The Trail Went Cold

The Trail Went Cold - Episode 144 - Sydney Land & Neo Kaufmann

October 27, 2016. Las Vegas, Nevada. 21-year old Sydney Land and her 20-year old boyfriend, Nehemiah “Neo” Kaufmann, are found shot to death inside Sydney’s apartment. The prime suspect is an alleged pimp named Shane Valentine, who had threatened the couple and fired a bullet into the home of Neo’s mother weeks earlier. Allegations eventually emerge that whoever committed the murders might be tied to a scandal involving police corruption and sex trafficking, and that a cover-up has been orchestrated to prevent the crime from being solved. This episode of “The Trail Went Cold” explores a convoluted case which was requested to us by Sydney’s mother, Connie Land, who is still seeking justice for her daughter’s murder.
This episode of “The Trail Went Cold” is sponsored by Native. Native makes safe, simple, effective products that people use in the bathroom everyday with trusted ingredients and trusted performance. For 20% off your first purchase, please visit nativedeodorant.com and enter the promo code “cold” during checkout.
Additional Reading:
https://baltimorepostexaminer.com/who-killed-my-daughter/2019/06/07
https://baltimorepostexaminer.com/nevada-supreme-court-ruling-judge-melanie-andress-tobiasson-wins-round-one/2019/05/14
https://baltimorepostexaminer.com/las-vegas-judge-melanie-andress-tobiasson-vice-detectives-wanted-me-and-my-daughter-dead/2019/04/01
https://baltimorepostexaminer.com/why-is-the-las-vegas-media-silent-on-judge-melanie-andress-tobiasson/2019/03/15
https://baltimorepostexaminer.com/las-vegas-judges-statement-to-judicial-investigator-about-klas-tv-interview-conflicts-with-statement-made-to-the-baltimore-post-examiner/2019/03/01
https://baltimorepostexaminer.com/las-vegas-judge-melanie-andress-tobiasson-says-she-threatened-suspect-in-unsolved-murders-then-kicked-in-his-door/2019/02/26
https://baltimorepostexaminer.com/fbi-agents-behavior-during-las-vegas-corruption-probe-led-to-inquiry/2019/02/24
https://baltimorepostexaminer.com/las-vegas-detective-calls-baltimore-post-examiner-story-on-unsolved-murders-filth-and-filled-with-lies/2019/02/21
https://baltimorepostexaminer.com/exclusive-witness-claims-las-vegas-judge-melanie-andress-tobiasson-offered-her-a-bribe-to-implicate-innocent-man-in-unsolved-murder-case/2019/02/18
https://baltimorepostexaminer.com/did-las-vegas-d-a-steve-wolfson-and-sheriff-joe-lombardo-cover-up-corruption/2019/02/09
https://baltimorepostexaminer.com/las-vegas-sex-trafficker-who-is-suspect-in-unsolved-double-homicide-threatened-victims-weeks-before-the-murders/2019/02/04
https://baltimorepostexaminer.com/las-vegas-judge-melanie-andress-tobiasson-who-exposed-police-corruption-faces-constant-retaliation/2019/01/25
https://baltimorepostexaminer.com/judge-claims-fbi-refused-information-on-police-corruption-probe-after-pressure-from-lvmpd/2019/01/21
https://baltimorepostexaminer.com/exclusive-affidavits-provide-insight-las-vegas-fbi-corruption-probe-las-vegas-metro-police-department/2018/05/19
https://baltimorepostexaminer.com/whos-running-fbi-las-vegas-division-las-vegas-metro-police-department-fbi/2018/05/17
https://baltimorepostexaminer.com/las-vegas-police-department-tells-fbi-stop-talking-judge-corruption/2018/05/15
https://baltimorepostexaminer.com/not-special-special-prosecutor-gives-convicted-las-vegas-pimp-sweetheart-deal/2018/05/15
https://baltimorepostexaminer.com/las-vegas-sex-trafficker-prison-life-may-released-amidst-police-corruption-probe/2018/05/13
https://www.nevadacurrent.com/2018/06/07/plea-deal-raises-questions-about-ties-between-cops-and-pimps/
https://lasvegassun.com/news/2018/oct/26/2-years-later-mother-presses-for-break-in-case-of/
http://news3lv.com/news/local/a-new-break-and-a-familiar-person-of-interest-in-young-couples-murder
“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.

The Trail Went Cold - Episode 143 - Charlie Anderson & Carol Montecalvo

January 24, 1987. Burbank, California. 35-year old Charlie Anderson, a deputy with the Los Angeles County Sheriff’s Department, returns to his suburban home with his wife and two children. He is shot to death after entering the house in what appears to be a burglary gone wrong. Over one year later, 43-year old Carol Montecalvo is shot to death inside her home, which is located only four blocks away from the Anderson residence, creating suspicion that the two crimes are connected. However, Carol’s husband, Dan Montecalvo, is eventually convicted of her murder, but maintains they were both attacked by intruders. Even though a woman named Suzan Brown confesses to being involved in both these crimes, her claims are dismissed. Was Dan Montecalvo actually responsible for his wife’s murder? Did the same person who shot Carol also kill Charlie Anderson? Or could Charlie have actually been murdered by someone he knew and trusted? We shall examine both these cases on this week’s episode of “The Trail Went Cold” and explore their possible connections.
Additional Reading:
https://unsolved.com/gallery/charlie-anderson/
https://www.dailynews.com/2007/01/29/probe-ongoing-in-cops-slaying/
http://articles.burbankleader.com/2002-01-26/news/export11305_1_burbank-police-off-duty-police-officer-tim-stehr
http://articles.latimes.com/1988-04-02/news/mn-524_1_hearing-shots
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Dan_Montecalvo_case
https://unsolvedmysteries.fandom.com/wiki/Dan_Montecalvo
“Final Vows: Murder, Madness and Twisted Justice in California” by Karen Kingsbury
“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.

The Trail Went Cold - Episode 142 - Ireland's Vanishing Triangle

March 26, 1993. Dublin, Ireland. 26-year old Annie McCarrick, an American-born citizen living in Ireland, leaves her apartment to travel to the Wicklow Mountains, but never returns. Even though Annie is allegedly seen in a pub that night with an unidentified man, no trace of her is ever found. Over the course of the next five years, eight other women – 39-year old Eva Brennan, 22-year old Imelda Keenan, 21-year old Jo Jo Dullard, 17-year old Ciara Breen, 25-year old Fiona Pender, 19-year old Fiona Sinnott and 18-year old Deirdre Jacob – would vanish within a triangularly-shaped radius surrounding Dublin. This leads to speculation that some or all of the disappearances might be connected and the area becomes known as “Ireland’s Vanishing Triangle”. On this week’s episode of “The Trail Went Cold”, we travel overseas to explore eight separate unsolved missing persons cases.
Additional Reading:
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ireland%27s_Vanishing_Triangle
https://www.irishcentral.com/culture/irelands-vanishing-triangle-missing
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Annie_McCarrick
http://charleyproject.org/case/annie-bridget-mccarrick
“Missing: The Unsolved Cases of Ireland’s Missing Women and Children” by Barry Cummins
“Missing, Presumed” by Alan Bailey
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Larry_Murphy_(criminal)
“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.

The Trail Went Cold - Episode 141 - David Bocks

June 19, 1984. Fernald, Ohio. 39-year old Dave Bocks shows up to work the graveyard shift at the Fernald Feed Materials Production Center, a plant which processes uranium for nuclear weapons. Dave vanishes before his shift ends and evidence soon emerges that he fell into some molten liquid inside one of the plant’s furnaces. The authorities initially suspect that Dave could have committed suicide and find no evidence of foul play, but months later, the plant is implicated in a major scandal involving radioactive contamination, leading to speculation that Dave was murdered for threatening to blow the whistle on unsafe practices at his workplace. Did Dave Bocks jump or accidentally fall to his death inside a 1,300-degree furnace? Or did someone kill him and intentionally place his body in there? This week’s episode of “The Trail Went Cold” chronicles the controversial story of a plant which endangered a farming community and the unexplained death of one of its workers.
Additional Reading:
https://unsolved.com/gallery/dave-bocks/
https://unsolvedmysteries.fandom.com/wiki/Dave_Bocks
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Fernald_Feed_Materials_Production_Center
“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.

The Trail Went Cold - Episode 140 - Michele Harris

September 11, 2001. Tioga County, New York. 35-year old Michele Harris finishes her evening shift at her workplace, but never returns home. The following morning, Michele’s abandoned minivan is discovered on a road next to the driveway of her family’s rural property. Suspicion turns towards Michele’s estranged husband, Cal Harris, as the couple are in the midst of a heated divorce and tiny specks of blood are soon found inside their residence. Years later, Cal is charged with Michele’s murder and found guilty, but the case would undergo four trials and two overturned convictions while the defence points the finger at alternate suspects. Cal is finally acquitted of the crime in 2016, but Michele’s body is never found. Was Cal Harris actually responsible for his wife’s disappearance, or did someone else murder Michele? This week’s episode of “The Trail Went Cold” is one of the most convoluted cases we’ve ever covered, chronicling a disappearance which just happened to take place only 200 miles from New York City on one of the most infamous dates in history.
This episode of “The Trail Went Cold” is sponsored by Native. Native makes safe, simple, effective products that people use in the bathroom everyday with trusted ingredients and trusted performance. For 20% off your first purchase, please visit nativedeodorant.com and enter the promo code “cold” during checkout.
Additional Reading:
http://charleyproject.org/case/michele-anne-harris
https://www.cbsnews.com/news/48-hours-presents-cal-harris-the-final-verdict/
https://www.pressconnects.com/story/news/local/2016/05/27/cal-harris-timeline/85036744/
https://www.cnn.com/2016/05/24/us/cal-harris-murder-trial-verdict/index.html
https://www.pressconnects.com/story/news/crime/cal-harris/2017/02/14/cal-harris-accused-menacing-harassment-oneonta/97891914/
“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.

The Trail Went Cold - Bonus Episode - Kent Heitholt

“The Trail Went Cold” is taking a break this week after a busy summer of live shows and conventions! In place of a brand new episode, please enjoy this Patreon-exclusive bonus episode from last year covering the case of Kent Heitholt. Robin covered this same case at the Ottawa Podcast Festival in August 2019.
November 1, 2001. Columbia, Missouri. Kent Heitholt, a 48-year old sports editor for the Columbia Daily Tribune, is severely beaten and strangled to death in their parking lot. Two-and-a-half years later, investigators are led towards a young suspect named Charles Erickson, who has told people he had vivid dreams of himself and his friend, Ryan Ferguson, murdering Kent after leaving a nearby bar that night. After Charles confesses to the crime, both he and Ryan are charged with Kent’s murder and Charles’ testimony helps convict Ryan and send him to prison for 40 years. However, after Charles and another key witness recant their testimony, Ryan’s conviction is vacated and he is released from prison in 2013. Even though many feel that Charles is also innocent of the crime, he continues to remain incarcerated. If Ryan Ferguson and Charles Erickson did not murder Kent Heitholt, then who did? On this month’s bonus Patreon episode, we explore one of the most infamous wrongful conviction cases in recent memory which has yet to find a definitive resolution. 
Additional Reading:
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ryan_W._Ferguson
https://www.law.umich.edu/special/exoneration/Pages/casedetail.aspx?caseid=4304
http://www.freecharleserickson.org/index.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 produced and edited by Magill Foote.
All music is composed by Vince Nitro.

The Trail Went Cold - Episode 139 - The Short Family Murders

August 15, 2002. Bassett, Virginia. 50-year old Michael Short and his 36-year old wife, Mary, are found shot to death inside their home, but the couple’s nine-year old daughter, Jennifer, is missing. Over one month later, Jennifer’s remains are discovered over 30 miles away in a rural area of North Carolina and it turns out she has been shot to death as well. The investigation turns up some promising leads, including a person of interest named Garrison Bowman, as well as an eyewitness sighting of an unidentified man who was seen parked across the street from the Short residence in a truck on the morning of the murders. However, these leads fail to bring about a resolution and no one can figure out a motive for this crime. On this week’s episode of “The Trail Went Cold”, we explore the truly horrific and baffling unsolved murders of an entire family. Special thanks to listener Jackie Elliott for providing the opening narration for this episode.
Additional Reading:
https://www.martinsvillebulletin.com/news/local/short-case-timeline/article_55042b5d-f433-5452-ab8d-e5519441a59a.html
https://www.roanoke.com/news/virginia/mystery-of-who-killed-the-shorts-remains-unsolved-year-after/article_3b8582e5-a76c-59ca-b84a-74af81dd9eec.html
https://www.greensboro.com/friend-witness-wasn-t-fleeing-john-beasley-says-garrison-bowman/article_5a9adebc-249e-58af-9728-54576c95e5dd.html
https://www.greensboro.com/angry-landlord-fingered-bowman-friends-say-gary-lemons-was-furious/article_3b513ad9-d436-560a-84d0-a622c8bd6bb5.html
https://www.roanoke.com/news/virginia/man-s-life-upturned-i-didn-t-know-them/article_f7037a40-68dd-5ccc-82f6-30519e08a2d7.html
https://truenoirstories.wordpress.com/2016/07/09/the-short-family-murders/
“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.

