The Bank Robber Who Vanished Into Alaska’s Wilderness
Northern Crimes21 Nov 2025

The Bank Robber Who Vanished Into Alaska’s Wilderness

This episode follows the extraordinary and unsettling life of Paul Stavenjord, who first made headlines in 1971 after fleeing into the mountains of Seward following Alaska’s largest bank robbery. For more than two decades, Stavenjord appeared to rebuild his life, working on the railroad, raising a family, and carving out a quiet existence in the Alaskan frontier. But in 1997, he vanished once again—this time after the murders of his neighbors, Rick Beery and Debbie Rehor. Through the robbery, the manhunt, the quiet years, and the eventual homicide case, this story traces how a fugitive’s past and present collided in the remote landscapes of Alaska. It’s a rare look at a decades-long cycle of escape, reinvention, and violence.

🤝 Become a Northern Crimes Patreon member!

Subscribe to our YouTube Channels:
Northern Crimes
Southern Crimes

🔍 Sources available on northerncrimes.com

Episoder(52)

Mysteries and Murder from the Most Remote Places in North America | 2 Hours

Mysteries and Murder from the Most Remote Places in North America | 2 Hours

From the fog-covered shores of the Oregon Coast to the frozen peaks of Alaska, and from the prairie towns of Alberta and Saskatchewan to the quiet capital of Olympia, Washington — some of North Americ...

1 Mai 2h 14min

The Mount Rainier Murders

The Mount Rainier Murders

Mount Rainier’s beauty often masks a dark history and high-altitude crime. This episode looks into the 1979 vanishing of Elaine Robertson and the 1996 abduction of Sheila Kearns from park housing. We ...

24 Apr 20min

Campground Killers | Predators in the Wilderness

Campground Killers | Predators in the Wilderness

From the high desert of Oregon to the remote mountains of Montana, the serenity of the great outdoors has often been shattered by sudden, senseless violence. This investigation examines a series of ha...

17 Apr 33min

Southern Crimes | Unsolved Mysteries from Florida

Southern Crimes | Unsolved Mysteries from Florida

Florida is often defined by its promise of reinvention and paradise, but beneath the turquoise waters and haunting Everglades lies a darker history of disappearances and unsolved violence. This episod...

10 Apr 27min

The Cult That Hunted People in Chicago

The Cult That Hunted People in Chicago

In the early 1980s, the "Ripper Crew" turned the Chicago suburbs into a landscape of ritualistic terror. Operating out of a red Dodge van, this four-man group - led by a contractor with links to John ...

3 Apr 21min

Unsolved Jane Doe Cases from the Pacific Northwest

Unsolved Jane Doe Cases from the Pacific Northwest

The dense wilderness and rugged coastlines of the Pacific Northwest have long served as a repository for some of the nation's most persistent forensic mysteries. This episode examines a series of deca...

27 Mar 35min

The Highway 97 Killer

The Highway 97 Killer

On September 10, 2001, 74-year-old Alaskan veteran James Hamrick stopped at a remote British Columbia rest area with a hitchhiker he had kindly offered to help. What followed was a brutal, senseless b...

20 Mar 21min

Real Life Horror Stories from the Pacific Northwest

Real Life Horror Stories from the Pacific Northwest

Every year, people encounter dark forces in the Pacific Northwest. Sometimes it's disappearing on a hike, other times, it's murder.This true crime compilation covers stories from Alaska, Washington, O...

13 Mar 2h 2min

Populært innen True crime

krimpodden-vg
insiders
avhort
podme-krim
rss-avhort-aktuelt
krimarkivet-2
verdens-verste
rss-pa-innsiden-av-psychohoder
rss-svarttrost
rss-henlagt-andy-larsgaard
rss-domt-2
rss-espen-lee-usensurert
rss-domt-3
forsvinningsfredag-podkast
kriminalkrniken
truecrimepodden-2
blalys
truecrimepodden-dokumentar
rss-overste-etasje
hold-pusten