Murder in the Mourning

Decades ago, the city with the most serial killers per capita was London…Ontario! In a mere 25 years, 29 people were murdered in the area, of which 16 remain unsolved. A minimum of three serial killers were identified, however, the true number may never be known.

Today, I bring you Murder City. 

Plus another cold case has been solved!

Let’s Mourn…

Blanco, J. I. (n.d.). Christian Magee: Murderpedia, the Encyclopedia of Murderers. Christian Magee | Murderpedia, the encyclopedia of murderers. https://mail.murderpedia.org/male.M/m/magee-christian.htm

CBS Interactive. (2025, January 31). Chilling details emerge after schoolmate arrested in Hawaii Girl’s 1977 murder. CBS News. https://www.cbsnews.com/news/dawn-momohara-cold-case-murder-hawaii-arrest-details-emerge/

Guardian News and Media. (2015, August 19). What turned one city in Canada into the “serial killer capital” of the world? The Guardian. https://www.theguardian.com/world/2015/aug/19/serial-killer-london-ontario-canada

Wikimedia Foundation. (2025a, January 16). Russell Maurice Johnson. Wikipedia. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Russell_Maurice_Johnson

Wikimedia Foundation. (2025b, January 22). Gerald Thomas Archer. Wikipedia. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Gerald_Thomas_Archer#:~:text=Gerald%20Thomas%20Archer%20(1932%20%E2%80%93%201995,%22The%20London%20Chambermaid%20Slayer.%22

24-year-old Aryndel Castro vanished under mysterious circumstances in the Fall of 2008. For nearly a decade his disappearance remained unsolved until one person caved and came forward with crucial information. 

Plus an update on Jack the Ripper!! What?!

Let’s Mourn…

Sources:

CBS Interactive. (n.d.). Jack the Ripper victim’s relative demands new inquest after possible DNA breakthrough: “A form of justice.” CBS News. https://www.cbsnews.com/news/jack-the-ripper-victim-relative-new-inquest-dna-evidence/

Cold case solved: Family has answers 8 years after Bridgeport man went missing. News 12 - Default. (n.d.). https://bronx.news12.com/cold-case-solved-family-has-answers-8-years-after-bridgeport-man-went-missing

Murdered: Aryndel Castro: Bridgeport, CT. Uncovered. (n.d.). https://uncovered.com/cases/aryndel-castro

Tepfer, D. (2024, May 15). Hamden man sentenced in death of Bridgeport man whose body was found under a garage 8 years later. Greenwich Time. https://www.greenwichtime.com/news/article/aryndel-castro-shawn-gibson-2013-death-19459341.php

YouTube. (n.d.). YouTube. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=NSB5m3W9Anw&pp=ygUaI2JyaWRnZXBvcnRjZW50cmFsYmFzZWJhbGw%3D

49-year-old mother and grandmother Jannell Martensen disappeared in November 2023 after she left for a camping trip with her boyfriend Colton Russell. When she failed to show up for a holiday party, her family knew something terrible had occurred. 

But what they didn’t realize is that one death would lead to more.

Plus an update on serial killer Herb Baumeister!

Let’s Mourn…

CBS Interactive. (n.d.). All of Indiana serial killer’s victims could be identified as renewed investigative push plays out in laboratories. CBS News. https://www.cbsnews.com/news/serial-killer-herbert-baumeister-victims-dna-investigation-indiana/

Duggan, A. (2024, January 16). Spokane woman found in Toolbox died by homicide from blunt force injuries, Medical Examiner Rules. Spokesman.com. https://www.spokesman.com/stories/2024/jan/16/spokane-woman-found-in-toolbox-died-by-homicide-fr/

Guenthner, H. (2023, December 20). Family of woman found dead in valleyford, connected to double murder, says she was generous and kind. NonStop Local KHQ. https://www.khq.com/news/family-of-woman-found-dead-in-valleyford-connected-to-double-murder-says-she-was-generous/article_9874d54a-9ec6-11ee-afac-efe7ae9d8f80.html

Legacy. (2023, December 24). Jannell Martensen Obituary (1974 - 2023) - liberty lake, WA - spokesman-review. Legacy.com. https://www.legacy.com/us/obituaries/spokesman/name/jannell-martensen-obituary?id=53919965

Missing woman’s body found in toolbox days after the suspects in her disappearance were killed | krem.com. (n.d.). https://www.krem.com/article/news/crime/jannell-martensen-missing-woman-body-found-suspects-killed/293-5ac4a15d-54d4-491e-af52-9378979f391f

