1 00:00:03,263 --> 00:00:06,484 An art collector is found dead in his luxury penthouse 2 00:00:06,527 --> 00:00:08,703 on Manhattan's Upper East Side. 3 00:00:08,747 --> 00:00:10,662 Doormen make great witnesses. 4 00:00:10,705 --> 00:00:13,404 They know what the people are doing. 5 00:00:13,447 --> 00:00:15,275 Surrounded by treasures. 6 00:00:15,319 --> 00:00:17,886 It's like walking into a cave of wonders. 7 00:00:17,930 --> 00:00:20,150 Precious paintings, 8 00:00:20,193 --> 00:00:23,892 riches of a man who has amassed this fortune. 9 00:00:23,936 --> 00:00:26,678 NYPD begins to vet suspects. 10 00:00:26,721 --> 00:00:28,680 Everybody kind of pointed a finger, 11 00:00:28,723 --> 00:00:29,724 "Hey, you should go look at 12 00:00:29,768 --> 00:00:32,292 this female friend of Mr. Cooley. 13 00:00:32,336 --> 00:00:34,338 Was this the work of a scorned lover? 14 00:00:34,381 --> 00:00:38,907 She was with Mr. Cooley for, you know, 10, 11 years. 15 00:00:38,951 --> 00:00:41,519 She could probably get herself in there. 16 00:00:41,562 --> 00:00:44,304 Or did his generosity come at a cost? 17 00:00:44,348 --> 00:00:46,132 And he helped many, many people. 18 00:00:46,176 --> 00:00:49,875 I would actually characterize him a modern-day Robin Hood 19 00:00:49,918 --> 00:00:51,833 without the bow and arrow. 20 00:00:51,877 --> 00:00:53,444 When you're thinking about suspects, 21 00:00:53,487 --> 00:00:54,923 one of the main things we're thinking about 22 00:00:54,967 --> 00:00:58,710 is was there a financial motive to kill someone? 23 00:00:58,753 --> 00:01:01,582 Investigators uncover a disturbing trail of wealth, 24 00:01:01,626 --> 00:01:04,759 greed and twisted deception. 25 00:01:04,803 --> 00:01:06,239 This was professional. 26 00:01:06,283 --> 00:01:10,461 Someone who was good at taking money from people. 27 00:01:10,504 --> 00:01:12,332 Detective Rodriguez made the discovery, 28 00:01:12,376 --> 00:01:13,594 and I remember him calling me and going, 29 00:01:13,638 --> 00:01:14,726 "You're never gonna guess what. 30 00:01:14,769 --> 00:01:16,641 You're never gonna guess what." 31 00:01:19,687 --> 00:01:26,825 ♪ 32 00:01:36,748 --> 00:01:38,793 When I think of New York's billionaires, 33 00:01:38,837 --> 00:01:40,491 the Upper East Side is the first neighborhood 34 00:01:40,534 --> 00:01:43,233 that comes to mind. 35 00:01:43,276 --> 00:01:45,713 That's where the old money lives. 36 00:01:45,757 --> 00:01:47,280 It's home to posh restaurants, 37 00:01:47,324 --> 00:01:49,500 designer shops along Madison Avenue, 38 00:01:49,543 --> 00:01:51,502 and the great cultural institutions 39 00:01:51,545 --> 00:01:54,940 like the Guggenheim and the Metropolitan Museum. 40 00:01:54,983 --> 00:01:56,420 It's the neighborhood that art collector, 41 00:01:56,463 --> 00:01:58,465 79-year-old Christopher Cooley 42 00:01:58,509 --> 00:02:01,816 has called home for almost 40 years. 43 00:02:01,860 --> 00:02:03,557 What stays with me about this case, 44 00:02:03,601 --> 00:02:05,690 more than Christopher's Upper East Side wealth, 45 00:02:05,733 --> 00:02:07,648 is his big heart and generosity. 46 00:02:07,692 --> 00:02:10,695 Unfortunately, in a place with 8 million people, 47 00:02:10,738 --> 00:02:13,654 the generous can be tragically exploited. 48 00:02:13,698 --> 00:02:16,570 In Christopher Cooley's case, it cost him his life. 49 00:02:16,614 --> 00:02:21,488 ♪ 50 00:02:21,532 --> 00:02:24,578 Normally, you kind of get this sort of separation 51 00:02:24,622 --> 00:02:26,624 between the people who live in the ritzy building 52 00:02:26,667 --> 00:02:29,931 and the people who run the ritzy building. 53 00:02:29,975 --> 00:02:33,631 White-collar versus blue-collar dynamic. 54 00:02:33,674 --> 00:02:36,024 But Christopher was not that type. 55 00:02:36,068 --> 00:02:38,418 This is the type of man who was very quick 56 00:02:38,462 --> 00:02:39,854 to pick up a conversation with anyone. 57 00:02:39,898 --> 00:02:41,508 He would talk to the doormen, 58 00:02:41,552 --> 00:02:43,641 even strangers out on the street. 59 00:02:43,684 --> 00:02:47,601 I would describe Uncle as a very, very generous person. 60 00:02:47,645 --> 00:02:50,300 He helped many, many people. 61 00:02:50,343 --> 00:02:53,738 I would actually characterize him a modern-day Robin Hood 62 00:02:53,781 --> 00:02:55,479 without the bow and arrow. 63 00:03:15,455 --> 00:03:17,849 Mom called me at night. 64 00:03:17,892 --> 00:03:19,938 She hadn't heard from Uncle. 65 00:03:19,981 --> 00:03:23,420 And despite the fact that he traveled quite a bit, 66 00:03:23,463 --> 00:03:24,899 he would always check in. 67 00:03:24,943 --> 00:03:27,554 She was nervous 68 00:03:27,598 --> 00:03:29,904 and she finally got ahold of the building super 69 00:03:29,948 --> 00:03:33,560 and said, "Can you check on Uncle?" 70 00:03:33,604 --> 00:03:36,389 Christopher's sister Sarah tells Ray Kazaj, 71 00:03:36,433 --> 00:03:38,086 the superintendent of the luxury building, 72 00:03:38,130 --> 00:03:42,569 she hasn't been able to reach her brother for over a week. 73 00:03:42,613 --> 00:03:44,702 Ray calms her down and says, 74 00:03:44,745 --> 00:03:45,920 "Listen, you know your brother. 75 00:03:45,964 --> 00:03:47,966 He likes to go out of town a lot. 76 00:03:48,009 --> 00:03:49,924 It's possible that maybe he flew overseas 77 00:03:49,968 --> 00:03:53,580 and just didn't tell you." 78 00:03:53,624 --> 00:03:55,060 So Ray hangs up the phone. 79 00:03:55,103 --> 00:03:59,020 He goes up to Christopher's apartment. 80 00:03:59,064 --> 00:04:02,110 There's a stack of newspapers there. 81 00:04:02,154 --> 00:04:04,417 Kind of odd, but maybe it could just be something 82 00:04:04,461 --> 00:04:06,941 where Christopher forgot to put a pause on a subscription 83 00:04:06,985 --> 00:04:08,552 before he left town. 84 00:04:08,595 --> 00:04:10,641 ♪ 85 00:04:10,684 --> 00:04:13,426 Ray knocks on the door. 86 00:04:13,470 --> 00:04:15,646 There is no response. 87 00:04:15,689 --> 00:04:18,605 Then he tries the door. It's locked. 88 00:04:18,649 --> 00:04:21,956 Now, Ray and Christopher had a close enough relationship 89 00:04:22,000 --> 00:04:24,394 where he had a key to the apartment. 90 00:04:24,437 --> 00:04:27,788 He opens the door. 91 00:04:27,832 --> 00:04:31,792 It's like walking into a cave of wonders. 92 00:04:31,836 --> 00:04:36,797 Precious paintings, rare artifacts, sculptures. 93 00:04:36,841 --> 00:04:41,106 Riches of a man who has traveled a lot in his life 94 00:04:41,149 --> 00:04:44,414 who enjoys art, who enjoys going to museums, 95 00:04:44,457 --> 00:04:48,592 and who has amassed this fortune. 96 00:04:48,635 --> 00:04:51,725 He can see Christopher from the threshold of the doorway 97 00:04:51,769 --> 00:04:54,989 sitting upright in his chair. 98 00:04:55,033 --> 00:04:58,906 Then he feels this waft, this smell. 99 00:04:58,950 --> 00:05:02,432 Realizing that the smell was coming from Christopher, 100 00:05:02,475 --> 00:05:06,000 who was unresponsive, 101 00:05:06,044 --> 00:05:09,526 Ray immediately calls 911. 102 00:05:09,569 --> 00:05:11,441 EMS arrives and within minutes, 103 00:05:11,484 --> 00:05:13,094 Christopher is pronounced dead, 104 00:05:13,138 --> 00:05:18,404 and Homicide is called to the scene. 105 00:05:18,448 --> 00:05:21,407 I was working the 19th Precinct detective squad 106 00:05:21,451 --> 00:05:24,018 when we got the call. 107 00:05:24,062 --> 00:05:26,499 I go, "They got something strange over in the 19th. 108 00:05:26,543 --> 00:05:27,674 We might have something. 109 00:05:27,718 --> 00:05:28,980 So he said, "What do they have?" 110 00:05:29,023 --> 00:05:30,590 He goes, "Well, we have a guy here 111 00:05:30,634 --> 00:05:35,029 but he has what looks like ties wrapped around his neck. 112 00:05:35,073 --> 00:05:37,815 And we have, like, broken glass on the floor." 