Janet's Secret | Full Episode | Forensic Files

When we were younger, there was always a box in my grandparents basement and it had Janet written on the [music] side
and we were always told, "Do not touch it." Janet was a very, very happy person and
Janet seemingly had everything to look forward to in life. Janet was very wellliked. She had a lot
of friends. She was both on the musical and the [music] geeky side, so to speak.
My name is Franchesco Keltieri and I am Janet Walsh's brother. >> They were really close. Really close.
Cuz I've heard my entire life uh about my aunt Janet and everything that happened.
>> She's just a kid. She's just a 23-year-old. She had been out the night before with a couple of girlfriends.
We found out that she didn't show up for work that morning. >> I'm Andy G. And in 1979, I was the first
police officer at the Janet Walsh homicide scene. I drove up to the front of the house and
ran up to the door and Pete Calori, Janet's father, told me that she was in the back bedroom.
I walk in and I pull the sheet back slightly. There was no need to even check for a pulse because you could tell
by the her face and the scarf around her neck that she was dead. >> The word dead just didn't apply. She's
she's my sister. There's nothing that could make my sister be dead. I had to go in and see for myself. But my
my brother would not allow me to. He put me in a bear hug and he would not let go.
He did not want that to be the last memory I had of my sister. [snorts] >> I have a plot from an old TV show like
Murder She Wrote where we have five suspects and I can't put a finger on any of them.
In the late 2000s, the Pennsylvania State Police Cold Case Unit began to relook at the investigation.
This was everything collected by the Pennsylvania State Police at the time of the crime in 1979.
>> Assistant District Attorney Britney Smith was assigned to prosecute it. >> And this has been preserved by the state
police since that time. >> In a way, this is a a time capsule. We're going back to the late 1970s.
We're going to the death scene now. >> The cord from [music] her own bathrobe was used to to bind her wrist.
She more than likely let her killer in and it was someone known to her >> at that time. This was almost the
perfect murder. It was for 34 years. I'm Peter Vans. Tonight on 48 hours, >> Janet's secret.
>> [music] >> Britney, what do we have here? This is Janet's purse. This would have been the
purse she used the night she went out from August 31st, 1979 into the early morning hours of September 1st, 1979.
>> Britney Smith, a prosecutor in Beaver County, Pennsylvania, hadn't even been born when 23-year-old Janet Walsh last
carried this bag on the final night of her life, September 1st, 1979. mint, gum, makeup, brush, keys, those
types of things are in every woman's purse. It definitely makes you feel as if there's a connection to her. And
Britney learned Janet was firmly connected to this place, the tiny town of Manaka, about 30 m outside
Pittsburgh. >> Janet moved next door to us when she was either two or three years old and we
became best friends. She had a couple brothers. I had brothers. So, she was like my little sister.
>> Janet's best friend, [music] Susan Needgall. >> Who lived where? >> Okay, this is the house that I grew up
in. And this is the house that Janet grew up in. And my bedroom windows right here, and her bedroom window is right
there. At one point, my mother bought us little princess bones, and we were able
to talk back and forth. >> Our childhood was probably just like everybody else's. You know, we each got
on each other's nerves, and I probably made it a goal to get on her nerves, being a little irritating brother.
>> Janet's brother, Francesco Cultieri, remembers a big sister bursting with talent.
>> She played the obo in the orchestra in the band and then she sang and she played the piano. Jen was also a Manaca
Indian. She was an avid sewer. So, she would go out and she'd buy material and she would
sew her clothes before she go on dates, >> cut it out and sew it together and wear
it out that night. I saw her do that more than once and it was just amazing. >> By high school, those dates were with
just one young man, Scott Walsh. >> We just were inseparable. I didn't hang around with buddies too much. It was
mostly her and I just going out. Janet and Scott were like two little puppy dogs in love.
>> My high school yearbook, sophomore, junior, and senior year. Right here, she signed to Scotty. I'll always love you,
Janet. >> So, it came as no surprise when the high school sweethearts decided to tie the
knot. >> Got married August 14th of uh 1976. I was 20 and she was 20. Like a lot of young men in western
Pennsylvania in those days, Scott had followed the tradition of going straight to work in a steel mill after high
school. I decided not to go to college because back in the 70s in in this area here,
the steel mills were booming. >> But despite a steady income, the newlyweds soon hit a rough patch
financially. We had the new mortgage, the new house, and two new vehicles, and it became a financial burden on both of
us. That's what led to our separation. >> In the summer of 1979, after just 3 years of marriage, the couple separated.
Janet moved into the ground floor of a two family house. >> I think she was a little apprehensive
about living alone because she never lived alone before. >> Janet got an office job at a local
refrigeration company. [music] And when Friday of Labor Day weekend rolled around, she decided to spend a
girls night out with three friends bar hopping and dancing. Getting home around 4:00 a.m. just hours before she was due
at work. >> My sister's boss, Ron, had called and told my mother that, "Hey, Janet didn't
show up for work this morning, and it's not like her." >> Janet's parents raced to her apartment.
My dad saw that there was somebody in bed and saw that her hands were bound, that she had something around her
throat. >> Rookie patrolman Andy Gaul was just 25 years old at the time. >> I had handled a couple of suicides and
two fatal traffic accidents, couple other serious crimes, but was clearly the first homicide that I had ever
responded to. >> And what G found when he got to Janet's house was chilling. Wearing only a short
night gown, Janet was face down in bed, her hands tied behind her back with the robe tie from her own bathrobe. Around
her neck, a light blue bandana tied tight. It appeared she had been suffocated to death.
>> I have never had a similar scene since during my career. >> Rich Mattis was a Pennsylvania state
trooper back in 1979. Like Andy Gaul, Mattis was looking at his first murder. >> So whenever you enter a crime scene, you
let the crime scene tell you what it has to say. What did this crime scene tell you?
>> Everything was very neat, very orderly. >> No bruising. >> No bruising, no cuts, no lacerations, of
course, no firearms injuries, nothing. >> Cops believe that Janet must have known
her killer. Why? Well, the front door was chained shut. There was no sign here of a forced entry, so she must have
recognized the man and let him in. The two then made their way back here into Janet's bedroom. Who would possibly want
to kill Janet Walsh? At that time, I had no idea. The older [snorts] detectives and investigators,
their automatic was, it's got to be the husband. You always look to the closest.
Janet's parents were at the Manaka police station when their arange son-in-law arrived.
>> They were crying and I started crying. And I'll never forget her mother grabbed
my hand and she said to me, she said, "Scott, you didn't have anything to do with this, did you?" And I looked at
Mrs. Keel Toran and said, "Mrs. Kel Torque, I think you know the answer to that question." And she shook her head
to me and said, "I know you didn't." >> But police weren't so easily convinced. For one thing, Scott Walsh, now suspect
number one, had been spotted at Janet's residence just hours before her body was
discovered. He says he was just dropping her support check in the mail slot. >> On the first of the month, I would give
her a check as part of our separation agreement. >> Also suspicious, police say Walsh had no
alibi after Janet got home. You didn't get up out of bed and say, "I'm going to find out what that woman, my wife, has
been up to on this night." >> Absolutely not. No. >> You didn't go in and confront her?
>> Not at all. No. >> Perhaps most damning, Walsh was given two lie detector tests following the
murder. In both, he failed one key question. >> So, Scott Walsh is given this lie
detector test. >> Yes. And he's shown to be deceptive on a rather important question. Did you kill
your wife? >> Yes. >> You told him, "Of course you failed this question and he knew that and you
pressed him on it." >> Sure. What did he say? >> He wasn't involved. >> Police were starting to think they had
their man until they heard about a stranger on the dance floor who had his eye on Janet.
This case [music] is about a young woman, 23 years old in 1979 who is tragically murdered
and it completely tears apart and devastates [music] her family. In the days following the horrific
discovery of Janet Walsh's lifeless body, rookie investigator Andy Gaul reached for leads in every possible
direction reconstructing [music] Janet's final hours. >> She was a typical 23-year-old girl.
Gaul learned that while bar hopping, Janet crossed paths with a stranger in town.
Robert McGra, a man cops describe as a drifter. When we were asking her friends,
"Anybody show interest in Janet that night?" He clearly came up. He came up right away.
>> He was interested in Janet. He was >> Yeah, I was I was interested in her. Yeah, she was an attractive girl.
>> Robert McGrael, suspect number two. He remembers spotting Janet out that night at one of the bars.
>> I asked her to dance and it was a disco dance. She was very good, very good dancer. I enjoyed dancing with her.
>> After a few more dances, Mcgrael decided to ask Janet for a favor. >> I asked her if I could get a ride home
with her. McGrael says Janet declined and put an end to the evening. >> She says, "I'm separated from my husband
and he gets very angry if he sees me with someone." And she said, "It might be good if you just left because I don't
want you to get hurt." >> Rejected, Mcra told police he walked home alone that night. Police believed
him until >> about six or seven days after the homicide, a lady's driving up Ninth
