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A Plan to Kill - Season 2 - Episode 06: Desert Grift
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00:05It was a big news story.
00:08Wealthy Palm Springs art dealer missing.
00:12There was no signs of force.
00:15Nothing was thrown about.
00:16But his Mercedes was not in the garage.
00:19It's suspicious when you have a missing person
00:22and all of a sudden their home is being sold out under them.
00:27We would be like, what the hell?
00:30How can this be another twist?
00:32Then witnesses tell me he was murdered
00:34and gave me a handwritten map.
00:37That's where they dumped the body.
00:39The location where these bones were located
00:42was exceptionally remote.
00:43It was unbelievable to me the elaborate scheme and plan
00:48that these guys went through.
00:50I was in shock.
00:53The plot was very complex.
00:55He was the next target
00:56in what they dubbed Operation Craigslist.
01:00In the county jail,
01:01he did make a phone call
01:02and the only thing he said was run.
01:23Palm Springs is a beautiful desert city
01:27with a long history.
01:29It became very popular
01:31with the celebrity crowd
01:32in the 40s and 50s.
01:37We're so close to Hollywood,
01:39100 miles away.
01:40So you had people that came out here
01:43for the sun and fun
01:44and away from paparazzi.
01:46and that's why we have so many good stories
01:48about the stars being here.
01:54The Festival of Lights is a Christmas parade
01:57that is held every year in Palm Springs.
02:01It happens on the first weekend of December
02:04and brings the whole community together.
02:08My good friend, Clifford Lambert,
02:11really loved the Christmas parade,
02:13but that year,
02:15Cliff didn't show up.
02:17He was very well known in the gay community,
02:20so when he didn't show up
02:21to that Christmas parade,
02:23his close friends were very concerned
02:25because that was his favorite thing.
02:30I was Cliff's hairdresser
02:32and I had some friends
02:35and clients in the salon
02:37and I remember somebody telling me
02:39that they had seen Cliff
02:40at his favorite haunt
02:42just down from his house
02:44having dinner with somebody
02:45on December 4th,
02:47but they hadn't heard from him
02:48or hadn't been able
02:49to get a hold of him afterwards.
02:52So we started putting things together
02:55and it was alarming.
02:59On December 12th, 2008,
03:02a missing person's report
03:03came across my desk
03:04by the name of Cliff Lambert.
03:06Reading the report,
03:08I noticed that his longtime friend,
03:09Edward, had reported him missing,
03:12had it heard from him
03:12for a couple of days.
03:14First thing you do with a missing person
03:16is try to call them
03:16and see if they're okay
03:17and give them a call
03:19and his voicemail box was full.
03:21I started conducting
03:23a more thorough investigation,
03:25contacting friends,
03:26seeing if anybody's heard from him.
03:28Nobody has.
03:30Over the next several days,
03:32the police department
03:34spoke to many of us,
03:36asking if we knew of anybody
03:38that might harbor
03:40any resentment towards Cliff.
03:42And I couldn't think of anybody.
03:46I'm still expecting him to show up,
03:48but a couple of days went by
03:50and I spoke with his friend,
03:52Edward, again,
03:53who had the key to the house.
03:54So he allowed me to enter the house
03:56and there was nothing unusual.
04:01There was no signs of force.
04:03Nothing was thrown about.
04:05Everything was in the right place.
04:08His friend explained
04:09that the Rolls Royce
04:10was still in the garage,
04:10but his Mercedes was missing.
04:14I didn't notice
04:15that his mailbox
04:16had, like, mail protruding out
04:17and there was papers
04:18on front of the door.
04:20But that in and of itself
04:21isn't suspicious.
04:22He could have been gone
04:23for the weekend
04:23and not told anybody.
04:28A few days it goes by
04:29and Cliff doesn't show up.
04:31We sent out the press release.
04:34We were hoping
04:35that it would turn on
04:36some information on him,
04:37but it didn't.
04:40Remember, social media
04:41wasn't a thing.
04:42So if we put it out now,
04:44we would be getting
04:45more people saying,
04:46I knew Cliff.
04:47I saw him at this party.
04:49There's no way
04:50he'd go missing.
04:51You know, things like that.
04:52But we didn't have
04:53those kind of tips or clues.
04:57At this point,
04:58I need to speak
04:59to his friends
05:00and learn all I could
05:01on Cliff Lambert.
05:04Cliff was born
05:05in St. Louis, Missouri.
05:08He had the biggest dreams
05:10and ambitions.
05:11He was going
05:12to be a celebrity.
05:14Cliff is a fascinating
05:15individual.
05:16You have to think about
05:17who he was
05:18and the time period
05:19that he grew up in.
05:20By all accounts,
05:21he was out
05:22through most of his life.
05:24He ended up getting
05:26a job on a radio show
05:30and that afforded him
05:32to create relationships
05:34with a lot of celebrities.
05:36And later,
05:38he ended up going
05:40into the art world.
05:42He had actually worked
05:44to create this process
05:46where famous pieces of art
05:48could be available
05:48basically as posters.
05:50And that was how
05:51he made his money.
05:53Cliff Lambert
05:54lives a very
05:55expensive lifestyle.
