Dark Poutine - True Crime and Dark History

Episode 397: In April 1895, two young women, both twenty-one, from San Francisco’s Emmanuel Baptist Church vanished days apart. Blanche Lamont, a dedicated teacher-in-training, and Minnie Williams, a hardworking domestic with dreams of her own classroom, both entered the same church and never left. Their bodies were later discovered inside the building, setting off one of the most sensational murder trials in California history. This episode explores the lives of Blanche and Minnie, the discovery of their deaths, the investigation that followed, and the arrest and trial of Canadian-born medical student William Henry Theodore Durrant, accused of killing them. Sources:Clara at the Door with a Revolver — Carolyn Whitzman (UBC Press, 2023)Toronto Public Library – Digitized Toronto newspapersNewspapers.com – Historical Toronto press coverageCity of Toronto ArchivesArchives of Ontario – Mercer Reformatory & judicial recordsRace on Trial: Black Defendants in Ontario’s Criminal Courts, 1858–1958 — Barrington WalkerAfua Cooper – Black Canadian history resources1897 film of convicted killer Durrant shapes prison policy -Theodore DurrantSympathy for the Devil: The Emmanuel Baptist Murders of Old San FranciscoBy Virginia A. McConnellTheo Durrant — The Origin of Monsters — Crime Library on truTV.comTrue Detective Mysteries, February 1929: Internet ArchiveThe tale of the 'Demon of the Belfry,' San Francisco's forgotten Jack the Ripper Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Episode 396: In this episode, we learn about an enigmatic narcissistic psychopath who led the Californian cult called The Children of Thunder. Glenn Taylor Helzer, and the other leadership was comprised of his brother Justin Helzer and their follower Dawn Godman. Raised in a strict Mormon home, Taylor’s life spiralled after years of mental health trouble. By 2000, the trio had formed a cult under Taylor’s delusional leadership. That summer, they murdered Ivan and Annette Stineman, Selina Bishop (daughter of guitarist Elvin Bishop), Jennifer Villarin, and James Gamble. The crime spree and investigation shocked authorities and families, exposing how Taylor twisted faith and loyalty into violence. Episode Sources: Shackles, Ski Masks and a Power Saw — Murderous Glenn Helzer and Justin Helzer called their cult The Children of Thunder — Crime LibraryHow Not To Get Away With Murder: Glenn Helzer And The Children Of ThunderGlen Helzer | WikipediaBody Parts Identified / Disparate Tragedies' Common Ground Is Death, SuspectsGrisly clues unfolding in Delta caseBlues Guitarist's Daughter KilledMurder, Madness and Mayhem by MIke Browne20240418175434277_Cert Pet GlenTaylorHelzerPeople v. HelzerPeople v. Helzer, 317 Cal. Rptr. 3d 246 | Cal., Judgment, Law, casemine.comJustin Helzer hangs himself in prison Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Episode 395: On a cold December day in 1983, McMaster University in Hamilton, Ontario, was shaken by a deeply unsettling crime. Dr. Edith Wightman, a respected scholar, was discovered dead in her office: bound with tape, handcuffed, and suffocated with a cloth. The investigation took an even stranger turn when police arrested Michael Allen Crowley, a chemist from Welland, who had been seen on campus in disguise, dressed in women’s clothing and a wig. With no personal connection to the victim, and the bizarre methods used, the murder left students and faculty reeling, and raised questions still unanswered to this day. Sources:A Brief History Of McMaster UniversityHistory of McMasterWIGHTMAN, Edith Mary | RutgersDec 19, 1983, page 1 - The Hamilton Spectator at Newspapers.comDec 24, 1983, page 16 - The Hamilton Spectator at Newspapers.comEdith Wightman - Search - Newspapers.com™Michael Alan Crowley - Search - Newspapers.com™"72 Hours: True Crime" Murder on Campus (TV Episode 2005)Canadian News Briefs - UPI ArchivesEdith Wightman | Wikipedia1984_3Winterhttps://www.reddit.com/r/McMaster/comments/jl1ew5/trying_to_find_details_of_on_campus_death/Review: [Untitled] on JSTORWightman: Gallia Belgica (Book Review)Detectives say Robert Garrow now 'best suspect' in 1973 Komorowski murder | CBC NewsAdele Komorowski Homicide Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Episode 394: On an August night in 1991, the quiet fields near Carp, Ontario, were interrupted by strange lights arcing across the sky—a sight so odd it left locals searching for answers. Soon, anonymous packages began to arrive, sent to UFO researchers all over Canada and the United States, packed with photos, documents, and a tape showing what appeared to be a UFO blazing above the marsh. The sender called himself “Guardian” and claimed this was not the first time such events occurred near Carp. Suddenly, what started as small-town talk exploded into one of Canada’s most perplexing UFO stories, a bizarre mystery that remains debated to this day. Sources: The Carp-Guardian Case - The Most Controversial UFO Case in Canadian HistoryGuardian UFO TapeGuardian UFO | Unsolved Mysteries Wiki - FandomThe Mysterious Canadian UFO Sighting - Unsolved Mysteries“Guardian”: The 30th Anniversary Of A Bizarre UFO Incident near Carp, OntarioA mysterious VHS tape, a military bunker, and UFO sightings near Ottawa | UFO TownWe investigated an alleged UFO sighting near Ottawa | CBC DocumentariesSearching for Guardian: Filmmaker re-examines mystery of Carp UFO sightingLiving in Carp Ottawa CanadaVillage of CarpI was a teenage UFO investigator who explored an infamous alien sighting near Ottawa | CBC Documentariesabduction – lindaseccaspinaU.S. Lawmaker: Underwater UFO Bases Hide AliensAliens may have underwater bases on Earth: Burchett | NewsNation PrimeHouse committee holds UFO hearing | full videoWhy Do UFO Sightings Keep Happening Near Nuclear Sites?The Diefenbunker and the Legends of Carp Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Episode 393: On a cold February day in 2022, tragedy struck the small communities of Creston and Kimberley, British Columbia. Julia Howe, a familiar face to her neighbours, was found lifeless in the bathroom of her partner's home. Just hours later and nearly a hundred kilometres away, David Creamer, a father and trusted friend, was discovered dead in his own house. Both initially believed accidental or natural, no one suspected that these two deaths would soon be linked. The true story was finally revealed, albeit in a peculiar manner. The connection between the deaths was finally revealed when Mitchell Earl McIntyre, a man known to both victims, confessed to hospital staff that he was responsible for both deaths. The problem was that, at first, no one believed him. It was the killer’s insistence and admissions of guilt that finally cracked the case. Sources: 2024 BCSC 774 (CanLII) | R. v McIntyre | CanLII2024 BCSC 2026 (CanLII) | R. v McIntyre | CanLIIObituary information for Julia Ann HoweOnline Tribute for David Creamer'You need to detain me' | Kamloops NewsB.C. man who confessed to 2 killings not arrested until a month laterMcInytre murder trial underway | My East Kootenay NowBC man allegedly confessed to two killings originally ruled as accidentsB.C. man charged with woman’s death reportedly also admitted killing someone elseBC homicide suspect confessed to 2 killings weeks before arrest, court documents showSecond-degree murder trial moved | Kamloops NewsAccidental Deaths That Were Really Homicides | Tyee Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices