The Trail Went Cold

December 1, 1991. Herndon, Virginia. The parents of 21-year old Tommy Burkett return home to find him dead in his bedroom, the apparent victim of a self-inflicted gunshot wound. When the authorities arrive, Tommy’s parents are immediately taken aback by their suspicious behaviour and notice strange discrepancies to make them believe their son did not commit suicide. Upon further investigation, they find evidence to suggest Tommy might have been murdered for doing undercover work with the Drug Enforcement Administration on his university campus and that a massive cover-up surrounds his death. Did Tommy Burkett actually take his own life, or did many people conspire to have him killed? On this week’s episode of “The Trail Went Cold”, we tackle one of the most suspicious suicide cases you’ll ever come across. Special thanks to listener Eve Davis for providing the opening narration for today’s episode.
Additional Reading:
https://unsolved.com/gallery/tommy-burkett/
http://unsolvedmysteries.wikia.com/wiki/Thomas_Burkett
http://www.dcdave.com/article4/020704.htm
http://web.archive.org/web/20051105020746/http://thepacc.org:80/
The Trail Went Cold is produced and edited by Magill Foote.
All music is composed by Vince Nitro.

June 15, 1998. Bloomington, Illinois. Three-year old Christina McNeil is discovered dead inside her bedroom and small cuts can be found in her window screen. The investigation soon focuses on Christina’s father, Barton McNeil, who is eventually convicted of his daughter’s murder and receives a life sentence. However, Barton continually maintains his innocence and points the finger at another suspect, who winds up going to prison for another brutal murder years later. This controversial case is the subject of the second season of the true crime podcast, “Suspect Convictions”. The podcast is produced by veteran investigative journalist Scott Reeder, who appeared on “The Trail Went Cold” earlier this year to discuss the first season, and has joined us again to talk to us about this new season of “Suspect Convictions”.
Click here to visit the “Suspect Convictions” website and download the podcast.
The Trail Went Cold is produced and edited by Magill Foote.
All music is composed by Vince Nitro.

September 7, 2015. Fridley, Minnesota. After spending the evening at a nightclub, 32-year old Henry McCabe is dropped off at a gas station by an acquaintance sometime after 2:00 AM. Shortly thereafter, Henry’s wife receives a phone call in which he sounds like he’s moaning in pain and claiming he’s been shot, and she winds up recording an odd voicemail containing unexplained growling noises. Henry’s body is found in Rush Lake nearly two months later and since there are no noticeable signs of foul play, the cause of death is determined to be drowning. But how did Henry wind up in the lake, and what was going on during his bizarre phone call? In this week’s minisode of “The Trail Went Cold”, we cover a truly baffling unexplained death based around one of the strangest voicemails you’ll ever hear.
Thanks to HelloFresh for supporting our podcast. Go to www.HelloFresh.com and use the code cold30 to get $30 off your first week of deliveries.
Additional Reading:
http://abcnews.go.com/US/disturbing-voicemail-woman-missing-husbands-phone-hold-clues/story?id=34177863
http://www.startribune.com/body-found-in-lake-is-missing-mounds-view-man-henry-mccabe/339975911/
http://spokesman-recorder.com/2016/03/30/vanished-without-trace-really-happened-henry-t-mccabe/
http://www.twincities.com/2015/10/06/in-case-of-missing-mounds-view-man-friends-story-questioned/
http://www.fox9.com/news/surveillance-video-uncovers-new-details-in-search-for-henry-mccabe
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The Trail Went Cold is produced and edited by Magill Foote.
All music is composed by Vince Nitro.

Happy Halloween, everyone! As a special piece of bonus content this month, “The Trail Went Cold” has participated in a joint collaboration with over a dozen podcasters in which each of us share our own scary Halloween-themed story. Hosted by Tyler from The Minds of Madness, the end result is the spookiest Halloween podcast episode you’ve ever heard.
Contributing Podcasts:
CreepyFairy Tales for Unwanted ChildrenThe Murder Road Trip PodcastEvil PodcastThe Trail Went ColdAmerican Crimecast36 TimesMoms & MurderTrue Crime IslandCold Case NotesThere Might Be CupcakesBless This MessThe Mad Scientist PodcastThe Minds Of Madness
Music Credits:
Kevin McLeod – Nightmare MachineKevin McLeod – Classic Horror 1Kevin McLeod – IntrepidKevin McLeod – Devastation and RevengeKevin McLeod – Evening of ChaosKevin McLeod – Unnatural SituationKevin McLeod – Private ReflectionKevin McLeod – The House of LeavesKevin McLeod – UnpromisedKevin McLeod – Private ReflectionKevin McLeod – VanishingKevin McLeod – Impromptu in BlueKevin McLeod – Tenebrous Brothers Carnival – IntermissionKevin McLeod – Thunder DreamsKevin McLeod – Blue SizzleKevin McLeod – The DreadKevin McLeod – UnrelentingKevin McLeod – ArcadiaKevin McLeod – Ghostpocalypse – 6 Crossing the ThresholdKevin McLeod – Long Note FourKevin McLeod – Pop Goes the WeaselKevin McLeod – Dark WalkKevin McLeod – Tenebrous Brothers Carnival – MermaidKevin McLeod – Darkest ChildKevin McLeod – Night BreakKevin McLeod – CryptoKevin McLeod – Come Play with MeKevin McLeod – Quinns Song-First NightKevin McLeod – MirageKevin McLeod – Lightless DawnKevin McLeod – Unseen HorrorsKevin McLeod – Bump in the NightKevin McLeod – Chase Pulse FasterKevin McLeod – Classic Horror 3Kevin McLeod – MaliciousKevin McLeod – Bent and BrokenKevin McLeod – Gloom HorizonKevin McLeod – Ice DemonKevin McLeod – Blue SizzleKevin McLeod – Chase Pulse FasterKevin McLeod – Quinn’s Song: First NightKevin McLeod – Seven MarchKevin McLeod – KillersAesis – Black AngelSurrain – FadePaolo MessereKiddycar – You Save Me From Understanding More
All music is used under an Attribution License – https://creativecommons.org/licenses/

October 21, 1978. Cape Otway, Australia. After leaving on a seemingly routine training flight in a Cessna 182 aircraft, 20-year old pilot Frederick Valentich vanishes without explanation over Bass Strait. During a radio transmission, Valentich describes seeing an unidentified flying object and his final words are: “It’s hovering and it’s not an aircraft”. When eyewitnesses report seeing strange things in the sky that night, speculation mounts that Valentich’s disappearance might have been the result of an alien encounter. For our final Halloween-themed episode of “The Trail Went Cold” this month, we will be covering our very first story involving potential UFO involvement and explore whether this caused a pilot to vanish forever. Special thanks to Cambo, host of the True Crime Island podcast for providing the voice of Frederick Valentich in this episode.
Additional Reading:
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Disappearance_of_Frederick_Valentich
https://unsolved.com/gallery/ufo-disappearance/
http://www.adelaidenow.com.au/news/truth-was-out-there-after-all/news-story/2973bd131c27da0a31f4a7b8eba643fe
http://www.mufon.com/valentich-disappearance—1978.html
Thanks to Winc for supporting our podcast. Get $22 and free shipping on your first order of wine at http://trywinc.com/cold.
The Trail Went Cold is produced and edited by Magill Foote.
All music is composed by Vince Nitro.

May 14, 2008. Marshall, Minnesota. The parents of 19-year old Brandon Swanson receive a late-night phone call from their son, who claims that his car has become stuck in a ditch in the middle of nowhere. The Swansons leave to go pick Brandon up, but have trouble finding him. At one point, Brandon’s father hears him shout a swear word over the phone before the call abruptly cuts off, and there is no answer to repeated attempts to phone him back. Even though his abandoned car is eventually found on a rural road, Brandon himself is never heard from again. What happened to Brandon Swanson, and what could have prompted his final reaction during his final phone call? In our latest Halloween-themed extended minisode of “The Trail Went Cold”, we tackle one of the scariest, most baffling missing persons cases of the past decade. Special thanks to Joe from Thinking Sideways Podcast for popping in to share a theory. Be sure to check out their episode about this case.
Additional Reading:
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Disappearance_of_Brandon_Swanson
http://charleyproject.org/case/brandon-victor-swanson
https://en.wikiversity.org/wiki/User:Jeff_Hasse/Missing_Person_Case_Study_–_Brandon_Swanson
http://www.cnn.com/2010/CRIME/01/18/grace.coldcase.swanson/index.html
The Trail Went Cold is produced and edited by Magill Foote.
All music is composed by Vince Nitro.

