Unsolved Mysteries with Robert Stack - Season 1, Episode 7 - Full Episode | Forensic Files

this program is about unsolved mysteries whenever possible the actual family members and police officials have
participated in recreating the events what you are about to see is not a news broadcast tonight on unsolved mysteries
we continue our examination into New York's infamous Son of Sam shootings new evidence suggests that the Son of Sam
killer David Berkowitz was part of a satanic cult and murdered six people at an inn near Philadelphia the head
waitress sees a Revolutionary War soldier on the main staircase in Jackson Mississippi a wealthy woman is kidnapped
her millionaire husband gives in to the kidnappers demands annie heron is still missing these intriguing stories all
need one final clue one final piece of information before they can be solved perhaps someone watching tonight can
help perhaps [Music] [Applause] [Music] [Applause] [Music] for over a hundred years people have
seen and heard things around the general Wayne Inn in Philadelphia that they cannot explain a number of different
ghosts who seem to have an unusual agenda of mischief in mind [Music] located in Merion Pennsylvania the
general Wayne Inn opened in 1704 and is reputed to be the oldest continuously functioning in in America Ben Franklin
visited the end and George Washington slept in what is today this dining room Edgar Allen Poe wrote part of his famous
poem The Raven here in 1836 but it is a history of hauntings that brings us to the general Wayne Inn Barton Johnson is
the innkeeper and serves as vice president of the local Historical Society we have had towels thrown all
over the kitchen we have had adding machine problems we've had television problems directly attributable to
something that it's not understandable we have had reports of sightings of entities ghosts we have had a funny
incident with a new Cadillac and the parking lot outside last year a valet walked by a Cadillac parked in front of
the inn the owner had gone inside and had taken his keys with him doors were locked windows were all
closed kid was scared to death and I said look calm down these things happen around here and just relax and I enjoy
these ghosts I mean they don't bother me at all I think they come up with some real clever little things on a busy
night that's when this entity will start and you'll go down the entire side of the bar blowing on the back of the girls
next and the poor guys they really were doing nothing and I knew when the first one started that it would continue all
the way down to the end of the bar it always did what that happened so often and I enjoyed standing back on the other
side of the bar and watching a hundreds of occurrences have happened some very minor some more dramatic but there have
been hundreds of them bart has witnessed many ghostly events but is never actually seen a ghost
dave rogers has I was made a day at the time and I was we were closing the restaurant up for the night
now he's starting on my way out and I looked up I only saw it first but second just a head sitting on this chest of
drawers it didn't register with me right away and when I got out into the barrio
it was like like I had hit a brick wall and it just stopped dead in my tracks and I started saying I I saw a head I
saw something I saw a head it was just like it happened yesterday I'll never forget the details although I just saw
it for an instant other employees have also seen apparitions one day Alice Gormley was
walking through the dining room and I heard someone call my name Alice Alice so I walked out here to see if it was
the manager and I saw this apparition this person on the on these stairs and he was standing on this step and he
looks so startled and when I said can I help you he just disappeared [Music] local historian J Robert Monty has
studied the ins history in detail and according to him the spectre has been seen before over a hundred years ago the
first written record of a ghost in the general Wayne Inn that we came across in writing was a report of an election in
1848 that took place in here a lady went down to the basement to get some more ballots when she came up she said to the
lady in charge of the elections I just saw a soldier down there in a green uniform in recent times there have been
three new sightings of this soldier letting interviewed three witnesses who saw the same apparition at different
times each of them saw the ghost in this basement I know the wine-cellar here right by the door of the wine cellar but
each one of them saw the operation this is it this is where they found him and he stood right there each one
described the imperfect way the green uniform and the yellowish lapel of the and the black mustache of a hessian
soldier of the regiments that were occupying Philadelphia at that time Hessians were German mercenaries who
frequented the end during the Revolutionary War what about the British backs unsolved mysteries invited my
Killeen mayor a paranormal investigator to the in my Killeen uses experimental research techniques that can separate
fact from fiction for without evidence she refuses to believe that ghosts exist starting with the tale floorplans she
uses statistical analysis to evaluate the responses are both skeptics and hand-picked psychics who have been
brought to the scene of the hauntings when we bring them into a an experimental situation into a haunting
we ask them to tour the place where something has been reported Mike Elena's as psychic Paula Rogers to walk through
the building Paula knew nothing about the ins history she went through every room and in the
basement she made a surprising discovery I got an extremely strong impression I see a young soldier hiding I can still
see it and he's in a very old costume it would probably to be at least 200 years
I could see if it was a memory him crouched there petrifying he seemed to have been left behind
Paula sensed the soldier only several feet from the spot where witnesses had reported seeing the Hessian coincidence
or something more you never know what they're gonna do and you never know how long they're gonna do it one night
during a local newscast Halloween story on the end a number of regular patrons gathered in the bar to watch as soon as
he showed the first scene of the inside of this building a whole no flop over now no snow perfect picture the whole
picture started to go very very slowly clockwise all the way around 50 people in the bar we're looking at this and
wondering what was going on and they're all heads are all turning and the whole thing just kept going around until our
portion was over but it never did that before and I never did it afterwards and no one else in the whole neighborhood
had it that way are there ghosts at the inn Michael E mayor believes that something unexplained is going on but as
is so often the case cannot prove for certain that it is caused by ghosts we did get some interesting results I can
only call them tentative at this point but our measures experimental measures are measures with random number
generators and some of our photography measures have given us enough of a hint that something is actually going on at
the general Wayne Inn that deserves a great deal of further exploration [Music] I know I saw something I don't think it
was a figment of my imagination I don't think it was a mirage or or whatever you
want to call it I I saw something that I don't believe in ghosts but I know they're here they have no other place to
go and they might as well have a little fun and that's exactly what they're doing and I don't think they're going
anywhere either our next story is about a modern-day Good Samaritan woman who dedicated her life to helping others
first as a mother and community volunteer and later as an advocate for children's rights and as a
court-appointed attorney for criminal defendants who could not otherwise afford legal counsel two years ago she
fell victim to the same type of street criminal she wants vigorously defended after raising three children
Gretchen Burford embarked on a new life in 1979 when she enrolled in law school at the age of 41 by 1984 Gretchen had a
full-time practice in Palo Alto California she specialized in criminal defense and juvenile law motivated by a
lifelong concern for the underprivileged especially minorities and children it appears it's a 418 on you're looking at
possible time in state prison I think justice was really important to my mother Jessica and I think that's part
of the reason she was drawn to a career in law she wanted to help people who didn't maybe start out with all the
benefits that her children had Gretchen put her heart and soul into defending the people and she worked hard with them
not only just with the legal defense but there are a lot of things that she would
be involved in as far as their personal lives February 26 1988 was a normal Friday for
Gretchen Burford late that afternoon she left her office and started home for the
weekend the police are unclear on her subsequent movements but with the help of computer
banking logs and eyewitness testimony they have sketched out a probable scenario they do believe that what
happened next was a random act of violence by an assailant unknown to her [Music]
bank records verify that his 6:30 7:00 p.m. Gretchen deposited a check for four hundred and forty nine dollars at a
branch bank four blocks from her office in Palo Alto it was a beginning of a nightmare and would last for 30
terrifying minutes [Music] it's here that we suspect that her assailant may have accosted her for the
first time she may have been the type of person who left her car unlocked which is what assailants looked for when they
are stalking their victims she's near a walk-up teller at night obviously she would be a target for some type of an
attack Gretchen was was naive about about how she handled herself especially outdoors she was never really aware of
what was going on around her the way she looked at things I think she looked looking people very trusting Lee
[Music] authorities speculate the Gretchen was abducted in the bank parking lot some
five to ten minutes after arriving there the next 20 minutes are a complete mystery you drive up to go go you can do
some serious jail time for this we can only speculate as to what was going on during that 20 minutes she was used to
this type of person and perhaps was trying to appeal to him as to what the consequences would be who knows
we don't know at 7:02 p.m. 25 minutes after her first bank transaction Gretchen attempted to withdraw money
from another bank machine three miles away this transaction was aborted and she requested more cash than she was
authorized to withdraw police assume Gretchen may have been trying to discourage her abductor
where's money we had two witnesses pull up behind Gretchen's vehicle the male driver saw a struggle going on inside
the car he saw the driver's door open and then it appeared that she was pulled back inside
[Music] witnesses have told us that she got out of her car screaming he stabbed me he
stabbed me and helped me and she collapsed immediately so the wound was it was definitely a one single stab and
it was fatal police believe that Gretchen Berger deliberately caused the accident in a desperate attempt to
escape her car came to rest 150 yards on the drive-up teller machine in the aftermath two witnesses were able to get
a clear and detailed look at her killer a lady jumped out of the car and screaming that she was stabbed and then
he got out of the car stared me and my friend down then he turned around and ran within two seconds three seconds he
was out of sight since the girl hit the ground she said she was dead we went for
her [Music] step she was lying on the ground and I can see a little pool of blood
she was looking up at me she was saying I'm dying I'm gonna die I said you're just bleeding and you're gonna be fine
such a you know relax and I held her hand she looked up at me her eyes roll back and her eyes closed and it kind of
I guess her life ended right there when I arrived at the scene Gretchen had already been transported to an emergency
room yeah female stabbing victim we have a perimeter set up I almost immediately
started processing her vehicle for any evidence looked inside and saw a Paisley baseball hat in the rear passenger
compartment that just seemed out of place later confirm that that did not belong to her and it's unknown how that
got in her car so we assumed that it belonged to our suspect the next day authorities recovered the murder weapon
a butcher knife with an eight-inch blade it was found in a driveway one block from the scene but provided no
additional leads the investigation next focused on the unusual hat found in Gretchen's car a check with the
manufacturer revealed that only two stores in the area stocked this item even though all attempts to connect the
Paisley hat with a suspect have failed police are convinced it holds the key to solving the case
I think it's ironic that that my mother would have gone on helping you know for years probably that she had only just
started her law career that she had so much to give and was giving so much and in helping so many people and that it
was you know it was just ended by somebody who had no idea who she was or what she was or you know ability to care
about her [Music] last week examined the Son of Sam shootings that took place in New York in
1976 and 1977 investigative reporter Maury Terry believes that the Son of Sam did not act alone that he was part of an
organized conspiracy that carried out a year-long reign of terror in New York City the Son of Sam shootings began on
July 29th 1976 in 8 separate incidents six people were killed and seven seriously wounded all of the shots were
fired by 44 caliber revolver police created composites from eyewitness accounts of the shootings the difference
in appearance suggested more than one suspect but on August 10th David Berkowitz was arrested and confessed to
all of the Son of Sam shootings investigative reporter Maury Terry gathered evidence that indicated that
more than one man was involved the general perception among the public for years had been that David Berkowitz was
a lone gunman the facts and the evidence not speculation two facts in the evidence say otherwise Terry found major
discrepancies and eyewitness accounts of the last shooting that support his theory of more than one gunman
eyewitness Tommy Zane I was parked just in front of the victim's car and he got a good look at the gun no I didn't think
it was David Berkowitz then and I don't think it's him now and thankfully I don't think it's him a yellow Volkswagen
had been spotted leaving the crime scene it may have contained one or more accomplices to the shooting
columnist Jimmy Breslin received a letter from the Son of Sam in this letter there were cryptic references to
the quote 22 disciples in hell and a wicked King wicker John Wheaties the rapist and Suffolk Eater of young girls
was also mentioned the letter was signed the Son of Sam underneath was a satanic
symbol Maury Terry believes that the breslin letter was sent not by Berkowitz but rather by a satanic cult that
operated in Berkowitz's Yonkers neighborhood he also believes that Berkowitz was a member of the cult that
it was this group that planned and executed the Son of Sam attacks David Berkowitz lived in a seventh floor
apartment in Yonkers down the hill was a street named wicker could this be the king wicker mentioned in the Breslin
letter wicker Street was near the home of another character believed to be mentioned in the letter
John Wheaties I learned that the John Wheaties rapist and suffocate ur alias of the killer in the present letter was
not really an alias at all but it was the name of a real person that person was John Carr who was the real-life Son
of Sam car John Kahrs nickname was Wheaties and I learned this within a day of the arrest and from then on I became
deeper and deeper involved in the case trying to locate John Carr this is the face of John Carr and these are the
composite drawings of the 44 caliber killers Maury Terry believes that there is a resemblance between these two and
John Carr Terry Trek John Carter Minot North Dakota where he had worked as a mechanic at a local Air Force Base
though he lived in Minot during the mid 70s car frequently commuted to New York during the time of the Son of Sam
attacks from my experience John Carr was a mixed up drug addict he was hanging around with the group of
people that were on the other side of the law all the time John Carr many many months before Berkowitz was ever
arrested had talked about his friend Berkey to his friends out in Minot North Dakota John Carr was a friend of a
confidant of an an associate of David Berkowitz on February 17th 1978 six months after Berkowitz's arrest John
Carr was found dead in his girlfriend's Minot apartment when I first walked in the room it was a ghastly sight
obviously the guy had sat on the edge of the bed put the gun in his mouth and pulled the trigger my first interview
with his live-in girlfriend at the time she told me that he must have just taken
his own life the next day same person new interview whole new story John Carr had to have
been murdered he was wanted by the police in New York for the Son of Sam killings he was afraid for his life and
I fully believe that John Carr was murdered through interviews with cars friends and the police officials in
North Dakota the picture emerged of John Carr being heavily involved in satanic cult activity both in Minot North Dakota
and in Westchester County New York where he spent part of his time it involved blood drinking urine drinking the
ritualistic sacrifice of animals specifically German shepherds all sorts of a very horrible activity that certain
satanic cults get into the satanic symbol found on the Breslin letter directly under the signature of Son of
Sam was also found inscribed on cars my nut phonebook one of cars my nerd acquaintances was a man named Phil
Falken Falken accidentally walked in on John Carr and a companion performing a satanic ritual Phil Falcon told us that
he walked into his own house one night in North Dakota and found John Carr and another friend of cars part of the
circle in the act of ritualistic Lee sac facing an animal right into Falcons house and phil falcon also told us that
john car belongs to a very very violent satanic cult prison sources who knew Berkowitz told Maury Terry that
Berkowitz had been introduced to this cult by John Kahrs brother Michael in 1975 Michael car ended up inviting
Berkowitz to attend of what he called a floating coven party and Berkowitz came in and attended the party and
symbolically not literally but symbolically the 44 was put into his hand that night that's how he got in -
into the cult scene at 4:00 a.m. on October 4th 1979 over two years after Berkowitz's arrest Michael Carr was
killed he was driving at a high rate of speed when he crashed into a light post on New York's West Side Highway he died
just 18 months after his brother conclusive proof that Berkowitz knew both John and Michael car came during
two of his depositions on October 25th 1978 when asked point-blank whether he knew John Karr he answered yes in
another deposition taken on January 19th 1982 Berkowitz was asked if the cars were part of a satanic cult he also
answered yes when asked whether the brothers were killed to ensure their silence Berkowitz again responded yes
Maury Terry believes that the death of the cars may have been engineered by the quote 22 disciples of hell mentioned in
the Breslin letter he also believes this is a satanic group that held the rituals
in Hunter Meyer Park located just one mile from Berkowitz's apartment on August 11th 1977 the day after
Berkowitz's arrest two young boys led police to a grave contained the bodies of three German
shepherds two of them have been strangled with chains one had been shot in the head
at least ten other slaughtered dogs had been found in the park area we received information that groups of people who
are tired themselves and black or dark-colored robes with hoods were chanting carrying on subtypes of rituals
on the aqueduct the rear of on Tamiya Park subsequently authorities did find some remains of dogs and the information
that we had was that this group of people were sacrificing animals in a satanic ritual I got a call from a young
boy in Yonkers fifteen year old high school sophomore wanted to know if I knew that there was a satanic cult that
was meeting in on tomorrow Park in Yonkers and killing dogs and so I met him down there it's just just about a
mile from Berkowitz's residence and he took me around to various spots and under Meyer Park me where the cult was
meeting we saw the satanic graffiti very sophisticated graffiti at the time and took me throughout the park
I saw the remains of probably two or three German dead German Shepherds right there at that time and he took me along
the aqueduct literally the gutters of NYC from the Breslin letter and showed me where they had set up an altar an
altar they had they place the altar board right over here in between the trees and we had to call - we knew where
it was meeting and we could tie it right - YES on a Sam case and the Son of Sam letter it was a very significant
development in a case you'd like to see your cases resolved with a conviction or
an acquittal or no case or whatever but it's when you have these constant doubts
who else was involved were there others involved in to what extent will they do it again you see that becomes the the
overriding concern if there is someone out there who was involved in the Berkowitz cases in the
killing of a number of people in the wounding of a number of people and that person is bent on doing the same thing
again than the public's in jeopardy and so certainly I would like to have that solve and get that person out of the way
cult activity has continued around under Meyer Park since the Son of Sam killings
while we were filming to local residents told us he had witnessed a satanic ceremony in 1987 about a year and a half
ago me and my cousin were watching TV and we saw a car headlights go banyak what I passed when my cousin took a
flashlight and I took on a baseball bat and walked up through my yard onto the aqueduct path then this has been about
fifteen or thirty people and it was one guy and he must have been like the head chant there was something cuz he was
chanting aloud if nobody other people we just froze we didn't know what to do but
we've never encountered something like this before we both decided to get out of it we
didn't want to get seen because you don't know what people like that'll do but I think it would serve the public
interest for us to know if in fact a cult does exist if in fact they engage in satanic activities if in fact
sacrifice is part of that activity if in fact human life is the sacrificial aspect of that activity and how it's
impacting upon life in our respective communities the Queens District Attorney would like to question the individuals
that matched these composites they would also like to locate the yellow 1971 Volkswagen noticed at the scene of one
of the Son of Sam attacks his license ends with the letters G you are or G V R if Maury Terry is correct the satanic
group responsible for the Son of Sam attacks is still alive still meeting as still recruiting new members if there's
last claim is true certainly that is the most disturbing thought of all next the
story of a Mississippi million Spratly searching for his kidnapped wife the ransom money has been paid Annie
Laurie Heron is still missing in this house Jackson Mississippi that 71 year old Robert Harold but of the wealthiest
men in the state his wife Annie Laurie Herron is 72 a devoted wife and mother she's well beloved and extremely active
in the social and civic life of Jackson on July the 26th Annie Laurie Herron was
kidnapped good morning 12 days later Robert hare and Clara press carcase at his hangar
the kidnapping was linked to one of Harry's businesses I wanted to make a personal plea to the kidnapper my name
is Robert Harry my wife Amal I was taken from our home over ten days ago my children and I have
done everything humanly possible to obtain her release like any business man I've made decisions which may appear to
others as unfeeling but those appearances are just not true moreover those business decisions were
mine not my wife's she had absolutely nothing to do with my children I appeal think my mom all the time and I'm sure
my daddy does too there's no real way to quantify what this how enormous a tragedy an ordeal
this has been to him and to the rest of the family annie laurie herons kidnapping was unusual rather than
simply insisting on money for himself the kidnapper left a note naming 12 people who meet felt were owed money by
one of robert herons companies and should be paid back it is Robert herons desperate hope that someone watching
tonight will come forward with information that will lead him to the woman he loved
woman he married 48 years when Robert Herren came home from work on the afternoon of July the 26th he was
alarmed to find that his wife was not in the house after checking with friends and family he called the police to
report her missing I'll wait right here for you officer thank you then mr. heron made an alarming
discovery a note apparently left by a kidnapper lay by his front door the note said do not call the police however mr.
herring had notified the police prior to the note being discovered responding to
mr. Harris missing-persons report police arrived at the scene and found that it was now a kidnapping connected in some
way to robert herons business dealings john you need to take a look at this robert heron put these people back in
the shape they was in before they got mixed up with school pictures the demands in the note were very vague l
made several demands of mr. heron concerning certainly individuals listed in there who were allegedly harmed by a
company of which mr. heron was president Heron had been president of school pictures a company that sells franchises
to photographers throughout the United States to produce portraits of schoolchildren between 1981 and 1983 in
an effort to collect outstanding debts school pictures file lawsuits against 12 franchise owners in eight states
including Florida on the day of Annie Laurie herons kidnapping neighbors had reported seeing
vehicles have seen out of place in the neighborhood we had calls from various people that
there had been two particular vehicles that had been seen in that neighborhood one of which was a pickup truck and the
other was a white cargo van the cargo van at a Florida Clayton police discovered that the twelve people on the
kidnappers list for the same 12-seat bicycle picture they resided in eight different states but they were all sued
through the Hinds County Court in Jackson Mississippi their names were easily available to the
general public and County Court records this means that the kidnapper need not have been one of the twelve people on
the note it's possible at these 12 people had absolutely nothing to do with this abduction but however you can't
rule out the fact that maybe somebody especially they had the knowledge of screwed pictures and it's an operation
could have been involved with it no specific ransom demand was contained in the letter we assumed it was a ransom
note and we wanted to comply we wanted to do everything we could to get mother back school pictures was requested to
look into their files on these twelve people the transactions were reviewed and letters were of course sent out to
these twelve people trying to determine what damages that that they had what did
they want at that point we didn't get a response except from several them saying
we don't want anything eight days after his press conference Robert Haran received a letter you
recognize the handwriting it belonged to his wife Annie Laurie we had hit a very
low ebb prior to August 15th and that was the day that we received a letter in mother's handwriting and it basically
fled with Daddy again to comply with the demands and to please save her this gave
us quite an emotional lift because it meant that mother apparently had survived the initial struggle but it
still was extremely vague as to what we were to do at that point daddy in order to do something to show our a good faith
effort to comply with these vague demands instructed his attorneys to check these roles and find out how much
school Pictures had sued these twelve individuals for Robert Haran seniors set out checks totaling nearly 1 million
dollars to the people on the list half of the checks have been returned more than four months passes Annie Laurie
Herron was abducted from her home and neither her family know the authorities has had word from her or the kidnapper
since the letter they received on August the 15th it's been our sincere desire from the
very beginning from the moment of the kidnapping that we do everything possible to comply with these demands we
won't mother back it's not our intention to question the motive of these peoples
at this point whatever they want we want to give it to them so we can get mother
back that is our very paramount concern [Music] update last month dupin alfred win the 65 year old lawyer
was arrested by the FBI and florida on charges relating to the abduction of annie laurie harris when was one of the
12 men named in the ransom note left at the Haren home also less than one month before the kidnapping he had allegedly
purchased a van which matched the description of a vehicle seen in the Herren neighborhood the woman told the
FBI that Wynn had promised her five hundred dollars to travel from Florida to Atlanta Georgia and mail a letter for
just 16 days after Annie Laurie Heron was kidnapped he had a German illa envelope inside was the letter wrapped
in a gray linen napkin when instructed her not to look at her touched the letter but to deposit the letter in a
mail slot she had to ease the napkin off and she was able to observe the writing
on the envelope later she identified a photograph of the envelope Robert hare had received from his wife as a 1 xi @
mailed in Atlanta [Music] thank my mom all the time and I'm sure my daddy does too
there's no real way to quantify what this how enormous a tragedy an ordeal this has been to him and to the rest of
the family [Music] for every mystery there is someone somewhere who knows the truth perhaps
that someone is watching perhaps it's you [Music] [Applause] [Music]

Brief Summary

The episode covers the Son of Sam case, ghost sightings, Gretchen Burford's murder, and Annie Laurie Herron's kidnapping.

Key points

The Haunted General Wayne Inn. The General Wayne Inn, established in 1704, is known for its ghostly occurrences.
Gretchen Burford's Tragic Story. Gretchen Burford, a dedicated lawyer, became a victim of random violence.
The Son of Sam Conspiracy. Investigative reporter Maury Terry believes the Son of Sam was part of a larger conspiracy.
The Cult Connection. Evidence suggests Berkowitz was involved with a satanic cult linked to murders.
A Disturbing Discovery. Police find remains of dogs linked to satanic rituals in Meyer Park.
The Kidnapping of Annie Laurie Herron. Annie Laurie Herron was kidnapped, leading to a desperate plea from her husband.

Episode highlights

Episode quotes

Perhaps someone watching tonight can help, perhaps.

0:58WatchMay 16, 2019

Tension

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