Infamous America

When the robbery becomes frustrating, Larry Phillips begins the North Hollywood Shootout. Officers in multiple locations withstand gunfire from illegally modified fully automatic assault rifles and they struggle to fight back with the handguns and shotguns. Civilians and officers suffer injuries; the LAPD rushes to respond to the threat; and the robbers begin their getaway. Thanks to our sponsor,...

After two armored car robberies, Larry Phillips and Emil Matasareanu graduate to bank robberies. They have an arsenal of high-powered weapons at their disposal, and they show no fear of confrontation with police. They execute two successful robberies . . . and then enter a Bank of America location in North Hollywood on February, 28, 1997, and everything goes wrong. Thanks to our sponsor, Quince! U...

In the 1990s, Los Angeles was the reigning bank robbery capital of the world. As two young men from Pasadena became increasingly disgruntled, they gravitated toward armed robbery. One wanted wealth and status. The other wanted a sense of belonging. They found a fast road to national infamy. Thanks to our sponsor, Quince! Use this link for Free Shipping and 365-day returns: Quince.com/infamousameri...

HH Holmes goes to trial for the murder of Benjamin Pitezel. The legal battle is headline news, and he loves the attention. During that time, investigators make disturbing discoveries in the basement of the Murder Castle in Chicago, and the legend of Holmes as the arch fiend of the World’s Fair and America’s most prolific killer is born. Thanks to our sponsor, Quince! Use this link for Free Shippin...

After six months on the run, law enforcement arrests HH Holmes for insurance fraud. Holmes believes he has secured a sweetheart deal which will allow him to face minimal punishment, but then he learns he is being investigated for murder. While Holmes sits in jail, Inspector Frank Geyer travels the country retracing Holmes' steps and searching for the missing Pitezel children. Thanks to our sponsor...

In Philadelphia, Holmes carries out the life insurance scam, but not the way his partner, Benjamin Pitezel, expects. When Holmes runs into unexpected obstacles while trying to collect the life insurance money, he orchestrates a dizzyingly elaborate crosscountry trip involving the Pitezel family. Along the way, Holmes eliminates members of the family one by one. Thanks to our sponsor, Quince! Use t...

After Holmes flees Chicago during the World’s Fair, he briefly settles in Fort Worth, Texas before an arrest warrant causes him to flee again. In St. Louis, he and his sometime partner, Benjamin Pitezel, prepare to execute a plan to commit life insurance fraud by faking Pitezel’s death. But when the law comes knocking again, they run to Philadelphia to enact their scheme. Thanks to our sponsor, Qu...

Holmes supervises the construction of one of the strangest apartment buildings in Chicago. He calls it his castle. Later, reporters will call it the Murder Castle. As Holmes and the city of Chicago ramp up to the World’s Fair, a young woman and her daughter disappear from the castle. During the exposition, two more young women – a pair of sisters – disappear. Before the end of the event, Holmes go...

At a young age, Herman Mudgett knows he wants to be a doctor. But as he progresses through medical school, he strays from any kind of desire to practice medicine. He realizes he can use his medical knowledge to con people out of their money. He experiments with fraud in a small town in New York, and then makes the move to the big city of Chicago. There, he adopts his notorious alias, H.H. Holmes,...

From Jonestown to Heaven’s Gate, to the Octopus Murders and the Waco Siege, the world is full of deception, manipulation, and destruction. Listen to Conspiracy Theories, Cults, and Crimes every Wednesday as we explore the real people at the center of the world’s most shocking secrets and nefarious organizations. Conspiracy Theories, Cults, and Crimes is a Crime House original powered by PAVE Studi...

Greed and addiction fueled a chaotic and coldblooded crime on September 28, 1953. The largest ransom request in American History at the time was demanded of Kansas City’s wealthiest automobile dealer, Robert Greenlease, in exchange for his 6 year old son and namesake, Bobby Greenlease. Money wasn’t the problem and the Greenleases’ wasted no time to comply, it should have been cut and dry, but it i...

72 year old Charles Ross was a year into his peaceful retirement after a lucrative career in real estate, followed by President of the prominent George S. Carrington greeting card company, when he found himself at the wrong place at the wrong time just outside of Chicago. John Seadlund, who’d been influenced by John Dillinger’s gang member Tommy Carroll and who had evaded the FBI for years, stole...

