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Unsolved Mysteries with Dennis Farina - Season 2, Episode 6

March 09, 2017 / 42:51

This episode of Unsolved Mysteries covers three main stories: the murder of Eric Tamaso in Hood River, Oregon, the legend of buried treasure in Skeleton Canyon, and a violent bank robbery in West Dallas, Wisconsin.

The first story details the mysterious death of Eric Tamaso, who was initially thought to have died from natural causes. However, an autopsy revealed he had been shot three times. Key figures include Don Dixon, who discovered the body, and Sheriff Joe Wampler, who faced scrutiny for burning evidence. The investigation points to several suspects, including Eric's friend Eric Smith and Don Dixon himself.

The second story focuses on the legend of a buried treasure in Skeleton Canyon, Arizona. The tale involves a gang of Mexican smugglers ambushed by Curly Bill's gang over a fortune in gold and jewels. Treasure hunters continue to search for the rumored riches, with varying opinions on its existence.

The final segment recounts a bank robbery in West Dallas, where armed robbers Terry Lee Connor and Joseph Dockerty held a family hostage while stealing nearly a million dollars. Their criminal history includes a violent escape from federal custody, leading to their eventual capture after a nationwide manhunt.

This episode presents a mix of unsolved mysteries and historical crime stories, highlighting the intrigue surrounding each case.

TL;DR

A murder investigation, a treasure legend, and a violent bank robbery unfold in this episode of Unsolved Mysteries.

