Female Criminals

In 1920's New York City, policy bank queen Stephanie St. Clair was sitting on the top of the world. She had become one of the most successful policy bankers in her adopted home of Harlem, and had the cash to prove it. But as the Prohibition came to a close, Stephanie would be faced with a formidable new enemy - white mobsters encroaching on her turf. Sponsors! Bombas - Save 20% on your first purch...

In 1911, 13-year-old Stephanie St. Clair left the Caribbean for America and never looked back. The scrappy teen lied about her age, and soon found herself on the streets of Harlem at the dawn of the Harlem Renaissance and the Prohibition Era - two moments in history that helped launch her career as the queenpin of a highly lucrative gambling ring. And ultimately, as New York City's first black wom...

On Easter Sunday, 1903, Marie Sukloff awoke in her Russian prison cell to the sounds of a massacre. She overheard one of the bloodiest pogroms in Russian history. The bloodshed ignited a fire that Marie would feel to her dying day. In the years to come, she would plan and carry out an assassination that would make her famous. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

As the grip of Tsar Nicholas II loosened at the turn of the 20th century and the wave of Communism started to rise in Russia, a young girl named Marie Sukloff dutifully took her place in the revolution. After watching her peasant farming parents struggle to make ends meet, she learned to read from political bulletins, waiting for her day to strike.  Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphon...

It was called “one of the most brutal and bizarre crimes Australia has ever seen.” In 1989, Tracey Wigginton not only murdered bar patron Edward Buldock – she and her fellow vampires drank his blood. As the investigation unfolded, her small coastal town was riveted by the story of Tracey’s small occultist following, all self-proclaimed lesbian vampires. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit mega...

After heiress Marjorie Congdon was aquitted of her mother's 1977 murder, she remarried and began to build a new life. But mysterious deaths continued to plague Marjorie, who would become a suspect in numerous murders and arsons for decades. Sponsors! Best Fiends - Download the 5-star rated mobile game for free on the Apple App Store and Google Play. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphon...

When Marjorie Congdon was adopted at three months old, she became the doted up daughter of an heiress. She grew up wanting for nothing, showered in gifts and affection. But Marjorie still suffered, eventually diagnosed with antisocial personality disorder. Her mother, afraid of scandal, couldn't accept the diagnosis and Marjorie was never treated. Left unchecked, Marjorie would bring chaos and dea...

Irma Grese quickly proved herself as one of the most vicious guards at Ravensbruck concentration camp. In 1943, she was promoted and sent to Auschwitz, where her reputation for cruelty only grew. Thousands of interned prisoners suffered under her reign until they were finally liberated by Allied forces.  Sponsors! Embrace Pet Insurance - Get your FREE quote at EmbracePetInsurance.com/CRIMINALS. Aw...

As Irma Grese grew up in rural Germany, she watched Adolf Hitler rise to power. Completely swept up in the nationalist views of the Nazi Party, Irma tried to find the best way to serve her country. Eventually, she found her purpose as a concentration camp guard. Parcasters - Is there any truth behind the rumored society that protects the secrets of the Holy Grail? Learn more about the Priory of Si...

As the Manson Family turned onto Cielo Drive, time slowed to a crawl. In a few minutes, they would commit five murders that became the most infamous slayings in American history. They intended to start a riot that would burn LA to the ground.  Sponsors! Best Fiends - Play the 5-star rated mobile game! Download FREE on the Apple App Store or Google Play. That’s FRIENDS without the R, Best Fiends! L...

By July, 1969, the "Manson Girls” saw Charlie as more than a leader, he was the second coming of Christ. Manson’s cult gospel called them to prepare for a fast approaching race war called Helter Skelter that would burn Southern California to the ground. And if the war didn’t start on its own, they would light the fuse. Parcasters - Don’t miss all of our special Summer of ‘69 episodes by subscribin...

When 23-year-old Brittany Holberg found herself homeless in Texas, performing sex work, and addicted to cocaine, she didn't think her life would get any worse.  But then a botched robbery became a murder in 1996, and Brittany had to learn to build a new life for herself on Death Row. Sponsors! Gabi - Take 2 minutes and see if you can save up to $865 when you go to Gabi.com/CRIMINALS. Grove Collabo...

After an off-handed comment about a serial killer on the loose, Syracuse DA William Fitzpatrick was determined to find out who the "H" family was in Dr. Alfred Steinschnieder's SIDS research. He was convinced the grieving "Mrs. H." was actually a serial killer in disguise.  Sponsors! Pair of Thieves - Get 20% off your first order at PairOfThieves.com/CRIMINALS. Learn more about your ad choices. Vi...

