Among the great successes of Netflix and its most-watched titles, all kinds of productions can sneak in. From hit series like Los Bridgerton to documentary series with the wildest plots and the most unsuspected endings. One of them is The Worst Roommate Ever, a compilation of some truly surprising experiences of several people sharing an apartment. Experiences that sometimes end in the worst way possible.
The documentary series was a huge success when it premiered on the platform and has just returned with its second season and a new batch of very disturbing episodes. The standout is the first one, titled My Best Friend Tried to Kill Me, which, as the name suggests, tells the story of how Rachel and Janie started as great friends until the obsessions of one of them end up awakening her murderous instincts.
It all starts when Rachel moves in with a woman named Janie Ridd. They soon become close friends and end up raising Rachel's young son together. After sharing a home for several years, Rachel falls seriously ill with no apparent explanation and her roommate develops an obsession with raising her friend's son while she is sick.
How Janie Ridd and Rachel Met
Rachel and Janie met in 1995, when the former was 22 and the latter 26. In the episode of the docuseries, Rachel herself describes Janie as kind and somewhat shy and introverted. It is also explained that Rachel had just gone through a divorce when their paths crossed and she was living with her parents at that time.
On the other hand, Janie lives in an apartment and, after an attempted break-in, she begins to feel afraid. This leads to both of them ending up living together.
Janie and Rachel in 'The Worst Roommate Ever'
At the beginning of the episode, Rachel says she felt "very safe" living with Janie, but she also remembers that, as she started making new friends and dating someone, Janie started to behave in a very controlling and jealous way.
Rachel worked as a paramedic, but in 2010 she suffered a herniated disc while pregnant. "Janie had all the control over me because I had no job, was pregnant, had a back injury, and was in so much physical pain that I needed her," Rachel recounted in The Worst Roommate Ever.
That same year her son Ryder was born and as a single mother, Rachel decided to appoint Janie as Ryder's guardian in the will. Unfortunately, Rachel continued to have serious health problems and in 2015 she had to undergo surgery again. Janie took care of her son during her recovery and focused mainly on that, even letting people at school believe she was his real mother.
The fights began soon after to see who would stay with Ryder, and on June 20, 2018, Rachel received a letter from Janie demanding custody of the child. Although in the end, Rachel ended up keeping custody thanks to Social Services.
An Alleged Poisoning
'The Worst Roommate Ever'
Rachel moved back in with Janie after the custody incident and helped her after her operation, which degenerated into a mysterious infection caused by a type of bacteria resistant to several antibiotics.
After recovering, Rachel woke up in the hospital and was told her blood sugar had dropped drastically. Something that seemed impossible because she didn’t have diabetes. Or at least that was before she remembered that, while watching a true crime show with Janie, she said that the best way to kill someone without raising suspicion was by injecting them with insulin.
Rachel survived that and her sister noticed that Janie "seemed almost angry that she had survived." Two days later, Rachel woke up in the hospital again with the same blood sugar problem. Something that would repeat over and over until it made her seriously ill.
In December 2019, Janie Ridd was arrested and charged with several serious crimes, including attempting to acquire a biological weapon. She was found guilty of attempting to assault a vulnerable adult and attempting to possess a biological weapon on August 25, 2020, and was sentenced to prison.
Where is Janie Ridd Now
Rachel in a scene from the documentary.
Currently, Janie Ridd is no longer in prison. She was granted parole in January 2022 after 25 months in jail and according to a chilling phone call played at the end of the episode, she will find a way to get Ryder back.
"I know what's going to happen. I'm going to end up getting out of here. And I'm going to find a way to keep him away from her. He needs to come back with me," she declared from Salt Lake County Jail.
'The Worst Roommate Ever' is available on Netflix.
*This article has been automatically translated using artificial intelligence
