117. The Hippy Smuggler, P1

In the first of this two-parter, Iain uncovers the origin story of Gary Betzner, a cropduster pilot from Arkansas who got himself embroiled in the dangerous world of drug smugglingMurder They Wrote with Laura Whitmore and Iain Stirling is available twice a week on BBC Sounds. Subscribe now so you never miss an episode. Email us at [email protected]

Laura looks at a series of extortion plots that targeted the most famous star in 1940s Hollywood: pin-up girl Betty Grable.Murder They Wrote with Laura Whitmore and Iain Stirling is available twice a week on BBC Sounds. Subscribe now so you never miss an episode. Email us at [email protected]

Iain looks at two FBI Most Wanted criminals who had a very unusual MO when it came to robbing banks.Murder They Wrote with Laura Whitmore and Iain Stirling is available twice a week on BBC Sounds. Subscribe now so you never miss an episode. Email us at [email protected]

It’s 1901 and Boston is abuzz with gossip. A high-society man named Sumner Paine has just been arrested for chasing his daughter’s music teacher down the street with a pistol. Murder They Wrote with Laura Whitmore and Iain Stirling is available twice a week on BBC Sounds. Subscribe now so you never miss an episode. Email us at [email protected]

Iain looks at a double murder case that revolves around a San Francisco church.Details of help and support with sexual violence and abuse are available at bbc.co.uk/actionline.Murder They Wrote with Laura Whitmore and Iain Stirling is available twice a week on BBC Sounds. Subscribe now so you never miss an episode. Email us at [email protected]

A collection of precious jewels goes missing from New York’s Museum of Natural History. The thieves are smooth operators – but prosecutor Maurice Nadjari will stop at nothing to put them away.Murder They Wrote with Laura Whitmore and Iain Stirling is available twice a week on BBC Sounds. Subscribe now so you never miss an episode. Email us at [email protected]

Iain looks at the story of Dr William Palmer, a man whom Charles Dickens described as “the greatest villain that ever stood in the Old Bailey".Murder They Wrote with Laura Whitmore and Iain Stirling is available twice a week on BBC Sounds. Subscribe now so you never miss an episode. Email us at [email protected]

A strange kidnapping case in Tennessee leaves the FBI scrambling for answers.Murder They Wrote with Laura Whitmore and Iain Stirling is available twice a week on BBC Sounds. Subscribe now so you never miss an episode. Email us at [email protected]

Today we’re heading to the Wild West to learn all about a famous 1870s outlaw – Sam Bass – and his gang, the Black Hill Bandits.Murder They Wrote with Laura Whitmore and Iain Stirling is available twice a week on BBC Sounds. Subscribe now so you never miss an episode. Email us at [email protected]

Laura looks at the story of a prolific French fraudster: Thérèse Humbert.Murder They Wrote with Laura Whitmore and Iain Stirling is available twice a week on BBC Sounds. Subscribe now so you never miss an episode. Email us at [email protected]