All language subtitles for Unsolved.Mysteries.S10E03.AMZN.WEB-DL.DD+2.0.H.264-AJP69_track3_[eng]

[creepy music playing]

NARRATOR: Tonight on
"Unsolved Mysteries."

Married only three
months, Michelle Witherell

died in this tragic fall.

Her husband said
it was an accident.

Her family believes
she was murdered.

It was a whirlwind romance
with a bitter ironic twist--

the groom was a convicted
killer serving life in prison

until he convinced his new
wife to help him escape.

Now her children would
like to find her,

and the police say she
is free to come home

without fear of punishment.

Party time in Tijuana.

But for this college student,
the revelry proved fatal.

Was Jason Ardas hit
by a car, or did he

anger the Tijuana police?

Carl McWilliams is
friendly and personable.

He is also a fugitive on the
run from statutory rape charges.

Police need your help.

Experience a world of mystery,
heartbreak, and intrigue.

Join me for
"Unsolved Mysteries."

[creepy music playing]

NARRATOR: A cold winter
night in a small town

near Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania.

The broken body of
Michelle Witherell

lay sprawled on the asphalt
outside her apartment.

Michelle was just 24
years old, a newlywed.

She and her husband
Jeremy had been

living in Pittsburgh since their
marriage three months earlier.

They had moved from
their home in Denver

expecting to build a new life.

Now, Michelle was in
critical condition--

bleeding heavily from
severe head injuries.

POLICE OFFICER (VOICEOVER):
Tell me what happened up there.

I don't know what happened.

NARRATOR: Jeremy
Witherell told police

Michelle had fallen from their
balcony three flights up.

He said he had been
playing solitaire

in the living room
of their apartment

when he heard a sound.

He stepped outside,
looked over the railing,

and saw his wife's body
on the ground below.

Paramedics rushed Michelle
to the trauma unit

at a Pittsburgh hospital.

It was December 20th, 1992,
just five days before Christmas.

Within hours, Michelle's
parents claim Jeremy's mother

called them with the awful
news and the second version

of his story.

She told me that there
had been a terrible accident

and that Michelle had
been out on the balcony

at their apartment,
and that she'd

been putting up
Christmas lights,

and that the balcony
had collapsed--

causing her to fall.

[screams]

[glass shattering]

NARRATOR: Michelle
and Jeremy Witherell

had planned to go home to
Denver for the holidays.

We're looking for
Michelle Witherell.

NARRATOR: Instead, Michelle's
family flew to Pittsburgh

on the first flight out.

Hey, baby.

NARRATOR: The left side of
Michelle's head was fractured,

and she was in a coma.

In addition, her jaw was broken.

But strangely,
her nose and teeth

were unharmed by the
three story fall.

My big strong girl.

NARRATOR: At that very moment,
I think questions were beginning

to come into our thoughts.

How did she get
her eye busted open

and her jaw broken with
no damage in between?

NARRATOR: The
[inaudible] believe

Michelle knew they
were with her and tried

her best to let them know.

She's squeezing my hand.

FAMILY MEMBER (VOICEOVER):
Hang in there, sweetheart.

We really think that
her squeezing Ed's hand,

she was telling us good bye.

[heart rate monitor beeps]

And then the doctor
walked in from the back

and said that, I'm sorry.

But you're going
to have to leave.

Michelle has died.

NARRATOR: It would seem only
two people in the world knew

how Michelle had been injured.

One of them was now gone.

Michelle's parents claim that,
moments later, Jeremy Witherell

came up with another version, a
third version, of how she fell.

What happened, Jeremy.

We'd just got
home from dinner.

And I was playing a
game of solitaire.

And Michelle and I--

we weren't even talking.

And then she went out to
the balcony for something.

And when I looked
up, there she was.

She was hanging.

And I should have got her.

She was just barely
hanging there.

I could have got her.

NARRATOR: Jeremy Witherell
declined to be interviewed.

