Original subtitles

MALE (VOICEOVER): 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.

ROBERT STACK (VOICEOVER): In 1884, one of the wealthiest men

in New Mexico built his wife the finest house money could buy,

a glorious Victorian mansion.

But after the couple's youngest daughter died,

the lady of the house turned into a virtual recluse.

And a lot of folks say that her spirit has haunted the mansion

for nearly a century.

Tonight, we'll take you along as a team

of real life Ghostbusters tries to flush the elusive ghost out

of hiding.

In March of 1988, the head of a multimillion dollar drug ring

named John Roubas was assassinated just

outside San Juan, Puerto Rico.

Or was he?

Authorities now suspect someone else was murdered in his place,

and that Roubas is very much alive.

Legend has it that nearly 150 years ago,

wealthy citizens in old Los Angeles

buried their riches for safekeeping

during the Mexican-American War.

Is there still a fortune in gold and jewels

hidden in the shadows of LA's downtown skyline?

Also, a heartwarming update.

Thanks to your calls, a family has been

reunited after 45 years apart.

Joine me.

Perhaps you may be able to solve a mystery.

[music playing]

ROBERT STACK (VOICEOVER): This is the La Posada

Hotel in Santa Fe, New Mexico.

Nestled within its Adobe walls is a

100-year-old Victorian mansion.

Recently, that mansion has become

the focus of an unusual, high tech investigation.

No crime has been committed.

No one has been hurt.

No one has disappeared.

It's important to look at thresholds

as soon as you walk in as well.

ROBERT STACK (VOICEOVER): Believe it or not,

this team of investigators is looking for a ghost.

So far, the information we have

regarding the La Posada Hotel--

it appears to have all the characteristics of what

is referred to as a classic haunt, because of the history,

because of a variety of different types of witnesses

who had this experience.

It certainly appears to look that way,

that it is a classic haunt.

We're trying to approach it very unbiased

without any expectations.

So at this point, we're not sure exactly

what we're going to find, or what we're going to encounter.

ROBERT STACK (VOICEOVER): If Christopher Chacone

and his team of real life Ghostbusters

do encounter a spirit at the La Posada Hotel,

she probably answers to the name Julius Stob.

Folks around here say Julia has been haunting

the place for nearly a century.

Julia came to Santa Fe from Germany

around 1870 to marry Abraham Stobb, one of the wealthiest

men in New Mexico.

Abraham promised Judy he would someday build her

the finest house money could buy.

Mazel tov.

ROBERT STACK (VOICEOVER): Seven children and 14 years

later, the Stobbs moved into Santa

Fe's first Victorian mansion.

Look at the beautiful parlor that papa

has made mama with her favorite flower in mind.

See the rose stained glass?

When Julia moved into this house,

she became the queen of Santa Fe society.

All major affairs were held here.

They entertained dignitaries from the government,

President Rutherford Hayes, General

Sherman, Governor Wallace.

Big parties were held here.

And one would think she was a very happy woman.

ROBERT STACK (VOICEOVER): In the new house,

Julia and Abraham were blessed with an eighth child, a girl.

But, tragically, the baby would live only a short time.

Abraham.

I'm so sorry.

ROBERT STACK (VOICEOVER): According to Betsy Sollitt,

Julia's joy turned to sorrow overnight.

She was so distraught over the child's death.

And it's said that she didn't eat or sleep for two weeks.

And when she finally slept and she awoke, and looked

in the mirror, all of the beautiful black hair

on her head had turned completely white.

All of the grief went into her hair.

ROBERT STACK (VOICEOVER): According to legend,

Julia Stobb withdrew from society,

and was rarely seen outside her mansion.

When Julia died at the age of 52,

she seemed far older than her years.

In 1936, the Stobb mansion was acquired by the La Posada.

Eventually, the modern hotel was built around it.

The front door of the mansion is reached through the lobby.

And the Stobb home is as elegant as ever.

The rooms upstairs, including Julia's bedroom,

can be booked by hotel guests.

And, Julia, over the years has had a way

of making her presence known.

I think there is something here.

There's no doubt to me.

Too many people, including guests

who know nothing about the history of the place,

say there is something.

Whether it's a ghost, or whether it's some sort of energy,

I don't know.

Built back in 1882, and it's the first formal brick

building built in Santa Fe.

ROBERT STACK (VOICEOVER): Chuck Barone

was a hardened skeptic until 1991, when he and a desk clerk

took several guests on an impromptu tour of the hotel.

Even though Julia's room was not occupied,

hotel policy required the clerk to knock anyway.

[knocking]

WOMAN: I'm in here.

I thought you said nobody was in there.

Let me double check at the front desk.

He went downstairs.

I stayed up with the guests.

And nobody came out the front door.

It been several minutes.

And by then, anything I was thinking about

may have passed, because I figured

there was a guest in the room.

[knocking]

Security.

ROBERT STACK (VOICEOVER): Curiously, the clerk

had returned, confirming that Julia's room was not booked.

Hello?

And so he knocked on the door again.

Nothing happened.

And we went in.

And the room was empty.

Nobody here.

The windows were locked from the inside.

Nobody had come out the door.

And I really have no explanation for it.

ROBERT STACK (VOICEOVER): Around a year later,

Chuck's son John Barone, who also worked as a security

guard, had his own weird encounter

when he checked the men's washroom at closing time.

Security?

Locking up for the evening.

It's time to go.

I looked in the mirror.

And there was a face, like a reflection.

I felt a cold chill come through me.

And something told me, it's time to leave.

I left.

I didn't turn off the lights.

I didn't turn off the hall lights.

I didn't check the female's restroom.

And I proceeded out the back door.

And I didn't come back.

I feel that it is real.

There is no doubt in my mind, because I saw someone standing

there looking down at us.

And before then, I was not a believer.

But once I saw her there, I believe

that she is present here.

Could you turn the TV off?

ROBERT STACK (VOICEOVER): This past June,

Ross Wisenhoffer and Holly were in Santa Fe

to attend a friend's wedding.

Even though they stayed in the room across the hall

from Julia's, Ross and Holly had never heard any of the stories.

We shut the TV off.

At that time, I was up.

And I was trying to go back to sleep.

And my eyes were closed.

And at that time, I felt something staring at me.

I saw the white apparition.

I put my head down.

And I'm like, my gosh, this isn't

happening to me right now.

And then I looked up again for the second time.

And at that point, it started to become more defined.

I put my head back down.

And when I looked up the third time,

it definitely was Julia standing there.

Ross, what is it?

Ross, what's going on?

What is it?

What are you doing?

And at that point, I jumped up out of bed,

flicked the lights on.

And I said, we're out of here.

Within five minutes, we were down at the front desk.

I've never seen him like that.

I've never seen him scared, especially enough

to have goosebumps.

He was definitely a skeptic before.

And then once he saw this happen, he was a believer.

So I was quite surprised.

So this was your room?

Yes, it was.

All right.

ROBERT STACK (VOICEOVER): Just two weeks later, Ross and Holly

were back at the La Posada to talk to Christopher Chacone

from the Office of Scientific Investigation and Research.

When had the image, was it just getting thicker?

ROBERT STACK (VOICEOVER): At the hotel,

Chacone's team of Ghostbusters included

a physician, a psychologist, and an electrical engineer.

It was getting more defined.

Where would I be in relationship to where you saw?

ROBERT STACK (VOICEOVER): Their goal--

to determine whether the hauntings here can be explained

in scientific, rational terms.

Closer.

Closer?

Yeah.

ROBERT STACK (VOICEOVER): Of the 800 investigations

of poltergeist phenomena that I've been on, 70% of them

appear to be have rational explanations for them.

We have found, definitively, answers.

However, there's another 30% which,

apparently, we cannot find a rational explanation for.

They define the known laws of nature and physics, at least

as we know them today.

It might remind you.

Could you take a look at that, and just

tell me what comes to mind, and what you can see in there?

ROBERT STACK (VOICEOVER): An important part

of each investigation is a psychological evaluation

of the subjects.

She's breaking bad news, or bringing

bad news, to the family.

Pull your arm back toward him as hard as you can.

ROBERT STACK (VOICEOVER): Next, the subjects

undergo a physical examination to eliminate

any possible somatic causes for the sighting.

One of the cases that come to mind

is one situation where a woman had a brain tumor pressing

against a certain part of her brain, which

would cause these seizures.

And it would create the illusion, at least to her,

that some type of entity was coming and having

physical contact with her.

When we get to the aspect of the case where we're looking

into the environment , we begin to take samples of the water,

samples of the air.

We take elements that the individual would actually

have physical contact with, pieces of carpet with the wall,

paint on the wall.

We're looking for toxic elements, which

could somehow affect them.

For example, certain types of phosphate gases,

when mixed with air, can produce flashes of light.

And some might see this as poltergeist phenomena

when, in fact, it's obviously rationally explainable.

After examining the environment, if we don't find anything which

is obvious, we will then proceed to set

up equipment in the environment to do a long term surveillance.

We would have specially designed radioactivity

monitoring equipment.

We look for electrostatic discharge of any type.

We would look at the magnetic fields,

both electromagnetic fields and geomagnetic fields.

We would analyze the spectrum of light,

from infrared to ultraviolet, and everything in between.

ROBERT STACK (VOICEOVER): The environment--

in this case, the upstairs rooms of the Stobb mansion--

is sealed off for a period of 12 to 72 hours.

Go ahead and stand by.

ROBERT STACK (VOICEOVER): State of the art

monitoring equipment, worth more than half a million dollars,

is setup in an adjacent area.

The team then returns to the environment, armed

with special thermal cameras which

measure temperature variations.

Finally, the room is plunged into total darkness.

The team uses the most advanced night vision equipment

to examine the environment.

We have floors that are lopsided.

ROBERT STACK (VOICEOVER): At the end of every investigation,

the team sits down together for a case wrap up.

Some people can perceive.

There are no air vents.

ROBERT STACK (VOICEOVER): We were

able to analyze the environment in every possible way.

And we did not encounter anything which

was unusual or extraordinary.

No vision and hearing trouble.

OK, psychologically, I think in terms of behavioral profile,

I see--

The examinations performed on Russ and Holly

prove that they are, in fact, very credible witnesses.

Functioning individuals.

I see no evidence of any suspicions.

Based on the results of the investigations we've conducted

here, we haven't found any facts to disprove the fact

that the La Posada is haunted.

There certainly, then, is that possibility

that there is unusual paranormal phenomena taking place here.

ROBERT STACK (VOICEOVER): Christopher Chacone

and his team do plan to return to the hotel at least

once more to search for definitive signs of a haunting.

In the meantime, if you should find yourself in Santa Fe,

if you should check into one of the rooms in the original Stobb

mansion, it might not be a bad idea to leave a single red rose

on the windowsill.

After all, rumor has it that it was

Julius Stobb's favorite flower.

When we return, the puzzling death of John Roubas.

Did a cunning drug lord stage his own murder

to evade capture?

[music playing]

ROBERT STACK (VOICEOVER): March 7th, 1988--

San Juan, Puerto Rico.

Flames consumed a late model car that

had apparently been abandoned in a remote corner of the city.

The next morning, local authorities

found the remains of a body charred

beyond recognition in the back seat of the car.

The only evidence that might eventually

lead to an ID of a victim was a fragment of jaw bone

and four loose teeth recovered from the ashes.

One week later, anonymous informant

told police that the dead man was John Roubas.

It was a name authorities knew well.

John Scott Roubas was a ringleader of a multimillion

dollar drug network.

Headquartered in Puerto Rico, the Roubas operation

had a virtual monopoly on cocaine

and marijuana distribution in the Midwestern United States.

We were able to obtain dental records from John

Roubas' dentist in Florida.

And we shipped those dental records to a pathologist

in Puerto Rico, who had found in the burnt automobile

four loose teeth and a piece of a jaw bone.

That pathologist identified those loose teeth

as being those of John Roubas.

ROBERT STACK (VOICEOVER): For years,

Roubas had alluded law enforcement

in several countries.

Now, fire had apparently accomplished

what the law could not.

John Roubas was out of business.

Or was he?

It began with a few whispered rumors.

But in the months that followed the grisly discovery in Puerto

Rico, authorities began to suspect that the fiery death

of John Roubas was, in fact, a cunning hoax, a ruse

to avoid prosecution.

Tonight, in an exclusive interview

a former member of the drug lord's inner circle

claims that John Roubas is very much

alive, and as busy as ever.

ROBERT STACK (VOICEOVER): The sprawling

empire of John Roubas operated with military precision.

A fleet of small airplanes ferried

tons of cocaine and marijuana from secret plantations

deep in the jungles of Colombia, Panama, and Jamaica.

The flights converged at the island of Puerto Rico.

The drugs were repackaged, and then

shipped into the United States through Milwaukee and Chicago.

