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The Final Trace

OdieStew Productions
  • 5.0 (15)
  • TRUE CRIME
  • UPDATED WEEKLY

The Final Trace is a true crime podcast digging into chilling disappearances, cold cases, and mysteries that still leave us searching for answers. Hosted by Hopper Dailey & Mckenzie, each chapter steps into final moments, overlooked clues, and theories that linger. Every story is a chapter - not the whole book. Just one page of someones story... the page where everything changed. From strange sightings to unsettling truths, we follow the clues wherever they lead. New Chapters every True Crime Tuesday.

  1. Murdered: Steven Johnson & Lucie Turmel

    4D AGO

    Murdered: Steven Johnson & Lucie Turmel

    📍 Staffordshire, England 📍 Banff, Alberta, Canada 🎧 Chapter 28: The Final Trace of Steven Johnson & Lucie Turmel In 1990, on opposite sides of the world, two taxi drivers began ordinary night shifts — and never made it home. Steven Johnson was murdered in rural England. His case remains unsolved.Lucie Turmel was murdered in Banff, Alberta — and years later, science revealed her killer. Though they never knew each other, their stories share chilling similarities: last fares, isolated roads, and clues left behind in the dark. In this episode, we explore both cases side by side — one solved, one still waiting — and ask whether the same advances that brought justice for Lucie could one day bring answers for Steven. 🔎 EPISODE RESOURCES & FURTHER READINGSteven Johnson — Staffordshire, England (1990) BBC Crimewatch (case appeal & coverage)https://www.bbc.co.uk/programmes/b006mg3c(Search archives reference Steven Johnson case; Crimewatch featured the murder in 1991) Staffordshire Police – Cold Case Appealshttps://www.staffordshire.police.uk(Search: “Steven Johnson taxi driver murder”) Unsolved UK Taxi Driver Murder Summaryhttps://www.unsolved-murders.co.uk/murder-content.php?key=660(Independent UK cold case archive referencing Steven Johnson) Lucie Turmel — Banff, Alberta, Canada (1990) Taxi-Library.org – Lucie Turmel Case Filehttps://www.taxi-library.org/canada/turmel-l.htm(Detailed timeline, evidence, conviction, and parole history) Global News – Ryan Jason Love parole coveragehttps://globalnews.ca(Search: “Ryan Jason Love Banff taxi driver murder parole”) Secrets of Forensic Science (2001 dramatization)https://www.imdb.com/title/tt0274295/(Episode dramatizing the forensic investigation; victim renamed in reenactment) Forensic & Legal Context RCMP & DNA Evidence in Canadian Lawhttps://www.justice.gc.ca(Criminal Code amendments influenced by forensic cases like Lucie Turmel’s) DNA Collection & Cold Case Breakthroughshttps://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC3547805/(Peer-reviewed overview of DNA’s role in cold case investigations)

    25 min
  2. The Final Trace of 'Twas The Night Before Christmas

    12/23/2025

    The Final Trace of 'Twas The Night Before Christmas

    📍 Troy, New York 🎧 Chapter 27: The Final Trace of ’Twas the Night Before Christmas For two centuries, ’Twas the Night Before Christmas has shaped the way we imagine Christmas Eve. But behind the stockings, sleigh bells, and familiar opening line lies a mystery frozen in time. The world’s most famous Christmas poem was published anonymously… and the man who later claimed it may not have written it at all. Tonight, we unravel a literary cold case buried beneath snow, legacy, and one vanished author. Special thanks to our friend Beans from the Tall Boy Radio Podcast for lending his amazing voice to this story. 🖤

    12 min
  3. Murdered: Paul Logan

    12/16/2025

    Murdered: Paul Logan

    📍Gateshead, Tyne and Wear, England 🎧 Chapter 26: The Final Trace of Paul Logan On a cold December night, Paul Logan was lured to Blue House Farm — and murdered.More than three decades later, his case remains unsolved. Police investigated numerous suspects, arresting ten men at one point, yet no charges were ever filed. Some people spoke poorly of Paul, others defended him, and the truth became harder to separate from rumor. What’s clear is that this was not a random act — it was planned, targeted, and followed by years of unanswered questions. In this episode, we step away from speculation and focus on what can be confirmed: the timeline, the investigation, and the chapter of Paul Logan’s life that ended at Blue House Farm. . Unsolved Murders (Paul Logan case page)Supports: timeline, location (Blue House Farm), unsolved status👉 https://www.unsolved-murders.co.uk/murder-content.php?key=673&termRef=Paul+Logan British Murders – Paul LoganSupports: murder described as planned/targeted, large-scale investigation👉 https://www.britishmurders.com/paullogan/ ITV News – Family still seeking justiceSupports: family statements, long-term impact, lack of resolution👉 https://www.itv.com/news/tyne-tees/2018-12-23/ongoing-anguish-for-the-family-of-paul-logan-twenty-five-years-have-passed-and-we-still-have-no-answers-and-no-justice Crime Immortal / Crime Immemorial – Paul LoganSupports: lured to location, premeditation language👉 https://crimeimmemorial.com/2024/08/28/paul-logan/ 🔗 Primary Case Summaries & Reporting 🔗 Reddit (Community Discussion / Speculation — clearly label as such) r/UnresolvedMysteries – Paul Logan threadSupports:• public perception that Paul was disliked by some• discussion of suspects and alleged grudges⚠️ Speculation, not official findings👉 https://www.reddit.com/r/UnresolvedMysteries/comments/a8zmun/two_days_before_christmas_paul_logan_was_lured_to/ YouTube – Paul Logan case summarySupports: general overview and recap👉 https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=WyJm7AlwEh8 🔗 Video Overview

    21 min
  4. Off The Record 008: Murdered Gianni Belvedere

    12/10/2025 · BONUS • SUBSCRIBERS ONLY

    Off The Record 008: Murdered Gianni Belvedere

    📍San Diego, CA Off The Record Exclusive 008: The Final Trace of Gianni Belvedere Christmas Eve at Mission Valley: a late shift, a missed call, and a parking lot that would never feel the same. Ilona Flint and Salvatore Belvedere were shot in a mall parking lot; Gianni — Ilona’s fiancé — disappeared that night. Investigators followed cell-phone records, ballistic matches, and DNA evidence that linked a suspect to the scene and ultimately produced a guilty plea and sentencing. In this episode we trace the night, the frantic search, the forensics that carried the case to court, and the quiet questions that remained for the family

    18 min
  5. Missing: Trevor Deely

    12/09/2025

    Missing: Trevor Deely

    📍 Dublin, Ireland 🎧 Chapter 25: The Final Trace of Trevor Deely What should have been a routine walk home turned into one of Ireland’s most enduring mysteries.After leaving a work Christmas party in the early hours of December 8th, 2000, Trevor Deely made an unexpected stop at his office — where CCTV captured him speaking to a hooded stranger moments before he disappeared forever. With a taxi strike, a violent storm, and a baffling change of route, investigators were left with little more than a handful of camera frames and a voicemail no one thought to save. 25 years later, the question remains:Where did Trevor go after that last sighting? 🔗 Primary Sources & ReportingGarda Crimecall (CCTV, Timeline, Official Appeal) https://www.garda.ie/en/crime-prevention/crimecall-on-rte/crimecall-episodes/2018/november-19/missing-person-trevor-deely.html Disappearance Timeline & CCTV Breakdown:https://www.irishtimes.com/life-and-style/people/trevor-deely-the-search-ends-and-continues-1.3230396 Siblings Describe the Case & Searches:https://www.irishtimes.com/culture/tv-radio-web/trevor-deely-s-siblings-describe-horrendous-dig-in-chapelizod-1.3314000 2023 Update: Man in CCTV Identified & Ruled Outhttps://www.irishtimes.com/ireland/2023/12/06/trevor-deely-disappearance-garda-investigation-identifies-man-caught-on-cctv/ https://www.thejournal.ie/cctv-trevor-deely-3328673-Apr2017/ https://www.thejournal.ie/trevor-deely-footage-3328863-Apr2017/ https://www.independent.ie/regionals/herald/closest-friends-of-missing-trevor-want-end-to-familys-15-year-ordeal/34271730.html Garda appeal confirming the man in black seen at ATM:https://www.independent.ie/irish-news/missing-man-trevor-deely-gardai-appealing-for-man-in-security-camera-footage-to-come-forward/35596407.html https://www.image.ie/editorial/trevor-deely-19-years-later-detectives-hope-crack-case-kildare-man-vanished-166832 https://www.rte.ie/news/ireland/2017/0419/868851-trevor-deely-investigation/ https://morbidology.com/what-happened-to-trevor-deely/ https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Disappearance_of_Trevor_Deely (Helpful overview; double-check against primary sources) https://unresolved.me/trevor-deely

