# 4 Chilling True Crime Cases You Won't Believe

An episode of [Lazy Chill True Crime](https://invisiblenetwork.ai/podcast/1815534472), 9 Sep 2025, 42 min.

Audio: https://traffic.megaphone.fm/APO1722435050.mp3

Explore four chilling true crime cases that defy explanation and will leave you questioning everything you thought you knew about justice and mystery. 👇 Youtube links: Lazy Chill True Crime Youtube: https://www.youtube.com/channel/UC8dVJtzeHcJgd_Z0bHrJTHQ Lazy Chill History Youtube: https://www.youtube.com/@LazyChillHistory Lazy Chill Zone Youtube: https://www.youtube.com/@LazyChillZone 👇 Support My Work: 🛍️ Merch: https://lazy-chill-zone-shop.fourthwall.com ❤️ Patreon: https://www.patreon.com/lazychillzone 👇Social Media Links: https://www.instagram.com/lazychillzone/ 👇 Podcast links: ⚡History Video Podcast on Spotify⚡: https://open.spotify.com/show/7km5pLWpYWEj1mrPpEfRUr?si=0FHYnZf-Qs2FY1GyLevfig ⚡True Crime Podcast on Spotify⚡: https://open.spotify.com/show/0klIz08pAr7wR4we0Ia4sk?si=68qZxCeAQkysXzMZrHE0Iw 🍏 True Crime Podcast on Apple 🍎: https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/lazy-chill-true-crime/id1815534472 true crime cases, chilling true crime, unbelievable crime stories, unsolved murders, mysterious disappearances, cold case podcast, shocking true crime, creepy true crime stories, disturbing mysteries, true crime podcast episode

## Transcript

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[1:23] and Why or text HOPENY. On a spring day in 1980, a hiker
[1:30] in Canada's Algonquin Provincial Park wandered off the trail and
[1:33] stumbled upon a chilling discovery.
[1:36] Human remains hidden beneath the forest floor.
[1:40] Scattered around were personal items weathered by the seasons.
[1:44] A single boot, a leather wallet, a sleeping bag, clothing and
[1:50] camping gear. There was no identification on
[1:53] the body, only these haunting clues in the dirt.
[1:58] It would take nearly half a century for the truth to emerge,
[2:01] finally revealing the fate of Ricky Singer, a 22 year old from
[2:05] Ohio who vanished without a trace in 1973.
[2:12] Ricky Singer grew up in the Cleveland, OH area and was known
[2:15] for being a free spirit. In 1970, at age 19, he dropped
[2:21] out of college after receiving a draft card for the Vietnam War,
[2:26] an event that prompted him to head north to Canada in search
[2:29] of a different path. Ricky spent the next few years
[2:33] living in Canada, exploring options for school and work.
[2:38] By the fall of, 197322 year old Ricky was back home in Ohio for
[2:43] a short stay with his parents. Then on October 3rd, 1973, he
[2:50] packed a backpack, hopped on his bicycle and rode off, telling no
[2:55] one exactly where he was going. That day was the last time his
[3:00] family ever saw him. When Ricky failed to stay in
[3:03] contact, his worried relatives filed a missing persons report
[3:07] and even hired a private investigator, but no leads
[3:11] turned up. Unbeknownst to his family,
[3:16] Ricky's journey led him back to Canada once more.
[3:19] Given his love of travel and nature, it's believed he
[3:22] ventured into the Wilds of the Canadian province of Ontario for
[3:26] a solitary trip. He had been spending a lot of
[3:29] time in Canada already, and he likely felt comfortable there.
[3:34] What we know for certain is that Ricky never returned home after
[3:38] October 1973. Decades would pass before his
[3:42] loved ones got any answers as his disappearance gradually
[3:46] transformed into a cold case. Fast forward to April 19th,
[3:52] 1980. A hiker trekking near the
[3:55] Hardwood Lookout Trail in Algonquin Provincial Park made a
[3:58] grisly find. Just off the path, partially
[4:02] buried under leaves and soil, were human remains, which at
[4:05] first appeared to be a shallow grave of some sort.
[4:09] The Ontario Provincial Police from the nearby Whitney
[4:12] detachment arrived and conducted A thorough search of the area.
[4:16] Over the following days, they recovered a number of items at
[4:20] what looked like an old campsite.
[4:22] These personal effects painted a portrait of a young outdoorsman
[4:26] who had been prepared to camp in the wilderness.
[4:29] Notably, no driver's license, passport, or any form of
[4:34] identification was found. Investigators determined that
[4:40] the remains belong to a white male, likely between 18 and 21
[4:44] years old at the time of death. Based on the decomposition and
[4:49] condition of the campsite, they estimated he had died several
[4:52] years before, roughly sometime between 1971 and 1978.
