Who Is Angela Connell? Where Ian Diaz’s Former Wife From “Simply Diabolical” Is Now – 2026 Update & Profile

Angela Connell, also known as Angela Diaz during her marriage to former deputy U.S. marshal Ian Diaz, is one of the central figures in the extraordinary case featured in NBC’s Dateline episode “Simply Diabolical.” She was first presented to police as the victim of a frightening cyberstalking campaign allegedly carried out by Michelle Hadley, Diaz’s former fiancée. Investigators later determined that Hadley had been framed.

Connell’s role in the case led to her arrest in January 2017. She later pleaded guilty to a series of felony and misdemeanor charges and received a five-year prison sentence. The case took another turn years later when federal prosecutors proved that Ian Diaz had also participated in the scheme against Hadley. A federal jury convicted him in 2023.

As of 2026, Connell has completed her sentence, left California and maintained a private life. She declined to participate in Netflix’s A Toxic Love Story, and the documentary’s filmmakers have said they know little about what she is doing today.

• “Simply Diabolical”: Dateline NBC Reports on How Michelle Hadley Was Framed in a Cyberstalking Plot August 21 2026
• Who Is Michelle Hadley? Where the “Simply Diabolical” Survivor Is Now – 2026 Update & Profile
• Who Is Ian Diaz? Where the Former U.S. Deputy Marshal From “Simply Diabolical” Is Now – 2026 Update & Profile

Angela Connell Became Involved With Ian Diaz

Connell entered the story after Ian Diaz’s relationship with Michelle Hadley ended. Hadley and Diaz had been engaged and shared ownership of a condominium in Anaheim, California.

Diaz later became involved with Connell, and the two married. She became known publicly as Angela Diaz during the events that followed.

At the time, Diaz was a deputy U.S. marshal. His federal law enforcement position would become an important part of the case because he and Connell approached local authorities as victims of Hadley.

The couple presented what appeared to be a recognizable motive. Hadley was Diaz’s former fiancée, their breakup had involved conflict, and Diaz had moved on and married another woman. Investigators initially interpreted the threatening messages that followed as evidence of revenge by Hadley.

Connell Claimed She Was Pregnant With Twins

One of the central claims surrounding Connell was that she was pregnant with twins.

That purported pregnancy increased the seriousness of the threats attributed to Hadley. Police were not dealing only with allegations that a former partner was harassing a newly married couple. They believed a pregnant woman and her unborn children could be in danger.

The pregnancy was not real.

According to the account presented in Netflix’s A Toxic Love Story, Diaz eventually discovered a doctored sonogram and pregnancy tests that appeared to have been altered with blue marker. The discovery became one of several reasons people around Diaz began questioning Connell’s credibility.

Connell Had Previously Claimed She Had Cancer

The pregnancy was not the first major part of Connell’s personal history to come under scrutiny.

Her former boyfriend, Jason Rayburn, told the Netflix documentary that Connell had claimed during their relationship that she had Stage 4 cervical cancer. Rayburn wanted to accompany her to chemotherapy appointments, but Connell resisted having him attend.

When he was eventually allowed to take her to a medical office, Rayburn learned that the office was treating her for a mole removal rather than cancer treatment, according to his account in the documentary.

Questions about the cancer story continued to accumulate. Rayburn discovered that Connell had used another person’s photograph taken during chemotherapy. Medical tubing was also discovered among her belongings.

Friends staged an intervention and asked Connell to provide evidence supporting the cancer diagnosis. According to the documentary, she could not produce a chemotherapy port and left the intervention.

Connell Also Claimed to Be a Department of Justice Attorney

Connell had made claims about her professional life that also proved false.

According to A Toxic Love Story, she represented herself as an attorney working for the U.S. Department of Justice. Rayburn discovered that this was not true.

The false cancer story, employment claim and later pregnancy fabrication became significant because investigators were being asked to determine whether Connell could be trusted when she accused Hadley of committing serious crimes.

Those questions were not apparent when the stalking allegations first reached police.

At that point, Connell appeared to be a pregnant newlywed reporting that her husband’s former fiancée wanted to harm her.

The “Lilithistruth” Messages Begin

Threatening electronic communications became a central part of the case.

Someone using the identity “Lilithistruth” sent messages containing violent language and material that appeared to threaten Connell. The name referred to Lilith, a figure from Jewish mythology and folklore.

The messages appeared to have connections to Hadley because she had sent angry emails to Diaz after their relationship deteriorated. Hadley acknowledged writing those earlier messages and using biblical language.

She denied writing the later violent communications.

The person creating the Lilithistruth messages appeared to have taken elements resembling Hadley’s writing style and incorporated them into communications containing threats and violent material.

That similarity helped create the appearance that Hadley was responsible.

