Every now and then I uncover a case buried deep in the archives with circumstances that prove truth is stranger than fiction. This story is one of them.

When a prominent Bridgeport, Connecticut woman failed to show up for lunch with a friend, it led to a devastating discovery in her overflowing home that had become a sort of treasure trove of local history. The investigation stalled until months later when some of the woman’s treasures started showing up around town.

With a suspect identified, the case was nearly closed until the accused killer quite literally slipped through investigators’ hands in one of the most bizarre escapes I’ve ever encountered.

View source material and photos for this episode at: darkdowneast.com/elizabethsterlingseeley

Dark Downeast is an Audiochuck and Kylie Media production hosted by Kylie Low.

• Follow @darkdowneast on Instagram, Facebook, and TikTok
• To suggest a case visit darkdowneast.com/submit-case

Hosted by Simplecast, an AdsWizz company. See pcm.adswizz.com for information about our collection and use of personal data for advertising.

In late summer of 1990, a mother in central Maine seemed to slip quietly out of her own life. Shirley McAvoy had been navigating a painful separation, leaning on friends and trying to rebuild a sense of normalcy. Then, shortly before a scheduled court date related to her pending divorce, she simply disappeared.

Days turned into weeks, and small, unsettling details began to surface—things that didn’t fit with the idea of someone who’d chosen to leave. What started as a missing persons case slowly transformed into something far more disturbing, stretching well beyond the quiet town where Shirley was last seen. More than 35 years later, investigators are still trying to identify a mystery man believed to know exactly what happened to Shirley.

• If you recognize “Jerry” or have any information about the murder of Shirley McAvoy, please contact Maine State Police Major Crimes Unit - Central at (207) 624-7076 x9. You may also submit a tip using the Maine State Police tip form.

View source material and photos for this episode at: darkdowneast.com/shirleymcavoy

Dark Downeast is an Audiochuck and Kylie Media production hosted by Kylie Low.

• Follow @darkdowneast on Instagram, Facebook, and TikTok
• To suggest a case visit darkdowneast.com/submit-case

Hosted by Simplecast, an AdsWizz company. See pcm.adswizz.com for information about our collection and use of personal data for advertising.

More than a century ago during the winter of 1923, a quiet Christmas in East Hartford, Connecticut took a devastating turn that would echo far beyond that holiday. Mrs. Mary Monsell never arrived for the dinner she’d been warmly invited to, and within hours, her home became the center of a crime that would send police searching for a suspect who vanished into the world and never returned.

Mary’s name rarely appears in headlines now. Her story has nearly slipped beneath the weight of time. But history leaves clues if you’re willing to look, and some stories are worth digging up again.

View source material and photos for this episode at: darkdowneast.com/marymonsell

Dark Downeast is an Audiochuck and Kylie Media production hosted by Kylie Low.

• Follow @darkdowneast on Instagram, Facebook, and TikTok
• To suggest a case visit darkdowneast.com/submit-case

Hosted by Simplecast, an AdsWizz company. See pcm.adswizz.com for information about our collection and use of personal data for advertising.