Original subtitles

NARRATOR: 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.

[music playing]

ROBERT STACK: Eric Kessler has been labeled

one of the country's smoothest con men, charming,

intelligent, and cosmopolitan.

He has won the hearts of at least four middle-aged women

and then left them broken and bankrupt.

No one is certain how many women Eric Kessler has victimized,

or how many hundreds of thousands of dollars

he's allegedly stolen.

But authorities believe that at this very moment,

Kessler may be spinning a web of deceit

for another unsuspecting victim.

In a moment, we'll bring you a fascinating profile

of this master con man as well as

these other remarkable mysteries.

Two years ago, Daniel Wilson left

Spokane, Washington to visit his mother's home in Colorado.

He never arrived, and authorities are still

baffled by the discovery of his abandoned car

in a remote area of Montana miles off his intended route.

And in Minnesota, a daring gang of thieves

has stolen nearly $2 million in a series of violent armored car

robberies.

Also, the authorities are searching

for a ruthless rapist who uses prescription

drugs to subdue his victims.

Perhaps someone watching tonight can help capture him.

Perhaps it's you.

[music playing]

This is the story of a cunning operator who has allegedly

bilked several middle-aged women out of hundreds

of thousands of dollars.

The victim who you are about to meet,

whom we will call Katherine, never imagined

that she'd fall prey to a scam.

She was a successful, highly intelligent

businesswoman who owned one of Wisconsin's

most popular hair salons.

According to police, she was swindled

by one of the most devious con men

to ever operate in the state.

No one knows how many women he has victimized.

No one is even certain of his real name.

[music playing]

You make people beautiful, huh?

ROBERT STACK (VOICEOVER): September 1986.

Katherine was at a singles party when she was approached

by a well-dressed stranger who spoke

with a pronounced European accent.

He introduced himself as Eric Kessler.

No, I was born in Hamburg.

KATHERINE: Oh, Germany.

Do you still have family there?

KATHERINE (VOICEOVER): The night I first met Eric Kessler,

he presented himself as a businessman who

was in town on business and would

be staying for probably a year.

Some business associates have asked

me to look at some property here about some--

KATHERINE (VOICEOVER): I was impressed on his dress,

on his mannerism.

I never got an impression that he was

even attempting to make a pass.

And what do you do here?

You work?

Yes.

I have a hair salon right here in--

ROBERT STACK (VOICEOVER): Eric encouraged Katherine to reveal

intimate details about herself.

He soon learned that she was divorced,

operated a hair salon, and was concerned

about being able to put her children through college.

--college.

Ah, I see.

It's such a coincidence that we should meet.

I'm talking with some friends of mine from Western Europe,

who are telling me about some very important changes

in the cosmetology and in the make-up beauty

business that has changed--

ROBERT STACK (VOICEOVER): Eric happened to have a solution.

He had learned that in a small resort town 120 miles away,

there was a prototype of an invention which

could revolutionize Katherine's industry.

Oh.

Well, I'd like to hear about that.

What area of the business is it?

Well, it's very complex and very technical, but--

ROBERT STACK (VOICEOVER): This was

the hook that lured Katherine into Kessler's scheme.

I did not get any impression that this would

be a physical relationship.

I just felt that it was an opportunity,

yes, I was excited about it.

ROBERT STACK (VOICEOVER): Eric arranged

for Katherine to see the image system

known as the video makeover.

At that time, it was the cutting edge of technology,

enabling clients to see how they would

look with different hairstyles and colors.

Now, what if we cut off a little bit on the sides, here.

Can you do that?

OK, why don't we do it that way?

KATHERINE: Just by doing that?

KATHERINE (VOICEOVER): I thought that the concept was fantastic.

KATHERINE: From here, and then it's going--

KATHERINE (VOICEOVER): You could charge a large amount of money

for it.

All right, all right.

ROBERT STACK (VOICEOVER): Eric Kessler had convinced Katherine

that he could place the system in a major Midwest department

store chain, but she needed to come up with the investment

capital to get them started.

Sylvia, it's called a video makeover.

ROBERT STACK (VOICEOVER): Katherine secured a $50,000

loan from a wealthy friend.

Eric was to repay the loan four months later.

KATHERINE (VOICEOVER): She did not ask a lot of questions

because she believed in me.

She wrote a check for $50,000.

Oh, you're terrific.

Thank you.

ROBERT STACK (VOICEOVER): At Eric's insistence,

the business account was established

in Katherine's name.

