EPISODE · Jan 15, 2025 · 44 MIN
Episode 334: The Candy Man, Part 2
from The First Degree · host Alexis Linkletter, Jac Vanek
In the late 1960s and early 1970s, former candy business operator Dean “Candy Man” Arnold Corll builds a reputation in Houston Heights as a trusted individual. The parents of the lower-middle-class neighborhood appreciate how Dean is a role model and caretaker for the local boys and young men. Except this is a ruse. Dean is actually the serial rapist and murderer responsible for multiple missing boys’ disappearances. When Dean’s accomplice, 17-year-old Elmer Wayne Henley Junior, kills Dean in August of 1973, all is revealed. Wayne shows the authorities Dean’s three dumping sites: a storage unit, a beach, and a forest. Within days, police uncover 27 victims’ nude and plastic-wrapped bodies. Dean’s other accomplice, 18-year-old David Owen Brooks, and Wayne receive justice for their part in these murders, but Dean—the mastermind—will never answer for his crimes. In episode 334, Jac and Alexis break down how Dean’s evil actions terrorized a community without anyone noticing. This is part two of a two-part series. 🎟 Catch up to FOUR bonus episodes per month plus full video episodes over on Patreon: patreon.com/thefirstdegree 📸 Instagram: instagram.com/thefirstdegree 🕺 TikTok: tiktok.com/@thefirstdegreee 👤 Facebook: facebook.com/thefirstdegree Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices
What this episode covers
In the late 1960s and early 1970s, former candy business operator Dean “Candy Man” Arnold Corll builds a reputation in Houston Heights as a trusted individual. The parents of the lower-middle-class neighborhood appreciate how Dean is a role model and caretaker for the local boys and young men. Except this is a ruse. Dean is actually the serial rapist and murderer responsible for multiple missing boys’ disappearances. When Dean’s accomplice, 17-year-old Elmer Wayne Henley Junior, kills Dean in August of 1973, all is revealed. Wayne shows the authorities Dean’s three dumping sites: a storage unit, a beach, and a forest. Within days, police uncover 27 victims’ nude and plastic-wrapped bodies. Dean’s other accomplice, 18-year-old David Owen Brooks, and Wayne receive justice for their part in these murders, but Dean—the mastermind—will never answer for his crimes. In episode 334, Jac and Alexis break down how Dean’s evil actions terrorized a community without anyone noticing. This is part two of a two-part series. 🎟 Catch up to FOUR bonus episodes per month plus full video episodes over on Patreon: patreon.com/thefirstdegree 📸 Instagram: instagram.com/thefirstdegree 🕺 TikTok: tiktok.com/@thefirstdegreee 👤 Facebook: facebook.com/thefirstdegree Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices
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Episode 334: The Candy Man, Part 2
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