Episodi

  • You hear the shovel hit metal - do you open the locked box?

    You hear the shovel hit metal - do you open the locked box?
    Oct 20 2026
    A county surveyor finds a locked metal box at a backyard edge tied to a nearby retiree - what would you do?

    You hear the shovel hit metal - do you open the locked box?

    In this episode, we follow the day a routine boundary survey unearths a sealed box and the tangled five-month path that led there. The story maps how a sobriety companion entered a retired occupational therapist's life and the choices that quietly changed her routines, access, and legal authority - what happened next?

    Person: Patricia Rogers
    Age: 63
    Location: Heron Falls, Indiana
    Event: Surveyor finds locked metal box with $4,200 and prescription bottle
    Person: Carl Thompson

    - March: Patricia completes a 28-day residential program and is referred to a sobriety companion named Carl Thompson.
    - First visit: Carl's truck breaks down in Patricia's driveway; he stays three hours and begins driving her places within two weeks.
    - June-July: Patricia's long-standing Thursday visits from friend Donna Pratt become irregular and then stop entirely.
    - July 15: Patricia signs a durable power of attorney drafted by a notary Carl brought to her house, granting Carl authority over her affairs.
    - August 3, 8:47 AM: County surveyor Alan Jensen digs up a locked steel box at Patricia's property line containing $4,200 cash and an alprazolam prescription bottle labeled for Patricia.

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    © 2026 OBOMEDIA. All rights reserved.
    This episode and its content (audio, text, and related materials) are the exclusive property of OBOMEDIA and are protected by applicable copyright laws. Reproduction, distribution, editing, or commercial use, in whole or in part, without prior written permission from OBOMEDIA is prohibited. For permissions, licensing, and business inquiries: business@obomedia.com.
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    18 min
  • You read her adviser's email from her account - do you reply?

    You read her adviser's email from her account - do you reply?
    Oct 19 2026
    A doctoral student’s identity unravels after her adviser emails from her account and a severed ID is found - what would you do?

    You read her adviser's email from her account - do you reply?

    In this episode, we follow the months leading up to a July discovery that exposed a pattern of manipulation around a doctoral student’s life and work. The episode traces the emails, fieldwork, and evidence that raised questions about who was shaping Julie Sanders’s relationships and research, and asks how identity can be stolen without obvious damage.

    Person: Julie Sanders
    Person: Jason Wagner
    Date: July 7, 2019
    Location: 14 Crestline Road, Dunmore, Ohio
    Topic: doctoral student fieldwork, alleged manipulation

    - A septic technician found a laminated university photo ID for Julie Sanders inside a zip-lock bag weighted with a hex bolt.
    - Julie began Harwick University in fall 2017 and completed 14 months of fieldwork with hundreds of timestamped recordings.
    - Jason Wagner became Julie’s advisor in March 2019 and began sending daily, sometimes twice-daily, emails and meeting offers.
    - An email sent from Julie’s account to her boyfriend in June 2019, asking for space, was actually composed from Wagner’s account and apartment.
    - Wagner’s monograph crediting “the Wagner Lab team” and noting the fieldwork was published days after the septic-tank discovery.

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    © 2026 OBOMEDIA. All rights reserved.
    This episode and its content (audio, text, and related materials) are the exclusive property of OBOMEDIA and are protected by applicable copyright laws. Reproduction, distribution, editing, or commercial use, in whole or in part, without prior written permission from OBOMEDIA is prohibited. For permissions, licensing, and business inquiries: business@obomedia.com.
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    19 min
  • You hand him your calendar - do you tell USCIS or keep your green card?

    You hand him your calendar - do you tell USCIS or keep your green card?
    Oct 18 2026
    A woman hands her USCIS sponsor her calendar - then finds her shoes miles away and realizes someone used her schedule against her.

    You hand him your calendar - do you tell USCIS or keep your green card?

    In this episode, we follow the unfolding of an intimate breach of trust and the steps one woman took to build a life while depending on a sponsor. We outline how access to a calendar became a tool, the small signs that something was wrong, and the decisions she faced as her daily routine was mapped without her knowledge. What would you do when the system that helped you also controls you?

    Person: Susan Fleming
    Person: Alan Vaughn
    Date: June 7, 2017
    Location: County Road 14, Harwick
    Topic: Immigration sponsorship and misuse of access

    - Susan Fleming, a 48-year-old Romanian-born medical billing specialist, arrived via sponsorship and lived in Harwick for two years.
    - Alan Vaughn, 54, was both her landlord and USCIS sponsor; he owned her apartment building and filed as her sponsor in 2015.
    - Susan gave Vaughn calendar access in early 2016 for USCIS paperwork; he logged in weekly to map her whereabouts.
    - Small anomalies appeared: a grocery list with handwriting shifts and items she was allergic to, suggesting someone entering her apartment.
    - Ruth Perry found Susan’s Romanian-brand shoes placed upright on County Road 14 at 6:10 AM on June 7, 2017, eleven miles from Susan’s home.

