1 00:00:01,131 --> 00:00:03,568 [dramatic music] 2 00:00:03,611 --> 00:00:05,004 ♪ 3 00:00:05,048 --> 00:00:06,832 These two women had just come back 4 00:00:06,875 --> 00:00:08,442 from the Fourth of July holiday weekend, 5 00:00:08,486 --> 00:00:10,183 and they were viciously attacked 6 00:00:10,227 --> 00:00:12,490 in their Brooklyn brownstone. 7 00:00:12,533 --> 00:00:13,534 [gunshot] 8 00:00:13,578 --> 00:00:14,579 [siren wails] 9 00:00:14,622 --> 00:00:16,015 I got a phone call. 10 00:00:16,059 --> 00:00:17,190 Amanda had been shot, 11 00:00:17,234 --> 00:00:19,714 Sylvia had been shot and killed, 12 00:00:19,758 --> 00:00:22,065 and I almost dropped the phone. 13 00:00:22,108 --> 00:00:24,197 The community was very, very afraid, 14 00:00:24,241 --> 00:00:25,633 and they wanted results. 15 00:00:25,677 --> 00:00:29,115 There was a fellow known as the Park Slope Rapist, 16 00:00:29,159 --> 00:00:32,771 and he had not been apprehended yet. 17 00:00:32,814 --> 00:00:36,557 But our main suspect was someone closer to home, 18 00:00:36,601 --> 00:00:38,124 the only known witness. 19 00:00:38,168 --> 00:00:41,562 To the police, none of her story is making sense. 20 00:00:41,606 --> 00:00:42,607 You see someone shot, 21 00:00:42,650 --> 00:00:44,217 you have to make a determination. 22 00:00:44,261 --> 00:00:47,525 Was the person shot, or could it be self-inflicted? 23 00:00:47,568 --> 00:00:49,135 We were outraged, telling them, 24 00:00:49,179 --> 00:00:50,441 "No, no, no, no, no. 25 00:00:50,484 --> 00:00:51,746 "You're barking up the wrong tree. 26 00:00:51,790 --> 00:00:54,358 Go find the guy who did this." 27 00:00:54,401 --> 00:00:56,838 Just the facts of the case makes you kind of 28 00:00:56,882 --> 00:01:00,451 shake your head and say, "I didn't see that coming." 29 00:01:00,494 --> 00:01:01,582 ♪ 30 00:01:01,626 --> 00:01:04,542 [dramatic music] 31 00:01:04,585 --> 00:01:11,723 ♪ 32 00:01:17,207 --> 00:01:19,426 Through all its reputation as a big tough place, 33 00:01:19,470 --> 00:01:22,081 New York is a city of tightly-knit communities. 34 00:01:22,125 --> 00:01:23,952 People often choose their neighborhoods 35 00:01:23,996 --> 00:01:25,954 by which community best suits them. 36 00:01:25,998 --> 00:01:27,260 Neighbors become family, 37 00:01:27,304 --> 00:01:29,262 and they watch out for each other. 38 00:01:29,306 --> 00:01:31,743 After 35 years in the NYPD, 39 00:01:31,786 --> 00:01:34,441 I retired as Chief of Detectives, 40 00:01:34,485 --> 00:01:35,921 and I've seen countless homicides 41 00:01:35,964 --> 00:01:37,531 throughout this city. 42 00:01:37,575 --> 00:01:39,794 Some still haunt me to this day. 43 00:01:39,838 --> 00:01:42,797 This is one of those cases. It was hard to crack. 44 00:01:42,841 --> 00:01:44,408 It tore the neighborhood apart, 45 00:01:44,451 --> 00:01:47,498 and the community was demanding justice. 46 00:01:47,541 --> 00:01:50,805 ♪ 47 00:01:50,849 --> 00:01:52,851 Every year, like clockwork, noise complaints 48 00:01:52,894 --> 00:01:55,593 flood our precincts on the Fourth of July, 49 00:01:55,636 --> 00:01:57,464 including reports of gunshots 50 00:01:57,508 --> 00:02:00,467 that turn out to be illegal fireworks. 51 00:02:00,511 --> 00:02:03,470 But on this one Fourth of July in 1995, 52 00:02:03,514 --> 00:02:05,516 that 1:00 a.m. call to Brooklyn's 84th 53 00:02:05,559 --> 00:02:07,953 turned out to be the real deal. 54 00:02:07,996 --> 00:02:11,261 911, what's your emergency? 55 00:02:11,304 --> 00:02:12,871 This was one of the most 56 00:02:12,914 --> 00:02:16,788 disturbing 911 calls I've ever heard. 57 00:02:16,831 --> 00:02:19,269 The woman is completely hysterical. 58 00:02:19,312 --> 00:02:24,448 She's describing that a man has forced his way in, 59 00:02:24,491 --> 00:02:28,016 she's been shot, she's been raped. 60 00:02:28,060 --> 00:02:31,237 [siren wailing] 61 00:02:31,281 --> 00:02:32,978 So you go there hell's bells 62 00:02:33,021 --> 00:02:35,154 and you get there as fast as you can. 63 00:02:35,198 --> 00:02:36,721 ♪ 64 00:02:36,764 --> 00:02:39,811 Was it a shooting out of a jealous rage 65 00:02:39,854 --> 00:02:41,334 or the boyfriend or girlfriend? 66 00:02:41,378 --> 00:02:42,640 Was it a robbery? 67 00:02:42,683 --> 00:02:44,555 There could be a shooter on the scene. 68 00:02:44,598 --> 00:02:45,817 ♪ 69 00:02:45,860 --> 00:02:49,603 They have no idea what awaits them inside. 70 00:02:49,647 --> 00:02:52,693 So the adrenaline level of everybody is very high. 71 00:02:52,737 --> 00:02:53,825 [pounding on door] 72 00:02:53,868 --> 00:02:55,305 They're knocking, 73 00:02:55,348 --> 00:02:59,134 and they're hearing screaming in the background. 74 00:02:59,178 --> 00:03:03,226 Add to that the first EMT who's arrived 75 00:03:03,269 --> 00:03:05,532 recognizes the apartment 76 00:03:05,576 --> 00:03:10,058 as belonging to her friends Amanda and Sylvia. 77 00:03:10,102 --> 00:03:12,017 ♪ 78 00:03:12,060 --> 00:03:14,715 Amanda is screaming, "Come in, come in! 79 00:03:14,759 --> 00:03:15,977 Help me, help me!" 80 00:03:16,021 --> 00:03:17,718 She has to drag herself 81 00:03:17,762 --> 00:03:19,720 through the apartment to the door 82 00:03:19,764 --> 00:03:24,247 because she's too badly injured to get up and walk 83 00:03:24,290 --> 00:03:26,292 and kind of climbs up her own door, 84 00:03:26,336 --> 00:03:29,556 unlocks the door so they're able to come in. 85 00:03:29,600 --> 00:03:32,777 There's blood everywhere. 86 00:03:32,820 --> 00:03:33,995 ♪ 87 00:03:34,039 --> 00:03:35,693 Amanda has been shot once in the leg 88 00:03:35,736 --> 00:03:38,173 and Sylvia twice in the head. 89 00:03:38,217 --> 00:03:39,610 When we first talked to Amanda, 90 00:03:39,653 --> 00:03:41,351 it was hard, because she was shot. 91 00:03:41,394 --> 00:03:42,743 So she was in a lot of pain. 92 00:03:42,787 --> 00:03:44,397 Sylvia is lying 93 00:03:44,441 --> 00:03:47,052 kind of in the threshold to the bedroom. 94 00:03:47,095 --> 00:03:48,749 She's bleeding profusely. 95 00:03:48,793 --> 00:03:52,231 She's not conscious, but she's still alive. 96 00:03:52,275 --> 00:03:54,277 When you see someone shot, 97 00:03:54,320 --> 00:03:55,669 you have to make a determination. 98 00:03:55,713 --> 00:03:58,716 Was the person shot, or could it be self-inflicted? 99 00:03:58,759 --> 00:04:01,762 We know a gun has been shot in that apartment 100 00:04:01,806 --> 00:04:03,547 at least three times. 101 00:04:03,590 --> 00:04:05,113 ♪ 102 00:04:05,157 --> 00:04:07,942 Three shells tends to indicate it's only three times, 103 00:04:07,986 --> 00:04:09,988 but there's no gun. 104 00:04:10,031 --> 00:04:15,559 And the initial question was, "Where has that gun gone?" 105 00:04:15,602 --> 00:04:18,039 And also, there's no forced entry. 106 00:04:18,083 --> 00:04:19,737 There's no damage to the door. 107 00:04:19,780 --> 00:04:23,610 The victims could have known the perpetrator 108 00:04:23,654 --> 00:04:26,352 and would allow the person to come in, 109 00:04:26,396 --> 00:04:28,833 and then this--this happened. 110 00:04:28,876 --> 00:04:31,183 The victims, 34-year-old Sylvia Lugo 111 00:04:31,226 --> 00:04:34,229 and her girlfriend, 28-year-old Amanda Leach, 112 00:04:34,273 --> 00:04:36,754 are rushed to Bellevue Hospital. 113 00:04:36,797 --> 00:04:39,974 While our investigators notify their families, 114 00:04:40,018 --> 00:04:42,150 Sylvia is put on life support. 115 00:04:42,194 --> 00:04:44,892 After we got the call, we all went to the hospital, 116 00:04:44,936 --> 00:04:46,285 and I remember us being 117 00:04:46,329 --> 00:04:49,854 all put into a room, uh, the doctor coming in 118 00:04:49,897 --> 00:04:53,466 and telling us basically that it didn't look good. 119 00:04:53,510 --> 00:04:55,294 I kept saying, 120 00:04:55,338 --> 00:04:56,991 "It's gonna be okay. It's gonna be difficult. 121 00:04:57,035 --> 00:04:58,863 "It's gonna be a challenge. 122 00:04:58,906 --> 00:04:59,907 "Who knows how long 123 00:04:59,951 --> 00:05:01,648 "rehabilitation may have to take. 124 00:05:01,692 --> 00:05:05,173 But she's gonna be fine. It's gonna be fine." 125 00:05:05,217 --> 00:05:06,914 Talking to the family is a little difficult 126 00:05:06,958 --> 00:05:09,743 because, remember, they're upset, they're angry. 127 00:05:09,787 --> 00:05:11,832 We have to approach them very delicately. 128 00:05:11,876 --> 00:05:14,357 But we talk to the family as soon as possible 129 00:05:14,400 --> 00:05:17,664 to unearth more information from them that we don't know. 130 00:05:17,708 --> 00:05:19,797 [monitor beeping] 131 00:05:19,840 --> 00:05:21,276 [somber music] 132 00:05:21,320 --> 00:05:23,888 Sylvia and I were born and raised in Park Slope. 133 00:05:23,931 --> 00:05:28,414 The perfect home, three floors, big backyard. 134 00:05:28,458 --> 00:05:29,807 You know, the schools were great. 135 00:05:29,850 --> 00:05:32,331 Mommy and Daddy had eight children. 136 00:05:32,375 --> 00:05:35,508 And Sylvia is the third in line. 137 00:05:35,552 --> 00:05:37,031 [laughing] Hi, honey! 138 00:05:37,075 --> 00:05:43,342 Sylvia was kind, loved animals. 139 00:05:43,386 --> 00:05:44,517 [indistinct chatter] 140 00:05:44,561 --> 00:05:45,692 Anybody who would ever meet her 141 00:05:45,736 --> 00:05:47,868 would not have a problem with her. 142 00:05:47,912 --> 00:05:49,696 She would give you the shirt off her back. 143 00:05:49,740 --> 00:05:56,355 She was always just so unaffected 144 00:05:56,399 --> 00:06:01,491 and just sweet and caring and wonderful. 145 00:06:01,534 --> 00:06:03,754 [children shouting] 146 00:06:03,797 --> 00:06:05,016 [soft music] 147 00:06:05,059 --> 00:06:08,323 Sylvia came out when she was 18, 19. 148 00:06:08,367 --> 00:06:10,543 She was totally comfortable with who she was. 149 00:06:10,587 --> 00:06:14,068 And that was her coming out. She came out to everyone. 150 00:06:14,112 --> 00:06:15,418 Sylvia and Amanda met 151 00:06:15,461 --> 00:06:17,898 playing softball on a neighborhood team. 152 00:06:17,942 --> 00:06:20,901 I remember when Sylvia introduced Amanda to us. 153 00:06:20,945 --> 00:06:24,252 And my initial impression was she's a very nice woman. 154 00:06:24,296 --> 00:06:27,255 And when I found out that she was a social worker 155 00:06:27,299 --> 00:06:29,170 and worked with kids, I'm like, you know, 156 00:06:29,214 --> 00:06:32,260 that for me is making a contribution in the world, 157 00:06:32,304 --> 00:06:33,740 someone who's trying to do good. 158 00:06:33,784 --> 00:06:36,569 And I liked her. 159 00:06:36,613 --> 00:06:39,790 [heart monitor beeping] 160 00:06:39,833 --> 00:06:41,313 ♪ 161 00:06:41,356 --> 00:06:43,358 But after fighting for her life throughout the day, 162 00:06:43,402 --> 00:06:47,101 Sylvia Lugo succumbs to her injuries. 163 00:06:47,145 --> 00:06:50,496 [monitor flatlines] 164 00:06:50,540 --> 00:06:53,412 You know, no, no. 165 00:06:53,456 --> 00:06:56,763 ♪ 166 00:06:56,807 --> 00:07:03,161 Um, you know, not--not Sylvia, so... 167 00:07:03,204 --> 00:07:07,774 Sylvia was-- how can you not be-- 168 00:07:07,818 --> 00:07:08,906 she was--sorry. 169 00:07:08,949 --> 00:07:12,953 - No, that's okay. - It's just--yeah. 170 00:07:12,997 --> 00:07:14,607 [sniffling] 171 00:07:14,651 --> 00:07:16,740 This thing goes high! 172 00:07:16,783 --> 00:07:18,524 ♪ 173 00:07:18,568 --> 00:07:19,786 [children shrieking, laughing] 174 00:07:19,830 --> 00:07:21,614 Ah! 175 00:07:21,658 --> 00:07:23,573 [solemn music] 176 00:07:23,616 --> 00:07:25,749 We were all banded together. 177 00:07:25,792 --> 00:07:27,272 ♪ 178 00:07:27,315 --> 00:07:29,970 We lost our dad a few years earlier. 179 00:07:30,014 --> 00:07:32,059 Sylvia's father had been killed 180 00:07:32,103 --> 00:07:34,322 when he was the victim of a robbery. 181 00:07:34,366 --> 00:07:36,803 The prior history, that was heartbreaking. 182 00:07:36,847 --> 00:07:37,978 We've been through a family member 183 00:07:38,022 --> 00:07:39,197 being robbed and murdered. 184 00:07:39,240 --> 00:07:41,199 We've been through it already. 185 00:07:41,242 --> 00:07:43,984 So we have to keep make sure Mommy's all right, 186 00:07:44,028 --> 00:07:46,813 and just, you know, 187 00:07:46,857 --> 00:07:49,990 shaking our heads in--just in disbelief 188 00:07:50,034 --> 00:07:53,994 and wanting to know what happened. 189 00:07:54,038 --> 00:07:56,040 Amanda has just lost her girlfriend 190 00:07:56,083 --> 00:07:58,433 and is still recovering from surgery to her leg, 191 00:07:58,477 --> 00:08:02,263 but she tells investigators about the fateful night. 192 00:08:02,307 --> 00:08:05,571 They were unloading the car to bring their things 193 00:08:05,615 --> 00:08:06,659 back into the apartment. 194 00:08:06,703 --> 00:08:09,009 Then they were set upon 195 00:08:09,053 --> 00:08:13,013 by an unknown male that forced them and himself 196 00:08:13,057 --> 00:08:16,887 into the apartment at gunpoint. 197 00:08:16,930 --> 00:08:21,631 He forced Amanda to tie Sylvia up. 198 00:08:21,674 --> 00:08:23,676 But she tied her so loose 199 00:08:23,720 --> 00:08:25,809 that she would be able to break free. 200 00:08:25,852 --> 00:08:27,332 ♪ 201 00:08:27,375 --> 00:08:30,683 He then took Amanda into the bedroom and raped her. 202 00:08:30,727 --> 00:08:33,556 She said that Sylvia broke free 203 00:08:33,599 --> 00:08:35,688 while this guy was raping her. 204 00:08:35,732 --> 00:08:38,517 After Sylvia burst into the room to save Amanda, 205 00:08:38,561 --> 00:08:40,867 the assailant shoots her in the head. 206 00:08:40,911 --> 00:08:41,912 [gunshot] 207 00:08:41,955 --> 00:08:43,130 ♪ 208 00:08:43,174 --> 00:08:46,569 Amanda says Sylvia fell to the floor 209 00:08:46,612 --> 00:08:48,353 and then stood up only to get shot 210 00:08:48,396 --> 00:08:50,747 a second time in the head. 211 00:08:50,790 --> 00:08:52,575 [gunshot] 212 00:08:52,618 --> 00:08:54,707 During the course of that struggle, 213 00:08:54,751 --> 00:08:59,059 he fired the gun, striking Amanda in the leg. 214 00:08:59,103 --> 00:09:00,104 [gunshot] 215 00:09:00,147 --> 00:09:01,758 And then she said that the attacker 216 00:09:01,801 --> 00:09:03,498 pointed the gun at her 217 00:09:03,542 --> 00:09:07,894 and tried to fire again and that the gun jammed. 218 00:09:07,938 --> 00:09:10,593 Amanda recalled that the perpetrator 219 00:09:10,636 --> 00:09:12,203 grabbed the car keys to the rental car 220 00:09:12,246 --> 00:09:17,338 and grabbed some jewelry and then left the apartment. 221 00:09:17,382 --> 00:09:20,951 A BOLO, "be on the lookout," is put out for the rental car. 222 00:09:20,994 --> 00:09:24,345 And Amanda's description of the assailant, 223 00:09:24,389 --> 00:09:28,741 a Latino male around 5'5", 150 pounds, 224 00:09:28,785 --> 00:09:32,223 wearing a baseball cap with a pencil thin mustache 225 00:09:32,266 --> 00:09:34,921 is used to create a composite sketch. 226 00:09:34,965 --> 00:09:36,531 [siren wailing] 227 00:09:36,575 --> 00:09:39,273 [dramatic music] 228 00:09:39,317 --> 00:09:40,623 Five days after the murder, 229 00:09:40,666 --> 00:09:43,103 detectives receive Sylvia's autopsy 230 00:09:43,147 --> 00:09:46,106 and are surprised by the results. 231 00:09:46,150 --> 00:09:48,587 It's at that point that the investigation 232 00:09:48,631 --> 00:09:50,937 suddenly takes a disturbing new turn. 233 00:09:50,981 --> 00:09:53,940 One of the key pieces of information 234 00:09:53,984 --> 00:09:56,377 was the autopsy results from Sylvia. 235 00:09:56,421 --> 00:09:58,205 According to the medical examiners, 236 00:09:58,249 --> 00:10:00,555 it was just physically impossible for Sylvia 237 00:10:00,599 --> 00:10:02,688 to get up after she was shot once in the head. 238 00:10:02,732 --> 00:10:05,778 And at that time, Amanda recalled that Sylvia 239 00:10:05,822 --> 00:10:08,041 was shot once in the head, fell down, 240 00:10:08,085 --> 00:10:10,087 and then got up again and was shot a second time. 241 00:10:10,130 --> 00:10:12,350 One of the things that police do, 242 00:10:12,393 --> 00:10:14,091 it's standard police procedure, 243 00:10:14,134 --> 00:10:16,789 and it's something we do in our own lives, 244 00:10:16,833 --> 00:10:19,357 is if someone has told a story 245 00:10:19,400 --> 00:10:22,142 that you just don't quite believe, 246 00:10:22,186 --> 00:10:25,189 you go back and ask questions again. 247 00:10:25,232 --> 00:10:27,713 ♪ 248 00:10:27,757 --> 00:10:29,019 Coming up... 249 00:10:29,062 --> 00:10:31,195 We started to go around to do a canvass, 250 00:10:31,238 --> 00:10:32,500 and we talked to neighbors. 251 00:10:32,544 --> 00:10:34,807 We talked to people that live next door. 252 00:10:34,851 --> 00:10:36,200 It's the most important thing 253 00:10:36,243 --> 00:10:37,549 to see what was going on 254 00:10:37,592 --> 00:10:40,334 in the victim's life prior to the homicide. 255 00:10:40,378 --> 00:10:43,076 And having somebody that threatened her life 256 00:10:43,120 --> 00:10:46,166 is the most paramount person to speak with. 257 00:10:46,210 --> 00:10:50,431 ♪ 258 00:10:53,521 --> 00:10:56,960 [siren wailing] - Soon after Sylvia Lugo dies from gunshots to the head, 259 00:10:57,003 --> 00:10:59,049 detectives notice inconsistencies 260 00:10:59,092 --> 00:11:00,659 between her autopsy report 261 00:11:00,703 --> 00:11:04,794 and her girlfriend Amanda's story about what happened. 262 00:11:04,837 --> 00:11:06,621 What the medical examiner 263 00:11:06,665 --> 00:11:09,494 told the investigating detectives 264 00:11:09,537 --> 00:11:13,977 was Amanda's story that Sylvia was shot, got up, 265 00:11:14,020 --> 00:11:16,327 and was shot a second time and went down 266 00:11:16,370 --> 00:11:19,591 and stayed down was a medical impossibility. 267 00:11:19,634 --> 00:11:22,768 After either injury to her head, 268 00:11:22,812 --> 00:11:26,511 she would not have been able to get up. 269 00:11:26,554 --> 00:11:29,688 NYPD detectives know traumatized witnesses 270 00:11:29,732 --> 00:11:30,994 can misremember details. 271 00:11:31,037 --> 00:11:33,518 But that inconsistency stands out even more 272 00:11:33,561 --> 00:11:36,956 after they take a look at Amanda's hospital records. 273 00:11:37,000 --> 00:11:38,828 The police are really starting 274 00:11:38,871 --> 00:11:41,134 to scrutinize Amanda's story 275 00:11:41,178 --> 00:11:44,398 as it goes to Amanda's leg injury. 276 00:11:44,442 --> 00:11:48,968 The angle of the injury would have been consistent 277 00:11:49,012 --> 00:11:50,230 with Amanda holding a gun 278 00:11:50,274 --> 00:11:52,798 and pointing it towards her own foot. 279 00:11:52,842 --> 00:11:54,278 ♪ 280 00:11:54,321 --> 00:11:56,236 The possibility that Amanda shot herself 281 00:11:56,280 --> 00:11:57,716 is damning enough, 282 00:11:57,760 --> 00:12:01,111 but then came the results from Amanda's rape kit. 283 00:12:01,154 --> 00:12:03,853 They are inconclusive. 284 00:12:03,896 --> 00:12:06,203 Rape kits are usually pretty dependable. 285 00:12:06,246 --> 00:12:08,118 However, they aren't always foolproof. 286 00:12:08,161 --> 00:12:10,381 But in this case, Amanda's results 287 00:12:10,424 --> 00:12:12,818 along with her troubling inconsistencies 288 00:12:12,862 --> 00:12:15,386 raised a red flag that could not be ignored. 289 00:12:15,429 --> 00:12:18,955 To the police, none of her story is making sense. 290 00:12:18,998 --> 00:12:21,566 So now there's a little bit more suspicion. 291 00:12:21,609 --> 00:12:23,263 Is Amanda really telling us the truth 292 00:12:23,307 --> 00:12:24,787 as to what happened here? 293 00:12:24,830 --> 00:12:26,658 ♪ 294 00:12:26,701 --> 00:12:29,226 We started to go around and we talked to neighbors, 295 00:12:29,269 --> 00:12:31,358 we talked to people that live next door, 296 00:12:31,402 --> 00:12:32,882 people that might live in the neighborhood 297 00:12:32,925 --> 00:12:36,102 to see if they heard or if they saw anything. 298 00:12:36,146 --> 00:12:38,322 The picture they're getting 299 00:12:38,365 --> 00:12:43,588 is that Amanda wasn't always very nice to Sylvia. 300 00:12:43,631 --> 00:12:46,417 Our detectives find a neighbor in the building 301 00:12:46,460 --> 00:12:48,593 who says the couple sometimes quarreled 302 00:12:48,636 --> 00:12:52,727 and that he heard them arguing the night of the murder. 303 00:12:52,771 --> 00:12:54,904 Amanda was definitely appearing 304 00:12:54,947 --> 00:12:57,907 to be an angry girlfriend, 305 00:12:57,950 --> 00:12:59,865 and that's just going to feed 306 00:12:59,909 --> 00:13:03,477 this suspicion that she committed the crime. 307 00:13:03,521 --> 00:13:08,439 Arguments might indicate a domestic dispute motive. 308 00:13:08,482 --> 00:13:10,789 The police, one of them, he asked me, 309 00:13:10,833 --> 00:13:13,096 "Did Sylvia and Amanda fight? Did they argue?" 310 00:13:13,139 --> 00:13:15,881 And I told him, "No, I had never witnessed that." 311 00:13:15,925 --> 00:13:17,796 And I asked him, I mean, "You don't think Amanda 312 00:13:17,840 --> 00:13:19,537 did this, do you?" 313 00:13:19,580 --> 00:13:21,452 Amanda Leach has now become 314 00:13:21,495 --> 00:13:24,672 a suspect in the murder of Sylvia Lugo. 315 00:13:24,716 --> 00:13:27,719 [dramatic music] 316 00:13:27,762 --> 00:13:30,069 ♪ 317 00:13:30,113 --> 00:13:31,244 The police are telling us 318 00:13:31,288 --> 00:13:33,464 this is what they think happened. 319 00:13:33,507 --> 00:13:36,119 They think that it was--it was a lovers' quarrel 320 00:13:36,162 --> 00:13:41,124 and Amanda shot Sylvia. 321 00:13:41,167 --> 00:13:42,560 Amanda was very, very adamant. 322 00:13:42,603 --> 00:13:44,301 She said, "Look, I'm not involved in this. 323 00:13:44,344 --> 00:13:47,347 I had nothing to do with this. You guys have to believe me." 324 00:13:47,391 --> 00:13:49,610 But the information that we had 325 00:13:49,654 --> 00:13:51,656 just pointed towards her at the time, 326 00:13:51,699 --> 00:13:53,963 where we just couldn't rule her out as a suspect. 327 00:13:54,006 --> 00:13:57,401 ♪ 328 00:13:57,444 --> 00:14:01,144 Sylvia's funeral was just a few days later. 329 00:14:01,187 --> 00:14:04,669 Amanda came to the funeral, 330 00:14:04,712 --> 00:14:08,499 and I remember, it was so awful. 331 00:14:08,542 --> 00:14:12,546 That was the first time we'd seen her since. 332 00:14:12,590 --> 00:14:14,984 I don't know if Amanda was immediately aware 333 00:14:15,027 --> 00:14:17,987 that we were told that she was a suspect. 334 00:14:18,030 --> 00:14:19,336 It was very awkward. 335 00:14:19,379 --> 00:14:23,340 We were looking at her as the cause of this, 336 00:14:23,383 --> 00:14:27,692 um, and it was-- it was difficult. 337 00:14:27,735 --> 00:14:31,739 Amanda was in a wheelchair, just sobbing. 338 00:14:31,783 --> 00:14:33,002 She was a mess. 339 00:14:33,045 --> 00:14:36,396 And so I grab her hand as she's passing by. 340 00:14:36,440 --> 00:14:38,442 I couldn't do more than that because my family, 341 00:14:38,485 --> 00:14:39,704 I felt like, you know, 342 00:14:39,747 --> 00:14:41,836 I couldn't--I grabbed her hand, 343 00:14:41,880 --> 00:14:44,709 I looked at her, you know, I let it go. 344 00:14:44,752 --> 00:14:46,319 And then, you know, she left. 345 00:14:46,363 --> 00:14:51,150 ♪ 346 00:14:51,194 --> 00:14:53,500 [indistinct chatter] 347 00:14:53,544 --> 00:14:55,938 After the funeral, the news of Sylvia's death 348 00:14:55,981 --> 00:14:56,982 and Amanda's injuries 349 00:14:57,026 --> 00:14:59,550 circulates among their friends. 350 00:14:59,593 --> 00:15:02,161 I got a phone call from my friend 351 00:15:02,205 --> 00:15:04,294 that Amanda had been shot 352 00:15:04,337 --> 00:15:08,907 and that Sylvia had been shot and killed. 353 00:15:08,951 --> 00:15:11,475 I mean, I almost dropped the phone, I think. 354 00:15:11,518 --> 00:15:17,133 My girlfriend at the time saw the horror on my face. 355 00:15:17,176 --> 00:15:18,917 I knew Sylvia and Amanda 356 00:15:18,961 --> 00:15:21,702 from the Prospect Park Women's Softball League. 357 00:15:21,746 --> 00:15:25,837 And everyone thought they were an adorable couple. 358 00:15:25,880 --> 00:15:26,751 ♪ 359 00:15:26,794 --> 00:15:28,361 I moved to Park Slope 360 00:15:28,405 --> 00:15:32,061 because half of the lesbians in New York City 361 00:15:32,104 --> 00:15:33,627 lived in Park Slope. 362 00:15:33,671 --> 00:15:37,283 There were just all kinds of people living there. 363 00:15:37,327 --> 00:15:40,591 The shockwaves of this crime ripped through the community. 364 00:15:40,634 --> 00:15:43,246 We were outraged when it first came out 365 00:15:43,289 --> 00:15:47,076 that the detectives involved were thinking 366 00:15:47,119 --> 00:15:50,079 that maybe Amanda had something to do with this. 367 00:15:50,122 --> 00:15:52,951 ♪ 368 00:15:52,995 --> 00:15:56,085 Members of Park Slope's LGBTQ community 369 00:15:56,128 --> 00:15:58,130 believe our investigators' focus on Amanda 370 00:15:58,174 --> 00:16:17,062 is keeping them from finding the real killer, 371 00:16:17,106 --> 00:16:19,108 especially when they learn a seria linking this manwas no 372 00:16:19,151 --> 00:16:20,674 to Sylvia's murder, 373 00:16:20,718 --> 00:16:24,243 detectives need to investigate any possible connection. 374 00:16:24,287 --> 00:16:25,679 While a parallel manhunt 375 00:16:25,723 --> 00:16:27,812 for the Park Slope Rapist continues, 376 00:16:27,855 --> 00:16:31,294 so too does the search for new leads in the Lugo case. 377 00:16:31,337 --> 00:16:32,556 There is a lot of pressure. 378 00:16:32,599 --> 00:16:34,645 Want to be close to solving the case 379 00:16:34,688 --> 00:16:36,299 because if it gets older, it gets cold. 380 00:16:36,342 --> 00:16:40,085 Our detectives discover a possible link to the murder 381 00:16:40,129 --> 00:16:41,826 when questioning members of Sylvia 382 00:16:41,869 --> 00:16:43,132 and Amanda's softball team, 383 00:16:43,175 --> 00:16:46,352 a woman named Trelane McKinney. 384 00:16:46,396 --> 00:16:49,573 Trelane McKinney was a woman that lived in the community 385 00:16:49,616 --> 00:16:51,444 who had dated Amanda. 386 00:16:51,488 --> 00:16:53,403 They had been seriously involved. 387 00:16:53,446 --> 00:16:56,275 And then, according to Trelane, 388 00:16:56,319 --> 00:17:00,845 Sylvia had come along and started dating Amanda 389 00:17:00,888 --> 00:17:05,589 and broken up the relationship between Trelane and Amanda. 390 00:17:05,632 --> 00:17:07,069 Trelane wasn't very happy about it 391 00:17:07,112 --> 00:17:11,682 from what we heard during our interviews with people. 392 00:17:11,725 --> 00:17:13,336 A few weeks after the breakup, 393 00:17:13,379 --> 00:17:15,164 tensions flared at a softball game 394 00:17:15,207 --> 00:17:17,035 that Trelane was umpiring. 395 00:17:17,079 --> 00:17:20,517 Trelane said to Sylvia, "I will hurt you. 396 00:17:20,560 --> 00:17:21,953 I will kill you." 397 00:17:21,996 --> 00:17:23,476 ♪ 398 00:17:23,520 --> 00:17:26,523 This was another possibility that we had to look into 399 00:17:26,566 --> 00:17:29,917 to see if this was fact true and that could Trelane 400 00:17:29,961 --> 00:17:32,877 be involved with Amanda in Sylvia's death? 401 00:17:32,920 --> 00:17:40,058 Maybe Amanda employed or had Trelane come take the gun. 402 00:17:40,102 --> 00:17:43,888 Maybe Trelane committed the crimes 403 00:17:43,931 --> 00:17:45,890 and they're covering it up, 404 00:17:45,933 --> 00:17:48,066 so, you know, Amanda and Trelane 405 00:17:48,110 --> 00:17:49,763 can get back together. 406 00:17:49,807 --> 00:17:51,156 Amanda's friends are adamant 407 00:17:51,200 --> 00:17:53,158 that these accusations don't make sense. 408 00:17:53,202 --> 00:17:56,292 But still, investigators must follow up to see 409 00:17:56,335 --> 00:18:00,600 if there could be any truth to these theories. 410 00:18:00,644 --> 00:18:03,516 It's the most important thing to see what was going on 411 00:18:03,560 --> 00:18:06,737 in the victim's life prior to the homicide. 412 00:18:06,780 --> 00:18:09,087 And having somebody that threatened her life 413 00:18:09,131 --> 00:18:12,003 is the most paramount person to speak with. 414 00:18:12,046 --> 00:18:13,265 ♪ 415 00:18:13,309 --> 00:18:15,528 Trelane was definitely a person of interest 416 00:18:15,572 --> 00:18:16,747 in this case. 417 00:18:16,790 --> 00:18:18,140 So when officers learn 418 00:18:18,183 --> 00:18:20,185 that Sylvia and Amanda's rental car, 419 00:18:20,229 --> 00:18:22,840 which Amanda had reported as stolen by the killer, 420 00:18:22,883 --> 00:18:25,277 was discovered near Trelane's apartment, 421 00:18:25,321 --> 00:18:28,019 our antenna went sky high. 422 00:18:28,062 --> 00:18:30,761 ♪ 423 00:18:33,590 --> 00:18:35,548 [dramatic music] - A month after Sylvia Lugo's murder, 424 00:18:35,592 --> 00:18:37,811 NYPD detectives were investigating 425 00:18:37,855 --> 00:18:39,073 if she'd been the victim 426 00:18:39,117 --> 00:18:40,597 of a love triangle gone wrong, 427 00:18:40,640 --> 00:18:42,860 involving her girlfriend, Amanda Leach, 428 00:18:42,903 --> 00:18:44,905 and Trelane McKinney. 429 00:18:44,949 --> 00:18:46,429 ♪ 430 00:18:46,472 --> 00:18:48,257 Finding the rental car a few blocks from her house 431 00:18:48,300 --> 00:18:50,389 just added to the suspicion 432 00:18:50,433 --> 00:18:54,219 that Trelane could be involved in this homicide. 433 00:18:54,263 --> 00:18:56,961 If we did find fibers or anything 434 00:18:57,004 --> 00:18:58,919 that linked Trelane to that vehicle, 435 00:18:58,963 --> 00:19:02,401 then our suspicions would have been raised a lot more. 436 00:19:02,445 --> 00:19:04,534 If anyone could find evidence in the car, 437 00:19:04,577 --> 00:19:07,276 it was the NYPD's world-renowned crime lab 438 00:19:07,319 --> 00:19:09,408 with over 200 forensic scientists 439 00:19:09,452 --> 00:19:11,367 and their cutting-edge techniques. 440 00:19:11,410 --> 00:19:12,629 ♪ 441 00:19:12,672 --> 00:19:15,197 While they wait for forensic results, 442 00:19:15,240 --> 00:19:17,024 our detectives rush over to the post office 443 00:19:17,068 --> 00:19:20,114 where Trelane works. 444 00:19:20,158 --> 00:19:22,421 One of the detectives knew my supervisor. 445 00:19:22,465 --> 00:19:24,249 And she called me into the office, 446 00:19:24,293 --> 00:19:27,209 and she allowed them to take me out of that job 447 00:19:27,252 --> 00:19:28,775 in handcuffs. 448 00:19:28,819 --> 00:19:31,430 I'm like, "I didn't do it. Why am I getting arrested?" 449 00:19:31,474 --> 00:19:33,432 And they said, "We'll talk to you down at the station." 450 00:19:33,476 --> 00:19:34,955 ♪ 451 00:19:34,999 --> 00:19:37,262 Trelane tells investigators that she met Amanda 452 00:19:37,306 --> 00:19:42,049 on the Park Slope women's softball team. 453 00:19:42,093 --> 00:19:44,226 Amanda had came to a game. 454 00:19:44,269 --> 00:19:46,271 I'm like, "Hey, she's kind of cute." 455 00:19:46,315 --> 00:19:49,796 And I found myself a little bit more mesmerized 456 00:19:49,840 --> 00:19:51,450 as I kept watching her. 457 00:19:51,494 --> 00:19:53,670 So I went up and introduced myself. 458 00:19:53,713 --> 00:19:57,848 And when we finally got together, it just took off. 459 00:19:57,891 --> 00:20:00,546 Our detectives learn that Amanda and Trelane 460 00:20:00,590 --> 00:20:02,287 had been dating about three years 461 00:20:02,331 --> 00:20:05,247 when Sylvia Lugo entered the picture. 462 00:20:05,290 --> 00:20:08,989 Amanda brought her home, brought her to our home. 463 00:20:09,033 --> 00:20:14,473 And...that was a lot for me 464 00:20:14,517 --> 00:20:17,824 to take on that she wanted to be with her. 465 00:20:17,868 --> 00:20:19,826 And I moved out. 466 00:20:19,870 --> 00:20:22,307 Trelane admits she threatened to kill Sylvia 467 00:20:22,351 --> 00:20:24,831 but claims it was empty words. 468 00:20:24,875 --> 00:20:26,659 I was angry, hurt. 469 00:20:26,703 --> 00:20:30,533 Sylvia was a big part of the breakup. 470 00:20:30,576 --> 00:20:32,491 And my thinking was like, "If you hurt Amanda, 471 00:20:32,535 --> 00:20:34,493 I will--I will hurt you back." 472 00:20:34,537 --> 00:20:37,235 ♪ 473 00:20:37,279 --> 00:20:41,021 And I end up having Sylvia's game. 474 00:20:41,065 --> 00:20:43,459 And I called her out. 475 00:20:43,502 --> 00:20:45,069 ♪ 476 00:20:45,112 --> 00:20:47,332 And then she comes up in my face. 477 00:20:47,376 --> 00:20:49,465 And I'm, you know, like, saying, "Back off, back off." 478 00:20:49,508 --> 00:20:50,683 The next thing I know, I said, 479 00:20:50,727 --> 00:20:52,859 "I will ----ing kill you. I will hurt you." 480 00:20:52,903 --> 00:20:55,906 ♪ 481 00:20:55,949 --> 00:20:57,081 [sighs] 482 00:20:57,124 --> 00:20:58,430 You know, last words said 483 00:20:58,474 --> 00:21:00,737 are the words that come back and haunt you. 484 00:21:00,780 --> 00:21:02,521 ♪ 485 00:21:02,565 --> 00:21:04,349 After the interview, 486 00:21:04,393 --> 00:21:06,308 the police certainly couldn't prove 487 00:21:06,351 --> 00:21:09,006 or have any hard evidence whatsoever 488 00:21:09,049 --> 00:21:10,529 that Trelane was involved. 489 00:21:10,573 --> 00:21:13,227 It's not like they had somebody who saw her 490 00:21:13,271 --> 00:21:14,533 go into the building 491 00:21:14,577 --> 00:21:17,667 or leave the building at the time of the crime. 492 00:21:17,710 --> 00:21:19,886 So with the leads up to this point going nowhere, 493 00:21:19,930 --> 00:21:21,714 our detectives hope their luck would change 494 00:21:21,758 --> 00:21:25,065 when the forensics from the rental car come in. 495 00:21:25,109 --> 00:21:26,545 ♪ 496 00:21:26,589 --> 00:21:30,680 But there was no latent prints, nothing recovered. 497 00:21:30,723 --> 00:21:32,682 With no evidence found in the car, 498 00:21:32,725 --> 00:21:35,815 detectives no longer consider Trelane a person of interest. 499 00:21:35,859 --> 00:21:38,383 Instead, they are left with the puzzle piece 500 00:21:38,427 --> 00:21:40,907 of how the victim's car ended up there. 501 00:21:40,951 --> 00:21:42,387 ♪ 502 00:21:42,431 --> 00:21:45,129 Five weeks after Sylvia Lugo's homicide, 503 00:21:45,172 --> 00:21:46,783 we still hadn't made an arrest. 504 00:21:46,826 --> 00:21:50,439 But we are unable to rule out Amanda Leach as a suspect. 505 00:21:50,482 --> 00:21:54,356 The police have nothing to back up Amanda's story 506 00:21:54,399 --> 00:21:56,401 that there's an outside attacker. 507 00:21:56,445 --> 00:21:59,796 Waiting every day for news, for an update. 508 00:21:59,839 --> 00:22:01,450 ♪ 509 00:22:01,493 --> 00:22:04,453 And so we're thinking, "Okay, if you guys suspect this, 510 00:22:04,496 --> 00:22:06,280 why is Amanda not arrested?" 511 00:22:06,324 --> 00:22:07,804 ♪ 512 00:22:07,847 --> 00:22:09,632 The investigators ask Amanda Leach 513 00:22:09,675 --> 00:22:11,721 to come down to the precinct. 514 00:22:11,764 --> 00:22:13,549 We had to sit down and interrogate her 515 00:22:13,592 --> 00:22:16,029 and go back with her and go at her 516 00:22:16,073 --> 00:22:17,117 so that maybe she could break 517 00:22:17,161 --> 00:22:18,467 and tell us what really happened 518 00:22:18,510 --> 00:22:19,946 because sometimes, in these cases, 519 00:22:19,990 --> 00:22:22,340 when you talk to individuals sometimes, 520 00:22:22,384 --> 00:22:24,734 after several hours of interrogation, 521 00:22:24,777 --> 00:22:27,127 sometimes they want to tell the truth. 522 00:22:27,171 --> 00:22:29,695 ♪ 523 00:22:29,739 --> 00:22:31,436 Amanda Leach says that because 524 00:22:31,480 --> 00:22:33,960 she was heavily medicated so soon after surgery, 525 00:22:34,004 --> 00:22:36,789 she may have misremembered some details, 526 00:22:36,833 --> 00:22:40,489 but she is adamant that she and Sylvia were both victims. 527 00:22:40,532 --> 00:22:42,665 She even agreed to take a polygraph test 528 00:22:42,708 --> 00:22:44,841 to tell us that she was telling the truth. 529 00:22:44,884 --> 00:22:46,886 ♪ 530 00:22:46,930 --> 00:22:49,759 Amanda aces the test, but detectives 531 00:22:49,802 --> 00:22:52,979 still aren't ready to rule her out as a suspect. 532 00:22:53,023 --> 00:22:54,459 Polygraph results 533 00:22:54,503 --> 00:22:58,376 are not admissible in court in New York State. 534 00:22:58,420 --> 00:23:02,772 And it's because they're not considered 100% reliable. 535 00:23:02,815 --> 00:23:05,818 When word gets out in the LGBTQ community 536 00:23:05,862 --> 00:23:09,474 that Amanda is still a suspect while a serial rapist 537 00:23:09,518 --> 00:23:12,216 remains on the loose, all hell breaks out. 538 00:23:12,259 --> 00:23:14,479 [people shouting indistinctly] 539 00:23:14,523 --> 00:23:17,482 I think, at one point, 540 00:23:17,526 --> 00:23:19,963 they were considering arresting Amanda. 541 00:23:20,006 --> 00:23:25,185 And we just decided that there was no way 542 00:23:25,229 --> 00:23:27,187 that we would let that happen. 543 00:23:27,231 --> 00:23:28,841 We protested. 544 00:23:28,885 --> 00:23:30,800 We marched. 545 00:23:30,843 --> 00:23:34,630 It really did feel like, because we were women, 546 00:23:34,673 --> 00:23:37,415 because we were lesbians, like, 547 00:23:37,459 --> 00:23:39,548 "Let's wrap this up right away. 548 00:23:39,591 --> 00:23:45,075 Amanda did it, and put her in jail, and we're done." 549 00:23:45,118 --> 00:23:46,642 ♪ 550 00:23:46,685 --> 00:23:49,209 The LGBTQ community and the police department 551 00:23:49,253 --> 00:23:51,429 had a fractured relationship. 552 00:23:51,473 --> 00:23:52,691 There was distrust, 553 00:23:52,735 --> 00:23:54,519 there were marches, and this is horrible, 554 00:23:54,563 --> 00:23:55,738 because you want to work with people. 555 00:23:55,781 --> 00:23:57,914 You want to gain their confidence. 556 00:23:57,957 --> 00:24:00,699 But the NYPD learned from it and improved. 557 00:24:00,743 --> 00:24:04,442 We formed a bureau to better serve the LGBTQ population. 558 00:24:04,486 --> 00:24:07,227 If we had that resource back in 1995, 559 00:24:07,271 --> 00:24:08,707 Sylvia and Amanda Leach's case 560 00:24:08,751 --> 00:24:11,188 likely would have gone much more smoothly. 561 00:24:11,231 --> 00:24:12,581 ♪ 562 00:24:12,624 --> 00:24:16,933 There was a rapist out there in Brooklyn. 563 00:24:16,976 --> 00:24:22,504 We did, as a group, constantly keep at the police department, 564 00:24:22,547 --> 00:24:25,332 the detectives, and telling them, 565 00:24:25,376 --> 00:24:26,420 "No, no, no, no, no. 566 00:24:26,464 --> 00:24:27,639 "You're barking up the wrong tree. 567 00:24:27,683 --> 00:24:30,947 Go find the guy who did this." 568 00:24:30,990 --> 00:24:32,426 ♪ 569 00:24:32,470 --> 00:24:34,733 Although Amanda is still considered a suspect, 570 00:24:34,777 --> 00:24:36,735 the community perhaps doesn't realize 571 00:24:36,779 --> 00:24:39,521 that the NYPD is also vigilantly continuing 572 00:24:39,564 --> 00:24:42,828 to hunt for the Park Slope Rapist. 573 00:24:42,872 --> 00:24:45,265 When you have two parallel cases like this, 574 00:24:45,309 --> 00:24:50,532 any community, understandably, is frightened and aggrieved. 575 00:24:50,575 --> 00:24:52,882 In fairness to the police at that time, 576 00:24:52,925 --> 00:24:56,015 both cases were being worked very hard. 577 00:24:56,059 --> 00:24:58,104 ♪ 578 00:24:58,148 --> 00:25:00,585 Two months after Sylvia and Amanda's attack 579 00:25:00,629 --> 00:25:02,631 and just a half a mile from it, 580 00:25:02,674 --> 00:25:04,589 a stranger follows another young woman 581 00:25:04,633 --> 00:25:06,983 into her apartment building. 582 00:25:07,026 --> 00:25:08,332 [siren wails] 583 00:25:08,375 --> 00:25:10,639 [indistinct radio chatter] 584 00:25:10,682 --> 00:25:12,771 Police were at the right place at the right time 585 00:25:12,815 --> 00:25:16,906 when they arrested 26-year-old Tony Harrison. 586 00:25:16,949 --> 00:25:20,039 Based on victim IDs, our investigators believe 587 00:25:20,083 --> 00:25:22,825 they finally caught the Park Slope Rapist. 588 00:25:22,868 --> 00:25:25,654 Now we had an individual who went around 589 00:25:25,697 --> 00:25:27,612 accosting women in this community. 590 00:25:27,656 --> 00:25:29,745 The more that we looked into it, the more we had 591 00:25:29,788 --> 00:25:32,269 to try to get as much information as we could. 592 00:25:32,312 --> 00:25:35,315 [dramatic music] 593 00:25:35,359 --> 00:25:36,882 ♪ 594 00:25:41,452 --> 00:25:43,410 matic music] - Our NYPD detectives have been looking 595 00:25:43,454 --> 00:25:47,023 for Sylvia Lugo's killer for over two months. 596 00:25:47,066 --> 00:25:49,808 The only witness, her girlfriend, Amanda Leach, 597 00:25:49,852 --> 00:25:51,941 was also shot in the vicious attack 598 00:25:51,984 --> 00:25:54,987 but was still considered a suspect. 599 00:25:55,031 --> 00:25:56,946 Other suspects were in short supply, though, 600 00:25:56,989 --> 00:26:00,166 until the arrest of the Park Slope Rapist. 601 00:26:00,210 --> 00:26:01,341 ♪ 602 00:26:01,385 --> 00:26:03,996 Tony Harrison was raping many women 603 00:26:04,040 --> 00:26:06,346 in their apartments after midnight 604 00:26:06,390 --> 00:26:07,696 in that Park Slope area. 605 00:26:07,739 --> 00:26:08,914 And the police were looking for him 606 00:26:08,958 --> 00:26:11,308 for ten months during this time. 607 00:26:11,351 --> 00:26:13,658 Harrison's victims said that he was armed with a gun 608 00:26:13,702 --> 00:26:16,052 and threatened to kill them if they screamed. 609 00:26:16,095 --> 00:26:19,229 It seemed like the same MO as Sylvia's attacker. 610 00:26:19,272 --> 00:26:22,145 But then, with Amanda Leach's description in mind, 611 00:26:22,188 --> 00:26:24,408 our investigators take a closer look. 612 00:26:24,451 --> 00:26:26,715 The investigators for Sylvia Lugo 613 00:26:26,758 --> 00:26:29,587 were looking for a thin-built Hispanic man 614 00:26:29,631 --> 00:26:32,721 with a pencil-thin mustache. 615 00:26:32,764 --> 00:26:35,071 What Amanda described was totally different, 616 00:26:35,114 --> 00:26:37,508 because the Park Slope Rapist was a Black male 617 00:26:37,551 --> 00:26:40,467 who was taller, maybe a little bit heavier, 618 00:26:40,511 --> 00:26:44,602 not as short as the one that Amanda described. 619 00:26:44,646 --> 00:26:46,082 So after the detectives 620 00:26:46,125 --> 00:26:49,259 intensively interviewed Tony Harrison, 621 00:26:49,302 --> 00:26:52,218 they believed that he was the Park Slope Rapist 622 00:26:52,262 --> 00:26:55,918 but he had nothing to do with Sylvia Lugo's homicide. 623 00:26:55,961 --> 00:26:57,136 ♪ 624 00:26:57,180 --> 00:26:58,921 It's a huge setback for detectives 625 00:26:58,964 --> 00:27:01,445 and for Amanda Leach's supporters. 626 00:27:01,488 --> 00:27:03,273 Although Amanda remains a suspect, 627 00:27:03,316 --> 00:27:05,841 she strongly maintains her innocence. 628 00:27:05,884 --> 00:27:07,451 Amanda was very convincing 629 00:27:07,494 --> 00:27:09,279 that she was a victim and so was Sylvia. 630 00:27:09,322 --> 00:27:13,109 And she knows that it looks like maybe she was involved 631 00:27:13,152 --> 00:27:16,286 from what--all the information that we gathered about her. 632 00:27:16,329 --> 00:27:20,943 But she had told us several times that she didn't do this. 633 00:27:20,986 --> 00:27:23,119 And we wanted to believe her. 634 00:27:23,162 --> 00:27:25,121 With no hard evidence against Amanda, 635 00:27:25,164 --> 00:27:27,732 the department announces a reward for information 636 00:27:27,776 --> 00:27:30,909 leading to the arrest of Sylvia's killer. 637 00:27:30,953 --> 00:27:32,911 There's a 10,000 reward for that person. 638 00:27:32,955 --> 00:27:34,565 That will entice people to come forward 639 00:27:34,608 --> 00:27:36,959 and say who this guy is, who this individual is, 640 00:27:37,002 --> 00:27:39,439 and that would possibly help us in the case. 641 00:27:39,483 --> 00:27:43,835 Hello, Times Square! [people cheering] 642 00:27:43,879 --> 00:27:45,271 But despite the reward, 643 00:27:45,315 --> 00:27:48,579 as 1995 turned into 1996, 644 00:27:48,622 --> 00:27:52,714 Sylvia's case remained an unsolved mystery, 645 00:27:52,757 --> 00:27:56,935 and her friends and family have little to celebrate. 646 00:27:56,979 --> 00:27:59,068 It was the absolute worst to think that 647 00:27:59,111 --> 00:28:01,679 somebody--somebody who did this to Sylvia 648 00:28:01,723 --> 00:28:03,899 was out there every day, 649 00:28:03,942 --> 00:28:05,944 was going to sleep a free person, 650 00:28:05,988 --> 00:28:07,903 was closing their eyes at night 651 00:28:07,946 --> 00:28:10,166 knowing what they did. 652 00:28:10,209 --> 00:28:12,255 This is something I thought about every night, 653 00:28:12,298 --> 00:28:14,300 you know, when I went to bed. 654 00:28:14,344 --> 00:28:15,606 ♪ 655 00:28:15,649 --> 00:28:17,173 It was difficult, but a lot of us thought 656 00:28:17,216 --> 00:28:19,915 that the best way that we could honor 657 00:28:19,958 --> 00:28:21,699 Sylvia's memory was to make sure 658 00:28:21,743 --> 00:28:27,792 Amanda didn't wrongfully go to jail for her murder. 659 00:28:27,836 --> 00:28:30,273 I think it's probably a really tough job 660 00:28:30,316 --> 00:28:32,623 to be a police officer, to be a detective, 661 00:28:32,666 --> 00:28:37,106 to sift through evidence, but you can't give up. 662 00:28:37,149 --> 00:28:39,499 [somber music] 663 00:28:39,543 --> 00:28:42,198 The community was very, very afraid. 664 00:28:42,241 --> 00:28:44,548 They wanted results. 665 00:28:44,591 --> 00:28:47,029 [dramatic music] 666 00:28:47,072 --> 00:28:48,944 Just after midnight, about eight months 667 00:28:48,987 --> 00:28:51,033 after Sylvia Lugo's murder, 668 00:28:51,076 --> 00:28:53,209 a young woman named Gabrielle Kearns 669 00:28:53,252 --> 00:28:54,514 is sitting in her car. 670 00:28:54,558 --> 00:28:56,168 A man with a gun approaches her 671 00:28:56,212 --> 00:28:58,823 and demands everything she has. 672 00:28:58,867 --> 00:29:00,216 He tried to take her vehicle. 673 00:29:00,259 --> 00:29:02,000 She wouldn't give it to him. She put up a fight. 674 00:29:02,044 --> 00:29:03,523 And he shot her in the head. 675 00:29:03,567 --> 00:29:04,481 [gunshot] 676 00:29:04,524 --> 00:29:06,526 ♪ 677 00:29:06,570 --> 00:29:10,052 Fortunately, we have officers patrolling the area. 678 00:29:10,095 --> 00:29:13,185 A man by the name of Alex Villanueva 679 00:29:13,229 --> 00:29:16,058 was arrested shortly thereafter. 680 00:29:16,101 --> 00:29:20,627 He had a semi-automatic handgun on him 681 00:29:20,671 --> 00:29:23,239 when he was taken into custody. 682 00:29:23,282 --> 00:29:24,457 Now we have a gun. 683 00:29:24,501 --> 00:29:26,372 Let's send that gun to ballistics to see 684 00:29:26,416 --> 00:29:29,027 if it matches other crimes that he may have committed. 685 00:29:29,071 --> 00:29:30,115 [siren chirping] 686 00:29:30,159 --> 00:29:32,291 Miraculously, Gabrielle Kearns 687 00:29:32,335 --> 00:29:34,903 survives the shooting. 688 00:29:34,946 --> 00:29:39,777 But right now, the focus is on 19-year-old Alex Villanueva. 689 00:29:39,821 --> 00:29:40,909 He was a drifter. 690 00:29:40,952 --> 00:29:42,824 He didn't have a place where he stayed. 691 00:29:42,867 --> 00:29:47,045 So he was more or less running in the streets. 692 00:29:47,089 --> 00:29:48,568 He had to be brought into custody. 693 00:29:48,612 --> 00:29:50,832 It took detective work to sit him down 694 00:29:50,875 --> 00:29:52,050 and get him to cooperate 695 00:29:52,094 --> 00:29:53,878 and to develop a rapport with him 696 00:29:53,922 --> 00:29:55,619 in what we call the box. 697 00:29:55,662 --> 00:29:58,143 We had to put him in the box and talk to him. 698 00:29:58,187 --> 00:30:00,842 It was eight months since Sylvia's murder 699 00:30:00,885 --> 00:30:02,669 that Alex Villanueva was arrested. 700 00:30:02,713 --> 00:30:04,106 It took a long time. 701 00:30:04,149 --> 00:30:07,239 And it just needed to be done the right way. 702 00:30:07,283 --> 00:30:09,459 When our guys get a good look at Villanueva, 703 00:30:09,502 --> 00:30:11,809 they compare it to the police sketch of the killer 704 00:30:11,853 --> 00:30:13,811 taken from Amanda Leach's description. 705 00:30:13,855 --> 00:30:14,812 [camera shutter clicks] 706 00:30:14,856 --> 00:30:17,249 ♪ 707 00:30:17,293 --> 00:30:18,468 They are stunned. 708 00:30:18,511 --> 00:30:20,513 He has an uncanny resemblance. 709 00:30:20,557 --> 00:30:22,864 ♪ 710 00:30:22,907 --> 00:30:25,649 The Sylvia Lugo case didn't really make much sense 711 00:30:25,692 --> 00:30:28,652 that it was related until I saw the sketch. 712 00:30:28,695 --> 00:30:32,482 When I saw the sketch, I knew that this had to be my guy. 713 00:30:32,525 --> 00:30:35,528 He was slim-built. He had a pencil-thin mustache. 714 00:30:35,572 --> 00:30:36,965 He was Hispanic. 715 00:30:37,008 --> 00:30:40,751 He even had the baseball hat on that Amanda described 716 00:30:40,794 --> 00:30:44,320 at the scene of the homicide of Sylvia Lugo. 717 00:30:44,363 --> 00:30:46,931 Our investigators believe Villanueva was not only 718 00:30:46,975 --> 00:30:49,847 Gabrielle Kearns' shooter, he was also capable 719 00:30:49,891 --> 00:30:53,198 of a coldblooded killing like Sylvia Lugo's. 720 00:30:53,242 --> 00:30:54,678 ♪ 721 00:30:54,721 --> 00:30:56,767 The shooting of Gabrielle really lit up the case. 722 00:30:56,810 --> 00:30:59,422 It changed things. She was shot in a car. 723 00:30:59,465 --> 00:31:01,903 So it was a little different than the home invasion. 724 00:31:01,946 --> 00:31:04,296 But it shows the recklessness of the individual, 725 00:31:04,340 --> 00:31:07,909 how violent and how volatile his personality was. 726 00:31:07,952 --> 00:31:10,215 The MO was that this guy would shoot first. 727 00:31:10,259 --> 00:31:12,522 It was just like in the Sylvia Lugo case. 728 00:31:12,565 --> 00:31:14,306 He always shot in the head. 729 00:31:14,350 --> 00:31:18,180 He's a dangerous person that we had to get off the streets. 730 00:31:18,223 --> 00:31:19,964 But in a city of eight million people, 731 00:31:20,008 --> 00:31:23,359 a sketch and a similar MO is not nearly enough to say, 732 00:31:23,402 --> 00:31:24,795 "We got our guy." 733 00:31:24,838 --> 00:31:27,624 We know it's gonna take a lot more digging. 734 00:31:27,667 --> 00:31:29,147 Coming up... 735 00:31:29,191 --> 00:31:30,322 This person just came out of nowhere. 736 00:31:30,366 --> 00:31:33,760 So he explained the unexplainable. 737 00:31:33,804 --> 00:31:33,935 ♪ 738 00:31:33,978 --> 00:31:38,374 [dramatic music] 739 00:31:41,203 --> 00:31:44,858 After nine months of hunting for Sylvia Lugo's killer, 740 00:31:44,902 --> 00:31:47,513 our NYPD detectives are finally headed 741 00:31:47,557 --> 00:31:50,038 in a new direction in their investigation. 742 00:31:50,081 --> 00:31:53,693 When their latest suspect, Alex Villanueva, 743 00:31:53,737 --> 00:31:55,565 is brought in for questioning, 744 00:31:55,608 --> 00:31:59,656 he seems unusually eager to cooperate. 745 00:31:59,699 --> 00:32:02,267 Alex, for his own purposes, 746 00:32:02,311 --> 00:32:04,226 decided he wanted to talk. 747 00:32:04,269 --> 00:32:06,010 He called himself Little Gotti 748 00:32:06,054 --> 00:32:08,708 because he saw himself as untouchable, 749 00:32:08,752 --> 00:32:13,235 like the criminal John Gotti was at the time. 750 00:32:13,757 --> 00:32:15,977 Villanueva unexpectedly confesses 751 00:32:16,020 --> 00:32:17,935 to another unsolved murder. 752 00:32:17,979 --> 00:32:20,633 ♪ 753 00:32:20,677 --> 00:32:22,287 It was an execution-style shooting 754 00:32:22,331 --> 00:32:24,724 two months before Sylvia Lugo's death. 755 00:32:24,768 --> 00:32:26,117 For almost a year, 756 00:32:26,161 --> 00:32:29,164 the stalled case had haunted Detective Parker. 757 00:32:29,207 --> 00:32:31,209 The reason I got the case is I was in the homicide team 758 00:32:31,253 --> 00:32:33,646 in the 81 detective squad. 759 00:32:33,690 --> 00:32:35,257 I'll tell you exactly what happened 760 00:32:35,300 --> 00:32:36,867 with this case that I had. 761 00:32:36,910 --> 00:32:38,390 [indistinct radio chatter] 762 00:32:38,434 --> 00:32:39,696 When we got to the crime scene, 763 00:32:39,739 --> 00:32:43,047 we found a male victim named Michael Turrell. 764 00:32:43,091 --> 00:32:44,396 Apparently, someone put a pillow over his head 765 00:32:44,440 --> 00:32:48,618 and shot him through the head and killed him. 766 00:32:48,661 --> 00:32:49,836 ♪ 767 00:32:49,880 --> 00:32:52,578 Alex Villanueva described at first 768 00:32:52,622 --> 00:32:55,929 and said that Mike Turrell was going to assault him 769 00:32:55,973 --> 00:32:57,931 and then admitted it was really 770 00:32:57,975 --> 00:33:00,412 just a simple robbery and murder. 771 00:33:00,456 --> 00:33:02,066 ♪ 772 00:33:02,110 --> 00:33:04,764 Michael Turrell appeared to be the victim of a robbery 773 00:33:04,808 --> 00:33:07,245 and was shot in the head 774 00:33:07,289 --> 00:33:10,422 just like Gabrielle Kearns and Sylvia Lugo. 775 00:33:10,466 --> 00:33:13,773 It is looking increasingly likely that Villanueva 776 00:33:13,817 --> 00:33:16,776 was the person responsible for Sylvia's death, 777 00:33:16,820 --> 00:33:19,257 not Amanda Leach. 778 00:33:19,301 --> 00:33:22,304 When we finally ask him about Sylvia's murder, 779 00:33:22,347 --> 00:33:25,089 our suspicions are confirmed. 780 00:33:25,133 --> 00:33:27,483 He told everything in quite strong detail. 781 00:33:27,526 --> 00:33:29,137 He was actually proud of what he did. 782 00:33:29,180 --> 00:33:31,095 That's an investigator's dream come true 783 00:33:31,139 --> 00:33:33,097 when you have a braggart like that. 784 00:33:33,141 --> 00:33:34,968 He explained, 785 00:33:35,012 --> 00:33:37,101 when he described Sylvia Lugo's murder, 786 00:33:37,145 --> 00:33:40,757 he said that he wasn't targeting anybody 787 00:33:40,800 --> 00:33:42,150 but he was in the area 788 00:33:42,193 --> 00:33:47,024 and saw them, had a gun, and decided, "Why not?" 789 00:33:47,068 --> 00:33:48,199 ♪ 790 00:33:48,243 --> 00:33:50,593 And once Villanueva started singing, 791 00:33:50,636 --> 00:33:51,985 he didn't stop. 792 00:33:52,029 --> 00:33:54,640 [siren wailing] 793 00:33:54,684 --> 00:33:58,340 He described, in the Sylvia Lugo murder, 794 00:33:58,383 --> 00:34:01,256 how it was a crime of opportunity, 795 00:34:01,299 --> 00:34:03,475 how he had been out on the street, 796 00:34:03,519 --> 00:34:07,262 saw these two women pull in and pull up 797 00:34:07,305 --> 00:34:09,655 and get out of their car 798 00:34:09,699 --> 00:34:12,049 and knew he could rush behind them 799 00:34:12,093 --> 00:34:14,007 and force them into the building 800 00:34:14,051 --> 00:34:16,009 and into their apartment. 801 00:34:16,053 --> 00:34:20,275 He described how Sylvia was tied up, at his orders, 802 00:34:20,318 --> 00:34:22,146 by Amanda, 803 00:34:22,190 --> 00:34:27,282 how Sylvia burst in while he was actually raping Amanda 804 00:34:27,325 --> 00:34:29,545 and how he shot Sylvia... 805 00:34:29,588 --> 00:34:31,460 [gunshots] 806 00:34:31,503 --> 00:34:33,026 And how Amanda grabbed him 807 00:34:33,070 --> 00:34:35,159 and they struggled over the gun 808 00:34:35,203 --> 00:34:36,595 and how Amanda was shot. 809 00:34:36,639 --> 00:34:37,727 [gunshot] 810 00:34:37,770 --> 00:34:39,207 And then he admits to stealing 811 00:34:39,250 --> 00:34:41,426 Sylvia and Amanda's rental car, 812 00:34:41,470 --> 00:34:43,646 which fills in the blanks on why the car was found 813 00:34:43,689 --> 00:34:45,778 near the home of Trelane McKinney, 814 00:34:45,822 --> 00:34:49,042 Amanda's ex-girlfriend and a former suspect. 815 00:34:49,086 --> 00:34:54,526 He said that he took the car, drove away, 816 00:34:54,570 --> 00:34:56,528 and that he had wiped it down, 817 00:34:56,572 --> 00:34:58,617 and that, a few weeks later, 818 00:34:58,661 --> 00:35:01,751 he had to visit his probation officer 819 00:35:01,794 --> 00:35:06,059 and that he parked the car near his probation officer. 820 00:35:06,103 --> 00:35:08,497 And when he was walking back to the car, 821 00:35:08,540 --> 00:35:10,542 there were some police cars around, 822 00:35:10,586 --> 00:35:13,066 so he walked away from it. 823 00:35:13,110 --> 00:35:15,330 So he explained the unexplainable. 824 00:35:15,373 --> 00:35:18,550 This person just came out of nowhere, nowhere. 825 00:35:18,594 --> 00:35:21,727 Like, they stumbled upon him. 826 00:35:21,771 --> 00:35:23,251 Incredible. Incredible. 827 00:35:23,294 --> 00:35:26,123 But what really needs to seal the deal 828 00:35:26,167 --> 00:35:28,212 is the ballistics report. 829 00:35:28,256 --> 00:35:30,214 Ballistics are like fingerprints. 830 00:35:30,258 --> 00:35:33,217 Every gun has its own rifling inside the barrel. 831 00:35:33,261 --> 00:35:36,177 So every bullet that comes out has distinct markings. 832 00:35:36,220 --> 00:35:39,092 It's irrefutable as forensic evidence. 833 00:35:39,136 --> 00:35:40,572 So when our guys get the word 834 00:35:40,616 --> 00:35:43,358 that the ballistics are in, we hope against hope 835 00:35:43,401 --> 00:35:46,709 that we don't run into yet another roadblock. 836 00:35:46,752 --> 00:35:48,667 ♪ 837 00:35:48,711 --> 00:35:50,365 The ballistics results from the gun 838 00:35:50,408 --> 00:35:56,066 used in Gabrielle Kearns' shooting come up as a match 839 00:35:56,109 --> 00:36:00,592 with the shells found at Sylvia's murder scene. 840 00:36:00,636 --> 00:36:03,291 That evidence was great because the sketch 841 00:36:03,334 --> 00:36:05,771 that Amanda provided to the detectives 842 00:36:05,815 --> 00:36:07,164 and with the ballistics evidence 843 00:36:07,208 --> 00:36:09,079 that we had from the shooting, 844 00:36:09,122 --> 00:36:11,777 we were able to match it together to say 845 00:36:11,821 --> 00:36:13,257 that this was the person that was responsible 846 00:36:13,301 --> 00:36:17,957 for these shootings, which was Alex Villanueva. 847 00:36:18,001 --> 00:36:20,482 In the Sylvia Lugo homicide, the police realized 848 00:36:20,525 --> 00:36:23,267 that Amanda was telling the truth about what happened. 849 00:36:23,311 --> 00:36:24,964 Amanda was giving you the narrative, 850 00:36:25,008 --> 00:36:27,445 the truthful narrative of exactly what happened, 851 00:36:27,489 --> 00:36:30,492 in what sequence, what the perpetrator looked like, 852 00:36:30,535 --> 00:36:32,798 and what the perpetrator said. 853 00:36:32,842 --> 00:36:34,626 Amanda Leach is no longer a suspect 854 00:36:34,670 --> 00:36:37,499 in the murder of Sylvia Lugo. 855 00:36:37,542 --> 00:36:38,717 Everything she said was true. 856 00:36:38,761 --> 00:36:40,806 It was--everything she said was true. 857 00:36:40,850 --> 00:36:42,373 I was completely shocked. 858 00:36:42,417 --> 00:36:46,334 Now the focus is on Alex Villanueva. 859 00:36:46,377 --> 00:36:47,465 ♪ 860 00:36:47,509 --> 00:36:49,293 First, you have Michael Turrell, 861 00:36:49,337 --> 00:36:50,512 who gets killed. 862 00:36:50,555 --> 00:36:52,514 Then you have, several months later, 863 00:36:52,557 --> 00:36:54,603 the murder of Sylvia Lugo. 864 00:36:54,646 --> 00:36:57,910 Then after Sylvia Lugo, then you have Gabrielle Kearns. 865 00:36:57,954 --> 00:36:59,347 She gets shot. 866 00:36:59,390 --> 00:37:00,565 So there were three victims 867 00:37:00,609 --> 00:37:04,308 from this young perpetrator's rampage. 868 00:37:04,352 --> 00:37:06,919 This guy, Little Gotti, Alex Villanueva, 869 00:37:06,963 --> 00:37:08,486 was a bad kid. 870 00:37:08,530 --> 00:37:09,879 It was a race against time 871 00:37:09,922 --> 00:37:11,402 to get him behind bars where he belongs. 872 00:37:11,446 --> 00:37:13,839 This kid should never come out in the streets ever again. 873 00:37:13,883 --> 00:37:15,667 [siren wailing] 874 00:37:15,711 --> 00:37:18,322 There is still more detective work to be done. 875 00:37:18,366 --> 00:37:20,019 Amanda Leach was the sole witness 876 00:37:20,063 --> 00:37:22,413 to the murder of her girlfriend, Sylvia. 877 00:37:22,457 --> 00:37:26,287 And now we hope she will help us ID Villanueva. 878 00:37:26,330 --> 00:37:28,854 Even though you have ballistics, 879 00:37:28,898 --> 00:37:30,856 if you have a statement, you still want 880 00:37:30,900 --> 00:37:33,119 an ID of the perpetrator, 881 00:37:33,163 --> 00:37:35,687 so having Amanda view a lineup 882 00:37:35,731 --> 00:37:38,690 was really paramount to the investigation. 883 00:37:38,734 --> 00:37:42,041 For Amanda, this was a step forward that detectives 884 00:37:42,085 --> 00:37:44,783 finally believed that she was a victim. 885 00:37:44,827 --> 00:37:46,481 We do a lineup in the city every day. 886 00:37:46,524 --> 00:37:48,570 Somewhere in the city, several a day. 887 00:37:48,613 --> 00:37:50,528 And each time, you understand that the victim, 888 00:37:50,572 --> 00:37:52,748 if it is the victim and not a witness, 889 00:37:52,791 --> 00:37:54,663 is reliving that horrible experience 890 00:37:54,706 --> 00:37:56,229 that she wants to block out, 891 00:37:56,273 --> 00:37:58,362 and it requires enormous strength. 892 00:37:58,406 --> 00:38:00,190 It's very emotional for a witness 893 00:38:00,233 --> 00:38:02,366 to actually see the perpetrator 894 00:38:02,410 --> 00:38:03,846 on the other side of the glass. 895 00:38:03,889 --> 00:38:06,457 Every witness is really frightened to do a lineup 896 00:38:06,501 --> 00:38:07,893 because they're afraid 897 00:38:07,937 --> 00:38:09,460 that they're gonna remember it wrong 898 00:38:09,504 --> 00:38:11,810 or pick the wrong person out. 899 00:38:11,854 --> 00:38:14,552 As Amanda approaches Brooklyn's 84th, 900 00:38:14,596 --> 00:38:16,424 she readies herself. 901 00:38:16,467 --> 00:38:17,773 How would she react 902 00:38:17,816 --> 00:38:20,645 if she found herself face to face once again 903 00:38:20,689 --> 00:38:25,258 with the man who caused her so much heartache? 904 00:38:25,302 --> 00:38:25,346 ♪ 905 00:38:25,389 --> 00:38:29,959 [dramatic music] 906 00:38:33,702 --> 00:38:36,531 ♪ 907 00:38:36,574 --> 00:38:38,533 After a nine-month investigation, 908 00:38:38,576 --> 00:38:41,710 Alex Villanueva has become our number one suspect 909 00:38:41,753 --> 00:38:44,974 in the shooting death of Sylvia Lugo. 910 00:38:45,017 --> 00:38:47,672 Amanda Leach, who had been the prime suspect, 911 00:38:47,716 --> 00:38:50,414 has insisted all along that she and Sylvia 912 00:38:50,458 --> 00:38:51,937 were the victims of a deadly shooter 913 00:38:51,981 --> 00:38:54,244 matching Villanueva's description. 914 00:38:54,287 --> 00:38:55,680 ♪ 915 00:38:55,724 --> 00:38:57,552 Now she will have the opportunity 916 00:38:57,595 --> 00:39:01,077 to possibly ID him. 917 00:39:01,120 --> 00:39:03,209 ♪ 918 00:39:03,253 --> 00:39:04,515 Amanda viewed a lineup, 919 00:39:04,559 --> 00:39:07,736 and she identified Alex Villanueva 920 00:39:07,779 --> 00:39:10,216 as the man who had attacked her 921 00:39:10,260 --> 00:39:13,959 and killed Sylvia back in July. 922 00:39:14,003 --> 00:39:15,134 ♪ 923 00:39:15,178 --> 00:39:19,530 The day she identified Alex Villanueva 924 00:39:19,574 --> 00:39:24,883 as the man who had destroyed her life and Sylvia's 925 00:39:24,927 --> 00:39:30,411 was really the day she began to get her life back. 926 00:39:30,454 --> 00:39:32,021 ♪ 927 00:39:32,064 --> 00:39:34,763 Just over a year after Sylvia Lugo was killed, 928 00:39:34,806 --> 00:39:37,113 the Kings County District Attorney's Office 929 00:39:37,156 --> 00:39:38,593 charges Alex Villanueva 930 00:39:38,636 --> 00:39:42,771 with attempted murder, murder, and rape. 931 00:39:42,814 --> 00:39:45,382 I think we were all, you know, 932 00:39:45,426 --> 00:39:47,645 blown away probably by the fact 933 00:39:47,689 --> 00:39:52,302 that Amanda was innocent and the fact that the person 934 00:39:52,345 --> 00:39:56,393 who killed our sister had also attacked other people. 935 00:39:56,437 --> 00:39:59,135 The news spread like wildfire. 936 00:39:59,178 --> 00:40:02,617 And we all rejoiced. 937 00:40:02,660 --> 00:40:05,141 It was a huge relief for Amanda. 938 00:40:05,184 --> 00:40:08,579 The stress and trauma 939 00:40:08,623 --> 00:40:12,583 of being thought of as the prime suspect, 940 00:40:12,627 --> 00:40:16,457 it was a horrible year while they investigated her. 941 00:40:16,500 --> 00:40:18,763 [somber music] 942 00:40:18,807 --> 00:40:22,811 Although she had a lot of people on her side, 943 00:40:22,854 --> 00:40:25,030 she had an awful lot who weren't. 944 00:40:25,074 --> 00:40:31,341 She was blamed, really turned into a pariah. 945 00:40:31,384 --> 00:40:32,951 ♪ 946 00:40:32,995 --> 00:40:34,649 Even a year after the shooting, 947 00:40:34,692 --> 00:40:36,651 Amanda still had serious leg injuries 948 00:40:36,694 --> 00:40:39,305 and was unemployed. 949 00:40:39,349 --> 00:40:40,481 You know, looking back on it, 950 00:40:40,524 --> 00:40:42,134 of course, you know, it's horrible. 951 00:40:42,178 --> 00:40:45,007 I mean, I couldn't--I can't imagine being in her situation, 952 00:40:45,050 --> 00:40:47,575 you know, being attacked, witnessing what she did, 953 00:40:47,618 --> 00:40:52,493 and then not having the love and support 954 00:40:52,536 --> 00:40:54,364 that Sylvia had around her. 955 00:40:54,407 --> 00:40:58,542 ♪ 956 00:40:58,586 --> 00:41:03,068 Amanda, she lost her dignity, okay? 957 00:41:03,112 --> 00:41:06,550 I mean, she wasn't the same after all that. 958 00:41:06,594 --> 00:41:10,162 ♪ 959 00:41:10,206 --> 00:41:14,863 I guess, in my little way, like, representing my family, 960 00:41:14,906 --> 00:41:19,041 I wanted to extend, you know, an olive branch 961 00:41:19,084 --> 00:41:21,347 or just, you know, an acknowledgement, at least, 962 00:41:21,391 --> 00:41:25,961 because, you know, anybody in that situation deserves that. 963 00:41:26,004 --> 00:41:27,919 I don't think one detective would say 964 00:41:27,963 --> 00:41:29,573 they would do anything different 965 00:41:29,617 --> 00:41:31,749 about how they handled this case, 966 00:41:31,793 --> 00:41:33,577 especially with all the evidence 967 00:41:33,621 --> 00:41:35,797 that sort of led them towards Amanda. 968 00:41:35,840 --> 00:41:37,712 And all you can do is go back and apologize and say, 969 00:41:37,755 --> 00:41:39,235 "Look, we're very sorry. 970 00:41:39,278 --> 00:41:41,280 "We hope this brings you 971 00:41:41,324 --> 00:41:45,067 some kind of closure, especially for the community." 972 00:41:45,110 --> 00:41:46,895 Trelane McKinney suffered too. 973 00:41:46,938 --> 00:41:48,723 She lost her job and was shunned 974 00:41:48,766 --> 00:41:50,594 by her own community. 975 00:41:50,638 --> 00:41:54,772 You know how paper blows in the wind? 976 00:41:54,816 --> 00:41:57,340 That's how I felt. I felt useless. 977 00:41:57,383 --> 00:42:00,952 Just let it take me away. 978 00:42:00,996 --> 00:42:03,912 It just hurt a lot that people I've been friends with, 979 00:42:03,955 --> 00:42:06,784 they believed that I did it. 980 00:42:06,828 --> 00:42:10,266 I still have flashbacks of the incident 981 00:42:10,309 --> 00:42:14,270 and what I went through every time July 5th comes around. 982 00:42:14,313 --> 00:42:16,054 ♪ 983 00:42:16,098 --> 00:42:18,013 In a Brooklyn courtroom, days before his trial 984 00:42:18,056 --> 00:42:21,233 was about to start, Alex Villanueva 985 00:42:21,277 --> 00:42:24,933 stuns prosecutors and even his own attorneys. 986 00:42:24,976 --> 00:42:28,284 He pleads guilty to second degree murder of Sylvia Lugo, 987 00:42:28,327 --> 00:42:31,940 Michael Turrell, the attempted murder of Gabrielle Kearns, 988 00:42:31,983 --> 00:42:34,159 and the rape of Amanda Leach. 989 00:42:34,203 --> 00:42:36,945 Almost two years after Sylvia's death, 990 00:42:36,988 --> 00:42:40,949 Villanueva is sentenced to 50 years to life. 991 00:42:40,992 --> 00:42:42,428 ♪ 992 00:42:42,472 --> 00:42:44,082 That's really, you know, 993 00:42:44,126 --> 00:42:46,171 relief in terms of, "Oh, justice. 994 00:42:46,215 --> 00:42:48,478 "Sylvia's killer is no longer walking around there 995 00:42:48,521 --> 00:42:50,306 just doing whatever he wants." 996 00:42:50,349 --> 00:42:51,394 That's good, but also, 997 00:42:51,437 --> 00:42:53,962 he won't be hurting anybody else. 998 00:42:54,005 --> 00:42:56,007 I would just like Sylvia to be remembered 999 00:42:56,051 --> 00:42:58,096 just as she was a great person. 1000 00:42:58,140 --> 00:43:00,664 And I know she could have been even greater. 1001 00:43:00,708 --> 00:43:03,667 ♪ 1002 00:43:03,711 --> 00:43:04,973 Look at Daddy, Danielle! 1003 00:43:05,016 --> 00:43:08,672 We talk about her constantly, every day. 1004 00:43:08,716 --> 00:43:11,153 [indistinct chatter] 1005 00:43:11,196 --> 00:43:12,154 No more! 1006 00:43:12,197 --> 00:43:13,285 [laughter] 1007 00:43:13,329 --> 00:43:14,983 Just keeping her spirit alive, 1008 00:43:15,026 --> 00:43:20,162 and it's--you know, it hurts, 1009 00:43:20,205 --> 00:43:23,861 but it makes us smile thinking about it. 1010 00:43:23,905 --> 00:43:25,820 Just because somebody is gone, 1011 00:43:25,863 --> 00:43:28,213 that doesn't mean their memory is gone. 1012 00:43:28,257 --> 00:43:32,257 ♪