All language subtitles for Unsolved.Mysteries.S09E11.AMZN.WEB-DL.DD+2.0.H.264-AJP69_track3_[eng]

ANNOUNCER: Tonight on
"Unsolved Mysteries"--

ROBERT STACK (VOICEOVER):
Rock and roll star Kurt Cobain

was renowned for his
music and denounced

for his drug-addicted lifestyle.

To many who suicide in
1994 seemed understandable.

But what if Kurt Cobain
did not take his own life?

At least one
investigator is convinced

that the official ruling
was a rush to judgment.

The police have always valued
the phenomenal nose of the dog,

whether it's tracking a
fugitive, detecting a bomb,

or uncovering a stash of drugs.

Now the medical
world is catching on.

Can a dog's remarkable
sense of smell

be used to sniff
out deadly cancers?

Tommy Zeigler is a
condemned man, sentenced

to the electric
chair for a Christmas

Eve rampage that left
four people dead,

including his own wife.

Recently, an independent
lie detector test

suggested that Zeigler
may, in fact, be innocent.

You be the judge in the
final appeal Tommy Zeigler.

Join me for another
intriguing addition

of "Unsolved Mysteries."

[theme music playing]

The cure for cancer is
medicine's holy grail.

In the absence of a cure, early
diagnosis is our best hope.

Amazingly, one of mother
nature's most ingenious designs

may have given us
an astonishingly

accurate detection device.

This unsolved mystery
could save your life.

A dog's nose, as sensitive
as radar, as accurate

as a heat seeking missile.

It's been estimated that
a dog's sense of smell

is more than 200 million times
stronger than that of humans.

Over the centuries,
we've trained

dogs to find anything we need.

Incredibly, our
four-legged friends

may also be able to detect
some kinds of cancer

as long as two years before
doctors can diagnose it.

Duane Pickel has been
training dogs professionally

for more than three decades.

He worked with them
during the Vietnam War

during his 22 years
with the Tallahassee,

Florida Police Department.

When a local
dermatologist wondered

if cancer had a signature scent
and if dogs could smell it,

Dwayne decided to find out.

I talked to several
nurses at the hospital

and they said, yes, I
can smell cancer myself.

And said, [inaudible],, when
you got off the elevator floor

at the hospital,
there's something unique

about that floor
as far as smell is

concerned-- not
necessarily offensive,

but something very unique.

ROBERT STACK (VOICEOVER): The
initial experiments centered

on skin cancer for two reasons.

First, it affects more
people than any other cancer,

killing thousands every
year; second, skin cancer

is extremely difficult for
doctors to detect visually,

especially the most
dangerous type, melanoma.

Melanoma begins on
the surface of the skin

and at that point
is 100% curable.

However, if you ignore it, it
will grow deeper into the skin

and eventually, it will
reach the blood vessels.

Once it reaches
the blood vessels,

it can spread around the body
and reach the vital organs.

Once it's done that,
there is no treatment.

ROBERT STACK (VOICEOVER):
Duane hid real melanoma cells

inside plastic tubes, hoping
the scent was strong enough

for a dog to detect.

Duane started the
experiment with George,

a standard schnauzer already
trained to sniff out bombs.

Once George was given the
scent, Duane hid the canister.

DUANE PICKEL: I wasn't
sure whether it was going

to have a strong
smell or whether it

was going to be like a salt,
have a very weak smell.

But we found out that it
has a very strong smell.

And if you're going to compare
the ease of finding cancer

with the ease of finding
drugs, you'd have to equate

cancer with marijuana.

It's a very strong odor.

It's very odiferous, very
easy for the dog to find.

ROBERT STACK
(VOICEOVER): Duane Pickel

took pains to make
certain George

was actually finding
cancer cells.

To be sure the dog
couldn't be thrown off,

he also tested George's ability
on a variety of other cells.

We used normal lung
tissue from pigs,

we used normal lung tissue
and skin tissue from people,

we used necrotic tissue.

We used everything
we could to make

sure that the dog was really and
truly trained to find cancer.

Show me where it's at.

Good boy.

OK.

Then we knew that
we had it made.

The dog was doing a good job
and was, indeed, finding cancer.

ROBERT STACK (VOICEOVER): The
first part of the experiment

seemed a clear success.

Out of 451 searches,
George and other cancer

trained dogs had a
99.8% success rate.

Now Duane went to
the next level.

