Stranger Than Fiction
A millionaire is found dead, murdered for a stash of buried silver. A young woman dates violent men, only to be killed by her best friend.
A millionaire is found dead, murdered for a stash of buried silver. A young woman dates violent men, only to be killed by her best friend.
Showing1to20of561results
Sometimes killers are careful to leave no fingerprints behind. But methods of the murder itself can leave a lasting impression on police, especially when the tools (or weapons) of a killer's trade leave an innocent victim marked for death.
When killers hide or destroy the remains of their victims, it becomes the mission of forensic scientists to reconstruct the scenes and prove murder for an absent witness.
When killers are driven by jealousy and desire, their desperation is evident in both the crime and their efforts to avoid detection. But forensic science can reveal even the slightest mistake to solve crimes of passion.
In most homicides, police rely on motive to pursue a murderer. But when the killer is a stranger the crime may go unsolved for years. It takes a full arsenal of forensic techniques to trace a lethal encounter.
When a victim is gunned down at point-blank range, police often assume that a friend or acquaintance is to blame.
Killers often attempt to deflect attention away from their crimes by hiding the remains of their victims. Bodies may lay hidden for years before they are discovered.
Most victims of multiple murderers are meticulously chosen because of a mutual connection with the killer or because they match an intricate set of criteria that fits the killer's MO.
When teenagers are driven to kill, their victims are but the first to fall. In three such cases, the families of the killers, as well as their communities, become the victims of violent crime.
Photography has long been a vital tool in homicide investigations. A single image captures enough information to identify a suspect, and to preserve a vital clue long after a witness' memory fades.
For the forensic entomologist, the insects that nest in dead bodies are like tiny witnesses to a crime.
A millionaire is found dead, murdered for a stash of buried silver. A young woman dates violent men, only to be killed by her best friend.
A teenager is abducted on a shopping trip. Two hikers disappear from the Appalachian Trail.
DNA analysis overturns the convictions of three men who have spent years behind bars, paying for crimes they did not commit.
The forces of nature can reduce a body to bones in a matter of weeks. Using a unique combination of art and science, forensic anthropologists give victims a face long after they have been forgotten.
When abduction turns to murder, forensic science is the only key to finding justice for the victims of a kidnapper's deadly intentions.
Three hairs microscopic fibers a common trash bag ripped from a roll. Seemingly small and insignificant clues become a victim's silent witness.
When a theft is committed, something valuable is stolen. But when a criminal needs a new identity, theft becomes a matter of life and death.
Ballistic analysis is the key to finding killers who turn guns on their victims. Each shot fired leaves its own fingerprint, allowing scientists to target murderers with deadly aim.
For homicide investigators, it's a race against time as they track their deadliest foe: a serial killer for whom killing is the only way to feel alive.
A dog can be a dead man's best friend. Dogs have been trained to sniff out corpses, drugs, explosives, and missing persons. They're often the first to find the essential clue that sets an investigation in motion.
Showing1to20of561results