Tinseltown (PODCAST EXCLUSIVE EPISODE)

MrBallen Podcast: Strange, Dark & Mysterious Stories

Ballen Studios

True Crime, Mrballen, Mysterious, True Story, Storytelling, Strange, Dark

4.9 • 27K Ratings

🗓️ 14 July 2025

⏱️ 42 minutes

🔗️ Recording | iTunes | RSS

🧾️ Download transcript

Summary

In December 2007, a lab technician sat at a table covered in dozens of evidence bags. The technician wasn’t sure where to start, because the bags didn’t contain the kind of evidence the lab normally tested. They were full of tinsel – which is a shiny, ribbon-like strip of material that’s used to decorate during the holidays. The samples had been collected from various homes in Burlington, North Carolina, and now, they had to be tested against a different, specific piece of tinsel. This specific piece of tinsel was thin and silver. And it was very important, because it had been found at a crime scene.

When the technician looked at the evidence bags, they realized they could immediately eliminate some of the samples because there were obvious differences between them and crime scene tinsel – like the color or thickness. But beyond that, the technician didn’t know how to determine if two pieces of tinsel that looked the same were actually identical. They’d never analyzed tinsel before – and they didn’t even know if it was possible to confirm a match. But the technician took a breath and started sorting through the bags anyway. Because they knew if they could figure this out… they could help solve a murder.

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Transcript

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0:00.0	Hey, Prime members, you can binge eight new episodes of the Mr. Ballin podcast one month early and all episodes ad-free on Amazon Music.
0:08.0	Download the Amazon Music app today.
0:10.2	In December of 2007, a lab technician sat at a table covered in dozens of evidence bags.
0:16.1	But the technician didn't even know where to start, because these bags didn't contain the kind of evidence this lab
0:21.6	normally tested. The evidence was very unusual. But right now, that didn't matter. What mattered
0:28.0	is this technician and the rest of the staff at this lab had to find a way to try to match one of
0:33.9	these samples to evidence found inside of a brutal crime scene. So the technician
0:39.9	took a breath and began sorting the bags because they knew if they could figure this out,
0:45.2	they could solve a murder. But before we get into that story, if you're a fan of the strange,
0:50.4	dark, and mysterious delivered in story format, then you come to the right podcast
0:54.4	because that's all we do and we upload twice a week, once on Monday and once on Thursday.
0:59.8	So, if that's of interest to you, please sneak into the Like Button's car and slightly adjust
1:04.3	the seats and the mirrors. Okay, let's get into today's story.
1:08.7	Okay. Okay, let's get into today's story. What do I do?
1:31.0	What do I do?
1:32.1	What do I say?
1:33.2	What do I say?
1:34.9	In the Macmillan online community, we know what it's like to have cancer, because we have it too.
1:41.7	So, whatever you're thinking, whatever you're feeling, whatever you need to
1:47.3	ask about cancer, whatever the time of day or night, we'll do whatever it takes to help you.
1:55.7	To join us, search McMillan Online Community.
2:00.2	You've been through one diet after another, maybe for years.
	...

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