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Serial Napper | True Crime for the Chronically Tired

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Serial Napper is true crime for the chronically tired.

Hosted by Canadian podcaster Nikki Young, Serial Napper tells the stories of real crimes, disappearances and mysteries from around the world, with a focus on the people at the centre of them and the details that too often get lost along the way.

Each episode digs into the full story: who these people were before they became names in headlines, what actually happened, how investigators pieced the case together, what unfolded inside the courtroom, and, when answers are still missing, the questions that remain.

Nikki tells each story the way she'd tell it to you if you were sitting across the table from her: conversational, curious, occasionally sassy and with a little dark humour when the moment allows for it. The victims are always treated with respect. The absurd behaviour surrounding some of these cases? Considerably less so.

Some episodes cover cases you've probably heard of, but go beyond the version that has been repeated for years. Others explore Canadian cases, international crimes, strange mysteries and lesser-known stories that deserve far more attention than they've received.

At its heart, Serial Napper is about looking past the headline and asking what really happened.

So dim the lights, get comfortable, and try not to have nightmares.

This is Serial Napper.


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  • 27 episodes
  • a few times a week
  • Avg 55 min
  • English

Episodes 27

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  • Yesterday · 49 min

    The Lie That Became a Death Sentence: The Murder of Darren Kelly

    On the evening of October 20th, 2015, 42-year-old father and lorry driver Darren Kelly travelled to Pitsea, Essex, believing he was meeting a woman he'd been talking to online. But when Darren arrived, he wasn't met by one person. A group was already waiting nearby, some of them hiding out of sight. They believed Darren was guilty of something terrible, and they had decided to confront him themselves. Within minutes, Darren was running for his life. He was chased through the streets, beaten and stabbed six times before managing to reach a nearby block of flats and desperately buzz strangers for help. Darren died later that night. But when police began investigating the accusation that had made Darren a target, they discovered something deeply disturbing: the evidence didn't support it. What followed was a murder investigation involving an online vigilante campaign, a teenage girl determined to catch suspected predators, four defendants and a trial that left Darren's family questioning how only one person could ultimately be convicted. Sources: https://www.theguardian.com/uk-news/2016/apr/12/teenage-vigilantes-killed-darren-kelly-mistaken-paedophile-court https://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-3595928/Family-man-stabbed-death-vigilantes-wrongly-thought-paedophile-blast-cruel-needless-murder.html https://www.standard.co.uk/news/crime/teenage-vigilantes-murdered-man-they-wrongly-thought-was-a-paedophile-a3223726.html https://www.bbc.com/news/uk-england-essex-36321082 https://www.halsteadgazette.co.uk/news/south_essex_news/14500196.murderer-chris-carroll-20-is-handed-life-prison-sentence-and-will-serve-a-minimum-of-21-years-for-killing-darren-kelly-in-pitsea/ https://www.echo-news.co.uk/news/14435379.eye-witness-describes-moment-darren-kelly-was-chased-down-and-stabbed-to-death-in-pitsea-street/ https://www.mirror.co.uk/news/uk-news/daughter-innocent-dad-killed-paedophile-8281536 Follow me here: ► YouTube - https://www.youtube.com/@SerialNapper/ ► Instagram - https://www.instagram.com/serialnappernik/ ► Facebook - https://www.facebook.com/SerialNapper/ ► TikTok - https://www.tiktok.com/@serialnappernik *Go Ad-Free on Patreon: https://www.patreon.com/SerialNapper * Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

  • Wednesday · 1 hr 17 min

    A Trail of Tragedy: Stacey Castor and The Deaths Around Her

    When Stacey Castor called the police to her New York home in August 2005, she told them she was worried about her husband, David. He had locked himself inside their bedroom after an argument and hadn't shown up for work. When officers forced their way inside, they found David dead beside a glass containing a bright green liquid and an open container of antifreeze. At first, everything pointed toward suicide, but one detective wasn't convinced. As investigators began looking more closely at David's death, they discovered that Stacey had already lost one husband under unusual circumstances. Michael Wallace had died suddenly five years earlier at just 38 years old, after suffering from a mysterious illness that had never been fully explained. So investigators decided to take another look. What followed was an extraordinary investigation involving an exhumation, toxicology, a discarded turkey baster, a suspicious will, computer forensics and a typed letter that threatened to change everything police thought they knew about this family completely. And eventually, investigators began to wonder whether Stacey Castor was an extraordinarily unlucky woman who had experienced more tragedy than most...or whether tragedy wasn't following Stacey at all. It was being created around her. Sources: https://allthatsinteresting.com/stacey-castor https://forensicfiles.fandom.com/wiki/Stacey_Castor https://abcnews.go.com/US/timeline-black-widow-stacey-castors-shocking-crimes/story?id=60860538 https://www.syracuse.com/crime/2020/01/stacey-castor-on-lifetime-5-chilling-details-from-syracuses-2009-antifreeze-murder-trial.html https://cnycentral.com/news/local/did-stacey-castor-murder-her-own-father https://www.syracuse.com/crime/2016/05/stacey_castors_shrine_of_evil_murdered_husbands_son_wants_remains_moved.html https://law.justia.com/cases/new-york/appellate-division-fourth-department/2012/860-ka-09-00469.html https://www.nycourts.gov/reporter/3dseries/2014/2014_03386.htm SUICIDE NOTE: http://a.abcnews.go.com/images/2020/Suicide_Letter_scan0001_090422.pdf Follow me here: ► YouTube - https://www.youtube.com/@SerialNapper/ ► Instagram - https://www.instagram.com/serialnappernik/ ► Facebook - https://www.facebook.com/SerialNapper/ ► TikTok - https://www.tiktok.com/@serialnappernik *Go Ad-Free on Patreon: https://www.patreon.com/SerialNapper * Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

  • August 29 · 1 hr 2 min

    The Bathtub Sisters: The Murder of Linda Andersen

    In January 2003, two teenage sisters returned home from an evening out with friends and made a frantic call to 911. Their 43-year-old mother, Linda Andersen, was lying face-down in the bathtub. Linda struggled with alcoholism. She had been drinking heavily that night, and toxicology would reveal alcohol and medication in her system. To investigators, everything seemed to point toward a tragic accidental drowning. And for nearly a year, that's exactly what everyone believed. But Sandra and Beth, just 16 and 15 years old, hadn't discovered their mother dead that night. Linda was already dead when they left for dinner. Because her daughters had killed her. In this episode of Serial Napper, we examine the case that became known as the Bathtub Sisters: the deeply dysfunctional home Sandra and Beth described growing up in, Linda's struggle with addiction and domestic violence, the disturbing digital trail that ultimately exposed the murder, the controversial youth sentences that followed, and the complicated question of rehabilitation. Sources: https://toronto.citynews.ca/2014/04/09/from-murder-to-law-school-story-of-ontario-sisters-who-drowned-mom-now-a-movie/ https://globalnews.ca/news/7458803/bathtub-girl-exclusive-interview/ https://www.ranker.com/list/linda-andersen-facts/trilby-beresford https://web.archive.org/web/20150120034422/http://nicholasguindon.com/f/C_K_Ruling.PDF https://www.mississauga.com/news-story/3123956-man-who-aided-bathtub-girls-asks-for-more-time/ https://www.inquisitr.com/3407112/perfect-sisters-lifetime-to-air-true-story-of-deadly-sisters-who-drowned-drunk-mother-linda-andersen-in-bathtub/ https://ca.news.yahoo.com/mandel-bathtub-girl-killer-now-215249646.html https://www.citynews1130.com/2014/04/09/from-murder-to-law-school-story-of-ontario-sisters-who-drowned-mom-now-a-movie https://www.theglobeandmail.com/news/national/portrait-of-a-drowning-in-real-time-on-msn/article740149/ https://www.scc-csc.ca/pdf/case-documents/34284/FM020_Respondent_Her-Majesty-the-Queen_Redacted.pdf Follow me here: ► YouTube - https://www.youtube.com/@SerialNapper/ ► Instagram - https://www.instagram.com/serialnappernik/ ► Facebook - https://www.facebook.com/SerialNapper/ ► TikTok - https://www.tiktok.com/@serialnappernik *Go Ad-Free on Patreon: https://www.patreon.com/SerialNapper * Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

  • August 25 · 41 min

    The Cheerleader’s Secret: Laken Snelling's Story

    When I first covered the case of Laken Snelling, it was a Patreon-exclusive, and one of the biggest questions surrounding the case remained unanswered: what really happened to her newborn baby in the hours after she secretly gave birth? Now, we finally have an answer. In August 2025, 21-year-old University of Kentucky student and STUNT athlete Laken Snelling gave birth alone inside her off-campus bedroom while her roommates were just feet away. They later told investigators they had heard loud crashing and thudding noises coming from her room in the early morning hours. By the next morning, Laken had left the house. Her suspicious roommates entered her bedroom and discovered evidence of childbirth. Inside her closet, they found her newborn son wrapped in a towel and concealed inside a trash bag. Laken initially gave investigators an explanation for what happened after the birth. But an autopsy would later determine that the baby had been born alive and died from asphyxia by undetermined means. Laken was eventually indicted for first-degree manslaughter, along with abuse of a corpse, tampering with physical evidence and concealing the birth of an infant. For months, the question remained: was her baby's death the result of a catastrophic accident, or had something else happened inside that bedroom? Then, on August 21, 2026, Laken walked into court and changed her plea. Sources: https://www.wkyt.com/2026/03/13/laken-snelling-case-file-reveals-snapchat-warrant-roommate-accounts/ https://www.kentucky.com/news/local/crime/article312308957.html https://www.yahoo.com/news/articles/laken-snelling-5-things-know-210515476.html https://www.lex18.com/news/covering-kentucky/court-records-reveal-laken-snellings-roommates-were-suspicious-about-her-pregnancy https://www.kentucky.com/news/local/crime/article315012906.html https://www.kentucky.com/news/local/crime/article315014043.html https://www.the-messenger.com/news/article_483939ec-f175-5fc9-8f16-8f7af6862ed3.html https://www.wwnytv.com/2026/08/24/former-university-kentucky-student-admits-ending-her-newborns-life-pleads-guilty/\ Follow me here: ► YouTube - https://www.youtube.com/@SerialNapper/ ► Instagram - https://www.instagram.com/serialnappernik/ ► Facebook - https://www.facebook.com/SerialNapper/ ► TikTok - https://www.tiktok.com/@serialnappernik *Go Ad-Free on Patreon: https://www.patreon.com/SerialNapper * Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

  • August 21 · 1 hr

    The Child Star Who Vanished: What Happened to Joe Pichler?

