Forensic Files

Emelita Villa came to Arlington, Texas from the Philippines as a shy, impoverished, 18-year-old mail order bride for Jack Reeves, a man almost 30 years her senior. Six and a half years later, Emelita disappeared.To learn more about how HLN protects listener privacy, visit cnn.com/privacy Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

A woman is found dead in a ravine near a jogging path. Crucial crime scene evidence had been washed away by severe thunderstorms. Then, almost 20 years later, two pieces of newly-discovered evidence brought the killer to justice.To learn more about how HLN protects listener privacy, visit cnn.com/privacy Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

A man accused of killing his estranged wife insisted she committed suicide. Investigators said it was murder. The evidence was interpreted differently by the defense and prosecution. It was up to the jury to decide.To learn more about how HLN protects listener privacy, visit cnn.com/privacy Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

In 1993, the Amtrak Railroad experienced the deadliest train crash in United States history when the Sunset Limited derailed while crossing Alabama's Bayou Canot bridge. Forty-seven passengers and crew were killed; scores more were injured. The clues to the cause of the crash lay etched in twisted steel and buried in the mud of the Bayou Canot.To learn more about how HLN protects listener privacy, visit cnn.com/privacy Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Firefighters find an entire family dead inside their burned-out home, and at first glance, it appears to be a case of murder-suicide. But clues found at the scene soon lead investigators to believe otherwise. Forensic science, a time card, a drawing, and an audiotaped diary help prosecutors to build their case, and bring the killer to justice.To learn more about how HLN protects listener privacy, visit cnn.com/privacy Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

A highway patrolman was dispatched to what he thought would be a routine traffic accident... until he looked in the car. While he had no formal training in forensic science, he had seen hundreds of accidents - but never as much blood as this. He was shocked by the coroner's ruling of "accidental death," and then an anonymous phone call breathed new life into his investigation.To learn more about how HLN protects listener privacy, visit cnn.com/privacy Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

The investigation into the disappearance of Helle Craft led to the murder conviction of her husband.To learn more about how HLN protects listener privacy, visit cnn.com/privacy Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

After eluding police for years, a model citizen in Olney, Texas is fund to be a serial killer.To learn more about how HLN protects listener privacy, visit cnn.com/privacy Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

A speck of bicycle paint and a speck nickel tie a suspect to the murder of a 9-year-old.To learn more about how HLN protects listener privacy, visit cnn.com/privacy Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

While Earl Morris was vacationing in California, he learned that his wife had gone missing from their home in Arizona. The search for Ruby Morris involved dozens of investigators, scientists, and even the coast guard.To learn more about how HLN protects listener privacy, visit cnn.com/privacy Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

A woman was reported missing, presumed dead. A clue inside the suspect's watchband and a popular television show helped solve the case.To learn more about how HLN protects listener privacy, visit cnn.com/privacy Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

A 1986 case of sexual assault and serial murder marked the first time DNA was used as evidence in a court of law.To learn more about how HLN protects listener privacy, visit cnn.com/privacy Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Three seemingly unrelated deaths proved to be serial murders. The killer had been careful; he'd used poison which has no taste or odor. Fortunately for investigators, it also had a unique chemical signature.To learn more about how HLN protects listener privacy, visit cnn.com/privacy Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

A twelve-year-old girl claimed she had been abducted and sexually assaulted. She recounted what happened in such a flat, unemotional voice that police found it difficult to believe her. Fibers on her clothing would prove she was telling the truth, and help police find her attacker.To learn more about how HLN protects listener privacy, visit cnn.com/privacy Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Two suspects living in the same apartment were linked to a murder by a gun and a pair of bloodstained boots - items that belonged to the one who claimed he'd never even met the victim. Investigators hoped the manufacturing code stamped on the six beer bottles would be distinctive enough to prove who was telling the truth, and who was a cold-blooded killer.To learn more about how HLN protects listener privacy, visit cnn.com/privacy Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

It's usually easy to determine how a criminal entered a crime scene. But in this case, it was far from clear. It looked like the killer vanished into thin air... and perhaps he had.To learn more about how HLN protects listener privacy, visit cnn.com/privacy Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Twenty-four years after the death of a 15-year old in California, forensic scientists discover enough microscopic evidence to finally bring the killer to justice.To learn more about how HLN protects listener privacy, visit cnn.com/privacy Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

The media dubbed him the "Last Call Killer" because he targeted men in gay bars who were obviously intoxicated. His MO involved dismembering the bodies and wrapping the parts in plastic bags, which he then carefully washed to remove all incriminating evidence. He eluded capture for almost ten years... and then new technology revealed fingerprints no one knew were there.To learn more about how HLN protects listener privacy, visit cnn.com/privacy Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Bruce Miller was shot to death in the office of the business he owned. When a computer expert examined the computers owned by the victim's wife and by her lover, he found the evidence needed to convict the person responsible for the crime.To learn more about how HLN protects listener privacy, visit cnn.com/privacy Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

A serial killer in Arlington, VA. leaves the same clues behind at each crime scene.To learn more about how HLN protects listener privacy, visit cnn.com/privacy Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

A young mother is murdered after years of domestic abuse. There are clues at the scene: bloody footprints and DNA from the victim's rape kit. But the evidence which will conclusively tie the killer to the crime is on a freshly baked hamburger bun.To learn more about how HLN protects listener privacy, visit cnn.com/privacy Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

One warm summer afternoon, the town of Verona, Wisconsin, faced its first triple homicide. To solve the case, investigators had to delve into the world of high rollers and offshore betting. With the help of forensics, they were able to bring down a killer who gambled, and lost.To learn more about how HLN protects listener privacy, visit cnn.com/privacy Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

A little girl disappears from a Christmas party.To learn more about how HLN protects listener privacy, visit cnn.com/privacy Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Women in a small Louisiana city live in fear of a rapist who leaves no clues to his identity. But computer technology and behavioral science combine to give police a new forensic tool: geographical profiling.To learn more about how HLN protects listener privacy, visit cnn.com/privacy Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

When a woman is found murdered in a bar, investigators believe the best evidence is the bite mark found on the victim. A postman is convicted of murder, but he maintains his innocence. Ten years later, improved technology yields new information.To learn more about how HLN protects listener privacy, visit cnn.com/privacy Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Children at a Texas hospital seem to be dying at a higher rate than at any other US hospital. Investigators look to a suspicious nurse.To learn more about how HLN protects listener privacy, visit cnn.com/privacy Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

A girl was found dead in her backyard. Her parents claimed she was attacked and killed by the family dogs, but police disagreed.To learn more about how HLN protects listener privacy, visit cnn.com/privacy Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

When a mother and her child are abducted during a carjacking, the crime is reported within minutes. Police know they have a small window of opportunity to find them... and the clock is ticking.To learn more about how HLN protects listener privacy, visit cnn.com/privacy Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Arson is suspected when a Seattle policeman's house burns down.To learn more about how HLN protects listener privacy, visit cnn.com/privacy Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

When a young mother and her infant son are found dead in a cornfield, the obvious suspect is the husband and father of the victims. But some insects found on the bodies reveal a vital clue, as does a long, blonde hair found on the victims.To learn more about how HLN protects listener privacy, visit cnn.com/privacy Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

A talented television news anchor was shot to death outsider her home; it appeared to be a crime of passion, perpetrated by an obsessed fan. A police dog tracked the scent of the killer through the adjacent woods and back to the crime scene. Could the murderer be one of the onlookers, watching the police conduct their investigation?To learn more about how HLN protects listener privacy, visit cnn.com/privacy Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

When their trailer catches fire, the young husband heroically rescues his wife and infant son. A month later, his wife is beaten to death in a bedroom of his parents' home. The cut window screen points to an intruder, but the lack of supporting evidence compels investigators to look beyond the obvious.To learn more about how HLN protects listener privacy, visit cnn.com/privacy Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Two years after a girl was murdered, a tiny drop of blood and burned bones lead police to her murderers.To learn more about how HLN protects listener privacy, visit cnn.com/privacy Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Several high-powered legal officials are victims of mail bombs.To learn more about how HLN protects listener privacy, visit cnn.com/privacy Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