Craigslist Advertisements Turn the Case Into a Physical Threat

The situation escalated when Craigslist advertisements appeared soliciting men for sexual encounters at the Anaheim condominium.

The advertisements described what was presented as a sexual assault fantasy. Men responding to the postings could be led to believe that resistance from the woman at the residence was part of the fantasy.

Connell and Diaz told authorities that Hadley had created the advertisements while posing as Connell.

The allegations transformed the case. This was no longer limited to threatening emails. Police believed someone was using the internet to send strangers to Connell’s home under circumstances that could lead to sexual violence.

Men did respond to the advertisements.

Connell Reports an Attack in Her Garage

In June 2016, Anaheim police responded to the condominium after Connell reported that a man had attempted to rape her in the garage.

Contemporary reporting stated that officers found her crying with her shirt ripped and red marks around her neck. She said a man had attacked her after responding to the Craigslist advertisement.

The apparent attack gave investigators physical evidence that seemed to support the cyberstalking allegations.

Prosecutors later concluded that the reported attack was fabricated. Authorities did establish that men had responded to the online solicitations, meaning the advertisements had created a genuine risk even though the story police had been told about who posted them was false.

At the time, however, police believed Connell.

Michelle Hadley Becomes the Main Suspect

Investigators focused on Hadley.

The theory appeared straightforward. Hadley had been engaged to Diaz. Their relationship had ended. Diaz had married Connell. Hadley had previously written angry emails, and new threatening communications appeared to contain similar language.

Police believed Hadley was posing as Connell online, creating sexual advertisements and sending men to the condominium.

Hadley denied the accusations.

Her denials did not prevent her arrest. She was ultimately held on $1 million bail and faced charges that included attempted rape. If convicted of the allegations against her, she faced the possibility of spending the rest of her life in prison.

Hadley Spends 88 Days in Jail

Hadley spent 88 days incarcerated because of the allegations.

Her case attracted media attention, and she was portrayed as a former fiancée driven by jealousy and revenge. The combination of threatening emails, Craigslist advertisements and Connell’s reports created what appeared to be a strong case.

Hadley continued to insist that she had not sent the violent messages or posted the advertisements.

The case began changing when investigators examined the electronic evidence in greater detail.

Instead of leading back to Hadley, parts of the digital trail pointed toward Connell.

Investigators Trace the Evidence Back to Connell

By September 2016, investigators had discovered evidence that undermined the case against Hadley.

Prosecutors said the Craigslist advertisement and harassing emails had been sent from the Anaheim condominium and from Connell’s father’s home. Investigators also determined that software had been used to make emails appear as though Hadley had sent them.

The discovery was devastating to the original prosecution.

Hadley had been jailed based on evidence that appeared to show she was stalking Connell. Investigators now had evidence that communications attributed to Hadley had come from places connected to Connell.

Hadley was released from jail in October 2016 as evidence supporting her innocence accumulated.

Police Begin Investigating Angela Connell

Anaheim police turned their attention toward Connell.

The investigation expanded beyond the stalking allegations and examined other claims she had made. Her false pregnancy, employment representations and other conduct became part of the growing case.

Connell was questioned about whether she had actually suffered from cancer. According to the Netflix documentary, she denied having cancer when questioned by a detective, despite what her former boyfriend said she had told him during their relationship.

The story that had placed Hadley in jail was collapsing.

The person police had regarded as the victim was becoming the suspect.

Angela Connell Is Arrested

Connell was arrested in Phoenix, Arizona, on January 6, 2017.

She was subsequently extradited to Orange County, California.

At the time, prosecutors accused the 31-year-old Connell of creating the Craigslist advertisement and making false allegations against Hadley. She initially pleaded not guilty.

The charges were extensive.

Connell faced 10 felony charges and 22 misdemeanor counts. The felony allegations included kidnapping, false imprisonment, perjury and forgery, while the misdemeanor counts included falsely reporting crimes to police.

Michelle Hadley Is Exonerated

Three days after Connell’s arrest, prosecutors formally exonerated Hadley.

On January 9, 2017, the criminal case against Hadley was dismissed.

Orange County District Attorney Tony Rackauckas described Hadley as the innocent victim of a “diabolical scheme.”

Hadley had already spent 88 days behind bars.

The reversal was striking. Connell had entered the investigation as a woman reporting that her husband’s former fiancée was trying to have her sexually assaulted.

She was now accused of helping create the evidence that made Hadley appear responsible.

Prosecutors Build a Large Criminal Case Against Connell

The criminal allegations against Connell extended beyond a single false email or police report.

Prosecutors accused her of fabricating electronic evidence and falsely reporting crimes. The charges included kidnapping, false imprisonment, perjury, forgery and numerous false reports to law enforcement.

