# "True Crime Updates: From Idaho Murders to Gilgo Beach Developments"
Join Detective Emily Carter in this gripping episode exploring recent breakthroughs in high-profile serial crime cases. Discover the latest on Bryan Kohberger's conviction in the Idaho murders, the identification of victims in the St. Louis serial killings, and new charges in the Gilgo Beach investigation against Rex Heuermann. Detective Em breaks down how modern forensic techniques, collaborative investigations, and persistent detective work are bringing justice to cold cases decades in the making. Learn how DNA evidence, student partnerships, and digital forensics are changing the landscape of criminal investigations while bringing closure to families. Perfect for true crime enthusiasts seeking expert analysis on recent headline cases and the evolving nature of serial crime investigation.
Join Detective Emily Carter in this gripping episode exploring recent breakthroughs in high-profile serial crime cases. Discover the latest on Bryan Kohberger's conviction in the Idaho murders, the identification of victims in the St. Louis serial killings, and new charges in the Gilgo Beach investigation against Rex Heuermann. Detective Em breaks down how modern forensic techniques, collaborative investigations, and persistent detective work are bringing justice to cold cases decades in the making. Learn how DNA evidence, student partnerships, and digital forensics are changing the landscape of criminal investigations while bringing closure to families. Perfect for true crime enthusiasts seeking expert analysis on recent headline cases and the evolving nature of serial crime investigation.
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Episode Transcript
Available transcripts are automatically generated. Complete accuracy is not guaranteed.
Speaker 1 (00:00):
Listeners, settle in because today I have a fresh batch
of true crime stories straight from the headlines. And let
me tell you, the world of serial crimes and criminal
justice never sits still. From the courtroom drama of high
profile convictions to the quiet perseverance of families still searching
for answers, these new developments should tickle even the most
(00:23):
seasoned crime junkie brain out there. For those of you
tuning in for the first time, I am Detective Emily Carter,
but everyone calls me m I am a rookie cop
with a badge that is still shiny and a filing
cabinet in my head, stuffed with every serial profile and
investigation technique my instructors could grow at me. Think of
(00:45):
me as your cop on the beat with a twist,
the kind of host who keeps it professional when the
tape comes out, but is not above making a rookie
joke or two about tracking footprints at three in the morning.
All right, squad, let's get rolling with the first MAI
major case update. Everyone is talking about. The Idaho murders
have been a specter hanging over Moscow, Idaho since late
(01:07):
twenty twenty two. Four students at the University of Idaho
were found brutally murdered in their residence back in November
of that year. The community was on edge for weeks.
The case cracked open with the arrest of Brian Coburger
in Pennsylvania. Prosecutors revealed just this July that there was
never any known connection between Coburger and the victims, which
(01:28):
is wild. Think about that, four students out celebrating a
normal Saturday night. Then there is a masked man with
months of planning but no apparent connection to any of them,
who slips into their unlocked rental home at four AM.
I keep playing this scene out the same as the
prosecutors did. Coburger, wearing black clothing and a balaclava, slides
(01:50):
open the kitchen door and heads right to the third floor.
He kills two roommates first, and then comes face to
face with a third victim just as she is resting
a food delivery. This is the stuff that makes you
second desks every shadow if you are up late ordering snacks.
He then kills her and her boyfriend, who had been
asleep upstairs. The most damning bit of evidence was a
(02:14):
tan leather knife sheet left behind with his DNA the
murder weapon itself, though get this never found. The trial
just wrapped and Coburger pleaded guilty. He gave up all
rights to appeal and received four consecutive life sentences. No parole,
no mess. He will never walk free again. I wish
(02:36):
I could say that brings closure, but as any rookie
learns fast and homicide, there is a difference between justice
and closure. The families have answers, but are still left
with impossible questions. Why these kids, Why this house? Why
that night? According to prosecutors, the planning had gone on
(02:56):
for months, but the why remains a void. Whenever I
read this stuff, I think back to the Academy's big
lessons about victimology, target selection, and the patterns that can
sometimes crack a case wide open. This one defies easy
pattern recognition, and as for Coburger, he becomes another file
in the Annals of lethal randomness. If you are listening
(03:20):
from the Midwest, you probably caught the other big news,
huge progress with the Saint Louis serial killer case. This
one stretches back to the early two thousands and involves
Maury Travis, a man who murdered at least seventeen women
For years, police and families worked with Jane Doe cases,
unidentified remains, lives cut short, and no closure. But in July,
(03:43):
law enforcement made a breakthrough that does not just bring names,
but brings reality into focus. Thanks to a partnership with
Southern Illinois University Edwardsville, YEP College students worked alongside the police.
