Open Investigation
A Project Productions Podcast
A True Crime Podcast
Based On The Emmy Award Winning
HBO Documentary
Have You Seen Andy?
The personal story of a childhood friendship abruptly ended by the tragic abduction of a young boy. On a hot summer day in August 1976, ten-year-old Andy Puglisi was playing along with dozens of other children at the Higgins Memorial Pool in Lawrence, Massachusetts. Then, he disappeared.
Read moreOPEN INVESTIGATION® is a true-crime, investigative podcast series based on the HBO Emmy-winning documentary Have You Seen Andy?. It follows host, Melanie Perkins McLaughlin’s search for answers about her childhood friend, Andy Puglisi, who vanished in 1976. The podcast uncovers dozens of other unsolved child abduction cases, revealing connections to clergy abuse and organized human trafficking in the 1970s. Through interviews, archival material, and police reports, it explores the ongoing challenges of missing and murdered children’s cases revealing systemic abuse across systems.
"Have You Seen Andy?"
is riveting.
Melanie Perkins McLaughlin, Ed.M. has more than 25 years of experience in storytelling and documentary filmmaking. She began her career with PBS and has worked as a consultant with ABC, Producer with the BBC, Senior Producer on projects for the Discovery and History Channels, writer/director/narrator for HBO, NPR and others. Melanie works with a team of accomplished editors, sound designers, composers and graphic artists.
For more information about the podcast, send Melanie a email.
In this powerful season finale, host Melanie Perkins McLaughlin takes listeners through an emotional journey, recounting her own experiences as a child advocate and revealing how survivors transform their trauma into a force for change. We hear directly from survivor and advocate Billy Giblin, whose story of resilience and advocacy sheds light on the lasting … Test For Season Two
Read more In this powerful season finale, host Melanie Perkins McLaughlin takes listeners through an emotional journey, recounting her own experiences as a child advocate and revealing how survivors transform their trauma into a force for change. We hear directly from survivor and advocate Billy Giblin, whose story of resilience and advocacy sheds light on the lasting impact of abuse and the urgent need for legislative reform. Joined by attorney and policy expert Kathryn Robb, and Massachusetts State Senator Joan Lovely, we discuss the systemic issues that survivors face and the critical role of advocacy in healing and justice. Bob Hoatson from Road to Recovery shares resource and support.
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In this episode of Open Investigation, host Melanie Perkins McLaughlin continues the journey into the chilling connections between child disappearances, abuse, and organized crime networks. Episode 7, “Connections,” unearths disturbing details surrounding the missing and murdered children of the 1970s, focusing on how individuals within criminal circles, including pedophiles and traffickers, formed complex networks to perpetuate child exploitation.
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In this powerful episode of Open Investigation, host Melanie McLaughlin dives deep into the effects of trauma, memory, and survival. The episode covers stories of child survivors of clergy abuse and other forms of childhood trauma, exploring the way memories resurface and the mechanisms the mind employs to cope. Melanie shares her own journey and how her search for answers in the disappearance of her friend, Andy Puglisi, led her into the dark underworld of organized child trafficking and abuse networks.
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In this intense episode, host Melanie McLaughlin delves into the disturbing reality of child exploitation networks, clergy abuse, and the failures of the systems meant to protect the innocent. Melanie explores the case of her childhood friend, Andy Puglisi, and how his disappearance in 1976 intersects with a network of child trafficking. As more survivors come forward, connections among clergy abuse cases in Massachusetts reveal chilling patterns of organized abuse and cover-ups.
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In Episode 4 of Open Investigation, host Melanie McLaughlin delves deeper into her investigation of the 1970s child trafficking rings, focusing on her childhood friend Andy Puglisi’s disappearance and the broader child exploitation network that flourished in Massachusetts. She highlights the formation of the North American Man/Boy Love Association (NAMBLA) and reveals how pedophile networks operated openly, facilitated by societal complacency. McLaughlin outlines the connections between prominent figures in business, religion, and community organizations who shielded their crimes, linking these networks to national child prostitution and pornography rings.
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What if the institutions you trust to protect the vulnerable were instead their worst predators? Join us on a harrowing journey through the Boston Sex Scandal of the 1970s, where systemic failures and nefarious networks allowed the exploitation and trafficking of children to flourish. We’ll uncover the tragic story of Dick Bavley a social worker who betrayed his duty to protect, and explore John Mitzel’s pro-pedophile book, “The Boston Sex Scandal,” which reveals how the man/boy love movement attempted to attach itself to the legitimate gay rights movement.
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Tips come pouring in as a result of the release of the documentary viewed by an estimated 35 million people. We identify an additional 27* unsolved cases of missing and murdered children in MA from the 1970s. Many of the facts of these unresolved cases have been lost over time during an analog era. Melanie begins building a digital database comparing unsolved cases involving missing and murdered children in MA. What she discovers is harrowing.
Read moreDo you like what you've heard? If so, become a Patreon exclusive supporter (get original content, access to full length interviews, access to documents related to cases, and have conversations directly with Melanie).
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