    30 min
  6. Vanished: The Sodder Children

    12/02/2025

    Vanished: The Sodder Children

    📍 Fayetteville, West Virginia 🎧 Chapter 24: The Final Trace of The Sodder Children The case began with a fire… but it never ended there.Five siblings vanished from their beds on Christmas Eve, leaving behind a burned home, a dozen unanswered questions, and parents who refused to believe the official explanation. The trucks wouldn’t start. The phone line was cut. A ladder went missing. And the fire chief’s report only deepened suspicion.In the years that followed, the Sodders uncovered a trail of eerie clues: rumors of a buried “heart,” bones that didn’t belong to their children, stories of a woman who may have seen them alive, and a photograph mailed from Kentucky that looked unmistakably like Louis. This is the haunting legacy of a mystery that never cooled—one where every detail seems deliberate, every silence suspicious, and every Christmas afterward carried the weight of five empty chairs. 🔗 SOURCE MATERIAL — & READINGS Smithsonian Magazine — “The Children Who Went Up in Smoke”https://www.smithsonianmag.com/history/the-children-who-went-up-in-smoke-172429802/ West Virginia Historical Society Quarterly (1998) — Full Sodder Case Analysis (PDF)https://www.wvculture.org/history/wvhs/wvhs1504.pdf Wikipedia: Disappearance of the Sodder Childrenhttps://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Sodder_children_disappearance The Doe Network — Missing Children Case Filehttps://www.doenetwork.org/cases/2106dfwv.html Legends of America — Sodder Children Firehttps://www.legendsofamerica.com/missing-sodder-children/ American Hauntings Ink — “The Sodder Children Mystery”https://www.americanhauntingsink.com/sodder Lost n’ Found Blogs — “The Sodder Children: Nightmare Noel”https://lostnfoundblogs.com/f/the-sodder-children-nightmare-noel Famous Trials (UMKC Law) — Sodder Children Overviewhttps://famous-trials.com/sodderchildren/337-sodderhome West Virginia Archives & History — Fayette County / Historic Fire Materialshttps://wvculture.org/west-virginia-history/ Hushed Up History — Sodder Childrenhttps://husheduphistory.com/post/176093625553/up-in-smoke-the-tragedy-of-the-sodder-children Investigation Discovery (ID) — Case Mention in Specials(No single episode link; ID references the Sodder case across multiple “Unsolved” compilations.)https://www.investigationdiscovery.com/

    33 min
  7. Murdered: The Blount Family

    11/25/2025

    Murdered: The Blount Family

    📍Lake Worth, Texas. 🎧 Chapter 23: The Final Trace of The Blount Family A briefcase.A knock at the door.A Thanksgiving night turned to fire and chaos. The 1985 bombing of the Blount family remains one of Texas’s most haunting unsolved mysteries — a case built on rumors, shattered evidence, and a suspect who walked free after ten years on death row. Was it revenge? A mistake? Or something darker?The truth still hides in the smoke. Sources & Readings: “12-year probe into briefcase blast at Texas home finally yields an arrest” — Deseret News. Deseret Newshttps://www.deseret.com/1997/12/6/19349732/12-year-probe-into-briefcase-blast-at-texas-home-finally-yields-an-arrest/ “Michael Roy Toney” — Wikipedia entry. Wikipediahttps://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Michael_Roy_Toney “Inmate on death row for Fort Worth bombing freed” — Chron.com / Associated Press. Chronhttps://www.chron.com/news/houston-texas/article/Inmate-on-death-row-for-Fort-Worth-bombing-freed-1737069.php “Death penalty news — Texas” — TCADP (Texas Coalition to Abolish the Death Penalty). TCADPhttps://tcadp.org/2008/11/24/death-penalty-news-texas-252/

    22 min
  8. Mysterious Death: Tommy Burkett

    11/18/2025

    Mysterious Death: Tommy Burkett

    📍Herdon, Virginia. 🎧 Chapter 22: The Final Trace of Tommy Burkett When 21-year-old Tommy Burkett was found dead, police told his parents the story was simple: suicide. But nothing about the scene felt simple. Or believable. His sweater was torn. His ear was bruised and bloody. There were signs of a struggle, blood on the stairs, and footprints leading toward a ravine where witnesses saw an ambulance stop before responders ever arrived at the house. Even the gun in Tommy's lap was in a position that shouldn't have fired. Crucial evidence disappeared - piece by piece. Autopsy photos went missing. Clothing was destroyed. Reports conflicted. And every attempt by the family to ask questions was met with silence or resistance. For years, Tommy's parents tried to uncover what really happened inside their home that day... and why so many details were ignored, erased, or rewritten. This is the story of a case that never made sense - and a family who refused to let their son vanish into a narrative that didn't belong to him. Sources • The Roanoke Times — “Was It Suicide — Or Murder?” (1993) https://scholar.lib.vt.edu/VA-news/ROA-Times/issues/1993/rt9306/930614/06140290.htm • The Washington Post — “Piecing Together the Truth” (2002) https://www.washingtonpost.com/archive/local/2002/08/04/piecing-together-the-truth/68eb06e6-4b74-45f8-a10b-ca371c5b1ed8/ • CG Crime – Substack Investigation (2021) https://cgcrime.substack.com/p/why-hasnt-this-case-been-reopened-the-death-of-tommy-burkett-a453330da581 • Unsolved Mysteries Wiki – Case Summary https://unsolvedmysteries.fandom.com/wiki/Thomas_Burkett • Find A Grave – Thomas Calvin “Tommy” Burkett https://www.findagrave.com/memorial/71179584/thomas_calvin-burkett

    28 min
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About

The Final Trace is a true crime podcast digging into chilling disappearances, cold cases, and mysteries that still leave us searching for answers. Hosted by Hopper Dailey & Mckenzie, each chapter steps into final moments, overlooked clues, and theories that linger. Every story is a chapter - not the whole book. Just one page of someones story... the page where everything changed. From strange sightings to unsettling truths, we follow the clues wherever they lead. New Chapters every True Crime Tuesday.

Information

  • Creator
    OdieStew Productions
  • Years Active
    2K
  • Episodes
    38
  • Rating
    Explicit
  • Copyright
    © OdieStew Productions
  • Show Website
    The Final Trace
  • Provider
    Ty Hopper

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