10 of history's biggest unsolved crimes:
1. The murders of Nicole Brown Simpson & Ronald Goldman: On June 13, 1994, the bodies of Nicole Brown Simpson—the ex-wife of football superstar O.J. Simpson—and Ronald L. Goldman were found outside Nicole’s townhouse, stabbed to death. At the time, Nicole and O.J. were divorced and living in separate residences. The bodies were found by neighbors who were literally led to the bodies by Nicole’s dog, who was reported to be incessantly barking around the time of the murders.
The timeline surrounding the murders is as follows: On June 12, at 6:30 p.m. Nicole, her children, and others arrive at the restaurant called Mezzaluna. At 9:15 p.m. the same night, her sister called the restaurant to say that her mother had left her glasses there. Ronald Goldman goes to pick up the glasses. At 9-9:30 p.m., O.J. Simpson and his friend Brian “Kato” Kaelin head to a nearby McDonald’s for dinner.
At 9:45 p.m., they return home from McDonald’s. Kato was staying at O.J.’s guest house at that time. At 9:48-9:50 p.m., Goldman leaves Mezzaluna with a white envelope containing the glasses. At 10:15 p.m., Nicole’s neighbor hears a dog bark and cry while he is watching TV. Prosecutors then theorize that these barks signalized the murder of the dog’s owner, Nicole.
At 10:25 p.m., a limo driver named Allan Park arrives at O.J. Simpson’s home. O.J. was scheduled for a red-eye flight at 11:45 p.m. At 10:40 p.m., Kato reported he heard three loud thumps on an outside wall of the guest house he was staying in. From 10:40-10:55 p.m., Allan Park buzzed OJ’s intercom several times but there was no answer.
Just before 11 p.m., Allan reports seeing a shadowy figure that was 6'0" tall and over 200 pounds walking across the driveway. At 11 p.m., Allan tried buzzing OJ again and this time, O.J. answered. He claimed that he had overslept and just got out of the shower.
At 11:45 p.m., OJ departs on his flight, and at 12:10 a.m. the next morning, the bodies of Nicole and Ronald Goldman are discovered. Evidence found at the crime scene included a blood-stained glove, a knitted hat and a bloodied footprint. When OJ landed in Chicago, he was contacted by Detective Ron Phillips and told that his ex-wife had died. Upon hearing the news, O.J. asked, “Who killed her?”
O.J. was then questioned for three hours by the LAPD. On June 17, O.J. was charged with two counts of murder and declared a fugitive. The high-speed chase involving police and O.J.’s white Ford Bronco has been a lasting memory for anyone involved with the case.
During the chase, O.J. was sitting in the passenger seat while his friend Al Cowlings drove. Cowlings reported that he didn’t stop because “O.J. was holding a gun to [his] head" and that O.J. was "suicidal." The chase ended at O.J.’s home in Brentwood, Calif. Inside the car they found makeup adhesive, a fake mustache, O.J.’s passport and a gun.
What followed was one of the most publicized trials in U.S. history. O.J. was represented by a high-profile defense team, also known as the "Dream Team," which was initially led by Robert Shapiro and then by Johnnie Cochran. The team also included F. Lee Bailey, Alan Dershowitz, Robert Kardashian, Shawn Holley, Carl E. Douglas, and Gerald Uelmen. Barry Scheck and Peter Neufeld were two additional attorneys who specialized in DNA evidence.
Prosecutors were Deputy District Attorneys Marcia Clark, William Hodgman and later Christopher Darden. They thought that they had a strong case against Simpson, but Cochran was able to convince the jury that there was reasonable doubt concerning the validity of the state's DNA evidence, which was a new form of evidence in trials at that time.
The reasonable doubt theory included evidence that the blood sample had allegedly been mishandled by lab scientists and technicians. The defense team also cited other misconduct by the LAPD related to systemic racism and incompetence.
The verdict was released on Oct. 3, 1995, and O.J. Simpson was acquitted. To this day, no other suspects have been questioned and the murders remain unsolved.
1. The murders of Nicole Brown Simpson & Ronald Goldman: On June 13, 1994, the bodies of Nicole Brown Simpson—the ex-wife of football superstar O.J. Simpson—and Ronald L. Goldman were found outside Nicole’s townhouse, stabbed to death. At the time, Nicole and O.J. were divorced and living in separate residences. The bodies were found by neighbors who were literally led to the bodies by Nicole’s dog, who was reported to be incessantly barking around the time of the murders.
