The Trail Went Cold

January 15, 2008. Chicago, Illinois. 15-year old Yasmin Acree is seen going to bed in the basement of her residence, but she is discovered to be missing the following day and there are signs of a break-in on the exterior basement door. Over one year later, Jimmie Terrell Smith, who had previously lived in the upstairs apartment at Yasmin’s residence, is charged with a series of sex crimes and mentions of Smith’s name are found in Yasmin’s diary. Even though Smith claims to have knowledge of what happened to Yasmin, this information is never substantiated and no conclusive evidence links him to the disappearance. On this week’s episode of “The Trail Went Cold”, we chronicle the sad story of a teenage girl who endured an abusive childhood before she vanished without explanation.
If you have any information about this case, please contact the Chicago Police Department at (312) 746-8365.
Thanks, Shudder. To try Shudder free for 30 days, go to shudder.com and use code the promo code “COLD“.
Additional Reading:
https://charleyproject.org/case/yasmin-rayon-acree
https://abc7chicago.com/yasmin-acree-missing-disapperance-teen/5853809/
https://www.chicagotribune.com/suburbs/oak-park/ct-xpm-2014-02-25-ct-yasmin-acree-mother-death-met-0227-20140226-story.html
https://www.newspapers.com/image/234539188/
https://www.newspapers.com/image/232575738/
https://www.newspapers.com/image/232589349/
https://www.newspapers.com/image/233010367/
https://www.newspapers.com/image/233010579
https://www.newspapers.com/image/233010509
https://www.dnainfo.com/chicago/20160316/englewood/man-pleads-guilty-violently-raping-young-girls-after-years-of-delays/
https://www.dnainfo.com/chicago/20170926/englewood/jimmie-smith-serial-rapist-sentencing-kidnapping-abduction-2009
https://chicago.suntimes.com/news/2019/10/24/20931275/convicted-rapist-jimmie-smith-guilty-murder-hire-plot-linn-papa-judge-prosecutor
“The Trail Went Cold” is on Patreon! Visit www.patreon.com/thetrailwentcold to become a patron and gain access to our exclusive bonus content.
“The Trail Went Cold” is now doing a weekly livestream show on  GetVokl every Thursday from 7:00-8:00 PM ET as part of their “True  Crime Thursday” line-up. For more information, please visit their website.
The Trail Went Cold is produced and edited by Magill Foote.
All music is composed by Vince Nitro.
 

July 19, 1996. Westwego, Louisiana. After leaving her apartment to walk to a supermarket, 14-year old Crystal Champagne fails to return and is found strangled to death in a wooded area the following evening. When Crystal’s 22-year old step-cousin, Damon Thibodeaux, is interrogated by police, he confesses to her murder and is subsequently convicted and sentenced to death. However, Damon maintains that his confession was coerced and none of the physical evidence from the crime matches him, so after 16 years of incarceration, Damon’s conviction is vacated and he is released from death row. But who was actually responsible for the death of Crystal Champagne? On this week’s episode of “The Trail Went Cold”, we explore the tragic story of an horrific murder which led to a wrongful conviction. Special thanks to listener Anne King for narrating the opening of this episode.
Additional Reading:
https://www.cbsnews.com/news/damon-thibodeaux-last-chance/
https://innocenceproject.org/cases/damon-thibodeaux/
https://caselaw.findlaw.com/la-supreme-court/1325303.html
https://www.law.umich.edu/special/exoneration/Pages/casedetail.aspx?caseid=4004
https://www.theguardian.com/world/2012/dec/07/dna-testing-frees-man-death-row
https://www.startribune.com/life-after-death-row-damon-thibodeaux-s-resurrection/318969021/
https://www.washingtonpost.com/national/louisiana-death-row-inmate-damon-thibodeaux-is-exonerated-with-dna-evidence/2012/09/28/26e30012-0997-11e2-afff-d6c7f20a83bf_story.html
https://www.startribune.com/damon-thibodeaux-escaped-death-row-for-a-crime-he-didn-t-commit-but-died-of-covid-19/600096179/
Download Best Fiends FREE today on the Apple App Store or Google Play.
“The Trail Went Cold” is on Patreon! Visit www.patreon.com/thetrailwentcold to become a patron and gain access to our exclusive bonus content.