    In January 2006, 18-year-old Joe Pichler seemingly vanished from Bremerton, Washington. Joe had grown up in front of the camera, appearing in movies and television shows including The Fan, Varsity Blues, Beethoven’s 3rd and Beethoven’s 4th. After stepping away from Hollywood as a teenager, he returned home, graduated high school and began building an ordinary life while planning his eventual return to acting. Then, during the early morning hours of January 5th, Joe made his final known phone call. Days later, his silver Toyota Corolla was found abandoned near the Port Washington Narrows. Inside were two pages of emotional writing that police initially interpreted as pointing toward suicide. But the writings never explicitly said Joe intended to end his life. His family disputed the suicide theory from the beginning, raising concerns about how Joe’s car and apartment were initially handled and questioning whether potentially important evidence had been missed. Police themselves would soon become less convinced that suicide explained his disappearance and continued investigating other possibilities. More than twenty years later, there has been no confirmed sighting of Joe, no financial or government activity known to establish that he started a new life, and his remains have never been found. So what happened after Joe’s final phone call? Anyone with information regarding Joe’s disappearance is asked to contact the Bremerton Police Department at 360-473-5228 or the National Center for Missing & Exploited Children at 1-800-THE-LOST (1-800-843-5678). Sources: https://allthatsinteresting.com/joe-pichler https://www.ladbible.com/news/child-actor-from-beethoven-missing-since-2006-20220601 http://www.websleuths.com/forums/showthread.php?s=5bb93ec13cd41535139045de83024223&t=61494 https://archive.kitsapsun.com/news/local/nation-watching-pichler-search-ep-424313295-359562221.html https://archive.seattletimes.com/archive/20060717/missing17m/former-child-actor-missing-for-6-months https://www.seattlepi.com/seattlenews/article/former-child-actor-missing-1192897.php https://charleyproject.org/case/joseph-david-wolfgang-pichler Follow me here: ► YouTube - https://www.youtube.com/@SerialNapper/ ► Instagram - https://www.instagram.com/serialnappernik/ ► Facebook - https://www.facebook.com/SerialNapper/ ► TikTok - https://www.tiktok.com/@serialnappernik *Go Ad-Free on Patreon: https://www.patreon.com/SerialNapper * Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

  • August 18 · 1 hr 14 min

    The Murder of Dan Markel, Part Two: The Conspiracy Unravels

    When we left off in Part One, Florida State University law professor Dan Markel had been murdered in what investigators believed was a carefully planned hit. Nearly two years later, police had traced a rented green Prius from Tallahassee back to South Florida, identified suspected gunmen Sigfredo Garcia and Luis Rivera, uncovered connections to Katherine Magbanua and Charlie Adelson, and staged an elaborate FBI operation known as “the bump.” Now, investigators are finally ready to make their first arrest. But the arrest of a suspected hitman is only the beginning. In Part Two, someone on the inside finally starts talking, giving investigators an account of the murder-for-hire plot from someone who was actually there. What follows is a years-long effort to work their way up the alleged chain: from Rivera and Garcia, to Katherine, to Charlie... and eventually to Donna Adelson. We'll get into multiple murder trials, Katherine's changing story, Charlie's extraordinary claim that he wasn't responsible for Dan's murder but was actually being extorted by the people who killed him, and the recorded jail calls that preceded Donna and Harvey Adelson purchasing one-way tickets to Vietnam. Donna would make it all the way to the jet bridge at Miami International Airport. She would not make it onto the plane. We'll also look at Donna's eventual conviction, the questions that continue to surround Wendi Adelson, where every major figure in the case stands as of August 2026, and what happened to the two little boys who were at the centre of the custody battle prosecutors said ultimately led to their father's murder. Dan Markel was killed in 2014. More than twelve years later, five people have been convicted in connection with his death. But behind the wiretaps, undercover operations, trials and appeals is something much simpler: Two little boys went to preschool one morning expecting their father to pick them up later. He never got the chance. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