Episode

42:51
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[Music]
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next on Unsolved Mysteries a man is
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found dead apparently from natural
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causes but then an odd Topsy reveals
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he'd been
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murdered Wild West Outlaws battle over a
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Fortune of gold and jewels is the
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treasure buried here in skeleton Canyon
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a bank president and his family are
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taken hostage by robbers who make off
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with close to a million
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and it was a terrifying case of home
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invasion three people are left dead and
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a killer is on the
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loose these are stories you won't want
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to miss I'm Dennis finina and this is
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Unsolved Mysteries
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[Music]
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[Music]
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[Music]
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Hood River
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Oregon Eric tamaso and Diana Anderson
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had been just friends for years and then
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they decided to take it to the next
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level it was just kind of checking each
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other out and seeing if maybe this is
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someone that I would like to spend more
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time with and I think it was the same
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for both of us what do you do for fun
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golf late in the evening the date seemed
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to be going very well until the couple
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heard some mysterious tapping noises
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outside what was that then
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someone was at the front
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door they heard the sound of footsteps
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running away but they didn't see
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anyone it was not funny at that time of
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night when I have to get in my car and
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drive home by
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myself this would be the first and last
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date Diana Anderson would ever have with
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Eric
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amasu Eric's home was located in a
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remote area outside of
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town a week after Eric's date with Diana
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Don Dixon a friend and business
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consultant went to Eric's house to check
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on
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him hey
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Eric Eric it's done you home Dixon says
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that for several days he had been
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getting phone calls from Eric's friends
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who also had not been able to reach
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him Eric you
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home St Dixon claims he he used the key
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Eric had given him to get in through a
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back door he was hit by a foul smell
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Eric it was an odor that I'd never
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smelled
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before my initial Hope was that this was
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the garbage that I had seen left
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[Music]
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out there was no question in my mind
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that he was
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dead so I set a prayer I went
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downstairs and I called 911 and asked
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for
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assistance when I first walked in it
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appeared to me that we were dealing with
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an unintended
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death a medical problem or you know a
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heart attack uh those kind of things
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there was no sign of trauma that we
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could see right off nothing to can
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indicate that there was any kind of Foul
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Play
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as Eric Tomaso's body was being removed
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from his house Hood River County Sheriff
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Joe Wampler approached Don Dixon with a
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strange request does uh Eric have a burn
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pile around here and he said we've
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looked for a gun we've looked for bullet
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holes we've looked for shells to spare
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the family grief and discomfort we're
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going to bring the bedding out and we
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want you to burn it piece of Earth over
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there I could burn it there and I said
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if it would help the family I would be
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happy to to do what I I can to
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[Music]
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assist the following morning Dixon Set
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Fire to the soil bedding from Eric's
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room when he was done there was nothing
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left but a metal frame and a pile of
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Ashes the next day during Eric's autopsy
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investigators were shocked to learn that
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three small caliber bullets were found
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lodged in Eric's head what at first
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seemed like a natural death was now a
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homicide
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investigation the investigation was not
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off to a good start Eric tamaso didn't
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seem to have any enemies so no one had
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assumed Foul Play The decomposition of
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the body had disguised the exact cause
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of his death and the most important
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piece of evidence the bed had gone up in
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smoke
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based on the lack of evidence that this
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was going to turn into a criminal case
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it was my decision to burn the bed
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because of the family might appreciate
