The Trail Went Cold

August 30, 1990. Westerville, Ohio. The mother of 22-year old Tony Lombardi returns home, assuming her son is at work. Forty-five minutes later, she claims that she hears the sound of a door closing followed by footsteps and she soon discovers Tony’s body on his bed. He has been shot through the head and a gun is lying on the floor next to him, but police rule Tony’s death to be a suicide. However, Tony’s family discovers injuries on his body to make them believe he was the victim of foul play and was possibly murdered by another man who was angry that Tony was dating his girlfriend, but his death is never reclassified. June 30, 1991. Galesburg, Illinois. After not hearing from him for a day-and-a-half, the parents of 23-year old Danny Williams discover his dead body on a couch inside his house. He has been shot through the forehead and since a gun Danny owned is found in his lap, the police believe that his death was a suicide. Danny’s family uncover a number of suspicious discrepancies to make them believe he was murdered, including the possible presence of small traces of blood at the scene which do not match Danny’s blood type. A coroner’s jury officially list Danny’s cause of death as “uncertain”, but no conclusive evidence of foul play can be found. On this week’s episode of “The Trail Went Cold”, we cover two suspicious suicide cases featured on “Unsolved Mysteries” involving young men who supposedly died of self-inflicted gunshot wounds, but their families felt differently. Additional Reading: https://unsolved.com/gallery/tony-lombardi/ https://unsolvedmysteries.fandom.com/wiki/Tony_Lombardi https://unsolved.com/gallery/danny-williams/ https://unsolvedmysteries.fandom.com/wiki/Danny_Williams https://www.newspapers.com/image/306495856/ https://www.newspapers.com/image/299581538/ https://www.newspapers.com/image/300115062/ “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 produced and edited by Magill Foote. All music is composed by Vince Nitro.

On December 23rd, 1974, three girls from Fort Worth, Texas vanished: Rachel Trlica, Renee Wilson, and Julie Mosely. After almost 50 years, the case has become steeped in misinformation and sensationalized mythos. In their series on the Fort Worth Missing Trio, Gone Cold attempts to cut through the misconceptions and confusion surrounding Julie, Renee, and Rachel’s disappearances. This is a preview of Gone Cold’s coverage of the case, and you can find the rest of the story by subscribing to Gone Cold – Texas True Crime wherever you listen to podcasts. https://linknbio.com/gonecoldpodcast

November 29, 1980. Duncan, British Columbia. 32-year old Granger Taylor drives away from his family’s farm in his pick-up truck, but never returns. Granger had developed an obsession with UFOs and claimed he started communicating with them and he leaves behind a note in which he states that he is going away on a 42-month interstellar voyage on an alien spacecraft. Five-and-half years later, human bones which are believed to belong to Granger and wreckage from his truck are found inside a crater on a nearby mountain. While it’s suspected that Granger travelled there and was killed in an explosion, there are no conclusive answers about what happened. For our final Halloween-themed episode of “The Trail Went Cold”, we will be tackling a UFO-themed story about the disappearance and presumed death of Granger Taylor. Additional Reading: https://www.vice.com/en/article/the-man-who-went-to-space-and-disappeared-the-story-of-granger-taylor/ https://www.cbc.ca/cbcdocspov/features/bcs-granger-taylor-left-a-note-saying-he-was-boarding-an-alien-spaceship https://www.cbc.ca/cbcdocspov/episodes/spaceman https://www.cbc.ca/cbcdocspov/features/mechanic-genius-restores-a-vintage-kittyhawk-plane-in-his-backyard https://www.timescolonist.com/islander/what-happened-to-granger-taylor-4669648 https://unsolvedmysteries.fandom.com/wiki/Granger_Taylor https://www.newspapers.com/image/508870222 https://www.newspapers.com/image/508064460/ “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 produced and edited by Magill Foote. All music is composed by Vince Nitro.

