Female Criminals

She grew up during the Civil War and supported the Confederacy. When Belle Starr married her first husband, a notorious horse thief, she was plunged into a world of outlaws in the postwar era of the 1870s and 80s. Was she a bystander to her husband's crimes? Or complicit in his reign of terror in the Wild West? Sponsors! BetterHelp - Female Criminals listeners get 10% off your first month with discount code CRIMINALS when you go to BetterHelp.com/Criminals. Proven Innocent - Proven Innocent Premieres Friday, February 15th at 9/8c, only on Fox. Torrid - Go to Torrid.com and use Promo Code CRIMINALS15 for $15 off every $50 you spend! That means you can get up to $150 off a $500 order! Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

After months of torment and abuse in the summer of 1965, Sylvia Likens stopped fighting back. No one would find out what was happening in Gertrude Baniszweski's house of horrors until it was far too late. By the time it’s over, Baniszweski wouldn’t be the only person convicted of manslaughter and murder. Sponsors! BetterHelp - Female Criminals listeners get 10% off the first month with discount code CRIMINALS. Proven Innocent - Proven Innocent Premieres Friday, February 15th at 9/8c, only on Fox. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

In the summer of 1965 in Indiana, teenagers Sylvia and Jenny Likens were invited to stay in the home of their friend's mother, Gertrude Baniszewski. Only one of them would leave the house alive. Parcasters - After this episode of Female Criminals, go check out our new show Extraterrestrial and learn about the abduction of Barney and Betty Hill. Listen at parcast.com/extraterrestrial Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Mobster Benjamin "Bugsy" Siegel was perhaps the only man Virginia Hill ever loved. He also brought her closer than ever to a bloody downfall at the hands of the Mafia. Shortly before Bugsy’s assassination in 1947, Hill fled to Paris, leading to questions about her knowledge of his impending death. Sponsors! Upstart - Hurry to Upstart.com/CRIMINALS to find out HOW LOW your Upstart rate is! Checking your rate only takes 2 minutes—and won’t affect your credit! Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

A trusted operative, she ascended to the highest ranks of the Chicago Outfit in the 1930s and made millions of the dollars for the mob, and herself. By the time Virginia Hill was 30, her cutthroat mentality would land her at the top of the FBI’s Most Wanted list. Sponsors! Torrid - Go to Torrid.com and use Promo Code CRIMINALS15 for $15 off every $50 you spend! That means you can get up to $150 off a $500 order! Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

After one fateful day in 1976, the New York City Queenpin lost her faith in the mob and turned her back on them forever. Brickman was able to bring the mob to its knees and take down kingpins as a police informant from the inside. Sponsors! Candid - Head to CandidCo.com/CRIMINALS to save 25% on your modeling kit. Sun Basket - Go to SunBasket.com/CRIMINALS today to learn more and get $35 off your first order! Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Associated with some of New York City’s most infamous criminals, Brickman was involved in the drug empire from the mid-1950s until the 1980s. She served as a courier, sold drugs, and ran her own bookmaking operation. Brickman not only used her family's mob connections, but also climbed the mob hierarchy, searching for the next powerful man she could seduce. Sponsors! Sun Basket - Go to SunBasket.com/CRIMINALS today to learn more and get $35 off your first order! Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Today, Lizzie Borden's name is forever associated with the brutal axe murder of her parents. But when she stood trial in 1892, she was known only as a polite, educated society woman. Even with all the evidence pointing towards Lizzie, convincing a jury that a well-mannered woman was a murderer was going to be a difficult task. Sponsors! Caffé Monster - Available in Mocha, Vanilla, and Salted Caramel. Caffé Monster: Chill it down, Shake it up, Enjoy! Candid - Save 25% on your modeling kit when you go to CandidCo.com/CRIMINALS. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Andrew and Abby Borden were found gruesomely slaughtered with a hatchet in their Massachusetts home in 1892. The main suspect was Lizzie Borden, a reserved Sunday school teacher who had been nothing but a loving daughter. Which begs the question - was she capable of killing her father and stepmother? Sponsors! Audible - Get 3 months of Audible for just $6.95 a month by going to Audible.com/CRIMINALS or text CRIMINALS to 500 500. Caffe Monster - Caffé Monster - Available in Mocha, Vanilla and Salted Caramel. Caffé Monster: Chill it down, Shake it up, Enjoy! Kopari - Go to KopariBeauty.com/CRIMINALS to save $5 off your first order when you subscribe! Living Proof - Visit LivingProof.com/CRIMINALS and use promo code CRIMINALS to get a free sample of their award-winning dry shampoo with your purchase. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Between 1960 and 1964, numerous children began disappearing across Manchester, England. The sadistic rapist and torture duo behind the murders? Ian Brady and Myra Hindley. After getting away with murdering four children they wanted to push the limit. They decided they wanted to murder their next victim in front of a live audience. The trial would prove Myra Hindley to be “the most evil woman in Britain.” Sponsors! StoryWorth - For $20 off, visit StoryWorth.com/CRIMINALS when you subscribe! Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Myra Hindley would do anything for her boyfriend, Ian Brady. She would even go as far as to murder someone for him. Both from troubled homes in Manchester, England, Hindley and Brady had abusive alcoholic parents. Their relationship would eventually cause Hindley to brutally murder five children between July 1963 and October 1965. Sponsors! Candid - Go to CandidCo.com/CRIMINALS to save 25% on your modeling kit. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

After her husband’s murder in the late 1980’s, she became head of a drug operation transporting cocaine and heroin from Philadelphia to Los Angeles. Known for her extravagant fur coats, Thelma Wright used her drug money to keep up with appearances. Sponsors! Caffé Monster - Now available in Mocha, Vanilla, and Salted Caramel. Caffé Monster: Chill it down, Shake it up, Enjoy! Kopari - Go to KopariBeauty.com/CRIMINALS to save $5 off your first order when you subscribe! Living Proof - Visit LivingProof.com/CRIMINALS and use promo code CRIMINALS to get a free sample of their award-winning dry shampoo with your purchase! Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

The leader of the Barker-Karpis Gang is responsible for increasingly violent bank robberies and kidnappings in the 1930s. In an attempt to take down the gang, the FBI engages in a shootout that lasts more than four hours. Does Ma Barker make it out unscathed? Sponsors! Caffé Monster - Available in Mocha, Vanilla, and Salted Caramel. Chill it down, Shake it up, Enjoy! Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

She frequently traveled with her gang of sons during the Public Enemy Era. But did the “mother of criminals” actually commit any crimes? Sponsors! Candid Co - Go to CandidCo.com/CRIMINALS to save 25% on your modeling kit. Kopari - Go to KopariBeauty.com/CRIMINALS to save $5 off your first order when you subscribe! Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

The first woman executed by the US federal government. Her crime? Engaging in a conspiracy to kill Abraham Lincoln, the 16th president of the United States. Subscribe now to our new podcast HOSTAGE, featuring the riveting story of Patty Hearst's abduction by the Symbionese Liberation Army. Sponsors! Kopari - Go to KopariBeauty.com/CRIMINALS to save $5 off your first order when you subscribe! Living Proof - Visit LivingProof.com/CRIMINALS and use promo code CRIMINALS to get a free sample of their award-winning dry shampoo with your purchase! Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Could you kill a president on your own? John Wilkes Booth used a network of conspirators to execute his plan of assassinating President Abraham Lincoln. The Surratt tavern was a well known hideaway from Confederate spies, was Mary involved in their ultimate act of vengeance? Subscribe to our new show - Hostage - today! Sponsors! Parcast - Sign up for the Parcast Monthly Newsletter at Parcast.com! Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

After getting caught by authorities her partner dies and Kim expects to be tortured, but ends up surprised at what happens next. Sponsors! Caffé Monster - Available in Vanilla, Mocha, and Salted Caramel. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Would you blow up a plane to be a hero? In November, 1987, twenty-five-year-old Kim Hyon-hui was given what would be her last mission as a North Korean spy. She and her partner were told that if they completed it, it would unify South Korea with North Korea. All they had to do was get on an airplane and plant a bomb. Sponsors! Caffé Monster - Available in Vanilla, Mocha, and Salted Caramel. Kopari - Go to KopariBeauty.com/CRIMINALS to make the safe switch today, and save $5 off your first order when you subscribe! Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

