1 00:00:00,080 --> 00:00:03,600 Speaker 1: Please note the following episode contains graphic and disturbing murder 2 00:00:03,640 --> 00:00:20,200 Speaker 1: scenes involving children. Parental discretion as advised. It was July third, 3 00:00:20,480 --> 00:00:23,759 Speaker 1: nineteen twenty nine, and shaping up to be another hot 4 00:00:23,800 --> 00:00:27,440 Speaker 1: one in the US city of Detroit, Michigan, when Vincent 5 00:00:27,520 --> 00:00:33,000 Speaker 1: Elias arrived at thirty five eighty seven Saint Auban Street. Vincent, 6 00:00:33,400 --> 00:00:37,080 Speaker 1: a real estate dealer, had arranged to meet Benny evangelist, 7 00:00:37,280 --> 00:00:39,960 Speaker 1: who lived at the property with his wife and four children, 8 00:00:40,280 --> 00:00:43,040 Speaker 1: for a ten thirty business meeting to discuss a farm 9 00:00:43,120 --> 00:00:47,080 Speaker 1: he was looking to buy from Benny. Vincent knocked on 10 00:00:47,120 --> 00:00:50,400 Speaker 1: the door and stepped back onto the porch, checking his 11 00:00:50,479 --> 00:00:54,320 Speaker 1: watch just to make sure he wasn't too early. Looking 12 00:00:54,360 --> 00:00:57,520 Speaker 1: about the street, he couldn't help but notice how quiet 13 00:00:57,560 --> 00:01:01,160 Speaker 1: it was for the usually bustling neighborhood, comprised largely of 14 00:01:01,200 --> 00:01:04,679 Speaker 1: Italian and Polish immigrants lured to the New World on 15 00:01:04,760 --> 00:01:09,360 Speaker 1: the promise of the American dream. Vincent checked his watch 16 00:01:09,400 --> 00:01:13,320 Speaker 1: again and knocked for a second time, turning his ear 17 00:01:13,360 --> 00:01:15,720 Speaker 1: to the door to listen out for any sign of 18 00:01:15,760 --> 00:01:20,959 Speaker 1: movement from inside, but heard nothing. It was certainly a 19 00:01:20,959 --> 00:01:23,720 Speaker 1: little odd, he thought, since though the kids would be 20 00:01:23,720 --> 00:01:27,919 Speaker 1: at school, the youngest, and Benny's wife, Santina, would be home, 21 00:01:28,440 --> 00:01:33,920 Speaker 1: even if Benny had forgotten their appointment. Growing impatient, Vincent 22 00:01:34,080 --> 00:01:38,560 Speaker 1: pulled open the front door and stepped inside. Taking his 23 00:01:38,600 --> 00:01:42,360 Speaker 1: hat in his hands, he called through apologetically as he 24 00:01:42,400 --> 00:01:46,200 Speaker 1: looked about the entrance hall, expecting Benny or Santina to 25 00:01:46,240 --> 00:01:52,160 Speaker 1: appear any moment, but the house remained completely still. Moving 26 00:01:52,200 --> 00:01:58,400 Speaker 1: further inside, Vincent spied Benny sitting at his desk, albeit strangely. Still. 27 00:01:59,680 --> 00:02:05,440 Speaker 1: Didn't you hear me knocking? He asked, but Benny didn't reply. Benny, 28 00:02:05,800 --> 00:02:10,280 Speaker 1: he said, stepping closer, the word barely audible as it 29 00:02:10,440 --> 00:02:14,280 Speaker 1: caught in his throat. For a moment, it looked as 30 00:02:14,280 --> 00:02:17,120 Speaker 1: though he was leaning so far forward his head was 31 00:02:17,160 --> 00:02:20,680 Speaker 1: being obscured by his back. But as Vincent drew nearer, 32 00:02:21,040 --> 00:02:24,680 Speaker 1: he realized with a thumping horror his head wasn't visible 33 00:02:25,320 --> 00:02:30,560 Speaker 1: because it wasn't on his shoulders. Then Vincent looked down 34 00:02:30,600 --> 00:02:34,320 Speaker 1: to the floor. There, lying in a thick pool of 35 00:02:34,360 --> 00:02:39,440 Speaker 1: blood was Benny's head, his eyes staring lifelessly up to 36 00:02:39,480 --> 00:02:44,320 Speaker 1: the ceiling. Seconds later, Vincent was back in the street, 37 00:02:44,919 --> 00:02:55,800 Speaker 1: heaving and gasping for air. Having flagged down two police officers, 38 00:02:56,120 --> 00:02:59,840 Speaker 1: Patrol and Lawrence, and Costage, Vincent returned with them to 39 00:03:00,040 --> 00:03:02,720 Speaker 1: the property, more than happy to be asked to wait 40 00:03:02,760 --> 00:03:05,959 Speaker 1: for them outside. As they conducted a search of the house, 41 00:03:07,120 --> 00:03:11,040 Speaker 1: they found Benny, just as Vincent had described, dressed in 42 00:03:11,040 --> 00:03:14,240 Speaker 1: a dark suit, with his body leant forward against the 43 00:03:14,280 --> 00:03:17,520 Speaker 1: desk with his hands pressed together in front of him 44 00:03:17,560 --> 00:03:21,440 Speaker 1: as though conducting a silent prayer. The head seemed to 45 00:03:21,440 --> 00:03:25,160 Speaker 1: have been taken off in one clean swoop, but there 46 00:03:25,160 --> 00:03:29,239 Speaker 1: were some other things that Vincent hadn't noticed. Three photos 47 00:03:29,400 --> 00:03:31,840 Speaker 1: that seemed to have been deliberately placed around the head, 48 00:03:32,400 --> 00:03:35,400 Speaker 1: each showing the image of a young boy lying dead 49 00:03:35,560 --> 00:03:39,480 Speaker 1: in a coffin. Then the officers noticed the set of 50 00:03:39,480 --> 00:03:43,000 Speaker 1: bloody footprints leading away from the head and out of 51 00:03:43,040 --> 00:03:48,040 Speaker 1: the room. Patrol and Lawrence stepped into the front hall 52 00:03:48,520 --> 00:03:51,520 Speaker 1: and asked Vincent again who else lived at the property. 53 00:03:52,080 --> 00:03:55,280 Speaker 1: As he eyed the bloody prints that trailed off towards 54 00:03:55,320 --> 00:03:59,000 Speaker 1: the back of the house, his wife and four children, 55 00:03:59,160 --> 00:04:04,840 Speaker 1: replied Vincent, with a concerned look toward his partner. Lawrence 56 00:04:05,160 --> 00:04:10,200 Speaker 1: unclipped his gun and pressed on, cautiously, tracking the prince 57 00:04:10,320 --> 00:04:13,200 Speaker 1: through the kitchen to the stairs. They took note of 58 00:04:13,240 --> 00:04:16,760 Speaker 1: the pile of dishes, presumably from the night before, that 59 00:04:16,920 --> 00:04:21,039 Speaker 1: had been washed but not yet put away. Pulling out 60 00:04:21,080 --> 00:04:25,479 Speaker 1: their revolvers, the officers crept slowly up the stairs, the 61 00:04:25,600 --> 00:04:28,960 Speaker 1: creak of each step echoing loudly as they made their 62 00:04:28,960 --> 00:04:34,440 Speaker 1: way to the second floor and on into the master bedroom. 63 00:04:34,640 --> 00:04:39,599 Speaker 1: Dear God, muttered Lawrence under his breath. The blood soaked 64 00:04:39,640 --> 00:04:43,159 Speaker 1: body of a woman lay strewn across the bed, cradling 65 00:04:43,200 --> 00:04:47,880 Speaker 1: a dead baby in her arms. The woman's head, which 66 00:04:47,960 --> 00:04:51,039 Speaker 1: had been all but severed, was hanging limply over the 67 00:04:51,120 --> 00:04:55,880 Speaker 1: side by a single sinuous thread. The baby's head, too, 68 00:04:56,000 --> 00:05:00,960 Speaker 1: had been almost completely obliterated. The wall and bedsheets were 69 00:05:01,000 --> 00:05:04,839 Speaker 1: splattered with blood, with the rest pulling out onto the floor. 70 00:05:05,800 --> 00:05:08,680 Speaker 1: A huge gash on the woman's upper arm seemed to 71 00:05:08,720 --> 00:05:12,960 Speaker 1: suggest the killer had tried to sever that too, and 72 00:05:13,120 --> 00:05:17,839 Speaker 1: still the bloody footsteps continued through the bedroom and beyond 73 00:05:18,440 --> 00:05:24,120 Speaker 1: into another smaller bedroom. Officer Lawrence turned away at the 74 00:05:24,160 --> 00:05:27,360 Speaker 1: sight of a small child sprawled out on the floor, 75 00:05:28,040 --> 00:05:32,440 Speaker 1: their skull cleaved right through the middle and lying one 76 00:05:32,480 --> 00:05:35,560 Speaker 1: in each of the two beds. Two more young children, 77 00:05:36,320 --> 00:05:40,640 Speaker 1: both killed in the exact same way. One child's arm 78 00:05:40,880 --> 00:05:45,560 Speaker 1: had also been severed at the shoulder. It was a 79 00:05:45,600 --> 00:05:50,680 Speaker 1: horror beyond comprehension, and it was about to get even stranger. 80 00:05:52,240 --> 00:05:56,800 Speaker 1: You're listening to unexplained, and I am Richard mc lane Smith. 81 00:06:03,920 --> 00:06:07,720 Speaker 1: Having secured the main house, Lawrence and Costage continued their 82 00:06:07,760 --> 00:06:12,159 Speaker 1: search of the property, heading first into the attic. All 83 00:06:12,200 --> 00:06:15,080 Speaker 1: about the room bunches of herbs had been left out 84 00:06:15,120 --> 00:06:19,280 Speaker 1: to dry in a way that seemed almost ritualistic. Then, 85 00:06:19,520 --> 00:06:23,240 Speaker 1: amid the boxes of surplus household items, they found a 86 00:06:23,320 --> 00:06:26,599 Speaker 1: large collection of underwear, which they judged to have belonged 87 00:06:26,600 --> 00:06:29,680 Speaker 1: to various women, with a different name tag tied to 88 00:06:29,760 --> 00:06:33,919 Speaker 1: each item. But even more peculiar was what they found 89 00:06:34,000 --> 00:06:38,640 Speaker 1: in the basement. Heading down into the darkness, Patrom and 90 00:06:38,720 --> 00:06:41,800 Speaker 1: Lawrence stopped suddenly at the sight of what appeared to 91 00:06:41,839 --> 00:06:47,080 Speaker 1: be bodies dangling from the ceiling, scrambling hastily for the lights, 92 00:06:47,120 --> 00:06:50,400 Speaker 1: which the officer flicked it on to reveal nine or 93 00:06:50,480 --> 00:06:55,000 Speaker 1: ten life sized papier mache figurines strung up to the 94 00:06:55,040 --> 00:07:00,400 Speaker 1: ceiling with wire. Each figure, carefully crafted and deck rated, 95 00:07:00,720 --> 00:07:04,640 Speaker 1: was different from the next, with strange and in some cases, 96 00:07:04,720 --> 00:07:10,200 Speaker 1: grotesque features. One had a pair of wings, another an 97 00:07:10,280 --> 00:07:14,800 Speaker 1: unusually long nose, and one was holding a baby covered 98 00:07:14,800 --> 00:07:18,680 Speaker 1: in hair. The walls had been draped with green cloth, 99 00:07:19,040 --> 00:07:21,960 Speaker 1: and in the middle of it all, a gigantic eye, 100 00:07:22,240 --> 00:07:25,520 Speaker 1: lit up from the inside, had been positioned to shine 101 00:07:25,560 --> 00:07:29,880 Speaker 1: down on everything. All in all, it was fair to 102 00:07:29,920 --> 00:07:34,200 Speaker 1: say the officers had never seen anything like it. In 103 00:07:34,240 --> 00:07:37,160 Speaker 1: a side room, they also found a stash of wine 104 00:07:37,400 --> 00:07:40,920 Speaker 1: and kegs of beer, a not unusual find during the 105 00:07:41,000 --> 00:07:46,160 Speaker 1: era of prohibition. After reporting their strange and horrific find 106 00:07:46,280 --> 00:07:49,840 Speaker 1: back to police headquarters, the patrolman was soon joined by 107 00:07:49,880 --> 00:07:53,360 Speaker 1: a swathe of colleagues intrigue to see it all for themselves. 108 00:07:54,240 --> 00:07:58,560 Speaker 1: In total, more than twenty detectives representing almost every department 109 00:07:58,920 --> 00:08:02,560 Speaker 1: arrived to take a look, from representatives of homicide to 110 00:08:02,640 --> 00:08:06,679 Speaker 1: the bomb squat while outside. As word began to spread 111 00:08:06,720 --> 00:08:10,440 Speaker 1: around the neighborhood, soon as many as two hundred people 112 00:08:10,520 --> 00:08:13,720 Speaker 1: had descended on the property, keen to see it all too. 113 00:08:18,520 --> 00:08:21,040 Speaker 1: Here's something you don't know about me. I often have 114 00:08:21,120 --> 00:08:24,240 Speaker 1: troubles sleeping. Though I might get to sleep easily enough, 115 00:08:24,480 --> 00:08:27,080 Speaker 1: within a few hours, I could be wide awake as 116 00:08:27,120 --> 00:08:30,320 Speaker 1: my mind races through everything I didn't do everything I 117 00:08:30,360 --> 00:08:33,040 Speaker 1: still need to do, or even just to some embarrassing 118 00:08:33,040 --> 00:08:35,360 Speaker 1: thing I said years ago that no one else even 119 00:08:35,400 --> 00:08:40,600 Speaker 1: remembers relatable. Yeah, it sucks. Fortunately, I was introduced to 120 00:08:40,679 --> 00:08:44,480 Speaker 1: Sunday Sceries, who make products specifically for overthinkers and night 121 00:08:44,520 --> 00:08:48,000 Speaker 1: howls like me C B D Gummies to help you decompress, 122 00:08:48,360 --> 00:08:51,480 Speaker 1: clear your head, and fall asleep so you can actually 123 00:08:51,480 --> 00:08:54,480 Speaker 1: wake up a fully functioning human being. 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Consult with a physician before use. If 134 00:09:26,400 --> 00:09:29,800 Speaker 1: you have a serious medical condition, or use prescription medications, 135 00:09:29,920 --> 00:09:32,680 Speaker 1: a doctor's advice should be sought before using this and 136 00:09:32,800 --> 00:09:41,280 Speaker 1: any supplemental dietary product. With Detective Lieutenant John Whitman and 137 00:09:41,440 --> 00:09:46,040 Speaker 1: detectives Charles Searle and Earl Switzer leading the investigation, the 138 00:09:46,160 --> 00:09:49,640 Speaker 1: police set about trying to disentangle just what an earth 139 00:09:49,800 --> 00:09:53,400 Speaker 1: was going on. With the help of neighbors and Vincent 140 00:09:53,440 --> 00:09:57,000 Speaker 1: Elias who had been detained at the scene, they ascertained 141 00:09:57,000 --> 00:10:00,800 Speaker 1: the victims to be thirty six year old Santeen evangelist 142 00:10:01,080 --> 00:10:04,440 Speaker 1: and her husband, the forty three year old Benny, along 143 00:10:04,480 --> 00:10:08,000 Speaker 1: with their daughters eight year old Angelina and six year 144 00:10:08,040 --> 00:10:12,600 Speaker 1: old Jenny, and their sons five year old Matthew and Mario, 145 00:10:13,120 --> 00:10:17,160 Speaker 1: who was only eighteen months old. Business cards found on 146 00:10:17,200 --> 00:10:20,320 Speaker 1: Benny's desk declared him to be a real estate developer 147 00:10:20,559 --> 00:10:24,880 Speaker 1: and building contractor. But more pertinent to the officers were 148 00:10:24,920 --> 00:10:27,880 Speaker 1: the other set of business cards they found scattered about 149 00:10:27,920 --> 00:10:33,480 Speaker 1: the attic, on which was written mister Benny Evangelist, divine prophet, 150 00:10:34,080 --> 00:10:39,560 Speaker 1: author and private history writer. As police continue to search 151 00:10:39,600 --> 00:10:44,160 Speaker 1: the evangelist's house, things only got more bizarre. A wig 152 00:10:44,240 --> 00:10:47,720 Speaker 1: and fake beard was found alongside what appeared to be 153 00:10:47,880 --> 00:10:52,440 Speaker 1: two ceremonial sorts, all of which clashed somewhat with the 154 00:10:52,520 --> 00:10:56,320 Speaker 1: various crucifixes dotted about the walls and the large painting 155 00:10:56,360 --> 00:11:00,840 Speaker 1: of the Last Supper in Benny's study. There was a 156 00:11:00,840 --> 00:11:05,040 Speaker 1: little more to Penny Evangelist than met the eye. As 157 00:11:05,080 --> 00:11:07,880 Speaker 1: for clues to who the killer might be, police found 158 00:11:07,920 --> 00:11:11,079 Speaker 1: only the bloody footprints, as well as a bloody finger 159 00:11:11,160 --> 00:11:14,920 Speaker 1: and a thumb print on the front door latch. Unluckily 160 00:11:15,000 --> 00:11:17,720 Speaker 1: for Vincent, since he was the last known person to 161 00:11:17,880 --> 00:11:20,600 Speaker 1: enter the house and his feet were a similar size 162 00:11:20,640 --> 00:11:25,440 Speaker 1: to the bloody prints, he was promptly taken in for questioning. However, 163 00:11:25,520 --> 00:11:28,760 Speaker 1: an alibi was quickly established and he was soon released 164 00:11:28,760 --> 00:11:34,120 Speaker 1: from custody. Then, detectives received word of a man seen 165 00:11:34,280 --> 00:11:37,480 Speaker 1: brandishing a bloody knife only six blocks from the scene 166 00:11:37,480 --> 00:11:40,400 Speaker 1: of the crime in the early hours of the previous morning. 167 00:11:41,160 --> 00:11:51,760 Speaker 1: It seemed they might have their killer. Later in the afternoon, 168 00:11:52,360 --> 00:11:55,080 Speaker 1: not long after, the victim's bodies were removed from the 169 00:11:55,080 --> 00:11:59,480 Speaker 1: house as the crowd of hundreds watched on, detectives arrived 170 00:11:59,520 --> 00:12:03,480 Speaker 1: at twenty eight thirty Pierce Street, located roughly five minutes 171 00:12:03,520 --> 00:12:08,600 Speaker 1: walk from the evangelist's residence, there police discovered a razor 172 00:12:08,720 --> 00:12:12,600 Speaker 1: edged banana knife, a short handle axe, and a freshly 173 00:12:12,640 --> 00:12:16,280 Speaker 1: washed pair of shoes, all said to belong to thirty 174 00:12:16,280 --> 00:12:19,960 Speaker 1: four year old Angelo Dapoli, who was lodging at the property. 175 00:12:21,200 --> 00:12:24,480 Speaker 1: On closer inspection, the axe appeared to be covered in 176 00:12:24,520 --> 00:12:28,480 Speaker 1: blood stains, and as detectives soon found out, it just 177 00:12:28,520 --> 00:12:32,320 Speaker 1: so happened that Dapoli, along with his fellow lodger, forty 178 00:12:32,320 --> 00:12:36,160 Speaker 1: two year old and Berto Pecchio, had visited the evangelists 179 00:12:36,160 --> 00:12:39,840 Speaker 1: property the night before the murders, making them the last 180 00:12:39,920 --> 00:12:44,319 Speaker 1: known people to see the family alive. With the axe 181 00:12:44,320 --> 00:12:47,720 Speaker 1: being sent off for testing, the men were immediately brought 182 00:12:47,800 --> 00:12:51,520 Speaker 1: in for questioning, and though Dapoli claimed to struggle to 183 00:12:51,600 --> 00:12:57,320 Speaker 1: understand them, he denied all knowledge of the potentially incriminating objects. Tecchio, 184 00:12:57,440 --> 00:13:00,280 Speaker 1: on the other hand, was a little more fourth coming. 185 00:13:01,280 --> 00:13:04,280 Speaker 1: As it transpired, it was to Poli who had in 186 00:13:04,360 --> 00:13:08,440 Speaker 1: fact accompanied him to the evangelist's property, having gone there 187 00:13:08,480 --> 00:13:10,880 Speaker 1: to make a final payment on a property he was 188 00:13:10,960 --> 00:13:15,760 Speaker 1: buying from Benny. As Techio explained, the pair arrived at 189 00:13:15,760 --> 00:13:19,400 Speaker 1: the house around eight pm, then, after swiftly making the payment, 190 00:13:19,920 --> 00:13:22,480 Speaker 1: headed on to a speakeasy where they spent the next 191 00:13:22,559 --> 00:13:26,320 Speaker 1: few hours drinking together. They both returned to the boarding 192 00:13:26,320 --> 00:13:30,640 Speaker 1: house around eleven PM and promptly went to bed, a 193 00:13:30,679 --> 00:13:33,040 Speaker 1: fact that was attested to by a number of their 194 00:13:33,040 --> 00:13:36,720 Speaker 1: fellow boarders. With the murders said to have occurred some 195 00:13:36,840 --> 00:13:40,680 Speaker 1: time after midnight, this put Techio and to Poli away 196 00:13:40,720 --> 00:13:43,000 Speaker 1: from the scene of the crime at the crucial time. 197 00:13:44,480 --> 00:13:47,880 Speaker 1: After analysis, the marks on the axe were found to 198 00:13:47,920 --> 00:13:52,040 Speaker 1: be simply rushed, and since neither Techio or Dapol's prince 199 00:13:52,400 --> 00:13:55,720 Speaker 1: matched those found on the door, the pair were released 200 00:13:55,840 --> 00:14:07,320 Speaker 1: the following day, Suddenly left without their anticipated suspect, The 201 00:14:07,440 --> 00:14:10,800 Speaker 1: police began to dig a little further into Benny's life. 202 00:14:11,559 --> 00:14:15,920 Speaker 1: After speaking to Benny's brother Antonio, things began steadily to 203 00:14:16,040 --> 00:14:22,120 Speaker 1: become a little clearer. Benjamino of Angelista was born in Napoli, Italy, 204 00:14:22,440 --> 00:14:26,400 Speaker 1: in eighteen eighty five, and in nineteen oh three emigrated 205 00:14:26,440 --> 00:14:29,360 Speaker 1: to the USA at the age of seventeen to join 206 00:14:29,440 --> 00:14:33,040 Speaker 1: his brother, who'd moved there