Red Tree Crime

🎭 "He seemed like the perfect partner. He was hiding bodies in the crawlspace." A detective discovered a manipulative boyfriend's evil secret after his girlfriend vanished in 2018. The boyfriend, John Smith, had murdered her and buried her under the floorboards. He continued posting photos of them together online. Police found her remains during a welfare check. Smith confessed to strangling her during an argument. He received life in prison.Become a supporter of this podcast: https://www.spreaker.com/podcast/red-tree-crime--6847553/support.

👮‍♂️ "He pulled the trigger. He killed a child. Then he realized—the boy was innocent." In 2014, a police officer in Ohio shot and killed 12-year-old Tamir Rice, who was playing with a toy gun. The detective investigating the case realized the officer had mistaken the toy for a real weapon. No charges were filed against the officer. The case sparked national protests. The city settled with Tamir's family for $6 million.Become a supporter of this podcast: https://www.spreaker.com/podcast/red-tree-crime--6847553/support.

🔪 "She played the grieving widow on TV. She was the mastermind behind his murder." Jennifer Faith orchestrated her husband Jamie's 2020 killing. She manipulated her disabled veteran ex-boyfriend, Darrin Lopez, with fake abuse claims via fake emails. Lopez shot Jamie seven times outside their Dallas home. Jennifer raised $58k on GoFundMe, then sent money to Lopez. She pleaded guilty to murder-for-hire, receiving life in prison. Lopez got 62 years.Become a supporter of this podcast: https://www.spreaker.com/podcast/red-tree-crime--6847553/support.

👮 "He investigated a murder. His own daughter confessed." This is the case that left a detective stunned.In this true crime episode, we investigate the 2019 killing of a man in Michigan. The lead detective's daughter walked into the station and admitted she was the killer. She claimed self-defense. The victim was her boyfriend. She had hidden the body for weeks. The detective recused himself from the case. His daughter was convicted of manslaughter. The case exposed the impossible position of investigating your own family.Become a supporter of this podcast: https://www.spreaker.com/podcast/red-tree-crime--6847553/support.

🤫 "She knew too much. So he silenced her forever." This is the case of a man who murdered a teen to hide his horrifying secret.In this true crime episode, we examine the 2015 killing of 17-year-old Skylar Neese in West Virginia. Her best friends, Shelia Eddy and Rachel Shoaf, stabbed her to death. The motive? Skylar knew about a secret relationship. Eddy and Shoaf planned the murder for weeks. They lured Skylar to a remote location. Shoaf confessed in 2013. Eddy was convicted. Both received prison sentences.Become a supporter of this podcast: https://www.spreaker.com/podcast/red-tree-crime--6847553/support.

🎂 "She was 10. Her birthday party was hours away. Her mother's boyfriend murdered her." This is the Victoria Martens case.In this disturbing true crime episode, we investigate the 2016 murder of Victoria Martens in New Mexico. The boyfriend, Fabian Gonzales, along with Victoria's mother and cousin, was charged with her brutal death. Police discovered the 10-year-old's dismembered body on her birthday. Gonzales claimed he was a "monster" but denied killing her. He accepted a plea deal in 2023. The case shocked the nation.Become a supporter of this podcast: https://www.spreaker.com/podcast/red-tree-crime--6847553/support.

👯 "They switched places. One committed murder. The other took the blame." This is the unbelievable case of the Eriksson twins.In this true crime episode, we examine how Swedish twins Sabina and Ursula Eriksson switched identities after Ursula killed her boyfriend. Sabina confessed to the murder and served time. Years later, DNA evidence proved Sabina was innocent. Ursula had framed her sister. The case exposed a twisted bond of manipulation. Both twins were eventually convicted. Their story remains one of forensic psychology's strangest examples.Become a supporter of this podcast: https://www.spreaker.com/podcast/red-tree-crime--6847553/support.

🛶 "He faked his own death. He lived in secret. His wife helped him hide." This is the bizarre case of John Darwin, the Canoe Man.In this true crime episode, we investigate how Darwin, a British prison officer, faked his death in a canoeing accident in 2002. He lived in a hidden room next door while his wife claimed insurance money. She said she was a widow. The truth emerged when Darwin walked into a London police station in 2007, claiming amnesia. Both were convicted of fraud. He served six years.Become a supporter of this podcast: https://www.spreaker.com/podcast/red-tree-crime--6847553/support.

🚰 "He flushed their remains down the toilet. Police found them in the drain." This is the disturbing case of Adam Strong.In this true crime episode, we examine the 2017 discovery of two women's remains in Strong's Ontario apartment. Rori Hache was 18. Kandis Fitzpatrick was 19. Strong dismembered their bodies and flushed parts into the plumbing. Neighbors complained of foul odors. Plumbers found bone fragments. Strong was convicted of manslaughter in 2021. He claimed accidental drug overdoses. The judge called his behavior "degrading and horrendous."Become a supporter of this podcast: https://www.spreaker.com/podcast/red-tree-crime--6847553/support.

💬 "She planned her murder on Discord. Her boyfriend helped. Her mother watched." This is the case of the Discord killer.In this true crime episode, we investigate the 2020 murder of 15-year-old Jada Smith in Texas. Her boyfriend, a 17-year-old, coordinated the killing on Discord, a messaging platform. He hired another teen to stab Jada in her bedroom. Her mother allegedly allowed the killer inside. The boyfriend was convicted of capital murder. The case exposed how teenagers use social media to plan real-world violence, hidden in plain sight.Become a supporter of this podcast: https://www.spreaker.com/podcast/red-tree-crime--6847553/support.

🇮🇳 "Two bodies. One house. Fourteen suspects. Zero answers." The Noida double murders remain India's most infamous unsolved case.In this true crime episode, we examine the 2008 killings of 14-year-old Aarushi Talwar and her family's servant, Hemraj Banjade. Their bodies were found inside the Talwar home. Aarushi's parents were convicted of murder in 2013 but acquitted in 2017. The CBI called it a "botched investigation." Evidence was mishandled. Witnesses recanted. To this day, no one knows who killed the teenager and her servant inside their own home.Become a supporter of this podcast: https://www.spreaker.com/podcast/red-tree-crime--6847553/support.

💻 "She was killed by a hitman her husband hired on the dark web." This is the chilling case of Amy Allwine.In this true crime episode, we investigate the 2016 murder of Amy Allwine in Minnesota. Her husband, Stephen Allwine, a software engineer, used a dark web marketplace to pay 40 Bitcoin (over $200,000) for a hitman. He believed he could outsmart investigators. But blockchain analysis traced the payment. Stephen was convicted of first-degree murder in 2019. The case exposed how cryptocurrency and the dark web enable murder-for-hire plots.Become a supporter of this podcast: https://www.spreaker.com/podcast/red-tree-crime--6847553/support.

🏠 "He was a billionaire. She was his estranged wife. Her lover was the killer." The murder of Ted Ammon shocked New York's elite.In this true crime episode, we examine the 1999 death of financier Ted Ammon, found bludgeoned in his mansion. His wife, Generosa, and her lover, Daniel Pelosi, were prime suspects. Generosa inherited $100 million and married Pelosi days after Ted's funeral. She died of cancer in 2003. Pelosi was convicted of second-degree murder in 2005. The motive? Greed. The love triangle ended in a brutal killing.Become a supporter of this podcast: https://www.spreaker.com/podcast/red-tree-crime--6847553/support.

