A heavy backpack. A quiet question in first‑period math. And a year of warnings that went unanswered. This episode of Serial Napper traces the long, tangled path leading to the Apalachee High shooting and the four lives lost in minutes.

In this late‑night deep dive, we walk through the slow unravelling of 14‑year‑old Colt Gray: a boy raised in chaos, overlooked by schools, ignored by caseworkers, and surrounded by adults who kept assuming someone else would step in. We also break down how Colt's father, Colin Gray, now charged with murder, moved through a year of missed red flags before the Apalachee High shooting.

From FBI‑flagged threats that stalled out, to a full school year he never once attended, to a frantic search that ended with staff detaining the wrong student - we unravel how a tragedy built itself one missed chance at a time.

This isn’t about excusing a shooter.  It’s about the systems that should have protected every child at that school… and failed them all. If you or someone you know is struggling with thoughts of self‑harm, help is available. In the U.S., call or text 988.

Sources:

https://www.bbc.com/news/articles/cpv87wwmd0lo

https://www.cnn.com/2024/09/06/us/timeline-apalachee-high-school-shooting-georgia

https://gbi.georgia.gov/press-releases/2024-09-13/frequently-asked-questions-apalachee-high-school-shooting

https://www.nytimes.com/2026/03/03/us/colin-gray-verdict-apalachee-shooting.html

https://www.alaskasnewssource.com/2024/09/06/inside-georgia-high-school-where-sleepy-morning-was-pierced-by-gunfire/

https://www.washingtonpost.com/investigations/2024/10/03/georgia-school-shooting-suspect-apalachee/

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On the morning of February 18, 2019, 15-year-old Rebecca Reusch was supposed to go to school. She never arrived.

The last confirmed sign of life? A Snapchat sent from inside her sister’s home in Berlin-Britz. At 7:46 a.m., her phone connected to the house Wi-Fi for the final time. After that, her digital footprint vanished.

In this episode of Serial Napper, we walk through one of Germany’s most high-profile and puzzling missing person cases. From the narrow 46-minute window inside the house… to the suspicious eastbound drives on the A12 highway… to the forest searches in Brandenburg… and the 2025 property excavation involving over 100 officers and the BKA.

Why was Rebecca’s brother-in-law arrested twice on suspicion of manslaughter?
Why were hairs and fibres from a missing blanket reportedly found in his car trunk?
Why did police publicly release his photo in a way that many called unprecedented?

And why, seven years later, is there still no body, no confession, and no definitive proof of what happened inside that house?

Rebecca Reusch’s disappearance has been described as one of Germany’s most closely watched missing person cases, second only to Madeleine McCann in media intensity.

And it all comes back to one timestamp.

7:46 a.m.

Sources:

https://www.berlin.de/generalstaatsanwaltschaft/presse/pressemitteilungen/2025/pressemitteilung.1608274.php

https://www.tagesspiegel.de/berlin/alles-deutet-darauf-hin-dass-sie-das-haus-nicht-lebend-verlassen-hat-4686169.html

https://www.mirror.co.uk/news/world-news/police-searching-missing-teen-rebecca-36103410

https://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-15210047/Police-hunting-missing-Berlin-schoolgirl-vanished-six-years-ago-15-search-grandparents-home.html 

https://www.stern.de/panorama/verbrechen/themen/rebecca-reusch-8595696.html

https://www.tagesspiegel.de/gesellschaft/spuren-des-zweifels-5546110.html?icid=in-text-link_4686169

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In the summer of 1968, the tight-knit community of Scotswood in Newcastle upon Tyne was shaken by two devastating deaths. Four-year-old Martin Brown was found in an abandoned house. Three-year-old Brian Howe was discovered weeks later, strangled behind concrete blocks near a railway.

The person ultimately convicted? An 11-year-old girl named Mary Flora Bell.

In this episode of Serial Napper, we dive deep into one of Britain’s most infamous child murder cases. Not just the crimes, but everything that came before them.

Mary’s chaotic upbringing in the slums of Scotswood.
The alleged abuse and early head injuries.
The repeated warnings that no one acted on.
The chilling courtroom testimony describing her “mask of sanity.”
The controversial verdict of diminished responsibility.
Her release at 23 under a new identity.
And the lifelong anonymity order that still protects her today.

