Dateline NBC

The Thing About Helen & Olga - Ep. 5: Just a Little Red Paint

February 9, 2026·28 min·4-min readnarrativetrue crime
Podzilla Summary (4 min)
PREMISE
This episode of Dateline examines the chilling case of Helen Golay and Olga Rudder-Schmidt, two elderly women who orchestrated a calculated scheme of insurance fraud and murder for financial gain. The story centers on the 2005 killing of Kenneth McDavid, a homeless man they had culti

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Mentions

Books, people, and resources mentioned in this episode.

People

Helen GolayOlga Rudder-SchmidtKenneth McDavidDennis KilcoyneSam Mayrose

Companies

AAA

Products & Tools

1999 Mercury Sable station wagon

Topics

Cold CasesCriminal JusticeForensicsFraudInvestigative JournalismTrue Crime

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