TRUE CRIME with Bratterstein

As always, thank you for hanging out and remembering Ava Grace Majury with me today. In 2021, 15‑year‑old TikTok creator Ava Majury blocked a follower whose comments had turned from fan messages into creepy, persistent demands for photos, only to have him reappear under new accounts, then finally at her front door. In the early hours of July 10, 2021, 18‑year‑old Eric Rohan Justin traveled from Maryland to Ava’s home in Naples, Florida, and fired a shotgun through the family’s front door, intent on getting to the girl who had cut him off online.Ava’s father, retired police lieutenant Rob Majury, grabbed his own handgun, confronted Eric outside, and shot him after the teen returned to the property, killing him and ending the attack. Investigators later said Rob’s actions were justified under Florida’s self‑defense and “stand your ground” laws, and he has not been charged, but the case has become a chilling example of how a blocked online obsession can turn into a real‑world attempt to kill.

As always, thank you for hanging out and remembering Jennifer Rothwell and her baby with me today. In November 2019, 28‑year‑old chemical engineer Jennifer Rothwell vanished after leaving her home in Creve Coeur, Missouri, and her husband, Beau Rothwell, tearfully reported her missing and joined public search efforts. Within days, investigators found bleach‑soaked, blood‑stained carpet in the couple’s basement and learned that, shortly before she disappeared, Jennifer had googled “what to do if your husband is upset you are pregnant,” while Beau had secretly made a “pros and cons” list about leaving his six‑weeks‑pregnant wife for another woman.Confronted with the evidence, Beau admitted that he had struck Jennifer from behind with a mallet during an argument over his affair, then disposed of her naked body in woods about 45 miles from their home before staging her car to make it look like she’d broken down on the way to work. A jury rejected his claim that the killing was a heat‑of‑the‑moment outburst and, in 2022, convicted him of first‑degree murder, tampering with evidence, and abandoning a corpse; Beau was sentenced to life in prison without the possibility of parole, plus additional years for the other charges.

In August 2016, Russian-born Viktoria Nasyrova went to the Queens apartment of her lookalike, 35‑year‑old eyelash stylist Olga Tsvyk, carrying a gift: a slice of cheesecake. Prosecutors said Viktoria had laced the dessert with phenazepam, a powerful sedative, then waited as Olga grew violently ill and lost consciousness, before staging the scene to look like a suicide and stealing her passport, cash, and other valuables in an apparent attempt to assume her identity.Olga survived and later tests found phenazepam on the cheesecake container and in pills scattered around her, with Viktoria’s DNA also on the box, tying her directly to the poisoning. In February 2023, a New York jury convicted Viktoria of attempted murder, assault, unlawful imprisonment, and petit larceny; that April, she was sentenced to 21 years in prison plus five years of post‑release supervision and faces possible deportation to Russia, where she is also wanted on a separate murder charge.

As always, thank you for hanging out and remembering Jessica L. Kaczmar Padgett with me today. In November 2014, Jessica Padgett, a 33-year-old mother of three from Northampton County, Pennsylvania, vanished after leaving work during her lunch break to visit her stepfather’s nearby business... what seemed like a routine errand quickly turned into a missing persons case that shocked the community. Investigators soon focused on her stepfather, Gregory Graf, after inconsistencies in his story, and within days he confessed to murdering Jessica Padgett, shooting her inside his home and burying her body beneath a shed on the property. The case grew even more disturbing as authorities uncovered evidence of post-mortem abuse, making it one of the most horrific family-related crimes in Pennsylvania. Gregory was ultimately convicted of first-degree murder and sentenced to life in prison without parole. This tragic case of betrayal, premeditation, and family violence continues to draw attention in true crime for its shocking details and the devastating loss of a young mother.

As always, thank you for hanging out and remembering Shad Thyrion with me today. In February 2022, 24‑year‑old Shad Thyrion was killed inside his mother’s home in Green Bay, Wisconsin, after a meth‑fueled sexual encounter with 24‑year‑old Taylor Schabusiness. Investigators say Taylor strangled Shad with a chain during sex, continued choking him until he died, then sexually assaulted his body and dismembered him, leaving his severed head and other remains in a bucket and various bags for his mother to discover.Taylor was arrested the same day and charged with first‑degree intentional homicide, mutilating a corpse, and third‑degree sexual assault. After competency evaluations and multiple disruptive outbursts in court, a jury in July 2023 found her guilty on all counts, and in September 2023 the judge sentenced her to life in prison without the possibility of parole, plus additional time for related offenses.

As always, thank you for hanging out and remembering Imani Serafina Roberson with me today. In July 2023, 29‑year‑old mother of four Imani Roberson disappeared after leaving her mother’s home in Conyers, Georgia, following a Sunday family dinner with her children. Days later, her SUV was found burned out near Atlanta, and after a nearly three‑week search, investigators located Imani’s body and determined she had been killed in what authorities described as a domestic violence homicide.Detectives focused on Imani’s husband, Donell Anderson, after finding blood evidence inside the couple’s home and other indications that the crime occurred there before her body and vehicle were moved. Donell was arrested on 4 August 2023 and charged with felony murder, malice murder, aggravated assault, and a firearm offense; days later, his brother Cedarius Glaze was also arrested and accused of helping conceal Imani’s body, commit arson, and tamper with evidence. The case is still moving through the courts, and as of the latest reports, no final sentence has been handed down.

