The Trail Went Cold - Episode 407 - Edward Banish

August 22, 1965. South Bend, Indiana. 49-year old Edward Banish is murdered inside his home after being stabbed seven times. Over two months earlier, Edward’s 18-year old son, Scott Banish, had gone missing after an apparent drowning accident in Lake Michigan, but eight days after his father’s murder, Scott is discovered to be alive and admits to having faked his own death. Even though Scott seems to have a solid alibi placing him over 2,500 miles away on the night of the crime, he eventually admits to killing Edward and is arrested and charged with second-degree murder. However, after Scott recants his confession, a grand jury rules that there is insufficient evidence to indict him, so the murder charges are dropped. Was Edward Banish actually stabbed to death by his son? If not, then who was actually responsible and what could their motive have been? On this week’s episode of “The Trail Went Cold”, we explore the bizarre story of a missing persons case which eventually evolved into an unsolved murder. Special thanks to listener Holly Dodson for narrating the opening of this episode.

Additional Reading:

https://www.southbendtribune.com/story/opinion/2017/10/01/colwell-st-joseph-county-murder-case-remains-a-mystery/45809981/

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https://www.newspapers.com/image/515768233/

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https://www.newspapers.com/image/515761266/

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https://www.newspapers.com/image/515733969/

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“The Trail Went Cold” is on Patreon. Visit www.patreon.com/thetrailwentcold to become a patron and gain access to our exclusive bonus content.

The Trail Went Cold is produced and edited by Magill Foote.

All music is composed by Vince Nitro.