PARTNERS IN TRUE CRIME

IN 1979, 16-YEAR-OLD CYNDE AND 17-YEAR-OLD JINA WERE BEST FRIENDS LIVING IN BURBANK, CA... THEY DID EVERYTHING TOGETHER. THEY LIVED DOWN THE STREET FROM THE SCOTT MOTEL AND EVERYDAY THEY WALKED TO SCHOOL TOGETHER PAST THE MOTEL. WHAT THEY DIDN'T KNOW WAS THAT THE TOOLBOX KILLERS, LAURENCE BITTAKER AND ROY NORRIS WERE LIVING AT THE SCOTT MOTEL STALKING YOUNG WOMEN TRYING TO DECIDE WHO WAS GOING TO BE THEIR NEXT VICTIM. CYNDE AND JINA WERE SHOCKED TO LEARN THAT THE MEN WHO WERE HARASSING THEM WERE ACTUALLY TWO OF THE MOST SADISTIC SERIAL KILLERS IN THE HISTORY. WHY WERE THEY SPARED? WAS IT FATE OR DID THEIR INTUITION SAVE THEM? CYNDE AND JINA ARE HERE TO TODAY TO TELL THEIR STORY. #AD https://amzn.to/3xr8g5q https://partnersintruecrimeblog.com/

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ANDY KAHAN IS THE DIRECTOR OF VICTIM SERVICES AND ADVOCACY AT CRIMESTOPPERS HOUSTON AND HE IS A BOARD MEMBER OF TEXAS EQUUSEARCH A NON-PROFIT THAT ASSISTS IN FINDING VICTIMS REMAINS THAT WERE A RESULT OF VIOLENT CRIMES. ANDY AND LAURA BRAND MET AT CRIMECON AND QUICKLY REALIZED THAT THEY COULD HELP EACH OTHER IN THEIR QUESTS TO BRING SOME CLOSURE TO VICTIMS FAMILIES. CINDY SCHAEFER AND ANDREA HALL WERE TWO YOUNG GIRLS WHO WERE ABDUCTED AND MURDERED BY THE TOOLBOX KILLERS IN 1979. ACCORDING TO EXTENSIVE INTERVIEWS THAT LAURA HAD WITH LAURENCE BITTAKER, THE BRAINS BEHIND THE TOOLBOX KILLERS, BOTH YOUNG GIRLS WERE TOSSED INTO A RAVINE IN THE SAN GABRIEL MOUNTAINS IN 1979 NEVER TO BE SEEN AGAIN. LAURA AND ANDY ALONG WITH THE PARTNERS IN TRUE CRIME TEAM PLAN ON GOING TO THOSE MOUNTAINS TO SEARCH FOR THEM.

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IN THE 1970’S AND 1980’S LOS ANGELES WAS A HUNTING GROUND FOR SERIAL KILLERS, THE NIGHTSTALKER, THE  HILLSIDE STRANGLER AND THE TOOL BOX KIILLERS. THERE WERE NO CELLPHONES, PEOPLE OFTEN HITCHIKED ALONG THE CALIFORNIA ROADS AND THE AREAS AROUND LOS ANGELES WERE NOT AS POPULATED AS THEY ARE NOW. LAURA’S WORK WITH THE TOOL BOX KILLER HAS BEEN FOCUSED ON GETTING INFORMATION FROM BITTAKER ABOUT OTHER VICTIMS WHO MIGHT STILL BE MISSING SO SHE CAN HELP RETRIEVE THOSE VICTIMS AND BRING THEM HOME TO THE FAMILIES…. BUT THERE HAVE BEEN A LOT OF WOMEN WHO HAVE HAD RUN INS WITH THESE SERIAL KILLERS AS TEENAGERS AND DIDN’T EVEN KNOW IT. IMAGINE LOOKING BACK ON YOUR TEENAGE YEARS AND REALIZING THAT YOU HAD BEEN INCHES AWAY FROM BECOMING A VICTIM OF A SERIAL KILLER? WELL TODAY WE ARE GOING TO BE SPEAKING TO TAMMY DUNN , SHE WAS A TEENAGER IN VENTURA COUNTY RIGHT OUTSIDE OF LOS ANGELES IN THE LATE 70’S AND SHE HAS A CHILLING STORY OF HOW SHE CROSSED PATHS WITH ONE OF THE WORLD’S MOST NOTORIOUS SERIAL KILLERS AND LIVED TO TELL ABOUT IT.

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IN THE 10 YEARS OF LAURA BRAND’S RESEARCH SHE HAS DISCOVERED MOUNTAINS OF INFORMATION ON SERIAL KILLERS CASES THAT REVEAL ADDITIONAL VICTIMS, WITNESSES, AND EVIDENCE TO WHERE MISSING REMAINS COULD BE FOUND. THREE YEARS AGO, LAURA STUMBLED ON SOMEONE WHO LAURENCE BITTAKER SHARED DETAILS OF HIS BRUTAL MURDERS TO WHILE INCARCERATED IN LA COUNTY JAIL AFTER HIS ARREST.  IN THE LATE 70’S ANTHONY CONJEJO, WAS A 26 YEAR OLD WHO WAS HOUSED WITH BITTAKER IN LA COUNTY JAIL FOR BANK ROBBERY AND MURDER. THE INFORMATION THAT ANTHONY TOLD LAURA NOT ONLY SOLIDIFIED WHAT SHE ALREADY KNEW ABOUT BITTAKER, BUT SHE ALSO LEARNED OF SOME NEW MURDERS THAT BITTAKER AND NORRIS COMMITTED THAT WERE NOT EVEN LOOKED AT. TODAY WE ARE GOING TO TAKE YOU INSIDE A CALIFORNIA STATE PRISON WHERE ANTHONY IS STILL SERVING TIME FOR HIS CRIMES TO HEAR WHAT BITTAKER TOLD HIM AND HOW ANTHONY EVENTUALLY TESTIFIED AGAINST THE TOOL BOX KILLER IN AN EFFORT TO DO SOMETHING GOOD FOR HIS PAST CRIMES.