[4:59] Importantly, the forensic examination found no obvious
[5:02] signs of foul play. It appeared this young man's
[5:05] life had ended due to misadventure or natural causes
[5:09] rather than violence. But stay tuned because we'll get
[5:12] back to that shortly. Despite these clues, the police
[5:17] had no name to go on. They compared the John Doe's
[5:20] description and belongings against missing persons reports
[5:23] from both Canada and the United States, but initially nothing
[5:27] matched. Public appeals were made and the
[5:31] story of the unidentified remains in Algonquin Park was
[5:34] circulated in the media, yet no one came forward to claim the
[5:39] young man. As weeks turned into months, the
[5:43] Algonquin Park John Doe case went cold.
[5:46] His remains were laid to rest without a name, and for years
[5:50] the mystery lingered in the back of investigators minds.
[5:55] In March 19, 9515, years after the initial discovery, a new
[6:01] break in the case occurred, though it only deepened the
[6:03] mystery at first. Another hiker found a human
[6:07] jawbone along the same trail, not far from the 1980 spot where
[6:12] the other remains were found. Investigators immediately
[6:16] recalled the previous body that was found and set out to prove
[6:20] or disprove the relationship between the two sets of human
[6:23] remains. Forensic tests confirmed the
[6:26] jawbone belonged to the same unknown individual, indicating
[6:30] that animals had scattered parts of the skeleton.
[6:33] Over time. The police organized another
[6:36] search of the area, but no further remains or clues were
[6:39] located beyond that single bone, and the case once again fell
[6:44] dormant. DNA testing was done at the time
[6:48] and was compared to databases over the years.
[6:51] But another major breakthrough in technology would be required
[6:55] to give Singer his name. Back in 2022, investigators
[7:01] turned to forensic genetic genealogy and teamed up with the
[7:05] DNA Doe Project, a nonprofit organization that uses
[7:09] genealogical databases to solve these cases.
[7:13] And yeah, just a big shout out to this group in general for all
[7:16] the great work they do. They're a nonprofit that relies
[7:19] on funding from everyone, so consider making a donation if
[7:22] you've got the spare resources. Anyway, by late 2023, this
[7:29] painstaking genetic detective work paid off.
[7:32] The DNA Doe Project team discovered a cluster of
[7:35] relatives in the database that led them to a family in the
[7:37] United States. In September 2023, detectives
[7:43] contacted 2 Sisters, Ruth and Mary Singer with astonishing
[7:47] news. They believe the long lost
[7:50] Algonquin Park John Doe was in fact Ricky Singer, their brother
[7:55] who had disappeared 50 years earlier.
[7:59] The sisters provided their own DNA samples to the investigators
[8:04] which allowed for a direct family confirmation of the
[8:06] match. It wasn't a quick process by any
[8:09] means, and final verification took nearly a year and a half,
[8:14] but on February 14th, 2025, investigators confirm the
[8:20] remains belong to Ricky. In the summer of 2025, Ricky's
[8:25] sisters traveled up to Algonquin Provincial Park to walk the
[8:29] forest trail where their brother's life had ended.
[8:32] This emotional pilgrimage brought some degree of solace to
[8:35] the family who had spent over half a century wondering where
[8:39] Ricky was. With Ricky Singer's identity
[8:45] known, the big question now turns to what happened to him.
[8:49] The official investigation turned up no evidence of foul
[8:52] play. However, his body was
[8:54] skeletonized at the time he was found.
[8:57] This means that there could have been significant soft tissue
[9:00] trauma that was lost due to the process of decomposition.
[9:04] Personally, I think it's possible that he could have run
[9:06] into a dangerous individual while off the beaten path in
[9:10] this National Park, though obviously the evidence isn't
[9:14] there to prove it. The authorities, for their part,
[9:19] consider the most plausible theory that Ricky fell victim to
[9:22] the unforgiving wilderness. He may have gotten lost or
[9:26] injured while hiking alone. Algonquin Park spans thousands
[9:30] of miles of dense forest, lakes, and rocky terrain, an easy place
[9:36] for even an experienced outdoorsman to get turned around
[9:39] or hurt. If Ricky had an accident or
[9:42] simply became disoriented and strayed from the trail, he could
[9:46] have succumbed to exposure. A lone camper in the woods
[9:50] without a way to call for help can quickly find themselves in a
[9:53] life threatening situation. Notably, hypothermia is a
[10:00] constant danger in Ontario's Backcountry, especially if Ricky
[10:04] was camping in the autumn when temperatures can drop rapidly at
[10:07] night. An early winter storm or cold
[10:10] snap could have overwhelmed him if he wasn't prepared for severe
[10:13] weather. Unfortunately, death by
[10:17] misadventure leaves little forensic trace, and a case of
[10:20] hypothermia or exhaustion wouldn't show up in skeletal
[10:24] remains. Another possibility is that
[10:28] Ricky became I'll while out in the wilderness.