For two decades, Waneta Hoyt was seen as the unluckiest mother in the world. But when new evidence emerged, police wondered if she wasn't a grieving mother, but in fact a serial killer.  Parcasters - When conservation advocate Joy Adamson turned up dead, the authorities initially suspected one of her lions. Little did they know one of her disgruntled employees would be much more dangerous! Listen...

In the early 1900s Ada and Minna Everleigh found their luxurious gentlemen's club in the midst of a moral war with Chicago's more rigid citizens. What these zealots didn't realize, is that the Everleigh Sisters had the government on their side.  Sponsors! Upstart - Hurry to Upstart.com/CRIMINALS to find out HOW LOW your Upstart rate is. Checking your rate only takes a few minutes—and won’t affect...

When sisters Ada and Minna Everleigh opened a brothel in early 1900, citizens were shocked to find that countless potential clients were bluntly turned away at the door. They weren’t suitable, they were told. Not for what was soon to be the most notorious and exclusive gentlemen’s club of the early 20th century. Sponsors! Best Fiends - Best Fiends is a 5-star rated mobile game app available for do...

In 2005, Dr. Felix Polk of San Francisco, was found stabbed to death by his 15-year-old son, Gabriel. But he believed his mother, Susan, was responsible for the death, after years of threatening violence against her husband.   Sponsors! Upstart - Hurry to Upstart.com/CRIMINALS to find out HOW LOW your Upstart rate is. Checking your rate only takes a few minutes—and won’t affect your credit! Zola -...

In 2002, after twenty years of marriage, 44-year-old Susan Polk of San Francisco, called it quits with her husband, 70-year-old Felix Polk. Susan's reasons for divorce were simple: she believed her husband was a spy working for the CIA and he had brainwashed her and her children.  Parcasters - In Conspiracy Theories this week we explore the North American Union, a supposed superstate created throu...

Stories of her exploits on Rum Row in the early 1920s made Gertrude Lythgoe a tabloid darling. As books and article series were published, America was captivated by the Queen of the Bootleggers. Unfortunately, so was the United States Government. Sponsors! Best Fiends - Don’t miss out on the must-play game of the year! Download Best Fiends for free on the Apple App Store or Google Play. That’s FRI...

During the early days of Prohibition in the 1920s, while most young women were focused on getting married and having a family, Gertrude Lythgoe was busy running her wholesale liquor empire in the Bahamas. She started as a secretary in the quiet Midwest, but found herself venturing to the dangerous waters of Rum Row. Sponsors! Grove - Get a 3-piece cleaning set from Mrs. Meyer’s spring scents, a fr...

On Monday, January 29th, 1979, 16-year-old Brenda Spencer shot 350 rounds at a San Diego Elementary School from her front window. Her family and neighbors were stunned by her violent actions. Brenda's response: "I don't like Mondays. This livens up the day." Sponsors! Upstart - Hurry to Upstart.com/CRIMINALS to find out HOW LOW your Upstart rate is. Checking your rate only takes a few minutes—and...

Before Parkland, before Sandy Hook, was the 1979 mass shooting at Grover Cleveland Elementary School in San Diego. At 8:30AM on Monday, January 29th, 16-year-old Brenda Spencer lined up her .22 rifle and started firing at the schoolyard across the street from her house. Why would the shy teenager go on such a horrific rampage? Sponsors! Best Fiends - Download the 5-star rated mobile game app for F...

After two months in captivity, Patricia Hearst sided with her kidnappers, the Symbionese Liberation Army. By the end of 1974, the newspaper heiress turned full-blown urban guerrilla. Sponsors! The Bouqs - Get an extra 20% off when you go to Bouqs.com and enter code FEMALE.   Upstart - Hurry to Upstart.com/CRIMINALS to find out HOW LOW your Upstart rate is. Checking your rate only takes a few minut...

In February of 1974, 19-year-old Patricia Hearst was kidnapped by the Symbionese Liberation Army. Her captivity would become one of the most well-known cases of Stockholm Syndrome in history. Sponsors! Robinhood - Robinhood is giving listeners of Female Criminals a FREE stock like Apple, Ford, or Sprint to help you build your portfolio. Sign up at Criminals. Robinhood.com. Learn more about your ad...

She climbed to the top of New York City’s real estate scene by bullying and blackmailing, earning her the moniker "The Queen of Mean." In the late 1980s, when Leona Helmsley was put on trial for fraud and tax evasion, all the little people she'd stepped on over the years lined up for their chance to take a swing at Leona.  Sponsors! Best Fiends - Download Best Fiends for free on the Apple App Stor...