“EERIE ENCOUNTERS WITH THE REAL MEN IN BLACK” and More Scary True Stories! #WeirdDarkness
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Be warned that once you pick up a refreshingly cold drink from McDonald's and

and people see just how refreshingly cold that drink from McDonald's is, you may create drink envy. Because there are drinks. Then there are drinks from McDonald's. For a morning brew that really creates a stir, get any size iced coffee, including caramel and French vanilla, for just 99 cents before 11 a.m. Price and participation may vary. Cannot be combined with any other offer or combo meal. Ba-da-da-ba-ba.

Hey Weirdos, if you enjoy what you're hearing from me in the Weird Darkness Podcast throughout the year, may I ask for a Christmas gift from you? It's an easy one, and it's free to give. This month, just invite two or three people you know to give Weird Darkness a listen. That is truly the greatest gift you could ever give to me.

Letting your family, friends, co-workers, neighbors, and others know about the podcast is incredibly valuable to me, my bride Robin, and our cat, Miss Mocha Monster. That's it. Tell someone about the show. Drop a link to Weird Darkness in your social media. Maybe send a text to a few folks to wish them a very scary Christmas with a link to the show in that text. It doesn't matter how you do it, but it does make a huge impact when you do.

From all of us here at Marlar Manor, thank you and Merry Christmas. The man was wearing a black suit and black tie.

and had very unusual facial appearances, with no hair or eyebrows, and an extremely pale figure. Hopkins' dog began barking erratically the minute the man entered the home. After the bizarre visitor was finished questioning him about the UFO case, the visit got even stranger. I'm Darren Marlar and this is Weird Darkness. Welcome, Weirdos! I'm Darren Marlar and this is Weird Darkness.

Here you'll find stories of the paranormal, supernatural, legends, lore, the strange and bizarre, crime, conspiracy, mysterious, macabre, unsolved and unexplained. Coming up in this episode… In the spring of 2015, the Great Barrington Historical Society and Museum formally inducted the infamous Reed case of alien encounters

But is the Reed Family Alien Abduction a valid historical fact? Or UFO fan fiction? Weeping statues are nothing new, and believers claim they are miracles without much investigation. However, the Vatican proves them to be hoaxes almost 100% of the time. The latest is the statue of Our Lady of Guadalupe in New Mexico. Will this be the one that finally convinces the Vatican of a true miracle?

Had Leonarda Cianciulli's life not been so muddled by superstition, curses, and Romani fortune-tellers, she may have never been murdered at all. A family keeps seeing black creatures in their home with no explanation of where they came from or where they go. On May 30, 1883, a stampede took place on New York's Brooklyn Bridge, killing 12 people, all because of a bizarre rumor

But the bridge has always had a strange history. If humanity were to receive a message from an extraterrestrial civilization right now, it would be the single greatest event in the history of civilization. But according to a new study, such a message could also pose a serious risk to humanity.

With as many people that pass on while being treated by EMTs, it should probably be no surprise that phantoms might be encountered in an ambulance. There was no doubt that Thomas Joy was murdered by a gunshot, but the witnesses all had different stories. As did the police. So what really happened? If you believe your house is haunted, it's best to not try and confirm it by using a Ouija board.

Nothing good can come from that. In 1928, a young boy mysteriously disappears after his mother gives him a dime to spend on admission to a local theater. But that's just the beginning of this very twisted true story.

But first: The mysterious Men in Black. Are they government agents? Time travelers? One man who experienced them firsthand has a different theory, and we'll look over a few separate incidents of people experiencing the Men in Black. We begin there...

If you're new here, welcome to the show! While you're listening, be sure to check out WeirdDarkness.com for merchandise, my newsletter, to enter contests, to connect with me on social media. Plus, you can visit the Hope in the Darkness page if you're struggling with depression or dark thoughts. You can find all of that and more at WeirdDarkness.com. Now, bolt your doors, lock your windows, turn off your lights, and come with me into the Weird Darkness...

I'm 55 years old and have known about the Men in Black since the 70s. Personally, the majority of the visits are, in my opinion, demonically orchestrated. I have learned, due to my belief system, not to make these events complicated. It's exactly what it portrays itself to be. Having the gift of discernment reveals what these hybrids are, that is, evil. I call the feelings and smells are all symptoms of a demonic encounter.

If you agree with this, then the obvious next conclusion is that these so-called aliens are also demonic. And what does the demonic dwell in? They dwell in shadows. They do not want to be found out. UFO encounters out them and their hybrids and satanic agendas. After all, it's about soul collecting, is it not?

I reside on the west coast of Lake Michigan. My front door faces directly 8 miles from an active nuclear power plant that is within months being decommissioned. This process can take up to 20 years. I live in the hot zone range of this very old plant. For three years, due to living on a hill with a spectacular view of the open sky, I have witnessed UFO activity coming directly from the nuclear power plant. It flies slowly right over my head.

with incredible lighting and maneuvers, including complete standstill hovering. I've also felt that I've been discovered witnessing this and have had some type of acknowledgement from the crafts. It's hard to explain. I just know that they know that I see them. Usually, I witness them around 11 p.m. and after. Anyhow, something different happened last August 2017. As I stated, I live on a hill with a steep drop-off approximately 30 feet from my door.

This is a brand new apartment complex, and a very short road runs in front of my back patio door. I should have originally said I'm witnessing these events from my back patio. The road runs to the right for about 100 feet and turns right to the front of the complex. Around 1:00 AM I felt compelled to go out onto my patio and look to the right. Below the hill is nothing but woods.

I saw three very tall, slender men come up the hill, onto the road in perfect formation, walking extremely slow, dressed completely the same, all in black, and suddenly stop. All three turned their heads directly towards me and just stood still. It seemed like minutes, but I don't think it was. I actually felt an electric charge go from my feet straight up my back up to my head.

"Not only that, the fear I felt and also a sickness in my stomach was nothing I have felt ever in my lifetime. I knew they were evil. They slowly moved their heads in complete synchronized fashion forward and slowly, and I mean slowly, continued to walk forward and disappeared from sight. I know what I just witnessed. That was pure evil.

Now, with that being said, I don't know if it was a warning, a visit, or what. I've not spoken about this event until now. Summer is almost here again, and I wonder what I will witness. Others have eerie encounters with the mysterious Men in Black as well. Here are just a few. Dr. Herbert Hopkins was working as a consultant on a UFO case in Maine.

One evening, he received a phone call from someone purporting to be an activist in the UFO community, asking him if he could visit Hopkins to discuss the case. Only minutes later, the man arrived. The man was wearing a black suit and black tie and had very unusual facial appearances with no hair or eyebrows and an extremely pale figure. Hopkins' dog began barking erratically the minute the man entered the home.

After the bizarre visitor was finished questioning him about the UFO case, the visit got even stranger. He informed Hopkins that there were two coins in Hopkins' pocket, which was correct, and asked him to remove one. Hopkins complied and held the coin, a shiny new penny in the palm of his hand. The man in black told Hopkins to watch the coin closely. After a few moments, the coin took on a silvery appearance and then appeared to be going out of focus.

It then began to fade and eventually disappeared altogether. The man in black informed Hopkins that the coin would never be seen on this plane again. He then inquired as to whether Hopkins was familiar with alleged UFO abductee Barney Hill. Hopkins replied that he had heard of Hill but was under the impression that he had died in the not-too-distant past. The man in black informed Hopkins that he was correct.

