Lost: The Story of Salvador Alvarenga

Lost: The Story of Salvador Alvarenga

Author: True Crime Campfire February 6, 2026 Duration: 57:34
In a lot of ways, the world is smaller now than it ever has been. With a few clicks of the mouse, I can watch a live camera feed of Sydney harbor, or read a newspaper from any country I can think of. Just five hours in an airplane can get you from the US to Europe, and pretty much anyone on the planet can listen to a couple of nerds like us on a podcast. But, obviously, the world is not in fact shrinking. It is still just as vast and potentially perilous as it was in the days when no one knew what lay on the other side of the ocean, and all it takes to bring that home is to lose connection to our world of technology and information. Our story is about a man’s unimaginable journey through the ocean wilderness, driven by nothing but his wits and his will to survive.*Registration is now open for CrimeWave 2.0! Visit crimewaveatsea.com/CAMPFIRE to get your discount code for $100 off your cabin and a private meet-and-greet with us! The cruise is Feb. 8-12, 2027.Sources:Jonathan Franklin, “438 Days”Time Magazine: https://time.com/4154458/castaway-sued-cannibalism-allegations/The Guardian: https://www.theguardian.com/world/2014/feb/04/castaway-story-backing-from-mexicanFollow us, campers!Patreon (join to get all episodes ad-free, at least a day early, an extra episode a month, and a free sticker!): https://patreon.com/TrueCrimeCampfirehttps://www.truecrimecampfirepod.com/Facebook: True Crime CampfireInstagram: https://www.instagram.com/truecrimecampfire/?hl=enTwitter: @TCCampfire https://twitter.com/TCCampfireEmail: truecrimecampfirepod@gmail.comMERCH! https://true-crime-campfire.myspreadshop.comBecome a supporter of this podcast: https://www.spreaker.com/podcast/true-crime-campfire--4251960/support. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Gather round the True Crime Campfire with Katie and Whitney, where the stories are dark but the atmosphere is surprisingly warm. This isn't your standard procedural recap; it's a narrative journey into the human condition, exploring societal undercurrents and the strange, often forgotten corners of history through the lens of true crime. You can settle in for a long, chilling tale with their first season, a deep dive into the bizarre case dubbed The Puppet Master and the Prince of Darkness. Or, if you prefer your mysteries in weekly installments, their second season serves up a new stranger-than-fiction story with every episode. What makes this podcast so compelling is the balance struck by the hosts: their meticulous research provides a solid foundation, while their natural chemistry and well-timed comic relief make even the most complex cases accessible and strangely welcoming. The storytelling is seamless, pulling you into each twist without sensationalism. It’s the kind of show that makes a long drive disappear or turns a household chore into an immersive experience, proving that the most haunting stories are often those told with a human voice and a thoughtful perspective.
Author: Language: English Episodes: 50

True Crime Campfire
Podcast Episodes
For the Love of Money: The Crimes of Randy Roth, FINALE [not-audio_url] [/not-audio_url]

Duration: 53:37
In Part Two of this story last week, we learned how serial husband and waste of DNA Randy Roth seduced, married, and almost certainly murdered his second wife Jan for a life-insurance payout, and tried and failed to use…
For the Love of Money: The Crimes of Randy Roth Pt 2 [not-audio_url] [/not-audio_url]

Duration: 52:37
Last week, we introduced you to Randy Roth, and described his early life and his escalation from ridiculous loser and petty criminal, to the chief suspect in the death of his second wife, Jan. Jan plummeted to her death…
For the Love of Money: The Crimes of Randy Roth Pt 1 [not-audio_url] [/not-audio_url]

Duration: 53:19
The story of Bluebeard has a mostly happy ending, with the killer’s newest bride being rescued in the nick of time by her brothers. Good for her, less good for his previous wives, who she’d discovered hanging on hooks fr…
Left Where God Could Find Him: Amish Serial Killer Eli Stutzman Pt 2 [not-audio_url] [/not-audio_url]

Duration: 46:57
The thing about serial killers is that it seems so obvious to us after the fact, right? Their behavior is so outrageous and so antisocial that we’re always left wondering why no one noticed. Eli Stutzman’s strange behavi…
Left Where God Could Find Him: Amish Serial Killer Eli Stutzman Pt 1 [not-audio_url] [/not-audio_url]

Duration: 44:51
Comedian Simon Amstell said, “If you are somebody who is going to at some point be revealed as not like everyone else, then to be in an insular community is a problem.” Here Amstell was discussing how it felt growing up…
TCC LIVE on the Crimewave Cruise! [not-audio_url] [/not-audio_url]

Duration: 1:03:06
Last week, we did our first-ever live show on the Crimewave true crime cruise! We covered three cases, a sort of "sampler platter" to give new listeners an idea of what kind of stories we usually tell on TCC. Case 1 is t…
Crown Fools: Two Notorious Cases from the UK [not-audio_url] [/not-audio_url]

Duration: 49:00
We tell a lot of wild stories about crimes that happened right here in the States—but it’s worth noting that our cousins across the pond are misbehaving just as badly. Y’know, same crimes, different accent. Today we’ve c…
Sleeping With the Enemy: The Murder of Bill McLaughlin [not-audio_url] [/not-audio_url]

Duration: 46:38
It’s hardly a revelation that physical attraction can cloud judgment. It’s one of the oldest traps in human nature—that spark of chemistry that overrides caution, turning common sense into background noise. For most peop…