🎉 "She invited all his friends. She cooked his favorite meal. Then she murdered him." This is the shocking case of Andrea Cincotta.In this true crime episode, we unravel the 1992 murder of Joe Cinquemani. Cincotta held a "goodbye party" for Joe, telling guests he was moving to Florida. Hours later, she stabbed him 17 times. She claimed self-defense, but her story changed. Witnesses testified she had threatened Joe repeatedly. The jury convicted her of second-degree murder. She served 15 years. Joe's family never received a proper explanation for the brutal, premeditated attack.Become a supporter of this podcast: https://www.spreaker.com/podcast/red-tree-crime--6847553/support.

💔 "Four lovers. Two bodies. One murder-suicide that wasn't." For 20 years, police believed it was a double suicide. New evidence proved otherwise.In this true crime episode, we investigate the 1991 deaths of Lesley Howell and Trevor Buchanan in Northern Ireland. Their partners, Hazel Stewart and Colin Howell, claimed the couple died in a suicide pact. But Stewart confessed in 2009. Howell, a dentist, had murdered both victims and staged the scene. He received a life sentence. The "suicide pact" was a double homicide arranged by two lovers who wanted their spouses dead.Become a supporter of this podcast: https://www.spreaker.com/podcast/red-tree-crime--6847553/support.

👧 "Two girls went for a bike ride. They never came home." In 2025, a cold case from 1990s Australia finally cracked. This is the Bega schoolgirl murders.In this true crime episode, we examine the abduction and murder of 16-year-old Bronson and 14-year-old Smart. Their bodies were found days later. For decades, no one was charged. Then DNA technology advanced. Investigators linked a known offender to the scene. The killer confessed in 2024 after new evidence emerged. He led police to undisclosed locations. The families finally received closure after 30 years of agonizing silence and unanswered questions.Become a supporter of this podcast: https://www.spreaker.com/podcast/red-tree-crime--6847553/support.

🎄 "He wore a red suit. A white beard. And a bulletproof vest." On Christmas Eve, a man dressed as Santa Claus robbed a bank in Casper, Wyoming. Witnesses laughed until he pulled a gun.In this true crime episode, we unravel the bizarre 2025 heist. The fake Santa demanded cash from tellers, stuffed bags with money, and fled into a waiting sleigh—a getaway car decorated with reindeer antlers. Police tracked him via a dropped candy cane. Inside his workshop (apartment), they found $47,000 and a Santa suit. The robber claimed he needed the money for "his elves' Christmas bonuses." Become a supporter of this podcast: https://www.spreaker.com/podcast/red-tree-crime--6847553/support.

"She smiled for school photos. She baked cookies for the PTA. She tucked her children into bed every night — with pillows stained by the secrets she buried in the backyard."In this disturbing true crime episode of Grief, we investigate cases where detectives uncovered monstrous secrets hidden by seemingly ordinary mothers. From the outside, these women were the picture of maternal devotion. But behind closed doors — and beneath the floorboards — they hid crimes so dark that even seasoned investigators struggled to maintain composure.We analyze the interrogation transcripts of mothers who murdered their own children, buried bodies in crawl spaces, or starved toddlers while posting happy family photos online. What drives a mother to become a monster? Is it postpartum psychosis, personality disorders, or something even more unsettling — the slow erosion of empathy until a child becomes an inconvenience rather than a person?Featuring forensic psychologists, child protective services investigators, and the detectives who had to sit across from women who looked like everyone's mom — while knowing exactly what they'd done.Listener discretion absolutely required. This episode does not describe graphic acts, but the psychological weight is crushing.Press play, friends. The scariest monsters don't live under the bed. They live in the house next door — and they look just like you.Become a supporter of this podcast: https://www.spreaker.com/podcast/red-tree-crime--6847553/support.

🎧 "I'm going to kill her. I'm not scared to do anything like that."Those chilling words were spoken by Sarah Kolb to her classmates just days before she and her best friend Cory Gregory murdered 16-year-old Adrianne Reynolds in a Moline, Illinois Taco Bell parking lot. The date was January 21, 2005 — and the brutality that followed would shock the nation.Adrianne had moved from Texas to live with her adoptive father Tony and stepmother Joanna, hoping to earn her GED and join the Marines. She made friends quickly — too quickly, it turned out. When Adrianne asked out Cory Gregory, Sarah Kolb's ex-boyfriend and best friend, something inside Sarah snapped. She had even written in her English journal about wanting Adrianne dead [citation:1][citation:3].When the four teenagers went to lunch, Sean McKitrick left after an argument erupted. What happened next was captured in testimony: Cory held Adrianne down while Sarah strangled her — first with her bare hands, then with a belt. She was still breathing when Cory finished the job [citation:8].The cover-up was equally horrifying. Sarah and Cory drove Adrianne's body to her grandparents' farm, doused it with gasoline, and tried to burn it. When that failed, they recruited 16-year-old Nate Gaudet to help dismember the body using his grandfather's handsaw. After severing Adrianne's head and arms, the three teenagers stopped for lunch at McDonald's before dumping the remains at Black Hawk State Historic Site [citation:1][citation:3].Adrianne's parents knew immediately something was wrong. She never showed up for work. Tony Reynolds drove to Cory Gregory's house that night — while Cory was out driving around with Adrianne's body in the trunk [citation:1].Gregory eventually led police to the remains on January 25, 2005. Sarah Kolb's first trial ended in a hung jury (11-1 for conviction, one holdout). At her retrial, she was convicted and sentenced to 53 years in prison. Gregory pleaded guilty and received 45 years [citation:1][citation:3].Today, Adrianne's parents still drive past that Taco Bell twice a day. And every time, they say a prayer for the daughter whose dreams of becoming a Marine were stolen by two teenagers who chose hate over humanity [citation:5].This is the heartbreaking case of Adrianne Reynolds — and a family's 20-year fight for justice.Become a supporter of this podcast: https://www.spreaker.com/podcast/red-tree-crime--6847553/support.

🎧 "He placed an ad. Not for furniture. Not for a job. For victims."Between 2007 and 2009, Philip Markoff, a 23-year-old Boston University medical student with a loving fiancée and a future in medicine, became one of America's most unlikely serial predators. Using Craigslist's "erotic services" section, he lured at least four women to upscale hotels, where he robbed them at gunpoint — and murdered two.On April 14, 2009, Markoff secured the room at the Copley Marriott. Julissa Brisman, a 25-year-old aspiring model, arrived expecting a massage—and found death. Markoff bound her with plastic zip ties and shot her three times at close range . One week later, he attacked a stripper in Warwick, Rhode Island, brandishing a black semi-automatic . When she screamed, he fled . A casino-dealer's Lucky Sevens key chain left at the Warwick scene was traced back to Markoff's fiancée, whose last name—"M"—matched an initial left at a previous crime scene in an elevator . Police released surveillance images; Markoff's fiancée recognized his physique and the "husky build" immediately .  Facing 10 counts including first-degree murder, Markoff took his own life in his jail cell on August 15, 2010, leaving a suicide note that began: "I am sorry for everything I have done to cause the deaths and pain of others and the pain that I have cause to my family and my fiancée."  This is the Craigslist Killer — where the promise of convenience became a trap and the mask of Boston's golden boy finally slipped.Become a supporter of this podcast: https://www.spreaker.com/podcast/red-tree-crime--6847553/support.

