Original subtitles

[music playing]

ANNOUNCER: Tonight on "Unsolved Mysteries."

ROBERT STACK: During the wildest days of the Wild West,

a stagecoach massacre shocked the nation

and led to the unwarranted persecution of hundreds

of Native Americans.

Today some researchers believe the real culprits were an army

deserter and a beautiful Madam who were

looking to steal a fortune.

After six years in the minors, Tony Marabella's baseball

career was going nowhere fast.

Then Tony was stricken by a mysterious seizure

and an acute case of amnesia, which inexplicably made him

a better ballplayer than ever.

Mesquite Nevada, 1994.

A Casino payroll delivery, an inexperienced driver

on his first bank run, a perfect setup for a heist.

Police believe it may have been an inside job

and no one is above suspicion, not even the victims.

In Webster, Texas, a 58-year-old woman

was gunned down in a dark, deserted parking lot.

Now, her daughter is locked in a heated dispute

with a man she believes is a prime suspect.

Join me for these intriguing case and more.

Perhaps you may be able to help solve a mystery.

[music playing]

ROBERT STACK: This much is known,

Joan Jefferies died alone and scared in a suburban parking

lot.

[gunshot]

[gunshot]

The killer shot Joan twice in the head at close range.

Her car coasted on its own.

Again, the killer fired twice.

[gunshots]

Both slugs pierced Joan's heart.

No one has been charged with the murder

a 58-year-old Joan Jefferies.

However, her family is convinced they

know exactly who killed her.

A former business partner named Sam Patel.

I think Sam Patel had the motive.

I think I had the opportunity.

And I think the facts speak for themselves.

I did not kill Joan.

I had no reason to kill Joan.

I had no reason whatsoever.

Hi, Sam.

Hey, Joan.

Just the person I want to see. How are you doing?

Oh, good.

ROBERT STACK: Joan Jefferies was a clerk at a Houston,

Texas aerospace firm.

Sam Patel was employed there was a software engineer,

but he had far bigger plans.

I want to talk to you about a new business

I'm getting involved in.

It's a private airline shuttle between Houston and Vegas.

ROBERT STACK: It would be called Best Aviation.

A specialized commuter airline for gamblers.

I've got a few investors, but I think I'll

need you for public relations.

Public rel-- well, what would I do?

Well, you can talk to clients.

You can talk to the airlines, the casinos.

See, you're mature, you're experienced, and I trust you.

KELLEY WALKER: When Sam initially offered this position

to my mother she was, of course, flattered and excited

because the money was very good.

Now, this file I've set up for all correspondence--

ROBERT STACK: In April of 1994 Patel hired Joan part time

to help launch Best Aviation.

He also named her to the company's board of directors.

Though Patel was married, he and Joan often

met at the home of Richie Guyote, Patel's girlfriend

at the time.

Sam had an arranged marriage.

He had told me that he could not get a divorce.

And so we lived as boyfriend and girlfriend.

Thank you.

If you guys need anything I'll be upstairs.

I'll holler. Thanks.

And, Joan, look what I got for you.

A brand new laptop for your bookkeeping.

Patel told to Joan that overseas investors

would fund Best Aviation in the coming months.

Meanwhile, a top priority was obtaining life insurance

on the company's key people.

Joan herself was insured for a quarter of a million dollars.

The initial idea was presented from the investor group

because they wanted assurances that if something happened

to one of the key people in the organization

that the company could function and that they

would recover their investment.

I know what she does for a living

and basically she's a secretary.

And I can't see that as a key point person.

It just didn't-- nothing sounded right about that, so.

ROBERT STACK: Sam Patel had agreed

to pay Joan a monthly salary.

But between April and November of 1994

she received only one check.

It bounced.

Kelley Walker claims that by the beginning of November

her mother had had enough of Best Aviation and Sam Patel.

Sam, I want out.

Why, Joan?

Because there's no money.

KELLEY WALKER; When confronted he

became defensive and offended.

And that scared her.

And it also proved to her that something is wrong.

I just want out.

Now. - I understand.

I understand. You're upset.

I know you're upset.

SAM PATEL: Joan never approached me and said that she

wanted to leave the business.

There was a time when she said, hey look, this isn't working

out and I don't like it.

She did come up and say that and the compromise

we had come up with was, fine, you

can continue to be part time until you feel comfortable

and we'll go out and get somebody

else to work part time also.

OK? All right?

Please?

All right.

ROBERT STACK: By then, Joan's back wages

totalled close to $4,000.

Kelley says that two weeks after the confrontation Patel

showed up at her mother's apartment late at night

and unannounced.

You'll never believe what he just did.

He brought the check.

You have it?

JOAN JEFFERIES (ON PHONE): Well, no, I don't have it.

He had to take it out and get it copied.

KELLEY WALKER: She said that he had

to go get this certified check xeroxed,

which was odd to her and me.

Sam?

Hi.

Look, Joan, I tried, but I just couldn't find a Xerox machine

and I don't have a car, so I need to use your phone, please.

ROBERT STACK: By Kelley's account,

Patel's behavior that night turned from merely

odd to downright suspicious.

Kelley, I've got to go.

KELLEY WALKER: He was on foot that night.

Call me right back.

KELLEY WALKER: Told my mother he was doing computer time

at a company right around the block

and his wife was bringing him a rental car.

[non-english speech]

ROBERT STACK: Kelley says that Patel made no further mention

of the check, but he inexplicably presented

Joan with some unusual gifts.

A door alarm and a taser gun.

What do I need something like this for?

Joan this is for your protection.

Keep it. - No, Sam.

I'm not comfortable with something

like this in the house.

Look, I'll be outside waiting for Penny.

And if she does not show up, then I want

you to give me a ride home. - No, I can't do that.

I promised Kelley that I would call her right back.

ROBERT STACK:

Well, you call her and I'll be outside.

KELLEY WALKER: When she told me that he mentioned getting

into her car, that, I think, was the firmest I

have ever been with my mother.

Saying over and over, absolutely not, do

not ever let him in your car.

There's someone at the door.

Hold on, Kelley.

ROBERT STACK: According to Kelley,

Patel came to the door yet a third time.

Oh, Kelley, it's Sam.

Look, Sam, it's getting late.

Go away.

I'll see you at work tomorrow.

ROBERT STACK: Sam Patel says Kelly Walker is flat out wrong.

SAM PATEL: I have never met Joan like that.

I'd been to her apartment on a couple occasions before,

but I never went two weeks in the manner

that Kelley had described to the police.

Never, ever.

KELLEY WALKER: In retrospect, when I think about that night,

I truly believe it was a trial run.

And I think, because I was on the phone

and my mother continued to say, Kelley, it's Sam,

I think I stopped it that night.

ROBERT STACK: Two weeks later, after a business

dinner with Sam Patel, Joan Jefferies was murdered.

I'm meeting someone here.

Oh, there he is right there.

ROBERT STACK: Kelley says that her mother

was supposed to meet with both Patel and his wife, Penny.

Joan expected a check for back wages.

She intended to hand over the company files

and sever ties with Best Aviation.

- So how are you doing? - Fine.

Where's Penny?

I thought Penny was supposed to be here.

I'm sorry.

She didn't show up because she had to work late, but I'm here.

KELLEY WALKER: I advised her not to go.

You can do this at work.

And she thought, well, it'll be OK.

It'll be in a public place.

ROBERT STACK: Sam Patel insists that Joan had no plans to quit.

SAM PATEL: I asked Joan to meet with me.

And I told her, we'll meet, I can give you the check,

you can give me files.

We can arrange for our meeting with the investor group

for you to be there.

And that was the purpose of the meeting.

Good. It's all there.

Great.

Just what I need for the meeting.

Good. Yes, it's all there.

And guess what I have for you?

I've got your check?

Is it good?

It will be in a few days.

ROBERT STACK: The check was posted to December 9,

the day Patel said he expected the investors'

money to be in hand.

Shall we leave?

ROBERT STACK: Sam Patel and Joan Jefferies

left the restaurant around 10:00 PM.

Joan would never make it home.

Hi, Charlie.

What do we got here?

Best I can tell, a couple of shots the head.

Another couple to the chest.

ROBERT STACK: By 9:00 AM, detectives

we're beginning to piece together a scenario.

--theft until I saw this.

Can you see that over there?

Necklace?

ROBERT STACK: Joan's purse and keys were missing,

yet her golden diamond necklace was plainly in view.