Hadley’s arrest demonstrated the consequences of those fabrications. The false evidence had not remained online. It had caused police and prosecutors to pursue criminal charges against an innocent woman.

Connell faced the possibility of a life sentence had the case gone to trial and resulted in convictions on the most serious charges.

Instead, the case was resolved through guilty pleas.

Angela Connell Pleads Guilty

In October 2017, Connell pleaded guilty to the criminal case against her.

She admitted guilt to 10 felony counts and 22 misdemeanor counts. The offenses included kidnapping, false imprisonment and falsely reporting a crime to a peace officer.

Connell received a five-year state prison sentence.

The plea established her criminal responsibility for the conduct that had helped send Hadley to jail.

At the time, it appeared that Connell might provide the primary explanation for what had happened.

Years later, federal investigators established that the story was more complicated.

Ian Diaz Initially Distances Himself From Connell

Diaz presented himself as someone who had discovered that his wife had deceived him.

Prosecutors later said that in the fall of 2016, Diaz told law enforcement that he believed Connell was solely responsible for framing Hadley.

Their marriage ended.

Contemporary and later reporting describes Diaz and Connell as divorced, while Netflix reports that Diaz had the marriage annulled. Whatever the precise marital procedure, the relationship did not survive the criminal case.

For several years, Connell remained the person most publicly associated with constructing the false case against Hadley.

Then federal investigators turned their attention to Diaz.

Federal Investigators Discover Ian Diaz Was Also Involved

The Department of Justice Office of the Inspector General opened an investigation into Diaz in 2017.

Investigators examined whether he had abused his position as a deputy U.S. marshal and whether he had influenced Connell’s actions.

The federal investigation uncovered evidence connecting Diaz to the scheme.

According to Netflix’s account of the investigation, digital forensics traced an email from Diaz’s personal account that continued a conversation with a man who had responded to one of the Craigslist sexual advertisements. The message asked whether the man was heading to the condominium.

Investigators concluded that Diaz had not been an innocent husband deceived by Connell.

Prosecutors Say Angela and Ian Worked Together

The federal case against Diaz described Connell and Diaz as participants in the conspiracy.

Prosecutors said the pair posed online as Hadley and sent themselves threatening and harassing communications. The scheme was intended to make authorities believe Hadley was targeting them.

The finding changed the understanding of Connell’s role as well.

She remained responsible for the crimes to which she had pleaded guilty, but the later federal case established that she was not acting in a story where Diaz was only another victim of her deception.

A federal jury found Diaz guilty in March 2023 of conspiracy to commit cyberstalking, cyberstalking, perjury and obstruction.

Was Angela Connell Also Manipulated by Ian Diaz?

One question remains unresolved: what was the relationship between Connell and Diaz inside their marriage, and could Connell also have been subjected to manipulation?

Netflix’s A Toxic Love Story raises this question without providing a definitive answer.

Director Alexandra Lacey has said the filmmakers could not determine what happened between the couple inside their home. Neither Connell nor Diaz agreed to participate in the documentary, limiting the filmmakers’ ability to examine their relationship from their perspectives.

The legal record establishes responsibility for criminal acts. Connell pleaded guilty. Diaz was convicted by a federal jury.

It does not provide a complete answer about the power dynamics within their marriage.

Michelle Hadley Has Addressed the Question

Hadley has also considered whether Connell could have experienced manipulation from Diaz.

She has stopped short of making that conclusion because she did not know Connell personally and could not know what occurred within the marriage.

Hadley has said that she can hold two ideas at the same time. If Connell was subjected to abuse or manipulation, Hadley can have compassion for that possibility while still holding her accountable for the actions that resulted in Hadley spending 88 days in jail.

That distinction is important to the way the case is presented in 2026.

Connell’s criminal responsibility has been established. Questions about whether she was also manipulated remain unanswered.

Angela Connell Serves Her Prison Sentence

Connell served a state prison sentence following her guilty pleas.

Netflix reported in July 2026 that she served five years in prison before her release.

Her incarceration separated her from the later federal prosecution of Diaz. By the time Diaz went on trial in 2023, Connell’s own criminal case had been resolved for years.

Diaz was convicted on March 23, 2023.

His conviction confirmed through a federal jury verdict that Connell was not the only person responsible for the conspiracy against Hadley.

What Happened to Angela and Ian Diaz?

Connell and Diaz are no longer together.

Their marriage ended after the allegations against Connell were exposed. Netflix reports that Diaz had the marriage annulled.

Their lives then followed different paths through the criminal justice system.

Connell served her state prison sentence for her crimes. Diaz remained free for years while federal investigators continued examining his role.

He was indicted in 2021 and convicted in 2023.

Diaz is now serving a federal prison sentence of more than 10 years.

Where Is Angela Connell Now?

