Bloodline Detectives - Season 2, Episode 13 - Gunpoint Horror - Full Episode | Forensic Files

[MUSIC PLAYING] NANCY GRACE: Alexandria, Virginia, 2016, a young female lifeguard raped at work.
That was the most severe sexual offense crime that I'd come across in my career at that time.
I think what was the most frightening was how well planned out it was, how calm he was.
The level of calm that he exhibited really-- it just exuded that he knew that he wasn't going to get caught.
NANCY GRACE: Police soon learn of a similar attack in nearby Fairfax County, Virginia,
just two years earlier. As far as the sexual acts and the statements that were made,
they were almost identical to our offense down to the order of events and the exact words that were said to the victim.
There's obviously a great deal of worry that the person is going to strike again.
NANCY GRACE: But police hit a dead end. There was a lot of uncertainty caused by it because
of the lack of information because the police didn't have any information to provide.
They weren't withholding it. There just wasn't any information to provide. It was the detective team that first
proposed perhaps using genetic genealogy to look into the matter. NANCY GRACE: This is the story of two brutal rapes, a sex
predator with a devious plan and how "Bloodline Detectives" catch him before he can attack again.
I'm Nancy Grace. This is "Bloodline Detectives." [THEME MUSIC PLAYING] [MUSIC PLAYING]
September 3, 2016, Alexandria, Virginia, police respond to an emergency call about a young woman
lifeguard sex assaulted. The incident occurred in essentially a pool house for a condominium and townhouse neighborhood.
I get there. It's the end of summer or the beginning of fall. The pool is empty.
It's overcast, so there was no one swimming that day or no one was going to be swimming that day.
Standard pool house to the left is the women's changing room. To the right is the men's changing room.
Since the victim is a woman, I called out into the women's changing room, and I heard
her calling from the pool. So I went through the female changing room and into the pool, and that's when I encountered
her right outside the women's changing room right into the pool area. She get-- she was able to get a jacket or something
across her shoulders, but other than that she was essentially naked with their hands
bound behind her back crying. Her makeup was very, very, like, smeared not in shock
but very, very panicked. I almost thought that she wasn't too comfortable with me
when I was on scene because of what just happened to her. So she kind of-- she kind of step back when I got there.
The most reassuring way possible said police. I'm here to help. What happened? Are you OK?
Are you OK? The first-- first thing. Are you hurt and then realizing that her hands
need to be cut free. So I went to look for her hand. Soon as I was able to get them from out of the jacket,
I found that her-- the zip ties that she was tied with were so tight her hands were blue, and she was
definitely losing circulation. The zip ties looked like they had been cutting into her skin.
So as soon as I could, I took my pocket knife out and very, very carefully considering how tight those zip ties worked
my pocket knife in between and cut her free, in the process cutting my own thumb
while I was cutting her free. NANCY GRACE: Officer Sanderson tries to figure out who the victim is and get a sense
of where the crime happened. The victim was a lifeguard. She was here just for the summer.
She was from an Eastern European nation. We're right outside of Washington DC, so it's a heavily populated area.
In the summer, there's a lot of pools, and we have a lot of people coming from outside of the US
to come here and serve as lifeguards. So she was very young. She was only here temporarily, and indeed this was
relatively late in the summer. She was probably finishing up her time here unfortunately when this terrible incident occurred.
The swimming pools in a kind of small neighborhood of townhouses and condos. The neighborhood itself sits on a hill,
and the pool is near the top of the hill. It's surrounded by a fence and by a lot of trees,
so there's not a lot of visibility into the pool area. The pool's only used by residents of that neighborhood,
and, again, it's a pretty small neighborhood. It's a small pool. She was the only lifeguard working there at the time.
There's one lifeguard at the pool. And so there are, you know, often days where no one would come to that pool at all,
and the lifeguard would just be there by themselves. And this was one of those days, especially
because of the weather, so she was there by herself all day. BRYAN PORTER: Pool itself wasn't very large.
You've got a pool. You've got a pool deck with some chairs on it, and there's a small office.
And, of course, it's got a gate and a fence around it, but it's not secure in any way.
NANCY GRACE: The victim, understandably shaken, Officer Sanderson does his best to piece
together what happened. BRADY SANDERSON: I was looking for stuff around the area,
and she actually did make it into the restroom. I knocked on the door, and I asked
her point blank were you raped. And she answers back yes. I was like I need you to stop, get off the toilet,
do not flush. And she said OK. And she actually was very, very responsive in this
and came out of the stall. And I was able to preserve whatever was in the toilet
and then also was able to start talking to her, asking her exactly where everything
happened so I can start securing that crime scene. She was able to tell me location where exactly it happened,
and it happened in we call it the pump room, the pumps for the swimming pool. It's about the size of a closet, and that's where she
told me the offense took place. NANCY GRACE: Medics arrive to take the survivor to the hospital--
JESSICA BEST SMITH: Both to check on her and then ultimately to take her to the hospital
for a sexual assault exam. The sexual assault exam has a number of components. So there's an external examination
where the nurses will document injuries to the body. So they looked at, for example, her wrists
had very deep abrasions in them from the zip ties. There were abrasions on her back from where
the zip ties head dug into her back while she was placed on her back. Everywhere externally to see signs of bruising or abrasions
that were caused by the assault. They also do an internal exam for a number of reasons
to look for injuries. In a rape case, it's actually relatively rare to have internal injuries, but the victim in this case
did have a rather significant internal injury. The nurses also use the internal and external exam
to collect evidence to look for DNA or anything else that might have been left behind.
So here they took a number of samples both internally and externally to look for the DNA of the perpetrator.
What occurs during the SANE exam is dependent upon what the victim reports occurred.
So because the victim here had reported that he had placed his mouth on her breast during the attack,
they did swab her breast area for saliva, any DNA that would have been left behind there.
She had also reported that during the course of the rape that he had ejaculated and that he had not used a condom,
so the nurses observed what appeared to be semen inside of her and they took swabs both internally and externally
to look for DNA that might be contained in there. NANCY GRACE: Some police departments give a traumatized
victim time before a detailed interview takes place, time for the victim to try to gather her thoughts
after such a brutal experience. NEAL AUGENSTEIN: It was a gray afternoon, Labor Day weekend.
There was nobody else at the pool. And later that afternoon, someone came up to her
and asked if he'd left his flip-flops there. RYAN CLINCH: So the victim kind of helped him look around.
Generally at the pool, they have some sort of lost and found, and so she had taken him to the area at the clubhouse,
which was the pump room. Kind of looked around, no flip-flops, and he left. Short time later, gentleman returned, kind
of asking the same questions. Look-- you know, looking for flip-flop shoes. And she agreed to help him look again.
JESSICA BEST SMITH: She did notice that this time when she was walking around that he didn't seem to be looking like he was before.
He was just kind of following around behind her. RYAN CLINCH: And at this time, that's
when they go over to the clubhouse, the pump room, and checks again, and then when she turns around
he produces a firearm. NEAL AUGENSTEIN: Told her that he would shoot her if she screamed.
JESSICA BEST SMITH: He put on some blue latex gloves. And tied her wrist together with zip ties.
RYAN CLINCH: And at one point he sticks a piece of tissue in her mouth. JESSICA BEST SMITH: He repeatedly told
her that he might shoot her. He did tell her that he was going to rape her or kill her or both.
He also strangled her, put his hand on her neck. And then at that point he starts to lift her shirt
licks her breasts, starts attempting to try and have sex with her. That time he was not erect at the time.
So he stuck his fingers in her vagina that must have aroused him. You know, at this point he's on top of her.
His penis enters her vagina. You know, she laid there. She recalls his face against hers and the heavy breathing.
He got off of her, patted her on the shoulder, and left. So she waited a little while to make sure that he was gone
and then got up. BRADY SANDERSON: There was no cell phone really on scene or anything like that.
The only phone was a-- like, a 1980s corded phone that was on a window seal that
was just about the right height where her hands would have been when they were tied behind her back.
And she dialed the phone number from memory without looking at the keyboard and called her boyfriend
and also the pool manager. NANCY GRACE: Police know this is no random act of violence.
It's well thought out. As we see next on "Bloodline Detectives," investigators think a serial rapist is on the loose.
[LOGO NOISE] [MUSIC PLAYING] September 2016, Alexandria detectives investigating the brutal rape of a female lifeguard.
They work the crime scene for strong clues but find almost none. JESSICA BEST SMITH: There was very little
evidence at all at the scene. So the investigators there just basically documented what
the pool looked like, what the pump room looked like, collected her clothing, collected the zip
ties that had been cut off. So the detectives really started with the most basic
aspect of the investigation, which was just looking for witnesses. No one had seen anything out of the ordinary that day,
so they were very much at a dead end at the very beginning of the investigation.
NANCY GRACE: Police try their best to create a sketch of the perpetrator with the victim's help.
JESSICA BEST SMITH: The victim set down with a sketch artist early on. It had been the hope of the police department
that as a result of that interview that they'd be able to release the sketch and ask the public for help in finding the person.
But after sitting with a sketch artist for quite a long period of time, the victim didn't feel like the sketch that
was produced looked like the perpetrator, and we weren't confident that it would
get any leads based upon that. So they weren't able to release that. NANCY GRACE: Detectives learned of a similar sex attack
on a lifeguard, that one two years earlier in Fairfax, Virginia. BRYAN PORTER: It's rare for us to have
this kind of violent sexual assault in this area-- I can't say it never happens--
and then to find that within just a couple of years a similar offense involving a lifeguard at a secluded
pool just a couple of miles away from the location of our offense that occurred.
NANCY GRACE: Investigators now take a hard look at the Fairfax sex attack. BRADY SANDERSON: Just like the incident that happened in ours,
