Prash's Murder Map: True Crime Podcast

Here's another collection of short but gruesome vintage true crime cases from the 1800s. Let’s go back in time for a whistle-stop tour of three Victorian crimes that are intriguing, shocking, and little known, including a spate of unidentified body parts which appeared all over Norwich, a sinister servant who bludgeoned his employer with a rolling pin, and the first murder case ever to be solved by a bloodhound. 


Sources Blackburn Standard, April 1 & April 8 1876 Cheshire Observer - Saturday 01 August 1868 Daily News, April 8 1876 Essex Weekly News - Friday 23 April 1869 Famous Crimes Past & Present, 1903 IPN, April 15 & May 6 1876 Kentish Gazette - Tuesday 26 January 1869 Liverpool Daily Post - Tuesday 01 August 1876 & Friday 21 August 1868 Lloyds Weekly Newspaper, April 9 1876 Magnet (London) - Monday 14 August 1876 Old Bailey Trial Account 17 August 1868 Penny Illustrated Paper 22 April 1876 Reynolds Newspaper, April 16, 23, 30 1876, & 24 May 1868 Rochdale Times - Saturday 29 July 1876 Sheffield Daily Telegraph - Tuesday 15 August 1876

 Music:

"Long Note Two" and “Long Note Three” Kevin MacLeod (incompetech.com) Licensed under Creative Commons: By Attribution 4.0 License http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/

Eternal Moment by Farrell Wooten

It was inevitable that George Joseph Smith would end up in jail one day. The only question was, how long would it take for his cunning crimes to be uncovered? George was a master of deception who swindled a string of lovers out of their life savings and ensured he was named as the beneficiary in the wills of his many wives. He had a curious obsession with the sea, and it was only fitting that his method of murder would also feature water…

Thanks for listening! Here’s how you can get in touch with comments and suggestions:

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I’m an independent podcaster, so I would be extremely grateful for any one-off donations, however small. This will go towards maintaining and upgrading my audio equipment, podcast hosting fees and licencing costs for any music and voices I use in my episodes. If you would like to contribute on an ongoing basis, you can do that through Patreon, so please feel free to check out the link below and see what rewards are on offer in return for your support. Thank you!!

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Music:
Coma Visions, Martin Klem Eye For Detail, Miles Avida Even If I Go, Jay Varton

Sources:
British Newspaper Archive
‘Caroline Beatrice (Thornhill) Davies (abt. 1880 - 1969)’, Wikitree, https://www.wikitree.com/wiki/Thornhill-700
Dorset History Centre, ‘Child criminals: young offenders in Victorian Dorset’, https://www.dorsetcouncil.gov.uk/documents/35024/285067/Learning+pack+-+Child+criminals+in+Dorset.pdf/5f965df6-c030-bf49-d506-2e7541c4c023#:~:text=At%20this%20time%2C%20children%20from,12%20years%20old%20being%20hanged
Goodman, Jonathan, ‘Seaside Murders: Thirteen Classic True Crime Stories’, 1985, Allison & Busby Honeycombe, Garden, ‘Murders of the Black Museum 1870 - 1970’, 1982, Hutchinson

When Shelly Walsh dropped her kids off at her dad’s on the evening of 30th June 2008, she had no idea it would be the last time she would ever see her son, daughter, and mother alive. What made an ordinary, loving grandfather in New South Wales, Australia, turn into a mass murderer overnight, killing his entire family without warning?

Thanks for listening! Here’s how you can get in touch with comments and suggestions:

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Want to listen to my audiobook, Murder Casebook Volume 1? Check out the Audible Links below:

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*****
I’m an independent podcaster, so I would be extremely grateful for any one-off donations, however small. This will go towards maintaining and upgrading my audio equipment, podcast hosting fees and licencing costs for any music and voices I use in my episodes. If you would like to contribute on an ongoing basis, you can do that through Patreon, so please feel free to check out the link below and see what rewards are on offer in return for your support. Thank you!!

