Paranormal investigator Dan Rivera dies in Pennsylvania
Authorities consider the death of Dan Rivera—the paranormal researcher who was traveling with the supposedly possessed Annabelle doll when he died—to be “natural," according to a police report.Police do not believe foul play was involved in the death of Dan Rivera, the paranormal researcher who passed away while traveling with the supposedly haunted doll Annabelle.
In a Pennsylvania State Police report released July 16, authorities listed the nature of the incident as "death natural."Furthermore, the department said "nothing unusual or suspicious was observed" at the hotel room where Rivera's body was found on July 13."The decedent was discovered in his hotel room by coworkers," the report stated. "This case is pending autopsy results."His
cause of death has yet to be shared.Ghost Hunters' Jason Hawes also does not believe emerging conspiracies that Rivera's death is somehow linked to Annabelle, whose spooky backstory serves as the inspiration behind the popular The Conjuring movies.“Recently the World lost a good man,” Hawes wrote in a July 16 Facebook post. “Dan Rivera was an Army veteran, a father of four, a husband, and someone who truly cared about people. What’s even harder to see right now are the posts blaming his death on things like the Annabelle doll."Calling the unfounded theories "disgusting," he also encouraged people to stop "attacking places like Ghostly Images of Gettysburg," where Rivera and the New England Society of Psychic Research (NESPR) hosted a viewing of Annabelle shortly before his passing."Dan was a family man, a respected paranormal investigator, and he left this world way too soon," Hawes added. "Let’s focus on remembering Dan for who he was."
Likewise, Ghostly Images of Gettysburg manager Christina Rowand is brushing off speculation that Rivera's death is related to the allegedly haunted Raggedy Ann toy, telling Inside Edition in a July 17 interview, "There is a logical reason for this. Dan has handled this doll for decades. Why now? Could it not just be natural causes?"
Rivera had been with the NESPR for more than 10 years when he died. According to the organization, he was a "constant presence" for cofounder Lorraine Warren—who first investigated Annabelle with her demonologist husband Ed Warren in the late '60s and early '70s—before her death in 2019."He worked closely with Lorraine Warren and remained by her side even as her health declined, always offering a steady hand and unwavering support," the firm noted in a July 15 statement. "His caring nature and sense of purpose made a deep impact on everyone who had the privilege of knowing him."The NESPR added that they have no immediate plans to cancel the remaining dates in their national tour of Annabelle, who the Warrens deemed to be "demonically possessed.""We believe with all our hearts that Dan would have wanted the work to continue," the group added in their statement. "We will carry his spirit with us in everything we do."
Keep reading for public figures sharing their supernatural experiences.A Pennsylvania coroner is revealing new details surrounding the sudden death of Dan Rivera, a noted paranormal investigator who was on tour with the Raggedy Ann doll known as Annabelle, made famous by “The Conjuring” horror film franchise, when he died.Francis Dutrow, coroner in Adams County, PA, told CNN on Thursday that the doll was not present in the hotel room where Rivera died earlier this week in Gettysburg. He was reportedly 54.Ever since the death was reported by the New England Society for Psychic Research (NESPR) via a press release posted to Facebook on Tuesday, horror and supernatural fans have theorized about a possible connection between the Annabelle doll, which Rivera was seen handling during the “Devils on the Run Tour” over the weekend, and his death.The case remains an“active investigation,” according to the coroner, with autopsy results expected in eight to ten weeks.Pennsylvania State Police public information officer Megan Frazer shared a report on Wednesday citing details that match Rivera’s case, and stated that “nothing unusual or suspicious was observed at the scene.”“Dan was not only a vital part of our team for over a decade, but also a deeply compassionate, loyal, and dedicated friend.”Rivera was affiliated with the Warren Occult Museum in Connecticut, which shared on its Facebook page that he “played a vital role in the museum’s operations, often responsible for transporting and safeguarding Annabelle during public appearances and private events.”
“He was respected for his careful approach and deep respect for the artefact’s (sic) alleged supernatural reputation. Rivera’s sudden passing has shocked both colleagues and paranormal enthusiasts worldwide.”NESPR’s statement also said Rivera was a US Army veteran, and that he “worked closely with” Lorraine Warren – the late famed paranormal investigator who determined that the real-life Annabelle doll was demonically possessed in 1968.Warren was portrayed by actor Vera Farmiga in the “Conjuring” films, an immensely successful horror franchise that has also seen sequels and standalone spinoffs, including 2014’s “Annabelle” and 2018’s “The Nun.”A new sequel starring Farmiga and Patrick Wilson, titled “The Conjuring: Last Rites,” is due in September.Since I was a kid, I’ve immersed myself in watching horror movies and shows and I’ve thoroughly enjoyed the thrill of being scared regardless of the nightmares that haunt me after the fact. However, I neverthought my life would turn into a horror movie. But one day at work when I was scrolling on my social media feed, an event titled, “An Evening with Annabelle” popped up.
