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Unsolved Mysteries with Dennis Farina - Season 4, Episode 4

March 09, 2017 / 42:51

This episode of Unsolved Mysteries covers the mysterious death of Norman Ladner, the unsolved robbery at a casino in Mosquite, Nevada, and the disappearance of Amelia Earhart. Key discussions include eyewitness accounts of Earhart's potential survival, the investigation into Ladner's death, and the robbery's inside job theory.

In the case of Norman Ladner, a 17-year-old who was found dead from a gunshot wound, his family believes he was murdered, not a suicide as ruled by the coroner. They found inconsistencies in the investigation, including a missing wallet and a strange device suggesting drug activity in the area.

The casino robbery in Mosquite involved a security guard named Jim, who was suspected after a gunman stole nearly a quarter of a million dollars. Investigators found several coincidences that pointed to an inside job, leading to a suspect named Luis Oawa, who was later charged with money laundering.

The episode also revisits the disappearance of Amelia Earhart, highlighting new eyewitness accounts suggesting she may have survived after her plane went down. Accounts from soldiers stationed on Saipan claim to have seen her plane and even documents belonging to her.

As the episode unfolds, it raises questions about the truth behind these unsolved mysteries, leaving viewers to ponder the fates of Ladner, Earhart, and the unresolved robbery.

TL;DR

Unsolved Mysteries investigates Norman Ladner's suspicious death, a casino robbery in Nevada, and new claims about Amelia Earhart's fate.