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not having to go through the trauma of
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viewing the horrid things that were left
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behind but could the sheriff had had a
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more personal Sinister motive for
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destroying the evidence a possible
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answer may have come up in a
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conversation Don Dixon said he had with
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Eric regarding a new romantic
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relationship there's this uh Polynesian
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woman I've been seeing a little bit this
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Polynesian woman described as older than
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he was and the Rumor Mill has that the
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sheriff's wife is Polynesian and older
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than Eric but that could be purely
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coincidental I've heard a rumor that my
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wife was having an affair uh with uh Mr
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Tommy
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ASU and out of retaliation for that then
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I went up there and did these things
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even went to the the trouble of
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destroying the evidence burning the bed
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and all that stuff all I can say is
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they're looking in the wrong direction
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if Sheriff Wampler had nothing to do
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with the murder then who
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[Music]
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did a second potential suspect is Eric
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Smith Eric Tomaso's lifelong
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friend what have we here there's two of
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us involved here that it's just not you
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Don Dixon says that he overheard an in
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argument between the two Erics just a
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few days before the murder he and Eric
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Smith had been in business together and
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Eric tomasu felt that Eric was pocketing
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money oh what's all these expenditures
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you know it's supposed to go into the
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business and here you're going out and
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that he owed him between 50 and
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$60,000 hey Eric is everything okay
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according to Dixon Eric Tomaso was quite
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upset after the AR what he want me to do
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just eat the $56,000 I asked him if he
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was okay if everything was all right he
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said that's son of a [ __ ] and got into
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his car and that's the last words that I
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heard from Eric
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tomasu I can tell you flat out for a
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fact Eric and I did not have an argument
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Eric didn't owe me money I didn't owe
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him
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money Dawn lives in a fantasy
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world Eric tomasu and Eric Smith did
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have a side business together selling
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used cars but police believe that there
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was much less money involved than Don
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Dixon had for you when I checked into
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the business dealings with Eric Smith
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and Eric Tommy yatu we found out they
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both invested the same amount of money
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which was probably $115,000 to start
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this business not 50 or 60,000 and it
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kind of went downhill and and then they
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had to go out of
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business so who else had a reason to
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kill Eric
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taso potential suspect number three Don
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Dixon the man who discovered the body
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[Music]
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it was Don Dixon who notified Eric's
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sister of her brother's death just
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minutes after he discovered his
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body well I came out to his house I
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found Eric and he's dead look she
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remembers that what Don said next was
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very strange he said it didn't look like
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there was any Foul Play and it also
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appeared that there weren't any Exit
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Wounds and I said what are you what are
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Exit Wounds what are you talking about
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Exit Wounds like from a bullet I said
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said what why would there be gunshot
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wounds well I I clearly looked closely
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at the body to try and see if if he had
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shot himself I mean because that was one
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of my First Reactions was it was it was
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suicide um he had been very depressed um
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and I had looked closely because of that
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I mean I honestly believe that a
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logical reason Eric was dead in bed was
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suicide
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with three bullets lodged in his head
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Eric's death was clearly not
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[Music]
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suicide did one of these three men
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murder Eric tamaso or could someone else
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have pulled the
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trigger not again in one final twist
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Diana Anderson says that when she and
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Eric heard the strange noises outside
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they went to investigate and they found
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a single
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footprint could that clue have
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identified Eric's
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killer investigators will never know
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heavy rains washed it away days
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later I don't know if the events on
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Saturday night had anything to do with
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Eric's murder or if it was just
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coincidence I think it's a
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possibility but I don't
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know did the sheriff deliberately
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destroy evidence in the case I did not
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have anything to do with the death with
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the death of Eric tamasu now could Eric
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Smith have wanted Eric tamasu dead Eric
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was my best friend I mean he was the
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best man at my wedding he was like my
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brother did Don Dixon tell the truth
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about his connection to the murder I
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have no way of knowing who was involved
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with Eric Tam yasu's death the only ones
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that I know that didn't do it are my
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wife and myself other than that
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everybody else in my mind is suspect
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all the suspects in this case passed
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polygraph tests arranged by the Hood
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River County Sheriff's Office except Don
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Dixon Dixon eventually took an
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independently administered polygraph the
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sheriff's department says the results
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were
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inconclusive someone in Hood River has
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gotten away with
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[Music]
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murder if you have any information in
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this case please log on unsolved.com
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coming up a wild west Ambush entails of
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a multi-million dollar buried treasure
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but first a young computer wizard packs
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into the pentagon's secret computer
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network Los Angeles
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California Kevin pson got his first
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computer on his 16th birthday it turns
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out that pson was a natural computer whz
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and it wasn't long before he was hacking
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into computer networks using the Alias
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dark
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Dante pson uncovered a telephone number
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which gave him access to a restricted
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computer network funded by the
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Pentagon pson managed to hack into a
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computer that held sensitive documents
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on Military research being conducted at
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the University of California at
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brookley the University became aware of
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dark Dante's visits when one day pson
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accidentally logged on using his real
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[Music]
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name Dan would you just put that in my
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car please well you taking my computer
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the Los Angeles da confiscated pson
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computer because of his age he wasn't
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charged but he was warned that his
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computer activities were illegal or
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anything but that warning didn't stop
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Kevin P your Bud's going to
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jail 4 years later in Northern
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California the owners of a storage
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facility opened up a unit on which the
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rent hadn't been
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[Music]
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paid W the locker contained what looked
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like stolen Telephone Company equipment
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the owners called the police we found a
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storage locker that contained pieces of
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electronic equipment payones computer
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printouts including the print out of the
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non-published number of the Soviet
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Embassy San Francisco that's not the
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type of equipment or material that one
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would buy at a swap meet or find in a
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dumpster it was quite obviously stolen
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property the storage unit had been
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rented to Kevin pson who was now 21
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years
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old when police searched his apartment
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they found a wiretapping facility in a
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spare
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bedroom what are you doing with all this
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stuff
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Kevin I don't know Happ the equipment in
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the switch room allowed Mr pulson not
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only to enter computer databases ours
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and others but also gave him the ability
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to monitor telephone conversations
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without the parties uh to the
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conversation being aware um that they
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were being
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monitored how about the test set over
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there with f lettery on it connected to
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poon's computer was an unauthorized test
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set which can be used to tap into
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private phone lines I know I got that
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from a buddy of mine only the telephone
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company and law enforcement officials
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are allowed to use test
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[Music]
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sets but the Smoking Gun was a series of
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photographs pson had taken of himself
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breaking into a telephone switching
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trailer and using the equipment
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inside it was time to bring in the
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FBI we did determined that the acts that
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pson was involved in had escalated we
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found evidence that pson had penetrated
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the United States government computer
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and had transferred the passwords of
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that computer via electronic mail to
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other
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individuals investigators found out that
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someone matching pulson description had
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illegally entered several Northern
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California telephone facilities using a
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fake ID hi can I help you yeah in the
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menow Park office I'm here to check out
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the ESS uh the ESS equipment is up on
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the second
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floor once inside the Intruder found
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telephone numbers that he could use to
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hack into the telephone company's
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computer
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system he had also stolen manuals
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switching equipment and a test set like
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the one found in Pen's
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apartment using the stolen equipment
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pson had allegedly infiltrated US
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military computer Transmissions to
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obtain classified Army
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information authorities believe he also
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obtained information about the US
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government's investigation of former
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Philippine president Ferdinand
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Marcus the FBI suspected that pson might
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have been engaging in
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Espionage after a 2-year investigation a
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19c count indictment was handed down
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against Kevin pson and two fellow
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hackers they were charged with
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conspiracy Computer Fraud wiretapping
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embezzlement and theft of public
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property and Records the two other men
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were arrested but pson
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disappeared
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update shortly after this story aired
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the FBI received information that Kevin
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pson was living near Los
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Angeles our San Francisco office advised
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us that pson had some acquaintances in
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the Los Angeles area and we went out and
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interviewed those acquaintances and one
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of them advised us that he had been seen
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in the not too distant past at Hughes
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Market we then went out and interviewed
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all the employees at Hughes market and
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displayed his
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photograph the FBI informed me that
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Kevin pson had been seen at the van IU's
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Market at about 10: or 10:30 in the
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evening I decided to surveil the market
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thinking Kevin may show up
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again at about 10 minutes till midnight
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Kevin pson arrived drove up and parked
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immediately in front of the
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market once Kevin was in the store I
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took a position near the front door and
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asked the security guard to go find the
00:17:57
evening manager so I could tell him that
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Kevin pson was in the
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store but as pson was checking out and
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about to leave the store he was grabbed
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by two
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employees
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security a security guard escorted pson
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to a store room where he was held until
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FBI agents arrived and placed him under
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arrest Kevin pson pleaded guilty to
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seven counts of male wire and Computer
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Fraud money laundering and obstruction
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of justice he was sentenced to 51 months
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in prison and ordered to pay
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$56,000 in
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restitution when Kevin was released from
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prison he was also given 5 years
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[Music]
00:18:49
probation after prison Kevin pson
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reinvented himself as a journalist and
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put his criminal past behind him he
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wrote a computer script capable of
00:18:59
searching the membership of Myspace for
00:19:02
sex offenders he ultimately confirmed
00:19:04
the identity of more than 700 sex
00:19:07
offenders who had Myspace
00:19:12
profiles next unsolved mystery searches
00:19:15
for buried treasure in a place called
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skeleton Canyon and later a pair of
00:19:22
violent criminals take a bank resident
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and his family hostage
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along Arizona's eastern border is a
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jagged Ravine called skeleton
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Canyon more than a 100 years ago a gang
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of Mexican smugglers were ambushed and
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red within the Steep Canyon
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walls some say the take from that
00:19:51
robbery was buried in this area an
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Undiscovered treasure worth millions
00:20:01
for years treasure Hunters have searched
00:20:03
in skeleton Canyon they've turned up
00:20:05
bleach bones and old Mexican coins but
00:20:08
no treasure not yet anyway so is there
00:20:12
really a buried treasure in skeleton
00:20:15
Canyon well it all depends on who you
00:20:20
ask it's a known fact that it's a real
00:20:24
treasure this is one of the treasures
00:20:26
it's absolutely real real no I don't
00:20:29
believe that there is a uh skeleton
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Canyon treasure waiting out there to be
00:20:35
found the legend of the skeleton Canyon
00:20:38
treasure starts in a small Mexican
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Village Jim Hughes a member of Arizona's
00:20:45
Infamous curly bille grous gang learned
00:20:47
that Mexican Bandits looted the town of
00:20:50
Monteray
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Mexico we done they were planning to
00:20:56
smuggle the fortune into the in States
00:20:59
through skeleton
00:21:05
Canyon Hughes was able to infiltrate him
00:21:08
because he spoke uh fluent Spanish and
00:21:11
he found out that the gang was coming
00:21:13
back through Skelton
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Canyon the Myriad of books and treasure
00:21:19
magazines reported the treasure to be
00:21:21
worth anywhere from $2.5 million all the
00:21:25
way and I've seen reports of it being
00:21:27
worth up to 8
00:21:31
million Hughes rode back to Arizona and
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made plans with curly Bill bres to
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Ambush the Mexican
00:21:42
[Music]
00:21:50
gang the men of the Rocks shot the
00:21:52
Mexicans off their mouths and the coins
00:21:55
and the Contraband were being scattered
00:21:57
all over the canyon in order to stop the
00:22:00
mules from scattering and taking the
00:22:02
loot with them the Curly Bill br's gang
00:22:05
was shooting the
00:22:07
mules The Outlaws now had their treasure
00:22:10
but without mules they had no way of
00:22:13
moving it out of the
00:22:16
canyon part of the loot was divided up
00:22:18
on the spot the rest was buried to be
00:22:21
picked up later but two members of the
00:22:24
gang had other
00:22:26
plans zwing hunt and Billy grounds were
00:22:29
friends and they decided that while the
00:22:32
rest of the gang was out in the local
00:22:33
bars spending their money they would
00:22:35
double cross the gang and come back into
00:22:37
the
00:22:39
canyon according to Legend uh they were
00:22:42
able to find a Mexican Teamster talked
00:22:44
him into bringing his team and his
00:22:47
horses into skeleton Canyon and removing
00:22:49
the treasure and of course he was later
00:22:51
killed because they wanted to keep the
00:22:53
new hiding place as a
00:22:56
secret I feel very sure my own mind that
00:22:59
it's very likely that the treasure is
00:23:01
still buried within the vicinity of uh
00:23:03
Skelton Canyon probably no more than 30
00:23:05
mil
00:23:07
away zwing hunt and Billy grounds hid in
00:23:11
a desert cave where they lived for close
00:23:13
to 4
00:23:15
months during this period Billy grounds
00:23:18
wrote a number of letters to his sister
00:23:20
Maggie in San Antonio Billy wanted her
00:23:23
to know where the treasure was hidden in
00:23:25
case anything happened to him
00:23:30
Billy would venture out once a week to
00:23:32
give the letters to a passing stage
00:23:34
coach
00:23:35
get yeah you
00:23:38
[Music]
00:23:46
bet treasure hunter Fern haml claims
00:23:49
that he's seen the nine
00:23:52
letters one of the letters he's writing
00:23:55
to his sister he said there's a cave at
00:23:57
the mouth of the the canyon I found that
00:24:00
cave and it goes back 80
00:24:04
ft and in one of things in the letter it
00:24:07
said from our Lookout you can see the uh
00:24:10
Turf growing back over where we buried
00:24:13
the treasure down in the valley
00:24:16
there I have found all the clues that
00:24:19
there is in the letters every one of
00:24:21
them everything is there so I know the
00:24:23
treasure is I'm near where it's at it's
00:24:27
there Billy grounds who is supposed to
00:24:30
have written the letters was a
00:24:32
19-year-old Texas Cowboy rustler type
00:24:36
it's unlikely to me that he would have
00:24:38
been writing home detailed letters about
00:24:41
hey we rob these Mexicans and buried
00:24:44
this huge treasure here's how to find
00:24:48
it Maggie was Billy ground's sister and
00:24:51
she her and a man had spent 2 years
00:24:55
living in a cave out there looking for
00:24:57
this treasure
00:24:59
and we found this vase in a cave it says
00:25:02
Maggie on 1885 World's Fair so I know
00:25:06
that was Billy gr's sister that was
00:25:09
there looking for this
00:25:13
treasure a sheriff's posi finally
00:25:15
cornered Billy ground and Wing hunt
00:25:29
during the shootout Billy was killed
00:25:32
zwing seriously
00:25:38
injured turf grass as the story goes
00:25:42
after his capture zwing revealed the
00:25:44
secret location of the treasure to his
00:25:47
uncle here come
00:25:50
Springs his uncle then Drew up a
00:25:53
detailed
00:25:54
map it seems to me that it's another
00:25:57
typical treasure hunting
00:25:59
yarn we never get to see the map we
00:26:01
never get to examine it for its
00:26:04
genuiness or see if it matches up with
00:26:06
any handwriting samples we might
00:26:09
have bur Hamill says that he's seen the
00:26:12
map that was made up by zwing Hunt's
00:26:15
Uncle the map shows the canyon and it
00:26:19
shows where the cave is everything
00:26:22
matches but on account of the earthquake
00:26:25
in
00:26:26
1886 I think the treasure is around 20
00:26:29
ft deep part of the mountain caved off
00:26:33
on
00:26:36
it is there really a treasure bared in
00:26:38
skeleton Canyon or is it just another
00:26:41
tall tale from the days of the old
00:26:46
west I think the skeleton Canyon
00:26:49
treasure is a very plausible story from
00:26:51
the standpoint that every time it would
00:26:53
rain somebody's skull would show up or
00:26:56
another coin would become evident
00:26:59
and uh compared to a lot of other
00:27:01
stories it's got a lot more plausibility
00:27:03
than I would say the lost Dutchman mine
00:27:05
for
00:27:07
instance it is possible that there's a
00:27:09
skeleton Canyon treasure out there to be
00:27:11
found somewhere but the initial reports
00:27:15
given by the Mexican Government given in
00:27:17
the local press indicate that there was
00:27:20
a very small amount of money taken which
00:27:23
would have been spent very very quickly
00:27:26
thus I don't think there was a treasure
00:27:29
given historical sources to
00:27:31
find when I find the treasure I'll stop
00:27:34
looking for it that's it will be when
00:27:36
I'll
00:27:37
stop because I know it's real this
00:27:40
trasure is real and I know I found the
00:27:42
right place where it's
00:27:44
at today Fortune hunters from all over
00:27:47
the world search through the skeleton
00:27:49
Canyon trying to find the lost treasure
00:27:52
despite the doubts of the Skeptics they
00:27:54
will continue to look and look because
00:27:57
the them The Treasure of skeleton Canyon
00:28:00
is still an unsolved
00:28:12
mystery coming up an escaped convict is
00:28:15
finally in custody after 9 years on the
00:28:19
run but first the story of two bank
00:28:22
robbers who took a family hostage and
00:28:24
vanished with close to a million
00:28:31
[Music]
00:28:37
West Dallas Wisconsin after locking 14
00:28:41
Bank employees in a store room two armed
00:28:43
robers clean out the
00:28:46
Vault when they leave their duffel bags
00:28:49
are stuffed with 3/4 of a million
00:28:52
[Music]
00:28:56
dollar the thief were identified as
00:28:59
Terry Lee Connor and Joseph dockerty
00:29:02
they were serial bank robbers the tools
00:29:04
of their trade were Dynamite grenades
00:29:07
submachine guns and
00:29:12
hostages 18 months earlier Connor and
00:29:15
dockerty were inmates at a federal
00:29:17
prison in
00:29:19
Oklahoma one morning they were Shackled
00:29:21
by US Marshals before being taken to a
00:29:23
courtroom in Oklahoma City
00:29:28
in the strip search they missed the
00:29:30
Handcuff key which one story has it that
00:29:32
Tor had planted it down inside his
00:29:39
mouth St took firearm he's got my all
00:29:43
right take that
00:29:44
AC somewhere along the way Connor and
00:29:47
[ __ ] took possession of the
00:29:49
vehicle understand from talking to the
00:29:51
deputy that he stripped the gun from him
00:29:53
in about 2
00:29:55
seconds the convict's handcuffed two
00:29:58
Marshals and then forced them into the
00:30:00
back seat go go outside
00:30:03
bur they drove to a secluded
00:30:08
area the deputies were I'm sure very
00:30:11
scared anybody would have been in that
00:30:13
situation there was a quiet moment when
00:30:15
the two deputies were handcuffed around
00:30:17
the tree when Connor indicated that he
00:30:20
wanted to eliminate the two deputies he
00:30:22
Advanced toward the deputies with his
00:30:24
weapon and had the weapon pointed at
00:30:26
them and looked over at dockerty and
00:30:29
nodded his head as if to say I'm going
00:30:31
to go ahead and kill them let's go go
00:30:33
Joe dockerty replied to him now they've
00:30:35
been good guys they'll be okay if we
00:30:37
leave them handcuffed around this tree
00:30:39
so it looked like there was a few
00:30:40
moments there where the deputies were in
00:30:42
Jeopardy of their
00:30:44
lives Connor and Dockery fled from
00:30:46
Oklahoma North all the way to Vancouver
00:30:50
Washington their plan was to pull off
00:30:52
their biggest bank robbery yet they went
00:30:55
to the home of Ray Dearing on the
00:30:58
pretext of buying a car but they weren't
00:31:00
interested in the
00:31:02
car Ray was the vice president of a
00:31:05
local bank is it possible we go inside
00:31:07
and talk about it yeah I guess so
00:31:10
neither one would ever let me walk
00:31:12
around him they would always turn their
00:31:14
bodies and I never saw their backs and I
00:31:16
realized later they had their 45s and
00:31:19
belts behind their
00:31:21
back once inside Ray and his son Tom
00:31:25
were easily overpowered Ray's wife
00:31:27
Ronnie was brought in from the
00:31:32
bedroom the fugitives held the family
00:31:34
hostage overnight early the next morning
00:31:38
they changed into business suits to look
00:31:40
like Bank
00:31:43
Executives okay you drive I'll drive we
00:31:46
didn't know what to expect when we got
00:31:48
there we didn't know if we were in for
00:31:49
problems that the police had have drive
00:31:51
and certainly we didn't want the police
00:31:53
there at this point because we knew
00:31:54
there'd be a shootout if there was he
00:31:56
said if the police arrived they would
00:31:58
spray the bank with uh
00:32:02
gunfire the group arrived at the bank
00:32:04
before any of the employees but the
00:32:07
Vault couldn't be open without two keys
00:32:10
held by separate tellers r i want you to
00:32:13
come with
00:32:14
me my biggest concern during this whole
00:32:17
time was that they separated us I had no
00:32:19
idea what was going on with my
00:32:22
family for the next 20 minutes as Bank
00:32:25
employees arrived their tellers keys
00:32:28
were confiscated and they were taken to
00:32:30
a back room let's
00:32:34
go Connor and doery then entered the
00:32:37
Vault and stuffed
00:32:40
$250,000 into two duffel bags in less
00:32:43
than 60
00:32:46
seconds after they got their money they
00:32:49
took me into the room with the rest of
00:32:50
the employees and my
00:32:51
family all right nobody opens the door
00:32:54
for 10 minutes at that time I knew we
00:32:57
were finally safe they were not taking
00:32:59
any
00:33:00
hostages my sole thought was thank God
00:33:03
you're all safe and I put my arms around
00:33:05
the family and and employees and broke
00:33:11
up
00:33:13
update Terry Lee Connor and Joseph
00:33:15
dockerty have been arrested the FBI and
00:33:19
the US Marshals suspected that the
00:33:21
fugitives were in a suburb of Chicago
00:33:23
and distributed wanted posters in the
00:33:26
area
00:33:28
a local Motel clerk noticed a guest
00:33:30
registered under the name Steven posik
00:33:33
one of Connor's
00:33:35
aliases she called authorities and
00:33:37
within an hour the FBI and US Marshals
00:33:40
began a state
00:33:43
up Connor was arrested the next morning
00:33:46
when he left his room he was returned to
00:33:48
prison where he began serving out a life
00:33:52
sentence 2 weeks later Joseph doerty was
00:33:55
arrested at a laundromat in antiac
00:33:57
California
00:33:59
incredibly agents were keeping
00:34:01
surveillance on a different suspect but
00:34:03
at the laundromat they recognized Joseph
00:34:06
doerty as a wanted fugitive doerty was
00:34:09
arrested and sent back to prison he
00:34:12
won't be eligible for parole until
00:34:16
[Music]
00:34:18
2019 next two violent fugitives are on
00:34:21
the Run they were armed and dangerous
00:34:23
until our viewers saw them on Unsolved
00:34:26
Mysteries
00:34:34
next we have two stories and thanks to
00:34:37
our viewers two cases
00:34:41
South Las Vegas
00:34:46
Nevada businessman Frank Allen from Los
00:34:49
Angeles bought a home just outside the
00:34:54
city he kept a room there to use during
00:34:57
his frequent trips to
00:34:59
Nevada he rented the rest of the house
00:35:02
to a man named Joseph welen Smith and
00:35:05
his wife Judith Two Daughters from a
00:35:08
previous marriage 12-year-old christe
00:35:11
and 20-year-old Wendy also live
00:35:14
there what Frank Allen didn't know was
00:35:17
that Smith had a long history as a con
00:35:20
man he had once been convicted of
00:35:22
attempted Grand Theft but that was
00:35:25
nothing compared to what Joe Smith did
00:35:27
next
00:35:29
Frank Allen arrived at his Las Vegas
00:35:31
residence on a night when he expected
00:35:33
Smith and his family to be out of
00:35:37
town I locked the door behind me and
00:35:40
went up the top of the steps and
00:35:42
unlocked the bedro and went in I started
00:35:45
undressing took off my jacket shirt tie
00:35:48
and suddenly stopped in my track and
00:35:51
said something is
00:35:53
wrong I said I don't know what it is but
00:35:56
something is wrong
00:36:00
[Music]
00:36:02
Joe what the hell are you doing I
00:36:04
grabbed him at the wrist and that's when
00:36:06
I shook him and I said Joe what in the
00:36:08
hell are you trying to do and then it
00:36:11
was clear to me that he was trying to
00:36:13
murder
00:36:15
me coming down the steps I said I've
00:36:17
locked myself in with these Double Dead
00:36:19
boats and I don't have time to Fumble
00:36:21
for key so I went straight through the
00:36:23
door
00:36:25
[Music]
00:36:29
I drove my car up to the guard gate and
00:36:32
said to the guard call the police
00:36:34
there's a man in my house come on out
00:36:36
Joe the police searched the
00:36:39
house they thought they had cornered Joe
00:36:41
Smith hiding under a
00:36:43
blanket instead they found the body of
00:36:46
12-year-old Christy Cox Smith's
00:36:49
stepdaughter think we got a homicide
00:36:51
here she had been strangled and bludgeon
00:36:54
to death it was obvious that she would
00:36:56
been dead for quite some time she had
00:36:58
several wounds to the face and to her
00:37:03
head in the next bedroom they forcefully
00:37:05
ENT her that also and that's when Wendy
00:37:07
Cox was found laying beside the bed she
00:37:10
had approximately 32 wounds to her head
00:37:12
and hands defensive wounds to her hands
00:37:15
and she had also been
00:37:18
strangled then officers searched the
00:37:20
master
00:37:22
bedroom they found the body of Joe
00:37:24
Smith's wife Judith she had also been
00:37:27
bludgeon to death all three have been
00:37:30
dead for approximately 18
00:37:36
hours Joe Smith was now wanted for
00:37:39
murder and attempted murder with a
00:37:41
deadly
00:37:44
weapon
00:37:46
update just minutes after we aired the
00:37:49
story on Unsolved Mysteries a viewer
00:37:51
reported that Smith was living near Los
00:37:53
Angeles
00:37:55
California Smith was arrested at a local
00:37:58
Motel where he was registered under an
00:38:00
assumed
00:38:02
[Music]
00:38:03
name at the time of his arrest Joe Smith
00:38:06
indicated to me that he had seen the
00:38:07
last heiring of the unsolved mystery
00:38:09
program he also told me that it was very
00:38:12
tough being a fugitive and he always
00:38:14
knew that someone be knocking at the
00:38:16
door one day he kind of glad it's all
00:38:17
over at this point 2 days later Joe
00:38:20
Welden Smith was returned to Nevada he
00:38:23
was convicted for the murder of his wife
00:38:25
and two daughters and
00:38:28
sentenced to
00:38:30
[Music]
00:38:32
death in our next update a bank robber
00:38:35
escapes from prison to live a life on
00:38:37
the run with his
00:38:44
wife for 8 years Thomas Leo langstone
00:38:48
and his wife lived in this small
00:38:50
Bungalow in St Paul
00:38:53
Minnesota no one ever suspected that
00:38:56
langstone was an an escaped convict
00:38:58
named Richard seones with a long
00:39:01
criminal
00:39:03
record sealon and two accomplices had
00:39:07
robbed the bank in wubber Massachusetts
00:39:09
and made off with more than
00:39:18
$177,000 sealon was convicted of bank
00:39:20
robbery and armed assault he was
00:39:23
sentenced to between 58 and 82 years in
00:39:26
prison
00:39:27
then he met Karen
00:39:29
Walters Karen was an aspiring teacher
00:39:32
whose class assignment was to write
00:39:34
letters to inmates eventually she
00:39:37
visited Richard you're much prettier
00:39:39
than your picture and a relationship
00:39:41
began how was the drive oh it was fine
00:39:44
thank you your typical inmate in prison
00:39:48
I find takes advantage of people out in
00:39:50
the
00:39:50
community often times they'll latch on
00:39:53
to women who are lonely uh want some
00:39:56
attention uh um and they take advantage
00:39:58
of them um and I think the women are
00:40:00
beguiled by all that attention I Caren
00:40:03
take Richard to be my husband hi Karen
00:40:06
take Richard to be my husband 8 years
00:40:09
after they met Richard seones and Karen
00:40:12
Walters got married in the prison
00:40:16
Chapel 2 years later seph alonis escaped
00:40:20
and the couple disappeared
00:40:28
update after our broadcast a viewer in
00:40:31
Minneapolis who had done business with
00:40:33
the couple recognized Karen's
00:40:36
photograph during a stake out of their
00:40:38
home officials tailed sep balonus to a
00:40:41
nearby convenience
00:40:43
store soon as he pulled into the uh
00:40:46
parking lot and got out of the vehicle
00:40:49
uh one of the task force members was uh
00:40:51
right there with him so he jumped out uh
00:40:54
drew his weapon uh ordered sepulus not
00:40:56
to move and at that point other task
00:40:59
force members got there uh jumped out
00:41:01
and assisted in the
00:41:03
arrest Karen Walters was picked up 20
00:41:06
minutes
00:41:07
later when I found out that they were
00:41:10
who they were I was shocked I couldn't
00:41:13
believe it my mouth fell to the floor I
00:41:15
never would imagine in a million years
00:41:18
that these two people would be the would
00:41:20
do anything wrong despite what neighbors
00:41:23
thought a bag of suspicious items found
00:41:26
inside the house
00:41:27
suggested that sealon was still an
00:41:30
active
00:41:32
criminal the discovery of the bag with
00:41:35
the face mask the gun the rubber gloves
00:41:38
the large amount of cash and small bills
00:41:41
we think that perhaps he's been back in
00:41:43
the bank robbery or or robbery business
00:41:46
again Karen Walters and Richard seones
00:41:49
were extradited to
00:41:52
Massachusetts SE lonus was sent back to
00:41:55
prison Karen Walters served the short
00:41:57
sentence and was
00:42:02
released if you have any information on
00:42:04
the cases presented tonight log on to
00:42:07
unsolved.com
00:42:25
[Music]
00:42:36
[Music]

Badges

This episode stands out for the following:

  • 70
    Most shocking
  • 70
    Biggest twist
  • 65
    Most intense
  • 60
    Most dramatic

Episode Highlights

  • A Date Turns Deadly
    Diana's first date with Eric takes a terrifying turn when they hear mysterious noises outside.
    “This would be the first and last date Diana Anderson would ever have with Eric.”
    @ 02m 20s
    March 09, 2017
  • Shocking Discovery
    Eric's death, initially thought to be natural, is revealed to be a homicide.
    “What at first seemed like a natural death was now a homicide investigation.”
    @ 05m 05s
    March 09, 2017
  • Murder in Hood River
    The investigation into Eric's death uncovers shocking truths and unanswered questions.
    “Someone in Hood River has gotten away with murder.”
    @ 11m 21s
    March 09, 2017
  • The Mystery of Skeleton Canyon
    Is there really treasure buried in Skeleton Canyon? Skeptics abound, but some believe it's plausible.
    “The Skeleton Canyon treasure is a very plausible story.”
    @ 26m 49s
    March 09, 2017
  • Bank Robbery Hostage Situation
    Two armed robbers take a family hostage during a bank heist, leading to a tense standoff.
    “Thank God you're all safe!”
    @ 32m 51s
    March 09, 2017
  • Fugitive Couple Arrested
    After years on the run, a couple's true identities are revealed, shocking their community.
    “I never would imagine in a million years that these two people would do anything wrong.”
    @ 41m 13s
    March 09, 2017

Episode Quotes

  • This would be the first and last date Diana Anderson would ever have with Eric.
    Unsolved Mysteries with Dennis Farina - Season 2, Episode 6
  • What at first seemed like a natural death was now a homicide investigation.
    Unsolved Mysteries with Dennis Farina - Season 2, Episode 6
  • I think it's a possibility but I don't know.
    Unsolved Mysteries with Dennis Farina - Season 2, Episode 6
  • Someone in Hood River has gotten away with murder.
    Unsolved Mysteries with Dennis Farina - Season 2, Episode 6
  • The treasure is real and I know I found the right place.
    Unsolved Mysteries with Dennis Farina - Season 2, Episode 6
  • Thank God you're all safe!
    Unsolved Mysteries with Dennis Farina - Season 2, Episode 6

Key Moments

  • First Date02:20
  • Murder Investigation05:05
  • Unsolved Case11:21
  • Treasure Hunt27:40
  • Bank Heist32:51
  • Fugitive Arrest41:13

Words per Minute Over Time

Vibes Breakdown

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March 09, 2017
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42:53
Unsolved Mysteries with Dennis Farina - Season 7, Episode 2
Unsolved Mysteries with Dennis Farina - Season 1, Episode 13 - Full Episode
March 09, 2017
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42:53
Unsolved Mysteries with Dennis Farina - Season 1, Episode 13 - Full Episode
Unsolved Mysteries with Dennis Farina - Season 3, Episode 5
March 09, 2017
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42:49
Unsolved Mysteries with Dennis Farina - Season 3, Episode 5