The Kidnapping of Barbara Jane Mackle (Part 1) | Morbid | Podcast | Forensic Files

hey weirdos I'm Ash and I'm Elena and this is [Music] morbid it sure is I just read something
on Instagram it says this Lavita is getting a little too Loca if you ask me and that's how I feel today that's how I
feel today I feel like this levita is hella [ __ ] Loca this is it is hella [ __ ] Loca Bella where you been Loca
there you go I love it one of the best lines in cinematic history as far as I'm spot the LIE spot the [ __ ] lie
spot it Taylor lner came out I don't know if it was recently I saw it recently and said how much he [ __ ]
hated that wig that they made him wear that wig was nuts iconic ion Bonkers I mean the Twilight Twilight
is such I like hello welcome to morbid Twilight is such a Vibe this is the skin of a killer Bella this is the skin of a
that's sparkly that line is one of the best lines in cinematic history it's one of those things where it's like we can
people can hate on it as much as they want have cuz you have to but damn what a moment that [ __ ] is and what a vibe
that [ __ ] like I'll watch that again the vibe is just for the vibe and the weather's about to be like
that too that came out at such an important crucial time in my life I was in Middle School when those books came
out wow so oh you bet your bottom [ __ ] dollar I was trying to do the Bella aesthetic oh yeah like I was
like oh new personality unlocked that's me I'm so different I'm so different I'm
go live with my dad and Works see it was my like looking at it I was like oh this
is everything I ever wanted as I was growing up was to meet a vampire yeah it to fall in love with like that's
literally all I wanted I I never pale I never he is and he's from Norway Empire definitely vampires there I bet Drew's
polish I don't know if that's giving vampire polish vampires you never know I don't know it's giving perogi so that's
good giving parois giving perogies and I do love those so I think yeah I found I
found a somewhat a vampire s command and I found perogi so let's [ __ ] go girls
I was just thinking about um that we so we found that The Hollywood Reporter did
like a podcasting thing yeah it was cool and we were part of it and it was really
fun thank you for featuring usw sick and in it we were all these other amazing podcasters that I was like I'm sorry
what are we doing in there but like I know right but like Bill Simmons is one of those podcasters he's like been
around for literally ever he's hilarious and John loves him like has loved him forever and one of the things he said
was a podcasting no no one of his things was um like [ __ ] banter oh no do you think he hates us and I was like I get
it cuz he does like serious interviews and like sports [ __ ] so like I understand yeah but I was like this is
all I could think of as we started this was like Bill I'm sorry but sometime I I
know some of you do not come from the [ __ ] Banner that's not banter that's not for you totally get it but I think a
vast majority of our audience actually loves [ __ ] you know you're here with us cuz they're us we try to we try to be
a little more mindful of how how much sprinkle it in at this point cuz you know like we've grown we've evolved and
also that was like not a knock at Bill Simmons cuz I love Bill Simmons I just thought it was hilarious no that is
funny and I loved how honest he was in his answer it was hilarious you guys actually should go read that article cuz
his answers were [ __ ] hilarious his are really funny theovon are really funny Georgia and Karen were in in there
they're really everyone had real everyone had differing opinions on 1.5 speed listening to podcasts which was
funny I think we forgot to answer that question I think we did too I think I also was just like uh no never yeah and
I felt weird saying no never I just get very stressed out with it it's too fast for me I I get over stimulated very
easily and that was it I talk fast enough for my own self putting me on 1.5 can you [ __ ] imagine no people
probably do do that woo can you even hear did that create a Time Warp did what's new in your personal World um so
really quick just before we get into this which is a it's going to be a two-parter cuz it's a very long but very
interesting case very interesting um I just wanted to mention that I'm going on like a mini book tour with me with Ash I
get to go I'm going on a mini book tour and uh there's a few dates I think there's really only two that are not
sold out which like is really wild um there's one on September 18th at 600 p.m. in New York at the Union Square
Barnes & Noble you can get if you go on the Barnes & Noble site and type in events and like go to that date in that
location you can get tickets I think there's a bunch of tickets left I'm not positive but that's the last update I
got I just have to say it's really [ __ ] cool I had a real moment last night where I was like [ __ ] that's my
sister B because Sarah Jessica Parker was just at that Noble and I saw that and I said and my sister got invited to
PR cool so I just wanted to say that thank you for that you beta and I I I did an event for Butcher and the ren
there and they were amazing and I loved doing that event and everybody who went was amazing it was just like a really
fun experience yeah it was cool so um go check and see if there's tickets left for that one and then I think there's
like only a few tickets left in great barington Massachusetts in the book in the birar at the book um at the book
Loft uh which is a really cool book store it's cool um and yeah so that's going to be fun and you know I'll keep
updating you on any future book events um oh and there is a sweep Stakes that we're doing that is a really fun
one this is cool um we're so we're doing a sweep Stakes where you can enter and you can you enter by just uploading your
pre-order receipt for uh the butcher game and you can uh it's right in my uh Instagram bio or in you know uh you can
go to the butcher game.com upload your pre-order receipt for the butcher game and you can be
entered to win like an O A stay at the Red Lion Inn in Stockbridge Massachusetts one of the coolest [ __ ]
ins ever it's iconic and it's beautiful it's like so historic my bravo fans that's where darinda used to work there
yes exactly and it's so much fun and then a grand prize winner is going to get so the grand prize winner is going
to get the two nights stay at the Red Lion in and that's um September 27th and 28th and they're going to get like all
this other fun stuff to it and this person is going to get tickets to a murder mystery dinner on September 28th
and that's going to be with me with Ash being there I can't [ __ ] wait Mikey's going to be there I literally can't wait
and it's GNA and it's going to be a murder mystery dinner so it's going to be [ __ ] fun and we're all going to
hang out and we're going to have a viby time yes so enter with your [ __ ] pre-order receipt at the butcher
game.com pre-order the butcher game put your receipt in there it's going to be like that episode when they're in the
berserk shears and they do the the murder mystery party at uh blue stone Manor yes I I've never been to a murder
mystery dinner it's it's a blast John and I went last year to one and it was so much fun and it's so the grand prize
winner gets the stay at the Red Lion in and a ticket to the dinner and 10 winners are going to get tickets to the
murder mystery dinner oh my God you guys you guys have like enter to win and even
if you don't win I'm going to be so sad for you but go to the [ __ ] Red Lion in it's the best and they have a really
cute little shop there yeah they do a really C shop and it's just a cool in like you're really going to love it um I
think they're going to be contacting the winners by September 6th so yeah this is
close so make sure you get in there get in there get if you want to enter to win
it'll be a fun time um and pre-order the butcher game if you haven't already yet
go to the butcher game you can pre-order it anywhere it really helps it's really awesome I'll be really
grateful and I promise you you're going to love it I really love it um I really love it I read it already yeah I'm very
excited about I got an arc LOL I got an arc that made me feel cool but yeah it's
coming out on September 17th so pre-order now and you might get it a day before you never know so amazing go do
it um and now that we have annoyed you or made you happy or made you feel neutral about what we have just talked
about uh let's get into the kidnapping of Barbara Jane Mackle oh now Barbara Jane Mackle is not a child uh just so
you know what you're getting into here which doesn't make it better I'm just saying it's a different kind of
kidnapping a little bit of a young adult napping so let's just get right into it
because this is a windy twisty wild tale and it takes place in the 60s ooh I love the 60s so in the
weeks leading up to Christmas break in 1967 emry University student Barbara Jane Mackle so she she's a young college
student uh she was looking really forward to the Christmas break she was just psyched to be getting the last of
her exams for the semester done and then she was going to head home to Miami to visit her family now unfortunately when
her father Robert Mackle talked to his daughter on December 14th he was pretty disappointed because he found out that
she had a cold that had evolved into the flu and she was sounding and feeling awful she felt like [ __ ] that's the
worst yeah so Jane Mackle who is Barbara's mother later recalled Robert had talked to Barbara that Thursday and
he was about ready to make her come home she couldn't get into the infirmary at Emory because it was full but Barbara
wanted to stick it out and so she wanted to stick it out because if she was going
to leave early she would have to reschedule one or more of her exams and she was just determined to finish them
all before the Hol holiday break and not have to worry yeah you don't want that looming over your head your whole
holiday break that would suck no cuz then sometimes you overstudy and then you kind of like lose it you know what I
mean you go too far literally could never be me but I've heard that does happen yeah if you overstudy like you
get obsessive about it no I'm kiding I so she couldn't even get into the infirmary at school though because it
was flu season everybody's got the flu everyone's got a cold you're probably better off not going into the infirmary
true So eventually Robert and Jane Mackle reached a compromise with Barbara uh and this compromise that was that
sure you can stay to finish your exams cuz she was very determined but her mother Jane said I'm coming to Atlanta
and I'm going to take care of you oh really sweet so the next morning Jane boarded the first available non-stop
flight from Miami and was in Atlanta within a couple hours wow she checked into the roadway in with her daughter a
little before noon and she said you're going to stay with me here and I'm going to take care of you and then you can go
take your exams yeah and Jane said I took her temperature right away and she still had 101 degree fever oh damn but
despite her really rough flu symptoms she was determined as ever to be studying through the weekend and doing
well on those exams oh my God she must have been exhausted yeah now later that afternoon Barbara drove to the rich
building at emy's School of Business and sat down to start you know going for it
but the instructor was like you look like [ __ ] like you look so sick yeah and like could tell that she was feeling
awful and he was like you got to go to the infirmary you can't sit in this class yeah you're going to like get
everybody else sick and you're probably not going to do that great on your exams
anyway you're it so she went to the infirmary she had to wait for over an hour only to be sent home and told to
rest oh my God I'd be so pissed now Barbara woke the next day feeling a little bit better but she was determined
to take her History exam and this time she said she was going to go in there and just act totally fine she wasn't
going to say anything to her history instructor about her temperature how she was feeling she put a little concealer
on the under eye she a little blush on the cheeks and went for it now meanwhile back at the motel the phone in Jane's
room rang and she answered it and she heard an unfamiliar man's voice and this man said I have a registered letter for
Barbara Mackle and earlier in the week Barbara had complained to her mother that she let a guy borrow her class
notes and he never returned them oh [ __ ] that guy so Jane assumed that the boy
had maybe mailed the B notes back like just to the motel yeah but apparently it didn't occur to her that like very few
people knew that they were staying at the motel was going to ask that especially like casual acquaintances
wouldn't have known right but regardless when Jane told Barbara someone had returned the notes she told her mother
it was too late to get them that night and that the letter should just be brought to the dorm tomorrow okay so
Jane told the caller that thank the man hung up nothing else happened the next day December 16th Barbara's best friend
Stuart Woodward spent most of the afternoon with her at the motel helping her study for the one remaining exam she
had and after leaving the motel for a bit Stuart went by barbar dorm room to see if the class notes were there cuz
he's like a best friend he was going to go pick them up for her that's really sweet because she needed that those
notes and when she he got there she he saw that yes the note the red notebook was sitting on her desk so he was like
oh good but there was no sign that they had ever gone through the mail so he was
like that's a little weird but Stuart returned to the roadway with the notes and spent the rest of the evening
studying again with Barbara and didn't leave until like 10: p.m. and as he walked out the door he jokingly said
well don't talk to any strange men and then Clos the door behind him oh I hate that because I think they had brought up
like that this guy had called and he was like well don't talk to any more strange
men on the phone yeah just joking now after a long day of studying Barbara was exhausted cuz she's still sick yeah
still not feeling well by the time Stuart left so she just was like I'm going to sleep and Jane Mackle was also
exhausted so she was like you know what let's go to sleep but Jane was awoken a few hours later cuz she heard Barbara
her breathing was sounding very ingested like she was that sick breathing and so
she asked Barbara are you awake and Barbara said yes I can't sleep my head is so stopped up oh and Jane got up and
walked to the motel window to look out over the parking lot and it was just dark and then she looked down to her
watch and saw it was only 3:00 a.m. so she was like way too early to get up for the day so she went back to bed and she
said she could hear Barbara's like congested breathing but there was really nothing she could think to do MH so they
did fall back to sleep Jane had just started to drift in and out of sleep when she was startled by a knock at the
motel room door in the middle of the night so she calls out and is like who the [ __ ] is there but it was difficult
to hear but there was a man on the other side and Jane said I thought he said a he was a detective maybe a policeman I'm
not sure and the man at the door explained there's a young boy in a white Ford and he's been in an accident he's
in the hospital and he's asking for you what and it was late and she had just been in and out of sleep so it didn't to
her that the policemen didn't seem to know the accident victim's name just a young boy or just didn't relay it to her
so she said I immediately thought of Stuart Woodward oh he had a white car so she was like so she said is his name
Stewart through the door and the man said yes it is oh now Jane parted the curtain by the door a little and looked
out and she said she saw a man and could see that he was white clean shaven and he was wearing a police officer's hat
with a badge on it uh-huh so she was like all right well this seems legit so she started unhooking the chain that had
been holding the door closed but as she lifted up the chain the man bashed his way with his shoulder into the room what
the fu literally ripping the stripping away from the frame did it so hard knocked Jane to the
floor and another figure appeared from behind him who was small and described a small and slender Jane said the second
Intruder looked like they were maybe like a 12 over 13-year-old they were so small what and their face was covered by
a black ski mask oh God I hate that yeah and they thought and Jane thought it was
like a young boy essentially and the smaller Intruder started tying Jane's hands and ankles and so Jane looked over
at the policeman who was still wearing the cap the policeman quot unot and she said he was chunky and he had a round
face a moon face she later said and she said that's a read yeah and she said he spoke well and spoke softly he didn't
look like a hoodlum or anything like that from the 6s of it all now at first Jane thought the two Intruders came in
to Rob them and so she immediately started saying take anything you want in this room but please do not hurt my
daughter or me yeah and seconds later she said as she's saying that she feels a damp rag being pressed over her face
and she started getting blurred and like it was covering her eyes # chloroform so
she said it was either chloroform or ether but I couldn't and she said I could hear him saying give her more give
her more oh my God so assuming that they were going to keep pouring this substance whatever it was onto the rag
and keep pressing it to her face until she passed out she just pretended to fall unconscious [ __ ] smart yeah she
