Unsolved Murders: True Crime Stories

What happens when a teenager goes missing in the world’s smallest, and supposedly safest, country? Emanuela Orlandi’s sudden disappearance remains the only missing person’s case in Vatican City, yet more than 40 years later we still have no idea what really happened behind the papal state’s walls. After the story, stick around for an exclusive interview with the director of The First Omen, Arkasha Stevenson! This episode is brought to you by Twentieth Century Studios' the First Omen. Experience the most terrifying movie of the year, and what critics are calling “deliciously disturbing” only in theaters April 5th. Conspiracy Theories is now on Instagram @theconspiracypod and TikTok @conspiracy.pod! Follow us to keep up with the show and get behind-the-scenes updates from Carter and the team. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

Elizabeth Short’s gruesome murder is the LAPD’s most infamous unsolved case. But there’s one person who thinks he’s cracked it — the alleged killer’s own son. Today, we reopen the case against George Hodel, a certified genius and once-celebrated doctor who rubbed elbows with noted surrealists… and had a vile history of abuse and terror, even against his own family. This episode originally aired August 2022 - to hear more of Vanessa and Carter check out Serial Killers and Conspiracy Theories. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

In 1940s Hollywood, a 22-year-old aspiring actress is found mutilated and drained of blood. Her body is posed, and her mouth has been carved into a permanent smile. The investigation takes police into the hidden sides of the city — illicit romances and gang-related crimes. But when another mutilated body is found weeks later, the hunt is on for a possible serial killer. This is a crossover series with Unsolved Murders, looking at the murder of Elizabeth Short and other unsolved cases surrounding it. This episode originally aired August 2022 - to hear more of Vanessa and Carter check out Serial Killers and Conspiracy Theories. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

In early 1905, Hawaiian police opened—and quickly closed—an investigation into Jane Stanford’s mysterious death. A century later, an amateur sleuth tried to crack the case, uncovering university scandals, possible motives for murder, and a misinformation campaign led by the president of Stanford University himself. This episode originally aired in September 2020. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

She became one of the most influential people in California when she co-founded Stanford University in 1891. Jane Stanford was widely beloved for her forward-thinking, liberal ideals—but she also earned a few enemies. And when she was murdered in 1905, one question sent shockwaves through California: Who disagreed with Jane enough to kill her? This episode originally aired in September 2020. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

During World War II, two bizarre murders in the West Midlands region of England became linked by speculations of witchcraft and black magic. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

Two years after the unidentified skeleton known as Bella was found in a hollow tree in Hagley Wood, a second bizarre murder struck the West Midlands. On February 14th, 1945, a 74-year-old Farmhand named Charles Walton was brutally slain in the nearby village of Lower Quinton. Scotland Yard deployed master detective Robert Fabian to lead the investigation. But what he hoped would be an open-and-shut case soon revealed itself to be an impenetrable web, made only murkier by centuries of superstition. From the outset, the case seemed to be cursed, whether by the phantom hounds that traipsed the countryside, or by the whispers of witchcraft and black magic that followed whenever anyone spoke of Charles Walton. This episode originally aired in October 2019. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

On April 14th, 1943, four boys discovered the skeleton of a woman in a hollow tree while exploring the woods near Hagley, England. Investigators threw themselves into the task of identifying the body, but after months of searching, were no closer to giving her a name. With England caught in the midst of World War II, it seemed like she was destined to be forgotten... until mysterious messages began cropping up around the Black Country, taunting the investigators with a cryptic question: who put Bella in the wych elm? This episode originally aired in September 2019. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

After a beachcomber discovered Starr’s body, it took two autopsies to determine foul play. Was Starr’s childhood abuser — and former mayor of Boston — behind her death? Did Starr decide to take her own life that night on the water, as some of her private letters suggested? Or did she get wrapped up with a notorious gangster in a blackmail scheme gone wrong? This episode originally aired in October 2021. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

In 1931, the body of a young woman washed up on the shores of Long Island. Starr Faithfull had spent the Roaring Twenties chasing glamor, partying in speakeasies and sneaking aboard ocean liners. Her mysterious death became a tabloid sensation. This episode originally aired in September 2021.  Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

The murders of teenagers Christine Sharrock and Marianne Schmidt shocked the community of Wanda Beach. Police announced more than 5000 persons of interest, but only three people became prime suspects. Who were they and which one of them is really responsible for the Wanda Beach Murders? This episode originally aired in May 2018.  Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

Australian teens Christine Sharrock, Marianne Schmidt, and Marianne's four younger siblings set out for the beach. When the younger siblings became tired, the older girls continued on, promising to be back soon. Their bodies were discovered the next day. This episode originally aired in May 2018.  Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

After a lengthy appeals process, Sam Sheppard was set free in 1964, ten years after his wife Marilyn’s murder. Two years later, he would be retried on second degree murder charges. New evidence would surface, but would it be enough to convict him? This episode originally aired in July 2018.  Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

Prestigious doctor Sam Sheppard woke up in the middle of the night to find his wife Marilyn dead from a gruesome murder. His account of what happened early that morning was shaky, and it was no secret that Sam had been sleeping around. Did the murderer break into the house to steal prescription drugs, or did Sam kill his wife in order to end the marriage? This episode originally aired in June 2018. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

By the 1980s, Ted Kaczynski had set off several bombs, causing only minor injuries — but for him, it wasn’t enough. What had started as a plot for revenge grew into an unrelenting need to change the world. To do that, he needed to kill. The reign of the Unabomber had begun. This episode originally aired on Serial Killers in April 2021. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

Spotting his genius at a young age, Ted Kaczynski’s parents pushed their son to academic excellence — but Ted never found a true home in the hallowed halls of academia. Instead, by 1969, he was a former math professor with a festering hatred for the modern world. This episode originally aired on Serial Killers in April 2021. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

Saying goodbye to Unsolved Murders after 7 years.  Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

In the 1940s, a young woman returns to her college campus before vanishing seemingly into thin air. Her mother keeps up the investigation for decades — but every new lead that surfaces suggests a fate more terrible than the last. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

In 1991 a man was found dead in the trunk of his car. He’d been brutally slain, and despite obvious foul play, leads were hard to come by — until his name began popping up in another investigation. One that was unraveling the threads of an art heist unlike anything the world had ever seen before. This episode originally aired on Cold Cases in October 2022. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

On a December evening in 2016, a man called 911 when he spotted an abandoned car on a bridge. Police discovered that 19-year-old Sarah Stern of Neptune City, New Jersey, usually drove the vehicle. She was now missing, and police needed to determine if she had left the car voluntarily or was the victim of a crime. If you’d like to learn more about the cases covered in this episode, or learn more about Missing and Unidentified Persons Awareness Month, head to www.spotify.com/disappearances. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices