Unsolved Mysteries with Robert Stack - Season 9, Episode 8 - Full Episode | Forensic Files

tonight on unsolved mysteries meet three incredible animals whose courage meant the difference between life and death
what fantastic psychic powers transform these ordinary house pets into extraordinary heroes and from the realm
of the unexplained a young boy describes and vividly accurate detailed the death
of a Civil War soldier a mother is stunned by her two-year-old daughter's chilling account of a freak accident
and a watery grave are these remarkable stories proof that reincarnation is real
from the current case file a beautiful young businesswoman mentor McClendon a shocking plunge from a hotel balcony the
police must decide was it an accident or murder Glen Deane Butterfield and her niece Kellyanne Ayers were as close as
any mother and daughter but some 20 years ago circumstances forced them apart our viewers could help bring them
back together it is a twisted and deadly scheme movie truck packages cleverly disguised as
promotional gifts delivered through the mail courtesy of a madman join me these intriguing cases perhaps you may be able
to solve one of tonight's unsolved mysteries [Music] children we think of them as innocence
raw clay to be molded blank slates eager for life's lessons lessons taught by family friends and teachers but some
people believe children can also be strongly influenced by more otherworldly forces experiences glean not just from
other people but from other lifetimes reincarnation is a theme that runs through all the cultures of the world
there is no proof unless you believe the accounts of those who have no reason to
lie those who possess specific knowledge and insights they are far too young to have consider first the case of
five-year-old chase Bowman it was a fourth of July 1988 Chase's mother says he became
inexplicably terrified by the fireworks not only terrified he was hysterical he was crying and screaming and I had to
take him home and I thought that that was very unusual because he had never responded to fireworks that way before
over the next few months chases fear of explosive noises intensifying becoming a
phobia all right chase I want to try something close your eyes and relax for help
Carol Bowman turned to a friend who was a hypnotherapist I want you to think of a sound that frightens you the
hypnotherapist had barely begun when chase suddenly seemed transported to another place and time a barrel filled
during the American Civil War there's lots of smoke there's a war going on I'm a black
soldier I'm behind you up with a big gun and a sword at the end well I was shocked he
started curling up in my lap as if he were afraid and I could feel him trembling as he described what it was
like with gunfire all around him and what it was like to be crouching behind a rock I could feel him crouching in my
lap in his mind's eye Chase's past life unreal a kaleidoscopic rush of images in
the heat of battle he was struck by a bullet his wrist shattered the comrades dragged into a crude field hospital the
wound was bandaged then he was sent back to the front to man a cannon chase said
he saw himself walking back into battle and he was killed behind the cannon he he died very suddenly
I was amazed because it sounded so true and so real and so plausible but I could
feel that it was true I just knew it at that point it chases life when he was five I knew what he watched on
television because we carefully regulated it he watched Sesame Street and mr. Rogers
period and I never had read books to him about the Civil War as far as I could tell there was no way he could have
known that chase later drew these rough sketches of the field hospital and the Canon Civil War buffs have found the
details amazingly accurate in my opinion it's rather remarkable that the child having not had any sort of background or
experience and viewing scenes from the Civil War his placement of the horse and the wagon
and the artillery piece is pretty consistent with the mode of transportation of cannon during the
Civil War it was a WoW experience you know I knew that something extraordinary had happened and what made it even more
extraordinary was that immediately after this regression within a few days a severe eczema a chronic eczema that he
had on his right wrist where he said he had been hit by a bullet completely cleared up and not only that as as the
months went by I saw that chases phobia of loud noises completely disappeared - Carol Bowman is a professional writer
she was so intrigued by her son's experience she started researching a book on children's past lives as it
turned out material was abundant at the time leah was little over - she's about two and a half years old and we were
driving near our home it was wintertime she's about two and a half she was in the backseat in her car seat where she
always was and we were driving down a hill and the sun was shining and all of a sudden I hear this little voice in the
backseat pipes up she goes mommy this is just like where I died what I was shot thank you what is she