Reed, M. (2023, December 29). “I’m scared to death”: Final texts revealed before woman’s body was found in a toolbox in valleyford. KXLY kxly.com. https://www.kxly.com/news/im-scared-to-death-final-texts-revealed-before-womans-body-was-found-in-a-toolbox/article_f0a0669c-a67f-11ee-977c-bb62f6619f09.html

#washingtonmurder #spokane #minnehaha #indiana #truecrimeupdates #toolboxkiller #missingandmurdered #unsolved #unidentifiedkillers #coldcase #mfm

As far as missing person cases go, Chance Englebert is not your typical victim. While on Holiday in Nebraska, the 25-year-old husband and father disappeared while on an evening walk. No one has ever seen or heard from him again. While the years have stretched on, not every lead has been exhausted.

Plus an update on an assassination case!

Let’s Mourn…

Sources:

Missing: Chance englebert: Terrytown, NE. Uncovered. (n.d.). https://uncovered.com/cases/chance-leslie-englebert

New leads in the disappearance of Moorcroft, Wyoming, man missing now for 5 Years. Cowboy State Daily. (n.d.). https://cowboystatedaily.com/2024/06/30/new-leads-but-not-much-progress-finding-moorcroft-man-missing-for-5-years/

NewsNation. (2024, July 5). New lead in chance englebert disappearance case. https://www.newsnationnow.com/missing/lead-chance-englebert-disappearance-case/

#coldcase #murder #serialkiller #unsolved #mystery #midwest #hunted

A college sophomore at St. John’s in Minnesota, Joshua vanished without a trace after attending a card game in November of 2002. Not a single shred of evidence has ever been recovered, however, plenty of signs point in a certain direction. 

That direction? A religious community of monks who live and work on the college campus. A community home to 18-plus monks who have been accused and charged with sexual abuse since the 80s. 

Plus an update on a decades-old cold case!

Let’s Mourn…

CBS Interactive. (2024, November 20). In 1967, Louisa Dunne was found murdered in her U.K. home by a neighbor. A suspect has just been arrested. CBS News. https://www.cbsnews.com/news/louisa-dunne-1967-cold-case-murder-suspect-arrested-uk/

Missing: Joshua Guimond: St. Joseph, MN. Uncovered. (n.d.). https://uncovered.com/cases/joshua-guimond

Nelson, T. (2011, June 7). Former st. john’s abbot accused of molesting NY teen in ’60s. MPR News. https://www.mprnews.org/story/2011/06/07/clergy-abuse

Regarding abbot Timothy Kelly. BehindThePineCurtaincom. (n.d.). http://www.behindthepinecurtain.com/wordpress/regarding-abbot-timothy-kelly/

Saint John’s abbey. Saint John’s Abbey. (n.d.). https://saintjohnsabbey.org/

Sepic, M. (2016, January 19). St. John’s Abbey releases files on 18 monks accused of abuse. MPR News. https://www.mprnews.org/story/2016/01/19/st-johns-abbey-files-monks-accused-of-abuse

People don’t just disappear, right? A man with a 17-year-long commitment and steadfast routine suddenly vanished. Mark Ramin, a single 40-year-old, disappeared without a trace in the early 2000s. 

But why? What in Mark’s life led to this decades-long mystery? 

Let’s Mourn…

Bierce, K. (2009, January 21). Still a mystery. Ithaca Times. https://www.ithaca.com/news/local_news/still-a-mystery/article_460bddfa-2a56-570b-9bff-bdd3923543a1.html

CBS Interactive. (2024, September 12). Skeletal remains inside car found by fishermen in Illinois River identified as men who disappeared in 1976. CBS News. https://www.cbsnews.com/news/remains-car-illinois-river-clarence-owens-everett-hawley-missing-1976/

Mark Donald Ramin. The Charley Project. (n.d.). https://charleyproject.org/case/mark-donald-ramin

Missing person / namus #MP706. NamUs. (n.d.). https://namus.nij.ojp.gov/case/MP706

Missing: Mark Ramin: Ithaca, NY. Uncovered. (n.d.). https://uncovered.com/cases/mark-ramin

In terms of serial killers you’ve “never heard of,” this case may be the one. 

Dismembered body parts, hacked apart with saws, began appearing in Hanover, Germany during the 1970s. First, a torso, followed by a leg, and then arms and a thorax! The atrocities only kept coming.

This “human puzzle” has confused investigators for nearly half a century.