05:57When you would
05:58walk into his house,
05:59people described it
06:00like walking
06:01into Versailles.
06:04Cliff was a person
06:06that liked to have
06:08others around him.
06:09He would have
06:10dinner parties.
06:12He was happiest
06:14when he was
06:14in a relationship.
06:16He had a boyfriend
06:18for a very long time,
06:1912 years or so.
06:21And his name
06:22was Travis.
06:23And Cliff really
06:24loved him
06:24and wanted him
06:25to carry his last name.
06:26So Travis Hobbs
06:28became Travis Lambert.
06:30They were both
06:30really happy with that.
06:33But then in 2007,
06:36Travis died
06:37in a drowning accident
06:38in the swimming pool.
06:42Cliff was just
06:44beside himself.
06:45He was just devastated.
06:47And I don't think
06:48he ever really
06:49got over it.
06:51Cliff was very lonely.
06:54And in 2008,
06:56it actually drove him
06:58to create a profile
07:01on Craigslist
07:02to begin looking
07:05for somebody
07:05to fill that void.
07:15Our first big break
07:17didn't come through
07:18until I received
07:19a phone call
07:19at my desk
07:20from a real estate agent
07:21over in San Francisco
07:22inquiring about
07:24Mr. Lambert
07:25and his residence
07:26in Palm Springs.
07:28He expressed
07:30that he had a client
07:31in San Francisco
07:33that had a power
07:34of attorney
07:34that a house
07:35was gifted to him
07:37and he wanted
07:38to do what
07:38he called
07:39a fire sale.
07:41The real estate agent
07:43was suspicious
07:44that when he ran
07:45Mr. Cliff Lambert's name,
07:46he came back
07:46as a missing person.
07:49So at that point,
07:50I called my partner,
07:51detective,
07:52who does do fraud
07:53and property crime
07:54Simon Mann
07:55and asked him
07:56to come on board
07:57with this investigation.
08:01It's suspicious
08:02when you have
08:03a missing person
08:04and all of a sudden,
08:06their home
08:07is being sold
08:08out under them.
08:10We received documents
08:12from the agent
08:13that pertained
08:14to Cliff's home
08:15here in Palm Springs
08:17and there was a deed
08:19and a power of attorney
08:20with the name
08:21of Kashal Nerula
08:23from San Francisco.
08:26Who is Kashal Nerula
08:28in San Francisco
08:29and why is he
08:30trying to claim
08:31ownership
08:32of Cliff Lambert's house?
08:33This was essentially
08:34the big break
08:35that led me
08:36to believe
08:36that there was
08:37something more nefarious
08:38was going on.
08:40There is a name
08:41that has no bearing
08:44on the residence itself
08:46and there's a huge
08:48distance gap
08:49between Palm Springs
08:50and San Francisco
08:51but at this point
08:53I'm asking
08:54is Kashal Nerula
08:55involved in
08:56Cliff Lambert's
08:57disappearance?
09:02We're looking
09:03for proof of life
09:04and oddly enough
09:05there are transactions
09:07on Cliff's bank account
09:09like somebody went
09:10on a spending spree.
09:11when we learn
09:12who the thumbprint
09:13belonged to
09:14and what happened
09:16to this man
09:17it was terrifying
09:20for us.
09:30Cliff would always
09:32stay in touch
09:33with friends
09:35always let somebody
09:36know when he would
09:38be out of town
09:41but this time
09:42none of that happened.
09:44We were all
09:45just very concerned.
09:48At this point
09:49in the investigation
09:50there wasn't much
09:51to go on
09:52other than the fact
09:53that we have someone
09:54with the power of attorney
09:55signed by Cliff Lambert
09:57to Kashal Nerula
09:59in San Francisco
10:00and he's trying
10:01to sell
10:02Mr. Cliff Lambert's
10:03house below market value
10:05but at this time
10:06instead of interviewing
10:07Kashal Nerula
10:08I want to get
10:09more information
10:10about him.
10:11I want to know
10:12everything I can
10:13about who he is
10:14that way
10:15I'm not going in blind.
10:19So I called
10:19the San Francisco
10:20Police Department
10:21and spoke to
10:22an investigator
10:23in their fraud unit
10:24and immediately
10:25when I said
10:26the name
10:26Kashal Nerula
10:28it was like
10:29an alarm
10:29that went off
10:30on the phone
10:31because Kashal
10:32had so many charges
10:34in San Francisco
10:35for fraudulent activities.
10:38Nerula was arrested
10:40a year prior
10:40he had been locked
10:41in jail
10:42in the county.
10:43But at this time
10:44Kashal Nerula
10:46is out of jail.
10:49Kashal Nerula
10:50is a convicted
10:52con man
10:53very, very good looking
10:54dressed impeccably.
10:56he would tell people
10:58that he was
10:59the prince of Nepal
11:00and that he was exiled.
11:03Kashal Nerula
11:04had undertaken
11:05a con scheme
11:06where he conned
11:07someone out of
11:08over $400,000
11:09worth of artwork.
11:11He ended up
11:12stealing $300,000
11:14approximately
11:15worth of jewelry
11:16in order to pay
11:17the restitution
11:17for his art theft scheme.
11:21And in 2007
11:23Kashal Nerula
11:23was responsible
11:24for swindling someone
11:25out of half a million
11:27dollars in Hawaii.
11:28He was a prolific fraudster
11:30but does he have
11:32any involvement
11:32in the disappearance
11:33of Cliff Lambert?
11:40I asked the real estate agent
11:42if they could pause
11:43any sales
11:44because there is
11:44suspicious factors
11:45behind the disappearance.
11:47then the real estate agent
11:49continued to tell me
11:50that an attorney
11:51by the name of
11:52David Replogle
11:53from the Bay Area
11:54he had done this deal
11:56between Mr. Nerula
11:57and Mr. Cliff Lambert
11:59and that Mr. Nerula
12:01took on
12:02the part of attorney.
12:07So there's still
12:08no signs of Cliff.
12:09I'm looking for proof of life
12:11and I found
12:13that there are
12:14transactions
12:14on Cliff's
12:16bank account
12:17after he was
12:18reported missing.
12:20It looked like
12:22somebody went on
12:22a spending spree
12:23in San Francisco.
12:25They were buying
12:27chocolate,
12:28clothes,
12:29computer products.
12:30It looked like
12:31somebody was having
12:32a good old time.
12:34But when I received
12:36surveillance photos
12:37from ATMs
12:38it was not Cliff Lambert.
12:39Nowhere near
12:41Cliff Lambert
12:41is a picture
12:43of a Hispanic male
12:45on all of these
12:46transactions.
12:47I take a little clip
12:48of that
12:48and I send it to
12:50the San Francisco
12:51Police Department
12:52and the investigator
12:53up there
12:53immediately identifies
12:55these pictures
12:56as Danny Garcia.
12:59And says
13:00he was also involved
13:01in fraudulent activities
13:03with Nerula.
13:07We find out
13:09that Kashal Nerula
13:10and Danny Garcia
13:12they've been
13:13under investigation
13:14by San Francisco
13:15Police Department
13:15amongst other
13:16police departments
13:17up in the Bay Area
13:18for many scams
13:20in which they defraud
13:20people out of
13:21their belongings.
13:23They are essentially
13:24part of a
13:25like a ring
13:26of con men.
13:28So now we had
13:29one more name,
13:30one more
13:32person of interest.
13:34with the names now
13:36I go back
13:37to Mr. Lambert's
13:38good friend
13:39who reported
13:39missing
13:40and asked
13:41if he recognized
13:42any of the names
13:43and lo and behold
13:44he did recognize
13:45Danny Garcia
13:47and stated
13:48that Danny Garcia
13:49was a boyfriend
13:51of Mr. Lambert
13:52but they have
13:53parted on bad terms
13:55several months
13:56before the disappearance.
14:01In April of 2008
14:03Cliff told me
14:05that he met
14:06somebody from
14:07San Francisco
14:07on Craigslist
14:09and his name
14:10was Daniel Garcia.
14:12He described him
14:13as something different
14:14than he normally likes.
14:16He said
14:16this boy
14:17is Hispanic
14:17and he has dark hair.
14:20Daniel came
14:21to the desert
14:22a handful of times
14:24to visit Cliff
14:25to see if they might
14:26get along
14:27or if there was
14:28a spark.
14:31But Daniel
14:33ended up
14:34making it clear
14:35that he was
14:36looking for an investor
14:37for a new business
14:38he wanted to open
14:39meaning that
14:40he wanted his money.
14:42Cliff told him
14:43that's it.
14:44This is done
14:46and he would
14:46have to leave.
14:51At this point
14:52all I knew
14:53is that
14:53Danny Garcia
14:54was a connection
14:55to Cliff Lambert
14:56but how was that
14:57related to Cliff's
14:58disappearance?
15:02Then on January 7th
15:04I get a phone call
15:05from Cliff's neighbor
15:06that there is a U-Haul truck
15:08in front of Cliff's house.
15:11Frank comes to me
15:13and he tells me
15:14Simon
15:15there's somebody
15:15at Cliff's house
15:16with the U-Haul.
15:18They're trying to leave
15:19we need to go
15:20get the U-Haul.
15:22I advise our patrol officers
15:24to quickly respond
15:25as somebody is
15:26trying to move
15:27the items out.
15:29As I'm driving
15:30towards the downtown area
15:32to get to his house
15:33I notice a U-Haul truck
15:35driving southbound
15:36away from the direction
15:38where his house would be.
15:40So between myself,
15:42Frank,
15:43and patrol
15:44we tactically
15:46start setting up
15:47units to go
15:48intercept
15:49all the vehicles
15:50that are leaving.
15:52Is Cliff there?
15:54Is Cliff not there?
15:56Are we going to find
15:57somebody who shouldn't
15:59be there
16:00cleaning out this house?
16:13Clifford Lambert
16:14was missing
16:15and we received
16:16a phone call
16:17there's somebody
16:18at Cliff's house
16:19with the U-Haul
16:20trying to clean out
16:21his home
16:22it's suspicious
16:24and then I get
16:26another call
16:26from Detective Browning
16:28saying hey
16:28I got this U-Haul
16:30driving south
16:31away from
16:32Cliff Lambert's house.
16:35I pull over
16:37the U-Haul truck
16:39simultaneously
16:39officers are arriving
16:41on scene
16:41at Cliff's house.
16:43I get on scene
16:45and I find
16:46a person
16:47talking to
16:48one of the patrol officers
16:50and as I approach
16:51he identified himself
16:53as Miguel Bustamante
16:55and he said
16:56we were hired
16:57to do a job
16:58but it didn't
16:59look like movers
17:00it looked like
17:02Miguel Bustamante
17:04at Cliff's home
17:06trying to steal
17:08all the contents
17:09of the residence.
17:11A lot of Cliff's property
17:12personal items
17:14of value
17:15art
17:16and we can't verify
17:18that any of this property
17:19was legitimately
17:20given to Miguel
17:22and his crew
17:22by the actual owner
17:24of Clifford Lambert.
17:25So Miguel Bustamante
17:27was detained
17:28at the scene
17:28and taken to the jail.
17:31Now we have
17:32one more
17:33person of interest
17:34in this case.
17:40Within an hour or so
17:41of Miguel Bustamante
17:43being arrested
17:43for the burglary
17:44he called for detectives
17:46he wanted to talk
17:48to us.
17:49Here we go.
17:50You know I'm
17:51Detective Browning
17:52and I was told
17:54that you wanted
17:54to talk to us
17:56what is it that you
17:57want to volunteer
17:58and tell us?
18:03Okay.
18:05I got to Palm Springs
18:06yesterday in the morning
18:07so I went to hire
18:08a few Mexicans.
18:10We confirmed
18:11the two people
18:12driving the U-Haul trucks
18:13were in fact
18:14just hired
18:15so they were not charged.
18:17Our main concern now
18:18is trying to get
18:19to what he knows
18:20about Cliff Lambert.
18:37For me that was huge
18:39because we never
18:40released the names
18:40of the people
18:41involved in this case.
18:43Now we have information
18:44that there is
18:45some kind of connection
18:46between Danny Garcia,
18:48Kushal Nerula
18:49and Miguel Bustamante
18:51so we're up to
18:52three people
18:53associated
18:54with this missing
18:55person's case
18:56with no sign
18:57of Cliff.
19:00His initial comments
19:01were that Cliff Lambert
19:02owed the cartel money
19:04and they took him
19:04to Mexico.
19:11It's a crazy story.
19:13I did not believe
19:14whatsoever that Cliff
19:15was in Mexico
19:16and it was abducted
19:17for the cartel.
19:18So they went
19:18the Mexicans
19:19and Cliff
19:19all went together.
19:21Yes, yes, yes, yes.
19:22That's why we're getting
19:23and Kushal hired me
19:24to keep his car
19:26supposedly his car
19:28in my garage.
19:29He proceeded
19:30to volunteer
19:30information
19:31that he had
19:32Lambert's Mercedes
19:33in his possession
19:35in Daly City
19:36in his apartment complex.
19:39So we had
19:40Daly City Police Department
19:42go to the residence
19:43and it was there.
19:46So now we had
19:47Cliff Lambert's vehicle.
19:49We were hoping
19:49that we'll turn on
19:50some information
19:51on what happened
19:52to Cliff Lambert.
19:53Cliff Lambert's Mercedes
19:55was brought back
19:56to Palm Springs
19:57for processing.
19:59The technicians
20:00were able to find
20:01traces of blood
20:03in the trunk
20:04but it was inconclusive
20:06at the time
20:06because it was
20:07very minute.
20:10So we obtained
20:11a search warrant
20:12to inspect Cliff's house.
20:16We recovered
20:18Cliff's toothbrush,
20:20his hairbrush,
20:21his fingerprints
20:23and we uploaded
20:24it into CODIS,
20:26the database
20:27in missing persons cases
20:29so that it can be used
20:31at a later time.
20:35Once law enforcement
20:36was able to do
20:37forensic testing
20:38of his house,
20:39they found
20:39the presence of blood.
20:41However,
20:42it didn't result
20:43in any DNA findings.
20:45It was inconclusive
20:47as to person
20:49but it tested positive
20:51for blood.
20:52So it was enough
20:53to write
20:54a public cause
20:55declaration
20:56to continue
20:57the investigation
20:58into all the suspects
21:00identified in this case.
21:02Also,
21:03we did book Miguel
21:04for the burglary
21:05and we asked the court
21:07that he be held
21:08in the county jail
21:09into his arraignment.
21:17A lot of Cliff's friends
21:19would talk to each other
21:21trying to come up
21:22with scenarios
21:23where he may have
21:24gone on his own
21:25and we were praying
21:27that one of them
21:27was true.
21:30We still hadn't
21:31interviewed Danny Garcia,
21:33still hadn't interviewed
21:34Nerula.
21:35We did have investigators
21:36from San Francisco
21:37Police Department
21:38just kind of keep
21:38an eye on him.
21:39They had no idea
21:40that we're on to him.
21:42First,
21:42I want to know
21:43exactly what happened
21:44to Cliff Lambert.
21:44That gives me
21:45a lot more ammunition
21:47for the interviews
21:48of them.
