SOLVED: Chicago's Coldest Case 1
Murder: True Crime Stories
Crime House
4.6 • 770 Ratings
🗓️ 2 September 2025
⏱️ 39 minutes
🧾️ Download transcript
Summary
When 7-year-old Maria Ridulph vanished from her quiet Illinois neighborhood in 1957, it made national headlines and triggered one of the largest FBI searches of its time. In this episode, we revisit Maria’s final moments, the man last seen with her, and the investigation that wouldn’t lead to an arrest for over 50 years.
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Transcript
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| 0:00.0 | Hey everyone, Carter Roy here. |
| 0:04.4 | If you're loving murder, true crime stories, you need to check out Crimes of, the newest show from Crime House. |
| 0:11.7 | Crimes of is a weekly series that explores a new theme each season, from crimes of the paranormal, unsolved murders, mysterious disappearances, and more. Their first season is |
| 0:23.3 | Crimes of Infamy, the true stories behind Hollywood's most iconic horror villains. Crimes of is a |
| 0:32.2 | crimehouse original powered by Pave Studios. Listen wherever you get your podcasts or find them on YouTube at Crimehouse Studios. |
| 0:41.0 | New episodes out every Tuesday. This is Crime House. |
| 0:57.0 | Grief comes in many forms. After a tragedy, some people need to be alone to process their feelings while others seek connection. |
| 1:09.0 | Some become quiet and introverted, while others |
| 1:13.5 | lash out in anger. There's no right way to cope, and there's no handbook for dealing with |
| 1:19.6 | life's most challenging moments, especially when those moments involve an innocent child. |
| 1:27.4 | After seven-year-old Maria Ridolf disappeared on a snowy |
| 1:31.3 | evening in 1957, her tight-knit Illinois community was turned upside down. Seemingly overnight, |
| 1:40.3 | neighbors betrayed each other, law enforcement agencies fought amongst themselves, and families were permanently divided. |
| 1:49.0 | In the midst of all the drama, the rid-offs were focused on one thing, finding justice for Maria. |
| 1:57.0 | But after decades of searching for answers, |
| 2:04.0 | they had to find a different kind of closure because there are some mysteries that can never be solved. |
| 2:25.7 | People's lives are like a story. There's a beginning, a middle, and an end, but you don't always know which part you're on. |
| 2:31.5 | Sometimes the final chapter arrives far too soon, and we don't always get to know the real ending. I'm Carter Roy, and this is Murder True Crime Stories, a |
| 2:36.3 | crime house original powered by Pave Studios that comes out every Tuesday and Thursday. At |
| 2:42.1 | Crime House, we want to express our gratitude to you, our community, from making this possible. |
| 2:48.6 | Please support us by rating, reviewing, and following |
| 2:51.8 | Murder True Crime Stories, wherever you get your podcasts. |
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