PRESS PLAY
Follow Investigative Reporter Robert Riggs into the darkest corners of the criminal mind.
Based on 6 episodes we listened to · September 2026
Robert Riggs makes organized crime, coercion, and institutional failure understandable through focused interviews with people close to the events.
True Crime Reporter follows investigative reporter Robert Riggs into cases where violence and exploitation depend on larger systems. His interview-led approach moves between alleged elder abuse surrounding a valuable Texas ranch, fraternity hazing, outlaw motorcycle gangs, and…
A cowboy loses a gas-rich ranch; you'll want the court records before you decide who's to blame.
Press play if you want
Short reviews from the PlayNext desk, based on the episodes we processed.
A fraternity hazing lawsuit becomes a sober look at coercion, belonging, and group pressure.
True Crime Reporter looks at how the promise of fraternity belonging can harden into coercion, centering the episode on the death of 18-year-old Sawyer Updike.
A security consultant recalls how cartel pressure turned duty, trust, and home into survival decisions.
Cartel power arrives here as pressure on a police officer in Tijuana, pushed toward an impossible choice: serve a cartel while still wearing the uniform, or be killed.
Ed Calderon recounts the cartel ultimatum that forced him to flee Mexico with his young daughter.
The episode is at its strongest when cartel power stops being an abstraction and becomes a personal decision. Ed Calderon, a former state police officer with years in counter-narcotics and organized crime investigations in Mexico's northern border region, recalls the moment his…
A fentanyl episode that follows cartel finance into a wider argument about geopolitical power.
The episode frames fentanyl as more than a street-level drug crisis. Ed Calderon, a former Mexican counter-narcotics officer now in the United States as a security consultant, connects cartel money moving through Chinese banking apps and financial institutions to China's…
A detective's account of turf, reputation, and violence behind the Bandidos' public patch.
A turf war among outlaw motorcycle gangs gives this episode its hard edge, but the sharper subject is public power: who gets to display it, who is expected to back down, and what happens when that order is challenged.
A documented elder-abuse case on a Texas ranch, told with patience and a focus on control as well as money.
This episode stays with a Texas ranch, a fortune built on gas and mineral assets, and the isolation of a dying cowboy. Robert Riggs lets Stephen Michaud lay out a case that reads as elder abuse and control as much as a fight over money, with court records and interviews doing…
NHPR's Jason Moon investigates the Bear Brook barrel murders and a New Hampshire wrongful-conviction case.
A former cop's DNA, a dropped case, unreliable memories.
This episode features an interview with former Texas prison warden David Stacks about his experiences overseeing dangerous inmates and insights into prison life, including a discussion about The Shawshank Redemption.
This episode exposes the 'pig butchering' financial scam where con artists use text messages and social media to target victims in a sophisticated scheme.
This episode features Kevin Estella from Fieldcraft Survival discussing practical strategies for personal safety and preparedness in response to rising urban violence and threats.
This episode explores how cyber criminals exploit technology to target vulnerable individuals through tactics like online grooming, romance scams, and AI impersonation.
This episode explores why women are overwhelmingly drawn to true crime content, featuring insights from former TV producer Claire Satterbaugh.
This episode features an interview with Mike Cox, a former police beat reporter and Texas DPS media chief, discussing his career covering crimes including serial killer Henry Lee Lucas and the Luby's Cafeteria mass shooting.
Former FBI agent Robin Drake shares advanced techniques from his behavioral analysis experience to help listeners read people, detect deception, and protect themselves from crime.
This episode explores the forgotten legacy of William J.
This episode explores the 1974 kidnapping of Patty Hearst by the Symbionese Liberation Army and the ongoing debate about whether she was brainwashed or willingly participated in their crimes.
This episode explores the chilling case of the Son of Sam, a serial killer who terrorized New York in the mid-1970s with shootings dictated by satanic voices.
This episode investigates a tragic case where two children suffered permanent brain damage from carbon monoxide poisoning due to their landlord's neglect, followed by a nine-year legal battle against the apartment owners and insurance company.
