All language subtitles for Unsolved.Mysteries.S12E03.Episode.451.AMZN.WEB-DL.DD+2.0.H.264-AJP69_track3_[eng]

NARRATOR: Tonight on
"Unsolved Mysteries"--

ROBERT STACK: A woman is
listed among the hundreds

of missing following
the terrorist attack

on the World Trade Center.

She would be assumed dead if it
weren't for one troubling fact.

She disappeared the night before
the twin towers collapsed.

Best friends since child Diane
Shawcroft and Jennifer Lueth

moved to a suburb of Phoenix,
Arizona and immerse themselves

in the local singles scene.

Two months later,
both would be dead.

Authorities now need your
help in finding their killer.

A divorced mother disappears
under bizarre circumstances.

Suspicion focuses on
her estranged husband

who is described by
some as a loving father

but by others as a
sadistic psychopath.

And now he is a
fugitive from justice.

A young, beautiful
girl becomes lost

in the neon glitter of Reno.

She leaves behind
paranoid emails,

gruesome drawings, and books
on how to change your identity.

Her family prays that
someone in our audience

can help Star Palumbo
find her way home.

Join me for these
fascinating stories.

Perhaps someone somewhere
has that one vital clue

that can solve a mystery.

Perhaps that
someone is watching.

Perhaps it's you.

[music playing]

Everywhere you looked, they
stared back, painful reminders

of the human toll taken
by the terrorist attack

on the World Trade Center.

Following September
11th, New York City

was blanketed with homemade
posters of missing loved ones.

Joining the thousands of
distraught family and friends

canvassing the city
was Ron Lieberman.

His wife, a 31-year-old
physician of Indian descent

named Sneha Philip, was
last seen in the vicinity

of the World Trade Center.

But Sneha's story is
drastically different

from the other hundreds
of people still listed

as missing and presumed dead.

In fact, Sneha
Philip disappeared

on September 10th, 14 hours
before the twin towers'

catastrophic collapse.

While she may have been
caught in the World

Trade Center disaster,
Sneha may have

also succumbed to foul play.

Her fate remains a mystery.

I think this is a very
difficult situation because

of the confusion
with September 11th

that leaves every
single possibility open.

I mean, in our heads right
now, anything is possible.

MAN: I pronounce them--

they are husband and
wife in the name of God.

ROBERT STACK: Only
one year earlier,

Ron and Sneha were exchanging
vows of everlasting love.

Their future happiness
seemed assured.

There are certain people that
you meet in your life who just

you connect with so strongly.

And right away we knew
and basically inseparable

since the first day we met.

ROBERT STACK: The newlyweds
shared an apartment

in Battery Park City, an
exclusive neighborhood

just four blocks from
the World Trade Center.

At 11:15 AM on September
10th, Ron left for his shift

as a doctor at Jacobi Hospital.

Sneha, who was also a doctor,
had the next three days off.

Hang on one second.
RON LIEBERMAN: I kissed her.

I told her I loved
her, and I left.

Ron's leaving for work.

RON LIEBERMAN: Luckily,
I left my keys at home.

So I went back.

Keys--

RON LIEBERMAN: And I
got to kiss her again.

And that was the last
time that I saw her.

ROBERT STACK: When Ron
returned at 11:15 that night,

Sneha was not home.

But Ron felt there was no
reason to be concerned.

My schedule is so
crazy, so sometimes she

would feel uncomfortable
staying by herself at home.

And her brother
lives very close by.

And her cousin also
lives very close by.

So she would sometimes go
spend the night with them.

And I thought,
well, maybe she just

decided to stop at her
brother's house or her cousin.

ROBERT STACK: The
following morning,

Ron rose early and headed to
work for an 8:00 AM meeting.

He expected Sneha to call
him once she woke up.

September 11th began
as a perfect day.

The weather was
unseasonably warm

and the sky a brilliant blue.

Like Ron, millions
of New Yorkers

went about their daily routines,
unaware that the entire world

teetered on the
verge of disaster.

What happened?

There was an accident.

A plane hit the
World Trade Center.

Oh my god.

RON LIEBERMAN: After the
meeting, I came outside,

and we saw the TVs were on.

And we saw the first plane hit.

So I immediately
went and called home.

Sneha, if you're
there, pick up the phone.

RON LIEBERMAN: And there was
just the message machine on.

I need you to call me and
let me know that you're OK.

I love you.

RON LIEBERMAN: And
then we learned

that a second plane hit.

And now everyone realized
that this is an attack.

And then, when the
buildings came down,

everyone was just-- you know,
people were crying but still

trying to work.

And it was a very,
very emotional time,

I think, obviously for everyone.

I called back again at
about 10:00 in the morning.

Still just the message
machine was on.

And then, after that,
the phones went dead.

I was frightened for
my wife, because I

couldn't get in touch with her.

I was sad at what had
happened, devastated

by the whole situation.

You know, there's
so many emotions.

Everyone is in shock.

And where's my wife?

I don't know.

ROBERT STACK: Ron Lieberman's
personal nightmare

coincided with one of the worst
global nightmares in history.

Imagine trying to find
your wife in the chaos

and confusion
following the tragedy

at the World Trade Center.

Any evidence as to what
happened to Sneha Philip

was most likely buried under
1.2 million tons of rubble.

Still, Ron Lieberman prayed
that Sneha was simply

lost in the turmoil
enveloping New York City

and that she would
soon find her way home.

Ron's hopes were based
on Sneha's spending

the previous night with
her brother or cousin.

But, when he finally
got through to them,

both said they had
not seen or heard

from Sneha in over 48 hours.

Realizing that no one
had spoken to her yet,

I realized that this
is a serious situation.

At that point, I decided,
you know, I'm going to try

to get down to the apartment.

ROBERT STACK: All roads into
lower Manhattan were closed.

Only emergency vehicles
are being permitted

through the barricades.

Ron hitched a ride
in an ambulance

and then made his way on
foot to the apartment.

RON LIEBERMAN: The scene
down there was just chaos.

There was this-- one of
the most scariest sights

I've ever seen in my life.

As I start approaching
my apartment building,

I started seeing trucks blown
up, fire engines turned upside

down, pieces of the building, or
what looked like the building,

on the ground also.

ROBERT STACK: Ron's apartment
in Battery Park City

was chained shut.

Sneha!

ROBERT STACK: He soon
learned from a neighbor

that Sneha was not
in the building.

RON LIEBERMAN: So
now, at this point,

I didn't know what to do.

With all the chaos going on,
I thought, well, how am I

going to find her right now?

And I went back to my friend's
place, and I spent the night.

And that was a very
difficult night,

I was by myself on
the couch wondering

where my wife was, frightened
that something awful happened.

ROBERT STACK: The day
following the attacks,

Ron filed a missing persons
report with the NYPD.

RON LIEBERMAN: We knew she
was missing since Monday.

And when we told the detective,
they just said, OK, we'll take

your missing person's report.

But that was lumped into
the World Trade Center.

You got the feeling that the
police were just completely

overwhelmed, and
that they had very

little time or effort to be
able to put forth towards this.

ROBERT STACK: The NYPD
believes that Sneha was more

than likely one of the
many lost in the World

Trade Center disaster.

But Ron was convinced that she
disappeared the night before.

He hired a private
eye and launched

an investigation of his own.

They would uncover several
disturbing questions.

But one above all others had
haunted Ron from the start.

Where was Sneha on the
night of September 10th?

Ron discovered that an
employee at the couple's

apartment building remembered
seeing Sneha that evening.

Hey Tom, I--

ROBERT STACK: At 5:15 PM, he
saw her leaving alone wearing

a brown dress and sandals.

By tracing credit card receipts,
Ron found evidence of Sneha

may have then going shopping
at a department store

near the World Trade Center.

At 7:15 PM, shoes,
lingerie, and bed linens

were purchased with
Sneha's credit card.

But was it Sneha who used
the card or an impostor who

had stolen it?

Excuse me--

RON LIEBERMAN: From
what was purchased,

it sounded like it was her--
you know, sheets for the beds

and things like that.

So we assumed it was
her without proof yet.

ROBERT STACK: Ron hoped to find
that proof on the department

store's surveillance video.

RON LIEBERMAN: And
for about two weeks I

sat and watched this tape
for about five hours a day,

you know, frame by frame.

It's one of those
stop action photos--

where I actually found my wife
on the tape, shopping alone.

ROBERT STACK: After
the department store,

Sneha's trailed turns
completely cold.

She leaves the store, and
then she just disappears.

There is not a trace of her--

nothing, not a credit
card transaction,

no money taken out
of her account,

no e-mails, no phone calls--

nothing.

How does that happen?

It's a complete mystery.

ROBERT STACK: Where did
Sneha go after leaving

the department store?

She was carrying two
large bags of merchandise.

But neither the bags
nor the merchandise

were found at Sneha's
apartment, suggesting that she

never made it back home.

Near the department store
stood the Millenium Hotel.

Inside was a connoisseur
bar and grill.

The private investigator
hired by Ron

theorized that Sneha could
have stopped in for a drink.

Is it possible that something
happened here that ultimately

led to her disappearance?

The Millenium Hotel
was closed down

after the attack,
frustrating Ron

and the investigator's efforts
to see if she went there.

In fact, the entire area
where Sneha was last seen

lay in ruins.

As a result, any theory
about what happened to her

was virtually
impossible to prove.

Was Sneha a victim
of random violence?

Could she have left on her own
accord to start a new life?

The questions seemed endless.

Any answers were
surely destroyed

along with the Twin Towers.

But then a mysterious
clue emerged,

spinning the investigation
into an entirely

unexpected direction.

A clerk at the department store
saw the missing flyer of Sneha

and stepped forward,
giving Ron and Sneha's

family renewed hope.

Then the shoe sales clerk told
us that she remembers my wife

and that she'd known
her as somewhat

of a regular customer--

Is that your sister?

Oh no, she's just
a friend of mine.

RON LIEBERMAN: --and that she
remembered her there that day

and said that she was
with another person,

an Indian woman that she
just said was her friend.

OK, bye-bye.

Have a good day.

You too.

RON LIEBERMAN: And
then they said,

after she went to
buy shoes, that they

were thinking about going
to the lingerie area.

ROBERT STACK: Based on
this new information,

Ron re-examined the department
store's surveillance tape.

Two women are captured
leaving the store together.

Could this be Sneha
and her companion?

Hey, you wanna get
something to eat?

ROBERT STACK: So
far, all efforts

to identify the mysterious
woman have failed.

We have no idea
who this person is--

and that she never
existed in Sneha's past.

We've gone through
her phone books.

We've gone through her email.

There's no, like, phone call
even made to this person

during that day.

She doesn't exist anywhere else.

I mean, it could be very
possible Sneha ran into her.

It could be an old time friend.

ROBERT STACK: Is it
possible that Sneha stayed

at the unidentified
woman's house

on the night of September 10th?

If that was the case,
then Sneha could well

have been heading
home the next morning

at the approximate time of
the World Trade Center attack.

If Sneha was near the World
Trade Center on the morning

of September 11th, knowing
the kind of person she was,

it would just be instinctual
with her to try to help.

And she might have
gone into the building,

or she might have
helped people out.

It would have just been-- that's
the kind of person she is.

She just cares about people.

ROBERT STACK: If Sneha was
inside the World Trade Center,

she had no chance of surviving.

But that scenario assumes
that Sneha was alive

the previous night
and spent it somewhere

other than with Ron, her family,
and all of her known friends.

Well she's never
just spent a night out

without informing
us where she is,

informing her
husband where she is.

It's never happened.

Why would this night
be any different?

So, I mean, I really
think that something

happened to her September 10th.

It's difficult to continue.

You know, each day is
a day that we suffer,

because we don't know.

You know, sometimes
I think she might

just walk through the door,
or she might just call.

But it just, each
day, doesn't happen.

And it's really torture.

ROBERT STACK: The Cedar Creek
apartments outside of Phoenix,

Arizona--

a brutal heat wave passes
through the region.

After graduating from high
school, Diane Shawcroft, 20,

and her best friend
Jennifer Lueth, 19,

had left their homes in
Colorado for the sunny suburb

of Glendale, Arizona.

Don't tell me to relax.

ROBERT STACK: They moved in with
Diane's older sister Kristina.

But three young women living
in a one bedroom apartment soon

led to tension.

When did you become mom?

I said no smoking.

That was my last cigarette.

Fine, maybe I'll just go then.

Maybe you should.

They said they were
gonna walk to the store

to get cigarettes and a
pop and that they would

be back in a little while.

They didn't take
anything with them,

and they never went anywhere
without their makeup.

So that's what made me think
they were coming right back.

Come on.

I'll talk it out with her.
We'll work it out.

No, we're not going--

ROBERT STACK: Diane and Jennifer
headed for the mini mart

two blocks away.

They never returned.

For the first time
in their lives,

Diane Shawcroft Jennifer Lueth
were living away from home.

The girls began to explore
the boundaries of their new

found freedom.

They were swept
into an exhilarating

whirlwind of late
nights, new friendships,

and lively parties.

But authorities
now fear that Diane

and Jennifer's
carefree lifestyle

may have ultimately
put them in harm's way.

Diane and Jenny
were very, very close.

They were probably
closer than most sisters.

Jenny was a little
more flirtatious.

Diane was a littler
quieter and more shy,

but she's the one that basically
took care of both of them

I believe.

Hi.

Hey, are you guys having fun?

They were pretty open
to just about anybody.

They liked to hang out, and they
liked to have lots of friends.

But they liked to go, go, go.

They wanted to be doing
something all the time.

And they didn't care if
it was 3:00 in the morning

or 3:00 in the afternoon.

ROBERT STACK: On the
day they disappeared,

Diane and Jennifer were
seen at a mini mart

at approximately 7:00 PM.

- Hey, girls.
- Hey.

How are we doing?

Good.

ROBERT STACK: According
to the cashier,

the girls bought
cigarettes and soda.

But instead of going home, they
lingered outside the store.

Two hours passed.

The girls were still in
front of the mini mart

when the cashier saw a man
pull up in a blue truck.

They conversed
for quite a while.

They got into the truck, and
then the truck drove off.

And that's the last time
that anyone that we know of

has seen them alive.

I believe she
knew this person,

because she would never ever get
into a vehicle with strangers.

She just wouldn't do it.

She wasn't the kind
that would hitchhike

or do anything like that.

She was very careful
and very cautious.

ROBERT STACK:
Three months later,

two men were hunting
in a remote desert

100 miles north of Phoenix.

As they traversed
a steep incline,

they came across
a gruesome site.

Diane Lynne Shawcroft lay on
top of Jennifer Sue Lueth.

Both had been murdered.

Even in death, Diane seemed to
be protecting her best friend.

Because the
investigation is ongoing,

police are withholding
the cause of death.

But the location of
the girls' bodies

offered several clues as to who
the killer or killers might be.

The area is extremely isolated,
16 miles from the nearest

highway, and accessible
only by pickup

truck or four wheel drive.

We feel that this person has
probably been in this area,

or frequented this
area, or certainly

was aware of this
area in some way

by their own four wheel
driving, or hunting,

or at least some personal
knowledge of the area.

ROBERT STACK: The deepness
of the ravine also raised

another troubling possibility.

TED SYMONDS: They were both
fairly decent sized girls,

so you would have had to have
handled each one of those.

So either we had a
very strong person,

or we had more than one person,
possibly, that were involved

in taking these bodies out.

Jennifer was a strong
girl, and she was

a scrapper if she needed to be.

It wouldn't be
easy for one person

to overpower Jennifer alone.

But with two of them, it's just
sort of inconceivable to me

that one person was able
to do that to two girls.

ROBERT STACK: The
police investigation

centered on finding
the mysterious man

in the blue truck.

Believing that both
girls knew this man,

police delved into
their personal lives.

Out in Phoenix,
Diane and Jennifer

had attended numerous
parties and nightclubs.

They had a lifestyle with a
lot of males involved in it.

There were a lot of male
friends, male relationships.

They were involved in
so many people's lives.

They were involved in
many strangers' lives

to the point-- it could have
been somebody they'd just met.

Where are you from?

We're from Colorado.

From this really small town
where it's like 0 degrees

right now--

We're so happy to be here.

DEBRA LUETH: I think
both Jenny and Diane were

very naive and very innocent.

I think, like most 19-year-olds,
they think they're invincible

and can just conquer the world.

That reminds me--
my friend's having

a little pool party tonight.

There's gonna be
kegs, lots of people.

You guys should come down.
- Really?

Yeah.

And I think whoever
got involved with them

knew that, could read
them like a book,

and took advantage of them.

ROBERT STACK: There was
one final, strange twist

to this case.

The families erected a shrine
where the bodies were found.

Pictures of both girls
were placed at the foot

of two wood crosses.

Police decided to
occasionally survey the site,

hoping for a morbid
visit from the killer.

No one ever showed up, at
least while authorities

were at the scene.

On September 29th,
2000, detectives

discovered that both
photos of the girls

had been removed
from their frames.

Only police and
the victims' family

knew the precise
location where the girls'

bodies had been found.

Nothing else seemed
to be disturbed,

and it definitely
raised questions

as to who would want the
pictures, who would go

to that much effort
to go back in,

as far as it is, get the
pictures, and take them.

Hard to even imagine who it'd
be, or why they would do it,

unless it's the perpetrator.

ROBERT STACK: Had the killer
returned for a macabre souvenir

of his brutal act?

Police can only speculate.

No evidence that might
identify the murderer

has ever been found.

The search for Diane and
Jennifer's killer or killers

continues.

Authorities would
especially like

to question the man who
was the last person seen

with the girls.

He may be driving a
blue pickup truck.

[knocking]

Hello!

ROBERT STACK: Two friends
of 44-year-old Brenda Bowen

arrive at her rural
Alabama home after she

fails to show up for a prayer
meeting earlier that morning.

Sweetie?

Brenda!

ROBERT STACK: But Brenda
is nowhere to be found.

Hello, anybody home?

ROBERT STACK: Within hours, the
Shelby County Sheriff's Office

responds to the scene.

Brenda's clothes were
laid out on her bed

as if to dress after she
got through with her shower.

On her dresser was her jewelry.

Everything was laid
out real nice and neat.

Also, they saw her
curling iron was in the

on position in the bathroom.

But there was no other signs
that Brenda was there at all.

ROBERT STACK: Brenda Bowen lived
a life most of us would envy.

She was blessed with two
healthy teenage children,

a thriving real estate
business, and a sprawling home

in the beautiful
Alabama countryside.

Her friends and family
could find no reason

why she would suddenly vanish.

When Brenda went missing,
it was devastating to us.

I stayed at home.

I thought she might
call, you know.

But, in my heart, I knew
that something had happened

to Brenda, something bad.

ROBERT STACK: The only source
of friction in Brenda's life

was her ex-husband,
Jerry Lee Bowen.

Two years earlier, Brenda's
long lasting marriage to Jerry

had abruptly fallen apart.

They were together for
about 18 or 19 years.

And they'd worked good together.

But Jerry-- Jerry got out
and found a girlfriend.

And he asked her for a divorce.

Jerry, you've
agreed to give Brenda

complete and unencumbered
use of the house

until your daughter turns 19.

Brenda, you will give Jerry
use of the guest house

in the back as his--

ROBERT STACK: With the help
of a divorce attorney, Jerry

and Brenda separated
on good terms

and even agreed to a very
unusual living arrangement.

