Once Upon A Crime

A young woman who creates a YouTube channel to advocate for animal rights and veganism becomes disgruntled with the social media platform when she feels she is being targeted for discrimination. But, no one imagined that her anger would spiral into a random act of violence.  Resources:  “Sleeping in Car and Visiting Gun Range: How YouTube Attacker Spent Final Hours” by Daisuke Wakabayashi, Matthew Haag and Elizabeth Dias for The New York Times, April 4, 2018. MVPD Statement Regarding Officers’ Interaction with Woman Responsible for YouTube Shooting, City of Mountain View News Details.  “YouTube shooter was angry about company’s “Policies and Practices’: The Latest” by Aric Jenkins, Katy Steinmetz, and Mahita Gajanan for Time Magazine, April 4, 2018.  The Case Files: Nasim Najafi Aghdam by Virginia Simmons, blog post dated March 25, 2021, Ontic.com.  Clip from Mountain View Police Department bodycam footage can be found here: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=dmpjNUWpLBU Links: Once Upon a Crime Facebrook Group: https://www.facebook.com/groups/1730325570622505See Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.

23 Maj 202228min

In this episode, a young man who dubs himself “Mr. Anime” gains a large following as a critic and reviewer on YouTube.. But, he’ll later admit to harboring dark fantasies most of his life after he commits a shocking act of violence against his closest family members. Resources: “Mr. Anime Loves God and His Family” by Jeannette Garrett for Crime Magazine. “Parents, brother each had high-powered rifle wounds” by Mike Glenn and Cindy George for The Houston Chronicle, Mar 21, 2012. https://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-2118711/Trey-Eric-Sesler-shot-dead-parents-brother-planning-Columbine-style-massacre.html https://rabrewster.com/2019/07/21/human-monsters-trey-sesler-mr-anime-the-first-youtube-killer/ https://www.mysanantonio.com/news/local_news/article/Police-Man-charged-in-Waller-deaths-planned-3425659.php https://www.dailystar.co.uk/news/weird-news/anime-youtube-star-murdered-family-22852419 https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=y-dWvmMif68 Links: Patreon - www.patreon.com/onceuponacrimeSee Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.

16 Maj 202226min

This week I have a special episode diving into the topic of the psychology of mass killers. What prompts someone to commit mass murder against random strangers? How did Columbine become a cultural touchstone that inspired others to plan and execute their own mass shooting sprees? What can we do to slow down the number and frequency of these types of crimes, if anything? I'll get answers to some of these questions from psychotherapist and author, P. Shavaun Scott, author of The Minds of Mass Killers: Understanding and Interrupting the Pathway to Violence. Here's a link to Shavan's book which you can purchase at Amazon.com. https://read.amazon.com/kp/embed?asin=B09MB86W17&preview=newtab&linkCode=kpe&ref_=cm_sw_r_kb_dp_2M1AWDE85GG90D9JY8QH&tag=onc01a-20 See Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.

9 Maj 202249min

A young couple on a quest for internet fame record a prank for their YouTube channel with tragic results.  Resources: YouTube Prankster Jailed, BBC News, March 15, 2018 https://www.bbc.com/news/world-us-canada-43410816 The Last Moments Before a YouTube Stunt Went Fatally Wrong, Buzzfeed News, June 22, 2018. https://www.buzzfeednews.com/article/tasneemnashrulla/failed-youtube-stunt-killing-videos Who Was Pedro Ruiz?, The Sun, March 15, 2018 https://www.thesun.co.uk/news/3908168/pedro-ruiz-youtube-star-killed-girlfriend-monalisa-perez-shooting-stunt-jail-latest/ Stunt Gone Wrong, Valley News, June 27, 2017 https://www.valleynewslive.com/content/news/Family-says-it-was-a-YouTube-stunt-gone-wrong-a-22-year-old-man-is-dead-after-being-shot-in-the-chest-431170773.html See Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.

2 Maj 202223min

This is part 2 of a 2-part- episode. As we continue the story, Shelly and Dave Knotek have isolated themselves, their three daughters, nephew, and a boarder, Kathy Loreno, in their Ramond, Washington home. The torture and abuse Kathy endured would come to a shocking conclusion in July of 1994. Resources: If You Tell: A True Story of Murder, Family Secrets, and the Unbreakable Bond of Sisterhood - Gregg Olsen https://murderpedia.org/female.K/k/knotek-michelle.htm https://www.the-sun.com/lifestyle/876416/shelly-knotek-abuse-daughters-serial-killer/ https://casetext.com/case/state-v-knotek Snapped: Season 10, Episode 19 Couple Held in Woman’s 1994 Disappearance https://apnews.com/article/1ba1a2ceca7d8bbbc82506c3b1b488b5 See Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.

1 Maj 202234min

Shelly Knotek has been called “America’s Most Evil Mom”. She abused, tortured, and humiliated her children and partners, but her control and abuse went beyond her own family members. One-by-one people she took into her home as boarders also found themselves trapped and unable to escape her abuse. This is part one of a two-part episode. To get Part 2 early and ad free, become a Patreon member of Once Upon a Crime at www.patreon.com/onceuponacrime.  Resources: If You Tell: A True Story of Murder, Family Secrets, and the Unbreakable Bond of Sisterhood - Gregg Olsen https://murderpedia.org/female.K/k/knotek-michelle.htm https://www.the-sun.com/lifestyle/876416/shelly-knotek-abuse-daughters-serial-killer/ https://casetext.com/case/state-v-knotek Snapped: Season 10, Episode 19 Couple Held in Woman’s 1994 Disappearancehttps://apnews.com/article/1ba1a2ceca7d8bbbc82506c3b1b488b5 See Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.

11 Apr 202248min

In this month’s series, we’ll take a look at the fascinating phenomenon of narcissistic family cults - a family unit that exhibits all the hallmarks of a traditional cult group but is led by a narcissistic family member - usually a parent.  In this episode, a couple with thirteen children spend decades isolating themselves from the outside world. The public would be shocked when it was discovered their children had been subjected to long-term ritualistic abuse, neglect, and deprivation in one of the worst cases of child abuse ever recorded in California.  Links: Patreon - www.patreon.com/onceuponacrime - Become a Patreon member of Once Upon a Crime to get ad-free, early release episodes, and more perks.  Military Murder Podcast - Check out my friend Margo’s podcast - Military Murder! www.militarymurderpodcast.com.  Resources: The Family Next Door by John Glatt, St. Martin’s Press, 2019.  David Turpin Biography: 13 Things About Perris, California Engineer Turpin Trial: Couple Jailed for Life for ‘Inhuman’ Child Abuse All That’s Interesting: Louise Turpin California Torture House: Louise Turpin’s Sister Said Sibling Experimented with Religion, Sex People: Couple Accused in Calif. House of Horrors Case ‘Ran Away’ to Marry When She was 16 and He Was 23 David and Louise Turpin Eloped - Daily Mail Inside the Turpin “Horror House” as Young Survivors Reveal Ongoing Struggles ABC 20/20, S44/E7 - Escape from a House of Horror - A Diane Sawyer Special Event Classmate Says Oldest Turpin Sibling Was Bullied, Frail During Grade School in Viral Facebook Post Turpins: 1 Sibling’s Desperate Escape Attempt Foiled When Police Forced Her Back to the House California Torture Case Raises Questions About Home School Regulation People: I Lived with the House of Horrors Family: What Relative Says She Saw Years Before Child Torture Case Came to Light  CNN: Judge Bars Turpins from Contacting Children People - From a Desperate Escape to Revelations of Shocking Abuse: How Abuse of Horrors Case Unfolded Huffpost - Turpin Children Speak Out About Life in California ‘House of Horrors’See Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.

9 Apr 202259min

A young man’s racist ideology lead him to take the lives of 51 people and injure dozens more all while recording and uploading a video of the murders to Facebook Live.  Resources: Royal Commission of Inquiry into the Terrorist Attack on Christchurch Mosques on 15 March 2019. https://christchurchattack.royalcommission.nz “Massacre Suspect Traveled the World but Lived on the Internet” by David D. Kirkpatrick for The New York Times, March 15, 2019.  “NZ gunman to stay silent at sentencing after families bring court to tears” by Nick Perry for The Times of Israel, 26 August 2020.  “The Christchurch shooting was streamed lived, but think twice about watching it” by Colleen Murrelll for abc.net.au, Mar 15, 2019.  “Family of alleged gunman apologises to Christchurch victims” by Padraig Collins for The Irish Times, Mar 17, 2109.  Links:  website - www.truecrimepodcast.com Patreon - www.patreon.com/onceuponacrime See Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.

28 Mars 202230min