Rotten Mango (Stephanie Soo)

“Big John” loved his little apartment. It wasn’t nice but it was his.

He was in his 40’s and he wanted to decorate it with whatever style he pleased. His bedroom was more of a game room with a mattress on the ground.

The walk-in closet was wall-to-wall with the newest and latest games. Nintendo games, board games, barbies, you name it. His drawers were stuffed full with candy and his mini-fridge only had soda in it.

The only thing is - none of these things were for Big John.

Book Rec: “Buried Memories” - by Katie Beers (Written by the victim of the crime - and how she recovered from such a traumatic event. Get your tissues ready)

Full Source Notes: rottenmangopodcast.com

This night was special from the rest - he felt his stomach rumble violently. Oh no. He bent over and threw up everything…

What was the problem? He was used to drinking all night - in fact, it was his only true joy.

Maybe it was her fault. He looked down at the girl laying on the ground covered in her own blood.

Maybe her blood just didn’t sit right in his stomach.

He is, after all, the Vampire of Düsseldorf.

Full Source Notes: rottenmangopodcast.com

You look around - you’re in the hospital but you feel trapped.

Why can’t you talk? Why can’t you move? You start to feel your body involuntarily shake…

The nurse noticed and rushed to your bedside. Good, someone is coming to help.

She pulls back your covers and crawls into the bed with you. She’s stroking your hair, kissing your face, and wants to look you directly in the eye as your pupils dilate, violently convulse, and you take your last breath.

You were always her favorite patient… right?

Full Source Notes: rottenmangopodcast.com

The beekeeper called for his friend - “Jose you need to come now!”

He had found something near the abandoned house. They rushed over to a small pit on the ground covered with branches.

They bent down - used an old spatula to move around the dirt. It was a watch.

They screamed…the watch was still attached to its owner.

The two men unknowingly discovered the bodies of 3 missing girls, that would lead the whole country down a rabbit hole of conspiracies, scandal, and a man on Interpol’s most-wanted list.

Rec: “Alcàsser Murders” - by Netflix

Full Source Notes: rottenmangopodcast.com

Kenny was ecstatic - he was finally moving to LA where he would chase his dreams. To make things better his older cousin was letting him stay at his house. He would also teach him a few lessons on how to be successful.

“Lesson #1: You gotta hit the bullseye. Make it your target.

Right between the legs.

Always use a wet towel. It doesn’t leave bruise marks.

Oh, and Kenny? Don’t chicken out when you strangle them.”

The two cousins would be known as the “Hillside Stranglers” and they would leave behind a trail of bodies all over the hills of LA.

Rec: “The Hillside Stranglers” - by Darcy O’Brien (best deep dive on this case out there but it is really intense.)

Full Source Notes: rottenmangopodcast.com

It’s healthy for couples to talk to each other.

That’s exactly what Mrs. C was trying to do to keep her marriage alive. She would come home to tell her husband about the love triangle at work.

“Melissa loves Jack but Jack is seeing Anna” can you believe it?

At first, it seemed like innocent coworker drama but slowly it got sinister. Mrs. C wanted to help Melissa spy on the couple, hack into voicemails, and even break into apartments.

Mr. C also knew all about Melissa & Jack’s sex life. How in love they were behind Anna’s back.

But he didn’t know that his wife was telling him all the dirty details of her own affair. Or that it would lead to two people being stabbed.

Rec: “Obsessed” - by M Phelps - this is such a good book by one of my fave authors!

Full Source Notes: rottenmangopodcast.com

Jason was a straight A college student, with 2 jobs, and his favorite show was “The Sopranos.” He was a nice kid with a bright future ahead of him.

One day police found Jason’s mom had gone missing. Jason was worried.

He had thrown her headless body off a cliff - just like what he learned from his favorite show. But he had been so busy - that he hadn’t gotten around to burning her head and her hands. They were still sitting in the closet waiting for him.

Book Rec: “Such Good Boys” by Tina Dirmann (best deep dive on this case and an amazing read)

Full Source Notes: rottenmangopodcast.com

In Florence, Italy - it’s said that 1/3 of people are conceived in cars.

Young couples would drive up the isolated hills to have some fun - and creepers would flock to watch them. They would watch, record, “enjoy” themselves, and then go home.

Except for one creeper - he wanted more.

He would ambush the couple right after they were done - and drag the woman out of the car to take something for himself.

His little trophies…

Book Rec: “The Monster of Florence” - by Douglas Preston & Mario Spezi (Might by me favorite read of the whole year - you need to pick it up)

Full Source Notes: rottenmangopodcast.com

Family should always be close. The two cousins did everything together.

They slept with their son's underage girlfriends together, started a business, and even lived together.

They wanted to experience life’s greatest pleasures - together, as a family.

The rush of injecting a woman with Windex (the window cleaner) to see how they would convulse. The rush of hooking up a woman to electrical wires from an auto shop. The rush of leaving naked bodies all over happy Los Angeles.

They did it all - as a family.

Rec: “The Hillside Stranglers” - by Darcy O’Brien (best deep dive on this case out there but it is really intense.)

Full Source Notes: rottenmangopodcast.com

He wrote in his diary everyday about his love and desire for Susan.

He took hundreds of pictures of Susan - of her getting dressed, eating cereal, using the restroom, even shopping at Costco.

Her husband was no good for her. They were not in love. Not like the way he and Susan were in love.

You probably guessed it but Susan had no idea that he was in love with her.

And she definitely wasn’t interested in dating her father-in-law.

When Susan went missing - all his creepy secrets would be exposed. But you know what they say - like father like son.

Full Source Notes: rottenmangopodcast.com

Alligators are one of the world’s oldest predators. Their bite is 3x stronger than that of a lion. So it was a no-brainer to police when they were told Mike Williams went missing at Lake Seminole.

“He was eaten alive - maybe they took his body to their dens for later food.” - they thought.

But when pieces of clothes that presumably belonged to Mike surfaced - people were confused. There were in pristine condition. Practically new.

The dark waters and mystery at Lake Seminole will haunt 4 families for over 20 years. But the truth will eventually come to shore.

Book Rec: “Evil At Lake Seminole” - by Steven Epstein (such a good deep dive and amazingly written)

Full Source Notes: rottenmangopodcast.com

In the halls of their high school - nobody dared to walk near her.

Most of the students pretended they didn’t see her, hear her, or know her.

If you were new there you might ask - “What did she do?”

“Oh, you don’t know? That’s Gitchie Girl. She went into the woods with 4 of her friends and she’s the only one that came out alive. And we all know that Gitchie Girl is hiding something.”

Book Rec: “Gitchie Girl” - by Phil Hamman & Sandy Hamman (There are 2 books written by the authors and both are incredible, heartbreaking reads)

Full Source Notes: rottenmangopodcast.com

Bbzzz - when the buzzer goes off they know it’s game time. The high contact sport of water polo begins.

For the next few hours - they attack, get dragged underwater, and they try to win at all costs.

And then afterward the team will reward themselves with shots at the bars. Keli was nervous.

She didn’t know how to sneak out of the party early without anyone knowing. But what choice did she have?

She was going to give birth tonight. In secret. For the second time.

Book Rec: “Nice Girl” - by Rachel Jane Chin (so good!)

Full Source Notes: rottenmangopodcast.com

They say family secrets are like vampires - they never really die.

The Murdaugh family knows this better than anyone. For generations, they were one of the most powerful, wealthiest, families in South Carolina.

But when those around them start mysteriously dying… and even two of their own end up dead.

You have to wonder - is someone finally getting their revenge on the untouchable family? An eye for an eye?

Or are the Murdaugh family secrets out for blood?

Full Source Notes: rottenmangopodcast.com

The stories were becoming wilder.

Did you know that right after killing her roommate with her boyfriend - she took a shower in the blood-soaked bathroom?

She killed her roommate over a threesome gone wrong!

She even did cartwheels, backflips, and splits in the police station.

If this were true she just might be the evilest woman in all of Italy.

But what if it wasn’t? What if this was an innocent woman spending 5 years in prison for a murder that she did not commit?

Full Source Notes: rottenmangopodcast.com

The highway patrol officers turned on their sirens. 2nd drunk driver of the night. This guy was worse than the first.

He had a friend in the passenger seat - drunk, passed out, and he didn’t even realize they had been pulled over.

He sat there sleeping while the driver was being arrested.

“Come on bud time to find a new ride” - the officer tapped the window.

That’s when he realized - the passenger wasn’t drunk.

He was dead.

Full Source Notes: rottenmangopodcast.com

“Welcome to the House of Gucci.” You’re instantly hit with the smell of leather and well - money.

This is what Gucci is all about - wealth, excess, and opulence. It’s a household name. But have you heard of the Gucci killer?

The one fueled by lust, greed, and counterfeit bags. The one that would kill in the name of Gucci.

They say money can’t buy happiness - but it’ll get you a whole lot of Gucci.

Full Source Notes: rottenmangopodcast.com

He was about to sell his family company and become a billionaire. But then he went missing.

In order to find him, the police had to dig into his personal life.

Why was a private detective following him? Who hired them? What’s on the videos the PI took of him?

Why was he visiting a very shady chat forum every single day - what kind of information was he looking for on there?

And most importantly - did the dismembered body parts scattered on the side of the road have anything to do with this?

Full Source Notes: rottenmangopodcast.com

The American exchange student skipped home - her life in Italy was perfect.

She had great roommates and a new Italian boyfriend. Nothing could ruin her time abroad.

That is - till she finds the door to her apartment wide open, blood smeared all over her bathroom, and one of her roommates dead in her room.

Her “strange behavior” makes her a target for the police. I mean would an innocent person do yoga in the police station, journal about pizza during an interrogation, and “make-out” with her boyfriend while police are around?

Book Rec: “Waiting To Be Heard” - by Amanda Knox (one of my fave books of the year)

Full Source Notes: rottenmangopodcast.com

Tony was getting fed up. His friend wasn’t listening to him.

“No no no you don’t get it! I’m f***ing my mother!” - he screamed.

The restaurant went quiet.

Tony came from a strange family, to say the least. His great-grandparents were the creators of plastic. Yes, plastic. His mom was an eccentric aspiring author working on her debut novel about a mom who seduces her son on a yacht - that everyone believed to be more of an autobiography.

Strange? Sure.

Homicidal? Absolutely.

Full Source Notes: rottenmangopodcast.com

Jodi is one of the most recommended marriage therapists in the area but there’s something about her that feels - wrong. 

“Every relationship needs to die in order to be reborn.”

Her pattern is simple yet effective. 

Find the husband’s addiction. Each husband has one. It’s usually watching too many explicit videos, staring too long at his female coworkers, or just having too many inappropriate thoughts. 

Find the addiction. And stomp. It. Out. 

Shame the husband for how he’s ruining the family and give the wife strength and power to run away from him… straight into Jodi’s arms. 

It almost seems like that is her intention. 

And it seems to work like a charm - every single time. 

And just maybe - if Jodi really tries… maybe the men will even end up in prison. Then the wife will have nobody but Jodi. 

Youtuber / family blogger, Ruby Franke, should be very familiar with this. Because now all she has - is Jodi. 

Full show notes at rottenmangopodcast.com

Gone South, the Edward R. Murrow award-winning podcast, is back. Unlike previous seasons, writer and host Jed Lipinski brings listeners new episodes every week with no end in sight. Each episode of Gone South Season 4 tells a different story about one of the South's most interesting crimes.

Dina and Tim know that the footage is going to be bad. They had already seen glimpses… but they weren’t prepared.

The baby camera footage shows a 56 year old woman standing at the edge of the bed. She’s emotionless yet she's holding a newborn baby in her arms...

She takes a moment before calmly - using all her force - to chuck the baby across the room onto the bed. Ever so calmly she walks over and stuffs blankets into the baby’s mouth and slams her down.

This is the case of the worst nanny in San Francisco. And strangely, how a TikTok executive and Snapchat executive get involved in this viral case. 

Full show notes at rottenmangopodcast.com

A perfect town comes with a terrifying price. From C13Features comes Treat, a podcast movie starring Kiernan Shipka as Allie West, an unpopular teenager who is dealing with issues beyond her years while struggling to fit in with her seemingly perfect small town. But, on one Halloween night, everything changes, and she discovers that her town’s idyllic image comes at a deadly cost. As she learns about the mysterious Piper’s powerful hold on the town, she, along with her younger brother, realize they are the only ones who can save their community before it’s too late. Can Allie West help rescue her family, and their town, and even herself, from its evil past and own demise? Grab some popcorn, and get lost in your imagination in this new thrilling and frightening podcast movie experience, Treat, from C13Features, a Cadence13 Studio. Available now.

There’s been a crime in the workplace. Tim, the man in charge, is tasked with figuring out what exactly happened.

He calls in the informants and sits them down at his desk.

“What did you hear?”

They lean forward - “I heard that they meet after hours in her car and they’re having a very inappropriate relationship. She might even be pregnant.”

Tim takes notes. He interviews each of the people that could know exactly what happened… before concluding. These are all just workplace rumors. There is nothing more he should do about it.

There’s just no way that Teacher Of The Year - Brittany Zamora is SAing her 13 year old student in a classroom full of kids.

There’s no way. What would her poor husband say about this?

A lot.

He has a lot to say.

All words of support for his wife.

Full show notes at rottenmangopodcast.com 

The 16-year-old girl couldn’t stop ranting at work.

Life is so short - her high school teacher’s husband had just been viscously murdered. Can you believe it? Her teacher is now a sad widow.

During her rant, one of her coworkers cut her off.

Wait- didn’t you tell me a few weeks ago that your 15-year-old friend was planning on murdering him? So that he could be with his teacher?

Cecilia looked up and responded… “Oh, sh*t I forgot I told you that.”

Full Source Notes: rottenmangopodcast.com

The two women met in the psychiatric ward and instantly sparks were flying.

Their hair was wild, they were heavily drugged up but they knew that it was only a matter of time before they had s*x.

They were so different but it worked. One woman - the wife of a millionaire. The other woman - was struggling with life and addiction.

But they just knew that they would be together. They just didn’t know it would be in jail… for murder.

Book Rec: “She Wanted It All” - by Kathryn Casey (an amazing deep dive on this case I was hooked).

Full Source Notes: rottenmangopodcast.com

The sisters were arrested - they went with the plan.

Stare at a fixed object to the point of looking hypnotized.

The police were getting fed up “YOU'RE AN EVIL LITTLE MANIAC TELL US WHERE THE BOMBS ARE.”

The sisters remained “hypnotized” till at exactly 3 PM they looked at their wristwatch and let out a big sinister smile.

BOOM.

The bomb went off in the busy streets of London injuring hundreds. The sisters had 3 more.

Book Rec: “Say Nothing” - by Patrick Keefe (one of my favorite authors of all time you won’t be disappointed by any of his books)

Full Source Notes: rottenmangopodcast.com

The FBI agent watched her across the store. He was seasoned enough to know what that little girl was trying to do.

