Search Captions & Ask AI

Unsolved Mysteries with Dennis Farina - Season 1, Episode 1 - Full Episode

March 09, 2017 / 42:48

This episode of Unsolved Mysteries covers a shooting rampage in Colorado, a man who came back to life after being struck by lightning, a con artist impersonating a race car driver, and the murder of auto racing legend Mickey Thompson and his wife.

The episode begins with the violent shooting of Officer Dale Claxton in Cortez, Colorado, by three men with anti-government views. The attack escalated into a military-style siege, resulting in the deaths of Claxton and injuries to several officers. The suspects, Alan Pon, Robert Mason, and Jason McVine, were later found dead, with McVine's body discovered after a long manhunt.

Next, the story of Jonathan Kern, who impersonated Formula 1 driver Jonathan Palmer, is shared. Kern charmed women and racked up debts across Europe and America, ultimately swindling Elizabeth Jez out of $115,000 before his true identity was revealed.

The episode also features Danion Brinkley, who was struck by lightning and declared dead for 28 minutes. After his near-death experience, he developed psychic abilities and helped solve a murder case in Montana.

Finally, the tragic story of Mickey Thompson and his wife Trudy is recounted. They were murdered outside their home in California, and after years of investigation, Thompson's former business partner Michael Goodwin was convicted of orchestrating the killings.

TL;DR

This episode covers a Colorado shooting rampage, a lightning survivor with psychic abilities, a con artist impersonating a race car driver, and the murder of Mickey Thompson.

Episode

42:48
00:00:00
[Music]
00:00:04
next on Unsolved
00:00:07
Mysteries a shooting rampage in Colorado
00:00:09
kills one highway patrolman and wounds
00:00:12
several
00:00:14
others in South Carolina a powerful bu
00:00:18
of lightning then a man pronounced dead
00:00:21
comes back to life and becomes a
00:00:24
psychic meet Jonathan he impersonates
00:00:28
celebrities to steal women's hearts
00:00:30
and then their
00:00:32
money and an auto racing Legend Mickey
00:00:36
Thompson and his wife are Gunn down in
00:00:38
the driveway of their
00:00:40
home police determined it was a contract
00:00:43
killing but who hired the
00:00:47
Hitman murder missing persons wanted
00:00:50
fugitives and the Paranormal I'm Dennis
00:00:54
finina and this is Unsolved Mysteries
00:01:09
[Music]
00:01:17
[Music]
00:01:28
he
00:01:32
in the mountains and deserts of Western
00:01:35
Colorado an unexpected terrorist attack
00:01:38
was about to
00:01:41
begin 11 Cortez that truck is 1099 out
00:01:45
on May 29th 45-year-old police officer
00:01:49
Dale Claxton followed a stolen water
00:01:51
truck out of the small town of Cortez
00:01:55
Colorado Claxton was a relative newcomer
00:01:58
to the force he had been an officer for
00:02:00
only 3 years I'll laying behind it send
00:02:02
me some
00:02:04
backup for suddenly the water truck
00:02:07
pulled
00:02:13
over Dale never had a chance to unbutton
00:02:15
SE Bel even go for the
00:02:18
door it was terrible it was in 33 years
00:02:23
of being in this business is the most
00:02:25
violent thing I've ever seen
00:02:27
[Music]
00:02:32
it was an assault executed with brutal
00:02:35
military likee Precision who were these
00:02:38
people wielding
00:02:40
AK47s the police had no idea and the
00:02:43
murder of Officer Dale Claxton was only
00:02:47
the
00:02:49
beginning an APB was put out on the
00:02:51
water truck and the Cortez Police sprang
00:02:54
into action but deputy sheriff Jason
00:02:57
Bishop had no way of knowing the killers
00:02:59
had already stolen another vehicle to
00:03:01
continue their
00:03:03
assault I just happened to look in my
00:03:05
rearview mirror and I see this yellow
00:03:07
Fort pickup following me really
00:03:09
close that's when the shots started
00:03:12
coming
00:03:13
in I lost Consciousness and fell over
00:03:16
into the passenger seat and wrecked my
00:03:19
patrol
00:03:20
car for the next 5 minutes state and
00:03:23
local police were under siege
00:03:27
[Music]
00:03:30
when they came around the corner at me
00:03:32
it took me by surprise they went off the
00:03:33
road to go buy me and they were doing at
00:03:36
least 60
00:03:38
70 next the yellow pickup truck bore
00:03:41
down on detective Todd
00:03:51
M I was just overwhelmed with uh
00:03:55
automatic gunfire
00:04:00
my left arm
00:04:02
exploded Martin was hit twice once in
00:04:05
the arm once in the
00:04:07
leg Officer Jim Bob wies saw him go
00:04:11
down I lost so much
00:04:13
blood if it wasn't for Jim Bob I would
00:04:17
have died out
00:04:20
there nine law enforcement vehicles have
00:04:23
been riddled with 300 High caliber
00:04:25
rounds one officer was dead two were
00:04:28
hospitalized
00:04:31
it was as if they were fighting a a
00:04:35
military battle they were dressed
00:04:37
military fatigues full military gear and
00:04:41
uh as if they were going to
00:04:45
war an hour later the stolen pickup
00:04:47
truck was found in a ravine 41 Mi
00:04:50
Northwest of Cortez on the Colorado Utah
00:04:55
border it sparked the largest Manhunt in
00:04:58
Colorado history
00:05:00
mobilizing 62 police agencies where we
00:05:04
found the vehicle is some of the rugged
00:05:05
country in the state of Utah lots of
00:05:07
Indian ruins in it lots of Mines some
00:05:10
deep Canyons uh and just lots of uh
00:05:14
places to hide police identifi the
00:05:17
suspects in the shooting as 30-year-old
00:05:19
Alan Pon from nearby Dove Creek and
00:05:22
Durango residents Robert Mason and Jason
00:05:25
mcvine both 26
00:05:29
all three were known to have
00:05:31
anti-government views though they had no
00:05:34
criminal records the three men had once
00:05:36
tried to join a militia group but were
00:05:38
thrown out for being too
00:05:40
violent they had been going to that area
00:05:43
for the last four or five years had done
00:05:45
a lot of survivalist training in that
00:05:47
area had done a lot of backpacking
00:05:49
living off the land in that area it was
00:05:52
like them going to their
00:05:53
backyard a week later they struck again
00:05:57
this time they shot and wounded a dep
00:05:59
sheriff in Bluff Utah SWAT teams quickly
00:06:03
surrounded the
00:06:04
area a few hours later the body of
00:06:08
Robert Mason was discovered dead from a
00:06:11
self-inflicted gunshot
00:06:17
wound the reasons for these attacks are
00:06:20
still a
00:06:22
mystery for the residents of Cortez
00:06:24
Colorado the brutal murder of Dale
00:06:26
Claxton is beyond tragic this one event
00:06:31
has taken our innocence taken the
00:06:34
innocence and the the safety away from
00:06:37
all of
00:06:38
us the children that I teach still go
00:06:42
home wondering when these guys are going
00:06:44
to be caught and they don't feel
00:06:47
safe none of us feel
00:06:50
safe a year after the Unexplained
00:06:52
attacks the body of Allan pylon was
00:06:55
discovered by a group of hunters just
00:06:57
like Mason he had died from a
00:06:59
self-inflicted gunshot
00:07:02
wound as to the third terrorist Jason
00:07:05
mcvine he seemed to have vanished Into
00:07:08
Thin
00:07:11
Air
00:07:13
update there was no sign of Jason mcine
00:07:17
until a raner LED sheriffs to a
00:07:19
weathered skeleton and a cash of guns
00:07:22
ammunition and exposis in a remote area
00:07:25
of
00:07:26
Utah dental records reveal it was J said
00:07:30
MC The Manhunt was
00:07:34
over but the authorities still wonder
00:07:37
what made mcvine and his buddies stage
00:07:39
these violent lethal attacks we will
00:07:43
probably never
00:07:48
know next a clever con wand impersonates
00:07:52
a race car driver to get into the hearts
00:07:54
and pocketbooks of his
00:07:56
victims and later the dramatic C capture
00:07:59
of a man suspected of multiple
00:08:11
murders in the high octane world of
00:08:14