113 00:05:37,858 --> 00:05:41,514 We drove over and we walked into the apartment. 114 00:05:41,558 --> 00:05:45,039 ♪ 115 00:05:45,083 --> 00:05:47,477 Mr. Cooley was slouched over with, like, 116 00:05:47,520 --> 00:05:48,869 a pillow over his face. 117 00:05:48,913 --> 00:05:51,872 You could see there was broken glass on him, 118 00:05:51,916 --> 00:05:54,745 blood on his head. 119 00:05:54,788 --> 00:05:56,573 A dispute appears to have occurred 120 00:05:56,616 --> 00:05:59,532 with Chris struck from behind with a glass lamp. 121 00:05:59,576 --> 00:06:01,926 ♪ 122 00:06:01,969 --> 00:06:03,493 When I saw the body, 123 00:06:03,536 --> 00:06:08,628 the victim's tie will not in a natural position. 124 00:06:08,672 --> 00:06:11,805 The tie was wrapped around his neck twice. 125 00:06:11,849 --> 00:06:13,328 It definitely gave the indication 126 00:06:13,372 --> 00:06:17,811 that somebody utilized that to choke out Mr. Cooley. 127 00:06:17,855 --> 00:06:20,945 And it's clear, Chris didn't die of natural causes. 128 00:06:20,988 --> 00:06:23,469 The detectives immediately call the medical examiner 129 00:06:23,513 --> 00:06:26,646 who comes to the apartment right away. 130 00:06:26,690 --> 00:06:28,735 The medical examiner said that she saw 131 00:06:28,779 --> 00:06:30,911 a particular hemorrhaging inside of his eyes. 132 00:06:30,955 --> 00:06:34,785 The blood vessels in your eyes exploding causes red dots 133 00:06:34,828 --> 00:06:38,789 which, nine out of ten, is from being strangled. 134 00:06:38,832 --> 00:06:41,835 Having glass all over himself. 135 00:06:41,879 --> 00:06:45,491 Having a pillow over his face, I think it's pretty quick 136 00:06:45,535 --> 00:06:48,015 you could also rule suicide out. 137 00:06:48,059 --> 00:06:51,279 This was definitely a homicide. 138 00:06:51,323 --> 00:06:53,934 Somebody choked him. 139 00:06:53,978 --> 00:06:58,548 So Ray immediately called my mom. 140 00:06:58,591 --> 00:07:01,246 By 9:00 that night, 141 00:07:01,289 --> 00:07:04,684 I received a call of what had transpired 142 00:07:04,728 --> 00:07:07,513 that--that Uncle had passed. 143 00:07:07,557 --> 00:07:11,952 I reached out and actually called Ray that night 144 00:07:11,996 --> 00:07:15,042 and we talked about it, shed a tear about it. 145 00:07:15,086 --> 00:07:18,829 It was devastating. 146 00:07:18,872 --> 00:07:20,744 We'd seen him over the holidays 147 00:07:20,787 --> 00:07:22,049 a couple months before, 148 00:07:22,093 --> 00:07:25,139 and he was in good spirits, good vigor. 149 00:07:25,183 --> 00:07:27,620 I cried. 150 00:07:27,664 --> 00:07:29,796 I don't cry much. 151 00:07:29,840 --> 00:07:32,277 Uncle and I were very, very close. 152 00:07:32,320 --> 00:07:34,758 ♪ 153 00:07:34,801 --> 00:07:38,544 Uncle Christopher Cooley was born in Hartford, Connecticut, 154 00:07:38,588 --> 00:07:39,937 but had been residing in New York city 155 00:07:39,980 --> 00:07:44,637 for the better part of 60 years. 156 00:07:44,681 --> 00:07:46,073 We learned Christopher Cooley 157 00:07:46,117 --> 00:07:47,988 didn't leave any children behind, 158 00:07:48,032 --> 00:07:51,644 but he was married for more than 20 years to Mary Cooley. 159 00:07:51,688 --> 00:07:57,084 Shortly after their marriage, Mary developed MS 160 00:07:57,128 --> 00:08:00,566 and he cared for her for over 25 years. 161 00:08:00,610 --> 00:08:03,134 Regardless of her disabilities, 162 00:08:03,177 --> 00:08:06,354 he carried her and took care of her. 163 00:08:06,398 --> 00:08:10,184 She absolutely was the love of his life. 164 00:08:10,228 --> 00:08:13,840 After Mary died, Christopher kept her memory close. 165 00:08:13,884 --> 00:08:16,669 He spent more time in a house they'd bought together 166 00:08:16,713 --> 00:08:19,672 in Venice, Italy, their home away from home. 167 00:08:19,716 --> 00:08:22,327 He and Mary loved Venice. 168 00:08:22,370 --> 00:08:25,199 He had a home over there for 41 years 169 00:08:25,243 --> 00:08:26,853 right off the Giudecca. 170 00:08:26,897 --> 00:08:29,290 So he would go over there around September 171 00:08:29,334 --> 00:08:34,644 and then back to New York in the spring. 172 00:08:34,687 --> 00:08:36,863 Christopher doted on his extended family 173 00:08:36,907 --> 00:08:40,258 and had devoted friends on both sides of the Atlantic. 174 00:08:40,301 --> 00:08:42,826 He was a very infectious person to be around. 175 00:08:42,869 --> 00:08:45,263 Some might use the word "eccentric" 176 00:08:45,306 --> 00:08:46,960 but eccentric is good. 177 00:08:57,275 --> 00:09:00,757 At Christopher's apartment, the Crime Scene unit arrives 178 00:09:00,800 --> 00:09:02,323 to do an initial sweep. 179 00:09:02,367 --> 00:09:04,195 After Crime Scene takes photos 180 00:09:04,238 --> 00:09:06,632 of the overall apartment and the victim, 181 00:09:06,676 --> 00:09:07,851 it does get very exciting 182 00:09:07,894 --> 00:09:09,635 when you find things out of place 183 00:09:09,679 --> 00:09:11,158 and you know that this is really good evidence 184 00:09:11,202 --> 00:09:12,682 that's gonna help solve this. 185 00:09:12,725 --> 00:09:15,685 There was the fingerprints on the lamp glass 186 00:09:15,728 --> 00:09:18,383 that was broken on him. 187 00:09:18,426 --> 00:09:19,993 Saw a little bit of blood on him. 188 00:09:23,693 --> 00:09:25,695 Fischer notices Christopher is still wearing 189 00:09:25,738 --> 00:09:27,087 an expensive watch 190 00:09:27,131 --> 00:09:29,873 and he finds a wad of nearly $200 in his pocket. 191 00:09:29,916 --> 00:09:32,310 ♪ 192 00:09:32,353 --> 00:09:34,660 Puzzled that such an easy score is left untouched, 193 00:09:34,704 --> 00:09:36,096 Fischer heads to the front door 194 00:09:36,140 --> 00:09:37,881 and thumbs through the dates of the newspapers 195 00:09:37,924 --> 00:09:41,058 outside of Christopher's apartment. 196 00:09:41,101 --> 00:09:43,451 If newspapers are inside the apartment 197 00:09:43,495 --> 00:09:45,932 where I understood Mr. Cooley did read, 198 00:09:45,976 --> 00:09:48,152 like, three different newspapers a day, 199 00:09:48,195 --> 00:09:49,501 you know, he's still alive, 200 00:09:49,544 --> 00:09:52,939 but if the newspapers were outside, okay, 201 00:09:52,983 --> 00:09:54,114 he wasn't there to collect them 202 00:09:54,158 --> 00:09:55,986 so he didn't bring them in. 203 00:09:56,029 --> 00:09:57,944 So that does help us with the timeline 204 00:09:57,988 --> 00:10:00,077 in regards to his death. 205 00:10:00,120 --> 00:10:02,296 So the newspapers were important 206 00:10:02,340 --> 00:10:06,823 because they were piling up since March 5th. 207 00:10:06,866 --> 00:10:09,129 Christopher's likely been dead for at least ten days. 208 00:10:09,173 --> 00:10:13,351 Detectives now wonder how did the killer get in? 209 00:10:13,394 --> 00:10:14,657 There were no signs of forced entry. 210 00:10:14,700 --> 00:10:17,224 As a matter of fact, the door was locked. 211 00:10:17,268 --> 00:10:19,705 ♪ 212 00:10:19,749 --> 00:10:22,447 Unless somebody had a key, well, how could this happen? 213 00:10:24,231 --> 00:10:27,887 I believe that the person was known to the victim. 214 00:10:27,931 --> 00:10:31,935 So now the question is who wanted to harm him 215 00:10:31,978 --> 00:10:34,372 and had access to his apartment? 216 00:10:34,415 --> 00:10:35,808 We do a building canvass. 217 00:10:35,852 --> 00:10:38,506 Did anybody hear anything? Did anybody see anything? 218 00:10:38,550 --> 00:10:40,987 No one witnessed anything suspicious 219 00:10:41,031 --> 00:10:42,293 and only expressed sadness 220 00:10:42,336 --> 00:10:44,948 at the loss of their dear neighbor. 221 00:10:44,991 --> 00:10:46,819 He was a collector of fine arts. 222 00:10:46,863 --> 00:10:48,299 He was a collector of many things. 223 00:10:48,342 --> 00:10:50,257 There may have been some things of value 224 00:10:50,301 --> 00:10:52,172 in the apartment. 225 00:10:52,216 --> 00:10:53,304 Something's not right. 226 00:10:53,347 --> 00:10:56,220 Who would ever hurt Uncle? 227 00:10:56,263 --> 00:10:58,222 ♪ 228 00:10:58,265 --> 00:11:00,485 I'm not one to sit on the sidelines. 229 00:11:00,528 --> 00:11:04,532 I immediately drove down to find out who did this. 230 00:11:04,576 --> 00:11:07,535 ♪ 231 00:11:07,579 --> 00:11:09,015 Coming up... 232 00:11:09,059 --> 00:11:12,453 The only person that was of any interest 233 00:11:12,497 --> 00:11:15,413 was this ex-girlfriend, Apples. 234 00:11:15,456 --> 00:11:16,849 Everybody kind of pointed a finger. 235 00:11:16,893 --> 00:11:18,111 "Hey, you should go look at Apples. 236 00:11:18,155 --> 00:11:20,853 Look at Apples." 237 00:11:20,897 --> 00:11:25,466 ♪ 238 00:11:30,384 --> 00:11:34,214 ♪ 239 00:11:34,258 --> 00:11:36,608 Investigators continue to work the crime scene 240 00:11:36,651 --> 00:11:38,349 where art collector Christopher Cooley 241 00:11:38,392 --> 00:11:40,612 was murdered in his Upper East Side penthouse 242 00:11:40,655 --> 00:11:43,397 by someone who has keys to his apartment. 243 00:11:43,441 --> 00:11:45,660 David Seymour is racing to his uncle's apartment 244 00:11:45,704 --> 00:11:49,621 from Connecticut to find out what happened. 245 00:11:49,664 --> 00:11:53,712 When I got to New York, 64th was quarantined off. 246 00:11:55,453 --> 00:11:58,456 The parade was going on for St. Patty's day 247 00:11:58,499 --> 00:12:01,546 but the--the caution tape and all the squad cars 248 00:12:01,589 --> 00:12:04,462 had a bit of a different flavor to it. 249 00:12:06,856 --> 00:12:09,336 Just blocks away from the happy crowds, 250 00:12:09,380 --> 00:12:11,643 David enters his uncle's building 251 00:12:11,686 --> 00:12:13,863 hoping for answers and eager to help. 252 00:12:13,906 --> 00:12:15,952 This was a scene out of "Law and Order." 253 00:12:15,995 --> 00:12:19,782 There were many, many police officers there. 254 00:12:19,825 --> 00:12:21,871 There was expensive pieces of art in there 255 00:12:21,914 --> 00:12:23,568 and he wanted to take them out. 256 00:12:23,611 --> 00:12:25,309 He was prevented from doing so. 257 00:12:25,352 --> 00:12:27,485 Nobody can go in the apartment. 258 00:12:27,528 --> 00:12:29,661 When I walked in with the keys, 259 00:12:29,704 --> 00:12:32,664 they wanna know, "When were you last here?" 260 00:12:32,707 --> 00:12:34,405 I felt like I was a suspect. 261 00:12:34,448 --> 00:12:36,494 ♪ 262 00:12:36,537 --> 00:12:39,410 But David was saying, "Listen, we are, 263 00:12:39,453 --> 00:12:42,369 "you know, very affluent and we don't need Christopher's money. 264 00:12:42,413 --> 00:12:44,371 "I can tell you right off that 265 00:12:44,415 --> 00:12:46,634 this does not have anything to do with our family." 266 00:12:46,678 --> 00:12:50,638 I think by the time I left on that night of the 17th, 267 00:12:50,682 --> 00:12:53,816 they had ruled me out at this point as a suspect. 268 00:12:53,859 --> 00:12:55,948 David Seymour was very helpful in giving us 269 00:12:55,992 --> 00:12:58,646 a picture of who Mr. Cooley was 270 00:12:58,690 --> 00:13:00,518 and how he was beloved by his family, 271 00:13:00,561 --> 00:13:02,041 how he was the eccentric uncle. 272 00:13:02,085 --> 00:13:03,564 He was always there for any time 273 00:13:03,608 --> 00:13:05,349 anybody ever needed anything. 274 00:13:05,392 --> 00:13:07,699 He was a very decent person. 275 00:13:09,744 --> 00:13:12,443 Detectives now need to talk to Ray Kazaj, 276 00:13:12,486 --> 00:13:14,053 the building superintendent to find out 277 00:13:14,097 --> 00:13:17,361 if he knows of anyone who would want Christopher dead. 278 00:13:17,404 --> 00:13:20,494 You wanna try to speak with the people who know him best, 279 00:13:20,538 --> 00:13:22,409 who he brings into the apartment. 280 00:13:22,453 --> 00:13:27,371 Does he allow people to sleep over or anything like that? 281 00:13:27,414 --> 00:13:30,069 Doormen make great witnesses because again, 282 00:13:30,113 --> 00:13:32,419 they are, like, the keepers of the gate. 283 00:13:32,463 --> 00:13:34,421 They know what the people are doing. 284 00:13:34,465 --> 00:13:37,120 They know who's fighting in the apartments. 285 00:13:37,163 --> 00:13:39,862 The only person of interest to the family 286 00:13:39,905 --> 00:13:44,127 and the friends was this ex-girlfriend Apples. 287 00:13:44,170 --> 00:13:47,347 They say she was actually banned from the building 288 00:13:47,391 --> 00:13:52,831 because due to her violent outbursts and argument. 289 00:13:52,875 --> 00:13:54,093 Everybody kind of pointed a finger, 290 00:13:54,137 --> 00:13:55,486 "Hey, you should go look at Apples. 291 00:13:55,529 --> 00:13:57,792 Look at Apples." 292 00:13:57,836 --> 00:14:01,492 Apples was a female friend of Mr. Cooley 293 00:14:01,535 --> 00:14:05,104 for probably a good ten-plus years. 294 00:14:05,148 --> 00:14:08,499 According to numerous, numerous people, 295 00:14:08,542 --> 00:14:11,894 their relationship was very, very volatile. 296 00:14:11,937 --> 00:14:13,547 ♪ 297 00:14:13,591 --> 00:14:15,593 Apples is well known to Christopher's friends 298 00:14:15,636 --> 00:14:17,290 and family 299 00:14:17,334 --> 00:14:20,728 from when she first entered the scene over ten years ago. 300 00:14:20,772 --> 00:14:22,600 We met her at an art gathering 301 00:14:22,643 --> 00:14:24,428 or something along those lines. 302 00:14:29,433 --> 00:14:32,871 The amount of people he helped is mind-boggling. 303 00:14:32,915 --> 00:14:34,655 And she needed some help 304 00:14:34,699 --> 00:14:38,181 so he certainly was helping her out financially. 305 00:14:38,224 --> 00:14:40,487 ♪ 306 00:14:40,531 --> 00:14:43,490 And around a year ago, their relationship had soured 307 00:14:43,534 --> 00:14:45,536 past the point of no return. 308 00:14:47,451 --> 00:14:49,670 They would be arguing. They would be fighting. 309 00:14:49,714 --> 00:14:52,021 People were actually really threatened by her. 310 00:14:52,064 --> 00:14:55,938 She was definitely the aggressor in it. 311 00:14:55,981 --> 00:15:00,551 ♪ 312 00:15:00,594 --> 00:15:04,033 Apples, she wanted something more and he didn't 313 00:15:04,076 --> 00:15:07,645 and he decides to cut it off. 314 00:15:07,688 --> 00:15:09,429 Friends and family say 315 00:15:09,473 --> 00:15:13,042 Apples didn't take the breakup gracefully. 316 00:15:13,085 --> 00:15:15,696 I don't want to use the word "stalking," 317 00:15:15,740 --> 00:15:18,221 but she certainly was still trying to contact him, 318 00:15:18,264 --> 00:15:22,529 despite the fact that he was trying to not speak with her. 319 00:15:23,878 --> 00:15:25,141 Before the breakup, 320 00:15:25,184 --> 00:15:27,839 Apples lashed out at Chris's friends too. 321 00:15:38,241 --> 00:15:40,808 The calls grew more frequent. 322 00:15:53,865 --> 00:15:58,087 She was with Mr. Cooley for, you know, 10, 11 years. 323 00:15:58,130 --> 00:16:00,263 She could probably get herself in there. 324 00:16:00,306 --> 00:16:02,787 ♪ 325 00:16:02,830 --> 00:16:06,530 Did jealousy drive Apples to kill Christopher Cooley? 326 00:16:06,573 --> 00:16:10,490 Maybe this was a case of a romance gone wrong. 327 00:16:10,534 --> 00:16:15,278 But now, the trouble is how do you track her down? 328 00:16:15,321 --> 00:16:17,193 Detectives, go back to ask Ray, 329 00:16:17,236 --> 00:16:18,672 the super of the building, 330 00:16:18,716 --> 00:16:21,066 if Apples was seen at the apartment 331 00:16:21,110 --> 00:16:24,548 but it's been months since he's seen her. 332 00:16:24,591 --> 00:16:26,245 While detectives search for Apples, 333 00:16:26,289 --> 00:16:27,638 David reports rumors 334 00:16:27,681 --> 00:16:30,293 from many of Christopher's friends in Venice. 335 00:16:30,336 --> 00:16:35,037 ♪ 336 00:16:35,080 --> 00:16:37,300 I was receiving a bunch of calls. 337 00:16:37,343 --> 00:16:40,651 There was the whole Venice quorum 338 00:16:40,694 --> 00:16:43,132 trying to help with leads. 339 00:16:43,175 --> 00:16:46,657 So many people had an interest in purchasing the property 340 00:16:46,700 --> 00:16:48,789 so I had to go quite a bit. 341 00:16:48,833 --> 00:16:52,576 Perhaps foul play had come from someone in Italy. 342 00:17:04,327 --> 00:17:06,111 So when you're looking at a case like this 343 00:17:06,155 --> 00:17:08,113 where the victim is a man of international wealth 344 00:17:08,157 --> 00:17:09,636 with a home in Venice, 345 00:17:09,680 --> 00:17:11,812 we need to ask if something happened in Italy 346 00:17:11,856 --> 00:17:14,119 that affects his life here in New York. 347 00:17:14,163 --> 00:17:15,729 And the message David is receiving 348 00:17:15,773 --> 00:17:19,951 from Christopher's friends suggests there is. 349 00:17:19,994 --> 00:17:22,040 One of these ladies was convinced 350 00:17:22,084 --> 00:17:25,087 that some of these buyers killed Uncle. 351 00:17:25,130 --> 00:17:26,610 There was a friend who was convinced 352 00:17:26,653 --> 00:17:28,220 that someone who had an interest 353 00:17:28,264 --> 00:17:31,832 in purchasing the property killed Uncle. 354 00:17:31,876 --> 00:17:33,095 No question about it. 355 00:17:33,138 --> 00:17:36,185 ♪ 356 00:17:39,231 --> 00:17:40,928 ♪ 357 00:17:45,194 --> 00:17:52,157 ♪ 358 00:17:52,201 --> 00:17:53,724 Art collector Christopher Cooley 359 00:17:53,767 --> 00:17:56,553 has been murdered in his Upper East Side apartment. 360 00:17:56,596 --> 00:17:57,815 The most unnerving rumor 361 00:17:57,858 --> 00:17:59,773 about who killed the affable art lover 362 00:17:59,817 --> 00:18:02,428 involves Christopher's coveted Venetian home. 363 00:18:02,472 --> 00:18:05,127 ♪ 364 00:18:05,170 --> 00:18:07,172 David relayed a rumor that someone trying to buy 365 00:18:07,216 --> 00:18:09,566 his uncle's house had him murdered. 366 00:18:09,609 --> 00:18:11,307 We brought in a special international unit 367 00:18:11,350 --> 00:18:12,438 to look into it, 368 00:18:12,482 --> 00:18:15,702 but it turned out to be a dead end. 369 00:18:15,746 --> 00:18:18,705 And obviously, there's a sense of frustration, 370 00:18:18,749 --> 00:18:21,186 but it is what it is. 371 00:18:21,230 --> 00:18:23,667 ♪ 372 00:18:23,710 --> 00:18:25,277 Back in New York, 373 00:18:25,321 --> 00:18:27,714 detectives finally get ahold of Cooley's former lover, 374 00:18:27,758 --> 00:18:30,108 Apples, who they tracked down to Christopher Cooley's 375 00:18:30,152 --> 00:18:31,283 phone records. 376 00:18:31,327 --> 00:18:33,633 And she agrees to talk. 377 00:18:33,677 --> 00:18:35,548 She lived a few blocks away. 378 00:18:35,592 --> 00:18:39,770 We went to her apartment and she invited us in. 379 00:18:39,813 --> 00:18:41,859 Right off the bat, she seemed the type, 380 00:18:41,902 --> 00:18:43,295 you know, little edgy. 381 00:18:43,339 --> 00:18:46,646 It was like, "Oh, is this about my boyfriend?" 382 00:18:46,690 --> 00:18:49,171 Apples denies having anything to do 383 00:18:49,214 --> 00:18:50,868 with Christopher's murder. 384 00:18:50,911 --> 00:18:53,175 You take what other people say. 385 00:18:53,218 --> 00:18:55,742 She's constantly screaming and she's constantly, 386 00:18:55,786 --> 00:18:58,354 you know, like, yelling at Mr. Cooley. 387 00:18:58,397 --> 00:18:59,920 And as--in speaking to her, you're like, 388 00:18:59,964 --> 00:19:03,576 "Well, where is this person?" 389 00:19:03,620 --> 00:19:06,753 She never lost her temper. She never lost her cool. 390 00:19:06,797 --> 00:19:08,581 I don't see it. I don't--I don't hear it 391 00:19:08,625 --> 00:19:11,454 at this point, but you know, again, 392 00:19:11,497 --> 00:19:14,196 you don't look at a person and go, "Okay, this is not her. 393 00:19:14,239 --> 00:19:16,589 This is definitely not her. We have to rule her out." 394 00:19:16,633 --> 00:19:18,374 We came to find out that Mr. Cooley 395 00:19:18,417 --> 00:19:21,551 was helping her pay for her apartment. 396 00:19:21,594 --> 00:19:25,207 The detectives did a great job seeing that, "All right, 397 00:19:25,250 --> 00:19:27,339 "well, this one here, he's still paying her rent. 398 00:19:27,383 --> 00:19:29,341 I doubt it she would kill him." 399 00:19:29,385 --> 00:19:31,909 She wasn't gonna kill her golden goose. 400 00:19:31,952 --> 00:19:35,739 Also, when we looked at her, she was an older woman. 401 00:19:35,782 --> 00:19:37,958 She was slight in--in physique. 402 00:19:38,002 --> 00:19:39,438 I don't think that she would've been 403 00:19:39,482 --> 00:19:40,700 physically capable of doing 404 00:19:40,744 --> 00:19:45,227 what--what it took to take out Mr. Cooley. 405 00:19:45,270 --> 00:19:48,273 And when detectives checked the building logs, 406 00:19:48,317 --> 00:19:50,667 there's no evidence that she paid Christopher a visit 407 00:19:50,710 --> 00:19:53,539 in the days leading up to his murder. 408 00:19:53,583 --> 00:19:57,804 The police sort of realize it's not possible for Apples 409 00:19:57,848 --> 00:19:59,197 to have done it. 410 00:19:59,241 --> 00:20:01,678 But she tells detectives there's one woman 411 00:20:01,721 --> 00:20:03,984 who paid him a visit just before his death. 412 00:20:04,028 --> 00:20:07,945 And according to Apples, that woman might know who did. 413 00:20:07,988 --> 00:20:10,643 She mentions, "Hey, you know, you-- 414 00:20:10,687 --> 00:20:12,515 maybe you want to go talk to Christine Skalski 415 00:20:12,558 --> 00:20:14,430 in--in a different tone of voice. 416 00:20:14,473 --> 00:20:15,561 Yeah, there was-- there was definitely 417 00:20:15,605 --> 00:20:18,651 a little bit of sarcasm. 418 00:20:18,695 --> 00:20:20,958 Now, we have to find Christine Skalski. 419 00:20:23,874 --> 00:20:27,312 As detectives search for a woman named Christine Skalski, 420 00:20:27,356 --> 00:20:29,009 Christopher Cooley's friends and family 421 00:20:29,053 --> 00:20:30,489 gather for a funeral, 422 00:20:30,533 --> 00:20:33,536 some traveling all the way from Venice to attend. 423 00:20:33,579 --> 00:20:36,016 We had the service roughly a month 424 00:20:36,060 --> 00:20:39,281 after the passing of Uncle. 425 00:20:39,324 --> 00:20:42,284 We pushed the service just to make proper arrangements 426 00:20:42,327 --> 00:20:43,981 and get our wits about us 427 00:20:44,024 --> 00:20:46,592 that it had been ruled a murder. 428 00:21:01,477 --> 00:21:03,479 The funeral is not only attended 429 00:21:03,522 --> 00:21:05,219 by family and friends. 430 00:21:05,263 --> 00:21:09,702 Detective Juan Rodriguez also shows up to pay his respects. 431 00:21:09,746 --> 00:21:12,836 It's almost a standard practice by detectives. 432 00:21:12,879 --> 00:21:15,404 You pay your respects and you stay in the back of the room 433 00:21:15,447 --> 00:21:17,493 and you're kind of hoping somebody comes up to you 434 00:21:17,536 --> 00:21:18,972 and, you know, 435 00:21:19,016 --> 00:21:20,800 and gives you information that you're looking for. 436 00:21:20,844 --> 00:21:24,326 Sometimes the murderer may be there, you know what I mean? 437 00:21:24,369 --> 00:21:26,850 But there were no leads for Rodriguez that day. 438 00:21:26,893 --> 00:21:29,374 All he found at the funeral were Christopher Cooley's 439 00:21:29,418 --> 00:21:32,769 heartbroken loved ones. 440 00:21:32,812 --> 00:21:34,901 I saw David Seymour. 441 00:21:34,945 --> 00:21:37,034 You know, David introduced me to his sisters, 442 00:21:37,077 --> 00:21:39,341 and the sisters were emotional, they were crying. 443 00:21:39,384 --> 00:21:41,995 They were telling me to get justice. 444 00:21:42,039 --> 00:21:44,302 You want to do so good for these people. 445 00:21:55,052 --> 00:21:57,402 At the funeral, detectives get the phone number 446 00:21:57,446 --> 00:21:58,751 for Christine Skalski. 