True Crimes about Escaping Kidnappings and Murder | "48 Hours" Full Episodes | Forensic Files

[Music] we wanted to be able to have this happy family like everybody else does my name is ardan Summers and I am
the daughter of Alisa and Trevor Summers I was really hoping that my family would be back together and
healthy and fixed Alisa Summers she is a loving mother of five children it's a tragic family story and
they're breaking up and getting divorced Trevor Summers wanted control he controlled Alisa and he controlled
his children we later learned through our investigation that Trevor summer is using his children to play against his
wife we was trying to persuade her not to get divorced and he was going to talk her into it no matter how long it took
she went through hell and back all because of what my dad did when tror Summers enters the home
and Alisa Summers ultimately wakes up that's when the violence occurs I am here with Elisa at her house
where I'm not supposed to be and I woke Lisa up and I have been holding her against her will
he used her cell phone to record a video making a statement about what occurred I did tie up uh to keep her uh
from contacting the authorities and giving me enough time to get out of town eventually he takes her out of the
house correct Alisa agrees to go with him because she knew that was the only way she was going to be able to stay
alive at that point he goes to the Walgreens she's in the car and there is an employee at the
Walgreens taking a smoke break we received a 911 call from a witness at the Walgreens where Miss Summers
attempted to flee from the vehicle some [ __ ] just ran out of the dude's car looked like her hands were TI and she
ran out of the car scri and help me and he just uh grabbed her and put her back in the car so this is a potential
kidnapping but could be headed towards something far more serious a potential homicide that's certainly a possibility
and something that's in the back of our heads the 911 call occurs approximately 9:00 p.m. on
Saturday then the following morning myself and another detective are able to interview four of the five
children there was just a knock on the door and just two tall men and asked do you know where your parents are and I
said no they were talking about how they're doing this in investigation and try to find my parents and all I'm
thinking is oh my God what happened the interview with the children was a very delicate
situation and and he was hurting mom well how do you know he was hurting Mom I heard it she screaming did he tie her
arms up or feet or or something else he tie both of her arms and [Music] body when the children are giving these
details it's just surreal it was shocking [Music] [Music] this is the bedroom window that Trevor
Summers was allowed into the home through Sergeant Christopher steel with the Hillsboro County Sheriff's Office
and who opened that window for him his eldest daughter would have been in the home unlocking and making it ready for
him to enter my dad had sat me down and discussed reconciling with my mom and fixing the marriage and bringing our
family back together ardan Summers was eager to help her father make her family whole again her parents Alisa and Trevor
Summers had separated after 15 years of marriage and there was a restraining order keeping them apart ardan and her
four siblings had been living with their dad he wanted me my younger siblings to
go over to my mom's house and spend the night and then I would let my dad in the
window after my siblings and my mom went to bed ardan thought her dad could then
talk her mom into getting back together but Trevor summers's supposed attempt at
reconciliation was actually an act of manipulation using his children as Pawns in a plot involving kidnapping assault
and attempted murder that would go on for 55 hours the Clock Was digital clock and it
said exactly 3:00 a.m. I was startled awake Alisa matthewson formerly Alisa Summers will never forget the
disorienting fear that began in the early morning hours of March 11th 201 17 she was awakened in her pitch black
bedroom two of her children were lying beside her 7-year-old Brin and 5-year-old Grady and I felt my face was
wet and I started screaming who's in my room what are you doing here I'm in a panic an absolute
Panic her estranged husband Trevor had entered her home in val Rico Florida dripping water on her head and was
standing over her and I'm still screaming and he says calm down it's just me I just start in full Panic
throwing things from my end table at him and he grabbed my ankles and pulled me off the end of the bed this must be
terrifying it's terrifying Bren and Grady are running out of my room screaming daddy daddy don't kill
mommy but how did it come to this the couple first met in 1995 in High School in Suburban Philadelphia and
started dating 3 years later he was spontaneous and charming and just seemed that he always put me first the couple
married in 2001 eager to begin their life together he wanted to start a family right away when I had ardan it
was everything I envisioned for my life I envisioned myself being a stay-at-home
mom and then over the years it was ardan times five five kids right yes after ardan came Landon Brin Grady
and Cooper the more kids it seemed that the more love the more happiness I wanted to have this picture perfect life
Alisa says Trevor initially started a landscape and pool design company and he dabbled in real estate but he really
fancied himself as an entrepreneur he would open up businesses for a little while and then he would move on to a new
business the family moves several times says Alisa as Trevor chased opportunities from Pennsylvania to
Florida to Vegas to California and eventually back to the Sunshine State where the children were homeschooled we
would very often um host people have sleepovers friends over birthday parties all kinds of stuff Arden now 20
remembers good times we would go to the beach we had a beach fairly close to our
house house play video games as a family and board games stuff like that Arden says while she was close to her mother
she had a special bond with her father I was definitely the definition of a daddy's girl we would go out on little
dates together go out for dinners just him and I meanwhile Alisa says her relationship with Trevor was changing
with each move and birth of another child she says her husband was slowly taking control of her life I had to wear
what he would select I couldn't have men on my Facebook page she couldn't even sit next to a man in church or anywhere
I couldn't ride in a car alone with a man I was to have no communication with any men other than Trevor Alisa was also
overhearing Snippets of Trevor's business conversations there were some things that just weren't adding up Alisa
says Trevor was frequently in financial trouble not paying debt and bouncing checks he was arrested several times but
she says he always blamed his problems on others and the crisis would seem to pass every single time it would happen
it would be it's a misunderstanding he's having these incidents with with the law
what are you thinking yeah at the same time I was walking on eggshells don't question him okay and smile and Nod did
he have a temper as long as we stayed in his good graces then it was fine in 2016
Alisa finally had enough and asked for a divorce Trevor begged her to stay wanting to keep the family together
Alisa agreed but she says Trevor's possessive Behavior worsened he took my cell phone he took my car I was being
held in my own home as like a prisoner it became very apparent that this is domestic violence this is domestic abuse
use I need to start working on my plan she wanted to escape but Trevor Summers had his own plans for
[Music] [Music] Alisa I had been just stuck staying in the house with him walking Watching
Me by October 2016 Alisa says she felt like an inmate in her own home with her husband Trevor monitoring her every move
he was always with me for several weeks until one day Trevor finally left to go to work that's when Alisa called a
domestic violence organization and I said you know these are the things that are going on my husband hasn't gone to
work in weeks this is the first time been alone and the more and more I asked them and I talked to them about this
they said your situation is very serious but before Alisa could get out of the house that day Trevor burst
through the door he came in and he attacked me and he every time I would try to get away from him he' block me
from leaving Alisa says that after some time Trevor reluctantly agreed to let her
leave with the children and she sought Refuge in the home of a friend he was going crazy over this and he uh he found
out where I was and he would be showing up there after a week there she felt safer moving with her children to a
shelter for Abused Women leaving everything behind we had nothing we had the clothes on our
backs over the course of several months Alisa started rebuilding her life when I
got out of the shelter I got myself a home and a car and a job as well she filed for divorce
and even tried online dating but Trevor was not out of her life as they shared custody of the children I was forced to
see him twice a week to exchange children with him by January 2017 Alisa says Trevor
seemed resigned to the fact their marriage was over and about a month later Alisa says she agreed to go by
Trevor's home to sign the divorce paper so you're in the house what happens he said that he just needed to talk to me
he was like I have to I have to get everything off of my chest so we can get divorced I have to tell you I've had
multiple Affairs I've really messed up Trevor was also in serious legal trouble facing real prison time according to
court records he was awaiting sentencing after pleading guilty to wire fraud charges for one of his failed business
ventures his perfect L controlled life was quickly imploding as I was leaving and he said you're not going
anywhere with one hand holding me down he used the other hand and pulled a knife and held it right up at my chest
by my throat how long was the blade it was a machete and he's got this machete right
under right at my neck and he says I won't tie you up if you just stay still and listen to me and then he held me
there for a few hours eventually Alisa says Trevor agreed to let her go after she called him down and
promised not to call the police a promise she did not keep I immediately called 911 when I left his home but when
investigators interviewed Trevor he denied threatening Alisa's life the police didn't believe me I wasn't left
with any marks there was no evidence of what I was saying the Sheriff's Office treated
it as a concern from the beginning Hillsboro County Sheriff Sergeant Christopher steel was not involved in
responding to the 911 call but says investigators were looking into the case it's not like we could have simply
arrested him that day um based on the statements of just the two that were involved um we needed more both Alisa
and Trevor filed for restraining orders against each other and Alisa says Trevor
used the incident to turn their children against her he told the children I lied
to the police she is trying to get me thrown in in prison he told them their mother was responsible for the marriage
falling apart he would constantly talk about how she was supposedly cheating on him he you know acted so heartbroken and
what did you think of your mother I felt like she was awful then just 2 Days Later Alisa arrived
home to find the place vandalized there was graffiti all over the walls there was Kool-Aid poured on my bed the
Kool-Aid was his idea the chalk and writing on the walls was my idea what had you written on the walls I had
written things like traitor I wrote thanks for being an assho right above the bed Alisa was incredulous when she
learned Trevor had convinced ardan to take part it was devastating my kids had a key to my
home and they used their key and did this a few weeks later Alisa got an unexpectedly cheery phone call from
Arden and ardan says mom we really miss you I I've just I'm sorry I've been thinking of you I want to come over and
just you and I talk things through hang out like old times within days Arden Brinn and Grady were back visiting
visiting Alisa while Cooper and Landon were at Trevor's house I especially was feeling like ardan was starting
to come around Alisa says she and ardan had no idea they both were being manipulated by
Trevor he had mentioned before that he was really hoping to reconcile with her and to put the family back together and
be almost like the savior of the family the goal was something Noble in a way that you were participating in that
maybe they can get him back together and we can be a family again yes so on the evening of March 10th
2017 as Alisa was in bed with Brinn and Grady Arden was in another room secretly
texting her father just checked she's fast asleep letting him know the coast was clear for him to enter Alisa's home
[Music] just after midnight on March 11th 2017 Trevor Summers left his three-year-old
son Cooper home alone asleep in bed and drove with 12-year-old Landon to his estranged wife's house
where ardan was already waiting he told me that he was going to talk to my mom following his instructions ardan had
left this window open for Trevor they passed each other as she went out to wait in the car with
Landon that's when Alisa says she remembers waking up to water dripping on her face at that point it's full on
terror Alisa says Trevor dragged her to the living room great and brenn the two young children who were in bed with her
woke up and screamed he looks right at them and he says get back in your mother's room don't come out Alisa says
they struggled as she tried to escape when I get my hand onto the door and he'd grab me and throw me backwards are
you wondering where is Arden yes I'm thinking Arden's going to hear this ardan's going to call 911 like where is
she ardan was sitting in the car hopeful that her parents would come out after talking and they would all return to
Trevor's house together but around 5:00 a.m. Trevor sent a text that the plan had changed she walks in and doesn't
even look at me and that's when I realized she's not going to call 911 she wants him to be
there Arden says her dad told her to drive Landon Brinn and Grady back back to his house and wait then 14 years old
Arden's only Driving Experience had been in a parking lot it was very terrifying
I was doing exactly the speed limit and I just followed all the traffic laws to not get pulled over once the children
were out of the house that's when it even escalated further he threw me onto my bed and took these scarves and
wrapped me my hands my wrists together he is tying me to the bed frame with the Christmas
lights and crisscrossing them across my body to hold me down that's when Trevor told her why he was there I Came to Say
Goodbye I am leaving I've chartered a boat I'm going out into International water and I'm going to
disappear Alisa says he claimed he had millions of dollars in offshore Bank accounts Alisa didn't believe any of it
she says she had a plan stay quiet and perhaps he would let her go I don't want to infuriate this man just sitting back
listening and letting him do the talking she says over the course of several hours Trevor raped her twice did he have
any kind of a weapon on him he did a razor blade Alisa says she felt drowsy because
Trevor made her take cold medicine he had been using night Quail throughout the day to keep me
sedated Alisa says Trevor tied her ankles and wrists behind her with the scarves and a nylon rope I was in
excruciating pain he used her thumb to unlock her cell phone and recorded those videos I am here with
Lisa at her house she's virtually unharmed um she's got a couple bruises today but from the uh from tying her
up Alisa says Trevor told her he was making the videos so she could prove to authorities he was there before taking
the boat trip but Trevor didn't immediately leave it was around 5:40 p.m. when he came back into the room he
a pillow over my face and he pushed down with all of his upper body and I thought about my
kids and I and I lost Consciousness moments later Alisa says she remembers the pillow being removed and he looked
at me and I said please I'll do anything please don't kill me he says you agree to go with me
yes I'll go with you to the boat to the islands yes Alisa says she still thought the
boat story was a lie but agreed to go with him to buy time with her hands tied Alisa says Trevor loaded her into her
SUV later he went into that Walgreens to buy more cold medicine it was the moment
she'd been patiently waiting for I pulled the door handle to open the door and so I'm running and I'm stumbling
through this parking lot I could hear him coming at me and grab me did he lift you off the ground me off to the ground
and pushed me back got me all the way back into the car that's when that Walgreens employee called 911 TR out of
the car scri help me trying to get the license it's a dark dark BL SUV he's pulling out right
now the employee managed to get that license plate number Hillsboro County sheriff's deputies realized it was
Alisa's vehicle and began a Statewide search as they sped into the night Alisa says Trevor was irate he screaming at me
are you agreed to go with me why are you doing this we cut from over here all the
way across over to here he said that's for getting out of the car at the Walgreens Lisa says Trevor spent hours
driving along back roads down the Tampa Bay Coast they stopped several times including at a secluded rural area where
they hid out for over a day here he wrote letters detailing what he'd done a confession and this chilling farewell to
their children Alisa read an excerpt we should have never gone down the road of divorce that tore our family apart so we
have ended it for your sake and we'll be watching you from Heaven Alisa says Trevor raped her two
more times I just need to stay alive I just need to stay alive on the morning of March 13th Trevor drove to Little
Harbor a resort area where they used to go as a family Alisa says Trevor pulled the SUV over parked right behind a
dumpster and climbed into the back seat and a rope came over my head and came around my neck is there
any doubt in your mind what he's attempting to do at that moment no he is he is killing me behind a dumpster
suddenly he's behind me and he lets go and he Dove through the car jumped into the driver's
seat and took off Trevor believed he'd been spotted there's no talking he is laser focus and he is driving
panicked he pulled into this carport he pulls out the razor blade and he starts slitting his throat I'm screaming at him
to stop and at this point then the police come up around guns drawn screaming Alisa remembers an officer
helping her he puts me right into the front seat and he gets in and he takes off goes down this road just takes off
and boom you're out of here that fast suddenly I'm saved I've been pulled from Hell following Alisa's rescue
investigators took these photographs while still receiving medical attention Alisa told her story
my hands were behind my back and he slipped my wrist and I just kept begging and begging please don't kill me please
don't kill me Trevor Summers also spoke to investigators from his hospital bed where his wounds were stitched up law
enforcement says it amounted to a confession what did you tie her up with just some rope nylon rope I grabbed the
pillow and put her over her face but bizarrely Trevor also claimed Alisa voluntarily went along with him and she
willingly let me tire up Trevor was later charged with 11 counts including attempted murder
kidnapping sexual battery and child neglect Trevor pleaded not guilty but a L's ordeal was far from over she would
come face to face with Trevor yet again at his trop learn more about Alisa's 55-hour
ordeal at 48 [Music] hours.com I'm not afraid of him anymore and I'm going to say this is what happened and this is
what you did by 2022 5 years had passed since Trevor summers's arrest on charges
including attempted murder kidnapping and sexual battery during that time the couple's
divorce was finalized now after legal and covid related delays a jury would decide if Trevor's mission had been to
kill a Lisa or to reconcile with her there was no murderous intent he stopped otherwise she would would be
dead Anthony maresi Trevor summers's courta appointed attorney says his client believes he did nothing illegal
so when his mind he could see consent he would think that he could show everyone
that no crime was committed even though she's tied up even though though there's
been alleged physical violence he still believed that the sex they had was consensual yes I mean in his mind if
there's tying up or other things happen those were temporary then from there she
would consent I've never had a client like Mr Summers he was always a gentleman always very polite and very
intelligent but he doesn't understand the distinction between consent and acquiescence maresi was the latest of
seven different lawyers who had been on and off the case Trevor Summer's plan was always to take Alisa and to harm her
that night Jennifer Johnson and Jessica ok' Conor prosecutors with the Hillsboro
County State Attorneys Office built the case against Trevor Summers the strongest evidence that we have was the
post Maranda statement and grabbed the pillow and put her over her face the handwritten confession
as well as the videotaped confession and I woke Alisa up and I have been holding
her against her will those pieces of evidence would play a crucial role as Trevor Summers trial began in August
2022 Alisa Summers thought she was living out the last few days of her life she believed that the defendant Trevor
Summers was going to kill her the testimony from Mrs Summers will be that she was tied up that she had no
alternative but there's some inconsistencies this case in many ways rests on your shoulders your ability to
deliver so as you take the stand what's going through your mind oh gosh what's going through my mind was just tell them
what happened used the Christmas lights to tie me to the bed rails and Ed the vacuum Court to go underneath the
mattress over the course of several hours the prosecution questioned Alisa regarding Trevor's actions point being
hog tied the pain was so incredible he pushed down the pillow on my face the prosecutors
anticipated the defense would question if Alisa was raped or consented to having sex so they raised it first with
Alisa detailing the alleged assaults he started to remove my bottoms and proceeded to have sex with me did you
tell him no no why is it that you did not tell him no or fight back because I didn't want to get hurt you finish your
testimony and now it's time for the defense attorney to cross-examine you what happens so we're taking a break to
then do cross-examination and Mr maresi stands up and gets the judges attention maresi
informed judge Christopher Sabella that he had just been fired his replacement to now cross-examine Alisa would be the
man on trial for attempting to kill her Trevor Summers himself the man you believe kidnapped
you and at least two occasions attempted to murder you is now going to do what stand in front of me and ask me
questions that was his way to manipulate and to abuse her again to represent himself defense attorney Mary was
permitted to remain as standby Council but he was not permitted to speak with Trevor while Court was in session
Alisa's questioning by her ex-husband her alleged Tormentor went on for more than 4 hours much of it focused on the
issue of consent did I threaten you before you to have sex with at times Alisa refused to look at Trevor focusing
instead on the jury and objects in the courtroom I was in my head starting off him standing in front of me and
questioning me about the things he did to me how is this how is this possible and then as it went on my confidence
built you did tie me up you did attack me and you did break into my home when when I was sleeping you raped me so
you're calling it rape it is that is the definition of rape to come into someone's home and attack them and tie
them up and then have sex with them that is the definition of rape that was the probably the most powerful incident
situation in the entire trial Trevor also questioned some of his own children not shown on camera about the events
that night Brin thir 1 years old at the time of trial do you remember Miss BR if
um if I was yelling anything back at mommy no and Arden 19 at the trial Arden did you ever see us physically fighting
in the home when you came in not physically no Sergeant Edward Remia was asked about
that hospital interview he conducted with Trevor after he was treated for the self-inflicted knife w wound Summers
argued that despite seeming coherent and agreeing to be interviewed he was not in
stable enough condition to have been questioned did you see me before uh the surgery I'm not aware that you had any
surgery did you notice a large cut and stitches and bandages on my NE again I think we're probably going to differ on
our definition of getting stitches in surgery now the man that you interviewed is cross-examining you have had you ever
had that happen in your career before I've never had that happen before never never it just poses you know a unique
set of circumstances when he's interviewing his own children when he's interviewing his ex-wife what's his goal
is this his last ditch effort to cause any you know mental anguish that he can possibly do or is it his last itch
attempt to show everybody that everything was okay that I was in control of the whole situation and that
I'm not guilty of a crime [Music] after 3 days of testimony in Trevor summers's trial closing arguments began
what this comes down to is a scorn lover the defendant was not willing to come to grips with his
divorce Trevor had decided not to testify now his life was in his own hands as he
would have to counter the prosecution's claims we spent a lot of time that weekend just talking just trying to
figure things out I'm in a confused state of mind we're going through a divorce we don't know what's going
on Trevor tried to cast doubt that he was violent with Alisa in her home that there was not broken glass or dsing
walls there's not scratches on countertops or blood splatter and he question the legitimacy
of that interview he gave to police at the hospital if you were in that position you would feel vulnerable you
feel taken advantage of I was captive and possibly coerced Trevor also disputed Alisa's
description of being tied up and held against her will at the Walgreens Park lot how do you get out of a car your
hands tied behind your back in the prosecution's rebuttal Jennifer Johnson returned to the video Trevor had
recorded I spent a lot of time with Mom last few hours and the thing that she's the things that
she's told you about me being good at manipulation and control and lying is true tying her up
that is Trevor summers in a nutshell true manipulative lying controlling it was now up to the
jury to decide Trevor summers's fate and about 5 hours later they had the verdict is read tell us what you
heard and it was just guilty all the way across all 11 charges a guilty it's emotional by Alisa's side to support her
was Jeff Matthew whom Alisa had met shortly before the 2017 attack I just had my hand on his shoulder and I was
holding his hand throughout it all Jeff stood by Alisa and they stood up together getting married in 2018 I think
Alisa knows as long as I'm around her she's safe and and I will protect her with my life and the kids another step
toward protecting the family would come a about a month after the verdict at sentencing I suffered horrific pain
during the 55h hour ordeal Alisa spoke about the impact of Trevor's actions and did several of their children including
Arden who had been manipulated by her father into letting him into the house that night for 5 and a half years I've
struggled with what happened to my family especially for the part I took in it we asked ardan to read from her
Victim Impact statement well no one else blam me for what happened I did the guilt all misplaced has caused ardan
profound pain I've had so many issues with trusting people after what happened and just the guilt that I lived with for
so long before I finally told myself that this isn't my fault but most of my teenage years I spent just absolutely
traumatized because of him ardan's trauma was not lost on the judge who addressed her directly as he prepared to
give his sentence to ardan you should not feel guilty for anything that you did in this case I assure you of that
judge sabella's address to Trevor Summers had quite a different tone the testimony and evidence that I heard
clearly make you a monster in every stretch of the imagination Mr Trevor Summers will spend the rest of his life
life in Florida State Prison the judge sentenced him to three life sentences and Then followed by
224 years of prison and what a sentence I've never heard of a sentence of that length of you I have not my focus when
that sentence came over were the kids and my focus was moving forward with them we got it we got it we got it woo
the family once so broken is whole again the healing says Alisa is a process and ongoing we've already come
so far Alisa now hopes to raise awareness of domestic abuse sharing her experience and Recovery with other
victims and she works full-time as an insurance agent what she does not do is dwell on Trevor Summers
I've been dealing with him since I was 19 years old that man means nothing to me and I'm moving forward with my
life we have the life more than I've ever envisioned us to have now we're on the road to kids happiness yeah a healed
family this is a happy ending this is a happy story there we go [Music] Eric and Corey were probably at the best
place they've ever been in their marriage a husband and Father's sudden death his wife writes a children's book
to help her kids cope with their grief they needed some help and Cy needed some help but what's the real story behind
his tragic ending 48 Hours next on CBS and streaming on Paramount [Music] plus The Disappearance of Ray Wright was
a complete mystery there was no explanation of why he was gone the first real break is when your
Uncle Dean went to your father's house and found an intruder in the house did it strike you all as okay that seems too
coincidental our dad is missing and here's a guy in his house AB yeah 100% because it was just it was scary
so Ray Wright has been missing since Friday when he failed to show up for a meeting at work this case was a series
of mysteries you have a Am Pm soda cup just like you would pick up at the gas station the soda cup was the one piece
of evidence left by the burglar at the victim's residence in which we get some key forensic evidence a white man and
then that evidence is linked to a car wreck and as ground units arrived it was like the scene uh out of a
[Music] movie inside that van is just a treasure Trove of evidence a rain jacket covered in blood
and a letter I hand delivered you your revenge now it's time to pay me all that added up to someone's got
Ray I knew something bad was happening to him I felt it it was weeks to months to then years
without really knowing right years of not knowing yeah throughout the case it was clear that many of the Witnesses
were afraid to come forward because I'm terrified of them all of them you guys are going to get me killed like I help
you I have to go you're going help you're going to get me killed 100% of the truth what happened to Ray I don't
know what happened to Ray I don't know I don't know what happened to R officers in the family are left with
essentially a person that has vanished off the face of the Earth [Music] [Music]
Dean Wright was nervous where's Ray it was Saturday morning January 13th 2018 in Sacramento California I just wanted
to know where Ray is Dean hadn't heard from his younger brother Ry in two days highly unusual for brothers who spoke
every day without fail all of a sudden middle of January there's just nothing nothing no phone calls no texts no
social media posts nothing Ray Wright 55 had Miss work no one had seen or heard from him including his daughters Haley
and Kennedy my sister called me and she was like Hey like have you heard from Dad like no one's heard from him I
immediately hung up and called him and I called and I called and I called straight to voicemail every time so I
was getting increasingly concerned Dean had repeatedly checked his brother's house in Rockland a
Sacramento suburb and the shop rented in Rio Linda for his work as a master Carpenter nothing seemed unusual except
the Silence of Ray's absence and you didn't see his truck no his truck was not there you're panicked
at this point right I think the first couple of days was when it really started to get real
and serious I just felt really powerless over the situation and it was really scary
it was the worst thing that could have ever happened Ray's ex-wife Peggy Wright was also upset I knew right away when he
was out of touch that there was something wrong although they were no longer married Peggy still considered Ry to be
the love of her life was he romantic oh God he was super romantic they married in June
1994 and Ray became an instant dad to stepdaughter Haley then 3 years old he was meant to be a father and he was so
good with her he was always there for me first male role model and he always did
everything to the fullest Along Came Kennedy nearly 3 years later she says her father a loving Hands-On dad would
never just up and disappear he was like a te- ball dad um and he would like take me like fishing
soccer soccer dad swim meets he could do it all yeah he could do at all he was good at
everything but after several good years Peggy says the couple found themselves drifting apart he was so busy working I
was busy parenting and I also worked they divorced in 2001 Ry remarried and divorced again in 2009 I think it was
the end of a second marriage that kind of put him over the edge and that's when he fell off the wagon at almost 20 years
sober Ray wri a recovering alcoholic had stayed sober for most of his adult life
but when he went missing Peggy worried he was in trouble you think oh gosh maybe you know he had a set back or
something he was sober during your marriage oh yeah it was Ray's relapse after his second marriage that sparked a
downward spiral exploding One Night in November 2011 when Ry got in a car and drove
drunk he slammed head on into a vehicle severely injuring a husband and wife Ray then 49 was convicted of felony
DUI and sentenced to 18 months in jail I think that was Rock Bottom for him yeah Rock Bottom was getting in this
devastating accident yeah and hurting people in the midst of it Ray immediately stopped drinking rejoined
Alcoholics Anonymous and checked in with his sponsor every day I think the ray after that time was even better than the
ray prior to that time because he wanted to be in the best version of Ray Wright
that he could be just weeks before he went missing this is the last Thanksgiving Ray spent Thanksgiving and
Christmas with his growing family celebrations that included Ray's first granddaughter Ashton that's Ashton when
she was really small I love that proud mom Haley was thrilled for her dad he was super excited he built her a custom
crib he loved being a grandpa and she loved Grandpa Ray Ray was at such a great spot in his life he had it all and
then he [Music] disappeared by Saturday afternoon on January 13th more than 48 hours had
passed without a single sign of Ray Dean Wright went back to his brother's house
yet again knocked on the door then let himself in said hello hello and immediately I smelled marijuana smoke
and that's when I knew this is completely wrong cuz he didn't like that and I'm getting increasingly tense
about it so as I walked forward I saw a cup and that had not been there I took another step and a
half that's when a back door burst open and I guy yell at me get out of here and
I said who who are you where's Ray the man took a step toward Dean he says then turned away and ran out the back door I
immediately called 911 Rockland Police arrived Dean shaken filed a missing person's report and
pointed to the soda cup on the kitchen counter explaining that the Intruder must have left it the cup is full of Ice
uh it's full of soda Sacramento County prosecutor Matt Chisum it has a lid and a straw and it's sweating so it's fresh
when did you start to fear the worst Dean then right then it was crushing and you suspected Foul Play
yes [Music] [Music] Ray wri much admired and loved by friends and family described as generous
creative and vibrant had seemingly vanished with the snap of a finger no one has any leads as to where he is or
what happened to him it was the frightening home invasion just 2 days after Ry had disappeared
that seemed too coincidental says prosecutor Matt Chisum I think that raised everyone's concern to a different
level as days go by it becomes more suspicious Rockland Police Sergeant Zach Lewis briefly considered Ray's history
of alcohol abuse but dismissed the possibility of a relapse we checked his bank accounts there was no activity on
his bank his vehicle had disappeared off of license plate readers we couldn't find his vehicle anymore his phone
wasn't working all those things led us to believe that it was more than just him not calling family members back and
drinking Ray's family immediately organized a search we all met up at a Target parking lot and passed out flyers
and then we just spread out and went in all different directions we were doing everything we could and exhausting
everything that we could do the resounding question for the right family echoing at all hours of the day
and night where was Ray vanish Without a Trace he was last seen a week ago today he was driving a
white Ford F2 10 days after his disappearance police discovered Ray's abandoned pickup truck in a North
Highlands apartment complex in this really high crime area the radio and license plates had been stripped for
