Cold Case Murder Mysteries

*Please note: The omitted 911 call has been added. Please delete the episode and download again, if you downloaded the original version without it.* October 12, 2013. 2am. Mark Waugh, Rahul Gupta, and Taylor Gould are caught on surveillance entering the Silver Spring, MD hi-rise where Gupta and Gould share a studio on the 16th floor. They seem in good spirits returning from an alcohol-fueled night of partying celebrating Gupta's 24th birthday. There's no sign of distress, an argument, or anything similar. But within an hour, one of them will be dead, the victim of a vicious stabbing, and the survivors claim they can't remember who the assailant was. In the end, one of them would walk free, while the other got life in prison. But the question remains... What really happened that night behind closed doors? Join host Ryan Kraus for a psychological investigation into the narrative surrounding the death of Mark Waugh in an attempt to uncover the truth.

In August 2018, 33-year-old Chris Watts, a young father with a seemingly perfect life, found himself the subject of sensational headlines around the world when he viciously murdered his 34-year-old pregnant wife, Shanann, along with the couple’s daughters, 4-year-old Bella and 3-year-old Celeste. In the aftermath, Watts admitted his wrongdoing, and went to prison for life; however, one question remains: why? Why did he throw it all away? Join host Ryan Kraus for a fascinating journey deep inside the criminal mind of a family annihilator, examining cognitive function, the evolutionary mechanics of thought, relationship dynamics, development of sociopathic behaviors, and more, in an effort to uncover why men kill.

On September 5, 2012, a British family of five on holiday in the French Alps near Lake Annecy decided to go for a scenic drive into the wilderness in search of a nice place to take a walk. Yet, before they could reach their destination, something caused them to pull over into a lay-by on the side of the road, at which point a gunman appeared and opened fire. In the end, four people were dead, including a local cyclist, and another was severely wounded. Unfortunately, the killer escaped without a trace, and the case remains unsolved to this day. So, who would want to murder this family? And why? Or, was the cyclist the intended target, and the family simply got in the way? Join host Ryan Kraus for a psychological exploration of the crime scene and beyond in an effort to learn the truth.

On September 29, 1982, a chain of events began that rendered 7 Chicago-area residents the victims of a sadistic killer who tainted over-the-counter- medications in local pharmacies. It was an incident that not only spread confusion, fear, and paranoia far and wide, but ultimately revolutionized the pharmaceutical industry's safety standards. However, decades later, the crime remains unsolved, and the victims have received no justice. Join host Ryan Kraus for a psychological profile of the perpetrator in an attempt to unveil the evil face lurking in the shadows.

On the night of December 24, 1945, the Sodder family of Fayetteville, WV went to bed in preparation for Christmas the next morning. But as they closed their eyes, they never could have imagined the nightmare that was about to ensue. A fire would break out in the upper level of their home, which contained two bedrooms thought to have held a total of five children at the time, ranging in ages from 5 to 14. Yet, as the remaining family members escaped, and the home burned to the ground, what seemed to be the imminent death of five young people as the result of a vicious arson soon proved to offer no evidence they succumbed in the fire. Despite an endless search for truth, their parents died never knowing what happened that fateful night. Did the kids perish in the fire, or were they already gone? Join host Ryan Kraus for an examination of this enduring mystery in an effort to uncover the truth about the disappearance of the Sodder children.

Sometime during the night of August 7, 1985, a gruesome mass murder took place within the residence located at White House Farm in Essex, England. Homeowners June and Nevill Bamber, 61, were hosting their 28-year-old daughter, Sheila, and her twin sons, Daniel and Nicolas, who were both 6 years old. Sadly, by morning, all of them will have been shot to death. Even more tragically, the crime scene appears to show the incident was a murder-suicide orchestrated by Sheila, who was troubled by severe mental illness, and seemingly on the verge of losing custody of her kids. But the police can feel something isn't right. Living nearby is the Bamber's son Jeremy, whose story appears to have some holes. Soon enough, he finds himself under suspicion, and a controversy ignites about the true identity of the killer. Was it Sheila, motivated by paranoid delusions related to her Schizophrenia, or did Jeremy Bamber have his sights set on inheriting the family estate for himself, and saw Sheila as an easy target for a scapeg

On the afternoon of February 16, 2009, a 70-year-old woman named Sandra Herold called 911 in Stamford, CT to report her 200-lb. chimp, Travis, had gone on a rampage outside her home, and was eating her friend, 55-year-old Charla Nash. The docile primate, who had been raised by humans and socialized among the public, from starring in TV commercials and print advertisements to making special appearances, had never harmed a fly. But something changed. And Travis snapped. The question is why. Join host Ryan Kraus for a psychological exploration of the evolutionary divide between humans and wild animals that leads to these tragedies.

On the evening of September 16, 2009, 24-year-old Mitrice Richardson drove to the beach in Malibu, CA alone to enjoy watching the sunset, after which she stopped at a local restaurant to have a nice dinner. But while there, Mitrice's behavior went from curious to inexplicable, and she soon found herself taken to jail for failure to pay the check. Even though it was apparent to the staff she was suffering from some type of mental health issue, deputies at the scene processed her as being of sound mind. And this would have tragic consequences. Hours later, Mitrice was released from jail, and walked off into the darkness of night through some difficult and dangerous terrain. That was the last anybody saw of her ... until August of 2010, nearly a year later, when park rangers discovered her remains at the base of a steep canyon. But despite locating Mitrice, the body didn't afford the definitive answers everyone was hoping to get regarding her fate. In the aftermath, one looming question remains... Was it a tragi

In the mid-1980s, on the heels of suffering an abusive childhood, a troubled Townsend, MA teen named Daniel LaPlante began a crime spree that terrorized the residents of the local area where he lived. It started as a string of burglaries, but a thirst for greater thrills developed over time, and his antisocial rampage finally ended with the vicious murders of a pregnant woman and her two young children. By the time it was all said and done, LaPlante was not only serving three consecutive life sentences in prison, but had become the subject of great speculation and legend, making himself a regular topic of conversation around campfires and Ouija boards. Join host Ryan Kraus for a psychological exploration of Daniel LaPlante's mysterious, yet terrifying persona to trace his issues back to their roots.

*Please enjoy this free episode from the back catalog of premium episodes available only on coldcasemurdermysteries.com. Please remember to rate/review the podcast with 5 stars, and also hit the “subscribe” button wherever you listen. Doing this allows CCMM to offer more free content.* On the afternoon of December 23, 2012, a Houston, TX woman named Sandra Melgar was discovered bound and trapped inside her bathroom closet, while her husband Jim lay nearby in a pool of blood, the victim of a vicious stabbing. In the aftermath, what initially seemed like a home invasion became a situation where detectives zeroed in on Sandy as the prime suspect. But could this seemingly fragile woman, limited by physical ailments such as two hip replacements and arthritis, really butcher her husband in cold blood? A jury believed so, and convicted Sandy. But did she do it? Join host Ryan Kraus for a psychological journey through the evolutionary implications of the crime scene and beyond in search of the truth.

From 1972 to 1978, infamous serial killer John Wayne Gacy, the "Killer Clown" murdered no fewer than 33 young men and teen boys in his ranch home located in Cook County, IL near Chicago, a truth that came to light when the remains of 29 victims were discovered buried in the crawlspace of his house and elsewhere on the property. It was an atrocity that defied words, and left the investigators, in addition to the general public, wondering how any man could be such a cruel, heartless monster. And as they searched for answers in the cold eyes of the 36-year-old predator, what was lurking beneath in his soul revealed that the story started long before the murders, back when Gacy was just a little boy living under the tyrannical wrath of his abusive, alcoholic father. Join host Ryan Kraus for a journey back in time to explore John Wayne Gacy's childhood inside his father's house of horrors, and how it led to him creating his own one day.

On June 12, 1977, busloads of enthusiastic young campers arrived at rural Camp Scott in Mayes County, OK for a two-week getaway hosted by the Girl Scouts that kicked off the summer season. It should have been the time of their lives, a carefree reprieve from the long school year that preceded it. But when night fell, a predator was revealed lurking in darkness throughout the surrounding woods, stalking them like prey. By morning, three innocent girls would be found dead, victims of a vicious assault that shocked a community, and caused the facility to close its doors forever. While numerous suspects came to light in the aftermath, and one even stood trial, the crime remains unsolved to this day. Join host Ryan Kraus for a psychological evaluation of the killer's action in an attempt to create an accurate profile that will, once and for all, finally put a face to this monster.

On the evening of November 16, 1957, Deputy Sheriff Frank Worden entered a Plainfield, WI hardware store owned by his mother, Bernice, only to discover the woman was missing. After finding blood all over the floor, his initial investigation revealed that the last customer who had purchased something that day was a local man named Ed Gein. Authorities soon learned Bernice had been shot, and her decapitated body was found inside a shed on Gein’s property. But the nightmare was just beginning. When police entered the home, what they saw was nearly unspeakable. Body parts, from bone to skin, had been repurposed for use as common household items such as lampshades, belts, and other accessories. Gein soon admitted to another murder, in addition to dozens of grave robberies intended to exhume women who looked like his deceased mother. He had also sealed off his mother’s bedroom, and turned it into a shrine dedicated to her. Disturbed by this news, local author Robert Bloch took a particular interest in trying to det

On the morning of September 14, 2007, an accomplished 14-year-old student named Andrew Gosden skipped school for unknown reasons and boarded a train headed to Kings Cross Station in London, at which point he was captured alone on surveillance video exiting to the street. But that was the last confirmed sighting of the teen. He was never heard from again. Many theories about his vanishing have gained traction in the aftermath, yet his disappearance remains a mystery to this day. Join host Ryan Kraus for a psychological exploration of Andrew's actions leading up to the event in an effort to understand why he left, in addition to how he might have met his untimely demise.

