Podcast
Weird True Crime
Hosted by Gina Nichols and Amber Paul · EN
Weird True Crime is the ultimate podcast for fans of bizarre, lesser-known, and jaw-dropping true crime stories. Hosted by Gina Nichols and Amber Paul, these lifelong besties explore strange crimes that will leave you stunned. They dive into ethical, victim-focused storytelling with family interviews that bring humanity to the forefront of the narrative.
Every episode of Weird True Crime unravels mysterious cases, unsolved crimes, and shocking events you won’t believe are real. Need a lighter take? Tune in biweekly for WTF Wednesday, where Gina and Amber share hilarious stories of dumb criminals, true crime history, and other oddball crime tales guaranteed to make you laugh.
As part of the Weird True Crime family, you’ll join a growing community of "little skeletons" led by our quirky mascot, Billy the Skelly, who guides you through these wild and fascinating tales.
Whether searching for podcasts about true crime, strange cases, ethical storytelling, or even light-hearted crime stories, Weird True Crime offers a unique blend of heart, humor, and spine-tingling content.
Subscribe today on Apple Podcasts, Spotify, or your favorite podcast platform, and let Gina, Amber, and Billy take you on an unforgettable journey into the weirdest corners of crime.
Weird True Crime is a Fire Eyes Media LLC production.
Instagram: www.instagram.com/weirdtruecrime
TikTok: www.tiktok.com/weirdtruecrime
YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/@WeirdTrueCrime
Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/weirdtruecrime
Become a supporter of this podcast: https://www.spreaker.com/podcast/weird-true-crime--5679751/support.
Every episode of Weird True Crime unravels mysterious cases, unsolved crimes, and shocking events you won’t believe are real. Need a lighter take? Tune in biweekly for WTF Wednesday, where Gina and Amber share hilarious stories of dumb criminals, true crime history, and other oddball crime tales guaranteed to make you laugh.
As part of the Weird True Crime family, you’ll join a growing community of "little skeletons" led by our quirky mascot, Billy the Skelly, who guides you through these wild and fascinating tales.
Whether searching for podcasts about true crime, strange cases, ethical storytelling, or even light-hearted crime stories, Weird True Crime offers a unique blend of heart, humor, and spine-tingling content.
Subscribe today on Apple Podcasts, Spotify, or your favorite podcast platform, and let Gina, Amber, and Billy take you on an unforgettable journey into the weirdest corners of crime.
Weird True Crime is a Fire Eyes Media LLC production.
Instagram: www.instagram.com/weirdtruecrime
TikTok: www.tiktok.com/weirdtruecrime
YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/@WeirdTrueCrime
Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/weirdtruecrime
Become a supporter of this podcast: https://www.spreaker.com/podcast/weird-true-crime--5679751/support.
13episodes
Episodes
Newest firstAll episodes
The Little Girl Who Vanished: HaLeigh Cummings || Part 2
3d ago00:24:37Tap to summarizeDisclaimer: Gina tried to do something new with her audio set up and failed miserably. Please forgive her underwater sound this week. Part two of our deep dive into the HaLeigh Cummings case picks up where the investigation gets darker — and more complicated. Within days of HaLeigh's disappearance, Misty Croslin's story had already changed multiple times. She gave different versions to law enforcement and the media, failed every polygraph she took (despite publicly claiming otherwise), and investigators received tips suggesting she may not have even been in the home when HaLeigh went missing. By August 2009 — on what would have been HaLeigh's sixth birthday — authorities made it official: they did not believe a stranger had taken her. The physical evidence contradicted Misty's account, and she, they said, held the answers.In a bizarre turn, Ronald Cummings and Misty married in March 2009 — while searches for HaLeigh were still actively underway. By October, they had divorced. Both returned to drug use, which opened the door for investigators to run a sting operation. Over two months, an undercover detective purchased thousands of dollars in oxycodone and hydrocodone from