December 12, 2014. Beaver County, Pennsylvania. A severed head belonging to an elderly woman is discovered in a rural wooded area about thirty feet from the nearest road, but the rest of her remains cannot be found. The head has rubber balls inside its eye sockets and since it has been embalmed, investigators are unable to extract any DNA to make an identification, so the victim becomes known as “The Beaver County Jane Doe”. While the authorities do not believe that foul play took place, a local resident named Jay Grabner starts displaying suspicious behaviour to indicate he might have some knowledge about the head. However, all attempts to determine the Beaver County Jane Doe’s identity and the circumstances of her death are unsuccessful. On this week’s episode of “The Trail Went Cold”, we explore an incredibly bizarre mystery about the discovery of a severed head. Join us on Saturday, October 26 at 8:00pm ET for an online streaming marathon where we will be watching classic segments from “Unsolved Mysteries”. You can enter our screening room by clicking on this link. Additional Reading: https://unsolvedmysteries.fandom.com/wiki/Beaver_County_Jane_Doe https://unsolved.com/gallery/the-severed-head/ https://www.washingtonpost.com/news/morning-mix/wp/2015/12/15/the-strange-sad-quest-to-match-a-severed-embalmed-head-with-its-body/?noredirect=on&utm_term=.bb82266a0128 https://www.reuters.com/article/us-usa-bodies-head-specialreport/special-report-a-womans-severed-head-was-found-in-the-woods-who-is-she-idUSKBN1D21B4/ https://www.reuters.com/article/us-pennsylvania-head-idUSKBN0TX2F120151214/ https://www.goerie.com/story/news/education/2015/12/12/edinboro-university-artist-creates-new/25015300007/ https://www.timesonline.com/story/news/local/2015/12/06/mysterious-case-embalmed-head-found/989358007/ https://www.timesonline.com/story/news/local/2022/12/08/increased-reward-offered-for-information-on-embalmed-head-found-in-economy-beaver-county/69708414007/ https://unidentified-awareness.fandom.com/wiki/Beaver_County_Jane_Doe https://www.distractify.com/p/beaver-county-severed-head “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 produced and edited by Magill Foote. All music is composed by Vince Nitro.

November 1, 1974. North Adams, Massachusetts. After leaving a dance at a local lodge, 18-year old Kim Benoit goes missing. Two weeks later, Kim’s body is discovered at the bottom of an embankment in a remote area twelve miles away and it is determined that she was the victim of strangulation. In October 1976, 17-year old Cynthia “Rocky” Krizack goes missing after leaving her home in the nearby town of Williamstown and her body is also eventually found at the bottom of a remote embankment. Since Rocky has been strangled to death and there are similarities between the two cases, investigators look into the possibility that she was killed by the same person who murdered Kim, but both crimes remain unsolved. On this week’s episode of “The Trail Went Cold”, we explore a pair of cold cases from the Berkshires. If you have any information about the featured cases, please contact the Berkshire County State Police Detective Unit at (413) 499-1112. That’s (413) 499-1112. For Kim Benoit’s murder, you can also contact the North Adams Police Department at (413) 664-4944 and for Cynthia “Rocky” Krizack’s murder, you can also contact the Williamstown Police Department at (413) 458-5733. Additional Reading: https://www.berkshireeagle.com/news/local/author-and-former-prosecutor-links-convicted-killer-to-kim-benoit-murder/article_d942ac81-a54f-5fb4-bd9c-ea9f1a5d95bb.html https://www.iberkshires.com/story/66509/Reward-Offered-in-Renewed-Search-for-Kim-Benoit-s-Killer.html https://www.cbsnews.com/boston/news/cold-case-reward-information-kim-benoit-death-1974/ https://www.greylockglass.com/top-left-corner-170-investigating-cold-cases-of-murder-time-can-be-your-friend/ https://www.westernmassnews.com/2022/02/22/true-crime-cynthia-krizack/ https://www.iberkshires.com/story/47000/Cold-Case-Expert-Offers-Thoughts-on-Unsolved-Local-Murders.html https://www.newspapers.com/image/544888238/ https://www.newspapers.com/image/545933562/ https://www.newspapers.com/image/545034519/ https://www.newspapers.com/image/1072387675 https://www.newspapers.com/image/470976091/ https://www.newspapers.com/image/532271900/ “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” will be appearing at the Berkshire Podcast Festival, taking place in North Adams, Massachusetts on October 18-20, 2024. To get a 30 % discount on tickets, please use our specialized promo code, “COLD2024”, by visiting https://www.berkshirepodcastfestival.com/. The Trail Went Cold is produced and edited by Magill Foote. All music is composed by Vince Nitro.