“The Killer Clown” - John Wayne Gacy

April 25 marks National DNA Day in the US, and if you’ve been following true crime stories for a while you know how important DNA can be for solving even the most complicated of cases. In this episode, we’re exploring the first murder case ever solved using DNA analysis, and how it changed a small English town, and forensic science, forever. Keep up with us on Instagram @serialkillerspodcast! Have a story to share? Email us at [email protected] Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

In 1989, Kristen Gilbert started her nursing career at the Veterans Affairs Medical Center in Northampton, Massachusetts. She impressed medical staff for her quick and skilled reactions to emergencies on her ward and in the ICU. But over the following seven years, so much death occurred during her shifts that she gained the moniker “The Angel of Death.” Was it a coincidence, or was Kristen Gilbert killing her patients? Keep up with us on Instagram @serialkillerspodcast! Have a story to share? Email us at [email protected] Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

In 1975, two young girls, Kate and Sheila Lyon, disappeared from the Wheaton Plaza Mall in Montgomery County, Maryland. Investigators assumed the worst: that they were abducted by a stranger with sexual motivations. But the case went cold without answers — and all these years later, the truth is still complicated. Keep up with us on Instagram @serialkillerspodcast! Have a story to share? Email us at [email protected] Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

Based on a tip from a former cellmate, Perry Smith and Richard Hickock drove for miles across Kansas to get to the Clutter family home. Their plan was to steal the family's hidden safe and then kill them, but things didn't go as planned. Keep up with us on Instagram @serialkillerspodcast! Have a story to share? Email us at [email protected] Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

All Anthony Garcia ever wanted to be was a successful doctor.  When anyone got in his way, he attacked – resulting in four violent murders. Keep up with us on Instagram @serialkillerspodcast! Have a story to share? Email us at [email protected] Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

Israel Keyes died having only confessed to a handful of murders and crimes. Researchers and investigators are left piecing together evidence to solve cold cases. Special thanks to Josh Hallmark for lending his expertise to today’s episode. Check out True Crime Bullshit, Josh’s investigation into Israel Keyes, as well as his other Studio BOTH/AND podcasts on Spotify or wherever else you listen. Keep up with us on Instagram @serialkillerspodcast! Have a story to share? Email us at [email protected] Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

Over the course of six months in 2012, Israel Keyes sits down with the FBI for a series of interviews. In between toying with investigators and bargaining for what he wants, he confesses to a handful of other crimes — while alluding to a whole lot more. Special thanks to Josh Hallmark for lending his expertise to today’s episode. Check out True Crime Bullshit, Josh’s investigation into Israel Keyes, as well as his other Studio BOTH/AND podcasts on Spotify or wherever else you listen. Keep up with us on Instagram @serialkillerspodcast! Have a story to share? Email us at [email protected] Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

In 2012, Israel Keyes is arrested and charged with kidnapping and killing an 18-year-old barista. Prior to that, he’d had just one blemish on his criminal record: a DUI. He’s since been called “the most terrifying serial killer you’ve probably never heard of.” Special thanks to Josh Hallmark for lending his expertise to today’s episode. Check out True Crime Bullshit, Josh’s investigation into Israel Keyes, as well as his other Studio BOTH/AND podcasts on Spotify or wherever else you listen. Keep up with us on Instagram @serialkillerspodcast! Have a story to share? Email us at [email protected] Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

On September 29, 1982, 12-year-old Mary Kellerman took one Extra Strength Tylenol capsule to ease her sore throat and mysteriously died less than four hours later. The same day, three members of the Janus family ingested Tylenol. Brothers Adam and Stanley died hours later. Theresa, Stanley’s wife, experienced chest pain and was rushed to the hospital, where she passed away two days later. In that span of time, two more victims – Mary Reiner and Mary McFarland – met similar fates. Shortly after, Paula Prince was discovered dead in her apartment All seven victims were living in the Chicago area; all seven had taken Extra-Strength Tylenol. Authorities determined the capsules had been laced with deadly potassium cyanide; a task force was promptly assembled; and Tylenol’s parent company, Johnson & Johnson, swiftly removed products from shelves amid growing concern around the country. Soon, they introduced tamper-proof packaging that became ubiquitous for medications and other products. And yet, the crime remains unsolved to this day. One name loomed large in the field of suspects connected to the unsolved 1982 Chicago Tylenol Murders: James Lewis. Investigators could never prove he did it, but Lewis held a certain fascination anyway. Why? Who was this man – and could he really have committed such an evil crime? CBS Chicago investigative reporter Brad Edwards decided to trace Lewis’s past to answer those questions for the docuseries PainKiller: The Tylenol Murders, on Paramount Plus. Keep up with us on Instagram @serialkillerspodcast! Have a story to share? Email us at [email protected] Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

In July 2023, Rex Heuermann was arrested and charged with the murders of Megan Waterman, Melissa Barthelemy, and Amber Costello. Additional charges came in January 2024 for the murder of Maureen Brainard-Barnes. Robert Kolker, author of Lost Girls: An Unsolved American Mystery joins the show to talk about the 16-year investigation, the apathy toward sex workers, and the lives and families of the Gilgo Four. The audiobook edition of Lost Girls: An Unsolved American Mystery by Robert Kolker is available for Spotify Premium Subscribers in our Audiobook catalog, where you can check it out after listening to this episode. To buy the hard copy, you can visit: https://www.harpercollins.com/products/lost-girls-robert-kolker Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices