Podcasts · Crime Junkie

Crime Junkie — episode summaries

Every new episode of Crime Junkie, distilled: the one-line TLDR, key takeaways, notable quotes, and whether it's worth the full listen. 55 episodes summarized so far.

• WARNING: Roger Hueber
  Mon, 13 Jul 2026

  Roger Huber, a New York corrections officer, sexually abused multiple vulnerable girls over years; his live-in girlfriend and key witness Cheryl Ruchi vanished before testifying against him, and remains missing.

• MURDERED: Carmen Van Huss
  Mon, 6 Jul 2026

  After 33 years, genetic genealogy and one relentless detective finally led to the arrest, conviction, and 45-year sentence of Dana Shepherd for Carmen Van Huss's brutal 1993 murder.

• MURDERED: Christine Banfield & Joseph Ryan
  Mon, 29 Jun 2026

  Federal agent Brendan Banfield orchestrated an elaborate plot to murder his wife Christine by creating a fake BDSM profile to lure stranger Joseph Ryan to their home, then killed them both and framed Ryan.

• MISSING: Brittany Wallace Shank
  Mon, 22 Jun 2026

  Britney Wallace Shank vanishes November 30, 2018, after mysteriously leaving a stranger's house in rural Michigan, leaving behind unanswered questions about a mystery man and suspicious circles around her.

• MURDERED: Alberta O. Jones
  Mon, 15 Jun 2026

  Alberta O. Jones, a pioneering Black prosecutor and civil rights activist, was beaten and drowned in Louisville's Ohio River in 1965—a crime that remains officially unsolved despite decades of investigation.

• MYSTERIOUS DEATH OF: Tripp Brazeale
  Mon, 8 Jun 2026

  A 15-year-old boy dies by hanging after a police pursuit in Arkansas, but inconsistencies in the investigation lead his family to suspect foul play.

• WARNING: AI Voice Cloning and Virtual Kidnappings
  Wed, 3 Jun 2026

  AI voice cloning technology enables scammers to create convincing fake kidnapping calls demanding ransom, and families must establish safe words and verify loved ones through separate contacts to protect themselves.

• SERIAL KILLER: David Meirhofer
  Mon, 1 Jun 2026

  David Meirhofer, a Montana serial killer, evaded capture for years until FBI criminal profiling connected him to the 1973 abduction of seven-year-old Susie Yeager.

• INTRODUCING: CounterClock Season 8
  Thu, 28 May 2026

  Crime Junkie introduces CounterClock Season 8, investigating the unsolved 2008 Lane Bryant mass shooting in Illinois that killed five women despite abundant evidence.

• MYSTERIOUS DEATH OF: The Jamison Family
  Mon, 25 May 2026

  A family of three vanishes from a remote Oklahoma mountain in 2009, their truck found abandoned with cash and belongings inside; their remains discovered four years later suggest foul play, but the case remains unsolved.

• MISSING: Christopher “Cole” Thomas
  Mon, 18 May 2026

  Christopher "Cole" Thomas, 22, vanished after a botched drug deal in North Carolina in November 2016; four men were charged with concealing his death, but the case remains unsolved.

• MYSTERIOUS DEATH OF: Spencer Irwin
  Mon, 11 May 2026

  A mother fights to uncover the truth behind her son's mysterious death after police wrongly ruled it a drug overdose, uncovering evidence of potential foul play in Fresno.

• MURDERED: Brittany McGlone
  Mon, 4 May 2026

  19-year-old Britney McGlone was brutally beaten to death in her boyfriend's bed in 2007 Texas, with Chad Carr arrested 15 years later, though a grand jury declined to indict.

• MISSING: Melissa Casias
  Mon, 27 Apr 2026

  Melissa Casillas vanished from her New Mexico home on June 26, 2025, leaving behind her wallet, keys, and phones—but surveillance video shows her walking alone down a highway hours later, sparking wildly conflicting theories about whether she fled voluntarily or met foul play.

• MURDERED: Melanie Howell
  Thu, 23 Apr 2026

  In 1976, 22-year-old Melanie Howell was stabbed 47 times in her LA apartment; decades later, fingerprint technology identified her killer as Paul Bustamante, who also murdered teacher Elizabeth Wolfe.

• MURDERED: Stephanie Casberg
  Mon, 20 Apr 2026

  In 1969, Wisconsin teen Stephanie Casberg was murdered after leaving her waitressing shift; decades later, DNA evidence and new leads suggest her killer may be connected to other dismemberment cases.

• MYSTERIOUS DEATH OF: Laura Sweetman
  Mon, 13 Apr 2026

  A pediatric neurologist is found dead in her bathtub in 2013, ruled undetermined by a controversial medical examiner, leaving her abuse-fearing family and friends suspecting her estranged husband but with no investigation.

• MISSING: Darrel “Bubba” Johnson Sr.
  Thu, 26 Mar 2026

  67-year-old Darrel "Bubba" Johnson Sr. disappeared from a New Mexico campsite in June 2024 with no body, belongings, or clear explanation, leaving his family questioning official theories.

• MURDERED: Mary Yoder Part 2
  Mon, 23 Mar 2026

  Mary Yoder was poisoned with colchicine, and Katie Conley was convicted of manslaughter—but her 2025 release and sealed records have left the case in legal limbo.

• MURDERED: Mary Yoder Part 1
  Mon, 16 Mar 2026

  Mary Yoder, a healthy 60-year-old chiropractor, died within 48 hours of sudden illness from a colchicine overdose, launching a murder investigation that points toward her husband, her son, or an anonymous letter writer.

• INFAMOUS: Mr. Cruel
  Mon, 9 Mar 2026

  Mr. Cruel targeted and abducted young girls in Melbourne throughout the late 1980s and early 1990s, evading capture despite extensive investigation, and his identity remains unsolved.

• MURDERED: Jill & Julie Hansen
  Mon, 16 Feb 2026

  Twin sisters Jill and Julie Hansen were shot and killed in a 1986 arson fire; their stepbrother Donnie was acquitted despite circumstantial evidence.

• MYSTERIOUS DEATH OF: The Day-Stewart Family
  Mon, 9 Feb 2026

  In 2023, a Chicago firefighter's wife and three children died in a house fire the night before she planned to leave him due to years of alleged abuse, raising questions about whether it was truly an accident.

• MURDERED: Bobby Moore
  Mon, 2 Feb 2026

  Detective Bobby Moore, who investigated a 1974 DC judge's murder, married the victim's widow, moved to Indiana as town marshal, shot his wife in 1988, was cleared of charges, and was assassinated five months later—a case unsolved for decades.

• AUDIO EXTRA: A Conversation With Elizabeth Smart
  Thu, 29 Jan 2026

  Elizabeth Smart discusses her 1998 kidnapping, nine-month captivity, escape strategy, and current advocacy work for missing and exploited persons.

• Kelly Dee Wilson (10 of Spades, Ohio)
  Tue, 27 Jan 2026

  Kelly D. Wilson, a rising Dayton radio DJ, was found strangled in her apartment on March 25, 2000—a case that remains unsolved 24 years later despite DNA testing and ongoing investigation.

• MISSING: Marilyn “Niqui” McCown
  Mon, 26 Jan 2026

  Police reopened the 2001 disappearance of Marilyn "Nikki" McCown and uncovered new evidence pointing toward multiple suspects, but her remains remain unfound after nearly twenty-five years.

• MYSTERIOUS DEATH OF: Shanquella Robinson
  Thu, 22 Jan 2026

  A 25-year-old Black woman dies during a trip to Mexico; initial claims of alcohol poisoning are contradicted by a leaked fight video, autopsy discrepancies, and an arrest warrant that never materializes.

• MISSING: Bonnie Lee Schultz Part 1
  Mon, 12 Jan 2026

  In 1997, married mother Bonnie Lee Schultz vanishes after telling her husband she wants a divorce, leaving her husband Rick under suspicion despite a flawed investigation.

• SURVIVING: Ernest Pine
  Mon, 5 Jan 2026

  A Kentucky man brutally attacked his neighbor in 2008, leaving her for dead—but she survived, wrote his name in blood, and now faces his 2025 parole release while authorities investigate unsolved similarities to a 1992 murder.

• INFAMOUS: A Conversation with JonBenét Ramsey's Father
  Mon, 29 Dec 2025

  Boulder Police have made minimal investigative progress in 30 years, and John Ramsey believes unidentified male DNA and untested evidence hold the key to solving his daughter's 1996 murder.

• MYSTERIOUS DEATH OF: Rowena Wilkinson Zapalac
  Mon, 8 Dec 2025

  A 1984 Texas woman's death ruled suicide by masturbation shows signs of murder, potentially linked to another woman's death and possibly a man with connections to multiple suspicious female deaths.

• MURDERED: Patrick Shunn & Monique Patenaude
  Mon, 1 Dec 2025

  A neighbor's deadly rage over property disputes escalates to double homicide, but meticulous detective work and forensic evidence lead to the killer's capture within 100 days.

• MURDERED: Linda Sherman
  Mon, 24 Nov 2025

  Linda Sherman disappeared from her home in 1985, and while her skull was found in 1990 at a restaurant her husband frequented, her case remains unsolved and effectively abandoned by police.

• INFAMOUS: The Murder of Amber Spradlin
  Mon, 17 Nov 2025

  A vulnerable 38-year-old woman is brutally murdered in Eastern Kentucky, with suspicious circumstances suggesting a cover-up by powerful local figures.

• MURDERED: Teresa Flores & Martha Mezo
  Mon, 10 Nov 2025

  In 1980, two young girls vanished from a small California town in broad daylight; 45 years later, a detective who solved Kristin Smart's case is pursuing fresh DNA evidence to finally catch their killer.

• MURDERED: Christion Olson
  Mon, 3 Nov 2025

  An 18-year-old Ohio teen dies from blunt force trauma after leaving a party, but no one admits what happened during the critical missing hour, leaving investigators baffled.

• MISSING: The Thompson Family
  Thu, 30 Oct 2025

  The Thompson family—Everett, Lydia, and their two sons—vanished from Chicago in July 1996; police negligence and delayed investigation allowed their likely killer, Lydia's brother Kenneth, to destroy evidence and evade murder charges before taking his own life in prison.

• MISSING: Trevaline Evans
  Mon, 20 Oct 2025

  In 1990, 52-year-old Trevaline Evans vanished from her Welsh antique shop after being seen with a mysterious older man, and 29 years later, two brothers discovered what they believed was her skeleton under a golf club floor—only to have it allegedly disappear during police excavation.

• MURDERED: Destiny Jackson & Nazirah Muhammad
  Mon, 13 Oct 2025

  Two young women, Destiny Jackson and Nazirah Muhammad, were shot and killed in their Hobart, Indiana apartment in November 2022; police suspect a drug dealer named Chip over money owed for marijuana but lack matching DNA evidence.

• INFAMOUS: The Murdaugh Family Murders
  Mon, 6 Oct 2025

  Alex Murdaugh murdered his wife Maggie and son Paul in June 2021 to distract from massive financial crimes, was convicted, and received two consecutive life sentences.

• UPDATE: Ellen Greenberg
  Thu, 2 Oct 2025

  Philadelphia teacher Ellen Greenberg is found stabbed 19 times in her locked apartment in 2011; police initially rule it suicide, but a new documentary reignites questions about the investigation that may finally be reopened.

• MISSING: Cherrie Mahan
  Mon, 29 Sep 2025

  After 40 years missing, new evidence links 8-year-old Cherrie Mahan's 1985 disappearance to alleged child abusers in her neighborhood, but her remains remain unfound.

• WANTED: Michael Bullinger
  Mon, 22 Sep 2025

  Pilot Michael Bullinger murdered his wife, girlfriend, and her 14-year-old daughter in Idaho, then vanished into Wyoming wilderness in 2017, leaving authorities uncertain whether he died in the backcountry or escaped with a loaded gun.

• INFAMOUS: The Mulholland Drive Murders
  Mon, 15 Sep 2025

  Detective Shepherd's discovery of a bloody bra in cold case files leads to identifying Jane Doe 59 as Reet Jervitsen and connects her to another unsolved 1969 murder, but both cases remain unsolved.

• MISSING: Dawn Mozino
  Mon, 8 Sep 2025

  23-year-old Dawn Mozino disappeared from Pennsylvania in 1989; police focused on convicted killer Tom Hawkins, but her diary reveals potential suspects police never properly investigated.

• MURDERED: Anastasia WitbolsFeugen
  Mon, 11 Aug 2025

  An 18-year-old goth girl is shot dead in a Kansas City cemetery in 1997; her boyfriend Justin dies by apparent suicide days later, and her friend Byron is convicted based largely on another friend Kelly's testimony, but serious investigation gaps and inconsistencies raise doubts about whether police got it right.

• MISSING: John & Shelly Markley
  Mon, 7 Jul 2025

  On December 15, 1995, Ohio parents John and Shelley Markley vanished without a trace, leaving behind five children and a case that spawned multiple conflicting theories.

• MYSTERIOUS DEATH OF: Jeannette Bishop May & Gabriella Guerin
  Mon, 30 Jun 2025

  Two women vanish in an Italian snowstorm in 1980, and decades of investigation reveal tangled connections to art theft, organized crime, and the Vatican—but no definitive answers.

• MISSING: Jennifer, Sidney, & Monique
  Mon, 23 Jun 2025

  Twenty-five-year mystery of Jennifer Lancaster and her infant daughters who vanished in 2000 with few leads until a potential DNA breakthrough emerged in 2025—though it ultimately proved false.

• MURDERED: Jennifer Farber Dulos
  Mon, 16 Jun 2025

  Wealthy Connecticut mother Jennifer Farber Dulos vanished in May 2019; her husband Fotis was convicted of orchestrating her murder despite her body never being found.

• MISSING: The Gospel Trio
  Mon, 9 Jun 2025

  Three women disappeared after a 1987 gospel concert in South Carolina, and decades later, suspicion points to one abusive husband, but insufficient evidence has prevented charges.

• SERIAL KILLER: The Doodler
  Mon, 19 May 2025

  In 1970s San Francisco, a serial killer targeted gay men, and despite survivors identifying him and a psychiatrist confirming his confession, fear kept victims silent and he remains free.

• SURVIVED: Fallon Farinacci
  Mon, 5 May 2025

  Fallon Farinacci survived a 1993 home invasion where her parents were murdered, later becoming a powerful advocate for missing and murdered Indigenous people.

• UPDATE: Beaumont Children
  Thu, 20 Feb 2025

  Three children vanished from an Australian beach in 1966; 59 years later, police are finally excavating a prime suspect's property for answers.