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Mind of a Monster: The Hollywood Ripper — True Crime
Mind of a Monster: The Hollywood Ripper

Across the 2000s, under the shimmering lights of Hollywood, a murderer lay in wait. Watching, waiting and stalking his young and beautiful female neighbors, Michael Gargiulo bided his time until his opportune moment arrived – while they were sleeping. Breaking into their safe havens – their homes – he butchered his victims and then moved to a new location in tinsel town to find his next target. 

Across six episodes, criminal psychologist Dr. Michelle Ward talks with friends and acquaintances of Michael Gargiulo, investigators, experts and attorneys from the case, all to uncover the twisted world of The Hollywood Ripper. 

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Copyright: © Discovery or its subsidiaries and affiliates. All rights reserved.

Latest Episodes:

S6 Ep.1: We Called Her Eklutna Annie Jan 09, 2024

Show notes

Dr. Michelle Ward takes us to 1980s Alaska, into the swirl and chaos of the pipeline oil boom. For months, Detective Maxine Farrell’s been troubled by the list of missing dancers on her desk, but her superiors don’t want to know about it. Then, an off-duty cop makes a shocking discovery in the wilderness - a young woman’s body in a shallow grave. In this episode, Dr. Michelle Ward explores the underworld of Anchorage and its seedy 4th Avenue strip. She explores potential mafia connections and uncovers the dangers that dancers and sex workers face. Is there someone preying on their vulnerability?

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Introducing Mind of a Monster: The Butcher Baker Jan 02, 2024

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1980s Alaska: a swirling, chaotic mix of oil workers, dancers, sex workers and old-school cops. On the seedy 4th Avenue strip in Anchorage, nicknamed the world's longest bar, women start to go missing, plucked from the street or the bars and never seen again. In this 7-part series, Dr. Michelle Ward investigates the case of one of the US's most prolific, but not widely known, serial killers. She'll talk to survivors, criminology experts and the police on the ground, uncovering audio tapes, police reports and old newspaper articles, all to reveal the killer's identity as it happened.

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S5 Ep.6: I’ll be back, I’ll be back Jul 04, 2023

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Aileen is found guilty of the murder of her first victim. Despite her protestations of self-defence and numerous assessments deeming her mentally incompetent, she is sentenced to death. For the remaining five murders, she fires her legal team and hires a new lawyer, Steven Glazer. She pleads “no contest” further sealing her fate. Aileen’s best friend Dawn stays in close contact, her constant comfort, Aileen begins writing long letters to Dawn. Aileen is on death row for eight years before there is an attempt to appeal her sentences. It fails and in 2002 she is put to death aged 45. 

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S5 Ep.5: Stab Me in the Back Jun 27, 2023

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Aileen Wuornos has been captured, her killing spree at an end, but her arrest is only on an outstanding warrant. Police need evidence to prove her guilt and they persuade Tyria, Aileen’s girlfriend, to elicit a confession. It’s a delicate operation but over the phone Aileen eventually agrees to confess. Dr. Michelle Ward explores, with Psychologist Dr. Tasha Jackson, the diminishing emotional state of Aileen in custody, as we hear of her hallucinations from a letter to her best friend, Dawn. In court for the murder of Richard Mallory, Aileen is faced with the ultimate betrayal by her ex-girlfriend Tyria.

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S5 Ep.4: Killer Queen Jun 20, 2023

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Aileen Wuornos has now killed five men, stealing their cars and possessions in the process. Her next victim is an ex-cop and determined police manage to retrace his steps. Their breakthrough comes from a pawn shop where they find two items belonging to Aileen’s first victim. Dr. Michelle Ward speaks to the investigators about how the case unfolded. They get a name and a fingerprint, but the name is false. Turning to the fingerprint they get a match and have a suspect: Aileen Wuornos. An undercover operation in a local bar hits the jackpot and Aileen is taken into custody.

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S5 Ep.3: Damsel of Death Jun 13, 2023

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Police are investigating the murder of Richard Mallory. He’s been shot dead by Aileen Wuornos who he solicited for sex work, but Mallory himself has a violent past. Aileen confides in her girlfriend Tyria about the murder, who is initially shocked. Meanwhile, the police investigation runs cold, but it is only six months until Aileen’s next kill. This time, her victim is a construction worker named David Spears. She shoots him not once, but six times in the chest. Dr. Michelle Wards speaks to police investigators from the case about Aileen’s escalation to serial killer.

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S5 Ep.2: From Rags to Riches to Rags Jun 06, 2023

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Aileen Wuornos has hitchhiked to sunny Florida, making money through sex work along the highways before meeting a millionaire yacht club president, whom she marries in 1976. But her chance at happiness is short lived and the marriage is annulled. She heads home to Michigan to see her brother, but he soon dies of cancer. Aileen is heartbroken and attempts suicide. Returning to Florida, Aileen meets the love of her life, Tyria. But Dr. Michelle Ward hears how sex work is still Aileen’s only way of making money and it leads her to her first murder, Richard Mallory in 1989.

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S5 Ep.1: Babe in the Woods May 30, 2023

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Season 5 of Mind of a Monster begins in Rochester, Michigan. Aileen Wuornos is just a child when she is abandoned by her parents and left with a grandfather who physically abuses her. Aileen is bullied at school and is just 14 when she begins accepting money for sexual favors. Tragically, she is raped by her grandfather’s friend and becomes pregnant, but the baby is taken away from her. Now homeless, Aileen is forced to live in the woods. Dr. Michelle Ward speaks to psychologists and Aileen’s best friend about how these early years started her spiral of chaos.

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Introducing Mind of a Monster: Aileen Wuornos May 23, 2023

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From 1989 to 1990, Aileen Wuornos killed seven men as she hitchhiked along Florida’s highways. Some were giving a woman in need a ride, others gave her money for sex, but they all fell victim to the rock ‘n’ roll biker chick dubbed the ‘Damsel of Death’.

Across 6 episodes, criminal psychologist Dr. Michelle Ward speaks to detectives, witnesses, and experts to delve into the mind of Aileen Wuornos, a woman fuelled by rage after decades of abuse at the hands of men. We’ll hear Aileen’s innermost feelings and thoughts, through letters she sent from prison to her best friend.

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S4 Ep.6: The Trial May 09, 2023

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Jeffrey Dahmer’s reign of terror finally ends after claiming 17 lives and attacking and drugging countless more. As the case goes to trial, could his insanity defense actually work?

Hosted by criminal psychologist Michelle Ward, the Mind of a Monster true crime podcast brings you exclusive access and insight into some of history’s most notorious serial killers—with chilling audio straight from the monsters themselves. Season 4 of Mind of a Monster examines Jeffrey Dahmer, who from 1978 to 1991 murdered seventeen men and boys, attempted to kill at least two others, and attacked, drugged, and abused countless more. He cannibalized some of his victims, dismembered their bodies and preyed on the vulnerable to become one of the most depraved serial killers in American history. Across six episodes, criminal psychologist Dr. Michelle Ward consults with detectives, journalists, survivors, and witnesses to dive deep into the case of Jeffrey Dahmer. Investigating his crimes, Dr. Ward tracks his trajectory as a killer and exposes the many opportunities that were lost to prevent his reign of terror. Mind of a Monster is an Investigation Discovery podcast.

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