Support the show on Patreon: https://www.patreon.com/prashsmurdermap

Donate via Paypal: https://www.paypal.me/prashsmurdermap

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Music:

"Long Note Two" Kevin MacLeod (incompetech.com) Licensed under Creative Commons: By Attribution 4.0 License http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/

Sources:

Alexander, H, Emerson, D, and Kennedy, L, ‘Man arrested after axe murders’, June 2008, The Sydney Morning Herald, https://www.smh.com.au/national/man-arrested-after-axe-murders-20080630-2zfj.html Flanagan, Padraic, ‘Viking fanatic kills lover then smothers son, 4’, January 2009, Express, https://www.express.co.uk/news/uk/82051/Viking-fanatic-kills-lover-then-smothers-his-son-4 Hill, Ben, ‘Serial killer, 79, earns another life sentence for 'coldly' bashing his cellmate to death with a Sunbeam sandwich press - inside Long Bay's 'frail offenders' unit’, August 2018, Daily Mail Australia, https://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-6089041/Man-jailed-killing-wife-two-grandchildren-admits-murdering-fellow-inmate.html Mitchell, Georgina, ‘I work in cold rage: Child killer John Walsh’s glib description of crimes’, August 2018, The Sydney Morning Herald, https://www.smh.com.au/national/nsw/i-work-in-cold-rage-child-killer-john-walsh-s-glib-description-of-crimes-20180823-p4zzca.html Murderer John Walsh wanted cellmate 'gotten rid of', killed him with sandwich press, August 2018, 9 News, https://www.9news.com.au/national/john-walsh-frank-townsend-murder-bashed-inmate-sandwich-press-2017/d126fd1b-d6fa-40b7-a882-b222f3740901 O’Neill, Marnie, ‘John Walsh: From Cowra axe murderer to Sandwich Press Killer’, August 2018, News.com.au, https://www.news.com.au/national/crime/john-walsh-from-cowra-axe-murderer-to-sandwich-press-killer/news-story/b81566848f8afb02ed770527303006b6 ‘Townsend Cell Killing’, Justice Action, https://justiceaction.org.au/townsend-cell-killing Wells, Jamelle, ‘Sandwich press murderer John Walsh receives life sentence for cellmate’s death’, August 2018, ABC News, https://www.abc.net.au/news/2018-08-23/john-walsh-sandwich-press-murder-sentencing/10155464

What happened to 14-year-old Thora Chamberlain, who was abducted on the way to watch a school football game one Friday afternoon? The main suspect, who had a cunning ruse and a bold disguise, went on the run across America with the FBI hot on his trail. Even after he was captured, he continued to protest his innocence until the end.

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Want to listen to my audiobook, Murder Casebook Volume 1? Check out the Audible Links below:

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*****
I’m an independent podcaster, so I would be extremely grateful for any one-off donations, however small. This will go towards maintaining and upgrading my audio equipment, podcast hosting fees and licencing costs for any music and voices I use in my episodes. If you would like to contribute on an ongoing basis, you can do that through Patreon, so please feel free to check out the link below and see what rewards are on offer in return for your support. Thank you!!

Support the show on Patreon: https://www.patreon.com/prashsmurdermap

Donate via Paypal: https://www.paypal.me/prashsmurdermap

Or you could buy me a coffee at: https://ko-fi.com/prashsmurdermap

** YOUR SUPPORT IS GREATLY APPRECIATED!**

Sources:

Good, Meaghan, ‘1948: Thomas Henry McGonigle [sic], murder without a body’, February 2018, ExecutedToday.com, https://www.executedtoday.com/2018/02/20/1948-thomas-henry-mcgonigle-murder-without-a-body/ Herhold, Scott, ‘Eerie echoes of 1945 case in Sierra Lamar’s fate’, May 2017, Mercury News, http://www.mercurynews.com/2017/05/21/a-forerunner-to-sierra-lamar-case/ Kackley, Rod, ‘The Murder of Thora Chamberlain: A Shocking True Crime Story’, December 2021, Lyons Circle Publishing Inc
Santa Cruz Sentinel, Aug 18 1957, Newspapers.com

In 1984, a serial burglar and rapist was at large in England, his crimes spanning several Home Counties as well as the northeast of the country. He was armed, masked and dangerous, and he had an unusual calling card – in every house he broke into, he built himself a blanket fort in the living room and made himself at home, watching television and drinking cups of tea. His habit of den-building and the way he slunk off into the countryside after his assaults soon led to him being given the nickname ‘The Fox’. People were fearful, and the police had a tough job on their hands as his attacks crossed multiple jurisdictions. They were learning more about him each time he struck, but they needed to catch him fast before his violence escalated. Who was The Fox, and how would they find him?

Update 29th May 2024
72 year old Malcolm Fairley A.K.A The Fox died at HMP Hull yesterday (Tuesday 28th May)  https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/articles/c1dde87035po

Note: Thank you to those of you who have correctly pointed out that Malcolm Fairley should not be referred to as a "Geordie", as he was from Sunderland, which makes him colloquially known as a "Mackem". This is a common error and derived from the Brampton victim stating on 18 August 1984 that they recognized his accent as being from "somewhere in the northeast" and erroneously referring to him as a Geordie. I quoted it from there without fully understanding the differences. Apologies for the inaccuracy.


Thanks for listening! Here’s how you can get in touch with comments and suggestions:

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Want to listen to my audiobook, Murder Casebook Volume 1? Check out the Audible Links below:

AUDIBLE UK

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*****
I’m an independent podcaster, so I would be extremely grateful for any one-off donations, however small. This will go towards maintaining and upgrading my audio equipment, podcast hosting fees and licencing costs for any music and voices I use in my episodes. If you would like to contribute on an ongoing basis, you can do that through Patreon, so please feel free to check out the link below and see what rewards are on offer in return for your support. Thank you!!


Donate via Paypal: https://www.paypal.me/prashsmurdermap

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** YOUR SUPPORT IS GREATLY APPRECIATED!**

Sources: https://www.watfordobserver.co.uk/news/nostalgia/crimelibrary/malcolmfairley/whowasmalcolmfairley/
https://www.bucksherald.co.uk/news/crime/thirty-five-years-on-from-crime-spree-that-shook-tring-1995858
https://jerseyeveningpost.com/news/2017/08/03/islander-buys-sketches-by-uks-most-violent-inmate/
https://wearsideonline.com/malcolm-fairley-aka-the-fox/
Liverpool Echo, February 1985
Daily Mirror, July 1984 and February 1985
The Sunderland Echo and Shipping Gazette, December 1938
Evening Chronicle, February 1985
Sunday Mirror, March 1985 Luton/Dunstable on Sunday, November 1999
Leighton Buzzard on Sunday, October 1999

In this episode, I’m bringing you a collection of short but grisly cases from the 1800s, which on their own would be too short for an episode, but they’re too intriguing not to share so I’ve put three of them together. Let’s go back in time for a whistle-stop tour of three crimes ranging from the brutal to the mysterious. If you’re looking for murders involving deceptions, an unscrupulous businessman who exterminated an entire family, an execution by guillotine, a strange letter, the death of a living scarecrow and more, this ‘Penny Dreadfuls’ episode has you covered with these bitesize blood-soaked crimes.

Thanks for listening! Here’s how you can get in touch with comments and suggestions:

• My Website

• Patreon

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Want to listen to my audiobook, Murder Casebook Volume 1? Check out the Audible Links below:

AUDIBLE UK

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*****
I’m an independent podcaster, so I would be extremely grateful for any one-off donations, however small. This will go towards maintaining and upgrading my audio equipment, podcast hosting fees and licencing costs for any music and voices I use in my episodes. If you would like to contribute on an ongoing basis, you can do that through Patreon, so please feel free to check out the link below and see what rewards are on offer in return for your support. Thank you!!

Support the show on Patreon: www.patreon.com/prashsmurdermap

Donate via Paypal: https://www.paypal.me/prashsmurdermap

Or you could buy me a coffee at: https://ko-fi.com/prashsmurdermap

***** YOUR SUPPORT IS GREATLY APPRECIATED! *****

Music:

"Long Note Two" Kevin MacLeod (incompetech.com)
Licensed under Creative Commons: By Attribution 4.0 License
http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/

Epidemic Sound Eternal Moment by Farrell, Wooten Trailing by Christian Andersen

Sources:
Bondeson Jan, ‘Victorian Murders’, 2017, Amberley Publishing
British Newspaper Archive
https://murderresearch.com/historic-serious-crime-and-victim-index/
https://historian416.rssing.com/chan-60133532/all_p3.html
https://murderpedia.org/male.T/t/Traupmannn.htm
https://thanatosarchive.com/2021/11/02/knick-family-murders-1869/
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Jean-Baptiste_Traupmannn
https://books.google.co.uk/books?id=VKsOAAAAYAAJ&pg=PA1&source=gbs_toc_r&cad=2#v=onepage&q&f=false
https://strangeco.blogspot.com/2017/04/a-murder-in-manchester.html
https://www.jack-the-ripper-tour.com/generalnews/the-murder-of-sarah-jane-roberts/

When a pair of legs washed up in Clifford Pier Harbour in Singapore, the police knew something was very wrong. That same week, a South African tourist who had travelled to the country to buy the latest electronics was reported missing. He would never make it home. Somehow, in a country with one of the lowest crime rates in the world and a draconian criminal justice system, he fell prey to British serial killer John Scripps, who travelled the world murdering unsuspecting tourists and butchering their bodies. Who was Scripps, and how did the police track him down?

Thanks for listening! Here’s how you can get in touch with comments and suggestions:

• My Website

• Twitter/X

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• Patreon

• Email [email protected]

Want to listen to my audiobook, Murder Casebook Volume 1? Check out the Audible Links below:

AUDIBLE UK

AUDIBLE US

*****
I’m an independent podcaster, so I would be extremely grateful for any one-off donations, however small. This will go towards maintaining and upgrading my audio equipment, podcast hosting fees and licencing costs for any music and voices I use in my episodes. If you would like to contribute on an ongoing basis, you can do that through Patreon, so please feel free to check out the link below and see what rewards are on offer in return for your support. Thank you!!

Support the show on Patreon: www.patreon.com/prashsmurdermap

Donate via Paypal: https://www.paypal.me/prashsmurdermap

Or you could buy me a coffee at: https://ko-fi.com/prashsmurdermap

***** YOUR SUPPORT IS GREATLY APPRECIATED!*****



Music:
Awakening, An Agent Alone by https://www.purple-planet.com
"Constance" Kevin MacLeod (incompetech.com) Licensed under Creative Commons: By Attribution 4.0 License http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/

Sources:
Boon, Tan Ooi, ‘Body Parts: A British Serial Killer in Singapore, 1996’, April 2019, Straits Times Press

‘Guilty As Charged: John Martin Scripps befriended tourists, then butchered them’, May 2016, The Straits Times, https://www.straitstimes.com/singapore/courts-crime/guilty-as-charged-john-martin-scripps-befriended-tourists-then-butchered-them ‘

John Martin Scripps: Body-parts murder’, Singapore Infopedia, https://eresources.nlb.gov.sg/infopedia/articles/SIP_437_2005-01-17.html

‘Manslaughter and Murder’, February 2020, I.R.B. Law, https://irblaw.com.sg/learning-centre/manslaughter-murder/

‘Singapore Census of Population, 2000 – Literacy and Language’, December 2000, Singapore Department of Statistics, Web Archive, https://web.archive.org/web/20091113162718/http://www.singstat.gov.sg/pubn/papers/people/c2000adr-literacy.pdf

The Straits Times, 30 March 1995, Reel Number NL19806

The Straits Times, 12 November 1995, Reel Number NL20073

What kind of killer could chisel out the panel of a door and creep inside without waking a soul? How was he so light on his feet that nobody heard him coming on the dark, moonless nights on which he struck? That’s what the people of New Orleans were asking themselves when their city was terrorised by a mysterious Axeman who targeted Italian grocers, leaving nothing behind but blood, fear, and a discarded weapon - and taking nothing with him except the secret of his identity. He came and went like a phantom, spreading a wave of brutality through the City of Festivals that would not easily be forgotten. Who was the Axeman of New Orleans?

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Want to listen to my audiobook, Murder Casebook Volume 1? Check out the Audible Links below:

AUDIBLE UK

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*****
I’m an independent podcaster, so I would be extremely grateful for any one-off donations, however small. This will go towards maintaining and upgrading my audio equipment, podcast hosting fees and licencing costs for any music and voices I use in my episodes. If you would like to contribute on an ongoing basis, you can do that through Patreon, so please feel free to check out the link below and see what rewards are on offer in return for your support. Thank you!!

Support the show on Patreon: www.patreon.com/prashsmurdermap

Donate via Paypal: https://www.paypal.me/prashsmurdermap

Or you could buy me a coffee at: https://ko-fi.com/prashsmurdermap

***** YOUR SUPPORT IS GREATLY APPRECIATED!*****

Music:

Dead Jungle composed by Matthew C Morelli
Don’t Scare Me Papa
Mysterious Madeline by Lucas Pittman

Sources:
The Axe Man of New Orleans: The True Story by Miriam C Davis
A Treasury of XXth Century Murder Compendium 1 by Rick Geary
The Mysterious Axman's Jazz by Joseph John Davilla https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=bLDiNcNvCBw