The site was created by their son-in-law, Tony Spera, who carries on their work and is married to their daughter, Judy Spera. It was selling tickets for an event hosted by Tony. In “An Evening with Annabelle,” the event would consist of a dinner, showcasing items from the Warrens’ occult room, and a finale viewing of the real Annabelle doll. My stomach sank with excitement. This event was right up my alley and I didn’t think twice about shelling out for a ticket.
Introduction to the Annabelle Doll
The event took place on October 29, 2016 in Monroe, Connecticut in a large Italian restaurant called Roberto’s. The back side of the room was filled with antique occult objects, the Shadow Doll and the Conjuring Mirror. They are some of the most noteworthy items from the Warrens’ occult room. At the center of the back was a tall, lengthy object covered with a sheet on top. Everyone knew Annabelle was underneath. evening took a heavy turn when we started listening to real possession tapes. I can still hear the dark words from the tape as clear as day in my head. Tony hesitantly paused the tape and confessed he didn’t like to play the entirety because something evil may manifest itself if you listen for too long.The dark voice on the tape was even making jokes. Tony told the room that dark entities enjoy making jokes and possessions aren’t how you always see them depicted in the movies. My eyes widened in amazement.
When it was time to unveil Annabelle, Tony gave a few frightening words beforehand. He warned everyone not to mock her or say anything negative, and not to tease her. Everyone was silently nervous. Tony talked about a man attending one of the events that proceeded to mock Annabelle. When he left that night, he got into a serious accident on his motorcycle and was found dead. Now, I don’t know about you but when someone tells me not to do something, doing that very thing is all I can think about.
One by one, people got up from their seat and took a photo with Annabelle. As I waited in line, I kept thinking, “Ok just take a photo, don’t mock her, just go quickly, don’t mock her.” I kept repeating that same phrase in my head. Somehow my mind slipped into a dark pla
ce and I mocked her. In my mind, I thought about how hideous she looked inside her box. I screamed internally to put that thought away and I took my photo with her.
It Started as a Joke
As I settled in back home at my roommate’s house, I had just finished eating dinner and was taking my plate downstairs. I remember stepping on the ground but somehow it felt like I missed a step. I fell and badly twisted my ankle as my glass plate broke into pieces. My roommates thought it was comical as I had to limp up the stairs for the next couple weeks.
My next step in life was finding a place where my kitchen was on the same floor as my bedroom, hence my clumsiness. I looked through many apartments and found one I loved in Long Beach. Although a long commute from my job, I thought it was perfect. I moved in within two weeks of applying and was enjoying my own space. Not long after, I started noticing bugs and cockroaches in corners. I’d kill them and they’d be gone for a couple days.After a while, it got out of hand and I found them everywhere. It wasn’t just one or two. It seemed like I was killing ten roaches every time I turned around. I found them in my lotion, on my bed, in my shower, in my food, and in all my clothes. So I complained to management and their only solution was to offer me a can of bug spray.
Apparently, the roaches were coming from my next door neighbor. My neighbor was an elderly woman who always wore the same long blue dress and loved to stare for uncomfortable amounts of time. Every time I’d leave my apartment, she’d open her door and stare at me. One time I asked her, “Why are you staring at me?” All she did in response was cackle. The elderly woman didn’t take care of her cats, never took out her trash, and had stacks of garbage on top of stacks of garbage. Management evicted her and didn’t even bother cleaning out her apartment. Within the next few days, my unit had a full on infestation. I couldn’t even put a sock on without checking it first to see if it had roach eggs. I was convinced something was out to get me and my dream apartment turned into a dwelling from hell.
The Annabelle Doll Caused Me Physical Pain
One night, I woke up to the sharpest of pains in my stomach at 3 AM. I couldn’t stand up, bend, move, or get out of my bed. All I could do was scream in agony. I was convinced I was dying and called my mom in a panic. She drove to my apartment and took me to the ER in the middle of the foggy night. The nurse ran multiple tests, put in an IV, and stuck me in a private room as I screamed in pain. Doctors found nothing wrong with me and couldn’t give me any answers. As it approached dawn, they let me go home and for a moment, they had me doubting myself and my pain.
I went back to my gross apartment and filed a health complaint. There were weeks when I wouldn’t even stay in my own home out of fear of sleeping in a roach-infested bed. Eventually I broke my lease and found a place with my sister. It had everything we wanted and was bug free. Just like in horror movies, when something bad happens, the solution is to move. That’s always the answer. You move and everything is supposed to be good…until it’s not.During this same time, I had the flu for two weeks and developed a persistent cough not long after my sickness. I went to urgent care twice and the doctors couldn’t find anything wrong. They said it was allergies and put me on medication and an inhaler. I saw different specialists who put me on more medications and ran tests every couple weeks. My cough grew increasingly more severe and enough people at work noticed that they reported me to HR. It was mortifying to try to talk about an illness that I couldn’t even explain. Nine doctor’s visits and five specialists later, they couldn’t diagnose me.
This is Not a Coincidence, Annabelle Is Out to Get Me
I’m not the superstitious type but I was convinced this was more than just a string of bad luck. One restless night as I was starting to fall asleep, I heard a faint crinkling noise. It sounded like someone squishing a plastic bag. At the foot of my bed, I heard the crinkling sound over and over. I thought it was my dog but he was sleeping on the couch. Then I heard another crinkling noise and become increasingly paranoid, I couldn’t bring myself to look down at my feet; I clenched my blankets as it got quiet and the rustling started again. Then I sat up, turned on the light, and spent hours looking for the plastic bag. I never found it.
Soon afterwards, my dog became violently ill. With my excessive coughing, hearing noises in the night, and my poor dog’s sudden sickness, I was about ready to lose it. One night, he got off the bed and shat on the carpet. It was really late and I got up to clean up the mess and take him outside. As I laid back in bed, I noticed that my feet were covered in his feces. I screamed and jumped in the shower. I threw my sheets in the wash and put a towel on my bed to use as a blanket. Then I inspected my bed as I was confused how he managed to soil my bed without me noticing. Everything looked fine aft
er inspecting.
By this time, I was exhausted and I had work in the morning. As I laid back down, I noticed I still smelled his feces everywhere. I buried my face deeper into my pillow and screamed and I felt a wetness on my face. I lifted my head off the pillow, ran to the mirror, and saw my entire face covered in his crap. I called off work the next day.
Relief never seemed to last long even when I thought everything was settling. After my sister and I got home from watching a movie, I put my purse down on the counter and grabbed a drink from the fridge. As I turned around and reached inside my purse, a huge cockroach crawled up my arm and made a move toward my face. The tiny legs of the cockroach crawling up my exposed skin made me scrub my arm in the shower until it turned red.
Something Isn’t Right.
One night, I was wide awake and looking at the ceiling. From my back bedroom window, I saw our automatic lights go off on the outside walkway downstairs. It was really late and I was constantly observing everything out of paranoia. I thought it might be my neighbor who typically worked late.
Suddenly, we heard our apartment door being rattled and shaken. Fear pierced through my body as I jumped up without hesitation, grabbed my dog and sister and threw them in the small bathroom. Someone was trying to break into our home. We cornered ourselves in the bathroom and all stood in fear. I called the police who took over half an hour to arrive. It was the most excruciating 30 minutes since we didn’t know if the intruder had left. This was the last straw. We moved out after this encounter.
Whatever You Do, Don’t Mock the Annabelle Doll
As we left that apartment, I knew I needed to turn over a new leaf. I didn’t need to see anything supernatural or experience anything abnormal to know the horror I experienced wasn’t a coincidence. Between all the unseemly happenings, I experienced car problems regularly, had a hard time functioning, and couldn’t get ahead no matter how hard I tried. It always felt like something was enjoying watching me suffer. Whether it was Annabelle or not, every area of my life was invaded and my physical and mental health suffered.
I trashed the outfit I wore the night I met her, threw out all souvenirs from the event, tossed the purse I carried that day, and even got a new phone. Additionally, I deleted the photos from the event. Everything slowly started getting better and my life no longer felt like a twisted horror movie. I moved into a better apartment, my illness was suddenly gone, and the strange occurrences at night all stopped.