“The Trail Went Cold” is now doing a weekly livestream show on  GetVokl every Thursday from 7:00-8:00 PM ET as part of their “True  Crime Thursday” line-up. For more information, please visit their website.
The Trail Went Cold is produced and edited by Magill Foote.
All music is composed by Vince Nitro.

March 27, 2004. London, England. 50-year old Richard Lancelyn Green, considered to be the world’s foremost scholar on Sherlock Holmes, is discovered dead on top of his bed inside his flat. His cause of death is determined to be asphyxiation, as he was garrotted with a shoelace which was tightened around his neck with a wooden spoon. Prior to his death, Lancelyn Green told people his life was in danger over a dispute involving a collection of rare documents from author Sir Arthur Conan Doyle, but since there is no definitive evidence pointing towards homicide or suicide, the coroner returns an open verdict on his death. Was Richard Lancelyn Green the victim of foul play or did he intentionally stage a very unusual and elaborate suicide? On this week’s episode of “The Trail Went Cold”, we explore the unexplained death of a Sherlock Holmes expert which resembles a scene from a fictional murder mystery.
Additional Reading:
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Richard_Lancelyn_Green
https://www.newyorker.com/magazine/2004/12/13/mysterious-circumstances
https://www.theguardian.com/uk/2004/may/23/books.booksnews
https://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/uknews/1478814/Case-of-the-Sherlock-Holmes-fanatic-who-killed-himself-but-made-it-look-like-murder.html
http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/uk_news/england/london/3653645.stm
https://www.smh.com.au/world/hint-of-murder-in-suicide-of-expert-on-conan-doyle-20041213-gdkays.html
https://www.thefreelibrary.com/%60Perfect+mystery%27+of+writer%27s+death+plot%3B+Claim+on+Sherlock+Holmes…-a0126061909
Be sure to check out our promo for the serialized true crime podcast, “Tapes from the Darkside”. Each season, they take one case and investigate in-depth using primary audio from 911 calls, police interrogations and interviews, court proceedings, and any other relevant source they can find.
“The Trail Went Cold” is on Patreon! Visit www.patreon.com/thetrailwentcold to become a patron and gain access to our exclusive bonus content.
“The Trail Went Cold” is now doing a weekly livestream show on  GetVokl every Thursday from 7:00-8:00 PM ET as part of their “True  Crime Thursday” line-up. For more information, please visit their website.
The Trail Went Cold is produced and edited by Magill Foote.
All music is composed by Vince Nitro.

October 28, 1991. Wheeling, Illinois. A 911 dispatcher receives an anonymous call from a payphone by a man asking for medical attention for a woman. When paramedics arrive at the address the caller provides, they discover the unconscious body of 27-year old exotic dancer Jamie Santos on her bedroom floor and it turns out she has been suffocated with a pillow. There is ambiguity about whether the caller was Jamie’s killer or an innocent bystander who found her body, but he cannot be identified and Jamie’s murder is never solved.
May 1, 1991. Palm Beach County, Florida. The Miami Police Department receives a 911 call from a Spanish-speaking man calling himself “Antonio”, who claims he had witnessed the brutal murder of an African-American woman in a remote sugar can field one week earlier. When police check out the location Antonio described, they find the decomposed body of 26-year old Rebecca Young, who was fatally attacked with a machete. Even though investigators eventually turn up a promising suspect, they lack the evidence to make an arrest and the mysterious “Antonio” is never tracked down.
On this week’s episode of “The Trail Went Cold”, we explore two separate unsolved murders which were reported by anonymous 911 callers.
If have any information about the murder of Jamie Santos, please contact the Wheeling Police Department at (847) 459-2632. If you have any information about the murder of Rebecca Young, please contact the Palm Beach County Sheriff’s Office at (561) 688-3000.
Thanks to Manly Bands. Get 21% off your Manly Band for a limited time and get a free silicone ring at manlybands.com/cold.
Thanks to ReadySlim. For a limited time, save 25% on your first 28 Day Detox Tea Kit order plus a free collapsible water bottle, at readyslim.com/COLD.
Additional Reading:
https://unsolved.com/gallery/jamie-santos/
https://unsolvedmysteries.fandom.com/wiki/Jamie_Santos
https://abc7chicago.com/archive/8409252/
https://www.chicagotribune.com/news/ct-xpm-1991-11-01-9104080336-story.html
https://www.chicagotribune.com/news/ct-xpm-1992-05-15-9202130130-story.html
https://unsolved.com/gallery/rebecca-young/
https://unsolvedmysteries.fandom.com/wiki/Rebecca_Young
https://www.sun-sentinel.com/news/fl-xpm-1991-05-06-9102250177-story.html
https://www.sun-sentinel.com/news/fl-xpm-1992-11-11-9202280959-story.html
“The Trail Went Cold” is on Patreon! Visit www.patreon.com/thetrailwentcold to become a patron and gain access to our exclusive bonus content.
“The Trail Went Cold” is now doing a weekly livestream show on  GetVokl every Thursday from 7:00-8:00 PM ET as part of their “True  Crime Thursday” line-up. For more information, please visit their website.
The Trail Went Cold is produced and edited by Magill Foote.
All music is composed by Vince Nitro.

November 7, 1997. New York City. 54-year old Michael Sullivan and his 36-year old girlfriend, Camden Sylvia, vanish without explanation from their loft in Manhattan and are reported missing six days later. Suspicion falls upon the couple’s landlord, Robert Rodriguez, who was involved in a dispute with them prior to their disappearances and refuses to cooperate with the investigation. It turns out that Rodriguez is connected to the unsolved disappearance of another man named David King which took place six years earlier and he eventually winds up going to prison on fraud charges. What happened to Michael Sullivan and Camden Sylvia? Was Robert Rodriguez responsible for their disappearances? On this week’s episode of “The Trail Went Cold”, we cover a puzzling case involving a missing couple who seemingly vanished into thin air in downtown Manhattan.
If you have any information about this case, please call the New York Police Department at (646) 610-6914.
Additional Reading:
https://charleyproject.org/case/camden-anne-sylvia
https://charleyproject.org/case/michael-sullivan
https://charleyproject.org/case/david-king
https://www.nytimes.com/1997/11/15/nyregion/a-couple-are-missing-and-friends-are-baffled.html
https://www.nytimes.com/1997/11/18/nyregion/2-are-missing-now-landlord-is-also-gone.html
https://www.nytimes.com/1997/11/19/nyregion/police-copters-scan-property-of-landlord.html
https://www.nytimes.com/1997/11/20/nyregion/search-blocked-in-case-of-3-who-vanished.html
https://www.nytimes.com/1997/11/25/nyregion/in-disappearance-case-landlord-s-vehicle-is-found.html
https://www.nytimes.com/1997/12/12/nyregion/body-seen-as-potential-clue-to-missing-3.html
https://www.nytimes.com/1999/01/06/nyregion/missing-couple-s-landlord-arraigned-in-fraud-case.html
https://www.nytimes.com/2002/07/27/nyregion/landlord-of-missing-manhattan-couple-to-be-paroled-in-month.html
https://www.nytimes.com/2012/05/29/nyregion/for-camden-sylvia-and-michael-sullivan-who-disappeared-in-1997-still-some-hope.html
https://pix11.com/news/local-news/manhattan/mom-still-wants-truth-about-mystery-of-missing-tenants-20-years-later/
https://www.newyorker.com/magazine/1997/12/08/housing-department
https://www.recordonline.com/article/20010217/news/302179983
https://www.nydailynews.com/news/crime/decade-no-answers-camden-sylvia-disappearance-article-1.259577
https://www.nydailynews.com/news/crime/archives-missing-manhattan-couple-article-1.259538
https://www.thefreelibrary.com/Anatomy+of+a+building+in+distress.-a020189711
https://www.villagevoice.com/1998/08/04/birthday-wishes/
https://www.newspapers.com/image/709587296/
https://www.newspapers.com/image/709587377/
https://www.newspapers.com/image/709587261/
https://www.newspapers.com/image/408784163/
https://www.newspapers.com/image/408528760/
https://www.newspapers.com/image/485305814/
“The Trail Went Cold” is on Patreon! Visit www.patreon.com/thetrailwentcold to become a patron and gain access to our exclusive bonus content.
“The Trail Went Cold” is going to be appearing on podcast row at “Crimecon UK” at the Leonardo Royal Hotel &  Spa in London on September 25-26, 2021. To get a 10 % discount on the purchase of tickets to the event, please use our specialized promo  code, “COLD21”, by visiting https://www.crimecon.co.uk.
“The Trail Went Cold” is now doing a weekly livestream show on  GetVokl every Thursday from 7:00-8:00 PM ET as part of their “True  Crime Thursday” line-up. For more information, please visit their website.
The Trail Went Cold is produced and edited by Magill Foote.
All music is composed by Vince Nitro.

June 29, 2001. Marysville, Ohio. After completing her shift at the Honda automotive plant, 29-year old Patti Adkins clocks out in order to leave on what she claims is a vacation to Canada with her boyfriend. When Patti fails to return after a week-and-a-half, she is reported missing, but her boyfriend denies this trip took place or that he was even involved in a relationship with Patti. It turns out this man was married and Patti had been paying him large sums of money during their affair, but even though investigators find him to be suspicious, there is not enough evidence to make an arrest. On this week’s episode of “The Trail Went Cold”, which explore the disappearance of Patti Adkins, which has remained unsolved for the past 20 years.
If you have any information about this case, please contact the Union County Sheriff’s Department at (937) 645-4110.
Additional Reading:
http://charleyproject.org/case/patricia-ann-adkins
https://disappearedblog.com/patricia-adkins/
https://www.nbcnews.com/feature/missing-in-america/ohio-mother-patricia-adkins-remains-missing-17-years-after-her-n885956
https://www.dispatch.com/article/20100906/NEWS/309069879
https://www.dispatch.com/content/stories/local/2010/09/07/timeline.html
https://abc6onyourside.com/news/local/daughter-speaks-for-first-time-15-years-after-moms-disappearance
Download Best Fiends FREE today on the Apple App Store or Google Play.
“The Trail Went Cold” is on Patreon! Visit www.patreon.com/thetrailwentcold to become a patron and gain access to our exclusive bonus content.
“The Trail Went Cold” is going to be appearing on podcast row at “Crimecon UK” at the Leonardo Royal Hotel &  Spa in London on September 25-26, 2021. To get a 10 % discount on the purchase of tickets to the event, please use our specialized promo  code, “COLD21”, by visiting https://www.crimecon.co.uk.
“The Trail Went Cold” is now doing a weekly livestream show on  GetVokl every Thursday from 7:00-8:00 PM ET as part of their “True  Crime Thursday” line-up. For more information, please visit their website.
The Trail Went Cold is produced and edited by Magill Foote.
All music is composed by Vince Nitro.

March 1, 1976. Bethesda, Maryland. 37-year old Annette Bishop, her 68-year old mother-in-law Lobelia Bishop, and Annette’s three sons – 14-year old Brad, 10-year old Brent and five-year old Geoffrey – are all bludgeoned to death inside their home. The following day, the victims’ burning bodies are discovered in a shallow hole in a remote area of North Carolina, but the family’s patriarch – 39-year old William Bradford Bishop – is missing. Since the evidence shows that Bishop committed the crime, he is indicted on five counts of murder, but even though there are a number of reported sightings of him over the years and he spends some time on the FBI’s “Ten Most Wanted Fugitives” list, Bishop is never found. Did William Bradford Bishop disappear into a remote area to kill himself or did he manage to escape and start a new life somehow? On this week’s episode of “The Trail Went Cold”, we explore the horrific story of the Bishop family murders and a wanted family annihilator who has managed to elude justice for 45 years. Special thanks to listener Matt Smith for narrating the opening of this episode.
Thanks to ReadySlim. For a limited time, save 25% on your first 28 Day Detox Tea Kit order plus a free collapsible water bottle, at readyslim.com/COLD.
Thanks to Manly Bands. To get 25% off your Manly Band for a limited time, and get a free silicone ring, go to manlybands.com/cold.