really is like that was some like Queen [ __ ] cuz they could have killed her yeah
absolutely so she's she never lost Consciousness cuz she just faked it um but she said that the rag on her face
did prevent her from seeing much of what was happening and she was like a little
woo from it sure she had to close her eyes anyway to pretend she's passed out so she said I looked up and I saw just a
flickering of Barbara's night gown going out the door between them and after that
her daughter and The Intruders were just gone and the room was just deathly quiet
and they just she tied up yep so terrified and unable to do anything she rolled over and started making her way
towards the phone which was knocked on the floor she couldn't dial cuz her hands were behind her back oh I didn't
even think started yelling into the receiver but she's like I didn't dial so it didn't even go to the overnight clerk
I was like she was hoping it would just connect maybe somehow but it didn't so she struggled to get to her feet and
hopped towards the little kitchenette with a pair of scissors on the counter and with her hair hands still being
bound she got the scissors into her hands but then dropped them and couldn't hold on to them or get them to work in
anyway so she hopped towards the door and made her way out into the parking lot and began screaming for help wow and
she said I got absolutely no response I couldn't believe that no one heard I know they heard oh and if anyone did
hear her cries for help no one moved to help her and none of the lights went on nothing it's so shitty because that's
such a catch 22 like when you're in that position you're like why is nobody helping but then hearing that you're
like I'm not going out there but you should call the police call the police come that your first thought should not
be go out there because you know what you're going out by no means go out there call the front desks call someone
call anybody literally like just call someone and say I did it I did what I needed to do but don't just ignore it
like that's crazy silly so unsure what to do or where to go she still tied up here my God Jane spotted her car in the
parking lot and started going towards it she fell twice cutting and bruising herself as she hit the ground with her
hands tied behind her back she did manage to get into the front seat of her car and she placed her chin on the
steering wheel and used her head to press the horn as hard as she could wow and just held it down genius it took
about a full minute before anyone responded but soon a young woman in the room next to Jane and Barbara which must
have heard something you didn't hear anything when he slammed he literally broke down the door he didn't call
anyone yeah what the [ __ ] that's crazy and also this lady called the front desk
and said another crackpot is on the loose nice like okay you heard all that real nice you think maybe something's ay
yeah probably the night clerk Walter Perkins who shame upon him uhoh he stepped out into the lot looked over and
finally spotted what was happening and he just said hey lady shut up you'll wake up the guests so Jane finally lifts
her head off the steering wheel and is like hey [ __ ] help me I'm tied up right and the man walks closer and could
see a piece of adhesive tape like hanging from her mouth and he was just like what the [ __ ] and J Jane said they
robbed me and took my daughter and he just stared at her and he said I thought it was some sort of motherdaughter
disturbance what do you do you see that a l robbed me and took my daughter like do you see that looking like this a lot
so he was like so Jane was like call the police that's what I need you to do Perkins was completely on move moved by
this scene and she said later Jane said later he just stood there and fussed at me he didn't do a thing are you [ __ ]
kidding me Walter Perkins get it [ __ ] together like what get it together he didn't call the police at all didn't
call it he he was literally like I staring at her this is annoying like and you said he's the the night Watchman now
later yeah he was like the night the person at the front desk oh good and later Walter Perkins Walter Perkins
would claim that he didn't want to alarm any of the other guests so he was trying
to be discreet but Jane ma said he was incredibly infuriating and he didn't give a [ __ ] I'm also like I think the
other guest should already be alarmed because um one of these doors has broken off the hinges a woman's been beeping
her horn and screaming for help and she was tied up yeah well we should probably
involve the police here so she's saying hey call the police and he's like what and she stands up and it's like hey see
how my hands are are tied behind my back and my ankles by the way her ankles are
still tied God she hopped across the parking lot right she stands up with her ankles tied and her hands tied behind
her back she's covered in cuts and bruises has tape AC on her mouth a mother daughter hey can you call the
police and then she also goes hey also can you get some [ __ ] scissors and uncut like un [ __ ] timing do I need
to spell everything out right now so he did but he ended up cutting her hands only
and she was like my ankles are also cut and he was like can't help you there what he was like this is weird I don't
want to do it why he was so ineffective that Jane had to hop back to her own room where she was able to cut the
bindings around her own ankles what is happening here Walter Perkins together so then she called the
County police on her own because Walter Perkins did not call the police I hope less people stayed at that Motel after
this you know what Walter Perkins did he just walked back to the counter in the front desk and sat behind
it where he started huh he just sat back at the front desk didn't call anyone just like that was weird I can't
understand on your name I just can't understand why the what I don't understand him so when she saw when Jane
saw The Intruders leaving with her daughter Barbara she immediately imagined that they had robbed her before
they had left and now they were probably planning to sexually assault or kill Barbara that's all she could think of of
course but when she entered the room after getting you know herself free she realized her purse was still on the
table and hadn't been touched and in fact everything was exactly as it had been before they were attacked the only
thing missing was Barbara Bar and she said when I realized they hadn't robbed us I knew they were after
Barbara which must have been horrifying horrific now doal County officers Walter
Bayer and SL bomb grass were the first one to were first to arrive at the roadway in they found Jane Mackle
waiting outside the door of her room and when the call came in on the radio for a
signal 77 both of them recognized that as a kidnapping code and it was uncommon in De County so they rushed to the motel
they were very worried within minutes of placing the call they were already there
like it was quick officer Bayer recalled she was terribly upset and terribly Disturbed and he said it was difficult
to understand what J was actually trying to tell them but they just knew that she
had reported a kidnapping and beay said I thought it was some sort of sexual abduction after all in the moment
neither officer knew Jane or Barbara Mackle and their instincts told them why would a man in a teenage boy kidnap a
young woman right there's really only one reason and it's horrible that they could think of Y so like Walter Perkins
though the roadway you know at the roadway night clerk Jane was immediately frustrated with these these responding
officers as well another shitty Walter they weren't really taking her seriously she said I tried to tell them Barbara
was a co-ed at Emery and a very nice girl and one of the policemen said very sarcastically a co-ed at Emy and a nice
girl as if those two things could not exist together that's good yeah that's fantastic just you know somebody trying
to further their education all of these men in this so far are [ __ ] pigs what the [ __ ] like this woman is literally
like I was just tied up in chloroformed and my daughter wasi was ripped out of her bed in front of me and I don't know
where she is by a man and a young boy it seems and they're like and she's like and she goes to Emory and she's a nice
girl and their response is like you're daughter is probably a [ __ ] Emory like like what what the actual [ __ ] you're a
pig like so far the men in this are pigs except for Stuart yeah very much so Jane's dad like that's yeah but by that
point Jane had called Stuart Woodward the best friend and he had arrived at the motel he came running in the middle
of the night since the maal were from Miami Jane didn't know anyone in the area who she could call for help in that
moment she so she called Stuart and asked him to sit with her while she waited for her husband to arrive because
uh Jane's Father Robert was coming right away yeah but he's coming from Miami now
Stuart wasn't there when all this happened but he tried to help answer the officer's questions for Jane to like
help through like get out yeah you know who knows if they trusted his answers any more than hers but the officers were
eyeing Stuart a little bit pretty suspiciously and Jane kept saying he's just a friend but they listed him as
Barbara's boyfriend why and she was like he's just and he was like I'm just her like really
good friend they said girls and guys can't just be friends be friends steuart explained that the previous day he had
actually noticed a white male driving a late model blue car hanging around the emery campus and staring at him oh and
he said just a it was just a few hours before Barbara was taken that's spooky but he said when he approached the man
to find out what the [ __ ] he wanted they sped away other than that piece of information they really didn't have
anything else H that's weird yeah so the two responding officers took Jane's statement and wrote it up more or less
as she described it to them but again very little evidence at the scene in a short time later plain clothed
detectives arrived at the motel but it didn't really help at all either there was nothing there to detective Matt do
macked over Jane appeared what he he said appeared mentally ill and could have passed for drunk well her daughter
was just ripped out of her [ __ ] bed at 3:00 a.m. so this detective described her as when I first saw her she appeared
looped looped like loopy she yeah like looped like loopy she had just been chloroformed is anyone taking that into
consideration she appears drunk uh she might have just huffed ether so what is wrong there's a very real possibility
that she is [ __ ] up not of her own valtion like are you is everyone all right it feels like they're like judging
her because she's at a motel yeah and it's like oh I'm sorry that she came here to take care of her sick child yeah
like what the [ __ ] but it's like they're not taking her seriously at all no now
before long however though he realized Jane was panicked and appeared to be in pain from the assault and also under the
influence of whatever the [ __ ] they had just suffocated her with with a rag still both Jane and Stuart felt that the
newly arrived detectives were just as suspicious of their story as the initial officers were and it's like they all
were treating them like they did something wrong and that was Remain the case until Robert Mackle arrived from
Miami a few years hours later that's good we as soon as the man appears yeah we're good it's very 60s now since the
kidnapping of the Lindberg baby in 19 32 kidnapping had been a federal crime in the United States which would make it
the jurisdiction of the FBI okay also in add need them instead probably do probably do in addition to being an
incredibly wealthy real estate developer in Florida Robert Mackle also moved in some pretty powerful political circles
oh yeah and had made because I I know you were probably wondering like what the [ __ ] is going on here this is a very
well-known like the a powerful family okay okay um he had also made a number of valuable contacts and close
relationships through this including a friendship with FBI director J Edgar Hoover shut the [ __ ] up holy [ __ ] Robert
Mackle was not [ __ ] around I'm surprised I haven't heard of this so when he learned of what had happened
here that night Robert the father immediately placed a call to Hoover's office directly and the case was given
the highest priority taking it completely out of the hands of the local police right away can you imagine in
those [ __ ] wads when he stepped on the scene and was like yeah get the [ __ ] out
I'm going to call J Edgar Hoover bye you pieces of [ __ ] who are just ignoring this also I would have oh the if I had
connections the way that I would get them ripped off the [ __ ] FL imediately like what the [ __ ] are you
doing so he got immediately ripped right out of the hands of those local [ __ ] police officers out Po and was just
placed delicately into the hands of the nation's most powerful law enforcement agency just like excuse me I'll take
that now as he drove north north towards Atlanta Robert said he just was fixated
on his daughter and what she was going through what could be happening at this moment he said I kept thinking I'll wake
up this has to be a nightmare oh and he said he just couldn't stop thinking about it and he said this was before the
idea that this could be a kidnap for ransom he just was thinking she kid to awful [ __ ] to her and kill her and
although it had become far less common the whole kidnapping for ransom thing than it had been in the past they still
did happen especially for like Ransom other material or political gains they happened and given his wealth and social
status and like how he was in political socials and um C circles I don't know why I said socials circles he was a far
more likely candidate for that so sounds like it yeah while Robert made his way to be with his wife in George several
family members and Friends waited for any word at the mle house they all came to help um in back in Miami and that
included Robert's business partner William odow Jr um odow had been posted by the phone just consistantly he would
not leave which I was like what a good business that's a really good friend um as soon as Robert left he just took his
place um and he was intent on keeping the line clear in case any calls came in regarding Barbara and a little after
9:00 a.m. the phone rang and odow answered and he said he heard a man's voice asking for Robert Mackle mhm and
he said he's on his way to Atlanta and there was a long pause and then the man on the other end said well
tell him to look under a palm tree in the northeast corner of the house under a rock about 6 in
down okay so to odow this was very confusing and strange because he didn't know any of the
details of what what was happening he just knew something bad happened they didn't know where Barbara was and he had
to leave so he just like came with very little information it was just like I'm here I'll just be here for whatever and
they're telling him to go look under this palm tree they said tell Robert to do that so he it's like like I said uh
he's going to Atlanta he's not there so he tried to ask follow-up questions cuz he was like what the [ __ ] and the man on
the other end just said that's all like Miranda Priestley that's all and then hung up so to William Dow the caller on
the other end of the line he said sounded Latino he said not Spanish necessarily but possibly from a country
or maybe just a home that spoke native Spanish okay but he said he also thought that it could have been a Canadian
caller trying to disguise their voice with an accent okay I wonder think that he said it was a very like muddled and
it kept falling in and out of like an accent so he didn't know if it was real not real kind of had a Canadian vibe to
it like it was giving DQ kempley yeah it was couldn't figure out what was happening there okay but whatever it was
he said he didn't recognize it and he and it didn't give any other identifying information so he was like that's really
all I got yeah although the prospect of digging for clues in the yard seemed kind of crazy to him a little
Preposterous might as well odow cared about this family he cared about Barbara he cared about his business partner
Robert he cared about Jane so his Instinct was to just rush outside and start digging where that person said cuz
he's like I just want to help I feel like that's what I would do but Robert's brother Elliott said we should wait for
the FBI they're on their way to the house let's not touch anything like they're almost here like let's just wait
you [ __ ] with evidence so when he arrived at the house agent Joseph St Pierre listened to odow story about the
mysterious collar with the uh maybe Spanish accent in the clu supposedly buried in the yard St Pierre called his
partner agent Cass who was with Robert and Jane in Atlanta and Cass confirmed for the couple that this did appear to
be a genuine kidnapping and then asked whether they had any palm trees in their yard at home so Robert was like well
yeah we have a cluster of Phoenix Palms in the northeast corner of the house yeah like we live in Miami exactly where
they said uhhuh uh so they relayed that back to agent St Pierre in Miami with some help from The maal Gardener Walter
Powell agent St Pierre located what he believed to be a large piece of coral about the size of a man's fist beneath
the Phoenix pum okay and he instructed Walter to begin digging very carefully he was like I
think we're coming upon something so we didn't he didn't want to destroy anything but in the second shovel of
dirt St Pierre spotted what appeared to be a rolled up piece of paper protruding
