Uncorked Crime

When Andrei Chikatilo was 42 years old, he was no longer able to contain his dark urges. He assaulted and murdered his first victim, 9 year old Yelena Zakotniva. Unfortunately, another man was wrongly convicted and executed for the crime. Over the next 12 years, Andrei would murder over 50 victims. He was arrested at the age of 54 and after days of interrogation, he finally confessed. Was Andrei Chikatilo insane, or would the court find him guilty and finally serve justice for all of his victims?

Andrei Chikatilo was born in the Ukraine in 1936, in the midst of a famine. His father was sent off to war and his mother was tough on him as a child. He was shy, socially awkward, and to his embarrassment, impotent. He would go on to marry a woman and have two children, but there were always dark urges within himself that he was trying and failing to contain.

Amelia and Adam Wright's marriage is failing. As they near another anniversary, they win a trip for two in an old chapel in Scotland. But this win wasn't random, it was planned. Amelia and Adam are hiding secrets from each other, and neither is the person the other thinks they are. Who sent them on this getaway? Will they make it out together, let alone alive?

On December 7,2001, 31-year-old Janine Vaughn went out for drinks and dancing with a couple of her friends. When they left the club around 3am, her friends were arguing and Janine was upset that she had lost her handbag. She walked ahead of her friends and CCTV footage shows her getting into a red car. Janine was never seen again. Who was driving that car, and what did they do with Janine?

On August 5, 1982, in New Mexico, Father Reynaldo Rivera received a phone call from a man asking the priest to come give his dying grandfather his last rites. Father Rivera's body was found three days later. He had been shot and strangled, possibly with a wire hanger. On July 20, 1984, Father John Kerrigan left a bakery in Montana. Nine days later, his clothes were found along with a wire coat hanger. Both were covered in blood. Were the two murders related, were there other priests murdered by the same assailant, and would any of them ever be solved?

On September 14th, 1971, 16 year old Cathy Moulton was dropped off in downtown Portland, Maine to do a little shopping. She visited a friend before making the walk back home. Unfortunately, she would never make it there. Cathy's disappearance would go cold quickly, with no new leads of where she might be. Twenty four years later, a new detective on the case was able to track down where Cathy went from Portland, but that trail ended before Cathy or her body were found. What happened to Cathy Moulton that afternoon? Will her family ever get an answer? 

In June in 1981, Minnesota police received a phone call from a man crying, saying he had killed someone and begged police to find him so he wouldn't have to kill again. Police were unable to track him. A year later, the same man called for an ambulance after getting into a physical altercation with a woman who he had planned to murder. Paul Stephani was picked up and connected to the phone call made the year before. How many innocent women had Paul murdered, and what drove him to murder them in such a gruesome manner?

In 1979, Sue Sharp left her husband and moved her five kids to cabin 28 in Keddie, California. Two years later, Sue, her eldest son, and his friend, Dana, were found murdered inside the cabin. Her youngest daughter, Tina, was nowhere to be found. The case would go cold until three years later when Tina's remains were finally discovered. Who murdered the three found in cabin 28 and why did they take Tina when they left? Would justice ever be served for Dana and the Sharp family?

Today's episode is a special one because it's our 100TH EPISODE! We couldn't have made it here without all of our listeners and supporters, so to show our thanks we're giving you two stories today. First, Kelli shares the story of one the worst child killers in America's history, Albert Fish. Albert claims to have tortured and murdered hundreds of children, and while only three of those murders were proven, they were three of the most gruesome crimes against children. Then, Amelia tells us the history of one of America's most haunted hotels, the Crescent Hotel. Norman Baker bought the run down hotel in 1937 and turned it into a hospital. After being sent to prison for mail fraud, the hospital was left abandoned for years. It's now a fully functioning hotel and spa, but you may run into a ghost or two during your stay.

In July 2012, 16 year old Skylar Neese disappeared from the apartment she lived in with her family. Six months later, one of Skylar's best friends, Rachel Shoaf, could no longer stand the guilt and confessed to murdering Skylar with the help of her other best friend, Shelia Eddy. Rachel then led police to Skylar's body, confirming what they had done. What drove the two teenage girls to plot and murder what everyone thought was their best friend?

In November of 1949, 24 year old Timothy Evans informed the UK police that his wife, Beryl, had died and he had disposed of her body in a sewer drain. Then he told them his neighbor, John Christie, had actually murdered his wife. The bodies of Beryl and her 13 month old were found on the property, and Timothy was executed for the murder of their daughter. Four years later, several other bodies were found on the property and it was discovered that John Christie had murdered several women over the years. Was Timothy wrongfully executed for murder, and would justice ever truly be served for all of the victims?

Jennifer Pan's parents set very high expectations for her, so when her grades began slipping in highschool, she forged her report cards to show perfect grades. She would then go on to lie about attending college and employment. Her parents soon caught on and forbade her from leaving their home, except to go to work, which they tracked. Until November 2010, when two armed men barged into the Pan family home and shot her parents. Her mother didn't survive, but her dad did. Was this a random act of violence, or was this part of a scheme put together by Jennifer herself?

In the early morning hours of June 6, 1996, 26 year old Darlie Routier called 911 claiming a man broke into her family's home, stabbed two of her sons and tried to slit her throat before running out of the home. Her husband was asleep in the other room with their 7 month old son. However, Darlie's claims of the attack and the evidence at the crime scene didn't seem to add up. Darlie would soon be found guilty of the murder of one of her sons, but was she really the murderer? And if she wasn't, who was?

In March of 1905, Jeanna Weber's sister in law left her two children in Jeanna's care for a few hours.  When she returned, only one of her children was alive. A week later, her second child died while in the care of Jeanna. By January of 1906, Jeanna was on trial for murdering eight children, including her own son, but she was acquitted on all charges. Within 2 years, she would be back on trial for murdering another two children. Would Jeanna finally be found guilty and put behind bars before she could murder again?

Theresa Knorr lost her mother at a young age and was never quite the same after. By the time she was 30, Theresa was a widow, had been divorced three times, and had six children with three different men. She then began taking her anger out on her children, even killing two of her own daughters within a year. Theresa went into hiding and it appeared she would get away with her evil crimes. Nine years later, Theresa's youngest daughter took action and finally brought justice to her two murdered sisters.

On August 3, 1930, Judge Joseph F Carter left Maine, where he had been vacationing with his wife, to return to New York City for a week for work. Three days later, Joseph got dinner with his lawyer and another woman. He left the restaurant alone and was never seen or heard from again. He would eventually become known as one of the most mysterious missing person cases of the 20th century. Did Joseph choose to disappear on his own, or did something more sinister happen to him?

On February 14, 2013, Oscar Pistorius, professional sprinter and six time Paralympic gold medal winner, shot into the locked bathroom in his home. The shots fatally wounded his 29 year old girlfriend, Reeva Steenkamp. Oscar claims he believed an intruder had gotten into his home and was hiding in the bathroom. Was the killing of Reeva an accidental one, or was there more to the story that Oscar wasn't sharing?

It's our first listener story episode of 2022.. Finally! Thank you to all who shared your stories with us! We've had plenty of time to gather up some good ones for you guys, and we've got quite the mix. There are ghosts (duh), haunted forests gone wrong, and a good friend turned murderer… Grab your blankets and listen in as we tell some chilling and troubling stories shared to us by you.

When Maggie Holt was 5 years old, she and her parents fled from their new home in the middle of the night, claiming it was haunted. Maggie wouldn't return to the home until after her father passed away and the house was left to her. She never believed her fathers claims of the house being haunted, but after a few nights she begins to think maybe she was wrong. Was the house actually haunted by spirits of past residents, or were there bigger secrets hidden beneath those claims?

Channon Christian and her boyfriend, Chris Newsom were kidnapped in their own vehicle on January 6, 2007. The two were taken to a house where they both raped and tortured, and ultimately murdered. Five individuals would be arrested and tried for the crimes committed. They would all be convicted, but were their sentences harsh enough for the amount of pain and suffering they caused Channon and Chris, and their families?

During Paula Welden's sophomore year in college, she decided to finally venture out and explore North Bennington's portion of the Long Trail in Vermont. She set out on the afternoon of December 1, 1946, and would never be seen again. Her body has not been found to this day, and no evidence or leads have come to light. However, she wasn't the first or last person to go missing without a trace in the area, leading to it being nicknamed the Bennington Triangle.

