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Premium Episode #40 - Ben McDaniel (Patreon)

Published:
2025-10-25 08:01:46
Edited:
2026-03-01 17:30:07
Imported:
2026-06
Tags:

Downloads

Content

On Friday, August 20 2010, officers from the Holmes County Sheriff's Department were called to Vortex Spring, a commercially operated dive park just outside the Florida town of Ponce de Leon. A 30-year-old scuba diver from Tennessee by the name of Ben McDaniel had failed to resurface after diving into the narrow cave network under the basin of the spring two nights earlier, and nobody had seen or heard from him since. 

When a recovery mission failed to find any sign of Ben, his loved ones and members of the cave diving community were left in shock. Was Ben stuck in an unexplored part of the cave somewhere, or was something else entirely at play?

Team:

Anonymous Host - narration

Elsha McGill - research, writing

Milly Raso - creative direction

Mike Migas - production, music

Anthony Telfer - audio editing

Files

Comments

Bob Trenwith

Interesting. In 1992, someone I knew from Uni (who had topped the state in his HSC) died in Florida in what sounds like a similar caving incident.

Glardzzz

Miss you guys already ❤️

Jess Harris

Cave diving honestly sounds like my idea of hell. This is such a strange story

Suicide Sauce

Yeah, it always boggles my mind how people find it exciting or fulfilling because unlike regular open water diving or scuba diving, there’s not a whole lot to see inside of a cave or even a whole lot of time to see it in. I get really excited about the prospect of getting into arguments though, so I understand that everybody gets their jollies in different ways

AR

I've googled photos of this particular cave and it's really beautiful down there. and eerie.

AR

as a local, I can't help but chuckle at the pronunciation of "collierville." non-americans always give us the benefit of the doubt but those vowels are always more open than that, especially in the south 😂😅

AR

(still very cool to see you guys do this story though! a total mystery and I'm excited to listen)

MG

Thank you for this excellent season! Looking forward to March!

Sidney Mannheim

Another great season. During the last break, I went back in the archives and listened to the multi-part Silk Road podcast. I highly recommend it!!

Paddy Murphy

Its the greatest episode of any podcast ever.

Paddy Murphy

Jesus I don't think my heart has ever raced as fast listening to an episode of Casefile.

Michelle Kimball

I had a friend who passed cave diving. He was only 24.

Miajane

This was such a great case and really well told. Cave diving sounds like the absolute last thing on earth I would do for fun and everytime I see videos about it my heart races.

Denise de la Vaux

About 4 or 5 years ago I first heard this story via an American true crime podcast called The Prosecutors. I was transfixed and haunted by it. Listened to it again because you guys are excellent and thought I needed a refresher. So what do you guys think happened? I don’t think he was in the cave when they started looking for him. My guess is Eduardo seriously messed up by giving him the key, and leaving him there. He figured out the mistake when finding Daniels’ body. He and others got rid of it. Just a theory I like. Miss you guys already - looking forward to March!

I. Hart

Great case to end the year on, thank you.

RhysHole

So that’s it? So long and good luck?

Kathleen

Did you really miss the first several mins of the last several episodes where Casey has explicitly explained what's going on and when they'll be back? I don't think they could have made it any clearer.

RhysHole

Just trying to make a Simpsons reference here.

Sidney Mannheim

It’s worth a second or even third listen

Emma Lou

Obsessed with this case. Thanks for covering casefile team! It’s been a fantastic year. Have a lovely well deserved break :)

AR

i've always leaned towards the idea that he intentionally left his truck there and wanted people to think that he disappeared in the cave, but probably actually left the scene and died by suicide somewhere else. It seems really clear that he's not in the cave and probably was never in the cave when they started searching, and I think the idea that there was a murder and a cover-up is too much of a stretch. (It seems like it's really not that uncommon for people to try to stage their suicides to look like they're more mysterious than they actually are. I'm thinking about that Sherlock Holmes obsessive who tried to make his suicide look like a locked-room murder, or those people who intentionally travel to faraway places under assumed names to take their own lives. If for whatever reason he left and started over, I hope he's somewhere enjoying the waves and the sea.)

Denise de la Vaux

Thinking about what we found out towards the end of the episode about all the stresses in his life, the failure of his business, end of his marriage, depression, drug use, etc you are probably on the right path. Sometimes my love for true crime makes everything seem more sinister. If he did end his life, maybe he thought I don’t want my family to know…but somehow disappearing seemed like a better option? I don’t know. My Dad died by suicide 30 years ago and we knew why - he had lived with severe chronic pain and alcohol and drug abuse for decades but suicide is still a wildly irrational act - to overcome the strongest will we have - the will to survive. And oddly a lot of people want to just disappear and go do it. So it’s hard to know what was happening with him. Only his girlfriend was around him. Anyway, I too hope wherever he is, he’s at peace. Thanks for your input!

Amela________

Great episode, never heard of this case. Have a good break and also dont work too hard!

Melisa Drucker

I have a small question. It doesn't make sense to me that someone would start a foundation for stroke awareness when their loved one actually died from something else. Can anyone shed light on what could be behind that? Even if you wanted to keep the cause of death secret, having a foundation goes beyond what's necessary to do that.

Melisa Drucker

Thanks for the great episodes. From the writing to the delivery, Casefile is tops.

Ophelia Pike

I don’t recall saying good luck!

Tessa

I feel like I know so much more about scuba diving by listening to casefile over the years than I ever anticipated 😂

RhysHole

I sleep in a racing car, do you?

Brenda Wells

Anybody else find themselves involuntarily holding their breath during this episode? I’m not claustrophobic generally, but…nope. Nope, nope, nope. I’ll stick to snorkeling on the surface, thanks.

Demi V

The amount of work these guys put in, I'm so glad they recognize the need for a break to catch up. I feel like the perfect way to highlight how close some of the episodes come with these recordings is the fact Casefile reached out two weeks ago about how locals pronounce Ponce De Leon. Please take some time during the break to not just catch up, but recharge because this year must have been stressful!

Mia

catch you next year casey!

AR

i'm very sorry for your loss.

Miri Dean

I don’t think I’ve ever been so completely without a hunch as to whether a case was an accident versus suicide versus foul play. Murder seems the least likely to me, but beyond that…?

Suicide Sauce

I was going to chime in with personal experience in that area and then thought, "maybe I don't do that!" lol

Suicide Sauce

Hey y'all, the holidays are coming up and it's a great chance to check up on your loved ones' mental health as well as your own. When you speak to a loved one who may need company, instead of just asking "how's it going?" try asking, "can I bring you a home-cooked meal?" Instead of saying, "you need to talk about your feelings," try saying, "I want to hear about how you feel." Reaching out for help is hard, hard, hard, and it'll be just as true for you as it is for others. You may not think that things are "that bad" for you, but depression doesn't always look like Bella staring at the wall for three months in Twilight. Do you get irritated more often? Are you in more pain than usual? Do you find yourself becoming exhausted doing routine things, or avoiding tasks or people because of how tiring they are? Check in with yourself the same way you would a cherished friend. How long has it been since you've eaten a good meal, taken a walk in the park, had a spa day or a long chat with someone you love? Suicidal thoughts can also be more insidious than sitting down to write a note or making concrete plans to self-harm. They may surface as thoughts like "I don't care what happens to me as long as X is okay" or "My problems are bothering everyone and there's no way to fix them." Again, they don't call me Suicide Sauce because I eat a lot of spicy tacos. I'm holding your hand. And here are a couple of things you can do if you think you're going down a dark tunnel: 1. Homeless Kitten Treatment. Make sure that you are fed, hydrated, clean, and have fresh bedding to lay in. 2. Get the thoughts out of your head by writing them down. For best results, write by hand to slow down your racing thoughts. Seal the papers in an envelope and destroy it (other people reading your private rantings sometimes leads to misunderstandings). 3. Tell someone close to you. If you're not sure where to begin, try "I think I need your help untangling some dark stuff I've been thinking about." Don't worry about whether or not you're "Bothering" them-- I promise you aren't, and they will want to do what they can. 4. If you live in the US and you think that you're in danger of harming yourself or someone else, you can call or text 988 any time of day or night to be put through to someone who can help you. Let them ask you questions if you're not sure what to say. I may just be the resident troll, but all of you are important to me. Experiencing depression and loneliness, especially around a holiday centered on family and joy, is a scary and painful thing and I don't wish it on anyone, least of all people I care about. I am holding your hands and squeezing them tight. I love you all. See you in March :)

Ira Finn

People can do a lot to deal with feelings of guilt and shame

Manuel

“A ship is safe in port, but that’s not what ships are for.” - a quote displayed at my local rock climbing gym. I race cars off-road. It’s very dangerous, so is cave diving. Some people can’t understand why I do it. I’m not into cave diving, but I can see why somebody might be.

Ashley White

Every single one of those points were covered in the episode. I could believe the writers used it we a reference even

Georgie

Holy guacamole. The details of how tiny those passages were made me feel claustrophobic.