For months now, we’ve been dropping hints and waiting to finally share this case with you. Now we have the unique opportunity of sharing a story that has been trapped in the dark for three-quarters of a century: the missing persons case of two-year-old Earnest Cagle Jr.

On August 27, 1950, little Earnest vanished from the backseat of his family’s car outside a tavern in Buckhart, Illinois. Despite massive searches, the trail went entirely cold. Decades passed, the headlines faded, and terrifyingly, the official systems meant to look for missing children completely forgot he was gone.

But is anyone every truly forgotten? Not on this podcast. We’re pulling back the curtain on how a case sits outside the system for a lifetime, and the intense behind-the-scenes hurdles we faced to finally get Earnest Cagle Jr. into a missing persons database 76 years later.

SOURCES:

https://sangamoncountyhistory.org/2-year-old-vanishes-1950/

https://www.reddit.com/r/UnresolvedMysteries/comments/1s82has/in_the_summer_of_1950_2yearold_earnest_cagle_jr/?share_id=Ec_tUYEPetbm1RoqKRFBx&utm_content=2&utm_medium=ios_app&utm_name=ioscss&utm_source=share&utm_term=1

https://imgur.com/a/sQOg3YF

https://www.findagrave.com/memorial/101845582/earnest_doss-cagle

https://www.findagrave.com/memorial/27661107/hattie_adeline-cagle

https://www.newspapers.com/image/1324760865/?match=1&terms=earnest%20cagle

https://www.newspapers.com/image/85369970/?match=1&terms=earnest%20cagle

https://www.newspapers.com/image/85369026/?match=1&terms=earnest%20cagle

https://www.newspapers.com/image/1303733602/?match=1&terms=cecil%20delay%20tavern

https://www.newspapers.com/image/1303731320/?match=1&terms=cecil%20delay%20tavern

One hundred episodes later, we're diving into one of Indiana's most infamous unsolved cases.

On the night of November 17, 1978, four young Burger Chef employees vanished from the Speedway restaurant where they worked. Their bodies were discovered two days later in neighboring Johnson County, launching an investigation that has remained unresolved for nearly five decades.

In this milestone episode, we first revisit the timeline, the investigation, and the enduring questions surrounding the Burger Chef murders before sitting down with special guests Áine Cain and Kevin Greenlee of the Murder Sheet podcast. Together, we discuss their extensive reporting on the case, what they've uncovered through years of research, and why the victims' stories deserve to remain in the public eye.

As we celebrate our 100th episode, we want to thank every listener who has joined us in exploring the stories that deserve to be remembered. We couldn't have reached this milestone without you.

SOURCES:

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

https://www.newspapers.com/image/312819589/?match=9&terms=burger%20chef%20murders

https://www.wthr.com/article/news/local/site-of-1978-burger-chef-murders-to-be-torn-down-speedway-indiana-indianapolis-5725-crawfordsville-road/531-5f0c51dd-f92d-469c-b64d-94970bc74497

https://www.wrtv.com/news/local-news/crime/1978-burger-chef-murders-haunt-retired-detective-this-is-the-type-of-case-that-i-will-take-to-my-grave

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

https://vault.fbi.gov/speedway-indiana-burger-chef/Speedway%20Indiana%20Burger%20Chef%20Part%2001%20%28Final%29/view

https://www.aetv.com/articles/burger-chef-murder-cold-case

https://abcnews.com/US/hope-time-earth-answers-victims-sister-1978-unsolved/story?id=59191521

https://www.newspapers.com/image/106962941/?match=4&terms=mark%20flemmonds

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

https://www.newspapers.com/image/107586337/?match=1&terms=jayne%20friedt

https://murdersheetpodcast.com/

Before we hit triple digits, we wanted to sit down and answer your questions in a special Q&A episode!

From behind-the-scenes podcast drama to our favorite cases we’ve covered so far, we’re diving into your submissions and reflecting on the wild ride to 100 episodes. We’re also talking about what’s next for the podcast, where we see the next 100 episodes going, and the stories we still can’t stop thinking about.

Oh… and yes. We finally reveal the infamous Indiana cold case we’ll be covering for Episode 100.

To celebrate this milestone, we’re also doing a merch giveaway! Be sure to rate and review the podcast for a chance to win. Your support genuinely helps our show grow, and we can’t thank you enough for sticking with us through 99 episodes of mystery, chaos, and questionable emotional stability.

Episode 100 is almost here.

SOURCE:

https://www.tiktok.com/t/ZTB6Pkr1y/

A retired Air Force general vanishes without a trace. A NASA scientist disappears during a hike. Multiple researchers connected to nuclear, aerospace, and classified government projects are found dead under mysterious circumstances.

Now, federal investigators and Congress are looking into whether these cases are connected — or if the internet has spiraled ordinary tragedies into something far more sinister.

In today’s episode, we’re diving into the growing mystery surrounding at least 10 scientists and researchers tied to sensitive U.S. programs whose deaths and disappearances have fueled conspiracy theories, national security concerns, and intense online speculation. From UFO rumors to espionage fears, we break down what’s fact, what’s rumor, and why this story has captured so much attention.

Are these isolated incidents… or pieces of a much darker puzzle?

SOURCES:

In August 2011, 85-year-old Essie Mae McVey was found barely alive on the floor of her Greencastle, Indiana condo—shot in the back of the head in what investigators believe was a burglary gone wrong.

But here’s the thing… nothing was taken.

No forced entry.

No witnesses.

No murder weapon.

And in a quiet community just miles from DePauw University, the case barely made headlines.

In this episode, we’re diving into the unsolved murder of Essie McVey—a grandmother of three children, ten grandchildren, and nineteen great-grandchildren—whose life was taken in a matter of minutes during a narrow 76-minute window in broad daylight.

SOURCES:

https://www.suncommercial.com/banner_graphic/archives/article_eb0325f4-fdc6-5952-a1b4-db370f9929f2.html

https://www.newspapers.com/image/126386679/?match=1&terms=essie%20mcvey

https://www.suncommercial.com/banner_graphic/archives/article_6f35080f-1456-535e-9ea5-ec6bca1d0d37.html

https://www.dignitymemorial.com/obituaries/greencastle-in/essie-mc-vey-4800977

In 1964, an 18-year-old girl was walking to school in Wausau, Wisconsin… and never made it.

Eleanor Kaatz was attacked in broad daylight on a quiet island. Stabbed nearly 50 times and left near the river, she was somehow still alive when she was found. But two days later, she died from her injuries.

The man responsible, Terry Caspersen, was caught almost immediately. What he admitted—and what investigators uncovered—painted the picture of a deeply disturbed young man capable of extreme violence.

But what makes this case even more unsettling… is that it didn’t end with her murder.

After serving years in prison, he was released—only to attack again.

This is the story of a murder that shocked a community, a victim who fought to survive, and a killer whose violence didn’t stop when it should have.

SOURCES:

Coming soon!

This January (2026), the disappearance of Fishers teen Hailey Buzbee took the internet by storm. What initially presented as a typical missing persons case began to shift as investigators uncovered more about her online connections and the events that led her to leave home suddenly in the middle of the night. FOX59 and CBS4’s Max Lewis returns to help break down the disturbing details and how this case fits into a larger pattern of online risk.

SOURCES:

https://www.icactaskforce.org

https://www.wlky.com/article/indiana-legislation-amber-alert-sytem-hailey-buzbee/70297447

https://www.wishtv.com/news/crime-watch-8/suspects-cellphone-reveals-new-details-in-hailey-buzbee-case/

https://www.nbcnews.com/dateline/missing-in-america/hailey-buzbee-indiana-missing-teenager-endangered-rcna255287

https://www.21alivenews.com/2026/02/10/father-urges-indiana-lawmakers-pass-social-media-protections-after-daughters-murder/

https://fox59.com/news/we-just-miss-our-girl-family-hopes-missing-daughter-returns-home-safe/

https://www.wthr.com/article/news/local/portrait-on-display-at-fishers-city-hall-celebrates-hailey-buzbee-fall-creek-junior-high-school-exhibit/531-9c07345e-481d-4000-8ef7-b5acff72cf9c

https://www.wrtv.com/news/local-news/fishers-pd-missing-teen-hailey-buzbee-believed-to-be-deceased-suspect-in-custody-in-ohio

https://www.usmagazine.com/crime-news/news/missing-teen-believed-dead-man-she-met-through-gaming-arrested-police/

https://www.wlwt.com/article/hailey-buzbee-missing-tyler-thomas-remains-found-hocking-hills-ohio/70237930

https://www.wlwt.com/article/fbi-releases-statement-on-hailey-buzbee-investigation/70248540

https://www.wthr.com/article/news/crime/federal-charges-filed-suspect-death-fishers-missing-teen-hailey-buzbee-tyler-thomas-ohio/531-5b3b86f5-0b92-48dd-adc2-2c510eeb1ba3

https://youarecurrent.com/2026/02/12/fishers-church-hosts-celebration-of-life-for-hailey-buzbee/

https://www.indystar.com/story/news/local/2026/02/12/community-honors-hailey-buzbee-during-celebration-of-life-in-fishers-itown-church-pink-alert/88646205007/

https://www.indystar.com/story/news/crime/2026/02/03/hailey-buzbee-teen-remembered-as-kind-vibrant-with-passion-for-journalism-community-reacts/88491969007/?gnt-cfr=1&gca-cat=p&gca-uir=true&gca-epti=z115239p115850c115850v115239d--49--b--49--&gca-ft=165&gca-ds=sophi

https://www.wthr.com/article/news/crime/suspect-admits-to-communicating-with-missing-fishers-teen-hailey-buzbee-for-over-a-year-before-death-tyler-thomas-columbus-ohio-logan/531-8b2ed99e-5575-4ac8-bf5e-d8b336b3cc05

https://wsbt.com/news/local/new-pink-alert

https://www.reddit.com/r/Indiana/comments/1qzcz2a/missing_cousin_update/

https://www.justice.gov/usao-sdoh/pr/columbus-man-arrested-connection-indiana-teens-death-now-faces-federal-exploitation

https://www.justice.gov/usao-sdoh/pr/columbus-man-arrested-connection-indiana-teens-death-now-faces-federal-exploitation

https://www.10tv.com/article/news/local/fbi-searches-victorian-village-home-of-man-accused-in-disappearance-of-hailey-buzbee/530-96927a63-d102-41f7-9e5a-25edf8515bf7

https://abc6onyourside.com/news/local/columbus-police-fbi-hocking-perry-county-fishers-indiana-search-warrant-reveals-new-details-hailey-buzbee-tyler-thomas-death-investigation

https://www.indystar.com/story/news/crime/2026/02/09/hailey-buzbee-timeline-disappearance-death-fishers-indiana-tyler-thomas/88491447007/?gnt-cfr=1&gca-cat=p&gca-uir=true&gca-epti=z118439p005050n11----c11----v118439d--60--b--60--&gca-ft=204&gca-ds=sophi

https://www.flannerbuchanan.com/obituaries/hailey-buzbee?fbclid=IwY2xjawP8Pm9leHRuA2FlbQIxMQBzcnRjBmFwcF9pZBAyMjIwMzkxNzg4MjAwODkyAAEejxvTuEgfgSpqBFao70Q5IDIB4PVryXlNtsCK5iQltPty0XXxN3ufTE6xJZg_aem_hOIGlxgFZlh3DQGhcFViaA

https://www.wrtv.com/news/local-news/haileys-law-headed-to-indiana-lawmakers-what-the-proposal-would-change

Speculation Station is parked in Morgantown, West Virginia, this week—where we examine the murders of two college freshmen whose case still lingers in uncertainty... despite *technically being closed.

When best friends Mared Malarik and Karen Ferrell disappeared after a night out at the movies, it was initially written off as a possible runaway situation or hitchhiking gone wrong. Months later, the community was confronted with a far darker and more disturbing reality when their bodies were discovered in the woods.

Strap in and let us know if YOU think they got it right in the 1970 WVU Coed Murders.

SOURCES:

https://www.nbcnews.com/dateline/cold-case-spotlight/west-virginia-murders-mared-malarik-karen-ferrell-rcna192293

https://pmc.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/articles/PMC11528885/

https://www.cbsnews.com/news/karen-ferrell-mared-malarik-murdered-west-virginia-investigators-high-tech-help-evidence/

https://wvuengage.wvu.edu/event/8512723

https://www.oxygen.com/crime-news/investigators-examine-murders-karen-ferrell-mared-malarik

https://www.dominionpost.com/2022/10/15/the-overlooked-confession-morgantown-man-thinks-he-knows-who-killed-two-wvu-coeds-in-1970-and-hes-getting-assistance-from-the-state-police/

https://www.reddit.com/r/UnresolvedMysteries/comments/48y4rx/mystics_murder_and_missing_heads_the_1970_wvu/ 

https://www.coedmurders.com/about-mared-and-karen 

https://www.dominionpost.com/2022/05/21/wvu-coed-murders-how-one-set-of-parents-turned-grief-into-grace/

https://www.dominionpost.com/2022/05/15/renewed-investigation-begins-on-murdered-coeds-case-we-want-full-disclosure/ 

WVU Coed Murders: Who Killed Mared and Karen? 

In November 2025, 22-year-old Rebecca Park disappeared from Wexford County while 38 weeks pregnant. Friends and family desperately searched for the young mother-to-be, hoping she and her unborn baby would be found safe.

Weeks later, investigators made a devastating discovery in the Manistee National Forest — turning a missing persons case into a horrifying murder investigation.

As detectives uncovered what happened, the truth led back to people Rebecca should have been able to trust the most.

In this episode, we break down the disappearance, the disturbing allegations, and the investigation into the tragic murder of Rebecca Park.

SOURCES:

In January 2003, 40-year-old Lawrence “Larry” Groves vanished from his Lakeville, Indiana home.

Months later, after black flies swarmed the siding of his house and blackbirds gathered in the yard, a horrific discovery was made beneath a hidden trap door in the floor — Larry’s body, concealed in the crawl space under his home.

What followed was a case filled with unanswered questions, conflicting reports, suspicious activity, and DNA that led nowhere. Larry had fought back. Evidence was found. A person of interest was identified. And yet, more than two decades later, his murder remains unsolved.

Larry was openly gay in a time and place where that came with risk. He was vibrant, unapologetic, deeply loyal to his friends — and, according to some, overlooked by a community that didn’t always accept him.

Why didn’t this case receive more attention?

Who was banging on his door the night he was last heard from?

And how does a case with DNA evidence still go cold?

Today, we’re diving into the still-unsolved 2003 homicide of Lawrence Howard Groves — Indiana Cold Case #80 on the T.I.P.S. deck.

For anyone who might have information related to the homicide of Mr. Groves, they can call the Indiana State Police Cold Case hotline at 833-466-2653, send an email to [email protected], or call the ISP Bremen Post at 574-546-4900 and ask to speak with Det. Arthur Smith. They can also contact Michiana Crime Stoppers and leave an anonymous tip.

SOURCES:

https://www.reddit.com/r/UnresolvedMysteries/comments/fnu6ue/on_june_18th_2003_5_months_after_his/

https://uncovered.com/cases/lawrence-howard-groves-lakeville-in

chrome-extension://efaidnbmnnnibpcajpcglclefindmkaj/https://www.in.gov/idoc/files/2ndEditionHEARTS.pdf

https://www.in.gov/isp/crime-reporting/cold-case-investigations/cold-cases-by-county/bremen-district-investigations/lawrence-larry-howard-groves-01282003/

South Bend Tribune: https://www.newspapers.com/image/511548734/?match=1&terms=lawrence%20howard%20groves

https://www.newspapers.com/image/511545000/?match=1&terms=lawrence%20howard%20groves

https://www.in.gov/isp/crime-reporting/cold-case-investigations/cold-cases-by-county/bremen-district-investigations/lawrence-larry-howard-groves-01282003/

https://imgur.com/a/larry-groves-newspaper-clippings-GjdJQLK