The timeline surrounding the murders is as follows: On June 12, at 6:30 p.m. Nicole, her children, and others arrive at the restaurant called Mezzaluna. At 9:15 p.m. the same night, her sister called the restaurant to say that her mother had left her glasses there. Ronald Goldman goes to pick up the glasses. At 9-9:30 p.m., O.J. Simpson and his friend Brian “Kato” Kaelin head to a nearby McDonald’s for dinner.
At 9:45 p.m., they return home from McDonald’s. Kato was staying at O.J.’s guest house at that time. At 9:48-9:50 p.m., Goldman leaves Mezzaluna with a white envelope containing the glasses. At 10:15 p.m., Nicole’s neighbor hears a dog bark and cry while he is watching TV. Prosecutors then theorize that these barks signalized the murder of the dog’s owner, Nicole.
At 10:25 p.m., a limo driver named Allan Park arrives at O.J. Simpson’s home. O.J. was scheduled for a red-eye flight at 11:45 p.m. At 10:40 p.m., Kato reported he heard three loud thumps on an outside wall of the guest house he was staying in. From 10:40-10:55 p.m., Allan Park buzzed OJ’s intercom several times but there was no answer.
Just before 11 p.m., Allan reports seeing a shadowy figure that was 6'0" tall and over 200 pounds walking across the driveway. At 11 p.m., Allan tried buzzing OJ again and this time, O.J. answered. He claimed that he had overslept and just got out of the shower.
At 11:45 p.m., OJ departs on his flight, and at 12:10 a.m. the next morning, the bodies of Nicole and Ronald Goldman are discovered. Evidence found at the crime scene included a blood-stained glove, a knitted hat and a bloodied footprint. When OJ landed in Chicago, he was contacted by Detective Ron Phillips and told that his ex-wife had died. Upon hearing the news, O.J. asked, “Who killed her?”
O.J. was then questioned for three hours by the LAPD. On June 17, O.J. was charged with two counts of murder and declared a fugitive. The high-speed chase involving police and O.J.’s white Ford Bronco has been a lasting memory for anyone involved with the case.
During the chase, O.J. was sitting in the passenger seat while his friend Al Cowlings drove. Cowlings reported that he didn’t stop because “O.J. was holding a gun to [his] head" and that O.J. was "suicidal." The chase ended at O.J.’s home in Brentwood, Calif. Inside the car they found makeup adhesive, a fake mustache, O.J.’s passport and a gun.
What followed was one of the most publicized trials in U.S. history. O.J. was represented by a high-profile defense team, also known as the "Dream Team," which was initially led by Robert Shapiro and then by Johnnie Cochran. The team also included F. Lee Bailey, Alan Dershowitz, Robert Kardashian, Shawn Holley, Carl E. Douglas, and Gerald Uelmen. Barry Scheck and Peter Neufeld were two additional attorneys who specialized in DNA evidence.
Prosecutors were Deputy District Attorneys Marcia Clark, William Hodgman and later Christopher Darden. They thought that they had a strong case against Simpson, but Cochran was able to convince the jury that there was reasonable doubt concerning the validity of the state's DNA evidence, which was a new form of evidence in trials at that time.
The reasonable doubt theory included evidence that the blood sample had allegedly been mishandled by lab scientists and technicians. The defense team also cited other misconduct by the LAPD related to systemic racism and incompetence.
The verdict was released on Oct. 3, 1995, and O.J. Simpson was acquitted. To this day, no other suspects have been questioned and the murders remain unsolved.
2. The Black Dahlia: In 1947, the remains of 22-year-old Elizabeth Short, AKA “The Black Dahlia,” were found on the block of 3800 S Norton Avenue in Los Angeles. The body was cut in half and so pale and drained of blood that the woman who found the body mistook it for a mannequin at first. The body was cut with surgical precision, leaving no trauma to internal organs and bones. Her face was also cut from her mouth to ears, leaving an eerie permanent smile. There was no blood on the ground, making it believed that the body was moved after she had been murdered.
Nine days after she was discovered, an envelope was sent to the examiner addressed by using individual cut and pasted letters from magazines and newspapers. It read “The Los Angeles Examiner and other Los Angeles papers, here is Dahlia's belongings, letter to follow.” As promised, the envelope contained Short’s Social Security card, birth certificate, photographs, names written on pieces of paper, and an address book with pages missing and the name Mark Hansen embossed on the cover. Gasoline was used to clean the objects, removing all fingerprints.
On March 14, a suicide note scrawled in pencil on a bit of paper was found tucked in a shoe in a pile of men's clothing by the ocean's edge at the foot of Breeze Avenue in Venice. The note read: "To whom it may concern: I have waited for the police to capture me for the Black Dahlia killing, but have not. I am too much of a coward to turn myself in, so this is the best way out for me. I couldn't help myself for that, or this. Sorry, Mary."
The pile of clothing was first seen by the beach caretaker, who reported the discovery to the lifeguard captain, John Dillon. Dillon immediately notified the West Los Angeles Police Station. The clothes included a coat and trousers of blue herringbone tweed, a brown and white shirt, white jockey shorts, tan socks, and tan moccasin shoes, about size eight. However, the clothes gave no clue about the identity of their owner.
Although many suspects were named, no authorities were able to identify the Black Dahlia’s killer and the mystery has gone unsolved for over 70 years.
Nine days after she was discovered, an envelope was sent to the examiner addressed by using individual cut and pasted letters from magazines and newspapers. It read “The Los Angeles Examiner and other Los Angeles papers, here is Dahlia's belongings, letter to follow.” As promised, the envelope contained Short’s Social Security card, birth certificate, photographs, names written on pieces of paper, and an address book with pages missing and the name Mark Hansen embossed on the cover. Gasoline was used to clean the objects, removing all fingerprints.
On March 14, a suicide note scrawled in pencil on a bit of paper was found tucked in a shoe in a pile of men's clothing by the ocean's edge at the foot of Breeze Avenue in Venice. The note read: "To whom it may concern: I have waited for the police to capture me for the Black Dahlia killing, but have not. I am too much of a coward to turn myself in, so this is the best way out for me. I couldn't help myself for that, or this. Sorry, Mary."
The pile of clothing was first seen by the beach caretaker, who reported the discovery to the lifeguard captain, John Dillon. Dillon immediately notified the West Los Angeles Police Station. The clothes included a coat and trousers of blue herringbone tweed, a brown and white shirt, white jockey shorts, tan socks, and tan moccasin shoes, about size eight. However, the clothes gave no clue about the identity of their owner.
Although many suspects were named, no authorities were able to identify the Black Dahlia’s killer and the mystery has gone unsolved for over 70 years.
3. Jack the Ripper: These murders took place in 1888 in the Whitechapel district of London, where at least five women were brutally killed and mutilated. They were found with their throats slashed and bodies mutilated, suggesting the killer had anatomical knowledge. The murders were characterized by their gruesome nature, with escalating brutality in each subsequent killing. The police received letters, allegedly from the killer, including the infamous "From Hell" letter, which contained half of a human kidney, heightening the panic.
Despite an extensive investigation involving more than 2,000 interviews and countless hours of detective work, the police were unable to apprehend the murderer. Numerous suspects emerged over time, ranging from local butchers and doctors to more sensational figures like members of the British royal family.
Despite an extensive investigation involving more than 2,000 interviews and countless hours of detective work, the police were unable to apprehend the murderer. Numerous suspects emerged over time, ranging from local butchers and doctors to more sensational figures like members of the British royal family.
4. The Somerton Beach body: In 1948, a body was found on Somerton Beach in Adelaide, Australia. The body was a man who was dressed impeccably in a suit with polished shoes and his head was slumped against a wall. Authorities thought the cause of death was heart failure or more likely poisoning but, no trace of poison was found in the autopsy.
There wasn’t a wallet or any type of identification on the man and all the tags from his clothing were cut out. The fingerprints that the authorities took of him were also unidentifiable. They even put a photo of the body in the newspapers and still, no one could identify who the man was.
