Helle Crafts: The Woodchipper Murder That Made Connecticut Legal History (ft. Annie Elise)

Helle Crafts: The Woodchipper Murder That Made Connecticut Legal History (ft. Annie Elise)

From Clues with Morgan Absher and Kaelyn Moore by Crime House

June 3, 2026 · 1h 26m · Episode 55

About this episode

The episode discusses the mysterious disappearance of Helle Crafts and the subsequent investigation that led to a historic murder conviction in Connecticut.

Before Helle Crafts disappeared, she told four different people the exact same thing: "If anything happens to me, do not believe it is an accident." On November 18th, 1986, the 39-year-old Pan Am flight attendant and mother of three walked into her Newtown, Connecticut home... and was never seen again. Her husband Richard told police she'd gone to Denmark for a family emergency. Then he said she'd run off with another man. Morgan, Kaelyn, and special guest Annie Elise of 10 to Life trace all 10 clues... from the chest freezer Richard bought five days before Helle vanished, to the 2,660 strands of blonde hair found in a pile of wood chips, to the tooth fragment that made this the first no-body murder conviction in Connecticut history. Follow Annie Elise on YouTube at @_annieelise and find her shows Serialously with Annie Elise and 10 to Life wherever you get your podcasts. And here is a link with more information about the Dulos case that is referenced in this episode: https://abcnews.com/US/connecticut-mystery-timeline-disappearance-mom-jennifer-dulos/story?id=63500830 If you or someone you know is in an abusive situation, the National Domestic Violence Hotline is available 24/7…

People in this episode

Hosts: Morgan Absher, Kaelyn Moore

Guest: Annie Elise

Topics covered

  • disappearance
  • true crime
  • murder investigation
  • legal history
  • domestic violence
  • forensic evidence

Keywords

  • Helle Crafts
  • Richard Crafts
  • Woodchipper Murder
  • Connecticut
  • no-body murder conviction
  • true crime
  • forensic evidence
  • domestic violence

Mentioned in this episode

Organizations: 10 to Life, National Domestic Violence Hotline, womenslaw.org, Clues

Places: Connecticut

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