All language subtitles for Unsolved.Mysteries.S09E05.AMZN.WEB-DL.DD+2.0.H.264-AJP69_track3_[eng]

[music playing]

NARRATOR: Tonight, on
Unsolved Mysteries.

NARRATOR: You've no doubt heard
of a near-death experience

where someone
embraced by the light

has a premature
glimpse of heaven.

Tonight, meet a man who says his
near-death experience took him

on a torturous journey
to the depths of hell

and changed his life forever.

Rushing home after the
birth of his first child,

Steve Newton hit a
wet patch of road.

Then, along came an
unknown good Samaritan.

Stephanie Booker
and two friends,

a moonlight cruise
on a lake in Texas,

ended in a horrifying collision.

Stephanie's physical
scars have begun to heal.

The man who nearly killed
her is still at large.

He was a convicted bank robber.

She was an elementary
school teacher who

helped him escape from prison.

See how one of our viewers
helped track them down.

If you're a woman traveling
alone, beware of this man.

Police say he offers
a helping hand

on the highway as a prelude
to kidnapping and murder.

Join me for these
intriguing cases.

Perhaps you may be able
to help solve a mystery.

[music playing]

NARRATOR: Sometimes,
the incredible occurs

when you least expect it.

Just ask Howard Storm.

In the summer of 1985, Howard
spent three weeks touring

Europe with his wife, Beverly.

In Paris, on their last day
abroad, disaster struck.

A curtain was drawn on
a profound drama that

would take Howard to
the brink of death

and launch him on a frightening
journey to the afterlife.

Howard, are you OK?

Oh my god, Howard,
what's the matter?

HOWARD STORM: I
thought I'd been shot.

There was the most
serious, excruciating pain

in the center of my abdomen.

I was just panicked,
full of fear.

I couldn't think at all.

The doctor that came to the
hotel and the two doctors that

examined me in the emergency
room at the hospital

all said the same
thing, that this

was a very critical situation.

And that if I didn't have
the surgery within an hour,

I would die.

NARRATOR: Howard's small
intestine had ruptured.

He was transferred to
another hospital where

the staff spoke only French.

Now there were problems
finding a surgeon.

HOWARD STORM: They didn't give
me any medication whatsoever.

No treatment whatsoever.

I was beginning to fear
that I wasn't going

to make it after a few hours.

After six or seven hours,
I had a very strong feeling

that I wasn't going to make it.

And after 10 hours,
I knew I wasn't.

I said to my wife, it's
time for us to say goodbye.

NARRATOR: When Howard
lapsed into unconsciousness,

it seemed like the
end was very near.

In fact, Howard's story
was just beginning.

He was about to embark on
what is commonly referred

to as a near-death experience.

Thousands of people
have described

such episodes as warm and
comforting, even heavenly.

Howard Storm, on the
other hand, believes

his near-death
experience took him

straight to the depths of hell.

What makes this story even more
remarkable is that at the time,

Howard was an avowed atheist
who believed in nothing--

not God, not heaven,
and certainly not hell.

By his own admission,
Howard Storm

was a man with a dark side.

An accomplished artist
turned professor,

Howard commanded everyone
around him with angry passion.

HOWARD STORM: My wife and
my children feared me.

Sometimes I was fun,
sometimes I was good,

but I also used
a lot of threats.

I used a lot of rage.

I used a lot of
coercion to get my way.

That was the bottom line all
the time, was to get my way.

My will to prevail.

NARRATOR: Now that person
lay in a Paris hospital.

As he slipped closer
to death, Howard Storm

said he took the first
step on a journey that was

nothing short of terrifying.

HOWARD STORM: I looked at the
bed, and I saw myself, lying.

And I was horrified, because I
knew that that's not possible.

Because I didn't believe
in life after death.

I didn't believe in God.

I didn't believe
in heaven or hell.

I mean, I really didn't believe.

Howard, it's
time, come with us.

I heard people calling
me from outside the room,

and they were saying,
Howard, Howard, hurry up.

You've got come with us.

It's time.

Come with us, Howard.

Howard, Howard.

It's time.

Come with me.

HOWARD STORM: I
assumed that they

must be hospital
personnel to come

to take me to have my surgery.

Where's my doctor?

This way.

HOWARD STORM: And they didn't
deny that, although they

didn't confirm it, either.

We're waiting.

HOWARD STORM: As I
walked with these people,

I became increasingly aware
that something was very wrong.

Everybody wants to help me.

Be quiet.

HOWARD STORM: These people
were getting more and more

aggressive, cruel to me.

We have to move along now.

HOWARD STORM: Alls
I wanted to do

now was to get away from them.

It was getting
darker and darker.

They kept leading me along,
standing in a circle around me.

And there was really no
way to escape from them.

They were scratching and
pushing and pulling at me.

And began biting at me.

So I was starting to yell and
scream and holler with pain.

And they thought
that was real funny.

And they really
liked that a lot.

The more that they did,
the better they liked it.

It was worse and worse
and worse to totally

tear me apart, not
only physically,

but psychologically,
emotionally.

In that place, I heard a voice,
which sounded like my voice,

say, pray to God.

I didn't believe in God.

It said a second
time, pray to God,

and I tried to
remember how to pray.

The mention of God pushed
them away from me, pushed them

back and back into darkness.

So I just kept at
it, kept at it.

It's as if it burned them.

They simply retreated
into the darkness.

Then they were gone.

Now I was all
alone in the place.

Left in physical pain, my
emotional pain, self pity.

Considering my
whole life, it was

sort of like, what
was the point of ever

living, to end up like this.

I never really accomplished
anything very significant.

Now I end up in this
place of torment.

Why was I ever born?

And in that state of, like,
complete hopelessness.,

I recalled myself
as a little child.

[child singing]

HOWARD STORM: And what was so
especially powerful about it

was that that child whom I had
been 30 years before believed

in something other than himself,
believed in something greater

than himself.

And in that complete despair,
pain and hopelessness,

a small light appeared,
and got brighter

and brighter and brighter.

And for the first time in
that light, I could see myself

and I was horrible.

I looked like roadkill.

I was just all mangled
and gore and horror.

And I felt this brightness
reach down and pick me up,

and I was like, all
healed and whole and full

of most wonderful,
physical, ecstasy.

I was being carried by my new
friend, this person of light.

I'm aware that there
is a tangible feeling

of light and lovingness
coming from that direction.

He called a number
of angels around us.

And they showed me the effects
that I had on other people,

how I hurt other people.

And I think to myself, I'm scum.

I don't belong here.

They made a mistake.

And then for the first time,
he spoke to me and said,

we don't make mistakes,
you do belong.

Where are we going?
Heaven?

No, Howard.

Not yet.

NARRATOR: Howard Storm's journey
to the other side was over.

He says a mysterious
figure instructed

him to return to work and
live with love in his heart.

I can't.

I can't.

You can.

[coughing]

NARRATOR: Soon after Howard
regained consciousness,

the surgeon arrived.

The operation saved Howard's
life, but not without a price.

He remained hospitalized
for two months,

suffering from hepatitis, double
pneumonia, a collapsed lung,

and minimal liver function.

Howard Storm would eventually
make a full recovery.

He would also undergo a
dramatic transformation.

The Lord be with you.

Lift up your hearts.

Let us pray.

NARRATOR: In 1988, Howard
left teaching and attended

a Methodist seminary.

Today, he is pastor
of Zion United Church

of Christ in southern Ohio.

HOWARD STORM: I'm thankful
for the whole experience

because it gave me a whole
second chance at life.

I feel like I died
and was born again.

My wife said that
on that day, I died.

And the person that came
out of that experience

was a complete stranger to her.

And I feel that way.

That I've been given a new life.

There's no doubt in my
mind that I went to hell.

I know what I experienced.

And I know it wasn't a dream.

And I know that there
is a conscious existence

beyond this world.
Outside of this world.

If you want to call
it another dimension

or you want to call it the
supernatural world or you want

to call it heaven and hell.

There is a life
beyond this life.

And we will reap the reward or
suffer the consequence of what

we've done with this life.

NARRATOR: Next, a
stranger's helping hand

becomes a fist of death
for a woman in Virginia.

NARRATOR: As children,
we're taught never to get

into a car with a stranger.

As adults, we sometimes
forget that lesson,

even though it's a lesson
that might save your life.

I'm going right to the mall.

I'll call you when I get there.

How are you getting there?

495 to 66, to 29,
straight to Charlottesville.

All right.
You've got a full tank of gas?

- I filled it last night.
- Good.

Love you.

Love you.

NARRATOR: On March 2nd, 1996,
Alicia Showalter Reynolds

said goodbye to her
husband and left her home

in Baltimore, Maryland.

It was a Saturday at
7:30 in the morning.

Alicia planned to drive
more than 150 miles

to spend the day
shopping with her mother

in Charlottesville, Virginia.

She left early, giving
herself plenty of time

to be at the mall by 10:30.

Alicia's mother arrived
on schedule, expecting

her daughter at any moment.

But she was late.

Sadie Showalter became worried.

SADIE SHOWALTER: Right about
11:00, she wasn't there,

and I said, this
is not like Alicia.

I wonder what's going on.

But I made myself
wait till 11:15.

And I then finally called
her husband, called Mark.

Have you heard from Alicia?

No.

I've been waiting.

It's over a half hour.

MARK REYNOLDS: At that point,
I said, you know, the weather

is kind of bad this morning.
There's a little fog.

There was a little drizzle.

Could have been
some slick roads.

Maybe she just slowed
down a little bit,

or, give her a little while
and give me a call back.

NARRATOR: Sadie
continued to wait.

An hour passed.

Then two.

Alicia never showed up.

At six o'clock that evening,
a Virginia state trooper

found Alicia's car
abandoned along

a highway near
Culpepper, Virginia,

50 miles from
Alicia's destination.

A white paper napkin
had been tucked

under the windshield
wiper, a commonly

used signal of car trouble.

When the car was
examined, however, there

were no mechanical problems.

SADIE SHOWALTER: My gut
reaction immediately

was that she was
gone, that somebody

had abducted her and taken her.

HARLEY SHOWALTER:
I feared the worst.

But we were told by many, many
folks to hope for the best.

Now we have an update
on our top story tonight.

As we told you,
25-year-old Alicia Reynolds

disappeared this weekend.

Her abandoned car was found--

NARRATOR: The next
day, the local news

media began broadcasting reports
of Alicia's disappearance.

Police set up a traffic block
where Alicia's car was found

and tracked down witnesses
who had seen her on route

29 the day she disappeared.

At least three people
saw Alicia talking

to a clean cut white man with
a dark colored pickup truck.

The traffic block also
produced witnesses

who had been approached by a man
fitting that exact description.

Police began to realize that
whatever it happened to Alicia

might have been the final act
of a nightmarish scenario that

had been evolving for weeks.

THOMAS CARTER: There were
approximately 20 women

who came forward after Mrs.
Reynolds' disappearance who

indicated that they,
too, had been stopped

along the route 29 corridor.

Most of the witnesses talked
about a man who would come up

behind them or beside them in
a dark, small, pickup truck,

flashing his headlights,
honking his horn,

looking in any way he could
to attract the attention.

Hey, lady, pull over.

There's something
wrong with your car.

I'm seeing sparks
out of your car.

THOMAS CARTER:
Most of the women,

they did have some
concern for their vehicle,

did manage to pull off
to the side of the road.

