Cincinnati's Crime Vault | Beyond the Broadcast

An unscripted thank you from the host of the podcast, Jessica Schmidt. 

Back in 2018, an unidentified woman was discovered dead and partially buried near an apartment complex in Avondale, a Cincinnati, Ohio neighborhood. For years, she was known only as the "Avondale Jane Doe" or the "Rose Lady."  Fast forward to 2025... and that woman has been identified. Thanks to the work of investigators with the Hamilton County Coroner's Office, the Ohio BCI, and the FBI, Pa...

In this brief bonus episode of Season Two of Cincinnati's Crime Vault: Beyond the Broadcast, Investigative Reporter and TV News Anchor Jessica Schmidt shares that there is a significant update in the Avondale Jane Doe case that was previously covered in the podcast.  A detailed episode breaking down the news will be available soon.  In the meantime, you can listen to episodes 23 and 24 o...

In 2013, a father of four, who built his own business, was shot in cold blood while inside his Hamilton, Ohio shop. His brother was with him, but was not able to see the killer's face. And to this day.. Broderick McGhee's murderer hasn't been identified. In this episode of Season Two of Cincinnati's Crime Vault: Beyond the Broadcast, Investigative Reporter and TV News Anchor Jessica Schmidt takes...

Prosecutors and detectives in Boone County, Kentucky have made significant progress in a cold case - the 1974 disappearance and presumed murder of Ed Nichols.  On the day Nichols vanished, he was reportedly going hunting with a friend... but investigators say he was actually shot and killed because of a dispute over a woman.  In this episode of Season Two of Cincinnati's Crime Vault: Bey...

Decades after Ronald Vonderheide seemingly vanished without a trace, detectives are using DNA databases to try to track him down. They say their evidence shows he's no longer alive... and may have been the victim of foul play.  But Vonderheide's mother has a different theory.  In this episode of Season Two of Cincinnati's Crime Vault: Beyond the Broadcast, Investigative Reporter and TV News Anchor...

Four members of the Wagner family are accused of killing eight members of the Rhoden family in April 2016 in what has been called the Pike County Massacre. Now, two of them, Jake and Angela Wagner, have been sentenced.  In this episode of Season One of Cincinnati's Crime Vault Beyond the Broadcast, Investigative Reporter and TV News Anchor Jessica Schmidt breaks down Jake and Angela Wagner's sente...

Jessica Schmidt gives an update on the Pike County massacre case, specifically related to the upcoming sentencings of Jake Wagner, Angela Wagner, and Rita Newcomb and the upcoming trial of George "Billy" Wagner III. She also addresses some unresolved issues related to the case, including the death penalty and a change of venue. 

Jessica Schmidt gives an update on the upcoming trial of George "Billy" Wagner III, who is set to go on trial in the Pike County Massacre case in January 2025. There are two significant developments: the judge issued rulings on the defense's change of venue request and the death penalty.

*Note: we encourage you to listen to part one of this two-part series, episode 23, before listening to this episode.  At the Hamilton County, Ohio Coroner's Office, the investigators, analysts, and technicians are trained in a number of areas. They handle autopsies, even from other counties, help police with murder investigations, and identify Jane and John Does.  It can be challenging work, but t...

In 2018, an unidentified woman was discovered dead and partially buried near an apartment complex in Avondale, which is a Cincinnati neighborhood. She became known as the "Avondale Jane Doe" or the "Rose Lady." Dr. Lakshmi Sammarco and her team at the Hamilton County, Ohio Coroner's Office have never given up on the case. Since the day the woman was found, they've pursued every avenue they can to...

Jessica Schmidt gives an update on season one by explaining where the Pike County Massacre case stands right now, as of August 2024. She touches on George "Billy" Wagner's upcoming trial and George Wagner the 4th's pending appeal. 

According to the FBI, right now, there are multiple serial killers, who could be connected to dozens and dozens of unsolved murders, operating in the United States.  Investigators are actively working to track the murderers down by focusing in on a specific pool of suspects - long haul truckers - through the agency's Highway Serial Killings Initiative.  In this episode of Season Two of Cincinnati'...

