1 00:00:08,675 --> 00:00:11,811 and this is "Dateline: Secrets Uncovered." 2 00:00:11,845 --> 00:00:14,547 - She was the person you wanted to be. 3 00:00:14,581 --> 00:00:17,984 She emulated everything that was good. 4 00:00:18,018 --> 00:00:21,054 - She just yelled through the door, "I love you!" 5 00:00:21,087 --> 00:00:23,323 And that was the last time we talked to her. 6 00:00:23,356 --> 00:00:25,525 - I said, "Where's Brooke?" And he said, 7 00:00:25,558 --> 00:00:27,827 "We can't find her." 8 00:00:27,861 --> 00:00:29,929 - A college student vanishes. 9 00:00:29,963 --> 00:00:32,766 - I got this chill all through my whole body. 10 00:00:32,799 --> 00:00:34,901 - They asked us, "Well, do you have a crime scene?" 11 00:00:34,934 --> 00:00:37,237 No, we don't. Other than flip-flops in the parking lot. 12 00:00:37,270 --> 00:00:38,938 - We had a community that was scared. 13 00:00:38,972 --> 00:00:42,409 Who's going to be the next victim? 14 00:00:42,442 --> 00:00:45,945 - A thousand miles away-- another student in danger. 15 00:00:45,979 --> 00:00:48,048 - She said, "He's got a knife. He's tryin' to kill me." 16 00:00:48,081 --> 00:00:49,949 - There were guns and there was a girl there 17 00:00:49,983 --> 00:00:53,053 and there was blood. 18 00:00:53,086 --> 00:00:55,388 This is not the first time he's done this. 19 00:00:55,422 --> 00:00:57,724 - One case would help solve the other. 20 00:00:57,757 --> 00:01:00,427 One man behind two mysteries. 21 00:01:00,460 --> 00:01:03,196 - This was dynamite to us. That's the smoking gun. 22 00:01:03,229 --> 00:01:04,898 - You're not gonna believe what we found. 23 00:01:04,931 --> 00:01:06,966 - We'd gotten so close. 24 00:01:07,067 --> 00:01:08,735 I wanna know where she is. 25 00:01:08,768 --> 00:01:16,876 ** 26 00:01:16,910 --> 00:01:20,146 - Hello and welcome to "Dateline: Secrets Uncovered." 27 00:01:20,180 --> 00:01:22,082 Nineteen-year-old Brooke Wilberger 28 00:01:22,115 --> 00:01:24,317 had just completed her freshman year 29 00:01:24,351 --> 00:01:27,454 at Brigham Young University and was excited to spend 30 00:01:27,487 --> 00:01:30,824 summer break with family back home in Oregon. 31 00:01:30,857 --> 00:01:34,160 Then, one afternoon, Brooke went missing. 32 00:01:34,194 --> 00:01:36,463 Months of dead-end leads followed, 33 00:01:36,496 --> 00:01:39,599 until investigators received a big break. 34 00:01:39,632 --> 00:01:42,402 But no one anticipated the twisted road 35 00:01:42,435 --> 00:01:45,105 this journey for justice would take. 36 00:01:45,105 --> 00:01:47,474 Here's "Bringing Brooke Home." 37 00:01:47,507 --> 00:01:53,747 ** 38 00:01:53,780 --> 00:01:57,517 Some images are eternal. 39 00:01:57,550 --> 00:02:01,221 Timeless. - Hey! Happy day! 40 00:02:01,254 --> 00:02:04,357 One moment, the future seems immeasurable. 41 00:02:04,391 --> 00:02:07,227 The possibilities, endless. 42 00:02:07,260 --> 00:02:10,163 But in an instant, you can be left with 43 00:02:10,196 --> 00:02:14,334 only memories to hold 'til the end of time. 44 00:02:17,303 --> 00:02:19,205 Brooke Wilberger lived as if she had 45 00:02:19,239 --> 00:02:22,075 all the time in the world to grow up, 46 00:02:22,075 --> 00:02:24,744 to marry, to create a close-knit family 47 00:02:24,778 --> 00:02:26,613 like her own parents had. 48 00:02:26,646 --> 00:02:30,150 - We have six children and Brooke is number five. 49 00:02:30,183 --> 00:02:31,985 - Always wanted to have a big family. 50 00:02:32,085 --> 00:02:34,621 - We ended up with one. 51 00:02:34,654 --> 00:02:36,690 - Cammy Wilberger and her husband Greg 52 00:02:36,723 --> 00:02:39,893 raised their children near beautiful Eugene, Oregon. 53 00:02:39,926 --> 00:02:42,862 A family that included Brooke's older brother Bryce 54 00:02:42,896 --> 00:02:44,264 and sister Stephanie. 55 00:02:44,297 --> 00:02:46,633 - Uh, we used to have so much fun dressing her up. 56 00:02:46,666 --> 00:02:49,169 She was kind of our little toy, if you will. 57 00:02:49,202 --> 00:02:50,103 [chuckling] 58 00:02:50,136 --> 00:02:51,538 - "I know! Let's dress up Brooke, right?" 59 00:02:51,571 --> 00:02:54,574 - Yeah. She was just fun. 60 00:02:54,607 --> 00:02:57,143 Little Brooke didn't speak until she was 4, 61 00:02:57,177 --> 00:03:01,081 and even then, could be a bit hard to understand. 62 00:03:01,114 --> 00:03:04,918 But as Brooke grew, her natural talents spoke loudly. 63 00:03:04,951 --> 00:03:08,054 She loved animals and 4H. Played basketball 64 00:03:08,054 --> 00:03:10,223 and ran track. - She was good. 65 00:03:10,256 --> 00:03:12,225 She was better than most of the rest of us 66 00:03:12,258 --> 00:03:14,527 at-at the sports that we played. 67 00:03:14,561 --> 00:03:17,063 - She snowboarded on slopes around Oregon. 68 00:03:17,097 --> 00:03:19,532 And as her little sister Jessica remembers, 69 00:03:19,566 --> 00:03:23,403 took pride in being scrappy on the soccer field. 70 00:03:23,436 --> 00:03:25,672 - She came home from soccer and she kinda had a black eye 71 00:03:25,705 --> 00:03:27,907 and, um, my brother asked what happened 72 00:03:27,941 --> 00:03:28,942 and she kinda laughed and said 73 00:03:28,975 --> 00:03:30,543 "I got in a fight." And he goes, 74 00:03:30,577 --> 00:03:32,512 "No, you didn't, Brooke. You don't get in fights." 75 00:03:32,545 --> 00:03:34,381 And-And she laughed and said, "You're right. 76 00:03:34,414 --> 00:03:37,817 I got hit in soccer practice. But isn't it so cool?" 77 00:03:37,851 --> 00:03:40,787 - Brooke was also an honors student at Elmira High, 78 00:03:40,820 --> 00:03:43,590 who loved to bake, scrapbook, 79 00:03:43,623 --> 00:03:46,092 and see the sights on the West Coast. 80 00:03:46,092 --> 00:03:49,529 - This is my home! Yay! 81 00:03:49,562 --> 00:03:51,798 - She could be seriously silly. 82 00:03:51,831 --> 00:03:54,668 - This is my crib. You know. 83 00:03:54,701 --> 00:03:58,271 - Or stylish, happy to shop for shoes or fashion. 84 00:03:58,304 --> 00:04:00,540 She was reliable. Thoughtful. 85 00:04:00,573 --> 00:04:03,610 Popular and pretty. Inside and out. 86 00:04:03,643 --> 00:04:06,479 - She made people feel better about themselves. 87 00:04:06,513 --> 00:04:07,547 - People wanted to be with her. 88 00:04:07,580 --> 00:04:09,182 - Yeah. - And she was nice. 89 00:04:09,215 --> 00:04:12,352 She was intelligent and beautiful, 90 00:04:12,385 --> 00:04:14,854 but she was also really nice. 91 00:04:14,888 --> 00:04:17,691 - The minute she turned 16, when Dad's rules 92 00:04:17,724 --> 00:04:20,193 allowed her to start dating, she knew she wanted 93 00:04:20,226 --> 00:04:23,396 her childhood friend Justin to be her boyfriend. 94 00:04:23,430 --> 00:04:25,465 And when they graduated from high school, 95 00:04:25,498 --> 00:04:27,367 Brooke decided to follow him 96 00:04:27,400 --> 00:04:30,203 to Brigham Young University in Utah. 97 00:04:30,236 --> 00:04:33,073 - She just really wanted to 98 00:04:33,073 --> 00:04:35,742 experience life outside of our community 99 00:04:35,775 --> 00:04:38,078 and just, you know, kind of branch out. 100 00:04:38,111 --> 00:04:40,947 - The girl who'd grown up saying words a little funny 101 00:04:40,980 --> 00:04:43,516 decided to study speech pathology. 102 00:04:43,550 --> 00:04:47,253 Brooke loved her new friends and BYU, but returned home 103 00:04:47,287 --> 00:04:49,255 her freshman year for Thanksgiving 104 00:04:49,289 --> 00:04:52,459 to spend time with her family. And shop. 105 00:04:52,492 --> 00:04:56,262 - We had gone to Meier & Frank before it became Macy's. 106 00:04:56,296 --> 00:04:58,765 And she had really liked this watch. 107 00:04:58,798 --> 00:05:00,500 And it was kind of a dressy watch. 108 00:05:00,533 --> 00:05:02,202 And she was pretty classy 109 00:05:02,235 --> 00:05:04,637 in the things that she chose to wear. 110 00:05:04,671 --> 00:05:07,040 - So, she sees it in the case and she mentions it to you. 111 00:05:07,073 --> 00:05:09,609 - Yeah. She goes, "I really like that watch, Mom." 112 00:05:09,642 --> 00:05:12,912 - Easy Christmas present. - It was. 113 00:05:12,946 --> 00:05:14,881 - Six months later, in the spring, 114 00:05:14,914 --> 00:05:16,716 her freshman year was history. 115 00:05:16,750 --> 00:05:18,752 Brooke returned home to Oregon. 116 00:05:18,785 --> 00:05:22,055 She had a summer job in Corvallis, about 30 miles 117 00:05:22,055 --> 00:05:25,091 from home, working at the Oak Park Apartments 118 00:05:25,125 --> 00:05:28,328 managed by her sister Stephanie and Stephanie's husband. 119 00:05:28,361 --> 00:05:32,065 And on Monday, May 24, 2004, 120 00:05:32,098 --> 00:05:34,200 she left the house where her sister Jessica 121 00:05:34,234 --> 00:05:37,704 was getting ready for another day of 7th Grade. 122 00:05:37,737 --> 00:05:38,805 - She was kind of in a rush 123 00:05:38,838 --> 00:05:40,306 and she walked out the door and left. 124 00:05:40,340 --> 00:05:44,077 And about 5 minutes later, um, she walked back in 125 00:05:44,077 --> 00:05:47,147 and she just yelled through the door, "I love you!" 126 00:05:47,180 --> 00:05:49,215 And walked out. And that was-- 127 00:05:49,249 --> 00:05:51,351 that was the last time we talked to her. 128 00:05:51,384 --> 00:05:54,154 - By 9 A.M., Brooke was at the apartments 129 00:05:54,187 --> 00:05:56,556 and an hour later, hard at work. 130 00:05:56,589 --> 00:05:58,258 - I could see through our apartment 131 00:05:58,291 --> 00:06:00,593 to the back window facing our patio. 132 00:06:00,627 --> 00:06:04,030 And Brooke was bending over filling up a bucket of water. 133 00:06:04,064 --> 00:06:05,932 And that was the last time I saw her. 134 00:06:06,032 --> 00:06:07,400 - At what point did you realize 135 00:06:07,434 --> 00:06:08,835 that she wasn't out there anymore? 136 00:06:08,868 --> 00:06:11,037 - Not until probably 1 o'clock. 137 00:06:11,071 --> 00:06:14,174 I had fixed lunch for my children and for her, 138 00:06:14,207 --> 00:06:16,810 and, uh, she ha-hadn't shown up. 139 00:06:16,843 --> 00:06:18,244 - What starts goin' through your head 140 00:06:18,278 --> 00:06:19,813 when she doesn't come in for lunch? 141 00:06:19,846 --> 00:06:22,415 - It's a large complex. There's over 100 apartments. 142 00:06:22,449 --> 00:06:25,051 And so, I wasn't, like, immediately worried 143 00:06:25,085 --> 00:06:27,053 because I thought she could be cleaning, 144 00:06:27,053 --> 00:06:28,922 you know, laundry rooms somewhere. 145 00:06:28,955 --> 00:06:31,424 I even said something like, "Well, let's take out 146 00:06:31,458 --> 00:06:33,193 the search party," you know, tongue-in-cheek 147 00:06:33,226 --> 00:06:35,061 and took my little kids out with me. 148 00:06:35,061 --> 00:06:36,596 And we started just kind of walking around, 149 00:06:36,629 --> 00:06:37,731 seeing if we could see her 150 00:06:37,764 --> 00:06:39,332 just to tell her that her lunch was ready. 151 00:06:39,366 --> 00:06:40,867 - You're not in a full-blown panic 152 00:06:40,900 --> 00:06:43,103 at this point. - No. No. 153 00:06:43,136 --> 00:06:46,373 - But before long, Stephanie would come upon these. 154 00:06:46,406 --> 00:06:48,608 Near a lamppost Brooke had been cleaning, 155 00:06:48,641 --> 00:06:51,778 her flip-flops were on the pavement. 156 00:06:51,811 --> 00:06:53,079 The little piece of plastic that goes 157 00:06:53,079 --> 00:06:56,383 between your toe was ripped out on one. 158 00:06:56,416 --> 00:06:58,418 And there were muddy toe prints 159 00:06:58,451 --> 00:07:00,787 sliding down the actual sole of the shoe, 160 00:07:00,820 --> 00:07:03,256 so it was clear that she was trying 161 00:07:03,289 --> 00:07:05,191 to keep them-- she was trying to stay put-- 162 00:07:05,225 --> 00:07:08,328 stay grounded when she lost her shoes. 163 00:07:08,361 --> 00:07:12,165 - You knew that right then. - Immediately, yeah. 164 00:07:12,198 --> 00:07:14,034 - Still, though, no panic. 165 00:07:14,034 --> 00:07:16,736 No cries for help for a couple of hours. 166 00:07:16,770 --> 00:07:20,040 Until 3:07 P.M., when Stephanie's husband 167 00:07:20,040 --> 00:07:23,043 placed a very calm call to 9-1-1. 168 00:07:44,364 --> 00:07:48,668 Where had Brooke WIlberger gone? Why couldn't anyone find her? 169 00:07:48,702 --> 00:07:52,072 Brooke's mom was about to learn of her daughter's disappearance 170 00:07:52,105 --> 00:07:54,741 in a phone call with one of her sons. 171 00:07:54,774 --> 00:07:58,411 - I said, "Where's Brooke?" And he said, "We don't know." 172 00:07:58,445 --> 00:08:01,381 And I said, "What do you mean, you don't know?" 173 00:08:01,414 --> 00:08:03,616 He goes, "We don't know where she is." 174 00:08:03,650 --> 00:08:05,118 And I said, "Spense, don't tease me. 175 00:08:05,151 --> 00:08:07,253 "What are you talking about?" And he said, 176 00:08:07,287 --> 00:08:09,622 "No, seriously, Mom. We can't find her." 177 00:08:09,656 --> 00:08:13,326 And right then, I just, um... 178 00:08:13,360 --> 00:08:17,664 had this chill go through my whole body. 179 00:08:17,697 --> 00:08:19,899 - Coming up... A whole community 180 00:08:19,933 --> 00:08:22,502 turns out to search for Brooke while the police 181 00:08:22,535 --> 00:08:26,606 start their investigation by focusing on her family. 182 00:08:26,639 --> 00:08:29,409 - We needed to go through, is the family a suspect? 183 00:08:29,442 --> 00:08:31,277 And we had to get that work done. 184 00:08:31,311 --> 00:08:33,179 And we had investigators doing that. 185 00:08:33,213 --> 00:08:37,417 - Stephanie was just grilled about, um, you know, 186 00:08:37,450 --> 00:08:39,919 "Where-where was she? Did you do it?" 187 00:08:46,059 --> 00:08:53,299 ** 188 00:08:54,234 --> 00:08:57,137 On a sunny spring day in Corvallis, Oregon, 189 00:08:57,170 --> 00:08:58,972 the clock was ticking. 190 00:08:59,072 --> 00:09:00,607 Nineteen-year-old Brooke Wilberger 191 00:09:00,640 --> 00:09:03,243 had disappeared about 10:30 A.M. 192 00:09:03,276 --> 00:09:05,011 when she worked cleaning lampposts 193 00:09:05,011 --> 00:09:07,914 in the parking lot of the Oak Park Apartments. 194 00:09:08,014 --> 00:09:10,417 Just a block away from the bustling campus 195 00:09:10,450 --> 00:09:13,153 of Oregon State University. 196 00:09:13,186 --> 00:09:16,156 At 1 P.M., her sister Stephanie got worried 197 00:09:16,189 --> 00:09:18,391 when Brooke didn't show up for lunch. 198 00:09:18,425 --> 00:09:20,894 - It just wasn't like her, you know? 199 00:09:20,927 --> 00:09:23,129 She was just always on time. 200 00:09:23,163 --> 00:09:26,066 - By 3:00, Stephanie's husband called police. 201 00:09:29,469 --> 00:09:32,072 Word was spreading among Brooke's five siblings 202 00:09:32,105 --> 00:09:36,142 that their sweet but feisty little sister had disappeared. 203 00:09:36,176 --> 00:09:39,312 When did they call you guys? - It was mid-afternoon sometime. 204 00:09:39,346 --> 00:09:41,047 I think we knew something seriously wrong 205 00:09:41,047 --> 00:09:44,751 when-when the comment was, "We can't find Brooke." 206 00:09:44,784 --> 00:09:47,654 It didn't take anything longer than that. 207 00:09:47,687 --> 00:09:49,456 - Bryce went to pick up his mother, 208 00:09:49,489 --> 00:09:51,758 who was trying not to panic. 209 00:09:51,791 --> 00:09:54,260 A lot of people talk about that maternal feeling 210 00:09:54,294 --> 00:09:57,230 that sometimes you get inside. Did you get a feeling? 211 00:09:57,263 --> 00:10:00,900 - I just kept thinking, you know, "Maybe she met up 212 00:10:00,934 --> 00:10:03,636 "with one of her friends that's going to OSU? 213 00:10:03,670 --> 00:10:06,206 "No, Brooke wouldn't do that. It's not Brooke." 214 00:10:06,239 --> 00:10:08,675 - By late in the afternoon, with Brooke now missing 215 00:10:08,708 --> 00:10:11,811 for hours, cell phones started buzzing. 216 00:10:11,845 --> 00:10:15,315 - I was sitting at my son's t-ball game and I got 217 00:10:15,348 --> 00:10:17,751 a phone call from one of our patrol lieutenants 218 00:10:17,784 --> 00:10:20,987 at the time who said, "Jon, we have a missing girl." 219 00:10:21,021 --> 00:10:24,224 - Captain Jonathan Sassaman and Lieutenant Tim Brewer, 220 00:10:24,257 --> 00:10:26,826 both with the Corvallis PD at the time, 221 00:10:26,860 --> 00:10:28,728 were about to begin a journey 222 00:10:28,762 --> 00:10:31,865 unlike anything they had ever experienced. 223 00:10:31,898 --> 00:10:34,134 - I asked him, uh, "What do you think? 224 00:10:34,167 --> 00:10:36,403 "Is this real?" He had a-- 225 00:10:36,436 --> 00:10:39,639 uh, the natural gut instinct that this was not a walk-away. 226 00:10:39,673 --> 00:10:42,575 This was not a runaway. Something bad had happened. 227 00:10:42,609 --> 00:10:45,111 - When Captain Sassaman arrived at the apartments, 228 00:10:45,145 --> 00:10:48,682 he was struck by how few clues he had to work with. 229 00:10:48,715 --> 00:10:52,952 - It is a parking lot with a pair of flip-flops. 230 00:10:52,986 --> 00:10:55,822 And a bucket with soap and some water 231 00:10:55,855 --> 00:10:58,958 under a lamppost. - Also left behind, 232 00:10:58,992 --> 00:11:02,195 Brooke's wallet, purse, cell phone, and car. 233 00:11:02,228 --> 00:11:05,065 Nobody, it seemed, saw anything. 234 00:11:05,098 --> 00:11:08,768 But someone heard something about 10:30 that morning. 235 00:11:08,802 --> 00:11:12,072 A blood-curdling scream. 236 00:11:12,072 --> 00:11:14,307 The evidence pointed to an abduction. 237 00:11:14,341 --> 00:11:16,409 But investigators started with questions 238 00:11:16,443 --> 00:11:18,712 for the people closest to the victim. 239 00:11:18,745 --> 00:11:22,248 First question-- where was Brooke's boyfriend, Justin? 240 00:11:22,282 --> 00:11:24,684 It turned out, he was serving a 2-year mission 241 00:11:24,718 --> 00:11:28,088 for the Mormon Church 4,000 miles away, 242 00:11:28,088 --> 00:11:31,424 in Venezuela. Next, Brooke's family. 243 00:11:31,458 --> 00:11:34,194 - We needed to go through, is the family a suspect? 