He immediately jumps
underneath the vehicle,

conducts an
examination, comes out.

And then engages them in
a conversation, a very

polite conversation, about
the mechanical difficulties

that he has allegedly uncovered.

NARRATOR: At that point,
the helpful stranger

usually offered to drive the
woman to the nearest phone.

There's a phone right inside.

OK.

Great.

NARRATOR: In at least
two cases, the women

accepted and came to no harm.

Other women found the
stranger to be anything

but kind and courteous.

THOMAS CARTER: Some of the women
would not pull over for him,

but merely went to the next
exit or to their destination

and had someone else
look at their vehicle.

Pull over, lady, your car.

THOMAS CARTER:
The only instances

where we have found that the
individual became agitated were

those instances where women
either refused his assistance

or refused to pull over for him.

And in those instances,
there was a display of anger

by him, such as pounding his
fist on the steering wheel

or murmurring things
under his breath.

RICK JENKINS: Looking
at all of the stops,

I think we pretty much all
agree that he was getting

his courage up if you will.

He was practicing, getting
comfortable at what

he was doing.

Was stopping these ladies
until he found someone that

trusted him enough
for him to carry

forward what he intended to do.

NARRATOR: One week before
Alicia Reynolds disappeared,

a woman driving through a
neighboring county apparently

fell for the same ploy.

I didn't mean to
scare you, but there's

something wrong with your car.

There's sparks coming
out the back of your car.

Sparks?

Yea, sparks.

So, there's a gas about
a mile up the road.

If you want me to give
you a lift up there,

I'll be happy to help you out.

LEO MCDONNELL: She said from
the first moment she met him,

he was soft spoken.

He seemed to be trustworthy.

She had no problem
with it at all.

And she knew she
needed a ride home.

She didn't know how to get home.

So she accepted the ride.

I really appreciate your
taking me to the gas station.

I don't know what
I would've done.

No problem.

Glad to help out.

Why are we slowing down?

I can't see anything
out of this windshield.

Frost.

LEO MCDONNELL: As they
were going along the road,

he would slow down.

And he would make the excuse
that there was bright lights

behind him or he couldn't
see because there

were vehicles behind him.

And he pulled off the road.

He did this three times.

We believe that he was
trying to establish

a place to do something.

Look, if you could
just take me to a phone,

I can just make a phone call.

Stop it.

What are you doing?

LEO MCDONNELL: She
became very frightened.

She fought him,
and he decided he

didn't want to fight with
her, so he pushed her away.

When he pushed her
out, he took off

and the shoulder belt was
still caught on her arm.

NARRATOR: The woman broke
her ankle, but she got away.

Seven days later,
Alicia Reynolds

would not be so fortunate.

For two months, the search
for Alicia proved fruitless.

Then on May 7th,
1996, a passer by

found her body in a
wooded area 15 miles

southeast of Culpepper.

Alicia had been
murdered, probably

on the day she disappeared.

MARK REYNOLDS: I don't want
it to happen to somebody else.

I think that's really my
main concern for the capture

of the guy is so
that I don't want

to hear about another
husband who lost his wife,

or another father and mother
who lost their daughter.

That's too much.

NARRATOR: The stalker may
have begun his rehearsals

in February of 1996.

He apparently stopped
operating in the Culpepper area

shortly after Alicia was
abducted on March 2nd.

No contacts have
been reported since.

RICK JENKINS: There is a
likelihood that the individual

has fled this area,
possibly the state,

and may be in another
community now,

where he may be preparing to
start the same type of behavior

again.

LARRY MCCANN: This
entire incident

was based upon the
perpetrator having a fantasy

and then living this
fantasy in his mind over

and over and over.

And then going out and
living it with a real person.

Getting a little
closer and a little

closer and finally with Alicia,
he found the perfect victim.

She got in the car with him.

And if we don't
catch him, there will

be another perfect victim out
there that will get in his car

again.

NARRATOR: Next, when a
motorcyclist loses control

of his bike, disaster
is averted thanks

to an unknown good Samaritan.

Also, an escaped
convict and his wife

are finally in custody
after 11 years on the run.

This quiet neighborhood
in St. Paul, Minnesota,

is a quintessential
American community.

Tree-lined streets, quaint
churches, cozy homes.

The kind of place where
everyone knows their neighbor,

or so they think.

For eight years, Thomas
Leo Langstone and his wife

lived in a small,
nondescript bungalow.

No one ever suspected
that Langstone

was in fact Richard
Cepulonis, an escaped convict

with a long criminal record.

In 1973, Cepulonis
and two accomplices

robbed a bank in
Woburn, Massachusetts,

and made off with more
than $17,000 in cash.

In fleeing, they almost
killed an innocent bystander.

Cepulonis was convicted of
bank robbery and armed assault.

His sentence?

58 to 82 years in prison.

Then he met Karen Walters.

Karen was an aspiring teacher
whose class assignment involved

writing letters to inmates.

Eventually, she
visited Richmond,

and their relationship
intensified.

For Karen, it was love.

For Cepulonis it may
have been something

different, perhaps nothing
more than a means to an end.

A A typically inmate
in prison, I find,

takes advantage of
people in the community.

Oftentimes, they'll latch
on to women who are lonely,

want some attention.

And they take advantage of them.

And I think the women are
beguiled by all that attention.

NARRATOR: Eight
years after they met,

Richard Cepulonis
and Karen Walters

married in the prison chapel.

Several months later,
Sepalotus escaped,

and the couple disappeared.

11 years would
pass before anyone

knew where Richard Cepulonis
and Karen Walters were hiding.

Let's go to Keely Shaye Smith
to find out what happened.

KEELY SHAYE SMITH: After
a recent broadcast,

a viewer in Minneapolis who
had done business with a couple

recognized Karen's photograph.

A task force which included
the local police and FBI

was mobilized and the
house was staked out.

On October 1st, 1996,
officers observed

Richard Cepulonis leave
his residence and drive

to a nearby convenience store.

STEPHEN GILKERSON: As he
pulled into the parking lot

and got out of the vehicle,
one of the task force members

was right there with him.

So he jumped out,
drew his weapon,

ordered Cepulonis not to move.

And at that point,
other task force members

got there, jumped out, and
assisted in the arrest.

KEELY SHAYE SMITH: Karen Walters
was picked up 20 minutes later.

For eight years, she and
Cepulonis had completely

fooled their neighbors.

KIMBERLY STRUSS: When I
found out that they were

who they were, I was shocked.

I couldn't believe it.

My mouth fell to the floor.

I never would imagined
in a million years

that these two people
would do anything wrong.

KEELY SHAYE SMITH: A bag of
robbery paraphernalia found

inside the hideout
gave authorities

a much different impression.

VERN LEE: The discovery of
the bag with the face mask,

the gun, the rubber
gloves, the large amount

of cash in small bills.

We think that perhaps he's
been back in the bank robbery

or robbery business again.

[music playing]

NARRATOR: August 27th,
1995, was a joyous day

for Steve and Cheron Newton.

That morning, their
first child, Virginia,

was born in Naples Community
Hospital in Naples, Florida.

It was the most incredible
thing I've ever seen before

in my life to watch
this child being born,

especially knowing
that it was my child.

STEVE NEWTON:
That's what I always

wanted to be was a father.

And I just-- she was my world.

That's pretty much how
I felt with my wife.

And you know, I just--
it couldn't have gotten

any better at that point.

NARRATOR: Steve had come to
the hospital straight from work

the night before.

At around 2:00 PM, he headed
home to pick up the family car.

The ride to the small
town of the Imocle

would take about
an hour and a half.

Over the previous
week, rainstorms

had blanketed the area.

