Unmasking the Zombie Hunter | Sneak peek | Forensic Files

[Music] when you think of the Phoenix Desert you definitely aren't thinking of a
waterfront the canal system goes right through the center of Phoenix the more people that were moving
to the area the more that the trail along there were being used for walking running
[Music] biking there are not many crimes that are like this one you had women riding bicycles along
the canal on a typical Phoenix evening ambushed stabbed multiple times police are looking for whoever killed
22-year-old Angela braso Angela braso dismembered decapitated police are looking at this
scene and thinking what on Earth happened and who did this 10 months later uh 17-year-old
Junior at Arcadia High School Melanie bernes this is the high school that Steven steelberg
attended Melanie Bern's mother goes out to dinner and Melanie decides to go on a
bike ride and the following morning a woman is riding her bike right here there was
just a big puddle it looked different as I rode through it and all of a sudden I'm like that is
blood so she called the police the police saw a blood trail and they see Melanie bernus body at the bottom of the
canal my time in my life froze at that very moment the day we found out I made a promise to
myself I just never stopped talking about her these murders became widely known as
the Phoenix Canal murders my name is Clark schwarzkoff and I was with assigned to the C case unit
investigating the canal murders I think there was over 600 Persons of Interest I said okay give me the
list in this mound of information of all these people and all these possible suspects I believed our killer was
listed eventually detective schwarzkoff found his prime suspect on that list and
discovered that the alleged Canal killer had a second identity a man who dressed
up like a comic book superhero and cruised The Valley in a decorated car dripping with fake blood the public knew
this man as the zombie hunter what was his life as the zombie hunter like what did he do he would go
to like parades and festivals and and show off this car and kind of be a part of the excitement if you
will your assignment was to find this guy and you have found him yeah he is accused of
being a killer but here he is posing with police officers before they discovered what he'd
[Music] done it was almost like a slap in the face like I'm here but you don't know it
it was like he was hiding in playing sight

How police connected the murders of two young women to a man known as a zombie-fighting comic book hero. "48 Hours" correspondent Peter Van Sant reports Saturday, Oct. 21 at 10/9c on CBS and streaming on Paramount+.

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

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Brief Summary

The episode covers the Phoenix Canal murders, focusing on Angela Braso and Melanie Berns, and the investigation led by Detective Clark Schwarzkoff.

Key points

The Phoenix Canal Murders. A series of shocking murders in Phoenix, including the dismemberment of Angela Braso.
The Discovery of Melanie Bern's Body. A cyclist finds a blood trail leading to the body of 17-year-old Melanie Bern.
The Zombie Hunter. The prime suspect in the canal murders had a bizarre second identity as a superhero.

Episode highlights

Episode quotes

My time in my life froze at that very moment.

Discovering Melanie Bern's body was a life-changing moment.

2:07WatchOct 19, 2023

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