Part 2 of the Sylvia Likens case examines the heartbreaking final hours of Sylvia Likens, one of the most horrific child abuse and murder cases in American history.

On October 26, 1965, after months of unimaginable torture inside a home in Indianapolis, Indiana, 16-year-old Sylvia was carried upstairs for a bath before she was discovered unresponsive. As Gertrude Baniszewski scrambled to cover up the abuse with a fabricated confession letter, investigators immediately recognized the devastating evidence of prolonged torture. Including severe burns, starvation, countless injuries, a fatal subdural hematoma, and the chilling message carved into Sylvia's abdomen.

The investigation took a dramatic turn when Sylvia's younger sister, Jenny, courageously told police, "Get me out of here, and I'll tell you everything." Her testimony unraveled Gertrude Baniszewski's lies and led to the arrests of Gertrude, several of her children, and neighborhood teenagers who participated in or witnessed the abuse.

Sources:

https://www.indianapolismonthly.com/longform/likens-looking-back-indianas-infamous-crime-50-years-later

https://www.indystar.com/story/news/history/retroindy/2013/10/24/sylvia-likens/3178393/

House of Evil: The Indiana Torture Slaying - John Dean

Torture Mom: A Chilling True Story of Confinement, Mutilation, and Murder - Ryan Green, 2018.

The House from Hell: The True Story of Gertrude Baniszewski, Genoveva Ortiz, Sea Vision Publishing, 2024.

https://www.history101.com/sylvia-likens-the-family-she-left-behind/

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Murder_of_Sylvia_Likens#Gertrude_Baniszewski

https://murderpedia.org/female.B/b/baniszewski.htm

https://www.history101.com/sylvia-likens-the-family-she-left-behind/

https://www.theindianalawyer.com/articles/35446-lawyers-book-retraces-indys-infamous-sylvia-likens-murder-case

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Police arrived at the New York Street house and quickly realized the story didn’t add up. Within hours, Gertrude Baniszewski, her children, and neighborhood teens were arrested in the torture of 16-year-old Sylvia Likens. In court, everyone pointed fingers—mother against children, children against mother.

Leaving one question: who was lying?

Subscribe and listen to Once Upon a Crime for part two.

Episode drops Monday July 13, 2026.

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How does an ordinary home become the scene of extraordinary evil, and how does a community fail to save a sixteen-year-old girl?

This week on Once Upon a Crime, we begin a two-part series on the murder of Sylvia Likens, examining the heartbreaking facts of the case and the psychological forces that turned one Indianapolis home into an innocent girl’s torture chamber, drawing seemingly ordinary children into unimaginable cruelty.

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In the summer of 1965, 16-year-old Sylvia Likens was left in the care of a mother of seven while her parents traveled for work. What should have been a temporary arrangement turned into one of the most horrifying child abuse and torture cases in American history. As the abuse escalated behind closed doors, an entire neighborhood witnessed signs of cruelty, manipulation, and neglect. Yet Sylvia’s suffering continued in plain sight.

Next week, Once Upon a Crime takes a deep dive into one of the most infamous true crime cases of the 20th century. A story of abuse, torture, manipulation, and the tragic death of Sylvia Likens that continues to haunt America decades later.

Subscribe to Once Upon A Crime so you don't miss this gripping two-part series. New episodes drop every Monday

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She poisoned her husband.

She nearly killed her own daughter.

She vanished while out on bail.

Then she reinvented herself with a brand-new identity… and somehow convinced people she was her own twin sister.

This week on Once Upon a Crime, we unravel the unbelievable case of Marie Hilley. One of the most notorious Black Widows in American true crime history.

What began as the life of a seemingly ordinary wife and mother spiraled into a shocking saga of poisoning, manipulation, fraud, and deception that stretched across multiple states and identities. As investigators closed in, Marie stayed one step ahead by crafting elaborate lies, faking illnesses, and ultimately attempting one of the strangest identity swaps ever seen in a criminal case.

From arsenic poisoning to forged documents and a fugitive run worthy of a movie script, this case is as bizarre as it is disturbing.

If you think you’ve heard every wild true crime story, think again.

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A black widow. A poisoner. A con artist. A master manipulator.

This week on Once Upon a Crime, Esther dives into the unbelievable case of Marie Hilley. A woman accused of murdering her husband, nearly killing her own daughter, disappearing while out on bail, and creating entirely new identities to stay one step ahead of the truth.

As investigators closed in, Marie spun outrageous stories and convinced friends, family, and complete strangers to believe them. The deeper this case goes, the stranger it gets.

One of the most bizarre and fascinating true crime stories Esther has ever researched is now live wherever you get your podcasts.

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She could become whoever people needed her to be.

A devoted wife.

A loving mother.

A trusted friend.

A helpless victim.

But behind the carefully crafted image was one of the most manipulative and deceptive women in true crime history.

In this chilling new episode of Once Upon a Crime, Esther dives into the shocking case of Marie Hilley. A woman whose lies, manipulation, and alleged poisoning crimes left devastation everywhere she went. When Marie’s husband died unexpectedly, no one suspected murder. Later, as her daughter became gravely ill, doctors struggled to explain the mysterious symptoms consuming her body.

From poisoning and fraud to psychological manipulation and identity deception, the story of Marie Hilley is stranger than fiction and packed with twists that seem impossible to believe.

“Marie Hilley: Black Widow and Master Manipulator” drops Monday, June 29 wherever you get your podcasts.

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