Fort Worth Does Identified

Fort Worth Does Identified

Author: TTC Productions September 26, 2026 Duration: 20:58
During one of the deadliest years in Fort Worth history, two homicide victims were found months apart in very different parts of the city. Neither carried identification, and despite investigative efforts, both remained nameless for decades.

Their cases became part of the long list of unidentified people whose deaths could not be fully investigated without first answering the most basic question: who were they?

Decades later, preserved evidence and advances in forensic technology gave investigators new opportunities to revisit both cases. One would require modern DNA analysis and genealogical research, while the other depended on an unusual method of recovering fingerprints from evidence preserved since the original investigation.

After forty years, both victims finally got their names back. 

This episode examines their original discoveries, the evidence investigators had to work with, the forensic methods that eventually provided answers, and what remains unresolved now that their names are known. It also looks at another recent identification by the Tarrant County Medical Examiner’s Office and the continuing effort to locate relatives of people who remained unidentified or unclaimed for years.

If you have information about the 1986 murder of Brenda Darnell McLerran Smith, please contact the Fort Worth Police Cold Case Unit at (817) 392-4307.

If you have any information that might help locate the next of kin of Jose Francisco Reyes Ortega, whose body was found in October of 1986, please contact the Tarrant County Medical Examiner’s Office at (817) 920-5700. If you have information about his murder, please contact the Fort Worth Police Cold Case Unit at the number above.

If you have any information that might help locate the next of kin of Ciro Estrada Hernandez, whose body was found in August of 2000, please contact the Tarrant County Medical Examiner’s Office at (817) 920-5700.

You can support gone cold and listen to the show ad-free at https://patreon.com/gonecoldpodcast

Find us at https://www.gonecold.com

For Gone Cold merch, visit https://gonecold.dashery.com

Follow gone cold on Facebook, Instagram, Threads, TikTok, YouTube, and X. Search @gonecoldpodcast at all or just click https://linknbio.com/gonecoldpodcast

#JaneDoe #HillsideJaneDoe #JohnDoe #FortWorth #FTW #TarrantCounty #Texas #TX #TexasTrueCrime #ColdCase #TrueCrimePodcast #Podcast #Unsolved #MissingPerson #Missing #Murder #UnsolvedMurder #UnsolvedMysteries #Homicide #CrimeStories #PodcastRecommendations #CrimeJunkie #MysteryPodcast #UnidentifiedPerson

Become a supporter of this podcast: https://www.spreaker.com/podcast/gone-cold-texas-true-crime--3203003/support.

The stories that haunt a community often linger long after the headlines fade, waiting for someone to listen. Gone Cold-Texas True Crime is a podcast dedicated to those unresolved narratives, focusing specifically on the vast and complex landscape of Texas. Each episode delves into a different mystery, from long-unsolved homicides and disappearances that have left families searching for decades to other enigmatic cases that have stubbornly resisted explanation. The sheer size and diverse history of Texas provide a unique backdrop for these investigations, where details can be as sprawling as the state itself. Produced by TTC Productions, this series approaches each case with a focus on the facts and the human stories at their core, avoiding sensationalism in favor of thoughtful examination. When you listen, you’ll hear a detailed recounting of events, often including what is known about the individuals involved and the investigative paths that were followed, all while considering the questions that remain unanswered. This podcast serves as an audio record for cases that deserve renewed attention, exploring the lingering impact on communities and the hope that new information might still emerge. It’s for those drawn to the intricacies of real-life mysteries and the understanding that some of the most compelling stories are those without an ending.
Author: Language: English Episodes: 50

Gone Cold - Texas True Crime
Podcast Episodes
The Murder of Sharon McLane Part Three: The Wrong Man [not-audio_url] [/not-audio_url]

Duration: 34:16
In December 1996, 32-year-old Sharon McLane was brutally murdered inside her Bedford, Texas apartment. Two years later, her friend John Earl Nolley was convicted of the crime and sentenced to life in prison. The case app…
The Murder of Sharon McLane Part Two: The Fast Food Killer [not-audio_url] [/not-audio_url]

Duration: 35:21
In December of 1996, 32-year-old Sharon McLane was found brutally murdered inside her Bedford, Texas apartment, stabbed and slashed more than fifty times in a crime that shocked the Mid-Cities area between Dallas and For…
The Murder of Sharon McLane Part One [not-audio_url] [/not-audio_url]

Duration: 37:26
In December 1996, 32-year-old Sharon McLane was murdered inside her home in Bedford, a brutal crime that immediately shook family, friends, and investigators.As detectives began piecing together Sharon’s final hours, que…
The Murder of Dr. George Chronis [not-audio_url] [/not-audio_url]

Duration: 28:16
In May 2018, what should have been a peaceful getaway to a secluded ranch in Emory ended in one of the most suspicious deaths in recent Texas memory. When 57-year-old obstetrician and surgeon Dr. George Basil Chronis tra…
Linda Flora & Baby Sam McClain [not-audio_url] [/not-audio_url]

Duration: 31:51
In August of 1988, twenty-four-year-old Linda Flora was found brutally murdered inside her modest home on Coulson Street in northeast Houston. At first, investigators feared her thirteen-month-old son, Sam McClain Jr., k…
The Abduction & Slaying of Danydia Thompson [not-audio_url] [/not-audio_url]

Duration: 28:27
In the spring of 1997, seven-year-old DaNydia “Nee-Nee” Thompson vanished just steps away from her elementary school in Killeen, Texas. What began as a confusing absence quickly escalated into a full-scale search involvi…
The Murder of Myrtle Anne Etheridge [not-audio_url] [/not-audio_url]

Duration: 31:32
In 1971, 19-year-old Myrtle Anne Etheridge vanished from her Plano apartment complex while doing laundry; barefoot, in the cold, and gone within minutes. Days later, her body was found in a remote drainage area, bound an…
The Murders of Giti Harari & Wendy Aldrich Part Two [not-audio_url] [/not-audio_url]

Duration: 29:23
After the murder of Giti Hariri in May 1988, her closest friend, Wendy Aldrich, struggled to move forward. What began as grief quickly turned into something deeper, drawing her back again and again to the cemetery, to th…
The Murders of Giti Harari & Wendy Aldrich Part One [not-audio_url] [/not-audio_url]

Duration: 32:16
In the 1980s, Texas was expanding fast, and real estate agents were often left working alone, opening doors for strangers in empty homes. Across the state, a quiet pattern began to form: women in the industry attacked an…
The Kidnapping & Killing of Kim Nguyen Part 2: Nightmares [not-audio_url] [/not-audio_url]

Duration: 31:10
As the search for 8-year-old Kim Nguyen continued a week after his disappearance, the Garland Police still coordinated the efforts but had begun concentrating on the investigation. After releasing a lead that likely woul…