Going West: True Crime

When a 43-year-old mother in Colorado slipped into a coma in March of 2023, her grief-stricken loved ones struggled to make sense of it. Otherwise active and healthy, she had been hospitalized multiple times with a mysterious ailment, dying within days. It wasn’t until a shocking source revealed the contents of a suspicious package that a murder plot was uncovered - before she even succumbed to her death. This is the story of Angela Craig.

In March of 2019, a 21-year-old student at the University of South Carolina went out to a local bar with friends. Leaving the rest of her group behind around 2am, she headed outside to hop in her Uber, and was never seen alive again. A day later, in a rural area of South Carolina, her remains would be found with over a hundred stab wounds. And as the investigation would uncover, it wasn’t a rideshare car she got into that evening, but a random, vicious strangers… This is the story of Samantha Josephson.

In March of 2012, a beloved 33-year-old high school science teacher went missing from Vermont after heading out to help someone with apparent car troubles. When her abandoned vehicle was discovered with her two-year-old son still inside, a frantic search began. And when detectives began looking into a local man who used to work for her, a sinister plot unraveled. This is the story of Melissa Jenkins.

In February of 2014, a Missouri girl was abducted off the street in her own neighborhood by a strange man in a truck. Three witnesses watched it happen and acted immediately, writing down the license plate number of the perpetrator, and even knocking on doors attempting to find the girl’s family. And because of their actions, police would soon be knocking on the door of the man responsible - where they would find horrific evidence linking him to the crime. This is the story of Hailey Owens.

In February of 2013, a 21-year-old woman mysteriously disappeared during a visit to see her on-again, off-again boyfriend after he told her he had a “surprise gift” for her. A subsequent investigation uncovered strange text messages, perplexing surveillance footage, and an important insider tip from an unsuspecting witness. This is the story of Kelsie Schelling.

In February of 2023, a 41-year-old woman failed to pick her kids up from school in Quincy, Illinois. When her father went to her home to check on her, he discovered her dead on the bathroom floor with 14 bullet wounds to her body. After police uncovered disturbing Google searches and a distasteful segment on an episode of Family Feud, a suspect was arrested. This is the story of Becky Bliefnick.

In late January of 1993, over Super Bowl weekend, a 39-year-old Texas man vanished while his wife and daughter were on a girls weekend in Dallas. Just one day later, he was seen walking on a highway multiple states away, looking disoriented, shortly before he would become the victim of a hit-and-run. But it took eleven years for him to be positively identified, bringing more questions than answers to his curious story. This is the story of David Glenn Lewis.

In February of 2023, a 37-year-old pediatric nurse was stabbed to death inside her suburban Virginia home, alongside a stranger from a dating app. But what appeared to be the scene of a sexual tryst gone terribly wrong quickly changed in the eyes of investigators the more they questioned the family’s live-in au pair. And when they did, a sinister plot revealed itself. This is the story of Christine Banfield. It’s also the story of Joseph Ryan, known as the Au Pair Murders.

In February of 2016, a 19-year-old woman departed her home state of South Dakota bound for Atlanta, Georgia. She had arranged to stay at the home of a man she’d met on Craigslist, in exchange for cleaning his house, but he kicked her out after just one day. And then, she disappeared. Mired in unsubstantiated rumors, pointed fingers, and familial disputes, this case has been complicated from the start. But finally, much resolution has come to her story, proving that she was murdered. This is the story of Morgan Bauer.

In March of 2017, a 36-year-old Navajo woman left her aunt’s house in New Mexico after visiting Arizona, but she never made it to her destination. Five years after she went missing, her former boyfriend was arrested for the murder and dismemberment of at least three people - later saying they were ritualistic sacrifice killings whom he engaged in cannibalism with. This is the story of Tanya Begay, and horrific actions by the Tarrant County Serial Killer.

In January of 2022, a Boston police officer was found dead in a snowbank outside the home of a friend. When his cause of death was discovered to be blunt force trauma and hypothermia, it soon became the belief that it had not been the result of a tragic accident, but instead, a murder. His killer, at least according to the people in attendance that night, was his girlfriend. But many others point to police corruption, as multiple people at John’s last known whereabouts were in law enforcement. This is the story of John O’Keefe.

In January of 1958, a 41-year-old Indiana mother went missing from her home, only to be found dead in her bathtub. Still mostly clothed and submerged under the water, she had drowned, but had also sustained blunt force trauma before her death - with clear signs of homicide. When her friends reported seeing someone flee in her vehicle shortly before her body was discovered, police questioned over 250 people looking for answers into the incredibly suspicious murder scene at her home. This is the story of Malvina Krutz.

In February of 2021, a 23-year-old aspiring police officer in Massachusetts was found dead in her apartment under suspicious circumstances. After police investigated the scene, they concluded that she had taken her own life. But as her family pushed for answers, they uncovered a shocking case of abuse of power and assault by multiple men she knew and trusted. This is the story of Sandra Birchmore.

In January of 2019, a 16-year-old girl went missing, last seen at a community park near her Moreno Valley, California home. As police searched for any sign of her, a sinister revenge plot unfolded before their eyes, with the main suspect in her likely murder described as nothing but “pure evil.” This is the story of Aranda Briones.

In February of 2003, a 40-year-old model and actress living in Los Angeles headed to her shift at the House of Blues Hollywood like any other Sunday. When a successful, notable music producer walked in to her VIP lounge, they got to talking - and her shift ended with him inviting her back to his mansion for a nightcap. But within an hour of his driver dropping them inside his home, a gunshot rang out, and she was pronounced dead in the foyer. This is the story of Lana Clarkson.

In January of 2016, a 13-year-old Virginia girl snuck out of her bedroom in the middle of the night, headed to meet up with someone she had befriended online. But unbeknownst to her, she was being groomed by a young man who had horrific plans for her. When her mother discovered she was missing, and the police and FBI became involved, they quickly found the identity of their suspect, with a second person coming forth with a terrifying confession. This is the story of Nicole Lovell.

In January of 2001, two wonderful and married German-born Dartmouth College professors were stabbed to death inside the study of their New Hampshire home. An investigation into their brutal homicides began, with police initially believing it was a crime of passion. But after sifting through numerous false leads, a bloody footprint and two distinctive knife sheaths led them to their unassuming culprits. These are the murders of Doctors Susanne and Half Zantop, also known as The Dartmouth Murders.

In January of 2017, a 20-year-old aspiring actress in Los Angeles went missing after abruptly leaving her boyfriend’s Calabasas home in the early morning hours after seemingly suffering a panic attack. Days later, her car turned up on the Pacific Coast Highway in nearby Malibu, but she was nowhere to be found. Investigators are still hoping that the multiple clips of surveillance footage available and the strange happenings on her phone in those early hours will help bring much-needed resolution. This is the story of Elaine Park.

In the 1970s, shortly after the horrific reign of the Zodiac Killer, another serial killer wreaked havoc on San Francisco, killing as many as seventeen men he’d met at bars and nightclubs across the city. Intriguingly, the killer reportedly sketched his victims before stabbing them and leaving their bodies to be discovered in public places - most commonly on a beautiful beach along the city's edge. This is the story of The San Francisco Doodler.

WE LOVE YOU LA. WE ARE SAFE from these fires right now, but staying aware here in Los Angeles of the developing chaos. Our hearts go out to the firefighters, the first responders, the animals, and all the people who have lost their homes or loved ones and are experiencing this. Everyone in LA is being affected by these fires right now. It's absolutely devastating. This episode was recorded before the fires began. In February of 2020, a successful 38-year-old sex therapist was strangled and thrown over the balcony of her Hollywood Hills home, leading to her death in a hospital shortly afterward. As police dug deeper into the home invasion that led to her tragic fate, they discovered a man who had a disturbing history of stalking and obsessing over her. This is the story of Dr. Amie Harwick.