Episode Details

In this episode of pplpod, we delve into the disturbing crimes of Charles Ng and his accomplice, Leonard Lake. Between 1983 and 1985, the pair targeted men, women, and infants from a remote cabin in Calaveras County, California, where authorities later uncovered a cinder-block bunker containing a hidden cell,. We explore how the duo was driven by a twisted fantasy Lake called "Operation Miranda"—inspired by John Fowles' novel The Collector—and the "M-Ladies" videotapes that captured their brutal torture of victims,.

We trace the collapse of their spree, which began when Ng was caught shoplifting a vise, leading to Lake’s suicide by cyanide capsule and Ng’s flight to Canada,,. Finally, we examine the legal circus that followed: a years-long extradition battle and the most expensive trial in California history,. Hear how Ng used delay tactics—ranging from firing lawyers to demanding the right to practice origami—before finally being convicted of eleven murders and sentenced to death,.