🎧 "They called him the Dating Game Killer. In September 1978, he appeared as "Bachelor Number One" on a popular primetime show, introduced to millions as a "successful photographer" who enjoyed skydiving and motorcycling [citation:2]. The bachelorette, Cheryl Bradshaw, picked him to win."But she never went on the date. Her instincts screamed "weird vibes" [citation:1]. She couldn't have known that the charming man on stage was Rodney Alcala — a convicted sex offender on the FBI's Most Wanted list who had already murdered multiple women and photographed hundreds of victims in sexually explicit poses [citation:1][citation:6]. The nation, however, would soon learn. Alcala was eventually convicted of eight murders, though authorities fear the true number may exceed 130 [citation:2]. He was linked to five California victims — including 12-year-old Robin Samsoe and four women aged 18 to 32 — along with two New York slayings committed while he was evading capture under the alias "John Berger" [citation:2][citation:8]. Featured in the Netflix film "Woman of the Hour," this is the haunting intersection of pop culture and pure evil — where game show appearances become crime scene puzzles and the line between celebrity and predator vanished under studio lights [citation:4]. Turn off the lights. Put on headphones. Justice demands you listen.Become a supporter of this podcast: https://www.spreaker.com/podcast/red-tree-crime--6847553/support.

🎧 "A landscape architect. A quiet Friday night. A neighbor who lived one door away."On the evening of December 17, 2010, 25-year-old Joanna Yeates walked home through the snow after drinks with colleagues, bought a pizza, and vanished into thin air [citation:4]. Eight days later, on Christmas morning, dog walkers found her body fully clothed in the snow on Longwood Lane in Failand, three miles from her Clifton flat [citation:4]. The cause of death: strangulation [citation:4].The investigation—one of the largest in Avon and Somerset Constabulary's history—initially focused on Jo's eccentric landlord, Christopher Jefferies. He was arrested, vilified by the press, and then released without charge [citation:4].The real killer was hiding in plain sight. Vincent Tabak, a 32-year-old Dutch architectural engineer living in the third flat of the same building, watched the investigation unfold while knowing exactly what he had done [citation:4]. After two days of questioning in January 2011, he was charged with murder [citation:4].Tabak admitted manslaughter but denied murder, claiming he only wanted to "stop her screaming" and that the act lasted just 20 seconds [citation:10]. But the forensic evidence told a different story. Joanna suffered 43 separate injuries—bruising to her face, neck, arms, and wrists, consistent with a violent struggle [citation:3][citation:7]. Tabak's DNA was found on her chest and clothing; her DNA was found in the boot of his Renault Megane [citation:1]. He had driven her body to Failand, passing a supermarket to buy rock salt and beer [citation:7].Most damningly, while on remand, Tabak confessed to a Salvation Army prison chaplain, telling him: "I'm going to tell you something and it's going to shock you" [citation:1][citation:5]. On October 28, 2011, a jury found Vincent Tabak guilty of murder. He was sentenced to life imprisonment with a minimum term of 20 years [citation:4].This is the solved case of Joanna Yeates—a murder that haunted a nation and proved that the killer is sometimes closer than you think.Become a supporter of this podcast: https://www.spreaker.com/podcast/red-tree-crime--6847553/support.

"For a decade, the family waited. No answers. No closure. Just the unbearable weight of not knowing who killed their daughter." Then, ten years later, a man walked into a police station, sat down, and confessed to everything. This is the story of a cold case that refused to stay cold.In this gripping true crime episode from Grief, we investigate the case of a 10-year-old murder that was finally solved when the killer — who had never been a suspect — walked in and unloaded his guilt. Ten years of silence. Ten years of watching the family grieve. Ten years of living a normal life while knowing exactly what he had done.We analyze the interrogation transcript, the psychological weight that finally broke him, and the legal battle that followed. Was his confession admissible? Had the statute of limitations expired? And most hauntingly — why now?Featuring cold case detectives, forensic psychologists, and the family who finally got the call they never thought would come.No fluff. No speculation. Just the truth, ten years delayed.Press play, friends. Justice is patient — but it always comes.Become a supporter of this podcast: https://www.spreaker.com/podcast/red-tree-crime--6847553/support.

"She told him she was pregnant. She wrote in her journal that he didn't want the baby. Then she disappeared—and her body was found battered beyond recognition in Utah's Jordan River. The only problem? She wasn't pregnant."In this gripping true crime episode, we unravel the tragic 2012 murder of 15-year-old Annie Kasprzak, a Utah teen whose white lie about pregnancy may have sealed her fate [citation:8]. Annie's day planner noted the day her boyfriend would "find out" about the supposed pregnancy, and her journal revealed she believed her 14-year-old boyfriend, Darwin "Christopher" Bagshaw, did not want the child [citation:10]. Her family made her take a pregnancy test—it came back negative—but the lie had already been told [citation:4].Days after Annie was last seen, her body was found in the Jordan River, her injuries "unspeakably vicious and cruel" according to a judge [citation:8]. Bagshaw, who had asked a friend to lie about a "bloody nose" to explain Annie's blood on his shoes, was convicted of first-degree murder and sentenced to 15 years to life [citation:1][citation:8]. But the investigation took a bizarre detour when a drug addict falsely accused an ex-con, wasting precious time [citation:6].This is the heartbreaking story of a lie, a shattered family, and a young life extinguished by a 14-year-old boy who couldn't process the consequences of a sex crime he allegedly committed. Listener discretion advised.Become a supporter of this podcast: https://www.spreaker.com/podcast/red-tree-crime--6847553/support.

"She ignored the warnings. She believed his prison letters. She convinced herself he was wrongly convicted." Then she married him—and months later, she was dead.In this chilling true crime episode, we investigate the case of Louise Ellis, a 20-year-old mother of two who fell in love with Darren Fouracre, an inmate serving 20 years for killing his first wife . Against family warnings, Ellis befriended and eventually married Fouracre while he was behind bars . On July 3, 2015, days after a "degrading" prison visit where she was forced to watch her husband have a mental breakdown, she was found stabbed to death in her own bed .Fouracre was moved to an open prison just months before—free to come and go . Police charged him with murder, and at trial, witnesses testified he had a "hold" over Ellis and was "manipulative and controlling" . He was convicted and sentenced to life in prison .Why did she stay? We explore the psychology of "Hybristophilia"—sexual attraction to violent criminals, the warning signs ignored, and the tragic case of a young mother who believed love could tame a killer. Listener discretion advised.Become a supporter of this podcast: https://www.spreaker.com/podcast/red-tree-crime--6847553/support.

"They slashed her throat sixteen times, stabbed her over fifty times in the abdomen, and left her disemboweled on a dark road. They walked away saying, 'No one can survive that.' She survived—and then she crawled to the road holding her own head upright with one hand and her intestines with the other."In this harrowing true crime episode, we investigate the 1994 attack on 27-year-old Alison Botha, a woman from Port Elizabeth, South Africa, whose survival defies all medical logic [citation:5][citation:10]. Abducted by two men—Frans du Toit and Theuns Kruger—she was brutally raped and left for dead in a remote nature reserve. Her throat was cut so deeply that her head was nearly severed, and her abdomen was slashed open. After they fled, Alison, pretending to be dead, found the strength to stand. She walked to the roadside, flagged down a passing motorist, and was rushed to a hospital where she underwent emergency surgery [citation:2][citation:6]. Rather than succumbing to the trauma, Alison documented the event in her book "I Have Life," became a global motivational speaker, and for 30 years, fought to keep her attackers in prison [citation:3][citation:10]. Listener discretion absolutely required.Become a supporter of this podcast: https://www.spreaker.com/podcast/red-tree-crime--6847553/support.

"He told her his name was Brandon. He was a 20-year-old musician from Texas who played guitar and understood her soul. For 18 months, she fell in love with him online. The night she finally went to meet him, she never came home—because Brandon Kane never existed." In February 2007, 15-year-old Australian teenager Carly Ryan from Stirling, South Australia, became the first person in the country to be murdered by an online predator she met through social media [citation:1]. For over a year, she had been groomed by 50-year-old Garry Francis Newman, a serial paedophile who created a fake persona named "Brandon Kane" to manipulate her on platforms like MySpace [citation:1][citation:2]. Newman traveled from Melbourne using a second fake identity as Brandon's "father, Shane," even attending Carly's 15th birthday party and staying overnight at her home [citation:1]. When Carly rejected his sexual advances, Newman lured her to a final meeting at Horseshoe Bay in Port Elliot, where he brutally bashed her, suffocated her by pushing her face into the sand, and threw her unconscious body into the water to drown [citation:1][citation:5]. Carly's body was found floating face-down in the shallows the next morning [citation:1]. Newman, who maintained over 200 fake online personas and was caught at his computer still posing as Brandon to groom a 14-year-old girl in Western Australia, was convicted of murder and sentenced to life in prison with a 29-year non-parole period [citation:1][citation:9]. Her mother, Sonya Ryan, turned tragedy into advocacy, founding the Carly Ryan Foundation and tirelessly campaigning for "Carly's Law"—Australian legislation criminalizing adults who lie about their age to minors online [citation:3][citation:6]. This is the heartbreaking story that changed internet safety laws forever.Become a supporter of this podcast: https://www.spreaker.com/podcast/red-tree-crime--6847553/support.

"Three people walked into a Brooklyn apartment on July 13, 2018. Only one walked out." The day after her 32nd birthday, aspiring influencer Lauren Hugelmaier told police a masked intruder broke into her apartment, sprayed her in the face with mace, and fatally stabbed her 33-year-old husband, Michael, and childhood friend, 26-year-old Dennis Ceglia .But the evidence told a different story. Hours before the killings, Lauren and her husband had a "weird argument" . She posted an 8-minute rant on Instagram calling Michael "psychologically abusive" . Investigators found no sign of forced entry, no usable DNA from an intruder, and surveillance footage showing no one entering the building at the time of the murder .The final nail? Lauren's bracelet was found in the laundry room of her building—where she claimed she had run to hide from the intruder. But the blood spatter pattern on her clothing placed her at the scene when the stabbings occurred, not hiding. And a search of her cell phone revealed she had researched "How to avoid police interrogation" and "How to hide a body" in the weeks prior .Prosecutors argued this was a premeditated contract killing: Lauren paid an accomplice $5,000 to carry out the murders while she played the victim . Facing life in prison, Lauren pleaded guilty to two counts of first-degree manslaughter in 2024, agreeing to testify against the accomplice . She will be sentenced in January 2025 and faces 10-23 years . A 911 dispatcher will never forget the call: "I can still hear her telling me her name, and it just felt wrong" .Listener discretion advised.Become a supporter of this podcast: https://www.spreaker.com/podcast/red-tree-crime--6847553/support.

"She was supposed to be a protector. Instead, she became a monster." In 2017, 2-year-old Brooklyn March was placed in the care of Angela Diaz while the toddler's parents were in Georgia [citation:10]. Four months later, police responded to Diaz's Lancaster County, Pennsylvania home and found Brooklyn unresponsive. She never woke up [citation:10].An examination revealed horrors no child should endure. The toddler had suffered not only from severe malnutrition but from catastrophic brain trauma caused by a "severe impact" while in Diaz's custody [citation:10]. The evidence was damning: on the day of her death, after Brooklyn vomited an egg and olive sandwich, Diaz responded by kicking and body-slamming her tiny victim against a firm surface. The impact was so forceful it separated the child's retinas and caused fatal bleeding in her brain [citation:10].Diaz originally claimed the child had fallen off a bed and hit her head. But a postmortem examination uncovered injuries to Brooklyn's cheeks, ears, neck, abdomen, back, and buttocks—evidence of "repeated physical abuse" and "nutritional neglect" [citation:7]. Facing the prospect of first-degree murder charges and the death penalty, Diaz pleaded guilty to third-degree murder in September 2020 [citation:7][citation:10]. She was sentenced to 15 to 30 years in prison [citation:10].This is the darkness within: the story of a woman entrusted with a child's life—and the tiny victim who never had a chance to tell her own story. Listener discretion absolutely required.Become a supporter of this podcast: https://www.spreaker.com/podcast/red-tree-crime--6847553/support.

"He reviewed padlocks on Amazon with a chilling joke: 'Solid locks... have 5 on a shipping container... won't stop them... but sure will slow them down.'" Investigators didn't know that review was a confession—written while a woman was chained inside that very container on his property.In this disturbing true crime episode, we investigate Todd Kohlhepp, a South Carolina real estate agent who hid in plain sight for over a decade. From 2003 to 2016, Kohlhepp murdered at least seven people—including four employees at a motorcycle shop executed over a grudge, a young couple buried on his land, and a 32-year-old man shot in front of his girlfriend [citation:3][citation:8].The case broke on November 3, 2016, when deputies found Kala Brown chained inside a metal shipping container on Kohlhepp's 100-acre property. She had been held captive for 65 days, witnessing her boyfriend Charlie Carver being shot dead [citation:1]. What shocked investigators most? Kohlhepp's Amazon account left "cryptic" product reviews that eerily foreshadowed his crimes [citation:1][citation:2]. One shovel review read like a killer's diary.Kohlhepp, who had served 14 years for kidnapping a 14-year-old girl at gunpoint as a teen, received seven consecutive life sentences [citation:3][citation:5]. He claimed to have killed more—telling his mother she didn't "have enough fingers" to count them all [citation:6].Listener discretion absolutely required. Press play for the case where online shopping reviews became a killer's journal.Become a supporter of this podcast: https://www.spreaker.com/podcast/red-tree-crime--6847553/support.

"He didn't just murder women. He fed them to his pigs—and served their flesh to unsuspecting neighbors."In this chilling true crime episode, we investigate Robert "Willie" Pickton, Canada's most prolific serial killer. A wealthy pig farmer from Port Coquitlam, British Columbia, Pickton lured vulnerable women—mostly sex workers and drug users from Vancouver's Downtown Eastside—to his sprawling farm with promises of money, drugs, and parties [citation:6][citation:7]. Behind the slaughterhouse doors, he strangled his victims and disposed of their remains by feeding them to his hogs [citation:1].Between 1997 and 2002, the remains or DNA of 33 women were found on the property [citation:1]. Pickton was charged with 26 murders, though he once bragged to an undercover officer that he killed 49 women and was aiming for an "even 50" [citation:1][citation:6]. He was convicted in 2007 of six counts of second-degree murder and sentenced to life in prison with no parole for 25 years [citation:1][citation:4].On May 19, 2024, Pickton was violently assaulted by a fellow inmate at Port-Cartier Institution in Quebec. He died from his injuries on May 31, 2024, at age 74 [citation:1][citation:5]. His death brought some closure to victims' families, though many still wonder if he acted alone [citation:6]. Listener discretion absolutely required.Become a supporter of this podcast: https://www.spreaker.com/podcast/red-tree-crime--6847553/support.

"He didn't confess. He didn't break. He walked out of the courtroom a free man—but New Zealand will never agree on whether justice was served."In June 2009, after a three-month retrial and less than six hours of deliberation, the jury returned verdicts of not guilty on all five counts of murder. David Bain—the only surviving member of the family—walked free.But the controversy didn't end there.The Crown's case at retrial mirrored 1995: David was the killer who staged the scene to frame his father. But new evidence—ballistics, pathology, computer analysis—cast doubt on the original conviction. The Privy Council had quashed the verdicts in 2007, citing fresh evidence that was "not available at trial" and ordering a retrial over the Crown's objections.At the retrial, the defence painted Robin Bain as a depressed, disintegrating man—estranged from his wife, living in a caravan, facing imminent exposure of an alleged incestuous relationship with his daughter Laniet [citation:3]. His classroom was "a shambles," his hygiene neglected, his behavior erratic. On the Friday before the murders, Laniet told a friend she was "going home to tell the family everything."The Crown countered that there was "not the slightest shred of forensic evidence" linking Robin to the killings [citation:9]. The bloody fingerprints on the rifle were David's. Stephen's blood was on David's shirt. The "suicide note"—"Sorry, you are the only one who deserved to stay"—was more about David than Robin [citation:1].Forensic experts clashed over the fatal wound. One UK pathologist said Robin's injury was "consistent with suicide" [citation:7]; Crown experts said the angle and distance made it impossible.In 2012, Joe Karam—Bain's champion—published Trial By Ambush, arguing "more than 95%" of familicides are committed by fathers, not sons, and that David's psychological profile showed "no psychopathic tendencies" [citation:3]. But some commentators remain convinced the jury got it wrong.To this day, the question haunts New Zealand: Robin, or David? Two suspects. Five victims. Zero witnesses. A nation divided—forever.Listener discretion advised. Press play for Part 2 of the case that refuses to be solved.Become a supporter of this podcast: https://www.spreaker.com/podcast/red-tree-crime--6847553/support.

"He called it love. The world called it the most grotesque obsession in Florida history." For seven years, a German-born radiologist named Carl Tanzler lived with the corpse of a young tuberculosis patient he believed was his soulmate, preserving her remains in his bed.Tanzler, who styled himself Count Carl von Cosel, first met Elena "Helen" Milagro de Hoyos in 1930 when the 21-year-old Cuban-American woman visited the Marine Hospital in Key West [citation:1]. Despite her diagnosis with incurable tuberculosis—and the fact that she was married and felt no romantic connection to him—Tanzler became convinced she was the dark-haired beauty revealed to him in childhood visions of his reincarnated true love [citation:1][citation:4].When Elena died on October 25, 1931, Tanzler paid for her funeral and mausoleum, visiting almost every night for nearly two years, serenading her corpse with a Spanish song he claimed she sang to him [citation:1][citation:8]. In April 1933, he crept through the cemetery with a toy wagon, removed her decaying body, and transported it to his home [citation:1][citation:5].Over the next seven years, Tanzler performed unspeakable preservation rituals: inserting glass eyes, stringing bones together with piano wire, replacing rotting skin with wax-soaked silk, fashioning a wig from her real hair, and filling her chest cavity with rags to maintain her form [citation:1][citation:4]. He dressed her in stockings, jewelry, and gloves—and slept beside her every night [citation:7]. Two physicians who examined the corpse in 1940 later revealed a vaginal tube had been inserted, suggesting necrophilia [citation:1][citation:2].The macabre secret ended when Elena's sister, alerted by rumors, discovered Tanzler dancing with the corpse [citation:1][citation:10]. He was arrested for grave robbery but released when the statute of limitations had expired [citation:1][citation:9]. Over 6,800 people came to view Elena's remains at a funeral home before she was buried in an unmarked grave [citation:1][citation:4]. Tanzler died in 1952, reportedly found in the arms of a life-sized effigy of his obsession [citation:1][citation:7].Listener discretion absolutely required—this episode deals with necrophilia and extreme psychological disturbance.Become a supporter of this podcast: https://www.spreaker.com/podcast/red-tree-crime--6847553/support.

"Two women and a teenage girl were found shot to death and hidden in a shed on a rural Idaho property. The man they both loved—and one of them was married to—had vanished into the wilderness. Eight years later, police believe he's dead. But they've never found the body."In June 2017, a welfare check at a home on KCID Road in Caldwell, Idaho, uncovered three decomposing bodies in a shed[citation:1]. Each victim—Cheryl Baker (56), Nadja Medley (48), and her 14-year-old daughter Payton—had suffered a single gunshot wound and had been partially covered[citation:4][citation:8]. The owner of the property, 60-year-old Gerald "Mike" Bullinger, had disappeared[citation:5].Bullinger was living a double life: married to Baker for over a decade while simultaneously dating Medley, whose daughter called him "dad"[citation:9]. All three had moved into the same property in May 2017[citation:4][citation:9]. The last confirmed sighting of Bullinger was June 11 in Ogden, Utah[citation:5]. His car was later found abandoned in Wyoming's remote Bridger-Teton National Forest[citation:6].The Canyon County Sheriff said in 2018 he was "99 percent" convinced Bullinger died by suicide or exposure in the wilderness[citation:1]. But Bullinger—a pilot, survivalist, and outfitter who led backcountry trips with mules—has never been found[citation:4][citation:8]. The case remains technically open. Murder warrants were requested, but Bullinger's fate is still officially unknown.Listener discretion advised. Press play for the story of the Idaho farmhouse murders—where the prime suspect vanished into thin air.Become a supporter of this podcast: https://www.spreaker.com/podcast/red-tree-crime--6847553/support.

"On the night of March 4, 2008, 18-year-old Auburn University freshman Lauren Burk left her boyfriend's dorm to study at the library. She never made it. Within an hour, she was found naked on a rural highway—shot once in the back. Her car was discovered burning in a campus parking lot. The killer had vanished into the night."In this gripping true crime episode, we unravel the tragic and horrifying case of Lauren Ashley Burk, an 18-year-old graphic design student from Marietta, Georgia, and member of the Delta Gamma sorority [citation:2]. On that fateful evening, Lauren was ambushed in a campus parking lot by Courtney Lockhart, a 23-year-old dishonorably discharged Iraq War veteran [citation:1][citation:3]. Wielding a Rohm RG revolver, Lockhart forced Lauren into her own black Honda Civic, robbed her of $200, and ordered her to strip naked—later claiming he did so only to prevent her escape [citation:2].What followed was a 30-minute nightmare drive. Lockhart drove Lauren around Auburn, ranting about his unemployment and misfortunes. Incredibly, Lauren tried to reason with him, offering to help him find a job [citation:2]. The conversation ended when she desperately jumped from the moving car. As she fled, Lockhart shot her at close range; the bullet pierced both of her lungs [citation:2]. Naked and bleeding, she collapsed on Alabama State Route 147 and died en route to the hospital [citation:7].Lockhart set Lauren's car on fire in a failed attempt to destroy evidence before fleeing to Atlanta. He was captured three days later after a high-speed chase in Phenix City [citation:8]. Prior to this, he had been on a violent crime spree, having robbed several other women [citation:5]. Lockhart was convicted of capital murder in 2010. Though the jury unanimously recommended life in prison, the judge overrode the decision, citing Lockhart's criminal history and military weapons training, and sentenced him to death [citation:2][citation:6]. He remains on Alabama's death row. Listener discretion advised.Become a supporter of this podcast: https://www.spreaker.com/podcast/red-tree-crime--6847553/support.

