A chance meeting in mid 1979 culminated in one of Sweden’s most sadistic crimes. 29-year-old Katarina Jakobsson struck up a conversation with 30-year-old Bengt Hjalmarsson in Malmö, Sweden. The pair quickly fell in love, but things were rocky from the start.

Katarina had recently gotten divorced, with her ex-husband receiving full custody of their son. She suffered for years with mental health issues and had shown signs of schizophrenia in her 20s, leading to long-term stays in institutions.

Unable to work, she collected state benefits and focused on getting her life back on track. Bengt offered Katarina a new future, and the pair moved fast. By November 1979, the pair had moved into his apartment.

November 7th 1979 marked the last time Katarina would be seen by her family. Her family noted that she seemed particularly ‘depressed and quiet’ that day. She had also made an odd remark about rushing home to get ready for ‘special visitors’.

For most of that night, things were normal; the pair ate dinner and relaxed in the living room. Things took a disturbing turn when Katarina made sexual advances toward her boyfriend, Bengt.

According to his later testimony, he grabbed a pair of handcuffs and restrained Katarina’s hands behind her back. Thinking it was a game, she complied and followed her boyfriend into the bathroom.

Instead of engaging with his girlfriend, Bengt drew a bath before grabbing Katarina and holding her head underwater. Katarina struggled against her binds, but after a few minutes, the thrashing stopped.

Emotionless, Bengt left the bathroom for a few minutes to contemplate, before returning with a devious plan. He would spend the rest of the evening dismembering his girlfriend’s body right there in their bathroom.

Each piece was then weighed, documented and labelled before being placed into a zip-lock bag. Bengt spent the remainder of his evening flaying Katarina’s skull, keeping some of her hair in a bag. He later remarked he did this because he thought it was ‘fascinating’.

Bengt kept a diary, adding weights and descriptions. In a final act of cruelty, Bengt removed Katarina’s teeth from her skull to prevent identification. Any parts that were too large to be kept in the fridge were flushed down the toilet.

Over the following days, Bengt visited rivers and harbours and dumped most of Katarina’s remains. I say most, as he kept her heart, liver and 97lbs of flesh for himself. These parts were cooked and consumed, as if they were a slab of beef.

The full extent of Bengt’s cruelty remained undiscovered until January 1980. Katarina’s parents had reported her missing the following year, and after much pressure, the police decided to search Bengt’s apartment.

Whilst the search took place, Bengt was in custody on an unrelated crime. Investigators who searched the apartment said they had never seen such depravity. In total, they were able to recover 44lbs of flesh, along with parts of a heart and liver, which had been left to rot.

Investigators sent these items to be tested at a forensic testing laboratory, hoping and praying they belonged to an animal. On January 18th 1980, that illusion was shattered when the laboratory confirmed the samples came from a human female.

This, along with the discovery of Bengt’s meticulous diary, sealed his fate. He confessed to everything and led police to the harbour where he had dumped Katarina’s remains.

Before the case even got to trial, Bengt’s sanity was called into question. An evaluation found Bengt was suffering from schizophrenia and detailed how his psychosis had evolved rapidly.

One psychiatrist noted how coldly Bengt spoke of the crime, speaking as if the human meat in his fridge was a piece of beef from the supermarket.

The court ruled the trial against Bengt would take place ‘in absentia’ as it was postulated he would become violent and angry. On June 25th 1980 Bengt Hjalmarsson was sentenced to indefinite psychiatric care, a disappointing verdict for Katarina’s family.

During his time at St. Lars Hospital, Bengt was allowed to change his name and study Latin at Lund University. His studies quickly came to a halt after it was found he was sending threatening letters to female students. These letters often included information about his crimes.

Bengt made little progress in psychiatric care, often being viewed as lacking compassion and empathy. During his stay, he was also diagnosed with ASD (Autism Spectrum Disorder). In 2010, Bengt was released from St. Lars Hospital, which caused controversy in Sweden.

Little is known about his life post-release, as he was allowed to start a new life with full anonymity. Bengt Hjalmarsson took his last breath on January 12th 2015 and the cause of his passing has still not been made public. He will forever be known as the Malmö Cannibal, the man who served no time for a crime almost too disturbing to mention.

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This is the last ever photo taken of the Whitaker family of Houston, Texas. The photo provides a creepy backdrop to the events that followed, but at the moment that the photograph was taken, no one could ever have anticipated what would happen next.

On December 10th 2003, Thomas Bartlett Whitaker, known as Bart to his family, shared the news that he was due to graduate from Sam Houston State University after just having taken his final exams.

Little did his parents, Patricia and Kent Whitaker and his younger brother, Kevin Whitaker, know that Bart had been lying to them for months. Sometime before December 2003, Bart had dropped out of Sam Houston State University without informing his parents.

They continued to give him money for his tuition and were under the impression that their son would soon be walking across the stage and receiving his degree.

To celebrate the occasion, the Whitaker family spent the evening at the Pappadeaux restaurant in Stafford, Texas. Kent and Patricia presented Bart with a Rolex watch worth around $4,000 as an early graduation present, and the family took some photographs to remember that night forever.

Patricia, Kevin and Bart can all be seen smiling into the camera, with Kent not knowing it would be the last photo he would ever take of his family.

Behind the facade of a happy soon-to-be college graduate, Bart Whitaker was hiding a dark secret that would rear its ugly head the moment the Whitakers stepped through their front door.

Moments after stepping into the home, Kevin, Patrica, Bart and Kent were all shot once at point-blank range. Under his instruction, two of Bart’s friends had gained entry to the house, staged a burglary, stolen a gun and were poised ready, waiting for the family to return home.

Thankfully, Kent survived and was able to call 911, and police and ambulance crews were quickly dispatched to the home. Sadly, Kevin and Patricia passed as a result of their injuries whilst Kent received treatment for a fractured humerus.

Authorities noted that Bart had also been shot; however, his wounds seemed superficial compared to the others, and their suspicions arose.

Police became even more suspicious when the forensic evidence didn’t match up to an armed robbery gone wrong. During their investigation, they came across a damning piece of evidence that would seal Bart’s fate.

It turned out that in 2001 whilst attending Baylor University he had tried to convince his classmate, Adam Hipp to shoot his parents so that he could claim a life insurance policy and be the heir to the family fortune.

The Whitaker family were extremely well off and lived in Sugar Land, a rich suburb of Houston, Texas. Bart had been spoiled by his parents throughout his entire life; he was given expensive cars, his college tuition was paid for, and whatever Bart wanted, he got.

It appears that Bart had become greedy and believed that his parents’ fortune should be his.

Hipp outright refused Bart’s offer and notified the police; however, his parents refused to move forward with the accusation, believing that Hipp had either misunderstood or that Bart was joking.

Sadly, this was not a joke and two years later Bart found two men who would be willing to take part: Chris Brashear and Stephen Champagne. The 3 had met whilst working at a yachting and country club, and Bart had managed to rope them in with the promise of a cut of the $1 million life insurance payout he would receive.

After learning this, the police applied pressure on Brashear and Champagne, but at first, they kept their composure. However, a year of having their phones tapped and being under constant surveillance broke them, and Stephen Champagne handed himself in and admitted everything. He told police that Brashear had done all of the shooting and that he had driven the getaway car.

Bart, along with Champagne and Brashear, was arrested and charged with the murders of Kevin and Patricia Whitaker, along with the attempted murder of Kent Whitaker.

Forensic evidence was recovered from Lake Conroe under Champagne’s instruction, and this was later used against them in court. Brashear received a life sentence whilst Champagne received just 15 years for his cooperation.

Bart Whitaker was initially given capital punishment however just hours before this was due to be carried out he was given a stay of execution and his sentence was commuted to life imprisonment without parole.

Kent Whitaker told Sky News that he has since forgiven his son, saying, “I was able to come to a complete forgiveness. It was a miracle. But it didn’t cloud my eyes to the awful thing my son chose to do. He is terribly repentant. We don’t know why he did it, and I don’t think we’ll ever really understand.”

The final creepy photograph of the Whitaker family at the Pappadeaux restaurant leaves Kent with a bleak reminder of what he has lost.

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Mary Flora Bell was born on May 26th 1957, to Betty McCrickett in Scotswood, Newcastle upon Tyne. McCrickett was a prostitute who frequently travelled as far as Glasgow looking for work. She fell pregnant at the age of 17 with her firstborn, Mary.

It is still unknown the true identity of Bell’s biological father; it is believed to be Billy Bell, a career criminal who was arrested for armed robbery. McCrickett and Billy Bell married when Mary was still a baby.

Many of Mary’s family members stated that Betty had tried to kill Mary on multiple occasions whilst trying to make it look like a tragic accident. During her childhood, Mary “fell” from a window and “accidentally” took sleeping pills amongst other incidents.

A witness even came forward to say that she saw Betty give Mary sleeping pills, telling her they were sweeties. Mary herself also talks about the repeated sexual abuse that she was subjected to by her mother Betty.

Betty was still working in the sex industry whilst Mary was a child and often brought clients into the home for service. Mary describes how from the age of 4 she was forced by her mother to engage in sexual acts with her clients.

It is reported that after her fall, Mary suffered from brain damage, which is an extremely common trend amongst serial killers during their childhood. Another theory is that the head trauma may be due to the abuse she suffered and was merely attributed to the fall.

Whatever the cause, prefrontal cortex damage is a common factor amongst serial killers as mentioned above. The prefrontal cortex is the area of the brain that controls movements and decision-making.

On May 11th 1968, Mary, aged 10 at the time, had been playing with a 3-year-old boy when he was found injured following a fall from the roof of an air raid shelter. The incident was chalked up to a tragic accident, with even the parents agreeing with the conclusion about their son.

However, following the 3-year-old’s death on May 11th, three mothers went to the Police to tell them how Mary had tried to choke their children. The Police gave Mary a stern lecture about her behaviour, and she was sent on her way.

The day before Mary’s 11th birthday, May 25th 1968, she strangled 4-year-old Martin Brown in an old abandoned house in Scotswood. This was the only crime that she is believed to have committed alone.

Two local boys happened to stumble across the body when they were playing in the abandoned house. There was little evidence other than a bottle of painkillers near Martin’s body; it was assumed that Martin had swallowed the pills, and his death was ruled an accident.

In a sick turn of events, Mary went to Martin Brown’s family home and asked if she could see Martin. His mother kindly replied that Martin was dead and wouldn’t be able to play anymore. Mary simply replied, “Yes, I know, I want to see him in his coffin.”

Shortly after the murder of Martin Brown her and a friend, Norma Joyce Bell, who was aged 13, broke into an abandoned nursery in Scotswood. They vandalised the nursery with messages claiming responsibility for the murder.

Police simply dismissed this incident as a cruel prank done by local teenagers; these messages and other clues were never followed up.

Mary and Norma then went on to kill together; on the 31st July 1968 they killed 3-year-old Brian Howe by strangling him in a wasteland in the Scotswood area. It is thought that Mary returned to the body and carved an M into his stomach post-mortem.

Upon her return to the body, Mary also cut off some of Brian’s hair, scratched his legs and mutilated his genitals with the scissors she had used to carve the M.

During the investigation of Brian Howe’s murder, both Mary and Norma were extremely interested and did little to hide this interest. Mary was also seen loitering outside of the Howe family house on the day of his funeral.

Mary was also seen laughing and rubbing her hands together when she saw the coffin of 3-year-old Brian Howe. Mary was brought to the police station for an interview regarding the death of Brian Howe.

Sensing that something was wrong, Mary made up a story about seeing an 8-year-old boy hit Brian on the day of his death. She also added that she saw the boy carrying a pair of broken scissors.

Revealing the final detail was the unravelling of Mary Bell; the details about the mutilation with the scissors had never been made public and were only known to the police. Along with one other person, Brian Howe’s killer.

Norma and Mary were just 11 and 13 during the time of the questioning, and to no surprise, they cracked under the pressure. Norma told the police that she was present at the murder of Brian but placed all of the blame on Mary.

Both Mary and Norma were formally charged with the murder of Brian Howe, with both of them being set to appear at a trial.

During the trial, the prosecution led with the argument that Mary Bell killed Brian and Martin “solely for the pleasure and excitement of killing.”

On December 17th 1968 Mary Bell was convicted of manslaughter for the murders of Martin Brown and Brian Howe. Mary was not handed a murder charge because a court psychiatrist told the jury that Mary had displayed classic symptoms of psychopathy and could not be held accountable for her actions.

Norma Bell was considered an unwilling accomplice who happened to get caught up with the wrong crowd under a bad influence. Norma Bell was acquitted for her involvement (or lack thereof) in the murder of Brian Howe.

Mary was deemed an extremely dangerous person as well as being a danger to other children. She was to be imprisoned at “Her Majesty’s pleasure”, which meant indefinite imprisonment until authorities thought otherwise.

Mary Bell was sent to Red Bank secure unit in Newton-Le-Willows in Lancashire; this is not the only child killer that the facility would see. Just 25 years later, Jon Venables would also be sent to the same unit.

During her teenage years, Mary Bell was transferred between various young offenders prisons and eventually into an adult prison. In September 1977 she escaped Moor Court open prison for a brief period.

Upon her capture, she was sent back to Moor Court open prison and lost prison privileges for a full month.

Mary Bell was aged 23 when she was released from Askham Grange open prison in 1980 after she had served just 12 years for the murder of Brian Howe and Martin Brown. Mary was granted anonymity by the courts and allowed to start a new life.

In May of 1984 Mary gave birth to her daughter, who didn’t know about her mother’s past until 1998 when local press discovered Bell’s new identity and waited outside of their home.

Mary’s daughter’s identity was only anonymous until she turned 18; however, in May 2003 Mary won a High Court battle to keep the identity of herself and her daughter extended indefinitely for life.

As a result of the High Court battle, any order that permanently protects a convicted person’s identity has come to be known as “A Mary Bell order.”

Mary Bell is also the subject of two books: The Case of Mary Bell and Cries Unheard: The Story of Mary Bell. Both books contain interviews and an in-depth look at the life of Mary Bell.

Cries Unheard was pretty controversial, as Bell received payment for agreeing to be the subject of the novel. The Labour government of the time tried to find legal grounds to block Mary Bell from receiving any of the money; this was unsuccessful.

For the victims’ families, the books from which Mary was able to profit and being granted anonymity for life is not the treatment she deserves. June Richardson, the mother of Martin Brown, told the media, “It’s all about her and how she has to be protected. As victims, we are not given the same rights as killers.”

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In 2005, Eryk Pelka and Magdalena Luczak, the biological parents of Daniel Pelka, moved from their native Poland to Coventry in the UK. Daniel Pelka was born to the couple on July 15th 2007, in Coventry.

Eryk and Magdalena broke up at the end of 2008, and Magdalena got with her new partner Mariusz Krezolek in 2010. Mariusz soon became a father figure to Daniel and Magdalena's other child.

In early 2010, a health visitor to the Pelka home noticed a bruise on the side of Daniel's head, but his mother, Magdalena, insisted that Daniel had simply fallen over. This would be the beginning of the failings that Daniel Pelka faced before his death.

In January 2011, Daniel was taken to A&E (Accident and Emergency) with a broken arm and multiple bruises. Social services were again involved; however, the doctor treating Daniel stated that the broken arm could have been an accident.

In November of 2011, Daniel’s school raised the alarm to social services over concerns that Daniel was stealing food from other pupils and eating a lot of the free fruit that they offered to pupils.

His mother Magdalena told doctors that Daniel would often raid the fridge at night and even hit his stepfather Mariusz when he wouldn’t allow him any more food. Social workers simply recommended that they give Daniel a snack to eat on his way to school.

By December of 2011, Daniel's school attendance was only 63%.

In January 2012, the school raised the alarm again about Daniel’s eating habits; he was eating out of bins and became obsessed with food. He even ate half of a birthday cake that was intended to be shared among the whole class.

Teachers started to notice that Daniel was losing weight, and another teacher noticed that Daniel had a fingerprint-shaped bruise on his neck and also had multiple bruises on his face.

Dr Chakraborthy saw Daniel on the 10th February 2012 and prescribed him tablets for worms, stating that Daniel was thin but not wasting away. By February 28th of 2012, Daniel was pasty, had sunken eyes and wasn’t playing with the other children.

Multiple people within the school saw Daniel repeatedly eating out of bins and stealing food from other pupils. Social services had been involved with the Pelka family since 2008 over concerns that Magdalena was being abused by her new partner Mariusz.

She told social services that she could protect herself and her children, and Daniel and the other child were never spoken to directly by social services.

Sharon Binyon, the medical director of the Coventry and Warwickshire NHS Trust, spoke to the BBC in 2013 and stated that she believed that all services had undoubtedly failed Daniel.

“Coventry has one of the lowest numbers of health visitors per child in the country. That was recognised and we’re working with NHS England.” Sharon Binyon 2013 (BBC).

On March 1st 2012 Daniel Pelka was severely beaten as a punishment for wetting himself. Magdalena had googled “how to care for a person in a coma” and phoned 999 at 3:07 am on March 3rd 2012. She told the call handler that Daniel was not breathing.

Paramedics arrived at the Pelka residence, where Daniel was taken to hospital; sadly, Daniel was pronounced dead at 03:50 am on March 3rd 2012.

During his autopsy, Daniel was found to have 22 different injuries, 10 of these being to his head. Daniel Pelka’s cause of death was ruled to be the result of a brain injury.

At the time of his autopsy, Daniel Pelka was just 5 years old and weighed 1st 9lb (10.4 kg). He was described as looking like a concentration camp victim and a seriously ill cancer patient. The ideal healthy weight for a 5-year-old boy is around 18- 20 kg.

Daniel’s body was returned to Eryk Pelka (his biological father) for a funeral and burial. Eryk wasn’t able to afford to fly Daniel’s body from the UK to Poland; however, in an extreme act of kindness, a Polish funeral home in London donated the full amount needed.

On September 3rd 2013, over a year after his tragic death, Daniel Pelka was finally laid to rest in Poland.

Magdalena and Mariusz both denied any involvement in the death of Daniel Pelka but did, however, admit to being guilty of child cruelty. During the trial, Magdalena claimed that Mariusz would strangle her if she tried to protect Daniel.

Mariusz also would apparently not allow Magdelena to feed Daniel. One of Daniel’s siblings even bravely gave evidence during the trial that Mariusz would drown Daniel in cold water and that Daniel was always locked in his room and not allowed to use the toilet.

Texts between Magdalena and Mariusz showed that Magdalena had almost drowned Daniel in the bath and that she had removed the handle from his bedroom door so that his brothers and sisters couldn’t let him out.

Other evidence presented to the jury was that Daniel was forced to eat salt to make him violently ill, that he was made to perform squats as a punishment and also that he was forced to sleep on a dirty, stained mattress in the room where he was held.

In August of 2013, Magdalena Luczak (27) and Mariusz Krezolek (34) were sentenced to life imprisonment for the death of Daniel Pelka; they would both have to serve 30 years of their sentence before appeal.

In late 2014 Magdalena and Mariusz dared to file an appeal against their sentence after claiming that it was ‘excessive’. The judges threw out the appeals that the couple had filed, leaving them to serve their life sentence with a minimum 30-year term.

Magdelena Luczak (29) was found dead in her cell at HMP Foston Hall Prison on 14th July 2015 at 07:15 am. An inquest into her death revealed that she had hanged herself the day before Daniel’s 8th birthday.

Two years later, on January 27th 2016, Mariusz Krezolek was also found dead in his cell at HMP Full Sutton Prison at 08:30 am. His inquest found that he had died from a heart attack and had refused medical attention due to fear of being recognised by other patients.

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Peter Connelly (known to the media as Baby P/Baby Peter) was born on March 1st 2006 in London to his mother Tracey Connelly. Peter’s father was not in the picture, and in November of that year Tracey’s new boyfriend, Steve Barker, moved in.

By December 2006, when Peter was just 8 months old, a local GP noticed that he had bruises on his face and chest. As a result of this, Tracey was arrested, and Peter was placed in the care of a family friend.

This only lasted for around a month, and in January 2007 Peter was returned to Tracey and Steven. During this time, Peter was taken to hospital twice with scratches, bruises and swelling on the side of his head. By May of 2007, Tracey Connelly was arrested once again.

In June 2007, a social worker spotted more bruises and marks on Peter and reported this to the police. A doctor examined Peter and concluded that these bruises were a result of abuse.

On June 4th Peter was taken by social services and placed in the care of a family friend. On July 25th, Haringey social services sought legal advice over Peter’s case; they were told that the “threshold for initiating care proceedings was not met.”

This meant that there were no legal grounds for social services to place Peter in foster care and remove him from his abusive home. Social services had no choice but to hand him back to his abusers.

On July 30th, a social worker made a visit to the Connelly home where Peter was living after being placed back in the care of Tracey. On investigation, it was found that the social worker missed bruises to Peter’s hands and face because Tracey had deliberately smeared chocolate to hide them.

On 1st August 2007, Peter was in hospital again, this time at St. Ann's Hospital being examined by a child development specialist, Dr Sabah Al-Zayyat. Peter had serious injuries during this examination, as highlighted by his subsequent autopsy; however, these were missed.

Just a day later, on August 2nd 2007, Tracey Connelly received the news that she would not be facing charges over Peter’s injuries.

On that same day, Baby Peter was found in his cot by Tracey, blue and in nothing but a nappy. Tracey called an ambulance and a paramedic crew attempted to resuscitate Peter whilst on the journey to North Middlesex Hospital.

Sadly, at 12:20 pm on August 3rd 2007, Peter was pronounced dead at North Middlesex Hospital. Peter’s postmortem revealed that he died because he swallowed a tooth after being punched in the face.

He had injuries to his fingers on his right hand, including damage to his soft tissue on his middle finger, which dated back to around some time after July 19th of 2007. He had a fractured tibia which dated back to a few months before his death. Up to 2 weeks before he died, Peter also suffered fractured ribs, with a pathologist finding at least 7 fractures.

It is to be noted that excessive force would be needed to cause this type of injury and that this type of injury comes from a child’s chest being squashed.

Around 3-4 days before his death, Peter also suffered a broken spinal cord, which was possibly missed by the examination carried out at St. Ann's hospital. This injury was caused by Peter being held over someone’s knee or over a rail.

Again, these types of injuries require a large amount of force, large enough that it is equivalent to those sustained in a car crash. Peter also had 3 bruises on the left side of his face along with an infected area on his left ear; he also had 10 separate bruises between his shoulder blades. Most likely from the injury that broke his spinal cord.

On August 2nd, Peter suffered a forceful blow to the face, causing him to swallow a tooth; the pathologist also noted that this could have caused his spinal injury to rebleed. It is possible that this would have led to impaired respiratory and cardiac functions.

10 injuries to the head (including the ones listed above), as well as an injury to his gums and an injury on his ear that was consistent with someone grabbing his lobes and pulling them.

5 injuries to his back and chest, 3 injuries to his hands with one of his fingernails being ripped off, 4 injuries to his legs and feet, along with his right big toenail being ripped off as well as significant weight loss.

Following Peter’s death, the police launched their murder inquiry immediately and arrested his mother, Tracey. Steven Barker, Jason Owen and Jason’s 15-year-old girlfriend were also arrested in connection with Peter’s death.

On November 11th 2008 Jason Owen (36) and his brother Steven Barker (32) were found guilty of “causing or allowing the death of a child.” Connelly (27) also pled guilty to this charge.

Another trial of the trio took place in April 2009 because Connelly and Barker were charged in connection with raping a 2-year-old girl. For this crime, Barker was found guilty of rape, with Connelly being cleared of child cruelty charges.

The sentencing for both of the trials took place on 22nd May 2009. Tracey Connelly was given “a sentence of imprisonment for public protection” and was indefinitely imprisoned until it is deemed that she is no longer a risk to children.

Steven Barker was sentenced to life imprisonment with a minimum of 10 years for the rape of the 2-year-old girl and a 12-year sentence for his involvement in the death of Peter. Jason Owen was also jailed indefinitely with a 3-year minimum term.

Upon repeal, Owen’s sentence was extended to a 6-year fixed term; he was released briefly in 2011 but was later recalled to prison. Connelly was released in 2013 but was back in prison again in 2015 for breaching her parole. Barker appealed for parole; however, it was rejected in August 2017.

Peter was just 17 months old when he died at the hands of the very people who should have cared for him. The NSPCC and public outcry were enormous, even leading the NSPCC’s chief executive and the Attorney General to send the case to the Court of Appeal for a review.

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Christa Gail Pike was born on March 10th 1976, in West Virginia to Glen Pike and Carissa Hansen. She would cement herself in the history books by becoming the youngest woman to be sentenced to death in the US.

Pike did not have the best start in life; she was troubled from an early age and dropped out of high school. Wanting to improve her career prospects and get back on track, Pike joined the Job Corps, which is a government program to help young people get into work.

Pike attended the Job Corps in Knoxville, Tennessee, which is now closed. Here she would take classes that would teach her career skills and offer vocational training in many different areas.

It was also here that Pike met Tadaryl Shipp, who was one year younger than her. The pair got on like a house on fire, and it has been reported that the pair were into the occult and worshipping the devil.

Things turned ugly, fast. Pike was extremely jealous of fellow classmate 19-year-old Colleen Slemmer, who Pike thought was trying to steal Shipp away from her. This claim is highly refuted by Slemmer’s friends to this day.

Pike, along with her friend 18-year-old Shadolla Peterson, hatched a plan to lure Slemmer to an isolated area near the University of Tennessee campus. Once there, they would strike Slemmer.

January 12th 1995, would be that day. Pike, Shipp, Peterson and Slemmer all signed out of the Job Corps dormitory and headed towards the woods. The trio told Slemmer that they wanted to sort out the argument and smoke some weed together.

Once they reached an area secluded enough, Pike and Shipp attacked Slemmer whilst Peterson acted as their lookout. For over 30 minutes, Pike and Shipp taunted, beat and slashed Slemmer. Even going so far as to carve a large pentagram into her chest.

Once the pair had finished torturing Slemmer, Pike grabbed a large piece of asphalt and smashed her skull with it, killing her. As a trophy, Pike decided to keep part of Slemmer’s skull.

It didn’t take long before Pike was showing off the piece of Slemmer's skull around the school, bragging as she went. This would be the downfall of the trio, as just 36 hours later they were arrested. During the investigation, the Police noticed that the dormitory log book showed the 4 of them leaving, with only 3 returning; triggering alarm bells.

Police also found the piece of Slemmer’s skull that Pike was showing off to the whole school and that she kept as a trophy. A copy of the Satanic Bible was found in Shipp’s room; the trio insisted they took it with the intention to scare Slemmer, and it got out of control.

On March 22nd 1996, after only a few hours of the jury deliberating, Pike was found guilty of murder and conspiracy to commit murder. The jury was shown the piece of Slemmer’s skull that Pike had kept and also her confession. On March 30th 1996, Pike was handed the death sentence for the murder of Slemmer and 25 years in prison for conspiracy to commit murder.

Shipp was given a life sentence with the possibility of parole after 32 years for his involvement in the murder of Slemmer. Peterson turned on the pair and acted as an informant for the Police; for this, she received probation for pleading guilty to being an accessory to murder.

Between 2001 and 2002, Pike launched a few different appeals of her guilty verdict and death sentence. On August 2nd 2002, a panel of judges decided that the proceedings should carry on and that Pike should not be executed in 2002 as planned.

In December of 2008, Pike’s latest request for a new trial was turned down, and she was returned to death row. On August 24th 2001, Pike, with alleged assistance from fellow inmate Natasha Cornett, attacked inmate Patricia Jones. Pike strangled Jones with a shoelace, almost killing her. For this, she was convicted of attempted first-degree murder in August 2004.

In March 2012, Pike had made plans to escape with the help of an officer, Justin Heflin, along with another man, Donald Kohut. Kohut had visited Pike in prison, and it is believed that they had a relationship together.

Luckily, the escape plan was stopped before it could come to fruition thanks to the efforts of the Tennessee Department of Corrections, the Tennessee Bureau of Investigation and the New Jersey State Police

Christa Pike is currently the youngest female to be handed a death sentence in the US; she was just 20 when she committed the murder of Colleen Slemmer.

In September 2025, her death sentence was upheld and is due to take place in September 2026, with Pike being given the choice between the electric chair or lethal injection.

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In 2016, headlines in South Africa would be dominated by whispers of a ‘Vampire’ serial killer. Reports emerged of the killer drinking the blood of his victims, but these have never been fully confirmed. Was Mzameleni Cele a sadistic killer with a blood lust, or were these reports wrong?

Cele’s first crime occured in September 2014 [exact date unavailable] at a tavern in downtown Johannesburg, South Africa. According to reports, Cele came across Sabelo Ngobese at the inn, and the two got into an argument. Instead of walking away, Cele pulled out a knife and stabbed Ngobese several times.

Witnesses also stated that he sprinkled snuff (chewing tobacco) around his victim’s body before drinking his blood. The scene was brutal and shocking, but it did not lead to his arrest. For reasons unknown, Cele was not captured and was allowed to strike again.

The next confirmed attack came almost a year later on August 1st 2015, at the same tavern where he killed Ngobese. That evening, Cele went on a ‘rampage’ and began arguing with all the bar-goers, daring them to fight him. In the midst of the argument, he withdrew a gun and began shooting indiscriminately.

Just a few hours later, he returned to the tavern, gun in hand and shot Mogoba Komane and Mnthandi Ngubane. Witnesses again testified they saw Cele drinking & licking the blood of his victims, proclaiming, “Let the dog die.” He fled the scene and lay low for the next few days.

Then, on August 14th, Cele would launch the final stages of his attacks. First, he travelled to the same tavern and attacked Sibiya, a man who had witnessed the first murder in 2014. Cele shot him in the head several times and left him for dead. Thankfully, he survived, although he was left blinded by the incident.

Two days later, Cele arrived at the workplace of his friends and was asking colleagues for his whereabouts. When told he wasn’t at work that day, he attacked Velemseni Sithole, stabbing him numerous times. Sithole survived the attack and was able to lead police to Cele.

In 2016 he stood trial, where his deeds were broadcast for the nation to see. Headlines called him a ‘blood drinking’ murderer, although the validity of these claims is shaky. He was eventually found guilty of two murders, two attempted murders and a litany of other charges relating to his gun.

For his crimes, he received 30 years in prison. All charges brought differing lengths; however, the judge opted for them to run concurrently. In court, he laughed at the judge and his victims, leading to him being removed. The judge remarked on Cele’s clear lack of remorse and maintained that a 30-year sentence was the right choice.

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The disappearance of 25-year-old Linda Rose Grimm is complex, with varying sources giving varying accounts. On March 31st 1986 [or 1985; sources vary], she left her home in Perris, California, telling her mother she was going to buy a pack of cigarettes. She never returned home, and here is where the discrepancies begin.

According to the Charley Project, Linda’s mother stated that she had intermittent phone calls with her daughter over the next 18 months. In the calls, she told her mother that she was in Wichita, Kansas, with a man named Robert Masters who worked as a truck driver.

It is reported that Linda was married, although it is unclear whether Masters was her husband. The only detail Linda’s mother had was that she was living on a farm just outside the city, and she refused to give her the full address. Her mother noted she sounded scared during the calls.

In October 1987, Linda called her mother for the last time, prompting her to report her missing. Many have theorised that she may have been held against her will in Kansas. It also does not appear that Masters was ever tracked down and spoken to - if he was, it has never been documented.

The case takes another turn 3 years later in April 1989 when her yellow Ford Pinto was found abandoned in a supermarket car park in Huntington Beach, California, ~ 69 miles from Perris, CA. It is unclear whether any clues were found in the car.

Since 1989, there have been no updates in Linda’s case, and she has received little media coverage. In another bizarre twist, the Texas Department of Public Safety is listed as one of the agencies involved with Linda’s disappearance, and it is still unclear why they are investigating.

Linda Rose Grimm is described as a white female with brown hair, brown eyes, 5’2 and 110 lbs. She may use the surnames Masters, Raby or Scheske and has a C-section scar on her abdomen and a scar between her eyes. Anyone with information is asked to contact the TDPS at 800-346-3243 or the Orange County Sheriff’s Department at 714-647-7000.

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DISCOVERY

On February 26th 2007, two men were walking the gloomy streets of Gary, Indiana, when they spotted a pair of legs in the entryway of an abandoned building. Upon closer inspection, the legs were almost completely charred, as were the rest of the remains.

The pathologist determined the remains belonged to a Black/bi-racial woman aged 16 to 25, standing 5’4” to 5’6” and 102 lbs. She had not been burnt at the scene, and the burning had occurred post-mortem.

Disturbingly, the woman had over 170 scars on her face, chest, abdomen and back which had been inflicted at various points through her short life. Due to the severity of the burns, most of her clothing had disintegrated, aside from a pair of pink underwear.

Identification was deemed almost impossible due to the state of the remains; despite this, 3 composite images were created. These images, along with information, were broadcast throughout Indiana. This initial broadcast failed to garner any leads.

AN UNEXPECTED BREAKTHROUGH

8 years later, the case would see a shocking breakthrough when a woman identifying herself as Taylin Hill's daughter stepped forward. She believed the body discovered in February 2007 belonged to Taylin’s adoptive daughter, Erika Antoinette Hill.

This statement would prove to be correct when the remains were formally identified as belonging to 15-year-old Erika Hill. So how did Erika end up here?

In 1992, shortly after Erika was born in Joliet, Illinois, she was adopted by Taylin Hill, the cousin of her mother, Theresa Spiva. Unfortunately, Spiva had struggled with substance abuse issues and decided to give Erika up for adoption.

Unfortunately, Erika’s new life in Fitchburg, Wisconsin was filled with horror from the moment she entered Taylin’s home. Taylin’s other children confirmed that they were all subjected to unspeakable abuse daily.

FAILED INTERVENTIONS

After Erika’s remains were discovered, investigators found that Taylin had been the subject of scrutiny and investigations by family services between the years of 2000 and 2005. The investigations did not amount to anything substantial, as according to family services, they stopped when Taylin stopped answering the phone and the door.

The services meant to protect Erika had tried to intervene after allegations were made, but failed to properly follow up with Taylin. Despite her being ‘uncooperative’, family services still had a range of ways to ensure the children’s safety.

Whilst the media discussed how services meant to protect Erika had failed, the Indiana Police were conducting their own investigations into Erika’s murder. They found that Erika had likely been murdered on February 25th 2007, the day before she was discovered.

FINAL MOMENTS

Through testimony from Taylin’s daughter, the case was broken wide open. Along with input from others in Taylin’s sphere, police were able to put Erika’s final days together. Erika’s body showed she had died from a combination of starvation and abuse.

Her body also showed that she had been beaten and stabbed by none other than Taylin. Once Erika was dead, Taylin called her daughter and her sister to the home in Fitchburg [WI] to discuss her ‘next steps’.

On the spot, Taylin decided she was going to throw Erika’s body into the family freezer in the basement to buy her more time. In a final act of depravity, Taylin also removed Erika’s teeth, believing it would hinder her eventual identification.

In the late hours of February 25th/early hours of February 26th, Taylin dragged Erika’s body from the freezer, dressed her in ‘cheap clothing’ and called upon her terrified daughter and sister once more. The plan was to leave Erika’s body under a bridge in Chicago and set her ablaze.

In a bizarre move, Taylin would visit the dumping site hours later to retrieve Erika’s charred body, throwing her once more into the boot of her car, and heading to Gary, Indiana. Gary is a city known for its abandoned buildings and ‘rough’ neighbourhoods, so Taylin likely believed that the discovery of Erika’s body would be lost in the sea of crimes committed in Gary.

But she was wrong.

A SHOCKING ARREST

On September 14th 2015, 50-year-old Taylin Hill was arrested and charged with the murder of her adoptive daughter, Erika Hill. In her community of Fitchburg, Taylin was highly regarded. She had worked in the school system as a special education teacher/aide and was praised for taking in Erika.

The other children in Taylin’s home were spun tall tales of their sister Erika. Testimony from them revealed Taylin had told them she had returned to her home in Joliet, Illinois, likely to be with her mother.

However, Erika’s biological mother, Theresa, died in 2009, and it is unclear thus far whether she was involved in her daughter’s lives. Given the abuse the children were subjected to, likely, they didn’t question Taylin’s version of events, nor even know that Theresa had passed away.

Thankfully, Taylin’s daughter had bravely come forward in 2015 to not only aid in the identification of Erika but of her killer. Without her bravery and testimony, Erika may have lain unidentified, and Taylin would not have faced justice.

THE TRIAL

Not only was Taylin facing first-degree murder, but she was also facing 6 counts of child abuse. Subsequently, she was held on a $500,000 bond, but this does not appear to have been posted.

At trial, Taylin pled guilty to lesser charges, and it appears the child abuse charges were reduced in exchange for her cooperation and guilty plea. In 2016, Taylin Hill was sentenced to just 20 years in prison for the brutal murder of her adopted daughter, Erika Hill.

Taylin’s family had always suspected that something bizarre was afoot when she adopted Erika. Erika’s brother, who wished to remain anonymous, told Patch.com that Taylin had effectively ‘stolen’ her and taken her to Wisconsin.

When Erika was 9 years old, her brother claimed to have driven to Wisconsin to retrieve her, but she affirmed she wanted to stay with Taylin. Years later, when he tried to reconnect with Taylin and his sister, he was unable to find any record of her.

In 2011, Taylin changed her name from Marie/Minnie to Taylin, making her untraceable. Erika’s brother believed that as Taylin had suffered both physical and sexual abuse, she would be the last person to ever harm Erika.

The Hill family had always dubbed her ‘crazy aunt Marie’, with Erika’s mother believing her to be a ‘tortured soul’. Whilst unconventional, Taylin upheld her identity as a religious woman, devoted to the special education students she served.

Taylin’s daughter, who was forced to help dispose of Erika’s remains, was not charged and spoke of her want to break the cycle of abuse and speak out about her experience. This materialised in 2015 when she identified Erika and came forward to authorities.

As per the Wisconsin Department of Corrections, Taylin [Minnie/Marie] Hill is being kept at the Taycheedah Correctional Institution and is due to be released on 03/09/2050.

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20-year-old Rosemary Hamilton Buck was last seen on Sixth North Street and Wolf Street in Syracuse, NY on August 11th 1973. Rosemary’s husband was in prison at the time, and she was dealing with mental health and alcohol issues. Rosemary was worried that Social Services were going to take her son because of her past hospitalisation.

Rosemary was a high school dropout, but had dreams of returning to education and becoming a nurse. Neighbours saw Rosemary hitching a ride on 6th Street North/Wolf Street at around noon, and it is believed she left on the back of a motorcycle. Before her disappearance, she told friends she was planning to meet an unknown male friend in Boston, MA.

Initially, her family believed Rosemary had run away to escape her hardships, but many do not believe she would have left her 2-year-old son behind. Her son was eventually adopted by her parents, who lived in Florida. This detail is interesting, as Rosemary bears a striking resemblance to Ginger Doe (1973), whose case is available here.

Ginger Doe was also seen riding away on a motorbike with a known biker days before her body was found dumped. There are slight differences in physical appearance between Ginger and Rosemary, but in such cases, it is important never to rule anything out. Rosemary’s case did not receive widespread media attention, and her son is desperate to find out what became of her.

Rosemary Hamilton Buck is described as a white female with strawberry blonde hair, hazel eyes, 5’2” and 110 lbs. Her two front teeth slightly overlap; she has a birthmark on her right leg and a scar on her abdomen. She was last seen wearing a white coat with blue jeans. Anyone with information is asked to contact the Syracuse Police Department at 315-442-5111, quoting case no 05-328624.

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44-year-old Meta Valentine was a devoted mother and worshipper at the Deliverance Praise Church of Worship in Fayetteville, NC. So when Meta failed to show up to bible study, the congregation knew something was wrong. What would follow was a 4+ year battle for justice and an even longer battle to put those responsible behind bars

On October 28th 2014, Meta left work at the Deliverance Praise Church, where she was the secretary, and headed for her apartment at the Sycamore Park complex. At around 10:30 PM, Meta called her mother, who immediately felt that something was off.

Her mother described their conversation as ‘talking in riddles’ and found it hard to discern what Meta was talking about. On October 29th, a Wednesday, Meta was supposed to turn up for bible study, as she did every week, but she never arrived. Those at the church, along with her family, formally filed a missing person report that evening.

Fayetteville Police immediately zeroed in on Meta’s boyfriend, Reginald McDowell. The two had been in a somewhat on-again-off-again relationship, and he was the father of one of Meta’s children. According to reports, the two had broken up in early October 2014, but Reginald refused to leave her alone.

When interviewed, the Pastor at Deliverance Praise Church told police Meta had been ‘fearful’ in the weeks before she vanished. She had even asked one of the congregation to follow her home and would take different routes so she wouldn’t be spotted.

During the investigation, police learnt that Reginald had been violent toward Meta before. In 1999, he kidnapped Meta and her then-boyfriend, resulting in a 15-year prison sentence. The pair had been romantically involved in the 1990s, and after his 2011 release, they got back together.

In early October, Meta had broken up with Reginald, who had refused to leave her alone ever since. Her neighbours reported that he had tried to get inside her apartment multiple times, but she refused to let him in. The picture was becoming clear, and then the evidence began to roll in.

On October 28th 2011 at around 5:30 PM, CCTV footage caught Reginald running towards Meta’s apartment building. In the footage, he can be seen waiting for Meta to enter the front door, before slipping in behind her.

The Fayetteville Police questioned Reginald about this footage; however, he refused to cooperate. A few days later, Meta disappeared; he left the state and cut off all communication with his family in North Carolina. Since then, Reginald has not been seen or heard from.

It would take investigators until March of 2018 to formally charge him with first-degree kidnapping and first-degree murder. The exact details have never been released, and it is unclear what happened in Meta’s apartment that day.

Reginald McDowell is a fugitive on the run, and police believe he may be hiding in New York. Upon capture, he will be extradited to North Carolina, and the trial will begin. Anyone with information as to Reginald’s whereabouts is urged to contact the FBI or the Fayetteville Police Department.

Meta Price Valentine is described as a Black female with blonde hair, brown eyes, 5’0 and 160 lbs. Her ears are pierced; she wears contact lenses and has the following tattoos: A flower on her upper arm & a heart on her breast. Anyone with information is urged to contact the Fayetteville Police Department at 910-433-1529, quoting case number 14-032112.

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For over 50 years, the body of a teenage girl sat unidentified in Clinton County, Iowa. Investigators now have answers as to who she was. This identification is another win for forensic science. Will that same science finally be able to bring justice?

On April 11th 1975, two men in a fishing boat found the body of a teenage girl in a mud bar on the river. A few days beforehand, the two had spotted the mass but believed it to be an animal. Upon discovering the remains were human, the two called it it and thus a 50+ year investigation began.

The medical examiner determined the remains belonged to a Black girl, aged 12 to 23. She stood at 5’2 to 5’4 and was 100 to 120 lbs. It was also discovered that the young girl was 10 weeks pregnant.

She had been shot once in the head, behind the right ear, before being dumped in the river. Other than her pregnancy, she had no distinctive features or marks, making the investigation difficult from the jump.

A homicide investigation was opened, but very few clues trickled in. It took only a few months for her case to become fully cold. Without answers, she was labelled Jane Clinton Doe.

Whilst her case had run cold, there were still investigators in Clinton County who couldn’t forget about her. Finally, in 2025, NCMEC, the DNA Doe Project and the Iowa Department of Public Safety came together to solve the case.

According to press releases, genetic genealogists from all 3 departments gathered for one weekend to work on the case pro bono. Their work began Friday evening, and by midnight, they had already made a breakthrough.

Genealogists were able to find the girl’s grandparents from a DNA sample and advanced genealogical techniques. From there, they found the girl’s parents. Her father was an active-duty US Army member, which meant the family moved from place to place, but the genealogists did not let this hold them back.

Finally, they uncovered the missing piece. The girl’s family were living in Waukegan in the 1970s. Birth records confirmed her existence, but after the mid-1970s, she disappeared from the paper trail altogether.

In June 2026, the DNA Doe Project announced that their Jane Doe from 1975 had finally been identified as 15-year-old Cheryl Lynn Edwards. Edwards was born in San Diego but moved to Waukegan with her family because of her father’s military service.

Cheryl can now be laid to rest with her family. Investigators from Clinton County and beyond are still investigating her murder. If you have any information, you are asked to contact the Clinton County Sheriff’s Office at 563-212-9211.

15-year-old Yasmin Acree had a troubled early life, but she was determined to turn it around. In 2008, she was living with her aunt in Chicago, Illinois. Little did Yasmin know that a dark force was lurking around her. Then, she vanished. Police took little interest in her case, that was, until they discovered a convicted rapist had been living next door.

Yasmin Acree lived with her aunt, Rose Mae Stanes, at an apartment complex in Chicago, IL. In 2001, Yasmin and her brother were sent to live with Rose after social services removed them from her mother’s care. According to reports, Yasmin’s mother suffered from substance abuse and is now deceased.

In 2006, Rose Mae formally adopted Yasmin and her brother. To the outside world, the adoption brought with it peace and stability, but not everything was perfect. According to Rose Mae, Yasmin had behavioural issues, which resulted in her being physically punished with a belt.

As Yasmin got older, the issues worsened. Once a star student in middle school, she was now getting bad grades at Austin Polytechnic High School. In 2007, just a year after the adoption, Yasmin’s brother was asked to leave his aunt’s home due to unknown reasons.

Following his removal, Yasmin’s poor grades continued, leaving her aunt at her wits’ end. Rose Mae hoped that the dawn of a new year would bring peace for her niece, but the family would be struck by another tragedy.

January 15th 2008, was like any other day for Yasmin. She woke up, went to the local YCMA in North Lawndale and played sports with her friends. That afternoon, she returned home, put a load of washing on, showered and went to bed. When darkness fell, Rose Mae went to bed, not knowing what awaited her at dawn.

January 16th rolled around, and when Rose went to wake her niece, Yasmin was nowhere to be found. Frantic, Rose searched the home and found some disturbing clues. Two locks to the outside fence had been broken, along with a broken lock on the basement door.

Rose’s heart sank. Yasmin’s bedroom was located in the basement. When she entered, she couldn’t see any signs of a struggle. Yasmin’s glasses lay neatly on her nightstand, and nothing had been taken. After searching for her niece, Rose Mae contacted the Chicago Police to report her missing.

Unfortunately, the Chicago PD did not take Yasmin’s disappearance seriously. It is obvious to outsiders that race plays a huge role in this. Yasmin was Black, and we all know that the disappearances of Black/African American people are brushed to the wayside.

The Chicago PD performed a very sloppy crime scene analysis at the Starnes home. It would later come out that they failed to take fingerprints or properly analyse any of the broken locks. With a sloppy investigation out of the way, the police told Rose her niece had likely run away.

As a toddler, Yasmin had been part of the care system. Children in the care system are far more likely to run away, and just as likely to be forgotten by the police and systems in place to keep them safe.

Rose Mae and Yasmin’s family continued to pressure the Chicago Police Department to broaden their investigation. In 2009, the police received a tip that would change their outlook forever.

This tip would come from Rose Mae, who admitted to police that Jimmie Terrell Smith lived on the second floor of their building. In 2009, Jimmie was arrested for the rape of 5 women/girls, two of those being just 14 years old. Years earlier, Jimmie had also served time for attempted murder.

Following his release for attempted murder, Jimmie moved into the second-floor apartment above Yasmin. Unfortunately, Jimmie struggled to keep his hands clean, picking up charges for selling drugs. It was also at this time that Rose Mae admitted that Jimmie, who was in his early 30s, had ‘taken a liking’ to 15-year-old Yasmin.

By the time investigators had learnt this, Jimmie was already in prison, beginning his 110-year sentence for the rape of 5 women/girls. From prison, Jimmie issued a press release stating that he knew what had happened to Yasmin.

He also added that he was responsible for 4 murders, for which he has yet to be charged with. It is unknown if Jimmie released any further details about what happened to Yasmin. But, seeing as though no charges have been pressed, it appears not.

Jimmie is an unreliable narrator, but he was close to Yasmin. Close enough to be mentioned in her diary. Despite all of this information, the Chicago Police Department are still no closer to finding Yasmin. Someone out there knows something, and it is time they did the right thing.

Yasmin(e) Rayon Acree is described as a Black female with sandy brown hair, brown eyes, 5’1” and 125 lbs. Yasmin needs glasses to see, but these were left behind. Anyone with information is asked to contact Det Mike Roth of the Chicago PD at 312-744-8266, quoting case no M08A1869.

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In 2017, Jepsy told her family was moving from the Philippines to Colorado to be with her boyfriend, Dane Kallungi. The pair had met online at the start of the year and had fallen madly in love. Despite reservations, in July 2017, 31-year-old Jepsy moved to the US.

Shortly after arriving, the pair wed and began their new life together, but things were far from perfect. Specifics are unclear, but sources indicate that by 2019, the couple had finalised their divorce; however, it appears Jepsy wanted to give Dane another shot.

The pair continued to live together in Colorado Springs, with Jepsy posting frequently to her social media accounts. For Jepsy, social media was a lifeline. Not only did most of her family live in the Philippines, but her mother, Margie, lived in Hong Kong.

The two made the most of Facebook Messenger’s free calling ability and spoke on the phone at least three times a week. On March 20th 2019, Jepsy would send her final message. She sent this message to a friend, Rhanae, in which she said: “You’re a real person.”

When Rhanae asked her friend if she was okay, she received nothing back. Jepsy’s social media had fallen silent, and her friends were worried. They initially reached out to Dane, but he told them Jepsy had gone to Chicago or the Philippines.

Dane promised Jepsy’s family he had no idea where she was, but did little to help them in their search. On April 4th 2019, Rhanae requested a wellness check at Jepsy’s home after failing to hear from her. When the police arrived, they could not locate Jepsy and a missing persons investigation was opened.

Shortly after the investigation kicked off, Dane deactivated all of his social media accounts and moved back to California to be with his dad. Margie continued to press him for answers, and what he said stunned her.

Now, Dane was saying that he and Jepsy had separated, and she was seeing another man named Travis. In one message, he wrote, “I hope she didn’t get into any trouble with him.” Dane was unable to provide the police or Jepsy’s family with Travis’ full name, and the investigation stalled.

Rhanae, Jepsy’s friend, would later tell the police that their relationship was toxic. Dane had been a suspect from the start, and now their suspicions were amping up. Despite their searches, no sign of Jepsy was found. Little did investigators know that a groundbreaking tip would come from the most unlikely source.

In mid 2021, the Colorado Springs PD received a call from Dane’s ex-wife. She had met with Dane days earlier, and he admitted to killing Jepsy. Following this, the ex-wife agreed to record a call between her and Dane, in which he said:

“I did not mean to kill her, I just wanted her to stop cursing at me. I saw her suffering, I did not know what to do at first. It’s eating me up for sure.” Dane confessed that he strangled his wife before placing her body in the boot of his car.

He then drove to a secluded area, dug a hole, placed her body inside and covered her with dirt. In June 2021, Dane Kallungi was arrested in Albuquerque, NM, for trying to break into Kirtland Air Force Base. Thankfully, officers in NM knew he was wanted for first-degree murder, and he was sent back to Colorado.

In early 2023, Dane Kallungi went before a jury, charged with first-degree murder. It took them just days to find him guilty; they also found him guilty of tampering with a human body. For his crimes, Dane was sentenced to life in prison without the possibility of parole.

Despite their wide-scale investigation, Jepsy’s remains have never been recovered. Her husband’s arrest is a small piece of closure for her family, but they have vowed to never give up until her remains are found. If you have any additional information, you are asked to contact the Colorado Springs PD at 719-444-7000.

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On August 6th 1992, a man walking his dog in a desert area of Apache Junction, just off US 60, came across the mummified remains of a young girl. Analysis by the Apache Junction Police Department estimated she had perished 4–10 weeks before her discovery. The M.E (medical examiner) was unable to determine her cause of death.

Days later, a news broadcast provided more information about the remains found on Aug 6th. The girl was estimated to be between 16 and 18 years old, with brown hair and standing 4’11” to 5’1”. Initially, it was believed she was Hispanic or Native American. She was found wearing denim pants, a light ‘Team Gear’ t-shirt, a light hairband and a yellow metal ring on her left finger.

In the pocket of her denim shorts was a yellow metal token with “Valid for student fare” on one side and “Phoenix Transit System” on the other. Investigators believed she was from Arizona, but the girl didn’t match any descriptions in local missing-person cases.

Despite initial interest, leads fizzled out fast, and investigators dubbed her ‘The Apache Junction Jane Doe’. In 2018, her case was taken on by the DNA Doe Project, which wanted to do further DNA analysis. In 2023, they announced that they had an updated racial profile. Apache Jane Doe was now listed as ¼ German, ¼ African-American and ½ Latin American.

Behind the scenes, the DNA Doe Project had found second/third cousins and was working to build a family tree. In 2021, they found Jane’s half-brother, Bernhard Lyon Neumann. Bernhard’s mother was German, and his father was African-American. The pair had met whilst his father was stationed in Germany. Bernhard was born in Germany, but was adopted and now lives in the U.S.

Bernhard had only been given his parents’ names and birthdays, but the DNA Doe Project were able to harness this information to find Jane Doe’s family. After years of painstaking work, the DNA Doe Project announced in 2023 that the Apache Jane Doe had been identified as 15-year-old Melody Harrison of Phoenix, Arizona.

Melody was reported missing in June 1992 by her family. In 1996, Melody was removed as the family had received ‘incorrect’ reports that she was alive, and living her life elsewhere. Melody’s body was finally returned to her family in the wake of her disappearance.

The Apache Junction Police are still trying to figure out how Melody ended up 40 miles away in the desert and who put her there. They are currently running with two suspects. The first is Scott Lehr, who was active in Phoenix in 1991/92 and was convicted of killing 3 women, but it is believed there are more victims.

The second is Bryan Patrick Miller, dubbed “The Zombie Hunter”, who was convicted of murdering 2 women in Phoenix in 1992. Both men targeted young victims, and any possible links are being looked into further.

For Bernhard and the Harrison family, Melody’s identification has allowed them to get closure on what happened to their beloved. Anyone with information in Melody’s case is asked to contact Det Jim Trout of the Apache Junction Police Department at 480-982-8260, quoting case number 923057.

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On April 5th 1988, the partial skeletal remains of a young man aged 17 to 18 years old were found in a remote desert wash in Tucson. His remains had been placed inside a trash bag and buried. He was around 5’11” with brown hair and had a unique feature. An extra left cervical rib, which the medical examiner stated would have caused him physical issues akin to a pinched nerve.

Despite the young age of their victim, the investigation was slow. Media interest was nonexistent, and soon all their leads dried up. It wasn’t until recently that the case began to move, all thanks to the DNA Doe Project. They were able to extract a DNA profile of the boy, now dubbed the Three Points John Doe.

Genealogists quickly made a stunning discovery: their John Doe was of Mexican descent. So, they began trawling American and Mexican records and discovered he may have moved from Sonora, Mexico, to Arizona. Within a matter of months, a possibly family were found and contacted.

But the relative they contacted did not know of anyone in their family missing. Weeks later, the relative contacted genealogists again, and this new information would lead to a break in the case. The relative explained they had been made aware that their cousin had disappeared sometime in the 1980s.

This cousin’s name was Rogelio Morales Caudillo. After digging a bit deeper, investigators learned that Rogelio was just 17 years old when he vanished from Tucson in 1986. They were then able to contact other family members for a DNA profile.

On April 15th 2026, almost 38 years to the day of his discovery, the remains of the Three Points John Doe were confirmed as 17-year-old Rogelio Morales Caudillo. Investigators are now focused on finding who murdered Rogelio and bringing them to justice.

• https://unidentified-awareness.fandom.com/wiki/Rogelio_Morales

• https://www.kgun9.com/news/local-news/skeletal-remains-found-on-tucsons-far-southwest-side-in-1988-identified

• https://dnadoeproject.org/case/three-points-john-doe-1988/

• https://www.doenetwork.org/cases/software/main.html?id=2473umaz

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Lisa Marie Young was described as a strong and formidable young woman. Lisa was a staunch vegetarian and loved to go to the gym. She was extremely close with her family and would often visit her mother, Joanne, for a cup of coffee and a chat. Both Lisa and her mother were proud of their Tla-O-Qui-Aht First Nations heritage and took part in cultural events.

By 2002, Lisa was getting ready to move into a new apartment and was considering enrolling in university. Unfortunately, Lisa would never get a chance to obtain her degree, and her life would take a very dark turn.

On June 29th, 2002, Lisa left her home and headed into downtown Nanaimo, British Columbia, to attend a birthday party at the Jungle Cabaret nightclub. The night went smoothly, and around 2:30 AM, the club closed. As Lisa and her friends stood outside, plotting their next move, they were approached by a stranger.

The stranger introduced himself as Christopher and told the girls that he was headed to a house party. He invited them to join, and as the night was still young, Lisa and her friends went with him. Christopher took the girls to two parties in Nanamio.

By 4:00 AM, Lisa had grown hungry after a long night of partying. Due to Lisa being a vegetarian, there was no food at the parties for her to eat, so Christopher offered to drive Lisa to a nearby restaurant. At 4:30 AM, Christopher and Lisa drove away from the party. Marking the last time she was seen alive.

Shortly after getting into Christopher’s car, Lisa called her friend and said, “Dallas, I dont know whats going on. This guy won’t bring me back. We’re sitting in a driveway on Bowen Road and he won’t bring me back. I’m bored; I’m getting pissed off.”

When Lisa didn’t return home the next morning, her parents became very worried. None of her friends knew where she was, and they all assumed she had just headed home after being with Christopher. Later that evening, Lisa’s parents attempted to report her missing to the RCMP.

The RCMP told Lisa’s parents they had to wait at least 48 hours before reporting her missing. Hours after this first report, an RCMP officer arrived at the Young home to tell them that he was going away for 4 days and they’d have to wait until he was back.

Joanne and Don, Lisa’s parents, were infuriated with how little regard the RCMP had for their daughter. Determined to find their daughter, they went to the media. A few days after their appeal, they received a call from the RCMP. Lisa’s case had now been taken on by the Serious Crimes Unit.

The RCMP stalled in Lisa’s case. They didn’t commence search efforts until September 2002, two months after Lisa had vanished. It wasn’t until the tail end of the year that Christopher, the last person to see Lisa alive, was interviewed. Joanne Young pressed Christopher for details, to which he replied, “I can’t, I’m sorry. I don’t mean to disrespect your family.”

Christopher Aldair has a long rap sheet; he has been arrested for assault, fraud, assaulting a police officer and unauthorised use of a credit card. He has maintained the same story: he dropped Lisa off somewhere after getting food, as she wanted to get a taxi home. He denies being involved in Lisa’s disappearance and maintains his innocence.

In June 2017, Joanne Young passed away aged 54. Her family believes that the stress of losing Lisa only worsened her medical conditions. According to sources, Joanne tried to keep Lisa’s Indigenous heritage a secret while reporting her daughter’s disappearance. She feared the media would paint her daughter as an alcoholic or a sex worker, drawing on offensive stereotypes of Indigenous and First Nations people.

Christopher Aldair is now believed to be living in Tokyo, Japan. The Tla-O-Qui-Aht First Nation has been the driving force behind the search for Lisa, and they have been far more proactive than the RCMP. Lisa’s family has held candlelit vigils, bought billboards and worked with TV shows and podcasts to get her story out there.

Lisa’s family wants her to be remembered as a fighter, a strong woman who wasn’t afraid to stand up for what was right. Anyone with information is asked to contact the Nanamio RCMP Office at 250-754-2345.

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A woman who has been missing since she was 13 years old has just been found alive and well in Arizona. She wasn’t kidnapped or taken against her will. She chose to run away. This is the story of Christina Marie Plante.

In May 1994, 13-year-old Christina Plant headed up to her stable in Star Valley, Arizona. She told her aunt and uncle she wouldn’t be long, but she never came back. A massive search was launched for the missing teen, but very few clues were found.

Investigators uncovered that Christina had spoken about running away before, but her friends didn’t think she was serious. At the time of her disappearance, she was living with her aunt and uncle and was very unhappy with the situation. Investigators classified her disappearance as an abduction, but the case quickly grew cold.

For 32 years, the community believed the case would never be solved, but the Gila County Sheriff’s Office was determined. Finally, in April 2026, they made a shocking breakthrough. Details are scarce, but we do know they ‘utilised new technologies’ to find Christina as an adult.

When officers tracked her down, she confessed and made another shocking revelation. She had run away. Some articles have said that Christina, who now goes by a new name, met with her mother the day she disappeared. It is believed the pair took a flight out of Arizona, and Christina has been living elsewhere ever since.

Christina has asked that her new identity be kept secret, and details of her new life have been omitted from reports. She told investigators that her disappearance was ‘her old life’ and she wants to get on with her life and her family in peace.

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What if your mother was really your kidnapper? Everything you knew was a lie. That’s exactly what happened to Baby K. On July 10th 1998, Kamiyah Mobley was born in Jacksonville, Florida. Her mother, Shanara Mobley, was just 16 years old when she gave birth to her, and was excited to meet her new addition to the family.

However, just 8 hours after giving birth, Shanara would face every parent’s worst nightmare. Her baby had been kidnapped from the hospital. Panic quickly set in as Shanara and her family begged the hospital to find her baby. Within hours, the hospital was swarming with police and staff trying to find the baby girl.

Very quickly into the investigation, Jacksonville Police stated that a woman, dressed in scrubs, had entered Shanara’s room. This woman helped out, but when Shanara asked the nurse to put Baby K in the carrier, the nurse bundled Baby K into her arms and left the room.

Shanara made a public appeal begging for her baby back, and the police put out a description. The woman was believed to be 25 to 35 years old, wearing glasses, a wig, a blue floral smock top and green scrub pants. Unfortunately, little came of this search, and the Mobleys were left to deal with their new reality.

Whilst the case seemed quiet in public, Jacksonville Police were working hard behind the scenes. In 2017, new tips came in, and it was around this time that a composite was made of Baby Kamiyah. This composite served as the only image of the stolen baby, as Shanara hadn’t had time to take pictures yet. The composite showed key details such as an umbilical hernia and Mongolian spots.

Luckily for investigators, a swab of Kamyiah’s DNA had been taken shortly after she was born, giving them a lot to work with. And in January 2017, they hit the jackpot. That DNA sample was matched to 18-year-old Alexis Manigo, living in Walterboro, South Carolina. Police met with Alexis and broke the news to her that she had been kidnapped at birth.

During this meeting, the police unravelled the full story and found their kidnapper. Alexis had been raised in South Carolina under the impression that Gloria Williams was her mother. She was also raised with two siblings, who she believed were her flesh and blood.

That was until she turned 17 in 2015 and needed her birth certificate to apply for a job. Gloria was extremely defensive and refused to hand over both the birth certificate and social security number. This is when Alexis began to suspect something was up.

Alexis did some digging of her own and eventually reconnected with her biological father. At the time of her birth, he was in prison for drug charges and charges relating to him impregnating 15-year-old Shanara Mobley when he was 19. Through finding her father, Alexis was able to reconnect with her father’s side and slowly began to find out the truth.

Shortly after Alexis was found alive and well, Gloria Williams was arrested and charged with kidnapping. Investigators were also able to uncover a motive. In 1998, Gloria was 33 and in an abusive relationship. In early July 98 she suffered a miscarriage. Police believe this motivated her to steal Baby K from the hospital on July 10th.

According to other reports, Gloria waited in the hospital for 14 hours, waiting for the perfect time to strike. It is unclear if there is a connection between Gloria and Shanara Mobley. After she took Baby K, she fled to SC and created a new identity for her new baby.

Alexis spoke at Gloria’s trial, stating she was a good mother who provided her and her siblings with everything they needed. In June 2018, Gloria Williams was sentenced to 18 years in prison for the kidnapping of Alexis/Kamyiah. In 2022, Gloria appealed her sentence.

At this hearing, Alexis submitted a statement, supporting Gloria, whom she states is her mother, and supporting a reduced sentence. She told the court, “I would like to make it very clear that she is my mother.” The appeal was denied and Gloria will not be released until 2032.

Shanara Mobley was awarded a $1.5 million settlement following Baby K’s kidnapping. Kamyiah/Alexis has now started the long path to reunification with her biological family. The path so far has not been easy, but her mother’s and father's sides are taking steps to have one another in their lives again.

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Louise Tume was born in 1987 in Leeds, England. Her childhood was marred by difficulty. Her father was involved in the criminal underworld and was not kind to Louise’s mother. By the late 1980s, Louise, her sister Rebecca and her brother were living in Edge Hill in Scarborough, North Yorkshire.

Despite the move, the family dynamic remained the same. The patriarch of the family was still involved in drugs and weapons, and the abuse continued. Eventually, Louise’s mother moved out of the home after suffering a miscarriage due to the physical abuse she endured.

When their mother moved out, Louise’s behaviour changed. She ran away from home often and found solace at her mother’s new place. Everyone in the area knew Louise as a runaway, and many felt there was little they could do to quell her feelings.

When Louise was around 10-11 years old, she was taken into care due to her frequently running away. Louise didn’t fare much better in foster care, though, and would run away from whichever home or couple she was placed with. She would often run away to see her siblings and mother.

Shortly after Louise was placed into care, so were Rebecca and her brother, effectively splitting up the siblings. This move did little to deter Louise, though, who took her role as the big sister seriously. Louise was told she could only meet her siblings under foster carer supervision, but these meetings were always cancelled at the last minute.

In 2003, Louise was planning her next moves, as in two years, when she turned 18, she would be removed from the care system. The UK has a long way to go in helping care leavers, even in 2026. According to Rebecca, Louise wanted to join the army and make something of her life.

In 2005, when Louise turned 18, she got her own flat in Darlington and was beginning to put plans in motion for the future. According to police reports, the final sighting of Louise was made in mid June 2005 in Islington, London. We have no idea how she ended up in London, or why she was there.

Meanwhile, Louise’s sister had no idea she was missing. In 2006, Rebecca received a call from Louise using a phone box. In the call, she said, “Becky, it’s me, I’m okay.” before the line went dead. This would be the last time Rebecca would ever hear from her sister again.

Following the call in 2006, Rebecca’s foster parents explained to her they had been keeping a secret. Louise had been missing for a year. The carers had decided to keep the secret as Rebecca was sitting her GCSEs, and now, she was left to reckon with this news.

According to Rebecca, the police haven’t been helpful in her sister’s case. “They just tell me there is no trace of her. They have interviewed a number of people from London - they don’t tell me who they are.” Nobody can seem to figure out why Louise was last spotted in London, over 246 miles from her flat in Darlington.

After Louise disappeared, Rebecca was given Louise’s belongings, including a suitcase. Inside the suitcase was a letter from a man, Lee James, and the letter had been sent from HMP Wormwood Scrubs, London. The letter read “I hope you are doing well and that you are staying away from London… I do not want you having anything to do with your old way of life.”

Not only was there a letter, but a phone book too. In this phone book, there was a number for a local restaurant near Louise’s flat in Darlington. When Rebecca spoke with Social Services about this restaurant and its owners, they raised suspicion. A social worker straight up told Rebecca they believed the owners were trafficking girls and women.

Despite these concerns, little has been done in the way of Louise’s disappearance or a public investigation into the owners. Rebecca has been the one to dig up tips, and not too long ago, she found another. A social worker admitted that she had met Louise in London sometime in 2006.

We do not know what the meeting was about or the exact date. The police have stated they could find no record of this meeting, leaving Rebecca to wonder whether it ever happened at all. The police believe that Louise was hanging around the wrong crowd in London, but nobody seems to know for sure why she was there.

Louise Tume, who may go by Anya Ford, is described as a white female, 5’6” with a slim build, with brown eyes and reddish brown hair. She was last seen wearing blue embroidered jeans, a blue denim jacket and pink sandals. Anyone with information, no matter how small, is urged to contact the Police at 101, Crimestoppers at 0800 555 111 or the Missing People charity at 116 000, quoting case ref 06-000681.

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