278: Insurance Fraud

Hate ads? The entire LGTC catalog is available ad-free on Patreon! Brandi really outdid herself this week by covering the most horrifying crime… ever??? James Urban Ruppert had a rough life. As he grew into adulthood, his struggles continued. He couldn’t hold a job. He couldn't maintain relationships. He had paranoid delusions. That all came to a head on Easter Sunday of 1975, when his entire extended family celebrated the holiday at his mother’s house. Also, please cue the Golden Girls theme song for Brandi. She told our only case this week so that Kristin could spend time with her grandma. And now for a note about our process. For each episode, Kristin reads a bunch of articles, then spits them back out in her very limited vocabulary. Brandi copies and pastes from the best sources on the web. And sometimes Wikipedia. (No shade, Wikipedia. We love you.) We owe a huge debt of gratitude to the real experts who covered these cases. In this episode, Brandi pulled from: “The 1975 Easter massacre: Uncle Jimmy Ruppert kills his family” by David J. Krajicek, New York Daily News “CRIME HUNTER: Easter Sunday massacre of Ohio family stunned U.S.” by Brad Hunter, Toronto Sun “James Ruppert” murderpedia.org “Easter Sunday Massacre” wikipedia.org “Mother, Brother Among James Ruppert’s Victims” by John R. Clark, The Cincinnati Enquirer “Grandmother Still Haunted By Memory” by Janet C. Wetzel, The Cincinnati Enquirer “Parole Hearing Not Due Til 95” by John R. Clark, The Cincinnati Enquirer “Officials Share Bitter Memories Of Ritter Case” by John R. Clark, The Cincinnati Enquirer “Ruppert Chronology” The Cincinnati Enquirer “Living in a murder house: Hamilton mom copes with her home's dark past” by Maxim Alter, WCPO 9 News YOU’RE STILL READING? My, my, my, you skeezy scunch! You must be hungry for more! We’d offer you some sausage brunch, but that gets messy. So how about you head over to our Patreon instead? (patreon.com/lgtcpodcast). At the $5 level, you’ll get 30+ full length bonus episodes, plus access to our 90’s style chat room!

30 Mars 20221h 33min

Hate ads? The entire LGTC catalog is available ad-free on Patreon! The out-of-work supermodels really struggled with this episode. Brandi’s case gave her nightmares and Kristin’s case is infuriatingly stupid. Brandi starts us off with the story of Brianna Denison, who was home from college, hanging out with friends when she was abducted from her friend’s house. Investigators were able to get touch DNA off of a doorknob, which led them to other unsolved crimes in the area. Then Kristin tells us about Dr. David Stephens, who had an affair with a young nurse named Stephanie Kennedy. When David’s wife, Karen, discovered the affair, she was beside herself. The couple argued. He got in his car to leave, and she grabbed a gun. She ran after him, holding the gun to her head. When she tripped, the gun went off. Karen died a few months later. About a year after that, David and Stephanie wed. And now for a note about our process. For each episode, Kristin reads a bunch of articles, then spits them back out in her very limited vocabulary. Brandi copies and pastes from the best sources on the web. And sometimes Wikipedia. (No shade, Wikipedia. We love you.) We owe a huge debt of gratitude to the real experts who covered these cases. In this episode, Kristin pulled from: “The Doctor’s Wife” episode of American Justice “The Other Woman” episode of 48 Hours In this episode, Brandi pulled from: “The Night Brianna Vanished” episode Dateline “College Student Staying With Friends Mysteriously Disappears From Their Living Room Couch” by Jill Sederstrom, oxygen.com “The Murder of Brianna Denison” by Gary C. King, trutv.com “Biela’s fate now in hands of jury” by Martha Bellisle, Reno Gazette-Journal “Being Brianna’s Brother” by Siobhan McAndrew, Reno Gazette-Journal YOU’RE STILL READING? My, my, my, you skeezy scunch! You must be hungry for more! We’d offer you some sausage brunch, but that gets messy. So how about you head over to our Patreon instead? (patreon.com/lgtcpodcast). At the $5 level, you’ll get 30+ full length bonus episodes, plus access to our 90’s style chat room!

23 Mars 20222h 32min

Hate ads? The entire LGTC catalog is available ad-free on Patreon! Kristin starts us off with the story of a hate crime that galvanized Asian Americans.  On the night of his bachelor party, Vincent Chin was brutally attacked by Michael Nitz and his stepdad, Ronald Ebens. Vincent died four days after the attack. He’d never regained consciousness. It was a horrific crime, but people in power didn’t see it that way. Michael and Ronald were sentenced to three years of probation and ordered to pay a little more than $3,000 in fines. The judge explained his decision, saying, “these weren’t the kind of men you send to jail.” Then Brandi tells us a story from her very own Johnson County bubble.  Right off the bat, William Jennings’ death looked suspicious. He was discovered in his home, beaten so badly that his veneers had come off. He’d been strangled with the bars of a decorative bird cage. A suicide note specifically mentioned that his longtime partner, David Stagg, was not to be blamed. Naturally, investigators wondered if he was.   And now for a note about our process. For each episode, Kristin reads a bunch of articles, then spits them back out in her very limited vocabulary. Brandi copies and pastes from the best sources on the web. And sometimes Wikipedia. (No shade, Wikipedia. We love you.) We owe a huge debt of gratitude to the real experts who covered these cases. In this episode, Kristin pulled from: The documentary, “Who Killed Vincent Chin?” The book, “Asian American Studies Now,” by Helen Zia “Vincent Chin’s family never got the justice they wanted. But his case changed things for those who came after him,” by Harmeet Kaur for CNN “The Killing of Vincent Chin” trial reenactment by UC Hastings Law, on YouTube “The Killing of Vincent Chin” entry on Wikipedia In this episode, Brandi pulled from: “Former Westmar Professor Charged In Slaying” Associated Press, Sioux City Journal “Professor charged in killing reported a suicide” by Diane Carroll, The Kansas City Star “Murder suspect wins legal round” by Diane Carroll, The Kansas City Star “Defense asks judge to throw out murder charge against professor” Associated Press, Lawrence Journal-World “Trial begins for Missouri professor of music charged with killing lover” Associated Press, Lawrence Journal-World “Professor’s trial ends in hung jury” Associated Press, The Manhattan Mercury “Mo. professor faces new murder trial” Associated Press, The Wichita Eagle “Prof on trial again in death of partner” Associated Press, The Manhattan Mercury “Source of DNA is disputed” by Diane Carroll, The Kansas City Star “Jurors unable to reach verdict in trial” Associated Press, Colby Free Press “Murder trial ends with 2nd hung jury” by Caroline Boyer, Shawnee Dispatch “No 3rd trial in 2004 Shawnee murder, judge rules” by Caroline Boyer, Shawnee Dispatch YOU’RE STILL READING? My, my, my, you skeezy scunch! You must be hungry for more! We’d offer you some sausage brunch, but that gets messy. So how about you head over to our Patreon instead? (patreon.com/lgtcpodcast). At the $5 level, you’ll get 30+ full length bonus episodes, plus access to our 90’s style chat room!

16 Mars 20222h 21min

Hate ads? The entire LGTC catalog is available ad-free on Patreon! Is this the twilight zone? Perhaps it is. We’re wearing top hats on our tits, we’re putting Jello in our salads, and Brandi’s covering a charlatan while Kristin covers a family annihilator. What has this world come to? Brandi starts us off with a story about a Georgia pastor named William Pounds, who loved proposing to women, but hated staying loyal to them. On June 12, 2015, he called 911, claiming that his fiance Kendra Jackson had shot herself in the head. The scene didn’t quite match his story. Then Kristin tells us about Arlene and Seymour Tankleff, who were attacked in their Long Island home. The next day, their 17-year-old son Marty discovered his dad clinging to life, and his mother dead. Detectives immediately zeroed in on the boy, and who could blame them? This smelled like a Brandi case! And now for a note about our process. For each episode, Kristin reads a bunch of articles, then spits them back out in her very limited vocabulary. Brandi copies and pastes from the best sources on the web. And sometimes Wikipedia. (No shade, Wikipedia. We love you.) We owe a huge debt of gratitude to the real experts who covered these cases. In this episode, Kristin pulled from: An episode of American Justice, titled, “Wrongly Convicted Marty Tankleff Finally Freed”  “Wrongful Conviction” podcast #84 Jason Flom with Marty Tankleff An episode of The Real Story with Maria Elena Salinas, titled, “Confessions of an innocent man” “The names stay linked: ‘Bagel King’ and Tankleff,” by Bruce Lambert, Paul Vitello and Nate Schweber for the New York Times “Martin Tankleff,” The National Registry of Exonerations In this episode, Brandi pulled from: “’Jekyll And Hyde’-Like Pastor Shot His Fiancée In The Head And Claimed It Was Suicide” by Joe Dziemianowicz, oxygen.com “Perry pastor on trial for fiancee's shooting death” by Tavares Jones, WGXA News “Perry pastor indicted in fiancee’s death” by Amy Leigh Womack, The Macon Telegraph “Bond revoked for midstate pastor charged with murder” by Amy Leigh Womack, The Macon Telegraph “Minister testifies in own defense at trial for 2015 slaying of woman” by Joe Kovac Jr., The Macon Telegraph “Former pastor sentenced to life in lover’s murder” by Joe Kovac Jr., The Macon Telegraph YOU’RE STILL READING? My, my, my, you skeezy scunch! You must be hungry for more! We’d offer you some sausage brunch, but that gets messy. So how about you head over to our Patreon instead? (patreon.com/lgtcpodcast). At the $5 level, you’ll get 30+ full length bonus episodes, plus access to our 90’s style chat room!

9 Mars 20222h 26min

Hate ads? The entire LGTC catalog is available ad-free on Patreon! It’s tough to rob an armored car. But on November 28, 1994, a group of men did exactly that. Their crime was brazen. They took control of the vehicle in a mall parking lot, in broad daylight. They exercised unnecessary violence, too. They shot the Wells Fargo van driver, John Magoch, in the head and left him slumped over in the front seat. When the armored car was discovered abandoned in a church parking lot a few hours later, the money — and the criminals — were long gone.   Then Brandi tells us about a mysterious illness. Janet Overton hadn’t been feeling well. She turned to doctors for answers, but couldn’t get any. Whatever plagued her was tough to identify. And then, one day, Janet collapsed in her driveway. The 46-year-old woman, who’d been healthy until recently, was now dead. And now for a note about our process. For each episode, Kristin reads a bunch of articles, then spits them back out in her very limited vocabulary. Brandi copies and pastes from the best sources on the web. And sometimes Wikipedia. (No shade, Wikipedia. We love you.) We owe a huge debt of gratitude to the real experts who covered these cases. In this episode, Kristin pulled from: “The Wells Fargo Heist” episode of American Justice “Convict says manhunter framed him” by Dennis Wagner for the Arizona Republic “New questions in  ‘94 armored-car murder,” by Michael Kiefer for the Arizona Republic “Ring v. Arizona,” Oyez.org “Timothy Stuart Ring,” Murderpedia.org “Former Falls resident still denies role in murder,” by Bob Dyer for the Akron Beacon Journal “Three arrested in slaying in armored car heist,” by Richard Robertson and Susan Leonard for the Arizona Republic In this episode, Brandi pulled from: “Janet Overton” chillingcrimes.com “A Slow Death” episode The Real Murders of Orange County “Every morning, Janet Overton applied eyeliner. It was slowly killing her.” By Helen Vnuk, MamaMia “O.C. man convicted of fatally poisoning his wife” by Rong-Gong Lin II, Los Angeles Times YOU’RE STILL READING? My, my, my, you skeezy scunch! You must be hungry for more! We’d offer you some sausage brunch, but that gets messy. So how about you head over to our Patreon instead? (patreon.com/lgtcpodcast). At the $5 level, you’ll get 30+ full length bonus episodes, plus access to our 90’s style chat room!

2 Mars 20222h 21min

Hate ads? The entire LGTC catalog is available ad-free on Patreon! Get ready to be infuriated.  Tiana Notice wanted nothing to do with her ex-boyfriend, James Carter. He’d seemed perfect at first, but it didn’t take long for Tiana to see his true colors. So she dumped him. But like a true shithead, James refused to take no for an answer. He called her constantly. He stalked her. Tiana went to the police for help several times. In fact, over the course of six weeks, she visited her local police station 33 times. But the police never took Tiana seriously.  Then Kristin lightens the mood with the story of a hilariously stupid heist. David Ghantt worked as a vault supervisor for Loomis Fargo in Charlotte, North Carolina. David made very little money, but was surrounded by so much of it that he went home every night reeking of cash. It was annoying, to say the least. So when his crush, Kelly Campbell, came to him with an idea to steal all the money from the vault, David went along with the plan. He’d steal $17.3 million dollars from the vault, and he’d keep one third of it. But he wouldn’t get the money right away. He’d need to hide out in Mexico for a while. Kelly and the rest of the money would *definitely* join him later.    And now for a note about our process. For each episode, Kristin reads a bunch of articles, then spits them back out in her very limited vocabulary. Brandi copies and pastes from the best sources on the web. And sometimes Wikipedia. (No shade, Wikipedia. We love you.) We owe a huge debt of gratitude to the real experts who covered these cases. In this episode, Kristin pulled from: An episode of the FBI Files, titled “The Unperfect Crime” An episode of Super Heists, titled “A Van Full of Dollars” Reporting by Jeff Diamant for the Washington Post in 1999 “October 1997 Loomis Fargo robbery,” entry on Wikipedia In this episode, Brandi pulled from: “If I Can’t Have You” episode Deadline: Crime with Tamron Hall “Valentine's Day murder: Stalker violates restraining order, kills ex-girlfriend” True Crime Daily “Jury Begins Deliberations In Carter Murder Trial” by Hilda Muñoz, Hartford Courant “Carter Found Guilty Of Murder” by Christine Dempsey, Hartford Courant “Carter Refuses To Be In Court As He Is Sentenced To 60 Years For Killing Tiana Notice” by Christine Dempsey, Hartford Courant “STATE of Connecticut v. James P. CARTER, Jr.” findlaw.com YOU’RE STILL READING? My, my, my, you skeezy scunch! You must be hungry for more! We’d offer you some sausage brunch, but that gets messy. So how about you head over to our Patreon instead? (patreon.com/lgtcpodcast). At the $5 level, you’ll get 30+ full length bonus episodes, plus access to our 90’s style chat room!

23 Feb 20222h 36min

Hate ads? The entire LGTC catalog is available ad-free on Patreon! Wanda Lopez was a little freaked out. She was working the evening shift, alone, at a gas station in a rough part of town, and a sketchy dude was outside the store with a knife. She called the police, but they brushed off her concerns. The guy hadn’t done anything! He wasn’t even inside the store! But the man’s presence set off Wanda’s alarm bells. So she called 911 again. The dispatcher didn’t like Wanda’s tone (!!) but sent officers to the scene when he overheard the man attack her. It was too late. Wanda didn’t make it, but at least there were eyewitnesses who could tell the police who’d done it. The murderer was a thin, 5’9” Hispanic man with curly, ear-length hair. He was wearing a flannel jacket. Or was it a white button up? Tomayto, tomahto!  After a 45-minute manhunt, they arrested Carlos DeLuna. Carlos claimed he was innocent. He’d seen another man commit the crime – a man who was also named Carlos. Carlos Hernandez. But Carlos DeLuna was full of shit. Right? Then Brandi keeps the bummers coming with another family annihilator. On a weekend in July of 2003, Joanie Harper, her children Marques, Lyndsey, baby Marshall and mother Earnestine Harper were all murdered in their home. The killer made a lame attempt at staging a break-in, but because they’d seen Dateline, investigators immediately turned their suspicion on Joanie’s husband, Vincent Brothers. But Vincent had been out of town during the murders, and he had the receipts to prove it.  And now for a note about our process. For each episode, Kristin reads a bunch of articles, then spits them back out in her very limited vocabulary. Brandi copies and pastes from the best sources on the web. And sometimes Wikipedia. (No shade, Wikipedia. We love you.) We owe a huge debt of gratitude to the real experts who covered these cases. In this episode, Kristin pulled from: “The Phantom” documentary “The Wrong Carlos: Anatomy of a Wrongful Execution,” by James S. LIebman  and the Columbia DeLuna Project  “The wrong Carlos: How Texas sent an innocent man to his death,” by Ed Pilkington for The Guardian “Carlos DeLuna” entry on Wikipedia “Yes, America, we have executed an innocent man,” by Andrew Cohen for The Atlantic In this episode, Brandi pulled from: “The Harper Family” episode Family Massacre “The Mystery of the Lost Weekend” episode Dateline “'That’s A Lot Of Hate’: Dead Insects Lead Detectives To Man Who Killed 5 Family Members” by Joe Dziemianowicz, oxygen.com “DEFINING CASES: Bugs and sex: Vincent Brothers’ 2007 multiple-murder conviction came down to insect parts and his smugness on the stand” by Jessica Logan, The Bakersfield Californian “Brothers attorneys blame woman for murders” by Jessica Logan, The Bakersfield Californian “Vincent E. Brothers” murderpedia.org “Vincent Brothers” wikipedia.org YOU’RE STILL READING? My, my, my, you skeezy scunch! You must be hungry for more! We’d offer you some sausage brunch, but that gets messy. So how about you head over to our Patreon instead? (patreon.com/lgtcpodcast). At the $5 level, you’ll get 30+ full length bonus episodes, plus access to our 90’s style chat room!

16 Feb 20222h 48min

Hate ads? The entire LGTC catalog is available ad-free on Patreon! If you haven’t listened to last week’s episode, then sashay away. If you have listened to part one of Brandi’s Jodi Arias coverage, then Shante, you stay.  This week, Brandi tells us about the epic trial of Jodi Arias. Brace yourself for a dramatic make-under, a homemade t-shirt, and several plot twists. Our advice? BUCKLE UP. Then Kristin covers the legal battles of Clarence Elkins. Stay buckled, because this one includes an appearance on the Maury Povich show, drunken chore completion, and a prosecutor who can’t keep his grubby mitts off the evidence. And now for a note about our process. For each episode, Kristin reads a bunch of articles, then spits them back out in her very limited vocabulary. Brandi copies and pastes from the best sources on the web. And sometimes Wikipedia. (No shade, Wikipedia. We love you.) We owe a huge debt of gratitude to the real experts who covered these cases. In this episode, Kristin pulled from: “Melissa Elkins” episode of I Solved A Murder “The Murder of Judith Johnson” episode of American Justice “Killer Instinct” by Sara James “Shadow of a Doubt: The Clarence Elkins Story” by Katherine Ramsland for Crime Library “Clarence Elkins” entry on Wikipedia In this episode, Brandi pulled from: “Jodi Arias Revised Timeline (UPDATED)” by David Lohr, huffpost.com “How an Inside Edition Interview Became a Key to Prosecuting Jodi Arias” Inside Edition “The Case Continues: Jodi Arias Pt. 1” episode Snapped “The Case Continues: Jodi Arias Pt. 2” episode Snapped “Arias Trial Timeline of events in Mesa murder case” The Associated Press, East Valley Tribune “Timeline: A look back at the Jodi Arias murder case” azcentral.com “In Saving Jodi Arias' Life, Kirk Nurmi Became the Most Hated Lawyer in Arizona” by Shanna Hogan, Phoenix New Times “Jodi Ann Arias” murderpedia.org “Murder of Travis Alexander” wikipedia.org YOU’RE STILL READING? My, my, my, you skeezy scunch! You must be hungry for more! We’d offer you some sausage brunch, but that gets messy. So how about you head over to our Patreon instead? (patreon.com/lgtcpodcast). At the $5 level, you’ll get 30+ full length bonus episodes, plus access to our 90’s style chat room!

9 Feb 20223h 24min