Episodi

  • Episode 3: The Youngest Victim

    Episode 3: The Youngest Victim
    Jan 19 2026
    Easter weekend 1946 brought Texarkana's worst nightmare to life. Fifteen-year-old Betty Jo Booker was a talented saxophonist with the Rhythmaires, playing gigs around town and building a promising future. After finishing a late-night performance at the VFW Club, she left with her childhood friend Paul Martin. By Sunday morning, both teenagers were dead, shot by the same .32 caliber pistol used in the previous murders.

    Betty Jo's death sent shockwaves through the community. She had run two miles through the woods before the Phantom caught her. The discovery of her missing saxophone six months later only deepened the mystery. Why would a killer take a musical instrument? What did it mean?

    This episode explores the murders that pushed Texarkana into mass hysteria. Families abandoned their bedrooms, sleeping together on floors with loaded shotguns. Schools released students early. Downtown emptied at dusk. The city transformed into a ghost town after dark, everyone counting down to the three-week mark when the killer would strike again.

    Four people dead. A pattern emerging. And law enforcement no closer to identifying the monster hunting their streets.
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    18 min
  • Episode 2: Double Murder on Spring Lake Road

    Episode 2: Double Murder on Spring Lake Road
    Jan 12 2026
    Episode 2: Double Murder on Spring Lake Road

    March 24, 1946. A motorist discovers Richard Griffin and Polly Ann Moore shot execution-style in Griffin's Oldsmobile on South Robison Road near Spring Lake Park. Both victims have been shot in the back of the head with a .32 caliber pistol. A pool of dried blood twenty feet from the car reveals the killer moved the bodies after shooting them. The crime scene is compromised by rain and poor security. Texarkana realizes the February attack wasn't isolated. A serial killer is hunting lovers' lanes.

    This episode chronicles the double homicide that transformed a local crime story into national news and unleashed mass panic across Texarkana. Discover how jurisdictional chaos between Texas and Arkansas law enforcement agencies hampered the investigation from the start. Learn about the arrival of legendary Texas Ranger Manuel "Lone Wolf" Gonzaullas, whose media-savvy approach prioritized headlines over forensic protocol. Witness the birth of the killer's infamous nickname and the gun-buying frenzy that followed.

    Featuring detailed crime scene analysis, the questionable tactics that contaminated evidence, and the escalating pattern that predicted another attack in three weeks. The Phantom was just getting started.
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    21 min
  • Episode 1: The Town Between Two States

    Episode 1: The Town Between Two States
    Jan 3 2026
    Episode 1: The Town Between Two States

    February 22, 1946. A masked attacker with a white hood and pistol terrorizes a young couple on a secluded Texas lovers' lane. Jimmy Hollis suffers multiple skull fractures. Mary Jeanne Larey is sexually assaulted and flees half a mile for help. The brutal attack on the outskirts of Texarkana goes largely unreported by local newspapers. Police dismiss it as an isolated incident. No warnings are issued to the public. Three weeks later, the killer strikes again.

    This episode introduces the Texarkana Moonlight Murders, one of America's most infamous unsolved serial killer cases. Discover how this unique border city spanning Texas and Arkansas became the hunting ground for a predator known as the Phantom Killer. Learn about the lovers' lane culture of 1940s America, the post-war boom that transformed Texarkana, and the first violent attack that law enforcement fatally underestimated. The victims' conflicting descriptions of their attacker would complicate the investigation for decades.

    Featuring detailed accounts of the February 22nd assault, the geographical complexities that hindered the investigation, and Jimmy Hollis's chilling warning: "If you don't find him, he's going to kill someone."
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    19 min