With Lover Stalker Killer streaming on Netflix now, here’s everything you need to know about the true crime case and where Shanna “Liz” Golyar is now.
Looking for a deep-dive into the potential horrors of online dating? Cue Lover Stalker Killer, Netflix’s true crime documentary about a love triangle turned deadly.
Dave Kroupa is at the center of the case, a divorcee looking to get back into the dating pool. But after getting to know Cari Farver and Liz Golyar, his life became a living nightmare, one that put Dave and everyone he cared about at risk.
Lover Stalker Killer is well worth a watch, and while you do, here’s what you need to know about where Liz Golyar is now. Warning: the documentary is based on real-life events, but spoiler alert to those who are unfamiliar with the case.
Lover Stalker Killer: Where is Liz Golyar now?
Liz Garler is currently serving a sentence of life in prison without the possibility of parole at the Nebraska Correctional Center for Women, having been found guilty of murdering Cari Farver in 2017. Despite maintaining her innocence, Garler’s 2018 appeal against the conviction was rejected.
Golyar’s involvement in the case was the biggest twist in Lover Stalker Killer, as initially it seemed like she was a victim. It started when Dave began dating Cari, having told Liz that he wasn’t looking for anything serious as he’d only recently broken up with his wife, Amy Flora, who he has two kids with.
After inviting Cari back to his apartment, Liz showed up to say she wanted to retrieve something from his house. This is the first time Liz and Cari came face-to-face, with Dave explaining that their eyes met for no longer than “a few seconds.”
Following this, Cari messaged Dave to ask if they could move in together. When he declined, she started sending streams of abusive texts that got progressively more threatening. At the same time, we hear from Cari’s mom, Nancy Raney, who explains that she couldn’t get hold of her daughter. “It was just so puzzling when I couldn’t get through to her,” she says.
Nancy filed a missing police report, and detectives immediately came to see Dave. However, when he explained what had been happening and showed them the abusive messages, they chalked it up to being a “bad breakup” and reassured them that she should calm down soon. Meanwhile, Nancy started receiving messages from Cari’s Facebook account, saying she was not missing and just needed some time away.
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Lover Stalker Killer: How did Liz Golyar end up in jail?
Liz Golyar was eventually caught when tech expert Tony Kava discovered that Liz had been sending text messages as Cari, and found Liz’s fingerprints in Cari’s car.
The case took a shocking turn when Liz turned up at Dave’s house with a huge scratch on her car, suggesting that Cari had keyed it. As the harassment escalated, Liz’s house was burned down — while her kids were saved, the fire killed all of her pet animals. As for Dave, Amy, and their kids, even when they moved away, the stalking continued.
Pottawattamie County Sheriff’s Office investigators Ryan Avis and Jim Doty took over the case. When they discovered that Cari hadn’t taken her bipolar medication with her, they initially believed that this could have something to do with her behavior.
However, the heroic soylent-drinking tech whiz, Tony Kava, was brought in to do some digging, and what he uncovered was shocking — many of the messages sent from “Cari” were actually being sent from Liz.
Upon further investigation, they discovered Liz’s fingerprint in Cari’s abandoned car, blood stains in the backseat of the vehicle, and an SD card that had been wiped. Tony managed to recover the images of the card — after trawling through dozens of Liz’s selfies, he came across a picture of a bloody foot which had the same tattoo as Cari.
While collecting evidence, police also set up a ruse after Liz shot herself in the leg. She did so to try and frame Amy, but officers were already suspicious of Liz at this point. They pretended they were on her side, telling her that they needed more proof that it was Amy who pulled the trigger. Soon enough, Liz started sending incriminating emails to herself pretending to be Amy — and this gave authorities more evidence of her tricks.
In 2016, Liz was arrested and charged with first-degree murder. Although she maintained her innocence, Goylar was found guilty in August 2017. She was sentenced to life imprisonment without the possibility of parole for the murder conviction and a consecutive sentence of 18 to 20 years for second-degree arson. Despite appealing the life sentence in 2018, the Nebraska Supreme Court upheld the conviction.
Lover Stalker Killer is streaming on Netflix now. If you’re looking for something fresh to watch, check out the new true crime and documentaries coming to streaming soon. You can also find out what movies you should be streaming in March, as well as what TV shows to add to your watch list.