Dateline- Unforgettable - Season 7 Episode 06- The Haunted House Confession - video Dailymotion

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Dateline- Unforgettable - Season 7 Episode 06- The Haunted House Confession    #EnglishMovie #cdrama #drama #engsub #chinesedramaengsub #movieshortfull

Transcript

00:00:00Some stories are unforgettable.

00:00:03This is one of them.

00:00:07She would show up sometimes before the pastor.

00:00:12She loved the love we gave her.

00:00:17I got a phone call that she didn't come home.

00:00:20She went missing on Friday the 13th.

00:00:23I heard sirens and my heart kind of dropped.

00:00:27Kids would call it a haunted house.

00:00:28I visited the scene of the crime and haunted house is right.

00:00:33It really was shocking to see and not just because I knew what happened there.

00:00:38You couldn't imagine a scarier place for a body to be found.

00:00:44We're trying to identify potential suspects.

00:00:48John Adams was Shantae's boyfriend.

00:00:50He said, I'm your boyfriend. I have a wife.

00:00:53She said, you know what I'm doing?

00:00:54Colin's name had been mentioned multiple times.

00:00:57Colin told her to meet him in the shed and not to tell anybody.

00:01:03She knew Ron.

00:01:04He was missing. He couldn't be located.

00:01:07There was this stunning juxtaposition of good and evil and two places representing those very things.

00:01:14A church and a spooky house.

00:01:16I have never seen anything like it in a case that I've covered.

00:01:19Take me to that Wednesday night church service.

00:01:22He starts talking about demon thoughts.

00:01:26That's when it just exploded.

00:01:28I grabbed the cue and I was like, ow.

00:01:36Ow.

00:01:43This is Dateline Unforgettable.

00:01:46I'm Blaine Alexander with a fresh look at the haunted house confession.

00:01:50Down this back country road is an isolated stretch of land.

00:01:59A place where hunters come looking for prey.

00:02:04Behind the fence, just through the overgrown grass, sits an abandoned farmhouse.

00:02:09The few people who know it's here call it the haunted house.

00:02:16This place is truly creepy straight out of a horror movie.

00:02:22But one night, the horror became real.

00:02:26This was the scene of a crime so evil it haunted an entire community and made neighbor doubt neighbor.

00:02:34Everybody was a suspect.

00:02:36In the very beginning, absolutely.

00:02:38The search for justice would lead to a different house.

00:02:43A house of worship.

00:02:45Had evil made its way there, too?

00:02:50To report this story, I spent a lot of time in Brown County, Texas.

00:02:55And it became clear to me that faith is profoundly important to many in this community.

00:03:01This tragic case, for some, tested that faith.

00:03:04And for others, caused them to lean more deeply into it.

00:03:08You're going to meet people who truly look out for each other.

00:03:12It's something that stuck with me.

00:03:14And I think it will for you, too.

00:03:16For the congregation of North Lake Community Church, this simple building was a refuge, a place to sing and worship in peace, a haven for people like Shantae Blankenship.

00:03:31You walk in that church and you felt like this is home, this is family.

00:03:38And I really think that is what kept her coming back.

00:03:43She felt safe there.

00:03:45Shantae was 25 and lived with her grandfather and boyfriend in a community on Lake Brownwood in central Texas.

00:03:53Linda and Russell Lamond met Shantae at church.

00:03:58Russell was the assistant pastor.

00:04:00He and his wife took Shantae under their wing when she started showing up with a notebook and her own Bible.

00:04:07You couldn't help but smile with her around because she just, she glowed.

00:04:13You know, she glowed.

00:04:15It didn't take a lot to make her happy.

00:04:18Shantae's younger sister, Destiny Jarvis.

00:04:20You know, she was happy with where she lived, her church, her neighbors, you know, going on her walks every day.

00:04:27Neighbors could count on seeing Shantae every day as she strolled her neighborhood by the lake.

00:04:34Friday, May 13, 2016, was no different except that evening, Shantae went out for a walk and didn't come home.

00:04:44Her grandfather called Shantae's mom, Michelle McDaniel.

00:04:47My dad had called and said that Shantae hadn't came home.

00:04:52We just, my dad had kind of figured she had spent the night with one of her friends.

00:04:57Shantae's mother wasn't too worried at first, but as the hours ticked by, that changed.

00:05:03He told me she still wasn't home.

00:05:06The next day, her mom went to the house, took a look around and saw that her purse was still there.

00:05:12She didn't go anywhere without her purse.

00:05:15It had kind of went over me, something had happened.

00:05:18Shantae's grandfather said he'd been calling her non-stop.

00:05:22It was a normal for her not to communicate, especially with him.

00:05:26The family reported her missing to the sheriff.

00:05:29And in a community this close, word spread quickly.

00:05:34A search was organized after church on Sunday.

00:05:37Were you surprised by how many people turned out to search?

00:05:40Actually, no.

00:05:41She was loved by everybody.

00:05:43And then in the moment we found out that she was missing, it was like not even a thought.

00:05:48Let's look forward.

00:05:49We had to find Shantae.

00:05:50I remember coming down the hill back to the church and the parking lot's full.

00:05:55Probably 200 people.

00:05:57All there to search for her.

00:05:59Yes.

00:06:00Since it was such a small community, it's like she's got to be around here.

00:06:05You know, she couldn't have walked that far.

00:06:07We searched under piles of leaves.

00:06:11We searched under boats.

00:06:13You know, anything that would look like it would be hiding something.

00:06:17911, what's the location of your emergency?

00:06:19I have no idea where I'm at.

00:06:21I am in the middle of nowhere.

00:06:23We were looking for Shantae for a good ship.

00:06:25It was Sunday afternoon.

00:06:27Shantae had been missing almost 48 hours.

00:06:31We found her.

00:06:32Deputies sped down a road five miles from Shantae's home to that abandoned farmhouse.

00:06:39Their body cameras were rolling as they met Charlie Radel and his girlfriend Jackie Neal.

00:06:45We were just driving around looking for her.

00:06:47Everybody met at three at the church to go look for her.

00:06:51And we were just driving around.

00:06:52I walked around in the house and didn't see nothing in there and went to all the outbuildings.

00:06:59Yeah.

00:06:59And I was coming back and that storm cell over there had a bunch of grass knocked down.

00:07:04So I run around and looked and there she is.

00:07:06She's upside down in there.

00:07:07And she is beat to s***.

00:07:11I got a daughter that age.

00:07:14I don't mind anything.

00:07:16Brown County Sheriff's Office Investigator Scott Bird responded to the scene.

00:07:20What was the condition she was in?

00:07:23Very brutal assault.

00:07:25There was cuts, bruises all over her face and head.

00:07:29So it was very clear to you from the beginning, this is a murder investigation.

00:07:33Oh, yes.

00:07:35That meant all hands on deck.

00:07:37Texas Ranger Jason Shea was called in to help.

00:07:41I'm a dad.

00:07:42I've got kids.

00:07:43It kind of hits home to you because we all have kids.

00:07:47And, um, it affects you.

00:07:51I can tell.

00:07:52Just looking at you, when you talk about it, it affects you.

00:07:56Yeah.

00:07:56Sure.

00:07:58A young woman of violent murder.

00:08:01It felt like it couldn't have been a first-time killer.

00:08:06The disappearance on Friday the 13th and the location where she was found.

00:08:11Is this some type of cult activity?

00:08:14It could have been anybody.

00:08:15How long could a murderer hide?

00:08:19I can't grab ahold of him.

00:08:20I can't find him.

00:08:22All of a sudden, it was almost like somebody turned the lights on and you were like, oh, and there he is.

00:08:27I realize it's like I just put my face in front of a killer's face.

00:08:31You know, I mean, that close.

00:08:33Shantae's mother, Michelle, heard the sirens first.

00:08:48Then a friend who'd helped organize the searches came to find her in person.

00:08:53I remember her telling me they had found her.

00:08:56I remember falling to my knees, screaming.

00:09:00Are there any words to describe what you felt?

00:09:04I was lost.

00:09:05I just, I lost myself at that moment.

00:09:10I'd fell to my knees and asked him why.

00:09:13I was devastated.

00:09:15Yeah, devastated and in shock.

00:09:17There's bad things that go on in the community.

00:09:21Anywhere.

00:09:22You'll get that anywhere.

00:09:23But her specifically.

00:09:27Why her?

00:09:29Why would anyone want to hurt Shantae?

00:09:33What was it about Shantae that just really drew people to her?

00:09:37Her love.

00:09:38Just, just her.

00:09:40I mean, just meeting her would make you just fall in love with her.

00:09:45Stephen McDaniel is Shantae's stepfather.

00:09:48He'd known her since she was six years old.

00:09:50What was Shantae like?

00:09:53Funny.

00:09:53Loved music.

00:09:55She had a good smile.

00:09:56You couldn't question whether or not she was happy.

00:09:58People not only noticed Shantae's smile, she had a sense of style, too.

00:10:04She thought everything was better in pink or with sparkles or glitter.

00:10:10Shantae was tiny, not even five feet, barely 90 pounds.

00:10:15But she had big opinions.

00:10:18And her grandfather, Charlie, the one she lived with,

00:10:21was happy to give her whatever she wanted.

00:10:24He'd helped raise her from birth.

00:10:26I had her when I was 16.

00:10:27I guess I was trying to live for me for a while.

00:10:30I worked and I partied.

00:10:32So, she just became my dad's permanent kid, pretty much.

00:10:37Growing up, Shantae needed extra care.

00:10:41She developed more slowly than other kids.

00:10:43So, her walking, her talking, all of that was delayed?

00:10:47Uh-huh.

00:10:49If you talked to her, you would know that she was different than a normal child.

00:10:54She still kind of talked like a child.

00:10:56It was like she aged to a certain point and she stopped.

00:11:00How did she navigate those challenges?

00:11:04She just did.

00:11:06She, nothing ever bothered her.

00:11:08She would figure it out.

00:11:10But she didn't do it alone.

00:11:12It seemed everyone in the neighborhood had a protective eye on her.

00:11:16From her family, her friends, and of course, her boyfriend, John.

00:11:21He spoiled her just like my dad.

00:11:24She never went without as long as they were together.

00:11:27Sounds like he really took care of her.

00:11:28He did take care of her.

00:11:30So did her friends at church.

00:11:33I understand that there were some times you would help her with the hymns that would be sung in church.

