Rachel Hansen is well-known in the Gilbert community as a bona fide horse whisperer.

At 14, Rachel teaches younger children to ride and breaks yearlings. She excels academically, is the only girl on the football team, and shines as a star soccer player. So accomplished, she graduates high school early at just 16. After graduating, Rachel runs a busy horse training business, AZ Hansen Horses, where she finds and breaks wild horses for clients. She also arranges to live and work as a trainer on a ranch in Queen Creek.

While living and working on the ranch, Rachel’s relationship with the owner begins to deteriorate. A payment dispute arises over a breeding deal involving Rachel’s mare, Dash, and an accident while transporting horses damages a trailer. The owner informs Rachel she won’t be paid for her final month of work and her services are no longer needed. Rachel removes her belongings from the property and plans to move into an apartment she’s subletting to tenants the following week.

Rachel moves some belongings into the apartment. Though still mostly empty, it’s enough for her to sleep there. She decides to spend the night. Around midnight, Rachel wakes to someone standing over her. She screams, and the intruder flees. It appears they had a key. Rachel’s fiancé arrives quickly and replaces her lock with one from his father’s house. He suggests calling the police, but Rachel believes the intruder simply didn’t realize the previous tenants had moved out.

Just after 2 a.m., Rachel Hansen calls 911 and says, “Someone broke in and shot me.” The dispatcher gets Rachel’s address and instructs her on how to stop the bleeding while police and paramedics are en route. Rachel says she doesn’t have any cloth or towel nearby to use.

The dispatcher notes Rachel is becoming less responsive and sounds close to passing out. The dispatcher also warns officers that the shooter has left the apartment but advises them to remain vigilant.

An officer finds Rachel crumpled on the bathroom floor with a gunshot wound to her chest. Another officer sweeps the apartment and discovers blood and a spent shell casing in Rachel’s bed. Officers note the apartment seems unusually empty, but there are no signs of a struggle, and Rachel’s jewelry and other valuables remain untouched. The case remains unsolved

Joining Nancy Grace today:

Additional Guests

Kim Hansen – Mother  

Ashley Holden – Reporter  ABC15  Phoenix, AZ; www.abc15.com; IG & FB: @ashleyvholdentv 

“Crime Stories with Nancy Grace” is also a national radio show heard on SiriusXM channel 111 airing for two hours daily starting at 12 p.m. EST. You can also subscribe and download the daily podcasts at iHeart Podcasts.

[Feature Photo: Rachel Hansen/Handout]