Kim Edwards, a nurse,
became a human volunteer.

During each of a
dozen tests, she

placed bandages on her body.

Sometimes there were live
cancer cells beneath them,

sometimes there were none.

KIM EDWARDS: I actually
would use long underwear

to completely cover everything
so that George wouldn't have

any indications of where
the bandages might be placed

or where the cancer
cells might be placed.

OK, Kim.

Let's just go
ahead and lay down.

We'll get started.

KIM EDWARDS: And Duane would not
know how many bandages I had on

or even whether I had any
cancerous bandages on.

Come on, George.

Check.

Check.

Check.

Very good.

OK.

Is that where you put it?

Yeah.

That's the spot.

Show Show me again.

Where's it at?

Every time George indicated
only on the cancer cells.

He hit every one of them every
time, or if there were none

he never indicated on them.

While you're doing that, we're
going to have the dog check you

and were going to
start at the head.

ROBERT STACK (VOICEOVER):
Eddie Messer,

a Tallahassee police
officer, also volunteered

as a human Guinea pig.

A biopsy on a suspicious
spot on Eddie's back

had already tested
negative for skin cancer.

George slowly went
over Eddie's body,

checking each
bandage thoroughly.

When George reached
the suspicious spot,

his nose smelled skin cancer.

When George first put
his nose to that spot,

it felt a little funny there.

But knowing and being in the
background that I've been in

and working with dogs at the
airport and what have you,

it makes you think maybe he
knows what he's talking about.

ROBERT STACK (VOICEOVER):
For a second opinion,

Duane's partner,
Glenda [inaudible],,

brought in her cancer
trained dog, Breeze.

Breeze confirm
George's diagnosis.

Eddie had a second biopsy,
it was still negative.

Duane was sure it was wrong.

They called me and said, well,
the spot come back negative.

I said, I'm very
sorry, but my dog said

it's melanoma, it's melanoma.

So then they took
off the whole lesion

and they froze it and they
sent it to a lab in Cleveland.

They shaved it just one
little stroke at the time.

It actually took four
and a half days later

before they found
that there was a spot

in the middle of
that lesion that

was a melanoma level three.

If it hadn't been for
the dog, if it hadn't

been for this pathologist
just checking on this one spot

for four and half
days and finding,

yes, proving the dog was
right, in a couple of years

it could have been
beyond repair.

So now we found it early
enough that it is repairable.

He's going to do fine.

This could lead to
some exciting research

in finding out what is it
that the dog's smelling?

And that may lead to
blood tests or other tests

to find these molecules as a
detection system for cancers.

ROBERT STACK (VOICEOVER): Coming
up, the mysterious case of rock

and roll star Kurt Cobain.

Is there more to his
untimely death than suicide?

But first, a judge
put him on death row

for the cold-blooded
murder of four people.

Now an independent
lie detector test

suggests he may be innocent.

Also, Lu Hanessian joins
us from the phone center

with an intriguing update.

You may recall this
harrowing scene

from a previous broadcast.

[gunfire]

The double murder was as
mystifying as it was ruthless.

Michelle Cartagena
and Grant Hendrickson,

to straitlaced dean's
list college students,

had been killed in a barrage
of semiautomatic rifle fire.

Michelle's body had been dragged
from the car and her clothing

left in disarray.

One eyewitness
reported seeing a Honda

CRX near the lakeside park where
Grant and Michelle were killed.

Others described a similar
a car speeding from the area

just after the murders.

At the scene, the only clues
were spent shells from a Colt

AR15 semiautomatic rifle.

To solve the crime, authorities
would need a run of luck

in a classic case of detective
work they made their own.

Keely Shaye Smith is
still on maternity leave.

Here's Lu Hennesian with the
tales of the investigation

that cracked the case.

Thanks, Bob.

For nearly two
years, investigators

checked the records of every
major pawn shop and gun dealer

within 150 miles
of Macon, Georgia.

They interviewed every
single person who

had sold or pawned a Colt AR15.

The first 2,000 leads
turned out to be dead ends.

Still, they persisted.

One of the agents found some
pawn records on an assault

rifle that he was following up.

When he followed
up those records,

that's where he
located Mr. Randy Cook.

And he in a routine interview
there interviewed him

and the suspect acted
somewhat suspicious,

made him want to follow
that up a little further

and that's how he was
developed as a suspect.

LU HANESSIAN (VOICEOVER): The
suspect 22-year-old Andy Cook,

had also owned a Honda
CRX similar to the one

spotted at the scene.

Authorities kept Cook under
surveillance and within a week,

he managed to get
himself arrested

on a hunting violation.

Later that day, Cook's father
told authorities his son had

confessed to the double murder.

A ballistics test
was the clincher.

Police say slug's
from Cooks rifle

matched those that had
killed Grant Hendrickson

and Michelle Cartegena.

ROBERT STACK (VOICEOVER):
For convicted

murderers on death
row, it's just

a few short steps to eternity.

The electric chair
awaits, ready to exact

the ultimate price for
the ultimate crime.

Unless his last ditch
legal appeal succeeds,

51-year-old Tommy Zeigler will
someday be led from his cell

and executed,
Florida's retribution

for a savage multiple murder.

I did not kill Eunice, I did
not kill Mr. And Mrs. Edwards,

and I did not kill Charlie Mays.

I have not killed anybody.

ROBERT STACK (VOICEOVER):
Tommy Zeigler

was wealthy and well-known.

His family owned
Zeigler's Furniture Store

and several apartment
buildings in the town

of Winter Garden, Florida.

Zeigler was married,
attended church,

and called the mayor and chief
of police by their first names.

According to
prosecutors, it wasn't

enough for Tommy Zeigler.

This is the scenario
they presented in court.

Zeigler murdered
his wife, Eunice,

in the kitchen area
of the furniture store

on Christmas Eve in 1975.

His motive, to turn $500,000 of
life insurance into cold cash.

My marriage was
very good, very sound.

Eunice and I loved
each other greatly.

I couldn't kill her.

There's just no way
I could kill her.

I loved her.

She was my life, that was
just all there was to it.

ROBERT STACK (VOICEOVER):
The killings didn't stop

with Eunice, say prosecutors.

Her parents, Perry and Virginia
Edwards, were also at the store

that night.

[gunshots]

By prearrangement, a customer
named Charlie Mays stopped

by to pick up a television set.

Zeigler's plan, to kill Mays and
frame him for robbing the store

and murdering Eunice
and her parents.

Mays would be found
with stone receipts

and cash stuffed in his pockets.

Zeigler ended the bloodbath
with final dramatic flourish.

He shot himself in the
side to ensure that he,

too, would be seen as a victim.

Prosecutors say they never
fell for the charade.

Zeigler was still
in the hospital

when he was charged
with the killings.

Soon after, he was convicted
and condemned to death.

Assistant State
Attorney Jeffrey Ashton

will represent Florida if
Zeigler is granted an appeal.

I think that Tommy Zeigler
will ultimately die for killing

those four people
and I believe he

has the right man to
die for it and I believe

that he will deserve it.

ROBERT STACK (VOICEOVER): This
is how Tommy Zeigler tells it.

He planned to meet Unice and
her parents at the store.

He says he was unaware
that they were already

dead when he opened
the back door

and found the
lights not working.

TOMMY ZEIGLER: I walked from
there into the main showroom,

through the door, and I was
hit in the back of the head.

As I was getting up, there
were two blurs coming in.

One was a shorter, stocky
man; one was a big burly man.

[glass breaking]

I was just being bounced
around, glass was breaking,

things were being knocked
over and knocked down.

I was thrown back
into the hallway.

ROBERT STACK
(VOICEOVER): Zeigler

kept large amounts
of cash at the store

and carried a handgun
for protection.

He believes he may have
wounded one of the assailants.

Then he himself was
shot in the side.

Before filming this
segment, we insisted

that Tommy Zeigler submit
to a lie detector test

with no attorneys present.

Zeigler was examined
by one of the country's

most respected forensic
specialists, John Paul Matir.

After talking to Tommy
Zeigler for the period of time

that I did and assessing
all of the other information

that I had, it was my
professional opinion

that Tommy Zeigler
was telling the truth

and that in fact, he had walked
into probably an armed robbery

in progress or that was
staged for his benefit

and that he was,
in fact, a victim.

Condemned killer Tommy
Zeigler won't go quietly.

For more than 20 years from a
hospital bed, from a courtroom,

now from death
row, he has loudly

proclaimed his innocence.

Zeigler and his attorneys
say they have new evidence

that debunks the
prosecution case

and makes liars
of its witnesses.

The state stands by the verdict,
Tommy Zeitler is guilty.