00:11:39She stood right next to Linda and I in the choir.

00:11:42She was like our daughter.

00:11:44She felt like family to you.

00:11:46This is the church, North Lake.

00:11:48Shantae's church had become the makeshift headquarters for her search.

00:11:52Now, it was where authorities launched their investigation.

00:11:56Pastor?

00:11:56How are you, sir?

00:12:00Hey, folks, could you have your attention in just a minute?

00:12:02If you believe you have information that will assist in this investigation, I ask you don't discuss it with anybody else.

00:12:10I want your recollections to be your own.

00:12:12We'll be speaking to you as we get to you, all right?

00:12:14She wasn't involved in any type of drugs or gangs.

00:12:18This was an innocent girl who hadn't done anything wrong.

00:12:22And then we find her in the bottom of a cellar.

00:12:25Texas Ranger Jason Shea and a team of investigators canvassed Shantae's neighborhood, retracing her final steps.

00:12:33This really was the starting place for your investigation.

00:12:36Yes, this is the very beginning of it.

00:12:38Besides the crime scene, we knew that she had been over here.

00:12:41So this is the main area where we focused a lot of our investigation.

00:12:46A quick word about the hats.

00:12:48I was fascinated.

00:12:50Ranger Shea told me it's a tradition among Texas Rangers.

00:12:54It's an actual part of their uniform.

00:12:57And their hats are a light color because in the old westerns, dark hats represented the bad guys.

00:13:03I also have fond memories of the show Walker Texas Ranger.

00:13:06So I can't lie.

00:13:08I was excited to meet one in real life.

00:13:10But what really stood out for me was the deep connection that Ranger Shea and investigator Bird had to this community.

00:13:18What did you hope to find out?

00:13:19Somebody that had seen her or seen her get in a car with somebody.

00:13:23A handful of neighbors had seen her at a local restaurant just a few hours before she disappeared.

00:13:30Then she went home, said goodbye to her boyfriend John before he left for work at 6 p.m.

00:13:37She set out for her walk right after, eventually meeting up with a friend.

00:13:41And that friend, Caitlin McAbee, told investigators that she and Shantae walked together for a couple of hours.

00:13:50Her grandpa called her right before we got to the end of the street.

00:13:55Said, hey, it's getting dark.

00:13:57She was like, it's okay, Papa.

00:13:59I'll be home soon.

00:14:01She says, I'm walking.

00:14:05And that's all she said.

00:14:08Her grandfather confirmed to police that call was at 8.48 p.m.

00:14:13That's about the dose.

00:14:15Caitlin said after that, she and Shantae said goodbye.

00:14:18And then within minutes after, she and her friend split.

00:14:30She goes missing.

00:14:31And where she and her friend parted ways, how far was she from her home?

00:14:35Quarter mile.

00:14:35When you think about that small window, does it mean that the killer was maybe following her, waiting for her?

00:14:42He could have been.

00:14:43He may have been waiting for her and watching for her and waited for that time to where she was by herself to take his chance.

00:14:53What happened next was still a mystery, but a bizarre clue was about to spark a new and terrifying question.

00:15:01You think Friday the 13th, you start wondering, is there something more sinister than just somebody got murdered?

00:15:20The old house was set back from the road, isolated and in a state of disrepair.

00:15:27Even for a native like Investigator Scott Byrd, a complete mystery.

00:15:33I've never seen that house before.

00:15:35I don't know that I'd ever been on that county road in my career.

00:15:39Investigators soon learned it was a party spot for kids.

00:15:43Teenagers had nicknamed it the haunted house.

00:15:46So it's obvious that people haven't lived here for years.

00:15:50The floor is gone.

00:15:51It's just joyous going across.

00:15:55You're going to find snakes in there.

00:15:56There are other living animals in there.

00:15:59Stepping up to the scene of the crime with Investigator Byrd was powerful.

00:16:04I'd only seen pictures of the crime scene to that point, so arriving there immediately gave me chills.

00:16:11It really was a haunted house.

00:16:13Standing in that very same spot where terrible things happened was emotional.

00:16:18My heart broke thinking of Shantae being brought there in darkness, murdered, and then discarded.

00:16:24This house was seemingly forgotten, and it felt that the killer hoped the same would happen to Shantae.

00:16:31What were you looking for immediately when you got here?

00:16:34We looked for shoe prints, what's being left in the dirt, tire tracks, looking for any kind of biological material, blood, hair.

00:16:43I've got his body cam so we can get a video going over there.

00:16:48Investigators set up a grid search, combing every inch of the property for clues.

00:16:54There's good tire tracks that just dead end at the gate and back out, and then there's spin-out marks.

00:17:01Like someone's been through it recently or something.

00:17:04They found Shantae's bracelets scattered across the grass.

00:17:08Here's another pink man right here, John.

00:17:11She wore a bunch of different colored bracelets.

00:17:14There was one on this side of the gate, and then there was one just on the other side of the gate.

00:17:18So what did that tell you?

00:17:19Bracelet here, bracelet there, both on the ground.

00:17:23Somehow or another, she's losing them off of her arm.

00:17:27At that point, we didn't know what caused that.

00:17:30Then, in the gravel, they found strands of brown hair.

00:17:34You kind of see it right there in this grass, where it looks like something's been through here right here.

00:17:40Yeah, right here too.

00:17:42Yeah.

00:17:42Investigators concluded someone had dragged Shantae to the place where she was found.

00:17:48Her body had been thrown over the fence, and then she was drugged by her hair to the cellar.

00:17:53Something very brutal happened out there.

00:17:57You don't just walk and lose your hair and your bracelets and your jewelry.

00:18:01Traumatic events were happening.

00:18:03And just the brutality of it is what sticks out.

00:18:06Investigators found a rusty lawnmower blade near her body.

00:18:11It was covered in blood.

00:18:13And there's blood spatter on that brick, so you know she's bleeding good.

00:18:17There were deep cuts on Shantae's scalp and face, bruises on both sides of her neck, her arms and legs,

00:18:26and something odd on her chest.

00:18:29We didn't know what it came from.

00:18:32It was kind of jagged lines, almost like triangles.

00:18:38We even took a picture of that and sent that to the FBI headquarters.

00:18:42An autopsy revealed Shantae had died from blunt force trauma consistent with that bloody lawnmower blade.

00:18:50She had also been sexually assaulted.

00:18:54Not only did we have a murder, we had a rapist as well.

00:18:58Crime scene techs collected evidence at the scene and sent it out for DNA testing, hoping it would lead them to Shantae's killer.

00:19:05There is a lot of fear that's generated when something like this happens in a place like Brownwood.

00:19:15Alicia Bird is Investigator Bird's wife.

00:19:19She is also the county's assistant DA.

00:19:22There becomes a time when you switch from your role as a supportive spouse to,

00:19:29I am a prosecutor and there is a murder within my county.

00:19:32When she saw a photo of that mark on Shantae's chest and considered that the murder happened on Friday the 13th,

00:19:41a theory started to take shape.

00:19:44When you put all that together and you think Friday the 13th,

00:19:47you start wondering if there's something connecting all of this.

00:19:52You know, is there something more sinister than just somebody got murdered?

00:19:55Is this some type of cult activity?

00:19:58Maybe that could explain the why, if only they could figure out the who.

00:20:06Right away, Investigator Bird knew who he wanted to look at first.

00:20:12We were looking for Shantae going to ship.

00:20:14Okay.

00:20:15We found her.

00:20:16Charlie Radel and Jackie Neal, the searchers who found Shantae.

00:20:20I thought, well, you already found who did this because you're five miles away from where everybody else is looking.

00:20:27You're in the middle of nowhere.

00:20:29She can't be seen from the road.

00:20:31You have to get out of your truck, climb a fence, walk through 100 yards of tall grass to get to where she was.

00:20:39So you're thinking, we found who did this and they gave themselves away.

00:20:44Correct.

00:20:44Time to head to the sheriff's office for questioning.

00:20:50What might a polygraph reveal?

00:20:53Did you kill Shantae?

00:20:54The search for Shantae had ended, but the hunt for her killer was just getting underway.

00:21:13To start, investigators wanted to take a hard look at Charlie Radel and his girlfriend Jackie, the searchers who found Shantae.

00:21:21We were just driving around looking for her.

00:21:24It was just, it was odd that they had found this.

00:21:28It seemed so unlikely that they just got lucky.

00:21:32The house is so remote, it's almost impossible to find, even with GPS.

00:21:38It's on a dirt road off of another dirt road.

00:21:42It's incredible to me that Charlie and his girlfriend found Shantae's body in that storm cellar.

00:21:49I grew up in Oklahoma, Tornado Alley.

00:21:52So storm cellars are very common.

00:21:54It's where people shelter during a storm.

00:21:57They're usually detached from the house with doors that lead underground.

00:22:01This one was so overgrown that I almost couldn't even see it from where I was standing.

00:22:06And for me, it becomes its own character in this story just because of how eerie it felt.

00:22:12What are the odds that he found her out there innocently?

00:22:16Sometimes where there's smoke, there's fire.

00:22:19If y'all want to have a seat in the truck so we don't make any more footprints than we've already got.

00:22:23Charlie and Jackie were both in their 40s, and they both knew Shantae from her daily walks in the neighborhood.

00:22:30She lived about a mile away from them.

00:22:32I got a dog of that age. I don't mind him.

00:22:38Investigators took note of Charlie's emotion at the scene and invited him to the sheriff's office to see how he would answer questions there.

00:22:47Do you go by Charlie?

00:22:48Everybody don't go by Charlie.

00:22:50Charlie told the investigator he'd just seen Shantae out walking, not long before she disappeared.

00:22:58When you saw her on Friday, what was she wearing?

00:23:01What was she wearing?

00:23:02A white shirt with kind of faded, Daisy Duke shorts on.

00:23:08Charlie said that as soon as they heard a search was being organized, he and Jackie jumped in the truck and hit the country roads.

00:23:16I was talking to Laura, and I said, Laura, I hope she's okay, but if she's in a bad way, please show her to me.

00:23:22Then he said they came upon that dirt road, the one leading to the haunted house.

00:23:28He had stated that his kids used to go out there and, you know, teenagers going out there and partying at this old abandoned house.

00:23:35I walked over to the galvanized gate and I propped up on it.

00:23:39I'm looking at that house.

