1 00:00:02,002 --> 00:00:04,743 [theme music] 2 00:00:04,961 --> 00:00:08,356 [wind blowing] 3 00:00:12,229 --> 00:00:13,839 [suspenseful music] 4 00:00:14,014 --> 00:00:15,492 LAURA HESLIN: I knew he was 5 00:00:15,493 --> 00:00:17,887 in trouble when he was sleeping with a 9 millimeter 6 00:00:18,061 --> 00:00:20,758 under the couch. 7 00:00:20,759 --> 00:00:23,284 - He was deep in gambling debts. 8 00:00:23,501 --> 00:00:24,502 I knew right away 9 00:00:24,720 --> 00:00:27,592 this is not going to end well. 10 00:00:27,810 --> 00:00:29,420 - It occurred in broad daylight. 11 00:00:29,638 --> 00:00:31,727 [rock music] 12 00:00:32,380 --> 00:00:35,035 [vocalizing] 13 00:00:36,514 --> 00:00:40,344 MICHAEL DE LA PENA: Two armed men approached the truck 14 00:00:40,562 --> 00:00:45,915 and took away a sack of cash with $1 million in it. 15 00:00:46,089 --> 00:00:49,049 One of the suspects was wearing a Santa Claus outfit. 16 00:00:49,266 --> 00:00:51,051 [vocalizing] 17 00:00:53,227 --> 00:00:55,185 MICHAEL DE LA PENA: We needed someone on the inside 18 00:00:55,403 --> 00:00:56,882 to lay it all out for us. 19 00:00:57,057 --> 00:00:58,754 [vocalizing] 20 00:00:58,971 --> 00:01:00,189 [ON] CLIFFORD SAUCIER: It looked 21 00:01:00,190 --> 00:01:01,800 like the body was killed somewhere else 22 00:01:02,018 --> 00:01:04,064 and buried in a snowbank. 23 00:01:04,238 --> 00:01:05,542 JAY SCHMIDT: Loose lips sink ships 24 00:01:05,543 --> 00:01:07,806 and usually end up with a bullet hole in you 25 00:01:08,024 --> 00:01:08,590 somewhere along the way. 26 00:01:08,807 --> 00:01:11,767 [vocalizing] 27 00:01:14,074 --> 00:01:17,338 [wind blowing] 28 00:01:20,428 --> 00:01:24,649 [bell tolling] 29 00:01:27,739 --> 00:01:31,439 CLIFFORD SAUCIER: Southington, Connecticut-- 30 00:01:31,656 --> 00:01:36,096 it's a quiet town, middle-class workers. 31 00:01:36,270 --> 00:01:38,881 A lot of them worked in factories. 32 00:01:41,971 --> 00:01:44,887 - The town is approximately 28 square miles. 33 00:01:45,105 --> 00:01:46,062 It's rather rural. 34 00:01:50,284 --> 00:01:51,894 It's not a place where 35 00:01:52,112 --> 00:01:53,678 many crimes are occurring. 36 00:02:01,121 --> 00:02:03,427 December 20, 1989, 37 00:02:03,645 --> 00:02:05,037 we were getting a lot of snow. 38 00:02:05,212 --> 00:02:06,212 [suspenseful music] 39 00:02:06,213 --> 00:02:07,605 It was below zero. 40 00:02:07,823 --> 00:02:08,911 It was that cold. 41 00:02:11,392 --> 00:02:13,176 - That morning, one of the captains 42 00:02:13,394 --> 00:02:18,007 came in and said, I believe we have a homicide. 43 00:02:18,181 --> 00:02:20,705 The pastor of a church discovered 44 00:02:20,923 --> 00:02:22,185 somebody buried in the snow. 45 00:02:26,711 --> 00:02:28,670 [sirens wailing] 46 00:02:29,236 --> 00:02:30,889 I went to West 47 00:02:31,107 --> 00:02:33,022 Center Street, where the crime scene was partitioned off. 48 00:02:33,196 --> 00:02:34,196 [siren wailing] 49 00:02:34,197 --> 00:02:35,372 And sure enough, there was 50 00:02:35,590 --> 00:02:36,721 a body on top of a snowbank. 51 00:02:38,941 --> 00:02:40,160 - It was pretty obvious 52 00:02:40,377 --> 00:02:42,510 that the person was deceased. 53 00:02:42,727 --> 00:02:45,033 Rigor mortis had set in. 54 00:02:45,034 --> 00:02:46,078 He was stiff. 55 00:02:46,253 --> 00:02:49,343 He certainly was not breathing. 56 00:02:49,560 --> 00:02:51,387 - The victim had red hair, red beard, 57 00:02:51,388 --> 00:02:53,999 and an emerald earring in one of his ears, 58 00:02:54,174 --> 00:02:57,177 and appearing to be about 25 years old. 59 00:03:00,267 --> 00:03:01,964 - We asked the reverend 60 00:03:02,182 --> 00:03:05,576 if he knew who this person was or had ever seen him before, 61 00:03:05,794 --> 00:03:07,490 and he had not. 62 00:03:07,491 --> 00:03:09,319 After a few minutes of looking around, 63 00:03:09,537 --> 00:03:16,457 it was quite obvious to us that the person did not die there. 64 00:03:17,719 --> 00:03:20,504 There was no sign of any struggle whatsoever. 65 00:03:20,722 --> 00:03:22,854 CLIFFORD SAUCIER: There was a snowstorm that night, 66 00:03:23,072 --> 00:03:27,076 but there was no tire marks in the snow. 67 00:03:27,250 --> 00:03:29,557 JOHN POTTER: It appeared that he was just thrown out 68 00:03:29,774 --> 00:03:34,125 of a vehicle because of the way he was laying on the snow bank. 69 00:03:34,126 --> 00:03:37,129 I remember thinking, nobody took time to hide it. 70 00:03:37,304 --> 00:03:38,478 They were rushing. 71 00:03:38,479 --> 00:03:41,090 Someone was just looking for a dark place 72 00:03:41,264 --> 00:03:44,528 just to get rid of the body. 73 00:03:44,746 --> 00:03:47,314 CLIFFORD SAUCIER: Then I noticed the blood. 74 00:03:47,531 --> 00:03:50,969 It looked like he had bitten through his tongue. 75 00:03:54,059 --> 00:03:56,627 I saw strangle marks around his neck, telling me 76 00:03:56,845 --> 00:03:59,630 the victim had been strangled to death. 77 00:04:02,720 --> 00:04:05,462 We really had no clue as to who this person was 78 00:04:05,680 --> 00:04:07,116 and why he was murdered. 79 00:04:07,290 --> 00:04:08,943 [ON] MICHAEL DE LA PENA: We need 80 00:04:08,944 --> 00:04:13,470 to find out who murdered him and to bring them to justice. 81 00:04:17,735 --> 00:04:20,869 [ominous music] 82 00:04:30,182 --> 00:04:33,795 [tense music] 83 00:04:34,709 --> 00:04:35,710 LAURA HESLIN: Connecticut-- 84 00:04:35,927 --> 00:04:38,626 it's a small state. 85 00:04:38,843 --> 00:04:40,279 It's not all Martha Stewart. 86 00:04:40,280 --> 00:04:43,065 We're not all fancy houses. 87 00:04:43,283 --> 00:04:48,244 It's more working class than it is the wealthy. 88 00:04:51,291 --> 00:04:56,513 I grew up in New Britain, a working-class city. 89 00:04:59,603 --> 00:05:04,215 The pubs and bars are more of a friendly meet-your-buddies kind 90 00:05:04,216 --> 00:05:06,001 of place. 91 00:05:06,218 --> 00:05:10,048 JAY SCHMIDT: It's really a small city, a little rugged. 92 00:05:10,266 --> 00:05:14,139 We were raised to always protect each other. 93 00:05:19,014 --> 00:05:21,538 LAURA HESLIN: There were six of us kids. 94 00:05:21,756 --> 00:05:24,324 [somber music] 95 00:05:25,803 --> 00:05:27,631 LAURA HESLIN: The two oldest hung out a lot together. 96 00:05:27,849 --> 00:05:29,938 The two youngest hung out a lot together. 97 00:05:30,155 --> 00:05:32,984 And then there was me and Robert in the middle, 98 00:05:33,202 --> 00:05:36,684 and we hung out a lot together. 99 00:05:36,901 --> 00:05:39,208 Robert was just goofy. 100 00:05:39,382 --> 00:05:41,689 He took goofy pictures. 101 00:05:41,906 --> 00:05:46,868 He was always somebody that you could rely on. 102 00:05:49,958 --> 00:05:51,699 [suspenseful music] 103 00:05:51,916 --> 00:05:53,614 JAY SCHMIDT: When I was 10, 104 00:05:53,831 --> 00:05:58,314 my brother Robert and I were out in the driveway, shoveling. 105 00:05:58,488 --> 00:06:01,186 Mom came out with a suitcase. 106 00:06:01,361 --> 00:06:03,188 A friend of hers picked her up. 107 00:06:03,363 --> 00:06:07,367 And Mom said goodbye, climbed in the car. 108 00:06:10,370 --> 00:06:13,721 - We never saw her again. 109 00:06:13,938 --> 00:06:16,027 Just gone. 110 00:06:16,245 --> 00:06:18,290 [sentimental music] 111 00:06:18,465 --> 00:06:20,510 LAURA HESLIN: I just don't think that she 112 00:06:20,728 --> 00:06:23,861 was cut out to be a mom. 113 00:06:24,079 --> 00:06:27,604 JAY SCHMIDT: It hurt my dad real bad. 114 00:06:35,264 --> 00:06:37,701 [clock ticking] 115 00:06:38,963 --> 00:06:41,749 JAY SCHMIDT: Mom leaving was pretty difficult. 116 00:06:41,966 --> 00:06:48,451 And for all of us six kids, we got into some trouble 117 00:06:48,669 --> 00:06:51,846 probably because of it. 118 00:06:52,063 --> 00:06:54,065 There was some pain, disbelief. 119 00:06:54,283 --> 00:06:56,024 Robert asked what caused it. 120 00:06:56,241 --> 00:06:57,546 Was it us? 121 00:06:57,547 --> 00:07:01,595 It was pretty rough on Robert for a while. 122 00:07:01,812 --> 00:07:03,031 It was tough. 123 00:07:03,248 --> 00:07:04,335 - Clear! 124 00:07:04,336 --> 00:07:05,163 LAURA HESLIN: After high school, 125 00:07:05,381 --> 00:07:07,775 Robert went in the military. 126 00:07:07,992 --> 00:07:12,432 He was stationed in Germany for two years as military police, 127 00:07:12,649 --> 00:07:14,999 and he loved it. 128 00:07:15,217 --> 00:07:18,699 He came home, and he did a lot of odd jobs. 129 00:07:18,916 --> 00:07:21,223 He did landscaping. 130 00:07:21,441 --> 00:07:26,054 He worked as a Loomis armored car guard, which made sense, 131 00:07:26,271 --> 00:07:29,579 but he really wanted to get his own business. 132 00:07:29,797 --> 00:07:32,539 Robert worked as a bartender, bouncer 133 00:07:32,756 --> 00:07:35,324 at Zindies, a bar in Canton. 134 00:07:42,157 --> 00:07:44,855 Jeff Stenner was the owner of Zindies. 135 00:07:45,073 --> 00:07:46,814 And Robert was like, he's going to help 136 00:07:47,031 --> 00:07:48,772 me become a business owner. 137 00:07:48,990 --> 00:07:50,687 We're going to work together. 138 00:07:50,905 --> 00:07:52,906 He's helping me. 139 00:07:52,907 --> 00:07:55,823 In 1986, Jeff purchased Bankers. 140 00:07:56,040 --> 00:07:58,390 He called it Bankers because it was an old bank, 141 00:07:58,565 --> 00:08:00,088 and it had a bank vault in it. 142 00:08:00,305 --> 00:08:02,351 Jeff wanted to turn it into a restaurant. 143 00:08:02,525 --> 00:08:07,051 Robert was working for Jeff, helping him, fixing it up. 144 00:08:07,269 --> 00:08:08,357 He loved it. 145 00:08:08,531 --> 00:08:10,751 He wanted to do big things. 146 00:08:10,968 --> 00:08:13,144 He had big dreams. 147 00:08:13,362 --> 00:08:16,147 Robert and Jeff got to be buddies. 148 00:08:16,365 --> 00:08:18,193 They did a lot of things together. 149 00:08:18,410 --> 00:08:20,238 He was just a really good friend of Robert's. 150 00:08:22,980 --> 00:08:26,506 [suspenseful music] 151 00:08:28,508 --> 00:08:32,816 LAURA HESLIN: Robert lived in New Britain with me. 152 00:08:33,034 --> 00:08:34,557 Robert worked at nights. 153 00:08:34,775 --> 00:08:36,124 I worked days. 154 00:08:36,341 --> 00:08:37,995 He would borrow my car, which was 155 00:08:38,213 --> 00:08:39,519 fine as long as he was home in the morning 156 00:08:39,736 --> 00:08:40,607 so I could go to work. 157 00:08:48,615 --> 00:08:51,008 After a while living with him, I could 158 00:08:51,226 --> 00:08:52,880 sense something was going on. 159 00:08:55,491 --> 00:08:57,754 He would get up and run to the window 160 00:08:57,972 --> 00:09:00,235 and look out any time a car would stop. 161 00:09:00,452 --> 00:09:02,497 And I kept asking him what was wrong. 162 00:09:02,498 --> 00:09:06,458 And he would tell me, what you don't know can't hurt you. 163 00:09:09,461 --> 00:09:12,507 And I knew he was really in trouble 164 00:09:12,508 --> 00:09:17,208 when he was sleeping with a 9 millimeter under the couch. 165 00:09:17,426 --> 00:09:18,645 JAY SCHMIDT: Robert wasn't small. 166 00:09:18,862 --> 00:09:19,949 He was 230 pounds. 167 00:09:19,950 --> 00:09:21,691 So for him to carry a gun, yeah, 168 00:09:21,909 --> 00:09:24,041 it's kind of a telltale sign something's up. 169 00:09:28,742 --> 00:09:33,094 LAURA HESLIN: On December 19, 1989, he got dressed. 170 00:09:33,311 --> 00:09:34,704 He was going to work. 171 00:09:36,706 --> 00:09:40,667 They found the gun under the couch after he was gone. 172 00:09:40,884 --> 00:09:45,367 That was unusual because that gun went with him everywhere. 173 00:09:45,585 --> 00:09:49,370 Later, he called me from Bankers 174 00:09:49,371 --> 00:09:55,377 and told me that he had to go to New Haven. 175 00:09:55,595 --> 00:09:58,685 [suspenseful music] 176 00:10:01,775 --> 00:10:03,298 LAURA HESLIN: The next morning, I get up, 177 00:10:03,515 --> 00:10:05,213 and my car wasn't in the driveway. 178 00:10:08,346 --> 00:10:11,741 And Robert wasn't on the couch. 179 00:10:11,959 --> 00:10:15,005 I started calling around. 180 00:10:15,223 --> 00:10:17,051 I couldn't find Robert anywhere. 181 00:10:17,268 --> 00:10:19,400 I didn't know where he was. 182 00:10:19,401 --> 00:10:21,098 That was not like Robert. 183 00:10:21,316 --> 00:10:22,883 Robert was reliable. 184 00:10:23,100 --> 00:10:26,147 If I said, you can use my car, but I need it back by 12:00, 185 00:10:26,364 --> 00:10:29,846 he was there by 12:00, always. 186 00:10:30,064 --> 00:10:33,154 There was just a gut feeling. 187 00:10:33,371 --> 00:10:35,852 I just knew something was not right. 188 00:10:40,814 --> 00:10:42,554 CLIFFORD SAUCIER: He owed everybody in town 189 00:10:42,729 --> 00:10:45,340 and had IOUs all over the place. 190 00:10:45,557 --> 00:10:47,385 - You don't know who's dealing the cards. 191 00:10:47,603 --> 00:10:49,649 They could set you up and then take you for it all. 192 00:10:52,260 --> 00:10:53,435 JAY SCHMIDT: Robert confiding 193 00:10:53,653 --> 00:10:55,567 in me was mind numbing. 194 00:10:55,742 --> 00:10:58,266 And I'm like, you got to be kidding me. 195 00:10:58,483 --> 00:11:00,616 I was stunned. 196 00:11:00,790 --> 00:11:04,620 It was a total setup from the beginning. 197 00:11:04,794 --> 00:11:09,494 [exhales sharply] 198 00:11:09,669 --> 00:11:14,108 [wind blowing] 199 00:11:22,290 --> 00:11:24,814 LAURA HESLIN: December 20, 1989. 200 00:11:25,032 --> 00:11:28,557 In the morning, I got up, and my car wasn't in the driveway. 