Our True Crime Podcast

In Oklahoma, the Edmondson family was royalty.

For decades, the Edmondson name had been synonymous with public service, integrity, and leadership. Some people even called them "the Kennedys of Oklahoma."

It was because, generation after generation, they answered the call to serve.

Sarah's grandfather served in the United States Congress. Her great-uncle was both the governor of Oklahoma and, later, a U.S. senator. Her uncle served as the state's attorney general. And her father, Jim Edmondson, would become a justice on the Oklahoma Supreme Court.

Their reputation had been built on a deep commitment to the people of Oklahoma. The Edmondsons weren't known for scandal.

And then came Sarah.

Join Jen and Cam as we discuss ‘From Fiction to Fatal: William Savage & Patsy Byers.’

Shout out to Jason P, who suggested the episode!

Promo from our friend Chris at They’re Not Shadows notshadowspodcast@gmail.com

Listener discretion is by @octoberpodVHS

Music and editing by @theinkypawprint

Sources:

https://www.imdb.com/title/tt2773056/

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Natural_Born_Killers_copycat_crimes

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/James_E._Edmondson

https://www.washingtonpost.com/archive/lifestyle/1995/09/10/cold-blood/82d33fa3-5700-4585-bfc1-858e2dea9d4f/

https://www.latimes.com/archives/la-xpm-1995-09-25-ls-49759-story.html

https://pardonletter.wordpress.com/category/sarah-edmondson/

https://www.rcfp.org/judge-dismisses-natural-born-killers-incitement-case/

https://law.justia.com/cases/louisiana/first-circuit-court-of-appeal/1998/97-ca-0831.html

https://www.yahoo.com/news/crime-rewind-natural-born-killers-205200935.html

https://caselaw.findlaw.com/court/la-supreme-court/1455991.html

https://www.oklahoman.com/story/news/2010/05/20/sarah-edmondson-to-serve-parole-in-oklahoma/61245352007/

https://ew.com/article/1999/08/06/natural-born-killers-creates-controversy/

https://web.archive.org/web/20081206030915/http://www.freedomforum.org/templates/document.asp?documentID=3962

https://www.latimes.com/archives/la-xpm-1995-09-25-ls-49759-story.html

https://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/entertainment/1217642.stm

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In this special episode, Cam and Jen join forces with Dean and Laura from The Family Plot to unravel the haunting mystery of Ricky McCormick.

When Ricky McCormick’s body was discovered in a remote Missouri field in 1999, it seemed like a standard missing person case gone wrong.

However, the discovery of two encrypted, handwritten notes in his pockets turned an already baffling death into one of the most persistent puzzles in modern forensics. Despite being subjected to some of the finest cryptanalysts at the FBI, the meaning of these codes remains locked away, fueling decades of speculation about what really happened to him.

Join us as we examine the evidence, the dead ends, and why this cryptic case continues to haunt investigators today.

Don’t forget to subscribe to Dean and Laura’s podcast, The Family Plot. Available wherever you get your podcasts.

Music by Nico Fyffe-Vettese
Editing by Jesse Fyffe-Vettese
Check them out, The Inky Paw Print

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368. The Boogeyman of Melbourne: Mr Cruel

On August 22nd, 1987, a man wearing a balaclava broke into a home in Lower Plenty, Australia. After tying up the parents and their young son, he brutally assaulted their eleven-year-old daughter. Then, he did something truly chilling: he made himself a snack, sat down, and ate it, leaving the family tied up and traumatized in the other rooms.

This monster, who would eventually be dubbed “Mr. Cruel” by the media, was just getting started.

He went on to terrorize the suburbs of Melbourne, executing highly planned child abductions that sparked one of the largest police investigations in Australian history. Then, just as suddenly as he arrived, he vanished.

This case is still open. If you have any information on these abductions, please contact the Melbourne Police. Or Crimestoppers

Phone Number (Within Australia): 1800 333 000

Website (For international listeners or online tips): crimestoppersvic.com.au

Join Jen & Cam as they dive into the details behind 'The Boogeyman of Melbourne: Mr Cruel.'