Formula 1 Auto Racing danger and
00:08:17
destruction wait around every
00:08:19
curve it can drink Fain fortune and the
00:08:22
kind of aeration usually reserved for
00:08:25
rock stars and
00:08:28
royalty big Time Racing has spawned its
00:08:30
own special breed of
00:08:34
criminal case in point alleged scam
00:08:37
artist Jonathan Kern he has reportedly
00:08:40
made a very profitable career of
00:08:42
impersonating a well-known Formula 1
00:08:45
race driver named Jonathan
00:08:48
Palmer the real Jonathan Palmer was a
00:08:51
medical doctor before he became a world
00:08:53
champion driver he is all too familiar
00:08:57
with Jonathan Kern
00:09:00
he had most at home wearing bace clothes
00:09:03
eating caviar and smoked salmon and
00:09:05
driving Mercedes-Benz sports cars and
00:09:06
being escorted by gorgeous women and as
00:09:09
he cannot do that through genuinely
00:09:12
earned income he he resorts to fraud to
00:09:14
achieve his desired
00:09:16
lifestyle we Kar has reportedly
00:09:19
crisscrossed Europe racking up bills for
00:09:21
designer clothes elegant restaurants and
00:09:24
five-star hotels all in the name of
00:09:27
Jonathan Palmer all
00:09:31
unpaid police say that Kar then brought
00:09:33
his masquerade to America Elizabeth jez
00:09:37
met him at a hotel in Miami Florida
00:09:40
hello
00:09:41
hi I'm Jonathan
00:09:44
Palmer there's a race car driver by that
00:09:47
name Jonathan Palmer that's me Elizabeth
00:09:50
who happened to know about car racing
00:09:52
had some initial dos wasn't your hair a
00:09:55
little
00:09:56
blunder it was blond yes you're right
00:09:59
and I asked a few more questions and I
00:10:01
said well what did you do before you
00:10:02
raced cars and he said I was a medical
00:10:05
doctor and I said that's right I knew
00:10:07
some background I said who did you race
00:10:09
for and he told me T which I knew was a
00:10:11
British team and I thought wow it really
00:10:13
is you
00:10:15
here
00:10:18
proof Kern's passport was the
00:10:23
Clincher so and Elizabeth wasn't the
00:10:26
only one impressed by Jonathan Kern a
00:10:28
car de dealer provided Kern with a
00:10:31
$78,000
00:10:33
Jaguar free of charge they dropped the
00:10:37
keys at the desk and they said this is
00:10:38
for Mr Palmer for his use while he's in
00:10:41
in America and please make sure that he
00:10:43
gets it and we always believed him and
00:10:45
that just made us more convinced that
00:10:47
everything was okay oh you're too sweet
00:10:50
for Elizabeth Jonathan Kern was almost
00:10:52
too good to be
00:10:54
true don't toy with me
00:10:57
Jonathan I couldn't understand
00:10:59
intellectually why he was interested in
00:11:00
me I'm Just a Nobody and I said to him
00:11:03
why are you interested in me and he told
00:11:05
me he just wanted a steady relationship
00:11:07
he didn't want the Jet Set life and he
00:11:10
convinced me over the next few days that
00:11:12
I was what he was looking
00:11:16
for Elizabeth was impressed by Kern's
00:11:19
International connections indeed
00:11:22
everyone at the hotel from bellhops to
00:11:24
the manager had been totally snowed by
00:11:27
Kern's performance
00:11:30
he just wo a web of intrigue around us
00:11:33
and managed to have a very nice holiday
00:11:35
at the hotel for 5 days and run up a
00:11:38
huge bill in the restaurant and have
00:11:40
bottles of champagne delivered to his
00:11:42
room and we always believed him despite
00:11:44
the fact that he was already having a
00:11:46
little bit of a problem with my front
00:11:47
desk about how he was going to pay his
00:11:49
bills excuse me David how are you this
00:11:51
even I'm fine we have some business to
00:11:53
in fact he never did pay Kar stiff the
00:11:56
hotel for about $3,000 thank you for
00:11:59
[Music]
00:12:03
eventually Kar Charmed his way into
00:12:05
Elizabeth's Connecticut home she still
00:12:07
believed he was Jonathan Palmer still
00:12:10
believed he had put his career on hold
00:12:12
to spend time with her come on inside
00:12:15
beautiful area but Kern's thoughts had
00:12:17
apparently turned to money Elizabeth's
00:12:21
money Elizabeth says that Kar wrote her
00:12:24
a personal check it was drawn on a bank
00:12:26
in Italy for 11 million l nearly
00:12:32
$88,000 at the time I was nervous about
00:12:35
it and the first question out of my
00:12:37
family and friends when I told him was
00:12:39
did you give them any money and I said
00:12:41
first I lied and I oh no no and then
00:12:43
once the check cleared I said see it was
00:12:45
fine yes I did give him some money but
00:12:47
now the check is cleared and and I have
00:12:49
the money back I've got a meeting
00:12:52
tonight during his stay with Elizabeth
00:12:54
Jonathan made frequent trips to
00:12:56
Manhattan he said they were business
00:12:58
trips
00:13:00
as usual he went in style now in a
00:13:04
$125,000 Mercedes lent to him by a local
00:13:07
dealer he also carried Elizabeth's ATM
00:13:10
card just in case of an
00:13:15
emergency and sure enough Jonathan had
00:13:18
an emergency you're not going to believe
00:13:20
this my wallet was
00:13:21
stolen once again Elizabeth put her own
00:13:24
money at kar's disposal you still have
00:13:27
my ATM card don't you
00:13:30
yeah Elizabeth never dreamed Jonathan
00:13:32
would use the card to drain her account
00:13:34
of cash I'm going to keep
00:13:37
you I didn't really check up on him I
00:13:40
could have gone through his things but I
00:13:42
didn't I just continued to try and
00:13:45
believe in
00:13:46
him I don't want to do this anymore Beth
00:13:49
you have to have patience eventually
00:13:51
Jonathan was spending more time in
00:13:53
Manhattan than with Elizabeth she had a
00:13:56
complete change of heart you'll have
00:13:58
your money on
00:14:01
day Jonathan cleared out the next day
00:14:05
suspicious Elizabeth began calling
00:14:07
numbers from her phone bill matching
00:14:09
them with names Jonathan had mentioned
00:14:12
do you know Jonathan Palmer the answers
00:14:14
came back the same the caller was
00:14:16
Jonathan Lake not Jonathan Palmer I mean
00:14:19
didn't he call you me I have your phone
00:14:20
number right here and that's when I knew
00:14:23
this hadn't been Jonathan Palmer that
00:14:25
was staying with
00:14:27
