True Crime Conversations
Mamamia Podcasts
Recent Episodes
“Iron Mike” Malloy survived not one, not two, but more than nine attempts on his life before he finally met his end. Malloy became the target of a group of acquaintances later dubbed the “Murder Trust,” who conspired to kill him for insurance money. What followed remains one of the most astonishing strings of failed murder attempts in history.
The conspirators served him cocktails laced with poison, swapped in antifreeze, turpentine, and even rat poison—none of which seemed to affect him at all. When that failed, they tried abandoning him in a snowbank to freeze, and later even staged a taxi hit-and-run. Each time, Malloy recovered, defying their plans and cementing his status as a near-mythic figure in true-crime lore.
Writer Riley Knight has chronicled the story of Mike Malloy along with some of history’s other strangest deaths. Some true crime, others simply unbelievable.
You can read his book, History's Strangest Deaths, here and listen to his podcast, Half-Arsed History, here.
SURVEY
Want to win a $1,000 gift card in just 3 minutes? Fill out this short survey to help True Crime Conversations gather more information on what content you want to hear from us!
CREDITS
Guest: Riley Knight
Host: Claire Murphy
Senior Producer: Tahli Blackman
Group Executive Producer: Ilaria Brophy
Audio Engineer: Tina Matalov
GET IN TOUCH
Follow us on Instagram and TikTok @truecrimeconversations
Make sure to leave us a rating and review on Apple & Spotify to let us know how you're liking the episodes.
Want us to cover a case on the podcast? Email us at [email protected] or send us a voice note.
If any of the contents in this episode have caused distress, know that there is help available via Lifeline on 13 11 14 or Beyond Blue on 1300 22 4636.
We acknowledge the Traditional Owners of the Land we have recorded this podcast on, the Gadigal people of the Eora Nation. We pay our respects to their Elders past and present and extend that respect to all Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander cultures.
Become a Mamamia subscriber: https://www.mamamia.com.au/subscribe
See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.
On July 15, 1976, a school bus carrying 26 children and their beloved driver, Ed Ray, left Chowchilla, California, after a hot day at summer school and never made it home.
Blocked by a mysterious white van, the bus was hijacked by armed, masked men and driven into a hidden slough, where the victims were transferred into dark, soundproofed vans. Over the next 16 hours, they would endure an ordeal that left lasting scars: being buried alive.
In this episode, we speak to Fox News Senior Correspondent Claudia Cowan, host of Nightmare in Chowchilla, to unpack the chilling ransom plot and its surprising perpetrators.
You can listen to the podcast Nightmare in Chowchilla: The School Bus Kidnapping here.
SURVEY
Want to win a $1,000 gift card in just 3 minutes? Fill out this short survey to help True Crime Conversations gather more information on what content you want to hear from us!
CREDITS
Guest: Claudia Cowan
Host: Claire Murphy
Senior Producer: Tahli Blackman
Group Executive Producer: Ilaria Brophy
Audio Engineer: Tina Matalov
GET IN TOUCH
Follow us on Instagram and TikTok @truecrimeconversations
Make sure to leave us a rating and review on Apple & Spotify to let us know how you're liking the episodes.
Want us to cover a case on the podcast? Email us at [email protected] or send us a voice note.
If any of the contents in this episode have caused distress, know that there is help available via Lifeline on 13 11 14 or Beyond Blue on 1300 22 4636.
We acknowledge the Traditional Owners of the Land we have recorded this podcast on, the Gadigal people of the Eora Nation. We pay our respects to their Elders past and present and extend that respect to all Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander cultures.
Become a Mamamia subscriber: https://www.mamamia.com.au/subscribe
See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.
If two teenage girls went missing today, would police just assume they’d run away from home? That assumption is why two Australian teenagers, Elaine Johnson and Kerry Anne Joel, have never been found.
Elaine was 16, Kerry was 17, living a carefree 80s life in The Shire, south of Sydney. The girls were seen hitchhiking on the Princes Highway, but by the weekend, they were gone. No calls. No sightings. Years later, the families uncovered police oversights, lost documents, and a cold case that never should’ve gone cold.
Journalist and podcast host Kate Kachor is retracing Elaine’s final days, hoping someone out there finally comes forward.
You can listen to Kate's podcast Out from the Cold: Searching for Elaine, here.
SURVEY
Want to win a $1,000 gift card in just 3 minutes? Fill out this short survey to help True Crime Conversations gather more information on what content you want to hear from us!
CREDITS
Guest: Kate Kachor
Host: Claire Murphy
Senior Producer: Tahli Blackman
Group Executive Producer: Ilaria Brophy
Audio Engineer: Tina Matalov
GET IN TOUCH
Follow us on Instagram and TikTok @truecrimeconversations
Make sure to leave us a rating and review on Apple & Spotify to let us know how you're liking the episodes.
Want us to cover a case on the podcast? Email us at [email protected] or send us a voice note.
If any of the contents in this episode have caused distress, know that there is help available via Lifeline on 13 11 14 or Beyond Blue on 1300 22 4636.
We acknowledge the Traditional Owners of the Land we have recorded this podcast on, the Gadigal people of the Eora Nation. We pay our respects to their Elders past and present and extend that respect to all Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander cultures.
Become a Mamamia subscriber: https://www.mamamia.com.au/subscribe
See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.
Sixteen-year-old Timothy “Jack” McCoy spent Christmas 1971 with his relatives in Michigan, leaving on January 2, 1972, to return home to Nebraska. After arriving in Chicago for a bus connection, he met a man who offered him food and a tour of the city. Timothy accepted, but he would never be seen alive again. Fourteen years later, his family learned he had been the first known victim of John Wayne Gacy, the infamous “Killer Clown.”
Through the accounts of survivors and families, The Devil in Disguise series uncovers Gacy’s horrifying legacy and the failures that allowed his killing spree to continue for years.
You can watch Devil in Disguise: John Wayne Gacy here.
SURVEY
Want to win a $1,000 gift card in just 3 minutes? Fill out this short survey to help True Crime Conversations gather more information on what content you want to hear from us!
CREDITS
Guest: Patrick Macmanus
Host: Claire Murphy
Senior Producer: Tahli Blackman
Group Executive Producer: Ilaria Brophy
Audio Engineer: Tina Matalov
GET IN TOUCH
Follow us on Instagram and TikTok @truecrimeconversations
Make sure to leave us a rating and review on Apple & Spotify to let us know how you're liking the episodes.
Want us to cover a case on the podcast? Email us at [email protected] or send us a voice note.
If any of the contents in this episode have caused distress, know that there is help available via Lifeline on 13 11 14 or Beyond Blue on 1300 22 4636.
We acknowledge the Traditional Owners of the Land we have recorded this podcast on, the Gadigal people of the Eora Nation. We pay our respects to their Elders past and present and extend that respect to all Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander cultures.
Become a Mamamia subscriber: https://www.mamamia.com.au/subscribe
See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.
On the morning of August 3rd, 1998, Melbourne businessman John Furlan followed his usual routine: coffee, newspaper, and off to work at his Coburg auto salvage yard. But at 8:45 AM, his white Subaru Liberty exploded on Lorenson Street, a blast so powerful it was felt five kilometres away. Windows shattered, cars burned, yet Furlan was the only fatality.
Police soon confirmed it wasn’t a gas explosion... it was a car bomb. But who planted it, and why?
Crime journalist Adam Shand speaks about the unsolved car bombing of John Furlan, its links to Melbourne’s underworld, and whether his death foreshadowed the Gangland Wars that gripped Victoria for years to come.
You can watch The Hunters here and find Adam's podcast, Real Crime, here.
SURVEY
Want to win a $1,000 gift card in just 3 minutes? Fill out this short survey to help True Crime Conversations gather more information on what content you want to hear from us!
CREDITS
Guest: Adam Shand
Host: Claire Murphy
Senior Producer: Tahli Blackman
Group Executive Producer: Ilaria Brophy
Audio Engineer: Jacob Round
GET IN TOUCH
Follow us on Instagram and TikTok @truecrimeconversations
Make sure to leave us a rating and review on Apple & Spotify to let us know how you're liking the episodes.
Want us to cover a case on the podcast? Email us at [email protected] or send us a voice note.
If any of the contents in this episode have caused distress, know that there is help available via Lifeline on 13 11 14 or Beyond Blue on 1300 22 4636.
We acknowledge the Traditional Owners of the Land we have recorded this podcast on, the Gadigal people of the Eora Nation. We pay our respects to their Elders past and present and extend that respect to all Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander cultures.
Become a Mamamia subscriber: https://www.mamamia.com.au/subscribe
See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.