As always, thank you for hanging out and remembering Robert Mendoza “Rob” Limon Jr.with me today. In August 2014, 38-year-old Robert Limon was shot and killed at his workplace in Tehachapi, California, in what initially appeared to be a robbery gone wrong. However, the investigation quickly shifted when authorities uncovered a secret affair between his wife, Sabrina Limon, and firefighter Jonathan Hearn. Phone records, witness statements, and Jonathan's eventual confession revealed a calculated murder-for-love plot, where Hearn carried out the shooting so the couple could be together. In 2018, Sabrina Limon was convicted of first-degree murder, conspiracy, and solicitation, receiving a sentence of 25 years to life, while Jonathan Hearn accepted a plea deal. The Robert Limon case remains a shocking example of a love triangle murder, workplace shooting, and premeditated killing driven by infidelity and deception.

As always, thank you for hanging out and remembering Ryan Poston, Brandon Duran, Frankie Fitzgerald, and Darlene Vandergiesen with me today.

As always, thank you for hanging out and remembering Phil Hartman with me today. On May 28, 1998, comedian and actor Phil Hartman was shot to death in his sleep by his wife, Brynn, in the bedroom of their home in Encino, California. After an argument late that night, Phil went to bed; sometime before 3 a.m., Brynn entered the room and fired three shots at close range with a .38‑caliber handgun, hitting him in the head, throat, and chest and killing him instantly.Brynn, who had alcohol, cocaine, and an antidepressant in her system, then drove to a friend’s house and confessed, returned with him to the home, and locked herself in the bedroom as police were called. A few hours after killing Phil, she died by suicide with a second handgun while officers were on the scene, leaving their two young children without parents and Hollywood stunned by the murder‑suicide.

As always, thank you for hanging out and remembering Aliza Parsy with me today. In August 2005, 18‑year‑old Aliza “Lizzy” Parsy was found murdered in the Staten Island home she shared with her mother, her body hidden under a mattress with a towel over her face and the house staged to look ransacked. At first, detectives focused on strangers and an ex‑boyfriend, but autopsy results showed Aliza had been killed by asphyxiation, her nose and mouth covered and her neck compressed, suggesting a personal, up‑close attack rather than a random break‑in.Suspicion eventually turned to Aliza’s 27‑year‑old half‑brother, Raviv Gabbay, who lived in Brooklyn and had been given the family’s cookie‑delivery business but was in serious financial trouble. Prosecutors said Raviv went to Aliza’s house looking for cash, argued with her when he couldn’t find the money he believed was there, and then suffocated her with a pillow before trying to stage a burglary. Raviv was arrested and later pleaded guilty to first‑degree manslaughter; he was sentenced to 18 years in prison for killing Aliza.

As always, thank you for hanging out and remembering Shari Faye Smith, Debra May Helmick, and Sandee Cornett with me today. The case of Larry Gene Bell is one that completely shook South Carolina in 1985, after two young girls, 17-year-old Shari Faye Smith and 9-year-old Debra May Helmick, were kidnapped and murdered just weeks apart in Lexington County and Richland County. Shari was taken from her own driveway in broad daylight, and what makes this case especially disturbing is that her killer didn’t just disappear, he actually called her family afterward, forcing her to write a heartbreaking final letter before he killed her. Not long after, Debra was abducted from her bus stop, and again, the killer inserted himself into the investigation, leaving behind eerie clues and taunting police. Through phone records, forensic evidence, and witness accounts, investigators were eventually able to track Bell down, leading to his arrest, conviction, and execution in 1996. It’s a case that still sticks with people because it’s not just about the murders, it’s about the psychological terror, the manipulation, and the chilling possibility that there could be more victims that were never officially connected to him.

As always, thank you for hanging out and remembering Danielle Keener and Daniel Zapp with me today. On the night of January 8, 2000, 18‑year‑old college students Danielle Keener and Daniel Zapp were walking near a marina outside York, Pennsylvania, when a man in a red pickup truck blocked their path, pulled a 9mm handgun, and forced them into his vehicle at gunpoint. He drove them to an isolated stretch by the Susquehanna River, sexually assaulted Danielle, then marched them to the water’s edge, shot Daniel in the head and Danielle in the face and shoulder, and pushed both of them into the icy river, assuming they would drown and his witnesses were gone.Miraculously, the shock of the cold water jolted Danielle and Daniel back to consciousness, and they managed to cling to each other and fight their way to shore, where a hunter spotted their badly wounded bodies and got help in time to save their lives. The gunman, identified as 37‑year‑old William Babner, was arrested weeks later and went to trial that summer; a jury found him guilty on all counts, including the attempted murders and rape of Danielle and Daniel. In August 2000, the judge handed William a sentence of 117 to 235 years in prison, effectively ensuring he will die behind bars with no chance of parole until well past a normal lifespan.