00:23:41Jackie, she comes up behind me.

00:23:43She's pointing with her foot.

00:23:44She said, what is that?

00:23:45I got down close to it and I grabbed it.

00:23:48I said, Jackie, that's human hair.

00:23:51I shot through the fence and I went to the house.

00:23:53After looking around the dilapidated house, he said he decided to check the storm cellar.

00:24:00That's where he found Shantae's body.

00:24:03Jackie asked me, she said, is she dead?

00:24:07I said, yeah, she's dead.

00:24:10I said, she had it all on the phone.

00:24:13I said, is it Shantae?

00:24:15I said, yeah, it's her.

00:24:17Did you touch her?

00:24:18No, no, I didn't touch her.

00:24:20Why do you think somebody would kill her?

00:24:23I can't imagine how anybody could do something like that.

00:24:31They also interviewed Jackie.

00:24:33The investigator asked her where Charlie was on Friday the 13th.

00:24:38The night Shantae disappeared.

00:24:39It was between 7.10 and 7.15.

00:24:48And he was at work before that?

00:24:50They offered investigators their DNA.

00:24:55Go ahead and do the DNA test.

00:24:57Pull me out.

00:24:58Charlie also agreed to a polygraph.

00:25:01How hard did law enforcement press Charlie?

00:25:05Extremely hard.

00:25:06Did you participate in killing Shantae?

00:25:09Shantae, no.

00:25:09Did you kill Shantae?

00:25:13No.

00:25:15Then he showed no indication of deception during that polygraph.

00:25:19And we decided it's time to move on.

00:25:22While investigators searched for Shantae's killer, her family was facing the difficult task of planning her funeral.

00:25:30Mourners gathered for the service at her beloved church.

00:25:35Everybody had a touch of pink somewhere, whether they were wearing, you know, just pink bracelet or that they were wearing actual pink.

00:25:44You know, my mom, my brothers, they'd all got like matching shirts and things like that.

00:25:48What stands out to you the most about that day?

00:25:52The people.

00:25:53Some people are standing outside, walking into the church, being seated, and it's packed.

00:25:58People are standing.

00:26:00The whole parking lot's full of people.

00:26:02Did you feel the love that this community had for your daughter?

00:26:06I did.

00:26:07Did you ever consider the possibility that her killer might be right there in the room, in the church with you?

00:26:14I didn't.

00:26:15She didn't, but investigators did.

00:26:19They rigged up surveillance cameras inside the church.

00:26:23You thought that it was important to see who was coming, who was going.

00:26:28Yes, people will come back to see what we have found or to downplay what they've done or to hide in plain sight.

00:26:37But after scrubbing through hours of video, investigators didn't find anything suspicious.

00:26:43Still, they were convinced Shantae's killer had to be close by, almost certainly someone she knew.

00:26:52She wouldn't get in a car with somebody she didn't know.

00:26:54Everyone just knew that about her.

00:26:56They knew that.

00:26:57I can't tell you how many people came up to us and said,

00:27:00had to have been somebody who'd known because she wouldn't have gotten in a vehicle that she didn't know that person.

00:27:04So they would have to look at everyone in Shantae's circle, starting with the man closest to her.

00:27:12He said, I'm your boyfriend.

00:27:15I have a friend.

00:27:16She said, you need a doctor.

00:27:17In the days after Shantae's body was found, her family and friends tried to come to terms with her savage murder.

00:27:35I know that you'd said at some point, even after she was found, there were days when you almost still expected to see her on those walks.

00:27:44Yes, I remember the first time we drove down that road and it was sad.

00:27:51It's like, she's supposed to be here.

00:27:53She's not here.

00:27:54It was almost like living that day over again that we found out that she wasn't alive.

00:28:01As investigators looked for Shantae's killer, those closest to her were under scrutiny.

00:28:07When we're doing any of these investigations, who are the first people you look at as boyfriend?

00:28:12John Adams, Shantae's live-in boyfriend.

00:28:16At 26, he was a year older than Shantae.

00:28:19They'd known each other since middle school, had been a couple for more than three years.

00:28:25They were even starting to talk about marriage.

00:28:28John meant a lot to her.

00:28:30She meant a lot to him.

00:28:31That's what mattered to Shantae's family.

00:28:33They made it clear to John that Shantae was special and needed to be protected.

00:28:40So with John, I think there was a lot of conversations between him and other family members about it.

00:28:49And I think they trusted him to not ever take advantage of her and to treat her right.

00:28:55Two days after Shantae's body was found, investigators paid John a visit.

00:29:01Hello.

00:29:02Carlisle Gilbert.

00:29:03What's your name?

00:29:04John Adams.

00:29:05John recognized the deputy from a traffic stop.

00:29:08You pulled me over before.

00:29:10I pulled you over before for what?

00:29:12Oh, down there on Sushi Whitson Road.

00:29:14Oh, okay.

00:29:15Is this where you all live, in here?

00:29:17Yeah.

00:29:18Can we go inside?

00:29:19Yeah.

00:29:20John led them to the bedroom he shared with Shantae.

00:29:23Is there anything missing out of here?

00:29:26No.

00:29:27They studied the room.

00:29:28Can we have this brush?

00:29:30Took pictures and examined Shantae's belongings.

00:29:34Just going to dump this out.

00:29:40So she goes everywhere with her purse, but she just didn't have her purse today.

00:29:45Then they went back outside.

00:29:47That's when they let John know they weren't just looking for clues.

00:29:51They were looking at him.

00:29:54And normally, boyfriends are, like, going to be the number one suspect a lot of times.

00:29:59And also a lot of times, when we do these, we do find another suspect.

00:30:06So when we do find the real killer, then, you know, we could say, oh, we covered that base.

00:30:13They walked around the property, looking into outbuildings.

00:30:16What is that on that hammer?

00:30:18Is that from pulling out nails or something?

00:30:20They took pictures of John's pickup truck and were interested to see a lot of lawnmowers in the shed.

00:30:27Man, do you guys have a lawn care service or something?

00:30:31Remember, it was a lawnmower blade that killed Shantae.

00:30:35That was missing, uh, that was tore up.

00:30:37They also wanted to know about John's relationship with Shantae.

00:30:43Investigators had heard it was loving, but could be tense at times.

00:30:48It was strained.

00:30:50They weren't the Ozzie and Harriet.

00:30:52They weren't perfect.

00:30:53Shantae liked to wave at boys, and boys would wave back, and it made her feel good.

00:30:59And that made him a little jealous.

00:31:02Now, she didn't mean anything by it, but John was a little bit jealous, so it upset him some.

00:31:09Did you ever learn that Shantae had complained to neighbors about John sometimes wanting to control her?

00:31:15Sure.

00:31:16Would tell her what to eat, what not to eat, where she could go, where she couldn't go.

00:31:22Vitsy Hobbs, one of Shantae's friends, told investigators she heard the couple fighting.

00:31:28Shantae sounded angry.

00:31:31You had no control over me.

00:31:33You cannot tell me what to do.

00:31:36Well, you know, I went on cussing.

00:31:38Mm-hmm.

00:31:40He said, I'm your boyfriend.

00:31:42I have a right.

00:31:44She said, no, you don't.

00:31:46You do not have control over me.

00:31:48I'll see whoever I want to.

00:31:49I think talking to witnesses who had spoken to John prior to the homicide, that he was worried about the relationship and didn't know how much longer it was going to last.

00:32:03So he was thinking it may come to an end soon.

00:32:06Quite possible.

00:32:07You know, could this have been a spat, an argument, and that's why, you know, she was killed?

00:32:14We didn't know at that time.

00:32:15But they were about to find out.

00:32:19They had a stack of questions for John Adams.

00:32:23For starters, what did he do with his phone?

00:32:27These text messages that you deleted, and you know what I'm talking about, because you even told somebody, hey, my phone's clean.

00:32:34I spoke with John Harper the first night and stuff, told my side of the story.

00:32:48John Adams seemed like a friendly guy when he met investigators.

00:32:53Who lives here?

00:32:54Charlie Barnett.

00:32:55And this is where you live, too?

00:32:56Yes, sir.

00:32:57But friendly didn't mean innocent.

00:32:59We didn't know if he knew more about what had happened to Shantae than what he was actually telling us.

00:33:05Did you bring him in?

00:33:06We did bring him in and asked him what was going on.

00:33:09So we had a good timeline of where Shantae was at, and we needed to see where he was at during that time.

00:33:14The last time you talked to her on the phone.

00:33:17John said that around 5 p.m., he picked Shantae up at the restaurant where neighbors had seen her that afternoon.

00:33:24So you picked her up and took her to where?

00:33:26To the house.

00:33:27And dropped her off?

00:33:28No.

00:33:29And we had to shower.

00:33:31And then we were there.

00:33:33John said he then went to work at his restaurant job around 6 p.m.

00:33:38So he left and she stayed there?

00:33:40Yeah.

00:33:40Is that what time you have to be at work?

00:33:42Are you supposed to be at work at 6 p.m.?

00:33:44It was 9 p.m., but I showed up.

00:33:45You can ask her.

00:33:46I would have showed up earlier.

00:33:47You're supposed to go to work at 9 p.m.

00:33:49Yeah, but I showed up earlier sometimes.

00:33:51He said he worked an overnight shift and got home around 5 p.m. the next morning.

00:33:57Shantae wasn't there.

00:33:59He thought maybe she was at a friend's place.

00:34:02That's when you discovered she wasn't there.

00:34:04Yeah, I went and saw her room.

00:34:05Did you start calling her phone?

00:34:07Yeah, I called her phone and it was just for me.

00:34:09They dug into his relationship with Shantae.

00:34:13Do you have another girlfriend?

00:34:15Huh?

00:34:15Do you have another girlfriend?

00:34:16No.

00:34:17Another girl in the top team that you don't have to?

00:34:19No.

00:34:20I'm a faithful man.

00:34:22I'm a lawyer.

00:34:22Did she ever tell you that she didn't sexually intimate with anybody else?

00:34:27I never said anything about that.

00:34:29I would ask her.

00:34:30Did she just say no or she just avoided the conversation?

00:34:33She avoided the conversation or said no.

00:34:35After that interview, John was free to go.

00:34:40But investigators found something while searching his cell phone data.

00:34:45He had given us his cell phone to download.

00:34:48We looked at that and noticed that there was some communication that had been deleted.

