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Pretty Wicked

The Babysitter Ad: The First Craigslist Killer

Oct 14, 2026 · 59 min · 18 segments

Settle in, friends, because today's story starts with something that should have been completely ordinary: responding to a babysitting ad. In October 2007, Katherine Ann Olson met a mom named Amy in…

Settle in, friends, because today's story starts with something that should have been completely ordinary: responding to a babysitting ad. In October 2007, Katherine Ann Olson met a mom named Amy in Savage, Minnesota. Amy needed someone to watch her 5-year-old, and Katherine said yes. She told her roommate Amy seemed a little strange. She went anyway. The next morning, a purse turned up in a park trash can, and a suburban police department started pulling on a thread that led somewhere nobody in Minnesota was ready for. This is the story of who Katherine really was, who was actually behind those emails, and how her case gave the internet a brand new and terrible nickname. 🖤 FOLLOW PRETTY WICKED New episodes every Wednesday. Subscribe so you never miss one. Instagram: @prettywickedthepodcast If you loved this episode, leaving a review means the world and helps other listeners find the show. Pretty Wicked is written, researched, and hosted by Megan Alda. 🖤 SOURCES & FURTHER READING Here is everything used to research this episode. 🔗 WEB SOURCES FindLaw - State v. Anderson, Supreme Court of Minnesota (2010) MPR News - Teen charged in death of Minn. woman who answered Craigslist ad MPR News - Victim in Craigslist murder remembered for warmth, energy MPR News - Indictments made in Craigslist killing MPR News - Craigslist founder helps memorialize murder victim CBS News - Teen Charged In Craigslist Nanny Slaying CBS News - Craigslist Killer Gets Life Without Parole NBC News - Police: Woman inquires about online ad, killed NBC News - Teen charged with killing woman seeking job NBC News - Killer who lured victim with online ad gets life Fox News - 19 year old charged in death of woman answering craigslist ad ABC News - Ad for Online Nanny Lured Woman to Her Death ABC News - Craigslist Killer Lured Victim With Baby Sitter Ad Minnesota Daily - Coverage of Katherine Olson's death and the criminal complaint, October 2007 Arizona Daily Wildcat (U-Wire) - Murder brings Craigslist safety in question Star Tribune - Asperger's diagnosis is rejected in Craigslist trial Star Tribune - Defense: Shy youth's desire for sex led to 'Craigslist' killing The Village Voice - Craig Newmark Speaks at Victim's Memorial in Wake of Craigslist Killings The Village Voice - Craigslist Founder Speaks on Minneapolis "Craigslist Killer" Victim Savage Pacer - Family finds solace 10 years after Craigslist murder Worldwide Faith News (ELCA News Service) - Memorial concert on May 3 to benefit ELCA's St. Olaf scholarship Crime Library - Katherine Ann Olson Lured to Her Death by Internet Classifieds Crime Library - Katherine Ann Olson Lured to Her Death by Internet Classifieds, continued Crime Library - Police Have Strong Evidence That Michael John Anderson Was Katherine Ann Olson's Killer Crime Library - Police Have Strong Evidence, continued Crime Library - The Illicit List: Minnesota Murder, No Mystery Crime Library - The Illicit List: The Death of Katherine Olson Westword - Letters, from the week of May 14, 2009 A&E - Richard Beasley, Philip Markoff and Others: The Many Faces of the Craigslist Killer Wikipedia - Murder of Katherine Ann Olson 📚 BOOKS No books were used to research this episode. 🎬 DOCS CNN - Nancy Grace, broadcast transcript, October 29, 2007 Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Settle in, friends, because today's story starts with something that should have been completely ordinary: responding to a babysitting ad. In October 2007, Katherine Ann Olson met a mom named Amy in…

Spotify Apple Podcasts YouTube Amazon Music Website

Speakers: Megan AldaHost

Top entities: Craigslist×45 Craig Newmark×9 Philip Markoff×10 Minnesota×11 Nancy Grace×18

Show signals: SuitabilitySensitiveBiasNot politicalAudience≈2k followers

The Abandoned Purse1:54 – 3:37

1:54

[gentle music] On a Friday morning in late October 2007 in a suburb just south of Minneapolis, somebody notices a purse that's been thrown away in one of the parks, so they give the police department a call.

2:15

An officer heads over to take a look, and sure enough, there it is, sitting right on top of a garbage bag inside of a trash can.

2:23

In the purse is a driver's license, and it belongs to a 24-year-old woman from Minneapolis named Katherine Anne Olson.

2:32

Now, a purse in a trash can isn't usually the start of anything big.

2:36

Purses get stolen all the time.

2:38

Wallets get picked clean and tossed, and most of the time, the owner's just relieved to get their ID back.

2:45

So the officer figures it's probably a stolen purse that somebody ditched, and the police do the normal polite thing, and they leave a message on Katherine's home phone to let her know that they found it.

2:57

Well, sure enough, later that day, the calls start coming in, but none of them are from Katherine.

3:04

Instead, the calls are from her roommate and her mother.

3:08

The roommate tells them that Katherine left the apartment around 8:00 AM the morning before on Thursday to go to a babysitting job out in Savage.

3:16

It was a job that she'd found online for a mom named Amy, and the two of them had been emailing back and forth about it for a few days.

3:24

And before Katherine headed out the door, she told her roommate something about Amy.

3:30

She said Amy seemed kind of strange, but Katherine went anyway, and she never came back home.

CraigslistCompanyAdvertising company
99%45 mentions
Craig NewmarkPersonAmerican internet entrepreneur and philanthropist
98%9 mentions
Philip MarkoffPerson
97%10 mentions
MinnesotaAdministrative AreaUS state
96%11 mentions
Nancy GracePerson
94%18 mentions
Evangelical Lutheran Church in AmericaCompanyChurch
93%4 mentions
Asperger syndromeEntityCondition
92%4 mentions
MinneapolisCityCity in Minnesota
90%6 mentions
SavageCityCity in Minnesota
89%4 mentions
SpanishLanguageSpoken language
88%6 mentions
NBC NewsCompanyTelevision broadcaster
87%7 mentions
CBS NewsCompanyTelevision broadcaster
85%2 mentions
ABC NewsCompanyTelevision network
84%3 mentions
TechnologyEntity
83%1 mention
MurderEntity
81%3 mentions
Murder of Katherine Ann OlsonEvent
80%6 mentions
Minnesota Supreme CourtOrganizationCourt
79%4 mentions
Fox NewsOrganizationTelevision channel
78%1 mention
Cottage GroveCityCity in Minnesota
76%6 mentions
Crime LibraryWebsiteWebsite
75%5 mentions
Village Voice MediaCompanyMedia company
74%2 mentions
The Minnesota Star TribunePeriodicalAmerican newspaper
72%2 mentions
BiggleswadeCityTown in England
71%3 mentions
InstagramSoftware ApplicationSocial networking service
70%1 mention
Minnesota State PatrolGovernment OrganizationState agency
69%1 mention
EgyptCountryCountry
67%1 mention
St. Olaf CollegeCollege or UniversityLiberal arts college in Northfield, Minnesota
66%3 mentions
EnglishEntitySpoken language
65%3 mentions
BedfordshireAdministrative AreaArea in England
63%2 mentions
HispanicEntityPeople
62%3 mentions
FindLawCompanyCompany
61%1 mention
Arizona Daily WildcatPeriodicalNewspaper
60%1 mention
WestwordPeriodicalNews publication
58%2 mentions
Richard BeasleyPerson
57%1 mention
WikipediaSoftware ApplicationSoftware
56%1 mention
CNNCompanyCompany
54%1 mention
AOLCompanyOnline service provider company
53%4 mentions
GodEntitySupreme being
52%2 mentions
John ListPerson
51%1 mention
SpockEntityFictional character
49%4 mentions
Southern United StatesPlaceRegion in the United States of America
48%1 mention
BostonCityCity in Massachusetts
47%2 mentions
United KingdomCountryCountry in Europe
46%2 mentions
Park High SchoolHigh SchoolHigh school in Cottage Grove, Minnesota
44%1 mention
Bell WitchEvent
42%1 mention
Waverly Hills SanatoriumHospitalSanatorium in Louisville, Kentucky
42%1 mention
MassachusettsAdministrative AreaUS state
40%1 mention
AustriaCountryCountry in Europe
38%1 mention
ViennaLandmarkCapital of Austria
38%1 mention
Prince Albert of Saxe-Coburg and GothaPersonFormer Prince consort
36%1 mention

Online ClassifiedsTechnology > Internet
Crime VictimsBiography > People
Katherine Olson MurderCrime > Homicide > Murder Investigation
2007 Savage Craigslist Babysitting MurderCrime > Homicide > Murder Investigation > Katherine Olson Murder
Michael Anderson Trial and AppealLaw > Criminal Law > Murder Prosecution
Craigslist Safety and AbuseTechnology > Internet > Online Classifieds
Katherine Anne OlsonBiography > People > Crime Victims
Victim Biography and Pre-Murder Life in MinnesotaBiography > People > Crime Victims > Katherine Anne Olson
Murder Victim MemorializationFamily > Bereavement
Olson Family Grief and ForgivenessFamily > Bereavement > Murder Victim Memorialization
PeopleBiography
Murder InvestigationCrime > Homicide
BereavementFamily
Murder ProsecutionLaw > Criminal Law
Law
Criminal LawLaw
Technology
Biography
Crime
Family
InternetTechnology
HomicideCrime

The Abandoned Purse1:54 – 3:37

1:54

[gentle music] On a Friday morning in late October 2007 in a suburb just south of Minneapolis, somebody notices a purse that's been thrown away in one of the parks, so they give the police department a call.

2:15

An officer heads over to take a look, and sure enough, there it is, sitting right on top of a garbage bag inside of a trash can.

2:23

In the purse is a driver's license, and it belongs to a 24-year-old woman from Minneapolis named Katherine Anne Olson.

2:32

Now, a purse in a trash can isn't usually the start of anything big.

2:36

Purses get stolen all the time.

2:38

Wallets get picked clean and tossed, and most of the time, the owner's just relieved to get their ID back.

2:45

So the officer figures it's probably a stolen purse that somebody ditched, and the police do the normal polite thing, and they leave a message on Katherine's home phone to let her know that they found it.

2:57

Well, sure enough, later that day, the calls start coming in, but none of them are from Katherine.

3:04

Instead, the calls are from her roommate and her mother.

3:08

The roommate tells them that Katherine left the apartment around 8:00 AM the morning before on Thursday to go to a babysitting job out in Savage.

3:16

It was a job that she'd found online for a mom named Amy, and the two of them had been emailing back and forth about it for a few days.

3:24

And before Katherine headed out the door, she told her roommate something about Amy.

3:30

She said Amy seemed kind of strange, but Katherine went anyway, and she never came back home.

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