Crime Capsule: Ripped from the pages of a reporter's notebook

CRIME CAPSULE: Jerri Williams, a female trailblazer in the FBI turned podcaster shatters glass ceilings

When Jerri Williams was sworn in as an FBI agent in 1982, she was one of just 23 Black female agents out of 7000 total. To say she is a trailblazer is an understatement. For more than two decades she uncovered corruption and investigated major crimes. She went on to be the spokesperson for the FBI in the Philadelphia area. In her fifties, Jerri blazed another trail. She became a podcaster at a time when most people didn't even know what a podcast was. Today, her show, FBI Retired Case File Review, has posted more than 400 episodes and has millions of downloads. She features the stories of retired FBI agents as they share the details of their most compelling cases. Jerri is also a successful author and a doting grandmother, not to mention an amazing person. In this bonus episode, we delve into Jerri's unique career path and some of her most compelling cases. CRIME CAPSULE PODCAST ON FACEBOOK [https://www.facebook.com/profile.php?id=61580429184466] CRIME.POD ON INSTAGRAM [https://www.instagram.com/crime.capsule/] CRIME CAPSULE ON YOUTUBE [https://www.youtube.com/playlist?list=PLXASFjkyqJX2yaLE8AjRLmxEv8VzSb4YU] TO HELP SUPPORT THE SHOW: BUY US A CUP OF COFFEE! [https://buymeacoffee.com/crimecapsulepod]

CRIME CAPSULE: Tarot cards, horse tranquilizers, and a plastic bag equal murder

He was an Eagle Scout and a high school student in a small North Carolina town who volunteered at his church. But people who loved Matthew Silliman said he fell in with the wrong crowd, outcasts who partied hard and spun wild stories about being stalked by the mafia. One fateful night he went to an unoccupied home with four other teens who dabbled in Tarot cards and put horse tranquilizers in his wine. They tied his legs together, covered his mouth with duct tape, hit him in the head with a hammer, and then covered his head with a plastic bag. Several days later Matthew was found dead, zipped up in a sleeping bag. And for what? That's the question years later that people involved in this case are still asking. The assistant district attorney at the time, Jason Waller, was prosecuting his very first high-profile murder case. The defense attorney for the ringleader, Robert Padavano, was assigned what seemed like and impossible case to defend. We speak with both of them for this episode as we unpack the details of this senseless crime. CRIME CAPSULE PODCAST ON FACEBOOK [https://www.facebook.com/profile.php?id=61580429184466] CRIME.POD ON INSTAGRAM [https://www.instagram.com/crime.capsule/] CRIME CAPSULE ON YOUTUBE [https://www.youtube.com/playlist?list=PLXASFjkyqJX2yaLE8AjRLmxEv8VzSb4YU] TO HELP SUPPORT THE SHOW: BUY US A CUP OF COFFEE! [https://buymeacoffee.com/crimecapsulepod]

CRIME CAPSULE: Holiday Parade Horror

It was supposed to be a celebration. Lights. Music. Families lining the streets. A holiday tradition in Raleigh where nothing bad was supposed to happen. But on November 19th, 2022—that changed in an instant. The Raleigh Christmas Parade was underway. Floats rolled down the street. Performers smiled and waved. And then—something went wrong. A vehicle towing a float lost control. In seconds, the celebration turned into chaos. People screamed. Spectators ran. A young dancer was struck and killed. Her name was Hailey Brooks. She was just 11 years old. In this interview with Wake County District Attorney Lorrin Freeman, we go through the complexities of holding someone responsible in a case like this and talk about ways to prevent it in the future. CRIME CAPSULE PODCAST ON FACEBOOK [https://www.facebook.com/profile.php?id=61580429184466] CRIME.POD ON INSTAGRAM [https://www.instagram.com/crime.capsule/] CRIME CAPSULE ON YOUTUBE [https://www.youtube.com/playlist?list=PLXASFjkyqJX2yaLE8AjRLmxEv8VzSb4YU] TO HELP SUPPORT THE SHOW: BUY US A CUP OF COFFEE! [https://buymeacoffee.com/crimecapsulepod]

CRIME CAPSULE: Suspected serial killer stalks and murders a young woman

It was like something out of a horror movie. A young woman fresh out of college beginning her professional life is dragged from her bed, sexually assaulted and killed in her own apartment while her roommates are out of town. Stephanie Bennett is found by an apartment manager after her friends and family can't reach her. The scene is brutal, but the killer's DNA is everywhere. Investigators believe this will likely help them solve the case quickly. But suddenly, everyone in the area, which is home to hundreds of apartment dwellers, is a suspect. Finding the killer will be like finding a needle in a haystack. Two years after Stephanie's death, the case goes cold despite hundreds of interviews and DNA tests that were performed on men in the neighborhood. That's when a pair of new detectives, Ken Copeland and Jackie Soles, are assigned the case and go back to square one. They read every single document in the file from the investigation. They quickly zero in on a man who neighbors suspect was a peeping Tom. This begins a cat and mouse game between Drew Planten and police to get his DNA. Eventually, their efforts pay off. But the case comes to an abrupt end, an end nobody wanted because it deprived everyone close to the case with the one thing they were seeking—answers. In this episode, Jackie and Ken share their memories of the case that changed both of their lives. They share their behind-the-scenes efforts to find justice for Stephanie and what it felt like to look a killer in the eyes. CRIME CAPSULE PODCAST ON FACEBOOK [https://www.facebook.com/profile.php?id=61580429184466] CRIME.POD ON INSTAGRAM [https://www.instagram.com/crime.capsule/] CRIME CAPSULE ON YOUTUBE [https://www.youtube.com/playlist?list=PLXASFjkyqJX2yaLE8AjRLmxEv8VzSb4YU] TO HELP SUPPORT THE SHOW: BUY US A CUP OF COFFEE! [https://buymeacoffee.com/crimecapsulepod]

CRIME CAPSULE: Killer on the greenway

It's the kind of place you go to clear your head. Tree-lined. Quiet. Safe. But on October 13th, 2022, that illusion was shattered along a stretch of greenway in Raleigh. At the center of it all— a 15-year-old boy: Austin Thompson. The first calls came in just after 5 p.m. Gunshots. Multiple victims. Chaos. What unfolded next would become one of the deadliest mass shootings in Raleigh's history. Five people were killed. Two more were injured. Among the victims—an off-duty police officer… shot in his own neighborhood. There was no clear motive. For hours the city didn't know where the shooter was. As the sun set fear took over. Entire neighborhoods were locked down. Residents were told: stay inside, lock your doors, don't move. Parents waited in panic as schools that were delayed in releasing students. Helicopters circled overhead because somewhere out there the suspect was still moving. Eventually, law enforcement tracked him to a home nearby. A standoff followed. Austin Thompson was taken into custody after shooting himself in the head. He survived. And that's when the real questions began. How does a teenager carry out something like this? And more importantly—could it have been stopped? In this interview with Wake County District Attorney Lorrin Freeman we break down the details of this tragic event in Raleigh's history. CRIME CAPSULE PODCAST ON FACEBOOK [https://www.facebook.com/profile.php?id=61580429184466] CRIME.POD ON INSTAGRAM [https://www.instagram.com/crime.capsule/] CRIME CAPSULE ON YOUTUBE [https://www.youtube.com/playlist?list=PLXASFjkyqJX2yaLE8AjRLmxEv8VzSb4YU] TO HELP SUPPORT THE SHOW: BUY US A CUP OF COFFEE! [https://buymeacoffee.com/crimecapsulepod]