The team identified three victims, Ally Johnson, Crystal Leigh, and
Carol Jean Hempill. Each of these women was found between
(04:05):
interstate highways or in creek beds, their fingerprints gone and
dental records missing due to decomposition. Identifying them took major hustle,
combining forensic work, genetic sleuthing, and old fashioned day in,
day out legwork. And yes, undergraduate students contributed hundreds of
hours of detective work, showing that fresh eyes on cold
(04:29):
cases can make all the difference. The head of Illinois
State Police even said he thinks this model could help
all over the state. That listeners is the kind of
partnership I dream about as a new detective. Everyone wants
to be Sherlock Holmes, but sometimes you need an entire
homes family reunion pulling together to close a case. For
(04:50):
the families, these identifications change everything. Jeanette Smith, whose son
Truman Smith was killed in an unrelated unsolved twenty eleven shooting,
but finally saw charges brought this spring, summed it up well.
She said, it is not closure, but it is justice.
From the perspective of a cop just out of the academy,
(05:10):
I completely get that every cold case solved is a
chance to show someone mattered that their story cannot just
disappear into a folder marked unsolved. While we are on
the topic of serial cases, you cannot ignore what is
happening in New York with the so called Gilgo Beach
serial killings. A quick primer in case this is a
new one for you. Starting in twenty ten, police on
(05:33):
Long Island found remains of sex workers and others along
the brambles and beaches. For years, these horrifying fines field questions.
Was there a single killer or multiple? Was it someone
local or did the perpetrator know the area just well
enough to avoid capture. In July of twenty twenty three,
police finally arrested Rex Huerman, a Long Island architect with
(05:55):
a perfectly normal seeming life. He worked in Manhattan, raised
two kids, and kept his secrets buried deeper than any
one could have guessed. Why are we talking about this
now because the case cleared another critical turning point just
last month. In June of twenty twenty four, Hureman was
arraigned and charged with two more murders. One of these victims,
(06:18):
Sandra Costilla, had never previously been linked to the Gilgo
Beach case. Let that sink in. This new development means
the timeline stretches all the way back to the early
nineteen nineties, broadening the scope by years. In December twenty
twenty four, more charges dropped for three years
Listeners, settle in because today I have a fresh batch
of true crime stories straight from the headlines. And let
me tell you, the world of serial crimes and criminal
justice never sits still. From the courtroom drama of high
profile convictions to the quiet perseverance of families still searching
for answers, these new developments should tickle even the most
(00:23):
seasoned crime junkie brain out there. For those of you
tuning in for the first time, I am Detective Emily Carter,
but everyone calls me m I am a rookie cop
with a badge that is still shiny and a filing
cabinet in my head, stuffed with every serial profile and
investigation technique my instructors could grow at me. Think of
(00:45):
me as your cop on the beat with a twist,
the kind of host who keeps it professional when the
tape comes out, but is not above making a rookie
joke or two about tracking footprints at three in the morning.
All right, squad, let's get rolling with the first MAI
major case update. Everyone is talking about. The Idaho murders
have been a specter hanging over Moscow, Idaho since late
(01:07):
twenty twenty two. Four students at the University of Idaho
were found brutally murdered in their residence back in November
of that year. The community was on edge for weeks.
The case cracked open with the arrest of Brian Coburger
in Pennsylvania. Prosecutors revealed just this July that there was
never any known connection between Coburger and the victims, which
(01:28):
is wild. Think about that, four students out celebrating a
normal Saturday night. Then there is a masked man with
months of planning but no apparent connection to any of them,
who slips into their unlocked rental home at four AM.