    To listen to this podcast ad-free and access premium episodes, try our subscription with a 14-day free trial at obomedia.com.

    © 2026 OBOMEDIA. All rights reserved.
    This episode and its content (audio, text, and related materials) are the exclusive property of OBOMEDIA and are protected by applicable copyright laws. Reproduction, distribution, editing, or commercial use, in whole or in part, without prior written permission from OBOMEDIA is prohibited. For permissions, licensing, and business inquiries: business@obomedia.com.
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    17 min
  • You hand Judith's sealed envelope to the receptionist - do you call the number?

    You hand Judith's sealed envelope to the receptionist - do you call the number?
    Oct 17 2026
    A sealed envelope from bedridden patient Judith arrives at the clinic receptionist’s desk - it shouldn’t exist; do you call the number on file?

    You hand Judith's sealed envelope to the receptionist - do you call the number?

    In this episode, we follow how a single envelope triggers a look into twenty-six months of medical interactions around a patient named Judith. It traces the meetings, procedures, financial entanglements, and the small details that begin to look like a pattern - what would you have done when the envelope arrived?

    Person: Judith
    Person: Jason Burns
    Person: Dr. Griffin
    Location: Linville County
    Period: twenty-six months

    - A sealed envelope signed by Judith arrived at a medical clinic at 7:14 a.m.; the receptionist photographed it and called the number on file with no answer.
    - Judith had been bedridden in a hospital room for three days before the envelope appeared at the clinic.
    - Dr. Griffin approached Judith on Merchant Street, handed her a card, and within six weeks she scheduled a first consultation that led to ongoing care.
    - Records show seventeen procedures over twenty-six months with patient authorizations signed by Judith and sedative compounds administered on ten- to twenty-one-day cycles.
    - Griffin co-signed a debt tied to Judith’s treatment and held a quiet financial stake in the pharmacy that filled most of her prescriptions.

    To listen to this podcast ad-free and access premium episodes, try our subscription with a 14-day free trial at obomedia.com.

    © 2026 OBOMEDIA. All rights reserved.
    This episode and its content (audio, text, and related materials) are the exclusive property of OBOMEDIA and are protected by applicable copyright laws. Reproduction, distribution, editing, or commercial use, in whole or in part, without prior written permission from OBOMEDIA is prohibited. For permissions, licensing, and business inquiries: business@obomedia.com.
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    17 min
  • You get the mail addressed only to Heather - do you open it?

    You get the mail addressed only to Heather - do you open it?
    Oct 16 2026
    A woman on Crestline Road finds a sealed bin and a mailing addressed only to Heather - what would you do?

    You get the mail addressed only to Heather - do you open it?

    In this episode, we follow the discovery of a sealed storage bin that contains meticulous daily entries tracking a woman named Heather, a mysterious mailer addressed only to her, and the gradual arrival of a man who would gain control of her finances. What choices and actions set the scene for the questions that follow?

    Person: Heather Maddox
    Location: Crestline Road
    Date: March 2019 (last log entry)
    Item: sealed storage container with 1,100-page handwritten log
    Event: single-piece mailing addressed only to Heather

    - Dawn Sharp found a lidded storage container buried in a roadside ditch during an April thaw.
    - The top sheet of the log inside was dated March 2019 and the log spans more than 1,100 pages.
    - The log documents Heather’s daily comings and goings, a hand-drawn property map, and a laminated card with her SSN and a death-benefit account number.
    - A promotional mailer addressed solely to Heather arrived in late March 2019; no other Crestline Road resident received it.
    - Dale Dempsey introduced himself six weeks after the mailer, later helped with her paperwork, and a power of attorney was signed in August 2019.

    To listen to this podcast ad-free and access premium episodes, try our subscription with a 14-day free trial at obomedia.com.

    © 2026 OBOMEDIA. All rights reserved.
    This episode and its content (audio, text, and related materials) are the exclusive property of OBOMEDIA and are protected by applicable copyright laws. Reproduction, distribution, editing, or commercial use, in whole or in part, without prior written permission from OBOMEDIA is prohibited. For permissions, licensing, and business inquiries: business@obomedia.com.
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    15 min
  • You find O'Brien's company filing date and choose whether to confront him

    You find O'Brien's company filing date and choose whether to confront him
    Oct 15 2026
    A woman finds a rain-warped galley proof of her memoir, and a filing date points to someone she trusted - did they plan the theft?

    You find O'Brien's company filing date and choose whether to confront him

    In this episode, we follow the moment Melissa Coleman discovers a galley proof of her own memoir under a false name and the slow, precise clues that make the incident more than a stranger's theft. What did a company registration date reveal about who had access to her work and her life?

