Who needs a femme fatale when reality is this twisted? Join us as we uncover the true stories of women who proved that sometimes, the sweetest smiles hide the darkest secrets.

You can check out the High Expectations podcast here!

Research links below!

Getty Images - "Sara Maria Aldrete Villareal, the so-called witch of a cult, discusses her role in the murder and death of the U.S. student, Mark Kilroy."
SF Gate -"Woman called priestess of satanic cult says she's changed: Inmate has served 15 years in prison in Mexico for ritual sacrifices of 13"
Deseret News - "'Perfect' Student Sought in Cult Slayings"
Oxygen - "Deadly Narcosatanist Cult Performed Human Sacrifices For Drug Cartels"
Time - "Cult of The Red-Haired Devil"
Unknown Gender History - "Sara Maria Aldrete, Mexican Cult Serial Killer - 1989"

Time - "CRIME: Louise"
Murderpedia - "Louise Peete"
The Spokesman-Review - "'Carbon Copy' Killer to Die"
Palisadian-Post - "The Bizarre Tale of Murder Louise Peete In 1944, Her Crime on Hampden Place Led to the Gas Chamber"
Los Angeles Magazine - "The Life and Lies of L.A. Man Killer Louise Peete"
Deranged LA Crimes - "Aggie and the City of Forgotten Women: Part 1"
Deranged LA Crimes - "Dead Woman Walking: Louise Peete, Part 3"
Deranged LA Crimes - "Dead Woman Walking: Louise Peete, Part 4"

From arsenic to antifreeze, we're diving deep into the dark world of deadly doses. Get ready for tales of twisted intentions and silent killers. This episode is toxic!

You can check out Murder and Such here!

Research links below!

The Journal of the American Academy of Psychiatry and the Law - "Arsenic, Familicide, and Female Physiology in Nineteenth-Century America"
Alexandria Gazette - "A Terrible Confession"
Morning Journal and Courier - "A Modern Borgia's Deeds"
The Wheeling Daily Intelligencer - "A Woman Executed"
"Periodic Insanity as Illustrated in the Case of Sarah J. Whiteling, and Others" by Alice Bennett, MD
Murderpedia - "Sarah Jane Whiteling"
Medium - "Sarah Jane Whiteling: The Wholesale Poisoner"

BBC News - "Patricia Dagorn: France's 'Black Widow' jailed for poisonings"
The Guardian - "France's 'black widow' jailed for 22 years after killing two elderly men"
Pulse - "France's 'Black Widow' has prison term cut on appeal"
South China Morning Post - "'Perverse' woman who seduced and murdered old men is jailed for 22 years in France"
The Guardian - "France's 'black widow' on trial for killing two old men for their money"
Getty Images - "Files in the case of Patricia Dagorn"
New York Post - "How 'black widow' became the femme fatale of the French Riviera"
The Times - "Black Widow of Côte d’Azur robbed and poisoned lonely men"
RFI - "'Black Widow' gets 22-year jail term for poisoning wealthy old men"

This is part 2 of our 200th episode extravaganza!

Two hundred episodes! We've journeyed through countless cases of darkness, mystery, and the truly unbelievable. To celebrate this milestone, join us as we return to the countdown you've all been waiting for: our definitive Top Ten crimes of all time. These cases have stuck with us, the ones that burrowed under our skin and continue to fascinate and disturb in equal measure. From shocking betrayals to baffling disappearances and the pure embodiment of evil, we'll revisit the details, the impact, and why these ten cases have earned a permanent spot in our true crime consciousness. Get ready for a rollercoaster of emotions as we delve into the crimes that have defined our last 200 episodes – and perhaps, the genre itself. You might think you know our tastes, but are you ready for the ultimate reveal? Tune in and find out! A special thank you to this week's guest, Michael Wanfalt!

Two hundred episodes! We've journeyed through countless cases of darkness, mystery, and the truly unbelievable. To celebrate this milestone, join us as we return to the countdown you've all been waiting for: our definitive Top Ten crimes of all time. These cases have stuck with us, the ones that burrowed under our skin and continue to fascinate and disturb in equal measure. From shocking betrayals to baffling disappearances and the pure embodiment of evil, we'll revisit the details, the impact, and why these ten cases have earned a permanent spot in our true crime consciousness. Get ready for a rollercoaster of emotions as we delve into the crimes that have defined our last 200 episodes – and perhaps, the genre itself. You might think you know our tastes, but are you ready for the ultimate reveal? Tune in and find out!

