The BBC has curated a collection of nine true crime podcasts on BBC Sounds, ranging from unsolved mysteries and assassinations to procedural investigations and character studies of notorious criminals. These series explore the impact on victims and survivors, covering a spectrum of human experience and death.
One standout is 'The Missing Cryptoqueen', which follows Ruja Ignatova, a Bulgarian businesswoman known as Dr Ruja, who promoted OneCoin as a rival to Bitcoin. Using multi-level marketing, she attracted thousands of investors, including many Brits, before vanishing in 2017 with millions of pounds. Investigators trace the money through offshore accounts and shell companies, but her whereabouts remain unknown.
'Unforgotten: The Coroner' examines real cases through a forensic lens, such as the suspicious death of a British man found charred at a remote campsite. The series follows a female-led team of coroners as they determine causes of death in puzzling circumstances, exploring their motivations for working with mortality daily.
'Fake Heiress' investigates Anna Delvey, born Anna Sorokin, who posed as a German heiress to defraud New York's elite. Journalist Vicky Baker delves into her origins, motivations, and eventual conviction, revealing a tale of glamour and deception.
'The Isdal Woman' revisits a 1970 Norwegian cold case: a woman found frozen in the Isdal Valley. Local journalist Marit Higraf and BBC's Neil McCarthy use DNA testing and crowdsourcing to explore whether she was a fugitive, spy, or tourist, and what role nearby military bases played.
'The Lazarus Heist' covers the 2014 Sony Pictures hack linked to North Korea, while 'Death in Ice Valley' and 'The Hurricane Tapes' also feature. The collection includes 'The Missing', about Chris Farmer and Peta Frampton, murdered in Guatemala in 1978, and the alleged killer Silas Duane Boston, whose sons later exposed his crimes.