Four months later after the body was found, detectives found a hidden pocket that was sewn on the inside of his trousers. Inside the pocket was a rolled-up piece of paper from a rare book called the Rubáiyát. The piece of paper had the words “Tamám Shud” on it which means “it has ended.” After months of looking for the exact book, authorities decide to bury the Somerton Man without identification. Although a cast was taken of the bust and he was embalmed to preserve him.
Eight months later, a man walked into the police station. He claimed that just after the body was found, he found a copy of the Rubáiyát in the back of his car that he kept parked near Somerton Beach. He thought nothing of it until he read about the search in a newspaper article. Sure enough, the book had a part of the final page that was torn and it matched the piece of paper that was found in the Somerton Man’s trousers. Inside the book were a phone number and some sort of strange code.
The phone number led the authorities to a woman named Jessica Thompson who lived nearby. During her interview, she was very evasive and even claimed she was going to faint when she saw the bust of the Somerton Man but denied knowing him. However, she said she did sell the book to a man named Alfred Boxall. Unfortunately, Alfred Boxall was still very much alive at the time and still had the copy of the Rubáiyát that Jessica had sold him. The code that was found ended up being even more unhelpful and as of today, it has still yet to be cracked.
To this day, the man on Somerton Beach has yet to be identified.
There wasn’t a wallet or any type of identification on the man and all the tags from his clothing were cut out. The fingerprints that the authorities took of him were also unidentifiable. They even put a photo of the body in the newspapers and still, no one could identify who the man was.
Four months later after the body was found, detectives found a hidden pocket that was sewn on the inside of his trousers. Inside the pocket was a rolled-up piece of paper from a rare book called the Rubáiyát. The piece of paper had the words “Tamám Shud” on it which means “it has ended.” After months of looking for the exact book, authorities decide to bury the Somerton Man without identification. Although a cast was taken of the bust and he was embalmed to preserve him.
Eight months later, a man walked into the police station. He claimed that just after the body was found, he found a copy of the Rubáiyát in the back of his car that he kept parked near Somerton Beach. He thought nothing of it until he read about the search in a newspaper article. Sure enough, the book had a part of the final page that was torn and it matched the piece of paper that was found in the Somerton Man’s trousers. Inside the book were a phone number and some sort of strange code.
The phone number led the authorities to a woman named Jessica Thompson who lived nearby. During her interview, she was very evasive and even claimed she was going to faint when she saw the bust of the Somerton Man but denied knowing him. However, she said she did sell the book to a man named Alfred Boxall. Unfortunately, Alfred Boxall was still very much alive at the time and still had the copy of the Rubáiyát that Jessica had sold him. The code that was found ended up being even more unhelpful and as of today, it has still yet to be cracked.
To this day, the man on Somerton Beach has yet to be identified.
5. D. B. Cooper: On the afternoon of November 24, 1971, a nondescript man calling himself Dan Cooper approached the counter of Northwest Orient Airlines in Portland, Oregon. He used cash to buy a one-way ticket on Flight #305, bound for Seattle, Washington. Thus began one of the great unsolved mysteries in FBI history.
Cooper was a quiet man who appeared to be in his mid-40s, wearing a business suit with a black tie and white shirt. He ordered a drink - bourbon and soda - while the flight was waiting to take off. A short time after 3:00 p.m., he handed the stewardess a note indicating that he had a bomb in his briefcase and wanted her to sit with him. The stunned stewardess did as she was told. Opening a cheap attaché case, Cooper showed her a glimpse of a mass of wires and red-colored sticks and demanded that she write down what he told her.
Soon, she was walking a new note to the captain of the plane that demanded four parachutes and $200,000 in twenty-dollar bills. When the flight landed in Seattle, the hijacker exchanged the flight's 36 passengers for the money and parachutes. Cooper kept several crew members, and the plane took off again, ordered to set a course for Mexico City.
Somewhere between Seattle and Reno, a little after 8:00 p.m., the hijacker did the incredible: He jumped out of the back of the plane with a parachute and the ransom money. The pilots landed safely, but Cooper had disappeared into the night, and his ultimate fate remains a mystery to this day. The FBI learned of the crime in-flight and immediately opened an extensive investigation that lasted many years.
Calling it NORJAK, for Northwest Hijacking, we interviewed hundreds of people, tracked leads across the nation, and scoured the aircraft for evidence. By the five-year anniversary of the hijacking, we had considered more than 800 suspects and eliminated all but two dozen from consideration.