talking about I was a little horrified that she's even thinking about death at that age but it shook me enough that I
pulled off the road what did you say I was driving in the car I fell off the bridge and I was in the water where was
mommy you are ravening that time there was a feeling that came over me of this was really important that this is big
news like the basement is on fire you know kind of something that you really want to pay attention to and that it was
a different moment from any conversation that we had had previously well who drove the car it's big I said jeez
because I was driving she said that basically she fell off the bridge and she fell into the water and she said I
felt out of the car I could feel the rocks on my head but and I could look up and see the bubbles going up and she
said I could see the light on the shiny bridge and that's right I died I don't think she could have possibly made it up
if it had been another child I might have been much more skeptical but I was home full-time with her at that point
and very controlling about what she saw and what she read she didn't watch any television she didn't really go to any
movies she wasn't exposed she could not have possibly had a frame of reference for this experience what stands out for
me is the fact that small children who have not been contaminated with adult ideas or concepts are telling us that
something of us does survive death my son Blake taught me a very spiritual lesson that we have lived before and
will probably live again and I've got no doubt that this is what happened are you
okay here hurts really hurt Colleen Hawkins son Blake was only three years old when he startled his mother
with a horrifying story shock who hit you with the truck man a man hit you with the truck someone
outside were you outside no not now a four a man hit me was a big truck he drove over me and I died I thought that
I would trick him in a way to see to see if he had his facts right and so I said
oh this happened on TV right and he said no it happened in the street he was getting irritated with me at this point
because he knew his facts and he felt I should know what happened also we don't give kids nearly as much credit for
being some experts believe there was a perfectly rational explanation for all of these episodes there's some very
creative kids out there and all kids fantasize to a certain degree and so the chances that they'll come up with
something startling and unusual and in that kind of a rich fantasy life is very high and when you look at it that way
these cases fall apart that there are lots of prosaic explanations for how they could possibly know this
information without it necessarily coming from a past life however the pairs of the children
involved are convinced those experiences are not only real but also beneficial I believe that remembering past lives
can be very healing for the child it can help them leave the past behind and move
on into the present reality and I think it can be marvelously healing for the adults too it can give them new insights
into who their child is as a soul and we'll give them a completely different perspective on life and death a
[Music] well-known physician once said all the honest truth telling the Risen the world
is done by children Carol Bowman has not collected dozens of case histories of children's past lives
example she believes are well beyond the scope of any child's imagination so if you're not listening to the stories your
kids tell you perhaps you should be coming up romantic interlude takes a stunning twist when a young woman Falls
to her death from a hotel balcony but first dramatic rescues by extraordinary four-legged heroes some
experts believe they were inspired by mysterious psychic forces [Music] when we think of hearing some names come
readily to mind Paul Revere Florence Nightingale Martin Luther King people whose courage served to inspire us all
but few of us are familiar with such extraordinary figures as boo Oscar and Ringo each is a household pet each is
responsible for saving a life guess how they did it and why is truly an unsolved
mystery we begin along the Yuba River 80 miles north of Sacramento California it
was a perfect setting for Lillian McDermott to exerciser Newfoundland boot the wall ready 110 pounds who was just
14 months old still a puppy it was the summer and the Eva was very inviting and so I thought it was a great opportunity
for a Newfoundland to play in the water and be in Newfoundland heaven chasing sticks and having fun
[Music] unbeknownst to Lilia a dangerous situation was developing a half mile upstream an amateur prospector named
link Hill had just finished bridging the river for gold and gone back out to fetch a gas can minutes later when Lake
came into view boo suddenly lost interest in the game I leaned down to see what it was he was looking at and I
saw what I thought was a log rolling in the white water it's alright good it's all right it was not a rope he wouldn't
stop I looked again and here an arm came up out of the white water holding a small basket Lilian was at a loss but
boo seemed to know exactly what needed to be done and he looked at me steady courageous strong all of those pretty
words that said to me you need to let me go so I did go a minute I said the words
he shot into the oil boo swam straight into a strong current driven by unknown forces to reach the
helpless stranger more than 75 feet away bull grabbed on her links are then mustering all of his strength he hauled
a man back to shore as it turned out link Hill was a fortunate man indeed Hill is a deaf man unable to speak or
hear if not for booze heroic actions he would surely have drowned how can we explain boo selfless act of courage
instinct devotion or a true desire to save another life incredibly some experts believe boos response may have
been triggered by psychic abilities what that animal felt was that man's fear and
he realized that was not a log you know cuz he could feel the emotion coming from that man and hid the emotion of
that man calling out in his mind for help that's all that dog needed he's a Newfoundland animal behaviorist
Suzanne heads has a different opinion since their development for a number of tasks one of which is to perform water
rescues we don't have to make assumptions that he knew that the person was in danger it's something that's
innate or some people use the term instinctive that animals do because of their genetic heritage but can genetics
explain the case of Oscar a three year old Chesapeake Bay Retriever ever since he was seven weeks old Oscars been a
constant companion truly a best friend to his owner Chris peshan Berg I was very conscious about socializing him
properly and he was exposed to a huge breadth of people from very young children to very old people he learned
early on that people were good and he just loves to be around people and in fact that's one of the things that's
most surprising about what actually happened it happened on a hot July evening in
1995 as Chris returned home the house was quiet odd because Oscar usually kicked up a noisy welcome something was
wrong very wrong at that point I then started to think about Oscar I was worried that I was gonna open the door
Oscar was gonna try to greet this guy like he treats all of my friends to walk into the house and this guy was just
gonna react by shooting him but Oscar was nowhere to be seen he had plans of his own
[Music] finally this guy was able to get his arm free and in that action of freeing the
arm he hit me or here and I was a little disoriented for a moment by the time I regained my composure he was gone I
securement getting out of the gate Oscar was drenched in blood fortunately it was
not the blood of the courageous canines but that of the would-be robber this is merely reaffirmed in me the fact that I
have a very dynamic live interesting intelligent creature that I'm sharing my life with and who in this respect
probably saved my life or may very well have done that first off it's almost sure that Oscar was aware of the
intruder before Chris got home he heard him he smelled him whether it was territorial behavior or protective
behavior or combination of both it's impossible to say but he definitely took the initiative took the offense because
of all these cues that were telling him this is not normal something isn't right
boo and Oscar personify the notion of man's best friend however dogs aren't the only animals
capable of protecting their owners from impending danger ray and Carol Steiner of Bowling Green Ohio Oh their lives to
their three-year-old red tabby cat Ringo during the summer of 1995 the Steiners were homebound Ray was recovering from
surgery and Carol was incapacitated by a foot ailment but inexplicably both had been suffering from memory loss high
blood pressure and chronic fatigue what I was noticing the most was terrible has
headaches dizziness I was sleeping all the time one morning in August Carol noticed that Ringo was acting
strangely Ringo had come in already from his early morning prowling and we were all settled
down and all of a sudden he wanted out again I opened the door he won't go out so I said okay kitty and close the door
no sooner did Carroll get settled down and Ringo was added again so Carroll opened the door again
and he turns up at me and gives a really high me out and it was obvious I was to
come out so I walked out with him Ringo led Carroll around to the side of the house all of a sudden he started
digging in our landscaping and then he opened up his mouth and curl his lips up as if something was had a terrible smell
oh that smell was lethal methane gas Carroll immediately called the gas company within minutes a service
technician arrived he put a tool in the ground and the siren went off he told us we're at
explosive levels I've got to turn your gas off right now or you're gonna blow incredibly the Steiners had a large
split in their gas pipe at the very spot where Ringo had been digging as a result
potentially deadly amounts of gas have been seeping into the house for months not only might a random spark have set
off an explosion but the Steiners were in danger of being asphyxiated we looked at each other then we looked at the cat
and I said my gosh ray Ringo saved our lives no one thought about the cat until everything settled and my gosh here's
the hero just lying there being a cat what mysterious forces compel these animals that take action there's no one
else to step forward was that instinct or perhaps some unexplained psychic ability we may never know but to their
owners it hardly matters they are just thankful to be living under the same roof with a courageous albeit
four-legged hero when we return a vicious booby trap disguised as a mail-order kook claims a
life of a teacher in Brooklyn New York and later police in Los Angeles search for clues in the mysterious death of a
young businesswoman [Music] it was May 7th 1982 the Friday before Mother's Day Joan Kipp a high school
guidance counselor in Brooklyn New York had just gotten off work Joan and her husband had plans to leave the city and
spend the weekend with their family the package seemed innocent in every way it contained a cookbook from a major
mail-order house Joan assumed that was a Mother's Day gift [Music] Joan Kipp had been struck in the chest
by two 22 caliber bullets she was rushed to a nearby hospital but died [Applause]
[Music] no one knows who killed Joan Kippur why her murder was unbelievably bizarre shot
to death by a booby-trap cookbook unfortunately more than a decade would pass before police realize it was not an
isolated incident in October of 1993 a retired New York City sanitation worker and his wife two people with absolutely
no connection to Joan Kip were on vacation in Pennsylvania when their children came to visit they brought the
couple's mail charitable organizations the package contained what appeared to be a gift a commemorative medallion in
this instance three people were shot but no one was killed since then there have
been three more attacks bringing the total to five the victims shared only two things in common each lived in the
New York City area and each had apparently been targeted by the same assassin [Music]
he is a creature of deadly habit his deliveries of disguise a look legitimate each package contains a lethal homemade
weapon that fires three bullets in different directions the New York City press has seized upon the details and
given the criminal a somewhat misleading nickname the zip gun bomber zip guns was
a weapon of choice for the gangs in New York in the late 50s early 60s they're not bombs they don't consist of any
dynamite or anything of that nature what they basically are crudely made guns the
devices are constructed in a way to be attractive this type of criminal certainly goes through a lot of effort
he definitely is putting it together in a way that guarantees that the receiver is going to open that package because
I'm getting ready in a few minutes June 27th 1995 Stephanie Gaffney of Queens New York was eight months
pregnant eagerly looking forward to the birth of her dog I was talking on the phone and I was sorting through the mail
I came across the package and I looked at the package and it was from a health insurance plan it looked legitimate I
opened up the box and inside of it was a book and the book also look legitimate I
mean it looked like there were real pages in everything [Music] Stephanie had been struck by shrapnel
from three bullets her unborn child had not been hit but was in severe distress within hours doctors induced labor
Stephanie gave birth to a healthy baby girl stephanie is convinced the only reason she and her child's survived was
because stephanie was holding the book at a slight angle when she opened it [Music]
there's no doubt about it that I'm very lucky I know for a fact that if it happened any other way I would not be
sitting here my daughter we would not be here so I thank God every day for that [Music]
the attack on Stephanie Gaffney was as mystifying as those which preceded it the authorities have no concrete
theories and at this point they don't even know if the victims were selected at random are targeted for some specific
unknown reason I believe that it is random I believe that you know loses one of those things it just happened it
could have been someone else it just happened to be me in June of 1996 it just happened to be a
retired real estate agent in Brooklyn New York he narrowly escaped injury and he opened a parcel from a local charity
the public should never open up a package lens they don't know who sent the package to them people should
remember that one of the easiest things to do is to call the return address on a
package number one to see if it's a legitimate return address and number two to ask if someone does answer the phone
what did you send me next a young woman Falls to her death from a hotel balcony that a passionate random vote tragically
wrong [Music] November 21st 1996 Los Angeles County sheriff's deputies use a dummy fashioned
out of firehose to perform a macabre experiment nine days earlier a woman had fallen from this hotel balcony
plummeting to her death 10 stories below was it an accident did she commit suicide or was she
murdered the victim was Sandra Oriana she turned 27 years old on November 12th the same