00:34:52So we had to pull him back in.

00:34:54Some messages?

00:34:54Some messages.

00:34:55This time, the conversation was less friendly on both sides.

00:35:00Do you delete your text messages?

00:35:02Yeah.

00:35:03Okay.

00:35:04And apparently you deleted some yesterday before you showed up.

00:35:07That was way early.

00:35:09No, that's not what these text messages that you deleted.

00:35:13And you know what I'm talking about.

00:35:14Because you even told somebody, hey, my phone's clean.

00:35:17So why don't you tell me if that's mine?

00:35:21John admitted he was trying to hide something.

00:35:25But not about Shantae.

00:35:27I smoke weed and I just don't want that.

00:35:30That's the only thing that would be in there.

00:35:32You know, he said, hey, this is what was going on.

00:35:35I was using drugs and those messages were in reference to buying and selling marijuana.

00:35:41And so that's how he explained it.

00:35:43I'm asking you questions.

00:35:44They interviewed John four times.

00:35:47We interviewed him, too, and asked him what it was like to be grilled like that.

00:35:53You could tell that when they were talking to you, they weren't just trying to get information.

00:35:59They were thinking that you had something to do with it.

00:36:01They were trying to pressure me to confess what they were trying to do.

00:36:06Were you upset?

00:36:07I was.

00:36:08I was very upset.

00:36:10It hurt.

00:36:11I have I don't have a bone in my body to do something like that to someone.

00:36:17He told us the same thing he told investigators.

00:36:21His relationship with Shantae was not perfect, but it was solid.

00:36:25Were there ever any rocky moments?

00:36:28Uh, there was things, you know, she'd just get mad for certain reasons.

00:36:33There'd be times where I'd just have to, I'd walk away.

00:36:36I wouldn't yell really at her or argue with her, you know.

00:36:40But I mean, learning out, we stayed together, you know, made it work, you know.

00:36:44Even if there were ups and downs between the two of you?

00:36:47Yeah.

00:36:47It wasn't just investigators.

00:36:50John knew neighbors were quick to assume the boyfriend was to blame.

00:36:55But he told us what some saw as controlling behavior was his way of protecting Shantae.

00:37:02Already people were starting to point their fingers at you.

00:37:04And it made me mad.

00:37:06Knowing Dane, well, I didn't, I didn't do nothing.

00:37:10I did nothing but protect her.

00:37:11Investigators needed to check out everything John told them,

00:37:18including what he said about other men in town.

00:37:22Like a guy named Bobby Sousa, who John said liked to throw parties.

00:37:28He lived in the area.

00:37:29He was always seen driving around that area.

00:37:32Shantae's friend told investigators she'd seen a red and white Bronco in the neighborhood

00:37:37the night Shantae disappeared.

00:37:39That the driver waved at them and seemed creepy.

00:37:43They tracked down Sousa and confirmed he drove a red and white Bronco

00:37:48and brought him in for questioning at the sheriff's office.

00:37:54Sousa said he did drive by Shantae on her walk that night.

00:37:58But that was it.

00:37:59If you did have something to do with this, you need to let me know now.

00:38:02I would have told you they would.

00:38:04Did investigators search his house, search his car?

00:38:07They searched everything.

00:38:07He was, come in my house, search my vehicle, look anywhere you want.

00:38:12Sorry about the mess.

00:38:13Oh, you're good, man.

00:38:14So he was very open.

00:38:16Absolutely.

00:38:16He also shared where he'd been that night.

00:38:19He had gone to another residence and there were multiple individuals there

00:38:24that he didn't leave till late that evening.

00:38:26Were you able to verify that?

00:38:28We were able to verify that.

00:38:30The pressure to find Shantae's killer was mounting.

00:38:33Meanwhile, police had more questions for John Adams,

00:38:38especially after investigators found out he'd been deleting text messages from his phone.

00:38:46Investigators checked out his story and confirmed those deleted text messages were just about marijuana.

00:38:53So you caught him in something else, but not murder.

00:38:56Correct.

00:38:57They were also able to get security video from the restaurant where John worked, along with the timesheets.

00:39:04He told us exactly where he was, what he had done, and everything he told us was truthful.

00:39:09So he gave you an alibi and you were able to verify it?

00:39:12Yes.

00:39:13Through video.

00:39:14I mean, it doesn't get much better alibi than that.

00:39:16He was just worried and upset that his fiancée had been killed.

00:39:21He wanted to figure out who had done this also.

00:39:23In talking to John Adams, it was very clear that his pain was still raw.

00:39:29I can't imagine grieving the loss of a loved one while at the same time living under this cloud of suspicion.

00:39:36It's always the first place investigators start with the significant other.

00:39:40And I got the sense that John was still traumatized by everything that happened.

00:39:45I was so grateful that he chose to open up to us and tell his part of the story.

00:39:50I want to ask you, John, what do you miss the most about Shantay?

00:39:57The most I miss about Shantay?

00:40:05Our laughter.

00:40:06It made life easier when she smiled and just laughed and not mad at you.

00:40:15She was like my best friend.

00:40:18John as a suspect was a dead end.

00:40:21But that didn't mean talking to him was a waste of time.

00:40:25Not at all.

00:40:26We still needed more information of potential suspects that might be involved in the case.

00:40:31So we had to continue to try to keep him on our side to get as much information as we could.

00:40:38John gave them another name, a name they heard from other neighbors, Colin Smith.

00:40:45When we started doing interviews, his name had been mentioned multiple times.

00:40:50Colin was in his 20s, did some lawn mowing and odd jobs around town.

00:40:55And he lived just around the corner from Shantay.

00:41:00Shantay went missing and it was right there by Colin's house.

00:41:04Here's where Colin was living.

00:41:05Right here?

00:41:06At the time.

00:41:06Yep.

00:41:07Okay.

00:41:07And it kind of backs up back to the road to where Shantay was living at too.

00:41:12Okay.

00:41:13So she would have had to walk down this area the day that she went missing.

00:41:19John Adams told investigators Colin was a troublemaker.

00:41:24He used to ride around with him and stuff.

00:41:27And he used to just do stupid stuff.

00:41:29And he'd like fire around with drones.

00:41:32And Shantay's stepdad Stephen recalls that months before the murder, Colin took Shantay out for a late night joyride.

00:41:40Stephen was furious.

00:41:43What did you say?

00:41:43I just asked him what he was doing with her and I made her get out of the vehicle and let him better stay away from her.

00:41:53You told him to stay away from her?

00:41:55Yes.

00:41:56Did he?

00:41:57As far as my knowledge, yes.

00:42:00But Ranger Shea heard that's not what Colin did.

00:42:04Ms. McBee that had been walking with Shantay had told us that Colin Smith had purchased her some shoes recently.

00:42:12Shantay also told her friend Colin wanted to meet up the night she disappeared.

00:42:18Saying, hey, meet me out by the barn tonight, but don't tell anybody.

00:42:23To Shantay?

00:42:23Yes.

00:42:24The Texas Rangers investigating the Shantay Blankenship murder were starting to hear the same name from several people.

00:42:41Colin Smith and Shantay's friend, Caitlin McAbee, told them about a secret meeting the night Shantay disappeared.

00:42:48She told me Colin told her to meet him in the shed behind his house that night and not to tell anybody.

00:43:03That very well meant that Colin could have been the last person to see her alive.

00:43:07Sure, and that's what we were thinking.

00:43:08Is he the one?

00:43:11Did she say something that upset him?

00:43:14In my opinion, he was a number one that we needed to talk to.

00:43:19Shea went to see him in person.

00:43:21How you doing, sir?

00:43:22I'm Jason Shea.

00:43:23I'm with the Texas Rangers.

00:43:25What's your name?

00:43:25Paul.

00:43:26How did you find him?

00:43:27Did he seem shifty to you?

00:43:29He really didn't.

00:43:31There was a little bit of concern.

00:43:32I mean, that's ridiculous that I'm even being looked at.

00:43:35Like other neighbors investigators spoke to, Colin said he did see Shantay the night she disappeared, but only from a distance.

00:43:45He'd seen her pass by his house on her last walk.

00:43:48But probably around the last time we seen her, it was around 637.

00:43:55Shantay was just a friend, Colin said.

00:43:58But he told investigators that she was interested in more than friendship.

00:44:02I would have changed my number because she would call it from like 6.30 in the morning to like midnight at night.

00:44:08Just call, hang up, call, hang up, call, hang up.

00:44:11Like a high school girl?

00:44:13Yeah.

00:44:13Did y'all have any type of physical relationship at all?

00:44:16Mm-mm.

00:44:17So never?

00:44:18No.

00:44:19Investigators wanted to ask him more questions, this time hooked up to a lie detector.

00:44:25Why are we here today, Colin?

00:44:26You know, they want to find out who the murderer is.

00:44:29I want to prove to them that it ain't me.

00:44:32But right before they got started, a key part of his story changed.

00:44:37He admitted he did have a physical relationship with Shantay.

00:44:41I'm like, wow.

00:44:43We kind of, we thought we were dating, you know.

00:44:47Colin told police he didn't know Shantay and John were serious.

00:44:51Once everybody started telling me that she did have a boyfriend and all the stuff, John Adams, I mean, I left her alone.

00:44:59When was the last time you'd been with her?

00:45:00A couple weeks ago.

00:45:02He ended up admitting that he had been in a sexual relationship with her.

00:45:06Was that the only thing he'd been hiding?

00:45:10Wired up to the machine, the questions got very specific.

00:45:14Did you physically cause the death of Shantay?

00:45:17No.

00:45:17You don't know how she died.

00:45:22Not at all.

00:45:22You don't know what kind of weapon was used.

00:45:26The investigator told Colin the results of the tests were not good.

00:45:31I've done a lot of these tests.

00:45:33I mean, I'm looking at this and I'm showing deception.

00:45:37Was that a red flag?

00:45:40That's a big red flag.

00:45:41A lie detector test can be a powerful tool for investigators.

00:45:45Just the willingness of someone to take the test can often speak volumes.

00:45:51But here's what many people don't realize.

00:45:53These tests are not foolproof.

00:45:55There are plenty of factors, stress, grief, anxiety, even medical conditions that can throw off the readings.

00:46:03That's why polygraph results cannot be used as evidence in court.

00:46:07They're just too unreliable.

00:46:09But detectives can use them to apply pressure.

00:46:12I'm telling you right now that something is causing you issues on this and I want to get down to the bottom of it.

00:46:17If you didn't kill her...

00:46:19I have no idea.

00:46:19I didn't do it.

00:46:21Bottom line.

00:46:22Colin, who'd been cooperative up to this point, seemed eager to leave.

00:46:27Probably done.

00:46:29You still want to cooperate, right?

00:46:31Yeah, don't make me out to be the bad guy here.

00:46:34We're going to have a serious problem.

00:46:36I will hire a lawyer.

00:46:37Hey, I don't give a f*** one way or another if you're going to hire a lawyer.

00:46:40Don't you not sit there and try to threaten me with hiring a lawyer.

00:46:44You're the one that's in here cooperating, are you not?

00:46:46Yes, sir.

00:46:47Okay.

00:46:47I thought you said we were done, though.

00:46:48Okay.

00:46:49Go ahead and put your hands together, please.

00:46:51I thought you said we were done.

00:46:52I'm sorry.

00:46:53Colin stayed long enough to give them his alibi.

00:46:56He'd been at his brother's house, he said, about 10 miles away.

00:47:00Why didn't you stay that night?

00:47:02I'm watching my brother's living room.

00:47:04Fall asleep watching basketball game.

00:47:06Texas Ranger Shea and I knew we had to get to the brother to talk to him before Colin could.

00:47:12To get the true story and not Colin calling his brother and saying, hey, cover for me.

00:47:17Would Colin's alibi check out?

00:47:20Or would police be forced to consider a whole new theory?

00:47:24It felt like it couldn't have been a first-time killer.

00:47:30Investigators thought they might finally be getting somewhere.

00:47:44In a room with a young man they found highly suspicious.

00:47:48Colin Smith was my main focus.

00:47:50Colin had initially lied to detectives about his relationship with Chante.

00:47:55And when they hooked him up to that polygraph, it seemed he still wasn't telling the whole story.

00:48:01Colin told the polygrapher that he had an alibi.

00:48:06He was with his brother, but couldn't explain why he failed the polygraph.

00:48:11Investigators raced to talk to Colin's brother before he could.

00:48:15And the brother confirmed his alibi.

00:48:19It's not just his brother that we talked to.

00:48:21Who else is there with you?

00:48:23They also talked to his niece and nephew, who said they saw Colin too.

00:48:28Of course, they're family members.

00:48:30So we've got to look at that too.

00:48:34It's not the strongest alibi.

00:48:35It's not the strongest because, you know, family members will cover family members.

00:48:40Investigators also took Colin's DNA and sent it to the crime lab.

00:48:44How does that come back?

00:48:45It come back that he's not a match to the DNA that was found on our body.

00:48:49So you're able to clear him?

00:48:50Yes.

00:48:51Another dead end.

00:48:53By now, DNA results were coming in from the other men they'd talked to.

00:48:58Chante's boyfriend, John, was not a match.

00:49:01Neither was neighbor Bobby Sousa.

00:49:03Nobody may have ever looked in that cellar.

00:49:06It may have been years.

00:49:07And the DNA also proved those searchers who found Chante were exactly what they appeared to be, good Samaritans.

00:49:16Far from suspects, they had been a blessing to the investigation.

00:49:20We were very lucky, very blessed.

00:49:23There's all kinds of predatory animals out here, coyotes, bobcats, stray dogs, any kind of occasional mountain lion.

00:49:33And if we hadn't found her, that's probably what would have found her, some kind of animal.

00:49:38The timely discovery of Chante's body was a stroke of luck that, to Investigator Byrd, felt like divine intervention.

00:49:46But that luck seemed to be running out as they tore through lead after lead.

00:49:52How many calls were coming in that you guys had to chase down?

00:49:57A lot. Hundreds.

00:49:58At first, it was just, try this name, try this name, try this name.

00:50:03And you all have to chase after each and every one.

00:50:05Anytime somebody called in and said, hey, this person was in the neighborhood, we'd go talk to them.

00:50:11And we would ask the male for a buccal swab to take their DNA.

00:50:14Investigators collected samples from at least two dozen men, including Chante's grandfather, Charlie.

00:50:22It seemed unthinkable the doting Charlie could be the killer, but Chante's mom was in favor of testing him.

00:50:30You thought he could have possibly been involved.

00:50:32Everybody was involved.

00:50:34Nobody was ruled out in your eyes.

00:50:36Nobody was ruled out in my eyes.

00:50:38It wasn't the grandfather.

00:50:40And it also wasn't anyone in CODIS, the National Law Enforcement DNA Database.

00:50:46Back to square one.

00:50:47Back to square one.

00:50:48Just heart-wrenching.

00:50:50This is how cold cases are born.

00:50:53It's dead end after dead end.

00:50:55It's painful for the families.

00:50:57It's terrifying for communities wondering who among them is a killer.

00:51:02For Investigator Bird, he told me it was particularly frustrating because he had the killer's DNA but didn't know who it belonged to.

00:51:10The answer was right there, but completely out of reach.

00:51:14As a journalist, I'm struck by how easily leads can go cold, but new technology or someone finally coming forward can make all the difference.

00:51:23As weeks went by, and then months.

00:51:29We just know that they're out there.

00:51:32It's scary.

00:51:33Out there and possibly right there in the community.

00:51:36Right.

00:51:36Is this a neighbor?

00:51:37Is this a friend?

00:51:38Everybody was scared.

00:51:40The kids that walked out there constantly started pairing up.

00:51:44Nobody walked alone.

00:51:45It snatched away that feeling of safety from the whole community.

00:51:48At Shantae's church, parishioners were desperate for answers.

00:51:54I can't believe they would take such a precious person.

00:51:59She meant so much to Linda and I and to the community.

00:52:02Pastor, how are you, sir?

00:52:04The pastor hounded investigators for updates.

00:52:07Called me every day, every two days, every three days, wanting to know what we found and asking questions about the evidence.

00:52:17Asking about the case.

00:52:18Yes.

00:52:19And because no one was above suspicion, investigators even wondered about the pastor himself.

00:52:26When somebody becomes too involved in your case, sometimes they're trying to figure out what you do know, what you have found out, what you haven't found out, to protect themselves.

00:52:37That went nowhere.

00:52:40And while authorities suspected the killer was someone Shantae knew, they couldn't rule out other theories.

00:52:46Did you ever consider the possibility that you were dealing with a serial killer?

00:52:51You know, that's always a possibility of things that we look at.

00:52:55Alicia Bird was still thinking about that strange symbol on Shantae's chest.

00:53:00What could it mean?

00:53:02The disappearance on Friday the 13th and the location where she was found, it just all...

00:53:09You're looking for some sort of cohesiveness.

00:53:12You're looking for some theory of the case.

00:53:14A lot of sleepless nights laying there wondering, what did I miss today?

00:53:19Did I talk to this person today?

00:53:21It makes you start second-guessing yourself.

00:53:26What are you missing?

00:53:28You were really taking this case personally.

00:53:30Absolutely.

00:53:31Investigator Bird's wife could see the case was weighing heavily on her husband.

00:53:36The great thing with us both being in this field is we're able to give each other that space, recognizing that he needs to be able to think and to figure out what his next investigatory step will be.

00:53:53Shantae's family feared the investigation had hit a wall.

00:53:58It seemed like that nothing was getting done to me.

00:54:03Desperate for answers, Shantae's stepfather admits he badgered his neighbors.

00:54:09I would stop everybody that drove by the house.

00:54:10I was out there morning to dark, trying to find out answers.

00:54:17I caused a lot of problems out there.

00:54:19I wanted to know.

00:54:20You were desperate.

00:54:21That was your girl.

00:54:22Yes, ma'am.

00:54:23You start thinking at that point, no, probably never actually find who did this.

00:54:28They told me they would never stop, but in my eyes they had stopped because they were doing stuff that I didn't know at the time.

00:54:35What she didn't know was that Investigator Bird was about to take a leap of faith with a cutting-edge technology.

00:54:43Maybe this would reveal the face of the killer.

00:54:47I'm willing to try anything.

00:54:48It very much seemed too good to be true.

00:54:53One year after Shantae was murdered, her mom organized a memorial.

00:55:08Friends and family came together and walked Shantae's route.

00:55:12Everybody was out of breath.

00:55:13Everybody was out of breath.

00:55:13We didn't know how she did it.

00:55:15Yeah.

00:55:15Well, that was her thing.

00:55:16Yeah, it was her thing.

00:55:17It was.

00:55:18She loved it.

00:55:19Everybody always talked about her.

00:55:22You know, all the beautiful moments.

00:55:24You know, everybody's seen her.

00:55:25Most of them are walking in her smile.

00:55:28Those were difficult days for everyone.

00:55:31Those who loved her spent hours by her grave, the stone inscribed, singing in the angels' choir.

00:55:39Her stepfather, Stephen, was grieving and feeling guilty.

00:55:43Before she went missing, he told Shantae he might take her fishing on that Friday.

00:55:48Instead, he picked up an extra shift at work.

00:55:51It's been hard.

00:55:54Real hard.

00:55:55Because I figured if I wouldn't have went to work that weekend, she'd still be here.

00:56:01You think through all these what-ifs.

00:56:05And I blame myself every day.

00:56:08The Le Mans were suffering, too.

00:56:11I cried for months and months.

00:56:13Afterward, it came to the point where it was unsolved.

00:56:16It hurt.

00:56:17I was really angry that, you know, if I said, man, if I could just get five minutes alone with this guy.

00:56:22And, you know, that's not a proper way to think.

00:56:24But, you know, still, you know, they took something from all of us.

00:56:29Despite all the leads the investigators had run down, Shantae's killer was still out there.

00:56:35Now, like a losing football team, they were ready for a Hail Mary.

00:56:40I was trying anything I could.

00:56:42I was trying anything I could.

00:56:42We were lost.

00:56:45We couldn't.

00:56:46We didn't know what the next step was.

00:56:49Byrd felt incredibly frustrated.

00:56:52He couldn't crack the case, even though he had the killer's DNA.

00:56:56It tells us who the killer is.

00:56:59It doesn't give us a name, but it tells us who did this.

00:57:03And it's undisputable.

00:57:05So what you have in your hand is quite possibly the best piece of evidence in terms of identifying someone, but no name.

00:57:12Right.

00:57:13That's how I've described it to people.