21:49At this time,
21:50Miguel Bustamante
21:51was still in the county jail.
21:52I received a phone call
21:54from an investigator
21:55explaining to me
21:56that he did have
21:57an inmate
21:58who was cellmates
21:59with Miguel Bustamante
22:01and had the truth
22:02on Mr. Lambert's
22:03disappearance.
22:06I went down
22:07to meet with the inmate
22:08to see what he was
22:09referring to
22:10and he gave me
22:11a piece of paper
22:12with the names
22:13of Danny Garcia
22:15and Keshaw Nerula
22:16and it did have
22:18a handwritten map
22:19on there
22:20and according
22:21to the inmate,
22:22he was told by Miguel.
22:23That's where they
22:24dumped Mr. Lambert's body,
22:25somewhere in the desert.
22:28So Detective Min
22:29and I went
22:30and searched
22:31the area
22:31identified in the map.
22:33I was pretty confident
22:35we had a murder investigation
22:36but it's very hard
22:38to prove up a homicide
22:39without a body.
22:50We have a map
22:51at this point.
22:52We have information
22:53that Cliff Lambert
22:55was killed.
22:56A confession
22:58of an inmate
22:59to another inmate
23:00but to me
23:01that was pretty
23:02credible information
23:03now.
23:04We searched
23:06for Cliff's body
23:06for months
23:07using the map.
23:09We drove up
23:10and down
23:11the freeway.
23:13We were searching
23:14for anything
23:15that looked like
23:16a fresh burial site
23:18but we were
23:20not able
23:20to find anything.
23:25I prayed
23:26every night
23:27that he would
23:28just
23:29walk back in
23:32with a little
23:33smile on his face
23:34and a smirk
23:34said it's alright
23:36I'm okay
23:36don't worry about me
23:37I'm alright.
23:39Unfortunately
23:40it didn't unfold
23:41that way.
23:44Without Cliff's body
23:46this case
23:47became about
23:48documents
23:49it was
23:50following
23:51the trail
23:52in bits and pieces
23:53of evidence
23:54and the case
23:55was so convoluted
23:56that it required
23:57additional evidence
23:59to corroborate
24:00everything that
24:01they've done
24:02up to this point.
24:05I'm reviewing
24:06the power of attorney
24:07documents
24:08I noticed
24:08a notary stamp
24:09and now I'm thinking
24:11I need to speak
24:11to this person
24:12to see if
24:13Cliff Lambert
24:13did in fact
24:14sign his name
24:15and give
24:16Kashaw Nerula
24:17power of attorney.
24:21I'm a mobile notary
24:23and I get calls
24:24all day long
24:24for people
24:25that want a notary
24:26to come to them
24:27to their home
24:28or to their office.
24:30I received a call
24:32on the 20th of December
24:33asking if I could
24:34go to a residence
24:35in a neighborhood
24:36called Noe Valley.
24:37I grabbed my notary book
24:39and I got into my car
24:40and I drove
24:41to the location.
24:42When I get to the address
24:44I rang one of the buzzers
24:46there was no answer
24:47and all of a sudden
24:49this guy comes up
24:51and grabs the bag
24:52from behind
24:52and he says
24:53give me the bag
24:54give me the bag
24:55and he's pulling me
24:56with the backpack
24:57and I'm being dragged
24:58down the sidewalk.
25:00All of a sudden
25:02my head hits
25:03a telephone pole
25:04and I was in shock
25:06and I said
25:07get the fuck
25:08away from me
25:09and he went like this
25:11and he walked
25:12down the sidewalk
25:13and I was like
25:16what was that?
25:18And I called 911
25:19and I told them
25:20what had happened
25:22and I stood
25:23in the street
25:23I was trembling
25:24I had never been
25:26so scared
25:27I was terrified
25:30A few days later
25:31my notary partner
25:32Glenn calls me
25:34and says
25:34I just got a call
25:36from the Palm Springs
25:37Police Department
25:38and they want copies
25:39of your journal
25:40Remember
25:41when we got a phone call
25:42from someone called
25:43Kashul Narula
25:44saying he would like
25:46to set an appointment
25:47for his friend
25:48Cliff Lambert
25:48and we met those guys
25:50late at night
25:51in a hotel
25:52and we notarized
25:53a bunch of
25:53power of attorney documents
25:54they want the signature
25:56and the thumbprints
25:58in your journal
26:00The person who
26:02put their thumbprint
26:02and signed
26:03the power of attorney
26:04should be
26:05Cliff Lambert
26:06so I asked
26:07if we could get
26:08that book analyzed
26:09and we got the results
26:10relatively quick
26:11but that thumbprint
26:13came back too
26:14David Replugo
26:17David Replugo's name
26:19was crucial
26:19because up until then
26:20he had claimed
26:21to be an attorney
26:22just brokering a deal
26:23for Narula
26:24and Cliff Lambert
26:25to sell the house
26:28It was clearly
26:29the plan all along
26:30that someone
26:31was going to have
26:31to pose
26:32as Cliff Lambert
26:33in order to execute
26:35this power of attorney
26:37Apparently
26:38David Replugo
26:39later realized
26:40that he made a mistake
26:42leaving his own
26:43fingerprint
26:45as Cliff Lambert
26:48So he decided
26:49that the new plan
26:50is to hire somebody
26:52to get that
26:53notary book back
26:54by force
26:56If they were able
26:58to get that
26:58notary journal
26:59there would be
27:00no proof whatsoever
