Bob Aellis has beautiful memories of growing up in New York doing things like going to the zoo with his dad. But when his father died and his older brother, William, returned home, Bob’s life became a hellscape, he says, as years of sexual abuse by William began. Later, Bob would find out that William had abused many children in the neighborhood and five decades later, he would realize that other children were at risk where William now lived in Florida. This began a daring effort to reverse-catfish William and set a trap. The effort, by Bob and other family members, put them at risk but it paid off when the FBI picked up their work and William was convicted of possession of child pornography in 2018, six decades after Bob and other family members say William’s reign of terror began.

In this episode, Bob tells the story of the “Monster in the Closet” and his work now to advocate for those who are suffering from childhood sexual abuse.

Fill out our Listener Survey at:

https://bit.ly/slhwinter25survey

Contact me at [email protected]

Check out the Silver Linings Handbook website at:

https://silverliningshandbook.com/

Check out our Patreon to support the show at:

https://www.patreon.com/thesilverliningshandbook

Join our Facebook Group at:

https://www.facebook.com/groups/1361159947820623

Visit the Silver Linings Handbook store to support the podcast at:

https://www.bonfire.com/store/the-silver-linings-handbook-podcast-store/

The Silver Linings Handbook podcast is a part of the ART19 network. ART19 is a subsidiary of Wondery and Amazon Music.

See the Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and the California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.

Episode art by Hannah Hill. To check out and support Hannah's art, check out her Instagram at @serious_moonlite or her website at https://linktr.ee/HannahHillArt.

See Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.