BILOXI, Miss. (TCN) -- A 21-year-old woman will spend the rest of her life in prison for killing her best friend in 2022 and hiding his remains in the woods. WLOX-TV reports Angel Pierce entered a guilty plea for first-degree murder and armed robbery in connection with the death of Cody Smith. Following the plea, a judge sentenced her to life in prison plus 30 years. Smith was reported missing to the Hinds County Sheriff’s Office on Dec. 16, 2022, but they reached out to the Harrison County Sheriff’s Office in March 2023 after learning Smith was last seen in Harrison County. In April ..read more

IONE, Calif. (TCN) -- Officials announced this week that a woman who died during a conjugal visit with her husband at a state prison had been strangled. KCRA-TV reports that on Nov. 13, 2024, at around 2 a.m., David Brinson called officers using a family visit phone at Mule Creek State Prison and said that his wife, Stephanie Dowells, became unresponsive during her visit. Officers rendered aid until paramedics arrived and took over. She was pronounced dead at 2:51 a.m. The Amador County Sheriff’s Office announced Monday, March 17, that Dowells died by strangulation. Officials are inv ..read more

SEASIDE, Calif. (TCN) -- A 72-year-old Nevada man will likely spend the rest of his life behind bars for abducting, sexually assaulting, and fatally strangling a child who disappeared over four decades ago. The Monterey County District Attorney's Office announced March 20 that a judge sentenced Robert Lanoue to 25 years to life in prison with an additional 31 years after he pleaded guilty in February to first-degree murder, kidnapping, committing a forcible lewd act on a child under 14, forcible rape, and forcible sodomy. He will also have to register as a sex offender for life. According to p ..read more

TAMPA, Fla. (TCN) -- An 18-year-old man faces a charge of murder after allegedly severely beating an elderly woman who then died months after the attack. According to the Hillsborough County Sheriff’s Office, on Dec. 26, shortly before 7 a.m., deputies responded to the University Area Park and found a "severely injured woman who had been brutally attacked and robbed." Surveillance footage allegedly showed that the suspect, Antonio Gueits, approached the victim, 65-year-old Cerida Charon, and hit her in the face, causing her to fall. While Charon was on the ground unconscious, the sheriff ..read more

In this episode of True Crime News The Sidebar Podcast: Terri Austin joins host Joshua Ritter to break down the biggest cases making headlines across the nation. They discuss the latest evidence in the University of Idaho slayings as Bryan Kohberger’s lawyers fight to have the death penalty taken off the table, Kimberly Sullivan allegedly holding her stepson captive for over 20 years, and Nichole Rice’s ongoing trial for the fatal stabbing of her roommate Anita Knutson. YouTube: Idaho slayings suspect fights death penalty; 'Evil stepmother' allegedly locks up child for 20 years ..read more

In this episode of True Crime News The Sidebar Podcast: Terri Austin joins host Joshua Ritter to break down the biggest cases making headlines across the nation. They discuss the latest evidence in the University of Idaho slayings as Bryan Kohberger’s lawyers fight to have the death penalty taken off the table, Kimberly Sullivan allegedly holding her stepson captive for over 20 years, and Nichole Rice’s ongoing trial for the fatal stabbing of her roommate Anita Knutson ..read more

CHATHAM COUNTY, Ga. (TCN) -- A 34-year-old woman will spend the next several years behind bars after pleading guilty to killing her 2-month-old son. The infant was found dead in a couch cushion with drugs in his system. Court records show Jennifer Cooper entered the plea for second-degree murder, second-degree cruelty to children, and possession of a controlled substance just days before her trial was scheduled to begin on March 18. WSAV-TV reports a judge sentenced Cooper to eight years in prison with 12 years of probation following her release in connection with the ..read more

FREDERICK, Colo. (TCN) -- Authorities recently arrested a 72-year-old man on suspicion of fatally stabbing a young mother near her children almost 18 years ago. According to a news release from the Colorado Bureau of Investigation (CBI), on April 6, 2007, Frederick Police responded to a home on Larkspur Circle and discovered 25-year-old Jessica Bejarano's body in the bathroom with a single stab wound to her chest. Bejarano's two kids, ages 4 and 2, were inside the residence at the time. Per an affidavit reviewed by KUSA-TV, Bejarano's 4-year-old daughter told police she witnessed a large man c ..read more

Twenty-one-year-old Kelcey Fike was a beloved daughter and friend ready to live happily ever after with the love of her life in a humble mobile home. Tragically, the home caught fire, and responders found Kelcey's lifeless body in the bedroom and her cherished dog deceased in the living room. But investigators determined the flames were a coverup for a brutal killing, and years later, the case remains unsolved ..read more

PROVO, Utah (TCN) -- Investigators closed a cold case this week after they positively identified the remains of a John Doe found in the desert 42 years ago. According to the Provo Police Department, 17-year-old Robby Peay ran away from a youth treatment center in Salt Lake City on Oct. 7, 1982. He was reported missing to the Provo Police Department and listed in national databases after he failed to return. About four months later, in February 1983, a body was found in Arches National Park in Moab with a gunshot wound to the head. Police said the victim "appeared to have similar character ..read more