As always, thank you for hanging out and remembering Chad, Margaret, and Cody Amato with me today. In January 2019, 29‑year‑old former nurse Grant Amato murdered his parents, Chad and Margaret Amato, and his younger brother Cody inside the family home in Chuluota, Florida, shooting each of them in the head and then attempting to stage the scene as a murder‑suicide by placing a handgun near Cody’s body. Investigators and prosecutors later argued that Grant killed his family after they confronted him over more than 200,000 dollars he had stolen and spent on a Bulgarian webcam model, cutting him off financially and ordering him to end the online relationship.Grant was arrested after a manhunt and charged with three counts of first‑degree murder. In July 2019, a Seminole County jury found him guilty on all counts; although the state sought the death penalty, the jury did not unanimously agree, and Grant was automatically sentenced to three consecutive life terms in prison without the possibility of parole.

As always, thank you for hanging out and remembering Grace Packer, Stoni Blair, Stephen Berry and Dylan Groves with me today.

As always, thank you for hanging out and remembering Adrianne Marie Reynolds with me today. The murder of Adrianne Reynolds is one of those true crime cases that’s hard to wrap your head around because of how senseless and calculated it was. In January 2005, 16-year-old Adrianne was lured out of her home in East Alton by someone she thought was her friend, Sarah Kolb, along with Sara's "boyfriend". What she believed was just a normal hangout turned into a planned attack, reportedly fueled by jealousy and petty drama. The pair drove her to a secluded area where she was stabbed and strangled, then hid her body in the trunk of a car. In an attempt to cover it up, they later tried to burn and dismember her remains, but investigators quickly caught on, and both were arrested within days. The Adrianne Reynolds case is now widely known as a deeply disturbing example of teen betrayal, jealousy, and premeditated murder that shocked communities across the country.

As always, thank you for hanging out and remembering Kim Tae-Hyun's victims with me today. In March 2021, 25‑year‑old Kim Tae‑hyun traveled to the northern Seoul apartment of a young woman he had met through an online game and had been stalking for weeks after she cut off contact with him. Disguised as a deliveryman, Kim forced his way inside, stabbed the woman’s younger sister to death while she was home alone, then waited in the apartment and murdered the woman and her mother when they returned, leaving all three bodies at the scene.Kim was arrested in the apartment with self‑inflicted injuries and later admitted the killings, which prosecutors described as carefully planned and motivated by rejection after his stalking was rebuffed. In 2021, the Seoul Northern District Court sentenced Kim to life in prison on multiple charges including murder, housebreaking, and theft; higher courts upheld the ruling, and in April 2022 South Korea’s Supreme Court confirmed the life sentence and ordered him to wear an electronic monitoring device for 30 years, effectively keeping him in permanent isolation with no realistic chance of release.

As always, thank you for hanging out and remembering Alesha MacPhail with me today. In 2018, six‑year‑old Alesha MacPhail vanished from her grandparents’ home on the Isle of Bute in Scotland, and was found hours later in a wooded area, sexually assaulted and murdered. Her disappearance triggered an island‑wide search and intense media attention, as the quiet holiday community struggled to understand how a child could be taken in the night.Police quickly focused on a 16‑year‑old local boy, Aaron Campbell, after CCTV, witness statements, and forensic evidence, including DNA, linked him to Alesha’s abduction and death. He was tried in adult court, found guilty of rape and murder, and given a life sentence with a minimum term (punishment part) of 27 years before he can be considered for parole.

As always, thank you for hanging out and remembering Dr. James Edward Kohnle with me today. In June 2007, a house fire in Ringgold, Georgia left 57-year-old chiropractor Dr. James Kohnle dead in his bedroom, and at first, it looked like a tragic accident. But as investigators dug deeper, they began to suspect arson, uncovering evidence that the fire may have been intentionally set while he was still inside. The investigation quickly turned toward his wife, Teresa Kohnle, as details about financial problems, life insurance, and claims that he may have been drugged before the fire started began to surface. What followed was a shocking true crime case involving alleged murder for money, a staged house fire, and a last-minute guilty plea to felony murder in 2010. The Teresa Kohnle case remains a chilling example of how a deadly house fire can hide something much darker beneath the surface.

As always, thank you for hanging out and remembering Myriam Dienes, Robert Dienes, Lynn Reister, Susan Lee Hudson, and Anna Karissa Grandine with me today.

As always, thank you for hanging out and remembering Dan and Linda Broderick with me today. In 1989, San Diego socialite Betty Broderick shot and killed her ex‑husband, prominent medical malpractice attorney Dan Broderick, and his new wife, Linda Kolkena Broderick, as they slept in their home, after a long, bitter divorce and custody battle. Betty had spent years alleging emotional abuse, financial control, and humiliation over Dan’s affair with Linda, and she repeatedly violated court orders, left threatening messages, and vandalized property in the lead‑up to the killings.Betty was tried twice; the first trial ended in a hung jury, but at her second trial in 1991 she was convicted of two counts of second‑degree murder. She was sentenced to 32 years to life in prison and has repeatedly been denied parole, remaining incarcerated to this day.

As always, thank you for hanging out and remembering Jessica Padgett with me today. In November 2014, 33‑year‑old mother of three Jessica Padgett left her job at a Northampton, Pennsylvania daycare on her lunch break to use the fax machine at the nearby home office of her stepfather, Gregory Graf and never came back. After a days‑long search, Jessica’s body was found buried behind a shed on the Allen Township property where Gregory lived with Jessica’s mother; investigators say Gregory admitted luring Jessica into his home, shooting her in the back of the head, moving her car to stage her disappearance, and then sexually abusing her body, a necrophilic motive later confirmed by videos found on his computer.Gregory was charged with first‑degree murder and related offenses and went to trial in 2015. Jurors took only minutes to find him guilty, and he received a mandatory sentence of life in prison without the possibility of parole for killing Jessica and abusing her corpse, a punishment he is still serving today.

As always, thank you for hanging out and remembering Jamie Michelle Stice with me today. In April 2011, 21‑year‑old expectant mother Jamie Stice left her Morgantown, Kentucky home with a woman she’d befriended on Facebook, 33‑year‑old Kathy Coy, believing they were going shopping for baby supplies. Instead, Kathy lured Jamie to a rural area, shocked her with a stun gun, slit her wrists and throat, and then cut Jamie’s baby boy from her womb, leaving Jamie’s body by a dirt road while she took the newborn to a hospital and tried to pass him off as her own.Kathy was quickly identified and arrested after her story about the baby began to unravel and evidence tied her to Jamie’s killing. She ultimately pleaded guilty but mentally ill to Jamie’s murder and kidnapping the baby, avoiding the death penalty in exchange for a sentence of life in prison without the possibility of parole.

As always, thank you for hanging out and remembering Alesha MacPhail, Stoni Blair, Stephen Berry, Grace Packer, and Samiah Downing with me today.

As always, thank you for hanging out and remembering Maddie Clifton with me today. In November 1998, 8‑year‑old Maddie Clifton vanished while playing outside her home in Jacksonville, Florida, sparking an intense week‑long search through her neighborhood. The search ended when Maddie’s body was found hidden inside the waterbed frame in the bedroom of her 14‑year‑old neighbor, Joshua Phillips, with injuries showing she had been beaten with a baseball bat, stabbed multiple times, and had her throat cut.​Joshua admitted killing Maddie and was tried as an adult, with prosecutors arguing the attack began during a game of baseball and escalated as he tried to conceal what he’d done. In 1999, he was convicted of first‑degree murder and given a mandatory life sentence without parole; after a 2012 U.S. Supreme Court ruling on juvenile life sentences, Joshua was resentenced in 2017 to life in prison with a review possible after 25 years, but he remains incarcerated and is now seeking another sentencing review.

On a September morning in 2010, single mom Marti Hill followed handyman Brian Pennington down into the basement of her Prairie Village, Kansas home, expecting to talk about repairs, not to fight for her life. Without warning, Brian attacked her from behind, strangling her, beating her, and slashing her throat before leaving her on the cold concrete floor, convinced she would never get back up.Marti somehow survived, managed to get help, and later named Brian as the man who had tried to kill her, evidence that led to his arrest within days. He eventually pleaded guilty to attempted first‑degree murder and aggravated burglary and was sentenced to more than 28 years in a Kansas state prison, while Marti rebuilt her life as the survivor of an attack she was never meant to walk away from.

As always, thank you for hanging out and remembering Cherish Lily Perrywinkle with me today. In June 2013, 8-year-old Cherish Perrywinkle was shopping with her mother and sisters at a Walmart when they were approached by a stranger, Donald James Smith, who pretended to be a good Samaritan offering help to the struggling family. After hours of gaining their trust inside the store, Smith convinced Cherish’s mother to let him take the little girl to get food, but instead he abducted her. Surveillance cameras captured them leaving Walmart together, and the following day Cherish Perrywinkle’s body was discovered in a wooded area in Jacksonville, Florida. Smith was quickly identified through surveillance footage, arrested, and later convicted of kidnapping, sexual assault, and first-degree murder, ultimately receiving the death penalty. The tragic Cherish Perrywinkle murder case shocked the nation and remains one of the most heartbreaking child abduction and child murder cases in Florida, raising awareness about child predators, stranger danger, and true crime cases involving missing and murdered children.

As always, thank you for hanging out and remembering Joel Guy Sr. and Lisa Guy with me today. In 2016, 28‑year‑old Joel Guy Jr. was accused of murdering and dismembering his parents, Lisa and Joel Guy Sr., inside their Knoxville, Tennessee home over Thanksgiving weekend, after years of being financially supported by them. Prosecutors alleged that Joel killed them to collect life insurance and inheritance money, then tried to dispose of their remains using chemicals and to stage the scene to destroy evidence. The case later resulted in his conviction on multiple counts of first‑degree murder and abuse of a corpse, and he was sentenced to life in prison.

As always, thank you for hanging out and remembering Debbie Elizabeth Cameron Griggs with me today. In May 1999, Debbie Griggs, a 34-year-old pregnant mother of three from Deal, Kent, suddenly vanished from her home, sparking a missing persons investigation that would remain a mystery for decades. Debbie was three months pregnant when she disappeared, and suspicion quickly surrounded her husband, Andrew Griggs, who claimed she had simply left the family. For years the Debbie Griggs disappearance remained an unresolved UK cold case, but investigators never stopped searching for answers. In 2019, Andrew Griggs was convicted of Debbie Griggs’ murder, despite her body never being found at the time. Then, in 2022, more than 20 years after she vanished, police made a chilling discovery when Debbie Griggs’ remains were found buried in Dorset, finally confirming what investigators had long suspected. This is the tragic and disturbing true crime case of Debbie Griggs, a pregnant wife who disappeared, the husband who lied for decades, and the buried secret that took more than twenty years to uncover.

As always, thank you for hanging out and remembering Donna Ongsiako with me today. On a July night in 2013, 51‑year‑old Colts Neck, New Jersey mother Donna Ongsiako was attacked in her kitchen by a 16‑year‑old neighbor, Brennan Doyle, who had entered her home and stabbed her repeatedly before fleeing in her car. Donna survived the assault and was able to call for help, and investigators later linked Brennan to the crime through DNA evidence recovered from the abandoned vehicle and other physical evidence.Brennan was charged as an adult with offenses including attempted murder and carjacking, later pleading guilty to repeatedly stabbing Donna with the intent to kill and stealing her car as he fled. He received a 15‑year state prison sentence under New Jersey’s No Early Release Act, requiring him to serve about 85 percent of the term before becoming eligible for parole, and he is barred from any contact with Donna.

As always, thank you for hanging out and remembering Christian Andreacchio with me today. On a February afternoon in 2014, 21‑year‑old tugboat worker Christian Andreacchio was found slumped over the bathtub in his small Meridian, Mississippi apartment, a single gunshot wound to the head and a pistol resting on the wrong side of his body. His death was ruled a suicide in under an hour, the scene quickly processed and the file all but closed.But when Christian’s family walked into that apartment, what they saw didn’t match the story they were being told: blood spatter that seemed too contained, a body that looked like it had been moved, a timeline that made no sense, and a promising young man who had been making plans for his future. Over the years, new experts, podcasts, and TV investigations would pore over gunshot residue tests, shifting witness accounts, and missing evidence, turning a quiet Mississippi case file into one of the most fiercely debated “suicide or murder?” mysteries in modern true crime.

As always, thank you for hanging out and remembering Tiffany Salter with me today. In 2012, 28‑year‑old Tiffany Nicole Salter was killed outside the Richmond County, Georgia home she shared with her boyfriend, Todd Goff, after a violent argument turned physical. Tiffany was found dead in the yard, and an autopsy determined she died from asphyxiation due to strangulation after Todd’s mother called 911 reporting that Tiffany and Todd had been choking each other and that Todd thought he had killed her.At trial, evidence of a long‑term, volatile, and abusive relationship between Tiffany and Todd was presented, including prior domestic violence incidents and injuries consistent with ongoing physical abuse. A jury convicted Todd of malice murder and related charges, and he was sentenced to life in prison without the possibility of parole; an attempted grant of a new trial based on claims that Todd’s lawyer was ineffective was later overturned, leaving his conviction and life‑without‑parole sentence in place.

As always, thank you for hanging out and remembering David Riess and Pamela Hutchinson with me today. In 2018, the shocking case of Lois Riess, often referred to as the “Killer Grandma,” stunned the nation. After her husband, David Riess, was found shot to death inside their Minnesota home, Lois disappeared.. withdrawing thousands of dollars and sparking a multi-state manhunt. But this wasn’t just a domestic murder case. Weeks later, in Florida, 59-year-old Pam Hutchinson was found murdered after befriending Lois.. a woman who allegedly targeted her because of their striking resemblance, then stole her identity in an attempt to start over. This true crime story explores deception, addiction, identity theft, and the chilling psychology behind a grandmother who became one of America’s most unlikely fugitives.

As always, thank you for hanging out and remembering Eve Marie Carson with me today. Eve Marie Carson was a 22‑year‑old student body president at the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill who was abducted near her home in March 2008. She was forced to withdraw money from ATMs and was then shot and killed; her body was found on a residential street not far from campus.Investigators identified two local men, Demario Atwater and Laurence Lovette, using ATM surveillance images and other evidence. Atwater later pleaded guilty in federal and state court and received life imprisonment without parole plus additional time, while Lovette was convicted at trial in North Carolina courts and also sentenced to life in prison for Carson’s murder.

As always, thank you for hanging out and remembering Sophie Sergie with me today. Sophie Sergie was a 20‑year‑old Alaska Native student from the village of Pitkas Point who was found murdered in a residence hall bathroom at the University of Alaska Fairbanks in April 1993. She had been visiting a friend on campus when she disappeared; hours later, a janitor discovered her body in a bathtub. She had been sexually assaulted and killed by a combination of stabbing and gunshot.For years the case went cold, despite investigators collecting DNA at the scene and interviewing numerous students, including a young Army electrician named Steven H. Downs who lived on the same floor. It was not until advances in forensic genealogy and a re‑examination of the DNA profile in the 2010s that investigators were able to link the crime‑scene DNA to Downs, who by then was living in Maine. He was arrested in 2019, extradited to Alaska, and tried for Sergie’s rape and murder. In 2022, Downs was convicted and later sentenced to 67 years in prison, nearly three decades after Sophie Sergie’s death.

As always, thank you for hanging out and remembering all the women and young girls who lost their lives at the hands of this LOSER with me today.Rodney Alcala, the "Dating Game Killer," murdered at least seven young women and girls across California and New York in the 1970s, posing as a photographer to lure victims. His confirmed killings included 12-year-old Robin Samsoe in 1979 and four California women between 1977 and 1979, plus two New York victims in 1971 and 1977.Arrested in 1979 after Samsoe's murder, his convictions were overturned multiple times on appeal due to procedural errors like improper evidence admission. DNA from cold cases in the 2000s linked him to more killings. In 2010, he received the death penalty in California for five murders, pleaded guilty in New York in 2012 to two more (25-to-life each), and died in prison in 2021.To see the photos:⁠https://www.nydailynews.com/news/nypd-seeks-clues-photos-serial-killer-rodney-alcala-gallery-1.7546⁠

As always, thank you for hanging out and remembering Christina Marie Williams with me today. In 1998, 13‑year‑old Christina Marie Williams disappeared while walking her dog near her home on the former Fort Ord Army base in Seaside, California. Her dog returned alone, prompting a large‑scale search; months later, Christina’s remains were found in a remote area a few miles away, confirming she had been kidnapped and murdered.​Despite early suspicion toward convicted sex offender Charles Allen Holifield, investigators lacked physical evidence tying him to the crime, and a girlfriend initially provided him with an alibi, leaving the case cold for years. In 2016, a cold case team ordered new forensic testing on Christina’s clothing; DNA found in her underwear matched Holifield, allowing prosecutors to finally charge him in 2017. In 2020, Holifield was convicted of kidnapping and first‑degree murder with special circumstances and was sentenced to life in prison without the possibility of parole.

As always, thank you for hanging out and remembering Rachel Lynn Castillo with me today. In November 2022, 25-year-old Simi Valley social worker and graduate student Rachel Castillo vanished from her sister’s apartment after a routine custody exchange with her two young sons. Her sister found a large amount of blood inside, but Rachel and her car were gone, sparking an urgent missing-person investigation. Within days, her remains were discovered in a shallow grave in the remote Antelope Valley, with suspicion falling on her estranged husband, 28-year-old math teacher Zarbab Ali. He admitted picking up their kids, dropping them at his parents’, returning to lie in wait, and fatally stabbing her amid their ongoing separation.Ali faced first-degree murder charges with special allegations for knife use and lying in wait, leading to life without parole. He pleaded guilty following powerful victim-impact statements from Rachel’s family, who described her as a devoted mother and advocate for domestic violence victims, training to be a therapist.

As always, thank you for hanging out and remembering Jake Merfeld with me today. In April 2013, Julia Merfeld, a 21-year-old newlywed from Muskegon County, Michigan, was arrested after attempting to hire a hitman to kill her husband, a plot that turned out to be a police sting operation.Merfeld had contacted a man she believed could arrange the murder, offering $50,000 in life-insurance money to have her husband killed. What she didn’t know was that the man was cooperating with police. In a recorded meeting, she calmly discussed how she wanted the killing carried out and how she planned to collect the insurance payout afterward.When officers arrested her at the scene, the case quickly made national headlines. Merfeld later admitted to planning the murder, though she claimed she never intended for it to actually happen.In 2014, Julia Merfeld pleaded guilty to solicitation of murder and was sentenced to at least 20 years in prison. The case became one of the most widely discussed examples of a murder-for-hire plot uncovered through an undercover operation.

As always, thank you for hanging out and remembering George Harrison and Olivia Harrison with me today. In December 1999, former Beatles guitarist George Harrison and his wife Olivia Harrison survived a terrifying home invasion at their estate in Henley-on-Thames, England. In the middle of the night, a man named Michael Abram broke into their home armed with a knife.Abram attacked George, stabbing him multiple times and puncturing a lung. As the assault continued, Olivia Harrison fought back, striking the intruder with a fireplace poker and a heavy lamp until he was subdued. Her actions likely saved George’s life.Police later arrested Abram at the scene. During the investigation, it became clear he was suffering from severe mental illness and believed he was on a religious mission. In 2000, Abram was found not guilty by reason of insanity and was committed to a secure psychiatric hospital.

As always, thank you for hanging out and remembering Mollie Cecilia Tibbetts with me today. The murder of Mollie Tibbetts is a haunting true crime case that shattered the illusion of safety in small-town America. On July 18, 2018, the 20-year-old University of Iowa student vanished while out for a routine evening jog in Brooklyn, Iowa.. a run she had taken countless times before. When Mollie failed to return, an urgent nationwide search began, gripping the country and leaving her family and community desperate for answers. Weeks later, investigators identified a farmworker, Cristhian Bahena Rivera, after surveillance footage captured his vehicle circling the area. He ultimately led authorities to Mollie’s body concealed in a remote cornfield. Prosecutors revealed she had been violently stabbed to death, turning an ordinary summer night into an unthinkable tragedy. Cristhian Rivera was convicted of first-degree murder in 2021 and sentenced to life in prison without parole, but Mollie’s case continues to resonate as a devastating reminder of how quickly everyday normalcy can turn into horror.

As always, thank you for hanging out and remembering Meggan Lambesis with me today. In May 2013, Tim Lambesis, the lead singer of the metal band As I Lay Dying, was arrested in San Diego, California, after attempting to hire a hitman to kill his estranged wife. What Lambesis didn’t know was that the person he contacted was actually an undercover police officer.During recorded meetings, Lambesis discussed payment, timing, and details about his wife’s schedule, believing the murder would allow him to avoid a difficult divorce and custody battle. Days later, he was taken into custody and charged with solicitation of murder.In 2014, Lambesis pleaded guilty in court, admitting he had tried to arrange the killing. He was sentenced to six years in prison but was released on parole in 2016 after serving about half his sentence.

As always, thank you for hanging out and remembering Alexis Tiara Murphy with me today. In August 2013, 17-year-old Alexis Murphy disappeared after leaving her home in Nelson County, Virginia, to buy something at a nearby gas station. Surveillance footage captured her arriving but she never returned home.Investigators soon focused on Randy Allen Taylor, a local man whose vehicle was seen at the station at the same time Alexis was there. Evidence from his property, including Alexis’s hair and personal items, tied him to her disappearance. Despite extensive searches, Alexis’s body was never found.In 2014, Taylor was convicted of first-degree murder, abduction with intent to defile, and other charges, and was sentenced to two life sentences plus additional years in prison.

As always, thank you for hanging out and remembering Tatiane Spitzner with me today. In June 2018, 29-year-old Tatiane Spitzner, a university professor and martial arts instructor in Guarapuava, Brazil, was found dead under a bridge near her home, her body discovered hours after she was last seen at a birthday party. What initially looked like a tragic fall quickly turned into a harrowing case of betrayal.Investigators revealed that Tatiane’s boyfriend, Cristiano dos Santos Rodrigues, had violently assaulted her in the hours before her death. Evidence showed that Rodrigo had beaten her and then staged her fall from the elevated bridge in an attempt to cover up the crime. Surveillance footage and witness testimony ultimately contradicted his version of events.At trial, prosecutors demonstrated that the injuries Tatiane sustained were consistent with a severe beating prior to the fall, and that Cristiano’s behavior after the incident suggested guilt and an attempt to mislead investigators. In 2021, he was convicted of murder and sentenced to 37 years in prison.

As always, thank you for hanging out and remembering Michael Tatalovich, Jonathan Gilbert, and Michelle Machusko with me today. In January 2008, a quiet evening near Robert Morris University in Pennsylvania turned into a deadly attack when 23-year-old H. Paul Visnansky, a part-time postal worker, entered a North Fayette apartment and opened fire on three students studying together. Two of the young men, 22-year-old Jonathan Gilbert and 20-year-old Michael Tatalovich, were killed, and a third was seriously wounded. Visnansky had been infatuated with one of the victims’ girlfriends and later told police that “there was a lot of stuff going on in my head,” though his motive was never fully explained. The attack shocked classmates and community members who knew the victims as hardworking, ordinary students. At a 2008 hearing, Visnansky pleaded guilty to two counts of first-degree murder and one count of attempted homicide, avoiding the death penalty in exchange for his plea. He was sentenced to two consecutive life terms plus additional decades in prison. Relatives of the slain students spoke of grief, disbelief, and the senseless loss of young lives.

As always, thank you for hanging out and remembering Melissa Jenkins with me today. In March 2012, 33-year-old science teacher Melissa Jenkins, a beloved educator at St. Johnsbury Academy in Vermont and devoted mother, was kidnapped and murdered after being lured from her home under a cruel pretext. A couple she loosely knew called her that evening, claiming their car had broken down and asking for help. When Melissa pulled over with her 2-year-old son still in the back seat, she was ambushed. Prosecutors later revealed that Allen Prue and his wife Patricia Prue had concocted the ruse to abduct her. After Allen allegedly strangled Melissa and Patricia helped ensure she was dead, they dumped her body in the nearby Connecticut River and attempted to cover their tracks. The crime sent shockwaves through the quiet communities of northeastern Vermont. In December 2014, Allen Prue was convicted of first-degree murder, attempted kidnapping, conspiracy to commit murder, and related charges, receiving 50 years to life in prison. Patricia Prue was also convicted and sentenced to life.

As always, thank you for hanging out and remembering Iana Kasian with me today. In May 2016, 30-year-old Iana Kasian, a Ukrainian-born model living in West Hollywood, California, was found dead in the apartment she shared with her fiancé, Blake Leibel. Iana had just given birth to their daughter three weeks earlier, but what should have been a joyful new beginning instead became a horrifying tragedy. Investigators later revealed that Leibel, a Canadian-born graphic novelist and heir to a prominent real estate fortune, had tortured and mutilated Iana over the course of hours, ultimately killing her in a brutal attack. Her body was found mutilated and drained of blood, with evidence that her scalp had been removed. Prosecutors argued the crime stemmed from Leibel’s jealousy, rage, and need for control after Iana turned attention to their newborn. In June 2018, Blake Leibel was convicted of first-degree murder, torture, and aggravated mayhem, and was sentenced to life in prison without the possibility of parole.

As always, thank you for hanging out and remembering Sheri, Garrett, and Gavin with me today. In May 2009, what appeared to be a devoted husband and father in Columbia, Illinois turned out to be something far darker. Christopher “Chris” Coleman, a former Marine and head of security for a prominent televangelist’s ministry, strangled his wife, Sheri Coleman, and their two young sons, 11-year-old Garett and 9-year-old Gavin, inside their family home while they slept. At first, investigators pursued threatening letters and emails sent to the family and to Chris’s employer, clues that seemed to hint at an external threat. But the truth that emerged was far more chilling: Chris had been leading a double life, engaging in an extramarital affair and plotting the murders in an effort to start a new life without the constraints of his marriage and job. During the investigation, police uncovered evidence that Chris had fabricated threats, emailed them from his own accounts, and sent them to his wife and ministry leaders to divert suspicion. He was arrested, tried, and in 2011 was found guilty of three counts of first-degree murder for killing Sheri and the boys. The judge sentenced him to three life terms without the possibility of parole.

As always, thank you for hanging out and remembering Melanie Davis with me today. In August 2012, 15-year-old Zachary Davis murdered his mother, Melanie Davis, while she slept in their Tennessee home, striking her repeatedly with a sledgehammer. After the killing, he attempted to murder his older brother by setting the house on fire, a plan that ultimately failed when his brother escaped and police intervened.Zachary was arrested and later convicted of first-degree murder, attempted murder, and aggravated arson. He received an automatic life sentence, despite his young age.Years later, the case resurfaced in a disturbing television interview on The Dr. Phil Show. During the interview, Zachary spoke publicly about the crime for the first time, giving evasive and unsettling answers when confronted about killing his mother. The segment raised renewed questions about his mental state, responsibility, and how someone so young could commit such an act of extreme violence.

As always, thank you for hanging out and remembering Kelly Bullwinkle with me today. On September 13, 2003, 18-year-old Kelly Bullwinkle, a college student from Redlands, California, vanished after finishing her shift at a fast-food restaurant. Her abandoned car was found at a nearby mall, and weeks of searching followed until paintball players discovered her body in a shallow grave in San Timoteo Canyon. Kelly had been lured there by two of her friends, Kinzie Noordman and Damien Guerrero, classmates from Redlands East Valley High School. What began as a friendship within their goth subculture spiraled into jealousy, betrayal, and violence. Police later determined that Guerrero shot Kelly in the head, and Noordman also fired at her as she lay dying. After the murder, the pair attempted to cover up the crime: they buried her body in a grave they had dug beforehand, abandoned her car in a parking lot, then went about their night as if nothing had happened. In 2005, Kinzie Noordman was convicted of first-degree murder and sentenced to 45 years to life in prison. Guerrero’s trial initially resulted in a hung jury, and he faced retrial proceedings for the killing.

As always, thank you for hanging out and remembering Heather Rich with me today. In October 1996, 16-year-old Heather Rose Rich, a high school cheerleader from Waurika, Oklahoma, disappeared after leaving home to meet a local teen on what was supposed to be a first date. Her body was found days later in Belknap Creek in Montague County, Texas, shot nine times with a shotgun and left in the water near a rural bridge. Investigators discovered that Heather had been plied with alcohol by three local boys, Joshua Luke Bagwell, Curtis Allen Gambill, and Randy Lee Wood who then drove her to the remote location. After raping her while she was incapacitated, they shot her and dumped her body before attempting to cover up the crime. The case drew intense law enforcement involvement, including the Texas Rangers and the FBI, as authorities worked to unravel the teenagers’ conflicting statements and motives. All three were eventually convicted: Bagwell received life plus 99 years, Gambill two life terms, and Wood a life sentence.