When a hit-and-run boating accident caused the death of a popular young man, investigators faced the the daunting task of searching for one boat among 1,200 others. They asked anyone who had seen the accident to come forward. The man who responded did much more than witness the crash; he was a passenger in that other boat.To learn more about how HLN protects listener privacy, visit cnn.com/privacy Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

A mother used her knowledge from murder mystery shows to determine who severely injured her young daughter in a hit-and-run accident.To learn more about how HLN protects listener privacy, visit cnn.com/privacy Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Fire sweeps through a mansion killing two children, and all evidence leads to the mother.To learn more about how HLN protects listener privacy, visit cnn.com/privacy Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

The investigation of the disappearance of a woman leads police to a suspect. But police could not find the victim's body. Finally, police discovered a charred tooth. Superimposed images and a dental filling give investigators the proof they need.To learn more about how HLN protects listener privacy, visit cnn.com/privacy Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

When a college co-ed vanished without a trace, her fellow students were concerned about her safety... and their own. Weeks later, the body of an unknown female was discovered about 700 miles away in the ashes of a barn fire, and an alert police officer realized the two crimes might be connected.To learn more about how HLN protects listener privacy, visit cnn.com/privacy Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

A young woman is found dead in her apartment. there's little evidence at the scene, leads don't pan out, and the case turns cold... until police discover a link between their prime suspect and an unsolved murder committed six ears earlier in a different state.To learn more about how HLN protects listener privacy, visit cnn.com/privacy Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

How unlucky could one man be? His wife had taken her own life, and his college sweetheart had killed herself in much the same fashion fourteen years earlier. Investigators had to determine if this was a bizarre coincidence or an attempt to get away with murder... twice.To learn more about how HLN protects listener privacy, visit cnn.com/privacy Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

In 1984, a couple set off for a camping trip but got lost and fell asleep at a scenic overlook in Virginia.To learn more about how HLN protects listener privacy, visit cnn.com/privacy Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

After he got into the home, the assailant used an axe to kill the husband and critically injure his wife. Nothing was taken, so this wasn't a robbery. A DNA profile from skin cells collected hundreds of miles away would reveal the killer's identity and his motive for murder.To learn more about how HLN protects listener privacy, visit cnn.com/privacy Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

A chemist suddenly starts to suffer from foot pain, partial numbness, and hair loss, and eventually dies. Could he have been poisoned?To learn more about how HLN protects listener privacy, visit cnn.com/privacy Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

The woman in the back of the truck was flailing her arms, screaming. They thought she was doing something dangerous for the fun of it. But when they found a jacket near a pool of blood, they knew what they'd seen wasn't a joy ride; it was an abduction.To learn more about how HLN protects listener privacy, visit cnn.com/privacy Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Doctors don't know why the young scientist is gravely ill. When test finally reveal the cause, it's too late to save him. Police hope that lab analysis of his hair - showing when attempts were made on his life and what was used - will lead to the killer.To learn more about how HLN protects listener privacy, visit cnn.com/privacy Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

When an 11-year old girl disappeared from a small town in a remote area of Alaska, investigators wondered if she'd been attacked by a bear or become lost int he dense woods. It turned out neither was true. Her body was discovered 10 days later; she'd been shot twice at close range, and sexually assaulted. A tip from an eyewitness led police to a suspect, and trace evidence found at the crime scene convinced a jury of his guilt.To learn more about how HLN protects listener privacy, visit cnn.com/privacy Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

A nurse experienced flu-like symptoms. She visited the doctor for a check-up and learned she was HIV-positive. In the end, science was able to determine not only how she had been infected, but also by whom. The worst part: It wasn't an accident.To learn more about how HLN protects listener privacy, visit cnn.com/privacy Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

A security guard disappeared from his post without a trace; his remains were found a year later in a remote camp site. More than a decade would pass before a phone call breathed life into the cold case, a paint smear on the bottom of the victim's boot helped scientists determine what happened during the last hour of his life.To learn more about how HLN protects listener privacy, visit cnn.com/privacy Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

For years, a woman suffered from what appeared to be the unpleasant side effects of lithium, a drug prescribed to treat bipolar disorder. When she died, investigators had to determine if her death was due to natural causes, suicide or murder.To learn more about how HLN protects listener privacy, visit cnn.com/privacy Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.