Additional Reading:
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Bradford_Bishop
http://unsolved.com/gallery/william-bishop
https://www.latimes.com/archives/la-xpm-1997-aug-11-ls-21347-story.html
https://www.newspapers.com/image/436633661/
https://www.newspapers.com/image/262985578/
http://www.bethesdamagazine.com/Bethesda-Magazine/May-June-2013/Bradford-Bishop-Murders/
http://www.nbcwashington.com/investigations/series/brad-bishop/The-Hunt-for-William-Bradford-Bishop-254593361.html
http://www.wjla.com/articles/2014/10/fbi-body-exhumed-in-ala-is-not-brad-bishop-most-wanted-md-fugitive-108133.html
http://www.wbir.com/article/news/crime/appalachian-unsolved-the-diplomat-accused-of-murdering-his-family-part-1/51-512842729
https://www.wbir.com/article/news/investigations/appalachian-unsolved/appalachian-unsolved-the-diplomat-accused-of-killing-his-family-part-2/51-516155553
https://www.wbir.com/article/news/crime/appalachian-unsolved-the-mass-murderers-daughter/51-0cc0d47e-8178-4f10-bae7-28dc69a34402
https://www.washingtonpost.com/nation/2021/03/09/bradford-bishop-dna-test-fbi/
“A Killer in the Family” by Peter Ross Range
“The Trail Went Cold” is on Patreon! Visit www.patreon.com/thetrailwentcold to become a patron and gain access to our exclusive bonus content.
“The Trail Went Cold” is going to be appearing on podcast row at “Crimecon UK” at the Leonardo Royal Hotel &  Spa in London on September 25-26, 2021. To get a 10 % discount on the purchase of tickets to the event, please use our specialized promo  code, “COLD21”, by visiting https://www.crimecon.co.uk.
“The Trail Went Cold” is now doing a weekly livestream show on  GetVokl every Thursday from 7:00-8:00 PM ET as part of their “True  Crime Thursday” line-up. For more information, please visit their website.
The Trail Went Cold is produced and edited by Magill Foote.
All music is composed by Vince Nitro.

February 23, 1974. Los Angeles, California. Police are summoned to the home of 41-year old orthopedic surgeon Ted Loseff after his wife, Wilda, claims that he threatened her with a gun. When police search the residence, they find Ted’s body inside his car in the garage and he has seemingly taken his own life via carbon monoxide poisoning. However, Ted’s mother discovers a number of suspicious discrepancies to suggest her son did not kill himself and that Wilda may hired someone to murder him and stage the suicide scene. While a coronial inquest takes place and the investigation is eventually reopened, there is not enough evidence to charge anyone with a crime. Was Ted Loseff’s death really a suicide or was he the victim of an elaborate murder-for-hire plot? We explore both sides of this very controversial case on this week’s episode of “The Trail Went Cold”.
Additional Reading:
https://unsolved.com/gallery/ted-loseff/
https://unsolvedmysteries.fandom.com/wiki/Ted_Loseff
https://www.latimes.com/archives/la-xpm-1985-04-21-me-13201-story.html
https://www.newspapers.com/image/169546053/
https://www.newspapers.com/image/389014084/
“The Trail Went Cold” is on Patreon! Visit www.patreon.com/thetrailwentcold to become a patron and gain access to our exclusive bonus content.
“The Trail Went Cold” is going to be appearing on podcast row at “Crimecon UK” at the Leonardo Royal Hotel &  Spa in London on September 25-26, 2021. To get a 10 % discount on the purchase of tickets to the event, please use our specialized promo  code, “COLD21”, by visiting https://www.crimecon.co.uk.
“The Trail Went Cold” is now doing a weekly livestream show on  GetVokl every Thursday from 7:00-8:00 PM ET as part of their “True  Crime Thursday” line-up. For more information, please visit their website.
The Trail Went Cold is produced and edited by Magill Foote.
All music is composed by Vince Nitro.

July 26, 1993. Llanharry, Wales. 65-year old Harry Tooze and his 67-year old wife, Megan Tooze, are both shot to death at their remote farm before their bodies are hidden inside the cowshed. The investigation eventually focuses on Jonathan Jones, the boyfriend of the Toozes’ daughter, and after his thumbprint is found on a saucer inside the farmhouse, he is charged with the murders. While Jonathan is found guilty of the crime and sentenced to life imprisonment, the Court of Appeal deems his conviction to be unsafe and he is released from prison one year later. If Jonathan Jones was not responsible for the murders of Harry and Megan Tooze, then who was? And what could their motive have been? For the first time, “The Trail Went Cold” explores an unsolved cold case from Wales, which is considered to be one of their baffling crimes ever.
Additional Reading:
https://www.herald.wales/crime/potatoes-cabbages-and-teacups-the-murder-of-harry-and-megan-tooze/
https://www.walesonline.co.uk/news/wales-news/shocking-execution-style-shootings-elderly-15513527
https://www.irishtimes.com/news/murder-conviction-quashed-1.43324
https://www.bbc.com/news/uk-wales-south-east-wales-23459713
https://www.independent.co.uk/news/uk/man-who-killed-inheritance-jailed-life-man-given-life-murders-remote-farm-life-sentences-farmhouse-double-murder-sentenced-life-given-life-killing-fiancee-s-parents-1614522.html
https://www.newspapers.com/image/260766047/
https://www.newspapers.com/image/260785986/
https://www.newspapers.com/image/725105017/
https://www.newspapers.com/image/260910851/
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/John_Cooper_(serial_killer)
Listen to the latest episode of This Is Actually Happening on Apple Podcasts, Amazon Music, or listen ad-free by joining Wondery Plus in the Wondery app.
“The Trail Went Cold” is on Patreon! Visit www.patreon.com/thetrailwentcold to become a patron and gain access to our exclusive bonus content.
“The Trail Went Cold” is going to be appearing on podcast row at “Crimecon UK” at the Leonardo Royal Hotel &  Spa in London on September 25-26, 2021. To get a 10 % discount on the purchase of tickets to the event, please use our specialized promo  code, “COLD21”, by visiting https://www.crimecon.co.uk.
“The Trail Went Cold” is now doing a weekly livestream show on  GetVokl every Thursday from 7:00-8:00 PM ET as part of their “True  Crime Thursday” line-up. For more information, please visit their website.
The Trail Went Cold is produced and edited by Magill Foote.
All music is composed by Vince Nitro.

June 13, 1977. Ohio County, West Virginia. Roberta Elam, a 26-year old postulant known as “Sister Robin” who is planning to become a nun, is seen living the motherhouse of the Mount St. Joseph convent. Hours later, Sister Robin’s body is found on top of a nearby hill in a secluded mediation area and she has been raped and strangled to death. There is immediate speculation that the crime might be connected to the murders of four other young women, which took place in neighbouring Washington County during the preceding months. However, in recent years, investigators have started looking at a potential suspect who supposedly confessed to Sister Robin’s murder. On this week’s episode of “The Trail Went Cold”, we cover the unsolved death of Sister Roberta Elam and explore its potential connection to a number of other homicides which took place during that time period.
If you have any information about the murder of Sister Roberta Elam, please contact the Ohio County Sheriff’s Office at (304) 234-3680. If you have information about any of the other cold cases mentioned on this episode, please contact the Washington County Sheriff’s Office at (740) 373-2833.Additional Reading:
https://www.oxygen.com/the-dna-of-murder-with-paul-holes/crime-news/paul-holes-roberta-elam-nun-murder
https://www.post-gazette.com/uncategorized/2005/10/16/Case-reopened-in-1977-killing-of-postulant-nun/stories/200510160251
“Who Killed…? Pittsburgh, Pa.” by Jack Swint
“Mysterious WV” Youtube Episode (Apr. 28, 2017)
http://old.post-gazette.com/neigh_washington/20030928wacover0928p1.asp
http://old.post-gazette.com/neigh_washington/20031005wacover1005p2.asp
https://archive.triblive.com/local/local-news/two-charged-in-1977-murder-of-charlerois-mary-irene-gency/
https://www.post-gazette.com/local/washington/2011/10/26/Decades-later-pregnant-teen-s-killer-convicted/stories/201110260241
“The Trail Went Cold” is on Patreon! Visit www.patreon.com/thetrailwentcold to become a patron and gain access to our exclusive bonus content.
“The Trail Went Cold” is going to be appearing on podcast row at “Crimecon UK” at the Leonardo Royal Hotel &  Spa in London on September 25-26, 2021. To get a 10 % discount on the purchase of tickets to the event, please use our specialized promo  code, “COLD21”, by visiting https://www.crimecon.co.uk.
“The Trail Went Cold” is now doing a weekly livestream show on  GetVokl every Thursday from 7:00-8:00 PM ET as part of their “True  Crime Thursday” line-up. For more information, please visit their website.
The Trail Went Cold is produced and edited by Magill Foote.
All music is composed by Vince Nitro.