00:57:15I know exactly who you are.

00:57:16Then, Byrd heard about a new DNA technique his department had never used.

00:57:22The process is called phenotyping.

00:57:26It uses DNA to predict the way a person looks, eye, hair, and skin color, among other things.

00:57:33Back in 2017, it was a shiny new tool for law enforcement.

00:57:37One of our investigators, who doesn't work for us anymore, saw a show on TV, and it was about phenotyping.

00:57:48And he told me about it.

00:57:49Byrd Googled it and called around.

00:57:52So you're hearing success stories.

00:57:53Correct.

00:57:54And thinking, this could work for us, too.

00:57:56Right.

00:57:57But when the investigator ran it by others, he hit a wall of skepticism, including his wife, Alicia, in the district attorney's office.

00:58:06It felt very television-esque, you know.

00:58:11It felt like something that you see on TV, but it doesn't really happen that way in real criminal cases.

00:58:19And so it very much felt like a science fiction idea.

00:58:25You doubted it from the very beginning.

00:58:26From the very beginning, I didn't believe that it would work.

00:58:29This is not a TV show.

00:58:31This is not a TV show, and this is not—they can't do that with DNA.

00:58:34You had a lot of people to convince.

00:58:37I did, including the sheriff, the district attorney, and then I had to convince them to give me some more money.

00:58:43That couldn't have been easy.

00:58:45That's not easy.

00:58:46The price tag?

00:58:47$3,600.

00:58:49More money for an investigation that was already one of the most expensive this sheriff's office had ever done.

00:58:57Michael Murray is the Brown County District Attorney.

00:59:01Did you have concerns about whether or not this would even be admissible in court or this could help with the case?

00:59:06It wasn't so much that we needed to use it in court, but we needed a lead that would help lead to real other evidence.

00:59:13And so sometimes, while it may not be the primary evidence you use in court, if it leads to other evidence, that would be the important aspect here.

00:59:21Finally, they all agreed.

00:59:23It was time for that Hail Mary.

00:59:26They got the money, and the DNA was submitted to a lab owned by a Virginia Tech company called Parabon.

00:59:33You thought there goes $3,600 down the drain?

00:59:36Yes.

00:59:36I think the county just wasted some money.

00:59:38Five months later, Investigator Byrd got an email.

00:59:42It was late afternoon.

00:59:44I pulled it up, and it said the image was included.

00:59:48Oh, goodness.

00:59:49What are you thinking before you open this picture?

00:59:51I hope I recognize the person.

00:59:54I hope this gives me an idea of who the person is.

00:59:58This is the image in the email.

01:00:00So I opened it, and I had no clue.

01:00:03It was just a stranger.

01:00:05Zero recognition?

01:00:06Zero.

01:00:07Did you see it?

01:00:08I did.

01:00:08Did you think that it looked like a person?

01:00:11I mean, did it seem like, hey, this could lead us somewhere?

01:00:13It looked like, to me, it looked like every white kid out in North Lake.

01:00:17It could have been anybody.

01:00:19Not exactly the miracle they were hoping for.

01:00:22Still, they posted it on social media and pinned their hopes on the public,

01:00:27the chance that somebody out there just might recognize this face.

01:00:32I mean, you're like, I have no idea.

01:00:33This looks like just an average white boy with blonde, sandy blonde hair.

01:00:39And it's like, I don't know who that could be.

01:00:43We look at the sketch, me and my husband, and nothing.

01:00:47Did anything about it stand out to you?

01:00:49Nothing.

01:00:49Shantae's sister studied it and was struck by its sophistication.

01:00:55You know, you grow up looking at the news, and they're looking for the guy who did whatever,

01:01:00and it's like a stick figure, and it looks like something you could have drew in art class.

01:01:04This was way advanced, you know, compared to anything that you had seen prior to that.

01:01:11But it didn't ring a bell for destiny, either.

01:01:14To me, looks like any dude, a pitcher, you know.

01:01:18Everyone felt defeated.

01:01:20Then Michelle got a call from another member of the family, Shantae's half-brother.

01:01:26He saw something others didn't, and gave his mother a name to look up.

01:01:32My heart hit the floor, and I remember crying, and I turned, and I said, this is him.

01:01:41At first, the Parabon sketch felt like a big dud.

01:01:51Police posted it on social media and showed it to the family, but nothing.

01:01:57Then Michelle's son, Cutter, called her.

01:02:01He said he felt like he knew it right then.

01:02:05Cutter told his mom he was sure the sketch showed somebody he knew.

01:02:11Someone named Ryan Riggs.

01:02:15I looked him up, and as soon as I seen that face, my heart hit the floor.

01:02:20And I remember crying, and I turned, and I said, this is him.

01:02:24This is him.

01:02:26All of a sudden, it was almost like somebody turned the lights on, and you were like, there he is.

01:02:32Ryan Riggs was a local.

01:02:34Ryan Riggs had bullied Cutter in school and had poured a whole glass of sweet tea over his head.

01:02:46So your son had known him for years.

01:02:48They all did, and they all used to play video games together.

01:02:52Michelle called Scott Byrd and gave him the name.

01:02:56You've got a picture.

01:02:58You've got a name.

01:02:59How do you put those together?

01:03:01We went to social media.

01:03:03We basically looked up Ryan Riggs on Facebook,

01:03:07and the picture that popped up of him

01:03:09was the spitting image of the computer image that we'd received.

01:03:13It felt definitive.

01:03:19It felt like here is the answer.

01:03:22We have been looking for a year and a half,

01:03:25and we've had nothing,

01:03:29and here it is, and it's a perfect match.

01:03:34What did you think when you saw that side by side?

01:03:36I started becoming a believer.

01:03:38Maybe it wasn't a waste of $3600.

01:03:39Maybe this is not a waste of money.

01:03:42Investigators still had a lot of work to do.

01:03:45The sketch alone wasn't enough for an arrest.

01:03:49We start diving into Ryan Riggs to find out who he is.

01:03:54They learned that the 21-year-old Riggs

01:03:57loved playing video games online

01:03:59and picked up work doing lawn care.

01:04:02When Shantae first went missing,

01:04:04he'd even been part of the search,

01:04:07riding with John on an ATV.

01:04:09We was yelling her name

01:04:12and just trying to see anything that was out of ordinary

01:04:15or see if we could just get lucky to find her, you know.

01:04:20And Ryan was calling her name, too?

01:04:21Yeah, he was.

01:04:24When investigators looked in their own files,

01:04:26they learned more.

01:04:28We found that he was a suspect

01:04:31in an illegal dumping case.

01:04:33That's where he dumped some trash on a county road.

01:04:36Dumping trash is no big deal.

01:04:40But where he dumped it was.

01:04:43Just a half mile from where Shantae's body was found,

01:04:47along that same remote country road.

01:04:52So what does that tell you?

01:04:53He knows the area.

01:04:55What's more,

01:04:56in those dark days after Shantae's murder,

01:04:59Riggs was a constant presence.

01:05:01Here he is captured on the police surveillance video,

01:05:06attending Shantae's funeral,

01:05:08waiting at the entrance to the church,

01:05:10then watching from the doorway.

01:05:13Midway through the service,

01:05:15he gets a program and takes a seat.

01:05:18And then he leaves before it's over.

01:05:20He was at the house for,

01:05:23you know,

01:05:24her wake.

01:05:25He was at our house

01:05:26multiple times with John.

01:05:29Shantae's boyfriend.

01:05:30I'd be crying,

01:05:31talking about it,

01:05:32and he'd just

01:05:34act like just normal.

01:05:37To me,

01:05:38this was one of the most

01:05:40chilling aspects of this case.

01:05:42People often say

01:05:43a killer returns to the scene of a crime,

01:05:46sometimes to admire their work

01:05:47or to monitor detectives.

01:05:49But if Ryan was the killer,

01:05:51being so intimately close

01:05:53to Shantae's family,

01:05:55even sharing an ATV

01:05:56with her boyfriend during the search,

01:05:58is just beyond comprehension.

01:06:00It would be evil

01:06:01and terrifying

01:06:03that someone could commit

01:06:04such a brutal murder

01:06:05and then just act normal.

01:06:08He would come into your intimate space

01:06:10and offer comfort,

01:06:13give you hugs.

01:06:14He was there

01:06:17standing next to him.

01:06:19He shook my hand.

01:06:20He shook your hand.

01:06:22Yes, ma'am.

01:06:25Today we buried my daughter.

01:06:27The fact that he was there

01:06:28for some of the most painful moments,

01:06:30that had to feel like

01:06:32the ultimate insult.

01:06:33It was.

01:06:34How could anybody do that?

01:06:36I mean,

01:06:37I just didn't understand.

01:06:43And I was mad

01:06:44just because he was there

01:06:45the whole time

01:06:46and I couldn't see it.

01:06:49And he was right there.

01:06:52After 18 months of hard work,

01:06:55investigators now had a new

01:06:57and urgent priority.

01:06:59Find Ryan Riggs.

01:07:02We find his mom and dad.

01:07:03They let us come in

01:07:04and look in the house.

01:07:06He's not there.

01:07:07They don't know where he is.

01:07:08Hasn't been home

01:07:09for several days.

01:07:10After police released

01:07:11the sketch to the public,

01:07:13Riggs had taken off.

01:07:15So now we know

01:07:16Ryan's on the run from us.

01:07:19We figure he's seen the sketch.

01:07:20He's seen the news release.

01:07:22And at this point,

01:07:23you're looking, but...

01:07:24We can't find him.

01:07:26My job at that point was

01:07:28we're going to have to

01:07:29come up with a plan

01:07:30to locate him.

01:07:31If that's out in the woods,

01:07:33out in the brush,

01:07:33wherever he's at,

01:07:34we've got to find him.

01:07:36You were preparing

01:07:36for a manhunt.

01:07:37We were getting ready

01:07:38for a manhunt.

01:07:40The investigation

01:07:41had been jump-started

01:07:42and another dramatic development

01:07:44was just around the corner,

01:07:47not in the woods

01:07:48or the brush,

01:07:49but at the very church

01:07:51that Shante loved.

01:07:54I want you guys to take me

01:07:56to that Wednesday night

01:07:56church service.

01:08:01Ryan Riggs was now

01:08:15the prime suspect

01:08:16in Shante's murder.

01:08:17But almost a week

01:08:19after the DNA sketch

01:08:20was made public,

01:08:21he was nowhere

01:08:22to be found.

01:08:24Scott Byrd believed

01:08:25he was on the run.

01:08:26We're calling informants.

01:08:29We have his picture

01:08:30out to the police department,

01:08:32our department,

01:08:34everybody out driving around

01:08:35is looking for him.

01:08:36Russell and Linda Lamond

01:08:39had no idea

01:08:40there was an all-out

01:08:42manhunt underway

01:08:43for the young man

01:08:44they knew from church.

01:08:47He would pop up

01:08:48every once in a while.

01:08:49He was always with

01:08:50his mom and dad

01:08:51or if mom was there

01:08:53by herself.

01:08:53And his sister as well.

01:08:54Yeah.

01:08:55Yes, his sister.

01:08:56What did you know

01:08:57about Ryan Riggs?

01:08:58Oh, he was a good kid.

01:09:00Good kid.

01:09:00He would do anything for you.

01:09:03Mm-hmm.

01:09:03Anything you would ask him,

01:09:05hey, can you do this for me?

01:09:06And it would be,

01:09:07yes, ma'am, yes, sir.

01:09:08We had a community cleanup

01:09:10of one of the homeless shelters.

01:09:12I remember him out there

01:09:13weed-eating,

01:09:14just going to town

01:09:15and weed-eating,

01:09:15cleaning up the community.

01:09:16He was very excited

01:09:17about doing it.

01:09:19On November 15, 2017,

01:09:2218 months after Shantae

01:09:24was murdered,

01:09:25the Lamonds headed to church

01:09:26for a regular

01:09:27Wednesday night service.

01:09:28I want you guys

01:09:30to take me

01:09:31to that Wednesday night

01:09:32church service.

01:09:32Okay, I'll start.

01:09:42When we got to church,

01:09:44there's Ryan's parents,

01:09:47the pastor and his wife,

01:09:49and then I see Ryan

01:09:50in the middle.

01:09:52There was Ryan,

01:09:54not hiding,

01:09:55not on the run,

01:09:56but there in plain sight

01:09:58at the church.

01:09:59We sat down

01:10:01and the pastor said

01:10:04that, you know,

01:10:04Ryan wants

01:10:05to tell us something.

01:10:07And he starts talking,

01:10:09but he's talking about

01:10:12his salvation.

01:10:14And my thought's like,

01:10:16what is he talking about?

01:10:17So you're just lost.

01:10:18He's like, I'm lost.

01:10:19And he starts talking

01:10:21about that he had,

01:10:22you know,

01:10:23demon thoughts,

01:10:25or he had,

01:10:26you know,

01:10:26voices in his head.

01:10:28That was telling him

01:10:30to do things.

01:10:32And then Ryan Riggs,

01:10:34standing alone

01:10:35at the pulpit

01:10:36in front of the whole

01:10:37congregation,

01:10:38said it.

01:10:40He was

01:10:41a murderer.

01:10:44I start crying

01:10:45and I don't even remember

01:10:47everything he said

01:10:48at that point.

01:10:49I want to ask you,

01:10:50Russell,

01:10:51all I had to do

01:10:52was mention

01:10:53that church service

01:10:54and you were almost

01:10:55brought to tears.

01:10:57It was very difficult.

01:10:58Very difficult

01:10:59because when he said,

01:11:01I'm a murderer,

01:11:05I just got sick.

01:11:06I was like,

01:11:07I remember saying,

01:11:09please don't tell me

01:11:10he's talking about Shante.

01:11:11Please don't tell me.

01:11:13And the pastor's wife

01:11:14was standing next to us

01:11:16and she goes,

01:11:17yes.

01:11:17and I put my head down

01:11:25and I was so angry.

01:11:29I was so angry.

01:11:31But I put my head down

01:11:32and I grabbed the pew

01:11:33and I was like,

01:11:36how?

01:11:37I love this boy.

01:11:39And pastor saw that

01:11:41he could see

01:11:43look at my face.

01:11:44You were really conflicted.

01:11:44He goes,

01:11:45Russell,

01:11:45I want you to come

01:11:46stand next to him.

01:11:48And I'm thinking to myself,

01:11:50that's probably not

01:11:51a good idea right now.

01:11:52You know,

01:11:53I'm not an angry person,

01:11:55but I wanted to hurt you

01:11:57for five minutes,

01:11:57I kid you not,

01:11:58because I loved her so much.

01:12:00And now you're being asked

01:12:01to stand next to him.

01:12:01And now I'm being asked

01:12:02to stand up next to him.

01:12:06And I went up to the pulpit

01:12:08and I put my arms around him

01:12:11and I embraced him.

01:12:13And I told him I loved him.

01:12:16It was one of the hardest

01:12:17things I had to do.

01:12:20Did you forgive him

01:12:21in that moment?

01:12:22Yes, I did.

01:12:23I did.

01:12:25This is without question

01:12:27one of those interviews

01:12:29that will always stay with me.

01:12:30You saw Russell's emotion

01:12:32just choking up

01:12:34at my mere mention

01:12:35of the church service.

01:12:36I felt his pain.

01:12:38Here's a man of deep faith

01:12:39who believed he must love

01:12:41and forgive

01:12:41while being wrapped with grief

01:12:44over Shante's death.

01:12:46And Ryan Riggs

01:12:47was given such a graceful space

01:12:49to surrender

01:12:49without police pressure.

01:12:52It's compassion that Ryan

01:12:53certainly did not show Shante,

01:12:55and it's something

01:12:56that really upset her family.

01:12:58This is a brutal,

01:13:00cold-blooded murderer,

01:13:02and he's being treated

01:13:03with kid gloves.

01:13:05He's allowed to come

01:13:06to this church

01:13:07where he's very familiar,

01:13:09confess in front of people

01:13:10who love him.

01:13:12Where's the SWAT scene?

01:13:13Where are the dogs?

01:13:15Yeah.

01:13:16Yeah.

01:13:17I don't know

01:13:18how he was able

01:13:20to do that at church.

01:13:23And my thought was,

01:13:25he needs to know

01:13:26we're angry.

01:13:28And so before he left,

01:13:30I just put my face

01:13:31in front of a killer's face.

01:13:33You know, I mean,

01:13:34that close.

01:13:35It kind of,

01:13:36it scared me a little bit,

01:13:37but I had grabbed his hands

01:13:39and told Ryan,

01:13:41I said,

01:13:41Ryan,

01:13:42we want to hate you,

01:13:44but we can't.

01:13:47We love you.

01:13:47Because I just wanted him

01:13:50to feel that

01:13:50what he did was wrong.

01:13:53Do you think he felt that?

01:13:55I'm hoping he did.

01:13:58Before that unforgettable

01:14:00scene at the church,

01:14:01Riggs had been on the run

01:14:03for several days.

01:14:05But then he showed up

01:14:06at the church

01:14:07with his parents,

01:14:08told the pastor

01:14:09what he'd done,

01:14:10and asked if he could confess

01:14:12to the congregation.

01:14:14The pastor agreed.

01:14:16So after the confession,

01:14:18what happens?

01:14:19Pastor Keener

01:14:20calls Sheriff Hill

01:14:22and says,

01:14:23I'm bringing in

01:14:24Ryan Riggs.

01:14:25He's just confessed to me

01:14:26in the church

01:14:27of killing Shantae.

01:14:28So they all ride

01:14:29to the sheriff's office

01:14:30together.

01:14:31He's not cuffed.

01:14:32He's not arrested.

01:14:33He's just in the car

01:14:34with his parents

01:14:35going to the sheriff's office.

01:14:37The sheriff met him

01:14:38out on the highway

01:14:39and followed him in

01:14:41to make sure Ryan

01:14:42didn't have a change of heart.

01:14:44Investigator Bird

01:14:45and Ranger Shea

01:14:46rushed to the sheriff's office.

01:14:48As you're processing

01:14:49all of this...

01:14:50How can you process that?

01:14:52That he just confessed

01:14:53to the church

01:14:54that he attended,

01:14:55that he's the one

01:14:56that everybody's been

01:14:57looking for

01:14:58for the last 18 months.

01:15:00You know,

01:15:01driving to the sheriff's office,

01:15:03trying to process that,

01:15:05a million things

01:15:05are going through your mind.

01:15:07Did he really do it?

01:15:08Is he just saying

01:15:09that he did it?

01:15:09This is somebody

01:15:11that you've been pursuing

01:15:12for 18 months,

01:15:14day in and day out.

01:15:16Finally,

01:15:16you're face-to-face

01:15:17with this person.

01:15:18What was that moment

01:15:19like for you?

01:15:21I kept thinking,

01:15:22my job's not done yet.

01:15:24Now it's time to talk.

01:15:26And did he talk?

01:15:27Yes, he did.

01:15:28I've always had this...

01:15:31It's like this

01:15:32different part of me

01:15:34that it just wants nothing

01:15:37but destruction and evil.

01:15:51This was the news

01:15:53Michelle had wanted

01:15:54so badly for so long,

01:15:56ever since that terrible

01:15:58Friday the 13th.

01:16:00Her daughter's killer

01:16:01was finally in custody.

01:16:03But she was confused

01:16:05by the way it happened.

01:16:07Ryan Riggs

01:16:07did not confess

01:16:08to authorities.

01:16:10He'd done it

01:16:10in front of the congregation

01:16:12at Shantae's church.

01:16:16This was the place

01:16:17where she would go

01:16:17and find comfort

01:16:18day after day,

01:16:20where she would sing

01:16:21and sit in the pews.

01:16:23The place she loved.

01:16:24How did it feel

01:16:26to know that he had

01:16:27chosen that place,

01:16:29that church

01:16:30to confess

01:16:31to killing her?

01:16:32I couldn't imagine

01:16:33being a person

01:16:34sitting on that pew

01:16:35when he confessed that.

01:16:38Michelle was angry

01:16:39that the pastor

01:16:40had arranged

01:16:41what Riggs himself

01:16:42described

01:16:43as a moment

01:16:44of salvation.

01:16:45I felt like

01:16:48it was done wrongfully

01:16:49that he shouldn't

01:16:50have been brought

01:16:50into the church.

01:16:53Should not have

01:16:54been able to step foot

01:16:55in that church.

01:16:57The way he decided

01:16:58to go about

01:16:59telling everybody

01:17:00was like his opportunity

01:17:01to try to

01:17:02cleanse himself

01:17:03or ask for some

01:17:04sort of forgiveness

01:17:05or his way of saying

01:17:06like, hey, look,

01:17:07I'm sorry.

01:17:09I don't believe

01:17:11he was sorry.

01:17:11When Riggs

01:17:14arrived at the

01:17:15sheriff's office

01:17:15after the service,

01:17:17he was finally

01:17:18face to face

01:17:19with Ranger Shea

01:17:20and Investigator Byrd.

01:17:23What I'm going to do

01:17:24is take you back

01:17:25a little bit

01:17:25and go through

01:17:26some of the stuff.

01:17:28Where did you find

01:17:28Shantae that day?

01:17:30She was walking

01:17:31past the mailboxes

01:17:32and I had stopped

01:17:34and asked her

01:17:34if she needed a ride

01:17:35and she got in my truck.

01:17:38Riggs said

01:17:40they drove around

01:17:40the neighborhood.

01:17:42Then he pulled over

01:17:43in a secluded spot.

01:17:45When y'all were

01:17:46sitting in the truck

01:17:46talking,

01:17:47what are y'all

01:17:48talking about?

01:17:49Music?

01:17:51I was letting her

01:17:54go through all my music

01:17:56and every time

01:17:58she'd play a song

01:17:59she'd be,

01:18:00she'd say something like,

01:18:01oh, that's my song.

01:18:04He told investigators

01:18:05that as they sat there

01:18:07in the truck

01:18:07listening to music,

01:18:09something inside of him

01:18:11snapped.

01:18:15Out of nowhere,

01:18:16I just put my left arm

01:18:17around her

01:18:18and began to strangle her.

01:18:22And whenever

01:18:23she had passed out,

01:18:27I took her clothes off

01:18:29and I raped her.

01:18:32While she's unconscious?

01:18:34While she's unconscious.

01:18:35Then what happened?

01:18:37He told us

01:18:38he knew he couldn't

01:18:38let her live

01:18:39because he had raped her

01:18:41and he couldn't

01:18:43have her talking.

01:18:44I went to that

01:18:45abandoned house.

01:18:48Riggs knew about

01:18:48the haunted house

01:18:49because he'd been there

01:18:51with friends

01:18:51when he was a teenager.

01:18:53I threw her

01:18:54over that fence

01:18:55and then climbed

01:18:56over the fence

01:18:57and dragged her

01:18:58to that tank battery

01:19:00where I had to put her.

01:19:05But before I threw her

01:19:06in there,

01:19:07I went back to my truck

01:19:10and got a lawnmower

01:19:11blade out of the back

01:19:12of my truck

01:19:12and I went back

01:19:14to where she was

01:19:15and I beat her

01:19:17to death with it.

01:19:19I had stomped

01:19:19on her chest

01:19:20as well.

01:19:22So he stomped

01:19:23on her chest

01:19:24to try to kill her.

01:19:25That was the mark.

01:19:26That's the mark

01:19:27from his shoes.

01:19:29It was an appalling

01:19:31story.

01:19:32But the way Riggs

01:19:34told it

01:19:34was cold.

01:19:36Almost methodical.

01:19:39I think

01:19:39whatever

01:19:41came over me

01:19:43knew that

01:19:43she was an easy target.

01:19:46What was his demeanor?

01:19:47Matter of fact.

01:19:49And that's what

01:19:50surprised us also.

01:19:52There wasn't really

01:19:53a whole bunch of emotion

01:19:54involved in this.

01:19:55It's like this

01:19:56different part of me

01:19:58that

01:20:00it just wants nothing

01:20:02but destruction

01:20:04and evil.

01:20:05It wanted to kill

01:20:06somebody.

01:20:07It wanted to rape.

01:20:09How long have you

01:20:10been having those

01:20:11thoughts before this

01:20:12happened?

01:20:13I've always had

01:20:13these thoughts.

01:20:16We used to have

01:20:16a chihuahua

01:20:17and I tried

01:20:19on numerous occasions

01:20:20to

01:20:21drown that chihuahua

01:20:23in a five-gallon

01:20:25bucket of water

01:20:26but I would just

01:20:28hold it there

01:20:28long enough

01:20:29to where

01:20:30I would just

01:20:32think to myself

01:20:33what am I doing?

01:20:35Your parents never

01:20:36saw you do it?

01:20:37No.

01:20:37I always made sure

01:20:38to do it whenever

01:20:39they were away.

01:20:40As you're sitting

01:20:41there listening

01:20:42listening to him

01:20:42what are you thinking

01:20:44about this guy?

01:20:45This guy's dangerous.

01:20:47This guy's scary.

01:20:49He kills

01:20:50without remorse

01:20:51and I'm shocked

01:20:53he hadn't done it

01:20:54again.

01:20:55Did you believe

01:20:55that Ryan Riggs

01:20:56would kill again?

01:20:57Absolutely.

01:20:57If you could say

01:21:00something right now

01:21:01to Sean Tate

01:21:02what would you say?

01:21:05Then I'm sorry

01:21:05that I did

01:21:06what I did

01:21:06and I

01:21:09whatever I have

01:21:10coming towards me

01:21:11I deserve.

01:21:13What do you think

01:21:14you deserve?

01:21:15Death for sure.

01:21:18Riggs was charged

01:21:20with capital murder.

01:21:21In the state of Texas

01:21:22if you commit

01:21:23a murder

01:21:24and there's

01:21:25aggravating

01:21:25circumstances

01:21:26around it

01:21:27for instance

01:21:28in this case

01:21:29sexually assaulting

01:21:30the victim

01:21:30that by itself

01:21:32transformed this

01:21:33from a regular

01:21:33murder case

01:21:34into a capital

01:21:35murder case.

01:21:36So the death

01:21:36penalty is on the table?

01:21:37At this point

01:21:38it very much is.

01:21:39But before D.A.

01:21:40Murray went to court

01:21:41to seek the death penalty

01:21:43he talked to

01:21:44Shante's family.

01:21:46He wanted them

01:21:46to know

01:21:47there is a long

01:21:48process before

01:21:49an execution

01:21:49can be carried out

01:21:51likely spanning

01:21:52many years.

01:21:54The question is

01:21:55are you going

01:21:56to be able

01:21:56to get justice

01:21:57for the family

01:21:57in a reasonable

01:21:59period of time

01:21:59that's not going

01:22:00to prolong

01:22:00their agony?

01:22:02Shante's mom

01:22:03decided death

01:22:04was too good

01:22:05for Ryan Riggs.

01:22:08To me that would

01:22:09have been an easy

01:22:09way out.

01:22:10Easy for him?

01:22:11Easy for him.

01:22:12What?

01:22:12He wouldn't have

01:22:13got to suffer.

01:22:14So the state

01:22:15offered Riggs

01:22:16a deal

01:22:17a life sentence

01:22:18without the

01:22:19possibility of parole.

01:22:21It was important

01:22:22for our community

01:22:23to have closure

01:22:24and the finality

01:22:27of being able

01:22:28to tell everyone

01:22:29we are guaranteed

01:22:31that he will

01:22:33remain in prison.

01:22:35That was incredibly

01:22:36valuable for our

01:22:37community.

01:22:38Riggs accepted

01:22:39the deal.

01:22:40He was sentenced

01:22:40in February 2019.

01:22:44He will never

01:22:45marry, never have

01:22:46kids, but he's

01:22:48still alive

01:22:49and he can

01:22:51still see

01:22:52his family.

01:22:54He got the

01:22:55choice to live

01:22:55or die

01:22:56and Shante did

01:22:58not.

01:22:59Michelle feels

01:23:00she knows

01:23:01what would have

01:23:02been in her

01:23:02daughter's heart.

01:23:04She would have

01:23:04forgave him.

01:23:06Do you forgive him?

01:23:07I don't.

01:23:10Shante's loved ones

01:23:12try not to dwell

01:23:13on the man

01:23:14who killed her.

01:23:16Michelle would

01:23:16rather remember

01:23:17her feisty,

01:23:18radiant daughter.

01:23:21When you

01:23:22close your eyes

01:23:23and think about

01:23:24your daughter,

01:23:25what's the first

01:23:27thing that comes

01:23:27to your mind?

01:23:28Her smile.

01:23:29Her smile.

01:23:33Yeah.

01:23:35It doesn't

01:23:36ever go away.

01:23:37I see her all

01:23:37the time.

01:23:44I want people

01:23:45to remember her

01:23:46singing at the

01:23:47choir, walking

01:23:47down the street,

01:23:48waving at people.

01:23:49That's how

01:23:50everybody needs

01:23:50to remember her,

01:23:51not as some

01:23:52sort of a victim.

01:23:54I will always

01:23:55remember this

01:23:56community's bond.

01:23:57They watched

01:23:58over Shante

01:23:59on her daily

01:24:00walks.

01:24:01Then they came

01:24:02together to search

01:24:02for her when she

01:24:03vanished.

01:24:04And the faith

01:24:05that many in the

01:24:06community believed

01:24:07helped bring the

01:24:08killer to justice.

01:24:09Those neighbors

01:24:10finding Shante's

01:24:11body so quickly

01:24:12in that remote

01:24:13location.

01:24:14Detective Byrd

01:24:15told me repeatedly

01:24:16that without that

01:24:17speedy discovery,

01:24:19which helped

01:24:19preserve DNA

01:24:20evidence, they

01:24:21never would have

01:24:22solved this murder.

01:24:23Call it divine

01:24:24intervention or

01:24:25incredible luck,

01:24:27but something

01:24:27extraordinary

01:24:28happened here.

01:24:31And on the

01:24:32streets where

01:24:33she walked,

01:24:34in the church

01:24:35where she sang,

01:24:37Shante's spirit

01:24:39is still very

01:24:41much alive.

01:24:44Her family

01:24:45visits her on

01:24:46holidays,

01:24:48decorating her

01:24:49grave and

01:24:51picturing her

01:24:52smiling as she

01:24:55sings in the

01:24:57angels' choir.

01:24:58day.

01:24:58How do you

01:25:00remember?

01:25:01The

01:25:05journey

01:25:05is

01:25:07the

01:25:07I

01:25:08remember

01:25:08it

01:25:08was

01:25:08here.

Dateline- Unforgettable - Season 7 Episode 06- The Haunted House Confession

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