On March 8, 2019, former detention officer Kirk Martin was arrested in connection with a horrifying case of sexual and psychological abuse. The prior afternoon, he forced his way into his ex-girlfriend’s apartment using a spare key, attacked her, and subjected her to brutal assault.

After violating her, Martin locked her in a closet, keeping her confined for hours as she tried to calm him down, eventually persuading him they might reconcile. Following this, Martin permitted her to leave the closet but restricted her to the bedroom.

When Martin finally left, the woman was able to FaceTime her mother, instructing her to call 911. Police arrived quickly, leading to Martin’s arrest. His mugshot, taken as he was booked into Murray County Jail, revealed visible scratches inflicted by the victim in her struggle to defend herself. During questioning, Martin admitted that he had “let things get too far” and disclosed that tensions had been high following their recent breakup.

In November 2019, Martin was sentenced to life without parole. At trial, prosecutors presented substantial evidence and witness testimony, and shortly after his arrest, two additional victims came forward, recounting instances of abuse dating as far back as 2012.

This photograph shows renowned linguist and Mayan script decipherer Yuri Knorozov holding his beloved cat, Asya.

He always listed Asya as his co-author on his publications, but it was a detail that his editors always removed, much to his dismay. He also insisted on using this specific photograph, which was taken around 1980, as his official author photograph. When editors cropped Asya out, Knorozov was angry and expressed frustration at their lack of respect for his chosen collaborator.

Knorozov, a Soviet scholar, famously cracked the code of Mayan hieroglyphs in the 1950s, unraveling a mystery that had stumped researchers for decades. His dedication to his work, along with his insistence on honoring Asya’s role in his life, became part of his legend. In his view, Asya provided him with company and inspiration through long nights of research, becoming a kind of muse for his groundbreaking work.

In the small, tobacco-farming town of Truevine, Virginia, brothers George and Willie Muse were born into an impoverished sharecropping family. The brothers had albinism, a condition that causes pale skin and sensitivity to the sun, which made their laborious life under the harsh sun even more challenging. Tragically, their unique appearance caught the attention of a circus worker, leading to two conflicting stories of how the brothers ended up in a circus show.

One story claims the brothers were lured away and kidnapped by a man named James “Candy” Shelton. Another account suggests their mother, Harriet, may have initially allowed their participation in the circus with the hope they’d be returned soon. Either way, Harriet later discovered her sons had been sold across multiple circuses, displayed as “Eko and Iko” in degrading shows, marketed as “sheep-headed cannibals,” “aliens,” and more. For years, George and Willie endured miserable conditions, performing tirelessly in various sideshows.

Harriet tracked her sons down in 1927 when Ringling Bros. came to Roanoke, Virginia. She fought to free them, winning a legal settlement and securing their return. Eventually, the brothers continued performing under fairer terms, gaining financial stability, meeting the queen, and performing at prestigious venues.

Between the 1960s and 1998, Northern Ireland was embroiled in an ethno-nationalist conflict known as The Troubles. While the conflict mostly took part in Northern Ireland, the violence sometimes spilled over to the Republic of Ireland, England and even mainland Europe.

A total of 3,532 people died during these years, and another 47,500+ were injured.

For many, Northern Ireland was a no-go zone throughout The Troubles, but there was one woman who looked past the discord and came to visit: 18-year-old Inga Maria Hauser.

Inga was a student from Munich, Germany. She was known for her intrepid spirit, and had ambitions of one day becoming a singer. Inga was also a keen artist.

In March of 1988, Inga left her home in Munich and went backpacking across England and Scotland. On the 6th of April, 1988, Inga boarded a ferry in Scotland to Larne, Northern Ireland. During her travels, she kept a diary which she used to document the sights she saw and the people she met.

That morning, she had written in her diary: “Morning has broken in Scotland. Breakfast in Inverness. Nice town. Have to see the Loch Ness monster one day. Going to Glasgow now. Snowy mountains and wild landscape. Scotland is beautiful.”

The ferry docked in Larne at 9:40PM. Inga stepped off the ferry and disappeared into thin air, only to turn up dead two weeks later….

𝐑𝐞𝐚𝐝 𝐌𝐨𝐫𝐞:

Ella Harper, known as “The Camel Girl,” was born with a rare orthopedic condition known as congenital genu recurvatum, which caused her knees to bend backward.

This unique trait led her to walk on all fours, bringing her to prominence as the star of W. H. Harris’s Nickel Plate Circus in 1886. Touring across the country, Harper earned $200 per week—roughly equivalent to $6,800 today—making her one of the most successful sideshow performers of her time.

