FROM THE VAULT: On a chilly March night in 1964, Kitty Genovese was brutally murdered near her home in Queens, New York—a crime that shocked the nation and changed the way we think about human behavior. The tragedy became infamous for reports that 38 bystanders heard her cries for help but did nothing. Was it urban apathy, or is the truth more complicated? In this episode, we unravel the myths, explore the psychology of the bystander effect, and uncover how this case reshaped laws, research, and public consciousness. Join us as we dive into the lasting legacy of the Kitty Genovese case.

On 23rd December 1993, delivery driver Paul Logan was tasked with delivering a Chinese takeaway to a nearby farm. When he arrived, the homeowners said they hadn't made any order. By the time he got to the end of the driveway, Paul was dead. 31 years on, who lured him to his death, and why?

In July 1994, the body of a man was found floating in the North Sea, of the coast of Heligoland, Germany. He was found wearing a suit, hence his nickname of 'Gentleman', but all clues have led to dead ends. Who was he? How did he end up in the water?

In this episode, we delve into the twisted story of Cary Stayner, a man whose name is forever tied to one of California's most infamous crime sprees. Known as the "Yosemite Killer," Stayner committed a series of brutal murders that shocked the nation. But his story takes an even darker turn when juxtaposed with the haunting legacy of his younger brother, Steven Stayner, a national hero who escaped from a notorious kidnapper years earlier.

In 1994, a small town in Washington State experienced a strange phenomenon: jelly-like blobs rained from the sky, leaving residents sick and baffled. Scientists and locals speculated wildly—was it a government experiment gone wrong, a byproduct of military testing, or something otherworldly? Join us as we dive into the theories, eyewitness accounts, and the lingering questions surrounding one of the most peculiar events in modern history.

The Steven Stayner case is a harrowing story of abduction, survival, and resilience. Kidnapped at age 7 in 1972, Steven spent seven years under the control of Kenneth Parnell before bravely escaping and rescuing another child. While his return brought hope, Steven faced lasting challenges and tragically died at 24. His story later intertwined with his brother Cary’s crimes as the "Yosemite Killer," marking a chilling chapter in true crime history.

In February 1985, 8 year old Cherrie Mahan got off the school bus 500ft from her home. Her parents heard the bus pull up, heard the door open, and waited for Cherrie to arrive back any moment. But she never did. At some point in that short walk, she was abducted and has never been seen again. 

On the morning of August 27th 1992, Vickie Felton left for work, leaving her 13 year old daughter Leigh home alone for the first time. There was a tornado warning that morning, and when by 8.30am Leigh wasn't answering the phone, Vickie rushed home - only when she arrived, Leigh was gone and has never been seen since. What happened to Leigh Occhi?

In 2009, Paula Hounslea told her daughter she was going to visit a friend. She told the friend she was going away for a few days. And then she never came home. 3 years later, her remains would be found in a fire pit by an abandoned railway. What happened to Paula?

Today we’re going to explore a historic case that changed the course of criminal investigations forever: the first-ever case solved by DNA fingerprinting. This groundbreaking technique was used to catch Colin Pitchfork, a man responsible for the brutal murders of two young girls, Lynda Mann and Dawn Ashworth, in the 1980s. What started as a complex investigation, with dead end after dead end, took a revolutionary turn when DNA evidence exposed the killer in a way that had never been done before.