244 00:11:34,227 --> 00:11:36,129 And we had to get that work done. 245 00:11:36,162 --> 00:11:38,131 And we had investigators doing that. 246 00:11:38,164 --> 00:11:41,301 - Stephanie was, you know, just grilled 247 00:11:41,334 --> 00:11:44,604 about, um, you know, "Where-where was she? 248 00:11:44,637 --> 00:11:45,972 "Why don't you know where she was? 249 00:11:46,006 --> 00:11:49,109 "And did you do it?" - That had to be awful. 250 00:11:49,109 --> 00:11:50,643 - It is awful. - It-It was- 251 00:11:50,677 --> 00:11:52,112 - It's awful. - It was terrible. 252 00:11:52,112 --> 00:11:56,216 And we had made a decision that we'll-- as a family, even-- 253 00:11:56,249 --> 00:11:59,352 we would do anything to get Brooke back. 254 00:11:59,386 --> 00:12:02,088 Whatever the police ask us to do, we will do it. 255 00:12:02,122 --> 00:12:04,424 If they suspect us, that's okay. 256 00:12:04,457 --> 00:12:06,960 We don't care. We wanna find Brooke. 257 00:12:07,060 --> 00:12:09,829 - And soon, a community came together. 258 00:12:09,863 --> 00:12:11,831 Within hours of Brooke's disappearance, 259 00:12:11,865 --> 00:12:14,834 dozens, then hundreds of people showed up. 260 00:12:14,868 --> 00:12:16,770 Many from the Wilberger's church. 261 00:12:16,803 --> 00:12:19,406 Others, concerned citizens and cops. 262 00:12:19,439 --> 00:12:20,640 - I suppose she could be anywhere 263 00:12:20,674 --> 00:12:23,343 and we just have to look everywhere. 264 00:12:23,376 --> 00:12:25,679 - They came in droves that first evening 265 00:12:25,712 --> 00:12:28,748 and every day after, with one goal. 266 00:12:28,782 --> 00:12:30,417 Find Brooke. - By golly, 267 00:12:30,450 --> 00:12:32,886 come hell or high water, we are going to find her. 268 00:12:32,919 --> 00:12:34,954 - But for detectives, the sheer number 269 00:12:34,988 --> 00:12:37,123 of searchers presented a challenge. 270 00:12:37,157 --> 00:12:39,125 - As an investigator responsible for this, 271 00:12:39,159 --> 00:12:41,928 we're looking at, "Is our bad guy here?" 272 00:12:41,961 --> 00:12:45,098 It is not uncommon for people who, uh, you know, 273 00:12:45,098 --> 00:12:48,101 commit the crime to circle right back around, 274 00:12:48,101 --> 00:12:52,172 be present, learn, uh, see what's going on. 275 00:12:52,205 --> 00:12:56,009 - By this time, the FBI had also entered the investigation. 276 00:12:56,109 --> 00:12:59,913 Supervisory Special Agent Joe Boyer's first question? 277 00:12:59,946 --> 00:13:03,049 Had Brooke been taken by someone who lived 278 00:13:03,049 --> 00:13:05,919 at the apartment complex? And could that person 279 00:13:05,952 --> 00:13:09,222 be among the tens of thousands of Oregon State students 280 00:13:09,255 --> 00:13:11,825 who'd soon be leaving town for the summer? 281 00:13:11,858 --> 00:13:15,061 Agent Boyer asked FBI profilers for help. 282 00:13:15,095 --> 00:13:17,564 - They asked us, "Well, do you have a crime scene?" 283 00:13:17,597 --> 00:13:20,333 "No, we don't, other than flip-flops in a parking lot." 284 00:13:20,367 --> 00:13:22,869 Uh, "Do you have any witnesses?" "No, we don't." 285 00:13:22,902 --> 00:13:24,337 "Do you have a vehicle description?" 286 00:13:24,371 --> 00:13:26,806 "No, we don't." "Do you have a body?" 287 00:13:26,840 --> 00:13:29,409 "No, we don't." And they said, "Frankly, 288 00:13:29,442 --> 00:13:32,512 there's very little we can do for you at this point." 289 00:13:32,545 --> 00:13:35,348 - With so little evidence, investigators found themselves 290 00:13:35,382 --> 00:13:37,884 thinking back to another crime. 291 00:13:37,917 --> 00:13:41,087 A crime many here in Corvallis barely recall. 292 00:13:41,121 --> 00:13:44,524 On another day in May nearly 30 years to the day 293 00:13:44,557 --> 00:13:47,427 and 1 mile away from where Brooke disappeared, 294 00:13:47,460 --> 00:13:50,196 a young Oregon State student vanished. 295 00:13:50,230 --> 00:13:52,265 It wasn't until her body was discovered 296 00:13:52,298 --> 00:13:55,368 and her killer caught that people here realized 297 00:13:55,402 --> 00:13:58,104 this town had been visited by one of America's 298 00:13:58,138 --> 00:14:02,108 most notorious serial killers-- Ted Bundy. 299 00:14:02,142 --> 00:14:04,477 Authorities in Corvallis wondered if there was 300 00:14:04,511 --> 00:14:07,547 now another sexual predator bold enough 301 00:14:07,580 --> 00:14:10,817 to abduct a young woman in broad daylight. 302 00:14:10,850 --> 00:14:13,186 - It was a rough day for the sex offenders in our county, 303 00:14:13,219 --> 00:14:14,754 because there was a team who went out 304 00:14:14,788 --> 00:14:18,058 and put their finger on every single one of 'em. 305 00:14:18,091 --> 00:14:20,093 - How many sex offenders are there in this area? 306 00:14:20,126 --> 00:14:21,161 - You know, I think that was something 307 00:14:21,194 --> 00:14:23,430 that was very startling to-to realize, 308 00:14:23,463 --> 00:14:25,699 is how many there actually were. 309 00:14:25,732 --> 00:14:27,567 - When police told Brooke's family 310 00:14:27,600 --> 00:14:30,403 there may be 2,000 sex offenders 311 00:14:30,437 --> 00:14:33,640 in the area, they were horrified. 312 00:14:33,673 --> 00:14:36,076 - When they'd try to-- When they'd get into details, 313 00:14:36,109 --> 00:14:37,911 I just had to lay back on the bed 314 00:14:37,944 --> 00:14:40,947 because I'd become nauseated. You know, just the-- 315 00:14:40,980 --> 00:14:44,084 the whole trauma of it was-was just too much. 316 00:14:44,117 --> 00:14:46,086 - It just took a couple days, I think, to sink in 317 00:14:46,119 --> 00:14:47,921 that, you know, something bad had happened 318 00:14:47,954 --> 00:14:50,857 and that she was-- that she was really gone. 319 00:14:50,890 --> 00:14:52,792 - There seemed to be little question. 320 00:14:52,826 --> 00:14:56,429 Brooke was gone and in grave danger. 321 00:14:56,463 --> 00:14:58,465 The family took to the airwaves. 322 00:14:58,498 --> 00:15:01,568 Her father, Greg. - If anyone has seen Brooke 323 00:15:01,601 --> 00:15:03,803 at all, if they could just, please, call in. 324 00:15:03,837 --> 00:15:06,373 - Tips poured in to police hotlines. 325 00:15:06,406 --> 00:15:09,709 - We had dozens and dozens of Brooke Wilberger sightings 326 00:15:09,743 --> 00:15:11,344 in-in practically every state. 327 00:15:11,378 --> 00:15:13,580 Everybody who went out for a walk, you know, 328 00:15:13,613 --> 00:15:15,682 in the-in the following days who saw someone 329 00:15:15,715 --> 00:15:18,284 who just looked out of place called us up. 330 00:15:18,318 --> 00:15:19,486 - Hi, we're searching for this girl 331 00:15:19,519 --> 00:15:20,920 who was abducted. - Yeah. Okay. 332 00:15:20,954 --> 00:15:23,356 - The search expanded daily. At times, 333 00:15:23,390 --> 00:15:25,358 it seemed the whole state of Oregon 334 00:15:25,392 --> 00:15:28,061 was pitching in to find Brooke. 335 00:15:28,061 --> 00:15:30,797 - Well, I have daughters this age. 336 00:15:30,830 --> 00:15:32,899 And, um, I want to help. 337 00:15:32,932 --> 00:15:35,835 - More search teams. Dozens of square miles. 338 00:15:35,869 --> 00:15:37,771 What's the geography like around here? 339 00:15:37,804 --> 00:15:40,640 Where could someone have taken Brooke? 340 00:15:40,674 --> 00:15:43,576 - Limitless. I mean, we're 10 miles from Interstate 5. 341 00:15:43,610 --> 00:15:45,078 We've got a north-south highway 342 00:15:45,078 --> 00:15:46,212 runnin' right through Corvallis. 343 00:15:46,246 --> 00:15:47,547 We've got an east-- east-west highway 344 00:15:47,580 --> 00:15:48,615 runnin' right through Corvallis. 345 00:15:48,648 --> 00:15:50,083 So, literally, you could-- you could drive 346 00:15:50,083 --> 00:15:51,918 5 miles from Corvallis and-and be 347 00:15:51,951 --> 00:15:54,254 in a very remote area. - In the deep woods. 348 00:15:54,287 --> 00:15:56,956 - That's right. - Absolutely. 349 00:15:56,990 --> 00:15:59,592 - But despite the odds, within days, 350 00:15:59,626 --> 00:16:03,430 investigators were hot on someone's trail. 351 00:16:03,463 --> 00:16:06,366 A police search turns up a terrifying checklist 352 00:16:06,399 --> 00:16:09,602 and investigators wonder if it's the lead 353 00:16:09,636 --> 00:16:11,905 they have been waiting for. 354 00:16:11,938 --> 00:16:14,240 Coming up... - Either someone is planning 355 00:16:14,274 --> 00:16:18,044 a very heinous mutilation sexual assault crime 356 00:16:18,044 --> 00:16:20,380 and murder, or it's a fantasy. 357 00:16:26,052 --> 00:16:31,658 ** 358 00:16:32,525 --> 00:16:34,861 Nearly a week into the head-spinning hunt 359 00:16:34,894 --> 00:16:38,098 for their daughter and sister-- - Hundreds of volunteers comb-- 360 00:16:38,131 --> 00:16:40,300 Brooke Wilberger's family somehow kept 361 00:16:40,333 --> 00:16:43,069 their unfailing optimism afloat. 362 00:16:43,069 --> 00:16:45,071 - Did you think she was alive somewhere? 363 00:16:45,105 --> 00:16:46,439 - Yes. I think we-- 364 00:16:46,473 --> 00:16:50,143 That was the-the overwhelming feeling that we felt. 365 00:16:50,176 --> 00:16:53,847 And I think that's why the focus was find Brooke. 366 00:16:53,880 --> 00:16:56,349 It's what-what drove us. We know the statistics, 367 00:16:56,383 --> 00:16:59,386 but this is-- this is our family. 368 00:16:59,419 --> 00:17:03,423 This is Brooke. She's gotta be there. 369 00:17:03,456 --> 00:17:06,026 - And there was reason to hope. 370 00:17:06,026 --> 00:17:08,028 - You heard it first right here on MSNBC. 371 00:17:08,061 --> 00:17:10,030 Elizabeth Smart-- found alive 372 00:17:10,063 --> 00:17:12,065 and, from what we can tell so far, 373 00:17:12,098 --> 00:17:14,067 physically in good shape. 374 00:17:14,100 --> 00:17:17,037 - In that summer of 2004, the story 375 00:17:17,037 --> 00:17:19,439 of Elizabeth Smart was still fresh. 376 00:17:19,472 --> 00:17:22,542 She was the 14-year-old snatched from her bedroom in Utah, 377 00:17:22,575 --> 00:17:25,211 held captive by a deranged street preacher, 378 00:17:25,245 --> 00:17:27,814 then, amazingly, after nine months, 379 00:17:27,847 --> 00:17:30,383 returned to her family alive. 380 00:17:30,417 --> 00:17:32,552 - I would think, you know, maybe someone just has her captive. 381 00:17:32,585 --> 00:17:35,455 And they're- They'll just decide to let her go one day. 382 00:17:35,488 --> 00:17:37,090 - A family friend put the Wilbergers 383 00:17:37,123 --> 00:17:39,659 in touch with Elizabeth Smart's uncle. 384 00:17:39,693 --> 00:17:42,062 - Was it comforting? - It was comforting. 385 00:17:42,062 --> 00:17:45,065 He was very positive and-- because, 386 00:17:45,065 --> 00:17:46,833 of course, of their experience. 387 00:17:46,866 --> 00:17:50,337 And he said, you know, "Mever give up hope. 388 00:17:50,370 --> 00:17:52,372 "Just keep thinking positive." 389 00:17:52,405 --> 00:17:53,740 - She came home. - Right. Right. 390 00:17:53,773 --> 00:17:57,677 And so, you know, I just-- I was like, "I don't know how. 391 00:17:57,711 --> 00:18:02,449 "I don't know the circumstances. But I cannot give up." 392 00:18:02,482 --> 00:18:04,284 - And while the search continued, 393 00:18:04,317 --> 00:18:06,820 what seemed to be a lead emerged. 394 00:18:06,853 --> 00:18:11,024 - That burglary pointed them to this man, Sung Koo Kim. 395 00:18:11,024 --> 00:18:13,727 - The name Sung Koo Kim came to the attention 396 00:18:13,760 --> 00:18:17,030 of investigators less than a week after Brooke vanished. 397 00:18:17,030 --> 00:18:19,165 Kim was a reclusive 30-year-old 398 00:18:19,199 --> 00:18:22,035 with a degree in genetics and cellular biology 399 00:18:22,035 --> 00:18:24,371 who still lived with his parents in this home 400 00:18:24,404 --> 00:18:27,574 80 miles from Corvallis in a suburb of Portland. 401 00:18:27,607 --> 00:18:30,744 He spent much of his time online trading stocks. 402 00:18:30,777 --> 00:18:33,913 Just weeks before, a search of Kim's home had turned up 403 00:18:33,947 --> 00:18:36,950 thousands of pairs of women's underwear, 404 00:18:37,050 --> 00:18:39,719 stolen from college dorms throughout the area. 405 00:18:39,753 --> 00:18:41,755 Burglary charges had been filed 406 00:18:41,788 --> 00:18:44,391 and he would soon be charged with stealing underwear 407 00:18:44,424 --> 00:18:47,427 from a dorm at Oregon State University, 408 00:18:47,460 --> 00:18:51,064 just blocks from where Brooke was abducted. 409 00:18:51,064 --> 00:18:52,932 Police had an investigative theory 410 00:18:52,966 --> 00:18:55,735 based on their experience in other cases. 411 00:18:55,769 --> 00:18:58,705 - When you start making steps to entering other 412 00:18:58,738 --> 00:19:02,042 b-buildings and dormitories and going and stealing 413 00:19:02,075 --> 00:19:04,444 other people's property, being in the underwear-- 414 00:19:04,477 --> 00:19:06,012 that's a progression. - Meaning what? 415 00:19:06,046 --> 00:19:07,213 That he could then do something violent? 416 00:19:07,247 --> 00:19:08,248 - There's gonna be a step two. 417 00:19:08,281 --> 00:19:09,282 There's gonna be a step three. 418 00:19:09,315 --> 00:19:11,551 There's gonna be contacting somebody next. 419 00:19:11,584 --> 00:19:15,121 And ultimately, abducting somebody. 420 00:19:15,155 --> 00:19:16,656 - Then, just five days after 421 00:19:16,690 --> 00:19:19,025 Brooke's disappearance, another search. 422 00:19:19,059 --> 00:19:21,027 In a dramatic middle of the night raid 423 00:19:21,061 --> 00:19:23,730 captured on videotape taken by police, 424 00:19:23,763 --> 00:19:27,600 an Oregon State Police SWAT team blew open the front door 425 00:19:27,634 --> 00:19:31,104 of the home Kim shared with his parents. 426 00:19:31,137 --> 00:19:33,707 - This is the Oregon Police. - Fifteen officers 427 00:19:33,740 --> 00:19:36,343 stormed inside to serve a search warrant, 428 00:19:36,376 --> 00:19:39,546 looking for physical evidence. Hair, body fluid, 429 00:19:39,579 --> 00:19:41,548 or more. Evidence of Kim's 430 00:19:41,581 --> 00:19:44,451 possible involvement in Brooke's disappearance. 431 00:19:44,484 --> 00:19:47,087 - Come out of the house with your hands in the air. 432 00:19:47,120 --> 00:19:49,055 - They found no physical evidence, 433 00:19:49,055 --> 00:19:52,726 but what they did discover drew their attention. 434 00:19:52,759 --> 00:19:54,961 On Kim's computer, investigators found 435 00:19:55,061 --> 00:19:59,065 tens of thousands of photos and thousands more videos. 436 00:19:59,065 --> 00:20:01,434 What police termed "a vast collection 437 00:20:01,468 --> 00:20:04,537 of pornographic images" including a small number 438 00:20:04,571 --> 00:20:07,273 of staged scenes depicting tortured, 439 00:20:07,307 --> 00:20:11,077 raped, and mutilated women. Then, there was this. 440 00:20:11,111 --> 00:20:13,446 A document labeled "OSU" 441 00:20:13,480 --> 00:20:15,782 as in "Oregon State University." 442 00:20:15,815 --> 00:20:19,085 It read like a how-to guide for committing a sex crime. 443 00:20:19,119 --> 00:20:21,187 It included a list of supplies. 444 00:20:21,221 --> 00:20:25,458 Hood. Glasses. Video and digital cameras. 445 00:20:25,492 --> 00:20:26,893 - It's more than just a checklist. 446 00:20:26,926 --> 00:20:30,230 Either someone is planning a very heinous mutilation 447 00:20:30,263 --> 00:20:32,966 sexual assault crime and murder, 448 00:20:32,999 --> 00:20:34,901 or it's a fantasy. 449 00:20:34,934 --> 00:20:36,970 But either way, it's extremely important to us 450 00:20:37,003 --> 00:20:39,539 and our investigation and very startling. 451 00:20:39,572 --> 00:20:42,776 - And as detectives dug deeper, they discovered this. 452 00:20:42,809 --> 00:20:46,780 While Kim was stealing underwear from dorms and laundry rooms, 453 00:20:46,813 --> 00:20:49,616 he had also developed a bizarre fetish 454 00:20:49,649 --> 00:20:52,519 for collecting lint from clothes dryers. 455 00:20:52,552 --> 00:20:54,621 In Kim's home, they discovered a bag 456 00:20:54,654 --> 00:20:56,923 of some of that lint labeled with the name 457 00:20:56,956 --> 00:21:00,060 of an Oregon State University swim team member. 458 00:21:00,093 --> 00:21:02,462 Like Brooke Wilberger, she was young, 459 00:21:02,495 --> 00:21:05,632 blonde, blue-eyed, and she used to hang out a lot 460 00:21:05,665 --> 00:21:08,234 with other swimmers in Corvallis 461 00:21:08,268 --> 00:21:11,538 right here at the Oak Park Apartments. 462 00:21:11,571 --> 00:21:14,574 So, I'm imagining red flags are goin' off all over the place 463 00:21:14,607 --> 00:21:16,109 when you start getting this information. 464 00:21:16,142 --> 00:21:20,313 - From our perspective, every red flag went off. 465 00:21:20,347 --> 00:21:24,484 That we had to spend some energy looking at Sung Koo Kim. 466 00:21:24,517 --> 00:21:27,087 - The media pounced. - Any comment about being 467 00:21:27,120 --> 00:21:29,923 a person of interest in the case in Corvallis? 468 00:21:29,956 --> 00:21:31,391 - No comment. Thank you. 469 00:21:31,424 --> 00:21:34,527 - Sung Koo Kim's life was examined from every angle. 470 00:21:34,561 --> 00:21:37,564 Newspaper headlines blared his new nickname, 471 00:21:37,597 --> 00:21:39,833 "The Panty Thief." 472 00:21:39,866 --> 00:21:43,169 And soon, Brooke Wilberger's family heard news reports 473 00:21:43,203 --> 00:21:46,106 that Kim, on the day of Brooke's disappearance, 474 00:21:46,106 --> 00:21:48,875 had purchased cinder blocks. 475 00:21:48,908 --> 00:21:53,913 - My thought was maybe, if he were the person 476 00:21:53,947 --> 00:21:57,117 and if he took Brooke, then he might've tied her 477 00:21:57,117 --> 00:22:00,053 to bricks and dropped her in a river. 478 00:22:00,053 --> 00:22:02,122 - Those reports about Kim buying bricks 479 00:22:02,155 --> 00:22:05,392 were never substantiated. His besieged family 480 00:22:05,425 --> 00:22:08,294 attempted to clear his name any way they could. 481 00:22:15,969 --> 00:22:18,538 Despite all the suspicion, was it possible 482 00:22:18,571 --> 00:22:21,941 that Sung Koo Kim really was innocent? 483 00:22:24,077 --> 00:22:26,613 Coming up... New information about 484 00:22:26,646 --> 00:22:29,349 the person of interest in Brooke's disappearance. 485 00:22:29,382 --> 00:22:30,517 - You put all three of those together, 486 00:22:30,550 --> 00:22:32,552 that's an ironclad alibi. 487 00:22:32,585 --> 00:22:35,255 - Where would the investigation lead? 488 00:22:41,127 --> 00:22:44,698 ** 489 00:22:45,665 --> 00:22:48,268 Welcome back to "Dateline: Secrets Uncovered." 490 00:22:48,301 --> 00:22:49,669 I'm Kate Snow. 491 00:22:49,703 --> 00:22:52,672 Several days after Brooke Wilberger vanished, 492 00:22:52,706 --> 00:22:55,842 police stormed the home of Sung Koo Kim. 493 00:22:55,875 --> 00:22:58,611 Kim had been caught stealing thousands of pairs 494 00:22:58,645 --> 00:23:01,848 of women's underwear from local college dorms. 495 00:23:01,881 --> 00:23:05,051 One, just blocks from where Brooke disappeared. 496 00:23:05,051 --> 00:23:07,053 He also possessed what appeared to be 497 00:23:07,053 --> 00:23:10,590 a secret checklist for committing sex crimes. 498 00:23:10,623 --> 00:23:14,594 But could detectives connect Kim to Brooke's kidnapping? 499 00:23:14,627 --> 00:23:19,065 Back now to "Bringing Brooke Home." 500 00:23:19,065 --> 00:23:21,234 Nearly two weeks after Brooke Wilberger 501 00:23:21,267 --> 00:23:22,936 disappeared while working outside 502 00:23:22,969 --> 00:23:25,438 these apartments in Corvallis, Oregon. 503 00:23:25,472 --> 00:23:28,441 - Search teams spent a tough day surveying 504 00:23:28,475 --> 00:23:31,644 acres of land around-- - The search was winding down. 505 00:23:31,678 --> 00:23:33,880 The official end would soon come. 506 00:23:33,913 --> 00:23:37,083 Members of Brooke's family expressed their gratitude. 507 00:23:37,083 --> 00:23:40,720 - You've given up so much, um, to help. 508 00:23:40,754 --> 00:23:43,990 And I was thinking yesterday, Brooke will be saying, 509 00:23:44,090 --> 00:23:46,092 "They didn't even know me!" 510 00:23:46,092 --> 00:23:47,827 And while detectives were still busy 511 00:23:47,861 --> 00:23:50,697 looking at Sung Koo Kim as a person of interest, 512 00:23:50,730 --> 00:23:52,565 at least one of Brooke's siblings 513 00:23:52,599 --> 00:23:55,869 took one look and thought "No way." 514 00:23:55,902 --> 00:23:57,404 - We never once for a second thought 515 00:23:57,437 --> 00:23:58,805 he had anything to do with it. 516 00:23:58,838 --> 00:24:01,541 I personally didn't because I just kept thinking 517 00:24:01,574 --> 00:24:03,777 she could get away from him. You know? 518 00:24:03,810 --> 00:24:06,446 He just- He didn't look very threatening to me. 519 00:24:06,479 --> 00:24:09,082 - And soon, more reasons surfaced to cast doubt 520 00:24:09,115 --> 00:24:10,884 on the idea that Kim was involved 521 00:24:10,917 --> 00:24:14,054 in Brooke's disappearance. He offers an alibi. 522 00:24:14,054 --> 00:24:16,356 - Well, offering an alibi and us being able 523 00:24:16,389 --> 00:24:20,760 to validate that alibi are two different things. 524 00:24:20,794 --> 00:24:23,430 - But Kim's alibi for the day of Brooke's disappearance 525 00:24:23,463 --> 00:24:27,534 consisted of not just one, but three pieces of evidence. 526 00:24:27,567 --> 00:24:29,636 Put together, they show that Kim could not 527 00:24:29,669 --> 00:24:32,305 have been in Corvallis at 10:30 A.M. 528 00:24:32,339 --> 00:24:34,407 when the kidnapping occurred. 529 00:24:34,441 --> 00:24:36,976 First, these records show an online purchase 530 00:24:37,077 --> 00:24:39,913 of 500 shares of stock with Ameritrade 531 00:24:39,946 --> 00:24:43,183 executed on Kim's computer, 75 miles 532 00:24:43,216 --> 00:24:47,087 from the crime scene at 11:14 A.M. Pacific. 533 00:24:47,087 --> 00:24:49,956 Next, a witness came forward saying Kim answered 534 00:24:49,989 --> 00:24:54,094 a phone call at the family home at 12:10 P.M. 535 00:24:54,094 --> 00:24:56,296 And finally, there was a videotape showing 536 00:24:56,329 --> 00:24:59,099 Kim and his father entering an electronics store 537 00:24:59,099 --> 00:25:02,402 in Portland at 12:42 P.M. 538 00:25:02,435 --> 00:25:04,037 and a receipt showing a purchase 539 00:25:04,070 --> 00:25:07,107 at the same store at 1:11 P.M. 540 00:25:07,140 --> 00:25:08,274 - You put all three of those together-- 541 00:25:08,308 --> 00:25:10,710 that's an ironclad alibi. 542 00:25:10,744 --> 00:25:13,413 - Steven Sherlag was one of Kim's attorneys. 543 00:25:13,446 --> 00:25:15,115 - Prosecutors should look at that and say, 544 00:25:15,148 --> 00:25:16,783 "This is a case we simply can't charge. 545 00:25:16,816 --> 00:25:19,085 We've got the wrong guy." - Did they say that? 546 00:25:19,119 --> 00:25:21,554 - They didn't, in fact. They went public, 547 00:25:21,588 --> 00:25:25,392 naming Sung Koo Kim as a person of interest 548 00:25:25,425 --> 00:25:28,495 in the Wilberger abduction. - Investigators insist 549 00:25:28,528 --> 00:25:30,864 it was a lead they had to follow. 550 00:25:30,897 --> 00:25:33,266 - When it came to Sung Koo Kim, there were moments 551 00:25:33,299 --> 00:25:35,702 where we were challenging each other with 552 00:25:35,735 --> 00:25:39,239 "How much time do we spend here versus spend it over there?" 553 00:25:39,272 --> 00:25:40,674 - Looking for someone else. - And we didn't wanna 554 00:25:40,707 --> 00:25:43,343 chase the red herring with 100% of our resources. 555 00:25:43,376 --> 00:25:45,812 It was the healthiest thing for the investigation. 556 00:25:45,845 --> 00:25:49,482 It made sure nothing fell through the cracks. 557 00:25:49,516 --> 00:25:51,484 - Any comment about being a person of interest-- 558 00:25:51,518 --> 00:25:52,986 - It took months, but authorities 559 00:25:53,086 --> 00:25:56,256 officially cleared Kim. Kim's family filed a lawsuit 560 00:25:56,289 --> 00:25:57,791 claiming excessive use of force 561 00:25:57,824 --> 00:25:59,693 in that nighttime SWAT raid. 562 00:25:59,726 --> 00:26:02,462 The State of Oregon, without admitting any wrongdoing, 563 00:26:02,495 --> 00:26:04,330 eventually settled with the family, 564 00:26:04,364 --> 00:26:07,500 paying them more than $330,000. 565 00:26:07,534 --> 00:26:09,436 - There was a lot of pressure to try and save 566 00:26:09,469 --> 00:26:12,105 this young woman. Uh, undoubtedly, the officers 567 00:26:12,138 --> 00:26:14,374 were-were hoping that they could find her 568 00:26:14,407 --> 00:26:16,176 and hoping they could find her alive. 569 00:26:16,209 --> 00:26:19,846 Uh, but they really didn't have many facts here. 570 00:26:19,879 --> 00:26:23,883 And the search was done in a very aggressive, 571 00:26:23,917 --> 00:26:25,885 I think, quite radical fashion. 572 00:26:25,919 --> 00:26:28,488 - Kim was eventually convicted of burglary 573 00:26:28,521 --> 00:26:31,958 and other charges in connection with his panty stealing 574 00:26:32,058 --> 00:26:35,795 and served 7 years of an 11-year prison sentence. 575 00:26:35,829 --> 00:26:39,366 He was released in 2012. 576 00:26:39,399 --> 00:26:43,136 The summer of 2004 wore on, and investigators 577 00:26:43,169 --> 00:26:46,573 in the Wilberger case seemed to be back at square one. 578 00:26:46,606 --> 00:26:49,509 Members of the FBI and the Corvallis Police Department 579 00:26:49,542 --> 00:26:52,879 worked hard, but leads were wearing thin. 580 00:26:52,912 --> 00:26:57,350 The weeks turn into a month, two months, three months. 581 00:26:57,384 --> 00:27:01,521 How frustrating is it to not have more of a lead? 582 00:27:01,554 --> 00:27:06,192 - The-- It was, uh, extraordinarily stressful. 583 00:27:06,226 --> 00:27:09,262 You had a community looking for answers. 584 00:27:09,295 --> 00:27:11,164 You had a community that was scared. 585 00:27:11,197 --> 00:27:12,932 Was there somebody else out there? 586 00:27:13,033 --> 00:27:14,768 Who's going to be the next victim? 587 00:27:14,801 --> 00:27:18,338 And we have got a family in tremendous pain 588 00:27:18,371 --> 00:27:20,573 and they are hurting. And they are doing 589 00:27:20,607 --> 00:27:23,343 everything they can to support us. 590 00:27:23,376 --> 00:27:26,212 To encourage us. To inspire the investigators 591 00:27:26,246 --> 00:27:28,682 to-to not give up. - In what sense? 592 00:27:28,715 --> 00:27:32,452 - They didn't turn. They never became an adversary. 593 00:27:32,485 --> 00:27:36,423 They were a partner with us and it was incredible. 594 00:27:36,456 --> 00:27:39,392 - But the Wilbergers were feeling the strain as well. 595 00:27:39,426 --> 00:27:42,896 And in September, three months after Brooke's disappearance, 596 00:27:42,929 --> 00:27:44,864 it was time to return to school. 597 00:27:44,898 --> 00:27:47,167 - Jessica was heading into 8th grade. 598 00:27:47,200 --> 00:27:48,902 - I always thought about it. You know, there were days 599 00:27:48,935 --> 00:27:50,603 I would get up in the morning and just be like, 600 00:27:50,637 --> 00:27:52,372 "Ugh, I don't wanna do this today." 601 00:27:52,405 --> 00:27:54,240 But you just kinda-- I would, you know, 602 00:27:54,274 --> 00:27:56,076 put a smile on my face and I'd go to school 603 00:27:56,076 --> 00:27:57,877 and just worry about school. 604 00:27:57,911 --> 00:27:59,913 - Their mother Cammy would do the same, 605 00:28:00,013 --> 00:28:03,016 returning to her job as a 3rd grade teacher. 606 00:28:03,016 --> 00:28:05,852 How did you go back to school? 607 00:28:05,885 --> 00:28:07,253 How did you walk in the classroom 608 00:28:07,287 --> 00:28:09,289 and teach little 3rd graders? - You know what? 609 00:28:09,322 --> 00:28:12,058 I wasn't sure if I could do it, but it actually became 610 00:28:12,092 --> 00:28:15,028 very therapeutic because when I walked through 611 00:28:15,061 --> 00:28:18,798 that school door, I was Mrs. Wilberger. 612 00:28:18,832 --> 00:28:21,935 And it gives you opportunity to love little children 613 00:28:22,035 --> 00:28:24,504 and to be concerned about their needs. 614 00:28:24,537 --> 00:28:27,340 And so, it was really a good therapy for me. 615 00:28:27,374 --> 00:28:30,944 It kept my mind busy on other things. 616 00:28:31,044 --> 00:28:33,813 - The Wilbergers didn't know it, but before the holidays 617 00:28:33,847 --> 00:28:36,850 would arrive in 2004, there would finally 618 00:28:36,883 --> 00:28:39,552 be a legitimate break in the case 619 00:28:39,586 --> 00:28:43,957 of the abduction of their daughter, Brooke. 620 00:28:44,057 --> 00:28:46,793 Coming up... Halfway across the country, 621 00:28:46,826 --> 00:28:50,096 a college student runs screaming from a kidnapper. 622 00:28:50,130 --> 00:28:51,464 - I told her, "Get in the car." 623 00:28:51,498 --> 00:28:53,099 That I wouldn't let anybody hurt her. 624 00:28:53,133 --> 00:28:55,368 - A lot of people didn't stop. - No, nobody stopped. 625 00:28:55,402 --> 00:28:59,272 - Would one woman's quick thinking help bring Brooke home? 626 00:29:06,111 --> 00:29:11,817 ** 627 00:29:12,851 --> 00:29:15,754 Six months after Brooke Wilberger's disappearance, 628 00:29:15,788 --> 00:29:19,224 police in Corvallis, Oregon were frustrated. 629 00:29:19,258 --> 00:29:23,662 Her family's hopes were fading. Slim, yet steadfast. 630 00:29:23,696 --> 00:29:27,032 What was that Thanksgiving like around that table? 631 00:29:27,066 --> 00:29:30,035 - We still had a good time. Just because we love each other 632 00:29:30,069 --> 00:29:32,104 and we still were pretty hopeful. 633 00:29:32,137 --> 00:29:35,107 I think when we get together, for myself, 634 00:29:35,140 --> 00:29:37,910 it brings a lot of joy and a lot of-of comfort. 635 00:29:37,943 --> 00:29:40,946 And so, even though we missed Brooke, there was-- 636 00:29:41,046 --> 00:29:44,383 there was just comfort in being together. 637 00:29:44,416 --> 00:29:47,052 - Police announced the reward had been doubled, 638 00:29:47,052 --> 00:29:49,254 hoping more money would loosen lips 639 00:29:49,288 --> 00:29:52,324 and shake out new leads. But even investigators 640 00:29:52,358 --> 00:29:55,361 felt trapped, as if it were "Groundhog Day." 641 00:29:55,394 --> 00:29:58,230 - We don't have a suspect. We don't have any clear leads. 642 00:29:58,263 --> 00:30:00,766 - Every press conference, simply another chance 643 00:30:00,799 --> 00:30:04,470 to make the same plea. "Help us find Brooke." 644 00:30:04,503 --> 00:30:06,205 - The investigation had kind of gotten to a point 645 00:30:06,238 --> 00:30:08,407 where they were still pluggin' away, 646 00:30:08,440 --> 00:30:10,542 following up on tips, still talking to people, 647 00:30:10,576 --> 00:30:12,277 still turnin' over rocks, still searching. 648 00:30:12,311 --> 00:30:13,479 And we were, at that point, 649 00:30:13,512 --> 00:30:15,047 just hopin' for somethin' to break. 650 00:30:15,080 --> 00:30:17,449 - Just waiting. - It was difficult. 651 00:30:17,483 --> 00:30:19,585 - And then, that very week, 652 00:30:19,618 --> 00:30:22,321 the last week of November 2004, 653 00:30:22,354 --> 00:30:23,389 it happened. 654 00:30:23,422 --> 00:30:26,925 Nearly 14,000 miles away in New Mexico, 655 00:30:26,959 --> 00:30:29,928 a place aptly known as The Land of Enchantment, 656 00:30:29,962 --> 00:30:34,099 the break that they had been praying for. 657 00:30:34,133 --> 00:30:35,868 In Albuquerque in one of the city's 658 00:30:35,901 --> 00:30:37,436 tougher neighborhoods, 659 00:30:37,469 --> 00:30:40,706 a waitress named Dara Finks was driving her SUV 660 00:30:40,739 --> 00:30:43,242 down the street with her three daughters 661 00:30:43,275 --> 00:30:47,079 just after dusk when they saw a young woman. 662 00:30:47,112 --> 00:30:49,181 - We were sitting at the light 663 00:30:49,214 --> 00:30:53,419 and the girl comes runnin' across the street 664 00:30:53,452 --> 00:30:55,587 and my daughter in the front seat 665 00:30:55,621 --> 00:30:57,923 says that she doesn't have any clothes on. 666 00:30:57,956 --> 00:30:59,091 - That's kinda weird. - Yeah. 667 00:30:59,124 --> 00:31:00,159 - You see a-a naked woman running across the street. 668 00:31:00,192 --> 00:31:02,628 - And we're watchin' her run into the restaurant. 669 00:31:02,661 --> 00:31:05,064 My daughter was ready to jump out the car. 670 00:31:05,097 --> 00:31:06,565 - And I'm like, "No, no, no. Wait. 671 00:31:06,598 --> 00:31:07,499 "We'll go over there 672 00:31:07,533 --> 00:31:09,902 "and, you know, see what's goin' on. 673 00:31:09,935 --> 00:31:13,105 - It was clear, Dara says, the young woman was in trouble, 674 00:31:13,138 --> 00:31:15,307 frantically trying to get help from someone 675 00:31:15,341 --> 00:31:17,810 inside the restaurant across the street. 676 00:31:17,843 --> 00:31:18,811 - No one helped her. 677 00:31:18,844 --> 00:31:20,546 Because we pulled around there 678 00:31:20,579 --> 00:31:22,448 and my daughter got out of the car 679 00:31:22,481 --> 00:31:23,349 and met her at the door 680 00:31:23,382 --> 00:31:24,516 and brought her over to the car. 681 00:31:24,550 --> 00:31:26,151 - To your car. - And that's when she said, 682 00:31:26,185 --> 00:31:28,620 "He's got a knife. He's trying to kill me." 683 00:31:28,654 --> 00:31:32,358 - The woman said she'd been kidnapped but had escaped. 684 00:31:32,391 --> 00:31:34,593 - I told her, "Get in the car. Lock the door." 685 00:31:34,626 --> 00:31:36,128 That I wouldn't let anybody hurt her. 686 00:31:36,161 --> 00:31:37,663 - How scared were you, Dara? 687 00:31:37,696 --> 00:31:40,132 - My tire iron's underneath the front seat of my car. 688 00:31:40,165 --> 00:31:41,100 My kids are in the car. 689 00:31:41,133 --> 00:31:43,435 I'm not gonna let anybody hurt us. 690 00:31:43,469 --> 00:31:45,270 - But then, the young woman saw something 691 00:31:45,304 --> 00:31:48,273 back out in the street that made her scream. 692 00:31:48,307 --> 00:31:49,675 He was back. 693 00:31:49,708 --> 00:31:52,878 The man who'd kidnapped her was looking for her. 694 00:31:52,911 --> 00:31:55,347 - She sees him. She pointed at him. 695 00:31:55,381 --> 00:31:56,849 He was sitting at the light. 696 00:31:56,882 --> 00:31:58,017 - The person who had kidnapped her. 697 00:31:58,117 --> 00:31:59,852 - Had kidnapped her. 698 00:31:59,885 --> 00:32:00,919 - It was true. 699 00:32:00,953 --> 00:32:03,322 The man with the knife had come to find her. 700 00:32:03,355 --> 00:32:06,325 Dara called 9-1-1. She described the man. 701 00:32:06,358 --> 00:32:08,293 His red compact car. 702 00:32:08,327 --> 00:32:10,596 Within minutes, police were there. 703 00:32:10,629 --> 00:32:12,398 A lot of people wouldn't have stopped. 704 00:32:12,431 --> 00:32:13,332 A lot of people didn't stop! 705 00:32:13,365 --> 00:32:14,533 - No, nobody stopped. 706 00:32:14,566 --> 00:32:15,668 - There was a lot of traffic. 707 00:32:15,701 --> 00:32:16,568 - They wouldn't even help her in the restaurant! 708 00:32:16,602 --> 00:32:18,537 She was in the restaurant at the counter 709 00:32:18,570 --> 00:32:22,074 talking to someone. 710 00:32:22,074 --> 00:32:23,842 - Who was this young woman? 711 00:32:23,876 --> 00:32:26,345 Blonde. Blue-eyed. Abducted. 712 00:32:26,378 --> 00:32:28,414 On her neck, what she said was a mark 713 00:32:28,447 --> 00:32:31,316 from her kidnapper's knife. 714 00:32:31,350 --> 00:32:33,085 She was a college student. 715 00:32:33,118 --> 00:32:35,688 Not from Oregon, but from Russia. 716 00:32:35,721 --> 00:32:38,257 And the story this 22-year-old told officers 717 00:32:38,290 --> 00:32:39,925 was pretty incredible. 718 00:32:39,958 --> 00:32:42,828 That she was walking home from work down this street 719 00:32:42,861 --> 00:32:45,497 near the University of New Mexico campus. 720 00:32:45,531 --> 00:32:48,901 She noticed a small red car parked near the curb 721 00:32:48,934 --> 00:32:50,869 and a man standing next to it, 722 00:32:50,903 --> 00:32:52,338 but she didn't think much of it. 723 00:32:52,371 --> 00:32:53,872 Walked right past. 724 00:32:53,906 --> 00:32:54,907 A few steps later, 725 00:32:54,940 --> 00:32:57,209 she felt someone grab her from behind 726 00:32:57,242 --> 00:33:00,879 and hold a knife to her throat. 727 00:33:00,913 --> 00:33:03,849 - Inside the car, she was sexually assaulted. 728 00:33:03,882 --> 00:33:06,385 Then, her abductor stopped at these apartments, 729 00:33:06,418 --> 00:33:08,721 tied her up with her own shoelaces, 730 00:33:08,754 --> 00:33:11,623 and went inside. 731 00:33:11,657 --> 00:33:14,660 Incredibly, the woman was able to wriggle free. 732 00:33:14,693 --> 00:33:17,062 Left the shoelaces lying in the parking lot 733 00:33:17,062 --> 00:33:19,932 and ran into the street with no clothes on, 734 00:33:19,965 --> 00:33:22,935 where she was rescued by Dara Finks. 735 00:33:22,968 --> 00:33:25,604 What made you want to help? What made you stop? 736 00:33:25,637 --> 00:33:27,906 - My upbringing? The way we were raised. 737 00:33:27,940 --> 00:33:30,409 I feel God put me here for a reason, to help that girl. 738 00:33:30,442 --> 00:33:31,910 'Cause he knew we would help her. 739 00:33:31,944 --> 00:33:34,413 - It was gutsy as hell. 740 00:33:34,446 --> 00:33:35,781 And I think she's the hero- 741 00:33:35,814 --> 00:33:37,683 Dara is the hero of that night. 742 00:33:37,716 --> 00:33:39,985 - Theresa Whatley was the prosecutor 743 00:33:40,085 --> 00:33:42,087 who handled the case for the Bernalillo County 744 00:33:42,087 --> 00:33:43,989 District Attorney's office. 745 00:33:44,089 --> 00:33:45,090 Had they not been there, 746 00:33:45,090 --> 00:33:46,291 he would've picked her up again. 747 00:33:46,325 --> 00:33:47,826 - Mmm-hmm. He was waiting. He was lurking right there. 748 00:33:47,860 --> 00:33:49,094 I mean, there-- there's no question 749 00:33:49,094 --> 00:33:50,729 what he was waiting for. 750 00:33:50,763 --> 00:33:52,731 - But though the victim was now safe, 751 00:33:52,765 --> 00:33:55,100 her attacker was still on the loose. 752 00:33:55,134 --> 00:33:56,602 The young woman gave an incredibly 753 00:33:56,635 --> 00:34:00,773 detailed description of the man and of his car. 754 00:34:00,806 --> 00:34:03,642 - She described the car seats down to the detail. 755 00:34:03,676 --> 00:34:05,444 She described the tinted windows. 756 00:34:05,477 --> 00:34:08,414 She described the fact the car was two-door. 757 00:34:08,447 --> 00:34:09,581 That it was red. 758 00:34:09,615 --> 00:34:11,750 - And the victim remembered something else. 759 00:34:11,784 --> 00:34:14,720 A small stuffed animal on the car's side window. 760 00:34:14,753 --> 00:34:16,522 [police dispatch chatter] 761 00:34:16,555 --> 00:34:19,491 Enter Albuquerque Police Officer Ed Taylor. 762 00:34:19,525 --> 00:34:20,526 He showed up at the scene 763 00:34:20,559 --> 00:34:22,961 ready to help track down the bad guy. 764 00:34:23,062 --> 00:34:24,063 First stop? 765 00:34:24,096 --> 00:34:25,831 The apartments where the victim escaped 766 00:34:25,864 --> 00:34:27,099 from her kidnapper. 767 00:34:27,132 --> 00:34:28,500 So, you go to the door of the apartment. 768 00:34:28,534 --> 00:34:30,202 Who answers? - It's a female. 769 00:34:30,235 --> 00:34:32,171 We went inside the apartment and right off the bat, 770 00:34:32,204 --> 00:34:34,673 you could tell that she was not gonna be helpful at all. 771 00:34:34,707 --> 00:34:36,608 - Not cooperative? - Not cooperative. 772 00:34:36,642 --> 00:34:40,913 She, um, did tell us she knew him as "Joe." 773 00:34:40,946 --> 00:34:44,383 And he spoke Spanish. And that was about it. 774 00:34:44,416 --> 00:34:46,885 - The name Joe. He spoke Spanish. 775 00:34:46,919 --> 00:34:49,521 Would it be enough to find him? 776 00:34:49,555 --> 00:34:53,425 And four states away, as you're about to see, 777 00:34:53,459 --> 00:34:56,495 would it be enough to help find Brooke? 778 00:34:58,497 --> 00:35:00,099 Police track down a suspect 779 00:35:00,132 --> 00:35:02,134 in the New Mexico kidnapping case 780 00:35:02,167 --> 00:35:05,070 and start to speculate about his MO. 781 00:35:05,104 --> 00:35:06,839 This is not the first time he's done this. 782 00:35:06,872 --> 00:35:09,908 You don't start grabbing people in broad daylight 783 00:35:09,942 --> 00:35:11,410 when you're almost 40. 784 00:35:11,443 --> 00:35:14,713 Was it possible this wasn't his first abduction? 785 00:35:21,186 --> 00:35:27,159 ** 786 00:35:27,793 --> 00:35:30,095 On a November night in 2004, 787 00:35:30,129 --> 00:35:32,631 Albuquerque police were on a manhunt. 788 00:35:32,664 --> 00:35:35,634 Just blocks from the University of New Mexico campus, 789 00:35:35,668 --> 00:35:38,270 a man had kidnapped a 22-year-old student 790 00:35:38,303 --> 00:35:41,473 off the street and sexually assaulted her. 791 00:35:41,507 --> 00:35:43,375 But when he carelessly tied her up 792 00:35:43,409 --> 00:35:46,278 and left her in his car in this apartment parking lot, 793 00:35:46,311 --> 00:35:49,114 she had bolted, run naked into traffic, 794 00:35:49,148 --> 00:35:53,218 and thankfully, been rescued by this woman. 795 00:35:53,252 --> 00:35:55,921 - That could be my daughter. She's a human being. 796 00:35:55,954 --> 00:35:57,389 She did not deserve to be runnin' down the road 797 00:35:57,423 --> 00:35:58,657 with no clothes on. 798 00:35:58,691 --> 00:36:01,260 - Now, Albuquerque police officer Ed Taylor 799 00:36:01,293 --> 00:36:03,595 was among those looking for the suspect. 800 00:36:03,629 --> 00:36:07,099 A white male with a shaved head wearing a cap. 801 00:36:07,132 --> 00:36:09,735 Police had learned from a woman who lived in the apartments 802 00:36:09,768 --> 00:36:13,038 where the victim escaped that the man's name was Joe. 803 00:36:13,038 --> 00:36:16,041 That he spoke Spanish. She would say no more. 804 00:36:16,041 --> 00:36:18,544 - I went back to the substation and I spoke to my supervisor. 805 00:36:18,577 --> 00:36:22,047 I told him, "I believe, if I went by myself, 806 00:36:22,047 --> 00:36:24,283 "she will tell me more information." 807 00:36:24,316 --> 00:36:25,584 - Why? Why did you have that feeling? 808 00:36:25,617 --> 00:36:27,686 - I thought I had a connection with her. 809 00:36:27,720 --> 00:36:30,189 So, I returned to the location and I told her. 810 00:36:30,222 --> 00:36:31,590 I said, this is what's goin' on. 811 00:36:31,623 --> 00:36:33,125 This is what happened. 812 00:36:33,158 --> 00:36:35,961 Basically, "God forbid something were to happen to you 813 00:36:36,061 --> 00:36:37,863 "or somebody you know." 814 00:36:37,896 --> 00:36:40,065 And she reluctantly ended up telling me 815 00:36:40,065 --> 00:36:42,434 we might be able to locate the vehicle 816 00:36:42,468 --> 00:36:46,772 behind the restaurant, um, just south of Gibson. 817 00:36:46,805 --> 00:36:50,309 - Riding solo, Officer Taylor followed the woman's directions, 818 00:36:50,342 --> 00:36:53,245 and parked right here on this dead-end street, 819 00:36:53,278 --> 00:36:55,647 was a red two-door Honda 820 00:36:55,681 --> 00:36:57,983 with a stuffed animal stuck to the window. 821 00:36:58,083 --> 00:37:01,020 - So, I waited a little bit and a few minutes later, 822 00:37:01,020 --> 00:37:04,223 I noticed three individuals walking out of that-- 823 00:37:04,256 --> 00:37:06,158 - That house. - White house. 824 00:37:06,191 --> 00:37:08,794 And walkin' towards me. I called out to him as Joe. 825 00:37:08,827 --> 00:37:12,031 I said, "Joe." And he acknowledged me. 826 00:37:12,031 --> 00:37:14,833 And as he got closer, "Is this your vehicle?" 827 00:37:14,867 --> 00:37:16,669 He said "Yes." I had him turn around 828 00:37:16,702 --> 00:37:18,404 and I placed him in custody. 829 00:37:18,437 --> 00:37:19,672 - Did you find anything on him? 830 00:37:19,705 --> 00:37:23,475 - I found, um, a glass pipe used to smoke crack cocaine 831 00:37:23,509 --> 00:37:24,910 and a small knife. 832 00:37:24,943 --> 00:37:26,845 - Did he ever ask you why he was under arrest? 833 00:37:26,879 --> 00:37:28,280 - No. Didn't say anything. 834 00:37:28,313 --> 00:37:30,049 I think he knew he was caught. 835 00:37:30,049 --> 00:37:33,786 - Caught was this man, Joel Patrick Courtney. 836 00:37:33,819 --> 00:37:37,089 Soon identified by his victim and booked into jail 837 00:37:37,122 --> 00:37:39,491 on charges of criminal sexual penetration, 838 00:37:39,525 --> 00:37:43,062 kidnapping, and aggravated battery. 839 00:37:43,062 --> 00:37:45,564 Joel Courtney was 38 years old. 840 00:37:45,597 --> 00:37:48,600 He lived in this Albuquerque suburb, Rio Rancho, 841 00:37:48,634 --> 00:37:52,771 in this home with his wife and three young children. 842 00:37:52,805 --> 00:37:54,840 He'd worked as a mechanic and fisherman 843 00:37:54,873 --> 00:37:57,109 and had lived all over the United States. 844 00:37:57,142 --> 00:38:00,346 A fluent Spanish speaker, he'd also lived in Mexico. 845 00:38:00,379 --> 00:38:02,715 But the man who appeared in family photos 846 00:38:02,748 --> 00:38:05,584 as the ever-smiling attentive father 847 00:38:05,617 --> 00:38:07,920 also had a dark side. 848 00:38:08,020 --> 00:38:09,154 Six months before, 849 00:38:09,188 --> 00:38:12,124 his wife had taken out a restraining order against him 850 00:38:12,157 --> 00:38:14,593 reporting he had choked her. 851 00:38:14,626 --> 00:38:17,896 - The first time I saw him, I remember thinking 852 00:38:17,930 --> 00:38:21,033 it was as strong a reaction as I'd had to Richard Ramirez. 853 00:38:21,066 --> 00:38:23,435 - Ramirez, the notorious Night Stalker, 854 00:38:23,469 --> 00:38:25,404 convicted of murdering more than a dozen people 855 00:38:25,437 --> 00:38:26,772 in the 1980s. 856 00:38:26,805 --> 00:38:29,308 He died in 2013 awaiting execution 857 00:38:29,341 --> 00:38:31,310 on California's death row. 858 00:38:31,343 --> 00:38:33,779 Prosecutor Theresa Whatley once crossed paths 859 00:38:33,812 --> 00:38:36,081 with Ramirez in a courtroom. 860 00:38:36,115 --> 00:38:39,284 - He actually made the hair on my arms stand up 861 00:38:39,318 --> 00:38:40,352 because he was so evil. 862 00:38:40,386 --> 00:38:42,388 The only other person who's ever done that to me 863 00:38:42,421 --> 00:38:43,555 is Joel Courtney. 864 00:38:43,589 --> 00:38:45,657 - When you first read the reports about this case, 865 00:38:45,691 --> 00:38:48,594 what went through your mind as a prosecutor? 866 00:38:48,627 --> 00:38:50,562 - That this is not the first time he's done this. 867 00:38:50,596 --> 00:38:53,432 You don't start grabbing people in broad daylight 868 00:38:53,465 --> 00:38:55,834 off the street and grab 'em into your car 869 00:38:55,868 --> 00:38:57,603 when you're almost 40. 870 00:38:57,636 --> 00:38:59,738 That's not the way the criminal mind works. 871 00:38:59,772 --> 00:39:02,508 - The New Mexico prosecutor didn't know yet 872 00:39:02,541 --> 00:39:05,477 how right she was. 873 00:39:05,511 --> 00:39:07,746 And back in Oregon, the Wilberger family 874 00:39:07,780 --> 00:39:10,082 knew nothing yet of these developments 875 00:39:10,115 --> 00:39:11,717 as they faced the holidays, 876 00:39:11,750 --> 00:39:14,253 still hoping Brooke would walk through the door 877 00:39:14,286 --> 00:39:15,821 and take her place on the stairs 878 00:39:15,854 --> 00:39:18,857 for the family's annual Christmas pageant and pictures. 879 00:39:18,891 --> 00:39:21,894 - Okay! Smile, Angels! 880 00:39:21,927 --> 00:39:23,796 - It's exactly what we kept thinking. 881 00:39:23,829 --> 00:39:26,098 This can't happen. This just can't happen. 882 00:39:26,131 --> 00:39:29,501 This is Brooke, you know. She's too full of life. 883 00:39:29,535 --> 00:39:33,472 She's too-- too dynamic and too much a part of us. 884 00:39:33,505 --> 00:39:35,441 I've got to keep hoping. 885 00:39:35,474 --> 00:39:37,676 And I've got to keep thinking positive. 886 00:39:37,710 --> 00:39:40,279 - This is my home! Yay! 887 00:39:40,312 --> 00:39:43,582 - Where was Brooke? Six months had passed. 888 00:39:43,615 --> 00:39:46,752 Was she still alive somehow, somewhere? 889 00:39:46,785 --> 00:39:49,722 Her sister Stephanie was dealing with a lot of guilt. 890 00:39:49,755 --> 00:39:53,058 Brooke was working for her when she disappeared. 891 00:39:53,058 --> 00:39:56,095 - If I was driving somewhere and just reflecting 892 00:39:56,128 --> 00:39:59,064 on-on where we were so far 893 00:39:59,064 --> 00:40:02,301 and I remember thinking, "Gosh, I wonder... 894 00:40:02,334 --> 00:40:03,869 I wonder what it'll be like 895 00:40:03,902 --> 00:40:06,138 when I don't think about this every day. 896 00:40:06,171 --> 00:40:07,873 And what could I have done differently? 897 00:40:07,906 --> 00:40:12,111 Or what if- what if just this little thing had changed?" 898 00:40:12,144 --> 00:40:15,147 - But something was finally about to change. 899 00:40:15,180 --> 00:40:17,750 The quick-thinking that led to Joel Courtney's capture 900 00:40:17,783 --> 00:40:21,420 in New Mexico was about to lead to more questions 901 00:40:21,453 --> 00:40:23,555 and investigators would soon want to know 902 00:40:23,589 --> 00:40:25,324 if this father of three, 903 00:40:25,357 --> 00:40:27,793 now charged in a daring abduction, 904 00:40:27,826 --> 00:40:30,963 could also be the man who took Brooke. 905 00:40:32,031 --> 00:40:34,900 He'd been caught carrying a knife and a crack pipe 906 00:40:34,933 --> 00:40:37,269 hours after a University of New Mexico student 907 00:40:37,302 --> 00:40:40,072 said Courtney abducted her near campus 908 00:40:40,105 --> 00:40:42,307 and sexually assaulted her. 909 00:40:42,341 --> 00:40:45,110 Miraculously, she had escaped. 910 00:40:45,144 --> 00:40:48,247 This is an incredibly brazen crime. 911 00:40:48,280 --> 00:40:50,249 He abducts her in broad daylight? 912 00:40:50,282 --> 00:40:51,383 - 6:45. 913 00:40:51,417 --> 00:40:53,052 It's probably just about dark. 914 00:40:53,085 --> 00:40:57,056 - That's either incredibly stupid or insane. 915 00:40:57,089 --> 00:41:00,693 - No, it's experienced. He knows what he's doing. 916 00:41:00,726 --> 00:41:01,627 He's done it before. 917 00:41:01,660 --> 00:41:03,062 He knows how to make it happen. 918 00:41:03,095 --> 00:41:05,164 He picked his spot really well. 919 00:41:05,197 --> 00:41:07,499 It's a very quiet street. It was dinnertime. 920 00:41:07,533 --> 00:41:09,234 As awful as it sounds, it's a smart move 921 00:41:09,268 --> 00:41:11,870 for what he's trying to do. 922 00:41:11,904 --> 00:41:14,306 - With Joel Courtney safely in custody, 923 00:41:14,340 --> 00:41:17,409 Albuquerque police begin a routine background check 924 00:41:17,443 --> 00:41:19,178 on their suspect. 925 00:41:19,211 --> 00:41:21,847 They found that in addition to New Mexico, 926 00:41:21,880 --> 00:41:23,882 he had lived in several states. 927 00:41:23,916 --> 00:41:26,552 Alaska, Florida, and Oregon. 928 00:41:26,585 --> 00:41:30,122 And a detective noticed that nearly a year before, 929 00:41:30,155 --> 00:41:34,493 in January 2004, in coastal Lincoln County, Oregon, 930 00:41:34,526 --> 00:41:37,663 Courtney had been pulled over by a State Trooper 931 00:41:37,696 --> 00:41:40,933 and charged with driving under the influence. 932 00:41:40,966 --> 00:41:43,402 But Courtney had failed to appear in court, 933 00:41:43,435 --> 00:41:47,139 so a warrant had been issued for his arrest. 934 00:41:47,172 --> 00:41:49,508 And that's when an Albuquerque detective 935 00:41:49,541 --> 00:41:51,977 did something he didn't have to do. 936 00:41:52,011 --> 00:41:54,179 He decided to dig deeper. 937 00:41:54,213 --> 00:41:57,116 Picked up the phone, and made a call to Oregon 938 00:41:57,116 --> 00:42:00,486 that would lead to a long-awaited break in the case 939 00:42:00,519 --> 00:42:01,954 of Brooke Wilberger. 940 00:42:02,054 --> 00:42:04,089 - He calls the Lincoln County Sheriff's Department. 941 00:42:04,123 --> 00:42:07,059 And he gets to a detective and says, 942 00:42:07,059 --> 00:42:09,061 "Hey, what do you know about this case? 943 00:42:09,061 --> 00:42:11,063 This is what he did down in New Mexico." 944 00:42:11,096 --> 00:42:14,233 And he's relaying the circumstances. 945 00:42:14,266 --> 00:42:16,068 And the Lin-- the Lincoln County detective, 946 00:42:16,068 --> 00:42:19,304 having heard about Brooke's case-- 947 00:42:19,338 --> 00:42:20,406 - Because everyone here had heard Brooke's case. 948 00:42:20,439 --> 00:42:22,074 - Because everybody knows about it. 949 00:42:22,074 --> 00:42:23,709 Says to him, "You need to call 950 00:42:23,742 --> 00:42:25,744 "Corvallis Police Department." 951 00:42:25,778 --> 00:42:27,579 It's that simple. And he does. 952 00:42:29,915 --> 00:42:31,817 - It was not just police asking questions 953 00:42:31,850 --> 00:42:33,185 about Brooke's case. 954 00:42:33,218 --> 00:42:35,587 So was the suspect's own sister. 955 00:42:35,621 --> 00:42:38,924 - There were some similarities and... 956 00:42:38,957 --> 00:42:41,226 - So, you thought to yourself-- - "Could it be?" 957 00:42:41,260 --> 00:42:42,728 It was unthinkable. 958 00:42:49,169 --> 00:42:52,806 ** 959 00:42:53,773 --> 00:42:56,443 - Welcome back to "Dateline: Secrets Uncovered." 960 00:42:56,476 --> 00:42:57,844 I'm Kate Snow. 961 00:42:57,877 --> 00:43:01,281 Detectives investigating Brooke Wilberger's abduction 962 00:43:01,314 --> 00:43:03,383 were running short on leads. 963 00:43:03,416 --> 00:43:06,753 Then, they received a phone call with a fresh one. 964 00:43:06,786 --> 00:43:09,422 Nearly 1,400 miles away, 965 00:43:09,456 --> 00:43:11,658 Joel Courtney was facing charges 966 00:43:11,691 --> 00:43:13,560 in the kidnapping and assault 967 00:43:13,593 --> 00:43:15,562 of another young coed 968 00:43:15,595 --> 00:43:17,797 who looked a lot like Brooke. 969 00:43:17,831 --> 00:43:19,599 Investigators learned that Courtney 970 00:43:19,632 --> 00:43:22,068 also had roots in Oregon. 971 00:43:22,068 --> 00:43:23,837 And soon, his family 972 00:43:23,870 --> 00:43:26,639 would share some dark secrets with them. 973 00:43:26,673 --> 00:43:28,875 Back now, to "Bringing Brooke Home." 974 00:43:28,908 --> 00:43:32,278 ** 975 00:43:32,312 --> 00:43:34,848 Joel Patrick Courtney was sitting in jail 976 00:43:34,881 --> 00:43:36,182 in Albuquerque. 977 00:43:36,216 --> 00:43:38,551 It was December 2004. 978 00:43:38,585 --> 00:43:42,222 The married father of three was facing decades in prison 979 00:43:42,255 --> 00:43:44,090 if convicted of kidnapping, 980 00:43:44,090 --> 00:43:46,993 sexual assault, and battery charges. 981 00:43:47,093 --> 00:43:50,096 As investigators began checking out the possible link 982 00:43:50,130 --> 00:43:54,401 to Brooke Wilberger's case, a call went out to her family. 983 00:43:54,434 --> 00:43:57,404 They had waited more than six months for news. 984 00:43:57,437 --> 00:44:00,607 Any news about their daughter's disappearance. 985 00:44:00,640 --> 00:44:02,542 Now, there was a man in custody 986 00:44:02,575 --> 00:44:05,645 who they thought might be able to reunite them 987 00:44:05,679 --> 00:44:08,748 with their daughter, just as Elizabeth Smart 988 00:44:08,782 --> 00:44:11,084 had been returned to her family. 989 00:44:11,117 --> 00:44:13,286 What are you thinking in that-- When you hear this? 990 00:44:13,319 --> 00:44:16,556 - Actually, I had prayed so faithfully all fall 991 00:44:16,589 --> 00:44:20,060 that whoever had done this would make a mistake. 992 00:44:20,060 --> 00:44:23,630 And when I heard the news I thought, 993 00:44:23,663 --> 00:44:27,467 "They made a mistake. They tried it again. 994 00:44:27,500 --> 00:44:29,402 And no one else knew what I'd prayed 995 00:44:29,436 --> 00:44:31,338 because I hadn't told anyone else. 996 00:44:31,371 --> 00:44:33,139 Because it was always "Find Brooke," 997 00:44:33,173 --> 00:44:34,541 you know, "Help us to find Brooke." 998 00:44:34,574 --> 00:44:35,942 I guess that was a selfish prayer, 999 00:44:35,975 --> 00:44:38,278 you know, to hope whoever had done this 1000 00:44:38,311 --> 00:44:39,346 to make a mistake. 1001 00:44:39,379 --> 00:44:42,482 And then, I felt like, they made a mistake. 1002 00:44:42,515 --> 00:44:45,518 - But if this mistake could help find Brooke, 1003 00:44:45,552 --> 00:44:48,555 investigators first had to find out all they could 1004 00:44:48,588 --> 00:44:51,825 about this latest possible suspect. 1005 00:44:51,858 --> 00:44:53,827 And specifically, they wanted to know more 1006 00:44:53,860 --> 00:44:56,763 about that suspect's ties to Oregon. 1007 00:44:56,796 --> 00:44:59,099 Detectives quickly determined that Joel Courtney 1008 00:44:59,132 --> 00:45:01,634 grew up in Beaverton, a Portland suburb 1009 00:45:01,668 --> 00:45:04,938 about 75 miles from where Brooke disappeared. 1010 00:45:05,038 --> 00:45:07,374 But that had been 20 years before. 1011 00:45:07,407 --> 00:45:10,777 Police also knew he had lived in several different states. 1012 00:45:10,810 --> 00:45:12,145 The question was, 1013 00:45:12,178 --> 00:45:14,681 had Courtney been anywhere near Corvallis 1014 00:45:14,714 --> 00:45:16,583 on the day of the kidnapping? 1015 00:45:16,616 --> 00:45:19,853 There was one person who could answer that question 1016 00:45:19,886 --> 00:45:21,488 and many more. 1017 00:45:21,521 --> 00:45:23,690 Her name? Dina McBride. 1018 00:45:23,723 --> 00:45:26,192 She is Joel Courtney's older sister. 1019 00:45:26,226 --> 00:45:27,694 She lives in Portland. 1020 00:45:27,727 --> 00:45:29,396 - My first thought is, 1021 00:45:29,429 --> 00:45:33,133 cute dimpled little blonde-haired mischievous kid, 1022 00:45:33,166 --> 00:45:34,768 you know, with a sweet little spirit 1023 00:45:34,801 --> 00:45:36,436 and a hilarious laugh. 1024 00:45:36,469 --> 00:45:39,372 - Days before Corvallis police got that phone call 1025 00:45:39,406 --> 00:45:42,208 from Albuquerque and heard the name Joel Courtney 1026 00:45:42,242 --> 00:45:43,643 for the first time, 1027 00:45:43,677 --> 00:45:46,146 Dina had received a call herself. 1028 00:45:46,179 --> 00:45:47,781 It was from Joel's wife 1029 00:45:47,814 --> 00:45:50,950 with word of his arrest in New Mexico. 1030 00:45:50,984 --> 00:45:54,087 Dina and her mother took in the news together. 1031 00:45:54,087 --> 00:45:56,523 How did your mom react? 1032 00:45:56,556 --> 00:45:58,792 - She was horrified. 1033 00:45:58,825 --> 00:46:02,595 Um, yeah, there were li-- very few details, 1034 00:46:02,629 --> 00:46:06,199 but she felt like the truth needs to come out. 1035 00:46:06,232 --> 00:46:08,501 - But the truth was hard to figure out 1036 00:46:08,535 --> 00:46:10,170 in those first moments. 1037 00:46:10,203 --> 00:46:11,838 The scowling man in the mugshot 1038 00:46:11,871 --> 00:46:14,040 was hardly the Joel his sister knew 1039 00:46:14,040 --> 00:46:15,342 when he was little. 1040 00:46:15,375 --> 00:46:17,310 I remember him coming home from the hospital. 1041 00:46:17,344 --> 00:46:19,179 I remember him toddling. 1042 00:46:19,212 --> 00:46:22,882 I remember all the classic childhood milestones. 1043 00:46:22,916 --> 00:46:25,151 And we were a very, very happy family. 1044 00:46:25,185 --> 00:46:26,853 - At some point, did you see a shift? 1045 00:46:26,886 --> 00:46:29,255 - When he was probably elevenish, 1046 00:46:29,289 --> 00:46:31,891 he started hanging out with some older kids. 1047 00:46:31,925 --> 00:46:35,695 I remember my mom kind of backtracking and saying, 1048 00:46:35,729 --> 00:46:37,630 "You know, I think that's really when it started." 1049 00:46:37,664 --> 00:46:40,066 - "It" was Joel's drug use. 1050 00:46:40,100 --> 00:46:42,635 And before long, when Joel became a teenager, 1051 00:46:42,669 --> 00:46:44,170 more reason to worry. 1052 00:46:44,204 --> 00:46:46,673 - He was starting to dabble in-in-in some Satanism 1053 00:46:46,706 --> 00:46:50,076 a little bit and kind of explaining how much power 1054 00:46:50,076 --> 00:46:53,313 it gave him and a sense of, you know, 1055 00:46:53,346 --> 00:46:56,116 a rush of being in control or whatever. 1056 00:46:56,149 --> 00:46:59,085 And yeah, he-he was pretty good 1057 00:46:59,085 --> 00:47:01,221 at throwing a punch here or there. 1058 00:47:01,254 --> 00:47:06,026 - Scare you? - Yeah. Hurt me. Yeah. 1059 00:47:06,026 --> 00:47:08,495 - So, around the same time that he dabbles in Satanism, 1060 00:47:08,528 --> 00:47:11,131 he starts becoming physical? - Mmm-hmm. 1061 00:47:11,164 --> 00:47:13,867 - But as Joel got older and more violent, 1062 00:47:13,900 --> 00:47:16,202 his sister says he was handsome enough, 1063 00:47:16,236 --> 00:47:18,705 charming enough, and smart enough 1064 00:47:18,738 --> 00:47:21,374 to get away with a lot of bad behavior. 1065 00:47:21,408 --> 00:47:22,676 - At some point in time, it was the in thing 1066 00:47:22,709 --> 00:47:25,445 to have IQ testing in school. 1067 00:47:25,478 --> 00:47:27,681 I remember not being as smart as I had hoped 1068 00:47:27,714 --> 00:47:32,152 and hearing that he had a genius-level IQ. 1069 00:47:32,185 --> 00:47:34,587 - Genius level? - Mm-hmm. 1070 00:47:34,621 --> 00:47:36,556 - Did he study a lot? Did he read books? 1071 00:47:36,589 --> 00:47:37,757 - He loved to read books. 1072 00:47:37,791 --> 00:47:40,694 But no, he kind of got away with really good grades 1073 00:47:40,727 --> 00:47:42,062 with very little effort, 1074 00:47:42,062 --> 00:47:44,464 which seemed monumentally unfair to me. 1075 00:47:44,497 --> 00:47:47,100 - Joel Courtney's luck would eventually run out. 1076 00:47:47,133 --> 00:47:49,402 He had a string of arrests for shoplifting 1077 00:47:49,436 --> 00:47:50,570 and other offenses 1078 00:47:50,603 --> 00:47:52,806 and was in and out of juvenile detention 1079 00:47:52,839 --> 00:47:54,641 until he was 18. 1080 00:47:54,674 --> 00:47:56,776 That's when Joel admitted beating 1081 00:47:56,810 --> 00:48:00,146 and sexually assaulting a woman he had known in high school. 1082 00:48:00,180 --> 00:48:02,582 He blamed the crime on drugs and alcohol 1083 00:48:02,615 --> 00:48:05,785 and a judge sentenced Courtney to probation. 1084 00:48:05,819 --> 00:48:08,722 He never finished high school and worked various jobs 1085 00:48:08,755 --> 00:48:11,725 as a fisherman in Alaska and as a mechanic. 1086 00:48:11,758 --> 00:48:15,895 He got married at 23 to Rosie, who was from Mexico. 1087 00:48:15,929 --> 00:48:18,031 He and Rosie had three children 1088 00:48:18,031 --> 00:48:20,433 and eventually, Courtney seemed to settle down. 1089 00:48:20,467 --> 00:48:22,469 Savoring his role as a father 1090 00:48:22,502 --> 00:48:24,371 and building a life in that home 1091 00:48:24,404 --> 00:48:27,240 in an Albuquerque suburb. 1092 00:48:27,273 --> 00:48:30,710 What kind of father was he? - Uh, he changed diapers. 1093 00:48:30,744 --> 00:48:32,612 He got up in the middle of the night. 1094 00:48:32,645 --> 00:48:34,214 He made lunches. 1095 00:48:34,247 --> 00:48:35,515 The kind of dad who was involved 1096 00:48:35,548 --> 00:48:39,252 and wanted to be there for his kids. 1097 00:48:39,285 --> 00:48:43,189 - But now, at age 38, this seemingly loving father 1098 00:48:43,223 --> 00:48:45,325 was facing the trial of his life. 1099 00:48:45,358 --> 00:48:46,393 Locked up. 1100 00:48:46,426 --> 00:48:48,161 Caught with a crack pipe and a knife. 1101 00:48:48,194 --> 00:48:51,264 Charged with kidnapping and sexual assault. 1102 00:48:51,297 --> 00:48:53,333 And given his checkered history, 1103 00:48:53,366 --> 00:48:55,669 something-- maybe intuition, 1104 00:48:55,702 --> 00:48:58,371 maybe the massive media coverage throughout Oregon 1105 00:48:58,405 --> 00:49:01,007 of a similar crime- a young, beautiful 1106 00:49:01,007 --> 00:49:03,243 female college student snatched off the street 1107 00:49:03,276 --> 00:49:04,577 just months before-- 1108 00:49:04,611 --> 00:49:07,847 something compelled Dina and her family 1109 00:49:07,881 --> 00:49:10,016 to ask the question themselves. 1110 00:49:10,016 --> 00:49:12,519 The very questions Corvallis police 1111 00:49:12,552 --> 00:49:14,421 were just beginning to look at. 1112 00:49:15,755 --> 00:49:18,391 - Just the details that we heard about the case 1113 00:49:18,425 --> 00:49:22,662 in New Mexico- there were some similarities and-- 1114 00:49:22,696 --> 00:49:26,032 - So, you thought to yourself-- - "Could it be? No." 1115 00:49:26,032 --> 00:49:28,301 I mean, you-you couldn't even say the whole sentence 1116 00:49:28,335 --> 00:49:30,637 because it was unthinkable, right? 1117 00:49:32,439 --> 00:49:34,374 New clues provide an answer 1118 00:49:34,407 --> 00:49:37,043 and break Brooke's case wide open. 1119 00:49:37,077 --> 00:49:38,812 - This was dynamite to us. 1120 00:49:45,250 --> 00:49:52,691 ** 1121 00:49:53,459 --> 00:49:55,894 - Time seemed to tick by so slowly 1122 00:49:55,928 --> 00:49:57,196 during those long months 1123 00:49:57,229 --> 00:49:59,498 when investigators were searching for clues 1124 00:49:59,531 --> 00:50:01,867 in the disappearance of Brooke Wilberger. 1125 00:50:01,900 --> 00:50:05,337 Minutes... Hours... Days. 1126 00:50:05,371 --> 00:50:07,840 But in early December, 2004, 1127 00:50:07,873 --> 00:50:10,576 more than six months after she went missing, 1128 00:50:10,609 --> 00:50:13,746 it was as if the clock suddenly sped up. 1129 00:50:13,779 --> 00:50:17,082 Police in Corvallis, Oregon, were struck by the parallels 1130 00:50:17,116 --> 00:50:18,951 between Brooke's abduction 1131 00:50:18,984 --> 00:50:20,753 and the crimes Joel Patrick Courtney 1132 00:50:20,786 --> 00:50:23,088 was accused of in Albuquerque. 1133 00:50:23,122 --> 00:50:25,157 - From our perspective, it's a signature crime. 1134 00:50:25,190 --> 00:50:27,526 Right next to the University of New Mexico campus. 1135 00:50:27,559 --> 00:50:29,261 Young woman. 1136 00:50:29,294 --> 00:50:31,063 You know, attractive. 1137 00:50:31,096 --> 00:50:33,098 Uh, broad daylight. 1138 00:50:33,132 --> 00:50:35,968 Abduction in a vehicle. Drives away. 1139 00:50:36,001 --> 00:50:37,302 So, yeah, we-we were real excited 1140 00:50:37,336 --> 00:50:39,371 that we were on the right track at that point. 1141 00:50:39,405 --> 00:50:42,107 - By the time police learned Joel Courtney's name, 1142 00:50:42,141 --> 00:50:44,176 Joel's sister Dina and her family 1143 00:50:44,209 --> 00:50:47,479 had been thinking about the same connection for days. 1144 00:50:47,513 --> 00:50:48,647 - We couldn't even say the words out loud. 1145 00:50:48,681 --> 00:50:50,849 We actually were up to the late hours of the morning 1146 00:50:50,883 --> 00:50:53,385 going back over the calendar thinking, 1147 00:50:53,419 --> 00:50:55,354 "Could he have done that?" 1148 00:50:55,387 --> 00:50:57,856 - Dina waited, saying nothing. 1149 00:50:57,890 --> 00:51:00,125 Until a week later, Corvallis police, 1150 00:51:00,159 --> 00:51:03,862 looking for information about her brother, called her. 1151 00:51:03,896 --> 00:51:06,198 In that moment, do you know in your heart 1152 00:51:06,231 --> 00:51:08,901 that he did something? 1153 00:51:08,934 --> 00:51:10,803 - In that moment, I did not know that. 1154 00:51:10,836 --> 00:51:16,742 Um, I thought, too many coincidences 1155 00:51:16,775 --> 00:51:19,311 to automatically discount it. 1156 00:51:19,345 --> 00:51:20,779 Right? 1157 00:51:20,813 --> 00:51:24,883 You can't just assume because he's your brother, 1158 00:51:24,917 --> 00:51:28,587 somebody that you love, that he couldn't have, right? 1159 00:51:28,620 --> 00:51:30,989 - What Dina told police was revealing. 1160 00:51:31,090 --> 00:51:32,291 During their first interviews, 1161 00:51:32,324 --> 00:51:34,860 she shared some dark family secrets. 1162 00:51:34,893 --> 00:51:36,462 When she was a teenager, 1163 00:51:36,495 --> 00:51:39,231 her brother Joel had attacked her. 1164 00:51:39,264 --> 00:51:41,133 - He would come in in the middle of the night 1165 00:51:41,166 --> 00:51:44,603 and put a hand around my neck 1166 00:51:44,636 --> 00:51:47,439 and attempt to sexually assault me. 1167 00:51:47,473 --> 00:51:50,009 - More than once? - More than once, yeah. 1168 00:51:50,109 --> 00:51:53,212 And I have had a great old-fashioned 1169 00:51:53,245 --> 00:52:00,052 wind-up alarm clock that met his head. 1170 00:52:00,085 --> 00:52:03,055 - Two more Courtney family members would soon come forward 1171 00:52:03,055 --> 00:52:06,759 claiming Joel had raped or tried to rape them. 1172 00:52:06,792 --> 00:52:08,293 - The further we got into the investigation, 1173 00:52:08,327 --> 00:52:10,262 as far as the number of people we interviewed, 1174 00:52:10,295 --> 00:52:12,664 the more sexual assaults came to light. 1175 00:52:12,698 --> 00:52:16,101 - And more pieces of the puzzle were coming together quickly. 1176 00:52:16,135 --> 00:52:17,536 Despite their troubled past, 1177 00:52:17,569 --> 00:52:19,938 Dina and Joel had maintained a relationship 1178 00:52:19,972 --> 00:52:21,173 over the years. 1179 00:52:21,206 --> 00:52:23,909 Joel's sister now showed police these photographs 1180 00:52:23,942 --> 00:52:25,711 of Joel and his family, 1181 00:52:25,744 --> 00:52:27,713 not at their home in New Mexico, 1182 00:52:27,746 --> 00:52:31,417 but visiting Dina's home in the Portland suburbs 1183 00:52:31,450 --> 00:52:33,719 in May 2004. 1184 00:52:33,752 --> 00:52:37,556 The very month Brooke Wilberger disappeared. 1185 00:52:37,589 --> 00:52:39,725 Joel, his wife Rosie and three kids 1186 00:52:39,758 --> 00:52:41,326 needed a place to stay. 1187 00:52:41,360 --> 00:52:44,329 Joel had gotten a job supervising a cleaning crew. 1188 00:52:44,363 --> 00:52:46,432 A job that meant he'd be traveling 1189 00:52:46,465 --> 00:52:48,534 all over the state of Oregon. 1190 00:52:48,567 --> 00:52:51,003 - We were under the impression they'd be there 1191 00:52:51,103 --> 00:52:53,172 for a couple of months. 1192 00:52:53,205 --> 00:52:56,508 A lot of the time, it would-- there would be, 1193 00:52:56,542 --> 00:52:58,444 you know, he would bow out fairly early on. 1194 00:52:58,477 --> 00:52:59,812 "I've gotta go do something for work." 1195 00:52:59,845 --> 00:53:03,148 And so, it was mostly Rosie and the kids 1196 00:53:03,182 --> 00:53:04,783 with the rest of us. 1197 00:53:04,817 --> 00:53:07,052 - So, he was traveling quite a bit? 1198 00:53:07,052 --> 00:53:09,421 - That was my understanding, yeah. 1199 00:53:09,455 --> 00:53:11,256 - And then, this bombshell. 1200 00:53:11,290 --> 00:53:14,226 May 24th, the day Brooke was abducted, 1201 00:53:14,259 --> 00:53:17,930 was one of those days when Joel Courtney was traveling. 1202 00:53:17,963 --> 00:53:20,933 He had a court date, turns out, over on the Oregon coast 1203 00:53:20,966 --> 00:53:24,570 on that drunken driving charge, but he never showed up. 1204 00:53:24,603 --> 00:53:27,072 According to court records, he called the courthouse 1205 00:53:27,072 --> 00:53:28,907 and said he was going to be late. 1206 00:53:28,941 --> 00:53:31,076 And that phone call was made 1207 00:53:31,076 --> 00:53:33,712 from the very town where Brooke disappeared. 1208 00:53:33,746 --> 00:53:36,615 Right here, in Corvallis. 1209 00:53:36,648 --> 00:53:40,552 Joel Courtney then disappeared for about 36 hours 1210 00:53:40,586 --> 00:53:42,087 before returning to Dina's home 1211 00:53:42,087 --> 00:53:44,089 in the Portland suburbs. 1212 00:53:44,123 --> 00:53:48,827 - He walked through the door and announced kind of loudly, 1213 00:53:48,861 --> 00:53:50,462 "You'll never believe where I've been." 1214 00:53:50,496 --> 00:53:53,165 And I said, "Okay, where were you?" 1215 00:53:53,198 --> 00:53:55,701 "I was kidnapped. There were these guys. 1216 00:53:55,734 --> 00:53:59,238 There were guns and knifes and we were in the woods 1217 00:53:59,271 --> 00:54:02,675 and it was rainy and cold and there was a girl there 1218 00:54:02,708 --> 00:54:06,078 and we were hiding and... 1219 00:54:06,111 --> 00:54:09,548 Yeah, there was blood and it was awful." 1220 00:54:09,581 --> 00:54:11,250 - At the time, Dina chalked it up 1221 00:54:11,283 --> 00:54:13,619 to Joel's chronic drug abuse. 1222 00:54:13,652 --> 00:54:16,355 He's delusional. - Mmm-hmm. 1223 00:54:16,388 --> 00:54:18,791 - You just think he's comin' off some bad drugs. 1224 00:54:18,824 --> 00:54:20,793 - Mm-hmm. - You don't call 9-1-1. 1225 00:54:20,826 --> 00:54:21,960 - No. 1226 00:54:22,061 --> 00:54:24,563 - Dina says she didn't feel like she was in danger 1227 00:54:24,596 --> 00:54:28,067 in that moment, so she did not call authorities. 1228 00:54:28,067 --> 00:54:31,303 But all those months later, sitting with investigators, 1229 00:54:31,337 --> 00:54:33,305 she suddenly realized how crucial 1230 00:54:33,339 --> 00:54:37,710 that strange conversation with Joel might've been. 1231 00:54:37,743 --> 00:54:40,746 - Just as I was saying it, it occurred to me. 1232 00:54:40,779 --> 00:54:42,414 Oh, my word. 1233 00:54:42,448 --> 00:54:47,486 Could he have been... Was he talking about that? 1234 00:54:47,519 --> 00:54:49,888 - And she remembered, the very next day 1235 00:54:49,922 --> 00:54:51,557 after Brooke disappeared, 1236 00:54:51,590 --> 00:54:54,226 her brother Joel would visit his doctor in Portland, 1237 00:54:54,259 --> 00:54:57,162 complaining of chest pains and anxiety. 1238 00:54:57,196 --> 00:54:59,865 But all this information, while damming, 1239 00:54:59,898 --> 00:55:02,468 was nothing more than circumstantial evidence 1240 00:55:02,501 --> 00:55:04,169 of Joel's potential involvement 1241 00:55:04,203 --> 00:55:05,871 in Brooke's disappearance. 1242 00:55:05,904 --> 00:55:09,308 Without Brooke or, if she were dead, her body, 1243 00:55:09,341 --> 00:55:11,477 detectives had no physical proof 1244 00:55:11,510 --> 00:55:13,612 linking Joel to the crime. 1245 00:55:13,645 --> 00:55:17,116 Until that is, police learned what Joel was driving 1246 00:55:17,149 --> 00:55:19,051 the day Brooke disappeared. 1247 00:55:19,051 --> 00:55:23,055 A green Dodge Caravan with Minnesota license plates 1248 00:55:23,088 --> 00:55:25,858 supplied by the cleaning company he worked for. 1249 00:55:25,891 --> 00:55:27,526 The minute you hear "green minivan 1250 00:55:27,559 --> 00:55:29,495 "with a Minnesota plate," 1251 00:55:29,528 --> 00:55:31,430 somebody remembers that that was one of your tips. 1252 00:55:31,463 --> 00:55:32,631 - Oh, absolutely. 1253 00:55:32,664 --> 00:55:35,567 - Actually, two separate tips pulled from the database 1254 00:55:35,601 --> 00:55:37,970 of thousands called into police. 1255 00:55:38,070 --> 00:55:39,938 The first at 9:30 A.M., 1256 00:55:39,972 --> 00:55:43,242 just an hour before and 100 yards north 1257 00:55:43,275 --> 00:55:45,110 of where Brooke was kidnapped, 1258 00:55:45,144 --> 00:55:47,079 a blonde OSU student said 1259 00:55:47,079 --> 00:55:49,748 a white male adult in a green minivan 1260 00:55:49,782 --> 00:55:50,816 approached her 1261 00:55:50,849 --> 00:55:53,952 and opened the back of his van to look for a map. 1262 00:55:53,986 --> 00:55:57,222 When she saw a blanket on the floor, she rushed off, 1263 00:55:57,256 --> 00:55:59,825 telling the man she was late for class. 1264 00:55:59,858 --> 00:56:02,027 Then, a university athletic official 1265 00:56:02,027 --> 00:56:05,030 called to report a man in a Dodge Caravan, 1266 00:56:05,030 --> 00:56:07,900 possibly green, with Minnesota plates 1267 00:56:07,933 --> 00:56:10,035 asking a female student for directions 1268 00:56:10,035 --> 00:56:12,938 in the stadium parking lot in close proximity 1269 00:56:13,038 --> 00:56:15,174 to where Wilberger was abducted. 1270 00:56:15,207 --> 00:56:17,509 The witness was later asked to identify the man 1271 00:56:17,543 --> 00:56:21,613 in this photo lineup and picked out Joel Courtney. 1272 00:56:21,647 --> 00:56:23,582 - Well, I mean, this was dynamite to us. 1273 00:56:23,615 --> 00:56:26,819 This told us this is our guy at the moment. 1274 00:56:26,852 --> 00:56:28,053 You know, we needed to focus on him 1275 00:56:28,087 --> 00:56:29,555 and find the van. 1276 00:56:29,588 --> 00:56:31,357 That's our one piece of physical evidence 1277 00:56:31,390 --> 00:56:33,058 that we've gotta get now. 1278 00:56:33,092 --> 00:56:36,261 - And that's exactly what the FBI did. 1279 00:56:36,295 --> 00:56:40,065 Agent Joe Boyer found the van in Washington state 1280 00:56:40,065 --> 00:56:42,501 and had it taken apart piece-by-piece 1281 00:56:42,534 --> 00:56:46,071 and shipped to an FBI lab across the country. 1282 00:56:46,071 --> 00:56:49,074 - We knew that if we were going to prove 1283 00:56:49,108 --> 00:56:51,076 that Joel Courtney was responsible for this, 1284 00:56:51,110 --> 00:56:52,945 the best chance we had was to find evidence 1285 00:56:52,978 --> 00:56:54,646 of Brooke being in the van. 1286 00:56:54,680 --> 00:56:56,715 - The Wilberger family was informed. 1287 00:56:56,749 --> 00:56:58,450 They wanted to know the truth, 1288 00:56:58,484 --> 00:57:01,020 but were almost afraid to discover more 1289 00:57:01,020 --> 00:57:04,289 about Joel Courtney and his crimes. 1290 00:57:04,323 --> 00:57:05,824 - I googled him and passed it on to you. 1291 00:57:05,858 --> 00:57:06,825 - You Googled him? 1292 00:57:06,859 --> 00:57:08,060 - Sure. Yeah. 1293 00:57:08,093 --> 00:57:11,030 - What was it like to see his face? 1294 00:57:11,030 --> 00:57:12,231 - Uh, you know, I just looked at him 1295 00:57:12,264 --> 00:57:16,135 and-and at that point, it was just a numb feeling, 1296 00:57:16,168 --> 00:57:19,471 you know. Even then, I didn't feel hatred. 1297 00:57:19,505 --> 00:57:22,041 You know, it was just-- I was all about... 1298 00:57:22,041 --> 00:57:23,676 getting Brooke back. 1299 00:57:23,709 --> 00:57:26,712 I wanna know what you did and where she is. 1300 00:57:26,745 --> 00:57:29,581 - But neither the Wilbergers, nor investigators, 1301 00:57:29,615 --> 00:57:32,718 nor Courtney's sister could ever have guessed 1302 00:57:32,751 --> 00:57:34,119 how they would get the answer 1303 00:57:34,153 --> 00:57:38,090 to the question where was Brooke? 1304 00:57:38,123 --> 00:57:40,793 As her loved ones continue the search for Brooke, 1305 00:57:40,826 --> 00:57:44,296 a jaw-dropping piece of evidence leaves little doubt 1306 00:57:44,329 --> 00:57:45,864 about who killed her. 1307 00:57:47,533 --> 00:57:49,168 - That's the smoking gun. 1308 00:57:49,201 --> 00:57:50,836 That's the nail in the coffin. 1309 00:57:56,543 --> 00:58:00,180 ** 1310 00:58:01,147 --> 00:58:03,583 - In the months after Joel Courtney had emerged 1311 00:58:03,616 --> 00:58:04,517 as a suspect 1312 00:58:04,551 --> 00:58:06,519 in Brooke Wilberger's disappearance, 1313 00:58:06,553 --> 00:58:10,256 Brooke's mom had desperately tried to hold on to the hope 1314 00:58:10,290 --> 00:58:12,625 that her daughter was still alive. 1315 00:58:12,659 --> 00:58:16,196 But Cammy Wilberger's heart was finally giving in 1316 00:58:16,229 --> 00:58:18,665 to what her head was telling her. 1317 00:58:18,698 --> 00:58:21,034 - I just had this sick feeling, 1318 00:58:21,034 --> 00:58:23,837 even though I would never give up hope. 1319 00:58:23,870 --> 00:58:27,440 You know, my-my motherly hope was always there. 1320 00:58:27,474 --> 00:58:29,409 I knew deep down 1321 00:58:29,442 --> 00:58:33,246 that, you know, she was probably gone. 1322 00:58:33,279 --> 00:58:36,649 - And it would be another mom in another state 1323 00:58:36,683 --> 00:58:39,519 who would move the story forward. 1324 00:58:39,552 --> 00:58:42,956 Joel Courtney had already been interviewed by the FBI, 1325 00:58:43,056 --> 00:58:45,358 but refused to answer any questions. 1326 00:58:45,392 --> 00:58:49,662 And when shown her photo, he denied ever seeing Brooke. 1327 00:58:49,696 --> 00:58:52,532 But when confronted by his own mother, 1328 00:58:52,565 --> 00:58:56,603 Courtney came perilously close to a confession. 1329 00:58:56,636 --> 00:58:59,806 - She actually asked him point-blank, 1330 00:58:59,839 --> 00:59:03,209 "Joel, did you do this?" And, um, he said, 1331 00:59:03,243 --> 00:59:04,344 "It's not really what it seems like 1332 00:59:04,377 --> 00:59:06,680 and-and I'll never be held accountable for this." 1333 00:59:06,713 --> 00:59:08,248 - He said that to your mother? - Mmm-hmm. 1334 00:59:08,281 --> 00:59:09,683 - "They'll never hold me accountable for this." 1335 00:59:09,716 --> 00:59:11,451 - Mmm-hmm. - Why would he say that? 1336 00:59:11,484 --> 00:59:13,353 - Because I don't think that he feels the need 1337 00:59:13,386 --> 00:59:17,023 to be held accountable for the things that he does. 1338 00:59:17,057 --> 00:59:18,191 - Power? - Yeah, power. 1339 00:59:18,224 --> 00:59:20,460 And doesn't have to play by the same rules 1340 00:59:20,493 --> 00:59:21,928 that other people have to. 1341 00:59:22,028 --> 00:59:23,029 - The rules. 1342 00:59:23,029 --> 00:59:24,864 To investigators, it did seem like 1343 00:59:24,898 --> 00:59:28,101 Joel Courtney thought he was playing a game. 1344 00:59:28,134 --> 00:59:29,502 The inmate whose sister said 1345 00:59:29,536 --> 00:59:31,604 he had above-average intelligence 1346 00:59:31,638 --> 00:59:33,673 knew that without physical evidence 1347 00:59:33,707 --> 00:59:36,743 or Brooke's body, it would be nearly impossible 1348 00:59:36,776 --> 00:59:39,412 for investigators to charge him with murder. 1349 00:59:39,446 --> 00:59:41,247 By the spring of 2005, 1350 00:59:41,281 --> 00:59:44,184 FBI scientists were working feverishly, 1351 00:59:44,217 --> 00:59:46,653 examining every inch of that green minivan 1352 00:59:46,686 --> 00:59:49,723 Joel once drove, hunting for DNA evidence. 1353 00:59:52,492 --> 00:59:54,594 On the day marking the first anniversary 1354 00:59:54,627 --> 00:59:56,062 of Brooke's abduction, 1355 00:59:56,096 --> 00:59:57,497 her family and police 1356 00:59:57,530 --> 00:59:59,899 dutifully held a news conference. 1357 01:00:00,066 --> 01:00:03,236 Privately, the family had held the secret for months 1358 01:00:03,269 --> 01:00:05,505 that police had a strong suspect 1359 01:00:05,538 --> 01:00:08,641 and that Brooke was likely no longer alive. 1360 01:00:08,675 --> 01:00:11,011 Yet in public, they held fast. 1361 01:00:11,044 --> 01:00:12,545 - You still have that hope, though. 1362 01:00:12,579 --> 01:00:13,713 You don't give that up. 1363 01:00:13,747 --> 01:00:16,016 - One year after Brooke Wilberger disappeared, 1364 01:00:16,049 --> 01:00:17,851 her tattered pictures still posted 1365 01:00:17,884 --> 01:00:20,120 on street signs in Corvallis. 1366 01:00:20,153 --> 01:00:22,155 - But as local stations played the story 1367 01:00:22,188 --> 01:00:23,990 of a grim anniversary, 1368 01:00:24,024 --> 01:00:26,426 some real news was about to break. 1369 01:00:26,459 --> 01:00:28,094 - We were heading back to Eugene 1370 01:00:28,128 --> 01:00:29,295 and we got a call. 1371 01:00:29,329 --> 01:00:30,864 And they said, "How far out of town are you?" 1372 01:00:30,897 --> 01:00:32,599 And we said, "Well, not too far." 1373 01:00:32,632 --> 01:00:34,100 They said, "Could you come back?" 1374 01:00:34,134 --> 01:00:35,969 - Unbelievably, that very day, 1375 01:00:36,002 --> 01:00:39,039 on the one-year anniversary of Brooke's disappearance, 1376 01:00:39,072 --> 01:00:42,542 FBI supervisory special agent Joe Boyer had received 1377 01:00:42,575 --> 01:00:45,211 a long-awaited call from the lab. 1378 01:00:45,245 --> 01:00:48,548 - They told me that you're not gonna believe what we found. 1379 01:00:48,581 --> 01:00:50,216 And I said, "Well, what is that?" 1380 01:00:50,250 --> 01:00:52,652 They said, "We found Joel Courtney's DNA 1381 01:00:52,686 --> 01:00:53,620 "in the van." 1382 01:00:53,653 --> 01:00:54,688 And I said, "Well, that's good, 1383 01:00:54,721 --> 01:00:56,189 but that doesn't quite get us there." 1384 01:00:56,222 --> 01:00:59,392 And they said, "We also found Brooke Wilberger's DNA 1385 01:00:59,426 --> 01:01:00,827 "in the carpet in the van." 1386 01:01:00,860 --> 01:01:04,064 - It was the physical evidence they'd been waiting for. 1387 01:01:04,097 --> 01:01:06,833 Beneath the back seat in the minivan's carpet, 1388 01:01:06,866 --> 01:01:09,436 analysts had found material consistent with 1389 01:01:09,469 --> 01:01:12,439 a mixture of male and female DNA 1390 01:01:12,472 --> 01:01:15,775 belonging to Joel Courtney and Brooke Wilberger. 1391 01:01:15,809 --> 01:01:18,545 What happens here at Corvallis police headquarters, 1392 01:01:18,578 --> 01:01:19,646 when you find that out? 1393 01:01:19,679 --> 01:01:20,847 - It was sort of an amazing day. 1394 01:01:20,880 --> 01:01:22,615 That's the smoking gun. 1395 01:01:22,649 --> 01:01:24,284 That's the nail in the coffin. 1396 01:01:24,317 --> 01:01:26,219 - The Wilbergers return to Corvallis 1397 01:01:26,252 --> 01:01:28,188 to get the news themselves. 1398 01:01:28,221 --> 01:01:30,490 - And they said, "We got a DNA confirmation 1399 01:01:30,523 --> 01:01:33,727 "that Brooke's DNA and his DNA were in the van together." 1400 01:01:33,760 --> 01:01:34,794 - Did you break down? 1401 01:01:34,828 --> 01:01:35,862 - No, you know, you just-- 1402 01:01:35,895 --> 01:01:37,230 you get up for certain things. 1403 01:01:37,263 --> 01:01:39,432 You're-- You just steel yourself for that 1404 01:01:39,466 --> 01:01:41,801 and it was like, "Yes," you know? 1405 01:01:41,835 --> 01:01:44,004 And then, um-- and then, I-- 1406 01:01:44,104 --> 01:01:46,373 Of course, I sobbed the whole way home. 1407 01:01:46,406 --> 01:01:48,708 - The DNA evidence had revealed details 1408 01:01:48,742 --> 01:01:51,311 no mother should ever have to hear 1409 01:01:51,344 --> 01:01:53,747 and no witness had yet disclosed. 1410 01:01:53,780 --> 01:01:56,516 - It was the nature of the DNA evidence 1411 01:01:56,549 --> 01:01:58,418 which told an even bigger story. 1412 01:01:58,451 --> 01:02:01,821 - Benton County, Oregon District Attorney John Haroldson. 1413 01:02:01,855 --> 01:02:05,825 - The DNA evidence was in the form of bodily fluids 1414 01:02:05,859 --> 01:02:07,594 which were co-mingled. 1415 01:02:07,627 --> 01:02:11,898 That told us a story in terms of 1416 01:02:11,931 --> 01:02:14,434 what had occurred in that van. 1417 01:02:14,467 --> 01:02:18,304 - The co-mingled DNA indicated Brooke had been raped. 1418 01:02:18,338 --> 01:02:21,107 So, Joel Courtney was charged with that crime 1419 01:02:21,141 --> 01:02:24,110 in addition to kidnapping and murder. 1420 01:02:24,144 --> 01:02:25,945 So, you've got him in Corvallis. 1421 01:02:25,979 --> 01:02:28,548 You've got him near the point of abduction. 1422 01:02:28,581 --> 01:02:30,784 You've got evidence that she was in his van. 1423 01:02:30,817 --> 01:02:33,319 That he assaulted her in that van. 1424 01:02:33,353 --> 01:02:35,789 The only thing you don't have is Brooke Wilberger. 1425 01:02:35,822 --> 01:02:36,790 - Yes. 1426 01:02:36,823 --> 01:02:37,791 - You charge him with the death penalty. 1427 01:02:37,824 --> 01:02:39,426 - Correct. I believe it was justified 1428 01:02:39,459 --> 01:02:41,227 by the evidence we had before us. 1429 01:02:41,261 --> 01:02:44,097 - News of the indictment had not leaked out yet. 1430 01:02:44,130 --> 01:02:46,700 As Joel Courtney sat in a New Mexico courtroom 1431 01:02:46,733 --> 01:02:48,535 for a hearing on that case, 1432 01:02:48,568 --> 01:02:51,204 he was served with the Oregon charges. 1433 01:02:51,237 --> 01:02:52,439 - They came to court, they gave it to me, 1434 01:02:52,472 --> 01:02:53,573 I gave it to the defense attorney 1435 01:02:53,606 --> 01:02:55,775 who gave it to Courtney in the jury box 1436 01:02:55,809 --> 01:02:58,211 with other, um, inmates. 1437 01:02:58,244 --> 01:02:59,879 Um, and he starts laughing 1438 01:02:59,913 --> 01:03:01,815 when he's reading death penalty, death penalty. 1439 01:03:01,848 --> 01:03:03,249 And he's laughing. - He's laughing? 1440 01:03:03,283 --> 01:03:04,617 - He's laughing and he's showing it off 1441 01:03:04,651 --> 01:03:06,152 to all of the other inmates, 1442 01:03:06,186 --> 01:03:07,954 like this is a badge of honor somehow. 1443 01:03:08,054 --> 01:03:09,122 - What does that tell you? 1444 01:03:09,155 --> 01:03:11,224 - Oh, that we read him exactly right. 1445 01:03:11,257 --> 01:03:13,460 That this is something he's proud of. 1446 01:03:13,493 --> 01:03:15,195 I think he felt, at that time, 1447 01:03:15,228 --> 01:03:16,596 particularly because he knew in that case 1448 01:03:16,629 --> 01:03:18,164 they did not have the body, 1449 01:03:18,198 --> 01:03:19,532 that this was just something he could enjoy 1450 01:03:19,566 --> 01:03:21,701 because it wasn't really going to affect him 1451 01:03:21,735 --> 01:03:23,069 in the long term. 1452 01:03:23,069 --> 01:03:24,571 - And from that day forward, 1453 01:03:24,604 --> 01:03:26,706 Joel Courtney did everything he could 1454 01:03:26,740 --> 01:03:29,576 to delay and disrupt his own case. 1455 01:03:29,609 --> 01:03:31,978 He knew that the charges here in New Mexico 1456 01:03:32,078 --> 01:03:34,848 of kidnapping and rape would have to be dealt with 1457 01:03:34,881 --> 01:03:37,350 before he could ever be sent back to Oregon. 1458 01:03:37,384 --> 01:03:40,420 So, he did all he could to turn the proceedings here 1459 01:03:40,453 --> 01:03:41,955 into a farce. 1460 01:03:41,988 --> 01:03:44,157 That meant he sometimes didn't communicate 1461 01:03:44,190 --> 01:03:45,825 with his own legal team. 1462 01:03:45,859 --> 01:03:48,194 He even fired one of his own attorneys. 1463 01:03:48,228 --> 01:03:49,963 And at other times, he refused to show up 1464 01:03:49,996 --> 01:03:51,664 for court appearances. 1465 01:03:51,698 --> 01:03:54,200 And then finally, Joel Courtney claimed 1466 01:03:54,234 --> 01:03:57,904 he was mentally incompetent to stand trial. 1467 01:03:57,937 --> 01:04:00,173 - Once that was brought up, when he came into court, 1468 01:04:00,206 --> 01:04:02,442 he would come in all bowed down. 1469 01:04:02,475 --> 01:04:03,710 He would shuffle. 1470 01:04:03,743 --> 01:04:05,445 He would only look at the floor. 1471 01:04:05,478 --> 01:04:07,080 His whole demeanor had changed 1472 01:04:07,113 --> 01:04:09,115 because now he wanted to be incompetent 1473 01:04:09,149 --> 01:04:11,284 because we couldn't try him. 1474 01:04:11,317 --> 01:04:13,920 - Courtney had to be tested by mental health experts 1475 01:04:13,953 --> 01:04:16,790 at the state hospital in Las Vegas, New Mexico. 1476 01:04:16,823 --> 01:04:19,793 The FBI now worried Courtney might try to flee. 1477 01:04:19,826 --> 01:04:21,261 - I was concerned that the entire time, 1478 01:04:21,294 --> 01:04:23,663 he would be looking for an opportunity to escape. 1479 01:04:23,697 --> 01:04:24,864 He's fluent in Spanish. 1480 01:04:24,898 --> 01:04:26,566 I felt that, uh, he was gonna head south 1481 01:04:26,599 --> 01:04:28,835 across the border where he'd lived before 1482 01:04:28,868 --> 01:04:30,503 and disappear into Mexico 1483 01:04:30,537 --> 01:04:32,739 and make it very difficult for us to find him. 1484 01:04:32,772 --> 01:04:35,108 - And as the fight over whether or not Courtney 1485 01:04:35,141 --> 01:04:39,212 was competent to stand trial dragged on through 2007, 1486 01:04:39,245 --> 01:04:41,381 Brooke's mom was struggling. 1487 01:04:41,414 --> 01:04:43,383 For her, the mission to find her daughter 1488 01:04:43,416 --> 01:04:45,685 was no longer a rescue mission, 1489 01:04:45,719 --> 01:04:47,454 but one of recovery. 1490 01:04:47,487 --> 01:04:49,422 And her hopes were being threatened by 1491 01:04:49,456 --> 01:04:52,692 what many saw as the courtroom shenanigans 1492 01:04:52,726 --> 01:04:54,361 of Joel Courtney. 1493 01:04:54,394 --> 01:04:57,464 - I can remember one time I was near the edge. 1494 01:04:57,497 --> 01:05:02,135 I knew that if they found him mentally incapable that 1495 01:05:02,168 --> 01:05:05,438 that was a black hole for us. 1496 01:05:05,472 --> 01:05:07,073 Because we would never get Brooke. 1497 01:05:07,107 --> 01:05:09,042 He would never come to Oregon. 1498 01:05:09,075 --> 01:05:12,545 He would be there forever, you know, playing this game. 1499 01:05:12,579 --> 01:05:15,348 - It was nearly a year before a New Mexico judge 1500 01:05:15,382 --> 01:05:18,718 finally ruled in January 2007, 1501 01:05:18,752 --> 01:05:21,888 nearly three years after Brooke disappeared, 1502 01:05:21,921 --> 01:05:25,692 that Joel Courtney was competent to stand trial. 1503 01:05:25,725 --> 01:05:27,327 - Well, we were on our way to San Francisco 1504 01:05:27,360 --> 01:05:28,628 and we got a phone call. 1505 01:05:28,661 --> 01:05:31,598 And he said, "They found him mentally stable." 1506 01:05:31,631 --> 01:05:33,733 And we got out of the car, the girls and I, 1507 01:05:33,767 --> 01:05:35,635 and did a dance around the car 1508 01:05:35,669 --> 01:05:37,237 and it was just like-- 1509 01:05:37,270 --> 01:05:39,639 I just felt like the world was lifted. 1510 01:05:39,673 --> 01:05:43,410 And, um, I didn't realize how close I was, 1511 01:05:43,443 --> 01:05:45,078 maybe-- you know. 1512 01:05:45,078 --> 01:05:46,079 - Close to what? 1513 01:05:46,079 --> 01:05:48,782 - To just brea-- a breaking point, 1514 01:05:48,815 --> 01:05:52,952 um, until I felt that being lifted. 1515 01:05:52,986 --> 01:05:56,089 And then, it was like, okay, we can do this. 1516 01:05:56,089 --> 01:05:58,892 - Later that year, in September 2007, 1517 01:05:58,925 --> 01:06:01,161 Joel Courtney would finally plead guilty 1518 01:06:01,194 --> 01:06:03,329 to kidnapping and sexually assaulting 1519 01:06:03,363 --> 01:06:05,498 that University of New Mexico student 1520 01:06:05,532 --> 01:06:07,167 he snatched off the street. 1521 01:06:07,200 --> 01:06:09,669 The young woman who somehow escaped. 1522 01:06:09,703 --> 01:06:12,906 At his sentencing, another circus. 1523 01:06:12,939 --> 01:06:15,041 - It didn't take long for Joel Patrick Courtney 1524 01:06:15,041 --> 01:06:17,377 to tell District Judge Kenneth Martinez 1525 01:06:17,410 --> 01:06:19,546 exactly what he thinks of him. 1526 01:06:19,579 --> 01:06:22,716 - I have no respect for this court. 1527 01:06:22,749 --> 01:06:23,683 This is-- 1528 01:06:23,717 --> 01:06:26,753 You are the rudest person I've ever met. 1529 01:06:35,729 --> 01:06:37,597 - The judge sentenced Joel Courtney 1530 01:06:37,630 --> 01:06:39,766 to 18 years in prison, 1531 01:06:39,799 --> 01:06:42,602 but not before Courtney took a parting shot. 1532 01:06:42,635 --> 01:06:45,572 - I would spit in your face if I was close enough. 1533 01:06:45,605 --> 01:06:48,808 - Time had finally run out for Joel Courtney. 1534 01:06:48,842 --> 01:06:51,244 He would soon be back on his way to Oregon, 1535 01:06:51,277 --> 01:06:54,214 where investigators were ready for his head games. 1536 01:06:54,247 --> 01:06:55,448 Their goal? 1537 01:06:55,482 --> 01:06:57,384 The same as it had been for years. 1538 01:06:57,417 --> 01:06:58,985 Find Brooke. 1539 01:06:59,085 --> 01:07:00,286 - There was a degree of vigor. 1540 01:07:00,320 --> 01:07:02,288 You are not gonna win, Joel Courtney. 1541 01:07:02,322 --> 01:07:03,923 We will. 1542 01:07:04,024 --> 01:07:05,358 - Coming up... 1543 01:07:05,392 --> 01:07:08,328 Brooke's family issues a plea to Joel Courtney 1544 01:07:08,361 --> 01:07:10,630 to help them finally find Brooke. 1545 01:07:10,663 --> 01:07:11,765 - We just wanted her back. 1546 01:07:11,798 --> 01:07:12,932 We just wanted her still. 1547 01:07:13,033 --> 01:07:14,634 We just wanted to bring her home. 1548 01:07:25,778 --> 01:07:27,312 - Welcome back. Despite years of delays, 1549 01:07:28,180 --> 01:07:31,050 Joel Courtney was finally going to answer 1550 01:07:31,050 --> 01:07:33,886 for the rape and murder of Brooke Wilberger. 1551 01:07:33,919 --> 01:07:35,954 A conviction would give Brooke's family 1552 01:07:36,055 --> 01:07:39,058 the justice they'd been denied for so long. 1553 01:07:39,058 --> 01:07:41,894 But could it unlock the secret the Wilbergers 1554 01:07:41,927 --> 01:07:43,729 were desperate to know? 1555 01:07:43,762 --> 01:07:47,533 Once again, here's "Bringing Brooke Home." 1556 01:07:47,566 --> 01:07:50,803 - Joel Courtney was finally in an Oregon courtroom, 1557 01:07:50,836 --> 01:07:53,472 pleading "not guilty" to murder charges. 1558 01:07:53,505 --> 01:07:57,209 It was the spring of 2008, a full four years 1559 01:07:57,242 --> 01:08:00,012 after Brooke Wilberger had disappeared. 1560 01:08:00,012 --> 01:08:03,115 The man charged with stealing a beautiful 19-year-old 1561 01:08:03,148 --> 01:08:04,450 from her loved ones 1562 01:08:04,483 --> 01:08:07,653 had also stolen years from their lives. 1563 01:08:07,686 --> 01:08:09,722 He'd manipulated the legal system. 1564 01:08:09,755 --> 01:08:13,459 Forced delays in New Mexico to avoid returning to Oregon 1565 01:08:13,492 --> 01:08:15,027 to face charges. 1566 01:08:15,060 --> 01:08:18,697 If he were convicted now, it could mean the death penalty. 1567 01:08:18,731 --> 01:08:21,166 Did you think that he deserved to die? 1568 01:08:21,200 --> 01:08:22,501 - It didn't matter. 1569 01:08:22,534 --> 01:08:25,637 It-It was-- We know the end result. 1570 01:08:25,671 --> 01:08:27,573 How did it happen and-and where is she? 1571 01:08:27,606 --> 01:08:29,875 And so, it wasn't a feeling of revenge 1572 01:08:29,908 --> 01:08:31,577 or a feeling of re-retribution. 1573 01:08:31,610 --> 01:08:33,512 It was just, okay, what now? 1574 01:08:33,545 --> 01:08:37,049 How do we-we now find her and recover her? 1575 01:08:37,049 --> 01:08:40,719 - The family simply needed to know. 1576 01:08:40,753 --> 01:08:43,055 Remember, thousands of searchers had covered 1577 01:08:43,055 --> 01:08:45,724 dozens of square miles in every direction, 1578 01:08:45,758 --> 01:08:48,093 from Oregon's coastal range of mountains 1579 01:08:48,127 --> 01:08:52,064 to its rocky coast, without any success. 1580 01:08:52,064 --> 01:08:54,133 Joel Courtney had not said a word 1581 01:08:54,166 --> 01:08:55,968 to police or prosecutors 1582 01:08:56,068 --> 01:08:59,071 since asking for a lawyer years before. 1583 01:08:59,071 --> 01:09:01,373 The man who had studied law books in jail 1584 01:09:01,407 --> 01:09:04,209 had to know that, despite DNA evidence 1585 01:09:04,243 --> 01:09:06,545 linking him to Brooke's rape and murder, 1586 01:09:06,578 --> 01:09:08,747 without a body, the prosecution's case 1587 01:09:08,781 --> 01:09:11,583 would be much harder to prove. 1588 01:09:11,617 --> 01:09:14,920 So, if Courtney knew where to find Brooke, 1589 01:09:15,020 --> 01:09:17,256 he was keeping the secret to himself. 1590 01:09:19,024 --> 01:09:20,659 DA John Haroldson. 1591 01:09:20,693 --> 01:09:22,127 You can't appeal to this man to just 1592 01:09:22,161 --> 01:09:23,929 do the right thing, can you? 1593 01:09:24,029 --> 01:09:28,634 - Uh, I never saw that as an incentive for him. 1594 01:09:28,667 --> 01:09:31,036 Uh, I felt that the incentives 1595 01:09:31,036 --> 01:09:33,839 were probably going to be more based 1596 01:09:33,872 --> 01:09:36,041 from the perspective of a narcissist. 1597 01:09:36,041 --> 01:09:37,910 - Selfish. - Then-- Yes. 1598 01:09:37,943 --> 01:09:42,815 What can you do for me versus what can I do for society. 1599 01:09:42,848 --> 01:09:44,817 - And so, the prosecutor thought, 1600 01:09:44,850 --> 01:09:47,519 what could be more precious to a narcissist 1601 01:09:47,553 --> 01:09:49,455 than his own life? 1602 01:09:49,488 --> 01:09:51,256 After consulting with the Wilbergers, 1603 01:09:51,290 --> 01:09:53,459 the DA offered Courtney a deal-- 1604 01:09:53,492 --> 01:09:55,127 Admit to Brooke's murder, 1605 01:09:55,160 --> 01:09:57,162 reveal the location of her body, 1606 01:09:57,196 --> 01:10:00,065 and avoid the death penalty in exchange for 1607 01:10:00,065 --> 01:10:03,602 a sentence of life in prison without parole. 1608 01:10:03,635 --> 01:10:04,770 - Actually, that was-- 1609 01:10:04,803 --> 01:10:06,372 you know, that's what we hoped for. 1610 01:10:06,405 --> 01:10:10,409 Because the death penalty would draw it out years. 1611 01:10:10,442 --> 01:10:12,311 - But you wanted something in return. 1612 01:10:12,344 --> 01:10:13,812 - We wanted Brooke. 1613 01:10:13,846 --> 01:10:16,348 We wanted to-- her remains. 1614 01:10:16,382 --> 01:10:18,684 - Why was that so important to the family? 1615 01:10:18,717 --> 01:10:19,852 - We just wanted her back. 1616 01:10:19,885 --> 01:10:20,886 We just wanted her still. 1617 01:10:20,919 --> 01:10:22,888 I mean, our goal was still really the same. 1618 01:10:22,921 --> 01:10:24,356 That we just wanted to bring her home, 1619 01:10:24,390 --> 01:10:28,560 clearly not the way that we had hoped. 1620 01:10:28,594 --> 01:10:31,163 But I think that it was important to us 1621 01:10:31,196 --> 01:10:34,366 to have her back-- Just to get her back. 1622 01:10:34,400 --> 01:10:37,236 - So, the prosecutor went to Courtney with the deal. 1623 01:10:37,269 --> 01:10:40,873 And true to form, the inmate made everyone wait. 1624 01:10:40,906 --> 01:10:43,175 Again. For months. 1625 01:10:43,208 --> 01:10:45,978 Until his defense lawyers delivered the word. 1626 01:10:46,011 --> 01:10:47,713 - Joel Courtney was not interested. 1627 01:10:47,746 --> 01:10:49,848 He did not return a counter offer. 1628 01:10:49,882 --> 01:10:52,584 He outright rejected our offer. 1629 01:10:52,618 --> 01:10:54,753 - It feels like holding her family hostage 1630 01:10:54,787 --> 01:10:57,623 in some ways, you know? 1631 01:10:57,656 --> 01:11:00,659 - Courtney's sister Dina watched all this unfold, 1632 01:11:00,693 --> 01:11:04,063 knowing a trial would mean she'd have to testify 1633 01:11:04,063 --> 01:11:07,333 about the times Joel tried to rape her as a teenager. 1634 01:11:07,366 --> 01:11:10,069 About his unexpected visit to her Oregon home 1635 01:11:10,069 --> 01:11:12,071 just before Brooke's abduction. 1636 01:11:12,104 --> 01:11:13,872 And about his incriminating, 1637 01:11:13,906 --> 01:11:16,442 presumably drug-induced statements. 1638 01:11:16,475 --> 01:11:19,078 Dina knew her testimony could help put 1639 01:11:19,078 --> 01:11:21,847 her own brother on death row. 1640 01:11:21,880 --> 01:11:26,418 - My mom and I, actually, talked about this 1641 01:11:26,452 --> 01:11:27,586 before she got sick. 1642 01:11:27,619 --> 01:11:30,222 We talked about, you know, we've always said 1643 01:11:30,255 --> 01:11:33,392 we believe in the death penalty and here it is. 1644 01:11:34,360 --> 01:11:37,296 - Your brother. - My brother, her son. 1645 01:11:37,329 --> 01:11:40,165 And so, if you believe in it for 1646 01:11:40,199 --> 01:11:43,502 some person that you don't know, 1647 01:11:43,535 --> 01:11:47,106 does that still hold true if it's your loved one? 1648 01:11:47,106 --> 01:11:49,842 And we did a lot of thinking and praying about it 1649 01:11:49,875 --> 01:11:54,179 and we came to the conclusion that yeah, we still did. 1650 01:11:54,213 --> 01:11:56,582 - Dina says she was ready to testify. 1651 01:11:56,615 --> 01:11:59,118 But what she didn't know was that the pressure 1652 01:11:59,118 --> 01:12:02,521 was building on her brother to find another way out. 1653 01:12:02,554 --> 01:12:05,824 In New Mexico, the courts rejected his appeals 1654 01:12:05,858 --> 01:12:08,560 and life in Oregon's jails wasn't pleasant 1655 01:12:08,594 --> 01:12:12,164 for a notorious inmate whose alleged crimes against women 1656 01:12:12,197 --> 01:12:14,099 were now well-known. 1657 01:12:14,133 --> 01:12:17,169 More than once, Courtney was beaten by fellow inmates, 1658 01:12:17,202 --> 01:12:19,471 as you can see in this jailhouse video 1659 01:12:19,505 --> 01:12:22,441 in which Courtney is being tended to by medical staff 1660 01:12:22,474 --> 01:12:26,078 after one particularly brutal beating. 1661 01:12:26,078 --> 01:12:28,480 Then, there were new charges of assault 1662 01:12:28,514 --> 01:12:30,783 after Courtney threw a fax machine 1663 01:12:30,816 --> 01:12:34,153 at a prison doctor who wouldn't give him what he wanted. 1664 01:12:34,186 --> 01:12:36,355 - That was the very beginning of the end. 1665 01:12:36,388 --> 01:12:37,623 - Why do you say that? 1666 01:12:37,656 --> 01:12:39,892 - We knew then he was frustrated. 1667 01:12:39,925 --> 01:12:41,393 He was feeling it. 1668 01:12:41,427 --> 01:12:42,661 It was getting close. 1669 01:12:42,695 --> 01:12:44,363 Because he threw the fax machine 1670 01:12:44,396 --> 01:12:48,200 because he couldn't get some anti-anxiety medication. 1671 01:12:48,233 --> 01:12:50,969 So, we knew that he was feeling very anxious. 1672 01:12:51,003 --> 01:12:53,906 - But still, no sign Joel Courtney was willing 1673 01:12:53,939 --> 01:12:56,608 to reveal the location of Brooke's body. 1674 01:12:56,642 --> 01:12:58,677 The prosecutor was fed up. 1675 01:12:58,711 --> 01:13:01,547 He was ready for a trial. 1676 01:13:01,580 --> 01:13:04,783 Still, the judge wasn't quite ready to move on. 1677 01:13:04,817 --> 01:13:07,152 He asked both sides to try one last time 1678 01:13:07,186 --> 01:13:09,555 to settle the case before trial. 1679 01:13:09,588 --> 01:13:12,958 During weeks of tense talks with Joel Courtney's attorneys, 1680 01:13:13,058 --> 01:13:16,128 the prosecutor finally discovered the one incentive 1681 01:13:16,161 --> 01:13:18,163 that might appeal to Courtney 1682 01:13:18,197 --> 01:13:20,766 and give the Wilbergers their daughter back. 1683 01:13:20,799 --> 01:13:23,435 Courtney wanted out of Oregon. 1684 01:13:23,469 --> 01:13:25,938 He might admit to murder and reveal the location 1685 01:13:25,971 --> 01:13:27,373 of Brooke's remains 1686 01:13:27,406 --> 01:13:29,274 if he could serve his prison time 1687 01:13:29,308 --> 01:13:32,811 near his own family in New Mexico. 1688 01:13:32,845 --> 01:13:34,980 The Wilberger family quickly agreed. 1689 01:13:35,080 --> 01:13:37,549 Anything, they thought, to get Brooke back. 1690 01:13:37,583 --> 01:13:39,084 - We needed to have the approval 1691 01:13:39,084 --> 01:13:40,586 of the Oregon governor. 1692 01:13:40,619 --> 01:13:42,087 And we needed to have the approval 1693 01:13:42,087 --> 01:13:43,789 of the New Mexico governor. 1694 01:13:43,822 --> 01:13:46,325 Those were the two final pieces. 1695 01:13:46,358 --> 01:13:48,093 - You would think they would give their approval. 1696 01:13:48,093 --> 01:13:50,429 - We were becoming extremely concerned 1697 01:13:50,462 --> 01:13:52,865 that this process was taking so long 1698 01:13:52,898 --> 01:13:55,434 that Joel Courtney was gonna change his mind and walk away 1699 01:13:55,467 --> 01:13:57,403 and we desperately needed that approval 1700 01:13:57,436 --> 01:13:59,271 and we needed it now. 1701 01:13:59,304 --> 01:14:01,907 - But while Oregon's governor signed off on the deal 1702 01:14:01,940 --> 01:14:05,310 almost immediately, New Mexico's did not. 1703 01:14:05,344 --> 01:14:07,479 Brooke's family couldn't believe it. 1704 01:14:07,513 --> 01:14:10,649 - I was frustrated to think that something like that 1705 01:14:10,683 --> 01:14:15,220 could stop this whole process that had gone so far. 1706 01:14:15,254 --> 01:14:18,457 - So, Brooke's mom decided to make a personal plea 1707 01:14:18,490 --> 01:14:20,426 to the governor of New Mexico 1708 01:14:20,459 --> 01:14:22,928 to try to get her daughter back. 1709 01:14:22,961 --> 01:14:24,663 - This one was unusual. 1710 01:14:24,697 --> 01:14:25,964 I wanted full details. 1711 01:14:26,065 --> 01:14:29,134 And I wanted to be sure that I did the right thing. 1712 01:14:29,168 --> 01:14:30,469 - Coming up... 1713 01:14:30,502 --> 01:14:34,406 - I said that we had gone through a lot already. 1714 01:14:34,440 --> 01:14:35,674 - You were appealing to their hearts. 1715 01:14:35,708 --> 01:14:36,909 - I was. 1716 01:14:36,942 --> 01:14:39,078 - The emotional plea from Brooke's mother 1717 01:14:39,078 --> 01:14:42,081 for the deal that would finally solve the mystery-- 1718 01:14:42,081 --> 01:14:44,249 Where was Brooke? 1719 01:14:55,962 --> 01:14:57,330 - So many years had passed 1720 01:14:58,164 --> 01:15:00,433 and now that the deal was nearly done 1721 01:15:00,467 --> 01:15:02,635 that might allow Brooke Wilberger's family 1722 01:15:02,669 --> 01:15:04,371 to bring her body home, 1723 01:15:04,404 --> 01:15:07,173 could it all fall apart at the last minute? 1724 01:15:08,375 --> 01:15:10,477 Brooke's suspected killer, Joel Courtney, 1725 01:15:10,510 --> 01:15:12,045 had agreed to tell investigators 1726 01:15:12,078 --> 01:15:13,780 where Brooke's body was 1727 01:15:13,813 --> 01:15:15,682 if he could spend the rest of his life 1728 01:15:15,715 --> 01:15:19,052 not in an Oregon prison, but in New Mexico. 1729 01:15:19,052 --> 01:15:21,821 Oregon's governor was set to sign the agreement, 1730 01:15:21,855 --> 01:15:24,224 so it was up to then-New Mexico Governor 1731 01:15:24,257 --> 01:15:27,594 Bill Richardson, who hesitated. 1732 01:15:27,627 --> 01:15:30,096 - You're talking about a convicted rapist 1733 01:15:30,130 --> 01:15:34,100 and a man who's accused of-of a heinous murder. 1734 01:15:34,134 --> 01:15:35,802 I imagine you must've thought, 1735 01:15:35,835 --> 01:15:38,872 "Well, I don't know if I want this person in our state." 1736 01:15:38,905 --> 01:15:40,340 - Well, that's true. 1737 01:15:40,373 --> 01:15:45,111 Um, he, uh, was a very bad guy. 1738 01:15:45,145 --> 01:15:48,782 And I said to my staff, "Let's be sure of all the facts. 1739 01:15:48,815 --> 01:15:52,318 Let's be sure that, uh, we're doin' the right thing." 1740 01:15:52,352 --> 01:15:54,821 - Richardson wanted to hear from Brooke's family. 1741 01:15:54,854 --> 01:15:57,490 Brooke's mother, Cammy Wilberger called the state capitol 1742 01:15:57,524 --> 01:15:59,793 and spoke with a top aide. 1743 01:15:59,826 --> 01:16:02,595 Do you remember the exact words that you used in that call? 1744 01:16:02,629 --> 01:16:05,065 - I remember that I said that we had 1745 01:16:05,098 --> 01:16:07,334 gone through a lot already. 1746 01:16:07,367 --> 01:16:10,837 And that we were hoping that this could be the end of it. 1747 01:16:10,870 --> 01:16:13,373 And that we would just hope that they would, 1748 01:16:13,406 --> 01:16:15,308 you know, consider it. 1749 01:16:15,342 --> 01:16:16,543 - You were appealing to their hearts. 1750 01:16:16,576 --> 01:16:18,545 - I was. 1751 01:16:18,578 --> 01:16:20,180 - How critical was that phone call? 1752 01:16:20,213 --> 01:16:22,315 That personal phone call from the Wilberger family 1753 01:16:22,349 --> 01:16:23,383 to your office? 1754 01:16:23,416 --> 01:16:25,051 - Well, it was absolutely critical. 1755 01:16:25,085 --> 01:16:27,087 As long as there's life imprisonment. 1756 01:16:27,120 --> 01:16:29,622 As long as the family of Brooke Wilberger 1757 01:16:29,656 --> 01:16:32,092 felt that this would bring closure, 1758 01:16:32,125 --> 01:16:36,162 I was, uh, comfortable in signing this agreement. 1759 01:16:36,196 --> 01:16:37,464 - It was done. 1760 01:16:37,497 --> 01:16:40,467 The word police in Corvallis had been waiting for. 1761 01:16:40,500 --> 01:16:42,235 - I think we were all kind of on pins and needles 1762 01:16:42,268 --> 01:16:43,870 for several days there. 1763 01:16:43,903 --> 01:16:45,305 - That call finally comes. 1764 01:16:45,338 --> 01:16:48,074 - Yeah, I remember learnin' that the document was signed, 1765 01:16:48,074 --> 01:16:49,442 the plea was done. 1766 01:16:49,476 --> 01:16:52,078 Now, it's a matter of, we've gotta find a way 1767 01:16:52,078 --> 01:16:55,949 to get from him where she actually is. 1768 01:16:55,982 --> 01:16:57,917 - What had happened to Brooke? 1769 01:16:57,951 --> 01:16:59,519 Her family and investigators 1770 01:16:59,552 --> 01:17:01,388 who'd spent more than five years 1771 01:17:01,421 --> 01:17:03,823 trying to answer that question would, 1772 01:17:03,857 --> 01:17:06,493 in the coming days, get their first details 1773 01:17:06,526 --> 01:17:08,895 from her killer, Joel Courtney. 1774 01:17:08,928 --> 01:17:11,531 Courtney's lawyers relayed the story to the DA, 1775 01:17:11,564 --> 01:17:14,100 who then told Brooke's family. 1776 01:17:14,134 --> 01:17:15,535 - I thought everything had been difficult 1777 01:17:15,568 --> 01:17:16,803 until that time. 1778 01:17:16,836 --> 01:17:18,538 But when he told us the details of the crime, 1779 01:17:18,571 --> 01:17:20,407 it was the first time I had heard some of them 1780 01:17:20,440 --> 01:17:21,574 and it was just all I could do 1781 01:17:21,608 --> 01:17:24,310 to just sit there and just look straight ahead. 1782 01:17:24,344 --> 01:17:27,547 And-And I just kept thinking, "You can get through this day. 1783 01:17:27,580 --> 01:17:29,816 You can-You can get through this day." 1784 01:17:31,651 --> 01:17:34,421 - The story told by Joel Courtney was this. 1785 01:17:34,454 --> 01:17:36,089 He said that morning in May, 1786 01:17:36,122 --> 01:17:38,892 he was high on cocaine when he drove up to Brooke 1787 01:17:38,925 --> 01:17:41,161 in the parking lot in his green van, 1788 01:17:41,194 --> 01:17:43,430 asked for help delivering a package, 1789 01:17:43,463 --> 01:17:46,466 and when she came closer, he pulled out a knife 1790 01:17:46,499 --> 01:17:48,168 and pulled her into the van. 1791 01:17:48,201 --> 01:17:50,270 Brooke began screaming as he tore her 1792 01:17:50,303 --> 01:17:51,938 out of her flip-flops. 1793 01:17:51,971 --> 01:17:53,940 From there, Courtney said he drove west 1794 01:17:53,973 --> 01:17:55,742 toward the town of Philomath. 1795 01:17:55,775 --> 01:17:58,378 He kept Brooke tied up in the van for hours, 1796 01:17:58,411 --> 01:18:00,847 even going through a McDonald's drive thru, 1797 01:18:00,880 --> 01:18:04,384 he said, doing more drugs before night fell. 1798 01:18:04,417 --> 01:18:07,387 He raped Brooke and when she fought back, 1799 01:18:07,420 --> 01:18:09,322 he killed her by bludgeoning her 1800 01:18:09,356 --> 01:18:11,324 in the head with a piece of wood 1801 01:18:11,358 --> 01:18:15,762 before concealing her body in the forest. 1802 01:18:15,795 --> 01:18:17,764 - But to know that she fought. 1803 01:18:17,797 --> 01:18:19,899 You know, which didn't surprise us. 1804 01:18:19,933 --> 01:18:24,571 Um, it was just a really difficult time. 1805 01:18:24,604 --> 01:18:28,174 And very emotional, I think, for all of us as a family. 1806 01:18:28,208 --> 01:18:30,176 - And in addition to those details, 1807 01:18:30,210 --> 01:18:31,678 Joel Courtney provided 1808 01:18:31,711 --> 01:18:34,681 the most critical piece of information. 1809 01:18:34,714 --> 01:18:36,816 What Brooke's family and investigators 1810 01:18:36,850 --> 01:18:39,052 had been waiting for. 1811 01:18:39,085 --> 01:18:42,689 - He drew a-a rough hand-sketched map 1812 01:18:42,722 --> 01:18:45,558 that he says depicts where he took her. 1813 01:18:45,592 --> 01:18:47,127 - Do you know this location? 1814 01:18:47,160 --> 01:18:50,663 - It-It's, um, not too far away. 1815 01:18:50,697 --> 01:18:52,832 - Detectives drove from the police department 1816 01:18:52,866 --> 01:18:54,401 past the apartment complex 1817 01:18:54,434 --> 01:18:57,604 where Brooke was abducted west five miles, 1818 01:18:57,637 --> 01:18:59,806 through the small town of Philomath. 1819 01:18:59,839 --> 01:19:02,709 Then, five miles further off the highway 1820 01:19:02,742 --> 01:19:05,512 onto a logging road shown on the map. 1821 01:19:05,545 --> 01:19:07,280 Had you been there? 1822 01:19:07,313 --> 01:19:08,748 - Not precisely. 1823 01:19:08,782 --> 01:19:10,684 - Close by searching? - Absolutely. 1824 01:19:10,717 --> 01:19:13,053 - Ten miles is so close by. 1825 01:19:13,086 --> 01:19:15,188 - Yeah, but it may as well be an eternity. 1826 01:19:15,221 --> 01:19:17,323 We went up in the woods and we're tryin', 1827 01:19:17,357 --> 01:19:18,692 again, to be quiet. 1828 01:19:18,725 --> 01:19:20,226 We don't want the world to know. 1829 01:19:20,260 --> 01:19:22,796 And we're looking and we're not finding. 1830 01:19:22,829 --> 01:19:24,397 And I remember bein' rather frustrated. 1831 01:19:24,431 --> 01:19:26,299 - Did you think he lied? 1832 01:19:26,332 --> 01:19:28,335 - Well, that certainly crossed our minds that he lied. 1833 01:19:28,368 --> 01:19:31,071 - The team called it a night. 1834 01:19:31,104 --> 01:19:34,140 But the next day, they went back with more details 1835 01:19:34,174 --> 01:19:36,609 supplied by Joel Courtney. 1836 01:19:36,643 --> 01:19:40,647 - Okay, it's about 9:40 A.M. on September 19th. 1837 01:19:40,680 --> 01:19:42,749 - And with the help of a cadaver dog, 1838 01:19:42,782 --> 01:19:44,284 through heavy timber, 1839 01:19:44,317 --> 01:19:47,053 just a few hundred yards off that highway-- 1840 01:19:47,053 --> 01:19:49,756 - Chief Deputy Medical Examiner, uh, came back 1841 01:19:49,789 --> 01:19:52,392 and said, "I think we're got-- I think we found her." 1842 01:19:52,425 --> 01:19:55,695 - On a hillside, investigators found some clothing, 1843 01:19:55,729 --> 01:19:57,297 including a sweatshirt. 1844 01:19:57,330 --> 01:20:01,468 And before long, small flags sadly marked several spots 1845 01:20:01,501 --> 01:20:04,070 where human remains had been recovered. 1846 01:20:04,104 --> 01:20:06,740 One of Oregon's most timeless mysteries 1847 01:20:06,773 --> 01:20:08,875 had apparently been solved. 1848 01:20:08,908 --> 01:20:10,243 - I certainly can't sit here and tell you 1849 01:20:10,276 --> 01:20:11,978 that I wasn't choked up a few times. 1850 01:20:12,012 --> 01:20:13,680 Yeah, there were emotional times there. 1851 01:20:13,713 --> 01:20:16,583 - But it would take time to identify the remains, 1852 01:20:16,616 --> 01:20:18,852 so searchers told the district attorney 1853 01:20:18,885 --> 01:20:22,355 about one particular item found on that hillside. 1854 01:20:22,389 --> 01:20:25,258 They wanted him to ask Brooke's parents about it. 1855 01:20:25,291 --> 01:20:27,927 - He texted me, um, and said, 1856 01:20:27,961 --> 01:20:29,662 "Can you describe Brooke's watch?" 1857 01:20:29,696 --> 01:20:31,331 - That was the watch that you gave her for Christmas. 1858 01:20:31,364 --> 01:20:32,732 - Mm-hmm. 1859 01:20:32,766 --> 01:20:36,069 - That beautiful watch Brooke had wanted so badly. 1860 01:20:36,102 --> 01:20:38,405 One of the last gifts Cammy would ever buy 1861 01:20:38,438 --> 01:20:42,375 for her daughter now signaled the time had come. 1862 01:20:42,409 --> 01:20:45,245 - So, I described her watch and he said "We found her." 1863 01:20:45,278 --> 01:20:48,748 It was like having the first day and six years 1864 01:20:48,782 --> 01:20:53,019 and then the snowball just came down on top of you. 1865 01:20:53,053 --> 01:20:55,055 Everything landed on you. 1866 01:20:55,088 --> 01:20:57,924 - Brooke's parents then told the rest of the family. 1867 01:20:57,957 --> 01:20:59,893 The wait was over. 1868 01:20:59,926 --> 01:21:02,195 - When she just said the words "They found Brooke" 1869 01:21:02,228 --> 01:21:04,864 it was-- I didn't feel excitement at all. 1870 01:21:04,898 --> 01:21:07,200 And it wasn't what I thought I would feel. 1871 01:21:07,233 --> 01:21:10,303 I just-- I sat there and I cried and I cried. 1872 01:21:10,337 --> 01:21:12,839 That hope of her coming home alive 1873 01:21:12,872 --> 01:21:16,109 was-was just kinda torn from me. 1874 01:21:16,142 --> 01:21:20,647 - In that moment, I felt such a powerful wave 1875 01:21:20,680 --> 01:21:24,317 of emotion and heaviness in my heart. 1876 01:21:24,351 --> 01:21:28,588 As a human being, as a parent, 1877 01:21:28,621 --> 01:21:30,523 I was just personally really, really struck 1878 01:21:30,557 --> 01:21:34,260 at that point with what that really meant for the family. 1879 01:21:34,294 --> 01:21:35,962 That the dream 1880 01:21:35,995 --> 01:21:39,966 of an Eli-Elizabeth Smart miracle 1881 01:21:40,000 --> 01:21:42,535 would be dashed forever. 1882 01:21:42,569 --> 01:21:45,271 - The next day, Joel Courtney pleaded guilty 1883 01:21:45,305 --> 01:21:47,674 to one count of aggravated murder 1884 01:21:47,707 --> 01:21:51,745 and was sentenced to life in prison without parole. 1885 01:21:51,778 --> 01:21:52,946 Do you remember that day? 1886 01:21:52,979 --> 01:21:54,714 - I just remember thinking, 1887 01:21:54,748 --> 01:21:58,518 "How could you have done that to that precious child?" 1888 01:21:58,551 --> 01:22:01,087 I can't imagine holding out for that long 1889 01:22:01,121 --> 01:22:05,058 without needing to come forward and say 1890 01:22:05,058 --> 01:22:07,827 this is the truth and here is your precious baby. 1891 01:22:09,596 --> 01:22:12,432 - After sentencing, most of Brooke's family paid 1892 01:22:12,465 --> 01:22:16,503 a brief visit to the site where Brooke's remains were found. 1893 01:22:16,536 --> 01:22:17,937 - I could hardly breathe. 1894 01:22:17,971 --> 01:22:19,906 And it was wooded and-and shaded 1895 01:22:19,939 --> 01:22:21,641 and someone made the comment, 1896 01:22:21,675 --> 01:22:24,077 um, that, you know, it was a beautiful, peaceful place. 1897 01:22:24,077 --> 01:22:25,879 And I thought it would be, 1898 01:22:25,912 --> 01:22:28,448 if your daughter hadn't been murdered here. 1899 01:22:28,481 --> 01:22:30,984 - At the Corvallis Library, a number of police agencies 1900 01:22:31,084 --> 01:22:33,520 gather at the end of a five-year effort. 1901 01:22:33,553 --> 01:22:35,689 - And as the news broke that day, 1902 01:22:35,722 --> 01:22:37,657 Brooke's mother stepped to the podium 1903 01:22:37,691 --> 01:22:39,225 to say thank you. 1904 01:22:39,259 --> 01:22:41,194 Not only to thank those investigators 1905 01:22:41,227 --> 01:22:44,197 who'd worked so hard toward this day, 1906 01:22:44,230 --> 01:22:47,867 but also, in a moment of incredible grace, 1907 01:22:47,901 --> 01:22:50,537 to thank Brooke's killer. 1908 01:22:50,570 --> 01:22:52,238 - It might be hard for you to understand, 1909 01:22:52,272 --> 01:22:56,109 but at this time we just really feel gratitude. 1910 01:22:56,109 --> 01:23:00,847 Um, even to Mr. Courtney that he could see fit 1911 01:23:00,880 --> 01:23:03,049 to tell us where he left Brooke. 1912 01:23:05,452 --> 01:23:09,089 And for our family, what happens to him, 1913 01:23:09,122 --> 01:23:11,358 we are thankful that justice was served 1914 01:23:11,391 --> 01:23:14,561 and that he will not have the opportunity for parole. 1915 01:23:14,594 --> 01:23:18,098 But now he can go on with what's left of his life. 1916 01:23:18,131 --> 01:23:19,933 And we want to strengthen our family 1917 01:23:19,966 --> 01:23:22,135 and to go on with our life. 1918 01:23:22,168 --> 01:23:24,070 - Did it surprise you to hear Mrs. Wilberger 1919 01:23:24,070 --> 01:23:27,474 say thank you to Joel Courtney? 1920 01:23:27,507 --> 01:23:29,075 - It didn't surprise me. 1921 01:23:29,075 --> 01:23:31,277 They are a giving and caring family. 1922 01:23:31,311 --> 01:23:34,214 You can only hate for so long. 1923 01:23:34,247 --> 01:23:35,715 At some point, as people, 1924 01:23:35,749 --> 01:23:38,084 we have to be able to get beyond that. 1925 01:23:38,084 --> 01:23:40,453 - People always throw the word "closure" around. 1926 01:23:40,487 --> 01:23:41,588 - Mm-hmm. 1927 01:23:41,621 --> 01:23:43,690 When people use that term, they're-they're trying 1928 01:23:43,723 --> 01:23:46,126 to be helpful and comforting. 1929 01:23:46,159 --> 01:23:49,729 Um, but I think in the death of anyone, 1930 01:23:49,763 --> 01:23:52,132 there's no closure. 1931 01:23:52,165 --> 01:23:55,235 - It is the end of a horrible ordeal. 1932 01:23:55,268 --> 01:23:58,338 One that lasted much longer than it needed to. 1933 01:23:58,371 --> 01:24:00,373 For Brooke's killer, Joel Courtney, 1934 01:24:00,407 --> 01:24:01,908 a lifetime of solitude 1935 01:24:01,941 --> 01:24:05,345 awaits at the Penitentiary of New Mexico. 1936 01:24:05,378 --> 01:24:07,414 You have no sympathy for this man. 1937 01:24:07,447 --> 01:24:09,049 - No, I think he's an animal. 1938 01:24:09,049 --> 01:24:12,052 I hope he feels trapped, caged, 1939 01:24:12,085 --> 01:24:14,621 defeated, weak. 1940 01:24:14,654 --> 01:24:16,756 He's been beaten at his game. 1941 01:24:16,790 --> 01:24:19,626 And like it or not, accountable. 1942 01:24:19,659 --> 01:24:23,496 - And many wonder, would Joel Courtney had been caught 1943 01:24:23,530 --> 01:24:26,800 if a waitress and mom in New Mexico named Dara Finks 1944 01:24:26,833 --> 01:24:29,769 hadn't taken the time to save another woman 1945 01:24:29,803 --> 01:24:32,072 from an unknown fate. 1946 01:24:32,072 --> 01:24:34,174 What would've happened if Dara hadn't stopped? 1947 01:24:34,207 --> 01:24:35,909 - The victim would be dead. 1948 01:24:35,942 --> 01:24:37,744 I have no doubt that he would've grabbed her again 1949 01:24:37,777 --> 01:24:39,646 and we would never have found her. 1950 01:24:40,847 --> 01:24:42,849 - And for Brooke Wilberger's family, 1951 01:24:42,882 --> 01:24:45,085 they keep this wristwatch of Brooke's 1952 01:24:45,085 --> 01:24:46,786 along with their memories, 1953 01:24:46,820 --> 01:24:49,222 knowing that time is healing. 1954 01:24:49,255 --> 01:24:51,591 But only to a point. 1955 01:24:51,624 --> 01:24:54,828 - I don't think that I could be any years old 1956 01:24:54,861 --> 01:24:57,397 and-and have my entire life behind me 1957 01:24:57,430 --> 01:24:59,466 and I don't think that I will ever, 1958 01:24:59,499 --> 01:25:01,368 um, reflect on what happened to her 1959 01:25:01,401 --> 01:25:03,603 and be okay with it. You know? 1960 01:25:03,636 --> 01:25:05,705 Time's not gonna make that okay. 1961 01:25:05,739 --> 01:25:09,943 - She was the person you wanted to be or be like. 1962 01:25:10,043 --> 01:25:12,278 She emulated everything that was good. 1963 01:25:12,312 --> 01:25:14,114 That she was my sister. 1964 01:25:14,147 --> 01:25:16,916 Uh, and that was-- that's just-- 1965 01:25:16,950 --> 01:25:18,818 was a really neat thing. 1966 01:25:20,353 --> 01:25:23,857 - That's all for this edition of "Dateline: Secrets Uncovered." 1967 01:25:23,890 --> 01:25:26,359 I'm Kate Snow. Thank you for watching.