[10:31] Even a bad case of food poisoning, dehydration, or a
[10:35] sudden infection could be fatal if one is days away from
[10:38] civilization. We know from the evidence that
[10:42] he had a camp stove and pot, which indicates he was cooking
[10:46] for himself. Perhaps he ate something
[10:49] poisonous or drank untreated water that made him gravely
[10:53] sick. Alone and weak, he might have
[10:56] lain down in his sleeping bag and never woken up.
[10:59] The way his remains were found at what looked like a campsite,
[11:04] undisturbed except by nature, suggests he perished peacefully
[11:08] in place rather than in a panicked struggle.
[11:14] Some have wondered if Ricky might have intended to
[11:16] disappear, essentially choosing a hermit's life in the wild
[11:20] before then ending at all. However, this theory doesn't
[11:24] appear to be supported by the evidence, and On the contrary,
[11:28] he had been exploring his future and had maintained contact until
[11:32] the point he vanished further. Yet in my view it doesn't really
[11:37] fit the evidence at the site where his body was located, so I
[11:41] think this one can very safely be ruled out.
[11:46] Also, naturally, since this is a National Park disappearance,
[11:50] people have suggested a whole variety of really far out
[11:53] otherworldly theories about what could have happened.
[11:57] The evidence doesn't really support anything of this nature
[12:00] though, so there's really not much more to say about that.
[12:03] And yeah, before you comment, I already know that someone will
[12:07] mention that he's a Midwestern guy with a vaguely German
[12:10] sounding last name. At present, the true 'cause of
[12:16] Ricky Singer's passing isn't known, but police have continued
[12:19] to investigate the matter and have promised further updates.
[12:23] Personally though, I suspect they'll rule that he perished
[12:26] from exposure and close out the file.
[12:32] Imagine hiking a tranquil trail in the Sierra Nevada foothills
[12:37] only to stumble upon a decades old secret hidden beneath the
[12:40] brush. In July 1984, a hiker near
[12:45] Nevada City, CA made a grim discovery.
[12:49] The remains of a young woman discarded down an embankment off
[12:52] a wooded trail. Nearly 40 years later, that
[12:56] woman is known only as the Nevada City Jane Doe, and both
[13:00] her identity and perpetrator remain unknown.
[13:05] On July 8th, 1984, two hikers walking along the Independence
[13:09] Trail north of Nevada City noticed something disturbing.
[13:14] There, 200 feet down an embankment, they spotted
[13:17] something highly unusual, which turned out to be what was left
[13:21] of the body of a young woman. The woman's remains were almost
[13:25] entirely skeletonized by the time of discovery, indicating
[13:30] she had perished at least a few weeks prior.
[13:35] Authorities noted that the Jane Doe was Caucasian and likely
[13:39] between 18 and 30 years old based on her bones and dental
[13:42] characteristics. Her height was harder to pin
[13:46] down due to the condition of the remains, but she was estimated
[13:49] somewhere between 5 feet and five feet 8 inches tall.
[13:54] She had shoulder length hair that appeared to be dark blonde
[13:57] or light brown, remnants of which were found with the body.
[14:03] Even more alarming were the signs of what had happened to
[14:06] her. An autopsy later revealed that
[14:09] this woman had been slain in a particularly cruel way.
[14:14] Now, I've got to give some details here because it'll be
[14:16] relevant to the analysis of the case and who may have done this.
[14:22] Without going into the gruesome details, she was strangled and
[14:26] also suffered significant blunt force trauma to her head.
[14:30] Based on the location, investigators believe the actual
[14:34] attack took place elsewhere and the predator dumped her body in
[14:38] this remote spot, hoping it would remain hidden.
[14:43] While the young woman had no identification on her, she was
[14:47] found with a number of personal items and clothing that offered
[14:50] critical clues. In fact, the clothing she wore
[14:53] was quite distinctive, both in style and in its inconsistency
[14:58] with the warm July weather. Detectives catalogued each item
[15:02] in hopes that someone might recognize them.
[15:05] She wore a distinctive red long sleeve shirt with an embroidered
[15:09] tiger face on the front, layered under a large men's Plaid shirt
[15:13] in red, tan and blue. Over these she had a tan
[15:17] reversible vest. Her lower body had size 8 Calvin
[15:21] Klein jeans, white tube socks with red stripes and blue size 5
[15:26] Nike sneakers. A red, tan and blue bandana was
[15:30] tied around her right ankle, echoing the Plaid shirts
[15:34] colours. The only jewelry noted was a
[15:37] gold tone floral ring with an Oval Opal stone at the centre.
[15:43] The ensemble of clothing is striking for a couple of
[15:46] reasons. First, the layers of shirts and
[15:49] a vest were unusually heavy attire for a Northern California
[15:52] summer. July temperatures in Nevada City
[15:56] are hot, yet this woman was dressed as if for a cooler
[15:59] climate. Investigators took note of this
[16:03] and theorized that the victim may not have been a local
[16:05] resident, but perhaps came from a colder region.