"Barney didn't have a heart," said the man, "just like you no longer have a coin." It should be noted that Barney Hill actually died of a cerebral hemorrhage. The man in black then gently suggested that Hopkins destroy any material he had related to the UFO case. Hopkins, extremely shaken by the encounter, followed the advice of the man and burned all the files he had related to the case.

While he had repeated phone troubles after, the phone company said his line had been tampered with. Maybe to tap it, he never saw the man again. Dr. Albert K. Bender was a well-written and extremely intelligent researcher who founded the International Flying Saucer Bureau. In 1955, his research was about to yield serious fruit as he prepared to unveil a paper that would prove the U.S. government had, to one degree or another, covered up proof of UFOs.

He planned to publish his findings in the Space Review. That was until he was visited by the Men in Black. Bender claims that three men dressed in all black visited him at his home and warned him against pursuing the topic of UFOs any further. The men left Bender scared for his life, and he immediately shut down all his research and the Flying Saucer Bureau. Many people who knew him claimed that Bender was a changed man after this encounter.

His later works were rambly, almost unreadable, and he seemed to live his life in constant anxiety and terror. He purported to still receive mysterious phone calls with nobody on the other end until the end of his life in 2002. Harold Dahl and his son were salvaging logs on a fishing boat when they spied six doughnut-shaped crafts flying in the air above them.

The crafts drop molten waste onto the lake, which allegedly kills Dahl's dog and injures his son. A few days later, after talking about the affairs with his boss and friends, he was visited by a mysterious man dressed in all black. The man urged him to not discuss the encounter. Not long after, he was also visited by several Air Force agents who were said to be on a mission to gather information.

Dahl's story definitely got the attention of various law enforcement agencies in the United States, leading the FBI to write a report on the matter. Not long after the encounter with the man in black, Dahl claimed that the whole thing was a hoax, but then recanted that years after, having allegedly made the first confession under duress. Paul Miller was returning home after a hunting trip when they saw a luminous disk in the

The disc landed in an empty field, and two humanoids emerged from the craft. Miller fired his gun at them and believed to have injured one when he fled down a rural road in his car. However, in that moment, he realized he had lost time. It was almost three hours later than when he first encountered the craft. He shrugged it off and went back to his Air Force job the next day.

However, upon entering work, he was immediately confronted by three men in black suits. They told him that they had his file. Despite having told nobody about the event, the men said that they knew all about it and mentioned that the encounter would be best forgotten. "They seemed to know everything about me, where I worked, my name, everything else," Miller said. They also asked questions about his experiences, as if they already knew the answers.

Miller, terrified, did not come forward about his experience until years later. Danny Gordon was a radio personality who became interested in a flurry of Wythe County UFO sightings. Multiple people across the county claimed to have seen bizarre objects in the sky, and Gordon decided to investigate.

Gordon became obsessed with getting photos of the objects, including one time where an entire school bus of students saw the UFOs flying over a shopping mall as Gordon took photos. Eventually, Gordon snapped a few photos at extremely close range that allegedly verified they were not of this world. However, strange things began happening to Gordon.

He received a phone call from a man who claimed to be ex-military and warned him that his research could cost him everything and urged him to stop for his family's sake. Gordon was also interviewed by two men in black suits who claimed to work for a magazine publication. Not long after the interview, Gordon realized all his photos were missing.

He contacted the magazine for information and they claimed to have never heard of him, much less commissioned an article about him. Not long after, Gordon suffered a heart attack and his doctor warned him that all the research and stress was jeopardizing his health. Gordon gave up the story and was never bothered again.

UFO researcher Jack Robinson and his wife Mary began to experience extremely strange events as they pursued more alien and UFO-related research. They would come home to find their house rummaged and looked through, and their UFO files disturbed. Mary also began to notice a strange man in a black suit and hat staring up at their apartment from the doorway.

Mary mentioned this activity to a friend, who drove over and saw what she was talking about for himself. The friend, Tim Green Beckley, snapped a photo of the man, which is believed to be one of the most ironclad pieces of proof of the Men in Black. Professor Peter Rogiewicz claims that he was reading a UFO book in the library when a strange pale man wearing all black sat down next to him.

The man began talking to the professor and asked him about his opinion on flying saucers. The professor replied that he wasn't super interested, and the man became very agitated. He eventually left, leaving Professor Rogiewicz extremely uncomfortable and anxious. He did not reveal this story until many years later when he finally gave a lecture on the subject. He remains convinced that it was a Men in Black official who confronted him in the library.

and to this day is trying to find more people who have had similar experiences. And finally, there's actor Dan Aykroyd, who has come forward with his story about how he was taping a show about the paranormal. He stepped out to take a phone call from Britney Spears, who was asking him to appear on Saturday Night Live with her, when he noticed a black Ford parked across the street. A tall man stepped out of the Ford and stared him down.

Aykroyd turned away for just a moment and then turned back to find that the man and the car had completely vanished. After he finished his phone call, he returned to the studio to learn that his show had been canceled and he was ordered to stop filming immediately. Some doubt his claim, but Aykroyd says he knew what he saw and maintains that there was some kind of connection between these men in black and the end of his paranormal show.

In the spring of 2015, the Great Barrington Historical Society and Museum formally inducted the infamous Reed case of alien encounters. A shocking precedent, this is thought to be the first ever UFO encounter that a historical society or American museum has declared to be a historical fact. However, it was not a decision that came easily. It was actually far from unanimous.

There are a total of nine voting members on the Historical Society's board, and three were vocally opposed to the UFO case induction. The minority vote was not alone. The Great Barrington Historical Society and Museum's decision and its surrounding controversy have led many to wonder, is the Reed family alien abduction a valid historical fact or UFO fan fiction? It all began in the small town of Sheffield, Massachusetts in the 1960s,

On a September night in 1966, six-year-old Thomas Reed and his younger brother Matt were sitting in their family home on Boardman Street. Things were fairly quiet in their residence that evening. It seemed like a sleepy late summer evening like any other, until the lights came. Young Thomas suddenly noticed strange flashing lights coming from a frisbee-shaped object that appeared to have touched down in their yard.

At that moment, everything seemed to have changed, including the pressure in their home. Before they knew it, the Reed brothers found themselves outside in front of the strange illuminated craft, staring down lifeforms not of this world. Before the brothers knew it, they were being escorted inside the UFO by the alien beings. Thomas would later recall the creatures as odd-looking, emitting a perpetual ethereal glow.

Once all were aboard, they showed the Reed brothers images of a willow tree and a large body of water on a big screen. That was all Thomas recalled. As quickly as it had all happened, he seemed to be back inside his home on Boardman Street. "The stuff happens very quickly," Thomas explained later. "You're not sure if it's two seconds or ten minutes or twenty minutes." A similar encounter would occur the following year in 1967.

The brothers were asleep in their shared bedroom when they were awakened by bright lights and eerie dead silence. And once again, they inexplicably found themselves back inside the spaceship. During this encounter, the alien beings seemed to be very intrigued with the brothers' human anatomy, particularly Thomas' cleft foot. He would later describe feeling like a walking petri dish.

The final Reed family alien encounter would occur in 1969, and this time it involved everyone. Thomas, Matt, their mother and grandmother were driving back from a horse show at Ashley Falls on Route 7. It was just an ordinary family ride home. Just like both of their prior occurrences, there was no warning that something strange was about to happen. Then there were strange lights, a sudden shift in pressure, and deafening silence.

Suddenly, Thomas recalls being back in the spaceship. He remembers being in a big, dark room, a body-encasing chamber, a series of long, illuminated corridors, and frightfully calling out for his mother and other family members. After all family members were mysteriously returned to the vehicle, the Reeds experienced much confusion and disorientation.

They believed that their vehicle was facing an entirely different direction than when it had stopped before the lights earlier. And it wasn't just the vehicle that was in a state of disarray. The family members were scattered about the countryside highway. Thomas located his grandmother first. She was wandering aimlessly in the middle of the road. Although his mother had been driving earlier, she was now seated in the vehicle's passenger seat in a seemingly catatonic state.

His little brother Matthew was fortunately close by in the back seat, although he was out cold and curled up in a fetal position. Thomas Reed and his family's claims have been investigated by Bigelow Aerospace, the Mutual UFO Network, and many other recognized organizations. Although most of the encounters are largely based on the words of Thomas himself, there are a few major pieces of supporting evidence worth noting.

First, corresponding UFO reports filed by area residents. Up until the 1969 event, the primary witnesses were Thomas and his younger brother, Matt. However, when the Reed family was seemingly abducted by aliens on a public roadway, there was some corroborating testimony from witnesses unrelated to them. At least 40 other individuals reported seeing an unidentified flying object or strange lights in the area that evening.

Second, the magnetic field that occurred with every incident. During each encounter, Thomas Reed described a sudden change in pressure. Official reports filed in the town of Sheffield include unexplained spikes in radiation and magnetic readings around the time of each occurrence. And third, Thomas Reed's polygraph test. In 2010, Thomas underwent a polygraph test in his Knoxville home.

he was questioned about the 1966 incident, and the polygraph found that he had answered all questions regarding the encounter truthfully. Some have taken issue with the fact that this UFO encounter is being recorded as a historical fact. During the 1969 encounter, dozens of concerned citizens reported seeing an unidentified flying object in the area. Many of those witnesses then called the local radio station, WSBS, which covered the sightings.

For this reason, the 1969 encounter has gone down in Sheffield history. But skeptics aren't sure the Reed family should have anything to do with it. They believe that the UFO sighting itself should be a part of history. But the alleged abductions are based primarily on anecdotal evidence submitted solely by the Reeds, not any actual historical evidence.

During the 1960s, three separate close encounters of the fourth kind rocked the quiet town of Sheffield, Massachusetts, and changed four family members forever. Thomas Reed and his family gave compelling accounts of real-life extraterrestrial abductions, but it wasn't just them who noticed something strange. During the Reed family's 1969 encounter, dozens of townspeople also reported seeing an unidentified object in the area.

Whether any or all of these encounters are true or not remains to be seen. But either way, the Reed family alien abduction is now a permanent part of history in the Great Barrington Historical Society and Museum. When Weird Darkness returns, had Leonardo Gianculli's life not been so muddled by superstition, curses, and Romani fortune-tellers, she may have never been murdered at all.

Plus, a family keeps seeing black creatures in their home with no explanation of where they came from or where they go. But first: Weeping statues are nothing new, and believers claim that they are miracles without much investigation. However, the Vatican proves them to be hoaxes almost 100% of the time.

The latest is the statue of Our Lady of Guadalupe in New Mexico. Will this be the one that finally convinces the Vatican of a true miracle? That story is up next! Hey Weirdos! If you enjoy what you're hearing from me in the Weird Darkness Podcast throughout the year, may I ask for a Christmas gift from you? It's an easy one, and it's free to give!

This month, just invite two or three people you know to give Weird Darkness a listen. That is truly the greatest gift you could ever give to me. Letting your family, friends, co-workers, neighbors, and others know about the podcast is incredibly valuable to me, my bride Robin, and our cat, Miss Mocha Monster. That's it – tell someone about the show!

There have been stories of statues weeping, blinking, crying and winking ever since the dawn of statues.

While only the pigeons know for sure, the accounts have been prevalent enough that the Catholic Church, paranormal investigators, and hoax-busters have fought their way through the crowds of believers and want-to-believers to attempt to vouch for their authenticity or prove them to be hoaxes. So far, the hoaxers have a near-perfect batting average. Only one weeping statue has ever been certified by the Vatican.

But that's not stopped representatives of the Catholic Church from visiting Our Lady of Guadalupe Catholic Church in Hobbs, New Mexico, where many parishioners claim to have seen a statue of Our Lady of Guadalupe appearing to be crying. Is this the one that will break the miracle losing streak? I actually saw how she was dripping and that's when I took the video and it's just incredible.

Local TV station KRQE reports that witness and 10-year parishioner Marcello Servan got a video of the alleged weeping, something that will help investigators. Witness Paul Campos will also help them. You can even get a sense of her presence. You can smell roses in her tears. I've got a tissue that I have taken, wiped from her mantle."

Samples and videos have helped debunk weeping and bleeding statue accounts in the past, with the videos showing alterations and DNA tests showing in one instance that dripping blood was from a male. These statues are usually made of plaster and sometimes hollow, both of which allow for absorption of moisture or alterations that perpetuate the hoax. However, this one is not plastered.

I couldn't tell you. I mean, I think that faith is an issue. Technically, of course, the metal doesn't hold water.

KVIQ tracked down Ricardo Flores Castanes, who works at the foundry in Mexico City where the bronze statue was cast and then loaned to the church in Hobbs. He's at a loss and is anxious to find out what the church investors discover. What that might be is the other way some weeping statue hoaxes are perpetrated: by applying water or oil to the statue when no one's looking.

Church members claim there was nothing on the statue until a service on the previous Sunday when it suddenly appeared to be weeping. Or was that just the first time anyone looked at the statue closely? Whatever the case, the statue has been under constant observation since then because the crowds have forced the pastor, Father José Pepe Segura, to keep it open.

He is also anxious for an investigation by the local diocese of Las Cruces, whose leader, Bishop Oscar Cantu, said that it has already begun. Father Pepe is part of it because he also wiped up some of the "tears" with a napkin, which he saved, and claimed that more tears appeared. Apparently, there is another sample someone preserved with cotton balls. Diocese spokesperson Deacon Jim Winder assures everyone that the investigation will be fair and thorough,

He plans to do DNA tests on the tear samples, examine the statue for hidden tubes, consult with the bronze experts at the foundry, and interview the witnesses, which may number in the hundreds. That could take years. "We will investigate to rule out any chances of man-made causes or natural causes. We don't want to jump to any conclusions," he says. It's the end of May.

It's hot in New Mexico, and the bronze statue is a new addition to Our Lady of Guadalupe Catholic Church in Hobbs. Could it be condensation forming on the cold bronze, or will it be proven to be a miracle?

It's important to know that Leonarda Cianciulli was fiercely protective of her children. After losing 13 of her 17 children before the age of 10, it's no wonder that the four remaining children were treated with the utmost care. So when police came calling, accusing her son Giuseppe of murdering three local spinster women, Cianciulli immediately confessed to the crimes she had worked so hard to conceal from authorities.

In fact, not only did Cianciulli confess to the murders, she described in great detail their aftermath, including boiling the bodies, baking them with the blood, and turning the fat into soap, all of which were shared so generously with her neighbors during afternoon tea. Leonarda Cianciulli was not always a monster, though her adolescent life had her set up to be. Before even reaching adulthood, she had attempted suicide twice.

Then she married a registry office clerk who her parents strongly disapproved of, as they'd had a more respectable setup in mind. She and Chuli claimed that upon her marriage, her mother cursed her, dooming her to a life of misery forevermore. Though there was, of course, no proof, a curse doesn't seem that unlikely when one looks at she and Chuli's life after her marriage. A few years into her marriage, she and Chuli was imprisoned for fraud.

Three years later, her home was destroyed by an earthquake. She got pregnant 17 times but lost 13 of her children, either to miscarriage or illness in their youth. She eventually went to see a fortune teller, a traveling Romani woman who did nothing to quell her fears of a curse. "In your right hand I see prison," the fortune teller told her. "In your left, a criminal asylum."

Laboring under the curse she felt was put on her by her mother and the Romani fortune-teller's prediction, Leonarda Cianciulli became highly superstitious. When her son Giuseppe told her in late 1939 that he was going to join the Italian army, Cianciulli turned to one thing that she believed would keep her son safe: human sacrifice. She chose her candidate well, a local spinster woman who she thought no one would miss, named Faustina Setti.

Inviting Setti over under the guise of setting her up with a husband, she and Chuli had her write letters to her family members, telling them that she would be visiting the man abroad. Then, she subdued Setti with drugged wine and murdered her with an axe. From there, she cut Setti into nine pieces and gathered her blood into a basin. In her official statement upon her arrest, she described the things she did to the body next. Quote,

I threw the pieces into a pot, added seven kilos of caustic soda which I had bought to make soap, and stirred the mixture until the pieces dissolved in a thick, dark mush that I poured into several buckets and emptied in a nearby septic tank. As for the blood in the basin, I waited until it had coagulated, dried it in the oven, ground it, and mixed it with flour, sugar, chocolate, milk, and eggs, as well as a bit of margarine, kneading all the ingredients together.

I made lots of crunchy tea cakes and served them to the ladies who came to visit, though Giuseppe and I also ate them." According to some, Cianciulli also took Setti's life savings, which she had received as payment for setting Setti up with a husband. While one would think a single sacrifice would have been sufficient to prevent her son's imminent demise, Leonardo Cianciulli didn't seem to be able to stop at just one.

Soon after Setti's murder, she and Chuli found another victim, another local family-less woman named Francesca Soavi. Like she had with Setti, she and Chuli convinced Soavi that she had organized a teaching job for her abroad and made her write letters to her friends detailing her trip. And, as she had with Setti, she fed her drugged wine, killed her with an axe, baked her into tea cakes, and stole her savings.

Her third victim, however, was where she slipped up. The third victim, Virginia Cassioppo, was a noted soprano, whom Cianciulli had promised a job working with an impresario in Florence. This time, however, instead of only baking her body into tea cakes and feeding them to her neighbors, Cianciulli also melted her flesh down and turned it into soap.

"She ended up in the pot like the other two," she said. "Her flesh was fat and white. When it had melted, I added a bottle of cologne and after a long time on the boil I was able to make some most acceptable creamy soap," she said in her statement. "I gave bars to neighbors and acquaintances. The cakes, too, were better. That woman was really sweet." Though she had surely thought she had covered her tracks, she had missed something. Unlike her first two victims, who had little or no family,

Cassioppo had a sister-in-law, a very nosy sister-in-law. She didn't believe Cassioppo's letter detailing her quick departure and had in fact seen her entering Cianciulli's home the night she had supposedly left. Immediately, she reported the disappearance to the police who quickly investigated Cianciulli. At first, Leonarda Cianciulli defended herself, never admitting to any wrongdoing.

It was only when the police openly suspected her son, one of the four children she had worked so hard to protect from the world, that she admitted it was her and that her son had nothing to do with it. The trial of Qianxu Li lasted only a few days. She was found guilty of her crimes and granted a 33-year sentence that echoed the Romani woman's prophecy with eerie accuracy: 30 years in a prison and three years in a criminal asylum.

During her years in the asylum in 1970, at age 79, Leonardo Cianciulli died of cerebral apoplexy, a type of intracranial hemorrhage. Her body was returned to her family for burial, but her murder weapons, including the pot that her victims were boiled in, were donated to the Criminology Museum in Rome, Italy. Today, visitors can see her collection of axes and peer inside the vat she used to boil human beings.

When I was about 8 or 9, I was at a friend's house. We were living on the Isle of Wight at the time. My friend lived in a big house just set back from the beach. We were playing with his Star Wars figures, and I noticed what I thought was a black cat. I asked my friend when his parents had gotten him a cat. He stated, "We don't have one."

He seemed a little agitated at my question, so I went into the hall and there it was again, right by the stairs leading down to the living room. I said, "Well, what is this then?" When he came into the hallway, it dashed down the stairs. He naturally didn't see it and looked even more upset. His mother was sitting down in the living room and I called down to her to see if she had seen the cat. She was extremely upset and told us to go back into my friend's room and stop playing around the stairs.

It had been arranged that I was to spend the night, but my parents showed up about half an hour later and took me home. I never really knew why. I figured I had upset his mother somehow and she was just mad at me or punishing him for playing by the stairs.

Several years later, when I was about 17, an event at home got my mother and I onto a discussion about the supernatural and ghosts. She proceeded to tell me about what had happened at my friend's house all those years ago. The family had been seeing black creatures of varying sizes, and they'd been terrorizing the family. The origin of these creatures had almost always been the bathroom, which was right next to my friend's bedroom.

They had been attacked several times, causing injuries to the family. What I had seen was one of these creatures, one of the most violent from what they said. His mother had called my mother in a panic. They had never appeared to anyone but family members until now. I learned that later that week the local vicar and several vicars from the mainland had gone to their house to try an exorcism. They were violently attacked, and one member of the group had become possessed momentarily.

They apparently had no further problems from then on. But every time I go by that house, I get this sinking feeling, like it's watching as you go by. What brought me and my mother into this discussion was odd as well. I've had several times when I was at home, alone up in my room, and would hear the kitchen cabinets open and close, sounds of glasses and the fridge opening. I would assume someone was home and I'd go down to see who was there,

No one was there. No one was home. Nothing had been disturbed. Our house is two stories with a basement. We would enter the house from the back door because the garage is next to the back edge of the house. When you walk into the back door, you come into a landing or staircase hall. The hall went up into the kitchen area to the left and went down into the basement to the right.

He couldn't see directly into the next room of the basement. The stairs ended above the sub-pump, and the room was off to the left from the bottom. When I came into the back door, I looked at my right as I came in because someone looked around the corner, casually, as if to see who was home, and then went back into the basement. The basement lights were on. I went up into the kitchen, and my mother was sitting at the table working on a cake. I asked her who was in the basement because I thought it was her.

She said, "'No one.' I said, "'Well, someone just looked at me from down there, and the lights are all on.' We went and looked, and the lights were off. We went down, and no one was there. I told her about the other things that had been happening in the house, and she seemed kind of skeptical. For some reason, she may have thought that it was their creatures, I don't know. But she told me all about the creatures at my friend's house."

