About Small Town Secrets: The Dark Side of Rural America
A deep dive into the hidden mysteries lurking in America’s quietest corners. From unsolved disappearances and chilling true crime to government cover-ups, cults, and eerie folklore, each episode uncovers the stories that small towns would rather forget. Hosted by Grayson Cole and Savannah Knox, this investigative podcast brings you firsthand accounts, expert insights, and on-the-ground reporting to expose the dark underbelly of rural America. Every town has its secrets—are you ready to uncover them?
Twin 13-month-olds were found in a playpen in a Washington, D.C. apartment on January 18, 2026. One of them, a little girl named Mazouri Jones, was already dead — and decomposing. Her twin brother was alive beside her, his ribs protruding, suffering from hypothermia, so hungry he tried to eat a medical provider's stethoscope.
Their mother had been gone for nearly four days. Over 92 hours, she was reportedly in the apartment for only two hours. When told Mazouri had died, she showed no emotion.
This week, Grayson and Savannah cover a case that is almost impossible to sit with — the conditions inside that apartment, the charges against Valencia Duke, and the question of how a 13-month-old baby can be left to die while the world goes on around her.
Mazouri Jones lived for 13 months. She deserved so much more.
#TrueCrime #MazouriJones #ValenciaDuke #ChildNeglect #WashingtonDC #SmallTownSecrets #TrueCrimePodcast #JusticeForMazouri #ChildAbuse #Homicide #FelonyMurder #TrueCrimeCommunity #CrimeJunkie #TrueCrimeAddict #Investigative #JusticeForChildren #ChildSafety #DarkHistory #Neglect #TrueCrimeNation
16 Jun 2026
Killed Over a Cash App Dispute: The Storage Tote Murder in Midland County
Someone stole money. A Cash App argument turned into a plan. And a man in Midland County, Texas ended up dismembered in a plastic storage tote in a trailer park bathroom, with an air conditioner blowing cold air on his remains so no one would notice.
Sandra Ramos allegedly drove the victim to her trailer, orchestrated the attack, and forced a witness at gunpoint to help her use a hacksaw to dispose of the body. The only reason investigators found out was because that same witness picked up the phone and called 911.
This week, Grayson and Savannah dig into a case that shows how quickly a digital payment dispute can spiral into something unthinkable — and how thin the line is between a small argument and a violent end in rural West Texas.
Both suspects are charged with murder and held on $2 million bond. The victim still hasn't been publicly named.
#TrueCrime #Texas #MidlandCounty #CashApp #Dismemberment #Murder #SmallTownSecrets #RuralAmerica #TrueCrimePodcast #WestTexas #TrailerPark #TrueCrimeCommunity #CrimeJunkie #TrueCrimeAddict #Investigative #MurderMystery #DarkHistory #JusticeForVictims #DigitalCrime #TrueCrimeNation
14 Jun 2026
Thirty Years of Searching: The Hunt for Kristin Smart's Remains Isn't Over
Paul Flores is serving 25 years to life for killing 19-year-old college freshman Kristin Smart in 1996. He was convicted in 2022. But Kristin's body has never been found.
In May 2026, investigators excavated the backyard of his mother Susan Flores' home for the first time. The soil tested positive for compounds associated with human decomposition. A neighbor had once reported hearing a watch alarm beeping from a freshly filled planter on that same property, every morning, for weeks after Kristin disappeared.
This week, Grayson and Savannah revisit one of California's most haunting cases — the podcast that helped crack it open, the clandestine grave found under Paul Flores' own home, and what the dirt at his mother's property may finally reveal.
Thirty years later, the Smart family is still trying to bring Kristin home.
#TrueCrime #KristinSmart #PaulFlores #SusanFlores #ColdCase #MissingPersons #SmallTownSecrets #RuralAmerica #TrueCrimePodcast #CalPoly #SanLuisObispo #YourOwnBackyard #UnsolvedMurder #TrueCrimeCommunity #CrimeJunkie #Investigative #JusticeForKristin #HumanRemains #ColdCaseFiles #TrueCrimeAddict
11 Jun 2026
Trusted with the Dead: The Funeral Director Who Desecrated “Mimi”
When 92-year-old Alyce Peterson — known to her family as “Mimi” — passed away in 2001, her loved ones trusted a funeral director to give her a dignified farewell. What they didn’t know was that Benjamin Hanson had other plans.
Using a hand saw, Hanson decapitated her body — then cremated the rest and disposed of her head in a Wisconsin ravine. It wasn’t discovered until Boy Scouts stumbled upon it in the woods. And it wasn’t identified until 2022, when forensic DNA technology finally gave Mimi back her name.