On April 14, 2013, 87-year-old Chip Northup and his 76-year-old wife, Claudia Maupin, were found brutally stabbed to death in the bedroom of the couple's Davis, CA home. Someone had broken into their house during the previous night and murdered them as they slept. But in the aftermath, investigators weren't able to identify anything missing from the home, nor could they establish any other motive. Soon enough, suspicion fell upon the shoulders of family members, including Chip's son Robert. Before long, however, the leads dried up, and the case seemed as though it might go cold. That's when a 911 operator receives a call from a local high school student who claims his best friend, 15-year-old Daniel Marsh, is the killer. Join host Ryan Kraus for a journey through the twisted mind of a sadistic psychopath in an effort to understand what drove him to commit murder.

Join host Ryan Kraus for the final episode of a two-part series exploring the disappearance of 12-year-old paperboy Johnny Gosch on September 5, 1982. In part I, we examined the crime itself, but this time we'll take a deep dive into the events that transpired in the aftermath of the kidnapping. From local pedophiles to mass conspiracies, this perplexing, unsolved abduction offers no shortage of potential answers. But to this day, we're all still asking the same question... Which one is true?

Join host Ryan Kraus for Part I of a two-part series delving into one of the strangest, most complex disappearances in US history, the kidnapping of 12-year-old West Des Moines, Iowa paperboy Johnny Gosch on the morning of September 5, 1982. In this episode, we'll explore the crime itself, while part II will examine the various theories and conspiracies that arose in the aftermath.

August 29, 2014. A Bladenboro, NC woman rises shortly after 7am to find a deceased black male hanging by a makeshift noose from an old swing set in the yard of the predominantly white trailer park where she lives. Her subsequent call to 911 draws police to the scene of the crime to investigate. They quickly determine the person in question is a 17-year-old high school student and football player named Lennon Lacy, who lives up the road about a quarter of a mile away. Before long, his death is hastily ruled a suicide by local authorities, a sentiment later shared by the state police as well. But something is wrong with this scene. Lennon is wearing shoes that don't belong to him, and are too small for his feet. Even more baffling is the fact that the hanging appears to have been impossible for him to accommodate on his own. Soon enough, what was initially deemed a suicide starts looking a whole lot more like it could be a racially motivated lynching. But to this day, the truth remains a mystery. Join host Ryan

On November 2, 2016, husband and father of two young children, Keith Papini, arrived home to discover his wife, Sherri, was missing. After using an app to locate her phone, he found it lying on the side of the road about a mile from their house. Keith dialed 911 and reported the incident, hoping the disappearance was just some type of a misunderstanding. But Sherri never came home that day, or even the next. Weeks passed, and there was still no word from someone described as a loving mother and devoted spouse. Early Thanksgiving morning, however, a beaten, battered, and frightened woman was spotted 150 miles away trying to flag down help at the entrance ramp to the I-5 freeway. It was Sherri Papini, who promptly offered a harrowing tale of abduction, captivity, and ultimately, freedom from her imprisonment. Yet, to this day, her captors remain unidentified, and the details surrounding her disappearance have caused some to question the integrity of her story. So, was Sherri telling the truth about her ordeal,

On the night of September 26, 2014, a 30-year-old woman named Kayelyn Louder dialed 911 to report an altercation involving guns in the clubhouse at her condo development. What followed over the next 24 hours was a series of inexplicable events shrouded in mystery, at the culmination of which Kayelyn was missing. Surveillance footage later discovered by police depicted her fleeing home on foot, but there was no evidence of anyone chasing her. Extensive searches in the aftermath also produced no leads as to her whereabouts. More than two months later, however, her decomposing body was discovered by workers unclogging a drainage pipe along Utah's Jordan River five miles downstream from her home in Murray. So, was Kayelyn a victim of a predator lurking in the shadows, or did she fall prey to some type of mental illness that caused her to lose control? Join host Ryan Kraus for a psychological exploration of this fascinating, yet tragic tale of a young woman's descent into darkness.