Dark Deeds

For over two decades, a shadow loomed over West Germany, Joachim Kroll, from 1955 to 1976, children and young women vanished without a trace, leaving a trail of terror that spanned cities, but the monster wasn’t hiding in the woods—he was living in a cramped apartment in Duisburg, working as a restroom attendant and living a life of quiet, dull routine. Children in Duisburg loved visiting Joachim as he often gave them candy and toys. He was known by neighbors to be a polite, pleasant guy to everyone, although a bit odd. How could a man dismissed by society as "dim-witted" manage to outsmart the police for 21 years until the gruesome discovery involving a neighbor's plumbing? 

Sources
The Serial Killer Magazine 
Murderpedia 
All That's Interesting (2020)
Utterly Interesting 

Documentaries
Real Crime-YouTube-Joachim Kroll: Serial Killer Who Owned a Manor | World's Most Evil Killers (2021) 

Bizarre Bazaar- YouTube- He MURDERED Them Because MEAT WAS EXPENSIVE (2024)

Evil Among Us-YouTube-The Horrific Crimes of Joachim Kroll [True Crime Documentary] (2024) 


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In October 2012, 58-year-old Gail Spencer arrived at her office in Macon, Gerogia expecting another routine day as a legal secretary and office manager at Calder Pinkston & Associates Law Firm. At this time, she had no idea that a coworker had already set a lethal plan in motion to embezzle funds from the firm using her to obtain them. 
     On October 5, 2012, 38-year-old Tracy Jones (Gail's coworker), Tracy's 18-year-old boyfriend, Michael Brett Kelly, and their friend, 23-year-old Keith Anthony Dozier entered the home of Gail Spencer after Tracy lured her to the front door by knocking and asking to use her phone saying her car broke down nearby. When Gail let Tracy into her home, the two men entered behind her where they went into Gail's bedroom as she was getting ready for work, held a gun to Gail, tied her up, and took her work credentials that would allow Tracy to access the law firm's financial accounts. 
     The two men held Gail hostage while Tracy and Michael's sister, Courtney Kelly returned to the law firm so Tracy could transfer just under $1.3 million to accounts Courtney had opened at various banks. While this was happening, Michael assaulted and strangled Gail Spencer and took off in her car, leaving her body lying across her bed with a black trash bag over her face. 
      Gail's body was discovered the next morning when her neighbors who had asked her to let their dog out came home to find their dog in their yard and Gail not answering the door. All four perpetrators in the crime were given life sentences, with Courtney being the only one to have a chance at parole.

Sources
FindLaw (2019)
13WMAZ (2019) 
41NBC (2013)
Justia (2020) 

Documentaries and Audio

Crime Circus YouTube - Confessions of a Monster in Macon, Georgia- police INTERROGATION of Keith Dozier- MUST SEE VIDEO 2 (2022)

BamaMike YouTube- The Full Interrogation of Michael Brett Kelly, The Grandma Killer (2022)

Crime Circus Cult YouTube- Tracy Jones 1st Police Interrogation in Macon, Georgia- Interview with a Criminal Mastermind- USA (2022) 

The Killer Beside Me Season 3 Episode 2: Hostage to Greed (2020)

Your Worst Nightmare Season 4 Episode 9: Twisted Plan (2018) 





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Lisa Solomon,a 22-year-old newlywed living in Huntington, New York had a beautiful dinner planned for her and her husband, Matthew Solomon on Christmas Eve 1987, but the dinner did not go according to plan. After dinner, the two got into an argument ending with Lisa being murdered. The next morning, on Christmas day, Matthew contacted relatives to start a search, maintaining that Lisa had gotten upset and went for a walk, never returning home. For 6 days, Matthew played the concerned, distraught husband, lying and tricking everyone until her body was found dumped in garbage bags in a field just a mile from their home on December 30th. Matthew eventually cracked and admitted to strangling Lisa during their Christmas Eve argument. He served 31 years in prison before being released at age 55 in 2019, much to the disagreement and dismay of Lisa's family. 


Sources
Long Islander News (2019)
US District Court for the Eastern District of New York (Justia)(1992)
NY Senate (2019)
New York Times (1988)
News 12 (2017)

Audio and Docs 
FilmRise True Crime: Missing on Christmas Eve: Lisa Solomon's Story | The Christmas Killings Hosted by Nancy Grace (Youtube) (2025)   (Original Release Date: February 2024)

Twisted Tales (YouTube, 2024): Bloody Christmas- The Brutal Kidnapping of Lisa Solomon | Happily Never After: Ice Cold Heart (Original Release Date: 2012)

The 1980s: The Deadliest Decade- The Newlywed Murder (2017)




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From the outside, 1426 F Street in Sacramento, California, looked like a respectable Victorian boarding house run by a kind, grandmotherly woman with a reputation for helping the community's most vulnerable. But beneath Dorothea Puente's sweet facade lay a cold, calculating killer with a lifetime of deceit and fraud.This episode delves into the chilling story of the "Death House Landlady." Tracing Dorothea's decades-long criminal history—from check forgery and running a brothel to eventually targeting her own tenants: the elderly, the disabled, and those with no one to look after them.The motive was not pleasure, but profit. She would drug her boarders, steal their government benefit and Social Security checks, and when they disappeared, she would simply tell concerned parties that they had moved on. Her deadly operation only came to light when an investigation into a missing tenant led police to an unthinkable discovery: seven bodies buried in shallow graves right in the backyard.