447 00:21:58,795 --> 00:22:01,754 from Christopher's sister Sarah. 448 00:22:01,798 --> 00:22:05,845 The only hitch, Christine lives in Tennessee. 449 00:22:05,889 --> 00:22:08,500 I actually had met Christine several times. 450 00:22:08,544 --> 00:22:11,634 She was actually staying with him for a period of time. 451 00:22:11,677 --> 00:22:13,418 I took her and Uncle out to dinner 452 00:22:13,462 --> 00:22:15,812 and got to know her a little bit. 453 00:22:15,855 --> 00:22:18,771 She was close with him, but she tells the police 454 00:22:18,815 --> 00:22:22,993 that she didn't have a romantic relationship like Apples did. 455 00:22:23,036 --> 00:22:26,953 She's a very soft-spoken, nice lady, 456 00:22:26,997 --> 00:22:30,653 so it never crossed my mind that she was on a list 457 00:22:30,696 --> 00:22:34,526 to really be examined as a culprit. 458 00:22:40,750 --> 00:22:43,840 Using cell tower triangulation technology, 459 00:22:43,883 --> 00:22:44,971 detectives determined 460 00:22:45,015 --> 00:22:46,582 Christine's cell phone location 461 00:22:46,625 --> 00:22:50,673 was in Tennessee in the days leading up to the murder. 462 00:22:50,716 --> 00:22:52,718 But she admits she was in New York 463 00:22:52,762 --> 00:22:56,983 a month before Christopher was killed. 464 00:22:57,027 --> 00:22:59,464 She stayed at Christopher's place. 465 00:22:59,508 --> 00:23:02,772 While in the apartment, she comes across slippers 466 00:23:02,815 --> 00:23:05,688 and a bathrobe and she asked Christopher, 467 00:23:05,731 --> 00:23:07,472 "Whose is this? This doesn't look like yours." 468 00:23:07,516 --> 00:23:10,127 And he goes, "Oh, this is just the man I met 469 00:23:10,170 --> 00:23:12,042 at the Lenox Hill Hospital. 470 00:23:12,085 --> 00:23:14,000 He's, like, this investment banker. 471 00:23:14,044 --> 00:23:16,655 I let him stay at my apartment for a couple of days. 472 00:23:16,699 --> 00:23:19,136 I'm thinking about giving him some money." 473 00:23:19,179 --> 00:23:22,008 And just like that, Christine is ruled out, 474 00:23:22,052 --> 00:23:26,186 turning her from a possible suspect into a source. 475 00:23:26,230 --> 00:23:27,710 What he unearthed, 476 00:23:27,753 --> 00:23:30,495 the people he helped over the years was tremendous. 477 00:23:30,539 --> 00:23:31,931 Tremendous. 478 00:23:31,975 --> 00:23:34,499 There was a friend who fell on some hard times 479 00:23:34,543 --> 00:23:35,805 that he actually let stay 480 00:23:35,848 --> 00:23:38,460 at his apartment for several months. 481 00:23:38,503 --> 00:23:40,505 We know Christopher to be the kind of guy 482 00:23:40,549 --> 00:23:42,986 who was very open-hearted, very forthcoming, 483 00:23:43,029 --> 00:23:46,163 very willing to strike up conversations with strangers. 484 00:23:46,206 --> 00:23:47,599 Now the police are thinking, 485 00:23:47,643 --> 00:23:51,603 "Is this our suspect we should be focusing on?" 486 00:23:51,647 --> 00:23:54,737 Bringing somebody you don't know that you just met, 487 00:23:54,780 --> 00:23:57,740 that's definitely an avenue we needed to explore. 488 00:24:00,786 --> 00:24:03,093 ♪ 489 00:24:07,706 --> 00:24:11,580 ♪ 490 00:24:11,623 --> 00:24:13,364 For the month leading up to his murder, 491 00:24:13,407 --> 00:24:14,974 Christopher Cooley hosted a man 492 00:24:15,018 --> 00:24:16,106 he just met at the hospital 493 00:24:16,149 --> 00:24:17,499 in his Upper East Side apartment. 494 00:24:17,542 --> 00:24:20,110 Christopher told his friend Christine Skalski 495 00:24:20,153 --> 00:24:21,328 he was thinking of investing 496 00:24:21,372 --> 00:24:24,984 in one of the man's financial ventures. 497 00:24:25,028 --> 00:24:26,377 According to Christine, 498 00:24:26,420 --> 00:24:28,248 there's something suspicious about it, 499 00:24:28,292 --> 00:24:31,121 but she didn't remember his name. 500 00:24:31,164 --> 00:24:33,166 ♪ 501 00:24:33,210 --> 00:24:34,603 She tells them Christopher Cooley 502 00:24:34,646 --> 00:24:36,256 had been at Lenox Hill Hospital 503 00:24:36,300 --> 00:24:38,171 a few months before his murder 504 00:24:38,215 --> 00:24:40,609 to be treated for a kidney ailment. 505 00:24:40,652 --> 00:24:43,960 So we go to Lenox Hill Hospital. 506 00:24:44,003 --> 00:24:46,005 We ask for, you know, a list of names, 507 00:24:46,049 --> 00:24:48,399 anybody who could have came in contact with Christopher 508 00:24:48,442 --> 00:24:52,359 while he was there. 509 00:24:52,403 --> 00:24:55,014 And we're talking about getting the information 510 00:24:55,058 --> 00:24:58,235 who's staying in the hospital room with him. 511 00:24:58,278 --> 00:25:00,585 You can't just walk into the hospital and ask a nurse, 512 00:25:00,629 --> 00:25:02,456 "Hey, who was that guy's roommate that was staying here 513 00:25:02,500 --> 00:25:03,545 a couple of days ago?" 514 00:25:03,588 --> 00:25:05,285 There are privacy laws. 515 00:25:05,329 --> 00:25:08,941 The doctors rightfully won't divulge that information. 516 00:25:08,985 --> 00:25:11,074 So it's a mystery man for now. 517 00:25:11,117 --> 00:25:13,424 ♪ 518 00:25:13,467 --> 00:25:15,731 While detectives continue to find a way 519 00:25:15,774 --> 00:25:19,256 to get names from the hospital, 520 00:25:19,299 --> 00:25:22,259 Christopher Cooley's nephew is still mourning his uncle 521 00:25:22,302 --> 00:25:24,043 and is desperate to sort the details 522 00:25:24,087 --> 00:25:25,349 of Christopher's estate. 523 00:25:25,392 --> 00:25:30,615 ♪ 524 00:25:30,659 --> 00:25:33,575 It was several weeks before the DA 525 00:25:33,618 --> 00:25:36,055 would let me in the apartment. 526 00:25:36,099 --> 00:25:38,754 As executor of Christopher Cooley's estate, 527 00:25:38,797 --> 00:25:42,627 David Seymour begins reviewing his uncle's financial records. 528 00:25:42,671 --> 00:25:45,717 I was just going through items in the dining room table 529 00:25:45,761 --> 00:25:49,591 and I found his checkbook. 530 00:25:49,634 --> 00:25:53,072 And then David makes a startling discovery. 531 00:25:53,116 --> 00:25:55,640 Uncle would always write who a check was to 532 00:25:55,684 --> 00:25:58,295 and the dollar amount or what it was for, 533 00:25:58,338 --> 00:26:01,472 except the last check was missing 534 00:26:01,515 --> 00:26:03,256 with nothing written down. 535 00:26:03,300 --> 00:26:06,042 ♪ 536 00:26:06,085 --> 00:26:10,089 So then I went back through previous months' checks 537 00:26:10,133 --> 00:26:13,527 and I immediately saw something that stuck out to me 538 00:26:13,571 --> 00:26:17,227 like somebody hit me with a baseball bat. 539 00:26:17,270 --> 00:26:21,187 Found a check for $1,425. 540 00:26:21,231 --> 00:26:25,235 I saw the signature. This is a forged check. 541 00:26:25,278 --> 00:26:28,238 Uncle would always sign a certain way 542 00:26:28,281 --> 00:26:32,416 so the mechanics were all wrong. 543 00:26:32,459 --> 00:26:35,506 My immediate suspicion was he had an idea 544 00:26:35,549 --> 00:26:38,335 what might be a safe amount to write. 545 00:26:38,378 --> 00:26:40,685 The forged check, dated March 2nd, 546 00:26:40,729 --> 00:26:43,601 is made out to someone named Steve Garland. 547 00:26:43,645 --> 00:26:46,343 Detectives wonder if this could be the mystery man 548 00:26:46,386 --> 00:26:49,694 Christopher had met at the hospital. 549 00:26:49,738 --> 00:26:51,435 Great. Here we go. 550 00:26:51,478 --> 00:26:53,611 We need to talk to Steven Garland. 551 00:26:53,655 --> 00:26:54,830 Around that time too, 552 00:26:54,873 --> 00:26:59,573 we started getting other things back. 553 00:26:59,617 --> 00:27:03,229 Soon after, detectives hear back from Lenox Hill Hospital. 554 00:27:03,273 --> 00:27:05,710 Pieces of the puzzle really begin to fall into place. 555 00:27:05,754 --> 00:27:08,321 Administrators can't provide the medical history 556 00:27:08,365 --> 00:27:09,801 of Christopher Cooley's roommates, 557 00:27:09,845 --> 00:27:12,848 but they do have something that proves useful. 558 00:27:12,891 --> 00:27:17,287 So they came out with a list of seven names of people 559 00:27:17,330 --> 00:27:18,723 who could have came in contact with Christopher 560 00:27:18,767 --> 00:27:20,812 while he was there. 561 00:27:20,856 --> 00:27:24,163 We looked at all seven individuals. 562 00:27:24,207 --> 00:27:27,427 The name Steven Garland kind of popped 563 00:27:27,471 --> 00:27:31,127 like a firework going off. 564 00:27:31,170 --> 00:27:34,870 Detectives call back Christine Skalski 565 00:27:34,913 --> 00:27:37,786 who recognizes the name Steve Garland. 566 00:27:37,829 --> 00:27:40,179 You know Steven Garland turns out to be 567 00:27:40,223 --> 00:27:41,311 the investment banker 568 00:27:41,354 --> 00:27:44,880 who stayed at Christopher's place. 569 00:27:44,923 --> 00:27:46,751 But even with this major break, 570 00:27:46,795 --> 00:27:49,449 the investigation is far from over. 571 00:27:49,493 --> 00:27:52,148 Maybe he's just--he forged a check to himself. 572 00:27:52,191 --> 00:27:53,845 Maybe somebody else killed him. We don't know. 573 00:27:53,889 --> 00:27:56,761 Detectives do a deep dive into Garland's past 574 00:27:56,805 --> 00:27:58,589 looking for anything that might beef up 575 00:27:58,632 --> 00:28:00,156 their case against him. 576 00:28:00,199 --> 00:28:02,898 We started doing background information on this guy. 577 00:28:02,941 --> 00:28:04,334 We ran at him, 578 00:28:04,377 --> 00:28:06,510 and turns out that he was a criminal. 579 00:28:06,553 --> 00:28:08,425 ♪ 580 00:28:08,468 --> 00:28:10,427 Steve Garland was the kind of con man 581 00:28:10,470 --> 00:28:13,299 that you hear about in movies. 582 00:28:13,343 --> 00:28:16,389 Garland's career as a con man began in Indiana. 583 00:28:16,433 --> 00:28:17,782 He would walk around with cards 584 00:28:17,826 --> 00:28:20,785 that he made up that he was some type of CEO 585 00:28:20,829 --> 00:28:22,352 for like Goldman Sachs. 586 00:28:22,395 --> 00:28:24,571 It was incredible. 587 00:28:24,615 --> 00:28:26,791 He was a true-life, like, con man. 588 00:28:26,835 --> 00:28:29,446 ♪ 589 00:28:29,489 --> 00:28:31,361 He was essentially a professional. 590 00:28:31,404 --> 00:28:34,190 Someone who was good at taking money from people, 591 00:28:34,233 --> 00:28:36,888 being able to persuade people to do things for you. 592 00:28:36,932 --> 00:28:40,805 He would usually prey on women. 593 00:28:40,849 --> 00:28:42,633 He would promise them money, 594 00:28:42,676 --> 00:28:47,377 promise them things, and then take it away and run off. 595 00:28:47,420 --> 00:28:48,857 The smooth-talking con man 596 00:28:48,900 --> 00:28:51,642 would often find his victims online. 597 00:28:51,685 --> 00:28:54,253 He'd then arrange an in-person meeting. 598 00:28:54,297 --> 00:28:56,647 He'd speak the right language, the right lingo, 599 00:28:56,690 --> 00:28:59,345 had the vocabulary for it. 600 00:28:59,389 --> 00:29:01,913 Steve Garland was giving his target deals 601 00:29:01,957 --> 00:29:04,394 that they couldn't pass up. 602 00:29:04,437 --> 00:29:07,179 "I could turn that into thousands of thousands 603 00:29:07,223 --> 00:29:08,485 of dollars overnight." 604 00:29:08,528 --> 00:29:11,401 I think that was his-- a lot of his con. 605 00:29:11,444 --> 00:29:13,272 For a lot of people who are in these sort of 606 00:29:13,316 --> 00:29:14,883 desperate situations 607 00:29:14,926 --> 00:29:17,537 who may need the money when everything else in their life 608 00:29:17,581 --> 00:29:19,278 seems to be falling apart, 609 00:29:19,322 --> 00:29:21,585 why wouldn't you hook onto this? 610 00:29:21,628 --> 00:29:22,891 With a check in his pocket, 611 00:29:22,934 --> 00:29:25,807 Garland would move on to his next mark. 612 00:29:25,850 --> 00:29:27,939 He swindled an elderly couple 613 00:29:27,983 --> 00:29:29,985 out of money in Indiana. 614 00:29:30,028 --> 00:29:31,725 Turns out he was arrested numerous times 615 00:29:31,769 --> 00:29:33,858 for larceny type of crimes. 616 00:29:33,902 --> 00:29:36,556 It's kind of hard and you take it a little personally 617 00:29:36,600 --> 00:29:39,298 when you have to deal with a con man 618 00:29:39,342 --> 00:29:40,996 whose prey is the elderly people. 619 00:29:41,039 --> 00:29:43,868 To me, he's like one of the lowest of the low 620 00:29:43,912 --> 00:29:46,218 because you can't mess with the elderly people 621 00:29:46,262 --> 00:29:48,525 and think that it's okay. 622 00:29:48,568 --> 00:29:51,702 Now the time was to get out there and find Garland. 623 00:29:51,745 --> 00:29:53,791 We were crunched for time. 624 00:29:53,835 --> 00:29:56,968 ♪ 625 00:29:57,012 --> 00:29:58,578 Coming up... 626 00:29:58,622 --> 00:30:00,711 We requested video. There he was, you know, 627 00:30:00,754 --> 00:30:04,628 on March 2nd on video cashing the forged check. 628 00:30:04,671 --> 00:30:06,935 It looked like there was, like, blood on his shirt. 629 00:30:06,978 --> 00:30:08,762 Detective Rodriguez made the discovery 630 00:30:08,806 --> 00:30:09,894 and I remember him calling me and going, 631 00:30:09,938 --> 00:30:11,330 "You're never gonna guess what. 632 00:30:11,374 --> 00:30:13,028 You're never gonna guess what." 633 00:30:13,071 --> 00:30:17,771 ♪ 634 00:30:21,993 --> 00:30:28,260 ♪ 635 00:30:28,304 --> 00:30:31,437 Detectives just discovered that Steven Garland, 636 00:30:31,481 --> 00:30:33,918 the hospital roommate that Christopher Cooley befriended 637 00:30:33,962 --> 00:30:37,443 and invited into his home is a career con man 638 00:30:37,487 --> 00:30:41,970 with a string of arrests for larceny in Indiana. 639 00:30:42,013 --> 00:30:44,407 After a lifetime of conning people, 640 00:30:44,450 --> 00:30:47,453 Garland was a wanted man. 641 00:30:47,497 --> 00:30:51,762 In fact, he'd been arrested in Indiana in 2016 642 00:30:51,805 --> 00:30:54,896 for cheating a woman out of $84,000. 643 00:30:54,939 --> 00:30:58,203 When he was released on a $20,000 bond, 644 00:30:58,247 --> 00:30:59,901 he headed for New York City. 645 00:30:59,944 --> 00:31:02,991 Lenox Hill Hospital, to be precise. 646 00:31:03,034 --> 00:31:05,080 He was here in New York getting treatment. 647 00:31:05,123 --> 00:31:06,603 As it turns out, 648 00:31:06,646 --> 00:31:10,128 there was one thing this con man wasn't lying about. 649 00:31:10,172 --> 00:31:12,478 Maybe he was a fraud in life, 650 00:31:12,522 --> 00:31:15,917 but his cancer diagnosis was quite real 651 00:31:15,960 --> 00:31:18,920 and he was suffering from it and he needed treatment. 652 00:31:18,963 --> 00:31:23,359 ♪ 653 00:31:23,402 --> 00:31:26,101 And who does he find at a Manhattan hospital, 654 00:31:26,144 --> 00:31:27,929 at Lenox Hill? 655 00:31:27,972 --> 00:31:30,366 Christopher Cooley. 656 00:31:30,409 --> 00:31:34,936 Possibly his greatest, easiest target. 657 00:31:34,979 --> 00:31:37,416 He was a rich, wealthy man 658 00:31:37,460 --> 00:31:39,418 who was so generous. 659 00:31:39,462 --> 00:31:42,291 Lenox Hill Hospital is one of the best hospitals 660 00:31:42,334 --> 00:31:44,423 in New York. 661 00:31:44,467 --> 00:31:49,428 A lot of the rich and famous, they go to Lenox Hill Hospital. 662 00:31:58,655 --> 00:32:02,920 Even as he was suffering from this deadly disease, 663 00:32:02,964 --> 00:32:06,141 Steve Garland had to keep going. 664 00:32:06,184 --> 00:32:07,446 Conning people was his job. 665 00:32:07,490 --> 00:32:10,014 This was his livelihood. 666 00:32:10,058 --> 00:32:12,625 And there was no way he was gonna stop, 667 00:32:12,669 --> 00:32:15,454 especially when greeted with a wealthy man 668 00:32:15,498 --> 00:32:17,239 such as Christopher. 669 00:32:17,282 --> 00:32:19,981 A lifetime of conning people is one thing 670 00:32:20,024 --> 00:32:23,201 but to kill someone is completely different. 