Twisted Mysteries

 In 1949, the U.S. government secretly released the largest single dose of radioactive iodine in Hanford's history over Washington and Oregon — and classified it for 37 years. This episode traces the Cold War panic that caused it, exactly where it happened along Highway 240, and the decades-long fight for accountability that followed. #Hanford #GreenRun #TrueCrime #PacificNorthwest SOURCED REFEREN...

In August 1951, the town of Pont-Saint-Esprit, France was overtaken by a wave of hallucinations, delirium, and death. This episode walks through the outbreak, the investigation, and the theories that still compete to explain it. Sources listed below. 1. Gabbai, Lisbonne & Pourquier, "Ergot Poisoning at Pont St. Esprit," British Medical Journal , 15 Sept 1951, 2(4732):650-651. https://www.ncbi....

There's a legend in northeastern Oregon that's been told for well over a hundred years: something lives in Wallowa Lake, and it isn't a fish. In this episode, we trace the full story of Wally, the Wallowa Lake Monster — starting with the Nez Perce origin legend of Wahluna and Tlesca, through the first documented sighting in 1885, decades of eyewitness reports into the 1940s, 50s, and 80s, and the...

In September 1982, Sylvia Heitstuman — a mother of six from La Grande, Oregon — vanished while walking her dog along Morgan Lake Road. Five days later, a massive search effort found her body in a nearby stream. She had been shot, but harsh weather conditions destroyed nearly all the forensic evidence at the scene. More than 40 years later, no one has ever been arrested. In this episode, we trace t...

What happens when the wilderness takes hours instead of a life? This episode traces documented “lost time” accounts — the Missing 411 archive, over a century of consistent reports from Ben MacDhui in Scotland, and a 2008 Hocking Hills account where daylight collapsed into near-darkness in minutes. We weigh the science (hypothermia, altitude, infrasound) against folklore that’s been telling this sa...

Warren Forrest was convicted of murder in 1978 — and for decades, that was treated as the end of his story. It wasn't. This episode covers the 2015 identification of a second victim, Martha Morrison, and the 2023 DNA breakthrough that finally connected Forrest to her murder nearly 50 years after she disappeared. We also cover the cases that remain unsolved and actively under investigation by Clark...

Today on Twisted Mysteries... Warren Forrest worked for the Clark County, Washington Parks Department. He was married, had two daughters, and by most accounts was unremarkable — which is exactly how he was able to move through his community for years while young women went missing. This is Part 1 of a two-part series covering the case of Warren Forrest: his early life, the suspected early victims,...

In 2002, deep in the mountains of Kandahar Province, a U.S. patrol vanished without a trace. When a Special Forces team was sent to find them, they discovered a cave littered with bones, scattered gear — and something waiting inside that shouldn't have existed. Thirteen feet tall. Red hair. Six fingers on each hand. What happened next has been told and retold in veteran circles and cryptid communi...

Three real people. Three first-hand ghost stories from the Pacific Northwest wilderness — a vanishing hiker near Zigzag Mountain, marching footsteps on the Tahoma Glacier, and a trail of torn leather leading up a silent hillside at Wallowa Lake. Sources in the show notes. Sources… The Zigzag Mountain Ghost Originally shared on the Oregon Hikers Forum, thread “Gather ’round the campfire for (real)...

Between February and May 2023, six women went missing or were found dead across the Portland metro area. For months, investigators denied any connection between the cases. They were wrong. In this episode, we tell the story of Kristin Smith, Charity Perry, Joanna Speaks, Bridget Webster, and Ashley Real — five women whose deaths are now tied to one man, Jesse Lee Calhoun, currently awaiting trial...

A two-year-old vanishes from a remote Oregon ranch in broad daylight. Hundreds search. No one finds him. Then, after a freezing night alone in the wilderness, he’s discovered miles away… alive. Tonight on Twisted Mysteries, we investigate the incredible survival story of Keith Parkins—a case that has inspired legends, sparked Missing 411 comparisons, and left investigators asking one haunting ques...

Five Cayuse men rode away from the Blue Mountains in 1850 and never came home. Their execution ended a war, but their bodies vanished into unmarked graves. Nearly two centuries later, local legends tell of five silent horsemen still riding the mountain trails, searching for home. In this premium episode of Twisted Mysteries, we investigate the true history of the Cayuse Five, the haunting lore of...

