Crime by the Bar

This week Ana and Jonatan pretend covid isn't a thing (because it wasn't when this was recorded).

Ana's takes us to 1992 Croatia where Srđan Mlađan raises suspicions by obsessively renting Natural Born Killers... a crime that would never have been solved now that we all have Netflix.

Jonatan's crime is in Belgium in 2012 where something sketchy is going on with Stijn Saelen but does his family know more than they're letting on?

Our cocktail is a gin spiked 'Bitter Love' (with Parfait Amour, Gin, lemon juice and sugar). We drink it while discussing the mysterious murder of Dragica Gvero. Enjoy and stay safe!

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Support us by sharing with other podcast listeners or by making a contribution to our running costs - http://patreon.com/crimebythebar or https://ko-fi.com/crimebythebar

TW: murder, hitman, brief reference to suspected paedophilia (non-specific)

This week Jonatan and Ana discuss yoga, Norwegian crime and insurance claims.

We begin with the tale of Bella Gunness, aka Hell's Belle: where she went, fire and death often followed. Was she unlucky or responsible for the terrible things that happened to those around her?

Later we discuss Ingeborg Koeber from Bergen Norway; a woman who was once described by Arthur Conan Doyle as 'the most remarkable medium' he'd ever met. Was she genuinely talented or did she go to extreme lengths to ensure her prophecies came to fruition?

No cocktail this week. I'm sure we'll make up for it next time though.

Support us by sharing with other podcast listeners or by making a contribution to our running costs - http://patreon.com/crimebythebar or https://ko-fi.com/crimebythebar

CN: Murder mystery, arson, buried bodies, drowning

We're back! This week Ana shares a Christmas Eve murder from her hometown and Jonatan tells the tale a Christmas Day heist. We round off with a gingerbread cocktail.

Ana's story is about a Fanny Barber, a woman who found her husband William dead in their home and was soon accused of his murder. What does the evidence say and was Fanny capable of pulling off the murder with such limited time?

Jonatan covers the theft of 125 Mayan, Aztec, Miztec and Zapotec artefacts from the National Museum of Anthropology in Mexico City. Was it an inside job, did the security guards have two much to drink or was it the faulty alarm that facilitated the crime?

Enjoy! Merry Christmas.

This week we’re looking at suspiciously timed insurance claims. Jonatan starts with Michael 'Mullet Mick' Martin, an Australian man who was brutally stabbed in his home one night while his son was visiting. Fortunately (or strangely) his 28-year-old son escapes with only superficial injuries. You can see where this is going…

Then Ana talks about Derek Nicholson who goes missing during a beach outing with his pregnant partner Nikole Nagle. A week later, the insurance company won’t pay out and Derek shows up with amnesia. When police start investigating it looks like a clear setup.

Finally we round off with an ‘Anti-Freeze Slushie’ cocktail (with blueberry and marshino liqueur) and discuss some of our favourite insurance related crimes including Michael ‘Iron Mike’ Malloy and a teacher who has her students help her to commit insurance fraud in exchange for higher grades.

Did you enjoy today’s episode? Reach out on Twitter, https://twitter.com/crimebythebar or by email, [email protected]. You can get extras from the show at www.crimebythebar.com or support us at https://www.patreon.com/crimebythebar.

CN: stabbing, murder, poisoning, beating, alcohol

This Friday we have stories that leave us with many questions including: could we have seen this coming?

First, Ana tells the tale of Dublin teenager, Raonaid Murray, who was stabbed to death on her walk home. She was found by her sister not far from her front door. What happened? We put together the pieces but almost 20 years later, there are still no clear answers.

Then, Jonatan shares the bizarre end to Günther Stoll. The unemployed food technician had become increasingly paranoid over the preceding years, convinced ‘they’ were out to get him. One night he made a mysterious breakthrough but then claims something terrible will happen… only to befall a very strange fate hours later. Was this coincidence? Or were ‘they’ watching all along?

Tell us your theories! Reach out on Twitter, @crimebythebar, or by email [email protected].

CN: stabbing, car crash, murder, botched investigations, paranoia

It's a travel edition! This time we talk about people who just can't let go.

Ana talks about married couple Xiaoye “Alex” Wang and Tianle "Heidi" Li. With divorce looming, the situation takes a strange turn and it seems like it may be 'until death do us part' after all. Jonatan shares the story of an art heist in Rotterdam involving Picasso, Gauguin, Matisse, Monet, Meijer de Haan and Freud. It may not be murder, but the tale ends in tragedy.

Our drink of the week is a simple classic: tequila, lime and salt. It turns out to have been a bad choice for a Tuesday.

Don't forget to reach out to us on Twitter, @crimebythebar, or share you suggestions and stories by email, [email protected].

CN: poisoning, murder, destruction of art

It's a travel edition! This time we talk about people who just can't let go.

Ana talks about married couple Xiaoye “Alex” Wang and Tianle "Heidi" Li. With divorce looming, the situation takes a strange turn and it seems like it may be 'until death do us part' after all. Jonatan shares the story of an art heist in Rotterdam involving Picasso, Gauguin, Matisse, Monet, Meijer de Haan and Freud. It may not be murder, but the tale ends in tragedy.

Our drink of the week is a simple classic: tequila, lime and salt. It turns out to have been a bad choice for a Tuesday.

Don't forget to reach out to us on Twitter, @crimebythebar, or share you suggestions and stories by email, [email protected].

CN: poisoning, murder, destruction of art

To round off the working week we're looking at unsolved cases relating to mysterious office encounters.

First Jonatan has a brief but brutal mystery from England: when Ruth Penelope "Penny" Bell rushes off to a meeting there's no reason to think anything is amiss but when she's found brutally killed her activities in the lead up seem a little more suspicious. Did she know her killer?

Ana shares the strange fate of Susan “Su” Taraskiewicz , a Northwest Airlines employee, who experienced years of abuse at the hands of her colleagues. One September night she disappears in the middle of her shift and no one reports it. 30 hours later her body is found in her car. With many of her co-workers involved in fraud, was she killed to keep her quiet?

As always you can reach us by email, [email protected] or on Twitter, @crimebythebar.

CN: stabbing, sexual harassment, bullying, murder

This week we talk about awful incidents in the workplace.

Jonatan covers the infamous Xerox killer in Honolulu, Hawaii who, after years of odd behaviour, goes on an office rampage killing with a 'to-do' list of co-workers.

Ana shares a case from London: Cathy Marlow heads to the office on a Saturday to catch up on work after returning from vacation. Just before leaving the office she runs into an ex-colleague who shouldn't be there. Things do not end well.

Later, we have English Mojitos (with elderflower, mint and lime) and talk about some stressful jobs.

As usual you can reach us on Twitter @crimebythebar or by email [email protected].

CN: murder, rampage killers, graphic descriptions, alcohol

We continue movie week with more crimes that inspired films. First Jonatan, our native Nordic, takes us to Finland to tell us about the Lake Bodom murders in Espoo. This one has all the making of a horror story but is very real. Four teenagers go camping together and are attacked by a mystery man. Was it an angry local, a suspicious foreigner or the sole survivor who killed the others?

Ana then tells the story of the Frog Boys, one of the most terrifying true crime tales to ever come out of South Korea. On a Tuesday in early Spring, a group of five boys decide to go into the mountains in search of frogs and never return. After 10 years, many false accusations and the suggestion that they probably just ran away their bodies are found in an area searched many times before. Police still say there was no crime but gunshot wounds and blunt force trauma tell a different story.

As usual you can send us your thoughts and requests by email, [email protected] or on Twitter, @crimebythebar. You can find us on Patreon at www.patreon.com/crimebythebar

CN: descriptions of gore, blood spatter, bludgeoning, shooting, child murder, murder generally, death by suicide