Esther Castellani died under mysterious circumstances at just 40 years old in 1965. If not for the suspicion and tenacity of a hospital physician, her killer may have gotten away with murder.

Thank you again to Eve Lazarus for her coverage and research of this case!

Sources

• https://dailyhive.com/vancouver/bizarre-murders-bc-history
• https://montecristomagazine.com/community/heartwrenching-clue-cracked-one-vancouvers-infamous-homicides
• https://www.nsnews.com/local-arts/murder-by-milkshake-stirs-up-memories-of-notorious-case-3087157
• https://www.weremember.com/rene-castellani/5x4f/memories
• https://radiowest.ca/forum/viewtopic.php?f=18&t=30625
• https://www.nydailynews.com/news/crime/radio-star-kills-wife-aresenic-laced-milkshakes-article-1.2249428
• https://evelazarus.com/tag/esther-castellani/
• https://evelazarus.com/the-maharajah-alleebaba/
• https://evelazarus.com/guy-in-the-sky-the-bowmac-sign/
• https://vancouversun.com/news/local-news/five-decades-after-her-father-the-maddest-ad-man-of-them-all-murdered-her-mom-in-infamous-milkshake-murder-case-jeannine-castellani-opens-up?_ga=2.170402338.386020716.1668282615-1434007836.1668282615&_gl=1*iun4hd*_ga*MTQzNDAwNzgzNi4xNjY4MjgyNjE1*_ga_72QH41ZTMR*MTY2ODI4MjYxNS4xLjAuMTY2ODI4MjYxNS42MC4wLjA.
• https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=DXbYuQW0bTM
• https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=dUgdD4hMnTA

Jimmy and Lily Ming were kidnapped from their home shortly after a family wedding in January of 1985 in the Strathcona neighborhood of Vancouver, BC. The Ming family received a ransom note the next day with an impossible sum, but tried their best to not only raise the ransom money but reason with the kidnappers. 7 weeks later, the kidnapping would come to a tragic end, but investigators could only speculate about who was responsible. Today, the case of Jimmy and Lily Ming is still unsolved - what happened to this young couple?

Thank you to Eve Lazarus and her book Cold Case Vancouver for much of the groundwork covering this story + continually looking for answers!

Sources

• https://www.vancouverisawesome.com/history/vancouver-cold-case-files-murder-on-the-edge-of-chinatown-4543731
• https://evelazarus.com/on-the-edge-of-chinatown/
• https://arsenalpulp.com/Books/C/Cold-Case-Vancouver
• https://www.websleuths.com/forums/threads/canada-jimmy-29-lilly-ming-30-abducted-found-dismembered-in-sacks-vancouver-jan-1985.597374/
• https://www.reddit.com/r/UnresolvedMysteries/comments/owlvip/the_kidnapping_and_murder_of_jimmy_and_lily_ming/
• https://www.theglobeandmail.com/news/national/mcmynn-case-revives-past-traumas/article706073/
• https://www.newspapers.com/clip/33062351/1985-may17-vcr-sun-pg23-jimmy/
• https://archive.macleans.ca/article/1985/4/8/a-wave-of-gang-violence
• https://www.newspapers.com/image/495318331/?terms=%22jimmy%20and%20lily%22%20ming&match=1
• https://www.newspapers.com/image/495139928/?terms=%22jimmy%20and%20lily%22%20ming&match=1
• https://www.newspapers.com/image/494830676/?terms=%22jimmy%20and%20lily%22%20ming&match=1
• https://www.newspapers.com/image/494817720/?terms=%22jimmy%20and%20lily%22%20ming&match=1
• https://www.newspapers.com/image/493855143/?terms=%22jimmy%20and%20lily%22%20ming&match=1
• https://www.newspapers.com/image/501818472/?terms=%22jimmy%20and%20lily%22%20ming&match=1
• https://www.newspapers.com/image/501810526/?terms=%22jimmy%20and%20lily%22%20ming&match=1
• https://www.newspapers.com/image/501820328/?terms=harry%20ming&match=1
• https://www.newspapers.com/image/495262729/?terms=harry%20ming&match=1
• https://www.newspapers.com/image/495263258/?terms=harry%20ming&match=1
• https://www.newspapers.com/image/493854338/?terms=jimmy%20ming&match=1
• https://www.newspapers.com/image/493854339/?terms=jimmy%20ming&match=1
• https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Vietnamese_boat_people#Refugee_camps
• https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Triad_(organized_crime)#Based_elsewhere
• https://www.solvecrime.ca/index.php/en/

Alyssa Angelique McLemore has been missing under (in our opinion) extremely suspicious and dangerous circumstances for over THIRTEEN YEARS. Sara takes us to Kent, WA to dive into the minimal information available about Alyssa and her case. What happened to Alyssa McLemore?

If you have any information regarding Alyssa's case, please contact either of the below authorities:

Washington State Patrol Missing Persons @ 1-800-543-5678

Kent Police Department @ 253-856-5807

Sources

• https://charleyproject.org/case/alyssa-angelique-mclemore
• https://people.com/crime/alyssa-mclemore-911-call-help-me-2009-disappearance/
• https://medium.com/@jennbaxter_69070/the-strange-disappearance-of-alyssa-mclemore-b51f0d8b724e
• https://vocal.media/criminal/young-indigenous-mother-vanishes-after-making-distressing-911-call
• https://www.kentreporter.com/news/i-just-want-closure-friend-of-missing-kent-woman-alyssa-mclemore-refuses-to-give-up-the-search/
• https://www.seattletimes.com/seattle-news/law-justice/a-kent-woman-called-911-then-disappeared-that-was-10-years-ago-her-family-and-police-want-to-find-her/
• https://www.theguardian.com/us-news/2019/apr/30/missing-native-american-women-alyssa-mclemore
• https://www.facebook.com/groups/missingalyssamclemore/
• https://www.newspapers.com/image/675606819/?terms=%22Alyssa%20McLemore%22&match=1

As promised, another spooky episode (because it was supposed to be released on Halloween, sorry about that!) from Caro this time, focusing on just a few instances of "witchy" happenings in Oregon from the 1800s up to modern day!

Sources

• https://www.thetravel.com/how-to-get-to-witchs-castle-oregon/
• https://puzzleboxhorror.com/urban-legends-the-gypsy-curse-of-lafayette-or/?amp
• https://portlandghosts.com/top-10-most-haunted-places-in-oregon/
• https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Stone_House_(Portland,_Oregon)
• https://www.atlasobscura.com/places/the-witches-castle-portland-oregon
• https://qz.com/quartzy/1443802/paddleboarding-witches-takeover-an-oregon-river-for-halloween/amp/
• https://wildhunt.org/2018/01/paranormal-reality-show-blames-witch-community-for-hauntings.html
• https://www.witchcamp.org/index.php/wcamp-header/camps/free-cascadia
• https://web.archive.org/web/20150528100823/http://www.centralportland.com/danford-balch-northwest-portland-country-boy-2011-08-16
• https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Danford_Balch
• https://newsregister.com/article?articleId=6462
• https://visitgrantspass.com/live-rogue/golden-ghost-town/
• https://stateparks.oregon.gov/index.cfm?do=park.profile&parkId=189
• https://www.newspapers.com/image/9634461/?terms=danford%20balch&match=1
• https://www.newspapers.com/image/96031135/?terms=mortimer%20stump&match=1
• https://www.newspapers.com/image/9634461/?terms=%22danford%20balch%22&match=1
• https://www.newspapers.com/image/197147727/?terms=richard%20marple&match=1
• https://www.newspapers.com/image/16217693/?terms=richard%20marple&match=1
• https://www.newspapers.com/image/81246718/?terms=richard%20marple&match=1
• https://www.newspapers.com/image/197150324/?terms=richard%20marple&match=1
• https://didyouknowfacts.com/gloomy-ghosts-witchs-castle/
• http://offbeatoregon.com/1710d.marple-the-triple-ax-murderer-466.html
• https://newlafayette.org/lafayette-history/an-ax-murder-a-hanging-and-a-curse-in-lafayette/
• https://books.google.com/books?id=ocPi8x4gkn0C&pg=PA133&lpg=PA133&dq=corker+murder+lafayette+oregon&safe=strict&source=bl&ots=3iGzuDnaQk&sig=5XpTRcgpy_4uUihuF2WfAoW600I&hl=en&ei=cjrKS-biM4usswOQ37CxAw&sa=X&oi=book_result&ct=result&resnum=1&ved=0CAkQ6AEwAA#v=onepage&q=corker%20murder%20lafayette%20oregon&f=false
• https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ley_line
• https://www.facebook.com/groups/PDXSUPWITCHES/

Today's minisode takes us to Portland, Oregon for a spooky story: a tragic, real murder that became a local ghostly tale, and a reminder that ghosts were people too, at some point. This is the sad story of the tragic murder of Thelma Taylor.

Sources

• https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Murder_of_Thelma_Taylor
• https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Cause_c%C3%A9l%C3%A8bre
• https://archive.ph/qCo1R
• https://www.findagrave.com/memorial/13089920/thelma-anne-taylor/photo
• http://americashauntedroadtrip.com/tag/thelma-taylor/
• https://www.oregonlive.com/books/2016/10/ghostland_cathedral_park_st_jo.html
• https://www.leagle.com/decision/1951788190or5981749
• https://www.newspapers.com/clip/105531074/leland/
• https://www.newspapers.com/clip/35878170/daily-news/
• https://news.google.com/newspapers?id=eLwhAAAAIBAJ&pg=5560%2C3195374&dq=thelma+taylor+portland+morris+leland&hl=en
• https://www.newspapers.com/clip/110677492/news-pilot/
• https://www.newspapers.com/clip/110677313/the-miami-news/
• https://www.newspapers.com/clip/35878104/the-capital-journal/
• https://www.newspapers.com/clip/35878134/the-san-francisco-examiner/
• https://news.google.com/newspapers?nid=1243&dat=19510406&id=D25YAAAAIBAJ&pg=4675,5233720
• https://www.newspapers.com/clip/35878156/independent/
• https://news.google.com/newspapers?nid=1310&dat=19530105&id=AyVWAAAAIBAJ&pg=2249,5139737
• https://www.facebook.com/profile.php?id=100063040608879
• https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=LEpCsV4icSg
• https://www.oregonlive.com/history/2018/01/the_most_cold-blooded_cowardly.html
• Ghostland, An American History in Haunted Places by Colin Dickey

As promised, Sara brings us a sampling of spooky from around Washington and Oregon's hiking trails! Have you hiked any of these trails? Seen or felt anything creepy, eerie, or was it just spooky enough to send a shiver down your spine?

Sources

• https://www.wta.org/go-outside/seasonal-hikes/fall-destinations/haunted-hikes
• https://www.travelchannel.com/interests/haunted/photos/scariest-haunted-hiking-trails-us
• https://www.onlyinyourstate.com/washington/iron-goat-trail-haunted-hike-wa/
• https://www.themandagies.com/haunted-hikes-in-the-pacific-northwest/
• https://thatoregonlife.com/2021/10/haunted-trails-and-places-pacific-northwest/
• http://www.activelynorthwest.com/fitness/haunted-hikes-in-washington/
• https://backpackerverse.com/haunted-hikes-washington/
• https://www.wta.org/go-hiking/hikes/lime-kiln
• https://www.wta.org/go-hiking/hikes/iron-goat-trail
• https://www.wta.org/go-hiking/hikes/hoh-river-blue-glacier
• https://www.wta.org/go-hiking/hikes/mine-shaft-trail
• https://www.wta.org/go-hiking/hikes/south-coldwater-trail
• https://www.wta.org/go-hiking/hikes/silver-star-mountain
• https://www.wta.org/go-hiking/hikes/gingko-petrified-forest-interpretive-trails
• https://www.wta.org/go-hiking/hikes/monte-cristo-143
• https://www.wta.org/go-hiking/hikes/camp-muir
• https://www.wta.org/go-hiking/hikes/spruce-railroad
• https://www.alltrails.com/trail/us/oregon/multnomah-falls-trail
• https://www.onlyinyourstate.com/oregon/portland/haunted-hike-portland/
• https://www.alltrails.com/trail/us/oregon/lithia-park-loop
• https://www.oregonhauntedhouses.com/real-haunt/lithia-park.html
• https://thatoregonlife.com/2021/10/haunted-trails-and-places-pacific-northwest/
• https://www.onlyinyourstate.com/oregon/scaponia-park-haunted-hike-or/
• https://www.wta.org/go-hiking/hikes/ape-cave
• https://www.nationalparkstraveler.org/2009/10/more-few-ghost-stories-swirl-about-crater-lake-national-park4821
• https://www.onlyinyourstate.com/oregon/sinister-story-crater-lake-or/

CW: this episode contains descriptions of cannibalism, abuse of a corpse, the murder of children, and animal cruelty; please take care when listening.

The 1970s were a really rough time for Sacramento, CA - not only was the East Area Rapist (later coined the Golden State Killer) terrorizing the community, but a blitz of killings were committed from December 1977 to January 1978 that haunt the community to this day. A killer who only entered homes with unlocked doors because he felt that meant he was "welcome." A killer who literally drank his victims' blood - the Vampire of Sacramento.

Note from Caro: we had a little audio issue at the end of the episode so we had to do some splicing, please forgive us!

Sources

• A Thirst for Blood: The True Story of California's Vampire Killer, Ray Biondi + Walt Hecox
• Worlds Most Evil Killers S4 Ep 8 "Richard Chase"
• Conversations with a Serial Killer S1 Ep 3 "Richard Trenton Chase"
• Serial Killers Podcast (Parcast) "The Vampire of Sacramento" Pt 1 & Pt 2
• https://murderpedia.org/male.C/c/chase-richard.htm
• https://www.newspapers.com/clip/17519262/ambrose-griffin/
• https://www.newspapers.com/search/?query=ambrose%20griffin&s_place=Sacramento%2C%20CA&dr_year=1977-1977
• https://www.newspapers.com/image/620935164/?terms=ambrose%20griffin&match=1
• https://www.the-sun.com/news/4563217/vampire-sacramento-killer-victim-speaks-pregnant-wife-murder/

Sara takes us to the spooky side of things and details some of the origin stories of Seattle's supposedly haunted Georgetown Morgue, now a haunted house that you can visit today (if you dare).

Sources

• https://seattlehaunts.com/morgue-history/
• https://www.dailyuw.com/features/the-georgetown-morgue-gruesome-true-story-or-fabrication/article_76fc03af-243f-5802-86bc-27e4e3ae2822.html
• https://www.onlyinyourstate.com/washington/georgetown-morgue-haunted-house-wa/
• https://komonews.com/archive/georgetowns-haunted-history-unearthed
• https://www.atlasobscura.com/places/georgetown-castle
• https://seattleterrors.com/terrifying-times-at-georgetown-castle/
• https://www.king5.com/article/features/georgetown-morgue-seattle-haunted-house/281-65cc72c4-a66d-4753-98c6-343a162c10a3
• The Ghostly Tales of the Pacific Northwest by Deborah Cuyle - Published 2022
• Haunted Graveyard of the Pacific by Ira Wesley Kitmacher

CW: this episode contains graphic crime scene descriptions, the accidental death of a child, and the violent murder of a pregnant woman

On Halloween night, 1984, police in San Jose, California responded to a scene one would later describe as a "Halloween horror show" in the front hallway of Charles and Doreen Erbert's suburban home. In the corner of the crime scene, near the door, lay a rubber mask in the shape of a cartoon wolf's head. This is a story of tragedy that lead to vengeful murder on Halloween night.

Sources

• https://www.newspapers.com/image/379262016/?terms=doreen%20erbert&match=1
• https://www.newspapers.com/image/460524251/?terms=doreen%20erbert&match=1
• https://www.newspapers.com/image/460628381/?terms=doreen%20erbert&match=1
• https://www.newspapers.com/image/758479889/?terms=doreen%20erbert&match=1
• Snapped, S26 Ep9 "William Dennis"
• https://crimesandconsequences.com/william-dennis/
• https://www.newspapers.com/image/461356699/?fcfToken=eyJhbGciOiJIUzI1NiIsInR5cCI6IkpXVCJ9.eyJmcmVlLXZpZXctaWQiOjQ2MTM1NjY5OSwiaWF0IjoxNjYzODE1MDE4LCJleHAiOjE2NjM5MDE0MTh9.zR6FjaLOqQRfNUwhYuI5va4yXcYtKr-7UsPX5uTLNNc
• https://www.record-bee.com/2016/09/30/condemned-inmates-victims-families-speak-out/
• https://medium.com/@crimewaffles/william-michael-dennis-the-murderer-in-the-wolf-mask-4ec6ebeb8f59
• https://kileystruecrime.squarespace.com/kileystruecrimeaddict-blog/the-halloween-murder-of-doreen-erbert
• https://www.oxygen.com/snapped/crime-news/michael-dennis-kills-ex-wife-doreen-erbert-wolf-mask-halloween

Janet Farris went missing en route to a family wedding in British Columbia, Canada in October of 1992. Decades later, an underwater discovery on a family vacation would help finally give her family answers as to just what happened to Janet.

Sources

• https://www.washingtonpost.com/nation/2019/09/09/canada-teen-gopro-missing-car-years/
• https://www.today.com/news/teen-gopro-camera-helps-find-body-missing-woman-lake-t162382
• https://www.cbc.ca/news/canada/british-columbia/body-missing-revelstoke-werenka-13-boy-1.5271853
• https://www.revelstokereview.com/news/honoured-for-helping-solve-a-near-30-year-0ld-mystery-of-missing-woman-near-revelstoke/
• https://www.timescolonist.com/local-news/island-womans-body-found-in-lake-27-years-after-she-vanished-4675483#:~:text=Next-,The%20discovery%20of%20his%20mother's%20body%20inside%20her%20car%20in,niece's%20wedding%20in%20Innisfail%2C%20Alta.
• https://www.newspapers.com/image/502988544/?terms=%22Janet%20Farris%22&match=1
• https://www.newspapers.com/image/325479297/?terms=%22Janet%20Farris%22&match=1
• https://www.newspapers.com/image/503126258/?terms=%22Janet%20Farris%22&match=1