27:02that the thumbprint
27:03belonged to David Replugo
27:05not to Cliff Lambert
27:10That event was
27:11a significant
27:12turning point
27:13in this investigation
27:14because it showed
27:16that David Replugo
27:17was posing
27:18as Clifford Lambert
27:22It appears
27:23that the plan
27:24was to clean out
27:25all of Cliff Lambert's money
27:26as well as
27:28transfer the deed
27:29of his home
27:29into their control
27:31but there was
27:33no evidence
27:34that these conmen
27:35definitively killed
27:37Cliff Lambert
27:40However
27:41with that information
27:43from the notary
27:44we were able
27:44to secure
27:45arrest warrants
27:46and search warrants
27:47for David Replugo
27:48Kashaw Nerula
27:50and Danny Garcia
27:51for essentially
27:53defrauding
27:53Cliff Lambert
27:54and taking
27:55in excess
27:56of $300,000
27:57from his bank accounts
28:01At this point
28:03we can't find
28:04Danny Garcia
28:04we think
28:05he's hiding out
28:06somewhere
28:08But we find out
28:10that Kashaw Nerula
28:11and David Replugo
28:12will be in court
28:13because it had
28:14proceedings
28:15from prior events
28:16that Replugo
28:17was representing
28:17Nerula on
28:19So we go up
28:20to San Francisco
28:21with warrants in hand
28:24We're at the
28:25Hall of Justice
28:25and I'm standing
28:26in the hallway
28:27where Kashaw
28:29had his hearing
28:31When the court
28:32recessed
28:33they came out
28:34with everybody else
28:35and both Replugo
28:37and Nerula
28:38were arrested
28:42Later that day
28:43Kashaw Nerula
28:44he's in the
28:45county jail
28:45in San Francisco
28:46We monitor
28:47their phone calls
28:48so he did make
28:49a phone call
28:50to Danny Garcia
28:51and the only thing
28:53he said was
28:53run
28:56He hung up
29:07After arresting
29:09David Replugo
29:10and Kashaw Nerula
29:11Nerula did make
29:13a phone call
29:14tipping off
29:15Danny Garcia
29:16that were on to him
29:17So he was in the wind
29:20Next we interviewed
29:22both Nerula
29:23and Replugo
29:24They of course
29:25claimed not to know
29:26anything about
29:27Cliff Lambert
29:27or his murder
29:30But Miguel Bustamante
29:32told another person
29:33at the jail
29:34that he knew
29:35Cliff Lambert
29:36was murdered
29:37and taken out
29:38to the desert
29:42During our investigation
29:43we find that
29:45Bustamante
29:46had a roommate
29:47by the name
29:48of Craig McCarthy
29:52We found evidence
29:54that Craig McCarthy
29:56worked at a medical
29:58center in San Francisco
29:59So Detective Browning
30:01and I decided
30:02to go pay a visit
30:03and we found him
30:04So we're speaking
30:05to Craig McCarthy
30:06to get understanding
30:08of what he knows first
30:10And when we started
30:12asking
30:12did Miguel participate
30:14in the disappearance
30:15of Cliff Lambert
30:16and we were in Palm Springs
30:18with Miguel
30:20Craig's demeanor
30:21is very soft-spoken
30:24That's when Craig
30:25started telling us
30:26Oh yeah
30:27we were hired
30:28to do a job
30:30by Danny Garcia
30:33So
30:34now we know
30:35that he was involved
30:36and we have
30:37one more suspect
30:38So
30:40we asked Craig McCarthy
30:41if he knew
30:42anything about
30:43Danny Garcia's
30:44furabouts
30:44he says
30:45he's hiding out
30:46with his friend
30:47in Sacramento
30:49So I put the warrant
30:50into the system
30:51That triggered Sacramento
30:53to have a task force
30:55search for him
30:57His phone was pinged
30:58by the task force
30:59and they did in fact
31:00find him hiding
31:01in a closet
31:02in a friend's house
31:03where they took custody
31:04of him
31:04and several electronics
31:06that he was
31:06holding there
31:08He was arrested
31:09and what was surprising
31:11was that
31:12there was
31:13multiple amounts
31:14of hard drives
31:15laptops
31:16cell phones
31:17in his possession
31:18at the time
31:19They needed to be
31:21checked for any evidence
31:25I interviewed Danny
31:26and he claimed that
31:28Cliff was a good friend
31:29of his
31:30and Cliff was
31:31going to help him
31:32invest into
31:33a software project
31:34that he had
31:35but I know
31:36that Danny
31:37is lying to me
31:38because
31:39Cliff Lambert
31:40and Danny
31:40left on bad terms
31:43Daniel Garcia
31:44is really
31:45the most critical
31:45element of this case
31:47He is the link
31:48to Cliff Lambert
31:49and also the link
31:50to everyone else
31:51that was involved
31:52in this case
31:53It took a very long time
31:55to inspect
31:56the data seized
31:57from these hard drives
31:59but it would help us
32:01to uncover
32:02what actually occurred
32:04in this scheme
32:06It was
32:07exceptionally
32:08complex
32:09There was
32:11financial evidence
32:12records
32:13credit card receipts
32:15There was also
32:16a lot of
32:17computer records
32:18that needed
32:19to be gone through
32:19What struck me
32:21was just
32:21the large scale
32:22of the entire operation
32:23that these individuals
32:24perpetuated
32:25in order to kill
32:26Cliff Lambert
32:29This plan
32:30dubbed
32:30Operation Craigslist
32:32was in play
32:33way before
32:34Cliff went missing
32:39When Cliff
32:40met Danny online
32:41on a dating website
32:42Cliff flew him down
32:43They spent
32:44six days together
32:45Danny did
32:46what Danny does
32:47and tried to pull
32:47a con on him
32:48Cliff was not
32:49a dumb man
32:50He sent him home
32:52That's when
32:52Garcia and Narula
32:54decide that
32:55in order to gain
32:56control of
32:57Cliff's estate
32:58that Cliff
32:59must be killed
33:01Sometime over
33:02the summer
33:03Daniel Garcia
33:04and Cashal Narula
33:05talked to
33:06David Rapogel
33:06They come up
33:08with this story
33:09that Cliff Lambert
33:10has inherited
33:11this large amount
33:12of money
33:13and some works
33:13of art
33:14Which is a
33:15fictitious
33:15inheritance ruse
33:17to get Cliff's
33:18signature
33:18In early fall
33:20Cashal Narula
33:21adapts this persona
33:22of a lawyer
33:23and he reaches
33:24out to Cliff
33:25Lambert
33:25about this
33:26new fortune
33:29Then they create
33:30legal documents
33:31that will transfer
33:32power of attorney
33:32to Cashal Narula
33:35Next they recruit
33:36two individuals
33:37Miguel Bustamante
33:38and Craig McCarthy
33:39to act as the muscle
33:40who will actually
33:41kill Cliff Lambert
33:43So on December 4th
33:45Miguel Bustamante
33:46Craig McCarthy
33:47Cashal Narula
33:49flew down
33:50from the San Francisco
33:51area to Palm Springs
33:53They set up
33:54a deadly meeting
33:55Hi Mr. Lambert
33:57I'm reconfirming
33:58for 5.30
33:59California time
34:00tomorrow evening
34:00and just
34:02looking forward
34:03to meeting with you
34:04And the next day
34:05they murder Cliff
34:07in his home
34:09With Cliff
34:10out of the way
34:11and the documents
34:12signed and notarized
34:14they now had
34:15full control
34:16and power
34:16to do whatever
34:17they wanted
34:18with his money
34:19his home
34:19basically his estate
34:23What these con men
34:24put together
34:25was a really
34:25diabolical plan
34:29Daniel Garcia
34:30Cashal Narula
34:31Miguel Bustamante
34:33David Rapogel
34:34and Craig McCarthy
34:35were charged with murder
34:36as well as
34:37financial crimes
34:38that were related
34:39to the death
34:40of Cliff Lambert
34:43And then
34:44in subsequent interviews
34:45Craig McCarthy
34:46tells us
34:47he is wanting
34:48to cut a deal
34:48for a reduced sentence
34:49When we brought
34:51Craig McCarthy
34:52down from
34:53San Francisco
34:54to Palm Springs
34:55he gave a full detail
34:57about what happened
34:58on the night
34:59of the murder
35:04Cashal met Cliff
35:06at Cliff's home
35:07around 8.30pm
35:11Craig and Miguel
35:12were hiding
35:13in the back
35:14of the house
35:15This is where we have
35:17text messages
35:18between Cashal Narula
35:19and Miguel Bustamante
35:22that indicates
35:23kill him
35:24kill him now
35:25and that was the signal
35:27for Miguel and Craig
35:29to enter the house
35:31So I'm standing right here
35:33Miguel's right here
35:37So Narula's like
35:38just do the job
35:40it'll be okay
35:41it'll be done
35:41in the moment
35:41alright
35:42and he walks out
35:44He reenacted
35:45the entire murder
35:46on video
35:47When you struck
35:49the first time
35:49initially it was here
35:52Cliff said
35:53ah
35:53and now Cliff
35:56it comes over here
35:57and he just
35:58went over
36:00and he just
36:00started stabbing
36:04Cliff is
36:08on his floor
36:09dead
36:11while Cashal
36:12was cleaning
36:13the house
36:14Miguel and Craig
36:15wrap Cliff
36:17in this rug
36:17and put him
36:19in the trunk
36:19of Cliff's
36:20Mercedes
36:23The next day
36:24they drove
36:24about 100 miles
36:25away from
36:26Palm Springs
36:27pulled off
36:27the side of the road
36:28buried Cliff Lambert
36:30in a shallow grave
36:32and drove off
36:33to San Francisco
36:34hoping that
36:35this body
36:35would never
36:36be found again
36:42When the news
36:43broke
36:44that Cliff
36:45had been murdered
36:48the whole thing
36:49was such a shock
36:51the details
36:52of how it happened
36:54in his own kitchen
36:56such a horrific crime
36:59It was heartbreaking
37:00the men that did
37:02this to Cliff
37:04are sociopathic
37:07they're animalistic
37:10that they would
37:11just discard him
37:13without any remorse
37:15he deserved better
37:29Any time you have
37:30a case where
37:31you don't have
37:32the body
37:32there's always
37:33a lingering issue
37:35of where
37:36is this person
37:37are they still alive
37:38and those are issues
37:39you have to overcome
37:39as a prosecutor
37:43Fortunately however
37:44in this case
37:44Daniel Garcia
37:45Cashel Narula
37:47Miguel Bustamante
37:48David Rapogel
37:49were convicted
37:50of all the charges
37:51and were sentenced
37:52to life in prison
37:53without the possibility
37:54of parole
37:55Craig McCarthy
37:56ended up pleading
37:57to a lesser sentence
37:5825 years
37:59in state prison
38:01This was a group
38:02of monsters
38:03nefarious
38:04and diabolical
38:05from the get-go
38:07I was relieved
38:09some justice
38:10finally being served
38:21But then years later
38:22the DA's office
38:24sent a news release
38:25to the station
38:26and we all just gasped
38:27it was
38:28what?