After committing more than 30 kidnappings, murdering 22 high-caste men in the 1981 Saint Valentine’s Day Massacre, and being placed on India’s Ten Most Wanted list— Phoolan Devi was wanted dead or alive. How did she manage to re-brand herself as a local hero? Sponsors! Go to TakeCareOf.com and enter CRIMINALS for 25% off your first month of personalized Care/of vitamins. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Phoolan Devi was born and raised in poverty but nevertheless was a precocious and resilient child. At ten years old, she learned her uncle's family had stolen her father's land, and fought back. It would be her first step to becoming Bandit Queen, a warrior for the lower classes. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Samantha Lewthwaite was just like any other housewife in the world. But while she was carrying on a life as a doting wife and mother, she was also a terrorist accused of planning attacks that have killed over 400 people. Her current whereabouts are unknown and international law enforcement agencies are still looking for The White Widow. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Originally known for being the wife of 2005 London bomber Germaine Lindsay, international authorities have suspected her of running a bomb factory, funding terrorist cells, and being responsible for the 2013 shopping mall attack in Kenya. Discover how she started on a path to radicalism. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Charlotte Corday set out on her journey to kill Jean-Paul Marat believing it was the only way to save France. So what made a young woman with no known political connections and no history of violence turn to murder? Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Charlotte Corday grew up poor in French family clinging to its noble status. When the French Revolution started, she strongly believed in peaceful change and liberation, in contrast to the Jacobin party who led the revolution on a platform of violence and executions. What happened to the mild-mannered Corday that led her to murder a leader of the Jacobin party? Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Dorothea Puente ran a boarding house in Sacramento, California. She had perfected a technique of taking in tenants who were on government assistance, murdering them, and then fraudulently cash the checks. All the while, neighbors had no idea that dead bodies were being buried in her backyard. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

We have a special guest. Greg from Serial Killers is to joining us to help provide some insight into the madness of Dorothea Puente. Dorothea Puente didn’t set out to become Sacramento, California’s most notorious female serial killer. But she did have a criminal streak that grew more sinister, culminating in the deaths of almost a dozen residents of the boarding house she ran. How was she able to evade detection from family members and social workers? And how did she get away with her first murder? Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Despite payouts from her exotic dance performances and the gifts from her many generous lovers, Mata Hari struggled to finance her lavish lifestyle. So when offers of spywork came from both French and German government officials during World War II, Mata Hari couldn’t say no to the money. It led her down a path of spying, lying, and ultimately, execution. Was Mata Hari World War II’s biggest fall guy, or its biggest counter-espionage triumph? Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Mata Hari built her fame on the novel and erotic dances she performed, claiming to have learned them as part of a secretive religious ritual. She’s remembered in part for her pornographic postcard series, as well as a string of wealthy lovers left in her wake. But she’s best known for the way she died: executed as a foreign spy. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

After numerous “close-calls” and many deaths, it became hard to ignore the number of emergencies that happened while Nurse Genene Jones was on duty in the pediatric ICU. Even after switching to work in a private practice, a dark cloud of tragedy followed her. Would forensic drug testing technology ever catch up with this Angel of Mercy? Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Genene Jones, a pediatric nurse from Texas, is believed to have killed between eleven and forty-six infants and toddlers between 1977 and 1982. Pediatric nurses give care to children, many of whom aren’t able to speak yet. Which is why they perfect targets. Find out what happened in Jones’ childhood that would drive her to murder innocent children. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

In an act of filial piety (respect for one's parents, elders, and ancestors) and revenge over the murder of her father, Shi Jianqiao executed warlord Sun Chuanfang in a crowded Buddhist hall. The media circus that ensued unleashed a fierce debate over her fate, which would play out in the courts of both law and public opinion. Would she actually get away with murder? Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Shi Jianqiao was a notorious Chinese assassin who avenged her father’s death by executing the warlord responsible. Was she a devoted daughter fulfilling her duty after her father’s unjust murder? Or was she an outlaw vigilante who deserved to be punished for her crime? Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Ulrike Meinhof was a West German journalist, screenwriter, and mother of two. But the non-violent activist would turn to a life of terrorist bombings and bank robberies. Find out why and what ultimately lead to her capture. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Ulrike Meinhof was a known journalist, pacifist, and anti-war activist in Germany. After complaining of severe headaches for months, she had a brain procedure. After her recovery, her perspective changed. She became a political militant responsible for murders, attempted murders, bank robberies and bombings. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Aileen Wuornos was convicted of killing Johns while working as a sex worker in Florida. During her trial, Wuornos would take the stand in her own defense in an effort to save her life. But it would only take a jury a couple hours to decide her fate. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Aileen Wuornos lived a difficult life as a sex worker along the highways to support herself. She killed seven men but she claims they were all in self-defense. Was Wuornos born a cold-blooded killer or did a difficult childhood mold her into one? Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Pirate Anne Bonny had seemingly met her match with Calico Jack, but the relationship didn't last forever. After leaving their child with a family in Cuba, Anne returned to the seas with Calico but found a new spark - this time with a most unexpected partner. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

As a child, Anne Bonny pretended to be a boy to cover for the fact that she was an illegitimate child. When she dressed as a woman later on, she realized she preferred the freedom of being treated like a man. Dissatisfied with traditional life as a wife to her husband, she found a true partnership with "Calico Jack," a pirate who treated her with more autonomy and respect than any woman on land would ever get. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

As police became more suspicious of Stacey Castor for the deaths of two husbands, she was quick to blame her daughter Ashley. When Ashley was discovered unresponsive with a suicide note next to her, the case got more difficult for detectives. Did Ashley try to commit suicide, or was she Castor’s next intended victim? Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Over the course of her adulthood, Stacey Castor went from a loving mother and wife to a meticulous murderer. Her choice of weapon was poison, and her careful planning allowed her to get away with murder for many years. We investigate how one woman could take such a dark turn and murder those closest to her. SPONSORS! After Anna - Listen now at Macmillanaudio.com/AfterAnna Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

When Seema Parihar was just 13 years old, she was kidnapped from her home in Northern India by bandits. Parihar faced unimaginable mental and physical abuse at the hands of her captors, but persevered to become one of the most feared bandits in the region for nearly 20 years. We investigate her path towards banditry and unlikely second act as a politician. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Bonnie Parker dreamed of being famous, but she became infamous. When she wasn’t robbing banks, Bonnie struggled to maintain relationships with her family, and maintain a “ladylike” image. However, Bonnie’s crimes kept her on less-than-ladylike wanted posters and led her to a violent death. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Since she was a little girl, Bonnie Parker dreamed of fame and fortune. And while she imagined life as a movie star, or a singer, she found an alternative way to make her dreams come true when she met Clyde Barrow. From stealing cars to robbing banks, Bonnie quickly became the most wanted woman in America for her role as half of the infamous criminal duo: Bonnie & Clyde. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Formerly a Lucha Libra wrestler in Mexico City, Juana Barraza became a deceitful serial killer. Between 1998 and 2006, she won the trust of elderly women, who she then killed and robbed. Because police believed the murderer to be a man, Juana continued her deadly crimes without fear. By the time she was caught, she was suspected of claiming up to 48 victims. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

From 1999 to 2006, as many as 48 elderly women were murdered in Mexico City. We dive deep into Juana Barraza’s transition from Lucha Libre wrestler, “The Silent Lady”, to one of Mexico’s most infamous serial killers, “The Little Old Lady Killer”. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Griselda Blanco was a Colombian drug lord who supplied cocaine to the United States in the 1970s and 80s. By the mid 1980s, she was moving roughly 2000 pounds of cocaine each month, and undergoing an intense rivalry with her former protege, Pablo Escobar. We dive into the life of the ruthless Cocaine Godmother and her reign as one of the bloodiest drug lords of her time. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Griselda Blanco was born in Colombia on February 15, 1943. By age 11, Griselda committed her first of many murders. We follow her rise to becoming one of the first infamous leaders of the 1970’s drug trade. Between cold-blooded killing and drug overdoses, many died at the hands of the Cocaine Godmother. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

From the team behind hit podcasts Serial Killers and Cults, Female Criminals gets into the minds of women who live outside the law. Every Wednesday, we examine the psychology, motivations, and atrocities of female felons. Female Criminals premieres March 21st and new episodes will release every Wednesday. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices