Lost Hills: Dark Canyon

Western Sound and Pushkin Industries

Lost Hills investigates the dark side of Malibu, California. Beneath a seductive facade, this city of billionaires, celebrities, and surf bums is hiding something menacing.

On September 16, 2009, 24-year-old Mitrice Richardson was arrested by the Los Angeles County Sheriff’s Department for failing to pay her bill at a restaurant in Malibu, CA. After being released from Lost Hills Station shortly after midnight, she disappeared. Eleven months later, her naked, skeletal remains were discovered in a canyon some six miles away.

For nearly 15 years, the Los Angeles County Sheriff’s Department, Mitrice’s friends and family, and generations of internet sleuths have tried to crack the case.

To this day, her death remains an unsolved mystery.

The truth lies in the remote Malibu community where Mitrice was last seen. And now, finally, people are starting to talk.

Hosted by Dana Goodyear (The New Yorker) and produced by Western Sound and Pushkin Industries. Show artwork copyright Francesca Gabbiani.

Subscribe to Pushkin plus to hear the whole season early, and ad free. Find Pushkin plus on the Lost Hills show page in Apple Podcasts or atPushkin.fm.

Follow us@losthillspodon Twitter and Instagram for a deeper dive into the stories.

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Our Editor's Take

Malibu isn't all rugged mountain peaks, famous surf breaks, and billionaire celebrities. The coastal enclave also has a bad side. Everyone in Malibu has a secret;Lost Hills: Dead in the Wateris a podcast that exposes them.

The first season ofLost Hills: Dead in the Watercovers the mysterious murder of a man in Malibu Creek State Park. And, importantly, it's also about the cops who could have stopped it. The case of Tristan Beaudette wasn't as cut and dry as everyone thought. But few knew what made this case unique. This podcast explores the details of the killing and the elements surrounding it. It also shows listeners that even the most beautiful places in California can harbor ominous energy. Listeners can consider this a true crime podcast unlike any other.

Why did the cops say they couldn't connect the crime to the primary suspect and then switch their answer? What was the motivation behind the Malibu murder? Was this a one-off incident or part of a pattern cops had not yet uncovered?Lost Hills: Dead in the Wateranswers these questions and more. Every episode guides listeners through the story of this murder. Host Dana Goodyear provides feedback, insight, and interviews with those close to the crime.

This podcast is episodic. That means listeners should hear episodes in order, beginning with the first episode. Each episode runs for about 30 minutes to an hour.

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True CrimeTrue Crime

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Lost Hills Trailer

Lost Hills Trailer

Lost Hills, reported, written and hosted by Dana Goodyear.Coming March 16th from Western Sound and Pushkin Industries Learn more about your ad-choices at https:// iheartpodcastnetwork See omnystudio /listener for privacy information.

Season 4

Coming Soon - Season 4, Dark Canyon

Coming Soon - Season 4, Dark Canyon

The disappearance and death of Mitrice Richardson remains Malibu, CA’s most baffling unsolved case. It’s been nearly 14 years since her remains were discovered in a remote canyon, and still, no one has been held accountable for her demise. From the beginning, the LA County Sheriff’s Department said Richardson’s case likely couldn’t be solved. And to this day, her death remains a mystery. The truth lies in the remote Malibu community where Mitrice was last seen. And now, finally, people are starting to talk.See omnystudio /listener for privacy information.

As Mitrice Richardson’s disappearance dominates news headlines, the Sheriff’s Department defends its decision to release her with no phone, no wallet, and no ride. Meanwhile, Mitrice’s autopsy raises puzzling questions about a missing bone, and a long-buried interview introduces a new witness. See omnystudio /listener for privacy information.

Investigators search Mitrice’s impounded car and find several journals she wrote in the last months of her life. Never before shared publicly, the journals offer details about Mitrice’s mental state and her complicated love life. We track down an old girlfriend, who reveals Mitrice’s secret struggle. See omnystudio /listener for privacy information.

3. Call for Help

3. Call for Help

Mitrice arrives at Geoffrey’s restaurant in Malibu on Sept. 16, 2009, claiming she’s there to “avenge the death of Michael Jackson.” When she walks out without paying, a restaurant staffer calls 911. Deputies bring Mitrice to Lost Hills Station, where Mitrice’s cellmate overhears a worrying conversation. See omnystudio /listener for privacy information.

Six hours after her release from Lost Hills Station, Mitrice is spotted in the rural community of Monte Nido. Investigators find Mitrice’s footprints, and neighbors report unusual disturbances around the time of her disappearance.See omnystudio /listener for privacy information.

As the months pass with no sign of Mitrice, rumors abound. Law enforcement questions the artist behind a creepy mural. And deputies raid a fort in the wilderness looking for human remains. See omnystudio /listener for privacy information.

