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  • The Vest in the Culvert: How a Dog Unraveled a Murder

    The Vest in the Culvert: How a Dog Unraveled a Murder
    2026/10/27
    The Vest in the Culvert: How a Dog Unraveled a Murder

    A single canvas bag sealed with disintegrating tape, a quilted green vest with a hidden pocket, and a Minnesota driver's license belonging to Gina Weber - missing for twenty-seven years - found by a dog in an Ohio culvert. How did the most personal piece of Gina’s identity end up fifty feet from a commercial unit leased for over a decade by a man never re-interviewed since 1992?

    In this episode, we follow the discovery on July 14, 2019, the decades-long disappearance that began on July 7, 1992, and the investigative threads linking a workplace, a delivery driver, and a photograph that captured a vest one month before Gina vanished - what does that vest tell us about where Gina really went?

    Person: Gina Weber
    Date: July 7, 1992 (last confirmed sighting)
    Location: Sycamore Flats Conservation Area culvert, Dellwood, Ohio (recovery site July 14, 2019)
    Case: Missing person, unresolved for 27 years
    Person: Ronald Speers (primary suspect questioned 1992-1994)

    - The canvas bag containing the vest was found on July 14, 2019, inside a drainage culvert sealed with tape beginning to dissolve.
    - Gina Weber’s Minnesota driver’s license was sewn into a hidden interior pocket that did not exist in a photo of the vest taken six weeks before she disappeared.
    - Gina was 44 years old in summer 1992 and had worked 17 years at Northgate Textile Services as a shift supervisor.
    - Gina left for work on July 7, 1992, was reported missing on July 9, and the Kettle River footbridge was the last confirmed point on her routine walk.
    - A work glove with a dark stain collected during the 1992 route canvas matched Gina’s ABO blood group, but a documented laceration six days before her disappearance matched Ronald Speers’ blood type, and no charges were filed.

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    © 2026 OBOMEDIA. All rights reserved.
    This episode and its content (audio, text, and related materials) are the exclusive property of OBOMEDIA and are protected by applicable copyright laws. Reproduction, distribution, editing, or commercial use, in whole or in part, without prior written permission from OBOMEDIA is prohibited. For permissions, licensing, and business inquiries: business@obomedia.com.
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    22 分
  • The Left Sneaker: How a Trotline Unraveled a 29-Year Secret

    The Left Sneaker: How a Trotline Unraveled a 29-Year Secret
    2026/10/26
    The Left Sneaker: How a Trotline Unraveled a 29-Year Secret

    A white canvas sneaker, size seven and still laced, surfaced on a trotline in the Cassaway River on June 14, 1993 - and with it a single piece of biological material that sat untouched in evidence for decades. How did a rusted cabinet, a detective’s certainty, and science that didn’t yet exist keep this case stalled for 29 years?

    In this episode, we follow the timeline from Tammy Wagner’s last known movements and the discovery on Lloyd Carter’s trotline to the sealed DNA sample that couldn’t be fully read in 1993; we ask how an unfinished DNA profile and early assumptions shaped the investigation and what finally changed after nearly three decades.

    Person: Tammy Wagner
    Date: June 14, 1993 (discovery); time of death estimated late June 10-early June 11, 1993
    Location: Cassaway River below Route 9 bridge; Fenwick Drive apartment (Fenwick Drive)
    Status: Biological material sealed in evidence freezer for thirty-one years
    Person: Lloyd Carter

    - At 6:47 a.m. on June 14, 1993, Lloyd Carter pulled his fourth trotline and found a white canvas sneaker, size seven, still laced, with a foot inside.
    - Tammy Wagner was 28 years old and had last been seen leaving the Dennison County Animal Shelter on June 10, 1993.
    - The sneaker was recovered forty yards upstream from the drainage culvert below the Route 9 bridge.
    - Medical examiner Dr. Patricia Holt ruled cause of death as strangulation and placed time of death between late June 10 and early June 11, 1993.
    - Technicians recovered foreign biological material under Tammy’s fingernails that yielded three usable DNA loci out of thirteen attempted, insufficient for database identification.

    To listen to this podcast ad-free and access premium episodes, try our subscription with a 14-day free trial at obomedia.com.

    © 2026 OBOMEDIA. All rights reserved.
    This episode and its content (audio, text, and related materials) are the exclusive property of OBOMEDIA and are protected by applicable copyright laws. Reproduction, distribution, editing, or commercial use, in whole or in part, without prior written permission from OBOMEDIA is prohibited. For permissions, licensing, and business inquiries: business@obomedia.com.
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    21 分
  • Surveyor Opens a Freezer and Solves a 36-Year Murder: The Scott Nelson Case

    Surveyor Opens a Freezer and Solves a 36-Year Murder: The Scott Nelson Case
    2026/10/25
    Surveyor Opens a Freezer and Solves a 36-Year Murder: The Scott Nelson Case

    A rust-free padlock on a derelict freezer led a county surveyor to an evidence bag labeled "NELSON - MAY 14, 1983 - DO NOT DISCARD," the only physical trace from a murder that went cold for thirty-six years. How did a detective come to hide two pieces of evidence on a falling-down property, and what finally let them solve the crime?

    In this episode, we follow the chain of discovery from a surveyor's curiosity to a sheriff's office call and a logged evidence bag, tracing how preserved items and a genetic genealogist reopened a decades-old death. What did the shirt and its DNA reveal about what happened on Parish Road 7?

    Person: Scott Nelson
    Date: May 14, 1983
    Location: Parish Road 7, Brackett Parish, Louisiana
    Person: Kenneth Stein
    Person: Detective Carl Pittman

    - The freezer bag label read exactly: NELSON - MAY 14, 1983 - DO NOT DISCARD.
    - The evidence sat on a warped shelf for about four hours before a deputy arrived.
    - Scott Nelson was estimated to be fifty-six years old at death and had worked eleven years as a fuel oil delivery driver.
    - The delivery log showed his last delivery at 11:47 a.m.; a witness recalled seeing his truck around 10:30-10:45 a.m., creating nearly a one-hour gap.
    - A dark blue size large work shirt was found snagged on a fence post forty yards from Nelson's truck with a faint smear of O-positive blood.

    To listen to this podcast ad-free and access premium episodes, try our subscription with a 14-day free trial at obomedia.com.

    © 2026 OBOMEDIA. All rights reserved.
    This episode and its content (audio, text, and related materials) are the exclusive property of OBOMEDIA and are protected by applicable copyright laws. Reproduction, distribution, editing, or commercial use, in whole or in part, without prior written permission from OBOMEDIA is prohibited. For permissions, licensing, and business inquiries: business@obomedia.com.
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    23 分
  • Card Buried Nine Feet Deep: The Disappearance of Sharon Richardson

    Card Buried Nine Feet Deep: The Disappearance of Sharon Richardson
    2026/10/24
    Card Buried Nine Feet Deep: The Disappearance of Sharon Richardson

    A laminated library card dated 1996 surfaced in a septic trench on April 14, 2022, after spending nearly three decades nine feet underground - and it led to the discovery that Sharon Richardson had been buried four feet down on the same property the whole time. How did evidence collected in 1994 sit in a garage for over twenty years, and what exactly connected that degraded card to the name investigators would eventually focus on?

    In this episode, we tell how a routine septic check, a consumer DNA kit, and a retired detective's self-taught forensic genealogy converged to reopen a two-decade-old missing person case. We trace Sharon's last known movements, the early evidence found along the creek, and the chain of events that finally produced the name Carl West - but why did critical biological evidence never reach a laboratory in 1994?

    Person: Sharon Richardson
    Date: April 9, 1994 (last seen); April 14, 2022 (card found)
    Location: Kelso Falls, Carver County, Indiana
    Status: Remains discovered four feet down on the vacant property
    Evidence: three hairs on fence barb, partial male shoeprint size 10-11, laminated library card dated 1996 found in plastic bag

    - The laminated library card recovered on April 14, 2022, bore Sharon Richardson's name and an expiry date of 1996.
    - Sharon was twenty-three years old in spring 1994 and worked as a teacher's aide at Pinewood Elementary.
    - Initial scene evidence in 1994 included three dark-brown hairs (one with a follicular tag) and a partial male shoeprint in clay.
    - The 1994 biological material was bagged, logged, placed in a brown paper envelope, and later stored in a garage inside a fireproof box for over twenty years.
    - The breakthrough involved a septic contractor finding the card, ground-penetrating radar confirming remains four feet down, a Tennessee consumer DNA kit, and a retired detective using forensic genealogy to identify the name Carl West.

    To listen to this podcast ad-free and access premium episodes, try our subscription with a 14-day free trial at obomedia.com.

