Crime With My Coffee

It was October 29, 1983 in Marshalltown, Iowa when 20 year old Kevin Thacker was arrested for OWI by Officer Kendall Eldred. Less than an hour later, Kevin would be fighting for his life due to a head injury. Six days later he would succumb to this injury. His parents took Officer Eldred to court with a civil lawsuit claiming that he had caused the death of their son. The police department would contend that Kevin had escaped custody and jumped from their roof to the roof across the alleyway when he fell to his death, making it a total accident.

Sources for this episode:
Justia - Thacker v. Eldred
Times-Republican - Kendall Joel Eldred
Deposition of Kendall Eldred
YouTube - The Thacker Case: Booking Video
Find A Grave - Kevin Thacker, Thomas Thacker, Beverly Thacker
Wikipedia - Marshalltown, Iowa
YouTube - FBI Corrupt Coverup of a murder by a policeman
Wikipedia - U.S. history of alcohol minimum purchase age by state
LSA Iowa - Operating While Intoxicated (OWI) Law
Facebook - Justice for Kevin ThackerSupport the show

Alcatraz Prison was touted as an unescapeable prison. The worst of the worst were sent there. In 1962, however, Frank Morris and brothers John and Clarence Anglin, were serving a stint there when they worked out an escape plan. After seeing to all of the details, the big night eventually came. They were discovered missing from their cells the next day. Though nothing has been proven one way or the other, many believe that their escape was successful and they lived the rest of their lives on the run from the US Government.

Sources for this episode:
Wikipedia - San Francisco
Wikipedia - Alatraz Island
HistoricTalk - The Incredible True-Life Story Of The Fantastic Escape From Alcatraz
FBI - Alcatraz Escape
National Park Foundation - A Genius, Two Brothers, and Fake Heads
Independent - Their families insist they survived. Investigators doubt it. The enduring mystery of the three missing men of Alcatraz
US Marshals - Frank Lee Morris
Alcatraz History - Facts & Figures
Alcatraz History - Famous Alcatraz Inmates
Wikipedia - June 1962 Alcatraz escape attemptSupport the show

In 2012 in the rural areas of Quebec, Canada, the Federation of Quebec Maple Syrup Producers (FPAQ) discovered nearly 10,000 barrels of maple syrup was either missing or had had its contents replaced with water. After discovering almost $18,000,000 of syrup missing, a massive investigation was launched. A few people would eventually be brought to justice for what would become known as the Great Maple Syrup Heist.

Sources for this episode:
Wikipedia - Great Canadian Maple Syrup Heist, Quebec, List of people from Quebec
AGR - Canadian Maple Syrup
The Guardian - Canada's 'maple syrup heist' thief must replay millions for sweet stolen goods
CBC - Ringleader in maple syrup heist gets 8 years in prison, $9.4M fine
The Canadian Encyclopedia - Great Canadian Maple Syrup Heist
Global News - Mastermind of. Quebec maple syrup heist gets 8 years in prison, $9.4M fineSupport the show

Mid-July of 2018 saw 8 month old Raija Straight spending the day with her 17 year old dad, Jayden Straight, in Des Moines, Iowa. It would be the afternoon of July 13 when he would have his mom drive the three of them to the hospital because Raija was unresponsive. Sadly, Raija would pass away just over 24 hours later. Listen in this week as we discuss the events leading up to the injuries she suffered that caused her death along with who eventually would plead guilty to causing those injuries.

Sources for this episode:
Des Moines Register - Father charged with 8-month-old's traumatic, fatal injuries sentenced to 100 years in prison
People - 8-Month-Old Iowa Girl Beaten to Death - and Her 17-Year-Old Father is Charged
WHO 13 - Family of Teen dad Accused of Murdering Daughter Speaks Out
KCCI - Remembering Raija: Vigil held for 8-month-old who died of traumatic injuries
Find A Grave - Raija Armoni Lynn Straight
YouTube - EWU Crime StorytimeSupport the show

We wanted to give you something different this week instead of all the dark, dreary, and draining. We hope you enjoy these 50 weird, wacky, and sometimes dumb laws from all 50 states in the United States.Support the show

In December of 1994 in Port Elizabeth, South Africa, 27 year old Alison Botha thought she was being carjacked. It turned into a literal fight for her life. Her attackers, Frans du Toit and Theuns Kruger, would rape her, disembowel her, and nearly decapitate her before leaving her for dead in a ditch on the outskirts of town. Alison had no intentions of dying that night, or letting them get away with what they had done to her. Against all odds, Alison survived and saw that her attackers were sent to jail.

Sources for this episode:
Wikipedia - Gqeberha
Medium - Raped, Disemboweled & Nearly Decapitated: The. Remarkable Survival Story of Alison Botha
Vocal.Media - The Amazing Survival of Alison Botha (Case of Frans du Toit and Theuns Kruger)
All That's Interesting - How Alison Botha Survived A Brutal Attack By The 'Ripper Rapists'
IMDb - Alison
I Have Life: Alison's Journey as told to Marianne ThammSupport the show

Starting in July 1976, New York City was gripped in fear because someone was shooting random people. This shooter was known as the .44 Caliber Killer but was most well known as the Son of Sam. After the eight different shootings, David Berkowitz was identified as a viable suspect. Once he was in police custody he confessed to the crimes and told them his reason for doing them.

Sources for this episode:
Wikipedia - Brooklyn
Wikipedia - David Berkowitz
Britannica - David Berkowitz
A&E - 'Son of Sam' David Berkowitz's Life in Prison and Chances for Parole
Murderpedia - David Richard BerkowitzSupport the show

In Septmeber of 2005 a double homicide in Pineville, Missouri and the massacre of almost an entire family in Pampa, Texas and a traffic stop at the border of Mexico and Texas were all connected. 10 year old Robin called 911 in the early morning of September 30 to report that there had been a shooting in her house in Pampa, which sadly claimed the lives of her mother, Michell Conrad, her stepdad, Brian Conrad, and her brother, Zach Doan. A few hours after that call, Pineville officers were called to the scene of Orlie and Dawn McCools' murder. It wouldn't be until that night that someone connected to these murders was stopped trying to cross back into the United States from Mexico.

Sources for this episode:
Wikipedia - Pineville, Missouri
Wikipedia - Pampa, Texas
CBS News - Surviving a Texas shootout
KFDA 10 -Levi King" Inside the Mind of a Murderer
KFDA 10 - Inside the Levi King Courtroom: Day 9
Twitter - Levi King Trial
Joplin Globe - Levi King receives life sentences for deaths of Orlie, Dawn McCool
Daily Mail - Teen tells how she played dead for two hours after psychotic AK-47 gunman broke into her home and killed her family 'for fun'
KFDA 10 - Accused Gray County Killer will Face Death Penalty
State Journal-Register - Man pleads guilty to 2005 shooting deaths
McDonald County Press - OPINION: Interview With A Killer
Texas Monthly - The Girl Who Saw Too Much
My Plainview - Authorities look for links between Missouri, Texas slayings
KHOU 11 - Convicted killer on trial in Texas triple homicide
Medium - The Daughter Had a Nightmare of Gunshots as She Slept Then She Woke up and Heard Screams
YouTube - A child's call for helpSupport the show

In September 2009, Emma Neiderbrock and two of her friends, Melanie Wells and Richard "Sam" McCroskey, left Emma's home in Farmville, Virginia and travelled to Southgate, Michigan to attend the Strictly For the Wicked horrorcore music festival. When Melanie didn't return home a few days later, her mother would make phone calls to police for a welfare check. It would be a few days later when police would finally find the bodies of Emma Neiderbrock, Melanie Wells, Dr. Debra Kelley, and Reverend Mark Neiderbrock in the home. They would finally track down their suspect and apprehend him at the airport while he was waiting for his flight to be called.

Sources for this episode:
Wikipedia - Horrorcore
Wikipedia - Farmville, Virginia
Murderpedia - Richard McCroskey
Medium - The Aspiring Death Metal Rapper Who Couldn't Lose His "Girlfriend"
Discover Walks - 10 Facts About Brutal The Farmville Murders
NBC 12 - McCroskey pleads guilty to Farmville murders, gets life in prisonSupport the show

In 2017 Ben Renick was living a life many would envy. He had a beautiful wife, kids, land, and a successful reptile business that he was super passionate about. On June 8th, 2017 his wife would find him dead in his reptile breeding facility in New Florence, Missouri. Initially, it was thought that one of his snakes had escaped and killed him. It was obviously a murder when they realized he had been shot eight times.

Sources for this episode:
Wikipedia - New Florence, Missouri
People - A Reptile Breeder Was Killed by One of His Snakes, the 911 Caller Said. Then Bullet Wounds Were Found
CBS News, 48 Hours - "Rock star" reptile breeder murdered; Coroner says "This was not just a random act"
US Sun - Inside Ben Renick's disturbing messages from wife Lynlee that helped uncover snake breeder's death and 'heinous' secret
US Sun - Inside disturbing death of 'rock str' snake breeder Ben Renick after wife Lynlee was hiding 'heinous' secret
ABC 17 News - Judge keeps Lynlee Renick from collecting husband's inheritance
Find A Grave - Benjamin Blue-Brich "Ben" Renick
World of Ball Pythons - Ben RenickSupport the show