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The Independent UK
The Independent UK
Lifestyle
Inga Parkel

Where is Janie Ridd? The Worst Roommate Ever poisoning story rocks Netflix viewers

Courtesy of Netflix

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Louise Thomas

Louise Thomas

Editor

The Worst Roommate Ever has returned with its second season, and viewers have been left speechless.

Directed by Cynthia Childs, the popular Netflix docuseries, which debuted its first season in 2022, tells the harrowing true stories of people who’ve moved in with roommates with malevolent and, in some cases, violent intentions.

Released on Wednesday (June 26), the four-episode season two is being branded “insane” by viewers. One person has even declared it “crazier” than season one. “I didn’t think it could get any crazier,” they tweeted.

*Warning, potential spoilers to follow*

Episode one of the new season focuses on a woman named Rachel, who moved in with a woman named Janie Ridd in 1995. The two quickly became friends, and Ridd even co-parented Rachel’s young son, Ryder. After Rachel fell ill, Ridd became her caretaker, leading Rachel to name Ridd as the beneficiary of her life insurance policy worth $500,000. In her will, she also designated Ridd parental custody over Ryder in the event of her death.

However, their relationship soon began to deteriorate, and Rachel told Ridd that she would try and move out and remove Ridd from her will. It was shortly after that that Ridd began poisoning Rachel with a strain of antibiotic-resistant bacteria that she had purchased from the dark web.

“I really have a hard time believing that the person I’ve known for 25 years, my best friend and roommate, could do what she did,” Rachel says in the show. “But it was diabolical, it was evil. It was plotted and planned so perfectly.”

(L-R) Janie and Rachel – ‘The Worst Roommate Ever’ season 2 episode 1
(L-R) Janie and Rachel – ‘The Worst Roommate Ever’ season 2 episode 1 (Courtesy of Netflix)

In August 2020, Ridd was convicted of two felonies: attempted intentional abuse of a disabled or elderly adult and attempted possession or use of a weapon of mass destruction, according to Desert News. Ridd was sentenced to one to 20 years in prison. She was released after serving 25 months.

“Finished watching 1st ep of Worst Roommate Ever s2 and it’s making my blood boil already,” someone wrote on X/Twitter.

“How did Janie only get 25 months in prison when she clearly tried to murder her friend 5 times?” a second questioned in disbelief. “She should of been done for attempted murder and kept her arse in prison! she isn’t safe to be out! hope Rachel and Ryder are safe.”

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Worst Roommate Ever on Netflix had me stressed last night. Those stories were terrible,” a third added. “Buying weapons of mass destruction on the dark web and injecting it to kill someone and take their child is all really psychotic behavior!”

“Worst roommate ever is some of the craziest s*** I’ve ever watched,” another said.

The second episode of the season follows a man named Darrell, who’s going through a divorce. In need of a place to stay, he moves in with a retired woman, Anita. Eventually, Anita also takes in a strange man, Scott Pettigrew. Although, the arrangement quickly takes a terrifying turn for both Anita and Darrell.

Episode three centres on Bo who moves in with his close friend’s widow, Tammy Fritz, to help take care of her son. But soon after, Bo begins to experience a series of deadly “accidents.”

The final episode tells the story of a group of teens who find a suitcase full of dismembered body parts. The remains lead investigators to an elderly landlord Michael Dudley, who ends up having a dark and evil side.

Season two of The Worst Roommate Ever is streaming now on Netflix.

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