Daniel Zamudio was born in Chile on August 3,1987. The second child of a family of four, he came out as a gay at 17. A regular guy into parties and Britney Spears and who dreamed on becoming a father one day who lived with his mom and grandma. He worked on a clothing store hoping to finish studying, save some money and studying modelling.

He was last seen by his mom on March 2, 2012, although it would be confirmed later that he went to work on his usual schedule from 14:00 to 19:00. His last whereabouts where at a local cybercafe on wich he stayed until 22:00.

At the early mornings of March 3, 2012 he was found by a local security guard of San Borja park in a catastrophic state. Without any identification he was send to a nearby hospital urgently.

Among his wounds were:

Severe TBI, open fracture of the left tibia and fibula, aspiration pneumonia, regressing rhabdomyolysis, multiple blunt and sharp trauma to the facial area, chest, back, and limbs. Cigarette burns on the body and swastika-shaped cuts on the chest and back were other characteristics of the sad and discouraging condition of the young man, who had to be placed in an induced coma.

The attackers were:

Alejandro Áxel Angulo Tapia (26),

Patricio Iván Ahumada Garay (25),

Raúl Alfonso López Fuentes (25),

Fabián Alexis Mora Mora (19).

Raul Lopez claimed he kicked him a few times on his head and legs while mentioning the sexual orientation of the victim. He continued describing how the victim was profundly bleeding and unconscious which made Alejandro broke a bottle on Daniel's head and then Patricio Ahumada come with the neck of the bottle to mark Daniel's body with an swastika.

Alejandro then took a heavy stone and threw it a couple of times on his stomach, then on his head until Fabián took the lead and threw it on Daniel's legs until, according to them, his legs cracked as if were chicken bones. Afterwards, they left the scene.

It wouldn't be until 2 am of Sunday that Daniel's identity would be known and the family would be informed. Sadly, the news weren't encouraging. If he survived, he would suffer from brain damage. Finally, Daniel after nearly a month of struggle and pain, died on March 27.

These people didn't feel ashamed of what they did. Angulo sister recalled how he boasted about beating a faggot and breaking his legs. In fact, Angulo carried her sister purse at the time of the attacks which had traces of blood that would be confirmed to be of Daniel.

Of all the perpetrators, only Fabián didn't have a criminal record. Angulo had been detained twice for robbery, Lopez for violent acts (unspecified as far as I know) but the worst was Ahumada. Nine detentions since 16 when he was caught with a baseball bat modified with nails. From then on, robberies, violence with knives and threats would increase his record. In fact, he had been in jail for five years for a brutal robbery with violence.

Ahumada had his conviction reduced thanks to apparent good behaviour. A week before the crime he had been given the benefit of going out the weekends. During the investigations it would reveal that two psychological tests adviced against his release.

According to them, Daniel had been sleeping in the park, until the group woke him up, he talked with Lopez confiding his fears about being beaten up by neonazis who hated him for his sexuality. The group left him for a while when they went to buy rum. After seeing Daniel asleep, Alejandro came and started the beating. He even peed on Daniel while they drank and laughed about their actions.

Ahumada received a life sentence, Angulo received 15 years, Lopez, 15 years and Mora seven years which he completed in 2016.

After all these years, Ahumada remains the most violent of the group despites finishing some studies. Mora was the only one that was released. A few years later he was interviewed on TVN where he didn't feel remorse by his actions. For some bizarre reasons, the show decided to confront Daniel's father with the killer just for him to claim that he's not sure about what really happened and that he left as soon as the brutal violence started, contradicting his statement during the trial. Even claiming:

The truth is, I punched his son, but it was because he groped me

To further add:

I went to jail unjustly; I only punched him, that was my crime. I didn't do anything else. They went, they told me (...) I didn't see anything that those three did to him.

Nevertheless, he remains free.

Daniel's brutal death caused an inmense reaction across Chile against homophobia and his name lives on the law that punishes lgbt discrimination in Chile.

Sources: http://movilh.cl/documentacion/Daniel_Zamudio_Informe_Movilh_1013.pdf

https://www.ciperchile.cl/2012/04/04/crimen-de-zamudio-devela-errores-de-gendarmeria-que-en-tres-meses-terminaron-con-dos-homicidios-y-una-violacion/

https://www.24horas.cl/nacional/homicidio-de-zamudio-el-antes-y-despues-de-un-caso-historico-908560

https://www.emol.com/noticias/nacional/2012/05/16/540737/brutal-relato-de-imputado-del-caso-zamudio-le-pegaron-punzazos-y-lo-orinaron-publicar-a-las-7-am.html

https://resumen.cl/articulos/caso-zamudio-se-cumplen-nueve-anos-desde-el-brutal-ataque-de-odio-hacia-daniel-zamudio-por-parte-de-grupo-neonazi

https://www.eldinamo.cl/actualidad/2020/09/04/programa-de-tvn-que-enfrento-a-padre-de-daniel-zamudio-y-condenado-por-el-caso-levanta-criticas-en-redes-sociales/

Pretty frequently in this subreddit we get questions asking for case recommendations. We've decided to make this a recurring post so that there will be a dedicated place to highlight and discuss cases that don't get posted about that often.

​

People want to know... what is a case that is important to you or that stuck with you and that you think others should know about?

​

What are some cases that need more attention? What are your pet cases besides the well known cases that get posted about frequently? Or just post your true crime guilty pleasures. Anyway, use this thread to bring attention to lesser known cases. If you want to post about the Delphi murders case that's ok too.

​

This thread will be sorted by new.

​

​

Also, if you have a case in mind, but need help remembering the name, feel free to head over to r/TipOfMyCrime and post a request there.

Lots of people come to reddit looking for good podcast, show, book, or movie recommendations. What have you seen lately? What have you listened to or read? What things should users be aware of that they might not know about? Give us some recommendations and suggestions.

​

Content creators are free to post their own content in this monthly thread. Thread will be sorted by new.

François Vérove, also known as Le Grêlé, was a French serial killer, rapist, police officer and local politician, who murdered three people (including one child) and raped at least six people between 1986 and 1994 in the Paris area. He received his nickname from acne scars seen on his face by witnesses following his first murder.

Vérove committed suicide in September 2021 upon realizing that he was about to be identified. Before his suicide, He wrote a farewell letter to his family and I find it super interesting ! Following are excerpts from an article :

Having no news of him, his wife decided to report his disappearance to the police. The body of François Vérove was finally found two days later, on a mattress in an apartment he was renting.

On the kitchen hood, He wrote “SUICIDE PLEASE CALL 17 (french 911)"

He wrote on his ID : “09/27/2021, my name is François Vérove. I have just committed suicide. In case I'm in a coma DO NOT TRY TO RESUSCITATE ME, THANK YOU”.

On the kitchen worktop, police officers found a letter to his family :

"My dear, I am going to explain to you why I had to leave this world."

"You met me in 1984, when I was a young policeman. A that time, You had already detected some difficulties that I was trying to hide. I was actually nourishing an uncontrollable rage which made me a criminal."

"Sometimes I couldn't take it anymore, and I had to destroy, tarnish, kill innocent people." According to him, his crimes were caused by "growing impulses" that he couldn't control until the birth of his children. He explains that these impulses completely vanished in 1997, when he went to therapy following a job burnout.

"Therapy erased my death instinct : when I was killing innocent people, I was actually seeking to destroy my childhood wounds".

“This recovery was a real relief, a true rebirth. But I could not erase the past”. "More than 30 years after my first crimes, the justice system has caught up with me. In order to avoid a trial that will have consequences for you, I have made the decision to commit suicide. Indeed, French justice system stops prosecution at the death of the criminal".

He concluded the farewell letter by writing a message to all his victims :

"I will never be able to undo the harm I have caused to my family and to the families of the victims (…) I am not asking for forgiveness because my deeds are unforgivable. I love you more than anything else in this world and I hate this criminal that I used to be".

Sources :

François Vérove - Wikipedia

Le Grêlé: la lettre qu’il a laissé à sa femme avant de se suicider (bfmtv.com)

French ex-officer's DNA ends 35-year murder hunt - BBC News

Former policeman's suicide ends 35-year hunt for French serial killer (france24.com)

Lots of people come to reddit looking for good podcast, show, book, or movie recommendations. What have you seen lately? What have you listened to or read? What things should users be aware of that they might not know about? Give us some recommendations and suggestions.

​

Content creators are free to post their own content in this monthly thread. Thread will be sorted by new.

Apologies if this is the wrong subreddit for this question, but does anyone know of interesting or high profile trials where the transcripts are available to read online? I find the whole trial process very interesting but I prefer to read rather than watch hours of video.

I’ve read the NXIVM/Raniere trial, some FLDS stuff, and a Ghislaine Maxwell deposition but that’s all I can remember at the moment. Any links would be greatly appreciated!

In 2011, Philadelphia teacher Ellen Greenberg, 27, was found dead from more than 20 stab wounds. Although authorities initially labeled her death as a homicide, the ruling was eventually changed to a suicide, shocking her parents who have long held the belief that Ellen was murdered.

Now, the Pennsylvania Supreme Court has agreed to hear Ellen's parents' argument over her manner of death ruling, Fox News and CBS News report.

Ellen's parents, Joshua Greenberg and Sandee Greenberg, have long believed that Ellen died by homicide and that the investigation was mishandled. They have fought for years to have suicide removed as the manner of death on Ellen's death certificate. Despite losing past legal battles regarding the matter, they may have a chance now to get the ruling officially reexamined.

"They [judges] have blatantly said the investigation was faulty on the part of the police, on the part of the medical examiner, on the part of the district attorney," Joshua told CBS News in 2023.

According to CBS News, the arguments that will be presented to the Pennsylvania Supreme Court will determine if "executors and administrators of an estate" can challenge a medical examiner's findings on a death certificate.

"We couldn't be happier. If we're not going to use the word 'justice,' we're going to use the words 'undecided' or 'homicide' because that's what we believe this is — a homicide," Joshua recently told CBS about the decision. "Ellen was brutally murdered."

In early 2011, Greenberg's fiancé Sam Goldberg returned to their shared residence in Philadelphia, but told investigators he couldn't get inside of the apartment because the swing bar lock inside of the apartment was in use, blocking his entrance. Eventually he forced himself inside and discovered Greenberg deceased in the kitchen. She had suffered more than 20 stab wounds and a 10-inch knife was still in her chest at the time of discovery, according to the investigation report, which was previously reviewed by PEOPLE. She had stab wounds to her chest, abdomen, head and back of her neck as well as a gash on her scalp.

Teacher Had 20 Stab Wounds, Yet 2011 Death Was Ruled Suicide — Now DA Is Reopening Investigation

Her manner of death was changed from homicide to suicide after investigators said they only found Greenberg's DNA on the knife and clothing, according to earlier reporting by PEOPLE. They also claimed there were no signs of foul play.

However, Joshua and Sandee's lawyer, Joe Podraza, claimed to Fox News that the knife was never fingerprinted and that there were, in fact, signs of a struggle in the apartment. The outlet also reports, citing unspecified court documents, that the scene was also cleaned before detectives came to investigate.

Pretty frequently in this subreddit we get questions asking for case recommendations. We've decided to make this a recurring post so that there will be a dedicated place to highlight and discuss cases that don't get posted about that often.

​

People want to know... what is a case that is important to you or that stuck with you and that you think others should know about?

​

What are some cases that need more attention? What are your pet cases besides the well known cases that get posted about frequently? Or just post your true crime guilty pleasures. Anyway, use this thread to bring attention to lesser known cases. If you want to post about the Delphi murders case that's ok too.

​

This thread will be sorted by new.

​

​

Also, if you have a case in mind, but need help remembering the name, feel free to head over to r/TipOfMyCrime and post a request there.

So I was digging into the Gary Heidnik case. Apparently he had an accomplice with him by the name of Cyril Brown during some of the most heinous parts of his crimes. From the little I could find about him, he was released on 50K bail/bond and an agreement to testify against Heidnik. I was curious if anyone had any more information on Cyril Brown and what happened to him after this case.

I’ve been watching Signs of a Psychopath on Max. Great show but it reminded me of something. I’ve been following true crime since I was a kid. In the early days I heard a lot of bad audiotapes of interrogations. As video became easier and easier to access police were still using audio recordings.

Now that video cameras are easy to use police seemed to have switched to video recordi ngs but the quality of these things is consistently poor.

You would think with something as important as an interrogation they would make quality recordings, but many of these modern interrogation interviews are blurry and hard to watch.

This seems to be fairly consistent from state to state. I was just wondering if anyone else had noticed this and if so what could the possible reason be?

For my second case I have chosen to examine a case which I am surprised to find appears never to have been featured on Reddit, the unsolved murder of wealthy businessman John Luper in 2004, a case which really shook the Leeds community at the time and made national headlines in the UK.

~Background~

John Michael Luper was born in 1946 in the city of Leeds, West Yorkshire to parents Stanley Luper and his wife Olga (nee Black). John’s only sibling, younger brother Toby who was 8 years younger than John, was born in 1954. In 1981, aged 35, John married Turkish-born Lyican Karabag in Leeds, and the couple’s only child, daughter Liza-Rose, was born in 1983.

John came from a well-known Jewish family in Leeds, and was part of the United Hebrew Congregation, an Orthodox Jewish community which worships at a synagogue in the city. His maternal grandfather, Isaac (Ike) Black, was a master tailor in one of the finest workrooms in Leeds in the 1940s-50s, when the city was still the hub of the UK textile and suit trade. He was followed into the trade by his son-in-law Stanley (John’s father) and son Norman (John’s uncle). Stanley and Norman founded Black & Luper, a textile factory employing hundreds of workers on Kirkstall Road, near to the famous Headingley cricket and rugby grounds, which was for some time the biggest single-story textile factory in the UK and manufactured garments for high-end brands such as Burton and Burberry. The firm also kitted out the Leeds United team that won the 1972 FA Cup.

Both John and Toby followed their fathers into the family business. Its success and his other ventures, such as in property, made John a millionaire and enabled him to buy a large mansion (worth approximately £1.6million today) in Alwoodley on Sandmoor Drive, one of the most exclusive streets in Leeds. Here he lived with his wife, daughter and the family au-pair. John was also a non-executive director of the Sports Entertainment Media Group and part of the consortium which bought out the business for £9.4m. The group represented sportspeople and celebrities such as Thierry Henry, Rio Ferdinand, Lennox Lewis and Jodie Marsh.

Toby, who was very close to his brother, said of John that, “He was loyal. He was a great family man. He would help anyone. He would go out of his way to help anyone, sometimes even at his own detriment.” Family friends described John as a colourful, forceful character, a ‘warm-hearted family man who was generous to charities’ and ‘a larger-than-life character who always had a cheeky grin on his face’ with a passion for sports, particularly football and golf.

~The Crime~

On 16 February 2004 John set out from the family home at 11.30pm to walk the family dog. He only got as far as the pavement in front of his neighbour’s driveway on Sandmoor Drive before he was ambushed by a gang of four or five masked men, who dragged him up the gravel drive, through some bushes and back to the family home. After entering the house John was bound with silver duct tape by the gang. John’s wife, daughter (aged 20 at the time) and the family’s Turkish au-pair, who were in bed when the raid began, were also similarly bound and left in an upstairs room, separated from John downstairs.

