On a cold night in December 1979, 18-year-old high school senior Michelle Martinko attended a choir banquet, stopped by the brand-new Westdale Mall in Cedar Rapids, Iowa — and never came home. The next morning, her body was found in her family’s Buick, parked in a quiet corner of the mall lot. She had been stabbed nearly 30 times in what investigators described as a “personal” and “frenzied” attack. There were no signs of robbery or sexual assault.

For nearly 40 years, her murder remained unsolved. But thanks to breakthroughs in forensic genealogy, a discarded straw, and tireless cold-case work, justice finally caught up with her killer — on the very same date the crime took place.

In this episode, we explore Michelle’s life, the night she was killed, the investigation that spanned decades, and how a small trace of blood ultimately helped close one of Iowa’s most haunting cold cases.

#TrueCrime #MichelleMartinko #GeneticGenealogy

In the early morning hours of December 18, 2013, 20-year-old Heather Elvis vanished from Myrtle Beach, South Carolina. Just hours earlier, she’d gone on a first date, sent a cheerful selfie, and talked about starting fresh after ending an affair with a married man.

But by dawn, her car was found abandoned at a remote riverside boat landing — her phone, keys, and purse gone. Heather herself? Missing without a trace.

This episode unpacks the tangled web of secrets, surveillance footage, payphone calls, and jealousy that followed. It also explores the convictions of Sidney and Tammy Moorer for her kidnapping — and the lingering mystery that still haunts Heather’s family and community to this day.

More than a decade later, her loved ones are still asking the same question: Where is Heather?

#HeatherElvis #MissingPerson #sidneymoorer #tammymoorer

On this day in 1968, 20-year-old college student Barbara Jane Mackle was kidnapped at gunpoint from a Georgia motel room and buried alive in a homemade underground box. For more than 83 hours, she lay trapped beneath the soil while her kidnappers demanded a $500,000 ransom and the FBI raced against time to find her.

In today’s episode, host Kona Gallagher walks through the harrowing details of one of the most infamous kidnappings in American history — a case that led to the first woman ever placed on the FBI’s Ten Most Wanted list, and that still captivates the public over half a century later.

#BarbaraMackle #BuriedAlive #CrimeHistory

On December 16, 1978, 15-year-old Kerry Graham and 14-year-old Francine “Francie” Trimble walked out of their homes in Forestville, California — and vanished. For decades, their families searched for answers, while two unidentified bodies found in Mendocino County sat in separate cold case files. It wasn’t until 2015 that DNA evidence brought the truth to light: the missing girls and the unidentified victims were one and the same.

In this episode, we walk through the timeline of their disappearance, the decades-long misidentification, and the ongoing mystery behind their unsolved double homicide. It’s a story of loss, systemic failure, and the enduring hope for justice.

#TrueCrime #UnsolvedMystery #KerryGraham #FrancineTrimble

On this day in 1927, 12-year-old Marion Parker was abducted from her Los Angeles junior high school by a man posing as a messenger from her father. Within 48 hours, her disappearance turned into one of the most horrific ransom cases in American history — a story of deception, cruelty, and unimaginable loss.

In today’s episode, host Kona Gallagher recounts the chilling case of Marion Parker and William Edward Hickman — a man who used familiarity and trust to lure a child, then orchestrated one of the most grotesque crimes of the era. From the schoolyard abduction to the heartbreaking ransom exchange and national manhunt that followed, we explore the crime that shocked a city and left an indelible mark on American legal and cultural history.

#MarionParker #kidnapping #crimehistory

On this day in 2020, 21-year-old Jason Landry was officially reported missing—just hours after his crashed car was discovered on a rural Texas road with no sign of the driver.

The Texas State University student had been heading home to Missouri City for winter break when he vanished along Salt Flat Road near Luling. His phone, wallet, backpack, and even his clothing were left behind. But Jason was gone—and despite extensive searches, no trace has ever been found.

In this episode, we walk through the haunting details of that night, the investigation that followed, and the theories—ranging from hypothermia to foul play—that continue to stir debate. We also examine the toll on Jason’s family and the many questions that remain unanswered three years later.

#TrueCrime #MissingPerson #JasonLandry

On this day in 2000, seven men executed one of the most shocking and well-coordinated prison escapes in American history. Known as the Texas Seven, the group walked out of a maximum-security facility in Kenedy, Texas — not in chaos, but with chilling precision.

Their escape from the John B. Connally Unit set off a nationwide manhunt and led to a violent crime spree that culminated in the murder of Irving police officer Aubrey Hawkins on Christmas Eve.

This episode revisits the escape, the elaborate planning behind it, the devastating aftermath, and the continuing legal reverberations — including recent developments in 2024.

#TrueCrime #TexasSeven #AubreyHawkins #PrisonEscape

On a cold afternoon in 1910, 25-year-old Dorothy Arnold — an heiress, aspiring writer, and socialite — left her family’s Upper East Side home for what should have been a simple shopping trip. She bought chocolates. She picked up a book. She ran into a friend on Fifth Avenue.

And then, she vanished.

More than a century later, Dorothy’s disappearance remains one of New York City’s oldest and most haunting missing-person cases. In this episode, we explore the mysterious final hours of her known life, the secrets uncovered in the aftermath, and the many theories — from elopement to foul play — that still swirl around her case.

#MissingPerson #DorothyArnold #HistoryMystery