Between 1981 and '85, Roubas slipped

an estimated $30 million worth of drugs into the US.

The Roubas operation was a model of efficiency.

At prearranged times, illicit cargoes

arriving from South America were dropped just

off the coast of Puerto Rico.

Small boats were already in place

waiting to retrieve the drugs.

In most cases, Roubas had hands

on with the drug trafficking.

Where a lot of the higher echelon drug traffickers

normally would stay in the background,

Roubas came to the foreground and actively got involved

in the distribution process.

ROBERT STACK (VOICEOVER): The drugs

were brought from the beach to a hidden processing plant

in the Puerto Rican highlands.

There, the large bundles were broken down

into one pound packages that could readily

be smuggled into the US.

John is one of the craftiest guys I've ever met in my life.

And his ability to smuggle drugs into the United States

unmolested--

you know, he had several years, maybe five, six, seven,

eight years of successful smuggling

with no type of wiretapping or anything.

Don't get funny with my stuff.

You know, he ran a real stiff organization.

Hey, Pablo!

Come here.

Roubas was very ruthless.

That's typical of the drug business.

You have to gain your respect through fear.

And Roubas was very good at it.

ROBERT STACK (VOICEOVER): In one notorious incident,

Roubas supposedly became suspicious

that one of his pilots was running

his own smuggling operation using a company plane.

I see that it takes you twice the time

using twice as much fuel, I get nervous.

Yeah, but we have a problem--

Sit down!

We have problems.

John, you've got the wrong man here.

Yeah, that's right.

I got the wrong man.

Mr. Roubas.

[speaking spanish]

What do you think it would take

for me to pull the trigger?

What do you think it would take?

What do you think it would take?

Go on, get out of here!

Get out!

Get out!

ROBERT STACK (VOICEOVER): Roubas ruled with such an iron hand

that it took investigators years to penetrate the organization,

locate the hidden processing plant, and close in on Roubas

himself.

By December of 1987, authorities in the United States

had enough evidence to charge 37 members of the ring.

Every one of them was arrested, everyone but John Roubas.

He seemed to have vanished into thin air.

Three months later, the charred remains

were identified as Roubas based solely on the four

teeth found at the scene.

In the United States, the outstanding charges

against Roubas were dropped.

In Puerto Rico, police uncovered a vendetta

that had apparently led to the murder

of the fugitive drug lord.

Donald Kurtzer, a former associate of Roubas,

was convicted of masterminding the hit.

Allegedly, Roubas was killed in retaliation

for raping both Kurtzer's girlfriend

and the 14-year-old daughter of Kurtzer's housekeeper.

According to Puerto Rican authorities,

the night of his death, Roubas arrived at the airport

in San Juan.

He was met there by two women, one of whom

was ultimately convicted in the case.

Although he rarely drank, Roubas was

said to be heavily intoxicated.

We were so worried about you.

Worried?

Honey, I missed you.

ROBERT STACK (VOICEOVER): Explaining that they had

an unexpected errand, the women drove

their passenger to a deserted area on the outskirts of town.

Hey, where are we?

[gunshots]

ROBERT STACK (VOICEOVER): Officially,

John Roubas ceased to exist--

officially.

[phone ringing]

Hey, what's up?

JOHN: It's John.

John?

Where have you been?

But A few months later, his former associate Richard

received a call from a dead man.

What do you mean?

JOHN: I mean it's not a good time

to go down there right now.

All right, I think I know what you're talking about.

JOHN: They closed down the old house.

A lot of people have been picked up.

I have no doubt about it being John Roubas.

You know, we had acquaintance over an extensive period

of time.

So I mean, you know, I'd know his voice anywhere.

We also began to receive information through some

various other of the co-defendants that had been

charged in the case that, perhaps,

Roubas was alive, that they had seen him,

that they had talked to him.

And what was reported to us was that one of the defendants

wives had received a telephone call from a person

that she identified as John Roubas.

ROBERT STACK (VOICEOVER): Authorities

have another reason to believe Roubas is still alive.

He was simply too smart to let himself be trapped.

John Roubas in the business he was involved in,

illegal narcotics, was a very suspicious individual,

and took a lot of precaution to protect himself.

He never traveled alone.

And when he did travel, he always traveled armed.

So the facts that were put together just

did not fit well with what we knew of John Roubas.