Episode

42:51
00:00:00
[Music]
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Next on Unsolved Mysteries, when a
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17-year-old goes hunting in the woods,
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he doesn't realize that someone is
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hunting
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him. She was America's first lady of
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flight until her fatal plane crash in
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the South Pacific.
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New evidence suggests that Amelia
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Heheart was
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executed on a remote island.
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Don't turn around or I'll kill you. A
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gunman steals almost a quarter of a
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million dollars from a
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casino. But then the victims become the
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suspects. A shootout in a bar. Two
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police officers are ambushed by a crazed
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excon. The gunplay turns deadly.
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[Music]
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Cunning, deceit, and lies. Can you
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figure out who's telling the truth? I'm
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Dennis Fina, and this is Unsolved
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Mysteries. Join us.
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[Music]
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[Music]
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Mosquite, Nevada, 80 miles from Vegas. I
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didn't think that he was going to leave
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any witnesses. I really didn't. and he
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had the perfect opportunity to kill us
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and leave us. This man, who we'll call
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Jim, says that he was the victim of an
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armed robbery. The FBI, however,
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considers Jim a
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suspect. Jim worked as a security guard
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at a local casino in
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Nevada. One summer day, he and the
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assistant cage manager picked up the
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payroll money at the local bank.
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then headed back to the casino. How's
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the baby doing? He's doing good. He's
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sleeping through the night. I've only
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had two bad nights so far. Oh, don't
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make any sudden moves.
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Shut up. Don't say nothing. Don't Wait a
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minute. You make any moves and I'm going
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to kill this girl next to you.
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Just shut up. Don't turn around or I'll
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kill you. I said look I looked to the
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rearview mirror to see what was going on
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back there and he said if I did that
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again he was going to blow her brains
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out right then. And with your left hand
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take your gun out and throw it on the
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ground. Take your walkie-talkie and
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throw it on the ground, too. Don't turn
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around.
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Jim was ordered to drive to a deserted
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area outside of town. Don't turn around.
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Keep your hands up. You know what's
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going to happen. You're just waiting to
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catch a bullet and you can feel it.
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You're just waiting to.
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The gunman left without hurting either
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one of them, but he got away with nearly
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a quarter of a million dollars in
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unmarked
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bills. From the beginning, authorities
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believe that the robbery was an inside
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job. Everyone at the casino became a
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suspect. Not surprisingly, Jim and the
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assistant cage manager were at the top
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of the list.
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Investigators soon discovered that a
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number of unusual things happened on the
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day of the
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robbery. First, the cage manager and the
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security chief who normally did the bank
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runs didn't do them that
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day. Second, the assistant cage manager
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decided to make the bank run 2 hours
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early. Third, this was Jim's first time
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doing payroll duty.
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And finally, the van they drove was not
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the one they normally used.
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So the question came up, how was the
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robber going to be so sure that this was
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going to be the day that that van was
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going to make that run? Too much
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coincidence. Too many times. Too many
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things fell into place. Too many things
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happened right in this thing. Somebody,
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in my opinion, gave him some
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information.
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We still had
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inconsistencies with both of the
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accounts of the teller and the security
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officer. Things that just didn't make
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sense. He even asked me at one time,
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"Why didn't you slam on the brakes?"
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It's a big van. They don't lock up like
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they do in the movies. You don't click
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your radio on like they do in the movies
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and everything goes smooth and everybody
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hears where you're at and what's going
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on. Don't talk. There was no way I could
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reach over and key that mic without him
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knowing about it. Every time that he saw
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me trying to get a description of him,
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he would tell me that he was going to
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kill us if I did that again. And I
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didn't want to take that chance.
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An hour after the robbery, police found
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the van. It was parked about a mile
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south of the spot where the gunman had
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dumped Jim and the assistant cage
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manager. Jim's gun and radio were
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missing. coming back from the van,
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walking around the back to the side.
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Police took plaster casts of footprints
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and tire prints that indicated the
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robber walked from the van to another
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vehicle and drove away.
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Despite a thorough investigation, the
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police couldn't tie any casino employee
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to the robbery.
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But then they got lucky. About a month
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and a half after the crime, uh, the
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Mosquite police were following a simple
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domestic dispute call in Mosquite,
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Nevada. There was a gun involved in the
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dispute, and it turned out that that gun
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was in fact the security officer's
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weapon that was stolen during the
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robbery.
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The man in the domestic dispute was
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ruled out as a robbery suspect. So, the
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FBI turned to the man who sold him the
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gun.
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His name was Luis Oawa, the owner of a
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local pizza parlor. He was nervous and
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defensive from the very beginning. Mr.
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Oawa, would it be okay if we go inside
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and have a talk here? Actually, it's
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okay. We We can talk out here. He didn't
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want us to come in the pizza shop. We
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found that a little bit odd. He
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immediately set our alerts off that he
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didn't want us to be there and he really
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didn't want to talk to us. I didn't sell
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anybody any gun. I don't know nothing
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about any guns. I don't know nothing
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about the robbery. I'm in the pizza
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business, guys. I'm not in the gun
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business. It was probably a great stroke
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of luck for us that he kept us outside
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because we were standing by the pickup
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truck. We're here doing our
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investigation. During the month and a
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half after this robbery, I sat and I
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looked at this plaster casting of a tire
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print until my eyes were going to fall
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out. I knew what the tire print looked
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like.
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I looked down at the tires on his truck
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and they matched.
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The FBI searched OOA's house and found
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$5,000 in $100 bills tucked inside the
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toe of a cowboy boot. Bring me an
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evidence bag. In OOA's truck, they also
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found a
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bullet. It was the same kind used in
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Jim's gun.
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As the searches were going on, Mr. Mr.
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AO was in fact with an attorney and they
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were making arrangements to come and
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meet with myself to discuss Mr.
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Ato's involvement in the case and
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possibly his accompllices. Things were
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starting to unravel very quickly for
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him. And I think at that point Luis
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decided it was time to get out of dodge.
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And that's exactly what Luis Ooa did. He
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left town. The FBI charged them with
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robbery and
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[Music]
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kidnapping
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update. Authorities captured Luis Ooa in
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Los Angeles. The evidence was
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insufficient to convict him of robbery,
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but he plead guilty to a lesser charge
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of money laundering. He served 3 months
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and was
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released. So far, no one else has been
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charged.
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Coming up, a routine call sends two
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policemen into a barrage of
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gunfire. Greenville, South
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Carolina. Two gunmen rob a local grocery
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store. The mastermind is a convicted
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armed robber named Sam Watkkey. His
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19-year-old son, Richard, waits in the
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getaway
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car. Grocery store clerks immediately
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call the
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police. Squad cars quickly close in.
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Two officers try to set up a roadblock,
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but before they can get into position,
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[Music]
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hit arrives too late. 47year-old Valvin
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Keith, the father of four, is dead.
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Within 48 hours, police have arrested
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all three suspects.
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As the shooter, ring leader, and gunman,
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Sam Watkkey is convicted of first-degree
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murder and sentenced to life in prison.
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We were leaving the courthouse and he
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grinned at me and and he said, you know,
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he said, "Life isn't nothing." He said,
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you know, I'm going to get out. Uh he
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was very confident about it.
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More than 8 years later, Watkkey did
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just that. He and another inmate used
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the stolen hacksaw to cut their way to
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[Music]
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freedom. Just a few minutes before the
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evening headcount, Watkkey and his
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accomplice drove through the prison
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gates and
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[Music]
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disappeared.
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Update: Watkkey remained at large for
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more than 2 years. But on the night of
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our broadcast, an Unsolved Mysteries
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viewer saw the story and called the
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police. She told them that a man she
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knew as Michael Alman looked exactly
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like Sam Watkkey.
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We were able to track
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down driver's license information on a
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nationwide driver's license search that
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eventually led to Louisiana.
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We called Louisiana authorities and they
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faxed us photos of a Louisiana driver's
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license for Michael Alman. And as soon
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as they came across the wire, we knew it
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was Sam Watkkey.
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Louisiana State Police tracked Watkkey
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to the flop house where he was staying.
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They used distraction devices,
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flashbangs, and were instantly into the
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room with a fully armed and and uh ready
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SWAT team. He had no opportunity to
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resist at all. Prison officials were
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notified immediately. He said, "Mr.
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Corbett, I hate to wake you up so early
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in the morning, but I got some good news
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for you." I said, "We'll put it on me."
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He said, "We got him." Happy to be back
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in South Carolina. Just love, man. I
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love it here. Sam Watkkey was sent back
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to a South Carolina prison to serve out
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his life term, plus 3 years for his
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escape. He has since died of a heart
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attack. Did you see the story on
00:11:49
Unsolved Mysteries on you? No, I didn't.
00:11:51
Missed it.
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In the Wild West, a bad guy can simply
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hight tail it out of town and have a
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very good chance of never getting
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caught. Today, criminals still figure
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that they can simply leave town and hide
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behind an alias and get away
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scot-free, but it ain't necessarily so.
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Albuquerque, New Mexico.
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I've been hit.
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10:25 p.m.
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We hit twice. We're real bad in the arm.
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332.
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[Music]
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Police units respond to the most urgent
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of all emergency calls. An officer is
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down. I knew I was losing a lot of blood
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and it was getting hard to breathe
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because of the wound in my side in my uh
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left lung area.
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Vic Web had been a policeman in
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Albuquerque for 5 years. This incident
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was the first time that he had ever
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fired his gun on duty. What happened?
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During the shootout, Webb was struck
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twice. Without the rapid response of his
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fellow officers, he would almost
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certainly have died.
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The evening started when officer Rick
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Foley sat down at the police crime
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computer. He discovered that a woman he
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wanted to question happened to have an
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outstanding arrest warrant. I was going
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to check on an outstanding bench
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warrant, please. An informant told Foley
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that the woman hung out at a local bar
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called Gary's Game Room. Foley and Vic
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Webb arrived at around 1000 p.m. Another
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bench warrant. Yeah. They didn't usually
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work together, but Webb had volunteered
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to help Foley serve the warrant.
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When we walked in, we noticed some
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people sitting at a bar off to the left
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and uh a couple of people playing pool.
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You guys need some help with something?
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Just looking towards the back of the
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room, there was a uh dark hallway. So,
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we decided to move towards the back and