the weather wasn't so great. A male suspect came to the pool with a similar type ruse.
NEAL AUGENSTEIN: Nobody else was at the pool. A man came up and asked about how he could get a pool pass.
And the lifeguard told him what he needed to do. JESSICA BEST SMITH: He was wearing sunglasses, which
is striker as strange given that it was kind of a rainy, cloudy day. In retrospect obviously, it appears that he was
trying to conceal his identity. NEAL AUGENSTEIN: The man left after that conversation,
but he came back a couple of hours later and said that he thought he'd left his sunglasses behind
and asked the lifeguard if she would do him a favor and go check for them. He pulled out a gun and said this is a robbery.
The lifeguard said she didn't have any money. The man pushed her to the ground, he tied plastic wrist ties around her wrists,
and he puts something over her mouth. RYAN CLINCH: And proceeded to try and rape her.
JESSICA BEST SMITH: The one big difference between the two offenses was that in Fairfax, the victim felt a sharp pain
in her bottom right before feeling very woozy and passing out. So in the Fairfax offense, the victim was drugged.
The last thing she remembered before passing out was that he did, in fact, rape her, and she passed out
woke up feeling very groggy sometime later. Was able to make her way out of the pool house
and to a nearby home where she asked some of the neighbors to call for help. NANCY GRACE: The Fairfax victim gives police exactly what
they're hoping for, a crucial piece of evidence linking both attacks to the same suspect.
JESSICA BEST SMITH: The Fairfax victim was able once the officers arrived to provide
a description of a white man in his 30s with a little bit of a beard. He was wearing a ball cap at the time and a t-shirt.
BRYAN PORTER: The suspect was described in a similar manner led us to pretty quickly assume
that the two must be linked. There were no sperm identified or DNA identified from the swabs from her body.
However, there was DNA, a very small amount of DNA found in her underwear. NANCY GRACE: Investigators scientifically
link both sex attacks with DNA found on both victims. BRYAN PORTER: The DNA from both scenes was compared.
That link took a little bit longer. It was a matter of a couple of months before we had definitive proof that the two were linked.
JESSICA BEST SMITH: The victim in the Fairfax case was likewise a seasonal lifeguard here on a work visa,
and this was near the end of the season. I believe the Fairfax offense was in August.
It was striking to the investigators that in both cases, he selected victims with obvious foreign accents working in jobs that
are in our area frequently worked by students who are here on work visas from overseas and that these offenses were
committed at or near the end of summer when these students would be going back to their home countries.
So it struck us that he was perhaps selecting these victims because quite simply that they wouldn't
be around to prosecute the offenses once they went back home. NANCY GRACE: Now there seem to be
red flags about a serial rapist everywhere. Police in Alexandria combine old fashioned detective work
with the very newest forensic science. BRYAN PORTER: The first step that was tried
was a phenotype analysis. Basically what that allows is to use the DNA to produce what
amounts really to a computer-generated composite sketch and an effort to produce some likeness of the person,
perhaps hopefully a better likeness than the composite sketch that was originally used in the matter.
So we were able to obtain a computer-generated composite sketch based on the DNA profile.
The police did release that to the media, and the hope, of course, is that it's going to spur tips, leads.
And some tips did come in. My recollection is that we did receive some tips, but most of them are very, very, very soft,
things like I saw a guy that looked like that on the bus the other day, nothing that could really be followed up,
nothing concrete, and nothing that led to the identification of a suspect. NEAL AUGENSTEIN: The idea of a lifeguard being raped
while at her job at a deserted pool was shocking to anybody who heard that. It was a shocking story to report on.
I think that every person who's ever worked a job where they're by themselves, you know,
the thought had crossed their mind at least at some point that just being alone like that
could put you at risk. There was a lot of fear in the community, especially in that neighborhood.
It was a very quiet neighborhood, a very small neighborhood, and there were a lot of questions
from the people in the media area about what the investigation was, why it hadn't yielded a suspect, and why there
wasn't any more information. There was a lot of uncertainty caused by it because
of the lack of information, because the police didn't have any information to provide.
They weren't withholding it. There just wasn't any information to provide. BRYAN PORTER: There's obviously a great deal of worry
that the person is going to strike again. I think there is unfortunately kind of like when are we going
to be able to identify this person, so there was a great deal of pressure when trying to find the perpetrator.
But I would point out I don't think the community pressure was as tough as the pressure on the detectives
that they bring on themselves. The detectives that work this case really take cases like this to heart,
and they refused to give up. And obviously it was the detective team that first proposed perhaps using genetic genealogy
to look into the matter. NANCY GRACE: The sex assaults are almost identical. So is the description of the attacker from both victims.
And there's a DNA match. But police are still stumped. Can the "Bloodline Detectives" stop a serial rapist before he
strikes again, and he will. That's. Next [LOGO NOISE] [MUSIC PLAYING] Alexandria, Virginia detectives hunting a serial sex predator
who has already raped two young female lifeguards in August 2014 and September 2016.
Investigators now turn to a forensic science proving to be successful in other high-profile cases.
BRYAN PORTER: The detectives approached my office with the idea of enlisting Parabon to assist.
We had some conversation about that. I'll be honest. At the very beginning of this, I wasn't convinced
that it would be useful. I felt like it was a shot in the dark, and it was something that was being tried because we
had nothing else to try. But this was several years ago, and while the technique had
been used before and Parabon had been used in criminal investigations before, I wasn't particularly well versed in the methods
and how it works. And this was about the time that the Golden State Killer case was really groundbreaking news, and the detectives
who were involved who really felt that this had a great chance of working used that case,
the Golden State case, as an example of the power of genetic genealogy. And it was the combined force of, hey,
we really have reached a dead end and the investigation coupled with trying to find this offender before he struck again
and also the fact that the technique had worked in other jurisdictions that led us to believe that we
needed to give it a shot. We laid out some parameters about the need for obtaining search warrants wherever possible, and then
the detectives took it and proceeded forward and try to use the genetic genealogy
technique to find and identify a potential offender. NANCY GRACE: Genetic genealogy's a groundbreaking
crime-solving tool, detectives in Alexandria anxious to understand just how it works.
BRYAN PORTER: Human beings are very interested in genealogy. They take their own DNA sample, they turn it
in to a private company, which maintains a database, and the database can comprise literally
millions of DNA profiles. Then you take a known sample from an offense, you've got a DNA profile that you've not
been able to identify, and you basically use the millions of DNA profiles that have been uploaded
to the internet, uploaded to this database, that's kept in the cloud. And you try to use it to compare and then establish
some potential familial relationships between the offender's DNA and people that are actually have their profiles in the cloud
on the database. You're not-- in other words, you're not necessarily actually looking for, quote unquote, a match.
Instead what you're looking for is a substantially close DNA profiles, the kind of narrowed down the potential family
connections for the offender and through the family connections if you can get someone with a close enough DNA profile
to the offender's profile, you can then use maybe normal detective techniques to try to narrow down the field to potential offenders.
Using a mix of the ancestry information and then social media information, right, because it says,
oh, it's somebody in his family and then you figure out how many people in this family
live in this area, how many of them are of an age where they could do this, how many of them
are male. And so then they came down to it seems like it's this person, right. BRYAN PORTER: I do remember very clearly the day
when the detectives told me that they thought they had narrowed it down to a potential offender and they informed me
that he not only lived in Arlington County but that he worked at our local hospital.
I had a real immediate visceral reaction, and I was convinced of the capabilities
of genetic genealogy. I mean, to use the technique to find somebody who matched the description, was in the right age group,
lived a couple of miles away, and worked in the city was really amazing. And at that point we were pretty confident we had the right guy,
but we still had a lot of work to do. NANCY GRACE: Alexandria detectives now have a new weapon, familial genealogy.
They also think they've got a suspect, Jessie Bjerke. Can they climb that family tree fast enough
to stop another sex assault. That's next on "Bloodline Detectives." [LOGO NOISE]
[MUSIC PLAYING] Alexandria police believe they've identified a serial rapist on the loose who's already assaulted
two young female lifeguards. His name, Jesse Bjerke. Now they've gotta find him.
NEAL AUGENSTEIN: Alexandria police began to think about Jessie Bjerke as a possible suspect,
and they staked him out. RACHEL WEINER: They went to his apartment. They looked through his trash.
They tried to get a DNA match from his trash but were unsuccessful. They followed him and his wife to a restaurant in Old Town
Alexandria, and then after, they left they picked up the straws from their table.
And they took those, and that's how they were able to get his DNA. JESSICA BEST SMITH: The items from the trash and the straws
were all submitted to the lab to be compared with the STR profile that had been developed from the DNA
that had been found in the sexual assault kit from the victim. They were determined to be first and foremost all
from the same person and then also a match. RACHEL WEINER: They looked at his cell phone records,
saw that his cell phone had been turned off during the time of this attack, saw that he had left work early
saying he was sick the day of the attack, and then they got a search warrant. RYAN CLINCH: We took the case before the grand jury,
and the grand jury issued warrants. We set up our surveillance again back at the residence.
When he left, he drove into the city of Alexandria here. Traffic stop was initiated, and he was placed under arrest.
JESSICA BEST SMITH: He appeared oddly unsurprised and calm when he was informed of what
he was being arrested for. After he was placed in the police cruiser, he was taken back to the police station
and interviewed by the police. RYAN CLINCH: He was cooperative. Yeah, I think he was a little afraid, having
not been in this situation. He had no criminal history. We talked for a little while.
