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PODCAST

Once Upon A Crime

Step into the darker side of history with Once Upon A Crime, a true-crime podcast that delves deep into some of the world’s most gripping cases. Hosted by an expert storyteller, Esther Ludlow, each episode unravels the mysteries behind notorious crimes, exploring the lives of victims, perpetrators, and the intricate details of the investigations that followed. With carefully researched narratives, thematic series, and thoughtful insights, Once Upon A Crime offers listeners a captivating blend

true crime

All Episodes

37:58

S6 Ep208: Buried Truth: Christopher Denoyer

Once Upon A Crime ·

2021/06/27

A teenage boy goes missing in 1984. Authorities would quickly decide that he was a runaway, but his family didn’t agree. Fourteen years later his fate would be learned in a shocking and unusual way. Resources: The New Detectives: Grave Secrets - Season 8, Episode 7, The Discovery Channel Articles (Jackson Vallarta/Christopher Denoyer/Dale Vallarta) from The Californian newspaper, Feb 17 1998 to Feb 10, 2000 - Clipped from Newspapers.com Sign up for texts from Once Upon a Crime! Text OUAC to

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45:43

S6 Ep207: Buried Truth: Russell Tillis and "The House...

Once Upon A Crime ·

2021/06/14

In this month’s series “Buried Truth” I share cases where a person goes missing never to be seen again. Just when it seemed their fate would remain a mystery, the truth would be uncovered. This time, a neighborhood menace harbors dark secrets in his own backyard. This is the case of Russell Tillis and The House of Horrors. You can now receive texts from Once Upon a Crime! Text OUAC to 408-676-1770 to

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111:55

S5 Ep206: The Trailside Killer, Part 3

Once Upon A Crime ·

2021/05/24

This is a double episode to conclude the month-long miniseries where I detail the case of serial killer David Carpenter, known as “The Trailside Killer”. Carpenter stalked and killed men and women on the hiking trails of Marin County, San Francisco and Santa Cruz. Other suspected victims would disappear from San Jose and Daly City, California. Resources: The Sleeping Lady: The Trailside Murders Above the Golden Gate by Robert Graysmith, Penguin Books, (1990) People v. Carpenter, Supreme Court of

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29:30

S5 Ep205: The Trailside Killer, Part 2

Once Upon A Crime ·

2021/05/17

In Part 2 of this 3-part mini-series, I’ll continue the story about a random series of attacks that took place on hiking trails in northern California beginning in 1979, soon after David Carpenter was released from prison for an earlier violent crime spree. After three women were found murdered on Mount Tamalpais, investigators began to suspect that a serial killer was on the loose and targeting local hikers. This is the case of “The Trailside Killer”. Resources: The Sleeping Lady: The

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35:46

S5 Ep204: The Trailside Killer, Part 1

Once Upon A Crime ·

2021/05/10

This month I’ll be sharing a 3-part miniseries. In the late 1970s and early 1980s, Northern California was terrorized by a series of random murders that took place on hiking trails in state parks, national forests and coastal lands. The public began to suspect that a serial killer was lurking among them and the media began referring to him as “The Trailside Killer”. In this first part, I’ll detail some of the Trailside Killers earliest victims and describe how he was allowed to slip through the

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25:13

S5 Ep203: Artful Crimes, Volume 2: The Van Gogh...

Once Upon A Crime ·

2021/04/26

In 2002, two paintings were stolen from The Van Gogh Museum worth $30 million dollars. The investigation into this crime would involve law enforcement in several countries. Special investigators in both art crimes and organized crime units would also be brought in to solve the case of the missing Van Goghs. Resources: Documentary: Stealing Van Gogh (2018), Julian Hendy, Director. “How 20 Stolen Van Gogh Paintings were Recovered” by Erik Shilling for Atlas Obscura, Sept. 30, 2016.

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40:21

S5 Ep202: Artful Crimes, Volume 2: Frank Lloyd Wright...

Once Upon A Crime ·

2021/04/19

Famed architect Frank Lloyd Wright begins an affair with Martha “Mamah” Borthwick. When the scandal threatens his career and reputation, he builds a home near Spring Green, Wisconsin. Called “Taliesin”, it was supposed to be a place of peace and refuge for the couple, but in 1914, it became the site of a horrifying massacre. Resources: “Soulmate Stunt Loses its Zest”, Kokomo Daily Tribune, August 3, 1910. Frank Lloyd Wright by Jan Adkins, published by Penguin Random House, 2008 “Cook massacres

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59:03

S5: Bonus Episode: Listener Q&A

Once Upon A Crime ·

2021/04/14

To celebrate reaching 200 episodes we created a bonus episode to answer listener questions. Thanks everyone for submitting them! Links: www.Patreon.com/onceuponacrime To listen to our "haunted" episode go to Episode #108 - Haunted Homicides: The LaLaurie Mansion. Some hear a "ghost" at minute 20 or so. The Scott Peterson episodes with my sister, Yolanda is #71 and #72 - The 12 Crimes of Christmas - Laci Peterson, Part 1 and 2. Special thanks to Lorena Garcia for co-hosting this episode with me

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33:17

S5 Ep201: Artful Crimes, Volume 2: The Murder of Mary...

Once Upon A Crime ·

2021/04/12

A contemporary artist is murdered in broad daylight in Washington D.C. Conspiracy theories about who was responsible begin to swirl after her close connection to John F. Kennedy is revealed. Resources: “The Last Painting of Mary Pinchot Meyer” by Maria Hummel for Counterpoint, June 5, 2019. https://crimereads.com/the-last-painting-of-mary-pinchot-meyer/ “The forgotten female artist who may have been murdered by the CIA” by Alina Cohen for Artsy.net, May 16,

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45:34

S5 Ep200: Chopped: Anjette Donovan Lyles

Once Upon A Crime ·

2021/03/22

A young widow opens her own restaurant in Macon, Georgia in the 1950s. Suspicions arise when the people closest to her begin falling ill and dying. Was Anjette Lyles a serial killer? Resources: Lyles v. The State, Supreme Court of Georgia, (1959) "Anjette Lyles, Restauranteur of Death" by Ciaran Conlittle for Headstuff.org, Sept 28, 2017. "Criminal History: Anjette Lyles poisoned 4 family members for money" by Chelsea Beimfohr, 13wmaz.com. Links: Podcasts We Listen To:

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39:40

S5 Ep199: Chopped: Anthony Kelly and Gordon Ramsay's...

Once Upon A Crime ·

2021/03/15

Celebrity chef Gordon Ramsay enters London's Brixton Prison in 2012 in an attempt to teach a group of inmates to run a successful bakery. Would he succeed or would the men return to a life of crime once the cameras stopped rolling? Resources: "Mad for It" by Lynn Barber for The Guardian, May 13, 2001. "From criminal to trainee cook: 'I owe Gordon Ramsay a lot'" by Erwin James for The Guardian, Aug 14, 2013. "Gordon Ramsay's Embarrassing Arrest Inspired Him to Set Up a Prison Bakery for London

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40:50

S5 Ep189: Chopped: David Viens

Once Upon A Crime ·

2021/03/08

In this series we'll take a look at the restaurant industry to ask "What happens when good cooks go bad?". In this episode, a restaurateur in Southern California is suspected of murder when his wife disappears. What detectives discover would shock and horrify the community. Resources: "Witness: Cliff Jumper Threatened to Kill Wife", Nicole Mooradian for The Patch, Sept 14, 2012. "Did California Chef David Viens Kill, Then Cook Wife?", 48 Hours, May 13, 2013. "Los Angeles jury finds chef guilty

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28:09

S5 Ep197: Hookups from Hell: Takahiro Shiraishi -...

Once Upon A Crime ·

2021/02/22

A serial killer preys on vulnerable women in Tokyo, Japan. He will meet his victims on Twitter. (Caution: This episode contains the subject of suicide.) Resources: "Inside the mind of the Japanese serial killer who killed 9 people" by Walter Sim for The Straits Times, Nov 5, 2017. "Japan's 'Twitter Killer' Given Death Sentence for 9 Murders" by Ben Dooley for The New York Times, Dec 15, 2020. https://www.nytimes.com/2020/12/15/world/asia/japan-twitter-killer-death-sentence.html "Killer who

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41:15

S5 Ep196: Hookups from Hell: Wade Ridley - "The...

Once Upon A Crime ·

2021/02/15

Two women meet a man on Match.com. After they end the relationship, Wade Ridley vows deadly revenge. Resources: 20/20: In an Instant - "Match Made in Hell", ABC Television, aired July 1, 2017 Dating App Horrors: The Untold Story, A&E Network, aired May 2, 2019. "Mary Kay Beckman Sues Match.com", The Huffington Post, Jan 24, 2013

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47:48

S5 Ep195: Hookups from Hell: Mark Twitchell "The...

Once Upon A Crime ·

2021/02/08

A Canadian man, inspired by the television show Dexter, lures his murder victims through online dating sites. Resources: Dateline: Deadly House of Cards, NBC Television, September 16, 2011. "Alleged First Victim Recalls His Escape" by Nahreman Issa for CTV News, April 1, 2011. "'Dexter Killer' Mark Twitchell among members of dating site for inmates" by Scott Stevenson for CBC News, Jan 9, 2017 Mark Twitchell's "Profile of a Psychopath", retrieved on Scribd.com.

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39:44

S5 Ep194: Serial Predator: Curtis Dean Anderson - Part 3

Once Upon A Crime ·

2021/01/25

In Part 3 of this miniseries, Curtis Dean Anderson confesses to a high-profile missing child case. He would be investigated for a series of abductions and murders of children in Northern California. Was he a serial killer as he claimed or was this just another manipulation by this serial predator? Resources: “Portrait of ‘an absolute monster’” by Kevin Fagan for The San Francisco Chronicle, July 7, 2009 “List of Bay Area child kidnapping cases”, San Jose Mercury News, August 27,

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40:49

S5 Ep193: Serial Predator: Curtis Dean Anderson - Part 2

Once Upon A Crime ·

2021/01/18

In part two of this miniseries the bravery of an 8-year-old girl unmasks a serial predator named Curtis Dean Anderson. He would be linked to the disappearance of Xiana Fairchild. Resources: "Portrait of 'an absolute monster'", by Kevin Fagan for The San Francisco Chronicle, July 7, 2009. "Midsi Sanchez finds purpose, peace 20 years after being kidnapped in Vallejo", by Amy Maginnis-Honey for The Daily Republic - Solano County, July 2020. Letters from a Serial Killer, Kristi Belcamino and

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24:05

S5 Ep192: Serial Predator: Curtis Dean Anderson - Part 1

Once Upon A Crime ·

2021/01/11

A 7-year-old goes missing from Vallejo, California in 1999. It would be some time before Xiana Fairchild would be linked to a serial predator who would ultimately be connected to several missing and murdered women and children in Northern California and beyond. This is the first part of a month-long series about serial predator Curtis Dean Anderson. Resources: Letters from a Serial Killer: The true story of a mother and a journalist's fight to save a little girl's life by Kristi Belcamino and

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63:06

S5 Ep191: The Craziest Crime Stories of 2020 w/Leroy...

Once Upon A Crime ·

2020/12/14

This week my special guest is Leroy Luna from Excuse Me, That's Illegal Podcast. We discuss some bizarre crimes, the dumbest criminals and crime stories that could only have happened in

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88:58

S5 Ep190: Cases You Probably Haven't Heard About, But...

Once Upon A Crime ·

2020/12/07

In this episode I'll share three true crime cases you may not have heard of, but should have. My special guest host is Laurah from The Fall Line and One Strange Thing Podcasts. Resources: A Girl Like Me: The Gwen Araujo Story (2006), Lifetime TV. Trained in the Ways of Men (2007), directed by Michelle Prevost. Lumbee Indians in the Jim Crow South: Race, Identity, and the Making of a Nation, Malinda Maynor Lowery, (University of North Carolina Press, 2010). The Lumbee Indians: An American

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420 results

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