Crime Off The Grid

From the newsroom this episode… a body from a murder was dumped in a popular southern National Park, 2 bodies were discovered by rangers in a Utah National Park, a mass murder attack on a popular ski area was thwarted, and…quicksand is REAL!

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Sources:
https://www.sltrib.com/news/2026/01/09/2-people-found-dead-canyonlands/ https://people.com/colorado-mom-and-son-6-dead-suspected-murder-suicide-11883722 https://www.charlotteobserver.com/news/local/crime/article313975656.html https://www.wsmv.com/2026/01/09/man-pulls-gun-great-smoky-mountains-visitor-fires-shots-park-service-says/?fbclid=IwY2xjawPXR_NleHRuA2FlbQIxMABicmlkETFIUXh3Qk1tV1pjYkg5ckNUc3J0YwZhcHBfaWQQMjIyMDM5MTc4ODIwMDg5MgABHrn7vIXMmyGvrCbi0eYbPc8E7pitT8tpQd7CTPCRfJ_kBRIJ4YPHOw9c2Gb9_aem_dLDKv4mYvVJUd8iXUNGZLg https://www.charlotteobserver.com/news/state/north-carolina/article314265634.html https://www.outsideonline.com/outdoor-adventure/snow-sports/colorado-ski-mass-shooting-threat/

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In this episode, Tara and Nancy examine the brutal murders of two Arizona teenagers who set out on what was supposed to be a simple Memorial Day camping trip and never returned.The two disappeared while camping near Mount Ord in the Tonto National Forest, a rugged and remote area of central Arizona. When deputies located their vehicle, disturbing evidence quickly turned a missing-persons case into a homicide investigation.

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Helpful Resources:  Parents of Murdered Children https://www.pomc.org/

Source Material
https://abcnews.go.com/US/suspect-arrested-months-after-2-teens-found-murdered/story?id=126183418#:~:text=The%20sheriff's%20office%20said%20Thomas,%2Dyear%2Dold%20Evan%20Clark.

https://www.cbsnews.com/minnesota/news/former-national-guard-member-charged-murder-arizona-campers/

 https://abcnews.go.com/US/suspect-arrested-months-after-2-teens-found-murdered/story?id=126183418#:~:text=The%20sheriff's%20office%20said%20Thomas,remote%20hiking%20and%20camping%20area.

Suspect indicted for deaths of Valley teenagers at Mount Ord | 12news.com

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A hidden treasure. A cryptic poem. And a decade-long search that pulled thousands of people deep into the wilderness—sometimes with fatal consequences. Tara and Nancy unravel the full story of the Forrest Fenn treasure hunt, and the obsession it inspired across the Rocky Mountains.  these clues sent people into some of the most dangerous terrain on public land, and the tragic deaths, rescues, and criminal cases tied to the hunt—Drawing on firsthand ranger experience and rarely discussed details, this episode explores how a quest meant to inspire adventure quietly became one of the deadliest games ever played on public land—and what it reveals about risk, obsession, and the unforgiving nature of the wilderness.

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https://www.seattletimes.com/nation-world/a-treasure-hunter-got-lost-in-yellowstone-looking-for-a-millionaires-hidden-trove-he-must-repay-the-rescue-costs/#:~:text=He%20did%2C%20thanks%20to%20a,entering%20Yellowstone%20for%20five%20years.

https://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-9118491/Utah-man-dug-Forrest-Fenns-hidden-treasure-Yellowstone-faces-years-prison.html

https://www.justice.gov/usao-wy/pr/forrest-fenn-treasure-hunter-indicted-damage-yellowstone-national-park

https://www.nps.gov/aboutus/foia/upload/ForrestFenn_Emails_Incidents_forWeb.pdf

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A celebrity of the rock climbing world may be a violent, serial predator.  A survey posted in several outdoor magazines and the special agents of the National Park Service put together a case that showed  just because you can climb so high, doesn't mean you wont go down HARD.

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GET HELP
National Sexual Assault Hotline1-800-656-4673https://www.rainn.org/ 
National Domestic Violence Hotline800-799-7233https://www.thehotline.org/?utm_source=youtube&utm_medium=organic&utm_campaign=domestic_violence 
 
Sources:#SafeOutside Survey
US District Court, Eastern District of California, United States V Charles Barrett, 1:22-cr-00213-ADA-BAM-1, 7-13-23
https://www.justice.gov/usao-edca/pr/professional-rock-climber-convicted-sexual-assaults-yosemite-national-park
https://www.outsideonline.com/outdoor-adventure/climbing/climber-charles-barrett-assault-trial/?scope=anonhttps://www.climbing.com/gym-climbing/sexual-assault/

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A woman was found dead below a 140-foot cliff at Miner’s Castle in Pictured Rocks National Lakeshore after her husband reported that she had fallen while he was away using the restroom. What initially appeared to be a tragic accident quickly unraveled as investigators uncovered shifting stories, troubling behavior, financial pressure, and a long history of emotional and physical abuse within the marriage. This is a case that highlights how intimate partner violence, coercive control, and deception can hide in plain sight, even in the most breathtaking wilderness settings.

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Sources
https://www.nps.gov/piro/learn/news/richardson-sentenced.htmhttps://www.govinfo.gov/content/pkg/USCOURTS-miwd-1_14-cv-01250/pdf/USCOURTS-miwd-1_14-cv-01250-0.pdfhttps://www.nbcnews.com/id/wbna25443664https://www.newspapers.com/article/lansing-state-journal/26563548/

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Bringing this one out from the Ranger Vault!  This is one of our favorite early episodes and it was Nancy's debut as a "guest" host! A brutal crime was committed at Ft Eustis Military base in Virginia, and the suspects fled to Shenandoah National Park.  A cool headed ranger lead the chase involving  multiple law enforcement agencies to bring the bizarre criminals to an ending no one could have expected.

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Also...We've Got Merch!!

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Check out Duane Martinz!
https://www.duanemartinz.com/

Sources:
US v Montowski; US District Court for the Western District of VA, October 9,2009
https://archives.fbi.gov/archives/norfolk/press-releases/2010/nf051710.htmhttps://www.cbsnews.com/news/gunman-dressed-as-the-joker-shot-by-police/https://www.theguardian.com/world/2009/mar/13/police-shoot-man-dressed-as-jokerhttps://www.upi.com/Top_News/2009/03/12/FBI-joins-inquiry-into-soldiers-shooting/44071236879818/https://wfcreport.com/2009/03/13/not-just-a-rumor-iraq-vet-killed-on-skyline-drive-loved-the-joker/

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A Utah father’s “family hike” up the steep and strenuous Broads Fork Trail in the Uinta-Wasatch-Cache National Forest turned into a horrific, life-threatening ordeal for his three young children when he refused to turn back as a storm rolled in, ultimately leaving them exposed, injured, and stranded overnight at high elevation. Search-and-rescue crews later found the children hypothermic and unresponsive, and investigators uncovered disturbing details, including the father ignoring repeated warnings, pushing the kids toward a nearly 9-mile summit, and even leaving his 8-year-old to perform CPR on her brother in the dark. This episode breaks down the timeline, the rescue, and the shocking decisions that turned a mountain trail into a nightmare.

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Sources:
https://www.ksl.com/article/51411042/extremely-selfish-dad-charged-with-taking-young-kids-on-dangerous-hike-that-ended-in-a-rescue 
https://gephardtdaily.com/local/father-who-took-children-on-mountain-hike-in-snowstorm-arrested-for-alleged-child-torture-intentional-abuse/ https://www.abc4.com/news/crimes-against-children/father-big-cottonwood-hiker-missing-toture/amp/
https://www.fox13now.com/news/local-news/northern-utah/utah-father-who-went-missing-with-3-children-on-hike-charged-with-child-torture-abuseources:

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In May 2005, a quiet corner of Wolf Lodge Bay near Lake Coeur d’Alene, Idaho, became the center of one of the most disturbing true crime cases in Pacific Northwest history. When a neighbor discovered blood on the porch of the Groene family’s rural home, it triggered a massive investigation that soon uncovered a brutal triple homicide—and the disappearance of 8-year-old Shasta Groene and her 9-year-old brother, Dylan. What followed was a 7-week search spanning Idaho and the remote Lolo National Forest of Montana, leading authorities to serial predator Joseph Edward Duncan III. This episode explores the Groene family murders, the kidnapping that shook Kootenai County, the heroic rescue that finally brought Shasta home, and the long criminal history that exposed severe failures in the justice system. A heartbreaking but important case that forever changed how the region views safety, wilderness, and the dangers that can lurk in even the most peaceful landscapes.  

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Sources:
https://www.nbcnews.com/id/wbna26300428
https://murderpedia.org/male.D/d/duncan-joseph-edward.htm https://www.idahostatesman.com/news/local/community/boise/article262213562.html#storylink=cpy  

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Thanksgiving Day, 2001: deep in the quiet forests of New Hampshire’s White Mountains, searchers made a grim discovery — the body of 52-year-old Canadian hiker who had vanished after setting out for a short afternoon hike. What unfolded in the days before and after her death paints a chilling picture of a random, violent attack in one of the Northeast’s most popular hiking corridors.

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Sources:
WMUR — “White Mountains Mystery: The Killing of Louise Chaput” https://www.wmur.com/article/new-hampshire-white-mountains-mystery-louise-chaput/42126315
Concord Monitor — “Twenty years later, Chaput murder is still unsolved” https://www.concordmonitor.com/2021/11/29/twenty-years-later-chaput-murder-is-still-unsolved-43696199/
Boston.com — “On 10th anniversary, N.H. authorities seek clues in slaying of White Mountains hiker” https://www.boston.com/uncategorized/noprimarytagmatch/2011/11/22/on-10th-anniversary-n-h-authorities-seek-clues-in-slaying-of-white-mountains-hiker/

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Listen to Nancy share one of her Ranger Tales with special guest, Ranger Kristin.  The two of them were crime fighting partners one night in Yellowstone and proved that no one is above the law.

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