Dan Rivera, a U.S. Army veteran and lead paranormal investigator, died suddenly while touring with the infamous Annabelle doll in Gettysburg, Pennsylvania. Rivera, 54, was found unresponsive in his hotel room during the “Devils on the Run Tour” and pronounced dead at the scene. The cause of death has not yet been disclosed.
Rivera was part of the New England Society for Psychic Research and had deep ties to the paranormal community. He was known for his appearances on Travel Channel’s Most Haunted Places and as a producer for Netflix’s 28 Days Haunted. The Gettysburg tour stop, hosted by Ghostly Image of Gettysburg Tours, had sold out its three-day event featuring the controversial doll.
A husband and father of four, Rivera had worked to preserve the legacy of famed demonologists Ed and Lorraine Warren. The Annabelle doll, on loan from the now-closed Occult Museum, has long been a centerpiece of the Warrens’ investigations. Reports of the doll moving on its own, leaking blood, and leaving eerie handwritten notes date back to the 1970s. The Warrens maintained that the doll was controlled by an inhuman spirit, not a child ghost as originally claimed.
In 2014, Lorraine Warren warned the public never to underestimate the dangers of Annabelle. She said the spirit tied to the doll was demonic and intent on possessing a human host. One museum visitor who mocked the doll by tapping on the glass display was reportedly killed in a motorcycle crash shortly after.
Rivera’s death has revived fears surrounding the doll’s dark reputation. Emergency responders attempted CPR but were unable to revive him. The incident has reignited the long-standing lore that Annabelle’s influence may extend far beyond the confines of her locked case.
