Gunz and Butta- True Crime Podcast

In December 1992, the dreams of two young women chasing opportunity in New York City ended in unimaginable violence. Brittany Rojas, 19, and Nikki Silas, 20, were roommates living on the Upper West Side of New York City. Both were aspiring performers working as dancers while hoping to break into entertainment and build a better future.

But on the morning of December 19, a building superintendent noticed water leaking from their apartment. When he investigated, he made a chilling discovery: both young women had been brutally murdered inside their home.

On April 18, 1974, a quiet neighborhood in San Francisco’s Potrero Hill became the scene of one of the most brutal home invasions the city had ever seen. Inside a small home on Kansas Street lived a young married couple, Frank and Annette Carlson. They had no idea that a violent intruder was about to turn their lives into a nightmare.

This is the story of a brutal home invasion, a husband who lost his life in a senseless act of violence, and a woman whose survival turned her into the only voice left to speak for the man she loved.

Sixteen-year-old Susana Morales was walking home on July 26, 2022, when she vanished. What should have been a normal summer evening turned into every family’s worst nightmare. Susana never made it home.

For months, her family searched. Flyers covered the neighborhood. Volunteers canvassed the area. Her case gained attention across Georgia, with many fearing the worst but still holding onto hope.

In February 2023, that hope was shattered. Human remains discovered in a wooded area in Gwinnett County were identified as Susana. Authorities later arrested Miles Bryant, a former Doraville police officer, charging him in connection with her murder.

This episode covers the heartbreaking 2020 murders of 26-year-old Jerica Banks and her two young daughters, Zaniya and Kamaria, in Milwaukee, Wisconsin — a tragedy that left a family shattered and a community searching for answers.

In 2020, inside what should have been the safety of their own home, Jerica and her babies were killed in an act of violence that stunned Milwaukee. Jerica was a young mother described by loved ones as devoted to her children, protective, and doing her best to build a life for her children during an already difficult year.

On quiet Sunday mornings, when most families were still asleep or preparing for church, a predator was already on the move.Carl Eugene Watts—later known as The Sunday Morning Slasher—terrorized Detroit and surrounding areas in the late 1970s, targeting women inside their own homes. Police were slow to connect the dots, and in the meantime, fear spread through neighborhoods. Women began locking doors religiously, sleeping lightly, and warning one another.

In the early morning hours of May 16, 2001, a quiet Houston neighborhood became the scene of a nightmare. Three masked intruders stormed into the home of Joana Rodriguez, a young mother, and her husband. What followed was a brutal home invasion that ended with Joana kidnapped, robbed, and later found dead. At the center of this case is Linda Carty, a British-born mother who prosecutors claimed orchestrated the entire crime.

In June 2001, Shelton Sanders vanished without a trace after giving a ride to a friend he believed needed help. That decision would place Shelton at the center of a mystery that still raises disturbing questions more than two decades later.

Despite mounting circumstantial evidence and lingering suspicions, Shelton Sanders was never found, and no one was ever charged in his disappearance.

In May 1998, 36-year-old Lisa Valdez—a successful computer programmer—was found brutally murdered inside her secure San Francisco apartment. There were no signs of forced entry. Nothing was stolen. And the building’s security suggested one chilling truth: Lisa let her killer inside.

In December 2000, DeKalb County, Georgia stood on the brink of change. Sheriff-elect Derwin Brown—a reform-minded leader with a grassroots following—had just defeated the sitting sheriff, Sydney Dorsey, in a shocking runoff election. Brown promised to clean up corruption inside the sheriff’s department, and for many in the community, his victory felt like hope.

But just days before he was set to take office, that hope was violently cut short.

Carla Stefaniak was the kind of woman who lit up every room she entered—a 36-year-old Venezuelan queen with big energy, big dreams, and a passport always ready for the next adventure. So when she flew out to Costa Rica in November 2018 to celebrate her birthday, she expected sun, beaches, and a great time. What she didn’t know was that would her last trip.