Sources
Worst Roomate Ever Season 1: Call Me Grandma
ID Crimefeed 
Sactown Magazine (2009)
OAC (1982-1992)
All that's Interesting (2024)
Los Angeles Times (2011)

Audio
Mass Murderabilia YouTube- Police interview with Dorothea Puente (Part 01)
Mass Murderabilia YouTube- Police Interview with Dorothea Puente (Part 02)


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Rebecca Park

On the night of November 3, 2025, 22-year-old Rebecca Park's biological mother, Cortney Bartholomew, and her step-father, Bradley Bartholomew lured her to their home. Since Rebecca was due to give birth soon, it was assumed they lured her there on the premise of having a baby shower for her, but they threw her in a car where they took her to the Manistee National Forest in Michigan. It is here that they brutally tortured and stabbed Rebecca, even cutting her baby from her womb. Rebecca was considered a missing person until November 25, when her body was found. Her baby has still yet to be found, and this case is still ongoing. 

Oninda Romelus
Oninda Romelus, a 31-year-old mother of 4 living in the Porter area of Texas put her 4 children into her vehicle on the early morning hours of October 4, 2025 and took them to a location near a gas station in Angleton, Brazoria County where she then pulled a weapon and shot all of them. She then drove to the gas station and called 911, stating that her children were going to kill her so she had to "do it to them" first. She told police at the scene that her children were "dead to her" and "with the devil." Two of her children passed away and two of them were flown by helicopter and are still recovering. This case is currently still ongoing.
           O'Karreo Covington: A 13-year-old boy who died from a gunshot wound to the head.
           Amourra Chapell: A 3-year-old girl who died in the backseat of the car.
           Kylee Romelus: A 9-year-old girl who was shot in the side and arm and survived.
           Traviel Downer: An 8-year-old boy who was shot in the arm and survived

Sources
People (2025)
Fox 26 Houston (2025)
ABC 13 (2025)
Click2Houston (2025)
Michigan Department of Attorney General (2025)
9 & 10 News (2025)
News Nation (2025)

Audio
UpNorthLive YouTube: Court hears details in murder and torture of pregnant Rebecca Park in Wexford County (2025)

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In the glamorous, smoky underworld of 1950s London, Ruth Ellis was a platinum-blonde trailblazer: a young, ambitious nightclub manager who quickly became the star of her own complicated life. But her world of glitz and aspiration was violently shattered by a toxic, abusive affair with wealthy racing driver David Blakely.
      On Easter Sunday, 1955, Ruth stalked Blakely to a Hampstead pub and shot him. Her immediate, chilling confession—"It is obvious when I shot him I intended to kill him"—sealed her fate. Ruth was the last woman to be hanged in the UK, and it sparked much controversy as her severe abuse at the hands of David Blakley was not thoroughly taken into account. Now, 70 years later, her grandchildren have applied to have her posthumously conditionally pardoned for her crimes. While it will not completely quash her record as she had admitted to killing David, it will show that her being hanged was a gross miscarriage of justice. 

Sources
Mishcon De Reya (2025) 
Luxury London (2025)
The Guardian (2025)
Wikapedia 
Real Crime YouTube- The Last Woman to be Executed in Britain (2022)
BBC (2025)

Audio
This Morning YouTube- "I'm Finally Proud to be Ruth Ellis' Grandaughter (2025)

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For millions, the screen is a window into a world of connection, entertainment, and shared experiences. These people are the content creators; artists, comedians, gamers, storytellers. But in today’s hyperconnected world of modern media, the line between admiration and obsession is becoming dangerously thin. On this episode, I use two cases to pull back the curtain on the chilling reality of the parasocial paradox- where a one sided relationship blooms into toxic fixation that ultimately culminates into unimaginable violence. 
              Sana Yousaf, a Pakistani social media influencer with over a million combined followers on platforms like TikTok and Instagram, known for content promoting cultural pride and girls' education was fatally shot in her home after an obsessed follower, 22-year-old Umar Hayat who had been attempting to message her and meet up for months, broke into her home on June 2, 2025.This sparked an outcry in Pakistan to change the way women who are independent and have their voices heard are treated. 
             Bianca Michelle Devins, a 17-year-old girl who was active in online communities such as 4Chan met 21-year-old Brandon Clark online. The two began a friendship, and Bianca was clear to Brandon that she did not want a relationship with him, as she was about to start college. On the night of July 13, 2019, Brandon and Bianca attended a Nicole Dollanganger concert. A third person attended with them, a creator named Ouipo. Brandon left to get something, and when he returned, he allegedly spotted Bianca kissing Ouipo.  
     The next morning around 6:03 AM, an image was posted to Bianca's discord server. The image featured Bianca with blood on her face and her throat slashed as well as a chilling message. Brandon later called 9-1-1 discussing what he had done. He attempted to commit suicide and laid on a tarp that was covering Bianca's body. He ultimately survived and was charged with her murder. 