Cooper was a quiet man who appeared to be in his mid-40s, wearing a business suit with a black tie and white shirt. He ordered a drink - bourbon and soda - while the flight was waiting to take off. A short time after 3:00 p.m., he handed the stewardess a note indicating that he had a bomb in his briefcase and wanted her to sit with him. The stunned stewardess did as she was told. Opening a cheap attaché case, Cooper showed her a glimpse of a mass of wires and red-colored sticks and demanded that she write down what he told her.
Soon, she was walking a new note to the captain of the plane that demanded four parachutes and $200,000 in twenty-dollar bills. When the flight landed in Seattle, the hijacker exchanged the flight's 36 passengers for the money and parachutes. Cooper kept several crew members, and the plane took off again, ordered to set a course for Mexico City.
Somewhere between Seattle and Reno, a little after 8:00 p.m., the hijacker did the incredible: He jumped out of the back of the plane with a parachute and the ransom money. The pilots landed safely, but Cooper had disappeared into the night, and his ultimate fate remains a mystery to this day. The FBI learned of the crime in-flight and immediately opened an extensive investigation that lasted many years.
Calling it NORJAK, for Northwest Hijacking, we interviewed hundreds of people, tracked leads across the nation, and scoured the aircraft for evidence. By the five-year anniversary of the hijacking, we had considered more than 800 suspects and eliminated all but two dozen from consideration.
6. The Zodiac Killer: In the late 1960s and early 1970s, a serial killer known as “The Zodiac Killer” terrorized Northern California. There were at least five victims but later on, the murderer would claim he killed at least 37 people in total.
On Dec. 20, 1968, on Lake Herman Road in Vallejo, 17-year-old David Faraday and 16-year-old Betty Lou Jensen were shot and killed while sitting in a parked car in a gravel parking area. By the time police arrived, Betty was found dead but David was still alive. Unfortunately, he would die on the way to the hospital. This was the first murder that the Zodiac Killer conducted and got away with.
The Zodiac’s next crime would happen on July 4, 1969, in Blue Rock Springs Park, only a few minutes away from the previous crime. The Zodiac Killer approached a parked car with a flashlight and then murdered 22-year-old Darlene Ferrin and 19-year-old Michael Mageau. Both were still alive when found but only Mageau would survive. He was able to describe the shooter as a young, white male, 26-30 years old, a stocky build, 200 pounds or larger, about 5’8 with light brown curly hair and a large face. Within an hour, the police received a phone call from someone who claimed to be the shooter and the shooter in the Lake Herman Road murders.
On Aug. 1, 1969, the San Francisco Chronicle, the San Francisco Examiner, and the Vallejo Herald all received a handwritten letter from someone who claimed to be the shooter. The letters revealed specific details about the killings to prove that the writer was indeed the murderer. All the letters were signed with a circle with a cross through it, the symbol that would eventually be known as the mark of the Zodiac Killer. Also included in the letter were three different codes that the Zodiac Killer demanded be printed in newspapers or else he would kill again. The Zodiac Killer said that the cracked codes would reveal his identity.
On Aug. 4, 1969, another letter was received that started with the phrase saying “this is the Zodiac speaking”, marking the first time the killer referred to himself as the Zodiac. On Aug. 8, the code was cracked by a couple in Salinas, California. The codes read: “I like killing because it is so much fun. It is more fun than killing wild game in the forest because man is the most dangerous animal of all to kill. Something gives me the most thrilling experience, it is even better than getting your rocks off with a girl. The best part of it is that when I die, I will be reborn in paradise and those I have killed will become my slaves. I will not give you my name because you will slow down or stop my collecting of slaves for the afterlife.”
After claiming three more lives and causing nationwide terror, the Zodiac Killer wrote his final letter on Jan. 29, 1974, concluding the letter with a new score “Me=37 SFPD=0.” The true identity of the killer has never been found.
On Dec. 20, 1968, on Lake Herman Road in Vallejo, 17-year-old David Faraday and 16-year-old Betty Lou Jensen were shot and killed while sitting in a parked car in a gravel parking area. By the time police arrived, Betty was found dead but David was still alive. Unfortunately, he would die on the way to the hospital. This was the first murder that the Zodiac Killer conducted and got away with.