Anjette Donovan Lyles ran a popular diner in downtown Macon, Georgia and she oozed Southern charm, wowing customers with her lemon pie and banana pudding. But behind the home-cooked meals and the bright red lipstick-smile, lurked a dangerous killer from whom none of her family members were safe…

Thanks for listening! Here's how to get in touch with comments and suggestions:

• My Website

• Twitter/X

• Facebook

• Instagram

• Patreon

Email [email protected]


Want to listen to my audiobook, Murder Casebook Volume 1? Check out the Audible Links below:

AUDIBLE UK

AUDIBLE US


***** I’m an independent podcaster, so I would be extremely grateful for any one-off donations, however small. This will go towards maintaining and upgrading my audio equipment, podcast hosting fees and licencing costs for any music and voices I use in my episodes. If you would like to contribute on an ongoing basis, you can do that through Patreon, so please feel free to check out the link below and see what rewards are on offer in return for your support. Thank you!!

Support the show on Patreon: www.patreon.com/prashsmurdermap

Donate via Paypal: https://www.paypal.me/prashsmurdermap

Or you could buy me a coffee at: https://ko-fi.com/prashsmurdermap

***** YOUR SUPPORT IS GREATLY APPRECIATED!*****

Music:
"Dark Times" and Long Note By Three, Kevin MacLeod (incompetech.com)
Licensed under Creative Commons: By Attribution 4.0 License
http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/

Sources:

13WMAZ, “Anjette Lyles Case: Murder on the menu”, YouTube, 2020, https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=0HU8R_sDJFc

13WMAZ, “From the archives: Anjette Lyles case”, YouTube, https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=yWhGSEetvnY&t=105s

“Anjette Donovan Lyles”, Murderpedia, https://murderpedia.org/female.L/l/lyles-anjette.htm

Dan, Tee Jay, “The Difference Between Madness and Mental Illness”, LinkedIn, Nov 2020, The Difference between Madness and Mental Illness (linkedin.com)

GroovyAmericanTourist, “Anjette Lyles The Black Widow of Macon Georgia”, YouTube, Mar 2020, https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=5_6tMhfdBUo

Lyles v. State, Supreme Court of Georgia, Justia, 1959, https://law.justia.com/cases/georgia/supreme-court/1959/20465-1.html

Weldon White, Jaclyn, “Whisper to the Black Candle: Voodoo, Murder, and the case of Anjette Lyles”, Mercer University Press, 2006

Ronald Ruse was a happy, easy-going young man who enjoyed surfing and softball in his home state of sunny California. But when he met girlfriend Linda Ricchio, everything changed for the worse. This is a sad and alarming story of obsession and stalking that culminated in disaster and ruined more than one life.

Thanks for listening! Here’s how you can get in touch with comments and suggestions:

• My Website

• Twitter/X

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• Facebook Author Page

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• Email [email protected]

Want to listen to my audiobook, Murder Casebook Volume 1? Check out the Audible Links below:

AUDIBLE UK

AUDIBLE US


*****
I’m an independent podcaster and produce these episodes from a spare bedroom in my home, so I would be extremely grateful for any one-off donations, however small. This will go towards maintaining and upgrading my audio equipment, podcast hosting fees and licencing costs for any music and voices I use in my episodes. If you would like to contribute on an ongoing basis, you can do that through Patreon, so please feel free to check out the link below and see what rewards are on offer in return for your support. Thank you!!

Support the show monthly on Patreon: http://www.patreon.com/prashsmurdermap

Donate via Paypal: https://www.paypal.me/prashsmurdermap

Or you could buy me a coffee at: https://ko-fi.com/prashsmurdermap


*****YOUR SUPPORT IS GREATLY APPRECIATED!*****


Credits:

Research, writing, narration and audio editing by Prash
Music: Melancholia by https://www.purple-planet.com. Particle Emission by Silver Maple. Even If I Go by Miles Avida

Sources:

https://www.latimes.com/archives/la-xpm-1989-06-06-me-1646-story.html https://www.latimes.com/archives/la-xpm-1988-03-29-me-95-story.html https://gunmemorial.org/1987/12/01/ronald-lewis-ron-ruse-jr# https://thecinemaholic.com/where-is-linda-ricchio-now/ https://mylifeofcrime.wordpress.com/2014/08/04/deadly-women-linda-ricchio-stalked-and-killed-ronald-lewis-ruse-jr-because-he-broke-up-with-her-sentenced-to-27-years-to-life-in-prison/ https://www.imdb.com/title/tt3658502/?ref_=ttep_ep16