[16:11] Secondly, the clothing and accessories themselves were
[16:14] potentially identifying. The embroidered tiger shirt was
[16:18] highly distinctive. Detectives publicly highlighted
[16:22] that shirt in particular, describing the tiger face design
[16:25] and media reports and circulating images of it.
[16:29] It wasn't a known band or sports team logo, but it looked unique
[16:33] enough that someone might recall seeing it before.
[16:37] And if you're watching this on YouTube right now, take a look
[16:40] at your screen and check out this unique tiger.
[16:44] I feel like this thing could actually be a core memory
[16:47] unlocked moment for someone who recalled A relative or a friend
[16:50] of the family wearing this exact shirt back in the day.
[16:56] Early efforts focused on standard police work of the
[16:59] 1980s, including manually checking missing persons reports
[17:03] and comparing dental records to national databases.
[17:07] Notably, due to the skeletonized nature of her remains,
[17:11] fingerprints, one of the most powerful forensic tools at the
[17:15] time, were unavailable. The autopsy estimated she'd been
[17:19] deceased for about a month, placing her time of death
[17:22] roughly in early to mid June 1984.
[17:26] This timeline was important for investigators trying to match
[17:29] her to missing persons reports. They scoured recent reports of
[17:33] young women missing in late spring of that year.
[17:37] However, if this Jane Doe was from out of the area, her
[17:40] disappearance might not have been reported in Nevada County,
[17:43] and this significantly widened the scope of the search.
[17:48] One theory considered that she might have been a hitchhiker or
[17:51] traveler. Passing through Hwy. 49, while
[17:55] not an Interstate, is a route that connects to other major
[17:59] roads and tourist areas. While less common already than
[18:03] earlier years, it wouldn't be unheard of for a young person in
[18:06] the 1980s to hitch a ride, potentially crossing paths with
[18:11] the wrong person. The presence of a men's shirt in
[18:14] her layers could hint she acquired clothing along the way
[18:18] or borrowed it from someone, perhaps a boyfriend or even the
[18:22] perpetrator. There's also the possibility she
[18:25] was homeless and that she was essentially carrying all her
[18:28] belongings on her back with her. These scenarios might explain
[18:34] why no immediate missing person match was found locally.
[18:37] If she wasn't from Nevada City and no one knew she was there,
[18:41] her disappearance might be logged in a completely different
[18:44] city or state, or potentially not reported at all.
[18:49] Over the years, numerous missing women have been compared to
[18:53] Nevada City's Jane Doe, but all have been ruled out.
[18:57] As for how to solve this, this is a case that's ripe to be
[19:01] solved with genetic genealogy, though it's unclear if her case
[19:06] has actually been referred out for testing.
[19:09] At any rate, if it hasn't been, if you're a local, consider
[19:14] reaching out to the authorities and asking for a status update
[19:17] on the case. And if genetic genealogy has
[19:19] been considered. After all, the only way these
[19:23] does get their names back is if local people pressure their
[19:26] police departments to actually solve these cases.
[19:31] With her identity still elusive, there's also a number of
[19:35] theories about who committed this act.
[19:38] Notably, since this is an active and ongoing investigation,
[19:42] publicly released information has been somewhat limited.
[19:46] However, all that said, the nature of the crime provides
[19:49] some insights. Strangulation suggests a very
[19:55] personal and deliberate act, and the presence of blunt force
[19:59] trauma could indicate A struggle or an attempt to subdue her.
[20:03] It's possible the perpetrator knew the victim, but it could
[20:06] also be the work of a predator who picked up a vulnerable
[20:09] stranger. California in the 1980s had its
[20:14] share of violent serial offenders looking for
[20:17] individuals like this young woman to victimize.
[20:20] Notably, the I5 strangler Roger Kibbe targeted women around
[20:25] Sacramento and Stockton, but his confirmed slayings began a
[20:29] couple of years after 1984. It's not impossible that the
[20:33] Nevada City Jane Doe was one of his early victims, though
[20:37] there's no evidence whatsoever to confirm this.
[20:42] As of now, the Nevada City Jane Doe remains unidentified for
[20:46] over 40 years, but the case is far from closed once her
[20:51] identity is returned to her by genetic genealogy.
[20:55] This may allow the police to reconstruct her last days and
[20:59] bring justice for her and her family.
[21:02] For now, though, her case remains a chilling unsolved
[21:05] mystery from the California wilderness.
[21:13] In September 19, 8750, year old Dale Kerstetter vanished from
[21:18] his job during an overnight shift at the Corning Glass Works
[21:21] plant in Bradford, PA. On that very same night, more
[21:25] than a quarter $1,000,000 worth of platinum disappeared from the
[21:28] facility. And yes, if you're a long time
[21:31] viewer, you know that I have a keen interest in both heists and
[21:35] missing persons cases, so I couldn't pass this one up.