Jerry would reside
in the guest house

behind the main residence.

He also gave Brenda the
bulk of the couple's assets.

Jerry live quietly in
the shadow of his ex-wife

until he ran into
financial difficulties.

Brenda, I'm asking
for your help here.

I don't know, Jerry.

You're asking me to live a lie.

It's only a
business arrangement!

And he told her that he
was in financial trouble,

and they had to
get back together.

He had to have some relief.

Brenda's answer was--

I'd have to think
about that, Jerry.

So you're not gonna help me?

I don't know, Jerry.

Can't we talk about
this in the morning?

Jerry-- Jerry, we can talk
about it in the morning.

I'm gonna take
you back to court.

ROBERT STACK: Four days
later, Brenda Bowen vanished.

Anything you find,
I wanted bagged.

I want it filed.

ROBERT STACK: Police
began their investigation

at the Bowen home.

Jerry Bowen was
fully cooperative

and even offered his own theory
on what happened to Brenda.

As I started to leave,
Jerry says, well Don, what do

you think happened to Brenda?

Well let's just hope she's
on a beach somewhere down

in Florida tanning her buns.

You're wrong.

She's dead.

I said, well, if
she's dead, where

do you think we could find her?

And Jerry looked at me.

He says, you could find
her in the water somewhere.

We got a call about
an abandoned vehicle.

ROBERT STACK: That same
night, Brenda's car

was found stuck in the mud
43 miles from her home.

We found personal items
belonging to Brenda there.

We found her purse.

We found a cell phone.

There was checkbooks there.

So that told us that this was
not a robbery, that perhaps

the car was left the way
it was just as a decoy,

that Brenda would
not be found there.

This here's the Bowens' boy.

ROBERT STACK: Brenda's own son
raised an even more troubling

question about the car.

I was wondering
what the position

that the driver's seat was in.

All the way back, right?

Yeah, it was all the way back.

Well, my mom--
she's only five two.

ROBERT STACK: With the car
seat completely pushed back,

Brenda's feet could not
have reached the pedals.

But the strangest
question of all

came out of Jerry
Bowen's own mouth

when he unexpectedly
appeared at the crime scene.

Is that the car that belongs
to the woman who's missing?

Now this was
his ex-wife's car.

He knew whose car that was.

And it turned out later to
be a question that we felt

was very important to
pinning down just who was

responsible for Brenda's death.

ROBERT STACK: Jerry was taken
to the Shelby County Sheriff's

Office for an interview
where his behavior

continued to raise red flags.

He was not of any
help to us whatsoever.

He showed no concern
for her well-being.

And during the process
of the interview,

he actually went to sleep.

ROBERT STACK: But Jerry's
friends and family adamantly

claim that he was
in a state of shock

and overcome with worry
for his former wife.

Jerry was very
concerned about her.

But he was also upset that the
police thought it might be him.

He said often that
he was innocent.

So there was no way he was going
to be pinned with a murder.

They stripped him down.

They checked him for
any cuts, or bruises,

or bites, or anything.

They didn't find a
scratch on him anywhere.

But they got in his
face and told him we

know you did something to her.

Whatever happened to
her, we know you did it.

And we will prove it.

And they had tunnel
vision from that night on.

There is zero doubt in
my mind that Jerry Bowen

killed my daughter Brenda--

no doubt.

ROBERT STACK: But
there was no evidence

linking Jerry Bowen to
his wife's disappearance,

and he was released.

Several months later,
three fishermen

saw something
floating in the murky

waters of the Coosa River.

It was the body of Brenda Bowen
bound and tied inside a sheet.

The advanced state
of decomposition

made it impossible for
the coroner to determine

the cause of death.

When Brenda Bowen's
body surfaced,

she was, for lack of a
better way of saying it,

packaged in a certain manner.

We got the call
late this afternoon.

These three fishermen
found the body.

RANDALL I. HILLMAN:
Around her body was

a green top sheet off of a bed.

Around that was a
length of nylon rope.

OFFICER: I want to secure the
area all the way up to the road

before the forensic
boys get here.

ROBERT STACK: The sheet was
positively identified as coming

from the Bowen home, and there
were several curious aspects

about the rope.

It was tied with two specific
knots, a bowline and a slip.

And the ends had been
deliberately burnt.

The son asked to
look at the rope that

was around his mother's body.

And he looked at it and
tears filled his eyes.

He said, I've seen that
same combination of knots

from Jerry Bowen
dozens of times.

He said, I've never
seen anybody else do it.

In addition to that,
every time Jerry Bowen cut

a piece of nylon rope, he
would take a cigarette lighter

and burn the ends of it.

The knots, the car seat, the
burned ends of the rope--

it all starts pointing
back to Jerry Bowen.

Jerry Bowen was arrested
and tried for the murder

of his wife Brenda.

The case against him was
almost entirely circumstantial

except for one crucial element.

Jerry could not account for
his whereabouts prior to 9:30

on the morning of
Brenda's disappearance.

The jury took only six
hours to decide his fate--

guilty.

But the bizarre
story of Jerry Bowen

did not end with his conviction.

While awaiting sentencing,
Bowen was released on bond.

The day of the hearing, Jerry's
sister received a blunt letter.

It read-- this may be a
dumb move on my part, sis.

But I don't feel I
should serve time

for a crime I didn't commit.

Therefore, I am running.

When Jerry was convicted,
my thoughts was it's payday.

When Jerry fled, I felt
like payday evaporated.

And it did.

ROBERT STACK: The FBI
descended on Jerry's home

looking for any clues
as to his whereabouts.

But no one was prepared for what
was found on Jerry's computer--

thousands of violent and
sadistic pornographic images.

Jerry is very polite,
respectful to others.

But when he's back in
his own secret place,

within his own residence, the
bizarreness of his behavior

starts to emerge when he's
visiting websites of women

being abused, tied up,
shackled, and tortured,

as well as a fascination for
pregnant women that are naked.

ROBERT STACK: No other
evidence was recovered

from Jerry's home that
would lead detectives

to the convicted killer.

He has now evaded
capture for over a year.

Well he's still on the loose.

And we can't have
closure until he's found

and come back to the Sheriff's
department where he belongs.

I hope they bring him in chains.

[music playing]

ROBERT STACK: In the early
morning hours of April 26,

2000, a young woman
is spotted wandering

in a restricted area
of the Reno-Tahoe

International Airport.

She appears disoriented
and frightened.

An airport police
officer is called.

He finds the woman
cowering near a truck.

Are you OK?

ROBERT STACK: The
woman identifies

herself as Star Palumbo.

She then claims she's trying to
find her younger sister who was

running loose on the tarmac.

OK, we searched the
grounds for your sister

with the description
that you gave us,

and she's nowhere to be found.

ROBERT STACK: The
airport police officer

felt there was a possibility
that Star's story was not true.

But he also believed that
Star had no criminal intent

for being out on the runway.

He had no idea why
she was out there.

She could give no
logical explanation.

But, instead of arresting her,
he decided to release her.

ROBERT STACK: Star Palumbo
is dropped off near a hotel

and disappears into
the kaleidoscope

of blinding neon lights.

The next day, an
illegally parked car

is discovered at the airport.

And, when I ran a license
check on it to put it

on the impound sheet,
the registered owner

came back to Star Palumbo.

As I was going through the
vehicle during the impound,

I found it appeared
to be loaded with all

her personal possessions.

ROBERT STACK: Also
in the car were

Star's cell phone and purse,
including $600 in cash.

And Star had left
behind other items

that caused even more concern.

Copies of three emails
sent to the White House

indicated that Star
felt the government

was trying to murder her.

A morbid drawing depicted
a woman who looked

like Star bound and gagged.

And finally, there
were two books

on how to change your identity.

Star never showed
up to claim her car.

