Short Stuff: Shark Arm Murders
Summary
This episode details the 1935 "Shark Arm Murder" in Sydney, where a tiger shark regurgitated a human arm, leading to the identification of missing gangster Jim Smith. The hosts explore the investigation into Smith's disappearance, linking it to underworld figures Patrick Brady and Reginald Holmes through circumstantial evidence and a failed suicide attempt. The story concludes with Holmes' mysterious death and the case's eventual acquittal, while also discussing various theories about the true killers.
Topics discussed
Sponsorships: McCormick and T-Mobile
Intro and source credits
The shark incident at Coogee Beach
Discovery of the arm and Jaws reference
Sponsorships: First America and Revisionist History
Jim Smith's background and the 1930s Sydney underworld
The cab driver testimony and Reginald Holmes
The murder theory and circumstantial evidence
Holmes's suicide attempt and death
The acquittal and alternative murder theories
The Fletch theory and movie discussion
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