Steve says it had cleared
by that afternoon,

but up ahead, disaster loomed.

A deep pool of water
covered the road,

creating a treacherous hazard.

STEVE NEWTON: It looked
like a mirage at first,

but it wasn't a mirage.

It was water.

I remember thinking, this is it.

I'm going to die.

I just remember coming
straight down on my head.

As I hit, I saw poof,
this big bright light.

And that was it.

Then I was just completely out.

Steve ended up in
a drainage ditch,

face down and unconscious.

Death was just a whisper away.

Are you OK?

Can you hear me?

STEVE NEWTON: I woke up.

And there's this lady
staring me in the face.

I remember thinking
that this woman

was like an angel of some sort.

She was just so peaceful,
so quiet, so pretty.

I'm going to stay here with
you until they get you, OK?

NARRATOR: The woman,
apparently a passing motorist,

had turned Steve
over in the water

and saved him from drowning.

She pulled him to his feet, led
him from the drainage ditch,

and over to a car.

STEVE NEWTON: I remember
standing in the car.

She was talking to me.

And after a while, her
voice started to fade out.

I remember that.

And then I remember seeing these
lights coming up the street.

NARRATOR: When
paramedics arrived,

Steve was in a precarious state.

Were you both involved
in the accident?

No, it's just him.

Sir, do you remember
what happened?

WAYNE WATSON: He appeared
slightly confused.

And he was hyperventilating.

Where are you hurt?

It's in my back
and my shoulder.

OK.

WAYNE WATSON: The woman
was there initially.

And since his answers
were somewhat disoriented,

I asked her what she
had found on the scene.

And she said that
he was face down

in the water at the roadside.

And when she initially
went up to him,

he was unconscious at that time.

He wasn't answering her at all.

He easily could have
drowned if she had

not pulled him from the water.

NARRATOR: The stranger
stayed at the scene

until Steve was taken away.

She gave a statement to
police, then disappeared,

without leaving her name.

How are you doing, sir?

You remember your name?

Steve.

One, two--

NARRATOR: Forty
minutes later, Steve

was brought into the same
hospital where his daughter had

been born just hours earlier.

STEVE NEWTON: I kept telling
him the whole time that, you

know, tell my wife I'm sorry.

And they didn't understand
what I was getting at.

But I just, I was really getting
at the fact that if I died,

I was really sorry
that, you know,

it shouldn't have
happened like this.

NARRATOR: More than a year
has passed since Steve

Newton's brush with death.

He is now on disability
because he suffers

from occasional seizures.

But if not for the
mysterious good Samaritan,

Steve Newton wouldn't
be here at all.

CHERON NEWTON: She
helped him stay around

to be a father to our daughter.

I mean, if she wouldn't have
helped him, he might've died.

And then, my baby
wouldn't have a father.

You know, that's basically
why I want to find her.

I just want to thank her.

STEVE NEWTON: I'm just
glad to be alive now.

I never thought about life.

You know, I'm here, and I'm
always going to be here.

And I just thank
God for each day.

I always knew
tomorrow was coming.

I always knew that
next week was coming.

And now, I don't take that for
granted no more, because it

could take end just like that.

If she could just
see my daughter,

she'll know that she did me
the greatest favor or gift

that anybody can give, and
that's to give me back my life.

And I'd like to say
thank you for that.

NARRATOR: With the
help of our viewers,

Steve Newton recently had
a chance to do just that.

Here's Keely Shaye
Smith with the details.

KEELY SHAYE SMITH: Bob, a
woman in Florida recognized

the story as one she had
heard from a coworker named

Tammy Dotson.

After the broadcast, Tammy's
boyfriend discussed the case

with one of his coworkers,
who happened to be

Steve Newton's father-in-law.

It soon became perfectly
clear that Steve's

mysterious good Samaritan
was, in fact, Tammy Dotson.

On January 31st,
1997, Steve and Tammy

met face to face
for the first time

since the near fatal accident.