38:30Can this really
38:30be happening?
38:31It's the case
38:32that just keeps
38:33on giving
38:34How can this
38:35be another twist?
38:42Four men convicted
38:44in the murder
38:44of Clifford Lambert
38:45have been granted
38:46a new trial
38:48An appeal
38:49filed on behalf
38:50of Narula
38:51alleging comments
38:52Judge David Downing
38:53made in court proceedings
38:55that Garcia
38:56secretly recorded
38:57on his court-issued
38:58laptop
38:58about Narula
38:59having HIV
39:00and refusing
39:01to read his motions
39:05The fair and right
39:06thing to do
39:06was to give them
39:07a new trial
39:07because it was
39:08clear that the judge
39:10had some bias
39:11against them
39:12It was shocking
39:13that they captured
39:14the judge
39:15making some
39:15homophobic statements
39:16but the four top guys
39:19in this case
39:20were all going to get
39:21to be retried
39:25I was perplexed
39:27I thought
39:27okay
39:28a judge
39:29made an inappropriate
39:30comment
39:31but they were
39:33guilty of murder
39:34I can't help
39:35but feel angry
39:36with authorities
39:37It's been eight years
39:39since a jury
39:40found Kashal Narula
39:41and Daniel Garcia
39:42guilty of murdering
39:43Palm Springs
39:44retiree
39:45Clifford Lambert
39:45authorities never
39:47able to find
39:48his body
39:52Then
39:52while the second
39:54trial was pending
39:55remains were found
39:56that were connected
39:57to Cliff Lambert
40:00I remember
40:01reading about
40:03a recovery
40:04of bones
40:05in the area
40:06of the 5 Freeway
40:08I actually called
40:10LA County Sheriff
40:11Can you please
40:12check the DNA
40:13and see if it matches
40:14our missing person?
40:18We received
40:19information
40:20that they had
40:22a presumptive hit
40:23for DNA
40:24on some bones
40:25that had been located
40:26in Castaic
40:27off the highway
40:28years beforehand
40:29It was great news
40:31for the second trial
40:32that what we had
40:34believed all along
40:35was in fact
40:36now supported
40:37in the evidence
40:38definitively
40:39that Cliff Lambert
40:40had been killed
40:44It was also
40:46exceptionally sad
40:47to see someone
40:48of Cliff's stature
40:49left there
40:50buried
40:51alongside
40:52discarded items
40:53and trash
40:55absolutely gut-wrenching
40:59Then
41:00unbelievably
41:01during the course
41:02of the retrial
41:03Kashal Narula
41:04was murdered
41:05by his cellmate
41:17Fortunately
41:18at the second trial
41:19all three
41:20of the defendants
41:21were convicted
41:22of all the charges
41:22and were sentenced
41:23to life
41:24in prison
41:24without the possibility
41:25of parole
41:30To hear
41:31those three times
41:32guilty
41:34on every count
41:36was beyond reassuring
41:38because they were
41:39held accountable
41:41Justice for Cliff Lambert
41:42would have been dying
41:4395 years old
41:44in his bed
41:44and there's no way
41:46I can achieve that
41:48for him
41:48but I hope
41:48this is something
41:52this was a highly
41:54sophisticated
41:54plan
41:55and scheme
41:56to
41:57murder
41:58someone
41:59steal their identity
42:01transfer all
42:02their assets
42:03for their own
42:04personal financial gain
42:08For those of us
42:09that knew Cliff
42:10and loved him
42:11it was just
42:13so sad
42:14and
42:15heartbreaking
42:19but I hope
42:20that people
42:21will remember
42:22Cliff as a fun
42:24easygoing
42:24guy
42:25that loved
42:26to laugh
42:27he liked
42:28to do things
42:29for people
42:30he liked
42:31to make people
42:32smile
42:33and he was
42:34all around
42:35a good
42:35human being
42:36��
42:37that loved
42:40yeah
42:41he hated
42:43he hated
42:44all
42:44human
42:44when
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