How does a seemingly ordinary teenager decide to kill the people closest to him? In 2012, Jake Evans murdered his mother and younger sister before calling 911 to confess. His explanations would leave investigators, psychologists, and the public searching for answers that may never come. This episode explores the crime itself, the handwritten confession, the infamous 911 call, and the difficult que...

Two sisters. One shared terror. A motorway filled with speeding cars. A warning that “they’re going to steal your organs.” And a stranger whose simple act of kindness would cost him his life. The story of Sabina and Ursula Eriksson isn’t just one of true crime—it’s one of the most disturbing psychological mysteries ever recorded. Was this a rare case of shared madness, an unexplained psychotic bre...

In this episode, Twisted Mysteries dives into the legend of Bigfoot, retelling three of the most compelling Bigfoot encounters in history. A 1924 cabin siege at Ape Canyon. A former Marine stalked through the Cascade Mountains. And chilling audio captured in the Sierra Nevada. Across a century of sightings, one question remains: what is really out there?

A young family heads into the Oregon wilderness for a Labor Day camping trip—and never comes home. When searchers arrive at their campsite, everything appears untouched: clothes neatly folded, a wallet left behind… and a carton of milk still sitting on the picnic table. Richard and Belinda Cowden, their five-year-old son David, and five-month-old baby Melissa have vanished. Seven months later, the...

On March 6th, 1981, inside a courtroom in Lübeck, a grieving mother pulled a gun and fired eight shots at the man accused of murdering her daughter. The world remembers the gunshots. But few know the story of Anna. In this episode, we uncover the life of a seven-year-old girl whose murder devastated Germany—and the mother whose grief became one of the most controversial acts of revenge in modern h...

Police raided the apartment. The suspects were arrested. The case should have been over. But sometime after officers left… someone came back. Hours later, 19-year-old Jama Harms was dead. This is the story of the murder that transformed a small-town burglary investigation into one of Oregon’s most haunting unsolved mysteries.

Before there was Hawkins… there was Montauk. In this episode, we dive into one of the most unsettling conspiracy legends to ever surface — the Montauk Project. A story of secret experiments, psychic children, and a machine that may have blurred the line between thought and reality. Is it just conspiracy theory fiction… or a reflection of something much darker?

Two bodies. One quiet neighborhood. And a story that doesn’t make sense. After a brutal killing in Los Angeles, witnesses described a man who seemed completely normal… just minutes before everything turned violent. But when police identified him, the case took a shocking turn. In this episode, we uncover the final hours of Johnny Lewis, the death of Catherine Davis, and the mystery that still surr...

This week on Twisted Mysteries... After losing their mother, two sisters try to contact her through a Ouija board. Something answers. It starts with knocking inside the walls… then messages appear. “I’m in your room.” As the activity escalates, their father refuses to believe them. But the girls are certain— they’re not alone.

Two mountains. Two hiking groups. One terrifying pattern. In 1959, nine hikers died under mysterious circumstances on Kholat Syakhl. In 1993, a second group collapsed in the Khamar-Daban mountains—but this time, one survived. Same behaviors. Same panic. No clear explanation. What could cause experienced hikers to abandon safety and walk into their deaths? Case Sources include: History.com Study.co...

In the remote high desert of Eastern Oregon, ranchers have been discovering cattle mutilated in ways that defy explanation—precise cuts, missing organs, and no blood at the scene. Since 2019, these cases have sparked investigations, theories, and growing unease. In this episode, we follow the timeline, examine the evidence, and explore the unsettling possibilities—from science to the supernatural....

In 1983, Dana DuMars was found brutally attacked at Candy Cane Park in La Grande after leaving her bartending job just hours earlier. A suspect, Bart Cochran, was arrested and convicted—but the case collapsed after a controversial interrogation and lack of evidence. Decades later, the murder remains unsolved. In this episode, we uncover what happened that night, the investigation that went wrong,...

This weeks episode of Twisted Mysteries explores the tragic case of Eli Hart, a six-year-old boy whose life was cut short due to systemic failures and custody disputes. It highlights the importance of child protection and the devastating consequences when warning signs are ignored. Case Sources: CARE 11 Investigative Reporting - https://www.care11.com CBS News Trial Coverage - https://www.cbsnews....