1 00:00:06,589 --> 00:00:08,842 [insects chirping] 2 00:00:08,925 --> 00:00:11,177 [tense music playing] 3 00:00:17,350 --> 00:00:20,395 [overlapping voices] My name is Karen Kummerer. 4 00:00:20,478 --> 00:00:21,479 I've been kidnapped. 5 00:00:21,563 --> 00:00:23,481 -I've been abducted. -And I have been kidnapped. 6 00:00:23,565 --> 00:00:24,941 I have been kidnapped. 7 00:00:26,568 --> 00:00:30,238 [woman 1] Kidnapping cases in the FBI usually do not end well. 8 00:00:30,780 --> 00:00:34,409 The statistics will show most victims do not survive 9 00:00:34,492 --> 00:00:36,077 after a certain amount of time. 10 00:00:36,161 --> 00:00:37,746 [engine revving] 11 00:00:37,829 --> 00:00:39,581 [woman 2] She was scared. 12 00:00:39,664 --> 00:00:42,709 It was terror on her face. 13 00:00:43,293 --> 00:00:45,587 "Somebody please help me." 14 00:00:47,297 --> 00:00:50,550 On a case like this, time is not our friend. 15 00:00:51,468 --> 00:00:53,053 [woman 3] I was scared for her. 16 00:00:54,054 --> 00:00:55,722 [voice breaking] I was scared for her. 17 00:00:55,805 --> 00:00:58,183 [music intensifies, fades] 18 00:00:58,266 --> 00:01:00,769 [music glitching] 19 00:01:00,852 --> 00:01:02,228 [music stops] 20 00:01:02,312 --> 00:01:04,314 [waves crashing] 21 00:01:04,397 --> 00:01:06,775 [seagulls squawking] 22 00:01:06,858 --> 00:01:08,860 [mellow music playing] 23 00:01:14,115 --> 00:01:19,329 [woman 4] In 2006, I had just separated from my husband of 17 years. 24 00:01:20,705 --> 00:01:22,707 And I was starting to date again. 25 00:01:24,000 --> 00:01:27,295 I was a finance director for Bert Fish Medical Center. 26 00:01:28,296 --> 00:01:30,298 I owned my own house. 27 00:01:30,840 --> 00:01:33,885 I just bought a brand-new 2006 GT Mustang. 28 00:01:34,928 --> 00:01:36,763 I was feeling very independent. 29 00:01:37,263 --> 00:01:39,057 And I was feeling really good. 30 00:01:39,557 --> 00:01:41,559 [dramatic sting] 31 00:01:43,520 --> 00:01:46,940 [woman 5] Karen is my aunt on my mother's side. 32 00:01:47,023 --> 00:01:49,984 We have been really close ever since I was little. 33 00:01:51,069 --> 00:01:55,115 Karen's personality is very independent, 34 00:01:55,698 --> 00:01:58,118 fun, goofy. 35 00:01:58,201 --> 00:02:00,161 She will speak her mind… 36 00:02:00,245 --> 00:02:01,162 [chuckles] 37 00:02:01,246 --> 00:02:03,498 …when she has something to say. 38 00:02:04,999 --> 00:02:08,962 I was living with her in 2006. 39 00:02:09,587 --> 00:02:11,047 I was 18. 40 00:02:11,131 --> 00:02:14,175 Karen and I were having a great time together. 41 00:02:14,259 --> 00:02:19,013 I think it helped having me around after she had gotten a divorce. 42 00:02:19,848 --> 00:02:22,892 Kind of had a shoulder to lean on in those rough days. 43 00:02:24,018 --> 00:02:27,772 She had been in a marriage for so long, and now she's single. 44 00:02:28,982 --> 00:02:30,733 Single and dating. 45 00:02:31,234 --> 00:02:33,027 [pensive music playing] 46 00:02:33,111 --> 00:02:36,531 [Karen] One night, my sister and I went out to the Ocean Deck. 47 00:02:37,157 --> 00:02:39,492 It was just a good place to meet people. 48 00:02:39,576 --> 00:02:40,952 [indistinct conversation] 49 00:02:41,035 --> 00:02:43,288 Scott approached me and asked me to dance. 50 00:02:44,330 --> 00:02:47,333 He was very beefy, and he had blond hair, blue eyes. 51 00:02:48,751 --> 00:02:51,713 He told me he was starting to be a personal trainer. 52 00:02:51,796 --> 00:02:53,464 And I found that very interesting 53 00:02:53,548 --> 00:02:56,634 because I was also into working out at the time. 54 00:02:56,718 --> 00:02:57,927 [ambient sounds] 55 00:02:58,011 --> 00:03:00,638 When I met Scott, I felt a little bit of a spark. 56 00:03:02,307 --> 00:03:05,059 I called her the next morning to find out, "How you doing?" 57 00:03:05,143 --> 00:03:08,062 She said, "Oh, it went great. I really like him." 58 00:03:09,147 --> 00:03:13,234 I met him the end of January, and Valentine's Day was a real eye-opener. 59 00:03:14,569 --> 00:03:17,447 He gave me flowers. He gave me weights. 60 00:03:17,530 --> 00:03:19,908 He spent a lot of money on me, actually. 61 00:03:21,075 --> 00:03:25,079 We used to go dancing together at some of the clubs in Daytona Beach. 62 00:03:25,955 --> 00:03:28,082 We would go out to dinner together. 63 00:03:29,375 --> 00:03:30,919 I really enjoyed Scott. 64 00:03:32,420 --> 00:03:35,131 [Brenna] Karen was, like, head over heels. 65 00:03:35,215 --> 00:03:38,509 She was like, "Oh, there's this guy. He's handsome." 66 00:03:38,593 --> 00:03:40,011 They looked good together. 67 00:03:40,511 --> 00:03:43,556 They were having fun, and they laughed, 68 00:03:43,640 --> 00:03:50,563 and I think Karen had missed that for so long from her marriage before, 69 00:03:50,647 --> 00:03:52,941 so I think she was really happy 70 00:03:53,024 --> 00:03:55,693 when she started to get that feeling again. 71 00:03:58,571 --> 00:04:00,573 [music fades] 72 00:04:00,657 --> 00:04:02,492 [leaves rustling] 73 00:04:02,575 --> 00:04:07,413 [Karen] I worked with a woman that was into tarot cards and crystals. 74 00:04:08,081 --> 00:04:10,500 She had this tarot card reader in Connecticut 75 00:04:11,084 --> 00:04:13,795 that you could have the tarot card read over the phone. 76 00:04:14,545 --> 00:04:17,298 So she gave me the number. She says, "Karen, you want to try it?" 77 00:04:18,258 --> 00:04:20,218 I was really curious about it. 78 00:04:20,760 --> 00:04:23,680 [menacing music playing] 79 00:04:23,763 --> 00:04:25,014 So that's what I did. 80 00:04:27,558 --> 00:04:29,269 She was reading my cards. 81 00:04:31,562 --> 00:04:34,816 All of a sudden, she said, "You've met this person." 82 00:04:35,858 --> 00:04:39,195 "He's crazy, and you need to get the heck out of there as soon as possible." 83 00:04:40,738 --> 00:04:42,699 I'm like, "Oh, well, she doesn't know." 84 00:04:42,782 --> 00:04:43,783 [dramatic sting] 85 00:04:43,866 --> 00:04:45,493 "Hell, how would she know?" 86 00:04:46,703 --> 00:04:49,664 Little did I know, she was actually very truthful. 87 00:04:49,747 --> 00:04:51,624 [dramatic sting] 88 00:04:51,708 --> 00:04:53,710 [unsettling music playing] 89 00:04:55,211 --> 00:04:59,257 [Brenna] I noticed that Scott started to be around, like, all the time. 90 00:05:00,466 --> 00:05:03,386 Like, he just kind of started, like, leaving stuff there, 91 00:05:03,469 --> 00:05:07,265 and the next thing I know, he was there all the time. 92 00:05:09,017 --> 00:05:11,519 [Karen] He actually lived with his mom and dad. 93 00:05:11,602 --> 00:05:13,354 They were right down the road from me. 94 00:05:14,772 --> 00:05:17,817 I was not really looking for a committed relationship. 95 00:05:18,318 --> 00:05:21,738 Maybe a dating-type relationship, but nothing more than that. 96 00:05:24,282 --> 00:05:26,034 And then one day I came home, 97 00:05:26,117 --> 00:05:30,288 and… all of a sudden Scott had moved into my house. 98 00:05:30,788 --> 00:05:32,582 And he goes, "Yeah, I moved in." 99 00:05:33,082 --> 00:05:35,501 And when I said, "Well, maybe you need to leave," 100 00:05:35,585 --> 00:05:39,047 that's when he said, "Well, I've been getting mail here for almost a month 101 00:05:39,130 --> 00:05:40,131 that you didn't realize." 102 00:05:40,214 --> 00:05:42,300 Because he would check my mailbox for his mail 103 00:05:42,383 --> 00:05:43,968 before I'd get home from work. 104 00:05:45,553 --> 00:05:47,680 I was not really happy about it, 105 00:05:47,764 --> 00:05:50,350 but I didn't really think how important it was 106 00:05:50,433 --> 00:05:53,019 that he had been getting the mail there and whatnot at that time. 107 00:05:54,771 --> 00:05:58,900 [Brenna] Scott started to become more possessive. 108 00:05:59,400 --> 00:06:02,945 Like, if I wanted to go to the store with Karen or go shopping together, 109 00:06:03,029 --> 00:06:07,408 it was like, "No, you guys don't need to be doing that." 110 00:06:07,492 --> 00:06:10,495 He scrutinized everything she did. 111 00:06:11,537 --> 00:06:15,541 Karen came out wearing something that, like, he didn't like. 112 00:06:15,625 --> 00:06:18,044 He would tell her, like, "You need to go change." 113 00:06:18,127 --> 00:06:20,129 "People are gonna think you're trash." 114 00:06:21,297 --> 00:06:24,842 Karen definitely changed after Scott moved in. 115 00:06:29,722 --> 00:06:32,809 [Lisa] My boyfriend and I, we went over for dinner one night. 116 00:06:33,309 --> 00:06:38,439 And I was putting something in the fridge, and that's when I saw the syringes. 117 00:06:39,482 --> 00:06:44,112 And that's when my ex looked over at me, and he goes, "Why are there steroids?" 118 00:06:44,779 --> 00:06:46,739 "Do you know that's illegal?" 119 00:06:46,823 --> 00:06:48,950 There was no prescription for those. 120 00:06:49,700 --> 00:06:52,286 And that's when I went in, and I pulled Karen aside, 121 00:06:52,370 --> 00:06:55,540 and I said, "What's that? Why do you have those in the fridge?" 122 00:06:56,082 --> 00:07:00,294 And that's when she told me that Scott used them for working out. 123 00:07:01,337 --> 00:07:04,090 And I'm like, "Karen, that's not good." 124 00:07:04,173 --> 00:07:08,803 I said, "Working out and doing that, roid rage is a really bad thing." 125 00:07:09,971 --> 00:07:13,641 So, um, that's kind of threw red flags up. 126 00:07:16,936 --> 00:07:18,771 [Karen] March of 2006, 127 00:07:18,855 --> 00:07:21,023 Scott and I had been dating a couple months. 128 00:07:21,524 --> 00:07:25,111 Scott would say, "Well, why doesn't Brenna go out and find a place of her own?" 129 00:07:25,194 --> 00:07:28,322 "She's old enough to go and live with her friends or whatever." 130 00:07:30,032 --> 00:07:33,286 [Brenna] I definitely got the feeling that Scott did not like me. 131 00:07:34,537 --> 00:07:41,043 I think I was an obstacle in his way of the control that he had with Karen. 132 00:07:42,044 --> 00:07:45,006 Karen and I were at such a good place before she met Scott. 133 00:07:45,089 --> 00:07:46,716 And then all of a sudden, 134 00:07:46,799 --> 00:07:49,552 he's living there, and you're asking me to move out. 135 00:07:50,052 --> 00:07:53,181 It wasn't her talking. 136 00:07:53,264 --> 00:07:55,266 [music intensifies, fades] 137 00:07:56,184 --> 00:07:58,352 [Karen] When Scott suggested Brenna move out, 138 00:07:58,436 --> 00:08:00,938 that's when the real domestic violence started. 139 00:08:01,022 --> 00:08:02,023 [barks weakly] 140 00:08:02,106 --> 00:08:04,150 [whimpering] 141 00:08:04,233 --> 00:08:07,278 He would hold me down and scream at me all night. 142 00:08:07,361 --> 00:08:09,030 [inaudible] 143 00:08:09,113 --> 00:08:12,617 He was a very big person. He weighed about 220 pounds. 144 00:08:12,700 --> 00:08:14,285 [menacing music playing] 145 00:08:14,368 --> 00:08:15,703 I would have my phone, 146 00:08:15,786 --> 00:08:18,247 and he would rip it out of my hand and break it, 147 00:08:18,331 --> 00:08:19,832 so I couldn't call the police. 148 00:08:22,084 --> 00:08:24,420 [voice breaking] I could not get away from him. 149 00:08:26,172 --> 00:08:28,174 [music fades] 150 00:08:28,257 --> 00:08:29,258 [rustling] 151 00:08:29,342 --> 00:08:31,427 [suspenseful music playing] 152 00:08:31,511 --> 00:08:33,513 [waves crashing] 153 00:08:35,556 --> 00:08:38,935 [Brenna] If I ever spoke to Karen after I moved out, 154 00:08:39,018 --> 00:08:41,395 it was usually when she was at work, 155 00:08:42,104 --> 00:08:44,899 because that's the only time I really could talk to her. 156 00:08:45,483 --> 00:08:48,819 I'm like, "What's going on?" Like, "Tell me what's going on." 157 00:08:48,903 --> 00:08:49,987 "No, I can't talk about it." 158 00:08:50,071 --> 00:08:52,031 "I can't talk about it. I can't talk about it." 159 00:08:54,033 --> 00:08:58,079 Had I known how bad it was going to be, I would have never left. 160 00:09:00,456 --> 00:09:04,919 [Lisa] Karen really withdrew, and I didn't see her that much. 161 00:09:05,836 --> 00:09:09,257 Didn't want to go out anymore. Was always doing something with Scott. 162 00:09:10,633 --> 00:09:12,552 Scott was able to control Karen 163 00:09:12,635 --> 00:09:15,012 because of her lack of self-confidence at the time. 164 00:09:15,846 --> 00:09:19,767 Coming out of that divorce was demoralizing. 165 00:09:20,601 --> 00:09:25,982 I myself had been a victim of domestic abuse in the past, 166 00:09:26,065 --> 00:09:28,025 so I knew the signs. 167 00:09:29,402 --> 00:09:34,448 Everybody handles these situations differently, but the fear paralyzed her. 168 00:09:34,949 --> 00:09:36,951 [music intensifies] 169 00:09:37,535 --> 00:09:39,996 [Karen] Scott told me because he moved in with me, 170 00:09:40,079 --> 00:09:43,583 I could evict him, but it had to go through the courts. 171 00:09:44,333 --> 00:09:48,087 I thought, you know, how can this be happening to me, to be honest with you. 172 00:09:51,132 --> 00:09:54,510 I was embarrassed that I managed to get myself in this kind of relationship 173 00:09:54,594 --> 00:09:58,973 because, you know, here I was independent, financially successful. 174 00:09:59,056 --> 00:10:02,226 Then I realized that I was in over my head at that point. 175 00:10:03,561 --> 00:10:07,690 I started to fear for my safety, but I also had had enough. 176 00:10:08,190 --> 00:10:10,901 I was gonna try to do anything to get him out of there, 177 00:10:11,485 --> 00:10:13,362 even if I had to get an eviction notice. 178 00:10:13,446 --> 00:10:15,448 [dramatic sting] 179 00:10:18,659 --> 00:10:20,161 [indistinct shouting] 180 00:10:20,244 --> 00:10:25,291 The tipping point for me was when he held me down all night screaming at me. 181 00:10:25,791 --> 00:10:28,628 Um, he was just screaming and screaming and screaming. 182 00:10:29,754 --> 00:10:34,425 So that morning, after he let me up, I got dressed and I went to work. 183 00:10:36,093 --> 00:10:39,388 In the meantime, he had started calling me on my cell phone. 184 00:10:39,472 --> 00:10:41,515 [cell phone ringing] 185 00:10:41,599 --> 00:10:44,977 And as I walked into the office that day, I had him on speakerphone. 186 00:10:46,062 --> 00:10:48,814 I said to one of my co-workers, "You need to hear this." 187 00:10:49,649 --> 00:10:52,777 He was yelling, "If you don't come back, I'm gonna kill you." 188 00:10:53,736 --> 00:10:58,324 At that point, I had witnesses. I said, "You need to leave." 189 00:10:59,075 --> 00:11:02,828 And a friend of mine from work took me back home. 190 00:11:05,081 --> 00:11:06,791 Got my dog. I got some stuff. 191 00:11:07,792 --> 00:11:09,460 He pulled up behind the car. 192 00:11:10,461 --> 00:11:11,837 My friend was a big woman. 193 00:11:11,921 --> 00:11:15,174 She got out, and she said to him, she goes, "You need to leave." 194 00:11:15,257 --> 00:11:16,425 [dog whimpers] 195 00:11:16,509 --> 00:11:18,719 I get in the car with Rocky and some clothes. 196 00:11:20,513 --> 00:11:24,058 I stayed at her apartment for the weekend until he moved out. 197 00:11:25,351 --> 00:11:28,354 [music intensifies, fades] 198 00:11:31,148 --> 00:11:35,403 After Scott left, he still thought he had possession of me. 199 00:11:36,904 --> 00:11:40,282 He would threaten to kill my dog if I didn't spend time with him. 200 00:11:40,908 --> 00:11:44,286 And he parked his car right behind my car, so I couldn't get out. 201 00:11:45,287 --> 00:11:46,497 [Rocky barking] 202 00:11:46,580 --> 00:11:48,791 [menacing music playing] 203 00:11:48,874 --> 00:11:50,710 It progressively got worse. 204 00:11:51,961 --> 00:11:53,337 He started stalking. 205 00:11:54,338 --> 00:11:56,716 I didn't feel safe anymore by myself. 206 00:11:57,925 --> 00:12:00,010 So in the beginning of October, 207 00:12:00,094 --> 00:12:04,098 I asked Brenna to move in with me again for my safety. 208 00:12:06,058 --> 00:12:09,645 I turned 19 in October of 2006, 209 00:12:10,521 --> 00:12:13,524 and I started living with Karen again. 210 00:12:15,109 --> 00:12:18,988 I didn't like when Brenna really moved back in with Karen. 211 00:12:20,030 --> 00:12:24,785 Brenna, being a kid, thought she could protect Karen, 212 00:12:25,745 --> 00:12:27,371 which, like, no. 213 00:12:28,164 --> 00:12:28,998 You're a kid. 214 00:12:29,081 --> 00:12:31,834 [menacing music continues] 215 00:12:31,917 --> 00:12:34,712 [Karen] One day, Brenna was at the house, 216 00:12:34,795 --> 00:12:36,172 and my nieces were over, 217 00:12:36,255 --> 00:12:38,340 and they were sitting in the living room. 218 00:12:38,424 --> 00:12:41,093 Scott just came in, opened the door like he owned the place. 219 00:12:41,177 --> 00:12:42,052 [door opens] 220 00:12:43,053 --> 00:12:44,972 Said "shh" to the nieces. 221 00:12:45,723 --> 00:12:47,016 He walked by them. 222 00:12:47,558 --> 00:12:49,018 He came into my bedroom. 223 00:12:49,101 --> 00:12:52,104 -[Rocky whimpering] -I screamed, "Brenna, he's here." 224 00:12:52,188 --> 00:12:54,648 And I heard Karen telling him, "You need to leave." 225 00:12:54,732 --> 00:12:57,359 "You need to get out of my house. I don't want you here." 226 00:12:57,443 --> 00:12:59,445 "I told you I'm done with this." 227 00:12:59,528 --> 00:13:01,530 And he's not listening to Karen. 228 00:13:03,115 --> 00:13:06,243 Brenna comes running out of the room. I said, "Call the police." 229 00:13:06,327 --> 00:13:07,953 She was dialing on her phone 230 00:13:08,454 --> 00:13:10,956 when he runs out, he gets in his car and takes off. 231 00:13:11,040 --> 00:13:12,041 [door slams shut] 232 00:13:16,504 --> 00:13:18,798 [Brenna] I wanted Karen to call the police, 233 00:13:18,881 --> 00:13:22,802 but I also understood that Karen was very scared. 234 00:13:24,762 --> 00:13:31,143 Like, I remember her telling me, like, "You don't understand. Like, he's crazy." 235 00:13:31,227 --> 00:13:34,271 Like, "He will kill me if I do the wrong thing." 236 00:13:34,355 --> 00:13:36,816 [line ringing] 237 00:13:36,899 --> 00:13:37,817 [voicemail beeps] 238 00:13:37,900 --> 00:13:40,528 [Karen] He left 27 voicemails on my phone that day. 239 00:13:41,403 --> 00:13:44,698 "Where are you? How come you're not answering your phone?" 240 00:13:44,782 --> 00:13:46,784 It was all the time like this. 241 00:13:46,867 --> 00:13:48,536 [suspenseful music playing] 242 00:13:48,619 --> 00:13:52,748 [Karen] Monday, November 13th, I get in my car, 243 00:13:53,833 --> 00:13:55,292 I was going to work. 244 00:13:57,253 --> 00:13:59,088 I got to the stop sign, 245 00:13:59,171 --> 00:14:01,215 and I looked one way. 246 00:14:02,174 --> 00:14:05,761 And then all of a sudden, my front passenger door was yanked open. 247 00:14:07,221 --> 00:14:11,016 [Brenna] He was in a bush waiting for her 248 00:14:11,100 --> 00:14:13,602 because she takes the same way to work every day. 249 00:14:14,353 --> 00:14:16,021 Scott jumped out of the bushes. 250 00:14:16,105 --> 00:14:18,899 -[car opens] -Unlocked the car from the key fob. 251 00:14:19,692 --> 00:14:22,361 Jumped in the car, had a knife, 252 00:14:22,444 --> 00:14:23,612 told her, "Drive." 253 00:14:23,696 --> 00:14:25,364 [car engine roaring] 254 00:14:25,447 --> 00:14:27,575 [Karen] He was screaming like a crazy man. 255 00:14:27,658 --> 00:14:29,994 He said, "I'm gonna cut you right here." 256 00:14:30,077 --> 00:14:31,120 "You can't hide." 257 00:14:31,203 --> 00:14:35,249 "I've got your social security number, and I need to see you." 258 00:14:37,084 --> 00:14:41,380 It was the first time that Scott had ever held a knife or a weapon to me. 259 00:14:41,463 --> 00:14:43,424 [car engine roaring] 260 00:14:43,507 --> 00:14:45,634 And my actions before, 261 00:14:45,718 --> 00:14:50,848 when Scott got into an explosive attitude or a violent situation, 262 00:14:50,931 --> 00:14:55,561 was if I stayed calm and submissive, it would make the situation better. 263 00:14:57,271 --> 00:14:59,356 I finally calmed him down enough 264 00:14:59,440 --> 00:15:02,276 by saying, "Okay, well, I will still see you." 265 00:15:02,860 --> 00:15:04,778 "I promise I'll see you tonight." 266 00:15:05,279 --> 00:15:09,325 He allowed me to drop him off where his Jeep was parked down my street. 267 00:15:10,326 --> 00:15:11,702 I told a friend of mine. 268 00:15:11,785 --> 00:15:15,247 Then she said, "I'll meet you at the Daytona Beach Police Department." 269 00:15:15,748 --> 00:15:19,168 We filed for an emergency restraining order. 270 00:15:19,919 --> 00:15:22,922 They said, "Once it's reviewed, we will serve it tonight." 271 00:15:23,005 --> 00:15:26,675 [music continues] 272 00:15:26,759 --> 00:15:29,345 In the meantime, Lisa brought me home. 273 00:15:30,596 --> 00:15:31,972 I left my car at work. 274 00:15:32,932 --> 00:15:35,392 I didn't want Scott to know I was even at my house 275 00:15:35,476 --> 00:15:38,854 in case he was served with a temporary restraining order that night. 276 00:15:39,688 --> 00:15:41,857 Brenna and I spent the night in the dark. 277 00:15:41,941 --> 00:15:44,777 We did not want anybody to know we were there. 278 00:15:44,860 --> 00:15:47,446 We were afraid he was gonna come in and kill both of us. 279 00:15:47,529 --> 00:15:49,949 [music intensifies] 280 00:15:50,032 --> 00:15:52,993 [Brenna] I remember her just being, like, terrified. 281 00:15:53,077 --> 00:15:54,078 [pensive music playing] 282 00:15:54,662 --> 00:15:57,206 Like, "How did he get my key fob?" 283 00:15:58,415 --> 00:16:01,418 Because that's the only way he could have gotten in the car. 284 00:16:03,712 --> 00:16:09,802 She's like, "This man is capable of doing so many more things than what we thought." 285 00:16:11,762 --> 00:16:14,473 [Karen] I had changed my phone number immediately. 286 00:16:14,556 --> 00:16:18,519 And then the next day, I also had my car rekeyed. 287 00:16:19,311 --> 00:16:21,563 I did not have them change the trunk. 288 00:16:22,439 --> 00:16:25,776 Between myself and the dealership, we didn't think that was necessary. 289 00:16:25,859 --> 00:16:26,860 [alarm beeping] 290 00:16:28,487 --> 00:16:31,115 [unsettling music playing] 291 00:16:31,198 --> 00:16:32,449 Monday morning, 292 00:16:32,533 --> 00:16:33,909 [door creaks] 293 00:16:33,993 --> 00:16:34,910 I went to work. 294 00:16:34,994 --> 00:16:36,870 [door creaks shut] 295 00:16:36,954 --> 00:16:40,749 [unsettling music playing] 296 00:16:42,167 --> 00:16:48,340 I get probably 150 feet down my road, and the trunk ajar light comes on. 297 00:16:48,424 --> 00:16:49,842 [trunk ajar alarm beeping] 298 00:16:49,925 --> 00:16:52,177 I probably left it open from shopping. 299 00:16:52,886 --> 00:16:54,054 Didn't shut it tight. 300 00:16:56,098 --> 00:16:57,391 Get out of the car. 301 00:16:57,474 --> 00:16:59,476 [beeping continues] 302 00:17:00,102 --> 00:17:01,353 I went to shut it. 303 00:17:02,646 --> 00:17:03,480 And… 304 00:17:03,564 --> 00:17:05,566 [dramatic sting] 305 00:17:06,150 --> 00:17:09,236 Scott jumps out of the trunk dressed in black. 306 00:17:10,237 --> 00:17:11,822 [dramatic sting] 307 00:17:11,905 --> 00:17:14,867 Grabs me, puts the knife to my throat. I started screaming. 308 00:17:14,950 --> 00:17:17,161 He goes, "If you do that again, I'm gonna cut you here." 309 00:17:18,203 --> 00:17:20,330 Throws me into the passenger seat. 310 00:17:22,666 --> 00:17:23,751 [car door slams shut] 311 00:17:23,834 --> 00:17:26,128 -Takes off in the car. -[tires screeching] 312 00:17:29,006 --> 00:17:31,341 Brings me to where his Jeep was parked. 313 00:17:33,010 --> 00:17:36,555 He goes, "If you're gonna behave yourself, you can sit up front." 314 00:17:36,638 --> 00:17:39,892 We get into his Jeep, and he takes off. 315 00:17:41,060 --> 00:17:43,062 [dramatic music playing] 316 00:17:44,646 --> 00:17:46,023 His comment to me was, 317 00:17:46,106 --> 00:17:49,568 "You're making me do this 'cause you got a restraining order. It's your fault." 318 00:17:50,986 --> 00:17:56,325 He had gloves in the center console, and I said, "What are those for?" 319 00:17:56,909 --> 00:17:59,495 He said, "So I don't get blood on my hands." 320 00:17:59,578 --> 00:18:01,163 [music continues] 321 00:18:03,624 --> 00:18:06,126 I said to him, "What are you doing with me?" 322 00:18:08,128 --> 00:18:10,756 And he goes, "I'm just driving." 323 00:18:12,049 --> 00:18:14,968 And then he says, "You better call in sick to work." 324 00:18:15,803 --> 00:18:17,930 And that's when I called in sick to work. 325 00:18:19,598 --> 00:18:20,599 [line ringing] 326 00:18:20,682 --> 00:18:22,810 I think I was in a state of shock. 327 00:18:22,893 --> 00:18:24,895 [car engine roaring] 328 00:18:27,523 --> 00:18:30,234 [Brenna] I remember I needed to call her for something, 329 00:18:30,317 --> 00:18:31,318 [line ringing] 330 00:18:31,401 --> 00:18:32,736 and she didn't answer. 331 00:18:34,196 --> 00:18:35,864 -So I call again. -[line ringing] 332 00:18:35,948 --> 00:18:37,908 No answer. I'm like, "Okay." 333 00:18:37,991 --> 00:18:40,202 Now I'm starting to get a little concerned. 334 00:18:40,702 --> 00:18:44,206 Because at this point, Karen and I had an understanding, 335 00:18:44,289 --> 00:18:46,083 if one of us calls each other, 336 00:18:46,166 --> 00:18:49,211 you know, try to get back to each other as soon as possible. 337 00:18:51,046 --> 00:18:52,923 [Karen] When Brenna tried calling me, 338 00:18:53,006 --> 00:18:55,425 I said to him, "Well, I'm gonna have to answer it." 339 00:18:56,426 --> 00:18:59,388 And he said, "You need to tell this story that I'm gonna commit suicide, 340 00:18:59,471 --> 00:19:01,181 and you're trying to get me to stop." 341 00:19:01,265 --> 00:19:02,808 [line ringing] 342 00:19:02,891 --> 00:19:05,602 So when I talked to Brenna, I said, "I'm with Scott, 343 00:19:05,686 --> 00:19:07,729 and he's threatening to commit suicide." 344 00:19:09,022 --> 00:19:12,192 [Brenna] She's telling me on the phone, "Don't call the police." 345 00:19:12,276 --> 00:19:15,195 And in my mind, I'm like, he's, like, sitting right next to her. 346 00:19:15,279 --> 00:19:17,823 I know he is, because I can hear in her voice. 347 00:19:18,991 --> 00:19:21,160 And I said to her, 348 00:19:21,243 --> 00:19:24,204 I said, "If you want me to call the police, 349 00:19:24,288 --> 00:19:26,748 say 'don't call the police' again." 350 00:19:28,667 --> 00:19:31,837 And then she said, "Brenna, don't call the police." 351 00:19:33,255 --> 00:19:35,007 That's when I called the police. 352 00:19:36,008 --> 00:19:40,345 And I told them, "I believe my Aunt Karen's been abducted." 353 00:19:40,929 --> 00:19:44,516 [music intensifies, fades] 354 00:19:44,600 --> 00:19:48,312 [man] There's going to be nothing else of a higher priority 355 00:19:48,395 --> 00:19:50,731 than working a kidnapping. 356 00:19:50,814 --> 00:19:53,442 So it's pretty much gonna be all hands on deck. 357 00:19:53,525 --> 00:19:58,530 Let's do our best to locate the victim before this turns into a homicide. 358 00:19:59,948 --> 00:20:02,784 I was a detective at the Daytona Beach Police Department 359 00:20:02,868 --> 00:20:04,953 in the Criminal Investigations Division. 360 00:20:06,163 --> 00:20:08,749 [indistinct radio chatter] 361 00:20:08,832 --> 00:20:11,919 We put out a BOLO, you know, to be on the lookout. 362 00:20:13,086 --> 00:20:17,758 We gave the description of Scott, of Karen, description of his vehicle. 363 00:20:18,258 --> 00:20:20,761 We let them know there is a warrant for his arrest, 364 00:20:20,844 --> 00:20:23,639 so if you come into contact with him, hold on to him, 365 00:20:23,722 --> 00:20:25,515 and that Karen Kummerer is a victim. 366 00:20:27,351 --> 00:20:30,395 Now what we're trying to do is find a trail. 367 00:20:30,938 --> 00:20:33,106 What direction? Where are they going? 368 00:20:34,191 --> 00:20:38,403 We flagged Karen and Scott's credit cards and bank cards, 369 00:20:38,904 --> 00:20:42,115 which means let us know if there's any activity on those cards, 370 00:20:42,199 --> 00:20:45,369 and they'll let you know where it happened. 371 00:20:47,120 --> 00:20:49,873 Now we're standing. We're waiting for activity. 372 00:20:50,374 --> 00:20:52,376 [music fades] 373 00:20:53,335 --> 00:20:57,339 One thing you have to keep in mind as we're sitting here today, 374 00:20:57,422 --> 00:21:02,803 in 2006, the technology that we had is not what the technology is today. 375 00:21:02,886 --> 00:21:04,012 [sirens wailing] 376 00:21:04,096 --> 00:21:07,140 In today's world, you know every move. 377 00:21:07,224 --> 00:21:09,184 There's videos. There's surveillance. 378 00:21:09,268 --> 00:21:13,146 There's red light cameras. There's cameras in every crosswalk. 379 00:21:14,064 --> 00:21:16,316 That wasn't the situation in 2006. 380 00:21:19,194 --> 00:21:21,029 [Brenna] I was scared, for sure. 381 00:21:21,613 --> 00:21:26,910 I don't know where she is at this point, and then I'm wondering if Karen's alive. 382 00:21:26,994 --> 00:21:28,495 [dramatic sting] 383 00:21:29,997 --> 00:21:32,791 [Karen] When Scott took me, I don't think he had a plan. 384 00:21:33,667 --> 00:21:37,713 I just think he thought he could take me anywhere and no one would do anything. 385 00:21:37,796 --> 00:21:39,548 [tense music playing] 386 00:21:39,631 --> 00:21:43,260 The first night we stayed at the Sunrise Inn in St. Augustine. 387 00:21:45,595 --> 00:21:47,639 I had to wait out in the car. 388 00:21:48,140 --> 00:21:49,975 I no longer had my cell phone. 389 00:21:50,058 --> 00:21:51,810 He took the keys with him. 390 00:21:51,893 --> 00:21:55,480 He kept an eye on the car the whole time while he was checking in. 391 00:21:55,564 --> 00:21:56,982 [coin clinking] 392 00:21:57,065 --> 00:21:58,150 [keypad beeping] 393 00:21:58,233 --> 00:22:02,988 He called his mother and he told her we were on vacation together. 394 00:22:03,071 --> 00:22:05,115 [music continues] 395 00:22:05,198 --> 00:22:06,408 When we got in the room, 396 00:22:08,535 --> 00:22:10,078 he gave me sleeping pills. 397 00:22:11,913 --> 00:22:14,833 Um… I was forced to have sex with him. 398 00:22:17,252 --> 00:22:21,965 I knew that complacency and submission was the way I was going to try to survive. 399 00:22:23,508 --> 00:22:27,721 So if I thought about yelling or screaming or whatever, he had a knife. 400 00:22:27,804 --> 00:22:30,140 If someone didn't act quick enough, I was dead. 401 00:22:30,891 --> 00:22:33,810 I was trying to survive the way I thought I could. 402 00:22:35,604 --> 00:22:37,606 [dramatic sting] 403 00:22:41,276 --> 00:22:43,612 The next day, Scott didn't have any money, 404 00:22:43,695 --> 00:22:46,323 so he wanted to stop at a bank 405 00:22:46,406 --> 00:22:49,201 so I could take some money out of my checking account. 406 00:22:50,494 --> 00:22:52,746 We stopped at a Wachovia Bank. 407 00:22:52,829 --> 00:22:55,999 He had me withdraw by check $500. 408 00:22:56,958 --> 00:22:59,961 He was right there beside me with a knife in his pocket. 409 00:23:00,462 --> 00:23:02,005 I didn't think I had a choice. 410 00:23:02,506 --> 00:23:05,801 Even if I said, "Hey, he's kidnapped me," what do you think's gonna happen to me? 411 00:23:05,884 --> 00:23:07,719 He's gonna slit my throat right then and there. 412 00:23:07,803 --> 00:23:09,429 Banks have security people, 413 00:23:09,513 --> 00:23:10,347 I realize that, 414 00:23:10,430 --> 00:23:12,557 but by the time someone's going to react, 415 00:23:12,641 --> 00:23:13,934 I'm going to be dead. 416 00:23:14,017 --> 00:23:16,019 [music intensifies, fades] 417 00:23:16,812 --> 00:23:21,191 We receive a notification that Karen had withdrew $500 418 00:23:21,274 --> 00:23:22,859 from a bank in St. Augustine. 419 00:23:23,819 --> 00:23:28,824 Once we got the hit on the bank account, now we know that they're northbound. 420 00:23:29,574 --> 00:23:31,618 Law enforcement responded to the bank, 421 00:23:31,701 --> 00:23:35,872 where they learned that it was Scott and Karen together. 422 00:23:37,040 --> 00:23:40,585 [Janet] In reviewing the tape, it looked like she was terrified. 423 00:23:41,169 --> 00:23:42,754 Scott has a violent history, 424 00:23:42,838 --> 00:23:46,508 and we had also come across the fact that he had been using drugs. 425 00:23:46,591 --> 00:23:48,301 So now he has money in his pocket. 426 00:23:48,385 --> 00:23:51,012 Now we're really concerned. Okay, which way did he go? 427 00:23:52,597 --> 00:23:55,642 So we're going through his history, looking through his paperwork, 428 00:23:55,725 --> 00:23:58,520 see who he knows, who can we contact, 429 00:23:58,603 --> 00:24:00,605 who could tell us something about him. 430 00:24:03,900 --> 00:24:07,779 [woman] My brother was a Daytona Beach police officer. 431 00:24:09,239 --> 00:24:13,410 And he called me up one day, out of the blue, and said, 432 00:24:13,493 --> 00:24:15,537 "You're not gonna believe this." 433 00:24:16,246 --> 00:24:18,665 "Scott Freeman kidnapped a woman." 434 00:24:19,166 --> 00:24:20,375 [dramatic sting] 435 00:24:25,380 --> 00:24:27,591 Early 1990s, 436 00:24:27,674 --> 00:24:31,803 my girlfriend had worked at a bowling alley that had a bar 437 00:24:31,887 --> 00:24:33,513 that everyone would go to, 438 00:24:33,597 --> 00:24:36,183 and that's where I met Scott Freeman. 439 00:24:39,811 --> 00:24:43,648 My first impression was he was handsome. 440 00:24:43,732 --> 00:24:45,984 He said he was a firefighter. 441 00:24:47,402 --> 00:24:49,154 I thought he had good potential. 442 00:24:50,447 --> 00:24:55,076 I feel like Scott love-bombed me. 443 00:24:56,244 --> 00:25:00,665 Now, mind you, I was a young girl of 22. 444 00:25:01,208 --> 00:25:03,877 He was six years older. 445 00:25:03,960 --> 00:25:06,630 Scott came on really strong, 446 00:25:07,339 --> 00:25:10,133 and was crazy about me. 447 00:25:10,217 --> 00:25:12,302 [enigmatic music playing] 448 00:25:12,385 --> 00:25:17,140 Scott was very charming, and we did begin seeing each other. 449 00:25:19,100 --> 00:25:24,648 When I first met Scott, he was a Ocala firefighter. 450 00:25:25,899 --> 00:25:27,609 But that did not last long. 451 00:25:28,610 --> 00:25:31,571 Soon after we started dating, 452 00:25:31,655 --> 00:25:36,076 Scott told me he got fired from the fire department. 453 00:25:36,618 --> 00:25:40,330 Scott had still lived at home with his mother and father. 454 00:25:41,206 --> 00:25:43,667 And it became apparent to me 455 00:25:43,750 --> 00:25:48,713 that Scott's mother paid for everything 456 00:25:49,673 --> 00:25:54,219 because Scott did not have a job for a long time. 457 00:25:55,637 --> 00:26:00,809 Scott definitely had control over me emotionally, 458 00:26:00,892 --> 00:26:04,813 and he liked me to wear certain things, 459 00:26:04,896 --> 00:26:07,440 did not like me to wear certain things. 460 00:26:07,524 --> 00:26:10,610 He was very controlling and manipulative. 461 00:26:10,694 --> 00:26:12,112 [waves crashing] 462 00:26:12,195 --> 00:26:13,446 [seagulls calling] 463 00:26:13,530 --> 00:26:16,032 My father had passed away, 464 00:26:16,116 --> 00:26:19,202 and I had gone to a medium, 465 00:26:19,703 --> 00:26:23,206 hoping I would hear something from my dad. 466 00:26:24,499 --> 00:26:26,501 The woman had tarot cards, 467 00:26:27,210 --> 00:26:31,590 and the first card she turned over was a devil card. 468 00:26:32,465 --> 00:26:33,883 And she told me, 469 00:26:33,967 --> 00:26:37,929 "I see a very disturbed person around you." 470 00:26:39,097 --> 00:26:42,058 This person is on drugs, 471 00:26:42,142 --> 00:26:44,477 and she sees jail. 472 00:26:44,561 --> 00:26:46,563 [ominous music playing] 473 00:26:47,856 --> 00:26:50,275 Scott would have these bouts 474 00:26:50,358 --> 00:26:55,572 where he would disappear for days on end with no explanation. 475 00:26:56,781 --> 00:27:01,119 I definitely know that Scott was addicted to crack cocaine, 476 00:27:01,953 --> 00:27:07,542 and that would contribute to his binges and disappearances. 477 00:27:09,336 --> 00:27:10,295 [pensive music playing] 478 00:27:10,378 --> 00:27:12,964 Two years into the relationship, 479 00:27:13,465 --> 00:27:17,218 a friend of his and his girlfriend had come down 480 00:27:17,302 --> 00:27:20,055 from North Carolina to visit. 481 00:27:20,138 --> 00:27:22,140 [indistinct chatter] 482 00:27:22,724 --> 00:27:26,936 And the four of us went out for the night to the clubs, 483 00:27:27,020 --> 00:27:30,398 and drinking and having a good time. 484 00:27:32,150 --> 00:27:36,488 And then upon coming back to the house that evening, 485 00:27:36,571 --> 00:27:39,199 we were talking about ordering pizza. 486 00:27:39,783 --> 00:27:42,702 And Scott just freaked out, 487 00:27:42,786 --> 00:27:46,873 and pinned me against the wall with his hands around my neck. 488 00:27:47,999 --> 00:27:50,126 I was so scared. 489 00:27:50,210 --> 00:27:53,963 I was like, "What the heck got into him?" 490 00:27:54,047 --> 00:27:55,340 [sirens wailing] 491 00:27:55,423 --> 00:27:56,841 The police came. 492 00:27:57,467 --> 00:27:59,260 And at that point, 493 00:27:59,344 --> 00:28:03,515 I said I did not want to press charges. 494 00:28:04,933 --> 00:28:07,769 Being the young girl I was, 495 00:28:07,852 --> 00:28:14,442 I said, "Well, he didn't mean it, and he drank too much," and made excuses. 496 00:28:15,694 --> 00:28:22,033 My head was saying, "No, get out. This is not good." 497 00:28:22,117 --> 00:28:27,038 But my 20-something-year-old heart was saying, "But I love him." 498 00:28:28,748 --> 00:28:30,750 [dramatic sting] 499 00:28:34,087 --> 00:28:35,797 I had come home from work, 500 00:28:36,423 --> 00:28:39,384 and Scott was there, intoxicated, 501 00:28:40,176 --> 00:28:42,929 and wanted me to go out with him to a bar. 502 00:28:44,305 --> 00:28:46,599 And I said, "No, you're drunk." 503 00:28:47,809 --> 00:28:51,563 His behavior was erratic. 504 00:28:51,646 --> 00:28:54,357 He was filled with rage. 505 00:28:54,441 --> 00:28:58,236 I got suspicious of what was going on and what he was doing. 506 00:28:58,319 --> 00:28:59,487 [door creaks] 507 00:28:59,571 --> 00:29:05,410 So I went in the closet, and I started looking through duffel bags and whatnot, 508 00:29:06,286 --> 00:29:10,373 and I had picked up a box that you would keep checks in. 509 00:29:10,957 --> 00:29:12,584 When I picked it up, it rattled. 510 00:29:12,667 --> 00:29:13,960 [rattling] 511 00:29:14,043 --> 00:29:17,630 So I opened it, and they were syringes. 512 00:29:19,007 --> 00:29:20,508 And I thought, "Oh boy." 513 00:29:21,426 --> 00:29:23,428 He was shooting up steroids, 514 00:29:23,511 --> 00:29:28,183 and that was leading to his crazy, erratic behavior. 515 00:29:29,350 --> 00:29:33,229 I approached him about what I found in the closet, 516 00:29:33,897 --> 00:29:37,442 and that's when he got really pissed. 517 00:29:37,525 --> 00:29:39,277 [perilous music playing] 518 00:29:39,360 --> 00:29:44,991 Scott smacked me in the face and attempted to take all my stuff, 519 00:29:45,658 --> 00:29:49,788 and he put his hands around my neck and had me up against the wall 520 00:29:50,371 --> 00:29:52,123 and tried to choke me. 521 00:29:53,124 --> 00:29:54,542 I was so scared. 522 00:29:54,626 --> 00:29:56,044 [music continues] 523 00:29:56,127 --> 00:29:57,128 [sirens wailing] 524 00:29:57,212 --> 00:30:01,633 The police came, and they had asked me if everything was okay, 525 00:30:01,716 --> 00:30:05,136 and then with that, Scott had come down the hall just, 526 00:30:06,054 --> 00:30:08,097 "What the F are you doing here?" 527 00:30:08,181 --> 00:30:11,434 And "Get the F out of here. Everything's fine." 528 00:30:12,227 --> 00:30:14,771 Just really, really being belligerent. 529 00:30:16,022 --> 00:30:18,149 And he resisted arrest, 530 00:30:18,775 --> 00:30:23,446 and it took pepper spray to finally get him handcuffed. 531 00:30:23,530 --> 00:30:24,823 [handcuffs clinking] 532 00:30:26,741 --> 00:30:28,785 That was my breaking point, 533 00:30:28,868 --> 00:30:33,248 and I knew I couldn't stay in a situation like that. 534 00:30:35,083 --> 00:30:37,085 [dramatic music playing] 535 00:30:40,338 --> 00:30:43,132 As soon as my brother got wind of Scott, 536 00:30:43,216 --> 00:30:47,929 he called me, and he was freaking out, like, "You're not going to believe this." 537 00:30:48,012 --> 00:30:50,598 "Scott kidnapped a woman." 538 00:30:50,682 --> 00:30:55,019 I seriously thought, "Holy shit, that could have been me." 539 00:30:55,812 --> 00:30:58,481 And he said, "He's on the run. They're heading north." 540 00:30:58,565 --> 00:31:01,317 "Do you have any ideas where he might be heading?" 541 00:31:01,401 --> 00:31:03,778 And I said, "Yeah." 542 00:31:04,779 --> 00:31:10,285 My brother asked if I would meet with Detective Hawkins, 543 00:31:11,286 --> 00:31:12,704 and I agreed to it. 544 00:31:14,038 --> 00:31:20,420 I shared with Janet Hawkins places that I had been to with Scott 545 00:31:20,503 --> 00:31:23,006 that maybe I thought he would bring Karen back to. 546 00:31:24,716 --> 00:31:30,096 I know Scott had a very good friend that lived up in North Carolina, 547 00:31:30,179 --> 00:31:33,224 and I thought, "Well, for sure, he's probably going to go there." 548 00:31:34,475 --> 00:31:38,354 And then it was on the TV and in the newspaper. 549 00:31:39,439 --> 00:31:41,065 I was scared for her. 550 00:31:42,567 --> 00:31:45,111 I was. I was scared for her. 551 00:31:50,366 --> 00:31:53,703 [Karen] We left St. Augustine, and we're driving north, 552 00:31:54,454 --> 00:31:57,707 and we stayed at the Days Inn in North Carolina. 553 00:31:59,292 --> 00:32:01,794 It was the same situation as in St. Augustine. 554 00:32:03,171 --> 00:32:04,255 He gave me pills. 555 00:32:05,465 --> 00:32:07,467 [music intensifies] 556 00:32:10,303 --> 00:32:11,679 [dramatic sting] 557 00:32:11,763 --> 00:32:13,389 He kept the knife with him. 558 00:32:19,145 --> 00:32:20,897 [suspenseful music playing] 559 00:32:20,980 --> 00:32:24,192 When I got up the next morning, we were getting ready to leave, 560 00:32:24,275 --> 00:32:26,611 and I looked down and I saw the notepad. 561 00:32:28,071 --> 00:32:30,490 I grabbed it and stuffed it in my pocket. 562 00:32:31,324 --> 00:32:32,867 I don't know why I did that. 563 00:32:32,951 --> 00:32:36,371 I don't know. I have no idea why I did it. To this day, I don't know. 564 00:32:41,417 --> 00:32:44,045 From Charlotte, we went to Bryson City. 565 00:32:44,587 --> 00:32:45,588 We stopped to eat. 566 00:32:49,342 --> 00:32:52,011 [woman] I worked at the Bar-B-Que Wagon in Bryson City 567 00:32:52,095 --> 00:32:54,722 as a head chef for 11 years. 568 00:32:54,806 --> 00:32:58,226 [chuckles] It was a typical day at the Bar-B-Que Wagon. 569 00:32:58,726 --> 00:33:00,436 Me being the main cook, 570 00:33:00,520 --> 00:33:03,648 I had a little break after the lunch rush, 571 00:33:03,731 --> 00:33:06,901 and so I walked outside out the back door, 572 00:33:06,985 --> 00:33:09,278 which is against the parking lot, 573 00:33:09,362 --> 00:33:11,030 to take me a quick smoke break. 574 00:33:12,031 --> 00:33:18,329 And, um, that's where I was when I saw a vehicle pull in. 575 00:33:19,163 --> 00:33:21,749 [dramatic music playing] 576 00:33:21,833 --> 00:33:25,044 It was a dark black Jeep. 577 00:33:26,462 --> 00:33:29,382 There was a lady who got out the passenger side 578 00:33:30,258 --> 00:33:32,510 and just kind of stood there. 579 00:33:32,593 --> 00:33:35,763 And so, you know, I gave her a friendly smile, 580 00:33:35,847 --> 00:33:40,184 and, well, she didn't give me a friendly smile back. 581 00:33:41,352 --> 00:33:44,897 And honestly, I thought, "What's wrong with her?" 582 00:33:46,232 --> 00:33:50,903 She had this, I don't know, this blank look. 583 00:33:51,904 --> 00:33:54,741 The gentleman got out and took her by the arm. 584 00:33:56,701 --> 00:33:58,453 They went in the front door, 585 00:33:58,536 --> 00:34:01,414 and I just went back to work, just like I normally would. 586 00:34:06,878 --> 00:34:08,838 [Karen] I went in to use the bathroom. 587 00:34:09,839 --> 00:34:12,759 I looked in my purse, and I took the pen. 588 00:34:12,842 --> 00:34:14,844 I wrote out the note, and it said, 589 00:34:15,511 --> 00:34:18,097 "My name is Karen Kummerer. I've been abducted." 590 00:34:18,598 --> 00:34:21,601 Um, "Please call the Daytona Beach Police Department." 591 00:34:21,684 --> 00:34:24,187 "This is not a joke, and please be quiet." 592 00:34:26,064 --> 00:34:28,274 I was hoping that no one would say anything 593 00:34:28,357 --> 00:34:30,359 while we were in there eating. 594 00:34:32,195 --> 00:34:34,822 I was afraid that I was gonna die if he found out. 595 00:34:37,533 --> 00:34:41,287 We left the barbecue place, we stopped at a gas station, 596 00:34:41,370 --> 00:34:43,372 and I went in to use the bathroom. 597 00:34:44,040 --> 00:34:46,125 I was terrified at this point. 598 00:34:46,709 --> 00:34:50,421 'Cause he would stand outside the bathroom door while I was in there. 599 00:34:50,922 --> 00:34:54,759 And he would make sure that no one else was coming or going. 600 00:34:56,886 --> 00:34:58,304 But I left another note. 601 00:35:00,348 --> 00:35:02,350 [suspenseful music playing] 602 00:35:05,061 --> 00:35:08,481 [Dana] I don't know. It must have been 20 minutes or so, 603 00:35:09,065 --> 00:35:10,858 and I needed to go to the restroom. 604 00:35:11,776 --> 00:35:15,738 When I turned around to flush the toilet, 605 00:35:15,822 --> 00:35:17,907 there was something sticking out. 606 00:35:19,367 --> 00:35:22,328 It wasn't supposed to be there, so I was going to clean it up. 607 00:35:25,039 --> 00:35:27,083 The moment I touched that paper, 608 00:35:28,251 --> 00:35:32,547 I had chills… immediately go all over me. 609 00:35:33,047 --> 00:35:34,966 And I started reading it, 610 00:35:35,049 --> 00:35:40,096 and knew at that moment exactly who wrote that note. 611 00:35:41,472 --> 00:35:44,058 I went straight out of that bathroom 612 00:35:44,142 --> 00:35:47,103 and straight, as fast as I could, to that phone. 613 00:35:48,312 --> 00:35:49,981 And I called 911. 614 00:35:52,191 --> 00:35:54,443 They asked if they were still there. 615 00:35:55,278 --> 00:35:57,780 But I told the police that they were already gone. 616 00:35:58,281 --> 00:36:01,993 When I think back to when they pulled into the parking lot, 617 00:36:02,076 --> 00:36:03,286 [dramatic whoosh] 618 00:36:03,369 --> 00:36:07,290 I realized she wasn't being a, you know, "B." 619 00:36:07,790 --> 00:36:09,792 She was scared. 620 00:36:10,459 --> 00:36:12,587 She was terrified. 621 00:36:12,670 --> 00:36:15,381 It was terror on her face. 622 00:36:16,674 --> 00:36:19,802 Like, "Somebody please help me." 623 00:36:20,595 --> 00:36:23,598 [suspenseful music playing] 624 00:36:25,433 --> 00:36:28,895 [Janet] We received a call that a note had been found 625 00:36:28,978 --> 00:36:31,814 that was left by Karen in a restaurant in North Carolina. 626 00:36:31,898 --> 00:36:35,735 At this point, we're elated because Karen is still alive, 627 00:36:36,360 --> 00:36:39,488 and she has enough presence of mind to leave us a note. 628 00:36:40,072 --> 00:36:41,991 "This is where I am. Here's a breadcrumb." 629 00:36:43,409 --> 00:36:46,787 [Brenna] When we got that first note, I was relieved. 630 00:36:46,871 --> 00:36:49,707 She's still alive, so there's some hope there. 631 00:36:50,791 --> 00:36:53,336 [Jakari] Once this note was found in North Carolina, 632 00:36:53,419 --> 00:36:56,839 we now realized that he's crossed several state lines, 633 00:36:56,923 --> 00:36:58,633 which is way out of our jurisdiction, 634 00:36:58,716 --> 00:37:01,177 so we needed to bring in the FBI. 635 00:37:03,262 --> 00:37:06,933 [woman] Kidnapping cases in the FBI usually do not end well. 636 00:37:07,683 --> 00:37:11,896 The statistics will show most victims do not survive 637 00:37:11,979 --> 00:37:13,773 after a certain amount of time. 638 00:37:15,107 --> 00:37:20,321 I thought that Karen's decision to leave behind notes 639 00:37:20,404 --> 00:37:22,865 was extremely smart. 640 00:37:22,949 --> 00:37:26,369 I don't know that a lot of people would have thought of that 641 00:37:26,452 --> 00:37:32,124 because you are so instilled with a fear of being harmed 642 00:37:32,208 --> 00:37:36,254 that you would not do anything to jeopardize taking another breath. 643 00:37:37,046 --> 00:37:40,174 She figured out at some point that, "I've got to do something." 644 00:37:40,258 --> 00:37:42,009 "They're never gonna find me." 645 00:37:43,469 --> 00:37:46,973 I believe that Scott Freeman was a very dangerous individual, 646 00:37:47,473 --> 00:37:49,392 and that he was a ticking time bomb. 647 00:37:52,061 --> 00:37:54,689 [Karen] The hotels we were staying at did not require an ID, 648 00:37:54,772 --> 00:37:56,399 and they only took cash, 649 00:37:56,482 --> 00:37:59,735 because, of course, he didn't want to show an ID at that point. 650 00:38:02,113 --> 00:38:04,365 Multiple times during this whole experience, 651 00:38:04,448 --> 00:38:07,410 I told Scott, I said, "Just let me out here." 652 00:38:07,493 --> 00:38:09,537 "Just leave me on the side of the road." 653 00:38:10,413 --> 00:38:11,956 "Just let me go." 654 00:38:12,039 --> 00:38:13,541 And he refused to do that. 655 00:38:14,583 --> 00:38:16,585 [dramatic sting] 656 00:38:20,923 --> 00:38:23,551 On Friday, we left Pigeon Forge. 657 00:38:24,969 --> 00:38:26,721 We went to Trenton, Georgia, 658 00:38:26,804 --> 00:38:29,265 where I left another note in a gas station. 659 00:38:29,849 --> 00:38:31,684 The same note as before. 660 00:38:31,767 --> 00:38:34,145 "My name is Karen Kummerer. I've been kidnapped." 661 00:38:34,228 --> 00:38:36,105 "Please call Daytona Beach Police Department." 662 00:38:36,188 --> 00:38:37,481 "This is not a joke." 663 00:38:40,401 --> 00:38:44,030 So after that, we continued on 100 miles to Snead, Alabama, 664 00:38:44,113 --> 00:38:46,657 where I left another note in a gas station. 665 00:38:48,534 --> 00:38:49,952 We stayed at a hotel 666 00:38:50,036 --> 00:38:52,580 which was right across the street from a Wachovia bank, 667 00:38:52,663 --> 00:38:54,999 and at this point, we were getting low on cash. 668 00:38:55,082 --> 00:38:57,960 And I said, "Why don't we go over and take cash out of the bank?" 669 00:38:58,044 --> 00:39:00,171 And he got really upset. 670 00:39:01,756 --> 00:39:03,257 [door slams shut] 671 00:39:03,341 --> 00:39:05,509 He took the knife. He slammed it down. 672 00:39:05,593 --> 00:39:06,677 [loud thud] 673 00:39:06,761 --> 00:39:10,473 Then he said, "Don't forget I always have this." 674 00:39:13,851 --> 00:39:18,981 [Jakari] Getting the notes was confirmation that she's still alive, 675 00:39:19,732 --> 00:39:21,359 but it was a little frustrating 676 00:39:21,442 --> 00:39:26,364 because it seems like we were still consistently one step behind. 677 00:39:26,447 --> 00:39:28,157 Time is not our friend. 678 00:39:28,240 --> 00:39:32,203 So the more time passes, the more concerned we are 679 00:39:32,286 --> 00:39:35,748 that we're not gonna find Karen in time to save her life. 680 00:39:35,831 --> 00:39:38,584 [buzzing softly] 681 00:39:40,294 --> 00:39:43,798 At this point in time, I did not know that they were seeing the notes. 682 00:39:43,881 --> 00:39:46,175 When we were in a hotel room, I tried to make sure 683 00:39:46,258 --> 00:39:50,054 the TV didn't turn on to the news because I was afraid it'd be on the news, 684 00:39:50,137 --> 00:39:52,390 and I was afraid of what he'd do at that point. 685 00:39:52,473 --> 00:39:54,475 [dramatic sting] 686 00:39:59,146 --> 00:40:04,777 On Monday, we drove from New Albany, Mississippi, to Greenville, Mississippi. 687 00:40:04,860 --> 00:40:06,278 Cash was getting very low. 688 00:40:07,488 --> 00:40:09,657 We stopped at a gas station, 689 00:40:09,740 --> 00:40:11,867 and as we got ready to leave, 690 00:40:11,951 --> 00:40:14,620 he said, "I got to make a phone call." 691 00:40:16,831 --> 00:40:20,292 He went to the back of the car, and I could hear him yelling. 692 00:40:20,876 --> 00:40:23,003 Couldn't understand what he was saying. 693 00:40:23,087 --> 00:40:25,297 I wasn't sure who he was talking to. 694 00:40:27,258 --> 00:40:28,801 He was really angry. 695 00:40:28,884 --> 00:40:29,885 [car approaching] 696 00:40:29,969 --> 00:40:32,346 [suspenseful music playing] 697 00:40:32,430 --> 00:40:36,851 [Jackie] Law enforcement was monitoring Scott's parents' phone, 698 00:40:37,435 --> 00:40:40,479 and they were able to intercept a phone call 699 00:40:41,147 --> 00:40:44,316 from Scott to his mom demanding money. 700 00:40:44,400 --> 00:40:46,402 [phone ringing] 701 00:41:01,000 --> 00:41:02,334 [dramatic music playing] 702 00:41:02,418 --> 00:41:05,588 [Jackie] The way Scott was speaking to his mother, 703 00:41:05,671 --> 00:41:07,548 it was more than just angry. 704 00:41:08,924 --> 00:41:10,968 The vitriol was palpable. 705 00:41:11,051 --> 00:41:13,137 It was awful. 706 00:41:33,324 --> 00:41:34,158 When he called, 707 00:41:34,241 --> 00:41:37,661 he was on there long enough for the FBI to get a trace on the call 708 00:41:37,745 --> 00:41:39,914 to pinpoint where he was calling from. 709 00:41:40,539 --> 00:41:43,209 He's in Greenville, Mississippi. 710 00:41:44,043 --> 00:41:46,462 We knew that we had to get the money in the bank. 711 00:41:49,548 --> 00:41:50,883 [Karen] We went to an ATM. 712 00:41:50,966 --> 00:41:52,885 [ATM keypad beeping] 713 00:41:52,968 --> 00:41:54,803 We got the $150. 714 00:41:56,096 --> 00:42:00,684 He attempts to withdraw the money. Law enforcement's monitoring it. 715 00:42:01,602 --> 00:42:06,232 They immediately send the FBI and local law enforcement 716 00:42:06,315 --> 00:42:09,026 to the location of the ATM. 717 00:42:09,109 --> 00:42:11,111 [sirens wailing] 718 00:42:12,947 --> 00:42:14,448 [Karen] We left the ATM. 719 00:42:15,783 --> 00:42:17,910 He went to a neighborhood and bought crack. 720 00:42:19,787 --> 00:42:22,373 -[horn hoking] -Then we took off down the highway. 721 00:42:22,456 --> 00:42:24,416 [music intensifies] 722 00:42:25,876 --> 00:42:27,002 [music fades] 723 00:42:27,086 --> 00:42:31,507 I had driven home for lunch, which I sometimes did, 724 00:42:31,590 --> 00:42:37,263 and was sitting at the kitchen table eating a sandwich when my phone rang. 725 00:42:38,514 --> 00:42:40,224 And it was my supervisor. 726 00:42:40,307 --> 00:42:43,477 He asked that I stop whatever I was doing 727 00:42:44,186 --> 00:42:46,313 and to immediately get on the road 728 00:42:46,397 --> 00:42:50,276 and head towards a small town called Leland, Mississippi. 729 00:42:50,359 --> 00:42:52,361 [intriguing music playing] 730 00:42:54,572 --> 00:42:57,950 I am on the telephone with Mississippi Highway Patrol, 731 00:42:58,033 --> 00:43:00,869 Washington County Sheriff's Office, 732 00:43:00,953 --> 00:43:03,038 Cleveland PD as well. 733 00:43:03,706 --> 00:43:07,209 And within five minutes of being on Highway 61, 734 00:43:07,293 --> 00:43:09,253 I knew the description of the vehicle. 735 00:43:10,379 --> 00:43:13,299 I knew exactly what Karen looked like. 736 00:43:13,382 --> 00:43:16,093 I knew exactly what Scott Freeman looked like. 737 00:43:16,802 --> 00:43:18,887 And literally two minutes later, 738 00:43:19,555 --> 00:43:23,267 I recognize a vehicle that matches the description, 739 00:43:23,767 --> 00:43:25,311 and I slowly catch up. 740 00:43:28,147 --> 00:43:30,691 It was obvious to me that it was Karen in the vehicle. 741 00:43:30,774 --> 00:43:33,027 I'll never forget the look on her face. 742 00:43:33,611 --> 00:43:34,820 I could see fear. 743 00:43:34,903 --> 00:43:38,073 She didn't look my way. She was staring dead ahead. 744 00:43:38,157 --> 00:43:39,658 And there was no talking. 745 00:43:40,284 --> 00:43:43,454 And Mr. Freeman was also staring dead ahead. 746 00:43:44,038 --> 00:43:49,001 At that point, my supervisor had contacted Mississippi Highway Patrol, 747 00:43:49,084 --> 00:43:51,754 and there were several units in the area. 748 00:43:53,464 --> 00:43:56,508 [Karen] We're on the highway, and all of a sudden he goes, 749 00:43:56,592 --> 00:43:59,720 "They're following us." I said, "What are you talking about?" 750 00:44:00,554 --> 00:44:03,557 [police sirens wailing] 751 00:44:05,893 --> 00:44:08,812 I looked up, and it seemed like a million police were following us. 752 00:44:08,896 --> 00:44:10,314 The lights were going. 753 00:44:10,397 --> 00:44:11,899 And he started yelling. 754 00:44:11,982 --> 00:44:13,734 He said, "Give me a minute. Give me a minute." 755 00:44:14,318 --> 00:44:16,487 We were going really fast. I was screaming. 756 00:44:18,238 --> 00:44:21,867 And he went off the exit to the highway. 757 00:44:21,950 --> 00:44:23,452 [tires screeching] 758 00:44:23,535 --> 00:44:26,413 [Anne] As soon as Mr. Freeman saw the highway unit, 759 00:44:26,497 --> 00:44:29,333 he knew that they knew who he was. 760 00:44:31,126 --> 00:44:32,503 [Jackie] She knew he had the knife. 761 00:44:32,586 --> 00:44:36,382 She believed at any point, he could reach over and just take her out. 762 00:44:37,591 --> 00:44:39,343 She was so close to being saved, 763 00:44:39,426 --> 00:44:43,097 but probably in the most danger that she'd been in through the whole trip. 764 00:44:44,682 --> 00:44:46,225 [tires screeching] 765 00:44:46,308 --> 00:44:48,686 [Karen] Then all of a sudden, they boxed us in. 766 00:44:49,687 --> 00:44:53,524 Like, 25 police officers got out of their cruisers and held guns. 767 00:44:53,607 --> 00:44:56,652 I was like, "Oh my God, oh my God, I'm going to die." 768 00:44:56,735 --> 00:45:01,198 And then they just grabbed him out of the truck and threw him on the ground. 769 00:45:01,281 --> 00:45:02,241 [loud thud] 770 00:45:04,243 --> 00:45:07,996 And then a beautiful deputy came and grabbed me. 771 00:45:08,080 --> 00:45:10,082 [somber music playing] 772 00:45:17,214 --> 00:45:20,718 And I said to him, "Do you have a gun?" 773 00:45:20,801 --> 00:45:23,095 He said, "Yes." I said, "Don't let me go." 774 00:45:24,680 --> 00:45:25,806 [siren blaring] 775 00:45:25,889 --> 00:45:28,600 -He brought me over to the EMS. -[indistinct radio chatter] 776 00:45:28,684 --> 00:45:33,480 And they took my blood pressure. It was at 250 over 150. 777 00:45:33,564 --> 00:45:35,524 And I would not go to the hospital. 778 00:45:35,607 --> 00:45:38,777 I said, "I'm not leaving. He's got a gun. I'm staying with him." 779 00:45:39,737 --> 00:45:42,448 And so then what he did was he calmed me down. 780 00:45:42,990 --> 00:45:46,827 He brought me to Anne LaHaye's truck, the FBI agent, and he put me in there. 781 00:45:46,910 --> 00:45:49,413 He goes, "You're gonna be safe here." And that's how it ended. 782 00:45:50,956 --> 00:45:56,336 [Brenna] I remember I got a phone call. The FBI called and said, "We got Karen." 783 00:45:56,837 --> 00:45:58,839 "We have her, and Scott's in custody." 784 00:45:58,922 --> 00:46:04,219 And I was just like, "Thank God." It was, like, a surreal feeling. 785 00:46:06,013 --> 00:46:09,141 When they got him, you know, everybody was so excited. 786 00:46:09,224 --> 00:46:10,684 It was, like, a relief. 787 00:46:11,727 --> 00:46:13,771 So much so, it was very emotional. 788 00:46:13,854 --> 00:46:15,481 There were tears shed. 789 00:46:16,857 --> 00:46:20,986 Law enforcement searched Scott's Jeep after he was in custody. 790 00:46:21,570 --> 00:46:25,365 They found a switchblade knife in the open position 791 00:46:25,449 --> 00:46:27,743 that was in the driver's side door pocket. 792 00:46:28,494 --> 00:46:31,997 They found rope. They found blankets. 793 00:46:32,080 --> 00:46:37,211 They found a can used to smoke crack cocaine. 794 00:46:38,253 --> 00:46:42,716 That really gave an indication to law enforcement 795 00:46:42,800 --> 00:46:46,178 that Scott, and Scott alone, planned this. 796 00:46:48,597 --> 00:46:52,726 Once he was arrested, my captain and lieutenant decided that 797 00:46:52,810 --> 00:46:55,103 because she had been traumatized so much, 798 00:46:55,187 --> 00:46:57,564 they made a decision to not put her on the airplane, 799 00:46:57,648 --> 00:47:02,027 but for myself and Jakari to drive up to pick her up and bring her back. 800 00:47:03,987 --> 00:47:06,532 Karen appeared to be worn out and tired, 801 00:47:06,615 --> 00:47:10,619 so we just made her comfortable and drove her back to Daytona. 802 00:47:10,702 --> 00:47:12,037 [birds chirping] 803 00:47:12,120 --> 00:47:15,582 [Brenna] The first moment I saw Karen, I gave her, like, the biggest hug. 804 00:47:15,666 --> 00:47:17,668 I'm like, I didn't want to let her go. 805 00:47:18,293 --> 00:47:21,755 It's definitely, uh, an emotional moment. 806 00:47:22,256 --> 00:47:24,258 [pensive music playing] 807 00:47:45,362 --> 00:47:47,072 [Brenna] Karen was traumatized. 808 00:47:48,574 --> 00:47:50,117 Everything scared her. 809 00:47:50,826 --> 00:47:52,995 Like, she would hear a sound, it scared her. 810 00:47:53,787 --> 00:47:56,540 You know, you couldn't talk really loud around her. 811 00:47:56,623 --> 00:47:59,334 She wanted people around her all the time. 812 00:48:00,669 --> 00:48:02,838 [Lisa] Karen's had to put up with a lot. 813 00:48:02,921 --> 00:48:05,674 Why didn't she fight back? She couldn't. She was paralyzed. 814 00:48:05,757 --> 00:48:06,925 That's what the fear did. 815 00:48:08,051 --> 00:48:09,970 And people don't realize that. 816 00:48:11,096 --> 00:48:16,310 For what Karen's been through, I admire how strong she is as a person. 817 00:48:18,437 --> 00:48:19,688 [Karen] When I was dating Scott, 818 00:48:19,771 --> 00:48:23,066 and some of the signs that he was exhibiting at the time, 819 00:48:23,650 --> 00:48:27,654 I was not aware of them being signs of potential domestic violence. 820 00:48:28,822 --> 00:48:30,574 It was not as prevalent back then, 821 00:48:30,657 --> 00:48:34,286 as well as discussed and open, as it is currently. 822 00:48:36,830 --> 00:48:39,082 Since that time, I've done work on myself. 823 00:48:39,166 --> 00:48:41,710 So it became quite clear 824 00:48:41,793 --> 00:48:46,173 that this was a situation that was gonna become violent in the very beginning, 825 00:48:46,256 --> 00:48:48,926 and I just did not even see the warning signs. 826 00:48:53,221 --> 00:48:54,556 I'm doing great today. 827 00:48:56,433 --> 00:48:57,851 I'm very blessed. 828 00:48:57,935 --> 00:49:00,395 Um, I approach life a lot differently. 829 00:49:01,855 --> 00:49:04,441 I feel so lucky to be alive, you have no idea. 830 00:49:04,524 --> 00:49:07,277 I tell everybody, I said, "Life's too short." [chuckles] 831 00:49:08,946 --> 00:49:10,948 [birds chirping] 832 00:49:12,699 --> 00:49:14,201 [music fades] 833 00:49:14,284 --> 00:49:18,288 [unsettling music playing] 834 00:50:36,616 --> 00:50:38,160 [music fades]