Why So Serial?
A Former Police Detective and His Son Discuss Cases of Serial Killers with a Fresh and Entertaining Perspective.
Why So Serial?
Death by Paddleboard? (Or Austin Cover Up?)
BONUS SHORT EPISODE
Something sinister might be lurking beneath the surface of Ladybird Lake in Austin, Texas. When 38 bodies turn up in just three years, can we really call it a coincidence?
The numbers are staggering – nearly 30 men, most between 30-49 years old, all found in the same relatively small urban lake since 2022. That's roughly one body every month for three straight years. While local authorities maintain these are accidental drownings, suicides, and overdoses, the patterns have sparked widespread speculation about a potential serial killer dubbed "The Rainy Street Ripper."
We dive into the disturbing statistics, comparing Ladybird Lake's death toll to Lake Norman in North Carolina – a body of water 78 times larger that's seen fewer fatalities over a much longer period. We also explore survivor accounts that challenge the official narrative, including two men who claim they were drugged before nearly drowning. As one survivor who spent days on life support puts it, "I survived the Rainey Street Ripper."
The local community has been raising alarms for years, with social media petitions gathering thousands of signatures demanding deeper investigation. A forensic psychiatrist has even voiced skepticism about the accidental explanation theory, noting that water environments can easily mask evidence of foul play. Why are so many men with similar profiles dying in this particular spot? And what environmental or safety measures have been implemented to prevent more deaths?
Whether this is truly the work of a serial killer or a tragic series of accidents, the people of Austin deserve answers based on thorough investigation rather than assumptions. If you have information about unusual incidents at Ladybird Lake or have experienced something suspicious in the area, reach out to us on TikTok @WhysoSerialPod. We're following this story closely and will update you as new information emerges.
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Everybody needs to stop what they're doing right now and listen to what these boys about to tell you.
Speaker 1:Okay, this has been declared an emergency. Welcome back to the greatest podcast on the planet. Why so serial Emergency edition Emergency edition.
Speaker 3:You hear me? Take it away, boys. Tell them what's up. Welcome back y'all. We are back. We are here with an emergency edition of why so Serial? And we call this an emergency edition because we don't actually know if this is a serial killer or not, but it has been a very popular case on social media and on the news here lately and this is coming to us from ladybird lake in texas and it's I guess it's in austin texas yeah, so, um, our story today is going to start in 2022, actually 2022 so, um, ladybird lake is um, it is right off of a street.
Speaker 2:It's literally, I think, not too far off of a street called Rainy something Street.
Speaker 3:Okay, so from what I understand, it's a pretty popular destination for the locals there.
Speaker 2:Yeah, it's pretty popular, but nothing too crazy, really Like not crazy popular but not unpopular at the same time.
Speaker 3:Right, and I guess what's been popular on the internet lately is Fox 7, austin confirmed that at least 38 bodies have been recovered in or around ladybird lake since 2022, and out of the 38, nearly 30 of those were male and about 70 percent were between 30 and 49 years old, and only two were teenagers.
Speaker 1:Yeah.
Speaker 3:So it makes you wonder what in the hell is going on. Have you been able to find anything murderous about it?
Speaker 2:So the locals? This is all based off on locals. Police in Texas are struggling to keep a lid on fears of the Rainy Street Ripper.
Speaker 3:Rainy Street Ripper.
Speaker 1:Yeah.
Speaker 3:So I guess the police are coming out and saying that.
Speaker 2:It's all just accident, drowning and stuff.
Speaker 3:Right, they're saying that they don't have any reason to believe there's any foul play and that these are mostly drownings, suicides, drug overdoses and natural causes. But uh, I need to know more. I want to to know more. What have we done? All topsy's on all these Um?
Speaker 2:are we assuming that these are all drowning, so they can be confirmed and yeah, I did see like at least like 10 or 11 of them were unconfirmed Um causes of death 10 or 11. Yeah, it was like it was a good bit of it. It might've been like seven, but like somewhere around that range yeah, you know what I'm actually looking at it right here. About a dozen remain unexplained yeah, I think there's like two or three that were confirmed murders or homicides it really makes me wonder.
Speaker 3:I guess I don't wonder the police are being pretty tight-lipped about this situation. But something I noticed when I was a police officer and especially when I was in investigations we had done this little sting operation where we were taking down child predators. When you're doing a takedown of a suspect, especially when you're talking about a vehicle, you're very strategic in how you do it. Yeah, You're looking at ways in ways out what could go wrong, what could go right, and everything is planned to a T and then you have a plan B and then you have a contingency on a contingency and you know there's always a backup to a backup.
Speaker 3:Yeah, Um, we had found this place that was perfect to do it in the city that we live in and it just happened to be, uh, owned by the city and it was a, a park, Um, but it just happened to be from a tactical standpoint and we were always mindful about, like, what time we did it and stuff like that. Yeah, uh, and always made sure that you know it wasn't like super crowded or anything. But I remember I actually got reprimanded about it because the city was more concerned about what the crime rate would look like in the park instead of what we were actually doing, and what we were actually doing was taking down child predators. So it makes me wonder are the police just trying not to freak everybody out because they want to keep the mayor and the city happy?
Speaker 3:I mean what's actually going on?
Speaker 2:I will say one thing. This dude claims to have been here. I'll share the quote that he gave um to the news police all right, I survived. The rainy street ripper what drugged man who plummeted 25 feet 25 meets.
Speaker 3:Is that a new unit of measurement? I was 25 stakes high.
Speaker 2:Oh, that's funny. Off-bridge believed serial killer stalking Austin, tried to drown him.
Speaker 1:Wow.
Speaker 2:I saw a picture I don't have it anymore because I forgot what website it was on. But, it was a picture of him in the hospital.
Speaker 3:What's interesting about that is they say he was drugged or whatever. By the time they're finding these bodies, what kind of state are they in? Are they able to do an autopsy and a toxicology that's useful, um, and if not, are they just making a lot of assumptions about these cases and yeah, I couldn't really get much much about, um, how he got drugged or anything.
Speaker 2:there wasn't too much on that, how he got drugged or anything, there wasn't too much on that.
Speaker 3:Yeah, and you know the police department can say whatever they want to right, but we're talking about a three-year stretch.
Speaker 1:Yeah.
Speaker 3:There has been 38 bodies. That is an average of just over three bodies per month.
Speaker 2:Yeah, dude, I saw something that's insane. It was. I think it was like Lake Norman, I think it was like 50-something bodies since like 2000 or something, or like 2010.
Speaker 3:But 38.
Speaker 2:38 in three years.
Speaker 3:You can't just dismiss it like and that also makes me wonder, like, okay, if you're saying that these are accidental or these are drowning or these are uh, cases where alcohol and partying and this and that was involved.
Speaker 2:I mean I will say there is a bar like right next to it.
Speaker 3:Okay, sure, I mean, I'm not naive, I also was an investigator, so I'm going to look at all possible outcomes and if that's the most likely one and they have evidence that they haven't put out that's leading them to believe that, sure I'm cool with it, but that's a lot of bodies man and what. And what I was gonna say is what have they done to prevent some of this stuff?
Speaker 1:yeah have.
Speaker 2:They put like a a no swimming thing into effect yeah, actually there is a no swimming thing, but they still paddleboard a lot there and kayak yeah, I mean, I just have a lot of questions about that man, like have they put new lights in, have they?
Speaker 3:yeah, like I want to know what they've done.
Speaker 2:Um, I just need to know more.
Speaker 3:I need to know more it is dude.
Speaker 2:It's literally right next to the heart of austin bro yeah, it's like if you pull it up on a map. It's like right under the a of in austin bro it's, it's interesting, um, to say the least.
Speaker 3:I mean it very well. Now, this is not me. I'm not. We're not just on here bashing the police or anything or saying that they're incompetent or they're not doing an investigation. I'm sure that they're doing an investigation they're just keeping it on the down low potentially, and they don't want to spark fear into Austin and all that unless they are absolutely sure, and I respect that.
Speaker 2:Because there's not a lot of serial killers around this time with technology and security and stuff.
Speaker 3:Yeah, and you know from the community itself. Families of the victims and some observers just believe that there may be a pattern fueled by the similar victim profiles. You know, predominantly men. The location clusters of where these bodies are found, yeah, and the nightlife right there. So it would make sense, you know. It would make sense on both sides though, it makes sense on the accident side. It would also make sense Make it look like an accident side it would also make sense make it look like an accident inside exactly, exactly.
Speaker 3:I will say there's yeah, go ahead um.
Speaker 2:This is I think this is this year. It says another body found um based down in ladybird lake on thursday march 27th in Lady Bird Lake on Thursday March 27th. It is that of a 49-year-old, Jennifer Lynn Atkinson.
Speaker 3:Atkinson.
Speaker 2:Something like that. Okay, according to the police, police say there is no identification of foul play, but are asking for anyone who might have seen something to contact the homicide. The body was believed to enter the um the like the night before wednesday, march 26th interesting.
Speaker 3:but I know I see here too that on social media there's been groups and petitions that have gotten more than 6 000000 signatures for a deeper investigation, which reflects that growing concern from the public. And there's actually been an external expert, a forensic psychiatrist, who voiced skepticism of the accidental explanation just by noting the victim or the decedent, gender, age, concentration among these people and just the fact that water is able to mask a lot of foul play. So you can't just come out when there's water involved. Water is going to damage a lot of evidence whether it be physical evidence.
Speaker 3:Like you know, you can hide things in the water and it gets rid of, like fingerprints and stuff like that. But also on the body forensically, like there's just things that water damages, that you can't get back. So for them, I think that that person just you know- has a concern with that part of it which I think is reasonable.
Speaker 3:But I think what we need to ask is why are so many males around the same age and the same body of water over this short time period, and so many of them have any cases undergone exhaustive forensic and toxological analysis for these drugs and stuff, like that one guy saying he's drugged? Have we looked at all that? Do the unidentified cases remain active investigations or do they just get tossed to the side? What's happening? And, like I said before, what are they planning to do environmentally as far as lights and barriers patrols? What are they planning to do, um, environmentally as far as lights and barriers patrols, like what are they doing um?
Speaker 3:so I guess we're gonna be in this kind of holding pattern to kind of see what happens.
Speaker 2:But yeah, I did see one thing it was supposed to be an evening of celebration. Instead it ended with a missing person case. Alright. So, like this one, I was looking up Rainy Street Ripper and, like, at first I looked up Labor, like brought me to Rainy Street Ripper and now I'm here. Alright, so it says A missing person's case and a near-death experience at the hands of someone Connor Dursley thinks may have been trying to kill him. He wonders if that person could be the killer dubbed as the Rainy Street Ripper, who is rumored to stalk a popular entertainment district in Austin, texas.
Speaker 3:That's really interesting, because now you have not just one account of somebody saying, there's someone involved. There's two, two um.
Speaker 2:I think we need to investigate this some more so, and he also said he was on life support for three or four days golly yeah, like he was so serious yeah, he was almost gone. I think he, like it, doesn't say his age here, but he he doesn't look above like 20. Wow, yeah, that's he looks like a kid still that's interesting.
Speaker 3:Um, I did want to. I didn't know much about like the size and if you know, 38 people was a lot or what, but I did a comparison of lady bird lake in texas to lake norman in north carolina, just because it's one that's close to us.
Speaker 1:Yeah.
Speaker 3:So, as far as fatalities go, Lake Norman has had 28 people die between 2012 to now. Now let's talk about the size. The surface area of Lady Bird Lake is 416 acres, Lake Norman 32,500 acres and it's 34 miles long.
Speaker 2:What Mm-hmm.
Speaker 3:And the length of Lady Bird Lake is about six, so it is a fraction. Now we got to take into account where, where they are and how many visitors there are. But Lake Norman is 78 times the surface area, 78 times bigger than Lady Bird Lake is and has had less deaths in 15 years.