The gang stole John’s wallet, which contained his credit cards and a substantial amount of cash which he had taken out of the bank in preparation for an upcoming business trip. Jewellery was also taken, including a number of watches, amongst which was a rare Cartier watch, one of only four sold in the UK at the time, made of platinum with vertical rows of diamonds either side of the watch face. Estimates suggest that the jewellery and cash totalled approximately £100k in value.

As John lay dying during the raid, an attempt was made by the robbers to feed him marmalade from a jar found in the family kitchen. The robbers, having completed their raid, then fled the home and, on hearing this, the ladies in the upstairs bedroom were able to free themselves from their bindings. On making their way downstairs they found John unconscious on the floor of the morning room. Police were called at 1.45am and, despite attempts by emergency services to resuscitate John, he was pronounced dead at the scene in the early hours of 17 February 2004.

~The investigation~

Pathologists initially struggled to determine the cause of death for John. It was theorized that, due to the attempts to feed him marmalade, he may have suffered a diabetic attack which caused his death. However, it was eventually determined that he had died from asphyxia and that the marmalade had likely been given to him by the robbers as they became concerned about his health during the raid. Police revealed that John had a very mild diabetic condition which did not require medication and it appears that the robbers became aware of this, possibly through John telling them, and in an attempt to boost his sugar levels gave him the marmalade. The mode of asphyxiation John suffered has never been revealed, but police did state that there were only superficial injuries on John’s body and no signs of violence. Detectives also revealed that the women had received light injuries, including two having suffered light blows, as the robbers moved them from room to room as they meticulously searched the property for items to steal.

Despite the lack of major obvious violence involved in the offence Detective Superintendent Bill Shackleton of West Yorkshire Police, who led the initial investigation in 2004, said of the raiders that “they came there determined to commit this offence. They were equipped to do so, and they knew exactly what they were going to do when they got there, and they were prepared to use a degree of violence." DS Shackleton confirmed that police believed John and the Luper home had been targeted due to wealth rather than any kind of business or personal grudge.

All the robbers had worn masks and gloves, and they were believed to have had a getaway car parked a short distance from the Luper home. The women in the Luper family were able to provide descriptions of two of the robbers. The first was described as a tall, muscular black man with a Yorkshire accent, while the second was between 5ft 3in and 5ft 6in, of slight build, and believed to be mixed race or a light-skinned black man. One was described as a somewhat reluctant participant in events, having been overheard by the women as apologising for what was happening and claiming he did not want to be there. However, the women could not be certain if there were four or five robbers in total and this appears to never have been established for certain by police.

Extensive forensic searches were conducted of the Luper home and on Sandmoor Drive, in particular the area where John was ambushed whilst walking the dog. Numerous public appeals for information were made, including a reconstruction of the crime on the nationally broadcast BBC Crimewatch programme. Efforts were made to trace the jewellery stolen. It has never been made public whether any of this has been recovered but a number of appeals over the 20 years since the crime have focused on the Cartier platinum watch so it appears that this rare item in particular is still outstanding.

Detectives came to believe from information received that the killers were from within the criminal fraternity of the Bradford and Spen districts. Spen is about 17 miles and 35 minutes by car from Sandmoor Drive, and central Bradford approximately 13 miles but around the same travelling time by car due to traffic and road differences. Ten months after John’s death, land and farm buildings at the Windybank estate near Liversedge (2 miles from Spen) was searched, but if anything of significance was recovered that information has never been made public and no charges have ever followed.

Over the years since John’s murder the case continues to be reviewed. Since 2017 it has been overseen by the West Yorkshire Police Major Investigation Review Team, a team of specialist cold case investigators. The team undertook a full review of the case, specifically focusing on forensic evidence and any advances over time which could bring new lines of enquiry from the existing forensic material. It appears that nothing of significance has been uncovered by the review team, and appeals continue to be made, including most recently by John’s brother Toby and new lead officer Detective Chief Inspector Damian Roebuck on the 20^(th) anniversary of the crime in February 2024.

~Theories~

During the investigation it was revealed that the Luper home had been broken into some months prior to the February raid. Police learned that John had reportedly told his friends that the robbers in the previous raid had repeatedly demanded diamonds from him. This led police to speculate that both raids were committed by the same gang, who had returned in the belief that diamonds were kept in the home and determined to steal these. Whether the Luper family did actually own diamonds has never been revealed.

It seems clear that police believe the identity of the gang members is known to members of the criminal fraternity in the Leeds and Bradford areas. It even seems possible that the police themselves are aware of who the robbers likely were, given the raids on the property in Liversedge carried out soon after the crime, but have been unable so far to secure enough evidence to prosecute. Police appeals continue to focus both on asking for information from people approached and asked to buy jewellery from unknown people or people know who didn't have provenance or receipts for the jewellery, and on the changing of loyalties and allegiances within the community or criminal fraternity over time. This focus suggests some awareness within the police of who likely suspects may be, and a need for more evidence to tie them to the crime.

The police have stated publicly that John was targeted for his wealth rather than for a grudge. This may be true, but it seems possible to me that someone with some inside knowledge of the Lupers may have been involved in the crime. It is plausible that the family were picked as a target because of their home being on Sandmoor Drive, and their obvious resultant wealth, but if so why pick that home over any other on the road? To me, the gang seem to have had some information about John and the family which may have come from a degree of insider knowledge. For example, 11.30pm at night is a fairly unusual time to walk a dog so how did the raiders know this would be a good time to ambush John? They could have gained such knowledge from watching the family home for some time and learning their routines (if indeed such a late-night walk was routine for John) but the layout of the road and the security conscious nature of people in a wealthy neighbourhood would have made anyone spending any time watching a home fairly conspicuous.

In addition, why did the raiders think that there were diamonds in the Luper home? Could this have been from some (possibly incorrect) inside information. And if the raiders were from the Bradford/Spen area how did they come to target the Lupers at all – it is, after all, some distance to the Alwoodley area of Leeds from this area so how did they become aware of the Luper family and why would they not have focussed on similarly wealthy targets closer to home? It is possible the information made its way to them through a criminal network, but it seems to me more likely that some insider information may have been in play. I stress this is purely a theory of mine based on deduction and has never been suggested to my knowledge by police.

~Discussion points~

How do you think the Lupers may have come to be targeted for this crime? And what do you think the chances are of it ever being solved now, given that the information the police need seems most likely to come from within the criminal fraternity?

~Sources~

~https://www.theguardian.com/uk/2004/feb/19/ukcrime.martinwainwright~

~https://www.theguardian.com/uk/2004/feb/20/martinwainwright~

John Luper

The Luper home on Sandmoor Drive

Police searching Sandmoor Drive outside the neighbours home

The watches stolen during the raid, including the rare Cartier watch second from left

The Black & Luper factory

Lots of people come to reddit looking for good podcast, show, book, or movie recommendations. What have you seen lately? What have you listened to or read? What things should users be aware of that they might not know about? Give us some recommendations and suggestions.

​

Content creators are free to post their own content in this monthly thread. Thread will be sorted by new.

This is my first post on Reddit, let alone this sub! I hope it meets the requirements.

For my first post I wanted to focus on a case which is close to my heart - the disappearance and murder in 1994 of Lindsay Jo Rimer.

