All language subtitles for Unsolved.Mysteries.S04E05.480p.WEB-DL.AAC2.0.H.264-PLAYREADY_track3_[und]

ANNOUNCER: This program is
about unsolved mysteries.

Whenever possible, the
actual family members

and police officials
have participated

in recreating the events.

What you are about to see
is not a news broadcast.

ROBERT STACK (VOICEOVER):
January 27, 1973,

the signing of the
Paris Peace Accords

marked the end of American
involvement in Vietnam.

Just one week later,
an Air Force spy plane

monitoring North
Vietnamese tank movements

encountered heavy ground fire,
and crashed in the jungle

with all hands on board.

Today, the families
of two crewmen

believe their sons did not die,
and that the end of the story

has not yet been written.

Paul Stamper was an energetic,
successful, young businessman.

But when his wife
walked out on him,

Stamper targeted her
in a vengeful campaign

of abuse and violence.

Meet Josephine White,
a human chameleon,

a charming con artist, a
master of the pigeon drop.

For years, she has
preyed on elderly victims

to the tune of more
than $1 million.

We'll also bring you the
touching update of a woman

who spent more than
40 years searching

for her long lost twin sister.

Join me for another edition
of "Unsolved Mysteries."

[theme music]

ROBERT STACK (VOICEOVER):
18 years ago, families

across the country were
rejoicing as their husbands

and sons began coming home
from the distant jungles

of Southeast Asia.

On January 27, 1973,
the Paris Peace Accords

had been formally ratified.

There would be no more American
involvement in Vietnam.

But for some families,
the war would never end.

While other soldiers
still stationed overseas

were writing joyful letters
to their wives and girlfriends

back home, Air Force
Sergeant Peter Cressman

was writing to his congressman.

SGT CRESSMAN (VOICEOVER):
Dear sir, on January 27th,

I read the headlines which
hailed the peace with honor

agreement, only to
wake the next morning

to find my situation the
same as the day before,

as though nothing had
changed in Southeast Asia.

Feeling that I must have
missed some of the small print

of the agreement,
I again read it

and found that I had
not overlooked anything

that was on the printed page.

It was then that I realized
that I and others in my unit

were in violation of the
agreement, which I consider

to be in order from
the commander-in-chief

of the armed forces
of the United States.

ROBERT STACK (VOICEOVER):
Sergeant Peter Cressman

was the youngest
of three brothers

to serve during the
Vietnam conflict.

He was an electronics expert who
flew top secret reconnaissance

missions.

Every day since the
ceasefire, his squadron

had continued to operate
as if nothing had changed.

Last night, an NKP
mission picked up

some short
transmissions at 4130.

SGT CRESSMAN (VOICEOVER):
I went to seek advice

at the base legal office.

There I was informed
of the consequences

for refusing to carry out the
orders, which I consider to be

illegal as well as immoral.

These consequences
instilled in me

a fear which has
caused me to abandon

any thoughts of refusing to
obey these illegal orders.

There any questions?

OK, good luck.

ROBERT STACK (VOICEOVER):
On February 4, 1973,

one week after the ceasefire,
Peter Cressman and seven

other men boarded an
EC47Q surveillance

plane, codenamed Baron 52.

[radio chatter]

1510.

1510, Check. .

ROBERT STACK (VOICEOVER):
The electronics

experts, Cressman among
them, were situated

in the rear of the plane.

1490?

1490, check.

ROBERT STACK (VOICEOVER): The
flight plan called for Baron 52

to proceed from Ubon Air
Force Base in Thailand

into Laos, a neutral
country which

borders Vietnam and Cambodia.

The assignment was
to monitor a column

of North Vietnamese tanks
which were moving into Cambodia

along the Ho Chi Minh Trail.

At 11:05 PM, Baron 52 departed.

2 and 1/2 hours later, reports
came in that the plane was

receiving heavy ground fire.

Five minutes later, radio
transmissions ceased.

Two days later, the
wreckage of Baron 52

was located in the
jungle deep inside Laos.

A rescue team recovered the
remains of only the copilot.