On March 10, 1928, nine year old Walter Collins left home and headed to the movie theatre. He never returned back home. Five months later, his mother brought home a boy claiming to be Walter. It didn't take long for her to realize this boy wasn't her son. Then another woman claimed to have helped her son murder Walter. Who was this boy, who did this woman murder, and what really happened to Walter Collins?

At the age of 16, Scott Kologi was known as a very happy and nice kid, with parents and siblings that were very close and supportive of each other. Until New Year's Eve in 2017. Scott went upstairs, loaded a gun, and waited for his mom to come looking for him. When she did, he shot her and then went on to shoot his dad, sister, and grandma. His grandfather and brother survived the shooting rampage, but their lives would never be the same again. What drove Scott to want to kill his family, and could anyone have seen this coming?

In 2010, 15 year old Kristy Bamu went to visit his sister, Magalie, and her boyfriend, Eric, for Christmas. His two sisters went with him and they were all so excited to spend time with Magalie. Shortly after arriving however, the couple accused the siblings of bringing witchcraft into their home and they aggressively attempted an exorcism. On Christmas Day, after days of torture, Kristy passed away. Would justice be served for Kristy's death and the abuse he and his sisters endured?

Marvallous Keene and his girlfriend, Laura Taylor, were in need of cash on Christmas Eve 1992 and had the idea of robbing a man. It turned into more than a robbery when the two decided to murder the man. The couple then met up with two more friends, DeMarcus Smith and Heather Matthews. By the afternoon of December 26th, the four would be arrested on a handful of charges, including multiple murders.

On December 24, 2002, Jean Wholaver, and her two daughters, 20 year old Victoria and 15 year old Elizabeth were found brutally murdered in their family home. In the crook of Victoria's arms was her nine month old daughter, Maddison, mercifully still alive. Eventually, police were led to Jean's ex husband, Ernest Whoalver as their main suspect. Ernest claimed to be at the home around the time of the murders, but said he was not the one to murder his family. His brother however had a different story of what happened that night.

In December of 2000, Reginald and Jonathan Carr traveled to Wichita, Kansas and began what would end up being a week-long spree of horrible crimes. The brothers began with kidnapping and robbing, but by the end of the week, their crimes got much more brutal. Six victims would be shot, only one of them surviving. After the brothers were caught, this survivor would play a major role in putting the two men in prison for the rest of their lives.

On November 26, Paul Merhige showed up at his cousin's house for Thanksgiving dinner. By the age of 35, Paul had distanced himself from family and friends, so his family was surprised to see him that day. A few hours later, Paul went outside to his car and came back in the house with a gun. He shot at multiple family members, killing his twin sisters, their aunt, and their cousin's 7 year old daughter. What drove Paul away from his family and to then try to murder them all?

After Vernon Howell gained possession of the Mount Carmel Center, the headquarters for the original Branch Davidians, he began taking multiple wives, not all of them of legal age, and began reproducing in order to create the next “Army of God.” However, when police found out about the illegal marriages, as well as illegal gun possession, they planned a raid of Mount Carmel. The raid would last 51 days, take a total of 86 lives, end in fire, and would later be known as the Waco Siege.

In 1955, Benjamin Roden claimed that he received a calling from the Lord telling him to create his own religious group. He followed this calling and founded The Branch Davidian Seventh-day Adventist Associate, better known as The Branch. Although harmless, this religious group would quickly become a cult. After Benjamin's death in 1978, a man named Vernon Howell joined the cult. His beliefs were not as harmless as Benjamin's, and things would soon take a turn for the worse for The Branch Davidians.

Omaima Nelson was born in 1968 in Egypt and at the age of 18, she met an American oil worker, married him, and moved to the US. The marriage wouldn't last long, but Omaima would soon remarry a man named William Nelson. A month later, in November of 1991, William hadn't been heard from in days and hadn't shown up for work that Monday. That day, Omaima was stopped by police and trash bags full of body parts were found in her car. Omaima had murdered her husband of 30 days, but what was her reasoning, and where was the rest of his body?

On October 31, 1974, Ronald O'Bryan took his two children, 8 year old Timothy and 5 year old Elizabeth, trick-or-treating. Shortly after arriving back home, Timothy ate a piece of candy he had received and within minutes was throwing up and convulsing. Timothy had been poisoned and unfortunately wouldn't survive the night. Police immediately searched the neighborhood trying to find who gave Timothy the poisoned candy. Little did they know, the murderer was already right in front of them.