day she arrived in California on a business trip with this man her boss 33 year old Robert Salazar the
two worked for skill master a national employment agency based in Houston Texas Sandra was a workers compensation claim
specialist engaged to be married Robert Salazar was a general manager of operations he has a wife and two
children Sandra had worked at skill master for about a year and a half she'd been promoted very rapidly to the
manager of the safety and health Division attorneys Michael Seto represents Sandra will Rihanna's family
her work was highly enough regarded that Salazar ostensibly took her to Los Angeles to interview for a high-level
position with a company that skill master had just acquired in California on the morning of November 12th Sandra
and Salazar checked into adjacent rooms on the 8th floor of the Sheraton Hotel in the City of Industry just outside Los
Angeles at 6:30 the next morning another hotel guest spotted Sandra's body sprawled on the ground below
police immediately questioned Robert Salazar he reportedly told them that he had
escorted Sandra to her room around midnight he stayed for only a moment when he left Sandra was alive and well
when mr. Salazar first told that story it was a believable story it was only after we the homicide detectives began
looking inside the room and determined that his underwear was in the room that we did not believe him the police
questioned Salazar again they say he proceeded to tell a very different story he said that he had in
fact gone into the room with Sandra and that they had engaged in sex and that at
one point they were on the balcony Sandra had positioned herself on the railing of the balcony in such a way
that she threw one of her legs over the top of the balcony and lost her balance and had fallen
[Music] Sandra's family is outraged by Salazar's allegations family believes that Sandra
would never have engaged in any consensual relationship with Robert Salazar first she was very devoted to
her fiance secondly she didn't believe in romantic relationships at work we talked to the folks that worked with
worked with Sandra and and mr. Salazar and they were very very shocked that Sandra and Salazar would have anything
to do with each other in a sexual or romantic way Salazar contends he and Sandra had not been romantically
involved until that evening several witnesses confirm what the couple was seen in the hotel bar drinking holding
hands and kissing after that Salazar told police they went up to Sandra's 8th floor room a short time later
Sandra fell off the balcony Salazar told no one about the alleged accident simply
went back to his room the next morning he waited in the hotel lobby as Oh expecting Sandra he even
left a message on her rooms voicemail asking where she was lieutenant Peavy used the dummy to test
Salazar's account of how and where Sandra piranha went over the rating the dummy landed a number of feet from where
Sandra actually landed close to 15 feet at one dropping and another time I believe it was 12 feet so it was never
even close to where she actually landed and we tried it several times and we actually ended up trying to make it land
where she landed and we had to basically throw the dummy in that direction to make it land there another perplexing
point the balcony railing is 44 inches tall Sandra Oriana was 5 feet too only 18 inches taller than the rain I don't
believe that it's possible that she could have fallen off the balcony I think that something else caused her to
fall off the balcony that mr. Salazar has not yet revealed we want to get to the truth so that we can explain away
all the questions whether we ever will or not remains to be seen [Music] when we return a poignant tale of lost
love perhaps you could help reunite blending Butterfield and her niece [Music] raising a child means a never-ending
series of hard choices it's difficult enough for a parent can sometimes be even tougher you've been entrusted with
a child that is not your own Glenn Dean Butterfield knows that all too well for more than two decades he's
been haunted by a decision she made about her brother's daughter [Music] it was a fall of 1969 blendings first
glimpse of her niece Kellyanne was a result of a hard-fought battle Glenn Dean's brother Bob Ayers was in the Army
and was being shipped to Germany he and kellyanne's mother had separated and neither could care for Kellyanne the
army planned to put the baby in an orphanage but aunt blendin wouldn't hear of it she went up the chain of command
straight to the office of the president about two days later the base commander at Fort Campbell Kentucky called me and
said that anybody would go that lengths to keep a kid out of an orphanage that the army would give my brother grant and
leave to bring her to me once Bob Ayers gave Kelly anta Glen Dean he abandoned all interest in the child Glen Dean was
on her own I didn't hear from him for a long time I mean a real long time Sonny was probably maybe three years
we'll say three years and he just kind of like disappeared you know kelly-ann spent those years happily
growing up with Glenn Dean and her two daughters in central California we just thought of her as a little sister cuz we
got her she was a baby she's real tiny so she was no different than my sister Vicki
except for more fun she liked her horse she liked riding horses she liked she just did everything anybody's normal kid
doesn't know different name except they were a little older you know I mean she just happy-go-lucky in 1974 Barbera
suddenly showed up out of the blue he moved into Glen Dean's apartment but still displayed little interest in being
a father that apparently changed when a woman nicknamed kitty set up housekeeping in the same building less
than a week later Bob made two astonishing decisions first he moved in with Kitty second without saying a word
to Glen Delia he took Kellyanne with him do you like this new toys daddy got you you like
staying in the apartment don't you huh but we love having you they moved her out after by boy knowing this woman for
a day or two and I just went into hysterics over time een you know this is my kid
for the help of the police Glenn Dean got Kellyanne back the battle over the child was just beginning within
a few months Glenn Dean says Kellyanne changed she had become an unhappy bewildered little
girl the situation became worse when Bob sued Glenn Dean for custody I've heard arguments from both sides and
I've just had a nice long chat with Kelly Anne in my chambers she's a very bright intelligent child she really
wants to stay with Glenn Dean she's very happy where she is so I find for the respondent I don't think I've ever been
so happy the judge said that Kitty and Bob could have visitation rights six months we will review the situation they
would see or when they weren't supposed to they would talk to her tell her things
it just kept her in a world of little confusion you know I mean you think of it little girl five years old or four to
have five years old and that's theta confusion to minimize the conflict blending moved to a small town in Nevada
Bob's visits with Kelly Ann were not limited to twice a year but for Glenn Dean even that was too much the first
time they took her and brought her back she got she was so depressed and just withdrawn and it was horrible
[Music] it got to the point but I was so concerned about our mental well-being you know for when she got older and
everything that I decided I needed to keep her away from my brother Bob and Kitty
you want to start a war you just started one let's go kitty much as she wanted to
keep Kellyanne Glenn Dean felt it was impossible she could think of only one alternative kellyanne's birth mother
Marion Marion was in the Air Force she had remarried and had two sons Glenn Dean believed she could provide the
stable environment Kellyanne needed so because of that you want to give up custody to this lady do you think it'd
be best for Killian the judge agreed to the plan soon after blending kiss Kelly and
goodbye and left her with her new family so much okay I couldn't believe I lost my child I mean this was my child and I
couldn't believe that I lost her that I didn't have her anymore he's just not sure miss you
[Music] the last time Glenn Dean spoke to Kelly Anne was a Christmas time in 1976 okay
she told me she miss me and she loved me and I told her I loved her and you know
it was like kind of not a real long conversation but just you know I felt wonderful when I talked to her the next
time Glenn Dean called however the line was disconnected since that moment all of her efforts to track Kelly Ann have
failed by 1983 Glenn Dean and her brother Bob had patched up their differences from then until Bob died in
a farm accident in 1994 their sole focus was finding Kelly Ann there hasn't been
one day went by since I gave her up time I've thought of her a dozen times I'm wondered is she okay does she need
anything is she happy did I do the right thing did I do the wrong thing I just wish I knew
[Music] when our next turn saw mr. Anna popular exotic dancers found murdered police are
left with only one solid clue the voice of an anonymous caller who reported the crime join me next time for another
edition unsolved mysteries [Music] [Music]

Brief Summary

Animals save lives, children recall past lives, and a murder mystery unfolds.

Key points

The Courage of Pets. Meet extraordinary animals whose courage meant the difference between life and death.
Chase Bowman's Past Life. A young boy recalls vivid details of a past life as a Civil War soldier.
Ringo the Cat Saves Lives. A cat named Ringo leads his owners to a gas leak, saving their lives.
The Bizarre Murder of Joan Kipp. A high school counselor is killed by a booby-trap cookbook in a bizarre murder.
Mystifying Attack on Stephanie Gaffney. The attack on Stephanie remains unexplained, with authorities baffled by the randomness.
Tragic Fall from Hotel Balcony. Sandra Oriana's mysterious death raises questions of accident, suicide, or murder.

Episode highlights

Episode quotes

Are these remarkable stories proof that reincarnation is real?

0:37WatchMay 23, 2019

Tension

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