Real Story Of Annabelle Doll
In 1970, a mother purchased an antique Raggedy Ann Doll from a hobby store. The doll had been a birthday present for her daughter, Donna. Donna was a preparing to graduate from college with a nursing degree. She lived in a tiny apartment with her room mate, Angie. (a nurse as Pleased with the cute raggedy-Ann doll, Donna placed it on her bed as a decoration and didn’t give it a second thought. Within days both Donna and Angie noticed that there appeared to be something very strange and creepy about the doll. The doll mysteriously seemed to move about the house, relatively small movements at first, such as a change in position, but as time passed the movement became more noticeable. Donna and Angie would come home to find the doll in a completely different room. Sometimes the doll would be found with legs crossed, arms folded, other times it would be found upright, standing on its feet. Several times Donna sometimes left the doll on the couch before leaving for work, and would return to find the doll back in her room on the bed- with the door closed.
Annabelle the doll not only moved but could write as well. About a month into their experiences Donna and Angie began to find messages on parchment paper that read “Help Us” and “Help Lou”. The hand writing as if written by a small child. The creepy part about the messages was not the wording but the way they were written. At the time Donna had never kept parchment paper, on which the notes were written, in the house, so where did it come from?
One night Donna came home to find the doll had moved again, this time it was on her bed. Donna had come to find that this was typical of the doll but some how she knew this time it was different, something wasn’t right. A sense of fear came over her when she inspec
ted the doll and saw what looked like blood drops on the back of its hands and its chest. Seemingly, from no where, a liquidy red substance had appeared on the doll. Scared and desperate Donna and Angie decide it was time to seek expert advice.
Not knowing where to turn they contacted a medium and a seance was held. Donna was then introduced to the spirit of Annabelle Higgins. The medium related the story of Annabelle to both Donna and Angie. Annabelle was a young girl that resided on the property before the apartments were built, they were “happy times”. She was a young girl of only seven years old when her lifeless body was found in the field upon which the apartment complex now stands.
The spirit related to the medium that she felt comfort with Donna and Angie and wanted to stay with them and be loved. Feeling compassion for Annabell and her story Donna gave her permission to inhibit the doll and stay with them. They were to soon find out however, that Annabelle was not what she appeared to be. This was no ordinary case and definitely no ordinary doll.
Lou was friends with Donna and Angie and had been with them since the day the doll arrived. Lou had never been fond of the doll and on several occasions warned Donna that it was evil and to get rid it of it. Donna had a compassionate tie to the doll and not giving much credence to Lou’s’ feelings kept it. Donnas’ decision, it turns out, was a terrible mistake. Lou awoke one night from a deep sleep and in panic. Once again he had a reoccurring bad dream. Only this time somehow, something seemed different. It was as though he was awake but couldn’t move. He looked around the room but couldn’t discern anything out of the ordinary and then it happened. Looking down toward his feet he saw the doll,
Annabelle. It began to slowly glide up his leg, moved over his chest and then stopped. Within seconds the doll was strangling him. Paralyzed and gasping for breath Lou, at the point of asphyxiation, blacked out. Lou awoke the next morning, certain it wasn’t a dream, Lou was determined to rid himself of that doll and the spirit that possessed it. Lou, however, would have one more terrifying experience with Annabelle. Preparing for a road trip the next day Lou and Angie were reading over maps alone in her apartment. The apartment seemed eerily quiet. Suddenly, rustling sounds coming from Donnas room aroused fear that someone had possibly broken into the apartment. Lou determined to figure out who or what it was quietly made his way to the bedroom door. He waited for the noises to stop before entering and turning on the light. The room was empty except for Annabelle whom was tossed on the floor in the corner. Lou scoured the room for forced entry but nothing was out of place. But as he got close to the doll he got the distinct impression that somebody was behind him. Spinning around he was quick to realize that nobody else was there. Then in flash he found himself grabbing for his chest, doubled over, cut and bleeding. His shirt was stained with blood and upon opening his shirt there on his chest was what looked to be 7 distinct claw marks, three vertically and four horizontally, all were hot like burns. These scratches healed almost immediately, half gone the next day, fully gone by day two.
Donna finally was willing to believe the spirit in the house was not that of a young girl but inhuman and demonic in nature. After Lou’s’ experiences Donna felt it was time to seek real expert advice and contacted an Episcopal priest named Father Hegan. Father Hegan felt it was a spiritual matter and felt he needed to contact a higher authority in the church, so he contacted Father Cooke who immediately contacted the Warrens. Ed and Lorraine Warren immediately took interest in the case and contacted Donna concerning the doll. The Warrens, after speaking with Donna, Angie, and Lou came to the immediate conclusion that the doll itself was not in fact possessed but manipulated by an inhuman presence. Spirits do not Possess inanimate objects like houses or toys, they posses people. An inhuman spirit can attach itself to a place or object and this is what occurred in the Annabelle case. This spirit manipulated the doll and created the illusion of it being alive in order to get recognition. Truly, the spirit was not looking to stay attached to the doll, it was looking to posses a human host. The spirit or in this case an inhuman demonic spirit, was essentially in the infestation stage of the phenomenon. It first began moving the doll around the apartment by means of teleportation to arouse the occupants curiosity in hopes that they would give it recognition.
