Psychopedia

TRIGGER WARNING: This episode contains discussions of suicide and may be distressing to hear. Please listen with caution.In the tragic and recent case of Sonia Exelby, a vulnerable woman in the UK went online to arrange for her own death. Sadly, she connected with a sadistic man in the U.S. named Dwain Hall, who framed her murder as mercy while investigators uncovered evidence of manipulation, coercion, internet predation, and calculated cruelty. Sonia was struggling, emotionally and psychologically, and Dwain positioned himself as a "mentor" who truly understood her pain. But text messages, recordings, and witness testimony painted a different picture: he was a predator who isolated Sonia from support systems, reinforced her belief that death was the only option, and meticulously documented her "consent" as insurance against exactly this kind of investigation. What Dwain called mercy, prosecutors called premeditated murder. This complex case is truly heartbreaking - please listen with caution! FOLLOW AND SUBSCRIBE to Psychopedia wherever you are listening! Follow Investigator Slater on Instagram + TikTok: @investigatorslater Join our Patreon family! (⁠www.Patreon.com/PsychopediaPod⁠) On Patreon, you get AD FREE episodes, exclusive true crime content, behind-the-scenes pics/vids, private group chats, and much more! To learn more about listener data and our privacy practices visit: https://www.audacyinc.com/privacy-policy Learn more about your ad choices. Visit https://podcastchoices.com/adchoices

This is the extraordinary case of Judy Malinowski, the first person in American history to testify from beyond the grave at her own murder trial. In 2017, Judy's life was shattered when her boyfriend doused her in gasoline and set her on fire. She was left to endure nearly two years of relentless pain, dozens of surgeries, and the heartbreak of not being able to raise her two children. Determined to be heard and to advocate on behalf of other survivors/victims, Judy worked with prosecutors to record her testimony from her hospital bed - forever preserving her voice, her memory, and her account of what happened. After her death, that testimony was played in court, allowing her to confront her killer and help secure his conviction in a way that had never been done before. This episode traces Judy's unbelievable fight for justice, the legal impact of her groundbreaking case, and the strength of a woman who ensured that her own words would be used to help bring down the man who killed her. FOLLOW AND SUBSCRIBE to Psychopedia wherever you are listening! Follow Investigator Slater on Instagram + TikTok: @investigatorslater Join our Patreon family! (⁠www.Patreon.com/PsychopediaPod⁠) On Patreon, you get AD FREE episodes, exclusive true crime content, behind-the-scenes pics/vids, private group chats, and much more! To learn more about listener data and our privacy practices visit: https://www.audacyinc.com/privacy-policy Learn more about your ad choices. Visit https://podcastchoices.com/adchoices

In Part 2 of our in-depth coverage of the "Devilsdorp" cult, the brutal murders introduced in Part 1 take on a new meaning. What initially appeared to be isolated, occult-linked attacks starts to reveal a far more calculated pattern. Because this was never about religion. As the case progresses into trial, Part 2 unpacks the roles of those involved in the gruesome murders of 11 individuals and explores the psychology of Cecilia Steyn - the dark force at the center of it all. For Cecilia, the carnage was a test of power measured by how far she could push others to prove her control. FOLLOW AND SUBSCRIBE to Psychopedia wherever you are listening! Follow Investigator Slater on Instagram + TikTok: @investigatorslater Join our Patreon family! (⁠www.Patreon.com/PsychopediaPod⁠) On Patreon, you get AD FREE episodes, exclusive true crime content, behind-the-scenes pics/vids, private group chats, and much more! To learn more about listener data and our privacy practices visit: https://www.audacyinc.com/privacy-policy Learn more about your ad choices. Visit https://podcastchoices.com/adchoices

A pentagram-shaped town. A string of cult murders. Between 2012 and 2016, the town of Krugersdorp became “Devilsdorp.” At the center was Cecilia Steyn, a manipulative, "Ted Bundy-esque" figure who claimed to be a 42nd-generation witch with supernatural powers, infiltrating a Christian ministry and slowly tightening her grip on a group of devoted followers. Through staged attacks, psychological control, and fabricated threats of a satanic enemy, she convinced them to protect her at all costs...even if it meant killing. When her authority was challenged, Cecilia retaliated by forming a splinter group, “Electus per Deus,” and orchestrating a series of calculated murders that were initially dismissed as random occult violence. But beneath the surface, this wasn’t chaos - it was total control. And it was only the beginning... FOLLOW AND SUBSCRIBE to Psychopedia wherever you are listening! Follow Investigator Slater on Instagram + TikTok: @investigatorslater Join our Patreon family! (⁠www.Patreon.com/PsychopediaPod⁠) On Patreon, you get AD FREE episodes, exclusive true crime content, behind-the-scenes pics/vids, private group chats, and much more! To learn more about listener data and our privacy practices visit: https://www.audacyinc.com/privacy-policy Learn more about your ad choices. Visit https://podcastchoices.com/adchoices

True Crime News: The Podcast is your weekly dose of real-time updates on the most gripping true crime stories, current cases, investigations, scams, and schemes. Host Ana Garcia is joined by crime experts, police officers, defense attorneys, and other leading authorities in their fields as they cover murders, scams, investigations, and unsolved crimes from across the country. Join us each week as we take you inside the biggest, most shocking, and most bizarre true crime cases. To learn more about listener data and our privacy practices visit: https://www.audacyinc.com/privacy-policy Learn more about your ad choices. Visit https://podcastchoices.com/adchoices

Please SUBSCRIBE to Psychopedia wherever you are listening!Follow Investigator Slater on Instagram + TikTok: @investigatorslater Join our Patreon family! (www.Patreon.com/PsychopediaPod) On Patreon, you get AD FREE episodes, exclusive true crime content, behind-the-scenes pics/vids, private group chats, and much more! This is the devastating case of Chris Benoit - aka The Canadian Crippler - a man once internationally revered in the wrestling ring, whose final act shattered the illusion completely. Over one horrifying weekend in June 2007, thirty-time champion Chris Benoit murdered his wife, Nancy, and their seven-year-old son, Daniel, before taking his own life - leaving behind a trail of questions that stretched far beyond the crime scene. From the devastating effects of repeated head trauma and suspected Chronic Traumatic Encephalopathy, to steroid use, psychological decline, and the dark underbelly of professional wrestling culture, the case became a horrifying collision of violence, brain injury, and unchecked deterioration. Following this tragedy, the world was forced to confront how a man so celebrated in the spotlight could unravel so catastrophically in the shadows. To learn more about listener data and our privacy practices visit: https://www.audacyinc.com/privacy-policy Learn more about your ad choices. Visit https://podcastchoices.com/adchoices

Please SUBSCRIBE to Psychopedia wherever you are listening!Follow Investigator Slater on Instagram + TikTok: @investigatorslater Join our Patreon family! (www.Patreon.com/PsychopediaPod) On Patreon, you get AD FREE episodes, exclusive true crime content, behind-the-scenes pics/vids, private group chats, and much more! On May 1, 2021, 19-year-old Sarah M. stabbed 39-year-old Zayed in the neck after pretending to be on a date with him. Sarah had joined dating apps under the name “Domina Cherry,” using the alias to gain access to hundreds of men she planned to murder in an effort to become the most prolific serial killer to ever live. Reportedly obsessed with notorious murderers, including Ted Bundy, Jack the Ripper, and Richard Ramirez, Sarah aspired to match their depravity and notoriety. This case forces us to confront something uncomfortable - because there is a clear and crucial difference between studying killers to understand them, and idolizing them to the point of wanting to become one. True crime asks us to look darkness in the face...while Sarah took notes on how to replicate it. To learn more about listener data and our privacy practices visit: https://www.audacyinc.com/privacy-policy Learn more about your ad choices. Visit https://podcastchoices.com/adchoices

Please SUBSCRIBE to Psychopedia wherever you are listening!Follow Investigator Slater on Instagram + TikTok: @investigatorslater Join our Patreon family! (www.Patreon.com/PsychopediaPod) On Patreon, you get AD FREE episodes, exclusive true crime content, behind-the-scenes pics/vids, private group chats, and much more! In the mid-1980s, the streets of Tampa, Florida became hunting grounds for one of the most ruthless predators in the state’s history: Bobby Joe Long, also known as the Hillsborough Strangler and the Classified Ad Rapist. Between 1984 and 1985, Bobby abducted innocent women and dragged them from dimly lit roadsides into a nightmare that ended with sexual assault, torture, and typically strangulation. By the time investigators finally closed in, Bobby had murdered at least ten women and assaulted many more. In this episode, we explore Bobby’s childhood, his complicated relationship with his mother, and the twisted path that led him from a troubled boy to the man who terrorized Tampa. To learn more about listener data and our privacy practices visit: https://www.audacyinc.com/privacy-policy Learn more about your ad choices. Visit https://podcastchoices.com/adchoices

Please SUBSCRIBE to Psychopedia wherever you are listening! On November 25th, 2025, the body of twenty-two year old Rebecca Park was discovered in Michigan's Manistee National Forest. When Becca vanished three weeks earlier, she was full-term pregnant. When her remains were found, the baby was gone. Becca's eviscerated body made it clear that someone had cut the baby from her womb at or around the time of her death - deliberately, methodically, and with intent. The details of what happened to beautiful Becca Park are disturbing in a way that is difficult to prepare you for. This was not a crime of passion, nor was it random. This was calculated, premeditated, and carried out by the last person/people Becca ever would ever suspected... Follow Investigator Slater on Instagram + TikTok: @investigatorslater Join our Patreon family! (www.Patreon.com/PsychopediaPod) On Patreon, you get AD FREE episodes, Girl On Gore Season 2 episodes releasing soon, merch discounts, exclusive content, extra true crime cases, pop quizzes, behind-the-scenes pics/vids, private group chats, and much more! To learn more about listener data and our privacy practices visit: https://www.audacyinc.com/privacy-policy Learn more about your ad choices. Visit https://podcastchoices.com/adchoices

Please SUBSCRIBE to Psychopedia wherever you are listening! He fancied himself a poet, but in reality, was a murderous cannibal. José Luis Calva Zepeda, dubbed the Cannibal Poet, murdered at least one woman in 2007 - his girlfriend, Alejandra Galeana - and dismembered her body inside his home. When police entered his Mexico City apartment, they discovered body parts stored in plastic bags and human meat simmering on the stove. Further investigation linked him to additional murders of even more women, marked by extreme violence and post-mortem dismemberment. The horror of the Cannibal Poet lies not just in the cannibalism, but in the psychology: a man who romanticized himself as a tortured intellectual while reducing women to consumable objects...literally. Follow Investigator Slater on Instagram + TikTok: @investigatorslater Join our Patreon family! (www.Patreon.com/PsychopediaPod) On Patreon, you get AD FREE episodes, Girl On Gore Season 2 episodes releasing soon, merch discounts, exclusive content, extra true crime cases, pop quizzes, behind-the-scenes pics/vids, private group chats, and much more! To learn more about listener data and our privacy practices visit: https://www.audacyinc.com/privacy-policy Learn more about your ad choices. Visit https://podcastchoices.com/adchoices

Please SUBSCRIBE to Psychopedia wherever you are listening! Follow Investigator Slater on Instagram + TikTok: @investigatorslater Join our Patreon family! (www.Patreon.com/PsychopediaPod) On Patreon, you get AD FREE episodes, Girl On Gore Season 2 episodes releasing soon, merch discounts, exclusive content, extra true crime cases, pop quizzes, behind-the-scenes pics/vids, private group chats, and much more! On November 25, 1996, Richard and Ruth Wendorf were bludgeoned to death in their own home by a 16-year-old boy named Rod Ferrell, who believed he was a 500-year-old vampire. Rod was the self-appointed leader of a so-called "vampire clan" in Murray, Kentucky, a loosely organized group of socially isolated teenagers bound by shared fantasy and ritualized blood drinking. To the outside world, it looked like teenage rebellion with fangs; but strip away the mythology and costumes, and what remained was far more disturbing than any supernatural story. This was a group of malleable kids desperate for acceptance, drawn into the orbit of a deeply damaged boy who understood exactly how to exploit their need to belong. In the end, this isn’t a story about vampires - it’s a story about what happens when young people searching for family find a cult instead...and when shared delusion hardens into shared violence. To learn more about listener data and our privacy practices visit: https://www.audacyinc.com/privacy-policy Learn more about your ad choices. Visit https://podcastchoices.com/adchoices

Please SUBSCRIBE to Psychopedia wherever you are listening! Follow Investigator Slater on Instagram + TikTok: @investigatorslater Join our Patreon family! (www.Patreon.com/PsychopediaPod) On Patreon, you get AD FREE episodes, Girl On Gore Season 2 episodes releasing soon, merch discounts, exclusive content, extra true crime cases, pop quizzes, behind-the-scenes pics/vids, private group chats, and much more! On Friday, April 13, 2012, 22-year-old Brittany Killgore lost her life in a sex dungeon. She disappeared three days after filing for divorce from her husband, Lance Corporal Cory Killgore, who was deployed in Afghanistan, and was ultimately discovered days later near a lake in Riverside County, California. The autopsy revealed neck injuries consistent with strangulation, and marks on Brittany's wrists and legs suggesting attempted dismemberment with a saw. But the physical evidence was only the beginning of what investigators would uncover, as the trail led to a home with a fully equipped sex dungeon in the basement. Three individuals, people Brittany considered friends, who were all involved in a sadomasochist sex relationship with each other, decided to torture, assault, and ultimately kill Brittany for their twisted satisfaction. To learn more about listener data and our privacy practices visit: https://www.audacyinc.com/privacy-policy Learn more about your ad choices. Visit https://podcastchoices.com/adchoices

Please SUBSCRIBE to Psychopedia wherever you are listening! Follow Investigator Slater on Instagram + TikTok: @investigatorslater Join our Patreon family! (www.Patreon.com/PsychopediaPod) On Patreon, you get AD FREE episodes, Girl On Gore Season 2 episodes releasing soon, merch discounts, exclusive content, extra true crime cases, pop quizzes, behind-the-scenes pics/vids, private group chats, and much more! Note: This is an ongoing investigation, and all information referenced is alleged at this time.14year-old MJ didn’t starve because there was no food in the house - she starved in a home full of it. At the time of her rescue in 2025, MJ weighed just 35 pounds, a size typically seen in toddlers. She lived with four adults who were themselves obese, and who visibly consumed an excess of food while allegedly systematically denying it to her. This was not poverty, illness, confusion; it was allegedly prolonged abuse and neglect by omission, carried out in plain sight. This case exposes how power and indifference, in the hands of allegedly depraved adults, can essentially erase a child. Please listen with caution. To learn more about listener data and our privacy practices visit: https://www.audacyinc.com/privacy-policy Learn more about your ad choices. Visit https://podcastchoices.com/adchoices

Please SUBSCRIBE to this channel! Follow Slater on Instagram + TikTok: @investigatorslater Join our Patreon family! (www.Patreon.com/PsychopediaPod) On Patreon, you get AD FREE episodes, Girl On Gore Season 2 episodes releasing soon, merch discounts, exclusive content, extra true crime cases, pop quizzes, behind-the-scenes pics/vids, private group chats, and much more! On May 23, 2014, 22-year-old Elliot Rodger, a self-proclaimed "incel," went on a killing spree in Isla Vista, California, murdering six people and injuring fourteen others before turning the gun on himself. But this wasn't a snap decision or a moment of lost control - it was the meticulously planned culmination of years of seething entitlement, sexual frustration, and rage against women who wouldn't sleep with him. Elliot left behind a 137-page manifesto titled "My Twisted World," countless YouTube videos, and a legacy that would birth an entire online subculture of so-called "incels"— involuntary celibates who worship him as a martyr. He didn't just commit mass murder. He created a blueprint for lonely, bitter men to blame women for their own failures, to weaponize their rejection, and to turn sexual inadequacy into violent ideology. This is the story of Elliot Rodger—the incel king, the self-proclaimed "supreme gentleman," and the pathetic little narcissist who couldn't get laid so he decided everyone else should die. To learn more about listener data and our privacy practices visit: https://www.audacyinc.com/privacy-policy Learn more about your ad choices. Visit https://podcastchoices.com/adchoices