Even decades later, a case known as the Easter Sunday Massacre continues to haunt the Hamilton, Ohio community. In 1975, James "Jim" Ruppert murdered 11 members of his own family.  Journalist Karen Holcomb first became familar with the case in the 1990s, when she was a reporter for the Journal News. She didn't know at the time that her coverage would lead to her marrying the prosecutor's son, and,...

NOTE: We suggest listening to episode 19 before listening to this one. In this episode of Season Two of Cincinnati's Crime Vault: Beyond the Broadcast, Investigative Reporter and TV News Anchor Jessica Schmidt interviews Randy Hubbard, a high school teacher who has investigated Laney Gwinner's case and is writing a book about it.  Hubbard's students have created a podcast of their own, where they...

More than 20 years after she disappeared and was later found dead, Laney Gwinner’s murder remains unsolved, and her vehicle is still missing.  Police believe she vanished after she went to a bowling alley in Fairfield, Ohio with a friend in December 1997. She left sometime around 1 a.m. to go to her boyfriend's house, but she never made it there.  In this episode of Season Two of Cincinnati's Crim...

In this episode of Season Two of Cincinnati's Crime Vault Beyond the Broadcast, Investigative Reporter and TV News Anchor Jessica Schmidt speaks with clinical psychologist Dr. Rachel Toles, who is currently touring the country for her show "The Psychology of Serial Killers and Why They Captivate Us."  Dr. Toles, who is making a stop in Cincinnati, shares some of her research on serial killers, giv...

The trial for George “Billy” Wagner III has been delayed until 2025. Jessica Schmidt gives an update.

It's been nearly 50 years since a young woman was strangled, stripped naked, and dumped on the side of the road. Even decades later, Cora Durham's sister is dedicated to finding out who is responsible, and now, Warren County, Ohio detectives are taking a new look at the case.  In this episode of Season Two of Cincinnati's Crime Vault Beyond the Broadcast, Investigative Reporter and TV News Anchor...

Thirteen years later, a deadly home invasion in Fairfield Township, Ohio is considered a cold case. Police believe the victim, Joe Patterson, was shot and killed in his own home, just feet away from his wife and stepchildren. Detectives are still trying to track down the gunmen who are responsible for what's been described as a vicious, targeted attack.  In this episode of Season Two of Cincinnati...

For the first time, relatives of a woman who was murdered in downtown Cincinnati are speaking publicly to call for justice.  In this episode of Season Two of Cincinnati's Crime Vault Beyond the Broadcast, Investigative Reporter and TV News Anchor Jessica Schmidt breaks down the newest theories in the unsolved murder of Ernestine Hurt - theories connected to love.. money... revenge.. and retaliatio...

West Chester, Ohio detectives have described George Gibson, a veterinary pathologist, as a good man... but they also say he had a lot of secrets, and that's made it hard for them to solve his murder.  It was a brutal crime - a planned ambush - that led to Gibson's death and to the death of his dogs.  In Season Two of Cincinnati's Crime Vault Beyond the Broadcast, Investigative Reporter and TV News...

This year marks nine years since a Cincinnati man disappeared without a trace.  Timothy Stanton's family believes, to this day, that the 40-year-old father of two was met with foul play.  In Season Two of Cincinnati's Crime Vault Beyond the Broadcast, Investigative Reporter and TV News Anchor Jessica Schmidt speaks with Timothy's relatives about where he was last seen, what they know about his dis...

Police are pursuing every lead they can in the murder of a Springdale, Ohio man, who was found brutally beaten to death inside his home in 1999. There's been DNA testing, surveillance, and even an arrest, but the case remains unsolved.  Detectives believe what could be holding them back is what little they know about the victim, Frederick Walker. In Season Two of Cincinnati's Crime Vault Beyond th...

In 2012, two Fairfield, Ohio teens were found dead by the same creek. Joey Oakley, 19-years-old, was discovered dead months after 15-year-old Chelsea Johnson was stabbed to death. Oakley's case, like Johnson's, remains unsolved and open. Although police have not connected the two cases, their families believe there may be something tying them together. Now, for the first time, Oakley's sister is r...