Lindsay Jo Rimer
Lindsay Jo Rimer was born on the 17^(th) February 1981 to parents Geraldine (Geri) and Colin Rimer. Lindsay lived with her parents, older brother Daniel, older sister Kate and younger sister Juliet at a house on Cambridge Street in the town of Hebden Bridge, situated in the northern county of West Yorkshire in the UK and made famous recently as the setting for BAFTA winning BBC drama series Happy Valley. Lindsay was described by her mother Geri as a ‘well-behaved, conscientious and happy kid’, a girl so well organised and efficient that her family nicknamed her Saffy, after the character in British sitcom Absolutely Fabulous who displayed the same traits. She was a conscientious and popular student in Year 9 at the local Calder High School, and had expressed an interest in going to University to attain a degree once her high school education was completed. Lindsay had recently taken on a part-time job at local Forbuoys Newsagents delivering newspapers to earn some money, at least in part to fund what her Mum described as a developing interest in fashion.

Lindsay’s home life had not always been easy though. The family-run pub in Rotherham had gone bust and subsequently, under the strain of the resultant financial problems, her parents had separated. Following this Lindsay, her brother Daniel and father Colin lived separately from the rest of the family in caravans at Lower Rough Head farm, Hebden Bridge. For two years Lindsay and Daniel shared one caravan and Colin lived in another at the farm. Whilst Daniel apparently quite enjoyed the country lifestyle, and sometimes returned to help the farmer (he was sheep dipping the day before Lindsay’s disappearance), Lindsay appears to have been less keen on it and missed her friends. However, her parents eventually reconciled and the whole family was once again living together again by the time Lindsay disappeared in November 1994.

~Lindsey goes missing~
On the evening of 7^(th) November 1994 Lindsay was at home with Colin. Her sister Kate was 20 at the time and had already left home. Presumably, although it is not clear from information in the public domain, Daniel and Juliet (only a toddler at the time) were also at home on this evening. At approximately 10pm Lindsay left the house on Cambridge Street to go to a shop and buy a packet of cornflakes while her father Colin was having a conversation on the telephone which commenced at 9.45pm, and so no words passed between them. On the way to the shop Lindsay visited the Trades Club in Holme Street, where her Mum Geri was out having a drink with a friend. Geri offered to buy Lindsay a Coke, but Lindsay refused and left to continue her journey to the shop.

CCTV at the SPAR supermarket on Crown Street captures Lindsay buying a packet of cornflakes at 10.22pm. This is the last footage of Lindsay alive and she appears to be acting completely normally, with no hint of any concerns. Nor is she carrying anything, such as a bag, other than the packet of cornflakes she had set out to buy. Lindsay never made it home, although this fact went unnoticed till the morning of the 8^(th) November as Geri had been out for the evening and, in her own words, made the ‘mistake of my life’ by not checking Lindsay had returned when she got home. Colin had been on the telephone from 9.45-10.20pm and had also not been aware of his daughter’s failure to return. On the morning of 8^(th) November Forbuoys Newsagents called the Rimer home as Lindsay had failed to turn up for her morning newspaper delivery round, and it was at this point that the alarm was raised.

~Search and Discovery~
Despite family and friends strongly arguing that Lindsay was not the type of girl who would leave home, police initially believed it was likely that she was a runaway, speculating that she was unhappy at home (this was denied by her family). Despite this initial belief, there was an investigation unit set up, and extensive appeals and searches took place. Lindsay’s older sister Kate played the role of her sister in a televised reconstruction of Lindsay’s last known movements in the hope this would jog memories but the police received little useful information as a result. Hundreds of local people joined searches of the area and some parts of the Rochdale Canal and River Calder were also searched, but to no avail.

Lindsay’s family participated in a Channel 4 documentary called Deadline in the hope this would help generate information about their daughter’s whereabouts. However, the documentary caused more problems for the family when the demeanor of Colin was questioned. He was observed by some viewers to be ‘smirking’ and too happy/jolly given his situation, and some started to suspect he was in some way involved with his daughter’s disappearance. His wife Geri supported him unequivocally, and outlined how behind closed doors Colin was an emotional wreck, but his way of coping with the events was to put on a brave face and happy demeanor in public, as well as his observed ‘smirking’ being a result of nerves at being in front of the camera. The police do not believe Colin was involved in his daughter’s disappearance.

~Lindsay is found~
In the late morning of the 12 April 1995, five months after Lindsay went missing, her body was found by canal workers dredging Rawden Mill Lock 12 of the Rochdale Canal approximately one mile from the centre of Hebden Bridge. Police admitted that the section of canal where the remains were found had not been part of earlier searches of the canal, a crucial mistake made as the police had failed to search 'upstream' from Lindsay's home, and one which would cost the investigation a heavy price.

Lindsay’s body had been weighed down with a 20lb concrete boulder, the boulder having been taken from the side of the canal by the killer. It appears from an FOI request submitted to West Yorkshire Police in 2021 that the boulder was secured to her remains by rope, though I cannot find confirmation elsewhere that this was the case. Where the rope came from, if this was so, is unclear - perhaps the killer brought it with them, suggesting some form of premeditation, or perhaps this also was found by the killer close to the canal. Lindsay was still wearing the same clothing she was pictured wearing in the CCTV footage taken at the SPAR on the night she disappeared.

Lindsay’s remains were taken to the Royal Halifax Infirmary for post-mortem by Home Office pathologist Professor Mike Green, assisted by Dr Naomi Carter. The pathologist concluded that Lindsay had died as a result of strangulation, with the larynx slightly flattened against the spinal column and ‘a prominent band of congestion across the middle area of the neck muscles’ (Halifax Courier article from 2000, quoted on HebWeb). Much of the content of the report has been kept confidential for investigative reasons, including information on the arrangement of Lindsay’s clothing when she was found, but the police did advise that no sexual assault was believed to have taken place.

~The investigation~
Detectives believe that Lindsay was murdered the night she disappeared, and that she had already been placed in the canal by the time she was reported missing on the morning of 8^(th) November 1994. The part of the canal where her remains were found is situated fairly close to the Rimer family home, and so the police believed it likely that Lindsay was picked up by someone in a car on her walk home from the SPAR shop, probably someone she knew given that she was believed to be a sensible and cautious girl who was unlikely to get into a car with a stranger.

Police speculated that, whilst it was likely she knew her killer, Lindsay could have met him as recently as a few nights before her death, at a Bonfire Night celebration in the town on 5^(th) November. Close to the area of the canal where her remains were discovered was a working mill factory, now long since closed and demolished, where detectives theorized the killer, sexually attracted to Lindsay, had taken her with the aim of some form of liaison and, when rejected, he killed her, possibly by mistake.  

In the three decades since Lindsay’s murder police have spoken to over 5000 people, taken hundreds of witness statements and examined over 1200 vehicles. Lindsay’s murder was investigated as part of Operation Enigma, a national enquiry that reviewed the unsolved murders of 207 women across Britain, which eliminated any link between Lindsay’s murder and others. In 2016, police confirmed that a DNA profile, believed to be that of Lindsay’s killer, had been isolated by a team of Canadian forensics specialists. Two arrests were made in 2016 and 2017, but neither man has been charged and given the availability of a DNA sample to test against it appears likely they have been eliminated.

~Theories~
Police clearly believe that Lindsay was killed by someone she knew, but other possibilities have investigated or proposed by outsiders over the years, and I have summarized the main theories below:

• 'Honda Man' - police discovered that a red Honda Civic stolen in Meanwood, near Leeds, on 6^(th) November had been spotted several times in Hebden Bridge near where Lindsay had last been seen and was again seen in the town during the evening of 12^(th) November. An e-fit was produced of the driver, described as a bearded male, and police attempted to trace both him and the vehicle. They discovered Honda Man had tried to talk to a number of teenage girls in the town around the time of Lindsay’s disappearance, including some of Lindsay’s school friends. He was spotted near the SPAR shop where Lindsay was last seen alive. The car was found abandoned in Sheffield ten days after Lindsay’s disappearance. Recent appeals in 2024 have focused on possible links between the murder and the red Honda, suggesting that police think the man in the car may have had a role to play in Lindsay’s death.
• John Taylor – Taylor was convicted of the murder of Leeds schoolgirl Leanne Tiernan following her murder in November 2000 and a series of rapes. He is also a suspect in a number of other murders in the West Yorkshire area. Police have investigated him in Lindsay’s case but no evidence has linked him to her murder.
• John Oswin – Oswin, from Halifax in West Yorkshire, was given an was given an indefinite life sentence after he pled guilty to two rapes and two indecent assaults involving teenage girls in the Halifax area from December 1993 to September 1997. At least one incident occurred along a canal towpath – a commonality with Lindsay’s case, and Hebden Bridge is only 9 miles from Halifax. Again, police investigated but could not link him to Lindsay’s case.
• Tony King – in 2003 the press reported that police were investigating the so-called Costa Killer and Holloway Strangler, and had sought his DNA, in Lindsay’s case. However, police described this as ‘speculation’.
• Jimmy Savile – one of the more outlandish theories about Lindsay’s murder is that it was committed by notorious celebrity sex offender Savile. The suggestion comes about as a result of Savile apparently regularly staying at a friend’s caravan situated at Cragg Vale, a mile from Lower Rough Head farm where Lindsay lived with her father and brother for two years, and Savile renting a garage in the town to park his Rolls Royce. In the month Lindsay went missing Savile’s whereabouts are unconfirmed and he was absent from the public eye, adding to the speculation of a link. However, the link seems tenuous at best.
• Francisco Arce Montes – in 2007 true crime author Wensley Clarkson claimed in his book The Predator: Portrait of a Serial Killer that Montes, killer of 13-year-old British schoolgirl Caroline Dickinson - murdered while she slept in a hostel in France, was responsible for Lindsay’s murder. Clarkson claimed that he was told by a retired police officer that Montes, working as a waiter in London in 1994, had visited York and was on a hunting trip in the West Yorkshire area on the date of Lindsay’s disappearance. However, Clarkson has never been able to provide any evidence to back up the claims and refuses to name the officer he says gave him this information.
• Vince Robson – in 2017 a retired detective from Cleveland Police claimed that Vince Robson, a man questioned in relation to the murders of Julie Hogg and Tina Bell, had links to the Rimer family and the Hebden Bridge area. Robson moved to Hebden Bridge in 1990 and worked at the Trades Club, the place Lindsay visited to see her Mum Geri on her way to the SPAR shop. Robson is purportedly one of the last people to see Lindsay alive on the night she disappeared, and the detective concerned believes he should be a prime suspect. These claims were explored further in Channel 4 documentary In The Footsteps of Killers.

Sources

~https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Murder_of_Lindsay_Rimer#cite_note-Times95-5~

~https://www.theguardian.com/lifeandstyle/2006/nov/04/familyandrelationships.features~

https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-england-leeds-39704774

https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/av/uk-england-leeds-29954173

Discussion Points

What are your thoughts on this, and on the case as a whole?
Do you think one of the suspects listed above is likely?
Was Lindsay killed by someone she knew?

Thanks for reading

Lindsay Jo Rimer

The Trades Club

The SPAR Lindsay visited

The last sighting of Lindsay on CCTV

The suspicious red Honda

The police e-fit of Honda Man

This is about the apparent serial killer who called into Howard Stern. I was wat hung this video about him by the YouTube channel Cadaber

In this video he mentions that the FBI confirmed this call was real but I can't find any proof of that. Does anyone have any more details?

My name is Charles Krause. In November 1978 I had just begun my first foreign assignment as The Washington Post’s South America correspondent when my editors in Washington sent me to cover Congressman Leo Ryan’s visit to the Peoples Temple in Guyana. Little did I know that 24 hours after we reached Jonestown, Jim Jones would send assassins to kill the Congressman and the rest of us who were with him as we were attempting to board two small planes at the airstrip in Port Kaituma. I was standing near Congressman Ryan when the gunmen started firing and was lying on the ground next to him when I was hit by a bullet and he was killed. Two days later, I was the first journalist to return to Jonestown, where I interviewed one of the few survivors of the mass suicide-murder that left more than 900 men, women, and babies dead. Why? Because they had put their faith in a false prophet whose paranoia, grandiosity and Narcissism killed them.

My book about Jonestown, Guyana Massacre: The Eyewitness Account, became a best-seller and, the next two decades, continued my work as a foreign correspondent, covering wars, revolutions and political upheavals for The Washington Post, CBS, and the PBS NewsHour, winning a number of awards, including an Emmy for my reporting from the Middle East. I now write and publish The Swamp Report online, which showcases the political art I’ve championed, along my views and analysis, which I humbly offer, about the important domestic and foreign events of our time.

I took part in the National Geographic documentary “Cult Massacre: One Day in Jonestown,” streaming on Hulu, because I hoped the lessons we should have learned from Jonestown would not be forgotten.

I will be answering questions starting at 1pm ET.

Edit: I want to thank you all for your interesting questions. I hope you’ll want to watch CULT MASSACRE: One Day in Jonestown because I really believe Jonestown should be viewed as a cautionary tale for our times. CULT MASSACRE does an excellent job of explaining why.

https://preview.redd.it/7wltm3hedpbd1.png?width=3024&format=png&auto=webp&s=ce479dd60b6bdfaa0b9ec95e3220d7ed554981f9

Lots of people come to reddit looking for good podcast, show, book, or movie recommendations. What have you seen lately? What have you listened to or read? What things should users be aware of that they might not know about? Give us some recommendations and suggestions.

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Content creators are free to post their own content in this monthly thread. Thread will be sorted by new.

One case that has stood out to me for a while is the murder of Margaret Fetterolf in Woodlawn, Maryland. Margaret went missing from Alexandria, Virginia in summer 1975. She was found murdered in by the side of a road near a cemetery in Woodlawn, which is in Baltimore County, MD. Until September 2021, she was known only as Woodlawn Jane Doe. I've not found anything explaining how she ended up being found in the Baltimore area but IIRC she might have been a runaway (according to her brother after identification).

Even though Margaret has been identified, he killer has not. If she went missing/ran away in summer 1975 and was recently murdered when her remains were found, I'm curious to know how she ended up murdered near Baltimore. Was it someone she was acquainted with? Could the perp have been a stranger or even a serial killer? I believe Samuel Little had victims in Maryland (among other states) so I've wondered if she might have been one of his victims. Samuel Little aside, were there any active serial killers in Maryland at the time Margaret was found? I don't know how likely this scenario is but I don't think it can be ruled out completely.

Pretty frequently in this subreddit we get questions asking for case recommendations. We've decided to make this a recurring post so that there will be a dedicated place to highlight and discuss cases that don't get posted about that often.

​

People want to know... what is a case that is important to you or that stuck with you and that you think others should know about?

​

What are some cases that need more attention? What are your pet cases besides the well known cases that get posted about frequently? Or just post your true crime guilty pleasures. Anyway, use this thread to bring attention to lesser known cases. If you want to post about the Delphi murders case that's ok too.

​

This thread will be sorted by new.

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​

Also, if you have a case in mind, but need help remembering the name, feel free to head over to r/TipOfMyCrime and post a request there.

