The Teslin Lake Incident

NORTHWESTERN BRITISH COLUMBIA, CANADA

Above: Constable Michael Joseph Buday and his dog Trooper

Michael Oros aka Sheslay Free Mike: Police Mugshot

“Sheslay Free Mike” terrorized the north for more than a decade.
His real name was Michael Oros, and he's been remembered as a legend of the north, the other “mad trapper”, a folk hero… and a cold-blooded killer.
But there's much more to this story than meets the eye...

This two-part series takes a look back at a well-known, historic case that was sensationalized through headlines, to show that behind it was a real, human story.

Special thanks to Garry Rodgers, Bob Buday, and Ed Hill.

Additional Content Warning:
This series includes brief mentions of the death of an animal.

Monthly Donation:
Canadian True Crime has donated to the Canadian Resource Centre for Victims of Crime

Credits:
Voice of Michael Oros: Craig Baird of Canadian History EHX podcast
General script consultant: Carol Weinberg
Audio editor and voice of disclaimer: Erik Krosby
Senior Producer: Lindsay Eldridge
Researcher, Writer, Narrator and Sound Design: Kristi Lee
Theme songs: We Talk of Dreams
All other music by Epidemic Sound and Blue Dot Sessions

Sources

Constable Michael Buday Memorial Park: 

• https://www.facebook.com/constablemichaelbuday/ 

• https://www.terracestandard.com/news/terrace-park-to-be-named-after-murdered-rcmp-officer-6013922

The Painting:

• https://royhenryvickers.com/

• https://edhillart.com/artist-bio/ 

• https://visionquestsociety.org/introduction/

• https://visionquestsociety.org/how-visionquest-began/

News Archives:

Collection of articles on the case by The Whitehorse Star, mainly retrieved from newspapers.com. Notably:

• Sheslay Free Mike suspected all, By PHILIP ADAMS Staff Reporter, The Whitehorse Star, March 20 1985

• Homicide. Jury confirms crazy Mike theory, By Becky Striegler, The Whitehorse Star on August 15, 1986

• Charting the killing of Sheslay Free Mike by Sam Holloway, The Whitehorse STAR, August 2 2019. Originally published in the Yukoner Magazine in October 1996

• Cabin was looted, no byline, The Whitehorse Star, March 22, 1984

• Policeman ambushed; shot in back by Massey Padgham, The Whitehorse Star, March 22, 1984

• RCMP Dog Handler, suspect die in shoot-out, no byline, The Whitehorse Star, March 20 1985

• Homicide, Jury says: Confirms Crazy Mike theory by Becky Striegler, The Whitehorse Star, August 15 1986

• Diary of a Mad Trapper by Chris Rose, The Vancouver Sun, Wednesday June 26, 1985

• RCMP-felled trapper had shot friend, jury finds by Becky Streiger special to The Vancouver Sun, August 16 1986

• Mad trapper roamed bush like animal by Larry Pynn, The Vancouver Sun, November 24 1993

• Extend mental care, jury says, no byline, The Whitehorse Star, June 28 1985

• Yukon team to get gear by Becky Streigler, The Whitehorse Star, June 28 1985

• Bullet hole clue to trapper’s fate by Becky Streigler, The Whitehorse Star, August 14 1986

Books:

• Descent into Madness: The Diary of a Killer by Vernon Frolick, 1993

• No Witnesses to Nothing by Garry Rodgers, 2013

• Shamans and Kushtakas: North Coast Tales of the Supernatural, book by Mary Giraudo Beck, 1991

Other sources:

• https://www2.gov.bc.ca/gov/content/governments/local-governments/improvement-districts-governance-bodies/stikine 

• https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Stikine_Region 

• https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Tahltan_Nation

• Wyoming ranch for troubled teens closes following abuse allegations, NBC News 2022

• Margaret Oros obituary 

• Constable Michael Joseph Buday

• Constable Michael Buday Memorial - RCMP Graves

• https://www.outdoorlife.com/survival/sheslay-free-mike-story/

• Tlingit Spirituality and Shamanism in the 21st Century, presentation by Dr. Rosita Worl

• https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Philosophy_and_religion_of_the_Tlingit

• https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Kushtaka

• Ed Hill Art - https://edhillart.com/

• Garry Rodgers Blog - https://dyingwords.net/ 

• Roy Henry Vickers Gallery - https://royhenryvickers.com/