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[helicopter blades whirring faintly]
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[ambient traffic sounds]
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[vehicle accelerating]
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August 20th,
I get a phone call from Bruce,
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00:00:47,964 --> 00:00:53,636
and he tells me that his wife, Jana,
has been missing since that morning.
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And did I know where she was?
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I was a very close friend,
almost like a sister to Jana,
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and I said, "No, I... I haven't seen her."
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"I have no idea where she could be."
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I said, "Bruce, is there anything
I can do for you?"
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And he broke into sobs and said,
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"You can tell me where my wife is."
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[suspenseful music playing]
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[Tomlin] The LA County
Sheriff's Department
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is the best of the best.
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[Jackson] Some of the highest-profile
cases are tried in Los Angeles.
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[Shonka] You have to be dedicated 110%.
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[Lillienfeld] This is murder.
There's no more serious crime.
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[Labbe] It boils down to a passion
and a sense of duty.
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Justice comes from finding the truth.
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[music trailing off]
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{\an8}[woman] On August 20th, 2001,
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{\an8}Bruce Koklich called
Lakewood Sheriff's Station
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{\an8}to make a missing persons report
on his wife, Jana.
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{\an8}[Bowers] Bruce said,
"We have a real estate office
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{\an8}at the north end of Long Beach,
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and Jana was supposed to, you know,
come to the office,
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and I don't know where she is."
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Bruce and Jana, they had
a real estate business in Bixby Knolls.
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The office in the city of Long Beach
was not far from the port,
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and not far
from their residence in Lakewood.
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[suspenseful music playing]
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[Bowers] The next day,
on Tuesday, August 21st,
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Bruce has indicated Jana's not here.
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She hasn't returned.
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{\an8}So there's a heightened interest as to...
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"Where is she? What has happened to her?"
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We all sat around wringing our hands
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trying to figure out
what could have happened.
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Bruce was a wreck.
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He was sitting on the couch
with his head in his hands,
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just bawling like a baby,
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and he gave us
as much details as he could.
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That, you know, the car was missing,
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and that he was trying
to think of things that he could do,
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where he could start searching,
could hire helicopters,
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could employ teams of searchers.
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[Scott] I know,
as a missing person's investigator,
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99.9% of the people
return within 24 hours.
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[Bowers] There's a number of things
law enforcement is looking into
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after the first 24 hours,
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when it becomes more likely
that something may have happened to 'em
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besides just running away.
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Could they be a victim of a crime?
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Could she have been carjacked?
Could it have been an accident?
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[tense, fraught music playing]
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We checked the hospitals
and checked for traffic accidents.
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So we knew that it probably wasn't that.
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I was tasked
to go to the Koklich residence.
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And so I decided
to call in a homicide team,
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because it is gonna take
a lot more time to investigate,
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and one of the investigators
was Karen Shonka.
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[Shonka] When I was a young girl
trying to think of what I wanted to do,
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{\an8}I thought, "I want to be a police officer
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so I can drive around
and speed everywhere."
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[slick, groovy music playing]
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I was hired by the LA County
Sheriff's Department in 1986.
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[stirring music playing]
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Being a woman in law enforcement
in the mid-'80s was a little difficult.
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I felt like at times
I had to prove myself.
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I would go above and beyond
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what a male deputy
or detective would have to do.
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I would just really want to work my cases
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and make sure
that I was doing a phenomenal job.
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[Labbe] Karen worked her ass off.
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God bless her for it.
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She wasn't gonna let anybody stop her
from doing what her dreams were.
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[cryptic music playing]
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[Shonka] Bruce and Jana
had a home in Lakewood,
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just north of Long Beach,
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which was on a golf course.
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Beautiful home.
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Once we arrived at the Koklich home,
we spoke with Bruce.
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[Scott] Bruce told me
that on Monday morning,
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he gave Jana a kiss goodbye
at around 6:00 a.m.
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They were partners
at a real estate agency.
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And typically Jana would arrive
at the office at 9:00 or 9:30 a.m.
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[Bowers] 10:00, maybe 10:30, Bruce said,
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"I asked around
with the other real estate agents,
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'Where's my wife?'
They said, 'She hasn't come in yet.'"
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[Shonka] Bruce and Jana have
a business partner, Chris Botosan,
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that was at the office,
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and Chris decided to go with Bruce
to the home to find out if Jana was there.
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[dark, foreboding music playing]
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[Bowers] Her car is gone.
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Her purse is gone. Cell phone is gone.
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Even the alarm on the house was on.
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So he was kind of suspicious.
"Where could she have gone?"
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This is a missing adult.
You have to look at all the possibilities.
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Maybe she ran away.
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Maybe there was an extramarital affair
that was occurring.
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You have to investigate all that.
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[Shonka] What's her mental state?
Are they on medication?
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Those kind of things
can tell us where she's at.
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And in this case,
something doesn't seem right,
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seems suspicious.
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Bruce told me that, on Friday night,
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Jana had gone to a concert
with her friend Nini.
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And that Jana had probably
arrived home after midnight.
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Bruce said that he and Jana
wanted to have a "mellow, chill weekend,"
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just the two of them.
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[Bowers] On Monday,
Bruce said his wife has disappeared,
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and no one has been able to determine
what has happened to her.
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[woman] It's just completely
out of character for her.
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{\an8}You know, it's like she just disappeared
off the face of the earth.
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[Shonka] Bruce gave us
a consent to search the home
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and to look around
for any clues we may find.
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We were going through trash cans,
everything in that house,
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to try and figure out
what happened with Jana.
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I remember going through
their answering machine at their home.
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I was writing down
the caller ID information.
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[cryptic music playing]
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[Shonka] Bruce did say they didn't want
to answer any phone calls for the weekend
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because Jana was still disturbed
about this unknown male voice
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that was leaving messages
on their answering machine.
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[chilling stinger]
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[Bowers] Bruce asked them,
"Would you listen to this tape recording?"
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"It sounds like somebody threatening."
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[Scott] It was directed to Jana.
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It was a male's voice,
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and it says,
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"You know me. You need to call me."
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Bruce said that he and Jana
both found it very disturbing,
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that they did not recognize the voice.
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You know, we've had
most of our acquaintances listening to it,
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and nobody can identify it.
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[Shonka] We asked, "Who'd wanna hurt her?
Did she have enemies?"
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Bruce said, "Because of Jana's father,
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someone may have abducted Jana."
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Jana was Jana Carpenter-Koklich.
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Her father was a state senator,
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a very prominent politician
in the state of California.
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Jana's father, State Senator Carpenter,
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was very popular with the community.
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However, he got mixed up
in some criminal activity
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later on in his political career.
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And he got prosecuted for it.
He even went to prison.
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Two years before Jana's disappearance,
he was released.
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So there was
a lot of attention by the media
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that this must have
something to do with her disappearance.
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Could there be some type of revenge
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for all the actions that he had done
through his political career?
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[Scott] This unknown male voice
that was leaving messages
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could be the possible kidnapper.
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[Shonka] Bruce let us know
that they do have repo'd property
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in gang areas throughout LA County.
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Jana may have gone over there
and was abducted around there.
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That was Jana's job, at times,
to go out and collect the rent.
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So she had a gun.
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She was afraid
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that somebody might try to rob her
when she was trying to collect the money.
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[Scott] That adds another level
to the investigation.
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00:11:00,493 --> 00:11:04,413
In many cases,
if people aren't willing to use a gun,
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it can be easily taken from them
and used against them.
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She's been missing for a day,
which is unlike her.
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She's a very prompt and professional woman
that I love most deeply,
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and hope to have her return
as soon as possible.
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[somber music playing]
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[Shonka] Bruce's demeanor
was very forthwith.
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He wanted to give us
the information that we needed.
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Bruce said they had been married
for 11 years,
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and they were in a very loving marriage.
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[Titchenal] Bruce and Jana
had similar goals in life
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and started building
a real estate business together
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{\an8}that was really very, very successful.
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[woman] They were really tied
to their business,
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but they were enjoying their life.
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{\an8}I could tell she loved him.
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Bruce and Jana
spent a lot of time together,
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almost all their time together.
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They never made decisions
without consulting each other,
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and they always talked about
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where they were going
and how they were gonna get there.
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[man] We sat up last night very late
trying to figure out motivation.
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{\an8}Why would anybody do this?
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00:12:18,571 --> 00:12:22,116
[disquieting, suspenseful music playing]
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We definitely have the clock ticking.
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Jana may have been abducted,
and we've already lost time.
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She could be in distress somewhere.
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So we want the media
to get her picture out there,
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00:12:37,339 --> 00:12:40,176
picture of her car, the license plate.
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00:12:40,843 --> 00:12:44,054
We need the public's help
to try and find Jana Koklich.
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00:12:44,680 --> 00:12:48,851
We figure if we find the car,
more than likely we'll find Jana.
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00:12:49,351 --> 00:12:51,353
[tense, eerie music playing]
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[Titchenal] We fully expected
there would be a ransom note,
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00:13:02,948 --> 00:13:05,451
or something to let us know
she was still alive,
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00:13:05,451 --> 00:13:08,120
and we continued to hold on to that hope.
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00:13:10,706 --> 00:13:12,041
[Baird] Time goes by.
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00:13:12,541 --> 00:13:14,376
Jana doesn't come home.
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00:13:14,376 --> 00:13:16,378
Jana doesn't call.
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00:13:17,171 --> 00:13:18,172
Nothing.
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00:13:19,757 --> 00:13:22,760
And the police are interviewing people.
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00:13:24,011 --> 00:13:28,432
[Scott] Nothing became of
the political theory with Jana's father.
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00:13:28,933 --> 00:13:30,851
It was checked out and cleared.
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00:13:31,936 --> 00:13:35,856
But a name that came up
while we were interviewing Bruce Koklich
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00:13:35,856 --> 00:13:37,650
was Chris Botosan.
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00:13:37,650 --> 00:13:39,360
[tense music playing]
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00:13:39,360 --> 00:13:43,697
Bruce said he came home with Chris
while he was looking for Jana.
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00:13:44,198 --> 00:13:47,785
{\an8}Chris was a business partner
of Jana and Bruce's
210
00:13:47,785 --> 00:13:50,871
in a software company
that they were just starting.
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00:13:51,539 --> 00:13:53,624
[Titchenal] I think there was a situation
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00:13:53,624 --> 00:13:57,044
where something happened
between him and Jana.
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00:13:57,044 --> 00:13:59,630
Bruce never really told me
anything about that,
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00:13:59,630 --> 00:14:01,632
but it just became apparent
215
00:14:01,632 --> 00:14:04,093
in the couple of times
I saw them all together
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00:14:04,093 --> 00:14:07,471
that Jana wasn't really enamored
by this guy.
217
00:14:07,471 --> 00:14:09,223
She wasn't really happy with him.
218
00:14:09,723 --> 00:14:12,643
Chris, being a partner of Bruce and Jana,
219
00:14:12,643 --> 00:14:15,729
he would benefit
from Jana's disappearance.
220
00:14:15,729 --> 00:14:17,815
[dark, brooding music playing]
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00:14:19,733 --> 00:14:20,776
In this business,
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00:14:20,776 --> 00:14:26,156
if Jana is eliminated,
Chris gets a bigger piece of the pie.
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00:14:27,157 --> 00:14:30,327
The cops told us
maybe Chris had something to do with it.
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00:14:30,327 --> 00:14:32,371
Then we heard that he left town.
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00:14:34,331 --> 00:14:38,586
So that, all of a sudden, was like
a red flag to the sheriff's department.
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00:14:39,795 --> 00:14:42,047
[Shonka] We were able
to locate Chris Botosan
227
00:14:42,047 --> 00:14:44,425
and confirm an alibi for that weekend,
228
00:14:44,425 --> 00:14:47,219
where he was hanging out
with a girlfriend.
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00:14:48,387 --> 00:14:52,349
Chris Botosan was eventually cleared
as a suspect.
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00:14:52,850 --> 00:14:54,852
[taut, mysterious music playing]
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00:14:58,814 --> 00:15:01,317
We did speak with Jana's friend, Nini.
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00:15:01,817 --> 00:15:05,446
She said that Jana seemed happy
on Friday night,
233
00:15:05,946 --> 00:15:08,449
that Jana didn't want
to stay up late that night.
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00:15:08,449 --> 00:15:12,286
She only had a half a glass of wine
at the Eric Clapton concert
235
00:15:12,286 --> 00:15:14,455
because she had
to get up early the next day
236
00:15:14,455 --> 00:15:17,374
{\an8}for a gym appointment with Dean,
her personal trainer.
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00:15:18,459 --> 00:15:21,795
{\an8}Dean told me
that he had been training her one-on-one
238
00:15:21,795 --> 00:15:23,672
for the last four, five years.
239
00:15:24,214 --> 00:15:28,093
She never missed an appointment,
and she was never late ever.
240
00:15:30,012 --> 00:15:32,806
[Bowers] Every Saturday morning,
around seven o'clock,
241
00:15:32,806 --> 00:15:35,351
they would go jogging down by the beach.
242
00:15:36,518 --> 00:15:38,145
The detectives wondered,
243
00:15:38,145 --> 00:15:40,648
"Could there have been
a romantic relationship?"
244
00:15:41,398 --> 00:15:45,527
[Baird] She's starting
to really change her outward image.
245
00:15:46,153 --> 00:15:48,489
She had had her teeth done.
246
00:15:49,573 --> 00:15:51,075
She had lost weight.
247
00:15:52,493 --> 00:15:56,830
Jana shared one of
her personal training days
248
00:15:56,830 --> 00:15:58,874
with a good girlfriend of hers, Connie.
249
00:16:00,084 --> 00:16:03,796
And Connie said
that there was no sexual tension
250
00:16:03,796 --> 00:16:06,799
or anything between Dean and Jana.
251
00:16:06,799 --> 00:16:08,842
Everything was very professional.
252
00:16:09,343 --> 00:16:13,222
Jana was just very obsessed
with her workouts.
253
00:16:13,847 --> 00:16:18,477
We verified his story,
and checked his alibi,
254
00:16:18,978 --> 00:16:21,230
and he was cleared as a suspect.
255
00:16:21,772 --> 00:16:25,943
There was nothing going on
between Dean and Jana.
256
00:16:25,943 --> 00:16:28,028
[ominous music playing]
257
00:16:29,446 --> 00:16:32,408
As well as I knew Jana,
there was no possibility
258
00:16:32,408 --> 00:16:34,994
that she had gone off
with some other lover.
259
00:16:35,828 --> 00:16:39,331
It just wasn't possible
that this was something of her own doing.
260
00:16:39,331 --> 00:16:42,042
Something definitely had happened to her.
261
00:16:44,420 --> 00:16:47,381
Dean relayed to me
that Jana missed the appointment
262
00:16:47,381 --> 00:16:50,009
on Saturday
at seven o'clock in the morning.
263
00:16:50,009 --> 00:16:52,302
He said he called the house phone,
no answer.
264
00:16:52,302 --> 00:16:54,555
He called her cell phone, no answer.
265
00:16:54,555 --> 00:16:56,890
He was very surprised
that she didn't show up.
266
00:16:59,143 --> 00:17:02,354
She also had
a scheduled massage appointment
267
00:17:02,354 --> 00:17:05,441
on Saturday at 2:00 p.m. with Nini.
268
00:17:07,484 --> 00:17:09,737
Nini said, "Jana did not show up."
269
00:17:10,237 --> 00:17:11,739
[phone ringing]
270
00:17:13,240 --> 00:17:15,951
Even as the weekend went on,
she tried to contact her,
271
00:17:16,744 --> 00:17:17,953
but got no answer.
272
00:17:18,454 --> 00:17:21,498
[Scott] Nini made calls
to Bruce's voicemail.
273
00:17:21,498 --> 00:17:25,377
There was never any answer
from Jana or Bruce.
274
00:17:25,377 --> 00:17:27,963
That definitely set up a red flag.
275
00:17:29,006 --> 00:17:33,552
I did ask Bruce, "Why would Jana
not answer those phone calls?"
276
00:17:34,053 --> 00:17:38,265
He just says, "We just wanted
to blow everything off for the weekend."
277
00:17:39,349 --> 00:17:41,935
They are professional real estate agents,
278
00:17:41,935 --> 00:17:46,857
and I found that very strange
that they wouldn't answer phone calls.
279
00:17:46,857 --> 00:17:48,942
[frenetic, suspenseful music playing]
280
00:17:53,322 --> 00:17:57,826
Investigating these type of cases,
you want all the information you can get.
281
00:17:57,826 --> 00:18:00,329
Housekeepers can be very informative.
282
00:18:01,121 --> 00:18:05,751
They see what's going on.
They're the quiet eyes around a house.
283
00:18:06,543 --> 00:18:09,338
I talked to the housekeeper.
284
00:18:09,338 --> 00:18:10,756
Her name was Consuelo.
285
00:18:10,756 --> 00:18:14,510
She said her routine was, every Tuesday,
286
00:18:14,510 --> 00:18:18,847
she would change the bedding
in the master bedroom.
287
00:18:19,640 --> 00:18:22,935
She said that when she made the bed
the week prior,
288
00:18:22,935 --> 00:18:26,188
it was a white and black sheet
with some cursive writing on it.
289
00:18:27,731 --> 00:18:30,275
[woman] There was messages on the sheets.
290
00:18:30,984 --> 00:18:33,821
"Happiness," "love,"
and, you know, beautiful messages.
291
00:18:34,446 --> 00:18:37,741
But on Tuesday 21st,
292
00:18:37,741 --> 00:18:39,451
when I see the bed,
293
00:18:39,451 --> 00:18:41,703
it was not the same sheets.
294
00:18:51,797 --> 00:18:55,759
[Scott] The sheets that she had put on
the previous Tuesday were gone.
295
00:18:56,343 --> 00:19:01,682
And now there was only
a full-size flat sheet on the bed,
296
00:19:01,682 --> 00:19:03,976
and the bed is a queen size.
297
00:19:05,519 --> 00:19:08,147
[Lopez] In the nine years
I worked for the Kokliches,
298
00:19:08,147 --> 00:19:10,065
they never changed the sheets.
299
00:19:10,065 --> 00:19:14,778
I'm the one who do it every Tuesday.
300
00:19:14,778 --> 00:19:16,321
They never do that.
301
00:19:17,531 --> 00:19:21,785
[Scott] And she added that the sheets
were nowhere to be found in the house.
302
00:19:21,785 --> 00:19:25,205
Not in the washer,
not in any of the other rooms,
303
00:19:25,205 --> 00:19:27,499
so she was very concerned about that.
304
00:19:28,292 --> 00:19:31,962
She also pointed out
a towel was missing from the bathroom.
305
00:19:32,462 --> 00:19:35,215
One of the pillows was also missing.
306
00:19:35,799 --> 00:19:37,384
This was very unusual.
307
00:19:38,385 --> 00:19:42,389
[Shonka] There was a theory
that Jana was abducted from her bed
308
00:19:42,389 --> 00:19:46,226
by the anonymous male
calling for Jana at the home.
309
00:19:47,269 --> 00:19:50,647
But Bruce told us
there was no signs of forced entry.
310
00:19:50,647 --> 00:19:53,525
All the doors were locked.
The alarm was activated.
311
00:19:53,525 --> 00:19:55,360
Everything looked secure in the home.
312
00:19:56,195 --> 00:20:00,574
{\an8}It has to be somebody who knew Jana
or knew of her, I feel,
313
00:20:00,574 --> 00:20:02,910
because they had to be aware
of her movements
314
00:20:02,910 --> 00:20:05,204
and the fact
that Bruce had left the house.
315
00:20:05,204 --> 00:20:08,207
[unsettling music playing]
316
00:20:14,463 --> 00:20:17,299
[Shonka] We had no leads
in her disappearance.
317
00:20:18,884 --> 00:20:21,470
And then on 27th August,
318
00:20:21,470 --> 00:20:26,183
we received a phone call
that Jana's '96 Pathfinder was located
319
00:20:26,183 --> 00:20:28,769
off California Street in Signal Hill,
320
00:20:28,769 --> 00:20:31,688
and this is huge information for us
in this case.
321
00:20:33,690 --> 00:20:35,067
[suspenseful music playing]
322
00:20:35,067 --> 00:20:39,279
The initial view of Jana's Pathfinder,
323
00:20:39,279 --> 00:20:42,658
we weren't able to find her purse,
gun, or cell phone in there.
324
00:20:44,243 --> 00:20:47,955
However, we did check
the cargo area of her Pathfinder,
325
00:20:48,455 --> 00:20:50,749
and we were able to see
a feather in the back.
326
00:20:54,378 --> 00:20:57,005
The feather in the back cargo area
327
00:20:57,005 --> 00:21:01,760
was really important
based on her pillow missing from her bed.
328
00:21:02,594 --> 00:21:06,390
And then we found
what appeared to be a large bloodstain.
329
00:21:08,058 --> 00:21:10,310
Working a missing persons case,
330
00:21:10,310 --> 00:21:14,273
when you find
a significant amount of blood somewhere,
331
00:21:14,273 --> 00:21:19,486
that's where you kind of cross the line
that, "Okay, this is not good."
332
00:21:22,197 --> 00:21:25,534
[Paul] She's a very sweet, friendly girl.
333
00:21:26,159 --> 00:21:29,997
No reason for anybody to do this.
[sobbing]
334
00:21:29,997 --> 00:21:33,041
There's a little chance
they might find her alive,
335
00:21:33,542 --> 00:21:36,128
but I'm prepared for whatever happens.
336
00:21:36,128 --> 00:21:38,297
I've got to know, get some closure.
337
00:21:39,047 --> 00:21:40,632
[Shonka] Now you go into recovery mode.
338
00:21:40,632 --> 00:21:44,011
Where is she? Where's her body?
We need to find her.
339
00:21:44,011 --> 00:21:46,096
[eerie, unsettling music playing]
340
00:21:54,604 --> 00:21:58,025
A search team was created
of about 140 people
341
00:21:58,859 --> 00:22:00,694
to search the petroleum fields.
342
00:22:01,945 --> 00:22:03,739
If you do discover something,
343
00:22:03,739 --> 00:22:06,575
we need you to back away from it,
and don't touch anything.
344
00:22:07,159 --> 00:22:12,247
[Bowers] Jana's car was found
right next to the Signal Hill oil wells.
345
00:22:13,623 --> 00:22:19,046
And all that area,
there's a lot of giant, big, deep holes
346
00:22:19,046 --> 00:22:21,757
that were dug
when they were trying to explore for oil.
347
00:22:25,093 --> 00:22:29,097
We were out there for quite a while,
and nothing was found.
348
00:22:29,097 --> 00:22:31,183
[cryptic music playing]
349
00:22:32,309 --> 00:22:33,643
[Scott] It was very disappointing,
350
00:22:33,643 --> 00:22:37,022
because we wanted
to bring closure to the family.