Misty, Ronald, and three others. Misty was present at every single transaction. When all five were arrested in January 2010, investigators hoped the weight of the drug trafficking charges — minimums of 25 years — would finally shake loose the truth about HaLeigh.What followed was one of the most gut-wrenching moments in this case: a detailed, disturbing confession from Misty's brother Tommy about what happened to HaLeigh — followed by a three-day river search, a recovered concrete block, and then a full retraction. Tommy admitted he had made the entire story up. Misty was sentenced to 25 years. Ronald took a plea deal for 15. And HaLeigh has never been found. A retired state investigator went on record with his theory: the child accidentally ingested drugs and someone panicked and disposed of her body. We close this episode by bringing it back to HaLeigh herself — who she was, what she looked like, and how you can still help. If you have information about the HaLeigh Cummings disappearance, the Putnam County Sheriff's Office tip line is 1-888-277-8477. A $15,000 reward remains available.📢 Follow & Subscribe:Subscribe on Patreon: www.patreon.com/weirdtruecrimeWebsite: www.weirdtruecrime.comInstagram: www.instagram.com/weirdtruecrimeTikTok: www.tiktok.com/weirdtruecrimeYouTube: www.youtube.com/@weirdtruecrimeEmail: weirdtruecrime@gmail.comMusic by - @djantonyflower⭐ Leave a 5-star review if you enjoy the showProud Member of Fire Eyes Media LLCBecome a supporter of this podcast: https://www.spreaker.com/podcast/weird-true-crime--5679751/support.
Transcribe →
The Little Girl Who Vanished: HaLeigh Cummings || Part 1
3d ago00:20:12Tap to summarizeDisclaimer: Gina tried to do something new with her audio set up and failed miserably. Please forgive her underwater sound this week. On February 10, 2009, five-year-old HaLeigh Ann-Marie Cummings vanished from her home in Satsuma, Florida — a small rural community along the St. Johns River in Putnam County. Her disappearance became one of the most heartbreaking and confounding missing child cases in Florida true crime history. In this episode of Weird True Crime, hosts Amber and Gina introduce us to HaLeigh: a curly-haired kindergartner at Browning Pearce Elementary School who loved nail polish, mac and cheese, and taking care of her baby brother. Her family called her "little mama." She was 39 pounds, five years old, and by every account, completely adored.We walk through the family background — the custody battle between her father Ronald Cummings and her mother Crystal Sheffield, the move to rural Satsuma, and the arrival of 17-year-old Misty Croslin, who had been living in the home and watching the children while Ronald worked second shift. On the night of February 9th into the early morning hours of February 10th, Ronald was at work. Misty was the only adult present. When Ronald came home at 3:25am, HaLeigh was gone. Within minutes, a 911 call went out — and within hours, investigators were already questioning whether the scene they found told the true story of what happened that night.This episode covers the initial search, the AMBER Alert, the FBI response, and the deeply troubling physical evidence: no forced entry, an undisturbed pile of laundry in front of the back door, HaLeigh's Hannah Montana shirt found in a place it shouldn't have been, and a crime scene that investigators would later describe as possibly staged. Misty Croslin's first account of the night begins to unravel almost immediately. If you're researching the HaLeigh Cummings case, Florida missing children cases, or true crime cold cases involving child disappearances, this is the episode to start with.📢 Follow & Subscribe:Subscribe on Patreon: www.patreon.com/weirdtruecrimeWebsite: www.weirdtruecrime.comInstagram: www.instagram.com/weirdtruecrimeTikTok: www.tiktok.com/weirdtruecrimeYouTube: www.youtube.com/@weirdtruecrimeEmail: weirdtruecrime@gmail.comMusic by - @djantonyflower⭐ Leave a 5-star review if you enjoy the showProud Member of Fire Eyes Media LLCBecome a supporter of this podcast: https://www.spreaker.com/podcast/weird-true-crime--5679751/support.
Transcribe →What Melissa Left || UPDATE & Family Statement
2w ago00:00:59Tap to summarizeGBecome a supporter of this podcast: https://www.spreaker.com/podcast/weird-true-crime--5679751/support.