671 00:32:23,245 --> 00:32:30,252 ♪ 672 00:32:30,295 --> 00:32:32,080 Things really started to heat up 673 00:32:32,123 --> 00:32:34,865 that Garland was our guy. Here we go. 674 00:32:34,908 --> 00:32:37,041 Now let's start focusing really, really hard 675 00:32:37,085 --> 00:32:40,305 on--on Garland. 676 00:32:40,349 --> 00:32:42,568 Around the time of the homicide, 677 00:32:42,612 --> 00:32:45,049 Garland was supposed to show up for a court date in Indiana 678 00:32:45,093 --> 00:32:46,616 which he didn't. 679 00:32:46,659 --> 00:32:50,141 Detectives are now following a warrant that was out 680 00:32:50,185 --> 00:32:53,536 for Garland's arrest in Indiana. 681 00:32:53,579 --> 00:32:56,321 When we were running his name, we found out 682 00:32:56,365 --> 00:33:02,023 that Garland had been arrested in New York on March 2nd. 683 00:33:02,066 --> 00:33:04,068 ♪ 684 00:33:04,112 --> 00:33:06,331 If Garland was arrested on March 2nd, 685 00:33:06,375 --> 00:33:08,551 it seems he has an alibi in Christopher's murder, 686 00:33:08,594 --> 00:33:11,249 which our detectives estimated to be on March 5th, 687 00:33:11,293 --> 00:33:14,383 the day Christopher stopped collecting his newspapers. 688 00:33:14,426 --> 00:33:17,516 ♪ 689 00:33:17,560 --> 00:33:19,953 You know he was locked up 690 00:33:19,997 --> 00:33:22,956 so no way he could be in the apartment. 691 00:33:23,000 --> 00:33:25,133 But as they gear up to go back to the drawing board, 692 00:33:25,176 --> 00:33:28,092 the autopsy comes in from the coroner's office. 693 00:33:28,136 --> 00:33:31,617 We get to the autopsy. That reveals everything. 694 00:33:31,661 --> 00:33:35,056 The report reveals Cooley was killed on March 2nd, 695 00:33:35,099 --> 00:33:36,318 not the 5th. 696 00:33:36,361 --> 00:33:39,538 Garland doesn't have an alibi after all. 697 00:33:39,582 --> 00:33:41,975 His arrest didn't happen until several hours 698 00:33:42,019 --> 00:33:43,499 after Christopher's murder 699 00:33:43,542 --> 00:33:45,370 when he went to get cancer treatment 700 00:33:45,414 --> 00:33:47,329 at the New York hospital. 701 00:33:47,372 --> 00:33:50,114 ♪ 702 00:33:50,158 --> 00:33:52,116 Indiana found out that he was here in New York 703 00:33:52,160 --> 00:33:53,422 getting treatment 704 00:33:53,465 --> 00:33:55,554 and knew when he was supposed to show up there 705 00:33:55,598 --> 00:33:57,208 on March 2nd. 706 00:33:57,252 --> 00:33:59,950 Contacted the detectives down here. 707 00:33:59,993 --> 00:34:04,302 So at 5:00, Steven Garland walked in to get a treatment. 708 00:34:04,346 --> 00:34:08,089 NYPD arrests Garland on the Indiana warrant 709 00:34:08,132 --> 00:34:10,613 completely unaware of Christopher Cooley's murder 710 00:34:10,656 --> 00:34:12,180 at this point. 711 00:34:12,223 --> 00:34:13,616 They take him to Rikers Island 712 00:34:13,659 --> 00:34:17,359 to await extradition back to Indiana. 713 00:34:17,402 --> 00:34:20,144 Rikers Island is one of the biggest correctional complexes 714 00:34:20,188 --> 00:34:22,755 in the world at more than 400 acres. 715 00:34:22,799 --> 00:34:26,107 It sits like a fortress in the middle of the East River. 716 00:34:26,150 --> 00:34:29,675 ♪ 717 00:34:29,719 --> 00:34:31,503 Rikers Island is a jail 718 00:34:31,547 --> 00:34:34,071 that's on its little own island for itself. 719 00:34:34,115 --> 00:34:37,683 It houses inmates that are awaiting trials 720 00:34:37,727 --> 00:34:41,600 or anybody who gets one to two years sentence only. 721 00:34:41,644 --> 00:34:44,212 Garland was held there. 722 00:34:45,517 --> 00:34:47,128 Now, with this new discovery, 723 00:34:47,171 --> 00:34:50,348 detectives had to Rikers to pick Garland up 724 00:34:50,392 --> 00:34:52,133 but there's a problem. 725 00:34:52,176 --> 00:34:56,224 Garland was sent back to Indianapolis. 726 00:34:56,267 --> 00:34:58,139 We missed him by one day. 727 00:34:58,182 --> 00:35:00,619 ♪ 728 00:35:00,663 --> 00:35:04,232 NYPD here now has this monumental task 729 00:35:04,275 --> 00:35:08,149 of trying to extradite Steve back to New York from Indiana. 730 00:35:08,192 --> 00:35:13,632 ♪ 731 00:35:13,676 --> 00:35:16,548 NYPD contacts police in Indianapolis 732 00:35:16,592 --> 00:35:19,029 and gets the ball rolling on extradition. 733 00:35:19,072 --> 00:35:21,684 In New York City, we have all the evidence that we need 734 00:35:21,727 --> 00:35:24,121 to arrest him ourselves, 735 00:35:24,165 --> 00:35:27,298 but we're now waiting for an extradition order 736 00:35:27,342 --> 00:35:28,560 from Indiana. 737 00:35:28,604 --> 00:35:30,083 And it's frustrating 738 00:35:30,127 --> 00:35:33,043 because you don't know when it's gonna happen. 739 00:35:33,086 --> 00:35:35,176 As they wait for authorities in Indiana 740 00:35:35,219 --> 00:35:37,134 to return Garland to New York City, 741 00:35:37,178 --> 00:35:39,397 they contact Cooley's bank. 742 00:35:39,441 --> 00:35:41,182 We requested video. 743 00:35:41,225 --> 00:35:43,532 There he was, you know, on March 2nd, you know, 744 00:35:43,575 --> 00:35:46,187 on video cashing the-- cashing the forged check. 745 00:35:46,230 --> 00:35:51,192 ♪ 746 00:35:51,235 --> 00:35:52,541 He's in video. 747 00:35:52,584 --> 00:35:56,371 He's wearing a shirt that sort of stood out. 748 00:35:56,414 --> 00:35:58,416 It looked like there was, like, blood on his shirt. 749 00:35:58,460 --> 00:36:01,680 ♪ 750 00:36:01,724 --> 00:36:04,466 The check was cashed 751 00:36:04,509 --> 00:36:08,252 at around, like, mid-- noon on March the 2nd 752 00:36:08,296 --> 00:36:10,689 and he was arrested at 5:00 in the afternoon 753 00:36:10,733 --> 00:36:12,474 on March the 2nd. 754 00:36:12,517 --> 00:36:17,261 We definitely knew we were 100% on the right direction. 755 00:36:17,305 --> 00:36:19,568 They have the motive, they have the video, 756 00:36:19,611 --> 00:36:21,396 but it's circumstantial evidence. 757 00:36:21,439 --> 00:36:25,269 Detectives need proof that Garland was at the scene. 758 00:36:25,313 --> 00:36:28,446 Juan Rodriguez made the determination to go to Rikers 759 00:36:28,490 --> 00:36:30,100 to look for property. 760 00:36:30,143 --> 00:36:31,623 Now the time was to get out there 761 00:36:31,667 --> 00:36:34,235 and get that smoking gun. 762 00:36:34,278 --> 00:36:38,848 We were hoping to recover a shirt that he was wearing. 763 00:36:38,891 --> 00:36:42,286 There has to be some type of DNA on that shirt. 764 00:36:42,330 --> 00:36:43,548 We pick up the clothes 765 00:36:43,592 --> 00:36:47,117 and bring it back to the 19th Precinct. 766 00:36:47,160 --> 00:36:51,469 And the detectives were like, "Oh, there's nothing here." 767 00:36:51,513 --> 00:36:52,862 The blood-splattered shirt 768 00:36:52,905 --> 00:36:56,126 was never collected from Garland. 769 00:36:56,169 --> 00:36:58,607 He somehow discarded that shirt. 770 00:36:58,650 --> 00:37:01,218 He was a slick guy. 771 00:37:01,262 --> 00:37:05,135 But something else jumps out at Detective Rodriguez. 772 00:37:05,178 --> 00:37:06,745 Detective Rodriguez made the discovery 773 00:37:06,789 --> 00:37:08,312 and I remember him calling me and going, 774 00:37:08,356 --> 00:37:09,313 "You're never gonna guess what. 775 00:37:09,357 --> 00:37:11,228 You're never gonna guess what." 776 00:37:14,318 --> 00:37:18,279 ♪ 777 00:37:22,283 --> 00:37:26,243 ♪ 778 00:37:26,287 --> 00:37:28,201 Detectives need physical evidence 779 00:37:28,245 --> 00:37:29,420 to connect Steve Garland 780 00:37:29,464 --> 00:37:31,335 to the murder of Christopher Cooley. 781 00:37:31,379 --> 00:37:33,859 And when they collect the clothes Garland left behind 782 00:37:33,903 --> 00:37:36,079 in Rikers Island, there's no shirt, 783 00:37:36,122 --> 00:37:38,864 but they find a lead that could be even better. 