In the blood-soaked pantheon of Depression-era gangsters, one killer stood apart – not for his height, but for his face. 

Witnesses consistently described him as looking like “an angel,” with bright blue eyes and features so youthful that bank tellers often mistook him for a teenage messenger boy. 

That angelic countenance masked the soul of perhaps the most efficient killer in gangster history. 

Baby Face Nelson didn’t just rob banks – he hunted FBI agents for sport, kept a list of their license plates, and giggled like a schoolboy while gunning them down. 

He was a member of John Dillinger’s gang and replaced him as Public Enemy Number One.

This isn’t the story of another charming outlaw like Bonnie and Clyde – it’s the tale of a cherub-faced psychopath who turned Depression-era America into his personal killing ground.

FOLLOW the True Crime Reporter® Podcast 

SIGN UP FOR my True Crime Newsletter

THANK YOU FOR THE FIVE-STAR REVIEWS ON APPLE Please leave one – it really helps.

TELL ME about a STORY OR SUBJECT  that you want to hear more about

Step into the storied halls of the Texas Prison Museum and uncover the gripping tales of infamous inmates, daring escapes, and the history of justice in the Lone Star State.

We used to fear sexual predators stalking our neighborhoods, ready to snatch our children off the streets.  We called it “Stranger Danger”.

But “Stranger Danger” has moved online with Sextortion schemes on the social media platforms and gaming apps our children use daily. 

Organized crime rings now prowl the internet, tricking teenagers into sharing explicit images through these familiar channels. 

Once they have those images, the nightmare begins. These criminals blackmail their victims, threatening to expose the photos and videos to friends, family, and the public unless they pay the extortion demand.

Fear and shame overwhelm the teenage victims, driving some to suicide.

In response, a pair of Texas Detectives known as the “Catfish Cops” troll these dangerous waters, sinking their hooks into predators before they can destroy more lives. 

True Crime Reporter® Security Libary: Sextortion Safety Resources For Parents

FOLLOW the True Crime Reporter® Podcast 

SIGN UP FOR my True Crime Newsletter

THANK YOU FOR THE FIVE-STAR REVIEWS ON APPLE Please leave one – it really helps.

TELL ME about a STORY OR SUBJECT  that you want to hear more about

Mike Cox’s name is synonymous with Texas crime reporting. 

Cox spent decades covering grisly crimes, working as a police beat reporter and later as the Chief of Media Relations for the Texas Department of Public Safety and authoring books about the Texas Rangers. 

His latest book, Getting Away with Murder: Learning from Dateline and Other True Crime Shows, blends his sharp wit with his vast experience in law enforcement, offering readers a tongue-in-cheek take on crime and the often bizarre ways criminals get caught. 

As an enterprising police beat reporter for the Austin American Statesman, Mike broke the story about serial killer Henry Lee Lucas’ courtroom confession to 100 murders. Mike extensively interviewed Lucas in jail and wrote the definitive book about the case, The Confessions of Henry Lee Lucas.

During our interview, Cox reflects on his lifelong immersion in storytelling, his family’s deep connection to journalism, and how true crime shows like Dateline rekindled his passion for the subject.

FOLLOW the True Crime Reporter® Podcast 

SIGN UP FOR my True Crime Newsletter

THANK YOU FOR THE FIVE-STAR REVIEWS ON APPLE Please leave one – it really helps.

TELL ME about a STORY OR SUBJECT  that you want to hear more about

True Crime Reporter® presents a story that straddles the line between horror and history. Mike Cox, a veteran police beat reporter and former chief of media relations for the Texas Department of Public Safety, spent his life documenting murder cases and bringing clarity to chaos. 

From unraveling the disturbing confessions of serial killer Henry Lee Lucas to sorting out the facts for the press at the Luby’s Cafeteria massacre, Cox’s career has been one immersed in blood and ink. 

In this episode, we examine one of Cox’s most sensational stories: serial killer Henry Lee Lucas. 

Lucas, a drifter with an off-kilter gaze and a chilling demeanor, shocked the world by confessing to over 600 murders. His admissions sent law enforcement agencies scrambling, but as Mike Cox discovered, the truth was far more elusive.

Join us as we revisit the courtroom where Lucas dropped his bombshell confession, follow Cox’s journey from crime scenes to interviews with Lucas inside prison, and explore the fine line between fact and fiction in one of the most bizarre cases in true crime history.

FOLLOW the True Crime Reporter® Podcast 

SIGN UP FOR my True Crime Newsletter

THANK YOU FOR THE FIVE-STAR REVIEWS ON APPLE Please leave one – it really helps.

TELL ME about a STORY OR SUBJECT  that you want to hear more about

Joe Pulizzi, the Godfather of Content Marketing, takes an audacious leap into crime fiction, delivering a story that is as mesmerizing as it is chilling. 

Set within the haunting confines of a funeral home, “The Will To Die” unravels a dark and twisted narrative brimming with suspense, secrets, and a touch of macabre.

Pulizzi’s protagonist, a marketing professional, finds himself entangled in a web of deceit and danger. He is compelled to uncover the mysteries buried deep within the family-run funeral home he unexpectedly inherits.

Since I grew up in East Texas, I was drawn to Pulizzi’s crime novel because of the real-life case of Bernie Tiede.

The chubby-cheeked mortician befriended the widow of a wealthy oilman at his funeral. 

Bernie became her personal assistant and sole heir to her multi-million dollar estate.

And in 1996, he carried out one of the most bizarre murders in Texas history. 

Pulizzi is on to something by incorporating the morticians and embalmers into his story.

They are typically seen as caretakers of the dead, but their presence confronts the unnerving possibility that death has taken on a new, more sinister dimension within their midst.

JOE PULIZZI – LINKS

“The Will To Die”

“The Content Entrepreneur”

The Orange Effect Foundation – Help children with speech disorders receive the speech therapy and technology they need.

FOLLOW the True Crime Reporter® Podcast 

SIGN UP FOR my True Crime Newsletter

THANK YOU FOR THE FIVE-STAR REVIEWS ON APPLE – Please leave one – it really helps.

TELL ME about a STORY OR SUBJECT  that you want to hear more about

Read The Story

Chaos erupted inside the impenetrable Walls Unit prison in Huntsville during the scorching Texas summer of July 1974. 

Frederico “Fred” Gomez Carrasco, a notorious drug lord often compared to Pablo Escobar of today, orchestrated a takeover that would become the longest prison siege in U.S. history.

Carrasco, known as “The Mexican Connection,” smuggled guns into the prison and, along with two accomplices, took teachers and librarians hostage. 

For eleven harrowing days, they threatened a massacre if their demands were not met, keeping the nation on edge.

Join me as I explore this gripping saga of desperation, manipulation, and deadly confrontation. 

This is the story of the deadly Huntsville siege, a tale that continues to resonate nearly fifty years later.

READ 50th Anniversary of “11 Days in Hell” – The Deadly Hostage Siege at the Huntsville Prison

FOLLOW the True Crime Reporter® Podcast 

SIGN UP FOR my True Crime Newsletter

THANK YOU FOR THE FIVE-STAR REVIEWS ON APPLE Please leave one – it really helps.

TELL ME about a STORY OR SUBJECT  that you want to hear more about

How well do we truly know our friends? Can we discern when they are lying, or even worse, when they might be hiding a deadly secret?

In this episode, I delve into the unsettling story of Fred Roehler, who seemed to embody the perfect father and husband in the idyllic setting of Malibu, California.

However, beneath this facade of a picture-perfect family lies a chilling tale of deception, tragedy, and murder.

Join me as I unravel the mystery that Ivor Davis and his wife Sally, both seasoned journalists, uncovered about their close friend in their book The Devil In My Friend: The Inside Story Of A Malibu Murder.

FOLLOW the True Crime Reporter® Podcast 

SIGN UP FOR my True Crime Newsletter

THANK YOU FOR THE FIVE-STAR REVIEWS ON APPLE Please leave one – it really helps.

TELL ME about a STORY OR SUBJECT  that you want to hear more about

John Dillinger & The Lady In Red Confronted Leaving The Biograph Theater in Chicago July 22, 1934. Artists Rendition

John Dillinger was the most famous outlaw of the 1930s—a charming yet elusive bank robber who captured the public’s imagination and fueled an entire genre of crime melodramas during the darkest days of the Great Depression.

His daring escapades, including multiple jailbreaks and bank heists, captivated the nation and earned him the moniker of “Public Enemy Number One” from FBI Director J. Edgar Hoover.

Join me as I delve into the life and legacy of John Dillinger, the man behind the myth.

Listen to my earlier episode The John Dillinger Enigma: Did The FBI Really Kill Public Enemy #1?

FOLLOW the True Crime Reporter® Podcast 

SIGN UP FOR my True Crime Newsletter

THANK YOU FOR THE FIVE-STAR REVIEWS ON APPLE Please leave one – it really helps.

TELL ME about a STORY OR SUBJECT  that you want to hear more about

The arrival of a mysterious box at a government office in a small Texas town shattered its quiet morning routine. 

Suddenly, the peaceful atmosphere turned to chaos as panicked men and women ran screaming from the building into the street. 

They were the targets of a sinister plot designed to kill them all with a powerful pipe bomb in a case of domestic violence.

FOLLOW the True Crime Reporter® Podcast 

SIGN UP FOR my True Crime Newsletter

THANK YOU FOR THE FIVE-STAR REVIEWS ON APPLE Please leave one – it really helps.

TELL ME about a STORY OR SUBJECT  that you want to hear more about

In the shadow of Texas’ heartland, a clandestine cult flourished under the guise of dark rituals and methamphetamine production.

Known as the Devil Lovers, this group of middle-aged men and women from prominent Waco families engaged in sinister ceremonies, pledging allegiance to their enigmatic leader, David Russell Zell.

Their twisted journey from occult gatherings to running the state’s largest illicit meth lab in the late 1980s unfolded a tale stranger than fiction.

Join investigative reporter Robert Riggs and former federal prosecutor Bill Johnston as they delve into the spine-chilling case of meth, murder, and malevolence that shocked a community and exposed the terrifying underbelly of human nature.

FOLLOW the True Crime Reporter® Podcast 

SIGN UP FOR my True Crime Newsletter

THANK YOU FOR THE FIVE-STAR REVIEWS ON APPLE Please leave one – it really helps.

TELL ME about a STORY OR SUBJECT  that you want to hear more about

Investigative Reporter Robert Riggs dives into the mind of a serial killer with author John David Bethel as we explore his latest novel “Mapping The Night.” Bethel's books stand out for their profound basis in real-life cases.  His fiction and nonfiction offer a unique lens through which to explore the darkest corners of the human mind. FOLLOW the True Crime Reporter® Podcast  SIGN UP FOR my True Crime Newsletter THANK YOU FOR THE FIVE-STAR REVIEWS ON APPLE Please leave one – it really helps. TELL ME about a STORY OR SUBJECT  that you want to hear more about