201 00:11:28,731 --> 00:11:33,344 I started calling around, trying to find my car. 202 00:11:33,562 --> 00:11:36,696 And I couldn't find my brother Robert anywhere. 203 00:11:36,870 --> 00:11:38,001 I didn't know where he was. 204 00:11:40,700 --> 00:11:41,788 [phone ringing] 205 00:11:42,005 --> 00:11:43,310 JOHN POTTER: That morning, 206 00:11:43,311 --> 00:11:44,878 in Southington, the captain got the phone 207 00:11:45,095 --> 00:11:48,403 call that there was a body found in a church parking lot. 208 00:11:48,620 --> 00:11:51,754 [sirens] 209 00:11:53,147 --> 00:11:54,757 JOHN POTTER: The body was frozen, 210 00:11:54,975 --> 00:11:59,153 solid like a block of ice, buried in the snow bank. 211 00:11:59,370 --> 00:12:00,937 CLIFFORD SAUCIER: There was no signs of a 212 00:12:01,155 --> 00:12:02,503 struggle there. 213 00:12:02,504 --> 00:12:06,682 There was no footprints, no blood in the snow. 214 00:12:06,856 --> 00:12:09,859 And it looked like the body was killed somewhere else 215 00:12:10,077 --> 00:12:12,166 and dumped there. 216 00:12:12,383 --> 00:12:14,123 We had snow that night. 217 00:12:14,124 --> 00:12:17,432 And rigor mortis kicks in a lot quicker when it's that cold. 218 00:12:21,741 --> 00:12:23,046 The victim was tall. 219 00:12:23,264 --> 00:12:26,136 He had red hair and a red beard. 220 00:12:26,354 --> 00:12:29,357 He had an earring in his left ear. 221 00:12:29,574 --> 00:12:32,752 And we noticed some blood on his face 222 00:12:32,926 --> 00:12:35,755 and the groin area of his pants. 223 00:12:35,972 --> 00:12:39,846 And we didn't see any bullet holes or anything like that. 224 00:12:40,063 --> 00:12:41,672 CLIFFORD SAUCIER: You could see strangle marks 225 00:12:41,673 --> 00:12:45,765 on his neck, which went all around except for the back, 226 00:12:45,982 --> 00:12:48,898 making me suspect that he was strangled in the sitting 227 00:12:49,116 --> 00:12:50,987 position from behind, but probably 228 00:12:51,205 --> 00:12:52,901 in a car because the headrest would 229 00:12:52,902 --> 00:12:56,601 prevent the ligature marks to go completely around his neck. 230 00:13:00,780 --> 00:13:03,913 I also found, on top of the body, 231 00:13:04,131 --> 00:13:07,438 a glove manufactured by Boss. 232 00:13:07,656 --> 00:13:10,964 [suspenseful music] 233 00:13:14,054 --> 00:13:16,230 CLIFFORD SAUCIER: The body had no identification 234 00:13:16,447 --> 00:13:18,449 on it whatsoever. 235 00:13:18,667 --> 00:13:22,105 We really had no clue as to who this person was. 236 00:13:22,323 --> 00:13:23,541 The snow and the snowbank hadn't 237 00:13:23,759 --> 00:13:26,588 been disturbed hardly at all. 238 00:13:26,806 --> 00:13:28,590 There's no tire marks, nothing. 239 00:13:31,332 --> 00:13:34,074 I knocked on a few doors, some of the neighbors. 240 00:13:34,291 --> 00:13:36,598 Nobody had seen anything. 241 00:13:36,816 --> 00:13:39,514 At that time, the body was taken to the coroner's office. 242 00:13:47,304 --> 00:13:48,523 We went back to the police station. 243 00:13:51,308 --> 00:13:54,137 Sent an APB out to all police departments 244 00:13:54,355 --> 00:13:56,270 informing that we had a victim-- 245 00:13:56,487 --> 00:14:00,056 no ID, red hair, red beard, an emerald earring 246 00:14:00,274 --> 00:14:02,406 in one of his ears, and appearing 247 00:14:02,624 --> 00:14:04,365 to be about 25 years old. 248 00:14:04,582 --> 00:14:06,106 Not long after that, a detective from 249 00:14:06,323 --> 00:14:07,237 Canton, Connecticut-- 250 00:14:07,455 --> 00:14:08,629 [phone ringing] 251 00:14:08,630 --> 00:14:10,283 CLIFFORD SAUCIER: - calls and says, 252 00:14:10,284 --> 00:14:13,635 it might be a guy he knows, a bouncer named Robert Schmidt. 253 00:14:13,853 --> 00:14:16,116 This detective said that he worked for a guy named 254 00:14:16,333 --> 00:14:19,902 Jeff Stenner, who owned that Zindies bar and the Bankers bar 255 00:14:20,120 --> 00:14:21,164 in New Britain. 256 00:14:21,382 --> 00:14:22,730 [phone ringing] 257 00:14:22,731 --> 00:14:24,514 CLIFFORD SAUCIER: So we reached out to Jeff. 258 00:14:24,515 --> 00:14:27,910 He told me that him and Robbie were good friends. 259 00:14:28,128 --> 00:14:30,870 I asked him to come with us to the coroner's office 260 00:14:31,087 --> 00:14:31,958 and make an ID. 261 00:14:36,788 --> 00:14:39,748 Then, when the sheet was pulled, 262 00:14:39,922 --> 00:14:42,620 I saw Jeff kind of hesitate. 263 00:14:42,838 --> 00:14:45,493 You could tell that this affected him. 264 00:14:45,710 --> 00:14:48,931 And he goes, yeah, that's Robbie. 265 00:14:49,149 --> 00:14:51,847 And he was quite upset. 266 00:14:52,021 --> 00:14:54,328 [sentimental music] 267 00:14:55,372 --> 00:14:56,896 LAURA HESLIN: I get a phone call, 268 00:14:57,070 --> 00:15:01,248 and Jeff told me that they had found Robert's body. 269 00:15:01,465 --> 00:15:05,121 It just-- it shattered my life. 270 00:15:05,339 --> 00:15:09,560 I mean, Rob was my friend. 271 00:15:09,778 --> 00:15:12,999 He was the one I called when good things happen. 272 00:15:21,050 --> 00:15:23,618 JAY SCHMIDT: Stunned, flabbergasted, 273 00:15:23,835 --> 00:15:28,840 denial, heartbroken. 274 00:15:29,015 --> 00:15:30,799 Not what a holiday is supposed to be. 275 00:15:33,410 --> 00:15:35,630 And it has changed everyone ever since. 276 00:15:38,459 --> 00:15:39,373 For sure. 277 00:15:52,386 --> 00:15:54,388 JOHN POTTER: One of the first things we did was we ran 278 00:15:54,605 --> 00:15:55,693 Robert Schmidt's background. 279 00:15:55,911 --> 00:15:56,999 That's something we always do. 280 00:15:57,217 --> 00:15:58,696 And he had a pretty clean record. 281 00:15:58,914 --> 00:16:00,046 [suspenseful music] 282 00:16:00,263 --> 00:16:01,829 JOHN POTTER: During the investigation, 283 00:16:01,830 --> 00:16:05,529 we brought in Robert's two brothers, Steven and Keith, 284 00:16:05,747 --> 00:16:07,314 to find out if there is anyone who 285 00:16:07,531 --> 00:16:09,577 wanted to hurt their brother. 286 00:16:09,794 --> 00:16:13,189 They said that on March 4, 1987, 287 00:16:13,407 --> 00:16:16,584 Robert Schmidt was working with the Loomis armored car services 288 00:16:16,801 --> 00:16:19,065 when he was the victim of an armed robbery 289 00:16:19,282 --> 00:16:20,370 while he was working. 290 00:16:20,588 --> 00:16:22,241 [OFF] CLIFFORD SAUCIER: Anyone who 291 00:16:22,242 --> 00:16:24,984 was involved in that robbery, if they felt that Robbie was 292 00:16:25,201 --> 00:16:27,377 ratting them out, that would be motive enough 293 00:16:27,595 --> 00:16:29,640 for them to kill him. 294 00:16:29,858 --> 00:16:31,947 JOHN POTTER: Two years later, Robert Schmidt was 295 00:16:32,121 --> 00:16:34,863 found deceased in a snowbank. 