I keep playing this scene out the same as the
prosecutors did. Coburger, wearing black clothing and a balaclava, slides
(01:50):
open the kitchen door and heads right to the third floor.
He kills two roommates first, and then comes face to
face with a third victim just as she is resting
a food delivery. This is the stuff that makes you
second desks every shadow if you are up late ordering snacks.
He then kills her and her boyfriend, who had been
asleep upstairs. The most damning bit of evidence was a
(02:14):
tan leather knife sheet left behind with his DNA the
murder weapon itself, though get this never found. The trial
just wrapped and Coburger pleaded guilty. He gave up all
rights to appeal and received four consecutive life sentences. No parole,
no mess. He will never walk free again. I wish
(02:36):
I could say that brings closure, but as any rookie
learns fast and homicide, there is a difference between justice
and closure. The families have answers, but are still left
with impossible questions. Why these kids, Why this house? Why
that night? According to prosecutors, the planning had gone on
(02:56):
for months, but the why remains a void. Whenever I
read this stuff, I think back to the Academy's big
lessons about victimology, target selection, and the patterns that can
sometimes crack a case wide open. This one defies easy
pattern recognition, and as for Coburger, he becomes another file
in the Annals of lethal randomness. If you are listening
(03:20):
from the Midwest, you probably caught the other big news,
huge progress with the Saint Louis serial killer case. This
one stretches back to the early two thousands and involves
Maury Travis, a man who murdered at least seventeen women
For years, police and families worked with Jane Doe cases,
unidentified remains, lives cut short, and no closure. But in July,
(03:43):
law enforcement made a breakthrough that does not just bring names,
but brings reality into focus. Thanks to a partnership with
Southern Illinois University Edwardsville, YEP College students worked alongside the police.
The team identified three victims, Ally Johnson, Crystal Leigh, and
Carol Jean Hempill. Each of these women was found between
(04:05):
interstate highways or in creek beds, their fingerprints gone and
dental records missing due to decomposition. Identifying them took major hustle,
combining forensic work, genetic sleuthing, and old fashioned day in,
day out legwork. And yes, undergraduate students contributed hundreds of
hours of detective work, showing that fresh eyes on cold
(04:29):
cases can make all the difference. The head of Illinois
State Police even said he thinks this model could help
all over the state. That listeners is the kind of
partnership I dream about as a new detective. Everyone wants
to be Sherlock Holmes, but sometimes you need an entire
homes family reunion pulling together to close a case. For
(04:50):
the families, these identifications change everything. Jeanette Smith, whose son
Truman Smith was killed in an unrelated unsolved twenty eleven shooting,
but finally saw charges brought this spring, summed it up well.
She said, it is not closure, but it is justice.
From the perspective of a cop just out of the academy,
(05:10):
I completely get that every cold case solved is a
chance to show someone mattered that their story cannot just
disappear into a folder marked unsolved. While we are on
the topic of serial cases, you cannot ignore what is
happening in New York with the so called Gilgo Beach
serial killings. A quick primer in case this is a
new one for you. Starting in twenty ten, police on
(05:33):
Long Island found remains of sex workers and others along
the brambles and beaches. For years, these horrifying fines field questions.
Was there a single killer or multiple? Was it someone
local or did the perpetrator know the area just well
enough to avoid capture. In July of twenty twenty three,
police finally arrested Rex Huerman, a Long Island architect with
(05:55):
a perfectly normal seeming life. He worked in Manhattan, raised
two kids, and kept his secrets buried deeper than any
one could have guessed. Why are we talking about this
now because the case cleared another critical turning point just
last month. In June of twenty twenty four, Hureman was
arraigned and charged with two more murders. One of these victims,
(06:18):
Sandra Costilla, had never previously been linked to the Gilgo
Beach case. Let that sink in. This new development means
the timeline stretches all the way back to the early
nineteen nineties, broadening the scope by years. In December twenty
twenty four, more charges dropped for three years
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