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The Killing of Professor Dan Markel: The Adelson Family's Web of Deceit (Part 2)

Moms and Mysteries: A True Crime Podcast

Release Date: 09/25/2025

Daniel Brophy: "How to Murder Your Husband"

Moms and Mysteries: A True Crime Podcast

Daniel Brophy was a beloved chef and culinary instructor at the Oregon Culinary Institute in Portland. At 63 years old, he was passionate about teaching and loved by his students. On June 2, 2018, Daniel was found shot to death inside his classroom—murdered in the place he loved most. The investigation led police to an unlikely suspect: his wife, Nancy Crampton Brophy, a romance novelist. Years before Daniel's murder, Nancy had written an essay titled "How to Murder Your Husband." In it, she detailed various methods of killing a spouse and getting away with it. ...

Nikki Cheng Saelee McCain: Husband Charged with Murder

Moms and Mysteries: A True Crime Podcast

When Nikki Cheng Saelee McCain vanished in May 2024, her family was devastated. Nikki was born in a refugee camp in Southeast Asia and came to the United States with her family, settling in Seattle. She was a beautiful, bubbly woman who loved to laugh and was always her family's biggest cheerleader. She had a forgiving nature and brought joy to everyone around her. After Nikki vanished, her husband Tyler McCain publicly pleaded for her safe return. He apologized to both families and said he wanted to help find her. But in August 2025, everything changed. ...

Jane Mixer: The Controversial Conviction

Moms and Mysteries: A True Crime Podcast

In 1969, Jane Louise Mixer, a 23-year-old law student at the University of Michigan, was trying to catch a ride home to tell her parents she was engaged to her boyfriend Phil. Jane was an exceptional student—top 10% of her high school class, honor student, debate team member, cheerleader, and voted "best all around girl." She graduated from the University of Michigan in 1968 and enrolled in law school, where she was one of the only female students in the entire program. But Jane never made it home that day. She was found shot and strangled in a cemetery, her belongings eerily...

[Unsolved] Cheryl Coker: The Kroger Parking Lot

Moms and Mysteries: A True Crime Podcast

On an ordinary Tuesday morning in October 2018, Cheryl Coker vanished from her suburban Ohio home. Her SUV was found abandoned in a Kroger parking lot with her purse and phone still inside. Cheryl—a bubbly, talkative mom and grandmother who never met a stranger—had not left on her own. For a year and a half, her family searched desperately for answers. Then, in April 2020, her remains were discovered in a wooded area not far from her home. Police believe Cheryl was murdered inside her house before being taken to the location where she was found. The only person of interest? Her...

A Deadly Inheritance: The Von Stein Murder

Moms and Mysteries: A True Crime Podcast

In July 1988, Lieth Von Stein was brutally murdered in his Washington, North Carolina home while his wife Bonnie barely survived the attack. The crime scene looked like a burglary gone wrong—but investigators quickly realized something didn't add up. The house was barely disturbed, nothing of value was taken, and the violence was shockingly personal. As detectives dug deeper, they uncovered a conspiracy that seemed ripped from a fantasy game. Lieth's stepson Chris and his college friends had been playing Dungeons & Dragons obsessively, blurring the lines between fantasy and...

Absurd Lawsuits: Scams, Frauds, and Greed

Moms and Mysteries: A True Crime Podcast

Some crimes are violent, some are tragic, and some are just so absurd that they make you lose a little faith in humanity. Today we're diving into lawsuits so wild, so petty, and so downright unbelievable, you'll think we made them up. First up: the Wendy's finger fraud. In March 2005, Anna Ayala claimed she found a human finger in her chili. The story made national headlines, Wendy's stock plummeted, and America lost its appetite for fast food. But the finger was planted—Anna thought she could outsmart the legal system and sue for millions. She was wrong. We also...

Janie Ballard: A Daughter's Deadly Greed

Moms and Mysteries: A True Crime Podcast

When a friend found 58-year-old Janie Ballard stabbed over 70 times in her Little Rock, Arkansas home on September 13, 2003, investigators immediately suspected her own daughter, Leslie, and Leslie's much older husband, Mike McCool. But how did a shy, successful young woman from a prominent family become capable of such unthinkable violence? Leslie had grown up with every advantage—private school, college degrees, a job at the family printing business, and a condo bought by her parents. But after meeting Mike, a twice-divorced bodybuilder 22 years her senior with a violent...