As a special treat, Steve
brought along Virginia,

now 1 and 1/2 years old.

TAMMY DOTSON:
Nobody has ever gone

that hard to come to thank me.

And he kept saying
that I was his angel.

I've never been called
an angel before.

Far from it.

But, it just--

I mean, it made me
feel good inside

to know that I've done something
that helped somebody so much.

KEELY SHAYE SMITH:
Steve and his wife,

Sharon, now expecting
their second child,

were finally able to express
their gratitude to the woman

who saved Steve's life.

STEVE NEWTON: I
owe her everything.

And there nothing that
I have that I wouldn't

give to her to say thank you.

Start

KEELY SHAYE SMITH:
Before the day was out,

Tammy and Steve returned to the
scene of the accident, all too

aware that Tammy's
simple act of kindness

had changed both
of them forever.

STEVE NEWTON: It makes me want
to do more for other people

now.

If someone's in trouble, I would
go that extra mile, that extra,

just to help that person.

TAMMY DOTSON: I just
wanted to hug him.

I was so glad to see that
he was OK, and the baby,

and everything.

I was just thrilled
that he was fine.

NARRATOR: Next, a
hit and run boating

accident leaves a young
woman fighting for her life.

This is Stephanie
Booker of Dallas, Texas,

as she appeared in 1995,
before this happened.

Stephanie Booker 1995.

Stephanie Booker today.

The change may
seem slight to you,

but to Stephanie, her new face
is that of a stranger, artfully

created by plastic surgeons.

In that horrific hit
and run accident,

the other Stephanie
was destroyed.

It happened on Lewisville
Lake, 20 miles north of Dallas.

Stephanie Booker and
two friends, Sabra Scott

and Kim Colvin spent
a great deal of time

on the lake, swimming, sailing,
whatever appealed to them.

June 17, 1995 was a typical
outing until nightfall.

After a break for
dinner, the three friends

decided to take one last
cruise beyond the breakwater.

Near midnight, the young
women headed back to the slip.

Kim, it's really dark.

Can you help me [inaudible]?

NARRATOR: They slowed down
as they entered the marina,

maneuvering through
a no wake zone

that prohibits
boaters from going

more than 5 miles an hour.

Then, 100 yards
away, a speedboat

raced out of the darkness.

Stephanie and her friends
never had a chance.

A rumble, only silence,
stunned disbelief.

What did you just do?

Do you know what you just did?

You just hit my boat.
Look at this.

Oh my god.

KIM COLVIN: Sabra
was still screaming,

and I could feel someone
tugging on the back of my shirt.

And it was Stephanie.

And at that point,
I got on my knees,

and I could see that she
was in serious condition.

STEPHANIE BOOKER:
I tried to speak,

and no words would come out.

It was as if my
mouth felt sewn shut.

And so I had to brace
myself with my hands

to push my body up.

And then I felt this terrible
weight hanging off my face,

as if dough was
hanging off of my face.

And I reached up, and realized
that my face was in my hand.

NARRATOR: The
speedboat's propeller

sliced across Stephanie's
face, literally

slicing it from the bone.

KIM COLVIN: Her lips were
detached from her face.

I couldn't see
any gums or teeth.

There was skin hanging
down from her eye.

So I was seeing
her exposed face.

And I could tell she was
having a hard time breathing.

NARRATOR: On the other
boat, a young woman

appeared at the driver's side.

They stared.

Neither said a word.

KIM COLVIN: They stood
there, as if contemplating

the pros and cons.

I'm sure he thought he already
killed someone by looking

at the damage on our boat.

SABRA SCOTT: I remember
one of the individuals

making the other person to,
kind of like, be silent.

Don't say anything.

So it was total silence with me
yelling and screaming at him.

They made no motions
to say one word

or make any actions
towards to come to help us.

Please.
Come help us.

We need help.

We need help.

