Rodney Alcala: The Killing Game | Full Episode | Forensic Files

48 Hours presents [Music] I was out doing my patrols we just started our shift that day and I was
driving down Sunset Boulevard and I received a call A beige color car with no license plates following this little
girl in Los Angeles in 1968 eight-year-old tally Shapiro was walking to school when a car pulled up alongside
her a Good Samaritan a witness sees the little girl the little eight-year-old Ali get in the car
thinks it's suspicious follows him and puts a call into la the former Los Angeles police officer
Chris Camacho reached the location and knocked on the door again I said police officer opened the door I need to talk
to you this mail appeared at the door I will always remember that face at that door very evil face
and he says I'm in the shower I got to get dressed and I told him okay you got 10 seconds finally I kicked the door in
[Music] the image will be with me forever we could see in the kitchen that there
was a body on the floor a lot of blood they say A picture says a thousand words in that image of those little white Mary
Janes on that floor with that metal bar that he used to strangle it with and that puddle of blood it just looks
like too much blood to come out of it a tiny little eight-year-old like that it was no breathing we all thought she
was dead Camacho began frantically searching the house for her attacker moments later he walked back into the
kitchen and witnessed a miracle she was gagging and trying to breathe and I thought one for the good guys
she's going to make it clinging to life tally was rushed to the hospital it hadn't not been for that
police officer tally Shapiro would have died on Rodney alcala's kitchen floor we started searching the residents there
was a lot of photograph equipment and all of us were amazed at the amount of photographs that he had there of young
girls very young girls we found a lot of ID picture ID of Iranian akala he was a student at UCLA
the suspect 25 year old Rodney akala had slipped through the officer's fingers when I
kicked in the front door suspect went out the back door with Alcala in the wind former detective
Steve Hodel was grasping at thin air but we kept coming up empty back then you know we didn't have a lot of the
forensics you have today he was a snake charmer I went and talked to his professor at UCLA he says Rod Alcala
wouldn't hurt anybody he's a great guy he truly believed that you know and a lot of people did
[Music] thank you [Music] Rodney Alcala was born in San Antonio Texas in 1943. his father abandoned the
family when he was young at 17 akala enlisted in the Army but there were problems allegations of sexual
misconduct a nervous breakdown the Army discharged him the military realized in 1963 that they had him
that he was a sexual deviant in 1969 the FBI put Rodney Alcala on its most wanted list
but finding Alcala was going to be no simple matter I'll call after raping and almost
killing tally Shapiro he fled to New York he made friends he he Charmed people he got into NYU Film School none
of his fellow students suspected that their popular classmate had a double life which had the makings of a film
itself a horror film three years after his attack on Tali Shapiro akala's Dark Side once again
emerged foreign [Music] beautiful face she carried herself extremely sophisticatedly his next victim Cornelia
Michael Crilley a 23 year old flight attendant for TWA I was living with her temporarily while she was getting her
own apartment ready around the corner to share with another stewardess krilly had spent the day moving in when
Borstein came home from work he was surprised to find her door locked and no one answered the phone when her
boyfriend was trying to reach her and was unable the police came in the horrible scene
prosecutor Melissa Moore just was struck by the Ferocious nature of the killing she had been stripped naked she was
strangled with a nylon stocking and there was a bite mark on her breast well obviously the cause of death is
strangulation she's bound she's held there's something stuffed in her mouth obviously keep it from screaming the
police focused in on cornelia's murder but with almost 2 000 killings in New York in 1971 investigators could not
close the case they had no real leads we didn't have the forensic tools that we have uh today so they did what they
could but it never went anyplace and the case just went cold and it stayed cold for 40 years
Rodney Alcala wasn't even a suspect after the murder he changed his name to John Berger and moved to New Hampshire
he landed a job as a counselor at an arts and drama camp for girls there he made a lasting impression on the campers
two girls went to their local post office and they looked and there was Rodney alcala's photo on the FBI 10 most
wanted list they looked up and said oh my gosh that's Mr Burger they report it to the dean he calls the
authorities they arrest him take him into custody I get a phone call from the FBI saying we've got your man in custody
he's ready to be picked up police in California were eager to charge him for tally Shapiro's brutal assault but her
family had left the country with no main witness prosecutors had no choice but to
offer Alcala a deal plead guilty to a lesser charge of child molestation and register as a sex offender
he took the deal but the judge's sentence stunned those working the case he received one year to life and the
parole board let him go after 34 months after what he did to tally Shapiro so less than three years later Rodney
Alcala was a free man again I I was flabbergasted to say the least it just amazed me
and Alcala had no trouble Charming his way back into the swing of things he was hired by the Los Angeles Times to
work as a typesetter he took photos at weddings and he was a registered sex offender during all of that and nobody
ever checked even worse he was chosen to be a contestant on The Dating Game The Dating Game
The Bachelor of its day what no one knew was that Rodney Alcala was already a serial killer please welcome Rodney
Alcala from all outward appearances radial color was a handsome I'm called the banana and I'm looking really good
charming smart young man well I like bananas so I'll take one number live that wouldn't hurt a fly the woman who
won a date with him ended up backing out saying she found him creepy come on over
here [Applause] probably saved her life others would not be so fortunate we'll never know how
many women are lucky because every woman that crossed that guy's path was a potential victim
[Music] it was 1977. Rodney Alcala was out of prison and living in New York bad news for the
New York cops who already had their hands full a home-grown serial killer known as Son of Sam was terrorizing the
city he struck again over the weekend the killer sixth victim police say they are nowhere near solving the case
by this time the Cornelia Crilley case had been cold for six years with no suspects
Rodney Alcala was only in the city a week before adding to the New York crime wave
his next victim a 23-year-old musician and artist named Ellen hover Ellen was a sweet gentle soul
Anita Feinberg and Ellen hover met as teenagers Ellen was a very dear college friend we roomed together for some time
[Music] she never confused what she had with who she was Ellen hover came from a
prominent Show Business family her father owned the famed Hollywood nightclub Ciro's her Godfathers were
Sammy Davis Jr and Dean Martin her mom called me and said Anita have you heard from Ellen
and I said no she said think hard nobody can find Alan and I didn't think anything of it until
it hit the newspapers her family's high profile made the story Front Page News as the NYPD kept up the hunt for her
that detective did a great job for missing person's case it was a lot of coals he did a lot of work a lot of
legwork detectives thought they were on to something when they found an important clue in her apartment Ellen
hover had marked on her calendar that she was going to see someone named John Berger on the date that she disappeared
remember Alcala had been using the name John Berger but at the time the connection was never made
her body wasn't found until a year later buried on the grounds of the Phillips Memorial Hospital in Westchester near
the Rockefeller estate until they actually found her there was always a glimmer of hope
once they found her body that was it Ellen's body was so decomposed police had to use dental records to identify
her based on the autopsy they declared it a homicide there was a suspect in the murder a fellow that they
believed was the last person that she was seen with could that fellow have been Alcala Ellen had written his Alias
John Berger in her calendar Alcala meanwhile had left New York and was on his Meandering road trip back to
California he was constantly in predatory mode that is behavior that involves hunting human
beings and that's part of a serial sexual killer that is often as exciting as the actual homicide and sexual
assault at the same time Rodney Alcala was on the road a 29 year old woman from Texas
Christine Ruth Thornton was traveling through the West with her boyfriend her sister Kathy was 11 years younger Chris
was a free spirit kind of gal so she always was up for anything in the spring of 1977 Christine was
heading to Montana with her boyfriend to pan for gold and she had big news she let my mom know that she was going
to be having a baby and then nothing more Was Heard Kathy immediately feared the worst Christine and her
boyfriend had a stormy relationship she had been abused by him we knew that I always thought that he had done
something to her soon after Christine disappeared Kathy began searching for answers she undertook a systematic
effort to track Christine and her boyfriend's whereabouts that would last almost 40 years through marriage
motherhood divorce and a career [Music] contacted police departments federal agencies hospitals and kept copies of
every phone call and letter this was a letter I sent to the FBI I contacted the Department of Health and
Human Services and they say a check at this address failed to reveal any contact with
Christine Ruth Thornton the Social Security Administration contacted them asking if there was any
employment record and there has never been any employment history [Music] you know I think the message was kind of
clear everything was no we don't know we have nothing looking back through this it's like yeah
it was staring me in the face she was not alive Kathy didn't know the name Rodney Alcala
but one day she would [Music] it was the spring of 1979. Rodney Alcala had been back in California for almost
two years and a 12 year old Robin samso was enjoying the Southern California beach
life we just lived to to have fun Bridget wilvert was Robin's best friend everybody could be
complaining about being bored and me and Robin would find ourselves doing cartwheels and back walkovers
the other love of Robin's life was her mom Marianne she was probably the most loving child a
mother could have everything she did she did to please me [Music] on June 20th 1979 Robin was going to
start her first day of work answering phones at the ballet studio in exchange for lessons but first she planned to
play on the beach for a few hours with Bridget I could definitely see a gentleman with dark hair
I mean he he honed in on us like really like a like a shark in the water honing in on a seal and he goes can I take your
girls pictures and Robin goes sure and all of a sudden out of nowhere pops up Jackie young my neighbor
you know she goes Bridget is everything okay are you girls all right man he he took that camera turned his head down
and you could almost see like smoke coming off his dress shoes he just he was gone
Robin and Bridget turned to go back home and Robin had thrown her Beach towing everything into her bag and she's like
well I'm gonna get going [Music] angle will take my bike and don't stop that was the last time anyone saw Robin
alive [Music] Robin's ballet teacher called when she did not arrive for her lesson later that
day her family immediately called 9-1-1 it was a probably the most horrifying time of all
you know not knowing police continually questioned the one person they thought might know where Robin could have gone
her best friend Bridget and I I said I go it was the man that man that took our picture
on July 2nd 12 Days After Robin last said goodbye to her friend and wrote off on her bike detectives found the body of
a child I said let's go see her he said we can't do that I said that's my baby of course
I can see her why not he said because it took us three days to identify her I said what's wrong with you people how
many little girls with long blonde hair disappeared that it took you three days he shook my shoulders
and the tears were coming down his face too he says there was no hair a fire crew conducting routine fire
prevention maintenance found Robin's remains in a remote location more than 40 miles from where she was last seen
there were 12 days of the animals to scavenge Robin's Remains by the time the fire crew actually found her body she
was just bones the pressure was on to find the killer Bridget's description resulted in this
composite sketch which was released to the media all over Southern California his parole officer saw that and uh and
called the detectives and said look there's a guy that used to be on my caseload you really need to take a look
at him his name is Rodney Alcala it had been nearly 11 years since Alcala had left eight-year-old Tali Shapiro for
dead but Alcala was easy to find this time he lived with his mother in Monterey Park a stone's throw from the
mountains where Robbins remains were located they learned that he had no alibi that he nobody could account for
his whereabouts at the time he was the perfect suspect Rodney Alcala was arrested on July 24th and charged with
the kidnap and murder of Robin samso Detective Pat Ellis said Huntington Beach Police got an unexpected tip when
alcoa's sister came to visit her brother in jail the conversation was being recorded on when he mentions him having
a stores Locker in Seattle Washington the cops don't know about so do me a favor
get the stuff out of there get it get it cleared out but what Alcala didn't know
was that police had found a receipt for the locker during a search of his home at the time of his arrest they beat her
there okay and then get inside there's the mother lode hundreds if not thousands of these of
these different images and there are dozens upon dozens of these young women that in the in the pictures clearly are
in positions of supreme vulnerability with Rodney I'll call him police learned Alcala had rented the
storage facility and moved his belongings there nine days after Robin samso's remains were discovered buried
under all this stuff was this tiny little silk bag filled with earrings Alcala claimed those were his earrings
but when police showed the jewelry to Robin's mother she recognized a pair of gold ball studs that she said Robin
often borrowed so at that point those are all the nuts and bolts that you need for a successful prosecution nearly one
year after Robin samso's murder prosecutors were ready it was February 1980. Rodney Alcala went on trial over
the course of two and a half months there were almost 50 witnesses that testified it was a very long very
difficult case the jury convicted Alcala and sentenced him to death it's a poor exchange for my daughter's life but
maybe it'll save someone else's by him being gone but the relief would be short-lived today in a five to one
decision the California state Supreme Court ruled that Rodney Alcala did not receive a fair trial
the jury had been improperly told about alcala's prior sex crimes including the attack on tally the decision would
devastate Robin's mother but the ordeal was just beginning you know it is only one perpetrator
that little Stone but the ripples keep going there's victims and victims and victims and victims
the samso family was steadfast in the face of a second trial for the murder of Robin they demanded Justice he killed my
child my child you know six years after the first verdict a clean-cut Rodney Alcala was convicted a
second time and again the sentence was death we the jury find the defendant Rodney James Alcala guilty of the crime
Authority Jeff that's the only penalty could ever be rendered in case such as this
akala had been on San Quentin's death row since 1980. now with a second conviction and a second death sentence
he was prepared to appeal all over again it was never really feeling safe that he was
locked up because he always thought there was a chance to go free in 2001 22 years after he killed Robin
samso a federal appeals court overturned Rodney alcala's sentence for a second time based on evidence he didn't get to
present there would be a new trial for Alcala now in his 60s for Robin samso's family it was
unbearable we've gone through a lot of hell because of that animal a lot of Hell a lot of hell
the path to justice for Robin samso would take almost a decade more in New York City 39 years since the
murder of Cornelia Crilley and 33 years since Ellen Hover was killed Cold Case detectives were finally able to identify
Rodney Alcala as the killer of both women the strongest link was the fingerprint there was a letter
that was lodged underneath Cornelia crilly's body and there was a fingerprint developed from the outside
of that envelope which was unmatched for many years and finally through the FBI's
database there was a match it was a significant piece of evidence but not enough standing alone equally
incriminating was the evidence left on her body there was bite mark evidence where he had bitten her breast it's his
his Dental impression is the one that's on her body and of course we looked at all of his other cases to see
similarities in sexual murders he had committed he decided we had enough evidence
in Ellen hover's case investigators now knew John Berger was Rodney Alcala and he had been seen near the Rockefeller
Estates where her body was found I think she was abducted here in Manhattan and ultimately killed up there
we had a witness who saw somebody who looked like Rodney Alcala at that time period with a woman who looked like
Ellen hover the man was carrying a camera bag just like Alcala did but the Manhattan prosecutors would have
to wait for California's third trial for Robin samso's murder in Orange County assistant D.A Matt Murphy was ready to
go to court when there was a stunning development DNA linked Alcala to three Los Angeles
murders Jill barkham Georgia wicksted and Charlotte lamb the killing of a fourth LA Woman Jill perento was also
tied to him right at that moment we realized that not only is Rodney Alcala a vicious murderer in our case but in
fact he is the serial killer that we always suspected him to be in a high Land school maneuver the cow the
California prosecutors decide to try all five cases together a bizarre looking Rodney Alcala would
serve as his own attorney on June the 20th 1979 Robin Sampson left Bridget Wilbert's apartment there is no better
Forum than to be center stage in court as your own attorney and you cross-examine the witnesses you're like
God in that courtroom Alcala even called Robin samso's mother to the stand it was
one of the hardest things I've ever had to do in my life having him ask me questions desperate to impeach
Marianne's character I'll call it confronted her about how during the first trial she had reportedly brought a
gun to court she didn't deny it I was going to shoot him right between the eyes if I could have gotten a shot at
him then she felt Robin's presence all of a sudden I smelled her shampoo and I felt this warmth in my hand and I
couldn't get my hand out of my purse for the third time Robin samso's family waited as the jury decided Rodney
alcala's fate this time there were four other families waiting with them one of the many things
that hurts me is that that was the last face she saw and that bothers me because
he's so ugly and he's so evil when the jury reached a verdict it was a relief to the families who had been
waiting for justice for so long the samsos hoped that this would finally be the end
we the jury find the defendant Rodney James Alcala guilty of the crime of Murder in the First Degree victim Robin
C samso Roanoke owed absolutely 100 deserves to die for what he did in a separate
penalty phase the prosecution called to the stand a ghost from his past my name is Tali Shapiro
I'm one of Rodney akola's first victims and one of the only living victims they should have stopped with me why in the
world are there so many other victims when it was a known fact of what he did to me
Rodney Alcala addressing the same jury that convicted him of murder makes an unusual plea for clemency let me put the
death penalty in perspective for you if you desire to join in the killing of a human being you and the families of the
victims will have to wait at least 15 to 20 years while the case slowly churns through the Appellate process he wanted
to plan Arlo Guthrie's song Alice's Restaurant and there's a part in that song where he talks about wanting to
kill people and he played that incredibly for the jury foreign closing argument did not sway the jury
we the jury determined that the penalty to be imposed upon defendant Rodney James Alcala to be death
Rodney Alcala had been on death row for more than 30 years now convicted of five murders it was
unlikely he could win another appeal [Music] with the California cases settled the
New York prosecutors were ready for him but they were not expecting what would happen next he came back to New York in
June of 2012 and by December he pled guilty it was a surprise it was a surprise that
he pled guilty because he had denied um every crime he was ever accused of Manhattan district attorney Cyrus Vance
Jr announced alcala's sentence two concurrent prison terms of 25 years to life for both families
who had lost all hope that these cases would ever be solved the please by Rodney Alcala and today's
sentencing brings closure to painful chapters in their lives the judge cried during the sentencing and Martha and I
have been in this business for over 35 years each and I've never seen a judge cry during a sentencing
as was agreed upon Alcala was returned to San Quentin's death row I got a telephone call from Robin samso's mother
and she said she was so grateful um that we were doing this it's such a comfort to know that regardless of what
might happen to the California cases if for some reason he should get out he's coming back to New York and he's going
to serve 25 to life both the New York and California prosecutors are haunted by the question
are there other victims out there he crisscrossed the country west coast East Coast East Coast West Coast crossed
through a lot of states and I'm sure there are victims in those States they just have to be found how come she
hasn't contacted us [Music] her thank you Rodney Alcala had been convicted of seven murders and was facing five
separate death penalties Kathy Thornton who had spent the last 39 years trying to track down her missing
Sister Christine had never heard of Alcala but her son did it would change Kathy's Quest forever the killing game
tonight's 48 Hours mystery in 2013 Kathy's son had watched a 48-hour story on Alcala that led him to its website
and a series of photos taken by Alcala of unidentified women I got an email from my son that said I
saw these pictures take a look if you'd like Kathy scrolled through the images she kept stopping at one of them a
picture of a beautiful woman on the back of a motorcycle I said yeah that sure looks like Chris and then I saw her
little toe her baby toe and that's one thing I always remembered about Chris was her little baby toe
was different it hooked I just saw that tone I said oh yeah that's Chris Googling the name Rodney Alcala Kathy's
heart almost stopped Kathy now believed her sister had been traveling with a notorious serial killer
fearing the worst but still wanting answers Kathy submitted her own DNA to a National Database of missing persons if
her sister's DNA was ever submitted they could be matched [Music] hundreds of miles away Jeff sheeman a
Wyoming detective was working on a very tough cold case they referred to my case
as Granger Greta because it was an unidentified female that was found in Granger Wyoming back in 1982.
there were a lot of aerial photos and photos from the scene when the body was found it was a desolate area County
prosecutor Daniel aramaspi recalled his predecessors had tried everything to help identify the victim the skull was
intact and so the Wyoming State Crime Lab was able to have an artist come in and use this skull as a form of of
recreating what this victim looked like [Music] more than 30 years had passed without a
lead all shemen could do was study the old files with a new set of eyes the bones were found next to clothing
the bones had been pulled apart presumably by scavengers animals she'd been out there about five to six years
it was the body of a 25 to 35 year old female they also told investigators at that
time that she was also approximately six months pregnant when he found saved skin tissue and Bone fragments and
all we got to do is get the ball rolling with send it to the proper authorities to start processing it for any DNA
specifically mitochondrial DNA that's DNA from the mother's side of the family siblings would be revealed as a match I
honestly thought I would be 10 20 years retired before I'd even receive a phone call saying they had identified her less
than a year later Jeff got the miraculous news there was a match between Kathy Thornton and the
unidentified bones I believe there was a lot of luck that went into it that went
into this whole case I believe that's what solved it it's a lot of luck after 39 years of searching Kathy found
Christine her hunt was finally over and the story of what happened to her sister began to unravel during the
summer of 1977 Christine split with her boyfriend and had the tragic Misfortune of meeting Rodney Alcala their trip
through the lonely Granger Prairie would be Christine's Last Ride when you see that photo there's no doubt
that she was having fun I think she just had no clue what he's he was thinking what he was capable of doing
so I think you're happy I'm until the point where you're not and at that point there was no no Escape
where would she go [Music] the location where the photo was taken to the location where Christine's
remains were found were Within probably just a few yards of each other I believe that Rodney Alcala killed
Christine Thornton shortly after that photograph was taken but before he would indict Alcala for
Chris Thornton's murder prosecutor era mospe wanted to interview him [Music] September 2016 he flew with the two
detectives to California frail and in ill health Rodney Alcala had been moved from San Quentin to the
medical unit of Corcoran prison outside of Fresno when we first arrived at Corcoran we talked to some of the
security staff they said that he was borderline dementia whatever his condition he was still being treated
like the dangerous serial killer that he was we went through numerous doors numerous gates to this
peach colored prison cell that looked like something off of a horror movie paints coming off
the walls flies buzzing around alcohol is on a bed facing a wall his feet were sticking out from underneath the sheets
and you know he had long toenails we started pulling out photographs of the crime scene
he took two seconds to look at that photo and he said I know that area that's my area how Alcala
reacted to Christine's photograph was something the detectives will never forget it almost clicked like that with
him and you could almost tell that he was reliving that day eventually he took the photograph set it
on his lap and he uses index finger and just started tracing her body tracing her
body for probably five minutes and eventually he sat the paper down flat and he started tapping
tapping on the photograph of Christine right over Christine's body just tap in the photograph
and eventually the tapping got louder I got louder he eventually looked at me as he kept
tapping on the photograph and at that point I I honestly thought he would provide us more information about
Christine it was a game despite his age his infirmity his close to 40 years behind
bars Alcala was still the master manipulator he'd always been he was very even Keel very the only time he would
show any type of of fervor in his voice would be when we would Point Blank ask him did you kill her and he would say no
no you're crazy you're stupid and then when I asked him was she alive when you left her
and he said yes she was alive when I left that's all the prosecutor really needed to hear the fact that he admitted
he was there just cinched it for me if he could deny killing her all he wants but the fact that he admitted is as far
as I'm concerned is a confession I decided to charge him with first degree murder
there would be no extradition to Wyoming he's been in prison since 1979. why should we give him a trip
a good place for Mr Alcala is in the the bed we left him in so Alcala was never tried for
Christine's murder but Kathy Thornton has finally learned what happened to her sister
along with seven other families she has the answer to the question none of them ever wanted to ask
how many others are there that you know did did the same thing Chris did I honestly believe in my mind in my
heart that that there's going to be other victims seeing how arrogant he is knowing how
uh Charming he apparently was back in the day and knowing how smart he is I wouldn't doubt it if there's 150 maybe
even 200 victims out there I'm hoping that with this being back in the news that
someone might recognize someone in one of those photos like we did foreign [Music]
[Music] [Music] thank you

A photographer who was on "The Dating Game" became one of the nation's deadliest serial killers -- eight years after "48 Hours"' first report, new victims emerge. Correspondent Peter Van Sant investigates. 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.

Brief Summary

Rodney Alcala's chilling crimes, capture, and the quest for justice are detailed in this episode of 48 Hours.

Key points

The Attack on Tally Shapiro. In 1968, eight-year-old Tally Shapiro was abducted but miraculously survived thanks to a police officer's quick action.
Rodney Alcala's Dark Past. Rodney Alcala, a charming student, was a known sexual deviant before his crimes escalated.
The Disappearance of Ellen Hover. Ellen Hover, a promising musician, vanished after planning to meet someone named John Berger, a name used by Alcala.
The Murder of Robin Samso. Twelve-year-old Robin Samso was last seen on her way to work, leading to a frantic search.
Alcala's Arrest and Evidence. After years of evasion, Rodney Alcala was arrested, leading to the discovery of incriminating evidence.
Rodney Alcala's Conviction. Rodney Alcala was found guilty of murder, bringing relief to the victims' families.

Episode highlights

Episode quotes

I will always remember that face at that door, very evil face.

A police officer recalls the moment he confronted a suspect.

1:16WatchOct 17, 2023

Tension

85/ 100High tension

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