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Black Lantern is a podcast dedicated to dark stories, true crime, unexplained mysteries, chilling encounters, and the secrets hiding in the shadows. Step into the darkness and discover stories that...
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Black Lantern is a podcast dedicated to dark stories, true crime, unexplained mysteries, chilling encounters, and the secrets hiding in the shadows. Step into the darkness and discover stories that will keep you listening long after the lights go out.
Turn off the lights. Put on your headphones. The Black Lantern is waiting.
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5 SEP 2026 · Deep in the rugged wilderness of New Mexico, between the Carson and Santa Fe National Forests, lies a region known as the Pecos Triangle. Covering more than 200,000 acres of isolated terrain, it is a place where people have vanished under mysterious circumstances for decades [citation:1]. Abandoned vehicles, personal belongings, and campsites have been discovered throughout the landscape, often with no sign of their owners [citation:1]. In some cases, remains are found under deeply unusual circumstances. Far more often, those who disappear in the Pecos Triangle are never seen again [citation:1].
In this chilling episode, we investigate the disappearances that have given this remote corner of New Mexico a reputation as one of America's most unsettling mystery hotspots. From the 2000 case of Carmen Marta Gonzalez, a nurse who vanished on New Year's Eve and whose rental van was found a month later at the bottom of a canyon with no footprints around it [citation:1], to the 1998 disappearance of Emma Tresp, a 71-year-old world traveler whose abandoned car was found on a notorious road known locally as El Camino del Diablo or the "Devil's Road" [citation:3][citation:8]. We examine the case of Mel Nadel, a fit 61-year-old martial artist who vanished while hunting on Elk Mountain in 2009, his scent tracked by dogs for just 100 yards before it abruptly stopped [citation:3][citation:8]. And we explore the stories of Stanley Vigil, found months later in the Pecos River with signs of trauma, and Audrey Kaplan, a 75-year-old hiker who disappeared while mushroom hunting and was eventually found [citation:6]. From the theories of serial killers and animal attacks to UFOs and portals to other dimensions, this is the story of a place where the wilderness seems to swallow people whole. Become a supporter of this podcast: https://www.spreaker.com/podcast/black-lantern--7264324/support.
Transcribed
5 SEP 2026 · In 1954, a businessman arrived at Tokyo's Haneda Airport with a passport from a country that did not exist. The country was called Taured, and he insisted it had existed for over a thousand years. He had stamps in his passport showing he had visited Japan multiple times before. When officials showed him a map, he pointed to the border between France and Spain—where Andorra sits—and refused to acknowledge the country. He was detained in a hotel room for the night. The next morning, he had vanished. The room was guarded. The windows were sealed. There was no way out. And his documents—held in a secure office—had disappeared with him.
The Man from Taured has become one of the internet's most enduring mysteries, a story cited by believers in parallel universes and interdimensional travel. But what if the truth is stranger than the legend? What if the man who vanished from a locked room was not a traveler from another world, but a master con artist whose real story got lost in the fog of urban legend?
In this episode, we trace the legend of the Man from Taured back to its source: the real-life case of John Allen K. Zegrus, a fraudster arrested in Tokyo in 1960 for passing phony checks with a homemade passport. We examine how a single sentence in a book of unexplained phenomena grew into a full-blown myth, and why the "locked room" mystery may not be a mystery at all. This is the story of how a case of international fraud became one of the most famous "glitch in the matrix" tales ever told. Become a supporter of this podcast: https://www.spreaker.com/podcast/black-lantern--7264324/support.
Transcribed
4 SEP 2026 · On the evening of February 24, 1978, five friends from Northern California went to watch a basketball game. They stopped for snacks, climbed back into their car, and drove off into the night—never to be seen alive again. The five men were part of a close-knit group that played basketball together and were due to compete in a Special Olympics tournament the next morning. Days later, their car was found abandoned on a remote mountain road, stuck in the snow, seventy miles from their intended route. The car was in working order, the keys were missing, and some windows were rolled down despite freezing temperatures.
Months later, when the snow melted, the bodies of four of the men were discovered. Ted Weiher had survived for weeks inside a Forest Service trailer stocked with food, fuel, and supplies, yet he had starved to death, never using the heat or the food that could have saved him. The fifth man, Gary Mathias, has never been found. This is the case often called "America's Dyatlov Pass"—and nearly five decades later, the mystery remains unsolved. Become a supporter of this podcast: https://www.spreaker.com/podcast/black-lantern--7264324/support.
Transcribed
3 SEP 2026 · The Nanjing Battalion, a 3,000-man garrison defending a strategic bridge on the Yangtze River, vanished without a trace on the morning of December 10, 1937. Their heavy weapons were still in place, their fires were still warm, and their positions showed no signs of struggle. But the soldiers were gone. No one saw them leave, no one heard a sound, and they have never been seen again.
In this episode, we investigate one of the strangest military disappearances of the 20th century. Did they surrender to the Japanese? Impossible—they would have had to cross a bridge guarded by friendly forces who saw nothing. Did they desert? Perhaps, but the sparse winter vegetation around Nanjing would have made it nearly impossible for 3,000 men to slip away unnoticed. Could they have been swallowed by the area's vast network of limestone caves and underground tunnels? Some believe the battalion may have entered a cave system—and simply never came out. Others have proposed more outlandish theories: a UFO abduction, a "flying cloak" that carried them away, or even a tear in the fabric of space-time. Many historians, however, point to the lack of any contemporary records or official Chinese government acknowledgment as evidence that the event may be a fabrication. The British magazine The Observer compared the case to the mysterious disappearance of two French battalions in 1915, cementing the Nanjing Battalion's place among history's great unsolved military mysteries. Become a supporter of this podcast: https://www.spreaker.com/podcast/black-lantern--7264324/support.
Transcribed
3 SEP 2026 · On December 1, 1946, a Bennington College student named Paula Welden went for a hike on Vermont's Long Trail. She asked a few hikers for directions, continued north, and was never seen again. Her disappearance triggered one of the largest searches in state history, but weeks of searching turned up nothing [citation:3]. And she wasn't the only one. Between 1945 and 1950, at least five other people vanished without a trace in the remote wilderness around Glastenbury Mountain—an area that would become known as the Bennington Triangle [citation:3].
In this episode, we investigate one of America's most enduring unsolved mysteries. From the disappearance of 74-year-old hunting guide Middie Rivers, whose only trace was a single rifle cartridge, to the case of eight-year-old Paul Jepson, who vanished from his mother's farm while wearing a red coat—a color many locals now refuse to wear in the area [citation:3][citation:11]. We explore the theories that have emerged over the decades: Bigfoot sightings, UFO activity, a man-eating rock, and even a curse that seems to claim those who dig too deep [citation:11]. And we ask the question that has haunted investigators for over seventy years: what is it about Glastenbury Mountain that seems to swallow people whole? Become a supporter of this podcast: https://www.spreaker.com/podcast/black-lantern--7264324/support.
Transcribed
3 SEP 2026 · Between 1945 and 1950, five people vanished without a trace in the dense forests surrounding Glastenbury Mountain in southwestern Vermont. An experienced hunting guide disappeared while leading a party, a college student was seen by multiple hikers before she simply vanished, and a military veteran disappeared from a moving bus with his belongings still on the seat. The area came to be known as the Bennington Triangle, and its mysteries remain unsolved more than seventy years later.
In this episode, we investigate the disappearances that earned this remote corner of the Green Mountains a reputation as one of America's most unsettling mystery hotspots. From the 1945 disappearance of 74-year-old hunting guide Middie Rivers, who knew the terrain intimately yet vanished without a trace, to the 1946 case of 18-year-old Bennington College student Paula Welden, whose disappearance triggered a massive search and led to the creation of the Vermont State Police [citation:1][citation:4]. We examine the bizarre case of James Tedford, who boarded a bus in St. Albans and was seen by multiple witnesses, yet simply vanished before the bus reached its destination [citation:1][citation:8]. And we explore the disappearances of eight-year-old Paul Jepson and 53-year-old Frieda Langer—one never found, the other discovered months later with no cause of death determined [citation:1][citation:3]. From legends of a man-eating rock to Bigfoot sightings and the ghost town of Glastenbury, this is the story of a place where the mountains seem to keep their secrets [citation:7][citation:12]. Become a supporter of this podcast: https://www.spreaker.com/podcast/black-lantern--7264324/support.
Transcribed
3 SEP 2026 · Two young Dutch women, Kris Kremers and Lisanne Froon, set out for a short hike through the cloud forests of Boquete, Panama, on April 1, 2014. It was supposed to be a simple adventure, a day trip before they began volunteering at a local school. They were never seen alive again.
More than two months later, their remains were discovered, and a blue backpack found by a local woman would reveal the most disturbing clues: their phones showing 77 desperate attempts to call emergency services, a camera containing 90 photographs taken in the dead of night on April 8th, and images that have fueled endless speculation [citation:2][citation:6][citation:15]. This is the story of the Lost Girls of Panama, a case that has baffled investigators and captivated the world for over a decade, a chilling reminder that the wilderness can be the most unforgiving place of all. Become a supporter of this podcast: https://www.spreaker.com/podcast/black-lantern--7264324/support.
Transcribed
3 SEP 2026 · At 1:19 AM on March 8, 2014, the pilot of Malaysia Airlines Flight MH370 signed off with the words: "Good night, Malaysian Three-Seven-Zero." It was the last time anyone heard from the aircraft carrying 239 people. Twelve years later, the disappearance remains the greatest mystery in aviation history. Despite the largest and most expensive search ever conducted, the Boeing 777 has never been found [citation:1].
In this episode, we investigate the baffling case of MH370. The flight from Kuala Lumpur to Beijing disappeared from civilian radar shortly after takeoff, but military radar showed it had made an unexplained turn, flying back over Malaysia and out toward the Andaman Sea before heading south into the remote Indian Ocean [citation:6]. Satellite data confirmed the plane continued flying for hours, likely until it ran out of fuel [citation:15]. Dozens of pieces of debris have washed up along African coastlines, but only three have been confirmed as belonging to MH370 [citation:1][citation:6].
The search has involved multiple nations, covered over 250,000 square kilometers of ocean floor, and cost hundreds of millions of dollars [citation:1][citation:6]. In 2025, Malaysia signed a new "no find, no fee" contract with deep-sea exploration company Ocean Infinity, agreeing to pay $70 million only if they find the wreckage [citation:2][citation:3]. A 28-day search phase in early 2026 found nothing [citation:2][citation:12]. The contract has now been extended to June 2027 to complete the search of the remaining area [citation:3][citation:8]. For the families, there is "no closure until the plane is found"—and the question of what happened after those final words remains unanswered [citation:13]. Become a supporter of this podcast: https://www.spreaker.com/podcast/black-lantern--7264324/support.
Transcribed
3 SEP 2026 · A 21-year-old Canadian student checks into a historic Los Angeles hotel, travels alone, and vanishes without a trace. Nineteen days later, her body is found floating in a rooftop water tank—a place nearly impossible to reach without setting off alarms. The only clue is a disturbing surveillance video: Elisa Lam, acting erratically, pressing every button in an elevator, hiding in the corner, and seemingly speaking to someone who isn't there. The video went viral, spawning endless conspiracy theories.
In this episode, we investigate one of the internet's most enduring mysteries. The Los Angeles County coroner ruled Lam's death an accidental drowning, with bipolar disorder listed as a significant contributing factor. But the case has never been fully put to rest. The unanswered questions persist: How did she get onto the roof without triggering alarms? Why was her body found in a water tank that guests had been drinking from for over a week? And what—or who—was she talking to in that elevator? From the Cecil Hotel's dark history as a haven for serial killers like Richard Ramirez, to the viral video that turned a tragedy into an internet spectacle, this is the story of Elisa Lam. Become a supporter of this podcast: https://www.spreaker.com/podcast/black-lantern--7264324/support.
Transcribed
3 SEP 2026 · In part one of this series, we explored the near-miss accounts that might have become disappearances—survivors who walked away from encounters that defy explanation. But what happens when the wilderness takes more than just your sense of direction? In part two, we examine a phenomenon that appears across the most baffling Missing 411 cases: missing time. Survivors report losing hours, even days, with no memory of where they were or what happened.
Some cases are more extreme than others. In one documented account, a man vanished and was later found over 1,000 miles from where he disappeared, with no memory of the interval [citation:13]. His case fits a pattern that investigator David Paulides has spent over a decade documenting: people who go missing under circumstances that don't align with ordinary explanations, and who sometimes return with gaps in their memory that can't be explained by trauma or exposure [citation:2][citation:13]. While skeptics argue that these cases can be explained by common causes like falls, animal attacks, or disorientation [citation:10][citation:14], the question remains: why do trained search dogs frequently fail to track any scent [citation:15]? Why do victims vanish while only briefly separated from their groups [citation:15]? And why does the National Park Service not centrally track missing persons data, as Paulides has documented through FOIA requests [citation:13]? This is the story of the Near Missing 411—and the time that seems to disappear along with the people. Become a supporter of this podcast: https://www.spreaker.com/podcast/black-lantern--7264324/support.
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Black Lantern is a podcast dedicated to dark stories, true crime, unexplained mysteries, chilling encounters, and the secrets hiding in the shadows. Step into the darkness and discover stories that...
show more
Black Lantern is a podcast dedicated to dark stories, true crime, unexplained mysteries, chilling encounters, and the secrets hiding in the shadows. Step into the darkness and discover stories that will keep you listening long after the lights go out.
Turn off the lights. Put on your headphones. The Black Lantern is waiting.
show less
Turn off the lights. Put on your headphones. The Black Lantern is waiting.
Information
| Author | Black Lantern |
| Organization | Black Lantern |
| Categories | True Crime , Society & Culture , History |
| Website | - |
| - |
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