Murder, She Told

1975 - Washington, Maine.

On a chilly November morning, just two days before Thanksgiving in 1975, 25-year-old Ludger Belanger kissed his wife, Linda, goodbye, and ventured into the snowy woods of rural Maine in search of a buck. He never returned. A devoted father of three young children, Ludger wasn’t the kind of man to abandon his family—Linda knew that much for certain.

As game wardens traced the tracks he left behind, clues emerged, weaving a haunting narrative of what may have happened that morning. The clues also pointed to two men who knew the truth, and told a story much louder than the silence of those who tried to keep that truth buried in the snow.

This holiday season marks 49 years since Ludger’s disappearance, yet his family has never stopped searching. This is the story of the disappearance of Ludger Belanger.

If you have information on the disappearance of Ludger Belanger, please contact the Maine State Police Major Crimes Unit Central at (207) 624-7143 or toll free at 1800-452-4664. You can also leave a tip here.

Read the book Open Season: https://amzn.to/4ftL8EO

Episode sources and photos: https://www.murdershetold.com/episodes/ludger-belanger

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For the past few years, Cairenn Binder and her team of students at Ramapo College of New Jersey’s IGG Center have been using investigative genetic genealogy (IGG) to identify human remains, solve violent crimes, and help exonerate the wrongfully convicted.

In this exclusive episode of Murder, She Told, Cairenn gives a behind-the-scenes look at the process of cracking the toughest of unsolved cases with IGG, shares what her students are currently working on, what it takes to become a genetic genealogist, and so much more.

Episode sources and photos: https://murdershetold.com/episodes/investigative-genetic-genealogy

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1982 - Florida, Massachusetts.

On a rainy Saturday evening in April 1982, 18-year-old Lynn Burdick was working alone at the Barefoot Peddlar, a small country store in the Berkshires. By the end of her shift, she had vanished—along with the cash in the register. Known for her reliability, Lynn’s disappearance immediately raised alarms.

Less than an hour before she went missing, just over 10 miles away at Williams College, a man attempted to kidnap a student in his car. Investigators couldn't help but question whether the two events were connected. 

Though decades have passed without answers, there is renewed hope that someone will finally come forward with the key to bringing Lynn home.

If you have information on the disappearance of Lynn Burdick, please contact the Berkshire State Police Detective Unit at 413-499-1112 or submit a tip to the FBI at tips.fbi.gov.

Episode sources and photos: https://murdershetold.com/episodes/lynn-burdick

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2020 - Manchester, New Hampshire.

On February 19, 2020, 22-year-old Chandler Innarelli was shot while sitting in a car in an alley in Manchester, NH. Chandler was waiting for his girlfriend and their newborn baby to come meet him to go visit his sister. Four years later, his murder remains unsolved.

Since that day, Chandler’s mother, Amy, has worked tirelessly to pursue justice for her son. 

Although their relationship had its flaws, she hopes that by sharing her story, others facing similar struggles will realize they aren't alone, and that hearing Chandler’s story will compel the right person will come forward with the information police need to crack this case. 

If you have any information about the murder of Chandler Innarelli, please contact the Manchester Police PD Detective Sergeant Ryan Brandreth at 603-792-5545 or Detective Timothy Carter at 603-668-8711. If you would prefer to remain anonymous, contact the Manchester CrimeLine at 603-624-4040, which offers cash rewards.

Episode sources and photos: https://www.murdershetold.com/episodes/chandler-innarelli

Support the show: https://www.murdershetold.com/support

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1983 - Plymouth, Massachusetts.

On a cold night in February 1983, Barry Pinto, 26, and his wife, Dena, 24, were brutally shot in their own home, while their infant son sat helpless in a nearby playpen. The crime scene hinted that the couple might have known their killer, yet investigators struggled to uncover a clear motive. 

Forty years later, the Pinto family is still haunted by unanswered questions, unable to shake the feeling that someone in the small coastal community is holding back the truth.

If you have any information about the murder of Barry and Dena Pinto, please call the Massachusetts State Police Unresolved Case Unit at 1-855-627-6583 (855-MA-SOLVE).