Science Gone Wrong: The Bizarre and Terrifying Experiments History Forgot

Moms and Mysteries: A True Crime Podcast

Science is supposed to cure disease and improve life, but sometimes confidence goes off the rails. Today, we are taking you on a tour through history’s wildest moments when science went completely off the rails, including incidents where confidence reached levels of blowing up a dead whale, dropping cats out of planes, and poisoning an entire generation. Join us as we explore the terrifying line between discovery and disaster. Join us as we dive into bizarre and unethical experiments, from psychology horror shows that spiraled out of control to so-called "miracle" substances turned deadly....

The Krugersdorp Killings: A Prophet's Cult

Moms and Mysteries: A True Crime Podcast

In 2016, a small South African community was rocked by a series of brutal murders orchestrated by a woman who claimed to speak directly to God. Cecilia Steyn manipulated her followers into committing unspeakable acts, all while maintaining the facade of a devout Christian. This is the story of the Krugersdorp Killings—where faith became a weapon and devotion turned deadly.What started as a church group became one of South Africa's most shocking cult cases. New episodes every Tuesday and Thursday! Follow us on Instagram: @momsandmysteries Join our Patreon: Visit our website: #TrueCrime...

The Piketon Massacre: New Trials, New Sentences—An Update on the Rhoden Family Murders

Moms and Mysteries: A True Crime Podcast

We are revisiting one of the most brutal and complex crimes we have ever covered: The Pike County Massacre, also known as the Rhoden Family Murders. Six years ago, we first discussed the shocking event where eight members of the Rhoden family—four adults, three young men, and a teenage boy—were executed at four different homes in rural Ohio on the same night. At the time of our original episode in 2019, the Wagner family had just been arrested. Now, years later, the trials and sentencing of the four members of the Wagner family are complete, and we are bringing you a comprehensive update...

More Episodes

In the gripping second part of the Daniel Markel case we delve deeper into the intricate web of deceit surrounding the murder-for-hire plot. This episode focuses on the trials of the two masterminds behind the shocking crime: Charlie and Donna Adelson.

Charlie Adelson's Trial: The episode begins with the conviction of Charlie Adelson. The state's case was built on compelling evidence, including audio recordings from a Miami restaurant where Charlie discussed killing a blackmailer or a police officer. The money trail connecting the Adelson family's dental practice to Katie Magbanua, the ex-girlfriend of the hitman, also played a crucial role. Charlie took the stand in his own defense, claiming he was being extorted by the hitmen. This defense was ultimately not believed by the jury, leading to his conviction for first-degree murder, conspiracy, and solicitation.
Donna Adelson's Arrest and Trial: Just seven days after her son's conviction, the matriarch, Donna Adelson, was arrested at Miami International Airport as she and her husband, Harvey, were attempting to flee to Vietnam, a non-extradition country. Key evidence against her included monitored phone calls where she discussed fleeing the country and a recording where she was overheard mulling over extradition policies and reading text messages from her daughter, Wendi. During her trial, testimony from her fellow inmates revealed her attempts to orchestrate false testimony and her admission of her role in the murder. The verdict was unforgettable, as Donna gasped dramatically when she was found guilty of first-degree murder, conspiracy, and solicitation, becoming the fifth person convicted in Dan's murder.
The Family's Web of Lies: The podcast also uncovers new details about the involvement of other family members. Wendi Adelson, Dan's ex-wife, testified under immunity but was confronted with her past inconsistencies about her knowledge of the murder plot. It was also revealed that Donna and Wendi had a deep knowledge of Dan's daily routine, and Wendi's ex-boyfriend testified that she once mentioned Charlie looking into a hitman for $15,000.
Legacy and Justice: The episode concludes with the powerful impact of the case on Dan Markel's parents, Ruth and Phil Markel. Their advocacy led to a new law and a long-awaited reunion with their grandsons.

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Dan Markel Murder

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