Crime and Mystery Podcast

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• Ep 4 | THE BOY IN THE BOX | Nobody Could Identify Him For 65 Years — Then DNA Changed Everything 31.05.2026 1Std. 21Min.

  This episode relied primarily on reporting and documentation from the following sources:The Philadelphia Inquirer's ongoing coverage of the case, including the January 2023 investigation into the identity of Joseph's parents by reporter Claudia Vargas and colleagues. NBC10 Philadelphia's reporting on the December 2022 identification press conference. The A&E Network's detailed case summary published September 2025. Court and public records from the Philadelphia Police Department. Academic and forensic literature on forensic genetic genealogy and the methodology used by Othram Inc. and Identifinders International. The original Medical Examiner's case files as cited in historical reporting.The name "Joseph Augustus Zarelli" was assigned as part of the identification process; it combines elements of his parents' names. His birth certificate exists and was located as part of the identification, but his original given name at birth has not been publicly confirmed. All characterizations of the parents' circumstances are drawn from the Philadelphia Inquirer's 2023 investigation and public statements from their respective family representatives. The investigation into Joseph's homicide is ongoing as of the publication of this episode. Nothing in this script should be understood as an accusation against any individual not publicly charged with a crime.In memory of Joseph Augustus Zarelli. January 13, 1953 — February 1957. Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. His name was restored to him on December 8, 2022.CRIME & MYSTERY PODCAST is an independent podcast. If you have information about the death of Joseph Augustus Zarelli, please contact the Philadelphia Police Department's Homicide Unit.
• Ep 3 | JonBenét Ramsey | A Complete Account from Christmas Night 1996 to the Present 29.05.2026 1Std. 46Min.

  JonBenét Ramsey. A Complete Account from Christmas Night 1996 to the PresentEvery investigative development, every piece of forensic evidence, the grand jury proceedings, the DNA evidence, and the honest account of what can be concludedThis episode examined the murder of JonBenét Patricia Ramsey; the forensic evidence, including blunt force trauma, strangulation, the garrote constructed from household materials, the ransom note and its forensic analysis, the DNA evidence recovered from clothing and confirmed through touch DNA analysis in 2008; the institutional conflict between the Boulder Police Department and the Boulder County District Attorney's office; the grand jury proceedings of 1998–1999 and the 2013 unsealing of the grand jury's vote; the 2008 formal exoneration of the Ramsey family; the 2006 false confession of John Mark Karr; the defamation litigation brought by Burke Ramsey; and the current status of the investigation. All forensic findings cited are drawn from published autopsy reports, court documents, the Lacy exoneration letter of 2008, and the reporting of journalists who have had access to the investigative record. Where findings are disputed among experts, both positions have been presented. Where the evidence is insufficient to support a conclusion, that insufficiency has been acknowledged directly.
• Jack the Ripper | The Complete Case 28.05.2026 1Std. 34Min.

  This is the full case of the unsolved crimes of Jack the RipperSources consulted in the preparation of this podcast include: the Metropolitan Police files held at the National Archives; the inquest records for each victim; Philip Sugden's The Complete History of Jack the Ripper (1994), which remains the most rigorously sourced single-volume treatment of the case; Hallie Rubenhold's The Five (2019), which provides the most complete biographical reconstruction of the victims; Paul Begg's Jack the Ripper: The Definitive History (2003); the Macnaghten Memorandum (1894); the Swanson Marginalia (discovered 1987); the Littlechild Letter (discovered 1993); and the primary documentary sources available through the Casebook: Jack the Ripper online archive.Contested claims are treated as contested. Definitive statements are limited to what the primary record actually shows.
• The Black Dahlia | Elizabeth Short's Life, Death, and the Investigation That Never Ended 28.05.2026 1Std. 27Min.

  The full case of "The Black Dahlia"Elizabeth Short's life and death — the complete investigation, every suspect in detail, the specific failures of the Los Angeles Police Department, and why one of the most investigated murders in American history has never been solvedSources consulted for this episode include the original LAPD case file materials as reproduced in court proceedings and press reporting; the Los Angeles County Coroner's original autopsy report as described in contemporary accounts and subsequent scholarly examination; Larry Harnisch's meticulous multi-decade journalism on the case at the Los Angeles Times and subsequently at his own archive; Steve Hodel's "Black Dahlia Avenger" (2003) and subsequent volumes; John Gilmore's "Severed" (1994); Piu Eatwell's "Black Dahlia, Red Rose" (2017); Donald Wolfe's "The Black Dahlia Files" (2005); the scholarship of Miles Corwin, particularly "The Killing Season"; contemporary press coverage in the Los Angeles Examiner, Los Angeles Times, and Los Angeles Herald Express; and various academic examinations of LAPD history and forensic science history of the 1940s. Where sources conflict, this episode has attempted to represent the conflict honestly rather than resolve it artificially. Where the record is incomplete or disputed, that incompleteness and dispute has been acknowledged rather than papered over. The case of Elizabeth Short deserves no less.CRIME & MYSTERY PODCAST is a podcast about cases that deserve complete treatment. If you have information relevant to any open case discussed on this program, contact the relevant law enforcement agency directly.