Casefile True Crime

Case 80: Beth Barnard

07 Apr 2018

Contributed by Lukas

The Vanishing of Vivienne Cameron delves deep into the murder of Beth Barnard and the disappearance of Vivienne Cameron, as previously covered on epis...

Case 79: Rayna Rison

24 Mar 2018

Contributed by Lukas

16-year-old Rayna Rison was a devoted animal lover who dreamed of one day becoming a veterinarian. On March 26 1993, she arranged to meet her ex-boyfr...

Case 78: The Janabi Family

17 Mar 2018

Contributed by Lukas

During the Iraq War, four members of the Janabi Family were found brutally massacred in their farmhouse in the rural village of Yusufiyah. 14-year-old...

Case 77: Mia Zapata

10 Mar 2018

Contributed by Lukas

The evening of July 6, 1993, was a typical one for Mia Zapata. The 27-year-old was a staple of Seattle’s music scene, having fronted punk rock band ...

Case 76: Silk Road (Part 3)

24 Feb 2018

Contributed by Lukas

[Part 3 of 3]The investigation into The Silk Road and Ross Ulbricht heats to boiling point as Homeland Security, the Drug Enforcement Administration a...

Case 76: Silk Road (Part 2)

17 Feb 2018

Contributed by Lukas

[Part 2 of 3]As The Silk Road continued to expand, problems started piling up for Ross Ulbricht, AKA The Dread Pirate Roberts. With business booming a...

Case 76: Silk Road (Part 1)

10 Feb 2018

Contributed by Lukas

[Part 1 of 3]Pennsylvania State University student Ross Ulbricht had been fascinated with mathematics and science from a young age. During his college...

Case 75: Graeme Thorne

27 Jan 2018

Contributed by Lukas

On June 1 1960, Sydney resident Bazil Thorne received a phone call informing that he’d just won one hundred thousand pounds in a Sydney Opera House ...

Case 74: Eric Coy

20 Jan 2018

Contributed by Lukas

On the morning of January 24 1987, nine-year-old Eric Coy hopped on his bike to make the one-mile journey to his cousin Eddrick’s house in the North...

Case 73: The Lady in the Barrel

17 Jan 2018

Contributed by Lukas

On September 15 1878, three teenage boys were tending to cattle in the woods near Silver Lake in Staten Island when they discovered a wooden barrel st...

Case 72: Wilhelmina Kruger & Anna Dowlingkoa

13 Jan 2018

Contributed by Lukas

For several weeks, 56-year-old Wilhelmina Kruger was unable to shake the feeling she was being watched. Her anxiety became so strong that on the night...

Case 71: Elodie Morel

16 Dec 2017

Contributed by Lukas

On May 2 2005, an officer at the Aigues-Mortes police station in Southern France received a phone call from a panicked man who warned, “A guy who ju...

Case 70: The Kimberley Killer

09 Dec 2017

Contributed by Lukas

In June 1987,  the bodies of Phillip Walkemeyer, Julie Warren and Terry Bolt were found shot dead at a campsite at the Pentecost River Crossing in We...

Case 69: Gary Patterson

02 Dec 2017

Contributed by Lukas

On the morning of May 3 1997, 33-year-old Gary Patterson woke up early at his home in Waco, Texas. Gary was excited, as he was flying out to El Paso t...

Case 68: Escape from Alcatraz

25 Nov 2017

Contributed by Lukas

Following the failed 1946 escape turned violent siege, safety measures at Alcatraz Federal Penitentiary were made even more stringent and inmates were...

Case 67: The Battle of Alcatraz

18 Nov 2017

Contributed by Lukas

In the 1940s, Alcatraz Federal Penitentiary in the San Francisco Bay was a state-of-the-art facility. Deemed to be completely escape-proof, convicts f...

Case 66: The Black Widow

11 Nov 2017

Contributed by Lukas

North Carolina residents James Napoleon Taylor and Raymond Reid died 13 years apart from seemingly natural causes, and doctors felt there was nothing ...

Case 65: Allison Baden-Clay

04 Nov 2017

Contributed by Lukas

When Brisbane based real estate agent Gerard Baden-Clay woke up at 6 AM on the morning of April 20 2012, there was no sign of his wife, Allison. This ...

Case 64: Peter Weinberger

28 Oct 2017

Contributed by Lukas

The Weinberger family was emblematic of 1950s suburban America. Husband and wife Betty and Morris lived in a modest home in Westbury, New York, where ...

