We Would Be Dead

The Beach (Spring Break Stories Part 1: Brittanee Drexel)

Nowhere will you find  more opportunities for disaster, than on spring break. A place with beautiful warm weather, water, and copious amounts of alcohol that attracts thousands of young adults every year.  Spring break destinations have disproportionately high rates of human trafficking , DUI deaths, and incidents of alcohol poisoning, rape and illicit drug use. They can be very dangerous especially if your guard is always down. In the United States, these trips are projected as a right of passage when your passage is not yet complete. 
Holly and Leslie both have stories to offer on this topic, so we thought a story swap would be the best way to approach it. This week Holly tells us about the disappearance and tragic murder of 17 year old Brittanee Drexel. In April of 2009 Brittanee snuck off with some acquaintances to Myrtle Beach SC for spring Break . Her parents had forbidden her from going on this unchaperoned trip, but just like many teens in her situation do, Brittanee found a way to get there in secret. Sadly she wouldn't make it home alive. Brittanee's disappearance baffled law enforcement for over 13 years before her case was solved, and in the process it and launched a protracted witch hunt for one innocent man
 
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Today’s The Devil You Tagged to Strange Hell (Case Updates #1)

True crime has a way of moving forward either very slowly or super fast, there is no in between. Not all the cases we cover have resolutions, and you're not going to believe this but, investigations don’t stop when we stop, thank goodness right? A lot of the cases we have covered in the past have received rather significant updates in the past three years so we decided to periodically bring you these update episodes to do our due diligence. This week we’ll give you the update rundown on the Delphi Murders, Khalil Wheeler Weaver, The Florida Clown Murder and some extras on Rebekah Gould. 
As long as there are questions, we'll keeping looking for answers, we know you will too. Stay curious, fiends!
 
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Mermaid (Katarczyna Zowada)

January 6th 1999 A pusher tug boat called The Elk was traveling along the Vistula River in Poland, when it came to a sudden halt just a few short feet from it's mooring.  The propeller had gotten stuck and so the captain and crew went to pull out what they assumed would be tree branches or River weeds. When the opened the hatch to access the propeller they were met with a sickening smell, it wasn't tree branches, and it wasn't river vegetation, it was a large pale piece of human skin. 
Using brand new DNA technology Polish authorities would learn that the skin belonged to 23 year old college student Katarzyna Zowada, but what they didn't know was that her story would go on to be one of the most sensational and prolonged investigations in Polish history. In the United States Katarczyna's story is know as "the Polish skin case" but in Poland it is simply called “Skora” which means… leather. This case is graphic, so proceed with caution. 
https://awnaves.medium.com/the-long-road-to-justice-for-katarzyna-zowada-fe28a00d463
https://krakow.naszemiasto.pl/sprawa-skory-ojciec-oskarzonego-jestem-przekonany-ze-syn/ar/c1-8617701
https://wiadomosci.gazeta.pl/wiadomosci/7,114883,22509867,sprawa-kusnierza-robert-j-w-jednoosobowej-celi-czy-ktos.html
 
 
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The Devil You Don’t (Rebekah Gould, Part 2)

Sorry to leaving you hanging! We're back with the second part of Rebekah Gould's story. Here's a little refresher:
On September 20th, 2004 22 year old Arkansas resident Rebekah Gould drove her friend to work at Sonic, grabbed breakfast at a local convenience store, and then disappeared never to be seen alive again. A week later her body was discovered at the bottom of an embankment on a scenic stretch of a local highway. The investigation that followed spanned years. The journey to justice for Rebekah is a revolutionary example of what dedicated crowd sourcing and effective utilization of the true crime community can accomplish when we work together. 
Click to learn more
Hell and Gone Podcast (Season 1)
Diamond State Murder Board Podcast
Break the Case podcast
Unsolved Murder of Rebekah Gould Facebook board
Examination by Jennifer Bucholtz
 
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The Devil You Know (Rebekah Gould, Part 1)

This week We Would Be Dead is coming back to the present(ish) with a case that has captured the true crime corners of the internet. On September 20th, 2004 22 year old Arkansas resident Rebekah Gould drove her friend to work at Sonic, grabbed breakfast at a local convenience store, and then disappeared never to be seen alive again. A week later her body was discovered at the bottom of an embankment on a scenic stretch of a local highway. The investigation that followed spanned years. The journey to justice for Rebekah is a revolutionary example of what dedicated crowd sourcing and effective utilization of the true crime community can accomplish when we work together. 
Click to learn more
Hell and Gone Podcast (Season 1)
Diamond State Murder Board Podcast
Break the Case podcast
Unsolved Murder of Rebekah Gould Facebook board
Examination by Jennifer Bucholtz
 
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A Very Bunny Episode (30 Min Horror Movie: Night of the Lepus)

This week we are taking off to enjoy spring break and egg hunts with the kids. In lieu of a new case we are re-releasing Holly's terrifying bunny monologue from Episode 102, and our Patron Only 30 Min Horror Movie: Night of the Lepus from April 26th, 2021. Whether you observe Easter as a religious holiday or not, everyone loves bunnies, and this episode is packed with them! 
We will be back next week with a very heavy 2 parter! 
Click to learn more
Rent Night of the Lepus on Amazon Prime
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Prima Belladonna (Part 2: Gironima Spana)

Poison artisans Giulia Tofana and Gironima Spana took all the power held hostage in their time by men and placed it in the hands of women. Join us as we go deep into the rise and fall of the world’s most infamous poison and sought after skin care line: Aqua Tofana.
Last week we told Guilia's story and this week we tell Gironima's.  Gironima Spana was a savvy business woman who took the recipe for Aqua Tofana and created an empire run by women for women. Empires however, have a tendency to fall. In its own time the Spana Prosecution as it came to be known was a sensational, news worthy event, but after the pope locked away all the documents from the trial, the true story of the women poisoners of Rome disappeared and all that remained was a half baked legend. Thankfully the documents resurfaced over 200 years later and they revealed a nuanced, intelligent and incredibly dramatic tale that we cannot wait to share with you.
Click to learn more
*The Black Widows of the Eternal City: The True Story of Rome's Most Infamous Prisoners
A famous and incredibly thorough article by Mike Dash
*Affiliated link
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Prima Belladona (Part 1: Giulia Tofana)

We wanted to end women’s history month with a bang, so we decided to deliver this much requested case in a way you’ve probably never heard it before, the way it actually happened. What was once thought to be the story of one woman, is actually that of a mother daughter dynasty. Poison artisans Giulia Tofana and Gironima Spana took all the power held hostage in their time by men and placed it in the hands of women. Join us as we go deep into the rise and fall of the world’s most infamous poison and sought after skin care line: Aqua Tofana.
 
Click to learn more
*The Black Widows of the Eternal City: The True Story of Rome's Most Infamous Prisoners
A famous and incredibly thorough article by Mike Dash
Leiden Medievalists Blog - Female Make Up and Beauty Standards of the 1600s
Evie Magazine - The Weird and Dangerous Beauty Standards of Renaissance Italy
*Affiliated link
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War Widows and Wild Stallions (The Legend of Red Mary)

Greetings fiends, it’s time for our 2023 St. Patrick’s Day offering!
Every we find some wild Irish stories and folklore for you, so we can celebrate one of the most magical and terrifying places in folkloric history. 
This year we have the legend of Red Mary. Hers is a story of love, war, revenge, violence, angry ghosts and a wild stallion. Get your whiskey ready and sit yourself by a cozy fire because this story is an adventure. Sláinte fiends, we hope you enjoy!
 
Click to learn more
Red Mary Irish Folklore
Wiki - Red Mary
The Last Leprechauns of Ireland - Kevin "McCoillte" Woods
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Black Friday Widow (Omaima Nelson)

On December 2nd 1991,Costa Mesa CA police arrested 23 year old Egyptian former model Omaima Nelson for the murder of her 56 year old husband Bill. Omaima had confessed to a former boyfriend on December 1st when she showed up at his home with a suitcase of unidentifiable body parts. 
Investigators were immediately sent to the Nelson residence, and while they didn’t expect the scene to be neat and tidy or even easy to stomach, they couldn't possibly have prepared themselves for what they found. It didn't look like a crime of passion had occurred, It looked like a cannibal’s test kitchen.
 
Click to learn more
Egypt UNFPA - FGM
World Health Organization - FGM
https://medium.com/california-dreaming/omaima-nelson-the-thanksgiving-butcher-2e21d300b328
https://www.ocregister.com/2011/10/06/woman-who-dismembered-husband-denied-parole/
https://www.latimes.com/archives/la-xpm-1991-12-03-me-526-story.html
https://www.latimes.com/archives/la-xpm-1993-01-13-mn-1395-story.html
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