Transcribe →WTF Wednesday: Weird Facts!
2w ago00:37:45Tap to summarizeWhat happens when two true crime podcasters dig through the random facts they've been mentally collecting for months? You get one of the most fascinating, surprising, and downright bizarre episodes we've ever recorded. This week on WTF Wednesdays, Gina and Amber are pulling ten wild true crime adjacent facts out of the depths of their brains and breaking them all down — and trust us, you're going to want to stick around for all of them.📢 Follow & Subscribe:Subscribe on Patreon: www.patreon.com/weirdtruecrimeWebsite: www.weirdtruecrime.comInstagram: www.instagram.com/weirdtruecrimeTikTok: www.tiktok.com/weirdtruecrimeYouTube: www.youtube.com/@weirdtruecrimeEmail: weirdtruecrime@gmail.comMusic by - @djantonyflower⭐ Leave a 5-star review if you enjoy the showProud Member of Fire Eyes Media LLCBecome a supporter of this podcast: https://www.spreaker.com/podcast/weird-true-crime--5679751/support.
Transcribe →
What Melissa Left: The Disappearance of Melissa Casias | Episode 3: Missing Pieces
3w ago00:25:38Tap to summarizeMelissa Casias has been missing since June 26, 2025. In the final episode of this series, Gina and Amber pull back the lens — examining the full scope of the investigation failures, the documented patterns of abuse and financial control inside the Casias marriage, and the three possible scenarios for what happened to Melissa. They don't tell you what to think. But they lay out everything the evidence supports — and everything it doesn't.This is the episode where it all comes together.🚨 If You Have InformationNew Mexico State Police: (505) 425-6771 Crime Stoppers (anonymous): (505) 843-STOP | Text ABQCS to 738477Find Melissa Mondragon Casias on FacebookGoFundMe Reward FundSourcesNew Mexico State Police Report — on fileFBI: No-Body Homicide Cases — A Practical Approach (Special Agent Michael Yoder)Recorded Phone Calls provided by familyInterview Transcript with Trudy and JazminWeird True Crime is an independent true crime podcast. If this episode moved you, please share it — and share Melissa's face. The more people who know her story, the better the chance that someone comes forward.📢 Follow & Subscribe:Subscribe on Patreon: www.patreon.com/weirdtruecrimeWebsite: www.weirdtruecrime.comInstagram: www.instagram.com/weirdtruecrimeTikTok: www.tiktok.com/weirdtruecrimeYouTube: www.youtube.com/@weirdtruecrimeEmail: weirdtruecrime@gmail.comMusic by - @djantonyflower⭐ Leave a 5-star review if you enjoy the showProud Member of Fire Eyes Media LLCBecome a supporter of this podcast: https://www.spreaker.com/podcast/weird-true-crime--5679751/support.
Transcribe →What Melissa Left: The Disappearance of Melissa Casias | Episode 2: 40 Minutes
3w ago00:24:37Tap to summarizeMelissa Casias dropped lunch off to her daughter Sierra at 12:57 p.m. on June 26, 2025. She sent her last text at 1:33 p.m. At 1:38 p.m., her phone was reset. At 2:18 p.m., surveillance footage from a home on Highway 518 captured a woman with a black backpack walking eastbound. That's 40 minutes — almost exactly the walking distance between the Casias home and that location. A coincidence? Gina and Amber don't think so.In this episode, they pick up where Part One left off: the days and weeks following Melissa's disappearance, the organized searches, Mark Casias's recorded phone calls, the disturbing patterns emerging from inside the marriage, and the surveillance footage that raises more questions than it answers.🚨 If You Have InformationNew Mexico State Police: (505) 425-6771 Crime Stoppers (anonymous): (505) 843-STOP | Text ABQCS to 738477Find Melissa Mondragon Casias on FacebookGoFundMe Reward FundSourcesNew Mexico State Police Report — on fileFBI: No-Body Homicide Cases — A Practical Approach (Special Agent Michael Yoder)Recorded Phone Calls provided by familyInterview Transcript with Trudy and JazminWeird True Crime is an independent true crime podcast. If this episode moved you, please share it — and share Melissa's face. The more people who know her story, the better the chance that someone comes forward.📢 Follow & Subscribe:Subscribe on Patreon: www.patreon.com/weirdtruecrimeWebsite: www.weirdtruecrime.comInstagram: www.instagram.com/weirdtruecrimeTikTok: www.tiktok.com/weirdtruecrimeYouTube: www.youtube.com/@weirdtruecrimeEmail: weirdtruecrime@gmail.comMusic by - @djantonyflower⭐ Leave a 5-star review if you enjoy the showProud Member of Fire Eyes Media LLCBecome a supporter of this podcast: https://www.spreaker.com/podcast/weird-true-crime--5679751/support.
Transcribe →What Melissa Left: The Disappearance of Melissa Casias | Episode 1: June 26th
3w ago00:38:19Tap to summarizeOn Thursday, June 26, 2025, Melissa Shirley Casias — a 53-year-old mother, avid hunter, devoted reader, thyroid cancer survivor, and administrative assistant at Los Alamos National Laboratory — vanished from Ranchos de Taos, New Mexico. She dropped lunch off to her daughter Sierra at 12:57 p.m. By 1:38 p.m., her phone had been wiped. By 2:18 p.m., a witness spotted someone who looked like her walking alone along Highway 518 Eastbound in Talpa. She has not been seen since.In this episode, Gina and Amber introduce you to Melissa — who she was, what her life looked like, and why the people who love her are certain she did not choose to disappear. They then walk through the events of June 26th in chronological order, covering her last confirmed movements, the first hours of the investigation, and the early signs that something about her husband Mark Casias's behavior wasn't adding up.🚨 If You Have InformationNew Mexico State Police: (505) 425-6771 Crime Stoppers (anonymous): (505) 843-STOP | Text ABQCS to 738477Find Melissa Mondragon Casias on FacebookGoFundMe Reward FundSourcesNew Mexico State Police Report — on fileFBI: No-Body Homicide Cases — A Practical Approach (Special Agent Michael Yoder)Recorded Phone Calls provided by familyInterview Transcript with Trudy and JazminWeird True Crime is an independent true crime podcast. If this episode moved you, please share it — and share Melissa's face. The more people who know her story, the better the chance that someone comes forward.📢 Follow & Subscribe:Subscribe on Patreon: www.patreon.com/weirdtruecrimeWebsite: www.weirdtruecrime.comInstagram: www.instagram.com/weirdtruecrimeTikTok: www.tiktok.com/weirdtruecrimeYouTube: www.youtube.com/@weirdtruecrimeEmail: weirdtruecrime@gmail.comMusic by - @djantonyflower⭐ Leave a 5-star review if you enjoy the showProud Member of Fire Eyes Media LLCBecome a supporter of this podcast: https://www.spreaker.com/podcast/weird-true-crime--5679751/support.
Transcribe →
NEW SERIES: What Melissa Left // The Disappearance of Melissa Casias
4w ago00:00:31Tap to summarizeJoin hosts Gina and Amber as they deep dive into this compelling case and unleash new and never before shared exclusive case updates. Working with the family, your Weird True Crime team presents this 3 part limited series on their Weird True Crime feed. All 3 episodes drop May 20, 2026On Thursday, June 26, 2025, Melissa Shirley Casias — a 53-year-old mother, avid hunter, devoted reader, thyroid cancer survivor, and administrative assistant at Los Alamos National Laboratory — vanished from Ranchos de Taos, New Mexico. She dropped lunch off to her daughter Sierra at 12:57 p.m. By 1:38 p.m., her phone had been wiped. By 2:18 p.m., a witness spotted someone who looked like her walking alone along Highway 518 Eastbound in Talpa. She has not been seen since.🚨 If You Have InformationNew Mexico State Police: (505) 425-6771 Crime Stoppers (anonymous): (505) 843-STOP | Text ABQCS to 738477Find Melissa Mondragon Casias on Facebook: [link] GoFundMe Reward Fund: [link]Weird True Crime is an independent true crime podcast. If this episode moved you, please share it — and share Melissa's face. The more people who know her story, the better the chance that someone comes forward.📢 Follow & Subscribe:Subscribe on Patreon: www.patreon.com/weirdtruecrimeWebsite: www.weirdtruecrime.comInstagram: www.instagram.com/weirdtruecrimeTikTok: www.tiktok.com/weirdtruecrimeYouTube: www.youtube.com/@weirdtruecrimeEmail: weirdtruecrime@gmail.comMusic by - @djantonyflower⭐ Leave a 5-star review if you enjoy the showProud Member of Fire Eyes Media LLCNew Limited Series from Weird True Crime:What Melissa Left: The Disappearance of Melissa Casias -search-for-melissa-casiasBecome a supporter of this podcast: https://www.spreaker.com/podcast/weird-true-crime--5679751/support.
Transcribe →WTF Wednesday: The 1927 Crime Skeleton Patent That Almost Changed Police Interrogations Forever
May 1300:45:55Tap to summarizeWhat if the key to getting a criminal to confess was... a glowing, blinking skeleton in a dark room? Welcome back to WTF Wednesday, little skeletons! This week we're digging up one of our favorite weird-but-true stories that deserves a second listen.We kick things off in the roaring 1920s — a decade absolutely packed with infamous crimes. From the St. Valentine's Day Massacre and the unsolved Wall Street Bombing of 1920, to serial killer Albert Fish (aka the Brooklyn Vampire, the Gray Man) and the Black Sox scandal of 1921 — the '20s were wild.But the real star of today's episode? Helene Adelaide Shelby, a woman so fed up with retracted confessions that on August 16, 1927, she filed a patent for an "Apparatus for Obtaining Criminal Confessions and Photographically Recording Them." What was this apparatus, exactly? A small dark chamber. A hidden interrogator speaking through a megaphone. And a life-sized skeleton with glowing red blinking eyes designed to terrify suspects into confessing their deepest, darkest secrets.Yes. A crime skeleton. She patented a crime skeleton.Sadly, Helene's invention never made it off the drawing board — and the 1961 Supreme Court ruling on coerced confessions probably would have had something to say about it anyway. But we fully stan her energy.We wrap up the episode with 10 hilarious real cop stories pulled from Reddit — featuring horse semen, a stiletto heel where it absolutely should not be, a self-proclaimed "earth ninja," Chuck Norris, Big Macs, and the most relatable donut panic you'll ever hear.📢 Follow & Subscribe:Subscribe on Patreon: www.patreon.com/weirdtruecrimeWebsite: www.weirdtruecrime.comInstagram: www.instagram.com/weirdtruecrimeTikTok: www.tiktok.com/weirdtruecrimeYouTube: www.youtube.com/@weirdtruecrimeEmail: weirdtruecrime@gmail.comMusic by @djantonyflower⭐ Leave a 5-star review if you love laughing at terrible life choicesProud Member of Fire Eyes Media LLCBecome a supporter of this podcast: https://www.spreaker.com/podcast/weird-true-crime--5679751/support.
