Midnight Trace

Midnight Trace True crime. Real people. Haunting stories. Telling what the world should never forget.
đź“©: [email protected]

22/08/2026

On May 20, 2022, in Orono, Minnesota, police stopped a Chevrolet Impala after a caller reported a vehicle with a shattered rear window and a blown-out tire. Officers noticed what appeared to be bl**d on the driver, inside the vehicle, and a bull*t hole in the rear passenger seat. The driver, 29-year-old Julissa Thaler, gave investigators different explanations for the bl**d, including that she had been carrying deer meat.

Officers initially released Thaler from the scene and drove her home. But after she left, investigators searched the vehicle again and discovered the bo*dy of her 6-year-old son, Eli Hart, inside the trunk. The medical examiner determined that Eli had died from multiple sh*tg*n wounds.

The investigation revealed that Eli had been at the center of a long-running custody dispute between Thaler and his father, Tory Hart. Eli had been placed in foster care in 2021 amid concerns about Thaler’s mental health, criminal history, and living situation. Just 10 days before Eli’s death, Thaler had regained sole custody of him. Investigators also learned that she had purchased a sh*tg*n just days before the k*lling and had recently gone to a g*n range to learn how to use it.

Prosecutors argued that the custody dispute was central to the k*lling, with evidence suggesting Thaler feared losing Eli to his father. Relatives had previously warned authorities that they were concerned she might harm Eli rather than lose custody of him. Thaler denied being responsible for the sh**ting, but prosecutors presented evidence that she had fired the sh*tg*n at Eli nine times and then concealed his bo*dy in the trunk.

In February 2023, a Hennepin County jury found Thaler guilty of first-degree and second-degree m*rder. She was sentenced to life in prison without the possibility of parole.

Follow for chilling stories, cold cases, and strange mysteries. 🔍

22/08/2026

In May 2018, 54-year-old Thomas Burns was reported missing from his home in Purvis, Mississippi. Thomas had begun dating Samantha Simmons earlier that year, just months after his wife died of cancer, and Simmons eventually moved into his home.

When Thomas’s family and neighbors became concerned, they returned to the house and discovered his bo*dy inside a chest freezer secured with a padlock. His wrists and ankles had been b**nd with zip ties, a belt was around his legs, and a trash bag covered his he*ad. The medical examiner determined that the injuries were consistent with st**ngulation or positional/environmental asph*xia.

The investigation uncovered evidence connecting Simmons to the k*lling. Her DNA was found on the zip ties used on Thomas, and investigators discovered that she possessed the only key that fit the freezer’s padlock. Witnesses also testified that Simmons attempted to sell Thomas’s belongings after his death, while other people were arrested for receiving or stealing property from the home.

Prosecutors argued that Simmons k*lled Thomas and then concealed his body while his property was being sold. Simmons maintained that the evidence did not prove she had k*lled him, but the jury rejected her defense. In September 2022, a Lamar County jury found her guilty of first-degree m*rder and receiving stolen property. She was sentenced to life in prison for m*rder plus 20 years for the stolen-property conviction, with the sentences running consecutively.

Follow for chilling stories, cold cases, and strange mysteries. 🔍

21/08/2026

In February 2019, 38-year-old Michael Cochran suddenly became gravely ill at his home in Beckley, West Virginia. His blood sugar was dangerously low, and he was eventually taken to the hospital, where he died. At first, his death appeared to be a medical mystery. Years later, investigators would uncover evidence that changed the case entirely.

Michael’s wife, Natalie Cochran, was a former pharmacist and had been running a business she claimed secured government contracts. Investigators later discovered that the business was actually part of a more than $2 million Ponzi scheme. Natalie had used investors’ money for personal expenses, including real estate, jewelry, and a classic Shelby Cobra. She eventually pleaded guilty to federal wire fraud and money laundering and received an 11-year prison sentence.

Michael’s death became suspicious as investigators examined the circumstances surrounding his final illness. His body was exhumed for additional testing, and forensic pathologist Dr. Paul Urbie determined that Michael had died after non-prescribed insulin was introduced into his body, ruling the death a hom*cide. Prosecutors alleged that Natalie administered the insulin to prevent Michael from discovering the financial scheme.

The prosecution also presented evidence concerning insulin obtained around the time Michael became ill and argued that his death occurred as Natalie’s financial scheme was unraveling. The defense challenged the forensic findings and argued that the evidence did not prove Natalie had k*lled him. After a nine-day trial, however, a Raleigh County jury found Natalie guilty of first-degree m*rder on January 29, 2025.

Natalie was subsequently sentenced to life in prison without the possibility of parole. Her conviction brought an end to a case that began with what initially appeared to be a sudden medical death but ultimately exposed a multimillion-dollar fraud scheme and a m*rder investigation.

Follow for chilling stories, cold cases, and strange mysteries. 🔍

21/08/2026

On December 20, 1984, 12-year-old Jonelle Matthews attended a Christmas concert in Greeley, Colorado. A friend and her father dropped her off at home around 8 p.m. Jonelle walked inside, and when her father returned about an hour later, she was gone. Investigators found signs that someone had entered the home and left with Jonelle, including shoeprints in the snow that appeared to have been partially covered with a garden rake.

For nearly 35 years, Jonelle’s disappearance remained unsolved. In July 2019, workers excavating for a pipeline in rural Weld County discovered human rem**ns. Dental records confirmed they belonged to Jonelle. An autopsy indicated that she had suffered a g*nsh*t wound to the head, and her death was classified as a h*micide.

Investigators eventually focused on Steven Pankey, a man who had lived in the Greeley area in 1984 and attended the same church and social circles as the Matthews family. Pankey had repeatedly inserted himself into the investigation over the years, making statements about Jonelle’s disappearance and offering information that investigators found inconsistent. He continued to deny ki*ling Jonelle.

Pankey was arrested in 2020 and faced charges including first-degree mu*der and kidn**ping. His first trial ended in a mistrial in 2021 after jurors could not reach unanimous verdicts. He was tried again in 2022.

A definitive motive was never established. Prosecutors instead pointed to Pankey’s unusual behavior and repeated attempts to insert himself into the investigation, while the defense argued there was no evidence he had known Jonelle or any reason to k*ll her.

In October 2022, a Weld County jury found Pankey guilty of first-degree felony m*rder, second-degree kidn**ping with a deadly weap*n, and false reporting to authorities. He was sentenced to life in prison with the possibility of parole after 20 years.

Follow for chilling stories, cold cases, and strange mysteries. 🔍

20/08/2026

On November 28, 2021, 29-year-old Germarcus Lamar David went to the Lancaster, California, home where his four children were staying with their maternal grandmother, 51-year-old Ericka England. Around 10:27 p.m., deputies responded to reports of a sh**ting and found Ericka and David’s four children dead inside the home. The victims were 11-year-old Namyiah, 7-year-old Germarcus Jr., 2-year-old Kayden, and 1-year-old Noah. All five had suffered fat*l g*nsh*t wounds.

The children’s mother arrived home shortly afterward and discovered her children and her mother dead. Neighbors reported hearing g*nsh*ts and screams coming from the house. David turned himself in to the Lancaster Sheriff’s Station within minutes of his wife’s arrival and was arrested. Investigators determined that he had used a firearm in the k*llings; his permit to carry a firearm had expired in 2020.

Prosecutors argued that the k*llings followed the breakdown of David’s marriage, after his wife decided to end their relationship. Evidence of prior domestic viol*nce was also presented at trial, but the case does not establish a single definitive motive for why he k*lled his children and mother-in-law.

After a trial in March 2024, a Los Angeles County jury found David guilty of five counts of first-degree m*rder and three counts of a**ault on a child causing death. On April 24, 2024, David was sentenced to life in prison without the possibility of parole.

Follow for chilling stories, cold cases, and strange mysteries. 🔍

20/08/2026

On January 15, 2001, 18-year-old Bridget Townsend was at the Bandera County, Texas, home of her boyfriend, Joe Leal, when she was abd*cted. Leal, who was a drug dealer, was away from the house at the time. According to court records, Ramiro Felix Gonzales, then 18, went there looking to steal c*caine from Leal. When Gonzales found Bridget alone, he restr**ned her, took cash from the home, and forced her into his truck.

Gonzales drove Bridget to a remote area of his family’s ranch in neighboring Medina County. According to his later confession and the evidence summarized by the Fifth Circuit, he s*xually a**aulted her before taking her into the brush and sh**ting her with a hunting r*fle. He left her body there and returned home. Bridget’s family and boyfriend had no idea where she was, and her disappearance remained unsolved for more than a year.

The breakthrough came after Gonzales was arrested for an unrelated kidn**ping and s*xual a**ault in September 2001. He pleaded guilty to those charges and received two life sentences. While awaiting transfer to prison in October 2002, Gonzales asked to speak with the Bandera County sheriff and said he knew what had happened to Bridget. He eventually led investigators to a remote hillside on the ranch, where they found her rem**ns.

Gonzales was subsequently charged with capital m*rder. At his 2006 trial, the jury found him guilty and sentenced him to death. His conviction and sentence were upheld through years of appeals.

After spending nearly 18 years on death row, Gonzales was exec*ted by leth*l injection in Texas on June 26, 2024—Bridget’s 42nd birthday. He apologized to Bridget’s family in his final statement before he was pronounced dead.

Follow for chilling stories, cold cases, and strange mysteries. 🔍

19/08/2026

On May 17, 2024, 28-year-old Da’Vonte Jovan Adams of Spring Valley, Minnesota, traveled to north Minneapolis for a predawn meeting after connecting with a woman through a dating app. Around 4:45 a.m., police responded to the 2200 block of 5th Avenue North after reports of a sh**ting and found Adams suffering from multiple g*nsh*t wounds. He was taken to Hennepin County Medical Center, where he was pronounced dead.

For months, the case remained unsolved. Investigators eventually determined that Megan Renee Karjala, 24, had allegedly used a dating app to arrange the meeting with Adams. According to the criminal complaint, prosecutors said Karjala and Vernon Sirhyde Archie, 28, were involved in a plan to rob and carjack Adams, with Archie allegedly carrying out the sh**ting. Both were charged with second-degree m*rder in February 2025.

The investigation alleged that Adams was lured to the location under the guise of meeting someone from the dating app, where the planned r*bbery escalated into a fat*l sh**ting.

Follow for chilling stories, cold cases, and strange mysteries. 🔍

19/08/2026

On December 23, 2018, 23-year-old LeBrea Jackson, a mother of two from Aurora, Colorado, was supposed to travel with her boyfriend, Andrew Joseph Condon, to her parents’ home in Westcliffe for Christmas. A message was sent from LeBrea’s phone telling her mother that she was on her way to pick up Condon, but the couple never arrived. LeBrea’s family reported her missing on December 26.

Investigators soon discovered that something was seriously wrong. A welfare check at LeBrea’s apartment found that many of her personal belongings were missing. Condon, meanwhile, was arrested in Texas on unrelated charges while driving LeBrea’s Toyota RAV4 and carrying her cellphone. Cellphone records later showed her phone traveling south from Colorado toward Texas, following the same general route Condon had taken.

The investigation also uncovered a history of domestic viol*nce between the couple. LeBrea had reported Condon twice in the months before her disappearance, including allegations that he had placed his hands around her thr*oat and threatened to hurt her if she contacted police.

On January 6, 2019, a person discovered human rem**ns inside a storage container at an abandoned truck stop near Aguilar, Colorado, along Interstate 25. The rem**ns were identified as LeBrea. Investigators determined that LeBrea had been st**ngled sometime between December 21 and 23.
Prosecutors said evidence showed that Condon had used her phone to send the message to her mother after her death, then traveled south in her vehicle.

Condon was arrested and initially charged with first-degree m*rder. After a five-day trial in August 2022, a jury found him guilty of second-degree m*rder, along with tampering with a deceased body, motor-vehicle theft, b*rglary, a**ault/st**ngulation, felony menacing, and other offenses connected to the k*lling.

Prosecutors described the killing as a br*tal act of domestic viol*nce. LeBrea’s death left her two sons without their mother and devastated a family who had been waiting for her to arrive for Christmas.

Follow for chilling stories, cold cases, and strange mysteries. 🔍

18/08/2026

On November 13, 2016, 45-year-old Susann Sills was found dead at the bottom of the staircase inside the San Clemente, California, home she shared with her husband, fertility doctor Eric Scott Sills, and their 12-year-old twins. Eric called 911 and reported that he had found Susann after what appeared to be an accidental fall. Susann had been suffering from a migraine and had spent the night in her daughter’s bedroom.

At first, the scene appeared consistent with an accident. But investigators noticed injuries that didn’t fit a simple fall. Susann had a pronounced ligat*re mark around her neck, and bl**d was discovered in the bedroom where she had been sleeping..

The case remained under investigation for more than two years. In November 2017, the coroner ruled Susann’s death a homic*de caused by ligat*re st**ngulation. Investigators eventually focused on Eric, and he was arrested in April 2019 and charged with m*rder.

Prosecutors argued that Eric had a**aulted and st**ngled Susann in the bedroom before moving her body to the staircase to make her death appear accidental. Evidence presented at trial included Susann’s injuries, bl**d and DNA evidence from the bedroom. The defense maintained that Susann had fallen and that the family dogs may have pulled on the scarf around her neck.

Prosecutors never established a definitive motive but pointed to a topless photo Susann posted on an online political forum after losing a bet. Investigators found an exchange about the photo in Eric’s home office and on his phone. Susann had reportedly told a friend it had caused tension in their marriage, while prosecutors suggested Eric may have been angry or jealous over her online activity.

In December 2023, an Orange County jury found Eric Scott Sills guilty of second-degree m*rder. The jury rejected the defense theory that Susann’s death was an accident. In March 2024, Sills was sentenced to 15 years to life in state prison.

Follow for chilling stories, cold cases, and strange mysteries. 🔍

18/08/2026

On March 24, 2016, 30-year-old Jocelyn Peters, a beloved third-grade teacher in St. Louis, Missouri, was found dead inside her Central West End apartment. She was 31 weeks pregnant with her first child, a baby girl she had named Micah Leigh, and had been preparing for her upcoming baby shower. Jocelyn had been in a relationship with Cornelius M. Green, a married middle-school principal and the father of her unborn child.

There was no sign of forced entry. Investigators soon learned that Green had access to Jocelyn’s apartment and that he had been involved with her for years. Prosecutors later established that their relationship had become increasingly strained because Green had promised Jocelyn he would divorce his wife. She did not know he was also involved with other women.

According to federal prosecutors, Green had searched for ways to secretly end Jocelyn’s pregnancy, including ways to conceal medication in food or drinks. When that plan failed, prosecutors said he turned to his longtime friend, Phillip J. Cutler, and paid him to k*ll Jocelyn and her unborn child. Green stole money from a school fundraiser to fund the m*rder and traveled to Chicago to create an alibi.

In the early hours of March 24, Cutler used a key provided by Green to enter Jocelyn’s apartment. He sh*t her in the head, ki*ling both Jocelyn and her unborn daughter. Cutler then left the apartment, while Green later returned to St. Louis and reported Jocelyn’s death. Investigators eventually uncovered the m*rder-for-hire plot through surveillance, location evidence, financial records, and other evidence connecting the two men.

In February 2024, Green pleaded guilty to conspiracy to commit m*rder-for-hire and m*rder-for-hire in the deaths of Jocelyn and Micah Leigh. The following month, a federal jury found Cutler guilty of the same charges. In June 2024, both men were sentenced to two consecutive life terms in federal prison.

Follow for chilling stories, cold cases, and strange mysteries. 🔍

Address

Quezon City
1119

Website

Alerts

Be the first to know and let us send you an email when Midnight Trace posts news and promotions. Your email address will not be used for any other purpose, and you can unsubscribe at any time.

Shortcuts

Share