A | B | C | D | E | F | G | H | I | J | K | L | M | N | O | P | Q | R | S | T | U | V | W | X | Y | ||
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
1 | Case Number | Case Name | Episode Date (M/D/Y) | Length of Episode | Researched by | Written by | Rating | Number of Votes | Solved or Unsolved | Date of Crime | Country of Crime | State of Crime | City of Crime | Number of Victims | Victim Name | Age of Victim | Gender of Victim | Perpetrator | Age of Perpetrator During Crime | Gender of Perpetrator | Type of Crime | Method of Crime | Motive | Interview/Confession Links | Case Notes | |
2 | 1 | The Wanda Beach Murders | 1/9/2016 | 1:14:02 | Anonymous Host | Anonymous Host | 3.88 | 710 | Unsolved | 1/11/1965 | Australia | New South Wales | Sydney | 2 | Marianne Schmidt, Christine Sharrock | 15 | F | Unknown | Unknown | Unknown | Murder, sexual assault | Stabbing, beating | Unsolved case of a pair of friends who were murdered at the beach and found partially buried the next day. A tv documentary in June 2018 named Christopher Wilder as the probable suspect, but no new information was brought to the case. He was born in Sydney in 1945, but later went on to become a serial killer in the US (motive: photographer who'd lure prospective models to assault and death). He has a similarity to the suspect drawing in the Wanda Beach murders, but no further evidence has come forward. | |||
3 | 2 | The Somerton Man | 1/16/2016 | 0:44:11 | Anonymous Host | Anonymous Host | 3.89 | 699 | Unsolved | 12/1/1948 | Australia | South Australia | Adelaide | 1 | "Somerton Man" | 40s | M | Unknown | Unknown | Unknown | Unknown | Possible poisoning | Unknown man found by beach wall. Clothing tags removed, all identifiers removed, and a trunk found at a local train station only left more questions than answers. As of July 2018, there is some possibility of dna testing on the death mask of the Unknown man to try to discover his identity. There are continuing theories about if he was murdered or not, since he was killed by a common poison. Further speculation about his identity since this occurred during the cold war and all of his clothes had tags cut out. In September 2018, there is another push to exhume the body and get DNA. There has been debate over how this would be paid for - crowdfunding, tax payer money, etc. | |||
4 | 3 | Lauria Bible and Ashley Freeman | 1/23/2016 | 0:36:28 | Anonymous Host | Anonymous Host | 3.85 | 612 | Solved | 12/29/1999 | USA | Oklahoma | Welch | 4 | Kathy Freeman, Daniel Freeman, Lauria Bible, Ashley Freeman | Unknown, Unknown, 16, 16 | F, M | Ronald Busick, Warren Welch II, David Pennington | M | Murder, possible sexual assault | Arson, shooting | Parents of Ashley murdered, girls kidnapped. Bodies of girls never found. Case unsolved for 20 years until 2018 arrest of Ronald Busick. Other suspects dead by then. Brief update in Nov 2018 established some background on the three suspects - it seems they were known in the area for being violent and dangerous, and possibly involved in the drug trade. In November 2018 update: A court meeting happened, but it was delayed until December 21. Busick is the lone surviving suspect in the case and he is curently incarcerated for other crimes. He claims to not know the location of the bodies and has not revealed any more information on the crime. There is still a reward being offered for more information to help resolve the case more fully. As of January 2019, Busick is set to have a competency hearing due to past physical trauma caused by a shot to the head. He still denies involvement in the girls' deaths. Searches to find the bodies are ongoing, but so far they have not been found. | ||||
5 | 4 | Who Put Bella in the "Witch" Elm | 1/30/2016 | 0:31:27 | Anonymous Host | Anonymous Host | 3.16 | 618 | Unsolved | 4/18/1943 | England | Worcestershire | Hagley | 1 | Unknown | 30s | F | Unknown | Unknown | Unknown | Murder | Suffocation | Unknown woman found dead with signs of probable murder, stuffed into a tree. She was in advanced state of decomposition - mostly bones - so she had probably been murdered a long time before she was discovered. | |||
6 | 5 | Donna Wheeler | 2/6/2016 | 0:24:07 | Anonymous Host | Anonymous Host | 3.50 | 474 | Solved | 11/2/1999 | Australia | New South Wales | Sydney | 1 | Donna Wheeler | 30 | F | Colin Bond | 40s | M | Murder | Stabbing | Donna had recently broken up with her boyfriend, Keith Bond, due to it being a toxic relationship. He began some obsessive/stalker behavior regarding Donna. Donna had a pleasant relationship with her ex husband and they coparented their son well. Police interviewed Colin Bond, Keith's brother, who admitted to being with Donna the night she died. He recounted several items that were at Donna's home the night she died. Keith had an alibi for the night (spending time with a new girlfriend) and also stated a few behaviors of Colin's on the night of Donna's death that were very suspicious. It turns out that Colin has a history of violence who reject his sexual advances. Blood was found on his watch, and he also started a load of laundry after midnight on the night of Donna's death. Donna's wallet was found in Keith's room. Items from the crime scene had DNA (blood and fingerprints) from both Donna and Colin. Colin had also previously murdered a woman who rejected his advances. | |||
7 | 6 | Roger Dean | 2/13/2016 | 0:32:29 | Anonymous Host | Anonymous Host | 3.61 | 469 | Solved | 11/18/2011 | Australia | New South Wales | Sydney | 11 | Dorothy Wu, Alma Smith, Reginald Green, Lola Bennett, Ella Wood, Urbana Alipio, Caesar Galea, Doris Becke, Verna Webeck, Dorothy Sterling, Neeltje Valkay | 73-97 | F, M | Roger Dean | 35 | M | Murder, theft of drugs | Arson | Newscast | Arson started to cover up theft of drugs / drug addiction | ||
8 | 7 | Julian Buchwald and Carolynne Watson | 2/20/2016 | 0:20:54 | Anonymous Host | Anonymous Host | 3.69 | 460 | Solved | 3/4/2008 | Australia | Victoria | Churchill | 1 | Carolynne Watson | 17 | F | Julian Buchwald | 22 | M | Kidnapping, assault | Kidnapping, assault | Carolynne Watson was kidnapped while out on a picnic with her boyfriend Julian Buchwald. She was captive for over 6 days. Later it was revealed the kidnapper was Julian, who was trying to trick/force her into sex and marriage. He later fled to India, but was captured and charged. | |||
9 | 8 | Holly Wells and Jessica Chapman | 2/27/2016 | 0:32:22 | Anonymous Host | Anonymous Host | 4.00 | 556 | Solved | 8/4/2002 | England | Cambridgeshire | Soham | 2 | Holly Wells, Jessica Chapman | 10 | F | Ian Huntley | 25 | M | Murder, kidnapping, sexual assault | Suffocation | Girlfriend of Ian Huntley Maxinne Carr (22) may have been involved. | |||
10 | 9 | Jonathan Luna | 3/5/2016 | 0:34:19 | Anonymous Host | Anonymous Host | 3.56 | 471 | Unsolved | 12/4/2003 | USA | Pennsylvania | Lancaster County | 1 | Jonathan Luna | 38 | M | Unknown | Unknown | Unknown | Probable murder, kidnapping, corruption | Stabbing | Some officials in Baltimore labled the death a suicide, but that is unlikely due to his injuries and behavior on the night of his death. More probable is corruption in Baltimore officials who tried to cover up the crime since Luna was likely investigating drugs and corruption. | |||
11 | 10 | Peter Shellard | 3/12/2016 | 0:21:03 | Anonymous Host | Anonymous Host | 3.58 | 426 | Solved | 5/7/2005 | Australia | Victoria | Melbourne | 1 | Peter Shellard | 56 | M | Shirley Withers | 39 | F | Murder | Overdose, beating, possible heart condition | Co-accused in death of Shellard: Stanley Callinicos, Sophia Stoupas. Shirley later attempted to hire a hitman to kill co-accused. | |||
12 | 11 | Anneliese Michel | 3/19/2016 | 0:44:58 | Anonymous Host | Anonymous Host | 3.68 | 512 | Solved | 7/1/1976 | Germany | Bavaria | Klingenberg Am Main | 1 | Anneliese Michel | 23 | F | Josef Michel, Anna Michel,Ernst Alt, Arnold Renz | F, M | Negligent Homicide | Starvation, neglect | Anneliese suffered from mental health issues (possibly schizophrenia) and siezures. Her parents and priests tried to cure her via exorcism. | ||||
13 | 12 | Katherine Knight | 3/26/2016 | 0:46:03 | Anonymous Host | Anonymous Host | 4.20 | 657 | Solved | 2/29/2000 | Australia | New South Wales | Aberdeen | 1 | John Price | 44 | M | Katherine Knight | 45 | F | Murder | Stabbing, mutilation of body, cannibalism | Katherine Knight had a history of mental health issues, including narcissism and abandonment issues. This resulted in several long term abusive relationships and culminated in the murder of John Price. | |||
14 | 13 | The Family Court Murders | 4/2/2016 | 0:55:59 | Anonymous Host | Anonymous Host | 3.89 | 539 | Solved | 1980-1985 | Australia | New South Wales | 4 | David Opas, Graham Wykes, Pearl Watson, Stephen Blanchard | 40s-60s | F, M | Leonard Warwick | 30s | M | Murder, Politically motivated attacks | Bombing, shooting | Leonard Warwick attacked and killed several family court judges/people near courts via shooting (Blanchard, Opas) or bombings (Gee (injured), Pearl Watson (wife of judge Ray Watson), Graham Wykes (near a court)). He was bitter against the court system due to his own experiences with the court during his divorce and custody hearings. Warwick was arrested in 2015 in relation to the crimes. In 2020, Warwick was found guilty of all charges except the shooting of his former brother in law. | ||||
15 | 14 | Helen Munnings | 4/9/2016 | 0:24:36 | Anonymous Host | Anonymous Host | 3.63 | 435 | Unsolved (ongoing) | 7/23/2008 | Australia | Tasmania | Burnie | 1 | Helen Munnings | 20 | F | Adam Taylor | 34 | M | Probable murder | Unknown | Helen had an illicit relationship with Adam Taylor (while he was with another woman). They had a child. When Helen became pregnant again, she disappeared under suspicious circumstances. Taylor was the last to see her alive. Adam claimed he and Helen talked on the day of her disappearance. She wanted to go for a walk, so he dropped her off on the highway. Later on he texted her (but she didn't have a phone with her anyway). Helen never made it home. The coroner found his behavior to be odd. The coronor admitted suicide would be unusual, but possible. Case ongoing. As of July 2018, the coroner ruled that this case must be investigated as a murder. | |||
16 | 15 | The Weepy Voiced Killer | 4/16/2016 | 0:27:33 | Anonymous Host | Anonymous Host | 3.76 | 631 | Solved | 1980-1982 | USA | Minnesota | Minneapolis | 3 | Kimberly Compton, Kathleen Greening, Barbara Simons | 18-40s | F | Paul Michael Stephani | 37 | M | Murder | Stabbing, drowning, beating | He would contact the police promising to never kill again, but continued to kill. | |||
17 | 16 | Cris and Cru Kahui | 4/23/2016 | 1:23:56 | Anonymous Host | Anonymous Host | 3.68 | 531 | Solved | 6/18/2006 | New Zealand | North Island | Auckland | 2 | Cris Kahui, Cru Kahui | 3 months | F, M | Chris Kahui | 21 | M | Murder | Head injuries | Chris was acquitted of murder in 2008, but in 2012 the coroner concluded the injuries occurred while the children were in the sole custody of Chris. | |||
18 | 17 | The Eriksson Twins | 4/30/2016 | 0:33:24 | Anonymous Host | Anonymous Host | 3.85 | 615 | Solved | 5/17/2008 | England | Staffordshire | Stoke-on-Trent | 1 | Glenn Hollinshead | 54 | M | Sabina Eriksson | 41 | F | Manslaughter | Stabbing | The Eriksson twins Ursula and Sabrina seemed to experience folie a deux - shared psychosis. They both ran into the path of oncoming traffic. After being released from hospital, Sabina killed Hollinshead | |||
19 | 18 | The North Hollywood Shootout | 5/8/2016 | 1:02:14 | Anonymous Host | Anonymous Host | 3.73 | 584 | Solved | 2/28/1997 | USA | California | Los Angeles | Larry Phillips Jr., Emil Mătăsăreanu | 27, 31 | M | Bank Robbery | Shooting | The only two deaths in this case were the perpetrators. The two men had mutual interests as well as a history of petty crime. They had attempted several previous bank robberies that ended in jail time for them both. They spent months planning a larger bank robbery. The robbery itself was mostly successful, but officers responded quickly. While they tried to leave the bank, the two robbers open fired on the officers, starting a shootout. Once the situation was hopeless, Phillips killed himself while his partner tried to escape. Matasereanu ended up dying of trauma due to excessive blood loss. This shootout led to police throughout the nation being more heavily armed. | |||||||
20 | 19 | Snowtown | 5/15/2016 | 1:31:32 | Anonymous Host | Anonymous Host | 4.32 | 685 | Solved | 1992-1999 | Australia | South Australia | 12 | Clinton Trezise, Ray Davies, Michael Gardiner, Barry Lane, Thomas Trevilyan, Gavin Porter, Troy Youde, Frederick Brooks, Gary O'Dwyer, Elizabeth Haydon, David Johnson | 18-42 | F, M | John Bunting, Robert Wagner, James Vlassakis, Mark Haydon | M | Murder | Shootings, strangulation, cannibalism | Bunting's belief that the victims were pedophiles, homosexuals, or otherwise "weak" | Bodies in Barrels. Murders motivated by Bunting's hatred of certain subcultures and particular hatred for pedophiles. | ||||
21 | 20 | Stoni Blair and Stephen Berry | 5/22/2016 | 0:34:00 | Anonymous Host | Anonymous Host | 3.78 | 507 | Solved | 2012-2013 | USA | Michigan | Detroit | 2 | Stoni Blair, Stephen Berry | 9, 13 | F, M | Mitchelle Blair | 33 | F | Murder | Blunt trauma, starvation, child abuse | Mitchelle Blair Confession | Mother claims to have murdered her children in order to protect her other two kids from abuse. | ||
22 | 21 | Pamela Lawrence | 5/29/2016 | 1:04:19 | Anonymous Host | Anonymous Host | 3.76 | 443 | Solved | 5/23/1994 | Australia | Western Australia | Perth | 1 | Pamela Lawrence | 40s | F | Simon Rochford | 24 | M | Murder | Blunt trauma | Andrew Mallard was wrongfully convicted of Pamela's death in 1995, but the conviction was reversed 12 years later. In 2006, it was found that Simon Rochford was likely the true murderer. Simon Rochford committed suicide shortly after being named a suspect. | |||
23 | 22 | Marguerite Edwards | 6/12/2016 | 0:28:06 | Anonymous Host | Anonymous Host | 3.63 | 418 | Solved | 8/2/1989 | Australia | New South Wales | Sydney | 1 | Marguerite Edwards | 41 | F | Christopher Lorenzo | 29 | M | Murder | Shooting | There was no available information on Edwards's case until 9 months later when a jail informant Lorenzo offered to give information for a shorter jail sentence. Lorenzo said someone he knew committed the crime, but digging deeper police found that Lorenzo likely was talking about himself. His blood type matches the type of blood found at the crime scene. | |||
24 | 23 | The Frankston Serial Killer (2 parter) | 6/19/2016 | 1:02:12 | Anonymous Host | Anonymous Host | 4.09 | 580 | Solved | 1993 | Australia | Victoria | Melbourne | 3 | Elizabeth Stevens, Debbie Fream, Natalie Russell | 17-22 | F | Paul Denyer | 21 | M | Murder | Stabbing, strangulation | Possibly motivated by a hatred of women. Paul later came out as trans and temporarily identified as Paula, a woman. As of 2022, it seems Paul has reverted back to being Paul. In Aug 2018, Denyer is 5 years away from being available for parole. People involved in the case are trying to keep the case in the public eye to emphasis that Denyer should stay in prison. | |||
25 | 24 | Russell Street Bombing (2 parter) | 7/7/2016 | 1:00:03 | Anonymous Host | Anonymous Host | 3.86 | 587 | Solved | 3/27/1986 | Australia | Victoria | Melbourne | 1 | Angela Taylor | 21 | F | Craig Minogue, Peter Reed, Stan Taylor, Rodney Minogue | M | Murder, politically motivated attacks | Bombs | Politically motivated attacks as revenge against law enforcement & the family court. | Apparent revenge by bombers against police, who resented their jail terms. Angela Taylor is Australia's first policewoman killed in the line of duty. As of Jul 2018, Minogue keeps trying for parole. He won a ruling by the high court that stated his crime was "indiscriminate", not directed at the police, and thus couldn't be further pursued on the basis that he targeted the police / a specific police officer. Therefore he is eligible to apply for parole. As of Aug 2018, a bill is being debated that would allow officers to deny parole. It would apply to anyone who has harmed police officers As of Sep 2018, officials have tried to extend the non-parole period of Minogue (established years ago). The high court ruled in Craig's favor regarding the bill previously debated. A new law - Corrections Amendment Parole Bill - was passed, and it would guarantee Craig would die in prison. This is now being appealed. As of Nov 2018, Minogue keeps trying to abandon his Australian citizenship by claiming he got British citizenship in the 90s (there is no evidence this is true so far). He believe he may get parole in Britain. As of Nov 2018, Minogue continues to tweet regarding his incarceration. There will be a further court hearing in February 2019. | |||
26 | 25 | Prue Bird | 7/16/2016 | 0:29:13 | Anonymous Host | Anonymous Host | 3.61 | 465 | Solved | 2/2/1992 | Australia | Victoria | Melbourne | 1 | Prue Bird | 13 | F | Leslie Camilleri | 23 | M | Murder | Unknown | Body never found. It was originally suspected that Craig Minogue killed her, since Prue and her mother had close ties to the Russell Street Bombing crew. But Minogue denied this. Later on in 2013, Leslie Camilleri was convicted of Prue's death. | |||
27 | 26 | Lisa Marie Young | 7/24/2016 | 0:22:56 | Anonymous Host | Anonymous Host | 3.78 | 462 | Unsolved (ongoing) | 6/29/2002 | Canada | British Columbia | Vancouver Island | 1 | Lisa Marie Young | 21 | F | Christopher Adair | 27 | M | Probable murder | Unknown | While out partying with friends, Lisa Marie met Christopher Adair. She accepted his offer to go find food, and he instead took her to a different party. Lisa texted a friend that she felt unsafe and trapped. Lisa was never heard from again. Police corruption/cover up seems a factor since Adair came from a wealthy and powerful family. As of Jul 7, 2018, police have appealed for people to come forward. They believe someone must know something. | |||
28 | 27 | The West Mesa Bone Collector | 7/31/2016 | 0:31:10 | Anonymous Host | Anonymous Host | 3.65 | 519 | Unsolved | 2001-2005 | USA | New Mexico | Albuquerque | 11 | Jamie Barela, Monica Candelaria, Victoria Chavez, Virginia Cloven, Syllania Edwards, Cinnamon Elks, Doreen Marquez, Julie Nieto, Veronica Romero, Evelyn Salazar, Michelle Valdez | 15-32 | F | Unknown | Unknown | Unknown | Murder | Unknown | Unknown serial killer hunted poor hispanic women involved in sex/drug trade. Possibly has a hatred for "impure" or lowly, poor women. | |||
29 | 28 | Lindsay Buziak | 8/7/2016 | 1:16:19 | Anonymous Host | Anonymous Host | 4.09 | 568 | Unsolved (ongoing) | 2/2/2008 | Canada | British Columbia | Victoria | 1 | Lindsay Buziak | 24 | F | Unknown | Unknown | Unknown | Murder | Stabbing | Lindsay was a real estate agent showing a house to an interested party. Two people showed up, and killed Lindsay. While her boyfriend Jason is not a suspect, some evidence points to either him or his mother being involved - possibly directly, or possibly hiring hitmen. Possibly someone else in the industry wanted to kill her. As of Jan 2019, Lindsay's father has planned the 11th memorial walk for justice in Lindsay's honor (for Feb 2). The walk goes around the site where she was killed and the nearby police department. Currently, Lindsay's father feel the police and politicians are doing nothing in the case - no one is currently working on the case full time. They are prioritizing other issues. Any other departments they could contact just pass the buck. No one is holding the offiicals accountable. He feels the officials want him to shut up and stop pressuring them about the case. A large amount of the public feels they know who killed Lindsay but the officials aren't pursuing it. | |||
30 | 29 | The Burgate House Murders | 8/13/2016 | 0:22:59 | Anonymous Host | Anonymous Host | 3.59 | 441 | Solved | 9/1/1986 | England | Hampshire | Fordingbridge | 5 | Joseph Cleaver, Hilda Cleaver, Thomas Cleaver, Wendy Cleaver, Margaret Murphy | 46-82 | F, M | George Stephenson | 35 | M | Murder | Strangulation, burning | He briefly worked at the house but was fired. In revenge and jealousy of the wealth of the family, he came back to kill them and steal from the house. | |||
31 | 30 | The Claremont Serial Killer | 8/20/2016 | 0:56:26 | Anonymous Host | Anonymous Host | 4.17 | 552 | Solved (ongoing) | 1996-1997 | Australia | Western Australia | Perth | 3 | Jane Rimmer, Ciara Glennon, Sarah Spiers | 18-27 | F | Bradley Robert Edwards | 28 | M | Murder, sexual assault | Unknown | The case sparked massive police action to find the killer with no success. No suspects in case until 2016 when Edwards was charged with two murders, and 2018 when he was also charged with Spier's murder. The case is ongoing. As of Aug 2018, Edwards appeared in court. He pleaded not guilty to the murder of the three women. The trial could begin in May of 2019 and continue for the entire year, due to the large amount of evidence in the case. As of Oct 2018, Edwards pleaded not guilty to all 8 charges. There may possibly be a trial as soon as May 2019, but possibly a later date. As of Nov 2018: Edwards will face a judge-only trial, no jury. He is also facing further murder charges of another woman. There is a massive amount of evidence in the case, so the defense asked for more time before the court start date (August), but the judge so far has refused to change the date from May 1. It's possible that some of the charges may be heard separately. The prosecution against Edwards is continuing their investigation into Edwards to get more evidence. The case is Australia's longest running and most expensive. It's estimated there will be roughly 2 months of pre-trial hearings regarding what evidence will be allowed in the trial. The defense keeps applying to push the date back and disallow some evidence. As of Dec, 2018, the trial has been delayed and the trial will likely be going through 2020. The defense attorneys are still fighting to have the various crimes tried separately. | |||
32 | 31 | The Killer Couple | 8/28/2016 | 0:39:51 | Anonymous Host | Anonymous Host | 3.88 | 477 | Solved | 1986 | Australia | Western Australia | Perth | 4 | Mary Nielson, Susannah Candy, Noelene Patterson, Denise Brown | 17-31 | F | David and Catherine Birnie | 35 | F, M | Murder, kidnapping, sexual assault | Stabbing, strangulation, overdose | "Moorehouse Murders". Killer couple kidnapped and assaulted women for sexual gratification. They were captured since their last victim was able to escape. As of 2018, Catherine Birnie keeps applying for parole, but there is a new law in the works aimed at severe offenders such as the Birnies that would keep her in jail for life. | |||
33 | 32 | Grace and Kathleen Holmes | 9/4/2016 | 0:33:32 | Anonymous Host | Anonymous Host | 3.69 | 424 | Solved (ongoing) | 8/30/1950 | Australia | New South Wales | Wyong | 2 | Grace Holmes, Kathleen Holmes | 18, 11 | F | William Birtle | 25 | M | Murder, sexual assault | Blunt force trauma | William Birtle was the only suspect and he's likely the murderer. But evidence techniques in the 1950s were not good enough to land a conviction. | |||
34 | 33 | Jaycee Lee Dugard | 9/18/2016 | 1:06:54 | Anonymous Host, Victoria Dieffenbacher | Anonymous Host, Victoria Dieffenbacher | 4.27 | 619 | Solved | 1991-2009 | USA | California | South Lake Tahoe | 1 | Jaycee Lee Dugard | 11 | F | Philip Garrido, Nancy Garrido | F, M | Kidnapping, sexual assault | Kidnapping, assault | Pedophilia | The Garridos kidnapped Dugard (11) and kept her imprisoned and sexually assaulted until 2009, when Dugard (29) was finally identified when a UC Berkely employee noticed Garrido's erratic behavior and did a background which, which showed he had previous crimes of kidnapping and assault. During her captivity, Dugard gave birth to two children. | |||
35 | 34 | The Catholic Mafia | 9/25/2016 | 0:57:00 | Anonymous Host | Anonymous Host | 3.93 | 568 | Solved | 1950s-1960s | Australia | Victoria | Melbourne | F, M | Father John Day | M | Pedophilia, police cover up | Pedophilia | Day served at parishes from 1936 to 1978. He was likely abusing children for that entire time until his death in 1978. Officer Denis Ryan investigated Day and found dozens and dozens of children that had been victims of Day. The church and police at the time had very close ties and the police covered up the crimes so the church would not undergo a scandal. Ryan's career was destroyed due to this. In 2016, Ryan was offered compensation and received an apology for his treatment. | |||||||
36 | 35 | Operation Mayan | 10/9/2016 | 0:47:09 | Anonymous Host | Anonymous Host | 3.70 | 432 | Solved | 3/18/2011 | England | Wiltshire | Swindon | 2 | Becky Godden, Sian O'Callaghan | 20s | F | Christopher Halliwell | 45 | M | Murder | Unknown | Cab driver that picked up and murdered women. Possibly more victims. More info?? | |||
37 | 36 | Amok | 10/16/2016 | 0:34:44 | Anonymous Host | Anonymous Host | 3.87 | 562 | Solved | 11/13/2000 | Poland | Lower Silesian Voivodeship | Wroclaw | 1 | Dariusz Janiszewski | 35 | M | Krystian Bala | 27 | M | Murder | Stabbing | Jealous husband | Dariusz was suspected of sleeping with Krystian's ex wife. In jealousy, Krystian killed him. Police were stumped until Krystian released a book (Amok) that had very similar details to the crime. | ||
38 | 37 | The Yorkshire Ripper (3 parter) | 10/23/2016 | 3:14:55 | Anonymous Host, Victoria Dieffenbacher | Anonymous Host, Victoria Dieffenbacher | 4.33 | 630 | Solved | 1975-1980 | England | Yorkshire | Bingley | 13 | Wilma McCann, Emily Jackson, Irene Richardson, Patricia Atkinson, Jayne McDonald, Jean Jordan, Yvonne Pearson, Helen Rytka, Vera Millward, Josephine Whitaker, Barbara Leach, Marguerite Walls, Jacqueline Hill | 16-47 | F | Peter Sutcliffe | 29 | M | Murder | Stabbing, blunt trauma with a hammer, strangulation | Hatred towards prostitutes and women in general. Schizophrenic. | Sutcliffe claimed that the voice of God sent him on a mission to murder prosittitues, but not all of his victims were prostitutes. Sutcliffe may have had a hatred of women stemming from his mother's infidelity. As of 2018, Sutcliffe is trying to get permission to visit his brother, who is sickly and dying. He also is trying to appeal his sentence so he can move to poland and be with Victoria, a woman interested in him. She is not even 18 yet. As of Oct 2018, Sutcliffe had a hospital visit. He complained how he was treated during this time. | ||
39 | 38 | The Pikuls | 11/13/2016 | 1:21:21 | Anonymous Host, Victoria Dieffenbacher | Anonymous Host, Victoria Dieffenbacher | 3.67 | 468 | Solved | 10/24/1987 | USA | New York | Newburgh | 1 | Diane Whitmore Pikul | 44 | F | Joe Pikul | 52 | M | Murder | Strangling, bludgeoning | Joe had a history of being abusive and violent to his various wives and romantic partners. Diane eventually discovered that Joe was a cross dresser who participated in orgies and who had contracted AIDs. She feared she and her two children may have gotten AIDs from him. She left the evidence of this with her lawyer and sought a divorce, but she was murdered shortly after. Joe was given custody of his children despite being the prime suspect in a murder. He was eventually convicted of the crime but his conviction was vacated when he died of AIDs before his appeal could ruled on. | |||
40 | 39 | Janelle Patton | 12/3/2016 | 1:00:53 | Anonymous Host, Victoria Dieffenbacher | Anonymous Host, Victoria Dieffenbacher | 3.79 | 439 | Solved | 3/31/2002 | Australia | Norfolk Island | 1 | Janelle Patton | 29 | F | Glen Peter Charles McNeill | 28 | M | Murder | Stabbing, bludgeoning | Janelle was a Sydney native who moved to Norfolk Island for a fresh start. While out on a walk one day, she was murdered. Much of the DNA evidence had been washed away due to heavy rains, but police were able to match a fingerprint to Glenn McNeill, who was working on the island at the time (but was a native of new zealand). Glenn McNeill later made a couple claims: he ran over Janelle on accident (this doesn't match her injuries) and disposed of the body. He also claimed that a couple who had a conflict with Janelle over their drug use killed Janelle, and he just happened to be there to dispose of the body. He was convicted. There was also unidentified female dna found on the sheet that covered Janelle's body. Some suspect this could be a match to McNeill's wife of the time, Aleisha, who some witnesses say was found arguing with her husband around the time of Janelle's murder. | ||||
41 | 40 | John Newman | 12/10/2016 | 1:03:17 | Anonymous Host, Victoria Dieffenbacher | Anonymous Host, Victoria Dieffenbacher | 3.65 | 432 | Solved | 9/5/1994 | Australia | New South Wales | Sydney | 1 | John Newman | 47 | M | Phuong Ngo | 36 | M | Assassination | Shooting | Newman is described as Australia's first political assassination. Ngo was a local club owner with close ties to a notorious gang. He had run against Newman for political office the prior year but lost. Newman was trying to take down this gang. Phuong was fairly popular in the labor party (John's party, which he joined in 1993), but John had suspicions that Phuong was associated with the 5T Gang and he kept close tabs on Ngo. | |||
42 | 41 | Mr. Cruel | 1/8/2017 | 1:03:42 | Anonymous Host | Anonymous Host | 4.06 | 636 | Unsolved | 1987-1990 | Australia | Victoria | Melbourne | 3 | Sharon Wills, Nicola Lynas, Karmein Chan | 10-13 | F | Unknown | Unknown | M | Abduction, assault, murder, pedophilia | Shooting | Mr. Cruel would kidnap young girls, assault them for sometimes days at a time, and then release them. Karmein Chan is the only victim he murdered (though some detectives wonder if she was really killed by Mr. Cruel). After Chan, there were no more reported attacks by Mr. Cruel and he has never been identified. | |||
43 | 42 | Sherri Rasmussen | 1/14/2017 | 1:04:22 | Anonymous Host, Anna Priestland | Anonymous Host, Anna Priestland | 4.36 | 669 | Solved | 2/24/1986 | USA | California | Van Nuys | 1 | Sherri Rasmussen | 29 | F | Stephanie Lazarus | 26 | F | Murder, staged burglary | Shooting | Jealous ex-lover | Stephanie Lazarus Interview | Lazarus was obsessed with her ex-boyfriend John Ruetten, who had moved on and married nurse Sherri Rasmussen. Lazarus and Reutten had brief affairs while Reutten was married to Rasmussen, but he wouldn't leave Rasmussen for Lazarus. Lazarus continued to harrass and stalk Rasmussen and had several conflicts until she finally killed Rasmussen in her home and staged it to look like a breakin. The crime remained unsolved until 2009 when DNA technology showed the attacker's DNA was from a woman. All that time, Lazarus was working as a cop. | |
44 | 43 | Keith Warren | 1/22/2017 | 0:44:57 | Anonymous Host | Anonymous Host | 3.61 | 421 | Unsolved | 7/31/1986 | USA | Maryland | Silver Spring | 1 | Keith Warren | 19 | M | Unknown | Unknown | Unknown | Probable homicide | Hanging | Keith was found hanging in the woods off a tree that was too thin to support his weight (such that his legs easily touched the ground even when his knees were bent). Police and coroner immediatley ruled it a suicide while first responders said it looked more like a lynching. There has been a large amount of discrepency between what the cops say happened and what the family say happened. Authorities failed to conduct an autopsy - they instead embalmed it before Keith's famliy was even informed that he was dead. Police did not conduct a full investigation because they insisted it was just a suicide. Keith was found in clothing that did not belong to him. Investigators and pathologists years later reviewed the case and found that police at the time did not follow proper procedures and that Keith did not commit suicide. They also found toxins in his blood - such as some chemicals used in cleaning fluids (the various chemicals were at toxic/lethal levels). He may have been dead/near dead before the hanging happened. Keith's friend Rodney Kendall stated that some people, including a guy Mark Finley, were looking for Keith. Keith had some issues at the time of his death, such as losing his car (to his dad) and losing his job / being between jobs. Police and his family have different versions of what was going on in Keith's life at the time. Police went out of their way to silence Keith's mother and even blamed her for not keeping her son safe. The mother, Mary, tried to accept her son's death. But later on, she was mailed crime scene photos that clearly showed something fishy was going on (Keith's clothing and shoes weren't his). The knot in the noose was very complicated, and it looked more like he had been hoisted/strangled rather than jumping from a log to hang himself. She confronted the police again, and the police again refused to actually investigate the case. Police destroyed the crime scene shortly after Keith's death. Clearly some cover up going on / police incompetence. Possible suspect Mark Finley was killed in a bike accident in 1993 - the injuries he sustained suggested something more sinister happened (perhaps being hit by car), but the cops insisted it was just a bike accident. One of the original lead cops was suspended by the police due to being arrested over violence against his girlfriend. | |||
45 | 44 | Peter Falconio | 1/29/2017 | 1:53:25 | Anna Priestland | Anna Priestland | 4.24 | 648 | Solved | 7/14/2001 | Australia | Northern Territory | Barrow Creek | 1 | Peter Falconio | 28 | M | Bradley John Murdoch | 43 | M | Murder | Unknown | Murdoch targeted those who got in the way of his 'job'. Falconio was collateral damage. | English tourists Falconio and his girlfriend Joanne Lees were travelling through Australia when they were abducted by Murdoch, a racist career criminal with a drug addiction. Lees managed to escape the abductor, but Peter was likely already dead by that point. Peter Falconio's body has never been found. Murdoch had previously been jailed for violent crimes that resulted in injury and death. | ||
46 | 45 | Port Arthur | 2/11/2017 | 1:20:08 | Anonymous Host, Anna Priestland | Anna Priestland | 4.40 | 715 | Solved | 4/28/1996 | Australia | Tasmania | Port Arthur | 35 | Winifred Joyce Aplin, Walter John Bennett, Nicole Louise Burgess, Sou Leng Chung, Elva Rhonda Gaylard, Zoe Anne Hall, Elizabeth Jayne Howard, Mary Elizabeth Howard, Mervyn John Howard, Ronald Noel Jary, Tony Vadivelu Kistan, Leslie Dennis Lever, Sarah Kate Loughton, David Martin, Noelene Joyce Martin, Pauline Virjeana Masters, Alannah Louise Mikac, Madeline Grace Mikac, Nannette Patricia Mikac, Andrew Bruce Mills, Peter Brenton Nash, Gwenda Joan Neander, Moh Yee William Ng, Anthony Nightingale, Mary Rose Nixon, Glenn Roy Pears, Russell James Pollard, Janette Kathleen Quin, Helene Maria Salzmann, Robert Graham Salzmann, Kate Elizabeth Scott, Kevin Vincent Sharp, Royce William Thompson, Jason Bernard Winter | 3-72 | F, M | Martin Bryant | 29 | M | Mass Murder, spree shooting | Shooting | Bryant never fit in anywhere and was an isolated loner. He was intellectually disabled, borderline mentally disabled with an IQ of 66. He was kept in the care of his father and a much older female friend, Helen Harvey. But once Harvey and his father were dead, he had no one else in his life. He felt isolated and judged by people. He drifted into alcoholism. He may have targeted Port Arthur due to some conflicts his family had with David and Sally Martin, since they had bought a bed & breakfast on Port Arthur that Bryant's father had wanted to buy. David and Sally were Bryant's first victims in the shooting. | |||
47 | 46 | The Frankston and Tynong North Serial Killer | 2/19/2017 | 1:06:00 | Anonymous Host, Anna Priestland | Anonymous Host, Anna Priestland | 4.01 | 521 | Unsolved (ongoing) | 1980-1981 | Australia | Victoria | Melbourne | 6 | Bertha Miller, Anne-Marie Sargent, Joy Carmel Summers, Bertha Miller, Narumol Stephenson, Catherine Linda Headland | 14-73 | F | Unknown | Unknown | Unknown | Murder, abduction | Unknown | 6 women were abducted and killed in an 18 month period in Frankston/Tynong North areas. Causes of death were undetermined / Unknown. At first, the Frankston and Tynong murders were treated as separate cases from separate killers. As of 2017, six 1 Million dollar rewards were announced to help solve the case. The victims: Rooke (59) last seem leaving home in Frankston North to catch a bus to go shopping. Body discovered in Frankston by man walking his dogs on 5 July 1980. Miller (73) last seen leaving home in Glen Iris to catch a tram to Prahran. Body found dumped in Tynong North. Hedland (14) last seen leaving boyfriend's house in Berwick to catch a bus to go shopping. Body found dumped in Tynong North. Sargent (18) last seen leaving mother's house in Cranbourne. Body discovered in Tynong North. Stephenson (34) last seen leaving friend's house in Brunswick. Remains found in Tynong North. Summers (55) last seen at a bus stop, intending to go shopping. Body found in Frankston North over a year after the last body was found. Two suspects have only ever been named in the media. Raymond Edmunds (mr stinky), a rapist and serial killer. Harold Janman, a local man. Prime suspect is a man Mr. Smith? But his name has been suppressed due to a court order. Officials haven't been able to completely confirm that all these women were killed by the same suspect, even after all this time. | |||
48 | 47 | Yara Gambirasio | 2/25/2017 | 0:44:41 | Anna Priestland | Anna Priestland | 3.82 | 485 | Solved | 11/26/2010 | Italy | Bergamo | Brembate di Sopra | 1 | Yara Gambirasio | 13 | F | Massimo Giuseppe Bosetti | 40 | M | Murder, pedophilia | Exposure, head injuries, superficial cuts | DNA found on Yara's body led the police to do a massive DNA collection of residents in town to try to track down the killer. The case was convoluted since familial DNA related to the killer was found, but the conservative people of the town weren't the type to admit to having affairs / children out of wedlock. While Yara suffered from some head and knife injuries, authorities determined her actual cause of death was due to exposure in the freezing field in which she was found. It came out that Massimo had a history of interest in very young girls and would follow/stalk them. | |||
49 | 48 | Suzy Lamplugh | 3/4/2017 | 0:56:43 | Anna Priestland | Anna Priestland | 3.95 | 508 | Unsolved (ongoing) | 7/28/1986 | England | London | Fulham | 1 | Suzy Lamplugh | 25 | F | John Cannan | 32 | M | Probable murder, disappearance | Unknown | She was an up and coming real estate agent who had an appointment with a "Mr. Kipper" to show a house in Sharrolds Road on the day she disappeared. She has not been found since. She was declared dead in 1994. Before her disappearance, Suzy was receiving unwated attention from a man from Bristol who would not leave her alone. It is believed this man was Cannan. Suzy's family campaigned for reform and laws were enacted that caused for more registration of minicab drivers, more regulations regarding harassment and stalking, and the registration of sex offenders. Similar crimes (possibly connected?) occured: Shirley Banks's disappearance. Banks was murdered by John Cannan. John Cannan is the only suspect in Suzy's disappearance. While they don't have enough evidence to directly charge Cannan with Suzy's death/disappearance, investigators are sure he is responsible. Cannan is in prison for life over the murder of Banks. He may have committed other murders, too (Sandra Court). So while Suzy's case is officially unsolved, it is very likely Cannan is responsible. As of 2018, the Suzy Lamplugh trust is campaigning to have harassment and stalking treated as different crimes (they're currently treated the same in Britain). Police are currently searching the home and property of John Cannan's mother. Cannan continues to deny involvement, though. He is currently in prison for life for Suzy Bank's murder. As of Nov 2018, a dig of Cannan's mother's property did not find anything. They used ground penetrating radar and other technical tools, but nothing was found. But they are continuing to look. | |||
50 | 49 | The Moors Murders (3 parter) | 3/19/2017 | 5:02:01 | Victoria Dieffenbacher | Victoria Dieffenbacher | 4.51 | 751 | Solved | 1963-1965 | England | Manchester | 5 | Pauline Reade, John Kilbride, Keith Bennett, Lesley Ann Downey, Edward Evans | 10-17 | F, M | Ian Brady, Myra Hindley | 25, 21 | F, M | Murder, kidnapping, sexual assault, sadism | Slit throat, strangulation, axe | Hindley became obsessed with Brady and came to share his fascination with sadism and violence. Together they wanted to commit the perfect crime. They would work togeter to pick up unsuspecting teens to kidnap, assault, and murder. They would dispose of the bodies in the moors. Their crimes came to light when they got sloppy and murdered Edward Evans in front of Hindley's brother in law, David Smith. To protect himself, David helped clean up the crime and get out of Hindley and Brady's house before he went home, woke up his wife, and they went to the police together. After that, their crimes unfolded and Hindley and Brady became the most notorious killer couple in British history. There was plenty of evidence of the crimes since Brady and Hindley would take pictures of places the bodies were hidden. The body of Keith Bennett has never been found. In Sep 2018, some jewelry related to the case surfaced. It's not sure which victim the jewelry relates to. As of 2018, Myra has been claiming that everything was Ian's fault - she went along with it due to mental and physical abuse. Ian claims she was a willing participant. As of Nov 2018, Pauline Reed's jawbone has been buried with her body. It was originally kept by police in an evidence box. Some of Pauline's belongings have also been returned to her family. The police issued a statement that Pauline and the other victims are on their minds, and they apologize for not returning the items sooner. | ||||
51 | 50 | Jennifer Pan | 4/16/2017 | 2:39:52 | Anonymous Host, Victoria Dieffenbacher | Anonymous Host, Victoria Dieffenbacher | 4.46 | 876 | Solved | 11/8/2010 | Canada | Ontario | Toronto | 1 | Heui Hann Pan, Bich Ha | 51, 40s | F, M | Jennifer Pan, David Mylvaganam, Eric Carty, Daniel Wong | 25, 20s, 20s, 25 | F, M | Murder, murder-for-hire | Shooting | Daughter's desire to be rid of controlling parents / desire to live her own life | Jennifer Pan Interrogation Part 1 | Jennifer Pan was a pathological liar. She struggled to live up to her parent's expectations (so called "tiger parenting"). She falsified her entire life to impress her parents, but it was all a lie - she didn't attend the college she claimed she did, she didn't have the job she claimed she did, and she had continued trying to see her ex-boyfriend that her parents told her to never see again. Her ex, Daniel, was tired of Jennifer's obsessiveness with him, and he moved on to a new girlfriend. Jennifer made up situations to appeal to his pity - such as saying she had been attacked by strangers and raped, when she hadn't been. She also made up lies about his new girlfriend to try to get her out of the picture. Ultimately, she decided that to be with Daniel, she had to get rid of her parents, who had caught on to her lies and enforced stricter rules on her. She had Daniel hire some men he knew from drug dealing to stage a break-in that would end with Jennifer's parents dead. Unfortunately for Jennifer, her father survived a shot to the head and Jennifer's story fell apart quickly after that. | |
52 | 51 | Tina Watson | 4/23/2017 | 2:29:31 | Anonymous Host, Victoria Dieffenbacher | Anonymous Host, Victoria Dieffenbacher | 4.14 | 551 | Solved | 10/22/2003 | Australia | Queensland | Wreck of SS Yongala | 1 | Tina Watson | 26 | F | Gabe Watson | 26 | M | Manslaughter | Possible tampering with scuba diving equipment or Negligence | Tina and Gabe were an American couple on their honeymoon in Australia. Gabe was a scuba diver hobbyist. Tina had taken some brief lessons to accomodate this hobby, but she didn't particularly seem to like or feel comfortable with scuba diving. Gabe chose the location of their honeymoon. During their dive, Tina became unresponsive. It was later found her equipment was bad - so either her partner Gabe had insufficient knowledge/experience to properly check her equipment, or he had tampered with it. Gabe's behavior after finding the body was very unusual - he seemed to not care a bit his new wife was dead. Another diver witnessed what seemed to be a struggle between Tina and Gabe under water right before she died. Gabe quickly moved on to a new girlfriend. Gabe was charged with murder in Australia, but was only convicted of manslaughter. An Alabama court also dismissed the case. Gabe had an overly confident, cocky, arrogant attitude in other aspects of his life and Tina's parents had concerns about him. Experts who have examined the evidence are torn between Gabe being overly confident, under-trained, and too cocky in his diving abilities and Gabe being malicious in his behavior towards Tina. Either way, intentional or not, Tina's death is Gabe's fault. | |||
53 | 52 | Mary & Beth Stauffer, Jason Wilkman | 5/6/2017 | 1:56:18 | Victoria Dieffenbacher | Victoria Dieffenbacher | 4.09 | 508 | Solved | 5/16/1980 | USA | Minnesota | Duluth | 2 | Mary Stauffer, Beth Stauffer, Jason Wilkman | 36, 8, 6 | F, M | Ming Sen Shiue | 30 | M | Abduction, rape, imprisonment, stalking, murder | Guns | Shiue had Mary as a 9th grade algebra teacher, and he became obsessed with her. He even wrote stories about her and their life together. As an adult, his obsession intensified and he began stalking Mary. Mary and her husband were devoutly religious and had gone on missions outside of the country, and were planning to do so again when Mary and her daughter Beth were kidnapped while out running errands in May 16. Another young boy, Jason Wilkman, who happened to hear Mary and Beth tied up in the trunk of the car, was also kidnapped and later killed to keep him quiet. She was kept locked up in Shiue's home, regularly raped (while being recorded). Shiue had big plans for Mary falling in love with him and being with him forever (he recorded some of these conversations). He also was erratic, blaming his B in her class as the reason he couldn't attend college and was drafted into the war. Shiue threatened their lives and Mary's husband's life if they ever tried to escape. Shiue had a job to go to, so he would keep them locked in a room and sometimes tied up. On July 7, 1980, Mary was able to remove the pin from the locked door and they called the cops. Beth did not handle this well - she was scared Shiue would find out and kill them. Shiue was arrested. He was tried for Jason's murder and the kidnapping of Mary and Beth. During the trial, he managed to smuggle a knife into the courtroom and he attacked Mary, leaving a gash on her face that required 62 stitches to close. He openly vowed in court to kill her when he got out of prison. As a result he was convicted to life in prison. | |||
54 | 53 | The Golden State Killer ( 6 Parter) | 5/13/2017 | 1:59:45 | Elsha McGill, Erin Munro, Milly Raso | Elsha McGill, Erin Munro, Milly Raso | 4.60 | 70 | Solved | 1974-1986 | USA | California | Sacramento | 13 | Claude Snelling, Brian Maggiore, Katie Maggiore, Robert Offerman, Debra Manning, Charlene Smith, Lyman Smith, Keith Harrington, Patrice Harrington, Manuela Witthuhn, Cheri Domingo, Gregory Sanchez, Janelle Cruz | 13-50s | F, M | Joseph James Deangelo | 30 | M | Murder, sexual assault, burglaries, stalking | Shooting, bludgeoning | The cases went unsolved for over 40 years. America's most prolific unsolved serial rapist / killer went on a killing spree from October 1, 1979 to July 27, 1981 before taking a 5 year break. Last known murder occurred on May 4, 1986. Earlier suspected murders include Brian and Katie Maggiore (1978) and Claude Snelling (1975). He escalated over time - from burglaries, to rapes, to murders that grew in level of violence and went from 1 female victim to couples. The attacker was noted to be athletic, whose knowledge of the home and victim suggested he had stalked the victim for some time prior to attacking. Police suggested a connection to the navy due to the complex diamond knots the attacker used to control the victims. By April 25, 2018, a tested DNA sample on Joseph James Deangelo, confirmed a match with the EAR/ONS. He is in custody and currently awaiting trial. Deangelo worked for a time as a police officer and had three daughters in the early 1980s. As of Jul 2018, it is known that Deangelo's DNA was swabbed from the handle of his car door and discarded trash and tissue. A relative of Deangelo had submitted dna to a genealogy website. Multiple samples were gathered to confirm for sure that the DNA was Deangelo's and the DNA matched the EAR. As of Aug 2018, survivors and family members of victims of EAR/ONS attended court to see Deangelo themselves. Prosecutors are also looking to review another case - a man called William Evans was found guilty of murdering a woman in 1979, but supporters are saying that his guilty plea was suspicious and there are similarities between this crime and EAR/ONS murders. A male victim (Hayes) of EAR/ONS spoke out about his experience. He and his girlfriend at the time were attacked by EAR/ONS. It's possible that Deangelo also was still prowling neighborhoods up to the time he was arrested. As of Sep 2018, Deangelo was charged with Snelling's murder. Prosecutors are finding ways to charge Deangelo with the rapes, too (since rape has a statute of limitations) by instead charging him with other things like kidnapping. Deangelo may need to pay for his own prosecutor if he isn't eligible for one from the state. In Oct 2019, some further information was given regarding Dr. Rey Venter and the genelogical techniques they used to build the DNA profile of EARONS and connect him to Deangelo. This is helped lead them to GED match website As of Nov 2018, there is another possible case that can be linked to Deangelo. 34 year old mom Patricia Newfield was bludgeoned in Nov 1978. She lived only 6 blocks from Deangelo's brother. There were no signs of forced entry. Another possible connection is a murdered woman named Joan ______ in 1979. These cases have not been established as Deangelo's, but there are some similarities and police are looking into it. As of Nov 2018, a pre-trial hearing was set for December 6. As of Dec 2018, the judge determined that Deangelo cannot afford his own attorney given that the trial is expected to cost around 20 million dollars. The trial could take as long as 10 years due to the complexity of the case. The judge does not see the need to put a media ban on the trial. These crimes primarily occurred in the Sacramento and Contra Costa counties. | |||
55 | 53 | The East Area Rapist (5 parter) | 5/14/2017 | 8:12:32 | Anonymous Host, Victoria Dieffenbacher | Anonymous Host, Victoria Dieffenbacher | 4.60 | 870 | Solved | 1974-1986 | USA | California | Sacramento | 13 | Claude Snelling, Brian Maggiore, Katie Maggiore, Robert Offerman, Debra Manning, Charlene Smith, Lyman Smith, Keith Harrington, Patrice Harrington, Manuela Witthuhn, Cheri Domingo, Gregory Sanchez, Janelle Cruz | 13-50s | F, M | Joseph James Deangelo | 30 | M | Murder, sexual assault, burglaries, stalking | Shooting, bludgeoning | The cases went unsolved for over 40 years. America's most prolific unsolved serial rapist / killer went on a killing spree from October 1, 1979 to July 27, 1981 before taking a 5 year break. Last known murder occurred on May 4, 1986. Earlier suspected murders include Brian and Katie Maggiore (1978) and Claude Snelling (1975). He escalated over time - from burglaries, to rapes, to murders that grew in level of violence and went from 1 female victim to couples. The attacker was noted to be athletic, whose knowledge of the home and victim suggested he had stalked the victim for some time prior to attacking. Police suggested a connection to the navy due to the complex diamond knots the attacker used to control the victims. By April 25, 2018, a tested DNA sample on Joseph James Deangelo, confirmed a match with the EAR/ONS. He is in custody and currently awaiting trial. Deangelo worked for a time as a police officer and had three daughters in the early 1980s. As of Jul 2018, it is known that Deangelo's DNA was swabbed from the handle of his car door and discarded trash and tissue. A relative of Deangelo had submitted dna to a genealogy website. Multiple samples were gathered to confirm for sure that the DNA was Deangelo's and the DNA matched the EAR. As of Aug 2018, survivors and family members of victims of EAR/ONS attended court to see Deangelo themselves. Prosecutors are also looking to review another case - a man called William Evans was found guilty of murdering a woman in 1979, but supporters are saying that his guilty plea was suspicious and there are similarities between this crime and EAR/ONS murders. A male victim (Hayes) of EAR/ONS spoke out about his experience. He and his girlfriend at the time were attacked by EAR/ONS. It's possible that Deangelo also was still prowling neighborhoods up to the time he was arrested. As of Sep 2018, Deangelo was charged with Snelling's murder. Prosecutors are finding ways to charge Deangelo with the rapes, too (since rape has a statute of limitations) by instead charging him with other things like kidnapping. Deangelo may need to pay for his own prosecutor if he isn't eligible for one from the state. In Oct 2019, some further information was given regarding Dr. Rey Venter and the genelogical techniques they used to build the DNA profile of EARONS and connect him to Deangelo. This is helped lead them to GED match website As of Nov 2018, there is another possible case that can be linked to Deangelo. 34 year old mom Patricia Newfield was bludgeoned in Nov 1978. She lived only 6 blocks from Deangelo's brother. There were no signs of forced entry. Another possible connection is a murdered woman named Joan ______ in 1979. These cases have not been established as Deangelo's, but there are some similarities and police are looking into it. As of Nov 2018, a pre-trial hearing was set for December 6. As of Dec 2018, the judge determined that Deangelo cannot afford his own attorney given that the trial is expected to cost around 20 million dollars. The trial could take as long as 10 years due to the complexity of the case. The judge does not see the need to put a media ban on the trial. These crimes primarily occurred in the Sacramento and Contra Costa counties. | |||
56 | 54 | Daniel Morcombe | 7/2/2017 | 1:27:20 | Milly Raso | Milly Raso | 4.44 | 745 | Solved | 12/7/2003 | Australia | Queensland | Sunshine Coast | 1 | Daniel Morcombe | 13 | M | Brett Peter Cowan | 34 | M | Murder, sexual assault, interfering wtih a corpse, pedophilia | Unknown | Brett Cowans Confession | Daniel Morcombe was a twin. He was going to catch the bus so he could go shopping for christmas, but he failed to come home. The bus he was supposed to catch had broken down and the replacement bus didn't stop for Daniel due to how delayed the bus was. Another bus arrived 3 minutes after the replacement bus, but by then Daniel was gone and he had been spotten in the company of a man who had presumably offered to give him a ride. The case went unsolved until 2011, when an undercover operation on Brett Peter Cowan revealed him as the murderer. Cowan had a long history of pedophilia and child abuse. He was under suspicion of police as early as 2006. The police set up a massive undercover sting, pretending to be a criminal organization that Cowan could work for. After months of gaining his trust and his employ, the "boss" of this criminal organization confronted Cowan due to his connections to the Morcombe murder. The boss promised Cowan they could sweep it all under the rug, but they needed to know what all needed to be swept up. After an extensive interview, Cowan finally admitted to it and he was arrested. In March 2014, Cowan was sentence to life with the possibility of parole after 20 years. As of 2018, the Daniel Morcombe foundation is running some fundraisers "Day for Daniel", which is child safety awareness. | ||
57 | 55 | Simone Strobel | 7/16/2017 | 1:08:53 | Anonymous Host, Victoria Dieffenbacher | Anonymous Host, Victoria Dieffenbacher | 3.79 | 387 | Solved (ongoing) | 2/11/2005 | Australia | New South Wales | Lismore | 1 | Simone Strobel | 25 | F | Tobias Suckfuell / Toby Moran | 25 | M | Murder | Suffocation | EPISODE REMOVED FOR LEGAL REASONS. Four german friends, including the couple Simone and Tobias and Tobias's sister Kathrin and their friend Jens Martin, were visiting Australia. After a night of drinking, Simone disappeared. Her body was found 6 days later, naked. The case is ongoing, but police have long believed and continue to gather evidence that shows her boyfriend Tobias is responsible for her murder. Tobias has not yet been charged, but in 2012 he married a wealthy Perth woman and continues to live the high life in Australia. As of 2017, police are still investigating the crime and Tobias is the prime suspect. The crime: Tobias and Simone had argued right before she disappeared. Deputy coroners found that Tobias had time to dispose of the body while their friends were out looking for her. Forensic material near the body suggests that Tobias had been present. Jens stated that Tobias asked him to lie to police regarding Tobias and Simone arguing.Tobias's sister Katrin may have helped drag the body away after she was suffocated. Tobias and his family are litigious and sue anyone who suggests he is the murderer, which is why casefile took this episode down. | |||
58 | 56 | Anita Cobby | 7/23/2017 | 1:35:52 | Victoria Dieffenbacher | Victoria Dieffenbacher | 4.31 | 625 | Solved | 2/2/1986 | Australia | New South Wales | Surry Hills | 1 | Anita Cobby | 26 | F | John Travers, Michael Murdoch, Michael Murphy, Gary Murphy, Les Murphy | 18-33 | M | Murder, gang rape, sexual assault | Slit throat, beating | Anita was a nurse. After a shift at work and dinner with friends, she left to head home, but she was kidnapped by a gang of 5 men who beat, assaulted, and then killed her. All of the men had violent criminal histories. When her body was discovered, suspicion first went to her husband, from whom she was separated. But he had a rock solid alibi (spending the evening of her death with her parents) and was clearly devastated by her death. The 5 men were tricked into confessing because John Travers uncle's girlfriend, Jennifer, got him on tape to confess to it, and from there the rest started confessing. In Oct 2018, Michael Murphy is not expected to live long. As of 2018, the case is talked about in an article talking about the high cost of prisons - per night, per prisoner. Michael Murphy in particular still shows no remorse. He is in pallitive care in jail due to poor health. | |||
59 | 57 | Walsh Street | 7/30/2017 | 1:47:58 | Milly Raso | Milly Raso | 3.91 | 534 | Solved | 10/12/1988 | Australia | Victoria | Melbourne | 2 | Damian Eyre, Steven Tynan | 20, 22 | M | Victor Peirce, Trevor Pettingill, Anthony Leigh Farrell, Peter David McEvoy | 30, 23, est. 20s, est. 20s | M | Murder, ambush, gang violence | Shooting | Early in the morning, an abandoned vehicle on Walsh Street was called in to police. The two nearest cops, Eyre and Tynan, responded. But it was an ambush - two masked men attacked them once they arrived, and they both died from gun wounds shortly after. Eyre and Tynan weren't specially targeted, they just happened to be the first on scene. A gang the police named The Flemington Crew had robbed at least four banks around Melbourne, and one of the guns used in those robberies was connected to the ambush/murders of Eure and Tynan. Members of the Pettingill crime family were believed to be involved, and the attacks were believed to be a form of revenge against police by criminals. Specifically, the day before the ambush, Pettingil crime family member Victor Pierce's best friend Graeme Jensen was fatally shot by police during a robbery. This was just the last in several years of back and forth between police and the criminal underworld associated with Victor Pierce. At the trial of the four men, prosecution alleged that 6 men were involved in the planning (the four, Jedd houghton (already dead), and Jason Ryan (who turned as a witness for the cops and later entered witness protection). Victor Pierce's wife was his alibi, but she later retracted her statement that he was with her the whole night of the murders. She was set to be a witness for the prosecution, but she later retracted her retraction and was a hostile witness during the pre-trial and didn't attend the actual trial. After Victor's death, his wife Wendy told media in 2005 that he was indeed responsible for these murders. Victor was murdered in a drive by shooting in 2002. All four men were acquitted by the court since the jury decided there wasn't enough evidence to convict. As of Oct 2018, Bill Nash (a former police man) came forward with an affidavit saying that police falsified evidence in the case of the death of Graeme Jensen. He is the second police officer to come forward with such allegations, though the first officer was later convicted of drug charges. As of Nov 2018, Anthony Farrel has died. He likely had knowledge of the shooting, but perhaps did not participate himself. | |||
60 | 58 | Shannon Matthews | 8/13/2017 | 1:03:30 | Anonymous Host, Victoria Dieffenbacher | Anonymous Host, Victoria Dieffenbacher | 3.93 | 516 | Solved | 2/19/2008 | England | West Yorkshire | Dewsbury | 1 | Shannon Matthews | 9 | F | Michael Donovan, Karen Matthews | 39 | F, M | Child neglect, kidnapping, false imprisonment, perverting the course of justice | Kidnapping | Shannon Matthews went missing after a swimming lesson on February 19. The investigation into her disappearance was massive and raised questions about the class differences of missing girls - the recent Madeline McCann disappearance had more media, but Matthews came from a poor family. On March14, Shannon was found drugged and bound in the base of a bed at Michael Donovan's home, which was within a mile's distance from Shannon's own home. Michael Donovan is the uncle of Craig Meehan, a pedophile and the boyfriend of Karen Matthews, Shannon's mom. Karen and Michael had plotted to fake a kidnapping in order to obtain the reward money for finding the kidnapped girl. Their plot was unwound when police started to become suspicious of Donovan and visited his flat, where they found Shannon. Karen lost custody of all 7 of her children, including Shannon. Karen and Donovan were sentenced to 8 years in prison. Meehan, who had nothing to do with the kidnapping, was sentenced on other child abuse material charges and sentenced to 20 weeks imprisonment. Experts later found that Shannon had likely been drugged for up to a year before her kidnapping. | |||
61 | 59 | Amy Lynn Bradley | 8/19/2017 | 1:13:14 | Alyssa Fletcher, Elsha McGill, Milly Raso | Alyssa Fletcher, Elsha McGill, Milly Raso | 4.11 | 558 | Unsolved | 3/24/1998 | Curacao | Antilles | 1 | Amy Lynn Bradley | 23 | F | Unknown | Unknown | Unknown | Disappearance, possible kidnapping | Unknown | Amy, her parents, and her brother Brad (21), were gifted a cruise trip by Ron's workplace. They went together, though Amy had misgivings about the trip. On March 24, early in the morning, Amy had been drinking and dancing at the ship's club. She was there at least by 1 am if not later. Ron saw Amy asleep in their cab between 5:15 and 5:30 am, but when he got up at 6:00 am, she was no longer there. She was not seen again. Extensive searches of the ship and surrounding seas produced no sign of her whereabouts. Amy was a trained lifeguard and investigators said there was no evidence that she had fallen overboard or committed suicide. Since that time, there have been some reported sightings of Amy in Curacao in 1998 and 1999. This second sighting, the witness claimed that Amy said she needed help since she was not allowed to leave. In 2005, an image of a woman resembling Amy was emailed to her parents, which suggested Amy may have been sold into sex slavery. At one point, the family hired a private investigator to look further into the case, but he ultimately was stringing the family along to get their money. The two leading theories are that she was sold into sex slavery (the family alleges a ship worker called "yellow" may have drugged her at the bar and then abducted her) or that she fell overboard (since she was likely still intoxicated and sleeping by the balcony, she may have fallen over the railing. Alternatively, she could have had a conflict with Yellow, which ended with her being pushed overboard). Either way, she is likely not alive today. This crime took place on the MS Rhapsody of the Sea - en route to Curacao | ||||