She had sole discretion over deposits and withdrawals.

A few days later, Eric suggested that he

move into Katherine's basement so they could

work more closely together.

It appeared that their business was starting to take shape.

KATHERINE (VOICEOVER): We brought

in another telephone line, which was strictly a business line.

At one point in time, my son took the message

from the department store saying they wanted to set

up a meeting with Eric Kessler.

He was very convincing.

ROBERT STACK (VOICEOVER): Before long, Eric began

to romance his new partner.

KATHERINE (VOICEOVER): When I really think about it,

what he really did was to find out where I was business-wise.

I have dealt with people who have attempted to con me

or take me in business matters.

When Eric Kessler came into my life,

it never occurred to me that the man

was a con artist, because I certainly

assumed that I would know.

I would recognize that.

The fact that Eric also made me feel that he was in love

with me also put me off guard.

[music playing]

ROBERT STACK (VOICEOVER): Three weeks later,

Eric's conquest was complete.

He surprised Catherine with a most unusual gift.

KATHERINE: Eric?

Ja.

KATHERINE: Eric?

Upstairs.

Eric, what are you doing in my--

Eric.

I have a gift for you.

What in the world have you done?

That other bed was too small for us.

KATHERINE (VOICEOVER): One day when

I came home from work there, was a king-sized bed in my bedroom.

And he had made the decision that it would be much easier

if he could have the office downstairs

and didn't have to use it also has a bedroom.

And his way of doing that was to bring in a king-sized bed.

Do you like it?

- I love it. - Good.

Thank you.

ROBERT STACK (VOICEOVER): Eric's seduction

now evolved into a strategy of psychological manipulation.

My dear, you look so beautiful in the outfit

I have chosen for you.

It makes you feel good?

Yes.

NARRATOR: Makes you feel confident?

ROBERT STACK (VOICEOVER): Eric controlled Katherine's

every decision, selecting her wardrobe,

her makeup, the jewelry she wore.

And we are confident people.

KATHERINE (VOICEOVER): I did get to the point

that I was not confident.

I mean, I wouldn't have bought a pair of earrings at that point

because I didn't think that I was

capable of doing it anymore.

Mr. Kessler--

ROBERT STACK (VOICEOVER): Eric even convinced

Katherine to lease a high priced Cadillac

with all of the options.

This package does include the electric sliding sunroof,

the hand-sewn leather upholstery,

the leather-covered steering wheel,

the AM/FM stereo radio with cassette

and high-performance sound system, and the six-way

adjustable seats.

That's good.

I want the car telephone.

It also includes a telephone with a fully

retractable antenna.

Good.

Now, on a 24-month closed-end lease agreement,

that would bring your payments down to $487.75 a month.

Eric, I don't think this is a good idea.

I don't think we have $500 a month to spend on this.

My dear, this is a taxable deduction.

Why can't you make an intelligent business decision?

Why are you wasting this gentleman's time?

ROBERT STACK (VOICEOVER): Eric's domination became

more calculating.

He deprived Katherine of sleep, insisting they conduct

their business at night after she'd

put on a full day of work at the salon,

and an evening entertaining prospective clients.

Oh, what.

While I'm gone, I want you to pay all of these invoices here.

Oh, please.

I'm exhausted.

It's 3:00 in the morning.

Can't this wait?

No.

What is--

Eric, there must be $7,000 of invoices to be paid.

Yeah, I know.

We hadn't planned on these expenses.

I had not idea--

ROBERT STACK (VOICEOVER): Many times,

Eric demanded that Katherine give him large cash advances,

claiming the money was owed to suppliers

who would not accept checks.

We have accountants, we have business managers,

we have lawyers, we have tax consultants--

ROBERT STACK (VOICEOVER): As the start-up capital dwindled,

Eric convinced Katherine to put an additional $20,000

of her own money into the business.

Thank you.

KATHERINE (VOICEOVER): I didn't know who I was more

angry with, myself or Eric.

All we had done is spent money.

It had not been spent wisely.

Here I am, as a businesswoman, and I have blown it.

I mentioned to him that I thought that he was a con man,

and I had thought about going to the police.

He said, what good would it do you?

You got the money.

You signed all of the checks.

You agreed to all of the decisions that were made.

There is nothing that ties me in.

I have never signed anything.

It is your word against mine.

[music playing]

ROBERT STACK (VOICEOVER): The relationship

completely disintegrated.

Eric, we have to talk.

I'm playing!

Now, Eric.

Please.

Yeah.

Two wine, please.

ROBERT STACK (VOICEOVER): Eric had taken another lover

and moved out of Katherine's apartment.

When the day arrived for Eric to repay the loan,

Katherine met him at a bar to ask for the money.

What am I supposed to do?

I am supposed to give Sylvia $50,000 tonight.

There's no money in the account.

What am I going to do?

You will write her a check.

With what?

There's nothing left in the account.

I have a check coming by special courier tomorrow

morning at 9:00 AM for $50,000.

And if they don't come, what then?

It will be here, and you will write a check.

KATHERINE (VOICEOVER): Emotionally, I was drained

and I was exhausted.

I wanted to believe that I was going to get money.

Down deep, I didn't believe it, but it

was the only thing I had left.

I had to hope that the check was going to be there.

I met my benefactor that night.

I wrote the check.

I was very hesitant.

If it all was going to come through.

[music playing]

[phone ringing]

[music playing]

Hello?

MAN (ON PHONE): I've got to talk to Eric Kessler.

Where is he?

I don't know.

Who is this?

MAN (ON PHONE): This is Andy down at Irishman's Pub.

He bounced a check in here last night for $1,000

and I want to know where he is. - I don't know where he is.

KATHERINE (VOICEOVER): When the bartender called me

the next morning, I knew, right then

and there, it was all over.

ROBERT STACK (VOICEOVER): Katherine

lost more than $75,000 and was unable to pay

for her children's education.

She was forced into bankruptcy and sold her business.

Finally, she left Wisconsin and moved to another state

to start over again.

Authorities were certain that Edward

Maynard was somewhere in the US, stalking his next victim.

Calls to our telecenter confirm their suspicions.

The night of our broadcast, authorities

learned that Maynard had recently

been in Naples, Florida, using the alias Eric Kelly.

Last December, he became romantically involved

with a woman whom we'll call Ann.

Maynard, alias Kelly, persuaded Ann to loan him $15,000, then

left with her life savings.

Last February, Maynard showed up in San Antonio, Texas,

once again using the name Eric Kelly.

He began wining and dining another woman.

BARBARA (VOICEOVER): He kept talking about how he

could really do a lot for me.

But, of course, it would take a lot of money.

And he started asking me if I had money, how much I had.

And so I started feeling very strongly

that something was wrong.

I've asked you for a simple favor.

A loan of $300 until tomorrow morning.

BARBARA (VOICEOVER): He said, I'm

going to need you to loan me some money,

and I indicated that I didn't want to, and at that point

he got very loud, a violent temper.

But I need $300, and I need it now.

Do you understand?

BARBARA (VOICEOVER): And to be very honest, he frightened me.

So I gave him the money and I did not see him again

after that evening.

ROBERT STACK (VOICEOVER): Barbara notified

the local sheriff's department about her run-in

with Eric Kelley.

BARBARA (VOICEOVER): Wednesday evening

I got a phone call from someone in the sheriff's department.

It had said, hey, are you watching

Unsolved Mysteries on TV?

Our boy was just on there.

I said, Eric Kelly?

He said, yes, bigger than life.

I'm getting ready to call the FBI

and give them all the information that I have.

ROBERT STACK (VOICEOVER): Four days

later, another viewer's tip placed Edward

Maynard in Houston, Texas.

He was registered at this motel under the same alias,

Eric Kelly.

The FBI closed in.

We immediately dispatched a number of agents out there.

In fact, there was up to eight agents that were on the scene,

and within 45 minutes he was apprehended.

[music playing]

ROBERT STACK (VOICEOVER): Next, the story

of an unscrupulous doctor turned rapist, who uses

drugs to overpower his victims.

[music playing]

The crime of rape is tragic and all too frequent fact of life

in the United States.

Sadly, the stigma attached to the women

who are victimized mean such crimes often go unreported.

This is especially true of date rape,

where the victim knows and even trusts the man who rapes her.

In our next story, the methods of the rapist

are particularly insidious.

This is a case of a doctor who uses

a powerful sedative to render his victims helpless

and then assaults them.

One woman agreed to talk to us on the condition

that we do not use her real name.

WOMAN: Hey, nice shot.

ROBERT STACK (VOICEOVER): Saturday night, a bar

in Bakersfield, California.

Patty Roberts and Stephanie Phillips were

shooting pool when they were greeted

by a friend of Stephanie's. - Hi, nice to meet you.

Hi. Patty.

Hi, nice to meet you.

ROBERT STACK (VOICEOVER): He introduced

the two women to his companion, Dr. Kenneth Frank.

Stephanie and Patty agreed to join the men for a drink.

PATTY (VOICEOVER): Immediately, I liked him.

I thought, oh, he's a doctor, he's a nice guy.

He was well dressed, well mannered.

He was real friendly.

Real talkative.

--the 24-hour clinic.

Yeah, yeah.

What do you do?

I'm a dental assistant.

Well, I'm studying to be a dental assistant.

- Are you serious about it? - Oh, yes.

Really?

I work with a couple of dentists.

PATTY (VOICEOVER): He said he had a friend

and he said that he might be hiring,

and that he would give me a card, a referral and all that.

Would that help you out?

Sure. - Hey, no problem.

I'd love to do it.

Thanks.

PATTY (VOICEOVER): Basically, he did act professional.

KENNETH FRANK: --piece of paper.

OK, well, if you'll excuse me, I'm

going to go to the restroom.

KENNETH FRANK: OK.

PATTY (VOICEOVER): Well, I walked to the restroom--

She's great.

PATTY (VOICEOVER): And I was talking

to this girl that was in there, so I

was in there a few seconds.

And I came back out, and he was just sitting there,

and my friend was not there.

Where are Bob and Stephanie?

It's getting late, they decided to leave.

They're not coming back?

PATTY (VOICEOVER): At first I thought he was just playing,

and I said no, really?

And he said yeah.

If that's a problem for you, I can give you a ride home.

PATTY (VOICEOVER): He said, well,

I can give you a ride home.

I said no, I'll wait.

She didn't show up a few minutes later, and I was ready to go,

so I said, OK, well, do you want to still give me the ride home?

And he said sure.

And I said, are you sure you don't mind?

He said no.

So, we left in his car.

And then he wanted to stop by his apartment to do something,

he said, and I wanted him to get that job

referral that he had told me about, a dentist

friend that was hiring.

ROBERT STACK (VOICEOVER): By the time they got to Dr. Frank's

apartment that Saturday night, Patty was

complaining of a chest cold.

Here we go.

This will make you feel a lot better.

Drink that.

ROBERT STACK (VOICEOVER): Dr. Frank quickly mixed up

a home remedy, a special coffee drink he claimed

would alleviate Patty's cough.

[music playing]

PATTY (VOICEOVER): I drank it quickly,

and it wasn't long after that my eyes start getting blurry.

And then I was sitting there trying to figure

out why my eyes were blurry.

And then my ears started ringing, a real high pitch.

And then, I just--

I fell over.

I remember laying there and I couldn't move.

[music playing]

KENNETH FRANK: Patty. Come on, Patty.

Time to wake up.

It was not until Monday morning that Patty awoke.

She would soon discover that while she slept,

she had been raped.

What time is it?

It's 7 o'clock.

It's Monday morning, I've got to get to work.

Come on, let's get going.

Monday morning?

PATTY (VOICEOVER): I couldn't figure

out what happened to Sunday.

Somewhere I lost Sunday.

You raped me.

I didn't rape you.

PATTY (VOICEOVER): I knew that he had taken advantage of me,

and I was so mad, I just felt like I wanted to hurt him

like he hurt me, my feelings, because that

wasn't given to him.

He took it.

ROBERT STACK (VOICEOVER): Patty had been knocked

out for at least 26 hours.

Still groggy and disoriented, and as yet unaware

that she had been drugged, Patty had the doctor drive her home.

PATTY (VOICEOVER): We turned the corner right by my apartments,

and I lived in a really huge apartment complex,

so I told him to let me out there.

I didn't want him to see what apartment

I lived in, because I didn't want him to come after me.

Patty, I wouldn't tell anybody about this if I were you.

If you do, next time we'll have to fix it so you can't.

[music playing]

PATTY (VOICEOVER): I started running

trying to get to my apartment.

[music playing]

As I got to my apartment, which was in the very back,

I saw him in his car.

He was right in front of me, so he knew, at that point,

where I lived.

I went home and took a shower and I went to my aunt's house.

And I just started feeling nauseated, real, real, bad,

and I remember getting sick everywhere

and I couldn't help it.

It was kind of like the flu or something.

ROBERT STACK (VOICEOVER): Patty continued to be immobilized

by Dr. Frank's home remedy, spending

much of the rest of the day in a deep, drug-induced sleep.

