

True Murder: The Most Shocking Killers
Dan Zupansky
Every week host Dan Zupansky will interview the true crime authors that have written about the most shocking killers of all time.
Episodes
Mentioned books

Dec 18, 2019 • 1h 4min
THE BEST NEW TRUE CRIME STORIES: SERIAL KILLERS-Mitzi Szereto and Mark Fryers
Serial killers Ted Bundy, John Wayne Gacy, and Jeffrey Dahmer are often the first names that spring to mind. Many people assume serial killers are primarily an American phenomenon that came about in the latter part of the twentieth century. But such assumptions are far from the truth. Serial killers have been around for a very long time and can be found in every corner of the globe. Some of these predators have been caught and brought to justice whereas others have never been found, let alone identified.Edited by acclaimed author and anthologist Mitzi Szereto, The Best New True Crime Stories: Serial Killers reveals all-new accounts of true crime serial killers from the contemporary to the historic. The international list of contributors includes award-winning crime writers, true-crime podcasters, journalists, and experts in the dark crimes field such as Martin Edwards, Lee Mellor, Danuta Kot, Craig Pittman, Richard O Jones, Marcie Rendon, Mike Browne, Vicki Hendricks and Mark Fryers. Mitzi Szereto's story included is about Vlado Taneski, a particulalry brutal serial killer from Macedonia, The Kicevo Monster.The Man in Black and the Silver Screen: The Life and Crimes of Peter Moore by Mark Fryers.The Man in Black physically and sexually assualted countless men in a reign of terror that lasted over 20 years, his crimes culminating in a killing spree in the winter of 1995, which ended the lives of 4 men. He owned and ran several cinemas in the area and acted like a film star at his trial, dressing all in black and claiming that it wasn't he who committed the murders but a phantom named Jason, after the homicidal killer in the film Friday the 13th. THE BEST NEW TRUE CRIME STORIES: SERIAL KILLERS-Mitzi Szereto and Mark Fryers Follow and comment on Facebook-TRUE MURDER: The Most Shocking Killers in True Crime History https://www.facebook.com/profile.php?id=100064697978510Check out TRUE MURDER PODCAST @ truemurderpodcast.com

Dec 10, 2019 • 1h 28min
UNHOLY MESSENGER-BTK-Joyce and Stephen Singular
To all appearances, Dennis Rader was a model citizen in the small town of Park City, Kansas. The self-named BTK (for Bind, Torture, Kill) had terrorized Wichita for thirty-one years. In 1974, BTK committed his first murders -- torturing and strangling four members of the Otero family -- and wrote the police an audacious letter declaring his responsibility for the Oteros' deaths and labeling himself BTK. Thus he established a pattern -- stalking and killing a series of ten victims, then bragging and claiming ownership of his crimes -- that ended in 1991. Until, that is, he resurfaced in 2004 with another string of letters that would finally lead to his arrest. Drawing from extensive interviews with Rader's pastor, congregation, detectives, and psychologists who worked the case, and from his unnervingly detailed thirty-two-hour confession, bestselling author Stephen Singular delves into the disturbing life and crimes of BTK to explore fully -- for the first time -- the most dangerous and complex serial killer of our generation and the man who embodied, at once, astonishing extremes of normality and abnormality. In Unholy Messenger, Singular recounts the year prior to Rader's arrest, in which the BTK killer reemerged, and the aftermath. The result is a chilling story of a man considered a "spiritual leader" by his pastor and congregation, who turned out to be the devil next door. UNHOLY MESSENGER: The Life and Crimes of the BTK Serial Killer-Joyce and Stephen Singular Follow and comment on Facebook-TRUE MURDER: The Most Shocking Killers in True Crime History https://www.facebook.com/profile.php?id=100064697978510Check out TRUE MURDER PODCAST @ truemurderpodcast.com

Dec 3, 2019 • 1h 9min
HANNIBAL THE CANNIBAL-Alan R. Warren
Robert Maudsley casually walked into the cell of another inmate, who was sleeping on his bunk facedown. A savage rage quickly took over, and Maudsley started stabbing the back of the man’s head. There was blood, pieces of brain, and chunks of hair flying in a fury. After the man went limp, Maudsley grabbed the man’s head and held it in both palms and started to smash it against the walls of the cell, so hard that the plaster began to fall off the ceiling.Nurses and guards had to watch on, not being able to get into the cell, hearing the victim’s head crack each time it was smashed against the wall. After Maudsley finished with the attack, he sat the limp body up against the bed, got down on his knees, and started to eat chunks of the brain with his home-made knife.Robert Maudsley was dubbed “Hannibal the Cannibal’ on account of his thirst for eating the brains of his victims. He is one of the most interesting and thought-provoking murderers in prison. He is housed in a bulletproof cage, in the basement of Wakefield Prison, England, where Britain holds it's most savage, high-profile convicts. He is known to be such a danger to others, even inmates, he lives in a specially designed cell that doesn’t allow him any contact with anybody, except for guards that slide his food through a small hole at the bottom of his cell.Robert Maudsley is deemed to be the ‘Most Dangerous Prisoner in Britain.’ Even though he only killed one person outside of prison, his remaining victims were claimed while incarcerated. This book reviews Maudsley’s life from his tormented childhood, his rage-filled murder outside of prison, and the planned torturous murders of three convicted pedophiles. HANNIBAL THE CANNIBAL: The True Story of Robert Maudsley-Alan R. Warren Follow and comment on Facebook-TRUE MURDER: The Most Shocking Killers in True Crime History https://www.facebook.com/profile.php?id=100064697978510Check out TRUE MURDER PODCAST @ truemurderpodcast.com

Nov 27, 2019 • 1h 7min
EVIL THOUGHTS: WICKED DEEDS-Dr. Kris Mohandie
Experience some of the most intense hostage, serial homicide, mass casualty, stalking, and violent “true-believer” cases encountered by an expert during his thirty-year police and forensic psychology career.Some of the scariest and most interesting criminals are broken down and analyzed by Dr. Kris Mohandie, an expert police and forensic psychologist who has met—and evaluated—some of the most dangerous people who have walked among us. This book has numerous first-hand accounts of his work, and interviews for cases like the Angel of Death serial killer, racist serial assassin Joseph Paul Franklin, and even the O.J. Simpson case.Detailed case information, including excerpts of interviews he’s conducted with these offenders, provides a platform to learn shocking new information about hostage takers, serial killers, mass murderers, violent “true-believers,” terrorists, and some of the worst predators on the planet. EVIL THOUGHTS: WICKED DEEDS-Dr. Kris Mohandiewondery.fm/TrueMurderDT Follow and comment on Facebook-TRUE MURDER: The Most Shocking Killers in True Crime History https://www.facebook.com/profile.php?id=100064697978510Check out TRUE MURDER PODCAST @ truemurderpodcast.com

Nov 19, 2019 • 1h 33min
THE FOREST CITY KILLER-Vanessa Brown
Fifty years ago, a serial killer prowled the quiet city of London, Ontario, marking it as his hunting grounds. As young women and boys were abducted, raped, and murdered, residents of the area held their loved ones closer and closer, terrified of the monster ? or monsters ? stalking the streets. Homicide detective Dennis Alsop began hunting the killer in the 1960s, and he didn’t stop searching until his death 40 years later. For decades, detectives, actual and armchair, and the victims’ families and friends continued to ask questions: Who was the Forest City Killer? Was there more than one person, or did a depraved individual commit all of these crimes on his own?Combing through the files Detective Alsop left behind, researcher Vanessa Brown reopens the cases, revealing previously unpublished witness statements, details of evidence, and astonishing revelations. And through her investigation, Vanessa posits the unthinkable: is it possible that the Forest City Killer is still alive and, like the notorious Golden State Killer, a simple DNA test could bring him to justice? THE FOREST CITY KILLER: A Serial Murderer, A Cold-Case Sleuth, And A Search for Justice-Vanessa Brown Follow and comment on Facebook-TRUE MURDER: The Most Shocking Killers in True Crime History https://www.facebook.com/profile.php?id=100064697978510Check out TRUE MURDER PODCAST @ truemurderpodcast.com

Nov 12, 2019 • 1h 13min
ABOVE SUSPICION-Joe Sharkey
When rookie FBI agent Mark Putnam received his first assignment in 1987, it was the culmination of a lifelong dream, if not the most desirable location. Pikeville, Kentucky, is high in Appalachian coal country, an outpost rife with lawlessness dating back to the Hatfields and McCoys. As a rising star in the bureau, however, Putnam soon was cultivating paid informants and busting drug rings and bank robbers. But when one informant fell in love with him, passion and duty would collide with tragic results. A coal miner’s daughter, Susan Smith was a young, attractive, struggling single mother. She was also a drug user sometimes described as a con artist, thief, and professional liar. Ultimately, Putnam gave in to Smith’s relentless pursuit. But when he ended the affair, she waged a campaign of vengeance that threatened to destroy him. When at last she confronted him with a shocking announcement, a violent scuffle ensued, and Putnam, in a burst of uncontrolled rage, fatally strangled her. Though he had everything necessary to get away with murder—a spotless reputation, a victim with multiple enemies, and the protection of the bureau’s impenetrable shield—his conscience wouldn’t allow it. Tormented by a year of guilt and deception, Putnam finally led authorities to Smith’s remains. This is the story of what happened before, during, and after his startling confession.Revised and updated, this book also includes photos and a new epilogue by the author. ABOVE SUSPICION: An Undercover FBI agent, An Illicit Affair and a Murder of Passion-Joe Sharkey Follow and comment on Facebook-TRUE MURDER: The Most Shocking Killers in True Crime History https://www.facebook.com/profile.php?id=100064697978510Check out TRUE MURDER PODCAST @ truemurderpodcast.com

Nov 6, 2019 • 1h 12min
TANTAMOUNT-Blaine Pardoe and Victoria Hester
"This is tantamount to my insensitivity to people especially women. I will admit the others when you catch me if you can! Free-way Phantom! In 1971 and 1972, a deadly predator stalked the streets of the nation’s capital. His targets, young girls who he kidnapped, raped, and left their remains along busy roadways in plain view. Some of his victims he held captive for days, others only a few minutes. Seven victims ranging from the ages of ten to eighteen died in his hands. Then, as mysteriously as he started, the Freeway Phantom stopped.On one victim he left a note, taunting police, and confirming the name the media gave him, The Freeway Phantom.Now, after nearly five decades, Washington DC’s oldest unsolved serial killing spree is pried open with the suspects, the liars, and the evidence laid bare. Father-daughter duo and bestselling authors Blaine Pardoe and Victoria Hester shed new light and provide tantalizing new clues as to who may be the Freeway Phantom. TANTAMOUNT: The Pursuit of the Freeway Phantom Serial Killer-Blaine L. Pardoe and Victoria R. Hester Follow and comment on Facebook-TRUE MURDER: The Most Shocking Killers in True Crime History https://www.facebook.com/profile.php?id=100064697978510Check out TRUE MURDER PODCAST @ truemurderpodcast.com

Oct 30, 2019 • 1h 33min
THE MENENDEZ MURDERS-Robert Rand
A successful entertainment executive making $2 million a year. His former beauty queen wife. Their two sons on the fast track to success. But it was all a façade. The killing of José and Kitty Menendez on a quiet Sunday evening in Beverly Hills didn’t make the cover of People magazine until the arrest of their sons seven months later, and the case developed an intense cult following. When the first Menendez trial began in July 1993, the public was convinced that Lyle and Erik were a pair of greedy rich kids who had killed loving, devoted parents. But the real story remained buried beneath years of dark secrets. Until now. Journalist Robert Rand, who originally reported on the case for the Miami Herald and Playboy, has followed the Menendez murders from the beginning and has continued investigating and interviewing key sources for 28 years. Rand is the only reporter who covered the original investigation as well as both trials. With unparalleled access to the Menendez family and their history, including interviews with both brothers before and after their arrest, Rand has uncovered extraordinary details that certainly would have changed the fate of the brothers’ first-degree murder conviction and sentencing to life without parole.Rand shares these intimate, never-before-revealed findings, including a deeply disturbing history of child abuse and sexual molestation in the Menendez family going back generations, and the shocking admission O.J. Simpson made to one of the Menendez brothers when they were inmates at the L.A. County Men’s Central Jail. THE MENENDEZ MURDERS:The Shocking Untold Story of the Menendez Family and the Killings that Stunned the Nation-Robert Rand#fabfitfunpartner Follow and comment on Facebook-TRUE MURDER: The Most Shocking Killers in True Crime History https://www.facebook.com/profile.php?id=100064697978510Check out TRUE MURDER PODCAST @ truemurderpodcast.com

Oct 24, 2019 • 1h 32min
BAT MASTERSON-Fred Rosen
Nearly 100 years since his death, Bat Masterson still holds great influence. Remembered by many for his adventures in America’s Old West - buffalo hunter, scout, gunfighter, and even lawman as Dodge City sheriff. in 20th Century New York City he became a sportswriter. However, Masterson left a legacy that is much more intricate.Masterson always stood up for the underdog. And his real legacy was how he fought for them. After the days of the Old West were over, he laid down his gun and picked up his pen. So great was his writing that he was vastly respected for his opinions on many topics of the day including, crime, politics, and war.But Bat Masterson had a secret. One that he kept well-hidden his entire life. For if known, he and all those he cared about would be ruined. His reputation and all that he worked for in his life would be in tatters. BAT MASTERSON: The First Dreamer-Fred Rosen Follow and comment on Facebook-TRUE MURDER: The Most Shocking Killers in True Crime History https://www.facebook.com/profile.php?id=100064697978510Check out TRUE MURDER PODCAST @ truemurderpodcast.com

Oct 21, 2019 • 1h 34min
MOMS OF THE MISSING-Steffen Hou
"Oh my God, we found a dead body." The man's voice, calling from a mountain trail in Cleveland National Forest, was frantic. "Please hurry. I'm so scared. It's a little kid." When police arrived, they were met by a horrific sight. The girl was naked and had been positioned in such a way that detectives believed the murderer had seen his kill as some kind of a trophy. As if he were showing off his "work". The little kid was Samantha Runnion, a five-year-old girl who had been abducted while playing in her parents' garden the day before.Samantha is just one of too many American kids who disappear. Almost half a million children are reported missing every year. And all across America parents are searching for their missing children or if the worst case scenario has come to pass the person who killed them.Moms of the Missing investigates ten abduction cases. Through personal and heartbreaking interviews with the victims, it describes how parents maintain their hopes of one day finding their children some of whom were taken by a stranger, a family member, or human traffickers. And two survivors tell what it is like to be held captive.Moms of the Missing explores the principal types of abductions, and not of least importance who's most likely to become a victim of the epidemic of missing children. Finally the book describes how abductions can be prevented. MOMS OF THE MISSING: Living the Nightmare-Steffen Hou. Wondery.fm/BBTM Follow and comment on Facebook-TRUE MURDER: The Most Shocking Killers in True Crime History https://www.facebook.com/profile.php?id=100064697978510Check out TRUE MURDER PODCAST @ truemurderpodcast.com