296 00:16:35,037 --> 00:16:38,127 Is there some connection between these two cases? 297 00:16:38,345 --> 00:16:40,695 We were not quite sure. 298 00:16:40,912 --> 00:16:43,959 The brothers also said that Robert Schmidt was 299 00:16:44,133 --> 00:16:45,961 a pretty good-sized gambler. 300 00:16:46,135 --> 00:16:47,571 LAURA HESLIN: I found out that Robert was 301 00:16:47,789 --> 00:16:50,400 gambling through the police. 302 00:16:50,618 --> 00:16:51,835 I was shocked. 303 00:16:51,836 --> 00:16:53,795 You don't know who's dealing the cards. 304 00:16:54,013 --> 00:16:56,102 They could set you up and then take you for it all. 305 00:17:01,585 --> 00:17:02,978 The next day, I 306 00:17:03,152 --> 00:17:05,285 started interviewing people that were employees 307 00:17:05,502 --> 00:17:07,330 of Bankers restaurant. 308 00:17:07,548 --> 00:17:10,203 We interviewed the owner, Jeff Stenner. 309 00:17:10,420 --> 00:17:13,119 He also led me to believe that Robbie was deep in gambling 310 00:17:13,336 --> 00:17:15,295 debts, owed to everybody in town 311 00:17:15,512 --> 00:17:18,689 and had IOUs all over the place. 312 00:17:18,907 --> 00:17:23,042 His sister Laura told us he was being paranoid, 313 00:17:23,216 --> 00:17:24,347 carrying a gun with him. 314 00:17:24,565 --> 00:17:27,263 I thought maybe it was gambling debt. 315 00:17:27,481 --> 00:17:32,616 I knew that this was probably a good motive to kill him. 316 00:17:32,834 --> 00:17:34,836 According to the people I spoke to, 317 00:17:35,054 --> 00:17:37,708 Robbie was supposed to be picked up by someone at 10 318 00:17:37,926 --> 00:17:39,971 o'clock that night. 319 00:17:40,146 --> 00:17:43,323 He left the downstairs lounge and went outside. 320 00:17:43,540 --> 00:17:45,325 Nobody saw him after that. 321 00:17:48,415 --> 00:17:50,721 The owner, Jeff Stenner, was telling me 322 00:17:50,939 --> 00:17:53,159 that Robbie's car he had borrowed 323 00:17:53,376 --> 00:17:55,335 from his sister, Laura, was in the parking 324 00:17:55,552 --> 00:17:56,901 lot outside of Bankers. 325 00:17:59,513 --> 00:18:02,081 When I approached the car, it was unlocked. 326 00:18:02,255 --> 00:18:03,821 I found that kind of odd, especially 327 00:18:04,039 --> 00:18:06,781 in that section of town. 328 00:18:06,998 --> 00:18:07,738 I popped the trunk. 329 00:18:07,956 --> 00:18:09,174 I look in. 330 00:18:09,175 --> 00:18:11,568 I find some rope, which is approximately 331 00:18:11,786 --> 00:18:14,093 the same circumference of the ligature marks 332 00:18:14,310 --> 00:18:16,747 on the victim's neck. 333 00:18:16,965 --> 00:18:22,274 I look underneath the seat, and I find a tag from Boss. 334 00:18:22,275 --> 00:18:24,886 And I remembered there was the Boss glove that 335 00:18:25,104 --> 00:18:26,496 was found on top of the body. 336 00:18:29,586 --> 00:18:31,153 I talked to Laura about the rope 337 00:18:31,371 --> 00:18:33,024 in the trunk and the glove. 338 00:18:33,199 --> 00:18:36,202 And she said, no, it's not my glove. 339 00:18:36,419 --> 00:18:39,379 And she said, I had no rope in the trunk of the car. 340 00:18:41,903 --> 00:18:45,036 I said to myself, bingo, this is it. 341 00:18:45,211 --> 00:18:47,038 This car is where he was murdered. 342 00:18:50,825 --> 00:18:53,436 [wind blowing] 343 00:18:54,263 --> 00:18:58,572 [wind blowing] 344 00:19:07,450 --> 00:19:12,063 - On the morning of December 20, 1989, 345 00:19:12,238 --> 00:19:15,980 Robert Schmidt was found murdered, buried in a snowbank. 346 00:19:19,070 --> 00:19:22,595 We believe that he was killed in the sister's car. 347 00:19:22,596 --> 00:19:25,599 [ominous music] 348 00:19:28,384 --> 00:19:29,472 JOHN POTTER: Then we seized 349 00:19:29,690 --> 00:19:33,520 Robbie's sister's Honda Civic. 350 00:19:33,737 --> 00:19:36,827 We process it from the front to the back. 351 00:19:37,045 --> 00:19:39,438 We check for fingerprints, we check for DNA, 352 00:19:39,439 --> 00:19:41,223 and we wait for their results to come. 353 00:19:46,968 --> 00:19:48,622 CLIFFORD SAUCIER: During one of the interviews 354 00:19:48,839 --> 00:19:50,841 with Robbie's boss, Jeff Stenner, 355 00:19:51,059 --> 00:19:52,365 he led me to believe that Robbie 356 00:19:52,582 --> 00:19:54,541 was deep in gambling debts. 357 00:19:54,758 --> 00:19:57,370 I thought that maybe this was why he was murdered. 358 00:20:00,460 --> 00:20:02,940 If he had a lot of debt, we needed to find 359 00:20:03,158 --> 00:20:04,638 who would want to kill him. 360 00:20:14,996 --> 00:20:17,912 LAURA HESLIN: Christmas time, 1989, 361 00:20:18,129 --> 00:20:23,178 we spent that entire holiday knowing we 362 00:20:23,352 --> 00:20:24,397 had to bury my brother. 363 00:20:27,313 --> 00:20:30,794 We did Robert's wake on the 26th. 364 00:20:31,012 --> 00:20:36,713 I've never seen my father weak until then, 365 00:20:36,931 --> 00:20:41,457 to watch him bury his son. 366 00:20:41,675 --> 00:20:46,854 Dad's aged, like, 100 years in that period of time. 367 00:20:52,903 --> 00:20:55,166 CLIFFORD SAUCIER: As the detective, 368 00:20:55,341 --> 00:20:58,213 I always go to the wake to pay my respects, 369 00:20:58,387 --> 00:21:02,217 and sit there and just listen and watch. 370 00:21:02,391 --> 00:21:04,045 You never know what you're gonna find out. 371 00:21:06,439 --> 00:21:10,486 I see Jeff Stenner walk into the funeral parlor. 372 00:21:10,704 --> 00:21:14,577 And with him is his wife, Jill. 373 00:21:14,795 --> 00:21:16,405 Jill was really uncomfortable. 374 00:21:16,623 --> 00:21:20,017 She just wouldn't look at me at all. 375 00:21:20,235 --> 00:21:22,454 Not long after the wake, Robbie's father 376 00:21:22,455 --> 00:21:25,458 told us Jeff had asked the funeral director for a death 377 00:21:25,675 --> 00:21:28,808 certificate on Robbie Schmidt. 378 00:21:28,809 --> 00:21:31,072 LAURA HESLIN: My father was furious that Jeff Stenner 379 00:21:31,290 --> 00:21:33,553 had the audacity to show up at our brother's wake 380 00:21:33,770 --> 00:21:36,164 and ask for a death certificate. 381 00:21:36,338 --> 00:21:37,470 That's ballsy. 382 00:21:45,695 --> 00:21:46,740 CLIFFORD SAUCIER: So I brought Jeff Stenner 383 00:21:46,957 --> 00:21:49,482 back in for another interview. 384 00:21:49,699 --> 00:21:51,221 He informed me that he had life insurance 385 00:21:51,222 --> 00:21:55,705 policies on key employees in the amount of $100,000. 386 00:21:55,923 --> 00:21:59,492 It was just a way to protect his business. 387 00:21:59,709 --> 00:22:02,973 Needless to say, I find that suspicious. 388 00:22:03,191 --> 00:22:05,236 It goes to motive. 389 00:22:05,411 --> 00:22:09,719 He was the beneficiary of a lot of money. 390 00:22:09,937 --> 00:22:13,157 So that changed my attitude of Jeff Stenner. 391 00:22:13,332 --> 00:22:16,596 He went from being a friend to a suspect. 392 00:22:22,036 --> 00:22:24,778 After that, I started interviewing customers who 393 00:22:24,995 --> 00:22:28,389 had been at Bankers restaurant the night prior to the body 394 00:22:28,390 --> 00:22:29,565 being found. 395 00:22:32,655 --> 00:22:33,613 I spoke to a man. 396 00:22:33,830 --> 00:22:35,702 He was a stockbroker. 397 00:22:35,919 --> 00:22:39,532 And he says the night of December 19, 398 00:22:39,749 --> 00:22:43,492 he saw Robbie Schmidt with Jeff Stenner in the parking lot 399 00:22:43,710 --> 00:22:45,233 with two guys. 400 00:22:45,407 --> 00:22:48,018 His words, they looked like bodybuilders. 401 00:22:50,673 --> 00:22:53,763 It took me a while to put a name on these two guys. 402 00:22:53,981 --> 00:22:57,811 I was talking to an undercover New Britain narcotics officer. 403 00:22:58,028 --> 00:23:00,596 Through my talking to him, giving him a description 404 00:23:00,814 --> 00:23:04,078 of these guys, he came up with two names, Scott 405 00:23:04,295 --> 00:23:05,906 Cancel and John Grzesczcyk. 406 00:23:12,216 --> 00:23:15,437 So I went directly to Scott Cancel's place. 407 00:23:15,655 --> 00:23:18,266 And John Grzesczcyk is there. 408 00:23:18,440 --> 00:23:22,313 And I ask them about the story. 409 00:23:22,488 --> 00:23:25,404 They're corroborating what the stockbroker told me. 410 00:23:25,578 --> 00:23:28,450 Scott Cancel said, yeah, we were in a parking lot. 411 00:23:28,668 --> 00:23:30,886 I was talking business with Jeff and Robbie. 412 00:23:30,887 --> 00:23:32,933 They want some renovation done. 413 00:23:33,150 --> 00:23:36,197 We didn't have probable cause to take their fingerprints, 414 00:23:36,415 --> 00:23:39,374 so I checked on both of them. 415 00:23:39,548 --> 00:23:42,029 And John Grzesczcyk had no fingerprints on file at all. 416 00:23:42,246 --> 00:23:44,597 And he had no criminal record at all. 417 00:23:44,814 --> 00:23:47,426 Scott Cancel had an extensive police record. 418 00:23:47,600 --> 00:23:50,516 So I took Scott Cancel's fingerprints that were on file 419 00:23:50,733 --> 00:23:53,823 and had the forensic lab check them to see if they match 420 00:23:54,041 --> 00:23:55,346 any of the fingerprint list that 421 00:23:55,521 --> 00:23:58,437 was obtained off Laura's car. 422 00:23:58,611 --> 00:23:59,394 There was no match. 423 00:24:03,703 --> 00:24:06,227 But I never wrote them off. 424 00:24:06,445 --> 00:24:07,402 JOHN POTTER: Every person we 425 00:24:07,576 --> 00:24:09,273 had available, we interviewed. 426 00:24:09,448 --> 00:24:11,100 We did everything. 427 00:24:11,101 --> 00:24:14,104 But it got to the point where nothing was coming our way. 428 00:24:20,197 --> 00:24:22,504 [suspenseful music] 429 00:24:22,722 --> 00:24:24,593 CLIFFORD SAUCIER: And then one day, Robbie's 430 00:24:24,811 --> 00:24:27,161 brother Jay came to my office. 431 00:24:27,378 --> 00:24:30,643 And he said that he had something to tell me. 432 00:24:30,860 --> 00:24:32,339 JAY SCHMIDT: I told the police 433 00:24:32,340 --> 00:24:34,951 that my brother and I were having a drink together, 434 00:24:35,169 --> 00:24:36,779 hadn't seen him in a while. 435 00:24:36,997 --> 00:24:40,609 And he asked me, do I know anything about Santa Claus 436 00:24:40,827 --> 00:24:44,047 robberies in West Hartford? 437 00:24:44,265 --> 00:24:47,268 He said he was part of it. 438 00:24:47,486 --> 00:24:49,313 And I said, what? 439 00:24:49,488 --> 00:24:51,620 What are you-- what are you talking about? 440 00:24:51,838 --> 00:24:54,144 He was shaky, scared. 441 00:24:54,362 --> 00:24:56,886 He said, yes, Jeff robbed the armored car 442 00:24:57,104 --> 00:24:59,498 in a Santa Claus suit. 443 00:24:59,715 --> 00:25:04,067 I didn't say anything because I was the only one that knew. 444 00:25:04,285 --> 00:25:06,113 It's a brother's bond. 445 00:25:06,330 --> 00:25:07,941 We're not going to snitch on each other. 446 00:25:08,158 --> 00:25:14,642 But Robert ended up dead, so I told them everything. 447 00:25:14,643 --> 00:25:18,691 CLIFFORD SAUCIER: Jay said that on December 20, 1988, 448 00:25:18,908 --> 00:25:20,693 Jeff Stenner was the lone gunman. 449 00:25:20,910 --> 00:25:24,523 And he made Robbie Schmidt the driver of the getaway car. 450 00:25:27,613 --> 00:25:31,051 - It was just a total setup from the beginning. 451 00:25:31,268 --> 00:25:34,315 My brother said, Jeff's the only one that saw the money. 452 00:25:34,533 --> 00:25:36,143 I knew Robert was scared. 453 00:25:36,360 --> 00:25:38,928 I think Jeff had Robert in his pocket. 454 00:25:39,146 --> 00:25:41,540 I said, if Dad ever finds out, dude, you're done. 455 00:25:41,757 --> 00:25:43,716 My father would've dragged him right to the police station. 456 00:25:46,414 --> 00:25:49,112 They knew right away this is not going to end well. 457 00:25:49,330 --> 00:25:52,507 Loose lips sink ships, usually end up with a bullet 458 00:25:52,681 --> 00:25:54,291 hole in you somewhere. 459 00:25:57,381 --> 00:26:00,515 - $1.8 million total was stolen. 460 00:26:03,431 --> 00:26:05,085 His jaw dropped. 461 00:26:05,302 --> 00:26:07,566 He says, OK, I'll tell you everything I know. 462 00:26:07,740 --> 00:26:09,392 [OFF] CLIFFORD SAUCIER: If they felt 463 00:26:09,393 --> 00:26:11,961 that he was renting them out, that would be motive enough 464 00:26:12,179 --> 00:26:14,094 for them to kill him. 465 00:26:14,311 --> 00:26:16,618 [wind blowing] 466 00:26:17,488 --> 00:26:21,667 [wind blowing] 467 00:26:25,975 --> 00:26:29,500 CLIFFORD SAUCIER: Late December 1989, Robbie's 468 00:26:29,675 --> 00:26:31,415 brother Jay came to my office. 469 00:26:31,590 --> 00:26:35,332 And he said that he had something to tell me. 470 00:26:35,550 --> 00:26:38,422 Jay said, because Robbie had told him that Robbie had been 471 00:26:38,597 --> 00:26:40,947 involved with an armored car robbery 472 00:26:41,164 --> 00:26:45,342 with his boss, Jeff Stenner. 473 00:26:45,560 --> 00:26:47,910 Anyone who was involved in that robbery, 474 00:26:48,128 --> 00:26:51,958 if they felt that Robbie was ratting them out or talking 475 00:26:52,175 --> 00:26:54,090 to the feds, that would be motive enough 476 00:26:54,308 --> 00:26:57,050 for them to kill him. 477 00:26:57,267 --> 00:27:00,923 Unfortunately, Jay is just telling me a story. 478 00:27:01,141 --> 00:27:03,926 He didn't have any concrete evidence. 479 00:27:04,144 --> 00:27:06,015 It's all hearsay information. 480 00:27:06,233 --> 00:27:07,974 So I couldn't get enough probable 481 00:27:08,191 --> 00:27:09,889 cause to make an arrest on it. 482 00:27:10,106 --> 00:27:12,805 I was at a dead end on this. 483 00:27:13,022 --> 00:27:15,329 And so the case got cold. 484 00:27:22,031 --> 00:27:24,686 MICHAEL DE LA PENA: I arrived in the summer of '91 485 00:27:24,904 --> 00:27:27,471 to Hartford as a brand-new FBI agent. 486 00:27:27,646 --> 00:27:30,344 We were investigating two separate armored car 487 00:27:30,561 --> 00:27:33,913 robberies, one in March of '87 and the other 488 00:27:34,130 --> 00:27:35,610 in December of '88. 489 00:27:35,784 --> 00:27:37,568 We believed that it was Jeff Stenner 490 00:27:37,743 --> 00:27:39,832 who robbed the armored cars. 491 00:27:40,049 --> 00:27:42,922 We just couldn't prove it. 492 00:27:43,139 --> 00:27:44,619 [tires squealing] 493 00:27:44,793 --> 00:27:46,012 [ON] MICHAEL DE LA PENA: The first robbery 494 00:27:46,229 --> 00:27:49,450 was on March 4th of 1987. 495 00:27:49,668 --> 00:27:53,323 Two armed men approached the Loomis truck 496 00:27:53,541 --> 00:27:57,719 while it was making a delivery and took away a sack of cash 497 00:27:57,937 --> 00:27:59,678 with $1 million in it. 498 00:27:59,895 --> 00:28:02,419 The FBI found out, at the time, Robbie Schmidt 499 00:28:02,637 --> 00:28:05,858 was working for Loomis and was one of the guards 500 00:28:06,075 --> 00:28:09,383 that had been robbed. 501 00:28:09,600 --> 00:28:14,214 We now believe Robbie Schmidt was the inside man. 502 00:28:14,431 --> 00:28:19,045 There was that theory that Stenner was manipulating Robbie 503 00:28:19,262 --> 00:28:23,789 Schmidt into doing this. 504 00:28:24,006 --> 00:28:29,229 The second armored car robbery was on December 20 of 1988, 505 00:28:29,446 --> 00:28:31,622 and it occurred in broad daylight. 506 00:28:31,797 --> 00:28:33,842 [vocalizing] 507 00:28:34,060 --> 00:28:35,322 One of the suspects 508 00:28:35,539 --> 00:28:38,020 was wearing a Santa Claus outfit. 509 00:28:38,238 --> 00:28:43,243 And he and his associate took almost $800,000. 510 00:28:43,460 --> 00:28:48,683 So $1.8 million total was stolen in both. 511 00:28:48,857 --> 00:28:51,120 Based on the description of one of the witnesses 512 00:28:51,338 --> 00:28:55,255 at the Santa Claus robbery, we had the newspapers 513 00:28:55,472 --> 00:28:57,039 put out the sketch. 514 00:28:57,257 --> 00:29:00,173 It just didn't match anybody. 515 00:29:00,390 --> 00:29:05,787 But suspicion was cast on Jeff Stenner and his associates 516 00:29:06,005 --> 00:29:09,399 because Jeff Stenner and his wife, Jill St. John, 517 00:29:09,617 --> 00:29:12,445 were going to the banks with hundreds of small amounts, 518 00:29:12,446 --> 00:29:13,969 $3,000 and $4,000. 519 00:29:14,187 --> 00:29:15,666 Some of the deposits were occurring 520 00:29:15,841 --> 00:29:20,149 the same day of the robberies. 521 00:29:20,367 --> 00:29:22,761 Unfortunately, that is not enough to charge them 522 00:29:22,935 --> 00:29:24,763 because you need to prove the underlying offense 523 00:29:24,937 --> 00:29:28,984 to show that the money was gotten through illicit means. 524 00:29:29,202 --> 00:29:32,683 [suspenseful music] 525 00:29:35,121 --> 00:29:36,470 [OFF] MICHAEL DE LA PENA: Robbie Schmidt 526 00:29:36,687 --> 00:29:41,517 was found murdered on December 20 of 1989, 527 00:29:41,518 --> 00:29:45,218 on the one-year anniversary of that second robbery. 528 00:29:45,435 --> 00:29:47,786 Talking to Detective Cliff Saucier, 529 00:29:48,003 --> 00:29:50,571 we thought that if we could at least find Jeff Stenner 530 00:29:50,789 --> 00:29:53,139 guilty of the armored car robberies, 531 00:29:53,356 --> 00:29:57,230 it would put pressure on Stenner and his cohorts, 532 00:29:57,447 --> 00:29:59,536 and that the charges would bring 533 00:29:59,754 --> 00:30:02,713 leverage against Jeff Stenner in the murder 534 00:30:02,888 --> 00:30:04,453 of Robbie Schmidt. 535 00:30:04,454 --> 00:30:07,631 We were up against the timeline because the statute 536 00:30:07,806 --> 00:30:10,852 of limitations for bank robberies is five years. 537 00:30:11,070 --> 00:30:17,076 So I only had until March of '92 to solve the case. 538 00:30:17,293 --> 00:30:18,425 The clock was ticking. 539 00:30:23,299 --> 00:30:24,605 [phone ringing] 540 00:30:24,823 --> 00:30:25,824 MICHAEL DE LA PENA: I really need someone 541 00:30:26,041 --> 00:30:28,304 on the inside to cooperate. 542 00:30:28,522 --> 00:30:31,046 So according to the files, we believe that Stenner 543 00:30:31,264 --> 00:30:33,179 also used his employees. 544 00:30:35,572 --> 00:30:39,402 I went to one of the waiters, and I knocked on his door. 545 00:30:39,620 --> 00:30:41,317 And the minute I introduced myself, 546 00:30:41,535 --> 00:30:43,624 I knew that he had been involved in the robbery. 547 00:30:43,842 --> 00:30:46,322 I could just tell by his demeanor. 548 00:30:46,540 --> 00:30:52,198 He denied any involvement, but I told him I'd be back. 549 00:30:52,415 --> 00:30:56,071 We only had less than a month left on the clock 550 00:30:56,289 --> 00:30:59,074 before the statute of limitations expired. 551 00:30:59,292 --> 00:31:01,468 We had to get our witness to cooperate. 552 00:31:01,685 --> 00:31:06,603 We needed someone on the inside to lay it all out for us. 553 00:31:06,821 --> 00:31:11,086 And so I kept going back three or four more times. 554 00:31:11,304 --> 00:31:14,089 I went to his house once more. 555 00:31:14,307 --> 00:31:16,700 I said, look, I have a grand jury subpoena for you. 556 00:31:16,875 --> 00:31:18,354 If you don't tell the truth, you 557 00:31:18,572 --> 00:31:21,705 could get in a lot of trouble. 558 00:31:21,880 --> 00:31:24,143 And his jaw dropped. 559 00:31:24,360 --> 00:31:27,320 He says, OK, I'll tell you everything I know. 560 00:31:27,537 --> 00:31:31,628 He agreed to cooperate, and so we agreed not to charge him. 561 00:31:31,846 --> 00:31:36,982 And then I put him in a motel under an assumed name. 562 00:31:37,199 --> 00:31:39,854 He was fearful for his life. 563 00:31:40,028 --> 00:31:43,727 He said, we all know Jeff Stenner killed Robbie Schmidt. 564 00:31:43,902 --> 00:31:45,338 And they were friends. 565 00:31:45,555 --> 00:31:46,861 I'm not even his friend. 566 00:31:47,035 --> 00:31:52,475 So he'll kill me without even batting an eyelid. 567 00:31:52,693 --> 00:31:54,869 [wind blowing] 568 00:31:55,522 --> 00:32:00,309 [wind blowing] 569 00:32:06,620 --> 00:32:10,058 MICHAEL DE LA PENA: And then, late January of '92, 570 00:32:10,276 --> 00:32:13,627 I finally got this witness to cooperate. 571 00:32:13,844 --> 00:32:16,021 We were up against the clock because we only 572 00:32:16,238 --> 00:32:18,806 had a few days left before the statute of limitations 573 00:32:18,980 --> 00:32:20,547 expired on March 4. 574 00:32:23,202 --> 00:32:27,684 The next morning, we got the arrest warrants for Stenner, 575 00:32:27,902 --> 00:32:30,992 and we prepared an arrest plan. 576 00:32:31,210 --> 00:32:32,559 [suspenseful music] 577 00:32:32,776 --> 00:32:35,562 [sirens wailing] 578 00:32:36,780 --> 00:32:38,565 MICHAEL DE LA PENA: The day of the arrest, 579 00:32:38,782 --> 00:32:41,133 we all got together very early in the morning. 580 00:32:41,350 --> 00:32:44,919 The FBI team and Detective Saucier was with us as well. 581 00:32:45,093 --> 00:32:49,619 On January 30, 1992, three years after Robbie Schmidt 582 00:32:49,837 --> 00:32:53,667 had been murdered, we effected the arrest of Jeff Stenner 583 00:32:53,884 --> 00:32:57,236 at his condo in New Britain, Connecticut, 584 00:32:57,453 --> 00:33:03,024 for the armored car robberies and the money laundering. 585 00:33:03,242 --> 00:33:06,593 [suspenseful music] 586 00:33:08,073 --> 00:33:09,596 MICHAEL DE LA PENA: After all the evidence was presented 587 00:33:09,813 --> 00:33:11,946 against him, including the witnesses, 588 00:33:12,120 --> 00:33:16,081 Jeff Stenner agreed to reach a plea deal with the government 589 00:33:16,298 --> 00:33:18,083 to avoid a trial. 590 00:33:18,300 --> 00:33:22,217 He agreed to plead guilty to the second Santa Claus robbery, 591 00:33:22,435 --> 00:33:25,177 and the first robbery was dropped. 592 00:33:25,394 --> 00:33:31,139 He was sentenced to eight years in federal prison. 593 00:33:31,357 --> 00:33:36,492 The $1.8 million in cash to this day is unaccounted. 594 00:33:36,710 --> 00:33:39,278 At the time of Jeff Stenner's arrest for the armored car 595 00:33:39,495 --> 00:33:42,324 robberies, we did not have enough evidence 596 00:33:42,542 --> 00:33:46,763 to link him to the murder of Robbie Schmidt. 597 00:33:46,981 --> 00:33:50,158 But the hope was that by charging him 598 00:33:50,376 --> 00:33:53,204 that we could shake something loose with his accomplices that 599 00:33:53,205 --> 00:33:57,644 would help in that homicide investigation. 600 00:33:57,861 --> 00:33:58,775 [suspenseful music] 601 00:33:58,993 --> 00:34:00,167 JOHN POTTER: At that time, 602 00:34:00,168 --> 00:34:02,475 I got promoted to detective sergeant. 603 00:34:02,692 --> 00:34:08,524 So now I was in charge of the entire detective bureau. 604 00:34:08,742 --> 00:34:10,352 One of the first things I did was 605 00:34:10,570 --> 00:34:13,790 to tell two of my detectives, go through everything. 606 00:34:14,008 --> 00:34:16,401 Re-interview people that we've already interviewed. 607 00:34:16,402 --> 00:34:18,969 And I want you to resubmit all that evidence 608 00:34:19,144 --> 00:34:20,710 we have back to the lab again. 609 00:34:26,629 --> 00:34:30,372 We get a hit, this time on a fingerprint that was gathered 610 00:34:30,590 --> 00:34:33,114 from the rear-view mirror next to the driver's 611 00:34:33,332 --> 00:34:36,291 side out of the car where Robert Schmidt was killed. 612 00:34:36,509 --> 00:34:40,121 We found out the fingerprint belongs to a John Grzesczcyk. 613 00:34:40,339 --> 00:34:41,556 [OFF] CLIFFORD SAUCIER: The first time 614 00:34:41,557 --> 00:34:43,603 I interviewed John, he had no record, 615 00:34:43,820 --> 00:34:45,866 had no fingerprints on file at all. 616 00:34:46,084 --> 00:34:50,784 But now, 2000, he applied for a gun permit. 617 00:34:51,001 --> 00:34:52,654 In Connecticut, 618 00:34:52,655 --> 00:34:54,527 when you get a pistol permit, you have to be fingerprinted. 619 00:34:54,744 --> 00:34:57,399 That means now that person has fingerprints 620 00:34:57,617 --> 00:34:59,226 that are in the system. 621 00:34:59,227 --> 00:35:02,274 So now, this time, we did have a hit on the fingerprints 622 00:35:02,491 --> 00:35:09,106 that we found in 1989. 623 00:35:09,107 --> 00:35:11,370 Your heart does beat a little faster when you get some very 624 00:35:11,587 --> 00:35:13,502 good evidence like that. 625 00:35:13,720 --> 00:35:16,461 It just opened up the case wide. 626 00:35:16,462 --> 00:35:18,551 [sirens wailing] 627 00:35:19,682 --> 00:35:20,509 [OFF] CLIFFORD SAUCIER: The detectives 628 00:35:20,727 --> 00:35:23,077 went to interview him. 629 00:35:23,251 --> 00:35:25,906 At first, he played like he didn't remember the murder. 630 00:35:26,124 --> 00:35:28,648 So they turned the pressure up on him, 631 00:35:28,865 --> 00:35:31,607 showed him some pictures from the crime scene. 632 00:35:31,825 --> 00:35:33,653 And then they showed him the results of the 633 00:35:33,870 --> 00:35:36,786 fingerprint identification. 634 00:35:37,004 --> 00:35:39,746 And that's when he said he was involved. 635 00:35:39,963 --> 00:35:41,530 We learned that John 636 00:35:41,748 --> 00:35:43,489 had completely turned around. 637 00:35:43,706 --> 00:35:45,185 He was married. 638 00:35:45,186 --> 00:35:47,754 He had a family, never got involved in any trouble. 639 00:35:47,971 --> 00:35:50,800 So he was willing to testify and give up 640 00:35:51,018 --> 00:35:53,238 whatever information he had for some leniency 641 00:35:53,455 --> 00:35:55,022 from the state's attorney. 642 00:35:55,196 --> 00:35:56,849 [OFF] CLIFFORD SAUCIER: He confesses 643 00:35:56,850 --> 00:35:59,635 to being the driver of the car wherein Robbie was murdered. 644 00:35:59,853 --> 00:36:01,201 And then he gives them the guy who 645 00:36:01,202 --> 00:36:04,336 did the actual strangling in the back seat, 646 00:36:04,553 --> 00:36:06,555 a guy named Delgado. 647 00:36:06,773 --> 00:36:08,992 John Grzesczcyk also tells investigators 648 00:36:09,167 --> 00:36:11,995 that night they were being followed by Scott Cancel 649 00:36:12,170 --> 00:36:16,042 and a guy named Salvatore Zampi in another car. 650 00:36:16,043 --> 00:36:19,829 John Grzesczcyk and Delgado each got $1,000 by Jeff 651 00:36:20,047 --> 00:36:21,788 Stenner to do the murder. 652 00:36:24,878 --> 00:36:26,575 JOHN POTTER: Now we had enough new information 653 00:36:26,793 --> 00:36:29,186 based on the fingerprints and interviews 654 00:36:29,187 --> 00:36:32,886 to get a warrant for Jeff Stenner. 655 00:36:33,103 --> 00:36:35,584 MICHAEL DE LA PENA: Jeff Stenner was the mastermind. 656 00:36:35,802 --> 00:36:37,717 He was the planner. 657 00:36:37,934 --> 00:36:39,196 He was the manipulator. 658 00:36:39,197 --> 00:36:42,983 He was the one pulling all the strings. 659 00:36:43,201 --> 00:36:46,769 And he hired these people to, quote unquote, 660 00:36:46,987 --> 00:36:50,077 "take care of" Robbie Schmidt. 661 00:36:50,251 --> 00:36:52,427 We're going to get every single person 662 00:36:52,645 --> 00:36:55,387 involved in that homicide. 