On July 21, 1972, a man named Gerald John Schaefer picked up two teenage girls who were hitch-hiking. Schaefer told 17-year-old Pamela Wells and 18-year-old Nancy Trotter that hitchhiking was illegal in Martin County. It wasn’t, but they were young, so they believed him. What this stranger had planned for these two young teens would, thankfully, not happen. The story these two girls would tell officers would lead to a trail of victims and from an unlikely suspect.

Join Jen and Cam on this Our True Crime Podcast episode entitled ‘To Protect and Serve...and Murder.’

This episode is sponsored by Iconic Protein Drinks available at drinkiconic.com or on Amazon. Use code ourtruecrime for a 25% discount on your order.

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Our listener discretion is courtesy of our friend Edward from @octoberpodVHS
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Sources:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=gjV7NDAUW7s
https://www.amazon.com/Hangman-Life-Crimes-Gerard-Schaefer/dp/1987902165
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Gerard_John_Schaefer
https://criminalminds.fandom.com/wiki/Gerard_Schaefer
https://news.google.com/newspapers?nid=1346&dat=19780512&id=T1RNAAAAIBAJ&sjid=qfoDAAAAIBAJ&pg=6167,3669114&hl=en
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=axY-2QEDlIQ
https://alookintotheworldofserialkillersandothermurders.wordpress.com/2015/08/25/gerard-john-schaefer-a-kiiller-cop-doing-doubles/
https://books.google.com/books?id=7K4amzFbIrYC&pg=PA50&lpg=PA50&dq=St.+Thomas+Aquinas+High+School+Gerard+Schaefer&source=bl&ots=xYZXzXo-11&sig=IrrVelIDattEMG4MVndcjeeU5nw&hl=en&sa=X&ved=0ahUKEwi11_j5yuPbAhWTAHwKHaoSBKI4ChDoAQhDMAg#v=onepage&q=St.%20Thomas%20Aquinas%20High%20School%20Gerard%20Schaefer&f=false
https://books.google.com/books?id=fmfxBQAAQBAJ&pg=PA137#v=onepage&q&f=false
https://web.archive.org/web/20100710153845/http://web.ukonline.co.uk/ruth.buddell/schaefer.htm