We also ask the uncomfortable question that has haunted this case for decades: Was Mary Bell born this way? Or was she built by the violence around her?

She has never reoffended. Not once. But two little boys never got the chance to grow up.

Sources:

https://www.theguardian.com/society/1968/dec/06/childprotection

https://www.crimeandinvestigation.co.uk/crime-files/mary-bell

https://www.nytimes.com/1999/04/18/books/a-bad-seed.html

https://www.independent.co.uk/news/police-investigate-bell-s-abuse-claims-1161695.html

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In 2005, just weeks after surviving a 41-day stay in the NICU, baby Emmanuel Woods died of malnutrition in Shreveport, Louisiana. His mother, Tiffany Woods, was later convicted of second-degree murder and sentenced to life in prison.

Her crime? Switching her premature infant to cow’s milk after Hurricane Katrina displaced the family and disrupted access to formula and medical care.

Nearly twenty years later, after earning a degree behind bars and raising four surviving children from a distance, Tiffany requested parole. Two board members voted to release her. One vote kept her in prison.

So what do we call this case? Was this criminal neglect? Or a catastrophic mistake made in survival mode during one of the worst natural disasters in U.S. history?

Sources:

https://atlantablackstar.com/2026/02/18/louisiana-mom-convicted-of-murdering-infant-by-feeding-him-cows-milk-after-hurricane-katrina-denied-parole-after-spending-18-years-in-prison/

https://newsone.com/6843116/tiffany-woods-disaster-displacement-life-without-parole/

https://www.scrippsnews.com/us-news/crime/clemency-recommended-to-mom-in-prison-for-killing-infant-with-cow-milk

https://www.nola.com/news/courts/louisiana-mom-whose-baby-died-after-being-fed-cow-s-milk-during-katrina-evacuation-denied/article_6bdb3f2f-c40d-458c-9644-b4e08e8cacde.html

https://madamenoire.com/1654770/tiffany-woods-parole-denied/

https://www.themarshallproject.org/2021/12/16/her-baby-died-after-hurricane-katrina#:~:text=Baby%20Emmanuel%20was%20extremely%20sleepy,he%20might%20tolerate%20it%20better.&text=Her%20Baby%20Died%20After%20Hurricane%20Katrina.,-Was%20It%20a

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April 15, 2014.

What began as a small student gathering near the University of Calgary ended in one of the most devastating nights in the city’s history.

Five young people went to a house party in Brentwood and never made it home.

The accused, 22-year-old Matthew DeGrood, the son of a Calgary police officer, would later be diagnosed with schizophrenia and found Not Criminally Responsible for the killings.

In this episode, we explore:
• What witnesses described from inside the house
• The disturbing behaviour leading up to the attack
• The legal meaning of Not Criminally Responsible in Canada
• The ongoing review board process
• And the difficult tension between treatment and public safety

This is not a story about revenge or a clear motive. It’s a case about psychosis, missed warning signs, and the ripple effects that continue more than a decade later.

Five families are still living with the aftermath.

Sources:

https://calgary.citynews.ca/2025/12/19/matthew-de-grood-criminal-review-board/

https://globalnews.ca/news/10067351/matthew-de-grood-calgary-stabbings-review/

https://calgaryherald.com/news/crime/details-of-shocking-brentwood-killings-heard-during-first-day-of-matthew-de-grood-trial

https://edmontonjournal.com/news/crime/matthew-de-groods-family-breaks-silence-about-alberta-review-board-controversy

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In February 2025, 22-year-old Liam Gabriel Toman disappeared from Mont-Tremblant after a night out at Le P’tit Caribou. Last seen on surveillance walking toward his hotel, he never made it back — and his disappearance remains unsolved.

After a day on the slopes and drinks in the village, Liam was captured on camera just minutes from his room. An extensive search followed. Weeks later, his wallet was found near a parking lot inside the resort area — but Liam was nowhere to be found.

In this episode of Serial Napper, we break down the timeline, the surveillance gaps, the search efforts, and the unanswered questions that still surround Liam’s disappearance.

A $50,000 reward is being offered for information leading to his whereabouts (valid through May 20, 2026).
If you have information, contact the Sûreté du Québec tip line: 1-800-659-4264.

Sources:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=vjYasFE18Jk

https://ottawa.citynews.ca/2025/11/25/reward-ontario-man-missing-mont-tremblant/

https://people.com/man-22-vanished-after-leaving-quebec-ski-resort-bar-and-remains-missing-year-later-11888049

https://www.liamtoman.com/

https://montrealgazette.com/news/liam-toman-mont-tremblant-police-command-post 

https://www.facebook.com/groups/9496912960422437/

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In September 2021, Mchale Busch and her 16-month-old son Noah McConnell were murdered in their apartment building in Hinton, Alberta, by a neighbour the system already knew was dangerous.

This episode explores how a young family, searching for safety and stability, unknowingly moved next door to Robert Keith Major, a convicted sex offender assessed as high risk to reoffend. Despite documented warnings, he was living without monitoring or supervision.

We examine the life Mchale and Cody built together, the events of September 15, 2021, the investigation that followed, and how gaps in Canada’s sex offender registry failed to protect families. We also discuss the RCMP’s 2025 High Risk Child Sex Offender Database and why Noah’s Law, proposed by Noah’s father, still matters.

Content warning: This episode discusses violence against a child. Details are handled with care and without graphic description.

Sources:

https://noahslaw.ca/ 

https://www.alberta.ca/assets/documents/hro-robert-keith-major-media-release.pdf

https://noahslaw.ca/ 

https://globalnews.ca/news/8332627/alberta-justice-system-failed-hinton-murders/

https://burgarfuneralhome.com/tribute/details/7794/Mchale-Busch/obituary.html

VIDEO: https://globalnews.ca/video/8414090/alberta-man-speaks-candidly-about-homicide-of-fiancee-and-son-in-hinton-airs-justice-system-grievances

https://www.canadianlawyermag.com/news/general/royal-canadian-mounted-police-releases-high-risk-child-sex-offender-database-to-public/393593

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In October of 1978, a young woman’s body was found dragged into a roadside ditch along a rural gravel road in Lyon County, Iowa. She had been dead for months. She had no identification. No missing person report. No name.

For 27 years, she was known only as Jane Doe. That woman was Wilma June Nissen.

Wilma’s life was marked by abandonment and survival long before her murder. Born in 1954, she endured extreme neglect and abuse as a child, homelessness at a young age, and years in the foster care system. As an adult, she was repeatedly exploited, escaped dangerous relationships, and tried to rebuild her life while navigating a world that never truly protected her.

After disappearing in 1978, Wilma resurfaced hundreds of miles from home, working for an escort service operating in Sioux Falls, South Dakota, and Northwest Iowa. Shortly after, she was brutally murdered. The details of her death remain largely undisclosed due to the extreme violence involved.

Despite being identified in 2006, Wilma’s case has stalled. Evidence exists. DNA exists. Modern forensic tools exist. Yet law enforcement has declined to pursue updated testing, forensic genetic genealogy, or outside assistance that could move this case forward at no cost to taxpayers.

Wilma was never reported missing. She was never prioritized. And today, she risks being erased all over again.

This episode is told through the lens of her daughter, the only person still fighting for answers. It’s a story about systemic failure, silence as policy, and what it means to refuse to let someone be forgotten simply because their life was difficult.

Sources:

https://medium.com/@justice4wilma/no-person-is-disposable-5172b2deee95

https://projectcoldcase.org/2025/05/12/wilma-nissen/

https://www.nbcnews.com/dateline/cold-case-spotlight/wilma-nissen-rock-rapids-iowa-homicide-unsolved-rcna232527

https://storiesoftheunsolved.com/2021/02/14/the-murder-of-wilma-june-nissen/

https://unidentified-awareness.fandom.com/wiki/Wilma_Nissen

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Kiara Agnew was 23 years old when she left Canada for the very first time.

In March 2023, the Dawson Creek, British Columbia woman travelled to Playa del Carmen, Mexico to celebrate her birthday with her boyfriend. She sent happy videos home. Smiled from a resort balcony. Talked about food and the beach. Everything about the trip felt ordinary.