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TODAY’S EPISODE WE WILL BE TALKING TO LINDA HOLTZ WHO WAS A FRIEND AND CLASSMATE OF LYNETTE LEDFORD WHO WAS ONE OF LAURENCE BITTAKER AND ROY NORRIS’ VICTIMS. ON HALLOWEEN IN 1979 LYNETTE LADFORD WAS DROPPED OFF BY FRIENDS AT A GAS STATION NOT FAR FROM HER HOUSE IN SHADOW HILLS, CALIFORNIA.  SHE WAS THEN PICKED UP BY BITTAKER AND NORRIS.  THE NEXT MORNING, SHE WAS FOUND WITHOUT CLOTHES BRUTALLY MURDERED IN SOMEONE’S IVY BED IN THEIR FRONT YARD. ACCORDING TO LAURA, BITTAKER NEVER DISPUTED WHAT HE AND NORRIS DID TO LYNETTE, IN FACT, THEY MADE AN AUDIO RECORDING OF LYNETTE SUFFERING WHILE THEY KILLED HER, WHICH TO THIS DAY IS USED TO TRAIN FBI AGENTS TO DESENSITIZE THEM TO HORRIC EXPERIENCES.

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WHEN LAURA BRAND FIRST EMBARKED ON THE JOURNEY TO GET INSIDE OF THE MINDS OF SERIAL KILLERS TO HELP FIND THE REMAINS OF THEIR VICTIMS, SHE REACHED OUT TO OTHER PROFESSIONALS IN THE FIELD FOR GUIDANCE. ONE OF THOSE PEOPLE WAS DR. ALLAN PASS. DR. PASS HAS A WELL DOCUMENTED HISTORY IN FORENSIC MENTAL HEALTH AS WELL BEING AN EXPERT WITNESS FOR BOTH DEFENSE ATTORNEYS AND THE PROSECUTION SINCE 1973.

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KRISTIN MESSINGER WAS A FUN LOVING TEENAGER LIVING IN A BEACH COMMUNITY IN SOUTHERN CALIFORNIA WHEN SHE DECIDED TO GET INTO A CAR WITH ROY NORRIS (ONE OF THE TOOLBOX KILLERS). WHAT HAPPENED AFTER THAT WAS A LIFE CHANGING EXPERIENCE THAT CHANGED HER FOREVER. LAURA, REVEALS TO KRISTIN WHAT THE KILLERS TOLD HER ABOUT THAT DAY SHE GOT AWAY AND HOW HER LIFE WAS IMPACTED BY THIS INCREDIBLE NEAR DEATH EXPERIENCE.

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DOUGLAS CLARK WAS AN AMERICAN SERIAL KILLER AND NECROPHILE. CLARK AND HIS ACCOMPLICE, CAROL BUNDY WERE KNOWN AS THE SUNSET SLAYERS AND WERE RESPONSIBLE FOR THE DEATHS OF AT LEAST SEVEN PEOPLE ALTHOUGH OFFICIALS AND LAURA BRAND BELIEVES THERE ARE MORE. LAURA HAS HAD EXTENSIVE CONVERSATIONS WITH CLARK DURING HER STUDY AND JUST BEFORE HE DIED ON OCTOBER 11, 2023 HE RELEASE ALL OF HIS CASE FILES TO LAURA AND ADMITTED HIS PART IN THE MURDERS.

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WHEN LAURA BRAND STARTED TO GET FULL COOPERATION FROM LAURENCE BITTAKER INSIDE SAN QUENTIN'S DEATH ROW HE GAVE HER FULL ACCESS TO HIS DISCOVERY CASE FILES. IN THOSE FILES, LAURA STARTED TO DISCOVER OTHER PEOPLE WHO CAME IN CONTACT WITH THE TOOLBOX KILLERS, BUT WEREN'T BRUTALLY MURDERED... BUT WHY DID THEY KILL SOME AND NOT OTHERS. TODAY WE ARE GOING TO FIND OUT. DENA MOODY WAS A TEENAGER WHO WAS ONE OF THE PEOPLE WHO MANAGED TO SURVIVE THE TOOLBOX KILLERS.

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10 years ago, criminologist and private detective, Laura Brand embarked on a journey to study the most notorious serial killers in the United States by sitting face to face with them inside a cage. Her goal was to not only learn what made them kill, but to also find the remaining victims that were not part of their convictions... And there are still many out there. Over 50 serial killers participated in her study and continue to do so, but it all started with Laurence Bittaker "The Tool Box Killer."

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