00:00:04
[thoughtful music]
00:00:06
BOB DICESARE: Richard
Matt was talented.
00:00:08
You have to be
smart to orchestrate
00:00:10
an escape from prison.
00:00:12
GABRIEL D. BERNADO:
He was the most
00:00:13
cunning, evil, sadistic person
I ever investigated in 38 years.
00:00:19
BOB DICESARE: The
idea of torturing
00:00:22
another human being for
$10,000, killing that person,
00:00:28
it's just evil.
00:00:29
It's evil.
00:00:31
JAMIE SCALISE: He
dismembered the body
00:00:33
with a hacksaw blade
and disposed of it
00:00:35
in the Niagara River
behind me here.
00:00:37
[intriguing music]
00:00:39
GABRIEL D. BERNADO:
After all these years,
00:00:40
it's still a puzzle--
00:00:41
how a man can be that cruel.
00:00:45
JAMIE SCALISE: I get
a phone call saying,
00:00:46
your father has
escaped from prison,
00:00:48
and there's a helicopter
over your house.
00:00:50
This was a real-life
"Shawshank Redemption."
00:00:53
SWAT teams combing back
yards, looking for him.
00:00:57
LUCY CIFFA-LONGO: It just
blows my mind how they did
00:01:00
this, how they pulled this off.
00:01:04
JAMIE SCALISE: I spent my
whole life trying to not
00:01:06
be Richard Matt's daughter.
00:01:08
And you know what?
00:01:09
I'm Richard Matt's daughter.
00:01:10
I can't change that.
00:01:14
[title music]
00:01:29
[thoughtful music]
00:01:44
GABRIEL D. BERNADO: I can see it
was just like it was yesterday.
00:01:45
It's still in my mind, and
it will always be in my mind.
00:01:51
My name is Gabriel D. Bernardo.
00:01:53
I was a police
officer for 38 years.
00:01:57
On January 5th, 1998, I
remember I was on duty
00:02:01
at 2:45 in the afternoon.
00:02:03
A fisherman had recovered
a body-- or a body part.
00:02:07
So I went down to the scene.
00:02:12
I came about here,
and I actually
00:02:14
walked through this area
over here, on the rocks,
00:02:17
down by the rocks.
00:02:18
I got right close to the water.
00:02:20
And it was a human torso.
00:02:25
And so I confirmed it.
00:02:27
I radioed back, and I said,
send the dive team down here.
00:02:33
NARRATOR: Police forensics
identified the torso found
00:02:36
in the Niagara River as
belonging to 76-year-old
00:02:40
William Rickerson.
00:02:41
He had been strangled
to death, and his body
00:02:44
had been cut up using a saw.
00:02:47
A disgruntled ex-employee
was the prime suspect.
00:02:51
GABRIEL D. BERNADO:
Why a human being would
00:02:53
do this to another human being,
I still don't understand it why.
00:02:59
28 years later, and that
case is still with me.
00:03:04
I could not believe that my
ex-husband was a brutal killer.
00:03:10
[sentimental music]
00:03:15
LUCY CIFFA-LONGO: My
name is Lucy Longo.
00:03:16
I am the ex-wife
of Richard Matt,
00:03:19
and I was married to
him for two years.
00:03:23
I met Richard Matt in 1987.
00:03:25
I was 27, and he was 21.
00:03:30
Richard and I met
at my niece's house.
00:03:33
I was introduced to him as
Rick, so I called him Rick.
00:03:37
He was very handsome.
00:03:40
He was funny.
00:03:43
He just seemed like
a real nice guy.
00:03:47
NARRATOR: Lucy and Richard soon
began a romantic relationship.
00:03:52
LUCY CIFFA-LONGO: It was a
whirlwind romance, absolutely.
00:03:56
Rick loved the outdoors, so
we'd go to the park a lot.
00:03:59
We'd go camping.
00:04:01
But it was a short
period of time,
00:04:02
like within maybe
a six-month span,
00:04:04
if that, that he proposed
to me, which was a shock,
00:04:09
threw me by surprise.
00:04:10
But I was pretty excited.
00:04:13
[thoughtful music]
00:04:21
NARRATOR: Richard Matt was
born on June 25th, 1966.
00:04:25
He was the second eldest
of his 12 siblings
00:04:29
who all grew up together
in a foster family
00:04:32
in North Tonawanda near Niagara
Falls and the Canadian border.
00:04:38
Before he turned 18, Matt had
already been in serious trouble
00:04:41
with the law.
00:04:43
BOB DICESARE: He was actually
accused of an assault by a woman
00:04:47
that he had been living
with at that time,
00:04:50
and he did end up
serving time for that.
00:04:56
LUCY CIFFA-LONGO:
I knew that he had
00:04:57
gotten into some
trouble in the past
00:04:59
and that he was out on parole.
00:05:01
I just assumed it
was minor things.
00:05:05
It wasn't really
discussed a whole lot.
00:05:08
The way I saw things
was, he has a past,
00:05:10
but everybody deserves
a second chance.
00:05:15
ANJULA MUTANDA: When we
first meet someone new
00:05:17
who we are attracted
to, what tends
00:05:21
to happen between two people is,
we look for things in common.
00:05:24
Even if they might have been
things that she wasn't sure of,
00:05:27
she might have just sort of
selected them out and pushed
00:05:30
them to the side, which is
pretty common when we first
00:05:33
get together with someone.
00:05:37
NARRATOR: After
a year of dating,
00:05:39
the couple married at their
local church on June 15th, 1988.
00:05:45
LUCY CIFFA-LONGO: It was
a beautiful, sunny day,
00:05:47
and this is one of the
happiest days of my life.
00:05:49
[sentimental music]
00:05:51
I remember how excited I was
and how handsome he looked.
00:05:57
And we were gonna start
a new life together.
00:06:03
One year and five days later was
the happiest day of my life--
00:06:11
--when I gave birth
to my daughter, Jamie.
00:06:17
JAMIE SCALISE: My
name is Jamie Scalise.
00:06:18
I'm the daughter
of Richard Matt.
00:06:20
My mom being the youngest
of four and the only girl
00:06:23
was a daddy's girl
herself, so I think
00:06:26
she wanted that opportunity,
at least, for me, to say,
00:06:31
she tried to implement
that relationship.
00:06:33
And if he reciprocated,
that would be his choice.
00:06:37
[thoughtful music]
00:06:39
LUCY CIFFA-LONGO: My father
was my knight in shining armor,
00:06:40
and more than anything, that is
what I wanted for my daughter.
00:06:48
After Jamie was born,
I recall clearly
00:06:50
that Rick came up
to the hospital
00:06:52
with one of his buddies.
00:06:54
I was so excited when
they first walked in.
00:06:56
The nurse brought Jamie
in, and they stayed
00:06:59
for less than 15 minutes.
00:07:03
I was crushed.
00:07:06
I'm just looking
over at my baby.
00:07:10
It was heartbreaking.
00:07:17
NARRATOR: By 1990, just two
years into the marriage,
00:07:20
Matt had become an absent figure
in the lives of his family,
00:07:24
spending time away from
the home and not being
00:07:27
there for his baby daughter.
00:07:29
LUCY CIFFA-LONGO:
His personality
00:07:30
kind of changed a little bit.
00:07:32
He would go out late at night.
00:07:34
He told me that he was
meeting one of his old buddies
00:07:37
that he was a cell mate with.
00:07:39
Don't worry about it.
00:07:40
Everything is fine.
00:07:43
NARRATOR: Matt was also back
on the wrong side of the law.
00:07:47
LUCY CIFFA-LONGO: Richard
got into some trouble.
00:07:50
He was sent to
Attica prison, and I
00:07:53
don't even remember exactly
what he did that he's in Attica.
00:07:56
But we had communication
again, trying to still make
00:08:00
the marriage work, even
though my whole heart
00:08:02
was telling me otherwise.
00:08:06
NARRATOR: That same
year, Lucy and Richard
00:08:08
divorced, and he disappeared
from their lives completely.
00:08:15
LUCY CIFFA-LONGO: My main
goal was to protect Jamie.
00:08:17
We got to change her last name.
00:08:19
I had no money,
so my father ended
00:08:23
up paying a lawyer
to legally change
00:08:25
her name to my maiden name.
00:08:29
JAMIE SCALISE: I don't
think I knew for a while
00:08:31
that I was born a Matt.
00:08:33
I really didn't
know much of him.
00:08:35
He wasn't spoke of.
00:08:36
I just knew he was somebody
that wasn't in my life,
00:08:39
that I really wasn't overly
invited to talk about it.
00:08:42
My mom was a single
parent for a while,
00:08:44
for all of my adolescence,
really, growing up.
00:08:49
LUCY CIFFA-LONGO:
My job is to protect
00:08:50
my daughter from this point on.
00:08:52
I am now her mother.
00:08:53
I am now her father.
00:08:55
I am now her provider, and
I am now her protector.
00:08:57
[thoughtful music]
00:09:01
NARRATOR: For the
next seven years,
00:09:03
Jamie grew up with her mom
at their home in Tonawanda.
00:09:13
In 1997, Richard Matt would
dramatically reappear as part
00:09:18
of a murder investigation.
00:09:19
GABRIEL D. BERNADO: On
December 5th, 1997, we got
00:09:23
a report of a missing person--
00:09:25
Mr. William Rickerson.
00:09:27
He was what they
call a food broker.
00:09:29
He used to sell food wholesale
to local restaurants.
00:09:33
He was missing for
a couple of days.
00:09:36
NARRATOR: Gabe
brought his detectives
00:09:38
to William Richardson's empty
property to investigate.
00:09:42
We had checked the
upper part of the house.
00:09:45
Nothing seemed to
be really disturbed.
00:09:48
One of my detectives,
he goes down the cellar
00:09:50
and finds one drop of blood
at the bottom of the stairs.
00:09:55
So something bad
had happened here.
00:09:58
Something bad.
00:10:02
NARRATOR: A month later, a human
torso washed up on the shores
00:10:07
of the Niagara River.
00:10:09
I'll never forget it because
I went down there, and sure
00:10:12
enough, right there, there was a
lower portion of the human body
00:10:16
floating in the water.
00:10:18
I brought my dive team in
there, and it's cold as hell.
00:10:22
The dive team worked
in terrible conditions.
00:10:25
They recovered legs, pajamas.
00:10:30
NARRATOR: DNA testing on
the blood spot in the house,
00:10:33
as well as body parts, confirmed
both belonged to the missing
00:10:37
William Rickerson.
00:10:39
A missing person inquiry
had turned into a homicide.
00:10:47
Police began their investigation
by talking to William
00:10:50
Rickerson's employees.
00:10:52
They quickly learned
that a worker who
00:10:54
had been fired by
Rickerson held a grudge
00:10:57
against his former employer.
00:10:59
[intriguing music]
00:11:00
BOB DICESARE: Richard
Matt felt that he
00:11:02
was owed money after being fired
when he worked for Rickerson.
00:11:05
Also, he had heard
that Rickerson
00:11:07
had $10,000 in that house.
00:11:10
That's probably was
his real motivation.
00:11:13
He wants the money.
00:11:16
NARRATOR: Richard Matt had
a plan on how to get it.
00:11:20
[music intensifies]
00:11:22
On the evening of December 4th,
Matt called an acquaintance,
00:11:26
Lee Bates, and then
asked for a favor.
00:11:29
GABRIEL D. BERNADO:
He didn't have a car,
00:11:31
so Richard Matt calls Lee Bates.
00:11:34
Lee Bates picks him up.
00:11:37
NARRATOR: Matt
instructed Bates to drive
00:11:39
him to the house of his former
employer, William Rickerson.
00:11:43
GABRIEL D. BERNADO:
He knocks on the door,
00:11:45
and Rickerson opens the door.
00:11:47
Richard Matt wants
money and demands money.
00:11:50
And Mr. Rickerson replies,
he doesn't have any money.
00:11:54
At that point,
Richard Matt hit him,
00:11:56
knocks him down several times.
00:12:00
And at one point,
according to Lee Bates,
00:12:02
he actually put a knife
sharpener into his ear
00:12:06
and pushes it into his brain.
00:12:11
That was his goal--
00:12:13
get him to talk.
00:12:14
But Mr. Rickerson wouldn't talk.
00:12:18
He wouldn't tell him
where the money was.
00:12:19
[suspenseful music]
00:12:21
They end up taking
him, putting him
00:12:23
in the trunk of their car,
and going on a long drive
00:12:26
to Ohio and back,
covering 300 miles.
00:12:32
GABRIEL D. BERNADO:
Every once in a while,
00:12:34
he would cry out in pain.
00:12:36
I believe three
ribs were broken,
00:12:38
so that had to be painful,
bouncing around in the trunk.
00:12:42
And no water, no food.
00:12:46
BOB DICESARE: I'm sure at that
point, Richard Matt's thought
00:12:48
was, we can't just let him go.
00:12:51
If we let him go, we're doomed.
00:12:54
We're gonna be
fingered for this.
00:12:55
He knows who I am.
00:12:57
Richard Matt, after
punching Mr. Rickerson,
00:13:03
strangled him somehow.
00:13:05
He dies in the trunk of the car.
00:13:11
NARRATOR: Richard
Matt and Lee Bates
00:13:13
drove William Rickerson's
body back to North Tonawanda,
00:13:17
to an island in
the Niagara River.
00:13:22
GABRIEL D. BERNADO: We're
on Tonawanda island.
00:13:24
The island is used for
boating and fishing.
00:13:26
[thoughtful music]
00:13:28
The day of the killing, he
drove here with the body.
00:13:31
He hid the body by the trees and
then came back two days later
00:13:38
with a hacksaw, cut off the
head, the arm, the legs,
00:13:42
and threw the body parts
into the Niagara River.
00:13:49
BOB DICESARE: River has a
pretty good current to it.
00:13:50
Certain parts of that river,
if I get that in there,
00:13:53
they'll wash.
00:13:54
They'll ultimately end
up down Niagara Falls.
00:13:57
They'll end up in
the lower Niagara.
00:13:58
No one is gonna find this.
00:14:02
GABRIEL D. BERNADO: If there's
no body, there's no evidence.
00:14:04
He wanted to destroy
the evidence.
00:14:06
What better way?
00:14:07
Cut him up and just
throw him in the river.
00:14:09
[intriguing music]
00:14:10
Then the fish will eat
them, eat the body parts.
00:14:16
NARRATOR: Within days of
the torso being found,
00:14:19
21-year-old Lee Bates gave
himself up to the police
00:14:23
and confessed to being part of
the murder of William Rickerson.
00:14:27
GABRIEL D. BERNADO:
Richard Matt told him
00:14:28
while we were doing all
this, you open your mouth,
00:14:31
and I will kill you.
00:14:32
He actually
threatened Lee Bates.
00:14:33
Oh god, yes.
00:14:35
And Lee Bates knew
Richard Matt meant it.
00:14:37
Oh god, yes.
00:14:38
Lee Bates was fearful.
00:14:41
But he still came forward,
still give us all the facts.
00:14:45
He still did the right thing.
00:14:47
BOB DICESARE: Lee Bates is
granted a less harsh sentence
00:14:51
if he's willing to
testify about Richard Matt
00:14:54
and what actually
took place then.
00:14:56
And he accepted that
offer and testified
00:14:59
that Matt had basically
orchestrated everything.
00:15:04
NARRATOR: The hunt for
Richard Matt was on.
00:15:08
31-year-old Richard Matt was on
the run in Mexico after becoming
00:15:13
the prime suspect in the
murder of his former boss,
00:15:17
William Rickerson.
00:15:18
[intriguing music]
00:15:19
LUCY CIFFA-LONGO: I was
in disbelief, disgust.
00:15:21
I was glad that I was no longer
in his life or my daughter.
00:15:29
Like, you've got
to be kidding me.
00:15:30
Murder?
00:15:32
Murder, really?
00:15:36
NARRATOR: With her
ex-husband on the news,
00:15:38
Lucy decided she had to tell
their nine-year-old daughter,
00:15:42
Jamie, about her father before
she heard it from someone else.
00:15:48
JAMIE SCALISE: She
told me the truth.
00:15:49
She told me that he
had murdered somebody,
00:15:52
that he had fled to Mexico
right around that time.
00:15:55
And that's why the
officers were around,
00:15:57
people were coming to the house.
00:15:59
She asked if I
had any questions.
00:16:01
I said no.
00:16:02
It really wasn't a topic
of open conversation.
00:16:05
So it was just something
that was kept private,
00:16:07
kind of that skeleton
in the closet.
00:16:11
LUCY CIFFA-LONGO: I said,
so do you understand this?
00:16:13
His name is never to be
mentioned in this house, ever.
00:16:16
She says, OK, Mom.
00:16:18
OK, Mom.
00:16:18
And that was it.
00:16:21
ANJULA MUTANDA: Lucy
wants to protect her child
00:16:22
from any further distress.
00:16:25
Jamie may have
learnt in that moment
00:16:27
that if she asks
any more questions,
00:16:29
that might upset her mum.
00:16:32
So they've both now gone into
protection mode, one as a parent
00:16:37
and one as a child.
00:16:38
And that can be a very difficult
place to find yourself as a kid.
00:16:45
Jamie learns at that
point to suppress
00:16:49
any questioning about her dad.
00:16:54
NARRATOR: Two months after
Richard Matt had killed
00:16:56
his former boss, and as the
police tried to track him down
00:17:00
in Mexico, Matt killed again.
00:17:03
GABRIEL D. BERNADO:
He had gone into a bar
00:17:05
and gotten into a fight.
00:17:06
For some reason, he had a
knife, and he kills the man,
00:17:10
stabs him several times.
00:17:12
BOB DICESARE: The man he killed
was an American-- wrong place,
00:17:16
wrong time.
00:17:18
A desperate man.
00:17:19
Again, I need money.
00:17:20
I need to survive.
00:17:21
I'll do anything, at
this point, right?
00:17:24
He'd already killed once.
00:17:26
Does that surprise me?
00:17:27
No, it doesn't.
00:17:29
It doesn't surprise me one bit.
00:17:30
I'm surprised he
didn't cut his head off
00:17:33
after stabbing him nine times.
00:17:35
He's such a-- [sighs]
an evil person.
00:17:37
God.
00:17:41
NARRATOR: Matt was arrested
by the Mexican authorities
00:17:44
and immediately placed
into prison without trial.
00:17:50
LUCY CIFFA-LONGO: After I
found out that he was arrested,
00:17:52
I felt peaceful
because if he did this,
00:17:56
he doesn't belong
on the streets.
00:17:59
With him in custody,
I felt safe.
00:18:03
[thoughtful music]
00:18:08
Richard didn't know
where Jamie and I lived,
00:18:11
so he would send letters
to a mutual friend.
00:18:15
And they'd give me
the letter and say,
00:18:17
you decide what you want to do.
00:18:19
Me being protective over her
and wanting a good life for her,
00:18:24
I didn't want to give
her these letters.
00:18:27
I just wanted nothing
to do with any of it.
00:18:30
I wanted to be as
far away as possible.
00:18:34
My main focus was to keep
this little girl safe.
00:18:45
NARRATOR: In 2003, another
letter arrived from Mexico.
00:18:51
This time, Lucy
handed it to Jamie.
00:18:54
LUCY CIFFA-LONGO:
She's older now.
00:18:55
Jamie's 14 years old.
00:18:57
I'm not 100% sure why I decided
to give her that letter.
00:19:04
Part of me just
wanted her to know
00:19:05
that as crazy as all the
stuff that he's done,
00:19:08
she's still on his
mind somewheres.
00:19:12
He asked in that letter
for me to possibly put aside
00:19:16
what I had heard about
him and that it would have
00:19:18
meant everything
in the world to him
00:19:20
to have a relationship with me.
00:19:21
And he knew what it was like
at 14 to not have a father.
00:19:24
[somber music]
00:19:25
I think for him, at
that point, that guilt
00:19:27
was setting in as to the
repercussion of his actions.
00:19:31
And I kind of looked at it
like, you're not around.
00:19:33
You're not here anyways.
00:19:34
Now you're gonna try
and be a part of my life
00:19:36
through some measly letter?
00:19:39
And I said-- I
dismissed it, really.
00:19:43
I have a father who
has done bad things.
00:19:45
I have a father who
is in a Mexican prison
00:19:48
after fleeing from a murder.
00:19:57
ANJULA MUTANDA: That speaks
to someone who is struggling
00:19:59
to make sense of her father and
his motives and his relationship
00:20:05
to her.
00:20:06
And at that point in time,
it sounds like it's harmful,
00:20:10
but she doesn't know.
00:20:11
[intriguing music]
00:20:13
JAMIE SCALISE: My curiosity
kicked in, but at that point,
00:20:17
I didn't want my mom to
know I had questions.
00:20:19
So my best friend and
I went to the library,
00:20:23
and I started researching what
came up about Richard Matt.
00:20:29
I found out that my
father was a monster.
00:20:33
I think that was the first time
that I took in what he did.
00:20:40
I must have looked in shock
because I remember my girlfriend
00:20:41
saying, are you OK?
00:20:44
So I must have lost
color, looked frightened.
00:20:48
And I just shook my head
yes and kept reading.
00:20:52
I knew a murder happened.
00:20:54
I didn't know that he was
viewed by law enforcement
00:20:57
like he was the most evil person
that they had come across.
00:21:03
So I did not say
anything to my mom.
00:21:05
I kind of kept it a
secret, and I was satisfied
00:21:08
with that at the time.
00:21:10
I still didn't feel like I
needed to contact my father.
00:21:14
[intriguing music]
00:21:16
NARRATOR: In January,
2007, when Jamie was 17,
00:21:20
Richard Matt was
extradited back to the US
00:21:23
after serving nine years
in the Mexican prison.
00:21:26
GABRIEL D. BERNADO:
The Mexican authorities
00:21:28
turned him over to us, then
we could triumph our murder.
00:21:33
He was back in the news.
00:21:35
There was that name again--
00:21:36
Richard Matt, the evil,
manipulative person.
00:21:42
This person to be feared
is being brought back.
00:21:45
[thoughtful music]
00:21:47
NARRATOR: The trial for the
murder of William Rickerson
00:21:49
began on March 10th,
2008-- over a decade
00:21:53
after the crime was committed.
00:21:57
BOB DICESARE: The trial began
in Niagara County court.
00:21:59
Three charges of second
degree murder, three charges
00:22:02
of first degree
kidnapping, and a couple
00:22:04
charges of first degree robbery.
00:22:07
And if I remember right, the
trial lasted about one month.
00:22:12
The jury finds him guilty.
00:22:14
He was sentenced to
25 years to life.
00:22:17
JAMIE SCALISE: He was
a double murderer.
00:22:20
That sets a tone for how
you feel about this person,
00:22:23
about what happened,
and about yourself, too.
00:22:26
You can't help but have that
person's reflection and shame
00:22:30
be projected onto
you as a person
00:22:32
being a product of your blood.
00:22:34
You're that person's relative.
00:22:37
I'm that person's daughter.
00:22:42
[thoughtful music]
00:22:44
NARRATOR: Matt's
accomplice, Lee Bates,
00:22:46
was already serving 15 years
for second degree murder.
00:22:50
Richard Matt was sent to
Clinton Correctional Facility,
00:22:54
located in Dannemora, New York.
00:22:57
BOB DICESARE:
Clinton Correctional
00:22:59
is like this fortress that
towers over everything.
00:23:02
Intimidating to look at
that, to think, oh my gosh,
00:23:06
what's it like to
be inside there?
00:23:10
JAMIE SCALISE: I had
no contact with him,
00:23:11
but I thought about it more
than I ever had in my life.
00:23:14
If I were to ever contact him, I
wanted it to be on my own terms.
00:23:20
[sentimental music]
00:23:24
NARRATOR: Three
years later, in 2011,
00:23:27
Jaime received another letter
from her father, now aged 44.
00:23:33
JAMIE SCALISE: I was 21.
00:23:34
I was married at
the time, getting
00:23:35
ready to buy my first home.
00:23:37
I was a young adult.
I was on my own,
00:23:39
and I was at a
different point in life.
00:23:42
And I remember I didn't
open it in front of anybody.
00:23:45
This letter finally tugged
at the heartstrings.
00:23:49
He describes his
treatment in Mexico.
00:23:53
I was tortured many
times by the guards
00:23:55
because I was an American.
00:23:57
I was beaten until I passed out.
00:23:59
I was cut, stabbed, shot,
starved, without food for days.
00:24:03
I was placed 20
feet below the floor
00:24:05
in a hole for 27
months in darkness
00:24:07
with cockroaches
crawling all over me.
00:24:09
As much as I wished
for death down there,
00:24:11
I never gave up, and
never let them break me.
00:24:14
My will to live came from you.
00:24:16
You were and are the most
important thing to me in life.
00:24:22
That line really did captivate
me and hit home, I think,
00:24:26
like he intended the first
letter to when I was 14.
00:24:30
Something about him saying
that was just so special to me.
00:24:35
[thoughtful music]
00:24:36
And I felt like it was
genuine and sincere
00:24:39
and that he truly
wanted to meet me.
00:24:41
He wanted to right the wrong
of him not being a father.
00:24:45
And I knew it was time.
00:24:48
I knew it was time to finally--
00:24:50
[music intensifies]
00:24:52
--dive into this part of my life
that I had put off for so long.
00:24:55
[intriguing music]
00:25:00
NARRATOR: Richard Matt
was a double murderer
00:25:02
and serving a life sentence
in Clinton Correctional
00:25:06
Facility in New York.
00:25:07
He had reached out by
letter to his estranged
00:25:10
daughter, Jamie, who he hadn't
seen since she was a baby.
00:25:14
But she had rebuffed
his attempts until now.
00:25:20
JAMIE SCALISE: I didn't
tell my mom that I
00:25:21
received the letter at all.
00:25:22
I think I was just
almost kind of bred
00:25:24
to keep this topic a secret
in all different aspects.
00:25:29
I think that part of me said,
I'm gonna do this on my own.
00:25:33
And I think I wanted to have
control of the situation.
00:25:37
I didn't want anybody's input.
00:25:40
ANJULA MUTANDA:
As she gets older,
00:25:41
she feels more like she has
a right to do what she wants
00:25:45
as an adult in her own life.
00:25:47
She has agency, and she wants
to take full control back.
00:25:51
She does not want to
be told by anybody
00:25:53
what she can and cannot do.
00:25:55
This is her choice
and her choice alone.
00:25:59
NARRATOR: Jamie
responded to the letter.
00:26:01
JAMIE SCALISE: He had asked
me in the letter to set aside
00:26:04
what I knew of him, the monster
that I knew that he was,
00:26:08
and if I would just give him
a chance to get to know him.
00:26:11
I said, I will set
these things aside.
00:26:14
I said, but I want the
truth at some point.
00:26:17
And he agreed.
00:26:20
We wrote letters
weekly, back and forth,
00:26:24
for at least a good six months.
00:26:27
I remember feeling like a kid
on Christmas shortly after that,
00:26:29
going to the mailbox
every day to see if I
00:26:31
had a letter from my father.
00:26:33
And that's how he
referred to himself,
00:26:35
was in our writing,
your father, Rick.
00:26:37
[sentimental music]
00:26:38
And shortly after
that, the verbiage
00:26:40
started changing to, love, Dad.
00:26:44
We covered a lot of
ground very fast.
00:26:50
NARRATOR: In June, 2011,
without telling her mom,
00:26:54
Jamie made the decision to visit
her father for the first time.
00:26:59
JAMIE SCALISE: It was
about a seven-hour drive.
00:27:03
I was calm.
00:27:04
I felt a sense of peace,
but I was nervous.
00:27:07
I was nervous, I think,
more about the process
00:27:09
of entering a maximum security
prison than meeting my father.
00:27:18
I do think it's
funny that we spent
00:27:19
so much time smiling at each
other during that visit.
00:27:23
And then we get the
opportunity to have a photo,
00:27:25
and he isn't doing much smiling.
00:27:26
[laughs] This was such a big
moment, a monumental moment,
00:27:30
in both of our lives,
and we knew that.
00:27:33
I'm not a crier.
00:27:35
In most situations, the
normal thing to do probably
00:27:38
would have to gone
in and cry and hug.
00:27:41
And we did that,
minus the crying.
00:27:42
[sentimental music]
00:27:44
He felt like my father, and
I don't remember feeling
00:27:48
fearful of him whatsoever.
00:27:51
And that first visit,
it felt very natural.
00:27:53
It felt like seeing
your long lost
00:27:55
father, who wasn't a murderer
at that point in time.
00:28:03
ANJULA MUTANDA: She needed
answers for herself.
00:28:06
What I see here is somebody
empowering themselves
00:28:10
to complete the picture
for herself, rather than,
00:28:14
I've been told this by my mum,
and then I've been told not
00:28:16
to talk about it ever again.
00:28:18
And that suggests to me that
all that time in her past,
00:28:23
she has been suppressing
those questions,
00:28:25
and she's not going to lose
that opportunity again.
00:28:30
NARRATOR: Jamie and
her father spent
00:28:32
the visit catching up on life
with no mention of his crimes.
00:28:39
JAMIE SCALISE: Seeing my
father as a convicted killer,
00:28:40
it brought out a lot of emotion.
00:28:42
Even looking back at
these photos, knowing I'm
00:28:45
standing next to a killer.
00:28:47
I'm standing next to somebody.
00:28:49
His arm is around me.
00:28:50
This person is
touching me, whose
00:28:52
same hands did such evil,
horrible things to other people.
00:28:56
[thoughtful music]
00:28:57
That is something that
it's very striking.
00:29:00
It doesn't sit with you well.
00:29:03
But I never went back
to being fearful of him.
00:29:06
I felt secure for him where
he was at that point in time.
00:29:13
I was there for probably
about four hours.
00:29:17
I knew we were absolutely gonna
continue our relationship.
00:29:20
I was already excited to
go back for the next visit.
00:29:24
I think I felt a sense
of pride in myself,
00:29:27
that I had made that trip--
00:29:30
--that I had finally
met my father.
00:29:38
[intriguing music]
00:29:40
NARRATOR: Richard Matt
revealed more about himself
00:29:42
to his daughter as she
paid further visits to him
00:29:45
over the next couple of years.
00:29:48
Jamie's mom, Lucy,
still had no idea
00:29:52
that her daughter was in
contact with her father,
00:29:55
and her ex-husband.
00:29:57
JAMIE SCALISE: It was probably
two years into this relationship
00:30:01
that I was going out
of town, and my mom was
00:30:04
looking after my house for me.
00:30:07
I cleaned up everything,
mopped the floors,
00:30:09
and set the table, and just
wanted everything to look
00:30:11
nice when she came home.
00:30:12
And I went out to
grab the mail, and I
00:30:15
saw Rick's name and Clinton
Correctional Facility, and then
00:30:20
a big package.
00:30:22
I was like, [gasps] oh
my gosh, he found her.
00:30:28
JAMIE SCALISE: He had sent
me a painting in the mail.
00:30:32
I had come to learn that my
father was a brilliant oil
00:30:34
painter in prison, and he wanted
to do some paintings for me.
00:30:41
When I came back into
town, she said, there's
00:30:43
something on your bed for you.
00:30:46
And I went in there and saw
what it was, and it was like,
00:30:48
oh, I'm in trouble.
00:30:50
[laughs]
00:30:54
NARRATOR: Jamie came
clean to her mom
00:30:56
about the new relationship
with her father.
00:30:59
JAMIE SCALISE: And I
didn't know what to expect.
00:31:00
I think part of me was afraid.
00:31:02
I was afraid to tell my mom.
00:31:03
I was afraid that she would
be disappointed in me.
00:31:06
And it was the exact opposite.
00:31:08
[thoughtful music]
00:31:09
LUCY CIFFA-LONGO: I was very
accepting because I knew,
00:31:12
she's a human being.
00:31:14
It's her natural instincts
that want to know.
00:31:21
She was protecting me,
doing it out of respect
00:31:24
because she knew where I
stood, that I wanted absolutely
00:31:28
nothing to do with him.
00:31:31
NARRATOR: Matt and Jamie
did eventually discuss
00:31:35
the murders he'd committed.