Hi. I just discovered this case and i am honestly terrified about it. I know the main suspect, Carson Peters-Berger pleaded guilty and is currently awaiting trial, but im just curious if there’s any new information about the case or if there’s any extra info about it. Thanks beforehand

Gloria Moody is the first known victim of the "Highway of Tears," a name given to British Columbia's Highway 16 and surrounding highways due to many deaths and missing persons cases that have occurred there over the years. She was an indigenous woman from the Bella Coola reserve in British Columbia. A mother of 2, Gloria was 27 years old when she went on a family trip to Williams Lake, a scenic area about 450 km from her home – at the time, a 12-hour drive. Her parents urged her to go on the trip to spend some time away from her unfaithful and abusive, common law husband. Her brother Dave and their parents were traveling with her while her kids stayed at their aunt’s house.

Gloria, via The Canadian Encyclopedia

On October 23rd, 1969, the family left the reserve and spent the night at Anahim Lake before continuing to Williams Lake the next day. They arrived on the afternoon of the 24th and checked into the Ranch Hotel, a hotel and bar at their destination. The next day, Gloria and Dave decided to do some bar hopping, visiting a few local bars including The Lakeview and The Maple Leaf before returning to the Ranch Hotel. They were seen at the Ranch Hotel’s bar around 10 PM, after which time Dave left to go back to their room. While walking, Dave turned around to say something to Gloria, but she wasn’t there. Though he thought she was right behind him the entire time, she in fact wasn't. No one at the bar recalled seeing her leave either. 

the Ranch Hotel in the 60s, Bob Samchuck, via Eve Lazarus

The next morning, 2 people, a mechanic and his friend, drove out to a small lake just a few miles from Williams Lake. On the way back, they noticed Gloria’s body on a small cattle trail and immediately called the police. The description of the scene is horrific – when police found her, Gloria’s body was naked and beaten, her clothes tossed nearby, and she showed signs of a brutal sexual assault. The coroner determined that she bled to death, which may have taken as much as half an hour after the assault was done.  

Police conducted an investigation, but no one in town had seen Gloria leave the bar, so there weren’t any leads. To make things worse, the town was especially busy that weekend, as it was a paid weekend off for many workers, and a local 4H sale helped fill hotels to capacity. In short, there were too many potential perpetrators, and no way to narrow them down. 

Gloria’s family was shaken by the murder. Her father blamed himself for her death. Gloria’s daughter Vanessa said that “He locked himself in my mom’s room, and he just lay there. He didn’t eat or sleep, and when he came out, everybody in the whole town talked about how his hair went pure white.” After Gloria’s death, her mother and father adopted and raised her two children.  

Though police made an investigation into the murder, it took almost three decades for Gloria’s family to find out anything about it. When they did, Vanessa says, police gave them 3 suspect names who might have killed the young mother, including a bartender from Williams Lake. Unfortunately, no one was ever charged for the crimes, and all three suspects had passed away before the family was notified of their potential involvement, meaning no one knows whether they really committed the crimes. Vanessa said that some Williams Lake residents told her everyone knows who did it, but won't say for some odd reason, perhaps fear. To this day, Gloria’s murder remains unsolved. 

What do you think happened? Was Gloria a victim of a serial killer bartender, or did someone else kill her? Did the police cover up her death? Please leave your thoughts below and let's have a healthy discussion.

Sources:

• Missing and Murdered Aboriginal Women (cbc.ca)
• For decades, women have vanished or been killed near these highways. These are the stories of the victims. | Vancouver Sun

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In Tampa's 'Summer of Hell,' police arrested a teen for murder. Forty years later, DNA cleared him — and pointed to possible serial killers, a rare duo of them, who were only 20 years old themselves.

Tampa in 1983 was described by one cop as a "summer of hell."

A series of vicious slayings -- all women, dumped in conspicuous places around town with no immediate suspects -- stood out, even among all the other murder and crime those months brought to the region.

News from 1983

Police told newspaper reporters over and over there was absolutely no connection between the crimes. In a few cases that proved true as they made arrests, but several remained cold cases for decades, such as the freelance photographer Linda Lansen, who disappeared the day after photographing the bunny of the year contest at the local Playboy club.

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Also among the eight victims was a 19-year-old mall worker named Barbara Grams, found behind a dentist's office near a popular teen hangout called Hutto's Corner grocery, with a mysterious, so-called bite mark on her cheek. She'd been walking home from the mall, carrying her work clothes in a County Seat shopping bag.

There were no eyewitnesses and as police struggled to find leads, a gas station clerk gave officers the description of a neighborhood troublemaker named Robert DuBoise. After a sensational trial, he was sent to death row for Grams' murder, screaming that he was innocent. He maintained that claim of innocence for decades.

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Robert DuBoise in court, 1983

Nearly 40 years later, someone finally agreed to help him -- a new conviction review unit at the local state attorney's office. All the evidence had supposedly been destroyed, but a shocking discovery turned up DNA. 

That DNA not only finally freed him, but pointed to a pair of alleged serial killers who prosecutors now say murdered  other victims besides Grams during that dark summer, but the crimes had never been connected until now. 

Robert DuBoise hugs his mother after being released from prison after 37 years.

Despite the DNA, the way that modern science has invalidated other evidence from DuBoise's trial, and the recantation of a jailhouse witness who now says flat out, "I lied," there are still people in powerful positions who seem to refuse to let go of DuBoise's "guilt," even now. 

Meanwhile, DuBoise has fought for compensation for the youth he lost behind bars. The state, at first, told him he was owed nothing, even though it normally pays exonerees $50,000 for every year they spent in prison. DuBoise had stolen tools and siphoned gas as a teen, which mean he was ineligible under the Florida’s "clean hands" law. 

And beyond that, DuBoise, now almost 60, has returned to a home town that he no longer recognizes, where he tries to figure out how to spend the rest of his life, and ponders whether his old dreams have to die.

The two men now charged with the murder of Barbara Grams have been charged in another cold case murder from that summer of hell, the photographer Linda Lansen, and are persons of interest in other murders from that era. The state attorney said they were on a "sinister spree" of "serial rape and murder."

One confessed to Grams, and has agreed to testify against his old friend who is awaiting trial.

Lots of people come to reddit looking for good podcast, show, book, or movie recommendations. What have you seen lately? What have you listened to or read? What things should users be aware of that they might not know about? Give us some recommendations and suggestions.

​

Content creators are free to post their own content in this monthly thread. Thread will be sorted by new.

Lots of people come to reddit looking for good podcast, show, book, or movie recommendations. What have you seen lately? What have you listened to or read? What things should users be aware of that they might not know about? Give us some recommendations and suggestions.

​

Content creators are free to post their own content in this monthly thread. Thread will be sorted by new.

Pretty frequently in this subreddit we get questions asking for case recommendations. We've decided to make this a recurring post so that there will be a dedicated place to highlight and discuss cases that don't get posted about that often.

​

People want to know... what is a case that is important to you or that stuck with you and that you think others should know about?

​

What are some cases that need more attention? What are your pet cases besides the well known cases that get posted about frequently? Or just post your true crime guilty pleasures. Anyway, use this thread to bring attention to lesser known cases. If you want to post about the Delphi murders case that's ok too.

​

This thread will be sorted by new.

​

​

Also, if you have a case in mind, but need help remembering the name, feel free to head over to r/TipOfMyCrime and post a request there.

You know how you get to work, you settle into your office for a nice, calm afternoon and then someone drops a bomb on your plans? On Wednesday, January 31st, 2024 at 2:17pm, that bomb was dropped on me. A seemingly normal day with normal plans that did not include, at any point, a resident coming into my office uttering the words: “I think my relative may have been murdered by the Boston Strangler.” Insert record scratch noise.

Let’s back up a bit.

This particular man is a long-time resident and just a gem of a human. A little quirky, but quirky in the best way. Someone who wants to know the answers to things around him. Thoroughly inquisitive, and a truth seeker.