[21:40] Kerstetter was a veteran maintenance man and security
[21:42] guard with 27 years experience at the Corning plant.
[21:46] He was scheduled to work his usual night shift on Saturday,
[21:49] September 12th, 1987. By the next morning, he was gone
[21:55] without a trace, leaving behind personal belongings and a
[21:58] mystery that endures to this day.
[22:01] Investigators and family alike have grappled with the question,
[22:05] was Dale Kerstetter an unsuspecting victim of a robbery
[22:10] or a willing participant in an elaborate theft?
[22:14] Dale was a trusted employee, described as an ordinary well
[22:18] liked man devoted to his large family.
[22:22] Sometime during the night, approximately $250,000 worth of
[22:26] platinum pipe used in the glass manufacturing process went
[22:30] missing from the Plants furnace area, along with Kerstetter
[22:34] himself. When the next security guard,
[22:37] John Lindquist, showed up at 7:00 AM on Sunday to relieve
[22:40] Dale, he immediately sensed something was wrong.
[22:45] Kerstetter was nowhere to be found.
[22:46] At his post in the Plants cafeteria, Lindquist discovered
[22:51] Dale's lunch pail sitting on a table alongside his newspaper in
[22:55] Keys. This was an alarming sign, as it
[22:59] appeared Dale had left in the middle of his shift without even
[23:03] consuming the dinner he brought. Later that morning, security
[23:08] staff located Kerstetter's pickup truck still in the plant
[23:12] parking lot, yielding more puzzling clues.
[23:17] The truck's keys were still in the ignition, and inside the
[23:20] vehicle investigators found a full carton of cigarettes,
[23:25] Dale's food, and an empty holster for his weapon, which
[23:29] itself was missing. There were no indications of
[23:32] forced entry at the plant or signs of a struggle at the
[23:36] scene. These early clues suggested that
[23:39] whatever happened, it occurred suddenly and likely not at
[23:43] Kerstetter's own initiative. For example, Dale was a heavy
[23:48] smoker, so leaving behind an entire carton of cigarettes was
[23:52] highly unusual if he had intended to leave voluntarily.
[23:57] Plant Procedures also called for the lone night guard to check in
[24:00] by phone with the company's headquarters every hour.
[24:04] However, it was later discovered that Dale never made any hourly
[24:07] check in calls after starting his shift.
[24:11] Unfortunately, a new employee in the remote monitoring office
[24:15] wasn't familiar with this protocol, so Kerstetter's missed
[24:18] check insurance went unnoticed in real time.
[24:22] Once Kerstetter's disappearance was recognized, plant officials
[24:26] and authorities quickly launched a search of the sprawling
[24:28] facility and surrounding area. And when I say sprawling here,
[24:32] I'm not exaggerating. The facility itself is over
[24:36] 100,000 square feet and the property it's on is even larger.
[24:42] Fearing that the missing guard might have been injured or
[24:45] fallen I'll on the job, AK 9 unit was brought in to track his
[24:50] scent through the building. The Bloodhounds traced Dale's
[24:54] trail along his normal patrol route at first, then LED
[24:58] officers to the second floor area housing the plants glass
[25:01] furnace where the valuable platinum was kept.
[25:05] This location wasn't part of Kerstetter's usual rounds,
[25:09] raising a red flag that something drew him there during
[25:12] the night. Upon inspecting the furnace,
[25:16] managers discovered that several pieces of platinum lining had
[25:19] been cut out and removed, confirming that a major theft
[25:23] had occurred. Despite an extensive search of
[25:26] the building, no sign of Cursedetter was found inside,
[25:30] and a sweep of the surrounding woods and a nearby Creek also
[25:34] turned up nothing. By later that day, the McKean
[25:38] County Sheriff's Office and Pennsylvania State Police were
[25:41] treating the incident as both a missing person case and a high
[25:44] value burglary. A breakthrough in the early
[25:47] investigation came when officials reviewed the plant
[25:50] security camera footage about four days after the incident.
[25:55] Corning Personnel Manager Patrick Foley scrutinized
[25:58] recordings from three surveillance cameras that
[26:01] monitored the facility. Also, keep Foley's name in mind
[26:05] for later because he's going to come up again in a bit and
[26:09] depending on how you see this case, you'll either love or hate
[26:12] him. What Foley saw was startling and
[26:15] completely changed the nature of the case and the investigation.
[26:20] At approximately 10:40 PM, only minutes after Kierstetter
[26:24] started his shift, the footage showed a masked intruder walking
[26:28] through the back area of the plant.
[26:31] At around 10:45 PM, the cameras captured A brief encounter
[26:35] between Dale and this masked person in a corridor.
