March 15, 1989. Frederick, Maryland. 17-year old Tracey Kirkpatrick spends the evening working alone at a shopping center clothing store. Nearly two hours after the store was supposed to have been closed, a security guard discovers Tracey’s body in the rear storage room and she has been stabbed seven times. Three months later, a man calling himself “Don” phones a national confession hotline and claims that he is responsible for Tracey’s murder. Police manage to track down a promising suspect, bu...
Feb 13, 2019•45 min•Ep 209•Transcript available on Metacast October 12, 2000. Houston, Texas. After leaving her home, 48-year old Mary Henderson Morris does not show up for work and her body is discovered inside her burned-out car on a remote road later that afternoon. Four days later, another Houston woman, 39-year old Mary McGinnis Morris, is discovered shot to death inside her car under eerily similar circumstances, but other than their name, there doesn’t appear to be any link between the two victims. However, the investigation uncovers potential sus...
Feb 06, 2019•53 min•Ep 208•Transcript available on Metacast July 16, 1952. Salisbury, Connecticut. While spending the summer at Camp Sloane, ten-year old Connie Smith skips breakfast and leaves the campground. Numerous witnesses see Connie walking down the road and attempting to hitchhike, but before she reaches the nearest town, she vanishes without a trace. Since Connie’s grandfather is the former Governor of Wyoming, there is a massive search effort and her case receives extensive publicity. Over the years, there are a number of unusual leads, includi...
Jan 30, 2019•42 min•Ep 207•Transcript available on Metacast July 11, 1988. Walnut Creek, California. Lester Garnier, a 30-year old vice officer with the San Francisco Police Department, is found shot to death inside his car in a shopping center parking lot. Eyewitnesses recall seeing at least two unidentified blonde women in the parking lot the previous night and speculation mounts that Lester’s murder might be connected to his involvement in the recent high-profile bust of a teenage prostitution ring. Twenty years later, authorities announce that a part...
Jan 23, 2019•45 min•Ep 206•Transcript available on Metacast May 4, 1996. Sitka, Alaska. While walking home from her sister’s place after celebrating her 17th birthday, Jessica Baggen is attacked on a bicycle path. Her body is soon found in a wooded area, where she has been sexually assaulted and asphyxiated to death. Eleven days later, a suspect named Richard Bingham turns himself in to the police and after making a videotaped confession, he is charged with Jessica’s murder. However, none of the physical evidence matches Bingham and it becomes apparent t...
Jan 16, 2019•34 min•Ep 205•Transcript available on Metacast April 12, 1994. Carlisle, Pennsylvania. 23-year old Karen Denise Wells has left on a cross-county road trip from her hometown in Oklahoma in order to visit her friend, Melissa Shepard, in New Jersey. After checking into a motel, Denise phones Melissa and asks her to come meet her there, but when Melissa arrives, Denise has vanished. Later that morning, Denise’s abandoned rental car is discovered 35 miles away on a remote road. The gas tank is empty and it turns out there are 700 miles on the veh...
Jan 14, 2019•46 min•Ep 204•Transcript available on Metacast September 14, 1965. Coral Gables, Florida. After leaving work, 22-year old Judith Hyams vanishes without a trace and her rental car is found abandoned in Atlanta. It turns out that Judith had become pregnant and was seeking an illegal abortion from a shady doctor, but after he is arrested, he jumps bail and disappears. 24 years later, the case is suddenly re-opened after a police captain receives a series of bizarre anonymous phone calls stating that Judith is still alive. Even after investigato...
Jan 02, 2019•42 min•Ep 203•Transcript available on Metacast Listeners of “The Trail Went Cold” have always had a number of questions about the podcast and its host, Robin Warder. What unsolved cold case have you covered which you’d most like an answer to? What is the biggest challenge of producing a weekly podcast? Have you ever been contacted by any of the people involved in the cases you have covered? Are there are any cold cases you would not cover? What is your favourite thing about being a podcaster? These questions and many others will be answered ...
Dec 26, 2018•2 hr 57 min•Ep 202•Transcript available on Metacast Christmas Eve 1975. The Isle of Mull, Scotland. 54-year old Peter Gibbs, a former Royal Air Field pilot and World War II veteran, has dinner with his girlfriend at the Glenforsa Hotel, but decides to go for an evening flight. After taking off from an adjacent airfield in a Cessna, Gibbs never returns. Four months later, Gibbs’ body is discovered on a hill one mile away from the hotel and his cause of death is determined to be exposure, but the missing aircraft is never found. An enquiry conclude...
Dec 19, 2018•41 min•Ep 201•Transcript available on Metacast Christmas Day 1996. La Vernia, Texas. Patty Vaughan, a 32-year old mother of three, vanishes without a trace and her van is found abandoned by the side of the road the following day. According to her estranged husband, J.R. Vaughan, Patty had stormed out of their house following a heated argument. Traces of Patty’s blood are found inside the house and her van and seem to indicate she was a victim of foul play. At the time, Patty was in the midst of a trial separation from her husband and recentl...
