WHAT HAPPENED TO THE MARY CELESTE?

On Dec 5, 1872, the British ship Dei Gratia pulled up alongside the Mary Celeste and found it abandoned and adrift about 400 miles (644 km) east of the Azores. A lifeboat was missing, but there was no damage to the vessel or sign of any struggle. The 10 passengers and crew aboard the vessel were never seen again, and what happened on board the ship has been a mystery ever since. Morehouse sent a boarding party to the ship. Belowdecks, the ship's charts had been tossed about, and the crewmen's belongings were still in their quarters. The ship's only lifeboat was missing, and one of its two pumps had been disassembled. Three and a half feet of water was sloshing in the ship's bottom, though the cargo of 1,701 barrels of industrial alcohol was largely intact. There was a six-month supply of food and water—but not a soul to consume it.

The ship began its fateful voyage on November 7, 1872, sailing with seven crewmen and Capt. Benjamin Spooner Briggs, his wife, Sarah, and the couple's 2-year-old daughter, Sophia. The 282-ton brigantine battled heavy weather for two weeks to reach the Azores, where the ship log's last entry was recorded at 5 a.m. on November 25.

Thus was born one of the most durable mysteries in nautical history: What happened to the ten people who had sailed aboard the Mary Celeste? Through the decades, a lack of hard facts has only spurred speculation as to what might have taken place. Theories have ranged from mutiny to pirates to sea monsters to killer waterspouts. Arthur Conan Doyle's 1884 short story based on the case posited a capture by a vengeful ex-slave, a 1935 movie featured Bela Lugosi as a homicidal sailor. Now, a new investigation, drawing on modern maritime technology and newly discovered documents, has pieced together the most likely scenario.

"I love the idea of mysteries, but you should always revisit these things using knowledge that has since come to light," says Anne MacGregor, the documentarian who launched the investigation and wrote, directed and produced The True Story of the 'Mary Celeste,' partly with funding from Smithsonian Networks.

Did Briggs, then, have a rational reason to abandon ship? MacGregor figured that if she could determine the precise spot from which Briggs, his family and crew abandoned ship, she might be able to shed light on why. She knew from the transcriptions of the Mary Celeste's log slate—where notations were made before they were transcribed into the log—that the ship was six miles from, and within sight of, the Azores island of Santa Maria on November 25; she knew from the testimony of the Dei Gratia crew that ten days later, the ship was some 400 miles east of the island. MacGregor asked Richardson "to work backward and create a path between these two points."

The abandoned ship remains a mystery to this day...

THE FATHER'S DAY MURDERS

Parents Lloyd and Dixie Ortiz, along with their 21-year-old son, Steven Ortiz, were murdered at their home on Father’s Day 2011. The family was found deceased that morning by the Ortiz’s daughter, Cherie Ortiz-Rios, who lived next door and called 911 to report the gruesome slaying.

When investigators arrived at the scene, they discovered Dixie in the master bedroom with trauma to her right temple. Lloyd was located in the backyard and had sustained several injuries to his upper head and torso.

In the kitchen, Steven had been struck multiple times in the head and shoulder area, according to an insider. An autopsy report later revealed the family’s wounds were the result of impact trauma made by a pickaxe, which was ultimately found in a field neighboring their residence. Although no offender DNA was detected on the murder weapon, a witness told law enforcement there was a reason for the lack of evidence — the attacker had been wearing socks over his hands at the time of the assault.

Ashley Mae Roybal claimed that on the night of the slaying, she dropped off her cousin, Jose Roybal, 15, and his friend, Nicholas Ortiz, 16, outside of the Ortiz house to burglarize it. She then returned home, and about 30 minutes later, Nicholas called her for a ride.

When Ashley picked him up, she noticed he had blood on his pants, a sock on his hand and a trash bag tied around his right foot. He confessed he had killed Lloyd, Dixie and Steven and discarded the weapon near the crime scene.

Investigators learned that Nicholas, who has no relation to the family, was friends with Cherie’s son and had lived at Cherie’s house for several months prior to the murders. After Cherie caught him stealing money and getting into trouble at school, she sent Nicholas back to his own family and never saw him again.

To corroborate Ashley’s claims, authorities examined the group’s phone logs, showing that communications between Nicholas, Ashley and Jose peaked around the time of the slayings.

When questioned about his involvement and confronted with the cellular records, Nicholas denied having anything to do with the triple homicide and quickly ended the interview.

Investigators then spoke to Jose, whose testimony proved to be a match to Ashley’s story. Jose claimed Ashley had brought them to the Ortiz house, and when she left, Nicholas said he wanted Jose to “go in with him, to go kill.”