Street and she sees a checkbook laying in the gutter. >> And there's a name inside that
checkbook. Whose name is it? >> Robert Mcgra. >> Robert Mcgrael, one of the last people
to see Janet. She's dead just down the block here. What are you thinking as an investigator at that moment?
>> I'm thinking Mcra is jumping to the top of my list. Investigators learned that no checks had
been written on McGrael's account since the night of Janet's death. >> I don't know whether I lost it that
night at the club, whether someone could have taken it out of my sport coat. >> Did you walk over to her place that
>> I didn't even know where she lived, >> but your checkbook is a half a block away from her apartment.
>> Did you follow Janet back to her? Did you kill Janet Wall? >> No, I did not. >> Absolutely not.
>> Absolutely not. So, did you give a polygraph to Robert McGra? >> We did. The state police gave him a
polygraph and it showed deception. >> So, you have two people who have shown deception in a polygraph. Janet's
husband and Robert Mcgrael. >> Correct. >> And soon there would be suspect number
three, another [music] stranger. On the last night of Janet Walsh's life, that stranger knocked on a neighbor's door.
>> About 8:00 at night, someone comes to his house, well-dressed young man, asking where Janet Walsh lives. He lives
two doors away. He showed him exactly where Janet Walsh lives. So, we put it out to the public. While cops hoped
someone had seen this man, Janet's best friend, Susan, gave police yet another lead. Who could have done
this to Janet? What did you think? >> My first thought it was her boss, Ron. >> Ron Sakoszi.
Janet's boss, suspect number four. Police say Janet and Ron had an affair. How long had this relationship gone on
between Janet and her boss? >> It hadn't been going on long. This started after she separated from [music]
Scott. >> Investigators discover that Ron had been at two of the bars Janet visited the
night she died. >> Detective, at this point in the investigation, give me your list of
suspects. >> Peter, at this point, we have a wide array of suspects. We have Janet's
estranged husband, >> Scott Walsh. >> We have the drifter, >> Robert Mcgrael. >> We have Janet's boss,
>> Ron Sakoszi. >> And we have Sketchman. >> Sketchman, unidentified. Anybody else
come up on the radar >> right at that time? We also get Scott Hopkins. >> Now, who's Scott Hopkins? Scott Hopkins
is substantially older than Janet, drives a Porsche, is a successful businessman, and we find out from one of
her girlfriends that they've had a relationship over the summer. Suspect number five, Scott Hopkins, had
[music] a home building company. Janet had started seeing him after moving into her own apartment, but kept
their relationship secret. Trooper Rich Mattis remembers interviewing Hopkins the day of Janet's
murder. >> He was not forthright in his responses. He goes from casual acquaintance
to sexual involvement, but it takes a while to get there during the course of the interview.
One reason Hopkins may have been reticent is that he had two other women in his life. a soon-to-be ex-wife and
another girlfriend. Both didn't know about Janet, but Hopkins had no secrets about where he
was when Janet was killed. >> What'd he say? >> He was at his residence. >> Hopkins tells police he was home all
night with his girlfriend with [music] two friends sleeping out on the living room floor, Larry Musgrave and his wife
Geanne. They'd all stayed over to help Hopkins prepare a pig roast for an employee Labor Day weekend picnic
[music] the next day. Police checked out Hopkins story and moved into the >> This is Larry Musgrave today.
>> We got up at 5:30 in the morning and Scott was the one that woke me up to get
the hot fire going to roast the pig. Georanne says she's a light sleeper and is clear about one thing. Hopkins never
left the house that night. >> I heard nothing that night. Absolutely nothing. >> And Scott Hopkins
is alabi. He's alabi. Okay. >> After interviewing about 20 people in the first three years, the case turned
cold. There were no witnesses, no forensic technology to single out a killer. Then in 1983, [music] 4 years after the
murder, suspect number six emerged, Victor Sakoszi. No relation to suspect number
four, Ron Sakoszi. Victor lived just two blocks away from Janet. >> He's in a restaurant. tells the waitress
that he knew Janet and that he had dated her just prior to the murder. When he's
describing that story to her, he said a far away look in his eye and he was talking about that there was not a hair
out of place as though he was reinvisioning the crime scene. We looked at the reports and we knew that Victor
had been at the getaway, the last bar that Janet Walsh was at. Even with so many suspects, [music]
Janet's brother, Francesco, remembers hope draining away in his family's household. One of the things that we
were told early on in the investigation was that even if the killer walked into the
police station and confessed today, we would not be able to take them to trial because we do not have enough evidence.
But all that would change when cold case detective Rocco Demo uncovered a clue that would knock him
off his feet. I was literally standing at my desk. My knees buckled. I said I sat down. I said, "Are you you kidding
me? I don't have any eyewitnesses. I don't have any physical evidence. I have no serious motive.
I have no one coming forth. Roco Deo, a Pennsylvania state trooper working in a cold case squad, says in late 2010,
all of that would change. Time and technology finally caught up to Janet's case.
>> These are markings that the state police crime lab would put on the item. This
would be where a sample was taken here, for example. De Milo sent some of the physical
evidence from Janet's crime scene out for new analysis. A lab tech called him with a game changer. They had found
semen on the top sheet that had covered Janet's body. >> And I'm thinking it's just going to be
some minor itty bitty trace. And she says, "No, we have a lot of it in a lot of locations."
>> [music] >> including on the back of Janet's night gown and the robe tie that had bound her
wrists. It was more than enough to create a DNA profile. >> They didn't know at the time who it was,
but they knew that whoever's DNA this was would be the killer. >> Decades have passed. It's not 1979
anymore, and this is a huge moment in this long investigation. What do you do first,
>> Peter? I've been keeping tabs on these guys for years. I have to get their DNA.
First thing I do is get the DNA and eliminate Scott Walsh. Then Ron Sakoszi and DNA eliminates Victor Sakosi.
>> So, three down, two to go. We have Scott Hopkins and Robert McGra. >> I knew when they came here and they
wanted my DNA that they must have considered me a suspect. >> Robert McGra was now living up in
Massachusetts. In December 2011, he voluntarily met Andy Gaul and another detective at a local police station.
>> You were never in her apartment. That's right. You never had sex with her. That's right.
>> McRail, the man whose checkbook was found around the corner from Janet Walsh's house just 6 days after her
murder, refuses to voluntarily give police his DNA. But Andy Gaul hadn't come 32 years and
600 miles to be turned away. >> You open your mouth, please. >> He brought a warrant for McGrael's DNA.
>> Relax your mouth. >> Then Gaul picks up exactly where he'd left off in 1979. Gaul grills Mcgrael for 7 hours.
>> I didn't kill anyone. >> Put your arms down and have a seat. Mcgrael agrees to take a lie detector
test. >> Everything is answered with a yes or a no. >> Remember, he'd shown deception on his
first one back in 1979. >> Did you kill that woman? >> No. >> Did you ever lie to the police?
>> No. >> Were you ever in that woman's home? >> No. Do you want me to finish scoring you up?
>> When the test is over, >> so how did it go? The technician delivers the bad news to
Mcgra. >> You score in the negative on the first one when I asked you, did you kill that
woman? >> And you also scored in the negative when are you the person who killed that
woman? >> Suspect Robert Mcgrael has failed another polygraph. >> Are you going to be looked at as being
an honest man that wanted to help in the end or >> I'm getting disgusted with that
statement. No, sir. I have nothing to be remorseful about. I did not do what you're accusing me of.
>> So Andy, you take Robert McGra's DNA sample back to Pennsylvania. What is the
result of that test? >> It was not a match. >> Not a match. So Robert McGrael is now
eliminated. Who does that leave? >> It's down to one. Scott Hopkins. >> Scott Hopkins. And back in 2011, give me
a sense of what his life was like. >> Scott Hopkins was now a very influential person in our community. He was an
elected councilman. He's 65 years old. He's a semi-retired, very successful businessman.
>> When I asked him for the DNA, he says, "Absolutely not." >> He said, "I'm not going to give my DNA."
>> Scott Hopkins current wife, Karen, says the fact that her husband had a relationship with Janet Walsh, made any
DNA test pointless. >> He said, "My DNA is going to be there because I was there. I did have sex with
her." So that's why he didn't give it. >> Still, investigators persisted. Police didn't have enough evidence to
get a search warrant for Hopkins DNA, at least not yet. They hatched a plan. >> Andy Gaul set it all up. Scott Hopkins
was a Bridgewater Councilman. Every day early in the morning, he came into the Bridgewater Burrow building where the
police department is located also and took a drink out of a water fountain and would throw his cup away.
Investigators had the police chief secretary standing by to pick up the trash after Hopkins morning water break
and retrieve the cup. It was tested and the result was the moment cops had waited for. Hopkins was a match to the
crime scene DNA profile. That enabled investigators to get an official warrant for Hopkins DNA.
>> I said, "Hey, Scott, I told you I'd be back. I have a warrant." And he actually
fell into a chair and he says, "You think I did this?" >> All that was left was to wait for the
results of Hopkins court ordered DNA test. Rocky Deio calls and says, "It's done. It's sure. It's him. We're getting
an arrest warrant." [music] >> Andy Gaul, who'd been first through the door when Janet Walsh was killed, was
the first [music] man through the door when Hopkins was arrested in January 2012.
>> I brought my handcuffs that I had in 1979 and put the cuffs on them. >> But would this DNA evidence really be
enough to catch a killer? Remember, Scott Hopkins and Janet were lovers that summer.
>> Even then, I'm worried because I know of all the suspects, only Hopkins had told
us that he had sex at that apartment in that bed. I knew it wasn't a sure thing just yet.
November 2013, Scott Hopkins, now 67 years old and a grandfather, goes on trial for the
murder of Janet Walsh in 1979. No cameras were allowed in the courtroom. >> Good girl. Janet's younger brother,
Francesco Calieri, says as the proceedings began, all he could do was pray. >> Please God, give everyone the strength
to do what is right and to do your bidding. >> Hopkins defense attorney Chad Bowers
says in the 34 years since Janet's death, Scott never acted like a guilty man. >> Scott Hopkins never left town. In fact,
he's done the opposite. He's stayed in Beaver County. He's dug his roots even deeper into Beaver County.
>> He is a giving person. He's a loving person. He gives everything that he possibly can to the community, to his
church. >> Karen is Scott's third wife. Back when they were still dating, Scott had told her he'd once been seeing a
young woman who'd been murdered. He was sorry that something terrible had happened, but he also was glad that he
[snorts] had had three people with him that night so that he would not have to be involved in this.
>> At trial, those three people, Scott's alibi witnesses, would all testify. Diane St. George, Scott's girlfriend at
the time, who'd go on to become his second wife, said she spent the night next to Scott in a water bed.
>> This was our model home. It was a split entry that we built, and this is where
we worked out of. >> Larry Musgrave was Scott's partner in a home building business.
>> Scott Hopkins was going through a divorce and he moved here and moved into the back bedroom of the house.
Larry and his wife Georanne were asleep on the floor of Scott's living room. Remember, they'd slept over to get up
early to prepare for an employee Labor Day weekend picnic the next day. They told jurors Hopkins never left the house
that night. >> I know it didn't happen. I was here. >> How do you know that? >> Well, I would have heard him leave. I
would have heard him come back. >> I wouldn't sit here and lie. Not for anybody. And all I can say is I feel
they have the wrong person here. >> Would you lie to protect your friend? >> Never. If I felt he did it, I would turn
him in. >> But prosecutor Brittney Smith says the Musgraves [music] are mistaken.
>> They were sleeping during a substantial period of time. >> With the model home just a 10-minute
drive from Janet's house. >> Ready? >> Here we go. Prosecutors say Hopkins would have had
time to arrive. >> We're now at 8 minutes 16 17 after Janet got home at 4:00 a.m.
commit the murder and get back to his own house to awaken his guests at 5:30. But if Scott Hopkins is guilty,
what exactly happened that night? [music] >> There was something sexual that occurred
in that apartment. Whether it was consensual by her or not, we don't know. >> Assistant DA Britney Smith lays out the
prosecution's theory. >> As part of this sexual act, he strangles her and takes it too far and she ends up
dead. >> Could this have been an accidental death? The problem with it being an accidental death is that strangulation
takes a period of time that he continuously applied pressure to her neck through the use of the bandana and
that takes a few minutes to do. So her life is essentially leaving her and he continues to apply pressure to her neck.
>> As they did at trial, Smith and Frank Martacei, >> this will be the night's shirt. the
co-prosecutor on the case demonstrate how the DNA evidence condemns Hopkins. First, when the Pennsylvania State Lab
found semen in the old crime scene evidence, it was given a rating of 4 plus. >> That means Scott Hopkins seminal fluid
is on that location in a concentrated manner and it is not consistent with having been washed. meaning prosecutors
say that Hopkins DNA was deposited the night of the murder, not from a previous encounter. And then there was something
else, something huge. >> We always go back to location, location, location, because the location of the
DNA is what tells us when it was put there. >> We believe that she was laying face down
on the bed and he was on top of her at the moment that he was strangling her. It turns out the DNA identified as
Hopkins was found to line up perfectly on the back of Janet's night gown, on the rope tying her hands, and on the top
sheet left covering her body. >> If you look at all the evidence in conjunction with one another, and how it
lines up, that's what tells you that her killer deposited it. And the prosecution would end up hiring
a famous messenger to deliver that news at trial. None other than the renowned forensic
pathologist Dr. Sirill Wacket who's consulted on world famous cases. >> John F. Kennedy, Martin Luther King,
Elvis Presley, Michael Jackson, Whitney Houston, and of course, one of the most famous autopsies of all, the alien
autopsy. >> Well, yes. I would prefer to say for the time being that is humanoid.
>> Wet admits he's not a DNA expert. >> Here you are. >> He says he was just brought in to
interpret the crime scene. >> I think that you can be quite comfortable with the fact that Hopkins
was the perpetrator. >> When it's the defense side's turn, they counter the celebrity testimony of Dr.
Wet. The question is >> was someone who is an internationally recognized DNA expert
>> based on their calibration. >> Dr. Mark PL >> we have a max statistic of a thousand
>> who says wet has no business talking about DNA on the stand. >> Do you believe that Dr. Sarel wet
testifying in Scott Hopkins case is that dangerous in your opinion? >> Uh I think it's very dangerous.
The defense investigation found something that the prosecution missed. Turns out Hopkins DNA was not the only
DNA at the crime scene. There was unidentified male DNA on Janet's robe and seaman from a third man.
Someone police knew all too well. >> There was an indication that her ex-husband was possibly on one of the
sheets as well. The defense claims they know how Hopkins DNA lined up. They say his DNA was on
Janet's night gown from past sexual encounters. Then when the real killer had sex with Janet, her perspiration
transferred Hopkins old DNA from the night gown to the rope tie to the sheet. In this case, the prosecution said was
there was only one possibility and that's clearly false. And in science, if you have two possibilities that can
equally explain the data, it's a wash. [music] I was transported back 30 plus years to
being just having my energy just shredded. My heart didn't even know how to work.
>> For Francesco Cultieri, the trial of his sister's accused killer would be bitter.
>> My fear, and it came to fruition, was that it would be like yesterday, like it
just happened. >> Francesco attended each day of Scott Hopkins murder trial. >> 30 plus years of not knowing who, why,
or whatever. And here's this man 10 ft away. You You can't imagine the rage. >> 34 years with no one having to pay the
price for Janet's murder. The trial would take only 8 days with 40 witnesses, including Hopkins himself. In
the end, the jury took 6 hours to render a verdict. >> It was guilty to murder in the third
degree. murder in the third, meaning Hopkins, while not intending to kill Janet, had
acted recklessly and in a manner he knew could result in death. >> And the first thought that came in my
head at that point was, "Jan, we got him." >> For Andy Gaul, who was just a rookie
that [music] September day back in 1979, the verdict closed a very big circle. to good friends, old friends,
>> to justice, and to Janet. [laughter] >> I'm hoping to get past these tears at
some point. It's just it was more than just another case. Just became way too personal.
>> But not everyone in that courtroom was rejoicing. After this verdict, did he turn and look at you?
>> He did. He turned and looked at me and and I was crying and he said, "I'm so sorry. You don't deserve this." And I
said, "Neither do you." >> 3 months later in February 2014, Janet's brother arrives at the sentencing,
wishing Hopkins would get exactly what he deserved. I got the conviction, but I'm hoping for the longest sentence
possible. As I understand it, this this crime carries a 20 to 40year possibility, and I know it's up to the
judge. >> The sentence the judge handed down was considerably shorter. >> He gave him 8 to 16 years, and my
husband just turned 68, so I don't know if my husband will ever get out alive. >> A few months into his prison stay,
>> Scott Hopkins. >> Yes. Peter Vans, 48 hours. >> We spoke with Scott Hopkins. >> Mr. Vans, I am absolutely innocent of
this crime. >> Why do you think the jury found you guilty? >> My own thought is we have a situation in
this country from watching CSI and all the crime shows that if your DNA is there, you must be guilty. And I
admitted to them that I was having sex with her in her apartment. Scott insists that the DNA investigation was far from
thorough. Starting with Janet's aranged husband, Scott Walsh. Our DNA expert found my sperm and his sperm mixed
together on the sheets. My DNA expert found an additional person's DNA or sperm on her robe. So, there were other
people's DNA there that they chose not to look at. Janet Walsh, who by all accounts was
just a summer fling for Scott Hopkins decades ago, would end up changing the course of his life. I
>> mean, I respected her as a person and as a female, and I would never do anything
to harm her. >> Scott, are you lying to me? >> Absolutely not. >> You swear on everything you find holy in
this world and the people who support you that you are telling me the truth. >> I swear on my kids' lives.
Hopkins had already started to mount an appeal of his conviction. For prosecutor
Britney Smith, the victory has been bittersweet. >> There's always this sort of sadness.
Even though you you get what you want to some degree, doesn't bring Janet back. She'll always be 23 [music] in 1979.
She's still gone. And for Janet's [music] brother, who'd kept vigil for justice all these years,
the time has come to let go. >> By getting rid of all these horrific momentos, the headlines, crime still
unsolved, case gone cold. That'll help me get to that point. I love my sister. I'll see you in heaven
one day. >> [music] [music] [music] [music] [music]

She was murdered at 23. Five suspects and cops couldn't arrest anyone. It was the perfect crime for 34 years -- until now. "48 Hours" correspondent Peter Van Sant reports in this episode from December 2016. Watch more full episodes of "48 Hours" on Pluto TV.

True crime. Real justice. "48 Hours" investigates the most intriguing crime and justice cases that touch on all areas of the human experience including greed and passion. "48 Hours," which premiered in 1988, has developed a rich history of original reporting and impact journalism that has helped exonerate wrongly convicted people, caused cold cases to be reopened and solved, and along the way changed lives.

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Brief Summary

The murder of Janet Walsh in 1979 leads to a complex investigation and eventual conviction of Scott Hopkins based on DNA evidence.

Key points

Janet's Mysterious Death. Janet Walsh, a vibrant 23-year-old, is found dead in her apartment, sparking a complex investigation.
The First Homicide Scene. Officer Andy G. describes the chilling discovery of Janet's body, marking a turning point in the case.
A Cold Case Reopened. In the late 2000s, the Pennsylvania State Police Cold Case Unit revisits Janet's unsolved murder.
Multiple Suspects. The investigation reveals a web of suspects, including Janet's estranged husband and a drifter.
DNA Evidence Emerges. New forensic technology uncovers crucial DNA evidence from Janet's crime scene, reigniting the investigation.
DNA Evidence Leads to Arrest. Investigators match Scott Hopkins' DNA to the crime scene, leading to his arrest.

Episode highlights

Episode quotes

This was almost the perfect murder.

Detectives discuss the complexities of Janet's case.

2:49WatchFeb 3, 2026

Tension

85/ 100High tension

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