Loni Kai Okaruru made several stops on the morning of August 26, 2001, and interacted with several people, before she was beaten to death, her body left on a farm in Washington County, Oregon. Loni Kai’s murder was quickly labeled by police as a hate crime, but decades later her killer is still unknown.

A while back, our team at audiochuck received an email from Kirsten Leonard’s family asking us if we would cover her case. Specifically, the email was sent by her nephew, Karsten, who’s named in memory of his aunt… an aunt he never got the chance to meet. That’s because in June 1986, at just 22 years old, Kirsten was murdered in what can only be described as a senseless and brutal crime.

In the spring of 2000, a 24-year-old woman was found floating in a Citrus County, Florida canal. Though answers have eluded authorities for more than two decades, a present-day sergeant is hoping that putting her story in the spotlight may help reveal the truth.

When Twana Smith’s body was discovered behind an abandoned building in Hartford in October 1997, she joined a growing list of the city’s vulnerable locals who fell victim to violent predators. And for decades, her case sat unsolved, gathering dust… even as detectives found the keys to unlock mysteries from the same era. But after years of dead ends, investigators now believe they're on the brink of a breakthrough… they just need a final push over the finish line.

A college campus in broad daylight in a town literally called “Niceville” might be one of the last places you’d expect a young collegiate to disappear from, but in March 1973, that’s exactly what happened. Debra Espey’s case spans more than 50 years, includes a primary suspect from the beginning, and has long been thought to have connection to other unsolved cases in the Florida panhandle. But for all the twists and misdirections, detectives are hopeful they can close this case soon.

28-year-old Lola, AKA Kathy, Kat, or Lolabee, as her family lovingly called her, was excited for a fresh start just before the holidays in 1993. She’d just left her job at an Indianapolis nightclub and was wrapping up the process of moving two hours northeast of Fort Wayne to live with her older sister. Kathy was planning to take her life down a new road and go back to school, maybe start a family. But before she could ever make good on those plans… something happened. Though, the specifics...

In 1997, 17-year-old Kemberly Ramer had big goals of getting out of her small town. She made great grades, was a star athlete, and was well-liked by her peers. Heading into her senior year, she already had plans to go to college to become a physical therapist, and there was no question, she had the brains and the talent to do just that. It would take a thief, a monster in the middle of the night, to take that away from her. But that’s exactly what happened one August evening, and her mother...

When 23-year-old Rose Gayhart left Dansville, New York with her boyfriend for Cape Coral, Florida in December of 1984, she was looking for a fresh start. But as Rose hugged her sister goodbye on that cold December day, neither of them could have imagined that it would be the last hug they’d ever share… or that within 3 short months, Rose would be gone.

Dubbed “the most famous missing man in Nevada” by local press, Roy Frisch was a bright light during an otherwise dark, lawless time in 1930s Reno. Yes, you read that right…1930s. This is the oldest case we’ve covered so far on this show. Roy disappeared almost 90 years ago, so while it’s not possible to punish those responsible for his death, thanks to newfound permission from a property owner, there is now serious potential his remains could be recovered, and just maybe, Roy can finally rest...

When three women are ambushed by a gunman in the early morning hours of a cold November Indiana night, investigators are left to sort through the complicated relationships of one, asking themselves who would want to hurt these women, and why.

Charles and Jennifer Chia could see their apartment complex from their school bus stop – that’s how close to their building it was. Such a small distance for something to go so terribly wrong. But a couple hundred feet is all it took for someone to stop the Chia siblings from making it home safely. That person has gone undetected for more than 34 years. But present-day detectives say their days are now numbered, as new technology could soon expose this nameless predator.

Revisiting a place that holds bad memories isn’t for the faint of heart. Just pulling up to a specific location can bring on anxiety about the past trauma that once took place there. Even decades later, that sinking feeling doesn’t go away. Until recently, Ashyea Durham Pugh hadn’t been back to the scene since that mostly blocked-out memory was her cruel reality. That night she and her mom returned home to their apartment to find that her little sister had vanished without a trace. And as the...