    Person: Melissa Coleman
    Event: discovery of a galley proof behind an electrical meter box
    Date: March 2019 (discovery); February 2015 (company filing)
    Person: Patrick O'Brien
    Topic: limited liability company filing for Marsh Literary Properties

    - Melissa kept a meticulous insulin log for her diabetic cat Soot; entries began showing consistent small delays starting March 2017.
    - In January 2015 Melissa had lunch with Patrick O’Brien, a self-described developmental editor who later kept a copy of her manuscript.
    - O’Brien filed paperwork for Marsh Literary Properties in February 2015, one month after that first lunch and months before Melissa finished her manuscript.
    - The galley proof found in the meter box bore the author name Diane Marsh and reproduced Melissa’s words identically.
    - Handwriting on the altered insulin log matched Melissa’s closely but showed subtle differences in pressure and letter formation, implying someone with access used her notebook.

    To listen to this podcast ad-free and access premium episodes, try our subscription with a 14-day free trial at obomedia.com.

    © 2026 OBOMEDIA. All rights reserved.
    This episode and its content (audio, text, and related materials) are the exclusive property of OBOMEDIA and are protected by applicable copyright laws. Reproduction, distribution, editing, or commercial use, in whole or in part, without prior written permission from OBOMEDIA is prohibited. For permissions, licensing, and business inquiries: business@obomedia.com.
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    17 min
  • You miss one Thursday call - the ledger on the bridge becomes yours

    You miss one Thursday call - the ledger on the bridge becomes yours
    Oct 14 2026
    A woman stops making one Thursday call and discovers a foster-parent ledger turned into a debt - what would you do with the ledger?

    You miss one Thursday call - the ledger on the bridge becomes yours

    In this episode, we follow how a discarded envelope on a footbridge and a string of late-night Thursday calls reveal a precise system of accounting between a former foster child and her longtime foster parent. The episode traces the discovery, the credit-report discrepancies, and the recordings that reshape a personal history into financial claims - who decides what counts as debt?

    Person: Tammy Bell
    Person: Sherry Rice
    Person: Shannon Sheridan
    Event: envelope found under Kellner Creek footbridge railing on February 11, 2019 at 6:40 AM
    Case: recordings of recurring Thursday 11:00 PM calls

    - A jogger finds a manila envelope wedged under a footbridge railing containing bank statements and a handwritten ledger.
    - The ledger lists children's initials and itemized entries dating back nearly twenty years, including a $340 entry for layette items when a nine-year-old arrived.
    - Sherry, who lived with foster parent Shannon from age nine to eighteen, made Thursday-night check-in calls for years; Shannon initiated a rule: if you don't call, I'll know.
    - Sherry's boyfriend suggests pulling her credit report, which shows three accounts opened in her name at addresses that match former residences of Shannon.
    - Sherry records four Thursday calls; transcripts portray the calls as an accounting mechanism of favors, sacrifices, and expectations used to enforce payment.

    To listen to this podcast ad-free and access premium episodes, try our subscription with a 14-day free trial at obomedia.com.

    © 2026 OBOMEDIA. All rights reserved.
    This episode and its content (audio, text, and related materials) are the exclusive property of OBOMEDIA and are protected by applicable copyright laws. Reproduction, distribution, editing, or commercial use, in whole or in part, without prior written permission from OBOMEDIA is prohibited. For permissions, licensing, and business inquiries: business@obomedia.com.
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    17 min
  • The Neighbor Who Knew Her Schedule - Stole $61,400 in Silence

    The Neighbor Who Knew Her Schedule - Stole $61,400 in Silence
    Oct 13 2026
    A neighbor uses a copied signature and a photographed schedule to take $61,400 from a widow’s account while she bowls-what would you have done?

    The Neighbor Who Knew Her Schedule - Stole $61,400 in Silence

    In this episode, we follow the slow, clandestine build-up inside a Collier Street house that led to a single, precise wire transfer. The story tracks the routines, small repairs, and photographed documents that made the theft possible and asks how predictability became vulnerability.

    Person: Karen Cook
    Person: Earl White
    Date: January 7-9, 2003
    Location: Collier Street, Dellmore, Ohio
    Event: $61,400 wire transfer from joint checking account

    - Karen’s weekly bowling schedule was handwritten on a magnet and publicly predictable; she was at Dellmore Lanes when the transfer occurred.
    - Earl White, a childhood friend who moved in, photographed Karen’s utility bill and the bowling schedule on his phone.
    - Earl reported fixing a broken side door latch on the detached garage but left no receipts; investigators found the latch was still faulty.
    - A utility alcove with a coded four-digit keypad at the rear of the garage was opened by a meter reader who found Karen’s missing reading glasses folded on the meter face.
    - The wire authorization used the signature “Karen M. Cook,” an initial that does not match Karen’s legal documents but does appear on a secondary utility bill photographed by Earl.

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    © 2026 OBOMEDIA. All rights reserved.
    This episode and its content (audio, text, and related materials) are the exclusive property of OBOMEDIA and are protected by applicable copyright laws. Reproduction, distribution, editing, or commercial use, in whole or in part, without prior written permission from OBOMEDIA is prohibited. For permissions, licensing, and business inquiries: business@obomedia.com.
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    16 min