Walls can't hold 'em! From daring daylight dashes to tunnels that'd make a mole jealous, we're diving deep into two of the craziest prison escapes ever. Lock your doors, folks, because these stories are wild!

You can check out the Not Fade Away podcast here!

Research links below!


Prison History - "Alfred George Hinds - Escape from prison"
TIME - "Great Britain: Alfie the Elusive"
Topfoto
UK Parliament - "Alfred George Hinds"
Greensboro - "Frequent Prison Escapee Alfred Hinds Dies a Free Man"

The Burlington Free Press - "Escapee Murders Way Across Country"
Jackson Sun - "Life, not death, for mentally ill"
The Herald-Palladium - "Police Say Ypsi Center Worker Admits He Aided Man's Escape"
Detroit Free Press - "Escape"
Detroit Free Press - "Ex-state employe pleads no contest in Day's escape"
Murderpedia - "William Scott Day"
Detroit Free Press - "What was staffer running from when he aided escape?"
The Tennessean - "Volunteer awards preserve legacy of slain activist"
Detroit Free Press - "Michigan hospital escapee confesses 6 killings to sheriff"

From ghostly apparitions to missing persons, Unsolved Mysteries terrified and intrigued us. In this episode of the BTC, we revisit some classic cases and ask: What happened next?

You can check out the Murder Road Trip podcast here!

Research links below!

Screen Rant - "15 Biggest Unsolved Mysteries Cases That Were Finally Solved"
Houston Public Media - "'People Were Afraid Of Him' - Killer's Death Leaves Hope For New Information"
Houston Chronicle - "Confessions of a cold-blooded killer"
Lubbock Avalanche-Journal - "Student Charged With Exposure"
The Waco Citizen - "Texas Most Wanted Fugitive #1"
The Paris News - "Murder suspect arrested"
IRE - "Suspected Texas serial killer confesses nearly 40 years later"
Unsolved Mysteries - "Edward Harold Bell"
Houston Public Media - "Texas Prisoner Responds To Theory That He's Responsible For Galveston Serial Murders"
The Daily News-Journal - "Flasher convicted in 1978 slaying"
Houston Matters - "Edward Harold Bell Claims He's At The Center Of A Vast Government Conspiracy"
Mental Floss - "A Brief History of Unsolved Mysteries"

Unsolved Mysteries - "Black Hope Curse"
Unsolved Mysteries Wiki - "Black Hope"
Terri Reid - "Black Hope Cemetery"
Austin Ghosts - "Black Hope Cemetery"
Anom Alien - "The Mysterious Case Of Black Hope Cemetery"

Cults: Power, control, and stories that will make your skin crawl. This week on the BTC, we're breaking down the two sketchy groups and what makes them tick.

You can check out 600 Second Saga here!


Research links below!

ResearchGate - "Cults: Angel's Landing"
Springer Nature Link - "Cults: Angel's Landing"
A-Z of Cults - "A is for Angel's Landing"
Oxygen - "Deadly Cults: Angel's Landing"
E! News - "Oxygen's Deadly Cults Sneak Peek: Daniel Perezs Former Follower Recalls Mother's Untimely Death"
The Witchita Eagle -"Case of Kansas cult killer and rapist Daniel Perez, AKA Lour Castro, Featured on TV"
Oxygen - "Lou Castro Told His Followers He Was A 1,000-Year-Old Angel"
Times Now World - "Who is Daniel Perez and Where is the Leader of Angel's Landing Now?"

The New Yorker - "The Cult in the Forest"
PBS News - "Kenyan authorities find 39 bodies during investigation of religious cult leader"
BBC - "Kenya cult: Children targeted to die first, pastor says"
Aljazeera - "Kenya cult leader Paul Mackenzie on trial for manslaughter"
Mpasho - "11 Things you didn't know about Shakahola Pastor Mackenzie"
CBS News - "Kenya starvation cult death toll hits 90 as morgues fill up: 'Nothing prepares you for shallow mass graves of children'"
The Guardian - "Kenyan cult leader accused of inciting children to starve to death"
Nation - "'I started a church with Mackenzie, then he ruined our lives': Tale of fight for church and the rise of a cult leader"
The Standard - "Stalled case of pastor in cult-like deaths exposes cracks in justice system"
Good News International Ministries
Tuko - "The Making of a Cult: Rise of Pastor Paul MacKenzie's Good News International Empire"
Nation - "Why court advised DPP to reduce murder charges against Shakahola suspects"

Bank robberies: a classic crime with endless stories. We're telling the best of them this week. Join Vicky and Rachel as they look at two tales with very different circumstances.

