Ray William Johnson: True Story Podcast

In 2007, prominent Utah doctor and former LDS bishop Dr. Martin MacNeill pressured his wife of nearly 30 years, Michele MacNeill, into getting a facelift. Just days after the procedure, he intentionally overmedicated her with a lethal cocktail of prescription drugs and left her to drown in their bathtub so that he could freely pursue a relationship with his mistress, Gypsy Willis.

Shannon Guess Richardson, an actress with minor roles in television shows like The Walking Dead, was sentenced to 18 years in federal prison in 2014 for mailing letters laced with poison to Barack Obama and Michael Bloomberg.

Swept overboard in the Gulf of Tonkin in 1967, U.S. Navy sailor Doug Hegdahl was captured and sent to the infamous Hoa Lo Prison. Feigning illiteracy and ignorance, he earned the nickname "The Incredibly Stupid One", granting him the freedom to sabotage enemy trucks and memorize the names and details of 256 POWs using the tune of "Old MacDonald Had a Farm".

Matthew Hughes repeatedly stalked and broke into the Michigan home of rapper Eminem. In a terrifying 2020 encounter, Hughes smashed a kitchen window and woke a sleeping Eminem.

Skylar Preciosa Deleon is an American convicted murderer and former child actor who was sentenced to death for the 2004 murder-for-profit killings of Thomas and Jackie Hawks.

Barry Keenan is a former businessman best known for masterminding the 1963 kidnapping of Frank Sinatra Jr. facing severe financial ruin and drug dependency, Keenan formulated a bizarre plan to solve his money problems by abducting the 19-year-old singer from a Lake Tahoe hotel room.

Frank Tassone a public school superintendent in Long Island, New York. Over the course of 12 years, Tassone meticulously elevated his school district to one of the top-ranked in the United States while leading a secret double life funded by the community's taxpayers. Alongside assistant superintendent Pamela Gluckin, Tassone stole over $11 million in school funds to finance luxurious vacations...

Aubrey Lee Price is a former Georgia banker and pastor who orchestrated a massive Ponzi scheme that defrauded over 100 investors and led to the 2012 collapse of the Montgomery Bank & Trust. To escape prosecution after losing or embezzling the bank's capital, Price faked his own death.

Jennifer Pan orchestrated a 2010 murder-for-hire plot against her strict parents in Markham, Ontario, staging a home invasion that resulted in her mother's death and her father's severe injury. Motivated by a desire for freedom and her forbidden boyfriend.

Randy Roth was a Washington state mechanic who married and murdered women to collect lucrative life insurance payouts. He famously caused the death of his fourth wife in a staged 1991 Lake Sammamish drowning. An investigation into this incident and the 1981 fatal cliff fall of his second wife ultimately exposed his deadly scam

Keanu Reeves was forced to star in the 2000 thriller The Watcher when a trusted friend and director Joe Charbanic forged his signature on a contract. Unwilling to endure a lengthy, expensive legal battle, Reeves fulfilled the role but negotiated an agreement to minimize his marketing involvement and keep the forgery quiet for a year

Roy Sullivan, a United States park ranger in Virginia, earned a unique spot in history by surviving seven verified lightning strikes between 1942 and 1977. Recognized by the Guinness World Records as the most lightning-struck person to survive, Sullivan endured multiple injuries from these encounters

Kumiko Yasufuku was arrested and indicted in Japan for the 1999 cold-case murder of Namiko Takaba. Driven by a long-held, unrequited obsession with the victim's husband, Satoru, Yasufuku.

Stephen Allwine was a Minnesota IT specialist and church elder convicted of first-degree premeditated murder for the November 2016 slaying of his wife, Amy Allwine. Motivated by a desire to exit his marriage without ruining his religious standing, Allwine initially used the dark web to hire a hitman.

Alexander Pichushkin is a notorious Russian serial killer known as "The Chessboard Killer" and the "Bittsa Park Maniac," who is serving life imprisonment for murdering at least 48 people.

Tommy Thompson is an American marine engineer who made history in 1988 by locating the SS Central America, a California Gold Rush-era steamship that sank in 1857 with tons of federal gold. While initially celebrated for recovering millions in treasure from the "Ship of Gold" using deep-sea robotic technology, his triumph quickly soured when the 161 private investors who funded his expedi...

Jolly Joseph is an Indian woman from Koodathayi, Kerala, who confessed to murdering six of her family members over a 14-year period between 2002 and 2016

Kenan Thompson lost an estimated $1.5 million in childhood earnings after a trusted family accountant absconded with his money. Thompson, who had granted the accountant power of attorney, discovered the devastating theft while attempting to buy his first home in Atlanta. He later faced unpaid tax issues with the IRS, which forced him into bankruptcy.

Mark Winger is an Illinois nuclear engineer who was initially hailed as a hero in 1995 after claiming he shot and killed a shuttle driver, Roger Harrington, who had broken into his Springfield home and bludgeoned Winger's wife, Donnah, with a hammer. Police originally closed the case believing Harrington acted in retaliation over a previous customer complaint, allowing Winger to collect life i...

James "Jimmy the Gent" Burke was a ruthless Irish-American associate of the Lucchese crime family who masterminded the 1978 Lufthansa heist at JFK Airport, netting over $5 million. Driven by paranoia, he subsequently orchestrated the murders of numerous accomplices to keep the stolen money and avoid prosecution.

Celeste Beard Johnson is a Texas woman convicted of orchestrating the 1999 murder of her wealthy, 74-year-old multimillionaire husband, Steven Beard. After marrying Steven in 1995, Celeste embraced a lavish lifestyle, but the marriage grew strained as he threatened to curtail her extravagant spending. While receiving treatment at a psychiatric facility, Celeste met Tracey Tarlton, whom she alleged...

Cherish Gomer was arrested multiple times for repeatedly trespassing at the Utah home of musician Post Malone. Police and family noted the behavior escalated from simply showing up at the property to instances like walking barefoot from Salt Lake City and jumping in front of the artist's moving vehicle. Claiming a spiritual connection, Gomer racked up multiple felony charges for stalking and v...

Pop star Aaliyah died instantly in a tragic plane crash on August 25, 2001, in the Bahamas. After wrapping the music video for "Rock the Boat" at Marsh Harbour Airport, the 22-year-old singer and eight others boarded a Cessna 402B bound for Florida. The flight ended in devastation when the aircraft, carrying excessive luggage, crashed shortly after takeoff due to being hundreds of pounds...

XXXTentacion was ambushed and fatally shot on June 18, 2018, while leaving RIVA Motorsports in Deerfield Beach, Florida. The 20-year-old rapper, born Jahseh Onfroy, had just withdrawn cash from a bank. As he attempted to drive away, an SUV blocked his vehicle, and two masked gunmen confronted him at his driver’s window.

In August 2018 David Katz was responsible for a shooting at a Madden NFL 19 video game tournament in Jacksonville, Florida. Katz, a 24-year-old competitive gamer from Baltimore Maryland, opened fire inside the GLHF Game Bar after losing earlier in the tournament.