#54: Abducted, Tortured, Left For Dead (Case of Alison Botha)

The 20 year high school reunion was a big deal for these friends. They had all grown up, started their own families, but one thing has always united them. Their oath of silence. Their oath of protection.Everyone sat down at their seats but their smiles quickly faded once they saw the empty chair next to them. They were reminded again of their friend who was not with them.What happened? Had they died? Had they moved abroad?No.They were in jail - for murder.The friends covered for them for over 20 years.Why?Because the victim deserved it.Full Source Notes: rottenmangopodcast.com Hosted by Simplecast, an AdsWizz company. See pcm.adswizz.com for information about our collection and use of personal data for advertising.

22 Helmi 20231h 19min

The person looked like they hadn’t slept in days. They were clearly agitated and nervous. Pacing.They flagged down a detective and told them“The stuff in the mountains. It was me.The body parts you’re finding.Scattered around the mountains.I cut them up and threw them all over the place.I blacked out, and I don’t know what happened. I just threw them all over the mountains.”The detectives had no idea what they had just gotten themselves into. They were about to unearth some very dark secrets.Full Source Notes: rottenmangopodcast.com Hosted by Simplecast, an AdsWizz company. See pcm.adswizz.com for information about our collection and use of personal data for advertising.

19 Helmi 20231h 10min

It was a good day to look for a missing person. It sounds dark, but the conditions at sea were optimal for a search and rescue. But life is funny, it never works out the way you expect.They searched for days before they gave up. It’s like the man had vanished into thin air. For 6 years, his family mourned his disappearance. A husband, father, son, had been ripped from their lives.But the story wasn’t over. He would come back 6 years later. He would show up in a small town in summer clothes, in the middle of December, and confused about his surroundings. He was confused about who he was, but he was holding onto a big secret that would shake the whole world up.Full Source Notes: rottenmangopodcast.com Hosted by Simplecast, an AdsWizz company. See pcm.adswizz.com for information about our collection and use of personal data for advertising.

15 Helmi 20231h 16min

They said she did it. They said they had all the evidence but the victim’s sisters weren’t so sure.Detective V picked up his phone at the sheriff’s department, there was a woman on the other line. She informed him that her sister had died mysteriously from ingesting a heavily regulated toxin and she was certain she knew who did it.It was her brother-in-law. She warned the detective -“And if he did it, you’re never going to catch him.”“Why is that?”“Because I believe him to be brilliant.”Full Source Notes: rottenmangopodcast.com Hosted by Simplecast, an AdsWizz company. See pcm.adswizz.com for information about our collection and use of personal data for advertising.

12 Helmi 20231h 41min

Mary died 6 times that day. Each time, a loud siren would blare through the hospital alerting the doctors.Her family rallied around her, praying, and hoping for a speedy recovery.There was her husband - he would soon enter into a romantic relationship with Mary’s sister.Then there was her son - he had already admitted to sleeping with a minor, what other atrocities could he have committed?Then there was his ex-gf - the one that accused him of rape + assault.By the time Mary walked in through the hospital doors, she was already dead. One of these people knew it was too late for Mary to be saved. And they were betting on it.Full Source Notes: rottenmangopodcast.com Hosted by Simplecast, an AdsWizz company. See pcm.adswizz.com for information about our collection and use of personal data for advertising.

8 Helmi 20231h 24min

The heat was suffocating. She was stuck in her car with no AC in the middle of the Florida summer heat. That’s comparable to being slow-cooked in an oven.She wiped the sweat off her forehead and left a smear of dark pigment on her hand. She was sweating her disguise off.She had to look as natural as possible. Not suspicious. But how could she? She was doing blackface in her car, wearing a giant hoodie, shoes that were 5 sizes too big, and a gun resting on her passenger seat.Maybe she didn’t think this through. She thought it would be easy to kill  - especially, when you have the perfect disguise for it.(Book: “Kill For Me” - by M. William Phelps is the most extensive, thorough deep dive you will find on this case)Full Source Notes: rottenmangopodcast.com Hosted by Simplecast, an AdsWizz company. See pcm.adswizz.com for information about our collection and use of personal data for advertising.

1 Helmi 20231h 43min

There are experiences that only few will ever have the honor of feeling. Winning the World Cup, winning the presidency, maybe even winning an Oscar. It’s a feeling that feels unexplainable. The adrenaline, euphoria, joy, the release of tension when you realize you’re being rewarded for your work.The Miss USA pageant was one of those brain chemistry altering moments.The two women stood there, holding hands, waiting for the winner’s name to be called.The host announced the new Miss USA for 2022, the confetti fell from the sky, and immediately the tension was palpable. The other 50 contestants clapped weakly before exiting the stage. Nobody stood around to congratulate the new winner.Something was seriously wrong. Let’s expose the dark secrets of the pageant industry, the allegations of abuse and assault.Full Source Notes: rottenmangopodcast.com Hosted by Simplecast, an AdsWizz company. See pcm.adswizz.com for information about our collection and use of personal data for advertising.

29 Tammi 20231h 23min

The University of Santa Barbara was a picturesque college town. Most days were filled with sun, surfs, and the smell of tanning lotions.But even the sunny town had sinister residents. Elliot sat in his math class as he wrote about the girl he had a crush on. It destroyed him to find out through social media that his crush, Brittany, already had a boyfriend.Elliot started fantasizing about kidnapping the couple and stripping Brittany’s boyfriend of all his skin. He wanted to deflesh him while forcing Brittany to watch.This was the only way to survive his life of torment. This twisted mind would go on to kill 6 people in the picturesque town of UCSB.Full Source Notes: rottenmangopodcast.com Hosted by Simplecast, an AdsWizz company. See pcm.adswizz.com for information about our collection and use of personal data for advertising.

25 Tammi 20232h 3min