You can check out the Book vs. Movie podcast here!

Research links below!


The Japan Times - "Plea of innocence from the grave"
TIME - "Japan: Noose of Pneumonia?"
The Japan Times - "Teigin Incident Convict Long Dead: Fight to clear mass-killer's name unending"
The Japan Times - "Experts doubt Teigin Incident Verdict"
The Japan Times - "Court calls end to plea seeing 'Teigin' retrial"
The Sydney Morning Herald - "19th bid to clear late murderer's name"
Murderpedia - "Sadamichi Hirasawa"
Infinite Corridor - "Teikoku Bank Incident"

Rolling Stone - "The MMA Fighter Who Pulled Off the Largest Money Heist in U.K. History"
Getty Images - "Securitas Robbery Depot"
BBC - "Man jailed over £53m Securitas raid refused parole"
New York Post - "Britain's biggest bank heist was 'executed flawlessly' - then it fell apart"
Metro - "Securitas heist 'inside man' still hasn't paid a penny back of £250,000 spoils"
History Daily - "The Securitas Depot Robbery"
Criminal - "The Securitas Depot Robbery (2006): England's Astonishing Heist that Shook the Nation"
History - "Gang commits largest robbery in British history"

Ever wonder why your neighbor's cat is always watching you? Maybe they're a spy. Probably not. But Rachel and Vicky will talk about real-life spies this week anyway.

You can check out the We're All Just Pretending Podcast here!

Research links below!

Accidental Talmudist - "Ballplayer And Spy: MoeBerg"
ESPN Classic - "Moe Berg: Catcher and spy"
NOVA Online - "Moe Berg"
SB Nation - "Moe Berg: Catcher, Lawyer, Horndog, Spy"
Atomic Heritage Foundation - "Morris 'Moe' Berg"
Smithsonian Magazine - "The Baseball Player-Turned-Spy Who Went Undercover to Assassinate the Nazis' Top Nuclear Scientist"
National Baseball Hall of Fame - "#Shortstops: Moe Berg's Life in Baseball"
Warfare History Network - "WWII Spies: Morris 'Moe' Berg"

FBI - "Velvalee Dickinson, the 'Doll Woman'"
Smithsonian Magazine - "The Spy in the Doll Shop"
History of Spies - "Velvalee Dickinson"
National Cryptologic Foundation - "1944: Spy Velvalee Dickinson Sentenced"
Gizmodo - "The Strange Case Of The Doll Seller Who Desperately Wanted To Be A Spy"
HistoryNet - "The Doll Seller Who Played With Japanese Spies"

Join Vicky and Rachel as we explore the murky underworld of literary crime. This episode highlights the surprising criminal activities of two authors, proving that real life can be far more dramatic than any novel.

You can check out The Vocal Fries Podcast here!

Research links below!


Oxygen - "Jack Unterweger Passed Himself Off As a Reformed Criminal, Then Killed Many More Victims"
Independent - "Murderer's 'final freedom': The bizarre life of Jack Unterweger, poet and killer of prostitutes, ends at his own hand"
The Guardian - "John Malkovich brings serial killer Jack Unterweger back to life on Vienna stage"
Los Angeles Times - "Austrian Slayer of L.A. Prostitutes Kills Self"
"Entering Hades: The Double Life of a Serial Killer" by John Leake

BBC - "Anne Perry: Murderer turned crime writer dies aged 84"
Los Angeles Times - "Anne Perry, teen murderer turned crime writer, dies at 84"
The Guardian - "'I was guilty. I did my time': Anne Perry, the novelist whose past caught up with her"
Sutjata Massey - "A Journey With Anne Perry"
NPR - "Remembering historical crime novelist Anne Perry"
Daily Mail - "The best-selling crime novelist with a terrible secret: How Anne Perry helped her best friend batter her own mother to death with a brick in brutal murder that was turned into an Oscar-nominated film starring Kate Winslet"