However, he claims he gave just
one version of Michelle's fall,

that he only discovered
she had fallen when he saw

her body on the ground below.

The [inaudible] still
insist they were

given three different stories.

Three stories or one?

Who was right?

According to detectives,
the Witherells were having

trouble in their marriage.

They say Jeremy admitted
arguing with Michelle

that evening while driving
back from a restaurant.

An argument that
continued at home.

MICHELLE (VOICEOVER):
What do you mean?

I don't have to listen to you!

NARRATOR: Neighbors say Michelle
and Jeremy had been fighting

frequently, fights so loud one
neighbor complained repeatedly

to the building manager.

Violence is what
she called it--

physically throwing each
other around the apartment.

And somewhere in the area of one
to three weeks before Michele's

death, she came into
my office and said

in no uncertain
terms-- she said,

someone's going to
get killed out there.

And she was very frightened.

She was scared.

And then I ran
up to the balcony.

I looked over, and
there was Michelle.

NARRATOR: The Melinas became
more and more suspicious.

They began questioning
the police investigation.

That's the whole story?

When the detectives
would start out by saying,

well, Jeremy says--

our thought was, well, you
guys are homicide detectives.

You were called into this,
evidently, for a reason.

Now, if all you're telling
us is what Jeremy says,

what's the point?

If this man is a
suspect in a homicide,

and by his own admission he
said he was the only one there,

then why would
you take his word?

NARRATOR: The Melinas found
troubling inconsistencies

in Jeremy's account.

One.

Michelle's wrists were
broken, but her palms

were completely unscratched.

If she fractured her wrists
trying to break her fall,

her palms should have been cut.

Two.

One of Michelle's
shoes was discovered

26 feet from her body.

The other shoe was never found.

And finally, Jeremy
Witherell took the time

to double lock his
apartment before allegedly

racing to his wife's side.

Unscathed palms.

A missing shoe.

A locked door.

The Melinas wondered why.

According to the police,
Jeremy Witherell took not one

but two polygraph tests.

They say he passed both.

The Allegheny County
coroner officially

labeled the cause of Michele's
death as undetermined.

Homicide, accident, or suicide.

The Melina insist it
couldn't have been suicide.

Michelle had a
high regard for life.

Michelle was a happy person.

Michelle had so
many goals in life.

And when she had made
this statement to me

about separating
from Jeremy, she

had dealt with the
situations in her marriage

that she was not pleased with.

And she had also
made her plan on how

to remedy those
situations, and that

was to separate and ask that
Jeremy get professional help.

NARRATOR: The Melinas
also believe the accident

theory was unlikely.

The balcony was 48 inches,
chest high for Michelle.

The wall was too high for
anybody to lose their balance.

It wasn't a poorly
constructed balcony.

It was very adequate in height
to prevent something like that

from happening.

NARRATOR: Michelle's
parents sent

her medical records to
three board certified

forensic pathologists.

Their unanimous verdict?

Michelle was murdered, but
possibly not by a fall.

According to forensic experts,
if Michelle had fallen three

stories she should
have had injuries

on both sides of her brain.

The head injuries
that Michelle

Witherell demonstrated at
autopsy were quite extensive.

But these were all left sided.

These injuries are what we
call coups-- direct impact

injuries-- as from a blow.

NARRATOR: Wecht says
Michelle's other injuries also

indicated an assault. In
addition, what wasn't harmed

is significant.

Her pelvis was unbroken, and her
internal organs were damaged.

That is extremely
inconsistent--

very atypical-- of
the kinds of injuries

that we would find in a fall.

NARRATOR: Another red flag.

Michelle's body was allegedly
found more than nine feet

from the building.

If I had to pick one single
physical factor in this case

that leads me to the
conclusion that it

was not an accidental
fall or a suicidal fall,

it would be that.

Somebody can dive in
a suicidal attempt

and leap several feet
away from the building,

or you can be thrown and wind up
several feet from the building.

You do not accidentally
fall and wind up nine feet.

The body doesn't bounce.

NARRATOR: Finally,
the Allegheny County

Coroner's Office opened
the first official

inquiry into the case.

The verdict was quick and clear.

We will amend the original
from undetermined to homicide.

We're thankful for the
outcome of the hearing today.

NARRATOR: The
coroner's ruling didn't

specify how Michelle
died, but her parents

feel certain they know.

Don't you raise
your voice to me.

Don't you talk
to me like that.

If you keep that
up, I'm leaving you.

I think that night, she made
the mistake of telling Jeremy

she was going to leave him.

We think she ran from the
apartment, fleeing for her life

at that point.

And the assault-- you know, she
was then found and assaulted

outside of the apartment.

NARRATOR: The Melinas
believe the balcony story was

a quickly improvised cover up.

A safe way for Jeremy Witherell
to explain Michelle's injuries.

While no one on Jeremy's side
was willing to be interviewed,

they emphasized that despite
the Melinas' suspicions,

Jeremy did pass a
police polygraph twice.

We told Jeremy, from the day
Michelle died, that we want

to find out and we
plan to find out

everything there is
to find out about what

happened to Michelle.

And we will pursue
justice in this case,

no matter where it takes us.

[intense music playing]

NARRATOR: Next.

He was a convicted murderer.

She was a lonely widow.

Together, they staged
a daring prison break.

[creepy music playing]

All right.

Make a wish and blow
those candles out.

[applause]

NARRATOR: Sherry Nickerson's
fifteenth birthday

was hardly a joyous event.

She was living with
her uncle's family,

and though they did their best
it was impossible to pretend

anyone was happy.

I was numb.

I didn't feel anything.

I wasn't happy.

It was the worst
birthday of my life.

NARRATOR: Small wonder.

Sherry's party included a
number of uninvited guests,

Oklahoma state troopers
stationed inside the house

and out.

They were there
because of a crime

involving Sherry's mother--

a crime committed
nine days earlier.

[laughing] Let's go.

Let's go.

NARRATOR: Two lifers had escaped
from a nearby Oklahoma prison.

Sherry's mother,
Donna Moses Brown,

had driven the getaway car.

Sherry's mom has been
on the run ever since.

However, she has never
been charged with any crime

because both her family
and the authorities

view her as a victim.

A lonely widow, so
desperate for love

that she could be manipulated
by a convicted killer

named Michael Wayne Brown.

Hi.

Hi.

I'm Michael.

I know.

I'm Donna.

NARRATOR: Ironically, it was
a good deed that introduced

Donna to Brown's world.

Her church groups
started writing letters

to convicts to help them
find spiritual comfort.

But these pen pals
quickly became more.

You know, I don't know if
I could make it in this place

if it wasn't for those
letters that I get from you.

/

You know, whatever
we can do to help.

You do.
I mean, you do so much.

You're always so supportive.

You know, you write
real sweet letters too.

I cannot get over
how beautiful you are.

Oh.

NARRATOR: She was lonely.

She hadn't had anybody
for a very long time,

and she needed
that companionship.

You know, someone-- someone, you
know, to talk to about things

and show her love and affection.

And that's what
she got from him.

How you doing?

I'm OK.

It's hard.

He spoke with her.

And I think that that's
pretty much all that mattered.

He wrote her.

It was somebody new in her life.

And I think that it probably
could have been anybody to him,

but she was the victim that fell
into the line of fire I guess.

Look what I brought you.

Oh wow!

These are great!

Michael Wayne
Brown, like a lot

of the men who are incarcerated
for long periods of time,

they really don't have any
concern for other people's

rights or lives.

They've got all the
time in the world

to scam, to scheme on people.

And they get quite good at it.

They could sell you a
chainsaw in the desert.

She wrote him every day.

She talked to him on
the phone every day.

It kind of started
and went full force.

And there was no slowing down.

