logo
episode-header-image
Jun 2025
48m 13s

Gertrude Baniszewski: The "Torture Mom"

WONDERY | TREEFORT MEDIA
About this episode

Retired FBI agent and criminal profiler Candice DeLong explores the chilling case of Gertrude Baniszewski. In the fall of 1965, behind the walls of her modest Indiana home, Gertrude masterminded the systematic torture and murder of teenage Sylvia Likens – encouraging her own children and neighborhood kids to join in the abuse. Candice investigates how Gertrude’s simmering resentment and deep-seated rage transformed her into the mastermind behind one of the most disturbing group crimes ever committed, and how the unthinkable violence against Sylvia went unchecked.

Be the first to know about Wondery’s newest podcasts, curated recommendations, and more! Sign up now at https://wondery.fm/wonderynewsletter

Need more Killer Psyche? With Wondery+, enjoy exclusive episodes, early access to new ones, and they’re always ad-free. Start your free trial in the Wondery App or visit wondery.app.link/TI5l5KzpDLb now.


See Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.

Up next
Oct 7
Encore: Matriarch of Murder: Sante and Kenneth Kimes' Trail of Death, Part II
In the second episode of our two-parter, retired FBI agent and criminal profiler Candice DeLong continues the case of Sante and Kenneth Kimes, a mother-son duo whose criminal exploits shocked the nation. Candice digs deeper into the complicated and potentially incestuous relation ... Show More
38m 56s
Sep 30
Encore: Matriarch of Murder: Sante and Kenneth Kimes' Trail of Death, Part I
Retired FBI agent and criminal profiler Candice DeLong walks us through the sinister activities of Sante and Kenneth Kimes, a mother-son duo whose criminal exploits shocked the nation. They were jailed for, among other crimes, the murder of 82 year old Irene Silverman in 2000, af ... Show More
49m 17s
Sep 23
Encore: Harold Shipman, Part II: The Original Doctor Death
In the second half of this two-parter, former FBI agent and criminal profiler Candice DeLong digs into the case of Harold Frederick Shipman: The Original Dr. Death. A prominent doctor in the UK during the late 1990s, Dr. Shipman murdered at least 230 of his patients, mostly elder ... Show More
31m 32s
Recommended Episodes
Jan 2024
EP. 138 CALIFORNIA - The WORST MOM In America: Theresa Knorr (She Tortured & Killed Her Children)
WARNING: The following podcast contains extremely disturbing descriptions of child abuse, murder and other atrocious acts and crimes. A parents job is to protect and love their children... but that doesn't always happen. You see, in the 1980's a killer mom terrorized her children ... Show More
1h 51m
Jan 2025
EP. 184: TEXAS - Andrea Yates: The Mother Who Drowned Her 5 Children In A Bathtub (PT. 1)
In today's episode, we examine the disturbing crimes of Andrea Yates, one of the most infamous mothers in American history. In 2001, a brutal crime rocked a suburb of Houston, Texas. A mother had snapped and drowned 5 of her children in the bathtub of her home. But her backstory ... Show More
1h 15m
Jan 2025
EP. 185: TEXAS - Andrea Yates: The Mother Who Drowned Her 5 Children In A Bathtub (PT. 2)
In today's episode, we examine the disturbing crimes of Andrea Yates, one of the most infamous mothers in American history. In 2001, a brutal crime rocked a suburb of Houston, Texas. A mother had snapped and drowned 5 of her children in the bathtub of her home. But her backstory ... Show More
1h 9m
Feb 2025
REWIND | The Weleetka Murders
Two young girls shot dead in a town of less than 1000 people. With local law enforcement stumped, they turned to the renowned FBI Behavioral Analysis Unit for answers. Julia Cowley is a retired FBI criminal profiler with a twist - she's a forensic scientist too. In this episode w ... Show More
51m 35s
Feb 2025
EP. 191: GEORGIA - The Child In The Trash Bag: The Disturbing Murder of Amari Hall
In 2021, the body of a young 8-year-old girl named Amari Hall was found wrapped up in a trash bag in a wooded area in Gwinnett County, Georgia. But as investigators pieced together what had happened to her, at the hands of her mothers, an incredibly disturbing story began to unfo ... Show More
2h 7m
Jul 2023
EP. 118 TEXAS - She Killed Her Best Friend & Stole Her Baby
At the end of 2019, a puzzling crime rocked the community of Austin, Texas. A mother, Heidi Broussard, had gone missing, along with her daughter... and nobody had a clue where she had went. But when the facts of the case began to emerge, an extremely dark picture was painted... a ... Show More
1h 12m
Aug 21
MURDEROUS MINDS: The Killer Step-Brother Pt. 2
Nathan Matthews murdered his 16-year-old stepsister Becky Watts—then helped her family search for her. In Part 2, we break down the failed cover-up, the forensic clues that exposed him, and how the truth about one of Britain’s most disturbing family murders finally came to light. ... Show More
40m 4s
Aug 11
SERIAL KILLER: "The Killer Boy" Pt. 1
In the 1870s, a wave of brutal attacks rocked Boston. The shocking culprit? A 12-year-old boy named Jesse Pomeroy. In Part 1, we examine the origins of his violent behavior—from childhood trauma to disturbing fantasies—and the warning signs that signaled a killer was emerging. Ki ... Show More
44m 4s
Jan 2025
Episode 384 - Lizzie Borden: High-Society Hatchet Homicide
The brutal hatchet murders of Andrew and Abby Borden are still among the most infamous and hotly debated cases in true-crime history.Truly springing from the pages of your favourite murder mystery – with seemingly innocent housekeepers, “evil stepmothers”, and precocious ladies o ... Show More
56m 12s
Oct 1
MURDERED: Idaho Murders
In November 2022, four University of Idaho students were brutally murdered inside their off-campus home. The killer left behind a trail of evidence: from DNA on a knife sheath to cell phone records and chilling witness accounts. Morgan and Kaelyn unravel the case that shocked a c ... Show More
1h 33m