Crime - Atlas Obscura
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Crime

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Don't be fooled by the outer grandeur.
Joliet, Illinois

Joliet Correctional Center

A historic and oft-filmed prison stands in a Chicago suburb.
41.5469, -88.0743
Added by TravelGal
Barker-Karpis House.
Saint Paul, Minnesota

Barker-Karpis Hideout House

Where the notorious gang lived while on the run from the FBI.
44.9153, -93.0811
Added by typosinkeye
How Many Liquor Bottles Can You Find in This 1931 Map of Chicago?
story
prohibition

How Many Liquor Bottles Can You Find in This 1931 Map of Chicago?

The "Gangland Map" features drunken fish and goofy jokes alongside descriptions of brutal murders.
June 04, 2018
Found: A Pickpocket's Coin, Used for Ill-Gotten Gains
story
theft

Found: A Pickpocket's Coin, Used for Ill-Gotten Gains

In 18th-century Russia, a two-kopeck coin could be worth much more than face value.
May 18, 2018
The Brazen Heist of a Human Heart in a Solid Gold Casket
story
theft

The Brazen Heist of a Human Heart in a Solid Gold Casket

Stolen from a French museum, the artifact was recovered by police a week later.
April 26, 2018
How a Gang of Thirsty Thieves Stole Over $500,000 Worth of Wine
Gastro Obscura
story
food heists

How a Gang of Thirsty Thieves Stole Over $500,000 Worth of Wine

Two people have been sentenced for participating in several California heists.
April 16, 2018
Charles Manson's Guitar Is a Symbol of Music and Murder
story
serial killer

Charles Manson's Guitar Is a Symbol of Music and Murder

One of the infamous killer's instruments is on display in Tennessee.
April 05, 2018
The Halifax gibbet
Halifax, England

The Halifax Gibbet

A copy of the brutal decapitation device that predated the French Guillotine by about 200 years.
53.7238, -1.8673
Added by Dr Alan P Newman
Facade.
New Orleans, Louisiana

United Fruit Company Building

The beautiful, fruit-covered facade hints at this building's former life.
29.9510, -90.0706
Added by amorgan2
Anthropomorphic fetish simulated by a manta ray fish.
Madrid, Spain

Reverte Coma Forensic Museum

The morbid items in this small and hidden museum are not for the weak stomached.
40.4432, -3.7236
Added by Luis Morato
Long rows of boxes line the halls.
Martinsburg, West Virginia

National Tracing Center

Endless rows of boxes of paper records line the hallways of the archaic federal facility where guns are traced.
39.4178, -77.9163
Added by lewblank
Detective Bar Progress.
Tokyo, Japan

Detective Bar Progress

The bartenders at this crime-fighting theme cafe are actual private detectives by day.
35.7334, 139.7112
Added by Hermit09
Watch a Thief Steal a $1.3 Million Bottle of Vodka
Gastro Obscura
story
culinary crimes

Watch a Thief Steal a $1.3 Million Bottle of Vodka

Cameras caught the burglar snatching the diamond-and-gold decorated liquor.
January 04, 2018
Butch Cassidy's cabin in the Chubut Province of Argentina
Cushamen, Argentina

Butch Cassidy's Cabin

With the Wild Bunch hunted almost to extinction and the law closing in on him, Butch Cassidy fled to this remote cabin in Argentina.
-42.4396, -71.4257
Added by Tony Dunnell
Quito, Ecuador

Garcia Moreno Prison Museum

An abandoned Ecuadorian prison that once held ex-presidents and notorious con artists is frozen in time as a museum.
-0.2175, -78.5208
Added by mnkitson
If You Had to Have a Scandal in 2017, Why Not Make It a Charming One?
story
scandal

If You Had to Have a Scandal in 2017, Why Not Make It a Charming One?

The highlights of the lowlights.
December 19, 2017
New Jersey’s ‘Sopranos’ Strip Club to Be Shuttered for Alleged Mob Activity
Gastro Obscura
story
new jersey

New Jersey’s ‘Sopranos’ Strip Club to Be Shuttered for Alleged Mob Activity

This is what happens when you try to keep business in the family.
December 12, 2017
How a Victim’s Last Meal Can Identify a Killer
Gastro Obscura
story
crime

How a Victim’s Last Meal Can Identify a Killer

To solve crimes, two botanists identify half-digested potatoes, tomatoes, and lettuce under a microscope.
December 12, 2017