The Misery Machine

By The Misery MachineTrue Crime

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Typical duration
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The Misery Machine episodes

May 25, 2020 The Disappearance of Randy Leach | 1980's Satanic Panic | Do Small Town Police Mishandle Cases?
This week, Yergy and Drewby tackle another listener suggestion (thank you, Amir!) - the unsolved disappearance of Randy Leach. We discuss the hard facts, and ponder whether or not the combination of the 1980's "Satanic Panic" phenomena and shoddy police work rendered his case unsolvable.

Randy was a senior at Linwood High School (Linwood, Kansas) in 1988. He left his home at 6:30 p.m. to attend a friend's pre-graduation party which took place on a farm owned by Annie Erwin, the mother of one of the graduating teens, on April 15, 1988.

Randy did not arrive at the party until between 9:30 and 10:00 p.m. He was driving his mother's gray four-door 1985 Dodge sedan with the Kansas plate number LVJ8721, and carried about $50 or $60 in cash.

There were between 70 and 150 guests at the party and there was considerable drug and alcohol use by the mostly teenaged guests. Some witnesses reported Randy was acting drunk, however there were conflicting accounts on this, and it's unclear whether he actually took any substances.

He may have left the party between 1:30 and 2:00 a.m., but some witnesses reported seeing him there as late as 2:15, and no one actually saw him leave. Randy never returned home and has not been heard from again.

Randy was reported missing by his parents on April 16, 1988.

Randy's parents then contacted police. Investigators went to the site of the party Randy had attended, but it had already been cleaned up and there was no evidence to be found. The farm burned down soon thereafter due to mysterious circumstances.

Authorities do not believe Randy left of his own accord, since he left behind the 1966 Ford Mustang he was restoring and his friends and family say he had no plans to leave home. He wasn't sure what he wanted to do after graduating high school, but he was thinking of enrolling in trade school.

The house where the party was held was destroyed by a fire shortly after Randy's disappearance. Rumors circulated that Randy was abducted and killed by a Satanic cult that was supposedly active in the Linwood area, however this was never proven. Many people were harassed by local police, as well as wrongfully arrested due to the narrative that Randy's disappearance was due to a cult sacrifice.

Several people have come forward about Randy's disappearance and those people have since disappeared or died in mysterious ways.

His case remains unsolved to this day.

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33 min
May 18, 2020 Armin Meiwes | The Rotenburg Cannibal | Der Metzgermeister
This week, Yergy and Drewby take a trip to the Fatherland to discuss the culinary proclivities of Armin Meiwes, whose crime inspired several musicians to make songs about his actions, and highlighted a massive hole in the German legal system where cannibalism is technically legal.
Armin Meiwes is a German former computer repair technician who achieved international notoriety for killing and eating a voluntary victim in 2001, whom he had found via the Internet. After Meiwes and the victim jointly attempted to eat the victim's severed penis, Meiwes killed his victim and proceeded to eat a large amount of his flesh. He was arrested in December 2002 and in January 2004 was convicted of manslaughter and sentenced to eight years and six months in prison. In a retrial May 2006, he was convicted of murder and sentenced to life imprisonment. Because of his acts, Meiwes is also known as the Rotenburg Cannibal or Der Metzgermeister (The Master Butcher).
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#podcast #documentary #truecrime
39 min
May 11, 2020 Murder Hornets: The New Plague of Locusts?
This week, Yergy and Drewby take a break from the weekly grind of true crime to bring to you an even bigger viral threat: Murder Hornets.
The Asian Giant Hornet (or Murder Hornet) is native to East Asia, South Asia, Mainland Southeast Asia, parts of Far East Russia, and was found in the Pacific Northwest in late 2019. It is currently the largest hornet species in the world by far. We discuss the impact this species could mean for the US, what dangers it could present, and if the media hype around them is a fair assessment. We also compare the Murder Hornets to similar known species as far as venom toxicity and pain on the Schmidt sting pain index. We also can confirm that Murder Hornets are what killed Macaulay Culkin in My Girl.
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#truecrime #podcast #mystery
33 min
May 04, 2020 James Hicks Part 2 | The Murder of Lynn Willette | Maine's Only Serial Killer

This week, Yergy and Drewby conclude the case of James Rodney Hicks, arguably Maine's only known serial killer - and speculate as to why Hicks got away with his crimes for so long.