Three years before Mitrice’s arrest, Mel Gibson was arrested for drunk driving on Pacific Coast Highway. An interview with the arresting officer, James Mee, reveals the power wielded by celebrities in Malibu. Would Mitrice’s story have ended differently if she were rich and famous? See omnystudio /listener for privacy information.

6. Reconnaissance

6. Reconnaissance

Eleven months after her disappearance, Mitrice’s naked remains are discovered in an abandoned pot field in Dark Canyon, just above Monte Nido. Deputies on scene make a controversial decision, sparking conflict with the LA County Coroner. And Mitrice’s recovered clothing goes missing. See omnystudio /listener for privacy information.

Looking for a way into Dark Canyon, we follow a former pot grower on a treacherous route, and pay a visit to the Porn Ranch, which borders Dark Canyon. Plus, a retired LASD sergeant reveals that there was a Person of Interest in the case.See omnystudio /listener for privacy information.

8. Rick Trouble

8. Rick Trouble

We learn everything we can about our Person of Interest — a longtime member of the Monte Nido community, who went from golden boy to convict to off-the-grid survivalist living in the woods. We check his criminal history and discover a troubling pattern of violence. See omnystudio /listener for privacy information.

9. Fearful Witness

9. Fearful Witness

A 2011 exhumation of Mitrice’s remains leads to a second autopsy. Meanwhile, a woman describes a disturbing encounter in Monte Nido around the time of Mitrice’s death. See omnystudio /listener for privacy information.

10. The Wallypad

10. The Wallypad

The home of a local firefighter is infiltrated by an informant hoping to get more information on the Person of Interest. And a hike planned for Dark Canyon instead leads to the Lost Hills Station.See omnystudio /listener for privacy information.

11. The Suitcase

11. The Suitcase

A round of cold calls yields brand new information tying the Person of Interest to Mitrice. We return to the fort in the woods, and make a startling discovery. See omnystudio /listener for privacy information.

Season 3

Lost Hills Season 3: The Dark Prince

Lost Hills Season 3: The Dark Prince

There’s an evil undercurrent that runs through the surf world, and it all leads back to the Dark Prince of Malibu: Miki Dora. A surfer who ruled Malibu from the 1950s to the 1970s, he was also a con man and led the FBI on a 7-year manhunt around the world. To many people, Miki is a hero. But there’s darkness in the legacy he left behind. See omnystudio /listener for privacy information.

1. The Legend of Miki Dora

1. The Legend of Miki Dora

Miki Dora, Malibu’s most celebrated surfer, was known as Da Cat. Gorgeous, graceful, and debonair, Miki was intimidating. He ruled Malibu from the 1950s to the 1970s. But then, he disappeared. Because Miki was not just a surfer. He was a con artist, who led the FBI on a 7 year hunt around the globe, while he searched for the perfect wave.See omnystudio /listener for privacy information.

2. Death in Mexico

2. Death in Mexico

The most iconic surfer in Southern California was born in… Hungary. Emigrating to Los Angeles as a baby, he was raised partly by his father, a sophisticated European wine lover and restaurateur, and partly by his mother and her new husband, a hard-charging surfer named Gard Chapin. After Gard’s rumored murder, Miki is never the same.See omnystudio /listener for privacy information.

3. Gidget Goes to Hollywood, Pt1

3. Gidget Goes to Hollywood, Pt1

In the bitchen’ summer of 1956, a 15 year-old girl named Kathy Kohner shows up in Malibu and asks the guys to teach her how to surf. They call her Gidget. Soon, her father writes a book based on her diaries. The book becomes a movie, and a TV show, and a cultural juggernaut. And Miki, one of Kathy’s new surfer pals, is furious. See omnystudio /listener for privacy information.

4. Gidget Goes to Hollywood, Pt2

4. Gidget Goes to Hollywood, Pt2

Kathy Kohner’s family were immigrants from Eastern Europe who helped launch the Golden Age of Hollywood. Miki Dora’s family had also escaped the rise of fascism to start anew in California. Their fathers were part of the same tight-knit emigre community. But Miki decides that Kathy is an interloper. And tries to drive her out of Malibu. See omnystudio /listener for privacy information.

Mainland surfing has been steeped in the symbols of fascism since its inception. Iron Crosses, swastikas, Nazi uniforms…in the golden era of surfing, surfers flaunt them on their boards and in the early surf movies. Miki Dora is famous for his SS leather trench coat and using a board emblazoned with a giant swastika. He polices Malibu, forces newcomers, known as kooks, off their boards and off the beach. He lets everyone know that Malibu is his territory.See omnystudio /listener for privacy information.

6. Fuck the World

6. Fuck the World

Miki puts his surfing skills to use in the Gidget movies and in every beach party movie he can get cast in. He wants to be a star, but he doesn’t want to really work. He and his girlfriend Diane Oosterveen dress up and go to Hollywood parties at night–and rob the guests. See omnystudio /listener for privacy information.