On the back of her pitch card, Harper wrote about her plans to leave show business and pursue education, stating, “I intend to quit the show business and go to school and fit myself for another occupation.”

True to her word, she eventually left the circus and pursued a quieter life. In 1905, Harper married a schoolteacher named Robert Savely. She lived out her remaining years in Tennessee, passing away in 1921 at the age of 51.

The “Doodler” or “Black Doodler” is the name given to an unidentified serial killer believed to have murdered up to 14 gay men in San Francisco during the 1970s.

He earned his eerie nickname because he would sketch his victims before engaging in intimate encounters with them, which ended with their brutal stabbing deaths. The Doodler frequented nightclubs where he would lure men, taking advantage of the secrecy many in the LGBTQ+ community maintained due to societal stigma.

While three men survived his attacks, they chose not to come out publicly out of fear of being outed in a time when homosexuality was often met with prejudice. Among the survivors was reportedly a U.S. diplomat and an entertainer, both of whom feared the impact that coming forward would have on their lives and careers.

San Francisco Mayor Harvey Milk, himself a prominent gay figure, publicly empathized with the survivors’ decision, saying, “I can understand their position. I respect the pressure society has put on them… my feeling is that they don’t want to be exposed.”

Despite significant media attention and the involvement of law enforcement, the Doodler was never apprehended, leaving the case unsolved to this day.

Jeanette Maples was a 16-year-old girl living in Eugene, Oregon. She had been a student at Cascade Middle School from 2006 where she was known for her immense love of reading. However, in 2008, after graduating from the eighth grade, she became a home-schooled student registered with Lane Education Service District. She lived at home with her mother, Angela McAnulty and Angela’s husband, Richard McAnulty.

Just before 8PM on the 9th of December, 2009, police and paramedics were called to the home in the 150 block of Howard Avenue. Inside, they discovered Jeanette, injured and unconscious in the bathtub. According to Angela, Jeanette had been asleep in the living room when she simply stopped breathing.

Jeanette was rushed to Sacred Heart Medical Center at RiverBend in Springfield but was pronounced dead on arrival. Upon first glance at Jeanette, it was evident that she had been the victim of prolonged abuse and starvation. Dr. Daniel Davis, the pathologist who conducted the autopsy, said that Jeanette had suffered so much harm that was inflicted in so many ways that he could not determine which injury had killed her. She had also completely wasted away; there was no fat on her body and very little muscle tissue.

The starvation alone could have been fatal but there were numerous injuries all across Jeanette’s body that were in various stages of healing. There were at least 200 injuries, many of which had been caused when Jeanette was struck by a manufactured object with a straight, machined edge. He discovered that there was a hole in the back of Jeanette’s head which had caused bleeding on her brain. Additionally, Jeanette had pneumonia in the form of an abscessed lung that may have sent bacteria into her bloodstream, causing shock and death.

The autopsy concluded that Jeanette’s death came in the course of, or as a result of, intentional maiming and torture.

𝐑𝐞𝐚𝐝 𝐌𝐨𝐫𝐞:

This photograph shows German serial killer, Joachim Kroll, re-enacting one of his murders.

Between the years of 1955 until 1976, Kroll killed a minimum of eight women and girls in the Ruhr region of Germany. The murders were particularly brutal, with most victims being mutilated and flesh removed to later be cannibalized. Kroll also performed necrophilia with his victim’s bodies.

Kroll was arrested after a neighbour complained that he had clogged the pipes by flushing rabbit innards down the toilet. When the pipes were examined, they were found to contain the remains of a four-year-old girl.

Kroll admitted to 13 murders but was convicted of eight. He died in prison from a heart attack in 1991.

It was the 5th of December, 1998, and the Engebretson family were preparing for their traditional search for the perfect Christmas tree. The family were from Bonanza, Oregon, and their ideal spot for the annual search was the Winema National Forest, located near Rocky Point, which was replete with fir, pine, and manzanita.

That afternoon, 8-year-old Derrick Engebertson set off on the search with his father, Robert, and his grandfather, Bob. He was dressed warmly in a blue snowmobile suit, hat, and felt-lined boots. He was also carrying with him a hatchet which he carried in anticipation of helping chop down the perfect trees.

Derrick was a brown-haired third-grader and his family had nicknamed him “Bear Boy” due to his love for the wilderness. The family lived on forested land, and Derrick had distinguished himself as a mushroom picker. He enjoyed tagging along on the family hunts as well, seeking out black-tailed deer, bobcat, and black bear. “Ever since he was a baby, he’s been out in the woods hunting and stuff,” said Lori.

