Woman who claims her father was a serial killer has sparked the minds of True Crime TikTok

After 45 years of claiming her father was a serial killer with almost 70 victims, Lucy Studey is finally being taken seriously after cadaver dogs picked up on suspected human remains in areas she alleged.

Authorities are investigating Studey's, 53, allegations that her late father, Donald Dean Studey, would murder "five or six" women a year in Iowa, forcing her and her siblings to help hide the bodies in and around their well.

She told Newsweekshe informed police, teachers and priests – but no one believed her.

"I know where the bodies are buried," she said, before adding: "He would just tell us we had to go to the well, and I knew what that meant,

"Every time I went to the well or into the hills, I didn't think I was coming down. I thought he would kill me because I wouldn't keep my mouth shut."

Fast-forward to this week, and authorities brought dogs to the property. They pinpointed potential human remains in the locations Studey had claimed for years. The outlet also reported that authorities are planning how to go forward, with could eventually lead to excavating the old 90-foot well.

"She’s got a hell of a story but we don’t have any proof of anything other than we had a cadaver dog hit," Sheriff Kevin Aistrope told the Des Moines Register. "We’ve got to have more proof than that."

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The story has captured the minds of true crime enthusiasts on TikTok, with over a million hashtags under the father's name. One clip from true crime TikToker, @makingatruecrimerer, detailing the alleged series of events:

Thousands of commentators urged the TikToker to keep them updated. Meanwhile, one person encouraged people to "note" that "this area could have also been a native burial ground which could be why the dogs picked up a scent."

Speaking to the outlet, Studey detailed the alleged murders in graphic detail, claiming her father beat the women to death and kept any gold teeth as trophies. She alleged most victims were runaways or sex workers in their twenties or thirties. She also recalled two victims were reportedly male.

However, on Tuesday (October 25), Studey's older sister challenged the claims.

She told the publication, the first time she heard about the so-called bodies was last year, from her sister. She argued that their father was protective and strict – and by no means a murderer.

"I would know if my dad was a serial killer," she said. "He was not, and I want my father’s name restored."

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