Declared missing in
action were Peter Cressman

and six other men,
three officers

and three electronics
experts, including

21-year-old Joseph Matejov.

While Matejov's
father died in 1984,

his mother vividly
remembers every detail.

Two military men, an
officer and a sergeant,

came to the home to inform me
that Joe was missing in action,

that his plane had
been shot down,

but there was a possibility
that some of the men

may have bailed
out of the plane.

I felt a little
feeling of relief

because he was missing
and not killed.

I thought there was some chance
that I might see him again.

It was 18 days later
that they returned

and they informed us
that none of the men

had gotten out of the plane.

There was no way.

They were not
wearing parachutes.

the plane went down into
a spin and none of the men

could possibly get out.

So they declared them
all killed in action.

They said that they did
see remains in the plane,

the plane had been burned.

So we believed 'em.

ROBERT STACK (VOICEOVER):
Peter Cressman's mother

had also received
word that her son's

status had been
changed from missing

in action to killed in action.

If my government said that he
had been killed, that they all

had perished in
the crash, then it

had to be true, because they
wouldn't go around and tell

a family that this had happened
unless they had positive proof.

OK

ROBERT STACK (VOICEOVER):
Several weeks

later, the Air Force
forwarded Peter

craftsman's Cressman's personal
belongings to his parents.

They found the letter
he had written but never

mailed to his congressman.

Peter's father passed away in
1989, but he and his other sons

had always questioned the status
change from missing to killed.

The letter only served to
heighten their suspicions.

They were declaring him
dead, but there was no body.

And we understand
that bodies can

burn up or disappear in
combat, but in this case,

there was just nothing.

And because of the
classification of the missions,

they never had anything
to back up their position.

According to this,
rescue team found one body

and there were no
parachutes in the plane.

ROBERT STACK (VOICEOVER):
For five frustrating years,

the Cressmans wrote various
Air Force officials,

seeking specific details
about Peter's case .

The Air Force response
remained consistent.

Based on the condition
of the wreckage

and the lack of a
distress call, there

was simply not enough time for
the flight crew to bail out.

The official report
concluded that all members

of the crew of Baron 52
were killed in the crash.

[phone ringing]

Hello?

ROBERT STACK (VOICEOVER):
Then, in June of 1978,

the Cressmans received
a surprising phone

call from an attorney with
the National MIA Organization.

He said I really don't know
how to tell you people this.

You're the first
family I've contacted.

But there is evidence that
I've seen that indicates

that at least four of the people
on your brother's aircraft

not only survived the
incident but were captured

by North Vietnamese forces.

ROBERT STACK
(VOICEOVER): The attorney

had learned of a report by
investigative journalist Jack

Anderson.

Anderson claimed that
US military intelligence

intercepted a North
Vietnamese communique shortly

after Baron 52 went down.

In 1973, Terrell
Minarcin was an air

defense analyst for the
National Security Agency.

His job was to
decipher intercepted

North Vietnamese messages.

We saw a specific North
Vietnamese communique

requesting transportation
for captured American bandit

pilots.

We felt at the time that
these messages were seen,

that based on the
logistics, based

on the lack of American
activity due to the ceasefire,

that the only personnel who
could have been captured

were the ones from Baron 52.

There was a good probability
some of the crew members

had survived.

Parachutes were missing.

So they probably parachuted out.

And we knew that they had
been captured, that they were

already in the hands
of the Vietnamese

and into the prison system.

My husband, a military man,
a career military man, we

were certainly dedicated
to serving our country.

So it was hard
for us to believe.

I telephoned my husband at work,
and I told him what I heard,

and he immediately said that we
would have to make arrangements

to go to the Pentagon
to pull Joe's file out

and to study it ourselves to see
just what had really happened.

Mr. and Mrs. Matejov, I
have these two files for you.

Thank you.

I'll be back in a half
hour to pick 'em up.

Thank you very much.

Thank you.

When we went to the Pentagon,
they showed us Joe's file.

They brought us
into a little room

where we could sit
together and study it.

And there in the file were
copies of the radio intercepts.

Much of them were blacked out.

