Cola City Crime - A True Crime Podcast

Have you ever had a gut feeling that someone was following you or watching you perform your usual daily tasks of life? Unfortunately for the two victims highlighted in our case this week, they did not have that feeling.
Maybe 17-year-old Shari Faye Smith was just riding the high of excitement with her impending high school graduation, and was too focused on the next chapter of her life to notice that someone followed her to her home, her safe space, to invade her personal privacy.
Maybe 9-year-old Debra Helmick was too busy playing pretend with her 3-year-old brother in her front yard right outside a window to notice the silver car stalking them.
This week we bring you the case of the notorious Larry Gene Bell, a South Carolina murderer who doesn't even need to be name dropped for locals to know who you are talking about. Listen to Tiffany and Sam discuss his evil plot to disrupt the lives of the Smith and Helmick family by abducting and murdering their sweet, bright blue-eyed, blonde daughters in the daytime hours for everyone to see.
This case has been a long time coming, so let us know what you think, did we do it justice?
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Instagram: @Colacitycrime
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Sources
law.justia.com/cases/south-carolina/supreme-court/1990/23163-2.html
allthatsinteresting.com/larry-gene-bell
en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Larry_Gene_Bell
www.talkmurderwithme.com/blog/2020/12/26/larry-gene-bell

Have you ever heard a strange noise in your home, or started missing items that you can never seem to find? Was your first thought that there might be a stranger in your home, maybe a ghost, or did you just think it was the house settling and absent mindedness that led you to these questions?
This week, Sam and Tiffany will be discussing a case that will make you start paying more attention to the items in your home and the possibility of the noise not just being the house settling.
A young UNC-Greensboro college student, Maddie, would be faced with the same questions when her personal items started to go missing and handprints started appearing in her bathroom. All her questions would be answered, and the truth would be more terrifying than the ghost story she had created in her head.
Be sure not to miss this week’s episode and tell us what you think! Do you think the punishment fits the crime? Would you have done what Maddie did? Send us an email or message and let us know what you think you would do if you were in Maddie’s shoes.
Facebook Group: www.facebook.com/groups/colacitycrime
Instagram: @Colacitycrime
Buy Me a Coffee: www.buymeacoffee.com/colacitycrime
Email your listener stories and case suggestions: [email protected]
Please subscribe, rate, and review our show on Apple Podcasts and Spotify!
Sources
www.dictionary.com/e/slang/phrogging/
people.com/crime/college-student-who-thought-she-had-ghost-allegedly-finds-man-in-home/
www.wfmynews2.com/article/news/local/uncg-student-finds-man-in-her-closet-police/83-7ff5dd89-3a14-445f-b8cf-a59a8dde5efa
www.newsweek.com/ghost-north-carolina-college-students-closet-turns-out-be-man-wearing-all-her-1317757

We are back after a 3 month break and we have something special for you!
Over the next few weeks, we are going to be covering the newly infamous Murdaugh family from our very own state of South Carolina. We will be covering mysterious deaths, accidental deaths, and corruption that plagued a community and ties back to the Murdaugh family who pretty much had control of Colleton County.
To start us off we are discussing the Stephen Smith case which really caught the community’s attention and made people think that the Murdaugh family was a part of a horrendous cover up.
Stephen Smith was a 19 year old man who was proud to be himself and was loved throughout the community. On July 8, 2015, Stephen would lose his life in a tragedy that would raise some eyebrows.
Listen to Sam and Tiffany go over Stephen’s life, cause of death, and rumors that swirl around the investigation. Be sure to let us know what you think after you listen to the episode!
What do you think happened - Is this a Southern Dynasty cover up or a mere accident?
Visit our sponsor, Titan Nutrition at www.titannutrition.net and use our code colacitycrime at checkout for free shipping and 10% off your order!
Facebook Group: www.facebook.com/groups/colacitycrime
Instagram: @Colacitycrime
Buy Me a Coffee: www.buymeacoffee.com/colacitycrime
Email your listener stories and case suggestions: [email protected]
Check out the website for our local non-profit: www.eccmpi.org
Please subscribe, rate, and review our show on Apple Podcasts and Spotify!
Stanley's Go Fund Me: gofund.me/220522d6
Sources
https://abcnews.go.com/US/stephen-smith-probe-homicide-south-carolina-authorities-confirm/story?id=98043830
Netflix Documentary: Murdaugh Murders: A Southern Scandal

Do you think someone can be born evil, or do you think someone's heinous actions are a result of their upbringing and childhood experience? This is a hot topic of discussion this week with Sam's coverage of the notorious Donald "Pee Wee" Gaskins, who ultimately is known by his nickname Pee Wee, due to his small stature.
Pee Wee had a very rough childhood which included lots of sexual assault, mistreatment, joining a gang when he was an adolescent, and overall negative life experiences that more than likely made him turn to a life of crime at the very young age of 11. Unfortunately Pee Wee was triggered easily by people's comments on his appearance, so he would never have a chance to calm his temper and try to become a better person. It seems like evil was in his blood and there was no turning back, therefore he was also known as the Meanest Man in America.
Listen to our second heavy hitter from South Carolina, where Sam talks us through Pee Wee's life and death and all of the unfortunate victims he claimed throughout.
Sources
murderpedia.org
Facebook Group: www.facebook.com/groups/colacitycrime
Instagram: @Colacitycrime
Buy Me a Coffee: www.buymeacoffee.com/colacitycrime
Email your listener stories and case suggestions: [email protected]
Please subscribe, rate, and review our show on Apple Podcasts and Spotify!

Have you ever had the overwhelming urge to creep around a neighborhood at night, break into someone's home, and physically assault them to the point of death? Yeah, no... Me neither.
Linwood Earl Forte's childhood was definitely not ideal, and ultimately his environment shaped him into a very terrible person, whose desires, no matter how depraved they were, became amped up while he was using drugs.
Linwood would prey on elderly women hidden by the darkness of the early morning hours, and take advantage of them when they least expected it. Listen as Tiffany tells his twisted story that will leave you with so many questions, but more than likely the main one of... Why?
Facebook Group: www.facebook.com/groups/colacitycrime
Instagram: @Colacitycrime
Buy Me a Coffee: www.buymeacoffee.com/colacitycrime
Email your listener stories and case suggestions: [email protected]
Please subscribe, rate, and review our show on Apple Podcasts and Spotify!
Sources
https://caselaw.findlaw.com/court/nc-supreme-court/1292205.html
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Linwood_Forte
https://murderdb.com/linwood-forte-north-carolina-serial-killer/
https://www.wral.com/story/101852/
https://www.studocu.com/en-us/document/kent-state-university/human-genetics/final-gentetics-essay-using-
dna-to-solve-cold-case-in-the-1990s-in-goldsboro-north-carolina-there/43120893