Murder, She Told

This is an excerpt from Black Girl Gone, a true crime podcast hosted by Amara Cofer with a new focus... shining a light on the all too often ignored cases of Black women who have gone missing or have fallen victim to murder. 

Each episode takes you on a heart wrenching journey through the stories of these women and the families they left behind. Join us as we work to uncover hidden truths and bring the stories of these women to the forefront. Together we can seek justice for the forgotten and give a voice to the voiceless. New episodes every Monday.

Learn more at https://blackgirlgonepodcast.com

Follow on Instagram: @blackgirlgonepodcast

Follow on TikTok: @blackgirlgonepodcast

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1995 - Bangor, Maine.

When Sarah Johnson went upstairs to check on her infant daughter, Aisha Mariah Dickson, she wasn’t expecting to find her not breathing in her crib. The little baby girl was rushed to the hospital where doctors tried everything they could. Aisha was later pronounced dead at just 8-months-old.

But the medical examiner made a disturbing discovery during the autopsy: Aisha had died of blunt force trauma. Not only that, but her short life was filled with abuse that was evident in her healing wounds and bones. 

The only people in the apt on the night of January 6th, 1995 were her mother, Sarah, her grandmother, June, and her father, DeShawn. 

So which one of them murdered Aisha?

Episode sources and photos: https://murdershetold.com/episodes/aisha-dickson

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

If you have any information on the murder of Aisha Dickson, please call the Bangor Police Dept at (207) 947-7382.

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1986 - Kingston, Massachussetts.

On a brisk night in October of 1986, 15-year-old Tracy Gilpin left a friend’s house party in Rocky Nook to buy a pack of cigarettes at the Cumberland Farms gas station. When she left the parking lot around 11:30pm, it was the last time she would be seen alive. Three weeks later, Tracy’s body was found 11 miles away in Myles Standish State Forest. She’d been crushed by a 73 lb boulder.

For years, the Gilpin’s fought to keep Tracy in the public eye. Her sister, Kerry Gilpin, inspired to help make a difference for other families, even became a state trooper (and eventually the superintendent) for the Massachusetts State Police. 

As years went on and other cases were solved, they always wondered when their day for justice would come… and 32 years later, in 2018, it did; when police arrested 61-year-old Michael Arthur Hand in North Carolina.

This is the murder of Tracy “Ashtray” Gilpin and what we know in the case against Michael Hand.

Though an arrest has been made, the work is still not done. If you have any information on the murder of Tracy Gilpin, now is the time to come forward. Please contact the Massachusetts State Police investigators at (508) 894-2584 with any information.

Episode sources and photos: https://murdershetold.com/episodes/tracy-gilpin

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

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1971 - Burlington, Vermont.

In July of 1971, a 23-year-old elementary school teacher named Rita Curran was brutally attacked and murdered as she slept in her own bed in Burlington, VT. Her roommates just happened to be away, and in the span of 70 minutes, an unknown man entered the apartment and took her life. Rita’s murder shook the small city. It was brazen; and police had zero leads.

For 51 years, Rita’s case remained unsolved. It was Burlington’s oldest cold case, and one of the most infamous true crime cases in New England. Ted Bundy was even considered to be a suspect at one point. Rita’s family came to the conclusion that her case may never be solved.

Until February 21st, 2023, when Burlington police detectives and other officials announced that through genetic genealogy, they had solved the case: her killer was a man named William DeRoos, who was 31 at the time and lived just 2 floors above her. But who was he? And why did he murder Rita?

This is a story of hope, and modern forensics. This is the story of Rita Curran; Burlington's newest solved case.

Episode sources and photos: https://murdershetold.com/episodes/rita-curran

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

Donate to Season of Justice

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Sheree Warren left her job in Salt Lake City on a mild October evening in 1985. She told a coworker she was headed to meet her estranged husband, Charles Warren, at a car dealership. But she never made it, Sheree vanished. When her car mysteriously surfaced weeks later, hundreds of miles away in Las Vegas, no one could say how it got there.

When a young mother disappears under unexplained circumstances, police always turn suspicious eyes towards the husband. And although there was distrust around Charles Warren, he wasn’t the only suspect when Sheree went missing. She also had a boyfriend, a former cop named Cary Hartmann, who lived a sinister double life.

Season three follows two suspects– men who both raised suspicion for investigators. But with two strong persons of interest with competing facts and evidence, it muddied the murder investigation. This season, host Dave Cawley, digs into the lives of these two men, the details of the case and examines the intersections between domestic abuse and sexual violence. The COLD team seeks to answer the question: what really happened to Sheree Warren?

Hey Prime Members, you can binge all 10 episodes of COLD: The Search for Sheree ad-free on Amazon Music. Download the Amazon Music app today: 

Murder, She Told: Wondery.fm/MST_ColdS3

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1947 - Pawtucket, Rhode Island.

17-year-old Rita Bouchard was paranoid of being hurt or killed by unknown men. In 1947, an unknown assailant was violently attacking women on the streets of Pawtucket, RI, and Rita, who worked the late shift at the factory, was afraid she could be next. 

Sadly, on February 1st, 1947, Rita’s fear came true. A man walking a trail in the woods discovered her body under a tree. She had been brutally stabbed to death over 30 times with a stiletto knife. Police had no idea who did this to her.

A month after her murder, police question a boy named Raymond Patenaude, the brother of Rita’s best friend. He was already a potential suspect in their mind, but they didn’t have the evidence against him. Raymond told them of a strange dream he had, and came to the realization it wasn’t a dream at all, but a repressed memory… A memory of killing Rita.

76 years have passed since Rita’s murder, but that doesn’t mean it can’t still be solved. 

