Episode 794: Dr. Ohta & the Killer Prophet | Forensic Files

Hey weirdos. I'm Ash. And I'm Elena. And this is Morbid. >> This is morbid. >> It's also kind of like an 800 call
service because I have a sexy voice. >> It's true. She does. >> It's like in and out though. Like I I
can I can force it to not be so >> Yeah. >> It's It's the allergies. >> It's the allergies. It's the asthma.
>> The asthma. >> Asthma. It's just It's a whole bunch of things, you know. >> Yeah. You know,
>> what are you going to do? >> It's the goddamn pollen. It's here to stay. I don't know when it's We've had
several rains, several intense rains, >> storms even. >> It rains every [ __ ] weekend.
>> It's raining all the time. And it's like, and then we wake up and it's just somehow more pollen on my porch
>> and now just puddles of pollen. Now the pollen has gathered. >> The pollen puddles gross me the [ __ ]
out. I'm also driving a pollen mobile. >> Yeah, >> if you have a black car, pollen mobile.
>> Yeah, there's no Don't get your car washed in New England right now. >> I recently did and I don't know why I
did. It was a waste of $22. I know. >> Like that's actually wild that you did that. I just hate like if when it builds
up to a certain point, I like can't handle it. >> I know it's true, but I'm just like it's
going to get this way tomorrow. >> I know, but then I'm like am I like breathing this in like having
>> probably >> like sitting in my pollen mobile? >> You're breathing it in everywhere.
>> It's coming into your house. >> Oh, I know. I need to get my um my air ducts cleaned out. This is 30.
>> There you go. >> Yeah, cuz I'm officially 30. So many people messaged me like really nice
things. So, thank you guys for the birthday wishes. >> The birthday wishes. I still haven't
quite celebrated. My 30th birthday was the most 30th birthday. It was so lowkey and so great.
>> They usually Yeah, they get chiller. >> It was Drew was like, "You don't want to
do anything?" I was like, "No, I want to order take out >> and I want to lay on the couch.
>> That's all I ever want to do for my birthday." >> Saw my grandparents >> and Elena.
>> Yep. >> That was great. That was enough for me. >> That's all I want. >> Yeah. Um but we are going out soon to
celebrate. >> Yeah, we'll celebrate for sure. We have a plan. >> Yeah, we're going to have a funeral.
It's true. >> For my 20s. >> Yeah, as you should. >> Let's kill them. >> Yeah. >> All right. Um, buy tickets to Radio City
Music Hall. There's not that many left. >> There isn't. So, go get them. >> Go get them. Go launder the streets of
New York afterwards. >> Yeah, it's fine. >> It's going to be great. >> Just kidding. Don't do that.
>> We got cool dresses. It's going to be a fun time. >> I know. Our dresses from Romania are
coming in soon. And I'm going to poop my pants when I see it. >> Truly not in the dress.
>> I know. What to do? Oh, I still need to figure out like our hair. >> I got to make some calls.
>> Going to make some calls. I got to do some admin. We're doing our own makeup.
>> Yeah, >> that's that. >> We had We had a mishap with makeup once that will forever scar us.
>> We That's all we can say. >> That's all we can say. But >> you're on a need to know basis.
>> Just know that we will be doing our own makeup for the rest of our lives. >> It's true.
>> Thank you. >> And without >> I think that's it. >> Yeah, that's all our business.
>> But pre-order the Butcher Legacy. Pre-order it. Get it. It's fun. She's also making really good Tik Tok. So, you
got to follow. She did another one today. It's not an evidence collection. She had a whole new idea.
>> Yeah. And I'm excited about it. So, >> Elena had a new idea. Mom would kill me
if I just said she. >> I know. It's true. >> Who's she the cat's mother? >> But go pre-order it. It's a lot of fun.
>> It's good. >> It's really fun. There's a lot going on in it. >> So close to finishing.
>> But >> that's it. >> I think that's all we have. >> Yeah. >> So, ding. Now it starts.
>> There you go. So, we're going to be talking about um the Otaf family killings and a killer prophet today. O
>> I feel like I don't even want to call this man a prophet. >> He probably just called himself that.
>> I don't even know if he did. I think he just got kind of like dubbed that. >> Damn, that's even worse.
>> Yeah. Um this is a really awful story and one that I actually hadn't really heard that much about before. Dave
suggested it and I was reading into it and I was like, "Oh my god." >> Yeah, I think I know this one.
>> I think you probably do. It was right. It was in California around the 70s, like very close to the Manson family
murders. Like literally, >> this happened while the Manson family was on trial. >> Oh, wow.
>> Yeah. So, a little past 8:00 p.m. on the evening of October 19th, 1970, firefighters got an emergency call about
an outofcrol fire at 999 Rodeo Gulch Road in SoCal, uh, California. It's a suburb of Santa Cruz County.
>> Okay. Now, this was a multi-million dollar mansion, and it was the home to 45-year-old Dr. Victor Ot, who was a
very popular local opthalmologist. He lived in that house with his wife, Virginia, as well as their two sons,
12-year-old Derek and 11-year-old Tagert. The couple also had two daughters, Lark and Tara, who were away
at boarding school, luckily, when the fire began. Now, the house sat on top of a really high hill with two long
driveways leading down to the main road. And when firefighters arrived to the scene, they found that the main driveway
was blocked by Mr. Ot's Rolls-Royce. It was parked across the driveway, like the
width. >> That's not usual. >> No. Now, there was a second car, which was a large Lincoln Continental, and
that was parked across the same way, the second uh driveway, like pull >> literally try to keep people from
getting there. >> Yeah. >> Wow. Luckily, firefighters were able to push one of the cars out of the way, and
they managed to get the truck up to the house, but once they got there, they ran
into another problem. The house was too far from any fire hydrants to connect the hose and start extinguishing.
>> I feel like that is that like I don't think that would be like up to code. >> I was going to say that's not okay.
>> No, I don't think so. I don't know. >> That is not all right at all. >> It was the ' 70s, so I don't know if
people really thought that much. >> So, they were like code >> about it. Yeah. I don't Maybe it wasn't
code. >> Yeah. So, thinking fast, one of the firefighters suggested that they could
siphon water from the swimming pool in the back of the house. >> Pretty good idea. That was smart.
>> I don't know if that would work if you had like a saltwater pool though. I was
thinking >> H cuz like >> still might. >> Still could. >> But also then like there's a lot of
chemicals in pools. So, it's just interesting to think about. >> Yeah. >> But they had to do something. The fire
wasn't uh it was serious, but it wasn't as large as they expected. So, the the pool would be a pretty uh sufficient
source of water. So they dragged the hose to the back of the house, but when they reached the pool, they made a
terrible discovery. Five bodies floating face down in the water. Fire Chief uh Ted Pound said, "I went to the pool to
see where the end of the pipe came through and my flashlight beamed sp my flashlight beam spotted one of the
kids." Oh. So Chief Pound called out for one of the detectives on the scene and was met at the back of the house by
Detective Terry Medina. Medina later said, "The first thing that I noticed was that the bodies are tied, but not
with rope. They're like silk scarves that are knotted together to tie the hands." To everybody's surprise, this
simple fire had just turned into a multi-murder scene. Damn. Now, they soon learned that the bodies were those of
Dr. Ot, his wife Virginia, the two youngest children, Derek and Tagert, and the fifth body was Dr. OTA's longtime
secretary, 38-year-old Dorothy uh Cadwaler. Based on the medical examiner's initial
observations, it seemed like Dr. Ot had been shot once in the chest and twice in
the back before he was pushed into the pool. And the other four victims had all been shot once in the back of the neck
and then were pushed into the pool. >> Oh god. >> All of the victims had their hands bound
with colorful silk scarves. And Dr. Ot was known to wear those scarves instead of a like a regular necktie.
>> Oh god. >> So those were all of his own personal scarves. >> That's spooky. And all five victims were
also blindfolded. Now, as far as the forensic investigators could tell, the victims
were each shot beside the pool, like I said, and then immediately pushed in. Now, to the frustration of
investigators, the crime scene really didn't have that many clues as to what happened at the house that night. All
five victims seem to have been shot at close range execution style and the killer or maybe multiple killers had set
several small fires throughout the house presumably to cover up the crime. >> Yeah.
>> Now, fortunately, the fires failed to catch or really spread as easily as they
probably hoped they would. So, there was minimal fire damage, but there was still
not that much to be found inside. From what investigators could tell, nothing looked to be missing. So, they were able
to rule out robbery as a motive. But even more concerning was the lack of evidence of any kind of struggle.
>> This is a family of five. You would expect there to be some kind of struggle.
>> It seemed very unlikely to investigators that a single intruder could overtake
and completely control five people, three of which were grown adults. >> Yeah. >> And they had to face the terrifying
possibility at that point that they were dealing with what one detective described as another Manson case.
>> Ooh. Cuz that had what just happened. Literally, like I said, the Manson family was on trial.
>> Yeah, that was probably one of the first things I thought of. >> It was It cannot be understated how
