Dark Poutine – True Crime & Dark History

This historical, true crime podcast hosted by Kru Williams from History Television’s hit original series Deadman’s Curse: The Legend of the Lost Gold investigates the curse and legend surrounding the lost gold mine of Pitt Lake.

On their quest they’re joined by members of the Stó:lō and Katzie First Nations, historians and cultural experts of diverse backgrounds, as they sort fact from fiction and give Slumach a voice from the other side of the veil.

You’ll hear about how an Indigenous prospector, accused of murder set a curse on anyone who searched for his hidden gold just before he was hanged. Over a century later, a prospector, a mountaineer, a truth-seeker and a way-shower band together to walk the same paths of those who went looking for Slumach’s cursed gold and never returned find how a single bullet was the catalyst for a 150-year-old mystery.

Click here to find it on your favourite podcast app.

Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Episode 275: On May 8, 1984, a man with a beard, dressed in Canadian Forces camouflage attire and wearing a beret, entered the studios of CJRP, a radio station in Quebec City. Employees at the station noticed the man had a knife secured to his leg. The man approached the assistant to radio host André Arthur’s assistant, presented her with an envelope while introducing himself as “Mr. D.” and promptly left.

The man was later identified as Denis Lortie, a 25-year-old disgruntled Canadian Forces corporal who then entered the Citadelle de Quebec to commit a mass shooting of members of the National Assembly of Quebec. He opened fire, killing three unelected legislature employees, Georges Boyer, 61, Camille Lepage, 54, and Roger Lefrançois, 57. He injured thirteen others before being apprehended, thanks to the heroism of René Marc Jalbert, a retired Canadian Forces officer and the sergeant-at-arms of the National Assembly of Quebec. Lortie’s actions shocked the nation and prompted discussions on security measures and political extremism. Jalbert’s earned him the Cross of Valour, Canada’s highest civilian bravery award.

Sources:

Home – La Citadelle de Québec – Musée Royal 22e Régiment

This is the story of how one lock and key, unlocked terror. | Diefenbunker.ca

Dramatic video: 30th Anniversary of National Assembly shootings | CBC.ca

“Mr. D.” – TIME

The Père-version of the Political in the Case of Denis Lortie

Canadian Parliamentary Review – Article

Il y a 20 ans, la fusillade de l’Assemblée nationale | Radio-Canada.ca

Le Soleil > Itinéraire d’un tueur

1990 CanLII 3485 (QC CA) | R. c. Lortie | CanLII

1986 CanLII 7293 (QC CA) | Lortie v. R. | CanLII

Lortie, Re, 1985 CanLII 3637 (QC CA) | Lortie Re. | CanLii

Rampage: Canadian Mass Murder and Spree Killing by Dr. Lee Mellor | Scribd

Mr. René Marc Jalbert | The Governor General of Canada

Canadian Parliamentary Review – Article

Lortie Released | The Canadian Encyclopedia

Plaque to honour victims of 1984 National Assembly shooting unveiled | Montreal Gazette

J’étais la femme du tueur: le récit de Lise Levesque, épouse du caporal Denis Lortie: Dominique Fournier: 9782920839052: Books – Amazon.ca

Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Episode 274: Trina Hunt, a 48-year-old woman from Port Moody, B.C., was reported missing on the evening of January 18, 2021. Her husband, Iain Hunt, claimed to have seen her at her home that morning. Her whereabouts remained unknown for weeks despite extensive search efforts by authorities and volunteers. Tragically, Trina’s body was discovered near Hope, B.C., South of Silver Creek on March 29, 2021. Her death was determined a homicide.  The investigation into her murder is ongoing, and her killer has yet to be apprehended.

Sources:

TrinaHunt.com

40 Hawthorn Drive – 40 Hawthorn Drive, Port Moody, BC

38 Hawthorn Drive, Port Moody, BC – 5 Beds for sale for $1,950,000

For sale: 38 HAWTHORN DRIVE, Port Moody, British Columbia V3H0A4 – R2732834 | REALTOR.ca

Missing Person – Port Moody Police Department

Family of missing Port Moody woman Trina Hunt makes a statement | GlobalNews

Trina Hunt’s family speaks out following the identification of her body | GlobalNews

Trina Hunt $50,000 Reward Offered | YouTube

IHIT – Trina Hunt investigation continues

IHIT – IHIT appeal to the public on the two-year anniversary of Trina Hunt investigation

Vancouver Sun | It has been two years since Trina Hunt was killed, and still no charge in the case

Facebook Page | Justice For Trina Hunt | Port Moody BC

JUSTICE FOR TRINA HUNT (@justicefortrina) | Instagram

GoFundMe | JUSTICE FOR TRINA

Unofficial Reddit Sub | r/MissingTrinaHunt

Twitter | @findtrina

The Murder Of Trina Hunt | Unofficial Facebook Discussion Group

Man arrested in connection with Trina Hunt killing released without charges | Globalnews.ca

Death of Chilliwack’s Shaelene Bell classified as ‘undetermined’: coroner – Hope Standard

Pinterest | Iain Hunt

Reddit | r/MissingTrinaHunt | Iain confronted at Dairy Queen

Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Episode 273: On August 15, 2009, the mutilated body of Jasmine Fiore, a 28-year-old Playboy model and aspiring actress, was found stuffed into a suitcase and discarded in a dumpster in Buena Park, California. The investigation quickly led to her husband, Ryan Jenkins, a Canadian real estate investor and former contestant on the reality TV show “Megan Wants a Millionaire.”

As the investigation progressed, a disturbing picture of domestic violence and jealousy emerged. It was revealed that Jenkins had a history of abusive behaviour towards Jasmine, and the couple had a tumultuous relationship. The motive for the murder appeared to be jealousy and control.

Ryan Jenkins fled to Canada, and an international manhunt was launched to apprehend him. However, on August 23, 2009, Jenkins was found dead in a Hope, British Columbia motel room. He had completed suicide by hanging himself.

This case generated widespread media coverage and sparked discussions about domestic violence, the dark side of reality TV, and the importance of raising awareness about toxic relationships. The tragic death of Jasmine Fiore served as a grim reminder of the dangers of domestic violence and the need for intervention and support for victims.

Sources:

Police: Violent Struggle Before Model’s Murder — YouTube

Ryan Jenkins | Murderpedia, the encyclopedia of murderers

Grim Reality: Jasmine Fiore and Ryan Jenkins — Introduction — Crime Library

Swimsuit Model’s Suspected Killer Husband Found Dead – ABC News

Friends of Murdered Model, Jasmine Fiore, Tell Her Story – ABC News

Friends mourn former swimsuit model, Bonny Doon native – Santa Cruz Sentinel

Jasmine Lepore Fiore (1981-2009) – Find a Grave Memorial

‘The Playboy Murders’: Model’s breast implants helped ID vic

Playboy model Jasmine Fiore’s reality TV millionaire husband Ryan Jenkins remains ‘on the run’ after her death | Daily Mail Online

Blood found in car of slain model, say police | CTV News

Ryan Jenkins’ Suicide Note: Love, Anger for Jasmine Fiore (Photos) – CBS News

The Playboy Murders: What happened to Jasmine Fiore?

Private memorial held in Calgary for Ryan Jenkins | CTV News

Police Discover Ryan Jenkins’ Suicide Note | Blog Archive | Vh1 Blog

Slain model’s ex-husband has assault record | CBC News

Thunderbird Motel

RCMP know woman who helped Jenkins – The Globe and Mail

Father of fugitive says he will talk | CTV News

Ryan Jenkins Death Rack/ Coat Rack (Item ID: 102251, End Time : N/A) – Ghouls Like Us

Wayback Machine — Collective Intelligence vs. Straightline International

Friends and family portray two very different Ryan Jenkins after murder, suicide – Red Deer Advocate

Reality TV contestant suspected of murdering his ex-wife found dead | US news | The Guardian

Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Episode 272: Peter Vasilievich Verigin, also known as “Lordly,” was a highly respected and influential leader among the Doukhobors. These Doukhobors had migrated to Canada in 1899, seeking a new life and religious freedom. Verigin was pivotal in guiding and inspiring them to create a strong and united community based on their religious beliefs.

However, tragedy struck in 1924, casting a dark shadow over Verigin’s legacy. An explosion occurred on Car 1586 of the Kettle Valley Line, resulting in the loss of Verigin’s life, the life of his companion, and seven others. The devastating incident left people shocked and searching for answers. Some suspected that fanatics or government agents might have been responsible, while others believed that fellow Doukhobors or accidental causes played a role. The truth behind this tragic event remains a mystery, and the case remains unsolved.

Sources:

Home | Doukhobor Heritage

Doukhobor Discovery Centre – Home

The Kootenay-Columbia Fuel Supply Company at Nelson, BC | Doukhobor Heritage

Explosion on the Kettle Valley Line: The Death of Peter Verigin

Peter Vasilevich Verigin | The Canadian Encyclopedia

Doukhobors | The Canadian Encyclopedia

The River Press 05 Nov 1902, page 2 – Newspapers.com

Times Colonist 29 Oct 1924, page 1 – Newspapers.com

Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Episode 271: In this episode, we’re providing updates on two historical shows that are now recently solved by way of updates to DNA technology and genetic genealogy. In the first half of this episode, we have recent updates to show 130, where we learned of the brutal rape and murder of a Montreal teen, Sharron Prior. We can finally answer the question posed in that episode’s title, “Who Killed Sharron Prior?”

In the second half, we go all the way back to episode 13, “Babes in the Woods – Stanley Park.” In that show, we learned that in 1953 in Vancouver’s Stanley Park, the skeletal remains of two young boys who were murdered around 1947 with a hatchet that was found near their bones. The boys’ identities remained a mystery until 2022, when their names were finally restored.

Sources:

Sharron Prior

Sharron Prior’s website

Sharron Prior website blog

Documentary: Don’t Rest in Peace | Crave.ca

Sharron Prior’s family relieved Longueuil police solve cold case 48 years later | Global News

Babes in the Woods

VPD identifies child victims in historic cold case murder | Vancouver Police Department

Vancouver police share details about Babes in the Woods case | Vancouver Is Awesome

Identities of Stanley Park Babes in the Woods revealed almost 70 years later | Globalnews.ca

Babes in the Woods officially identified, 75 years after their death | Vancouver Sun

Who are the Babes in the Woods found dead in Stanley Park? | Vancouver Is Awesome

68UMBC

69UMBC

Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Episode 270: Having just set out from Quebec City the previous day, in the early hours of May 29, 1914, the passenger ship Empress of Ireland sank in the Saint Lawrence River near Rimouski, Quebec. She was on a return trip to Liverpool, England and due to heavy fog, the ship collided with the Norwegian collier SS Storstad. 

Just two years after the Titanic calamity in international waters off the coast of Nova Scotia came the deadliest shipwreck in Canadian history. The event was so significant it is number 11 on the list of deadliest all-time Canadian disasters, just behind number 10, the Halifax Explosion.

The collision occurred when most of the 1,057 passengers and 420 crew members were fast asleep. The aftermath was devastating; the liner plummeted beneath the waters in less than a quarter of an hour, resulting in the tragic loss of more than 1,000 lives.

Sources:

Commémoration Empress of Ireland 2014

ARCHIVED: Investigating the Empress of Ireland | Library and Archives Canada

The Empress of Ireland disaster | National Museums Liverpool

Into the Mist by Anne Renaud – Ebook | Scribd

Losing the Empress by David Creighton – Ebook | Scribd

Dark Descent by Kevin F. McMurray – Ebook | Scribd

Empress of Ireland, ‘Canada’s Titanic,’ finally getting its due after 100 years – The Globe and Mail

Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Episode 269: On April 12, 1991, a group of teens attended a woodland party near Oromocto, New Brunswick, involving alcohol and drugs, including LSD. Pamela Gail Bischoff, 14, and William Wayne Dale (Billy) Stillman, 17, left the gathering together, marking the last sighting of Pamela Bischoff alive. Stillman returned home later, wet from the thighs down, cold, shaking, and sporting a cut above his eye with mud and grass on his pants.

Six days later, Pamela’s body was discovered in the Oromocto River, a short distance from the party site. The time of death correlated to the evening she had left with Billy Stillman. Eyewitnesses confirmed seeing a male accompanying Pamela near the discovery site, and Stillman was seen departing the area, his pants muddied. An autopsy showed that Pamela’s death resulted from head wounds, and there was evidence of sexual assault, which included semen inside her body.

Billy Stillman was arrested, released, arrested again and eventually charged and convicted in Pamela’s murder. Stillman’s appeals were based on alleged inappropriate conduct by the RCMP officers collecting important DNA evidence. This resulted in the case being heard and decided in Canada’s highest court in 1997, and a new trial was ordered.

Sources:

1995 CanLII 5579 (NB CA) | R. v. Stillman | CanLII

R. v. Stillman (W.W.D.) (1997), 192 N.B.R.(2d) 298 (TD | vLex Justis

1997 CanLII 384 (SCC) | R. v. Stillman | CanLII

Pamela Gail Bischoff – Life Through My Eyes

Pamela Gail Bischoff 1976-1991 – Ancestry®

The Constitution Act, 1982, Schedule B to the Canada Act 1982 (UK), 1982, c 11 | Federal Statutes

Oromocto — Deer Park

The Vancouver Sun 21 Mar 1997, page 7 – Newspapers.com

The New Brunswick Telegraph Journal 22 Sep 1992, page 3 – Newspapers.com

YouTube — What Happened To 14-Year-Old Pamela Bischoff? | Dark Waters Of Crime | Real Crime

ARCHIVED – Kingsclear Investigation Report | Civilian Review and Complaints Commission for the RCMP

ROBERT FREDERICK BISCHOFF: obituary and death notice on InMemoriam

Criminal AND Civil LAW Assignment – Regina vs. Stillman Criminal and Civil Law – Case Law Assignment – StuDocu

Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Episode 268: On November 18, 1987, Jay Cook, 20, and Tanya Van Cuylenborg, 18, a young couple from Vancouver Island, went on a road trip to Seattle, Washington. Unfortunately, they were never seen alive again.

Their bodies were discovered weeks later in separate locations. Tanya had been raped, shot, and left in a ditch in Skagit County. Jay was found strangled in the woods near Monroe, about 60 miles away.

The case went unsolved for over three decades until 2018, when authorities were able to use genetic genealogy to identify a suspect. He was arrested and charged with the murders. The man pleaded not guilty. In 2021, after his trial, the man was the first to be convicted using genetic genealogy. The couple’s killer was subsequently sentenced to life behind bars.

Sources:

The Murder of Jay Cook and Tanya Van Cuylenborg – Unsolved Mysteries

The disappearance of Tanya Van Cuylenborg and Jay Cook: Following a decades-old cold case – CBS News

Sheriff’s Office Seeks Information for Unsolved 1987 Murders | Snohomish County, WA

Sheriff’s Office Detectives Seek the Public’s Help to Identify Suspect in 1987 Double Homicide Cold Case | Snohomish County, WA

Arrest Made in 1987 Double Homicide Cold Case | Snohomish County, WA

2018 Annual Report | Skagit County Sheriff’s Office

Suspect arrested in 1987 deaths of a young couple from BC | HeraldNet.com

My cousin, the killer: Her DNA cracked a 1987 double murder – Victoria News

Parabon NanoLabs: Engineering DNA for Next-Generation Nanotech, Analytics, and Forensics

GENSCO | Home

Chelsea Rustad | AMA : IAmA

How DNA Expert CeCe Moore Solved 109 Cold Cases

Is murder in your DNA? – The Fifth Estate season premiere – YouTube

Killer of Tanya Van Cuylenborg and Jay Cook Sentenced | CBC News

Life in prison for 1987 killer of young Canadian couple | Seattle Weekly

Man convicted in the murder of Saanich couple left DNA on zip tie in 1987 – Victoria News

Man appealing genetic genealogy murder conviction was a violent child, his family told police | CBC News

State Of Washington, Respondent V. William Earl Talbott II

Conviction for 1987 murders of Tanya van Cuylenborg and Jay Cook overturned | CBC News)

Guilty verdict in 1987 killings of Saanich couple restored | CTV News

The Forever Witness by Edward Humes

Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Episode 267: On November 4, 1979, Iranian militants attacked the US embassy in Tehran, Iran, taking 66 diplomats and staff members hostage. Remarkably, six diplomats managed to slip away unnoticed. These individuals were Robert Anders, Cora Lijek, Mark Lijek, Joseph Stafford, Kathleen Stafford, and Lee Schatz. Schatz sought refuge at the Swedish embassy, while the others went to the British embassy. However, upon nearing the embassy, they encountered a large crowd of protestors obstructing their path. Consequently, they decided to take shelter at Anders’ residence and devise their next steps. After six harrowing days, the six American diplomats sought refuge at the Canadian embassy. 

The Canadian Ambassador to Iran, Ken Taylor, and his team provided shelter to the American diplomats and false Canadian passports. The Canadian government played a critical role in the mission to rescue them. The then-Canadian Prime Minister, Joe Clark, approved the operation and fully supported Ambassador Taylor and his team. 

The rescue mission, known as the “Canadian Caper,” involved the creation of a fake movie production company called “Studio Six” and the production of a fake science fiction film called “Argo.” The Canadian embassy staff, along with the American diplomats, managed to escape from Iran using a combination of air travel and ground transportation. They were safely evacuated from Iran on January 28, 1980. The role played by Canada in the hostage crisis was highly appreciated by the US government and earned Canada international recognition for helping resolve the crisis.

Sources:

How the Shah’s Cancer May Have Changed History

The Iranian Revolution — A timeline of events

Ken Taylor and the Canadian Caper

Our Man In Tehran by Robert Wright — Ebook | Scribd

The Canadian Caper — Pelletier, Jean | Internet Archive

Ken Taylor and the “Canadian Caper” | The Canadian Encyclopedia

Canada history: Jan 27, 1980 — The famous “Canadian Caper” rescue – RCI | English

What you won’t see in Argo — Macleans.ca

Argo, F**k Yourself: Iran and the Oscars – The Diplomat

‘We lost a true hero’: Ken Taylor, 1934-2015 – Macleans.ca

Tony Mendez, former CIA officer and inspiration for ‘Argo,’ dies at 78 – National | Globalnews.ca

Ken Taylor satisfied with Affleck’s shoutout to Canada during Oscar speech | Globalnews.ca

Canada and Iran

U.S. Relations With Iran – United States Department of State

Iran – The CIA World Factbook

Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices