Disappearance of David Tyll and Brian Ognjan, and How to Survive a Serial Killer

Random Michigan and mayhem. You know you want it.

This show, “Michigan and other Mayhem”, is a sort of factual, slightly comical, always earnest podcast about interesting stuff in Michigan and around the world. It is done by two sisters-in-law (Ali and Jenn) that like to talk about random interesting stories.  Expect cults, mysteries, murder, fast-talking, and a couple of mental palate cleansers… and cuss words.  Those happen on this show, a lot.

Episode 1: Disappearance of David Tyll and Brian Ognjan, and How to Survive a Serial Killer

Click Here to listen to Episode 1

Warning: This podcast occasionally contains strong language which may be unsuitable for children.

• Alerts:
  • Pretend podcast music (because we couldn’t find any we liked enough for a theme song)
  • Ali has a weird laugh. It is often loud.
  • Jenn tells the story of driving on US-23 North and seeing a one-way sign with a weird placement around mile marker forty-six. There is a brick wall in the median and there are no on/off ramps in the area. Thoughts?

• The disappearance of David Tyll and Brian Ognjan
  • November 21, 1985, they decide to go hunting in White Cloud, MI at a cabin
    • First, they decide to stop in Mio, MI to visit a friend
  • November 22, 1985, one of them cashes a check in St. Claire Shores, MI and that’s the last time either of them is heard from
    • The check wasn’t for a lot of money, no suspicion
  • They never made it to the cabin and they never made it to their friend’s house
    • Their vehicle was never found
    • The case goes cold
  • Cut to 1990
    • Police received a tip that the two men (David and Brian) had been at a bar in Mio
    • There had been a fist fight between them and the Duvall brothers outside of the bar
    • Still not enough evidence, the case goes cold again
  • Now it is 2003
    • A woman comes forward as a witness, saying she and a friend had been there at the time the men died
    • The Duvall brothers beat the two men to death with a baseball bat
    • Placed the bodies in the victim’s vehicle and drove off
    • She was afraid of the Duvalls and didn’t say anything earlier
  • Ali and Jenn talk about whether they would tell if they knew someone was murdered and what the consequences would be
    • Batshit crazy families are brought up
  • Others then testified that the brothers drunkenly bragged about committing the murders
    • They told people they fed the bodies to their pigs
    • The Duvall brothers wonder who is telling on them about the murders
      • They did. They told everyone.  They told on themselves.
    • 2003, the Duvall brothers were sentenced to life in prison
    •  The Missing Hunters on Cold Case TV Series
    • Book on the murders by Tom Henderson called Darker Than Night: True Story of a Brutal Double Homicide and an 18-year Long Quest for Justice
      • 81 rating on Good Reads
    • More talk on people who witness crimes

• How to Survive a Serial Killer
  • Types of killers
    • Spree Killers = killing at two or more locations with very little time in between the murders, not defined by the number of victims
    • Mass murderers = killing four or more people with no cool off period, at a single location
    • Serial killers = killing over a long period of time
  • Prolific American serial killers
    • Gary Ridgway (48 women)
    • Ted Bundy (35 women)
    • John Wayne Gacy (33 men)
  • Jenn reveals she was robbed at gunpoint
    • Ali was mugged twice
    • Ali and Jenn have had their houses broken into
  • Stephan Harbort, a German criminologist, former police commissioner conducted a study
    • His research says you have a 15.9% chance of survival, once the assault/abduction begins
    • Serial killers initiate 31 contacts with potential victims before being able to control one
    • Don’t fight unless you can win
    • Some people survived when others scared them away
    • Flee whenever possible
  • Follow your intuition
    • If a little voice says GET OUT or DON’T DO IT, listen to it
    • Don’t go upstairs/downstairs if they are chasing you, do not go to a room without a way out, you could be trapping yourself
      • Don’t trap yourself on a second floor or closet
      • Run to a door opposite of the one they are entering, front/back door
    • Find crowds if you’re in public
    • Lock doors when driving and don’t leave your purse out
    • If you find yourself in water, take off heavy clothing and shoes if you can, so they don’t weigh you down
    • Make noise. Their killing spree depends on not having attention drawn to them
    • Run like your ass is on fire. Get away. Kick off your shoes.
      • Yell “Fire!” not rape.
    • Don’t trust someone just because they are accompanied by a woman, women are evil too
    • Lock your doors/windows, even when you’re at home. Place a dowel down behind sliding glass doors
    • Motion sensor lights are a cheap deterrent
    • Get a dog. That’s an extra level of trouble a killer doesn’t want to bring to themselves
      • Maybe they could be allergic to cats? You never know

What percent of serial killers make up the American population?  Ali could not figure it out!  However, the number is currently around 2,000.  Sweet dreams!