  • August 14 · 1 hr

    The Murder of Dan Markel, Part One: The Hit

    Florida State University law professor Dan Markel was 41 years old when he was shot in the garage of his Tallahassee home in July 2014. It quickly became clear that this wasn't a random act of violence. Someone had followed Dan through his morning routine, waited until he returned home, and then disappeared. But who would want a Canadian-born law professor and devoted father of two dead? The answer would lead investigators hundreds of miles south to Miami and into the bitter aftermath of Dan's divorce from Wendi Adelson. In Part One of this two-part deep dive, we look at Dan's life before the headlines, his contentious divorce and custody battle, Wendi's unsuccessful attempt to relocate their two young sons to South Florida, and the increasingly hostile involvement of her family. Then we follow investigators as they begin piecing together the murder itself: a rented Toyota Prius, surveillance footage, cellphone records, two mysterious trips from South Florida to Tallahassee, and two men who seemingly had absolutely no connection to Dan. Eventually, investigators uncover a link between suspected gunman Sigfredo Garcia, his former partner Katherine Magbanua, and Wendi's brother, Charlie Adelson. But having a theory and proving a murder-for-hire conspiracy are two very different things. Nearly two years after Dan's murder, investigators still hadn't made a single arrest. So the FBI decided to shake things up An undercover agent approached Wendi's mother, Donna Adelson, with a photograph of Dan, a phone number and a demand for money. The operation became known as the bump. And suddenly...the phones started ringing. Part Two continues with the first arrest, the insider who finally starts talking, multiple murder trials, Charlie Adelson's extraordinary extortion defence, Donna's attempted flight to Vietnam, and the question that has followed this case for more than a decade: how far did this conspiracy really go? Sources: https://www.reddit.com/r/dan_markel_murder ​​​​https://www.courttv.com/tag/dan-markel/ https://thecjn.ca/news/slain-law-professor-dan-markels-canadian-family-hopes-for-more-time-with-his-kids-after-new-guilty-verdict/ https://www.nbcnews.com/news/us-news/daniel-markel-murder-hit-men-family-donna-adelson-katherine-magbanua-rcna239425 https://www.cbc.ca/news/world/florida-matriarch-convicted-daniel-markel-1.7625845 https://www.wctv.tv/2022/04/21/extended-timeline-key-dates-dan-markel-murder-case/ https://abcnews.com/US/police-tracked-caught-suspected-hit-men-murder-fsu/story?id=42064896 https://law.justia.com/cases/florida/first-district-court-of-appeal/2026/1d2024-0004.html https://people.com/wendi-adelson-today-what-to-know-12021519 https://abcnews.com/US/south-florida-grandmother-center-murder-hire-saga-spanning/story?id=128005003 https://www.wctv.tv/2025/09/03/contentious-or-typical-dan-markels-divorce-under-scrutiny-donna-adelson-trial-continues/ https://transcripts.cnn.com/show/cnc/date/2025-09-04/segment/02 https://www.wctv.tv/2025/08/29/state-rests-its-case-against-donna-adelson-without-calling-son-charlie-defense-call-witnesses-tuesday/ Follow me here: ► YouTube - https://www.youtube.com/@SerialNapper/ ► Instagram - https://www.instagram.com/serialnappernik/ ► Facebook - https://www.facebook.com/SerialNapper/ ► TikTok - https://www.tiktok.com/@serialnappernik *Go Ad-Free on Patreon: https://www.patreon.com/SerialNapper * Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

  • August 11 · 34 min

    [BONUS] What Happened to Liam Tomen? - Chat w/ True Crimecast

    In this episode, the True Crimecast team, John and Jamie, sit down with Nikki Young, host of the Serial Napper podcast, to take a deep dive into the disturbing and unsolved disappearance of 22-year-old Liam Tomen. On the weekend of January 31, 2025, Liam and two friends travelled from Whitby, Ontario, to the resort village of Mont Tremblant, Quebec, for a ski trip. After spending the evening at local village spots—ending at Le P'tit Caribou—Liam got separated from his friends. Surveillance footage captures him walking directly toward his hotel, L'Auberge du Voyageur, just minutes away. He never made it inside. Despite extensive search efforts using cadaver dogs, snowmobiles, helicopters, and pond drainage, no trace of Liam was found during the winter. Months later, as the snow melted, his wallet was recovered near a parking lot—intact with his ID and bank cards, but stripped of cash. With phone pings raising questions and a white vehicle spotted in the area, Liam’s family continues to fight for answers. Check out True Crimecast: https://www.stoveleg.com/true-crimecast https://www.facebook.com/truecrimecast/ Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

  • August 7 · 53 min

    Nothing Ever Happens Here: Jennifer Teague's Last Walk Home

    On a warm September night in 2005, 18-year-old Jennifer Teague finished her shift at a Wendy's restaurant in Barrhaven, Ontario. She stopped to chat with friends at the local Mac's Milk before beginning the short walk home, a route she'd taken countless times before. She never made it. Jennifer's disappearance shattered the sense of safety in one of Ottawa's fastest-growing suburbs. As police, volunteers, helicopters and search dogs scoured the community, her family refused to believe she had run away. Ten days later, the search ended in heartbreak when Jennifer's body was discovered in the Stony Swamp Conservation Area. For months, investigators chased leads that went nowhere. A composite sketch. A $100,000 reward. Dozens of new tips. Then, in one of the most unusual twists in Canadian true crime history, a Barrhaven man began telling complete strangers that he had killed Jennifer. In this episode of Serial Napper, we're revisiting Jennifer's case nearly twenty years later, exploring who she was before she became a headline, how one ordinary walk home changed an entire community, and why her story still resonates with so many people today. Sources: https://ottawacitizen.com/news/local-news/from-the-archives-jennifer-teague-there-will-never-be-closure-until-the-truth-is-known-father-says https://www.ctvnews.ca/ottawa/article/finding-hope-after-the-murder-of-their-daughter-jennifer-teague/ https://www.cbc.ca/news/canada/ottawa/jennifer-teague-s-killer-heads-to-prison-after-pleading-guilty-1.712530 https://www.cbc.ca/news/canada/ottawa/neighbours-stunned-after-ottawa-man-charged-in-teen-s-slaying-1.586319 Follow me here: ► YouTube - https://www.youtube.com/@SerialNapper/ ► Instagram - https://www.instagram.com/serialnappernik/ ► Facebook - https://www.facebook.com/SerialNapper/ ► TikTok - https://www.tiktok.com/@serialnappernik *Go Ad-Free on Patreon: https://www.patreon.com/SerialNapper * Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

  • August 5 · 46 min

    The OnlyFans Murder Case: Courtney Clenney's Self-Defence Claim

    On April 3, 2022, 27-year-old Christian "Toby" Obumseli was fatally stabbed inside the luxury Miami condominium he shared with his girlfriend, influencer and OnlyFans creator Courtney Clenney. Courtney never denied causing the fatal injury, but she insisted it was self-defence. Prosecutors insisted it was murder. For years, this case divided the internet. Security footage, police bodycam video, disturbing audio recordings, allegations of domestic abuse from both sides, and forensic evidence all fueled a debate that seemed destined to play out in front of a jury. But after years of delays, the trial never happened. In this updated episode of Serial Napper, we're revisiting this case, including the new evidence both sides planned to present, the shocking developments that changed the course of everything, and the plea agreement that brought the criminal proceedings to an unexpected end. Was Courtney Clenney a victim who fought back? Or was Christian Obumseli the victim all along? Sources: https://www.instagram.com/courtneytailor/reels/ https://lawandcrime.com/crime/it-definitely-could-have-been-stopped-former-neighbor-speaks-out-after-onlyfans-model-charged-with-murdering-boyfriend/ https://www.rollingstone.com/culture/culture-news/onlyfans-murder-not-guilty-courtney-clenney-christian-obumseli-1234584744/ https://www.newsweek.com/what-we-know-courtney-clenney-onlyfans-instagram-model-arrested-murder-1733236 https://www.mercurynews.com/2026/08/03/onlyfans-model-courtney-clenney-plea-deal-boyfriend-stabbing-death/ https://nypost.com/2026/07/09/us-news/onlyfans-killer-courtney-clenney-to-use-boyfriends-texts-about-beatings-to-fight-murder-case/ Follow me here: ► YouTube - https://www.youtube.com/@SerialNapper/ ► Instagram - https://www.instagram.com/serialnappernik/ ► Facebook - https://www.facebook.com/SerialNapper/ ► TikTok - https://www.tiktok.com/@serialnappernik *Go Ad-Free on Patreon: https://www.patreon.com/SerialNapper * Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

  • August 1 · 46 min

    Four Women at the Bottom of the Locks: The Shafia Family Murders

    In June 2009, four women from the same family were found dead inside a submerged car at the Kingston Mills Locks near Kingston, Ontario. At first, it appeared to be a tragic accident. Their family claimed the women had taken the car for a late-night drive and somehow ended up in the water. But investigators quickly uncovered a much darker truth. As evidence mounted, police began to suspect that the deaths of Zainab Shafia, Sahar Shafia, Geeti Shafia and Rona Amir Mohammad were not an accident at all, but a carefully planned act of so-called "honour"-based violence carried out by the very people who were supposed to protect them. Follow me here: ► YouTube - https://www.youtube.com/@SerialNapper/ ► Instagram - https://www.instagram.com/serialnappernik/ ► Facebook - https://www.facebook.com/SerialNapper/ ► TikTok - https://www.tiktok.com/@serialnappernik *Go Ad-Free on Patreon: https://www.patreon.com/SerialNapper * Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

  • July 27 · 46 min

    The Mother Texas Almost Executed: Is Melissa Lucio Innocent?

    In February 2007, two-year-old Mariah Alvarez died after suffering a catastrophic head injury just days after her family moved into a new apartment in Harlingen, Texas. Within hours, investigators became convinced they were looking at one of the worst cases of child abuse they had ever seen. Mariah's mother, Melissa Lucio, endured a five-hour interrogation while pregnant with twins, eventually uttering the words, "I guess I did it. That confession helped send her to death row. But nearly two decades later, the case has become one of the most controversial in America. Medical experts have challenged the original forensic conclusions. Specialists in false confessions have questioned the reliability of Melissa's interrogation. Jurors who voted to sentence her to death have publicly changed their minds. And in a stunning turn of events, a Texas judge recommended overturning both her conviction and death sentence, even concluding she is actually innocent of intentionally murdering her daughter. As of 2026, however, Melissa Lucio remains on death row while the Texas Court of Criminal Appeals decides whether to uphold or overturn her conviction. Was this a horrific case of child abuse? Or a tragic accident followed by a false confession? Sources: https://law.justia.com/cases/texas/court-of-criminal-appeals/2011/21496.html https://edition.cnn.com/2022/04/26/us/melissa-lucio-what-we-know/index.html#:~:text=Lucio%2C%20a%20mother%20of%2014,wrongfully%20convicted%20of%20capital%20murder. https://dockets.justia.com/docket/mississippi/msndce/4%3A2026cv00040/52130 https://legalclarity.org/melissa-lucio-supreme-court-decision-and-legal-update/ https://deathpenaltyinfo.org/trial-judge-signs-agreed-findings-of-fact-and-conclusions-of-law-recommending-melissa-lucios-conviction-and-death-sentence-be-overturned https://innocenceproject.org/news/case-update-texas-trial-court-recommends-melissa-lucios-conviction-and-death-sentence-be-overturned/ https://www.lmtonline.com/news/article/melissa-lucio-conviction-reversal-20335304.php https://www.npr.org/2022/04/22/1094156659/melissa-lucio-execution-texas Follow me here: ► YouTube - https://www.youtube.com/@SerialNapper/ ► Instagram - https://www.instagram.com/serialnappernik/ ► Facebook - https://www.facebook.com/SerialNapper/ ► TikTok - https://www.tiktok.com/@serialnappernik *Go Ad-Free on Patreon: https://www.patreon.com/SerialNapper * Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

  • July 23 · 43 min

    The Tinder Revenge Killing: Liam Smith's Murder

    On November 24, 2022, 38-year-old Liam Smith stepped outside his home in Shevington, Greater Manchester. He never made it back inside. For nearly ten hours, Michael Hillier had been waiting in a Mitsubishi Shogun parked outside Liam's home. When Liam approached the vehicle, Hillier shot him in the face at close range before pouring sulphuric acid over him as he lay fatally wounded. The shocking attack stunned the community, but what investigators uncovered next was even more disturbing. The motive traced back to a single Tinder date three years earlier. Hillier claimed his girlfriend, Rachel Fulstow, had told him Liam had raped her during their encounter in 2019. According to Hillier, the couple spent months planning a vigilante attack because they believed the justice system would never hold Liam accountable. Rachel told a very different story. She admitted she had told Michael about the encounter, but denied ever wanting Liam harmed, insisting she was living under Michael's coercive control and had become trapped in his obsession. As detectives pieced together CCTV footage, internet searches, cloned licence plates, burner phones, and months of meticulous planning, one question emerged: Was Rachel Fulstow an equal participant in Liam's murder, or another victim manipulated by the man who carried it out? Sources: https://www.elle.com/uk/life-and-culture/culture/a71770037/killer-couple-love-on-trial-bbc/ https://www.thejusticegap.com/documentary-reveals-inside-story-of-womans-joint-enterprise-murder-conviction/ https://www.bbc.com/news/uk-england-manchester-66600454 https://www.bbc.com/news/uk-england-manchester-66615107 https://www.manchestereveningnews.co.uk/news/greater-manchester-news/i-love-you-much-always-27585163 https://www.iclr.co.uk/document/2025002869/transcriptXml_2025002869_2025050612425263/html https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=1H4-F-wRA1Y https://www.liverpoolecho.co.uk/news/liverpool-news/murderer-who-shot-dad-face-27582056 https://www.independent.co.uk/news/uk/home-news/michael-hillier-rachel-fulstow-court-b2393233.html Follow me here: ► YouTube - https://www.youtube.com/@SerialNapper/ ► Instagram - https://www.instagram.com/serialnappernik/ ► Facebook - https://www.facebook.com/SerialNapper/ ► TikTok - https://www.tiktok.com/@serialnappernik *Go Ad-Free on Patreon: https://www.patreon.com/SerialNapper * Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

  • July 18 · 49 min

    Seven Days Then Silence: The Story of Frauke Liebs

    Frauke Liebs: The Woman Who Kept Calling Home On June 20, 2006, 21-year-old nursing student Frauke Liebs left an Irish pub in Paderborn, Germany, after watching an England World Cup match with friends. She was expected home in just fifteen minutes. She never arrived. Then something unimaginable happened. Over the next week, Frauke made a series of brief phone calls to her roommate, her family, and the people searching for her. She insisted she would be home soon, but she never revealed where she was or who was with her. Each call gave her loved ones hope that she was still alive... while leaving investigators with more questions than answers. Months later, Frauke's remains were discovered in a wooded area outside Paderborn. Nearly twenty years later, her murder remains unsolved. If you have any information regarding the murder of Frauke Liebs, please contact the German police. Sources: https://www.nw.de/nachrichten/zwischen_weser_und_rhein/23986586_Ungeklaertes-Verbrechen-in-Paderborn-Erneute-Durchsuchungen-im-Fall-Frauke-Liebs.html https://www.indonewyork.com/breaking/cold-case-frauke-liebs-murder-mother-shuts-down-information-page-after-h93383.html https://coolinterestingstuff.com/the-unsolved-murder-of-frauke-liebs https://www.reddit.com/r/UnresolvedMysteries/comments/36ec5z/what_happened_to_frauke_liebs/ https://www.radiobielefeld.de/nachrichten/am-puls-der-stadt/mordfall-frauke-liebs-bielefelder-polizei-mit-durchsuchung.html https://www.presseportal.de/blaulicht/pm/12522/5083988 https://www.zeit.de/news/2022-11/24/akte-im-mordfall-frauke-liebs-bleibt-geoeffnet https://www.stern.de/panorama/verbrechen/frauke-liebs/mordfall-frauke-liebs--eine-mutter-spricht-zum-moerder-ihrer-tochter-33134070.html Follow me here: ► YouTube - https://www.youtube.com/@SerialNapper/ ► Instagram - https://www.instagram.com/serialnappernik/ ► Facebook - https://www.facebook.com/SerialNapper/ ► TikTok - https://www.tiktok.com/@serialnappernik *Go Ad-Free on Patreon: https://www.patreon.com/SerialNapper * Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

  • July 14 · 57 min

    Behind the LilithIsTruth Emails: The Michelle Hadley Story

    When Angela Diaz reported that someone was terrorizing her with anonymous emails, Craigslist rape fantasies, and violent threats against her unborn twins, the case seemed straightforward. Her husband, Deputy U.S. Marshal Ian Diaz, told investigators he knew exactly who was responsible: his ex-fiancée, Michelle Hadley. Police believed him. Prosecutors believed him. The media believed him. Michelle was arrested and faced the possibility of spending the rest of her life in prison. But as the digital evidence slowly came to light, the story began to unravel in ways no one expected. What looked like a textbook case of an obsessed ex quickly became one of the most elaborate frame-ups in recent history, exposing fake identities, fabricated pregnancies, forged documents, and a conspiracy that reached far beyond what anyone imagined. Sources: https://www.justice.gov/archives/opa/press-release/file/1394186/dl https://lawandcrime.com/crime/u-s-marshal-indicted-for-allegedly-luring-men-from-craigslist-to-rape-his-wife-in-plot-to-blame-his-ex-girlfriend/?utm_source=mostpopular https://www.latimes.com/local/lanow/la-me-ln-craigslist-plot-michelle-hadley-20170109-story.html https://www.cbsnews.com/news/michelle-hadley-da-says-rape-fantasy-attack-was-hoax-woman-arrested-was-framed/ https://www.thedailybeast.com/real-life-gone-girl-framed-love-rival-in-twisted-craigslist-rape-plot/ Follow me here: ► YouTube - https://www.youtube.com/@SerialNapper/ ► Instagram - https://www.instagram.com/serialnappernik/ ► Facebook - https://www.facebook.com/SerialNapper/ ► TikTok - https://www.tiktok.com/@serialnappernik *Go Ad-Free on Patreon: https://www.patreon.com/SerialNapper * Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

  • July 10 · 45 min

    The Last Walk Home: The Mysterious Disappearance of Steven Clark

    Steven Clark vanished on December 28, 1992, after walking into a public toilet on the seafront in Saltburn, England. More than thirty years later, his disappearance remains one of Britain's most baffling unsolved mysteries. On a cold winter afternoon, 23-year-old Steven Clark spent the day walking along the beach with his mother, Doris. Before heading home, the pair stopped at public toilets along the seafront. Steven entered the men's side. Doris went into the women's. When she came back outside, she assumed her son had already started the walk home. He never arrived. What followed was a mystery that has haunted investigators and devastated Steven's family for more than three decades. With no witnesses, no forensic evidence, and no confirmed sightings, the investigation eventually grew cold. Then, nearly 28 years later, everything changed. Police reopened the case, searched the Clark family home, excavated their garden, examined their drains, and arrested Steven's elderly parents on suspicion of murder. But after one of the most dramatic developments in the case, investigators were forced to admit there wasn't enough evidence to charge anyone. Did Steven voluntarily disappear? Did he suffer a tragic accident? Was he the victim of an opportunistic predator? Or does the answer lie somewhere investigators have yet to uncover? Sources: https://metro.co.uk/2020/11/12/mysterious-letter-names-killer-of-man-who-went-missing-28-years-ago-13582476/ https://www.thenorthernecho.co.uk/news/18918340.steven-clark-police-identify-author-letter-sent-detectives-1999/ https://www.dailymail.co.uk/femail/article-12324135/My-brother-vanished-without-trace-31-years-ago-going-public-loo-18-years-later-cops-arrested-elderly-parents-murder-Sister-missing-Steven-Clark-tells-three-decades-agony-fury-diabolical-police.html https://www.mirror.co.uk/tv/tv-news/inconsolable-mother-accused-murdering-son-23962183 https://www.gazettelive.co.uk/news/teesside-news/steven-clark-police-speak-detail-20457800 Follow me here: ► YouTube - https://www.youtube.com/@SerialNapper/ ► Instagram - https://www.instagram.com/serialnappernik/ ► Facebook - https://www.facebook.com/SerialNapper/ ► TikTok - https://www.tiktok.com/@serialnappernik *Go Ad-Free on Patreon: https://www.patreon.com/SerialNapper * Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

  • July 7 · 48 min

    The Uncle Who Never Existed: What Happened to Bianca Lebron?

    On the morning of November 7, 2001, ten-year-old Bianca Lebron walked to Elias Howe Elementary School in Bridgeport, Connecticut, just as she always did. While waiting outside before classes began, she excitedly told classmates that her uncle was taking her shopping for the day. She even invited some of them to come along. Minutes later, multiple witnesses watched Bianca calmly climb into a brown-and-tan van. No one tried to stop her. No one thought anything was wrong. Everyone believed she was leaving with family. There was just one devastating problem. Bianca didn't have an uncle waiting outside that school. By the time anyone realized she had never made it to class, nearly twelve hours had passed. The most critical window in any child abduction investigation was already gone. Nearly twenty-five years later, Bianca has never been found. If you have any information about the disappearance of Bianca Lebron, please contact the Bridgeport Police Department at 203-576-7671 or the National Center for Missing & Exploited Children at 1-800-THE-LOST (1-800-843-5678). Sources: https://www.missingkids.org/blog/2026/released-today-new-age-progression-of-bianca-lebron https://nhschiefadvocate.org/2024/04/connecticut-mystery-remains-unsolved-over-two-decades-later/ https://int-missing.fandom.com/wiki/Bianca_Lebron https://charleyproject.org/case/bianca-elaine-lebron https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=fX99UaHDjZE https://www.ctpost.com/news/article/bianca-lebron-missing-for-10-years-2255434.php https://www.nhregister.com/news/article/Police-may-have-new-leads-on-missing-girl-11689656.php Follow me here: ► YouTube - https://www.youtube.com/@SerialNapper/ ► Instagram - https://www.instagram.com/serialnappernik/ ► Facebook - https://www.facebook.com/SerialNapper/ ► TikTok - https://www.tiktok.com/@serialnappernik *Go Ad-Free on Patreon: https://www.patreon.com/SerialNapper * Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

  • July 3 · 50 min

    Judge, Jury, Executioner: The Bobby Kent "Bully" Case

    In July 1993, 20-year-old Bobby Kent believed he was meeting his ex-girlfriend for a second chance. Instead, he was driven to a secluded rock pit in western Broward County, Florida, where seven young people were waiting. Among them was Bobby's best friend of fourteen years, Marty Puccio. The murder of Bobby Kent would inspire books, documentaries, and the 2001 film Bully, but the real story is far more complicated than Hollywood could ever portray. Was Bobby truly the violent bully so many described after his death? Were some of the allegations against him impossible to verify? Was Marty Puccio a victim trapped in an abusive friendship, or did he become something far more dangerous? Sources: https://www.sportskeeda.com/pop-culture/where-bobby-kent-s-killers-now https://allthatsinteresting.com/bobby-kent-murder https://www.sportskeeda.com/pop-culture/5-chilling-details-bobby-kent-murder-case-1993 https://law.justia.com/cases/florida/supreme-court/1997/86242-0.html https://www.orlandosentinel.com/2013/05/10/bphotosb-kents-killers-then-now/ Follow me here: ► YouTube - https://www.youtube.com/@SerialNapper/ ► Instagram - https://www.instagram.com/serialnappernik/ ► Facebook - https://www.facebook.com/SerialNapper/ ► TikTok - https://www.tiktok.com/@serialnappernik *Go Ad-Free on Patreon: https://www.patreon.com/SerialNapper * Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

  • June 30 · 48 min

    You Can Fake Your Death... But Not Forever: The Nicholas Rossi Story

    How far would someone go to escape accountability? In 2020, child advocate Nicholas Rossi was declared dead after an alleged battle with non-Hodgkin lymphoma. Politicians mourned him. Friends grieved. An obituary celebrated his life and his supposed contributions to foster care reform. There was just one problem. Nicholas Rossi wasn't dead. Nearly two years later, a critically ill COVID patient calling himself "Arthur Knight" was admitted to a hospital in Glasgow, Scotland. When hospital staff noticed his distinctive tattoos, an international investigation unravelled one of the most bizarre true crime stories in recent memory. Sources: https://everloved.com/life-of/nicholas-alahverdian/obituary/?flow=201 https://www.providencejournal.com/story/news/local/2022/01/12/ri-nick-alahverdian-suspected-faking-death-found-scotland/9188170002/ https://www.thescottishsun.co.uk/news/9542954/fugitive-nicholas-rossi-hit-controlled-ex-wife/ https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=xYT7SeUWTuo Follow me here: ► YouTube - https://www.youtube.com/@SerialNapper/ ► Instagram - https://www.instagram.com/serialnappernik/ ► Facebook - https://www.facebook.com/SerialNapper/ ► TikTok - https://www.tiktok.com/@serialnappernik *Go Ad-Free on Patreon: https://www.patreon.com/SerialNapper * Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

  • June 23 · 51 min

    The Missing Hour: Who Was Mekayla Bali Waiting For?

    Sixteen-year-old Mekayla Bali spent the morning of April 12, 2016, moving across Yorkton, Saskatchewan. She went to school... for six minutes. She withdrew every dollar from her bank account. She tried to pawn a ring. She spent hours sitting in restaurants, checking her phone, waiting for someone. She told friends she was heading to Regina. Then, at approximately 1:45 p.m., she walked out of a bus depot restaurant and vanished. What happened next remains one of Canada's most baffling missing person cases. Was Mekayla planning to run away? Was she meeting someone she met online? Or did something go terribly wrong after a meeting she entered willingly? Ten years later, her family is still searching for answers. Sources: https://www.cjme.com/2016/07/06/a-familys-agonizing-search-for-missing-yorkton-girl-mekayla-bali https://rcmp.ca/en/saskatchewan/news/2026/04/4352074 https://newsinteractives.cbc.ca/longform/i-need-help-mekayla-bali-missing/ https://www.cbc.ca/news/canada/saskatchewan/mekayla-bali-missing-decade-10-year-anniversary-9.7160487 https://www.sasktoday.ca/central/yorkton-this-week/nine-years-since-the-disappearance-of-mekayla-bali-10519670 Follow me here: ► YouTube - https://www.youtube.com/@SerialNapper/ ► Instagram - https://www.instagram.com/serialnappernik/ ► Facebook - https://www.facebook.com/SerialNapper/ ► TikTok - https://www.tiktok.com/@serialnappernik *Go Ad-Free on Patreon: https://www.patreon.com/SerialNapper * Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

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