351
00:22:37,981 --> 00:22:40,317
Now we have to start from ground zero.
352
00:22:43,862 --> 00:22:45,697
[Labbe] We still didn't have a body,
353
00:22:45,697 --> 00:22:47,491
and the truth of the matter is,
354
00:22:47,491 --> 00:22:49,076
we're homicide detectives.
355
00:22:49,576 --> 00:22:51,703
As far as a "no body" case,
356
00:22:51,703 --> 00:22:54,664
they're extremely difficult to prove
in the state of California.
357
00:22:58,752 --> 00:23:00,754
[dark, ominous music playing]
358
00:23:04,174 --> 00:23:07,636
[Shonka] We were able to secure
another search warrant on the house
359
00:23:08,345 --> 00:23:11,390
and conducted a luminol examination.
360
00:23:15,769 --> 00:23:19,606
There was a drop of blood
found in the master bedroom
361
00:23:19,606 --> 00:23:21,400
on the carpet near the bed.
362
00:23:21,900 --> 00:23:25,946
We got DNA samples for Jana
from her hairbrush.
363
00:23:26,947 --> 00:23:31,660
The several spots of blood
that were found in the bedroom
364
00:23:32,160 --> 00:23:36,915
and that blood that was in the back
of the Pathfinder matched Jana's DNA.
365
00:23:39,501 --> 00:23:41,962
[Shonka] Evidence is still
being put together,
366
00:23:42,462 --> 00:23:46,299
but with that amount of blood
in the back of her Pathfinder
367
00:23:46,299 --> 00:23:49,302
would lead anybody to believe
she's been murdered,
368
00:23:49,302 --> 00:23:52,389
and her body was placed back there
at some point.
369
00:23:52,389 --> 00:23:57,436
I think that we could classify this
from a critical missing over to homicide.
370
00:23:59,771 --> 00:24:03,817
[Scott] At this point
in our investigation, her husband, Bruce,
371
00:24:03,817 --> 00:24:06,153
was the only one that had access to her.
372
00:24:07,279 --> 00:24:09,906
[Shonka] Bruce was
the last person that saw her alive
373
00:24:09,906 --> 00:24:11,491
and really has no other alibi,
374
00:24:11,491 --> 00:24:13,785
other than he was alone with her
over the weekend.
375
00:24:13,785 --> 00:24:17,205
So now we're starting to focus on Bruce,
her husband.
376
00:24:19,499 --> 00:24:21,084
[Bowers] From the detectives' standpoint,
377
00:24:21,668 --> 00:24:27,048
Bruce is claiming Jana was alive
and with him the entire weekend,
378
00:24:27,048 --> 00:24:30,051
Saturday, Sunday, and Monday morning.
379
00:24:31,136 --> 00:24:35,557
And then they talked to Bruce and say,
"Would you be willing to do a polygraph?"
380
00:24:35,557 --> 00:24:38,226
"We just want to verify your story."
381
00:24:38,727 --> 00:24:40,604
And Bruce said, "That's fine."
382
00:24:41,855 --> 00:24:46,568
He asked investigators if he could preview
the questions beforehand.
383
00:24:47,068 --> 00:24:50,238
Um, it's not our policy
to provide those questions.
384
00:24:50,906 --> 00:24:53,700
[Janeth] He's been given
a lot of advice by a lot of friends,
385
00:24:53,700 --> 00:24:56,953
{\an8}in the law field and even law enforcement,
386
00:24:56,953 --> 00:25:00,081
and, uh, has heard
all kinds of horror stories
387
00:25:00,081 --> 00:25:02,584
about how they use tricky questions.
388
00:25:02,584 --> 00:25:05,837
He had an attorney,
and the attorney advised him,
389
00:25:05,837 --> 00:25:07,714
"No, you shouldn't do a polygraph."
390
00:25:10,800 --> 00:25:13,345
Bruce was frantic about doing something.
391
00:25:13,345 --> 00:25:16,264
He couldn't just sit there
and not do anything.
392
00:25:16,264 --> 00:25:18,725
I'm doing whatever I can
to get my wife back.
393
00:25:18,725 --> 00:25:23,855
I know that he called the TV stations
and made an appeal.
394
00:25:24,981 --> 00:25:26,483
[Koklich] My name is Bruce Koklich,
395
00:25:26,483 --> 00:25:29,319
and I'm currently looking
for my wife of 11 years,
396
00:25:29,319 --> 00:25:33,490
and I'm offering a $100,000 reward
for her return.
397
00:25:33,490 --> 00:25:35,700
The $100,000 reward still stands.
398
00:25:35,700 --> 00:25:37,827
I want my wife back.
399
00:25:38,328 --> 00:25:41,373
Whatever it takes to get her back,
I'm willing to do it.
400
00:25:42,958 --> 00:25:45,877
[somber, delicate music playing]
401
00:25:47,003 --> 00:25:49,839
[Bowers] Bruce had come out
and gave interviews.
402
00:25:50,674 --> 00:25:53,093
Then as time went by,
there were several ladies
403
00:25:53,093 --> 00:25:55,011
who saw those interviews
404
00:25:55,512 --> 00:25:57,889
and contacted the sheriff's department.
405
00:26:01,309 --> 00:26:07,357
They indicated that Bruce contacted them
about maybe going out on a date.
406
00:26:07,357 --> 00:26:09,401
There was a lady at the bank.
407
00:26:09,401 --> 00:26:11,403
Bruce came up and said,
408
00:26:11,403 --> 00:26:14,197
"Would you be willing
to go out to dinner with me?"
409
00:26:15,198 --> 00:26:16,449
She didn't think much of it
410
00:26:16,449 --> 00:26:20,662
until she saw the TV interview
that his wife was missing.
411
00:26:22,581 --> 00:26:25,375
There was another lady
who worked at an escrow office.
412
00:26:25,375 --> 00:26:27,210
She didn't wanna have
anything to do with him.
413
00:26:28,003 --> 00:26:30,213
And then there was one of the neighbors.
414
00:26:30,213 --> 00:26:32,799
And she got a note on her windshield.
415
00:26:32,799 --> 00:26:34,718
And it said, "From Bruce Koklich."
416
00:26:34,718 --> 00:26:38,346
"Would your granddaughter
be willing to go out with me?"
417
00:26:39,014 --> 00:26:40,557
She thought, "That's strange."
418
00:26:40,557 --> 00:26:44,352
"Why would he put a note like that
wanting to meet my granddaughter?"
419
00:26:46,896 --> 00:26:50,317
[Shonka] Right before and after
Jana's disappearance,
420
00:26:50,317 --> 00:26:51,943
{\an8}he's asking all these women out,
421
00:26:51,943 --> 00:26:55,322
{\an8}and they all turned him down
because of his creep factor.
422
00:26:55,322 --> 00:26:57,407
[foreboding music playing]
423
00:26:58,617 --> 00:27:01,328
[Bowers] Bruce was interested
in going out with other women
424
00:27:01,328 --> 00:27:03,955
while he's giving TV interviews,
425
00:27:03,955 --> 00:27:05,457
how much he misses his wife,
426
00:27:05,457 --> 00:27:08,877
and he would do anything
to have his loving wife back.
427
00:27:08,877 --> 00:27:10,503
What is going on here?
428
00:27:12,047 --> 00:27:14,924
This is not a grieving spouse.
429
00:27:15,800 --> 00:27:16,801
This looks suspicious.
430
00:27:17,802 --> 00:27:21,598
It's starting to get
a little more concerning.
431
00:27:21,598 --> 00:27:23,683
[somber, restrained music playing]
432
00:27:25,685 --> 00:27:28,438
[Bowers] As the investigators
got deeper into this case,
433
00:27:28,438 --> 00:27:32,525
they found out from friends, relatives
434
00:27:33,818 --> 00:27:36,696
that Jana was dissatisfied with her life.
435
00:27:37,864 --> 00:27:42,202
[Baird] Jana told me
that they were going to adopt.
436
00:27:42,786 --> 00:27:45,664
{\an8}She wanted a family so bad.
437
00:27:46,498 --> 00:27:48,833
They had already filled out the papers,
438
00:27:48,833 --> 00:27:51,044
and we were both real excited.
439
00:27:52,295 --> 00:27:55,048
One day, she shows up for dinner,
440
00:27:55,840 --> 00:27:59,344
maybe a month or so before she disappears.
441
00:28:00,136 --> 00:28:04,057
And I said something about,
"How's the adoption going?"
442
00:28:04,057 --> 00:28:05,684
And she said to me,
443
00:28:06,267 --> 00:28:08,603
"There will be no adoption."
444
00:28:10,689 --> 00:28:15,860
Now I'm wondering if maybe
it was something else with her and Bruce.
445
00:28:16,778 --> 00:28:20,573
I just could never see Bruce
adopting a child,
446
00:28:21,449 --> 00:28:25,787
because it definitely
would take Jana away from the business
447
00:28:25,787 --> 00:28:27,789
if she had become a mom.
448
00:28:30,417 --> 00:28:35,088
Was Jana tired of the domination of Bruce,
449
00:28:35,088 --> 00:28:37,173
who was always there telling her,
450
00:28:37,173 --> 00:28:39,884
"We gotta make more money,
more money, work harder"?
451
00:28:41,469 --> 00:28:43,138
[Titchenal] Control was
important to Bruce.
452
00:28:43,138 --> 00:28:45,890
He had to control the business situation.
453
00:28:45,890 --> 00:28:48,643
He had to control personal relationships.
454
00:28:49,269 --> 00:28:50,520
That's how he was built.
455
00:28:53,189 --> 00:28:58,194
We learned that Bruce Koklich
has a long history
456
00:28:58,194 --> 00:29:02,782
of asking women out,
making rude comments to women,
457
00:29:02,782 --> 00:29:04,743
grabbing women, doing certain things.
458
00:29:05,827 --> 00:29:08,204
Obviously, that's a problem in a marriage.
459
00:29:08,705 --> 00:29:12,041
[Baird] He was womanizing
while he was married.
460
00:29:12,625 --> 00:29:14,335
Jana knew about some of it.
461
00:29:16,463 --> 00:29:19,007
[Bowers] We don't know exactly
what was going on in Jana's mind,
462
00:29:19,007 --> 00:29:22,677
but we know
she was trying to improve herself,
463
00:29:22,677 --> 00:29:25,054
make herself more independent,
464
00:29:25,054 --> 00:29:27,432
where she could go out on her own
if she wanted to.
465
00:29:28,016 --> 00:29:30,852
Looking for a new life,
something different.
466
00:29:32,520 --> 00:29:36,649
I believe that she may have
threatened him with divorce.
467
00:29:40,904 --> 00:29:45,408
If Jana said, "We're done,
you don't want the same things I want,"
468
00:29:45,408 --> 00:29:49,454
I can see Bruce not being able
to handle that well.
469
00:29:50,288 --> 00:29:51,372
He was very ambitious
470
00:29:51,372 --> 00:29:53,792
and very much money-driven
and goal-driven.
471
00:29:54,334 --> 00:29:57,837
If they get a divorce,
he would have to share half of everything.
472
00:29:59,798 --> 00:30:03,635
I honestly believe
that he killed her over money.
473
00:30:04,844 --> 00:30:07,680
He just didn't want to part with it.
474
00:30:09,098 --> 00:30:14,062
We learn Bruce and Jana
both held $1,000,000 life policies.
475
00:30:14,729 --> 00:30:17,982
She most likely
has been killed for financial gain.
476
00:30:20,109 --> 00:30:23,780
[Shonka] During that time,
we were able to speak neighbors that said
477
00:30:24,531 --> 00:30:28,034
early Saturday morning
they heard what sounded like arguing
478
00:30:28,034 --> 00:30:29,661
between a man and a woman,
479
00:30:29,661 --> 00:30:33,915
and the other one described it
as maybe moving heavy furniture.
480
00:30:33,915 --> 00:30:38,795
I mean, this picture just keeps getting
brighter and brighter as it goes on.
481
00:30:41,089 --> 00:30:43,091
[low, harsh music playing]
482
00:30:47,679 --> 00:30:49,180
[phone ringing]
483
00:30:49,180 --> 00:30:50,765
[tense music playing]
484
00:30:52,308 --> 00:30:55,353
[Shonka] A call came in that a witness saw
485
00:30:55,353 --> 00:30:58,022
what they believed to be
a white Pathfinder
486
00:30:58,022 --> 00:31:01,860
parked in front of a home
there on California Street in Signal Hill,
487
00:31:03,027 --> 00:31:05,613
but they weren't sure it was Jana's car.
488
00:31:06,406 --> 00:31:09,284
[Bowers] A person said
that they saw the car parked there
489
00:31:09,284 --> 00:31:12,704
the Sunday before she's reported missing.
490
00:31:14,205 --> 00:31:17,834
They looked, and it was a white person
with a white dress shirt on,
491
00:31:17,834 --> 00:31:20,003
and he's just sitting there in the alley,
492
00:31:20,003 --> 00:31:22,380
and it seemed suspicious
to this individual.
493
00:31:24,257 --> 00:31:27,135
The sheriff's department thought,
"Could it be Bruce?"
494
00:31:30,263 --> 00:31:34,726
We put together three separate six-packs,
or mug show-up folders.
495
00:31:36,853 --> 00:31:41,566
One that had Bruce in it,
one that had Dean, the personal trainer,
496
00:31:41,566 --> 00:31:45,361
and the other one had
the business partner, Chris Botosan.
497
00:31:46,321 --> 00:31:49,240
This witness looked at
all three different folders
498
00:31:49,240 --> 00:31:50,491
and picked out the one
499
00:31:50,491 --> 00:31:54,579
where Bruce was identified
as being that person in that car.
500
00:31:55,872 --> 00:32:00,543
That put Bruce in that area on a Sunday
501
00:32:01,210 --> 00:32:04,047
when he said
that he and his wife were home alone.
502
00:32:04,547 --> 00:32:06,549
[mysterious music playing]
503
00:32:08,676 --> 00:32:12,805
Bruce wanted somebody else
to be blamed for his wife's disappearance,
504
00:32:12,805 --> 00:32:16,017
and it appeared
that he purposely took her car,
505
00:32:17,477 --> 00:32:20,939
put it in a very poor neighborhood
506
00:32:20,939 --> 00:32:24,776
with the keys in the ignition,
with the windows down...
507
00:32:26,527 --> 00:32:29,113
just hoping
and praying that somebody would take it,
508
00:32:29,113 --> 00:32:34,077
make it appear that somebody else
had kidnapped or carjacked Jana.
509
00:32:35,578 --> 00:32:38,998
[Shonka] Signal Hill is
just north of Long Beach.
510
00:32:38,998 --> 00:32:42,502
The Kokliches had some of their
apartment complexes in the area.
511
00:32:43,002 --> 00:32:49,425
We were able to get some information
from some residents in Signal Hill
512
00:32:49,926 --> 00:32:53,012
who said they saw the neighborhood kids
getting in Jana's car,
513
00:32:53,012 --> 00:32:55,723
taking the car for joy rides
around the neighborhood,
514
00:32:55,723 --> 00:32:57,350
and parked in a garage.
515
00:32:57,850 --> 00:33:01,020
It was becoming apparent, not only to us,
516
00:33:01,020 --> 00:33:04,399
but family members and friends of Jana
517
00:33:04,399 --> 00:33:08,945
who were starting
to have their doubts about Bruce.
518
00:33:08,945 --> 00:33:11,030
[suspenseful music playing]
519
00:33:12,448 --> 00:33:15,159
{\an8}[Titchenal] I had trust in Bruce
and had no reason to not believe
520
00:33:15,159 --> 00:33:17,662
{\an8}everything that he had told us
up to this point.
521
00:33:18,663 --> 00:33:22,000
Now I had to look at everything,
and I had to think,
522
00:33:22,000 --> 00:33:23,710
"Was my trust misplaced?"
523
00:33:24,669 --> 00:33:28,339
"Is there actually
a lot more that's going on
524
00:33:28,339 --> 00:33:29,882
that Bruce isn't telling me?"
525
00:33:32,760 --> 00:33:37,557
"Is there another side to him
that I didn't know existed,
526
00:33:37,557 --> 00:33:39,642
that I didn't think was possible?"
527
00:33:43,771 --> 00:33:45,773
[tense, mysterious music playing]
528
00:33:50,069 --> 00:33:55,158
We put together a timeline
of 18th and 19th August.
529
00:33:56,868 --> 00:34:02,081
According to Bruce, 12:30-ish,
Jana returns from the concert.
530
00:34:03,332 --> 00:34:06,794
Early Saturday morning,
neighbors across the street
531
00:34:06,794 --> 00:34:09,672
heard arguing between a man and a woman.
532
00:34:11,591 --> 00:34:14,677
[Bowers] When the detectives were
asking more questions with Bruce as to
533
00:34:14,677 --> 00:34:17,346
"Where were you guys all weekend long?"
534
00:34:18,264 --> 00:34:19,557
Bruce had told 'em,
535
00:34:19,557 --> 00:34:22,769
"Saturday, we read some books,
we watched some television."
536
00:34:24,103 --> 00:34:28,483
"Then on Sunday, we walked around.
We talked to people in the neighborhood."
537
00:34:29,150 --> 00:34:31,944
When detectives talked to those neighbors,
the neighbors said,
538
00:34:31,944 --> 00:34:33,905
"We never saw them."
539
00:34:36,074 --> 00:34:38,034
But Bruce kept coming by and asking,
540
00:34:38,034 --> 00:34:42,038
"Remember? Remember I talked to you
on Sunday? Remember?"
541
00:34:42,038 --> 00:34:44,665
And they said, "No, we... we didn't."
542
00:34:44,665 --> 00:34:48,002
We weren't able
to corroborate anything that Bruce said.
543
00:34:48,503 --> 00:34:50,838
He didn't even remember
what they were wearing.
544
00:34:51,339 --> 00:34:54,133
Bruce Koklich was planting a seed
545
00:34:54,133 --> 00:34:57,303
that somebody out there
had it in for Jana.
546
00:34:58,012 --> 00:35:01,516
[Scott] He was directing the investigation
right from the beginning.
547
00:35:02,016 --> 00:35:05,478
He thought it was a carjacking,
was a kidnapping,
548
00:35:05,478 --> 00:35:09,148
or it was that person on the voicemail.
549
00:35:09,857 --> 00:35:13,069
All those things have to be looked into,
and they were,
550
00:35:13,569 --> 00:35:15,863
but they were all excluded.
551
00:35:18,449 --> 00:35:21,577
Bruce had a motive. Bruce is the only one.
552
00:35:21,577 --> 00:35:23,663
[inscrutable music playing]
553
00:35:27,792 --> 00:35:31,295
[Shonka] Bruce had a lot to gain
from Jana's death.
554
00:35:32,171 --> 00:35:35,716
The potential million-dollar
life insurance policy,
555
00:35:35,716 --> 00:35:37,051
all the properties,
556
00:35:37,051 --> 00:35:40,138
that beautiful home
that they had there on the golf course.
557
00:35:42,306 --> 00:35:45,768
If he was able to avoid divorce,
he would get all of it.
558
00:35:46,602 --> 00:35:48,813
[reporter] Do police consider you
a suspect?
559
00:35:48,813 --> 00:35:50,231
Not that I'm aware of.
560
00:35:50,231 --> 00:35:52,942
I'm doing whatever I can
to get my wife back.
561
00:35:55,027 --> 00:35:58,114
Bruce didn't have
any characteristics of grieving.
562
00:35:58,114 --> 00:36:02,076
His wife is missing,
and he's going out trying to meet women
563
00:36:02,076 --> 00:36:04,871
and trying to have
sexual relations with them.
564
00:36:05,580 --> 00:36:08,374
[Shonka] It seemed like
Bruce wanted to be single.
565
00:36:08,374 --> 00:36:11,794
Bruce wanted to be the real estate mogul,
566
00:36:11,794 --> 00:36:14,380
the guy with the money and the property,
567
00:36:14,881 --> 00:36:16,674
and Jana was in the way.
568
00:36:17,258 --> 00:36:21,137
So he came up with a plan
to get rid of and murder his wife.
569
00:36:21,137 --> 00:36:23,222
[tense music playing]
570
00:36:25,975 --> 00:36:31,522
I believe that Bruce killed his wife
early Saturday morning.
571
00:36:34,317 --> 00:36:40,740
[Shonka] Bruce wraps her body up
in the sheets with the pillowcase or towel
572
00:36:40,740 --> 00:36:43,576
and moves her body
into the back of the Pathfinder,
573
00:36:43,576 --> 00:36:46,037
which was in the garage at the time.
574
00:36:47,413 --> 00:36:51,459
For the amount of blood
that was in the back of her Pathfinder,
575
00:36:52,210 --> 00:36:53,461
it could be purge.
576
00:36:57,006 --> 00:37:01,260
A body starts purging
as it's starting to decompose.
577
00:37:01,802 --> 00:37:03,137
So I'm wondering,
578
00:37:03,137 --> 00:37:06,599
"Did he keep her in the garage
Saturday and Sunday?"
579
00:37:08,809 --> 00:37:10,394
And then moves her body,
580
00:37:10,895 --> 00:37:15,441
dumps it somewhere
in between their home and Signal Hill,
581
00:37:16,108 --> 00:37:17,735
because, Sunday night,
582
00:37:18,694 --> 00:37:21,989
the Pathfinder's seen in Signal Hill
583
00:37:21,989 --> 00:37:23,866
with him in the driver's seat.
584
00:37:26,118 --> 00:37:30,373
And then he walks home
the four miles to Lakewood.
585
00:37:33,501 --> 00:37:36,003
The whole team did a great job
586
00:37:36,003 --> 00:37:39,131
of clearing any other possibility.
587
00:37:40,925 --> 00:37:43,177
All roads lead to Bruce Koklich.
588
00:37:43,844 --> 00:37:45,846
[agitated, foreboding music playing]
589
00:37:46,681 --> 00:37:51,477
When you add up all of those
really significant, incriminating things,
590
00:37:53,187 --> 00:37:57,692
it was enough evidence for the DA's office
to file an arrest warrant.
591
00:38:01,570 --> 00:38:03,572
[dramatic music playing]
592
00:38:09,245 --> 00:38:12,123
[Titchenal] Once we learned that Bruce
had been arrested for Jana's murder,
593
00:38:12,123 --> 00:38:17,086
all those little pieces finally
fell into place for me and my wife,
594
00:38:17,086 --> 00:38:19,839
and we were saddened to have to think
595
00:38:19,839 --> 00:38:22,633
that Bruce did have
something to do with it.
596
00:38:23,551 --> 00:38:27,513
There was a lot of circumstantial evidence
that suggests Bruce isn't innocent.
597
00:38:28,514 --> 00:38:29,890
[Baird] I thought, "This is great."
598
00:38:29,890 --> 00:38:34,395
{\an8}"He'll just sit in jail until,
you know, his trial comes."
599
00:38:34,395 --> 00:38:35,813
{\an8}But, boy, was I wrong.
600
00:38:36,439 --> 00:38:40,026
He got out on $1,000,000 bail.
601
00:38:40,860 --> 00:38:45,698
I love my wife.
I mean, I hope that she's found.
602
00:38:46,324 --> 00:38:49,660
And, um,
I'm most wholeheartedly not guilty.
603
00:38:51,203 --> 00:38:53,205
[mysterious synth music playing]
604
00:39:03,966 --> 00:39:07,595
[Bowers] After many months,
almost a year, we got to trial.
605
00:39:09,096 --> 00:39:11,474
To get a conviction,
we're gonna have to prove
606
00:39:11,474 --> 00:39:15,269
he is the one that caused
her disappearance by killing her.
607
00:39:16,062 --> 00:39:20,858
But the problem is our best evidence,
meaning a dead body, we don't have.
608
00:39:20,858 --> 00:39:23,569
As far as the search for the body,
it's ongoing.
609
00:39:24,987 --> 00:39:27,448
[Shonka] This case was
an eye-opener for all of us
610
00:39:27,448 --> 00:39:30,409
because nobody had really had
a "no body" case.
611
00:39:31,118 --> 00:39:35,331
There wasn't too many of those
that they were getting convictions on.
612
00:39:36,415 --> 00:39:39,126
[Bowers] We were stuck
with circumstantial evidence.
613
00:39:39,710 --> 00:39:45,633
It's a major task for the prosecutor
to convince all 12 jurors
614
00:39:46,175 --> 00:39:47,885
there is no reasonable doubt.
615
00:39:48,761 --> 00:39:52,390
The danger in "no body" cases,
there's always a doubt.
616
00:39:52,390 --> 00:39:54,475
[suspenseful music playing]
617
00:39:58,646 --> 00:40:02,441
[Bowers] Jana had
a $1,000,000 life insurance policy.
618
00:40:02,441 --> 00:40:04,735
Bruce could collect on the life insurance.
619
00:40:04,735 --> 00:40:09,907
The prosecution needed to prove
that there was a financial motive.
620
00:40:11,826 --> 00:40:14,453
[Shonka] The prosecution
had a lot of good witnesses
621
00:40:14,453 --> 00:40:17,540
that wanted to come in
and testify on behalf of Jana.
622
00:40:18,958 --> 00:40:21,085
[Lopez] It was my responsibility to do it.
623
00:40:21,752 --> 00:40:24,088
She was the sweetest lady in the world.
624
00:40:24,088 --> 00:40:25,673
She doesn't deserve this.
625
00:40:27,299 --> 00:40:31,595
And when I see Bruce,
he was not nervous at all.
626
00:40:32,847 --> 00:40:36,308
[Bowers] Bruce wanted to testify,
which was kind of a surprise.
627
00:40:36,809 --> 00:40:40,187
Most of the time,
when a defendant takes the witness stand,
628
00:40:40,187 --> 00:40:43,357
they will do more harm to their case
than benefit.
629
00:40:44,483 --> 00:40:47,153
However, the defense put on a strong case.
630
00:40:47,153 --> 00:40:49,822
{\an8}There's absolutely no motive,
631
00:40:49,822 --> 00:40:54,618
{\an8}either personal between the two of them
or monetarily, as has been suggested.
632
00:40:55,494 --> 00:40:59,206
[reporter] Bruce Koklich testified
he and his wife had a good relationship.
633
00:40:59,206 --> 00:41:02,751
His legal team displayed photographs
of the couple's vacations.
634
00:41:02,751 --> 00:41:05,963
They also showed the jury
birthday and anniversary cards
635
00:41:05,963 --> 00:41:08,674
the pair had exchanged
over the course of their marriage.
636
00:41:08,674 --> 00:41:12,052
He painted a different picture
of what was going on.
637
00:41:12,052 --> 00:41:14,930
And the question was,
"Was a jury going to buy it?"
638
00:41:17,057 --> 00:41:19,935
[Shonka] As a detective,
you always feel like,
639
00:41:19,935 --> 00:41:22,897
"I put this picture together,
and they're gonna judge it,
640
00:41:22,897 --> 00:41:26,734
and all it takes
is one person to not like it."
641
00:41:26,734 --> 00:41:27,902
There goes your case.
642
00:41:31,155 --> 00:41:32,990
[Bowers] After all the evidence
was presented,
643
00:41:32,990 --> 00:41:35,242
the judge read the instructions
to the jury,
644
00:41:35,242 --> 00:41:38,078
and they went
into the jury room to deliberate.
645
00:41:47,171 --> 00:41:49,507
[Bowers] There's one day,
and nothing happened.
646
00:41:49,507 --> 00:41:52,134
Another day, another, another.
It went on and on.
647
00:41:55,012 --> 00:41:57,223
[Shonka] When it goes beyond a day or two,
648
00:41:57,223 --> 00:41:59,183
I would start to worry.
649
00:41:59,183 --> 00:42:02,102
On this case,
the jury deliberated for six days.
650
00:42:05,481 --> 00:42:09,568
There was seven for guilty
and five for not guilty.
651
00:42:10,152 --> 00:42:13,364
They could not
come to a unanimous verdict.
652
00:42:13,364 --> 00:42:16,867
The judge declared a mistrial,
and it was declared a hung jury.
653
00:42:19,411 --> 00:42:20,663
[Shonka] It's hard to swallow,
654
00:42:20,663 --> 00:42:25,209
especially knowing that we had seven
that believed what we presented.
655
00:42:25,209 --> 00:42:27,795
I couldn't believe Bruce got away with it.
656
00:42:28,379 --> 00:42:30,839
He killed Jana and he gets to walk.
657
00:42:35,010 --> 00:42:37,930
[Bowers] The DA's office
had to take a serious look at it,
658
00:42:37,930 --> 00:42:41,016
and then it was decided
we could do it again,
659
00:42:41,600 --> 00:42:43,394
but we have to take another approach.
660
00:42:48,607 --> 00:42:51,652
I was asked to come in and create
661
00:42:51,652 --> 00:42:54,363
what was called a "visual trial,"
662
00:42:54,363 --> 00:42:59,118
where we would present all that
circumstantial evidence in a slideshow.
663
00:42:59,118 --> 00:43:00,536
We would have charts.
664
00:43:03,372 --> 00:43:07,418
We're not gonna emphasize
killing Jana for the life insurance.
665
00:43:07,418 --> 00:43:10,588
We were gonna concentrate on the timeline.
666
00:43:12,298 --> 00:43:16,343
The sheets, the setting up of the car,
667
00:43:17,052 --> 00:43:19,930
all of that pointed to Bruce's guilt.
668
00:43:23,684 --> 00:43:27,980
[Shonka] At the end of the trial,
when the jurors went in to deliberate,
669
00:43:28,897 --> 00:43:30,149
I felt very good.
670
00:43:33,444 --> 00:43:35,738
[Bowers] Jury was out
for only several hours.
671
00:43:35,738 --> 00:43:38,032
It was less than a half a day,
672
00:43:38,824 --> 00:43:42,161
and they rang the buzzer,
meaning they had a verdict.
673
00:43:44,663 --> 00:43:48,459
The jury came out
and the jury verdict was read.
674
00:43:49,084 --> 00:43:52,421
Bruce Koklich was found guilty.
675
00:43:52,421 --> 00:43:54,506
[somber music playing]
676
00:43:55,966 --> 00:43:58,552
I remember I sat there and cried.
677
00:43:58,552 --> 00:44:01,305
It was the culmination of everything.
678
00:44:01,305 --> 00:44:03,349
[mournful music playing]
679
00:44:03,349 --> 00:44:05,768
[Janeth] Now we can plan
a memorial for Jana.
680
00:44:06,644 --> 00:44:12,024
{\an8}And I just wish we could've gotten him
to tell what he had done with her.
