Utterly interesting

Elmer Wayne Henley Jr. was only 17 when he shot Dean Corll, ending the Houston Mass Murders. But for two years, Henley had been Corll’s accomplice, luring boys to their deaths, even killing some himself. His story is one of abuse, manipulation, and murder.

Nicolae Minovici was the Romanian doctor who risked his own life by hanging himself to study death. But beyond his daring experiments, he also founded Romania’s first ambulance service and a folk art museum that still stands today.

In 1897, The Champion Text Book on Embalming blended science, ritual, and business. Its haunting photographs, echoing Old Master anatomy scenes, documented how embalmers removed fluids, battled disease, and shaped the modern funeral industry.

In 1980, Alain Mingam photographed the execution of a man accused of betraying Afghans to the Soviets. His haunting image symbolises the Soviet-Afghan War — a conflict that reshaped the Cold War and left the photographer questioning his own role as a witness.

In 1992, a remote cabin in Idaho became the centre of a bloody 11-day siege. The Ruby Ridge standoff left three dead, sparked congressional hearings, and inspired the militia movement that shaped America in the 1990s.