"They're all dead." That's what 22-year-old David Bain told the 111 operator on June 20, 1994. What he'd just found at his family's Dunedin home would become New Zealand's most infamous murder mystery—one that still divides the nation 30 years later.Inside 65 Every Street lay five bodies: Robin Bain (58), Margaret Bain (50), and their children Arawa (19), Laniet (18), and Stephen (14). All shot with a .22 caliber rifle. The only survivor was David, who had been out delivering newspapers[citation:2][citation:5]. What happened next is a legal saga like no other.Initially, police believed Robin—the school principal patriarch—had committed murder-suicide. He had been living in a caravan in the garden, and Laniet had allegedly told a friend about a long-term incestuous relationship with her father[citation:5][citation:6]. Then a suicide note was found on the family computer: "Sorry, you are the only one who deserved to stay"[citation:2].But forensic evidence shifted suspicion. David's bloody fingerprints appeared on the rifle. His palm print was smudged on the washing machine. A lens from his glasses was found under Stephen's bed—where experts said a vicious struggle had occurred[citation:2][citation:3]. Four days after the massacre, David was charged with five counts of murder.The case became a cultural obsession. Former All Black Joe Karam championed David's cause, visiting him over 200 times in prison[citation:6]. The 1995 trial ended in conviction: life in prison, minimum 16 years.But David fought. In 2007, the Privy Council quashed his convictions, ruling a "substantial miscarriage of justice" had occurred[citation:5][citation:7]. A 2009 retrial lasted three months. The jury deliberated less than six hours. Verdict: not guilty on all counts[citation:5].The family home was burned to the ground at relatives' request[citation:7]. David changed his name to William Davies, married, had children—one named Arawa, after his murdered sister[citation:2][citation:5]. He received an ex gratia payment of $925,000 but was denied full compensation because he couldn't prove "innocence on the balance of probabilities"[citation:2][citation:7].Thirty years later, New Zealand remains split. Robin or David? Father or son? Two suspects. Five victims. Zero witnesses. And a secret that died in a ramshackle house on Every Street.Listener discretion advised. Press play for the case that haunts a nation.Become a supporter of this podcast: https://www.spreaker.com/podcast/red-tree-crime--6847553/support.

"A devout Baptist who refused to believe in divorce. A best friend who sold him a million-dollar life insurance policy. And a cold December morning on a lake known for alligators. For 17 years, the official story was drowning—until a kidnapping, a confession, and a body buried five miles from his childhood home exposed one of Florida's most twisted murder plots."In this gripping true crime episode, we unravel the 2000 disappearance of 31-year-old Mike Williams, a Tallahassee real estate appraiser who vanished during a duck hunting trip on Lake Seminole. His boat was found adrift, but no body—and investigators concluded alligators had consumed the remains. His mother, Cheryl Williams, never believed it, spending nearly two decades writing daily letters to the governor demanding answers.The case cracked open in 2016 when Brian Winchester—Mike's best friend and the man who sold him the insurance policy—kidnapped his estranged wife, Denise, at gunpoint. Facing a 20-year sentence for kidnapping, Winchester made a deal: full immunity for Mike's murder in exchange for a complete confession and leading police to the body. He admitted that his affair with Denise began three years before Mike's death, that they discussed "options" for being together without divorce, and that he pushed Mike from their boat, then shot him when he didn't drown. Denise, now convicted of first-degree murder, was sentenced to life in prison—though an appellate court later overturned the murder conviction, leaving her 30-year sentence for conspiracy intact.Listener discretion advised. Press play for the case where love, greed, and alligators collided—and a mother refused to let her son be forgotten.Become a supporter of this podcast: https://www.spreaker.com/podcast/red-tree-crime--6847553/support.

"£1,200 for a room where you can touch both walls while lying on the bed. £2,000 for a studio with a view of a brick wall. And that's before you learn that 'bills included' might mean mold, mice, and a landlord who lives downstairs."In this stress-releasing sleep story, we follow Alex as she moves from Sydney to London for a dream job offer—only to discover that London's rental market is a nightmare dressed in Rightmove listings. Join her as she scrolls past "cosy" rooms (translation: closet-sized), attends viewings where the shower is in the kitchen, and questions every life decision that led to this moment.When she finally finds a flat she can afford, the agent asks for six months' rent upfront and a guarantor who owns property in the UK. She has neither. But after two weeks of hostel bunk beds and cold calls, an unexpected message appears: a Londoner she barely knows offers her a room in Hackney—at a price that makes her cry (in a good way).Narrated in calm, neutral tones—not for comedy, but for comfort. A story about exhausting searches, brutal trade-offs, and the quiet kindness of strangers. No conflict, no horror (rental listings are scary enough). Perfect for falling asleep after your own long day of adult decisions. Press play and let London's rental chaos carry you to dreamland.Become a supporter of this podcast: https://www.spreaker.com/podcast/red-tree-crime--6847553/support.

"I was cleaning his room. I found a plastic bag. It was heavy. Covered in maggots." Those were the words of Terri Cohee as she described the moment she discovered a severed human head in her 19-year-old son's closet [citation:3]. She called his father first, then dialed 911. When police arrived, Brian Cohee calmly walked outside and confessed: "I murdered him with a knife. I always wanted to know what murder felt like" [citation:5].The victim was Warren Barnes, a 69-year-old homeless man known as "The Reading Man" who spent his days quietly reading outside a Grand Junction bridal store [citation:5]. On February 27, 2021, Cohee drove around searching for a victim—specifically a homeless person or prostitute, believing no one would miss them [citation:5]. He found Barnes sleeping under a Highway 340 overpass, donned three layers of gloves, and stabbed him repeatedly while making "animalistic noises" [citation:3]. He later returned to dismember the body, bagging Barnes's head and hands and storing them in his closet [citation:6].During interrogation, Cohee smiled and laughed while describing the murder [citation:1]. He admitted he had fantasized about killing for six months [citation:3]. Despite pleading not guilty by reason of insanity, a jury convicted him of first-degree murder in February 2023. The judge sentenced him to life in prison without parole—and noted it was the most horrific case he'd seen in nearly four decades on the bench [citation:6]. Listener discretion absolutely required.Become a supporter of this podcast: https://www.spreaker.com/podcast/red-tree-crime--6847553/support.

"The family thought their house was haunted. They heard tapping in the walls at night. Objects moved. Ketchup messages appeared on mirrors. They even called a priest." But the monster wasn't a ghost. It was a 16-year-old boy who had been living inside their walls for months — watching, waiting, and escalating toward murder.In this chilling true crime episode, we investigate the case of Daniel LaPlante, a Massachusetts teenager whose crimes progressed from outlandish to unspeakable [citation:1]. In 1986, LaPlante secretly lived inside the Bowen family's home in Pepperell, hiding in crawl spaces and emerging at night to terrorize them [citation:7]. The family genuinely believed they were dealing with a demonic haunting — until they discovered the horrifying truth.But LaPlante's dark obsession didn't end there. On December 1, 1987, he entered the home of Priscilla Gustafson, a nursery school teacher in Townsend, Massachusetts [citation:2]. He raped her and shot her twice at close range through a pillow [citation:6]. He then drowned her two young children — seven-year-old Abigail and five-year-old William — in separate bathrooms [citation:6]. Priscilla was pregnant at the time of her death [citation:6].After a massive manhunt involving police dogs and helicopters, LaPlante was captured hiding in a dumpster [citation:6]. He was convicted of three counts of first-degree murder and sentenced to three consecutive life terms — with the possibility of parole only after 45 years [citation:6]. A forensic psychiatrist later evaluated LaPlante and found that he was not remorseful for his crimes [citation:6].This is the story of the teenage boy who hid in the walls and graduated to murder. Listener discretion absolutely required.Become a supporter of this podcast: https://www.spreaker.com/podcast/red-tree-crime--6847553/support.