LT. SHAMBLIN (VOICEOVER):
I think Donna Brown was

under the misconception that
Michael Wayne Brown was just

a misunderstood young man
who, through unfortunate

circumstances, was doing time.

NARRATOR: But Michael Wayne
Brown was hardly misunderstood.

Everyone but Donna
knew what he was,

and what he was was a
cold blooded killer.

Nine years earlier,
when brown was only

18, he and another teenager--

Dennis Woodward-- burglarized
an insurance office

in Broken Arrow, Oklahoma.

What are you doing here?

Huh?

What are you doing here?

Shut up!

Insurance investigator Richard
Sullivan picked the wrong time

to stop by for a file.

Turn around.

Turn around and face the wall.

Give me the gun.

Turn around.

[gunshot]

Brown was very, very
hyper after that event.

He said, I killed him.

I killed him.

Almost bragging about it.

He looks over at Woodward and he
said, if I had one more bullet,

I would have shot his eyes out.

And thereafter, they went
off to have breakfast

at a local restaurant.

NARRATOR: While Brown was
eating his bacon and eggs,

41-year-old Richard
Sullivan bled

to death on his office floor.

He left behind a wife
and a young daughter.

Michael Wayne Brown
was put on death row

for murdering Richard Sullivan.

However, that sentence
was later commuted

to life without parole.

By the time brown met
Donna Moses in 1984,

he had spent nine
years in prison.

Meanwhile, Donna has served
a different kind of time.

She had been married
twice, and widowed twice.

Both husbands had been murdered.

Raising two children on her
own was a constant struggle.

Perhaps it was just
another ironic twist

in Donna's hard
luck life that she

now found herself in love with
a murderer 10 years her junior.

It was consuming her too much.

You know, she didn't have time
for anything else but him.

I mean, she could visit
him every weekend.

And it was like the whole
week was preparing to see him.

This is your

copy.

- There she is.
- Hi.

Hi.

NARRATOR: Less than three months
after Brown first met Donna,

he performed a
brief transformation

from shackled prisoner
to eager bridegroom.

Ready?

Yes, sir.

Do you, Michael Wayne
Brown, take this woman to be

your lawfully wedded wife?

To love her and to cherish her
as long as you both might live?

I do.

And do you, Donna
Moses, take this man to be

your lawfully wedded husband?

To love and to cherish
him from this day forward,

as long as you both shall live?
- I do.

I love you.

I love you.

NARRATOR: Moments after
the ceremony, the honeymoon

was over.

Brown, back in shackles
and prison orange,

was returned to his cell.

Donna sent her children
to stay with relatives

and followed Brown
as he was transferred

from prison to prison,
sometimes living out of her car.

Between visiting days,
she wrote letters.

Michael Wayne Brown became
Donna's whole world.

In November of 1984,
Brown was transferred

to a minimum security prison.

It was a perfect opportunity,
and Brown wasted little time.

Less than three weeks
later, Michael Wayne Brown

and another inmate
jumped a 4 foot fence

and raced for freedom.

By the time guards discovered
them missing, it was too late.

Let's go.

Let's go!

NARRATOR: Police have remained
a step or two behind Brown

ever since.

A few days after
the escape, they

tracked him to Paris,
Texas, but missed

him by a matter of minutes.

Since then, brown is known to
have lived in Kentucky, New

Jersey, Texas, and Virginia.

For three years, Donna's
family had no word from her.

No idea if she
was alive or dead.

Finally, in 1987, Donna
Brown made an unexpected call

to her daughter.

Hello?

Hi, Sherry?

- Yeah?
- Hi.

It's me.

Mom.

Mom?

Are you OK?
- Yeah.

I'm OK.

I'm out of Oklahoma.

But I want to come home.

Michael and I broke up.

You know, it was just kind of
a quick thing and that's all.

She told me she loved
me, and that was it.

NARRATOR: Though Donna had
said she wanted to come home,

she never did.

Four years went by.

Donna called again, asking
if she had grandchildren.

At that time, she didn't.

[baby talking]

Since then, however,
Donna's children--

Sherry and David--
have each had a son.

Both would like nothing more
than to introduce the boys

to their long lost grandmother.

I'm afraid that she's afraid
that we don't want her back.

I'm afraid that my
mom feels like she

did something really bad, and
that she can't face us anymore.

How are we going to act to her?

And what I say to
her is, it's OK.

NARRATOR: There is nothing to
stop Donna brown from rejoining

her family, except Donna Brown.

She can come home at any time.

There's no arrest
warrant either issued

by the state of Oklahoma or by
the federal government for her.

She's not wanted on any charges.

And in fact, we
would encourage her,

if she's no longer with
Brown, or if, in fact, she

is with Brown, to immediately
contact the authorities.

[intense music playing]

NARRATOR: Coming up.

A college student clashed
with Tijuana police.

His family believes
the police retaliated.

[creepy music playing]

Tijuana.

It's been one of Mexico's
most popular border towns

for decades, especially
for college students.

Hundreds hit nightclubs
every weekend, hunting

big fun at bargain rates.

But a good time doesn't
always come cheap.

It can cost you your life.

1:30 a.m., Tijuana time.

Steven Thomas was looking for
his brother Jason in the crowds

partying on Avenida Revolucion.

They'd become separated while
heading back to their car.

I looked to the right of me.

I turned around.

My brother wasn't there.

I mean, it was like that.

NARRATOR: An hour and a half
after Jason disappeared,

a Tijuana police
officer discovered

his battered body in the road.

Jason was drinking, and
he was loud and obnoxious

and maybe out of control.

That night, I believe,
that Jason was

murdered by the Tijuana police.

20-year-old Jason
Ardas had moved

from Virginia to Los Angeles one
year earlier to go to college.

A week before his death,
he brought his younger

brother Steven out for a visit.

They spent a week
touring the top tourist

spots in Los Angeles.

Then, Jason decided
he couldn't let Steven

go back home without
showing him a good time

south of the border.

[rock music playing]

[chatter]

Saturday night, August 1, 1998.

Tijuana's main drag,
Avenida Revolucion,

was packed with party people.

The feel of fiesta
was part of the draw.

But for many, the
loose drinking laws

were the biggest attraction.

That night, Jason, Steve, and
their friend Michael Justin

started barhopping
about 9, mostly

hitting places that
offered all you

could drink for less than $5.

Jason was usually
friendly and easygoing,

but he had a reputation
as a rowdy drinker.

By the time he ran
into a tequila vendor,

he was already a little drunk.

He didn't realize that
tequila cost extra--

$6 a shot.

[whistle]
- Go!

Go!

Go!

Now you owe me $12.

$12?

You crazy, man.

Jason didn't want
to give up the money.

So I just said, Jason,
give him the money.

Just give him the money
and let's get out of here.

You know what I'm saying?

This ain't the spot
we need to be in.

NARRATOR: Jason and Steven
left Michael at the bar

and went back out on the strip.

My strategy was to
hurry up and find the car,

so we could go sit down.

We're kind of drunk.

You know what I'm saying?

Walking around Tijuana.

Walking down the street.

And that's when my
brother accidentally

bumped into a female officer.

Excuse me.
Did you just hit me?

You just hit me?

You just hit me?

Forget it!

NARRATOR: According to Steven,
another Tijuana police officer

had tried to shake them
down earlier that evening,

demanding cash or jewelry.

Jason was still angry.

We're American citizens.

We just trying to get home.

Tell her, we
ain't got no money.

We have no money.

I swear.

We have no money on us.
- Go ahead.

I was kind of
frustrated at my brother

for the simple fact
of being that drunk.

My feelings were just,
I'm ready to go home.

I'm ready to get
back to Van Nuys.

You acting crazy, man.

This ain't our country.

I told him, walk behind me.

Come on, let's hurry up
and try to find this car.

Go check for the car.

So just keep moving all right?

Yeah.
All right.

I'll keep moving.
OK?

All right.

Go and find the car.

He's like three or four
yards behind me at first.

That's when I walked up
some more to another block.

So I walked up.

I looked to the right.

I looked behind me, and
my brother wasnn't there.

My first reaction was probably
that he's sitting down

on the curb somewhere, or
sitting up against a building,

anything like that.

You know what I'm saying?

Because we were
kind of intoxicated.

NARRATOR: Soon after
Steven lost sight of Jason,

Michael Justin
claims he spotted him

in the back of a police car.

I looked and I
see-- what is he doing

in the back of a police car?

They were the last
people I saw Jason with.

I saw Jason, with my own eyes,
in the back of a police car

like I knew my hand.

NARRATOR: Michael and Steven
never saw Jason again.

Two days later, the
American consulate

sent word that Jason was dead.

His aunt, Tina Martin
Smith, went to Tijuana

to identify the body.

I remember thinking,
this is not Jason there.

Jason is somewhere
in a jail in Tijuana,

and someone has robbed him
and they've taken his ID.

And this person
is in the morgue.

And I looked down.

And it was Jason.

It was Jason.

NARRATOR: Tijuana
authorities told

Jason's family he
must have gotten

lost trying to make his
way back to the border.

[car swerves]

[car horn]

The authorities called it a
tragic hit and run accident.

But there were a number
of unanswered questions.

I believe that
it had something

to do with the police.

I feel that for a fact.

After Michael told me
that he seen my brother

in the back of a
police car, there's

gotta be something on that.

NARRATOR: Tijuana police
deny that allegation.

They say they never had
Jason Ardas in custody.

We check and
double check almost

the whole month of August.

And there is no
retention with that name.

Sometimes it happens
that they miswrite

the name in our computer, so
we ran it with the three names.

We found nothing.

NARRATOR: Jason's family got
a copy of the autopsy report

through the American
consulate, and had it

translated into English.

Nothing was adding up.

First of all, they stated
that Jason was hit by a car.

And we had these
conflicting things.

[camera clicks]

We had the photos of
him with no injuries

to his lower extremities
with these unexplained five

inch marks all over his body and
chest area, and then his face.

NARRATOR: At the
request of "Unsolved

Mysteries," three
forensic pathologists

reviewed the autopsy report.

One said Jason's death did
indeed appear to be the result

of a simple hit and run.

Two others, however, agreed
that the inconsistencies

were puzzling.

I would be very skeptical
of one, the autopsy findings,

and the assertion that this was
simply a hit and run accident.

One has to apply a high
degree of skepticism

to the entire
autopsy, in my view.

NARRATOR: For instance,
the Tijuana coroner

claimed the car had hit Jason
in the chest hard enough

to rupture his heart.

In order for a blunt blow
to get through the sternum

and rupture of the
heart, it would have

to virtually crush the chest.

And it's quite evident
from the autopsy

that that chest is
not badly mashed.

There are no bruises on it.

There are no big hematomas.

So that becomes incredible.

The autopsy report
becomes incredible.

NARRATOR: Another point.

Jason's injuries included head
wounds that might easily have

been the result of a beating.

Certainly, the lesions
around the head and the skull--

which were severe--

certainly consistent
with the butt

of a rifle or any other
sharp or even blunt object

that could be used
on an individual.

I believe that he was beaten.

And after he was beaten,
perhaps in an attempt

to destroy the evidence,
that they perhaps

ran over and/or drug him.

And I believe that,
when he was run

over, that he was already dead.

NARRATOR: Though Tijuana
authorities say the case is

still under investigation,
they also believe Jason's

family may be overreacting.

We have had responses from
the families in conflict

with the saying of the
autopsy and the statement

from our department.

Even then, sometimes,
where there are witnesses

of an accident and
there is a driver

responsible for
the accident, there

have been some families stating
that they are not accepting

that it was an accident.

