A father who had become embroiled in the world of online conspiracy theories committed an act of unimaginable horror on his young children after abducting them
“The best was yet to come,” for Matthew Coleman, 45 – or at least, that is what he told a friend just days before committing an act of unimaginable violence.
He told his pal that his wife, Abby, was doing well, as were his two youngsters, Kaleo, two, and Roxy, 10 months old, and on the outside it seemed like he was in good spirits and enjoying his family life – but privately, he had gone down a dangerous rabbithole filled with debunked conspiracy theories, and had started having delusions.
Even his wife, Abby, was none the wiser that something was amiss with her popular surf instructor husband. It was a Saturday evening, and the family had been packing, getting ready to go camping together, when Matthew abruptly grabbed the two children and left their home, leaving Abby behind.
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It wasn’t until the following morning, August 8 2021, when Abby reported her children missing to the police after Matthew failed to bring them back to their Santa Barbara home.
She was totally convinced that the children wouldn’t come to any harm from Matthew, telling the police as much, and explaining that they shared a happy marriage, rarely arguing.
But initial attempts to find the missing children failed, and the authorities reportedly used the Find My Phone app to discover Matthew’s whereabouts: only to discover he had driven his children over the border to Mexico.
Abby was mystified about why he would be in the town of Rosarito, but still believed that her children would be back with her soon.
“We are doing this together, babe,” Abby wrote in a text to Matthew on Monday morning. “Praying for clarity over you and your mind this morning. Everything you’ve believed and known to be true is happening right now. I’m partnering with you from SB. Let’s take back our city. The gateway of revival for the state of California and the nation and the world. You were created to change the course of world history. Take care of my little giant slayer and my voice of heaven’s dove. They sure are special.”
However, this was the day that would bring news that would see Abby’s life change forever.
Very early on August 10, Matthew is alleged to have taken his two small children from the hotel they were staying in to a nearby ranch, where he brutally murdered them with a spearfishing gun.
He stabbed his 10-month-old daughter 12 times and his toddler son 17 times, and hid their remains in a wooded area.
Coleman got rid of his weapon, then threw his own clothes, which were covered in blood, into a river, and disposed of his baby daughter’s in a bin by the side of the road later.
A local ranchhand walking his dog made the shocking discovery of the children’s remains after initially seeing blood on the ground, just a couple of hours after Coleman had committed the terrifying act. The local man instantly contacted local authorities, who confirmed that the remains were those of the missing children.
The father began his journey back to California and was arrested when he crossed the border back into the US.
The authorities discovered blood in his vehicle, and as soon as they began to interview Coleman, he confessed to what he had done to his young kids. They showed him photographs from the crime scene, and he marked his initials on the images in a move that the police found bizarre.
He explained in a signed affidavit that he had become preoccupied with the debunked online conspiracy QAnon.
Coleman believed his children had been infected with “serpent DNA” through their mother Abby, and that he had to kill them to ensure the safety of the world – telling investigators he knew “it was wrong, but it was the only course of action that would save the world”.
An FBI agent working on his case added that Coleman believed he had been “receiving signs and visions” about the children’s “serpent DNA” and that they “were going to grow into monsters”.
In court documents, wife Abby admitted that she too had been researching the conspiracy theories, but that her husband became much more “paranoid”, according to Vice.
Coleman has spent much of his time behind bars in protective custody, which stops him from interacting with other inmates.
The man has been declared unfit to stand trial so far, and has on more than one occasion tried to “mutilate” himself whilst in prison. He has also been reported to be practically “incomprehensible” at this stage.