two years earlier, living together 207 00:14:33,280 --> 00:14:36,360 Speaker 1: while picking up odd jobs in construction and on the 208 00:14:36,400 --> 00:14:40,480 Speaker 1: ever expanding railroads. Though the pair had once been close, 209 00:14:41,000 --> 00:14:44,520 Speaker 1: things had become strained between them when one morning Benny 210 00:14:44,960 --> 00:14:50,000 Speaker 1: claimed he'd started receiving visions from God at midnight for 211 00:14:50,120 --> 00:14:54,040 Speaker 1: three hours every night since February the second, nineteen o six. 212 00:14:54,080 --> 00:14:57,720 Speaker 1: He explained he'd been falling into a trance during which 213 00:14:57,760 --> 00:15:00,200 Speaker 1: he was given visions of the true history of the 214 00:15:00,200 --> 00:15:04,200 Speaker 1: world and how it had been created, dating back fifteen 215 00:15:04,680 --> 00:15:08,120 Speaker 1: four hundred years to the time before Adam, all the 216 00:15:08,200 --> 00:15:12,080 Speaker 1: way to the birth of Christ. Benny had also begun 217 00:15:12,120 --> 00:15:16,440 Speaker 1: recording each and every vision he'd experienced for inclusion in 218 00:15:16,480 --> 00:15:21,120 Speaker 1: a book he was planning to write. In response, Antonio, 219 00:15:21,480 --> 00:15:24,760 Speaker 1: who like Benny, had been brought up a strict Roman Catholic, 220 00:15:25,120 --> 00:15:28,600 Speaker 1: tried at first to ignore his brother's strange and growing obsession, 221 00:15:29,040 --> 00:15:32,800 Speaker 1: until eventually he couldn't bear it any longer. By nineteen 222 00:15:32,800 --> 00:15:36,200 Speaker 1: oh eight, he'd become so unsettled by it he disowned 223 00:15:36,240 --> 00:15:38,800 Speaker 1: Benny and sent him away to the town of York 224 00:15:38,880 --> 00:15:41,960 Speaker 1: in Pennsylvania, where he was able to find more work 225 00:15:42,040 --> 00:15:47,320 Speaker 1: in railroad construction. Antonio knew little about his brother's time 226 00:15:47,440 --> 00:15:50,760 Speaker 1: spent in York, but by nineteen twenty the pair had 227 00:15:50,760 --> 00:15:55,000 Speaker 1: been reconciled, with Benny joining Antonio in Detroit, where he'd 228 00:15:55,000 --> 00:15:59,880 Speaker 1: since moved with his family. Like thousands of others, Antonio 229 00:16:00,040 --> 00:16:02,600 Speaker 1: had been drawn to the city by the extraordinary boom 230 00:16:02,600 --> 00:16:06,480 Speaker 1: of the automobile industry, led by the Ford Motor Company 231 00:16:06,600 --> 00:16:19,560 Speaker 1: and General Motors. Benny, however, had other ideas. Benny's time 232 00:16:19,560 --> 00:16:22,880 Speaker 1: in York had done nothing to dampen his apparent fascination 233 00:16:23,000 --> 00:16:26,080 Speaker 1: with mysticism, and by the time he moved to Detroit, 234 00:16:26,480 --> 00:16:29,800 Speaker 1: he'd even established himself as something of a prophet and 235 00:16:30,000 --> 00:16:34,720 Speaker 1: faith healer, and soon rumors of his unusual talent began 236 00:16:34,840 --> 00:16:39,000 Speaker 1: to spread around the neighborhood. Working as a carpenter by day, 237 00:16:39,480 --> 00:16:43,800 Speaker 1: at night, Benny moonlighted as a healer and prophet for higher, 238 00:16:44,280 --> 00:16:47,760 Speaker 1: offering spells and healing rituals for up to ten dollars 239 00:16:47,800 --> 00:16:51,120 Speaker 1: a pop. Though some might come for the novelty of 240 00:16:51,200 --> 00:16:54,320 Speaker 1: a fortune read or the purchase of a love potion, 241 00:16:54,880 --> 00:16:57,960 Speaker 1: ten dollars or one hundred and forty dollars in today's 242 00:16:57,960 --> 00:17:02,360 Speaker 1: money wasn't cheap, and while others derided him as nothing 243 00:17:02,400 --> 00:17:06,359 Speaker 1: but a circus fraud, many sincerely believed that what Benny 244 00:17:06,480 --> 00:17:10,639 Speaker 1: was offering would cure them of their ills. It was 245 00:17:10,760 --> 00:17:14,560 Speaker 1: during one such appointment that Benny met his wife, Santina, 246 00:17:14,840 --> 00:17:17,800 Speaker 1: and before long, the pair had moved in together and 247 00:17:17,880 --> 00:17:22,720 Speaker 1: were expecting their first child. Over time, Benny made so 248 00:17:22,840 --> 00:17:25,040 Speaker 1: much money he was able to do away with the 249 00:17:25,119 --> 00:17:29,480 Speaker 1: carpentry altogether and instead turned his attention to real estate 250 00:17:29,760 --> 00:17:33,200 Speaker 1: while continuing to moonlight as a faith healer. And as 251 00:17:33,240 --> 00:17:37,040 Speaker 1: the real estate business grew, so too did Benny's commitment 252 00:17:37,240 --> 00:17:41,480 Speaker 1: to his more unusual profession. After moving into the large, 253 00:17:41,520 --> 00:17:45,359 Speaker 1: four bedroom house at thirty five eighty seven Saint Auban Street, 254 00:17:45,840 --> 00:17:49,280 Speaker 1: he immediately set about converting the basement into an altar 255 00:17:49,680 --> 00:17:52,480 Speaker 1: that would become the center point of his healing rituals. 256 00:17:53,640 --> 00:17:56,600 Speaker 1: The strange folk models he'd had constructed and hung up 257 00:17:56,600 --> 00:18:00,399 Speaker 1: in their were depictions of various celestial planets, which he 258 00:18:00,440 --> 00:18:02,760 Speaker 1: would then use to help read the signs that he 259 00:18:02,840 --> 00:18:07,000 Speaker 1: claimed to receive from God. And on February second, nineteen 260 00:18:07,000 --> 00:18:11,320 Speaker 1: twenty six, twenty years after he started, he finally finished 261 00:18:11,320 --> 00:18:14,520 Speaker 1: his book, which was published that year under the title 262 00:18:15,040 --> 00:18:18,880 Speaker 1: The Oldest History of the World Discovered by a Cult Science, 263 00:18:19,800 --> 00:18:23,120 Speaker 1: many copies of which were found by police piled up 264 00:18:23,119 --> 00:18:27,600 Speaker 1: in his home. In it, Benny laid out the history 265 00:18:27,600 --> 00:18:30,280 Speaker 1: of the world as it had apparently been dictated to 266 00:18:30,359 --> 00:18:34,880 Speaker 1: him by God, in effect constituting a new Earth, which 267 00:18:34,920 --> 00:18:40,480 Speaker 1: he named the Great Union Federation of America. In spite 268 00:18:40,480 --> 00:18:43,679 Speaker 1: of this all, however, Benny continued to attend the local 269 00:18:43,720 --> 00:18:47,639 Speaker 1: Catholic church, San Francesco's, which had become a haven for 270 00:18:47,800 --> 00:18:52,399 Speaker 1: much of the local Italian population. Located on Brewster Street, 271 00:18:52,600 --> 00:18:56,000 Speaker 1: only a few blocks from Saint Auban's, it was presided 272 00:18:56,000 --> 00:19:01,000 Speaker 1: over by Father Francis Beccarini. Each of Any and Santina's 273 00:19:01,040 --> 00:19:05,560 Speaker 1: four children were baptized there, leading Father Beccherini to suspect 274 00:19:05,760 --> 00:19:08,720 Speaker 1: as he later told the police that Benny's interest in 275 00:19:08,760 --> 00:19:12,479 Speaker 1: the occult was purely for financial gain, as opposed to 276 00:19:12,520 --> 00:19:17,640 Speaker 1: any genuine spiritual interest. And yet, even at the time 277 00:19:17,680 --> 00:19:22,080 Speaker 1: of his death, every night from midnight to three am, 278 00:19:22,240 --> 00:19:25,280 Speaker 1: Benny continued to sit at his desk in his office 279 00:19:25,720 --> 00:19:34,040 Speaker 1: and wait for the visions from God. Are you a 280 00:19:34,040 --> 00:19:36,960 Speaker 1: proud cat person? You love your cat, but that doesn't 281 00:19:37,000 --> 00:19:38,920 Speaker 1: mean you love having a litter box in your home. 282 00:19:39,359 --> 00:19:42,160 Speaker 1: Kitty Poo Club takes care of the more unpleasant parts 283 00:19:42,160 --> 00:19:44,639 Speaker 1: of cat ownership so you can get back to loving 284 00:19:44,640 --> 00:19:47,280 Speaker 1: your furry friend. 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A checkout at a loss 301 00:20:45,640 --> 00:20:48,720 Speaker 1: to establish a motive, the police began to wonder if 302 00:20:48,720 --> 00:20:51,680 Speaker 1: Benny and his family had been murdered by a disgruntled 303 00:20:51,720 --> 00:20:55,560 Speaker 1: customer who he'd been unable to heal, or perhaps the 304 00:20:55,640 --> 00:20:58,280 Speaker 1: partner of one of the women whose underwear he'd been 305 00:20:58,359 --> 00:21:02,719 Speaker 1: keeping in the attic. Another theory was that, if Benny 306 00:21:02,840 --> 00:21:05,119 Speaker 1: had been working to build up a cult following for 307 00:21:05,200 --> 00:21:08,119 Speaker 1: his new religion, perhaps one of the followers, in a 308 00:21:08,160 --> 00:21:11,040 Speaker 1: fit of religious mania, had been driven mad by the 309 00:21:11,119 --> 00:21:14,840 Speaker 1: grotesque figurines during one of his rituals and had later 310 00:21:14,880 --> 00:21:18,879 Speaker 1: returned to the house to murder the family. Things weren't 311 00:21:18,920 --> 00:21:21,440 Speaker 1: helped by the fact that many in the local neighborhood, 312 00:21:21,800 --> 00:21:24,159 Speaker 1: some because of how they'd been treated in the past 313 00:21:24,640 --> 00:21:28,080 Speaker 1: and others due to their not entirely legal status, had 314 00:21:28,119 --> 00:21:31,359 Speaker 1: grown suspicious of the police, and so they were reluctant 315 00:21:31,400 --> 00:21:35,600 Speaker 1: to come forward with any pertinent information. Of the few 316 00:21:35,640 --> 00:21:39,160 Speaker 1: neighbors and friends that did speak, however, despite Benny's own 317 00:21:39,200 --> 00:21:42,680 Speaker 1: doctor describing him as insane on account of his dealings 318 00:21:42,680 --> 00:21:46,000 Speaker 1: in the occult, most had only warm things to say 319 00:21:46,080 --> 00:21:49,600 Speaker 1: about him and his family. Though they thought it ought 320 00:21:49,800 --> 00:21:52,399 Speaker 1: whenever they saw him in the street, gazing toward the 321 00:21:52,440 --> 