[26:39] Kerstetter could be seen walking up to the intruder and
[26:42] apparently engaging in a short conversation.
[26:45] The two then move together out of frame.
[26:48] Moments later, the intruder is seen walking through the plant
[26:51] alone, without Kerstetter. The next significant footage
[26:56] comes around midnight when the intruder appears on camera in
[27:00] the furnace area on the 2nd floor, precisely where the
[27:03] platinum was stored. The video shows the intruder in
[27:07] that area and later shows him Wheeling out a large, heavy bag
[27:11] through the building. Investigators speculated that
[27:15] the bag likely contained the stolen platinum, or possibly
[27:18] even Kerstetter himself. Notably, during the brief
[27:23] corridor encounter on the tape, as Kerstetter and the masked man
[27:26] we're leaving the 2nd floor area together.
[27:29] Dale glances up directly into one of the security cameras.
[27:34] This peculiar moment would become a focal point of debate.
[27:38] Was Dale subtly looking into the camera to signal for help?
[27:42] Or was he acknowledging the camera, Jim from the Office
[27:45] style because he knew what was about to happen?
[27:49] Authorities at the time couldn't determine if Kirstetter's
[27:51] behavior indicated duress or complicity.
[27:55] The surveillance evidence made one thing clear.
[27:58] The unidentified intruder was able to navigate the plant with
[28:02] confidence. The individual knew exactly
[28:05] where to find the platinum, how to access the furnace even in
[28:09] the dark, and where equipment like carts or bags were located.
[28:14] This strongly suggested that someone familiar with the
[28:17] facility, perhaps a current or former employee, was involved in
[28:22] the heist. Notably, while the authorities
[28:25] have been uncertain about whether Dale was involved, the
[28:28] company he worked for for 27 years of his life literally
[28:32] immediately threw him under the bus.
[28:35] Patrick Foley, the plant manager I mentioned previously, went on
[28:39] the record saying that Dale was a common thief taking their
[28:42] platinum. Also, as a complete aside, I
[28:46] hope Mr. Foley's words inspire someone to take this as a sign
[28:50] to follow their own dreams. By way of reminder, Dale gave 27
[28:55] years of service to Corning Glass Works, yet this was the
[28:59] thanks he got at the end of the day, where there was a
[29:01] significant likelihood that he was slain in the line of duty.
[29:06] Dale's family vehemently rejected the notion that Dale
[29:09] was a platinum thief. From the beginning, family
[29:12] members described Kirstetter as a devoted father of six who
[29:16] would never willingly abandoned his children and grandchildren
[29:19] without any word. In the months and years
[29:22] following the disappearance, the case remained A stubborn
[29:26] mystery. Law enforcement conducted
[29:29] numerous interviews and background checks.
[29:32] It came to light that Kerstetter had been under financial strain.
[29:36] He'd recently taken a pay cut of several $1000 and was reportedly
[29:40] $40,000 behind on various loan and bill payments.
[29:45] This information gave weight to a possible motive if he had
[29:48] engineered the theft. Investigators also noted that no
[29:52] trace of the missing Platinum or Dale himself surfaced in the
[29:55] aftermath. The platinum, a highly valuable
[29:59] commodity, could have been melted down or sold on a black
[30:02] market, making it hard to trace. Meanwhile, despite occasional
[30:07] tips, police never identified the masked culprit seen on the
[30:11] tape. The uncertainty of Kerstetter's
[30:13] fate created legal and personal dilemmas for his family.
[30:18] In 1993, years after he vanished, Dale's daughter Wendy
[30:22] petitioned the court to have her father declared legally dead.
[30:26] She was hoping to bring some closure and possibly claim life
[30:29] insurance and his pension benefits.
[30:33] Corning Glass Works fought this petition, contending that Dale
[30:37] could still be alive and may have been a participant in the
[30:40] crime. During the hearing, the
[30:42] company's lawyer argued there was no conclusive evidence that
[30:46] Cursed Etter had met with foul play.
[30:49] The Pennsylvania Superior Court agreed that the evidence of
[30:52] Dale's demise was too vague and denied the petition in December
[30:56] 1990. As a result, Kerstetter remained
[31:00] legally a missing person, and Corning withheld his pension and
[31:03] insurance payouts from his family.
[31:06] Over the years, several theories have emerged to explain what
[31:10] might have happened to Dale Kerstetter.
[31:13] The core question is whether Kerstetter was an unwilling
[31:16] victim of foul play or whether he was a willing participant in
[31:20] the theft who disappeared by choice.
[31:23] Within these broad possibilities are variations, including the
[31:28] idea that he could have been involved in the crime but
[31:31] ultimately double crossed and harmed by accomplices.
[31:35] Each theory has its own evidence and arguments, with strengths
[31:39] and weaknesses supported by the known facts.
