This episode includes mentions of sexual assault. Listen with care.
New England Serial Killer Series | On the South Coast of Massachusetts sits New Bedford, a city shaped by the sea. Called the “whaling capital of the world,” New Bedford rose to prominence in the 19th century as a global hub for whale oil, fueling lamps and industry across continents. It inspired the Melville classic, Moby Dick. Its deep harbor and access to railways helped it eclipse Nantucket by the 1840s, transforming the city into one of the wealthiest in America. But beneath the grandeur of its maritime legacy lay a working-class community shaped by immigration, labor, and resilience—a backdrop that would later frame some of the region’s darkest chapters.
In 1983, New Bedford was thrust into the national spotlight when 21-year-old Cheryl Araujo was gang-raped inside Big Dan’s Tavern. The attack, witnessed by onlookers who failed to intervene, ignited outrage and debate over victim-blaming, media ethics, and systemic misogyny. The televised trial and community backlash—especially within the city’s Portuguese-American population—exposed deep cultural rifts and left her ostracized until her tragic death in a car accident three years later. Her story inspired the film The Accused and remains a painful reminder of how justice and empathy can falter.
Just four years later, New Bedford faced another reckoning. Between 1988 and 1989, eleven women—many struggling with addiction and poverty—vanished or were found murdered along highways surrounding the city. The New Bedford Highway Murders, still unsolved, revealed a chilling pattern of vulnerability and neglect. Many suspects, no arrests. A serial killer goes free.
Journalist Maureen Boyle, who covered the case from its earliest days, chronicled the victims’ lives and the community’s grief in her book Shallow Graves: The Hunt For The New Bedford Highway Serial Killer. The killer has not been caught, but the women and their stories have not been forgotten.
Trial By Media - Big Dan's Rape Case - Netflix link
Shallow Graves: The Hunt For the New Bedford Highway Serial Killer, By Maureen Boyle
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