This week, Grayson and Savannah dig into a story that is equal parts horror and heartbreak — a rural Midwest town, an industry with almost no oversight, and a family who thought they had said goodbye, only to learn the truth 24 years later.
The sentence Benjamin Hanson received? 90 days in jail.
#TrueCrime #FuneralHome #AlycePeterson #BenjaminHanson #SmallTownSecrets #RuralAmerica #TrueCrimePodcast #ColdCase #JusticeForMimi #WisconsinCrime #Minnesota #Desecration #TrueCrimeCommunity #CrimeJunkie #TrueCrimeAddict #MurderMystery #DarkHistory #Investigative #ForensicScience #JusticeDelayed
9 Jun 2026
Blood on the Walls of Cabin 28: The Keddie Murders
On the night of April 11, 1981, a mother and three young people were brutally murdered inside a remote mountain cabin in Keddie, California. Twelve-year-old Tina Sharp was taken from the cabin — her remains not discovered until three years later, 80 miles away. The prime suspects were identified almost immediately. The motive existed. The evidence was there. And yet, after 40+ years, no one has ever been charged. This week, Grayson and Savannah dig into one of rural America's most haunting cold cases — the botched investigation, the evidence that went missing, the anonymous tip ignored for years, and the persistent allegations of a police cover-up. Cabin 28 is gone. But the truth is still out there.
#TrueCrime #ColdCase #KeddieMurders #Cabin28 #UnsolvedMurder #RuralAmerica #SmallTownSecrets #TrueCrimePodcast #KeddieCaliforna #PlumasCounty #ColdCaseFiles #UnsolvedCases #TrueCrimeCommunity #MurderMystery #DarkHistory #CrimeJunkie #TrueCrimeAddict #Investigative #MissingPersons #JusticeForTina
1 Jan 2026
Deadly Delivery: The Panera Plot That Exposed a Double Murder
This episode investigates a double homicide case stemming from a stolen Panera order and involving two ex-husbands, revealing the dark side of a seemingly ordinary food pickup.
4 Jul 2025
Coroner’s Affair: The Deadly Love Triangle of Meagan Jackson
This episode investigates the tragic love triangle between Meagan Jackson, Christopher Dontell, and Gregory Rice, which ended with Rice's murder in Horry County, revealing the dark secrets behind this crime.
2 Jul 2025
The Grisly Murders of Mariame Toure Sylla & the Dutton Conspiracy
This episode investigates the gruesome murders of Mariame Toure Sylla by Harold Landon and the conspiracy of Hiedi Dutton and Lucas Anthony Walker to kill her grandparents, revealing the dark secrets hidden within small towns.
7 Feb 2025
Vanished: The Maura Murray Mystery
A chilling exploration of one of New Hampshire's most perplexing cold cases. What really happened to Maura Murray on that fateful winter night in the White Mountains? Join us as we unravel the layers of this haunting disappearance that continues to baffle investigators and true crime enthusiasts alike.
31 Jan 2025
Cabin 28: Blood in the Pines
A shocking journey into the brutal 1981 Keddie Cabin Murders that shocked a quiet Sierra Nevada logging town. Three lives brutally taken, a daughter vanished, and decades of unanswered questions. This is not just a true crime story—it's a chilling testament to the darkness lurking beneath rural America's peaceful facade.
24 Jan 2025
Justice After Decades: The Teresa Lee Scalf Case
Explore the 1986 murder of Teresa Lee Scalf in rural Sarasota, Florida, which remained a cold case until 2022. This episode delves into the initial investigation, the long wait for justice, and how advanced DNA technology finally identified Cleveland Hall Jr. as the suspect, posthumously. We'll discuss the implications for crime-solving in rural areas and the emotional journey of Scalf's family, providing a nuanced look at the power and limitations of forensic science.
22 Jan 2025
The Vanishing of Lily Cartwright
In 1993, 17-year-old Lily Cartwright left work at a small-town diner in Ravenswood, Kentucky—and was never seen again. Her abandoned car, eerie late-night phone calls, and a chilling discovery in the woods all pointed to something far more sinister than a runaway case. For years, whispers of corruption, cover-ups, and a powerful local businessman have kept the truth buried. But when an investigative journalist starts pulling at the town’s darkest threads, she finds herself facing a warning of her own: Some secrets should stay buried.
Join us as we unravel the unsettling mystery of Lily Cartwright’s disappearance, the secrets of Ravenswood, and the terrifying possibility that someone in town still knows exactly what happened that night.
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