The Darker Side of Life Podcast

The Kidnapping of Barbara Mackle

Kristen & Dana Episode 100

In 1968, college student Barbara Mackle was kidnapped from an Atlanta hotel when two armed individuals came into her room, tied her up, drugged her and forced her into a car. The kidnappers intended to get a ransom - $500,000 - from her wealthy family, but they also imposed a strict set of rules regarding the ransom drop and how they would find Barbara afterward.  However, a carefully planned kidnapping soon turned terrifying after the ransom money drop was bungled, leaving the kidnappers anxious, police frustrated and Barbara's parents worried beyond belief. Barbara herself however, was in the most precocious position of all - she had been hidden away in an underground capsule, buried alive.