Latest Episodes

Ezra Allen Miner, more commonly known as Bill Miner, was an infamous American stagecoach and train robber born in Michigan in 1846. Bill Miner's criminal career included an early arrest on April 3, 1866, for robbery, leading to a three-year sentence at San Quentin. Over thirty-five years, Miner was incarcerated for a cumulative total of nearly 30 years, experiencing two official releases and making five escapes from custody. He became infamous in Canada for robbing the Canadian Pacific Railway (CPR) and securing his status as a legendary figure in Canadian outlaw lore, which included an escape from the B.C. Penitentiary in New Westminster. Known by nicknames such as “The Grey Fox” and the “Gentleman Bandit,” Miner was celebrated for his courteous demeanour during his heists. Furthermore, he is often credited with popularizing the now-iconic command during robberies, “Hands up!”; however, this may be hyperbole. Miner’s blend of politeness and notoriety helped cement his legacy in the annals of Canadian criminal folklore.

Douglas Donald Moore, known in Meadowvale, Ontario, as a drug supplier for young teens, gained notoriety in Mississauga for killing three young men before taking his own life in his jail cell while awaiting trial on 11 charges for sexual assaults on three boys. Peel Regional Police assert that Robert Grewal, 22, of Meadowvale, and Giuseppe (Joseph) Manchisi, 20, of Milton, who were close friends, were killed in 2003 by Moore. After Moore’s death, he was named the prime suspect in the murders of Grewal and Manchisi. Additionally, police believe Moore was responsible for killing Rene Charlebois, 15, also of Meadowvale. All three victims disappeared in late 2003, and their bodies were discovered in spring 2004. Charlebois’ remains were found in an Orangeville landfill, while Grewal and Manchisi’s remains were located in wooded areas near Montreal. In 2005, Moore’s former common-law wife and an unidentified 16-year-old were convicted of accessory to murder after the fact. The teen assisted in disposing of evidence, including driving with Moore to Quebec to bury the bodies of Grewal and Manchisi. Moore believed the two men had stolen drugs and cash from him, but it was later revealed that the 16-year-old was responsible for the robbery. The police have never disclosed the motive behind the killing of Rene Charlebois.

In this episode, we explore a dark chapter of Winnipeg's criminal history, centred on the "Yuletide Bandit," notorious for his holiday-season robberies in the late 1990s and early 2000s. Michael David Syrnyk, known for targeting banks and armoured vehicles, executed his crimes with a reckless disregard for human life, often using firearms and viewing his victims merely as obstacles. His choice of the festive season for these heists added a cruel irony to his crimes, starkly contrasting with the spirit of joy and family. One notable incident was a shootout at Winnipeg’s Polo Park Mall, causing terror among Christmas shoppers. The dramatic end to his criminal spree came with a 12-hour standoff involving a former girlfriend, leading to his capture. This episode not only recounts Syrnyk's heinous acts but also underscores the lasting impact of his crimes on the victims and the broader community in Winnipeg.

On the evening of December 21, 1883, near Bloomfield, Ontario, visitor Peter Lazier was murdered by two intruders at the farmhouse of Quakers Gilbert and Margaret Jones. The community, deeply affected, quickly organized a search. They traced footprints in the snow, leading to Joseph Thomset and the Lowder family's homes near West Lake. By the next day, Joseph Thomset and brothers David and George Lowder were arrested and charged with murder. The legal process moved rapidly. The coroner's inquest began the next day, followed by formal proceedings within a week. The trial, held at the Prince Edward County Courthouse in Picton just five months later, suggested the motive was robbery, aimed at stealing the $555 Gilbert Jones earned from selling hops. George Lowder and Joseph Thomset were found guilty of murder and hanged in June of 1884. Many felt justice was served, but others believed the law got it wrong, acting hastily without sufficient evidence.

On March 27, 2020, Jacob Sansom, 39, and his uncle, Maurice Cardinal, 57, both Métis, went hunting in Glendon, Alberta. They later began driving along Range Road 484, where they were mistakenly suspected of planning a burglary by Roger Bilodeau, a white property owner. Bilodeau, 58, and his 16-year-old son, Joseph, gave chase, reaching speeds up to 150 km/h. Another son, Anthony Bilodeau, 33, was called to join during the chase. He did and brought a gun. After a confrontation at an intersection near Glendon, Alberta, Anthony shot and killed both Sansom and Cardinal. The Bilodeaus fled the scene, offering no aid, nor did they contact authorities. The victims’ bodies were discovered by a passerby hours later.

As this is our special Christmas episode. It is our tradition to tell a Yuletide-themed yarn. This one is about a duo of bandits who burglarized various shopping malls across the United States and Canada year after year during the holidays. Their insidious M.O. was to work from the inside. The group’s leader, a safe cracker named Willie Thomas Soke and his sidekick, a little person of colour called Marcus Skidmore, would acquire jobs inside the department store. Soke, a foul-mouthed, chronic alcoholic and sex addict, would play the store’s Santa Claus, and Skidmore, his evil sidekick, would be one of Santa’s elves. Finally, after the murder of the head of a mall security manager named Johnny ‘Gin’ Calhoun at a Phoenix, Arizona, shopping complex, the pair were brought to justice in 2003. This was thanks partly to the unwitting help of a Canadian-born 10-year-old boy, Thurman Merman, who was living in Phoenix with his grandmother.

On March 3, 2005, a contingent of RCMP constables, attended the property of James Michael Roszko, 46 in Rochfort Bridge, near Mayerthorpe, Alberta. The members were there to serve a search warrant for stolen property and a marijuana-growing operation on the farm, discovered the day before. Roszko, knowing the police would be arriving soon, armed himself with the help of a couple friends, Shawn Hennessey and Dennis Cheeseman, and then he laid in wait for the RCMP. When four of the officers, *Anthony Gordon, Lionide “Leo” Johnston, Brock Myrol and Peter Schiemann*, walked into a quonset hut on the farm. Roszko, hidden inside the building, opened fire on the four members, killing them and then himself before the other RCMP members on site could come to their aid. In the last episode we learned of the life of the murderer leading up to the day of the slaying of the four RCMP members. In this episode you’ll hear about the crime and its aftermath.

On March 3, 2005, a contingent of RCMP constables attended the property of James Michael Roszko, 46, in Rochfort Bridge, near Mayerthorpe, Alberta. The members were there to serve a search warrant for stolen property and a marijuana-growing operation on the farm, discovered the day before. Roszko, knowing the police would be arriving soon, armed himself with the help of a couple of friends, Shawn Hennessey and Dennis Cheeseman, and then he lay in wait for the RCMP. When four of the officers, Anthony Gordon, Lionide “Leo” Johnston, Brock Myrol and Peter Schiemann, walked into a quonset hut on the farm. Roszko, hidden inside the building, opened fire on the four members, killing them and then himself before the other RCMP members on-site could come to their aid. This episode covers the life of the murderer and leads us up to the slaying of the four RCMP members. Next week in part 2, you’ll hear about the crime and its aftermath.

Episode 221: On the morning of December 31, 1888, in Saint-Pierre and Miquelon, friends found 61-year-old fisherman François Coupard dead in his fishing shack. Someone had brutally slain Coupard and had mutilated his body horribly after his murder. A quick investigation led to two men, Auguste Neel and Louis Ollivier, trying to flee to Newfoundland on a stolen fishing boat. The pair later admitted their roles in the murder and were tried and convicted. Ollivier was sentenced to 10 years at hard labour, while Neel, against whom the evidence was more solid, received a death sentence, which was carried out on August 24, 1889. This execution was the first and last in North America using a guillotine to do the deed.Sources:ExecutedToday.com » auguste neel19/02/1930 : Affaire NEEL Auguste et OLLIVIER Louis – Saint-Pierre et Miquelon : Ephéméridesaffaire néel - Histoire des îles St Pierre et MiquelonSaint Pierre and Miquelon - WikipediaL’Île-aux-Marins - WikipediaCanada’s top court says voluntary extreme intoxication a defence in violent crimes | Globalnews.caR. v. Brown, 2022 SCC 18 (CanLII), the dive spell: Saint Pierre Island: site of the only guillotine execution in north americaLa Veuve de Saint-PierreHistory of the Guillotine8 Things You May Not Know About the Guillotine - HISTORYThe Paris Review - The Bloody Family History of the GuillotineLouis XVI - WikipediaDoes the head remain briefly conscious after decapitation (revisited)? - The Straight DopeExploring The French Instrument Of Death: The Guillotine | Thought CatalogGuillotine by Robert Frederick Opie - Ebook | ScribdExecution by Geoffrey Abbott - Ebook | ScribdThe Widow of Saint-Pierre - WikipediaSt. Pierre, a Tiny Pin Point of France and Al Capone’s Prohibition Haunt: Canadian Odyssey on the Looney Front — Part 10 | HuffPost LifeSept. 10, 1977: Heads Roll for the Last Time in France | WIRED5 really cool things about Saint-Pierre and Miquelon - Newfoundland and Labrador, CanadaSupport the show: https://www.patreon.com/darkpoutine

Episode 203: On May 7, 1992, after the McDonald’s restaurant on Kings Road near Keltic Drive in Sydney River, Nova Scotia, closed for the night and the overnight crew was coming in and the evening crew was leaving. Three young men, armed with a shovel handle, knives and a .22 calibre pistol robbed the establishment. They beat, stabbed and shot 4 of the restaurant workers, killing three, Jimmy Fagan, 27, Donna Warren, 22, and Neil Burroughs Jr., 29, and critically wounding 20-year-old, Arlene MacNeil, who was permanently disabled both physically and mentally, requiring round the clock care until her death in 2018. The crime’s brutality brought unwelcome international media attention to the small town, especially when the truth came out. To almost everyone’s surprise, days after the murders, it quickly became evident that the brutal crime had been committed by three, fairly well-liked young men from the area. They’d robbed the place for its cash, making off with a tiny fraction of what they had assumed would be in the restaurant’s safe.Sources:Sydney River McDonald’s murders - WikipediaR. v. Muise, 1992 CanLII 4046 (NS SC), R. v. MacNeil, 1993 CanLII 4442 (NS SC), R. v. MacNeil, 1993 CanLII 4449 (NS SC), R. v. Wood, 1993 CanLII 4535 (NS SC), R. v. Muise (No. 1), 1993 CanLII 4555 (NS SC), R. v. Muise, 1994 NSCA 198 (CanLII), R. v. Wood, 1994 NSCA 239 (CanLII), R. v. MacNeil, 1995 NSCA 10 (CanLII), Twenty years of heartache | The Chronicle HeraldN.S. McDonald’s killer granted full parole | CBC NewsMcDonald’s killer Darren Muise ‘financially secure’ and ‘living a good life’ on parole: documents - Halifax | Globalnews.caMcDonald’s murderer ‘financially secure’ and ‘living a good life’: parole documents | CTV NewsDerek Wood, convicted in McDonald’s murders, denied day parole | CBC NewsWood v Warden (Atlantic Institution), 2017 CanLII 67340 (NB CA), Derek Anthony Wood and the Sydney River McDonald’s Murders - Christopher di Armani.comSydney River McDonald’s killer loses appeal | SaltWireOne of three men convicted in McDonald’s murders awarded unescorted absences   - Halifax | Globalnews.ca24 Sep 2000, 28 - The Winnipeg Sun at Newspapers.comMurder at McDonald’s: The Killers Next Door eBook : Jessome, Phonse: Amazon.ca: Kindle StoreSupport the show: https://www.patreon.com/darkpoutine