Uncover: Calls From a Killer
CBC
What does a reporter do when they receive a cold call from one of the most horrific serial killers in Canadian history?The killer: Clifford Olson, who murdered at least eleven children in the 1980s. The reporter: Arlene Bynon, who recorded her jailhouse calls with Olson for years.Alongside legendary journalist Peter Worthington, Arlene spent hundreds of hours on the phone with Olson. It was kept secret from his prison guards; he wasn't allowed to speak to the media.In Calls From a Killer, from CBC’s Uncover, Arlene unearths secrets that have been buried for decades. Secrets about Olson's crimes, about how police failed his young victims and their families — and why law enforcement paid a psychopathic serial killer $100,000. With Nathaniel Frum — Peter's grandson — Arlene exposes hard truths about a forgotten tragedy, a bungled investigation, the loved ones left behind, and the mind of a killer. About UNCOVER: Crime. Investigation. Revelation. Uncover brings you explosive, high-caliber true crime year-round. From CIA mind control to serial abuse, mysterious disappearances to wrongful imprisonment. Each season features a new host who is deeply connected to the story, committed to tracking down the truth. With over 30 seasons to choose from, Uncover represents the best in true crime.For early access to episodes, plus ad-free listening, visit apple.co/cbctruecrime.
Episodes
Mentioned books
Jun 26, 2023 • 26min
S21 E4: The Winters are Coming | "The No Good, Terribly Kind, Wonderful Lives and Tragic Deaths of Barry and Honey Sherman"
It is no secret that some family members wanted Barry Sherman dead. And no one had a bigger grudge against Barry than his first cousins, Kerry Winter and his brothers. The Winter cousins were close to Barry — especially Kerry. They were father/son close. And the Winter boys lived well off Barry's money. But that good blood turned bad after a 10-year court battle that pitted cousin against cousin, in a fight over a billion-dollar fortune of which the Winters claimed their cousin robbed them.For transcripts of this series, please visit here.Kerry Winter on The Fifth Estate
Jun 26, 2023 • 34min
S21 E5: Just Skate | "The No Good, Terribly Kind, Wonderful Lives and Tragic Deaths of Barry and Honey Sherman"
If Honey Sherman showed up unannounced at her favourite hair salon and someone was in her chair — that person got moved pretty darn quickly. Honey wasn't the one who made the billions, but she certainly spent them. So much is known about her husband, but very little about Honey Sherman. A child of Holocaust survivors, family and community meant everything to Honey. And as for her friends? They aren’t talking.For transcripts of this series, please visit here.Rosemary Sexton’s website
Jun 26, 2023 • 33min
S21 E6: It's Complicated | "The No Good, Terribly Kind, Wonderful Lives and Tragic Deaths of Barry and Honey Sherman"
The lack of justice, or any resolution, has left a void in this story that has been filled by online sleuths, investigative reporters, nosey neighbours, and conspiracy theorists. From Covid to the Clintons. From family to the Mafia. With more than a dozen theories on the table, and little information from the police, is it any wonder this case remains constant fodder for the darkest corners of the internet?For transcripts of this series, please visit here.WebsleuthsSnopesCorrina Oates’ Sleuthing WebsleuthsAnn Brocklehurst
Jun 26, 2023 • 42min
S21 E7: My Blood is Yours | "The No Good, Terribly Kind, Wonderful Lives and Tragic Deaths of Barry and Honey Sherman"
After a notorious 2018 interview on CBC television, Kerry Winter became a familiar figure in the tale of the Shermans’ deaths. “The Cousin Did It” wasn’t just a snappy headline on the cover of The National Enquirer, it also became a favourite theory. Yet Kerry is not a suspect. And all these years later the humiliation, anger, and deep sadness Kerry feels towards his cousin Barry are still right on the surface. How did such a good thing go so bad, and why is Kerry so certain Barry killed Honey then killed himself? Was a man capable of “ripping off little orphans” also capable of killing his own wife? And himself?Kerry Winter on The Fifth EstateFor transcripts of this series, please visit here.
Jun 26, 2023 • 34min
S21 E8: Thin Lines | "The No Good, Terribly Kind, Wonderful Lives and Tragic Deaths of Barry and Honey Sherman"
After our year-long investigation, in this final episode we revisit the murder/suicide theory. That misstep set the whole investigation off on the wrong foot, and might have derailed any chance of finding out who killed the Shermans. To the Sherman's children, it's one of the biggest police screw-ups in recent history – a botched job that muddled the truth and stained the family. But the theory hangs in the air because its adherents, especially Kerry Winter, aren’t budging. In the end, what is the Shermans’ legacy? And what was all that money really for?Itiel Dror’s Cognitive Bias in Forensic Pathology DecisionsDouglas Young’s websiteFor transcripts of this series, please visit here.
Jun 22, 2023 • 3min
Introducing: The No Good, Terribly Kind, Wonderful Lives and Tragic Deaths of Barry and Honey Sherman
In the No Good, Terribly Kind, Wonderful Lives and Tragic Deaths of Barry and Honey Sherman, journalist Kathleen Goldhar looks into the lives and deaths of one of Canada's richest couples.
Jun 15, 2023 • 5min
Bonus: The Set from Audacy Originals
It’s the crack era.The most violent time in New York City history. The NYPD is fighting a losing battle and instead of protecting the city from drug dealers, some police officers have become them. This is the never-before told, first-person documentary of the biggest police corruption scandal in NYPD history and the investigation that uncovered it all. From Audacy Originals and Zak Levitt, the Emmy, Peabody, and NY Press Club Investigative Journalism Award winning creator of Root ofEvil, Gangster Capitalism, and Relative Unknown comes The Set.
May 1, 2023 • 4min
Introducing: The Africas VS. America
To those that remember, it’s known simply as the bombing of West Philly. In the spring of 1985, the City of Philadelphia became the first in U.S. history to drop a bomb on a family of American citizens. The attack killed 11 people, including five children, and the ensuing fire set a neighborhood to ruins. The targets that day? A family of Black radicals known collectively as MOVE, who found themselves ensnared in a city — and nation’s — domestic war on Black Liberation. Over seven episodes, host Matthew Amha investigates the events that culminated in the MOVE bombing, and the long afterlife of a forgotten American tragedy. Through intimate conversations, The Africas VS. America offers an unseen look into the MOVE's origins and dynamics while looking ahead to the group's uncertain future.
May 1, 2023 • 52min
S20 "The Africas VS. America" E1: Mother's Day
In the early hours of May 13, 1985, police direct residents of Osage Avenue in West Philadelphia to leave their homes, and not return for 24 hours. It’s Mother’s Day, and authorities have come to resolve a years-long conflict with a family of local revolutionaries — the Africas, collectively known as MOVE. There are 13 people in the Africa home that morning. Six of them are children. By the end of the day, most will be dead, and a neighbourhood will lie in ruins.The Africas VS. America is nominated for a Webby! Vote for the series here.Binge all episodes of The Africas VS. America ad-free by subscribing to CBC True Crime Premium.Artwork by Yannick Lowery.
May 1, 2023 • 54min
S20 "The Africas VS. America" E2: The Making of John Africa (GI John)
A quiet and reclusive young man is conscripted to war in Korea and returns having been made anew. Vincent Leaphart becomes the enigmatic John Africa, whose revolutionary vision will prove irresistible to followers seeking a new way of living. But what begins as a movement concerned with the protection of all life, will gradually turn to nonviolent direct action and large-scale civil disobedience in reaction to the state. This is the origin story of John Africa, leader of what will soon become known as MOVE.The Africas VS. America is nominated for a Webby! Vote for the series here.