As of August 2026, Angela Connell is no longer in prison.

Netflix’s July 2026 update states that Connell completed her prison term and moved out of California after her release.

Beyond that, verified information about her present circumstances is limited.

She has not returned to a prominent public role, and there is little reliable public information concerning her occupation, relationships or day-to-day life.

That lack of information appears to be intentional to some degree. Connell had the opportunity to provide her account for the recent Netflix documentary but chose not to participate.

Angela Declined to Participate in “A Toxic Love Story”

The filmmakers behind A Toxic Love Story attempted to contact the major figures involved in the case.

Producer Emma Supple said the production contacted everyone central to the story to determine whether they wanted to participate.

Connell declined.

Supple said the filmmakers do not know much about what Connell is doing now.

As a result, Connell does not provide a new first-person account explaining why she participated in the scheme, how she views her actions today or how she describes her relationship with Diaz.

Her absence leaves several personal questions unanswered.

Connell Has Kept a Low Profile Since Leaving Prison

There is no reliable indication as of August 2026 that Connell has returned to public life.

The most recent authoritative update from Netflix states only that she served her sentence, left California and declined to participate in the documentary.

Her exact current location has not been publicly established in the recent reporting surrounding A Toxic Love Story. There is also no confirmed public information showing what work she does or whether she has remarried.

Those details should therefore be treated as private or unknown rather than inferred from social media accounts or people with similar names.

Angela’s Role Looks Different After Ian Diaz’s Conviction

The prosecution of Diaz changed the historical understanding of Connell’s case.

When Hadley was exonerated in January 2017, authorities had evidence that Connell had created false communications and reports. She appeared to be the principal architect of the scheme.

The later federal investigation established that Diaz was also involved.

Prosecutors said Diaz and Connell posed as Hadley and sent themselves harassing and threatening messages. A federal jury ultimately convicted Diaz of participating in the cyberstalking conspiracy.

Connell therefore cannot be understood only as a lone perpetrator who deceived her husband. Nor does Diaz’s conviction erase Connell’s responsibility for the crimes to which she pleaded guilty.

Both faced criminal consequences.

What Is Known About Angela Connell in 2026?

Connell’s current circumstances can be summarized with a few established facts.

She is no longer married to Ian Diaz. She completed the prison sentence imposed after her 2017 guilty pleas. She has left California. She declined to participate in A Toxic Love Story. Beyond those points, the filmmakers behind the documentary acknowledge that little is known publicly about her present life.

There is no reliable basis for claiming that she has returned to California, entered another marriage, taken a particular job or resumed a public career.

Her decision not to participate in the documentary also means the public has not heard her current account of the case.

Angela Connell Remains One of the Case’s Most Complicated Figures

Angela Connell occupies an unusual position in the story examined by Dateline: Simply Diabolical.

She entered the case as a reported victim. Police believed she was a pregnant woman whose husband’s former fiancée was threatening her and sending strangers to her home.

Investigators then discovered that the pregnancy was fabricated and that electronic evidence attributed to Hadley pointed back toward Connell.

Connell became the defendant, while Hadley became the exonerated victim.

The later prosecution of Ian Diaz added another layer. Federal investigators established that Diaz had participated in the scheme, undermining the idea that Connell had acted alone while deceiving him.

Where Angela Connell’s Story Stands Today

As of 2026, the legal consequences of Connell’s actions are settled. She pleaded guilty, received a five-year prison sentence and has completed that sentence. She has since left California.

What remains unresolved is her personal account.

Connell has not publicly explained through the recent documentary why she participated in framing Hadley, what role she believes Diaz played, whether she considers herself to have been manipulated or how she views her conduct years later.

Those unanswered questions make her one of the most enigmatic figures in the case.

Michelle Hadley has rebuilt her life and speaks about what happened to her. Ian Diaz remains incarcerated following his federal conviction. Angela Connell has chosen another path, leaving California and remaining outside the public discussion surrounding the case.

NBC’s Dateline: Simply Diabolical airs Friday, August 21, 2026, at 10/9c. The episode revisits the false accusations against Michelle Hadley, Angela Connell’s role in creating the case against her and the federal investigation that exposed Ian Diaz’s involvement years later.

More “Simply Diabolical”

• “Simply Diabolical”: Dateline NBC Reports on How Michelle Hadley Was Framed in a Cyberstalking Plot August 21 2026
• Who Is Michelle Hadley? Where the “Simply Diabolical” Survivor Is Now – 2026 Update & Profile
• Who Is Ian Diaz? Where the Former U.S. Deputy Marshal From “Simply Diabolical” Is Now – 2026 Update & Profile
• Who Is Angela Connell? Where Ian Diaz’s Former Wife From “Simply Diabolical” Is Now – 2026 Update & Profile