00:31:37
JAMIE SCALISE: When my
father decided to open up
00:31:39
about the crime that had
happened with Mr. Rickerson,
00:31:42
I think he told me
the truth, but I
00:31:45
think he gave me the version
that he thought appropriate
00:31:48
for his daughter to hear.
00:31:51
There was something
about it that I
00:31:52
know wasn't the full story.
00:31:59
He had remorse for what he
did, but the most remorse
00:32:03
that he had in
context was the fact
00:32:05
that his actions caused him to
not be able to be in my life.
00:32:15
These photos here are
four of the six visits
00:32:17
that I had with my father
at Clinton Correctional.
00:32:20
Each one of these visits
were from 2011, '12, '13,
00:32:27
and I believe we did get to
see each other end of '14.
00:32:30
[intriguing music]
00:32:35
In June, in 2015, I was at one
of my best friend's weddings,
00:32:41
and my phone was buzzing,
buzzing, buzzing, buzzing.
00:32:42
My mom was calling.
00:32:44
Before I could even do
anything, I answered the phone.
00:32:45
I'm like, what?
00:32:46
I'm working this wedding.
00:32:47
You know this is a big day.
00:32:48
What is going on?
00:32:50
She goes, Rick escaped.
00:32:52
He's out.
00:32:55
I panicked, instantly
knowing, they're coming here.
00:32:58
They're coming for me.
00:33:00
And authorities
are now searching
00:33:02
in the US, Canada, and Mexico.
00:33:05
This prison break right
out of a Hollywood script.
00:33:07
[intriguing music]
00:33:08
LUCY CIFFA-LONGO: It was June 6
of 2015, and I turned the TV on.
00:33:14
Richard Matt and David Sweat
had escaped from Clinton
00:33:17
Correctional Facility.
00:33:18
My mouth hit the floor.
00:33:20
Right after that was
banging on my door.
00:33:23
The sheriffs, the SWAT
team, the FBI, Border Patrol
00:33:29
lined up all down my street.
00:33:31
JAMIE SCALISE: I
talked to my husband,
00:33:33
and he said, well,
just pulled up home.
00:33:34
He goes, and the
SWAT team is here.
00:33:36
He goes, and so is Border
Patrol, and so is local PD.
00:33:40
So my house was surrounded.
00:33:42
There was a helicopter
over my house.
00:33:47
She had an agent outside
her house at all times.
00:33:50
Any time she left that
house, they'd follow her.
00:33:54
JAMIE SCALISE: Word had gotten
out, whether I liked it or not,
00:33:56
that I was related to
one of these people.
00:33:59
I had spent in my
whole life trying not
00:34:01
to be Richard Matt's daughter.
00:34:04
And now it was right in front
of me, and I had no choice.
00:34:08
[somber music]
00:34:10
This was left behind
in my father's cell.
00:34:13
Time to go, kid.
00:34:14
With the date on it.
00:34:16
That is directly to me.
00:34:19
He would joke often
and call me kid.
00:34:22
This here was left
by my father as well.
00:34:25
That said, you left me no choice
but to grow old and die in here.
00:34:28
I had to do something.
00:34:30
That's more directed towards
some type of law enforcement.
00:34:34
Immediately after
leaving these messages
00:34:37
was when my father made
his way to freedom.
00:34:40
[intriguing music]
00:34:41
BOB DICESARE: I would
stand at the front window
00:34:43
during this escape
and wonder, is
00:34:45
this guy around here somewhere?
00:34:47
Is he back?
00:34:48
Is there unfinished business?
00:34:51
I had loaded guns on
every floor in my house.
00:34:53
Didn't know when he would
show up, if he would show up.
00:34:56
With a killer like that
loose, anything is possible.
00:35:02
BOB DICESARE: Richard
Matt and David Sweat
00:35:04
have both committed murder,
are out there somewhere,
00:35:07
and you don't know
where they are.
00:35:10
JAMIE SCALISE: It was
a three-week manhunt.
00:35:12
They became the most
wanted men in America.
00:35:17
There was sightings throughout
the Adirondack Mountains.
00:35:19
The dogs were starting to pick
up on certain things, where
00:35:21
they said they can confirm there
was DNA found at certain sites.
00:35:25
They had started finding
empty bottles of liquor.
00:35:27
Once that became
publicized, I was fearful.
00:35:31
I was fearful for my father,
if he was under the influence
00:35:33
of something.
00:35:34
And I was fearful for others.
00:35:38
You're desperate.
00:35:39
You're hungry.
00:35:40
You're probably hurt.
00:35:41
Who knows?
00:35:43
You've been living in the
woods for three weeks.
00:35:46
I can't imagine what that
does to your mindset,
00:35:49
and my biggest fear was
him hurting somebody
00:35:55
and negating
everything that we had
00:35:56
discussed in our conversations.
00:36:04
NARRATOR: It took the
police nearly three
00:36:06
weeks to track down the killer.
00:36:08
Matt was finally found
in the town of Malone,
00:36:11
only 10 miles away from the
prison he'd escaped from.
00:36:15
He had found a gun in
one of the hunting cabins
00:36:17
in the Adirondack Mountains.
00:36:19
[music intensifies]
00:36:20
And when they got close
enough, he raised the gun.
00:36:24
NARRATOR: When
asked by a Customs
00:36:26
and Border Protection SWAT team
to put down the gun, he refused.
00:36:32
The officer shot him in the
head and shot him three times.
00:36:38
And that was the
end of Richard Matt.