    © 2026 OBOMEDIA. All rights reserved.
    This episode and its content (audio, text, and related materials) are the exclusive property of OBOMEDIA and are protected by applicable copyright laws. Reproduction, distribution, editing, or commercial use, in whole or in part, without prior written permission from OBOMEDIA is prohibited. For permissions, licensing, and business inquiries: business@obomedia.com.
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    21 分
  • The Dry Badge: How a Freezer Solved a 28-Year Murder Mystery

    The Dry Badge: How a Freezer Solved a 28-Year Murder Mystery
    2026/10/23
    The Dry Badge: How a Freezer Solved a 28-Year Murder Mystery

    Fear and curiosity collide at the first sentence: a laminated badge labeled "FACILITIES - GUEST" lay completely dry on Beverly Ramsey’s chest while her clothes and hair were soaked in three to four inches of standing water. How could a piece of evidence sealed in an evidence freezer for nearly three decades finally unravel the mystery of where she was found and who placed that badge?

    In this episode, we lay out the facts of Beverly Ramsey’s death and the long, stalled investigation that followed. You’ll hear how the scene details, a missing morning routine, and a car parked in the wrong direction added up to decades of uncertainty - and what question remained unanswered until that frozen badge was reexamined.

    Person: Beverly Ramsey
    Date: March 14, 1991
    Location: Copperhead Slough Nature Preserve, Dellard, Indiana
    Status: Evidence file sealed for 28 years
    Case: Unresolved at time of original investigation

    - Body found in three to four inches of standing water at the south access of Copperhead Slough.
    - Laminated badge with blue border and “FACILITIES - GUEST” found dry on her chest.
    - Beverly was 38 years old and worked as a programming coordinator at Dellard Regional Medical Center.
    - Her maroon Pontiac was found on a gravel turnout on Fenner Road, 0.4 miles from the trailhead, pointed south.
    - Neighbor Ed Piatkowski noted he did not hear Beverly’s usual cabinet squeak on the morning of March 13.

    To listen to this podcast ad-free and access premium episodes, try our subscription with a 14-day free trial at obomedia.com.

    © 2026 OBOMEDIA. All rights reserved.
    This episode and its content (audio, text, and related materials) are the exclusive property of OBOMEDIA and are protected by applicable copyright laws. Reproduction, distribution, editing, or commercial use, in whole or in part, without prior written permission from OBOMEDIA is prohibited. For permissions, licensing, and business inquiries: business@obomedia.com.
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    20 分
  • The Milk Carton, the Fake Technician, and a 37-Year-Old Secret

    The Milk Carton, the Fake Technician, and a 37-Year-Old Secret
    2026/10/22
    The Milk Carton, the Fake Technician, and a 37-Year-Old Secret

    Fear and bafflement: a cold, unbroken school milk carton sat in a running truck beside a strangled overnight dispatcher, and for 37 years the same man walked free. What did a Meadow Bell school-issue chocolate milk carton and a fake telephone technician have to do with Amy Osborne’s death-and who put that sealed carton there?

    In this episode, we tell the story of the night dispatcher Amy Osborne, the stranger who posed as a technician six days before her death, the abandoned white Ford pickup found running at 6:15 a.m. on February 9, 1987, and the preserved evidence that refused to be ignored. How did a distribution code, a freezer, and decades of small details finally begin to answer that question?

    Person: Amy Osborne
    Date: February 9, 1987
    Location: Sunridge Truck Stop lot, State Route 41, Dellard, Ohio
    Item: Meadow Bell single-serve chocolate milk carton, foil seal unbroken
    Event: Fake telephone equipment technician visited Tri-State Freight on February 3, 1987

    - Amy Osborne was 31 years old and worked 10 p.m, to 6 a.m. as a night dispatcher since 1982.
    - The white Ford pickup was found at 6:15 a.m.; police confirmed the scene at 6:22 a.m.
    - The Meadow Bell carton expiration date was February 13, 1987, and the distribution run traced to February 2, 1987.
    - The truck’s dashboard VIN had been filed off; the frame rail VIN traced the truck to a salvage auction in Lorain County in fall 1985.
    - A man posing as a technician stayed about 40 minutes on February 3, 1987; no carrier work order or matching employee was found.

    To listen to this podcast ad-free and access premium episodes, try our subscription with a 14-day free trial at obomedia.com.