Episode sources and photos: https://www.murdershetold.com/episodes/barry-and-dena-pinto

Support the show: https://www.murdershetold.com/support

Revisit the case of Tracy Gilpin: https://www.murdershetold.com/episodes/tracy-gilpin

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1951 - Brunswick, Maine.

Police heard the woman’s screams before they even reached the door. 

They were responding to a late night break-in at the apartment of 56-year-old Lancelot Cooper, a prominent figure in the community. When they stepped inside, they found his wife, 45-year-old Eva Cooper, nude on the living room floor with a scarf over her head and her hands bound behind her back. Inside the bedroom, they found a bloody and violent scene. 

It was clear from the attack that somebody wanted Lance dead, and as the details of that frigid January night became clearer to police, an obvious suspect emerged into focus. 

Episode sources and photos: https://murdershetold.com/episodes/lancelot-cooper

Support the show: https://www.murdershetold.com/support

Visit the Pejepscot History Center: https://pejepscothistorical.org

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1989 - Dunbarton, New Hampshire. 

In November of 1989, 14-year-old Sonya Moore disappeared. 

At first, her mother thought it was typical Sonya behavior. After all, the teenager had a habit of staying out late and skipping school. But when Sonya missed an important appointment, the pit in her stomach began to grow. Despite her daughter’s independence, she always knew where Sonya was.

As days turned into weeks, Sonya’s friends held onto the hope that she was somewhere warm, chasing her dream of becoming a model. But deep down, they knew something was wrong. Sonya wouldn’t just vanish without telling someone.

Then, in the spring, a badly decomposed body was discovered in Stark Pond. The girl was wearing an arrowhead necklace and a Hampton Beach shirt—just like the ones Sonya Moore was last seen wearing.

If you have any information about the murder of Sonya Moore, please contact the NH Cold Case Unit at (603) 271-2663 or email [email protected].

Episode sources and photos: https://murdershetold.com/episodes/sonya-moore

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1974 - Swampscott, Massachusetts.

In the shadows of the early-December afternoon, somebody with a baseball bat beat the life out of 15-year-old Henry Bedard Jr. He had been on his way home to wrap a Christmas gift, and was found the following day in a well-travelled patch of woods that was popular amongst the town’s youth.

Henry was a good kid from a good family, who, to this day, still can’t understand why somebody would have done this. 

But police are still hopeful the right person will recognize the markings on the bat and come forward with the tip they need to crack this case, no matter how much time has passed.

If you have any information on the murder of Henry Bedard Jr., please contact the Swampscott Police at (781) 595-1111.

Episode sources and photos: https://www.murdershetold.com/episodes/henry-bedard

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1986 - Winthrop, Maine. 

On a cool November night in 1986, an intruder entered the geodesic dome home of 34-year-old Brian Kowalczyk, firing multiple shots before stabbing the Snap-On Tools salesman to death and fleeing into the darkness. At the time, Brian’s wife was away in New York looking for their next home.

Not only were the police stumped by the identity of the killer, but they also had no known motive for the crime. There was no forced entry. There was no robbery. Who wanted Brian dead?

If you have any information on the murder of Brian Kowalcyzk, please contact the Maine State Police Major Crimes Unit Central at (207) 624-7143 or leave a tip online here.

Episode sources and photos: https://murdershetold.com/episodes/brian-kowalczyk

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1983 - Auburn, Maine.

While hiking in Mount Apatite Park in June of 1983, a woman stumbled on the body of 36-year-old William Lester Smith partially hidden under scavenged sheet metal and forest debris. William was part of a mineral club at home in Massachusetts, and had come to the park to search its quarries for treasure. 

Two days prior, William had been seen in the company of 16-year-old Jeff Smith. The pair were not related. 

It didn’t take police long to arrest their suspect. But in the eleventh hour as the trial inched closer, a narrative from the defense emerged that changed everything. 

Episode sources and photos: https://murdershetold.com/episodes/william-smith

Support the show: https://www.murdershetold.com/support

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