He watched her steal a notebook and make a run for the door. Not today. The agent grabbed her arm and stopped her. She was under arrest.

“I’m an FBI agent and you just committed a crime, little girl. I need to take you to my boss.”

This is how Sally Horner was kidnapped, held hostage, and tortured for 2 years.

Book Rec: “The Real Lolita” - by Sara Weinman (without her this case would have been forgotten).

Full Source Notes: rottenmangopodcast.com

It’s a tale as old as time. A farmer was walking his fields one cold winter when he spotted a snake. The snake was frozen stiff from the cold.

The farmer knew the snake to be deadly but he couldn’t help himself. He scooped it up and put it in his jacket to warm it up.

Slowly the snake woke up and gathered enough strength to look up at the kind man who saved him… and bit him. The ultimate betrayal.

But we know snakes are cold-blooded. Humans are different - we would never do such a thing to someone who saved our lives. Or would we?

Full Source Notes: rottenmangopodcast.com

Jean was a successful doctor working as a researcher at the well-respected World Health Organization. His wife was a pharmacist and they had 2 beautiful children. Ah yes, it’s another perfect family.

But we both know that there’s no such thing. Jean was cheating on his wife with a mutual friend - a child psychologist.

But the affair does something mysterious to Jean. He starts blacking out, has holes in his memory, but most alarming of all - he wakes up one day to find himself hovering over his wife’s dead body... What really happened here?

Full Source Notes: rottenmangopodcast.com

The Cleveland Health Department had been flooded by calls from residents on Imperial Avenue. The residents complained of an inescapable, pungent, thick stench that was so strong that it made their eyes sting.

After years of calls, the inspectors went out to investigate. The source was clear.

Ray’s Sausage Shop! That made perfect sense, fresh meat being ground daily into sausages has to produce some stench right?

No matter what the residents tried - the smell never went away.

At least for years. 11 bodies later.

Full Source Notes: rottenmangopodcast.com

You might think her life is perfect. Millionaire boyfriend, $13million dollar mansion, and a cute dog.

But behind closed doors it was rough - her boyfriend’s ex-wives hated her, she fought with his teenage kids all the time and spent a lot of her time babysitting his youngest child.

One day under her care - the little boy ends up unconscious and is rushed to the hospital. Nobody blames her though - or do they?

Because just 2 days later she is found dead with the words “she saved him, can you save her?” scribbled on the door.

Book Rec: “Death On Ocean Boulevard” - by Caitlin Rother (Yes, there’s a ton of info on this case but this is the best deep dive you will find).

Full Source Notes: rottenmangopodcast.com

The only thing he loved in life was his mom. She was his everything. He couldn’t bear to be fighting with his “Mama Bear.”

He was worried that South Hill Rapist would come for his mom. I mean why wouldn’t he? He was terrorizing the entire neighborhood - no woman was safe.

The rapist would drag women into the bushes, assault them, threaten them, and then whisper in their ears. “I’m so sorry, I didn’t mean to, you didn’t deserve this, are you okay?” In a high-pitched baby voice.

His mama bear did always say his baby voice was just so adorable.

Full Source Notes: rottenmangopodcast.com

The FBI agent walked into the warehouse. It was exactly what he expected…

A concrete fortress, barely any natural light, and then he saw it. The walls. The walls were filled with rows and rows of decapitated heads, skulls, and bones. Some still had rotting flesh on them - others were completely skeletonized.

When the FBI agent made it to the back he came face to face with the man. He was shirtless, barefoot, and stirring a giant pot with a head inside.

“I wasn’t expecting you today” - the man said...

Do they know each other? What is behind the mysterious Vidocq Society?

Book Rec: “Murder Room” - by Michael Capuzzo (One of my fave books this year and brb while I go read all his other books. Do yourself a favor and read this one!)

Full Source Notes: rottenmangopodcast.com

She woke up disoriented in the dark. She didn’t know where she was… oh god, what’s that awful smell?

Her hand was touching something sticky on the ground. When her eyes slowly adjusted to the dark she saw - bodies. Dead bodies. Stacked on top of each other. Some of their faces were frozen still as if they were still screaming.

The stickiness on her hand? The bodies coming together and forming a sticky sludge filled with maggots.

Now the question - how would she escape the dungeon?

Full Source Notes: rottenmangopodcast.com

The gas station attendant was helping him fill up his car. What timing. It was a hot summer’s day, the sweat trickled down his forehead, and he was anxious to get going. The two of them stood awkwardly at the back of his truck waiting for his tank to get full.

Drip. Drip. Drip.

“Sir, I think your car is leaking.” They both looked down to see a red liquid drip down onto the pavement. The gas attendant didn’t know that there were 3 bodies in the trunk - and the driver was going to keep it that way.

Book Rec: “Alice & Gerald” - by Ron Franscell (an amazing author who really dives deep into the emotions of a case)

Full Source Notes: rottenmangopodcast.com

Sean hopped into his car to pick up his girlfriend. He was always so happy to see her. He couldn’t get enough of her.

“Honey bunny” I’m over here! Sean’s girlfriend slid into the passenger side and he leaned in for a kiss.

He couldn’t help but pull back with a giant grin. He wondered if she could taste it. He could…

The taste of human flesh always lingered in his mouth.

Book Rec: “Dismembered” - by Susan D Mustafa & Sue Israel (The best deep dive on this case I could find! Truly amazing work)

Full Source Notes: rottenmangopodcast.com

Have you heard about how to boil a frog? They say if you throw a frog into a pot of boiling water - it will jump out.

But if you throw a frog in a pot of cool water… and you slowly start turning up the heat.

Slowly but surely. So slow that it’s just incremental changes in heat. It’s said the frog will sit there, completely unaware of its impending doom, and it will be cooked to death.

The frog has been “willingly” cooked alive.

Do you think humans are any smarter than frogs? Maybe not.

Full Source Notes: rottenmangopodcast.com

Have you heard of the Chinese urban legend? It’s about the most famous thief in history. He was able to steal entire train cabins from moving trains.

When he was finally caught - the thief was sentenced to death. He said his very last wish in life was to be breastfed one last time. The mom pitied her full-grown son and laid her chest bare. One last time. He lifted his mouth up, and with the most force he could summon, he ripped off her nipple.

“This is all your fault” - he screamed. It begs the question, how much of a crime is the parent's fault? And how do criminals’ parents truly feel?

Full Source Notes: rottenmangopodcast.com

He knew this was going to happen sooner or later. The FBI had already stopped by twice to let him know that he was on a criminal’s “kidnap wish list.”

He just didn’t know - that the one being kidnapped wouldn’t be him. It would be his very own son. The heir to the Coors Beer Dynasty.

He felt confident he could deal with this. It’s like a business transaction. He just had to make sure his son had no secrets.

Who knew beer had so many secrets?

Book Rec: “The Death of an Heir” - by Phillip Jett (amazing read I couldn’t get enough!)

Full Source Notes: rottenmangopodcast.com

The couple’s vacation in Ocean City was supposed to help them fall in love again. Marriage is tough - they lost that spark.

They were even staying in the penthouse of a beautiful oceanfront hotel. The penthouse bathroom had a hot tub that they were certain was going to help ignite their romance again.

But the night ended with two headless bodies in the tub. They were dismembered. And honestly, it was exactly what the couple felt they needed.

They were in love again.

Full Source Notes: rottenmangopodcast.com

It all started when a woman jumped from her bathroom window. The police questioned whether or not it was a suicide.

The whole nation did. Why did the seemingly happy wife and mother take her own life? Maybe someone pushed her?

Why was her entire back filled with sexually derogatory tattoos?

Just weeks later her father-in-law took his own life, and a 14-year-old girl’s body was found stuffed in a suitcase.

How were they all connected?

To make things more puzzling - the person at the center of the web was someone that is loved by the entire nation...

Full Source Notes: rottenmangopodcast.com

The text messages were released. At first, it only circulated amongst smaller group chats - but like a fire, it spread.

It was too good of a scandal. Two normal everyday people and the innermost private parts of their lives. Their affair.

Wanda, the married woman, and mother, cheats on her husband with the mailman. Nude pictures and videos were circulating of the two. Wanda lost everything. She lost her job, her family, her friends, her reputation. Her entire life was ruined by this leak.

But something nobody would have guessed? Everything was faked. Two men had set out to ruin this woman’s life for very sinister reasons.

Full Source Notes: rottenmangopodcast.com

He emerged from the thick jungle for the first time in a long time.

He had been waiting for this moment for years. The day World War II would come to an end. He would be relieved from his duties and Japan glorious in their victory!

Onoda held his breath while his commander read his release. Onoda waited for further orders but there were none. Just a tub of face cream.

“What’s this for?” - asked Onoda.

“You’re going to need it. For all the interviews… Onoda, the war ended 29 years ago. We’ve been looking for you. The world will want to know what on earth did you do in the jungle for the past 29 years? How did you even survive? And how many did you kill?”

Full Source Notes: rottenmangopodcast.com

The Burning Sun scandal exposed some of the most beloved K-pop idols to be depraved predators. The Burning Sun was a popular club.

The type of club where rich men ruled. If you wanted a rare bottle of champagne. They would get it. If you wanted the club to stay open an extra hour. They would do it.

If you wanted the bartenders to roofie a random girl’s drink so that you could have her escorted into your private room to assault… they would do it.

The Burning Sun exposed a lot - it would even take down one of the richest women in Korea. The Milk Princess.

Full Source Notes: rottenmangopodcast.com

The authorities burst into the room and their jaws dropped. The entire room was completely white. Even the books on the shelves were bound in white leather.

But the most shocking was the pure white bed in the middle of the room surrounded by an arc of chairs. As if people sat around the bed like it was some sort of show.

Which they did. Authorities found audio recordings of middle-aged men assaulting underage girls while their friends watched. Some victims are as young as 12. There are hundreds if not thousands of victims.

What kind of monsters would do such a thing?

Book Rec: “The Witness Wore Red” - by Rebecca Musser

Full Source Notes: rottenmangopodcast.com

It was supposed to be a place of growth, learning, and happy laughter filling the yards. It was a place where people were supposed to feel safe.

But in the parking lot of the elementary school, under a suspicious white van, there was a woman lying nude. Murdered.

The police had the killers in the back of the cop car… they could see one of them looking at the victim. His lips curled up into a small smile.

He was happy with what he had done. He wanted to do this for a while. He told his accomplice - “hey at least I’m not a virgin anymore." They high-fived.

Full Source Notes: rottenmangopodcast.com

They say Lake Erie is haunted. That’s where the “Lady of the Lake” lives. The bizarre pieces of the puzzle started to come together.

A 14-year-old girl came out of the lake screaming, she claimed she saw a hand waving to her at the bottom of the lake. A few fishermen pulled up their line to find it tangled with a chunk of blonde hair. Human hair.

A ferry operator claimed to see a suspicious bobbing object in the water. He said it looked like a head.

What was going on? Why were body parts washing ashore?

The dismembered “Lady of the Lake” turned out to be the first victim of the still free “Cleveland Butcher” serial killer.

Full Source Notes: rottenmangopodcast.com

Middle schooler Alice got off the train with excitement bubbling in her chest. She was meeting 17-year-old Peter for the first time.

She had no idea that she would be ambushed by Peter and his friends, dragged to a local motel where she would be gang r*ped by more than 40 high school boys. They filmed the entire thing.

Her torture would last a year.

The boys blackmailed her into coming back for more assaults. Just when she thought the nightmare was over - the police kept asking her “why did you go back unless you liked it?”

Full Source Notes: rottenmangopodcast.com

When he was found dead at the bottom of a building in Beijing - the police found two notes of interest. His suicide note where he named his killer. That seemed odd?

And another note - a piece of paper that was handwritten. Where he had promised $2 million dollars to someone within the next 120 days.

Could that even be a real contract? Would a handwritten random note be used in the court of law? Why was this successful tech CEO so scared of losing $2 million dollars? Why had he promised it in the first place?

The answer will lead you to the person that pushed him off the edge of the building.

Full Source Notes: rottenmangopodcast.com

In Brazil, this specific prison is known as the “real dungeons.”

Because once you get in - you feel like you’re trapped in hell until they let you out. That is - if you can even get out alive.

BBC reporters are there to interview one of the most high profile prisoners. Every single prisoner in there has been deemed a dangerous criminal - this one even more so.

She walks out. Thin frame. Short blonde hair.

She used to be a model in NYC and was reported to have dated Leonardo DiCaprio. What is she doing in here?

“Why are you in here?” - they ask her.

“They say I can control people minds. Change their brains.” - she responds.

“Can you?”

“What do you think? Can I? I hope so… when I get out you will see the power that I have and if it is real or not.”

“Is that a threat”

Did the prisoner just threaten the BBC reporters?

This is the case of Kat Torres - the Brazilian Instagram “influencer” with over 1 million followers that has been charged with human trafficking and slavery charges.

Full show notes at rottenmangopodcast.com 

Both men were racing in their cars for different reasons.

Peter was stepping on the pedal to his wife. She was sick, and he needed to get to her ASAP. He was worried for her.

Larry was in his car - racing to his girlfriend, who wasn’t picking up his calls. He was worried for her.

Both men were gripping their steering wheels till their knuckles turned white. They were both racing to the same woman. They both knew it. Maybe they hoped whoever got their first would get her love.

But both would walk away without her. She would choose neither of them because someone had taken her life.

Full Source Notes: rottenmangopodcast.com

Chloe was used to her pictures being posted on the internet. She was a model, after all. She posted on social media and updated her followers on her personal life. But she had never been posted on this type of website before in her life.

It’s the type of website that you and I probably couldn’t access. You can’t just Google it. No. It exists only in the deep layers of the dark web.

The post read: “Chloe. Born in the UK. Abducted in Italy. 19 years old. Measurements: 35DD.

Starting bid: $300k.

Auction open: July 16, 2017.”

Her auction would be seen all over the world.

Full Source Notes: rottenmangopodcast.com

Joanne’s mom had always been a bit out there. Nobody could quite put her finger on it, but there were whispers that family members were witches.

When Joanne’s mom sent her out in the middle of the night to dig up something in the woods for a spell… Joanne was confused. She was terrified of walking alone in the dark. What spell was her mom talking about?

Joanne imagined she would be arrested that night. But she wouldn’t be. Nobody gets arrested for digging up someone’s flowers.

But soon, Joanne would find herself digging in the darkness again for her mom. This time it was for a dead body, and Joanne would be arrested but let’s not get ahead of ourselves.

Full Source Notes: rottenmangopodcast.com

Margaret was cooking up her favorite stew. She could use it. The temperature was below zero, the winter storms were approaching, and Margaret hoped the nutrients from the pork bones would give her energy.

She would need the energy for her cleaning job.

She took her pork bones, which were neatly pre-sliced, she took them out, washed them, and plopped them into her water.

It was almost muscle memory - but when she stuck her hand in again she felt something strange. She pulled out some bony pieces in the bag and it took her a moment to realize she was staring at 3 severed human fingers.

Margaret didn’t have pork meat. She had the dismembered remains of a university student. The police would find 2000 more pieces of that student dropped around campus.

Full Source Notes: rottenmangopodcast.com

Summer in Italy - where else would you want to be?

Marco was a lifeguard working at one of Italy’s beautiful seaside resorts. After his shift, he rushed over to his girlfriend’s house, and ate dinner with her entire family.

They all got along. It’s like he was part of the family already.

Even after dinner, Marco wanted to wash the scent of saltwater off his body and asked if he could take a bath.

Of course they let him. And in that little bathroom, Marco would die. The house was filled with people. How did nobody know what happened? Or maybe, they all have their own secrets to protect.

Full Source Notes: rottenmangopodcast.com

It was going to be a long day - just like the movies. Each housewife was getting ready, staring into the mirror, clasping on their string of pearls.

They hated these gatherings. All the other moms, bratty children, and don’t even get them started on the attorneys that shuffled into the room. Tensions were high. The 5 moms in total hated each other.

Technically they should have a lot in common - being that they are all married to high-powered businessmen.

They had similar problems but the biggest one of all? Was that they were all dating the same man. And now he was dead. Who killed him? And who will inherit his fortune?

Full Source Notes: rottenmangopodcast.com

It had been months since Abby had been held captive in the bucker/torture chamber. The cruelest torture had been carried out on her, every single day.

She wanted it all to be over. It didn’t matter anymore that she would never graduate the 7th grade. Nothing mattered except making sure her kidnapper paid for this.

Abby wrote a note, naming her kidnapper, and what he had done to her before slipping it into the lining of her shoe. She hoped whoever found her would find the note.

And then she filled the tiny gross sink in the corner of her cell, one of the only things that filled the tiny space, and prepared herself to end it all.

Full Source Notes: rottenmangopodcast.com

There were always 12. 10 foster kids in the house at all times, plus the two biological children of the Baker parents. 12 kids.

All 12 kids would grow up to see some heinous things. It’s alleged that the Bakers would force the foster boys to molest the foster girls in their care.

It’s said that the Bakers would even force brothers to inappropriately touch sisters under their direction. Victims came forward to say they were assaulted weekly by Mr. Baker, and they remember being starved as a fear tactic.

Most of these kids came out of the foster home as survivors, but one, one child grew up to become the predator. One that would prey on victims where they might be the most vulnerable - the church.

Full Source Notes: rottenmangopodcast.com

It sounded like a new age of crime. We’ve all heard of jealousy being the motivation behind the murder, but this was a bit different.

She was jealous that Naomi was a bigger “influencer” than she was. She hated that she was getting all the love, the likes, the follows. She was going to put a stop to it. Her brilliant plan? Have her boyfriend assault Naomi so that she would be too traumatized to work again.

The plan spiraled out of control, and Naomi ended up murdered. But this case is far from simple. The boyfriend was the son of Cartier’s Chairman in Asia. As new information came out - people found themselves changing their minds nonstop. Did she really kill out of jealousy? Did she even know?

Full Source Notes: rottenmangopodcast.com

When I say “it was the town’s best-kept secret,” what do you imagine? Maybe an unknown hole-in-the-wall restaurant with the best milkshakes? Maybe a secret hangout spot near the river with the best city views.

Not for the town of Glen Ridge; it was much darker than that. For them, their best-kept secret was their boys. The town’s group of star athletes - the football players, wrestlers, basketball players, and the most popular boys in class.

So why are they a secret? Well, they’re not. But the secret was over a dozen of the most popular boys gang raped a disabled high school girl. They assaulted her with a baseball bat and broomstick.

It was a secret kept by the boys, the parents, teachers, faculty members, coaches, and social workers, for 3 full months before the police were alerted.

Full Source Notes: rottenmangopodcast.com

John was devastated when he got the call from his wife’s twin. His wife of two and a half years had just passed. Sure, he knew that she had been terminally ill for a while, but that didn’t ease the grief he felt.

So when his wife’s twin sister showed up at his front door, he welcomed her in with open arms. She was the only one that understood his pain.

They were identical twins, but she had blonde hair, whereas his wife had brown. She was also a bit thinner than his wife. Maybe she reminded him so much of his wife that he slowly fell in love with her.

He felt it was natural to connect with her, but he had no idea that she had planned it all. His wife’s twin had been obsessed with their life. Their picture-perfect marriage, their lovely plush house, and she wanted it for herself. She felt she deserved it more than her twin. So she was here to take it. Everything. The house, the husband, and the life.

Full Source Notes: rottenmangopodcast.com

Edward’s new boss loved a good team-building event. Most companies would take their employees out for a fun night of bowling.

But not Edward’s boss, Robin; he liked to have a more intimate setting. He gathered all 3 of his employees in the attic of his house and told them to follow after him.

He started chanting random phrases while holding up an object into the air above them. Then he dramatically pressed the object to his mouth and took a bite. He cackled maniacally and passed it around for everyone to eat.

It was an amputated human breast. They were all going to be cannibals from this point on. Robin didn’t care though. He didn’t even care that he ripped the flesh straight from a human being who was still alive. All he cared about was that his employees were bonding with him.

Full Source Notes: rottenmangopodcast.com

You’ve heard of the red rooms - the alleged deep web livestreams of people being assaulted, tortured, and killed.

The existence of red rooms is largely debated. But have you ever heard of the “Little Red Mansion?” Because this one is very real.

The mansion itself was beautiful, filled with crystal chandeliers, gold crown moldings, and massive rooms filled with over-the-top furniture. It felt like an expensive boutique hotel.

But for the girls trapped inside it was the biggest nightmare. They were being held hostage, trafficked to high-powered government officials, injected with hormones, and in the end, their eggs were ripped from their bodies to be sold on the black market.

If you walked by the Little Red Mansion, you would think it’s a nice building - you would never imagine the secrets it held.

Full Source Notes: rottenmangopodcast.com

They needed protection in order to go through with their big plans. She turned to black magic. Sure, it was risky to get dark magic and spirits involved, but their plans were more important. 

Their plans were to travel up and down the West Coast with their new van! It was a family van, one that could fit all their biological children in, one that you could sleep in, one that the children were supposed to feel safe in. 

It was going to be perfect. The couple had dreams about this day. The day that they could assault their own children in their incest torture van. 

Full Source Notes: rottenmangopodcast.com

They were meeting up again. They knew they should stop, it wasn’t doing any good for them, but how could they? They were the only ones that really understood each other. So the two of them would leave their spouses, their children, all at home to go be with one another. 

And I know what you’re thinking. Cheaters. 

Well, don’t judge a book by its cover. 

These two were not cheating on their spouses. In fact, they had been cheated on. His wife was sleeping with her husband. They were meeting up to try and heal from their shared trauma. 

4 people's lives were shattered by the affair and when 2 of them ended up dead in a car in the most bizarre “suicide.” You have to wonder… was it a suicide pact? Or a perfectly staged murder?

Full Source Notes: rottenmangopodcast.com

In the summer of 2009, there were whispers around South Korea. A Korean blogger had gone out to the woods and came back traumatized. They had seen something in the woods they shouldn’t have. 

They called it “The Mimic” and it is NOT human. It has no human emotions, no human empathy, but it sounds just like a human. It can mimic anyone’s voice to lure you into their web of death. 

It sounds like an urban legend, right? But there are people amongst us that do the same thing. They do not feel love, empathy, and have no care for others but they are so convincing in their acting you would never know. They feel nothing yet you feel like you can trust them. That is the story of the Indonesian Jeffrey Dahmer. 

If you walked into his house, you would be tempted to walk right back out. The smell alone could have knocked you back through the front door. Every surface, every wall, every square inch of the floor was littered with dust. 

He collected tens of thousands of bottles, empty cereal boxes, trash, magazines, everything. He kept it all. I don’t know how you would find anything, let alone anyone in a place like that. 

It would have been nearly impossible to know that in a tiny little empty sugar box that blended in with the rest of the trash - there was a note. It read, “my name is Amy help me… I have been kidnapped.” 

In this house, 5 women were held captive for 15 years, and he almost got away with it. 

Full Source Notes: rottenmangopodcast.com

When you open the front door you might be expecting a package, the mailman, or even your Karen neighbor, but you wouldn’t expect Greg Marlow.

I know you’re thinking the name doesn’t ring a bell. It didn’t either for Cyndi when she opened the door to see him. But there he was, in his tight shirt, handsome, smiling smoothly at her.

There were a few things Cyndi would soon find out about this mysterious man on her doorstep.

He didn’t show up by chance. He heard her voice and fell in love.

They were going to be lovers.

He was going to be her one-way ticket to the death penalty.

Oh, and he was a wolf.

Full Source Notes: rottenmangopodcast.com

It’s said that there are a lot of dark spirits in New Orleans. It might be one of the most haunted cities in the entire world and one story that the city can’t seem to escape is that of Madame LaLaurie.

The rumors go like this - she tortured her victims and experimented on them. It’s said she liked to drill skulls into victims’ heads and insert spoons inside so she could “stir their brains.”

It’s said that she would stick ash, feces, and other vile things into the victim’s mouths, ears, and eyes, and sew them shut. Another disturbing rumor was that she would cut holes into their stomachs, pull out their intestines, and wrap them around their bodies like belts.

Whatever the rumors were, the truth was much worse in the haunted LaLaurie mansion in New Orleans.

Full Source Notes: rottenmangopodcast.com

This episode is brought to you by BetterHelp. Give online therapy a try at betterhelp.com/rotten and get on your way to being your best self.

2 people are rushed into the emergency room. The doctors and nurses don’t ask questions - they have one objective in mind. Save these people. 

Both are suffering from stab wounds. Sadly, only 1 of them will make it. 8 year old, Haneul, is deceased from multiple stab wounds to her neck, back, and chest. 

The 48 year old woman however, is alive. 

The nurses try to piece together what might have happened with the little information they have. The older woman is a teacher. The 8 year old girl was attacked in her elementary school. 

Perhaps, a knife wielding madman snuck into the school and attacked the little girl. Perhaps, the teacher tried to protect her student but was stabbed in the process. It will be difficult to tell the teacher that her student that she presumably tried to protect - did not make it. 

But when the teacher wakes up - the nurses don’t know how to handle the situation anymore. Because… she is laughing. 

She is giggling. 

She killed 8 year old Haneul and she is seemingly happy. Content. Giddy with excitement. 

Full show notes at rottenmangopodcast.com

He was the type of psychiatrist that was to get to the bottom of someone’s underlying problem. What was the real reason she thought herself to be the devil’s child?

What made her feel like she was so evil she could bring out the darkness in others?

And what about those two guys? The ones she was so insistent that they were trying to seduce her? She claimed she just knew they were either going to seduce her or they would all commit some violent crimes together. She seemed scared of her relationship with the two guys.

You’re probably hoping the doctor calls the police to report the two men but that would be impossible. Because the two seductive men were her two 4-year-old sons. And soon Sheila would be labeled as a murderer… but what if there really was a man out there to get her?

Full Source Notes: rottenmangopodcast.com

“Welcome to IHOP (International House of Pancakes), how many people in your party?”

Dee had the routine down to a science. She knew what to say, when to smile, when to talk about her kids, when to flirt so she could keep the tips rolling in. Today was not her day though. She wanted to throw up.

Her hands were shaking and she was messing up everyone’s orders. She ran to the bathroom to splash water on her face. She reminded herself how important this was. She took out the crumbled piece of paper in her apron that a customer had left for her. It had “$3000” written on it.

That’s how much it would cost to kill the man she wanted dead. He needed to die in order for her to keep her job.

Full Source Notes: rottenmangopodcast.com

They nicknamed her “mini Martha Stewart” because of how perfect she was. Her doctor husband adored her. She took care of their baby girl while still getting her master’s degree, cooking, cleaning, and even volunteering.

Her life seemed so perfect till she was arrested and her secret life started to unravel.

Years ago, before moving to the perfect suburban town, she lived with roommates. She dated 3 of them. And now they were all back.

1 - her husband’s patient.

1 - the man she was having an affair with.

1 - dead.

And they think she did it.

Full Source Notes: rottenmangopodcast.com

He was the college “simp.” His friends knew better than to ask him to go to a party with them. He would inevitably be too busy in his dorm room thinking about his girlfriend. Listening to audio clips of her telling her she loves him.

But his best friend was the only one that knew the truth of what was going on. He had secretly recorded conversations he had with his dream girl on campus. Then he edited and spliced together clips of the audio to make her say “I love you.” He would listen to those distorted, unnatural clips for hours on end.

His best friend finally had enough and brought him to a therapist. He had no idea that he would start plotting murder there.

Full Source Notes: rottenmangopodcast.com

His two sons were out playing in the back while he supervised through the kitchen window. The boys were 13 and 12.

What should have been a heartwarming moment, watching his two sons play and get along, was instead filled with anxiety. His friend asked, “what’s wrong?”

“I don’t trust Derek.”

His friend was confused. He peered at the window to see the boys playing on the swing set.

“I don’t trust him. I’ve read the diaries. I’ve seen the pictures. Look at them. Look at them, they look like they’re plotting something.”

Two hours later - Terry would be found dead. Both sons missing. House on fire.

Full Source Notes: rottenmangopodcast.com

Diana’s note in her diary read - “I am sitting here at my desk today in October, longing for someone to hug me, and encourage me to keep strong and hold my head high.”

“My husband is planning an ‘accident’ in my car, brake failure and serious head injury in order to make the path clear for Charles to marry.”

Diana predicted that her husband wanted her dead in a car accident so he could marry the true love of his life. She worried for her life. She felt someone was watching her, listening in on her, and keeping tabs on her.

Less than a year later - Princess Diana was killed in a car accident.

Full Source Notes: rottenmangopodcast.com

It’s not the most captivating livestream. Ash Trevino is on the phone with her boyfriend and we, the viewers, are forced to just listen to their seemingly mundane conversations.

Out of nowhere, the 36 year old mom of two starts getting angry. She starts screaming -

“He’s innocent. I don’t care what y’all say. He is innocent and y’all are going to see that. My comments are saying RIP to those who lost their lives...”

Ash Trevino starts cackling. What is so funny? Is she laughing at the 2 teenage girls her new boyfriend killed?

Or is she laughing at all the other victims her other boyfriends in prison have killed?

Welcome to the world of Ash Trevino. Dubbed the “inmate hopper” and the “worst mom on TikTok.” The internet is collectively trying to get her accounts closed and are mass reporting her to Child Protective Services.

Full show notes at rottenmangopodcast.com

Charles took a step back from his self-portrait. He was just adding his finishing touches of paint.

“Are you sure this is what you saw? This is how I’m going to die?”

“Yes” the voice said.

The painting showed Charles with a gag in his mouth and 5 bullet wounds on his forehead. It was a gruesome piece of art but everyone that knew Charles said he was just “eccentric.”

They had no idea that’s almost exactly how Charles would later be found at the crime scene.

With the painting hanging above him…

Full Source Notes: rottenmangopodcast.com

Welcome to Ghostwriter, a new gripping and suspenseful podcast movie listening experience from C13Features. In Ghostwriter, Kate Mara and Adam Scott star in a psychological thriller about a former journalist who reluctantly accepts a job ghostwriting a new murder mystery novel for an eccentric billionaire. Kate Michaels has been living a solitary life after a traumatic experience, but after pressure from her rational agent and candid best friend, she begrudgingly concedes that she needs the work. As she collaborates with the enigmatic James Webber on the project, she finds herself growing dependent on him and starts to suspect that something is wrong…deeply wrong. Will Kate be able to trust herself with James’ story, or even her own voice? Get ready to pop some popcorn, and get lost in your imagination in this invigorating new podcast movie experience, Ghostwriter, from C13Features, dropping December 6.

December 12th is the night that everyone has been waiting for.

The invitation is cryptic - it takes some guests weeks to figure out what it reads.

“Sdaeh tsilaer & sesserd gnol eit kcalb?”

The secret is this - you have to reflect it into the mirror to figure out what it says.

“Black tie, long dresses & surrealist heads.”

Welcome to the Rothschild's (one of the wealthiest and most powerful families) newest secret party. Everyone walks in donning a giant bejeweled mask of animals that you would normally hunt. Stags. Deer. Birds in cages.

The staff in the massive mansion are dressed as cats, perched on the stairs, meowing at the passing guests. There’s no way they’re not hunting people afterwards right?

That’s always been the conspiracy. Rich people hunting the poor for sport. But what if it is true? What if it happened in South Korea and became the inspiration of the Netflix show - Squid Game?

It was the most viewed home on realtor websites for weeks. It’s a curious looking house. As you swipe through the photos of the 15 foot tall ceilings, the grand glass windows, the $5M price tag starts to make sense. 

But what is that? There is an entire concrete bunker like structure underneath the house with its very own panic room. A bank vault door - leading to a room with a toilet and sink. 

To keep people out - and to keep people in. 

This is the home that Ruby Franke & Jodi Hildebrandt tortured Ruby’s 2 youngest children in. There are detailed diaries left behind by Ruby Franke describing how she tortured them with cactuses, pouring cayenne pepper and honey into their wounds, and all the unique punishments she came up with. 

All the while posting podcast episodes - giving advice to other moms. 

How to be a perfect mom. 

Just like her.

Full show notes at rottenmangopodcast.com 

Deep Sea Liner 2682 was coming back to port early. Nobody knew why - just that something very bad had happened at sea. The original plan was a group of 33 people would embark on a 2 year long deep sea fishing mission. But now they were coming back after just 8 months. What happened?

When the giant vessel docked - concerned family, corporate employees of the fishing company, and even 11 police cars were lined up waiting for them. Police went on board escorting each one of the passengers off in handcuffs.

Forensic teams in full hazmat suits rushed onto the boat and sprayed it down with Luminol. The whole boat was glowing. Blood. There was blood everywhere.

33 people on a ship in the deep sea for 8 months. 22 murdered and only 11 came back. And nobody wanted to talk about what really happened out at sea.  

Full Source Notes: rottenmangopodcast.com

It’s the crack era. The most violent time in New York City history. The NYPD is fighting a losing battle and instead of protecting the city from drug dealers, some police officers have become them. The Set is the never-before told, first-person documentary of the biggest police corruption scandal in NYPD history and the investigation that uncovered it all. From Audacy Originals and Zak Levitt, the Emmy, Peabody, and NY Press Club Investigative Journalism Award winning creator of Root of Evil, Gangster Capitalism, and Relative Unknown.

Dr. Bickham was the coroner for the small town of Slaughter. For the past few decades, he had looked death in the face - that was what the job required, and he was good at it. Until January 3, 2022. 

He was called out to the small white suburban house with the well manicured lawn - he could tell someone had died there judging by the smell. He walked into the living room and there in the center was a couch. 

The living room was organized and tidy even, except this couch was at the center covered in feces. The smell was stinging his eyes. He walked closer, and he saw - melted, into the couch the body of a young woman. 

She was unclothed, maggots in her hair, rotting flesh eaten off her bones, and she was sitting there with her eyes and mouth open. She had been sitting on this very couch, alive, for the past 12 years. 

Full Source Notes: rottenmangopodcast.com

Mr. C looked through his peephole. The police were here again, probably to talk about that psychopath. Just 10 months ago, a complete stranger tried to stab and kill Mr. C. They didn’t even know each other! It was shocking to know that such depraved, evil, monsters existed in this world.

Mr. C let the police officer in but now under the bright light of his foyer… he realized this man was no police officer. He was the killer from 10 months ago - back to finish the job.

The attacker grabbed a hammer and slammed it down on Mr. C’s head.

The attacker would be caught and he would scream to the world that he did this for justice. Justice was to kill Mr. C!

This was justice for 8 year old Nayoung. The little girl that Cho Doo Soon (Mr. C) had kidnapped, assaulted within an inch of her life, mutilated, and disemboweled just 12 years ago. He had left her for dead after he brutally SA’d her. She miraculously survived and now Mr. C was a free man - living just half a mile from his victim.

This is the case of the most hated - yet most well protected man in all of South Korea. The government has spent over $1 million dollars to ensure Cho Doo Soon’s safety. The safety of the man who assaulted an 8 year old girl in a church bathroom.

Full Source Notes: rottenmangopodcast.com

It takes 2 minutes for a car to drown to the bottom of the river - and having your car sink to the bottom of the Han River was as good as a death sentence. 

33 year old, Minjun, woke up in his sinking car. He had no idea how he got here… 

His car was filling up with water. His only way out was to break the window using nothing but the force of his body. He pushed the glass shards out and closed his eyes before jumping out… 

He plunged into the cold… 

Concrete. 

Minjun looked around. He was on a half-submerged concrete island in the middle of the deadly river. The bridge he had been driving on had collapsed - plunging 66 feet down into the water. 

He could see people, covered in blood, crawling out of their cars. Screaming for help. 

Help would come too late. 

It was up to the 49 people to save each other on the concrete island. By the end 32 would be dead.

Full Source Notes: rottenmangopodcast.com

They called it the House of Death.

If you’re not careful and step foot inside the house, the owner will kill you and feed you to his dogs. 2 men had visited the House of Death, managed to get out with their lives, and told the police a bizarre story.

They saw it with their own eyes they said. The owner of the death house was feeding the pack of dogs the small severed hand of a woman.

They said they knew who the hand belonged to.

She was a young woman who had gone viral recently for exposing a famous professional soccer player.

She told reporters -

“If something happens to me - it was him. He did it.”

The 2 men told police that she was kidnapped, held hostage, killed, and fed to the dogs in the mysterious “House of Death.”

Full Source Notes: rottenmangopodcast.com

Be like Barbie, Nina thought. She pushed her chest out and applied bubblegum lip gloss as she arrived at the seaside mansion for the first time. The last thing she wanted was to look like a child.

But to Jeffrey Epstein, that was absolutely what he wanted. In fact, quite possibly the only thing he desired at all.

What do rich men desire when they know they can buy almost everything in the world? They want what they can’t have. For Epstein that was young girls, illegally young girls, inexperienced young girls—his desires weren’t uncommon by any means either.

Epstein was a multi millionaire rubbing shoulders with princes, socialites, tycoons, magnates, all over the world who had exactly the same desires. How far would the rich go to get something they couldn’t buy?