significant the fear of another Manson style murder was at the time of these murders. It was a little more than a
year earlier when Charles Manson and his followers broke into the Hollywood home
of director Roman Palansky and his wife Sharon Tate while Palansky was away in Europe. As we know, they killed five
people staying in the house, including Sharon Tate, who was 8 and 1/2 months pregnant. And then the very next day
they murdered Lo and Rosemary Labianca. Now the murders had always been symbolic
of a larger shift in fear toward uncertainty, but they were just the first of a lot of horrific acts that
would go on to reshape California throughout that period. At the time, residents of the San Francisco Bay area
were being terrorized by the Zodiac Killer like as all of this was going on. And there were a slew of other violent
criminals who kept Californians in constant fear of being killed. >> Yeah. >> Like California in the 70s, it cannot be
stated enough how insane it was. >> Cuz then just a couple years later, you would have uh Ed Keer.
>> Yep. >> There like there's so many more. >> Oh, yeah. The some of the scariest ones.
Mhm. So, just one morning after the OTA murders, 19-year-old Tom Deeco was found
dead inside the gas station where he worked and his body was stuffed into an al cove just off the main garage. The
station was in Saratoga, which was just 30 m from where the Otah family lived. Like the Ots, Deco had been shot in the
back of the head execution style, and his wrists were also bound, this time with electrician's tape.
>> Jeez. According to the medical examiner, his murder occurred roughly 2 hours after the OTA murders, and that brought
to everybody's mind the murders of the Labiancas. >> Investigators declined to comment on
whether the crimes were related, but they couldn't help think of the Manson murder spree and wonder if this was some
kind of copycat crime. >> Yeah, I mean, I would think that, right? >> A whole family and then the kid, you
know. >> Mhm. So, the fear of a new murderous cult only grew deeper when investigators
started combing over the crime scene at the Otah home and they reached the cars at the bottom of the driveway. It was
clear obviously, like we said, that the killer rearranged the cars on purpose to
prevent the firefighters from reaching the house and the police, too. >> The killer so [ __ ] up and so like
thinking that's so premeditated. >> It is. Absolutely. I'm so glad that you said that. The killer actually even went
as far as to break the key of do Dr. Ot's car off in the ignition >> so that they could move it. That's why
they one of them. >> But more disturbing was the typewritten note that they found tucked under the
windshield. >> It read, "Hello, 1970. Today, World War II will begin as brought to you by the
people of the free universe. From this day forward, anyone andor everyone or company of persons who misuses the
natural environment or destroys same will suffer the penalty of death by the people of the free universe. I and my
comrades from this day forth will fight until death or freedom against anyone who does not support natural life on
this planet. Materialism must die or mankind will stop. And then it was signed Knight of Wands, Knight of Cups,
Knight of Pentacles, Knight of Swords. All of those knights were spelled correctly like KN other than the
pentacles. That one was spelled like nighttime. >> Like night. Okay. >> Which is just weird.
>> Now, detectives saw similarities between the note and the apocalyptic ranting of
from the Manson family. Like similar kind of vibes there, >> but the signatures at the bottom of the
note were entirely new and entirely unfamiliar to investigators. >> They not everybody was very familiar
with tarot back then. >> Yeah. So, the reference to four possibly oult sounding names only reinforced the
concern that they were dealing with a new murderous cult, a copycat, if that. Now, elsewhere in the house, more
evidence suggested that the OTA murders were not an impulsive act. >> In addition to the killer or killers
having taken the time to block the driveway, investigators quickly discovered that the killer had also cut
the phone lines, which is the scariest thing to me. >> Yeah. Um, and they also discovered a box
of 22 caliber shells, which indicated that they had the forethought to bring additional ammunition.
>> [ __ ] >> But the killer had collected all the spent cartridges at the scene and left
little evidence of having been there at all. >> Wow. >> Now, when considered together, the
evidence suggested that these murders were definitely planned in advance, and the presence of the note suggested that
whoever was responsible seemed intent on killing again. >> Yeah. So, despite the presence of
several high-profile cases in San Francisco and Los Angeles in the summer and the fall of 1970, violent crime was
really something that didn't happen in the quiet suburban area of Santa Cruz. >> Mhm.
>> In fact, the Ot murder was the first murder in the county's history. >> Wow. >> Crazy.
>> We've we've done a that was like the Martha Moxley case. >> Yeah. It was like one of the first.
>> This was legit the first. Wow. Under the circumstances, suspicion quickly settled
on the relatively small hippie community in and around Santa Cruz and especially
I think because of the Manson. >> I was going to say the Manson didn't help hippies up.
>> No, they did not. One neighbor told a reporter, "It looks like another Manson
thing to me." And another commented, "Looks like drugs." Which like it doesn't really look like drugs because
there was a lot of careful polit. >> No, not at all. >> Like that. That is a very planned out
almost professional crime scene. >> I don't know if they said looks like drugs because of like the execution
style killings. >> Yeah. >> Who knows? >> Or they're just thinking of hippies. So
they're like drugs. >> Exactly. Now in reality, detectives had no idea what the motive could have been.
If it had been drugs, then they reason that the killer would have at least taken some of the jewelry or the other
valuables that were in plain sight around the house. I mean, this is a mansion. Like there's valuables
everywhere. >> Yeah. I was shocked by that. Yeah, and if it were a Manson copycat, they
expected some sign of the occult left behind. But aside from the cryptic, mysterious note, there was not that much
to indicate a motive. In fact, other than the note, the only thing detectives knew for sure was that the killer or
killers had stolen Virginia Ot's green Oldsmobile station wagon. District Attorney Peter Chang told reporters,
"This was the most tragic murder scene I've witnessed in 9 years. We will need all the outside help we can get." Now,
in the absence of any forensic evidence pointing to a motive or a suspect, detectives started looking into the
background of the victims. Family friend Douglas Liticote said, "The life of Dr.
Victor Ot reads like a classic American dream." >> Yeah. >> He was born in Montana to Japanese
immigrant parents who worked really hard to build a life for their family only to
have everything ripped away from them when they were placed in an internment camp in 1941.
>> [ __ ] >> Despite everything he faced, Victor was a great student. He worked all these odd
jobs to support not only himself through college, but also his parents. He always
sent money to his parents. >> After graduating with an undergrad degree, he enlisted in the army in 1943
and served two years before returning home and enrolling at Northwestern University where he studied
opthalmology. At night, he drove a cab in order to support himself and his parents.
>> Damn. >> Because by that point, they were too old and too weak to work anymore. After
graduating in 1950, he met and married Virginia, and before long, she was pregnant with their first son. Uncertain
about their financial situation, Victor decided actually to reinlist in the army, and he served several years as a
flight surgeon. >> Wo, which is crazy. >> That must be wild. >> Next level. >> Yeah.
>> And then eventually he returned to Northwestern to continue his studies and he was just determined to become the top
specialist in his field. Hell yeah. >> Which he really did become one of them. Now, it was during this time that
tragedy struck and the couple lost their son Kevin to uh pneumonia when he was only 2 years old.
>> Their daughter said, >> their first son at 2 years old. Like >> 2 years old, >> that's horrific.
>> Their daughter Lark said, "I know it was traumatic. It was another two years before they even considered having more
children." So the emotional toll of the loss and the add added expenses of a funeral pushed Victor back into the army
where he managed to finish his studies while also making a livable wage and that finally made it possible for them
to consider having more children. >> Now over the course of the next decade, Dr. Victor Ot built one of the most
successful medical practices in Santa Cruz County. >> Hell yeah. >> And at the same time served as a
founding member on the board of the Dominican Hospital. >> Wow. like doing the damn thing.
>> Yeah. >> Not long after establishing his own private practice, he hired Dorothy
Codwalader as his uh secretary. She became an indispensable asset to the family. And in no time, she really just
became part of their family. >> She joined them for holidays, birthdays, vacations, and actually unfortunately
they did have quite the bond because Dorothy and her husband had also lost a child at a young age.
>> Their child was struck and killed by a mail truck. Holy [ __ ] Yeah. Now, as far
as anybody knew, Dr. Ot and the family had no enemies to speak of, and nobody could imagine who might want them dead.
Like him specifically, much less his entire family. You also wonder with like stories like that, you're like, why do