Speaker 2:Yeah, it's insane.
Speaker 3:Like 10 less deaths. So it really helps me put it into perspective. You know it's definitely an interesting case going on. I want to make sure that we stay on top of it and see you know what comes of it. But for you, the listener out there there, I think it's important that, especially if you're in the austin texas area to make noise the more noise that you make and the more noise that, like, we make in everything, I think there's a higher probability that at least there's more investigation done. I'm not saying that there is a rainy street ripper yeah, but I think it's odd that there's 38 bodies in three years at a relative pretty small lake yeah, and that one. Nothing has seemingly been done about it environmentally I will say one thing.
Speaker 2:Like I was watching tiktok the other day and some daily mail thing popped there's like a news and somewhere else I don't know where. It popped up on my, my TikTok feed and I was like hmm, dude. I looked in the comments. So many people from Austin, texas, are like finally we're getting news, finally, finally, finally.
Speaker 3:So they've been on this.
Speaker 2:Dude, they've been on, I think dude, they're all like oh my God, finally.
Speaker 3:Like I think someone's like yes, we've been saved. Wow, like they were going crazy I can't even imagine that's.
Speaker 2:That's incredible. I can pull it up real quick.
Speaker 3:No, I mean, I mean I think you said what needs to be said, that's it's obviously very important to them and it's big on their mind and that's sad. Um, that's got to be scary for them too. I mean, this is a place they like to go to to hang out and enjoy themselves, and they got to worry about if they're going to be 39 and 40 yeah, listen to this.
Speaker 2:Locals have been saying this for literally years. There is a serial killer living in austin, texas, and the cat and the cops can't gaslight us otherwise.
Speaker 3:Wow, that's strong.
Speaker 2:And then another one says finally, exclamation point why did it take 38 bodies from the media to label this a serial killer? Wow, I could go on and on for hours.
Speaker 3:Now I'm not saying it is or isn't a serial killer. It could be an accident, it could be a serial killer. Now what we are going to do is encourage you to reach out, sign these petitions, be joining these groups. I think the bigger the following and the bigger the the outcry from the public, the better chance that there is a full investigation. And not only a full investigation. But I think the public there in Austin deserve to know with facts, not just assumptions and theories, with real facts.
Speaker 2:I will say anything. If you're in Austin, texas, if you see anything, or if you're searching online, because you listen to this, please, if you see something that we didn't cover, comment it on TikTok or DM us.
Speaker 3:Dm us on tiktok or something like that yeah, we want to hear from you about if you've heard any other serial killer theories about this specific area, or stories, or have one of your own or have had anything weird happen to you in that area. We want to know about it. We want to talk to you about it. So hit us up. But we're going to keep this short and sweet and that's all we have. We wanted to just speak about this a little bit, bring it to your attention. If you hadn't heard about it, it's, it's pretty crazy to us. I assume it's probably the same for you. So, yeah, that's we're gonna. We're gonna be tuned in and trying to learn more about this and if we find out anything else or we hear anything else, we'll keep it posted and we'll keep you posted on our social media.
Speaker 3:But for now that's all we've got on this case. We wanted to bring it to your attention. We thought it was really interesting and we wanted to. We don't have a full episode on this, but we wanted to get it out to you because we were just shocked by the sheer number of bodies and if there is a serial killer, we will do a full episode. But we are patiently waiting for more to come out about this, but in the meantime we'll see you guys later. Soren, any parting words for the people man.
Speaker 1:Bye, bye.
Speaker 3:You mean to tell me there's 38 bodies in three years?
Speaker 1:And that's an accident? I don't think so.
Speaker 2:Follow the boys on TikTok, Follow the boys on iTunes. It's why so Serial Pod? And we'll see y'all next time Because this has been. Why so Serial? And we'll see y'all next time Because this has been why so Serial?
Speaker 3:We hope y'all enjoyed it. This is Ernest.
Speaker 1:We'll see y'all next time.