Less than twelve hours later, Kiara was found beaten to death in a laundry room at a five-star resort. Her boyfriend, Ryan Friesen, was discovered asleep beside her body.

Ryan was charged with femicide under Mexican law, and prosecutors told Kiara’s family the case was “open and shut.” But in September 2024, after a judge-only trial, he was found not guilty.

This episode walks through what happened next.

We examine the crime scene, the physical evidence, and the defence theory that shifted the case, including the DNA evidence that introduced reasonable doubt. We hear from Kiara’s sister about diary entries that documented years of escalating abuse, and we unpack Ryan’s version of events, including his claim that multiple attackers were responsible.

We also look at the questions that were never fully answered, including surveillance footage from the resort that Kiara’s family was led to believe existed but was never provided to them. In a case where timelines matter, that absence still looms large.

As protests spread across Canada, Kiara’s aunt organized the Justice for Kiara movement, pushing for accountability and for Kiara’s Law, a proposal calling for mandatory Canadian forensic autopsies in suspicious deaths abroad, stronger consular support for families, and Canadian jurisdiction in cases of Canadian-on-Canadian violence overseas.

Then, in an extremely rare move, a Mexican magistrate overturned the not-guilty verdict. Ryan Friesen remains free in Canada while his lawyers appeal, and his fate now rests with a three-judge panel in Mexico. If the new verdict is upheld, he could face up to 50 years in prison.

This is a story about unanswered questions. Conflicting truths. And a young woman whose first trip abroad ended in violence.

Sources:

https://www.facebook.com/profile.php?id=100090631765773

https://www.ctvnews.ca/canada/article/ctv-w5-exclusive-not-guilty-verdict-in-murder-of-canadian-may-be-overturned/

https://www.cbc.ca/news/canada/british-columbia/canadian-man-found-not-guilty-of-killing-b-c-woman-in-mexico-1.7322127

https://www.legacy.com/us/obituaries/legacyremembers/kiara-agnew-obituary?id=51529082

https://www.scribd.com/document/985529747/Ryan-Friesen-Statement#google_vignette

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In December 2020, two little boys vanished from a backyard in California City just days before Christmas.

Three-year-old Orrin West and four-year-old Orson West were reported missing by their adoptive parents, who claimed the boys wandered away through an open gate while playing outside.

At first, it sounded like every parent’s nightmare. But almost immediately, nothing about the story made sense.

No footprints in the desert dirt.
No scent trails.
No neighbours had ever seen the boys.
No surveillance footage placing them in California City at all.

As the search intensified, investigators began to suspect something far darker. What followed was a quiet, meticulous investigation that unfolded largely out of public view, culminating in the arrest and conviction of the boys’ adoptive parents, Trezell West and Jacqueline West.

In this episode of Serial Napper, we revisit the case now that it’s been somewhat resolved and walk through what really happened to Orrin and Orson West.

Sources:

https://www.kget.com/missing-cal-city-boys/west-case-timeline-from-the-initial-report-to-trial/

https://www.courttv.com/news/cal-city-toddlers-trial-ca-v-jacqueline-and-trezell-west/

https://www.yahoo.com/news/west-trial-conflicting-testimony-given-010300309.html?guccounter=1&guce_referrer=aHR0cHM6Ly93d3cuZ29vZ2xlLmNvbS8&guce_referrer_sig=AQAAADFT6Qni2katPdaXiZ1xxMS4d4R8joN6u_NBPQIyfJ2s5tzwMGSYrTVx2l8EVE4xWX6MOhJt6XZdw4b4ydL2WMuvZUdyyTL3vZvuagovm_h1EYg44KaBCusTOSH4OtVTqqKzCtEk9A6-uc4r-rlAnHboe0RyIhuT-8pxEHblNkUh

https://www.kget.com/missing-cal-city-boys/west-trial-day-14-prosecution-begins-calling-west-children-to-testify/ 

https://lawandcrime.com/crime/they-were-babies-adoptive-parents-sentenced-for-2020-murder-of-still-missing-4-year-old-boy-and-abuse-of-his-younger-brother/

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