some people >> just have the worst luck? >> All the [ __ ] >> It's so true. >> And a lot of times it's like the nicest
nicest people, >> best kind of people. >> Mhm. Like that never makes sense to me.
>> No, I feel like we know so many families like that. >> Yeah, cuz like her like Dorothy and her
>> husband >> husband lost a child in such a horrific way and now he loses her this way.
>> Mhm. >> Like why why do they have to deal with all that? And then the Otas like it's I
just don't whenever you hear about that you're like Jesus. >> And Dorothy and her husband much like
the Otas went on to have more children. So her children and her husband lost her. It's awful.
>> You just don't get it. I don't either. Dr. Louise Wowman, a friend said, "Never
once did I hear him speak an angry word to any anybody." Dr. Ot was always friendly, always generous to give to
charitable organizations. >> Oh, that breaks my heart. >> Yeah. Lark, his daughter, echoed the
sentiments of friends and neighbors and colleagues. Literally, everybody in this
community loved this family. Lark said, "My dad was a magnanimous man. He was generous and outgoing and friendly. He
was just a good man. He was loved in that community." Oh, I also love that name, Lark.
>> I do, too. I think it's such a good name. >> Now, the same was true for the other
victims. Like her husband, Virginia grew up in an immigrant family, and she worked alongside her husband to make
sure that their kids had opportunities that her and her husband never could have dreamed of.
>> Mhm. >> Lark said of her mother, "She was the strongest and most determined person
that I knew, and I miss her deeply." Victor may have been the face of several charities at the hospital, but Virginia
was very much working behind the scenes to ensure that everything ran smoothly. More than just a doctor's simple,
stylish wife, she was an active, integral member of this community. And she was a dedicated mother, she was so
committed to raising those kids to not only have the best opportunities, but with an awareness of both sides of their
heritage. While Dorothy Call Waller might not have been as outgoing as Dr. Otan in Virginia. She left an impression
on the lives that she touched. Her daughter Melinda said, "My mom was very elegant. She was very 60s makeup, false
lashes, and hairstyles." >> Dorothy spent her entire professional life working in healthcare. And for the
previous 8 years, she worked in Dr. Ot's private practice. She managed nearly every aspect of that business. She
always jumped in to help with the OTA children when the parents were too busy. And all the children loved and respected
her. Like this was very much a like >> a family. >> Yeah. Like a blended family.
>> Yeah. >> Now, when Victor and Virginia had to go out of town or to a conference or a
charity event, Dorothy and her husband would welcome all of the Otah kids into their home and just treated them like
they were their own children. >> Damn. >> Lark said Dorothy was perfect, like a 60s TV mom, except that she worked. She
was beautiful inside and out. Nearly everything investigators had learned about the Otto family and about Dorothy
indicated that these were all well-liked, deeply appreciated people in their community.
>> It's like great people. >> They were the last people anybody would expect to be the victims of violent
crime. The only involvement with the law that Dr. Ot had in his past was in 1967
when a group of thieves actually broke into his office and they stole a cocaine solution that he that he used in his
surgical procedures. >> Jeez. So, it wasn't even him. >> No. Otherwise, there appear appeared to
be nothing in the background of any of the victims that pointed toward their killer. So, in the absence of any new
evidence, any new leads, anything, detectives turned their attention back to their original theory that the
victims had been killed by either a cult or a Manson family copycat. Santa Cruz County and SoCal in particular had
always been a quiet area. In the summer, the area was popular with tourists. They
like to visit the beaches. But otherwise, it was mostly populated by wealthy retirees.
>> Okay. >> So, by the mid60s though, the University of California opened a campus in Santa
Cruz and that brought a younger crowd to the area. And by the end of the 60s, many among that crowd embraced the
hippie lifestyle. It was very much of the time, but also very much to the disappointment of locals.
>> Oh, I'm sure. In reality, the small but noticeable hippie community in the area,
they were mostly peaceful. They actually really didn't engage with many protests
or >> they were just vibing. >> Yeah. Like all across the country, there were like like activism, different
things like that going on. But here, these hippies just kind of hung out around this uh cafe and coffee shop
called the Catalyst. >> They hosted folk music and poetry readings regularly. Like just a very
chill. I just that just made me think of something completely unrelated to this,
but I feel like you need to know it right now. >> I do. >> Uh I just thought of the name the
catalyst as like I'm like, "Wow, what a name for a cafe." Did you know that 98 Degrees almost named themselves
Spontaneous Combustion? >> I actually did and I saw you post about that. >> If you didn't see that post, I just
needed everybody to know that. >> I feel like Spontaneous Combustion. It would make them a completely different
band. >> Yeah. >> Like a completely different band. And one of them also wanted to be called
Inertia. >> Oh, Inertia could have been cool. >> I It's been sitting within me, so I just
had to put it out there when I heard the catalyst. >> I feel like they didn't quite know what
vibe they were going for cuz those are three completely different like genres to me.
>> That's the thing. It sounds like they knew the vibe they wanted to go for. They just could not.
>> But then they went >> they went with the right band. >> They went with the right name for the
for the vibe. >> Spontaneous combustion will live in my soul. >> Yeah. >> Yeah. I feel like the catalyst is also a
bomb name for a coffee shop. >> It's a really cool name for a coffee shop. That's why it made me think of it
>> like anything. >> Yeah, even a band name. Catalyst. I think the catalyst is a band
>> probably. >> Well, here it's a coffee shop and they, you know, they had like little hippie
gatherings all the time. >> Yeah, hippie gatherings. You know, I want to go to one. Even though things
were pretty chill with this group and they kept to themselves, after the OTA murders, the local police were very
worried that there would be tension between the hippies and the older residents in Santa Cruz.
>> I thought you meant just tension between the hippies. >> No, never tension between the hippies.
It's always outsiders. >> Always. >> I'm just picturing like hippies fighting. >> Yeah. Just like tension.
>> Weird. >> Yeah. >> Now, at the time, the contents of the note found on Dr. Ot's windshield had
not yet been made public. And it was truly only because of the Manson murders that the locals even suspected somebody
from the catalyst community was responsible for the murders. Dr. Terry Medina said, "There was already fear.
People were already buying guns. We didn't want retaliation against hippies or vigilantism, so we decided not to
release the contents of this note." Which I think was a good idea. >> Probably smart
>> because unfortunately, whether they wanted it or not, retaliation was inevitable. As soon as the news about
the murders made the papers, the catalyst started getting all kinds of harassing phone calls and even a few
bomb threats. Wow. Which like you guys don't know anything about this murder. That's it's
it's wild to know that even then before the internet >> people going to people >> people were still peepling in a way of
being like I know the whole story >> even though I know nothing about the story.
I way be way worse now, but I feel like it's there. It is cuz people have always
been doing that thing where they're like, "Well, I heard this much of the story.
>> So now I know the whole story and I'm going to act based on that tiny little grain of sand that I know."
>> Yep. >> We all have to stop doing that. >> Can we stop that? >> Can we all agree collectively to stop
doing that? >> I'm down. >> Until you know a whole story inside and out, don't act.
>> And here's the thing. When these things are initially reported on, you know nothing.
>> Yeah. >> You know the tip of the tip of the >> iceber. Yeah. Just a little boop. They
they know what you want them or what they want you to know. >> Ex. That's the thing.
>> Now, given the way that they'd been treated in the community and now facing harassment, the staff and the patrons at
the Catalyst had every reason not to trust the police, trust the locals, or really talk to anybody. But when
investigators canvased the restaurant, they found a group of people who were actually very eager to help.
>> Yeah. No one at the Catalyst really knew anything about the murders or the Ot
family, but when detectives brought up the contents of the note to these people, they learned from one of the
patrons that the four signatures at the end of the note were not signatures. They were suits from the tarot.
>> Yes. Now, back at the police station, Detective Medina and the other investigators laid out the Knight of
Wands, the Knight of Cups, the Knight of Pentacles, and the Knight of Swords on the desk in various configurations,
hoping that the cards might tell themselves about the contents of the note or the murders.
>> Medina said, "We really didn't come up with very much, but it was still very cultish."
>> Very cultish. >> Cultish, but very cultish. >> So 70s to have that take. >> Just like pretty cultish. almost like,
"Do you want to bring in one of the hippies who knows tarot who can maybe tell you something?"
>> Yeah, that's the thing. Get some experts. >> Exactly. Now, on the second day of the
investigation, just as they were settling into their theory of a newly formed cult, investigators got a call
that would undermine that theory altogether. The call was from a gas station attendant on the outskirts of
Soal, uh, who had been working on the night of the murders. According to the caller, he'd been sitting outside the
gas station when a young man in a green station wagon >> pulled up looking for gas. At the time,
that specific station had run out of gas. So, the attendant directed the driver to another station about a mile
down the road. He couldn't remember the exact time, but he said it was probably a little before 8:00 p.m., which was not
long after the Otas were killed. According to the attendant, the car matched the description of Virginia
Oda's Oldmobile, and there was only one person in the car. And while the attendant never saw the man's face in
the light, he did say that the driver had a fairly distinct voice, and he was certain that he would recognize it if he
heard it again. Now, that was just the first of many calls that investigators got that day. Most reporting leads that
really went nowhere. But among the dud calls, there was someone from the Southern Pacific Railroad with valuable
information. The caller reported that one of their trains had collided with a green old mobile wagon
>> in a tunnel not too far from the gas station where it had been spotted on the
night of the murder. >> So, sheriff's deputies rushed out to the scene hoping that they would find the
killer or the killers. But by the time they reached the train tunnel where the car was discovered, the driver was
nowhere to be found. Fortunately, neither the train nor the car suffered much damage in the collision. The only
damage from the fire was to the upholstery inside the car. But any hope of finding useful evidence was quickly
dashed. >> It had rained that morning, >> of course, >> and it had transformed the area of the
tunnel into like kind of a mud pit. >> God damn. >> And it washed away any phys physical
evidence that might have been left on the exterior of the vehicle. But there were several footprints left in the mud
around the car. >> And while it was difficult to be 100% certain, it did seem that these
footprints all belong to the same person. >> Okay. So since the bodies were discovered, the police and the press had
been operating on the assumption that there was more than one killer. >> Yeah. >> But now investigators with all this new
information were starting to wonder if they had it wrong. The footprints found outside the car and the statement from
the gas station attendant seem to suggest that these five murders actually could have been committed by one single
killer. >> That's horrific. >> And just to think about >> they have to think about how that
possibly could have happened. >> Yeah. Now you have to go back and be like, whoa, whoa, whoa. Wait a minute.
So frustrated with the lack of evidence and leads, detectives went back to question family and friends of the Otas
in order to try to establish some kind of timeline uh which like would have accounted for the day of the murders.
>> Yeah. >> So they learned that on the day of the murders, Dorothy had picked up one of
the boys from school and drove him home because his mom was going to be late. >> So stick that in your back pocket.
>> Yeah. Already this is adding up. >> Changing the routine a little bit. Now, from the beginning of the investigation,
the assumption had been that the Otah family had all been home at the same time >> exactly when they were attacked,
>> which would make that insane, >> right? But if Dorothy had picked up one of the children and Virginia planned to
be home later, that strongly suggested that the family members could have arrived home one or two at a time. And
if that was the case, an armed gunman easily could have overtaken them as they entered the house 2 by two,
>> especially if he had been lying in weight as they suspected, which is so [ __ ] terrifying.
>> Horrible. >> Now, the new theory did seem to match the evidence, but it did little to point
them in the direction of somebody. >> Out of options and running the risk of this case going cold, investigators did
make the decision to release the one piece of information that they had been holding back. That note, that note on
the car. They hoped that somebody might recognize the language in the note. >> And on the day that it was published in
the paper, Roger Cone, the owner of the catalyst, >> and several others at the cafe were
reading that paper and recognized the content as being very similar to the ranting of a young man who'd been coming
into the cafe recently. >> Isn't that interesting that it's the catalyst people?
>> Mhm. That are like, "Wait a second." >> They're like, "Wait a minute, we can help."
>> And that it's like a newcomer to the catalyst, not like the typical crew. So,
Roger Cronin spent a lot of the afternoon agonizing over whether he should turn in one of his own customers
and his own community members to the police, but in the end, he reasoned that if it was the same man, there was a very
good chance he could kill again. So, in the early uh hours of October, just just
quick, he was not sure if he should >> he was stressed out about it. Like this, I'm just being clear.
>> Yeah. >> With myself. >> Yeah. So, there's a possibility that this person murdered an entire family,
including children. >> Yeah. >> And that was like something you were wrestling with.
>> Roger Roger was nervous to turn on his own community. >> Okay. >> Yeah. >> I mean,
>> but he he eventually realized he couldn't not do that. >> Cuz you literally can't not do that.
>> You can't not do that. >> I'm glad you realized that. >> And he said he was like, "If this is the
same guy, he could kill again." And like, I got to tell somebody. >> And he's already murdered kids, so he
did. And that goes to show you that you can, you know, you shouldn't, but you can sit
there and question things for a minute and then ultimately come to the right decision.
>> Yeah. There you go. You can mull things over for about a minute and a half and
then you can >> move on with the right thing. I'm glad he made the right decision. He did in
the end. >> There's always that that >> just had to be for you >> clear that I was like what? So, in the
early mornings of October 22nd, he met privately at the catalyst with District Attorney Peter Chang. And he told him
the note found at the scene sounded a lot like the apocalyptic rhetoric of a man named John Lindley Frasier. He'd
been coming into the cafe in recent weeks. And according to Cone, Frasier generally seemed like he was suffering
from some kind of mental illness. He came into the cafe regularly ranting about capitalism, the rich destroying
the earth, and he seemed very preoccupied with World War II. All of that sounds very familiar.
>> All of that was in the notes. >> Very. And you know what? I can I can at least take a step back now and say,
"Okay, so he wasn't positive that this guy is the person like he's not sitting there being like, I know he did it."
>> That's the thing. He was like, I think that sounds like >> it is difficult to take that first step
and accuse >> cuz you want to be like >> hopefully that guy coming into my bar or
my my cafe didn't murder >> family annihilator like Yeah. >> Exactly. >> So, so I'll step back look at it from a
different angle. >> So, see you you're always capable of that, too. >> Yeah, I thought about it.
>> Growth. >> So, Roger provided a general description of Frraasier, but he didn't really know
that much about him. He didn't know where police might find him. In fact, given the increased bomb threats that
the uh cafe had been receiving and the fear of violence that his customers were feeling, John wanted to make sure that
Chang and all the other investigators understood that despite his appearance, John Frasier was not a member of the
hippie community and he did not represent their values. He was like, "Please understand that. Don't conflate
us." The DA indicated that he understood and that he would do his best to relay the message, but first he needed to find
and stop John Lley Frasier. So, who the [ __ ] is John Lley Frasier? >> Truly, who the [ __ ] is he?
>> This is a doozy of a background. >> Oh boy. >> John Lley Frasier was born January 26,
1946 in New Mexico to Pat and William Frasier. He was an Aquarius. The family was very far from wealthy, but they were
well known in the area because they had a rabbit farm. And Pat, the mother, was an outspoken advocate of rabbit farming
and animal welfare, both activities that she would later enlist the help of her son with. In 1970, she told a reporter,
"Jon was always kind to animals. He couldn't stand abuse of life." Wow. Now, according to Pat, the first year or two
of John's life were pretty ordinary. The family was generally happy. But in mid1
1947, they moved to Ohio to be closer to her husband's family. And that was when
Pat started to notice that William, her husband, his personality was changing and he was just behaving in odd ways.
She said he'd go out all night, forget where he lived, and get involved with other women.
>> Oh, it's unclear whether his behavior was the result of a mental illness or if
he was just unhappy. But either way, the sudden change in his personality took obviously a serious toll on his
relationship with his wife and his son. >> Pat tried to convince her husband that
moving back to his hometown maybe was a mistake and suggested that they move and
start over on their own, but he was not interested. So Pat said, "I left and I thought he might come to his senses, but
he didn't. So I started off on my own." Wow. Now a single mother with no income,
she moved to Hayward, California to live with her own family and she found a job
working at a local hospital. At first, the new situation was really tough for John. His mom had to rely on her family
to watch him while she was working 12-hour overnight shifts and everything was made significantly worse in the
months that followed when Jon's health appeared to be declining. Oh. One night while Pat was working at the hospital,
her aunt brought Jon in and he had a high fever and acute stomach pain. At first, the attending doctor diagnosed
him with pneumonia, but the situation took a very dramatic turn just a few hours later when his appendix ruptured.
>> Oh [ __ ] >> Yeah. From there, things only got worse. After the surgery to remove his
appendix, he was kept at the hospital a few for a few days and he was inadvertently exposed to measles.
>> Oh my. So that added another two months onto his hospital stay. >> O yeah. Now his measles were followed by
other upper respiratory illnesses. >> Yeah. Measles sucks. >> Upper respiratory illnesses.
>> Yeah. That's why they have vaccines for measles too. >> And that's why they are proponents of
vaccine. >> Hell yeah. Now eventually uh doctors removed his addenoids and they also
removed his tonsils and he started to improve but then inevitably declined again when he was afflicted with just
what seemed to be severe colds that went on and off for months. Oh, that sucks. Now believing that the move and the
living arrangements were contributing to her son's poor health, Pat quit her job
and she moved to the San Francisco area. She enrolled in dental school and found
new doctors for her son. And it took some time before they were able to properly diagnose him, but eventually it
was discovered that he had contracted tuberculosis. >> Holy [ __ ] >> Yeah. Now, this was all further
complicated by injuries that he sustained in an auto accident in 1952. >> What is going on?
>> Everything. In that accident, he broke his collar bone and also got a concussion.
>> What? He was blind for several weeks after that accident. This is so much trauma
>> at This kid isn't even in first grade yet. >> This is an incredible amount of trauma.
>> This kid isn't even in first grade yet. >> That's >> He's got a burst appendix, measles,
tuberculosis, adoise removed, tonsils removed, >> broken collarbone. >> Broken collarbone.
>> Went blind. >> Went blind, and a concussion. >> Holy [ __ ] >> Yeah. Now, once he had been properly
diagnosed, his physical health improved dramatically. But there were several unusual behaviors that persisted
regardless of the doctor's attempts to try to curb them. John frequently wet the bed and it ultimately seemed to stop
when he got married. >> Oh wow. >> He was like a very long >> Yeah. bed wetter. Um he was also a
chronic sleep walker who struggled with other sleep disturbances for years. >> Oh man. Now, after he was quote unquote
stabilized, Pat realized that she wasn't going to be able to go to school full-time, work in the evenings, and
take care of her son. So, she ended up placing him in foster care, where he lived for 2 years.
>> By the time that he did reach first grade, she was able to regain custody, but from that point forward, he
struggled with a lot of behavioral problems. The amount of trauma >> Yeah. Yeah.
>> That happened to this child before first grade. >> Yeah. >> Is unthinkable. >> It really is. It's also a wild concept
to me that like you could just drop your kid off in foster care and then go >> a couple years later and just be like,
"Okay." >> Yeah. Nuts. >> It's a lot. So, his first brush with the law came when he was 10 years old.
>> Wow. >> And got caught shoplifting a pen knife from a store in San Francisco. Police
were called and he was given a citation and had to appear in juvenile court. Eventually, the charges were dropped,
but his attitude and his behavior only continued to get worse. His eighth grade teacher said he was kind of a tough kid.
His attitude was poor at times. He didn't seem like a happy kid. >> Yeah. >> Like, I don't know that I'd be a happy
kid either. >> Two years later, after his mom moved to Santa Cruz, John was arrested again when
he his friends uh vandalized a tile factory in town. >> The parents of all of the boys made them
clean up the factory and repair the damages. So the company agreed that they wouldn't press charges, but it didn't do
much to stop his defiant behavior. >> By the time he reached high school, he was almost entirely uneducated and going
to school. >> He went to a vocational school, but within a few months, he started skipping
classes and soon he was just skipping school days altogether. Teachers and counselors tried to keep him engaged,
but he continued to miss long stretches and eventually just dropped out entirely. Pat said that was when he
started to get in trouble. >> No, >> I feel like he started getting drunk, babe.
>> Yeah, that's not it. That objectively that's not when he started getting in trouble.
>> He got arrested at 10 years old, babe. >> Yeah. >> So, a series of more petty crimes led to
a period of incarceration in a juvenile detention center, which was then followed by juvenile parole, which he
violated almost immediately. >> Oh, man. He's just on a path clearly. Outside of the justice system, he also
continued to demonstrate antisocial behavior. Um, trigger warning for animal abuse here.
>> I thought he was nice to animals. >> Yeah, his mom thought so, too. But there
was one instance where he dowsed a neighborhood cat in kerosene and lit it on fire.
>> How do you go from being kind to animals to that? >> Head injuries. Wow. There were also charges for shoplifting
and petty violence. In 1961, he was removed from his mother's care for a second time, this time involuntarily,
and placed again in foster care. His relationship with his foster parents got off to a very bad start, and it
basically stayed that way for the entire duration of the placement. In 1962, he was reported uh to the police by his
foster parents for stealing a 22 caliber pistol, which he said he took in order to shoot animals for food.
Whoa. So that charge got him sent back to a juvenile justice center in Watsonville where he continued to
demonstrate a very defiant and antisocial behavior, particularly when it came to authority figures.
In 1966, he found work in the auto parts uh section of Disco, which was a San Francisco department store. And it was
there that he met Dolores, his soon-to-be wife, not to be confused with my sweet angel of a daughter.
>> No. Now, she later said, "I started taking Johnny home cuz he didn't have a car, and every time I took him home, we
got closer and closer." She was married at the time, but within a few months, she divorced her husband so that she
could be with John Frasier. >> Wo! >> Choices. At first, the relationship was pretty good. Everything seemed normal.
But then she started to notice some unusual behavior in John. She said he would get horribly sweaty and cold, and
he'd yell and cry and whimper in the middle of the night. >> Oh, that's really sad.
>> It is. And she said at times he seemed so paranoid that he kept a loaded gun in
the drawer of his nightstand. >> He's clearly >> suffering from something. >> He has mental illness 100%.
>> So the couple got married in 1967 and moved to Washington hoping to make a fresh start. But unfortunately things
did not work out out there. Jobs were very hard to come by. So they struggled and they scraped together enough just to
get by. But in September of that year, Dolores found out that she was pregnant with their daughter Lisa. and it became
clear that they weren't going to be able to make it in Washington. So, they returned to the Santa Cruz area where
Jon found work at an auto shop. Like always, things would be pretty good for a while, but then after a few months,
Jon would find faults with his employer, with his co-workers. He'd get into arguments, and he'd eventually get
fired. Dolores said he always had to change jobs cuz there was always someone who he couldn't get along with or who
was always picking on him. >> Oh, we all know people like that. It's never their fault.
>> Never their fault. Finally, in 1969, he got a job with Performance West, which
was a foreign car mechanic. And this was the one job that seemed to stick. The owner, Richard Deont, told a reporter,
"He was the best worker I ever had." Wo. >> Yeah. So, Frasier, managed to stay out
of trouble until May of 1970 when he was picked up by police for harassing a local girl on the sidewalk.
>> Awesome. >> Yeah. According to Dolores, the young girl had been walking down the sidewalk
on her way to school when she was verbally assaulted by John. He denied it was him, but she was able to identify
him in a lineup. After the identification, they let him go with a warning because he only frightened her.
>> That's it. You have to actually cause somebody physical. >> Hurt someone. >> He didn't hit her. So,
>> no, she just scared the [ __ ] out of him. >> Terrified on the way to school.
>> He just menaced her, that's all. >> It's fine. Men Men are allowed to do that.
>> People are idiots. >> Yeah, it's a man's world. What are you thinking? >> So, to investigators, he sounded like
countless other petty criminals that they'd run into. Young guys with bad up upbringings who were mad at the world
and their parents and wanted to take it out on whoever stepped on their path. He
definitely seemed like a nuisance, but to investigators, he really didn't seem like the kind of guy who could plan and
execute a mass murder of a family for no obvious reason. >> Valid. Now, detectives managed to track
him to Performance West where they discovered he'd been working until a few months earlier when he quit
unexpectedly. Now, remember this. >> Yeah, he's the best worker they've ever had.
>> The description of Frraasier given by Deont, uh, that of a clean-cut, married
man and a great employee, seemed at odds with the man that investigators came to
know through his criminal record. But, as it turned out, there was an explanation for that. After Dupont gave
them the address that they had on file for Frraasier, detectives learned that right around the time he quit his job
there, he also left his wife abruptly and moved out of the house. >> Oh. According to Dolores, a few days
before he was picked up for that verbal assault, he was in another car accident and hit his head when he rearended
another car. >> Oh [ __ ] At the time, she said he didn't seem to be hurt in obvious way in any
obvious way. At least not physically. But she did say he had a bump on his forehead. It wasn't bleeding, just
raised. But he wouldn't let me touch it at all. He wouldn't see a doctor, and he
wouldn't hardly let me near him. >> Oh boy. Now, in the days that followed, he continued to insist that he was fine.
But he started to behave even more strangely. According to his friend, David Marlo, he started hearing voices
that were warning him against catastrophe. This is such severe mental health issues.
>> It is. Dolores said he said he heard voices that said he should never drive again or he'd be killed. He was very
different. His whole attitude was cheap and aggressive. >> He said, "That's a read."
>> That's Wow. What a way to describe that. Cheap and aggressive. You're acting cheap.
>> It's crazy. >> Holy [ __ ] >> Now, at first, Dolores was hesitant to tell the detectives where Jon had gone,
but eventually she relented and she told them. >> Guys, we got to stop hesitating.
>> I think she was embarrassed. >> Everyone's very hesitant in this in this >> because look, don't hesitate.
>> Okay, stop hesitating. Now, after he moved out of the house, he moved into an abandoned shack in the
woods, just a few miles from the Ots family house. Oh, I hate this. Later, after his picture was published in all
the papers, neighbors of the Otaf family told the police that they saw somebody who looked very much like Frasier
walking from the woods to a water tower near their houses, where he appeared to watch the Otah house with binoculars for
hours on end and then climb down from the water tower and retreat into the woods. To which I say, neighbors,
if you see a strange man in the woods using binoculars to watch a family home, maybe call the police before that entire
family gets murdered. The amount of unnecessary hesitation in this story is sending me into [ __ ] orbit.
>> Especially this one, they're like, come to think of it, >> you know what? There was that guy in the
water tower. >> The guy who lives in the woods was watching this family for literally hours
on end >> at top the water tower. >> A top the water tower. And it just slipped my mind. That would be something
that would be top tip top. >> Also, I would hope that would come knock on my door.
>> I would hope >> and say, "Hey, there's a man watching your home with binoculars at top the
water tower. >> We should do something." But >> do you want me to call someone? You guys
should go somewhere. >> Yeah. Hello. >> I'm I'm shook by everybody in this. >> So, now certain that they uh had the
right suspect, >> Yeah. >> police and sheriff's deputies combed the woods around the Otah house for hours
until they ended up finding the shack. But there was no sign of Jon anywhere. Convinced he would return at some point,
they set up a stake out, and they watched the shack for almost an entire day. Around 8:00 a.m. on the morning of
October 23rd, they saw him return. Not wanting to alert him to their presence, they waited an hour or two longer before
finally storming the shack. More hesitancy. They >> But, you know, I'm like, like I realize
you don't want to like scare them right away, but like 25 minutes. >> Like an hour or two.
>> Half an hour. >> An hour or two feels like >> 20 minutes. >> 20 minutes max. >> Max.
>> I me thinks like >> I've never done it before >> for 20 minutes. Like he's he's doing his
thing. >> Yeah, >> you you're free to storm the shack at that point. >> Storm it.
>> Storm the [ __ ] shack. >> Please. >> Everybody hustle. >> Pri hustle. >> Pri this is California. Everybody's
chiller. >> If this was the East Coast, you'd never see it go down. >> You never see it be this slow. Nobody
can be that slow over here. >> So they like, like I said, they waited an hour or two before they stormed the
shack. And that's where they caught Frraasier asleep on a dirty mattress laid out on the floor.
>> Holy [ __ ] >> He was startled by the presence of police in his shack. But as soon as he
understood what was happening, he looked at Terry Medina and said, "Why don't you
give me what I deserve?" >> Wa! >> Chilling. >> That's really chilling. >> Now, he was taken into custody that
morning and a few hours later, he was charged with the murders of the four members of the Ot family and the murder
of Dorothy Codwalader. The arrest was a major relief to everybody in Santa Cruz County, especially when District
Attorney Chang announced that they had captured the sole person responsible for the murders.
>> Wow. >> And true to his word, Peter Chang made sure to tell reporters that they could
not have apprehended John Frasier if it was not for the help of the hippie community who were quote unquote totally
revulsed by the mass executions. >> But look at him. >> I know. >> That's nice that he kept his word. It is
>> cuz it's the truth. >> It is. Now, in their interviews with Frraasier's family and friends, they
learned that after one of the the most recent recent accident, John had developed a fixation with wealthy people
that he believed were quote unquote too materialistic. He said that they were harming the
earth. But the one person he was the most fixated on was Victor Ot. >> Why? According to a former friend, in
the weeks leading up to the murders, John made several statements about how big things would be happening next
Monday, which indicated his plan to kill the Otas. That same friend also told detectives that John confessed to him
that he had broken into the Ot family home on several occasions when they weren't there. And while inside, he s
stole several items, including the binoculars he was using to stalk them and the 22 caliber pistol that they were
killed with. >> Later say something. >> Yeah. Later, when Lark, their daughter, was shown uh the items found in
Frraasier's possession, she identified them all as having belonged to her father.
>> Wow. Now, the evidence was already quite substantial by the end of the day that
he was arrested, but there was still more to be learned in the days that followed. Shortly after his arrest, he
was placed in a voice lineup where he was identified by the gas station attendant as the man seen driving
Virginia Ot's station wagon on the night of the murders. And beyond that, there were his own statements about the
murders made the day following his arrest. According to John, he said he received a message from God telling him
that the Otah family needed to die because they were too rich and they were harming the earth with their reckless
materialism. Wow. Now, meanwhile, these people are like giving back to their community.
>> That's the thing. >> They're using their wealth for good. >> Now, on the day of the murders, he said
he broke into the house early in the afternoon when no one was home, which is so [ __ ] scary. That's when he found
the 22 caliber pistol and the scarves that he and he started planning the executions in their home.
>> Wow. >> He placed a call to Mr. OTA's office saying that Virginia wouldn't be able to
pick up the children from school because she was having car trouble knowing that
it would require them to change their plans and now that they would all be coming home at different times.
>> That's too much premeditation for me. Like he thought that through way too well.
>> Oh yeah. When Dorothy returned to the house with Derek Ot a few hours later, John ambushed them at the door and tied
them up with the scarves. Mr. Ot and Tagert returned home next and they were ambushed and tied up in the same way.
And finally, Virginia came home and she too was ambushed and tied up. With the entire family bound and gathered in the
living room, John ranted for some time about his beliefs about how they were harming the earth. And then he explained
that he needed to destroy their home and actually even asked Victor Ot to help him do it. Victor Ot did not respond to
the request, but instead he said, "We'll give you whatever you want. You can have
any money that you want, and please just let my family live." >> But the mention of money and possession
sent John over the edge, and now he was enraged. He dragged Mr. Ot, Dr. Ot out to the pool, pushed him in, and then
shot him three times. What the [ __ ] Now, once he started killing, he said he understood that
there was no going back. Moments later, he brought Virginia and Dorothy out to the pool and told the blindfolded women
to kneel down. Oh. >> After they did as he instructed, John asked Virginia whether she believed in
God. And when she said that she did, he said, "Then you have nothing to fear." And shot them both in the back of the
neck and pushed their bodies into the pool. This is so [ __ ] up. >> It's so dark. Now, after killing all
three adults, he said he hesitated when it came to the children who were 11 and 12. He told investigators that he
kneelled down on the pavement beside the pool and begged God to give him a sign that he should spare the children. But
when he didn't receive a sign, he said he had no other choice than to accept that the sins of the father had been
passed on to the sons. >> Oh, [ __ ] off. >> So, he shot and killed both boys, Derek
and Tagard. >> Wow. >> Now, it was clear to detectives that he had absolutely killed the family. But
the question on many people's minds, which I'm sure you can say it with me, >> was he legally sane when he committed
the murders, >> which I'm so happy you've been pointing out the premeditation here.
>> Yeah. >> So, in the weeks after his arrest, he was placed in the custody of the county
jail where he made a suicide attempt in his cell by cutting one of his wrists kind of. In his statement to the press,
Peter Chang told reporters, "He made a very superficial cut on one wrist. He is in no danger."
In fact, it seemed that most of his behavior while in custody was that of somebody trying to convince people that
he was mentally ill rather than somebody who was genuinely suffering from a mental disorder. I'm not here to say
that he didn't have a mental disorder, >> but it very much seemed like he was >> trying to play it up a little more.
>> Yeah. Now, for instance, just before his interview with an evaluating psychiatrist, he shaved all the hair on
one side of his head, including his eyebrows, for no apparent reason other than just to look.
>> I just saw that picture and it is very unsettling. >> It's really chilling. Terry Medina said
in 2020, it very quickly just became a media train wreck. From the moment he was arrested, Santa Cruz County was
descended upon by journalists from not only just all over the country, but some case in some cases all over the world.
The case was very sensational. And being that it was 1971, the idea of a spree killer was still pretty unfamiliar to
most people. So a figure like John Frasier terrified ordinary people, especially coming so close on the heels
of the Manson murders. Now, as a result, the defense filed several motions that delayed the start of the trial,
including a request for a gag order on everyone involved in the case and a motion to move the trial out of Santa
Cruz County to ensure that he would be treated fairly. A judge approved the motion for the relocation, specifically
citing the local population's animosity toward the hippie community >> and commending uh Peter Chang for his
attempts to minimize those negative feelings. >> He did try. >> He did. Now, in late October of 1971, a
year after the murders had been committed, the trial finally got started in Redwood City, which is about 50 mi
from Santa Cruz, and there were countless spectators, journalists, everybody gathered inside the courtroom
and even waiting in the halls. Assistant uh assistant district attorney Chris Codddle said, "I would put him in the
same camp as Manson, but unlike the Manson trial, there was no cheering section for Frraasier."
>> Isn't that interesting? Isn't it also insane that there was a cheering section
for a group of people that murdered a woman who was 8 and 1/2 months pregnant and all of her friends and then a
married couple? >> Mhm. >> What's there to cheer for? And also, how you picking and choosing exactly? Now,
given that he had already essentially confessed to the murders, it was the job of the defense to convince the jury that
he was too mentally ill to be held accountable for the crimes. And to that end, he did his best to play the part.
During witness testimony for the prosecution, he stared relentlessly at the witnesses and at one point even
yelled at the district attorney for getting in between him and a witness that was on the stand. But despite the
antics in the courtroom, several people testified to his bizarre behavior and the frequency that he raised the subject
of quote unquote snuffing out the rich and materialistic people of the world. >> That's the thing. He's been talking
about this. It's not like this was like, "Oh, I snapped." >> Exactly. So, the trial dragged on for
over a month with even more strange outbursts from Frraasier. Throughout the trial, uh, his defense attorney, James
Jackson, did his best to demonstrate his client's poor mental health and the extent to which they did believe that
the police violated his rights with regard to collection of physical evidence, blah, blah, blah. Despite his
best efforts, though, it actually seemed like John Frasier was working against his lawyer rather than with him. Jackson
recalled in 2020, "Frazier didn't talk to me. He just wouldn't talk to us for a long time and he gave three different
stories to a psychiatrist. >> Oh jeez. >> Now, in addition to the obvious fact that he was mentally ill, the
prosecution faced the hurdle of not having the murder weapon at the time of the trial. But what they did have was
enough to place him in the house at several points, including on the night of the murder. And while it may have
been obvious that he was unwell when the crimes were committed, he killed a family which included two children. So
they were hoping that would override at least some of the sympathy that jurors felt if any at all. Now on November
26th, 1971, both sides gave their closing arguments and the case was handed over to the jury.
>> Throughout the trial, it was very hard to ignore that while he may have been performing this mental illness at
various points, he was actively clearly suffering from some kind of mental illness.
>> And that did strengthen the defense's case. It made it tough for the jury. Mhm.
>> But being ill, mentally ill, was not in it in itself enough to prove that he was
legally insane at the time of those two very different things. >> That's the thing that you have to
remember. >> In fact, like you've been saying this whole time, there was considerable
evidence that established he planned these murders in advance. And not only that, but he gathered what he needed in
order to execute this plan. >> And on top of that, even after he committed the murders, this is a biggie.
He set the house on fire and blocked both driveways in order to prevent help from arriving.
>> Yeah, that's big. >> Which all suggested that while yes, maybe mentally ill, he was still sane
enough to know that what he was doing was a crime. >> Yeah. >> After 3 days, the jury emerged from
deliberation and they found John Lindley Frasier guilty of five counts of first-degree murder. The following
month, the same jury found him to have been legally sane at the time of those murders.
>> I agree. >> And he was sentenced to death. >> Whoa. When a reporter asked him how he
felt about the sentence, he said, "Oh, I don't know what sentence." And then laughed. "Wow." Unfortunately, while
investigators initially did think that Tom Deco's murder was linked to the Utah family murders, there was never
sufficient evidence and the case remains unsolved. >> Wow. >> In 1972, just a few months after John
Frasier was sentenced to death, though, the California Supreme Court overturned the death penalty on the grounds that it
was a cruel and unusual punishment. So Frasier's sentence was commuted to life in prison. A few weeks later, detectives
found the OTA murder weapon among his possessions. Stop. >> They just didn't initially find it. What
now? John Lley Frasier ultimately spent 37 years at Mule Creek State Prison in Lone, California until August 13th, 2009
when he was found to have hanged himself in his cell at the age of 63. >> Wow. And that is the story of the Otah
family murders. Wow. >> What a chilling case. >> What a chilling case. Truly, >> this man just like truly loses his grip
on reality. >> He never had a chance from the beginning. >> He really didn't. But like moves into a
shack in the woods and just singles in on this family. >> That's so scary. And like I need to know
for how long these people saw him. >> That's the thing. Like >> I'm sorry. That's making me cry.
>> No, I know. >> Like what? And then just the fact that they were like, "Oh, yeah. Come to think
of it." >> Like that's why I'm so glad me and my neighbors are all up each other's asses.
>> Hell yeah. You should be. >> And it honestly that's the way it should be. We're always looking out for each
other. >> I hope mine are looking out for me. >> Our group chat pops off if there's
something suspicious going on. We're all just out there like, "What the [ __ ] up, Kyle?
>> What the [ __ ] is up, Kyle?" >> Like, FedEx trucks. Sorry. >> You're getting ganged up on by my whole
neighborhood. We're following you around. That's just the way it is. >> Neighbors coming out their house.
>> It's true. We're all just like staring you down as you go by. >> It's wild. >> I can't imagine my neighbors just being
like, "Yeah, it's so weird. We saw somebody watching your house in your family with binoculars for hours on
end." >> Yeah, it was nuts. We just kind of went about our business. Like I can't imagine
that. >> And also like how long did it take to communicate to that to the police
because they were struggling to find a suspect for the >> and all of a sudden everyone's like come
to think of it >> that guy from the water tower. >> Weird that guy that was staring at you.
>> I feel like people like really kept to themselves like >> Oh yeah. I think it was a totally
different like culture. >> Yeah. >> You know, >> but it's like >> to a to a bad degree.
>> Yeah. to her detriment. Exactly. >> Damn. >> I think we're going to need a fun fact.
>> Yeah. >> I love this. In Switzerland, it's illegal to own just one guinea pig.
>> I know >> because guinea pigs are like broy and they're very sociable. >> Yeah.
>> So, they literally the Swiss government classifies owning just one single guinea
pig as animal abuse. >> Oh my god, I love that. >> That's pretty badass. >> That's so funny that you said that.
>> A plus Switzerland. My angel sweet daughter Dolores went to the pet store and she was like intrigued by the guinea
pigs yesterday. >> Wow, that is weird. >> It's weird that you just brought up guinea pigs today.
>> Can't have just one. >> No. >> Got to catch them all. >> I feel like you can't just have one
animal at all. You have to have really, unfortunately. >> It's just the way it is.
>> Yeah. >> Oh, that's so cute. >> Isn't that adorable? >> All right. Well, thanks so much and we
hope you keep listening. >> And we hope you >> keep it weird. But not so that you don't
report the strange activities in the woods outside of your house and a man at top a water tower watching a family with
their own binoculars. >> Yeah, I hate that a lot. Shame. I hate it a lot. >> Their own binoculars.
Heat. Heat.

In the early evening of October 19, 1970, police and firefighters were called to the Santa Cruz County home of Dr. Victor Ohta, a well-respected ophthalmologist, for a report of a house fire. Intending to siphon water from the pool out back, firefighters ran a hose from the truck to the backyard. However, when they reached the pool, the made a horrible discovery—floating in the pool were the bodies of Mr. and Mrs. Ohta, as well as their two children, and the doctor’s secretary, Dorothy Cadwallader. When they searched the scene, investigators discovered a cryptic note stuck under the windshield wiper of Victor Ohta’s car that made references to the occult and the counterculture movement.

At the time of the murders, Southern California was experiencing an unprecedented wave of violent murders by multiple serial and spree killers, as well as the notorious murders committed by the Manson family. Given the content of the note and the potentially ritualistic way in which the Ohta family had been killed, investigators and residents couldn’t help but fear that they may have another murderous cult on their hands.

MENTIONED IN THIS EPISODE

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Resources

Bennett, Bruce, and Christine Connor. 2017. "Killer Prophet." A Crime to Remember. Janaury 24.

Hagar, Philip, and Dick Main. 1970. "Neighbor charged in Ohta murders." Los Angeles Times, October 23: 1.

Holmes, Christian. 1970. "Doctror, family slain in mansion." San Francisco Examiner, October 20: 1.

John Linley Frazier v. The Superior Court of Santa Cruz County. 1971. 22812 (Superior Court of Santa Cruz County, July 7).

Murray, Emerson. 2022. Murder Capital of the World. Santa Cruz, CA.

Santa Cruz Sentinel. 1970. "Live Oak fire chief first to discover bodies in pool." Santa Cruz Sentinel, October 20: 5.

—. 1970. "'Most tragic murder'." Santa Cruz Sentinel, October 20: 5.

Cowritten by Alaina Urquhart, Ash Kelley & Dave White (Since 10/2022) Produced & Edited by Mikie Sirois (Since 2023) Research by Dave White (Since 10/2022), Alaina Urquhart & Ash Kelley Listener Correspondence & Collaboration by Debra Lally Listener Tale Video Edited by Aidan McElman (Since 6/2025) Listener Tale Theme Music licensed from https://www.purple-planet.com Main Theme: Matti Paalanen — Trick or Treat — Provided by Jamendo Ad Music: Title: Artist: BlueJay Studio — Spooky Waltz — Provided by Jamendo

Brief Summary

The episode details the Otaf family murders and the chilling profile of killer John Lindley Frasier.

Key points

The Otaf Family Killings. A shocking multi-murder scene unfolds as firefighters discover five bodies in a pool.
A Cryptic Note. A typewritten note found at the scene hints at a larger motive behind the murders.
The First Murder in Santa Cruz. The Otaf murders mark the first homicide in Santa Cruz County's history, igniting fear.
Community's Love for the Otas. The Otas were cherished in their community, known for their kindness and generosity.
The Catalyst Cafe. The Catalyst Cafe became a hub for the local hippie community, hosting gatherings.
A Call for Help. Roger Cone recognized the note's language and faced a moral dilemma about reporting it.

Episode highlights

Episode quotes

Damn, that's even worse.

Reacting to the description of a killer.

4:03WatchJun 13, 2026

Tension

75/ 100High tension

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