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At times, what appears to be a harmless or simple image hides a much darker, more unsettling reality. A cheerful picture of an everyday family may conceal some of the darkest moments in history. Below, we’ve compiled ten seemingly innocent photos that, when you uncover their backstories, reveal tragic and chilling tales.
10. Omagh Bombing, 1998
A man beams for the camera while wearing a bright yellow sweater, his equally happy son perched on his shoulders. The duo are thrilled Spanish tourists visiting Omagh, a town in Northern Ireland.
They are seen posing casually in front of an unremarkable red car on a bustling street. It is 1998, and little do they know, the car holds around 500 pounds (226 kilograms) of fertilizer-based explosives that will explode shortly after this photo is taken. The attack was carried out by the Real Irish Republican Army (Real IRA), a breakaway faction from the IRA that opposed the ceasefire agreement signed earlier that year.
The blast claimed the lives of 29 people, injured 220 others, and ignited widespread outrage both in the UK and internationally. Remarkably, the two individuals in the picture survived the blast, though the photographer tragically lost his life.
9. David A. Johnston
With his legs stretched out, a notebook and pen resting on his lap, David A. Johnston flashes a bright smile at the camera, taken by Harry Glicken, a student of his. Calm and eager, Johnston is a volcanologist studying the rumblings of Mount St. Helens.
Thirteen and a half hours later, Johnston would meet his fate during the eruption of Mount St. Helens. His final words, broadcast over the radio to the nearest U.S. Geological Survey office, were: 'Vancouver, Vancouver, this is it!'
His body was never recovered. Glicken, who was scheduled to be on duty observing the volcano that day, swapped shifts with Johnston at the last moment because he had an interview. Upon learning of the eruption and Johnston’s death, Glicken was devastated. He joined helicopter crews, searching for survivors until they were forced to stop. In an eerie twist, Glicken himself would later perish in a separate volcanic eruption in Japan.
8. Black Bear in the Woods
The image depicts a 300-pound black bear in the woods, about 100 feet (30 meters) away, hidden behind a fallen log. The bear seems to be stalking the photographer.
The photo was taken by Darsh Patel, a 22-year-old Rutgers University student, using his phone. He had gone hiking in West Milford’s Apshawa Preserve with four of his friends. Sadly, the bear began chasing the group, prompting them to scatter. When they reconvened, one person was missing: Darsh Patel.
Four hours after the authorities arrived, Patel's body was found. He had been attacked by the bear he had snapped a picture of just moments earlier. His phone was also retrieved, marked with puncture wounds, along with the eerie photo.
7. Tyler Hadley
The image is blurry, as though the photographer moved the camera while taking it. It shows two men, one with a shaved head, holding an orange cup towards the camera. It could easily be mistaken for a typical house party photo. However, the man holding the cup is Tyler Hadley, who, earlier that day, had murdered his parents, Blake and Mary-Jo Hadley, with a claw hammer while under the influence of ecstasy.
Their lifeless bodies, wrapped in towels and surrounded by family belongings that reminded Tyler of his parents, lay upstairs while the party continued downstairs.
At the party, Tyler began to confess his horrific act to those around him. Some guests left or dismissed his words as lies. His best friend, Michael Mandell, was led upstairs to view the bodies. Later, they took this now-infamous photo together. Michael eventually fled the scene, and through rumors, Tyler’s crime was reported to the authorities. Tyler was arrested the following morning and sentenced to life in prison. The Hadley residence was later torn down.
6. Dutch Girls of Panama
Two young women smile for a selfie against the stunning backdrop of Panama’s wilderness. The women are Kris Kremers and Lisanne Froon, Dutch travelers hiking the El Pianista trail. They began their hike at 11 am on April 1st. Unfortunately, by the 2nd, they missed an appointment, and their parents stopped receiving the daily texts they had grown accustomed to.
On April 6, the girls' parents arrived in Panama, accompanied by a full-scale police search. The forest was thoroughly combed for ten days, but no trace was found.
Ten weeks later, a woman turned in a blue backpack. It belonged to Froon, and inside were personal items, including a camera and their phones. The phones showed that emergency calls were made shortly after the girls began their hike, but due to poor reception, none of the calls went through. Froon’s phone died on April 4, while Kremers’s phone was intermittently turned on between the 5th and 11th, though incorrect or no PIN was entered each time.
On the camera, ninety flash photos were taken between 1 and 4 am in complete darkness deep in the jungle. One disturbing image shows the back of Kremers’s head, with blood on her hair.
Two months after the backpack was found, a pelvis and a foot inside a boot were discovered, along with other remains. DNA tests later confirmed these remains belonged to Kris Kremers and Lisanne Froon. The circumstances surrounding their deaths remain unsolved to this day.
5. The Red-Haired Woman
The photo shows a man bouldering along Montecito’s Cold Spring Trail in California. Behind him, a flash of red is visible on the rocks — the hair of Saylor Guilliams. Guilliams had gone for a late afternoon hike with her friend, Brenden Michael Vega. Ill-prepared, their phones offered little light as it grew darker, leading to a fall.
Vega injured his arm, while Guilliams suffered broken ankles and a wrist. Vega went to find help but tragically fell 20 to 30 feet (6 to 9 meters) off a ledge and died from his injuries. Guilliams was left alone, lying there throughout the night. The next day, some men bouldering discovered her unresponsive on the rocks. They called for help, and she was airlifted out, surviving the ordeal.
4. Daylenn “Moke” Pua
Daylenn Pua visited his grandmother in Waianae, Oahu, Hawaii, where he expressed interest in hiking the Haiku Stairs, also known as the 'Stairway to Heaven.' This hike was closed to the public, and hikers were considered trespassers. Despite his grandmother’s warnings that he would be arrested, on February 27, 2015, Daylenn caught a bus and headed for the hike. He sent texts and photos to his grandmother during the hike, but he was never seen again.
After his disappearance, the photos were examined, and one revealed a man in the distant background, seemingly following Daylenn. The family appealed to the public for help in identifying the man, but neither he nor Daylenn’s remains have ever been found. The circumstances of Daylenn’s disappearance, as well as the identity of the man in the photo, remain unsolved.
3. The Dating Game
The image shows a man and a woman standing side by side. It is a still from the popular 1970s TV show The Dating Game.
The woman in the photo is Cheryl Bradshaw, and the man beside her is Rodney James Alcala. At the time of his appearance on the show, Alcala was in the midst of a brutal murder spree. Between 1977 and 1979, he murdered five victims, torturing them by strangling them to the point of unconsciousness, allowing them to revive, and then repeating the cycle before ultimately killing them. Described as a 'killing machine,' Alcala’s exact murder count remains unknown, but he was eventually convicted for seven murders.
Rodney Alcala appeared on The Dating Game claiming to be a 'successful photographer who got his start when his father found him in the darkroom at the age of 13, fully developed.' He also mentioned his hobbies, such as skydiving and motorcycling. He won a date with bachelorette Cheryl Bradshaw, but she rejected him, calling him creepy. Alcala would go on to murder three more women after this appearance, and some suggest that the rejection might have fueled his violent actions.
2. Tina Watson
Two divers are captured in a photo while scuba diving off the picturesque Queensland Coast. Behind them, a stiff, prone figure lies on the ocean floor. This figure would later be identified as Tina Watson, who was murdered by her husband.
Tina Watson was on her honeymoon in Queensland with her husband, Gabe. On the day of her tragic death, the couple chose to dive at the notorious wreck of the SS Yongala. Both Tina and Gabe were inexperienced divers, and the dive company recommended a guided expedition, which they declined. This decision would prove fateful.
During the dive, Tina encountered difficulties and sank nearly 100 feet (30 meters) to the ocean floor. Gabe later claimed that he attempted to rescue her but could not dive deep enough due to an ear issue. When Tina was retrieved, she was pronounced dead after 40 minutes of unsuccessful CPR. Suspicion arose due to inconsistencies in Gabe’s statements and the fact that he had previously asked Tina to increase her life insurance policy and name him as the sole beneficiary. Gabe was charged with manslaughter in Queensland, but those charges were later dropped when he was charged in the U.S. for allegedly orchestrating the murder.
1. Jolee Callan
In an oversized red shirt, 18-year-old Jolee Callan stands atop a steep cliff at Pinhoti Trail in Cheaha State Park, Delta, Alabama, capturing a breathtaking photo of the scenery below.
After hiking to a picturesque spot with her ex-boyfriend, Loren Bunner (20), Jolee Callan posed for a photo. Moments later, Loren shot her twice in the head with a .22-caliber Ruger Bearcat revolver and discarded her body over the edge of a cliff.
Loren later contacted the authorities, confessing to the murder of his ex-girlfriend and turning himself in. The couple had been together for ten months before Jolee ended the relationship due to Loren's controlling nature, which included forbidding her from meeting her friends. Despite the breakup, they remained in frequent communication and even shared custody of a dog.
Two months after their breakup, Loren invited Jolee on a hike, where he ultimately killed her. Loren Bunner was sentenced to 52 years in prison for the crime.
