In a Dateline Podcast, the shocking tale of how two elderly ladies became coldblooded murderers and killed two men who were homeless to steal $5 million in insurance policies was revealed.
Branded as the Black Widow Killers, Helen Golay and Olga Rutterschmidt slayed two homeless men in 1999 and 2005 – in an attempt to collect multi-million-dollar insurance policies on their lives – after pretending to help them get off the streets.
Two elderly ladies who looked like “very nice grandmothers” gained trust from the homeless men by providing a safe place for them to live and helping them to get on their feet again.
The men didn’t know that they secretly had multiple life insurance policies and planned to kill each other for the cash.
In the early 1990s Helen, who was born Texas in 1931 and Olga who was Hungarian in 1933 met in a gym and immediately fell in love.
They became acquainted with Hollywood Presbyterian Church in 1997. This church was known for providing assistance to the homeless.
“They fit the bill for the type of volunteer who may be a good match for our program,” Pastor Charles Zaheda said about Helen and Olga’s volunteering at the free meals program.
“Two grandmothers want to serve food and volunteer, that’s quite normal. That’s what grandmothers do.”
Dateline Podcast, released on November 16th, has a bizarre tale about how two sweet old ladies became coldblooded murderers.
Helen Golay (left), Olga Rutterschmidt, and Kenneth McDavid (right) murdered two homeless men in 1999 and 2005 by running them over with cars.
The two women killed the men in an attempt to collect multi-million-dollar insurance policies on their lives, after pretending to help them get off the streets
The men provided shelter, paid their bills and gave them food. They didn’t know that they secretly had multiple life insurance policies for them.
Podcast was published on November 16, 2021. Keith Morrison exclusively revealed to DailyMail.com how the podcast’s host and co-host worked together on their plans, but they weren’t always able to get along.
“This story of two old ladies is truly amazing. He said that Helen and Olga were an unlikely pair. They were frenemies. This made their exploits and miss-exploits more intriguing.
“They were connected by their mutual interest in fraud and profit. Once they became together, their relationship was unique.
‘They really didn’t like each other but they had specific roles to play and they were frequently carping and kvetching at one another about how the other had performed in those roles. However, each of their roles was vital for the mischief they were engaged in.
According to them, they wanted to be able to assist others who are less fortunate than theirs and so offered homeless men a home. The men would pay their bills and feed them. They could also drive them to other places. It turned out that it was all just a scam.
Keith said, “Los Angeles, like many other cities, has a large homeless population. This is especially true along the west coast, where it’s a bit warmer.
“The idea that women could act as angels for men in need and make them rich in unusual ways was what the women embraced – while still presenting themselves as kind and helpful ladies.
Paul Vados was found dead in his street by police on the 8th of November 1999. He was injured and it appeared that Paul Vados had possibly been run over, perhaps while lying down.
A second man, named Fred Downie, died in November 2000, after he wandered into the street and got hit by a car. He was living at Helen’s home during the time of his death, but this time, it was Helen’s daughter, Kecia, who be-friended him.
She convinced him to move from Massachusetts to California and live with them, and right away, the mother-duo took the title of his house and control of all his financial assets. However, his death was ruled as an accident.
Jimmy Covington later told a third person that Olga and Helen offered him accommodation in exchange for him filling in forms. However, he eventually declined.
“Hi, how is it going?” I’m Olga. Do you need help? Jimmy recalls the moment he first met Olga on the podcast. “I told you, “Well why would that be?”
She said that although you may not look homeless, it is possible to have a bag and a sleeping bag. If you are homeless, I know of an agency that helps homeless men. We are able to help you get money, accommodation and benefits.
“She was professional, honest and competent. While she looked nice, it was also apparent that she was anxious. His accent was rapid and he said that she seemed anxious.
After a brief time, he left their home to go on his own.
On June 22, 2005 Kenneth McDavid 50, who was, according to NBC, a radio DJ, was discovered dead in a alleyway.
The police found that his chest and skull had been crushed, and that grease marks were visible on his clothes. They believe that this was evidence of him being lying down after he was struck by a vehicle. They found traces of alcohol, zolpidem, and hydrocodone in his system.
Mutual of New York (MONY), investigator Ed Webster looked into Kenneth’s policies and noticed inconsistencies immediately after his death.
Paul (pictured) was killed on November 8, 1999. After his death, Helen and Olga claimed they were his fiancé and cousin
Fred Downie (pictured) was a second man who died after being hit by a motor vehicle in November 2000. At the time of his death, he lived at Helen’s residence. His death was declared accidental.
Jimmy Covington (pictured) revealed that in 2001, while he was homeless, Helen and Olga offered him a place to stay in exchange for signing some forms, but he declined
Kenneth (pictured) was killed on June 22, 2005. Ed Webster, an investigator, began to investigate the policies after Kenneth’s death. He immediately saw some inconsistencies.
Most importantly, the beneficiaries – Helen and Olga – were listed as Kenneth’s ‘business partners’ on the claims, yet they told the police that they were his fiancé and cousin.
Ed did some digging and discovered that women had purchased more than 20 policies (on Kenneth as well as Paul). This totaled more than $5,000,000. He was compelled to contact the police to voice his concern.
It was difficult because it required you to see the connections. It has to be more than, “We’re pretty sure we did it.” You have to be able to establish absolute proof. Keith explained that it must be able to support itself in court, and this took quite a while.
“The main reason this story was made public and solved was due to Ed Webster, an insurance investigator.
“He was once a Marine, and after his service he found himself in investigation and he was I believe, the only investigator like him.
He had an old-fashioned and non-technical approach to his investigations. This case was ruined by his thoroughness and dedication to following every lead.
These women took out over 20 policies (on Kenneth and Paul) totaling $5 million.
Keith Morrison, the podcast host, said that what attracted him to this story’s uniqueness was why he created it. He said: ‘It’s one of those stories that just doesn’t happen’
He added: ‘Two sweet little old ladies having a plan like this and carrying it out the way they did, it just doesn’t happen’
Two counts each of first-degree and conspiratorial murder were filed against them on March 18th 2008.
The podcast features Detective Dennis Kilcoyne as one of the investigators on the case. He said, “I wasn’t certain what we had, and I didn’t wish to make too much out of it because there were people who were portrayed in the podcast as two sweet, elderly ladies,”
The investigators began to watch the women and quickly realized that there was another victim.
Although there wasn’t enough evidence yet to indict the two women, police took the girls into custody and charged them with mail fraud.
They searched their homes and found large amounts of hydrocodone and zolpidem, as well as various documents and documents that belonged to them.
The car was then examined by detectives who discovered that Helen called a tow company for the vehicle the night Kenneth died. It had broken down just one block from the spot where Kenneth was found. Later, the car was abandoned close to her home and eventually was impounded.
Even though Kenneth was still alive after his death, the police decided that they would check the car and found Kenneth’s blood.
Helen and Olga were reluctant to talk to Keith, but Keith spoke to their families, detectives involved in the case and an insurance investigator. He made some shocking revelations.
He said that ‘Somethings emerged that I believe nobody knew before the report was published’.
Fred’s grave was one example. He found out that Fred had placed gravestones in Helen’s yard for her and her daughter so they could be right next to him when he dies.
‘[At the time of his death] he was still so taken with these women he had ordered gravestones for one of the women and her daughter to go next to him – these were the people who were responsible for his death,’ Keith shared.
They were each convicted of conspiring to murder Paul and first-degree murder one month later. Helen was the only one to be convicted for Kenneth’s first-degree murder.
They were sentenced to consecutive life terms without the possibility of parole
The talk show host explained that he originally discovered the story two years ago, and right away it drew him in. But as he started to look into it more and more, he realized there was a lot more to uncover under the surface.
‘This is a fascinating tale which I discovered two years back, but there was so much more story there than I was able to tell,’ he revealed.
‘We have a ton of material. When you go over the archives you discover the story wasn’t really told in full and it’s there waiting to be told.
‘I was just taken with [the story], fascinated with the relationship between these two women. And the immoral hoops that they had to jump through to get to the place where they ended up – essentially farming homeless people.
‘How do you persuade yourself that you’re a decent person when you’re engaged in fraud on many different levels and potentially murder as well?’
Despite the shocking nature of their crimes, the talk show host said he was not ‘surprised’ by the case in the end.
‘In this line of work you eventually get to the point where you’re not really surprised by the certain behaviors of some people. It happens way too often,’ he concluded.
‘I was not surprised and I was certainly not impressed by their behavior, it was so evil. But it was so unique. It’s one of those stories that just doesn’t happen. Two sweet little old ladies having a plan like this and carrying it out the way they did, it just doesn’t happen.’
On March 18, 2008, Helen, who was now 77, and Olga, who was now 75, were charged with two counts of first-degree murder and conspiracy to commit first-degree murder.
One month later, they were both found guilty of conspiracy to murder and to first-degree murder of Paul. Only Helen was convicted of first-degree murder of Kenneth.The sentences were consecutive, with no possibility for parole..
All six episodes of The Thing About Helen & Olga are now available; Dateline airs every Friday at 9PM ET