October 27, 2007. Grand Forks, North Dakota. 38-year old Joel Lovelien and his fiancée attend a Halloween party at a local bar. When Joel takes a moment to step outside, he is beaten to death in the parking lot. The investigation leads to a suspect named Travis Stay, who was so intoxicated that night that he cannot even remember what happened. Travis goes on trial for Joel’s murder, but his defence team manages to generate reasonable doubt by diverting attention towards a group of costumed suspects from a party bus. Did Travis Stay commit this crime or have others managed to get away with it? We look at both sides of this case in another Halloween-themed episode of “The Trail Went Cold”. Special thanks to listener Scott Owings for providing the opening narration for today’s episode.
Additional Reading:
https://www.nbcnews.com/news/other/halloween-murder-mystery-who-killed-man-hockey-costume-f8C11470596
http://www.grandforksherald.com/news/2086041-taxi-driver-tells-jurors-ride-travis-stay
http://www.grandforksherald.com/news/2086010-party-bus-riders-testify-lovelien-murder-trial
The Trail Went Cold is produced and edited by Magill Foote.
All music is composed by Vince Nitro.

October 31, 1986. Long Beach, New York. Chaim Weiss, a 15-year old Orthodox Jewish rabbinical student, returns to his dormitory after attending Shabbat services at his yeshiva high school. The following morning, Chaim’s body is found on his dorm room floor. At some point during the night, an unknown individual entered his room and brutally murdered him while he slept. Police conduct an extensive investigation and interview students and faculty members from the yeshiva, but are unable to uncover a solid suspect or any discernible motive for Chaim’s murder. We examine a very perplexing cold case on this month’s first Halloween-themed minisode of “The Trail Went Cold”.
Additional Reading:
https://unsolved.com/gallery/chaim-weiss/
http://www.nydailynews.com/news/crime/chaim-weiss-brutally-murdered-1986-article-1.2417684
http://m.nydailynews.com/new-york/investigation-continues-1986-halloween-murder-article-1.2417285
The Trail Went Cold is produced and edited by Magill Foote.
All music is composed by Vince Nitro.

October 24, 1961. Lincoln, Massachusetts. 30-year old housewife and mother Joan Risch vanishes from her home and the evidence at the scene suggests a violent abduction. Witnesses report seeing a bloody, disoriented woman matching Joan’s description walking down the road that day, but this woman is never found. Over one year later, evidence is uncovered to suggest Joan might have decided to stage her own disappearance. Was Joan Risch abducted, did she disappear voluntarily, or is there an altogether different explanation for what happened? We shall explore all the different angles of one of our most baffling and requested cases on this week’s episode of “The Trail Went Cold”.
Additional Reading:
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Disappearance_of_Joan_Risch
http://charleyproject.org/case/joan-carolyn-risch
http://archive.boston.com/news/local/massachusetts/articles/1996/08/28/8_28_96_spatterd_blood_and_speculation/
“The Search for Joan Risch: Presented by New England’s Untold Stories”
Thanks to Winc for supporting our podcast. Get $22 and free shipping on your first order of wine at http://trywinc.com/cold.
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The Trail Went Cold is produced and edited by Magill Foote.
All music is composed by Vince Nitro.

June 4, 1999. Wasilla, Alaska. While spending the night at a friend’s house, 15-year old Michael Palmer slips out to attend a graduation party. While biking home with friends, Michael vanishes without a trace, but his bicycle and sneakers are soon discovered at separate locations. In April 2010, Michael’s older brother, Chucky, disappears while riding a snow machine in the Talkeetna Mountains. Even though his snow machine is recovered, Chucky himself is never found. This week’s minisode of “The Trail Went Cold” is one of the most tragic stories we’ve ever covered, as two brothers from the same family go missing under mysterious circumstances over a decade apart.
Thanks to HelloFresh for supporting our podcast. Go to www.HelloFresh.com and use the code cold30 to get $30 off your first week of deliveries.
Additional Reading:
http://charleyproject.org/case/michael-timothy-palmer
http://charleyproject.org/case/charles-edwin-palmer-v
http://www.akfatal.net/Palmer%2006-04-97.htm
http://www.frontiersman.com/news/youth-still-missing-after-seven-years/article_4778a9bd-9231-5e38-bf8a-d2aa21a7fba1.html
https://www.adn.com/alaska-news/article/last-brother/2010/04/16/
The Trail Went Cold is produced and edited by Magill Foote.
All music is composed by Vince Nitro.