police finding Ray's vehicle was a break in the case for Haley it was just heart
breaking that was the first real piece of evidence I was like okay we know something bad happened to him Rockland
PD uh seized the car and collaborated with the FBI to have it processed for trace evidence in the back of the truck
brown stains barely visible on black carpet liner were later determined to be human blood that was tested for DNA
against Ray Wright's toothbrushes since we don't have a body and it was a [Applause]
match 16 days after Ray's disappearance something happened that would shift the investigation into
overdrive white chy unknown occupant it all began with a harrowing high-speed police chase through
Sacramento it was a very dangerous high-speed chase speeds of up to 100 mph there was a terrible accident at the
end of that Pursuit open the car anybody in the car with you this is one of those chases
that you watch on TV and it's like whoa Yes except in this case the guy who was responsible for that is much more
dangerous than we even know the driver pinned inside the vehicle with a broken leg was unable to move what the [ __ ]
California Highway Patrol officers cuffed the driver who appeared to be intoxicated the man's name Victor gray
he had problems with the law before and police arrested him this time for felony
evasion and DUI he's taken to a hospital for treatment and uh is under guard and is
then booked in the Sacramento County Jail it was Gray's expired registration with current registration sticker tabs
that caught the attention of a police officer like a stolen vehicle is that what they're thinking possibly or
somebody stole a registration Tab and just stuck it on their license weight a DMV record search showed the
registration tab actually belonged to a 2016 Ford pickup truck that had recently
been reported missing along with its owner Raymond Wright the registration tab is actually Ray Wright's
registration tag off of his license plate and so that's the first connection that they are able to make between
Victor gray and Ray Wright's disappearance and then 3 months after Ray's disappearance another turning
point in the case investigators got a DNA hit off that soda straw in the cup left behind
by the fleeing Intruder who finally had a name and it's one the police already knew Victor gray so now we have two
pieces of evidence linking him to Ray Wright the DNA match placed Victor gray inside Ray's home and at the center of
the expanding investigation turned out things were about to get a lot worse for gray
because his wrecked smoking van was a Smoking Gun here you've got a treasure Trove of evidence where was all of this
found all this was located in the vehicle that uh Victor gray was driving in the van's cluttered cargo area
Rockland PD and FBI investigators unraveled a black plastic tarp inside disturbing evidence deepened the ray wri
mystery the Hat you pull that hat out Ray wri design it was like a holy moment this is huge for us the yellow rain
jacket that is Ray wri's jacket and what was found on that his DNA um was found on that jacket the glasses glasses just
yeah and they're just broke into a bunch of pieces his wallet which appeared they
tried to burn a cell phone that's clearly been destroyed like somebody took a hammer to it right is that what
it looked like that's what it looked like yes we had to run the serial number on the back and it was registered to Ray
wri's cell phone carrier we now we definitely able to tie Victor gray to Ray Wright going missing but police had
not found Ray there was still a sliver of hope it was just really hard being patient it's still a hot investigation
there's still uh many details left to figure out perhaps none more significant than Victor Gray's cell phone it wasn't
just Ray's phone in the van Victor gra was there too the violent Collision ending the police chase sent gr cell
phone sliding underneath the van center console the FBI found that and was able to process it for its contents and
inside that cell phone was also a treasure Trove of evidence astonishingly there was a photo of a handwritten three
Page Letter prosecutors say from Victor gray to someone named Bob at this point we don't know who Bob is it was dated
January 27th the same day as Gray's ill- fated Chase with police and it's clear that Victor has grievances with
Bob and the Grievances stem about not being paid for delivering the dude to you those are his
words the dude yeah I hand delivered you your revenge now it's time to pay [Music]
[Applause] me let's talk about what was found in that phone [Music] text messages that seem to refer to Ray
Wright's possible kidnapping at that point right yes it took months but investigators eventually dug up a gold
mine of evidence from Victor Gray's cell phone there was a text conversation with
a woman who appeared to be working as a lookout for Mr Gray Ray out front of the shop texted
the woman California Katie in a series of misspelled texts it was 9:50 a.m. January 11th
2018 yes I'm watching out front for anything tracing California Katie's number found in Gray's cell phone police
identified her as Katie Bernard the text messages with ktie Bernard were invaluable those messages were sent the
very morning Ray Wright went missing last scene at his Workshop they revealed a plan of sorts says pler County
district attorney investigator Ashley englefield Ray W's house probably about 30 or 40 minutes east from here mhm
investigator englefield showed us Ray Wright's former Workshop in Rio Linda and its close proximity to a neighbor
Katie Bernard she happened to be living in a trailer next to Ray wri's cabinet shop so that trailer right there is
where Katie Bernard was staying that morning englefield believes Katie Bernard was watching Ray's Workshop
from just yards away she was in a prime spot to be a source of intelligence for Victor Gray she's looking out that
window and she's looking at the shop so where do we think Victor gray is on that
morning during the course of that text conversation we think Victor is out there on the road and he's waiting for
the text from Katie the one that would tell him when Ray Wright was alone at his shop it came just before 410
a.m. just you and him hun a few hours later Ray Wright would [Music] disappear I see right there we'll be
right with you okay okay englefield brought in Katie Bernard for questioning in October
2018 Ray Wright had been missing for nearly 300 days if we don't have reasons for why you did certain things okay and
you lie to us about doing the things we know you you did it makes you look like a killer okay are you a killer no Katy
Bernard would grudgingly become a pivotal witness what did Katie Bernard think she was doing this all for she
told us that she was only involved because she thought that Victor gray wanted to steal ran right's truck this
wasn't about rais truck this doesn't start and end with Victor gray okay it starts with somebody else you about to
say it who Bob Katie knew the key players including the mysterious Bob named in that letter who's Bob Bob is my
ex-boyfriend what's Bob Bob Manor Robert Bobby Manor and so what's the story then
what's the whole back story R Bob we're in a car accident when Ray Wright drove drunk 6
years earlier in November 2011 the married couple he struck was Robert Manor and his wife she nearly
died and Manor suffered multiple broken bones that left him with a permanent limp and lingering pain he was reminded
about it on a daily basis from his injuries and he could never let it go after raised DUI conviction He was
ordered to pay more than $275,000 in restitution to Manor and his wife he had occasionally made payments
but not very much police say Robert Manor was not a man to stiff he was a feared methampetamine dealer in
North Sacramento authorities say who had done time for assault and selling drugs
armed with a gun and Witnesses told police that Manor was enraged and wanted revenge against Ray Wright that gives
you a motive right the money and the Revenge mostly a few months before Ry went missing in a staggering coincidence
police believed that Manor while visiting Katie just happened to see the man who had smashed into him driving
drunk years ago the man he blamed for shattering his life he came over one day and Ray was
there Ray Wright was working in his shop about 30 ft away that might have been the moment
englefield says when Manor lit the fuse igniting his plot for Revenge that had smoldered for
years truck is gone yes and Ray been miss gone yes Katie told police when she heard the news that Ry was missing she
realized this wasn't just about stealing his truck I'm freaking out why because like it's obvious you know like that
what that he's been taken or hurt or something the cop tell Victor and Bob or Katie says Victor
gray later told her that morning armed with a gun he approached Ray Wright and punched him I think he then somehow
secured Ray's hands and he was able to put Ry into his own truck then englefield says Victor gray drove Ray's
truck with a bloodied Ray R in the back to Manor's house a few miles away I don't know what they did with r afraid
she might be implicated in Ray wri's disappearance Katy told investigator she confronted Robert
Manor she asked him about whether he killed Ray Wright and he tells her that he did Manor then grabbed her around the
neck choked her and told her never to speak about this again according to Chisum Manor's
chilling admission came in just three words he says I got him I got him I got him
we heard that quote from Mr Manor from multiple Witnesses I didn't do anything I'm not
saying you did like Tessa Trimble I'm not involved in it I'm not saying that you are in an audio only police
interview Ashley englefield spoke to Tessa a massage therapist who had treated Robert Manor's injuries from the
accident she says they eventually became romantically involved Tessa was very hesitant to speak initially and she was
also very afraid of Bobby you're going to get me killed I have to go I don't want get out of here it would take some
time but Tessa began to talk she received a phone call from Bobby and Bobby had told her hey come over to the
house we need to talk according to her what she thought at the time was that they were going to talk about their
relationship but when she saw Manor Tessa says there was something else on his mind what did he talk to you about he
told me he took care of whatever something he was trying to take care of for a long
time he didn't give me details he just told me that he took care of it he felt good about now when he said that who you
think he was talking about show about Ray right why would you think he was talking about Ray
right because he had a he had a problem with that guy he mentioned on numerous occasions he wanted to get that guy
it sounded to me like one of the only persons that Bobby could tell about this was Tessa and so he
did Bobby telling you what he got him m is that what he said I got him yeah everyone knew that Manor was
talking about Ray Wright and then the first time they see him after The Disappearance see Manor he says I got
him in March 2021 prosecutors charged Robert Manor and Victor gray with the kidnapping and murder of Ray Wright even
though police had yet to find Ray both men pleaded not guilty Manor facing a life sentence
without parole can you hear me Mr Manor had a very different story to tell I'm innocent you had nothing to do with the
murder of Ray R nothing to do with it [Music] it was still a missing person but we all
assumed it was a homicide did they tell you at any point we believe your brother is dead
yes ibe 3 and 1/2 years in during those agonizing years Ray family one by one eventually came to the
same conclusion Ray was no longer alive and their grief was compounded by not having his body to
bury that's definitely still a source of pain for us there was no laying him to rest like
he doesn't get the send away that he deserves prosecutor matches hoped to provide the family A measure of Justice
by convicting Robert Manor and Victor gray approaching trial chism's crucial concern was The credibility of his
Witnesses you've got witnesses who have history of drugs and drug use does that create a complication with the jury yes
all these Witnesses had significant credibility issues including another witness who had
come forward Victor Gray's sell M Chris Mitchell well I started off talking to him and I'm real comfortable talking to
him in an audio only interview Mitchell says Victor gray told him about Ray Wright's tortured Final hours in Bob
Manor's house what did gray tell you he delivered dude to Bobby alive though Mitchell claims Victor gray told
him there was plastic sheeting laying on the floor plastic everywhere according to Mitchell gray
said Manor had Ray Wright poisoned he poisoned me Mitchell says gray also told him that
Manor had Ray's body dismembered cut the body up they tell you what they did with it no he didn't
tell me none of that Victor was your accomplice in this kidnapping and murder plot there's no
connection whatsoever with me and Victor before the incident Robert maners spoke
to us from the Sacramento County Jail they searched my house they tore the carpet up they did everything like that
there was no DNA found well because you put plastic all over the floor he was good at covering his tracks
he got other people to do the Dirty Work people like Victor gray says Chisum we find all the evidence of Ray Wright's
death it's in Victor Gray's van the cleanup is done and Victor gray tells you that on the jail
call Miss there in a jail house visit with his wife after the high-speed chase with
police Victor gray made a powerful admission says Chisum he almost kind of confesses to his wife and brings his
wife into the no clean up the scene or whatever I to clean up you know what I mean he
said I had to clean up the scene as if he was almost bitter about it such a mess but he played me we believe that
Victor was supposed to be paid $10,000 he was pissed off because he didn't get paid by B that's why
prosecutors believe Victor gray wrote the three-page letter found on his cell phone in it he said I'm done waiting and
need a fat package to the day meaning the money gray believed he was owed he told Bob Manor to take care of him
because he had hand delivered you your revenge but Manor never paid Chisum says so Victor gray decided to deliver some
revenge of his own so white Chevy unknown occupant he was on his way to Manor's house with all the rayr evidence
still inside the van according to Chisum that's when police tried pulling gray over
had Victor gray been paid then maybe he's not driving across town with this Treasure Trove of evidence in the back
of the van the trial finally began in March 2023 more than 5 years after Raymond
Wright went missing since there was still nobody the case had become a nobody homicide no
body cases are tough to prove you lose a lot of information by losing the body we
developed every single lead possible in order to prove this case as Chisum fully
expected The credibility of his Witnesses came under Relentless fire the thrust of the defense was these
Witnesses are saying whatever the cops want them to say in order to help themselves I'm terrified of them they're
dangerous people they have guns but Katie Bernard who was granted immunity and never charged with the crime emerged
as a star witness at says Chism for her damaging testimony about Gray's involvement and Manor's admission and it
was something that Manor was trying to keep under wraps even though that he said it to her uh it was something that
she was to take to her grave in court Manor and Gray's defense teams zeroed in on the prosecution's lack of direct
physical evidence against Robert Manor and the absence of a body I reminded the jury that it been
1,889 days and no one on the face of this Earth had seen Ray Wright and this one was magical like he
spent W hours on that the trial says Peggy left her Imagining the unimaginable Ray's final
moments it's even worse to find out what it must have been like at the end for him how scared he must have been he knew
what was going to [Music] happen after an 8-day trial the jury got the case I remember like squeezing
Haley's hand and like thinking I was going to throw up like while we were waiting for the
verdict what do you make of the evidence against Manor and gray see a timeline of
the investigation at 48 hours.com how long before you got word there's a verdict the jury was out about 4 hours
it was late afternoon on March 17th 2023 the verdict was in it was the most gut-wrenching day of
my life Robert Manor and Victor gray were found guilty of first-degree murder and
kidnapping but it didn't bring him back so it was like it was a Bittersweet Victory it's Unthinkable that someone
would do something like that like you can't imagine that your loved one would be swept off the Earth like that April
28th the day of reckoning for Manor and gray before hearing their sentence they heard from Ray Wright's family I said my
dad God will be in heaven like amongst the Angels like where he belongs and you'll be in prison for life where you
belong will never be the same none of us you just can't imagine how it impacts a
family Manor and gray were sentenced to life without the possibility of parole gray never responded to our request for
an interview but Robert Manor insisted there had been a miscarriage of Justice I did not have anything to do with Ray
wri's disappearance at all Ray wri's body has never been found no where did you bury him I I never buried Ray R I
never I never chopped Ray R up I never had anything to do with Ray R's disappearance or murder nothing he has a
family that deserves answers they want to know why why did you do this I didn't I did not do this and there was
something else Manor wanted to say he claimed it was Victor gray and Katie Bernard who had plotted to set him up by
kidnapping and killing Ray Wright they come up with this and tried to come and ask me for
money gray and Bernard tried to extort Manor for $20,000 he says a claim that was never raised in court Manor was
making it for the first time during our interview what do you make of that argument wow it's that's a Whopper right
there's no proof of of anything like that in Chism argues it makes much more sense that Manor was The Mastermind you
also have this monster motive Revenge let the evidence speak for itself it's not people that gone on there said the
same exact phrase you know I got him I didn't get no money the remnants of Ray Wright's life
these silent Witnesses did speak loud and clear [Music] his famous yellow raincoat that he had
had for like 15 years like soaked in blood yeah I think seeing his broken glasses is what that killed us sealed
the deal for me Haley says even her young daughter Ashton was overwhelmed by losing Grandpa
Ray she always thought people were going to go missing I caught her singing in the dark songs that she would make up
about where her Grandpa went I hope we didn't enough for the family until we find the body it's still
an open missing person's case with The Rock Police Department at the end of the day do you
believe Justice was served yes Justice was served it gives this family somewhere to
to start over assumed by Ray's disappearance and death for years friends and family
decided it was time to celebrate his life I'm glad you all are here to share these times with us Ry was to me my
first best and forever friend on this day June 17th day 1,983 since he went missing Ray wri's
presence filled the room and the hearts of those who loved him him we love you Ray how do you want your dad to be
remembered Haley exactly how he is remembered lovable accountable creative thoughtful I have
never met anyone like my dad like I definitely used this whole event as motivation to do better it's all like a
testament to my dad I I hope he's you know at peace freeze the [Music] [Music] bird a famous therapist murdered I just
was woken up by screaming and now new evidence and clues reveal the chilling truth how creepy is that crazy creepy it
hate arm how dangerous it really is for women 48 hours Saturday on CBS and streaming on Paramount Plus
[Music] it is Farm country Horse [Music] Country bucolic upwardly mobile wealthy type of community
affluent it's a quiet [Music] place tiny unassuming house just a a simple Farmhouse colck has a lot of these
yes this beautiful little Farmhouse with this beautiful Farm star you know in the
middle of [Music] it in July of 2013 I was an assistant prosecutor in Mammoth County New
Jersey Donna shako was alone she had just gone to bed for the evening an intruder came into her house
and attacked her stabbing her repeatedly one where's emergency oh my name is Don Shaka I just got
stabbed really bad kid just came in and stabbed me I my heart I'm pouring gushing blood
okay I'm losing Consciousness keep your eyes open Donna Donna I was driving home it was maybe like 3:00 in the
morning 3:30 as I pulled up closer I saw big SUVs cop car lights flashing everywhere I was like where is my
mom and they were like well she has been attacked and she's on her way to the hospital they couldn't tell me whether
she was alive or she wasn't I was new into Major Crimes I didn't didn't have the experience at
some of the older detectives so I had never seen that much blood in before why would somebody do this who
did this what did she ever do to anybody you know on that night in the early morning
hours we got a 911 call from a worker from this restaurant about how far from Donna's
house are we standing right here this is about an 8-minute Drive they called because they saw a subject
walking through their drive-thru I deten police one of my customers were in drivethru were approached by a man with
no shirt but had a knife in his hand knocking on Windows carrying a knife one of the witnesses who saw the
young man she agreed to come in and give us a sketch everybody was asking about the
police CCH it was in every store people were frightened can you tell me about the tip I get a
call the woman on the other end says that she's calling about the stabbing in Colts Neck she said I think my cousin
may have something to do with that [Music] [Music] tiny coltsneck New Jersey sits just 50
miles from New York City but it might as well be a world away so in July 2013 this quiet
community was rocked by news of a violent home invasion where the victim was stabbed
repeatedly the only thing more shocking my name is Donna anako the victim survived
I lost in in total close to 3/4 of the blood in my body there's no earthly reason why I'm
alive none if I had asked you at the time to give me a list of 100 things you're worried about where would have
home invasion been oh no never Donna worked for a company that brokered fuel for ships on the nearby
Jersey Shore she and her daughter Kiren lived in this farmhouse on the edge of flower Fields
she was 20 when she had me so we're only 20 years and one day apart friend Sharon
sharp hired Donna decades ago Kirsten had just been born yeah Kiren was a baby I thought she was really Brave being a
single mom very [Music] young I was by her side all the time Kiren who now works as a
welder recalls what life was like just prior to her mother's attack we were going to the gym multiple times a week
Not only was she like mentally strong but she was physically strong she was so fit she did tough mutters with uh Kiren
I like that competition I like to show strength uh physical strength things couldn't have been any better at that
time that's when Saturday of July 4th weekend rolled around Mammoth County detective
Andrea tazi says they were having a heatwave it was humid but we had no rain or anything like that I mean it was a
dry night so Donna had her windows open yes she had her windows open just to C obviously to circulate
air kirston was out at a party so so I was home doing laundry I'd say about 11:00
11:30 um I decided I'm going to get ready for bed um I let the cat out I went brushed my
teeth but just as she was drifting off to sleep I heard what I thought was the cat I heard something and I remembered
oh I forgot to let the cat in without turning on any lights Donna headed downstairs to open the front door
for her cat but instead when I opened the door I saw someone standing there in the Split Second after seeing
this person on my porch I saw the knife he was trying to cut into the screen of the window that was right next
to the front door she says she didn't recognize the young white male standing right in front of her holding a large
knife I tried to slam and shut the door my fingers were protruding out he stuck the knife through the opening and
cut my finger um so that I immediately let go of the door and then he pushed his way
in I'm backing into my kitchen we're face to face it didn't register to me that he
was actually going to stab me but without a word that's exactly what the stranger
did he slashed my cheek and you can see that here and actually it starts back here
there was no way to process that that happened Donna's attacker came at her with the knife again he then slashed
three times on this side of my neck she tried grabbing the knife but only cut her own hand in the process did you feel
like you were dealing with somebody who was really strong no but I felt like he was very
sure like he was very in control of himself Donna was starting to weaken from the
injuries I felt like my legs were going to give out so I braced myself against the corner of um my bathroom right next
to the front door sure enough she slid down to the floor I was in fetal position and I'm bleeding and he came
over and it was kind of like he was playing you know with a knife and just started jabbing at me so that's when he
caught me here um and he got me in the back of my neck here finally Donna's attacker spoke
to her this was when he decided to ask me for my car keys and if I had a lighter a lighter mhm I just answered
him um there's a lighter in my purse and my purse was on the table back in the kitchen so he went over and was rumaging
through my purse and got the key got the lighter Donna's as salent ended up taking her entire purse with him but not
before returning one last time to Donna still bleeding on the floor he said you dead [ __ ] and plunged the knife into my
chest once he plunges the knife in and then removes it what does he do then he just walked out the door with no
neighbors an earshot Donna knew she must get get help somehow your phone isn't in
reach no my phone was upstairs in my bedroom charging Donna had no landline in the house but even as the blood was
draining rapidly from her body she had one pressing concern above her own Survival karston could come home and
find me I just didn't want her to have to experience any level of the horror that I had just gone through or any
other levels in finding me there dead so this is a mother's instinct as pure as it gets yes absolutely
yeah you know you have to get upstairs if you're going to be able to make a call for help right how do you get up
those stairs so that I don't know there was divine intervention that helped me up those stairs no doubt no
doubt in my mind a mother disappears evidence points to homicide the suspect is gone too
leading US Marshals on a Relentless manh hunt the chase is on Justice is coming 48 hours tonight on CBS streaming on
Paramount plus being an FBI agent is not just a job our city is under attack it's
a life we're hunting a serial killer the life we chose chose people are in danger
that only works if we're doing it together teamwork cover me let's rock and roll yeah my team every team yeah my
team a't no way to stop we the FBI's new episodes Tuesday on CVS and streaming on Paramount
plus we know how his story ended now see how it all began NCIS origin coming CBS
fall she's a tiny little woman you have to imagine that many stab wounds and she just wed it she was not
going to die there former Mammoth County assistant prosecutor Lori Gart says Donna anaka was determined her daughter
Kirsten would not come home to find her dead she knew she had to get to her cell
phone upstairs and I don't remember my feet or my hands actually touching the stairs the energy that it took for me to
get up off the ground and up those stairs I was definitely guided the amount of strength that goes
into that is just unimaginable but the motivation was you yeah yep maybe I was there guiding her in
spirit once Donna made it upstairs she faced a new challenge after peering out her bedroom window she had a car sitting
right here right she had a car sitting right in this area I could still see the car was there and I could see he the car
was on and he was in it if I take my phone off the charger it's going to light up he's going to see the light
afraid her attacker would come back for her Donna did her best to hide the light
of the phone then just getting it to work became the next hurdle my hands are covered in blood my touch screen I was
trying to swipe and swipe so I ended up having to wipe my hands off wipe the phone off wipe it down on the bed and
then I was able to do the touchcreen and get through to 911 oh my name is donaka
I just got stabbed really bad some kid just came in and stabbed me and he stole my car okay okay okay just stand up on
me okay where did you get stabbed in the neck glood it's Cushing out and in the chest detective Andrea tazi says Donna's
ability to place that call despite her injuries was amazing but then Donna did something even more extraordinary she
gave a detailed description of her attacker okay do you know what he looked like yeah he was probably about
17 white real skinny curly hair blonde dirty blonde hair backpack it was pretty chilling to listen to
Donna and be able to hear her accurately talk about this is what happened this is
what he looks like I'm losing Consciousness and then hear her Fade Out Donna Donna hello
Donna Donna yes ma'am I I down for a minute police and paramedics arrived less than 8 minutes after Donna dialed
911 but her attacker had already fled Donna was rushed to Jersey Shore University Medical Center and into
trauma surgery it would be a few more hours before Kiren arrived home from her party to a house surrounded by flashing
lights I saw the caution tape and that her car was gone police told kisten what happened to her mother you were deeply
shaken oh yeah I remember at one point my knees buckled they had the SUV the undercover cop car the trunk was open so
I was like can I sit here because I feel like I'm going to pass out as Kiren was
processing the news an allout Manhunt had already begun for Donna's as salent detective tazy says another 911 call had
come in shortly before Donna's attack I was going to pick up my daughter and there was a kid it'sing from a driver
who saw someone walking along the road near Donna's house they saw saw a young man with a backpack and khaki pants he
was walking close to the fog line and kind of stepping into traffic and she felt that he was kind of a hitchhiker he
was on the Northbound side walking southbound and I'm afraid he's going to get hit by a car how old about I'm going
to say like 18 19 20 some something like that she was concerned because she just
thought that maybe he needed help in some way and was it car dispatched yes yes they didn't find him though still
the Good Samaritan driver had inadvertently given the investigation its first leave I felt that the The
Hitchhiker was my person it was too coincidental for that time of the night in that area for somebody to be walking
and then 15 minutes later Don is calling say that she was stabbed and there was about to be another tip not long after
Donna's 911 call from a F food restaurant 5 miles from her house they saw a subject walking through their
drive-thru knocking on Windows carrying a knife and it looked like it had blood on it employees from the Taco Bell
quickly called police you have any description of him yeah he was wearing um you know like those army pants and he
had no shirt he was white with like really like bushy hair but it was like long like the skater type hair how old
was he I don't know he looked like he was like 18 police rushed to the Taco belt and started canvasing the nearby
shopping center they didn't find their suspect but they did find something else so there had been a bolo put out on on
Donna's vehicle be on the lookout right and in the process of looking for this person here they found the car Donna's
stolen car this BMW had been ditched behind a movie theater it was lights on and and it was running so so it clearly
was an abandoned vehicle tazy says the car would become crucial there was blood all over it and
so we were hoping that we would get some kind of DNA evidence of our suspect did you we did
Sharon sharp will never forget the dread she felt when she arrived at the hospital to see her friend Donna an
shako only to be told she wasn't there I'm picturing the color draining from your face and the air leaving your lungs
like totally no this cannot be there's no way she has to be here did you think maybe she had died yes it turned out
with her attacker still on the loose the hospital had admitted Donna under an alias to protect her Sharon was allowed
to see Donna the next day an intensive care room I've never seen before it looked like an enlarged
massively enlarged cockpit wall because there were tons of machines behind her and she looked almost like a puppet
surgery was 7 hours I believe despite losing 34 of the blood in her body body trauma surgeons had saved Donna's life
but at a tremendous cost you may find the pictures you're about to see disturbing I pretty much looked like a
living caver I had 37 Stitches on my face and neck 38 Staples in my chest seven stitches in my hand and now internally
my sternum is wired shut and as for that final step to Donna's chest just before her asant left
it missed my heart by the edge of a dime is what I remember them telling me the edge of a
dime when she talks about the margin that the knife missed her heart by yeah if she was any
slouched over anymore that would have been it Kiren says as soon as her mother was
able to talk she had one simple request I remember her saying all I smell is this blood in my
hair can somebody please wash my hair Sharon says they got permission and then she and two of Donna's family
members did their best to wash Donna's hair as she lay in her hospital bed we were determined to see if we can make
her smile so we turned it into a ridiculous idiot session with three of us like a factory line we laughed
through our tears and anytime anybody would get too serious we' make it funny but her hair was far from Donna's
biggest concern she was sure her attacker would find her and finished the job she was convinced that he was in the
hospital and we kept telling her no you're here under an alias I survived I stood face to face with him I could 100%
positively identify him he's coming back for me detective tazi says they were pretty sure the young man knocking on
windows at the Taco Bell drive-thru shortly after Donna's attack was their suspect within two days a customer who
saw him met with a police sketch artist and was able to provide pretty great details on the person she saw that night
investigators then took the sketch to the hospital what did Donna say when she saw the that sketch she said yeah that's
was incredibly accurate she tweaked it a little bit she said that yes that looks
like the person who stabbed me his curly blonde hair he was like a surfer kid or a skateboarder or
something like that former assistant prosecutor Lorie Gart says the sketch of the suspect was
soon plastered all over mouth County and on law enforcement social media so people are obvious viously talking and
trying to figure out do we know where is he from who is this kid and it's scary because you like to have a sense of
security in your community investigators reviewed the cameras of stores in the shopping center near the Taco Bell to
see if they'd get lucky and spot their suspect hoping the more images they had the more likely the chance of
identifying him we were trying to go back and look at video from various businesses to see the description and
really to put out the bolo like this is who we're looking for security cameras had captured the
suspect once again the surveillance we got from the store over there was from the inside the store but it was pointing
outwards I see and it definitely caught him oh yeah you could see him walking wow as police kept looking for the
suspect Donna was turning a corner at least physically amazingly after Just 4 days days Donna anako was released from
the hospital Sharon says that was all due to the training Donna had done prior to the attack clearly she's very
physically fit she couldn't have survived this if she wasn't it's an amazing thing you were out in 4
days but as you leave the hospital you are also walking back into a world where whoever did this to you is still out
there right but also I wasn't going back to the farm I wasn't going back to my house no there was no way in fact Donna
would never step foot in her house again she and Kirsten moved in with family living in New Jersey then just 8 days
after the attack not long after the police sketch began circulating detective tazy's phone rang I take the
call and the woman on the other end says that she's calling about the stabbing cold snack H I said okay I said how can
I help you and she said I I think my cousin Brennan Doyle may have something to do with
that it was the first time tazy had heard the name Brennan Doyle he was just 16 years old his cousin told tazy word
was going around her family that Brennan was involved in the Colts Neck stabbing
the cousin had seen Brennan just days prior to Donna's ATT attack between July 3rd and 6th because he was up in
Connecticut for her wedding with his family he had attended her wedding he attended her wedding and she was able to
provide us a picture of what he looked like during the time he was up there for the wedding the photo she sends is
Brennan with long curly hair wearing camouflage shorts looking very much like the kid in the sketch and more
importantly on the videotapes Brennan's resemblance to this sketch all around town was about to
become even more important because of what the cousin told detective tazy happened a few days later she was
staying at Brennan's family's lakeh house in New Hampshire as a wedding gift and Brennan his brother and the mother
showed up there unexpected hang on this woman is in Lake wiip pasak she's on her
honeymoon yes and all of the sudden there's Brennan Brennan's mother Brennan's brother crashing her honeymoon
yes and the dog but what was even more surprising was Brennan's appearance Brennan's hair
was cut the next time she sees him he's cut his hair yes so that's a big red flag yes
Brennan Doyle's cousin told investigators that Brennan showed up just days after Donna's attack hundreds
of miles from home with his hair suddenly cut short similar to this like Donna the doyle family resided in Colt
neck former assistant prosecutor Lori Gart we lived in a very nice house two sons a mom and a dad the life of a
typical cult snack teenager it's a life of wealth it's a life of privilege doyo was a student athlete on wrestling and
hockey teams detective tazi started digging into his background he had never been arrested there was never any
charges filed against him prior to our investigation according to the prosecutors records police had been
called to the doyle house for what they refer to as family conflicts the location of the home would turn out to
be very important where did Brennan live so if you make a right up here and you go up maybe a quarter of a mile on the
left so that's close yeah the teen and his family lived within walking distance of Donna's house up the very road that
driver had reported seeing someone she described as a young hitchhiker just prior to Donna's attack I'm afraid he's
going to get hit by a heart when does the doyle family return to Colts Neck later in July with Brennan
and his family back in Town tazy reached out to the family saying investigators were canvasing the neighborhood what
happened when you went to the house we spoke with Mrs joyle she was nervous her voice was cracking and did this raise an
eyebrow for you it did we asked if Brennan and his brother could come and look at the composite sketch and if they
had any idea who that person might be on the sketch did Brennan come out he did tazy says she wanted to see Brennan's
hair to confirm what his cousin had told her that it had been cut much shorter it
seemed the teen tried to stay a step ahead when he came out to greet the detective he was wearing a hat he was
wearing a baseball hat I think wearing a baseball cap was a calculated move it might have been but it didn't work you
could tell his hair was cut short next tazy showed Brennan the police sketch of the suspect the same one Donna helped
tweak to look just like her attacker how did he react he looked away he looked at
it looked away and said I don't know I don't know he was nervous and he was scared and he got very quiet there is a
reaction eyes are down no eye contact people are nervous Mom starts redirecting the conversation Doyle's
family and his attorney denied our request for an interview we asked CBS News consultant defense attorney Matt
trano to study the case File and and I think that that probably confirms what they believe going in Brennan's odd
behavior and resemblance to the sketch and video evidence may have been striking but with nothing else to go on
yet tazi thanked the doy for their time and left did you know that was your guy I was pretty confident that we were on
the right track with him but we also have a duty we had other leads that were coming in so we were doing a lot of
follow-ups as investigators work the case Donna was struggling weeks after the attack the reality of what had
happened to her had taken hold I lost everything that night I lost my home had nowhere to go I lost my car they took it
into evence Donna you lost more than half your blood I exactly I lost I lost a lot Donna says that's when in addition
to her physical recovery she faced a new challenge symptoms um of PTSD started to show up I'm not
eating I'm not sleeping I don't care about anything I'm angry I'm sad I'm happy um you know every emotion Under
the Sun at any minute I felt like I was going crazy I was always thinking I don't know who this kid is but he
climbed through the window in that second that I fell asleep and now he's hiding in the closet you know kind of
crazy thoughts Sharon sharp says Donna's fear meant even friendly visits required
a new protocol including announcing her arrival every step of the way so as not to trigger Donna I'm going to come
around the hedges now and I'm going to enter the backyard I'm going to be touching the gate in 3 2 1 I would shake
my keys first which had bells on them say it's me Sharon I'm coming the investigation lasted through the summer
of 2013 Brennan Doyle remained the only likely suspect Detective tazy says investigators took the next step in
September we got a warrant to obtain his DNA his fingerprints photographs of him
just things that are personal to him when the results came back there's a fingerprint match then ultimately
there's a DNA match Brennan Doyle's DNA was a spoton match to unknown DNA found in Donna's car in a number of places 11
different DNA s and pieces of evidence found in that vehicle and really there's no reason why
Brennan Doyle's DNA should be in This Woman's vehicle he's a stranger to her one more crucial piece of evidence
was found in early October in the most unexpected spot repairmen were servicing an air conditioning unit that was on the
top of the strip mall they found the knife on the the roof right near the air conditioning unit a knife looking
weathered as though it had been there for months found on a bowling alley roof in the very same shopping center where
the Taco Bell was located and where Donna's car had been abandoned how important was the knife it
ended up being very important because the knife was from a set we determined that that knife matched another knife
that we knew came from the doyle household that had been taken months earlier through a Twist of timing and
fate the Colts Neck police already had another night from the Doyle home taken after police were called to the house a
few weeks prior to Donna's attack following an altercation between Brennan and his brother there's a knife that's
apparently used by the younger brother in in a threatening manner police are called police take the knife and the
situation ends there was no charges or anything that came of it but they secured the knife in their evidence
Vault it was the same brand name the same look it was a silver knife it was from the same collection correct that
was kind of the icing on the cake to get a search warrant they had moved during the course
of this investigation so we got a search warrant for their new home the search of the new Doyle
residents also in Colts Neck turned up the rest of the knife set matching the one found at top the shopping center in
late October 2013 Brennan Doyle was arrested what kinds of of charges was he facing serious ones attempted murder
carjacking weapons possession these are the most serious of crimes that we [Music]
have what do you make of the evidence against Brennan Doyle take a look at the complete investigation at 48 hours.com
months after Donna's brush with death her alleged attacker Brennan Doyle was in custody facing six counts including
attempted murder and carjacking he pleaded not guilty you have to look at the seriousness of the offense the
prosecution felt the crime warranted trying Doyle as an adult even though he was 16 at the time and in juvenile court
Brennan is looking at four years maximum in a youth detention facility in adult Court he's looking at up to 30
years a judge would rule an assistant prosecutor gearhart's favor but there was a catch Doyle would now be entitled
to post bail set at $760,000 which he did when you heard he was out did all of the fear come rushing back it
wasn't so much fear as it was anger that he was even allowed to be bailed out the thought of
running into Doyle terrified Kiren she says he even haunted her dreams I didn't realize how much it was affecting me I
had no idea until I was like falling asleep and all I see is his face as prosecutors developed their case the
details of what happened that horrific night began to emerge what does Brennan Doyle say happened the night of July 6th
heading into the morning of July 7th 2013 musher he says he was under the influence of a
hallucinogenic mushrooms according to investigative reports he examined Matt trano says that
on the night of Donna's attack doyo claimed he was losing touch with reality and had gotten into a fight with his
father he has a knife in his hand dad kicks him out and he kind of loses his mind makes bad decisions police thought
it was likely that Doyle who lived a short distance away approached Donna's home looking to steal her car I don't
know if his intent was to kill Donna certainly when he started stabbing her that became his intent to me what he's
doing is he's getting rid of the witness Gart believes Doyle did not act like someone incapacitated by drugs Doyle
drove five miles to that shopping center after leaving Donna's house this kid manages to ditch a knife he abandons the
court and that's not a kid who's so high on mushrooms he doesn't know what he's doing Triano says while a lot of the
evidence against Brennan Doyle was strong the knife the security camera videos one thing put this case over the
top what is going to seal the fate of of this boy this kid is that there's DNA in
her vehicle that links to him it's indefensible but as it turned out there would be no need for a defense
in August of 2015 Bren and Doyle agreed to a plea deal in return the prosecution
dropped all but the two most serious charges carjacking and attempted murder it was very important for me that he
admit his guilt if he took the plea he would have to confess his guilt to the court in October 2015 Brennan Doyle now
18 years old appeared in mammouth County superior court for sentencing Donna who'd attended every
court appearance was there to face him one last time even though I felt overpowered by fear I wanted him to see
me as strong and as a Survivor it was an emotional day for Kiren there to support her mother when
you would look at him in court what do you remember feeling ah anger just very angry
sorry the drugs turned me into the monster that night Doyle was permitted to address the court I pray and hope her
wounds will lessen and she will recover eventually I am asking you to forgive me
going to prison will be the hardest thing I will ever have to face in my life I'm
afraid Brennan Doyle was sentenced to 15 years in state prison the law requires him to serve at least 85% of that time
justice has to be done on both sides and we we have to be sensitive to that we have a 16-year-old kid who for the most
part had absolutely no prior history the court has a balancing act to do did it feel like
justice it did not what would have felt like justice to you more like 30 years 40 years 50
years if not longer even with Doyle off the streets Donna was still struggling she had found
PTSD and domestic violence support groups but says there were none for victims of random attacks so in 2015 she
decided to create her own survivors of violent crimes reason we took to the support group was
to help each other cope Donna connected with fellow survivors Tiffany at and Dana Richards together they held
meetings and felt gratified they could help when more survivors joined they're finding relief and knowing that they're
not alone but Donna says her work isn't done her future plans include helping victims connect with trauma therapists
and offering self-defense classes as she grows her support group she's also educating others she travels to
prisons meeting with inmates and addresses police Cadets so they can understand the victim's point of view I
got up I made it up the stairs to my bedroom where my cell phone was but I got through to
911 she survives and she's building a life how could any would not applaud that Donna says the physical scars that
remain are a reminder of the surgeons who saved her life this is artwork your beautiful
artwork you could either get sucked into the darkness or you just keep going I did what I had to do to to be
here today and go another day [Music] a mother disappears evidence points to homicide and she's nowhere to be found
the suspect is gone too leading US Marshals on a Relentless Manhunt he was using the railways to move around
hopping trains the chase is on Justice is coming 48 Hours next on CBS and streaming on Paramount Plus
[Music]

"48 Hours" reports on cases involving kidnappings and murders in this YouTube mini-marathon. Binge-watch the full episodes, featuring "Alisa Mathewson's Night Terrors," "Who Took Our Dad? The Abduction of Ray Wright" and "A Stabbing in Colts Neck."

00:00 Alisa Mathewson's Night Terrors 41:33 "Who Took Our Dad? The Abduction of Ray Wright 1:22:14 A Stabbing in Colts Neck

Crime. Social justice. Impact. "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

Alisa Summers recounts her terrifying kidnapping by estranged husband Trevor, revealing domestic violence and the impact on their children.

Key points

The Night of Terror. Alisa describes the horrifying moment Trevor broke into her home, leading to a violent confrontation.
A Chilling Confession. Trevor writes letters detailing his actions, revealing his mindset during the ordeal.
A Narrow Escape. Alisa's dramatic rescue from Trevor's violent intentions by law enforcement.
Verdict Delivered. The jury finds Trevor guilty on all charges, bringing relief to Alisa.
Alisa's New Life. After the trial, Alisa focuses on healing and raising awareness about domestic abuse.
The Search for Ray Wright. Ray's family organized a search after he vanished without a trace, leading to a heartbreaking discovery.

Episode highlights

Episode quotes

I went through hell and back all because of what my dad did.

Alisa reflects on her father's actions and their impact on her life.

1:03WatchAug 31, 2024

Tension

85/ 100High tension

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