EXCLUSIVE: New twist in 'The Watcher' mystery - no copies of threatening letters, no summons served, and former residents insist there was NO stalker, but family demand three times $1.35 purchase price

  • Derek and Miria Broaddus lodged legal papers claiming they had been sent threatening letters to the $1.35m New Jersey house they bought 
  • In legal papers they claimed 'The Watcher' said he wanted 'young blood' and that house had been stalked since 1920s 
  • They demanded the house price back - and 'treble damages' - because they cannot move in or sell it
  • Former residents tell Daily Mail Online they lived in house happily in 1960s when Broaddus suit claims The Watcher struck
  • Broaddus family have not served legal papers on couple they are suing, meaning case is stalled 
  • And they are using a crisis PR firm that worked in aftermath of Gulf of Mexico oil spill to act as their spokesman

When the Westfield Leader recorded last August that John and Andrea Woods had sold their house to Derek and Maria Broaddus, the only raised eyebrows in the comfortable New Jersey town may have been over the price; at $1.35million, it was in the top three most expensive transactions of the month.

But a year later, the six-bed, 3.5-bath family house with wraparound porches lies empty, stripped of furniture, a children's playhouse abandoned in the backyard.

The New Jersey home is at the center of a bizarre legal case which has made it famous worldwide.

On one side is the Broaddus family, who claim they were deceived by the sellers over a troubling secret: That their new home has a menacing stalker who calls himself 'The Watcher'.

Since the Broadduses signed the property deed in June 2014, they say 'The Watcher' has sent them three threatening letters, laying claim to the house and suggesting 'nefarious intentions' towards those who live there.

With three children under 12, the couple have said they are too terrified to move into the home, particularly because one letter, made sinister demands for 'young blood'.

And on the other side of the bizarre case are the Woods, a couple in their early sixties with two grown-up sons.

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Sinister: The house in Westfield, New Jersey, which its current owners claim they can neither live in nor sell because of the letters they have received from 'The Watcher'

Sinister: The house in Westfield, New Jersey, which its current owners claim they can neither live in nor sell because of the letters they have received from 'The Watcher'

Threatened: Derek and Maria Broaddus and their three young children. Mr Broaddus, an insurance executive in New York, and Mrs Broaddus, a Westfield native and stay-at-home mom, claim to have received three letters, one of which spoke about 'young blood'

Threatened: Derek and Maria Broaddus and their three young children. Mr Broaddus, an insurance executive in New York, and Mrs Broaddus, a Westfield native and stay-at-home mom, claim to have received three letters, one of which spoke about 'young blood'

High flier: Wall St insurance executive Derek Broaddus in professional mode. He is being represented by a New Jersey attorney who specializes in DUIs and a crisis PR firm's managing director who is refusing to allow him to be interviewed but who has previously said the best thing to do is 'answer the first question'.
John Woods and his wife Andrea are being sued over The Watcher claims on the grounds that they did not disclose the alleged existence of the stalker

High flier: Wall St insurance executive Derek Broaddus (left)  in professional mode. He and his wife Maria are suing John Woods (right) a distinguished scientists, and his wife Andrea over The Watcher

Their downsizing to an idyllic waterfront property in Cape Cod has been upended as they face being sued for the $1.35million purchase price of the New Jersey home along with the hundreds of thousands of dollars that the Broadduses claim to have spent in renovations.

The Broadduses were also suing for legal costs and punitive damages for 'severe and incalculable emotional distress'.

But a Daily Mail Online investigation today uncovers the background to the case – and raises key questions over a legal battle.

Seton Hall Law Professor, Charles Sullivan, said it was going to be a 'hard road both legally and factually for the plaintiffs as the only proof they appeared to have come in a statement from "The Watcher" himself'.

Derek and Maria Broaddus filed their civil case on June 2 in the Superior Court of New Jersey, Union County against the Woods and two companies involved in the sale of the home; Chicago Title Insurance Company and A Absolute Escrow Company.

Also named on the complaint was The Watcher as 'John Does #1 through #10'.

The lawsuit alleged the Woods family were 'so desperate to sell' that they kept quiet about The Watcher and his 'mentally disturbed fixation' on the turn-of-the-century home.

The Broadduses claimed the Woods received a threatening letter from The Watcher 'on or about the week of May 26' and failed to disclose it before the house sale was finalized.

Court documents: The legal papers which began the mystery of The Watcher

Court documents: The legal papers which began the mystery of The Watcher

Letters: The only evidence of the letters is in the lawsuit. It does not reproduce them and police say they are unaware of one of the letters which is claimed to exist

Letters: The only evidence of the letters is in the lawsuit. It does not reproduce them and police say they are unaware of one of the letters which is claimed to exist

Demand: The section of the suit where the Broaddus family demand 'treble damages'.

Demand: The section of the suit where the Broaddus family demand 'treble damages'.

However, the lawsuit doesn't explain how the Broadduses found out that a letter had been sent to the Woods.

The Broadduses claimed they would never have bought the house if the sellers had warned them of The Watcher.

Three days after getting keys to their new home, the Broadduses said The Watcher sent them a letter, demanding 'young blood' and threatening to watch the house as 'my grandfather watched the house in the 1920s and my father watched in the 1960s'.

Two additional letters were sent to the Broadduses in the next six weeks. The letter writer claimed the Woods sold the Westfield house because 'it was their time to move on and kindly sold it when I asked them to,' according to the lawsuit.

All of the windows and doors in [redacted] Boulevard allow me to watch you and track you as you move through the house. Who am I? I am the Watcher and have been in control of [redacted] Boulevard for the better part of two decades now.

The letter, signed by The Watcher, claimed that he had been put in charge of the home and was 'waiting for its second coming', the suit stated.

The threats also seemed to focus on the Broaddus children. The Broadduses have refused to move into their home due to the 'potential harm' which could befall them and their children.

And the couple also claim they were now unable to sell the home because of The Watcher's letters.

The Broadduses were now obligated to reveal The Watcher's threats to those who live at the house and this has put off potential buyers, according to the suit.

No copies of the letters, which have sparked international interest, have been made public. The only details were those included in the Broadduses' lawsuit. That lawsuit demanded 'treble damages' - a potentially handsome compensation.  

It's unclear where the letters were sent from and where they were received.

The United States Postal Service told Daily Mail Online they had received a copy of one of the letters from a third party and contacted the police department to offer assistance.

USPS could offer no further information on the letters but confirmed they have assisted the Westfield Police Department with an investigation.

Westfield police chief David Wayman told Daily Mail Online there will no longer be any comments from his department relating to The Watcher case but earlier revealed to Nj.com that police had a 'few' leads.

Chief Wayman added that he was unaware of the Woods receiving a letter from The Watcher as the Broadduses have claimed.

Local realtors also confirmed last week to Daily Mail Online that the sale of the home on Boulevard had been withdrawn from the market.

A realtor from Coldwell Banker, whose name was provided by a fellow agent as the individual handling the sale, hung up when contacted.

For 41-year-old Mr Broaddus and his college sweetheart wife Maria, 40, the purchase of the million-dollar home in June 2014, must have appeared the reward for their years of hard work.

After graduating in 1992 from Cheverus Jesuit High School in Portland, Maine, Mr Broaddus spent four years at the Catholic University of Fairfield in Connecticut, graduating  with a Bachelor of Science degree in marketing in 1996.

While at Fairfield he met fellow student, Maria Joy Santamauro, a native of Westfield, New Jersey, who had graduated from her local high school and was studying for a degree in mathematics.

After college, the couple moved to an apartment in New York where Mr Broaddus embarked on his career, climbing the ranks at General Star Management, a Berkshire Hathaway company, to becomerose to become vice president.

Treasured memories: For 40 years the house was the family home of the Bakes - a period which covers the years the Broaddus family claim includes activity by The Watcher. Two members of the Bakes family tell Daily Mail Online that there was no such activity 

Treasured memories: For 40 years the house was the family home of the Bakes - a period which covers the years the Broaddus family claim includes activity by The Watcher. Two members of the Bakes family tell Daily Mail Online that there was no such activity 

Inside: This was the cherished family home remember by Margaret Bakes which her parents bought in 1950 and owned for 40 years until they sold it to the Woods family - who sold it to the Broaddus family

Inside: This was the cherished family home remember by Margaret Bakes which her parents bought in 1950 and owned for 40 years until they sold it to the Woods family - who sold it to the Broaddus family

Around 2002, the couple moved to a $300,000, three-bed colonial style starter-home in Scotch Plains, New Jersey.

Six years later and with a growing family, the couple upgraded and fulfilled Mrs Broaddus' wish of returning to her home town of Westfield.

They paid around $770,000 and moved into a three-bed, 3.5-bath property with screened porch, deck and large garden.

Mr Broaddus is now a senior vice president for Allied World Assurance Company, where he has been for the last decade.

He is no stranger to routine legal action while handling accounts totalling more than $75 million from his office on the 25th floor of a skyscraper in Manhattan's financial district, just steps from Wall Street.

Along with his professional success, Mr Broaddus' philanthropy reveals him to be a devout Catholic. He joined his former high school's board of trustees in 2012 and raised $13,000 for children's cancer charity, St Baldrick's, which primarily fundraises through head-shaving events. In 2011, the Broadduses were listed as donors of Camp Sunshine, a retreat for children with life-threatening illnesses.

New Englander Mr Broaddus is avid online follower of ice hockey team, the Boston Bruins, the New England Pats and the Red Sox, according to social media, and a fan of TV shows The Walking Dead, The Daily Show and The Newsroom.

Former resident: Tim Woods lived in the house with his parents, John and Andrea, who are now being sued for $1.35 million plus 'treble damages' for allegedly not telling the Broaddus family about The Watcher

Former resident: Tim Woods lived in the house with his parents, John and Andrea, who are now being sued for $1.35 million plus 'treble damages' for allegedly not telling the Broaddus family about The Watcher

happy family home: The garden at the Boulevard home when it was in the Bake family. They tell Daily Mail Online they have no knowledge of the watcher - despite the claims of the Broaddus family.

happy family home: The garden at the Boulevard home when it was in the Bake family. They tell Daily Mail Online they have no knowledge of the watcher - despite the claims of the Broaddus family.

He also appears to keep up with goings-on in his hometown, following Facebook groups for renting in Portland along with Friends of Portland and a Portland historical society.

Like her husband, Mrs Broaddus earned her degree, in Math, from the University of Fairfield in the mid-nineties. She spent a brief stint working in human resources and consulting for Hewitt Associates.

However unlike Mr Broaddus, she decided the corporate world was not for her and her passion lay in teaching. She pursued her Masters at Sacred Heart University, also in Connecticut.

The 40-year-old, mother-of-three has been a lifelong volunteer. While a student at Fairfield, she received a humanitarian award for charity work, crediting her parents for driving her to give back to the community.

She also volunteered at a summer camp for children with cancer, and after graduation, went to Arizona to spend time at a counselling agency for abused children.

 Will the young bloods play in the basement? Who has the bedrooms facing the street? I'll know as soon as you move in. It will help me to know who is in which bedroom to plan better

Several years later in 2004, the now Mrs Broaddus was back in her home town teaching the fourth grade at Franklin Elementary School.

The then pregnant 29-year-old told the local paper in a short 'Educator of the Week' interview that she thought the Westfield school system provided a 'solid education' and that she was on a mission to make math exciting for her young students.

She added that she took the job at Franklin Elementary because she had always wanted to move back to her local area.

At the time she was pregnant with the couple's son, who is now 11. The couple went on to have daughters, who are now ten and seven.

In recent years, Mrs Broaddus seems to have swapped the demands of teaching for the busy job of being a stay-at-home mom to three young children.

Sadly, their lawsuit suggests that the young family's peaceful, suburban life has been uprooted by the disturbing presence of a presumed stalker while they live in a temporary home.

But since filing their lawsuit, the Broadduses have used a crisis management public relations firm to respond to calls directed towards them and their lawyer.

Abernathay MacGregor is more used to the world of financial and insurance public relations, but its managing director, Rhonda Barnat, is answering questions for the Broaddus family.

Retirement interrupted: East Falmouth, Massachusetts, where the Woods had moved after selling their Westfield Home.

Retirement interrupted: East Falmouth, Massachusetts, where the Woods had moved after selling their Westfield Home.

PR guru: Rhonda Barnat is described as having an international reputation for dealing with crisis in the insurance industries, but now finds herself shielding the Broaddus family from answering questions on their legal suit - which would stand to net them punitive damages if they won it

PR guru: Rhonda Barnat is described as having an international reputation for dealing with crisis in the insurance industries, but now finds herself shielding the Broaddus family from answering questions on their legal suit - which would stand to net them punitive damages if they won it

Dealing with allegations of a deranged stalker in suburban New Jersey is an unusual addition to her CV: the firm describes her as 'one of the country's leading crisis management advisers' and she has previously been involved in the aftermath of the BP oil spill in the Gulf of Mexico.  

Through her, the Broadduses have refused repeated requests for interview over the sensational claims of their suit.

Whether answering no questions at all is in line with what Barnat says is her usual advice to her clients is unclear: she wrote in Business Insider in 2010: 'Tell them, as simply and clearly and quickly as you can. Things go better when you answer the first question first.'

Their attorney, Lee M. Levitt, has also refused to respond to repeated calls to his office in Parsippany, New Jersey or to requests for comment sent to the Gmail address he provides.

Mr Levitt, who graduated from Yeshiva University's Benjamin N. Cardozo School of Law, was admitted to the New York and New Jersey bars in 1997. According to his website, he has more than 12 years of experience as a general practice lawyer. He records his specialty as dealing in DUIs.

Those on the receiving end of the million-dollar lawsuit are distinguished scientists, John Whitcomb Woods, 62, and his 61-year-old wife Andrea.

Mr Woods is a cell biologist with a number of awards including a National Research service award from the National Institute of Health; an Argall L. and Anna G. Hull Cancer Research Award and a Leukaemia Society of America special fellowship.

He earned a Ph.D in biology from the University of Maryland in 1981, continued with his post-doctoral work at Yale University School of Medicine and while at the Ivy League college , he became a special fellow with the Leukemia Society of America.

They moved to the Boulevard home in the early 1990s when Mr Woods became a research fellow at Merck, based in Rahway, six miles away, and lived there with their sons, Tim, now 24, and Michael, 28, selling last year.

His wife Andrea also worked at Merck, a global pharmaceutical company which makes vaccines among other products.

Much like their legal adversaries, the Woods also appear to have been valued members of the Westfield community.

The Woods were members of the Presbyterian Church of Westfield where Mr Woods served as a deacon. He is a former scoutmaster and has been a summer camp director on three occasions.

Following the sale of their Westfield home the Woods have decamped to the idyllic seaside community of East Falmouth, Massachusetts.

'Leads': David Wayman, Westfield's police chief, who claims his department have leads in the case. The United States Postal 

'Leads': David Wayman, Westfield's police chief, who claims his department have leads in the case. The United States Postal 

Attorney: Lee Levitt, a New Jersey attorney, declined requests for comment and did not return a request sent to the gmail address he provides for potential clients

Attorney: Lee Levitt, a New Jersey attorney, declined requests for comment and did not return a request sent to the gmail address he provides for potential clients

They purchased a three-bed, three-bath ranch-style home in 2012 for close to $600,000, nestled in a heavily forested, gated community within walking distance of the members-only Cape Cod country club.

Mr Woods refused to comment to Daily Mail Online on the lawsuit citing advice from his lawyer, when reached at his property.

He gave a wry smile and offered no comment when asked if he had received letters from The Watcher.

Details of the Woods' attorney were not known at present. Chicago Title Insurance Company and A Absolute Escrow failed to respond to requests for comment.

The Woods have not responded the civil lawsuit as of today - in fact they have no need to do so: no summons has been issued against them, court officials said, which means the case is simply stalled.

According to New Jersey courts, defendants must file an answer to the suit within 35 days of receiving a summons, including any defense and dispute with the facts.

As lines are drawn on both sides of the real estate legal battle, past residents of the house on the Boulevard revealed to Daily Mail Online they were baffled by tales of The Watcher and recalled their happy childhood.

Matthew L. Bakes, 57, whose parents owned the house for 40 years, said he had never heard of the alleged creepy tormentor while growing up, adding that his family had never received any threatening letters.

Mr Bakes' late mother Floy Bakes and father Seth Bakes, a WWII Air Force captain, bought the home in the early 1950s and lived there happily for decades with their two daughters and two sons.

The 57-year-old described an idyllic childhood, bordering on 'almost dull' in the single family home surrounded by neatly-kept lawns.

 We never had any letters. We had a very good childhood. The house was my mother's dream home.
Matthew Blakes, whose parents lived in the house since the early 1950s, and sold it to the Woods family 

Mr Bakes, who lived in the house through the 1960s, said he was unaware of The Watcher or his letters – despite the letters noted in the Broadduses' lawsuit, where the sinister figure claims his grandfather and father had been watching the home for decades.

He said: 'We never had any letters. We had a very good childhood. The house was my mother's dream home.

'This has all caught me totally by surprise, it's so arbitrary.'

Mr Bakes, who now lives in Bally, Pennsylvania and owns a car restoration business, said he had loved growing up on the street which had changed little over the years.

The family knew their neighbors during their time in the house although Mr Bakes said he doesn't know anyone who lives there now.

His sister, Margaret Bakes Davis, also told Daily Mail Online that she found the story of The Watcher 'very odd' and there had been no mention of this figure growing up.

She said: 'It was a fabulous house to grow up in and we had great neighbors. I consider myself very lucky to have lived there.'

Mrs Davis, who now lives in Belle Mead, New Jersey close to Princeton, added: 'Nothing like that happened when I was there. It just seems so bizarre.'

Their father sold the home in the early 1990s to John and Andrea Woods.

When asked about his childhood home's newfound notoriety, Mr Bakes said: 'It strikes you as kind of odd, you never associate it with anything like that.

'Living there, it was just a normal way to grow up.'

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