[31:43] One prominent theory is that Dale Kerstetter was the victim
[31:46] of foul play, meaning he encountered intruders during a
[31:50] robbery and was forcibly taken and slain.
[31:55] In this scenario, criminals, possibly one or more people,
[32:00] broke into the plant to steal the platinum and neutralize the
[32:03] security guard as an obstacle. Supporting evidence for this
[32:07] theory centers on indications that Kerstetter didn't leave on
[32:11] his own terms. The scene left behind at the
[32:14] plant strongly suggests an abrupt interruption.
[32:18] Investigators found no signs of a struggle at the guard station,
[32:23] but it's possible that the confrontation was quick,
[32:26] explaining the lack of obvious violence on the premises.
[32:30] After all, the thieves would have had strong motivation to be
[32:34] as silent as possible. The fact that his weapon was
[32:37] missing from its holster implies he might have armed himself when
[32:41] facing a threat or that the intruder took his weapon from
[32:45] him on the security tape. Kerstetter's behavior could be
[32:50] interpreted as that of a man under duress.
[32:53] The other main line of speculation is that Kerstetter
[32:56] was involved in the crime. In this view, the incident was
[33:00] an inside job and the masked intruder could have been an
[33:04] accomplice or Co conspirator rather than an unknown
[33:07] assailant. Proponents of this theory
[33:10] emphasized Kerstetter's possible motive and the inside knowledge
[33:14] required to carry out the theft. Investigators uncovered that
[33:19] Dale was under significant financial pressure, including
[33:22] 10s of thousands of dollars in debt and a recent pay cut at
[33:26] work. Some have suggested that this
[33:29] pay cut after 27 years alongside his mounting debt could have
[33:34] forced a good, loyal worker to turn bad.
[33:38] While the inside job theory is plausible, there are significant
[33:42] challenges and counter arguments that cast doubt on Kerstetter's
[33:46] willing complicity. The most major point is Dale's
[33:50] abrupt and total disappearance. Even if he initially escaped,
[33:55] can we believe that for decades he never contacted any of his
[33:58] loved ones or resurfaced? However, supporters of the
[34:02] theory that he was in on it speculate that Dale was double
[34:06] crossed by his Co conspirator. In assessing the competing
[34:10] theories, it's important to note that none of them have been
[34:13] proven. Simply put, this is a case with
[34:16] an abundance of strange evidence but little definitive proof.
[34:20] Personally, I have significant difficulty believing that a
[34:23] family man who worked for a company for 27 years would throw
[34:27] it all away for a platinum heist.
[34:31] I wasn't able to find the value of his pension in my research.
[34:34] That said, I suspect that the value of his pension after 27
[34:38] years work was likely worth more than the platinum he allegedly
[34:42] stole. However, to put things in
[34:45] perspective, the company fought tooth and nail to deny his heirs
[34:49] any rights to the pension, and last I checked, lawyers aren't
[34:53] free. This is doubly true considering
[34:56] he would have at least had to split it 5050 with his
[34:59] accomplice, assuming there was only one.
[35:02] Further yet, I suspect Dale Kerstetter may not have had
[35:07] ready access to a fence. Given that he clearly wasn't
[35:10] living a life of crime, he would have had to have taken a massive
[35:14] hit on the exchange of the illicit platinum.
[35:18] In my view, the numbers just don't really add up, and I'd
[35:21] like to propose a theory I haven't run into so far.
[35:25] Dale was known to be the only person who worked security at
[35:28] the plant where the platinum was kept.
[35:31] It would have been extremely easy for a perpetrator to follow
[35:34] him back to his house. Snap a few pictures and then
[35:38] confront him at a different location.
[35:40] At this point he would have been given an offer he couldn't
[35:43] refuse and we know from his family that he was a loving
[35:48] family man with six kids plus grandkids.
[35:53] I think he could have been forced to do the whole thing.
[35:55] And that last look at the security camera was a knowing
[35:58] goodbye. I admit this is purely
[36:01] speculation, but in my view it fits better with the evidence
[36:05] than him willingly throwing away significant pension based wealth
[36:09] for this heist. Anyway, I've gone on way too
[36:12] long about Dale Kerstetter's case, but I find his case
[36:16] endlessly fascinating. Let me know what theory you
[36:20] prefer in the comments or propose your own.
[36:25] In November 19, 8026, year old Valerie McDonald, an aspiring
[36:30] actress and part time model, vanished from San Francisco
[36:34] under mysterious circumstances. She was last seen on November
[36:38] 9th, 1980, leaving her North Beach apartment with a young man
[36:42] who had promised her a bit part in a movie.
[36:46] On the day she disappeared, Valerie was in the process of
[36:49] moving out of her apartment and had been wary of the new
[36:52] building managers who were ex convicts.