me call me when you get in I'll try now
00:14:30
I realized some of the numbers that I
00:14:31
called were other women he' been
00:14:33
Romancing other women while he was in
00:14:37
Manhattan I had been taken he hadn't
00:14:40
been in love with me he was just using
00:14:41
me I I just felt
00:14:44
awful there was one final insult nearly
00:14:49
a year after Elizabeth deposited the
00:14:51
check from karna the bank in Italy
00:14:54
reversed payment the check had bounced
00:14:57
after all police said say that Kern
00:14:59
swindled some
00:15:01
$115,000 Elizabeth jezek was forced into
00:15:06
bankruptcy Jonathan Kar has been charged
00:15:09
with forgery felony criminal
00:15:11
impersonation and Larsen he is 5' 10 in
00:15:15
tall and 180 lb though Kar is British he
00:15:20
is not the race car driver Jonathan
00:15:26
Palmer update
00:15:29
later in London Jonathan Kern allegedly
00:15:32
ConEd a well-known fashion executive out
00:15:34
of 10,000 British pound when she called
00:15:38
the police he'd fled once
00:15:41
again if you have any information about
00:15:44
Jonathan Kern please log on to our
00:15:46
website at unsolved.com
00:15:53
where you been it's none of your
00:15:55
business you know on a previous
00:15:57
broadcast an angry husband confronted
00:16:00
his estranged wife at her home you're
00:16:02
going to listen to
00:16:04
me Geraldine George ran next door for
00:16:07
help her ex Larry George then went on a
00:16:11
rampage a neighbor Janice Mar was shot
00:16:15
Point
00:16:16
Blank please stop Gerald deine could not
00:16:19
get
00:16:20
away Janice's boyfriend Ralph
00:16:24
Swain was shot in the back of the head
00:16:27
in a matter of second
00:16:29
Janice Morris and Ralph Swain had been
00:16:32
fatally wounded Geraldine George was
00:16:35
left paralyzed from the was down for
00:16:38
more than 6 years she lived with a
00:16:40
bitter knowledge that her husband was
00:16:43
still at
00:16:43
[Music]
00:16:46
large
00:16:48
update Wilmington
00:16:51
Delaware and Unsolved Mysteries viewers
00:16:54
spotted Larry George on the banks of a
00:16:56
local River the police moved
00:16:59
in the officers recounted their dramatic
00:17:02
meeting with Larry George for our
00:17:05
cameras this is where we first
00:17:06
encountered Larry George at right here
00:17:09
at this time a brief struggle ensued
00:17:11
right about here we all three fell to
00:17:13
the ground here we got back to our feet
00:17:16
still struggling and at that point we
00:17:18
just turned and threw L into the
00:17:21
water George attempted to flee down
00:17:24
river but backup units quickly cornered
00:17:27
him and he surrendered with without
00:17:29
further
00:17:30
struggle Larry George was convicted and
00:17:33
sentenced to death his appeals have all
00:17:36
failed and he awaits execution in an
00:17:39
Alabama
00:17:44
prison next how can a man who was struck
00:17:48
by lightning help solve a murder case
00:17:52
and later a young American Tourist who
00:17:54
was reported dead in Baja California
00:17:57
mysteriously appears in tiny Mexican
00:18:10
villages aen South
00:18:14
Carolina it was a blustery night with
00:18:17
severe thunderstorms sweeping through
00:18:19
the southeast danian Brinkley and his
00:18:22
wife Sandy were at home oh I got to call
00:18:25
Tommy see if you got that I'm going to
00:18:26
check on dinner
00:18:29
danion was on the phone with his best
00:18:30
friend Tom when the storm passed
00:18:32
directly
00:18:35
overhead lightning
00:18:39
flash at least
00:18:42
180,000 volts of electricity shot
00:18:45
through dian's body a jolt so powerful
00:18:48
it left his shoes welded to the floor oh
00:18:51
my God Dan I couldn't move I couldn't
00:18:54
scream I couldn't talk I didn't know
00:18:55
what had happened I was on fire and
00:18:57
burning and then all of a sudden I'm out
00:19:00
of my
00:19:03
body I saw Sandy checking me to see if I
00:19:06
was breathing and start to work on me
00:19:08
and pushing on my chest and clearing my
00:19:11
Airway Tommy heard the explosion and he
00:19:13
was on his way over he got there he was
00:19:16
a Corman in the Navy he wrapped me he
00:19:17
went to work on me he's trying to get my
00:19:19
heart started he's pushing he's
00:19:21
breathing in my mouth he's talking to me
00:19:24
come
00:19:25
on for all intents and purposes danan
00:19:28
Brinkley was clinically
00:19:31
dead he claims that he had what is now
00:19:34
known as a near-death
00:19:37
experience I start down this tunnel I
00:19:40
see what appears to be a form coming out
00:19:43
of this beautiful Misty
00:19:46
Blue then all of a sudden I not only
00:19:49
felt everything I'd ever done and saw
00:19:52
everything I'd ever done I became every
00:19:54
person that I had ever
00:19:56
encountered in his youth Dan was by his
00:19:59
own admission self-centered
00:20:01
mean-tempered nothing short of a bully
00:20:05
the pattern continued during a tour of
00:20:06
Duty in Southeast
00:20:08
Asia and now danion was forced to
00:20:12
confront those that he had victimized
00:20:14
through the
00:20:16
years I felt the pain and the anguish
00:20:19
and the anger and the frustration that I
00:20:21
had caused these people and you know
00:20:24
people don't realize that you judge
00:20:26
yourself when this happens you just
00:20:29
judge yourself and that's what I
00:20:33
did danion was rushed to the hospital in
00:20:36
the emergency room his breathing
00:20:39
faltered then stopped minutes later his
00:20:42
friend Tom Hall was told danion was
00:20:48
dead they had wheeled Dan into a little
00:20:51
dark room I have no idea what made me go
00:20:54
back in there I just had to see for
00:20:56
myself and I just felt like that he
00:20:59
wasn't gone I saw the sheet
00:21:02
moving I all of a sudden went from a
00:21:05
spiritual place in world back into this
00:21:07
place where I'm in a hospital I'm under
00:21:10
this sheet and I'm looking up at it I
00:21:13
can't move I can't talk I'm on fire
00:21:16
again doctor
00:21:19
nurse miraculously danian Brinkley
00:21:22
returned to life nearly 28 minutes after
00:21:26
he had been declared dead
00:21:29
Dr William said he's in pretty bad shape
00:21:31
the way it looks that the lightning went
00:21:33
down his back and I think it just
00:21:35
shattered his nerve
