Strange True Stories

Most people would agree that the Internet has improved daily life. But the web has a dark side, too - the rise of social media has led&nbsp;to a rise in creepy online stalkers. These real-life creepy stalker stories are absolutely chilling, and it’s telling that so many of them begin with a seemingly innocent online meeting.If you’re looking for an excuse to limit your Internet time, these Reddit stalking tales&nbsp;will give you plenty of reasons to log off. They contain some of the most skin-crawling&nbsp;descriptions of stalking that you'll ever read.&nbsp;From ex boyfriends who just can't take a hint to strangers who lovingly pen poems to the objects of their obsessions, this list has them all.

14 People Describe Their Terrifying Encounters With Creepy Stalkers

General

14 People Describe Their Scary Stories About Creepy Stalkers

Jacob Shelton

Unspeakable Times

Many look back on their high school years fondly, remembering them as the best time of their life. For others, the thought of&nbsp;high school brings back <a href="https://www.ranker.com/list/elementary-school-teachers-discuss-gross-students/alexfurlin" target="_blank">painful memories</a>&nbsp;of being bullied. No matter what type of school someone attended, they likely know all about bullies - whether through personal experience or stories.Some students <a href="https://www.ranker.com/list/kids-standing-up-to-bullying/anabel-conner" target="_blank">stand up to bullies</a> and put a stop to the mistreatment. Others, meanwhile,&nbsp;suffer from the life-long effects of being beaten up, called names, or having their school days made a living hell. For&nbsp;those who dealt with bullying in high school, however, sharing stories of their harassment on Reddit&nbsp;can prove cathartic.

People Share Their Stories Of Sadistic High School Bullying

Real People Share Their Heartbreaking High School Bully Stories

Jessika M. Thomas 

Organized Crime

Whether you love&nbsp;Mob Wives&nbsp;or&nbsp;The Godfather (and you no doubt enjoy at least one), the organization holds an allure for many on the outside. <a href="https://www.ranker.com/list/mafia-nicknames/amylindorff" target="_blank">Mafia lore</a> and <a href="https://www.ranker.com/list/how-lemons-led-to-criminal-organizations/beth-elias" target="_blank">mob history</a>&nbsp;have long inspired everything from entertainment to the creation of unions to legal policy framework.&nbsp;Though Rudy Giuliani allegedly took out the American mafia, the Five Families, and the Commission in the 1980s, many say <a href="https://www.ranker.com/list/things-the-mafia-controls/philgibbons" target="_blank">the mob is still active</a> throughout the world. Certainly, different countries possess their own iterations of the mob, but even in the US the institution still holds power.&nbsp;These Redditors claim to have encountered it&nbsp;-&nbsp;and lived to tell their tales on the internet.&nbsp;

Disturbing Stories From People Who Have Actually Encountered The Mafia

13 Normal People Share Their True Stories About Mafia Encounters

Beth Elias

The California Innocence Project (CIP) began in 1999 with the intent of assisting the wrongfully incarcerated in gaining their freedom while also working to reshape the legal system. Justin Brooks, co-founder and director of CIP, harnesses the assistance of students from the California Western School of Law to secure his&nbsp;clients&#39; release while also teaching those budding lawyers what it takes to relentlessly advocate for their clients.

According to <a href="https://californiainnocenceproject.org/" target="_blank">the CIP website</a>, the organization assists around 1,500 clients every year. There are many people sitting in cells due to false confessions, poor eyewitness testimony, or even a nearly impossible set of circumstances coming together to seal their fate, such as <a href="https://www.ranker.com/list/innocent-man-meets-guilty-doppelganger-in-prison/trilby-beresford" target="_blank">sharing a name and even a strong resemblance</a> to the actual culprit.&nbsp;

The CIP has to be sure their client is 100% innocent before sending their student interns to interview witnesses, visit crime scenes, and gather as much information as possible.&nbsp;The CIP then files a motion in court to reopen the case and present their research, resulting in dozens of releases over their history.&nbsp;

CIP is a nonprofit and <a href="https://californiainnocenceproject.org/ways-to-give/" target="_blank">accepts donations</a>.&nbsp;

13 People Who Have Been Freed By The California Innocence Project

People Who Have Been Freed By The California Innocence Project

Jodi Smith

Mysteries

Nicknamed &quot;Shelby&#39;s Sweetheart&quot;&nbsp;by her community, Asha Jaquilla Degree was last seen walking down a foggy highway in the early hours of Valentine&#39;s Day&nbsp;2000. She was only 9 years old. Over the past two decades, there have been multiple theories explaining why Asha left her Shelby, NC, home in the middle of the night, and as of 2016,&nbsp;there were&nbsp;350 leads on the case.

Despite these leads, one fact remains clear: No one has seen, heard from, or been able to find Asha Degree in over 20 years. Even after two decades of searching, Asha&#39;s family still believes she is alive; while this may strike some as wishful thinking, there are numerous <a href="https://www.ranker.com/list/missing-people-who-were-found-alive/rydavis" target="_blank">missing persons</a> who have been found, sometimes years after they disappeared.

The Asha Degree case is still considered an open investigation; here&#39;s everything we know.

Everything We Know About The Mysterious Disappearance Of Asha Degree

Patrick Thornton

Lists about real and fictional policemen & women, detectives, and other law enforcement.

Police: Blue Lives  on Patrol

Police & Law Enforcement

There are plenty of <a href="http://www.ranker.com/list/best-movies-about-undercover-cops/ranker-film">movies or TV shows about cops who had insane undercover operations</a> to bust all sorts of criminals - and while these tales seem too crazy to be true, some are real. There are plenty of real-life examples of&nbsp;cops going deep undercover in the pursuit of justice.Sometimes in order to crack the case, law enforcement officials have to <a href="http://www.ranker.com/list/becoming-a-cop/stephen-tompkins">put themselves in some serious danger</a> and investigate from the inside. For undercover cops, revealing their true identity could not only cost them their job but possibly their life. Cops who went deep undercover have taken down drug lords, hate groups, and even busted animal fighting rings. These crazy stories from undercover cops are true and often had huge impacts for all those involved.&nbsp;Cops who had insane undercover operations were often left shattered, isolated, and alone,&nbsp;rather than rewarded.

14 Insane Stories of Cops Who Went Deep Undercover For Years At A Time

14 Fascinating Stories Of Cops Who Went Undercover For Years

Brent Sprecher

Weird

While it&#39;s now considered history to younger students, the attacks on the World Trade Center and the Pentagon on September 11, 2001, are moments permanently etched in Americans&#39; minds. Most everyone can tell you exactly what they were doing when they heard about the events, and many&nbsp;who lost loved ones can recall the day in excruciating detail. 2,753 people lost their lives at the World Trade Center alone, and tens of thousands&nbsp;of survivors still live with physical and psychological health problems. The idea that someone would pretend to be involved in such a horrifying event is both shocking and distasteful - but one woman did exactly that.

Alicia Esteve Head - known primarily by her alias, Tania Head - was a graduate student in Barcelona during the events of 9/11. Despite not even being in New York City at the time, she joined the World Trade Center Survivors&#39; Network and told a dramatic story of being severely injured and losing her fianc&eacute;. Although this tale won her sympathy and friendship, those close to her - and reporters - started to sense something wasn&#39;t right. Her narrative wasn&#39;t always consistent, and after&nbsp;The New York Times&nbsp;opened up an investigation, people learned Tania Head&#39;s story was completely fabricated.

Her ruse was conveyed&nbsp;in the&nbsp;documentary&nbsp;<a href="http://target.georiot.com/Proxy.ashx?TSID=5036&amp;GR_URL=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.amazon.com%2FWoman-Who-Wasnt-There%2Fdp%2FB00AHGXIE2%2F&amp;amazon-ids-by-cc=US%3Drankercom2758741-20" target="_blank">The Woman Who Wasn&#39;t There</a>. Head&#39;s then-friend Angelo J. Guglielmo&nbsp;Jr.&nbsp;directed and produced the movie, and he originally intended to showcase the lives of survivors. He had to change tactics when Head&#39;s true story came out.

Like the documentary&nbsp;<a href="https://www.ranker.com/list/worst-moments-from-mommy-dead-and-dearest-documentary/stefanie-hammond" target="_blank">Mommy Dead And Dearest</a>,&nbsp;the movie delves into a web of intricate lies and speculates about the motivation behind such harmful deceit. Trauma - especially collective grief - can make people act out in a strange manner, and Tania Head appears to be no exception.

'The Woman Who Wasn't There' Tells The Shocking Story Of A 9/11 Survivor Who Wasn't All She Seemed

The True Story Behind 'The Woman Who Wasn't There'

Anna Lindwasser

Lists about punishments, penalties, systemic harm, and execution methods used then, now, here, and all around the world.

Crime & Punishment

Torture

Capital punishment: the age-old way for humans to&nbsp;dispose of one another for crimes perceived to be the most egregious in a particular moment and place. As an ancient practice carried out countless times <a href="https://www.ranker.com/list/state-sanctioned-execution-methods/shonna-wright" target="_blank">throughout history</a>,&nbsp;there have predictably been some horrifically failed&nbsp;attempts. These failed executions have resulted in sheer agony for the condemned, adding insult, injury, and intense suffering to their final moments.

This list serves as a lowlight reel for history&#39;s most brutally botched executions - some from as recent as 2015. What follows goes to show that the process of capital punishment still seems to be working out a few bugs, even after hundreds of years of testing. In fact, some of <a href="https://www.ranker.com/list/horrible-executions-still-used/harrison-tenpas" target="_blank">these methods are still used</a>&nbsp;around the world.

Botched Execution Attempts That Went Horribly Wrong

Harrison Tenpas

Prison

When a criminal is deemed to be the &quot;worst of the worst,&quot;&nbsp;they&#39;re sent to the United States Penitentiary Administrative Maximum Facility in Florence, Colorado, otherwise known as ADX. This high-security prison in the middle of nowhere is meant to keep hardened offenders&nbsp;as far away from the general population&nbsp;as possible. It&#39;s unlikely anyone could escape, and for many of its residents, ADX will be the last place they ever see.&nbsp;

ADX has been operating since 1994 and it&#39;s the only prison in America that offers no real means of rehabilitation. Most of the people who end up there have either committed enough terrible acts that the system doesn&#39;t know what to do with them, or they&#39;ve committed crimes against&nbsp;the American Government.&nbsp;

The institution has come under fire for its lack of medical facilities and treatment of its patients, and in the mid-2010s, after a significant amount of legal pressure, ADX reevaluated its practices. Still, the day-to-day life for an inmate at&nbsp;ADX isn&rsquo;t a cakewalk, and most of them spend their time in solitary confinement.

Realities Of Daily Life In Florence ADX Supermax Prison

What Is Life In Florence ADX Supermax Prison Like?

True Crime

There has been a recent&nbsp;increasing fascination with true crime in media and entertainment. Recounting unspeakable&nbsp;stories usually feels more like a work of fiction than something that actually happened. Few people have literally been on the wrong side of a gun, a knife, or a deranged person and lived to tell the tale. There are some, though, who have been attacked by someone with an intent to kill and are still here to share their story.

There are plenty of&nbsp;<a href="https://www.ranker.com/list/crazy-survival-stories/lea-rose-emery" target="_blank">survival stories</a>&nbsp;that have been sensationalized by popular culture, and rightfully so, but these <a href="https://www.reddit.com/r/AskReddit/comments/bojhpr/serious_people_who_have_survived_a_murder_attempt/" target="_blank">Redditors</a>&nbsp;aren&#39;t likely to show up on any screen, big or small.

People Who Survived An Attempted Murder Tell Their Stories

Samantha Dillinger

History

What was it like to live in the Tower of London? That depended on a prisoner's social position and personal wealth; however, even&nbsp;the <a href="https://www.ranker.com/list/what-happened-to-the-princes-in-the-tower/christy-box" target="_blank">most notable prisoners</a> were subject to horrible fates. Many prisoners in the Tower of London faced torture and even death, but privileged inhabitants brought servants and threw feasts.&nbsp;The Tower of London didn't start off as a prison, but it certainly became one of the <a href="https://www.ranker.com/list/what-ghosts-haunt-the-tower-of-london/erin-mccann" target="_blank">gnarliest places</a> to send criminals and political enemies. The last&nbsp;executions at the Tower of London took place after<a href="https://blog.nationalarchives.gov.uk/blog/shot-tower/" target="_blank"> World War II&nbsp;when Josef Jakobs</a> was shot by firing squad. But between its origins and the final shot, the Tower of London offered a vast array of experiences for&nbsp;prisoners.

What It Was Like To Be A Prisoner At The Tower Of London

Tower Of London Prison History: What Daily Life Was Like

Melissa Sartore

Convenience&nbsp;stores aren't just the ultimate hubs for late night ice cream, gasoline, and Slim Jims. According to certain employees on Reddit, these mini marts and gas stations are also hotbeds for crime and sketchy characters, especially once&nbsp;nighttime approaches. Typical customers might just fill up their tanks and chat idly with the workers counting out their change, but other people are slightly more nefarious at&nbsp;<a class="edS-cl" href="https://www.ranker.com/list/convenience-store-secrets/ericascheidt?ref=internalCrossLinking_keyword">local convenience stores</a>.Like <a href="https://www.ranker.com/list/worst-restaurant-customer-stories/michaelchoi" target="_blank">awful restaurant customers</a>, these unwelcome visitors&nbsp;steal food and drinks, release bodily fluids in inappropriate places, and even enact bodily harm on themselves and others. If you've ever considered a job at the <a href="https://www.ranker.com/list/711-horror-stories/jacob-shelton" target="_blank">7-Eleven</a>&nbsp;around the corner, be prepared.

Convenience Store Workers Describe The Craziest Things They've Witnessed

Lowe Saddler

Lists of unsettling and grisly details about what happened to kidnapping victims who were held against their will. 

While They Were Held Hostage

On November 4, 1970, Los Angeles child services discovered an unprecedented case of child neglect. At 13, Susan Wiley had the demeanor and appearance of a 6 or 7-year-old girl. When the authorities began investigating parents Irene and Clark Wiley, they found that two of the four Wiley children passed within months of their births. A third child lived with Clark&rsquo;s mother until her unexpected passing, and the fourth was Susan, also known as &ldquo;Genie.&rdquo; Genie, despite her age, was unable to speak, feed herself, or use the toilet. At less than 60 pounds, the girl walked with an unusual gait, the result of years of confinement.&nbsp;

After child services rescued Genie, child psychologists devoted themselves to the girl&rsquo;s recovery. Known as a &ldquo;<a href="https://www.ranker.com/list/famous-feral-children/justin-andress" target="_blank">feral child</a>,&rdquo; Genie&rsquo;s isolation from society in her formative years caused her to have stunted cognitive and behavioral abilities. She never developed the ability to communicate with language, although her behavioral and social skills improved with years of positive reinforcement and therapy. Since Genie, other cases of feral children have come to light, such as <a href="https://www.ranker.com/list/dani-girl-in-the-window-florida-feral-child/nathan-gibson" target="_blank">Danielle Crockett</a>, known as &ldquo;The Girl in the Window,&rdquo; and Ukraine&rsquo;s <a href="https://www.ranker.com/list/oxana-malaya-feral-child-facts/erin-wisti" target="_blank">Oxana Malaya</a>.

The courts arrested Genie&rsquo;s parents, but Clark took his own life&nbsp;before the trial. The judge subsequently dismissed the charges against Irene. In 1994, Nova - a PBS series - released an Emmy-winning documentary about Genie called Secret of the Wild Child. As of 2016, Genie lives in a Los Angeles facility as a permanent ward of the state.&nbsp; 
&nbsp;

A Little Girl Was Locked In A Basement By Her Own Parents For More Than A Decade

Laura Allan

The capture of <a href="https://www.ranker.com/list/brutal-drug-kingpins/katherine-ripley " target="_blank">infamous crime lord</a> Joaqu&iacute;n &quot;El Chapo&quot; Guzm&aacute;n is one of the biggest blows to organized crime of the 21st century. El Chapo&#39;s capture threw&nbsp;his family and empire into a state of chaos. While Guzm&aacute;n may be incarcerated, that doesn&#39;t mean&nbsp;the Sinaloa cartel has ceased its operations. Internal conflict, rival cartels, and law enforcement agencies are putting the squeeze on this once-untouchable syndicate.

But it&#39;s not over for the&nbsp;Guzm&aacute;n family. Many of his children are living relatively normal lives, and his wife&#39;s public and flashy lifestyle has caught the attention of the tabloids. His sons are consolidating power within the cartel, and there is always the possibility El Chapo will try to escape from the <a href="https://www.ranker.com/list/famous-prisoners-at-adx-florence-facility/treadlightly" target="_blank">supermax penitentiary</a>&nbsp;in which he&#39;s likely to be housed. In any case, the post-Chapo history of the Guzm&aacute;n family is as rich and horrifying as its leader&#39;s reign. El Chapo is in jail, but the ripples of his numerous exploits will be felt for years to come.&nbsp;

What Happened To El Chapo's Family And Empire After The Last Time He Was Caught

What Happened To El Chapo's Family & Empire After He Was Caught?

Eric Luis

Brittanee Drexel told her parents she was staying with a friend for spring break before she went <a href="https://www.ranker.com/list/lost-children-who-were-found/anabel-conner" target="_blank">missing</a> in 2009. Leading up to her disappearance, the 17-year-old high school senior from Rochester, NY,&nbsp;was under an immense amount of stress from&nbsp;her parents&#39; separation. While her vanishing&nbsp;may at first sound like the case of a runaway teen, Brittanee Drexel&#39;s disappearance quickly turned ominous.

The Brittanee Drexel case has remained unsolved since she was last seen on April 25, 2009, though the investigation fluctuated between hot and cold throughout the 2010s. While murder and human trafficking are the two leading theories in Brittanee&#39;s disappearance, the events of April 25&nbsp;remain just as perplexing now as they were in 2009.

Here are the facts of the case and a general timeline of events. We&#39;ll also explore plausible theories and suspects in Brittanee Drexel&#39;s confounding disappearance.

Brittanee Drexel Was On Spring Break When She Vanished In 2009, And Her Case Is Still Unsolved

On August 23, 2003, Pennsylvania resident Brian Wells&nbsp;delivered his last pizza. At the location of his delivery, Wells allegedly was coerced into strapping an explosive around his neck with instructions to complete four tasks in exchange for his life. The first objective was to <a href="http://www.ranker.com/list/1997-north-hollywood-shootout-facts/jacob-shelton" target="_blank">shake down a PNC Bank</a>, which Wells tried to comply with. It was not meant to be a&nbsp;<a href="http://www.ranker.com/list/bank-robbers-who-didnt-use-violence/cristina-sanza" target="_blank">harmless stickup</a>, as the people who affixed the device to&nbsp;Wells gave him a homemade single barrel. However, Wells didn&#39;t harm anyone before police stopped the getaway car. Wells begged for help as he was being handcuffed&nbsp;before the device went off, ending his life on the spot.

The police were stunned by the bizarre and elaborate Collar Bomb Heist (CBH). But what was even more shocking were all the twists and turns discovered after Wells&#39;s passing. Brian Douglas Wells, a high-school dropout, skyrocketed into the media spotlight as the CBH pizza deliveryman. Read on below to find out the crazy facts about how Wells ended up the infamous pizza deliveryman from Erie, PA.

The True Story Of A Pizza Delivery Guy, A Bomb Collar, And A Bank Robbery

The True Story Of The Pizza Delivery Guy With The Bomb Collar

Amanda Sedlak-Hevener

Unspeakable Times lists at Ranker - the ultimate source for lists and rankings in all categories