There was very little
that we could read.

But we saw enough
evidence in his file

to show that the government
knew all along that these four

men had been captured.

My husband didn't
want to be bitter,

but it was beginning to
hurt him more and more.

I would hear him at night
when he thought I was asleep,

and I could hear
him sometimes cry.

And he would mutter "Joe."

I'd hear him talking out loud
when he thought I was asleep.

No, it never got
off of his mind.

He was very much hurt
by the whole issue.

ROBERT STACK (VOICEOVER): The
Defense Intelligence Agency

does not deny the existence of
a North Vietnamese communique.

However, the DIA
claims the nationality

of the captured pilots
was never specified.

Consequently, they
determined that the prisoners

were not the crew
members of the Baron 52.

Then, in 1986, Jerry Mooney, a
retired intelligence analyst,

testified before Congress
that Peter cressman

and Joseph Matejov were
prisoners of war, but not

in Southeast Asia.

Incredibly, he claimed
they had been transported

to the Soviet Union.

Terrell Minarcin agrees
that the men could have

been transported to the USSR.

Special types of
prisoners, prisoners

with special knowledge,
special experience,

were being rounded up throughout
the various prison of war camps

throughout North
Vietnam and sent

to Hanoi to be turned over to
the Russians for exploitation.

From that point, they
were flown from Hanoi

across to northern route,
which would be Northern

Laos, Northern Burma, down
into India for refueling,

and then up to Moscow.

I had information stating
that they had been

flown out to the Sokol area.

ROBERT STACK (VOICEOVER):
There is no concrete evidence

of that POWs were
transported to Russia

during the Vietnam conflict.

However, the Soviets
have recently

pledged to search through
their penal system

in the unlikely event that
any Americans were ever

brought into their country.

One question continues
to haunt the families.

If the government had knowledge
that their sons had been

captured, why had
their status been

changed to killed in action?

According to Mrs. Matejov,
the answer could be

found at the Paris Peace Talks.

My husband made arrangements
to meet with Dr. Roger

Shields, the Assistant
Secretary of Defense

at the Paris Peace Talks.

Dr. Shields told us that
he was ordered to cross off

the name of these four men
from the EC47Q from a list,

a government list of known
live captured Americans,

and write over them
"killed in action."

This plane was flying after
the peace treaty was signed,

therefore it was breaking
the peace treaty.

It was a covert operation.

They were flying over Laos.

And at that time, we said we
were not at war with Laos.

But we were having a
secret war, and there

was secret bombing going on.

But we couldn't admit to that,
so the only thing they could do

was just wipe these men out
as if they never existed.

And that's what they did.

So he was actually killed on
paper at the Paris Peace Talks.

ROBERT STACK (VOICEOVER):
Roger Shields

declined to appear on camera.

In a telephone conversation
with "Unsolved Mysteries,"

he stated that he was never
ordered to cross off the names.

In fact, he never
had the authority

to make a status change.

However, he did acknowledge
that Mrs. Matejov has

every reason on earth to
wonder if her son might

still be alive.

A man who puts on a
uniform to serve his country

should be brought back
once he serves and brought

back to his loved ones.

So I like to speak
out about that.

Make sure, whatever you do
that, you never let this happen

again, God forbid this
should ever be another war

and other men forgotten.

We didn't expect this kind
of thing from the government,

to be perfectly honest.

I mean, and I had someone
asked me once, well,

do you consider
yourself patriotic?

As though the information
that I was telling

them about made me unpatriotic.

Well, if something goes
wrong in your family,

you do what you can
to straighten it out.

You admit to what
the problem is.

And obviously, I don't believe
they've admitted to this day

what the problem is.

ROBERT STACK (VOICEOVER):
The Air Force and the Defense

Intelligence Agency continue
to maintain that there is

absolutely no proof that any
of the men aboard Baron 52

were captured.

The official report
reads, "Following

the loss of Baron 52, none of
its crew was ever seen alive.

And there is no
intelligence whatsoever

which would indicate
that any of the crew

survived the incident of loss."

For nearly 20 years, both
the Air Force and the Defense

Department have stood
by the classification

of Peter Cressman and Joseph
Matejov as killed in action.

However, there was one odd
footnote to this story.

At the Vietnam War
Memorial in Washington DC,

seven of the crewmen
were lost on Baron 52,

including Cressman and
Matejov, are inexplicably

listed as missing in action.

ROBERT STACK (VOICEOVER):
In the summer of 1924,

sharecropper Rufus Hinkle
of Greeneville, Tennessee

was forced to make an
agonizing decision.

Rufus' wife died
after giving birth

to twin girls, Mary and Martha.

With little money and
nine other mouths to feed,

Rufus felt he had
no choice but to put

the twins up for adoption.

Within a few months,
Mary and Martha were

adopted by separate families.

Rufus never saw his
daughters again.

He passed away in 1950.

Later on, I heard that they
would not tell us where they

were at until my father died.

So shortly after he died, we
started looking for the twins,

and we found Mary.

Why don't you come over here.

In September of
1955, Shorty and Mary

were reunited at her home
in Bluefield, West Virginia.

Great.

You know, Shorty, it's amazing
how much she looks like Dalton.

I can't believe it.

ROBERT STACK (VOICEOVER):
That afternoon, Mary

received a special surprise.

Mary, I've got
some news for you.

You have a twin
sister named Martha.

Really?

Really.

I just can't explain how I
did feel, not knowing that I had

a twin sister, a part of me.

ROBERT STACK (VOICEOVER):
Unfortunately, little was

known of Martha's whereabouts.

Then, in 1986, Martha's
niece, Jackie Reynolds,

learned that Martha had been
taken in by the Meeks family

of Johnson City, Tennessee.

I've never found any trace
of the Meeks whatsoever,

so I really don't know what
happened to 'em from there.

I've often wondered
if it's been good,

or if Martha's
life has been bad.

You wonder about them things.

Shortly after our
broadcast, one of our viewers,

Sandy [inaudible]
of San Bernardino,

California, contacted the Hinkle
family with surprising news.

During a search for her
mother's biological family,

Sandy accidentally discovered
the location of Martha

Hinkle's adoptive family.

ROBERT STACK (VOICEOVER): Martha
lived with John and Lyda Meeks

for three years.

When the couple
divorced, Martha was

taken in by the
Dan Jackson family

of Johnson County, Georgia.

In 1940, she married
James Thomas,

and together, they
had four sons.

Sadly, Martha passed away
just weeks before the Hinkle

family could contact her.

I'm glad that I found her.

We won't have to do
no more searching.

But it's so sad that
I couldn't meet her,

that I couldn't be with her,
just to talk to her for--

just for an hour or two and
tell her that I loved her.

ROBERT STACK (VOICEOVER):
Although she never realized

her dream of meeting
her twin sister,

Mary's 35 year search
was not in vain.

On July 27, 1991,
Martha's four sons

met Mary and a side of the
family they had never known.

That day, in a
bittersweet reunion,

two families came
together as one.

We were part of the
family before we ever walked

up and touched the one of 'em.

It was written all
over their faces

when we saw all those
smiles and tender hearts.

All the little fears, big fears,
the apprehensions just left.

It was all over with.

Glad to be home with our family.

[inaudible] Walmart
one hour photos.

I'm proud that she left
four sons, left part of her

here for me to get together
and know her through her sons.

But part of me is gone
that I've never found,

and I never will find.

But she'll always
be in my heart.

ROBERT STACK
(VOICEOVER): Next, police

are searching for a
convicted felon who targeted

his ex-wife for violence.

November 23, 1985,
Kingfisher, Oklahoma.

Nice meeting you.

ROBERT STACK (VOICEOVER):
23 Year old Teresa

Stamper left a small town
with her new boyfriend,

Chris Butler.

The quiet evening
was a pleasant change

for Teresa, who had just
ended a marriage which was

marked by violence and abuse.

Unbeknownst to Teresa,
her estranged husband,

Paul Stamper, was
parked nearby, watching

her every move through a
high powered telescope.

That night would be the
culmination of a reign

of terror against his ex-wife.

Paul Stamper never
accepted his wife's

decision to leave him.

For six months, he
stalked her night and day,

waiting for just
the right moment

to unleash his vengeance.

Teresa was constantly
looking over her shoulder,

never knowing where or when
her ex-husband would appear.

Paul Stamper had changed.

He was no longer the
man Teresa fell in love

with five years earlier.

ROBERT STACK (VOICEOVER):
The booming oil business

in the early 1980s
had lured Paul Stamper

to Kingfisher County, Oklahoma.

Stamper set up a lucrative
oil equipment operation

and hired Teresa, then an
impressionable 20-year-old,

as his secretary.

Paul was a real charmer,
and I worked for him,

and he took me places, and
we flew a lot of places.

It was different for me.

Hey, Teresa, honey, you
been outside yet this morning?

It was on my birthday.

He called me about
7:00 in the morning.

And he said, have
you been outside?

And I said, no.

So I looked outside,
and went out there,

and there's this
'82 red Corvette.

That's what he liked to do.

He liked to spend money
and buy nice things.

So what do you think?

What's this?

Well now, looks
like a Corvette.

This is for me?

Nothing but the best
for my little girl.

It's gorgeous.

Come on.

Let's go for a ride.

We had fun.

He was really a lot of fun.

He asked me to marry him.

And I liked him.

He was nice.

He was good to me.

And I liked living like that.

It was fun.

And then we got married.

ROBERT STACK (VOICEOVER):
Teresa believed she was marrying

a dynamic young businessman.

In fact, Paul Stamper
was a convicted felon

with a record for theft,
assault, and fraud

stretching back to 1974.

Little bit of a problem here.

Whatcha got?

ROBERT STACK (VOICEOVER):
More recently

his business practices had
come under investigation

in Oklahoma.

We had unconfirmed reports
that he went out and destroyed

some equipment on locations so
that those same people would

call him the very next
day and have him come out

and repair it.

ROBERT STACK (VOICEOVER):
Within six months,

the marriage became a
living hell for Teresa.

You mind telling me
where the hell you been?

I was at the grocery
store getting dinner.

You've been gone
for two hours!

Now who were you with?

Nobody.

TERESA (VOICEOVER): He
started watching me,

and having people follow
me, and he wouldn't

let me visit my friends.

And in one moment
he would be nice,

and the next moment,
he would hit me.

And I just didn't know
how to handle him.

Don't I get
everything for you?

Don't I get you a nice place to
live and buy you nice things?

And you're just
running around with--

Paul, this is crazy.

I don't--

You shut up!

TERESA (VOICEOVER):
He was jealous.

And you had better be
here when I get back.

I mean, we could be
sitting at a red light,

and I could just turn
and look at someone,

and it could be a guy
sitting in this car,

and he would just
double his fist up

and just hit me
right in the mouth.

I mean it was just-- it
was unreal to the abuse

that he did to me.

ROBERT STACK
(VOICEOVER): Stamper

was arrested and
charged with assault

and battery against his wife
on no less than five occasions.

Each time, the charges against
him were inexplicably dropped.

Stamper bragged
to Teresa that he

was paying off the authorities.

We had heard rumors that
there was payoff attempts.

Whether it's true or
not, I don't know.

We looked into a
couple incidents.

We could absolutely
find no basis for it.

But there was a lot
of talk about it.

ROBERT STACK (VOICEOVER): By
the second year of the marriage,

the violence reached
a frightful climax.

On the evening of
January 5, 1985,

a man slipped into
the Stamper's home.

Teresa was out of town, and
a friend was staying over.

Thankfully, the friend
survived the attack

and called the police.

The woman later
identified her assailant

as Gary Trout, a local mechanic
who worked for Paul Stamper.

Gary Trout informed me that
Paul Stamper had contacted him,

and Paul asked of
Gary to kill his wife,

and was willing to pay $5,000
upfront, and then $5,000

to finish it.

ROBERT STACK
(VOICEOVER): Stamper

was arrested and
charged as an accessory

to the attempted murder.

But when Gary Trout's
case went to court,

he refused to finger his boss.

Once again, all charges
against Stamper were dropped.

Meanwhile, Teresa moved
in with her parents,

yet she never felt
completely safe.

Stamper threatened
her repeatedly.

And on the night of
September 13, 1984,

he left a violent calling card.

I had went to the window,
and looked out the window,

and there he was, just
revving up the engine.

And he just let me see him,
and let me know that he did it,

and then he just drove off.

ROBERT STACK (VOICEOVER):
Teresa reported

the incident to the
sheriff's department,

but again, nothing was done.

Teresa remained separated from
her husband for more than a

year.

Despite continuing
harassment from Stamper,

she tried to put her
life back together.

Then came the night
of November 23, 1985.

That evening, Teresa and her
new boyfriend, Chris Butler,

had left the dinner party
at approximately 11:30 PM.

TERESA (VOICEOVER): We were
just driving down the highway,

and we weren't
speeding or anything.

And all of a sudden,
these lights come on.

Looks like we got trouble.

TERESA (VOICEOVER): We thought
it was a highway patrolman.

So Chris pulls over.

It's really late and no one
was driving on the highway.

Paul?

Teresa, honey,
get out of the car.

Hey, man.

She's not taking orders
from you anymore.

Hey, you shut up.

What are you doing with
my wife, anyway, huh?

I don't that's any
of your business.

Paul, put down the gun.

Get out of the car now!

Paul, what are you doing?

No, Chris!

Oh my God.

Oh my God.

What are you doing?

Open the door or I'll
shoot you through the window.

Come on!
- OK.

TERESA (VOICEOVER): Finally,
I was so scared that I just--

I unlocked the door.

And he just grabbed
me around my neck,

and just forced
me out of the car.

Chris had come too, and he
had yelled, don't leave me

here, Teresa, don't
leave me here.

And there wasn't
anything I could do.

ROBERT STACK
(VOICEOVER): Sheriff's

deputies and paramedics were
summoned by a passing motorist.

Chris Butler was in
critical condition.

The bullet had
punctured his heart,

pancreas, spleen, and lung,
but miraculously he survived.

Paul Stamper held a gun to
his ex-wife and headed north.

Two days later, they
stopped at a restaurant

just outside of Topeka, Kansas.

Can I help you?

- Two coffees.
- Is that it?

That's it.

Look, I gotta go
to the bathroom.

TERESA (VOICEOVER): I was
walking toward the restrooms,

and I looked around my shoulder
to see if he was following me.

And he wasn't.

He was just sitting there
with his back toward me.

And so I just took off running.

Teresa ran to the
manager's office

and pleaded with him
to call the police.

Yeah, could you send
an officer by here?

I got a crazy lady--

ROBERT STACK (VOICEOVER): By the
time the authorities arrived,

Paul Stamper had vanished.

Five hours later, police
caught up with Paul Stamper

as he boarded a bus
in Salina, Kansas.

He was returned to
Kingfisher County,

and held in the county
jail to await trial.

Six months later,
at 3:30 AM, a man

who had been offered
$10,000 by Stamper

broke into the
Kingfisher County Jail.

Don't try anything.

What do you want?

Open the cell.

Don't hurt me.

Shut it.

Shut up.

No!

ROBERT STACK (VOICEOVER):
Paul Stamper escaped,

and has not been seen since.

I'd consider Paul Stamper
extremely dangerous,

reason being, he's desperate.

Doesn't wanna be caught.

Knows he's looking at life
from prison once caught.

And a desperate person
will do desperate things.

He's out there,
somewhere, watching me.

He knows what I do, and I don't
think he knows where I live

now, but I just don't
think it's right

that he should be
out there maybe

doing it to somebody else.

ROBERT STACK
(VOICEOVER): Update.

Just minutes after
this story aired,

the FBI received information
from several of our viewers

that Paul Stamper was
living in Commerce City,

a suburb of Denver, Colorado.

One phone call
was very specific.

It had his alias.

It had his location,
his address,

his employment, that he was
driving a semi truck overland.

And that brought an immediate
response from the Denver FBI

so that we moved
out within the hour.

ROBERT STACK (VOICEOVER):
Just three hours

after our broadcast,
Paul Stamper was

arrested as he left his home.

The fugitive had been
living in the Denver area

under the assumed
name Gary Wickle

for approximately four years.

This is one of the more
efficient, cost effective,

speedy apprehensions
that we've ever made.

For us to not have
any idea early evening

that this individual
is in the Denver area,

and by 11:30, he is captured,
he's off the streets,

and he's on his way to Denver
City Jail, that, I think,

may be close to a record for us.

ROBERT STACK
(VOICEOVER): Paul Stamper

was returned to Oklahoma
and is currently

being held in the
Kingfisher County Jail

while awaiting trial on
charges of kidnapping

and attempted murder.

If convicted, Stamper could
receive life in prison.

When we return, the
saga of Josephine White,

a con woman with 1,000 faces.

April 26 1989,
Norwood, Massachusetts.

An elderly woman is approached
by a stranger who seems nervous

and agitated.

The elderly woman is a
Lithuanian immigrant,

whom we'll call Barbara.

This seemingly chance encounter
would change her life.

Here.

Right by that newspaper,
I found this bag.

Let me show you what I found.

I found this.

I think there's about
$70,000 in there.

What do you think we should do?

I says you better go
to police to find out.

Oh, she says, no.

I don't go to police.

Maybe they take money
and I don't want that.

Well, let me show you this.

I also found inside this note.

And look, look.

This is all it says.

It says, "Dear brother,
we've done it again

this time at the racetrack.

I've enclosed the
money and sent this way

to avoid paying income tax."

And then it's signed "Jose."

Excuse me, ladies, but is--
is there something wrong?

May I be of any help to you?

Well, um.

What is it?

ROBERT STACK
(VOICEOVER): Barbara

is a volunteer hospital
worker, retired and living

on a small pension.

She is about to fall victim
to one of the oldest tricks

in the book, the pigeon drop.

The wad of money she has
been shown is worthless.

The woman is a con artist,
the man her accomplice.

You know, my boss is like--
he's like a tax specialist.

I mean, he's a
wizard with finances.

ROBERT STACK (VOICEOVER):
Barbara, an immigrant

with a limited command
of English, confronted

with an amount of money
she has never seen before,

is a perfect target for
an acknowledged master

of the pigeon drop,
Josephine White.

Since 1963, White has
allegedly scammed more than 100

elderly women and
men, all of them

living on small, fixed incomes.

Once I pinned down the person
I was looking for was Josephine

White, I was surprised to see
how many different appearances

that she had.

She changes like a chameleon.

She puts on weight.

She loses weight.

She was described in a
number of different fashions.

And in addition to her
own appearance changing,

she'll use wigs, sunglasses,
quite a bit of jewelry.

And very often, this will
grab a woman's attention away

from her actual
physical appearance.

Why don't we just
go talk to him?

I mean, he'll know what to do.

It is a good idea.

Come on.

It's a great idea.

ROBERT STACK (VOICEOVER):
Josephine White

and her accomplice are
about to move into phase

two of the pigeon drop.

They persuade Barbara
to go with them to get

advice from Josephine's boss.

You know, I don't
know how I would

have gotten him into college
if I hadn't met you people.

I mean, and then my wife.

Oh God.

What's wrong with her?

Well, she's got a cancer
in her stomach or something.

Oh my God.

ROBERT STACK (VOICEOVER):
To lure Barbara

further into their trap,
the accomplice spins out

a poignant, hard luck
story, emphasizing how

desperately he needs the money.

And God, this is the
luckiest day of my life.

No, this is the luckiest
day of all our lives.

This is great.

Yeah, it's so nice to
meet such wonderful people.

Oh, you good man
and you good lady too.

Yes, so are you.

ROBERT STACK (VOICEOVER): They
arrive at an office building,

where Josephine
claims her boss works.

Don't worry.

It'll be fine.

Are you sure?

Yes.

I don't know.

Maybe we should tell police.

Ma'am, don't worry
about it, please.

We can't take it to the
police, because we'll

never get the money back.

You know, and I need the money.

My wife is dying of cancer.

The police find Jose.

The older woman actually
wants to do the right thing.

Now, again, the
third party is only

reinforcing the idea that
this is the best thing to do.

And even though the victim
may make mention of backing

out of the situation,
the third party

puts the pressure on them.

Don't worry about it.

Everything's gonna be all right.

So she has emotion
playing on one side,

and pressure of the money being
given to her on the other side.

She's really caught in a vise.

I told you everything
was gonna Be OK.

This is what he said.

We can keep the money--

ROBERT STACK (VOICEOVER):
Josephine White

tells them that her boss
says they can legally

keep the money, $22,000 apiece.

But she claims that a $5,000
good faith deposit for income

tax purposes is required.

Do you have a
credit card on you?

Oh no, I don't use those.

ROBERT STACK (VOICEOVER): Phase
three of the scam now begins--

convince Barbara to
put up the $5,000.

Do you have a
bank book on you?

Oh no, my bank home home.

Well, we'll stop off at
your house and get it, OK?

OK.

Let's get going.

These people come along,
and they talk so quickly,

and they offer you all
kinds of grand schemes.

And the second person
is jumping in as

soon as the first person stops.

So pretty soon the
victim's head is spinning.

The idea of money,
the idea of what

should we do with the money.

And pretty soon
she's being directed.

She's having all her thoughts
channeled by these two people,

who are actually
manipulating her

and manipulating her thoughts.

Remember, by the
end of the day,

you'll have the $5,000 back in
the bank, plus $22,0000 more.

And you're sure you
want to take it all?

Oh, I sure.

I sure.

All right.

What size bills do
you want that in?

100S, please.

100s.

1, 2, 3--

ROBERT STACK (VOICEOVER): The
$5,000 represents nearly all

of Barbara's savings.

7, 8, 9, 10, 1,000.

ROBERT STACK (VOICEOVER):
Josephine White returns

to the same office building.

I'll give him this.

ROBERT STACK (VOICEOVER):
She tells Barbara she will

show the $5,000 to her boss.

A few minutes later,
White returns and triggers

the final phase of
the pigeon drop.

You can go in and get
your money now, room 204.

ROBERT STACK (VOICEOVER):
Barbara's instructed

to meet with the boss herself.

We'll be right here
waiting for you.

BARBARA (VOICEOVER):
There was nobody there.

I just look around and then I
come back again to the place

where they was parked.

ROBERT STACK
(VOICEOVER): Barbara

finds the parking lot empty.

Josephine White, the car,
the man, and Barbra's $5,000

had vanished.

The scam has taken
less than two hours.

At this point, the
victim is devastated.

The victim doesn't
know what to do.

They didn't know whether to
cry, to collapse, to walk away.

They're just lost.

Their trust has been betrayed.

So what ends up happening is,
they eventually walk around

and they go over, and they
mull it over in their mind.

Geez, if I tell my family,
they're going to think

I'm a stupid old woman.

If I tell my son, he may
put me in a nursing home.

And all these terrible
thoughts go through their mind

in conjunction with the
embarrassment and the problems

of losing large sums of money.

I don't understand
myself how I did that.

But I trust her.

She says you'll get
this 5,000 back.

And you'll get or 22 more.

I trust.

That's why I did.

ROBERT STACK (VOICEOVER):
Josephine White

has bilked her victims
out of nearly $1 million.

Just two weeks ago,
she struck again in two

different Boston suburbs.

White sometimes uses the names
Judith Hunt or Judith Campbell,

and operates primarily along the
East Coast and in California.

On our next
"Unsolved Mysteries,"

in Florida, a bright,
energetic, young mother

suffered years of abuse at the
hands of her brutish husband.

When she finally walked out,
he decided to take revenge.

In 1969, a lonely
young boy found

friendship and
understanding with the help

of Big Brothers of America.

Now he goes to find the man
who turned his life around.

Join me next time.

Perhaps you may be able
to help solve a mystery.

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