It is once again time for us to look into the darkness of the unknown in my continuing series of 5 Creepy Unsolved Mysteries. In this edition we will look at; a horrific fire which claimed many lives, an example of love overcoming the grave, and an unsolved crime with ties to one of America's greatest criminals. As per usual if you wish to stroll through our archives feel free to do so.
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1. Ghost Train at Luna Park: You may have guessed from the title of this particular story that it is about a supernatural train of some sort, but this time it is not the train that is the source of the mystery but rather what happened to the train. John and Jenny Godson of Warren, Australia, decided to treat their two young sons, Damien and Craig, to a day of festivities in Sydney. After a day at the zoo, the Godsons ventured to Luna Park where the two boys pleaded to ride the Ghost Train ride. John decided to go on the ride with the two of them, while his wife stepped away to pick up some ice cream. When Jenny returned, instead of finding her family having a good time on the train she found that the ride was on fire and employees were trying to get everyone they could off of it. Sadly her family perished in the blaze, and fire investigators were never able to come up with a solution as to what started the fire. Debate raged as to whether it was an electrical fire due to negligence or deliberate arson. Sometime later, Jenny Godson, discovered the photographs from that fateful day and decided to go through them where she made a haunting discovery. One of the photographs showed her son Damien reluctantly posing next to a large man in a terrifying horned-demon mask. One would suspect that with the attraction being a Ghost Train that this intimidating figure would be there for the ride, but he was not, in fact nobody has ever been able to figure out the identity of this ominous masked man. The discovery of this image has added a new and terrifying theory to the Ghost Train fire, that perhaps this unidentified man started the fire as part of occult practice. To this day the tragic fire that claimed the lives of six children and an adult remains a mystery.
2. Murder of Mark Walts: The murders perpetrated by criminal Charles Manson and his Family are among the most infamous crimes in American history. But aside from the massacre at Sharon Tate's home, there have been many other deaths and murders that have been tied to the Family but there exists no evidence to tie them directly. One such murder was of Mark Walts, who worked on some of the movies and television shows which were filmed on the grounds of Spahn Ranch, where Manson and his crew lived for free in exchange for doing chores for property owner, George Spahn. In the summer of 1969, Walts went to do some fishing, but he never returned. His body turned up the next day haven been brutally beaten and stabbed, instantly his brother knew Manson was behind it. He never gave a reason why, but he did swear revenge on the strange man. Walts' brother was deprived of his vengeance though, as Manson and his followers were arrested a few months later. To this day the murder of Mark Walts remains unsolved.
3. Footprints of the Batutut: John McKinnon made a name for himself in the field of by studying the animals hiding in the forests on Southeast Asia, even discovering three new species of mammals during his distinguished career. In 1974, he was on an expedition in Malaysia when he came across a series of footprints which filled him with chills. The scientist claimed they were humanlike but the big toe was opposite of where it should be on a person, and the soles were broader than an average person. His guide told McKinnon that these were the footprints of the forest people known as, the Batutut. Ape-like bipeds who were between 5 and 6 feet (shorter than the North American Sasquatch) and covered in red fur, the Batutut is reportedly incredibly vicious and territorial. With the idea of this animal filling him with dread, McKinnon refused to pursue the animal further and left it in peace.
4. Final Phone Call from Charles Peck: In September 2008, the worst tragedy to occur on the Los Angeles Metrolink commuter train claimed the lives of 25 people while many more were injured. The engineer in charge of the Metrolink train was more focused on his texting than on his job and collided head on with an oncoming freight train. One of the people who tragically lost their life that day was Charles Peck, who had recently moved to the Los Angeles area to be closer to his fiancé. On the day of the crash many of his loved ones received phone calls from the man. His children, his brother and his fiancé would answer these calls only to be greeted by a brief few moments of silence on the other end, and this continued into the night. Peck's body was one of the last to be removed from the wreckage that night, and it was discovered that he had died instantly in the collision. But if he had been dead all along, who was making those phone calls to the people in his life until he was found?
5. T he Murder of "Machine Gun" McGurn: Al Capone may have been the suave and charismatic leader of Chicago's organized crime during Prohibition, but during his time at the top the man at his right hand was the cold and vicious Jack "Machine Gun" McGurn. Whereas Capone had a public image to protect, McGurn enforced the crime lord's will on the city with brutality and violence. Perhaps the most violent act perpetrated by "Machine Gun" was allegedly acting as the mastermind behind the St. Valentine's Day Massacre. Nothing has ever been proven but the rumbling around Chicago's underworld placed the blame squarely on him. Perhaps this is why the night before the seven year anniversary of the crime, "Machine Gun" McGurn was ambushed at a bowling alley. The identity of the men who carried out this hit have never been discovered, but after they carried out the deed they propped the body up and placed into its hand a nickel and poem lamenting the loss of everything.
