This week on Siblings in Crime, we’re exploring three short stories in the unsettling world of break-ins. We kick things off with two gripping Reddit stories that capture the shock and fear of discovering someone inside where they don’t belong. Then, we take things closer to home with a childhood story from our own past — a real moment that ties into this week’s theme.

Listen Now and Stay Safe!

Welcome to SIC PART TWO

Just one year after terrorizing a family from inside their walls, Daniel LaPlante’s crimes escalated to something even more horrifying. In December 1987, in the small town of Townsend, Massachusetts, a husband returned home to find the most horrific scene. The investigation revealed a trail of stolen guns, matching bullets, and chilling evidence — all leading back to the boy once mistaken for a ghost. This half of the story unravels the brutal murders of the Gustafson family and the trial that finally put Daniel LaPlante behind bars.

Sources

• Commonwealth v. LaPlante, 416 Mass. 433 (1993) – Massachusetts Supreme Judicial Court opinion (detailed trial evidence, forensic testing, ballistics, manhunt evidence).
• Commonwealth v. LaPlante, 482 Mass. 399 (2019) – resentencing appeal (juvenile life sentencing, parole eligibility after 45 years).
• Oxygen True Crime: “Daniel LaPlante Murdered Pregnant Woman And Kids” (2018).
• Archival news reports: Boston Globe, Lowell Sun, UPI (contemporaneous coverage of manhunt, capture, trial).

Welcome to SIC, PART ONE:

It began with whispers in the night, noises no one could place. A family grieving their mother thought it might be her, reaching across the veil. But as days passed, the whispers became knocks, the knocks became footsteps, and the fear in their home turned suffocating. Whatever was in their walls, it was alive.

Listen now and turn on notifications to hear next weeks PART TWO of The Killer Ghost.

Sources Used

• Commonwealth v. LaPlante, 416 Mass. 433 (1993) – Massachusetts Supreme Judicial Court opinion (trial evidence, ballistics, forensic details, manhunt evidence).
• Commonwealth v. LaPlante, 482 Mass. 399 (2019) – resentencing appeal, parole eligibility after 45 years.
• Oxygen True Crime, “Daniel LaPlante Murdered Pregnant Woman And Kids” (2018).
• News reports: Boston Globe, UPI, Lowell Sun (archival coverage of arrest and trial).
• Secondary storytelling: MrBallen, Wendigoon, creepypasta retellings — noted for legend vs. fact contrasts.

In 1974, nineteen-year-old Patricia Hearst was ripped from her apartment at gunpoint. Within days, a radical group calling themselves the Symbionese Liberation Army claimed her as their prisoner and issued a ransom demand unlike anything America had ever seen. But when Patty finally resurfaced, she wasn’t begging for freedom. She was carrying a rifle.

Sources Used

• FBI case history: fbi.gov – Famous Cases: Patty Hearst
• Historical overview: History.com – Patty Hearst Kidnapped
• Detailed timeline & trial: Famous Trials – Patty Hearst
• Contextual background: Wikipedia – Patty Hearst
• https://famous-trials.com/pattyhearst/2209-tapes
• https://archives.fbi.gov/archives/news/stories/2009/february/hearst_020409
• https://youtu.be/qZLN1UHliRE?si=1fnj_psoS5Q3QtcR
  
  

A decorated Air Force major is found brutally murdered in his own driveway after a late-night errand. At first, the investigation points to his secretive military career but as detectives dig deeper, they uncover a story far more personal. Whispers of betrayal, hidden connections, and a shocking revelation at his funeral leave his family reeling.

Sources Used

• On the Case with Paula Zahn episode on David Turenne’s murder
• WJHG News
• ItemLive.com
• Injusticebusters.org case archive
• Trial coverage and Canadian press reports

Welcome back to SIC!

Today we cover one of the most confusing missing persons cases from the early 2000's.

In February 2004, 21-year-old nursing student Maura Murray vanished after a car crash on a dark New Hampshire road. Within minutes, she was gone — leaving behind a locked car, spilled wine, and a trail of confusing leads. Was she running away, the victim of foul play, or caught in something stranger? In this episode, we unravel the final days of Maura’s life, the conflicting witness accounts, and the haunting theories that still leave more questions than answers.

Sources:

• Media Pressure podcast by Julie Murray (sister of Maura Murray)
• New Hampshire State Police Cold Case Unit reports
• FBI ViCAP missing persons bulletin on Maura Murray
• Disappearance of Maura Murray – Wikipedia
• The Maura Murray Evidence Project
• True Crime Addict by James Renner (investigative reporting, with noted controversy)
• The Disappearance of Maura Murray (Oxygen documentary, 2017)
• News coverage and anniversary reports: People, The Sun, Boston Globe, Concord Monitor

The murder of Hae Min Lee, and the conviction of her ex-boyfriend Adnan Syed, has become one of the most debated true crime cases of our time. With resurfacing witnesses, changing stories, and DNA evidence revealed, the question remains unsolved: is Adnan Syed guilty? If Adnan didn’t kill Hae, then who did?

From the original evidence to the most current updates, this episode offers a surface-level rundown of the case that launched modern true crime podcasting.

Sources:

• Serial (Sarah Koenig, 2014)
• Undisclosed Podcast (Rabia Chaudry, Susan Simpson, Colin Miller)
• Truth & Justice Podcast (Bob Ruff, recent Aug 2025 episode)
• Baltimore Sun archives (1999–2025 coverage)
• Court filings & Maryland Judiciary updates
• Innocence Project updates on DNA testing

Welcome back to another episode of SIC!

This weeks case started as a quick trip to see a used car. Somewhere between the parking lot and the open road, 18-year-old Zebb Quinn took an unexpected detour — and was never seen again. Four days later, his car surfaced under eerie circumstances: headlights still glowing, a puppy in the seat, and lipstick markings on the back window. The clues are strange, the connections even stranger, and every possible lead seems to raise more questions than it answers.

Listen now for all the clues, theories and confessions.

Sources:

• Asheville Citizen-Times archives
• State of North Carolina v. Jason Owens court documents
• North Carolina Department of Public Safety offender records
• WLOS ABC 13 news reports
• Wikipedia – Murder of Zebb Quinn