Last week we walked through the initial investigation into the nearly 5-decade-old missing person case of 17-year-old Belinda VanLith. Despite her disappearance essentially being considered a runaway case by police initially, they had quickly come around to the possibility that perhaps Belinda had been met with foul play – and there were some people close to the cabin she was last known to be at that were looking like promising suspects, but police never had enough evidence to move forward,...

Belinda’s story has held a special place in our hearts for a very long time. Back in August of 2022, her family reached out to the team here at audiochuck requesting we cover her case. We told Belinda’s family we’d try, and for months we did try – we reached out to the investigating agency on multiple occasions, but we’ve still never heard back about an interview. Thankfully, through a records request, we were eventually able to obtain hundreds and hundreds of pages of reports spanning the...

Deshawna was a bright, recent high-school graduate who was so excited for her future in nursing. She loved helping others, and she wanted to make it her career. But late one night in October 2001, someone saw to it that Deshawna would never have a chance to help anyone ever again.

Lo que comenzó como una búsqueda del sueño americano terminó siendo una tragedia. Manuel trabajaba en trabajos de construcción en Atlanta, GA, y Freeport, FL, hasta que fue encontrado tirado a lo largo de un camino de tierra en Freeport el 16 de agosto del 2004. Después de 20 años de preguntas sin respuestas, los detectives finalmente han conseguido la pista que estaban esperando. Este nuevo descubrimiento más los últimos avances en la tecnología de ADN, les dan seguridad a los...

What began as a pursuit of the American dream ended in tragedy on August 16th, 2004. Manuel was working construction jobs in Atlanta, GA, and Freeport, FL – until he was murdered and dumped along a dirt road in Freeport. After 20 years of only questions and no answers… detectives finally got the tip they’d been waiting on. Add that to the latest advancements in DNA technology, and detectives feel confident they’re close to finally solving this case and giving Manuel’s wife and children the...

Dark Downeast digs into the decades-old and modern day cases that prickle the history of Vacationland and beyond – the unsolved homicides, undetermined deaths, unexplained disappearances and other dark stories of New England. Investigative journalist and storyteller Kylie Low gets straight to the story with a mix of narrated episodes and documentary style production featuring interviews with surviving family and friends and insight on the investigations from detectives and sources who know...

In 1999, 76-year-old Georgia had plans to spend the Fourth of July with her family at her lakeside cabin over in Wisconsin. But a few days before they were all set to leave, Georgia said she needed to go there early… on her own. When her family eventually showed up to celebrate, they quickly realized this holiday wouldn’t be anything like they had planned.

Jacqueline Brown and her coworkers went out on July 12th, 1985 to cash their paychecks and celebrate payday with some drinks. Instead, the night ended in tragedy when residents in another part of town were awoken to find Jacqueline shot and begging for help. And while first responders may not have been able to save her, detectives are dedicated to finding her killer... who may have been someone she knew.

October 9th, 2015, was supposed to be a normal, routine Friday for 80-year-old Stanley. But what unfolded in his home that night was anything but ordinary – and it set in motion a chilling mystery that still stumps detectives all these years later.

When 50-year-old Ruth Carter was found murdered in her home in Dayton, Ohio, suspicions immediately turned to her former roommate. But no physical evidence could tie him to the scene, and years started to tick by without any leads to point investigators to her killer, until 2005, when a young man came forward with information that took detectives to the people who may have been responsible.

One fall day in 1991, 14-year-old Clarissa vanished into thin air after a night of hanging out with friends. Years later, the mystery of where she disappeared to would be solved, but that discovery would open up a whole new world of unknowns.

The afternoon of July 1st, 1985, was supposed to be a mundane Monday for Tira Snyder. The 19-year-old wife and mother was going to run some errands and make dinner before her husband got home from work. Nothing that day went as planned. And Dave Snyder would never get another mundane day with his wife again.