Then predictably the mistake of bringing a medium into the apartment to communicate with it. The inhuman spirit now able to communicate through the medium, preyed on the girls emotional vulnerabilities by pretending to be a rather harmless, lost young girl with which during the seance, was allowed permission from Donna to haunt the apartment. Insofar as demonic is a negative spirit, it then set about causing patently negative phenomena to occur; it aroused fear through the weird movements of that doll, it brought about the materialization of disturbing handwritten notes, the symbolic drops of blood on the doll, and ultimately it even attacked Lou leaving behind the symbolic mark of the beast. The next stage of the infestation phenomenon would have been complete human possession. Had these experiences lasted another 2 or 3 more weeks the spirit would have completely possessed, if not harmed or killed one or all of the occupants in the house. At the conclusion of the investigation the Warrens felt it appropriate to have a recitation of an exorcism blessing by Father Cooke to cleanse the apartment. “The Episcopal blessing of the home is a wordy, seven page document that is distinctly positive in nature. Rather than specifically expelling evil entities from the dwelling, the emphasis is instead directed toward filling the home with the power of the positive and of God.” (Ed Warren). At Donna’s request, and as a further precaution against the phenomena ever occurring in the home again, the Warrens took the big rag doll along with them when they left.
Father Cooke, although uncomfortable with his role as an exorcist, agreed to perform the seven page rite of exorcism a doctrine he receited throughout the apartment at which point the Warrens were confident the entity would no longer reside there. They agreed to take the rag doll back home with them. Upon leaving Ed placed the doll in the back seat and agreed he would not take the interstate in the event the inhuman spirit still resided with the doll.
His suspicions were all to correct in no time the Warrens felt themselves as a the object of a vicious hatred. Then at each dangerous curve the car swerved and stalled with every corner causing the power steering and brakes to fail. Repeatedly the car verged on collision. Ed reached into the back seat into his black bag and took out a vial of holy water and doused the doll making the sign of the cross over it. The disturbances stopped immediately and the Warren’s arrived safely home.
After the Warrens arrived home, Ed sat the doll in a chair next to his desk. The doll levitated a number of times in the beginning, then it seemed to fall inert. During the ensuing weeks, however, it began showing up in various rooms of the house. When the Warrens were away and had the doll locked up in the outer office building, they would often return to find it sitting comfortably upstairs in Ed’s easy chair when they opened the main front door. The doll also showed a hatred for clergymen who came to the house.
In one instance FatherJason Bradford a catholic exorcist came to the house. Upon seeing the doll seated in the chair he picked it up and said ” Your just a ragdoll Annabelle, you can’t hurt anyone”, and tossed the doll back in the chair at which point Ed exclaimed “That’s one thing you better not say.” Upon leaving an hour later Lorraine pleaded to the priest to please be careful driving and to call her when he arrived home. Lorraine discerned tragedy for this young priest but he had to go his way. A few hours later Father Jason called Lorraine and explained that his brakes had failed as he entered a busy intersection. He was a involved in a near fatal accident destroying his vehicle. This was just one of many such events that occurred over the next few years.
The Warrens had a special case built for Annabelle inside the Occult Museum, where she resides to this day. Since the case was built Annabelle no longer appeared to move but she is thought to be responsible for the death of a young man who came to the museum on motorcycle with his girlfriend. The young man after hearing Ed’s account of the doll, defiantly went up and began to bang on the case insisting that if the doll can put scratches on people then he wanted to also be scratched, Ed said to the young man “Son you need to leave” and put him out of the building
On the way home the young man and his girlfriend were laughing and making fun of the doll when he lost control of his motorcycle and went head on into a tree, the young man was killed instantly but his girlfriend survived and was hospitalized for over a year. When asked what happened the young woman explained that they were laughing about the doll when they lost control of the motorcycle. Ed warns you do not challenge evil, that no man is more powerful than Satan.
Posted on 2025/07/19 02:36 PM