Ep 36-Arsenic and Double Indemnity

A tailor’s back room, a bottle of “powder,” and a stack of insurance forms—our step-by-step tour of Philadelphia’s 1930s arsenic ring reveals how murder became a business, cloaked in folk magic and legitimized by paperwork. We start with a misdiagnosed “pneumonia,” follow the paper trail through forged signatures and overlapping policies, and watch a would-be hitman flip the script with the Secret Service. From sandbags meant to mimic brain hemorrhages to a spiritualist selling la fattura, the scheme preyed on fear, poverty, and the promise of a payout, turning neighbors into recruiters and grief into revenue.

Resources: 

https://www.secretservice.gov/newsroom/releases/2017/08/moments-history-poison-profit-philadelphia-arsenic-murder-cases 

https://journals.psu.edu/phj/article/view/25642/25411 

https://vtuhr.org/articles/42/files/submission/proof/42-1-76-1-10-20171116.pdf 

https://billypenn.com/2023/05/28/pasta-arsenic-mass-murder-south-phillys-infamous-1930s-poison-ring/ 

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Philadelphia_poison_ring 

https://news.medtronic.com/Medtronic-smart-study-pivotal-moment-in-womens-health-newsroom 

Chapters

• 0:00 Banter, Weather, and Home Upgrades
• 9:12 Taxes, Fees, and Public Frustrations
• 16:27 Sponsor: Cheeky Night Guards
• 19:02 Setting the Stage: 1930s South Philly
• 24:42 The Arsenic Ring Emerges
• 32:42 Superstition, “La Fattura,” and Arsenic
• 39:42 The Meyer Tip and Sting Operation
• 47:12 Paper Trails, Forged Policies, and Raids
• 53:42 Coercion, Blackmail, and the “Mob Doctor”

Transcript

SPEAKER_00: 0:43

Amanda. Jenna. I'm just finishing a pretzel, sorry.

SPEAKER_02: 0:53

Welcome everybody to episode twenty. No. No. Thirty-six. Yeah. Thirty-six. Thirty-six. Thirty-six. That's how old I am. Yikes here, baby. Only if you ask some people.

SPEAKER_00: 1:09

It's all relative, but if you ask me, you're a baby. How are you doing? I'm doing fantabulous. Ooh, I'm good. The weather's nice. It's my favorite. It's crisp enough to get the pumpkins on the porch. I mean, it's been so hot. I was like, are we gonna have like rotted pumpkin, like cooked pumpkin outside? So yeah. I got them out two days ago. They haven't died, so there we go.

SPEAKER_02: 1:41

Yeehaw! Cute, cute. Husband's outside right now hanging permanent lights on the house, which I'm very excited for.

SPEAKER_00: 1:50

Oh, tell me about that. What's permanent lights? Like permanent Christmas lights?

SPEAKER_02: 1:54

Yeah. Like he drills this thing into the soffit, and then the little light fits up in there. And then you can run the different colors from your phone and like have them blink in different sequences and stuff.

SPEAKER_00: 2:08

You can do different holidays.

SPEAKER_01: 2:10

Oh, that's so cool.

unknown: 2:12

Ah!

SPEAKER_01: 2:12

I know I was like, tonight can we put on purple and orange for Halloween? Oh, that is so cool.

SPEAKER_00: 2:18

Oh, wow. I'm so excited. I'm excited for you. Eee, I'll have to send you a picture. Getting in the mood. Yay! What else is new?

SPEAKER_01: 2:31

Yeah.

SPEAKER_02: 2:32

Other than that, not a whole lot. I feel like we did a little more organization on the house. You know, you kind of like move in and then your main spaces are livable, and then you kind of forget about the other ones because you never go there.

SPEAKER_01: 2:44

Yeah, really.

SPEAKER_02: 2:45

So this past weekend we did a little more work with things that needed working on. So now it feels like wow, our house is ginormous, which it is too big for us, too. But yeah, it feels good to have things more organized. Oh, good for you.

SPEAKER_01: 3:04

What about you?

SPEAKER_00: 3:07

Me. Well, I mean, I fell asleep and realized it was April and that I didn't have my taxes done. So I filed for an extension purely out of laziness. And the the deadline is like Is this a dream? What? That you fell asleep and you woke up and it was April? No, but I mean, like, I feel like I just dozed through the tax season and I was like, oh crap, April fell upon us. And I was like, I'm not ready. So, you know, with the divorce and whatnot, I didn't know how to do my taxes. So I just sucked it up and did my taxes because then the extended deadline was October 15th. So I got that done. Yay for me. Good job. Yeah.

SPEAKER_02: 3:53

And you know, yeah, I don't love tax time.

SPEAKER_01: 3:56

Yeah.

SPEAKER_02: 3:57

Or like I've seen these posts where people are like, the government apparently knows how much money we owe them, and we have to pay someone to tell us how much money we owe them, and hopefully it's right, otherwise we get in trouble. Yeah. It's like, can you guys just send me a letter and be like, you owe me this much? And I can just send you a check. Like, can we take out the middleman here?

SPEAKER_00: 4:14

I know. And most of the time it's what they owe us, and they've been sitting on our money. Yeah, whatever. Yeah. That's how our system of government works in the United States. Pipe up those of you, 34 countries that also other countries that listen to this podcast and let us know how much better it is in your end.

SPEAKER_02: 4:34

Yeah, because we get taxed on the money we make, taxed on the money we spend, then we have to do our taxes and pay more money.

SPEAKER_00: 4:41

And then if you upgrade your bathroom, you need to get a city permit so that they can tax you more because your house is house is worth more. I mean. Yeah. It's all good times.

SPEAKER_02: 4:52

But you know what? Wow, we do have nice driving roads.

SPEAKER_00: 4:55

Well, we have dri we have roads that we have to in some places like Minnesota, you have to pay for when they repave. Yeah.

SPEAKER_02: 5:05

And they have that like road delivery tax in Minnesota now. Like if you order a package, it has like a a charge. Really? Did you see that?

SPEAKER_01: 5:13

No.

SPEAKER_02: 5:14

Yeah. I mean it's 50 cents, but it's like a road charge or something.

SPEAKER_00: 5:18

I was just shocked that I had to pay$12,000 for them to repave the road in front of my house. Yeah. And now I have to pay to replace the part to repave the sidewalk because one of the government trees' roots has uprooted the sidewalk so that it's uneven. And we have to pay to repave that. So yeah.

SPEAKER_02: 5:41

I feel like that's your tree your problem.

SPEAKER_00: 5:43

Yeah, but if we take out the city's the city's tree, that's another 10,000, 15,000, we're welcome to take it out. But I mean it's just gonna keep But the tree and the boulevard are the city's property. Yeah, and yet we had to pay for the rate the road to be repaved. So I don't understand how it works, but it seems to never go in my favor, I'll just say it right now.

SPEAKER_02: 6:08

Okay, so correction section. There's not any like corrections to your story at all, but I did have quite a few people texting me about the how do you say chart note? And apparently the California law that we discussed in a heated, passionate manner last time does not include dentists. So that's good for them.

SPEAKER_00: 6:37

I also had someone else say this only pertains to nurse practitioners, which if they're qualified to do the services that they're providing, then the public needs to understand that that level of provider is able to give them the services that they need, that they're licensed to provide in their scope of practice, and that that scope of practice belongs to a doctor of nursing practice. So if we just say, well, you need to say whether you're a physician or not, you're not really educating the public on what that means and whether they even need a physician to provide the level of expertise that they require for their condition. I mean, you can't get a license if you don't understand your scope of practice and when to refer. So we're not respecting any of that, or their years of like you know how many years a doctor of nursing practice needs to undergo to get that title.

SPEAKER_02: 7:33

Yeah, yeah, yeah. Okay. Without further ado, we're gonna jump into sponsor number one, which is our cheeky cheeky cheeky. Remember when that was a trending thing? Cheeky mouth guards for grinding at getcheeky.com. So you yourself can stop teeth grinding and clenching with a custom night guard from Cheeky at a fraction of the cost of a dentist. It's easy, affordable, and guaranteed. Smile, sleep, repeat, the details, listeners, discount. Nope, I forgot to delete that part. That's from last time. Okay. Cheeky offers affordable custom night guards delivered to your doorstep at a fraction of the cost charged by dentists. Our easy-to-use impression kit captures your bite from the comfort of your home, ensuring a dentist quality night guard tailored to your teeth. Cheeky night guards protect teeth from grinding by absorbing the forces of grinding, preventing headaches, jaw pain, and chipped teeth, while promoting healthier gums and a more confident smile. With free shipping and a hundred percent money-back guarantee, Cheeky is the perfect solution for teeth grinding or clenching. Try it risk-free and join thousands who choose Cheeky to solve their grinding and clenching problems. So don't delay, this exclusive deal is limited. GetChiki.com and use our promo code STAYSUSPIOS for 30% off your order today. Resources for today's episode will be in the show notes, per usually. We're going old old timey today, guys. And then when I was reading about this one, it had some like mystical, magical, like potion-y things in it. And I was like, ooh, this kind of feels like perfect for coming up on Halloween time. Even though it's not like like we're not diving into potions or anything, but I'm just saying there's mansions, there's shades of mystical things.

SPEAKER_00: 9:30

I'm excited, just in time for spooky season.

SPEAKER_02: 9:36

I know. Ah so no trigger warnings. This episode seems like lighthearted and fun. Of course, it's like it's horrible that it happened, but when it's an old timey, like we're going back to the 1930s. So when it's so old timey, like literally almost a hundred years ago, it just seems so far-fetched, like that would not happen today, that it's it's kind of seems like, oh ha ha. Even though it's horrible, it happened. And who knows, maybe it's still happening today, but we hope not. Ooh. All right, y'all. Let's get in our time machine. We're going back to the 1930s, to South Philadelphia. Phil. So in the at the time, South Philadelphia was home to a thriving Italian immigrant community, many of whom struggled to navigate a world of new language barriers, economic hardship, and unfamiliar legal systems. It was a period of tension and hope, but also vulnerability. Ferdinando Alfonsi, a 38-year-old Italian immigrant and day laborer living in Philadelphia, died on October 27, 1938 at National Stomach Hospital. On paper, his death seemed ordinary. A married white male employed in construction, now recorded in the Pennsylvania Department of Health's Bureau of Vital Statistics. But amid the official stamps and registration numbers, one phrase stood out in bold, smeared letters under principal cause of death. Inquest pending. So, anywho, that's on our socials.

SPEAKER_00: 11:35

Wow.

SPEAKER_02: 11:36

Oh my gosh. So Alphonse's death was initially attributed to pneumonia, but it was anything but ordinary pneumonia. The autopsy revealed that his body was saturated with arsenic, the same stub substance commonly used as rat poison. The suspicions deepened when they discovered that Alphonse's widow had recently taken out a series of life insurance policies on him. There were multiple overlapping contracts with payouts far exceeding his modest income. The case, which had become as a routine inquiry, soon led authorities into the one one of the strangest and most chilling criminal enterprises in the city's history. A network of poisoners and insurance swindlers who treated murder as business. Wow, you're kidding. That is crazy. Detectives Michael Schwartz, Anthony Franchetti, and Samuel Riccardi had already been investigating a string of suspicious deaths among Philadelphians' Italian population, and they recognized that Alphonse's murder was part of a much larger pattern. What followed was a complex investigation that uncovered this extensive murder for insurance ring spanning Pennsylvania, New Jersey, New York, and Delaware. The men at the center of the operation were cousins Paul and Herman Petrio, two Italian immigrants who had spent years of building reputations in their South Philadelphia neighborhoods as men who could fix problems. Paul worked as a tailor and an amateur spiritual advisor, and Herman operated as a photographer, but moonlighted in much shadier trades from extortion to fake insurance dealings. And together they built an empire based on desperation and superstition.

SPEAKER_00: 13:33

Oh wow.

SPEAKER_02: 13:34

By the late 1930s, the Great Depression had left working-class Philadelphians, particularly in the immigrant or Italian immigrant enclaves, impoverished and afraid. Jobs were scarce, hunger was common, and the promise of an insurance payout could mean the difference between survival and destitution. The Patrios exploited this fear with precision. They found men and women willing to insure a spouse, relative, or acquaintance for small sums, promising that accidents could be arranged and claims quickly paid. Clients typically paid$300 plus 10% of any insurance proceedings, proceeds exceeding$1,000, transforming homicide into a form of investment, which is wild. And for reference,$300 in the late 30s is equivalent to about$6,893 in today's money. Beneath the veneer of financial crime, however, lies something even more insidious. The organization drew upon traditional Italian folk beliefs in witchcraft and malachi, which means evil eye, and the power of potions and spiritual healers. Like, how perfect for this time of year. The Patrios began collaborating with Morris the rabbi, Bulbur, who was a Russian-born spiritualist and self-styled healer. Bulber practiced la fatura, which is a blend of Italian folk magic, herbal remedies, and psychological manipulation. Through him, the Patrios also discovered arsenic. Many others involved posed as faith healers themselves or as fortune tellers, exploiting superstition and desperation with immigrant neighborhoods battered by the Great Depression. For some, participation in the ring represented not pure malice, but a grim form of survival. An attempt to translate old world magic and misfortune into new world money. Arsenic was easy to obtain and in small doses difficult to detect. It could mimic the symptoms of natural diseases such as stomach distress, weakness, and gradual decline. And remember, we are in the 1930s here. So it's not like going into the clinic today and they're gonna run a bunch more labs because they just didn't have all that then. So with Bulber's influence and their growing network of collaborators, the Patrios turned poisoning into an industrial process. They recruited m relatives, friends, and neighbors, often through promises of wealth or superstition-driven fear. A wife who complained about her husband's drinking might be told she could cure him with a special potion. But of course, this co this potion contained personality.

SPEAKER_00: 16:26

He might be dead, but he's not drinking.

SPEAKER_02: 16:29

They're like, honey, do we have a deal for you? We can just get you set up with a little potion. It's gonna cure his drinking. It's like, well, we did deliver what we said. He's not drinking. Oh, so funny. I mean, see, not funny, but like funny. Yeah. The investigation into Philadelphia's arsenic murder ring truly began, though, when Alphonse's death crossed the line from tragedy to transaction. In the summer of 1938, a recently released convict named George Meyer, who ran a small upholstery cleaning business in New Jersey, found himself short on cash. He was seeking a modest$25 loan, which I promise this is the last translation of money I do, but$25 in 1930s is equivalent to$574 today. Oh my gosh, that's a lot. I think it's fun. Yeah. So seeking this loan, he was referred to a Philadelphia spaghetti and olive oil salesman named Herman Petrillo. Meyer expected a small favor in return for the loan, but instead he was offered blood money. Petrillo told him bluntly, quote, why bother me for$25 when you can get$500, end quote. Oh my gosh. And proposed that Meyer earn it by killing a man named Ferdinando Alfonso. According to Petrillo's plan, the murder had to look accidental to trigger a double indemnity clause on Alphonse's life insurance policy. Petrill offered either$600 in cash or$2,500 in counterfeit bills if Meyer would stage the death, perhaps by striking Alphonse with a lead pipe or a sandbag and then pushing him down the staircase. The accident, he explained, would allow them to collect the inflated payout. Meyer accompanied Petrio to meet Alphonse, but ultimately backed out. Troubled by what he had heard, he went to the Philadelphia police to report the murder for hire proposal. Unfortunately, detectives dismissed him, assuming that the ex-convict was imagining things.

SPEAKER_00: 18:45

And I mean, and what does it hurt you to take it seriously? If it's wrong, you know, so what? At least you checked it out.

SPEAKER_02: 18:52

Does that is it everyday guys that are people are walking into the police station saying someone wants to do a murder for hire? I don't think so. Then dismiss him after that. Yeah. Yeah. Determined, Meyer turned to the U.S. Secret Service, which I'm like, okay, go, George Meyer, because I would be like, how do you even get a hold of the Secret Service? But you go, sir. And so this U.S. Secret Service, he got in touch with local chief William Landvot, who took cautious interest, which the police should have done, after learning that Petrillo was already wanted for bootlegging and counterfeiting. Landvott assigned agent Stanley B. Phillips to pose as a hitman and infiltrate the Patrillo circle. Phillips and Meyer met repeatedly with Petrillo, who discussed various ways to dispatch Alphonse, such as drowning, you know, maybe a hit and run. How about you bludgeon him with a sandbag? Because according to Petrillo, if you bludgeon someone with a sandbag, it left no visible mark and mimicked a brain hemorrhage. Oh, he's evil. I know. Like what a naughty naughty little I can't think. Yeah, gangster. Oh my gosh, naughty naughty. During these meetings, Phillips tried to buy counterfeit bills while pretending to negotiate the contract killing. The deal dragged on for weeks and weeks as Petrio struggled to secure the fake currency. At one point, he informed Phillips that the murder for hire was no longer necessary because Alphonse had fallen gravely ill. That bastard must have nine lives, Petrio allegedly said. We gave him enough arsenic to kill six men.

SPEAKER_00: 20:38

Go, Alphonse.

SPEAKER_02: 20:40

Yeah.

unknown: 20:41

Huh.

SPEAKER_02: 20:42

Dang, got brothers out here just literally fighting first life. Oh shame. In addition to this fruitful information gathered after Alphonse died, his wife collected several insurance payouts, but one of the policies was filed with a forged signature and drew scrutiny. Investigators began tracing the paperwork and soon uncovered a web of overlapping claims, all tied to the same small circle of brokers and agents. Investigators found that many of the victims in similar cases had been insured multiple times, sometimes without their knowledge, and most shared social ties to the same South Philadelphia neighborhoods. In some cases, signatures had been forged by the Petrios themselves or by complicit insurance agents. Others had been recruited by intermediaries, such as wives, cousins, or neighbors who were promised a cut of the payout. When police raided Paul Petrillo's tailor shop, they found stacks of policy forms, correspondence with insurance companies across several states, and bottles containing traces of arsenic laced tonics. The shop's back room had effectively served as the operations' headquarters where poison was distributed and paperwork forged. As the investigation widened, detectives uncovered a network so large it resembled an underground corporation. There were field recruiters who identified potential clients, middlemen who arranged insurance, and even medical professionals who participated knowingly or under coercion. The ring exploited routine medical practice in the limits of contemporary medicine. Physicians at that time often misattributed arsenic symptoms to food poisoning, stomach disease, or heart failure, especially when families reported symptoms in culturally framed ways. So this was like a big, a big web. Lots of people involved. And we're going to talk about one naughty-naughty naughty doctor in particular. But anyway, as you can see, a lot of people involved. The spiritual front made the scheme possible. Bulber convinced superstitious clients that illness or misfortune could be lifted by special remedies like powders, oils, or charms. To those desperate enough to believe, these treatments promised both healing and protection. In reality, they became instruments of murder. When victims began dying in suspiciously similar ways, whispers spread throughout South Philadelphia about cursed families and the mala malokie, which again is that evil eye. Fear and fascination grew, but few dared speak openly about it. It was only after several widows began fighting over insurance payouts that the threads started to unravel.

SPEAKER_01: 23:39

Hmm.

SPEAKER_02: 23:41

Investigators discovered that the ring's structure extended beyond the neighborhood boundaries. There were two main divisions: one in North Philadelphia, led by Herman Bulber, and a woman named Rose Karina, an accomplice who had poisoned several of her own husbands, and another in South Philadelphia, overseen by Paul and his associate Karina Favato. Despite territorial disputes, the two groups continued cooperating, sharing poison and supplies, occasionally borrowing each other's clients. If persuasion failed, the Patrios turned to more sinister tactics. Sometimes they seduced reluctant wives, binding them emotionally before reintroducing the proposition of murder. Other times they used threats of supernatural harm. Victims were told that disobedience could invite a curse. Those most vulnerable were the poor, unfortunately, the superstitious and the isolated. They were all easy prey. I know. In cases where women sought abortions, the ring leveraged even deeper fear. Dr. Horace Perlman, a licensed obstetrician and gynecologist, performed illegal procedures for clients referred by Bulber. Afterward, Perlman would blackmail the women, threatening exposure unless they participated in the insurance fraud or murder schemes. And that's that naughty naughty doctor that I said I was going to mention. Because how freaking horrible. Payment options were flexible, of course. How sweet. And if necessary, one of the Petrios impersonated the policy holder. And with several complicit or unwitting insurance agents in their circle, many of these applications passed unchallenged. Just so crazy.

SPEAKER_00: 25:46

Absolutely nightmare. I can't believe this web is so deep. It's like a movie where you go, okay, come on, guys, settle down. Yeah, like absolutely fucking like that. All these things were in place. It's like, no, this is true.

SPEAKER_02: 26:02

It's just so crazy. Welcome to the chart note. No, I gotta sing to first. Hang on, I need a sit before I sing. But before we move any further, for a chartnote. Mine was more of a chant than a sing chart note. Welcome to the chart note segment where we learn about what's happening in medicine and healthcare. Ooh, nice grade teacher. Julia Garcia began suffering from exhaustion, dizziness, and difficulty walking. Symptoms that puzzled doctors for months. Her husband Jose recalled her frustration as physicians offered conflicting diagnoses. Eventually, cardiologists discovered that Julia had aortic stenosis, a severe narrowing of the aortic valve that restricts blood flow and can be fatal if untreated. She underwent a successful valve replacement with Medtronic Evolute, transcatheter, aortic valve replacement, T-A-B-R system, regaining her strength and quality of life. Julia's story highlights a broader issue. Heart disease is often under-diagnosed and under-treated in women. As Dr. Roxana Meirin, Director of Cardiovascular Research at Mount Sinai, explained, this imbalance means women's unique symptoms and needs are frequently overlooked. So to address this, Dr. Mirin co-led the SMART study, which was a major international clinical trial designed to close gender gaps in cardiovascular care. They conducted across 83 sites in the US, Canada, Europe, Middle East, and Asia, and the trial involved 716 patients, nearly 90% of them being women with small heart valves and severe aortic stenosis. It compared outcomes between the Medtronic Evolet and the Edwards Sapien TAVR systems. Results released on April 7, 2024, show that the Medtronic Evolut system delivered superior post-procedural blood flow performance, marking a pivotal moment for women's heart health, which is exciting, but honestly, I was like most excited that they were like, wow, physiology between men and women is different, and we need to look at that.

SPEAKER_00: 28:44

About damn time.

SPEAKER_02: 28:45

Yeah. Nina Goodhart, who is senior vice president at Medtronic, emphasized that this was the first head-to-head trial to produce female-specific data on valve performance. She and Dr. Miran noted that women often have smaller heart valves and different symptom profiles than men do, which reinforced the need for more inclusive research. Despite these advances, experts agree much work remains. Women still represent less than 40% of participants in clinical studies, and both patients and physicians often overlook the distinct systems, nope, symptoms of heart disease in women. The SMART trial is an exciting starting point, but we need collaboration among healthcare professionals, institutions, and policymakers to reshape the future of medical treatment for women. Amen. Amen. And if anybody watches Cray's Anatomy, I mean, can we just clap for Meredith Gray, who is like trying to cure Alzheimer's, and they're only studying male mice because male mice aren't as difficult to study as women mice. And she was like, But Alzheimer's affects women more than men. We need to test this, that.

SPEAKER_00: 30:01

Yeah. And I mean it may be Gray's anatomy, but they draw on what's actually happening in healthcare, you know. Yeah. And obviously dramatize it, but a lot of times it doesn't need dramatization because it's the truth. So yeah, I think we need to look at that. We're not the same. So, well, good for them. It's a it's a good start.

SPEAKER_01: 30:19

Yes. Okay, back to the story.

SPEAKER_00: 30:29

I mean it's depressing, but yeah, it's important.

SPEAKER_02: 30:32

Yeah. I'm just making my font larger again here because my eyeballs. Okay. As the scope of the conspiracy. Emerged, arrests began. McDevitt understood that standard interrogation methods wouldn't be enough. He needed confessions and cooperation from a community that was bound by fear and loyalty. His approach was both psychological and strategic. He treated prisoners as collaborators rather than criminals, offering comfort, flattery, and occasional privileges in exchange for information. Some suspects, initially defiant, softened when they realized how much the police already knew. As one confession led to another, the ring began to collapse under its own weight. Those who spoke were rewarded with leniency, and those who stayed silent watched as their allies turned to witnesses. McDevitt's detectives even escorted some suspects to restaurants, bars, and family gatherings to win their trust, a tactic later criticized by local papers but defended as essential. The results were undeniable. Within months, dozens of confessions had been secured without coercion or violence. The trickiest case involved Dr. Perlman, that big puke. Investigators had enough circumstantial evidence linking him to the poisoning of a woman named Jenny Pino, but lacked the key witness. Her husband Joseph, who had died unexpectedly. With no living accuser, McDevitt and Captain James Kelly devised an audacious plan, which I'm like, this is awesome. Yeah. Using information from Bulbur, they coached Detective Samuel Ricardi to impersonate Joe Pino's voice, which was her husband. In a staged police lineup with bright lights concealing the audience, Bulber identified Perlman as the man who provided the fatal pills. Then, from the darkness, Ricardi, who was the detective, shouted, That's the man who murdered my wife. I paid him and Paul Petrio. He gave me the pills. Oh, why did I ever kill Jenny?

SPEAKER_00: 32:52

Oh my gosh, this is like a Shakespeare play. Oh my gosh.

SPEAKER_02: 32:58

Perlman, shaking and believing the dead had returned to accuse him, broke down and confessed. The tactic, while highly unorthodox and by modern standards unconstitutional, was legal at the time. The Supreme Court's Miranda's ruling were still decades away. As confessions accumulated, the web of corruption came fully into view, and the ring's reach extended to doctors, undertakers, and insurance brokers across state lines, as I've kind of already alluded to or have said. It was huge. Anonymous letters arrived from as far as Chicago, naming potential victims and describing neighborhood rumors about witchcraft and sudden deaths. By the time the investigation concluded, 25 people were under arrest and authorities suspected dozens more involved. Trials began in August 1939 and it continued into early 1940. Each followed a similar pattern. The prosecution presented testimony from toxicologists, insurance agents, and former ring members, supported by forensic evidence from exhumed bodies. The defense tried to undermine witnesses, but the mounting testimony proved overwhelming. Out of 25 cases prosecuted by McDevitt, 22 had ended in conviction, which go McDevitt.

SPEAKER_00: 34:17

Badass.

SPEAKER_02: 34:18

Yes. The key defendants, Morris Bulber, who was referred to as the mob doctor, by the way. Paul and Herman Petrillo and Karina Favado received the harshest sentences. Bulbur and Favado avoided execution only because of their cooperation, spending the rest of their lives in prison. Paul Petrillo, however, was less fortunate. After 10 days of trial, faced with devastating testimony from Bulber and another witness named Caporado. I don't remember writing that now. I'm like, that's looks like cacao. Like the tablet. Not so nice. Yeah, not so nice. Paul pleaded guilty. He later claimed that Bulbur had placed him under a spell and that he'd been controlled by the evil eye and forced into the crimes. The judge, however, was unmoved. On March 31st, 1940, Paul Petrillo was executed in the electric chair at Rockview Prison. Herman's ordeal stretched out longer. His first conviction for the murder of Ferdinando Alfonsie was overturned on appeal, but prosecutors quickly re-indicted him for the death of Ralph Caruso. The second trial ended the same way as the first, a guilty verdict and a death sentence. And he was executed on October 20th, 1941. When the arsenic trials concluded, officials attributed at least 35 confirmed deaths to the ring, though many suspected the true number was far higher, and perhaps 100 or more. I mean, yeah, if this was stretching into New York, all the way over to Chicago, like, it has to be way more. Fulber boasted in court that he personally knew of 70 poisonings, though prosecutors doubted his count. Even so, given the ring's longevity, organization, and secrecy, investigators acknowledged that the total actual count could never be known. Rumors persisted of related schemes, arson for insurance plots, bombings for hire, and two independent murder rings that mimicked the Patrios' methods. Police pursued Leeds but found little evidence. What they had already uncovered was a staggering was staggering enough, a vast criminal enterprise that had operated for years under the guise of folk, healing, and faith. The crimes would echo through American culture. Only a few years later, Hollywood dramatized a similar story in double indemnity from 1944, where Barbara Stanwyck and Fred McMurray played lovers who murder for an insurance payout. But while that tale was fiction, the Philadelphia case had been horrifyingly real. I've never seen that movie, have you? What made it so uniquely disturbing was the fusion of old world superstition and modern bureaucracy, ancient fears weaponizing through paperwork and poison. La Fatura and Maloki gave the crimes a spiritual gloss. Forged signatures and insurance ledgers gave them profit. And together they formed a perfect storm of deceit, greed, and manipulation. For the Philadelphia justice system, the investigation was one of the largest in its history, consuming two and a half years from Alphonse's death to the final executions. It exposed not only the vulnerabilities of a struggling immigrant community, but also the moral rot that could thrive amid poverty and fear. When it was finally over, Philadelphia's streets were quieter, its people wary, and its faith shaken. The Patrios were dead, bulber and favado behind bars, and dozens of families haunted by the knowledge that their loved ones had been killed not by fate or illness, but by a business arrangement, a murder for profit scheme disguised as healing.

SPEAKER_00: 38:25

But like you hear about this like now and again, like, oh, you know, could the motive have been, you know, the life insurance? But like basically they finangled people, whether it's through emotional or spiritual blackmail, basically, to for their for them to allow their loved ones to be killed. I don't know. I feel like there's a lot more people that needed to have been held accountable, whether I don't know if you find that fair or not, since they were manipulated. But also, I mean, how do you feel about the death sentence for just two of them and when there were so many people involved? Right.

SPEAKER_02: 39:03

I mean, if we were handed them out, probably more should have got it.

SPEAKER_00: 39:07

Yeah.

SPEAKER_02: 39:07

I mean, how about the doctor who gave illegal abortions and then blackmailed the women?

SPEAKER_00: 39:13

Yeah. I mean, that to me is just so disgusting. And they were already in a fragile and vulnerable state. Already low less than in society's eyes, and terrified and trying to scratch a living together, and and then that's held against them. So yeah, this is really eye-opening. I mean, we think horrible things happen now, but I guess it's been the human condition since Yeah, it just looks a little different now. Time incarnate, which is super depressing. Do you think we're any better off now?

SPEAKER_02: 39:48

See, I would love to say yes, but I feel like in today's culture, society, everything, and with technology, like I feel like these things are just easier to mask and hide.

SPEAKER_00: 40:00

Right? I mean, we yeah, and we still have human trafficking probably more than ever. And yeah, no, uh, that's horrible. Well, but thanks for bringing thank you for bringing that up to our.

SPEAKER_01: 40:13

Oh, you're so welcome.

SPEAKER_02: 40:15

Yeah. And like for the time too, with people very much believing in like the faith healers and the the whole spiritual aspect for that to be used against them as well. And it's like the manipulation by that.

SPEAKER_00: 40:30

Yeah, no, that's the emotional and spiritual manipulation and abuse, really. But also like you turn to your faith, you turn to, you know, in times of desperation when you're struggling, and there's a larger proportion of those who are unfortunate who don't have, you know, and we're scratching out a living. And then, you know, would you steal a loaf of bread to feed your family kind of question?

SPEAKER_01: 40:56

Yeah.

SPEAKER_00: 40:56

You know, when a larger proportion of the population is in that situation, then it invites people that can take advantage of that and promise, you know, an out for nefarious means and and control. And I just I'm just afraid that that pattern keeps repeating itself, you know, when when we have a large portion of a population that are not living comfortably, you know? Mm-hmm.

SPEAKER_02: 41:22

Mm-hmm.

SPEAKER_00: 41:22

Yeah.

SPEAKER_02: 41:23

Yeah, absolutely. And this and like their business model wasn't going to fail either because they either manipulated those when they needed to, or people went to them, you know, like they heard about and were like, I can get this, I need this, yeah.

SPEAKER_00: 41:35

Seeking for they're seeking for hope and for a way out. And yeah, who could blame them? I would too. So yeah. It's just rife. It's just rife for abuse and and they're vulnerable in in some sense. And so uh, I wish I could say, well, oh, thank God that's over, and that's all timing times, but but it it probably just looks different now.

SPEAKER_02: 41:58

Yep, yeah. Unfortunately.

SPEAKER_00: 42:01

Maybe we can use this as a lesson to kind of keep our eyes open to those situations, those possibilities.

SPEAKER_02: 42:08

And remember, guys, if you see something, say something. Always. Yep.

SPEAKER_00: 42:13

Yep.

SPEAKER_02: 42:14

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SPEAKER_01: 43:49

Do it! Halloween! No one wants an afternoon slump. Right? Same. Oof. We got a medical mishap. We do, we do. Do you want to read it?

SPEAKER_02: 44:05

Sure. Shall I? Sure. I feel like the last couple weeks, I just like my I can't read. And then I'm like thinking about how I can't read while I'm reading, which then I feel like it makes me mad.

SPEAKER_00: 44:20

Oh no, you've been doing great. But I'm happy to jump in.

SPEAKER_02: 44:24

Well, so so just to like um a quick sidebar for you guys, if you also felt like I haven't been able to read, like I feel the same way, and I'm so sorry. I don't, I don't know. And like sometimes I get a little like it's not a lisp. I don't know. It's like slush. I don't know, whatever. Basically, if you've been thinking it, I've also been thinking it. So sorry.