He denied raping a lifeguard. Going into an interview like this with somebody who's committed these sort of crimes,
it's almost like a chameleon. They're good actors. There were some questions of why I'm here,
you know, those sort of things, some nervousness, some things you would expect for somebody who's never been
arrested before or have been caught for crimes they've committed. NANCY GRACE: With Bjerke in custody,
investigators now use more forensic weapons to prove his guilt. JESSICA BEST SMITH: After he was arrested, than the detectives
executed a search warrant to obtain a buccal swab from him so that, A, a known DNA comparison
could be done. The Department of Forensic Science was able to calculate statistics that were related
to the comparison, finding that it was one in 7.2 billion, which is approximately the world population.
NANCY GRACE: Jesse Bjerke now officially charged with two rapes but investigators still want more evidence to put
him behind bars for good. RYAN CLINCH: We made an arrest. Now we're working backwards to try and gather
as much evidence as possible as far back as we can go. We got search warrants for his residence.
We got search warrant for his car, for his cell phone, for his work locker, at Inova Alexandria hospital,
and we were just kind of looking for anything that could place him at the scene, any evidence
of how to commit these crimes. For example, his phone, there was a lot of crime articles
stuff, particular genetic genealogy sort of stuff that we ended up recovering. JESSICA BEST SMITH: The second thing
we were able to determine from his cell phone records was his location at the time.
And we were able to determine that for the Alexandria offense that he was present, that his phone was hitting off the tower
right next to the pool just prior to the first time that the victim reported that he entered the pool claiming
to have lost his flip-flops. Now the location evidence ended there, but what was significant
was that the phone appeared to have been either put into airplane mode or turned off after that time.
And in looking at his records, the detectives and investigators looked back for some period of time
and found very, very few other instances where his phone went off and definitely
not during the day like that. So that appeared to us to be an attempt to-- a conscious attempt to conceal his location during that time
by turning his phone off or putting it in an airplane mode for the exact time period
that the offense occurred. The detectives were very detailed on what they were looking for to corroborate the offense.
So, for example, blue latex gloves, they were also doing a search warrant for the Fairfax offense
as well in that their perpetrator and our perpetrator were one in the same even though the Fairfax defense
hadn't been charged yet. So we were looking for ketamine, for syringes. RYAN CLINCH: We got Mr. Bjerke's time and attendance records.
We did see on the day of the fence that he had left work early. He mentioned something about feeling ill or not
feeling well. And, you know, that to us right there, it was like, wow. He wasn't at work.
JESSICA BEST SMITH: We learned that he had already given notice at his job and at his apartment that he was leaving
his job and that he would be moving out of his apartment, breaking his lease, and he had planned
to become a traveling nurse . And so had we made this arrest even a month later, not only
would he have been gone, he would have been in a position to victimize women all over the country
and continue moving on, making it even harder to find him or to identify him as the perpetrator.
NANCY GRACE: Does the suspect Bjerke know police are on his tail? Is that why he's making a move to leave Virginia?
That's next on "Bloodline Detectives." [LOGO NOISE] [MUSIC PLAYING] Alexandria, Virginia, 2019, police
believe they have identified the perpetrator in the brutal rapes of two young women.
His name, Jesse Bjerke. Now investigators want to know just who is this guy. RACHEL WEINER: He was married.
He had a child. He had a daughter. He had previously been married and divorced, and his attorney said for him that that divorce had
impacted him mentally in a way that maybe contributed to these crimes. He was also sexually assaulted himself.
He was sexually abused as a young child as an eight-year-old, and that was something
he had never dealt with in therapy until he committed these crimes. An older man when he was eight years old
had sexually violated him and introduced him to pornography. NANCY GRACE: Jesse Bjerke maintains his innocence,
and his family and friends stand beside him. RACHEL WEINER: Everyone in his life
had no understanding that this was happening or could happen. I think his family, even with the DNA evidence,
had some belief that there had been a mistake because that does happen with this DNA evidence, which
is one argument to be cautious about the use of it. But he told them it wasn't me, and they
believed him because, like I said, he was a nurse. He was a father. He was, by all accounts, a good husband.
He just had this other side that he went to great lengths to conceal. NANCY GRACE: Prosecutors decide to try both cases together,
and a trial date is set. BRYAN PORTER: We indicted him for-- in Alexandria for rape, use of a firearm, and abduction.
Later on in the case, he was charged in Fairfax County, but we agreed to resolve all of the matters
in our Alexandria case. That can be done if the defendant himself waives objection.
So generally speaking, normally we would have to prosecute the Fairfax offense in Fairfax
and the Alexandria offense in Alexandria, but if the defendant waives any objection
to the jurisdiction of the court, they can be all put together in one case. JESSICA BEST SMITH: And the Fairfax case, he was indicted
for similar offenses for rape, for object sexual penetration, abduction with intent to defile, and then he
was charged with one count of use of a firearm in commission of a felony. NANCY GRACE: The evidence against Jessie Bjerke
is strong, but investigators still need his victims to return to the US. JESSICA BEST SMITH: If we hadn't been able to find the victims,
there would have been nothing that we could do. So the Constitution guarantees an offender
the right to confront their accuser, and there are rules of evidence that prohibit hearsay
from being admitted at trial. So if we hadn't been able to find these victims, then there would have been nothing that we could have
done to prosecute the cases. Both cases required their willingness to come back to the United States and testify at trial.
NANCY GRACE: Detective Clinch contacts one victim, urging her to come home and help the prosecution.
RYAN CLINCH: She was here in the United States and was a victim of this horrible crime
and left with essentially no justice. I had reached out to her and started talking to her,
introduced myself, and just let her know that we didn't forget about you. I continue to talk to her throughout the investigation,
talk to her, you know, at least once a week if not more. JESSICA BEST SMITH: And that relationship ultimately
resulted in her agreeing when we had a trial date set and when we were ultimately able to start the prosecution,
she agreed to come over. NANCY GRACE: The evidence against Jesse Bjerke looks overwhelming, and finally he faces that fact as well
and changes his plea to guilty. JESSICA BEST SMITH: The defendant ultimately entered
a plea of guilty in Alexandria, but it was a conditional plea of guilt. And what that meant was he was admitting guilt
but he was reserving the right to appeal a motion to suppress that had been litigated in the case.
The biggest motion the one that he wanted to appeal dealt with whether the police needed a search warrant
to develop a DNA profile from the items that they had taken from his trash or from the straws at the restaurant.
RACHEL WEINER: He cried and he apologized for what he'd done and said he couldn't really explain it.
He apologized to his family for lying to them because again up until I think pretty much the moment
he confessed, his wife and his mother-in-law were holding out hope that he had somehow been misidentified,
and I think he had told them that. NEAL AUGENSTEIN: The sentencing for Jessie Bjerke
I was in the courtroom at the time-- one of the few reporters there-- and watched the victim in the 2016 attack
give her victim impact statement. She told the judge that she was a dreamer. Anything was possible.
She told the judge that after that day, she doesn't believe in anything. In her words, my life ended that day.
JESSICA BEST SMITH: We argued for a sentence of 80 years. The defense argued for sentence of far less time,
essentially asking the court to consider his daughter and that he wanted to be a part of his daughter's life
and that a lengthy sentence essentially wasn't necessary in the case. Our argument, the Commonwealth's argument after the victim
impact statements, was focused upon the danger that he presented to the community.
This is someone who had committed this offense twice without any obvious remorse with an extensive amount of planning
both in selecting victims who were vulnerable, likely to leave the country, and unable to-- be
unable to participate in prosecution any further but also in avoiding detection and wearing the gloves
and picking secluded locations on days without witnesses. All of these things led us to believe that he was someone who
would commit this offense again, and the court ultimately across all of the cases
sentenced him to a term of 65 years. NANCY GRACE: Jesse Bjerke is in prison. Has justice been served?
JESSICA BEST SMITH: Whether justice was served is a tough question. I think for the community, justice was served.
I think for the victims, that's something only they can answer. RACHEL WEINER: In some ways, especially because the victims
had come from another country, I think there's a sense that, you know, you let someone in as a guest,
someone travels all the way here just for a summer to work in another place and what they think
is going to be sort of a vacation, you know, to see the capital of another country,
there's a sense that you've made a promise to that person that they will be protected.
One of the victims said for her in some ways it was worse than death. I think this is something that really
terrorizes people, an idea that preys on them psychologically. NANCY GRACE: For the "Bloodline Detectives," the science
of genetic genealogy sends a signal that previously unsolvable crimes are now within reach for investigators.
JESSICA BEST SMITH: It is helpful on several levels, one for them to know that they can't do this anymore,
that it's not the case that just because your DNA isn't in a database that you can go on and commit these crimes
without any fear of detection. But it's also really important for the community to know that we can catch these people,
that this is the type of crime that prior 'til now, prior to the last few years, there isn't anything
we would have been able to do. This would have remained an unsolved case forever
without genetic genealogy. BRYAN PORTER: Genetic genealogy was the linchpin of this case.
To put it bluntly, if we had not utilized the technique, I am very confident that Mr. Bjerke would never have been
identified and he would be free right this moment as we are conducting this interview to hurt someone else
and to assault another human being with impunity. NANCY GRACE: There is never closure
for violent crime victims. Tears and scars may never go away. But genetic genealogy is an incredible breakthrough
in forensic science because it tells the guilty there is another more powerful weapon to track them down and ease
the suffering of crime victims. I'm Nancy Grace, and this has been "Bloodline Detectives."
[LOGO NOISE] [CLOSING THEME]

In Alexandria, Virginia in 2016, a young female lifeguard is raped while working at a local pool. Police soon learn of a similar incident in Fairfax, two years previously.

A compelling new True Crime series, hosted by preeminent legal analyst and renowned former prosecutor Nancy Grace, that explores the advanced form of familial DNA testing.

Brief Summary

Genetic genealogy helps catch serial rapist Jesse Bjerke after two lifeguards are assaulted in Virginia.

Key points

Detectives Explore Genetic Genealogy. Investigators turn to genetic genealogy to identify the serial rapist targeting lifeguards.
Brutal Attack on Lifeguard. A young lifeguard is brutally assaulted at a secluded pool, raising fears of a serial predator.
Community Fear and Uncertainty. The brutal crime leaves the community in fear and uncertainty about their safety.
Jesse Bjerke's Arrest. Police arrest Jesse Bjerke after gathering DNA evidence from his trash and straws.
Victim Impact Statements. Victims share their harrowing experiences in court, highlighting the emotional toll of the crimes.
The Breakthrough of Genetic Genealogy. Genetic genealogy played a crucial role in identifying Jesse Bjerke as a suspect.

Episode highlights

Episode quotes

The most severe sexual offense I'd come across.

Detective reflecting on the severity of the crime.

0:23WatchJun 1, 2022

Tension

85/ 100High tension

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