00:21:38
system after a week in the hospital Dian
00:21:42
was released he was hardly able to walk
00:21:45
or talk his eyes were so light sensitive
00:21:48
he had to protect them by wearing
00:21:49
welder's glasses at all
00:21:52
times and he began to experience Vivid
00:21:56
images of the future
00:21:59
I was partially paralyzed for 7 months
00:22:01
but the visions and things that had
00:22:03
happened in this now what we call the
00:22:05
near-death experience have stayed with
00:22:07
me longer and more coherently than
00:22:09
virtually anything that ever
00:22:11
happened danian claims that altogether
00:22:14
he witnessed
00:22:16
117 future occurrences including the
00:22:20
election of Ronald Reagan the collapse
00:22:22
of the Soviet Union and the Gulf War of
00:22:26
1991 danion later told his friend
00:22:28
friends about the visions and they
00:22:30
verified that he did indeed predict
00:22:32
events before they
00:22:38
happened danion first made started
00:22:40
making his predictions as uh as he was
00:22:43
convalescing he was talking about
00:22:45
Chernobyl and he was talking about the
00:22:47
food lines in Russia about their
00:22:49
starving and uh it was just a lot of
00:22:52
predictions that you know that I didn't
00:22:54
pay that much attention to him at the
00:22:56
time he' always talked about the Gulf
00:22:58
War and the collapse of Communism and
00:23:01
things like that but at the time you
00:23:03
didn't think that much about it but then
00:23:05
when it came about is when you really
00:23:06
stuck thinking about
00:23:08
it Danel now believes that his
00:23:11
near-death experience marked the birth
00:23:13
of his psychic
00:23:16
abilities he admits that in the months
00:23:18
just after the accident he was simply a
00:23:21
dazed and bewildered young man who had
00:23:23
undergone a dramatic transformation why
00:23:26
don't you just tell me about it talk
00:23:27
about crazy you being Dead all that's
00:23:29
just it Tommy I wouldn't did I was
00:23:33
really confused i' never heard of the
00:23:35
near-death experience and I literally
00:23:37
was driving people nuts cuz I wanted
00:23:39
somebody to tell me either it didn't
00:23:41
happen which I knew it did or please
00:23:43
explain it I've been astounded at the
00:23:45
number of people I've met who have had
00:23:48
such an
00:23:49
experience Dr Raymond Moody is one of
00:23:51
the country's most prominent Authorities
00:23:53
on near-death
00:23:55
experiences or perhaps someone here has
00:23:58
had a similar experience when I heard
00:24:00
his account it seemed very consistent
00:24:03
with what I had heard from many other
00:24:05
people it's something that happens to
00:24:07
quite a number of patients who get
00:24:09
resuscitated following cardiac arrest
00:24:11
and therefore for that reason doctors
00:24:14
need to know about this so that they can
00:24:15
reassure the patient that they're not
00:24:17
alone that in fact that this occurs
00:24:19
fairly
00:24:22
frequently in an attempt to verify
00:24:24
dian's psychic abilities we asked the
00:24:27
well-known Paris psychologist Dr William
00:24:29
R to conduct a series of
00:24:33
tests mind if I just see your hand
00:24:35
danion gave readings for eight people he
00:24:38
had never met before in several
00:24:41
instances he picked out details about
00:24:44
the lives of these individuals there
00:24:46
were facts that uh he could not have
00:24:50
known it was like you knew when to pull
00:24:52
out and that's recognized by your family
00:24:55
from the brief experiments we did this
00:24:57
time he is one of the more remarkable
00:25:00
psychics that I have worked with for
00:25:03
sure later dian's abilities were put to
00:25:06
the test he was asked to consult on a
00:25:09
brutal murder
00:25:11
case in Big Fork Montana John and Nancy
00:25:14
Bosco had been shot to death execution
00:25:17
style as they
00:25:19
slept the police investigation turned up
00:25:23
absolutely no leads 2 months later
00:25:26
John's mother Tony met met with Danon
00:25:29
Brinkley this is a slight little kid
00:25:32
with black hair this is someone who
00:25:35
knows John he knew the layout of this
00:25:37
house in the very early part of December
00:25:41
this little kid will be caught and he's
00:25:42
in a college Somewhere Out West I have
00:25:45
to say that I just shook my head and I
00:25:47
thought to myself uh I made a mistake in
00:25:49
coming down danion doesn't you know this
00:25:51
this isn't going to get me anywhere I
00:25:53
couldn't begin to make sense out of what
00:25:55
he was
00:25:56
saying but in incredibly danian Brinkley
00:26:00
was correct on all counts 18-year-old
00:26:03
John Shadow Clark was arrested in
00:26:05
December and later convicted just as
00:26:09
diyan predicted Clark had lived in the
00:26:11
murder house had known the Boscos and
00:26:14
was attending college in the
00:26:16
west danyon had apparently solved the
00:26:19
case through the power of his
00:26:23
mind this is new to me and sometimes
00:26:27
it's troublesome because I pick up
00:26:29
things that I don't want to know about
00:26:31
and if someone's intense around me I'm
00:26:33
perceiving it but and I try to I'm still
00:26:36
trying to figure out ways to turn it off
00:26:39
okay and at the same time ways to
00:26:41
perfect
00:26:42
it Joseph Shadow Clark was convicted of
00:26:45
the murders of John and Nancy bosow he
00:26:48
is now in Montana State Prison where he
00:26:50
is serving a sentence of
00:26:52
150 years danian Brinkley now spends
00:26:57
much of his time volunteering at
00:26:59
hospices and nursing homes doing fine
00:27:01
you have the flowers looking really
00:27:03
great this morning he believes his
00:27:05
near-death experience left him uniquely
00:27:08
qualified to counsel
00:27:13
others next Mickey Thompson was a legend
00:27:17
in the high-speed world of auto racing
00:27:20
he and his wife Trudy were beloved by
00:27:22
fans everywhere why would someone want
00:27:25
them killed
00:27:31
[Music]
00:27:38
California a place where people love
00:27:40
fast cars and high velocity Mickey
00:27:44
Thompson was a legend in the world of
00:27:46
auto
00:27:48
racing cars were Mickey's
00:27:50
life racing and redesigning them made
00:27:53
him famous and Wealthy among his many
00:27:57
Innovations
00:27:58
were the slingshot Dragsters his
00:28:01
homebuilt Challenger was the first car
00:28:03
to break the 400 mph M Mickey was also a
00:28:08
Pioneer in promoting off-road
00:28:13
racing a good description of my dad was
00:28:16
he was flat out all the time and and he
00:28:18
was pedal to the floor and he did that's
00:28:20
the way he spent his life he loved to go
00:28:23
past me he loved
00:28:25
racing I think the businesses were a way
00:28:29
to help him continue to
00:28:32
race Mickey's obsession with speed drove
00:28:35
him far sometimes too
00:28:38
far a speedboat accident paralyzed him
00:28:42
from the ways
00:28:43
down doctors said that he would never
00:28:46
walk
00:28:47
again with the support of his wife Trudy
00:28:50
he made an incredible recovery and
00:28:53
returned to business as usual I'm sorry
00:28:56
again but we' had some real ch daily
00:28:58
routine was just about twice as frantic
00:29:01
as anybody else they did not work an 8
00:29:03
hour day they worked at least a 16-hour
00:29:06
day Mickey developed an extremely
00:29:09
profitable Stadium Racing
00:29:11
Venture but this deal with business
00:29:14
partner Richard Goodwin went
00:29:17
sour it ended up in a nasty lawsuit and
00:29:20
Mickey said he had received that
00:29:25
threats he had called me on the phone
00:29:27
and he said sis I'm really concerned and
00:29:30
I say what's the matter Mick and he said
00:29:32
I'm afraid Goodman's going to hurt my
00:29:33
baby meaning his wife
00:29:38
Trudy Mickey and Trudy lived in Bradbery
00:29:41
California an affluent rural community
00:29:44
located near Los Angeles early one
00:29:47
morning the peaceful quiet was shattered
00:29:50
by the sound of gunfire
00:29:59
the shots came from Mickey Thompson's
00:30:01
home at the bottom of the driveway
00:30:04
Sheriff's found
00:30:05
Trudy she was dead 57 1033 requesting
00:30:10
backup a few yards away near the garage
00:30:13
Mickey Thompson was also found
00:30:18
dead you rolled up here was all the
00:30:20
jewelry and the body the way you found
00:30:21
it here yeah everything was all the same
00:30:23
when Trudy was killed she was wearing
00:30:26
over $70,000 worth of jewelry she and
00:30:29
her husband were carrying $4,000 in cash
00:30:33
none had been taken robbery was an
00:30:36
unlikely
00:30:38
motive police also learned that one of
00:30:40
the neighbors was a
00:30:43
witness well my wife and I were sleep in
00:30:46
bed it was about 6:00 in the
00:30:49
morning when we heard the shots we
00:30:51
literally jumped straight out of the bed
00:30:53
and I ran over to the window to see
00:30:55
where the shots were coming from there
00:30:57
was probably about 15 seconds of silence
00:31:00
and at that time we heard Mickey
00:31:02
screaming please don't hurt my wife
00:31:05
please don't hurt my
00:31:10
wife my belief when Trudy got in the van
00:31:14
and backed it out people that murdered
00:31:16
him were waiting in the
00:31:20
bush and micke he just didn't have a
00:31:22
chance he walked right into where they
00:31:25
were
00:31:28
when Mickey came out through the garage
00:31:29
he was suddenly confronted by two armed
00:31:31
gunmen uh one of the gunmen immediately
00:31:34
shot and immobilized Mickey while the
00:31:36
second G approached
00:31:38
Trudy the next thing we've heard is
00:31:40
another series of shots and silence
00:31:43
again and as Mickey laid helplessly on
00:31:46
the driveway he was forced to watch as
00:31:48
the second gunman shot his wife and
00:31:50
essentially he witnessed her
00:31:52
execution both gunmen then turned their
00:31:54
attention back towards Mickey and
00:31:57
executed him as well
00:31:59
well after the second series of shots I
00:32:02
saw two black men on 10-speed bikes
00:32:05
pedling as fast as they could to get out
00:32:08
of
00:32:09
here several neighborhood residents also
00:32:12
spotted the
00:32:13
men the two suspects were dressed in
00:32:16
jogging suits they were between 20 and
00:32:18
30 years of age and were approximately 6
00:32:21
ft tall police are certain that they
00:32:24
were hired to do the killings
00:32:28
I want to see this person or persons
00:32:32
brought to Justice in the very very
00:32:34
worst way and I'm going to do anything I
00:32:38
can with whatever it
00:32:43
takes
00:32:45
update after investigating the case for
00:32:48
13 years police finally arrested
00:32:51
Thompson's former business partner
00:32:53
Michael Goodwin and charged him with a
00:32:56
double murder we do do believe that Mr
00:32:58
Goodwin orchestrated the murders we
00:32:59
believe he planned the murders and we
00:33:01
believe that his motive was based on uh
00:33:04
a personal Vendetta uh along with
00:33:06
financial
00:33:07
gain Goodwin's lawyer however says he
00:33:11
was falsely accused there is simply no
00:33:14
evidence nor has there ever been that
00:33:15
implicates Mike good one of the murders
00:33:18
the key innuendo or motive has always
00:33:20
been the alleged civil dispute between
00:33:22
Mike Goodwin and Mickey Thompson Mike
00:33:24
negotiated a settlement with Mickey
00:33:26
Thompson there are third party Witnesses
00:33:27
to confirm
00:33:29
that however an eyewitness came forward
00:33:32
and said Goodman was seen sitting in a
00:33:35
station wagon in the Thompson
00:33:36
neighborhood spying on them with
00:33:39
binoculars several days before the
00:33:45
murders Michael Goodwin pled not guilty
00:33:48
however the jury didn't buy his story at
00:33:52
his trial they heard that Goodwin had
00:33:53
bragged that he would quote have Mickey
00:33:56
Thompson wasted further he had left the
00:33:59
country right after the
00:34:02
murder Michael Goodman was convicted and
00:34:05
sentenced to two consecutive life
00:34:07
sentences without the possibility of
00:34:11
parole the police are still trying to
00:34:13
identify and prosecute the two gunmen a
00:34:17
$1 million reward is being offered in
00:34:20
this
00:34:22
case this is a sketch showing what the
00:34:25
gunman might look like today
00:34:30
if you have any information that could
00:34:31
help please log on to our website at
00:34:34
unsolved.com
00:34:40
next a missing person's case turns into
00:34:44
a
00:34:54
tragedy the Baja California peninsula
00:34:57