The Zodiac’s next crime would happen on July 4, 1969, in Blue Rock Springs Park, only a few minutes away from the previous crime. The Zodiac Killer approached a parked car with a flashlight and then murdered 22-year-old Darlene Ferrin and 19-year-old Michael Mageau. Both were still alive when found but only Mageau would survive. He was able to describe the shooter as a young, white male, 26-30 years old, a stocky build, 200 pounds or larger, about 5’8 with light brown curly hair and a large face. Within an hour, the police received a phone call from someone who claimed to be the shooter and the shooter in the Lake Herman Road murders.
On Aug. 1, 1969, the San Francisco Chronicle, the San Francisco Examiner, and the Vallejo Herald all received a handwritten letter from someone who claimed to be the shooter. The letters revealed specific details about the killings to prove that the writer was indeed the murderer. All the letters were signed with a circle with a cross through it, the symbol that would eventually be known as the mark of the Zodiac Killer. Also included in the letter were three different codes that the Zodiac Killer demanded be printed in newspapers or else he would kill again. The Zodiac Killer said that the cracked codes would reveal his identity.
On Aug. 4, 1969, another letter was received that started with the phrase saying “this is the Zodiac speaking”, marking the first time the killer referred to himself as the Zodiac. On Aug. 8, the code was cracked by a couple in Salinas, California. The codes read: “I like killing because it is so much fun. It is more fun than killing wild game in the forest because man is the most dangerous animal of all to kill. Something gives me the most thrilling experience, it is even better than getting your rocks off with a girl. The best part of it is that when I die, I will be reborn in paradise and those I have killed will become my slaves. I will not give you my name because you will slow down or stop my collecting of slaves for the afterlife.”
After claiming three more lives and causing nationwide terror, the Zodiac Killer wrote his final letter on Jan. 29, 1974, concluding the letter with a new score “Me=37 SFPD=0.” The true identity of the killer has never been found.
7. The murder of Tupac Shakur: On Sept. 7, 1996, at the MGM Grand Casino in Las Vegas, Nevada, well-known rapper Tupac Shakur was seen attending a Mike Tyson boxing match. After the match, Tupac left with the CEO of Death Row Records, Suge Knight. Upon the departure of the match, Tupac and his bodyguards got into a fight with Compton-based Southside Crips gang member Orlando Anderson in the lobby of the MGM. After the fight was broken up, Tupac and Knight left in Knight’s car with Tupac’s entourage following in cars behind them.
While stopped at the intersection of Flamingo and Koval, a white Cadillac pulled up to the passenger side of Knight’s car and shot out of the window, hitting Tupac four times and grazing Knight in the head with a bullet fragment. In 2014, retired LVPD sergeant Chris Carroll revealed that he was the first police officer at the scene. According to Carroll, when he opened the car door, Tupac fell out of the car, covered in blood and Carroll asked “Who shot you?” Tupac took a deep breath and only proclaimed explicative words at the police officer before slipping into unconsciousness.
Tupac was then taken to UMC and placed on life support and into a medically induced coma. On Sept. 13, 1996, six days after the shooting, Tupac died as a result of his injuries at the age of 25. Las Vegas Police never arrested anyone in connection with the murder. They also failed to follow up with Yaki Kadafi, a member of Tupac’s entourage who claimed he could identify the assailant. Unfortunately, Kadafi was murdered only two months after the infamous shooting before he could be interviewed.
While stopped at the intersection of Flamingo and Koval, a white Cadillac pulled up to the passenger side of Knight’s car and shot out of the window, hitting Tupac four times and grazing Knight in the head with a bullet fragment. In 2014, retired LVPD sergeant Chris Carroll revealed that he was the first police officer at the scene. According to Carroll, when he opened the car door, Tupac fell out of the car, covered in blood and Carroll asked “Who shot you?” Tupac took a deep breath and only proclaimed explicative words at the police officer before slipping into unconsciousness.
Tupac was then taken to UMC and placed on life support and into a medically induced coma. On Sept. 13, 1996, six days after the shooting, Tupac died as a result of his injuries at the age of 25. Las Vegas Police never arrested anyone in connection with the murder. They also failed to follow up with Yaki Kadafi, a member of Tupac’s entourage who claimed he could identify the assailant. Unfortunately, Kadafi was murdered only two months after the infamous shooting before he could be interviewed.
