​What happens when 1920s school security operates entirely on the honor system, and a 19-year-old edgelord decides to pull off the most audacious crime in L.A. history? You get an absolute, unhinged nightmare.

​This week, Kat and Holly are dragging you back to Los Angeles in 1927 to unpack a case that completely broke the West Coast. Enter William Edward Hickman—an absolute bottom-feeder who unironically signed his taunting ransom notes as "The Fox." After waltzing into Mount Vernon Junior High with a dramatic lie about a car crash, he casually walked out with 12-year-old Marion Parker, the daughter of a wealthy local banker.

​What follows is a chronological, detail-packed hour of sheer audacity and historical incompetence. We are breaking down the agonizing timeline of the $1,500 gold certificate ransom demand, police stakeouts that were running almost entirely on vibes, and the darkest, most cinematic bait-and-switch drop-off in true crime history.

​Grab your favorite coping beverage and lock your doors. The details are incredibly heavy, the 1920s police blunders will make you rage-listen, and the entire saga is a masterclass in clinical precision meeting absolute chaos.

​Episode Highlights:

• ​The Honor System: How to kidnap a child in 1927 using zero effort and a fake story.
• ​Taunting the LAPD: The bizarre telegrams and unhinged letters from "The Fox."
• ​The Drop: The gruesome reality of the ransom exchange that terrified a nation.
• ​The Manhunt & The Trial: A stolen green Hudson, a massive multi-state chase, and Hickman's spectacular courtroom failure trying to blame an imaginary voice named "Providence."

​Watch the visual deep dive for this episode on our YouTube channel

#truecrime #kidnapped #crime #fyp #podcast #new #ransom #justice #interrogation #karma

Lock your doors and check your attic, because this week HMMC is tackling the ultimate "the-call-is-coming-from-inside-the-house" true crime classic. We’re going back to 1922 Bavaria to the Hinterkaifeck farm, where a killer didn't just break in—they moved in.

Imagine finding strange footprints leading from the woods to your door, but none leading back out. Imagine hearing footsteps in your ceiling for days and finding a newspaper you never bought. Now imagine your entire family being lured into a barn one by one to meet a pickaxe-wielding nightmare.

This episode is a fever dream of 1920s chaos, including:

• The Ultimate Red Flag: Andreas Gruber literally told neighbors someone was living in his walls, then went back inside to take a nap. (Bold strategy, Cotton).
• A "Complicated" Family Tree: Let’s just say the "Forbidden Fruit" wasn't just a metaphor on this farm.
• The Long Weekend: The most chilling part? The killer stayed for three days after the murders, feeding the cows and cooking meals while the bodies chilled in the barn.
• The Suspect Lineup: From a "resurrected" dead husband to a neighbor with a serious grudge and a very specific toolset.

The police botched it, the skulls went missing, and 100 years later, we’re still asking: Who was in the attic?

Strap in, HMMC fans. This one is dark, dusty, and deeply disturbing.

#crime #truecrime #justice #comedy #fyp #investigation #podcast #coldcase #unsolved #hinterkaifeck

Grab your favorite "emotional support" beverage and buckle up, because today the Hot Mess Murder Club is diving into the absolute fever dream that is the University of Idaho 4 case.

We’re heading to Moscow, Idaho—a town so quiet that a stolen bicycle used to be front-page news—until November 13, 2022, when things went from "charming college town" to "low-budget horror movie" real quick.

• 01:45 AM: Xana Kernodle and Ethan Chapin roll back from a frat party. Standard.

• 01:56 AM: Maddie Mogen and Kaylee Goncalves get dropped off after a late-night Grub Truck run (because carbonara is life).

• 04:00 AM: Xana gets a DoorDash delivery. Yes, she was literally on TikTok while a literal monster was lurking in the hallway. Modern tragedy at its finest.

• 04:12 AM: The "unhinged" begins.
• The Aftermath: Four students gone, a surviving roommate who saw a "bushy-browed" man and then—in a move we relate to but cannot legally recommend—just went back to sleep, and a 911 call that didn't happen until noon. Noon, guys.

Imagine being a PhD student in Criminology and being this bad at crime. We’re talking:

1. Leaving your DNA on a knife sheath like a literal business card.
2. Driving your very recognizable White Hyundai Elantra past the crime scene like you’re doing laps for a fitness app.
3. Turning your phone off during the murders but then turning it back on to go back to the scene at 9:00 AM for a "quick look-see."

We’re breaking down the trial that wasn't, the 2025 guilty plea that saved his neck from the needle, and why his "spartan" apartment was exactly as depressing as you’d imagine. It's a chronological descent into madness, delivered with the heavy dose of sarcasm this "mastermind" deserves.

#truecrime #crime #storytime #idaho4 #crimecases #podcast #justice