December 12, 2014. Beaver County, Pennsylvania. A severed head belonging to an elderly woman is discovered in a rural wooded area about thirty feet from the nearest road, but the rest of her remains cannot be found. The head has rubber balls inside its eye sockets and since it has been embalmed, investigators are unable to extract any DNA to make an identification, so the victim becomes known as “The Beaver County Jane Doe”. While the authorities do not believe that foul play took place, a local resident named Jay Grabner starts displaying suspicious behaviour to indicate he might have some knowledge about the head. However, all attempts to determine the Beaver County Jane Doe’s identity and the circumstances of her death are unsuccessful. On this week’s episode of “The Trail Went Cold”, we explore an incredibly bizarre mystery about the discovery of a severed head.

Join us on Saturday, October 26 at 8:00pm ET for an online streaming marathon where we will be watching classic segments from “Unsolved Mysteries”. You can enter our screening room by clicking on this link.

Additional Reading:

https://unsolvedmysteries.fandom.com/wiki/Beaver_County_Jane_Doe

https://unsolved.com/gallery/the-severed-head/

https://www.washingtonpost.com/news/morning-mix/wp/2015/12/15/the-strange-sad-quest-to-match-a-severed-embalmed-head-with-its-body/?noredirect=on&utm_term=.bb82266a0128

https://www.reuters.com/article/us-usa-bodies-head-specialreport/special-report-a-womans-severed-head-was-found-in-the-woods-who-is-she-idUSKBN1D21B4/

https://www.reuters.com/article/us-pennsylvania-head-idUSKBN0TX2F120151214/

https://www.goerie.com/story/news/education/2015/12/12/edinboro-university-artist-creates-new/25015300007/

https://www.timesonline.com/story/news/local/2015/12/06/mysterious-case-embalmed-head-found/989358007/

https://www.timesonline.com/story/news/local/2022/12/08/increased-reward-offered-for-information-on-embalmed-head-found-in-economy-beaver-county/69708414007/

https://unidentified-awareness.fandom.com/wiki/Beaver_County_Jane_Doe

https://www.distractify.com/p/beaver-county-severed-head

“The Trail Went Cold” is on Patreon. Visit www.patreon.com/thetrailwentcold to become a patron and gain access to our exclusive bonus content.

The Trail Went Cold is produced and edited by Magill Foote.

All music is composed by Vince Nitro.

November 1, 1974. North Adams, Massachusetts. After leaving a dance at a local lodge, 18-year old Kim Benoit goes missing. Two weeks later, Kim’s body is discovered at the bottom of an embankment in a remote area twelve miles away and it is determined that she was the victim of strangulation. In October 1976, 17-year old Cynthia “Rocky” Krizack goes missing after leaving her home in the nearby town of Williamstown and her body is also eventually found at the bottom of a remote embankment. Since Rocky has been strangled to death and there are similarities between the two cases, investigators look into the possibility that she was killed by the same person who murdered Kim, but both crimes remain unsolved. On this week’s episode of “The Trail Went Cold”, we explore a pair of cold cases from the Berkshires.

If you have any information about the featured cases, please contact the Berkshire County State Police Detective Unit at (413) 499-1112. That’s (413) 499-1112. For Kim Benoit’s murder, you can also contact the North Adams Police Department at (413) 664-4944 and for Cynthia “Rocky” Krizack’s murder, you can also contact the Williamstown Police Department at (413) 458-5733.

Additional Reading:

https://www.berkshireeagle.com/news/local/author-and-former-prosecutor-links-convicted-killer-to-kim-benoit-murder/article_d942ac81-a54f-5fb4-bd9c-ea9f1a5d95bb.html

https://www.iberkshires.com/story/66509/Reward-Offered-in-Renewed-Search-for-Kim-Benoit-s-Killer.html

https://www.cbsnews.com/boston/news/cold-case-reward-information-kim-benoit-death-1974/

https://www.greylockglass.com/top-left-corner-170-investigating-cold-cases-of-murder-time-can-be-your-friend/

https://www.westernmassnews.com/2022/02/22/true-crime-cynthia-krizack/

https://www.iberkshires.com/story/47000/Cold-Case-Expert-Offers-Thoughts-on-Unsolved-Local-Murders.html

https://www.newspapers.com/image/544888238/

https://www.newspapers.com/image/545933562/

https://www.newspapers.com/image/545034519/

https://www.newspapers.com/image/1072387675

https://www.newspapers.com/image/470976091/

https://www.newspapers.com/image/532271900/

“The Trail Went Cold” is on Patreon. Visit www.patreon.com/thetrailwentcold to become a patron and gain access to our exclusive bonus content.

“The Trail Went Cold” will be appearing at the Berkshire Podcast Festival, taking place in North Adams, Massachusetts on October 18-20, 2024. To get a 30 % discount on tickets, please use our specialized promo code, “COLD2024”, by visiting https://www.berkshirepodcastfestival.com/.

The Trail Went Cold is produced and edited by Magill Foote.

All music is composed by Vince Nitro.

September 12, 1983. Wyoming, Ohio. 59-year old Dorothea Irwin is found stabbed to death inside her residence. Since she was in the midst of selling the house and said she was meeting an interested buyer, it is theorized that this person murdered her as part of an elaborate set-up. Suspicion turns towards Dorothea’s son, John “Jay” Irwin, who had previously spent time in prison for fraud and encouraged his mother to put her home up for sale. Jay eventually commits some additional fraud schemes and becomes a wanted fugitive until he is captured in 1991, but no conclusive evidence links him or anyone else to Dorothea’s murder. Who was responsible for killing Dorothea Irwin and what could their motive have been? We shall attempt to answer that question on this week’s episode of “The Trail Went Cold”.

Additional Reading:

https://unsolvedmysteries.fandom.com/wiki/Dorothea_Irwin

https://www.newspapers.com/image/103324432/

https://www.newspapers.com/image/103324378/

https://www.newspapers.com/image/103324343/

https://www.newspapers.com/image/764445101/

https://www.newspapers.com/image/103324688/

https://www.newspapers.com/image/103324693/

https://www.newspapers.com/image/103325205/

https://www.newspapers.com/image/101855002/

https://www.newspapers.com/image/101855023/

https://www.newspapers.com/image/764780734/

https://www.newspapers.com/image/164897155/

https://www.newspapers.com/image/101239293/

https://www.newspapers.com/image/101040575/

https://www.newspapers.com/image/763917774/

https://www.newspapers.com/image/100898478/

https://www.newspapers.com/image/801358948/

“The Trail Went Cold” is on Patreon. Visit www.patreon.com/thetrailwentcold to become a patron and gain access to our exclusive bonus content.

“The Trail Went Cold” will be appearing at the Berkshire Podcast Festival, taking place in North Adams, Massachusetts on October 18-20, 2024. To get a 30 % discount on tickets, please use our specialized promo code, “COLD2024”, by visiting https://www.berkshirepodcastfestival.com/.

The Trail Went Cold is produced and edited by Magill Foote.

All music is composed by Vince Nitro.