SPEAKER_00: 44:44

No, listen, you've been doing great. I don't know what the hell you're talking about. Stop overanalyzing. Okay. Our listeners and myself, we love you. So, hi ladies. I've been loving listening to the pod, as do my co-workers. We work in a GI clinic, and the couple of co-on prep stories have inspired me to share one of ours that we'll never forget. Oh, great. Cheeseburger smoothie guide. I don't know if I can read this. Is this why you wanted me to read this? My gosh. Okay. Um, it was a typical Tuesday in the clinic, meaning phones ringing nonstop with patients double checking colonoscopy instructions and the occasional prep panic calls. Oh my god, I think I was one of those. Like, am I supposed to can I can I drink something? Can I uh I just sat down with my coffee when the phone lit up again. GI Nurse Line, this is Emily. How can I help you today? I said. On the other end was a man scheduled for colonoscopy the next morning. He sounded anxious but oddly proud all at once. Like someone who'd followed every rule to the letter. I just wanted to make sure I did the bowel prep right, he said. You said nothing solid for 24 hours, only liquids? I replied, That's correct, sir. He then said, Okay, perfect. I just wanted to make sure, because I blended my cheeseburger, and it honestly went down smoother than I thought. For a second I thought I misheard him. You blended a cheeseburger? Yep. Bun, patty, pickles, and ketchup, everything. Liquids only, right?

SPEAKER_02: 46:32

Oh my everybody.

SPEAKER_00: 46:35

Dude, I had to take a long pause, crafting my response without including any laughter. So I gently explained, when we say clear liquids, we actually mean things like water, broth, or apple juice. Cheeseburgers, even blended, don't qualify as clear liquid. He groaned. Oh, you mean I did all that for nothing? I'm afraid so, I said. We had to reschedule his procedure, but hey, on the bright side, his dedication was admirable. Luckily he laughed, breaking the tension. Patients are usually not happy when you tell them they need to be rescheduled. He said something like he created the world's worst milkshake. Yeah, sir, yeah, sure did. Yeah, gross. Since then, the cheeseburger smoothie guys become the clinic legend, and some of us have even used this in our bell prep instructions. Now, every time I say clear liquids only, I add no cheeseburgers, even if you blend them. Most people are appalled at the suggestion, but hey, when you read warning labels, it's because someone tried it at least once. Oh my god, isn't that true? Thanks for taking the time to read this if you do. We'll look forward to the next episode, and all of us in the GI Clinic will stay suspicious until then, Emily.

SPEAKER_02: 47:53

Oh, Emily, thank you. Thank you. I want to gag thinking about drinking a cheeseburger the movie.

SPEAKER_00: 48:00

I mean, he's like, I'm gonna follow instructions, but I am not giving up my Big Mac.

SPEAKER_02: 48:05

But he's like, gonna have the burger. Gotta have it.

SPEAKER_00: 48:09

Well, that's his heart. Yeah. Well, thank God he called in because otherwise he would have come and it would have been a disaster on the table. So yeah. Don't envy those uh chai docks.

SPEAKER_02: 48:25

So normally, this is where I would ask Jenna what we can look forward to next week, but have something very exciting to share with you guys, actually. We have a surprise. We have a surprise for you. You're not gonna hear from either of us next week. Like we'll be here. We're gonna be here. Lucky you. But we have a guest on our show. We have a guest, very special guest. Her name is Shannon. Shannon! Shannon! So both of us previously worked with Shannon. She works in the ear, nose, and throat department of life. And I know she she had been interested in being a guest at some point in some capacity. And she had sent me a case idea, and I was like, oh, okay, awesome. I'm gonna do that. And then the more we were talking, she was like, actually, I just want to cover it. And I was like, okay. Go girl. Go girl. So um Shannon's been working hard behind the scenes doing her research and crafting a wonderful episode for us all that we get to hear next week.

SPEAKER_00: 49:34

I can't wait.

SPEAKER_02: 49:36

I am so excited.

SPEAKER_00: 49:38

She's a true crime goddess. I mean, she's the one that got me turned on to my favorite murder years ago. So, I mean, so in part, this never would have happened if we hadn't gotten into true crime, thanks to Shannon. Shannon, see the oldest all to you. Yeah, it's your fault. So that's what's happening next week. But meanwhile, don't miss a beat. Subscribe or follow Doctoring the Truth wherever you enjoy your podcasts for stories that shock, intrigue, and educate. Trust, after all, is a delicate thing. You can text us directly on our website at doctoringthe truth at buzzsprout.com or email us your own story ideas and comments at Doctoringthe Truth at Gmail. If you want to support us, we would truly appreciate it because you know this isn't free to put out, but we don't ask our listeners for money. This is offered for free. So if you like what we do and you want to support us, click on our support us link, either on the website or on any of the episodes wherever you listen. Uh, we truly appreciate you, and you'll get true name shouted out on the show and a chance at picking a future topic. So thank you in advance. And be sure to follow us on Instagram at Doctoring the Truth Podcast and on Facebook at Doctoring the Truth. We're also on TikTok for now. Well, TikTok's still a thing at Doctoring the Truth and ed odd pod. Don't forget to download, rate, and review so we can be sure to bring you more content next week. Until then, stay safe and stay suspicious.

SPEAKER_01: 51:17

That was all special.

SPEAKER_00: 51:19

Good. Bye.

SPEAKER_01: 51:20

Bye. Goodbye. Hey, one, two, three, goodbye.