    © 2026 OBOMEDIA. All rights reserved.
    This episode and its content (audio, text, and related materials) are the exclusive property of OBOMEDIA and are protected by applicable copyright laws. Reproduction, distribution, editing, or commercial use, in whole or in part, without prior written permission from OBOMEDIA is prohibited. For permissions, licensing, and business inquiries: business@obomedia.com.
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    23 分
  • The Turquoise Ring: How Frozen DNA Finally Caught Her Killer

    The Turquoise Ring: How Frozen DNA Finally Caught Her Killer
    2026/10/21
    The Turquoise Ring: How Frozen DNA Finally Caught Her Killer

    Cold and silent at -11°F with wind chill, a county grader blade unearthed Kathleen Dempsey beneath eighteen inches of packed snow on January 14, 1991 - and a turquoise ring on her left index finger that no family member had ever seen. That ring and a frozen collar swab sat untouched in a sheriff’s freezer for 31 years until degraded male DNA from that swab yielded familial matches within seven days of upload - but who did that DNA lead to?

    In this episode, we lay out the facts of the case from the night she disappeared to the forensic breakthrough three decades later, following how investigators turned two distant GEDmatch and FamilyTreeDNA hits into a family tree and narrowed suspects - who did the partial profile identify?

    Person: Kathleen Dempsey
    Date: January 14, 1991
    Location: Depot Road (body found); Vander Avenue (abandoned Pontiac)
    Status: Cold case reopened; partial male DNA profile uploaded to GEDmatch and FamilyTreeDNA
    Event: Turquoise ring found on left index finger; collar swab produced degraded but usable DNA

    - Kathleen Dempsey was 24 years old and missing for 11 days before her body was found.
    - The grader blade struck her body at 4:15 AM after a night at -11°F with wind chill and 18 inches of packed snow and frozen clay.
    - The turquoise ring was sized for the left index finger and was unknown to her mother, sister, and bowling teammate.
    - The evidence envelope and collar swab remained sealed in the Harwick County Sheriff’s Office freezer for 31 years.
    - After a private lab processed the swab in spring 2022, two familial matches appeared within seven days on GEDmatch and FamilyTreeDNA.

    To listen to this podcast ad-free and access premium episodes, try our subscription with a 14-day free trial at obomedia.com.

    © 2026 OBOMEDIA. All rights reserved.
    This episode and its content (audio, text, and related materials) are the exclusive property of OBOMEDIA and are protected by applicable copyright laws. Reproduction, distribution, editing, or commercial use, in whole or in part, without prior written permission from OBOMEDIA is prohibited. For permissions, licensing, and business inquiries: business@obomedia.com.
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    19 分
  • The Frozen Vial That Exposed a Killer After Thirty-One Years

    The Frozen Vial That Exposed a Killer After Thirty-One Years
    2026/10/20
    The Frozen Vial That Exposed a Killer After Thirty-One Years

    A single vial of blood sat frozen at minus eighty degrees Celsius for thirty-one years under a donor name while its owner lived freely in a suburb of Erie; that vial, a cream linen tablecloth, and a receipt dated November 12, 1992 would eventually close a case that stalled for decades. How did a blood sample catalogued under Position 44, Drawer 7 become the thread that tied a technician’s cash receipt to a strangulation on Crestfield Avenue?

    In this episode, we trace the sequence of discoveries from the December 3, 1992 welfare check to the late-breaking genealogical lead, showing how preserved evidence, routine records, and family-tree DNA work converged to answer the question: who was C. Keller and how did that receipt link him to Kimberly Callahan’s death?

    Person: Kimberly Callahan
    Date: November 19-23, 1992 (time-of-death range)
    Location: Crestfield Avenue, Veramont
    Event: Manual strangulation; body found December 3, 1992
    Item: Receipt dated November 12, 1992 - Dexter and Sons, technician "C. Keller", $42 paid in cash

    - The body was discovered on December 3, 1992 after eleven consecutive days below freezing.
    - Medical examiner Irene Cho narrowed time of death to November 19 through November 23, 1992.
    - Crime-scene lab testing in 1992 consumed the only biological sample, leaving a partial STR profile.
    - Lead Detective Stewart Palk worked the case through 1996, retired in 2009, and died in 2017 with the case still open.
    - A receipt dated November 12, 1992 listed service by "C. Keller" for Dexter and Sons, $42 paid in Kimberly’s handwriting.

    To listen to this podcast ad-free and access premium episodes, try our subscription with a 14-day free trial at obomedia.com.

    © 2026 OBOMEDIA. All rights reserved.
    This episode and its content (audio, text, and related materials) are the exclusive property of OBOMEDIA and are protected by applicable copyright laws. Reproduction, distribution, editing, or commercial use, in whole or in part, without prior written permission from OBOMEDIA is prohibited. For permissions, licensing, and business inquiries: business@obomedia.com.
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    21 分