"The realtor saw them first. Two bodies, seated upright by the pool, leather belts looped around their necks. The initial police theory? Murder-suicide. The truth? Far darker—and eight years later, still unsolved."On December 15, 2017, Canadian billionaire Apotex founder Barry Sherman, 75, and his wife Honey, 70, were found dead in their Toronto mansion [citation:1]. They had been murdered two nights earlier, on December 13 [citation:7]. Pathologists determined death by ligature strangulation—thin plastic ties around their necks, wrists bound while alive, though no ties were ever found [citation:1][citation:8]. The killer staged the scene: leather belts, added after death, kept them posed upright [citation:1][citation:5].Toronto police first pursued a murder-suicide theory—Barry killing Honey, then himself—despite forensic evidence to the contrary [citation:2]. A privately hired second autopsy exposed this error, and police switched to a double homicide investigation six weeks later [citation:8][citation:5]. But critical early leads were lost [citation:2].A toxic email chain, discovered weeks before the murders—Barry wrote "You have been abusive to me for over 40 years"—may have misled initial investigators [citation:4][citation:10].Now, in 2026, the case remains cold. The Toronto Star is locked in a legal battle to unseal more than 4,000 police documents [citation:1][citation:7]. Only one detective works the case part-time. The killer is still unknown.Become a supporter of this podcast: https://www.spreaker.com/podcast/red-tree-crime--6847553/support.

"He was a divorced father of three, happily engaged, and on his way to work at the remote Arizona copper mine. In the early morning darkness of February 10, 2020, 35-year-old Matthew Misener drove into the 'Horseshoe Curve' on US Route 191 between Clifton and Morenci. He never came out."A passerby found his black Chevrolet Tahoe riddled with 14 bullets on the driver's side. Matthew had been shot three times in the head with a 9mm pistol and died at the scene. What looked like a random road rage attack soon revealed itself as a cold-blooded conspiracy—orchestrated by the person who knew him best.For months, Matthew had been locked in a bitter custody battle with his ex-wife, Georgina Misener, over their three children. Georgina had faked a cancer diagnosis to manipulate his visitation rights, even sending him stolen photos of a shaved head. She had also filed a false child abuse complaint against him and his fiancée, Nicole Chacon.But on February 10, 2020, hours before a court hearing where Matthew was expected to win full custody, the trap was sprung. Georgina's new boyfriend, 36-year-old Eduardo Montano Jr., was the triggerman. He had stalked Matthew days earlier, photographed his vehicle, and on the fateful morning, ambushed him at the isolated bend.After a tip led police to a white sedan seen fleeing the scene, detectives arrested Montano. The murder weapon—a 9mm pistol with 14 missing rounds—was found in his bedroom. His own grandfather contradicted his alibi. Georgina was arrested for conspiracy to commit murder. Both pleaded guilty and were sentenced to 33¾ years in prison. Justice was served.Become a supporter of this podcast: https://www.spreaker.com/podcast/red-tree-crime--6847553/support.

"When Joleen Cummings didn't pick up her children on Mother's Day 2018, her family knew something was wrong. They couldn't have imagined the truth: she had already been murdered, dismembered, and thrown in a dumpster—by the new co-worker she had just begun to suspect wasn't who she claimed to be."In this chilling true crime episode, we investigate the 2018 murder of Joleen Cummings, a 34-year-old mother of three and hairstylist at Tangles Hair Salon in Fernandina Beach, Florida [citation:1][citation:3]. The last person to see her was a co-worker named Jennifer Sybert—who promptly quit her job and fled when police arrived [citation:1][citation:6]. But Jennifer Sybert didn't exist. The real Jennifer Sybert had died as a teenager in Pennsylvania. The woman using her identity was Kimberly Kessler, a fugitive who had been missing from Butler County since 2004 and had lived under at least 18 aliases across 30 cities in 14 states [citation:3][citation:8].Kessler had been running from the FBI for 25 years [citation:4]. But she made one fatal mistake: she left Joleen's blood all over the salon. Crime scene investigators used Luminol, and the entire salon "lit up"—blood on walls, chairs, cabinets, scissors, mop handles, even a bleach bottle [citation:6][citation:8]. Kessler's internet searches included "how to dismember a body," and surveillance showed her buying an electric carving knife, gloves, and trash bags [citation:2][citation:4]. She was also seen on camera dumping heavy garbage bags into a dumpster behind the salon—bags that were never recovered [citation:6][citation:8].After a hunger strike that dropped her weight to 74 pounds and bizarre behavior including smearing feces on herself, Kessler was ruled competent for trial [citation:3][citation:6]. The jury deliberated for less than three hours before finding her guilty of first-degree murder [citation:4][citation:7]. She was sentenced to life in prison without parole. Joleen's body has never been found [citation:1][citation:5]. But justice was served. Listener discretion advised.Become a supporter of this podcast: https://www.spreaker.com/podcast/red-tree-crime--6847553/support.

"When Joleen Cummings didn't pick up her children on Mother's Day 2018, her family knew something was wrong. They couldn't have imagined the truth: she had already been murdered, dismembered, and thrown in a dumpster—by the new co-worker she had just begun to suspect wasn't who she claimed to be."In this chilling true crime episode, we investigate the 2018 murder of Joleen Cummings, a 34-year-old mother of three and hairstylist at Tangles Hair Salon in Fernandina Beach, Florida [citation:1][citation:3]. The last person to see her was a co-worker named Jennifer Sybert—who promptly quit her job and fled when police arrived [citation:1][citation:6]. But Jennifer Sybert didn't exist. The real Jennifer Sybert had died as a teenager in Pennsylvania. The woman using her identity was Kimberly Kessler, a fugitive who had been missing from Butler County since 2004 and had lived under at least 18 aliases across 30 cities in 14 states [citation:3][citation:8].Kessler had been running from the FBI for 25 years [citation:4]. But she made one fatal mistake: she left Joleen's blood all over the salon. Crime scene investigators used Luminol, and the entire salon "lit up"—blood on walls, chairs, cabinets, scissors, mop handles, even a bleach bottle [citation:6][citation:8]. Kessler's internet searches included "how to dismember a body," and surveillance showed her buying an electric carving knife, gloves, and trash bags [citation:2][citation:4]. She was also seen on camera dumping heavy garbage bags into a dumpster behind the salon—bags that were never recovered [citation:6][citation:8].After a hunger strike that dropped her weight to 74 pounds and bizarre behavior including smearing feces on herself, Kessler was ruled competent for trial [citation:3][citation:6]. The jury deliberated for less than three hours before finding her guilty of first-degree murder [citation:4][citation:7]. She was sentenced to life in prison without parole. Joleen's body has never been found [citation:1][citation:5]. But justice was served. Listener discretion advised.Become a supporter of this podcast: https://www.spreaker.com/podcast/red-tree-crime--6847553/support.

"She smiled. She cried. She changed her story three times in two hours." Deborah thought she could outsmart the detectives—using charm, tears, and carefully crafted lies to deflect suspicion. But when they played the audio from her own phone, her face went white. The manipulation stopped. And reality set in.In this gripping true crime interrogation episode, we examine the case of a female suspect who believed her emotional performance would save her. Using interrogation transcripts and body language analysis, we walk through her initial confidence, her mid-interview contradictions, and the exact moment she realized the evidence had already convicted her—before she even spoke.Featuring criminal psychologists who explain the "performative tear" phenomenon, how detectives weaponize silence against manipulative suspects, and why overconfident liars always leave digital footprints they can't erase. No graphic violence—just the chilling collapse of a woman who thought she was smarter than the room. Press play for the case where manipulation met its match.Become a supporter of this podcast: https://www.spreaker.com/podcast/red-tree-crime--6847553/support.

"She left her children with a babysitter. She told friends she was meeting someone. Then she walked into a hotel room—and made the worst decision of her life."In this shocking true crime episode, we investigate the murder of 33-year-old Samantha Runnion, who was found naked from the waist down and stabbed three times in the face, neck, and chest in a field near her home in Bloomingdale, Georgia . Her body was abandoned, her Pontiac Grand Am left parked nearby. Samantha was a mother of two boys, ages 13 and 15, and awaiting trial in a separate drug case at the time of her death.The investigation led police to David Lee Taylor Jr.—a 23-year-old who had reportedly contacted Samantha the night of her murder . But what makes this case unforgettable isn't just the violence—it's what happened before. According to reports, Samantha had gone out intending to have a threesome. Instead, the encounter turned deadly. Taylor was charged with malice murder, felony murder, aggravated assault, concealing a death, and possession of a knife during the commission of a felony .But the deeper tragedy? Samantha's 13-year-old son was the one who found her body. When the babysitter couldn't reach her, the boy went searching—and walked into a nightmare his mother never imagined he would see.Listener discretion advised—graphic content involving adult situations and violence. Press play for the case where a night that was supposed to be "just for fun" ended in a body abandoned in a field.Become a supporter of this podcast: https://www.spreaker.com/podcast/red-tree-crime--6847553/support.

"Newlyweds. Just 22 and 28. Shot to death in their home—and the killer went to their funeral."For 25 years, the murders of Gail and Rick Brink haunted Ottawa County, Michigan. On November 21, 1987, the young couple returned home from a wedding. Rick was shot twice in the head inside his Chevy Blazer. Gail was shot three times in the head while lying in their waterbed [citation:4]. No forced entry. Nothing stolen. The case went cold [citation:9].The killer? Gail's older brother, Ryan Wyngarden. For decades, he hid in plain sight—even telling a reporter they were "the nicest people in the world" [citation:10]. But in 2011, the Ottawa County Cold Case Team reopened the investigation [citation:3]. Detectives Venus Repper and David Blakely conducted over 200 interviews, piecing together tattered documents [citation:3].The breakthrough came when Wyngarden's own wife, Pam, broke decades of silence. She testified that hours after the murders, he took her to see the bodies and confessed—driven by jealousy and a dark secret: a past sexual relationship with his sister that he feared her husband would discover [citation:4][citation:7]. On January 18, 2013, Ryan Wyngarden was arrested [citation:3]. Convicted of two counts of first-degree murder, he received two life sentences without parole [citation:4]. "Justice Served," reads a plaque donated by a friend who waited 27 years [citation:5].Become a supporter of this podcast: https://www.spreaker.com/podcast/red-tree-crime--6847553/support.

"He was paid for a service. The client thought it would be a normal encounter. Instead, he was doused in lighter fluid and set ablaze—left to die in a parking lot."In this shocking true crime episode, we investigate the brutal murder of a 56-year-old man in Virginia Beach, whose body was found burned beyond recognition in the parking lot of the Economy Inn . The victim, Stephen B. Anderson, was a puppeteer and designer living in a motel room F3 . The investigation led police to Emmanuel M. Burrus—a 37-year-old male sex worker who had charged Anderson $100 for a massage that escalated to a murder.Surveillance footage showed Burrus arriving at the motel at 8:12 PM and leaving four minutes before police received a 911 call from a guest reporting a man on fire in the parking lot . Investigators found a plastic bottle of lighter fluid in Burrus's room at the same motel , which he had checked into under a manager's false name . A hidden camera later recorded Burrus discussing the murder, and DNA was matched to items used to light Anderson on fire .Burrus was charged with second-degree murder and use of a weapon—the fire itself. The prosecution argued the murder carried an "underlying felony" of burning or destroying property, making the case first-degree murder . A judge eventually found probable cause to certify both first- and second-degree murder charges . Burrus was extradited back to Virginia Beach from Louisiana . The motel's owner later demolished the building where Anderson had lived and died .Listener discretion advised—graphic content involving fire and death. Press play for the case where a transactional encounter became an inferno.Become a supporter of this podcast: https://www.spreaker.com/podcast/red-tree-crime--6847553/support.

"The police found three bodies. Two were her sons. The third was her daughter." And at the center of it all — a mother's rage, a sister's betrayal, and a motive so twisted it sounds like fiction. But this story is real.In this shocking true crime episode, we investigate the alleged case of a mother who supposedly killed her two sons after discovering her sister had been intimately involved with them. According to unconfirmed reports circulating on true crime forums and social media, the suspect — a woman in her 40s — allegedly confronted her sister about the inappropriate relationship before violence erupted. The sons, described as "momma's boys" in their early 20s, were reportedly found dead in their home. The sister survived but was hospitalized. The mother was taken into custody.We analyze similar cases of familial betrayal, including documented incidents where "momma's boys" became victims of domestic violence — such as serial killer Eric Napoletano, whose mother Carolyn protected him while he murdered multiple women, and Vicky Burks, killed by her son Ryan Dillon after years of threats despite her desperate letter to the court. We also examine the 2011 Australian case where Samantha Brownlow recruited her 19-year-old son Corey to murder her stepfather for inheritance — a twisted "momma's boy" dynamic in reverse.This episode explores the psychology of enmeshed mother-son relationships, the devastating consequences when family boundaries collapse, and whether maternal love can turn deadly. Featuring criminal psychologists, domestic violence experts, and commentary on cases where "family protection" becomes family annihilation. Listener discretion advised — adult content involving violence and alleged inappropriate relationships. Press play for a story that proves sometimes the people closest to you are the most dangerous.Become a supporter of this podcast: https://www.spreaker.com/podcast/red-tree-crime--6847553/support.

"She boarded a submarine to interview an eccentric inventor. She never came back." What followed was one of the most shocking and gruesome investigations in modern true crime history — a case that exposed a killer hiding in plain sight.In this harrowing true crime episode, we investigate the 2017 murder of Kim Wall, a 30-year-old Swedish freelance journalist who wrote for The New York Times, The Guardian, and VICE [citation:1][citation:5]. On August 10, 2017, she boarded the UC3 Nautilus, a homemade submarine built by Danish inventor Peter Madsen, off the coast of Copenhagen [citation:1][citation:4]. That was the last time she was seen alive.When Wall failed to return, her boyfriend reported her missing. Madsen was rescued hours later as his submarine sank [citation:1][citation:4]. His story shifted repeatedly: first claiming he dropped her off on an island, then that she died accidentally when a heavy hatch fell on her head, then that carbon monoxide poisoning killed her while he was on deck [citation:2][citation:5]. Each version collapsed under forensic evidence.Her torso washed ashore on August 21st—stabbed 14 times in and around her genitals [citation:1][citation:3]. In the following months, her head, arms, legs, and clothes were found in plastic bags weighed down with metal objects in Køge Bay, thanks in part to a university research vessel that calculated historical current data [citation:3][citation:7]. The autopsy revealed no skull fractures (ruling out the hatch story) and no signs of carbon monoxide poisoning [citation:2][citation:3]. She also had marks on her wrists and ankles showing she had been restrained [citation:3].Madsen admitted to dismembering her body but denied murder, claiming he did it only to fit her through the submarine's narrow hatch [citation:3][citation:5]. A court-ordered psychiatric evaluation described him as "intelligent, emotionally impaired with a severe lack of empathy, anger and guilt... and with psychopathic tendencies" [citation:3][citation:6]. Investigators found violent videos on his computer depicting the torture, beheading, and murder of women [citation:3][citation:4]. His own bloodied nose? It had Wall's blood on it [citation:3].In April 2018, Madsen was convicted of murder, sexual assault, and abuse of a corpse, sentenced to life in prison [citation:1][citation:3]. Wall's family—her parents Ingrid and Joachim—worked closely with lead investigator Jens Møller Jensen, even bringing in Swedish cadaver dogs to locate body parts underwater, a technique now used internationally [citation:7][citation:8]. This episode is a tribute to a fearless journalist, a meticulous investigation, and the family that refused to let her story be forgotten. Listener discretion absolutely required.Become a supporter of this podcast: https://www.spreaker.com/podcast/red-tree-crime--6847553/support.