RedHanded, Episode #434: The Oakland County Child Killer

Released: January 29, 2026
Hosts: Saruti (A), Hannah (B)

Episode Overview

In this chilling episode, hosts Saruti and Hannah unravel the infamous Oakland County Child Killer (OCCK) case—one of the most disturbing and unsolved serial murder sprees in American history. Four children from Oakland County, Michigan, vanished and later turned up dead between 1976 and 1977. The brutality, the possible links to organised pedophile rings, botched investigations, and the implication of powerful figures make this case a labyrinth of horror, incompetence, and conspiracy. Saruti and Hannah blend grim facts with their trademark dark humour and empathy, guiding listeners through the crimes, the victims, failed investigations, and the culture of hidden predators festering in 1970s America.

Main Themes

• The terror and fallout caused by the unsolved abductions and murders of four children in Oakland County, Michigan.
• The possibility of the OCCK being part of a larger, organised child abuse and murder network rather than a lone killer.
• Police failures, evidence contamination, and persistent conspiracies—including links to wealthy individuals and politically sensitive investigations.
• The shocking prevalence of paedophile rings operating under authorities' noses in 1970s Michigan.
• The haunting legacy of families’ relentless search for justice, systemic cover-ups, and why the case remains cold to this day.

Key Discussion Points & Insights

1. Setting the Scene: The Birth of Terror

[00:47 – 02:11]

• In 1977, previously idyllic suburbs around Detroit faced unprecedented fear as a serial child killer targeted local kids.
• Four children—boys and girls, various ages, murdered in differing ways—went missing and were found dead, their bodies meticulously washed, redressed, and left in public places.
• These crimes initiated the largest and most expensive task force in US history at the time, yet no perpetrator was ever arrested.
• The possibility of a networked pedophile operation involving powerful figures began to gain traction as investigations went nowhere.

Notable Quote:
A: "Everyone is a pedophile. Yeah, in 1977. I dare you to say anything else when we get to the end of this script." [00:24]

2. The Victims and the Crimes

[03:21 – 23:50]

Mark Stebbins (age 12)

[03:21 – 09:32]

• Vanished after leaving a pool tournament in Ferndale, hoping to watch a TV special.
• Police delayed response, compounded by poverty (his mother had no recent photos, just a sketch).
• Four days later, his body was found: strangled, with rope burns, circular head wound, no blood. His clothes and body were freshly washed—"even his nails had been scrubbed and trimmed."
• He had been sexually assaulted. Crime scene was carelessly contaminated (covered with a dirty blanket, mishandled evidence).

A: "Mark's clothes had been freshly washed and so had his body. Even his nails had been scrubbed and trimmed, horrifically." [06:33]

Jill Robinson (age 12)

[11:19 – 14:18]

• Ran away after an argument, disappeared heading to Birmingham.
• Found shot in the face, dumped by a highway, still wearing her rucksack.
• Like Mark: ligature marks, washed body and clothes.
• Notably, had recurring nightmares of being shot in the face by an unknown man, which she recounted to her therapist—a detail that fuelled supernatural speculations.

A: "The year before Jill was murdered, her mum had sent her to a therapist because Jill was having a reoccurring nightmare of being shot in the face by an unknown man." [14:18]

Christine Mihalik (age 10)

[17:56 – 20:15]

• Abducted from a busy road after visiting a 7-Eleven.
• Body discovered 20 days later, the longest of any victim—had been smothered, bruised on the face, thoroughly cleaned, left in a snowbank.

A: "Her mum said that she thought they had kept her alive for so long because they must have enjoyed spending time with Christine as she was such a great kid. But she had still met the same fate." [19:13]

Tim King (age 11)

[20:15 – 24:01]

• Last victim; abducted after buying sweets and skateboarding.
• Eyewitness reported a man with shaggy brown hair and mutton chops near a blue AMC Gremlin—a massive, fruitless lead.
• Tim was held for six days, discovered smothered, washed, and had eaten fried chicken and Oreo cookies just before his death—a detail heavily publicised by his mother.

B: "Chillingly, autopsy reports showed that Tim had been fed a meal of fried chicken just hours before he was killed. I think that if you have heard of this case at all, that's the bit you remember." [23:18]

3. Investigation Missteps and Public Panic

[24:01 – 29:33]

• Police chased dead-end leads in a media-fuelled frenzy (notably, relentlessly searching blue Gremlins), including the infamous suspension of the Fourth Amendment to search every car, drawing laughs and frustration in the community.
• Failed leads and countless suspect interviews ensued, including a mysterious letter to police psychologist Dr. Danto from "Alan," who claimed to be the killer's accomplice—a dead end.
• The case inspired widespread panic, fostering a community-wide distrust and a sense that "everyone is a paedophile."

4. Oakland County in the 1970s: The Underworld Exposed

[30:32 – 36:52]

• The OCCK task force unearthed an unprecedented web of child sex abuse, including high-profile offenders such as Frank Sheldon, a millionaire who ran a government-subsidised, predatory boys camp on North Fox Island.
• This ring involved child kidnapping, sexual assault, and film material distributed internationally.
• Notably, Sheldon fled to the Netherlands and was never prosecuted.

A: "Sheldon would then fly over men who would sexually abuse the trapped boys and film the assaults to be sold as child abuse material via their network of predators. Eventually, over two dozen people were arrested in connection to North Fox island..." [35:09]

5. Why Did the Investigation Shut Down?

[36:52 – 41:37]

• After uncovering an expansive paedophile network and over 18,000 leads, the task force was abruptly disbanded in 1978 with no OCCK arrests.
• Official reason: budget cuts, though the killings stopped at the same time.
• Public outrage stormed, especially amidst beliefs that money was redirected into high-profile cases like the Jimmy Hoffa disappearance. Families, especially Tim King's, campaigned for justice on their own, compiling evidence and documentaries highlighting police secrecy.

A: "He had trusted the police to seek justice for his son. But when there were no arrests and eventually all contact from the police stopped, Barry decided to take matters into his own hands... the police were not exactly transparent with the families about their findings..." [40:20]

6. The Suspects: Pedophile Rings, Polygraph Fails, and a Trail to Nowhere

[41:40 – 58:51]

Key Persons of Interest

• John Hastings: Allegedly confessed to the crimes, according to persistent amateur investigator Helen Dagner. DNA didn't match, but his name resurfaces later.
• David Norberg: Suspected after his wife found "Christine" jewellery; DNA didn’t match.
• Theodore Lambergine & Richard Lawson: Detroit-based pedophiles with knowledge of local sex abuse rings. Both refused to talk even when offered deals; DNA inconclusive.
• Christopher Bush: Wealthy son of a GM executive, known paedophile repeatedly protected by lawyers; died of a suspicious "suicide" (a .22 rifle shot between the eyes, found tucked into bed, police report destroyed).
  • Found with child abuse material connected to North Fox Island.
  • Lived near abductions, fit the physical description, and had connections to other suspects.
  • Bloody ligatures and disturbing drawings were found in his room but key evidence was lost/destroyed.

A: "Bush looks like the man that that woman... describes talking to Tim King the day he disappeared. Big husky, shaggy beard, mutton chops..." [51:45]

• Gregory Greene: Bush's partner in abuse, pointed finger at Bush for Mark's murder, but was ignored due to Bush's (passed) polygraph.
• Archibald Ed Sloane: Detroit mechanic and convicted paedophile; car contained hairs that mitochondrial DNA linked to both the victims and someone in his maternal line, but not him personally.

A: "But there was no match. But I don't think that makes Christopher Bush not guilty, because what we also know is that the police lost several of the hairs that they had originally found on the victims." [58:05]

Investigation Failures

• Inexplicably, Bush and Hastings (and others) were cleared at the time via polygraph tests, despite direct allegations and circumstantial evidence.
• Key evidence (hairs, ligatures, reports) repeatedly lost or destroyed.
• Investigators suspected multiple perpetrators and ringleaders providing children to well-connected paedophile circles, not a lone OCCK.

7. Cover-Ups, Conspiracies, and Cold Trails

[62:49 – 70:36]

• Families allege ongoing cover-ups and deliberate stalling—everything from ignored leads to missing evidence points towards a protection of affluent, prominent suspects.
• Mitochondrial DNA from two boys matched hairs from Sloane's car—but only proves family relation, not identity.
• Suspects clammed up, refusing deals, fueling suspicions that they feared retribution from powerful figures more than prison.

A: "Does this point ... to some sort of powerful sex abuse ring whose leaders these men were more afraid of than a life behind bars, possibly." [67:20]

8. Unsolved, Unresolved, Unforgivable

[70:36 – End]

• The case remains officially unsolved nearly 50 years on. DNA evidence is degraded; most suspects and their potential protectors are dead or unreachable.
• The hosts conclude that, despite heroic efforts by some detectives and families, the combination of incompetence, corruption, and overwhelming number of predators meant the true perpetrators were quietly allowed to escape justice.

Notable Quote:
A: "It really feels to me like the police knew it was Bush who was the ringleader... They shoot him in the head. Bang, done. And then the police are like, all's well that ends well... Let's just shut this task force down." [68:53]

Notable Quotes & Memorable Moments

• On the prevalence of predators:
  A: "Everyone is a pedophile. Yeah, in 1977. I dare you to say anything else when we get to the end of this script." [00:24]
• On credulity and the supernatural:
  A: "The year before Jill was murdered, her mum had sent her to a therapist because Jill was having a reoccurring nightmare of being shot in the face by an unknown man." [14:18]
• On police mishandling:
  A: "The crime scene soon became an absolute Argos Catalogue of Errors Christmas edition." [08:17]
• On polygraph reliance:
  A: "...they had released him after, you guessed it, he passed a polygraph, even though his fucking pedo mate, Gregory Green had told the police that Bush had killed Mark Stebbins." [61:40]
• On institutional failure:
  A: "...some detectives were working very hard but somebody or some somebodies were working very hard to stop their progress. And sadly, now, nearly 50 years later, any hope of justice feels impossible." [69:56]

Key Timestamps for Major Segments

• [00:47 – 02:11]: First overview of the community panic and origins of the OCCK case
• [11:19 – 14:18]: Introduction of Jill Robinson, her death, and the haunting nightmare detail
• [20:15 – 24:01]: Tim King's abduction and murder, blue Gremlin lead, escalation of panic
• [30:32 – 36:52]: Oakland County's secret underbelly, North Fox Island, and paedophile networks
• [41:40 – 43:45]: DNA possibilities and frustrations in the 1990s
• [52:31 – 59:19]: Deep dive into Christopher Bush and the web of suspects
• [65:11 – 66:50]: The Sloane DNA development and why it's inconclusive
• [67:20 – 70:36]: Reflection on cover-ups, immunity, and case closure
• [70:36 – end]: Final thoughts on why the case will likely remain unsolved

Conclusion

Saruti and Hannah peel away the façade of suburban safety to expose a shocking era of unchecked abuse, institutional failure, and shattered trust in authority. The OCCK case remains a terrifying, unresolved chapter in American crime history, suggesting the presence of collusion at the highest levels and leaving justice forever out of reach for the victims and their families.

If you want the full investigative rabbit hole, Saruti recommends the documentary "Children of the Snow" and the book "The Snow Killings."

Note: This summary distills the rich, conversational detail and wry tone of the hosts, preserves explicit quotes and moments, and structures the tangled narrative for readers new to both the case and the podcast.