Episode Four: Villisca Axe Murders

Sometime between midnight June 9 1912 and early morning June 10 1912 in the town of Villisca, the six members of the Moore family and their overnight guests, the two Stillinger sisters were found bludgeoned to death with Joe Moore's own axe. Despite a hampered investigation, several suspects have been tried and acquitted. Over 100 years later, this crime remains unsolved.

Who killed the Moore family and the Stillinger girls? Why would anyone carry out such a brutal crime on this seemingly innocent family?

Some of our research
Overview of the crime
The virtual house tour
The suspects

Episode Three: Chris McCandless

After graduating college in 1990, Chris McCandless rid himself of all personal ties and possessions, changed his name to Alex Supertramp and hitch-hiked around the United States. His dream was to spend time in Alaska which he achieved, arriving in April 1992. Based on journals completed by Chris, we learn about his journey until his death 113 days after arriving in Alaska.

What would make a upper-middle class, well-educated man give away all his money and run away from his family?

Some of our research

Overview
Timeline
Theories of how he died

Episode Two: The Missing Beaumont Children

 

On January 26 1966, Jane, Arnna, and Grant Beaumont left their home to celebrate Australia Day with a day at Glenelg beach. When the children didn’t return two hours later as promised, their mother assumed that the children either missed the bus or decided to walk home. When they hadn’t returned home by nightfall, Nancy and Jim Beaumont reported the children missing to the police. Though many witnesses reported seeing the children that day, no evidence was ever found to explain what happened to them.

Where did they go? Who was responsible?

Some of our research

The overview
The story
The suspects

Episode One: Lori Erica Ruff

After her suicide in 2010, Lori Erica Ruff (nee Kennedy) was discovered by her estranged husband's family to have been living under a false name, and that her real name was Becky Sue Turner. Or was it? It seems that Becky Sue Turner in fact died in a house fire in 1971, aged 2.

So who was Lori Erica Ruff?

Some of our research

Seattle Times article
Source Documents
Timeline