On 1 November 2000, Maine's Penobscot County grand jury formally charged confessed killer James Hicks, 49, with the murders of Jerilyn Towers and Lynn Willette. Hicks served six years of a 10-year prison sentence for killing his first wife, 23-year-old Jennie Hicks, who disappeared from the couple's Carmel home in 1977.

Hicks was not arrested for her murder until 1983 and was convicted in 1984. Before his arrest, Towers, 34, of Newport, disappeared after leaving a Newport bar with Hicks. In fact the police investigation into Towers' disappearance prompted the re-examination Jennie Hicks' disappearance and subsequently the charging Hicks with her murder. At the time he was not charged with Towers' death because police lacked adequate evidence.

After his release from prison in 1990, Hicks met 40-year-old Willette of Orrington with whom he worked at the Twin City Motel in Brewer. The two eventually lived together at a South Main Street apartment where Hicks now claims he killed Willette on May 26th 1996. Though also suspected in her disappearance, Hicks was never charged with her death because of lack of evidence. That is until he was handed a 55-year sentence in Lubbock, Texas, and confessed to the three killings and led authorities to their bodies.

Hicks was convicted in Texas of holding a gun to the head of a 67-year-old woman, forcing here to write a check to him and sign over the title to her car, and then write a suicide note. He planned to drug and drown the woman to make it look like a suicide, but she somehow managed to escaped. When he was convicted to 55 years in prison Hicks asked to cut a deal with authorities in Maine whereby he agreed to direct them to the bodies of the three missing in exchange for serving his time in Maine instead of Texas.

Back in Maine Hicks located the remains of his three victims after two days of digging around his former home in Etna and at several roadside sites in Aroostook County, Maine. The remains of his former wife and Towers were found 100 feet apart next to the home where he grew up. Willette's remains were found in concrete buckets buried next to the road in Aroostook County. Apparently all the bodies were dismembered and some parts he allegedly tossed in a nearby river.
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39 min
April 20, 2020 Mona Fandey | The Murder of Datuk Mazlan Idris | The Singing Witch
We hope you're all staying safe in quarantine out there! This week, Drewby and Yergy discuss the case of Mona Fandey - a failed pop singer later turned shaman and murderer from Malaysia. Fandey was executed at the age of 45, after being convicted of the murder of a politician, Mazlan Idris in 1993, who had solicited Fandey to perform a "witchcraft ritual" to help his position within his political party.
Ending Song: "Ratapan Anek" By Mona Fandey
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34 min
April 20, 2020 James Hicks Part 1 | The Murders of Jennie Cyr Hicks & Jerilyn Towers | Maine's Only Serial Killer
This week, Yergy and Drewby discuss the crimes of James Rodney Hicks, arguably Maine's only known serial killer.
On 1 November 2000, Maine's Penobscot County grand jury formally charged confessed killer James Hicks, 49, with the murders of Jerilyn Towers and Lynn Willette. Hicks served six years of a 10-year prison sentence for killing his first wife, 23-year-old Jennie Hicks, who disappeared from the couple's Carmel home in 1977.
Hicks was not arrested for her murder until 1983 and was convicted in 1984. Before his arrest, Towers, 34, of Newport, disappeared after leaving a Newport bar with Hicks. In fact the police investigation into Towers' disappearance prompted the re-examination Jennie Hicks' disappearance and subsequently the charging Hicks with her murder. At the time he was not charged with Towers' death because police lacked adequate evidence.
After his release from prison in 1990, Hicks met 40-year-old Willette of Orrington with whom he worked at the Twin City Motel in Brewer. The two eventually lived together at a South Main Street apartment where Hicks now claims he killed Willette 26 May 1996. Though also suspected in her disappearance, Hicks was never charged with her death because of lack of evidence. That is until he was handed a 55-year sentence in Lubbock, Texas, and confessed to the three killings and led authorities to their bodies.
Hicks was convicted in Texas of holding a gun to the head of a 67-year-old woman, forcing here to write a check to him and sign over the title to her car, and then write a suicide note. He planned to drug and drown the woman to make it look like a suicide, but she somehow managed to escaped. When he was convicted to 55 years in prison Hicks asked to cut a deal with authorities in Maine whereby he agreed to direct them to the bodies of the three missing in exchange for serving his time in Maine instead of Texas.
Back in Maine Hicks located the remains of his three victims after two days of digging around his former home in Etna and at several roadside sites in Aroostook County, Maine. The remains of his former wife and Towers were found 100 feet apart next to the home where he grew up. Willette's remains were found in concrete buckets buried next to the road in Aroostook County. Apparently all the bodies were dismembered and some parts he allegedly tossed in a nearby river.
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#truecrime #podcast #mystery #documentary
40 min
April 13, 2020 Futoshi Matsunaga | Junko Ogata | The Kitakyūshū Serial Murder Incident | Japan's Only Known Serial Killer Duo
This week, Drewby and Yergy cover the ghastly crimes of Futoshi Matsunaga, who is a Japanese serial killer who kidnapped, defrauded, and tortured his victims in what is collectively known as the Kitakyūshū Serial Murder Incident. Matsunaga was convicted of six counts of murder and one count of manslaughter between 1996 and 1998 and sentenced to die by hanging. He murdered his victims with an accomplice, Junko Ogata, who also received a life sentence. Both were on Japan's most wanted list, and remained at large for years. This also makes the pair one of the very few known serial killer duos in the world, and the only known serial killer duo in Japan.
This week's episode was brought to you by our sponsor, Ghost Town: https://www.stitcher.com/podcast/jason-horton-3/ghost-townJoin Our Facebook Group to Request a Topic: https://t.co/DeSZIIMgXs?amp=1Support Our Patreon For More Unreleased Content: https://www.patreon.com/themiserymachinePayPal: https://www.paypal.me/themiserymachineInstagram: miserymachinepodcastTwitter: misery_podcast
#truecrime #podcast #mystery #documentary
38 min
April 06, 2020 The Delphi Murders
This week, Drewby and Yergy review the unsolved murders of Abigail Williams and Liberty German, two teenage girls from the small town of Delphi, Indiana.
On February 14, 2017, the bodies of Abigail Williams and Liberty German were discovered near the Monon High Bridge Trail, which is part of the Delphi Historic Trails in Delphi, Indiana, United States, after the young girls had disappeared from the same trail the previous day. The murders have received significant media coverage because a photo and audio recording of an individual believed to be the girls' killer was found on German's smartphone. Despite these recordings of the suspect that have been circulated, and the more than 26,000 tips that police have received, no arrest in the case has been made.

Please email [email protected] if you know ANYTHING about this case.
The reward is currently $225,000 for anyone that can provide evidence that will lead to the arrest and conviction of the person or persons responsible for the killings.

Stay safe and practice social distancing!
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32 min
March 30, 2020 Joe Exotic | Netflix's "Tiger King: Murder, Mayhem, and Madness."
This week, Drewby and Yergy discuss the case of Joe Exotic, recently thrust back into the spotlight as the subject of the new Netflix docuseries "Tiger King: Murder, Mayhem, and Madness."
Joseph Allen Maldonado-Passage, (né Schreibvogel; born March 5, 1963), popularly known as Joe Exotic, is an American former zoo operator. He previously owned and ran the Greater Wynnewood Exotic Animal Park in Oklahoma. He claimed to be the most prolific breeder of tigers in the United States. He ran as a candidate for President of the United States as well as for Governor of Oklahoma, but neither campaign garnered significant public support. In 2019 he was convicted on 17 federal charges of animal abuse (eight violations of the Lacey Act and nine of the Endangered Species Act) and two counts of murder-for-hire, for a plot to kill Carole Baskin, the chief executive officer of Big Cat Rescue, an animal rescue organization for exotic cats. He is currently serving 22 years in federal prison.
This week's episode was brought to you by our sponsor True Crime XS: https://www.truecrimexs.com/
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53 min
March 23, 2020 Hello Kitty Murder | Hong Kong's Most Ghoulish Killing
This week we are covering a chilling and ghastly case of Fan Man Yee(樊敏儀), a young woman who was tortured and ultimately killed by three men: Chan Man-lok(陳文樂), Leung Shing-cho(梁勝祖), and Leung Wai-lun(梁偉倫) in the Kowloon District of Hong Kong over stolen money despite it being paid back over double the amount taken.
The slaying gets its name from the victim's skull being discovered in a plush Hello Kitty stuffed animal mermaid, after she was dismembered, boiled, and had her remains disposed of in a trash pickup. Only her skull, a tooth, and some internal organs were recovered.
The trio were eventually sentenced to life in prison due to the testimony of a thirteen year old girl that took part in the torture.
Two films were made based off these events: There is a Secret in My Soup, and Human Pork Chop
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33 min