25: Lee Rigby - The Drummer Boy

Kelsey Hildal survived brain surgery at age ten that left her unable to walk. Three years later, a devastating car accident fractured her skull and altered her personality forever. Sent to wilderness boot camp in North Carolina, then to Montana Academy for troubled teens, Kelsey nearly died from hypothermia after running away in subzero temperatures. Against all odds, she became a basketball sensation at Flathead High School in Kalispell, Montana, breaking the single-game scoring record with 39 points. She walked on at the University of Montana and later competed as an amateur MMA fighter with a 7-7 record. But the trauma never left her. On April 1, 2025, Ohio State Highway Patrol responded to reports of a wrong-way driver on Interstate 275 near Cincinnati. The confrontation ended in gunfire. This is Part 1: The complete story of who Kelsey Hildal was before everything went wrong.Born on December 23, 1990, Kelsey Lamar Hildal was one of twin daughters to Robyn and Rick Hildal in Cincinnati, Ohio. Her twin sister Alix would become a Division I soccer player at Ole Miss. But Kelsey's path would be defined by survival from the very beginning.VICTIM PROFILE:In fifth grade, Kelsey was diagnosed with hemifacial spasm, a neuromuscular disorder causing involuntary facial twitches and spasms on one side of her face. The condition required microvascular decompression surgery at age ten. The procedure stopped the spasms, but Kelsey had to relearn how to walk, completing rehabilitation among stroke patients six times her age. Half of her face remained paralyzed for months.Three years later, on the way to a soccer tournament, the Hildal family was involved in a catastrophic car accident. Her father Rick and twin sister Alix, sitting on the passenger side, walked away with cuts and bruises. Kelsey and her mother Robyn weren't as lucky. One side of the car was completely flattened. Robyn suffered a broken arm. Kelsey sustained a punctured lung, a broken arm, lacerations to her ear and face, and required staples in her head. The impact left her left arm permanently shorter than her right. But the most devastating injury was invisible: a traumatic brain injury that fundamentally altered her personality.BEHAVIORAL CRISIS:The change was gradual but profound. Kelsey went from a model student with perfect grades to a troubled teenager who didn't care about consequences. Her parents made the agonizing decision to send her to a wilderness boot camp in North Carolina. Men arrived in the middle of the night, handcuffed Kelsey, and took her away. She was enrolled in Montana Academy, a boarding school for psychologically troubled teens in rural Kalispell, Montana. At one point, so disenchanted with the program, Kelsey ran away. She was found eight miles away, passed out in subzero temperatures, nearly dead from hypothermia.REDEMPTION THROUGH BASKETBALL:But something changed. Under strict probationary rules, Kelsey was allowed to transfer to Flathead High School for her senior year in 2008-09. She showed up to basketball tryouts with a big bag on her shoulder and calmly asked Coach Kim Elliott if she could try out. Within minutes, the coaching staff realized they were watching something special. At just 5-foot-4, Kelsey averaged 18.8 points per game, third highest in Montana Class AA. On February 12, 2009, she scored 39 points against the defending state champion Missoula Big Sky Eagles, breaking Flathead's single-game scoring record. She walked on at the University of Montana, redshirted her freshman year, and later pursued an amateur MMA career, compiling a 7-7 record with her last bout in 2022.But on April 1, 2025, at age 34, Ohio State Highway Patrol and Union Township Police responded to multiple 911 calls about a wrong-way driver on Interstate 275. The driver was Kelsey Hildal. What happened next would end her life.EPISODE NOTES:This is Part 1 of 2. Part 1 establishes Kelsey Hildal's complete background, medical history, and achievements. Part 2 will feature the complete audio from the April 1, 2025 incident and the investigation that followed.Support Obscura and access Part 2 immediately:Patreon: https://www.patreon.com/obscuracrimepodcast/Apple Premium: https://podcasts.apple.com/us/channel/black-label/id6443660911RedCircle Premium: https://app.redcircle.com/shows/8136b701-6bed-4cc9-bfb2-0013a2822e00/exclusive-contentOur Sponsors:* Check out Chime: https://chime.com/OBSCURA* Check out Kensington Publishing: https://www.kensingtonbooks.com* Check out Mood and use my code OBSCURA for a great deal: https://mood.com* Check out Progressive: https://www.progressive.comSupport this podcast at — https://redcircle.com/obscura-a-true-crime-podcast/exclusive-contentAdvertising Inquiries: https://redcircle.com/brandsPrivacy & Opt-Out: https://redcircle.com/privacy