I was so upset about whatever it was that looked at me from the basement that I don't really know how the conversation got there. It just drifted in that direction. But there have been other events that have made me believe in ghosts, demons, or whatever they are. There is something there. It may be a natural extension of our after-existence. It may be evil or the devil. I don't know.

I have found that if I leave them alone and just take them with a bit of humor and a grain of salt sometimes, then I have on the whole been left alone. I haven't had an experience in about four years." Coming up next: In 1928, a young boy mysteriously disappears after his mother gives him a dime to spend on admission to the local theater. But that's just the beginning of this very twisted true story.

And, on May 30th, 1883, a stampede took place on New York's Brooklyn Bridge, killing 12 people – all because of a bizarre rumor. But the bridge has always had a strange history. Plus, if humanity were to receive a message from an extraterrestrial civilization right now, it would be the single greatest event in the history of civilization.

But according to a new study, such a message could also pose a serious risk to humanity. These stories and more when Weird Darkness returns.

We all dream, but for some people, what should be a time for their bodies and minds to rest turns into a nightmare from which they cannot escape. Our next Weird Darkness live stream is Saturday night, December 28th on the Weird Darkness YouTube channel, and during the live broadcast I'll share some of these chilling nighttime stories.

Tales of shadow people, sleep paralysis, and demons who stalk their victims in that place between dreams and reality. I'll share true tales of prophetic dreams, some joyful, some not. Sleepwalking incidents that are both amusing and disturbing. I'll also share real stories of night terrors so horrifying that sleep

became something to fear and dread for those victimized by the night. You might not want to sleep after joining our next live-screen. It's Saturday, December 28th at 5pm Pacific, 6pm Mountain, 7pm Central, 8pm Eastern. On the lighter side, I'll also be responding to comments and questions live on the air and doing a giveaway of some Weird Darkness merch.

Prepare yourself for our next live-screen for chilling tales of what some people must endure in an attempt to get some sleep. Find the details on the live-screen page at WeirdDarkness.com.

On a very sunny afternoon on the 10th of March, 1928, nine-year-old Walter Collins mysteriously disappeared after his mother Christine, a telephone operator, gave him some money to spend on admission to the theater near their Mount Washington area home. The nation rallied behind the grieving mother and her missing boy, while the local police dragged nearby Lincoln Park Lake and launched a national campaign to find Walter.

His apparent kidnapping struck a chord in a city still traumatized by a vicious crime only three months earlier. In that case, 12-year-old Marion Parker was kidnapped for ransom by a psychopath named William "The Fox" Hickman, who shoved her dismembered body from his car just before being captured. Countless tips on Walter's location led to dead ends. He was allegedly spotted as far north as San Francisco and Oakland.

One reported sighting was at a Glendale gas station in the backseat of a car, wrapped in newspaper with only his head showing. The station owner described the driver as a foreign-looking man, probably an Italian, accompanied by a woman. The boy's father, Walter J. S. Collins, who was serving time in prison for robbery, believed that former inmates out for revenge against him may have kidnapped his son, though there were no witnesses and no proof that that had occurred.

Police continued their search until August, when a boy claiming to be Walter turned himself in to Illinois authorities. Christine Collins paid $70 in travel expenses so the boy could return to Los Angeles. When he arrived, however, Collins said that although he resembled Walter, the boy was not her son.

However, the Los Angeles Police Department, under terrific pressure to declare the case happily closed, refused to believe that the boy wasn't Walter, whatever the mother said. Emotionally drained, Collins caved in to the cop's suggestion that she "try the boy out" and took him into her home. But after three weeks of attempting to reconcile herself to the convenient fiction, Collins returned him to the police.

Armed with proof in the form of her son's dental records and a troop of friends who agreed that the boy wasn't Walter, Collins still failed to convince LAPD Captain J.J. Jones, who investigated the kidnapping, that the boy was an imposter.

"What are you trying to do? Make fools out of us all? Or are you trying to shirk your duty as a mother and have the state provide for your son? You are the most cruel-hearted woman I've ever known. You are a fool," Jones allegedly told Collins. Resolved to bend her to his will and the department's convenience, Jones had the distraught mother committed to Los Angeles County General Hospital's psychiatric ward for evaluation.

While she spent five days in the hospital, Jones extracted the truth from the faux Walter. The boy from Illinois confessed that he actually was 12-year-old Arthur Hutchins of Iowa. After his mother died, he had gone to live an isolated new life with his cold fish of a father and a malicious stepmother, he said. He ran away, hitchhiking around the country and working odd jobs.

While stopped at an Illinois roadside café, Arthur said, he listened to a diner tell him how much he resembled the kidnapped boy from Los Angeles, whose picture had appeared in newspapers nationwide. Arthur quickly seized on an opportunity to see Hollywood, turned himself in to authorities, and carried out the charade by assuming the identity of the missing boy. For Collins, however, there was more heartache and trouble to come.

Released from the hospital, she filed a false imprisonment complaint against the city, Police Chief James Davis and Jones. With the heat on the department, Jones, who also was being pressured to help solve a grisly murder mystery, insisted that Walter had been one of the victims of Gordon Stewart Northcott and his mother, who had recently been charged with beheading a youth, one of 11 children they sexually assaulted and murdered in Riverside County. But Collins refused to believe it.

especially because her son's body was never found on the Northcott's chicken ranch in Wineville, now Mira Loma. The case remains unsolved. On May 30, 1883, a stampede took place on New York's Brooklyn Bridge, killing 12 people, all because of a bizarre rumor. But the bridge has always had a strange history. At the time of the tragedy, the bridge had only been open for six days.

The structure, linking Brooklyn and Manhattan, was initially designed by German immigrant John Roebling. While conducting surveys for the project, he sustained a crushing injury to his foot when a ferry pinned it against a piling. After amputation of his crushed toes, he developed an infection, which eventually killed him.

He was replaced soon after by his son, Washington Roebling, who also suffered a paralyzing injury as a result of decompression sickness and was unable to physically oversee the construction. So, his wife, Emily, stepped in to do the job, unbeknownst to the public and male engineers and workers.

Under her husband's guidance, Emily studied higher mathematics, the calculations of catenary curves, the strengths of materials, bridge specifications, and the intricacies of cable construction. She spent the next 11 years helping to supervise the bridge's construction.

The Brooklyn Bridge opened on May 24, 1883, to great fanfare with several thousand people and ships in attendance. Cannons were shot off, fireworks were launched, banquets were held, and Roebling was honored in his home since he could not attend and rarely visited the bridge again.

On the first day, 1,800 vehicles crossed the bridge and more than 150,000 people crossed what was then the only land passage between Brooklyn and New York. But then the rumors began. Just six days after opening to the public, a rumor quickly spread that the new bridge was about to collapse. It was at that time the longest suspension bridge in the world. There had been 27 workers killed during the construction.

In the previous decades, dozens of failed suspension and iron bridges had collapsed around Europe and the US, killing hundreds. Since this was the first suspension bridge to use steel cables, it was new, unproven technology. So when a panic broke out on the Brooklyn Bridge in 1883, you can imagine how many were already a little nervous about being suspended 135 feet above the water.

The tragic incident started the afternoon of May 30, when a woman tripped and fell descending the wooden staircase on the Manhattan side of the bridge. Apparently, this caused another woman to scream at the top of her lungs, which caused those nearby to rush towards the scene. The commotion sparked a chain reaction of confusion as more and more people panicked and mobbed the narrow staircase, creating a massive pileup.

