Crime at Bedtime

On July 18, 2008, 40‑year‑old elementary school teacher and Navy reservist Genai Coleman was tragically shot and killed in her own car in a Gwinnett County, Georgia mall parking lot—an unthinkable crime of opportunity that shocked her community. A cigarette butt retrieved from her stolen Dodge Stratus matched DNA in the national database, pointing investigators to Donald Eugene Smith, a convicted felon.When Donald steadfastly denied involvement—claiming police should be targeting his identical twin, Ronald—the case took a dramatic turn. Unlike DNA, fingerprints don’t duplicate, and Ronald’s prints were found on the car, alongside cell‑tower records placing his phone near Genai’s stolen vehicle.Confronted with the mounting evidence, Ronald confessed—and claimed it was an accidental discharge while attempting to carjack Coleman. In October 2012, the jury convicted him of murder, carjacking, and weapon possession, sentencing him to life plus 25 years. Today, he remains incarcerated at Wheeler Correctional Facility in Alamo, GeorgiaThis case underscores a rare forensic challenge identical‑twin DNA ambiguity and the pivotal role of fingerprints in achieving justice. Genai Coleman’s family, who endured unbearable loss, found some solace in Ronald’s conviction, trusting that multiple investigative methods ensured truth prevailed

When Kala Brown was discovered chained inside a shipping container on a rural property in South Carolina in 2016, police had no idea they were about to uncover one of the most chilling serial killer cases in modern American history.Todd Kohlhepp, a respected real estate agent and seemingly successful businessman, had been hiding a dark and deadly double life. As investigators dug deeper, they found multiple graves on his property and a trail of cold-blooded murders stretching back more than a decade. He had been killing under everyone’s noses — maintaining a public life of property sales, smiling client photos, and local charm, all while burying his victims behind his house.In this deeply researched episode of Crime at Bedtime, we follow the entire timeline — beginning with the shocking discovery of Kala Brown, through Kohlhepp’s twisted childhood and early violent crimes, to the moment the full scale of his serial killing spree was revealed. We explore his manipulative nature, the calculated façade he maintained, and the psychological profile of a man who lived a lie so convincingly, no one saw the monster behind the smile.This is the story of how a predator hid in plain sight — and how one woman’s survival brought his empire of horror crashing down.

In December 1974, a liquor store robbery in Edmond, Oklahoma left one woman dead and another seriously wounded. Within weeks, two young Black men — Glynn Ray Simmons and Donnie Miller — were arrested, tried, and sentenced to death, based largely on a single eyewitness identification. But there was a problem: the investigation was riddled with flaws, crucial evidence was withheld, and the men had alibis that were never properly examined.This is the extraordinary true story of Glynn Ray Simmons, who would go on to spend 48 years behind bars — the longest known wrongful conviction in American history. In this multi-part Crime at Bedtime episode, we uncover the botched police work, suppressed documents, and systemic failures that stole nearly five decades from an innocent man. From his time on death row to the slow unraveling of the truth, this case is a harrowing journey through the justice system — and a stark reminder of how easily it can get things terribly wrong.If you think wrongful convictions are rare… think again.

On a freezing winter morning in 1985, Yvonne Menke stepped out of her apartment to start her car — and never came back. Shot once in the neck and twice in the head, the 45-year-old mother was executed just metres from her front door. For decades, police had a description of the killer but no name. That all changed in 2024 with the arrest of Mary Jo Bailey, a woman allegedly entangled in a bitter love triangle with Yvonne and local man Jack Owen. In this Crime at Bedtime episode, we unravel the twists of this long-unsolved murder: the eyewitness account, the motive hiding in plain sight, and the forensic trail that brought police to Bailey's door nearly 40 years later.

In January 2018, the world was horrified by the shocking rescue of 13 children from their parents’ so-called “house of horrors” in Perris, California. The Turpin family story became one of the most disturbing child abuse cases in modern American history. For years, David and Louise Turpin kept their children — ranging in age from 2 to 29 — chained, starved, beaten, and isolated from the outside world inside their modest suburban home. The children were denied medical care, education, and even the basic right to wash themselves.When 17-year-old Jordan Turpin bravely escaped through a window and called 911 with a deactivated phone, she set in motion a rescue operation that stunned the nation. Police discovered children so emaciated they looked half their age, shackled to filthy beds in squalid rooms. The Turpin parents had maintained a carefully constructed facade of a large, happy homeschooling family, even registering their house as a private school called “Sandcastle Day School” to avoid suspicion.The Turpin parents, both originally from West Virginia, carried a dark history of strict religious beliefs mixed with total psychological control. Their twisted discipline methods and obsession with power left their children traumatised, unable to speak in full sentences, and terrified of the outside world. After their arrest, David and Louise Turpin were sentenced to life in prison, while their children began the long road to recovery. But even after their freedom, the Turpin siblings faced further challenges from the child welfare system meant to protect them, revealing heartbreaking gaps in America’s social safety net.Crime at Bedtime takes you deep into this haunting true crime story, examining the hidden lives of the Turpin children, the shocking details of their imprisonment, the bravery of a teenage girl who saved her family, and the failures of the system to support them even after rescue. This is more than a tale of unimaginable cruelty — it is a story of survival, courage, and the will to rebuild a life from the ashes of abuse.

In April 2015, London’s diamond district was rocked by an audacious £14 million vault robbery — the now-infamous Hatton Garden Safe Deposit Heist. Over the Easter weekend, a gang of ageing career criminals, dubbed the “Pensioner Gang,” drilled through half a metre of reinforced concrete to loot 73 safe deposit boxes inside one of the UK’s most secure vaults. Their meticulous plan, daring entry through a lift shaft, and two-night operation stunned the world. But how did these veteran thieves slip past high-tech alarms, and what mistakes led to their capture? Join Crime at Bedtime as we unpick the biggest burglary in British history, from the masterminds behind the heist to the dramatic police investigation and the millions still missing.

Before the headlines, before the Netflix series, there was just Anna — a girl from Russia with a dream, a fake name, and a taste for luxury. In this episode, we dive into the true story behind the “fake heiress” who scammed her way into New York’s high society and left a trail of deception in her wake.

To neighbours, the Porcos were the picture of suburban success — respected careers, a lovely home, two sons with bright futures. But behind closed doors, something much darker was brewing. When an axe-wielding attacker shatters their quiet life, all eyes turn to someone they never suspected — until the lies began to unravel. Join us as we step into one of the most disturbing and controversial family murder cases in modern America.

They posed as royalty. Faked their way into mansions. Left a trail of fraud, fire, and missing people across the United States. But in 1998, Sante and Kenneth Kimes crossed the line from con artists… to killers. This is the twisted story of a woman who trained her son to lie, steal — and murder.