Like many victims of rape, Patty was so

overcome by fear and embarrassment,

she could not yet bring herself to go to the police.

[music playing]

Seven days later, Patty had a second encounter

with Dr. Frank, who acted as if nothing was wrong.

Patty decided to play along, hoping to get

Frank to admit his crime.

Coke, please.

Just having a good time, how about you?

PATTY (VOICEOVER): I was kind of offended at first,

and then I thought, well, if I'm going to find out anything,

I'm going to have to be nice to him,

and just ask him questions and stuff.

So, tell me.

What was that stuff you gave me the other night?

I didn't give you anything.

You just had a good time.

You can tell me.

It was some pretty wild stuff.

PATTY (VOICEOVER): He was going to tell me he didn't give me

anything, and then he told me that it was a sedative

and that I was kind of like an experiment for him.

You liked it.

We had a good time, come on.

Come on.

You raped me!

PATTY (VOICEOVER): I was really angry at him then.

And then after I started yelling at him,

he knew that I wasn't going to play his little games anymore,

because I had decided then I was going to go to the police.

[music playing]

Basically I just looked around at all the little girls

out there running around.

They don't know about stuff like this,

and I thought, if I can at least give a report to the police,

then I can help someone else.

ROBERT STACK (VOICEOVER): Three months after the rape,

Patty filed an official police report, but stopped

short of pressing charges.

She was worried that a trial would come down

to her word against Dr. Frank's, an unknown student

against an established physician.

I accused him of raping me.

ROBERT STACK (VOICEOVER): Patty also believed

that being associated with a rape case

would jeopardize her future chances for employment.

MAN: Are you willing to press charges?

No.

ROBERT STACK (VOICEOVER): She also

feared that Dr. frank might make good on his threat to harm her.

If-- if he does this again to somebody else, yes, I will.

[music playing]

OK, Tracy, it's ready.

ROBERT STACK (VOICEOVER): Four months

after he had raped Patty, Dr. Frank raped another woman.

There's was an established professional relationship.

This victim too was given a sedative.

When she awoke 24 hours later, Frank admitted

that he had drugged her.

It was later estimated that the amount of the sedative

in her system was eight times greater

than that normally administered to patients in surgery.

LISA GREEN (VOICEOVER): She was a professional woman in town

in her mid-thirties, and after she became aware

of this situation, after Dr. Frank told her what happened,

she went to a local lab into town, had her blood tested

for the drug he told her he had given her,

and it did come back positive for that particular drug.

And then she went to the police.

ROBERT STACK (VOICEOVER): Based on the statements of Patty

and the other victim, Kenneth Frank was

arrested in February of 1986.

Legal wrangling delayed his trial until December of 1989.

Frank showed up on time for every court appearance.

December 20th, 1989, the jury rendered his verdict.

He was convicted of two counts of rape

by administering an intoxicating or anesthetic substance.

That carries the same amount of time

as more common type of rape, known as a forcible rape.

What happened is the jury verdict came in,

and, at that time, I requested the judge take the defendant

into custody because he was looking at a maximum

of 16 years in state prison.

He was out on his own recognizance at the time,

so there was no bail up at all, and the judge

declined to do that.

When he came up for sentencing, 28

days, which is the normal period of time, he didn't show up.

[music playing]

ROBERT STACK (VOICEOVER): When we return,

a bizarre tale of a mild-mannered man

whose temper suddenly erupted at work

on the very day he vanished.

What happened to Daniel Wilson?

[music playing]

Dan Wilson of Spokane, Washington

was known as a quiet, religious man.

In 1986, when Dan was 33, his marriage broke up,

but he remained close to his young son and daughter

and visited them often.

In 1987, Dan suffered a nervous breakdown, which he felt

was due to the trauma of his divorce.

By the summer of 1988, however, he was off his medication

and seemed to have his life back under control.

In June, Dan went to work at the ASC Machine Tool

company in Spokane, and, according to coworkers,

was a steady, reliable employee.

Then, suddenly, on August 24, everything changed.

Hey Dan, when's this one going to be done?

What's the problem, Jerry?

Oh, there's no problem.

Just need it over on the other line

whenever you're done with it.

Every time I try to get my work

done, you come down here and give me a hard time about it.

What's going on? - Wait a minute.

I didn't say anything about your work.

Hey, the heck you haven't!

I know what you've been saying, what

they've all be saying about me.

And I don't like it!

Quiet down.

I don't need to be quiet.

I just want you to leave me alone so I can

get my work done, all right?

ROBERT STACK (VOICEOVER): Dan Wilson's foreman

was shocked by the outburst.

He and the plant manager were concerned,

and told Dan to take time off and return

to work whenever he felt ready.

Dan left the plant at 11 o'clock in the morning.

It was Wednesday August the 24th, 1988.

[music playing]

Two days went by.

Dan Wilson's neighbors noticed that his sprinklers

had been left running.

On Friday, they turned them off, never suspecting

that anything was wrong.

Dan was not scheduled to visit his children that weekend,

so his ex-wife never noticed he was missing.

His mother lived in Colorado telephoned,

but was not alarmed when she received no answer.

Saturday and Sunday came and went,

and no one even knew Dan Wilson was missing.

Sunday, August 29th, 1988.

In a remote area of Custer County, Montana

an abandoned car was investigated

by Sheriff Tony Harbaugh.

[music playing]

[bird calling]

When When the car was found, the doors were unlocked.

In fact, one of the doors was ajar.

Check for keys in it, Mark.

TONY HARBAUGH (VOICEOVER): The keys were not in the vehicle

when it was found.

There were a few miscellaneous items, one of which

was a Bible, laying on the front seat.

Got a Bible on this side.

Daniel Wilson inscribed in the front of it

ROBERT STACK (VOICEOVER): Sheriff Harbaugh

traced the car to Dan Wilson.

It had been abandoned more than 700 miles

from Dan's Spokane residence.

[music playing]

TONY HARBAUGH (VOICEOVER): There was no luggage in the car

to indicate that Daniel was planning a trip, nothing that

would really give us a firm indication of what Daniel was

thinking or doing in the area.

Also going to need a record of this location to have

this vehicle towed into town.

We conducted both ground and aerial searches.

It's my belief that if Daniel Wilson was in the area,

in any of the area that we covered,

we should have found him at that time.

ROBERT STACK (VOICEOVER): There seemed

to be no explanation for Dan's car

being found abandoned in the middle of the Montana prairie.

Baffled, Dan's mother, Darlene Wilson, along with two

of his cousins, went to Montana to talk to the Sheriff

and look for some answers.

We've checked the car.

We've searched the ground around the area here.

DARLENE WILSON (VOICEOVER): The sheriff told us

that the car looked like it had just been parked there

and that someone had walked away from it.

They had looked under the hood and there

was nothing wrong there, and there

was a third of a tank of gas.

TONY HARBAUGH: --Car back to you.

Thank you.

I couldn't visualize in my mind

that he would just walk away from the car and just take off.

It certainly was not an area where you would expect a person

would stop and take a walk.

I really feared for his safety from the beginning

because of the state of mind he was in.

ROBERT STACK (VOICEOVER): Glenda had visited Dan

two days before he disappeared.

She was surprised by the disarray in his home.

GLENDA HORSEMAN (VOICEOVER): Looking

around, I seen that the children had been there that weekend.

Things had been left quite messy,

which was very uncharacteristic for him.

Oh, I'm a ranger or a policeman.

GLENDA HORSEMAN (VOICEOVER): He seemed agitated,

and he seemed real tired.

Is everything OK?

Oh, early shifts at the job and trouble there, you know.

ROBERT STACK (VOICEOVER): Before she left,

Glenda suggested that Dan take time off to visit

the family in Colorado.

I know what you've been saying about me, what

they've all be saying about me!

I don't like it!

ROBERT STACK (VOICEOVER): 48 hours later,

Dan had his outburst at work and vanished.

[music playing]

His family believed he had taken Glenda's advice

and started for Colorado to visit them.

[music playing]

Dan's family lived here in Longmont, Colorado.

He had made the trip from Spokane

to Longmont many times before.

Using the route he normally traveled,

Interstate 90, Dan would have headed

south at Billings, Montana.

Instead, Dan turned onto a different highway, Interstate

94, heading due east.

He continued for 150 miles into the sparsely populated area

of Montana where his car was found.

How had Dan strayed so far off course

on such a familiar route?

His mother suspected foul play.

[music playing]

DARLENE WILSON (VOICEOVER): I know that he

did pick up hitchhikers.

If he felt he could give somebody a ride, he would.

I'm concerned that maybe he was not the person that

parked the car in Montana, that it

could have been somebody else.

ROBERT STACK (VOICEOVER): Determined

to unravel the mystery, Dan's mother and cousins

went back to Spokane.

Dan's home was in even worse disarray

than when Glenda had visited 10 days earlier.

DARLENE WILSON: He's even left the light on.

I'll go look in the bedrooms.

ROBERT STACK (VOICEOVER): Surprisingly, his luggage,

his clothes, and an uncashed paycheck

were all still in the house.

MAN: The suitcases are still here.

I couldn't see where he had taken anything at all,

not even a toothbrush or razor.

It just looked like that he had just

left and intended to come back.

ROBERT STACK (VOICEOVER): The next day, Dan's family left

Spokane more puzzled than ever.

Darlene and Glenda drove Dan's car on the return trip.

En route, they both had sore throats

and felt an odd burning sensation in their eyes.

--Scratchy. Have you noticed anything?

You know, my eyes have been hurting, too.

ROBERT STACK (VOICEOVER): As soon as they returned home,

they had the car inspected.

Well, folks, what we have here is a faulty muffler on the car.

It could be allowing exhaust gases to enter

into the interior of the car.

I would say the car would be unsafe to drive.

ROBERT STACK (VOICEOVER): It appeared that a carbon monoxide

leak in the muffler might have caused Darlene's

and Glenda's physical symptoms.

OK, thank you.

ROBERT STACK (VOICEOVER): Dan had been driving the same car

every day for over a year.

It is possible that carbon monoxide

poisoning could have caused him severe physical

and emotional damage.

Chronic exposure to carbon monoxide can cause fatigue,

can cause definite changes in personality, confusion,

can cause permanent loss of function

of the brain, intellectual ability, memory,

as well as severe personality changes resembling psychosis.

[music playing]

DARLENE WILSON (VOICEOVER): Memory loss,

confusion, amnesia.

Maybe he knows his name but maybe that's about all.

Maybe he doesn't realize where his family is

or how to get in touch with any of them.

ROBERT STACK (VOICEOVER): Darlene Wilson

flooded the state of Montana with flyers.

In late November of 1988, a homeless shelter

in Billings, Montana sent Darlene

a copy of its desk register.

The Register showed that a Daniel Wilson had signed in

to spend the night on November 12,

nearly three months after Dan had disappeared.

[music playing]

Darlene compared the signature with one of her son's.

The similarity was striking, so she and her nephew

decided to go to Billings and talk

to the man who ran the shelter.

My name's Darlene Wilson.

I'm here to see Mr. Johnson, please.

ROBERT STACK (VOICEOVER): Still clinging to the fragile hope

that Dan might be wandering aimlessly, knowing his name

but nothing else, Darlene brought

along several photographs of him,

hoping for a positive identification

and some new clues.

Hello, Mrs. Wilson?

Yes.

You called earlier?

Yes. Nice to meet you.

I think you have a photo for me.

I have a photo of my son.

I wondered if you could help us.

I believe I've seen this young man.

David?

Oh, yeah.

We've seen him before.

I'm sure he spent the night, too.

DARLENE WILSON (VOICEOVER): It was really

a sense of relief for us.

We thought surely if he has been here that recently

that he still would be around somewhere

where we could find him.

So we distributed more posters around

in Billings and throughout all the area from Billings

into Spokane again.

[music playing]

ROBERT STACK (VOICEOVER): There has been no trace of Dan

Wilson for nearly two years.

Authorities found no sign of violence

and no evidence of a second person in Dan's car,

so they have tended to discount the foul play theory.

They have, however, suggested the possibility

that Dan Wilson made a conscious choice to disappeared.

[music playing]

GLENDA HORSEMAN (VOICEOVER): I feel

it's not impossible that Dan made a decision to disappear

and start a new life.

He was under a great deal of pressure.

He had not had a happy life since coming to Spokane.

But I feel the possibilities are small due to the fact he was so

devoted to his children, and he felt the children

needed him so badly.

I feel that whatever has happened

is something beyond his control.

[music playing]

He could be most anywhere, and we

wouldn't be able to locate him or he

wouldn't be able to locate us.

[music playing]

ROBERT STACK (VOICEOVER): When we return,

three daring armored car robberies executed

with military precision.

An ingenious gang of thieves that's still at large.

[music playing]

Every day, billions of dollars in hard currency

are transported by armored cars.

Considered by most criminals to be impregnable,

these vehicles have recently been targeted

by a brazen, heavily armed gang that carry out their raids

with almost military precision.

1: 00 PM, April 18th, 1989.

Eden Prairie, Minnesota.

[music playing]

Don't move, or I'll shoot!

ROBERT STACK (VOICEOVER): Instinctively,

the guard grabbed one of the robber's guns

but was quickly subdued.

No shots were fired.

RAM SECURITY MESSENGER (VOICEOVER): These guys

seemed to move very smoothly.

They didn't seem to be in a hurry or panicky or nothing.

They were very smooth.

These robbers come very heavily armed

and very much ready to shoot.

ROBERT STACK (VOICEOVER): Almost simultaneously,

the second phase of the heist began.

Another vehicle pulled up in front of the armored car,

cutting off any route of escape.

A fourth robber then placed what appeared

to be a bomb the truck's hood.

[music playing]

It's hot!

ROBERT STACK (VOICEOVER): In just under a minute,

the robbers had stolen close to $1 million.

They then vanished without a trace.

It seemed like kind of a commando type thing,

like these people had been well-trained at that type

of thing, or well-practiced.

ROBERT STACK (VOICEOVER): A bomb squad was immediately

dispatched to the scene.

Attaching guide wires to the device,

they carefully removed it from the truck's hood.

X-rays later revealed the bomb was a fake,

and the FBI concluded that it was

nothing more than an ingenious delaying tactic.

The FBI linked this fake bomb to an identical device

used in a Baltimore, Maryland robbery three years earlier.

In that operation, the thieves made off with over $600,000.

The FBI concluded both robberies were executed by the same gang.

[music playing]

In the first two heists, through a combination

of careful planning and clockwork timing,

the crooks had stolen $1.6 million.

They had also brilliantly covered their tracks.

Every vehicle they used had been stolen,

wiped clean of evidence, then abandoned.

It was thought that the gang would quit while they

were a million dollars ahead, but one year later

they struck again.

March 27, 1990.

Burnsville, Minnesota, just 10 miles from the scene

of the last robbery.

As one Brinks guard waited in the cab,

another made a cash pickup at a local bank.

[music playing]

On the ground!

On the ground, right now. - OK!

On the ground.

OK.

ROBERT STACK (VOICEOVER): Once again, the second guard

was caught behind the wheel.

BRINKS DRIVER (VOICEOVER): As I turned around,

I see this van that was coming up in front of me.

[gunshots]

[glass breaking]

I hit the van real hard, I knew that.

I turned my siren on.

Shots went off.

Scared the living daylights out of me.

[gunshots]

I made a circle to come around so I could see what's going on,

and when I was about 3/4 of the way through my circle,

I could see where our cart was.

As I was going by, I could see my partner on the ground.

All those shots that were going on,

I thought they'd killed him.

I thought he was dead.

He was just laying on the ground.

ROBERT STACK (VOICEOVER): Fortunately, the guard

was uninjured.

His partner fought back.

BRINKS DRIVER (VOICEOVER): At the time I thought, well,

I got these guys right where I want them.

I just rammed it as hard as I could.

[crashing]

[music playing]

ROBERT STACK (VOICEOVER): Despite the collision,

the robbers still managed to get away.

It's a real lucky situation that some innocent bystander

wasn't killed, because there were a number of shots fired

and there were a number of shoppers and bank customers

passing right by the area.

ROBERT STACK (VOICEOVER): The robbers

abandoned their car behind a nearby shopping center

and left on foot.

The FBI theorize that they may have

had another vehicle parked nearby which

they used to leave the area.

Authorities quickly cordoned off the neighborhood.

They brought in tracking dogs.

Roadblocks were set up, but the gang had once again

made a clean getaway.

The following morning, police found

one of the gang's stolen cars less than a mile from the bank.

As in the other robberies, it contained no evidence

that identified the robbers.

Currently, all the authorities can do is wait for the elusive

robbers to strike again.

These individuals could be living

anywhere in the United States.

And we would like to get information from anybody who

has any indication that people that may be able to perpetrate

this type of crime have come into a lot of money,

or that had the capability to commit

these robberies in any one of these three cities.

ROBERT STACK (VOICEOVER): There are apparently

at least four members of the gang,

and authorities have managed to create

composites of three of the men.

The first suspect is a white male in his late 30s,

about five feet, nine inches tall, with dark hair and dark

mustache.

Suspect number two is white, between 35 and 38 years old,

about six feet in height, and weighs

between 170 and 180 pounds.

A third suspect is approximately six feet tall

and is between 35 and 40 years old.

He has gray or white hair, and may wear

a false beard the same color.

[music playing]

Join me next week for another edition of Unsolved Mysteries.

[music playing]