8. The Sodder Children Disappearance: On the night before Christmas in 1945 in Fayetteville, West Virginia, George and Jennie Sodder were asleep with nine of their children when a fire started in the house around 1:00 in the morning. George, Jennie, and four of their children managed to escape. The remaining children: 14-year-old Maurice, 12-year-old Martha, 9-year-old Louis, 8-year-old Jennie, and 5-year-old Betty still remained in the house. Between the five of them, they shared two bedrooms located upstairs.
George broke back into the house to save the rest of the children but the staircase was on fire. When he went outside to retrieve his ladder, it was missing from its normal spot. Plus, both of his coal trucks, which he was going to use to stand on top of, were strangely not starting.
Marion, one of the children who escaped the fire, ran to a neighbor’s house to phone the fire department but the operator didn’t pick up. When another neighbor called, the operator failed to pick up the phone again. That same neighbor actually drove to town and found the fire chief in person, FJ Morris, and told him about the fire. However, even though the fire station was located a mere 2.5 miles away from the house, the firefighters didn’t reach the Sodder home until 8 a.m., seven hours after the fire began. When they got there, the house was literally burnt to ash.
Authorities sifted through the ash to try and find the remains of the missing 5 children but nothing was found and they were presumed dead due to the fire. Morris suggested that the fire was so hot that it literally cremated the children’s bodies—including their bones. While that theory sounds reasonable, it’s not entirely accurate because even when flesh is burned away, bones are typically left behind. Additionally, there was no smell of burning flesh reported during or after the fire.
The cause of the fire was deemed to be bad wiring and the five missing children were issued death certificates. Soon after the fire, George and Jennie began to suspect that their children were not dead but instead kidnapped and the fire was deliberately set as a diversion. In fact, George had the wiring checked earlier that fall by the power company which had deemed the wiring in safe working order.
While the fire was in progress, a woman came forward and said she saw all of the five missing children peering from a passing car. Another woman who was staying at a Charleston hotel had seen the children’s photos in a newspaper and said she had seen four of the five a week after the fire. “The children were accompanied by two women and two men, all of the Italian extraction,” she said in a statement. “I tried to talk to the children in a friendly manner, but the men appeared hostile … and wouldn’t allow it.”
From the 1950s until Jennie Sodder’s death in the late 1980s, the Sodder family maintained a billboard on State Route 16, with pictures of the five vanished children and offering a reward for information. The last known surviving Sodder child, Sylvia, still doesn’t believe her siblings perished in the fire. To this day, they have never been found.
George broke back into the house to save the rest of the children but the staircase was on fire. When he went outside to retrieve his ladder, it was missing from its normal spot. Plus, both of his coal trucks, which he was going to use to stand on top of, were strangely not starting.
Marion, one of the children who escaped the fire, ran to a neighbor’s house to phone the fire department but the operator didn’t pick up. When another neighbor called, the operator failed to pick up the phone again. That same neighbor actually drove to town and found the fire chief in person, FJ Morris, and told him about the fire. However, even though the fire station was located a mere 2.5 miles away from the house, the firefighters didn’t reach the Sodder home until 8 a.m., seven hours after the fire began. When they got there, the house was literally burnt to ash.
Authorities sifted through the ash to try and find the remains of the missing 5 children but nothing was found and they were presumed dead due to the fire. Morris suggested that the fire was so hot that it literally cremated the children’s bodies—including their bones. While that theory sounds reasonable, it’s not entirely accurate because even when flesh is burned away, bones are typically left behind. Additionally, there was no smell of burning flesh reported during or after the fire.
The cause of the fire was deemed to be bad wiring and the five missing children were issued death certificates. Soon after the fire, George and Jennie began to suspect that their children were not dead but instead kidnapped and the fire was deliberately set as a diversion. In fact, George had the wiring checked earlier that fall by the power company which had deemed the wiring in safe working order.
While the fire was in progress, a woman came forward and said she saw all of the five missing children peering from a passing car. Another woman who was staying at a Charleston hotel had seen the children’s photos in a newspaper and said she had seen four of the five a week after the fire. “The children were accompanied by two women and two men, all of the Italian extraction,” she said in a statement. “I tried to talk to the children in a friendly manner, but the men appeared hostile … and wouldn’t allow it.”