NARRATOR: When the driver
finally did do something,

it was to save himself.

He gunned his
engine and took off.

Don't leave.

Come help.

NARRATOR: Kim turned her
attention back to Stephanie,

and Sabra got the boat
started and made for shore.

KIM COLVIN: I'm thinking to
myself that Stephanie is going

to quit breathing
any minute now,

so the trip seemed
like it lasted forever.

Long enough for me to think, I
can't give her mouth to mouth

because I'm afraid if
I put any pressure,

it will cave in any
facial structure she has.

And also, I didn't think
there was an airway big enough

to get any air in her.

STEPHANIE BOOKER:
Looking at Kim,

not being able to
breathe very well,

I felt a very conscious
decision to either live or die.

And so at that moment,
instead of freaking out,

looking at Kim's face, I
decided to just remain calm.

And it was as if a
power overcame me

and gave me this
incredible strength

to take control of my life.

NARRATOR: As Stephanie was
being rushed to surgery,

police started looking for
the driver of the other boat,

or anyone who might
have seen him.

WELDON LUCAS: Right
after the accident,

we have two witnesses
that were there.

They heard the screaming.

They heard the noise
coming from the accident.

And then about 15 or
20 seconds after that,

they saw a boat fitting
this description just

come howling, but--

NARRATOR Five minutes
later, another eyewitness

saw two people
load the same boat

onto a trailer, towed by a
white four-by-four pickup truck.

Without even bothering
to tie down the boat,

they sped off into the night.

They remain unidentified.

The community was outraged.

While local businesses
raised reward money,

Stephanie suffered through
her own private ordeal.

Seven reconstructive
surgeries done,

and five more
scheduled to rebuild

her internal facial structure.

STEPHANIE BOOKER: I'm not
able to breathe very well.

I'm not able to smell as well.

Nor can I taste the way
I used to be able to.

And my teeth that I have are
very much for aesthetics,

for looks.

Memory, concentration
skills, the ability to do

more than one task at a time--

all the things that I used to do
and take for granted are gone.

And I walk by a
mirror after I've

had one of my many surgeries
and look at myself,

and just wonder, why
did someone do this?

Why did they not come forward?

Why don't they care?

We need help.

We need help.

She's hurt.

NARRATOR: At least one
person did seem to care.

Police have heard from
the same anonymous caller

on three occasions.

WELDON LUCAS: He
stated emphatically

that he knew who
it was, that he was

going to talk to
the person, and try

to get them to turn himself in.

From the tone of his voice
and the way he was talking,

we think that he
does know who it is,

and we would like for him
to at least contact us.

KIM COLVIN: It frightens
me that these people

are still out there.

It really does.

They've proven that they
place absolutely no value

whatsoever on human life.

That was shown the
night of our accident

when they chose to
leave us there to die.

STEPHANIE BOOKER: These people
being brought to justice

has a huge impact
on me emotionally,

as well as my family.

My feelings towards the
people in the other boat

was, I felt very sorry for them.

It had to be devastating to
cause an accident like this.

However, they do need
to do the right thing

and come forward so
that I can move on

and try to work on myself
emotionally and get back

as close to normal as possible.

NARRATOR: The suspect's boat is
a Miami Vice style speedboat,

with a single engine
mercury cruiser outdrive,

similar to these.

It is 25 to 30
feet long, painted

white with teal green markings.

The fiberglass
shell was probably

damaged on the starboard side
about five feet from the stern.

The motor would have had
damage to the outdrive,

girkins, skeg or gimbal rig.

It might have been
brought in for repairs

or sold some time
after June 17, 1995.

The driver of the
speedboat was a

stocky, muscular, clean shaven
white male with light hair.

His companion was an
athletic looking woman

with very long, dark hair.

They drove a white
four-by-four pickup truck.

[music playing]

NARRATOR: Join me next to
another compelling hour

of Unsolved Mysteries.

[music playing]