[36:56] That afternoon, one of them, Michael John Hennessy, convinced
[37:01] her to accompany him by offering $200 for a small role in a
[37:06] supposed Dustin Hoffman film being shot that night.
[37:11] Friends grew concerned when Valerie didn't return and
[37:13] contacted police the next day. However, they were initially
[37:17] told they had to wait 72 hours to file a missing persons
[37:21] report. Valerie's friend spent days
[37:25] searching for her and eventually reached out to Valerie's
[37:28] parents. The parents flew to San
[37:31] Francisco, only to be brushed off by authorities who
[37:35] speculated that their daughter might have gone to Las Vegas.
[37:39] It wasn't until roughly a week after Valerie's disappearance
[37:42] that police truly began investigating, and by then,
[37:46] critical time had been lost. Once the San Francisco police
[37:50] delved into the case, suspicion quickly focused on the men
[37:54] running Valerie's building. These were Michael Hennessy and
[37:58] his two associates, John Abbott and Phillip Thompson.
[38:03] Investigators learned these three had taken over management
[38:06] of the apartment that fall and all were recently out of prison.
[38:11] On November 19th, 1980, about 10 days after Valerie went missing,
[38:16] authorities went to question the trio only to discover they had
[38:20] abruptly vanished. A break in the case came a week
[38:24] later in Canada. On November 26th, 1980, Abbott
[38:29] and Hennessy resurfaced in British Columbia where they were
[38:33] confronted by the Royal Canadian Mounted Police.
[38:37] During this encounter, Hennessy was eliminated by the police
[38:41] while Abbott was captured after attempting to shoot 2 Mounties.
[38:45] In Abbott's vehicle and belongings, officers found
[38:48] multiple weapons and personal items of Valerie's, including
[38:52] her ID cards and the leather jacket she had been wearing.
[38:56] On November 9th, these chilling discoveries confirmed that
[39:00] Valerie had been in the men's company and strongly suggested
[39:03] foul play. Authorities also learned that
[39:07] Phillip Thompson had been with Abbott and Hennessy in Canada,
[39:11] but had flown back to California shortly before the shootout.
[39:16] Despite the evidence linking the suspects to Valerie's
[39:18] disappearance, there was still no trace of Valerie herself.
[39:23] Without a body, a weapon, or any direct evidence of foul play,
[39:28] San Francisco police felt they lacked enough proof to charge
[39:31] Abbott or Thompson at the time. Abbott was instead prosecuted in
[39:36] Canada for the attempted shooting of the officers and
[39:39] sentenced to prison there. Thompson was later arrested in
[39:43] California in 1983 on unrelated kidnapping and robbery charges.
[39:50] Despite tantalizing circumstantial evidence,
[39:53] Valerie's case unfortunately went cold.
[39:56] Phillip Thompson and John Abbott denied any involvement in
[39:59] Valerie's disappearance. And with one suspect dead and
[40:03] the others behind bars on other matters, Leeds grew cold.
[40:08] A major break finally came over a decade later.
[40:11] In October 1991, hunters in a remote area of Ferry County,
[40:16] Washington, not far from the Canada US border, stumbled upon
[40:21] partial skeletal remains near the Kettle River.
[40:24] The remains were initially recorded as an unidentified Jane
[40:27] Doe. At the time, forensic examiners
[40:31] could only determine that they belong to a woman in her mid 20s
[40:34] to 30s. Finally, in late 2000A review of
[40:39] dental records in California's missing persons database yielded
[40:44] a hit. In November 2001, authorities
[40:48] announced that the remains were identified as Valerie McDonald.
[40:52] The authorities officially determined that she had been
[40:55] rendered deceased non consensually, confirming what
[40:58] her family and investigators had long suspected.
[41:02] The location of the grim find along a river in Washington
[41:06] state strongly tied her death to the suspects flight path toward
[41:11] Canada. This discovery, 2 decades after
[41:15] Valerie vanished, provided some closure to her family, even as
[41:20] the question of who was responsible remained unanswered.
[41:25] Despite the strong circumstantial case against the
[41:27] trio, no one has ever been charged or prosecuted in this
[41:31] case. By the time Valerie's remains
[41:34] were identified IN200011, suspect Hennessy was long dead
[41:40] and another, Thompson was incarcerated for life on a
[41:44] different slaying. The third, John Abbott, was
[41:48] living overseas and out of reach.
[41:50] After he was released from Canadian prison for his role in
[41:53] the shootout, he was deported to the United Kingdom, his home
[41:57] country. From there, he's lived in Japan,
[42:01] New Zealand and South Africa. He's never faced any charges
[42:05] whatsoever in relation to Valerie's case, and some
[42:08] theories online suggest that his dad is a politically powerful
[42:11] individual and pulled some strings.
[42:14] That said, I was only able to find this information in forum
[42:17] gossip, so I'd take that all with a grain of salt for the
[42:20] time being.

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