681
00:44:13,067 --> 00:44:15,527
[Titchenal] The perpetrator
has family too, and they're...
682
00:44:15,527 --> 00:44:18,364
you know, the disappointment and shame.
683
00:44:18,864 --> 00:44:21,659
{\an8}There was really no reason
why Jana had to die.
684
00:44:22,618 --> 00:44:25,996
It is especially devastating
not to know where her body is
685
00:44:25,996 --> 00:44:29,667
so that we could have the comfort
of a final goodbye to her.
686
00:44:30,250 --> 00:44:34,046
{\an8}Bruce, you took away your wife
who loved you.
687
00:44:34,546 --> 00:44:38,425
You took away all that Jana was
and could have been.
688
00:44:39,385 --> 00:44:43,931
You took away a daughter.
You took away a niece and a cousin.
689
00:44:43,931 --> 00:44:49,770
You took away her father's will to live
and the only thing that gave him comfort.
690
00:44:51,897 --> 00:44:54,233
You'll be imprisoned
in the state prison system
691
00:44:54,233 --> 00:44:55,901
for the term prescribed by law,
692
00:44:55,901 --> 00:44:58,070
which is 15 years to life.
693
00:44:59,405 --> 00:45:03,075
[Titchenal] When the judge pronounced
what Bruce's sentence was gonna be,
694
00:45:03,075 --> 00:45:07,371
he turned, looked at me, and said,
"Don't worry about me. I'll be okay."
695
00:45:07,371 --> 00:45:09,873
And they handcuffed him
and walked him off.
696
00:45:12,668 --> 00:45:15,879
He's an egotistical manipulator
697
00:45:15,879 --> 00:45:19,508
and thought that he could
charm his way out of this somehow,
698
00:45:19,508 --> 00:45:21,301
and it just didn't work.
699
00:45:24,471 --> 00:45:29,059
Bruce could not outsmart
bulldog homicide detectives.
700
00:45:29,059 --> 00:45:32,146
Everybody has a lot of pride
working homicide.
701
00:45:32,146 --> 00:45:35,816
You get a case, and you work that case.
You're not gonna let go.
702
00:45:37,901 --> 00:45:40,446
[Titchenal] Even though
I still communicate with Bruce,
703
00:45:40,446 --> 00:45:44,032
I don't have any sympathy for him
and his situation,
704
00:45:44,533 --> 00:45:47,661
but I can't punish him any more
than he's already being punished.
705
00:45:49,788 --> 00:45:53,792
I really do feel for Jana,
her mother, and her father,
706
00:45:53,792 --> 00:45:56,044
not knowing what happened
to their daughter.
707
00:45:56,044 --> 00:45:58,589
That's very sad and that breaks my heart.
708
00:46:05,053 --> 00:46:07,723
[Baird] I miss Jana every single day.
709
00:46:08,307 --> 00:46:09,641
It still hurts.
710
00:46:12,186 --> 00:46:14,146
She was a lovely person.
711
00:46:15,439 --> 00:46:17,566
Yes, I miss her very much.
712
00:46:19,234 --> 00:46:20,235
[sniffles]
713
00:46:20,235 --> 00:46:21,320
I'm sorry.
714
00:46:25,282 --> 00:46:27,409
[Shonka] Being able to put
this puzzle together,
715
00:46:27,409 --> 00:46:30,704
and then take it to court
for 12 people to look at it,
716
00:46:31,205 --> 00:46:35,125
and for them to unanimously agree
717
00:46:35,125 --> 00:46:38,629
with what myself and my team put together,
718
00:46:39,379 --> 00:46:42,090
it's so rewarding to be able to do that.
719
00:46:43,592 --> 00:46:45,594
[somber music playing]
720
00:46:53,101 --> 00:46:54,478
[indistinct chatter]
721
00:46:59,066 --> 00:47:01,026
As I look back and reflect on it
722
00:47:01,026 --> 00:47:03,570
now that I'm no longer
a homicide detective...
723
00:47:03,570 --> 00:47:07,449
I've only been retired 32 days now,
so it's kind of...
724
00:47:07,449 --> 00:47:10,536
After 42 years,
I'm wrapping my head around it still.
725
00:47:10,536 --> 00:47:13,455
I was very depressed
when I left Sheriff's Homicide.
726
00:47:13,455 --> 00:47:15,332
It's like leaving my family.
727
00:47:15,916 --> 00:47:19,419
I miss the excitement,
the challenge of solving a case,
728
00:47:19,419 --> 00:47:21,755
so, um, I thought about it a year,
729
00:47:21,755 --> 00:47:23,549
and I just had to go back.
730
00:47:23,549 --> 00:47:25,509
I just couldn't handle retiring.
731
00:47:25,509 --> 00:47:27,177
I cried. [laughs]
732
00:47:27,177 --> 00:47:28,512
I did. I... I mean,
733
00:47:28,512 --> 00:47:33,767
I was just so conflicted with leaving,
and I didn't feel it in my heart.
734
00:47:34,685 --> 00:47:38,522
Karen Shonka retired
but decided to go back to work.
735
00:47:38,522 --> 00:47:40,023
She's a workaholic.
736
00:47:40,023 --> 00:47:41,483
Crazy girl went back.
737
00:47:41,483 --> 00:47:45,779
There's a very small percentage of people
that come to Sheriff's Homicide Bureau
738
00:47:45,779 --> 00:47:49,074
and stay there
for, let's say, more than a decade.
739
00:47:49,074 --> 00:47:51,201
I think that that takes a special person
740
00:47:51,201 --> 00:47:53,954
to see and deal with
the trauma that we deal with.
741
00:47:53,954 --> 00:47:55,622
[bright, hopeful music playing]
742
00:47:55,622 --> 00:47:57,624
[Hernandez]
There is no other job like ours,
743
00:47:58,208 --> 00:48:01,336
even law enforcement in particular,
working homicide.
744
00:48:02,462 --> 00:48:04,882
I think that's where it becomes a family.
745
00:48:05,591 --> 00:48:08,677
[Tomlin] You gotta remember, in that room,
there's different ideologies.
746
00:48:08,677 --> 00:48:11,305
Different religions, different races,
747
00:48:11,305 --> 00:48:14,266
different political parties, if you will,
748
00:48:14,266 --> 00:48:16,560
but you come together
749
00:48:18,937 --> 00:48:20,564
for the job.
750
00:48:20,564 --> 00:48:23,400
You were a small part
of something much bigger.
751
00:48:23,400 --> 00:48:26,320
It's a whole shitload of responsibility
on your shoulders.
752
00:48:26,320 --> 00:48:28,196
But it is kind of fucking cool, right?
753
00:48:28,196 --> 00:48:30,991
To show up and you're the shot caller,
big baller.
754
00:48:30,991 --> 00:48:35,454
I would say if I miss one thing,
it was the people that I worked with,
755
00:48:35,454 --> 00:48:37,289
and the fun that we had,
756
00:48:37,289 --> 00:48:40,292
and the time to get serious,
and the time to play.
757
00:48:40,292 --> 00:48:43,545
Deep down, you always will be a cop,
and you'll always be a detective.
758
00:48:43,545 --> 00:48:47,341
If I had to go back and do it over again,
and I was 25 or 30 again,
759
00:48:47,341 --> 00:48:49,927
and I knew,
"This is what's ahead next 35 years,"
760
00:48:49,927 --> 00:48:53,096
I wouldn't change a goddamn thing,
not a thing.
761
00:48:53,096 --> 00:48:56,350
I wouldn't change anything.
It was the greatest ride of my life.
762
00:49:11,073 --> 00:49:13,075
[hopeful music trails off]
763
00:49:13,659 --> 00:49:15,661
[dramatic outro music pulsing]