Today in True Crime

The famed sea captain-turned-infamous pirate was executed in London, England. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

Chandra Levy had been missing for a year before her remains were found in a Washington D.C. park. Her disappearance and death launched a political scandal that derailed the investigation. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

The multimillionaire founder of DHL was presumed dead after his seaplane crashed. In the aftermath, several women came forward claiming Hillblom had fathered children with them when they were teenagers — beginning a fight for inheritance that would take several bizarre turns. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

30-year-old Laurie Dann opened fire in a Chicago suburb elementary school before taking a hostage in a nearby neighborhood. The full extent of her crimes was yet to be uncovered. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

Canadian serial killer Wayne Boden was a traveling salesman who killed four women in the late ‘60s and early ‘70s. He earned his sinister moniker because of the bite marks he left on his victims — but they were also what got him caught. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

The murder of millionaire Irene Silverman helped expose the shocking criminal past of a mother-son duo whose financial schemes destroyed lives. Guest hosted by Molly Brandenburg from Conspiracy Theories, a podcast that unravels controversies and cover-ups. Don’t miss their six-part deep dive into the life of the FBI’s most notorious director: J. Edgar Hoover. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

Nannie Doss was a serial killer convicted of killing four of her husbands, though it’s suspected she killed many more people — including two of her own children. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

After Jeffrey Willis attempted to kidnap a 16-year-old girl, police found evidence in his home linking him to the cold case disappearance of 25-year-old Jessica Heeringa and the murder of 36-year-old Rebekah Bletsch. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

In Castro Valley, California, two children found the body of a murdered infant near a creek. A break in the case came twenty years later. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

A drunk driver collided with a school bus carrying a church youth group in Northern Kentucky. The initial impact only caused minor injuries, but several people died after a fire broke out. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

In Philadelphia, police used water cannons, tear gas, and explosives during an attempt to forcefully remove members of a Black liberation group from their headquarters. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

A Russian journalist was ambushed by a hammer-wielding assailant while entering his apartment building. The truth behind who masterminded the attack was eventually found — though too late. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

The 73-year-old Nazi was on trial for 177 crimes against humanity. He had eluded capture for decades with help from the U.S. government. Guest hosted by Kate Leonard from Dictators, a podcast covering the lives and legacies of history’s most controversial world leaders. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

When 15-year-old Kimberly Jo Dotts started having second thoughts about running away from home, her posse – “The Runaway Gang” – turned on her in the Pennsylvania woods. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

In New York City, a fight between a roofer and his supervisor ended with a fatal stabbing. 44-year-old Victor Gonzalez dismembered his boss’s body and scattered its pieces around the neighborhood. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

Judge Eileen C. Moore declared that 24-year-old Jeen Han was a danger to society and a threat to her own family. Han was sentenced to 26 years in prison for conspiring to murder her twin sister, Sunny. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

Pacific Air Lines Flight 773 crashed near San Ramon, California, after 27-year-old Francisco Paula Gonzales charged the cockpit and shot the captain, the first officer, and himself. All 41 passengers and three crew members were killed. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

Brandon Mayfield was wrongfully detained for two weeks because U.S. authorities believed he was involved in a Madrid terrorist attack. Mayfield felt he was religiously profiled because he was Muslim and was later awarded $2 million by the federal government. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

While he was exiled on the island of St. Helena, Napoleon Bonaparte succumbed to what is believed to have been stomach cancer. Though some conspiracy theorists believe it may have been arsenic poisoning. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

Karla Homolka, half of the "Ken and Barbie Killers" along with Paul Bernardo, was born on this day. Together, the couple would kidnap, torture, and kill teenage girls in southern Ontario. Guest hosted by Greg Polcyn from Haunted Places, a podcast that takes you on a tour through the world’s eeriest locations. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

The charred remains of 19-year-old Natasha Atchley were found in the trunk of her smoldering car the morning after a party. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

Named for driving with a red spotlight on his car and "pulling over" unsuspecting motorists, Caryl Chessman was executed for numerous robberies, sexual assaults, and kidnappings. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

During a May Day celebration in the hills of Sicily, several gunmen opened fire on the crowd. Though the masses tried desperately to escape, 11 people died, four of them children, and dozens were wounded. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

Daniel Victor Jones, a 40-year-old man who was upset about HMO health insurance organizations, stopped his pickup truck in the middle of a busy Los Angeles freeway. A standoff with police ensued, and as numerous media outlets broadcast the event live on television, Jones died by suicide. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

Executioners and doctors were ill-prepared when they attempted to execute Clayton Lockett through lethal injection. Between needles that were too small, a lack of sodium thiopental, and numerous other mishaps, it took 43 minutes for Lockett to die a painful and prolonged death. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

A 28-year-old Australian man named Martin Bryant used a stockpile of weapons and ammo to kill 35 people. The tragic event would lead to the Australian government passing the National Firearms Agreement and Buyback Program. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

Ferdinand Magellan, who attacked the Island of Mactan with an armed force of Conquistadors, was struck with a poisoned arrow in the leg during a battle with the Mactanese. Guest hosted by Molly Brandenburg from Conspiracy Theories, a podcast that delves into the world's most controversial mysteries. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

Dora Fronczak was in the hospital holding her newborn son Paul when a nurse came to take the baby for tests. Only it wasn't really a nurse. Paul was kidnapped, and Dora would never see her son again. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

A crowd gathered early to see Joseph-Ignace Guillotin's new invention up close and in person. It was designed to make capital punishment more humane. Convicted robber Nicolas-Jacques Pelletier would be the first to find out how well it worked. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

Ten days after two young boys went missing in Spruce Hollow, Pennsylvania, a stranger began having vivid dreams in which he found them. George and Joseph Cox were later found exactly where Jacob Dibert dreamed they would be. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

Police officers found the bodies of Marc, Debra, and Jacob Richardson in their home in Medicine Hat, Alberta, Canada. Each had been stabbed to death several times. The Richardson’s 12-year-old daughter Jasmine would become one of Canada’s youngest convicted murderers. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

The 27-year-old founder of an investment scheme called the Billionaire Boys Club was convicted for killing Ron Levin, who had scammed Hunt out of millions while posing as an investor. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

Manfred von Richthofen was a fearsome German fighter pilot during WWI. He was shot down over France, crash landed, and died. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

The first modern detective story was published on this day in 1841 by Edgar Allan Poe. Guest hosted by Greg Polcyn from Serial Killers, a podcast that examines the minds and motives of terrifying killers. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

Days after detonating bombs near the Boston Marathon’s finish line, 26-year-old Tamerlan Tsarnaev was killed during a police shootout. His younger brother fled the scene. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

In the British-controlled Dominion of New England, thousands of militiamen marched on the city of Boston and arrested their governor, Sir Edmund Andros. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

Gail Collins shot and killed her musician husband Felix Pappalardi when he crawled into bed early in the morning. She claimed it was a tragic accident. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

Irene Garza went to mass nearly every single day. So it was no surprise when she went to church the evening before Easter. But when she didn't come home, her family feared the worst. It would take decades to find out what really happened to her that night. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

Ninety-seven people died at a soccer match between Liverpool and Nottingham Forest when spectators charged through a tunnel, pinning others up against a series of fences. Despite law enforcement’s original claim, rowdy fans were not to blame. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

In an effort to fulfill a cannibalistic fantasy, Kevin Ray Underwood lured 10-year-old Jamie Rose Bolin into his apartment and killed her. Racked with guilt, he couldn’t go on with his plan. After his detailed confession, he was subsequently taken into custody. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

The bodies of two young churchgoers were discovered in San Francisco’s Emmanuel Baptist Church. Guest hosted by Richard Rossner from Unexplained Mysteries, a podcast that examines history’s most compelling puzzles, from suspicious deaths to paranormal activity. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

One year after the American Civil War began, a group of Yankees led by James J. Andrews hijacked a locomotive in Marietta, Georgia, and used it to try to sabotage the South's infrastructure. The Confederates tried to chase down the attackers in a train of their own. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

Zhou Enlai, the Premier of China, was supposed to be one of the delegates aboard the Kashmir Princess when it flew from Hong Kong to India. But at the last minute, he didn't show up. When the plane crashed in the South China Sea, people wondered if it had been an assassination attempt. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

At the Henry Ford Community College in Dearborn, Michigan, 20-year-old Asia McGowan and 28-year-old Anthony Powell were found dead in a classroom in an apparent murder-suicide. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

David Murtishaw opened fire on four USC film students in the Mojave Desert. Only one survived. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

The 42-year-old mother’s body was found near the Cancun hotel where she’d been vacationing with her family. Circumstantial evidence pointed to her TV producer husband. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

A 29-year-old Vietnam veteran disguised himself before handing a ransom note to a flight attendant on a plane traveling from Denver to Los Angeles. Could Richard McCoy have been the infamous D. B. Cooper? Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

After years of service as a consular clerk, Virginia Hall was recruited as a spy in Nazi-occupied France. Guest hosted by Lanie Hobbs from Crimes of Passion, a podcast that covers love stories that turn into crime stories. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

A young nun found 71-year-old Sister Margaret Ann Pahl covered in dozens of small stab wounds. Two decades after the case went cold, police reopened their investigation. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

Cheryl Crane, the 14-year-old daughter of movie star Lana Turner, stabbed her mother’s boyfriend to death with a kitchen knife. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices