On October 26, 2003, a 911 call led police to a dry lakebed near Boulder City, Nevada – roughly 25 miles from the Las Vegas Strip. There, they discovered the unearthed remains of a brutalized human body.

Disturbing aspects of the crime scene immediately led investigators to conclude that the victim had not been the target of random violence. This had been a well-planned execution.

It would be over 4 months before the remains would be identified as those of Jared Whaley, a Las Vegas high school student who’d been reported missing just 10 days before he was found in a shallow grave in the desert.

For this special episode of the podcast, series creators Jeff Walker and Meagan & Anthony Smith sit down for a conversation about the murder of Jared Whaley as well as the investigation into the killing, and the trial of the group of Jared's friends who were accused of the murder. Meagan also describes her experience of having to testify at the preliminary hearing leading up to the trial and her involvement in the case.

To learn about the murder of Jared Whaley and other true crime tales from the darker side of Las Vegas history, visit Mayhem In The Desert.

Follow Sin City Stories: Vegas True Crime on Facebook & Instagram

Follow Mayhem In The Desert on X (formerly Twitter) & Facebook

To this day, the 1993 Circus Circus Casino heist in Las Vegas remains one of the most remarkable criminal escapades in U.S. History.

Over $3 million was stolen from an armoured truck in broad daylight, and the heist was carried out so smoothly that it took hours for anyone to realize a crime had even occurred. And while the planning and execution of the robbery itself was impressive, what happened AFTER the heist is equally as impressive.

To learn about the robbery at the Circus Circus Hotel & Casino and other true crime tales from the darker side of Las Vegas history, visit Mayhem In The Desert.

Follow Sin City Stories: Vegas True Crime on Facebook & Instagram

Follow Mayhem In The Desert on X (formerly Twitter) & Facebook

In the early hours of October 1, 1993, a quiet but daring heist unfolded on the Las Vegas Strip.

What began as an ordinary day at the Circus Circus Hotel & Casino turned into a high-stakes mystery that would take years to unravel, forever changing the way casinos approached their security.

In a heist that seemed straight out of a Hollywood blockbuster, over $3 million in cash was stolen from an armoured truck without a single alarm being raised or a single shot being fired. It wasn’t until hours later that anyone realized the money was gone—and so were the culprits.

To learn about the robbery at the Circus Circus Hotel & Casino and other true crime tales from the darker side of Las Vegas history, visit Mayhem In The Desert.

Follow Sin City Stories: Vegas True Crime on Facebook & Instagram

Follow Mayhem In The Desert on X (formerly Twitter) & Facebook

The Las Vegas Strip has its fair share of iconic hotels & resorts, perhaps none of which are more steeped in history & folklore than The Flamingo.

Part of the Vegas landscape since the mid-1940’s…it was the brainchild of a Los Angeles-based night club owner, restaurant owner and entertainment news publisher who wanted to build one of the most luxurious hotels & casinos Las Vegas had ever seen.

But that’s not what legend & pop culture would have you believe...

To learn more about the history of the Flamingo, the murder of Benjamin "Bugsy" Siegel, and other true crime tales from the darker side of Las Vegas history, visit Mayhem In The Desert.

Follow Sin City Stories: Vegas True Crime on Facebook & Instagram

Follow Mayhem In The Desert on X (formerly Twitter) & Facebook

It was the summer of 1993 when Las Vegas casino mogul, Steve Wynn, was thrust into a nightmare that few people could ever imagine.

In a brazen late-night plot that seemed to come straight out of a Hollywood thriller, Wynn’s daughter had been kidnapped…abducted from her own home and held hostage by two men, who were now demanding that wynn hand over a huge ransom.

But this wasn’t just a simple ransom demand. The kidnappers were watching – or so they claimed. Every move was carefully calculated, every phone call laced with threats.

To learn about the kidnapping of Kevyn Wynn and other true crime tales from the darker side of Las Vegas history, visit Mayhem In The Desert.

Follow Sin City Stories: Vegas True Crime on Facebook & Instagram

Follow Mayhem In The Desert on X (formerly Twitter) & Facebook

It’s June 3, 1999…early morning, sometime around 5 am in a quiet neighborhood roughly a mile from the Las Vegas Strip.

Walking through this serene scene is a young man in his early twenties, draped in a camouflage shirt, sporting black pants and boots. In his hands, a pump-action shotgun loaded to maximum capacity. In his pockets are more shells…ready to be used. A total of nineteen shells in all.

The man’s name is Zane Floyd, and on this early summer morning, he plans to use those ninteen shells to kill the first nineteen people he encounters.

And as a resident of this neighbourhood, he already knows exactly where his first stop will be.

To learn about the story of Zane Floyd and other true crime tales from the darker side of Las Vegas history, visit Mayhem In The Desert.

Follow Sin City Stories: Vegas True Crime on X (formerly Twitter) & Facebook

Follow Mayhem In The Desert on X (formerly Twitter) & Facebook

As the early 1980’s rolled around, the cold war between the United States and Russia was well into its third decade and tensions between these global superpowers were steadily mounting.

As newly elected U.S. President Ronald Reagan promised to take an aggressive stance against the Soviets, Russian troops secretly invaded Afghanistan and the USSR faced an international backlash over their human rights violations.

It was amidst this backdrop, that an elderly las vegas couple known for their outspoken views against the soviet union were found murdered in their home under circumstances straight out of a spy thriller…

Click here to read more about the double murder of Jack & Xenia Rabinowitsch - including photos, newspaper articles, and more!

To learn about other true crime tales from the darker side of Las Vegas history, visit Mayhem In The Desert.

Follow Sin City Stories: Vegas True Crime on X (formerly Twitter) & Facebook

Follow Mayhem In The Desert on X (formerly Twitter) & Facebook

In the spring of 1980, headlines across the united states screamed out, “ANGEL OF DEATH!”

These sensational stories centered around 32-year-old Jani Adams, a nurse working the graveyard shift in a Las Vegas Intensive Care Unit. These articles about the so-called “Death Angel” carried a distinctly Vegas twist – word was, this nurse was running a hospital “dead pool”, placing wagers on when patients would die.

But how did a mild-mannered nurse - who described herself being “shy as a mouse” - end up in the national spotlight for allegedly murdering her patients?

Click here to read more about the case of Jani Adams - including photos, newspaper articles, and more!

To learn about other true crime tales from the darker side of Las Vegas history, visit Mayhem In The Desert.

Follow Sin City Stories: Vegas True Crime on X (formerly Twitter) & Facebook

Follow Mayhem In The Desert on X (formerly Twitter) & Facebook