ROBERT STACK (VOICEOVER): Two people

have served time in Puerto Rican prisons

for the murder of John Roubas.

But was Roubas truly the victim?

Or was someone else assassinated in his place?

Roubas was fully capable of staging his own death,

and may well have had his own teeth

extracted in order to accomplish a false identification

of a body.

And I believe that there is substantial reason to believe

that John Roubas is alive.

It wasn't he could have.

He did pull it off.

I know John pretty well.

I mean, and John is a very mystique type of guy.

One thing that he would never do was

corner himself in a situation where he couldn't get out.

He always had an exit that most people didn't know about.

Bottom line is that John Roubas still rides.

[music playing]

ROBERT STACK (VOICEOVER): When we return,

surprising discoveries in a treasure

hunt in downtown Los Angeles.

[music playing]

ROBERT STACK (VOICEOVER): Spanish doubloons,

royal jewels, chests of gold--

in our experience, there's nothing like an old legend

of buried treasure to lure otherwise

sensible folks into the wilderness to risk their lives.

While these tales may be rich in history and folklore,

we've learned that they don't usually

amount to much when it comes to actually

finding anything of value.

That is, until we heard about the buried treasures of Elysian

Park, 575 acres of hills and secluded canyons

situated just two miles from the heart of downtown Los Angeles.

In June of 1994, "Unsolved Mysteries"

brought in a team of historical researchers and high tech

surveyors to follow up age old rumors

of buried gold and jewels that would now be worth millions.

Incredibly, the sensitive instruments

revealed that the legendary treasures of Elysian Park

may, in fact, be real.

It seems hard to believe that 150 years ago Los Angeles was

just a dusty pueblo, a quiet outpost

in the northernmost territory of Mexico.

But that way of life came to a sudden end in 1846.

War had erupted between Mexico and the United States.

According to stories handed down over the years,

well-to-do Angelenos panicked as American forces drew near.

Some dug elaborate escape tunnels.

Others buried their family fortunes for safekeeping.

This was the best thing that they could do to protect

their valuables at the time.

And it was a customary way, because there were no banks.

If you wanted to protect something, bury it, hide it.

Elysian park was the most logical place

for people living in the Los Angeles area at that time

to bury treasure.

ROBERT STACK (VOICEOVER): Through the years,

stories circulated that some families never came back,

and that their treasures were still waiting to be

discovered in Elysian Park.

In 1984, two sisters hired Roy Roche to explore in the park.

The women recall their father searching

for one of the fabled treasures when they were children.

Soon, they located a spot that seemed familiar.

It might have been there.

I realized that this was an excellent place to bury

treasure, because it was a place where you could dig

a good-sized tunnel without being observed, because there

was trees and hills.

Well, the first thing that attracted

my attention was on the side of a sandstone bluff

were three indentations.

The holes seemed to be rather symmetrical and rather smooth,

and looked like it probably could be man made.

However, it was quite possible that they

could be natural also.

So keeping that in mind, I'm now looking around

for some other signs and symbols.

About 75 feet away at the same level on the side of the hill,

I discovered some initials carved

in the side of another rock.

ROBERT STACK (VOICEOVER): Halfway between the two signs,

Roy spotted exactly what he had been looking for--

evidence of an old tunnel.

I think I found something.

It was not military.

It was not a miner's tunnel.

It was not for building.

It was not an old toilet pit.

It all came together.

It was perfect.

Obviously, it was a treasure shaft.

There was no other reason for this hole being there.

ROBERT STACK (VOICEOVER): It seems simple,

removed dirt, claim treasure.

The sisters said they had permits from park officials.

But Roy suggested that the crew dig at night

to avoid attracting rivals.

We got down about 25 feet.

And I got a fairly good signal right

in the center of the hole.

We all got excited, because metal detectors don't

lie in a situation like that.

ROBERT STACK (VOICEOVER): The instrument had, indeed,

detected buried artifacts.

But they were not exactly what Roy Roche was looking for.

We uncovered two very old flashlight batteries,

the oldest flashlight batteries I'd ever seen.

Even though I got no more readings with my metal detector

after we uncovered the two flashlight batteries,

we kept digging.

ROBERT STACK (VOICEOVER): 30 feet into the tunnel,

another artifact--

the frayed end of a very old, crudely made rope.

This was bad news, because after finding the two

old flashlight batteries and a piece of rope,

it was quite obvious that somebody

else had already beat us to the treasure years before.

ROBERT STACK (VOICEOVER): For Roy Roche,

it was a treasure hunter's worst nightmare.

He was certain he had found the right spot, but far too late.

Well, whatever was in there was big and heavy.

Somebody has beat us to it.

It was a combination of gratification

and disappointment.

The gratification was that we had correctly found a treasure

tunnel and had excavated it.

But the disappointment was that after all the time, and money,

and work, and effort that we put into it,

we had nothing to show for our efforts

except a couple of old flashlight batteries

and a piece of rope.

ROBERT STACK (VOICEOVER): Although he came up

empty handed, Roy Roche believes there are still

buried treasures in Elysian Park with a total value

approaching $1 million.

To test that theory, "Unsolved Mysteries"

called upon experts from the National Underwater and Marine

Agency, or NUMA, a nonprofit group that conducts

both ocean and ground surveys.

Their surface investigation was fully

approved by city officials.

All right, guys, let's go.

ROBERT STACK (VOICEOVER): The sensing device emits

radar waves as it has dragged across the field.

A cross section of what lies underground

shows up on this monitor.

An anomaly such as a cannon, or perhaps a treasure chest,

would appear on the screen as a discernible shape

among the colors.

Now, if there is a foreign object in there,

like maybe a box or a cannon, something that doesn't

belong there, we can see it.

We have an image of it.

And we don't know what it's made of yet.

So we'll come back over and do an electromagnetic survey

to see if that can-type object is a log,

or really has some metal to it.

Or that box could have some gold or silver in it,

or if it's just a wooden box.

ROBERT STACK (VOICEOVER): After the survey was completed,

computers translated the information

into these cross sections.

Here is the first anomaly.

Though open to interpretation, these marks

could suggest the presence of a vertical tunnel running

to a depth of roughly 30 feet.

The second anomaly was detected less

than 10 feet below the surface.

The survey findings indicate that this anomaly

is not only a solid object, but is also metallic.

If there is treasure here, I would

prefer to see it stay here.

I'd like to keep that mystery alive.

I think it adds to the mystique of this park.

I think it's something that people would probably continue

to talk about in the future, and help

to keep the mystique of the treasure that

might be in Elysian Park alive.

Representatives of NUMA believe the anomalies

may be important relics from the city's history,

links to its Mexican past.

However, it is unlikely we will ever know for sure.

Obtaining a permit to excavate in Los Angeles

is even more difficult than finding a buried treasure.

And digging without a permit is strictly against the law.

Violators are subject to arrest, and could end up in jail,

rather than on easy street.

Next, a man searches for the American soldier

who helped save his family during the final days

of the Second World War.

[music playing]

Recently, we received a rather unusual

letter from one of our viewers.

She called her attention to the moving story of a man

she knows in Germany who is looking for someone here

in the United States.

Needless to say, we were both intrigued and anxious to help.

So this past summer we traveled to Europe,

and came back with a poignant mystery

of kindness and compassion.

ROBERT STACK (VOICEOVER): For more than a decade,

Siegfried and Marguerite Laier of Germany

have been searching for an unsung American hero,

a young soldier who forged an unlikely friendship

with Siegfried when he was just a small boy

nearly half a century ago.

1945, the final days of the Second World War--

for Germany civilian population, it was a time

of uncertainty and despair.

Among the innocent victims was young

Siegfried Laier, whose neighborhood of Ludwigshaven

was leveled by Allied bombers.

Siegfried's mother immediately fled with her three youngest

children.

The Lyres walk 125 miles to take refuge

with relatives in a village.

They quickly discovered that the hardships, especially

for children, were universal.

INTERPRETER (VOICEOVER): It was very bad.

I was four when the war ended.

There was very little food to be had.

We had to go with [inaudible] vouchers and buy food.

But there wasn't much around.

ROBERT STACK (VOICEOVER): In March of 1945,

American troops rolled into Morlanbach.

The German citizens had feared the worst, a conquering army

bent on revenge.

But instead, they encountered a benevolent corps

of occupiers who provided them with food and medical supplies.

One of the GIs was a young man named Alexander.

You want something?

Come here, it's chocolate.

Come here.

It's all right.

Hey, can you say chocolate?

Chocolate.

Very good.

INTERPRETER (VOICEOVER): He was sympathetic to me,

and friendly.

Yes, will you take this home?

INTERPRETER (VOICEOVER): If it hadn't been for him,

perhaps I would not be alive today.

He was a guardian angel for me.

[knocking]

I am Alexander, American.

ROBERT STACK (VOICEOVER): The guardian angel

took it upon himself to track Sigfried down.

Soup.

ROBERT STACK (VOICEOVER): Alexander

took a genuine interest in the Laier family.

And before long, the food shortages were a dim memory.

INTERPRETER (VOICEOVER): He brought us food from the army,

the same food eaten by them.

We also ate.

He used to come by every day, if only

to pick me up and take me to kindergarten,

or to pick me up there later.

Each time, he would bring a little food.

ROBERT STACK (VOICEOVER): The bond

between the German child and the American GI

grew stronger with each passing day.

Alexander would often invite Siegfried to tag along

on routine patrols around town.

You want to drive?

- Want to drive? - Right.

- Right. - Jeep.

Jeep.

OK.

Jeep.

Jeep.

Grab the wheel.

Watch the road.

Watch the road.

INTERPRETER (VOICEOVER): Then I was allowed to drive with him.

That was the most wonderful thing.

Ziggy, you're driving!

INTERPRETER (VOICEOVER): When I was sitting in the car

and the other children saw me, they were, perhaps,

a bit jealous, because I was not allowed to drive,

and they couldn't.

I was fairly proud.

I don't know if you can understand

what I'm trying to say to you, but I have to go.

ROBERT STACK (VOICEOVER): Inevitably,

the time came to say goodbye.

We may not see each other for a long time,

for a very long time.

INTERPRETER (VOICEOVER): I was sad.

Perhaps I would never see him again.

As I think about it today, I was really sad.

Be a good boy.

Be a good boy, Ziggy!

INTERPRETER (VOICEOVER): I have always

thought about how he helped us, and that I should,

in turn, help other people.

He was not obliged to us in any way.

But he did it as a human being, out of human love.

ROBERT STACK (VOICEOVER): Today, Sigfried has only one

precious memento of Alexander, this photograph

taken in the spring of 1945.

At the time, Alexander was approximately 20 years old.

He would now be around 70.

Sigfried Laier or does not know Alexander's last name.

He does know that Alexander was part of an army unit

that marched into Marlaboch Germany on March 27, 1945.

While there, the soldiers were housed

at the Grunebaum Guesthouse.

[music playing]

ROBERT STACK (VOICEOVER): On a previous broadcast,

we brought you the poignant story of the Krone family

of Illinois.

Just before Christmas in 1948, Hilda Krone

and seven of her children had been evicted from their home.

The only available shelter was the Henry County Jail.

Eventually, the children were all

separated, either put up for adoption

or placed in foster care.

18 years later, two of the children, Marie and Raymond,

managed to find each other.

Together, they set out to track down the rest of the family.

For 18 years, Maria and Raymond

suffered through a series of near misses and false leads.

Finally, in 1993, they did locate one sister, Karen.

Then their story aired on "Unsolved Mysteries."

Incredibly, within a few hours, two more sisters and three

brothers had been found.

ROBERT STACK (VOICEOVER): On July 9th, 1994,

we were at Raymond's house in Houston, Texas

as the Krone family gathered for their first reunion

in more than 45 years.

Marie's dream had finally come true.

I've been looking forward to this for a long time,

because I didn't know if I would ever get to really

meet them in person or not.

I feel that the love is still there.

It never went away.

It's always been there.

And I always wondered about them.

And now, I'll finally get to find out

what has been going on with their life and everything,

and get reacquainted.

ROBERT STACK (VOICEOVER): For the oldest sister, Betty Jane,

the reunion was particularly emotional.

I knew that was Marie right away.

Just by looking at her, I knew that was Marie.

And that's when the first one I embraced.

I was very happy to see them all.

And they all started coming to me.

And I started going to them, hugging them, and everything.

So I was very happy.

I feel so good.

I really do.

ROBERT STACK (VOICEOVER): For Raymond, the end of the search

meant a new beginning.

We got a lot of catching up to do.

Yeah, we do.

I always knew their names and everything.

But I just didn't know how to go about finding them or anything.

We hunted.

And we just got turned down everyplace

we'd turn to try to find them till this come along.

And it worked.

[music playing]

Join me next time.

Perhaps you may be able to help solve a mystery.

[music playing]