The famous Annabelle doll, often linked to paranormal stories, was recently part of a national tour. But the visit to Gettysburg took a tragic turn when a leading figure behind the tour, Dan Rivera, passed away unexpectedly.

Dan Rivera, 54 years old, was a paranormal investigator and a former U.S. Army veteran. He was also the lead researcher for the New England Society for Psychic Research (NESPR), the group behind the Annabelle doll tour.

Rivera had traveled with the Annabelle doll across the United States as part of the “Devils on the Run Tour.” The tour aimed to showcase haunted and mysterious objects, with Annabelle being the main attraction.

While staying in a hotel in Gettysburg on Sunday, July 13, 2025, emergency responders were called to the scene. Rivera was reportedly receiving CPR, but later passed away. The cause of his death has not been officially released.

The Gettysburg stop of the tour was hosted by Ghostly Images of Gettysburg Tours and held at the Soldiers National Orphanage. All tickets for the weekend event sold out. Over 1,260 people attended across three days, showing the strong public interest in the haunted doll.

Rivera was known for his engaging personality and efforts to make paranormal experiences educational and safe. He often shared videos on TikTok that featured the doll and received millions of views. His content helped bring attention to the tour from people around the world.

As news of his passing spread, many people in the paranormal community began posting tributes. They remembered Rivera as a kind, funny, and passionate man who loved teaching others about the unknown.

At the Gettysburg event just a day before his death, Rivera led a tour group to see the Annabelle doll. He joked with the audience and explained how he protected the doll inside a special case he built himself.

Rivera explained that the case was designed with three crosses, representing the holy trinity. He also said the wood was stained with holy water to help keep any negative energy inside the box.

During the tour, Rivera joked about the rumors surrounding the doll. Some people online had blamed the doll for strange events, like emergency alert outages. Rivera calmly told the audience these events were not related to Annabelle.

He also shared advice he had learned from Lorraine Warren, a well-known paranormal investigator and his personal mentor. Rivera said Warren taught him that people could protect themselves by closing their eyes and imagining a halo of white light around them.

Rivera’s interest in ghosts and the paranormal started when he was very young. After serving in the U.S. Army, he started his own ghost-hunting group. Later, he met Lorraine Warren, who took him under her wing and helped him become a top investigator.

Since 2011, Rivera had led NESPR, the group started by Lorraine and her husband Ed Warren in 1952. The Warrens were famous for investigating cases like the Amityville Horror and the story of Annabelle. These stories later inspired “The Conjuring” movie series, which became one of the most popular horror franchises of all time.

After Lorraine died in 2019, her daughter Judy Spera and son-in-law Tony Spera continued to run NESPR and manage the collection of haunted objects, including Annabelle. Although the museum in Connecticut is closed to the public, some of its items travel for tours like the one Rivera helped organize.

Rivera also worked in television. He was featured in shows like “Most Haunted Places” on the Travel Channel and helped produce Netflix’s “28 Days Haunted.” He also organized the ParaCon paranormal convention, which came to Gettysburg in 2024.

His colleague Ryan Daniel Buell, who helped Rivera create many viral videos, said that Rivera had worked hard to protect Lorraine Warren’s legacy. Buell also said Rivera helped many families privately who believed they were experiencing paranormal activity.

The paranormal world quickly reacted to Rivera’s death. Chris Gilloren, another NESPR investigator, said Rivera loved educating people about the paranormal and truly cared about others. Many others agreed that Rivera was a legend in his field.

A fellow paranormal expert, Mary Jo Chudley, called Rivera “one of the kindest and funniest guys I’ve ever known.” Social media quickly filled with messages of sadness, love, and respect for him.

Rivera once wrote a tribute to Lorraine Warren in 2020, asking whether life really ends. He believed we leave a part of ourselves with others and that we live on through the memories we create. He ended the post by saying, “I will never die. My journey has only begun.”

Now, those same words are being remembered by fans and friends mourning Rivera’s unexpected loss.