25 Sep 20min

Today we cover a strange case. An unusual case. The case of Joe Winko. But who is Joe Winko? Well, pinning him down is a challenge in itself. I’ll try my best. I warn you this episode is going to be unlike any Obscura episode you’ve heard before. But I promise you it will be worth it.Our Sponsors:* Check out Chime: https://chime.com/OBSCURA* Check out Kensington Publishing: https://www.kensingtonbooks.com* Check out Mood and use my code OBSCURA for a great deal: https://mood.com* Check out Progressive: https://www.progressive.comSupport this podcast at — https://redcircle.com/obscura-a-true-crime-podcast/exclusive-contentAdvertising Inquiries: https://redcircle.com/brandsPrivacy & Opt-Out: https://redcircle.com/privacy

17 Sep 31min

Hello Listener.Today we cover a strange case. An unusual case. The case of Joe Winko. But who is Joe Winko? Well, pinning him down is a challenge in itself. I’ll try my best. I warn you this episode is going to be unlike any Obscura episode you’ve heard before. But I promise you it will be worth it.Our Sponsors:* Check out Chime: https://chime.com/OBSCURA* Check out Kensington Publishing: https://www.kensingtonbooks.com* Check out Mood and use my code OBSCURA for a great deal: https://mood.com* Check out Progressive: https://www.progressive.comSupport this podcast at — https://redcircle.com/obscura-a-true-crime-podcast/exclusive-contentAdvertising Inquiries: https://redcircle.com/brandsPrivacy & Opt-Out: https://redcircle.com/privacy

17 Sep 23min

In December 1984, a man walked into a karate dojo in Dumfries, Virginia. Minutes later, he was dragged out the back door, leaving a trail of blood in his wake. Decades later, the grainy footage of his brutal beating would reemerge on YouTube, igniting a firestorm of outrage, speculation—and questions that remain unanswered to this day.In this Black Label episode of Obscura, Justin Drown unpacks the haunting story behind what came to be known as the "Kung Fu Guy Incident." At the center is Bobby Joe Blythe—a self-styled sensei with a history of violent stunts and a doctrine that turned martial arts into a license for cruelty. What happened inside that dojo wasn't a demonstration. It was an orchestrated attack on a mentally ill man, all filmed, narrated, and later uploaded by the very man who allowed it to happen.This is not a tale of ancient discipline or honor. It's the story of power abused, a life discarded, and a justice system left paralyzed by the absence of a name. No arrest. No trial. No confirmed identity for the victim—only the echo of his last words and the sound of boots on concrete.Listener discretion is strongly advised. The audio in this episode is graphic. The subject matter is disturbing. But the story must be told.Join me on Black Label at https://www.patreon.com/c/obscuracrimepodcastOur Sponsors:* Check out Chime: https://chime.com/OBSCURA* Check out Kensington Publishing: https://www.kensingtonbooks.com* Check out Mood and use my code OBSCURA for a great deal: https://mood.com* Check out Progressive: https://www.progressive.comSupport this podcast at — https://redcircle.com/obscura-a-true-crime-podcast/exclusive-contentAdvertising Inquiries: https://redcircle.com/brandsPrivacy & Opt-Out: https://redcircle.com/privacy

5 Sep 20min

Anchorage wakes to the knock that ends the hunt: October 27, 1983, troopers arrive at Hansen’s bakery, and an interrogation room papered with maps and faces waits for him. Search warrants turn his life inside out—an aerial map etched with 24 Xs, hidden firearms, and jewelry that speaks for the dead. Ballistics tell the rest: shell casings match the Ruger Mini-14, and those Xs resolve into graves in the wild. From a 12-hour confession to a grim helicopter tour that yields new remains—including the victim dubbed “Horseshoe Harriet”—Obscura threads meticulous police work with the voices too long ignored. The gavel falls—461 years plus life—and the cold Alaskan air still carries the names of the missing.Join Black Label on Patreon to unlock our entire back catalog ad-free, plus every Black Label premium episode: https://www.patreon.com/obscuracrimepodcastOur Sponsors:* Check out Chime: https://chime.com/OBSCURA* Check out Kensington Publishing: https://www.kensingtonbooks.com* Check out Mood and use my code OBSCURA for a great deal: https://mood.com* Check out Progressive: https://www.progressive.comSupport this podcast at — https://redcircle.com/obscura-a-true-crime-podcast/exclusive-contentAdvertising Inquiries: https://redcircle.com/brandsPrivacy & Opt-Out: https://redcircle.com/privacy

26 Aug 38min

Anchorage’s pipeline boom promised prosperity, but under the neon and snow, someone was hunting. In this episode, we revisit the disappearances of young women—Megan Emerick, Mary Phil, Roxanne Eastland, and more—whose lives were too easily dismissed as the city looked the other way. Through survivor testimony, including Cindy Paulson’s harrowing escape, we chart the failures that let a predator thrive and the dogged investigators who refused to let the case go cold. Forensic breakthroughs and psychological profiling peel back the mask of Robert Hansen, the “Butcher Baker,” revealing calculation where others saw banality. Obscura’s trademark approach—unflinching, empathetic, and meticulously sourced—honors the victims while mapping the long, frozen road to justice.Join Black Label on Patreon to unlock our entire back catalog ad-free, plus every Black Label premium episode: https://www.patreon.com/obscuracrimepodcastOur Sponsors:* Check out Chime: https://chime.com/OBSCURA* Check out Kensington Publishing: https://www.kensingtonbooks.com* Check out Mood and use my code OBSCURA for a great deal: https://mood.com* Check out Progressive: https://www.progressive.comSupport this podcast at — https://redcircle.com/obscura-a-true-crime-podcast/exclusive-contentAdvertising Inquiries: https://redcircle.com/brandsPrivacy & Opt-Out: https://redcircle.com/privacy

19 Aug 46min

Anchorage during the oil boom promised quick money and fresh starts—but the wilderness kept its own secrets. In this episode, we trace the disappearances of young women drawn north by opportunity, and the investigators who fought isolation, scarce resources, and a chilling pattern surfacing in the tundra. At the center stands Robert Hansen, the seemingly ordinary baker whose long shadow fell over a city in rapid transformation. Through survivor voices, case files, and methodical police work, we reconstruct how the truth closed in—without losing sight of the lives behind the headlines. Dark, patient, and unflinching, this is Obscura at its most atmospheric.Join Black Label on Patreon to unlock our entire back catalog ad-free, plus every Black Label premium episode: https://www.patreon.com/obscuracrimepodcastOur Sponsors:* Check out Chime: https://chime.com/OBSCURA* Check out Kensington Publishing: https://www.kensingtonbooks.com* Check out Mood and use my code OBSCURA for a great deal: https://mood.com* Check out Progressive: https://www.progressive.comSupport this podcast at — https://redcircle.com/obscura-a-true-crime-podcast/exclusive-contentAdvertising Inquiries: https://redcircle.com/brandsPrivacy & Opt-Out: https://redcircle.com/privacy

13 Aug 37min

Not long after 9 PM on that Sunday night, in the sleepy new-build development of Dragon Rise, the back door security light of Jennifer and Stephen Chapple’s home flicked on. Their two boys aged 5 and 6 years old had been put to bed hours before and were sleeping soundly upstairs.36-year-old Stephen was a well-loved IT teacher at West Somerset College. It was a secondary school in Minehead in Somerset, 23 miles away from his home in Dragon Rise. His wife 33-year-old Jennifer worked as a Customer Service Advisor at the coffee shop of the popular Otter Garden Centre in Norton Fitzwarren. At that time on a Sunday night, they were probably thinking about preparing for bed themselves. They had no idea what was about to explode into their home.Join our Black Label at https://www.patreon.com/obscuracrimepodcast to unlock the full ad-free catalog of Obscura Episodes AND Black Label premium episodes.Our Sponsors:* Check out Chime: https://chime.com/OBSCURA* Check out Kensington Publishing: https://www.kensingtonbooks.com* Check out Mood and use my code OBSCURA for a great deal: https://mood.com* Check out Progressive: https://www.progressive.comSupport this podcast at — https://redcircle.com/obscura-a-true-crime-podcast/exclusive-contentAdvertising Inquiries: https://redcircle.com/brandsPrivacy & Opt-Out: https://redcircle.com/privacy

6 Aug 22min