Dec 12, 2018•39 min•Ep 200•Transcript available on Metacast December 26, 1985. Fayetteville, North Carolina. 28-year old nurse Debbie Wolfe leaves at the end of her shift at the Veterans Administration Medical Center, but does not show up for work the following morning. When Debbie’s mother checks her cabin, she discovers that Debbie is missing. Six days later, one of Debbie’s friends finds her at the bottom of a nearby pond, but even though he claims her body was inside a barrel, the local sheriff’s department rule that Debbie drowned accidentally and t...
Dec 05, 2018•41 min•Ep 199•Transcript available on Metacast October 8, 1976. Knoxville, Tennessee. 16-year old Trenny Gibson leaves on a high school field trip to the Great Smoky Mountains National Park alongside nearly 40 classmates. The students spend the day hiking through the park, but after Trenny is last seen turning off the trail at around 3:00 PM, she vanishes without explanation. During a search of the park, dogs would track Trenny’s scent to a spot next to the roadside, creating speculation that she was abducted. Did Trenny simply wander off an...
Nov 28, 2018•45 min•Ep 198•Transcript available on Metacast May 31, 1975. Hamilton, New Zealand. 18-year old Mona Blades leaves to hitchhike hundreds of kilometres in order to attend her nephew’s birthday in Hastings, but never arrives. After Mona is reported missing, witnesses would recall seeing her inside an orange Datsun station wagon with an unidentified man. Over the years, investigators examine a number of different suspects, including a man who committed suicide only weeks after Mona went missing, a former traffic officer, and a biker gang. Who w...
Nov 21, 2018•39 min•Ep 197•Transcript available on Metacast August 28, 2008. Laurel, Maryland. While returning to her apartment after running errands, 28-year old Army veteran and government employee Kanika Powell is shot to death inside the building’s hallway. In the preceding days, Kanika claimed that separate men impersonating an FBI agent and a deliveryman had knocked on her apartment door, but she refused to let them inside. Two-and-half-months later, Sean Nicholas Green, a 31-year old government employee living in Oxon Hill 30 miles away, is shot t...
Nov 14, 2018•42 min•Ep 196•Transcript available on Metacast August 14, 1986. Myrtle Point, Oregon. 14-year old Jeremy Bright attends a county fair with his younger sister, but after promising to meet her at a scheduled time, he does not show up and is never heard from again. After Jeremy is reported missing, it isn’t long before rumours start circulating throughout the community and many of them involve a group of local troublemakers causing Jeremy’s death and disposing of his body. Two years later, one of these alleged suspects would go to prison for an...
Nov 07, 2018•41 min•Ep 195•Transcript available on Metacast April 12, 1981. Keddie, California. 36-year old Sue Sharp, her 15-year old son John Sharp, and John’s 17-year old friend, Dana Wingate, are found brutally murdered inside Cabin 28 at the Keddie Resort. Sue’s 12-year old daughter, Tina Sharp, is missing and her skeletal remains would be discovered in a remote area three years later. Sue’s two youngest sons, along with a 12-year old family friend named Justin Smartt spent the night in a separate bedroom and were left unharmed. Over the years, the ...
Oct 31, 2018•59 min•Ep 194•Transcript available on Metacast Five years ago, Molly Weaver, Bryan Anderson, and Nathan Howell started a podcast focused on the local legend of a monster called The Blackwood Bugman. Quickly, the investigation grows out of their control, as they discover that, not only are the legends seemingly true, many people in Blackwood have turned up dead or disappeared without a trace. Worse, there may be a reason why no one has ever uncovered the truth before. Someone is watching them, willing to do whatever it takes to keep the secre...
Oct 25, 2018•11 min•Ep 192•Transcript available on Metacast October 31, 2002. Minneapolis, Minnesota. 21-year old university student Chris Jenkins celebrates Halloween by going to a local bar with friends. After he is ejected from the establishment, Chris vanishes without a trace and his body is found in the Mississippi River four months later. While police initially believe that Chris’ death was an accidental drowning, his family uncovers disturbing discrepancies to suggest his body was not in the river the entire time he was missing and that he was a v...
Oct 24, 2018•1 hr•Ep 193•Transcript available on Metacast October 24, 1953. La Crosse, Wisconsin. The father of 15-year old Evelyn Hartley attempts to phone her while she is babysitting an infant child, but there is no answer at the house. After travelling there to check on her, he discovers that Evelyn has disappeared and the evidence suggests she was the victim of a violent abduction by an intruder. Days later, pieces of blood-stained clothing are found outside of town which are believed to belong to Evelyn and her abductor. Over the next several dec...
Oct 17, 2018•55 min•Ep 191•Transcript available on Metacast October 31, 1979. Williamson County, Texas. The nude body of a young woman is discovered in a concrete culvert next to Interstate 35. She has been strangled to death and is only clad in a pair of orange socks, but since she cannot be identified, “Orange Socks” becomes her nickname. Notorious serial killer Henry Lee Lucas eventually confesses to her murder and is sentenced to death, but there is strong evidence to suggest he was not actually responsible. November 1, 1980. Walker County, Texas. Th...