The Trail Went Cold - Episode 138 - Doyle Wheeler

April 19, 1988. Suncrest, Washington. 36-year old Doyle Wheeler, a former police officer from the San Diego Police Department, is attacked inside his home by a group of armed intruders. They force Wheeler to write a suicide note at gunpoint, hog-tie him, and fire a shot which grazes the side of his head, but he winds up surviving the attack. Evidence seems to link the intruders to another San Diego police officer named Donovan Jacobs whom Wheeler had testified against at a previous murder trial. While Wheeler suspects Jacobs of orchestrating the attempt on his life, Jacobs believes the incident never even happened and accused Wheeler of fabricating the entire story in order to set him up. Did Donovan Jacobs attempt to have Doyle Wheeler killed? Did Wheeler orchestrate a fake home invasion in order to frame Jacobs? Or could an unknown third party have been behind the entire thing? On this week’s episode of “The Trail Went Cold”, we explore the alleged attempted murder of a police officer in one of the most unique and complex stories we’ve ever covered.
This episode of "The Trail Went Cold" is sponsored by Native. Native makes safe, simple, effective products that people use in the bathroom everyday with trusted ingredients and trusted performance. For 20% off your first purchase, please visit nativedeodorant.com and enter the promo code “cold” during checkout. 
“The Trail Went Cold” will be appearing at the Ottawa Podcast Festival, being held at the “LIVE! on Elgin” venue in Ottawa, Ontario on Saturday, August 24. For more information and to purchase tickets to the event, please visit their website (https://www.ottawapodcastfestival.com).
Additional Reading:
https://unsolvedmysteries.fandom.com/wiki/Doyle_Wheeler
https://apnews.com/b7ce295622b630e619207b41e52b55f7
https://www.latimes.com/archives/la-xpm-1988-07-21-me-9029-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 produced and edited by Magill Foote.
All music is composed by Vince Nitro.

The Trail Went Cold - Episode 137 - Clifford Sherwood & George Gumbly

October 21, 1954. Verdun, Quebec. Nine-year old Clifford Sherwood leaves for school and meets up with his 12-year old friend, George Gumbly. The two boys never arrive at school or return home and are subsequently reported missing. Clifford’s mother, Frances Sherwood, believes that her abusive ex-husband, Nephi “Tex” Sherwood, abducted Clifford and took him across the country to British Columbia, but there is no evidence to implicate him. When Tex passes away three decades later, his family discovers that he had been living under a false identity and led a secret double life, furthering their belief that Tex raised Clifford under a new identity and giving them hope that Clifford might still be alive somewhere. But if Clifford was abducted by his father, what happened to George Gumbly? On this week’s episode of “The Trail Went Cold”, we explore a truly bizarre mystery which is considered to be the oldest registered missing children’s case in the history of Canada.
Additional Reading:
https://unsolvedmysteries.fandom.com/wiki/Clifford_Sherwood
http://www.doenetwork.org/cases/208dmqc.html
“The Trail Went Cold” will be appearing at the Ottawa Podcast Festival, being held at the “LIVE! on Elgin” venue in Ottawa, Ontario on Saturday, August 24. For more information and to purchase tickets to the event, please visit their website (https://www.ottawapodcastfestival.com).
The Trail Went Cold will be appearing at the event, “True Crime Podcasts: Live in Toronto”, being held at the Royal Cinema in Toronto on Sunday, August 18. For more information and to purchase tickets to the event, please visit this website.
“The Trail Went Cold” is on Patreon! Visit www.patreon.com/thetrailwentcold to become a patron and gain access to our exclusive bonus content.
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The Trail Went Cold is produced and edited by Magill Foote.
All music is composed by Vince Nitro.

The Trail Went Cold - Episode 136 - Deanna Cremin & Melanie Melanson

March 29, 1995. Somerville, Massachusetts. 17-year old Deanna Cremin spends the evening with her boyfriend, Tommy LeBlanc, but fails to return home. The following morning, Deanna’s body is found behind a senior housing complex and she has been sexually assaulted and strangled to death. According to Tommy, he had walked Deanna halfway to her house before turning around and heading back home, but he denies any involvement in her murder. While Tommy and two other individuals are looked at as persons of interest, no one is ever charged with the crime.
October 27, 1989. Woburn, Massachusetts. 14-year old Melanie Melanson tells her grandmother that she is planning to sleep over at her next-door neighbour’s house. When Melanie fails to return home the following day, her family learns that she actually sneaked away to attend a party in a wooded area on the outskirts of town. Two older boys are named as the last people seen with Melanie, but they give conflicting stories about what happened to her. While investigators are certain that something happened to Melanie at the party, no trace of her is ever found.
On this week’s episode of “The Trail Went Cold”, we cover two unsolved cold cases involving teenage girls which took place in Middlesex County, Massachusetts.
Additional Reading:
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Murder_of_Deanna_Cremin
https://www.boston.com/news/local-news/2015/03/29/20-years-without-deanna
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Melanie_Melanson
http://charleyproject.org/case/melanie-jo-melanson
“The Trail Went Cold” will be appearing at the Ottawa Podcast Festival, being held at the “LIVE! on Elgin” venue in Ottawa, Ontario on Saturday, August 24. For more information and to purchase tickets to the event, please visit their website (https://www.ottawapodcastfestival.com).
The Trail Went Cold will be appearing at the event, “True Crime Podcasts: Live in Toronto”, being held at the Royal Cinema in Toronto on Sunday, August 18. For more information and to purchase tickets to the event, please visit this website.
“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.