She has now been
missing for over a year.

There are two very
likely possibilities.

The first is that
she is suffering

from some type of either
organically caused

or drug induced psychosis,
and is a sick woman,

and doesn't know
who or where she is.

And the second
possibility, sadly,

is that she's been the
victim of a serious crime

and has either
been murdered or is

in a position where she can't
contact her friends and family.

The mystery of
what happened to Star

Palumbo began long before the
25-year-old woman vanished.

Star was once a
vivacious brunette

full of hope and promise.

But authorities believe
that she tragically

drifted into a nether world
of drugs and desperation,

placing her life
in imminent danger.

Her family is convinced
that Star is alive

and, with your help,
will one day come home.

Star lived a very
happy childhood,

and she was very dependable.

And she's a very
trusting person.

She was a very happy
person, sociable person.

And she really, I guess,
trusted people too much.

ROBERT STACK: One year
prior to her disappearance,

Star left her home
in Tucson, Arizona,

and moved to Reno, Nevada.

She lived there with
her grandmother.

It was in Reno, investigators
believe, that Star's life

began to careen off course.

Interviews with
Star's friends there

reveal a portrait of a troubled
woman who had lost her way.

In this particular
case, Star seems

to have fallen in
with a very bad crowd

and had been involved in a more
increasing degree of drug use,

and specifically
with methamphetamine

at a level that could
only be disastrous.

ROBERT STACK: According to her
friends, in the weeks leading

up to her disappearance,
Star's drug

habit cost more
than she could make

as a cashier at a pawn shop.

Police believe it is possible
that the increasingly

distraught woman began to look
for other ways to make money.

DET.

DAVID JENKINS: There is an
indication that Star had

been dabbling in prostitution.

In her phone books, there was
reference to a number of men.

We really don't
have a good feeling

for the extent of
the relationships

with a number of those men.

However, certainly prostitution
is a high risk occupation

and one of the
factors that causes

us concern about
what has befallen

Star in her disappearance.

ROBERT STACK:
While in Reno, Star

continued to call her
mother on a weekly basis

and seemed in good spirits.

But on the day she
disappeared, Star

made a final phone call that
took on an ominous and paranoid

tone.

She would only talk
to us for a little bit.

She said that she felt
somebody was following her.

And when she talked
on the phone,

she thought maybe the
phones were tapped

and somebody was listening.

And she mentioned how
something was going on,

and she was afraid for her life.

And she wouldn't discuss
it any more than that.

ROBERT STACK: According
to her mother,

Star expressed a desire
to turn her life around.

She then talked about
flying home to Tucson

and starting over.

I love you.

OK, bye.

ROBERT STACK: Gail Palumbo has
not heard from her daughter

since.

Following Star's
disappearance, her parents

mounted a massive effort
to locate their daughter.

Thousands of flyers
were distributed,

and Star's picture was posted
throughout the state of Nevada.

It appears that those
efforts have paid off.

Linda Fields, owner of a Silver
Dollar Casino in Elko, Nevada,

claims to have seen Star
there a full eight months

after her disappearance.

Honey?

Honey, are you all right?

Miss Fields described seeing
a young woman who, in her mind,

she was very certain
was Star Palumbo,

who had come into
the bar one evening,

had looked
frightened, was alone,

and that the young
woman had volunteered

to her that her name was Star,
and that she was being chased

or was trying to
escape from a pimp.

ROBERT STACK: Linda
Fields says that Star

became extremely agitated
when a man peered

through the bar's window.

A short time after
that, Star left the bar

with another young woman.

If the woman was
Star, then where did

she go after leaving the bar?

Maybe there really was
somebody after her.

Could she have used the books
found in her car to change

her identity and escape?

It is this scenario that
Star's family clings to.

I'd like to say, Star, that
your mom and dad really love

you and, no matter
what you've done,

or anything, that we
wish you'd contact

us to see if we could help you.

Join me next time for
another fascinating edition

of "Unsolved Mysteries."

[music playing]