Mind of a Monster: The Hollywood Ripper

By IDTrue Crime

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Mind of a Monster: The Hollywood Ripper episodes

January 09, 2024 S6 Ep.1: We Called Her Eklutna Annie
Dr. Michelle Ward takes us to 1980s Alaska, into the swirl and chaos of the pipeline oil boom. For months, Detective Maxine Farrell’s been troubled by the list of missing dancers on her desk, but her superiors don’t want to know about it. Then, an off-duty cop makes a shocking discovery in the wilderness - a young woman’s body in a shallow grave. In this episode, Dr. Michelle Ward explores the underworld of Anchorage and its seedy 4th Avenue strip. She explores potential mafia connections and uncovers the dangers that dancers and sex workers face. Is there someone preying on their vulnerability?
Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.
44 min
January 02, 2024 Introducing Mind of a Monster: The Butcher Baker
1980s Alaska: a swirling, chaotic mix of oil workers, dancers, sex workers and old-school cops. On the seedy 4th Avenue strip in Anchorage, nicknamed the world's longest bar, women start to go missing, plucked from the street or the bars and never seen again. In this 7-part series, Dr. Michelle Ward investigates the case of one of the US's most prolific, but not widely known, serial killers. She'll talk to survivors, criminology experts and the police on the ground, uncovering audio tapes, police reports and old newspaper articles, all to reveal the killer's identity as it happened.
Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.
2 min
July 04, 2023 S5 Ep.6: I’ll be back, I’ll be back
Aileen is found guilty of the murder of her first victim. Despite her protestations of self-defence and numerous assessments deeming her mentally incompetent, she is sentenced to death. For the remaining five murders, she fires her legal team and hires a new lawyer, Steven Glazer. She pleads “no contest” further sealing her fate. Aileen’s best friend Dawn stays in close contact, her constant comfort, Aileen begins writing long letters to Dawn. Aileen is on death row for eight years before there is an attempt to appeal her sentences. It fails and in 2002 she is put to death aged 45. 
Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.
44 min
June 27, 2023 S5 Ep.5: Stab Me in the Back
Aileen Wuornos has been captured, her killing spree at an end, but her arrest is only on an outstanding warrant. Police need evidence to prove her guilt and they persuade Tyria, Aileen’s girlfriend, to elicit a confession. It’s a delicate operation but over the phone Aileen eventually agrees to confess. Dr. Michelle Ward explores, with Psychologist Dr. Tasha Jackson, the diminishing emotional state of Aileen in custody, as we hear of her hallucinations from a letter to her best friend, Dawn. In court for the murder of Richard Mallory, Aileen is faced with the ultimate betrayal by her ex-girlfriend Tyria.
Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.
45 min
June 20, 2023 S5 Ep.4: Killer Queen
Aileen Wuornos has now killed five men, stealing their cars and possessions in the process. Her next victim is an ex-cop and determined police manage to retrace his steps. Their breakthrough comes from a pawn shop where they find two items belonging to Aileen’s first victim. Dr. Michelle Ward speaks to the investigators about how the case unfolded. They get a name and a fingerprint, but the name is false. Turning to the fingerprint they get a match and have a suspect: Aileen Wuornos. An undercover operation in a local bar hits the jackpot and Aileen is taken into custody.
Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.
37 min
June 13, 2023 S5 Ep.3: Damsel of Death
Police are investigating the murder of Richard Mallory. He’s been shot dead by Aileen Wuornos who he solicited for sex work, but Mallory himself has a violent past. Aileen confides in her girlfriend Tyria about the murder, who is initially shocked. Meanwhile, the police investigation runs cold, but it is only six months until Aileen’s next kill. This time, her victim is a construction worker named David Spears. She shoots him not once, but six times in the chest. Dr. Michelle Wards speaks to police investigators from the case about Aileen’s escalation to serial killer.
Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.
45 min
June 06, 2023 S5 Ep.2: From Rags to Riches to Rags
Aileen Wuornos has hitchhiked to sunny Florida, making money through sex work along the highways before meeting a millionaire yacht club president, whom she marries in 1976. But her chance at happiness is short lived and the marriage is annulled. She heads home to Michigan to see her brother, but he soon dies of cancer. Aileen is heartbroken and attempts suicide. Returning to Florida, Aileen meets the love of her life, Tyria. But Dr. Michelle Ward hears how sex work is still Aileen’s only way of making money and it leads her to her first murder, Richard Mallory in 1989.
Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.
36 min
May 30, 2023 S5 Ep.1: Babe in the Woods
Season 5 of Mind of a Monster begins in Rochester, Michigan. Aileen Wuornos is just a child when she is abandoned by her parents and left with a grandfather who physically abuses her. Aileen is bullied at school and is just 14 when she begins accepting money for sexual favors. Tragically, she is raped by her grandfather’s friend and becomes pregnant, but the baby is taken away from her. Now homeless, Aileen is forced to live in the woods. Dr. Michelle Ward speaks to psychologists and Aileen’s best friend about how these early years started her spiral of chaos.
Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.
39 min
May 23, 2023 Introducing Mind of a Monster: Aileen Wuornos
From 1989 to 1990, Aileen Wuornos killed seven men as she hitchhiked along Florida’s highways. Some were giving a woman in need a ride, others gave her money for sex, but they all fell victim to the rock ‘n’ roll biker chick dubbed the ‘Damsel of Death’.

Across 6 episodes, criminal psychologist Dr. Michelle Ward speaks to detectives, witnesses, and experts to delve into the mind of Aileen Wuornos, a woman fuelled by rage after decades of abuse at the hands of men. We’ll hear Aileen’s innermost feelings and thoughts, through letters she sent from prison to her best friend.
Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.
2 min
May 09, 2023 S4 Ep.6: The Trial
Jeffrey Dahmer’s reign of terror finally ends after claiming 17 lives and attacking and drugging countless more. As the case goes to trial, could his insanity defense actually work?

Hosted by criminal psychologist Michelle Ward, the Mind of a Monster true crime podcast brings you exclusive access and insight into some of history’s most notorious serial killers—with chilling audio straight from the monsters themselves. Season 4 of Mind of a Monster examines Jeffrey Dahmer, who from 1978 to 1991 murdered seventeen men and boys, attempted to kill at least two others, and attacked, drugged, and abused countless more. He cannibalized some of his victims, dismembered their bodies and preyed on the vulnerable to become one of the most depraved serial killers in American history. Across six episodes, criminal psychologist Dr. Michelle Ward consults with detectives, journalists, survivors, and witnesses to dive deep into the case of Jeffrey Dahmer. Investigating his crimes, Dr. Ward tracks his trajectory as a killer and exposes the many opportunities that were lost to prevent his reign of terror. Mind of a Monster is an Investigation Discovery podcast.
Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.
45 min

About Mind of a Monster: The Hollywood Ripper

From the publisher's feed

Across the 2000s, under the shimmering lights of Hollywood, a murderer lay in wait. Watching, waiting and stalking his young and beautiful female neighbors, Michael Gargiulo bided…