Thousands were on the promenade, quickly turning the situation deadly. Believing a collapse was imminent, terrified pedestrians scrambled for the exit, trampling one another. Panicked men, women, and children piled on top of each other and became trapped against the iron fences that lined the narrow promenade. In true old-time New York fashion, pickpockets came to rob the helpless victims.

Eventually, some quick-thinking workers were able to cut away some of the iron fence, allowing trapped victims to escape from the promenade onto the streetcar tracks below. Afterwards, the New York Times described a "vivid, gruesome scene" littered with gloves, shawls, handkerchiefs, smashed jewelry, crumpled men's and women's hats, and shredded trimming from ladies' dresses.

broken canes, and torn parasols splattered with blood were strewn about the roadway. In all, 12 people had died on the stairs, and more than 35 others were injured. The following year, P.T. Barnum helped to reassure the public of the bridge's safety while publicizing his circus by leading a parade of 21 elephants over the bridge. But the weird history wasn't over.

The landmark bridge soon became one of New York's favorite suicide spots. Many of the jumps from the bridge were publicity stunts. Some survived, and some didn't, and even today it's still a place where locals go to end their lives. The first person to jump from the bridge was Robert Emmett Odlum, brother of women's rights activist Charlotte Odlum Smith, on May 19, 1885.

He struck the water at an angle and died shortly thereafter from internal injuries. Many others have jumped, trying to end their lives and ended up paralyzed. Others did it for the publicity and died. The bridge plays no favorites. The point of the story is not that the Brooklyn Bridge is unlikely to ever collapse, but we don't recommend it for jumping, and you should always be careful on the stairs.

Roughly half a century ago, Cornell astronomer Frank Drake conducted Project OSMA, the first systematic SETI survey at the National Radio Astronomy Observatory in Green Bank, West Virginia. Since that time, scientists have conducted multiple surveys in the hopes of finding indications of technosignatures, that is, evidence of technologically advanced life, such as radio communications.

To put it plainly, if humanity were to receive a message from an extraterrestrial civilization right now, it would be the single greatest event in history. But according to a new study, such a message could also pose a serious risk to humanity. Drawing on multiple possibilities that have been explored in detail, they consider how humanity could shield itself from malicious spam and viruses.

The paper, titled "Interstellar Communication: Ix Message Decontamination Is Impossible" recently appeared online. The study was conducted by Michael Hipke, an independent scientist from the Sonneberg Observatory in Germany, and John G. Learned, a professor with the High Energy Physics Group at the University of Hawaii. Together, they examine some of the foregone conclusions about SETI and what is more likely to be the case.

To be fair, the notion that an extraterrestrial civilization could pose a threat to humanity is not just a well-worn science fiction trope. For decades, scientists have treated it as a distinct possibility and considered whether or not the risks outweigh the possible benefits. As a result, some theorists have suggested that humans should not engage in SETI at all, or that we should take measures to hide our planet.

As Learned told Universe Today via email, "There has never been a consensus among SETI researchers about whether or not extraterrestrial intelligence would be benevolent. There is no compelling reason at all to assume benevolence, for example that ETI are wise and kind due to their ancient civilization's experience. I find much more compelling the analogy to what we know from our history.

Is there any society, anywhere, which has had a good experience after meeting up with a technologically advanced invader? Of course, it could go either way, but I think often of the movie Alien. A credible notion, it seems to me. In addition, assuming that an alien message could pose a threat to humanity makes practical sense.

Given the sheer size of the universe and the limitations imposed by special relativity no known means of faster-than-light travel, it would always be cheaper and easier to send a malicious message to eradicate a civilization compared to an invasion fleet. As a result, Hipke and Learned advised that SETI signals be vetted and/or decontaminated beforehand.

In terms of how a SETI signal could constitute a threat, the researchers outline a number of possibilities. Beyond the likelihood that a message could convey misinformation designed to cause a panic or self-destructive behavior, there's also the possibility that it could contain viruses or other embedded technical issues, like the format could cause our computers to crash.

They also note that when it comes to SETI, a major complication arises from the fact that no message is likely to be received in only one place, thus making containment impossible. This is unlikely because of the Declaration of Principles Concerning Activities Following the Detection of Extraterrestrial Intelligence, which was adopted by the International Academy of Astronautics in 1989 and then revised in 2010. Article 6 of this declaration states the following:

The discovery should be confirmed and monitored, and any data bearing on the evidence of extraterrestrial intelligence should be recorded and stored permanently to the greatest extent feasible and practicable, in a form that will make it available for further analysis and interpretation. These recordings should be made available to the international institutions listed above and to members of the scientific community for further objective analysis and interpretation.

As such, a message that is confirmed to have originated from an ETI would most likely be made available to the entire scientific community before it could be deemed to be threatening in nature. Even if there was only one recipient, and they attempted to keep the message under strict lock and key, it's a safe bet that other parties would find a way to access it before long. The question naturally arises then: What can be done?

One possibility that Hipke and Learned suggest is to take an analog approach to interpreting these messages, which they illustrate using the 2017 SETI Decrypt Challenge as an example. This challenge, which was issued by René Heller of the Max Planck Institute for Solar System Research, consisted of a sequence of about 2 million binary digits and related information being posted to social media.

In addition to being a fascinating exercise that gave the public a taste of what SETI research means, the challenge also sought to address some central questions when it came to communicating with an ETI. Foremost among these was whether or not humanity would be able to understand a message from an alien civilization, and how we might be able to make a message comprehensible if we sent one first. As they state,

As an example, the message from the SETI Decrypt Challenge was a stream of 1,902,341 bits, which is the product of prime numbers. Like the Arecibo message and Evaptorius Cosmic Calls , the bits represent the XY black-white pixel map of an image.

When this is understood, further analysis could be done offline by printing on paper. Any harm would then come from the meaning of the message and not from the embedded viruses or other technical issues. However, where messages are made up of complex codes or even a self-contained AI, the need for sophisticated computers may be unavoidable.

In this case, the authors explore another popular recommendation, which is the use of quarantined machines to conduct the analysis, that is, a message prison. Unfortunately, they also acknowledge that no prison would be 100% effective and containment could eventually fail.

This scenario resembles the Oracle AI or AI box of an isolated computer system where a possibly dangerous AI is imprisoned with only minimalist communication channels, they write. Current research indicates that even well-designed boxes are useless and a sufficiently intelligent AI will be able to persuade or trick its human keepers into releasing it.

In the end, it appears that the only real solution is to maintain a vigilant attitude and ensure that any messages we send are as benign as possible. As Hipke summarized, "I think it's overwhelmingly likely that a message will be positive, but you cannot be sure. Would you take a 1% chance of death for a 99% chance of a cure for all diseases?"

One learning from our paper is how to design our own message, in case we decide to send any. Keep it simple, don't send computer code. Basically, when it comes to the search for extraterrestrial intelligence, the rules of internet safety may apply. If we begin to receive messages, we shouldn't trust those that come with big attachments and send any suspicious-looking ones to our spam folder.

Oh, and if a sender is promising to cure all known diseases, or claims to be the deposed monarch of Andromeda in need of some cash, we should just hit delete. When Weird Darkness returns, there was no doubt that Thomas Joy was murdered by a gunshot, but the witnesses all had different stories, as did the police. So what really happened?

Plus, if you believe your house is haunted, it's best not to try and confirm it by using a Ouija board. Nothing good can come from that. But first, with as many people that pass on while being treated by EMTs, it should probably be no surprise that phantoms might be encountered in an ambulance. That story is up next.

If you or someone you know is struggling with depression, dark thoughts, or addiction, please visit the "Hope in the Darkness" page at WeirdDarkness.com. There, I've gathered numerous resources to find hope and solutions for those suffering from thoughts of suicide or self-harm. There's the "Suicide and Crisis Lifeline" as well as the "Crisis Text Line." Both have trained counselors at all hours to help those in need, and the page even includes text numbers for those in the US, Canada, United Kingdom, and Ireland.

Those struggling with depression can get help through the 7 Cups website and app, and there's information for anyone to read more about what depression truly is and how to identify it through our friends at ifred.org. There are resources for those who battle addictions, be it drugs, alcohol, or self-destructive behavior, along with help for those related to addicts.

The page has links to help you find a therapist or counselor, to find help for those who have a family member with Alzheimer's or dementia, help for those in a crisis pregnancy and more. These resources are always there when you or someone you love needs them on the Hope In The Darkness page at WeirdDarkness.com. I'm a part-time EMT with the county and I volunteer with the local fire department. I've done so for maybe two years.

Being a rural department, we have almost all second-hand apparatuses, including an old Ford ambulance conversion. This particular vehicle was one of the vehicles the county bought brand new for our EMS department way back in 1985. It served them for 19 years before being shuffled off to the fire department to act as a rescue equipment vehicle, and it earned a reputation as slow, difficult to drive, and positively impossible to kill with both services.

Plans change, and shortly after we received the ambulance, we purchased a light rescue truck to carry equipment and personnel to vehicle collisions. As such, the ambulance got another refit, becoming a firefighter recovery vehicle to keep firefighters in good shape on the fire ground. Heat injuries are especially prevalent, and heart attacks caused by overexertion are depressingly common.

In December 2012, at around 1 in the morning, a late response to the station on my night off left me and another firefighter as last out of the station in the ambulance headed to the scene of a large residential fire. The roads were awful, snow over ice left over from earlier in the day, and the sleet was coming down heavily enough that we couldn't see much more than 50 feet. I reached down to grab the radio mic and tell dispatch that we were en route

As I reached down, the firefighter with me realized what I was doing and grabbed for the mic, saying something about keeping my hands on the wheel and eyes on the road. Our hands bumped and hit the box that controls the emergency lights and the interior lights. As the cab was lit by the interior lights, our emergency lights turned on too, and the spotlights on the right side of the ambulance blazed against the snow and ice. I shot my companion a glare as I began to turn everything off and then glanced in the rearview mirror.

At that moment, I saw a young girl sitting on a bench in the ambulance, looking at me just as the lights flashed off. I slammed on the brakes and we skidded a bit. I turned all the lights on with a swipe across the panel and turned around to look in the back. There was no one. I did a walk around but saw no open doors and no footprints leading away. The girl would have been hard to miss as she'd been wearing a day-glow yellow t-shirt and shorts.

Ryan, the firefighter with me, seemed skeptical when I explained and asked if I was okay to drive. I let him take over and kept nervously eyeing the back the whole night. That was a long night. The sleet turned to snow, then finally quit right before dawn. The house was a total loss, but everyone got out okay, even the three-legged cat who was missing for several hours.

During overhaul, Ryan was telling another firefighter about me flipping out so he too could join in heckling me. One of the paramedics overheard him and mentioned that back when the ambulance was still with EMS in the 90s, there had been reports of strange stuff happening. For example, the back doors would sometimes open by themselves in the locked bay, the lights would come on of their own accord, and paramedics heard whispers. The truck is gone now,

sold at auction so it can live a new life freaking out some other department. We left a note in the glove box, though. Figured they deserved a heads-up. Fireman Doherty was on duty at the 3rd Street Engine House in Cincinnati in the early hours of Monday, November 30, 1896. A little after 3 a.m., he heard a gunshot coming from Muldoon's saloon across the street.

He went to the door to see what had happened and was met by Pat Muldoon himself, who rushed in and told Doherty to call a patrol wagon. Someone had been hurt. Doherty sent for the wagon, then looked across the street and saw two other men he knew. Billy Farrell was holding up taunty Joy, as if Joy was about to fall over. Joy was unconscious when the wagon arrived to take him to the hospital. Police officers stayed behind to question Muldoon and Farrell.

They told the officers that no one else was in the saloon, and they were playing cards when they saw Tauncey Joy staggering outside, his hand clasped to his stomach. He told them he'd been shot and showed them the wound. Muldoon and Farrell had not seen the shooting, and Joy had not told them what happened. The officers took their statements and left. Joy died in the hospital at 7.48 without ever regaining consciousness.

Thomas "Tauncey" Joy was a well-known sporting man in Cincinnati, likely to be seen on Vine Street at any time, day or night. Joy was 31 years old, a quiet, inoffensive man when sober and even when drunk was not considered a desperate man. But in his younger days, he had been a scrapper and carried the scars to prove it.

He was a shoemaker by trade, and in a melee at a shoemaker's ball, someone drew a knife and gave Joy four deep slashes in his face. Joy was very nearly killed when a man named Smithy fractured his skull with a billiard cue. He was later stricken with paralysis. He no longer had the use of his left arm, and his left leg could just bear his weight. Physically, he was not a threat to anyone.

The following day, Coroner Haar performed a post-mortem examination and officially declared Joy's death a murder. The angle of the fatal wound indicated that either Joy was laying down when shot or the killer held the gun low down and shot up in an underhanded way. Haar was upset that the police officers had not arrested Farrell and Muldoon at the scene of the shooting.

In addition to being a saloon keeper, Patrick Muldoon was a prominent ward healer connected with the political machine of "boss" George Cox. Billy Farrell was an ex-police officer. Friends of Tauncey Joy said that there had been bad blood between Joy and Farrell, but no one knew the cause. Muldoon and Farrell were brought to the police station, and both were quite indignant when they were put under arrest.

The story they told in police custody was essentially the same story they had told the night before. But the police knew these men and had a different theory. They believed that Joy, Muldoon, and Farrell had been playing cards with a fourth man who they were cheating. After their victim had been skinned, it was Joy's job to steer him away. When Joy returned for his share, they wouldn't pay. A fight ensued and Joy was shot.

The general impression was that Farrell had done the shooting and Muldoon was protecting him. On December 3rd, James K. Kelly, a saloon keeper who worked for Boss Cox and Attorney Cabell, paid a visit to Police Chief Deitch. They said that they had the man who killed Tauncey Joy but did not give his identity. The man was a city official, ready to surrender provided Muldoon and Farrell were released on bond.

Chief Deitch was anxious to talk to the man, but was not willing to release his prisoners. The following day, the mystery man surrendered himself at the office of Coroner Haar. His name was James Welton, and he was a park policeman. He said he'd been drinking with Joy. Joy got drunk and started to get abusive. Welton drew his revolver from his overcoat pocket. Joy grabbed him. A scuffle ensued, and the revolver went off. Joy said, "Oh, I'm shot!"

Welton said, "I don't believe you, but if you are, it's your own fault." Then Welton left him. The police were skeptical, though. It came out that Welton was a friend of the prisoners and owed his city job to Muldoon's influence. They believed that Welton had confessed to an accidental shooting to take the heat off of Muldoon and Farrell. At the inquest, the coroner's jury heard testimony against all three prisoners, and there were a few surprises.

Muldoon and Farrell changed their stories. They now said that Welton was in the saloon that night with two women. Joy came in and made some disparaging remarks about the women and Welton shot Joy in cold blood. Another witness also changed his story with contradictory results. Fred Burkhart, a waiter who had been walking home that night, first testified to seeing Muldoon, Farrell and Joy together on the corner but saw nothing more.

But after testifying, his conscience overcame his fear, and he returned to the stand to say that he had seen Farrell and Joy scuffling and could say without any doubt that Billy Farrell shot Tauncey Joy. The jury decided to err on the side of caution and charged all three with murder. When the case went before the grand jury, all the same evidence was presented, but by now the police and prosecutors refused to indict anyone but Weldon.

The district attorney protested and managed to move the case to the next session with a less political jury. This time, they followed the lead of the coroner's jury and indicted all three. Farrell, Muldoon, and Welton each pleaded not guilty. Though the prosecutors were convinced that Farrell was the killer, there was not enough evidence to prosecute. Eventually, all three were released on bond and were never brought to trial.

The identity of Tauncey Joy's killer remains a mystery today. There were always signs in our old house that it was haunted. Before Mom, Dad, and I lived there, it was owned by my great-grandma and grandpa, Nana and Dee, which whom passed away when I was very young and that we believed haunted the house. Some of the strange happenings were disembodied voices, which my mom claimed sounded like Nana.

things disappearing, only to be found later in the spot it was missing from, leaving the house for errands to find the bathtub filled with water and wet footprints on the floor, distorted faces reflecting in windows and in mirrors, and the feeling you have when someone sits on the edge of the bed but no one's there, to just name a few. I never really felt threatened or too creeped out in the house, except for one room that always made me uncomfortable.

the middle room. The middle room was basically a room that had a computer and other office-like materials in it where I would play computer learning games or find a book to read. Whenever I was in the middle room, I would have this feeling of unease and someone watching me, but I never made much of it. There was one time, however, on Halloween that was different. My family has always gone full tilt for Halloween.

Everything from decorating to pumpkin carving and, of course, our annual Halloween party, which included a haunted backyard. The haunted backyard was a kind of haunted trail where guests that were invited were guided through a maze of scary props Dad and I would put out there. We also had all types of entertainment inside the house, which would entertain the guests as they waited for the tour, such as food, games, a palm reader, and a Ouija board.

The Ouija board was located in the middle room, which was set up kind of like a gypsy tent. In the back was a projector that my dad set up that projected an image of my mother's face onto a styrofoam head, making it look like it was floating, as well as a handful of other decorations. To the left of the room, covered with a dark tablecloth and two lit candles, was an old card table with the Ouija board on top of it.

I'd never really played with the Ouija board before and thought it more of a joke than anything else. Being distributed by Hasbro, a known company for kids' board games, but of course there was a cute girl there at the party that wanted to play it, so as any red-blooded 11-year-old boy would do, I obliged her. Joining us in the room were about three other people about our age, observing us use the board.

We started at first asking questions like, is there a spirit here? And how did you die? The planchette would move around, spelling out random answers, and we'd laugh and comment on the answers, not taking it seriously. Keep in mind, I thought all this time she was moving the planchette, until I asked what the spirit's name was, and it slowly spelled out Nana. I freaked out.

There was no way this girl knew what we called my great-grandma or that our house was haunted. My family never spoke of it. She could tell my mood had changed immediately when this happened. With our fingers resting on the planchette, we asked one more question: "Are you in heaven?" As fast as we asked the question, the planchette shot towards "goodbye" and all at once the candle blew out.

The closet closest to the Ouija board collapsed onto the table and all the kids in that room ran the hell out of there screaming. Rest assured, I never touched a Ouija board again.

Thanks for listening! If you like the show, please share it with someone you know who loves the paranormal or strange stories, true crime, monsters, or unsolved mysteries like you do. And please leave a rating and review of the show in the podcast app you listen from. You can email me anytime with your questions or comments at darren at WeirdDarkness.com – Darren is D-A-R-R-E-N –

Weird Darkness is also where you can find all of my social media, listen to audiobooks that I've narrated, shop the Weird Darkness store, sign up for monthly contests, find other podcasts that I host, and find the Hope in the Darkness page if you or someone you know is struggling with depression or dark thoughts. Also on the website, if you have a true paranormal or creepy tale to tell, you can click on Tell Your Story. You can find all of that and more at WeirdDarkness.com.

All stories in Weird Darkness are purported to be true unless stated otherwise, and you can find source links or links to the authors in the show notes. Weeping Statue was written by Paul Seaburn for Mysterious Universe. The Reed Family Alien Abduction is from the Alien UFO Sightings website. The MIB – I Knew They Were Evil was written by Brent Swatzer for Mysterious Universe and Jacob Gears for Thought Catalog.

"She turned her victims into soap and tea cakes" was written by Katie Serena for All That's Interesting. "Black creatures on the Isle of Wight" is from ghost-story.co.uk. "Death on the Brooklyn Bridge" was written by Troy Taylor. "If we receive a message from aliens, should we delete it without reading?" is from Alien UFO Sightings. "Haunted Ambulance" was written by an unknown author. "The Very Strange Case of Christine and Walter Collins" is from CoolInterestingStuff.com.

Who Shot Taunt's Joy was written by Robert Wilhelm for Murder by Gaslight. And Ouija Halloween is by Blake Lacey from MyHauntedLife2.com. Again, you can find links to all of these stories in the show notes. Weird Darkness is a production and trademark of Marlar House Productions. And now that we're coming out of the dark, I'll leave you with a little light. 1 John 4 verses 18 and 19. There is no fear in love,

But perfect love drives out fear, because fear has to do with punishment. The one who fears is not made perfect in love. We love because He first loved us. And a final thought: don't think about what can happen in a month. Don't think about what can happen in a year. Just focus on the 24 hours in front of you and do what you can to get closer to where you want to be. I'm Darren Marlar, thanks for joining me in the Weird Darkness.

We all dream, but for some people, what should be a time for their bodies and minds to rest turns into a nightmare from which they cannot escape. Our next Weird Darkness live stream is Saturday night, December 28th on the Weird Darkness YouTube channel. And during the live broadcast, I'll share some of these chilling nighttime stories. T

Tales of shadow people, sleep paralysis, and demons who stalk their victims in that place between dreams and reality. I'll share true tales of prophetic dreams, some joyful, some not. Sleepwalking incidents that are both amusing and disturbing. I'll also share real stories of night terrors so horrifying that sleep

became something to fear and dread for those victimized by the night. You might not want to sleep after joining our next live-screen. It's Saturday, December 28th at 5pm Pacific, 6pm Mountain, 7pm Central, 8pm Eastern. On the lighter side, I'll also be responding to comments and questions live on the air and doing a giveaway of some Weird Darkness merch.

Prepare yourself for our next live scream for chilling tales of what some people must endure in an attempt to get some sleep. Find the details on the live screen page at weirddarkness.com.