Oct 10, 2018•49 min•Ep 190•Transcript available on Metacast The courtroom can be a battlefield over money, people’s rights, and even their lives. For some cases, the consequences can affect us long after the verdict is read. Based on extensive interviews and court transcripts, Wondery’s new podcast LEGAL WARS puts you inside the jury box of some of the most famous court cases in American history, including Hulk Hogan’s courtroom wrestling match with Gawker, the battle for free speech on the internet, and the Rodney King trial that set off the LA Riots. H...
Oct 09, 2018•10 min•Ep 189•Transcript available on Metacast November 1, 2001. State College, Pennsylvania. After spending Halloween night partying at a club with friends, 21-year old Penn State student Cindy Song is dropped off at her apartment complex at 4:00 AM. She is never heard from again, but some of her personal items and a piece of her Halloween costume are found inside her apartment. Years later, an informant tells police that Cindy was abducted and murdered by pair of suspects named Hugo Selenski and Michael Kerkowski. A search of Selenski’s pr...
Oct 03, 2018•38 min•Ep 188•Transcript available on Metacast June 14, 2000. Jonesboro, Arkansas. 20-year old Amanda Tusing leaves her fiancee’s apartment to drive home to her parents’ house, but never arrives. Her abandoned car is soon discovered by the side of the highway, but there is no sign of Amanda. Days later, her body is found in a waterlogged ditch over 12 miles away, but there are no signs of sexual assault and the exact cause of death cannot be determined. The identity of Amanda’s killer, as well as the motive for the crime, remain unknown. Jul...
Sep 26, 2018•40 min•Ep 187•Transcript available on Metacast April 16, 1987. Union City, Tennessee. Four-year old Marlena Childress vanishes from her front yard after her mother, Pamela Bailey, claims she saw a red car driving away from their house. Two months later, Pam confesses that she accidentally killed Marlena and tossed her body into the Obion River. Pam soon recants her confession and claims it was coerced and since Marlena’s body cannot be found and there is no other evidence to implicate Pam, she is not indicted for her daughter’s death. Over t...
Sep 19, 2018•49 min•Ep 186•Transcript available on Metacast August 16, 1983. Idaho Springs, Colorado. 14-year old Beth Miller leaves her home to go jogging, but never returns. The investigation uncovers some promising leads, including eyewitness accounts of a man in a red pick-up truck who was seen flirting with Beth in the days prior to her disappearance. Ten years later, the former girlfriend of a deceased suspect leads the authorities towards an alleged burial location for Beth’s body, but nothing is found. February 9, 1989. Gainesville, Florida. 20-y...
Sep 13, 2018•46 min•Ep 185•Transcript available on Metacast October 12, 1982. Los Angeles, California. 35-year old Sol Salomon, his 39-year old wife Elaine, his 15-year old stepdaughter Michelle, and their 9-year old son Mitchell all vanish without explanation from their home. Evidence suggests they were victims of foul play and pieces of their identification are found scattered alongside a freeway. The investigation leads to Harvey Rader, a business acquaintance of Sol’s who is accused of killing the entire family and burying their bodies in the desert,...
Sep 05, 2018•45 min•Ep 126•Transcript available on Metacast November 6, 1976. Rome, New York. 59-year old Stanley Gryziec and his wife, Esther, are attacked in their home by two masked intruders, who tie up Esther, ransack the place, and murder Stanley. Even though the original autopsy report states that Stanley was stabbed to death, his son finds a shell casing inside the house which was overlooked by police, and an exhumation of Stanley’s body reveals that he was actually shot through the chest. Over a decade later, a new investigation uncovers evidenc...
Aug 29, 2018•38 min•Ep 127•Transcript available on Metacast March 24, 1991. Victoria, British Columbia. Four-year old Michael Dunahee accompanies his family to a football game at a local elementary school and after they park their car, Michael asks if he can go to a nearby playground. Within minutes, Michael’s parents notice that he is not at the playground and has vanished without a trace, leading to speculation that he was abducted during a very narrow timeframe. Over the next two decades, there would be reported sightings of Michael, the surprising di...
Aug 22, 2018•41 min•Ep 128•Transcript available on Metacast August 18, 1949. Los Angeles, California. After finishing a phone call with a friend, 48-year old widowed socialite Mimi Boomhower is not heard from for days. When police eventually check Mimi’s house, they discover that her lights are still on, an uneaten salad is sitting on the table, and her car is still parked in the garage. Mimi herself has vanished without explanation and her purse is soon found inside a phone booth containing a message that it was found on a beach. It would also turn out ...
Aug 15, 2018•14 min•Ep 129•Transcript available on Metacast November 24, 1956. LaPlace, Louisiana. 46-year old married family man Thomas Hotard and 31-year old single mother Audrey Moate meet up to continue their secret affair, which they have been carrying on for years. The following day, Thomas’ body is discovered inside his vehicle at a remote swamp area with a shotgun blast to the back of his head. Even though most of Audrey’s clothing has been left behind, she is nowhere to be found and a search of the area turns up no trace of her. Two decades late...
Aug 08, 2018•44 min•Ep 5•Transcript available on Metacast 