He always came by around the same time, always on a Wednesday. He had come down for a chat several times before, while I was listening to true crime podcasts and typing up my notes. We chatted about conspiracy theories and aliens, all the intriguing ins and outs of the universe and social media.

He made friends with my office jumping spider named August. Wanted to know all about jumping spiders and watched him eat his tiny fly with curiosity. I wonder now, looking back on it, if meeting my spider named August sparked/ignited the bomb he would drop on me that following Wednesday.

The Bomb was named Augusta.

Augusta Bloomberg, or Goldie as she was known in later life, was born in 1902 under circumstances that I am sure are not included in any expectant mother’s birth plans. She was born on the ship that would bring her Jewish Russian immigrant parents to America.

This gave me pause -- as I reflected on how my own great grandmother was forced to give her infant a burial at sea during my family’s voyage to the land of opportunity just five years earlier. It makes me think about how much joy Goldie’s birth must have brought to the Bloombergs, to bring new life into the world on that long voyage. A new country, a new baby, a fresh start in a new world. They could never have guessed that their daughter’s death would be front page news just 62 years later.

Sorry, now back to Goldie.

In the 1905 New York City census, the poor dear is listed as “Gussie” Bloomberg. I am sure she was thankful that nickname did not stick. She’s a Goldie, not a Gussie.

April 29th, 1921, Goldie marries Mr. Hyman Fine in Chelsea, Massachusetts. Hyman is working as a meter reader while Goldie is employed as a bookkeeper. They would go on to live, for a time, in Sharon, Massachusetts. The couple would have four children. A son, Melvin, arrived in 1924; a daughter, Shirley, who arrived in 1931; and twin girls, named Ruth and Jean, round out the Fine children in 1934.

Hyman would go on to own a laundry business. Goldie would be getting ready to join Hyman at the family shop when she meets her death. Once their children were grown and with families of their own, the Fines moved into the first floor apartment in a home owned by the Martowska family in Norwood. The Martowskas resided in the upper two floors of the home located at 16 Lewis Avenue. The home was at the end of a dead end street which found its terminus in a large open meadow.

The morning of April 13th, 1964 started off normally for the Fines.

According to news articles, Hyman left for Lourde's Cleaners in Canton, around 6am. He later reports that his wife was awake when he left and getting ready for her day. Around 8am, Hyman sends an employee of his, Mr. James Rhoden [inaccurately identified as: "James Rhodes" in the articles], to pick up his wife and their upstairs neighbor, Mrs. Lillian Martowska who was employed by the Fines at the cleaners. This was not a daily routine but also not out of the ordinary. If Hyman needed to arrive early, the ladies would join him later in the morning. For this trip, Hyman loans James his car.

Upon arriving at the home, James enters the exterior door to the home and proceeds to the interior door leading to the Fines' apartment. James knocks on the door and does not get an answer from Goldie. He assumes she may be toward the back of the apartment and may not have heard his knocking. He then goes to the upstairs apartment to find Lillian dressed and waiting for her morning ride to work.

The two go downstairs together to knock on Goldie’s door once more. Again, no answer. One of them decides to try the doorknob, they find it locked. It is unclear who realizes this, but they discover the house key on the car’s key ring and open the door a crack. James calls out and hears no reply. The two, thinking Goldie may have fallen or needs assistance, enter the home and make the horrific discovery.

They immediately called police.

Goldie’s body is discovered in the bedroom, lying diagonally across the end of the bed. Her feet are resting flat on the floor, as if she is sitting on the bed and has fallen backward. The sad scene made grislier by two of Goldie’s own stockings being tied tightly into a ligature around her neck.

Goldie Fine’s life ended between 6am and 8am the morning of April 13th, 1964. She would now become a headline and, for a brief twenty hours, a suspected victim of the Boston Strangler. News reporters flock to the quiet dead-end street almost immediately. Hyman returns to the home and speaks with police. It is the beginning of a nightmare that haunts Hyman until his death in 1981.

There are only three Boston Globe articles about the death of Goldie. The first article was published in the evening edition on April 13th. The headline reads “Mystery Cloaks Woman’s Death” with an above line of “Stockings Around Neck” sparking fears that the strangler has struck again. It details the position of her body, that she is clothed; however, the police (and/or James & Lillian) would report to Hyman that she was either nude or partially undressed when police made entry.

The article states all the windows were locked from the inside though it does not note if the door could be locked from inside or if it needed a key to be locked from the outside. The article ends with what would become the running theme for tomorrow’s article: Goldie was a frail, old lady in poor health.

The two articles published on April 14th, 1964 go on to paint a picture of the scene. They both state that there are no signs of forced entry to the apartment -- not through a window, not through a door. There are no signs of anyone struggling -- either with Goldie or anywhere in the home. Everything is in order, nothing out of place or missing. And, again, Goldie is a frail, old lady. Deeper into the paper, on page 32, Goldie’s death notice can be found. She would be buried that same day, April 14th, 1964 -- with the religious memorial week of Shiva taking place at the home of her daughter Jean.

The articles make Goldie out to be a 92 year-old woman, not a 62 year-old woman. The autopsy determines her "manner of death" to be "strangulation by ligature," noting that there are "no broken bones in her neck."

It details her psoriasis and her upcoming eye surgery for cataracts. She previously had the same surgery on her other eye which was successful. It details her weight as being 90 pounds without reference for that number, nor any mention of her height. Goldie was a woman of shorter stature. Ninety pounds wouldn’t have been all too shocking for the time.

The article all but outright states she decided to take her life due to her fragile medical condition, while at the same time making note that there is no explanation for the stockings around her neck. It is concluded by investigators that she is not a victim of the Boston Strangler that same evening.

This is where my brain melted. I cannot tell you how many times I reread these three articles. It had only been three months since the last killing that police could tie to the Boston Strangler. How could this be dismissed so easily?

Everything matched up. The strangler left no signs of forced entry at his scenes. That’s part of his calling card. Goldie had been to the hospital recently to be evaluated before her surgery. Again, part of his pattern. Most of his victims either worked in healthcare, had recently been to a hospital or lived close to a hospital. The only thing that was different in this case is that Goldie was married -- the other victims were single.

How does it make better sense to investigators that this woman, with minor health ailments, would commit suicide in the same way as the strangler kills his victims? What 62-year-old woman would commit suicide in a way to make it seem as if a serial killer did it? -- Without leaving a note, knowing that a friend or loved one would find her like that? How can they say in the very same paragraph that Goldie was so frail and fragile, yet had the strength to tie two stockings into a ligature around her neck, stopping her ability to breathe?

If we were to entertain the theory of suicide, there was a whole cupboard of cleaning chemicals she could have used, under the sink. She could have gone to the pharmacy around the corner and gotten any number of pills to end her life. Why would she pick this method? Why would she want to bring attention to her death? Did even examine the possibility of James Rhoden, or even her husband, Hyman, being a suspect?

She was a mother, a wife, a grandmother! And we are expected to believe she ended her life over itchy skin and anxiety over cataract surgery?

Seriously Boston Police? This is the best story the strangler division can come up with?

I decided to dig into the days, weeks and months of news articles related to the Boston Strangler to come up with a reason why this had to be a suicide for the police. I would search all 16 months back to 1962 if I had to. I didn’t have to dig deeper than a week back to uncover the reason why police had to rule Goldie’s death a suicide.

On April 8th, 1964 a Boston area theater hosted the premiere of the Hollywood feature film called “The Strangler.” The clearly-exploitative movie utilizes elements from the Boston Strangler killings, portraying the killer as appearing slovenly and disgruntled by his lab tech job in a hospital.