His motive, a life insurance
payout of $500,000.

Tommy!

Tommy, what happened?

ROBERT STACK (VOICEOVER):
On the night of the murder,

Zeigler stumbled out
of the store at 9:25.

Minutes earlier,
Zeigler had called

the police chief
and a private party

to report that he'd been shot.

Almost immediately,
evidence in this store

raised troubling questions.

First, the body of
Zeigler's wife, Eunice.

Her oddly unruffled pose--

coat on, hand and pocket--

suggested to police that
her killer was no stranger.

I think it's very unlikely
that any unknown assailant

could get in a position where
they could surprise Eunice

Zeigler in that
kind of circumstance

and shoot her in the back of the
head and catch her in that way.

Second problem, blood type.

Zeigler's father-in-law,
Perry Edward,

was type A. Tommy
Zeigler's shirt was

stained with a quantity
of type A blood,

in addition to his own type O.

JEFFREY ASHTON: His story
didn't account for that,

as to how he got someone
else's blood on his shirt

and the blood type matched Perry
Edwards, which would indicate

that he was involved
in that struggle

with Perry Edwards that
resulted in his death.

During the course of his
struggle in the store when

Tommy first came in, he was in
a fight with a couple of people.

One of those people he had a
struggle with and was hitting

him with a gun, it would
have caused bleeding

and it could have
caused the blood there.

ROBERT STACK (VOICEOVER):
Scattered among the bodies

were five handguns.

Four had been wiped
clean of fingerprints.

Two of the guns were inexpensive
Saturday Night specials

made by a company named RG.

Of the five guns found
in the store, three of them

were documented as
belonging to Tommy Zeigler.

The other two that were there,
which was the cheaper guns,

were not registered to him
but they were connected

to him through another witness.

I bought good, high quality
guns when I bought guns,

and I had good
high quality guns.

From what I understand
and what I saw at trial,

those RGs are garbage.

State your name, please.

Felton Thomas, sir.

ROBERT STACK (VOICEOVER):
One of the key witnesses

for the state was a man
named Felton Thomas.

Thomas was a friend of Charlie
Mays, one of the four victims.

Tommy Zeigler says the
account you are about to hear

is a total fabrication,
start to finish.

We went to the
furniture store.

About what time did you
get to the furniture store?

ROBERT STACK (VOICEOVER):
Felton Thomas

testified that on the
night of the murders,

he had gone to Zeigler's
store with Charlie Mays.

Sorry I'm late.

Oh, that's all right.

Hey, this is Felton Thomas.

He come to help
me get the TV set.

Listen, the guy with
the keys isn't here yet,

but while we're waiting for
him, why don't we take a ride?

I've got something
I want to show you.

All right.

ROBERT STACK (VOICEOVER):
Thomas told the court

that Zeigler took them
to a nearby orange grove

to show off some new guns.

Smooth, clean action.

All right.

I'm going to step out
and fire off a couple.

No, no, no.

No, here.

Just do it from the window.

ROBERT STACK (VOICEOVER):
Prosecutors charge

that Zeigler's plan was
to taint Thomas and Mays

with gunshot residue
and taint the weapons

with their fingerprints.

If, in fact, that
was his purpose

for doing that so that he could
set up Charlie Mays and Felton

Thomas and have their
prints on the guns,

why were all of the
guns wiped clean?

What happened
later at the store?

Mays told us to go around--

ROBERT STACK (VOICEOVER):
Thomas testified

that once back at
the store, Zeigler

asked him to kill the power.

Thomas complied.

All right.

ROBERT STACK (VOICEOVER):
Zeigler then made a more

startling proposal, break in.

Come on.

OK, Charlie.

Pick yourself up a piece
of pipe and help us out.

ROBERT STACK (VOICEOVER):
To prosecutors, it

was all part of
Zeigler's plan to create

evidence of a robbery
to explain the murders

of Eunice and her parents.

No, I ain't doing it.

All right.

Well, maybe I've got
an extra key back home.

Why dont' we go and pick it up.

ROBERT STACK (VOICEOVER): Thomas
told the court that they next

drove to Zeigler's
house for the key,

then they went
back to the store.

Well, are you going to come
in and help us with the TV?

ROBERT STACK (VOICEOVER):
According to Thomas,

Mays and Zeigler went
inside and he left.

Prosecutors say that once inside
the store, Zeigler killed Mays.

The defense completely
dismisses Thomas' account.

To begin with, they
claim his entire scenario

would have to occur in
less than 21 minutes.

We get out I
guess about a mile--

Felton Thomas is a joke.

I have no idea why
Felton Thomas would

make up a story like that.

I had never laid
eyes on him until he

walked in that courtroom
to testify against me.

I know Tommy Zeigler.

ROBERT STACK (VOICEOVER):
Another key witness

for the state was
Ed Williams, who

had known and worked
for the Ziegler family

during the previous 10 years.

I was a permanent resident.

ROBERT STACK
(VOICEOVER): Williams

testified that on the
night of the murders,

Zeigler gave him a handgun.

Later that night,
Williams turned

the weapon over to authorities.

Ballistics tests would reveal
that bullets from that gun

killed Perry and
Virginia Edwards.

Edward Williams in the last
20 years, as far as we know,

has been an upstanding citizen,
hasn't done anything wrong.

And there's no reason not
to believe Edward Williams.

ROBERT STACK (VOICEOVER):
However, Zeigler

testified that the
gun in question

had been taken from his truck
two weeks before the murders.

Among those who had ready access
to the vehicle was Ed Williams.

A witness also linked
Williams to the weapon that

killed Eunice Zeigler, one of
those Saturday Night specials

found at the scene.

The witness, called
by the prosecution,

testified that he had purchased
the two guns for Tommy Zeigler.

However, he admitted they
had never met face to face.

The deal had actually been
made through an intermediary

identified by the
witness as Ed Williams.

Edward Williams
is, in fact, the one

that purchased the
two Saturday Night

specials that did the killing.

And the only person that was
found with a murder weapon

on him was Edward Williams.

They were all directly
traceable to Edward Williams,

not to Tommy Zeigler.

ROBERT STACK (VOICEOVER):
It was not just

the witnesses who took
the stand that troubled

Zeigler and his attorneys.

It was also those who
were never called.

The defense claims that
two people verified

Zeigler's contention that
unidentified individuals

had been at the store.

A husband and wife reported
to the sheriff's department

that they had been driving by
the Zeigler Furniture Store

on the night of the crime and
that they had seen four cars,

not two as the
state had contended,

outside the furniture store,
including a white Cadillac,

all of which is completely
inconsistent with the state's

version of events.

In addition, they saw
a man who generally

fit the description of
Charlie Mays, who we believe

was one of the perpetrators.

And none of that was reported
to the court, none of it

was presented to the
jury, and none of it

was reported to the trial
lawyers for Mr. Zeigler.

Any witness who
comes by and claims

to be an eye or ear witness
at the time of a murder

is going to be interviewed.

A statement's going to be taken.

So I think their claim that they
went by the police department

to talk about the case
is not very credible.

ROBERT STACK (VOICEOVER):
Zeigler's trial

lasted four weeks
and filled nearly

3,000 pages of transcripts.

In the end, the jury
voted to convict.

They recommended life in
prison, but they were overruled

by Judge Maurice Paul.

Notwithstanding the
recommendation of a majority

of the jury, it is the
sentence of the law

and the judgment of this
court that you, William Thomas

Ziegler, Jr., shall
be put to death

by means of electrocution.

Nobody in their right mind
that can look at that trial

transcript can say that
there was a fair trial

in Ziegler versus State.

It was a railroad
from day one and judge

Paul orchestrated
the whole thing.

ROBERT STACK
(VOICEOVER): Ziegler

believes Judge Paul had
held a grudge against him

since they had testified
for opposing sides

in a bitter legal dispute.

Within months
thereafter, Tommy Zeigler

was standing at the defendant's
table accused of murder

and Judge Paul was sitting
on the bench making decisions

that would affect his life.

Judge Maurice Paul was
a very respected member of

the judiciary of Orange County.

He is now a federal district
court judge up in northern part

of Florida and his
reputation and ethics have

never been subject to question.

No one has even ever
alleged he is anything

other than an honest man.

Nothing that I've heard
the defense claiming

outside of court
in books or on TV

is in any way convincing
once you analyze it.

Once you analyze
all their claims,

you see that they
really are nothing.

ROBERT STACK (VOICEOVER):
On May 19, 1986,

Zeigler stood at the precipice.

Less than 24 hours
remained before he

would face the electric chair.

Then a federal court
granted a stay.

Zeigler filed an appeal.