62 | 60 | Jonestown (3 parter) | 9/17/2017 | 3:23:16 | Milly Raso | Milly Raso | 4.49 | 780 | Solved | 11/18/1978 | Guyana | Jonestown | 918 | F, M | Jim Jones | 47 | M | Mass murder-suicide | Poisoning, guns, knife | Religious / cult beliefs, power/control | Jim Jones started off as a revolutionary religious speaker who drew in a large following of minorities - primarily women and black people - due to his support of civil rights and criticism of social norms of his day. He was an extremely charismatic speaker, like many cult leaders are. His church, the Peoples Temple, was formed in Indiana in 1955. His following quickly took the form of a cult, since it brought in much money, the members were required to dedicate all their time and money to the cause, and they were expected to follow their leader wherever he went. Jones because extremely paranoid as time went on and came to believe the US government was trying to catch him/persecute him. He eventually decided to leave the country after investigations into the legality of his organization intensified in San Francisco. He set up Jonestown in Guyana and insisted his followers join him there. It was set up as a communist community - since Jones was interested in communism and even wished to move them all to Russia. Life in jonestown was poor. The living conditions were terrible, despite Jones holding it up as a paradise community. Members worked 12 hour days, 6 days a week trying to maintain Jonestown. In evenings, members were expected to sit and listen to lectures on socialism and other ideas Jones liked. During these evenings, Jones would interrogate individual followers and solidify his hold on the community, nearly like brainwashing. Jones set himself up as the father of these hundreds of temple members and insisted he was called father. Jones continued to fall more and more into paranoia, becoming obsessed with communism and the belief that the American government was out to get him. People who attempted to escape Jonestown were caught and punished, even drugged and tortured. Jones began to have "white night rehearsals," which were addresses to the temple members regarding their safety and essentially served to spread Jone's paranoia about the CIA to members. He kept saying the capitalist pigs were out to destroy Jonestown. He insisted the only way to live genuinely free was to either flee to the soviet union, or commit "revolutionary suicide", or attempt to fight the invading CIA attackers. On a few occassions, a simulated "revoutionary suicide" was rehearsed. Paranoia was at an all time high. Congressman Leo Ryan of California visited Jonestown to investigate rumors of murder and abuse happening there. On Nov 14, he flew there with a delegation to visit Jones. He was at first not allowed to access Jonestown. By Nov 17, Ryan and his delegation was allowed in to visit. While he was there, some temple members tried to plead for help and defect by handing him a note asking for help to escape. Ryan and his delegation stayed there over night and the next day, Ryan and his delegation left for Port Kaituma airstrip to leave. Some defectors tried to join him, including Jones loyalist Larry Layton and other loyalists. At the airstrip, Ryan and his people were attacked by the loyalists, ending in the death of 5 people, Ryan included. "The attacks on Ryan (likely ordered by Jones) were used by Jones to start enacting a final ""white night"". With the death of a government official, Jones said the time to act was now. The soviets wouldn't have them, and the only other option available was revolutionary suicide. Loyalists poisoned koolaid. Jones recorded this white night on ""Death Tape,"" where he was convincing his members to take the poison. A temple member, Christine Miller, argued against taking the poison and argued that they should find another way, but she was silenced by other temple members. Taking the poison was not entirely voluntary, given that loyalists stood around with guns and members were called forward to take their poison. They started with babies and children. Death occurred within 5 minutes, and people who took the poison later could hear the first people dying in agony. Then the remaining began to panic and showed a ""reluctance to die."" Later that evening, 4 people - Sharon Amos and her 3 kids - at temple headquarters in Georgetown also committed murder-suicide via a kitchen knife. All in all, 918 people died as a result of Jonestown. Only 33 people who were in Jonestown that morning survived the night: 11 people escaped into the jungle and watched 30 miles to another town. 14 defectors survived the airport ambush. 4 people were sent away by Jones or his mistress. 4 lived through the mass suicides by hiding The demographics of Jones's followers were overwhelmingly black and female (black people made up 70% of jonestown, and black women in particular made up 45%). White women made up 13% and white men made up 11%. Roughly a third of the 918 dead were minors (304). Jonestown was the largest loss of American civilian lives in a deliberate act until 9/11. November 18, 2018 was the 40th anniversary of Jonestown." Members of Jonestown (909), Leo Ryan and 4 companions (5), Jonestown members at Georgetown (4) | |||||
63 | 61 | The Lin Family | 9/29/2017 | 1:03:45 | Anna Priestland | Anna Priestland | 4.32 | 703 | Solved | 7/18/2009 | Australia | New South Wales | North Epping | 5 | Min Lin, Yun Lin, Irene Lin, Henry Lin, Terry Lin | 45, 43, 39, 12, 9 15 | F, M | Lian Bin "Robert" Xie | 45 | M | Murder | Bludgeoning with a hammer-like object | Kathy Lin, sister of Min, and her husband Lian "Robert" discovered the 5 bodies when she went to see why the family wasn't at their newsagency that morning. The whole family was wiped out except for Jun "Brenda" Lin (15), who was on a school trip at the time of the murders. Robert and Kathy became the legal guardians of Brenda (he had offered to adopt her within hours of the murders) and they also took over the newsagency that the Lin family had run. In May 2010, police were able to match bloody footprints at the crime scene with shoes belonging to Robert. After a covert operation, they obtained surveillance of Robert trying to dispose of the evidence. Bloodstains in Robert's home matched blood from 4 of the 5 victims. Robert was then arrested in May 2011, and in 2017, Brenda revealed publicly that during the time she was under his guardianship, he began molesting her. His desire for his niece was argued by prosecutors as a motive for the crime. He had began touching her inappropriately even before the murders occurred. Robert was found guilty and sentenced to five life sentences without the possibility of parole. | |||
64 | 62 | The Honolulu Strangler | 10/7/2017 | 0:41:57 | Anna Priestland | Anna Priestland | 3.46 | 530 | Unsolved | 1985-1986 | USA | Hawaii | Honolulu | 5 | Vicki Gail Purdy, Regina Sakamoto, Denise Hughes, Louise Medeiros, Linda Pesce | 25, 17, 21, 25, 36 | F | Unknown | Unknown | Unknown | Murder, sexual assault | Strangulation | The Honolulu strangler is an Unknown serial killer from Hawaii. He would kidnap, rape, and strangle women. He was an opportunist who would abduct women in vulnerable areas, such as waiting at bus stops. He wouldn't stalk or choose victims ahead of time. Witnesses saw Pesce with a man who is believed to be the strangler, and he was described as caucasian or mixed race with a light colored van. An informant, an unidentified 43 year old caucasian man, came forward to police saying a psychic told him the location of Pesce's body, but the location was wrong. This informant was arrested on May 9th, when Pesce's body was found. Those who knew this man personally said he was "caucasian, middle aged, clean cut, receding hairline, black glasses, polite", but seemed to make people uncomfortable by being too interested in some women. His ex wife and girlfriend both also claimed that they engaged in sexual bondage, and allegedly on the same nights of the murders, he would leave the house. This suspect lived in Ewa beach and worked as a mechanic. He failed a polygraph test and was interrogated, but was released due to a lack of concrete evidence. Two months later, a woman came forward claiming she saw Pesce with a man the night she died and she successfully chose the suspect out of a photo lineup. Police believed the man was their killer, but only had circumstantial evidence and thus he was never charged. This suspect was Howard Gay, as reported by some media outlets later on. Most people believe Gay is the perpetrator, but police bungled the case and he was let go. It seems that he died in 2012 and cannot be charged now anyway. Thus it is officially unsolved but we likely know the perpetrator. | |||
65 | 63 | Catherine Holmes and Georgina Watmore | 10/15/2017 | 0:41:41 | Anonymous Host | Anonymous Host | 3.66 | 412 | Unsolved (ongoing) | 4/15/1987 | Australia | New South Wales | Cowra | 2 | Catherine Holmes, Georgina Watmore | 29, 23 | F | Unknown | Unknown | Unknown | Murder | Bludgeoning with a sharp, heavy weapon | Georgina and Catherine attended a small after-pub party on April 15, 1987 with a few friends. The party broke up in the early morning hours. When Catherine did not report to work the next day and when a neighbor became concerned that Catherine's car had remained in the driveway the whole time, the neihgbor Ms. Moulder sent her son over to Catherine's house to see if anyone was home. He could see blood and bodies together on the bed from the window of the main bedroom. Paramedics arrived and found Georgina unconscious and Catherine dead. Georgina was pronounced dead at the hospital. A coroner ruled that the person responsible for the deaths was someone they knew and were "deeply and emotionally involved" with due to the nature of the crime. There is a current $200,000 reward for information that leads to the crime being solved. Catherine was a mother of two children. | |||
66 | 64 | Peter Weinberger | 10/29/2017 | 0:56:05 | Milly Raso | Milly Raso | 3.74 | 457 | Solved | 7/4/1956 | USA | New York | Westbury | 1 | Peter Weinberger | 1 month | M | Angelo LaMarca | 31 | M | Kidnapping, extortion, murder | Abandonment to the elements | Peter was kidnapped from his back yard and a ransome note left. The media was asked to keep the police investigation out of the press so they could follow the ransom note instructions without interference, but they didn't respect the request. The kidnapper did not attend the ransom meetup. Several false notes were sent to the family, and a couple more meetups with the real kidnapper also went nowhere. After a week, the FBI got involved and eventually the kidnapper was identified by his unique handwriting style. Angelo LaMarca was a family man in a lot of debt. He kidnapped Peter as a crime of opportunity to try to get money to pay off his debts. He was sentenced to the death penalty. | |||
67 | 65 | Allison Baden-Clay | 11/5/2017 | 1:35:29 | Anna Priestland | Anna Priestland | 4.30 | 634 | Solved | 4/19/2012 | Australia | Queensland | Brisbane | 1 | Allison Baden-Clay | 43 | F | Gerard Baden-Clay | 42 | M | Murder | Blunt force trauma | Allison married Gerard in 1997 and had 3 kids with him. He was an amibtious real estate agent. In the year before her death, Allison discovered that Gerard was having an affair with one of his employees - a salesperson named Toni. What she didn't realize was that the affair was serious and had been going on for 3 years. Gerard's partners knew about the affair and after a couple years, they insisted that he must end the affair since it was affecting the work place and profits. Gerard offered to buy his partners out of the business and Allison started working there to try to help turn profits. On the day she disappeared, Allison was set to attend a real estate conference. Toni was also going to attend. This prompted Toni to tell Gerard to make up his mind once and for all - her or Allison. That night, Allison disappeared. Gerard called the cops the next day to report his wife missing. He had some scratches on his face, hands, and chest. Further witness testimony and evidence pointed to Gerard. Even Toni testified. Gerard was sentenced to life with a non parole period of 15 years. Even at the end, Gerard and his family refused to accept his responsibility. | |||
68 | 66 | The Black Widow | 11/10/2017 | 1:04:42 | Anna Priestland | Anna Priestland | 3.79 | 498 | Solved | 1971-1986 | USA | North Carolina | Alamance County | 4 | PD Kiser, Isla Taylor, James N. Taylor, Raymond Reid, Dwight Moore | 40s-70s | F, M | Blanche Taylor Moore | 35 | F | Murder | Poisoning | Blanche hard a hard life growing up with an abusive father, sexual abuse, and unhappy home life. She seems to have taken these attributes into her own relationships. She poisoned her first husband's mother, her own father, her first husband, one of her boyfriends, and another boyfriend who later survived. She would put arsenic in the food of her victims. She usually did this for financial gain - she was generally the recipient of their insurance payouts or pension payouts. | |||
69 | 67 | The Battle of Alcatraz | 11/18/2017 | 1:09:09 | Milly Raso | Milly Raso | 3.83 | 588 | Solved | 05/02/1946 | USA | California | San Francisco | 2 | Harold Stites, William Miller | 49, Unknown | M | Bernard Coy, Joseph Cretzer, Marvin Hubbard | 46, 35, 33 | M | Attempted prison escape | Guns | Bernard Coy planned an escape from alcatraz for 7 years. On May 2, he put his plan into action with the help of Joseph Cretzer and Marvin Hubbard. Later on, Sam Shockley, Miran Thompson, and Clarence Carnes also became involved. Coy managed to access weapons and imprison some of the guards within cell block D, but he couldn't escape to the yard because he didn't have the correct door key, and the door had locked down due to a failsafe anyway. Since the escape attempt failed, the ringleaders Coy, Cretzer, and Hubbard decided to just stay alive as long as possible, so the escape became a siege that didn't end until two days later. Cretzer shot into the cells where they had imprisoned guards, wounding most of them. Military and police authorities came to help take back the prison and eventually, Coy, Cretzer, and Hubbard were all found dead inside. Later, Shockley, Thompson, and Carnes were put on trial for their roles. Thompson and Shockley were put to death, but Carnes was just sentenced to life in prison since he had protected some of the prison guards. | |||
70 | 68 | Escape from Alcatraz | 11/25/2017 | 1:05:52 | Milly Raso | Milly Raso | 3.92 | 605 | Unsolved | 6/11/1962 | USA | California | San Francisco | Frank Morris, John Anglin, Clarence Anglin, Allen West | 36, 32, 31, 33 | M | Prison escape | Allen West found a potential way to escape outside of the prison via a vent opening. Allen enlisted the help of the Anglin brothers, who wanted to escape as much as he did, as well as Frank Morris, a high-IQ criminal with a long history of prison escapes. They spent months carving holes out of their prison cells (they found the old concrete was crumbly), creating dummies that would serve to mislead the prison guards, opening the vent that would lead outside, and creating life vests. On the night of the escape, Morris and the Anglin brothers were able to get out, but West was not able to since the hole in his cell was blocked by a pipe in the wall. He was left behind, even though he spent several hours widening the hole and he eventually got through. By then, the other three men were gone and West couldn't slip past the guards outside. The next day, guards realized they were 3 men short and West claimed to have masterminded the plan (though it is more likely that Morris was the real mastermind). The three men have never been seen again. It is likely that they drowned in the currents surrounding Alcatraz island, but their bodies have not been found and some people think they managed to make it to land and live out the rest of their lives. The FBI has concluded that while it is theoretically possible that they reached Angel island 2 miles away from Alcatraz, the frigid water and strong currents made it unlikely they survived. But at the same time, no bodies have ever been found, and given the currents of the bay, the bodies probably would have washed ashore or somewhere they could've been found. In August 2018, a tv show attested that the Anglin brothers may have survived and lived out their lives. A photo surfaced that some facial experts say is of the Anglin brothers. In November 2018, the FBI recreated the fake heads the escapees had made. They made replicas for historical purposes. They will be displayed and available for viewing. As of December 2018, a prisoner escaped from a UK prison. This escape was inspired by the escape from Alcatraz. He was eventually caught, pleaded guilty to it and several other smaller charges. | ||||||||
71 | 69 | Gary Patterson | 12/2/2017 | 0:59:00 | Anna Priestland | Anna Priestland | 3.72 | 436 | Solved | 5/3/1997 | USA | Texas | Waco | 1 | Gary Patterson | 33 | M | Sam Urick, Ted Young, Lisa Urick | 59, 50s, 30s | F, M | Murder, murder-for-hire | Buried alive, blunt trauma | Gary married Sam's daughter Lisa in the early 1980s. He didn't get along with his father in law, who he worked for. The business seemed unbalanced, with Gary doing the work and Sam taking the profits. In the early 90s, Gary's relationship with Lisa ended. Sam wanted to keep Gary away from "his" family, so he told his daughter to go on the run with Gary and Lisa's child. She fled the state and moved around for several years until investigators found her in '96. Gary got full custody of the child. Gary was attending several interviews for a job, but he didn't realize the interviews were a set up by Sam and a criminal Ted Young, designed to lure him into the desert to kill him. Ted fled to Honduras after the death, but officials captured him and he confessed. He directed investigators to Gary's body, and they found that he had been tortured and buried alive. Lisa covered for her father, but eventually caved under pressure and started talking to police. Turns out that Sam also had arrests/convictions for criminal behavior in 22 states as well as working with terrorists overseas. According to Ted's testimony, Ted helped trick/kidnap Gary to the desert, where Sam had Ted leave them alone because dealing with Gary would "take all night." The next day, Ted picked up Sam. Then he fled to Honduras and Sam left to Las Vegas. Upon agents finding Gary's body, Lisa lost full custody of their daughter, who was put in the custody of Gary's parents. Sam was sentenced to life in prison and Ted had additional time put onto his sentences that he had previously from N. Carolina. | |||
72 | 70 | The Kimberley Killer | 12/9/2017 | 0:55:03 | Gemma Harris | Gemma Harris | 3.93 | 511 | Solved | 6/9/1987 | Australia | Northern Territory / Western Australia | Top End | 5 | Marcus Bullen, Lance Bullen, Philip Walkemeyer, Julie Warren, Terry Bolt | 70, 42, 26, 25, 36 | F, M | Joseph Schwab | 26 | M | Spree killing | Shooting | Schwab was a German tourist and spree killer who would shoot at campers with a rifle. His motive is not clear, and he was killed in a final shootout with police. His car contained more weapons/bullets, so his spree would likely have continued if he hadn't been caught/killed. | |||
73 | 71 | Elodie Morel | 12/17/2017 | 0:56:30 | Milly Raso, Nicolas Deliez | Milly Raso, Nicolas Deliez | 3.83 | 480 | Solved | 5/2/2005 | France | Occitanie | Aigues-Mortes | 1 | Elodie Morel | 28 | F | Guillaume Mangot | 49 | M | Murder, abduction, sexual assault | Possible suffocation | Elodie was a young mother of a 4 year old and separated (but still friendly) from her husband Silvan. She wanted to get into the modeling industry and responded to a competition for a rolls royce modeling ad. She was selected as a finalist and went roughly 2 hours from her home in Marseille to meet up with Nicole de Forestier's (sp) assistant Le Quest (sp), the agent in charge of the ad. She never returned. Dominic Terasco was a bar owner and a police informant. He contacted Aigues-Mortes police to report a conversation he had overheard where a "friend" talked about kidnapping/harming a woman. Terasco reported this but would not give the "Friend's" name due to fear of the man, so he instead gave a discription of his car and the location the man would go to harm this woman. Police could not find a woman or man matching this description, and Terasco realized too late he'd accidentally given a description of the wrong car. On May 4, Silvan reported Elodie missing, but Marseille police didn't take him seriously and didn't immediately file the missing persons report. When the report was finally sent out to various police departments, the cops at Aiges-Mortes immediately noticed the similarities between it and Terasco's call. Terasco was interviewed again, and he said he saw this "Friend" and a woman who appeared unconscious in the "friend's" car driving passed a police roadblock. He told those police to arrest the "friend", but they didn't take him seriously. Aiges-Mortes police confirmed this happen with those police at the roadblock. Now the police insisted Terasco must give them the name of this friend, and he admitted to it finally - Guillaume Mangot, a middle aged man with a long history of violent crimes against women spanning back to the 1980s. With a sting operation involving Terasco, police lured Mangot to the bar where they sprung on him. Mangot was there with another friend, Richard Linier. Police found that Mangot had Elodie's credit card. They further went to Linier's home and found that Linier's daughter had Elodie's cell phone. Interviews between Mangot, Linier, and Linier's wife and daughter eventaully revealed that Mangot showed up at Linier's home with a drugged woman. They stored her in the basement, and Linier made references to assaulting/suffocating her. He gave Elodie's belongings to the Liniers as a gift. The Liniers claim they did not report this due to fear of Mangot. Mangot claimed his only crime was stealing Elodie's credit card, and it was Elodie's own fault because any one should have seen the ad was a scam. Mangot was given a relatively light sentence and even appealed to have his maximum sentence lowered to 30 years, with a minimum of 20. Terasco admits now that his intial refusal to name Mangot was a mistake that may have cost Elodie her life. | |||
74 | 72 | Wilhelmina Kruger and Anna Dowlingkoa | 1/14/2018 | 0:59:23 | Milly Raso | Milly Raso | 3.72 | 475 | Unsolved | 1/29/1966 | Australia | New South Wales | Wollongong | 2 | Wilhelmina Kruger, Anna Dowlingkoa | 56, 27 | F | Unknown | Unknown | Unknown | Murder | Stabbing, strangulation, mutilation | Kruger was a cleaning lady at the Piccadily center. She was brutally beaten, mutilated, and molested early in the morning during her shift on Jan 29, 1966. She was last seen alive at 4 am, and her body found by a butcher that worked in the center. She had been dragged from where she was cleaning down two flights of stairs, possibly while still alive. A Sydney detective sergeant said it was one of the most brutal, vicious slayings in the history of the state. Her injuries included torn skin, bruising, disembowlement, disfigurement, cigarette burns, torn hair. She clearly put up a strong fight but lost. The butcher was investigated but found to not have been involved. A month after Kruger's death, Anna Dowlingkoa (a prostitute) was found stabbed and mutilated in bush at Menai. Detectives believed the two women were killed in the same week by the same person. Some investigators believe there may possibly be a link between the murder of Kruger and the Wanda Beach girls, but there is no actual evidence to link the two. They do note the similarities of the crimes - the body was dragged along the ground, there was no attempt to conceal the bodies, and sexual molestation after the slayings occurred in each case, and the victims were killed in or near Sydney. Case evidence: There is no apparent motive and the case has not been solved. Based off the crime, it appeared that the killer was familiar with the layout of the Piccadilly center and Kruger's schedule - he knew she would be working alone at that time. His bloody footprint and cigarettes were found near the body. The murder weapon was a large double edged knife. Blonde hair was found attached to Kruger's body (her hair was grey/dyed reddish brown), presumably the killer's. She died of strangulation and the stabbings/mutilation occurred after death. | |||
75 | 73 | The Lady in the Barrel | 1/17/2018 | 0:43:02 | Anna Priestland | Anna Priestland | 3.54 | 525 | Solved | 7/19/1878 | USA | New York | New York City | 1 | Mary Ann Reinhardt | 25-30 | F | Edward Reinhardt | M | Murder, concealing a dead body | Negative side effects of abortion | Mary Ann Reinhardt ("Annie") was married to Edward Reinhardt. She was the first wife of Reinhardt. Reinhardt wanted to move on to a new woman, Pauline, who he married shortly after Mary Ann disappeared. Mary Ann's mother appealed to Pauline for help, and Pauline agreed. She discovered that Reinhardt was a bigamist and helped provide the evidence to police and Mary Ann's parents that condemned Reinhardt. He was found guilty by a jury. | ||||
76 | 74 | Eric Coy | 1/20/2018 | 1:00:13 | Anna Priestland | Anna Priestland | 3.67 | 455 | Unsolved | 1/24/1987 | USA | California | Martinez | 1 | Eric Coy | 9 | M | Unknown | Unknown | Unknown | Murder | Throat slashed | 9 year old Eric was going to his cousin's house (less than a mile away) to play, but he never arrived. A kid from the local boys&girls club found Eric's body along a footpath that was used to travel between eric's and his cousin's homes and the club. He was found within minutes of his attack. Benny, a neighbor of the Coy family, had some conflict with the coys due to Eric leaving his bike all over the place, but Benny was released as a suspect after 1 interview. It's a very small town, and from the murder location, the homes, the club, the police department and town hall were al visible. Luke Caroula, a 16 year old robbery suspect, was interviewed based off the fact that he looked similar to the sketch of the suspect (assumed to be about 21 years old) in Eric's murder. But this suspect was also cleared. Another suspect, Shawn Melton, that was interviewed claimed that the real killer of Eric was killed by someone called the terminator. There is no evidence connecting Melton to the crime. Detective Paul Holes presumes that it was a fantasy motivated crime - someone who wanted to commit violence or murder to see what it feels like - but then he was interrupted. Eric's brother Jason, later said that his father "took care of it", presumably took care of the person who killed Eric, but Jason couldn't find out if his dad was just drunkenly talking or if he really did something. | |||
77 | 75 | Graeme Thorne | 1/28/2018 | 1:03:58 | Anna Priestland, Bonnie Lavelle Robinson | Anna Priestland, Bonnie Lavelle Robinson | 3.87 | 493 | Solved | 7/7/1960 | Australia | New South Wales | Sydney | 1 | Graeme Thorne | 8 | M | Stephen Bradley | 34 | M | Kidnapping, murder, ransom | Suffocation | Graeme's father won the opera house lottery of $100,000 that year, and this led to his family being the target of beggers and then a kidnapping/ransom for Graeme. At the time, the privacy of the lottery winners was not respected. The name of the family and their location was printed in the newspapers, which is how Bradley found them and he started plotting to get the money from them. Bradley appears to have been envious - why should that family get financial security and not his? He plotted for a few days until he could successfully trick Graeme into his car by pretending that he was sent to give Graeme a ride to school. Graeme was tied up and knocked unconscious and placed into the boot of the car. Bradley made the ransom call to Graeme's mother, and when he got back to the car, he found that Graeme had suffocated. | |||
78 | 76 | Silk Road (3 parter) | 2/11/2018 | 3:51:51 | Victoria Dieffenbacher | Victoria Dieffenbacher | 4.56 | 961 | Solved | 2011-2013 | USA | Ross Ulbricht | 27 | M | Cybercrime, murder for hire | Internet | Monetary gain / control of black market | Ross Ulbricht became a fanatical libertarian during his time at college and as a result, he decided to set up an anonymous, online black marketplace for drugs. He promoted it anonymously and over time it gained traction. Once some of the FBI caught on to the existence of this marketplace, they started a sting operation to discover the identity of Ulbricht, who only went by the name the Dread Pirate Roberts. Ulbricht's right hand man also was caught up in the crimes and helped increase the security of the site, but also contributed to Ulbricht's paranoia. When he started getting really paranoid, Ulbricht hired hitmen to take out the men who he felt would betray him - what he didn't know is that the deaths were faked and just tools to make him sloppy. As of Jul 2018, Variety Jones / Roger Clark (right hand man of Ulbricht) has been in a Thai prison for the last 2.5 years, avoiding extradiction to the US. In July, he lost his fight and he will be in the US to face trial for his part in the Silk Road. Gary Davis also lost his appeals. Ulbricht argued that his convictions were unreasonable, but the supreme court denied his appeal. As of August 2018, some supporters of Ulbricht hope that Trump will pardon Ulbricht. In September 2018, a petition to the white house to reduce Ulbricht's sentence was gaining steam. As of Nov 2018, an admin, Gary Davis, of the Silk Road going by "Libertas" who resolved disputes between buyers and drug dealers has pleaded guilty to narcotics conspiracy. Sentencing is not until Jan 2019. Ross Ulbricht is currently in solitary for his "own safety." He is trying to plant an apple tree in his solitary cell from the apples he gets every day. As of Nov 2018, authorities have tracked down "red and white" James Ellington in Canada. He is the suspected hitman that Ulbricht hired. A petition asking for Trump to grant clemency to Ulbricht has gotten a hundred thousands signatures. The white house will likely not give a response to the petition, but we'll see. As of Dec 2018, Ulbricht has been reaching out to people in the bitcoin community for support in his case. He thinks his best hope is to get clemency from the president. | ||||||||
79 | 77 | Mia Zapata | 3/11/2018 | 1:02:15 | Anna Priestland | Anna Priestland | 3.93 | 598 | Solved | 7/7/1993 | USA | Washington | Seattle | 1 | Mia Zapata | 27 | F | Jesus Mezquia | 38 | M | Murder, sexual assault | Strangulation, beating | Mia was part of a up and coming musical group in Seattle, The Gits. She met foul play one night when she was targeted and attacked by Jesus Mezquia. It appeared to be a crime of opportunity. The case went unsolved for a decade when DNA evidence was able to link Mezquia to the crime. In Jul 2018, Mia's bandmades put togeter a kickstarter to publish a book about Mia, her music, her personality, etc. | |||
80 | 78 | The Janabi Family | 3/17/2018 | 1:48:22 | Milly Raso | Milly Raso | 4.23 | 671 | Solved | 3/12/2006 | Iraq | Mahmoudiya | 4 | Qasim al-Janabi, Fakhriyah al-Janabi, Abeer Hamza al-Janabi, Hadil al-Janabi | 14-45 | F, M | Specialist James Barker, Sergeant Paul Cortez, Private Jesse Spielman, Private Bryan Howard, Former Private Bryan Green | 19-23 | M | Murder, thrill killing, military killing, gang rape of a minor | Shooting, arson | Young military men began started venting frustrations about their situation in a very dangerous war zone, frustration over seeing their fellow soldiers killed. It fostered hatred towards the native iraqi people and a confidence that they could commit whatever crimes they wanted and get away with it since it would all fall under the scope of military action. Led largely by Steven Green. | ||||
81 | 79 | Rayna Rison | 3/25/2018 | 1:06:11 | Anna Priestland | Anna Priestland | 3.77 | 460 | Solved | 3/26/1993 | USA | Indiana | La Porte | 1 | Rayna RIson | 16 | F | Jason Tibbs | 16 | M | Murder | Strangulation | Rayna Rison lived a difficult life: as a child she was raped and (at age 11) was impregnated by her brother in law Ray McCarty. McCarty received a slap on the wrist as punishment and Rayna's sister Lori stayed with him and maintained his innocence in Rayna's disappearance. The assaulting of Rison by McCarty may have continued up until her disappearance. McCarty died aged 52 in jail in 2018. Rayna went missing at age 16 and was found 10 days later, her body weighted down in a pond. Rayna's murder went cold for roughly 15 years until an inmate came forward to point the finger at Jason Tibbs, Rayna's ex-boyfriend. This inmate claimed to have been witness to two men who pulled Rayna's body from the trunk of a car on the night of her disappearance. These two men were Jason Tibbs and his friend Eric Freeman. Freeman cut a deal with prosecutors to testify against Tibbs. Information that Freeman provided to police matched details that were never publicly released. Jason Tibbs was convicted in 2014 of Rayna's murder and is currently serving a 40 year prison sentence. In 2023, a judge rejected Tibb's argument that his lawyers failed to properly present evidence at court and thus he will not receive a new trial. | |||
82 | 80 | Beth Barnard | 4/8/2018 | 1:36:40 | Anna Priestland | Anna Priestland | 4.15 | 557 | Unsolved | 9/22/1986 | Australia | Victoria | Phillip Island | 1 | Beth Barnard | 23 | F | Fergus Cameron | 36 | F, M | Murder, possible murder-suicide, possible double murder | Stabbing | Beth Barnard had an affair with married man Fergus Cameron (36). She worked as a farmhand on the Cameron family farm. Fergus's wife Vivienne found out, and they had a violent altercation that ended with Fergus leaving the marital home and separating late that night. That same night, Beth was found murdered. She was mutilated, with a large A carved into her body. That same night, Vivienne disappeared and her body has not been found. Some evidence points towards Vivienne committing a murder-suicide with Beth in a rage against her cheating husband, but some evidence also points to Fergus being involved somehow, since he also had some wounds that night. Some believe Fergus did it and framed Vivienne, and his family helped cover up for him. Some combination of Vivienne or Fergus killing beth and Vivienne is likely. | |||
83 | 81 | Brian Wells | 4/15/2018 | 1:40:39 | Gemma Harris | Gemma Harris | 4.01 | 536 | Solved | 8/28/2003 | USA | Pennsylvania | Erie | 1 | Brian Wells | 46 | M | Marjorie Diehl-Armstrong, Kenneth Barnes | 54, est. 50s | F, M | Murder, robbery | Bomb | Wells got drawn into a plot with Diehl-Armstrong and Barnes to pull of a bank robbery heist. They set it up to look like Wells was forced to commit the act by strapping him up in a "fake" bomb collar or under the impression that the bomb would never go off. But he was killed shortly after. Diehl-Armstrong was trying to steal enough money to pay Barnes to kill her father so that she could get the life insurance. Diehl-Armstrong was also convicted of killing her former boyfriend in the 80s. | |||
84 | 82 | Maria Korp | 4/22/2018 | 1:42:41 | Milly Raso | Milly Raso | 4.11 | 550 | Solved | 8/5/2005 | Australia | Victoria | Melbourne | 1 | Maria Korp | 50 | F | Joe Korp, Tania Herman | 47, 38 | F, M | Murder | Suffocation, beating, dehydration | Joe Korp was a serial cheater and womanizer. He was an abusive and neglectful husband to the catholic Maria, who was determined to save her marriage. Joe had an affair with a woman Tania, who was so obssessed with Joe (and who Joe had severely manipulated) that she would do anything to be with him. Joe convinced Tania to set up a plot to kill Maria. Tania was the one to attack Maria and stuff her into the trunk of her car. She was found several days later, barely alive. She was put into a medically induce coma that she was never well enough to wake up from. Several months of being in a coma and her public advocate decided to euthanize Maria. Police quickly zoned into Joe and Tania and the stories they told quickly fell apart. Tania was jailed for 8 years before being released in 2014. Joe was next to be charged, but he committed suicide on the day of Maria's funeral. | |||
85 | 83 | Chantelle & Leela McDougall, Tony Popic | 5/6/2018 | 1:08:12 | Unknown | Unknown | 3.60 | 448 | Unsolved | 2007 | Australia | Western Australia | Nannup | 3 | Chantelle McDougall, Leela McDougall, Tony Popic | 27, 6, 40 | F, M | Simon Kadwell | 45 | M | Disappearance, possible murder | Unknown | Chantelle became involved with cult leader Simon Kadwell. He prophesized that an "end of days" time was coming. Chantelle sold her possessions, left a rather bizarre video with her parents, and then she and the three others boarded flights under false names. They haven't been seen since. | |||
86 | 84 | Lesley Molseed (2 parter) | 5/12/2018 | 2:25:40 | Milly Raso, Tayla Vos | Milly Raso, Tayla Vos | 4.08 | 558 | Solved | 10/5/1975 | England | West Yorkshire | Rishworth Moor | 1 | Lesley Molseed | 11 | F | Ronald Castree | 22 | M | Murder, assault | Stabbing | Lesley was on her way to the store when she was taken and killed. Police zoned in on Stefan Kiszko, a developmentally disabled man that people in the community had reported as exhibiting bizarre behavior. He was convicted and served 16 years before the conviction was overturned. He died shortly after his release and his conviction is considered a big miscarriage of justice. In 2006, DNA found at the crime scene was matched to Ronald Castree and he was sentenced to life. | |||
87 | 85 | Tom Brown | 6/2/2018 | 0:56:00 | Anonymous Host | Milly Raso, Tayla Vos | 3.66 | 491 | Unsolved (ongoing) | 11/23/2016 | USA | Texas | Canadian | 1 | Tom Brown | 18 | M | Unknown | Unknown | Unknown | Disappearance, possible murder | Unknown | Tom was hanging out with friends late at night, but never made it home. He hasn't been seen since. Police believed he may have just committed suicide, but investigators contend that he may have been taken against his will. Investigators are still actively working on the case. As of Jul, 2018, police say they feel the town's pain in the case. They are continuing to investigate the case and they are obtaining sworn statements. Police say the case is solvable, and it's just a matter of time. While they are still investigating, they cannot give details. As of November 2018, there has not been any update on the case. On January 15, 2019, Tom's body was found off Lake Marvin Road. At that time, no details regarding the nature of the death were released. | |||
88 | 86 | Amy Allwine | 6/9/2018 | 1:22:26 | Eileen Ormsby | Eileen Ormsby | 4.28 | 703 | Solved | 11/13/2016 | USA | Minnesota | Cottage Grove | 1 | Amy Allwine | 43 | F | Stephen Allwine | 42 | M | Murder | Shooting | The husband of an extremely religious family has an affair and murdered wife to get her out of the way. | Amy and Stephen were both from a strict religious background. Stephen was a pastor in their church. But Stephen started an affair online using the ashley madison website, and instead of just divorcing his wife, he decided to kill her. He attempted to hire hitmen with bitcoin to kill her, but their attempts failed. (Later, these hitmen sites were found to be scams). Finally, he killed her himself and staged it to look like a suicide. | ||
89 | 87 | Elaine O'Hara | 6/16/2018 | 1:05:47 | Bonnie Lavelle Robinson | Milly Raso | 3.95 | 518 | Solved | 8/22/2012 | Ireland | Dublin | Shanganagh | 1 | Elaine O'Hara | 36 | F | Graham Dwyer | 36 | M | Murder | Stabbing | Elaine suffered severe mental health issues throughout much of her adult life that required hospitalisation several times. She became involved with Dwyer and had a secret BDSM relationship with him. Dwyer was intensely sadistic and was very interested in the sexual arousal that murder would cause. Text messages between the two confirmed these desires by Dwyer. Elaine was not a willing participant in the sexual violence aspect of their relationship since she repeatedly requested that she would not be stabbed or beaten. Dwyer took advantage of her mental state and lured her into the mountains, killed her and expected her death to be ruled a suicide. As of Dec 2018, Dwyer and his lawyers argued that the authorities had no right to use data from his phone. This data was part of the evidence that convicted him of Elaine's death. The high court gave him limited relief, but he is unlikely to get his conviction overturned as a result of it. | |||
90 | 88 | Stephen Hilder | 7/7/2018 | 1:04:00 | Eileen Ormsby | Eileen Ormsby | 3.80 | 505 | Unsolved | 7/4/2003 | England | Hereforeshire | Hereford | 1 | Stephen Hilder | 20 | M | Unknown | Unknown | Unknown | Unknown | Tampering with parachute | Stephen took part in parachuting as a competitive hobby. He and his 3 man team competed on July 4, and during their jump, his chute and backup chutes failed to launch properly. He died in the fall. Investigation into the gear found expert level tampering with both chutes, but could not conclude if the tampering was murder (or by who) or if it was tampered by Stephen himself to commit suicide. It is considered an unexplained death. | |||
91 | 89 | Ella Tundra | 7/14/2018 | 1:01:30 | Eileen Ormsby | Eileen Ormsby | 4.01 | 665 | Solved | 10/3/2014 | Scotland | Glenrothes | 1 | Paige Rolland, Ella Durant | 21, 18 | F | Richard Brittain | 28 | M | Attack (attempted murder?), Stalking | Blunt force trauma | Richard Brittain was a narcissist who became obsessed with a pretty barmaid, Ella Tundra, at his college. He tried to court her, but she rejected him. The more she rejected him, the more obsessed he became. Even when she appealed to help from the police, he was delusion enough to think she was sending him secret messages of love. He stalked her for over 3 years. He ended up writing a ridiculous book, The World Rose, which featured Ella as Ella Tundra. He tried to promote his book as one of the great works of fiction, but it was widely negatively reviewed. His violent and defensive reaction to poor reivews also made him very unpopular and the target of derision. One particularly negative review came from Paige Rolland, who Richard tracked down and attacked at her job. Paige survived and Richard was arrested. | ||||
92 | 90 | Hoddle Street | 7/28/2018 | 1:09:41 | Elsha McGill | Elsha McGill | 4.00 | 595 | Solved | 8/9/1987 | Australia | Victoria | Melbourne | 7 | Dusan Flajnik, Vesna Markovska, Robert Mitchell, Johnny Muscat, Gina Papaioannou, Tracy Skinner, Kenneth Stanton | 21-53 | F, M | Julian Knight | 19 | M | Mass Murder | Shooting | Julian Knight had a history of violence and anger. He was obsessed with the military lifestyle due to his father's military career, and he dreamed of being in combat. Due to his violence and anger issues, he was unliked and eventually kicked out of his military college and discharged from the army. The massacre on Hoddle Street is likely a reaction to this; he wanted to die in combat, so he created combat out of civilians by firing at cars on a high way. He was too cowardly to die in combat, so he turned himself in before police could shoot him. In 2018, some poems from Knight were published. In Nov 2018, Knight keeps petitioning for more rights for access to use computers more often while he's incarcerated. | |||
93 | 91 | Carly Ryan | 8/4/2018 | 1:03:22 | Elsha McGill, Milly Raso | Elsha McGill, Milly Raso | 4.13 | 607 | Solved | 2/19/2007 | Australia | South Australia | Port Elliott | 1 | Carly Ryan | 15 | F | Garry Francis Newman | 50 | M | Murder, Paedophilia | Assualt, drowning | Garry Francis Newman protrayed ficticious 18yr Brandon Kane online through the use of a phony Myspace Profile, wooing Carly and winning over the trust of her mother. On her 15th birthday he (as Brandon) asked if his father 'Shane' (Newman) could come in his stead. The father "Shane" behaved inappropriately, possessively, and obsessively over Carly under the pretense that he was acting as the messenger for Brandon, and Carly obliged. He gifted her a lingerie set. After finding "Shane" lying in bed with Carly, her mother kicked him out of the house and told him to never contact them again. But the mother didn't realize that Shane continued contact with Carly and convinced her to meet up without her mother's knowledge. Carly never returned. As of Nov 2018, this case has had an impact on all of Australia. Queensland is cracking down on all sites - including those using browser Tor - that traffic explicit child content online. Carly's mother is also continuing work with the Carly Ryan foundation to help make the country safer for kids, especially by making parents aware of their kid's behavior online. | |||
94 | 92 | Dnepropetrovsk Maniacs | 8/11/2018 | 1:03:45 | Eileen Ormsby | Eileen Ormsby | 3.93 | 704 | Solved | 2007 | Ukraine | Dnepropetrovsk | 32 | Ekaterina Ilchenko, Roman Tatarevich, Evgeniya Grischenko, Nikolai Serchuk, Egor Nechvoloda, Elena Shram, Valentina Hanzha, Andrei Sidyuck, Vadim Lyakhov, Sergei Yatzenko, Natalia Mamarchuk, Unnamed pregnant woman, Lidia Mikrenischeva | 14-33 | F, M | Viktor Sayenko, Igor Suprunyuk, Alexander Hanzha | 19 | M | Thrill/Spree killing, animal abuse | Blunt force trauma with objects like hammers, bars, etc. Mutilation of body with items like screwdrivers. | Hanzha was an accomplice and was not charged with participating in the murders. He did participate in some armed robberies that occurred before the spree. Victor and Igor came from wealthy and powerful families, while Alexander came from the poor side of town. They generally were trouble makers that seemed to have no supervision or discipline/structure from their families. They decided to face their fear of heights by suspending themselves over a high area until the fear was conquered. They did the same with Alexander's fear of blood by torturing animals and normalizing blood. They escalated their behavior by robbing people (since they did not find fulfillment in having actual jobs). They became fascinated with violence, shock films, and other things found on shock/gore websites. Igor and Victor went on a killing spree lasting almost a month, where they randomly picked people off the streets to bludgeon to death and torture. They seemed to have a fascination with nazi beliefs and ideals, since they nazi saluted several times. At least one of the murders - Sergei Yetzenko - was filmed. Victor and Igor were eventually caught when they tried to sell a cell phone that belonged to the last victim. Victor and Igor's parents stood behind their sons and to this day proclaim their innocence. They instead allege that the confessions of Victor and Igor were obtained by torture. Victor's father, Igor Sayenko, was the defense lawyer for Victor and he postulated that the real murderers were sons of wealthy/powerful families that had swept it under the rug and framed Igor and Victor. The "3 guys, 1 hammer" video murder of Sergei Yetzenko was leaked to the public and clearly shows the murderers. Yet still, both sets of parents of Igor and Victor, maintain their sons are innocent and have been cruel to families of victims. Prosecutors speculated that some of the murders were filmed because the killers thought they could make money off snuff films. Note: the victims are as follows: 21 (killed), 8 (survived), 3+ (robbed) | ||||
95 | 93 | Susan Snow and Bruce Nickell | 8/26/2018 | 1:40:09 | Milly Raso | Milly Raso | 4.06 | 523 | Solved | 1986 | USA | Washington | Auburn | 2 | Susan Snow, Bruce Nickell | 40, 52 | F, M | Stella Nickell | 43 | F | Murder | Cyanide poisoning | Susan suffered from headaches and took her usual medicine - excedrin - to counteract the pain. Shortly after, her daughter heard Susan collapse and she called for help. Susan was dead by noon the same day. Police zeroed in on Susan's new husband, Paul, who seemed aloof, unemotional, and suspicious. A masive recall of excedrin products happened. Washington state also instituted a 90 day ban on selling capsule medicine. Police were stumped until Stella Nickell called them to say her husband had died with similar symptoms. It was found that the cyanide came from a fish tank cleaning material, and Stella was a fish hobbyist. She failed a polygraph. The real break came when Stella's daught came forward to give character witness that her mom had fantasies of murder for hire plots and life insurance payouts. Her plan to kill her husband was flawless and she had initially got away with it. But she wanted a bigger insurance payout, which would come if his death was ruled part of a murder plot. Thus she planted tampered products at different stores to make it seem like a mass murderer similar to the chicago tylenol case was occurring. Susan happened to pick up one of these tampered bottles. Authorities likely picked up the other tampered bottles in the mass recall that happened. | |||
96 | 94 | Millie & Trevor Horn, Janice Saunders | 9/1/2018 | 1:15:30 | Eileen Ormsby | Eileen Ormsby | 3.76 | 433 | Solved | 3/4/1993 | USA | Maryland | Silver Springs | 3 | Millie Horn, Trevor Horn, Janice Saunders | 43, 8, 38 | F, M | James Perry, Lawrence Horn | 44, 54 | M | Murder, murder for financial gain | Shooting, home invasion | Lawrence Horn was formerly a musician and music producer making good money, but he'd fallen on hard times. He hired a criminal, James Perry, to murder his ex wife Millie and their mentally disabled son, Trevor, for monetary gain. Trevor had a trust fund (which was the result of a hospital malpractice suit) in his name worth 1.7 million dollars, and the amount would be split equally between Millie and Lawrence in the event of Trevor's death. Lawrence's cousin Thomas introduced Lawrence to criminal James Perry, and several months later, Perry killed Millie, Trevor, and Trevor's night nurse, Janice. Both James and Lawrence were sentenced ot three life terms. Perry used a "how to" book called "Hit Man" as a guide to commit the murders. The existing copies of the book were later destroyed by the publisher. | |||
97 | 95 | The Vampire of Krakow | 9/8/2018 | 1:17:04 | Mike Migas, Paulina Szymanska | Elsha McGill, Milly Raso | 3.54 | 510 | Solved | 1964-1966 | Poland | Krakow | 2 | Marii Plichty, Leszka Catka | 77, 11 | F, M | Karol Kot | 18 | M | Murder, sadism | Stabbing, arson, poisoning | Karol Kot was fascinated with sadistic behaviors - the butchering of animals, drinking blood, rape, etc. He didn't have a single type of victim - he just liked attacking and killing people, and he had a particular interest in knives. Classmates eventually notified the police that he may be a good suspect for the series of attacks that had been occuring in Krakow for over a year and a half. At first police did not think he was a good suspect, but after more pressure from closer friends of Kot, they arrested him. He fully admitted to his behaviors and did not have remorse. Rather, his sense of morality was such that appropriate behavior is determined by what brings a person satisfaction. Killing and inflicting harm gave him satisfaction, so it wasn't wrong. He was executed in 1968, when he was 21. | ||||
98 | 96 | The Toy Box (3 parter) | 9/22/2018 | 3:42:08 | Elsha McGill, Milly Raso, Victoria Dieffenbacher | Elsha McGill, Milly Raso, Victoria Dieffenbacher | 4.19 | 675 | Solved | 1950-1999 | USA | New Mexico | Elephant Butte | 3 | Cynthia Vigil, Angelica Montano, Kelli Garrett, Marie Parker | 21, 20s, 20s, 20s | F | David Ray Parker, Dennis Roy Yancy, Cindy Hendy, Glenda "Jessie" Ray | 20s-60, 39, 27, 32 | F, M | Murder, kidnapping, rape, torture, drugging | Various | David Parker Ray was a sexual sadomasochist that had made claims going back as early as the mid 1950s (when he was married to his first wife) that he had been kidnapping and torturing women for sexual pleasure. He worked as a Departments of Parks employee in New Mexico, which allowed him some space and isolation to conduct his fantasies. He built a sound proof torture chamber ("Toy Box") that contained many torture devices that he used as sex toys, including whips, chains, pulleys, straps, clamps, spreader bars, blades, and saws. The torture chamber also contained information on methods or techniques to inflict pain. His victims were also subjected to sexual abuse by Ray's circle of sadomasochistic friends and even his dogs. He would keep the women docile and confused via fear and a drug concoction which he believed would wipe their memories of the event. This drug concotion seemed somewhat successful, since the known surviving victims have somewhat (and various levels of) hazy memories of the events. He would kidnap women for several days at a time to keep in his chamber. He had a pre-recorded message for them, informing them what was about to happen to them. It is Unknown exactly how many victims Ray had since he did release several of his victims (implying he must have been confident in his memory-altering drug concoction). His spree continued on for an Unknown number of years and an Unknown number of victims until one victim managed to escape. (Some suspect that bodies have not been discovered because they were dumped down abandoned mines on the East side of Caballo Lake). Known victims: Cynthia Vigil was kidnapped by Ray after he impersonated an undercover officer who was arresting her for solicitation. She was held captive in his home for three days until March 22, 1999, while Ray was at work. She managed to get the keys that locked her chains, attack Hendy (who was supposed to be keeping guard over her), and run away from the property completely naked except for a slave collar and some chains still attached to her. She ran to a nearby home to seek help and call police. This is what started the investigation into Ray, who up until that point was known in his community and workplace as a nice person. Angelica Montano, an earlier victim of Ray's, came forward with her story once Vigil's story was in the news. She had a similar case of kidnapping and torture, but she had been released by Ray. Montano had been kidnapped at Raymound's Lounge in Truth or Consequences (the manager of this Lounge was an accomplice). She said she had reported the incident to the police after it happened, but there was no follow up. Kelli Garrett had been kidnapped by Ray in 1996. She was a newlywed who'd gotten into a fight with her husband, and went off with friends to let off steam. She was tortured for a couple of days before Ray slashed her throat and dumped her on the side of the road. She survived and stumbled home, where her husband accused her of cheating after she couldn't remember the events from the past several days. After the Ray case was blown up in the media, Garrett's former mother in law recognized that Garrett may have been a victim and called it in to police. She was right; Garrett had a matching tattoo that was seen in one of Ray's videos of torture sessions. Marie Parker was an ex girlfriend of Dennis Roy Yancy. Yancy, Jesse Ray (Ray's daughter), and Ray all participated in Marie Parker's kidnapping, torture, and strangulation. "Perpetrators: Dennis Roy Yancy, sadomasochistic friend of Ray's. Participated in and committed the murder of Marie Parker, an ex girlfriend. He was convicted of second degree murder and conspiracy to commit first degree murder. He received two 15 year terms. Jesse Ray, Ray's daughter who assisted in the kidnapping of Marie Parker. She tried on charges of kidnapping and sentenced to 2.5 years in prison and 5 years probation. Cindy Hendy was Ray's girlfriend and likely accomplice in several of the kidnappings and tortures. She testified against Ray for a more lenient sentence. She receieved 36 years in prison. Ray was the primary perpetrator in all these crimes. It is Unknown how far back his crimes go and how many victims he has, but the collection of victim items in his possession implied that he had many victims. Ray was tried seperately for Vigil, Montano, and Garrett. The first trial resulted in a mistrial, and the retrial resulted in convictions on all 12 counts for which he was accused. Montano passed away before her trial could begin, so it was not conducted. Ray agreed to a plea bargain and was sentenced to 224 years in prison. Unfortunately, he would not serve most of his sentenced, since he died of a heart attack in 2002. It is very likely that Ray had many more accomplices and victims than is currently known. The FBI is still trying to identify possible victims of Ray by displaying his victim's stolen items on the FBI website. You can view the items here: https://www.fbi.gov/contact-us/field-offices/albuquerque/items-david-parker-ray" | |||
99 | 97 | Rebecca Schaeffer | 10/20/2018 | 1:23:02 | Eileen Ormsby | Eileen Ormsby | 4.04 | 486 | Solved | 7/18/1989 | USA | California | Los Angeles | 1 | Rebecca Schaeffer | 21 | F | Robert Bardo | 19 | M | Stalking, murder | Shooting | Rebecca was an up-and-coming actress from Oregon. She had found some moderate success in modelling in NY and Japan, but not enough to sustain her or "break into" the industry. She turned to acting as another career option. She was strong willed and persistent, and so she accepted the many rejections from auditions with determination. She got her biggest break when she was cast as the sister of the lead character in the prime time TV show "My Sister Sam." The show ran for roughly a season and a half until it was cancelled due to falling ratings, despite that it started off with high ratings. She threw herself into more auditions and had some minor tv and movie roles. In 1989, she had her biggest audition yet for the role of Maria in "The Godfather Part 3". While prepping for this role, a man she previously had not personally known and had no interactions with besides generic responses to fan mail, visited her at her home and shot her fatally. She died within a half an hour of being shot. Robert Bardo was an obsessive fan from Arizona. Her first noticed Rebecca when she was on "My Sister Sam" and became obsessed with her percocious persona of Patti. He wrote her many fan letters and became convinced that they had a relationship and she may be in love with him like he was with her. For roughly three years, he obsessed over everything she did. He tried to visit her at her studio, but was rebuffed. He hired an Arizona private investigator to obtain Rebecca's home address so he could personally visit her. His "relationship" with Rebecca had become more complex, since she had acted in more adult roles that showed she wasn't her character in "My Sister Sam". He resented that she may be turning into, essentially, a slutty Hollywood star (despite her roles still being relatively tame). While Rebecca was prepping for her Godfather audition, he visited her home twice. She reacted gracefully and thanked him for the flattery, but requested that he not visit her home again. He left, but returned again later with a gun that his brother had unlawfully bought for him (since Robert was underage). He shot Rebecca once and left. Robert's sister reported him to the police, and he was later arrested while making a scene in traffic. Robert's lawyers argued he was mentally ill and should only be convicted of 2nd degree murder (not pre-meditated), which has significantly less jail time. Instead, he was found guity of first degree murder and sentenced to life without the possibility of parole. Rebecca's parents campaigned for gun control and changes to privacy laws. As a result of their efforts and Rebecca's death, California passed a law which made it illegal to obtain anyone's drivers license information from the DMV (including home address), which was how the PI had obtained Rebecca's address. | |||
100 | 98 | The Pillow Pyro | 10/27/2018 | 1:39:38 | Elsha McGill | Elsha McGill | 4.04 | 529 | Solved | 10/10/1984 | USA | California | Pasadena | 4 | Ada Deal, Matthew Troidl, Carolyn Kraus, Jimmy Cetina | 50, 2, 26, 17 | F, M | John Leonard Orr | 35 | M | Arson, death by arson | Arson | When John Orr failed the police officer entrance exam, he became a fire investigator instead. He became well known as an expert in his field. Through the 1980s and early 1990s, LA was dealing with a series of fires found to be purposefully set and, due to the similarities of the crimes, probably set by the same person. One of these fires led to the deaths of four victims in Ole's Home Center store in 1984: Ada, her grandson Matthew, Carolyn, and employee Jimmy. This particular fire was declared to be the result of an electrical fire, but Orr argued that it was actually arson. In 1987, a convention for arson investigators was held in Fresno, and several fires were set nearby during the convention. Another convention in 1989 in Pacific Grove had similar suspicious fires set during the convention. This led investigator Captain Marvin G Casey of the Bakersfield fire department to suspect that the perpetrator was an attendee of these conferences. Cross referencing the attendance lists of both conferences showed a list of 10 people that attended both. Orr was on this list, but he and all others on the list were cleared of suspicion when their fingerprints were compared with the fingerprints Casey had found at one of the arson scenes and they didn't match. In late 1990 and early 1991, the Pillow Pyro task force was formed (thus named for some of the fires which were originally set in pillows) in LA, with Tom Campuzanno as a member of this force. Eventually this force and Casey's investigation found out about each other's investigations into the fires and decided to combine their efforts. As a result, Campuzanno and two other task force members met with Casey. They obtained a fingerprint from Casey which they were able to match to John Orr in April of 1991 due to improved fingerprint tech. Orr was put under surveillance for several months to build a case against him and he was arrested on Dec 4, 1991. On July 31, 1992, Orr was convicted of three coutns of arson and sentenced to three consecutive terms of 10 years in prison. On March 24, 1993, he was convicted of three additional counts of arson pursuant to a plea bargain agreement. On June 25, 1998, Orr was convicted of four counts of first degree murder for the 1984 fire and he was thus sentenced to life plus 20 years in prison without the possibility of parole. Before his arrest, Orr was working on a novel - Point of Origin - about a fire investigator who sets fires to get sexual gratification. The book bears remarkable similarities to real acts of arson that were likely committed by Orr. Some arson investigators and FBI criminal profilers have deemed Orr to be the worst American serial arsonists of the 20th century. Agent Mike Matassa believes Orr set nearly 2000 fires between 1984 and 1991. Arson investigators state that after Orr's arrest, the number of brush fires in the nearby area decreased by over 90%. Orr maintains his innocence to this day. | |||
101 | 99 | Becky Watts | 11/10/2018 | 1:47:54 | Elsha McGill, Milly Raso, Victoria Dieffenbacher | Elsha McGill, Milly Raso, Victoria Dieffenbacher | 4.10 | 460 | Solved | 2/19/2015 | England | Bristol | Bristol | 1 | Becky Watts | 16 | F | Nathan Matthews, Shauna Hoare | 28, 21 | F, M | Murder | Suffocation, dismemberment | Becky was a shy and anxious teenager living in a mixed family. Her parents divorced when she was a small child and her father, Darren, soon got together with Anjie Galsworthy. Becky became very close with her stepmother Anjie, but had a somewhat contentious relationship with her step brother Nathan, who often didn't understand her mental health issues and felt she was using her anxiety, depression, and status as a bullying victim to get attention from people, especially from his mother Anjie. As Becky got older, her relationship with Nathan became even worse. After Becky disappeared on 19 of February, she was initially believed to possibly have been a runaway. Police and Becky's parents and grandmother made public appeals for her to come home. Many searches for Becky was executed, but to no avail. All of Becky's family members were helpful and open with the police regarding the search and events of the day she disappeared, except Nathan and Shauna. Police started looking more into Nathan and Shauna and found that while their stories matched up perfectly, something seemed off. They went to the home the two shared with their child and found it to be extremely messy and filled with hoarded junk everywhere except the bathroom, which had been recently cleaned. After police found some evidence of blood in the house and confronted Nathan about it, he openly admitted to being involved. Nathan and Shauna were arrested on suspicion of murder on February 28 and Becky's dismembered body was found on March 4 in a shed owned by friends of Nathan and Shauna. As police dug further into the personal lives of Nathan and Shauna, they learned of Nathan's disdain for Becky and also that he and Shauna had a sexual interest in underage, petite girls. Several text exchanges indicated that Nathan would like for Shauna to kidnap a girl fitting this description for him to use as he wished. Furthermore, after Becky's disappearance, Nathan was found to have made several suspicious purchases, such as a circular power saw, gloves, face mask, goggles, and drain cleaner. Becky had been suffocated, stabbed, dismembered and her body parts were thrown into plastic containers and suitcases and stored in a friend's garden shed. At the trial, prosecutors argued that the motive for the killing was sexual in nature. After the trial (which began on 6 October), Nathan was found guilty of murder and Shauna guilty of manslaughter. Both were also convicted of kidnapping, perverting the course of justice, preventing the lawful burial of a body, and possession of two stun guns. Nathan was sentenced to life with a minimum term of 33 years and Hoare to 17 years. Nathan's friends who own the garden shed - Karl and Jaydene - were also convicted of assisting an offender. Karl receieved 2 years imprisonment and Jaydene received 16 months. | |||
102 | 100 | The Beaumont Children | 11/17/2018 | 1:57:48 | Elsha McGill, Milly Raso | Elsha McGill, Milly Raso | 4.38 | 606 | Unsolved | 1/26/1966 | Australia | South Australia | Adelaide | 3 | Jane Nartare Beaumont, Arnna Kathleen Beaumont, Grant Ellis Beaumont | 9,7,4 | F, M | Unknown | Unknown | M | Kidnapping, murder | Unknown | Jim and Nancy Beaumont lived in Somerton Park, a suburb of Adelaide near Glenelg Beach. They had three children: Jane, Arnna, and Grant. On January 26, 1966 (Australia Day), the kids took the bus to visit the beach. They had been given money for food. Jane was a nurting and responsible girl for her age, so her parents felt the younger kids were safe under Jane's care. The children had taken similar trips alone (including the previous day) without incident, so there was no reason to believe January 26th would be any different. The children were expected back between 12:00 and 2:00 pm (depending on which bus-time they decided to take). Nancy became worried when they didn't return by 2:00, and by 3:00 Jim went to the beach to look for the kids. With no sign of them at the beach, Jim searched their neighborhood. By 5:00, Jim and Nancy reported their missing children to the Glenelg police department. Initially police thought the kids just lost track of time, but when not a single trace of the kids - none of their various items they had with them that day - showed up, they became more concerned that the kids had been taken. Several witnesses at the beach that day helped to establish a timeline: The kids caught the 8:45 bus to the beach. Several witnesses said they saw the kids playing with a tall, blonde, and tanned man in his mid 30s to mid 40s in Colley Reserve. At roughly 12:15, he and the children were seen walking together away from the beach. When the children ate lunch, they bought the food with a 1 pound note, which did not match the money their parents had given them for lunch (furthering police suspicions that there was an adult interacting with the kids). At about 3:00, the children were seen (by their postman) walking alone away from the beach, in the direction of their home. This was the last known sighting of the kids. (the 3:00 time has been disputed, since the postman couldn't exactly remember the tim. He later told police he believed he actually saw the kids in the morning, not the afternoon.) Since that time, there have been various reports of sightings of the kids, but none have been confirmed as true. No further evidence of any kind has been directly linked to the Beaumont children. Witnesses on the beach reported some odd behavior from the man seen with the children. The kids seemed very at-ease with the man, despite the three (especially Jane) being known as shy. At one point during the day, the man proclaimed that their money had been stolen from their possessions, alerting neighboring beach-goers to the situation. Later on, when the kids bought lunch, they bought more than just the three of them could eat (and more than they could afford) and the shop worker noted that they had ordered a meat pie for "the man". When the kids were getting ready to leave the beach, the man personally helped put on Jane and Arnna's clothing, even though Jane was old enough to take care of her own clothes and would generally be considered too shy to let a stranger so close to her. In the weeks preceding the Australia day beach trip, the Arnna had joked about Jane having a boyfriend at the beach. Combining all these witness statements, and the police came to believe that this man had met the children before at the beach. He had perhaps been grooming them and getting them to trust him, which would explain why they were so at ease with him. Police theorized the man may have offered to give the kids a ride home, and that way the kids would leave the beach quietly and willingly, without making a scene. One witness led police to believe the children may have been thrown into the marina - and the entire marina was drained, but to no avail. As weeks and months passed, Jim and Nancy were inundated with calls and reports from mostly unhelpful sources like psychics. They took every possible clue they could to search for their kids. "Two years after the disappearance, a couple of hoax letters were sent to Jim and Nancy, written as though they were from Jane (who had often wrote letters to her parents). The letters made reference to a man who was keeping them captive and suggested that they may be let go if certain conditions were met. A third letter informed them that the children would not be let go because the man suspected the meet up was a set up. In 1992, forenxic examinations showed the letters to be hoaxes - the letters were sent by a now-41 year old man who had sent them as a prank when he was a teen. There have been a series of suspects over the years, but none have been definitively found to be the culprit. Some theories/investigative paths include: - an extreme religious sect took the children and possibly killed them in New Zealand. - Dutch psychic Gerard Croiset inserted himself into the investigation and, in a huge surge of media attention, he claimed he was incredibly close to discovering the bodies of the children. He claimed a warehouse near the Beaumont home was where the bodies were buried, and intense public pressure called for the building to be demolished so a full scale dig could be completed. Croiset's suspicions were wrong and he failed in his search. - Some suspect the Beaumont Children's disappearance may have been connected to the Family Murders (killer Bevan Spencer von Einem) Von Einem is somewhat unlikely since he was only 20 at the time of the abduction, much younger than the man witnesses saw. The children also did fit his usual victim profile. - James Ryan O'Neill was briefly viewed as a suspect, but there is nothing to connect him to this case. He is a suspect in other child murders, however. - Arthur Stanley Brown bore a strong resemblance to the image of the man suspected to take the children. He was responsible for the deaths of two other children in Queensland, but due to his age and deteriorating mental state (alzheimers), he wasn't pursued further as a suspect. He died in 2002. - Alan Anthony Munro: he became a suspect due to his children reporting that he had something to do with the case. Munro claimed he knew a man in 1966 that had been involved in the case, which had included the children's bodies being stored in the boot of the car. Police found that Munro was not involved. - Harry Phipps was identified as a suspect in 2015 after a woman came forward claiming her former father in law had been invovled. Her spouse had been abused by his father, Harry, as a kid, and they also lived very close to Glenelg Beach in 1966. Harry's son claimed that, in 1966, his father had said ""they're buried in the pit"". The son believed this meant that the bodies were buried somewhere in Phipp's factory. In fact, two brothers, who had been teens in the 60s, came forward to say they'd been paid by Phipps to dig a large hole in the factory in 1966. investigations into the factory were done, but since the building has been changed so much since 1966, nothing but animal bones were found. Jim and Nancy divorced and live out of the spotlight. As of 2018, they are 92 and 90 years old and may never find out what happened to their children. As of Dec 2018, there is a growing movement to set up a monument for the Beaumont children." | |||
103 | 101 | Sian Kingi | 11/24/2018 | 1:34:26 | Eileen Ormsby | Eileen Ormsby | 4.12 | 420 | Solved | 11/27/1974 | Australia | Queensland | Noosa | 1 | Sian Kingi | 12 | F | Barrie Watts, Valmae Beck | 33, 43 | F, M | Murder, sexual assault | Stabbing, strangling | Three separate women in Brisbane made reports of a man in a dusty white holden sedan behaving oddly and that they feared the man meant them harm. All three managed to escape to make the reports. One of the three reports also mentioned that the man was accompanied by an older woman. The three reported the license plate of the car, but when police traced this number, it was not connected to a white holden sedan in Queensland. A few weeks later, 12 year old school girl Sian Kingi was bicycling home after spending time with her mother at the shops, picking out fabric for a skirt she was going to make. She should have arrived home quickly, but there was no sight of her. After calling all her friends, who had not seen Sian since school let out, her parents retraced the path she would have taken from the shops to their home. They found her yellow bicycle abandoned along the path. Police quickly put Sian's disappearance in the newspaper asking for tips, and witness reports came in. Witnesses in the area of Pinnaroo park near the bike path reported seeing a dusty white holden sedan and a male driver and its license plate. Police tracked cars of this description, but it was an extremely common car and color. Without any success in Queensland, the search was expanded to neighboring states. Roughly a week after Sian's disappearance, her body was found in the bush in Tinberrwah forest, about 12 km away from where she'd been taken. She had been sexually assaulted, stabbed, and strangled. A connection was made between the three reports made in Brisbane to the kidnapping of Sian. After expanding the search for the white holden sedan, police found it was registered in the name of Valmae Beck and the address given was the residence of her father in law. Looking further into Beck revealed that she was married to Barry Watts and both of them had a long criminal history. They both were on the run from various crimes. Police managed to track them to the residence they had in Lowood, but they had already fled. Police then tracked them to The Entrance, New South Wales. They were arrested there. It didn't take long for Beck to confess to the crimes, and then both Beck and Watts started accusing each other of being the primary instigator in the abduction, rape, and murder. Beck claimed that Watts pushed her to do this because he wanted to be sexually gratified and he would leave her if she didn't, and she was too insecure to let Watts leave her. Watts claimed that Beck was just as interested in committing the murder. Beck was sentenced to life imprisonment with a non parole period of 14 years while Watts was sentenced to life imprisonment without parole. Neither seemed to express any regret for what they did, and police believe that they were involved in more than just that one murder. | |||
104 | 102 | Britt Lapthorne | 11/30/2018 | 1:57:14 | Elsha McGill, Milly Raso | Elsha McGill, Milly Raso | 4.18 | 443 | Unsolved | 9/18/2008 | Croatia | Dubrovnik-Neretva | Dubrovnik | 1 | Britt Lapthorne | 21 | F | Unknown | Unknown | Unknown | Possible murder or misadventure | Unknown | Britt Lapthorne was a 21 year old Aussie girl with a passion for backpacking and travelling. She had planned a large trip through several European countries to last from June - October 2008. In July, she met up with her parents in Paris to spend some time with them, and then she continued on through several countries including Austria and Croatia. She met several new backpacker friends along the way, and in the early morning hours of September 18, 2008, they all went out to a local haunt for backpackers in Dubrovnik - Club Fuego. The following day, her backpacker friends at their hostel realized she had not returned. After several days of her not showing up, they reported it to the hostel owners, the local police, and the Australian embassy in Croatia. Right from the start, Dubrovnik police did not take the case seriously and they assumed Britt was just a party girl who would stumble home at some point. Britt's parents were not informed of her disappearance for five days. According to her parents, the Dubrovnik police were dismissive of their concerns and not actively investigating the case. Even Australian officials asked Britt's parents to keep their interactions with the Dubrovnik police polite so as to not upset the relationship between the countries. Britt's parents refused this, of course, and the Dubrovnik police incompetence became a large point of contention between the two countries. Three weeks after Britt disappeared, a largely decomposed body was found by fishermen in Boninovo Bay. The advanced state of decomposition and large amount of missing body parts (including legs and some organs, like lungs), initially led officials to state it couldn't be Britt's body. But DNA analysis proved it to be her. Though the Dubrovnik police chief and a large chunk of staff were fired over how this case was handled and new, more competent police were hired, the case has not advanced much since then. Some theories include: Misadventure: a drunk Britt got separated from her friends while out parting and she fell into the sea and drowned. The damage to her body was largely done by it being dragged around the ocean. (some of the damage was confirmed by coroners to be possibly done by damage from ocean currents). Britt's parents refute this as she wasn't really a party girl and she was much more cautious and conservative as a well-travelled person. Foul Play: many cameras in Club Fuego weren't properly working on the night Britt disappeared, but a camera down the street caught site of a blue van picking up someone from the club around 4:30 am. It is possible this was Britt. Later investigation found that in the weeks surrounding Britt's disappearance, some men in a blue van had attempted various kidnappings of foreign women in and around the club. In one such case, the men had posed as police officers to coerce the women to come with them. It is possible that Britt fell victim to this. No further information on Britt's case has come to light. | |||
105 | 103 | The Gonzales Family | 12/15/2018 | 1:36:54 | Gemma Harris | Elsha McGill, Milly Raso | 4.23 | 444 | Solved | 7/10/2001 | Australia | New South Wales | Sydney | 3 | Teddy Gonzales, Mary Loiva Josephine, Clodine Gonzales | 46, 43, 18 | F, M | Sef Gonzales | 20 | M | Familicide | Stabbing, beating | Son's desire to be rid of his family, who he felt were controlling / oppressing him | The Gonzales family were natives of the Philippines, but they emigrated to Sydney after the 1990 Earthquake in the Philllipines destroyed their business and to be nearer to their family that already lived in Australia. Teddy and Loiva were strict catholic parents who wanted their kids to excel academically in serious fields like medicine or law. Sef was the eldest and more interested in becoming a musician, but at his parents' behest he pursued first medicine and then law and receieved good marks. On July 10, 2001, he came home from a night out with friends to discover all three of his family members had been killed (he initially believed they had been shot), and he called the police. Teddy had receieved threats from a business acquaintance from the Phillipines and racist writing was found on the walls of the home, so police initially investigated those leads. As time went on, Sef's behavior seemed more suspicious - he seemed to not care his family died and he quickly was trying to access the family's funds, a 1.5 million dollar inheritance that now all went to solely him. He gave some information to the police that didn't add up - such as the weather on the day and time of the murders, claiming to witness a man running from the house, the nature of the wounds on the bodies, his whereabouts before and during the time of the murders. Police looked more into Sef and his story completely fell apart. It was found that he had been faking his school grades (he was failing all 4 of his classes), he had made a "fan made" website in adoration of himself and his music, he was stealing money from familiy and friends and spending time and money in brothels. As his story fell apart, Sef tried to buy and harass both a taxi driver and a prostitute into claiming to be his new alibi for the murders, but it didn't work. Sef was arrested and charged with murder. In 2004, he was sentenced to three consecutive life terms without the possibility of parole. | ||
106 | 104 | Mark and John | 12/22/2018 | 1:04:27 | Eileen Ormsby | Eileen Ormsby | 4.44 | 547 | Solved | 6/28/2003 | England | Manchester | Altrincham | 1 | "Mark" | 16 | M | "John" | 14 | M | Incitement to murder | Stabbing | Note: the two boys involved in this case are known under the pseudonyms Mark and John. 16 year old Mark got involved in a message board for locals in Manchester. He became involved with a couple young girls on the board and also befriended 14 year old John, Rachel's step brother. He became the target of Kevin, a stalker on the board, who first blackmailed Mark into mastubating on camera and then ended up kidnapping and killing Mark's first girlfriend, Rachel. Several other friends of Mark's were killed shortly after, leaving only Mark and John. An older woman (Janet Dobinson) joined the board and recruited Mark to MI6. She gave him a mission first to protect John, who had the passcode to a large British fortune. But later the order changed - Mark was told to kill John in an act of mercy killing, since John had a fatal brain tumor. Mark was also enticed with the promise of a sexual encounter with Janet upon completion of the killing. Mark stabbed John in an alleyway in Altrincham town centre, however John did not die. He was in hospital for a week before being released. Mark was charged with attempted murder. After he was first arrested, Mark was hesitant to reveal to police that he was an MI6 agent, but he finally revealed it to them and seemed genuinely convinced of his work. Investigators dug into the 193 email addresses that Mark had been in contact with and found that all five people (besides Mark) involved in this case were actually John. John admitted everything after being confronted by police. He admitted to having an addiction to the internet due to his own crippling loneliness and social skills. He became obsessed with Mark, and set up the entire charade to manipulate mark's naivete. John fell into a spiral of depression over the thought of not being able to come clean to Mark, so he made up Janet and set up his own murder plot. Three months after the stabbing, John became the first person in British history to be charged with incitement of his own murder. John was sentenced to a three year supervision order and banned from all online chat rooms while Mark was sentenced to a two year supervision order. | |||
107 | 105 | Louise Bell | 1/26/2019 | 1:07:33 | Elsha McGill | Elsha McGill | 3.76 | 272 | Solved | 1/4/1984 | Australia | South Australia | Adelaide | 1 | Louise Bell | 10 | F | Dieter Pfennig | 35 | M | Abduction, murder, ransom | Unknown | Louise Bell was a 10 year old living in Adelaide with her family. On January 4th, she and her younger sibling were sent to bed and told to keep the windows closed. The following morning, their mother woke up to find Louise's younger sister asleep in bed, but Louise was nowhere to be found. The window in Louise's room was found to be open and the screen slit at the corner so it flapped in the wind. At first, officials were unsure of the circumstances - if Louise had left of her own will or if there was foul play involved - due to the lack of any evidence. As such, the government only offered $5,000 as a reward, though local businessment donated a further $10,000. Some days after her disappearance, the Bell family received a call from a man with a slight European accent who claimed to have taken Louise and was demanding $30,000. As proof of who he claimed to be, he told them of a location where Louise's hoop earrings could be found under a rock near a busy intersection. Investigators went there, and sure enough the earrings were found. A neighbor found a wet, cut up pajama top in her yard and realized it may be connected to the missing local girl. Louise's parents confirmed the top was Louise's and it appeared from the damage to the shirt that it had been cut off her while her arms were bound. Further investigation revealed that the shirt had microbiological substances and algae on it that could be connected to the Onkaparinga river. In April 1983, an inmate at a local prison, 36 year old Raymond John Gacing, claimed to have murdered Louise and 4 other inmmates attested to that. Gacing was a known sex offender who lived only 500 meters away from her home in Hackham West. There were some connections between the Bells and Gacing - they lived close to each other, Gacing had been to the Onkaparinga River, and Gacing's wife had found a paper with the Bell's address on it. He was charged with the abduction and murder of Louise. In November 1984, he stood trial in S. Australia's supreme court, where only 2 of the 4 inmate's statements were regarded as admissible. Gacing did not have a European accent, and the only physical evidence linking Gacing to Louise was that he had biological material from the river. The circumstancial evidence was overwhelming, though, and he was sentenced to life in prison for the death of Louise. Gacing maintained his innocence and continued to appeal his sentence. Later on, both inmates who provided testimony were found to have been untrustworthy (one admitted to fabricating his testimony), and so on appeal the verdict was reversed on April 12, 1985. Gacing was released from custody and his conviction was regarded to be a miscarriage of justice. However, upon release he continued to prey on other children. He eventually arrested and convicted again on other charges and sentenced to 7 years in prison for crimes against two sisters over a span of 8 years. Meanwhile, Louise's case was marked unsolved. In December 1985, a colonial inquest was startd to look into Louise's disappearance with the goal of finding her body. They had no suspects, but they believed the suspect to be a tall, strong man who is very psychologically capable. They regarded the abduction to be sexually motivated, and the suspect may be a sexual exhibitionist. They found that the abduction was likely unrelated to any other missing children's cases in the area. Louise's parents, Colin and Diane, found the inquest to be very painful and they released a statement that they wished to move on with their lives. On December 30, 1989, a 13 year old boy was riding his bike when a man tricked him into a vehicle where the boy was bound, gagged, and kidnapped. The bike was wiped down near Maslin beach and abandoned to mislead the police. The boy was held captive in a home in Hackham West and sexually assaulted. He managed to escape to the neighbors next door, where he managed to call police. The abductor was arrested - 41 year old Dieter Pfennig, a math and sciences teacher with a wife and two children. He admitted to the crime, saying he "just wanted a hug". While in custody, police recieved a tip that Pfennig may be connected to another crime; 11 months prior, January 18, 1989, another 10 year old, Michael Black, had also been kidnapped while biking and fishing at a Sturt reserve. His belongings were found abandoned later on at the reserve, but with no sign of Michael. While Pfennig was in custody for the assault of the 13 year old, a witness said that Pfennig had claimed to be at the reserve the same day Michael had been and had even helped the boy with his fishing line. Police identified many similarities between the two cases, and Pfennig was charged with the murder of Michael Black. And given the close proximity to Hackham West, they began to connect Pfennig to Louise Bell. "Pfennig was known to frequent the Onkaparinga River, he lived within 7 minutes walk from the Bell home, and had opportunity to take her. Pfennig claimed to have been on holiday (and using a rental car service during that time, as an alibit) during the time Louise was taken, however. Police tracked down the rental company and found that Pfennig had returned the car on January 4, 1983, which would allow him to be back in Adelaide that night while his family remaind on holiday in Swan Hill. Pfennig pleaded guilty for the 13 year old boy, but pleaded not guilty for the case of Michael Black. The judge allowed ""similar fact"" evidence in the trial - which means the other cases could be brought up in the Michael Black trial. This is very rare for a judge to do, but the judge felt that Pfennig's behavior and prior treatment of children was relevant to the Michael Black case. Pfennig was sentenced to 38 years in prison for Michael's murder. However, investigators still had not found a solid lead between Pfenig and Louise. At one point, investigators thought that Louise may be connected to Sian Kingi murderers Barrie Watts and Valmae Beck. But there was no connection. Louise's case went cold. By 2009, the case was reopened with the hopes that new forensic tech could advance the investigation. The technology found traces of new DNA evidence on the pajama top, but the technology wasn't advanced enough until 2012 to create a DNA profile based off such a small sample. The DNA was matched to a man already in prison for crimes in South Australia: Dieter Pfennig. In 2012, police returned to Pfennig's address he'd lived at during the 1980s. Radar was used to identify abnormalities in the ground of the property. Unfortunately the dig found nothing. Some inmates of Pfennig's came forward to say he had made a confession to them about both Michael Black and Louise Bell. He had refused to admit to the location of Black's body because ""there's a chick there"" too: Louise. On November 13, 2013, Pfennig was arrested for Louise's death. He faced a judge alone in court, no jury, in an attempt to avoid a miscarriage of justice situation since the case was so highly publicized. The prosecutor argued that it was likely that Louise was enticed out of the house by Pfennig, whose daughter played basketball with Louise. One of Louise's daughters testified against him as well as Pfennig's ex-wife. Various other witnesses came forward to testify regarding Pfennig's behavior during the time of Louise's disappearance. Pfennig had a heart attack during the trial and was hospitalized, but he was able to return to court 3 weeks later. A second DNA test of the shirt had a lower likelihood of a Pfennig match than the original test done by a dutch company with the most advanced DNA testing available at the time. The defense used this to draw doubt to the DNA evidence. They also argued that maybe the DNA was ""secondary transferred"" to Louise's pajamas via Pfennig's daughter who played basketball with Louise. The defense did everything they could to draw doubt regarding the witnesses and physical evidence. Due to this being a judge-only trial, the trial dragged on with several adjournments. Finally in 2016, the judge found Pfennig guilty for the murder of Louise. He asked Pfennig to lead authorities to the bodies of Michael and Louise with the promise that his sentencing could be affected by his cooperation with the authorities in this. Pfennig did not do this and Louise's body still has not been found. As a result, he was sentenced to 35 years in prison. Along with his other convictions, his non-parole time was brought up to over 60 years. Defense attorneys continue to argue that the DNA evidence in this case is suspect and this decision will have negative impacts on the legal system. Authorities will not close the case until Louise's body is found." | |||
108 | 106 | Peter Nielsen (2 parter) | 2/2/2019 | 2:17:26 | Milly Raso | Milly Raso | 4.07 | 367 | Solved | 2/24/2004 | Switzerland | Bulach | Kloten | 1 | Peter Nielsen | 38 | M | Vitaly Kaloyev | 48 | M | Murder | Stabbing | Kaloyev wanting revenge for the death of his family. | (Part 1) On July 1, 2002, Bashkirian Airlines Flight 2937 (a Russian passenger jet carrying 69 people, including 45 children and 9 crew, piloted by Captain Alexander Mihailovich Gross and First Officer Oleg Pavlovich Grigoriev) and DHL Flight 611 (a cargo plane piloted by Captain Paul Phillips and First Officer Brant Campioni) collided in mid air over the German town of Uberlingen around 9:35 pm. All 71 people aboard both planes were killed. Initially it was not clear what caused the accident and various countries (in particular, Switzerland) involved speculated that it was possible the Russian pilots did not properly understand the English commands of the air traffic controller. This was later disregarded, as English is the de facto language of air traffic professions and the Russian pilots were well versed in flight English. It was also considered that perhaps the Russian plane was defective, since itw as a Tupolev jet - a brand which had had around 30 air disasters since its inception. The darkness of the night sky that night also led to speculation that the planes could not see each other. An investigation into the crash (using the black boxes and cockpit recordings from both planes) ultimately revealed that, once air traffic control saw the two planes were in each other's paths, the DHL plane was ordered by both their Traffic Collision Avoidance System (TCAS) and the air traffic controller to descend while the Tupolev passenger jet was given conflicting orders, one by TCAS to ascend and one by the air traffic controller to descend. Audio recordings from the Russian cockpit revealed that the pilot and his fellow officers argued over which command to follow and ultimately it was decided by the senior officer to follow the air traffic controller's command to descend, despite the unease of the other officer present. Due to the dark sky from the lack of moonlight and the fact that the air traffic controller incorrectly told the Russian plane that the incoming traffic was at the 2:00 position when it was actually at the 10:00 position, the two planes did not actually see each other until it was far too late for them to maneuver out of each other's way. At that point, the Russian plane was going to cross directly over the DHL plane. The vertical stabiliser on the back end of the DHL plane sliced through the body of the Russian plane, causing an immediate loss of oxygen (and the loss of consciousness of all on board) in the Russian aircraft, which started to break to pieces above Uberlingen. The loss of the vertical stabiliser caused the DHL pilots to lose control over the flight; it struggled to fly for a few more kilometers before crashing into a wooded area nearby. Further investigation into what really happened at air traffic control, Skyguide. Skyguide initially stated that the planes were given warnings to ascend and descend, respectively, 2 minutes prior to the crash. However, the black box data and cockpit recordings showed that to be false - the orders were given a mere 43 seconds before the crash and conflicting orders were given to the Russian plane. The air traffic control crew on duty that night were tested for drugs and alcohol, but all came back negative. For a long time, the controller in charge of these flights remained anonymous, but he was eventually revealed to be 36 year old Peter Nielsen, a 10 year veteran controller with a largely umblemished record (excepting a single incident a year prior which did not result in any loss of life) who was well regarded by his peers. "(Part 2) Vitaly Kaloyev was a Russian architect working in Spain on contract. Near the end of his contract, he invited his wife and kids to come out to visit him and see Spain. His wife and two children got on the same flight the Russian school children had chartered to Spain. He got the news over radio the next day that a flight from Russia had been downed over Germany. When he went to the crash site to identify the bodies, he found both of his children's bodies (as they were the two youngest on board). Kaloyev lost himself to grief and spent much of the next year or two in mourning and spending most of his time by his wife and children's graves. He tried to contact Skyguide, the air controller company in charge of the air space where the crash occurred, to find out more about what caused this disaster, but they deflected blame, avoided communication, and tried to pay off victim's families in return for no legal action. After nearly 2 years of sidestepping and refusal to apologize by Skyguide and its company director Alan Rossier, Kaloyev took matters into his own hands and hired a private investigator to discover the identity of Peter N. - the only name partially released in relation to the crash. The PI found the full name and address of Peter Nielsen for Kaloyev, and so Kaloyev went to confront Peter with pictures of his children's dead bodies. Kaloyev later claimed that he just wanted to talk and get some answers from Peter, and things would have gone differently if Peter had invited him in and perhaps acted with less of what Kaloyev perceived to be arrogance and disregard, but the conversation outside of Peter's house didn't last long before Kaloyev stabbed him to death with Peter's wife and children watching. Kaloyev fled to his hotel near the airport and police found him shortly thereafter. He at first denied any wrong doing, but there was clear evidence that he did it - including his fingerprints on the knife and receipt of his purchase of the knife. He admitted to doing it, but showed no remorse. He was found guilty in trial and condemned to 8 years in prison, but he ultimately only spent 3 years doing time before he was returned to Russia. Many Russians consider him a hero for defending his children's honor. He continues to show no remorse to this day. Either because of the murder of Peter Nielsen or just due to tragic timing, the investigation into the crash was completed shortly after Nielsen's death. It found Nielsen not responsible in any way. It found several contributing factors to the crash: It was standard practice at Skyguide for the night shift to be very lightly staffed since the airspace was normally very empty during night. Negligent behavior was tolerated by Skyguide, including allowing controllers to largely sleep through their shifts rather than watching the radars. Maintenance work was being done on the night of the crash that hampered the controller's ability to do their job properly by both delaying the radar and disabling phone communications as well as the early alert system, and this maintenance work and how it would impact the equipment was not properly explained to the controllers before their shift. Peter Nielsen was one of two controllers on shift that night, but the other controller left to take a nap. Nielsen was running back and forth between two stations trying to do the job of two people by 1. safely bringing a plane into landing and 2. guiding the Russian and DHL planes away from each other. Nielsen was unaware of the impact the maintenance work would have on the radar and his communication abilities were limited, so from his end of things, he was doing everything properly and efficiently. He did give the two planes incorrect information regarding the 2:00 vs 10:00 location, but the investigation chalked that up to being confused from having to handle two situations at once. The investigation did not hold Peter Nielsen in any way responsible for the crash. Furthermore, it was found that similar near-miss crashes nearly occurred in other places (one in particular over Japan), but no action was taken by any governing flying body (like the international civil aviation organization) to ensure nothing like that happened again. It was only after the Uberlingen Crash that policies were instituted to help avoid such situations in the future (including a policy which stated that, if given conflicting information from controllers and TCAS, prioritize TCAS). A trial went ahead and held eight Skyguide managers and employees responsible for 71 cases of negligible homicide. Three of the four managers convicted were only given suspended prison terms and the fourth had to pay a fine. The other four were cleared of wrongdoing. Russians and the families of the victims found these punishments to be laughably insufficient. Skyguide only released a generic apology and responsibility statement after the conclusion of the trial, and Alan Rossier was let go from the company. Peter Nielsen is included in memorials as part of the 72 people who lost their lives as a direct result of this crash. " | ||
109 | 107 | Lucie Blackman & Carita Ridgway | 2/23/2019 | 1:32:00 | Catherine Seccombe | Catherine Seccombe | 3.81 | 252 | Solved | 1992-2000 | Japan | Kanto | Tokyo | 2 | Carita Ridgway, Lucie Blackman | 21, 21 | F | Joji Obara | 40, 48 | M | Serial assault and rape, murder | Poisoning, overdose | Sexual desire | Carita Ridgway was a 21 year old Australian model temporarily living and working in Japan with her sister in 1992. She was attempting to save up money for her upcoming wedding and acting classes she wished to take. She worked as a hostess and on February 29, 1992, her douhan (paid date) drugged her, raped her, and video taped the act. She was dropped off at a hospital, unconscious, and after some life-saving procedures failed to revive her, she was declared brain dead. Lucie Blackman was a 21 year old English woman working as a hostess in Japan as a way to save up money and pay off some debts she had. She was living and working with her friend, Louise Kerton. On July 1, 2000, Lucie went on a douhan and was scheduled to spend time with Louise later that night after her date. She called Louise to confirm their plans, but the set time came and went without Lucie arriving home. Louise waited a couple of days before reporting Lucie because they were technically illegally working in Japan. She reported Lucie's disappearance to the Japanese police, but felt they did not take her report seriously. Louise received a call from Lucie's date, who claimed Lucie had decided to join a cult. Louise made Lucie's family aware of her disappearance, and some family members travelled to Japan and started to put pressure on the police via the media. Lucie's case received very high press coverage both in Japan and internationally. Five days after Lucie's disappearance, a report was made to Tokyo police from an apartment manager stating that one of his tenants had been making odd noises in his apartment. Police visited this tenant - Joji Obara - and found his apartment in dissaray, with cement chunks and a bulky sack laying about. The police couldnot investigate further due to not having a warrant. After months of appeals, three women came forward stating that they experienced situations that bore similarities to Lucie's - they had been western women working as hostesses in Japan who had been on douhans, blacked out, and woke up to their date giving them an excuse for their unconsciousness. They both reported their assaults to the Japanese police, who did not take their reports seriously. The police made the possible connection between the assaults and Joji Obara due to the fact that he had a police record of an assault from the 1980s, and the western women came forward to confirm their attacker was Joji. "Police got a warrant to search Joji's apartment and found a collection of hundreds of video tapes and records of assaults of tens of women. The modus operandi was always the same: drugging the women into unconsciousness and assaulting them for upwards of 10+ hours. Police also found receipts of a chainsaw and a shovel. Obara denied any involvement and claimed the sexual activities in the videos were all consensual. When Obara's name and face were published in the media, Carita Ridgway's family recognized him as the man who had dropped her off at the hospital and who had later met with them to establish his story - he and Carita had been on a date, and she had become ill after eating bad food. A piece of liver the hospital had taken from Carita was tested and found traces of chloroform, and Carita was also found as one of the victims in his video tapes. A diary entry from Obara regarding Carita mentioned that he had used too much chloroform. Police had conducted several searches for Lucie's body at Obara's various properties (as he was a wealthy man with many homes), and finally, seven months after her disappearance, Lucie's body was found semi buried and partially encased in cement by a small cave on the beach near his apartment. Obara was charged with drugging, raping, and killing Lucie, the rape of six other women, and the manslaughter of Carita. Since the Japanese judicial system has strict rules regarding concrete evidence in trials (as opposed to circumstantial evidence), the prosecutor could not provide concrete evidence linking Obara to Lucie's death. Therefore, he was acquitted of Lucie's murder, but he was found guilty of the multiple rape charges and manslaughter of Carita and was subsequently jailed for life." Feb 29, 1992 Jul 1, 2000 | ||
110 | 108 | The Kicevo Monster | 3/2/2019 | 1:04:34 | Elsha McGill | Elsha McGill | 3.71 | 273 | Solved | 2005-2008 | Macedonia | Kicevo Municipality | Kicevo | 4 | Mitra Simjanoska, Ljubica Licoska, Zivana Temelkoska, Gorica Pavleska | 64, 56, 65, 78 | F | Vlado Taneski | 53-55 | M | Murder, kidnapping | Strangulation | Vlado Taneski was a crime reporter in Macedonia. He had been laid off from his full time work, but he caught a lucky break when he started writing on breaking news - the murders of Mitra Simjanoska, Ljubica Licoska, and Zivana Temelkoska. Violent crimes were rare in Kicevo, so Taneski used the opportunity to pitch the crimes to a Macedonian newspaper. His articles on the subject became widely read and he became more respected as a journalist. Two young men, Ante Risteski and Igor Mirceski, were arrested and charged with Simjanoska's murder (as well as the murder of Radoslav Bozhinoski, an old man killed in 2004. The police were treating these two separate incidents as a double homicide). During pre-trial interrogation, Risteski and Miceski had confessed to both murders, however they later recanted the Simjanoska confession and said they were coerced under duress to confess. Mirceski and Risteski were found guilty and sentenced to life in prison for the murders. It was later revealed, however, that traces of semen found in Simjanoska did not match the DNA of either man. Lubica Licoska's body was found in February 2007 after she had been missing for three months. Like Simjanoska, she had been held hostage for months, abused, and then killed shortly before her body was discovered. Around this time, police recalled a similar case of an older woman who worked as a cleaner (as Licoska and Simjanoska did), Gorica Pavelska, who had gone missing in May 2003 and who has never been found. On May 7, 2007, Zivana Temelkoska disappeared and, unlike the others, her body was found dead only a week later. But like the others, she was also sexually and physically abused. Taneski ramped up his investigation into the crime by interviewing police detectives on the case and family members of the victims. He kept the public informed with his series of articles on the crimes. Based on the DNA evidence in each case, police were able to narrow down a pool of suspects over time. Taneski was included in this pool of possible suspects. Police became suspicious of him when he revealed in one of his articles the method of murders - strangulation via a phone cord - because that detail had been purposefully kept out of the media. Three independent lab tests confirmed that semen taken from Simjanoska and Temelkoska was Taneski's, and hairs found near Licoska's body were Taneski's. On June 20, 2008, Taneski was arrested in connection to the three murders and police wanted to find possible links between him and the 2003 disappearance of Pavelska. On June 23, 2008, while in custody, Taneski was found dead in his cell. There was a suicide note found nearby, but there is debate about whether his death was actually a suicide. By Macedonia law, a dead person cannot be put on trial, so the murders of the three victims never went to trial. Some of Taneski's motives could be drawn from his complicated relationship with his mother, who had died before the murder spree began. Some of the women had been dressed his Taneski's mother's clothing while they were abused, murdered, and disposed. Note: the victims are as follows: 3 (known), 1 (possible, missing) | |||
111 | 109 | Belanglo (5 parter) | 3/23/2019 | 6:18:22 | Anonymous Host | Elsha McGill | 4.41 | 471 | Solved | 1989-1993 | Australia | New South Wales | Belanglo State Forest | 7 | Deborah Everist, James Gibson, Simone Schmidl, Anja Habschied, Gabor Neugebauer, Joanne Walters, Caroline Clarke | 19, 19, 21, 20, 21, 22, 21 | F, M | Ivan Millat | 45-49 | M | Murder, sexual assault | Shooting, stabbing, blunt force trauma | Serial killer who targeted young travelers and seemed to find enjoyment in violence. | In 1989, young Victorian couple James Gibson and Deborah Everist left on a backpacking trip. Their destination was a conservation rally in Albury and they hitchhiked their way south down the Hume Highway to get there. They were last seen on December 30, 1989, near the Belanglo forest. The day after the couple’s disappearance, James’s backpack was found on Galston Gorge Road, 150 km away from Belanglo and in the opposite direction of where James and Deborah had been intending to travel Simone Schmidl was a German hitchhiker who was travelling alone through Australia. She was a passionate traveller and met friends along the way, but during one particular stretch of her journey, she went hitchiking alone along the Hume Highway despite her friends and family asking her not to and offering to pay for transportation. She was last seen in January of 1991. Gabor Neugebauer and Anja Habschied were a young German couple that had travelled together to many places throughout the world. They came to Australia, but found it wasn't to their taste. The last contact that Gabor had with his family, he expressed unhappiness with Australia and desire to leave as soon as possible. They had been missing since December of 1991, last seen near the Sydney suburb of Kings Cross. Caroline Clark and Joanne Walters were two British backpackers who had met and bonded while in Australia and decided to continue travelling together. They worked odd jobs like fruit picking to fund their journeying. They were last seen in Kings Cross in April 1992. As the family members of the missing people, in particular those of Clark and Walters, pressed Australian officials to take the cases seriously, some tips and sightings were reported. Though most of the sightings were thought to be false, the increasing media attention led the press to look into various cases of missing international travellers to find possible connections. The Hostel industry came under fire and press denouncing hitchiking as dangerous was released. In September 1992, members of the Orienteering Club discovered a decaying body in Belanglo forest. They reported the find to police, who discovered a second body near the first the next day. Items near the body indicated that the two bodies were British travelers Caroline Clark and Joanne Walters, which was later confirmed by forensic testing. Forensic experts determined that both women had died to ferocious attacks. Neither had defensive wounds, indicating they had been bound. Joanne had 14+ stab wounds in her torso, and she had been gagged with a cloth tied in an over-under knot. Caroline had been shot in the head ten times and she also had a knife wound in her back. Ballistics showed the bullets came from a 22 caliber rifle. Near Caroline’s body were discarded cigarette butts, which indicated the perpetrator may have spent a long time committing the attack and attending the scene. Due to how far away the crime scene was from the road, police believed the killer was familiar with the forest, perhaps a local. Police continued searching the area for additional evidence, but nothing was found. On Oct 5, 1993, a local man named Bruce Pryor was gathering wood in the forest when he came across human remains. He notified police of his finding, and when police arrived, they found another body near the first remains. Panty hose tied in a slip knot was found, as well as electrical tape, clothing, shoes, and cloth that seemed to have been used as a gag. Post mortem examination revealed these bodies to be that of James Gibson and Deborah Everest, which surprised police since they had only been considering foreign travelers up to this point. Deborah Everest had suffered severe blunt force trauma to her head and jaw as well as some knife wounds to her head. James was found in the fetal position and he had been stabbed 7+ times. Neither had defensive wounds, which indicated they had been restrained. The fact that James’s backpack had been found a day after they were last seen (and the backpack contained pine needles like those found in Belanglo, while Galston Gorge Road has no pine trees), led investigators to believe that James and Deborah were killed the very day that they were last seen alive. Assistant Commissioner Clive Small led Task Force Air, a police force designated to investigate the four deaths. The investigation was slow going and not a lot of headway was made. Further searches of the forest did not reveal any more evidence. Since it was very difficult to identify the knife or knives used in the various attacks, police focused on the bullets found. They began looking into gun owners who had 22 caliber rifles. They requested any such owners to come forward so they could be eliminated from the investigation. No major breakthroughs were made in the case, and the investigation slowed down. "On Nov 1, 1993, a group of police did a final sweep of their area of the forest when they came across remains. The body was later identified as Simone Schmidl. She had been stabbed multiple times with extreme force. Near her body was found clothing, rope, and wire tied in the shape of a noose. Investigators thought it would be unusual for all the victims to have been killed by the same killer, since serial killers usually don’t kill across genders or kill multiple people at once. On Nov 4, 1993, further search of the area near Simone’s body revealed two more bodies. Shoes, clothing, plane ticket, rope, electrical tape, and jewelry were found near the bodies. Dental records confirmed the bodies to be that of Gabor Neugebauer and Anja Habschied. Anja had been stabbed multiple times in the torso and she had also been decapitated by a single powerful blow (her skull has never been found). Gabor had been shot six times in the head and he was likely strangled. He had been gagged using a reef knot, which was different from the knot used to gag Joanne. It indicated the possibility that perhaps more than one person was involved in committing the crimes. Near the area Gabor was found, more bullet containers and casings were found, which helped narrow down the type of guns used. Investigators found some differences between the murders. The earliest murders primarily involved stabbings and other knife wounds, while the violence of the crimes later escalated to include shootings and the decapitation. However, the similarities between the murders indicated they were connected. One of the guns used, a Rugger, likely had a silencer attached to it. An area near where Gabor was found seemed to have been used as a shooting range. The investigators looked into the brand and make of the bullets to help discover more about the perpetrator. The perpetrator had stabbed several of the victims in the same spot in the back, which would have rendered them paralyzed but kept them alive. Furthermore, several of the victims had been used as target practice for the perpetrator. Several of the victims may have also been sexually violated. All victims had been found face down, except James who was in the fetal position. As the violence of the attacks increased, the time the perpetrator spent committing the crimes and his level of confidence increased. All of the sites where bodies were found were similar in geography and each had makeshift firepits nearby. This indicated that perhaps the victims were lured by the campfire, or perhaps the killer camped out while he committed the crimes. Investigators were unsure if the crimes were committed by a single perpetrator or by multiple. Backpacks of all the victims, except James, remained missing. Police combed missing traveler records to see if any others could be potentially linked to the bodies found in Belanglo. On Nov 5, NSW police announced a large reward for any information leading to the arrest of the Belanglo killer. Hundreds more police were added to the Belanglo task force and the investigation continued to expand. Several separate investigations were all combined to form this task force, and this merging was a difficult process due to the various ways information had been stored and the massive amount of data from each investigation. Clive Small went out of his way to, with the help of others, create a new system (NetMap) which would import and organize all the data from the various investigations. This process took a large amount of time and effort, which delayed the investigation, but it organized nearly a million pieces of data into a manageable system. Further searches were conducted along Galston Road and in Belanglo, but no further evidence was found. The police were able to slightly narrow down the search on a more specific type of rugger rifle. People called in to the police hotline to report people who owned similar guns or had other similarities to the perpetrator. Two separate callers identified a man by the name of Ivan Millat. A third reported an incident a few years prior, when she was driving on the Hume Highway and saw two men struggling. One of the men jumped in her car and said the other had a gun, so she drove away. In January 1990, British backpacker Paul Onions accepted a ride from a man named Bill along the Hume highway. After some small talk, Bill threatened Paul with a gun, but Paul managed to escape by running from the car and diving into another car driving in the opposite direction. Paul and the woman who rescued him both filed reports with the police regarding the incident, but Bill was not found. In Nov 1993, when Paul heard the reports of the Belanglo serial killer, he contacted Australian police again regarding his experience. Criminal psychologists had differing opinions on the profile of the killer. Initially, some psychologists believed the killer was actually two killers – a pair of brothers. The FBI profiling team disagreed, however, and instead argued the killer was a single perpetrator. Richard Millat worked at a building supply company. The topic of the Belanglo murders was a popular conversation at the company. Under the influence of drugs, Richard mentioned that he knew who killed the Germans. At this point, no Germans had been discovered. Over several other conversations, he mentioned over things, such as “not all the bodies have been discovered” or “you could pick up anyone on that road and they’d never be found” or “stabbing a woman is like cutting a loaf of bread.” The sinister remarks caused some of his coworkers to report him to police. The Millat name had been known to Task Force Air since October 1993 – another family member, Alexander Millat, had claimed to see some women being taken (seemingly by force) by some men in two cars. A third brother, Ivan, had been reported to the hotline due to the fact that he lived near Belanglo and owned guns. " | ||
112 | 110 | Muriel McKay | 5/4/2019 | 1:27:16 | Milly Raso | Milly Raso | 3.64 | 227 | Solved | 12/29/1969 | England | Hertfordshire | Stocking Pelham | 1 | Muriel McKay | 55 | F | Arthur Hosein, Nizamodeen Hosein | 34, 22 | M | Kidnapping, blackmail, murder | Unknown | On Dec 29, 1969, Muriel was kidnapped from her home. A caller who claimed to be associated with a mob group called M3 contacted Alick to demand a 1 million pound ransom. Over the next several weeks, M3 made more than 18 calls and sent 3 letters (written in the hand of Muriel) demanding the payment be maid. Two attempts to deliver the money were unsuccessful. During the second attempt on February 6, 1970, a suspicious Volvo passed by the cases containing the ransom money several times. The Volvo was traced back to the Hosein brothers Arthur and Nizamodeen. The Hosein brothers intended to kidnap Anna Murdoch, wife if media mogul Rupert Murdoch, to use for ransom. However, they confused Anna with Muriel McKay, wife of Murdoch's deputy Alick McKay. The brothers were charged and convicted of blackmail, kidnap, and murder without a body (since Muriel's body was never found) based on evidence found in their residence. They were given life sentences plus an additional 25 years for Arthur and 15 for Nizamodeen. Arthur died in prison while Nizamodeen was eventually deported back to his home country. | |||
113 | 111 | Shauna Howe | 5/18/2019 | 1:15:22 | Eileen Ormsby | Eileen Ormsby | 3.77 | 205 | Solved | 10/30/1992 | USA | Pennsylvania | Oil City | 1 | Shauna Howe | 11 | F | Eldred Walker, James O'Brien, Timothy O'Brien | 33, 20, 25 | M | Kidnap, Murder | Blunt force trauma caused by a fall | Shauna Howe was 11 years old when she was kidnapped and murdered by being thrown off a bridge in October 1992. Her case went unsolved for over a decade when three men, Eldre Walker, James O'Brien, and Timothy O'Brien, were convicted for participating in the crime. | |||
114 | 112 | Rachel Barber | 5/25/2019 | 1:12:56 | Elsha McGill, Gemma Harris, and Milly Raso | Elsha McGill, Gemma Harris, and Milly Raso | 4.01 | 247 | Solved | 3/1/1999 | Australia | Victoria | Melbourne | 1 | Rachel Barber | 15 | F | Carline Reed Robertson | 19 | F | Kidnap, Murder | Strangulation | Rachel Barber was an aspiring dancer, and she attended a prestigious dance school in Melbourne. On March 1, 1999, she didn't return home from her classes. Police didn't take her family's pleas for help seriously - "she's a teen, she'll show up sometime, probably just lost track of time". Her friends and boyfriend informed the family that Rachel had made comments about some high paying job she was offered on the night she disappeared, and she was excited since the job would let her buy a pair of shoes she'd been eyeing. This led some to speculate that Rachel had been forced into a prostitution ring, but this lead led nowhere. One witness eventually came forward to say that she saw Rachel walking away with an older, plain looking female. This eventually led to Caroline Robertson - the Barber family's old babysitter. It became clear that Robertson was obsessed with Rachel due to her good looks, popularity, and talent. After investigators combed Robertson's home and journal, it came out that Robertson had been stalking Rachel and trying to assume Rachel's identity. Robertson admitted that she kidnapped Rachel under pretenses of a job, tried to drug her with "drowsy powder" on pizza they ate together, and then she strangled Rachel with a cord. She left Rachel's body in her apartment before burying her a few days later on her family property. Robertson was found guilty and sentenced to 20 years in prison. So far, it appears she has shown no remorse for her crime and still appears to be obsessed with Rachel. | |||
115 | 113 | Brendan Bernard | 6/1/2019 | 1:09:45 | Rick Best | Rick Best | 3.48 | 194 | Solved | 1/27/2015 | Australia | Victoria | Moonee Ponds | 1 | Brendan Bernard | 32 | M | Constantinos Spalarias, Edward Hill, Matthew Brennan | 31, 46 , 36 | M | Murder | Strangulation, blunt force trauma, cutting up body | Brendan was a drug addict living rent free with Matthew, a friend. Some acquaintances of Matthew, Constantinos and Edward (and Constantinos' girlfriend) partied together. Brendan was lent money for drugs. He was later beaten, strangled, killed, and dismembered over the debt, despite the fact that he gave the $60 back to Matthew, who hid the repayment from the others. All three men were found guilty of murder and sentenced to 17, 20, and 22 years for Constantinos, Edward, and Matthew respectively. | |||
116 | 114 | Elisa Claps & Heather Barnett | 6/15/2019 | 1:47:30 | Mike Migas, Paulina Szymanska | Elsha McGill | 3.99 | 229 | Solved | 1993-2002 | Italy | Basilicata | Potenza | 2 | Elisa Claps, Heather Barnett | 16, 48 | F | Danilo Restivo | 21, 30 | M | Murder | Stabbing | In 1993, Elisa Claps went missing in Italy. Much misinformation floated around regarding her disappearance, but an admirer of hers - Danilo Restivo - was identified as a suspect. However, not enough evidence was found and the case went cold. In 2002, Heather Barnett, single mother of two, was found murdered in England. At the time, Restivo lived nearby, and he was almost immediately a person of interest. DNA evidence at the scene connected Restivo to Barnett. He was also known locally as a creep who had a fetish for cutting hair. The body of Elisa Claps was discovered in 2008 in the attic of the church she and her family attended, and where many vigils had been held in her honor. It was discovered that the church probably already knew about the body in the attic, and had not come forward with this information. It was indicated that other sexual activities had been commited by the priests there. DNA evidence in both cases tied Restivo to the murders. In 2011 at a trial in England, Restivo was found guilty of Barnett's murder and sentenced to 40 years in prison, and that same year he was found guilty of Claps' murder and sentenced to 30 years in Italy. It is possible that Restivo is connected to other similar style murders in Europe. Note: The Elisa Claps case took place in Potenza, Italy. The Heather Barnett case took place in Bournemouth, England. This is the only casefile case where multiple murders by the same person took place in separate countries. | |||
117 | 115 | Operation Cathedral | 6/22/2019 | 1:15:24 | Milly Raso | Milly Raso | 3.99 | 239 | Solved | 1998 | England | Unknown | Unknown | F, M | Ian Baldock, David Hines, Gavin Seagers, Antoni Skinner, Andrew Barlow, Frederick Stephens, Ahmed Ali, Gary Salt, Stephen Ellis | M | Rape, abduction, child pornography | Rape, abduction, child pornography | * This date refers to the night of simultaneous raids done in cooperation by 13 police forces around the globe, which resulted in 104 suspects arrested in 13 countries. The crimes of the members of the Wonderland Club were occurring before that time, with police first being tipped off / starting an investigation in 1996. The Wonderland Club was a child pornography ring that had members active in at least 46 countries. It was first created by two pedophiles from the USA and spread from there to include more the 750,000 images and 1,800 videos of child pornography involving children as young as two months old. One requirement for entry into the club included providing 10,00 new images for other members of the club to use. Despite substantial police work, only a tiny fraction (17 out of 1,263) of the people in the photos and videos have been identified and as such, many of the pedophiles got away with their crimes and many of the child victims are Unknown. Operation Cathedral took place in several countries: Great Britain, Australia, Belgium, Finland, France, Germany, Italy, Sweden, USA | |||||||
118 | 116 | Chloe Ayling | 6/29/2019 | 1:21:05 | Eileen Ormsby | Eileen Ormsby | 3.71 | 246 | Solved | 7/12/2017 | Italy | Lombardy | Milan | 1 | Chloe Ayling | 20 | F | Lukasz Herba, Michal Herba | 30, 36 | M | Kidnapping, ransom | Kidnapping | Ayling was a model in Milan to work for a photographer "Andre Lazio," whom she had met previously for potential work. Lazio was actually Lukasz Herba, who, along with his brother Michal, had planned to kidnap and auction Ayling off as a sex slave on the dark web. Herba claimed to work for a group called the Black Death Group. Pictures and threatening messages were sent to UK investigators regarding Ayling and the state of her auciton. At one point, though, the auction was called off since the group had rules to not auction off mothers, and Ayling had a child. After 6 days of being held hostage, Ayling and Lukasz showed up at the milan consulate and there began to be suspicions that Ayling was in on the kidnap. At the trial, Ayling refuted the claims that she was involved and gave her side of the story - that she was injected with kedamine, tossed into the trunk of a car, and held in bondage until Lukasz decided to turn her over to authorities. She says the bad press ruined her reputation, while others say she used the attention to leverage her career. Lukasz was sentenced to 16 years and 9 months in prison, while Michal's trial is ongoing. | |||
119 | 117 | Hannah Foster | 7/13/2019 | 1:15:57 | Erin Munro | Elsha McGill | 3.78 | 209 | Solved | 3/14/2003 | England | Hampshire | Southampton | 1 | Hannah Foster | 17 | F | Maninder Pal Singh Kohli | 37 | M | Rape, murder | Strangulation | On March 14, 2003, Hannah Foster was kidnapped, raped, and murdered. Her body was found two days after her death. While in captivity, Hannah made a call to emergency services in the hope that they would track her location to save her. Unfortunately, the call was treated as a likely misdial and no help was sent. This call revealed, however, that Hannah was in the presence of a man with a south Asian accent. Combined with this and a tip off from a coworker of Kohli's, police were able to pin point Kohli as a suspect - but he fled back to his home country of India. Due to DNA evidence, it was clear that Kohli was involved in the crime, but locating him in India and extradicting him took a few years. While he was on the run, he became a bigamist - he had left a wife in Great Britain and remarried in India. When he was captured, he confessed to the crime but later recanted. Both of his wives support his innocence. At trial in November 2008, Kohli was found guilty and sentenced to life imprisonment. | |||
120 | 118 | The Chicago Tylenol Murders | 7/21/2019 | 1:23:03 | Anonymous Host, Milly Raso | Milly Raso | 4.22 | 333 | Unsolved | 1982 | USA | Illinois | Chicago | 7 | Mary Kellerman, Adam Janus, Stanley Janus, Theresa Janus, Mary Reiner, Mary McFarland, Paula Prince | 12, 27, 25, 19, 31, 27, 35 | F, M | Unknown | Unknown | Unknown | Poisoning, Domestic Terrorism | Poisoning | In the course of a few days between late September, early october 1982, 7 people in Chicago died after taking Tylenol. Tests on their bottles found that some of the capsules inside had been laced with cyanide. While there were some suspects (James Lewis, who demanded money to stop the poisonings but was found to made a false claim; Roger Arnold, who was investigated and cleared), no one was ever convicted of the crime. As a result of this crime, the medicine industry instituted stronger safety standards and quality control for medicine bottles. | |||
121 | 119 | Abigail Williams and Liberty German | 7/27/2019 | 1:09:00 | Anonymous Host, Erin Munro | Elsha McGill, Erin Munro, Milly Raso | 3.93 | 246 | Unsolved (ongoing) | 2/13/2017 | USA | Indiana | Delphi | 2 | Abigail Williams, Liberty German | 13, 14 | F | Unknown | Unknown | M | Murder | Unknown | Best friends Abigail and Liberty were on a break from school and decided to spend some time hiking a local trail and taking photographs, which was a hobby they shared. When they failed to meet their family members at the scheduled time at the end of the trail, they were reported as missing to the police. Their bodies were found the next day a half mile from the Monon High Bridge Trail and it was clear they had been murdered, rather than some accidental deaths. Police released some information in the hopes of finding a suspect - including blurry images and video of a man who had been on the trail that day, and who had spoken to the girls and seemed to have given them orders to go "down the hill." Liberty had the foresight to record as much as she could. Despite thousands and tips and police hours worked, a suspect has not been arrested yet in this case. This case is still open and active. | |||
122 | 120 | Bill McGuire | 8/10/2019 | 1:06:03 | Flossie Arend | Elsha McGill, Flossie Arend, Milly Raso | 3.59 | 184 | Solved | 4/28/2004 | USA | New Jersey | Woodbridge | 1 | Bill McGuire | 39 | M | Melanie McGuire | 32 | F | Murder | Shooting, dismemberment | Human remains were found in luggage near the Chesapeake Bay Bridge Tunnel. A composite sketch and DNA later confirmed it to be the remains of Bill McGuire. At this time, Bill's wife Melanie displayed some erratic and suspicious behavior, including buying a gun, sending letters to various people involved in the case, having affairs, and moving Bill's car randomly two hours away from their home. She was charged with first degree murder in June of 2005 and was later charged with additional crimes like hindering apprehension. At trial in 2007, she was found guilty of first degree murder, perjury, desecration of human remains, and posession of a weapon for an unlawful purpose. She was sentenced to life in prison. Despite this, Melanie insisted her husband was killed by gang members. | |||
123 | 121 | The Freeway Phantom | 8/17/2019 | 1:23:17 | Anonymous Host | Elsha McGill | 3.68 | 220 | Unsolved | 1971-1972 | USA | Washington DC | 6 | Carol Spinks, Darlenia Johnson, Brenda Crockett, Nenomoshia Yates, Brenda Woodward, Diane Williams | 13, 16, 10, 12, 18, 17 | F | Unknown | Unknown | Unknown | Serial murder, rape, assault | Strangulation, stabbing | The Freeway Phantom is an unidentified serial killer that operated from 17 months between April 1971 and September 1972. He abducted six young girls, aged 10-18. His usual modus operandi was, after abduction, to rape or assault them, then manually strangle them and dump their bodies on grassy areas near freeways in and around DC. He deviated from this pattern in a couple of the cases: For third victim Brenda Crockett, the phantom coerced her into calling her family twice, perhaps as a way to taunt them. Brenda was strangled with a scarf rather than manually. And the fifth victim, Brenda Woodward, had a note from the killer found with her body: This is tantamount to my insensitivity to people especially women. I will admit the others when you catch me if you can! Free-way Phantom The Victims: Carol Spinks (April 25, 1972 - aged 13) was abducted while on an errand given by her older sister to pick up groceries at a local 7-eleven. Her body was found six days later near I-295. Darlenia Johnson (July 8, 1971 - aged 16) was abducted while on her way to her sumemr job. One witness reported seeing her in an old black car that was driven by a black male shortly after her abduction. Her body was discovered eleven days later only 15 feet from the location Spink's had been found. Brenda Crockett (July 27, 1971 - aged 10) was abducted while she was out running errands at the store for her mother. She failed to return home, and three hours after she left on the errand, the family phone rang. Brenda's little sister answered, and Brenda reportedly said "A white man picked me up and I'm heading home in a cab." Brenda also stated she believed she was in Virginia somewhere. Shortly after that, Brenda called again and repeated the same information. A few hours after that, Brenda's body was discovered near US Route 50. Police concluded the information Brenda gave over the phone was inaccurate information meant to divert the police so the Phantom had time to commit his acts. Nenomoshia Yates (October 1, 1971 - aged 12) was abducted while walking home from a Safeway store. Her body was found a few hours later near the shoulder of Pennsylvania Avenuein Maryland. After this murder, the moniker "Freeway Phantom" started being used in media. Brenda Woodward (November 15, 1971 - aged 18) was abducted after leaving a friend's house, where she had dinner, to return to her home. Her body was found approximately six hours later near Route 202. She had been stabbed and strangled. Her body held the note as transcribed above. Diane Williams (September 5, 1972 - aged 17) was abducted while on her way to visit her boyfriend. Her body was found a short time later near I-295. Angela Denise Barnes (1971 - aged 14) was originally considered to also be a possible victim of the Phantom, but she had dissimilarities from the other victims (including the fact that she was shot). A later investigation concluded that Angela was victim to a different killer. Later on Edward Sullivan and Tommie Simmons, two ex-cops, were arrested for her murder "There was much unrest in the DC community, which was 70% black, that the murders weren't being taken seriously due to the race of the victims. The police captain argued that the police department had worked hard on the cases and pointed blame to the media and news, who did not shine a light on black victims. The Green Vega Rapists were a gang considered to be suspects of the Phantom killings. This gang largely operated in DC and Maryland, commiting rapes and abductions. While some of the gang members seemed to have pointed fingers at each other, or while some imprisoned criminals may have had insider knowledge, no solid suspect was ever found. Outside of the gang, the strongest suspect was Robert Askins, a man who had previously served time for a 1938 murder of a DC prostitute. He was freed in 1958 based off a legal technicality. In 1977, police got a warrant to search his house where they found the appelate court's opinion from his conviction, which used the word ""tantamount"". Police found the use of the word interesting since it matched the word used found in the note on one of the victims. Plenty of evidence was found in the house that linked Askins to other crimes, but not to the murders of the six girls. Askins was convicted of other crimes and received a life sentence, and he died in prison in 2010. Some detectives, like Romaine Jenkins, have since tried to solve the case. But there has been little reported headway since much of the evidence in the case was mishandled or lost. The case is still unsolved to this day." | ||||
124 | 122 | Leeann Lapham | 8/24/2019 | 1:00:42 | Anonymous Host, Elsha McGill, Queensland Police Homicide Unit | Elsha McGill | 3.59 | 203 | Solved | 4/19/2010 | Australia | Queensland | Innisfail | 1 | Leann Lapham | 30 | F | Graeme Evans | 36 | M | Murder | Blunt force trauma | Leeann Lapham's partner and father of her child, Graeme Evans, was verbally and physically abusive. Their relationship was turbulent and Leeann attempted to leave several times, but Graeme kept manipulating her to come back with promises to improve and "love-bombing" her. He would soon return to his abusive ways, however. After an argument with Graeme in April 2010, Leeann disappeared. Investigators looked into Leeann's friend, who had expressed romantic interest in her. But he was eliminated from the investigation. Graeme gave several interviews with police, and seven years after her disappearance, Graeme was charged with her murder. Graeme's former partner had also reported him for stalking and domestic violence in the early 2000s, and her fear of him was so great that she changed her name and moved away. A year after his arrest, Evans's lawyer wanted to discuss the possibility of a plea bargain under the "no body, no parole" rule. Evans pleaded guilty and lead investigators to Leeann's body. As a result, Graeme was sentenced to nine years in prison and is eligible for parole after four years. This was the first case in Aus to be solved under the "no body, no parole" rule. Many are outraged at the lightness of the sentence. | |||
125 | 123 | Mark Kilroy | 9/7/2019 | 1:09:11 | Erin Munro | Elsha McGill, Milly Raso | 3.98 | 228 | Solved | 3/14/1989 | Mexico | Tamaulipas | Matamoros | 1 | Mark Kilroy | 21 | M | Adolfo Constanzo / The Narcosatanists | 26 | M | Ritual sacrifice, murder, torture, sodomy, cannibalism | Machete | Satanic ritual killing | Mark Kilroy was a young student on spring break in Mexico with friends. While out partying one night, Mark disappeared. Police did not initially take the case seriously, as the area was flooded with tourists on spring break, and "missing" tourists usually turned up after a few days. The case drew a lot of attention in America due to the status of Mark's family, and the bad publicity caused Mexican officials to take the case more seriously. Initially, they thought it could be a case of robbery or a case involving drugs. These leads and the growing publicity of the case did not go anywhere, unfortunately. An unrelated incident - a speeding car that had run a red light - caused police to notice the driver, Serafin Hernandez. Serafin and various of his family members were found to be members of a cult, led by Adolfo Constanzo. This cult participated in ritual torture, sacrifice, and cannibalism and various other rituals in the hope of supernatural power. Mark Kilroy's body parts were found at the ranch where these rituals would take place, alongside 14 other victims of the cult. Adolfo Constanzo, the leader of the cult, fled the area in an attempt to escape, but he was eventually found. He ordered cult members to kill him before he could be arrested. At trial in 1993, various cult members were found guilty and sentenced to 60+ years in prison. It is possible that there are more victims than the 14 (+Mark Kilroy) found at the ranch. As of today, two suspect members of the cult remain at large. | ||
126 | 124 | Hinterkaifeck | 9/14/2019 | 1:02:29 | Erin Munro | Erin Munro | 3.77 | 270 | Unsolved | 3/31/1922 | Germany | Bavaria | Waidhofen | 6 | Andreas Gruber, Cazilia Gruber, Viktoria Gruber, Cazilia Gruber, Josef Gruber, Maria Baumgartner | 63, 72, 35, 7, 2, 44 | F, M | Unknown | Unknown | Unknown | Murder | Bludgeoning, Mattock | After not being seen for several days, neighbors of the Gruber family went to investigate the Gruber family farmstead. They found Andreas, Cazilia, Viktoria, and Viktoria's daughter Cazilia dead in the barn, and Maria and Josef were found dead inside the house. Investigators initially thought the family may have been targeted for robbery, but many valuables were left behind at the home. Without much evidence to go on (and primitive investigative techniques), there was much speculation about who could have murdered the entire family and why. There were signs that someone had been inhabiting the home before, during, and after the death of the Grubers and Andreas had complained of noticing signs that someone was on his property but refused help to search. The last time young Cazilia was seen at school, she had made mention that no one slept well the previous night due to an argument. Some theories include: Karl Gabriel: Viktoria's husband and father to Cazilia, who was reportedly killed in action in WWI, may have actually just been in hiding. He may have killed the entire family due to the incestuous relationship between Andreas and his daughter, Cazilia, a relationship that had been ongoing since she was young. Lorenz Schlittenbauer: Likely the father of Viktoria's second child, Josef, he had a turbulent relationship with the Gruber's. He was among the first group of people that discovered the bodies. Other theories abounded, all largely based on speculation. Many rumors spread about the family due to the incestuous relationship between Andreas and Viktoria and how it may have been involved in someone being motivated to kill the entire family. | |||
127 | 125 | The Angels of Wynarka & Belanglo | 9/21/2019 | 0:58:00 | Alyssa Fletcher, Elsha McGill, Milly Raso | Alyssa Fletcher, Elsha McGill, Milly Raso | 3.82 | 238 | Solved | 12/1/2008 | Australia | Northern Territory | Alice Springs | 2 | Karlie Pearce-Stevenson, Khandalyce Pearce | 20, 2 | F | Daniel James Holdom | 34 | M | Murder | Unknown | Khandalyce's remains were found stuffed into a luggage bag and tossed onto the side of the road near Wynarka (in 2015), South Australia. Karlie's body was found in Belanglo in state forest (2010), 680 miles from where Khandalyce's remains were found. The mother and daughter pair had not been seen since 2008, when they moved to a new city with Karlie's new boyfriend, Daniel James Holdom, who was nearly twice her age. Daniel had a history of violence and drug use and had previously been involved in a fatal accident that killed 2 children from a previous girlfriend. In 2015, police found that Holdom and his new girlfriend, a woman named Hazel, had continued to use Karlie's identity to commit fraud and to send false "proof of life" messages to Karlie's friends and family. Daniel was charged with the murders of Karlie and Khandalyce and in November 2018, he was sentenced to two life sentences. | |||
128 | 126 | Johnny Altinger | 10/5/2019 | 1:15:49 | Eileen Ormsby | Eileen Ormsby | 3.90 | 231 | Solved | 10/10/2008 | Canada | Alberta | Edmonton | 1 | Johnny Altinger | 38 | M | Mark Twitchell | 29 | M | Murder, dismemberment | Stabbing | Mark Twitchell was an amateur filmmaker who had an obsession with serial killing. He tried to plan his perfect crime, mirrored after the Dexter tv show. He created fake dating profiles to lure in single men in their 30s. His first victim, later nicknamed the One Who Got Away, was a man named Giles Tetreault. He attacked Tetrault in a garage while wearing a mask. Tetrault got away, but ultimately did not report the incident to the police. Then on Oct 10, 2008, Mark lured Johnny Altinger to his home under the guise of a date with a fake woman named Jess. To cover his tracks, Mark sent fake messages to Johnny's friend, stating that he (speaking as Johnny) had quit his job and went on a months-long vacation in the caribbean with his new girlfriend Jess. His friends were unconvinced, however, and reported him missing. Police were able to zone in on Mark quickly, and discovered text files on his computer called "SK Confessions," which read like a story of the two attacks. Police charged Mark with Johnny's murder and in 2011, he was sentenced to life in prison with no chance of parole. | |||
129 | 127 | Killer Petey | 10/12/2019 | 1:01:17 | Eileen Ormsby | Eileen Ormsby | 3.57 | 238 | Solved | 1967-2003 | Brazil | 71 | Pedro Podrigues Filho | 14-49 | M | Murder | Pedro Filho is a self described psychopath who first felt the need to kill at age 13. He committed his first murder at 14, and over the decades he would go on to kill dozens of people. He is sometimes called the "dexter" killer because he often targeted people he felt deserved to die - such as rapists or men who beat women. He spent 34 years in jail for his crimes, and he continued killing other inmates while inside. He is, in some circles, celebrated for killing other criminals. Note: He is estimated to have killed 71-100 people | |||||||||
130 | 128 | Joan Vollmer | 10/19/2019 | 1:08:45 | Erin Munro | Erin Munro | 3.62 | 207 | Solved | 1/30/1993 | Australia | Victoria | Antwerp | 1 | Joan Vollmer | 49 | F | Ralph Vollmer, Leanne Reichenbach, David Klinger, Matthew Nuske | F, M | Abuse, exorcism | Heart attack, trauma | The Vollmers lived in a rural community and were active in their church. Ralph was more invested in the church, which included rituals such as exorcisms, than his wife Joan was. Joan had a history of mental health issues, including anxiety, depression, and schizophrenia. When she experienced a mental health crisis in 1993 and when psychiatric help didn't immediately fix it, Ralph turned to his church. During a four day ordeal, various members of the church starved, restrained, and beat Joan. They justified this because they believed they were beating the demon possessing Joan rather than beating Joan. After four days, Joan died from her injuries. The church members waited, believing she would be resurrected whole. When she wasn't, police were notified. None of the perpetrators were given heavy sentences, given that exorcism isn't illegal and the crime was not considered manslaughter. Reichenback was given 4 months and Klinger was given 3 months. Ralph Vollmer and Nuske both had their terms suspended completely. | ||||
131 | 129 | The Dupont de Ligonnes Family | 11/2/2019 | 1:20:14 | Erin Munro | Elsha McGill | 4.09 | 293 | Solved (ongoing) | 4/4/2011 | France | Loire-Atlantique | Nantes | 5 | Agnes Dupont de Ligonnes, Arthur Nicolas Dupont de Ligonnes, Thomas Dupont de Ligonnes, Anne Dupont de Ligonnes, Benoit Dupont de Ligonnes | 48, 20, 18, 16, 13 | F, M | Xavier Pierre Marie Dupont de Ligonnes | 50 | M | Murder, disappearance | Shooting, drugging | Pressure from financial ruin and extramarital affairs | Xavier Dupont de Ligonnes came from an aristocratic family. He ran several travel-based businesses. With his wife Agnes, he had 3 biological children and he was the father figure of Agnes' oldest child, Arthur. In mid April 2011, several friends and family members of the Dupont de Ligonnes family recieved letters which claimed the Dupont de Ligonnes family had to flee the country under orders of the American government, who Xavier claimed to be working for as an undercover agent. In the days surrounding the arrival of these letters, police were able to piece together the movements of the family - including the fact that no one had seen any of the family memebers, except Xavier, recently. Xavier had been witnessed cleaning out the apartments of a couple of his sons, and his wife and at least one of his kids were claimed to be sick at home or in hospital. Additionally, the lease on their home was terminated, their bank accounts were closed, and their home was emptied. Xavier had been taking shooting classes to get his gun license, and had purchased rifle bullets in the month leading up to the family's murder. It was found that Xavier's businesses were not doing well and he hardly had an income. He had survived on loans from friends and family. Furthermore, it was found that Xavier had carried on a sexual affair with an old girlfriend in the two years prior to the disappearance of his family. Upon hearing of the family's disappearance, the girlfriend came forward and identified herself. She had loaned Xavier more than 50k euros. On April 21, 2011, five bodies were found under the porch of the family's home. They had been shot, covered in lime, and buried under the porch along with the two family dogs. Xavier was nowhere to be found, though cctv footage of him taking money out of an ATM prior to his disappearance was later found. On April 29, an international warrant was put out for Xavier, as he is considered the primary suspect in the murder of his family. However, he has not been found yet and it is Unknown if he is still alive. Some sitings have been reported, but none have been confirmed to be Xavier. | ||
132 | 130 | Joe Cinque | 11/9/2019 | 1:05:20 | Jessica Forsayeth | Elsha McGill | 3.78 | 200 | Solved | 10/26/1997 | Australia | Canberra | 1 | Joe Cinque | 26 | M | Anu Singh | 25 | F | Murder | Poisoning | Abusive, controlling girlfriend who wanted to take joe "with her" when she died. | Joe Cinque was poisoned by heroin overdose by his girlfriend, Anu Singh, in 1997. Anu had poor mental health that included obsession with her image, narcissism, suicidal and homicidal thoughts, bulimia, and hearing voices. She had expressed to many friends that she blamed her boyfriend Joe for her issues (though she later admitted that she lied when she claimed Joe was an abusive boyfriend), and she told many friends she intended to kill Joe after a dinner party they were hosting at their home. All the people she told believed it was a joke. Her closes friend, Midhavi Rao, is suspected to have helped Anu with her plans, though it is Unknown how involved she was. Anu's first attempt to kill Joe was unsuccessful, so she organized another dinner party and attempted again. This time, she incapacitated Joe with a very huge dose of rohypnol and then she gave him a heroin overdose. When she called for an ambulance, she gave them an incorrect address. At her judge-only trial, her defense argued the case based on Anu's mental health while the prosecutors argued some facts that presented Anu to be of sound mind. The justice found Singh guilty only of manslaughter and she was sentenced to ten years imprisonment. She got out on parole after four years. | |||
133 | 131 | Mr. Stinky | 11/16/2019 | 1:27:22 | Erin Munro, Milly Raso | Milly Raso, Erin Munro | 3.74 | 202 | Solved | 2/10/1966 | Australia | Victoria | Shepparton | 2 | Abina Madill, Garry Heywood | 16, 18 | F, M | Raymond Edmunds | 22 | M | Murder, serial sexual assault | Shooting, bludgeoning | Serial sexual predator | Raymond Edmunds was a serial rapist, pedophile, and murderer. He also was abusive to his children and series of wives. He became known in news as Mr Stinky due to his body odor. In 1966, he killed two teenagers, Abina and Garry. He raped and bludgeoned Abina and shot Garry. Their murders went unsolved for years until his fingerprints were matched to a series of other crimes. In 1985, he was sentenced to life in prison for the two murders and 30 years for five rape convictions. He is suspected in others murders and more than 30+ rapes. | ||
134 | 132 | Rui Pedro Teixeira Mendonça | 11/30/2019 | 1:10:32 | Elsha McGill, Erin Munro, Milly Raso | Elsha McGill, Erin Munro, Milly Raso | 3.72 | 189 | Unsolved | 3/14/1998 | Portugal | Porto District | Lousada | 1 | Rui Pedro Teixeira Mendonça | 11 | M | Unknown | Unknown | Unknown | Kidnapping, possible sexual abuse | Unknown | Rui Pedro was an 11 year old boy in Portugal when he disappeared in March 1998. Multiple witnesses stated that he was last seen with 22 year old Afonso Dias, who denied this claim but made several cryptic comments to police, including that they should "close the borders". Police unfortunately did not take this investigation very seriously. Afonso was not taken to trial until 2012, where he was acquitted due to lack of evidence. In 2014, he was tried again and this time convicted only of corruption of a minor and sentenced to 3 years in prison, of which he only served 2/3rds. Rui Pedro has remained missing. Some possible sightings have been made over the years, including a potential sighting on a ride at Disneyland Paris in April 1998. In September 1998, Rui Pedro was identified as one of only 16 children identified in over 750,000 child pornography images confiscated from a multinational pedophile ring. The British investigation, coined Operation Cathedral, identified Rui Pedro as a victim of the ring, but were unable to find any further leads to his whereabouts. Rui Pedro's mother continues to have faith that he is alive and will be found someday. | |||
135 | 133 | Tom & Eileen Lonergan | 12/7/2019 | 1:15:46 | Erin Munro | Elsha McGill, Milly Raso | 3.87 | 183 | Solved | 1/25/1998 | Australia | Coral Sea | 2 | Tom Lonergan, Eileen Lonergan | 34, 29 | F, M | Geoffrey Ian "Jack" Nairn / Diving Team of Outer Edge | Unknown | Unknown | Probable Drowning | Accidental Stranding | Tom and Eileen Lonergan were American scuba enthusiasts. They joined a group of scuba divers on January 25, 1998, to scuba dive in the Coral Sea. They were abandoned when the skipper and boat workers did not do a proper headcount to ensure all passengers (26 total) were aboard ship before they departed for the day. The missing couple were only noticed after two days, but by that time they were nowhere to be found. Various items from the couple - including a plea for help written on Tom's diving board - were found. The owner of the boat and diving team - Nairn was charged with unlawful killing, but found not guilty. His lawyer argued that since no bodies had been found, and since Tom and Eileen had expressed some negative world views (taken out of context) in their journals, he argued that they had faked their deaths to start a new life elsewhere. The judge found this argument unrealistic, but also found Nairn not guilty. The Australian scuba diving world then underwent an overhaul in rules and safety regulations. | ||||
136 | 134 | Martha Puebla | 12/14/2019 | 1:05:33 | Eileen Ormsby | Eileen Ormsby | 3.67 | 145 | Solved | 5/12/2003 | USA | California | Los Angeles | 1 | Martha Puebla | 16 | F | Raul Robledo | Unknown | M | Gang murder | Shooting | 16 year old Martha Puebla had been a witness to some crimes. The gang whose crimes she witnessed had her killed on May 12 to keep her from testifying against them. A note with a picture of a man circled indicating that he was the man she would have testified against was put into evidence. The man, Jose Ledesma, was taken to trial. Video from an HBO tv show that filmed on the day proved that Jose was actually attending a baseball game at the time and so he couldn't have been the killer of Martha. Later on, other members of the gang, including Raul Robledo, javier Covarrubias, and Juan Ledesma were implicated in the crime. The detectives on the case were found to have been falsfiying evidence on multiple occassions. They did not recieve any punishment for this, however. | |||
137 | 135 | The Santa Claus Bank Robbery | 12/21/2019 | 1:01:42 | Eileen Ormsby | Eileen Ormsby | 3.11 | 178 | Solved | 12/23/1927 | USA | Texas | Cisco | 3 | George Carmichael, Tom Jones, GE Bedford | Unknown, 56, 60 | M | Marshall Ratliff, Henry Helms, Robert Hill, Louis Davis | 24, 30, Unknown, Unknown | M | Robbery | Shooting, impersonation | Marshall Ratliff had dreams of having a lot of money without having to work for it. He grew up with a mother who excused all of his bad behavior. He and his brother attempted a bank robbery (on the advice of a neighbor who had gotten rich this way years before) in 1926, but were caught and sentenced to 18 years in prison. The brothers were released by a monetary bribe from their mother. Ratliff soon planned another bank robbery, this time for the bank in Cisco, TX. He assumed that townspeople would not have the guts to stand up to armed robbers (despite a law in TX stating that anyone who shoots a robbery under proper circumstances would received a $5k rewards). Marshall got a group of four total men together to rob this bank on the last Friday before the bank would close for the holidays - since that is when the bank would be holding the most money. As Ratliff was known in the Cisco community, he wore a santa suit / mask he borrowed from his landlady (who also had helped them procure items for the robbery) to hide his identity. Ratliff and his gang parked their stolen car in a back alley (where the bank had rear exit) and entered the bank. Ratliff's diguise backfired, since he was recognized by at least one citizen in the bank, and local children wanted to come up and chat with santa. One woman with such a child managed to sneak out of the bank through one of the employee offices and she alerted the public to the robbery. Contrary to Ratliff's belief that citizens would not intervene in a robbery, local men had set up a blockade outside of the bank and shots were traded between the robbers and the civilians. (It is Unknown who fired the first shot). Some police, including Chief Bedford and Deputy Carmichael, arrived to help. Both officers were mortally wounded during this gunfight. The robbers took two children, Laverne Comer (12) and Emma May Robertson (10), to use as human shields while they escaped down the alley to their car. Despite the shields, a couple of the robbers sustained serious injuries as they escaped with $12,400. "A car chase ensued. Near the edge of town, one of the tires of the robber's vehicle was shot out and they realized they had forgotten to fill up their tank, so they stole a car from a passerby (14 year old Woodrow Harris). The money and four robbers transferred to the new car, but they could not escape with this car, since Harris had taken the keys with him when he gave up the car. The robbers returned to their original car, but abandoned Davis, who was unconscious, in the new car. Later on, they realized they had forgotten the money in the new car, too. The mob found Davis and the money in the new car and temporarily gave up chase. The mob took Davis to a hospital, but he was unable to survive his wounds. This was the first crime Davis had ever committed, as he was a last-minute addition to the gang. The other three robbers continued their escape. There were several clashes between the robbers and police. During one such clash, Ratliff was injured and captured, but Hill and Helms continued to run. The last two robbers were captured on Dec 30, seven days after the robbery. The three surviving robbers lived long enough to go to trial. Helms was identified as the man who had gunned down the two deceased police officers and was sentenced to death. He was executed on Sep 6, 1929. Hill was sentenced to life imprisonment (99 years). He escaped prison three times, but was recaptured each time. He was released on parole in the 1940s and he then changed his name and lived a peaceful life until he died of natural causes in 1996. Ratliff was convicted of armed robbery and sentenced to life in prison. In a separate trial, he was also sentenced to death for his involvement in the deaths of the officers (though no eye witnesses saw the Santa robber shoot at the police). Ratliff appealed this, but failed. He attempted to have the death sentenced repealed by an insanity plea, so he began to act bizarrely. The citizens that lived in the county where this robbery had occurred were frustrated with how legal proceedings were going in Ratliff's case and frustrated that he hadn't been executed yet. On Nov 18, 1929, Ratliff feigned paralysis in his cell, and his two jailers came to help him. During this, Ratliff managed to get a gun from the officers and fatally shot one of them, Tom Jones. The other officer, Pack Kilbourn, managed to beat Ratliff into unconsciousness and return him to his cell. A mob had gathered outside the jail by that time. The following day, the mob overtook the jail and dragged out Ratliff to hang him. It took two tries, but Ratliff died at 9:55 pm on November 19, 1929. No one was ever tried for this lynching." | |||
138 | 136 | Azaria Chamberlain | 2/15/2020 | 2:02:28 | Erin Munro | Elsha McGill, Erin Munro | 4.13 | 190 | Solved | 8/17/1980 | Australia | Northern Territory | Uluru | 1 | Azaria Chantel Loren Chamberlain | 67 days | F | Dingo | Unknown | Animal attack | Animal attack | Lindy and Michael Chamberlain were a religious married couple with 3 young kids, Azaria being the youngest. They took a family camping trip to Uluru in August 1980. While on this trip, Azaria was taken and killed by a dingo - a wild dog / wolf native to Australia. Fellow campers witnessed the panic of the Chaimberlains and helped search for the baby. Initial reports of the event supported the Chaimberlains and their version of the story, but the media quickly turned against the family. Lindy came across in the media as cold and unlikeable, their religion was scrutinized, and there was a general belief that a dingo couldn't / wouldn't attack humans. The media frenzy turned public opinion severely against the Chaimberlains, in particular Lindy, who was portrayed to be a careless, heartless baby murderer. Lindy was tried for murdering Azaria and, despite the prosecution's case being entirely made up of circumstantial evidence and speculation, was convicted and sentenced to life imprisonment in 1982. Lindy and her legal team exhausted every appeal option they had available, but to no avail. In 1986, the chance discovery of some of Azaria's clothing in a dingo lair confirmed the Chamberlain's version of the story and Lindy was released from prison. The convictions against Lindy and her husband were overturned in 1988, but the Northern Territories government still did not treat the case as an animal attack - even after multiple inquests, they listed Azaria's death as an "open" finding in 1995. Azaria's death was not listed as killed by a dingo until another inquest in 2012 - 32 years after her death. The shameful behavior of the northern territories government, coroner, police department, and media turned a tragedy into a complete circus that ruined the lives of the Chamberlain family. Rumor and speculation surrounds Lindy Chamberlain to this day. | ||||
139 | 137 | Arlis Perry | 2/22/2020 | 1:28:23 | Jessica Forsayeth | Elsha McGill | 3.70 | 99 | Solved | 10/12/1974 | USA | California | Stanford | 1 | Arlis Kay Perry | 19 | F | Stephen Blake Crawford | 28 | M | Murder | Ice pick | Arlis was a newlywed who moved to Stanford to be with her husband, Bruce Perry, who was a student. On Oct 12, 1974 around 11:30 pm, they had an argument and Arlis (a devoutly religious woman) insisted on going to the Stanford chapel to pray. She didn't come home that night, and Bruce reported her missing to the police by 3:00 am. Her body was discovered by Stephen Crawford, a police guard, at 5:45 am. She was found dead in the chapel with a broken ice pick stuck in the back of her head. She had also been strangled and suffered sexual assault with a couple altar candles. DNA evidence was found in the case, but wouldn't be useful to this case for decades until DNA forensic technology became viable. The police investigation initially focused on Bruce, as he had admittedly had an argument with Arlis that night. Police also focused on the seven people who were known to have entered the chapel around that time - Arlis, Stephen Crawford, four others that were later ruled out, and an Unknown man with sandy-colored hair that has never been identified. Crawford remained a suspect due to some of his timeline and story not matching up - but his lies were assumed to be him covering up misbehavior at his job, not a connection to the murder - and nothing solid at the time could link him to the case. Crawford continued to be a suspect over the years and even was found to have stolen large amounts of valuables from Stanford while he worked there. For this he recieved felony charges. The Arlis Perry case went cold. Over the years, the case was considered to possibly be connected to both Ted Bundy and David Berkowitz, but there is no evidence to suggest this. The case was possibly thought to be connected to the John Getreu murders: Getreu had murdered at least 2 women in 1973-1974 (21 year old Leslie Perlov in Stanford CA and 21 year old Janet Taylor in Woodside CA). Getreu's cases went unsolved until 2018 when DNA evidence linked him to the crimes. He currently is awaiting trial and has been connected to further assaults and attempted murders. Police are continuing to search for possible connections to other cold cases, as well. Getreu spent 2 years in prison in Germany for raping and murdering a girl while he was a minor living there with his military father. By 2018, DNA forensics had become advanced enough to test the DNA evidence found at the Arlis Perry crimescene and it was definitively matched to Stephen Crawford. When police went to confront Crawford and search his residence, Crawford committed suicide. | |||
140 | 138 | The Batavia | 2/29/2020 | 1:24:10 | Erin Munro | Erin Munro | 3.94 | 179 | Solved | 1629 | Australia | Beacon Island | Morning Reef | 110-125 | F, M | Jeronimus Cornelisz | 31 | M | Massacre, Mutiny | Stabbing, drowning, bludgeoning, suffocation, stabbing. | In 1628, the ship Batavia of the Dutch East India company set sail on its maiden voyage from Texel, Netherlands, to Batavia (modern day Jakarta, Indonesia). Batavia was the capital of the Dutch East Indies at the time and the ship was carrying large amounts of gold and silver. The ship was commanded by Francisco Pelsaert with skipper Ariaen Jacobsz as the second in command (these two were rumored to not be on good terms). Junior merchant Jeronimus Cornelisz, a former pharmacist from Haarlem, was also on board as he attempted to flee the Netherlands and his debt. Cornelisz had a poor reputation because of his association with painter Johannes van der Beeck and the Roscicurcian society, a society accused of having atheistic and satanic beliefs. 341 total people were aboard the ship. As the voyage made way, Cornelisz made friends with Jacobsz and they both started to form a plan for mutiny so they could take the valuables and ship for themselves. They planned to harass and assault a wealthy woman on board, Lucretia Jans, while disguised so that Pelsaert would punish the crew (and thus motivate the crew to be dissatisfied with Pelsaert and more willing to join a mutiny. This fail, however, since Lucretia was able to identify her attackers. On Jun 4, 1692, the ship struck Morning Reef near Beacon Islands (close to the western coast of Australia). Of the 341 on board, all but 40 were able to swim to Beacon Island. The ~300 survivors of the shipwreck realized the island did not have a fresh water source and no reliable food source. Pelsaert organized a group, including Jacobsz and some senior officers, to take their longboat and sail a month-long journey to Java, Indonesia, to find help. Pelsaert did not leave anyone in charge of the other survivors staying behind on Beacon Island. Cornelisz was left with the survivors and was able to establish himself as a leader of the group. As no leader had been appointed by Pelsaert, this was technically not a mutiny. He managed to separate the survivors so that he maintained control of most of their supplies, and he separated the strongest onboard (including the soldiers) under pretenses of searching for food and water. He and some men who had agreed with his original mutiny plan aboard the Batavia quickly became criminal and murderous. They picked off many people who opposed them and those who they would have to share the limited food and water supply with. At first these murders were done secretly, but Cornelisz's rule became more openly violent as more of his opposers were killed. Over a two month period, Cornelisz and his followers killed between 110 and 124 men, women, and children by strangulation, drowning, bludgeoning, and stabbing. Seven women were kept alive to be forced into sexual slavery for Cornelisz and his men. Lucretia Jans, the prettiest, was kept exclusively for Cornelisz. Cornelisz and his men then began targeting factions of other survivors who had gone to nearby islands in search of more food and water, since their collective numbers outnumbered his group's size. Among the survivors that had gone to the other islands was a man named Wiebbe Hayes. This group did find a new source of fresh water, and they sent up a smoke signal to bring others to their locations. This brought together Hayes' group and survivors of Cornelisz's killings. So thus Cornelisz and his band of men were now more outnumbered and Wiebbe's group had the main source of fresh water and a hastily made stonework defense to ward of attacks by Cornelisz. Cornelisz made several attacks on Hayes' and his survivors, but was unsuccessful. At this time, October 1629 (about 4 months after he left), Pelsaert returned with a rescue ship and more men. Pelsaert would later claim that he arrived just in time to stop Cornelisz from massacreing everyone and stealing the rescue ship - but in reality, by this time Cornelisz and his group were largely outnumbered with few supplies. Cornelisz and his men were tortued to confess of their crimes. Cornelisz was tried and found guilty of mutiny. He and a half dozen of his men had their hands amputated (by hammer and chisel) and then hung on the island. Some of the "minor offenders", including young boys like Wouter Loos and Jan Pelgrom de Bye, were marooned on the western Australia coast. It is Unknown what happened to them after that, but it is possible they were the first Europeans to become residents of Australia.The rest of the mutineers were taken in captivity to Java and most of them were executed. Ariaen Jacobsz likely died in the dungeons of Castle Batavia. The VOC (the Dutch East India Company) were unimpressed with Pelsaert's handling of the ship and did not give him the position in Batavia he had originally been promised at the start of the voyage. He died in 1630 and the VOC retained most of his earnings. Soldier Wiebbe Hayes was hailed as a hero for his acts during the reign of Cornelisz's terror and for protecting other survivors. He was given a promotion to Sergeant and placed in charge of the remaining surviving soldiers. As this is the last mention of him in the public record, it is Unknown what the rest of his life was like. The stone fort that he and his men made on West Wallbi island is the oldest surviving European structure in Australia. Lucretia Jans survived and was initially put on trial for her part in the action of Cornelisz's men, as she was kept as Cornelisz's personal sex slave. She denied the charges, and it appears that she was acquitted. She returned to the Netherlands in 1635. Of the 12 chests of gold and silver originally on the Batavia, 10 were able to be recovered by the rescue ship Sardam. Of the two remaining chests, one had been trapped under a cannon in the wreck, and the other had been broken into by mutineers. In the modern day, the wreck of the Batavia was first sighted in 1963 and much of the wreckage was salvaged in the 1970s. The wreckage site is today a popular diving spot on the western Australian coast. | |||||
141 | 139 | Beryl & Geraldine Evans (2 parter) | 3/13/2020 | 3:11:39 | Anonymous Host, Erin Munro | Erin Munro | 3.80 | 117 | Solved | Nov 10, 1949 | England | West London | Notting Hill | 2 | Geraldine Evans, Beryl Evans | 1, 20 | F | John Christie | 50 | M | Murder | Strangulation, assault | Timothy and Beryl were a young married couple (25, 20) who had moved to Notting Hill around 1948. At this time, it was a poorer neighborhood that had suffered from the bombings of WWII. Various people had different views of their relationship - some thought Timothy and Beryl fought too much, while others believed it was a healthy, loving relationship. They had one daughter, Geraldine. Around this time, Beryl discovered she was pregnant, but she absolutely did not want to go through with it. She wanted an abortion, which was illegal in England at the time. Timothy told his wife she would do no such thing, but eventually relented. Weeks after this, on November 30, 1949, Timothy informed police that his wife was dead. Timothy gave several versions of the events that had transpired. In the first, he claimed that a strange man he'd met by chance had given him pills that would induce an abortion in his wife. Timothy claimed that he told his wife to not touch the pills, but the next day he came home to find her dead. He claimed he had dumped her body down a hole covered by a manhole covering. Police did not believe this story and opening the covering did not reveal any body. After this, Timothy changed his story: he claimed that his neighbor, John Christie, had offered to perform an abortion on Beryl. Christie said he had medical training and could perform the procedure, but at a 10% risk of death. Beryl wanted to go through with the procedure, while Timothy did not want her to. He came home from work to be informed by Christie that the procedure did not work and Beryl was dead. Christie told Timothy he would dispose of the body and arrange for friends to take care of Geraldine while Timothy left the area to lay low for a while. Christie would later refuse to let Timothy see Geraldine when he returned to find her. Beryl and Geraldine's bodies were found wrapped in tablecloths in an outdoor wash house in the back garden of the Notting Hill homes. Both were dead by strangulation. This was apparently the first time Timothy had heard of Geraldine's death. At this time, he allegedly confessed to the crime (claiming to have killed Beryl during an argument and strangling Geraldine two days later) - though it is debatable if this confession was coerced or not. Timothy was put on trial for the murder of Geraldine on January 11, 1950. During the trial, Timothy claimed that Christie was responsible for the murders. The procescution dismissed these claims as "fantastic" and used Christie and his wife Ethel as key witnesses against Timothy. The trial largely became the word of Chrstie versus the word of Timothy. The jury ultimately turned against Timothy and, after a trial of only three days and much omitted evidence, they convicted Timothy of murder. He was executed by hanging on March 9, 1950. Three years later in 1953, Christie left the home he had been living in. The landlord allowed Beresford Berown, a neighbor from upstairs, to use the apartment's kitchen. Brown discovered the bodies from three women (Kathleen Maloney, Rita Nelson, Hectorina Maclennan) hidden in the kitchen pantry (which was near the wash house where Beryl and Geraldine's bodies had been found). Further searching led to the discovery of three additional bodies (Ethel Christie, Christie's wife, under floorboards of the front room; Ruth Fuerst and Muriel Eady, buried in the back garden). Christie was arrested for murder and put on trial. He was found guilty of murdering his wife and executed by the same hangman who had executed Timothy Evans 3 years prior. Christie is now linked to seven murders of women (plus Beryl Evans' unborn child and Geraldine Evans, age 13 months). These women were all aged 20-31, with the exception of Ethel Christie (54). Based on evidence collected at the scene, it is possible that Christie was responsible for more murders. An inquiry into Evans's case in 1965-1966 concluded that Evans' "probably" killed his wife, but Geraldine was killed by Christie. However, there was a large amount of uncertainty in the case that would have made it impossible for any jury to conclude guilt beyond a reasonable doubt. Roy Jenkins, the home secretary, recommended that Evans be posthumously pardoned - and this motion was granted. It wasn't until 2003 that the home office awarded Evans' family compensation for the miscarriage of justice. This case played a major part in the abolition of the death penalty in the UK (1965). | |||
142 | 140 | Richmond Hill | 3/28/2020 | 6:36:00 | Elsha McGill | Elsha McGill | 3.49 | 98 | Solved | Nov 10, 2012 | USA | Indiana | Richmond Hill | 2 | John "Dion" Longworth, Jennifer Longworth | 34, 36 | F, M | Monserrate Shirley, Mark Leonard, Bob Leonard, Gary Thompson, Glenn Hults | 52, 50s | F, M | Arson | Explosion | Monserrate Shirley and her boyfriend, Mark Leonard, had a plan to blow up Monserrate's home to cash in on the insurance money. The explosion severely damaged the nearby houses and killed their next door neighbors, the Longworths. Mark was considered the mastermind behind the plan and had several fellows join in including Bob Leonard (brother of Mark), Gary Thompson, and Glenn Hults. They were all tried separately on various counts ranting from murder to arson. Mark Leonard was found guilty on 53 counts, including murder and felony murder charges. He was sentenced to life without parole plus 75 years. Monserrate pled guilty to conspiracy to commit arson and was sentenced to 50 years in prison. Bob Leonard was convicted of all 51 counts against him and was sentenced to two life sentences without parole plus 70 years. Gary Thompson pled guilty to conspiracy to commit arson and was sentenced to 30 years. Glenn Hults recieved a 3 year sentence. | |||
143 | 141 | Natalee Holloway | 4/11/2020 | 2:28:21 | Elsha McGill | Elsha McGill | 4.09 | 151 | Solved (ongoing) | May 30, 2005 | Aruba | Oranjestad | 2 | Natalee Holloway, Stephany Flores Ramirez | 18, 21 | F | Joran van der Sloot, Deepak Kalpoe, Satish Kalpoe | 17, 21, 18 | M | Disappearance, Murder | Possible date rape drugs, blunt force trauma | Natalee Holloway was an 18 year old, recently graduated high school student in 2005 when her senior class trip took her to Aruba. When she failed to show up for her flight to go back home to Alabama on May 30th, authorities were alerted to her disappearance. Initially, local authorities believed she was just a partying tourist that was probably somewhere sleeping off a hangover. Natalee was last seen by her classmates getting into a car with local residents Joran van der Sloot and Deepak and Satish Kalpoe. When later questioned, they said they had dropped Holloway off at her hotel and denied knowing what happened to her after that. Van der Sloot was arrested twice and the Kalpoes were arrested three times each in connection to this case, but always were released without charges. In the years since Holloway's disappearance, van der Sloot has remained in the media spotlight. Multiple times, he has gone on talk shows to tell the "true story of what happened" to Holloway in exchange for money - after which, he would claim he was lying during the shows / interviews. He has given multiple confessions to the crime and multiple versions of his story, with his lies becoming more and more egregious, ranging from grinding up and burning her bones to selling her into sex slavery. [In my opinion, the most likely events are:] van der Sloot and his friends the Kalpoes were known in their area to try to get with as many girls as they could. They were known to use date rape drugs. As a naive tourist on a party vacation, Holloway would have been a prime target for such men. I think it is most likely that she takern to the California Lighthouse area of Arashi Beach and was drugged and raped by van der Sloot and the Kalpoes on the night of May 29th / early morning May 30th. Something killed her, whether it was a drug overdose or a choking on her own vomit or being killed by one or all three men involved. Her body was then disposed of, possibly into the ocean where it would be very unlikely, if not impossible, to be found again. Natalee's remains have never been found, but van der Sloot and the Kalpoes have continued to be prime suspects - in particular van der Sloot, who was later found to have murdered Stephany Flores in Peru on May 30, 2010 (the five year anniversary of Holloway's disappearance). For this crime, he was found guilty of murder and sentenced to 28 years of imprisonment. He remains in prison to this day for the murder of Flores. Due to how the justice system works in Aruba, the case technically remains unsolved and, without new evidence, is unlikely to be opened again. Despite this, the perpetrators are almost certainly known. | ||||
144 | 142 | The Churchill Fire | 4/18/2020 | 1:28:50 | Milly Raso | Milly Raso | 3.47 | 104 | Solved | Feb 7, 2009 | Australia | Victoria | 10 | Scott Fendo, Alfred Fendo, Colin Gibson, David Gibson, Alan Jacobs, Miros Jacobs, Luke Jacobs, Nathan Charles, Martin Schultz, Annette Leatham | 27, 58, 49, 47, 51, 50, 21, 21, 33, 51 | F, M | Brendan Sokaluk | 42 | M | Arson | Arson | This was a series of bushfires that were either ignited or already burning across Victoria around February 7, 2009. 173 people died as a result of the bushfires. On February 7, bushfires in the Central Gippsland area (southeast of Churchill) began around 1:30 pm. Winds pushed the fire through Callignee, Koornalla, Traralgon South, and onwards towards Gormandale and Willung South. As a result of this fire, 81200 acres of land were burned and 11 people were killed. Fire investigators strongly believed that arson was the cause of this particular fire, which was just one part of a larger series of fires in Victoria around this time. On February 12th, a former volunteer fireman by the name of Brendan Sokaluk was arrested in connection with the crime. In April 2012, Sokaluk was convicted of 10 counts of arson causing death and sentenced to 17 years and 9 months of prison time. | ||||
145 | 143 | Leigh Leigh | 4/25/2020 | 12:15:32 | Eileen Ormsby | Eileen Ormsby | 4.17 | 156 | Solved | Nov 3, 1989 | Australia | New South Wales | Newcastle | 1 | Leigh Leigh | 14 | F | Matthew Grant | 18 | M | Assault, Murder | Trauma | Leigh Leigh was a 14 year old girl who convinced her parents to let her attend a party on Nov 3, 1989. When she didn't arrive at the scheduled meetup place that night by 11 pm, her step father began searching for her. Her body was found the next day among the dunes of the beach at which the party had been located. She had severe damage to her head and genitals. She was disfigured beyond recognition. The boys who attended the party (as well as their parents) closed ranks to protect themselves. There was a strong culture of 'boys will be boys' and slut shaming and victim blaming. Three males were of primary suspicion: a 15 year old boy who has not been named ("Corey") who openly admitted to raping Leigh and slut shaming her (despite Leigh being a virgin before the party). The two "adult supervisors" at the party were 18-19 year old drunk males, Matthew Webster and Guy Wilson, also admitted to assaulting her. Rumors around the party indicated that many more had attacked Leigh, that she had been gang raped, but no one came forward with information. The police and judges involved in the case all participated in the victim blaming culture. No rape or assault terminology was used in the legal documents and the boys were treated as though the sexual interactions were consensual. Matthew Webster eventually confessed to the murder (some speculate he did it to take sole blame and protect the others involved) and was sentenced to 20 years in prison. He served 14 years, which was the minimum. Guy Wilson served six months for assault, and "Corey" served 100 hours of community service. Other parties that may have been involved have never been brought to justice. Leigh and her family continued to be harrassed, victim blamed, and slut shamed by the people of Stockton. | |||
146 | 144 | The Muswell Hill Murderer (3 parter) | 5/9/2020 5/16/2020 5/23/2020 | 3:45:05 | Holly Boyd | Elsha McGill | 4.10 | 134 | Solved | 1978-1983 | England | London | 12-15 | Stephen Dean Holmes, Kenneth Ockenden, Martyn Duffey, William Sutherland, Malcolm Barlow, John Howlett, Graham Allen, Stephen Sinclair, and seven (possible) unidentified victims | 14, 23, 16, 26, 23, 27, 20 | M | Dennis Nilsen | 33-38 | M | Serial murder, rape, assault | Strangulation, assault, necrophilia | Sexual desire | Dennis Nilsen was a gay man during a time when being gay was a criminal act. He had violent behaviors from a very young age, and this lead him to a career in the military. After his time in the military and an argument with his family over gay rights (after which he never spoke to most of them again), he moved to London to work at the metropolitan police and, later, as a civil servant. As a big city, there were many different sorts of people to meet and Nilsen made use of gay bars to meet likeminded people. He engaged in several relationships, but up to this point had not killed anyone (but had assaulted and taken advantage of several people throughout his life). In December 1978, he encountered 14 year old Stephen Holmes. He lured Holmes back to Nilsen's home where he plied the boy with alcohol. The next day, while Holmes slept, Nilsen strangled him and then drowned him in a bucket of water because he didn't want Holmes to leave. He kept the body under the floorboards and would masterbate over the body. This became Nilsen's usual method - to drug the desired victim, strangle them and drown them, and stow the body away to be used again for sexual needs later. The bodies would eventually be cut to manageable pieces and destroyed in bonfires. While living in this particular home at Melrose avenue in London, Nilsen is suspected to have killed as many as 12 men between 1978 and 1981. Some of the victims have never been identified by name, so the exact number is not known. But the method for most of the victims was the same. In 1982, Nilsen moved to a new home in Cranley Gardens. He did not have access to a garden or floorboards at this some since he was renting an attic apartment, and so he needed new methods to dispose of his victims. He decided, instead of bonfires, he would dissect the bodies and dispose of the pieces down drain pipes. This would end up being his undoing, since the flesh and bones would come to block the drains at Cranley Gardens and the remains would be discovered when plumbers came to fix the issue. The pipe from whence the body parts had come from was clearly Nilsen's, and police were called to inspect the home. The body of Nilsen's final victim, Stephen Sinclair, was found partially dissected in the home when the police arrived. Nilsen was arrested and confessed to the crimes. Nilsen was brought to trial on October 24, 1984, charged with six counts of murder and two attempted murder (some potential victims had managed to run away). Nilsen pleaded not guilty, and his solicitors focused on his state of mind before, during, and after the murders as his defense. Testimony from some survivors was given, and helped the prosecution establish that Nilsen was in full control of himself when the attacks happened. Some of the victims had refused to report their assaults to police at thetime due to fear of their sexuality being discovered. Nilsen's confession was used by the prosecution and the much of the evidence in the case came directly from the confessions. An investigator noted how unusual it is for a defendent to go into such detail during their confessions. After much testimony, the jury returned on November 3 with a verdict of guilty on six counts of murder and one attempted murder. He was sentenced to life imprisonment with a minimum of 25 years. | |||
147 | 145 | Michael Dippolito | 6/6/2020 | 1:17:47 | Holly Boyd | Elsha McGill | 3.80 | 111 | Solved | Aug 5, 2009 | USA | Florida | Boynton Beach | 0 | Michael Dippolito | 39 | M | Dalia Dippolito | 26 | F | Murder for Hire | Murder for Hire | Potential monetary gain, extramarital affair | Michael Dippolito Interview | Dalia Dippolito is a former sex worker who had a very quick runaway marriage with one of her clients, Michael Dippolito. Michael had a history of drug addiction and abuse (and so had a criminal record), but was trying to stay clean and out of trouble with the law. Shortly after their marriage, anonymous tips regarding his alleged drug use / drug trafficking were sent to their local police department, resulting in various raids from police. He also had difficulty obtaining all the money he needed for some of his legal / parole issues thanks to Dalia. While this was going on, Dalia was having an affair with a man named Mohamed Shihadeh. She asked him to murder Michael to get him out of the way (or find someone in Shihadeh's gang that could do it). He agreed, but then went to the police to report it. The police set up an operation where they sent in a cop to pretend to be a contract killer. This cop struck a deal with Dalia, and the date for Michael's 'death' was set. Dalia got out of the house for the arranged time, and then cops contacted her to come home because there had been an incident with her husband and he was now dead. The cops used this situation to get plenty of Dalia's statements and lies recorded on video. It was later revealed to her that Michael was alive and well, and she was being charged with murder for hire. Dalia faced three trials. Her first in 2011 resulted in a conviction and a 20 year sentenced, but the conviction was tossed out by an appeals court judge in 2014 due to improper jury selection. Her second trial in 2016 ended in a hung jury. Her trial trial in 2017 ended in a guilty verdict with a sentence of 16 years in prison. She has since appealed this conviction, but her appeals have so far been rejected. | |
148 | 146 | Brittany Phillips | 6/13/2020 | 0:58:24 | Jessica Forsayeth | Jessica Forsayeth | 3.42 | 85 | Unsolved | Sep 27-28, 2004 | USA | Oklahoma | Tulsa | 1 | Brittany Phillips | 18 | F | Unknown | Unknown | M | Murder | Strangulation | Unknown | Brittany Phillips was a college student in Tulsa, OK. After her classes finished on September 27th, she returned to her apartment. None of her friends or family heard from her for several days, so a friend went to her apartment to check on her. Her body was discovered and she likely was killed between 9 pm September 27th and 8 am of the following day. She had been sexually assaulted and then strangled / suffocated to death. There were no signs of her apartment being broken into, so it is possible that she knew her attacker and let him in. But it was later discovered that her apartment could be accessed via a small door in her closet which led to the attic - an attic that was shared between seven apartments. Thus anyone who had access to any of those apartments would have had access to Brittany's. DNA and fingerprints were taken from the scene, but unfortunately they have not led anywhere in the case. Some other items from the crime scene - in particular, a pillowcase - are believed to have possibly belonged to the perpetrator, but it is not known for sure. The case almost recieved a breakthrough when a DNA sample from the apartment was matched to a man, but this man was found to have been a friend of Maggie's. He had an alibi and the police did not charge him with any involvement. The case went cold and Brittany's mother, Maggie, has crusaded since to keep her daughter's name in the public eye. She travels the country with a car she had painted with her daughter's image and a sign "Caravan to Catch a Killer". She has tried to get some media outlets to give Brittany's case air time, but she has been rejected - with one telling her that her daughter's murder was "too boring" to put on TV. Brittany's case remains unsolved. | ||
