• (8:02) - Rex Heuermann Update
• (13:49) - Rachel Nickell

In the summer of 1992, young mother Rachel Nickell (23) took her son Alex (2) to a London park to enjoy the sunshine.

Rachel was brutally attacked and left to die. Alex was the only witness and was found clinging to her body. This crime shocked Britain and sparked one of the most controversial investigations in modern criminal history.

As public pressure mounted, police became fixated on a suspect and launched an unprecedented undercover "honeytrap" operation, only for the case to collapse spectacularly in court. The hunt for Rachel’s killer exposed serious flaws in police methods, fuelled years of media scrutiny, and ultimately led to a breakthrough that revealed a very different perpetrator—turning the Rachel Nickell case into a haunting story of tragedy, obsession, and justice delayed.

Read our blog for this case - https://truecrimesocietyblog.com/2026/06/21/the-murder-of-rachel-nickell/

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Timestamps:
(8:55) - Maternal Instinct Discussion
(13:55) - Cancer Scammers

With the rise of crowdfunding, there has also been a rise in fraudulent fundraising schemes being carried out.

In this episode of the True Crime Society Podcast, we discuss three separate cases where women have faked cancer diagnoses in order to raise money for personal use:

• American woman Vanessa O’Rourke told friends and family in 2015 that she had been diagnosed with glioblastoma, a deadly form of cancer. She raised money for fake experimental treatment and fled to Australia. She is currently on the FBI’s Most Wanted List.
• Australian mother-of-four Tara Enoka created a YouTube channel in 2021 titled ‘Stand with Tara.’ She spoke about being diagnosed with cervical and breast cancer. Fundraising efforts for Tara raised over $35,000 before her fraudulent scheme was uncovered. Tara never had cancer.
• Australian mother Michelle Bodzsar developed a gambling addiction during the pandemic. A few years later, after her young son suffered an eye injury during a trampoline accident, she saw an opportunity and ran with it. Michelle faked a cancer diagnosis for her son - even shaving his eyebrows and his head to make her story believable. Michelle has been jailed for her crimes.

Read our blog for these cases - https://truecrimesocietyblog.com/2026/06/14/social-scammers-june-2026/

GoFundMe has repeatedly stated that fraudulent campaigns account for less than 0.1% of all campaigns (fewer than 1 in 1,000).

Be sure to check the timestamps to get straight to the episode section that you want to listen to.

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Skip straight to the case: (7:27)

Taylor Parker was convicted in Texas for the 2020 murder of Reagan Hancock, a 21-year-old pregnant woman. Prosecutors said Taylor had spent months faking a pregnancy to keep her boyfriend from leaving her, creating fake medical records, staging baby-related events, and presenting herself as expecting a child. In October 2020, she went to Reagan’s home, killed her, cut her unborn baby from her womb, and then attempted to pass the newborn off as her own. Neither Reagan or the baby survived.

Read our blog for this case - https://truecrimesocietyblog.com/2026/06/07/maternal-instinct-the-story-of-taylor-parker-and-reagan-hancock/

This case is the subject of the new Netflix documentary ‘Maternal Instinct.’

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Skip straight to the case: (6:00)

In the fall of 1998, a tight-knit Florida neighborhood came together with a single mission: find missing eight-year-old Madelyn Clifton. Flyers covered telephone poles, search parties combed the streets, and worried neighbors opened their homes to help. A chilling truth was hiding in plain sight. The person who knew exactly what had happened to Maddie wasn't a stranger lurking in the shadows - it was a boy from just down the street.

Almost thirty years later, this case is still making headlines. In May 2026, Josh withdrew his resentencing application in a bid to work on and prove his rehabilitation after being incarcerated. Do you think Josh Phillips should ever be freed?

Read our blog for this case

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Timestamps:
(9:02) - Mackenzie / The crash
(29:20) - Matthew Hertgen Update
(34:13) - Sam Nelson
* Note - Timestamps may slightly vary due to dynamic ads

The AI tool ChatGPT is used by over 800 million people per week. In a recent poll, a majority of 13- to 17-year-olds said they use AI chatbots, with 28% saying they use them daily.

Sam Nelson (19) started using ChatGPT when he was in high school. He began initially using it for general questions and homework help.

Over time, it is alleged that Sam began to use the chatbot to get information about taking illicit drugs. In the early morning hours of May 31, 2025, Sam told the chatbot about drugs he had ingested and asked for help with the side effects that he was experiencing. ChatGPT’s last alleged message to Sam was “If you’re still nauseous after an hour, I can help troubleshoot further (Benadryl combo, timing, food intake, etc.). Just let me know your symptoms and how intense the nausea is right now.” Sam’s mother would find him dead in his bedroom hours later.

In May 2026, Sam’s parents filed a lawsuit against OpenAI. They allege wrongful death and the unauthorized practice of medicine. Sam’s family are asking for financial damages and for the court to pause the operation of ChatGPT Health.

In this episode of the True Crime Society Podcast, we discuss the case of Sam Nelson - did AI contribute to his death?

Read our blog for Sam - https://truecrimesocietyblog.com/2026/05/20/did-ai-contribute-to-the-death-of-sam-nelson/

In this episode, we also discuss the case of Mackenzie Shirilla, subject of the new Netflix documentary The Crash. We first covered this case on our podcast in 2023 and we will be re-releasing that episode this week. Be sure to check it out before listening to this episode for context!

Be sure to check the timestamps to get straight to the episode section that you want to listen to.

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Ohio teen Mackenzie Shirilla had been dating Dominic Russo for years and their relationship was described as tumultuous. A friend overheard an argument between the two in July 2022 where Mackenzie threatened to crash the car she was driving, with both of them in it.

A few weeks later, Mackenzie did exactly that. Early one morning, after a night of partying, she crashed her vehicle into a wall at 100mph. Dominic died along with a friend of the pair, Davion Flanagan. Mackenzie was injured and taken to hospital, where she recovered.

By October 2022, Mackenzie was well enough to dress up as a corpse for Halloween, despite just losing two of her closest friends.

Mackenzie was eventually arrested and her case has just gone to court. She was convicted and is currently serving a minimum of 15 years in prison.

This episode of the True Crime Society Podcast was first released in 2023. We are re-releasing the episode due to renewed interest in the case following the release of the Netflix documentary ‘The Crash’.

Be sure to check the timestamps if you want to get straight to the case:

TIMESTAMPS:
Mackenzie Shirilla - (6:04)
BTK Updates - (50:56)

Read our blogs for these cases - Mackenzie Shirilla & BTK Updates

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Skip straight to the case: (13:40)

In 1978, five friends from Yuba County, California vanished after a basketball game. Their abandoned vehicle was found deep in the snowy mountains, miles away from their intended route. Why the men went there and what happened next remains one of America’s strangest unsolved mysteries.

Read our blog for this case

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Skip straight to the case --> (5:24)

On a rainy morning in October 2023, a police officer in a small Arkansas town approached a parked SUV to check on a family inside.

In the passenger seat, a tired mother in a red T-shirt smiled politely as she folded baby clothes. Her toddler climbed between the seats. A baby cried in the back. Her boyfriend was in the driver's seat.

She told the officer they were just passing through - trying to get back to Wyoming.

That officer would become the last confirmed person to ever see Katheryn “Katie” Ferguson alive.

Days later, her boyfriend would continue the trip without her.

And when investigators finally searched the vehicle they had been traveling in, they found something chilling — blood, bullet holes, and a missing passenger seat.

Katie Ferguson has never been seen again.

Read our blog for Katie - https://truecrimesocietyblog.com/2026/03/08/katie-ferguson-vanished-on-a-road-trip/

Be sure to join us on Patreon for weekly exclusive episodes and all episodes are ad-free - Patreon.com/truecrimesociety

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This episode is sponsored by:

• IQBAR is offering our special podcast listeners twenty percent off all IQBAR products—including the Ultimate sampler pack—plus FREE shipping. To get your twenty percent off, text CRIME to sixty-four thousand. Message and data rates may apply. See terms for details.