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take a look.
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[Music]
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Drop your
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guns. Get to me now.
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This was a situation where we were
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caught absolutely cold and here was a
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guy pointing a gun at us demanding our
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weapons. I'd been out of the academy for
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approximately a year and a half, 2
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years. My first thoughts were, I
00:14:32
couldn't believe this was happening to
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me. Go
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ahead.
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His first round hit me in the side. I
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was wearing a uh a bulletproof vest at
00:14:44
the time, but this round went in between
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the two panels on my side and um entered
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the rib
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area. The first shot broke two ribs, but
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Officer Webb managed to pull his own
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weapon and returned fire.
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We were probably about 3 ft apart at
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this time, but he was on one side of the
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wall and I was on the other side.
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I had fired five to six rounds by this
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time and he was continuing to fire back
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through the
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sheetrock. A bullet ripped through Web's
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right arm, severing an artery and
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destroying nerves. His shooting hand was
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now
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useless. Badly hurt, Web staggered
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outside. The suspect picked up Web's gun
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and used it to make his escape.
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The alleged asalent was later identified
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as Lyall Moody, a parrolled armed robber
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with a criminal record stretching back
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17 years.
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I would hope that the police officers
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who run across him the next time know
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who he is and know how dedicated he is
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to not going back to uh to prison.
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My fear is that he's going to be
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cornered by some other officers who may
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not know who he is and uh more police
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officers are going to get hurt.
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Update. After 18 years on the run, Lyall
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Moody was busted for loitering. He was
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hanging around a building in New York
00:16:22
City known for drug deals. Moody gave
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police false identification, but a check
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of his fingerprints revealed that he was
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a wanted
00:16:32
fugitive. Moody was tried, convicted,
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and sentenced to 12 years in prison. He
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served his time and has been
00:16:43
released. Coming up, the mysterious
00:16:46
final flight of legendary pilot Amelia
00:16:49
Heheart.
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[Music]
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During the 30s, Amelia Heheart was one
00:17:01
of the most famous people in the world.
00:17:04
She was the first woman to pilot an
00:17:06
aircraft across the Atlantic. Part
00:17:09
all-American girl, part daredevil. She
00:17:12
was way ahead of her time. A self-
00:17:14
aacing yet outspoking champion of
00:17:17
women's rights. Men or women, a pilot to
00:17:20
pilot. I hope that such equality could
00:17:24
be carried out in other fields so that
00:17:27
men and women may achieve equally in any
00:17:31
endeavor they set out. At the age of 39,
00:17:35
Hehheart planned what was to be her
00:17:37
greatest triumph. She wanted to be the
00:17:40
first person, man or woman, to fly
00:17:42
around the world at the equator, the
00:17:46
longest route around the earth. Hehheart
00:17:48
selected Fred Nunan, a former airline
00:17:51
pilot, to be her
00:17:53
navigator. Well, as it turned out,
00:17:55
Amelia Heheart and Fred Nunan never
00:17:57
completed their flight. History tells us
00:18:00
that they crashed in the South Pacific,
00:18:02
but new eyewitness testimony suggests
00:18:05
that history has it
00:18:09
wrong. Oakland,
00:18:11
California, May 20th, 1937.
00:18:16
Amelia Heheart and Fred Nunan begin
00:18:18
their epic flight. They touched down at
00:18:21
several airports in the United States
00:18:24
and headed to South
00:18:27
America. They continued on to Africa,
00:18:30
Asia, Australia, and finally lie New
00:18:34
Guinea. Amelia and Fred had flown almost
00:18:39
twothirds of the way around the world,
00:18:41
and they had done it fairly quickly. But
00:18:43
after that amount of flying time, they
00:18:46
must have been exhausted. And here they
00:18:47
were facing the most difficult leg of
00:18:49
their flight.
00:18:51
From New Guinea, Amelia and Fred faced a
00:18:54
grueling 18 hours of flying. They also
00:18:57
had to hit a tiny target, Howland
00:19:00
Island. A mile and a half long and a
00:19:02
half a mile wide, Holland rises a mere
00:19:05
20 ft above the sea. It was like trying
00:19:08
to find a speck of dirt in the vast
00:19:10
South Pacific. The difficulty factor on
00:19:15
a scale of 1 to 10. Piloting from Lelay
00:19:19
New Guinea to Howland Island in 1937 in
00:19:22
that aircraft make it a
00:19:25
10. Bad weather delayed them for a day.
00:19:29
But finally on July 2nd at exactly 10:00
00:19:31
a.m. Amelia and Fred took off.
00:19:38
They hoped to land on Howland Island 18
00:19:40
hours
00:19:43
later. So she had the best navigator in
00:19:45
the world sitting beside her, Fred Nan.
00:19:48
She was responsible for running that
00:19:49
airplane. She had to fly the heading.
00:19:51
She had to watch the weather. She had to
00:19:53
watch the fuel flows. She had to watch
00:19:54
the mixtures, the carburetor air, make
00:19:56
sure they weren't getting carburetor
00:19:58
ice. She was responsible for the
00:19:59
airplane maintaining altitude and
00:20:01
maintaining trim.
00:20:06
All these things were constant. Plus,
00:20:08
she had to do the radio
00:20:10
transmissions. Amelia was not competent
00:20:12
where radio was concerned. She would
00:20:15
never take the time to learn properly. I
00:20:19
think it can be honestly said that the
00:20:22
radio was the Achilles heel of that
00:20:25
flight.
00:20:26
It seems incredible, but Amelia's only
00:20:30
link with the world was her
00:20:31
batterypowered radio.
00:20:36
The Coast Guard cutter Itasa was waiting
00:20:39
in the waters around Holland Island.
00:20:41
They were ready to communicate by radio
00:20:44
with Amelia as soon as she came within
00:20:46
range. With a radio bearing, they could
00:20:49
rescue Amelia and Fred if anything went
00:20:52
wrong. For 16 hours, the flight went
00:20:55
smoothly. But then Amelia's lack of
00:20:58
radio experience caused problems.
00:21:02
About 17 hours and 14 minutes into the
00:21:04
flight, now we're really getting to the
00:21:06
critical part. She reports that she's
00:21:09
approximately 200 m out and she wants
00:21:13
them to take a radio bearing on her. And
00:21:16
she whistles into the microphone.
00:21:19
Want bearing on
00:21:21
3105 kily an hour.
00:21:26
[Music]
00:21:30
She stopped whistling. Amelia didn't
00:21:33
whistle long enough to give the Atasca a
00:21:35
constant signal. And what she didn't
00:21:38
understand was that whistling wasn't
00:21:41
necessary. Any 30-cond radio signal
00:21:44
would have been enough. Please repeat
00:21:46
last transmission on
00:21:48
7500. I repeat, they were 19 hours into
00:21:52
the flight and an hour behind schedule.
00:21:55
Amelia and Fred calculated they should
00:21:58
be directly above Howland Island, but
00:22:01
when they looked down, all they saw was
00:22:04
water. Fred, I don't see Howard Island.
00:22:08
I don't know where it is. We should be
00:22:09
right on top of it. It's not on my side.
00:22:12
Something was terribly wrong. Instead of
00:22:16
keeping her radio line open so the Atasa
00:22:18
could help them get back on course,
00:22:20
Amelia stopped her radio transmissions.
00:22:24
On a previous flight, she had overused
00:22:26
the radio and drained her battery. She
00:22:29
did not want to make the same mistake
00:22:32
twice.
00:22:33
They know they've missed the island,
00:22:35
gone past it, but they don't know which
00:22:37
side. They have no way of knowing. They
00:22:39
have to take a radio bearing. So, Amelia
00:22:41
does the only thing she can. 20 hours
00:22:44
and 13 minutes into the flight, Amelia
00:22:46
sends her last message. Her voice is
00:22:48
talking very rapidly and very tense.
00:22:52
-137 will repeat message. We will repeat
00:22:56
this message on 6210.
00:22:59
In her final radio message, Amelia said
00:23:02
she was switching frequencies to 6210
00:23:06
kily. The Atasa couldn't reach her on
00:23:09
that frequency. So they assumed she had
00:23:11
turned her radio to the wrong setting.
00:23:14
Frantically, the Atasaska tried other
00:23:16
frequencies with no luck. Airheart, this
00:23:19
is the Ataska. Come in over. We have an
00:23:21
emergency. Notify all the ships in the
00:23:23
area. Amelia Heheart's plane may be
00:23:25
going down. We may be losing her. That
00:23:27
was the last verified transmission ever
00:23:30
heard from Amelia Heheart and Fred
00:23:31
Nunan. They must have ran out of fuel
00:23:34
and within a minute or two from 1,000 ft
00:23:37
would have had to ditch the airplane
00:23:38
into the
00:23:41
ocean. A search effort began
00:23:43
immediately. 10 ships, 65 planes, and
00:23:48
4,000 men scoured a quarter million
00:23:50
square miles of open ocean around
00:23:53
Holland Island. The search was the
00:23:55
largest in history for a single plane,
00:23:58
and it lasted 16 days. With its gas
00:24:01
tanks empty, the plane would float for
00:24:03
at least 5 hours. Amelia and Fred had
00:24:07
life preservers and a small life raft
00:24:09
equipped with emergency supplies, so
00:24:12
they could have been afloat for days.
00:24:15
But despite the massive search, no trace
00:24:17
of Amelia Heheart, Fred Nan, or the
00:24:20
plane was ever
00:24:22
[Music]
00:24:24
found. The nation was in mourning. A
00:24:27
unique hero was lost.
00:24:32
Next, 7 years after her plane went down,
00:24:35
an eyewitness claims that she saw Amelia
00:24:38
Heheart
00:24:44
alive. Amelia Heheart and Fred Nunan
00:24:47
flew 3/4 of the way around the world,
00:24:50
some 22,000 m. Most accounts say they
00:24:53
ran low on fuel, crashed, and then died
00:24:56
at sea. But eyewitness testimony now
00:24:59
suggests that they both survived.
00:25:03
Most experts believe Amelia went down
00:25:06
somewhere near Holland Island, but
00:25:08
incredibly unconfirmed sightings have
00:25:11
placed Amelia and Fred 2500 m northwest
00:25:15
on the island of
00:25:18
Saipan. At the time, Saipan was
00:25:20
controlled by the Japanese military.
00:25:23
Japan was building an empire and had
00:25:25
begun to extend its reach to islands
00:25:27
across the South
00:25:29
Pacific. But by July of
00:25:32
1944, 7 years after Hehart's plane
00:25:35
vanished, American forces had taken
00:25:38
control of
00:25:39
Saipan. US Army Sergeant Thomas Divine
00:25:42
and his unit were among those stationed
00:25:44
there. Soon after my arrival on the
00:25:48
island, Lieutenant Leebig, who was our
00:25:50
first lieutenant, had secured a jeep and
00:25:54
told me that I was to drive him to Esto
00:25:57
airfield, which was a short distance
00:25:59
away from our bibac area.
00:26:02
Divine and the lieutenant drove along an
00:26:04
isolated road and pulled up in front of
00:26:06
a padlocked aircraft hanger.
00:26:12
I'm sorry, sir. This is a restricted
00:26:14
area. While he waited, Divine overheard
00:26:16
part of a conversation between a group
00:26:19
of Marines. Telling you guys, you know,
00:26:21
we got Amelia Heheart's plane in that
00:26:23
hanger. You guys wouldn't believe it
00:26:25
when we found them. Suddenly, an
00:26:26
official in civilian clothing confronted
00:26:29
the Marines. You people want to knock
00:26:31
off the chatter? I want you to sit down,
00:26:33
do your jobs, and shut up. Do you
00:26:34
understand?
00:26:36
[Music]
00:26:38
Later on that same day, I heard a roar
00:26:42
from the airfield, but we didn't pay too
00:26:45
much attention until suddenly it came
00:26:48
overhead very, very low and you could
00:26:51
see the markings on it. It was not a
00:26:53
military plane. It was a civilian plane.
00:26:56
The marking was very evident.
00:26:59
NR1620. We all looked up. We all
00:27:02
wondered what in the world was going on.
00:27:04
Divine wrote down the ID number. It
00:27:08
matched the number of Amelia Heheart's
00:27:11
[Music]
00:27:13
plane. That same evening, Thomas saw the
00:27:16
plane again, but this time it was on
00:27:20
fire. And I was a guest to see this
00:27:25
plane, the so-called Earheart plane,
00:27:28
engulfed in flames.
00:27:30
I saw that plane personally on three
00:27:33
occasions that day. The last time the
00:27:36
plane was in flames.
00:27:39
Another soldier stationed on Saipan,
00:27:41
former Marine Bob Wallik, also found
00:27:44
evidence that Hehheart had been on the
00:27:46
island. We're looking through some
00:27:49
government looking buildings, brick
00:27:51
buildings. We found this safe. One of
00:27:55
the guys was a demolition person that
00:27:57
knew and he thought he could blow the
00:27:59
door off the safe and we'd have
00:28:02
[Music]
00:28:05
something. No, we thought we're going to
00:28:07
be millionaires, you know. But anyway,
00:28:09
there was a briefcase that I
00:28:11
grabbed and I thought I had it packed
00:28:13
full of money or something like that. To
00:28:16
my surprise, it was something I didn't
00:28:19
expect to see, but it was full of Amelia
00:28:20
Heheart's papers.
00:28:23
Hey Joe, come take a look at this. What
00:28:26
do you got, Wall? Amelia Heheart. What's
00:28:30
this stuff doing here? I may have only
00:28:32
been 18 years old, but I knew I had a
00:28:34
piece of history in my hand. This is
00:28:36
incredible. Wall gave the briefcase to a
00:28:38
commanding officer. He never saw it
00:28:41
again.
00:28:44
I do not believe Amelia Heheart died at
00:28:47
sea. I think Amelia Heheart survived the
00:28:53
downing.
00:28:54
Buddy Brennan is an Amelia Heheart
00:28:57
expert. He interviewed a woman in Saipan
00:29:00
who said she witnessed Amelia's death.
00:29:03
We went to Saipan and we spoke with the
00:29:06
same woman.
00:29:09
This woman was brought ashore by the
00:29:11
Japanese.
00:29:14
[Music]
00:29:18
It was said they had captured two spy
00:29:21
people. The Japanese soldiers brought
00:29:23
the spies into
00:29:25
town. Many of us went there to see
00:29:34
them. I think they want us to strip. The
00:29:37
Japanese cars made them take off all
00:29:39
their clothes, everything they had on
00:29:42
their bodies.
00:29:43
It was then we could see that one of the
00:29:46
spies was a
00:29:48
woman. I had never known before a woman
00:29:51
who wore men's
00:29:56
trousers. All the things that happened
00:29:58
to that
00:29:59
woman. The soldiers put her in
00:30:03
jail. They removed her jewelry from her
00:30:06
hands. Then the Japanese came and gave
00:30:09
her rice. She threw it out.
00:30:14
When they took her out of the prison,
00:30:16
they tied her hands. They blindfolded
00:30:19
her. I was working on a farm. I saw a
00:30:23
Japanese motorcycle.
00:30:27
The woman was in a little seat on the
00:30:29
side of the motorcycle.
00:30:33
[Music]
00:30:41
I watched and they took her to this
00:30:43
place where a hole had been
00:30:47
dug. They made her kneel in front of the
00:30:50
hole.
00:30:56
[Music]
00:30:59
Who's there?
00:31:03
[Music]
00:31:15
I planted a bread fruit tree near her
00:31:18
grave.
00:31:20
In 1987, Buddy Brennan excavated the
00:31:24
grave site. He was only allowed to dig
00:31:26
for 12 hours.
00:31:28
We got down to 6 and 1/2 ft below what
00:31:33
they said would have been the surface in
00:31:37
1944, which is the date M. Bloss gave us
00:31:40
of having witnessed the
00:31:43
execution, and that's where we retrieved
00:31:46
the
00:31:48
blindfold. Buddy believes this tattered
00:31:51
piece of cloth was Amelia's blindfold.
00:31:54
However, he found no human remains.
00:31:58
What really happened on Saipan? Did the
00:32:01
Japanese actually execute Amelia Heheart
00:32:04
or did Amelia and Fred Nunan go down
00:32:07
with their plane somewhere in the vast
00:32:10
South Pacific?
00:32:13
I think if we can raise her airplane and
00:32:16
prove once and for all the solution to
00:32:18
the Mary Heart mystery, it will be
00:32:20
something very, very worthwhile for our
00:32:23
heritage. We can't afford to throw our
00:32:26
heroes away.
00:32:28
When she set out to fly around the
00:32:30
world, Amelia Heheart was only
00:32:33
39. After more than a half century of
00:32:36
research and speculation, we know little
00:32:39
more now than on the day she
00:32:42
disappeared. She remains a true hero. As
00:32:46
inspiring in failure as she might have
00:32:49
been had she succeeded.
00:32:52
[Music]
00:32:54
Next, a hike in the Mississippi woods
00:32:57
turns deadly for a popular teenager.
00:33:00
Some think he was killed by drug
00:33:12
runners. Pikyune,
00:33:16
Mississippi. On a warm summer day,
00:33:18
Norman Ladner left his parents' country
00:33:20
store to go hunting on his family farm.
00:33:25
Norman was a popular high school student
00:33:27
who loved the outdoors. He knew his
00:33:30
family's property, all 122 acres of it,
00:33:33
like he knew the back of his hand. So,
00:33:36
it didn't make any sense that he would
00:33:38
be late coming home.
00:33:41
Norman would always be back by 7 to 7:30
00:33:45
in the uh afternoon or in the evening.
00:33:48
And about 7:00 up I began to get worried
00:33:51
about him because he was very punctual
00:33:54
and it was the most
00:33:59
unusual. Norman
00:34:02
I helped in the
00:34:04
search but then I decided that it would
00:34:07
be best had I waited at the store for
00:34:09
him. Perhaps if he was lost he could
00:34:12
come to the
00:34:14
store. Harmon
00:34:21
[Music]
00:34:22
Norman. Oh, Norman. Norman. I knelt down
00:34:27
by him and I felt him and felt he was
00:34:29
cold. So, I knew he'd been dead for a
00:34:31
while.
00:34:33
It's a deep shock and a tragedy to come
00:34:36
up on and find your own
00:34:38
son because you could never imagine or
00:34:42
think how this could happen or the loss
00:34:45
of a child until you've experienced or
00:34:47
gone through it. Norman Ladner, who was
00:34:50
just 17, was dead. A single gunshot
00:34:54
wound to the head had taken his
00:34:57
life. Just after 10 p.m., the sheriff's
00:35:00
department arrived. They roped off the
00:35:02
area and began their investigation.
00:35:06
[Music]
00:35:09
Foul play is the first thing that I
00:35:12
normally address in the course of an
00:35:15
investigation. I ruled it out in this
00:35:18
instance because I saw nothing there to
00:35:21
indicate
00:35:26
that. After they found him, a deputy
00:35:30
came to the store and approached the
00:35:33
door. And I
00:35:35
said, "Is he
00:35:37
dead?" And he said,
00:35:42
"Yes. I can tell you it's the most
00:35:45
shattering experience anyone can go
00:35:48
through."
00:35:51
Right there, guess it. At first, I
00:35:53
thought it might have been an accident.
00:35:56
It looked as though he might have been
00:35:57
in a tree nearby and subsequently fallen
00:36:00
out of the tree and the gun discharged
00:36:06
etc. We felt that it was an accident and
00:36:11
even when the coroner came back at the
00:36:12
store after the results of his
00:36:14
examination
00:36:16
uh he came up with two deputies and he
00:36:18
said he felt that it was 90% sure that
00:36:21
it was an accidental shooting.
00:36:24
However, Norman's family was in for a
00:36:26
terrible shock when the official ruling
00:36:29
came down. The coroner said that Norman
00:36:31
did not die from an accident. He
00:36:34
committed
00:36:35
suicide. The coroner's decision was
00:36:38
based on the fact that Norman died from
00:36:40
a close contact head
00:36:44
wound. The bullet entered his right
00:36:46
temple and exited his left. It was a
00:36:49
very typical suicide wound.
00:36:54
I think that he went back into an area
00:36:57
where he felt comfortable and for
00:37:01
reasons that we don't know that he
00:37:03
decided to take his
00:37:06
[Music]
00:37:08
life. It was impossible for it to be a
00:37:12
suicide. I knew my son too well. He
00:37:15
enjoyed and he lived life to the
00:37:17
fullest. Uh he was happy. He was
00:37:20
outgoing. He was not depressed in any
00:37:22
way and uh he had too many things going
00:37:26
for
00:37:31
him. They made no attempt to locate the
00:37:34
bullet. They never fingerpointed the
00:37:37
gun. They cannot say with any facts that
00:37:42
his gun was the weapon that was used to
00:37:45
kill him.
00:37:47
There were other problems. Norman's
00:37:50
wallet with $140 was missing. He had a 1
00:37:53
and a4 inch long cut on the top of his
00:37:56
head. If Norman had committed suicide,
00:37:59
how did that cut get
00:38:02
there? Authorities said the head wound
00:38:04
was caused by this bloody tree root that
00:38:07
was found at the scene. We didn't see
00:38:09
how that could happen because falling
00:38:11
straight back uh you would hit your head
00:38:14
on the the side or directly in the back,
00:38:17
not up in the crown of your head.
00:38:20
Norman's parents began their own
00:38:22
investigation. They dug in a dirt area
00:38:24
where their son had fallen to see if
00:38:26
they can find the bullet that had taken
00:38:28
his life. I remember so well the feeling
00:38:31
that I had of having to sift through
00:38:36
the dried
00:38:40
particles of brain tissue and blood that
00:38:44
my of my
00:38:48
son. We found a
00:38:51
bullet. It was longer than the bullet
00:38:55
that Norman's gun would hold. The
00:38:57
chamber was not bored out for the length
00:38:59
of that bullet and it had dried blood
00:39:02
and a hair that we examined under the
00:39:04
magnifying glass. We don't have any
00:39:07
reason to believe that it was the bullet
00:39:09
that was fired that caused the boy's
00:39:12
death. U mainly because we feel that
00:39:15
that the boy was standing at the time
00:39:18
the gun was fired. And if that being the
00:39:21
case, it would not have been in the
00:39:23
ground underneath his head.
00:39:27
We came to the conclusion that he was
00:39:30
lying on the ground and he was shot by
00:39:34
someone in a standing position.
00:39:37
The Labers gave the bullet to a state
00:39:39
ballistics expert, but he couldn't tell
00:39:42
if it had come from Norman's rifle. And
00:39:44
when they were given the bullet back,
00:39:46
they claimed that it was not the same
00:39:48
bullet that they had found.
00:39:50
My boy didn't commit suicide. A few
00:39:52
weeks later, Norman's parents went to
00:39:54
the coroner's office to question his
00:39:56
ruling. His mother said a stranger
00:39:59
interrupted their conversation. In the
00:40:02
womb, I speak to you over here a minute,
00:40:03
please. He said, "Mrs. Ladner, don't
00:40:06
open this case up." Mrs. Lner, you have
00:40:09
other children. I suggest you raise them
00:40:11
for your own good. You'll never find the
00:40:13
person that killed your son. And then
00:40:16
the man left.
00:40:20
[Music]
00:40:24
Unfazed, Norman's father returned to the
00:40:26
area where his son died.
00:40:31
Hey, come here. 300 yd away, he found a
00:40:36
strange radioike device that looked
00:40:39
homemade.
00:40:41
State authorities said it was not an
00:40:44
important clue, but a neighbor suggested
00:40:47
that he show it to an ex narcotics agent
00:40:49
who lived in the area. The former DEA
00:40:52
agent said this was a type of device
00:40:55
that drug dealers used to signal
00:40:58
aircraft by sending out a low range
00:41:00
signal
00:41:02
uh for the proper alignment to drop
00:41:06
shipment of drugs.
00:41:14
Norman believes that his son came upon
00:41:16
drug dealers in the woods and that they
00:41:18
killed them because they didn't want any
00:41:23
eyewitnesses. Authorities continue to
00:41:26
stand by the coroner's rulings, but
00:41:28
Norman's parents say it was nothing less
00:41:31
than coldblooded murder.
00:41:34
We will not stop this
00:41:37
investigation, no matter what, until it
00:41:40
is
00:41:41
finished. We owe it to our son.
00:41:52
It's a great deal of strain knowing that
00:41:54
he was murdered and nothing has been
00:41:56
done to bring his murderers to justice.
00:42:02
If you have any information about the
00:42:04
death of Norman Latner, please log on to
00:42:07
our website at
00:42:10
[Music]
00:42:25
unsolved.com.
00:42:29
[Music]
00:42:40
[Music]
00:42:47
Heat. Heat.

Badges

This episode stands out for the following:

  • 70
    Most shocking
  • 70
    Most surprising
  • 65
    Most intense
  • 65
    Most unpredictable

Episode Highlights

  • The Inside Job
    A casino robbery leads to suspicion among employees, including a security guard named Jim.
    “Too many coincidences. Too many things fell into place.”
    @ 04m 25s
    March 09, 2017
  • Convict's Escape
    Sam Watkkey escapes prison after 8 years, only to be caught again.
    “Life isn't nothing.”
    @ 09m 53s
    March 09, 2017
  • Amelia Heheart's Last Flight
    Amelia Heheart's final journey ends in tragedy, with no trace ever found.
    “The nation was in mourning. A unique hero was lost.”
    @ 24m 27s
    March 09, 2017
  • Amelia's Mysterious Fate
    Eyewitness accounts suggest Amelia and Fred may have survived their crash.
    “Most experts believe Amelia went down somewhere near Holland Island.”
    @ 25m 03s
    March 09, 2017
  • The Discovery of Amelia's Briefcase
    A soldier finds Amelia's papers in a safe, hinting at her presence on Saipan.
    “I may have only been 18 years old, but I knew I had a piece of history in my hand.”
    @ 28m 32s
    March 09, 2017
  • Norman Ladner's Tragic Death
    A popular teenager is found dead, leading to shocking revelations about his death.
    “It’s a deep shock and a tragedy to come up on and find your own son.”
    @ 34m 36s
    March 09, 2017
  • The Fight for Justice
    Norman's parents refuse to accept the coroner's ruling of suicide, believing he was murdered.
    “We owe it to our son.”
    @ 41m 31s
    March 09, 2017

Episode Quotes

  • Don't turn around or I'll kill you.
    Unsolved Mysteries with Dennis Farina - Season 4, Episode 4
  • Life isn't nothing.
    Unsolved Mysteries with Dennis Farina - Season 4, Episode 4
  • I knew I was losing a lot of blood.
    Unsolved Mysteries with Dennis Farina - Season 4, Episode 4
  • The nation was in mourning. A unique hero was lost.
    Unsolved Mysteries with Dennis Farina - Season 4, Episode 4
  • I do not believe Amelia Heheart died at sea.
    Unsolved Mysteries with Dennis Farina - Season 4, Episode 4
  • My boy didn’t commit suicide.
    Unsolved Mysteries with Dennis Farina - Season 4, Episode 4

Key Moments

  • Robbery Threat00:29
  • Murder Conviction09:47
  • Amelia's Crash24:53
  • Unconfirmed Sightings25:08
  • Discovery on Saipan25:42
  • Witness Account29:09
  • Excavation Attempt31:24
  • Norman's Death34:50

Words per Minute Over Time

Vibes Breakdown

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46:16
Unsolved Mysteries with Robert Stack - Season 3, Episode 8 - Full Episode
Unsolved Mysteries with Dennis Farina - Season 3, Episode 4
March 09, 2017
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42:53
Unsolved Mysteries with Dennis Farina - Season 3, Episode 4
Unsolved Mysteries with Dennis Farina - Season 2, Episode 8 - Updated Full Episode
July 26, 2021
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42:51
Unsolved Mysteries with Dennis Farina - Season 2, Episode 8 - Updated Full Episode
Unsolved Mysteries with Dennis Farina - Season 8, Episode 12
March 09, 2017
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42:51
Unsolved Mysteries with Dennis Farina - Season 8, Episode 12
Unsolved Mysteries with Dennis Farina - Season 2, Episode 1 - Updated Full Episode
July 26, 2021
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42:53
Unsolved Mysteries with Dennis Farina - Season 2, Episode 1 - Updated Full Episode
Unsolved Mysteries with Dennis Farina - Season 6, Episode 17
March 09, 2017
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42:51
Unsolved Mysteries with Dennis Farina - Season 6, Episode 17
Unsolved Mysteries with Dennis Farina - Season 2, Episode 4
March 09, 2017
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42:54
Unsolved Mysteries with Dennis Farina - Season 2, Episode 4
Unsolved Mysteries with Dennis Farina - Season 3, Episode 2
March 09, 2017
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42:53
Unsolved Mysteries with Dennis Farina - Season 3, Episode 2
Unsolved Mysteries with Dennis Farina - Season 5, Episode 22
March 09, 2017
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42:49
Unsolved Mysteries with Dennis Farina - Season 5, Episode 22
Unsolved Mysteries with Dennis Farina - Season 3, Episode 19
March 09, 2017
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42:55
Unsolved Mysteries with Dennis Farina - Season 3, Episode 19
Unsolved Mysteries with Dennis Farina - Season 5, Episode 10
March 09, 2017
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41:58
Unsolved Mysteries with Dennis Farina - Season 5, Episode 10
Unsolved Mysteries with Dennis Farina - Season 7, Episode 5
March 09, 2017
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42:53
Unsolved Mysteries with Dennis Farina - Season 7, Episode 5