Full Source Notes: rottenmangopodcast.com

In the dense forests of Washington - there is a suspicious wooden door leading into a mountain. If you look too quickly you just might miss it. It’s strange. If you were to open the door you would be standing inside of the tall mountain… how is that possible?

Peter Keller had spent the past 8 years building his secret bunker inside the mountain. It a massive feat - 2 stories tall, log cabin walls, stockpiles of food, weapons, his favorite candy bars, and all the supplies he would need to live off the grid for years. 

He vlogged the process of building his bunker for the end of the world. 

Cyberattack that breaks America? Massive earthquake that leaves everyone without power? Peter was ready. 

He had his secret bunker to hide out in case the world ended. He just needed to kill 2 people before he could live out his doomsday fantasies… 

This is the case of Peter Keller

Full Source Notes: rottenmangopodcast.com

Most business deals are done at the dinner table. You quite literally wine and dine your potential investors. CEO Chen knew the song and dance better than anyone.

He invested in companies with unique products to offer to the market.

The businessman in front of him was doing everything to get CEO Chen to open his wallet.

“Our product is really unique and hopefully this is comforting to know - I quality assure each and every single product sold.”

CEO Chen smiled and the businessman knew it was time to go bigger. He eagerly stated -

“We also give back to our local communities. We provide aid for elementary and middle schoolers. Here, take a look at what we’ve given to them.”

CEO Chen leaned over to look at the businessman’s phone.

The man smiled at his screen and kept swiping from the videos…

Each video depicted a 12 year old being brutally assaulted in a dimly lit hotel room. The investment opportunity? A child sex trafficking ring disguised as a student aid foundation.

Full Source Notes: rottenmangopodcast.com

The Maxwell Family rubbed shoulders with the British Royal Family in England. They were untouchable with a net worth of $2 billion. Ghislaine Maxwell, the favorite heir, was well connected. With friends like Prince Andrew, Bill Clinton, and other high profile world leaders.

Ghislaine Maxwell could have had anything - but all she wanted was 2 men. She would have done anything to please her father. She would have done anything to please her boyfriend - like run an intricate trafficking ring for the world’s upper elite. But both of them would end up dead.

Her billionaire father - that would be found naked & dead off the side of his yacht “Lady Ghislaine.” There are speculations that somebody murdered him.

Her billionaire boyfriend - that would be found dead inside his prison cell. There are speculations that somebody murdered him.

Full Source Notes: rottenmangopodcast.com

He woke up from the smell. His head was pounding as his eyes adjusted to the harsh bathroom light. Did he drink too much the night before?

What is that smell?

He reached his hand up to rub his eyes… it was covered in blood. He looked down - blood. All over his clothes, the tiles, everywhere.

He slowly turned his head to the bathtub - and there floating in the water… were dismembered body parts. Along with a severed head with long black hair that was getting tangled…

“I swear I woke up and there was just a body here.” The police would never fall for it. He had no choice but to put on a raincoat, mask, and eye goggles and get to work. Finish the job.

But eventually, he would stop, right? This would be the 9th severed head in his collection.

Full Source Notes: rottenmangopodcast.com

“Could you please help me? I need money for my baby.”

Something strange was happening in the small city of Fuyang, China. There was an influx of families begging for help on the street. All of them said something was very wrong with their child. The baby had a mystery illness and needed help.

When passerbys would bend down to take a closer look - they realized that the 5 month old infant had the head size of a “full size watermelon.”

This was not a genetic condition nor was there an explanation.

The truth would lead to over 20 arrests and 2 death penalty sentences.

And the eerie feeling that - there must be something in the water there.

Full Source Notes: rottenmangopodcast.com

In South Korea - there were 2 women sitting inside a prison cell together. One was in for fraud. The other for drugs.

But they had a lot in common. They were both young. Pretty. And wanted a lot of money.

Around the time their friendship developed - on the other side of the world - at the 92nd Academy Awards (The Oscars), Lee Sun Kyun was standing on stage with the cast of ‘Parasite.’

He was at the height of his career - internationally acclaimed actor and family man.

Within 4 years - he would be found dead in his car after a 19 hour interrogation by the police, leaked personal phone calls, $300k lost to blackmailers, and his life completely ruined.

And those two girls - would have everything to do with it.

Full Source Notes: rottenmangopodcast.com

Eunhee was an A list actress and had always had star treatment but this was a whole new level. She had a guarded mansion and millions of dollars at her disposal.

Every evening, platters of shrimp, lobster, sushi, delicacies shipped in from all over the world filled an entire banquet table. It was all just for her.

Every morning, a new gift was delivered for her downstairs, a fur coat, lacy lingerie, or beautiful gowns. She added them to the closet in ‘her’ bedroom already stuffed to the brim. Every single piece was perfectly tailored to fit her body; her exact measurements all the way down to her undergarments. She had guards watching her every move and tending to her every need.

The one condition was that - she couldn’t leave… unless he called.

A week into her stay - her assistant burst in through the door excited to get her ready. He had invited her to a party and she needed to look perfect.

She got all dolled up and was led down to the front where she was face to face with the man who kidnapped her.

The Supreme Leader of North Korea. Kim Jong Il.

Full Source Notes: rottenmangopodcast.com

The surveillance footage that captured the limp body of a young boy getting dragged into a closet was surprisingly clear.

“You’re pathetic, but I already knew that.” The person talking came into view and positioned the boy in front of the camera. His body was completely nude except for a sagging diaper. To be alive - seemed agonizing.

The little boy’s breathing sounded like a fish out of water - they bent over and pinched the little boy’s lips together.

“See? You don’t need to breathe through your mouth like that - dummy.”

Those would be the last words he ever hears. The boy would die in that closet. After enduring endless torture- starvation, ice baths, and being forced to drink hot sauce. But who was behind the camera watching?

Full Source Notes: rottenmangopodcast.com

“I can’t let you in…”

The housekeeper was confused - what does the mom mean she can’t let me in?

“Could you just toss the keys from your balcony?”

The mother threw her keys from the balcony and vanished into the house. The housekeeper walked into the house and it was immediately chaos. The mother was hysterical - the father was banging his head on the wall.

The mother threw her arms around the housekeeper. She cried and ushered her to a bedroom, “Come, come, inside and see what happened!”

Lying in her bed was the family’s 13 year old daughter, dead. Her throat slit ear to ear. Her body looked posed and so were her stuffed animals, though they were eerily free of any blood or splatter. This case would become known as the JonBenét Ramsey case of India.

Rumors of cheating, black mail, revenge, honor killings, truth serum, grooming and orgies consumed the media but the only thing we know for certain is - whoever her killer or killers are – they are free.

Full Source Notes: rottenmangopodcast.com

Gustavo stumbled out of the nightclub, barely keeping balance. He felt like he was hallucinating. He noticed people looking at him with very concerned looks – what? Did he have something on his face? He looked back up to a random man rushing towards him with a pail of water. He threw the water onto Gustavo’s arms.

Everyone was acting so strange…  

Then a woman yelled at him, “HEY! You need to call an ambulance!—There’s something wrong with your body!”

Gustavo was taken aback but reassured the woman, “NO! Don’t worry. It’s just my shirt—I tore it on the way out of the club; that’s all…”

He was sure of it. He could feel his shirt in that moment, shredded and hanging off his body. Every time he took a step forward or turned around to look at another stranger yelling at him, he could feel it swaying, hitting other parts of his torso. 

The woman looked at him very concerned, “Sir. You’re not… wearing a shirt.”  

Gustavo walked towards a streetlamp and looked down at his arms. His flesh was eviscerated, hanging only by his wrist. 

His skin was melting off.. 

Full Source Notes: rottenmangopodcast.com