From the 1950s until Jennie Sodder’s death in the late 1980s, the Sodder family maintained a billboard on State Route 16, with pictures of the five vanished children and offering a reward for information. The last known surviving Sodder child, Sylvia, still doesn’t believe her siblings perished in the fire. To this day, they have never been found.
9. The Circleville Letters: In 1976, residents of Circleville, Ohio, began receiving threatening mail that has haunted them ever since. The letters were from Columbus but had no return address. They accused school bus driver, Mary Gillespie and the school superintendent of having an extramarital affair.
One of the letters was even addressed to Mary’s husband Ron that threatened his life if he didn’t put a stop to the affair. In 1977, Ron died in a suspicious one-car crash that involved gunshots. However, when the Sheriff ruled the death an accident, other residents of Circleville began receiving letters accusing the Sheriff of covering up the so-called “accident.”
Ron’s sister’s husband, Paul Freshour, was convicted of writing the letters after there was an attempt to murder Mary via a booby-trap-rigged pistol. Even after he was thrown behind bars, the Circleville Letters continued throughout the 1970s and the early 1980s. Freshour even received one in prison.
In 1994, Freshour was released, and he claimed his innocence until his death in 2012. The true identity of the Circleville Letter Writer remains unknown.
One of the letters was even addressed to Mary’s husband Ron that threatened his life if he didn’t put a stop to the affair. In 1977, Ron died in a suspicious one-car crash that involved gunshots. However, when the Sheriff ruled the death an accident, other residents of Circleville began receiving letters accusing the Sheriff of covering up the so-called “accident.”
Ron’s sister’s husband, Paul Freshour, was convicted of writing the letters after there was an attempt to murder Mary via a booby-trap-rigged pistol. Even after he was thrown behind bars, the Circleville Letters continued throughout the 1970s and the early 1980s. Freshour even received one in prison.
In 1994, Freshour was released, and he claimed his innocence until his death in 2012. The true identity of the Circleville Letter Writer remains unknown.
10. The disappearance of Jimmy Hoffa: On July 30, 1975, teamster boss Jimmy Hoffa disappeared without a trace. At the time, he was one of the most powerful men in the country. Because of his union leadership, many working Americans considered Hoffa their hero, but Hoffa also had powerful enemies.
The Mob and Hoffa had a symbiotic relationship in which the Mob was able to take loans out of the Teamsters’ pension fund. These funds funneled into many Las Vegas casinos and, in return, Hoffa and the pension fund got a favorable return on these loans.
Despite his connections to the Mob, Hoffa was still loved by the Teamsters as he was known for increasing benefits and wages for workers. Throughout the 1940s and 1950s, Hoffa was able to have good relations with the Mob until he started a 13-year prison sentence in 1967 for crimes including bribery, jury tampering and mail fraud. He was then pardoned by President Nixon in 1971 as long as he abstained from any union involvement until 1980. This would lead to Hoffa’s downfall.
Despite the lack of evidence, there is wide agreement among crime historians and investigators close to the case that Hoffa was murdered by his enemies in the Mafia. However, key details of his disappearance remain either unknown or unprovable, and this has ensured that no individuals have ever been charged in relation to the case. Hoffa’s body was never found.
The Mob and Hoffa had a symbiotic relationship in which the Mob was able to take loans out of the Teamsters’ pension fund. These funds funneled into many Las Vegas casinos and, in return, Hoffa and the pension fund got a favorable return on these loans.
Despite his connections to the Mob, Hoffa was still loved by the Teamsters as he was known for increasing benefits and wages for workers. Throughout the 1940s and 1950s, Hoffa was able to have good relations with the Mob until he started a 13-year prison sentence in 1967 for crimes including bribery, jury tampering and mail fraud. He was then pardoned by President Nixon in 1971 as long as he abstained from any union involvement until 1980. This would lead to Hoffa’s downfall.
Despite the lack of evidence, there is wide agreement among crime historians and investigators close to the case that Hoffa was murdered by his enemies in the Mafia. However, key details of his disappearance remain either unknown or unprovable, and this has ensured that no individuals have ever been charged in relation to the case. Hoffa’s body was never found.
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