The Vault

At first, 25-year-old Isadora Wengel was considered a missing person. Yet days into the 2026 investigation, the Fargo Police Department pivoted and charged her boyfriend, 21-year-old Joshua Hite, for her murder.  Based on evidence collected, investigators believe Isadora Wengel was likely dismembered.  Despite the murder charge, Isadora Wengel's remains have not been located. They are asking peopl...

In the third and final part of this series, we explore what happened to the mountain of evidence in the 1984 cold case murder of Kelly Jean Robinson -- and we discuss what could come next in law enforcement's investiation into Kelly's death.  Kelly's body was found floating in a rural Minnesota gravel pit pond, roughly 30 miles from her home in Sioux Falls. Her case remains unsolved.  If anyone ha...

In part 2 of this series, the team at The Vault tries to track down a man previously considered a potential suspect in the 1984 murder of Kelly Jean Robinson. In the process, they run across a new potential person of interest: a convicted murderer who preyed on South Dakota workers in the 1980s. He was a free man in 1984 -- and he was known to frequent The Frontier Bar, where Kelly Robinson was la...

Forty years after a 22-year-old woman was found floating in gravel pit pond in rural Minnesota, a man who was adopted an infant took two at-home DNA tests. The results led him to the discovery that his biological mom was Kelly Jean Robinson, the woman found dead in the pond. She had been murdered, and her case had gone cold.  In coordination with Kelly's family, the team at The Vault obtained the...

In this episode, Trisha Taurinskas takes listeners behind the scenes of the investigative process behind the The Vault's most recent web series, "Minnesota Vice," through an interview with the author: Jeremy Fugleberg.  The series focuses on the story of Casey Ramirez, a drug smuggler who tried to hide out while living large in a little Midwest town. It examines how the feds caught up with him, an...

The arrest of a well-known Winona resident in the 2011 cold case death of a newborn baby found floating in the Mississippi River stunned the community.    Jennifer Baechle is a pillar in the local arts and music scene. She's a wife and mother of two, who volunteers with nonprofits and cooks for church fundraisers, including one benefiting the Winona Immigration Network. She's an English instructor...

In the final part of this series, we learn what the Minneapolis Police Department told Joli Truelson's family in a recent meeting -- and we learn the fate of her investigation.    For more information on Joli Truelson, including photos, visit: https://www.inforum.com/people/joli-truelson   For more information on Jon Keith Miller, visit: https://www.inforum.com/topics/true-crime   To contact Trish...

In part 4 of this series examining the 1972 Minneapolis murder of 16-year-old Joli Truelson, we examine the criminal -- and violent -- history of Jon Keith Miller, a potential suspect who was sentenced in March of 2025 for the 1974 murder of 25-year-old Mary Schlais. Miller picked up Mary Schlais while she was hitchiking in Uptown. Joli Truelson was also picked up while she was hitchhiking in Upto...

In part 3 of this series, we cover the plea/sentencing hearing of Jon Keith Miller for the 1974 murder of 25-year-old Mary Schlais.  Miller has been questioned in Joli Truelson's 1972 murder.  Both girls hitchiked in Uptown Minneapolis before being killed. Schlais' body was dumped in a Wisconsin snowbank. Joli's body was found in Minneapolis' Minnehaha Creek.  Jon Keith Miller was arrested for Sch...

This is part 2 in the series, "Joli Truelson: Connecting the Dots," which examines the devastating impact of a flawed investigation by the Minneapolis Police Department into the 1972 slaying of 16-year-old Joli Truelson – and her family's renewed fight for answers in the wake of a killer's confession.    Joli Truelson was picked up on the evening of July 3, 1972 in Uptown Minneapolis by a man driv...

This series examines the devastating impact of a flawed investigation by the Minneapolis Police Department into the 1972 slaying of 16-year-old Joli Truelson – and her family's renewed fight for answers in the wake of a killer's confession.    Joli Truelson was picked up on the evening of July 3, 1972 in Uptown Minneapolis by a man driving a newer model, gold-colored, two-door vehicle. Her body wa...

How a 'cult' took hold in the small town of Neche, North Dakota   In the summer of 2024, reporters C.S. Hagen and Drew Trafton presented a reporting series and two-part documentary highlighting the Plymouth Brethren Christian Church, a Christian sect that began in the U.K. in the 1800s and has since branched out globally. The PBCC also has historic ties to the small town of Neche, North Dakota.  ...

A former 'cult' member describes sexual assault and forced separation from family   According to former members, the Plymouth Brethren Christian Church has operated for years in the small town of Neche, North Dakota, using fear and the separation from family to keep its members in line.   In this episode, the second in a three-part audio series, we hear from a former PBCC member who experienced nu...

A helping hand to former Plymouth Brethren members   In the last of this three-part audio series, host Trisha Taurinskas interviews Carman Drever, a former member of the Plymouth Brethren Christian Church and outspoken critic of the church.   Drever shares her experiences within the church and goes into detail about the PBCC's control over its members, who face separation from their family if they...

This episode provides the full hour-long interview with Timothy Crosby, the main suspect in the disappearance of Belinda Van Lith. The in-person interview is conducted by Forum reporter Trisha Taurinskas at the secure Moose Lake Sex Offender Program facility in January 2024.    Trisha Taurinskas can be reached at ttaurinskas@forumcomm.com   Questions related to this interview can be directed to Tr...

This is part 7, the final episode in the series on the disappearance of Belinda Van Lith, and the investigation that followed.   In this episode, we explore new information brought to light through listener contributions, including potential suspects and insight into the day Belinda went missing.    We also discuss Belinda's troll necklace, which contained a white stone. A white jewelry stone was...

This is part 6 in an ongoing series on the disappearance of Belinda Van Lith, and the investigation that followed.   In part 6 of this series, reporter and host Trisha Taurinskas sits down to interview the main suspect, Timothy Crosby, at the secure Moose Lake Sex Offender Treatment Program facility, where he is locked up indefinately.    This episode we examine how Belinda's investigation led to...

This is part 5 in an ongoing series on the disappearance of Belinda Van Lith, and the investigation that followed.   In this part of the series, we explore the cold case review of Belinda's case, which took place from 2008 to 2014. During that time, investigators with the Wright County Sheriff's Office, the Minnesota BCA and the FBI conducted a number of thorough searches in their effort to find B...

This is part 4 in an ongoing series on the disappearance of Belinda Van Lith, and the investigation that followed.   In part 4 of this series, we explore an alleged confession related to Belinda's disappearance.    In January 2002, the Wright County Sheriff's Office in Minnesota received a call from a woman who claimed she had information about a confession in Belinda's case.    The woman told inv...

This is part 3 in an ongoing series on the disapperance of Belinda Van Lith, and the investigation that followed.   In part 3 of this series, we explore the criminal history of Timothy Crosby, the main suspect in the disappearance of Belinda Van Lith.    After being released from a state insitution for sexually violent individuals for the December 1974 kidnapping and sexual assault of a young woma...

We had originally planned to produce four episodes in this series. But, because we continue to uncover and receive new information and insight, we are expanding the series. This episodes includes a preview of what's to come.  We will be picking up this series with a new, extended episode next week. Until then, you can find all of our work on this case at inforum.com/Belinda . There, you'll discove...

This is part 2 in an ongoing series on the disappearance of Belinda Van Lith, and the investigation that followed.   Six months after Belinda went missing, Timothy Crosby, the last known person to see her was arrested for abducting a young woman in St. Paul and taking her to his family's cabin on Eagle Lake, where he repeatedly sexually assaulted her.   The victim escaped to tell investigators her...

Belinda Van Lith (also referred to in various media outlets as Belinda VanLith) was 17 years old when she went missing from a home she was house sitting on Eagle Lake, just outside of Monticello, Minnesota.  Over the past several months, Forum News Service has worked with the Van Lith family, delved into the roughly 1,200-page police file and conducted an exclusive interview with the main suspect...

Kevin Mahoney vanished from a known party house in Fargo on Oct. 2, 1993. Some party-goers told investigators that he left on foot for his brother's house in nearby Moorhead. His brother wasn't home that night, and there's no indication he made it to his destination.  Others believe Kevin never left the party house.  Kevin's sisters are dogged advocates for their brother's case. They, along with t...

This year marks thirty years since Kevin Mahoney went missing from a once-notorious party house in Fargo, North Dakota. His sisters believe that somebody in the Fargo area knows something. They're after one thing: They want the person -- or people -- who know what happened to come forward before their memories are carried to the grave.  This Fargo missing persons case has gone cold, yet the detail...