663 00:36:55,604 --> 00:36:58,041 [wind blowing] 664 00:36:58,912 --> 00:37:03,046 [wind blowing] 665 00:37:03,221 --> 00:37:06,615 [sirens] 666 00:37:07,921 --> 00:37:11,229 JOHN POTTER: In the summer of 2001, 667 00:37:11,446 --> 00:37:13,143 we got the hit on that fingerprint 668 00:37:13,318 --> 00:37:17,322 we collected from the rear-view mirror in 1989. 669 00:37:17,539 --> 00:37:22,022 We found out it belongs to a John Grzesczcyk. 670 00:37:22,240 --> 00:37:25,721 CLIFFORD SAUCIER: They went and interviewed him. 671 00:37:25,939 --> 00:37:28,942 He told them that Jeff Stenner hired people 672 00:37:29,159 --> 00:37:32,772 to have Robbie Schmidt murdered because he 673 00:37:32,989 --> 00:37:35,470 thought Robbie was ratting to the FBI 674 00:37:35,688 --> 00:37:37,342 about the bank robberies. 675 00:37:37,559 --> 00:37:41,041 So they were able to get arrest warrants 676 00:37:41,259 --> 00:37:42,564 for all of those involved. 677 00:37:48,353 --> 00:37:49,615 JOHN POTTER: So two detectives 678 00:37:49,832 --> 00:37:52,182 went out to the prison. 679 00:37:52,357 --> 00:37:54,054 When Stenner saw him, he right away knew who 680 00:37:54,272 --> 00:37:56,186 they were and says, hi, boys. 681 00:37:56,361 --> 00:37:58,928 Are you here because I'm getting out of prison tomorrow? 682 00:37:59,146 --> 00:38:01,409 And they said, you know, a matter of fact, 683 00:38:01,627 --> 00:38:02,889 we have a warrant for your arrest 684 00:38:03,106 --> 00:38:05,065 on the Robert Schmidt case. 685 00:38:08,155 --> 00:38:09,896 CLIFFORD SAUCIER: John Grzesczcyk pled guilty. 686 00:38:10,113 --> 00:38:11,332 Delgado pled guilty. 687 00:38:11,550 --> 00:38:14,640 Zampi pled guilty. 688 00:38:14,857 --> 00:38:17,686 John Grzesczcyk drove the car, and Delgado 689 00:38:17,904 --> 00:38:19,383 strangled him to death. 690 00:38:19,384 --> 00:38:23,083 So they were both sentenced to 25 years in prison. 691 00:38:23,301 --> 00:38:24,866 JOHN POTTER: Salvatore Zampi, 692 00:38:24,867 --> 00:38:28,915 for his role in the crime, received three years in prison. 693 00:38:29,132 --> 00:38:31,352 CLIFFORD SAUCIER: But Scott Cancel and Jeffrey 694 00:38:31,570 --> 00:38:33,963 Stenner wanted a jury trial. 695 00:38:38,490 --> 00:38:39,882 JOHN POTTER: Scott Cancel's trial 696 00:38:40,100 --> 00:38:42,407 took place in 2002. 697 00:38:42,624 --> 00:38:45,235 John Grzesczcyk testified to everything 698 00:38:45,410 --> 00:38:51,720 that took place inside the vehicle on December 20, 1989. 699 00:38:51,938 --> 00:38:54,027 CLIFFORD SAUCIER: According to their confessions, 700 00:38:54,244 --> 00:38:56,508 Jeff Stenner had paid Scott Cancel 701 00:38:56,725 --> 00:39:03,253 to hire two or three men to have Robbie Schmidt murdered. 702 00:39:03,428 --> 00:39:05,908 JOHN POTTER: Jeff Stenner sent them on an errand. 703 00:39:06,126 --> 00:39:09,303 And then Robbie went along because Stenner was his boss. 704 00:39:09,477 --> 00:39:12,611 John Grzesczcyk drove Laura's Honda Civic, 705 00:39:12,828 --> 00:39:14,526 while Robbie sat in the passenger seat. 706 00:39:14,743 --> 00:39:17,442 And Gilbert Delgado rode in the back seat. 707 00:39:20,053 --> 00:39:24,405 Eventually, John parked the car near Southington Reservoir. 708 00:39:24,623 --> 00:39:26,886 Robert had no idea what was happening when 709 00:39:27,103 --> 00:39:32,543 Gilbert Delgado pulled a rope around his neck 710 00:39:32,544 --> 00:39:33,632 and strangled him. 711 00:39:43,381 --> 00:39:47,254 Around midnight, John and Gilbert pulled into a church 712 00:39:47,428 --> 00:39:49,561 parking lot in Southington. 713 00:39:49,778 --> 00:39:52,651 - And John Grzesczcyk and Delgado 714 00:39:52,868 --> 00:39:55,523 got out of the car and grabbed Robbie 715 00:39:55,741 --> 00:39:58,570 and pulled him into the snowbank. 716 00:39:58,787 --> 00:39:59,745 And then they left. 717 00:40:02,400 --> 00:40:04,402 - And then Salvatore Zampi 718 00:40:04,576 --> 00:40:06,534 threw out their clothes. 719 00:40:06,752 --> 00:40:08,318 MICHAEL DE LA PENA: They were all associates 720 00:40:08,493 --> 00:40:09,971 of Jeffrey Stenner. 721 00:40:09,972 --> 00:40:13,933 And they did this at the behest of Jeffrey Stenner. 722 00:40:14,150 --> 00:40:15,674 CLIFFORD SAUCIER: Jeff Stenner got away with it 723 00:40:15,891 --> 00:40:18,458 for a while, but not for long. 724 00:40:18,459 --> 00:40:21,419 After the trial, Scott Cancel was convicted 725 00:40:21,636 --> 00:40:23,116 for first-degree murder. 726 00:40:23,333 --> 00:40:25,423 The judge sentenced him to 60 years in prison 727 00:40:25,640 --> 00:40:28,556 for his part in the murder. 728 00:40:28,774 --> 00:40:31,167 At Jeff Stenner's trial, I testified 729 00:40:31,385 --> 00:40:35,258 that Jeff came in as a friend and mentor for Robert Schmidt 730 00:40:35,433 --> 00:40:39,611 and that he did the hiring for this murder. 731 00:40:39,828 --> 00:40:42,440 I believe Jeff wanted to eliminate 732 00:40:42,657 --> 00:40:46,487 Robbie to prevent him from talking to the authorities. 733 00:40:49,403 --> 00:40:51,753 The jury found him guilty. 734 00:40:51,971 --> 00:40:54,495 And the judge sentenced him to 60 years in prison 735 00:40:54,713 --> 00:40:55,714 for first-degree murder. 736 00:41:00,632 --> 00:41:03,330 JAY SCHMIDT: Knowing that Jeff is going to go to jail 737 00:41:03,504 --> 00:41:05,985 for life is satisfying. 738 00:41:06,202 --> 00:41:08,727 But it'll never take the pain away. 739 00:41:13,253 --> 00:41:15,908 Never. 740 00:41:16,125 --> 00:41:17,866 My brother was only 26. 741 00:41:18,084 --> 00:41:22,131 He was just a boy trying to become a man. 742 00:41:22,349 --> 00:41:25,961 And it's a shame that his life was ended in such 743 00:41:26,179 --> 00:41:29,486 a drastic and horrible manner. 744 00:41:29,487 --> 00:41:31,010 It's 35 years. 745 00:41:35,493 --> 00:41:37,669 Some days, it feels like yesterday. 746 00:41:41,368 --> 00:41:43,892 [sentimental music] 747 00:41:44,110 --> 00:41:45,503 LAURA HESLIN: I want the world to remember 748 00:41:45,720 --> 00:41:47,853 Robert and his big heart. 749 00:41:48,070 --> 00:41:51,900 I try to remember more of the smile, and the goofy grins, 750 00:41:52,118 --> 00:41:57,645 and the guy he was to me. 751 00:41:57,863 --> 00:41:58,603 He's missed. 752 00:41:58,820 --> 00:42:01,780 He's loved. 753 00:42:01,997 --> 00:42:05,392 I wish he had the opportunity to be a dad. 754 00:42:05,566 --> 00:42:09,004 I know he would have made an amazing uncle. 755 00:42:09,222 --> 00:42:11,790 I wish my girls got a chance to meet him. 756 00:42:14,575 --> 00:42:15,707 I miss my friend. 757 00:42:18,405 --> 00:42:19,537 I just miss my friend. 758 00:42:26,935 --> 00:42:30,069 [ominous music]