784 00:37:38,908 --> 00:37:40,910 ♪ 785 00:37:40,953 --> 00:37:43,260 I remember Detective Rodriguez calling me 786 00:37:43,304 --> 00:37:44,348 and going, "You're never gonna guess what. 787 00:37:44,392 --> 00:37:47,003 You're never gonna guess what." 788 00:37:47,046 --> 00:37:48,874 When he got arrested, he never had time 789 00:37:48,918 --> 00:37:51,834 to get rid of his shoes. 790 00:37:51,877 --> 00:37:55,272 Rodriguez takes a closer look at the shoes left behind. 791 00:37:55,316 --> 00:37:57,318 They look like the same shoes he was wearing 792 00:37:57,361 --> 00:37:59,363 when he cashed the check. 793 00:37:59,407 --> 00:38:00,886 When I got the shoes, 794 00:38:00,930 --> 00:38:04,847 I remember grabbing one and you can feel the moisture. 795 00:38:04,890 --> 00:38:09,678 I was like, "Why is thing wet for?" 796 00:38:09,721 --> 00:38:12,942 I said to myself, "This guy washed the shoe." 797 00:38:12,985 --> 00:38:16,772 So I flipped over the shoe and I'm like, 798 00:38:16,815 --> 00:38:20,819 "There's blood here." 799 00:38:20,863 --> 00:38:22,299 Detectives wonder if the blood 800 00:38:22,343 --> 00:38:25,694 is that of Christopher Cooley. 801 00:38:25,737 --> 00:38:27,260 Called Crime, they come and they vouchered 802 00:38:27,304 --> 00:38:30,133 the shoe for DNA. 803 00:38:30,176 --> 00:38:32,440 With the shoes sent to the lab for testing, 804 00:38:32,483 --> 00:38:35,268 detectives play one last card. 805 00:38:35,312 --> 00:38:36,748 I went to Indiana and I 806 00:38:36,792 --> 00:38:40,404 went with my Homicide detective, Tommy Fischer. 807 00:38:40,448 --> 00:38:43,320 We were gonna interview him in regards to this homicide. 808 00:38:43,364 --> 00:38:46,105 In the back of your mind, you're like, "Oh, con man. 809 00:38:46,149 --> 00:38:48,760 He's gonna talk his way around everything." 810 00:38:48,804 --> 00:38:52,982 But your ego also says, "Hey, I can get this guy to confess." 811 00:38:53,025 --> 00:38:56,681 We went to the correctional facility. 812 00:38:56,725 --> 00:38:58,901 Finally, detectives are face-to-face 813 00:38:58,944 --> 00:39:02,252 with the man they've been hunting. 814 00:39:02,295 --> 00:39:04,167 He just kind of looked like a, you know, 815 00:39:04,210 --> 00:39:06,778 a disheveled, rundown older man. 816 00:39:06,822 --> 00:39:08,954 He was very-- he was very polite. 817 00:39:08,998 --> 00:39:11,043 And, "Hey, NYPD, New York's finest. 818 00:39:11,087 --> 00:39:12,436 I love you guys." 819 00:39:12,480 --> 00:39:14,786 The typical con man. 820 00:39:14,830 --> 00:39:17,310 "But unfortunately, guys, I'm not gonna speak to you. 821 00:39:17,354 --> 00:39:20,488 I'm gonna request the right to speak to an attorney." 822 00:39:20,531 --> 00:39:22,838 We didn't get the confession. 823 00:39:22,881 --> 00:39:24,883 ♪ 824 00:39:24,927 --> 00:39:28,060 Not long after detectives land back in Manhattan, 825 00:39:28,104 --> 00:39:30,019 they get some good news. 826 00:39:30,062 --> 00:39:32,369 The lab tested the shoes 827 00:39:32,413 --> 00:39:36,329 against the blood that they had from Mr. Cooley 828 00:39:36,373 --> 00:39:38,201 and the blood came back a match. 829 00:39:38,244 --> 00:39:42,771 So not only do they have Mr. Garland on video 830 00:39:42,814 --> 00:39:45,817 with the shoes on, now they have Mr. Cooley's 831 00:39:45,861 --> 00:39:48,254 blood recovered from those same shoes. 832 00:39:48,298 --> 00:39:50,169 ♪ 833 00:39:50,213 --> 00:39:52,258 They also run Garland's fingerprints 834 00:39:52,302 --> 00:39:54,870 taken while he was at Rikers Island. 835 00:39:54,913 --> 00:39:57,742 The icing on the cake, they wound up recovering 836 00:39:57,786 --> 00:40:02,138 his fingerprints from the lamp shards. 837 00:40:02,181 --> 00:40:04,401 That's the home run right there. 838 00:40:04,445 --> 00:40:07,143 That put him at the crime scene of my victim. 839 00:40:07,186 --> 00:40:09,145 That was a good moment. Good feeling. 840 00:40:10,973 --> 00:40:13,497 Detectives present their evidence, 841 00:40:13,541 --> 00:40:16,761 the fingerprints, the DNA match, the forged check, 842 00:40:16,805 --> 00:40:18,546 and the financial motive to the grand jury. 843 00:40:18,589 --> 00:40:21,157 Garland is indicted for the murder of Christopher Cooley. 844 00:40:21,200 --> 00:40:23,420 The NYPD asked the Indiana governor, 845 00:40:23,464 --> 00:40:25,248 who at the time was Mike Pence, 846 00:40:25,291 --> 00:40:27,511 to have Garland sent back to New York. 847 00:40:27,555 --> 00:40:30,949 But Unfortunately, the governor of Indiana 848 00:40:30,993 --> 00:40:33,299 was a little preoccupied with his election 849 00:40:33,343 --> 00:40:37,042 then it took a little while to try to get the extradition. 850 00:40:37,086 --> 00:40:39,828 ♪ 851 00:40:39,871 --> 00:40:41,090 As the time ticks by, 852 00:40:41,133 --> 00:40:43,875 Garland's cancer ravages his body 853 00:40:43,919 --> 00:40:47,052 and he claims he's too sick to travel. 854 00:40:47,096 --> 00:40:50,795 That was an unbelievably frustrating situation. 855 00:40:50,839 --> 00:40:54,059 Being he was such a con man, I thought, 856 00:40:54,103 --> 00:40:57,323 "Oh, yeah, I have cancer. How bad is it really you know?" 857 00:40:57,367 --> 00:40:59,891 But it turns out it was bad. 858 00:40:59,935 --> 00:41:01,980 In August of 2017, 859 00:41:02,024 --> 00:41:04,156 detectives get an unexpected call 860 00:41:04,200 --> 00:41:06,811 from an official in Indiana. 861 00:41:06,855 --> 00:41:09,292 You're never gonna to believe this. 862 00:41:09,335 --> 00:41:11,424 He died. 863 00:41:11,468 --> 00:41:14,863 Like what? 864 00:41:14,906 --> 00:41:17,300 Steven Garland died of sepsis 865 00:41:17,343 --> 00:41:21,913 at the Plainfield Correction Facility in Indiana. 866 00:41:21,957 --> 00:41:25,438 He got what he gave and he was an evil guy. 867 00:41:25,482 --> 00:41:28,485 When I heard that he had died, 868 00:41:28,529 --> 00:41:30,966 I had no sympathy. 869 00:41:31,009 --> 00:41:37,450 I think the irony of how he died, 870 00:41:37,494 --> 00:41:39,627 not being able to breathe 871 00:41:39,670 --> 00:41:43,326 due to cancer of the lungs, 872 00:41:43,369 --> 00:41:46,503 is perhaps poetic justice. 873 00:41:46,547 --> 00:41:48,505 ♪ 874 00:41:48,549 --> 00:41:51,334 Even though they never had a chance to prove it in court, 875 00:41:51,377 --> 00:41:53,510 detectives believe they know what happened. 876 00:41:53,554 --> 00:41:55,947 After the two men met at Lenox Hill Hospital, 877 00:41:55,991 --> 00:41:58,297 Christopher Cooley took in Garland as a friend, 878 00:41:58,341 --> 00:41:59,951 inviting him to stay in his apartment 879 00:41:59,995 --> 00:42:02,563 while getting cancer treatments in New York. 880 00:42:02,606 --> 00:42:04,869 Garland began to cheat him out of money 881 00:42:04,913 --> 00:42:06,915 and Christopher picked up on it. 882 00:42:18,013 --> 00:42:19,971 Steve wasn't having it. 883 00:42:20,015 --> 00:42:21,973 A fight broke out. 884 00:42:22,017 --> 00:42:25,629 He strangled Christopher. 885 00:42:25,673 --> 00:42:30,025 ♪ 886 00:42:30,068 --> 00:42:32,941 There isn't a week that goes by 887 00:42:32,984 --> 00:42:35,639 that I don't think about Uncle in some way. 888 00:42:35,683 --> 00:42:38,555 Not having Uncle be part of our life 889 00:42:38,599 --> 00:42:41,602 is a big--a big loss. 890 00:42:41,645 --> 00:42:45,127 There has been an emptiness to all the family. 891 00:43:14,286 --> 00:43:15,679 Uncle had different views of life, 892 00:43:15,723 --> 00:43:18,160 a different take on things. 893 00:43:18,203 --> 00:43:21,250 To know Uncle was quite an adventure. 894 00:43:21,293 --> 00:43:23,556 There was always a good bottle of wine to be had 895 00:43:23,600 --> 00:43:28,039 and--and many, many huckster laughs together. 896 00:43:28,083 --> 00:43:29,432 He is who he was, you know? 897 00:43:29,475 --> 00:43:33,475 I will never forget that.