This episode features an interview with former FBI behavioral analyst Robin Dreek, who teaches listeners how to size people up and predict human behavior for personal safety.
This episode explores the tragic execution of 16-year-old Lady Jane Grey, the Nine Days Queen, in 16th century Tudor England, highlighting political intrigue and questions of justice.
This true crime episode explores how journalists Ivor and Sally Davis discovered their seemingly down-to-earth friend Fred Rayler was actually a stone-cold killer in 1970s Malibu.
This episode explores the mysterious plane crash in Mena, Arkansas, linking it to a bank robbery, fugitive hunting, and the long-standing conspiracy theory about CIA drug operations during Bill Clinton's governorship.
This episode explores the bizarre true crime story of the Devil Lovers, a Central Texas cult that operated a massive meth lab in the late 1980s through ritualistic blood pacts and satanic imagery.
This episode explores how the Chinese Communist Party allegedly steals American technology and assets through corruption, as revealed by energy entrepreneur Patrick Genevieve in his book 'Dancing with the Dragon'.
This episode explores the intersection of true crime and fiction through an interview with author David Bethel about his novel Mapping the Night and his insights into serial killer psychology.
This episode explores the story of Sandra Bridewell, dubbed 'The Black Widow' after being linked to three mysterious shooting deaths in Dallas's Highland Park community, her escape to California, and the media sensation surrounding her case.
A former Texas prison warden shares insights on personal safety based on his 30-year career overseeing dangerous inmates, including serial killers like Ted Bundy, and discusses the reality behind prison life and movies like The Shawshank Redemption.
This true crime episode continues the investigation into Sandra Bridewell, a Dallas socialite suspected of murdering her first husband and now marrying her second husband Bobby Bridewell to climb the social ladder.
This episode marks the 25th anniversary of serial killer Kenneth McDuff's execution, exploring his brutal crimes and the systemic failures in Texas's parole system that his case exposed.
This episode introduces the story of Sandra Bridewell, a charming socialite in Dallas's affluent Highland Park community who is suspected of being a serial killer known as the Black Widow.
This episode investigates how the Holy Land Foundation in North Texas illegally funded Hamas through online channels, tracing connections from the U.S.
This episode recounts the 2016 murder of University of Texas student Haruka Weiser, detailing how a predator followed and attacked her after dance class.
This episode features an interview with Detective Brandon Poore, who discusses his undercover work posing as teenagers online to catch predators involved in sextortion crimes targeting children.
This episode explores the CIA's secret plot with mafia gangsters to assassinate Fidel Castro and how it was concealed from the JFK assassination investigation, based on revelations from investigative reporter Thomas Mayer's book.
A widow offers a $1 million reward to solve the cold case murder of her husband, Jim Grimes, in Tennessee, hoping it will encourage someone with information to come forward.
This episode explores a secret Cold War alliance between the CIA and the mafia to assassinate Fidel Castro, based on investigative reporter Thomas Mayer's book.
This episode explores a new type of scam where fraudsters physically come to victims' homes, analyzing the psychology of deception with expert Jim Grinstead.
This episode explores the chilling true crime legacy of Alcatraz, detailing its transformation from a military fortress to a notorious prison known as The Rock.
This episode investigates how the U.S.
This episode explores the brutal reality of the mafia through FBI Special Agent Mike Campy's investigations into the Genovese crime family, contrasting it with Hollywood's romanticized portrayals.
This episode features an interview with content marketing expert Joe Pulizzi about his surprising transition to writing a crime novel set in a funeral home, inspired by real-life cases like Bernhard Tidy's.
This episode recounts the chilling 1995 incident in Centerville, Texas, where a mail carrier delivered a suspicious heavy box to the probation department, leading to a dangerous discovery.
This episode explores how a serial killer on death row used a contraband cell phone to threaten a Texas senator, highlighting ongoing prison security issues with smuggled devices.
This episode explores the rise of John Dillinger as America's most famous outlaw during the Great Depression, detailing how his bank robberies captured public imagination amidst economic turmoil.
This episode explores the true crime reporting legacy of Mike Cox, whose parents met covering a 1943 murder trial in Texas, blending personal history with crime storytelling.
This episode recounts the 1974 Texas prison hostage crisis, where three armed inmates held 15 people hostage for 11 days, leading to a deadly shootout involving notorious drug lord Fred Carrasco.
This episode explores the enduring conspiracy theory that the FBI may have killed a stand-in instead of the real John Dillinger in 1934, featuring insights from Dillinger's great nephew.
This episode explores a 1903 Secret Service investigation into a mafia-run counterfeiting ring in New York City, focusing on detective William Flynn's pursuit of justice.
This episode features an interview with former police officer Glenn Williams about his 26-year struggle with PTSD from law enforcement work and his book aimed at helping first responders heal from trauma.
This episode introduces legendary LAPD homicide detective John 'Jigsaw' St.
This episode explores Operation United, a five-year FBI-led mission to identify over 200 unidentified murder victims in Detroit through exhumation and forensic investigation, as detailed in Catherine Schweit's book 'Women Who Talked to the Dead'.
This episode explores the life and crimes of Babyface Nelson, a ruthless Depression-era gangster known for killing more FBI agents than any other criminal in American history.
Robert Riggs hosts an episode exploring violence in society and introduces Doug Knoll, founder of the Prison of Peace Project, which teaches inmates de-escalation skills.
Robert Riggs discusses the appeal of true crime stories in an interview with Michael Jackson, highlighting his work on serial killer Kenneth McDuff and crediting law enforcement for their efforts in the case.
Investigative reporter Stephen Michaud discusses his six-year investigation into how Texas cowboy Robert East, heir to a $750 million ranch fortune, was systematically stripped of his wealth and left to die in isolation.
Robert Riggs centers True Crime Reporter on Sawyer Updike, an 18-year-old University of Texas at Austin freshman whose parents say Sigma Chi hazing, forced drugs, and physical abuse ended in death by suicide on January 16, 2024.
Investigative reporter Robert Riggs recounts the case of Gino Ruiz Camacho, a violent drug kingpin sentenced to death for grotesque murders.
Investigative reporter Robert Riggs discusses with Dr.
Ed Calderon says a new presidential administration told his drug squad to "take the silver or take the lead," and he fled Mexico with his three-year-old daughter.
Ed Calderon says he left Mexican law enforcement after being asked whether he wanted to 'work a side,' and he fled Mexico with his three-year-old daughter after choosing between cartel service and assassination.
Robert Riggs frames True Crime Reporter around Ed Calderon’s warning that China, Mexico, and fentanyl could push the United States toward intervention.
True Crime Reporter centers on Robert Riggs and Detective Steve Cook unpacking the Bandidos as organized crime, with Cook saying the clubs use membership, dues, and hierarchy to enrich members rather than a single boss.
Investigative reporter Robert Riggs discusses the 20th anniversary of the Iraq War, Mexican cartels and fentanyl, and safety tips following the Idaho college murders, in an interview with a sheriff.
Investigative reporter Robert Riggs recounts the case of a violent parolee who murdered two healthcare workers in a hospital maternity ward.
True Crime Reporter examines Micah Johnson's July 7, 2016 attack on Dallas police during a Black Lives Matter protest, where five officers were killed and 11 were wounded.
Robert Riggs and former prosecutor Bill Johnston revisit the 1972 Watergate burglary through Riggs's early Capitol Hill work for Congressman Wright Patman.
Investigative reporter Robert Riggs examines the rise of mass shootings in America, featuring an FBI expert and personal coverage of past tragedies.
Investigative reporter Robert Riggs follows up on a case where a Baptist minister murdered his wife and exposed a wider sex abuse scandal in the Southern Baptist Convention.
Investigative reporter Robert Riggs explores cases where women become romantically involved with incarcerated criminals, focusing on the Vicki White case.
Robert Riggs's True Crime Reporter pairs Kenneth McDuff's case with Stephen Misho's recorded conversations with Ted Bundy.