00:36:43
[somber music]
00:36:47
LUCY CIFFA-LONGO: My oldest
brother called me and says,
00:36:49
are you by a TV?
00:36:50
I said, no.
00:36:52
And he says, I just wanted to
let you know that Rick was shot,
00:36:54
and, he's killed.
00:36:57
I was somber, quiet.
00:37:02
What are you gonna do?
00:37:07
I felt bad for Jamie because
she was just starting kind
00:37:11
of this relationship with him.
00:37:24
It was a calm, but it was
the most upsetting thing
00:37:29
I'd ever heard in my life.
00:37:33
I don't know who the
officer was that shot him,
00:37:36
but I would not
only shake his hand
00:37:38
and give him the
biggest hug, but thank
00:37:40
him for ending an evil life.
00:37:43
Thank you.
00:37:45
Our community thanks you.
00:37:48
[sentimental music]
00:37:53
JAMIE SCALISE: I do believe
my father wanted to die,
00:37:54
and I believe he wanted
to die on his terms.
00:37:57
And I think he got the wish
that he wanted because I know
00:38:00
he wasn't going back to prison.
00:38:10
NARRATOR: David sweat was
captured three days later
00:38:14
and returned to prison to a
life of solitary confinement.
00:38:18
In July, 2015, Jamie gave her
father, Richard Matt, a funeral.
00:38:26
JAMIE SCALISE: He was cremated,
and we did a very small service,
00:38:30
almost in hopes that he made
it somewhere-- that he made it.
00:38:35
The suffering was done.
00:38:36
The mind games were done.
00:38:38
Nobody else got hurt,
and it was almost a way
00:38:40
to put everything to rest.
00:38:44
Sadness did overcome
me, and I let it out.
00:38:47
I cried like a baby,
which was probably
00:38:50
the first time in 20 years.
00:38:53
[laughs] So the
emotion took over.
00:38:59
LUCY CIFFA-LONGO: I
hope he's at peace.
00:39:02
I truly hope that he made
his peace with his maker.
00:39:08
I hope he asked, most
important, for forgiveness,
00:39:12
and that he is resting,
truly resting, in peace.
00:39:16
[intriguing music]
00:39:21
GABRIEL D. BERNADO: So is
there a place for Richard Matt?
00:39:23
Certainly [laughs]
not in heaven.
00:39:27
So full of evil.
00:39:34
NARRATOR: Jamie has found it
difficult separating herself
00:39:37
from the murder of
William Rickerson
00:39:39
at the hands of her father.
00:39:43
JAMIE SCALISE: What my
father did to that family
00:39:45
is just unforgivably horrific.
00:39:50
The guilt and the shame
that you feel over that,
00:39:53
it's never gonna fully go away.
00:39:54
[thoughtful music]
00:39:57
It's something I finally had to
separate myself from and, again,
00:40:00
know that I didn't
do those things,
00:40:02
and there's nothing
that I could ever
00:40:04
do to bring peace to
that family in the way
00:40:06
that they would truly deserve.
00:40:10
LUCY CIFFA-LONGO: I
feel absolutely horrible
00:40:12
about the Richardson family.
00:40:14
I can't even imagine or
begin to imagine what
00:40:17
that family was put through.
00:40:21
That's heartbreaking,
beyond heartbreaking.
00:40:24
My heart goes out to them.
00:40:32
JAMIE SCALISE: I feel like
I've been able to process
00:40:33
my father's death and
the crimes that he
00:40:36
committed in a healthy way.
00:40:38
It's taken a lot of time.
00:40:40
I've learned a lot about myself.
00:40:43
I wish that I did have a
longer relationship with him.
00:40:49
I do feel like this
happened so quick.
00:40:51
It's like we just got started,
and then as fast as it started,
00:40:54
it ended.
00:40:56
I feel like there was so
much more that I could have
00:40:59
gotten to know about my father.
00:41:03
ANJULA MUTANDA: She has found
a sense of relief and release
00:41:06
at discovering who her dad
was from her point of view,
00:41:09
and that is the
person that she loves.
00:41:12
She can gain some form
of closure for herself.
00:41:18
It's like, I knew him.
00:41:19
We had a connection.
00:41:21
It was deep for me, and I
can close that mystery now.
00:41:33
LUCY CIFFA-LONGO: Now that
my daughter is a young lady
00:41:34
and a mother herself,
she really, completely
00:41:38
understands where
I was coming from,
00:41:41
that I wasn't the big, bad wolf.
00:41:43
She knows that I protected her,
and I could not be more proud.
00:41:49
She's a great mom, and
she's a great friend.
00:41:55
JAMIE SCALISE: My
father ultimately
00:41:56
wanted to be in Mexico.
00:41:57
That was his happy place.
00:41:59
That was freedom for him.
00:42:01
I ended up taking a
trip myself to Mexico
00:42:05
with a vial of his ashes,
and I sprinkled his ashes
00:42:08
into the ocean down there.
00:42:09
So I felt like I
brought him home,
00:42:12
and he could finally
rest in peace,
00:42:14
and that I could have
closure knowing that he's
00:42:16
right where he wanted to be.
00:42:24
I think my lack of emotion
is not because I don't care,
00:42:26
not because I'm insensitive.
00:42:28
I think it's because I was
raised to be strong for everyone
00:42:33
around me.
00:42:35
And every now and
then, it'll get me.
00:42:37
The tears will come out.
00:42:39
I'll reread an old
letter, and it reminds me
00:42:42
that I miss you, Dad.
00:42:45
I do.
00:42:52
[closing music]
