31 episodes
WTOP’s American Nightmare Series WTOP | Hubbard Radio
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- True Crime
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4.6 • 10.2K Ratings
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“WTOP’s American Nightmare Series” is a podcast covering true crime stories in the Washington D.C. region.
Season 3, "Unknown Subject": For 9 years, he terrorized women across the DC region. Breaking into homes and raping his victims before killing a brilliant scientist near the gates of Georgetown University in 1998. And then, it all stopped. Had he died? Was he locked up? Before the FBI would name him the infamous Potomac River Rapist, detectives simply called him their “unknown subject” for years. A man whose DNA linked him to multiple crime scenes but whose name and face remained a mystery to police. For nearly three decades, detectives had no idea who he was until a bike cop named Smugs began connecting the dots.
Season 2, “Murder in a Safe Place," investigates the vicious rape and murder of 50-year-old nurse Sherry Crandell inside the DC-area hospital where she worked. Her murder has mystified not only the police, but her family and the community for the past two decades. Police have DNA evidence and fingerprints - even a witness to the attack - but no suspect. In “Murder in a Safe Place,” veteran DC reporter Paul Wagner tells a story that, by the final episode, will have you thinking there may be a chance for justice after all.
Season 1, “22 Hours: An American Nightmare,” hosted by WTOP award-winning reporters Megan Cloherty and Jack Moore was named the No. 2 Podcast of the Year by The Associated Press and was listed among Apple Podcasts’ Most Popular New Shows of 2019. “22 Hours: An American Nightmare” chronicles the case that became known nationwide as the “DC Mansion Murders” – the horrific killing of a DC power couple, their 10-year-old son, and housekeeper – in a way no one has covered it before.
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S3 EP1 - A Murder In Georgetown
In the summer of 1998, a brilliant scientist walking home from a party is grabbed off the street and killed. Her body is found the next day in a wooded area just steps from the Georgetown University campus. It was a gruesome scene. DC Police had no witnesses and no suspects, but they did have a valuable clue: a key piece of evidence the killer left behind.
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S3 - E2 - Kelly's Story
Seven years before Christine Mirzayan was murdered in Georgetown, a man cut the phone lines to a house miles outside the city and raped a teenage baby sitter. The first in a string of similar attacks spread out over several years. Kelly survived that awful night and in this episode tells her harrowing story. A crime that was nothing like the murder in Georgetown.
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S3 EP3 - The Case That Wouldn't Break
In the early to mid nineties, Montgomery County Police Detective Joe Mudano knew he had a ruthless rapist preying on women but he had no idea who he was. DNA linked a number of cases, but a clear description remained elusive. More maddening for Mudano was the fact the Unknown Subject seemed to have inside information. But how?
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S3 EP4 - A Cold Hit
As the nineties turned into Y2K Detectives Dean Combee and Joe Mudano were still trying to solve their cases. Years of investigating had gotten them nowhere until the FBI called with stunning news. DNA from all of the attacks had been linked to one man. A fact that floored the veteran investigators who never saw it coming.
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S3 EP 5 - Going Down the Rabbit Hole
By 2018, investigators had tired of waiting for another DNA cold hit and decided to hand the case to a cop named 'Smugs.' A young Montgomery County police officer who had already used genealogy to solve several high profile rape and murder cases. Crimes that had stumped detectives for years. Could 'Smugs' be the one to finally give a name to the Unknown Subject?
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S3 EP6 - Unmasked
In November 2019, detectives from Montgomery County, Maryland, and Washington, D.C., make their way to Conway, South Carolina, where investigators are certain they will find their "unknown subject." They head to a ranch house on a rural country road where a 60-year-old man is living with his girlfriend. But, what will they find when they knock on the door?
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Customer Reviews
Must listen
This story is horrific. They did an amazing job delivering such a heart break story! Look forward to me podcast!
Great podcast
WTOP American Nightmare Series has been such a great informative easy to listen to podcast. Having newly moved to the DMV area I found it interesting that all of this heartbreak & terror happened in a place I now call home. The narrator Paul did such a great job of laying out the facts & I felt like I was tracking right along with the investigation. I came into series 3 first & look forward to going back & listening to series 1&2.
Good delivery of information
Straightforward, thorough information! This is an actual reporter of information. Good job!