Case 46: The Frankston & Tynong North Serial Killer | Update

22 Oct 2017

Contributed by Lukas

An important update on the case from Victoria police on October 21st, 2017.MAPS: Frankston North Killings map Frankston and Tynong North points of i...

Case 63: Catherine Holmes & Georgina Watmore

14 Oct 2017

Contributed by Lukas

On the evening of April 14 1987, 28-year-old Catherine Holmes hosted a small party at her home in the small New South Wales town of Cowra. When she fa...

Case 62: The Honolulu Strangler

07 Oct 2017

Contributed by Lukas

Between 1985 and 1986, five young women went missing on the Hawaiian island of Honolulu. The victims – Vicki Purdy, Regina Sakamoto, Denise Hughes, ...

Case 61: The Lin Family

30 Sep 2017

Contributed by Lukas

On the morning of July 18 2009, customers gathered outside Min Lin’s news agency in North Epping, New South Wales. The family-run business always op...

Case 60: Jonestown (Part 3)

23 Sep 2017

Contributed by Lukas

[Part 3 of 3]On November 17 1978, Congressman Leo Ryan travelled to Guyana to inspect Jonestown for himself. When a number of Peoples Temple members e...

Case 60: Jonestown (Part 2)

16 Sep 2017

Contributed by Lukas

[Part 2 of 3]In the late 1970s, Jim Jones and hundreds of his followers relocated to The Peoples Temple Agricultural Project in the South American cou...

Case 60: Jonestown (Part 1)

16 Sep 2017

Contributed by Lukas

[Part 1 of 3]During childbirth, Lynetta Jones’ deceased mother appeared to her in a vision and prophesied that the baby would one day become a great...

Case 59: Amy Lynn Bradley

18 Aug 2017

Contributed by Lukas

In March 1998, 23-year-old Amy Lynn Bradley joined her parents and brother on a weeklong cruise through the Caribbean. While the rest of her family wa...

Case 58: Shannon Matthews

12 Aug 2017

Contributed by Lukas

Nine-year-old Shannon Matthews lived with her family at the Moorside Council Estate in West Yorkshire, England. On February 19 2008, she said goodbye ...

Case 57: Walsh Street

29 Jul 2017

Contributed by Lukas

At 11 PM on October 11 1988, Victoria Police Constables Steven Tynan and Damian Eyre began working the night shift in the Melbourne suburb of Prahran....

Case 56: Anita Cobby

22 Jul 2017

Contributed by Lukas

On the morning of February 4 1986, a dairy farmer in the outer Sydney suburb of Prospect noticed his cows had been behaving strangely. For hours, they...

Case 54: Daniel Morcombe

01 Jul 2017

Contributed by Lukas

On December 7 2003, 13-year-old Daniel Morcombe set out from his home in Queensland’s Sunshine Coast to walk the one-kilometre journey to the nearby...

Case 53: The East Area Rapist/Original Night Stalker (Part 5)

03 Jun 2017

Contributed by Lukas

[Part 5 of 5]In 1979, the East Area Rapist’s three-year-long crime spree came to an abrupt halt. Residents of Northern California could finally brea...

Case 53: The East Area Rapist 1978–1979 (Part 4)

03 Jun 2017

Contributed by Lukas

[Part 4 of 5]As the 1970s drew to a close, the East Area Rapist continued terrorising residents of Northern California. His attacks became increasingl...

Case 53: The East Area Rapist 1977–1978 (Part 3)

27 May 2017

Contributed by Lukas

[Part 3 of 5]Throughout the summer of 1978, the East Area Rapist continued to stalk, attack and assault women and their families. He extended his hunt...

Case 53: The East Area Rapist 1977 (Part 2)

20 May 2017

Contributed by Lukas

[Part 2 of 5]By the start of 1977, panic had well and truly set in throughout Sacramento County as news of the East Area Rapist spread. Despite reside...

Case 53: The East Area Rapist 1976 (Part 1)

13 May 2017

Contributed by Lukas

[Part 1 of 5]In the summer of 1976, a serial offender began terrorising several quiet, suburban communities throughout Northern California’s Sacrame...

Case 52: Mary & Beth Stauffer, Jason Wilkman

06 May 2017

Contributed by Lukas

In May 1980, Mary Stauffer was a happily married mother-of-two, living in Minnesota. She and her family were about to make a big move to the Philippin...

Case 51: Tina Watson

22 Apr 2017

Contributed by Lukas

The Great Barrier Reef is one of the seven natural wonders of the world and one of Australia’s most famous tourist attractions. Its warm, clear wate...

Case 50: Jennifer Pan

15 Apr 2017

Contributed by Lukas

On the evening of November 8 2010, 25-year-old University of Toronto student Jennifer Pan was relaxing in the bedroom of her family home in the Ontari...

Case 49: The Moors Murders (Part 3)

01 Apr 2017

Contributed by Lukas

[Part 3 of 3]After Ian Brady and Myra Hindley are arrested for the string of horrific slayings dubbed ‘The Moors Murders’, the true horror of thei...

Case 49: The Moors Murders (Part 2)

25 Mar 2017

Contributed by Lukas

[Part 2 of 3]Ian Brady had fantasies about committing the “perfect murder.” After sharing his secret with his girlfriend, Myra Hindley, the fantas...

Case 49: The Moors Murders (Part 1)

18 Mar 2017

Contributed by Lukas

[Part 1 of 3]In 1963, two youths disappeared during separate incidents in and around the northern English city of Manchester. First, 16-year-old Pauli...

Case 48: Suzy Lamplugh

04 Mar 2017

Contributed by Lukas

At midday on July 28 1986, 25-year-old British real estate agent Suzy Lamplugh left work to attend an appointment. The only clue as to where she was h...

Case 47: Yara Gambirasio

25 Feb 2017

Contributed by Lukas

The Italian town of Brembate di Sopra is home to a quiet, close-knit community, and like the other local youths, 13-year-old Yara Gambirasio felt safe...

Case 46: The Frankston and Tynong North Serial Killer

18 Feb 2017

Contributed by Lukas

In the 18 month period between May 1980 and October 1981, six women went missing from the Frankston and Tynong North areas in Melbourne’s south-east...

Case 45: Port Arthur

11 Feb 2017

Contributed by Lukas

On April 28 1996, a lone gunman entered the Broad Arrow Café in Tasmania’s historic Port Arthur site and opened fire. By the end of his shooting sp...

Case 44: Peter Falconio

28 Jan 2017

Contributed by Lukas

The desert roads of the Northern Territory are as long as they are desolate. If you stand still, the loudest sound you’ll hear is your own heartbeat...

Case 43: Keith Warren

21 Jan 2017

Contributed by Lukas

The summer of 1986 was a busy one for 19-year-old Silver Spring resident, Keith Warren. Having recently graduated from John F. Kennedy High School, Ke...

Case 42: Sherri Rasmussen

14 Jan 2017

Contributed by Lukas

When 29-year-old Sherri Rasmussen married the love of her life, John Ruetten, the future looked promising. But just three months after their wedding, ...

Case 41: Mr Cruel

07 Jan 2017

Contributed by Lukas

In the late 1980s and early 1990s, Melbourne was gripped by fear when a masked assailant began breaking into suburban family homes and abducting young...

Case 26: Lisa Marie Young | Update

23 Dec 2016

Contributed by Lukas

This is an update on the Lisa Marie Young case in Case 26.For all credits and sources please visit casefilepodcast.com/case-26-lisa-marie-young Hosted...

Case 40: John Newman

10 Dec 2016

Contributed by Lukas

In the 1980s and 1990s, the Sydney suburb of Cabramatta was a hotbed for criminal activity. Heroin use was rife and users flocked to the area looking ...

Case 39: Janelle Patton

03 Dec 2016

Contributed by Lukas

After a string of failed relationships and other disappointments, Janelle Patton made the decision to relocate from Australia to Norfolk Island in sea...

Case 38: The Pikuls

12 Nov 2016

Contributed by Lukas

Indiana born Diane Whitmore always dreamed of making it big in New York City. When she met Wall Street securities analyst Joseph Pikul, she thought sh...

Case 37: The Yorkshire Ripper (Part 3)

05 Nov 2016

Contributed by Lukas

[Part 3 of 3]With the West Yorkshire Police no closer to identifying The Yorkshire Ripper, the department came under intense scrutiny. Prime Minister ...

Case 37: The Yorkshire Ripper (Part 2)

29 Oct 2016

Contributed by Lukas

[Part 2 of 3]With the Yorkshire Ripper showing no sign of slowing down, police appealed directly to the killer himself in the hopes of putting an end ...

Case 37: The Yorkshire Ripper (Part 1)

22 Oct 2016

Contributed by Lukas

[Part 1 of 3]West Yorkshire is a county in England that has a population of over 2 million people. It covers an area of over 2,000 km² and is formed ...

Case 36: Amok

15 Oct 2016

Contributed by Lukas

In late 2000, the owner of a Polish advertising company, Dariusz Janiszewski, went missing after going to meet a client. His body was later found floa...

Case 35: Operation Mayan

08 Oct 2016

Contributed by Lukas

On the evening of March 18 2001, 22-year-old Sian O’Callaghan enjoyed a night out with friends in the Old Town of Swindon in South West England. The...

Case 34: The Catholic Mafia

24 Sep 2016

Contributed by Lukas

[WARNING – This episode deals with child sex abuse. It will not be suitable for all listeners.]In the early 1960s, Victorian Detective Denis Ryan wa...

Case 33: Jaycee Lee Dugard

17 Sep 2016

Contributed by Lukas

In the early 1990s, South Lake Tahoe was considered a safe and sheltered place to live. All that changed on June 10 1991, when 11-year-old Jaycee Lee ...

Case 32: Grace & Kathleen Holmes

04 Sep 2016

Contributed by Lukas

After migrating from England to Australia after World War II, the Holmes family were looking forward to embracing a safer and higher quality of life. ...

Case 31: The Killer Couple

27 Aug 2016

Contributed by Lukas

Over a five-week period in 1986, four young women went missing from around Perth in Western Australia. 22-year-old Mary Neilson, 15-year-old Susannah ...

Case 28: Lindsay Buziak | Follow Up

24 Aug 2016

Contributed by Lukas

This is an update on the Lindsay Buziak case in Case 28.For all credits and sources please visit casefilepodcast.com/case-28-lindsay-buziak Hosted on ...

Case 30: The Claremont Serial Killer

20 Aug 2016

Contributed by Lukas

This episode of Casefile was released in 2016 when the case was still unresolved. Major developments have since occurred and as a result, we have elec...

Case 29: The Burgate House Murders

13 Aug 2016

Contributed by Lukas

The 80-year-old retired publisher Joseph Clever lived with his wife Hilda at Burgate House, a secluded mansion on the edge of New Forest in Hampshire,...

Case 28: Lindsay Buziak

06 Aug 2016

Contributed by Lukas

24-year-old Lindsay Buziak loved her job as a Vancouver Island real estate agent and was looking forward to carving an impressive career for herself. ...

Case 27: The West Mesa Bone Collector

30 Jul 2016

Contributed by Lukas

The eastern side of the city of Albuquerque, New Mexico, is closed in by mountains. On the city’s west side, a mesa rises out of the Rio Grande Vall...

Case 26: Lisa Marie Young

23 Jul 2016

Contributed by Lukas

Vancouver Island. Known for its breathtaking scenery, astonishing postcard beauty and amazing wildlife. Heaven on earth.But on certain parts of the is...

Case 25: Prue Bird

16 Jul 2016

Contributed by Lukas

“If any bastard ever thought about going to the cops about us, they’ll be killed and so will their fucking families. And if we don’t get them, o...

Case 24: Russell Street Bombing (Part 2)

09 Jul 2016

Contributed by Lukas

[Part 2 of 2]We left part one just after the government announced a 500 thousand dollar reward for any information to help solve the case. It was hope...

Case 24: Russell Street Bombing (Part 1)

02 Jul 2016

Contributed by Lukas

[Part 1 of 2]Haros Avenue in Nunawading (Melbourne) presented a problem for the police surveillance team following the red Jaguar. It was a small dead...

Case 23: The Frankston Serial Killer (Part 2)

25 Jun 2016

Contributed by Lukas

[Part 2 of 2]Part 2 of the Frankston Serial Killer. At the end of part 1 police had found out who owned the suspicious vehicle parked on Skye Road at ...

Case 23: The Frankston Serial Killer (Part 1)

18 Jun 2016

Contributed by Lukas

[Part 1 of 2]Donna had recently received a few prank calls and she was getting nervous. She had a young baby and didn’t like the idea of being alone...

Case 22: Marguerite Edwards

11 Jun 2016

Contributed by Lukas

It was Wednesday the 2nd of August 1989. 41-year-old Marguerite Edwards started the day like any other. Making sure her three daughters were up, and r...

Case 21: Pamela Lawrence

28 May 2016

Contributed by Lukas

On Monday the 23rd of May 1994, a violent storm hit the city of Perth, Western Australia. Peter Lawrence was starting to become concerned.It was getti...

Case 20: Stoni Blair & Stephen Berry

21 May 2016

Contributed by Lukas

The details of this case are extremely difficult to hear. Extreme child abuse and child murder are involved. This episode won't be for everybody. Ther...

Case 19: Snowtown

14 May 2016

Contributed by Lukas

Living in Australia, I had heard of the Snowtown case. I knew it as the bodies in the barrels case. But that’s all I knew. I had no idea about the w...

Case 18: The North Hollywood Shootout

07 May 2016

Contributed by Lukas

On the 28th of February 1997 Los Angeles police officers, Perello and Farrell were on routine patrol driving along Laurel Canyon Blvd, North Hollywood...

Case 17: The Eriksson Twins

30 Apr 2016

Contributed by Lukas

On the 17th of May 2008, two motorway patrol officers attended to a call that a pedestrian had been hit by a vehicle on the M6 motorway, near the city...

Case 16: Chris & Cru Kahui

23 Apr 2016

Contributed by Lukas

Chris and Cru Kahui were twins, aged just three months old when they died in hospital, both suffering from traumatic brain injury. Their death was the...

Case 15: The Weepy Voiced Killer

16 Apr 2016

Contributed by Lukas

In the early 80’s a series of attacks occurred in the twin city area of Minnesota, USA. The victims were all women. Police struggled in the initial ...

Case 14: Helen Munnings

09 Apr 2016

Contributed by Lukas

On the 23rd of July 2008 young mother, Helen Munnings disappeared from the port city of Burnie, on the North West Coast of Tasmania, Australia.She was...

Case 13: The Family Court Murders

02 Apr 2016

Contributed by Lukas

In the 1980's in Sydney Australia, Justice David Opas was shot dead outside his home and bombs were exploded at the homes of Justice Richard Gee and J...

Case 12: Katherine Knight

26 Mar 2016

Contributed by Lukas

The crime scene was described as looking more like the set of a horror movie, than real life. It is one of the most horrific crimes ever committed.Not...

Case 11: Anneliese Michel

19 Mar 2016

Contributed by Lukas

First came the seizures and sleep paralysis. Then came the hallucinations and violent behaviour.Anneliese Michel made endless visits to doctor’s and...

Case 10: Peter Shellard

12 Mar 2016

Contributed by Lukas

The 7th of May 2005 was a typical run of the mill day for Shirley Withers. She worked the full day in her Melbourne fashion boutique and once the shop...

Case 09: Jonathan Luna

05 Mar 2016

Contributed by Lukas

He was implicated in a case of missing money from a courthouse evidence vault. He was facing allegations of misconduct and illegal handling of a witne...

Case 08: Holly Wells & Jessica Chapman

27 Feb 2016

Contributed by Lukas

On the 4th of August 2002, best friends Holly Wells and Jessica Chapman disappeared from the small town of Sohom in England.One of England’s biggest...

Case 07: Julian Buchwald & Carolynne Watson

20 Feb 2016

Contributed by Lukas

On the 4th of March 2008, Julian Buchwald and his girlfriend Carolynne Watson went for a romantic picnic lunch in country Victoria. They didn't return...

Case 06: Roger Dean

13 Feb 2016

Contributed by Lukas

"You won't believe it, but it was like, satan saying to me that it's the right thing to do."In the early hours of the 18th of November 2011 a fire was...

Case 05: Donna Wheeler

06 Feb 2016

Contributed by Lukas

On Tuesday the 2nd of November 1999 Donna Wheeler was found murdered in her home in Berala, Western Sydney. There were several suspects.Was it her ex-...

Case 04: Who Put Bella In The ‘Witch’ Elm

30 Jan 2016

Contributed by Lukas

On the 18th of April 1943, four boys discovered a skeleton buried in the hollow of a wych-elm tree in Hagley Woods, England.Police immediately got to ...

Case 03: Lauria Bible & Ashley Freeman

23 Jan 2016

Contributed by Lukas

On the 29th of January 1999, best friends Lauria Bible and Ashley Freeman had a sleepover at Ashley’s house to celebrate her 16th birthday.Ashley’...

Case 02: The Somerton Man

16 Jan 2016

Contributed by Lukas

On the first of December 1948, a body of a man was located along the seawall of Somerton Beach, just near Adelaide in South Australia.At first, the po...

Case 01: The Wanda Beach Murders

09 Jan 2016

Contributed by Lukas

On the 11th of January 1965, two fifteen-year-old schoolgirls Christine Sharrock and Marianne Schmidt were found murdered in the Wanda sand hills, jus...