300 miles south of San
00:35:01
Diego a young American disoriented
00:35:04
pennil and obviously out of place
00:35:07
wandered into the Mexican Village of
00:35:09
Colonia Vicente Guerero he lingered for
00:35:13
months living on handout depending on
00:35:16
the charity of
00:35:18
strangers for one California couple
00:35:21
tales of the young stranger were a ray
00:35:24
of Hope in the search for their
00:35:26
34-year-old
00:35:28
son Gordon Collins had been missing for
00:35:34
months I know he's alive I can't get on
00:35:37
with my business I can't get on with
00:35:39
nothing until uh you know we're get him
00:35:43
home Gordon was vacationing with his
00:35:46
girlfriend Anastasia seals and another
00:35:49
couple near Santa Rosalia a popular deep
00:35:52
sea fishing port near the middle of the
00:35:54
Baja
00:35:56
Peninsula 4 days after they arrived the
00:35:59
group secured a boat at a local hotel
00:36:02
Gordon's friend Wayne Schwarz had fished
00:36:04
off the Baja Coast many
00:36:08
times as the group left port a fisherman
00:36:10
on his way in warned them a storm was
00:36:24
rowing
00:36:26
dangers dangers several hours later a
00:36:29
fierce storm would indeed hit the area
00:36:32
Gordon Collins and his friends never
00:36:37
returned the next day a hotel employee
00:36:40
was sent out to look for them the search
00:36:44
ended 28 Mi
00:36:47
[Music]
00:36:50
Northeast Gordon's girlfriend Anastasia
00:36:53
seals and Wayne Schwarz were dead
00:36:59
but Gordon and Wayne's wife Arlene
00:37:02
Burlington were nowhere to be
00:37:06
found the bodies and all the
00:37:08
paraphernalia out of the boat was all
00:37:10
within one square mile of each other cuz
00:37:13
I talked to the fellow that fish the
00:37:14
bodies out and uh and so and we say Hey
00:37:19
where's the other two jackets where's
00:37:21
the other two
00:37:23
people for 3 Days the United States
00:37:27
Coast Guard searched a
00:37:28
250m
00:37:31
area nothing it seemed obvious that
00:37:34
Gordon and Arlene had also
00:37:40
perished in time Gordon and Arlene's
00:37:43
parents were asked to sign death
00:37:45
certificates however reports that Gordon
00:37:48
was still alive had already begun to
00:37:50
filter across the border some thought
00:37:52
that he might be suffering from Amnesia
00:37:55
his parents went South to Mex Meo to
00:37:58
find
00:38:03
out we got Flyers made of and two
00:38:06
Mexican fishermen come running up to us
00:38:09
and kept pointing to the
00:38:11
flyer he said they seen a guy that come
00:38:14
out of the water just had shorts he was
00:38:16
all cut up waiting there at trying to
00:38:18
get on the bus
00:38:20
station I was very
00:38:23
excited thing started fitting together
00:38:25
because this is where the accident
00:38:27
happened
00:38:27
uh they found the bodies uh just a mile
00:38:30
and a half off of this Shore it's got to
00:38:32
be
00:38:35
gording around the same time Gordon was
00:38:38
also spotted on a nearby beach by a man
00:38:41
named Jose
00:38:42
Peralta can I have your blanket okay can
00:38:46
I have your blanket I'm cold Jose said
00:38:49
that gy said he was waiting for friends
00:38:51
he went fishing with and could he have
00:38:54
Jose's blanket cuz he was going to sleep
00:38:56
on the beach there at Cabo and wait for
00:38:58
his friends
00:39:04
okay on one trip we headed toward laas
00:39:08
and we stopped at a few of these taco
00:39:10
places and they says yeah seen him an
00:39:13
hour ago so we went on down for him
00:39:15
probably another 3 or 4 miles we stopped
00:39:17
again the guy said yeah we we' seen him
00:39:20
about 30 minutes ago so we finally got
00:39:22
right into town and it says yeah within
00:39:25
5 minutes
00:39:27
and then they seen us all seen us
00:39:30
together and I don't know what happened
00:39:32
but everybody just clammed up we
00:39:33
couldn't get no we couldn't get no uh no
00:39:36
more
00:39:37
information over the next 3 months
00:39:40
Gordon Collins was spotted at least 50
00:39:43
times in seven different locations all
00:39:46
in the area of laaz and Cabo San Lucas
00:39:50
at the southern end of the Baja
00:39:52
Peninsula Gordon's parents hired Bill
00:39:55
Garcia a private in investigator who
00:39:58
alerted newspapers in
00:40:00
Baja after the Articles ran Garcia
00:40:03
received several calls from a village
00:40:06
300 mil south of
00:40:10
Tijana it was four or five months here
00:40:13
in town he never worked here never work
00:40:16
and he only hang around here in town he
00:40:18
was walking all the time and almost in
00:40:21
the town everybody knows him we've shown
00:40:24
them pictures and everyone recognizes
00:40:26
him and they're positive that it's him
00:40:29
the people that have talked to him know
00:40:31
some things about Gordon and feel
00:40:34
confident that he is
00:40:36
there the man identified as Gordon was
00:40:39
eventually arrested for stealing food a
00:40:42
local sheriff brought in James Hatfield
00:40:45
an American living in the village to
00:40:47
translate my name's James what's
00:40:50
yours hi I'm I'm Gordon there's no doubt
00:40:54
in my mind it's Gordon because when we
00:40:56
met in jail I introduced myself to him
00:40:59
and he gave me his name Gordon and then
00:41:02
when the flyer came out it was right
00:41:03
there on the flyer Gordon and you can't
00:41:05
get the two pictures mixed up it's the
00:41:09
same he moved on shortly before we were
00:41:11
able to get to that area and we haven't
00:41:14
been able to find where he's gone from
00:41:17
there over the next year sporadic
00:41:20
sightings of Gordon continued the US
00:41:23
Consulate has officially reversed its
00:41:25
position and no longer presumes that
00:41:27
Gordon Collins is
00:41:32
dead you just can't up and give up
00:41:35
because it's your
00:41:36
son I know it keeps me driving and keeps
00:41:39
me going and I want to get him
00:41:41
home Gordon Collins is 6'2 in tall and
00:41:45
has light hair and blue
00:41:48
eyes based on eyewitness descriptions a
00:41:51
police artist made this sketch of the
00:41:53
man thought to be Gordon Collins
00:41:58
if you have any information that might
00:42:00
help find him please log on to our
00:42:02
website at unsolved.com
00:42:04
[Music]
00:42:22
[Music]
00:42:36
[Music]

Badges

This episode stands out for the following:

  • 85
    Most heartbreaking
  • 80
    Most dramatic
  • 75
    Most shocking
  • 70
    Most emotional

Episode Highlights

  • The Tragic Murder of Officer Dale Claxton
    Officer Dale Claxton was killed in a brutal attack, marking the start of a violent spree.
    “It was the most violent thing I’ve ever seen.”
    @ 02m 25s
    March 09, 2017
  • The Con Artist Jonathan Kern
    Jonathan Kern impersonated a race car driver, swindling victims out of thousands.
    “I just felt awful.”
    @ 14m 41s
    March 09, 2017
  • Danion Brinkley's Near-Death Experience
    After being struck by lightning, Danion Brinkley claims to have had a transformative near-death experience.
    “I was clinically dead for nearly 28 minutes.”
    @ 19m 31s
    March 09, 2017
  • Danian Brinkley's Predictions
    Danian Brinkley correctly predicted the arrest of John Shadow Clark in a murder case.
    “He was correct on all counts.”
    @ 26m 06s
    March 09, 2017
  • Mickey Thompson's Tragic Death
    Auto racing legend Mickey Thompson and his wife Trudy were murdered in their home.
    “Please don't hurt my wife!”
    @ 31m 02s
    March 09, 2017
  • Gordon Collins' Mysterious Disappearance
    Gordon Collins went missing in Baja California, leading to a year of sporadic sightings.
    “I know he's alive.”
    @ 35m 34s
    March 09, 2017

Episode Quotes

  • This one event has taken our innocence.
    Unsolved Mysteries with Dennis Farina - Season 1, Episode 1 - Full Episode
  • I had been taken.
    Unsolved Mysteries with Dennis Farina - Season 1, Episode 1 - Full Episode
  • I was on fire and burning.
    Unsolved Mysteries with Dennis Farina - Season 1, Episode 1 - Full Episode
  • I made a mistake in coming down.
    Unsolved Mysteries with Dennis Farina - Season 1, Episode 1 - Full Episode
  • Please don't hurt my wife!
    Unsolved Mysteries with Dennis Farina - Season 1, Episode 1 - Full Episode
  • You just can't up and give up because it's your son.
    Unsolved Mysteries with Dennis Farina - Season 1, Episode 1 - Full Episode

Key Moments

  • Con Artist08:37
  • Lightning Strike18:39
  • Near-Death Experience19:31
  • Murder Mystery25:11
  • Auto Racing Legend27:13
  • Tragic Murder29:50
  • Missing Person34:44
  • Hope and Despair41:35

Words per Minute Over Time

Vibes Breakdown

Related Episodes

Unsolved Mysteries with Dennis Farina - Season 3, Episode 19
March 09, 2017
Captions not detected. You can watch the video, but not search it. If you think this is an error, contact support.
42:55
Unsolved Mysteries with Dennis Farina - Season 3, Episode 19
Unsolved Mysteries with Dennis Farina - Season 2, Episode 17
March 09, 2017
Captions not detected. You can watch the video, but not search it. If you think this is an error, contact support.
42:54
Unsolved Mysteries with Dennis Farina - Season 2, Episode 17
Unsolved Mysteries with Dennis Farina - Season 7, Episode 4 - Updated Full Episode
July 18, 2022
Captions not detected. You can watch the video, but not search it. If you think this is an error, contact support.
42:17
Unsolved Mysteries with Dennis Farina - Season 7, Episode 4 - Updated Full Episode
Unsolved Mysteries with Dennis Farina - Season 6, Episode 13
March 09, 2017
Captions not detected. You can watch the video, but not search it. If you think this is an error, contact support.
42:54
Unsolved Mysteries with Dennis Farina - Season 6, Episode 13
Unsolved Mysteries with Dennis Farina - Season 2, Episode 8 - Updated Full Episode
July 26, 2021
Captions not detected. You can watch the video, but not search it. If you think this is an error, contact support.
42:51
Unsolved Mysteries with Dennis Farina - Season 2, Episode 8 - Updated Full Episode
Unsolved Mysteries with Dennis Farina - Season 1, Episode 13 - Full Episode
March 09, 2017
Captions not detected. You can watch the video, but not search it. If you think this is an error, contact support.
42:53
Unsolved Mysteries with Dennis Farina - Season 1, Episode 13 - Full Episode
Unsolved Mysteries with Dennis Farina - Season 3, Episode 21
March 09, 2017
Captions not detected. You can watch the video, but not search it. If you think this is an error, contact support.
42:55
Unsolved Mysteries with Dennis Farina - Season 3, Episode 21
Unsolved Mysteries with Dennis Farina - Season 3, Episode 11
March 09, 2017
Captions not detected. You can watch the video, but not search it. If you think this is an error, contact support.
42:54
Unsolved Mysteries with Dennis Farina - Season 3, Episode 11
Unsolved Mysteries with Dennis Farina - Season 2, Episode 2 - Updated Full Episode
March 16, 2022
Captions not detected. You can watch the video, but not search it. If you think this is an error, contact support.
43:07
Unsolved Mysteries with Dennis Farina - Season 2, Episode 2 - Updated Full Episode
Unsolved Mysteries with Dennis Farina - Season 2, Episode 15
March 09, 2017
Captions not detected. You can watch the video, but not search it. If you think this is an error, contact support.
42:53
Unsolved Mysteries with Dennis Farina - Season 2, Episode 15
Unsolved Mysteries with Dennis Farina - Season 5, Episode 22
March 09, 2017
Captions not detected. You can watch the video, but not search it. If you think this is an error, contact support.
42:49
Unsolved Mysteries with Dennis Farina - Season 5, Episode 22
Unsolved Mysteries with Dennis Farina - Season 1, Episode 15 - Full Episode
March 09, 2017
Captions not detected. You can watch the video, but not search it. If you think this is an error, contact support.
42:49
Unsolved Mysteries with Dennis Farina - Season 1, Episode 15 - Full Episode