Sources
GirlsNotBrides (2025)
Dunya News (2025)
The Current (2025)
Aljazeera (2025)
CNN (2025)
CBS News (2021)
BBC (2019)
Rolling Stone (2019)
Law and Crime (2019)
Huffington Post (2019)
Dark Case Documentaries-YouTube- GRAPHIC:17yo Vlogger Finds Stalker in Her Bedroom-True Crime Documentary (2025) 


Audio
Syracuse.com YouTube- Bianca Devins' mother remembers the night of her daughter's murder (2020)

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After returning to Urbana, Ohio, attempting to repair her relationship with her mother, and getting a small apartment on Light Street, 21-year-old Jessica Rae Sacco felt as though things may be looking up in her life, but she was missing one thing, companionship. She took to the internet to meet someone and it was here that she met 25-year-old fellow Juggalo, Matthew Puccio. In the Fall of 2011, Matthew came from Texas to Ohio to meet Jessica and ultimately moved into her small apartment with her against her mother's wishes. It didn't stop here, however, as Matt moved in two friends, Andrew and Candace Forney. Tensions rose in such a small toxic space with Jessica feeling as though she was a stranger in her own home having everyone against her. Two more people who the group met at the local library came to the apartment to stay, Chris Wright and Sharon Cook. This only worsened the tension, and the group decided they needed to get rid of Jessica, even though it was her home. 
      On the morning of March 30, 2012, Jessica's landlord made entry into the apartment to check on her, as her mom, Sue, had not been able to make contact with her for 8 days. Jessica's decomposing, partially dismembered body was located in the bathtub of the apartment. Her limbs had been scattered in various areas around Southern Ohio and Northern Kentucky. Matthew and his four accomplices had fled to a city 85 miles away. 


Sources
Springfield News Sun (2013) 
supremecourt.ohio.gov 
ABC7 (2012)
Fox8 (2012)
Oxygen (2017)

Documentaries
Web of Lies S02E4: Crowded House (documentary)
Misery Machine- Online Juggalo BF Brings All His Squatter Friends to Rip Her Limbs Off-YouTube (2025)
Sword and Scale Episode 257

Audio
#killerpost: Episode 9 Bonus Clip - Interview with Sue Taynor | Oxygen



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Glenna Susan "Sue" Sharp and her five children, Sheila, Greg, Richard, Tina, and John lived in Cabin 28 at the Keddie Resort in Keddie, California. On the morning of April 12, 1981, Sheila Sharp (who was staying with a nearby family, The Seabolts) returned home at 7:45 AM to find her brother, John, his friend, Dana Wingate, and her mother, Sue Sharp all murdered. Sue had been beaten and stabbed in the neck and chest, John had been beaten and his throat was slashed, and Dana was strangled. The other three boys at the home, Greg, Ricky, and their friend, Justin Eason had all been unharmed. Tina Sharp had been missing from the home. Tina's remains were found three years later in Feather Falls, a two a hour trip from Keddie. 
   While there have been some developments,  suspects, and many theories over the years, these murders still remain unsolved, 44 years later. 

 Sources
r/UnresolvedMysteries- Uistreel(2021)
ThoughtCo (2025)
ABC10 (2021)
allthatsinteresting (2021)
CBS News (2016)
Keddie Truth 
Keddie28 (D. McNarie, 2022)
ABC10 YouTube: Murder in Cabin 28: A look back on the Keddie Murders | Unsolved California (2021) 
Feather River Bulletin (1981)
Feather River Bulletin (1981)


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In late July of 2018, a 54-year-old Akron, Ohio woman named Martha Freitag called police to see if the restraining order she previously had on her on-again-off-again, live-in boyfriend, 53-year-old David Callaghan could be reinstated. Her pleas for help went ignored, as she had been struggling with paranoid Schizophrenia and often called police on her boyfriend. Little did police know, this would be the last time Martha was heard from or seen alive again. Later that year in September, Martha's daughter Kim pressured police to investigate her disappearance. Police did not take her calls seriously, leaving Kim to do her own investigation until one day when the family recieved a strange text message explaining that David would bury someone in the fire pit in the back yard. Upon investigating, the body of Martha Freitag was uncovered in the fire pit, wrapped in plastic, bedding, burnt, and showing signs of blunt force trauma with a rope still tied around her neck. 


Sources
Summit County Prosecutor (2019)
Akron Beacon Journal (2019) 
Akron Beacon Journal (2018)
Fox 19 (2018)
Fox 8 CLE+ (2018, 2019)

Some information and body cam footage obtained from:

Dr. Insanity- Daughter Finds Mother's Decapitated Body in Backyard (2025) 




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