In 1987, his attorneys
used Florida's Freedom

of Information Act to open
up the prosecution files.

They found previously
undisclosed evidence.

You're about to hear excerpts
of a tape-recorded conversation

between a prosecution
investigator

and an apparent witness.

The young man was
staying at this motel

on the night of the murders.

His room faced the back
of Zeigler's store.

The man said that
at about 8:30, he

saw a policeman,
service revolver drawn,

hunkered down behind the store.

Around 9:00, he heard shots.

This is obviously significant
because if it was at 9:00,

this was 20 minutes at
least before the time Tommy

called for help.

It would mean that Tommy
would have been in the store

at this time.

And if there was a policeman
outside with his gun drawn

and there were shots
going off then,

the police had to
have been involved.

It appears to have
shots being fired

after the police arrived,
which clearly couldn't

be related to the murder.

Maybe some sound that
sounded like a gunshot.

So the information
itself is meaningless.

ROBERT STACK (VOICEOVER): Was
a police officer involved?

We may never know.

The prosecution did not
inform Zeigler's attorneys

of this account, nor did
they call the witness

to testify at the trial.

INVESTIGATOR (ON TAPE):
Well, as long as you heard

the gunshots after you
saw the police cars,

that wouldn't help us a bit.

Today, Tommy Zeigler is
asking for a new trial in which

a new judge and jury
can listen to the tape

and review all the evidence.

A ruling on Ziegler's
appeal is still pending.

Of course, the question
remains, even if Tommy Zeigler

wins another day in court, will
that verdict be any different?

Next, when rock and roll singer
Kurt Cobain committed suicide,

few questioned the
official ruling.

But private
investigator Tom Grant

is convinced that the
truth about Cobain's death

has yet to be revealed.

April 8th, 1994.

Music fans worldwide
were horrified

to learn of the tragic death
of reluctant rock star Kurt

Cobain.

Cobain's body was
found in a room

above the garage of his
Seattle, Washington home.

He had apparently taken
a large dose of heroin

and killed himself
with a shotgun.

Even as the mourning commenced,
rumors began to circulate.

What if Kurt Cobain
did not kill himself?

What if Kurt Cobain
was murdered?

One private investigator
who's been on the case

from the very beginning believes
the official ruling is wrong.

I don't believe Kurt
Cobain committed suicide.

I believe there was someone
with him in that room.

I believe it was
someone that he knew,

they were doing heroin together.

I believe at a certain
point, more heroin

was injected into Kurt Cobain
than what he wanted injected

into himself and
after that point,

he was shot with a
shotgun once he had

become totally incapacitated.

Our detectives actually
went into this investigation

on the premise that
this was a homicide.

That's the way they conducted
this investigation so

that there was a very thorough,
comprehensive investigation

done from the very beginning.

And everything that the
detectives encountered

indicated to them that
this was a suicide.

We actually found nothing
to indicate that this

was anything but a suicide.

ROBERT STACK
(VOICEOVER): Kurt Cobain

was the lead singer and creative
force for Nirvana, a wildly

popular grunge rock band.

But Cobain also
made headlines for

his drug-addicted lifestyle.

This photograph was
taken on March 4th,

1994, as Cobain was being rushed
to a hospital in Rome, Italy.

He had overdosed on sedatives
and alcohol and nearly died.

Three weeks later,
on March 30th,

family and friends
persuaded Cobain

to check into the
Exodus Recovery Center

in Marina Del Rey, California.

But in less than
48 hours, Cobain

walked out and took a late
night flight back to Seattle.

A limo driver dropped
Cobain off at his home,

where his daughter's
male nanny saw

him on the morning of April 2.

The next day, Cobain's wife,
fellow rocker Courtney Love,

is said to have contacted
Tom Grant, a Los

Angeles-based private
investigator and former LA

County sheriff's deputy.

Grant claims he met with Love
at a Beverly Hills Hotel.

He also says she did
not mention that Cobain

had been seen at their
Seattle home the day before.

We set up a surveillance
in Seattle on a couple

of locations and we were
attempting to locate Kurt

and try to determine what
he was doing-- where he was,

where he was going.

Courtney asked us, of
course, not to contact him,

not to make any
contact with him,

just to report back where he
was and what was going on.

ROBERT STACK (VOICEOVER):
When the surveillance failed,

Grant himself flew to Seattle.

He claims he and one of Cobain's
friends began searching.

They checked Cobain's
usual hangouts.

Then about 2:00 AM
on April 7th, Grant

says they went to
Cobain's house.

And we searched the entire
interior of the house--

the basement, the living
room, the upstairs, the attic.

We left all through
the house for Kurt.

His friend, when we
went in the house,

made a comment that
he'd never seen

the house this clean before.

Apparently, it's never
been that straightened up.

We didn't locate Kurt.

We didn't see any indication
that he had been at the house.

About this
location right here--

ROBERT STACK (VOICEOVER):
Some 20 hours

later, Tom Grant says
he and Cobain's friend

searched the house again.

This time, Grant claims
they found a note left

for Cobain by the male nanny.

The first line of a
note started off, Kurt, I

can't believe you managed
to be in this house

without me knowing.

We searched the entire
interior of the residence

once again for any evidence
that Kurt might have been there

the night before or
since we had left

the location the first time.

And we found no evidence
that he had been there.

ROBERT STACK (VOICEOVER):
The next day, an electrician

discovered Cobain's
body in a room

above the garage known
as the greenhouse,

the only place grant says he and
Cobain's friend did not check.

According to Grant, he was
never told about the room

and it was too dark to see it.

It just really
seemed strange to me

that the one place in
that entire property

that we didn't
search was the place

that I was never told about.

And of course, the
medical examiner later

determined that
Kurt had been laying

up there dead for several days.

So while we were
searching the main house,

Kurt Cobain was lying
dead up above the garage.

ROBERT STACK (VOICEOVER): This
is a diagram of Tom Gran't

depiction of the death scene.

A 20-gauge shotgun
was still cradled

across Kurt Cobain's body.

His heroin kit was at his side
and a note apparently written

by Cobain was in plain sight.

The first officers to
arrive at the house

reported that they were
on the scene of a suicide.

I contacted the police
the day the body was found.

I attempted on the
telephone to get

them to slow down a little bit.

I indicated I felt
something was wrong.

They basically told
me on the phone, hey,

we know a suicide
when we see a suicide.

ROBERT STACK (VOICEOVER):
Tom Grant strongly disagrees

and believes he
has found a number

of notable inconsistencies.

Item number one,
according to grant,

Kurt Cobain carried
only one credit card.

Courtney Love had
reportedly canceled

that card shortly
after Cobain left

the drug rehab in California.

Now Courtney told me that she
had stopped this credit card so

that she could track Kurt's
activities as he attempted

to use the credit card.

In actuality, stopping
the credit card

is what made it more difficult.

ROBERT STACK (VOICEOVER): After
the credit card was canceled,

the bank apparently recorded
only the dates, the amounts,

and generic information,
not where the attempts

were made to use the card.

TOM GRANT: There was an
attempt made on April 6th

in an amount of over $1,500.

There was another attempt made
on April 8th which was Friday,

the day the body was found,
for an amount of $43.

Now, according to
the medical examiner,

Kurt had died sometime on April
5th, the previous Tuesday.

Who was using the credit card?

The information we've been
able to receive from the bank

has only been able
to identify for us

when the information was logged
onto their mainframe computer

and not specifically
when the attempt was made

or who it was made by.

TOM GRANT: And after the body
was discovered, of course,

the police searched
Kurt's property.

Two other cards were
found in the wallet,

but the actual credit card
that Courtney had canceled--

the same card that someone was
attempting to use after we now

know Kurt was already dead--

was not found in
Kurt's property.

ROBERT STACK (VOICEOVER):
Item number two, the autopsy

reportedly showed Kurt Cobain's
blood contained a tranquilizer,

Diazepam, and heroin.

According to Tom Grant and
published news articles,

the level was 1.5
milligrams per liter.

Some medical experts say
that much heroin could kill

a non-addict three times over.

Could he, with
that much heroin

and Diazepam in
his system, could

he even pick up that shotgun?

Wouldn't he be incapacitated
within seconds?

For most people, including
addicts, 1.5 milligrams

per liter of morphine
is a significant level

and for most of them,
the great percentage,

it will be a level
that will induce

a state of unconsciousness
quite quickly--

talking about
seconds, not minutes.

ROBERT STACK
(VOICEOVER): Cyril Wecht

is a nationally-known
forensic pathologist.

Even though he hasn't
seen the autopsy report,

Wecht believes the
suicide ruling is correct.

However, he does find the high
level of heroin intriguing.