00:21:56,440 Speaker 1: sky and gesticulating wildly, he appeared to be well respected 322 00:21:56,480 --> 00:22:00,000 Speaker 1: among the local community. He'd even been granted a life 323 00:22:00,080 --> 00:22:03,680 Speaker 1: since by the state of Michigan to practice his unusual medicine, 324 00:22:04,760 --> 00:22:07,359 Speaker 1: and as for his visions of the real Earth history 325 00:22:07,600 --> 00:22:10,480 Speaker 1: that he hoped to spread through his own Bible, it 326 00:22:10,560 --> 00:22:14,440 Speaker 1: was no more speculative or unquantifiable as the very book 327 00:22:14,600 --> 00:22:19,439 Speaker 1: under which much of the nation labored. For the police investigators, however, 328 00:22:19,960 --> 00:22:24,680 Speaker 1: it was all a little too peculiar that no money, jewelry, 329 00:22:24,800 --> 00:22:27,479 Speaker 1: or anything else of monetary value appeared to have been 330 00:22:27,520 --> 00:22:30,800 Speaker 1: taken in the attack only seemed to strengthen their theory 331 00:22:31,040 --> 00:22:34,399 Speaker 1: that his dabblings in the occult were to blame. A 332 00:22:34,480 --> 00:22:37,360 Speaker 1: brief attempt to connect the crime with a similarly horrific 333 00:22:37,400 --> 00:22:40,040 Speaker 1: and brutal murder of a woman and her two children 334 00:22:40,200 --> 00:22:45,199 Speaker 1: in nearby River Rouge was quickly dismissed. Despite offering a 335 00:22:45,240 --> 00:22:49,320 Speaker 1: thousand dollars or fourteen thousand in today's money for any 336 00:22:49,320 --> 00:23:00,920 Speaker 1: substantial information, no one came forward. On Saturday j six, 337 00:23:01,320 --> 00:23:05,000 Speaker 1: as a crowd of three thousand gathered to watch six 338 00:23:05,080 --> 00:23:09,320 Speaker 1: opal colored caskets were wheeled out of fl Calcatira funeral 339 00:23:09,359 --> 00:23:13,280 Speaker 1: home by sixteen girls dressed all in white and pushed 340 00:23:13,320 --> 00:23:18,320 Speaker 1: across the road to San Francesco's church. Emotions were high 341 00:23:18,359 --> 00:23:22,400 Speaker 1: amongst the close knit community, shocked by the senseless brutality 342 00:23:22,440 --> 00:23:27,159 Speaker 1: of it all, as many, including Antonio Evangelista along with 343 00:23:27,200 --> 00:23:30,359 Speaker 1: his brother Joseph, who'd made the long and arduous journey 344 00:23:30,400 --> 00:23:35,560 Speaker 1: from Italy to be there, wept openly inside. With the 345 00:23:35,640 --> 00:23:38,679 Speaker 1: church having been filled up long before the service began. 346 00:23:39,160 --> 00:23:42,720 Speaker 1: The mourners stood as the six caskets were wheeled inside 347 00:23:43,160 --> 00:23:46,240 Speaker 1: and placed in single file, running all the way down 348 00:23:46,280 --> 00:23:51,920 Speaker 1: to the transept. As Father Beccarini led the solemn requiem mass, 349 00:23:52,520 --> 00:23:55,560 Speaker 1: many had to be helped from the building, having become 350 00:23:55,640 --> 00:24:01,119 Speaker 1: so overwhelmed with grief. Meanwhile, throughout the out a number 351 00:24:01,119 --> 00:24:04,240 Speaker 1: of plainclothed police officers kept a watchful eye on the 352 00:24:04,320 --> 00:24:08,880 Speaker 1: proceedings for any hint that the murderer might be among them. 353 00:24:09,080 --> 00:24:12,480 Speaker 1: One man immediately caught their attention, who was seen arriving 354 00:24:12,520 --> 00:24:15,680 Speaker 1: alone at the church by bike, wearing a battered hat 355 00:24:15,920 --> 00:24:20,359 Speaker 1: and a well worn suit. After deciding the man, John Ryan, 356 00:24:20,720 --> 00:24:25,960 Speaker 1: had been acting strangely, officers took him in for questioning. However, 357 00:24:26,280 --> 00:24:28,880 Speaker 1: the man, who was later judged to have been suffering 358 00:24:28,920 --> 00:24:33,359 Speaker 1: from psychiatric problems and who weighed barely ninety pounds, was 359 00:24:33,440 --> 00:24:38,280 Speaker 1: quickly released. Later that afternoon, the six bodies of the 360 00:24:38,280 --> 00:24:42,840 Speaker 1: evangelist family were taken to Mount Olivet Cemetery and laid 361 00:24:42,880 --> 00:24:52,920 Speaker 1: to rest. After the funeral, Detroit Police held a press 362 00:24:52,960 --> 00:24:56,800 Speaker 1: conference to appeal for witnesses, in particular anyone who might 363 00:24:56,840 --> 00:24:58,760 Speaker 1: have been walking by the house at the time of 364 00:24:58,760 --> 00:25:03,200 Speaker 1: the murders to and forward. With no further tangible clues 365 00:25:03,520 --> 00:25:07,040 Speaker 1: aside from the bloody Prince, the police began the arduous 366 00:25:07,080 --> 00:25:10,199 Speaker 1: task of pouring through the family's possessions in search of 367 00:25:10,240 --> 00:25:14,120 Speaker 1: a lead, having also at first been looking for an 368 00:25:14,119 --> 00:25:18,040 Speaker 1: axe as the murder weapon. Doctor Paul Clever, the Wayne 369 00:25:18,040 --> 00:25:21,919 Speaker 1: County coroner, who examined the bodies, concluded it was in 370 00:25:21,960 --> 00:25:24,640 Speaker 1: fact a sharp knife and not an axe, that they 371 00:25:24,640 --> 00:25:29,880 Speaker 1: should be looking for. Self styled human engineer and astrologer 372 00:25:29,960 --> 00:25:34,640 Speaker 1: Clark Robson, having consulted his astrological charts, gave his opinion 373 00:25:34,640 --> 00:25:39,000 Speaker 1: to the press, stating that the police needn't worry too much, since, 374 00:25:39,000 --> 00:25:43,000 Speaker 1: with mercury and uranus being fifty degrees apart, the killer, 375 00:25:43,400 --> 00:25:45,400 Speaker 1: who he judged to be a man of less than 376 00:25:45,440 --> 00:25:49,119 Speaker 1: medium height with a dark complexion, was also a show 377 00:25:49,119 --> 00:25:52,840 Speaker 1: off and would shortly confess to the crime to gain notoriety. 378 00:25:53,960 --> 00:25:57,960 Speaker 1: Robson also suggested that Benny, evangelist, who he claimed on 379 00:25:58,000 --> 00:26:01,320 Speaker 1: looking at his horoscope, was large driven by his desire 380 00:26:01,400 --> 00:26:04,679 Speaker 1: for money, had known his death was coming, and that 381 00:26:04,760 --> 00:26:07,639 Speaker 1: despite what the police had said, it was in fact 382 00:26:07,680 --> 00:26:10,240 Speaker 1: a dispute over money that led to his and his 383 00:26:10,320 --> 00:26:19,879 Speaker 1: family's murder. It was some point around the time of 384 00:26:19,920 --> 00:26:24,560 Speaker 1: the funeral, with investigators trawling through Benny's personal letters, that 385 00:26:24,680 --> 00:26:29,159 Speaker 1: they uncovered something unusual, a series of letters sent to 386 00:26:29,200 --> 00:26:34,399 Speaker 1: Benny demanding money, and though no threat was explicitly made, 387 00:26:35,000 --> 00:26:38,440 Speaker 1: it was more than implicit, not least because the letters 388 00:26:38,440 --> 00:26:43,600 Speaker 1: had been signed simply the Black Hand. Though not much 389 00:26:43,720 --> 00:26:46,080 Speaker 1: was known about the exact nature of the Black Hand 390 00:26:46,119 --> 00:26:49,800 Speaker 1: at the time, the organization is thought to have originated 391 00:26:49,840 --> 00:26:54,399 Speaker 1: in Napoli sometime in the eighteenth century. In nineteen oh seven, 392 00:26:54,720 --> 00:26:58,800 Speaker 1: a black Hand training camp was discovered in Hillsville, Pennsylvania. 393 00:26:59,000 --> 00:27:02,720 Speaker 1: While many proponents of the organization appeared to be active 394 00:27:02,800 --> 00:27:06,600 Speaker 1: in most Italian communities of major cities on both sides 395 00:27:06,640 --> 00:27:11,120 Speaker 1: of the country, many police departments within the corresponding cities 396 00:27:11,240 --> 00:27:15,879 Speaker 1: had even established special Blackhand units to combat them, and 397 00:27:16,040 --> 00:27:19,280 Speaker 1: so it seemed finally the police had the lead they've 398 00:27:19,280 --> 00:27:24,760 Speaker 1: been looking for. Surely, now solving the murders would only 399 00:27:24,800 --> 00:27:32,280 Speaker 1: be a matter of time. You're listening to Unexplained, Season five, 400 00:27:32,359 --> 00:27:36,840 Speaker 1: Episode twelve, Profit and Loss, Part one of two. Part 401 00:27:36,880 --> 00:27:43,439 Speaker 1: two will be released next Friday, March nineteenth. If you 402 00:27:43,520 --> 00:27:46,280 Speaker 1: enjoy Unexplained and would like to help supporters, you can 403 00:27:46,320 --> 00:27:49,560 Speaker 1: now do so via Patreon. To receive access to add 404 00:27:49,600 --> 00:27:53,199 Speaker 1: three episodes, just go to patron dot com, forward slash 405 00:27:53,280 --> 00:27:56,320 Speaker 1: Unexplained pod to sign up, or if you'd like to 406 00:27:56,359 --> 00:27:59,160 Speaker 1: make a one time donation, you can go to Unexplained 407 00:27:59,200 --> 00:28:04,200 Speaker 1: Podcast forward Slash Support. All donations, no matter how large 408 00:28:04,240 --> 00:28:09,040 Speaker 1: or small, are greatly appreciated. Unexplained, the book and audiobook, 409 00:28:09,359 --> 00:28:12,159 Speaker 1: featuring ten stories that have never before been covered on 410 00:28:12,160 --> 00:28:15,760 Speaker 1: the show, is now available to buy worldwide. You can 411 00:28:15,760 --> 00:28:20,200 Speaker 1: purchase through Amazon, Barnes and Noble, and Waterstones, among other bookstores. 412 00:28:21,040 --> 00:28:24,720 Speaker 1: All elements of Unexplained, including the show's music, are produced 413 00:28:24,720 --> 00:28:28,000 Speaker 1: by me Richard McClane smith. Please subscribe and rate the 414 00:28:28,040 --> 00:28:30,960 Speaker 1: show wherever you listen to podcasts, and feel free to 415 00:28:31,000 --> 00:28:33,560 Speaker 1: get in touch with any thoughts or ideas regarding the 416 00:28:33,600 --> 00:28:36,280 Speaker 1: stories you've heard on the show. Perhaps you have an 417 00:28:36,320 --> 00:28:38,080 Speaker 1: explanation of your own you'd like to share