A massive plan so profound it takes years to unfold. And a brilliant mind driven to the absolute edge. 1980: Salt Lake City, Utah: home of the Mormon Church setting for a discovery that sends shockwaves throughout America. Mark Hofmann, a first year medical student, has purchased an old Bible; stuck between its pages is a mysterious document … a long lost Anthon transcript … ‘One of the great historical finds of Mormon history.’ Masterminds s1e1: The Anthon Forgeries, History 2011
Hofmann sells his amazing find to the Mormon church for $20,000. ibid.
Six months later Hofmann makes another incredible find: he unearths three Joseph Smith letters that he sells for $95,000. ibid.
Including documents of national importance. ibid.
He has created over 600 extraordinary forgeries. ibid.
He creates the ‘Salamander Letter’: the first of a series of controversial documents that threatens the very foundation of the Mormon faith. ibid.
Hofmann targets [Steven] Christensen because he was about to expose Hofmann’s financial dealings. ibid.
The calm of Salt Lake City Utah was rocked today by two booby-trap bombs that left two people dead … Murder Among the Mormons I, newscaster, Netflix 2021
A morning that brought fear and death. The first explosion ripped through a downtown office building, killing one man. The second explosion outside a holiday home claimed another life … ibid.
There was dark talk involving religious documents, hired professional killers … ibid.
The bombing’s impact has drawn the Church into an uncomfortable spotlight. ibid.
Salt Lake City 1980: At that time I was introduced to Mark Hofmann. And I was very excited to meet Mark. He was in the Mormon document world, he was a rock star. ibid. Shannon Flynn, rare document dealer
The Anthon Transcript discovery was widely publicized and brought Mark Hofmann into contact with top leaders in the Mormon Church. ibid. reporter
I’d never seen anybody come up with the material that Mark was coming up with. ibid. Brent Ashworth, historical document collector
He takes out from his briefcase the Salamander letter. ibid. Flynn
It just changed everything. Instead of God and angels, now it’s salamanders and magic. ibid. Sandra Tannner
The McLellin Collection was potentially devastating. ibid. Flynn
Last year Hofmann sold a document known as the White Salamander letter to the men who were the apparent targets of the first attack. Murder Among the Mormons II
For more than three hours officers sifted through boxes and collected evidence they hope to use in their case against Hofmann. ibid. news
The FBI has reportedly concluded there is no reason to believe the Salamander letter is a phony. ibid.
Every single document that Hofmann had handled had that cracked ink. ibid. document verification dude
It’s the biggest forgery case to ever occur. Period. Murder Among the Mormons III, observer
After Mark’s confessions, the Parole Board decides he will serve his entire life in prison. ibid. caption
HOLLOWAY, NATALIE murder: The Disappearance of Natalee Holloway TV -
March 25 2017: Private investigator T J Ward questions John Ludwick. Ludwick claims to have new information about the details of Natalee’s remains. This information could finally prove the answers to questions the Holloway family has been asking for over twelve years. If confirmed, this could lead to a conviction and justice for Natalee. The Disappearance of Natalee Holloway I: New Lead, CI 2020
Within days the island [of Aruba] was overrun with cameras and media. The Disappearance of Natalee Holloway II: The Sting I
These three suspects: they couldn’t get their story straight. ibid.
Why would you wait eighteen days to arrest your primary suspects? ibid. father heads to Aruba
February 2017: Day 1 the Sting Operation: ‘I could take you to where I got the remains.’ ibid. bugging of hotel room
It’s probably only a ten-minute walk from my aunt’s house. The Disappearance of Natalee Holloway III: The Sting II, John alleges payment by Paul van der Sloot, father of Joran, to dig up remains
Two days later TJ’s team meets in Atlanta to plan Aruba trip. ibid. caption
March 13 2017: Investigative team arrives in Aruba: ‘We can’t give up; we need to get justice for Dave and his family.’ The Disappearance of Natalee Holloway IV: Aruba, TJ
Around John’s aunt’s house, we think we might be in the right area, but without John and Gabriel being here, it might be hard to find the exact location to locate the DNA. ibid. Skype call to Dave
Gabe agrees to come to Aruba. ibid.
Can a cadaver dog pick up a human scent at that location? … We may have to search the surrounding areas as well. The Disappearance of Natalee Holloway V: The Burial Site, searcher
We’re handing off more [evidence] than they [rozzers] need to bring John in for questioning. ibid. TJ
I’m not going to stop until we finally get justice for Natalee. ibid. dad Dave
Dave and the team had a three hour meeting with the Aruban authorities. They handed over all the evidence they’ve [sic] gathered over the past 18 months. ibid. caption
The Commissioner of Police is out here as well. ibid. TJ in situ
He was locked up in a horrible prison: that gave us some closure. He was sentenced to twenty-eight years, so it’s been seven now … ibid.
Upon returning from Aruba, Gabriel kicked John out of his house. He told John that he was going to turn him over to the authorities. John agreed to go to the FBI, hoping that his cooperation would lessen criminal charges against him. ibid. captions
‘The idea was to crush everything to the point where it’s not recognisable as human bones and skull.’ The Disappearance of Natalee Holloway VI: The Bones, John’s confession
The next day John took Gabriel to the pet cemetery where John claims he and Joran buried Natalee’s remains. Gabriel documented the visit on his phone. Gabriel and John were unable to locate the alleged gravesite. The Aruban police claimed to have surveilled them at this location. ibid. captions