He has zero luck with the ladies and is targeting the female nurses in the hospital where his super-controlling mother is undergoing care for a recent heart attack. He goes to an amusement park and falls for a carny girl at the ring toss game where he wins a doll. He kills a couple nurses, goes out with the carny girl, then kills his mother’s nurse. He then confesses to his mother -- which then causes his mother to die of a heart attack.

The police are onto him though and set up a sting operation with the help of the carny girl. The strangler is shot when police burst into the room while he is busy strangling her and he flies dramatically through the window, falling to his death. Yeah, I know. Not one of Hollywood’s finest features.

Despite the self-described "fictional" film earning one star in my rating book, it's seemingly a hit and is shown in over 14 theaters throughout the Boston area that week. Drawing even bigger crowds the weekend of April 10th-12th.

On April 12th, the Boston Globe publishes an article titled: "6 Main Suspects In Stranglings,” in which the reporter details findings of the attorney general’s “Strangler Division.”

Attorney General John S. Bottomly states the following:

They believe they know who is responsible for 9, possibly 10, of the 11 killings attributed to the Boston Strangler.

They have six prime suspects.

Three in custody on other charges.

The three suspects not in custody (freely walking the streets) are under surveillance by police and other authorities.

The psychologists hired by the division believe the “North Shore” murders can be attributed to one suspect.

The psychologists hired by the division believe the Boston proper killings are a different suspect.

However, in contrast to the findings of the psychologists, Bottomly believes it is one suspect who is responsible for 8 of the 10 identified murders at this point. (Again, my brain is melting. What is this dude even saying? He said "11 murders" in the paragraph above this statement!)

All victims were killed by their own stockings.

Most, but not all, were sexually assaulted.

They suspect the Strangler is entering homes under the guise of being a repairman; or someone the landlord has hired to work in their apartments or on their properties.

The Strangler leaves no sign of forced entry, nor takes anything from the crime scene.

All of the victims are single (unwed or widowed) women.

They are currently developing a computer program, with the help of MIT professors and students, in the hope they can find connections between victims, thus finding the suspect. This computer is on loan from Concord Computer Services and, apparently, will crack the case.

This must be a wonder computer -- because Bottomly states this computer is going to “compare neighborhoods of the victims and see if there is any duplication in that area. It can also find duplications in hobbies. In the case of the strangler, most of the victims showed a strong interest in music.”

What is this dude even trying to say? Duplication of what?

So let’s break this down. There are six prime suspects. Three in custody, three at large, but under surveillance. All of the victims were unmarried and/or widowed women, strangled with their stockings, with no sign of forced entry. There are two killers, but maybe actually one killer? They are not sure. There is a magical computer that Bottomly cannot seem to describe what it will actually do -- and he is spitting technological facts to the press like he is a congressman attempting to question the CEO of TikTok, during that shitshow of a congressional hearing.

The article, for all its faults, seems to speak directly to the Strangler.

In it, Attorney General Bottomly makes it "evident" that investigators will catch the killer and his days of strangling are coming to a quick end. It is telling the Strangler that they are on to him. He is being watched, just like at the end of the film. All of this tension could provoke the strangler to kill again. Perhaps wanting to prove that the police have nothing on him and that they are chasing suspects in the wrong direction.

I don’t believe it is coincidental that Goldie would be found dead the next day.

Goldie’s murder, and yes, I am now declaring it a murder, caused a problem for investigators. Just 24 hours earlier, the Strangler Division and Attorney General Bottomly made it clear they had their three prime suspects who were out running free on the streets under tight surveillance.

They had their targets in their sights -- but now they have another victim.

If Goldie were to be included in the official victim count, it would show failure on the part of the Boston Police, the FBI, the Strangler Division and on Bottomly himself.

The wrong people were being surveilled.

It was far easier for investigators to spin the murder into a case of a frail lady unable to handle her ailments and taking her own life.

They didn’t even properly investigate it as anything other than a suicide. They couldn’t admit that they were wrong. They decided to save their reputation while destroying the Fine and Bloomberg families.

If Boston Police, the FBI and the Strangler Division ignored Goldie’s murder to preserve public favor, how many other Goldies are out there?

Could the Boston Strangler have been caught and properly prosecuted for the murders if Goldie was included in the victim count instead of deciding the strangler’s last killing was committed in January of 1964? Since when do police decide when a serial killer is done being a murderer?

Albert DeSalvo was only charged with one count of rape before confessing to the strangler killings. That confession led investigators to add two other murders to the Strangler list. DeSalvo was never charged with murder.

After interviewing Goldie's relative. I learned that Hyman’s son Melvin -- and the entire Fine & Bloomberg families -- were absolutely destroyed by the loss of their beloved matriarch. Melvin suffered a complete nervous breakdown -- concurrently experiencing a lifelong depressive condition, requiring counseling and treatment -- following Goldie’s murder.

Neither Melvin, Hyman (nor many other family members) ever believed it was suicide.

We don’t know if Hyman was given the full report with the manner of death listed or if he just didn’t want to see what they concluded was the cause of Goldie leaving him as she did. The relative and I presume it is listed as undetermined. The shortened death record from Norwood does not list a manner of death.

We requested it from the Boston medical examiner but are still awaiting a reply.

As it stands now, there is an open FOIA request with both the Boston Police and the Norwood Police. A clerk with the Norwood record office responded back stating they have not located any record of this event. Those records may have been lost to a flood in the storage location some 25 years ago.

My intent with this article is to tell the story of a family shattered by injustice. The hope is that we can find answers to lessen the heavy weight this murder has caused this family -- a burden that has lasted several generations. They would like real answers, solid facts, and to know once and for all, if Goldie was a victim of the Boston Strangler. I am hopeful that in an update to this article, I will have more answers from our record requests.

Warning, extremely graphic content involving infanticide and child sexual abuse below. Please read at your own risk.

An undated mugshot of Pensinger on death row, but was possibly taken in the 90s

In 1981, a then 19 year old Pensinger went drinking with a Californian woman that he befriended in Arizona, and she left him alone with her children in his uncle's truck. That day, one of the woman's children had pointed Pensinger's gun at a stranger while playing in the truck, and the man confiscated and refused to return it. She had Pensinger act as a babysitter as she went to report the snatched gun to the police.

As soon as the mother left their sights, Pensinger drove away with the children. He then took the opportunity to beat and orally rape the woman's daughter, 5 month old Michelle Melander, and cut the girl's stomach open with a knife. Several of Melander's body parts, including her anus and vagina, were removed and taken. 

Although he abused Melander’s 5 year old brother that was also abducted, he spared the boy’s life. Presinger abandoned the boy on a road near Parker Dam and discarded Melander's body in the nearby Black Meadows Resort. He then fled California and was captured in Texas with the truck he used in the murder and abductions.

In the incident that ended with his arrest, Pensinger lured a 10 year old girl into the truck after dancing with her at a bar, and was confronted by the girl's older sister and two men for it. Pensinger admitted his predatory intentions while being beaten by one of the men.

After a year of proceedings, the state of California sentenced Pensinger to death. In 2019, Pensinger passed away from undisclosed health issues in a prison hospital. At the time of his death, he was 56 years old.

Sources:

1.https://scocal.stanford.edu/opinion/people-v-pensinger-30911

2.https://www.cdcr.ca.gov/news/2019/05/03/condemned-inmate-brett-pensinger-dies-of-natural-causes/

3.https://www.upi.com/Archives/1982/08/11/A-jury-Wednesday-recommended-that-Brett-Panama-Red-Pensinger/3585397886400/

4.https://apnews.com/general-news-bfb7138dfaeb45e2894b05afc0453fe5

5.https://www.cbsnews.com/sanfrancisco/news/convicted-baby-killer-dies-at-san-quentin-prison/