from a black rubber stopper okay and when he carefully removed this from the dirt it appeared to be a broken
laboratory Beaker huh and it would smashed when the shovel went into the dirt so they were like [ __ ] uh and it
appeared that whoever had placed this note in the bottle had trimmed the rubber stopper to like get the note in
the bottle mhm and it was rolled very tightly so they they're finding laboratory equipment buried in the yard
in a in the yard of a Miami real estate developer weird but St Pierre was far more concerned that there was a note
here and he was like this is a little scary so the agent carefully carried the whole thing back to the house and asked
the housekeeper to get him some tweezers cuz he didn't want to touch the um so she did that and once they pulled
it out of the bottle and unfurled it they realized that this was very real and very [ __ ] scary and very dark a
ransom note so the note said Robert Mackle sir your daughter has been kidnapped by us and we now hold her for
ransom she's quite safe if somewhat uncomfortable we offer no proof of our possession of her at this time it will
arrive by mail in a few days uh Barbara is presently alive inside a small capsule buried in a remote piece of soil
what the [ __ ] she has enough food and water and air to last 7 days at the end of the seven days the life supporting
batteries will be discharged and her Air Supply will be cut off the box is waterproof and very strong fiberglass
reinforced plywood she has little chance of escaping the box is in an unusual and
lonely place she has no chance of being accidentally stumbled upon what yes in the actual [ __ ] this young woman is in a
fiberglass and plywood coffin in the middle of the forest somewhere buried in the ground what the
[ __ ] the three-page note which is a very long note uhhuh was very detailed and it
went on to demand $500,000 which in 2024 is 4.5 million oh my God and they they demanded it in recently
issued $20 bills and no more than 10 notes may have consecutive serial numbers the kidnappers also claimed each
bill would undergo quote a minimum of 8 hours of intense examination before they
revealed where Barbara was they also noted that the money should occupy quote no more than 4,000 cubic in and
therefore should be delivered in a standard suitcase that is 31 1/2 in Long by 18.75 in High by 6.25 in deep oh that's
scary cuz these people know what the [ __ ] they're doing like down to every last centimeter that's horrifying once
the mael were ready to make the exchange they were instructed to place an ad in the personal section of all the Miami
newspapers that read quote loved one please come home we will pay all expenses and meet you anywhere at any
time your family once the ad appeared in all the papers the kidnapp ERS would call to
tell them further instructions I'm I have chills I'm I'm absolutely shook of [ __ ] that they have
to do right now under such duress per absolutely perfectly or their daughter is going to die in a box in the middle
of the to die of Suffocation being buried alive yeah so this whole thing clearly confirmed that Barbara had been
kidnapped for ransom um it also showed them that like you said these kidnappers are [ __ ] [ __ ] brilliant well
organized and very serious doesn't sound like this is the first time they've done
something like this and the details contained in the note implied that they had thought through several aspects of
this crime it was not quickly done down to the dimensions necessary for a suitcase to hold
$500,000 and finally the presence of the note at the mle house suggested that this was not impulsive at all in order
you know the note had to be found the note was going to be found right after Barbara was kidnapped so they either had
to have somebody stationed there who then snuck onto the property once the deed had been done and buried it or they
had buried it in advance like days before that's what I was wondering and the news of the kidnapped Millionaire's
daughter clearly broke the following day and made headlines across the country but despite their best efforts rep
reporters got very little information from investigators because remember they're tight with the family and they
had like no access to the family well that's good cuz they could have [ __ ] everything up an FBI agent said in
response to reporter's requests for a statement from the family they just need a little peace and quiet we're getting
them away from the motel good now Barbara's F friends and classmates were also protective of the family in the
situation that's great when they couldn't get any information from the FBI or the family a lot of reporters did
you know what reporters do and they all went to Emory University campus and they
searched for leads mostly they came up empty good uh one student told her a rep from the Atlantic Constitution I'm not
going to tell you anything just [ __ ] off Vibes and Barbara's roommate Ramsey Owens was also like no I'm not telling
Ramsey Owens love that uh they said I've talked to the FBI and I feel like anything that can be that can help has
been said and done I haven't been at emry since Saturday and I don't know anything up to the minute good so they
were just like leave us alone Z the FBI's got it nobody's yapping those who were willing to talk to the Press
avoided specific questions about the case and said just talked about what a great person Barbara was that she was
very warm very friendly and they would see her again that's it they would not talk about the case they wouldn't talk
about that Family other than to say we love that family good so it sounds like this family also had a lot of people who
really cared for them yeah um while FBI agents and government officials around the country were scrambling to find
Barbara Mackle she lay very still inside a coffin-shaped box buried somewhere in
the remote forests of Georgia so she really was in a [ __ ] box now to give you all a little bit of ease Barbara
lives okay I needed to know that I needed you to tell me that and the reason I'm telling you this ahead of
time is one to give you that but also to give you her thoughts while she was here
in this box because she was open about what she was going through so I think it's important she said she iMed she
thought to herself I'm being left here to die and she said this is it this is the end and what the vessels had put her
in the one that was reference in the ransom letter was little more than a reinforced plywood box with two pipes
leading out of the lid presumably to the surface above she had no idea where she
was she didn't know how deeply she had been buried in fact she only knew what her kidnappers had told her she had food
and water and air for seven days and if her father prayed The Ransom she would be set free oh my God and she said the
kidnappers had left a small amount of food within her reach which I was like you're laying down though and you have
to eat yeah and she was able to access the water bottle at the bottom of the box through
a long straw wow and later after she had been rescued uh Barbara would learn her
captors had drugged her water to make her sluggish and docile uh-huh which is really [ __ ] up and the only other
things in the Box were an exhaust fan supplying her Air at a single light in the electrical supply to both
the light and the fan were connected so when one was on the other one would go off this is like unfathomable who the
[ __ ] comes up with it literally feels like and she's laying there [ __ ] panicking and she said at first like
after pretty much right away she said I had really dark thoughts and I was just like I can't do this I mean yeah and she
said instead of waiting a week for this to happen why should I why not just turn
off the fan like she's like should I just turn off the fan and let it happen why should
I go through this for a week cuz also you're probably sitting there wondering are they actually telling me the truth
is like are they going after my dad for ransom or are they just [ __ ] with him and are they going to get the ransom
then just leave me here like are they just going to do it for the hell of it and but she wasn't a defe and she was
like I she's a strong strong lady so she was like I just could not allow myself to give up in that moment even though
like I'm sure all she wanted to do I can't fathom that no she said as I lay there I began to think about the
kidnappers I kept thinking of him not her look I said if he was going to let me die he wouldn't have gone to all this
trouble if he wanted me to die he would have just killed me right yeah and remember she just said I kept thinking
of him not her so is the little one a girl maybe so what she's thinking is true too like if her kidnappers had gone
to such incredible lengths to arrange this super elaborate crime it did stand a reason that they like maybe had
intentions of returning her once they got the money mhm like there's always that chance obviously that they're just
going to run away into to the wild blue yonder after they get their money yeah of course but like they did go through
cuz cuz my like I think her thought finally went to like they would have just buried me with no air and nothing
and just been like yep she's under there with no air like they didn't give any evidence to the family that she was
alive so they didn't have to give her all this if they didn't plan on releasing her after a week yeah you know
they at least had intentions of trying that's I mean the long straw the food the light like seems like that's a lot
and it's like but then you have then I'm sure she's going dark and sitting there
thinking but are they just torturing me for a week yeah and letting me think that and making me go through this for a
week before I die right like this is torture my God I can't imagine so Barbara later told a reporter I can't
remember the exact sequence of things I can't remember what I was thinking at exact times I know I started singing
after counting I knew I had turned off the light I didn't want to waste the battery and she said she did everything
she could to take her mind off these [ __ ] off circumstances and any of the awful
potential outcomes that she couldn't stop running through her head you know anything could go wrong at this point
uhuh so she said she's saying Christmas carols she counted cuz remember it's Christmas break coming up I forgot that
she's saying Christmas carols she counted she talked to herself endlessly and she thought about her family and
friends she said and she said and then it happened and she said you know how a light bulb flickers just before it burns
out that's what it did I had the light out and I reached up to turn it on it flickered and it just went out oh so now
she's just in total darkness she plunged into complete and utter darkness and she
said that's when she panicked she went hysterical and she said I was absolutely convinced I was going to die in a
makeshift coffin in the middle of the woods alone oh my God and oh the PTSD that she must have endured
afterwards now it took about a day for Robert Mackle to get this money together cuz remember in this today's money is
$4.5 million [ __ ] money so specific specific the serial numers numbers the it has to be in new 20s but by the night
of December 18th he had collected all the $500,000 in cash as requested and he loaded the Stacked bills into the
suitcase now because there was such a tight timeline here they had a lot of difficulty finding a specific suitcase
that matched those mentions mhm but eventually it was Robert's employee Billy vessels who found one that fit the
entire amount wow he must have gotten [ __ ] promoted after that his his like business people are all like coming
together to help this makes you really think that these are good [ __ ] people yeah so um Billy vessel said to me it
was a Fant it was fantastic the way the money fit I don't think they could have put in one other bill it was so damn
heavy I couldn't believe wow so they had measured it down to the last bill wow and with the money ready to go an ad was
placed in the personal sections exactly how they told them and the mael could just wait and with each hour that passed
without word they started wondering whether they would ever hear from anybody again or whether they'd ever see
their daughter again yeah vessels the employee said it was High Noon waiting for the damn telephone we were rendered
completely helpless and the process was made all more painful and frustrating when the phone finally did ring a few
hours later and he someone pranking the family telling them they knew where Barbara was because people are always
when I tell you people have always and will always be peopling get it [ __ ] together yeah the fact that people exist
out there that take these situations and do that you're you got to be a [ __ ] piece of [ __ ] well you're just TST I
wish we could get all these people that make prank phone calls to families that are going through this kind of [ __ ] and
put them on a list and it should be like a high offense if you put them on an island together you
all you go all live together [ __ ] like that's like god wow so finally in the early hours of the morning when everyone
was about to give up the phone rang a little before 400 a.m. my God it was a man's voice and they said the man's
voice was cold and very formal they said nothing like the Prank Caller tone MH and Robert said he just instinctively
knew this was the real kidnapper and the caller gave Robert directions to a remote location on Fair Isle Street in
rural Atlanta and it passes over a Causeway and he said if you look down the causeway you'll see a blinking white
light you'll put the money in the box which will have a light on it and he said do it gently and then gently close
the lid and you'll turn around and leave is that clear Robert said yes he understood and the kidnapper also
provided a few other instructions he said you are to come alone you are to drive your link to the location you are
to wear a white suit and that's it these all indicated that the Nappers were going to be monitoring the entire drop
site and what was happening to make sure that he listened this is reminding me of
one of the cases that you just did and everything got theer one the mar yes now given his you know power in you know
social standing Robert Mackle had a lot of control over how this case was handled luckily um particularly when it
came to law enforcement so he told everyone he wanted to cooperate with the kidnappers and follow the instructions
exactly I would want to of the agents are going to argue with him and attt to interfere he was like this is it I'm
doing thank goodness that he held the power that he did cuz this could go so differently but they did tell him we are
going to follow you in an unmarked car at a considerable distance um that we're going to have agents around so nervous
and you know an agent in the passenger seat would be calling out each cross street they passed over the radio so
everyone at headquarters could follow along on the map okay now when Robert finally reached the general area of the
causeway he became became confused about where he was and he got turned around and lost his sense of direction this is
before GPS remember and he was panicking he was going to miss the deadline and so
he's frantically looking for any houses or businesses that he can ask for directions to and he spotted a fisherman
and this confusion had rippled back to the agents trailing him so the cars and all the family members waiting back at
headquarters are like what the [ __ ] is going where is he where is he going what's going on they're all worried that
the kidnappers are going to leave Barbara to die if anything goes wrong everyone's panicking and Robert was
luckily able to talk to this fisherman who gave him good directions hell yeah thank you fisherman and Robert was able
to backtrack and make his way to the drop site oh my God and he found the box under the causeway so it was still there
the sun was starting to come up as Robert placed the suitcase in the Bal box did what he was told and went back
to his car and drove away why did he have to wear a white suit so they could tell that he was listening to what they
said that's [ __ ] terrifying they just want to know that you'll follow all their directions basically and they want
to make sure it's you they want to make sure all of that and he but at this point he's so scared that the chaos and
confusion like [ __ ] all this up and he's like I did everything perfect but like what if I didn't did they see
anybody else did I mess something up yeah like what happened less than 30 minutes after Robert drove away from
this whole thing thing two police officers Paul self and William Sweeney were just out patrolling and they
spotted a parked car out by the causeway o and this area where the causeway is is
super Rural and even in you know a place where there's a lot of rural Landscapes
a car being here was strange so self the police officer said automatically I knew
it didn't belong there I didn't recognize it so he's thinking it's something nefarious he's like what's
going on here so the officers kind of like talk to each other like should we check it out should we just leave it
alone uh and they finally were like let's go take a look let's at least go talk to this person so as the officer's
car approached the causeway their headlights hit on two figures emerging from the brush shut the [ __ ] up they
appeared to be two men one larger than the other and one carrying a suitcase uh-huh now both officers jumped from
their car and immediately called for them to stop which sent them both scrambling in different directions
officer Paul self gave Chase on foot and Sweeney pursued the man in his car trying to cut him off as he ducked into
a backyard and while the smaller of the two men disappeared into the woods the officers focused on pursuing the man
with the suitcase yeah by the time they caught up to him he was scrambling over um a tall chain link fence and he
dropped the suitcase behind him I'm so nervous right now now realizing they probably didn't they're not going to
catch up to him at this point they ended the Chase and just grabbed the suitcase
and went back to the local Precinct so as the FBI agents back at headquarters listened to the police channels on the
radio while they waited for Robert to come back they caught a brief mention of two officers who' spotted some
suspicious activity out by the Fair Isle Causeway and pursued two unknown suspects into the woods I'm so nervous
that this is like going to [ __ ] everything up it didn't take long before they realized um that oops the local
police didn't have any knowledge of the ransom exchange happening oh my God so the local police had no idea what they
had just stumbled into and so they had inadvertently botched The Ransom drop why did I know that this
why do Ransom drops just never go to plan yeah in a statement later that day um police chief Charles price said there
has been no coordination between us and the family or others so that meant that FBI never informed them of the ransom
drop the local authorities had no idea and they said if we had known we wouldn't have interfered that was an
over since they had not been aware of of the situation the two officers had no idea what they were walking into and
just thought they were stopping a Prowler doing their job and when he learned of what it occurred Robert
Mackle was absolutely devastated of course he was and he was absolutely certain he wasn't getting his daughter
back he was like we [ __ ] it up while the FBI refused to make any statement on the botched Ransom drop they did release
a statement on Robert's behalf indicating to the kidnappers that what had happened was in no way the fault of
the mle family um Robert was quoted as saying it was my desire and wish that everybody leave it alone I want to do
business with them please do not harm her now the press release was broadcast all day and night on local television
and radio stations hoping the kidnappers would hear it and contact the mackles later that evening they did Robert
Mackle received another call from the kidnapper who agreed to give him one final chance to save their daughter damn
well cuz they want their money they want the money so he's told to take back them
take the money to the remote location again another he's got to take a whole another set of that money well now they
have the suitcase ohce they dropped it so he was told to take the money to another remote location on the outskirts
of where they were and this time he was supposed to come alone mhm uh so not wanting to botch The Exchange a second
time the FBI informed the local authorities of the upcoming exchange this time they were like this is
happening and all parties agreed we will not interfere and this time everything went as planned thank goodness now while
the local police interference had foiled the plans for one smooth exchange it wasn't all bad that that had happened
because in their pursuit of the suspicious individuals on the causeway officer self and Sweeney discovered a
Volvo station wagon with Massachusetts plates huh that they believed belong to the two men that pursued into the woods
I hate that it's Massachusetts in this case I know I'm like damn inside the car they found rope tape a ski mask believed
to have been worn by the smaller person during the abduction and more importantly a key to Jane and barbar's
room at the roadway in how did they get a key I don't oh was it on Barbara possibly they must have taken it okay
they also found other less incriminating evidence including a woman's blonde wig
several road maps miscellaneous camera equipment and roles of film what at the scene they also discovered a boat
registered to Dr Robert Hurley which they believe the kidnappers used to reach the pickup location okay now when
the agents ran the plates on the Volvo they learned that the car belonged to a man named George Gary Deacon a resident
of Massachusetts with no known criminal record and barely any evidence of any public existence whatsoever that's weird
suspicious inside the Volvo they also found a stack of Polaroid photos depicting who they believed to be the
kidnapper George deacon it was um they were very uh provocative photos with an unknown young woman wait they were just
like piics of the kidnapper yeah in one photo Deacon was described as quote nude
heavily bearded this is the description by the way it's you got to do what you got to do I don't necessarily want you
to but here we are nude heavily bearded I'm so what are you going to say [ __ ] and beefy and
fat lying on his back on the bed not beefy it's the beefy Barbera gets out of this guys
don't worry beefy just describing rude like that's that's out of pocket a pocket my that is not a pocket you
didn't just say that I'm crying oh my God guys that's the relief we needed in this tension
filled episode it's the beefy it's the beefy uh it's the beefy for me uh sometimes I'm
feeling beefy you know what I mean beefy I wish they wrote I Reckless with this instead they could have said thick with
two C's but they said beefy um I mean this guy seems like an [ __ ] so yeah and also um just to be clear this other
person in the photo is not Barbara so don't worry this is not yeah that situation and they're describing George
describing adjectives Deon quote unquote adjectives yeah and in another photo Deacon is nude except for a police cap
on his head remember the kidnapper had the police cap yeah and he's holding a telephone as though he's about to make a
call and the other photos are of the young woman in various states of address Pro undress posing provocatively what
the [ __ ] are they up to here who knows just having a a good time now when the agents get to the fifth photo in the set
oh no there's suddenly evidence that this is definitely their kidnapper cuz it's Barbara the fifth photo is of
Barbara Mackle laying on her back on the ground she is dressed um and she has a sign reading
kidnapped place under her chin oh my God in the photo Barbara's Eyes Are Open her
mouth is like a little open like and she looks she doesn't look like it's a it's
a strange look on her face can you look up you can look it up okay I'm going to look um and remember she is alive in
this photo but when they saw photo and I understand why they thought this think they thought she might be dead in the
photo oh God just because of the look on her face um the photo set contains seven
photos in total but the agents knew the and this is very interesting and like smart of them uhhuh the agents knew that
the Polaroid cartridge that they used in uh produced eight photos in total huh so
based on that they presumed that there was one missing photo and that photo was likely of Barbara and that was probably
the proof of existence that the ransom letter had referred to that they said they would send to the maal later okay
but the mael had not received it yet oh wow I can see why they thought right she
does have a look on her face that could be yeah looked at as she's not with us cuz she's not smiling but but she's not
she's not not smiling yeah like she's definitely not happy that's not what I'm saying but she it's a strange look and I
think that's why they were like is she alive yeah now oh my God this is [ __ ] chilling
so they assume that this final photo is the one that was being sent to the mael but they hadn't uh received it yet so
they found all these photos they now have a name George Deacon they have dropped off don't you dare they're
Ransom don't you do it everything has been put in place and now they just have to
wait and when we come back for part two you're going to hear some mindblowing [ __ ] about George deacon I'm so scared
so get ready um it gets crazier how even it gets crazier Elena this case is cucko
nuts bananas this might be and especially because she survives one of my favorite cases we've covered Dave
also was saying this as he was going through it like this was he was he was like this is [ __ ] mind-blowing crazy
you just need a case where somebody survives yes where six years in and there's a fun little um like there's
also a fun little tidbit at the end that even adds to like the like oh wow cool so like it'll all come in the end we'll
all get to go ha okay all right see sometimes you need they'll be that but it's going to get wild till then okay so
Okie do so strap in well keep listening we hope you do we hope you keep listening and we hope you keep it weird
but not so wor that you forget your outro and just Babble it all out I was like I'll figure out I was like
listening we hope our hopes listening our hopes bye bye [Music] [Music] [Music]

In the early morning hours of December 17, 1968, two gunmen burst into the Atlanta motel room of Barbara Jane Mackle and her mother, Jane. After tying up and chloroforming Jane Mackle, the two kidnapped Barbara, forcing her into their car at gunpoint. Later that day, a family friend received a call at the Mackle home in Florida, instructing them to look in the northwest corner of the Mackle’s yard, where they would find a ransom note with details about how to ensure their daughter’s safe return.

Once the note was unearthed, the Mackle’s learned their daughter had been placed inside a box and buried in the ground in a remote location. She has enough food, water, and air to survive for a few days, but if the family doesn’t act quickly, there’s a good chance Barbara will die

The kidnapping of Barbara Jane Mackle was an elaborately planned, well-executed crime that quickly dominated local and national headlines, which was no small feat in a year of major social upheaval. By the 1960s, kidnapping for ransom was a familiar concept, but to be kidnapped and buried alive was a terrifying thought that shook Americans to their core and left everyone wondering, what kind of person could do such a thing?

Thank you to the incredible Dave White of Bring Me The Axe Podcast for research and writing support!

References Associated Press. 1968. "Kidnapped college girl found safe in box underground." Los Angeles Times, December 21: 1.

—. 1968. "Mackle kidnapping suspect capturted; $480,000 recovered." Los Angeles Times, December 22: 1.

—. 1968. "Kidnapped girl tells of ordeal of 83 hours entombed in box." New York Times, December 29: 44.

—. 1968. "Kidnapped girl, buried alive, is freed." New York Times, December 21: 1.

Atlanta Constitution. 1968. "80-hour burial ends in rescue." Atlanta Constitution, December 21: 1.

—. 1968. "Motel coed kidnapped here spurs nationwide alert for 2." Atlanta Constitution, December 18: 1.

Foreman, Laura. 1968. "Campus silent about the girl." Atlanta Constitution, December 18: 1.

Gary Steven Krist v. State of Georgia. 1970. 227 Ga. 85 (Ga. 1970) (Supreme Court of Georgia, December 3).

Markowitz, Arnold. 1969. "Plea of Innocent entered for Krist." Miami Herald, March 8: 1.

Miami Herald. 1969. "Krist collapses; is being force-fed." Miami Herald, April 25: 4.

—. 1969. "'Superiority' goes to jail." Miami Herald, May 28: 3.

—. 1969. "Who's villain of kidnap case?" Miami Herald, March 9: 19.

Miller, Gene. 1969. "Krist gets life in prison avter jury grants mercy." Miami Herald, May 27: 1.

—. 1969. "'Life imprisonment worse than death'." Miami Herald, May 27: 16.

Miller, Gene, and Barbara Mackle. 1971. Eighty-Three Hours till Dawn. New York, NY: Doubleday.

Murray, Frank. 1968. "Researcher and 2 sought in kidnap." Atlanta Constitution, December 20: 1.

New York Times. 1968. "Ransom pickup inadvertently foiled by Miami police." New York Times, December 20.

Raines, Howell. 1979. "Parole of a kidnapper angers Atlanta." New York Times, May 14: A14.

Sosin, Milt. 1969. "FBI hunts Ruth's 'flight pal'." Miami News, March 6: 1.

—. 1969. "Ruth: Everyone is against me." Miami News, March 7: 1.

United Press International. 1968. "Gunman and 'boy' kidnapp 20-year-old coed, Florida millionaire's daughter." New York Times, December 18: 25.

Vissar, Steve. 2006. "The strange odyssey of Gary Krist; From kidnapper to prisoner to doctor to alleged drug smuggler." Atlanta Journal-Constitution, March 19.

Connect with Wondery http://wondery.com/shows http://facebook.com/WonderyMedia http://twitter.com/WonderyMedia http://instagram.com/WonderyMedia

Brief Summary

Barbara Jane Mackle was kidnapped in 1967, leading to a complex ransom situation involving her family and the FBI.

Key points

The Twilight Vibe. Twilight is such a vibe, and it marked a crucial time in my life.
Murder Mystery Dinner. Join us for a murder mystery dinner with a chance to win tickets!
Jane's Desperate Plea for Help. Jane, tied up and desperate, honks her car horn for help.
Walter Perkins' Inaction. The night clerk, Walter Perkins, fails to call the police despite Jane's pleas.
Robert Mackle's Connections. Robert Mackle uses his powerful connections to escalate the case.
Ransom Note Discovery. A chilling ransom note reveals Barbara's dire situation and demands.

Episode highlights

Episode quotes

I can't [ __ ] wait!

7:16WatchSep 5, 2024

Tension

85/ 100High tension

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