149 | 147 | Julie Dart and Stephanie Slater | 6/20/2020 | 2:17:25 | Erin Munro | Erin Munro | 3.94 | 87 | Solved | July 1991, January 1992 | England | Lincolnshire | Easton | 1 | Julie Dart | 18 | F | Michael Sams | 50 | M | Kidnapping, murder | Strangulation, blunt force trauma | Ransom money | In 1991, Julie Dart was an 18 year old girl who had started working as a sex worker. On July 9 of that year, she was kidnapped by Michael Sams, imprisoned her in a coffin-like box, and held for ransom. Sams contacted police several times, threatening to firebomb a local store if he wasn't given ransom money. None of the communications came to any fruition, however, and Julie's body was found nine days later. Sams later confessed that she had attempted to escape and psychologists beleive Sams had always intended to kill her. On January 22, 1992, 25 year old estate agent Stephanie Slater was kidnapped by Sams and held in a cramped coffin-like box for eight days. Sams continued to demand ransoms, similarly as he had done for Julie Dart. Unlike Dart, Slater did not attempt to escape and largely played along with Sams. Sams later released Slater back to her family. Stephanie later admitted that Sams had raped her during her imprisonment. At this point in time, police had no clue who the suspect was. The case was higlighted on the tv show Crimewatch, where Sams' ex wife recognized his wife and several details about the perpetrator. She and her son reported Sams to the police. This tip-off led Sams to be arrested and subsequently brought to trial. He accepted responsibility for kidnapping the women, but claimed an unnamed accomplice had murdered Dart. He was found guilty and sentenced to life in prison. Three days after being imprisoned, he confessed to the murder as well. Officials credit Slater's smart actions and presence of mind during her imprisonment for her survival and aiding police in apprehending the perpetrator. | ||
150 | 148 | The Miyazawa Family | 7/4/2020 | 1:12:29 | Holly Boyd | Elsha McGill | 3.85 | 117 | Unsolved | Dec 30, 2000 | Japan | Kanto | Tokyo | 4 | Mikio Miyazawa, Yasuko Miyazawa, Niina Miyazawa, Rei Miyazawa | 44, 41, 8, 6 | F, M | Unknown | Unknown | M | Murder | Strangulation, blunt force trauma, stabbing | Unknown | A notorious unsolved case from Japan. During new years, 2000-2001, a stranger broke into the home of the Miyazawa family (via removing a screen in a second floor bathroom) and murdered all four family members one by one. First, 6 year old Rei was strangled and 8 year old Niina was injured. Niina retreated to her mother, 41 year old Yasuko. Mikio heard the disturbance and went to Rei's room to discover what happened. The intruder used a knife to murder 44 year old Mikio so brutally that the knife broke, and then attacked Niina and Yasuko again using a Santoku knife from the kitchen. Once all four family members were dead, the killer stayed in the home for some hours (between 2 to 10). They used the family computer, ate food, used the bathroom, used first aid kits on his injuries, and took a nap. Later analysis of the computer showed that after the murders, at 1:18 am and 10:00 am, the computer had been used to connect to the internet. Based off this information, investigators know the killer stayed in the home until at least 1:18 am, but potentially until 10:00 am (though this instance could have been triggered by Yasuko's mother coming over to the home after all her calls to the house had gone unanswered). Oddly enough, the killer attempted to purchase theater tickets on the computer. This case is highly unusual in that the killer left behind so much evidence, but has yet to have been found. The killer's feces were found in an unflushed toilet. The killer left behind clothing items (in particular a sweater bought in the Kanagawa prefecture that had only sold 130 of its kind). Trace amounts of sand in a bag left behind by the killer was traced to the Nevada desert near Edwards Air Force Base in California, USA. DNA and fingerprints for the killer were found in the home, but so far have not been connected to any known person (so they potentially do not have a criminal record). The killer's blood was also discovered (type A, which no member of the Miyazawa family had that type). The killer is thus known to be male and potentially mixed race. Furthermore, the police estimate that the killer was born between 1965-1985, 170 cm tall, and thin, based on the physicality one would need to enter the home as the killer did. Based off the wounds, he is likely right handed. The case remains active but still with no real leads even 20 years later. | ||
151 | 149 | Anan Liu | 7/11/2020 | 1:21:27 | Holly Boyd | Erin Munro | 3.62 | 97 | Solved | Sep 1, 2004 | Australia | Victoria | Melbourne | 1 | Anan Liu | 27 | F | Nai Yin Xue | 49 | M | Murder, child abandonment | Strangulation | Nai Yin Xue murdered his wife, Anan (a much younger woman and immigrant who only married him so she wouldn't be kicked from the country) and abandoned their child at Southern Cross Station and fled to Los Angeles in mid September 2007. Their child (Qian Xun Xue), who was nicknamed Pumpkin for the clothing brand she was wearing, was found and taken into emergency foster care while the case continued. A couple of days later, police identified Pumpkin's parents as New Zealanders and found Anan's body when they went to their home. The hunt for Nai Yin Xue became international since he had fled to the US and was seen in various states, from California, to Texas, to Alabama, and more. In February 2008, he was identified from his image in a chinese-language press as living in Georgia, US. He was captured by his neighbors and held until police could put him in custody. He was deported back to New Zealand for trial, which began in June, 2009. He was found guilty and sentenced to life imprisonment with a non-parole period of 12 years. In October 2007, Pumpkin's grandmother (and Anan's mother) was granted custody of Pumpkin. | |||
152 | 150 | The Murchison Murders | 7/18/2020 | 1:37:19 | Holly Boyd | Elsha McGill | 3.46 | 70 | Solved | 1929-1930 | Australia | Western Australia | 3 | James Ryan, George Lloyd, Leslie Brown / Louis Carron | Unknown | M | John Rowles | Unknown | M | Murder | Poisoning, shooting | Burglary | Murders for personal gain / robbery in Australia. Perpetrator was caught due to still having on his person some of the items he stole from victims and the fact that his body disposal method matched one from a novel an acquaintance of his was writing. Perpetrator "Snowy" Rowles was found guilty of murder and hanged in 1932. | |||
153 | 151 | Dan O'Connell & James Ellison | 8/1/2020 | 1:37:16 | Jessica Forsayeth | Erin Munro | 3.69 | 58 | Solved | Feb 5, 2002 | USA | Wisconsin | Hudson | 2 | Dan O'Connell, James Ellison | 39, 22 | M | Ryan Erickson | 28 | M | Murder | Shooting | Sexual abuse, coverup | An pedophilic, sexually abusive priest murdered two men to silence them when they confronted him about his behavior. The case went without leads for a couple of years. When Father Ryan Erickson started to become a suspect, he killed himself by hanging before he could be taken to trial. Even despite the increasing evidence, some friends of Erickson and his church defended him and claimed there wasn't any evidence of his involvement / he didn't "have the personality" for it. In 2005, a St. Croix judge found probable cause that Erickson did, in fact, commit the crimes. | ||
154 | 152 | Cindy & Mona Lisa Smith | 8/8/2020 | 1:26:54 | Jessica Forsayeth | Erin Munro | 3.33 | 67 | Solved | Dec 1987 | Australia | New South Wales | Bourke | 2 | Mona Smith, Cindy Smith | 16, 15 | F | Alexander Ian Grant | 40 | M | Drunk driving murder, rape | Drunk Driving | sexual assault, drunkeness | Alexander Grant had a very large history of drunk driving incidents. One night in December 1987, he was giving a ride to two aboriginal teens (cousins). He was more than twice over the legal limit for intoxication. He crashed the car and both girls were killed as a result. Cindy was found to have been molested after the fact, too. Grant claimed the girls had been driving despite his long record of drunk driving and the fact that he had had more than 30 drinks leading up to the crash. Prior to his trial, the charge of indecent interference with a corpse was dropped. Grant's lawyer was paid for by an anonymous benefactor, and the all-white jury acquitted him for culpable driving. There has not been any justice for Cindy and Mona even 30 years on. Grant died in 2017 without ever having spent a day in jail as a result of the girl's deaths or the molestation of Cindy. | ||
155 | 153 | Anni Hindocha | 8/15/2020 | 1:41:17 | Holly Boyd | Erin Munro | 4.00 | 78 | Solved | Nov 13, 2010 | South Africa | Gugulethu | 1 | Anni Hindocha | 28 | F | Hziwamadoda Qwabe, Xolile Mngeni, Zola Tongo, (Shrien Dwani) | M | Abduction, murder | Shooting | Money, (possible desire to no longer have a wife) | A wife and husband were abducted on their honeymoon in South Africa. While the husband was released relatively unscathed, the wife was murdered and possibly assaulted. As the case unfolded more, the men who committed the abduction claimed to have been hired by the husband to kill his wife (as a secretly gay man, it was a marriage he didn't want). Ultimately, the husband was acquitted due to some errors in the testimony of the abductors (and the fact that Mngeni died in prison, so he could no longer actively testify about the case). Zola Tongo was found guilty and sentenced to 18 years in prison. Qwabe was sentenced to 25 years in prison. Mngeni was found guilty and sentenced to life in prison, but he died in prison in 2014. Many today believe the husband got away with murder for hire. | ||||
156 | 154 | Steven Stayner | 8/29/2020 | 2:08:45 | Jessica Forsayeth | Elsha McGill | 4.17 | 95 | Solved | Dec 4, 1972 | USA | California | Merced | 2 | Steven Stayner, Timothy White | 7, 5 | M | M | 41, 49 | M | Kidnapping, child molestation & sexual assault | Kidnapping | Pedophilia | 7 year old Steven Stayner was kidnapped on his way home from school in 1972. Police, family, and the community could find no trace of his whereabouts despite ongoing searches and police work for years. Steven was actually alive the whole time and had been kidnapped by a child sex predator, Kenneth Parnell, who had previous run-ins with the law over child sex abuse. Parnell claimed he wanted a boy to raise as his own and have his own family, but he was sexually abusing Steven on a near daily basis when he was small (less often as he his his teen years). When Steven hit puberty, he was no longer to Parnell's taste and so Parnell went in search for another little boy to kidnap. He successfully kidnapped 5 year old Timmy White from Ukiah, CA. Steven did not want Timmy to experience what he had experienced, so he started to plan a way to get TImmy back to his family. A few weeks after Timmy's kidnapping, Steven managed it - he managed to get them to the police department while Parnell was at his night shift job. By this point, Steven had lost some memory of who he was originally due to Parnell threatening him over it, but knew his first name and (maybe) his last name. He was able to piece together the story for police. Police and legal team at the time did not take the sexual abuse of Steven seriously, in part due to the length of time since he was originally taken and in part due to a culture of not taking child sex crimes seriously. Steven's mormon parents also refuse to acknowledge his sexual abuse and refused to get him therapy or any sort of help for it. He was bullied at school for "being gay" when he was actually a sexual assault victim. Steven testified at Parnell's trial in 1981, and Parnell was sentenced to five yeas imprisonment (and was paroled after two years). Parnell would go on to try to kidnap another boy later on, which would result in a life imprisonment sentence. After the trial, Steven had a hard time adjusting back to normal life and fell into drugs and alcohol, which his strict mormon parents did not approve of. After he almost OD'd, he decided to quit drugs and alcohol altogether. He married his wife in 1985 and had two children with her. In 1989, he died when a (probably drunk) driver hit his motorcycle. Timmy White went on to lead a happy (but short) life. He became a deputy of the LA sheriff's department and gave talks and lectures about his experience as a kidnap victim. He died in 2010 from a pulmonary embolism. | ||
157 | 155 | Danniella Vian | 9/5/2020 | 1:26:34 | Eileen Ormsby | Eileen Ormsby | 3.30 | 71 | Unsolved (ongoing) | Jul 17, 2018 | USA | Alabama | Mobile | 1 | Danniella Vian | 25 | F | Unknown | Unknown | Unknown | Murder | Unknown | Unknown | Danniella was a young mother in Mobile, Albama, in 2018 who was trying to get her life together after recently giving up a baby for adoption. On July 17, 2018, she went missing. She had been hanging out at a bar that evening with an acquaintance Denson White. She was not seen again after leaving that bar (presumably with White or following him in her car). Denson had her cell phone with him the following days and eventually returned it to Danniella's friend Julie, who reported her missing. Denson had called Danniella and left several messages on her phone via facebook messenger (despite that he had her phone with him). Police did not seem to have a very good investigation in this case, as they bungled several key pieces of evidence (such as claiming no CCTV video footage existed of Danniella that night with Denson, but there was). Danniella remained missing until May 2019, when her body was found submerged inside her car in a bayou ~20 miles from where she had last been. The case is technically unsolved at this point, but circumstantial evidence points to Denson White as a suspect. | ||
158 | 156 | Shergar | 9/12/2020 | 1:33:12 | Jessica Forsayeth | Elsha McGill | 3.05 | 94 | Unsolved | Feb 8, 1983 | Ireland | County Kildare | 1 | Shergar | 5 | M | Unknown | Unknown | Unknown | Horse kidnapping & ransom | Unknown | Money, ransom | Shergar was a very popular and successful racehorse in Ireland in the early 1980s. He was retired from racing in order to be a studhorse, which was wildly lucrative. In February 1983, he was stolen and offered for ransom. Shergar has never been seen since. It is suspected that the Irish Republican Army (IRA) was involved in the theft. No arrests have ever been made in connection with the crime. It is suspected Shergar was killed soon after he was taken. | |||
159 | 157 | The Strip Search Scam | 9/26/2020 | 1:17:16 | Erin Munro | Erin Munro | 4.05 | 109 | Solved | Apr 9, 2004 | USA | Kentucky | Mount Washington | 1 | Louise Ogborn | 18 | F | David Stewart | 36 | M | Scam, sexual assault by proxy, impersonating an officer | Phone call hoax | Control, sexual release, desire to be a cop | A call came in to the Mount Washington, KY, McDonalds in April 2004 from a man claiming to be a police officer. He stated that one of the employees - a young, slim girl - had stolen from a customer and she would have to be searched. The Assistant Manager at the time, Donna Summers, identified this thief as 18 year old part time worker, Louise Ogborn. She was placed into the McDonald's office. Since Donna was too busy to watch over Louise or follow the instructions of the "officer' herself, she brought her fiance (Walter Nix) to conduct the interview and watch over Louise on the "officer's" behalf. Over the next ~3 hours, this supposed police officer gave instructions under the guise of interviewing and investigating this thievery. Louise was stripped naked, with only a very small apron to partly cover her body. Her body was described to the officer over the phone. Her bodily cavities were 'searched' for the stolen items. She was sexually assaulted by Nix, all at the behest of this police officer. Each time Summers would come to the office, Louise would beg to be let go, but Summers refused. After assaulting Louise, Nix left and Summers had to find a replacement to watch over Louise. She asked Thomas Simms, the maintenance man, to watch over Louise. The officer tried to get Simms to continue with Louise's "interogation" / assault, but Simms knew this situation wasn't quite right. He refused to go along with the demands and informed Summers of the disgusting demands the cop had made. Only then did Summers suspect that perhaps this cop wasn't really a cop. Louise was let go and real police brought in to investigate. Louise's full assault was caught on the CCTV of the office. This was just the latest in a series of scams that had been occurring at various fast food restaurants since the early 1990s. Investigators of another similar scam had been able to connect the phone caller with a pre-paid phone card. Comparing the footage between different scam events (and stores where the cards had been bought) led officers to 36 year old David Stewart, a married police-wanna-be with five children. They got a warrant to search his home where they found another pre paid phone card that was linked to several of these fast food scams (but not the one in Mount Washington). Stewart was put on trial, but ultimately was found not guilty since the one phone card found at his residence wasn't the one directly used in the Mount Washington situation. However, from the moment Stewart was arrested for the crimes, there has not been any other such scam perpetuated. Louise also sued McDonald's for their role in the event. The scam had been a well known issue, but McDonald's did nothing to inform or train their employees of it or how to respond to it. McDonald's legal team went so far as to argue that Louise's assault was her own fault and she had "grown stronger" by experiencing it. McDonald's ultimately was found responsible and Louise was awarded a settlement over $6 million dollars. McDonalds would go on to appeal and eventually would settle out of court with Louise for an undisclosed amount. | ||
160 | 158 | Russell Martin | 10/3/2020 | 1:05:12 | Eileen Ormsby | Eileen Ormsby | 2.18 | 66 | Unsolved | Jan 20, 1977 | Australia | Victoria | Stawell | Russell Stawell | 31 | M | Unknown | Unknown | Unknown | Disappearance, possible murder | Unknown | Unknown | Russell Stawell was a married father of four who disappeared in early 1977 and has not been seen since. His highly volatile relationship with his wife, Helen, (who he constantly cheated on and was emotionall & physically abusive to) lends some credence to the idea that Helen had him killed. Helen had mentioned that she was afraid to leave Russell because he would murder her if she ever tried to leave him. Helen denied being involved in Russell's disappearance, although not all of her story adds up. | |||
161 | 159 | James Craig Anderson | 10/10/2020 | 1:19:25 | Holly Boyd | Elsha McGill | 3.34 | 56 | Solved | Jun 26, 2011 | USA | Mississippi | Jackson | 1 | James Craig Anderson | 47 | M | Deryl Dedmon, William Montgomery, John Aaron Rice, Jonathan Gaskamp, Joseph Dominick, John Louis Blalack, Sarah Adelia Graves, Robert Henry Rice, Shelbie Brooke Richards. | 18, teenaged - young adult | F, M | Racially motivated murder, random attack | Beating, hit and run | racial hatred, hate crime | James Craig Anderson, a married man with a child, was locked out of his car in June 2011. He sought help of some nearby teenagers, and instead was beaten severely and run over by a car. The group of teenagers / young adults had gone out that night looking for trouble and wanting to "fuck with some n******". They beat Craig and shouted 'white power' before fleeing the scene. But the attack was witnessed, both by people in the nearby building and by security cameras. Onlookers tried to help Craig, but his injuries were severe and he died in hospital a few days later. Police arrested and charged a group of 10 people with hate crimes in relation to Craig's death and other racially-motivated attacks that had occurred in the area. The instigator of this attack, Deryl Dedmon, was sentenced to two life sentences (to be served concurrently) and 50 years in prison for the murder and the hate crimes. All others of the 10 conspirators pleaded guilty and were sentenced to 4-18 years in prison. | ||
162 | 160 | Beverly McGowan | 10/24/2020 | 1:13:29 | Erin Munro | Milly Raso | 4.28 | 67 | Solved | July 17, 1990 | USA | Florida | Pompano Beach | 1 | Beverly Ann McGowan | 34 | F | Elaine Parent | 48 | F | Murder, stolen identity, fraud | Unknown | Unknown | Elaine Parent was a career criminal when it came to fraud and stolen identity. Throughout the 80s up until her death in 2002, she stole numerous identities and had many different aliases (in fact, it isn't known for sure that her true name was even Elaine Parent). She stole identities from multiple people throughout a number of US states and England. In 1990, she murdered her only known murder victim - Beverly McGowan, a 34 year old woman seeking a roomate to help pay her condo mortgage. The trail of McGowan's death went cold for over a decade until authorities were able to identify Elaine Parent as connected to several people who had committed crimes in the country - who all turned out to be Elaine herself. When finally confronted by police in April 2002, Elaine shot herself before she could be arrested. She has gone on to be known as the Chameleon Killer due to her numerous disguises and aliases. It is not known if Elaine had any accomplices in her crimes or if she worked alone. | ||
163 | 161 | The Yosemite Sightseer Murders (2 parter) | 10/31/2020 11/7/2020 | 2:11:11 | Jessica Forsayeth | Elsha McGill | 4.34 | 79 | Solved | Feb-Jul 1999 | USA | California | Yosemite National Park | 4 | Carole Sund, Juli Sund, Silvina Pelosso, Joie Ruth Armstrong | 42, 15, 16, 26 | F | Cary Stayner | 37 | M | Serial murder, rape | Strangulation, decapitation, cut throat | Sexual desire, desire to murder women | Cary Stayner, older brother of kidnapping victim Steven Stayner, first felt the impulse to murder at seven years of age. He finally acted on his impulse in 1999 when he worked as a maintenance man for a hotel in Yosemite National Park. His victims were victims of opportunity, killed in two batches: Carole, Juli, and Silvinia were family/friends travelling together and Cary killed them in February of that year. He was not suspected of the crimes at the time. His next opportunity was in July of that year, when he came across Joie along working outside her cabin. Cary became the obvious suspect at this point in time - his fingerprints and shoe prints were all over the crime scenes. Cary was arrested and confessed to everything. At his trial in 2002, Cary was convicted of four counts of first degree murder and sentenced to death. He remains on death row to this day. | ||
164 | 162 | Lawrence Haggart | 11/22/2020 | 1:16:14 | Elsha McGill, Erin Munro, Milly Raso | Erin Munro | 3.46 | 26 | Solved | Mar 16, 1996 | Scotland | Falkirk | Larbert | 1 | Lawrence Haggart | 15 | M | Brian Beattie | 34 | M | Murder, assault, pedophilia | Blunt force trauma, lit on fire | Sexual desire | Late on March 16, 1996, Lawrence's brother John woke up to find Lawrence unresponsive and on fire in the living room of their home. After calling for emergency assistance, they Lawrence was taken to the hospital but he never regained consciousness and was declared dead the following day. Over the next several years, police did not know who was responsible for this attack, so they focused all their attentions on Lawrence's younger brother, Dennis, who was 12 at the time. Basing their entire case off the fact that Dennis and Lawrence had argued about curfew, they made Dennis their sole suspect and even went so far as to fake evidence trying to incriminate Dennis. Ultimately, the police only stopped pursuing Dennis because Brian Beattie confessed to the crime when he was brought in on unrelated charges. Pedophile Brian Beattie had a long history of sexual assault against boys and men. He had been arrested several times prior to the attack on Lawrence Haggart. Beattie was ultimately sentenced to a minimum of 15 years for the murder. | ||
165 | 163 | Joanne Ratcliffe & Kirste Gordon | 11/28/2020 | 1:25:16 | Elsha McGill | Elsha McGill | 4.04 | 46 | Unsolved | Aug 25, 1973 | Australia | South Australia | Adelaide | 2 | Joanne Ratcliffe, Kirste Gordon | 11, 4 | F | Unknown | Unknown | Unknown | Child kidnapping, possible sexual assault, murder | Kidnapping | Possible pedophilia, sexual assault | Joanne Ratcliffe and Kirste Gordon were abducted while they went to visit the bathroom during a football game with the Ratcliffe family in 1973. The girls disappeared at the most hectic point during the football match, so it was difficult for police to get a full picture and interviews with everyone there. Over the years, some suspects have cropped up as possible perpetrators, but none have been 100% confirmed to have been the perpetrator. | ||
166 | 164 | Cindy James | 2/6/2021 | 1:42:10 | Jessica Forsayeth | Jessica Forsayeth | 4.52 | 96 | Unsolved | Jun 8, 1989 | Canada | Vancouver | Richmond | 1 | Cindy James | 44 | F | Unknown | Unknown | Unknown | Possible stalking, assault, abduction, and murder OR possible self-inflicted victimization and false claims caused by severe mental illness | Strangulation, drug overdose | Unknown | After her separation from her husband in 1982, Cindy James started experiencing some kind of stalking - threatening phone calls, threatening notes, and sometimes abductions / assaults. Over the next seven years, Cindy would report nearly 100 of such incidents to police. Each time, there was zero evidence of anyone else there. When abducted or injured, Cindy would always be tied up with a nylon stocking around her throat and usually injected with some sort of drug. Despite this, there was never any evidence found that supported the presence of another person who could have committed the abductions / assaults. Cindy would claims that 2 or more men had committed these events, but she would always refuse to elaborate further or claim amnesia. For certain events, such as a time where a small fire was set in Cindy's basement and investigators concluded it was highly unlikely that anyone outside of the house set the fire due to the items involved in the fire and the fact that there was no sign of any break in. In 1989, Cindy disappeared (again). This time, instead of being found alive and not harmed in any permanent way, Cindy's body was found a couple of weeks after her initial disappearance. She had died of a drug overdose and was found in the same position she always was - tied up with a nylon stocking around her throat. Police were convinced that Cindy staged the scene and committed suicide (accidentally or otherwise), while Cindy's family believes she was murdered and her stalkers were real people. Her ex husband, Roy, felt Cindy was suffering from some sort of severe personality disorder, such as a split personality, caused by sexual and physical trauma she endured as a child. Ultimately, a coroner found that Cindy died of an "Unknown event". A jury also concluded that the death was an "Unknown event" by only a 1 vote majority (the rest beleived she had committed suicide). | ||
167 | 165 | Nicholas Barclay | 2/13/2021 | 1:13:29 | Jessica Forsayeth | Jessica Forsayeth | 4.24 | 62 | Unsolved | Jun 14, 1994 | USA | Texas | San Antonio | 1 | Nicholas Barclay | 12 | M | Unknown | Unknown | Unknown | Unknown | Unknown | Unknown | Nicholas Barclay was a 12 year old who went missing on June 14, 1994. His case remains unsolved to this day. In October 1997, a man from France (Frederic Pierre Bourdin) with a long criminal history claimed to be the missing boy. He disguised himself as Nicholas, managed to fool Nicholas's family and local USA law enforcement - at least for a time. It became clear by February of 1998 that this was an imposter. His true identity was revealed and Nicholas's true fate remains Unknown. | ||
168 | 166 | The Family | 2/20/2021 | 1:38:44 | Jessica Forsayeth | Jessica Forsayeth | 4.06 | 71 | Solved | 1979-1983 | Australia | South Australia | Adelaide | 5 | Alan Barnes, Neil Muir, Peter Stogneff, Mark Langley, Richard Kelvin | 17, 25, 14, 18, 15 | M | Bevan Spencer von Einem, The Family | 33-37 | M | Serial Murder, sexual assault, mutilation | vicious sexual assault, torture | Starting in 1979, a series of five young men were found to have been kidnapped and held captive for a stretch of time (sometimes weeks). During this period of time, the men all suffered from torture and severe sexual assault. They often had rudimentary surgeries performed on them by the perpetrator, who would remove some organs prior to dumping the bodies. The case picked up steam when the fifth victim, Richard Kelvin, was kidnapped. Kelvin was the son of a well known local news presenter. DNA evidence on several of the victims led police to Bevan Spencer von Einem, who was found guilty in his 1984 trial over Kelvin's murder. Von Einem was sentenced to 36 years in prison. Despite von Einem being the other person held legally responsible for this series of murders, police believe that up to 12 people may have been involved in the kidnappings. | |||
169 | 167 | Jai, Tyler & Bailey Farquharson | 3/6/2021 | 1:37:47 | Erin Munro, Milly Raso | Erin Munro, Milly Raso | 3.76 | 54 | Solved | Sept 4, 2005 | Australia | Victoria | Geelong | 3 | Jai, Bailey, and Tyler Farquharson | 10, 2, 2007 | M | Robert Farquharson | 36 | M | Murder / possible accidental death | Drowning in a sinking car | Possible vengeance at ex wife | In September 2005, Robert Farquharson had his three children (with ex wife Cindy) in the car with him when the car veered off the road and sunk into a nearby dam. Robert survived while the boys died. By Robert's account, he had blacked out during a coughing fit and woke up in the dam. He was unable to get the kids out due to locks on the doors and the seat belts. By the prosecution's account, Robert purposefully killed the boys to get back at his ex wife Cindy for divorcing him. The details in this case aren't known. The evidence is largely circumstantial and with some possibly made up testimony. Ultimately Robert was found guilty and sentenced to life imprisonment, with a minimum of 33 years. | ||
170 | 168 | Judmundur and Geirfinnur Einarsson | 3/13/2021 | 1:38:21 | Jessica Forsayeth | Jessica Forsayeth | 3.21 | 52 | Unsolved | Jan 26, 1974 | Iceland | Hafnarfjörður | 2 | Guðmundur Einarsson, Geirfinnur Einarsson | 18, 32 | M | Unknown | Unknown | Unknown | Disappearance | Unknown | Unknown | 18 year old Guðmundur Einarsson disappeared while walking home on January 26, 1974. He was last seen by a motorist after he nearly fell in front of the vehicle. Ten months later on November 19, 1974, 32 year old Geirfinnur Einarsson (unrelated to Guðmundur) received a phone call at his home, drove to a nearby harbour cafe in Keflavik, and then disappeared; his car keys were left in the ignition. Neither body has ever been found and it is not clear if foul play was involved. The cases appear to be unrelated. Despite a near complete lack of evidence, six suspects were eventually rounded up: Sævar Ciesielski, Kristján Viðar Viðarsson, Tryggvi Rúnar Leifsson, Albert Klahn Skaftason, Guðjón Skarphéðinsson and Erla Bolladóttir. These six eventually signed confessions to the murders after intense investigative pressure: they had been kept in isolation, interviewed at length with no contact with their lawyers, given drugs, subjected to sleep deprivation and water torture. The six signed confessions in order to put an end to their solitary confinement, though none of the six had any memories of the victims or their disappearances. The confinement was a significant amount of time, too: Erla's was for 242 days, while Tryggvi's was for 655 days. Sævar was kept in custody for 1,533 days. Sævar Marinó, Kristján Viðar and Tryggvi Rúnar were convicted of killing Guðmundur and Albert Klahn was convicted of helping hide the body. Sævar Marinó, Kristján Viðar and Guðjón were convicted of killing Geirfinnur while Erla was convicted of perjury. The investigation was heavily criticized after the supreme court ruled that the case could not be re-heared in 1998. In 2017, the Interior Ministry's Rehearing Committee concluded that the cases of 5 of the 6 defendents should be reheard (Erla's perjury case was left alone). Following that in September 2018, all five men were acquitted of the crimes. To this day, it is not known who may have had a hand in the disappearance of Guðmundur and Geirfinnur. It isn't known if those men even died during that time. | |||
171 | 169 | Corinna Mullen | 3/20/2021 | 1:05:37 | Holly Boyd | Erin Munro | 3.85 | 54 | Solved | Oct 2, 1987 | USA | Kentucky | Central City | 1 | Corinna Mullen | 20 | F | Billy Fields, Jimmie Cramer, Jeff Boyd | 43, 19, 25 | M | Rape, murder | Stabbing | Possibly silencing the victim | Billy Fields was a corrupt cop who was allegedly involved in running a drug ring in this small town. Young mother Corinna Mullen threatened to expose Fields, and Fields (along with some buddies of his, Jimmie and Jeffrey) silenced her. She was raped, stabbed, and thrown into the trunk of a car. Fields became lead investigator on the case and put on a show of trying to solve it, but the case remained unsolved for 19 years when a witness came forward. In 2008, the three men were found guilty in their joint trial, with Fields and Boyd being found guilty of murder while Cramer was found guilty of manslaughter. | ||
172 | 170 | The Caffey Family | 3/27/2021 | 1:11:30 | Jessica Forsayeth | Jessica Forsayeth | 4.11 | 64 | Solved | Mar 1, 2008 | USA | Texas | Alba | 3 | Penny Caffey, Mathew Caffey, Tyler Caffey | 37, 13, 8 | F, M | Erin Caffey, Charlie Wilkinson, Charles Waid, Bobbi Johnson | 16, 18, 20, 18 | F, M | Murder | Shooting, stabbing, arson | To get her family out of the way so Erin could date her boyfriend | Erin Caffey's parents didn't approve of her relationship with her boyfriend, Charlie. After discovering some upsetting messages between them on their myspace accounts, Erin's parents Penny and Terry, split Erin and Charlie up. On March 1, armed intruders entered the Caffey house, shooting Terry, stabbing Penny and Tyler to death, and shooting & stabbing Mathew to death. Terry survived his gunshot wounds and managed to crawl to the neighbor's house for help. As he left, the house was set on fire. Initially, it was believed that Charlie was the perpetrator, who was enacting revenge on the Caffey family for breaking up his relationship. But once police went looking for him, he was found with Erin (who was unharmed) and with items covered in blood. It was quickly revealed that Erin masterminded the murders to get her parents out of the way (and because she "just didn't like" her brothers) so she could be with Charlie. She convinced Charlie, Charlie's friend Charles, and another friend Bobbi to participate. Erin was ultimately sentenced to two consecutive life sentences plus 25 years. Charlie and Charles were sentenced to life in prison. Bobbi received a 40 year sentence. Terry survived the attack. He ultimately forgave the attackers for their crimes (as a devout baptist, he believed he needed to forgive them for his own peace of mind). He also believes Erin is innocent and was forced to commit the murders or otherwise unable to stop them. | ||
173 | 171 | The Gladbeck Hostage Crisis | 4/10/2021 | 1:28:21 | Erin Munro, Milly Raso | Erin Munro | 4.02 | 61 | Solved | Aug 19, 1988 | Germany | West Germany | Gladbeck | 2 | Emanuele De Giorgi, Silke Bischoff | 14, 18 | F, M | Hans-Jürgen Rösner, Dieter Degowski | 31, 32 | M | Bank Robbery | Shooting, hostage threats | Money | Degoswki and Rösner, two men with previous criminal records, committed an armed raid on a bank in Gladbeck, Germany, in August 1988. When police arrived at the bank to asses the situation, the robbers took bank employees hostage and made some demands (money, a car to get away). The hostage situation became a media circus as reporters realized they could call into the bank and chat with the robbers. This greatly impeded the police's already scattered response to the situation. Over the next two days, the robbers went on the run with hostages. Initially, their hostages were the bank employees, but once they had the car they had demanded, they also took hostages from a local bus. The police were unable to effectively deal with the situation (and indeed, didn't seem to have a very strong grasp of how to handle the situation). The non stop interference from the media, which was constantly surrounding the robbers and hostages (and even encouraging the robbers to take interviews and pose with guns aimed at the hostages), greatly impacted the outcome of this event. At one point, the police captured the girlfriend of one of the robbers, which resulted in the robber shooting one of the captives - a 14 year old boy, Emanuele, who was protecting his younger sister (also a captive). The media dragged the boy's body around, which may have impacted this life or death situation. Medical care was not immediately brought for the boy. After another day or so, the police finally decided to spring into action and ram the robber's car and engaged in a gunfight. Another hostage, Silke, was fatally shot by one of the robbers in this exchange. At trial, the robbers were both pronounced guilty and received life sentences. This case has become internationally known for the media interference in an active police case. | ||
174 | 172 | Michael Gregsten & Valerie Storie | 4/17/2021 | 1:39:21 | Jessica Forsayeth | Jessica Forsayeth | 3.86 | 35 | Solved | Aug 23, 1961 | England | Bedfordshire | Deadman's Hill | 2 | Michael Gregsten, Valerie Storie | 36, 22 | F, M | James Hanratty | 25 | M | Murder, robbery, hijacking, rape | Threatening at gunpoint | Possibly money, car theft | In 1961, couple Michael and Valerie were kidnapped by a man (who hid his face) at gunpoint. This man had them drive around and gave them orders for several hours until finally taking them to Deadman's Hill, where he shot Michael dead. He raped Valerie, shot her, and left her for dead. Though severely injured and permanently disabled, Valerie survived and was able to give testimony regarding the incident including a description of the man's face, which she briefly saw when a car passed by with lights that lit up the man's face. Pretty quickly, police zeroed in on James Hanratty, a 25 year old man with a long criminal record of break-ins and car thefts. Hanratty was recognized by some friends as looking very similar to the police sketches of the perpetrator. Additionally, he initially lied about his alibi, was found to be in several locations that the perpetrator was said to have been (including a hotel where boxes of bullets were found and the bus where the gun and a bloody cloth was hidden) by witnesses. When pulled into a police lineup, Valerie identified Hanratty as the perpetrator. At trial in 1962, Hanratty pronounced his innocence but was found guilty and sentenced to death. He lost his appeal and finally, he was hanged April 4, 1962. After the trial concluded, there was a growing movement of support for Hanratty. People believed he may have been wrongfully convicted. Even celebrity figures such as John Lennon and Yoko Ono expressed support for Hanratty and his family. Another figure - Peter Alphon - claimed that Hanratty was innocent and Alphon had been paid to 'end the affair' between Michael and Valerie. When Alphon was pulled into a police lineup, Valerie did not recognize him. As DNA testing became more advanced, DNA evidence from Valerie's clothing worn on the night of the attack was able to be tested to find the true perpetrator. Alphon was found to not be a match, but Hanratty's test came back prett conclusively - the perpetrator's DNA was two and a half million times more likely to belong to Hanratty than any one else. Hanratty's family and remaining supporters do not believe the DNA evidence and think it could have been contaminated over the 40+ years of storage. | ||
175 | 173 | Rocio Wanninkhof & Sonia Carabantes | 4/26/2021 | 1:45:09 | Victoria Dieffenbacher | Victoria Dieffenbacher | 3.61 | 44 | Solved | Oct 9, 1999; Aug 2003 | Spain | Málaga | Mijas | 2 | Rocio Wanninkhof, Sonia Carabantes | 19, 17 | F | Tony Alexander King | 32-36 | M | Murder, assault | Kidnapping, strangulation, stabbing | Serial predator attacking women | Rocio Wanninkhof disappeared in October 1999 after leaving her boyfriend's house to walk to her own home. Her body was found a few weeks later. She had been stabbed, beaten, and assaulted. Initially, police hyper focused on Rocio's mother's former girlfriend, Dolores Vazquez, despite there being no evidence that Dolores was involved. In 2001, popular pressure and a media circus ensured that a jury convicted Dolores of murdering Rocio. This conviction has become known as a massive miscarriage of justice in Spain, with many blaming prejudices towards Dolores' sexuality and a narrative that she was a domineering, predatory lesbian. Dolores' conviction was overturned three months later and a new trial was ordered. However, all charges were dropped against Dolores when DNA evidence from the crime scene linked Rocio's death to a different person entirely. In August 2003, Sonia Carabantes disappeared under similar circumstances to Rocio's. DNA at this crime scene was matched to DNA found at Rocio's crime scene. A woman came forward to police stating that she had suspicions that her husband was involved in the crime, so his DNA was tested against that which was found at both crime scenes; the DNA matched both crime scenes. Tony Alexander King was an English immigrant living in Spain with his wife and daughter. He had a long criminal history going back to his teenage years (involving many sexual assaults and beatings of women) in Britain. In 2005, King was sentenced to 36 years in prison for the murder of Sonia Carabantes as well as 7 additional years for an unrelated sexual assault. In another trial in 2006, he was found guilty of Rocio Wanninkhof's murder and sentenced to an additional 19 years in prison. Note: it is possible that another man, Robert Graham (36), may have assisted in the murder of Rocio Wanninkhof or at least helped cover it up for King. At this point, he does not seem to have been convicted or held accountable for any of alleged involvement. | ||
176 | 174 | Vicki Arnold & Julie-Anne Leahy | 5/8/2021 | 1:59:33 | Erin Munro | Erin Munro | 3.74 | 43 | Unsolved | Jul 26, 1991 | Australia | Queensland | Atherton Tablelands | 2 | Vicki Arnold, Julie-Anne Leahy | 28, 26 | F | Unknown | Unknown | Unknown | Murder | Shooting | Unknown | In 1991, friend Julie-Anne and Vicki were reported missing after Julie-Anne's husband, Alan, claimed the two women had gone night fishing in winter after midnight the day prior. After several days, the bodies were found with multiple gunshot wounds to both women as well as evidence of strangulation and beating to Julie-Anne. A very shoddily-run police investigation concluded that Vicki killed Julie-Anne in a murder suicide. After years and several inquests, the police investigation was accused of being horribly run on the orders of police supervisors who didn't want the expense or time cost involved in a big investigation. The husband, Alan, was found to be a man who already had a criminal record, was in a dire financial state at the time of the murder (and who had received insurance money as well as money he successfully sued from Vicki's family as a result of the murders), and who had been sexually abusing Julie-Anne's younger half sisters for years by this point. A state coroner ruled in 2013 that Alan should be charged with the murders, but a supreme court justice put the ruling aside. Alan killed himself in 2018. | ||
177 | 175 | Gail & Rick Brink | 5/15/2021 | 1:23:48 | Erin Munro | Erin Munro | 3.97 | 34 | Solved | Nov 21, 1987 | USA | Michigan | Holland | 2 | Gail Brink, Rick Brink | 22, 28 | F, M | Ryan Wyngarden | 23 | M | Murder, incest, sexual assault | Shooting | To silence the victims about sexual assault | Gail & Rick Brink were a young couple who just bought their first home in 1987. In November of that year, they were both found dead from gunshot wounds, with Gail dead in bed and Rick dead in his car. The case seemed to have no strong leads at the time and ultimately went cold for about two decades when it was re-examined by a cold case unit. The cold case detectives realized a discrepancy in some of the original testimony given by Gail's brother's then-girlfriend, Pam. She had been Ryan's alibi the night of the murders, but a lie-detector test at the time had indicated she was lying. Pam stuck to her story for the next couple of decades, but she finally admitted the truth to the cold case detectives. Ryan was a controlling and abusive husband who had threatened to kil her if she ever revealed the truth of what happened. Ryan had sexually assaulted Gail from the time she was 9 and he was 12. He openly ogled at her and was jealous when she got married to Rick. On the night of the murders, he went to their home and shot both of them - to silence Gail about their sexual relationship, according to Pam's testimony. Ryan was a poor perpetrator, though. Multiple people around the time of the murders noted Ryan's odd behavior and strange things he would say, including "could I have killed them?" or openly imagining what the killer would have done upon entering the house or openly discussing how "hot" his sister Gail was. Pam testified against Ryan at his trial. On March 28, 2014, Ryan was found guilty of two counts of first degree murder and sentenced to two life sentences without parole. He has since appealed his sentences three separate times and all his appeals have been rejected. Ryan's mother believes in his innocence, but she seems to be the only one in his family supporting him. | ||
178 | 176 | Yingying Zhang | 5/22/2021 | 1:19:41 | Erin Munro | Erin Munro | 3.71 | 49 | Solved | Jun 9, 2017 | USA | Illinois | Urbana | 1 | Yingying Zhang | 26 | F | Brendt Allen Christensen | 28 | M | Murder, sexual assault | Kidnapping, beating, stabbing, decapitation | Sexual desire | Yingying Zhang was a visiting Chinese student to the University of Illinois in Urbana, IL. On June 9, 2017, she missed her bus on her way to meet a colleague and accepted a ride from the driver of a Saturn Astra. CCTV footage captured her entering the car and that was the last Yingying was seen. Police were able to quickly narrow down the perpetrator pool due to the fact that the Saturn Astra was a relatively rare car, with only 18 of this type (four door, black Astra) existing in the county. Further study of the CCTV footage revealed this car also had a sunroof and a damaged front right hubcap, which further helped narrow down the pool of possible suspects. Only one of the 18 cars had these exact specifications and it belonged to Brendt Allen Christensen. Brendt Allen Christensen was in an open marriage and was an active user of various sexual forums on reddit and fetlife that were of a BDSM, kidnapping, torture variety. Police interviewed Christensen on June 15, where he admitted to giving an asian woman a ride in his car. Police let him go, but continued monitoring him, because they believed he would further incriminate himself. Police approached Christensen's girlfriend and she agreed to wear a wire, thinking that it would exonerate him. On June 29, Christensen and his girlfriend attended a memorial walk for Yingying. During this walk, Christensen fully admitted to his girlfriend of his involvement in the kidnapping and murder of Yingying. He openly bragged about being a serial killer, with Yingying being his 13th victim. The following day, the FBI arrested Christensen and he was brought to trial. On June 24, 2019, he was found guilty on all counts and sentenced to life without the possibility of parole. Yingying's body has not yet been found, since Christensen claimed to have dismembered the body, placed parts in various garbage bags, and the disposed of them in a dumpster. This dumpster was emptied three days after the body was disposed in it and the contents were taken to a private landfill in Vermillion county, compacted at least twice, and then spread over an area at least 50 yards wide, and then buried under at least 30 feet of garbage. It would be costly and difficult to try to find the remains in such a place. Police also did further investigating into Christensen's claim of being a serial killer, but they doubted he had any other victims and have so far found no evidence of other victims. | ||
179 | 177 | 657 Boulevard | 5/29/2021 | 0:38:39 | Jessica Forsayeth | Jessica Forsayeth | 3.58 | 52 | Unsolved | 2014 | USA | New Jersey | Westfield | 0 | DerekBroaddus, Maria Broaddus | Unknown | F, M | Unknown | Unknown | Unknown | Stalking, threatening | Mailed letters | Unknown, potential anger at house renovations | This was originally a patreon-only bonus episode. Derek and Maria Broaddus bought their dream home in New Jersey in 2014 for about $1.35 million (plus $100,000 they put into renovations), but they never moved in. While renovations were going on at the house, the Broaddus family started receiving threatening letters from "the watcher", someone who likely lived in the neighborhood and claimed to be watching the house at all times. Various letters were sent to the family, all with an angry tone and threats to the family and their children. Police seemed to have thoroughly investigated the matter, but were unable to identify the sender of the letters. There was a small amount of DNA extracted from one of the letters, which seemed to indicate that the sender was female, but no further identifying information was found. The watcher claimed that the house was essentially haunted and had been watched by their father and father's father before them. For fear that their family was in danger, the Broaddus family never moved into the home. Rumors and news stories about the watcher made the house's value drop sharply and the Broadduses finallly sold it in 2019 for about $960,000. | ||
180 | 178 | The Woman Without a Face | 6/5/2021 | 1:09:52 | Holly Boyd | Jessica Forsayeth | 4.00 | 48 | Solved | 1993-2009 | Germany | 6 | Michele Kiesewetter | 23 | F | National Socialist Underground | 20-23 | F, M | Terrorism, Murder | Bombing, shooting | White nationalism | Between 1993-1999 in Germany, there appeared to be a female serial killer involved in numerous crimes (including in other European countries). Her DNA showed up at multiple crimes, but no other evidence of her ever surfaced. After years of chasing this serial killer theory, it was discovered that some of the cotton swabs used to collect DNA were not approved for such a purpose. The "serial killer's" DNA was really the DNA of a factory worker who processed these cotton swabs. With that theory out of the way, police had to reinvestigate many of these murders that they had attributed to the phantom serial killer to find the true killers. This eventually lead them to uncover the NSU, a white nationalist group primarily consisting of Uwe Bohnhardt, Uwe Mundlos, Beate Zschape, and some male accomplices over the years. Throughout the 90s, they planned robberies, bombings, and other attacks primarily on the Turkish population in Germany. Ultimately, the police honed in on Mundlos and Bohnhardt, who committed murder-suicide to not be arrested. Zschape turned herself in and, in 2018, sentenced to life imprisonment for her numerous crimes - including arson, first degree murder, etc. | ||||
181 | 179 | Christie Marceau | 6/12/2021 | 1:21:18 | Erin Munro | Erin Munro | 3.84 | 25 | Solved | Nov 7, 2011 | New Zealand | North Island | Auckland | 1 | Christie Marceau | 18 | F | Akshay Anand Chand | 18 | M | Murder, stalking | Stabbing | Revenge | In September of 2011, Christie was asked to come to Chand's home under false pretenses. They were acquaintances and former coworkers. Unbeknownst to Christie, Chand harbored extreme thoughts of revenge against Christie because he felt she had abandoned him and been a bad friend when she left her old job and didn't speak to him as much. He threatened her with a knife and initiated an assault (which he backed down from). He let her return home. At that point, Christie and her family got the police involved. Chand was charged with kidnapping, intent to cause grievous bodily harm, and assault with intent to sexually violate. Initially, Chand's application for bail was denied for fear that he would attack Christie again. A second judge, David McNaughton, granted bail on October 5. In the following weeks, Chand watched Christie and gave her some space, to help lull her into a sense of security. Then on the early morning of November 7, 2011, Chand went to Christie's house. Christie's mother answered the door. As soon as Chand saw Christie, he chased her until he caught up to her and stabbed her to death. At trial, Chand was acquitted of murder by reason of insanity. He has been committed to a psychiatric hospital indefinitely. | ||
182 | 180 | Bill Payne & Billie-Jean Hayworth | 6/19/2021 | 1:36:27 | Eileen Ormsby | Eileen Ormsby | 3.71 | 31 | Solved | Jan 31, 2012 | USA | Tennessee | Mountain City | 2 | Billie Jean Hayworth, Billy Payne | 23, 36 | F, M | Marvin Potter, Barbara Potter, Jenelle Potter, Jamie Curd | late 20s-60s | F, M | Murder, harassment | Shooting | Bullying, revenge | In January 2012, Billie Jean Hayworth and her partner Bill Payne were found murdered in their home. While the case itself is straightforward - the victims were murdered by members of the Potter family and Bill Payne's cousin Jamie Curd - the circumstances around the murder are strange. The Potters moved to the area in 2005 and were never very popular with people. The father, Marvin Potter, claimed to be former military and CIA (neither of which was true) and got into many arguments and fueds with people. Both Marvin and his wife Barbara were very protective of their daughter Jenelle, who lived off disability and was in special education for most of her life. Jenelle started a secret relationship with Jamie Curd, who was 8-10 years her senior and who had never had a girlfriend before. They had to keep their relationship a secret as Marvin and Barbara didn't want Jamie dating Jenelle. Jenelle primarily lived her life on social media and did't go out too much. At one point, she was friendly with Billie Jean and Bill, but she became overbearing (to the point of making 15-20+ calls a day) and Jenelle was unfriended by the victims. Jenelle took this very personally and a feud between the parties started. Jenelle ultimately made many fake profiles to both harass Billie Jean and Bill Payne as well as to fake-harass Jenelle, and paint her as the victim of harassment. Jenelle created a fake persona, "Chris", a so-called childhood friend and current CIA agent. Over the course of a year, Jenelle manipulated Jamie and her parents (via Chris) to put an end to Bill Payne and Billie Jean Hayworth. On January 31, 2012, Jamie Curd and Marvin Potter murdered Bill and Billie Jean. Ultimately, Janelle was sentenced to two concurrent life sentences. Barbara and Marvin are also sentenced to two concurrent life sentences. Jamie took a plea deal and received 25 years in prison for his part in the crime. | ||
183 | 181 | The Vampire of Nuremberg | 6/26/2021 | 0:40:24 | Milly Raso | Milly Raso | 3.46 | 28 | Solved | May 6, 1972 | Germany | Bavaria | Nuremberg | 2 | Markus Adler, Ruth Lissy | 24, 18 | F, M | Kuno Hofmann | 41 | M | Murder, necrophilia, cannibalism / vampirism | Shooting | Fascination with vampirism | This was originally a patreon-only bonus episode. Kuno Hofmann suffered from the loss of his speech and hearing from a young age. As a young man, he became interested in satanism, black magic, and ritualistic behaviors involving necrophilia and vampirism. He seemed to believe that drinking the blood of others may potentially cure his disabilities and improve his looks. In 1971, police and morgue attendants made note of some bizarre grave robberies, which involved bodies that were exhumed and gnawed upon and potential sex acts enacted on the female bodies. In 1972, desiring a fresher victim, Hofmann shot and killed a young couple and drank their blood. He was captured only a few days later, when he was caught in the act by a morgue attendant. Hofmann was ultimately deemed insane and confined to a mental asylum. | ||
184 | 182 | Freda Burnell & Florence Little | 7/31/2021 | 1:00:32 | Jessica Forsayeth | Jessica Forsayeth | 3.88 | 26 | Solved | Feb 5, 1921 Jul 8, 1921 | Wales | Monmouthshire | Abertillery | 2 | Freda Burnell, Florence Little | 8, 11 | F | Harold Jones | 15 | M | Murder, sexual assault | Strangulation, knifing | The desire to kill | In February 1921, 8 year old Freda Burnell was sent to the local store by her father to purchase poultry spice and grit. The girl was turned away from the store due to one of the items not being in stock, but Freda never made it home. Her parents and local community members searched for Freda late into the night, but her body was found the following day stuffed into a sack within 300 yards of the store. Officially, her cause of death was a combination of blunt trauma to the head and strangulation. A sexual assault had been attempted, but did not appear to have been completed. Investigators were able to link Freda to the store's storage shed due to corn chaff being both inside the sack and inside the nearby shed. Further evidence inside the shed - including Freda's handkerchief and an axe handle later determined to be the murder weapon - established it as the scene of the crime. This led investigators to hone in to store employee Harold Jones, who was the only person who had a key to the shed and who was unaccounted for at work between 9:15 and 9:40 am. Harold Jones stood trial in June of 1921, but was ultimately found not guilty. The local community supported him as they did not believe he could be a murderer. Seventeen days after his trial, Jones' little sister's friend, Florence Little, was around the Jones' home playing. Jones lured her into the house where he strangled and beat her, sexually assaulted her, and slit her throat. he drained her body in the kitchen sink and stuffed her into the attic. Police were still suspicious of Jones and honed in on him again. This time, they found evidence within the house pretty quickly and located Little's body in the attic the following day. Jones' own father performed a citizens arrest on his own son to ensure he was given proper justice. This time around, Jones confessed to both murders and pleaded guilty. He did this to avoid the trial being prolonged passed his 16th birthday, when he would have been facing the death penalty. He ultimately spent 20 years in prison, eventually changed his name, got married, and had a child of his own. He died of bone cancer in 1971. Jones is suspected of being Jack the Stripper, an Unknown serial killer who committed the Hammersmith Nude Murders; a series of prostitues were murdered between 1964 and 1965 in West London. Jones lived nearby and had access to the materials and some of the locations that bodies were found. | ||
185 | 183 | The MacKenzie Family | 8/7/2021 | 1:06:17 | Elsha McGill | Elsha McGill | 4.00 | 27 | Solved | Feb 21, 1993 | Australia | Western Australia | Greenough | 4 | Karen Mackenzie, Daniel Mackenzie, Amara MacKenzie, Katrina MacKenzie | 31, 16, 7, 5 | F, M | William Patrick Mitchell | 24 | M | Murder, sexual assault, necrophilia | Sharp and blunt force trauma | Crime of passion (?), vengence for rejection | The entire MacKenzie Family was slaughtered on the night of 21 February, 1993. Within a few weeks, police were able to identify William Patrick Mitchell, an acquaintance of Karen MacKenzie who had attended the same house party as Karen the night before her death and who had argued with Karen at the party. Karen had reportedly rejected Mitchell's sexual advances several times in the weeks prior. Investigators were able to link Mitchell to the crime via hand lotion that was found at the scene and used as part of the crime. Mitchell confessed to the crime and ultimately was convicted and sentenced to four concurrent life terms with parole eligibility after 20 years. The crime was so gruesome that the details of the deaths of all three children have been permanently sealed. | ||
186 | 184 | Gay Gibson | 8/14/2021 | 1:15:37 | Erin Munro | Erin Munro | 3.73 | 26 | Solved | Oct 18, 1947 | Atlantic Ocean | 1 | Gay Gibson | 21 | F | James Camb | 30 | M | Sexual assault, murder | Strangulation, dumping of body | Serial sexual assault | Gay Gibson was a 21 year old actress travelling to England on the MV Durban Castle to pursue acting work. When she disappeared from the ship mid-voyage, she was reported missing and an investigation ensued. A steward on the ship, James Camb, was identified as being inside of Gibon's room on the night she disappeared. Camb initially claimed that he had been invited in for drinks, but as the investigation furthered, he confessed to the captain and to the police that Gibson had invited him in, they had consensual sex, Gibson suddenly died, and Camb panicked and tossed her body out the porthole. During the trial, prosecutors argued that James had assaulted and strangled Gibson before dumping her body out the porthole. They pointed to urine stains on the bedding (involutary urination can occur during strangulation) as evidence of this. The prosecution pointed out six different times they could prove that Camb had lied or changed his story regarding that night. Camb was found guilty of the murder and sentenced to execution, but this execution was delayed due to the abolition of the death penalty. His sentence was instead commuted to life in prison, but he got out on parole in 1959. He was put again in prison shortly thereafter due to a string of assaults on young girls. | ||||
187 | 185 | Kim Chol | 8/21/2021 | 0:46:02 | Erin Munro | Erin Munro | 3.97 | 31 | Solved | Feb 13, 2017 | Malaysia | Selangor | 1 | Kim Jong-nam | 45 | M | Đoàn Thị Hương, Siti Aisyah, North Korean operatives | 30s | F, M | Assassination | Poisoning by VX | Political assassination | Kim Jong-nam was the eldest son of Kim Jong-il, the former dictator of North Korea. Jong-nam was originally set to be Jong-il's successor, but he fell out of favor with the family for a variety of reasons, but in particular due to being too pacifist for his family's regime and some embarassing international incidents. The new succesor was his younger half brother, Kim Jong-un, who can be described as paranoid. Upon his succession, Jong-un had over 100 of his own family members executed to secure his position. The assassination of Jong-nam by the (almost universally banned) nerve agent VX was almost certainly on the orders of Jong-un. It involved a convoluted operation in which four North Korean operatives involved two women (one Indonesian and the other Vietnamese) in a prank-style tv show where they smeared baby oil on random people's faces. For their last "prank", the women were unknowingly given nerve agent VX and directed to smear it on the face of Jong-nam as he was checking his flight at the airport. Both women were eventually released from imprisonment and charges against them were dropped. The four North Korean operatives escaped back to North Korea the same day of the assassination. | |||
188 | 186 | The Bowraville Murders | 8/28/2021 | 1:35:27 | Erin Munro | Erin Munro | 4.18 | 22 | Unsolved (ongoing) | Sep 1990 - Feb 1991 | Australia | New South Wales | Bowraville | 3 | Colleen Walker, Evelyn Greenup, Clinton Speedy-Duroux | 16, 4, 16 | F, M | Jay Hart (alleged) | 22-23 | M | Murder, sexual assault | Head trauma | Sexual desire | Three young aboriginal people disappeared within a few months of each other in 1990-1991. In each case, the police did nothing to start an investigation due to casual racism against aboriginals in the area. Collen Walker (16) was last seen walking away from a party at the aborginal community, The Mission, on Sept 13 1990. Collen's body has never been found, but some of her clothes were found weighted down in a river. Evelyn Greenup (4) disappeared after a party at her grandmother's house. She had been staying in the same bedroom as her mother, but her mother had fallen into such a deep sleep that she didn't awake the entire night (which was unusual for her). She disappeared on October 4 1990. Evelyn's body was found in April 1991. Clinton Speedy-Duroux (16) went missing after a party at The Mission. He had spent the night with his girlfriend in a caravan owned by the suspect Jay Hart. His girlfriend, much like Evelyn's mother, had slept suspiciously deeply the entire night and awoke alone to find Clinton had disappeared. Clinton disappeared on January 31, 1991. His body was discovered Feb 18, 1991. Police honed in on Jay Hart, a man who had been suspected (and witnesses came forward with claims) of drugging women and sexually assaulting them in their sleep. Despite police honing in on him, their police work was sloppy; they allowed Jay to remove items from the crime scene without protest. Witnesses came forward to testify that they had seen Jay acting strangely on the day of Clinton's disappearance - testimony that conflicted with much of Jay's claimed schedule that day (such as when he borrowed his mother's car, and even some witnesses that saw a man moving a body that looked like Clinton's). Jay was tried in 1991, but ultimately acquitted due to the circumstantial nature of the evidence. Jay was tired again in 2006, but again acquitted. Investigators are continuing work on this case and hope to bring forward fresh evidence so the NSW court system will allow a third trial. | ||
189 | 187 | Peter & Joan Porco | 9/4/2021 | 1:14:35 | Jessica Forsayeth | Jessica Forsayeth | 4.25 | 32 | Solved | Nov 15, 2004 | USA | New York | Delmar | 2 | Peter Porco, Joan Porco (survived) | 52, 50s | F, M | Christopher Porco | 21 | M | Murder | Sharp force trauma | Money | In Nov 14, 2004, an assailant in the home of Peter and Joan Porco entered their home and attacked the couple in their beds. Both received severe head trauma. The portion of Peter's brain that handles instinct stayed in tact, so he was able to get up and go about his morning routine the following morning (while bleeding from the head) until he finally passed away in the house. Joan also managed to survive the night with her severe injuries (which left her without an eye and part of her skull). She was conscious enough to tell police when they arrived at the scene that their attacker had been their youngest son, Christopher. Police investigation into Christopher found CCTV footage and ticket receipts from various toll booths that he had passed through the previous night travelling from his college in Rochester to the family home in Delmar, roughly 230 miles apart. A neighbor also identified Christopher's yellow jeep in the driveway of the family home on that morning. Further investigation revealed that Christopher had a long history of lying about his personal wealth and status, claiming to be from a wealthy family and to have a trust fund and a mansion. He routinely stole from work, roomates, and his own parents (via forging their signatures) to keep up the appearance of this lifestyle. His parents had recently caught him forging their signatures on a large loan to buy a new car and they were trying to hold him accountable. Joan survived the journey to the hospital and a high risk surgery. After 3 weeks of medically-induced coma, she woke up and managed to survive the entire ordeal, but she had lost her memories of the night of the attack. Joan couldn't believe her son would do such a thing and stood by him during the investigation, trial, and his conviction. Christopher was convicted of murder and attempted murder and sentenced to the maximum sentence: 50 years to life. While Joan pleaded on behalf of her son Christopher, her other son Jonathan, her sister in law, and her mother in law all pleaded against Christopher and advised the judge to give him the maximum sentence for fear that he could commit a similar act again. | ||
190 | 188 | Robert Wone | 9/11/2021 | 1:28:50 | Jessica Forsayeth | Jessica Forsayeth | 4.06 | 31 | Solved (ongoing) | Aug 2, 2006 | USA | Washington DC | 1 | Robert Wone | 32 | M | Joe Price, Victor Zaborsky, Dylan Ward | 30s | M | Murder, sexual assault | Stabbing | Unknown | Robert Wone was staying the night at a friend's house in the city as he had a late night prior and an early night the next morning due to work. He was staying with a friend, Joe Price, who lived in DC with his polyamorous partners Victor Zaborsky and Dylan Ward. Within 90 minutes of arriving at the house, Robert Wone was dead. He had been stabbed and sexually assaulted. The other people in the house claimed someone must have broken in and committed the act, but much of the circumstantial evidence pointed to the three residents of the house. The police investigation was criticized due to homophobic remarks made by the investigators and due to the fact that much of the case seemed poorly investigated. The crime scene had plainly been cleaned prior to the residents making a 911 call. The house had a break-in by one of the resident's brothers just a couple of months after the murder occurred, and this break-in derailed the arrest plans of the officers in charge of the investigation. This led to a period of no progress in the investigation. When the three men finally went to trial (in a no-jury trial), the judge sentencing them acknowledged that all available circumstantial evidence pointed to them as guilty, but without hard evidence she felt obligated to pronounce them not guilty. | |||
191 | 189 | JoAnne Chambers | 9/18/2021 | 0:39:27 | Jessica Forsayeth | Jessica Forsayeth | 3.50 | 20 | Solved | 1993 | USA | Pennsylvania | Coolbaugh | JoAnne Chambers | 41 | F | Falsifying evidence, stalking | Unknown | JoAnne Chambers was a relatively new teacher at the same school Paula Nawrocki taught at. Over a period of ~18 months, JoAnne received increasingly threatening and disturbing messages and threats. She also made various reports of being followed, having sharp objects or dirty materials smeared all over her belongings, etc. The police and JoAnne honed in on fellow teacher, Paula, over claims she was jealous of JoAnne. No physical evidence linked Paula to the crimes, however DNA evidence from some of the threatening letters sent to JoAnne indicated that JoAnne had been sending the threats to herself. Ultimately, Paula was cleared of the charges against her and she pursued a lawsuit against the school, JoAnne, and the Police for the damage the case had done to her career, reputation, and income. | |||||||
192 | 190 | The Butcher Baker (2 Parter) | 9/25/2021 10/2/2021 | 2:29:00 | Erin Munro, Milly Raso | Erin Munro, Milly Raso | 4.21 | 33 | Solved | 1971-1983 | USA | Alaska | Anchorage | 17 | Ceilia Van Zanten, Megan Siobhan Emerick, Mary Kathleen Thill, "Horseshoe Harriet", "Eklutna Annie", Roxane Easland, Joanna Messina, Lisa Futrell, Sherry Morrow, Andrea Altiery, Sue Luna, DeLynn Frey, Paula Goulding, Cindy Paulson, Malai Larsen, Teresa Watson, Angela Feddern, Tamera Pederson | 17-41 | F | Robert Hansen | 32-44 | M | Murder, rape, kidnapping, assault | Shooting, stabbing, hunting | Sexual desire, thrill of hunt? | Robert Hansen was a baker who lived in Alaska with his family starting in 1967. He was well liked by his neighbors and community, so when women started coming forward starting in 1971 with claims that Robert Hansen had assaulted and kidnapped them, police did not believe the victims. over the next decade or so, many women would come forward to report Hansen as the man responsible for their abduction and assault, and police continued to either disregard their claims or the justice system treated Hansen with a very light touch due to him being well liked and a "family man who had to support his family". Between 1971 and 1983, Robert Hansen is known to have killed at least 17 women, raped at least 31, and to have attempted multiple more of each crime. He would fly out many of his victims in his plane to remote locations in the Alaskan wilderness to then hunt them for sport. Many of Hansen's victims were women of small means and who police would not respect or trust, like prostitutes or women working in adult entertainment. When the evidence finally stacked up high enough against Hansen that the police could no longer ignore it, further evidence seemed to pile up - including a map that Hansen owned that marked off multiple burial sites where victims were later discovered and trophies collected from his victims. Hansen was found guilty and sentenced to 461 years plus life in prison, without the possibility of parole. | ||
193 | 191 | Sheree Beasley | 10/09/2021 | 1:36:19 | Erin Munro | Erin Munro | 4.19 | 26 | Solved | Jun 29, 1991 | Australia | Victoria | Rosebud | 1 | Sheree Beasley | 6 | F | Robert Arthur Selby Lowe | 54 | M | Murder | Suffocation, kidnapping | Sexual desire | By 1991, Robert Lowe had a long criminal history of sexual crimes and indecency towards teenage girls, and over the years his victimes had gotten younger and younger. He had been working with a sex psychotherapist recommended by the state, but after several years of visits, Lowe seemed to only become more depraved and violent. He almost semed to enjoy sharing his crimes with his therapist. It got to the point where the therapist, Margaret Hobbs, fired him as a client because she felt he was not improving at all. When Sheree Beasley went missing in June 1991, Lowe's former therapist suspected Lowe may be responsible. He began to see his therapist again and over some time, she managed to get incriminating information and confessions from him. She handed over this information to the police, who charged Lowe with murder. Lowe was found guilty of the crime and sentenced to life imprisonment plus 15 years without parole in 1994. | ||
194 | 192 | The Sodder Children | 10/16/2021 | 0:54:06 | Jessica Forsayeth | Jessica Forsayeth | 3.85 | 20 | Unsolved | Dec 24, 1945 | USA | West Virginia | Fayetteville | 5 | Maurice, Martha, Louis, Jennie, Betty Sodder | 14, 12, 10, 8, 6 | F, M | Unknown | Unknown | Unknown | Possible Kidnapping, Possible Murder, Possible Accident | Accidental or Malicious housefire | Unknown | On Dec 24, 1945, the Sodder Family home went up in flames. The Sodder parents and four of their children escaped the house, but five children were missing. In the wake of the fire, either no investigation or very shoddy investigation took place. Several pieces of evidence contradict if the children died in the fire, or if they had first been kidnapped. Could the children still be living? Could they have died in the fire? Was the fire an accident or maliciously set? Due to the very poor initial investigation into the case, it's likely we won't ever have answers. | ||
195 | 193 | Suesan Knorr & Sheila Sanders | 10/23/2021 | 1:26:49 | Jessica Forsayeth | Jessica Forsayeth | 3.94 | 16 | Solved | Jul 16, 1984 Jun 21, 1985 | USA | California | Sacramento | 2 | Suesan Knorr, Sheila Sanders | 17, 20 | F | Theresa Knorr | 38-39 | F | Severe physical, emotional, and mental child abuse & forced sex work | Beating, stabbing, shooting, suffocating, keeping children chained up or stuffed in closets, forced sex work, unsafe medical procedures | Alcoholism(?), paranoia, possible mental illnesses and/or delusions of witchcraft | Theresa Knorr had previously killed her first husband, Clifford Sanders, but wasn't found guilty of murder due to self defense. It likely wasn't self defense, as further evidence would point to Theresa actively attacking her husband. After this point, Theresa went on to have a series of quick marriages that all ended in divorce and resulted in five children. As she aged, she began to be more violent and paranoid. After her last marriage, she basically became a hermit that hardly ever left the house. She was severely abusive to all of her children, but primarily the girls, who she felt were using witchcraft to force her to gain weight, age, and lose her beauty. She forced her two oldest girls, Sheila and Suesan, into sex work to bring income to the family. The sons, Howard and Robert, were also mistreated (and forced to sell drugs to bring income to the family), but not nearly to the same extent as the girls. The youngest girl, Terry, was also abused but didn't face the brunt of it as her older sisters did. Suesan Knorr was the first to take the brunt of Theresa's abuse. She had formed a bond with Theresa's last husband, Chet, due to shared interest. This bond made Theresa incredibly jealous and angry and it was at this point that the family became cut off from the world. She began to torture her children in various ways, from beating them, force feeding them, burning them with cigarettes, throwing things at them. She forced the children to become involved in the abuse of each other, such as having the boys hold the girls down as they were beaten. According to Terry, Theresa felt threatened by Suesan and Sheila growing into pretty young women as Theresa was aging and gaining weight. Theresa also became convinced that her previous husband, Chet, had turned Suesan into a witch. Suesan had attempted to escape at least on one occassion, but she was captured by police and returned to Theresa (who claimed that Suesan was just a problem child who told many lies). In 1982, the abuse of Suesan hit a high point when Theresa shot Suesan in the back. The bullet lodged in her back and Suesan miraculously managed to survive despite Theresa refusing medical treatment for Suesan. In July 1984, after another argument and round of abuse, Theresa stabbed Suesan in the back and again refused her daughter any medical treatment. At this point, Suesan made a deal with her mother: she would leave the family and move to Alaska, never to associate with one another again. Theresa agreed to this arrangement on the condition that they remove the bullet from Suesan's back to remove the evidence of Suesan's abuse. Using stolen medication, they knocked Suesan unconcious and Theresa forced her 15 year old son Robert to perform the operation, using an x-acto knife to cut out the bullet. Suesan survived the operation to awake to great pain. Over the next few days, she developed sepsis and did not improve with basic medicines. On July 16, 1984, Theresa and her sons packed all of Suesan's belongings in trash bags, bound her arms and legs and put duct tape over her mouth. They drove her out to Squaw Valley, placed her on the side of the road, doused her in gasoline, and then Theresa had her sons light her on fire. Her smoldering remains were found the next day and an autopsy confirmed she was still alive when she was lit on fire. At that point in time, a positive ID could not be made. Now that Suesan was out of the way, Sheila began to take the brunt of Theresa's abuse. She was forced into prostitution to support the family, since Theresa herself did not work. A while into this arrangement, Theresa accused Sheila of transmitting a STD to Theresa via a shared toilet seat. Sheila denied the accusations, so Theresa hog tied her daughter and locked her into a a 2 foot by 4 foot closet that was very hot and had no ventilation. She forbade the other children from providing food or water to Sheila. While Theresa and the boys were out one day, youngest child Terry gave Sheila a beer to drink. Sheila died three days later of dehydration and starvation. In her final days, she could be heard whispering to herself in the closet and she seemed to be delirious. They only discovered Sheila was dead three days later due to the smell of decomposition. Her body had left stains in the bottom of the small closet. Theresa forced her boys to dispose of Sheila's body in a cardboard box outside of the Truckee-Tahoe airport, where it was discovered a few hours later (but not successfully identified). Due to the evidence of in the closet, Theresa and Terry made a deal: if Terry lit the apartment on fire to cover up the evidence, Terry and Theresa could go their separate ways. At this point, the family largely went their separate ways. Terry used Sheila's ID card to pass herself off as an adult (despite being 16), Howard (the oldest child) had left the family before Suesan's death, William went his own way, and Robert temporarily stayed with his mother whens he moved to Las Vegas (but her was soonafter arrested for killing a bartender). After Robert's arrest, Theresa moved to Salt Lake City and adopted a new persona as Theresa Cross, a devout mormon who worked as a caretaker. For years, Terry tried to tell authorities of the abuse her siblings suffered and the murder of her sisters, but police, friends, therapist, and even her own husband did not believe her. Finally, on October 28, 1993, Terry phoned the tip line for America's Most Wanter (that had a program that night on the Jane Doe body that Terry knew was one of her sisters). While the program was not able to help Terry much, they did direct her to detectives in Placer County, CA, which is where Suesan's body had been found. These detectives finally took Terry's story seriously and linked the two Jane Does based off Terry's information. The fire Terry had started in their Sacramento apartment had not done enough damage to destroy the place or to remove the evidence in the closet, so officers were able to remove the flooring. In Nov 4, 1993, William was arrested as an accessory to the murders. Robert was charged with the murders while he was serving his prior prison sentence. On Nov 10, 1993, Theresa was arrested in Salt Lake City, where police had finally been able to locate her. On October 17, 1995, Theresa was sentenced to two consecutive life sentences and is eligible for parole in 2027. Robert had agreed to a reduced sentence in exchange for testifying against her and William was sentenced to probation and ordered to undergo therapy. The court and prosecutors recognized that William and Robert were also victims of abuse. Terry died in 2011 due to heart failure. Her sisters' lives and stories would not be known today had it not been for her persistence. | ||
196 | 194 | Lake Bodom | 10/30/2021 | 1:18:04 | Holly Boyd | Holly Boyd | 4.14 | 22 | Unsolved | Jun 5, 1960 | Finland | Uusimaa | Lake Bodom | 3 | Maila Björklund, Anja Mäki, Seppo Boisman | 15, 15, 18 | F, M | Unknown | Unknown | Unknown | Murder | Stabbing, blunt force trauma | Unknown | On June 5, 1960, two couples camped together at Lake Bodom and were attacked in the night. Both girls and one of the boys died in the attack, but the second boy (Nils Gustafsson) survived the attack with very little memory and with injuries. This case remains unsolved after all this time. There have primarily been three suspects in the case over the years: Valdemar Gyllström: a kiosk keeper known to have been hostile to campers and who had sold the campers some drinks on their way into the lake grounds. While no physical evidence was found regarding this suspect, police also didn't investigate him thoroughly (even going so far as to not recover DNA or ignore leads due to language barriers). This suspect was known to be violent, to cut down tents, to throw rocks at people, etc. He drowned in the lake in 1969 (possible suicide) and his wife later claimed that he was responsible for the murders, but had denied it at the time due to fear he would harm her. Hans Assman: a man who lived near the lake and who looks strikingly similar to the police suspect sketch. Assman had an alibi for the night of the bodom murders, however on the morning after the attacks, he showed up at a hospital in Helsinki with bloody clothes and some injuries. Nils Gustafsson: In 2004, sole survivor Nils Gustafsson was accused of being the perpetrator and tried. The prosecutor's argument was that Gustafsson went into a jealous rage over his girlfriend (since she had sustained more severe injuries than the other two victims) and murdered all three of his companions. However, Gustafsson was acquitted due to the fact that he was also severely injured that night and wouldn't have been capable of causing such injuries to three other people and also hiding evidence of the weapons used in the attack. Gustafsson was awarded money for mental suffering caused by the remand time. | ||
197 | 195 | The Costa Mesa Murders | 11/6/2021 | 1:32:27 | Erin Munro | Erin Munro | 4.00 | 19 | Solved | May 21, 2010 | USA | California | Costa Mesa | 2 | Samuel Herr, Juri Kibuishi | 26, 23 | F, M | Daniel Wozniak | 26 | M | Murder | Shooting, dismemberment, falsifying evidence | Money | In 2010, Daniel Wozniak and his fiancee, Rachel Buffett, were both stage actors and in debt. Wozniak discovered that a friendly neighbor of his, Sam Herr, had roughly $62,000 in savings and Sam had a previous conviction on his criminal record. Wozniak hatched a plan to murder Herr and a second person for Herr's money and frame the scene of the crime like Herr was responsible for the murder. On May 21, 2010, after a performance of Nine in which Wozniak and his fiancee were co-leads, Wozniak shot and killed Herr in a Los Alamitos theater attic. He then used Herr's phone to lure one of Herr's friends (Juri "Julie" Kibuishi) to the apartment, where she was also shot and killed, and then her body was staged like she had been violently attacked and/or assaulted. Wozniak then partially dismembered Herr's body, trying to remove identifying parts. He then had a 17 year old friend use Herr's bank card to start removing money from Herr's accounts. Police quickly identified the 17 year old, who led them to Daniel Wozniak. Wozniak (and his fiancee) had previously told cops that he had seen Herr leave their apartment building with an unidentified figure, but his story began to fall apart quickly. He first said that Wozniak had admitted to killing Julie while in the car with Wozniak. He then said that Herr had actually shown Wozniak Julie's body. His lie kept becoming more elaborate as detectives picked at it. It eventually became clear that Wozniak had murdered both people for money, since his wedding was coming up in a couple of days and he wanted to have an elaborate honeymoon. His fiancee likely was more involved than previously thought, since she also claimed to have seen the unidentified figure with Herr on the night of the murders. In 2012, the fiancee Buffett was arrested and charged with felony counts of accessory after the fact, due to her multiple lies to the police. She was convicted of those two counts in September 2018 and sentenced to 32 months in prison. In 2016, Wozniak was convicted of two counts of first degree murder and sentenced to death. | ||
198 | 196 | Boy A | 11/13/2021 | 0:41:39 | Jessica Forsayeth | Jessica Forsayeth | 3.82 | 17 | Solved | Mar 16, 1997 May 27, 1997 | Japan | Kobe | Suma | 2 | Ayaka Yamashita, Jun Hase | 10, 11 | F, M | "Boy A"/"Sakakibara" | 14 | M | Murder | Stabbing, suffocation, blunt force trauma, decapitation | Bitterness, Zodiac copy-cat | In the Spring of 1997, a then-14 year old boy attacked several children with various weapons (knives, hammers, etc). He left behind notes identifying his motives, stating "this is the beginning of the game... try to stop me if you can you stupid police... I desperately want to see people die" and indicating a general rage towards life and the education system. Several children were attacked, with two dying. During the manhunt, the perpetrator sent several messages to the police taunting them and making demands. On June 28, the perpetrator was arrested and he confessed to the murders and assaults. It was a shock when the identity of the perpetrator was not released due to his being a minor. As a result of this case, Japan's legislature lowered the age of criminal responsibility from 16 to 14. On March 11, 2004, "Sakakibara" (then 21 years old) was released from prison on a privional basis and then fully released in January 2005. His name and location have remained secret. | ||
199 | 197 | The Austrian Ripper | 11/20/2021 | 1:29:17 | Jessica Forsayeth | Jessica Forsayeth | 4.13 | 15 | Solved | 1974 1990-1992 | Austria | 12-15 | Margaret Schafer, Blanka Bočková, Brunhilde Masser, Heidi Hammerer, Elfriede Schrempf, Silvia Zagler, Sabine Moitzl, Karin Eroglu-Sladky, Regina Prem, Shannon Exley, Irene Rodriguez, Peggy Booth | 18, 39, 31, 35, 23, 25, 25, 32, Unknown | F | Johann "Jack" Unterweger | 24 40-42 | M | Sexual Assault, Murder | Garroting | Sexual desire, hatred of sex workers | Jack Unterweger murdered an 18 year old woman in 1974 by strangulation. He was convicted and sentenced to life in prison for this crime. While in prison, he took up writing as a hobby and found he had a natural talent for it. He wrote short stories, poems, plays, and an autobiography (which later became a documentary). His writing earned him public respect and fame and fans of his started to campaign for his release in the mid 1980s. He was released from prison in 1990 after meeting the minimum of fifteen years served of his life sentence. Jack went on to become a writer, journalist, and public speaker. He was held up as the ideal of criminal rehabilitation. As a journalist, he wrote stories on the murders of sex workers and the conditions they worked in. In the early 90s, he was reporting on a string of murders. Law enforcement was initially stumped, since some officers did not believe Unterweger could be responsible. The fact that the murders also occurred in different countries complicated the investigation. Ultimately, circumstantial evidence that placed Unterweger in the city of each of the crimes (usually for a public speaking event or other work-related event) caused police to hone in on him more as a suspect. Some of the police departments did not feel this circumstantial evidence was enough to arrest him, but police in Graz did. They went to arrest Unterweger at his home, but he had fled the country with his girlfriend. Police chased Unterweger through Switzerland, France, and the United States before finally capturing him in Miami, Florida, in February of 1992. At this trial, he was found guilty of nine murders and he was sentenced to life in prison without the possibility of parole. On the night he was sentenced, Unterweger hung himself in his prison cell. | ||||
200 | 198 | Tami Reay | 11/27/2021 | 1:14:26 | Elsha McGill | Elsha McGill | 4.58 | 12 | Solved | Feb 8, 2006 | USA | South Dakota | Pierre | 1 | Tamara Reay | 41 | F | Brad Reay | 46 | M | Murder, falsifying of evidence | Stabbing | Vengeance, desire to frame another person | In early 2006, Brad and Tami Reay told their 12 year old daughter Haylee that they were getting a divorce. Tami had a new boyfriend and was happily moving on from her marriage. On Feb 8, 2006, Tami went missing. Her absence was first noticed by her mother, who always had a phone call with Tami in the morning. The missing person's report came from Tami's coworker (and married boyfriend), Brian Clark. Investigators initially were suspicious of Tami's husband, Brad. The inside of Tami's car appeared to have been hastily cleaned with bleach and clearly had semi-fresh blood on the seats. Brad claimed that he didn't know where Tami was and didn't even know who her new boyfriend was. On the night of Tami's disappearance, Brian had an alibi - he was with his wife and kid at a local basketball game. With that information, authorities arrested Brad Reay within a day of Tami's disappearance, despite not having a body or true confirmation that she was dead. Brad made odd comments during his first interrogation, such as one that authorities would find something when Tami's body was recovered that would "set me free". Tami's body was found with dozens of vicious stab wounds. Initially, nothing was found with the body that would exonerate Brad, but a letter arrived for the police that claimed to be from Brian's cousin. This letter claimed that Brian had confessed to murdering Tami over an argument regarding the use of condoms during sex. The letter went into great detail, including the fact that the condom remained with the body. A second autopsy was performed on Tami and a condom was indeed found inside of her, but her body acids had degraded the DNA beyond any use. The letter was clearly pointing to Brian Clark as the perpetrator and, when interrogated, Brian did say that he had a habit of tossing condoms out of the car once used. Brad Reay had already confessed to following Brian and Tami on at least one occassion in their car, so the suspicion fell back onto Brad. Investigators looked into the letter further and found that it was actually sent by Bret Reay, Brad's twin brother. Bret agreed to testify against his brother for falsifying evidence and was sentenced to 172 days in prison. Further investigation into Brad and Bret's prison conversations led investigators to discover a map of "fishing spots" which was actually a map of sites where Bret had dumped evidence in the case, including the tarp and blankets he had used to soak up Tami's blood. More investigation at the Reay household found phone calls Brad had recorded that confirmed Brad had been lying about knowing who Brian was. With all of this evidence falling at his feet, Brad changed tactics. He admitted to trying to frame Brian and to disposing of Tami's body and crime scene evidence, but claimed he did it out of love for his daughter. He claimed that Haylee went into a trance-like state on the night of the murder and she was the one that actually murdered Tami. Out of love of his daughter, he covered up the events. This testimony did not fool the jury. Haylee testified in her own defense at a mere 13 years old. Brad Reay was found guilty of murder and sentenced to life in prison without the possibility of parole. | ||
201 | 199 | Truro | 12/4/2021 | 2:07:03 | Elsha McGill | Elsha McGill | 4.43 | 7 | Solved | Dec 1976-Feb 1977 | Australia | South Australia | Truro | 7 | Veronica Knight, Tania Kenny, Juliet Mykyta, Sylvia Michelle Pittmann, Vickie Howell, Connie Iordanides, Deborah Lamb | 18, 15, 16, 16, 26, 16, 20 | F | Christopher Robin Worrell, James William Miller | 23, 36 | M | Rape, murder | Suffocation, kidnapping | Sociopathy, sexual desire, thrill killing | Miller and Worrell met in prison. After they were released, they formed a dom/sub relationship. Later on, Worrell would return to his roots of raping women (his preferred sexual partners) with Miller assisting (due to his infatuation with Worrell). Over the span of two months from December 1976 to February of 1977, Worrell and Miller together kidnapped, raped, and strangled seven women. Generally, Miller assisted with the kidnapping of the women (who were usually out walking alone or looking to hitch a ride) and then removed himself while Worrell raped the women. Miller would then assist Worrell with burying the bodies. Miller would later claim this assistance was done under duress, but we only have his word to believe on that account. In February 1977, Worrell, Miller, and a friend's ex girlfriend, Deborah Skuse, were involved in a car accident that left Worrell and Skuse dead, with Miller injured. This effectively ended the murder spree. The crime spree first came to public notice when a body was found in April 1978, later identified as victim Veronica Knight (victim #1). Lack of obvious evidence led investigators to initially believe Knight's death was possibly an accident, that she got lost and died of thirst. A year later in April 1979, a second body was found about 1 kilometer from Knights. This body was identified as Sylvia Pittmann (victim #4). There was possibly a connection between these two women and five other women reported missing in an around Adelaide near the same time period due to the similarity of their circumstances. A huge task force was put together and an additional two bodies were discovered nearby - Connie Iordanides (victim #6) and Vicki Howell (victim #5) The story was released by the media and a rewards of $10,000 (later increased to $30,000) were offered for any information regarding the murders. The reward brought forward one witness who claimed that a friend had had a strange conversation with James Miller. James Miller had reportedly confessed (two days after Worrell died in a car accident) to this friend that he and Christopher Worrell were responsible for the crimes. The friend, a woman, had not told police at the time since Worrell was dead and she felt the crime spree was done. Police began surveilling Miller and eventually brought him in to be interrogated. When charged with the crimes, Miller conceded and offered to take the police to where the bodies were buried. Initially, Miller led police to the area where the first four bodies had been found. Further into the bush, Miller identified the location of Julie Mykyta (victim #3). Miller then led police to Port Gawler Beach where he identified the location of the body of Deborah Lamb (victim #7), who had suffered the most vicious attack and had likely been buried alive. Miller finally then directed police to search Gillman to find the last body, that of Tania Kenny (victim #2). Miller was ultimately found guilty of 6 out of the 7 murders (excepting victim #1, Veronica Knight) in March 1980 and sentenced to six consecutive life terms. According to Miller's testimony at trial, he claimed to have not have been involved with any of the actual murders, but assisted Worrell in kidnapping his victims. He claimed his love for Worrell prevented him from leaving the situation. He claimed that, over time, the attacks became more vicious - starting with assaults and rapes, then escalating to more brutal murders that occurred more frequently. Miller died of liver failure in 2008 while in prison. | ||
202 | 200 | The Zodiac ( 4 Parter) | 2/5/2022 2/12/2022 2/19/2022 2/26/2022 | 6:30:00 | Jessica Forsayeth, Milly Raso | Elsha McGill, Erin Munro, Jessica Forsayeth, Milly Raso | 3.58 | 130 | Unsolved | 1968-1969 | USA | California | 5 | Betty Lou Jensen & David arthur Faraday, Darlene Ferrin, Cecilia Shepard & Bryan Hartnell | 16-29 | F, M | Unknown | Unknown | M | Spree killing | Shooting | Unknown | The Zodiac killer is an unidentified American serial killer who is believed to have murdered at least 5 people in California between 1968 and 1969. The killer would go on to taunt police and journalists in letters and ciphers which he claimed would reveal his identity. Some of these codes have not been broken to this day. | |||
203 | 201 | Janet Chandler | 3/4/2022 | 1:20:49 | Elsha McGill | Elsha McGill | 4.04 | 89 | Solved | Feb 1, 1979 | USA | Michigan | Holland | 1 | Janet Chandler | 22 | F | Robert Lynch, Freddie Parker, Anthony Williams, James Nelson, Arthur Paiva, Laurie Swank | 20s-39 | F, M | Gang rape, torture, kidnapping | Strangulation | Envy, punishment | Janet Chandler was kidnapped, tortured, and gang raped by men who lived in the Inn she worked at. These men were encouraged to be rough on Janet and to torture her by her roomate / boss, Laurie Swank. The motive appears primarily to be jealousy - Janet was a vivacious, pretty young woman who had been sexually active with several of the men at the inn. Janet was kidnapped to the home of Arthur Paiva, who was the boss over all the men living at the inn. There she was blindfolded, with a belt tied around her neck that would tighten if she tried to resist, and paraded around naked for all the partiers to leer at, assault, and torture. The men took turns raping Janet, with the encouragement of Laurie, but she was finally killed by the oldest of the men: 39 year old Robert Lynch, who pulled the belt on her neck so tight that he suffocated her. Upon her death, all the partygoers scattered, but not before Arthur Paiva threatened them with photographs he had taken of the night to keep their silence. Janet's body was dumped in a snowbank 40 miles away from Paiva's house where she was discovered the next day. In 2003, a group of film students at Janet's former college, decided to create a documentary project on Janet ("Who Killed Janet Chandler?") in the hopes of bringing attention back to the case. They were successful, as law enforcement reopened the case after the film premiered. Within 3 years of the film's release, arrests were made on Arthur Paiva, Freddie Parker, Anthony Williams, and James Nelson. Investigators were shocked to find that Laurie Swank was also involved, and when she was confronted with what they knew, she also confessed and agreed to testify against the men arrested. Cheryl Ruiz, a women who had worked as a hotel maid back in the day, also agreed to testify. She had originally been happy that Janet would get her comeuppence for sleeping with a worker (who turend out to be Ruiz's then-boyfriend), but she hadn't thought the men would go so far as to murder Janet. She claimed she had been threatened to keep silent. Ultimately, Paiva was found guilty of 1st degree murder while the others were found guilty of 2nd degree murder. All four men were sentenced to life in prison without parole. It is likely that more men were involved in the abuse of Janet (at least 10 men and about half as many women, according to some), but it is unlikely further arrests will be made. Robert Lynch and Laurie Swank pleaded guilty to 2nd degree murder and received 25-40 and10-20 years in prison respectively. As of 2022: Arthur Paiva died in prison in 2013 James Nelson died in 2020 Freddie Parker remains in prison Anthony Williams remains in prison Robert Lynch remains in prison Laurie Swank was paroled in 2016 Great reddit write up of this case. | ||
204 | 202 | Moira Anderson | 3/12/2022 | 1:22:35 | Erin Munro | Erin Munro | 3.51 | 70 | Solved (ongoing) | Feb 23, 1957 | Scotland | North Lanarkshire | Coatbridge | 1 | Moira Anderson | 11 | F | Alexander Gartshore | 30s | M | Sexual assault, pedophilia, murder | Unknown | Serial childhood sexual assault | In February 1957, Moira Anderson (11) left her grandmother's house to buy butter and a birthday card for her mother at the local store. The store was closed due to poor weather, so Moira waited for a bus to take her to another store, and from that point she was never seen again. A few weeks later, Moira's older sister, Janet (13), was asked by a male stranger to assist lifting his car hood while he fixed something with the car. While she did this, the man assaulted her by groping her. She ran away, but turned back to get a good look at the man, his car, and his license plate number. Police right from the start seemed to have no leeds on Moira's case and it quickly went cold. They tossed around ideas, such as Moira leaving to go to London by herself or a locally mentally ill man may have harmed her, etc, but there was little evidence towards any of these other theories. In the 1990s, Sandra Brown, the now-grown daughter of bus driver Alexander Gartshore, realized that her father had a criminal history that had been kept from her as a child. After speaking to many of her family members and childhood friends, she heard stories of Gartshore molesting multiple young girls and even being sent to prison for raping a family babysitter during the 1950s and 1960s. She confronted her father about some of the information she had learned, and he admitted to much of it, though claimed to be a different man now. He admitted that his own father had never forgiven him for "the Moira incident". After Moira went missing in 1957, Gartshore's father had torn apart his newly made kitchen in search of a body, since he was so convinced Gartshore had done it. After Moira's disappearance, Gartshore quickly got out of town and moved to Leeds, England, permanently and Moira's case went even colder. It remained a missing person's case, so it received fewer resources than a case that would be labelled as a murder case. Upon finding all of this out, Sandra started working with journalists and the police detective currently over Moira's case. This new detective interviewed police who had worked the case back in the 1950s and found that many of them simply didn't think Gartshore could have done it, so they didn't pursue him as a viable suspect. Suspiciously, these police officers were all part of the same free masons club that Gartshore was a member of. Given how much time had passed, it was unlikely that much evidence could be found in the case. In 2014, Moira's case was officially changed to a murder investigation and Gartshore was named a suspect... but Gartshore had died in 2006 and so would never be brought to justice. The search for Moira's remains is ongoing into 2022, but so far she has not been found. Sandra has gone on to form a foundation that assists victims of childhood sexual violence. | ||
205 | 203 | Bob Chappell | 3/19/2022 | 2:02:35 | Jessica Forsayeth | Elsha McGill | 4.01 | 82 | Solved (ongoing) | Jan 26, 2009 | Australia | Tasmania | Hobart | 1 | Bob Chappell | 65 | M | Susan Neill-Fraser | 55 | F | Disappearance, possible murder | Unknown | Possible monetary gain | In January 2009, Bob Chappell disappeared after a night on his new yacht (which was in need of repairs and refurbishments). The boat was found untethered and sinking the next day, but with Bob nowhere to be found. Bloodstains were found on the boat, however, indicating a possible murder. Suspicion quickly fell on Bob's long time partner, Sue Neill-Fraser. Sue's testimony on the days surrounding Bob's disappearance was scattered and inconsistent. She either lied (or misremembered) where she had been after she left Bob on the yacht the afternoon before his disappearance, and claimed to have spent the night totally alone at home for the entire night. Susan said police should look into drug-related crimes in the area, but this made police more suspicious of Sue, since it looked like she was trying to draw suspicion off of herself. Police claimed that Susan must have snuck out to kill Bob and cause the boat to sink. Ultimately, Sue was tried and found guilty of Bob's murder based solely on circumstantial evidence in October of 2010. Over the following years, Sue's lawyers worked to get her a new trial. They emphasized that a fresh vomit stain full of DNA had been found on the boat, and the DNA matched a young homeless woman who had been in the area on the night of Bob's disappearance. This young woman, Meaghan Vass (15 at the time), was a poor witness. She testified at Sue's original trial and at various other legal proceedings and media interviews over the years. Her story kept changing, and she claimed to either to be bullied into speaking out, or that she didn't want to provide all the information (such as the names of the men she was with on the night in question). Meaghan had claimed that she and two men had snuck onto the yacht to steal liquor money, but were surprised to find Bob there. Bob was attacked and killed, and the sight of blood caused Meaghan to vomit. However, given Meaghan's inconsistent testimony over the years and the fact that she had changed her story many times led her testimony to not hold much water. Sue's lawyers have appealed on her behalf twice and both times (as recently as November 2021) the appeal was dismissed. This case is divisive, since Sue was convicted purely on circumstantial evidence, other avenues (such as Vass) were not properly investigated by police, and police handled Sue's case poorly (with such issues as leaving evidence out in a police parking lot for nearly a week). While Sue was convicted of the crime, we may not ever have a definitive answer to her guilt due to how the case was handled and changing testimony of witnesses over the years. | ||
206 | 204 | The Glendale Train Crash | 3/26/2022 | 00:44:58 | Holly Boyd | Jessica Forsayeth | 3.11 | 79 | Solved | Jan 26, 2005 | USA | California | Los Angeles | 11 | Manuel Alcala, Julia Bennett, Alfonso Cabellero, Elizabeth Hill, Henry Kilinski, Scott McKeown, Thomas Ormiston, William Parent, Leonard Romero, James Tutino, Don Wiley | 39-62 | F, M | Juan Manuel Álvarez | 26 | M | Murder with special circumstances, attempted suicide | Train Crash | Attempted Suicide | Juan Álvarez was suicidal for a long time prior to the incident. On January 26, 2005, he decided to kill himself by throwing himself (in his car) in front of a train. Right before the train crashed, he decided against suicide and fled his car (and the scene) to go to a friend's house instead. The train crashed into the abandoned car, which caused it to jackknife and hit trains on other tracks adjacent to it. The chain reaction of collisions caused 11 people to die and at least 177 injured people. Police were able to link the car to Álvarez, who was charged and convicted with eleven counts of murder with "special circumstances". Álvarez received 11 life sentences without the possibility of parole. | ||
207 | 205 | Bernd Brandes | 4/2/2022 | 1:15:59 | Jessica Forsayeth | Jessica Forsayeth | 3.92 | 89 | Solved | 2001 | Germany | Hessen | Rotenburg | 1 | Bernd Jürgen Armando Brandes | 43 | M | Armin Meiwes | 40 | M | Cannibalism, murder | Cannibalism | Sexual fetish, desire for cannibalism | By 2001, Armin Meiwes had long harbored desires to consume human flesh as part of a sexual fetish. He did not wish to do this against someone's will, so he posted on a then-active website The Cannibal Cafe (a website for like-minded cannibalism fetishists) looking for volunteers. He had several interested parties who ultimately backed out of the arrangement, but then Meiwes was contacted by Brandes in March 2001. Brandes had long had a desire to be eaten. The two began a correspondence which revolved entirely around their complementing sexual fetishes and their plans to act on them. Brandes and Meiwes met up on March 9, 2001. After some back and forth and nearly abandoning the plan due to conflicting visions of how to enact their plan, they went through with it. Brandes consumed a large amount of sleeping pills and a bottle of cough syrup to knock himself. Per Brandes' request, his penis was removed and they both tried to eat it, but were unable to due to the texture. Brandes was put in the bath so he could bleed out, at which point Meiwes butchered the body and stored the meat in his freezer. Meiwes ate up to 44 pounds of Brandes' flesh over the next 10 months or so. The entire incident of Brandes' death was filmed, coming out to be roughly four hours long. Meiwes was arrested in December 2002, after a college student had raised suspicions about Meiwes' online persona. On January 30, 2004, Meiwes was convicted of manslaughter and sentenced to eight years and six months in prison. Meiwes expressed regret for what he did to Brandes, encourages others who have the same thoughts to seek treatment, and has since become a vegetarian. In 2005, a German court ordered a retrial after prosecutors argued that Meiwes' should have been tried for murder, not manslaughter (since his crime was motivated by sexual gratification). A psychologist at this trial stated that Meiwes could reoffend, as he still had fantasies around cannibalism. In 2006, a court convicted Meiwes of murder and sentenced him to life imprisonment. | ||
208 | 206 | Julio & Candra Torres | 4/9/2022 | 1:11:09 | Erin Munro | Erin Munro | 3.62 | 66 | Solved | July 24, 1976 | USA | Oregon | Mount Hood National Forest | 1 | Julio Torres | 21 | M | Tom Brown | 29 | M | Murder, kidnapping, sexual assault | Shooting | Sexual desire | In 1976, 16 year old Candra and 21 year old Julio took a trip into the forest to celebrate their 1 year wedding anniversary, with plans to fish and camp. They ran into a stranger in the forest, Tom Brown, who claimed he could guide them towards better fishing spots. The day after meeting, they decided to instead go hunting for deer. While doing this, Tom shot and killed Julio, kidnapped Candra, and killed Candra's dog. Over the next several days, Tom raped Candra repeatedly and brainwashed her into believing the murder was an accident. Once Candra fully believed in Tom and once he came down with a sickness that would require him to seek medical help, she convinced him to lead them both out of the forest, to both go to the police to report the incident as an accident, and to part ways. The police believed their story. After returning to her home, Candra started to regain memories of what truly happened while she had been kidnapped and returned to the police to report the death of her husband as a murder, not as an accident. Police investigated Tom Brown and arrested him. The trial of Tom Brown in 1977 was unprecedented at the time since the judge allowed testimony on stockholm syndrome. Brown was convicted of Julio's murder. He remains incarcerated in Oregon State Penitentiary. | ||
209 | 207 | Suzanne Armstrong & Susan Bartlett | 4/16/2022 | 1:20:46 | Elsha McGill | Elsha McGill | 3.80 | 56 | Unsolved | Jan 10, 1977 | Australia | Victoria | Collingwood | 2 | Suzanne Armstrong, Susan Bartlett | 28, 27 | F, F | Unknown | Unknown | Unknown | Murder, sexual assault | Stabbing | Unknown | Known as the Easey Street Murders, this crime took place in January 1977. Two roomates and friends, Suzanne and Susan, were murdered in the home they shared in Collingwood, a suburb of Melbourne. Both women had been stabbed multiple times (rangin gfrom 29-55 times). There were no signs of forced entry into the home, though a window with a footprint on it was a possible entry point. The killer had taken the time to clean up inside the home before leaving. The crime becomes stranger as two other individuals (Armstrong's new boyfriend and his brother) had also visited (via breaking in) the home that night. The boyfriend's calls to Armstrong that day had gone unreturned, so he went to Armstrong's house to leave a note for her. He said while he was in the house that night, he had not noticed the bodies since he had not gone into the hallway or the bedroom where the bodies were found. The homicides were also linked to the disappearance of Julie Garciacelay, who had disappeared in Melbourne two years earlier. The suspect in that case had been in the house next door to Suzanne's and Susan's the night of their deaths. Despite all this, the case went cold. The case was largely botched by an arrogant police force, who didn't properly investigate the crime at the time it occurred, didn't follow up leads, and even offended one neighbor who may have witnessed the murderer leaving the house that she refused to give a description. While the case is cold to this day, it was reopened for further investigation in 2011 and a reward for further information is currently up to $1 million. | ||
210 | 208 | John Chau | 4/23/2022 | 00:38:36 | Erin Munro | Erin Munro | 3.65 | 71 | Solved | Nov 17, 2018 | India | Andaman Islands | North Sentinel Island | 1 | John Allen Chau | 26 | M | Sentinelese People | Unknown | Unknown | Murder / illegal contact with isolated people | Unknown | Evangelical missionary work | John Chau was a young evangelical Christian missionary who believed it was his destiny to bring Christianity to those who didn't have it, particularly those peoples that had never been in contact with the religion before. Using the resources of the evangelical christian organization All Nations, which keeps logs of unchristian peoples, John singled out the Sentinelese. The Sentinelese are an isolated people located on North Sentinel Island, India, who are known to ward off any invaders with violence. It is illegal by Indian law to try to make contact with the Sentinelese. John formed a plan to illegally contact the Sentinelese in the hopes that he could become part of their tribe, learn their language (which is not spoken by any human on earth outside of the Sentinelese), and slowly convert them all to Christianity. He "trained" for a couple of years by completing missions to other locations and by navigating a mock native village of All Nations christians in a racist caricature of hostile natives weilding spears. John finally began his mission in November 2018, when he paid fishermen in the area to take him to North Sentinelese Island. He had some gifts he intended to use to initiate contact with the villagers. On the trip, he wrote letters to his family indicating that he knew he may lose his life on this trip, but it was worth it to declare Jesus to these people and, if he should die, he instructed that his body should not be retrieved. Chau's first attempt to approach the island got him resulted in an arrow being shot at him (piercing his bible). He retreated after these hostilities. He wrote a final letter to his parents before attempting contact again on November 17, when Chau instructed the fishermen to leave without him. The fisherman would later report that they saw the Sentinelese dragging Chau's dead body and burying it in a grave near the shore. The fishermen returned to Port Blair and gave Chau's diary to a friend of Chau, which resulted in Chau's family, the American Consulate, and the Indian government to get involved. While Chau's death is technically a murder by definition, it was ultimately decided to not pursue charges as he had illegally tried to contact the Sentinelese people, who were known to be violent towards any invaders and the Sentinelese would also have no understanding of modern law regardless. Chau's mission has received much criticism, rincluding the possibility of introducing deadly pathogens to the native Sentinelese, the racism of the mock native village training by All Nations, the disrespect of Sentinelese culture and preference for isolation, and the potential for this stunt to encourage more evangelicals to break laws in the pursuit of missionary work. Chau's own father blamed extremist religion for his son's death. | ||
211 | 209 | Urban Höglin and Heidi Paakkonen | 4/30/2022 | 1:32:49 | Elsha McGill | Elsha McGill | 3.76 | 71 | Unsolved | Apr 8, 1989 | New Zealand | North Island | Coromandel Peninsula | 2 | Urban Höglin, Heidi Paakkonen | 23, 21 | M, F | Unknown | Unknown | Unknown | Murder | Unknown | Unknown | In 1989, young engaged couple Urban Höglin and Heidi Paakkonen were visiting the Coromandel Peninsula of New Zealand and they disappeared while tramping in the bush. Relatively quickly, police linked the case to David Tamihere, a mid-30s man with a criminal history that included rape and murder. Tamihere was found to be in posessions of some of the two traveler's items, including Höglin's jacket and the couple's vehicle. Furthermore, a few jajilhouse informants testified against Tamihere, claiming that he confessed to murdering in the couple to them. The case against Tamihere went forward with only circumstantial evidence and he was ultimately found guilty in December 1990. Throughout the years, Tamihere professed his innocence and his supports and legal team appealed his conviction multiple times. Ultimately, the primary of the jailhouse informants, "Witness C", recanted his testimony and claimed he was fed information by detectives. Witness C later claimed that he only recanted due to threats being made on his life while in prison due to his involvement in the case. Witness C was later convicted of perjury and given an additional 8 years onto his life sentence (he was in prison for a double homicide). Furthermore, two years after the couple's disappearance, Höglin's body was found ~70 km away from where the jailhouse informants said Tamihere had allegedly confessed to the crimes (and the evidence of Höglin's body contradicted the claims these informants had made, including that the bodies were dumped at sea). Supporters of Tamihere argue that police did not properly investigate all avenues of the case. A second suspect in the case was Huia George Foley, a mental health patient with a history of violence who was known to be in the same area of bushland that the young couple were in at the time of their disappearance. Foley is said to look very similar to Tamihere and a couple of witnesses came forward claiming to have seen a distressed Heidi with a man matching Tamihere's/Foley's description around the time of the couple's disappearance. Foley's own mother stated that he had committed the crime and Foley made a confession on his deathbed At this point in time, Paakkonen's body has not been found and we may never know exactly what happened to the couple. Legally, Tamihere was found guilty of the crime, though he appealed his conviction and the circumstantial evidence in the case didn't add up. Other avenues were not properly investigated by police. It's entirely possible that the young couple fell victim to foul play and later, Tamihere saw an opportunity to steal their vehicle and therefore became the primary suspect. | ||
212 | 210 | Jayna Murray | 5/7/2022 | 1:10:09 | Jessica Forsayeth | Jessica Forsayeth | 4.30 | 79 | Solved | Mar 11, 2011 | USA | Maryland | Bethesda | 1 | Jayna Troxel Murray | 30 | F | Brittany Norwood | 29 | F | Murder | Stabbing | Cover up theft | Norwood and Murray worked at the same Lululemon store in 2011. Norwood had long been suspected of stealing merchandise from the store. That night, only the two women were working to close the shop and Murray (the senior employee) caught Norwood stealing a pair of leggings. In response, Norwood viciously attacked Murray to death, an attack that included inflicting 331 injuries. After the attack, Norwood staged to crime to make it seem that perpetrators had broken into the store, raped, and attacked both women. The evidence didn't line up at all and police quickly were able to find evidence pointing to Norwood. Norwood's own family members were suspicious of her story. In 2012, Norwood was sentenced to life in prison without the possibility of parole. | ||
213 | 211 | Cari Farver | 5/14/2022 | 1:23:34 | Erin Munro | Erin Munro | 4.42 | 105 | Solved | Nov 13, 2012 | USA | Nebraska | Omaha | 1 | Cari Farver | 37 | F | Shanna Elizabeth Golyar | 37 | F | Murder, stalking, impersonation, arson | Unknown | Jealousy over a man | In 2012, recently single Dan Kroupa moved to Omaha to start over. After leaving a long term relationship, he wanted only casual relationships with women and started seeing multiple. Initially, he started seeing Shanna Elizabeth Golyar, but later met Cari Farver and had an immediate connection with her. While out on a date with Cari, Dave started receiving many calls from Liz demanding to be let into Dave's home where she had left some of her belongings. This interaction was the one time that Liz and Cari interacted, as far as Dave knew. Shortly after this interaction, about two weeks into Dave and Cari's relationship, Cari started behaving strangely via text messages and emails. She wanted to move in with Dave, but he refused. She began stalking him, sending thousands of threatening emails and phone messages to both Dave and Liz over the next couple of years. Within her personal life, Cari disappeared. Her mother received a message stating that Cari suddenly moved across state lines and wanted to sell some of the furniture in her home. For about three years, Cari's family could not be sure if Cari was alive or dead, because she only ever contacted family via messages that didn't sound like something Cari would say. The stalking of Dave and Liz increased up to the point that Liz's house was set on fire and all her pets perished. She also was shot in the leg. While Liz claimed all this time that the harassment was coming from Cari, this time she claimed that it was really Amy - Dave's ex-partner - that had been the stalker all along. Police started collecting evidence from Liz under the guise of trying to trap Amy into revealing herself. In reality, they were able to connect Liz to the crimes due to her fingerprint being located inside of Cari's car (which had earlier been abandoned at Dave's apartment), photos that Liz had taken that linked her to the threatening messages, and information in the emails that only the killer could have known. Cari was murdered by Liz sometime on November 13-14 of 2012 and, for the next 3 years, Liz pretended to be Cari in order to stalk Dave and maintain their relationship. Liz tried to frame Amy as the true perpetrator once Dave finally broke up with Liz. | ||
214 | 212 | The Forgotten Cannibal | 5/21/2022 | 00:39:18 | Holly Boyd | Holly Boyd | 3.35 | 57 | Solved | 1903-1924 | Poland | Ziębice | 30+ | Ida Launer, Emma Sander, Rochus Pawlick | Unknown | M, F | Karl Denke | 43-64 | M | Murder, cannibalism | Unknown | Unknown | Note that Denke lived and murdered in Münsterberg, Kingdom of Prussia, which today is Ziębice, Poland. In December 1924, a homeless man named Vincenz Olivier escaped Denke's home and claimed the old man had tried to kill him with a pickaxe. Initially, Olivier was not believed as Denke was seen as a harmless, older, religious man in the community. Denke was arrested and questioned, then placed in a holding cell where he hanged himself a few hours later. Police searched Denke's home and found evidence of numerous murders (at least 30 confirmed, but possibly more), ranging from bones, to carved human meat, to personal items belonging to the victims, and even to ledgers kept by Denke indicating the victim's names and how much meat he carved off their bodies. He had been killing since 1903 and even one of his victims exonerated another man - Eduard Trautmann - who had been found guilty of one of Denke's victims, Emma Sander, in 1909. | |||
215 | 213 | The Noordhoek 'Ripper Rapists' | 5/28/2022 | 1:04:45 | Erin Munro | Erin Munro | 3.91 | 65 | Solved | Dec 18, 1994 | South Africa | Port Elizabeth | 1 | Alison Botha | 27 | F | Theuns Kruger, Frans du Toit | 20s | M | Rape, abduction, attempted murder | Stabbing | Claimed "satanism", but had a history of violence against women | Alison Botha was 27 when she was abducted near her home in Port Elizabeth in December 1994. Initially, her attacker claimed he just needed to temporarily borrow her car, but it quickly became clear that was not the case. A second attacker joined them and they drove out to a deserted area outside of the city. Both men raped Botha and then decided to kill her. They stabbed Botha at least 30 times (which partially disembowelled her intestines) and slashed her throat from ear to ear 14 times before abandoning her to die. Fortunately for Botha, they had not managed to sever the artery in her throat. She had lost a lot of blood, but she was able to keep breathing and even slowly move. She had to use a piece of her clothing to hold in her intestines and, with her other hand, she held her head in place (which had been severed so deeply as to almost decapitate her). She managed to make her way to a road where, eventually, passersby found her and helped. One of her saviors, Tiaan, was a young veterinarian student and had some medical knowledge to assist with her injuries while authorities arrived. Alison's injuries required extensive medical treatment to recover from, but she had the mental clarity to remember exactly what had happened to her and who her attackers were. She clearly identified Frans du Toit and Theuns Kruger as her attackers. These two men were already known to police as violent rapists and they were arrested the next day. Upon hearing that Alison had survived the ordeal they had put her through, both men confessed fully to the crime. At their sentencing trial, both were given life in prison. Alison has gone on to be a motivational speaker for other victims of violent crimes, a wife, and a mother. | |||
216 | 214 | Kevin Hjalmarsson | 6/4/2022 | 1:23:08 | Elsha McGill | Elsha McGill | 3.58 | 60 | Unsolved | Aug 16, 1998 | Sweden | Arvika | 1 | Kevin Hjalmarsson | 4 | M | Unknown | Unknown | Unknown | Possible unsolved murder or accidental death | Suffocation | Unknown | Four year old Kevin was found dead in August of 1998 on the shore of Kyrkviken, part of Glafsfjorden lake. Police initially theorized that he had been murdered via a stick pressed against his throat and perhaps the perpetrator was a pedophile. Two brothers, Robin and Christopher (aged 5 and 7), who lived in the nearby area were accused of being the murderers and a now-discreted psychologist who specialized in memory retrieval was brought into work with the boys. The boys underwent dozens of hours of interviews and "memory retrieval" which ultimately warped their memories of that day and thus they confessed to the crimes despite there being no evidence connecting them to Kevin's death. The boys and their family had to move around and be under the care of a psychological team for years following this incident. A different boy (aged 13) who may have possibly been involved in the case (since he knew where to locate Kevin's missing shoes) was not investigated due to he and his family being immigrants and police did not want to potentially stoke zenophobia in the community. Years later in 2017, journalists and investigators reviewed how the case was initially handled and the many faults in the investigation. The case came under heavy criticism for essentially leading to young children to confess to a murder they did not commit (and who both had a verifiable alibi for the day Kevin died). The case was reopened in May of 2017 and by March of 2018, the boys were completely cleared of any wrongdoing. Police at this point stated they believe that Kevin's death was an accident. In 2022, both boys received 1 million SEK in damages for the wrongdoing against them. | |||
217 | 215 | The One-Man Crime Wave | 6/11/2022 | 1:18:54 | Jessica Forsayeth | Jessica Forsayeth | 3.66 | 53 | Solved | 1969-1982 | USA | Missouri California | 2-16 | William Freeman, Eric Christgen, Michelle Steele | 12, 4, 11 | M, F | Charles Ray Hatcher | 40-55 | M | Kidnapping, sexual assault, murder | Suffocation | Charles Ray Hatcher was a serial murder who committed between 3-16 murders in the years 1969 to 1982; his victims were children. He went undetected for so long due to string of incompetent police investigative decisions, the fact that he used a multitude of aliases to disguise himself, and operating in multiple states. His first victim was 12 year old William Freeman from Antioch, CA in August 1969. His next confirmed victim was 4 year old Eric Christgen in May of 1978 in St. Joseph, MO. Hatcher was not successfully linked to the crimes until his next confirmed victim, 11 year old Michelle Steele, also in St. Joseph MO. | ||||
218 | 216 | The Itzkovitz Family | 6/25/2022 | 00:37:26 | Holly Boyd | Holly Boyd | 2.71 | 42 | Solved | 1954 | Vietnam | Bắc Ninh | 1 | Stănescu | 40s | M | Eliahu Itzkovitz | 26 | M | Revenge | Shooting | Revenge for murdered family | The Itzkovitzs were a jewish family that lived in Chisinau, Romania. During WWII, Eliahu's entire family was murdered at the hands of a Romanian prison guard named Stănescu. Stănescu escaped prosecution for his crimes as WWII ended. Eliahu, then 13, managed to find Stănescu's son and kill him (for which he was imprisoned for several years). Once released from prison, Eliahu emigrated to Israel and joined the military there to help him hunt down Stănescu. After some years, he managed to identify that Stănescu was serving in French Indochina. He tracked Stănescu down, shot him, and told his squad that Stănescu had died at the hands of enemy gunfire. He was later court-martialed in Israel for his desertion, but only sentenced to one year in prison given the unique circumstances of his crime. | |||
219 | 217 | Kathleen Marshall | 7/2/2022 | 1:15:06 | Jessica Forsayeth | Jessica Forsayeth | 3.57 | 53 | Solved | Mar 1998 | Australia | Queensland | Brisbane | 1 | Kathleen Marshall | 52 | F | Andrew Fitzherbert | 49 | M | Murder | Stabbing | Possible in-fighting for cat society | Kathleen Marshall was a veterinarian and member of a cat protection society in Brisbane. The society had undergone a series of incidents over the years, ranging from arguments over leadership positions to money going missing. Kathleen had an appointment to meet with a client to care for the client's cat. Several days after this appointment, Kathleen was found dead in the vet surgery located under her home. She had been stabbed more than 50 times. Following the investigation, a local man Andrew Fitzherbert, was prosecuted and convicted for her murder. He had claimed to have never been to Kathleen's home, yet his dna (blood) was found at the murder scene and witnesses saw him come to Kathleen's home, and he also lied about making phone calls to Kathleen's home. The case is notable for being the first of its kind in Australia; a case where the perpetrator was convicted solely off of DNA evidence. There is some debate to this day that Fitzherbert was wrongfully convicted, but his appeals have been denied thus far. | ||
220 | 218 | The Blackout Killers: Part 1 | 7/9/2022 | 1:07:40 | Jessica Forsayeth | Jessica Forsayeth | 3.48 | 50 | Solved | Feb 1942 | England | London | 4 | Evenlyn Hamilton, Evelyn Oatley, Margaret Lowe, Doris Jouannet | 41, 34, 43, 32 | F | Gordon Cummins | 28 | M | Assault, Murder | Suffocation, stabbing | Gordon Cummins was a British serial killer known as the blackout killer, who operated under the darkness of government-ordered blackouts during World War II. All of his attacks (four murders, two attempted murders & assaults) occurred during a six day period in London in February 1942. It is also possible he may have committed two earlier murders in October of 1941 Victims: Evelyn Margaret Hamilton (41) was murdered sometime in the night of February 8, 1942 via strangulation. She was not sexually assaulted or mutilated. She was a pharmacist who had plans to move out of London for a new job. Evelyn Oatley (34) was murdered sometime in the night or early morning of February 9-10 via strangulation, blood loss, and blunt and sharp trauma. She was beaten and severely sexually abused and mutilated. Evelyn was a married nightclub hostess who had turned to prostitution to help get by during the war. Margaret Florence Lowe (43) was murdered in the early hours of February 11, but her body wasn't discovered until two days later when it was found by her 15 year old daughter. She had been sexually assaulted and mutilated by her attacker. Margaret was a prostitute who had brought her attacker home with her. Catherine Mulcahy (25) was attacked on February 12 and strangled. She managed to fight off her attacker and flee to a neighbor's house for protection. Her attacker left her home, but left behind his RAF belt as evidence. Catherine was a prostitute. Doris Jouannet (32) was murdered sometime in the night between February 12-13 via strangulation. She had been beaten, sexually assaulted, and mutilated. She was discovered by her husband, who had been a previous client of hers - she worked as needed as a prostitute. Margaret Haywood (?) was attacked in the evening of February 13. Her attacker molested her and strangled her into unconsciousness, but the attack was interrupted by a delivery boy passing by. When he fled the scene, he had left behind his RAF-issued gas mask, which was later used to definitively identify him. Cummins was arrested on February 14. He claimed innocence, but was ultimately tried and found guilty of murdering Evelyn Oatley and sentenced to death by hanging. He was executed on June 24, 1942. Cummins has some supporters who believed he was falsely accused, though his living victims were able to definitively identify him in a lineup and his RAF-issued gear was found at two different crime scenes. | ||||
221 | 218 | The Blackout Killers: Part 2 | 7/16/2022 | 1:23:52 | Jessica Forsayeth | Jessica Forsayeth | 3.45 | 44 | Solved | Oct 1940 - Jul - 1941 | Germany | Berlin | 8 | Gertrude Ditter, Elfriede Franke, Irmagard Freese, Elisabeth Bungener, Gertrude Siewert, Hedwig Ebauer, Johanna Voigt, Frieda Koziol | 19-30s | F | Paul Ogorzow | 28 | M | Assault, Murder | Bludgeoning and throwing the victims off trains | Paul Ogorzow was a serial rapist and murderer who operated in war-time Nazi Germany. His crimes started out in August of 1939 as a series of violent, random sexual assaults and rapes of women. These women were primarily housewives who lived alone due to their husbands being in the military and called to serve during the war. These victims usually suffered under the threat of a knife or bludgeoning. All victims noted that their attacker wore the uniform of a railway worker. Ogorzow's initial attempts to murder his victims were unsuccessful - between August 1939 and July 1940, he attacked and stabbed three women who all went on to recover and later testify against him. Three other victims also survived their attacks onboard the s-bahn train, where Ogorzow worked. This last attempt was a close call - the women was rescused by her husband and brother in law, who proceeded to severely beat Ogorzow. Ogorzow had only managed to just barely get away, and from that point he changed his modus operandi. From this point forward, Ogorzow would look for women riding alone in train cars that were kept dark during the blackout of berlin. Passengers were generally not suspicious of a uniformed employee, which gave him opportunity to approach the women and attack, usually strangling or striking them with a blunt object. He would then throw their bodies from the moving train. Victims: Gertrude Ditter was murdered on October 4, 1940, via stabbing in her home. Elfriede Franke was murdered on December 4, 1940, via blunt trauma and being flung from the s-bahn. Irmgard Freese was raped and murdered on December 4, 1940, via blunt trauma as she was walking home. Elisabeth Bungener's body was discovered on December 22, 1940, by the s-bahn tracks. She had died of blunt trauma to her skull. Gertrude Siewert was discovered on December 28, 1940, the day after she had been attacked and thrown off the s-bahn. She was alive and managed to be taken to the hospital, but she later died from her injuries and from exposure. Hedwig Ebauer was discovered on January 5, 1941, in a similar manner to that of Siewert: she had been assaulted and thrown from the s-bahn. She also was rushed to the hospital, but later died due to her injuries and from exposure. Johanna Voigt's body was discovered on February 11. She had died from blunt injuries to her head and injuries sustained from being thrown from the train. At this point, police were investigating the case and this caused Ogorzow to go inactive for a period of several months. Frieda Koziol was raped and murdered via blunt trauma on July 3, 1941, in the same area of Berlin where Ogorzoe had initially started his crime spree. Police initially noticed Ogorzow as a possible suspect due to railroad employees highlighting Ogorzow's misogynistic comments and fascination with killing. His work clothes were found to have numerous blood stains on them, too. Thus ogorzow was arrested on July 12, 1941 and he confessed in detail to his crimes. He claimed his spree was caused by alcoholism and that a jewish doctor had incompetently treated him for gonorrhea. He pleaded guilty to eight murders, six attempted murders, and thirty one cases of assault and rape. He was sentenced to death and was executed on July 26. | ||||
222 | 219 | Doctor John | 8/20/2022 | 1:00:43 | Erin Munro | Erin Munro | 3.95 | 58 | Solved | Oct 31, 1992 | Canada | Saskatchewan | Kipling | 2 | Candice, "Amy" | 23, 13-15 | F | John Schneeberger | 32-34 | M | Serial rape | Drugged victims | Forensic Files: Bad Blood | In 1991, Candice went to the hospital after a fight with her boyfriend. The doctor, a popular local physician known as Dr John, drugged Candice and raped her. Candice went to a different hospital the next day, providing a semen sample that had been left on her underwear. Over the next few years, Candice would insist that the doctor had raped her, but two blood tests in a row concluded the doctor was not a match to the DNA on her underwear. Undeterred, Candice hired a private investigator who managed to get a sample of Dr John's DNA from a chapstick in his car which confirm him to be a match to the semen. A third blood test was ordered and this time, it was done under much more scrutiny. The doctor had insisted the blood be drawn from his arm, but the phlebotomist struggled to get the needle into his "vein". This blood test came back inconclusive, as the blood in the sample was too degraded to get any conclusive match. This confirmed to authorities that Dr John had fooled them somehow. While this is going on, Dr. John's stepdaughter informed her mother in 1997 (with a used condom to prove her story) that Dr. John had been sexually assaulting her for at least two years. From that point on, her mother Lisa protected her and helped the prosecution gather evidence against her husband. This new information allowed authorities to get a warrant to get Dr John's DNA how they wanted to (the previous three had been voluntary). This time the match was conclusive. During his trial in 1999, Dr. John revealed the method by which he fooled authorities; he had stolen blood from a patient, put it in a tube, then inserted the tube into his arm. The "vein" was actually the tube. Dr. John was found guilty of sexual assault and obstruction of justice. He received 6 years in prison (of which he only spent 4). He lost his medical license, his wife divorced him, and he was stripped of his Canadian citizenship and sent back to live in his native South Africa. | ||
223 | 220 | Hannah Witheridge & David Miller | 8/27/2022 | 1:36:56 | Elsha McGill | Elsha McGill | 3.58 | 45 | Solved | Sept 15, 2014 | Thailand | Koh Tao | 2 | Hannah Witheridge, David Miller | 23, 24 | M, F | Zaw Lin, Wai Phyo | 22 | M | Murder, rape | Bludgeoning | Unknown | Please note that while this case is marked as "solved", there is heavy debate about the outcome of the trial and investigation due to police mishandling of evidence, contamination of the crime scene, corruption, language barriers / lack of translators, potential zenophobia towards the defendants, and pressuring the defendants into confessions. Hannah Witheridge was a 23 year old backpacker from England who travelled to Thailand after completing her undergraduate studies. David Miller was a 24 year old backpacker from Jersey who had also completed his undergraduate studies and travelled to Thailand upon graduation. While they had not travelled to Thailand together, they and their friends groups did meet up once in the country as they stayed in the same hotel. The two groups got together to attend a party on September 14-15. Witheridge and MIller left the party together around 1 am of the 15th. Their bodies were disocvered on Sairee Beach between 4 and 5 am of the same day. Miller's body was found floating in the water, while Witheridge's was on the beach. Witheridge's body indicated she had been raped and bludgeoned, while Miller's indicated he had been beaten and drowned. Both bodies were found semi-naked. While DNA samples were taken from Witheridge's body (on the vulva, perineum, and her right nipple), other samples - such as from her clothing - were not taken. Additionally, the bodies had been moved to prevent them from being swept up in the tide. Due to concerns that the murders may affect foreign tourism in Thailand, authorities did everything they could to expedite the investigation. Their investigation immediately focused on foreign peoples, as they believed "Thais wouldn't do this". Migrant workers on the island were mass DNA tested. Three burmese men who lived nearby were seen on CCTV footage on the night of the murders . The police theorized that two of these three men (the third had broken off from the group and gone in a different direction) were the perpetrators in this case, guessing that they had a desire to rape Witheridge upon seeing her and Miller kiss. Both suspects were illegal migrant workers from Myanmar who had no criminal records and who also did not speak Thai. Their hours-long interrogation was translated with the help of Burmese food vendors. During the subsequent investigation, police would claim that the DNA of items on the beach (such as the hoe and cigarette butts) matched the suspects' DNA and they claimed that Miller's mobile phone was found in the suspects' home, but this contradicts media reports stating that the phone was handed to police by a friend of the victim's. The police also forced the suspects to re-enact the murders in front of media, with their coaching and guidance. The suspects both retracted their statements and confessions after discussing things with a lawyer from Myanmar, saying they had only made the statements under duress, after they had been beaten and left naked in a freezing room, and threatened with electrocution. The police chief denied torture was involved in the confessions. Thailand's human rights commission tried to investigate these allegations, but police representatives did not appear at four different meetings with them. The defense team were permitted only a half an hour to meet the defendants prior to trial. The 900-page police report used for the prosecution's case was not made aware to the defense until the trial had begun. The 18 day trial began July 8, 2015. The judge did not permit the public to take notes of the trial, so direct quotes do not exist. The defense pointed out the many flaws of the prosecution's case and police mishandling of the evidence and they provided an alternative story for the suspects (they had gone out swimming on the same beach that night, but left prior to the murders). They could not find witnesses to testify to this version of events due to witnesses being fearful of retribution. On July 10, the court ordered the DNA to be retested, but police revealed the samples from Witheridge's body had been "used up". They did provide samples from the murder weapon, and the country's central institute of forensic science found the DNA on the hoe was not a match to the defendants. Expert witnesses for the defense, such as forensic scientist Jane Taupin, were not allowed to testify in the trial. Ultimately, the defendants were found guilty of murdering Miller and Witheridge and sentenced to death. Attempts to appeal the sentence in 2017 were unsuccessful. On August 14, 2020, a royal degree from King Vajiralongkorn commuted their death sentences to life imprisonment. This case was met with criticism from international media, legal experts, and human rights groups. | |||
224 | 221 | Frank & Carol Hilley | 9/3/2022 | 1:14:20 | Jessica Forsayeth | Jessica Forsayeth | 3.86 | 49 | Solved | May 25, 1975; Summer-Fall 1979 | USA | Alabama | Anniston | 2 | Frank Hilley; Carol Hilley | 45, 19 | M, F | Audrey Marie Frazier | 42-46 | F | Murder, attempted murder | Poisoning | Financial, personal | In 1975, Frank Hilley experienced a period of severe illness that he ultimately died from on May 25. Three years later, after experiencing threats, attacks, and blackmail from an Unknown perpetrator who claimed that Frank owed them money before he died, Marie and Frank's daughter, Carol, started experiencing the same symptoms that Frank had before he died. After being in the hospital for a month with doctors unable to figure out what was happening to her, a physician suspected Carol was experiencing heavy metal poisoning due to some of the symptoms she was experiencing. Once the physician made that connection, Marie checked Carol out of that hospital and admitted her to a different hospital. The same day of the hospital move, Marie was arrested for passing bad checks. It became clear that Marie had a very pad financial history, with her spending always exceeding her income, especially after Frank died. She had a large amount of debt and had taken a life insurance policy out on Carol shortly before she had become ill. In October of 1979, doctors tested Carol for arsenic poisoning in October of 1979 and found to have over 100 times the normal amount of arsenic in her system. The testing indicated that Carol had been given increasingly large doses of arsenic over 4 to 8 months. Frank's body was exhumed and tested for arsenic and was also found to have died of poisening. Marie had been incarcerated for her bad checks when police arrested her again on charges of attempted murder of Carol. A vial of arsenic was found in her purse and a jar of rat poison was also found to contain arsenic. On November 9, Marie was released on bail, after which she took on an alias and fled the city. In January of 1980, Marie was indicted in absentia for her husband's murder. Investigators also found that her mother and mother-in-law both had significant, but not fatal, amounts of arsenic in their systems when they died, too. Police and the FBI launched a massive manhunt, but Marie remained a fugitive for a little more than three years. During those three years, she lived under the assumed name of Robbi Hannon. Under this name, she married another man, John Homan. After a year together, she killed off this persona and pretended to be Robbi's twin sister, Teri, who still lived with John (who believed her to be his wife's twin). Concerned coworkers of Robbi's didn't trust Teri and did some digging, which ultimately lead to her arrest. She confessed to being wanted in Alabama. She was extradited to Alabama where she stood trial for murder and attempted murder. She was convicted and sentenced to life in prison and 20 years. In February 1987, she was given a three day pass to visit her husband, who had moved to Alabama to be closer to her. She managed to flee while on this three day pass, an act for which her husband reported her to the police. She was found within four days, having been crawling through the woods in pouring rain and freezing temperatures. She was experiencing hypothermia and EMTs took her to a nearby hospital for treatment, but she died of a heart attack while being transported there. | ||
225 | 222 | Karina Holmer | 9/10/2022 | 00:48:47 | Jessica Forsayeth | Jessica Forsayeth | 3.39 | 33 | Unsolved | June 22-23, 1996 | USA | Massachusetts | Boston | 1 | Karina Holmer | 20 | F | Unknown | Unknown | Unknown | Murder, desecration of a body | Strangulation, dismemberment | Unknown | Karina Holmer was a Swedish au pair working for Frank Rapp and Susan Nichter in Massachusetts in the summer of 1996. She worked during the weekdays, but had the weekends off to do as she pleased. Her employer, Frank, offered his Boston apartment for her to stay in during the weekends so she could be closer to her friends in the city. She took him up on this offer and enjoyed socializing and partying with her friends on weekends. On June 21, Karina went to Zanzibar, a club, to party with her friends and she became heavily intoxicated. She ended up hanging out with several strangers and, when her friends tried to retrieve her to leave, she refused and stayed at Zanzibar. On June 22 around 3-5 am, karina was seen at a 24 hour store near Boylston St. On June 23, the upper half of Karina' body was found in a dumpster on Boylston Street. There is little blood around the body, suggesting she was killed elsewhere. There are theories that her body was severed to cover up the possibility of a rape, but as her bottom half was never found, that remains just a theory. On June 24, Frank Rapp and Susan Nichter are questioned. Frank is viewed as a suspect due to marital problems he and Susan had in previous years. On the same day, a dumpster fire started 200 ft away from Rapp's condo. Investigators looked into it but were unable to piece together solid information. To this day, the perpetrator has not been identified. Suspects have included: - Frank Rapp, Holmer's employer - Herb Whitten: a guy with a large dog who was seen speaking to Holmer on the night at the Zanzibar - Wan Polo: a homeless man that Holmer had danced with the night at the Zanzibar - Four Unknown males in a silver car: men who claimed to be taking Holmer to an after party. | ||
226 | 223 | The Kuřim Case | 9/17/2022 | 1:10:34 | Holly Boyd | Holly Boyd | 4.11 | 47 | Solved | 2006 - May 10, 2007 | Czech Republic | Kuřim | 2 | Ondrej Mauerova, Jakub Mauerova | 8, 9 | M | Klara Mauerova, Katerina Mauerova, Barbora Skrlova | 31, 34, 33 | F | Abuse, cannibalism, incest | Imprisonment, torture | Abuse spurred on by religious / cult fervor | Klara was the mother to two sons, Ondrej and Jakub and she lived together with her older sister, Katherina, and a friend, Barbora. Barbora and Katherina would punish and abuse the boys for actions they provoked. She convinced Klara and Katherina to join a religious sect / cult which believed in cannibalism and incest. Jakub and Ondrej were imprisoned and tortured and partially cannibalized in their home's basement for the next year. The boys' abuse was uncovered when a neighbor was installing a baby monitor in his newborn's room and the monitor picked up the video feed Klara had set up to watch the imprisoned boys. All three women were given sentences ranging from 5 to 10 years and both boys were adopted out to a family in the USA. | |||
227 | 224 | Evelyn Hartley | 9/24/2022 | 1:02:09 | Erin Munro | Erin Munro | 3.30 | 33 | Unsolved | Oct 24, 1953 | USA | Wisconsin | La Crosse | 1 | Evelyn Grace Hartley | 14 | F | Unknown | Unknown | Unknown | Kidnapping, probable murder | Unknown | Unknown | Evelyn Hartley was hired to babysit the 20 month old daughter of her father's coworker, Viggo Rasmussen. Evelyn was supposed to check in with her family at 8:30, but that time came and went without any call. Evelyn's father Richard went to the Rasmussen household to check in, but found the house to be locked, lights and radio on, items scattered about. A window in the basement was missing a screen (which was found leaning against the outside wall), which is how he entered the house to look for Evelyn. Evelyn's items were found scattered through the house, including her shoes which were in two different rooms. A stepladder was positioned outside of the opened window, footprints were found both inside and outside of the house, and blood was found in the house and the yard. The baby was fine, but Evelyn was nowhere to be found. Police believe Evelyn was kidnapped through the yard, as police dogs were able to follow her scent up until two blocks away where she may have been put into a vehicle. A neighbor had reported hearing screams an hour earlier, around the time Evelyn disappeared, and a car driving around the neighborhood repeatedly. Two days after the disappearance, a local man, Ed Hofer, reported to police that he'd almost been hit by a green two toned 1942 Buick, inside of which he could see a girl wedged between two men. Several days after this, various items of clothing (some of which was blood stained) were found at different locations and the blood type matched Evelyn's. In an effort to uncover more information, mass searches and lie detector tests were conducted in the area. Ed Gein was briefly considered a suspect, but no connection was found between them. In 2004, a man named Mel Williams came forward with a conversation that he recorded at a bar in 1969 where he was recording the playing band and unintentionally recorded nearby men as well. The men, Clyde "Tywee" Peterson and Jack Gaulphair and an unnamed third man, implicated themselves in Evelyn's disappearance and claiming that she had been murdered and buried in La Farge, WI. Both the known men are deceased as of 1967 and 1974. No further developments were made into this lead and Evelyn remains a missing person. | ||
228 | 225 | Raheel Siddiqui | 10/1/2022 | 1:12:55 | Erin Munro | Erin Munro | 3.52 | 29 | Solved | March 2016 | USA | South Carolina | Parris Island | 1 | Raheel Siddiqui | 20 | M | Joseph Felix | 33 | M | Hazing, racism | Leapt to death | Abuse from Drill Instructor | Semper Fidelis – which means ‘Always Faithful’ is the motto of the United States Marine Corps and a nod to the tight-knit culture the corps is known for. At the Parris Island recruit depot in South Carolina, new recruits undergo a gruelling 13-week training program that determines whether they will become Marines.Semper Fidelis – which means ‘Always Faithful’ is the motto of the United States Marine Corps and a nod to the tight-knit culture the corps is known for. At the Parris Island recruit depot in South Carolina, new recruits undergo a gruelling 13-week training program that determines whether they will become Marines. In March 2016, 20-year-old recruit Raheel Siddiqui arrived at the depot for boot camp. A brilliant student who was eager to pursue his dreams while also serving his country, he described the chance to become a Marine as a “golden opportunity”. But when he crossed paths with a drill instructor named Joseph Felix, things went terribly wrong. Within a week of arriving at camp, Siddiqui would die following an altercation with Felix and days of severe hazing, bullying, and humiliation. Felix had encouraged other trainees to participate in the severe hazing of three muslim recruits (including Siddiqui) while leading the charge on the hazing (both physical and mental). The circumstances around Siddiqui's death are somewhat unclear - he fell to his death, but whether that was suicide or an accidental fall following an abusive altercation with Felix is unclear. Felix ultimately was sentenced to 10 years in prison and convicted of abusing recruits. | ||
229 | 226 | El Mataviejitas | 10/8/2022 | 00:40:28 | Holly Boyd | Holly Boyd | 2.90 | 21 | Solved | 1998-2006 | Mexico | Mexico City | 16+ | María de la Luz González Anaya, Guillermina León Oropeza, María Guadalupe Aguilar Cortina, María Guadalupe de la Vega Morales, María del Carmen Muñoz Cote de Galván, Lucrecia Elsa Calvo Marroquín, María Guadalupe Núñez Almanza | 64+ | F | Juana Barraza | 41 | F | Murder | Strangulation | Hatred of mother | In 2003, 12 elderly women were killed in their homes in Mexico City. Most were strangled and robbed. Fears arose that a serial killer was on the loose, with the media dubbing the perpetrator ‘El Mataviejitas’ – The Little Old Lady Killer. Police initially dismissed the serial killer notion, until the victim count continued to rise and the evidence became too strong to ignore. Juana Barraza was abused from a young age, repeatedly raped by her guardian and living a rough life. She became a professional wrestler in Mexico City and started targeting women over the age of 60 for her crimes of murder and robbery. Barraza associated these women with her own mother and thought she was helping society by killing them. Barraza was ultimately caught fleeing the residence of her last victim in January 2006. Fingerprint evidence linked Barraza to at least 10 of the 40 murders attributed to the Mataviejitas serial killer and she was sentenced to 759 years in prison. | |||
230 | 227 | Mike Williams | 10/16/2022 | 1:29:26 | Elsha McGill | Elsha McGill | 3.83 | 29 | Solved | December 2000 | USA | Florida | Lake Seminole | 1 | Mike Williams | 31 | M | Brian Winchester | 29 | M | Murder | Gunshot | in love with victim's wife | The weekend of December 16 2000 was shaping up to be a good one for Tallahassee man Mike Williams. With a romantic getaway planned to celebrate his sixth wedding anniversary to his wife Denise, Mike got up early to sneak in a couple hours of duck hunting on Lake Seminole. When he failed to return home, Denise quickly raised the alarm. Investigators soon concluded that Mike had drowned and alligators had eaten his remains. But with no body and no evidence, Mike’s mother Cheryl Williams refused to believe this explanation. Would her tireless crusade for the truth eventually pay off? Initially thought to have drowned or been eaten by alligators, Mike's case was considered an accident for several years. His wife, Denise, went on to marry a friend of Mike's after he was legally declared dead, Brian Winchester. Brian had helped Denise take out a life insurance policy on Mike shortly before his death. Mike's mother, Cheryl, never believed her son died accidentally and continually pressured police to reopen the case and it was in 2004. At this point in time, police discovered that alligators do not eat during the winter months, so their initial theory could not be true and foul play was suspected, though no further evidence was found and the case was closed again. Cheryl would write daily letters to the governor to try to get her son's case reopened. In 2012, Denise and Brian separated after half a decade of marriage, reportedly due to his sex addiction. She filed for divorce in 2015. During the process of separating their lives from one another, Brian kidnapped Denise but ultimately she was able to talk him down and get him to release her. She went straight to the police and Brian was arrested on charges of kidnapping, assault, and armed burglary. For these crimes, Winchester was sentenced to 20 years in prison. This led Winchester to assisting prosecutors finding Mike's body as part of his plea deal and also revealing that Denise had been part of the plot to kill Mike so that Denise and Brian could be together. Denise was ultimately sentenced to life in prison. | ||
231 | 228 | The Harrison Family | 10/22/2022 | 1:05:35 | Jessica Forsayeth | Jessica Forsayeth | 3.71 | 21 | Solved | 2009-2013 | Canada | Mississauga | 3 | Bill Harrison, Bridget Harrison, Caleb Harrison | 65, 63, 41 | F, M | Melissa Merritt, Christopher Fattore | 30s | F, M | Murder | Asphyxiation | Child custody | article | Caleb Harrison had a custody dispute with his ex wife Melissa over their two shared children. Caleb had been sentenced to prison time due to a drunk driving incident, and while in prison, Melissa was to share custody with Caleb's parents. In 2009, when it was the Harrison's turn to have the kids, Bill Harrison was found dead in his home by his wife, Bridget. It was thought to be a natural death and he was cremated shortly thereafter. Melissa and her husband Chris took the kids on the run and were not found for seven months. This began a legal charges of parental kidnapping, for which Bridget was supposed to give evidence at trial. The day before Bridget could give her testimony, she was killed at home. Caleb was given sole custody after Bridget's death and only supervised visits between Melissa and the kids. Caleb briefly allowed unsupervised visits between the kids and Melissa, but rescinded that option after Melissa and Chris moved back to the city. Upon this, and three years after his father died, Caleb was also found dead in his home. The deaths of Caleb and Bridget were declared to be homicides. Now with all the Harrisons dead, Melissa and Chris were the only ones left who could claim custody of the kids. They did this and moved their whole family to Nova Scotia. As this was going on, the custody battle between the families was very ugly. Melissa and Chris hurled many accusations of neglect and abuse at the Harrisons. After being charged with parental abduction, police found distubring searches on their computer: google searches around the topic of grandparent rights, legal custody, and how to get away with murder. In January of 2014, Melissa and Chris were arrested for the murders of Bridget and Caleb (and for further investigation into the suspicious death of Bill). Chris confessed to killing Bridget and Caleb Harrison, but he was also caught telling Melissa he was confessing for her so he could take full blame. Ultimately, they were both found guilty of the first degree murder of Caleb, while Chris also was found guilty of the first degree murder of Bridget and was tried (but not found guilty of) the second degree murder of Bill. | ||
232 | 229 | The Killer Realtor | 10/29/2022 | 1:31:46 | Erin Munro | Erin Munro | 3.76 | 29 | Solved | Nov 25, 1986; Nov 6, 2003; August 2003 | USA | South Carolina | Chesnee | 8 | Scott Ponder, Brian Lucas, Chris Sherbert, Beverly Guy, Johnny Joe Coxie, Meagan McCraw-Coxie, Charles David Carver, Kala Brown (survived) | 20s-52 | F, M | Todd Kohlhepp | 32 - 45 | M | Kidnapping, murder, rape | Shooting | Sexual desire, random killing | Alana's rescue | Todd Kohlhepp had a criminal history going back to when he was 15, when he first kidnapped and raped a neighbor girl in Tempe, Arizona. For this crime, he was put on the sex offenders list and sentenced as an adult to 15 years in prison and he was diagnosed with borderline personality disorder. From a young age, he was noted by his acquaintances and parents to behave unusually - almost always angry and violent. A couple of years after being released from prison, Kohlhepp murdered everyone in a motorcycle shop from which he was purchasing a bike. The attack was seemingly random or spurred on by a burst of anger on Kohlhepp's part. The case went unsolved for years. In 2016, Alana and her new boyfriend Charlie Carver went missing. A few months later, authorities were able to track the couple's last known location via their cell signals and found Alana chained up inside of a large metal storage container on Kohlhepp's property. Alana revealed that Kohlhepp had tricked the couple into coming to his property under the guise of hiring them as cleaners for the day. He killed and buried Charlie and kept Alana imprisoned and regularly raped and threatened with her own death. He claimed to have buried more bodies on his property. When police found where Charlie was buried, they also found two other bodies which could only be identified by their tattoos: married couple Meagan McCraw-Coxie and Johnny Coxie, who had gone missing in December of 2015. Kohlhepp was arrested and confessed to also being responsible for the motorcycle shop murders. He ultimately pleaded guilty to seven counts of murder, two counts of kidnapping, one count of criminal sexual assault, and was sentenceed to seven consecutive life sentences without the possibility of parole. | |
233 | 230 | Rubí Frayre & Marisela Escobedo | 11/5/2022 | 00:43:25 | Holly Boyd | Holly Boyd | 3.21 | 19 | Solved | 2008-2010 | Mexico | Chihuahua City | 2 | Marisela Escobedo Ortiz, Rubi Frayre | 52, 16 | F | Sergio Rafael Barraza (confessed) | Unknown | M | Murder, assassination | Dismemberment, Shooting | Unknown | Marisela Escobedo's 16 year old daughter Rubi Frayre went missing in 2008. A year later, her remains were found dismembered and burnt in a trash bin in Ciudad Juarez. Marisela and her husband believed Rubi's boyfriend, Sergio Rafael Barraza Bocanegra, to be responsible. They managed to locate Barraza and he was arrested. In court, he confessed to the crime and told officials of the burial of Rubi's remains. Ultimately, he was acquitted by the judges for "lack of evidence". Marisela held protests against the Chihuaha state authorities for this acquittal. A circuit court overturned the acquittal and Barrazza was sentenced for the murder, but remained a fugitive. Marisela continued to hold vigils and protests in rememberance of her daughter and others like her when, in December 2010, a number of masked men arrived at the site of her vigil and shot Marisela fatally. It is suspected that Barraza ordered Marisela's murder, but we may never know for sure since he was killed in a clash with the Mexican military in 2012. | |||
234 | 231 | Anna-Jane Cheney | 11/13/2022 | 1:33:14 | Elsha McGill | Elsha McGill | 3.80 | 20 | Unsolved | 1994 | Australia | Adelaide | 1 | Anna-Jane Cheney | 29 | F | Henry Keogh (suspected) | 38 | M | Murder | Drowning | Potential life insurance payout? | Anna-Jane Cheney was found dead in her bathtub by her fiance, Henry Keogh, in 1994. There is some debate over if the death was an accident or if Keogh held Cheney under water until she died. It was alleged by authorities investigating the case that Keogh had been planning the murder for over two years, during which time he took out five life insurance policies on behalf of Cheney whereon he had forged Cheney's signature. The prosecution team conceded that Cheney was aware of at least two of these policies, but it is not known if she was aware of and consented to all five. Keogh claimed that he took out the policies to prevent insurance agencies he had established from lapsing. Keogh was convicted and sentenced to 26 years in prison in 1995, but his conviction was overturned in December of 2014. | |||
235 | 232 | Jo, Michelle, & Christe Rogers | 11/19/2022 | 1:06:32 | Jessica Forsayeth | Jessica Forsayeth | 3.92 | 26 | Solved | June 1989 | USA | Florida | Tampa | 3 | Jo Rogers, Michell Rogers, Christe Rogers | 36, 17, 14 | F | Oba Chandler | 40s | M | Murder, sexual assault, coercion | Drowning | Sexual assault | Angels & Demons | Jo took her two daughters, Michelle and Christe, on a trip from their farm in Ohio to enjoy Florida. It was the first time they had left their home state, and inevitably they got lost while in Florida (possibly on June 1 while trying to start the return to Ohio). They encountered Oba Chandler, a Florida resident who claimed to originally be from Ohio, who gave them directions and offered to take them on a ride in his boat the following day. They accepted this offer and were last seen alive at their hotel's restaurant at 7:30 pm the next day. They likely boarded Chandler's boat around 8-9 pm and died by 3 am of the following day. The victims' bodies were found floating in Tampa Bay on June 4. All three were naked below the waist, were bound around the neck with ropes that were attached to concrete blocks, and died of either suffocation or drowning. Decomposition of their bodies had forced them to the surface. Due to the decomposition, it took about a week for their identities to be found and Hal Rogers, Jo's husband, had reported them missing in Ohio. A housekeeper at the hotel noticed that the hotel room had been undisturbed for days. Ultimately, fingerprints in the hotel room matched with the victims and were thus identified. The case went unsolved for over three years, but police received many tips and followed up on evidence, such as: a similar rape of a Canadian tourist that had occurred two weeks prior to the Rogers' murders, handwritten directions from Chandler in Jo's car and a description of his boat. Chandler's handwriting was identified by a former neighbor of his who recognized it and named Chandler. Chandler was arrested for the murders in September 1992. Chandler was found guilty and sentenced to death on November 4, 1994. His execution occurred on November 15, 2011. DNA evidence later identified Chandler was the perpetrator in the 1990 murder of Ivelisse Verrios-Beguerisse. | |
236 | 233 | Denise Amber Lee | 11/26/2022 | 1:01:27 | Erin Munro | Erin Munro | 3.91 | 23 | Solved | January 17, 2008 | USA | Florida | North Port | 1 | Denise Amber Lee | 21 | F | Michael Lee King | 36 | M | Murder, kidnapping, sexual assault | Shooting | Unknown | Denise Amber Lee was a 21 year old mom in 2008. On January 17, she was at home caring for her kids while her husband was at work. Around 11 that day, she had a brief phone call with her husband. Around 2:30, a neighbor reported that they had seen a white male driving a green Chevy Camaro pulling into the Lees' driveway. The car was gone within 10 minutes. At 3:00, Nathan, Denise's husband, called her to let her know he was coming home, but she didn't pick up any of the nine calls he placed to her during his drive. Upon getting home, Nathan found his children, Denise's phone and keys, and noticed that the windows were shut - but not locked. He realized that the person who shut the windows was not Denise, so he immediately called 911 to report his wife as kidnapped and informed Denise's father of the situation. At 6:14, a second 911 call was placed by Denise herself. She relayed as much information as she could during the 7 minutes she had taken her kidnapper's phone (before he realized it was missing), including her name, where she lived, the color and make of her kidnapper's vehicle, and that the kidnapper was a stranger to her. Authorities were not able to trace the phone's location, but were able to identify its owner: Michael Lee King. King had kidnapped Denise in broad daylight, took her to his home where she was bound with tape and raped. He then transported her to his cousin Howard's home, where he asked to borrow a shovel, a can of gas, and a flashlight. Denise, who was bound in the backseat of King's car, managed to get out and scream at Harold for help, but Harold did nothing and King forced Denise back into the car. During this point in time is when she was able to take King's phone and call 911. Howard's 17 year old daughter, Sabrina, called 911 at 6:23. She gave police King's address. At 6:30, a fourth call to 911 was made by Jane Kowalski, a woman who pulled up to a spotlight next to a green Camaro and noticed that there appeared to be a kidnapping going on in the car. At 9:15, a patrol officer spotted the Camaro and pulled King over. He was soaking wet and covered in mud. The phone Denise had used to call 911 was found in his pocket. He was arrested and taken into custody. On January 9, Denise's body was found buried in a shallow grave only 5 miles from where Kowalski had made her 911 call. Upon seeing King's headshot, Kowalski identified him as the man she had seen in the green Camaro. Unfortunately, Kowalski's call was mishandled by the 911 operators, who never reported the call to deputies. King was charged with first degree murder, sexual battery, and kidnapping. He was found guilty on all counts and sentenced to death. As of 2022, his execution date has not been scheduled. | ||
237 | 234 | Franca Viola | 12/3/2022 | 00:51:49 | Holly Boyd | Holly Boyd | 3.82 | 22 | Solved | Dec 26, 1965 - Jan 2, 1966 | Italy | Sicily | Alcamo | 1 | Franca Viola | 17 | F | Filippo Melodia; 12 accomplices | 25 | M | Kidnapping, rape, attempted forced marriage | Brute force | Forced marriage | Franca Viola was 17 when she was kidnapped by a former fiance, Filippo Melodia (a member of Sicily's mafia family) and 12 of his companions. Franca was held for eight days and raped repeatedly by Melodia. Melodia's plan was that Franca, as a dishonored woman, would be forced to marry Melodia. The Viola family involved the police immediately and they were eventually able to track down Franca's location and free her from her kidnappers. Franca would go on to be the first woman in Sicily to refuse marriage to her rapist. She went to trial against Melodia and his accomplices. During her own testimony, she declared that honor is lost by those who commit offenses against others, not those who are victims of the offenses. Melodia's lawyers tried to claim that Franca had consented to the kidnapping plot and wanted to marry Melodia, but her father refused to let her. Ultimately, Melodia received 11 years in prison while seven of his accomplices received minor sentences. While Franca Viola was the first woman in Siciliy to refuse the marriage of her rapist, the law that allowed rapists to expune their crime via marriage was not abolished until 1981. | ||
238 | 235 | House of Horrors ( 3 Parter) | 2/5/2023 | 5:30:20 | Milly Raso | Milly Raso | 4.39 | 33 | Solved | 1967-1987 | England | Gloucestershire | Gloucester | 12 | Anna McFall, Charmaine West, Rena Costello, Lynda Gough, Carol Ann Cooper, Lucy Partington, Therese Siegenthaler, Shirley Hubbard, Juanita Mott, Shirley Robinson, Alison Chambers, Heather West | 8-27 | F | Fred West, Rose West | 26-46, 18-34 | F, M | Kidnapping, assault, torture, murder | Suffocation | Sexual gratification | Between 1967 and 1987, Fred West kidnapped, assaulted, tortured, and murdered at least 12 women, most of them young teenagers. Rose West participated in at least nine of the murders from 1973 on. Both Fred and Rose participated in sexual abuse from a young age, with Fred impregnating his younger sister when he was 17 and molesting young girls since his young teen years and Rose, who was both molested by her father and would go on to molest her brother. Fred (27) met Rose when she was just 15 in 1969 in and they quickly started a relationship, with Rose becoming a childminder to Fred's two kids from his first marriage. Fred first murder was of Anna McFall, his 18 year old nanny, in 1967. Over the following years, both children from Fred's previous marriage as well as Fred and Rose's first child Heather, would suffer physical, sexual, and emotional abuse and one of the girls, Chamaine, would be Rose's first murder victim in 1971. The next victim was Rena Costello, Fred's first wife, in 1971, who had come inquiring about her children. The next victim was Lynda Gough, 19, in 1973. Carol Ann Cooper, 15, killed in 1973. Lucy Partington, 21, in 1973. Therese Siegenthaler, 21, in 1974. Shirley Hubbard, 15, in 1975. Alison Chambers, 16, in 1979. Heather West, 16, the oldest daughter of Fred and Rose, was murdered in 1987. Most of the victims were dismembered and buried in the cellar of the family home. In June of 1994, Fred was charged with 12 murders and Rose was charged with 9. Fred committed suicide before he could be judged and Rose was ultimately found guilty and sentenced to life in prison. To this day, Rose protests her innocence, though several of the surviving victims testified at Rose's trial that she was the more aggressive and calculating perpetrator in their cases. There are 12 known victims of Fred and Rose West, but there may potentially be more Unknown victims; Fred confessed to murdering up to 30 people. Additionally, there were more vitims who were assaulted, but not murdered. | ||
239 | 236 | Sophie Lionnet | 2/25/2023 | 00:55:32 | Elsha McGill | Elsha McGill | 4.14 | 21 | Solved | September 19, 2017 | England | London | Wimbledon | 1 | Sophie Lionnet | 21 | F | Sabrina Kouider, Ouissem Medouni | 30s | F, M | Imprisonment, torture, abuse, starvation, murder | Possible drowning, suffocation, or blunt force trauma | Jealousy | In January 2016, 20 year old French woman Sophie Lionnet accepted a position as an au pair in London working for Sabrina Kouider and Oussem "Sam" Medouni, who had two children (one by Kouider's ex, Mark Walton). Some months after Sophie began working in London, Kouider began to exhibit severely delusional behavior, including an obsessive belief that Sophie was colluding with Walton to harm Kouider and her family - despite the fact that Sophie had never met Walton. Kouider made numerous accusations and more than 30 police reports against Walton, all of which were bogus. There are some theories that Kouider and Medouni suffered from dual psychosis and Medouni began to support (and join in) on Kouder's delusions. They abused Sophie, beating her, taking away her (and possibly destroying) her identification/passport and plane ticket home, starving her, not being paid, and often being interrogated and tortured for information over her supposed collusion with Walton. In the twelve days leading up to her death, Sophie was not allowed to leave their residence. Shortly before she died, Sophie was coerced into recording multiple hours of video in which she confessed to everything Kouider had accused her of. She suffered severe violence and injuries before she was ultimately killed and her body was thrown into a bonfire in the backyard. Kouider and Medouni were found guilty of murdering Sophie Lionnet and sentenced to jail for at least 30 years. | ||
240 | 237 | Rena & Danny Paquette | 3/4/2023 | 1:20:16 | Jessica Forsayeth | Jessica Forsayeth | 3.81 | 21 | Solved | 1960-1964; November 9, 1985 | USA | New Hampshire | Hooksett | 4 | Sandra Valade, Pamela Mason, Rena Paquette, Danny Paquette | 18, 14, 54, 34 | F, M | Edward Coolidge, Eric Windhurst | 27, 17 | M | Murder, assault, covering up a crime | Stabbing, shooting | On February 1, 1960, 18 year old Sandra Valade was enjoying her free time after finishin work. That evening, around 9:15 pm, she was heading home via a bus and a walk from the bus stop to her home. She never made it home. Nine days later, her body was discovered in a snowbank - she had been sexually assaulted, beaten, cut, and shot. Her case had few leads and it went cold. On January 13, 1964, 14 year old Pamela Mason was picked up by a person who had placed an ad for a babysitter. Eight days later, she was found stabbed and shot to death, just two miles from where Sandra had been found four years earlier. Due to similarities in the cases, authorities began investigating both as having possible connections. A few weeks after Pamela's murder, a local woman named Rena Paquette told people that she knew who was responsible for Pamela's death. On February 3 of that year, she was found burned to death inside a barn on her property - investigators initially ruled her death as a suicide despite the circumstances surrounding it. On February 19, deliveryman Edward Coolidge was arrested and charged with Pamela's murder. He was also suspected of killing Sandra and Rena, but ultimately was only convicted for the murder of Pamela. Two decades later, on Nov 9, 1985, Rena's son Danny was shot to death near his home. While authorities believe the two cases are unrelated, the Paquette family believes that Rena knew the true identity of Sandra's and Pamela's killer and was silenced. They also believe that Danny, who was 13 years old at the time of his mother's death, may have also had information and this is why he was silenced two decades later. However, in 2004, Danny's case was reopened and suspicion fell on Eric Windhurst. Windhurst was, in 1985, a 17 year old friend / boyfriend of Danny's stepdaughter, Melanie. Melanie told Eric that Danny had sexually abused her and, in retaliation, Eric killed Danny. Melanie provided an alibi for Eric that had initially gotten him ruled out as a suspect back in 1985. In 2006, Eric was sentenced to between 15-36 years in prison. | |||
241 | 238 | Renae Marsden | 3/11/2023 | 1:23:27 | Elsha McGill | Elsha McGill | 4.00 | 22 | Solved | August 2013 | Australia | New South Wales | Sydney | 1 | Renae Marsden | 20 | F | Camilla Zeidan | ~20 | F | Catfishing | Suicide | In August of 2013, 20 year old Renae Marsden took her own life after her boyfriend of 18 months, Brayden, had broken up with her. Her body has never been found, but she sent texts to her family indicating her actions. It appears she had sent the texts to her family, then leapt from a cliff. The relationship with Brayden was tumultuous and had been entirely online, since Brayden had been imprisoned since early on in the relationship. Investigation into Renae's death revealed that she had been catfished by her best friend of six years, Camila Zeitan, and Brayden did not actually exist. Renae's family had been concerned with their daughter's friendship with Camila, noting that Camila seemed to emotionally, mentally, and physically dominate the friendship. Renae had tried to end the friendship several times, but always reconnected with her. Finally, Renae ended the friendship for good and Camila responded by having "Brayden" end the relationship with Renae. Police were unable to charge Camila with any crime as catfishing is not criminalized in Australia. Camila remains free to this day. | |||
242 | 239 | Peggy Carr | 3/18/2023 | 1:07:13 | Erin Munro | Erin Munro | 4.26 | 23 | Solved | October 15, 1988 | USA | Florida | Alturas | 1 | Peggy Carr | 41 | F | George james Trepal | 42 | M | Murder, intimidation | Poisoning | Dislike of family, desire for the family to move away | In October 1988, Peggy Carr became sick with what was initially thought to be some sort of virus. As her symptoms worsened (and as other members of her household became sick with the same symptoms), she was taken to the hospital and diagnosed as having been poisoned with thallium. Where the other members of the family were hospitalized for months, they managed to recover; but Peggy had too much of the poison in her system and she died after slipping into a coma and having her life support turned off 4 months after the initial sickness. The Carr family had a tumultuous relationship with their neighbors, the Trepals, due to the usual neighborhood squabbles - one of which escalated enough that George Trepal threatened one of the Carr kids. In 1988, the Carrs received an unsighed letter threatening harm to their family if they did not leave the state. After discovering that thallium poisoning was the culprit behind the family's illness, investigators looked for the source; the local water supply as tested and ruled out. Inside the house, investigators discovered a pack of coca cola bottles that tested positive for thallium. They traced these bottles back to the plant where they had originated and ruled out the plant as the source for the poison, as no other bottles from the same plant had thallium in them. Investigators were able to link George Trepal to the threatening letter the Carrs had received a few months prior and thallium, a bottle capping machine, chemistry books & equipment were found inside the Trepal home. Trepal was arrested and charged with several counts of poisoning - and eventually murder, when Peggy died - and was convicted in 1991. | ||
243 | 240 | JasonInHell | 3/25/2023 | 00:44:20 | Milly Raso | Milly Raso | 4.17 | 36 | Solved | Nov 17, 2016 | USA | Indiana | Darlington | 2 | Tyler Worley, Charlee Worley | 7, 3 | F, M | Brandi Worley | 30 | F | Filicide | Stabbing | Broken marriage, divorce | 911 Call | After his wife allegedly cheated on him with a neighbor, Jason Worley went to reddit to ask for relationship advice about how to handle the situation. The general advice was to get couples counseling, which his wife, Brandi, refused to do. As a result, Jason asked for a divorce. In the early morning hours of Nov 17, Brandi killed both of the couples' children, Tyler (7) and Charlee (3) by stabbing them. She also stabbed herself in the neck. Once the children were dead, Brandi called her mother to inform her of what she had done, and then called 911 to report it and confess. Her reasoning was that "she did not want [Jason] to have the kids". Initially at trial, she pled not guilty to the charges, but later changed her plea. In 2018, she was sentenced to 120 years. | |
244 | 241 | Harry & Nicola Fuller | 3/31/2023 | 1:18:28 | Elsha McGill | Elsha McGill | 3.58 | 24 | Solved | Feb 10, 1993 | England | Sussex | Wadhurst | 2 | Harry Fuller, Nicole Fuller | 45, 27 | F, M | Stephen Young | 35 | M | Murder | Shooting | Money | On February 10 1993, East Sussex police were summoned to conduct a welfare check at the Wadhurst cottage of newlyweds, Harry and Nicola Fuller. What they found inside left the tight-knit community in shock. An investigation quickly revealed there was more to Harry Fuller than meets the eye. But who would want the charming car dealer and his innocent wife dead? The case took multiple turns, culminating in the questionable involvement of an ouija board. | ||
245 | 242 | The Investor Murders | 4/8/2023 | 1:08:27 | Erin Munro | Erin Munro | 3.65 | 17 | Unsolved | Sept 7, 1982 | USA | Alaska | Craig | 8 | Mark Coulthurst, Irene Coulthurst, Kimberly Coulthurst, Michael Stewart, Jerome Keown, Dean Moon, Chris Heyman, John Coulthurst | 28, 28, 4, 19, 19, 19, 18, 5 | F, M | Unknown | Unknown | Unknown | Murder | Shooting, Burning | Unknown | An investigation quickly revealed there was more to Harry Fuller than meets the eye. But who would want the charming car dealer and his innocent wife dead? The case took multiple turns, culminating in the questionable involvement of an ouija board.On the afternoon of Tuesday, September 7 1982, residents of the tiny Alaskan fishing village of Craig noticed smoke across the harbour. A fishing vessel was on fire. It belonged to successful Washington fisherman Mark Coulthurst, who was travelling with his wife Irene, their two children, Kimberley and John, and four teenage deckhands: Dean Moon, Michael Stewart, Jerome Keown and Chris Heyman. When the flames were extinguished, and the boat was boarded, first responders made a shocking discovery. Everyone onboard was dead, and it appeared the fire had been started to cover a gruesome crime. Authorities soon honed in on one suspect: a former employee of Mark’s named John Peel… | ||
246 | 243 | Deidre Kennedy | 4/15/2023 | 1:25:25 | Elsha McGill | Elsha McGill | 3.29 | 17 | Unsolved | April 14, 1973 | Australia | Queensland | Ipswich | 1 | Deidre Kennedy | 16 month | F | Unknown | Unknown | Unknown | Murder | Unknown | On April 14 1973, the Kennedy family awoke in their Ipswich, Queensland unit to discover the unthinkable. 16-month-old Deidre Kennedy was missing from her cot, having been abducted by an intruder overnight. The hunt to find Baby Deidre’s killer rattled even the most seasoned detectives. What unfolded would become one of the most frustrating cases in Queensland’s legal history, paving the way for changes to the state’s double jeopardy laws. | |||
247 | 244 | Engla Höglund & Pernilla Hellgren | 4/22/2023 | 0:35:00 | Holly Boyd | Holly Boyd | 3.15 | 13 | Solved | April 5, 2008 | Sweden | Dalarna | Stjärnsund | 2 | Engla Höglund & Pernilla Hellgren | 10, 31 | F | Anders Eklund | 43 | M | Rape, Murder | strangulation | Sexual | On April 5 2008, 10-year-old Engla Höglund went missing while cycling home from soccer practice near the small Swedish town of Stjärnsund. As news spread, a witness came forward who had captured Engla in a photograph just moments before she disappeared. The image not only revealed an instrumental clue but also led to the stunning discovery that whoever had taken Engla Höglund was also responsible for the unsolved murder of 31-year-old Pernilla Hellgren in the Swedish city of Falun eight years earlier. | ||
248 | 245 | Sherri Papini | 4/29/2023 | 1:35:09 | Elsha McGill | Elsha McGill | 4.43 | 37 | Solved | November 2, 2016 | USA | California | Redding | 1 | Sherri Papini | 34 | F | Sherri Papini | 34 | F | Hoax | Kidnapping | Unknown | When married mother of two, Sherri Papini, goes missing near her home in Redding, California, the community is gripped by fear. Suspicion immediately falls on Sherri’s husband, Keith Papini, but an even darker theory emerges – what if Sherri was the victim of a human trafficking ring? Three weeks later, motorists passing down the Interstate 5 highway noticed something on the side of the road that would change the course of the investigation entirely. | ||
249 | 246 | Grégory Villemin (2 Parter) | 5/6/2023 | 3:01:00 | Elsha McGill | Elsha McGill | 3.54 | 24 | Unsolved | October 16, 1984 | France | Vosges | Docells | 1 | Grégory Villemin | 4 | M | Unknown | Unknown | Unknown | Murder, Kidnapping | Drowning | Revenge | The extended Villemin family lived in the Vosges region of north-eastern France. From 1981, several members of the family started to receive anonymous, threatening phone calls from a mysterious caller they eventually labelled The Crow. Young couple Jean-Marie and Christine Villemin lived in the small village of Lépanges with their four year old son Grégory. They became The Crow’s main target. Then on October 16 1984, after several years of harassment, The Crow finally delivered on one of their threats. After grieving father Jean-Marie Villemin takes revenge for his son’s death into his own hands, the investigation into Grégory Villemin’s death takes a series of unexpected turns. | ||
250 | 247 | Nina Puganova, Irina Trasyn & Anastasia Mikhailova | 5/20/2023 | 13:53:00 | Holly Boyd | Holly Boyd | 4.08 | 13 | Solved | Summer 1980 | Soviet Union | Moldavian SSR | Chisinau | 3 | Nina Puganova, Irina Trasyn & Anastasia Mikhailova | F | Alexander Skrynnik | 27 | M | Murder | Stabbing | Sexual | In the summer of 1980, Theodosius Glukharev received a series of harrowing deliveries to his home in Kishinev, Soviet Moldova. The contents ultimately unravelled the murders of three women – Nina Puganova, Irina Trasyn & Anastasia Mikhailova. An extortion attempt by the killer helped narrow down the suspect pool, but still, investigators were no closer to catching the killer. Who was this individual who had been dubbed a “blood thirsty maniac?” | |||
251 | 248 | Abraham Shakespeare | 5/27/2023 | 1:13:59 | Milly Raso | Milly Raso | 3.72 | 18 | Solved | April 6-7, 2009 | USA | Florida | Plant City | 1 | Abraham Shakespeare | 42 | M | Dorice Moore | 37 | F | Murder | Shooting | Financial Gain | In 2006, Abraham Shakespeare won a $30 million Florida lottery and took the lump sum so he could use it to help support his family and friends. Within a few months, he had bought a $1.1 million dollar home. In October of 2008, Dorice "DeeDee" Moore arranged to meet with Abraham under the guise of writing a book about his experience, but within a few months Abraham's home was transferred to a business owned by DeeDee. Other properties owned by Abraham were also sold or transferred to DeeDee's business. Through February and March of 2009, Dee Dee started making large purchases with cashier's checks from her business account - including two cars both worth over $70 thousand. April 6 was the last day Abraham's cell phone was used. By November of 2009, Abraham's family had reported him missing. Over the next few months, police honed in on Dee Dee as the prime suspect. Her ex-husband, James Moore, told police in an interview that he had dug a hole in Dee Dee's yard at her request in April. Sure enough, Abraham's body was found buried on a property owned by Dee Dee. Dee Dee was arrested and charged with first degree murder and James Moore was charged with accessory after the fact. Dee Dee was found guilty and sentenced to life in prison plus an additional minimal sentence of 25 years for possessing a gun in the course of a violent felony. | ||
252 | 249 | Lorraine Wilson & Wendy Evans | 6/3/2023 | 1:09:16 | Elsha McGill | Elsha McGill | 3.55 | 11 | Solved | October 6, 1974 | Australia | Queensland | Murphys Creek | 2 | Lorraine Wilson, Wendy Evans | 20, 18 | F | M | Murder, Assault | Blunt Trauma | In 1974, coworkers and friends Lorraine Wilson and Wendy Evans were going on a road trip. Partway through their trip, their car broke down and it likely wouldn't be fixed in time for them to make it back to work, so they decided to hitchhike back home. Two years later, their skeletons were found by two bushwalkers in a clearing at Hoods Paddock. Given their fractured skulls and marks on their bodies, an inquest found that the two women had met with foul play. Over the following 40 years, detectives continued to work on the case. Their work was hampered since many eye witnesses simply didn't come forward for years. The evidence in this case, including witness interviews conducted between 1988 and 2005, identified seven persons of interest, four of whom had already died: Allan John Laurie, Wayne Hilton, Donald Laurie, Larry Charles. The remaining three - Desmond Roy Hilton, Allan Neil Laurie, Terrance James O'Neill - were brought in to give evidence in 2013. Detective Paul Ruge identified Wayne Hilton as the person of interest that he had sufficient evidence to arrest for murder. Per eye witness testimony, here is what police were able to put together: Multiple eyewitnesses saw the women held captive and kidnapped, though their reports either went ignored or they didn't come forward until years later. Younger brother of one of the perpetrators, Walter Laurie was ten at the time of these events. He told an inquest that he witnessed his brother and brother's friends in a "gang bang" with two women at Murphys Creek. Other eyewitness and secondhand witness accounts indicate that the women were raped, tied up, and ultimately killed. The men involved told some of their friends and family about it, but none of that came forward to police for years. Of all the perpetrators, Hilton was the only one that could be definitively identified. The other, still living perpetrators, deny involvement. | |||||
253 | 250 | Amy Boyer | 6/10/2023 | 0:46:32 | Milly Raso | Milly Raso | 4.19 | 16 | Solved | October 15, 1999 | USA | New Hampshire | Nashua | 1 | Amy Boyer | 20 | F | Liam Youens | 21 | M | Murder, Stalking | Shooting | Obsession | Amy Boyer attended school with Liam Youens, where they both graduated in 1997. Youens had been obsessed with Boyer for years, and the advent of the internet made it easy for him to obtain information on her online. Youens documented his obsession with Boyer on his website and had paid Docusearch Inc to get information on her, including her SSN and work address. Youens went to Boyer's work - a dentist's office - where he shot her and then shot himself. | ||
254 | 251 | The Caldwell Farmhouse Murders | 6/17/2023 | 0:46:41 | Erin Munro | Erin Munro | 3.72 | 18 | Solved (ongoing) | June 2017 | USA | Idaho | Caldwell | 3 | Cheryl Baker, Nadja Medley, Payton Medley | 57, 48, 14 | F | Gerald Michael Bullinger | 59 | M | Murder | Shooting | Unknown | Nadja Medley had been dating her boyfriend Mike Bullinger for about a year when the couple (and Nadja's daughter Payton) moved to Idaho to live in a farmhouse. Nadja was not aware that her boyfriend had a wife - Cheryl, and Cheryl was not aware that her husband was cheating on her. Cheryl arrived at the farmhouse unannounced and later on, the bodies of all three women were found in a shed on the property and Bullinger was missing. The current theory is that Bullinger killed all three women after Cheryl showed up early and discovered the cheating. Bullinger's car was later found at a campsite in Wyoming, so there is some suspicion that he is either dead on on the run, since he hasn't been found since. | ||
255 | 252 | Margaret Maher, Mersina Halvagis & Nicole Patterson | 6/24/2023 | 1:33:56 | Milly Raso | Milly Raso | 3.94 | 17 | Solved | 1997-1999 | Australia | Victoria | Melbourne | 3 | Margaret Maher, Mersina Halvagis & Nicole Patterson | 40, 25, 28 | F | Peter Norris Dupas | 44-46 | M | Murder | Stabbing, Blunt Force Trauma | Serial Murder | Dupas has a long criminal history, including numerous sex offenses between 1974-1994, and his crimes increased in violence over time. Dupas was arrested, charged, and found guilty of Nicole Patterson's murder in 1999. While he served his prison sentence, he was also found responsible for the murders of Margaret Maher and Mersina Halvagis in 1997. He is suspected of being involved in other murders. | ||
256 | 253 | Aarushi Talwar & Hemraj Banjade | 7/1/2023 | 1:16:22 | Erin Munro | Erin Munro | 3.94 | 17 | Unsolved | May 15-16, 2008 | India | Uttar Pradesh | Noida | 2 | Hemraj Banjade, Aarushi Talwar | 45, 13 | M, F | Unknown | Unknown | Unknown | Murder | Blunt Force Trauma | Unknown | In 2008, an unknown perpetrator killed two people in a family home in Noida, India: Aarushi Talwar, a 13 year old, and Hemraj Banjade, the Talwar family's hired domestic help. Aarushi was found murdered in her bedroom on May 16. Initially, Banjade was a prime suspect, but then his body was also discovered partially decomposed on the home's terrace. The case has received widespread criticism for being a "trial by media" and for shoddy police work. Police work into former domestic help as potential suspects went nowhere, so police instead marked the Talwar parents as the prime suspects despite a lack of evidence. In 2013, the parents were convicted and sentenced to life imprisonment, but the conviction was acquitted in 2017. The case remains unsolved. | ||
257 | 254 | Winsie Hau | 7/8/2023 | 0:35:29 | Holly Boyd | Holly Boyd | 3.22 | 18 | Solved | January 14, 2012 | Netherlands | Gelderland | Arnhem | 1 | Winsie Hau | 15 | F | Jinhua K. | 14 | M | Murder for Hire | Stabbing | Revenge over petty fights | The friendship between 15 year old Winsie Hau and 16 year old Polly W started to devolve as the two had increasingly volatile interactions on social media, in particular facebook. During these interactions, Polly threatened Winsie and her family. She went to her 17 year old boyfriend Wesley C to "deal with the situation". This young man claimed his family had ties to the chinese mafia, though this was probably all just bluster. Instead, they hired someone to kill Winsie. A young man knocked on the Hau family home's door on January 14, 2012. Chun Nam, Winsie's father, answered and invited the boy inside so he could speak privately with Winsie. As soon as they were alone, the young man attacked Winsie with a knife in the face and kneck. Chun Nam came when he heard Winsie's cries and also suffered a slash across his face and arm. Winsie and her father were hospitalized, but where Chun Nam survived, Winsie passed away after five days of being in critical condition. The young man was 14 year old Jinhua K, who appeared to have no connection to Winsie outside of their shared cultural background. He had been recruited by Wesley and Polly to act as a hitman, and he was willing to take any opportunity to insert himself into the group of the older and cooler teens. He was also paid 150 euros for the murder. The planning of the murder took place over several weeks, with significant pressure on the part of Polly and Wesley to get Jinhua to do it, "or else". Jinhua was convicted of murder. | ||
258 | 255 | Rudolf Rupp | 7/15/2023 | 1:03:29 | Elsha McGill | Elsha McGill | 3.63 | 19 | Solved | October 13, 2001 | Germany | Upper Bavaria | 1 | Rudolf Rupp | 52 | M | Helen Rupp | Heinrichsheim | F, M | Murder | Blunt Trauma, Dismemberment | Rudolf Rupp disappeared October 13, 2001 after visiting a pub. In May of 2005, Rupp's wife Helene and the ex boyfriend of one of their daughters, Matthias E., were sentenced to eight and a half years in prison for manslaughter. The defendents had confessed (and later retracted the confessions) to killing Rupp in the family home. Rupp had been ambushed after returning home from the pub, beaten and abused by Helene, Matthias, and the two daughters. The following day, after Rupp died, they dismembered his body and fed some parts to the family dogs. It may not ever be known exactly who murdered Rudolf or how, since there was limited physical evidence and the defendants retracted their confessions and the theory presented was a theory by the prosecutor. Plus there was some question as to the legality of how the initial confessions were gotten in the first place. | ||||
259 | 256 | Jill Rosenthal | 8/19/2023 | 1:19:35 | Erin Munro | Erin Munro | 4.22 | 18 | Unsolved (ongoing) | July 1965 | USA | New Jersey | Atlantic City | 3 | Jill Rosenthal, Jack Rosenthal, Paul Fronczak | 0-1 | F, M | Unknown | Unknown | Unknown | Abandonment, Abuse, Abduction | Unknown | On April 26, 1964, newborn Paul Fronczak was kidnapped by a woman posing as a nurse in his Chicago maternity ward. Multiple searches were made to find the child, with no luck. Over a year after the abduction, a young boy was found abandoned in New Jersey. Believing this boy was the missing Paul, he was brought home to Paul's parents and raised as Paul. In 2012, "Paul" completed DNA testing which confirmed he could not be the real Paul Fronczak. Instead, his true name was Jack Rosenthal and he had a twin, Jill. Jack and Jill had grown up in a physically abusive home and he believes his parents were responsible for his abandonment and the potential abandonment or murder of his sister Jill. In 2019, the FBI reopened Paul's case and they were able to identify a grown man by the name of Kevin Baty as the true Paul via genetic testing. Very little about Paul's life as Kevin has been made public and the identity of his kidnapper is unknown (or unreleased to the public). Kevin died from cancer in 2020 and, while he was able to speak to his biological mother over the phone before he died, they did not get to meet in person before he passed. | |||
260 | 257 | Joe Gliniewicz | 8/26/2023 | 1:06:10 | Elsha McGill | Elsha McGill | 4.07 | 15 | Solved | September 1, 2015 | USA | Illinois | Fox Lake | 0 | Joe Gliniewicz | 52 | M | Falsifying evidence, sexual harassment, stealing | Shooting | Staging suicide to cover up criminal activity | Joe Gliniewicz had a history of sexual harassment, embezzelment and other crimes. In order to avoid responsibility for these crimes hanging over his head, Joe committed suicide and tried to frame it like a murder while on duty. Initially, he was treated as a hero killed in the line of duty but the crimes were quickly uncovered. His own family had been involved in the embezzelment. | |||||
261 | 258 | Kay Mortensen | 9/2/2023 | 1:10:19 | Erin Munro | Erin Munrro | 4.33 | 12 | Solved | November 16, 2009 | USA | Utah | Payson | 1 | Kay Mortensen | 70 | M | Benjamin David Rettig, Martin Cameron Bond | 23, 23 | M | Murder, thievery | Stabbing | Stealing guns to sell for money | Kay Mortensen collected guns and was a wealthy man. He was visited one day by Martin Bond, the the son of a friend, and Martin's friend Benjamin. Kay invited the men in thinking they just wanted to catch up, but once the men were inside they tied up Kay and threatened him in order to gain access to Kay's gun collection. Once they had the guns, they killed Kay with a knife. Shortly after this, Kay's son Roger and daughter in law Pamela arrived at the house for a previously-planned game night. The couple were also tied up and threatened, but not killed. Over the following year, Roger and Pamela were treated as the primary persons of interest and were eventually arrested and jailed on suspicion of their involvement. They would have continued being the prime suspects had not Martin's ex wife Rachel come forward with new information. Marting had confessed to his ex wife what he did, and Rachel coming forward led to the arrest of the actual perpetrators. Martin was ultimately found guilty of aggravated murder, three counts of aggravated kidnapping, aggravated burglary and aggravated robbery. He was sentenced to life in prison without parole. Benjamin pleaded guilty and was sentenced to 25 years to life in prison. | ||
262 | 259 | Jamie Lavis | 9/9/2023 | 0:52:08 | Erin Munro | Erin Munro | 4.27 | 11 | Solved | May 5, 1997 | England | Manchester | Openshaw | 1 | Jamie Lavis | 8 | M | Darren Vickers | 27 | M | Abduction, murder, child sexual assault | Pedophilia | Darren Vickers was a pedophile bus driver who groomed 8 year old Jamie Lavis. In May of 1997, Vickers had lured Jamie away, abused, and murder him. After Jamie's death, Darren inserted himself into the lives of the Lavis family. As the bus driver who was the last known person to see Jamie alive, he presented himself as a concerned citizen. He inserted himself into the Lavis family so fully that he eventually befriended the family and even moved in with them. | |||
263 | 260 | The Alpine Manor Murders | 9/16/2023 | 1:13:40 | Jessica Forsayeth | Jessica Forsayeth | 4.07 | 15 | Solved | 1987 | USA | Michigan | Walker | 5 | Mae Mason, Edith Cook, Marguerite Chambers, Myrtle Luce, Belle Burkhard | 60-95 | F | Gwendolyn Graham, Cathy Wood | 25 | F | Murder, elder abuse | Smothering | "Love bond", tying the perpetrators together | Gwendolyn Graham and Catherine May Wood were nurses who met at an elderly folks' nursing home in 1986. They became friends and then lovers quickly after meeting. In 1987, a series of patients at the nursing home died of what appeared to be natural causes or heart failure - despite these women having strong hearts per their most recent doctors visits. Other members of staff made complaints of the pair being poor employees and bullies, but upper management not only ignored these complaints - they even promoted one of the pair to a supervisory position. The pair eventually broke up and Graham began dating another woman at the facility. In 1988, police became aware of the situation when Wood's ex husband came forward; Wood had confessed to him about the murders. She was interviewed by police and she painted a picture of Graham being the dominant one who planned all the murders. Woods ended up taking a plea bargain to reduce her sentence and testify against Graham. Per Woods' testimony, she simply served as a lookout while Graham committed the murders. Later on, author Lowell Cauffiel made a non-fiction book about the killings and suggested that Woods instead was the primary perpetrator of the crimes; that Woods purposefully confessed to her ex-husband and then the police in order to set up Graham as the primary responsible party as revenge for Graham leaving her for another woman. Woods allegedly told this version of events to fellow inmates while she was incarcerated. Ultimately, Graham was convicted and given a life sentence while Wood was convicted and received 20-40 years of imprisonment and was released in January of 2020. | ||
264 | 261 | Shari Smith & Debra May Helmick | 9/23/2023 | 2:11:22 | Elsha McGill | Elsha McGill | 4.32 | 19 | Solved | May-June, 1985 | USA | South Carolina | Lexington County | 2 | Shari Smith, Debra May Helmick | 17, 9 | F | Larry Gene Bell | 36 | M | Murder, kidnapping | Suffocation | In 1985, Bell kidnapped 17 year old Shari Smith at gunpoint from her driveway. A few days after her kidnapping, her family started receiving taunting phone calls from her abductor. He also forced Shari to write a "last will and testament", which he sent to her family. Shari was likely killed by suffocation within a day of her kidnapping. Six days after her abduction, Bell informed her family of her body's location. Two weeks after Shari was kidnapped, Bell kidnapped again, this time a 9 year old named Debra May Helmick. He killed Debra similarly to Shari and also taunted the Smith family with Debra's death. Bell made a total of eight phone calls to the Smith family, most of which were handled by Shari's sister Dawn. It is possible that Bell mistook Shari for Dawn, since during one of these calls he mentioned "all I wanted to do was make love to Dawn". On June 27th, Bell was arrested; authorities had managed to identify him by indentations indicating a phone number on one of the letters he had sent to the Smith family. Bell was ultimately executed for his chrimes in 1996. Bell is suspected in two other murders: 1984's Sandee Elaine Cornett and 1975's Denise Newsom Porch | |||
265 | 262 | Samia Shahid | 10/7/2023 | 0:34:56 | Holly Boyd | Holly Boyd | 4.08 | 13 | Unsolved (ongoing) | July 20, 2016 | Pakistan | Jhelum | Pandori | 1 | Samia Shahid | 28 | F | Chaudhry Muhammed Shakeel (alleged), Chaudhry Mohammed Shahid (alleged) | 20-30s, 52 | M | Murder, rape, honor killing | Strangulation (allegedly) | Honor killing | Samia Shahid was arranged married at age 25 to her cousin Shakeel but it was an allegedly unhappy marriage for her. After the marriage, Samia moved to live in Bradford, England, while Shakeel stayed in Pakistan while he waited for immigration papers to be processed. A year after the marriage, in 2013, Samia obtained a divorce, fell in love with another man, and converted to Shia Islam from Sunni Islam. She also married her second husband in 2014. Her family did not approve of any of this and viewed her marriage as adultery. In 2016, Samia's family tricked her into returning to Pakistan with false claims that her father was deathly ill. Her husband begged her not to go, and she never returned. Her body was found dead in her cousin's / first husband's home. Some of her family claimed she died of a heart attack, local press claimed it was a suicide due to not having children, and her uncle obtained a death certificate from the "local union council" and told police Samia had died of natural causes. Her remains were buried the same day. Her autopsy noted bruising around hte neck and concluded that she had been raped. Samia's husband and her constituency MP, Naz Shah, advocated on behalf of Samia and eventually Samia's father and ex-husband were arrested for murder. On August 14, 2016, police stated that Shakeel confessed to strangling Samia. However, the case has never been brought to trial. | ||
266 | 263 | Kim Barry | 10/14/2023 | 1:13:09 | Erin Munro | Erin Munro | 3.93 | 14 | Solved | February 7, 1981 | Australia | New South Wales | Wollongong | 1 | Kim Barry | 19 | F | Graham Gene Potter | 23 | M | Murder | Blunt trauma, decapitation | In 1981, Graham Potter murdered Kim Barry, a 19 year old he knew from dance classes they both had taken. On February 6, 1981, Potter was enjoying his bachelor party at a disco in Wollongong when he noticed Barry at the same location. He shared a few drinks with Barry and convinced her to come home with him, where he tried to coerce her into sex. When she refused, he beat her and left her trapped in his bedroom. The following day, he realized she was still alive and proceeded to beat her to death before decapitating her and removing her fingers in the hopes her body could not be identified. He scattered her body parts along Jamberoo Lookout Road. Barry's body was discovered quickly and Potter immediately withdrew money from his bank and fled the area. He came to police attention when other attendees of the party recognized that both Potter and Barry had attended the disco. He was on the run for a few months before he was caught, tried, and sentenced to life in prison - but he only spent 15 years in prison before being released in 1996. After being released, he became involved with the mafia in Melbourne, mostly around drug and hitman activity. In 2010, he failed to appear in court for numerous drug and conspiracy to murder offenses and he again went on the run. This time, he managed to avoid police for twelve years. He was finally found in hiding in February 2022 in Ravenshoe, NSW. | |||
267 | 264 | Andrew Gosden | 10/21/2023 | 1:02:11 | Elsha McGill | Elsha McGill | 3.86 | 21 | Unsolved | September 14, 2007 | England | Central London | 1 | Andrew Gosden | 14 | M | Unknown | Unknown | Unknown | Disappearance; possible murder and/or human trafficking | Unknown | Unknown | Andrew Gosden was a shy young man in 2006-2007, a gifted student who, according to his father, was absent minded, not streetwise, and potentially vulnerable. On the day of his disappearance, his family did not notice anything unusual aside from Andrew having a hard time waking up (strange for him, as he normally was easy to wake). Upon leaving the house for school at 8:05, a family friend noticed Andrew heading towards his usual bus stop. It was not until later that they discovered Andrew did not get on his usual bus and he instead went to a local garage, took 200 pounds from his bank account, and then returned home (which was captured on a neighbor's CCTV). At home, he washed his uniform, put on casual clothes, and collected his keys, wallet, and PSP. (It seems his family had also left the house at this time, so he had been home alone). At 8:30, he left the house and headed down Littlemoor Lane (captured on a neighbor's CCTV). He purchased a one-way rail ticket to London at Doncaster railway station, and the ticket seller later recalled that she offered to sell him a two way ticket for only 50 pence more, but Gosden refused and only wanted the single way ticket. At 9:35, he boarded the train to King's Cross station alone. During the train ride, passengers noted that he was quiet and focused on his PSP. He arrived at King's Cross station at 11:20 and exited the station at 11:25. This was the last confirmed sighting of Andrew. Meanwhile, Andrew's school noted his absence and contacted his parents, or so they thought - they had called the wrong number and left a message with the wrong set of parents. Without warning that something was wrong, Andrew's family assumed he had lost track of time and was just with friends. When he didn't return home by dinner, they called the police to report him missing at 7:00. Initial theories included that 1. he was meeting someone he'd met online (unlikely, as he had no internet accounts and didn't spend much time on the family's one computer), 2. visiting family (he enjoyed London and his grandparents lived ther), 3. sightseeing (he enjoyed London's many museums). They looked into other activities happening in London at the time, but none of them seemed to be anything Andrew would have been interested in. The initial police investigation was later criticized as the police decided to focus on the Gosden family as suspects rather than collect CCTV footage from around King's Cross from the day of the disappearance, and reported sightings of Andrew in Coven Garden were not investigated. No further major updates have occurred in this case. There was some hope in 2022 after two men were arrested on suspicion of involvement in this case, but they were ultimately released without charge and found to have no connection to this case. | |||
268 | 265 | Marea Yann | 10/27/2023 | 1:03:23 | Elsha McGill | Elsha McGill | 3.15 | 13 | Unsolved | September 30, 2003 | Australia | Victoria | Healesville | 1 | Marea Yann | 69 | F | Unknown | Unknown | Unknown | Murder | Blunt trauma | Marea was found murdered in her home in September of 2003, with her last known contact being with her daughter via a phone call the night before. Marea's murder unfortunately did not take precedence with the local police department, who were dealing with and putting many resources towards the Melbourne gangland killings at the time. Marea's former son in law, Joseph (James) Unumadu was suspected and even charged with her murder in 2006, but found not guilty by a jury in 2008. The case is still open and there is currently a million dollar reward for anyone who can provide information that leads to the killer. | |||
269 | 266 | Circleville Letter Writer | 11/4/2023 | 0:43:11 | Jessica Forsayeth | Jessica Forsayeth | 3.84 | 19 | Unsolved | 1977 - 1994 | USA | Ohio | Circleville | Unknown | Unknown | Unknown | Threats of harm, blackmail | Starting in 1976, residents in Circleville Ohio started to receive anonymous, threatening letters. The primary targets of these letters over the coming years were school bus diver, Mary Gillespie, whom the letters accused of having an affair with the school superintendant. Mary's husband Ron also started receiving letters threatening him to get his wife to admit to the affair. Over the following months, the letters kept arriving. In August 1977, Ron received a phone call that upset him. He told his daughter the caller was the letter writer, and he got into his truck and drove into the night. Ron was later found dead in his truck, which had crashed into a tree. There has been heavy debate over if this death was an accident or if foul play was involved. After Ron's death, more residents of the town started to get threatening letters. It seems that no one was safe from the writer. In 1983, Mary came across a sign posted near her bus route that included an obscene message about her 12 year old daughter. The sign had a box next to it, which turned out to be a booby trap with a gun inside. The gun was found to belong to her brother in law, Paul Freshour. Paul claimed the gun was his, but that it had gone missing weeks before. Paul and his wife - Ron's sister - had recently gone through an acrimonious divorce, so it was suggested that Paul's ex-wife Karen framed him. There was no other evidence linking Paul to the booby trap. However, Paul was charged and found guilty of attempted murder and sentenced to prison (he was later released in 1994 and he maintained his innocent up until he died in 2012). The Circleville letters kept being sent even while Paul was in prison, so it made people doubt if they had caught the right culprit. The last letter attributed to the writer was sent in 1994. So who was the letter writer? Was it originally David Longberry, a fellow bus driver who had romantic interest in Mary, but who had been rejected by her? Was Paul or Karen? Was it multiple people? Was it originally one person, and then the whole town started writing letters to air out their dirty laundry? | ||||||||
270 | 267 | Brian Barrett | 11/11/2023 | 0:55:27 | Erin Munro | Erin Munro | 4.20 | 20 | Solved | September 15, 2006 | USA | New York | Buffalo | 1 | Brian Barrett | 22 | M | Thomas Montgomery | 46 | M | Murder | Shooting | Love Rival | In 2005, two 18 year olds met and started a romance in an online chatroom. What neither of them knew about each other at the time is that both were lying about their age and who they were: "Tallhotblond" wasn't 18 year old Jessi; she was instead 45 year old Mary, Jessi's mom. "MarineSniper" was actually 46 year old Thomas Montgomery. The affair (as Montgomery was a married man) intensified over the next year, but remained entirely online and in mail communication. Montgomery's wife found a package that "Jessi" had sent to Montgomery, including sexual photos, letters, and underwear. In response, she replied to "Jessi" with a photo of her family and informer her that her affair partner is actually 46 years old. "Jessi" ended the affair via text message. In an attempt to get vengence on Montgomery, "Jessi" intentionally started a flirtation with Brian Barrett, a 22 year old coworker of Montgomery's. Barrett and "Jessi" embarassed Montgomery in their shared online forums by identifying him by his real photo and age and implying he was a pedophile. Barrett decided to meet "Jessi" in real life and planned to make a trip to Virginia where she lived, but this inceased Montgomery when he found out about it. In September 2006, he shot and killed Barrett outside their place of work. Police responded to the murder and realized quickly it was related to the love triangle. When they couldn't find Montgomery, they went to "Jessi" only to find out that she was actually 45 year old Mary. Montgomery was eventually found, convicted of murder, and sentenced to 20 years. Prosecutors wanted to charge Mary with something, but ultimately she hadn't broken any laws. Mary's daughter Jessi was entirely unaware of how her mom stole her identity and also took lewd photos up her skirt to use in her flirtations. Mary's husband divorced her as a result of these events. | ||
271 | 268 | Colleen Stan (2 Parter) | 11/18/2023 | 2:52:21 | Milly Raso | Milly Raso | 4.33 | 21 | Solved | 1976-1984 | USA | California | 1 | Colleen Stan, Marie Elizabeth Spannhake | 20, 18 | F | Janice Hooker, Cameron Hooker | 20, 23 | F, M | Kidnapping, imprisonment, sexual assault, torture | Threats of harm, abuse | Sexual desire | Cameron (23) and his wife Janice (20) Hooker came to an agreement in 1977 that Cameron could capture a slave to take Janice's place to fulfill Cameron's sexual desires revolving around sexual bondage. Colleen was hitchiking from her home in Oregon to a friend's house in Northern California to attend a birthday party on May 19, 1977, when she crossed paths with the Hookers. Over 1977, Colleen was kept locked in a box 23 hours a day and tortured. Cameron told Colleen she was being watched by a powerful organization called The Company and she would be tortured and her family harmed if she tried to escape. In January of 1978, Colleen was coerced into signing a contract that sold her into sexual slavery for the rest of her life. The Hookers' two children were aware of Colleen's presence in the home, and Janice was fully aware of what Cameron was doing to Colleen. In 1981, Cameron allowed Colleen to visit with her family briefly. Colleen joined her under the alias of a man named Mike. Colleen's family assumed she had joined a cult due to her poor clothing. But after this visit, Cameron thought he gave Colleen too much freedom and for the next three years, he kept Colleen locked in the box again for 23 hours per day. There was little food, no space for bodily functions (only a bed pan), no temperature control, and little air to breathe. In 1983, Colleen was allowed to get a job at a motel. During this time, Cameron decided he wanted to take Colleen as a second wife, which was a turning point for Janice. Janice states that she was tortured and brainwashed very early on in her relationship with Cameron, and she survived only with denial and compartmentalization. By 1984, she finally confessed to Colleen that Cameron was not part of The Company and told Cameron (via a phone call) that she was leaving him. Colleen took the opportunity to leave and go back home to her family. Janice also informed the police that Cameron had kidnapped and murdered another victim in 1976, Marie Elizabeth Spannhake; since no body was ever found, Cameron was not charged with murder. Cameron was brought to trial in 1985 and Janice testified against him in exchange for full immunity. Cameron ultimately was sentenced to consecutive prison terms totalling 104 years. | |||
272 | 269 | Caroline Crouch | 12/2/2023 | 0:42:12 | Milly Raso | Milly Raso | 4.18 | 11 | Solved | May 11, 2021 | Greece | Athens | Glyka Nera | 1 | Caroline Crouch | 19 | F | Babi Anagnostopoulos | 33 | M | Murder | Suffocation | Caroline Crouch met her husband when she was 15 and he was 29. They married and had a 9 month old daughter in 2021. In May 2021, Caroline was murdered by her husband Babis, who framed the scene to make it look like robbers broke into the home and committed the crime. He was arrested about a month after committing the crime and he ultimately confessed to the murder. He was sentenced to life imprisonment. | |||
273 | 270 | Meredith Kercher | 2/3/2024 | 2:24:29 | Elsha McGill | Elsha McGill | 4.42 | 24 | Solved | November 1, 2007 | Italy | Umbria | Perugia | 1 | Meredith Kercher | 21 | F | Rudy Guede | 20 | M | Murder, incompetent law enforcement | Stabbing | In the early hours of Nov 1 2007, American exchange student Amanda Knox returned to her italian home to find her roommate, British exchange student Meredith Kercher, murdered. Knox and her Italian boyfriend Raffaele Sollecito contacted authorities, but in the following weeks a media frenzy around Knox and Sollecito put almost all of the attention of the murder on them rather than on the numerous pieces of evidence found at the scene. Italian law enforcement and media accused Knox and Sollecito of murdering Kercher. They were ultimately put on trial (with no real evidence against them and only overwhelmingly negative smear of their reputations in media) and found guilty of the sexual assault and murder of Kercher. In 2008, the actual physical DNA evidence of the crime scene was used to link Rudy Guede to the crime and he was tried, found guilty, and sentenced to 16 years in prison. Despite having found two separate sets of peope guilty for the crime, Italian media continued to smear Knox and Sollecito's reputations and portray them as murderers. Sollecito and Knox had their guilty verdicts overturned and they were released in 2013 after four years in prison. Internationally, the trials and prosecution of Knox and Sollecito received much criticism of the "evidence" that supported the guilty verdicts. In 2013, the Supreme Court of Cassation of Italy rendered the acquittals null for "manifest illogicalities" and ordered the appeals trials had to be repeated. These trials occurred again in 2014 where Knox and Sollecito were convicted again. These second convictions were annulled by the Supreme Court in March of 2015 and ordered that no further trial should be held. The Supreme Court's decision pointed that that there was scientific evidence central to the case and "sensational investigative failures", "amnesia", and "culpable omissions" on the part of investigative authorities. Knox and Sollecito's trials and guilty verdicts are massive injustices on the part of the Italian judicial system that, along with the media frenzy surrounding the case, overshadowed the life and murder of Meredith Kercher, who should have been central to this case. | |||
274 | 271 | Bonnie Clarke | 2/10/2024 | 1:14:05 | Erin Munro | Erin Munro | 4.33 | 12 | Solved | December 21, 1982 | Australia | Victoria | Northcote | 1 | Bonnie Clarke | 6 | F | Malcolm Joseph Thomas Clarke | 28 | M | Murder, child sexual assault | Stabbing, strangulation | Six year old Bonnie Clarke was found assaulted and murdered in 1982. The original police investigation failed to solve the crime, though pointed fingers at Bonnie's mother, Marion. Marion thought there must have been an intruder that broke into their home in the night, but there were no signs of forced entry at the home, so police thought Marion was lying. The cold case was reopened in 2001 and Malcolm Clarke, who had been a boarder at the house in the months before the murder, was connected to the crime. Malcom Clarke admitted to the crime to undercover detectives during a Mr Big sting operation. He used his knowledge of the house to gain entry (knowing a certain door wouldn't be locked) and said he was intoxicated during the crime. He was found guilty and sentenced to life in prison with a non-parole period of 25 years in 2005. Malcolm Clarke had previously been convicted and imprisoned for other crimes, including the manslaughter of a 22 year old woman, Theresa Verity Crowe, in 1980 and the stabbing and rape of a woman in 1983. | |||
275 | 272 | The Annecy Shootings | 2/17/2024 | 1:18:24 | Elsha McGill | Elsha McGill | 4.23 | 13 | Unsolved | September 5, 2012 | France | Haute-Savoie | Lake Annecy | 4 | Saad al-Hilli, Iqbal al-Hilli, Suhaila al-Allaf, Sylvain Mollier | 50, 47, 74, 45 | F, M | Unknown | Unknown | Unknown | Murder | Shooting, execution-style shooting | Unknown | An Iraqi-born British family were tourists in the French Alps in 2012. Married couple Saad and Iqbal, Iqbal's mother Suhaila, and local cyclist, Sylvain, were fatally shot by unknown perpetrator(s). Saad, Iqbal, and Suhaila were shot execution-style in their car. The couple's young daughters Zainab (7) and Zeena (4) ultimately survived the attack, though Zainab suffered a gunshot wound to the shoulder and a head wound. This case remains unsolved. Police have investigated the possibility of the murders being entirely random, possibly connected to Saad's previous work in Iraq and an engineer on sensitive/secret topics, the possibility that Sylvain was the target of the attack and the family was in the wrong place at the wrong time, the potential of a local serial killer being responsible, and more. None of these theories have been conclusively proven true. | ||
276 | 273 | The Beast of Mlawa | 2/24/2024 | 0:40:31 | Milly Raso | Milly Raso | 3.73 | 11 | Solved | May 22, 1997 | England | West London | Hammersmith | 1-4 | Katerina Koneva | 12 | F | Andrzej Kunowski | 17-46 | M | Murder, rape | Strangulation | Kunowski became known as the beast of Mlawa due to his numerous crimes against women and girls for rape. He was arrested for his first rape in Poland in 1973, when he was 17 years old. He was imprisoned in 1980 for attempted murder, 25 counts of rape, robberies, and escape from custody. However, his sentence only lasted 15 years and he was paroled in 1991 for good behavior. After his release, he was suspected in the disappearance of a young student and arrested again on rape charges. The Polish courts released him so he could be treated for a medical issue in 1995, but during that time he fled the country with a fake passport and entered England illegally. In England, his pattern of behavior continued and he identified 12 year old Katerina Koneva as his next victim. In 1997, he fatally strangled her and was chased by the victim's father, but managed to evade capture. During the following years, he was suspected in additional murders and rapes, but not definitively linked to them. In 2002, he attacked, raped, and attempted to strangle another victim, but this victim escaped and alerted authorities. The evidence provided here was enough to identify Kunowski and link him to the DNA and fingerprints found at Katerina Koneva's crime scene. He faced trial at the Old Bailey in 2004 and was found guilty of all charges and sentenced to a whole life order. He died in prison in 2009 from heart failure. | |||
277 | 274 | Benjamin Amato | 3/2/2024 | 1:03:34 | Elsha McGill | Elsha McGill | 3.73 | 11 | Solved | November 16, 2001 | USA | Pennsylvania | Chestnuthill Township | 1 | Benjamin Amato | 52 | M | Cheryl Kunkle | 32 | F | Murder | Blunt Trauma | Benjamin Amato started a relationship with Cheryl Kunkle and they have a son born in 1998. Cheryl already had a teen son named Greg. Their relationship officially ended during the pregnancy and from that point forward, they would have to coordinate the parenting of their son. The ensuing years would be a custody battle between Ben and Cheryl. In 2001, Benjamin was found murdered in him home, killed by some sort of blunt instrument to the head. Police were suspicious of his ex-partner Cheryl and her son Greg, but no solid evidence at the time connected Cheryl to the death. When questioned by police, Cheryl implied that Ben had a "dark side". Three months before Ben's murder, Cheryl had reported a home invasion, but later decided she didn't want to prosecute the accused. Police investigated and found the two people named in that event were known to Cheryl and they claimed to have been hired by Cheryl to murder Ben Amato. When they weren't paid the agreed amount, they broke into Cheryl's home to steal the money instead (and they never attacked Ben). According to one of these suspects, Cheryl had threatened them into silence. In May of 2004, Cheryl's now-18-year-old son Greg was arrested in connection with the murder of his girlfriend Kristin, who was the mother of his newborn. As he was now 18, police could question Greg without his mother's approval, and Greg confessed what he knew: on the night Ben was murdered, Greg drove his mother to Ben's house and picked her up again afterwards; she was covered in blood and later disposed of the clothing. Cheryl was found guilty of murdering Ben and was sentenced to life without the possibility of parole. Gregory was given two life sentences for his crimes. | |||
278 | 275 | Michelle Hadley | 3/9/2024 | 1:25:21 | Erin Munro, Eileen Ormsby | Erin Munro, Eileen Ormsby | 4.44 | 16 | Solved | 2016 | USA | California | Anaheim | 1 | Michelle Hadley | 29 | F | Ian Diaz, Angela Diaz | 38, 30s | F, M | Cybercrime, stalking, false accusations, police corruption | Ian Diaz and Angela Diaz framed Ian's former fiance, Michelle Hadley, for harassment, stalking, and threats of rape in an attempt to ruin her life and force her to give up her ownership of a condo Michelle and Ian owned. As a worker in law enforcement, Ian Diaz had the support of the cops on his side. Hadley was entirely cleared of all charges and recieved compensation from the city of Anaheim, Ian Diaz, and Angela Diaz for her ordeal. Angela Diaz and Ian Diaz were both found guilty, with Ian being sentenced to 10 years in prison. | ||||
279 | 276 | Claire Acocks & Margaret Penny | 3/16/2024 | 1:10:06 | Elsha McGill | Elsha McGill | 3.36 | 14 | Unsolved | May 1991 | Australia | Victoria | Portland | 2 | Margaret Penny, Claire Acocks | 58, 49 | F | Unknown | Unknown | Unknown | Murder, possible murder-for-hire | Stabbing, beating | In May 1991, Margaret Penny was at an appointment with her hairdresser, Claire Acocks, when someone entered the salon to beat them, stab them, and slit their throats. The identity of the attacker has never been discovered. It is possible this was a random, brutal attack. It's also possible that the attacker was a hitman hired by Margaret's husband, Robert Penny, who had been having an affair with a younger woman, Kim, who would go on to become his second wife after Margaret's death. There wasn't enough definitive evidence to tie Robert to the crime, plus the addition of too much random physical evidence in the salon made it difficult to identify the perpetrator's DNA. The case remains unsolved and likely will remain so. Robert Penny died in 2016. | |||
280 | 277 | Linda Slaten | 3/23/2024 | 0:45:28 | Milly Raso | Milly Raso | 4.00 | 10 | Solved | September 4, 1981 | USA | Florida | Lakeland | 1 | Linda Slaten | 31 | F | Joe Mills | 20 | M | Murder, rape | Strangulation | Linda was raped and strangled with a wire hanger in 1981. Her two young sons were sleeping in other rooms of the apartment when it happened. The case went unsolved for 38 years until improvements in DNA technology was able to identify the boys' football assistant coach, Joseph Clinton Mills, as the perpetrator. Mills sometimes drove the boys to and from practice, as he had the night of the murder. | |||
281 | 278 | Alma Tirschke (2 Parter) | 3/30/2024 | 1:10:13 | Milly Raso | Milly Raso | 4.18 | 11 | Unsolved | December 30, 1921 | Australia | Victoria | Melbourne | 1 | Nell Alma Tirtscke | 12 | F | Unknown | Unknown | Unknown | Murder, rape of a child | Strangulation | Unknown | Alma was a shy young girl who had been tasked with collecting meat at the butchers shop and dropping it off at her aunt's home. It was unusual for her to take so long to complete her errands and standersby claimed that they saw her dawdling, perhaps out of fear or perhaps due to a man following her. She was raped and murdered in an alleyway near the Australian Wine Saloon. The owner of the saloon, Colin Campbell Ross, was charged with the crime. He protested his innocence and evidence against him was very sparse, but he was executed on April 24 1922. Ross was fully exonerated in the 1990s when the only phsyical evidence in the case (strands of red hair) was proved to not be from Ross. Ross was posthumously pardoned in 2008. The true murderer has never been discovered. | ||
282 | 279 | Zebb Quinn | 4/13/2024 | 1:13:59 | Elsha McGill | Elsha McGill | 3.42 | 12 | Unsolved (ongoing) | January 2, 2000 | USA | North Carolina | Asheville | 1 | Zebb Quinn | 18 | M | Unknown | Unknown | Unknown | Disappearance, presumed dead (possibly murdered) in absentia | Zebb Quinn disappeared aged 18 in January of 2000. He had finished his shift at wallmart before he disappeared. His car was later discovered in a restaurant parking lot with the headlights on and a puppy inside. In 2022, the last person to see Quinn, Robert Jason Owens (a coworker), pleaded guilty to accessory afer the fact to first degree murder. He claimed his uncle, who had died in 2017, had been hired to kill Quinn by the boyfriend of a woman Zebb had been romanticaly interested in. After the murder, he claimed Zebb's body had been cut up and burned. However, there is some debate if this version of events is true. It's unlikely that the true details of this case may ever be entirely confirmed. | ||||
283 | 280 | The Stockton Arsonist | 4/20/2024 | 0:26:10 | Erin Munro | Erin Munro | 3.00 | 11 | Solved | August 15, 1988 | USA | California | Redwood City | John Hannon, Omar | 19, 17 | M | Arson | Unknown | A family driving down the road had to pull over when their car overheated. When walking to a payphone, they came across a jacket that had a videotape on the inside. The videotape contained footage of a house burning and a voice commentating on it. The family turned the videotape to the police, who were certain the owner of the voice on the tape was responsible for the fire. Despite searching the footage frame by frame, they were not able to identify the location of the house. Unsolved Mysteries aired a broadcast about the tape and within minutes, several viewers called and identified the house, which was located in Redwood City, California. On the night of the fire, Woodside fire captain John Dellinges had also videotaped the fire for training and investigation purposes. Comparing the two different tapes confirmed this was the same fire. Tips from the public led police to the Omar referenced in the original video, and Omar pointed police to his friend John. Upon investigating John's home, they discovered several disturbing items like destroyed animal remains and another set fire. John was found guilty of arson and ordered to undergo psychiatric treatment and to register as a known arsonist. Omar was found guilty of one count of arson in connection with a different house fire and he served time in juvenile hall. | |||||||
284 | 281 | Bibaa Henry & Nicole Smallman | 4/27/2024 | 1:17:17 | Erin Munro | Erin Munro | 3.57 | 14 | Solved | June 6, 2020 | England | Kingsbury | Fryent Country Park | 2 | Bibaa Henry, Nicole Smallman | 45, 26 | F | Danyal Hussein | 19 | M | Murder, devil worship | Stabbing | Deal with the devil for money and women | Sisters Bibaa and Nicole were hosting a get together in Fryent Country Park to celebrate Bibaa's birthday. The two were the last of their party to leave the park, but they never made it out alive. Calls to police from family members were not taken seriously. Family and friends searched the park themselves, ultimately finding the sisters stabbed to death. Investigation led the police to 19 year old Danyal Hussein, who had been radicalised for at least two years in devil worship. He believed that if he sacrified six women, he would be safe from prosecution, become wealthy, and be attractive to women. His DNA was found at the scene of the murders. He was sentenced to life imprisonment with a mininum term of 35 years. | ||
285 | 282 | April Tinsley | 5/4/2024 | 1:06:45 | Milly Raso | Milly Raso | 3.80 | 15 | Solved | April 1, 1988 | USA | Indiana | Spencerville | 1 | April Tinsley | 8 | F | John D Miller | 29 | M | Murder, child rape | Asphyxiation | April Tinsley was kidnapped when she momentarily separated from two friends that she had been playing with and her body was found three days later. She had been raped, asphyxiated, and her body dropped in a ditch. DNA evidence technology was in its infancy at the time, but the investigators knew enough at the time that they could properly store DNA evidence found at the scene. The crime went unsolved for decades, despite the perpetrator leaving multiple notes taunting April's family and the police, saying things like "I killed April Tinsley" and "did you find the other shoe" and "I will kill again". In 2018, the suspect's DNA was sent to a forensic company which was able to make a familial match, leading investigators to John D Miller. Miller was sentenced to 80 years in prison. | |||
286 | 283 | Kris Kremers & Lisanne Froon | 5/11/2024 | 1:14:05 | Elsha McGill | Elsha McGill | 4.38 | 8 | Unsolved | April 1, 2014 | Panama | Chiriquí | Boquete | 2 | Kris Kremers, Lisanne Froon | 21, 22 | F | Disappearance, likely accidental death | Froon and Kremers were young students/graduates and friends who were taking a six week vacation to Panama, arriving in the country on March 15, 2014. They arrived in the small mountain town of Boquete on the 29th of March and on April 1st, they went hiking in the forests surrounding Baru Volcano on the El Pianista trail. The following day, they missed an appointment with a local guide and by the 6th, their parents arrived in the country to search for them along with police, dogs, and detectives from the Netherlands. On June 14th, a local woman discovered Froon's backpack by a riverbank near the village of Alto Romero. It had two pairs of sunglasses, cash, Froon's passport, a water bottle, Froon's camera, the women's phones, and some clothing. The phones showed that about six hours into their hike (around 4:39 pm), one of them dialed the emergency international number of the EU and the emergency number of Panama. None of the calls actually went through. Froon's battery died and Kremers wasn't able to make any calls due to reception. The phone was turned off and on several times between April 5th - 11th, but without ever entering the correct PIN code to log into the phone. The last time the phone was turned on and off was April 11th. Photos from the camera suggested that the women had taken a hiking trail at the overlook of the continental divide and wandered in the wilderness for some hours before making the emergency calls. The approximately 90 flash photos were taken in the dark of night, between 1 and 4 am, apparently deep in the jungle and in almost complete darkness. Possibly they were using the camera flash to light their way through the darkness. Two months after the discovery of the backpack, a pelvis and a boot with a foot inside were found. Then at least 33 widely scattered bones were discovered along the same riverbank, which DNA testing confirmed belonged to Kremers and Froon. What exactly happened to the young women will likely never be known, but a probable theory is as follows: they got lost while hiking and one of the girls fell and was critically injured. The photos were used to help light their way. The successive iphone lock code attempts were one girl trying to use the others' phone after her own phone died (the phone's owner may have been dead or incapacitated by this time). The girls later died of exposure and/or injuries. | |||||||
287 | 284 | Widden Hill Farm | 5/18/2024 | 0:42:51 | Holly Boyd | Holly Boyd | 3.50 | 6 | Solved | April 9 & 30, 1984 | England | Dorset | Horton | 2 | Colyn Bedale-Taylor, Margaret Backhouse (survived) | 63, 36 | F, M | Graham Backhouse | 44 | M | Murder, attempted murder | Shooting, Bombing | Insurance money | Graham Backhouse had run his family business into the round and was 70k pounds in debt by 1984. In an attempt to clear his debt, he fabricated a deadly vendetta against him from a neighbor. He claimed this neighbor and he had a property dispute. The harassment against the Backhouse family included threatening messages and murdered sheep, until finally his wife Margaret was severely injured by a pipe bomb, meaning Graham wasn't entitled to the life insurance. She ultimately survived. Then Graham killed his neighbor, Colin Bedale-Taylor, and framed the scene to make it look like he was attacked by the neighbor. Graham was ultimately sentenced to life in prison. | ||
288 | 285 | Louise Ellis | 5/25/2024 | 1:00:08 | Erin Munro | Erin Munro | 3.40 | 5 | Solved | April 22, 1995 | Canada | Ontario | Ottawa | 1 | Louis Ellis | 46 | F | Brett Morgan | 40-50s | M | Financial, physical, and emotional abuse of a domestic partner; murder | Strangulation | Money, power | Brett Morgan had a series of relationships in which he was extremely abusive and violent to his partners and flings. His two marriages ended due to the abuse, with both women fearing for their lives and one suffering from miscarriages due to the physical abuse. Then on November 3, 1978, he strangled to death 21 year old Gwen Telford in a hotel room simply because he hated her. There was a witness that overheard the entire crime, but Morgan was convicted only of manslaughter and 10 years in prison. Louise Ellis was a journalist who covered crimes. She came into contact with Morgan when she covered a case on which he was a witness and the two started a relationship in 1993. Like with his other relationships, Morgan quickly became abusive; stealing money, lying, emotional and physical abuse, etc. On April 22, 1995, Morgan murdered Ellis via suffocation and dumped her body in a wooded area near her ex-partner's home (in an attempt to frame the other man for murder). Marie Parent was studying to become a private detective and took on Louise's missing person's case as her final assignment. She became suspicious of Morgan due to his behavior on TV (when interviewed about his partner's disappearance) and she began working with Ottawa police. She personally got to know Morgan in an attempt to get him to reveal more information about Louise's body. Even in the short time she knew Morgan, he made intimidating advances on her. Morgan led Marie to Louise's body and Ottawa police arrested him later the same day. Morgan was convicted of first degree murder in March 1998 and sentenced to life in prison, but he died from hepatitis C two months into his sentence. | ||
289 | 286 | The Survivors' Network | 6/1/2024 | 1:17:42 | Milly Raso | Milly Raso | 3.82 | 11 | Solved | 2003-2007 | USA | New York | New York City | World Trade Center Survivors' Network | Alicia Esteve Head | 30-34 | F | Fraud | Alicia Esteve Head was a Spanish businesswoman who claimed to be a survivor of the 9/11 terrorist attacks under the assumed name of Tania Head. She joined the World Trade Center Survivors' Network support group and eventually became its president. She was very involved with survivors and promoting the group, to the point that she was regularly mentioned in media reports and interviewed in relation to the group. Tania claimed she had been inside WT2 when United Airlines Flight 175 hit and that she had sustained severe burned on her arm during her escape. She claimed her husband "Dave" had died in the tower and that she was ultimately rescued by Welles Crowther, an actual 9/11 victim who heroically saved as many as 18 people before dying in the tower. In 2007, The New York Times sought to verify Head's story as part of an anniversary piece and uncovered details that were not true: Head never graduated from either Harvard or Stanford, she'd never been employed by Merrill Lynch in WT2, her claims of engagement/marriage to "Dave" were denied by his family (Big Dave had died in WT1), Head's scars were caused by a car or horse accident, Head had never been to New York until 2003, and during the events of 9/11 Head was in a class in Barcelona. After this revelation, Head abruptly left NYC and returned to Spain. She was removed as president of the network. | |||||||
290 | 287 | Half & Susanne Zantop | 6/8/2024 | 1:10:46 | Erin Munro | Erin Munro | 4.14 | 7 | Solved | January 27, 2001 | USA | New Hampshire | Etna | 2 | Susanne Zantop, Half Zantop | 55, 62 | F, M | James J Parker, Rubert W Tulloch | 16, 17 | M | Murder | Stabbing | Robbery | Parker and Tulloch, bored teens in 2001, wanted to move to Australia and needed money to do so. They decided they would enter homes under the pretext of conducting a survey, rob the owners, steal their credit cards and atm information, and then kill the victims. Their first three attempts to enter homes were denied, but Half allowed the boys into the Zantop home on January 27. Half and Susanne were stabbed to death and about $340 was stolen. The boys fled the scene, but left behind knife sheaths and boot prints. Police were able to trace the knives back to Parker and the boot prints back to Tulloch. Parker testified against Tulloch in exchange for a reduced sentence and pleading guilty to second degree murder. Tulloch was sentenced to life in prison without the possibility of parole and Parker was sentenced to 25 years with a possibility of parole after 16 years. Parker has been released on Parole as of 2024. Tulloch's sentencing is being reviewed in July 2024, as he was a minor when he was sentenced to life in prison. Half and Susanne were well liked and respected professors at Dartmouth college. They are survived by their two daughters. | ||
291 | 288 | Mark van Dongen | 6/15/2025 | 0:41:24 | Holly Boyd | Holly Boyd | 4.08 | 13 | Solved | September 22, 2015 | England | Bristol | 1 | Mark van Dongen | 28 | M | Berlinah Wallace | 45 | F | Acid Attack | Sulphuric Acid | Jealousy over ended relationship | Mark van Dongen started dating Berlinah Wallace, a woman nearly 20 years his senior, in 2010 when he was 23. The relationship broke down in August 2015 and Mark began to see someone else. Wallace bought a one litre bottle of 98% sulphuric acid nline and started researching acid attacks. On the evening of September 22, Mark stayed the night at Wallace's flat. In the early hours of the morning, he woke to her laughing, throwing the acid on him, and saying "if I can't have you, no one else will." He spent the following four months in a coma, had his leg amputated, and was paralyzed from the neck down. The severity of the attack and his injuries led Mark to opt for a euthanasia, which was completed on January 2, 2017. In 2018, Berlinah Wallace was given a life sentence with the possibility of parole after 12 years. She was not found guilty of murder, but was found guilty of the premeditated and evil attack. | |||
292 | 289 | Stephen & Carol Baxter | 6/22/2024 | 1:07:10 | Milly Raso | Milly Raso | 4.20 | 5 | Solved | April 7, 2023 | England | Essex | West Mersea | 2 | Carol Baxter, Stephen Baxter | 64, 61 | F, M | Luke D'Wit | 34 | M | Murder | Poisoning | Financial gain, theft of business | The Baxters first met Luke D'Wit around 2012-2013, when he was asked to help build a website for the couple's business. They continued the acquaintance, became friendlier, and over time, the Baxters even came to trust D'Wit with helping them with their medication. D'Wit created fake personas to manipulate and confuse the Baxters (mostly Carol), who had serious chronic health conditions. In April of 2023, D'Wit killed the couple by lacing their medication with fentanyl. He then amended their will to name himself as the director of the couple's company. D'Wit was given a life sentence with a minimum of 37 years for the crime. | ||
293 | 290 | The Crawford Family | 6/29/2024 | 1:02:25 | Vikki Petraitis | Vikki Petraitis | 3.17 | 6 | Solved (ongoing) | July 1-2, 1970 | Australia | Victoria | Glenroy | 4 | Therese Crawford, Katherine Crawford, James Crawford, Karen Crawford | 35, 12, 8, 6 | F, M | Elmer Kyle Crawford | 40 | M | Murder | Bludgeoning, electrocution | Possible financial gain or rage | This case is technically unsolved as the prime suspect has not been found since the murders occurred, but husband Elmer Crawford is the likely culprit in this case. A coroner's inquest in 1971 found that Elmer was responsible for the murders. In the weeks before the murders, the Crawford parents drafted new wills that left a considerable fortune to Elmer in the event of his family's death. The motivation for the murders could possibly come from Therese being pregnant and her mental state at the time or a potential theft by Elmer at his job. Elmer constructed an electrocution device and attached it to his wife's ears while she slept, electrocuting her. He also electrocuted Katherine and James, but bludgeoned Karen to death with what was likely a hammer. He loaded the bodies into the family car, drove 200 km to Port Campbell, and pushed the car over the cliff edge. This was all in an attempt to frame Therese to make it look like a murder-suicide. Elmer has not been seen since the day of the crashed car's discovery, when he was spotted in his driveway. Potential sighting ocurred in 1994 in Western Australia and 2010 in Texas, USA, but the latter was ruled out by DNA. A $100,000 reward for the whereabouts of Elmer still stands. | ||
294 | 291 | David Pauley, Ralph Geiger, & Timothy Kern | 7/6/2024 | 1:16:08 | Erin Munro | Erin Munro | 3.80 | 5 | Solved | 2011 | USA | Ohio | Akron | 3 | David Pauley, Ralph Geiger, Timothy Kern | 51, 56, 47 | M | Richard Beasley, Brogan Rafferty | 53, 16 | M | Murder | Shooting | Theft of possessions and identity | Richard Beasley was wanted by authorities after suspicions arose that the halfway house he ran in Akron, OH, was actually a front for a brothel. In an attempt to get away and live a life on the run, Richard started luring vulnerable, single, middle-aged white men to isolated areas using craigslist job ads, where he and his 16-year-old accomplice, Brogan Rafferty, would rob, kill, and bury the victims. Their plans proceeded successfully for three victims, but the fourth (Scott Davis) managed to escape and report his experience to police. Beasley was ultimately sentenced to death. Rafferty was tried as an adult and sentenced to life in prison. | ||
295 | 292 | Monster of the Andes | 7/13/2024 | 0:51:19 | Holly Boyd | Holly Boyd | 4.00 | 3 | Solved (ongoing) | 1969-1980 | Colombia | 110+ | F | Pedro López | 21-31 | M | Murder, rape | Strangulation | Note: This serial killer was born in Colombia, but his crime spree spans across Colombia, Ecuador, Peru, and potentially any countries he has been in since being released in 1998. Pedro López was born into a difficult life, being assaulted and raped himself multiple times during his childhood and teenage years. He became involved in street gangs and went to prison multiple times. His hard life seems to be the motivation for his murders, as he reportedly said "I lost my innocence at the age of eight so I decided to do the same to as many girls as I could." He claimed to have murdered over 200 in Ecuador, tens in Peru, and many more in Colombia. After he was captured and confessed to Ecuadorian police, he directed authorities to bodies of 53 victims and his confessions led to the confirmation of a total of 110 in Ecuador. He was sentenced to the maximum prison sentence available in Ecuador at the time, 16 years. He was released two years early on good behavior in 1994 and deported back to Colombia, but Colombia prosecutors were not able to make a case against him. He was declared insane and admitted to a mental hospital. However, he was declared sane and released from the hospital on a $70 bail in 1998. He had the condition that he would report to the authorities periodically, but he immediately absconded. The last reported sighting of Pedro López was in 1999. There are warrants out for his arrest and more murders matching his modus operandi have occurred in Colombia since his release. |
A | B | C | D | E | F | G | H | I | J | K | L | M | N | O | |
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
1 | Country of Crime | AVERAGE of Rating | COUNTA of Rating | Solved or Unsolved | AVERAGE of Rating | COUNTA of Rating | Gender of Perpetrator | AVERAGE of Rating | COUNTA of Rating | Written by | AVERAGE of Rating | COUNTA of Rating | |||
2 | Aruba | 4.09 | 1 | Solved | 3.89 | 192 | F | 3.94 | 24 | Alyssa Fletcher, Elsha McGill, Milly Raso | 3.96 | 2 | |||
3 | Atlantic Ocean | 3.73 | 1 | Solved (ongoing) | 3.90 | 9 | F, M | 3.99 | 24 | Anna Priestland | 3.93 | 14 | |||
4 | Australia | 3.88 | 78 | Unsolved | 3.72 | 43 | M | 3.87 | 164 | Anna Priestland, Bonnie Lavelle Robinson | 3.87 | 1 | |||
5 | Austria | 4.13 | 1 | Unsolved (ongoing) | 3.82 | 10 | Unknown | 3.70 | 42 | Anonymous Host | 3.79 | 38 | |||
6 | Brazil | 3.57 | 1 | Grand Total | 3.86 | 254 | Grand Total | 3.86 | 254 | Anonymous Host, Anna Priestland | 4.19 | 2 | |||
7 | Canada | 4.06 | 7 | Anonymous Host, Victoria Dieffenbacher | 4.06 | 10 | |||||||||
8 | Croatia | 4.18 | 1 | Number of Victims | AVERAGE of Rating | COUNTA of Rating | Catherine Seccombe | 3.81 | 1 | ||||||
9 | Curacao | 4.11 | 1 | 3.69 | 7 | Eileen Ormsby | 3.75 | 18 | |||||||
10 | Czech Republic | 4.11 | 1 | 0 | 3.69 | 2 | Elsha McGill | 3.86 | 41 | ||||||
11 | England | 3.92 | 24 | 1 | 3.86 | 123 | Elsha McGill, Milly Raso | 4.26 | 2 | ||||||
12 | Finland | 4.14 | 1 | 2 | 3.79 | 50 | Elsha McGill, Milly Raso, Victoria Dieffenbacher | 4.14 | 2 | ||||||
13 | France | 3.82 | 3 | 3 | 3.92 | 20 | Gender of Victim | AVERAGE of Rating | COUNTA of Rating | Elsha McGill, Erin Munro | 4.13 | 1 | |||
14 | Germany | 3.76 | 7 | 4 | 3.91 | 12 | 3.86 | 5 | Elsha McGill, Erin Munro, Jessica Forsayeth, Milly Raso | 3.58 | 1 | ||||
15 | Guyana | 4.49 | 1 | 5 | 3.93 | 9 | F | 3.88 | 128 | Elsha McGill, Erin Munro, Milly Raso | 4.08 | 3 | |||
16 | Iceland | 3.21 | 1 | 6 | 3.87 | 4 | F, F | 3.80 | 1 | Elsha McGill, Flossie Arend, Milly Raso | 3.59 | 1 | |||
17 | India | 3.65 | 1 | 7 | 4.26 | 4 | F, M | 3.95 | 61 | Elsha McGill, Gemma Harris, and Milly Raso | 4.01 | 1 | |||
18 | Iraq | 4.23 | 1 | 8 | 3.62 | 3 | M | 3.74 | 54 | Elsha McGill, Milly Raso | 3.96 | 5 | |||
19 | Ireland | 3.50 | 2 | 10 | 3.47 | 1 | M, F | 3.64 | 5 | Erin Munro | 3.82 | 35 | |||
20 | Italy | 3.83 | 4 | 11 | 3.46 | 3 | Grand Total | 3.86 | 254 | Erin Munro, Milly Raso | 3.99 | 2 | |||
21 | Japan | 3.83 | 3 | 12 | 4.35 | 2 | Gemma Harris | 3.97 | 2 | ||||||
22 | Macedonia | 3.71 | 1 | 13 | 4.51 | 3 | Holly Boyd | 3.50 | 9 | ||||||
23 | Malaysia | 3.97 | 1 | 17 | 4.21 | 1 | Jessica Forsayeth | 3.82 | 29 | ||||||
24 | Mexico | 3.36 | 3 | 32 | 3.93 | 1 | Milly Raso | 4.00 | 23 | ||||||
25 | New Zealand | 3.76 | 3 | 35 | 4.40 | 1 | Milly Raso, Erin Munro | 3.74 | 1 | ||||||
26 | Poland | 3.59 | 3 | 71 | 3.57 | 1 | Milly Raso, Nicolas Deliez | 3.83 | 1 | ||||||
27 | Portugal | 3.72 | 1 | 918 | 4.49 | 1 | Milly Raso, Tayla Vos | 3.87 | 2 | ||||||
28 | Scotland | 3.66 | 3 | 2-16 | 3.66 | 1 | Rick Best | 3.48 | 1 | ||||||
29 | South Africa | 3.95 | 2 | 110-125 | 3.94 | 1 | Unknown | 3.60 | 1 | ||||||
30 | Soviet Union | 4.08 | 1 | 12-15 | 4.12 | 2 | Victoria Dieffenbacher | 4.22 | 5 | ||||||
31 | Spain | 3.61 | 1 | 16+ | 2.90 | 1 | Grand Total | 3.86 | 254 | ||||||
32 | Sweden | 3.37 | 2 | 30+ | 3.35 | 1 | |||||||||
33 | Switzerland | 4.07 | 1 | Grand Total | 3.86 | 254 | |||||||||
34 | Thailand | 3.58 | 1 | ||||||||||||
35 | Ukraine | 3.93 | 1 | ||||||||||||
36 | USA | 3.87 | 88 | ||||||||||||
37 | Vietnam | 2.71 | 1 | ||||||||||||
38 | Wales | 3.88 | 1 | ||||||||||||
39 | Grand Total | 3.86 | 254 |