“I told him no, I didn’t want to. I was scared,” Jose told authorities. “When he started walking towards the house, I ran to the river.”

Once he met up with Ashley and Nicholas after the murders, Jose said Nicholas “was white as a ghost” and that he confessed to killing the three family members.

On Feb. 12, 2015, an arrest warrant was issued for Nicholas, and he was picked up by New Mexico State Police.

"There were five total charges on the criminal complaint that I gave him,” New Mexico State Police Agent Kraig Bobnock told “An Unexpected Killer.” “He said, ‘I don’t agree with two of these charges on here.’ And there were only two charges that were different from murder. So, it’s an omission to me. I knew I had him at that point. It was him.”

Nicholas was brought to trial four months later, and prosecutors argued he killed the family in a robbery gone wrong. Both Ashley and Jose testified against him.

In the middle of proceedings, however, Jose changed his testimony and said that it was Ashley who had instructed them to kill the family, claiming she gave them socks to cover up their hands and plastic bags for their feet to avoid footwear impressions.

He also testified that Ashley gave Nicholas the pickaxe to carry out the murders.

Jurors were deadlocked, and a mistrial was declared. The case went back to trial the following year, and Nicholas was found guilty of three counts of first-degree murder and one count each of aggravated burglary with a deadly weapon and conspiracy to commit aggravated burglary with a deadly weapon, reported local newspaper the Albuquerque Journal.

He was sentenced to 25 years in prison.

Ashley pleaded guilty to conspiracy to commit aggravated burglary and tampering with evidence and was given 20 years in prison with six years of her sentence suspended, according to the Albuquerque Journal...

LESLIE CHANCE: WAS SHE WRONGLY CONVICTED?

On Aug. 25, 2013, Todd Chance's body was found shot dead in an almond grove near his home. When questioned by police, his wife Leslie and daughter Samantha reported that he left earlier stating he was going to a gun show with his father. However when officers interviewed the father, he told officers he made no plans with him that day.

His car was later found in another neighborhood with the murder weapon (his own gun) inside. A woman was spotted on CCTV leaving the car and walking away, visiting a Walmart pay phone, changing clothes, and dumping a bag of trash in a public bin before getting in a taxi. The police, believing that the woman featured in the CCTV footage was Leslie, arrested her a few days later, but she was released soon after as prosecutors said the footage was unclear and there was no other evidence linking her to the crime. Police found racy pics on Todd's phone of an ex, Carrie, who he had recently been back involved with, however she had an alibi and was cleared. No one else was arrested.

Jump to 2016- the case was re-opened. Police found out the family had gone to a "CSI experience" in Las Vegas the year before, and many of the details in the case matched methods the experience showed. More footage was found of the taxi, which dropped the woman off not far from the Chance house. They found CCTV from weeks before of Leslie going to the Walmart and asking about a payphone. Leslie's laptop, which she stated she had been working on that morning, was not able to show activity proving a solid alibi, although her daughter stated she had seen her that morning. Leslie was arrested again for first degree murder.

After an initial mistrial, a second trial found her guilty in 2019, based on the circumstantial evidence and twin motives of jealousy and life insurance money. However, their 3 daughters and others still doubt she did it.

The biggest point argued is lack of physical evidence tying her to the case. Shoe prints found at the scene were never matched to hers and no DNA was found at the scene, nor any blood or injury on her when she was interviewed later the same day. There was also a concern over the CCTV footage. The woman in the footage was stated as noticeably smaller than Leslie, especially compared to the CCTV of her at the same Walmart a few weeks before. 911 calls from the body and car being discovered were deleted and any clues from them apparently lost. Several early interviews were also lost when investigators didn't properly book them into evidence. Her defense stated that with the misconduct and only circumstantial evidence, he was shocked at the conviction. However appeals have since been unsuccessful.

Do you think she did it? Personally it looks suspicious but I agree that the CCTV footage, while grainy, doesn't look like her body shape at all. The person is far smaller than Leslie and I don't see any way you can hide that much weight. I'm also really surprised they managed to get a conviction with such little (and botched) evidence...

THE MURDER OF TODD CHANCE

I was listening to a true crime podcast on my car radio and came upon this case. Of course, I was done with my drive before the episode was order, so I had to research and see what happened to mild mannered family man Todd Chance. 

It was a vacation to remember. Todd Chance, his wife Leslie Jenea Chance, and their children headed to Las Vegas in the summer of 2013 to take in the sights and spend some quality time together, even going through a special CSI themed-crime exhibit. But what Todd likely never suspected was that Jenea, his wife of 17 years and a beloved elementary school principal, was using the popular experience to gather tips about how to kill him, according to authorities.

Weeks later, Todd’s body was discovered in an almond field just outside Bakersfield, California on Aug. 25, 2013. But it would take years — and a significant amount of surveillance video footage — to piece the complex case together and bring the devoted dad’s killer to justice.

Who was Todd Chance? Raised in a small farming community just outside Bakersfield, Todd was a regular “cowboy,” often donning a cowboy hat and boots. During his early years, he loved to go off-roading, raised pigs, and tended to the family’s horses with his younger brother, Scott.

Todd also loved fast cars, including a sporty blue ‘76 Cobra II he drove as a teen.

“Oh it was a chick magnet,” his mom Diana Chance remembered. “Every day there were notes on the windshield of the car from some little girl that wanted to have him call her, liked his car, thought he was cute.”

But there was one woman that would stand out from the rest. Todd met Jenea, a single mom to a young daughter, while both were working at a local drug store.

“He was very good looking, I kind of thought he was a ladies man and a player and I wasn’t interested in that at all,” Jenea told Canning of her initial impressions. “I had already been married once and I had come to the conclusion I wanted to find some ugly, fat man that would cherish me.”

But Jenea soon learned that Todd was more than his good looks. He was “very doting” and quickly bonded with her daughter Jessica, treating her like his own child.

The couple got married and had two more daughters. While Todd, a truck driver, focused on keeping the family’s home life running, Jenea earned her teaching degree and eventually worked her way up to become the principal at a local elementary school.

By the summer of 2013, Jessica had moved out of the house and her two younger sisters were enjoying their teenage years. The family took advantage of their time off by going to the beach, traveling to San Francisco, and taking that trip to Las Vegas.

“It was perfect timing and we had the money,” said the couple’s daughter Sarah. “It was a really good summer, probably the best summer I’ve ever had.”

But tragedy struck on Aug. 25, 2013, when Todd was found dead in an almond grove just outside town. A bullet tore through his hand in what was likely a defensive wound and the 45-year-old had two shots to the chest. His beloved black 2011 Mustang was missing, leading investigators to initially believe he may have died in a carjacking gone wrong.

But just hours later, the car was discovered abandoned in a drug-ridden neighborhood. The vehicle was unlocked and the keys and his .38 revolver, believed to be the same weapon that killed him, were left inside.

"Our carjacking theory now is showing less and less evidence, especially now with the car being left open and the gun left inside it,” Kern County Homicide Detective Kavin Brewer explained. “That was just so rare and unheard of that a carjacking now is not in my mind anymore.”

Jenea told detectives that her husband left the house that Sunday morning around 7:30 a.m. or 8 a.m. to go to a gun show with his father, Travis Chance. She claimed she stayed home to get some work done on her computer before her teen daughters woke up late that morning. “It was a typical day,” she told authorities

When police arrived later that afternoon to notify the family of Todd’s death, Jenea said she was stunned.

“It was unbelievable. I couldn’t comprehend,” she told Canning later that year. “He was such a likable guy, he didn’t hang out with a rough crowd, you know, he wasn’t into drugs, he wasn’t into, you know, gambling. It’s very baffling.”

Strangely, Travis told investigators he never had plans with his son that day. Detectives also found another clue on Todd’s phone. The married father had nude photos of another woman on his phone. Authorities ultimately discovered the photos were of his ex-girlfriend Carrie, a woman he rekindled an online communication with several years earlier.

Jenea believed Carrie may have had something to do with the murder, but Carrie was quickly ruled out after a parking ticket placed her hours away on a trip to Mission San Juan Capistrano with her daughter and friends. Carrie also told detectives she hadn’t communicated with Todd in months and they never had an affair or met in person after reconnecting.

Brewer said investigators got the break they needed after discovering a string of surveillance video that seemed to trace the killer’s movements that day. A witness in the neighborhood where the car was abandoned reported seeing a woman, wearing her hair tucked in a hat and large sunglasses walking away from the vehicle. In surveillance footage, the woman seemed to be carrying a bag and red backpack.

The same woman was later spotted walking into a Starbucks, where she went into the bathroom and emerged in entirely different clothes and shoes. The woman left the store before she was captured again at Lowe’s disposing of some evidence behind some bags of soil. The same woman is then seemingly seen at a nearby Walmart, where she uses a payphone to call for a cab.

Brewer was convinced the woman seen in the footage was Jenea. The principal was arrested just four days after her husband’s death. But the district attorney’s office wasn’t sure the blurry video was enough to build their case and charges were never filed against her.

Yet, Brewer was still determined to make his case and spent years tracking down more evidence and surveillance images.

He discovered that while in Las Vegas the family had attended a CSI experience based on the popular crime show and several of the exhibits had some eerie similarities to Todd’s case. For example, in one exhibit the suspect used a payphone to avoid detection, in another they changed their shoes to throw investigators off of their trial, and in a third a woman killed her husband and then disposed of his body in the desert.

Along with the chilling details from the CSI experience, investigators also found Jenea’s fingerprint on the outside of the Mustang’s driver side and her DNA was found on the steering wheel and gearshift — although she had claimed earlier to Dateline that she never drove the car.

Brewer also learned that just three weeks before the murder, Jenea had made a purchase at the same Walmart where the killer used the payphone and appears to be asking a greeter in the surveillance images during the earlier shopping trip where the payphone is located.

When Brewer showed some of the surveillance images to Jenea’s daughter Jessica, she broke down in tears. When asked whether she believed it was her mother in the footage, she replied “yes.”

Jessica would later tell Dateline she was confused during the interview and thought all the surveillance images she was shown, including that earlier shopping trip, were taken the same day. She later insisted it wasn’t her mother in the footage and believed, along with her two younger sisters, in her mother’s innocence.

With all the new evidence, Jenea was arrested again in 2016. She went on trial for the first-degree murder of her husband three years later. Prosecutors argued Jenea killed her husband after discovering his online relationship with his ex and was hoping to cash in on several life insurance policies totaling nearly a half a million dollars.

Although Jenea’s defense attorney tried to argue that it couldn’t be her in the surveillance videos because Jenea needed to wear glasses and didn’t own contacts or prescription sunglasses, prosecutors introduced evidence that Jenea had ordered two boxes of contacts the month before Todd’s death.

“It was an absolute lie and she was just absolutely caught in it and right in front of the jury,” Brewer said.

After eight days of deliberations, Jenea was convicted of first-degree murder and sentenced to 50 years to life behind bars. In an interview with the media in 2020, Jenea continued to proclaim her innocence.

“When the verdict came in I thought I heard it wrong. I seriously thought I heard it wrong,” she said.

THE MURDER OF JONATHAN JOSS: WAS IT A HATE CRIME?

The husband of slain “King of the Hill” star Jonathan Joss has claimed his killer cackled and spewed a gay slur moments after allegedly shooting the voice actor in the head.

Joss, 59, was gunned down near his San Antonio, Texas, home Sunday night in an attack that his spouse alleges was carried out by a homophobic neighbor.

“Everything was really close range. It was in the head,” Tristan Kern de Gonzales told the Press of the moment the actor was fatally shot.

“While I’m holding him, [the suspect] has the gun pointed over me, and he’s laughing, saying, ‘Oh, you love him? Joto,'” de Gonzales alleged.

“‘Joto’ is Spanish for f—t. I never knew the word until I came to Texas, and then I heard it a lot.”

The suspect, Sigfredo Ceja Alvarez, 56, was arrested a block away and has since been charged with murder.

Cops, however, said the initial probe had found “no evidence” that indicated Joss was killed due to his “sexual orientation.”

“We take such allegations very seriously and have thoroughly reviewed all available information. Should any new evidence come to light, we will charge the suspect accordingly,” San Antonio police said in a statement.Sigfredo Ceja Alvarez was arrested and charged with the murder of Jonathan Joss on June 2, 2025.

It comes after the husband claimed the alleged killer had approached the pair after they stopped by to check the mail at Joss’ home, which had been heavily damaged during a January fire that claimed the lives of their three dogs.

The husband said the couple had just found the bones of their dead pet dog displayed on the property — causing them both “severe emotional distress.”

“We began yelling and crying in response to the pain of what we saw,” de Gonzales said in a social media post.

“While we were doing this a man approached us. He started yelling violent homophobic slurs at us. He then raised a gun from his lap and fired.”

The husband said the couple had just found the bones of their dead pet dog displayed on the property — causing them both “severe emotional distress.”Facebook/Tristan Kern de Gonzales

Joss — best known for voicing John Redcorn on the bawdy cartoon comedy — was struck by the gunfire and killed. He also appeared on the NBC comedy "Parks And Recreation".

“He was murdered by someone who could not stand the sight of two men loving each other,” Joss’ husband said.

VIDEO BREAK: THE MOTHMAN OF MOUNT PLEASANT