*We are BEYOND excited to finally announce our next big adventure! Our True Crime Podcast will be turning 10 years old in 2028. To celebrate this huge milestone, we are heading to Europe for a once-in-a-lifetime 11-day trip to Belgium, the Netherlands, and Luxembourg!

We would love for you to come along.

It's officially a "Cheers to 10 Years Tour!" from July 8–19, 2028!

SAVE $150 per person if you book by July 20th!

You can visit our webpage travel webpage here to see the itinerary:

https://0tcp711.s.gy/VOfMrW

If you’re nervous or want more info, RSVP

for a 6pm July 16th Zoom call

https://0tcp711.s.gy/Ue4NG8

Our team:

Listener Discretion by ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠Edward October ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠

Research & Writing by Lauretta Allen

Executive Producers Nico & Jesse of ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠The Inky Pawprint⁠⁠

Sources:

https://youtu.be/ArIl4189jDw?si=RpwZGMKgwfzv_cmg

https://youtu.be/Jaq001Evc_c?si=CxsMwY8U6CL-_1pb

Apr 14, 1992, page 5 - The Age at Newspapers.com™ - Newspapers.com™

Mr Cruel - Wikipedia

Chilling new evidence in harrowing ‘Mr Cruel’ investigation | news.com.au — Australia’s leading news site for latest headlines

Major breakthrough in Melbourne’s notorious ‘Mr Cruel’ case - Starts at 60

A new profile of Mr Cruel, who may have been a burglar before he was a killer

Mr. Cruel: The Australian Serial Kidnapper Still at Large

Aug 29, 1987, page 5 - The Age at Newspapers.com™ - Newspapers.com™

Dec 29, 1988, page 1 - The Age at Newspapers.com™

Dec 28, 1988, page 1 - The Age at Newspapers.com™ - Newspapers.com™

Dec 31, 1988, page 2 - The Age at Newspapers.com™

Dec 30, 1988, page 1 - The Age at Newspapers.com™

Dec 29, 1988, page 1 - The Age at Newspapers.com™

Dec 28, 1988, page 1 - The Age at Newspapers.com™

Jul 06, 1990, page 4 - The Age at Newspapers.com™ - Newspapers.com™

Jul 05, 1990, page 3 - The Sydney Morning Herald at Newspapers.com™

Jul 07, 1990, page 5 - The Age at Newspapers.com™

Apr 16, 1991, page 3 - The Age at Newspapers.com™

Jul 07, 1990, page 4 - The Age at Newspapers.com™

Apr 15, 1991, page 1 - The Age at Newspapers.com™

Jul 05, 1990, page 7 - The Age at Newspapers.com™

Jul 21, 1990, page 17 - The Age at Newspapers.com™

Jul 07, 1990, page 1 - The Age at Newspapers.com™

Apr 21, 1991, page 5 - The Age at Newspapers.com™ - Newspapers.com™

Apr 17, 1991, page 9 - The Sydney Morning Herald at Newspapers.com™

Apr 30, 1991, page 3 - The Age at Newspapers.com™

Apr 29, 1991, page 3 - The Age at Newspapers.com™

May 27, 1991, page 8 - The Sydney Morning Herald at Newspapers.com™

Apr 15, 1991, page 1 - The Age at Newspapers.com™

Apr 20, 1991, page 1 - The Sydney Morning Herald at Newspapers.com™

Apr 24, 1991, page 10 - The Sydney Morning Herald at Newspapers.com™

Apr 11, 1992, page 20 - The Age at Newspapers.com™

May 29, 1992, page 18 - The Age at Newspapers.com™

May 11, 1992, page 5 - The Age at Newspapers.com™

May 17, 1992, page 3 - The Age at Newspapers.com™

Jan 29, 1995, page 2 - The Age at Newspapers.com™ - Newspapers.com™

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On March 27, 1993, the morning began like countless others for nine-year-old Jonathan Sellers and thirteen-year-old Charlie Keever. The two boys set off on their bicycles, planning nothing more extraordinary than a day of roaming, pedaling through familiar places, killing time, enjoying the small freedoms of childhood.

Throughout the morning and early afternoon, the boys were seen moving easily through the neighborhood. Witnesses recalled spotting them at a local arcade and a pet adoption center, lingering the way kids do when the day feels wide open. Later, they stopped at a Rally’s hamburger stand, where they bought lunch before heading off again on their bikes.

Their last confirmed sightings placed them in the Otay River Valley, an area the boys were known to frequent. Two witnesses briefly spoke with Jonathan and Charlie as they rode along the riverbed near a washed-out bridge. One of those witnesses would later recall a detail that stood out at the time and lingered afterward: a man driving a car across the open field, deliberately blocking the bike path. It struck her as strange, out of place in the quiet riverbed. Years later, she would identify a photograph of a blue sedan, similar in color and shape to the vehicle she had seen that day.

As evening approached and the boys failed to return home, worry turned quickly into alarm. Family members began searching nearby streets and paths. Jonathan’s brother mentioned the riverbed trail where the boys often rode, prompting their mother to head there in a growing panic. What he didn’t think to mention, what no one realized in time, was a hidden “fort” tucked away in the brush, a place the boys liked to crawl into “like a little cave.”

Join Cam and Jen on this episode of Our True Crime Podcast named “Hidden Fort: Jonathan Sellers and Charlie Keever.”

Listener discretion by @octoberpodVHS

Editing and music by @theinkypawprint

Sources:

http://www.signonsandiego.com/uniontrib/20040829/news_1m29erskine.html

https://scocal.stanford.edu/opinion/people-v-erskine-34617

https://www.reddit.com/r/serialkillers/comments/1hbddzh/scott_erskine_a_repeat_offender_responsible_for/

https://www.nbcsandiego.com/news/local/scott-erskine-charlie-keever-jonathan-sellers-death-row-appeal-south-bay-murders/159324/

https://www.cbs8.com/article/news/local/scott-erskine-dies-while-on-death-row-due-to-covid-19/509-3e957e89-6775-45a2-9f5f-d08c02e0844c

https://www.sun-sentinel.com/news/fl-xpm-2004-08-28-0408280095-story.html

https://web.archive.org/web/20130409222853/http://www.meganslaw.ca.gov/cgi/prosoma.dll?searchby=offender&id=18601082E9187

https://www.sun-sentinel.com/news/fl-xpm-2004-08-28-0408280095-story.html

https://www.mercurynews.com/2020/07/29/coronavirus-these-killers-died-on-san-quentins-death-row

https://www.cbsnews.com/sanfrancisco/news/2-condemned-san-quentin-inmates-die-of-apparent-covid-19-complications/

Who the (BLEEP) Did I Marry? Season 5, Episode 7 titled "The Face of Death"

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In this special episode, Cam and Jen talk with Ed & Melissa from Murder Unscripted, who dive into the decades-old mystery about the disappearance of Ilonka Cann.

On May 25, 1970, 22-year-old Ilonka spoke with her parents in Ohio, excited about coming home for a visit that summer. She never made that trip.

The very next afternoon, she vanished from her rural Pennsylvania farmhouse, leaving behind all her belongings and her 15-month-old son crying alone in his crib.

For decades, searches of the isolated property yielded nothing, while the case took bizarre legal turns regarding her husband's personal life. Finally, after fifty years, a 2024 coroner's inquest changed everything by officially ruling Ilonka’s disappearance a homicide.

Don’t forget to subscribe to Ed & Melissa’s podcast, Murder Unscripted. Available wherever you get your podcasts.

Music by Nico Fyffe-Vettese
Editing by Jesse Fyffe-Vettese
Check them out, The Inky Paw Print

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