Transcribe →
Calista Springer: The True Story of a Child Failed by the System
May 600:50:45Tap to summarizeCalista Springer was a 16-year-old girl from Centreville, Michigan, who loved to draw, paint, and color — and who spent most of her short life being abused, starved, and chained to a bed by the people who were supposed to protect her. For over a decade, teachers, neighbors, and social workers filed at least 15 reports with Child Protective Services. Nothing was done. On February 27, 2008, a fire broke out in the Springer home. Calista could not escape. She was chained to her bunk bed by a dog choke chain. She died of carbon monoxide poisoning. She was 91 pounds.The Calista Springer case is one of the most heartbreaking examples of child abuse and CPS failure in Michigan history. Calista's stepmother, Marsha and father, Anthony Springer, were ultimately convicted of torture and first-degree child abuse — but only after years of documented abuse that investigators, caseworkers, and school officials failed to stop. The Springers had even pulled Calista out of public school under Michigan's permissive homeschool laws, removing her from the last adults who could have intervened. In 2010, both Marsha and Anthony were sentenced to up to 50 years in prison for torture.In this episode of Weird True Crime, Amber and Gina walk through the full story of Calista Springer — from her early childhood and diagnosis with Pervasive Developmental Disorder, to the years of reported child abuse that CPS ignored, to the fire that killed her and the criminal trial that followed. They also examine the civil lawsuit against the CPS workers who closed Calista's case, the role Michigan's homeschool laws played in hiding her abuse, and what her case changed — and didn't change — about how the state protects vulnerable children.If this episode moved you, please share it. The more people who know Calista's story, the harder it becomes to look away from the systems that failed her — and the children who are still waiting for someone to believe them. Follow Weird True Crime wherever you listen to podcasts, and leave us a review if you have a minute — it helps more people find the show.📢 Follow & Subscribe:Subscribe on Patreon: www.patreon.com/weirdtruecrimeWebsite: www.weirdtruecrime.comInstagram: www.instagram.com/weirdtruecrimeTikTok: www.tiktok.com/weirdtruecrimeYouTube: www.youtube.com/@weirdtruecrimeEmail: weirdtruecrime@gmail.comMusic by - @djantonyflower⭐ Leave a 5-star review if you enjoy the showProud Member of Fire Eyes Media LLCLinks & SourcesDistrict Court — Langdon v. Skelding (civil lawsuit): https://www.govinfo.gov/content/pkg/USCOURTS-miwd-1_10-cv-00985/pdf/USCOURTS-miwd-1_10-cv-00985-0.pdfMichigan Court of Appeals — Langdon v. Skelding: https://scholar.google.com/scholar_case?case=17496516472404841413Court of Appeals — People v. Springer (sentencing appeal): https://scholar.google.com/scholar_case?case=70839503630412404816th Circuit Court of Appeals — related federal ruling: https://cases.justia.com/federal/appellate-courts/ca6/11-2353/11-2353-2013-04-17.pdfM Live — Calista Springer investigative series (March 2009): https://www.mlive.com/news/kalamazoo/2009/03/calista_springer_in_progress.htmlM Live — Records investigation: https://www.mlive.com/news/kalamazoo/2009/03/gazette_investigation_records.htmlM Live — Initial fire report: https://www.mlive.com/kzgazette/2008/02/girl_who_died_in_centreville_f.htmlM Live — Fire details: https://www.mlive.com/kzgazette/2008/02/details_emerge_in_fatal_fire.htmlM Live — Jury deliberations: https://www.mlive.com/news/kalamazoo/2010/02/jury_deliberations_continue_to.htmlM Live — Case goes to jury: https://www.mlive.com/news/kalamazoo/2010/02/springer_case_goes_to_the_jury.htmlM Live — Children with Calista's disorder (trial coverage): https://www.mlive.com/news/kalamazoo/2010/02/children_with_calistas_disorde.htmlM Live — Courtney Springer testimony: https://www.mlive.com/news/kalamazoo/2010/02/calista_springers_sister_court.htmlM Live — Anthony Springer's public statement (2008): https://www.mlive.com/news/kalamazoo/2008/09/anthony_springers_statement_to.htmlM Live — Calista's mother grieves (March 2008): https://www.mlive.com/kzgazette/2008/03/calistas_mother_grieves_as_doc.htmlNIH — Pervasive Developmental Disorders: https://www.ninds.nih.gov/health-information/disorders/pervasive-developmental-disordersBecome a supporter of this podcast: https://www.spreaker.com/podcast/weird-true-crime--5679751/support.
Transcribe →