By the early 1900s Frederick Weyerhaeuser was known as the “Lumber King” and had amassed a fortune in the Pacific Northwest. The wealth generated from his timber empire was on par with the Rockefellers, the Carnegies, and the Vanderbilts and as it kept getting passed down to the next generation, it kept growing. But it also made his family a target, specifically his great grandson George Weyerhaeu...

On November 9, 1933 – 22 year old Brooke Hart, the heir to a department store fortune and San Jose’s most eligible bachelor, went missing in broad daylight. The crime obsessed kidnappers believe they have a brilliant plan to extort money from the Hart family. But it was more brutal than brilliant, and when it unraveled, no one was prepared for the reaction of the people in San Jose, California. Jo...

The Lindbergh family discovers the fate of little baby Charlie, but it takes 2 more years for investigators to follow the ransom money to the Bronx, New York to Bruno Richard Hautmann, who they labeled the kidnapper. In January of 1935 the suspect faced a sensational trial packed with journalists and celebrities, while the general public sat by the radio hanging every word of the case being called...

On May 21, 1927, 25 year old Charles LIndbergh became the biggest star on the planet. He advanced the travel industry to a level many doubted was possible after completing the first ever solo flight from New York to Paris in 55 hours. That should have been the most dramatic moment of any person’s life, but it wasn’t for Charles. Five years later his 20 month old son was kidnapped from his home in...

Here’s a preview of a new podcast, The Chinatown Sting from our friends at Pushkin Industries. In the late 1980s, a group of women connected through the mahjong parlors in Manhattan’s Chinatown were caught in a massive undercover drug bust. But this bust was just the beginning of an even bigger case. Host Lidia Jean Kott and co-reporter Shuyu Wang interview sources who’ve never spoken on record be...

As the FBI’s investigation of local Boston art thieves fades, its investigation of crews linked to the Italian mob ramps up. Agents begin to focus on the men who are associated with Carmello Merlino’s gang. But the 1990s proves to be a deadly time to be involved with the Merlino crew, and suspects start dying. Eventually, the FBI declares partial victory and announces that it knows the identities...

In the first few years after the heist at the Isabella Stewart Gardner Museum, the FBI’s investigation follows two parallel tracks. The first to produce possible leads is the Irish Connection as the FBI examines notorious art thief Myles Connor, infamous gangster James “Whitey” Bulger, and local conman Brian McDevitt. A few tantalizing leads develop, but they end in frustration. Join Black Barrel+...

In the early morning hours of March 18, 1990, two thieves, disguised as Boston police officers, gain access to the Isabella Stewart Gardner Museum. They tie up the two security guards and spend 81 minutes stealing 13 items. When the heist is discovered hours later, the FBI begins an investigation which features far more baffling mysteries than clues. Join Black Barrel+ for ad-free episodes and bin...

In the 1970s and 1980s, Boston and the greater New England region seem plagued by art thieves. Myles Connor becomes the most notorious thief of the era, and he and others notice that the eclectic Isabella Stewart Gardner Museum is a vulnerable target. The FBI likely thwarts an attempted robbery, and, as the 1980s progress, events start to align for the biggest art heist in history. Join Black Barr...

Anthony Pino and his crew commit one of the fastest and smoothest robberies in history, and they escape with a record-breaking haul. The FBI launches its investigation and hits a series of dead ends until, one by one, the robbers run into trouble and begin to turn on each other. The historic heist unravels, but it retains one enduring mystery: where is the stolen money? Join Black Barrel+ for ad-f...

In the mid-1940s, career criminal Anthony Pino sets his sights on robbing Brinks security company. He recruits a team of thieves and they rob armored cars and Brinks clients, but Pino’s ultimate goal is to carry out the big score by robbing the vault at Brinks headquarters. He and his crew spend months planning the job, and, in January of 1950, they commit an historic heist. Join Black Barrel+ for...

By fall 1992, serial arsonist Paul Keller has set more than two dozen fires throughout the Seattle area, and he shows no signs of slowing down. Law enforcement creates a task force made up of multiple counties in order to find Keller. But desperation kicks in, and they resort to unusual tactics. When the task force gets an idea of what the Keller looks like, Keller is betrayed by the most unlikely...

From an early age, Paul Kenneth Keller exhibits signs of disturbing behavior. From bullying his younger siblings to petty theft, Paul never behaves. Even more disturbing, he develops a life-long fascination with fire. In the summer of 1992, Paul’s life spirals and the only way he copes is by setting a string of arson fires throughout the Seattle area.  Join Black Barrel+ for ad-free episodes and b...