unsolved mystery

Read the latest stories and cases of unsolved mysteries and crimes on Newser.com

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A Decade Later, a Tiny Creature Contradicts MH370's Fate

'New York' mag reveals more questions raised in study of barnacles that latched to debris

(Newser) - A lot has changed in the time since MH370 took off and disappeared 10 years ago today. Perhaps nowhere is that more evident than in our knowledge of a specific type of gooseneck barnacle. Lepas anatifera were found coating the chunk of plane wing that washed ashore on the Indian...

They Were Stabbed and Left to Die. 50 Years Later, a Suspect

Indianapolis cops say Thomas Edward Williams, attacked 2 sisters, friend in 1975; he has since died

(Newser) - A nearly 50-year-old cold case surrounding three young girls stabbed and left to die in an Indiana cornfield has finally reached a conclusion, although it's one that will end without justice. In a Thursday presser , the Indianapolis Metropolitan Police Department announced that DNA evidence was able to help identify...

25-Year Search for Mysterious X-Files Song Finally Pays Off

Internet thread leads to songwriters who penned tune that appeared in 1998 episode

(Newser) - There was always mystery upon mystery layered in The X-Files, the popular sci-fi series starring David Duchovny and Gillian Anderson, and now a big meta one regarding the show itself has been solved. The Washington Post reports on a melancholy country-western song heard in the background of a Season 6...

After Unsolved Murder Features in Netflix Doc, FBI to Exhume Body

It's not clear what authorities are looking for with regard to Joyce Malecki cold case

(Newser) - FBI investigators are planning to exhume the body of a young woman whose unsolved 1969 killing has been a source of widespread speculation, especially since Netflix's documentary series The Keepers examined the slaying of a Baltimore nun that unfolded days earlier under eerily similar circumstances. Joyce Malecki went Christmas...

Mystery Song's Origin Stumps Online Sleuths

With only 17 seconds of the New Wave song recorded, no one has cracked where it came from

(Newser) - Can you name this tune in 17 seconds? If so, you'd be the hero to a community of online sleuths who've been tracking down its origin for the last two years. Rolling Stone covers the quest to crack the case of "Everyone Knows That," which has...

We Now Know Who Guy on This Zeppelin Album Cover Is

Meet Lot Long, a 19th-century UK thatcher whose photo inspired the front of 'Led Zeppelin IV'

(Newser) - If you ever felt sorry for the poor branch-carrying dude on the cover of the Led Zeppelin IV album but took comfort in thinking it was simply a painting of a fictional character, get ready to feel a little uncomfortable. Turns out the "Stick Man" was a real person,...

On Florida's Roads, 'Deja Vu All Over Again'
On Florida's Roads,
'Deja Vu All Over Again'
IN CASE YOU MISSED IT

On Florida's Roads, 'Deja Vu All Over Again'

Mysterious yellow lines keep popping up in the middle of St. Johns County thoroughfares

(Newser) - There's plenty of other stuff to worry about, but a roadway mystery has captured the attention of residents in Florida's St. Johns County. WSVN describes an "enigmatic marking" that's popped up along US 1 near St. Augustine: a nearly 2-mile-long yellow line, between International Golf Parkway...

37 Years Later, Cops Think They Know What Happened to Missing Teen

Susan Robin Bender might have been killed, buried in Yosemite National Park

(Newser) - Nearly four decades after a California 15-year-old went missing, authorities may know what happened to her. The case of Susan Robin Bender , who hasn't been seen since 1986, was reopened in 2021, and earlier this month, police announced an arrest had been made. Court documents indicate the suspect may...

Her Name Was Unique. The Dangers She Faced Were 'Common'

'Washington Post' looks back on coverage of murdered mom, what everyone got wrong

(Newser) - When Monica Hesse was a young reporter, she covered the story of Unique Harris, a 24-year-old single mom of two young boys who vanished from her DC apartment in October 2010, while she was hosting a sleepover for her kids and their 9-year-old cousin. It was a case that went...

Vatican: Let's Look at New Leads Over Missing Teen

40 years after 15-year-old Emanuela Orlandi vanished, new hope for solving her cold case

(Newser) - Exactly 40 years after the teenage daughter of a Vatican employee disappeared, the Vatican said Thursday that new leads "worthy of further investigation" had surfaced hopes of finally getting to the bottom of one of the Holy See's enduring mysteries. Emanuela Orlandi vanished June 22, 1983, after leaving...

Illinois Girl Vanished 6 Years Ago, Turns Up in North Carolina
She Was Abducted 6 Years Ago.
A Netflix Watcher Found Her
in case you missed it

She Was Abducted 6 Years Ago. A Netflix Watcher Found Her

Illinois' Kayla Unbehaun, 15, turns up in North Carolina; mom is arrested

(Newser) - In November, the Netflix series Unsolved Mysteries featured an episode on family abductions, including the case of Kayla Unbehaun, who vanished from South Elgin, Illinois, at the age of 9 after a visit with her mom, who didn't have custody of her. Nearly six years later, Kayla, now 15,...

Company Teases New Evidence of MH370's Location

US-based Ocean Infinity wants Malaysia's approval to launch another search

(Newser) - Nine years after Malaysian Airlines flight MH370 vanished over the Indian Ocean, leaving little evidence of its tragic fate, one of the biggest mysteries in aviation continues to baffle, as evidenced by Netflix's new documentary exploring what might have happened to the Boeing 777 along its route from Kuala...

Vatican to Take Another Look at Case of Emanuela Orlandi

The 15-year-old daughter of Vatican employee vanished in 1983

(Newser) - The Vatican said Monday it has reopened the investigation into the 1983 disappearance of the 15-year-old daughter of a Vatican employee, months after a new Netflix documentary purported to shed new light on the case and weeks after her family asked the Italian Parliament to take up the cause . Vatican...

Take a COVID Test or Jump Into the Sea. They Jumped

'NYT' explores the story of missing Americans Isaac Danian and Shukree Abdul-Rashed

(Newser) - By the account of the captain of their sailboat, Americans Isaac Danian and Shukree Abdul-Rashed jumped from the boat as they neared the Pacific island of Wallis. A monthslong inquiry by authorities concluded that the captain was telling the truth and that both men were swept out to sea and...

Investigators Think They've Solved Mystery of Buried Car
Investigators Think They've
Solved Mystery of Buried Car
in case you missed it

Investigators Think They've Solved Mystery of Buried Car

Cops: Mercedes unearthed in Atherton, Calif., may have been part of insurance fraud scheme

(Newser) - Three decades ago, John Lew's 1991 Mercedes-Benz 500SL convertible was reported stolen to police in Palo Alto, California—a fact that may be the missing clue as to why the car was found buried last month on the property of a mansion in nearby Atherton. NBC News reports that...

Mystery in Pa. Parking Lot: 'Almost Certainly Human Blood'

Police in Silver Spring Township are scratching their heads over a 4x7 pool of blood but no body

(Newser) - Police in a Pennsylvania town are trying to solve a gory mystery, and so far, clues have been scarce. The main evidence they're working with right now, according to Silver Spring Township Police Chief Chris Raubenstine, who appeared at a Thursday presser : a pair of Ray Ban prescription eyeglasses...

Has an Enduring Australian Mystery Finally Been Solved?

University of Adelaide professor thinks he has identified the Somerton man

(Newser) - It's one of Australia's most persistent mysteries, and Derek Abbott says he has solved it. As CNN reports, the University of Adelaide professor had long advocated for the exhumation of the long unidentified Somerton Man. The suit-clad, 40-something man was found dead on a beach near Adelaide—possibly...

Victim of 'Happy Face Killer' Identified, 29 Years Later

Patricia Skiple was found dead in 1993

(Newser) - A victim of the Happy Face Killer has been identified nearly 30 years after her body was left near a California highway, authorities said Monday. Patricia Skiple of Colton, Ore., had been known only as “Blue Pacheco" for the color of her clothing until genetic genealogy was used to...

New Twist in Murdaugh Murders Involves Wife's Will
Murdaugh's Wife Left a Will
Behind, but With One 'Oddity'
in case you missed it

Murdaugh's Wife Left a Will Behind, but With One 'Oddity'

Someone had crossed off name of Maggie Murdaugh's sister as estate handler on 2005 doc

(Newser) - The strange saga swirling around South Carolina's Murdaugh family continues, now involving the supposed final wishes of the late Maggie Murdaugh. NBC News reports the 52-year-old, found shot to death in June in her rural Islandton home along with 22-year-old son Paul Murdaugh, left behind a last will and...

First His Wife and Son Were Killed, Now He's Been Shot

Prominent South Carolina lawyer Alex Murdaugh was shot in the head on a lonely road

(Newser) - The murder of a prominent South Carolina attorney's wife and son has gone nearly twelve weeks without any arrests but there's new startling twist: the attorney himself was shot in the head Saturday after experiencing car trouble on the side of the road. Per the New York Times...

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