Sources:

Breen, K. (n.d.). 3 charged in connection with One direction star Liam Payne’s death in Argentina. CBS News. https://www.cbsnews.com/news/liam-payne-death-charges-argentina/

R/unresolvedmysteries - the saw-killer of Hannover killed six people in the 1970s and left their body parts in public places - all victims are unidentified and there are no suspects. (n.d.). https://www.reddit.com/r/UnresolvedMysteries/comments/j4ii4a/the_sawkiller_of_hannover_killed_six_people_in/

Wikimedia Foundation. (2024, April 15). Saw-killer of Hanover. Wikipedia. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Saw-Killer_of_Hanover

53 years ago the body of Theresa Rodger was found bound and bloodied atop a Brooklyn rooftop. According to the autopsy she was murdered in broad daylight, but not one record of an investigation exists. 

Police told her family that because she wasn’t sexually assaulted, a group of girls must be responsible! I find that hard to believe. 

Plus, a bit of positive true crime news!

Let’s Mourn…

Sources:

(N.d.). https://m.facebook.com/Justice.for.the.Unforgettable/?profile_tab_item_selected=about

Baker, D., & Powell, A. (2024, October 27). Quick-thinking teen stops suspected sex offender’s plans to lure her, police say. https://www.kold.com. https://www.kold.com/2024/10/27/quick-thinking-teen-stops-suspected-sex-offenders-plans-lure-her-police-say/

Murdered: Theresa Rodger: Brooklyn, NY. Uncovered. (n.d.). https://uncovered.com/cases/theresa-rodger

O’Brien, C. (2023, June 10). Theresa Rodger, May she rest in peace. Medium. https://medium.com/@Charlie_OBrien/theresa-rodger-may-she-rest-in-peace-5c49b8744b0

Sokrat Kirshveng, Bulgaria’s first serial killer, loved women almost as much as he hated them. Throughout the early 1900’s Sokrat lied, manipulated, and murdered women in a gruesome fashion. This is the story of The Adze Killer.

Plus an update on the Delphi Murders and Abercrombie and Fitch! WHAT?!

Let’s Mourn…

Sources:

R/serialkillers - Bulgaria’s serial killers: Sokrat Kirshveng “the killer with the adze.” (n.d.). https://www.reddit.com/r/serialkillers/comments/9mibm0/bulgarias_serial_killers_sokrat_kirshveng_the/

Wikimedia Foundation. (2024, January 15). Sokrat kirshveng. Wikipedia. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Sokrat_Kirshveng

Zanger, J. (n.d.). Former Abercrombie & Fitch CEO Mike Jeffries arrested on sex trafficking, interstate prostitution charges. CBS News. https://www.cbsnews.com/newyork/news/forrmer-abercrombie-fitch-ceo-mike-jeffries-arrested/

Nearly 65 years ago, Nancy Eagleson was abducted and killed only yards from her home in Spaulding, Ohio. The only witness–her 5-year-old sister. However, this wasn’t the first young girl to be attacked, or even killed, in that same area. 

The man who murdered her has evaded capture for decades. But, has he been aided in this escape?

Let’s Mourn…

11 investigates: Former Paulding-area resident says alleged abuse by deputy could be clue in 1960 murder of Nancy Eagleson. (n.d.). https://www.wtol.com/article/news/investigations/11-investigates/11-investigates-new-suspect-nancy-eagleson-murder-former-deputy-paulding/512-1b40ded7-a984-40fc-b925-b15c054e2d9b

Czachor, E. M. (2023, October 10). 63 years after Ohio girl’s murder, victim’s surviving sister helps make sketch of suspect. CBS News. https://www.cbsnews.com/news/nancy-eagleson-cold-case-1960-murder-sister-helps-sketch-suspect-paulding-ohio/

Dugger, B. (n.d.). Updated composite sketch made in Nancy Eagleson case | wtol.com. https://www.wtol.com/article/news/investigations/11-investigates/nancy-eagleson-cold-case-suspect-new-composite-sketch/512-1fe4d7e6-74d7-43f6-81f1-90e393bfae41

Murdered: Nancy Eagleson: Paulding, OH. Uncovered. (n.d.). https://uncovered.com/cases/nancy-eagleson

Phillipp, C. (2024, October 12). Remains found at recently sold Colorado home identified as teen girl who hadn’t been seen since 2005. People.com. https://people.com/remains-found-at-recently-sold-colorado-home-identified-as-teen-girl-who-hadnt-been-seen-since-2005-8727595