Robbery seemed an unlikely motive.

DET.

SGT. CHARLES PROPST: Because of the multiple gunshot wounds

to the body, it would make you normally

think that the person was angered

or it was an overkill type situation.

Which again, would indicate that the offender is

known to the victim or had a grudge

or something of that nature.

I talked to the detective and I said,

well, you know, I know Joan and I was with her last night.

And he asked if I would mind coming in and I was--

I decided just to go ahead and go in.

There was no reason for me not to talk to them.

Could you account for your whereabouts right

after leaving the restaurant?

What happened?

What were your actions?

Yeah.

We walked out in the parking lot.

I spoke to her for 15, 20 minutes in the parking lot.

I walked to her car.

She went home and I went to my girlfriend's house.

At any time were you in her car?

No, sir.

I was never in her car.

- Are you sure about that? - Yes, sir.

I'm positive.

I've never been in her car and I was not in the car last night.

DET.

SGT. CHARLES PROPST: In the first interview that we had

with Sam Patel he told us that he had not

been in Joan Jefferies' car.

Later in a second interview, he changed his story

and said that he had in fact been in Joan's car

and that we would find evidence of such in her car.

Now, can you account for your movements

after leaving the restaurant?

Yes.

When I went to my girlfriend's house

and rode the bicycle for a few minutes.

You rode the bicycle?

Yeah.

Around the cul-de-sac for a few minutes.

I guess your girlfriend will back you up on that?

- She sure can. - What's her name?

RICHIE GUYOTE: I opened the door and Sam was there with a shirt

wrapped around his neck.

And I said, you know, what are you doing without your shirt

on?

You know, it's cold out there, you're going to catch cold.

And he said, I've been riding my bicycle.

I was hot.

I hadn't ridden a bike, I hadn't done any exercise

in months and months.

And I was going into the house.

I took my shirt off and I had it over me

and I was walking into the house.

And that shirt has never been found.

I think it's a very crucial piece of evidence

because he would have had to reach across Joan to take

the keys out and that shirt would have had a smear

of blood all up the arm.

SAM PATEL: There's no blood stains on it.

I have it in my closet.

And if whoever wants it, if the Webster police department would

send me a real nice note saying, please,

could we have the shirt?

I would be glad to hand over the shirt to them.

ROBERT STACK: Investigators say their attempts

to obtain the shirt have been unsuccessful.

However, early on they did believe

that other evidence could link Patel to the crime scene.

Hate to do this to you, buddy, but we

got some vomit here that needs to be cleaned for evidence.

ROBERT STACK: Subsequent analysis revealed the contents.

Precisely what Sam Patel had consumed during his dinner

with Joan.

It was lowly evidence, but it promised to break the case wide

open if DNA could be extracted from a specimen and if the DNA

matched Sam Patel's.

But in the end, the lab failed to retrieve any DNA.

Though the evidence is inconclusive,

Joan's family has no doubts.

I think Sam is responsible for the murder of my mother.

Because he had a key man life insurance policy

out on her life for $250,000.

She was ending her business relationship

with him that night.

So he needed to do it that night while she

was still an employee.

ROBERT STACK: Sam Patel continues

to maintain his innocence.

He insists that his actions after Joan's death

prove Kelley's accusations are groundless.

The very next day after her death, the board of directors

all got together and we decided that we would take

the entire proceeds from the insurance

and, a, either give it to the family, b,

donate it to some local charity that

would leave a lasting memorial for Joan,

or a combination of both.

[music playing]

ROBERT STACK: Next, will a mysterious case

of amnesia help of a young ballplayer

make it to the majors?

[music playing]

As soon as I got home and everybody started telling me,

this is your house, and this is where you sleep,

this is your brother.

I couldn't remember my brothers and sisters.

My grandfather lives with us, I couldn't remember him,

and it kind of disturbed me.

So I didn't feel really comfortable at my own house.

That's when I started getting scared.

ROBERT STACK: Last season, 22-year-old Tony Marabella

played third base for the Harrisburg Senators,

a AA team in the Montreal Expos Farm System.

He bats left, throws right, and has

good speed on the base paths.

He also has an extraordinary story to tell.

[cheering]

Tony Marabella's a walking, talking medical mystery.

Two years ago his career was on the skids,

his dream of playing in the big leagues fading rapidly.

Today all that has changed.

Tony may well become the first third baseman

to make it to the majors, thanks to a case of a cute amnesia.

[music playing]

ROBERT STACK: Tony broke into professional baseball in 1989

when he was just 16.

Everyone said he was destined to be a star.

But by May of 1994, after an assortment of injuries,

it looked like Tony was going nowhere.

Ironically, the turning point in Tony's career

came when he showed up at the ballpark with a headache.

TONY MARABELLA: I was taking batting practice one day

and the harder my head would hurt,

the harder I would try to hit the ball

because I was getting mad and it was getting worse and worse.

And for me I thought, I just thought if I swing harder it'll

kind of get loose or something.

I don't know.

I took my last one, and then I just couldn't take it anymore

and just walked off the batting cage, started to get dizzy,

and I fell.

Tony, what's the matter?

Tony?

Tony, come on. Relax.

Relax. Come on.

- Ho, ho, ho, ho. - Come on, relax.

- Tony, Tony, Tony, - Yeah, go get some ice.

Call 911.

OK.

ROBERT STACK: The team knew Tony was in serious trouble.

He was a guy who had always played through every injury.

[beeping]

He's coming to.

Hey, Tony?

Tony? Tony, look here.

TONY MARABELLA: I kind of woke up

and saw, like, a lot of people.

And they started asking me questions.

Where do you live, Tony?

He's got an apartment in the city, doc.

What were you doing when you fainted, Tony?

Do you remember what you were doing when you fainted?

TONY MARABELLA: For me, it was everything was like so fast.

Like asking the questions 100 miles an hour

and I couldn't comprehend what was going on.

I didn't-- because I didn't know my name.

So I was kind of getting scared.

And there was one guy answering all the questions.

It was after batting practice.

He just kind of walked back to screen and just keeled over.

TONY MARABELLA: I waited until everybody left.

Not to be, I mean, rude or anything.

I turned around and I go, I don't want to be rude,

but who the hell are you?

Come on, Tony.

I'm the trainer, man.

Trainer for what?

TONY MARABELLA: Then he told me that he was

the trainer from the ball team.

I'm a baseball player.

And I went, oh, baseball player?

He goes, yeah, look.

I look down there and I had my baseball uniform.

I go, OK.

But then I didn't know if I was a second baseman,

third baseman.

ROBERT STACK: A battery of tests failed

to reveal any neurological reason for Tony's collapse.

It was as if a tiny invisible bomb

had exploded inside Tony's brain obliterating only his memory.

DR. FREDERICK EDELMAN: Memory of who we are

is the most basic memory that we have.

When we separate as infants from our mothers

we have some basic concept of ourselves.

And other amnesic syndromes that can produce loss of memory

usually don't involve loss of memory of ourselves.

So that was what was quite bizarre.

ROBERT STACK: Tony's doctors tried

everything to jog his memory.

They hoped pictures of his girlfriend

would spark a glint of recognition.

TONY MARABELLA: Now, I look at the pictures

and there was a pretty girl in there,

so I go, cool, I was with her.

All right, I got a good looking girlfriend.

But I couldn't remember who she was.

I mean, I don't know, on the back it said Isabel.

And I go, OK, I guess her name is Isabel,

but I couldn't remember.

Tony?

Hey.

How's it going.

Oh my god.

I was so worried about you.

ROBERT STACK: When Isabel came to visit

Tony pretended to know her.

I'm OK.

How are you doing?

TONY MARABELLA: It was like a brand new girlfriend.

It's like a blind date.

I brought you something.

Oh, thank you.

Yeah.

They look like the ones from my garden.

Your garden?

Yeah.

The one you helped me plant. - Oh, yeah.

OK.

I remember that.

TONY MARABELLA: See, I did that a lot though.

Not that I lied to a lot of people,

but I said I remembered stuff.

I'd go off the blank, they'd asked me questions, hey,

do you remember this, when this happened?

I'd answer yeah just not to have any more questions about it.

So that's what I kind of did to her.

ROBERT STACK: When no physiological basis was found

for Tony's blackout and subsequent amnesia,

he and his doctors began searching for another cause.

Perhaps Tony's problems stem from the stress and frustration

of a failing baseball career.

DR. FREDERICK EDELMAN: He's in a very

competitive situation trying to make it as a pro player.

He apparently was not getting much sleep,

he was away from home, he was a young guy

that was sort of isolated.

And it's possible that things sort

of came crashing down on him and literally he collapsed.

ROBERT STACK: After a three month layoff,

Tony returned to the ball field.

It was the best possible therapy.

Being around his old teammates suddenly

began to trigger his memories.

Hey, remember the pitch before that?

Right before I hit the home run. - Up and in.

And when we started that brawl.

Almost did. - Completely.

You remember that? - Oh, yeah.

TONY MARABELLA: And I kind of just--

I just jumped.

I go, oh yeah, remember when this happened?

And without knowing what I just, and then

I realized, hey, remember that?

And I remembered the whole thing.

Oh, yeah.

At the ninth inning.

At the ninth inning.

ROBERT STACK: It was the beginning of what would

become a complete recovery.

Incredibly, Tony soon found that his bout with amnesia

had one miraculous side effect.

He was now playing the best ball of his life.

TONY MARABELLA: Baseball was so fun.

I mean, I would run hard, play dive everywhere.

Play just like a little kid.

When the game was over I'd go home

and wouldn't even think about it because for me it was fun.

And that's when my game got better.

And it just kept getting better and better because my outlook

on baseball and life in general is

was just so much better than it was before.

ROBERT STACK: While there was still no scientific explanation

for Tony's amnesia, it's effect upon his play is indisputable.

A career 250 hitter, Tony began batting at a near 400

clip upon his return.

[music playing]

ROBERT STACK: Coming up, a 19th century stagecoach attack has

prompted a contemporary debate.

Who was responsible for the Wickenburg Massacre?

But first, authorities need your help

to track down the key suspect in a brazen payroll robbery.

[music playing]

I didn't think that he was going to leave any witnesses.

I really didn't.

And he had the perfect opportunity

to kill us and leave us.

ROBERT STACK: This man, who we will call Jim,

says he was a victim of an armed robbery in 1994.

The FBI, however, has a different take.

They consider Jim a suspect.

For the past six years, Jim has worked as a security guard

at the Virgin River Casino in Mesquite, Nevada.

On Thursday, August 25, 1994, Jim and the assistant cage

manager picked up the payroll at the local bank

then headed back to the casino.

How's the baby doing?

He's doing good.

He's sleeping through the night.

I've only had two bad nights so far.

Oh, that's good.

That's good.

- Don't make any sudden moves. - Hey.

Shut up. Don't say nothing.

Don't turn around.

If you make any moves, I'm going to kill this girl next to you.

Calm--

Just shut up.

Don't turn around or I'll kill you, I said.

Look straight ahead. - All right.

JIM: I looked to look in the back to the rear-view mirror

to see what was going on back there and I couldn't see

a whole lot, but he did know that I

looked back there and he said if I did

that again he was going to--

he was going to blow her brains out all right then.

With your left hand take your gun

out and throw it on the ground.

Take your walkie talkie and throw it on the ground, too.

OK.

Don't turn around.

ROBERT STACK: The robber ordered Jim off the main road

and directed him to a deserted area outside town.

JIM: You know what's going to happen.

He's got the motive, he's got everything.

He's holding all the cards.

Keep your hands up.

JIM: You're just waiting to catch a bullet

and you can feel it.

You're just waiting to.

ROBERT STACK: But the gunman drove off, leaving

both eyewitnesses unharmed.

He got away with $220,000 in unmarked $100 bills.

From the start, the FBI and local police

believed the robbery was most likely an inside job.

The gunman was either very lucky or someone tipped him off.

Everyone at the casino became a suspect.

Not surprisingly, Jim and the assistant cage manager

were at the top of the list.

ROBERT STACK: Investigators soon discovered

that the day of the robbery was marked by a series

of atypical circumstances.

First, the cage manager and the security

chief who ordinarily handled the bank runs were gone.

Second, the assistant cage manager decided to make

the bank run two hours early.

Third, Jim had never before been assigned payroll duty.

Finally, the casino hospitality van driven to the bank

was not commonly used for payroll runs.

MIKE MURPHY: So the question came up,

how was the robber going to be so sure that this

was going to be the day that that van

was going to make that run?

Too much coincidence.

Too many times too many things fell into place.

Too many things happened right in this thing.

Somebody, in my opinion, gave him some information.

We still had inconsistencies with both

of the accounts of the teller and the security officer.

Things that just didn't make sense.

He even asked me at one time, why didn't you slam

on the brakes on the vehicle?

It's a big van.

You know, they don't lock up like they do in the movies.

You don't click your radio on like they do in the movies

and everything goes smooth and everybody hears where you're at

and what's going on.

Don't talk.

JIM: There was no way I could reach over and key that mic

without him knowing about it.

Every time that he saw me trying to get a description of him,

he would tell me, said he was going

to kill us if I did that again and I didn't

want to take that chance.

ROBERT STACK: An hour after the robbery, police located the van

abandoned about a mile south of the spot

where the gunman had dumped Jim and the assistant cage manager.

Jim's gun and radio were missing.

Police took plaster casts of footprints and tire prints that

indicated the robber had walked from the van to another vehicle

and driven away.

Despite a thorough investigation,

the authorities could not link casino insiders to the robbery.

The case stalled.

Then the police got lucky.

About a month and a half after the crime,

the Mesquite police were following

a simple domestic dispute call in Mesquite, Nevada.

There was a gun involved in the dispute

and it turned out that that gun was in fact

the security officer's weapon that

was stolen during the robbery.

ROBERT STACK: The man in the domestic dispute

was ruled out as a robbery suspect.

The FBI turned to the man who sold

him a gun, Luis Ochoa, the owner of a local pizza parlor.

Police, how you doing?

HENRY WILKS: He was nervous and defensive

from the very beginning.

Mr. Ochoa, would it be OK if we go inside and have a talk?

Actually, it's OK.

We can talk out here.

HENRY WILKS: He didn't want us to come in the pizza shop.

We found that a little bit odd.

He immediately set our alerts off

that he didn't want us to be there

and he really didn't want to talk to us.

I didn't sell anybody any gun.

I don't know nothing about any guns.

I don't know nothing about the robbery.

I'm in the pizza business, guys.

I'm not in the gun business.

HENRY WILKS: That was probably a great stroke of luck for us

that he kept us outside because we were

standing by the pickup truck.

We're here doing our investigation.

During the month and a half after this robbery,

I sat and I looked at this plaster casting of a tire print

until my eyes were going to fall out.

I knew what the tire print looked like.

I looked down at the tires on his truck and they matched.

ROBERT STACK: The FBI obtained search warrants.

In Ochoa's house they found $5,000 in $100 bills

tucked in the toe of a cowboy.

Bring me an evidence bag.

ROBERT STACK: In Ochoa's truck they

found a bullet, the same kind used in Jim's gun.

HENRY WILKS: As the searches were going on,

Mr. Ochoa was in fact with an attorney

and they were making arrangements to come and meet

with myself to discuss Mr. Ochoa's involvement in the case

and possibly his accomplices.

Things were starting to unravel very quickly for him.

And I think at that point Luis decided it

was time to get out of Dodge.

ROBERT STACK: His attorney got word to us

that Mr. Ochoa had left his office on a break

and had never returned.

He was unaware of his whereabouts.

And from that point on, we don't know where he is.

[music playing]

On a quiet highway 60 miles from Phoenix,

Arizona stands a small often overlooked monument

memorializing the victims of a tragic incident

from the long ago days of the Wild West.

[music playing]

[gunshots]

Apaches!

[gunshots]

ROBERT STACK: In all, six men lay dead.

One had been scalped, another had been dispatched

with a lance through his chest.

The atrocity would come to be known

as the Wickenburg Massacre.

Miraculously, two people did survive.

Though injured, William Kruger and Mollie Sheppard

lived to tell what would become the official account

of the massacre.

But did Kruger and Sheppard tell the true story?

Kruger blamed the attack on the Apaches.

The government retaliated.

And as a result, scores of innocent Native Americans died.

But there is evidence to suggest that Kruger and Sheppard were

in fact notorious outlaws who orchestrated the attack hoping

to pocket a fortune.

Today many believe Kruger and Sheppard

caused a great injustice to be committed.

An injustice that demands to be righted.

ROBERT STACK: November 5, 1871 dawned

peacefully, giving no indication of what was to come.

When William Kruger and Mollie Sheppard

climbed aboard the stage in Wickenburg that morning

they seemed an unlikely pair to change the course of history.

Mollie was a well known prostitute and madam who

had recently sold her bordello.

Kruger was a two time army deserter

who had somehow managed to hire on as a civilian clerk

for the military.

DANA BURDEN: William Kruger's a wonderful character, just kind

of a floater and a gambler and a whoall.

He didn't have any holdings.

He didn't own anything and was apparently

traveling with Mollie.

From what I know the story is that it was done by Indians,

fewer than 20.

And they set up an ambush and just

shot the heck out of things.

And the two that got away got away because the Indians

were on foot.

They didn't have horses, so they were unable to chase them down.

Well, sir, this is how it happened.

We got into Wickenburg this morning

and we switched teams of horses to get fresh horses.

ROBERT STACK: A day after the attack, while Mollie lay

nursing her wounds, Kruger was questioned

by Captain Charles Minehold, who'd been assigned

to investigate the incident.

We started out, and I think it might have been

about 9:00 or 10:00 o'clock, but don't quote me exactly on that.

We started out and everything was just fine.

I mean, it was a nice trip, and everybody was happy.

And in fact, everything up to here was fine.

It was a very pleasant trip.

And then, sir, I believe it was about 11 AM

or so that I heard the driver yell, Apaches!

Apaches!

And the next thing I know, sir, these Indians are firing on us.

[gunshots]

And they got Mr. Warren.

You know, the famous author?

He was up top.

They got him and the driver, sir.

To be honest, they didn't even have a chance up there.

And then they wounded Mr. Salmon, spelled

just like the fish, you know?

And he got out the back of the coach

and he went running the other way.

And these Indians they swooped down on him, sir.

They swooped down and they scalped him, sir.

They scalped him there.

And it was horrible, sir.

And I saw it.

And I fired back at them and I got a couple,

but that just left me and Mr. Hamill, you know, in the coach

itself and, uh, and we did everything we could.

But there just wasn't nothing left that we could do.

And how was it that you Miss Sheppard were able to escape?

Sir, that was only by the grace of God.

I mean, poor Mollie, she was wounded so badly

she couldn't even really run.

And Mr. Hamill and I, you know, we were fighting

and he was hit so bad that he couldn't go anywhere.

And I knew our only chance, sir, our only chance

was to just make a run for it.

Go, go. Mollie, go.

WILLIAM KRUEGER: And during that split second, Mollie and I,

we got out the other side and we just took off

running in the opposite direction, sir,

until we finally got away.

You say the attackers were Apache?

Are you sure of that?

Absolutely, sir.

We were only about 20 or 30 yards from them.

I mean, they had on them blue Cavalry pants.

You know, like you got on?

You know the kind they give them on the reservation.

You know the kind I mean, sir? - Yes, sir.

I do.

Exactly how many attackers were there?

Well, sir, I counted at least 15.

But you know, there might have been more.

- 15? - Yes, sir.

Maybe more.

Thank you, Mr. Kruger, for your cooperation.

Thank you, sir.

God bless.

Lieutenant, tell them men we'll ride at sun up.

I want to get a look at this site myself.

[music playing]

Scout, check the area for track.

ROBERT STACK: By the time Minehold reached the site,

the bodies of the victims had been returned

to Wickenburg for burial.

Minehold uncovered several signs that

indicated the Native Americans had been present.

DANA BURDEN: Well, Minehold was a military person

and looked at it, I guess, like military would.

And he really carefully studied the footprints,

the moccasin prints, which they were wearing moccasins.

And most of the moccasin, most of them

were toed in, which is typical of the way

Native Americans walk.

ROBERT STACK: The tracks led toward the Camp Date Creek

reservation 25 miles away.

The reservation was home to 750 members of the Yavapai tribe.

But curiously, several miles before the tracks

reached Camp Date Creek, they veered

off in a different direction.

This to me, would indicate possibly a non-Native American

group that is heading towards Camp Date Creek to make it look

like the perpetrators are heading back

to the military reservation.

ROBERT STACK: They Yavapai, who were

often misidentified as Apaches, were a largely peaceful people.

Many worked as laborers and scouts for the settlers.

To those who knew them, it seemed

inconceivable that the Yavapai would

have attacked the stage coach.

JEFF HAMMON: It was impossible.

It would have been the most bizarre

Indian massacre, Native American massacre that ever occurred.

There were only six occasions throughout the entire Western

frontier when American Indians actually, Native Americans,

attacked stage coach.

If this was a Native American attack,

we would find that the livestock certainly

would have been missing.

We would have found that the ammunition and the weapons

certainly would have been missing.

And we would also have found that any of the blankets

would have been taken.

But in this particular case, none of it

was touched whatsoever.

ROBERT STACK: But the most baffling discrepancy

was centered on several bags of mail that had been loaded

onto the stage at Wickenburg.

After the attack, most of the letters in the bag

were found intact and undisturbed.

However, a number of letters addressed to the army quarter

master had been opened and their contents carefully reinserted.

BILL SMITH: The mail, going through the mail,

this is something that an Indian or Native American would

not do is go through the mail.

This certainly, to me, would indicate that it

was a non-Indian attack.

ROBERT STACK: But if it wasn't the Yavapai, who was it?

In those days gold booty was often transported by stage.

According to at least one account,

Mexican bandits disguised as Apaches were responsible.

Others point to another, more intriguing possibility.

JEFF HAMMON: Kruger and Sheppard masterminded the entire thing.

It had to be them.

If it was bandits, Mexican bandits or typical highwaymen,

why did they let Kruger and Sheppard get away?

So these Indians, they're slithering up on us like vipers

coming back to the nest.

ROBERT STACK: Kruger's account of his escape

seemed hard to believe, especially

given the condition of his gun.

JEFF HAMMON: Kruger's gun supposedly

hadn't even been fired.

He probably had another gun, or he had switched guns

with one of those that was killed,

which is why he ended up with a gun that hadn't been fired.

ROBERT STACK: Jeff Hammon believes

that Kruger and Shepard hired the bandits

to assist in the heist.

JEFF HAMMON: Krueger probably fired first

to begin with inside the coach.

The attackers shooting on the outside.

Would have been easy to wipe out anybody inside the stagecoach.

They wouldn't have expected somebody inside the coach

to start shooting.

I think they either meant to wound Sheppard to make

it look like an actual attack.

I mean, Kruger himself has a very slight wound.

Mollie had a more serious wound.

But she may have been willing to do it on purpose,

depending on how much money they were getting,

or somebody simply got carried away

when they were attacking the stage and accidentally hit her.

ROBERT STACK: In his report, Captain Minehold

acknowledged rumors that quote, the scheme was intended to rob

the mail of the bullion generally

ship on or shortly after the first of every month.

But Minehold made no mention of a gold shipment

on the ill fated stagecoach.

There had to be something worthwhile.

Whatever it was, it was something

that was privately owned.

That was the reason it wasn't officially reported.

The person that owned the money that was taken was dead.

There was nobody left to be upset about it.

ROBERT STACK: Jeff Hammon believes that Kruger hid

the loot somewhere near the massacre site,

where only he and Mollie could find it.

JEFF HAMMON: Kruger had expected to walk out there

a few days later and dig it up.

He couldn't.

He had no idea that this would cause national attention to it.

He knew there was nothing he could do.

If anybody found him out there outside of Wickenburg digging

in the ground, he would have ended

up on the other side of a rope.

I mean, everybody suspected him anyway,

but they couldn't prove it.

ROBERT STACK: If there was a treasure,

it seems unlikely that William Kruger and Mollie

Sheppard ever recovered it.

Mollie dropped from sight soon after the incident

and there were rumors that she had died of her wounds.

Kruger was last heard from 13 years later

when he sued the government for money he claimed

to have lost in the attack.

The Wickenburg Massacre caused a national outrage.

Within 18 months of the attack, the Yavapai

were driven out of Camp Date Creek

by a government bent on retaliation.

Eventually, hundreds of innocent men, women, and children

would die from starvation and disease.

We may never know who was responsible for the Wickenburg

Massacre.

But there is one undeniable fact, the list of victims

stretches far beyond the six men who

were gunned down on that tragic fall morning

more than a century ago.

[music playing]

Join me next time for another fascinating addition

of Unsolved Mysteries.

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