Maybe he should have
gone to jail for the night.

But he didn't-- nobody--

nobody deserves to die that way.

NARRATOR: Next.

Tara Roy was losing
her battle with cancer

until she touched the headstone
of a little girl who died

over three decades earlier.

[creepy music playing]

NARRATOR: Lourdes, France.

Fatima, Portugal.

And Medjugorje in the
former Yugoslavia.

Every year, they
come by the millions.

The dying, the disabled,
the sick at heart.

They come in the hope of
being miraculously healed,

in the hope of being
touched by God.

Now, many are
making a pilgrimage

to a new mecca for miracles--

the tomb of a young girl
buried in a small graveyard in

a tiny town in rural Louisiana.

Her name was Charlene Richard.

Many people say that,
even from the grave,

she has the power to heal.

One of those was Nicole Price.

When Nicole was two
years old, she was

diagnosed with a lethal cancer.

She was expected to die
within months, perhaps less.

She and her family prayed
for Charlene's help.

They believe that, thanks
to Charlene Richard,

Nicole lived not just a few
months but nine more years.

I feel that Charlene's
intervention in Nicole's life

gave us the nine extra
years we had with her.

I feel somehow God reached
out, through Charlene,

and touched Nicole.

NARRATOR: Donald
Ledger also believes

in Charlene's healing power.

In 1979, Donald-- a Sergeant
in the United States Army--

had an accidental fall
that injured his feet,

shattering both heels.

Doctors doubted he
would ever walk again.

Donald started
praying to Charlene.

To everyone's surprise,
he didn't just walk.

He even started running.

Without the
intercession of Charlene,

I feel that I would
not be able to walk.

I truly believe this.

I believe in miracles.

I do.

NARRATOR: But who
was Charlene Richard?

It was 1959.

Charlene had leukemia and
was suffering great pain.

Yet when Father Brennan
found the courage

to tell her she was dying,
it was she who comforted him.

Father Brennan, when I
see the blessed mother,

I'll tell her that
you said hello.

NARRATOR: During her
last days, Charlene

thought often of others.

She believed in
the Catholic idea

that one person's
suffering can save another.

Though she was
dying, she selflessly

offered her pain as
redemption for other patients

in the hospital.

When the sickness came and the
pain came, she grew in crisis.

She became great.

NARRATOR: Charlene prayed for
others every day for two weeks,

even as her own time
was running out.

I will be gone tomorrow.

I want to say goodbye.

I will be praying for you.

NARRATOR: The next
day, Charlene died.

I felt a presence in
that room of the divine.

There was an aura of
peace in that room.

NARRATOR: Charlene's
death deeply

touched her small community.

Over the years, word spread of
her courage and saintly ways.

People started praying
to her, asking her

to intercede for them with God.

Now, thousands gather each
year for a memorial mass.

More and more say
they've experienced

Charlene's power
to heal firsthand.

In 1994, 21-year-old Tara
Roy developed colon cancer.

She was diagnosed with a
Dukes Class C Stage 3 carcinoma.

And I've done enough
research and reading

about it to where I know that
you don't come back from those.

NARRATOR: Tara started
heavy doses of chemotherapy.

Despite its debilitating
side effects,

she was determined not to
give in to the disease.

I didn't want this to
interfere with my life.

I didn't want it to
totally take over,

you know, and dictate what I
would do and how I would do it.

I just wanted to be a college
student and go to class

and do my job.

NARRATOR: But Tara's
determination wasn't

enough to make her better.

Every day, she felt worse.

She soon felt she needed
more than medicine.

Tara and her parents started
making frequent trips

to Charlene's grave.

On their last trip, however,
Tara was so sick they thought

she might die within weeks.

With the cumulative
chemotherapy kicking in real

strong, we almost
didn't-- we almost

turned around and came home.

I didn't want to go.
I felt terrible.

It's probably one
of those days I just

didn't want to do anything.

Laying in bed was a challenge.

Deep down I wanted
to go to the grave

that day, I just
didn't physically

feel up to it at all.

NARRATOR: Tara knelt by
Charlene's grave as usual.

Then, some impulse inspired
her to do something

she had never done before.

With her fingers, she traced
the letters of Charlene's name.

And in about 20
seconds, she turned around

and she was transformed.

And when I saw
her, I was stunned.

I felt like a lot had
been lifted right then.

Like, just a weight off my
shoulder was lifted right then.

Pop, I'm going to be OK.

[laughing]

I just felt that I definitely
would be healthy again,

and I would--

I would beat this.

NARRATOR: Tara did beat it.

Both the cancer and the
effects of the chemotherapy.

She is now back to being a
healthy and happy young woman.

She finished college,
went on to get

a master's degree
in social work,

and is engaged to be married.

I saw the hand of God.

I saw what I needed
to see that day.

We saw a miracle.

No doubt.

Does the spirit
of Charlene Richard

reach out from her
grave to help those

who send her their prayers?

Skeptics aren't convinced.

Yet for the thousands who
visit Charlene's grave,

the answer is an unwavering yes.

Next.

Help authorities
catch Carl McWilliams,

wanted by State College
police for child molestation.

[creepy music playing]

Recently, authorities
in Pennsylvania

contacted us with a
request to profile

a fugitive considered to be
very manipulative and dangerous.

Please watch closely.

You may be able to help put
this individual behind bars.

State College, Pennsylvania.

A young mother struggling to
raise her three young children

alone met Carl McWilliams
in the fall of 1992.

He lived only a few
doors away and they

were both students at
Pennsylvania State University.

The two became friends, and
eventually Carl McWilliams

became like family.

For the sake of her
children, their mother--

who we will call Sarah--

asked that we not
reveal her identity.

Carl was a very
personable man.

He was friendly.

He got along beautifully
with my children.

They adored him.

He was, to me, like the perfect
father figure for my children.

NARRATOR: The fact
was, Carl McWilliams

was a convicted child molester.

He had spent six years
in prison for molesting

his 8-year-old daughter.

One day, Sarah came
home from work early

to find Carl McWilliams had
become her worst nightmare.

He was allegedly
locked in a bedroom

with her young daughter.

He opened the door, and
he was as pale as a ghost.

And he had broken out
into a real cold sweat.

And even to this day,
it's something so vile

that I could never even
put a handle on it.

I couldn't imagine someone
doing to a five year old child.

NARRATOR: Sarah and her children
moved away from the area.

And for seven
years, she anguished

about whether to report
the incident to police.

I felt that, if I expose them
to the police and agencies,

that it would be
worse for the girls.

And I felt it was better
for me as their mother

to try to handle it.

NARRATOR: Finally,
Sarah realized

the police needed to know
about McWilliams's behavior.

Authorities found
Carl McWilliams living

with another woman
and her children

just two miles from
the neighborhood Sarah

and her children had fled.

Carl McWilliams was
ordered to leave the house,

and relocated to a nearby
motel while police investigated

the allegations against him.

He stayed there one night and
checked out the next morning.

And that's the last indication
of any specific location

that we knew he possibly
could have been.

NARRATOR: Carl McWilliams
has been charged with rape,

statutory rape, aggravated
indecent assault,

and indecent assault.
He is most likely

working in the logging industry
in the United States or Canada.

Carl has, on occasion,
changed his appearance.

He's changed his hairstyle.

He's changed his glasses style.

Or maybe lost a little weight,
gained a little weight.

It wouldn't surprise me right
now if he is somewhere living

with another woman
who has little girls,

because that's what he does.

I think it's
important that he's

caught so that he doesn't
have the opportunity

to do this to other children.

No one has that right-- to
violate a child like that.

[intense music playing]

[creepy music playing]

Join me for the next
fascinating edition

of "Unsolved Mysteries."

[creepy music playing]