Murder & Mortgage

Cranberry Juice and Crime Scenes: Detroit's No Body Conviction

Liz Short & Brooke Lapides — Fri, 23 Oct 2026 05:00:00 -0500

In October 2003, 27-year-old graduate student Raed Al-Farah vanished without a trace after a night out in Royal Oak, Michigan. But behind Raed's quiet student life, he was secretly operating as an alleged 'straw buyer' in a sprawling mortgage fraud scheme.

After a receptionist walked into Raed’s mortgage office to find a suspicious "kill kit" and bloodstains brushed off as "spilled cranberry juice", investigators uncovered a violent struggle right on the office floor.

In the fourth episode of Murder & Mortgage, we follow the disappearance, the sloppy office cover-up, and the rare "no-body" murder trial that sent two mortgage professionals to prison.

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Have a case we should cover?

We’re always looking for true crime stories with a connection to mortgages, real estate, lending, fraud, finance, or the people behind the deal.

Send your case suggestions, tips, or story ideas to Murderandmortgage@gmail.com.

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The Greenwich Web of Lies: The Murder of Andrew Kissel

Liz Short & Brooke Lapides — Fri, 16 Oct 2026 05:00:00 -0500

In April 2006, real estate developer Andrew Kissel was found tied up and stabbed to death in the basement of his rented Greenwich, Connecticut mansion, just days before he was scheduled to plead guilty to federal bank fraud charges.

Behind Andrew’s life of extreme privilege, expensive cars, and luxury yachts was a massive, multi-million-dollar web of deceit. From embezzling millions as a Manhattan co-op treasurer to forging mortgage releases across four different banks on a single property, Andrew was staring down a complete financial collapse.

Given his brother’s infamous 2003 "Milkshake Murder" in Hong Kong, a contentious divorce, missing funds, and a trusted employee allegedly tied to missing cash, investigators were left with an almost endless list of suspects.

In the third episode of Murder & Mortgage, we trace the rise and fall of Andrew Kissel and learn about the SUPERSTAR, eagle-eyed title attorney who exposed his fraud.

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Have a case we should cover?

We’re always looking for true crime stories with a connection to mortgages, real estate, lending, fraud, finance, or the people behind the deal.

Send your case suggestions, tips, or story ideas to Murderandmortgage@gmail.com.

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Deadly Workplace Vendetta: When Office Rivalries Turn Fatal

Liz Short & Brooke Lapides — Fri, 09 Oct 2026 05:00:00 -0500

In August 2002, Michigan mortgage loan officer John Polish was shot and killed inside his home while his two children and their neighborhood friends were inside.

The killer was no stranger - it was his former coworker and college fraternity brother, David McCloy, whom John had helped hire years earlier. What began as an office dispute over alleged unpaid commissions spiraled into a four-year campaign of picketing, threatening faxes, and terrifying phone calls.

In the second episode of Murder & Mortgage, we follow the friendship, the sudden workplace feud, the years of escalating harassment, and the tragic ambush that left a family devastated and an industry shocked.

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Have a case we should cover?

We’re always looking for true crime stories with a connection to mortgages, real estate, lending, fraud, finance, or the people behind the deal.

Send your case suggestions, tips, or story ideas to Murderandmortgage@gmail.com.

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Greg & Bernadette Ohlemacher: Murder, Mortgage, and an Unsolved Mystery

Liz Short & Brooke Lapides — Thu, 01 Oct 2026 09:48:25 -0500

In August 2005, Greg and Bernadette Ohlemacher were shot and killed inside their New Mexico home while in the middle of refinancing their mortgage.

Their 20-year-old daughter, Renee, was inside the house and survived. What followed was an eight-year investigation that eventually focused on someone connected to the loan itself.

In the first episode of Murder & Mortgage, we follow the Ohlemachers, the refinance, the investigation, the evidence, and the mortgage connection at the center of a double homicide that remains unsolved.

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Have a case we should cover?

We’re always looking for true crime stories with a connection to mortgages, real estate, lending, fraud, finance, or the people behind the deal.

Send your case suggestions, tips, or story ideas to Murderandmortgage@gmail.com.

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