I just cannot tell you that
it would have been impossible

for him to have shot himself
because it was found that he

had a level of 1.5 milligrams
per liter of morphine

at the post-mortem examination.

It's certainly within
the realm of possibility,

but it does raise a question
as to whether or not

he shot that shot.

ROBERT STACK (VOICEOVER):
Dr. Donald Ray,

chief medical examiner
of King County,

inspected Cobain's
body at the scene.

He does not find Cobain's
heroin intake problematic.

It's really an issue
of tolerance, how

much is this person used to?

If a person has gradually
over the months or years

increased the dose, a
person could function

with that amount of drugs,
narcotics, or whatever

it is present in the system.

Again, so much of it depends
upon individual tolerance

over a period of time.

ROBERT STACK (VOICEOVER):
Item number three,

police have checked the
shotgun, the shotgun

shells, and the pen used
to write the suicide

note for fingerprints.

There were no legible
prints on any of them.

I think it's clear that anyone
who is familiar with firearms

and their use would
know that as they

hold a weapon, that
frequently that weapon

will move in their hand.

Additionally, when that
weapon is discharged,

that caused a jerking motion
which causes the hands to move

over the surface of the weapon.

And all of those
factors could cause

any fingerprints that may
have been left on the weapon

to be unusable.

ROBERT STACK
(VOICEOVER): Item number

four, the alleged suicide note.

Tom Grant believes it
was actually a retirement

letter to Cobain's fans.

There were rumors that
Cobain was feeling burned out

and was planning to
adopt a lower profile.

He had recently pulled out of
the annual Lollapalooza tour,

a decision which
some speculate could

have cost Cobain and others
involved millions of dollars.

This is a copy of the note that
has been widely circulated.

Tom Grant suggests
that only the last four

lines indicate suicide.

They read, please
keep going, Courtney--

for Frances, for
her life which will

be so much happier without me.

I love you.

I love you.

Curiously, these
lines are written

in much larger characters
than the rest of the note.

"Unsolved Mysteries" asked
handwriting expert Marcel

Matley to compare a copy of
Cobain's alleged suicide note

with copies of two pages of
lyrics handwritten by Cobain.

Matley believes the bulk of
the note was written by Cobain,

but finds the last four
lines questionable.

As to the last
four lines, there

are more than a dozen
differences that should give us

pause and we would have
to reasonably explain

these differences
before we can conclude

that the same person
wrote the four lines that

wrote the body of it.

ROBERT STACK (VOICEOVER):
Handwriting expert Reginald

Alton of Oxford
University also compared

copies of Cobain's handwriting
to a copy of the note.

In a five-page written
report, Alton pointed out more

than a dozen discrepancies.

Alton believes the bulk
of the suicide note

was written by
Cobain, but raises

questions about the first
line and the last four lines.

His report concludes,
quote, "There

are many indications
that there may have

been a second hand at work."

Alton cautions, however, that
the copies are not good enough

to make any firm pronouncement.

We did take the
note from the scene

and have it examined at the
Washington State Crime Lab

and their handwriting
analyst has

indicated that it is her
belief that this note

was written by Mr. Cobain.

TOM GRANT: Kurt Cobain had
made an important decision

in his life.

He wanted out of the
entertainment business.

He didn't want to
tour anymore, he

didn't want to perform anymore.

He wanted to be left alone.

He never liked that aspect
of being a performer.

This decision that he had
made was going to affect

a lot of other people.

He was no longer the money
machine that he once was.

Now Cobain was worth more
dead than he was alive.

ROBERT STACK (VOICEOVER):
But who would

have wanted Kurt Cobain dead?

Could it have been a mysterious
user of his credit card?

To the same person add
critical lines to Cobain's

alleged suicide note?

For now, those questions
remain unanswered.

Despite the controversy,
the Seattle Police

are confident they made
the correct ruling.

They consider the case closed.

Tom Grant does not.

He believes the investigation
should be reopened

and the inconsistencies
resolved once and for all.

On our next "Unsolved
Mysteries," in 1994,

fragments of a
giant comet set off

a series of
cataclysmic explosions

on the planet Jupiter.

Is there more destruction
lurking in the night sky?

Will Earth be the next target?

Also, the crash of a
presidential helicopter

in Maryland prompts speculation
that the craft was downed

by friendly fire
in the form of an

experimental top secret weapon.

Join me next time for
another intriguing edition

of "Unsolved Mysteries."

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