MURDERED: Shari Smith and Debra Helmick

In May 2023, Lakesha Thompson’s entire family was upended by a single bullet that took their mother away from them forever. From the beginning, who pulled the trigger has been the question at the forefront of her family’s mind. Investigators determined pretty quickly that it was ...  Afficher plus

In 2019, we covered the Sodder children, five siblings who vanished after their family’s home burned down on Christmas morning in 1945. Officials said they died in the fire, but no bodies were ever found. And now, with new information from a family descendant, we’re taking anothe ...  Afficher plus

*** Content warning: Sexual assault ***[Part 1 of 2]When 17-year-old Shari Smith disappeared from the end of her family's driveway in Lexington, South Carolina, there were immediate concerns for her wellbeing. Shari had a rare medical condition that could turn fatal without her m ...  Afficher plus

*** Content warning: Sexual assault ***[Part 2 of 2]When nine-year-old Debra May Helmick was abducted from the front of her family’s trailer in Richland County, South Carolina, there were immediate concerns that her kidnapping could be linked to the recent murder of Lexington tee ...  Afficher plus

May, 1985. Two days before her high school graduation, Shari Faye Smith was abducted from her parents’ driveway in broad daylight. Her kidnapper taunted Shari’s family by phone for days, calling in the middle of the night and revealing bone-chilling details of his crime. With lit ...  Afficher plus

In the early summer of 1986, two young blonde girls went missing in the state of South Carolina without a trace. Until a series of cryptic phone calls led investigators to their bodies. A serial killer was on the loose and a letter written by one of the victims to her own fami ...