For this spooky season episode, we not only have a special guest, we also got to sit back and listen as she told us a story! The Purple Gang started as a street gang in Detroit's lower eastside during the WWI years. When the prohibition era began, the gang had grown in size. The gang members not only participated in illegal liquor trade, but violence, harassment, murder, and posisbly kidnapping. But this story doesn't only have crime, it has ghost stories and many ties to locations in our home state of Michigan too. Thank you to our mother for putting in the time and research, and for telling us such a great story!

Jack Unterweger committed his first murder at only 18 years old in Austria. He was caught, arrested, and sent to prison. After serving 15 years, during which he taught himself to read and write, he was released and had become a well known and respected writer. Jack was sent to the US to report on crime in LA and the stories he covered were murders he himself committed. Police would eventually have enough evidence against him, but by then he and his girlfriend were on the run. Just how many murders did Jack commit, and would he be caught and sent back to prison before he could do it again?

Bryn Harper suffers smoke filled nightmares after being involved in a car accident that the driver unfortunately didn't survive. After a caterer she and her husband hired and her husband's assistant were both brutally murdered, Bryn begins feeling watched, taunted, and lied to. As Bryn tries to connect the dots and figure out who is murdering these women, she finds herself next on the murderers list. Who was committing these murders, and how could Bryn, her nightmares, and what happened the night of the car accident help her survive this mess?

In 1968, when Anneliese Michel was only 16 she suffered a severe convulsion, leading to doctors prescribing her anti-convlsion drugs, among others. Over the next few years, Anneliese would report seeing the face of the devil and hearing voices, and she would refuse to go near any religious items. Her behaviors got worse and a priest was called in. After 67 exorcism sessions, Anneliese was found dead in her bed. Was Anneliese truly possessed by multiple demons, or did the priest put her through things she couldn't possibly survive?

Welcome to our first Spooky Season episode of 2021! We're starting this month off talking about the Wyrick family. When Heidi Wyrick was just three years old, she had an encounter with her first ghost. Over the years, she would meet many other ghosts and spirits, but not all were friendly. She saw a dark figure in the family home when she was seven, and shortly after members of the family started waking up with three scratch marks on their bodies. Would these ghosts and spirits ever let the family, especially Heidi, live in peace, or would they follow Heidi as she grew up and tried to live a normal life?

On January 14, 1963, Daisy Zick didn't show up to a coffee date planned with a friend or her shift at Kellogg's later that morning. Her husband Floyd went home right away to check on her and found her stabbed to death in their guest room. Her car was found abandoned a mile away from their home. With little evidence and no leads, Daisy's murder would go cold quick. Family, friends, lovers, and co workers would all be questioned, rumors would spread, and police would receive many tips. Would Daisy's murderer ever be found and brought to justice?

On July 5, 2017 Jimi Patrick went missing. On July 7, Dean Finocchiaro, Mark Sturgis, and Thomas Mio went missing. All four boys went missing in Bucks County, Pennsylvania and all four had plans to meet up with local drug dealer Cosmo DiNardo. Just five days later, Cosmo would confess to murdering the four boys with the help of his second cousin, Sean Kratz. Cosmo seemed to be an all around good kid until these sudden and horrible murders. What caused Cosmo to snap, and could those four boys have been spared if someone had been paying closer attention to Cosmo's behaviors?

On September 13, 2016 the Ashland County police department in Ohio received a phone call from a woman saying she had been kidnapped, and she was calling from her kidnappers phone. They were able to get her out safe and capture her kidnapper, Shawn Grate. Two dead bodies were found in the house, but Shawn would admit to killing more than just those two. Who were the women Shawn murdered, and what led him to commit these horrible crimes?

William List built a mansion on Toddville Road in Seabrook that actually looked more like a prison. William took in four boys who had been living on the streets and provided them with a home, food, alcohol, and drugs. In October 1984, the four boys trashed the mansion and one of them shot William dead when he arrived back home. The boys fled the scene with William's car and credit cards, but would be caught just days later. What drove the boys to plot revenge against William List?

After playing another round of Escape the Crate, Speakeasy style this time, we figured it was a great time to do our next favorite thing - tell you guys some creepy listener stories. We've got a haunted school, a possible serial killer spotting, a gorey death, and of course, murder. Amelia might have gotten too creeped out by some of these stories, so you have been warned. Thank you to all that shared your creepy and spooky stories with us!

On October 8, 2009, Bobby and Sherilyn Jamison, along with their six year old daughter Madyson, left home to look at a lot in the mountains they were considering buying. The family truck was found abandoned 8 days later, with no signs of the family members. Four years later, the bodies were discovered just three miles away. The circumstances surrounding their disappearance and deaths remains a mystery, but the family's history and the events leading up to that fateful day have resulted in many different theories.

On November 25, 1988, 17 year old Junko Furuta was on her way home from work when she was kicked off her bike. A boy classmate, Hiroshi Miyano, saw Junko fall and offered to walk her home. However, Junko's friends and family would never see her alive again. Hiroshi would take Junko to his friend Shinji Minato's house. The two boys, along with two other friends, would spend the next 44 days beating, torturing, and raping Junko to the point of murderering her. The boys confessed to their crimes, but what was the reasoning and would justice truly be served for their horrible crimes?

In the early morning hours of September 5, 1982, 12 year old Johnny Gosch left his family home with their dog, Gretchen, to complete his morning paper route. Not long after he left the house, Gretchen returned home alone and Johnny's wagon was found still full of newspapers just two blocks from his home. Johnny Gosch has not been seen since. Police assumed he ran away, but his mother believes he was kidnapped and sold to an underground prostitution ring. Would the truth about what happened that fateful morning and Johnny's whereabouts ever come to light?

Autumn Carpenter finds the social media account of the family that adopted her daughter, Grace, and she becomes obsessed with following their picture perfect life. When the account suddenly closes, Autumn applies to work as a nanny for the family, hiding her identity as Grace's birth mother. Once inside the family home, she starts to realize the family's life isn't at all as it seemed online. Listen in as we review Minka Kent's The Memory Watch, including all the twists and turns and the ending we never saw coming.

On July 27, 1981, six year old Adam Walsh went to Sears with his mother in Hollywood, Florida. She left him playing with a group of other boys while she shopped, but when she returned Adam was nowhere to be found. Two weeks later, after no leads, Adam's severed head was found in a drainage canal over 130 miles away from Hollywood. Adam's cause of death would be ruled asphyxiation, but would police and investigators be able to find the person responsible for Adam's kidnapping and murder?

In 1965, David Brandt Berg received a “Warning Prophecy” from his mother that stated he had a special destiny and mission from god, and that his life was directly linked to the last 7 seven years of the world. David took this as his calling to start his own religious organization. It started as the Teens of Christ and transformed into what is today known as The Family International. In the second episode of this two part story, we dive into what was really going on within this cult. From the strict rules and crazy beliefs, to the sexual tactics the group used to recruit new members.

In 1965, David Brandt Berg received a “Warning Prophecy” from his mother that stated he had a special destiny and mission from god, and that his life was directly linked to the last 7 seven years of the world. David took this as his calling to start his own religious organization. It started as the Teens of Christ and transformed into what is today known as The Family International. In the first episode of this two part story, we look at David's life, the start of his religious organization, and this history of what turned into one of the creepiest modern day sex cults.

On November 12, 1998, 23 year old college student, Katarzyna Zowada, had plans to meet her mother at a psychiatric clinic in Kracow, Poland where Katarzyna was being treated for depression. But Katarzyna never showed up. Almost two months later, a piece of human skin and a human leg were found in the Vistula river and were both determined to belong to Katarzyna. With little to no evidence, investigators spent years trying to track down her murderer. Then in 2017, an arrest would finally be made. But would there be enough evidence to prove this man murdered Katarzyna?

Fred and Delle Albright adopted Charles Albright when he was just three weeks old. Delle was strict and overprotective, but encouraged Charles' interest and hobbies, including taxidermy. Charles' favorite part was the fake eyes, but Delle was never able to afford them. Charles was never able to hold a job for long and after his divorce, he began picking up prostitutes. Years later, three prostitutes would be found murdered, their eyes perfectly removed. Charles claimed he didn't know the women, but hairs found on the bodies suggested otherwise. Would these hair samples be enough to convict Charles of these horrible murders?