In addition to his love for the outdoors, Derrick also loved sports, especially baseball, basketball, soccer and football. He had even taken a few swings with a golf club. The only time Derrick was ever really indoors was at nightfall, when he liked to curl up in front of the television and watch shows about animals.

There were really only two things that scared little Derrick: the dark and cougars.

The search for the Christmas tree got off to a good start. They had purchased permits for three trees – one for each family and then another for a friend. The family had driven to Rocky Point at around 2PM, and they hiked into the woods together. They had hiked around 150 yards, and were heading in the direction of a nearby ridge.

Derrick was armed with his hatchet, as the family moved through the woodland together. After a while, however, Derrick and his grandfather had found themselves trailing behind Robert. As Bob later explained, Derrick had a penchant for wandering off. “Footloose and fancy free,” Bob recollected.

Bob was trying to keep an eye on Derrick, but also keep an eye out for the perfect tree. Derrick also kept commenting to his grandfather that he wanted to run ahead, to catch up with his father. He asked his grandfather again and again if he could run ahead and Bob reluctantly agreed.

As Bob continued in his search, he could see that based on the snowy footprints, Derrick was following Robert’s footprints perfectly. He had no reason to worry, so he turned around and continued in his search, as Robert continued in his. He surmised that his grandson had caught up with his father, and assisting him in his search.

A short time later, Robert and Bob met up on the road. They were both noticeably alone. “Where’s Derrick?” asked Robert. Bob replied: “I thought he was with you.” Robert responded: “No, I told him to stay with you.”

𝐑𝐞𝐚𝐝 𝐌𝐨𝐫𝐞:

Coober Pedy, a unique Australian town, is famed for its vast deposits of gem-quality opals and its unusual subterranean lifestyle.

Located in the South Australian outback, this remote settlement houses around 3,500 people, most of whom live in “dugouts” — homes carved directly into the earth. Life underground shields residents from the region’s harsh desert climate, where temperatures soar to over 104°F in summer and rain is scarce, frequently leading to dust storms.

Established in 1915 after opal was discovered, Coober Pedy quickly attracted settlers willing to brave the challenging conditions. Aboveground living proved impractical, so residents turned to the earth for relief, digging out homes that naturally maintain a comfortable temperature of 74°F, making air conditioning unnecessary.

These underground homes are well-equipped and surprisingly modern, featuring built-in bookshelves, tables, and even a swimming pool. Coober Pedy’s resourceful residents have not only created a comfortable way of life but also a town filled with enduring charm and resilience in one of the world’s most extreme environments.

Franz Reichelt, an Austro-Hungarian-born tailor and inventor, became famous for his tragic and daring attempt to test a wearable parachute of his own design by leaping from the Eiffel Tower on February 4, 1912.

Known as the “Flying Tailor,” Reichelt was committed to developing a parachute-suit hybrid that would allow aviators to survive falls from aircraft. His early experiments with dummies from his apartment’s fifth floor were reportedly successful, which fueled his determination to prove the concept from a greater height.

After multiple petitions, Reichelt finally secured permission from the Parisian authorities to conduct a test from the Eiffel Tower. Although officials expected him to use a dummy, Reichelt announced his plan to jump himself, despite onlookers’ attempts to dissuade him. Wearing his parachute-suit, he leapt from the first platform, but the parachute failed to deploy, and he fell 57 meters to his death.

His fatal leap was captured on film, and the following day, newspapers widely covered the story of the “reckless inventor.”

14-year-old Lauren Barry and 16-year-old Nicole Collins were best friends and students at Bega High School. They bonded over their shared love for horse riding and bushwalking. Lauren was soft spoken but was also extremely outgoing and full of life. She wanted to work with small children or animals. Her father, Garret Barry, was Bega Valley Shire Council town planner, and her mother, Cheryl, was a stay at home mom. She was exceptionally close with her older brother, Nathan.

Nicole too was a social butterfly who loved people. She worked part-time as a checkout in Coles Supermarket in Bega where she was known as a hardworking and dedicated employee. She had aspirations of becoming an interior designer or chiropractor. Her father, Graeme, was a vet and her mother, Delma, was a nurse in the local day surgery.

Among Lauren and Nicole’s circle of friends were Sarah Brennan and Rebecca Kemble. The group of friends had planned a camping party at White Rock in Kalaru. White Rock was in the Evans Hill area – an area that both girls knew very well. It was only one or two kilometres away from their homes. Lauren was a champion long-distance runner and had run numerous bush tracks in the area.

The camping party was to celebrate Lauren’s upcoming 15th birthday and they invited a number of other local boys and girls as well as Nathan, Lauren’s brother. After setting up camp 3 October, 1997, the group relaxed around the campfire, swam and rode horses.

Throughout the camping trip, the girls returned home to get showers and fresh clothing. On Saturday, Nicole returned home briefly to wish her mother a happy birthday. Meanwhile, Lauren attended a family dinner at her home. Afterwards, both girls returned to the campsite and on Sunday morning, Nicole’s parents visited the campsite to see how everybody was getting on. She said that all of the teenagers were in high spirits and chatted to them before they returned home.

Teenagers had often camped at White Rock and there had never been any problems and as they believed, it was a safe area. At approximately 9PM on Sunday the 5th of October, the girls left their other friends at the campsite, stating that they were going to a party seven kilometers away at Jellat Jellat.

Earlier in the evening, two boys who were at the camp headed off to the party and later on, the girls decided they wanted to go too. Nicole believed that her ex-boyfriend would be at the party and she wanted to talk with him.

What happened that night sent shockwaves all across Australia.

𝐑𝐞𝐚𝐝 𝐌𝐨𝐫𝐞:

Spirit photography emerged in the mid-19th century, tapping into people’s desire to connect with deceased loved ones through eerie photographs that appeared to capture “ghosts.”

This movement began with photographers like William Mumler in post-Civil War America, who used tricks like double exposure to place ghostly images of the dead within portrait photos. For mourners, these images felt real and offered a sense of closure or connection beyond death.

Victorian England soon embraced spirit photography, blending it with the burgeoning spiritualism movement that suggested the dead stayed close by. Figures like Frederick A. Hudson created photos that purportedly showed spectral relatives, further embedding the idea of life after death.

However, these images also faced scrutiny; skeptics questioned the legitimacy of the photographs, while some spiritualists, like William Stainton Moses, believed genuine photographers existed. Today, they’re seen as little more than the worst kind of fraud.

Félicette, a black-and-white stray from Paris, made history on October 18, 1963, as the first (and only) cat sent into space. Weighing just five and a half pounds, she was chosen for her calm temperament among 14 cats trained by French scientists for space missions. Nicknamed “C 341” in training, Félicette was subjected to rigorous tests, including confinement and rocket simulations, as scientists observed her brain activity.

Launched in a Véronique AG1 rocket from Hammaguir, Algeria, Félicette experienced a brief 15-minute journey, reaching nearly 157 km above Earth. Upon her safe return, she was celebrated as “Astrocat,” although media initially referred to her as “Félix,” a male name.

Despite her groundbreaking flight, Félicette’s story faded, overshadowed by other space animals like Laika and Ham. However, in 2017, a successful campaign funded a statue honoring Félicette at the International Space University in Strasbourg, France.

Amanda Tusing was a 20-year-old woman living with her parents in Dell, Arkansas. She was petite and brunette, and was affectionally called “Mandy” by her loved ones. Amanda was described as “spunky” and she had the world by the tail.

Amanda was engaged to Matthew Ervin, and was already planning their wedding for June of 2001. She had ambitions of one day becoming a vet, while Matthew sold insurance after graduating from Arkansas State University. The couple were said to be inseparable.

It was around 11:30PM the 14th of June, 2000, Amanda left Matthew’s home in Jonesboro, Arkansas, to drive back to the home she shared with her parents in Dell, Arkansas.

Amanda had left in the middle of a heavy rainstorm, and she promised her fiancé that once she arrived, she would call him to tell him know she had gotten home safely.

The journey should have taken around an hour, but by 1:30AM, Matthew still hadn’t heard from Amanda. He called up her parents, Ed and Susan Tusing, and was informed that Amanda wasn’t there and that she had never arrived.

Fear immediately swept over Matthew, Ed and Susan. Matthew and Ed grabbed their respective car keys and began driving along Ark 18. This was the road Amanda would have driven along to get from his apartment to her parents’ home and they agreed that they would meet somewhere in the middle.

Around one mile west of Monette on Ark. 18, Matthew’s headlights illuminated the dark road, and he spotted Amanda’s black 1991 Grand Am pulled over to the side. She must have broken down, he thought, but when he pulled up alongside the car, he saw that it was empty and the keys were still in the ignition.

He opened up the door, to find that Amanda’s purse was on the passenger’s seat. Even more eerie, the window wipers had stopped mid-wipe. When he turned the key in the ignition, the car started perfectly. Amanda was nowhere to be seen, and there was no sign of a struggle…

𝐑𝐞𝐚𝐝 𝐌𝐨𝐫𝐞: