Latest Episodes

In October 2008, the friends and family of 38-year-old Johnny Altinger were worried. Although emails and social media messages had indicated Johnny had run away on the spur of the moment with an unknown woman he’d just met, things didn’t add up. The messages did not have the same feel as Johnny’s typical fare, and he wasn’t known for his spontaneity. Police had already spoken with the tenant at the Edmonton garage that Johnny was directed to on the night he disappeared. They’d seen some things that concerned them, but there was no sign of Johnny. Something seemed off with the 29-year-old filmmaker Mark Andrew Twitchell, the man they’d spoken to. Little did the police know that only a week before Johnny vanished, another man, Gilles Tetreault, had suffered a bizarre attack at Twitchell’s hands after being lured to the same garage.

In October 2008, 38-year-old Johnny Altinger was looking for love online and, thinking he’d found it, was lured to his death in a dingy south Edmonton, Alberta garage. Johnny believed he would meet the girl of his dreams, but a Star Wars and Dexter-Morgan-obsessed serial killer wannabe and 29-year-old amateur filmmaker named Mark Andrew Twitchell awaited him in the garage’s darkness.

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.

On March 26, 1997, police found the bodies of 39 members of a religious UFO cult known as Heaven’s Gate in an 830 square-metre (9,000 square foot) home in Rancho Santa Fe, a San Diego suburb. All, including the group’s leader, Marshall Applewhite Jr., had died in a ritualistic act of mass suicide. The headline on the cult’s website, which remains online today, stated, “Hale-Bopp brings closure to Heaven’s Gate.” Over the following weeks, as investigators probed what happened in the home, the story of the Heaven’s Gate cult emerged, each detail weirder than the next. I wrote about this story in part three, The Madness of Crowds, in my first book, Murder Madness and Mayhem. I have always wanted to cover this on Dark Poutine. I have expanded on what I wrote, especially toward the end of the story, I get into more detail about the victims. The medium of a podcast also allows for other content, including audio clips from individuals involved in the case and other details I was otherwise unable to convey in the book including a Canadian connection. That’s right, this is not an away game.

Episode 214: On November 25, 2011, neighbours around the four-plex at 51st Avenue and 47th Street in the town of Innisfail, Alberta heard a bang which shook their homes. Some said sounded like a gunshot, others said it sounded like someone dropping a heavy pile of wood. The dining room window of one the corner suites had been blown outward, glass was strewn throughout the yard. Police were called to the scene by a bystander inside the home and found a horrific scene. The home was full of smoke and debris. There at the dining room table, still in her wheelchair, first responders discovered the body of 23-year-old, Victoria (Vicky) Shachtay who’d died in what appeared to have been an explosion.Sources:Innisfail | The Canadian EncyclopediaR v Malley, 2015 ABCA 213 (CanLII), R v Malley, 2017 ABCA 186 (CanLII), Malley (Re), 2014 IIROC 10 (CanLII), Malley (Re), 2014 IIROC 29 (CanLII), Blast that killed Vicky Shachtay was a ‘targeted attack’: police | National PostStepfather told victim not to open Christmas gift that turned out to be bomb | CTV NewsFriends, family gather to remember Vicky Shachtay - MountainviewToday.caDisabled woman killed by parcel bomb — YouTubeA defining case | Royal Canadian Mounted PoliceBombing suspect arrested, police hold conference — YouTubeBrian Malley loses last appeal chance - MountainviewToday.caPipe bomb - WikipediaThe pipe bomb: a modern terrorist weapon - PubMedGUILTY - Canada - Vicky Shachtay, 23, paraplegic, killed by bomb, Innisfail, AB, 25 Nov 2011Financial advisor found guilty in blast that killed disabled woman — macleans.caBomb that killed paraplegic Innisfail mom Vicky Shachtay disguised to look like Christmas presents, Red Deer court told | Edmonton SunFriends, family gather to remember Vicky Shachtay - MountainviewToday.caCharges laid in bombing murder of Vicky Shachtay - MountainviewToday.caVictoria Shachtay’s caregiver testifies about moments before fatal explosionMysterious package killed Alberta mother | CBC NewsCanada ‘extremely lucky’ to face few bomb threats, attacks: RCMP - iPoliticsPresentation to Finance Committee Re: Disability Tax Credit Regarding Bill C-462 | Council of Canadians with DisabilitiesVicky Shachtay’s step-dad issues statement about her murder | CTV NewsInvestment Executive: Brian Malley ArticlesGlobal News: Victoria Shachtay | News, Videos & ArticlesRed Deer Advocate: Vicky Shacktay ArticlesVictoria-Shachtay | National PostUnsolved Murders. Help us solve a crime today. Homehttp://www.unsolvedcrimes.caA machinist in rural Ontario flipped the switch on a flashlight that arrived in the mail. Then it exploded | The Star16 years later, police still don’t know who killed Paavo Henttonen | News | toronto.comSupport the show: https://www.patreon.com/darkpoutine

Episode 170 - In November of 1902, a rancher named Issac Belt from Haynes Creek near Red Deer, Alberta, had gone missing. Investigating officers had gone to Belt’s ranch to question a young man calling himself Bert Ellsworth, who was suspected of horse theft, who had been lending a hand there. That young man and Belt were both missing.  Police discovered the man claiming to be Ellsworth at a camp on the outskirts of Calgary. Some of Belt’s personal belongings were in Cashel's possession, and Cashel was wearing Issac's clothes. In reality, his name was Ernest Cashel, a 21-year-old American. He was on the run from U.S. and Canadian authorities for forgery and other crimes, including escaping from custody several times.  Cashel was arrested and charged with theft and later charged with Isaac Belt’s murder, convicted and sentenced to hang. Cashel escaped one last time, only days before he was to be executed, and was on the run for more than a month before being recaptured and sent to see his maker via the hangman. Sources: [The Case of Ernest Cashel | Maclean’s | December 1st 1930] [Ernest Cashel - Wikipedia] [2 Feb 1904, Page 1 - Vancouver Daily World at Newspapers.com] [Ernest Cashel Hanged at Calgary - Newspapers.com] [Scoundrels and Scallywags: Characters from Alberta’s Past by Brian Brennan] [The Pursuit of Ernest Cashel by MJ Malcolm] [14 Dec 1929, 39 - The Province at Newspapers.com] [Ernest Cashel Hanged - page 3 - Newspapers.com] [Hanged - Edmonton Journal (archived)] [Ernest Cashel on way to trial, Calgary, Alberta - Photo] [Ernest Cashel Story - Glenbow.org - January 30 - February 5] [Biography – NOLAN, PATRICK JAMES – Volume XIV (1911-1920)] Support the show: https://www.patreon.com/darkpoutine

Episode 156 - In 2006, Thomas George Svekla, 38, a man who’d been in and out of trouble since 16, became the focus of a murder investigation lead by the Project KARE task force. Svekla was a suspect in as many as twelve murders. He was only ever charged with two slayings, that of Theresa Innes and Rachel Quinney, but was designated a dangerous offender for his long history of violent offences. Co-host: Carol Browne Sources: R. v. Svekla, 2007 ABQB 557 (CanLII), R. v. Svekla, 2009 ABQB 181 (CanLII), R. v. Svekla, 2009 ABQB 187 (CanLII), R. v. Svekla, 2009 ABQB 193 (CanLII), R. v. Svekla, 2010 ABQB 370 (CanLII), R. v. Svekla, 2010 ABCA 390 (CanLII), R. v. Svekla, 2011 ABCA 154 (CanLII), Edmonton Journal - June 8, 2008 - Tom Svekla's Secret Life https://www.theglobeandmail.com/news/national/edmonton-killer-gets-life-no-parole-for-17-years/article18452563/ Support the show: https://www.patreon.com/darkpoutine

Episode 137 - At 9:30 a.m. on Friday, June 19, 1914, the worst coal mining disaster in Canadian history occurred at Hillcrest, Alberta, in the Crowsnest Pass region of western Canada. Episode written by Josina de Bree Sources: Anderson, Frank. “Hillcrest Mine Disaster” (Triumph and Tragedy in the Crowsnest Pass. Diana Wilson, Heritage House Publishing, Surrey, BC, 2005) www.crowsnest.bc.ca www.crowsnest-highway.ca www.hillcrestminedisaster.com Archival Holding PR0740. Provincial Archives of Alberta. https://hermis.alberta.ca/paa/Details.aspx?ObjectID=PR0740&dv=True&deptID=1 https://www.veterans.gc.ca/eng/remembrance/history/first-world-war/canada/Canada3 https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Saul_(Handel) http://www.indsci.com/the-monitor-blog/carbon-monoxide-carbon-dioxide/ https://www.healthlinkbc.ca/health-topics/hw193731 https://alchetron.com/Hillcrest-mine-disaster https://www.cbc.ca/player/play/2466176980 Support the show: https://www.patreon.com/darkpoutine

Episode 136 - In July of 1998, Keith Scott Black went missing. He was a respected Taekwondo instructor who had three schools near Kelowna., B.C., where he taught with his wife, Rhonda Petra Black. Rhonda was saying Keith had abandoned her, but Keith's sister Sandy and the cops knew there was more to the story. After five long years the story came to a conclusion as the true story emerged as did Keith's remains. Sources: R. v. Black, 2007 BCSC 1105 (CanLII),   R. v. Steadman, 2008 BCSC 1613 (CanLII), http://www.worldtaekwondo.org/ https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Fx5MLf3sdRQ  Support the show: https://www.patreon.com/darkpoutine