Box in the Basement

In this emotional episode, Arlene shares memories of Leon as we near the anniversary of his murder. 

On May 10th, 1996 at midnight, someone kidnapped Leon Laurales from his workplace, Kroger's grocery. Fifteen minutes later, they shot him outside of town, leaving behind Leon's burning Thunderbird, and a wake of shattered lives and hearts. Leon's box in the basement started our quest for justice for not only ...

Box in the Basement begins An Era of Terror in Brownwood, a series highlighting all the murders in Brownwood from 1980-1996, a period of time in which most of Brownwood's murders happened. We start with Judge Bunnell, a politician whose car goes off the road in 1980. But as we dig deeper, we see there's more to meet the eye when it comes to Judge Bunnell. Did his recent run for District Attorney ruffle the wrong feathers?...

When a child goes missing is one of the most terrifying nightmares for any community. Join us as we share the stories of two children in 80's Texas. Desiree Carroll, a toddler, was last seen walking down the wooded road outside a small town by her mother in her rearview mirror.  Did Desiree disappear into the woods and a victim of mother nature, or is foul play involved? Six-year-old Bradley Gilbert played outside his aunt&apo...

Our own host Leah and her Father share their memories of an explosion that rocked a quiet neighborhood in Akron, OH in 1978. A teacher out for a dating game at a local bar ends up discovered in her charred car in a dead-end alley near Leah's childhood home. Did she meet her killer at the dating game? Join Arlene and Leah as they travel through Akron in 1978 and walk through the night of the murder. Leah vividly recounts the ne...

Today's episode explores two missing persons cases in Texas. 

In 1973, 17-year-old Norman Prater vanished after visiting his mother at a Dallas coffee shop, a mystery that remains unsolved 51 years later. Join Arlene and Leah as they explore Norman's disappearance against the backdrop of a tumultuous year marked by historical events, from the Vietnam War's ceasefire to the Supreme Court's Roe v. Wa...

A young lab technician with her whole life ahead of her boarded a train from Texarkana, Texas to Denton. She planned on furthering her education and taking lab classes to advance her career in a post-war boom. After leaving in a cab from the train station, she would vanish.  This is one of our oldest cold cases yet, a mystery from 1948. A sketchy story from a taxi driver, a concerned boyfriend, witnesses for years claiming to see h...

In the quiet town of Seguin, Texas, a grim discovery was made on December 14th, 2002. Firefighters responding to an apartment blaze uncovered a scenario more sinister than they could have anticipated: the charred remains of 21-year-old Japanese exchange student, Mikiko Kashura. Investigators quickly discovered someone had strangled her to death before her murder. Who killed Mikiko? Join Arlene and Leah as they walk through the clue...

The day before Thanksgiving in 1982, Elizabeth Bettis left her job at Sugars only to be found murdered the next day. Who was the man she was seen fighting with the night before? The list of suspects grows as investigators consider every possibility, from a known patron of Sugars to a possible serial rapist, with suspicion even on law enforcement as the lack of evidence in her vehicle stumps detectives. 

Who was Elizabeth? ...

In the shadowed silence of a Texas highway, a chilling discovery sends ripples through the heart of McLennan County. It's late at night, September 30th, 1985, when Texas State Trooper Richard Coddle, guided by intuition and duty, investigates an abandoned car off US Highway 84. What he finds inside the trunk ignites a mystery that has endured for decades—the remains of 32-year-old Dorothy Estep, a dedicated social worker from ...

On a chilling November night in Midwest City, Oklahoma, a devastating scene unfolded as Matthew Probst discovered his wife, Nancy Probst, lifeless in their home, marking the beginning of one of Oklahoma's most perplexing and unsettling unsolved homicides. Nancy, a 32-year-old mother, was found dead, leading to Matthew quickly becoming a person of interest. Despite his time behind bars, the case remains unsolved as of February ...

In the shadowed underbrush of Panola County's dense forests, a mystery as perplexing as the twisted pines unfolded with the disappearance of Lauren Elizabeth Thompson. This case, which has haunted the East Texas Timberlands since January 2019, serves as the focal point for an episode of "Box in the Basement," a podcast dedicated to shining a light on Texas' coldest cases and the families left grappling in the da...

In this heart-wrenching episode of Box in the Basement Podcast, hosts Arlene and Leah delve into a chilling cold case from Lockhart, Texas. On December 27, 1993, two days post-Christmas, the tranquility of a small town is shattered when Jack White discovers his daughter, 38-year-old Latricia White, shot dead in her home. The mystery deepens with the disappearance of Latricia's partner, Lee "Dub" Wackerhagen, and his ...

In today's gripping episode of Box in the Basement Podcast, we delve into two heart-wrenching unsolved mysteries from Texas, each marked by seemingly random and violent acts. We first explore the tragic case of seven-year-old Jennifer Delgado, whose life was abruptly ended in San Antonio during a routine laundromat visit in 1988, leaving her mother wounded and a community in mourning. Our journey then takes us to Abilene in 19...

A pregnant woman is strangled to death by her own telephone cord on a warm summer night in 1966. 

In this episode of "Box in the Basement," hosts Arlene and Leah delve into the haunting cold case of Ruby Lewis Stevens, whose life was tragically cut short in El Paso, Texas, and remains El Paso's oldest cold case. 

Ruby, a young, pregnant wife living in the heart of El Paso, was found strangled in her...

Welcome to 'Box in the Basement', where we delve into the enigmatic and often overlooked cold cases of America. Today, we take you back to a serene evening in 2007 in an upscale neighborhood of the DFW metroplex, where a heinous act shattered the tranquility. Marianne Wilkinson, a devoted mother and grandmother enjoying a quiet night at home, was abruptly gunned down at her doorstep. This tragic event left the commun...

Welcome to another chilling episode of Box in the Basement, the podcast dedicated to shedding light on cold cases in Texas and beyond. Join Arlene & Leah, as they delve into the mysterious disappearance of Kathleen Ranft from Seguin, Texas in 1985.

In this episode, the navigate the unsettling vanishing of 29-year-old Kathleen, a tire shop employee and mother. Despite the immediate suspicion of foul play by the Guadalup...

Join us in this gripping episode of "Box in the Basement," where we delve into the shadows of unsolved murders and the relentless quest for justice. Hosted by Arlene, a steadfast advocate in the true crime community, and joined by her life partner and co-host, Leah, this episode unveils startling revelations and unexplored angles in the heart-wrenching case of Leon Loreles.

Warning: This episode contains detailed...

Welcome to the first episode of "Box in the Basement," a true crime podcast dedicated to shedding light on cold cases and unsolved murders. In this heartfelt episode, host Arlene delves into the tragic story of her uncle, Leon Laureles, whose life was cruelly taken in an execution-style murder outside Brownwood, Texas, in 1996. This poignant tale is not just about an unsolved crime; it's a journey through grief, inju...