Please SUBSCRIBE to this channel! Follow Slater on Instagram + TikTok: @investigatorslater Join our Patreon family! (www.Patreon.com/PsychopediaPod) On Patreon, you'll get AD FREE episodes, Girl On Gore Season 2 episodes, merch discounts, exclusive content, extra true crime cases, pop quizzes, behind-the-scenes pics/vids, private group chats, and much more! Griselda Blanco - aka Cocaine Queen, Cocaine Godmother, Cocaine Cowgirl, La Madrina (to name just a few) - didn't just break into the drug trade, she rebuilt it from the ground up with ruthless efficiency and creative brutality. By the time Miami was drowning in blow and blood in the 1980s, Griselda had already pioneered smuggling routes, invented new methods of moving product, and racked up a body count that would make a cartel boss blush. This is the story of the woman who turned Miami into a war zone, made billions in the process, and proved that when it comes to narco empires, the most dangerous player isn't always the one with the biggest balls...sometimes it's the one in stilettos. To learn more about listener data and our privacy practices visit: https://www.audacyinc.com/privacy-policy Learn more about your ad choices. Visit https://podcastchoices.com/adchoices

Please SUBSCRIBE to this channel! Follow Slater on Instagram + TikTok: @investigatorslater Join our Patreon family! (www.Patreon.com/PsychopediaPod) On Patreon, you'll get AD FREE episodes, Girl On Gore Season 2 episodes, merch discounts, exclusive content, extra true crime cases, pop quizzes, behind-the-scenes pics/vids, private group chats, and much more! TRIGGER WARNING: This episode is extremely disturbing and discusses the very difficult subjects of child sexual abuse, child homicide, necrophilia and cannibalism. Please listen with caution. Tsutomu Miyazaki, known as "The Otaku Murderer," murdered four young girls in Japan between 1988 and 1989. He didn't just kill them—he engaged in necrophilia, dismemberment, and cannibalism. Then he terrorized their families, sending letters and pieces of his victims through the mail. This episode explores how his social isolation and obsessive fantasies escalated into ritualized violence so disturbing it ignited a moral panic across Japan. This case forces us to confront the darkest edges of human depravity: obsession, control, and complete dehumanization. This is an extremely difficult case. Please listen with caution. To learn more about listener data and our privacy practices visit: https://www.audacyinc.com/privacy-policy Learn more about your ad choices. Visit https://podcastchoices.com/adchoices

Please SUBSCRIBE to this channel! Follow Slater on Instagram + TikTok: @investigatorslater Join our Patreon family! (www.Patreon.com/PsychopediaPod) On Patreon, you'll get AD FREE episodes, Girl On Gore Season 2 episodes, merch discounts, exclusive content, extra true crime cases, pop quizzes, behind-the-scenes pics/vids, private group chats, and much more! Trigger warning: This episode discusses the very difficult subject of child sexual abuse. Please listen with caution.Description: In 2016, Jason Vukovich decided the justice system wasn’t doing its job — so, he took over. Jason launched a violent, one-man campaign against convicted pedophiles in Alaska, attacking his targets with fists, hammers, and years of unresolved pain and anger. As a survivor of childhood sexual abuse, Jason openly framed his actions as punishment the justice system failed to deliver. To supporters, he is a vigilante hero known as “The Alaskan Avenger.” To law enforcement, he is a dangerous criminal and serial attacker who belongs behind bars. To the public? A Rorschach test. This explosive case collides trauma, rage, and moral certainty - and leaves us with one brutal question: when justice fails and revenge feels necessary, who’s actually at fault? To learn more about listener data and our privacy practices visit: https://www.audacyinc.com/privacy-policy Learn more about your ad choices. Visit https://podcastchoices.com/adchoices

Please SUBSCRIBE to this channel! Follow Slater on Instagram + TikTok: @investigatorslater Join our Patreon family! (www.Patreon.com/PsychopediaPod) On Patreon, you'll get AD FREE episodes, merch discounts, exclusive content, extra true crime cases, pop quizzes, behind-the-scenes pics/vids, private group chats, and much more! At the height of summer along the New Jersey Shore in the 1960s and 70s, a man was killing for the thrill. His name was Richard Beigenwald. Known as the "Jersey Shore Thrill Killer," Richard was a serial killer who turned brief encounters into acts of domination, terror, and death. For Richard, violence was not incidental - it was entertainment. In this episode, we trace Richard’s life and crimes, reconstruct the scenes he left behind, and examine the psychological machinery driving thrill-based serial killers - people who kill not out of rage, but out of appetite. We break down the criminology, the escalation, and the absolutely wild details of the double life Richard lived. You see, for Richard Beigenwald, the danger wasn’t getting caught - it was getting bored. Because when boredom hit, innocent people paid with their lives... To learn more about listener data and our privacy practices visit: https://www.audacyinc.com/privacy-policy Learn more about your ad choices. Visit https://podcastchoices.com/adchoices

Please SUBSCRIBE to this channel! Follow Slater on Instagram + TikTok: @investigatorslater Join our Patreon family! (www.Patreon.com/PsychopediaPod) On Patreon, you'll get AD FREE episodes, merch discounts, exclusive content, extra true crime cases, pop quizzes, behind-the-scenes pics/vids, private group chats, and much more! Happy New Year, Little Psychos! I wanted to share a recent Patreon episode to give you a preview of the chaos happening behind the Patreon curtain. This is the inaugural episode of “True Crime or Fake Crime?” featuring my cousin Zak — the guy who, as a kid, once slid down a staircase in a sleeping bag and made a human-sized hole in the wall. In this episode, we go head-to-head trying to figure out which crimes actually happened and which ones were forged in the flames of our deeply f*cked-up imaginations. Apparently very twisted minds run in our family. I hope you enjoy this episode! And if you do, please consider joining the Patreon family over at Patreon.com/PsychopediaPod. Sending you so much gratitude, all my love, and best wishes for a happy, healthy, and suitably dark New Year! xo To learn more about listener data and our privacy practices visit: https://www.audacyinc.com/privacy-policy Learn more about your ad choices. Visit https://podcastchoices.com/adchoices

Please SUBSCRIBE to this channel! Follow Slater on Instagram + TikTok: @investigatorslater Join our Patreon family! (www.Patreon.com/PsychopediaPod) On Patreon, you'll get AD FREE episodes, merch discounts, exclusive content, extra true crime cases, pop quizzes, behind-the-scenes pics/vids, private group chats, and much more! Tyler Hadley was just 17 years old when he brutally murdered both of his parents inside their Florida home - and then, astonishingly, threw a house party in the same space where their bodies lay hidden. In July 2011, after killing Mary-Jo and Blake Hadley, Tyler invited dozens of friends over, blasted music, drank, danced, and posed for photos, even showing a friend the bodies of his murdered parents. The crime shocked investigators not only for its violence, but for the chilling lack of remorse and the surreal normalcy that followed the gruesome crime. This case isn’t just about patricide; it’s about a young person struggling with severe internal distress that ultimately manifested in unimaginable violence - and two innocent parents who paid the ultimate price. To learn more about listener data and our privacy practices visit: https://www.audacyinc.com/privacy-policy Learn more about your ad choices. Visit https://podcastchoices.com/adchoices