If you or somebody you know has any information about the unsolved murder of Rita Bouchard, please call the Pawtucket Police Dept at 401-727-9100.

Episode sources and photos: https://murdershetold.com/episodes/rita-bouchard

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

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Happy Valentine's Day!

This week I'm bringing you a special bonus episode in collaboration with 14 other podcasts around a Valentine's Day theme hosted by Shane Waters.

Each podcast host brings a new, love gone wrong true story to mix. It's an extra special, two part, more than two-hour, Valentine event.

Part 2 of 2.

Podcasts are listed here in order of appearance:

In this Part 2 episode:

1. Sirens [https://tinyurl.com/2p8avykh]

2. The Trail Went Cold [https://tinyurl.com/2zydj3yl

3. Method and Madness [https://tinyurl.com/yc6ept53]

4. True Crime Cases with Lanie [https: //linktr.ee/LanieHobbs]

5. Crimelines [https: //linktr.ee/crimelines]

6. Love Murder [https://tinyurl.com/39c3fzeb]

7. Foul Play: Crime Series [https://itsfoulplay.com]

In the last Part 1 episode:

1. Murder She Told [https://murdershetold.com/connect]

2. True Crime Island [https://tinyurl.com/y6kk2npj]

3. Hillbilly Horror Stories [https://tinyurl.com/567vxrkz]

4. Tapes from the Darkside [https://tinyurl.com/3pnff3fe]

5. Coffee and Cases [https://linktr.ee/coffeeandcases]

6. Gone Cold - Texas True Crime [https://tinyurl.com/ytzxudt8]

7. Live, Laugh, Larceny [https://linktr.ee/Live.Laugh.Larceny. Podcast]

Find more at murdershetold.com

Support Murder, She Told: https://www.murdershetold.com/support

Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

Happy Valentine's Day!

This week I'm bringing you a special bonus episode in collaboration with 14 other podcasts around a Valentine's Day theme hosted by Shane Waters.

Each podcast host brings a new, love gone wrong true story to mix. It's an extra special, two part, more than two-hour, Valentine event.

Part 1 of 2.

Podcasts are listed here in order of appearance:

In this Part 1 Episode:

1. Murder She Told [https://murdershetold.com/connect]

2. True Crime Island [https://tinyurl.com/y6kk2npj]

3. Hillbilly Horror Stories [https://tinyurl.com/567vxrkz]

4. Tapes from the Darkside [https://tinyurl.com/3pnff3fe]

5. Coffee and Cases [https://linktr.ee/coffeeandcases]

6. Gone Cold - Texas True Crime [https://tinyurl.com/ytzxudt8]

7. Live, Laugh, Larceny [https://linktr.ee/Live.Laugh.Larceny. Podcast]

In the next Part 2 Episode:

1. Sirens [https://tinyurl.com/2p8avykh]

2. The Trail Went Cold [https://tinyurl.com/2zydj3yl

3. Method and Madness [https://tinyurl.com/yc6ept53]

4. True Crime Cases with Lanie [https: //linktr.ee/LanieHobbs]

5. Crimelines [https: //linktr.ee/crimelines]

6. Love Murder [https://tinyurl.com/39c3fzeb]

7. Foul Play: Crime Series [https://itsfoulplay.com]

Find more at murdershetold.com

Support Murder, She Told: https://www.murdershetold.com/support

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1988 - Hermon, Maine. 

If you haven’t listened to the interrogation in part one, I suggest starting with that one first.

In November of 1988, the body of 14-year-old Rebecca “Becky” Pelkey was found in the rural woods of Hermon, Maine. Becky went missing the week prior after a night out with friends, and was last seen in a car with a man named Ronald Boobar. Ron was 24-years-old.

The following month, Ron was arrested for her murder.

This is the story of Becky Pelkey, told through her family, and original transcripts and court records. You followed the investigation in part one, now follow the trial, the evidence, and the impact left from Becky’s death.

This is an MMIW case from Maine. Becky is part of the Aroostook Band of Mi'kmaqs, one of Maine’s Native tribes. By sharing her story, we are keeping her name alive and bringing awareness to the epidemic that is violence against Indigenous women and girls. 

Episode sources and photos: https://murdershetold.com/episodes/rebecca-pelkey-2

Support Murder, She Told: https://www.murdershetold.com/support

It’s time to end the violence. No more stolen sisters.

Learn more about MMIW and MMIWG2S. 

https://www.csvanw.org/mmiw/

https://www.niwrc.org

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1988 - Hermon, Maine. 

Inside the neon splashed walls of the Bangor Arcade, Erica and Melanie waited for their friend, 14-year-old Rebecca “Becky” Pelkey. Becky was late, and the clock was ticking. Not only was Becky no-showing, but so was her new friend, 24-year-old Ronald Boobar, who they’d hung out with the previous night.

One week later, the newspaper released a description of an unidentified young woman who had been found dead in the woods. It was Becky. 

The day that she was identified, police spoke individually with her friends. They waited to talk to Ron last. In a quiet room, just after midnight, Ron Boobar sat at the Bangor Police dept with two detectives. They set up a cassette recording device on the table, and hit record….

This is the story of Becky Pelkey, told through her family, and original transcripts and court records. 

This is an MMIW case from Maine. Becky is part of the Aroostook Band of Mi'kmaqs, one of Maine’s Native tribes. By sharing her story, we are keeping her name alive and bringing awareness to the epidemic that is violence against Indigenous women and girls. 

Episode sources and photos: https://murdershetold.com/episodes/rebecca-pelkey

Support Murder, She Told: https://www.murdershetold.com/support

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