The 1980s: The Deadliest Decade (2016–2017): Season 2, Episode 10 - The Krishna Killers - full transcript
Hare Krishnas follow a religion based on divine love. But the mysterious disappearance of a charismatic devotee exposes a disturbing dark side. When another member is shot dead, police uncover a twisted web of murder and betrayal.
[ STATIC CRACKLES ]
Choir:
♪♪ HARE KRISHNA ♪♪
THE KRISHNAS OF THE '80s
LIVE IN A SOMEWHAT
MORE SHADOWY WORLD.
[ SUSPENSEFUL MUSIC PLAYS ]
HE WAS WORSHIPPED
LITERALLY AS GOOD AS GOD.
YOU THOUGHT, "THIS IS WHAT
I NEED IN MY LIFE.
THIS IS THE KEY TO HAPPINESS."
[ EERIE MUSIC PLAYS ]
I WAS BEING TOLD OFFICIALLY
THAT HE'S BEEN REMOVED
FROM THE PROPERTY.
I SAID, "NO ONE'S EVER
GONNA FIND THAT GUY."
♪♪♪♪
[ "EIGHTIES" PLAYS ]
SHE WAS UPSET, NOT ONLY
BY THE FACT THAT HE WAS MISSING,
BUT IT SEEMED LIKE NOBODY CARED.
Kirtanananda:
WE DO NOT BELIEVE
IN NONVIOLENCE.
KRISHNA SAID, "FIGHT FOR ME."
THEY WERE AFRAID
FOR THEIR LIVES.
THAT MURDER WAS DONE AS
AN EXAMPLE TO SCARE PEOPLE OFF.
[ GUNSHOT ]
Killing Joke: ♪♪ AH AH AH AH ♪♪
♪♪ EIGHTIES ♪♪
♪♪ I'M LIVIN' IN THE EIGHTIES ♪♪
♪♪ EIGHTIES ♪♪
JUST SAY NO.
♪♪ WELL, I HAVE TO PUSH ♪♪
- [SIREN CHIRPS]
♪♪ I HAVE TO STRUGGLE, OH! ♪♪
♪♪ EIGHTIES ♪♪
[ CLOCK TICKS,
ELECTRICITY CRACKLES ]
Narrator: IT'S 1983.
"TRADING PLACES" IS A SMASH HIT
AT THE BOX OFFICE...
SELL 200 APRIL AT 142!
[ SHOUTING ]
[ RING ]
...MOBILE PHONES ARE INTRODUCED
- HELLO.
TO THE GENERAL PUBLIC
FOR THE FIRST TIME...
Announcer:
THIS COULD MAKE IT POSSIBLE
TO HAVE A PHONE
THAT TRAVELS WITH YOU.
...AND TELEVANGELISTS LIKE
JIM AND TAMMY FAYE BAKKER
ARE PREACHING A NEW KIND
OF RELIGIOUS DEVOTION
TO A MULTIMILLION-DOLLAR
MEDIA EMPIRE.
GIVE US 300 MORE PEOPLE
TO CALL ON THEIR
CREDIT CARD RIGHT NOW.
BUT NOT EVERYONE IS BOWING DOWN
TO THE ALMIGHTY DOLLAR.
[ STATIC CRACKLES ]
Choir: ♪♪ HARE KRISHNA ♪♪
Narrator:
THERE'S A GROUP THAT
OFFERS ANOTHER PATH
TO A SIMPLER WAY OF LIFE --
THE HARE KRISHNAS --
AND THEY PLAY OUT THEIR PUBLIC
DISPLAYS OF DEVOTION EVERYWHERE:
STREET CORNERS,
AIRPORTS,
EVEN THE MOVIES.
WOULD YOU LIKE
TO MAKE A DONATION?
NO THANKS.
WE GAVE AT THE OFFICE.
"AIRPLANE"
IS MY FAVORITE MOVIE
BECAUSE OF THE
HARE KRISHNA SPOOFS.
THEY WERE SUCH A PRESENCE
SOAKED INTO THE CULTURE.
Narrator:
IN A DECADE WHERE MONEY,
POWER, AND STATUS RULE,
THE KRISHNAS ARE A HOLDOUT
OF THE PEACE-AND-LOVE
COUNTERCULTURE OF THE '60s.
IT'S A RELIGION BASED
ON DIVINE LOVE,
LEARNING TO LOVE GOD,
AND TRYING TO DEVELOP
COMPASSION FOR ALL.
WE HAD PEOPLE
FROM ALL WALKS OF LIFE,
FROM TRUCK DRIVERS
TO COLLEGE PROFESSORS.
Muster:
THE '80s WAS THE HIGH POINT
FOR THE HARE KRISHNA MOVEMENT.
THEY HAD ABOUT 5,000 MEMBERS
IN THE UNITED STATES.
Narrator:
THOSE WHO COMMIT THEMSELVES
TO THE KRISHNAS
OFTEN HAVE ONE THING IN COMMON:
DISILLUSIONMENT.
Doktorski: IN MY CASE,
THERE WAS SOME EMPTINESS
THAT I WAS VAGUELY AWARE OF.
I WAS NOT HAPPY WITH THE WAY
MY LIFE WAS GOING AT THE TIME.
CHARLES ST. DENIS,
A 29-YEAR-OLD
CALIFORNIA TRANSPLANT,
ALSO SHARES A TROUBLED PAST.
[ CAMERA SHUTTER CLICKS ]
Rader: CHARLES ST. DENIS
WAS A VERY ATTRACTIVE MAN.
HE WAS A STRONG, TALL,
DARK, HANDSOME
SORT OF CHARACTER,
MUSCULAR, 6'2".
THE KIND OF IRREPRESSIBLE
PERSONALITY,
VERY OUTGOING, LARGER-THAN-LIFE.
ST. DENIS REALLY DIDN'T HAVE
WHAT MOST PEOPLE
WOULD CONSIDER
A HAPPY CHILDHOOD.
CHARLES ST. DENIS'S PARENTS
WERE ALCOHOLICS.
Narrator:
CHARLES'S FATHER ABANDONED
THE FAMILY WHEN HE WAS YOUNG.
[ SUSPENSEFUL MUSIC PLAYS ]
HE ACTUALLY RAN AWAY
WHEN HE WAS 11.
Narrator:
AFTER A TUMULTUOUS CHILDHOOD,
MARKED BY DRUG DEALING
AND JUVENILE HALL,
CHARLES FINDS THE FAMILY
HE NEVER REALLY HAD
ON THE SANTA CRUZ BOARDWALK.
WHEN HE FIRST MET THE HARE
KRISHNAS, HE WAS 16 YEARS OLD.
HE WAS SELLING LSD ON A PIER.
HE SAW THEM AS THE ANSWER
TO THE PROBLEMS IN HIS LIFE
AND HE THOUGHT, "THIS IS WHAT
I NEED IN MY LIFE.
THIS IS THE KEY TO HAPPINESS."
Narrator:
FOR THE FIRST TIME,
CHARLES HAS ORDER IN HIS LIFE.
THE KRISHNAS TELL HIM
WHEN TO WAKE UP, WHEN TO SLEEP,
AND WHAT TO DO IN BETWEEN.
HE GIVES UP DRUGS
AND DEVOTES HIMSELF
TO LIVING A SPIRITUAL LIFE,
A DECISION THAT WILL COME
AT THE ULTIMATE COST.
[ SINISTER MUSIC PLAYS ]
Choir:
♪♪ HARE KRISHNA ♪♪
IT'S A PROFOUND,
LIFE-ALTERING EXPERIENCE.
- ♪♪ KRISHNA, KRISHNA ♪♪
- Narrator: IN 1980,
CHARLES MOVES
TO A HARE KRISHNA COMMUNITY
IN WEST VIRGINIA,
CALLED NEW VRINDABAN.
Choir: ♪♪ HARE RAMA ♪♪
Reporter:
THE MEMBERS OF THE HARE
KRISHNA SECT WHO LIVE HERE
CALL THEIR HOME
AMERICA'S TAJ MAHAL.
- ♪♪ HARE ♪♪
- IN THE EARLY 1980s,
IT'S THIS REALLY GORGEOUS
TOURIST ATTRACTION HERE
IN WEST VIRGINIA.
Reporter:
GOLD, MARBLE, TEAK,
ALL OF IT HANDCRAFTED.
[ STATIC CRACKLES ]
Narrator:
INSIDE THE COMPOUND,
LIFE WAS LESS GRAND
FOR THE 500 OR SO DEVOTEES.
Doktorski:
MOST OF US JUST SLEPT ON THE
FLOOR IN OUR SLEEPING BAGS.
WE HAD TO GET UP AT 2:00 OR 3:00
IN THE MORNING EVERY DAY.
WE CHANTED FOR AN HOUR, THEN
THERE WAS THE MORNING SERVICE.
THEN, AFTER THAT, BREAKFAST,
AND THEN WORK ALL DAY LONG.
Narrator:
DESPITE THE VISITING TOURISTS,
THE KRISHNAS OF NEW VRINDABAN
ARE ISOLATED,
OPERATING WITHIN
THEIR OWN WORLD.
THE COMMUNITY INVOLVED
ESSENTIALLY EVERYTHING
YOU'D NEED TO RUN A SMALL CITY:
GROWING FOOD, THEIR OWN
WATER TREATMENT PLANT.
Narrator:
LEADING IT ALL?
KEITH HAM,
A BAPTIST MINISTER'S SON
FROM UPSTATE NEW YORK,
WHO'S KNOWN TO ALL DEVOTEES
BY HIS KRISHNA NAME:
KIRTANANANDA SWAMI BHAKTIPADA.
HE WAS LIKE A VERY WISE
AND COMPASSIONATE FATHER
THAT MAYBE I FELT I DID NOT HAVE
AS A CHILD, GROWING UP.
Rader:
KIRTANANANDA DEFINITELY
HAD A SPECIAL PRESENCE.
HE WAS WORSHIPED LITERALLY
AS GOOD AS GOD.
Muster:
I ALWAYS SAW HIM
AS A REALLY COMPLEX PERSON.
HE HAD POLIO AS A CHILD, THAT,
YOU KNOW,
PERMANENTLY SCARRED HIM.
Young:
HE SEEMED SO INFIRM, PHYSICALLY;
BUT HE WAS SO SHARP, MENTALLY.
HE COMMANDED A CERTAIN KIND
OF RESPECT BECAUSE OF THAT.
Doktorski:
WE ATTRIBUTED HIM
WITH DIVINE QUALITIES.
WE LOVED HIM, YOU KNOW?
AND IT SEEMED LIKE
HE LOVED US ALSO.
SO WE WERE HAPPY TO WORK
TO BUILD NEW VRINDABAN.
Narrator:
THE SWAMI WELCOMES 27-YEAR-OLD
CHARLES ST. DENIS,
WHO SHOWS HIS DEVOTION BY
LANDSCAPING THE PALACE GROUNDS.
LIKE ALL DEVOTEES,
HE WORKS FOR FREE.
KRISHNAS ARE TAUGHT TO LIVE
A STARKLY SIMPLE LIFE.
WHEN I MOVED IN,
THEY WANTED ME
TO THROW AWAY
ALL MY POSSESSIONS.
MOST OF US LIVED IN POVERTY.
YOU WERE EXPECTED
TO SURRENDER EVERYTHING.
YOU'RE LITERALLY SUPPOSED
TO GIVE UP ALL DESIRES
AND DESIRE TO ONLY PLEASE GOD.
Muster:
NO MEAT, NO INTOXICATION,
NO ILLICIT SEX,
AND NO GAMBLING.
ALSO, YOU HAD TO AGREE NOT
TO WATCH TV OR MOVIES,
NOT TO READ MAGAZINES,
NOT TO LISTEN TO POPULAR MUSIC.
EVERYTHING HAD TO BE
FOR KRISHNA.
[ MELANCHOLY TUNE PLAYS ]
Narrator:
CHARLES SOMETIMES SLIPS UP,
WHEN IT COMES TO THE
STRINGENT RESTRICTIONS.
HE WAS A GOOD DEVOTEE,
BUT, AT SOME POINT,
HE STARTED GOING INTO THE OLD
HABITS, WITH DRUGS AND SEX.
CHUCK WAS NOT BEYOND
HAVING HIS FAVORITE BEER,
AND HE MAY HAVE BROKEN SOME
OF THE OTHER RULES.
APPARENTLY VERY POPULAR WITH
THE LADIES AROUND NEW VRINDABAN.
Narrator:
RATHER THAN EXILING THOSE
WHO CAN'T FOLLOW THE RULES,
THERE'S A SPECIAL PLACE
FOR GUYS LIKE CHARLES.
HE BECOMES A FRINGY.
THEY'RE ON THE OUTSKIRTS
OF THE COMMUNITY,
SEVERAL MILES FROM THE TEMPLE.
Narrator:
FRINGIES ARE COMMITTED
TO THE SPIRIT OF KRISHNA
AND THE COMMUNITY
OF NEW VRINDABAN,
BUT NOT ALL OF THE RESTRICTIONS.
SOME WOULD COME
TO THE TEMPLE EVERY DAY.
MOST WOULD COME ONCE A WEEK.
THEY WEREN'T FOLLOWING
THE PRINCIPLES,
OF NO ILLICIT SEX,
NO INTOXICATION,
BUT, THE FRINGIES WERE STILL
SURRENDERED TO KIRTANANANDA.
[ SUSPENSEFUL MUSIC PLAYS ]
Narrator:
A YEAR AFTER HE MOVES
TO WEST VIRGINIA,
CHARLES FALLS HARD
FOR A FELLOW FRINGY:
DEBORAH GERE.
SHE WAS A COMMUNITY NURSE.
SHE WAS A VERY SMART LADY,
VERY TOUGH LADY.
SHE HAD LONG RED HAIR,
BIG BROWN EYES.
Doktorski:
THEY WERE A REALLY GOOD COUPLE,
VERY COMPATIBLE, WELL-MATCHED.
THEY WERE BOTH VERY
STRONG-WILLED PERSONS,
BUT, THEY FIGURED OUT HOW
TO WORK OUT THE DIFFERENCES
SO THAT THEY CAN STAY TOGETHER
IN A PEACEFUL RELATIONSHIP.
Narrator:
IN THE WINTER OF 1982,
DEBORAH COMES INTO
A SURPRISE INHERITANCE
AFTER HER FATHER DIES.
$50,000, WHICH, OF COURSE,
WAS A LOT MORE AT THAT TIME
AND, FOR HARE KRISHNAS,
YOU KNOW, NO ONE HAD ANY MONEY.
Narrator:
CHARLES AND DEBORAH WRESTLE
WITH A DIFFICULT DECISION:
DO THEY GO AGAINST
THE KRISHNA WAY?
NORMALLY, THAT WOULD
AUTOMATICALLY GO TO THE TEMPLE.
OR TO BHAKTIPADA,
KIRTANANANDA SWAMI.
CHARLES ST. DENIS HAS
THIS IDEA TO KEEP THE MONEY.
ST. DENIS WANTED
TO BE INDEPENDENT
AND START HIS OWN
NURSERY BUSINESS.
Narrator:
HE AND DEBORAH STRUGGLE
WITH THE DILEMMA.
CHARLES WANTS TO USE
THE MONEY TO OPEN
AND RUN THE BUSINESS HIS WAY,
BUT HE DOESN'T WANT TO BETRAY
HIS PLEDGE TO THE KRISHNAS.
THEY DECIDE THAT THEY'LL
GIVE HALF OF THE MONEY
TO THE COMMUNITY,
TO KIRTANANANDA.
Narrator:
THEY PROPOSE THIS TO THE SWAMI,
WHO GRUDGINGLY CONSENTS
TO THE DEAL.
I'M SURE HE PROBABLY
DIDN'T LIKE THE FACT
THAT CHARLES ST. DENIS
DIDN'T WANT TO GIVE
ALL THAT MONEY TO HIM.
Narrator:
CHARLES AND DEBORAH
EXCITEDLY BEGIN LOOKING
INTO BUILDING
THEIR NEW BUSINESS.
Doktorski:
AND THINGS WERE
LOOKING PROMISING.
EXCEPT, THEY HAD A SQUATTER
ON THEIR PROPERTY.
THIS WAS THOMAS DRESCHER.
HE WAS ALSO ANOTHER FRINGY.
[ STATIC CRACKLES ]
VERY TOUGH GUY.
HE WAS ABOUT 190 POUNDS,
ABOUT 6'0", MOSTLY ALL-MUSCLE.
HE CLAIMS THAT BHAKTIPADA SAID
HE COULD LIVE ON THAT PROPERTY.
PART OF WHY HE CAME
TO THE COMMUNITY WAS
TO SERVE AS A KIND OF PROTECTOR
OF THE COMMUNITY.
THERE WERE A LOT OF LOCALS
GOING BY THE COMPOUND AT NIGHT,
LIKE SHOOTING THE PLACE UP,
AND THERE WERE PEOPLE
LIKE BEATING UP THE DEVOTEES,
LIKE OUT ON LIKE ISOLATED ROADS.
THE SWAMI HAD TROUBLE
PROTECTING THE PLACE.
Drescher:
HE DID NEED SOMEONE THERE
TO PROTECT THE DEVOTEES.
I DID HAVE MILITARY EXPERIENCE.
IN VIETNAM,
I WAS PERSONALLY INVOLVED
IN QUITE A NUMBER OF
[ RAPID GUNFIRE ]
[ BLAST ]
CAMPAIGNS.
[ SUSPENSEFUL MUSIC PLAYS ]
Narrator: CHARLES REALIZES
THE ONLY WAY TO GET
DRESCHER TO MOVE IS
TO PAY HIM TO LEAVE THE HOUSE,
BUT THE VIETNAM VET
DOESN'T EXACTLY
GO QUIETLY INTO THE NIGHT.
HE TOOK A FEW THINGS,
LIKE THE KITCHEN SINK,
THE HOT WATER HEATER,
APPLIANCES THAT SHOULD'VE
BEEN LEFT IN THE HOUSE.
HE KIND OF RIPPED THEM OUT,
SO, OF COURSE,
ST. DENIS WAS REALLY
PISSED ABOUT THAT.
BUT AT LEAST HE'S GONE NOW,
FINALLY, THANK GOODNESS.
HE CAN BUILD HIS NURSERY.
Narrator:
NOW CLEAR TO GET THE BUSINESS
UP AND RUNNING,
CHARLES GETS FINANCIAL ADVICE
FROM ANOTHER FRINGY:
DAN REID.
[ STATIC CRACKLES ]
DAN REID WAS A BOOKKEEPER
IN THE NEW VRINDABAN
ACCOUNTING OFFICE
AND HE WAS VERY GOOD AT HIS JOB.
Narrator:
WITH DAN'S EXPERTISE
AND DEBORAH'S INHERITANCE,
THEIR DREAM OF OPENING A NURSERY
IS WELL ON ITS WAY
TO BECOMING A REALITY.
[ SUSPENSEFUL CHORD STRIKES ]
[ CLOCK TICKING ]
[ ELECTRICITY CRACKLING ]
[ OMINOUS CHORD STRIKES ]
[ TRANQUIL TUNE PLAYS ]
IT'S BEEN A CHALLENGING YEAR,
BUT, AS SUMMER APPROACHES,
CHARLES AND DEBORAH
HAVE REASON TO CELEBRATE.
ST. DENIS'S NURSERY
WAS COMING ALONG.
THEY HAD A PLANTING PARTY,
WHERE THEY WANTED TO GET ALL
OF THEIR PLANTS IN THE GROUND.
Narrator:
ALL OF CHARLES'S
FRIENDS STOP BY.
INCLUDING DAN REID.
Rader:
IT WAS A FUN TIME FOR EVERYONE.
CHARLES ST. DENIS WAS THE SORT
OF CENTER OF ALL THIS ACTIVITY
AND SORT OF ENGAGING
WITH EVERYONE.
Narrator:
AFTER THE PARTY ENDS,
THE EXHILARATED,
YET EXHAUSTED, COUPLE
GETS READY FOR BED.
WHEN THE PHONE RINGS.
[ RING ]
IT'S DAN REID.
ST. DENIS TELLS DEBORAH,
"I HAVE TO GO GET $50
THAT DAN OWES ME.
I'M GONNA GO MEET HIM."
HE TELLS HER HE'LL BE BACK
IN 10 MINUTES.
Narrator:
DEBORAH SUSPECTS CHARLES
IS HEADING OUT
FOR A LITTLE AFTER-HOURS
PARTYING WITH DAN.
SHE SAID, "DON'T STAY VERY LONG"
AND THEN HE DROVE OFF.
[ SUSPENSEFUL MUSIC PLAYS ]
Rader:
DEBORAH WAKES UP
THE NEXT MORNING.
HE'S STILL NOT HOME.
SHE ASSUMES HE IS OUT,
PARTYING SOMEWHERE
AND HE'LL BE STUMBLING IN
ANYTIME.
Narrator:
BUT AFTER A FEW HOURS
AND STILL NO SIGN OF CHARLES,
SHE BECOMES ANXIOUS.
[ SUSPENSEFUL MUSIC CLIMBS ]
DEBORAH REACHES OUT TO DAN.
DAN REID SAID CHARLES ST. DENIS
HAD NOT BEEN THERE.
SHE BEGINS TO GET
REALLY WORRIED
THAT SOMETHING HAPPENED TO HIM.
[ SUSPENSEFUL CHORD STRIKES ]
[ ELECTRONICA PLAYS ]
[ CLOCK TICKING,
ELECTRICITY CRACKLING ]
[ SUSPENSEFUL MUSIC PLAYS ]
Narrator: IT'S 1983.
TO THE OUTSIDE WORLD,
THE HARE KRISHNAS
ARE SPIRITUAL DEVOTEES
SEEKING ETERNAL BLISS.
BUT WITHIN THE BORDERS OF THEIR
COMPOUND, THERE IS DISCORD.
DEBORAH GERE IS PANICKED.
WHEN ST. DENIS
DID NOT COME HOME,
DEBORAH WAS REALLY,
REALLY, REALLY WORRIED.
Narrator:
CHARLES HAS BEEN MISSING
SINCE THE PREVIOUS NIGHT,
WHEN HE LEFT TO MEET
HIS FRIEND DAN REID.
DAN SAYS CHARLES
NEVER SHOWED UP.
♪♪♪♪
DEBORAH JUMPS INTO HER TRUCK
AND SETS OUT TO SCOUR
THE COMPOUND FOR HIM.
AROUND THE COMMUNITY,
ON THE BACK ROADS,
SOME OF THE DIRT ROADS,
IT'S KIND OF ROUGH TERRAIN.
ONE THOUGHT SHE HAS
IS MAYBE THAT
HIS TRUCK FELL
OFF THE SIDE OF A CLIFF.
Westfall:
WENT EVERYWHERE
AROUND THE COMMUNITY.
SHE WAS DESPERATE TO FIND OUT
WHAT HAPPENED TO HIM.
SHE REPORTED IT TO A TROOPER
AND THEY SAID,
"WE DON'T START LOOKING
FOR MISSING PEOPLE
FOR 48 HOURS."
Narrator:
DESPERATE FOR HELP,
DEBORAH GOES TO SEE
THE GROUP'S SPIRITUAL LEADER,
SWAMI KIRTANANANDA.
SHE CAME TO THE TEMPLE
AT NEW VRINDABAN
AND SAW KIRTANANANDA
AND TOLD HIM,
"MY HUSBAND'S GONE,
YOU KNOW, MISSING."
Westfall:
HE DIDN'T TAKE IT
VERY SERIOUSLY.
SHE SAID, "HE JUST ACTED LIKE
I WAS JUST A SILLY WOMAN."
SHE WAS FRUSTRATED THAT A LOT
OF OTHER PEOPLE IN THE COMMUNITY
THOUGHT THAT CHARLES ST. DENIS
PROBABLY JUST
PACKED UP AND LEFT.
CHARLES, IN HIS EARLIER LIFE,
WAS A LITTLE BIT NOMADIC.
Narrator:
DEBORAH THEN RUSHES TO FIND
CHARLES'S FRIEND BIG JOHN,
WHO LIVES ACROSS
THE BORDER IN OHIO,
WHERE HE MAKES HIS LIVING
DEALING POT TO FRINGIES.
BIG JOHN'S FARM IS A PLACE
THAT CHARLES ST. DENIS
USED TO VISIT REGULARLY.
Narrator:
AS DEBORAH PULLS UP,
SHE'S RELIEVED TO SEE
HER HUSBAND'S TRUCK
PARKED NEARBY.
SHE ANXIOUSLY APPROACHES JOHN.
HE SAID, "I HAVE NO IDEA
WHY THAT'S DOWN THE STREET,
BECAUSE HE WAS NOT HERE.
I DON'T KNOW ANYTHING ABOUT IT."
Narrator:
AFTER TWO DAYS
OF FRANTICALLY SEARCHING,
DEBORAH REACHES OUT
TO HER LAST HOPE:
SGT. TOM WESTFALL.
Young:
HE WAS CALLED THE KRISHNA COP.
IF THERE WAS ANY
COMMUNICATION AT ALL
BETWEEN THE COMMUNITY
AND NEW VRINDABAN,
IT PROBABLY WENT
THROUGH SGT. WESTFALL.
HE DIDN'T SEE THE DEVOTEES
AS SOME HEATHEN RELIGION,
WORSHIPING FALSE GODS.
THE FIRST TIME
THAT I EVER MET A DEVOTEE,
I NOTICED THAT HE WAS
A LITTLE BIT NERVOUS.
WE ALL GREW UP
WITH THE VIETNAM WAR,
WITH THE HIPPIE GENERATION,
ALL OF THAT,
SO I PUT HIM AT EASE.
WE WERE VERY MUCH ALIKE,
EXCEPT THEY WERE FOLLOWING
A FAR EASTERN RELIGION
AND I WAS
ENFORCING THE LAWS
OF THE STATE OF WEST VIRGINIA.
Narrator:
DEBORAH KNOWS THAT,
IF ANYONE WILL HELP HER,
IT'S WESTFALL.
Westfall:
SHE WAS EXTREMELY UPSET.
SHE WAS WEEPING.
SHE WAS UPSET, NOT ONLY BY THE
FACT THAT HE WAS MISSING,
BUT IT SEEMED LIKE NOBODY CARED.
Narrator:
ONE OF THE THINGS
THAT IMMEDIATELY
CATCHES WESTFALL'S ATTENTION
IS DEBORAH'S RETELLING
OF THE PROBLEMS
CHARLES HAD
WITH THOMAS DRESCHER.
AWARE OF HIS REPUTATION,
WESTFALL BELIEVES
THE VIETNAM VET COULD BE
CONNECTED TO THE DISAPPEARANCE.
I NEVER HAD ANYBODY EVER
COME UP TO ME AND SAY,
"WHAT A GREAT GUY."
EVERYBODY KNEW
WHAT HIS ROLE WAS THERE,
AND EVERYBODY FEARED THAT.
THOMAS DRESCHER HAD
A CRIMINAL RECORD
THAT INVOLVED A LOT OF CRIMES,
THAT INCLUDED VIOLENCE.
I WAS THE SECURITY GUARD
FOR THE PALACE
AND THAT ROLE
WAS SORT OF EXPANDED
TO BEING SORT OF LIKE THE,
YOU KNOW, COMMUNITY'S POLICEMAN.
FROM THERE, THE ROLE,
I GUESS YOU COULD SAY,
IT EXPANDED INTO OTHER THINGS.
HIS ROLE EVOLVED TO ALSO
KICK PEOPLE OUT
WHEN THEY NEEDED TO BE KICKED
OUT, OR ROUGH PEOPLE UP.
Kirtanananda:
WE DO NOT BELIEVE
IN NONVIOLENCE.
KRISHNA SPOKE THE "BHAGAVAD
GITA" ON THE BATTLEFIELD.
KRISHNA SAID, "FIGHT FOR ME."
WE WOULD GET REPORTS
OF FLEEING DEVOTEES,
THAT THEIR CAMERAS WERE TAKEN,
MONEY WAS TAKEN,
CREDIT CARDS WERE TAKEN.
AND THEY WOULD ALL SAY
IT WAS TIRTHA --
TOM DRESCHER'S DEVOTEE NAME.
THEY WOULD SAY, "THOMAS DRESCHER
BEAT THE HELL OUT OF ME,"
BUT NOBODY EVER
WANTED TO PROSECUTE.
Narrator:
HOW COULD A COMMUNITY DEVOTED
TO THE PRINCIPLES
OF PEACE AND LOVE
UNLEASH A MAN
LIKE THOMAS DRESCHER
ON ITS OWN MEMBERS?
DISILLUSIONED DEVOTEES BEGIN
QUESTIONING THE STATUS QUO.
♪♪♪♪
- ♪♪ HARE ♪♪
- ♪♪ HARE ♪♪
- ♪♪ KRISHNA ♪♪
- ♪♪ KRISHNA ♪♪
DESPITE ALL THE PROMISE
OF LOVE AND INNER PEACE,
[ SITAR PLAYS ]
THE DEVOTEES BEGIN TO REALIZE
THERE'S A DARK SIDE
TO NEW VRINDABAN...
DURING THE 1980s, ESPECIALLY,
THERE WAS A LOT OF
UNFORTUNATE INCIDENCES.
Narrator:
...AND IT HAD BEEN IN FRONT
OF THEM THE WHOLE TIME.
[chanting]
HARE KRISHNA
HARE KRISHNA.
SURRENDER,
SURRENDER, SURRENDER.
HEAD GURU KIRTANANANDA
DEMANDS ABSOLUTE OBEDIENCE
FROM ALL OF HIS FOLLOWERS.
HE WOULD RISE EARLIER
THAN ANYBODY ELSE
AND HE WOULD WAKE US UP
IN THE ASHRAM.
HE'D WALK ALONG AND, IF SOMEONE
WASN'T GETTING UP FAST ENOUGH,
HE'D WHACK 'EM WITH HIS CANE.
Narrator:
THE SWAMI BELIEVES VIOLENCE
IS EVEN NECESSARY
WITH WOMEN.
I CAN'T SAY THAT THERE WOULD
NEVER BE A CIRCUMSTANCE
WHEN IT WOULDN'T BE THE BEST
[chuckle] THING IN THE WORLD
TO GIVE HER A LITTLE SLAP
ON THE FACE OR --
Y-- JUST LIKE, UH, MY DOG.
Narrator:
CHILDREN ARE SEPARATED
FROM THEIR PARENTS
AFTER THE AGE OF FOUR.
THEY ALSO WERE
SUPER-OVERMANAGED.
THEY WERE MADE TO ACT
LIKE LITTLE ADULTS.
THEY WERE EXPECTED TO CHANT
AND TO SIT QUIET.
THEY USED TO SAY,
"NOT A BLADE OF GRASS MOVES
WITHOUT KIRTANANANDA
KNOWING ABOUT IT."
I WAS AFRAID OF HIM.
Narrator:
KIRTANANANDA COUNSELS DEVOTEES
NOT TO LET THE OUTSIDE WORLD
KNOW ABOUT THE TRUE
GOINGS-ON WITHIN.
Doktorski:
KIRTANANANDA ALWAYS TOLD US,
"YOU SHOULD NOT TALK
TO ANYONE ELSE,
SUCH AS THE POLICE.
WE DON'T WANT PEOPLE
TO KNOW ABOUT
ANY NEGATIVE THINGS
THAT MIGHT HAPPEN HERE."
Narrator:
DRESCHER MAY NOT
HAVE ANYTHING TO DO
WITH CHARLES'S DISAPPEARANCE,
BUT, IF SOMETHING HAS
HAPPENED TO HIM,
THE COMPOUND'S HEAD ENFORCER
WILL LIKELY KNOW ABOUT IT.
WESTFALL TRIES
TO TRACK HIM DOWN,
BUT IT SEEMS DRESCHER'S
GONE INTO HIDING.
I WAS BEING TOLD OFFICIALLY
THAT HE'S BEEN
REMOVED FROM THE PROPERTY,
BUT I HAVE OTHER PEOPLE
TELLING ME THAT HE'S THERE,
THAT HE'S STILL COMING BACK,
AND THAT HE LIVES IN THE AREA.
♪♪♪♪
Narrator: AT THIS POINT,
WESTFALL BECOMES CONVINCED
SOMETHING HAS HAPPENED
TO CHARLES.
HE CONFRONTS THE SWAMI.
SWAMI BHAKTIPADA TOLD DEVOTEES
NOT TO TALK TO ME
AND I SAID, "LISTEN,
I'M GONNA TALK TO YOU"
AND HE SAID, "WELL, I MAY NOT
WANNA TALK TO YOU."
AND I ASKED HIM
DIRECTLY ABOUT IT.
I SAID, "WHAT DO YOU KNOW
ABOUT THE ST. DENIS CASE?"
AND HE SAID,
"OH, EVERYBODY KNOWS:
HE'S GONE TO CALIFORNIA
OR GONE TO DO SOMETHING.
HE'S NOT HERE, HE'LL PROBABLY
NEVER COME BACK HERE,
AND WE DON'T CARE."
Narrator:
EQUALLY TIGHT-LIPPED
IS DAN REID,
THE MAN CHARLES WAS ON HIS WAY
TO SEE THE NIGHT HE VANISHED.
JUST SAID THAT CHARLES
ST. DENIS HAD NOT BEEN THERE.
Narrator:
THE NEXT STOP?
BIG JOHN'S.
IT'S STILL A MYSTERY,
WHY CHARLES'S CAR
WAS PARKED NEAR HIS HOME.
Westfall:
BIG JOHN WAS VERY
HONEST WITH US.
HE COOPERATED
AS MUCH AS HE COULD.
IT BECAME PRETTY CLEAR TO ME
THIS WAS NOT PART
OF WHAT BIG JOHN DID.
MY BELIEF WAS SOMEBODY
PUT THE VEHICLE THERE.
[ SUSPENSEFUL CHORDS STRIKING ]
Narrator: BUT WHO, AND WHY?
[ RING ]
AFTER WEEKS OF DEAD ENDS,
THE KRISHNA COP FINALLY UNCOVERS
A POTENTIAL BOMBSHELL.
THERE'D BEEN SOME
HARSH DEALINGS
BETWEEN DAN REID
AND ST. DENIS.
DAN HAD HEARD TALK
THAT HIS WIFE
WAS HAVING AN AFFAIR
WITH ST. DENIS.
AND REID'S REACTION WAS
IT MUST'VE BEEN RAPE.
[ SUSPENSEFUL MUSIC CLIMBS ]
SO THAT MADE HIM REALLY,
REALLY ANGRY AT ST. DENIS.
A VERSE FROM THE
"SRIMAD BHAGAVATAM" SAYS
"ONE WHO RAPES A WIFE
DESERVES TO BE KILLED,
WITH NO PUNISHMENT GIVEN
TO THE EXECUTIONER."
[ SUSPENSEFUL CHORD STRIKES ]
[ ELECTRONICA PLAYS ]
[ CLOCK TICKING,
ELECTRICITY CRACKLING ]
[ SUSPENSEFUL MUSIC PLAYS ]
Narrator: IT'S BEEN TWO WEEKS
SINCE DEBORAH GERE'S HUSBAND,
CHARLES ST. DENIS,
VANISHED WITHOUT A TRACE
FROM THE HARE KRISHNA COMMUNITY
NEW VRINDABAN.
DEBORAH'S REALLY, REALLY,
REALLY UPSET.
SHE'S FRANTIC.
Narrator:
SGT. TOM WESTFALL HAS UNCOVERED
A DISTURBING ALLEGATION
ABOUT DAN REID,
THE MAN CHARLES WAS HEADING TO
SEE RIGHT BEFORE HE DISAPPEARED.
HE FELT HIS WIFE, BRENDA,
HAD BEEN RAPED
BY CHARLES ST. DENIS.
DAN HAD HEARD TALK
THAT HIS WIFE
WAS HAVING AN AFFAIR
WITH ST. DENIS
AND, WHEN HE APPROACHED
HER ABOUT IT,
SHE SAID IT WAS A RAPE.
DEBORAH SAYS THAT SHE KNEW
ABOUT THE RELATIONSHIP
BETWEEN CHARLES ST. DENIS
AND BRENDA,
BUT THAT IT WAS JUST AN AFFAIR.
THERE WAS NEVER ANY RAPE.
Narrator:
DEBORAH HAS FORGIVEN CHARLES
FOR WHAT SHE BELIEVES
WAS A BRIEF DALLIANCE
THAT ENDED LONG AGO.
BUT DAN HAD JUST HEARD ABOUT THE
TRANSGRESSION A MONTH EARLIER.
IF DAN BELIEVED THAT CHARLES
HAD RAPED HIS WIFE,
COULD HE HAVE GOTTEN
HIS OWN BRAND OF JUSTICE
BY GOING AFTER CHARLES
THE NIGHT OF HIS DISAPPEARANCE?
Westfall:
WHEN I TALKED TO DAN REID,
HIS VOICE CRACKED,
I COULD SEE
THAT HE WAS SWEATING,
AND HE WAS SHAKING A LITTLE BIT.
I COULDN'T EXACTLY SAY
THAT HE WAS NERVOUS
BECAUSE HE HAD DONE SOMETHING,
BUT I KNEW THAT HE WAS NERVOUS
ABOUT TALKING TO ME.
BUT HE SAID HE LIKED
CHARLES ST. DENIS.
Narrator:
THERE ISN'T A SHRED OF EVIDENCE
THAT HE KNOWS
WHAT HAPPENED TO CHARLES.
WESTFALL CONTINUES TO SUSPECT
THAT THE VOLATILE
THOMAS DRESCHER IS THE LINCHPIN.
DRESCHER TRIED TO INTIMIDATE
ST. DENIS.
Narrator:
BUT DRESCHER HAS NOT BEEN SEEN
ON THE COMPOUND FOR WEEKS
AND HE'S NOT THE ONLY ONE
WHO'S MADE A HASTY EXIT.
WHEN WESTFALL GOES BACK
TO INTERVIEW DAN AGAIN,
HE FINDS OUT HE'S GONE, TOO.
DAN REID MOVES BACK
TO LOS ANGELES.
Westfall:
HE CRATED UP HIS MOTORCYCLE
AND SHIPPED IT, AND HE'S GONE.
I DIDN'T HAVE ANY REASON TO GET
A WARRANT FOR HIM AT THAT POINT,
BUT I THOUGHT THAT
WAS VERY CURIOUS.
♪♪♪♪
Narrator:
MONTHS INTO THE INVESTIGATION,
POLICE ARE NO CLOSER
TO SOLVING THE MYSTERIOUS
DISAPPEARANCE.
DEBORAH GERE WAS VERY
FRUSTRATED BY THE FACT
THAT WE WERE
NOT GETTING ANY FURTHER.
Narrator:
WESTFALL IS STONEWALLED
ON ALL SIDES:
[ STATIC CRACKLES ]
THE SWAMI WON'T COOPERATE,
THE PEOPLE WHO MAY KNOW
WHAT HAPPENED HAVE LEFT,
AND IT APPEARS THE DEVOTEES
HAVE BEEN ORDERED TO KEEP QUIET.
AS MONTHS TURN INTO YEARS,
THE INVESTIGATION SPUTTERS
TO A DEAD HALT.
[ SUSPENSEFUL CHORD STRIKES ]
Westfall:
WE COULDN'T GO ANY FURTHER.
WE DID NOT HAVE THE BODY.
WE WERE SORT OF
IN PURGATORY ON THIS.
Narrator:
BUT WESTFALL NEVER
LETS GO OF THE CASE,
KNOWING THAT DEBORAH
HASN'T, EITHER.
Westfall:
IT WAS VERY DIFFICULT
FOR DEBORAH.
A SPOUSE WHO'S DISAPPEARED.
SO, I MEAN, IT HAD A GREATER
IMPACT ON HER THAN ANYBODY,
AND I THINK SHE SHOWED
THE STRESS OVER THE YEARS.
BUT I CONTINUED TO INVESTIGATE.
I WAS FORMING UP A GROUP
OF POLICE OFFICERS
ALL AROUND THE COUNTRY
WHO HAD HAD DEALINGS
WITH THE HARE KRISHNAS.
[ SUSPENSEFUL CHORD STRIKES ]
[ CLOCK TICKING ]
[ ELECTRICITY CRACKLING ]
[ OMINOUS CHORD STRIKES ]
Narrator:
NEARLY THREE YEARS AFTER
CHARLES ST. DENIS VANISHES,
THE SERGEANT GETS
A DISTURBING CALL
FROM THE LOS ANGELES POLICE.
[ RING ]
A FORMER NEW VRINDABAN
MEMBER LIVING THERE,
NAMED STEVE BRYANT,
WAS MURDERED.
EXECUTION-STYLE.
HE WAS PARKED IN HIS VAN.
[ EERIE MUSIC PLAYS ]
Westfall:
SOMEONE WALKED UP TO HIS VAN,
TAPPED ON THE WINDOW,
[ KNOCKING ]
SO THAT STEVEN BRYANT
WOULD TURN AND LOOK AT HIM.
♪♪♪♪
AND, WHEN HE DID, HE FIRED
TWO SHOTS INTO HIS HEAD.
[ GUNSHOT ]
[ GUNSHOT ]
AND KILLED HIM.
♪♪♪♪
Narrator:
WESTFALL IMMEDIATELY SUSPECTS
THE CALIFORNIA KILLING
IS CONNECTED TO CHARLES
ST. DENIS'S DISAPPEARANCE.
STEVEN BRYANT HAD BEEN
A DEVOTEE AT NEW VRINDABAN
AND REALLY HAD BEEN
A CONTROVERSIAL CHARACTER.
HE WAS EXPELLED
FROM THE COMMUNITY BY SWAMI
AND WAS SPEAKING
AGAINST BHAKTIPADA.
STEVE BRYANT WAS CONCERNED
WITH THE VARIOUS ACTIVITIES
HAPPENING AT NEW VRINDABAN.
HE STARTED TRAVELING
AROUND THE COUNTRY,
VISITING OTHER DISGRUNTLED
FORMER RESIDENTS,
AND HE FOUND OUT MORE AND MORE
ABOUT ALLEGATIONS
AGAINST THE SWAMI.
HERE WAS STEVEN BRYANT,
WHO WAS A DISSIDENT,
AND, YET, HIS PUNISHMENT
WAS NOT JUST BANISHMENT.
HE WAS MURDERED.
THAT MURDER WAS DONE AS
AN EXAMPLE TO SCARE PEOPLE OFF.
[ GUNSHOT ]
THE MURDER WAS ONE OF THE BIG
TURNING-POINT MOMENTS
BECAUSE THINGS WERE
NEVER THE SAME.
[ EERIE MUSIC CLIMBS ]
[ HEARTBEAT ]
[ CLOCK TICKING,
ELECTRICITY CRACKLING ]
[ OMINOUS CHORD STRIKES ]
[ GUNSHOT ]
Narrator: A LOS ANGELES MURDER
[ GUNSHOT ]
MAY FINALLY LEAD TO ANSWERS
ABOUT CHARLES ST. DENIS'S
DISAPPEARANCE
FROM A HARE KRISHNA COMMUNITY
OVER 2,300 MILES AWAY.
THE SHOOTING VICTIM,
STEVE BRYANT,
ONCE BELONGED TO THE SAME
WEST VIRGINIA COMPOUND
AS CHARLES:
NEW VRINDABAN.
THE STEVE BRYANT MURDER WAS
A VERY HIGH-PROFILE INCIDENT.
IT WAS A CLEAR CASE OF MURDER.
THIS BEGINS TO DRAW
SOME LARGER MEDIA SCRUTINY
TO THE NEW VRINDABAN COMMUNITY.
Westfall:
HE WAS KILLED ON THE
STREETS OF LOS ANGELES.
THE MEDIA IS A LITTLE BIT
THICKER IN LOS ANGELES
THAN IT IS
IN NORTHERN WEST VIRGINIA.
THE KRISHNAS OF THE '80s
LIVE IN A SOMEWHAT
MORE SHADOWY WORLD.
WE HAD NETWORKS IN
AND WE HAD NEWS MAGAZINE SHOWS
COMING IN AND DOING PIECES.
THE ORGANIZATION WAS
VERY OUT OF CONTROL.
Narrator: BRYANT WAS
A DISAFFECTED KRISHNA
WHO QUIT THE COMPOUND IN 1984,
ONE YEAR AFTER
ST. DENIS DISAPPEARED.
STEVEN BRYANT
WAS A DISSIDENT
AND HE WAS UNHAPPY WITH HOW
KIRTANANANDA WAS RUNNING THINGS.
HE BECAME MORE
AND MORE FRUSTRATED
WITH TRYING TO GET
SOMEWHERE AT THE COMMUNE
AND HE FINALLY DECIDED
THAT HE HAD HAD IT.
HE WANTED TO LEAVE.
[ STATIC CRACKLES ]
AND HE SAID THAT
HE WOULD DESTROY
ME AND THE COMMUNITY.
Narrator: BRYANT GOES
ON A ONE-MAN ODYSSEY,
TRACKING DOWN EX-DEVOTEES
ACROSS THE COUNTRY.
HE STARTED AN INVESTIGATION
TO FIND SOME DIRT
ON KIRTANANANDA,
AND HE FOUND LOTS OF IT.
Narrator:
BRYANT UNCOVERS VARIOUS SCHEMES
KIRTANANANDA BHAKTIPADA UTILIZES
TO FUND THE UPKEEP AND EXPANSION
OF HIS ORNATE PALACE.
BECAUSE OF HIS GOALS, BHAKTIPADA
HAD A VERY BIG NEED FOR MONEY.
WHICH MEANT COLLECTING MONEY,
BY ANY MEANS POSSIBLE.
Westfall:
THERE'S A SORT OF FAMOUS PICTURE
OF HIM SEATED ON A THRONE
AND HE'S COVERED IN MONEY
THAT WAS BROUGHT IN.
HE'S CELEBRATING
THE MONEY COLLECTION.
Woman:
THEY DID NOT DRESS UP
AS THEY DID IN NEW VRINDABAN.
THEY MADE IT VERY CLEAR
THAT IT WAS IMPORTANT
NOT TO BE NOTICED
OR KNOWN AS A HARE KRISHNA.
FUND-RAISING PRACTICES
THAT WERE EXTREMELY
QUESTIONABLE, AT BEST.
THEY COLLECTED MONEY
IN THE NAME OF NORML,
THE MARIJUANA ORGANIZATION.
THEY COLLECTED MONEY IN THE
NAME OF THE GIRL SCOUTS.
THEY WOULD ASK FOR MONEY TO HELP
STARVING CHILDREN IN APPALACHIA.
♪♪♪♪
Narrator:
BRYANT ALSO DETAILS
SHOCKING ALLEGATIONS
INVOLVING CHILDREN.
VARIOUS ACTIVITIES HAPPENING
AT NEW VRINDABAN,
ESPECIALLY CHILD ABUSE
AND SEXUAL ABUSE
OF CHILDREN IN THE COMMUNITY.
THEY HAD A SCHOOL
AT THE PROPERTY
AND THEY HAD CHILD ABUSERS
WORKING ON THE STAFF.
Narrator:
BRYANT TAKES HIS STORY
TO THE MEDIA.
EVEN MORE DAMNING?
DISTURBING ACCUSATIONS
THAT THE GURU HIMSELF
IS A SEXUAL PREDATOR.
BRYANT FOUND OUT MORE AND MORE
ABOUT THESE ALLEGATIONS
OF THE SWAMI HAVING
SEXUAL RELATIONS
WITH THE BOYS
AT NEW VRINDABAN.
Rader:
STEVE HAD MANY AUDIOCASSETTES
ABOUT SEXUAL MOLESTATION
OF THE BOYS.
Narrator:
BRYANT KNEW HE WAS
PLAYING WITH FIRE.
ONE RECORDING IS
EERILY FOREBODING.
[ GUNSHOT ]
Narrator:
NOW? HIS WORST PREDICTIONS
HAVE COME TRUE.
WITH STEVE BRYANT'S MURDER, ALL
EYES ARE NOW ON NEW VRINDABAN
AND, FOR CHARLES ST. DENIS'S
WIFE, DEBORAH,
IT'S THE BREAK SHE'S BEEN
WAITING FOR FOR THREE YEARS.
THERE WAS SO MUCH
MEDIA ATTENTION
THAT CAME AFTER THE BRYANT CASE
THAT DEBORAH GERE
WAS NO LONGER SOMEBODY
CRYING IN THE WILDERNESS.
SHE HAD A LOT OF PEOPLE
PAYING ATTENTION
TO WHAT SHE HAD TO SAY.
THE MURDER OF STEVE BRYANT
WAS AN EXTREME
TURNING POINT
FOR THE COMMUNITY BECAUSE
THAT'S WHEN THE FEDERAL
GOVERNMENT GOT INVOLVED.
[ SUSPENSEFUL CHORD STRIKES ]
Westfall:
WE FORMED THIS TASK FORCE.
THERE WERE TWO TROOPERS
AND THERE WAS AN FBI AGENT.
WHEN THE FEDERAL GOVERNMENT
ENTERED THE CASE,
WE HAD A LOT MORE RESOURCES.
THAT HELPED QUITE A BIT.
Narrator: TWO DAYS
AFTER BRYANT'S MURDER,
[ GUNSHOT ]
A NEW FIGURE EMERGES:
A FRIGHTENED OLDER MAN
NAMED RANDALL GORBY.
HE MADE CONTACT WITH A TROOPER
WHOM HE KNEW PERSONALLY
FROM UP IN THE AREA.
Narrator:
GORBY DID LAND DEALS
FOR THE SWAMI.
HE'S FRIENDS
WITH THOMAS DRESCHER
AND HE HAS A SPINE-TINGLING
STORY TO TELL.
HE TELLS THEM THAT HE KNOWS
WHO KILLED STEVE BRYANT.
WHILE THOMAS DRESCHER WAS SORT
OF HIDING OUT AT GORBY'S HOUSE
TO STAY AWAY
FROM NEW VRINDABAN, AND ME,
HE TOLD RANDALL GORBY THAT "I'M
GOING TO KILL STEVEN BRYANT."
Narrator:
AFTER THE BRYANT MURDER
BECOMES FRONT-PAGE NEWS,
HE REALIZES DRESCHER
WAS DEAD SERIOUS.
NOW, GORBY'S TERRIFIED
THAT DRESCHER MAY REGRET
HIS CONFESSION
AND COULD COME AFTER HIM NEXT.
DRESCHER MUST'VE RECOGNIZED
THAT HE HAD A LOOSE END
THAT HE NEEDED TO CLOSE.
Narrator:
BUT THAT'S NOT ALL.
THERE'S ONE MORE SHOCKING
REVELATION THAT CAME OUT
DURING THE DISTURBING
CONVERSATION.
DRESCHER TELLS GORBY,
"I'M GONNA HAVE TO KILL
STEVE BRYANT
JUST LIKE I DID ST. DENIS."
[ SUSPENSEFUL MUSIC CLIMBS ]
[ SUSPENSEFUL
CHORD STRIKES ]
[ ELECTRONICA PLAYS ]
[ CLOCK TICKING,
ELECTRICITY CRACKLING ]
[ SUSPENSEFUL MUSIC PLAYS ]
Narrator: RANDALL GORBY
HAS JUST GIVEN SGT. TOM WESTFALL
THE BREAK
HE'S BEEN WAITING FOR:
THE NAME OF THE
PERSON RESPONSIBLE
FOR CHARLES ST. DENIS'S
MYSTERIOUS DISAPPEARANCE.
I KNEW THAT THOMAS DRESCHER
WAS INVOLVED.
Narrator:
GORBY TELLS INVESTIGATORS
THAT DRESCHER SAID
HE KILLED ST. DENIS
AND ANOTHER KRISHNA DEVOTEE:
STEVE BRYANT.
HE AGREES TO BE
A POLICE INFORMANT.
GORBY ALLOWS THEM
TO TAP HIS PHONE.
HE HAS A CONVERSATION
WITH DRESCHER
ABOUT THE STEVE BRYANT MURDER.
Narrator:
THE RECORDING PROVIDES
DAMNING EVIDENCE
THAT DRESCHER WAS A PAID
ASSASSIN WHO KILLED BRYANT.
IT WAS A CONVERSATION
ABOUT WHY DRESCHER
HADN'T GOTTEN THE FULL $8,000
FOR KILLING BRYANT.
Narrator:
THE SOURCE OF THAT MONEY?
SWAMI BHAKTIPADA.
[ SUSPENSEFUL CHORD STRIKES ]
[ SUSPENSEFUL MUSIC PLAYS ]
Narrator:
WHEN CONFRONTED,
THE SWAMI VEHEMENTLY DENIES
ANY INVOLVEMENT
IN BRYANT'S DEATH.
DID YOU GIVE THE ORDER
TO MURDER STEVE BRYANT?
[ LAUGHS ]
I'M SURPRISED AT YOU.
OF COURSE NOT.
I COULD NOT DO THAT.
WE DON'T EVEN KILL ANIMALS.
Narrator:
AS MAJOR NEWS NETWORKS
CONTINUE TO SHINE A HARSH
LIGHT ON NEW VRINDABAN,
SGT. WESTFALL HOPES THE GLARE
WILL REFLECT BACK
TO THE UNSOLVED DISAPPEARANCE
OF CHARLES ST. DENIS
AND DEVOTEES WILL COME FORWARD.
HIS HOPE IS REALIZED WHEN
THREE KRISHNAS TELL WESTFALL
THAT DRESCHER ALSO MADE
MURDEROUS CONFESSIONS TO THEM.
DRESCHER BRAGGED THAT
HE KILLED ST. DENIS.
[ OMINOUS CHORD STRIKES ]
Westfall:
WE HAD FORMAL STATEMENTS
FROM EVERYBODY.
WE HAD DEVELOPED
MORE INFORMATION.
Narrator:
THE STUNNING INFORMATION
REVEALED THAT DRESCHER WAS NOT
THE ONLY ONE INVOLVED IN THE
MURDER OF CHARLES ST. DENIS.
DAN REID WAS AN ACCOMPLICE.
REID IS SAYING, "I WANT
TO KILL THIS ST. DENIS
BECAUSE MY WIFE SAYS
HE RAPED HER."
I DON'T KNOW THAT WE EVER
KNEW WHETHER OR NOT
THAT RAPE EVER OCCURRED.
Narrator:
IN EARLY JULY,
WHILE AWAITING TRIAL
FOR THE MURDER OF STEVE BRYANT,
THOMAS DRESCHER,
ALONG WITH DAN REID,
IS INDICTED ON CHARGES OF
MURDERING CHARLES ST. DENIS.
BUT THERE'S ONE MAJOR HURDLE:
ST. DENIS'S BODY?
HAS STILL NOT BEEN FOUND.
WE WERE HAUNTED BY THE
POSSIBILITY OF LOSING THE CASE
BECAUSE WE DID NOT HAVE A BODY,
BUT TIME RAN OUT.
[ SUSPENSEFUL CHORD STRIKES ]
[ CLOCK TICKING ]
[ ELECTRICITY CRACKLING ]
[ OMINOUS CHORD STRIKES ]
[ SUSPENSEFUL MUSIC PLAYS ]
Narrator: ON A COLD WINTER DAY,
THE TRIAL BEGINS.
Reporter:
ONE WITNESS CALLED TODAY,
DEBORAH GERE,
WAS LIVING WITH ST. DENIS
WHEN HE DISAPPEARED.
Narrator:
DEBORAH GERE TELLS THE JURY
ABOUT THE FEUD
BETWEEN HER HUSBAND
AND THOMAS DRESCHER.
RANDALL GORBY AND THREE KRISHNA
DEVOTEES ALSO TESTIFY
ABOUT HOW DRESCHER BRAGGED
TO THEM ABOUT MURDERING CHARLES.
THE TRIAL LASTS FOUR DAYS.
Reporter:
THE PROSECUTION HAS
TWO PREMISES TO PROVE:
ONE, CHARLES ST. DENIS
IS ACTUALLY DEAD,
EVEN THOUGH THE BODY
WAS NEVER FOUND;
AND TWO, THAT THOMAS DRESCHER
KILLED HIM.
Narrator:
DRESCHER SITS SMUGLY
THROUGH THE TRIAL,
CONVINCED THAT, WITH NO HARD
EVIDENCE AND NO BODY,
THERE WILL BE NO CONVICTION.
AND THEN, ON DECEMBER 5, 1986,
THE VERDICT IS ANNOUNCED.
Reporter:
THE JURY FOUND THOMAS DRESCHER
GUILTY IN THE FIRST DEGREE OF
MURDERING CHARLES ST. DENIS.
[ OMINOUS CHORD STRIKES ]
Narrator:
DRESCHER IS SENTENCED
TO LIFE IN PRISON
WITHOUT PAROLE.
I THINK THOMAS DRESCHER
WAS PRETTY STARTLED.
[ SUSPENSEFUL CHORD STRIKES ]
♪♪♪♪
Narrator:
REID, WHO HAS NOT YET
GONE TO TRIAL,
IS SPOOKED BY THE SWIFT,
AND HARSH, OUTCOME.
IT WAS NOT LONG AFTER THAT
THAT DAN REID'S ATTORNEY
OFFERED A DEAL:
THAT HE WOULD PLEAD
TO MANSLAUGHTER
AND THAT HE WOULD SHOW
THE INVESTIGATORS
WHERE THE BODY WAS BURIED.
Narrator:
AND INVESTIGATORS LEARNED,
FOR THE FIRST TIME,
EXACTLY WHAT HAPPENED
THE NIGHT CHARLES ST. DENIS
LEFT HIS HOME MORE THAN
THREE YEARS EARLIER
AND NEVER RETURNED.
[ OMINOUS CHORD STRIKES ]
[ SUSPENSEFUL CHORD STRIKES ]
[ CLOCK TICKING ]
[ ELECTRICITY CRACKLING ]
[ OMINOUS CHORD STRIKES ]
[ OMINOUS MUSIC PLAYS ]
THAT NIGHT,
AS ST. DENIS WAS WINDING DOWN
AFTER HIS PLANTING PARTY,
DAN REID AND THOMAS DRESCHER
LAUNCHED THEIR PLAN
TO LURE CHARLES TO A CABIN.
[ RING ]
Rader:
CHARLES ST. DENIS
GETS A CALL FROM DAN REID.
[ EERIE MUSIC PLAYS ]
HE'S THINKING THAT THEY'RE GOING
TO DO SOME COCAINE TOGETHER
AND HE TELLS DEBORAH
THAT HE HAS TO GO MEET DAN.
♪♪♪♪
CHARLES DRIVES UP TO MEET DAN.
Doktorski:
DAN WAS SITTING
IN THE SHADOWS
AND DRESCHER WAS
BEHIND THE DOOR.
AND ST. DENIS
PULLS UP IN HIS JEEP.
HE WALKS OUT.
AND THEN DAN CONFRONTS HIM.
♪♪♪♪
Rader:
DRESCHER SAYS, "STEP INSIDE.
WE WANT TO TALK TO YOU."
AT THAT POINT,
CHARLES ST. DENIS
TURNS TO RUN AWAY.
Westfall:
DRESCHER HAD A.22 PISTOL
[ TWO GUNSHOTS ]
AND SHOT HIM ABOUT 11 TIMES.
[ THREE GUNSHOTS ]
ST. DENIS WENT DOWN,
BUT HE DIDN'T DIE.
ST. DENIS IS SAYING,
"WHAT ARE YOU GUYS DOING,
SHOOTING ME,
YOU KNOW, BULLETS IN ME?"
Rader:
HE'S STILL TRYING TO GET BACK
TO HIS TRUCK TO ESCAPE.
THOMAS DRESCHER YELLS
TO DAN REID, "GET ME A KNIFE!"
DAN REID -- HE'S FREAKING OUT
BY THIS POINT --
RUNS AND GETS HIM A KNIFE.
♪♪♪♪
THOMAS DRESCHER STABS
CHARLES ST. DENIS
MULTIPLE TIMES.
THEY'RE KILLING THE GUY
AND THEY'RE ORDERING HIM,
"CHANT HARE KRISHNA."
Choir: ♪♪ HARE KRISHNA ♪♪
♪♪ HARE KRISHNA ♪♪
- THEY DID ENOUGH TO KILL 10 MEN,
BUT ST. DENIS WAS
SOMEHOW STILL BREATHING.
ST. DENIS WOULD NOT DIE.
- ♪♪ HARE HARE ♪♪
- THEY WRAP HIM IN PLASTIC.
- ♪♪ HARE RAMA ♪♪
Narrator:
THE MEN ARE CONVINCED
THAT CHARLES IS FINALLY DEAD.
BUT, JUST LIKE A CHARACTER
IN A HORROR MOVIE...
HE OPENED HIS EYES AND SAID,
"DON'T PUT THAT OVER MY FACE.
YOU'LL SMOTHER ME."
[ OMINOUS CHORD STRIKES ]
Narrator:
DRESCHER AND REID DRIVE
ST. DENIS TO A NEARBY CREEK.
WHEN DRESCHER AND REID BURIED
ST. DENIS IN THE CREEK,
HE WAS STILL BREATHING.
THE CAUSE OF DEATH
WAS DROWNING, TECHNICALLY.
Young:
TOM DRESCHER BURIED THAT BODY
UNDER A MOVING STREAM.
THAT WILL CONFUSE DOGS.
THAT WILL CONFUSE
ANY KIND OF SEARCH PARTY.
AFTER THEY BURY
CHARLES ST. DENIS,
THEY TAKE HIS TRUCK.
THEY DRIVE TO BIG JOHN'S FARM.
THEY PARK THE TRUCK THERE.
Choir: ♪♪ HARE HARE ♪♪
I SAID, "NO ONE'S EVER
GONNA FIND THAT GUY."
[ OMINOUS CHORD STRIKES ]
ST. DENIS WOULD'VE
NEVER BEEN FOUND,
IF DAN REID HADN'T HAVE GONE
TO THE AUTHORITIES
AND SHOWN THEM
WHERE THE BODY WAS.
[ EERIE MUSIC-BOX
LULLABY PLAYS ]
Narrator:
INVESTIGATORS FINALLY
HAVE THEIR ANSWER
AS TO HOW CHARLES ST. DENIS
WAS KILLED.
BUT THERE'S STILL ONE
MORE PERSON INVOLVED
IN THE GRUESOME TALE,
ONE WHO APPARENTLY
AUTHORIZED THE MURDER:
KIRTANANANDA SWAMI BHAKTIPADA.
[ OMINOUS CHORD STRIKES ]
Doktorski:
REID IS SAYING,
"I WANT TO KILL ST. DENIS."
DRESCHER SAYS, "YOU GOTTA COME
AND TALK TO KIRTANANANDA.
HE'LL KNOW WHAT'S
THE BEST THING TO DO."
I FINALLY TALKED HIM INTO
GOING TO SEE KIRTANANANDA.
Narrator:
AFTER MEETING WITH THE SWAMI,
REID CONTACTS DRESCHER.
I SAID, "HOW'D IT GO?"
HE SAYS, "HE WANTS ME
TO KILL HIM.
HE SAID TO GET WITH YOU AND MAKE
SURE THE JOB GOT DONE RIGHT.
BECAUSE OF HIS OFFENSES,
HE HAS TO DIE."
[ SINISTER FLOURISH PLAYS ]
DAN REID IS SENTENCED
TO FIVE YEARS
[ EERIE LULLABY CONTINUES ]
FOR VOLUNTARY MANSLAUGHTER
AS AN ACCOMPLICE IN THE KILLING
OF CHARLES ST. DENIS.
BUT INVESTIGATORS ARE UNABLE
TO PIN ANY RESPONSIBILITY
ONTO THE SWAMI.
IN CALIFORNIA, THOMAS DRESCHER
FACES YET ANOTHER TRIAL.
HE STILL HAD TO FACE THE TRIAL
FOR THE MURDER OF
STEVEN BRYANT IN CALIFORNIA,
WHICH, HE WAS LATER
BROUGHT OUT OF PRISON
AND TAKEN TO CALIFORNIA.
Narrator:
DRESCHER IS FOUND GUILTY
AND RECEIVES A SECOND
LIFE SENTENCE.
AND, WITH NOTHING LEFT TO LOSE,
HE FINALLY REVEALS THAT
THE SWAMI HAD HIS OWN REASONS
FOR WANTING ST. DENIS DEAD.
Drescher:
ST. DENIS WAS TELLING PEOPLE
KIRTANANANDA WAS HAVING
SEXUAL RELATIONS
WITH SOME OF THE MEXICAN
WORKER BOYS.
IT'S BECAUSE THERE WAS TRUTH
TO THESE ALLEGATIONS
THAT HE HAD TO BE SILENCED.
[ SUSPENSEFUL MUSIC PLAYS ]
WHATEVER I DID,
I DID OUT OF A SENSE OF DUTY
TO MY SPIRITUAL MASTER.
Rader:
DRESCHER REALIZES THAT
HE'S BEEN USED BY KIRTANANANDA.
HE TELLS POLICE THAT
KIRTANANANDA SANCTIONED
BOTH OF THESE MURDERS
AND HE IS VERY ADAMANT
THAT HE WOULD NEVER HAVE
DONE ANYTHING LIKE THAT
WITHOUT KIRTANANANDA'S
DIRECT PERMISSION.
Narrator:
INVESTIGATORS WORK DILIGENTLY
TO PUT THE SWAMI BEHIND BARS
FOR THE MURDERS OF ST. DENIS
AND STEVE BRYANT.
IN MAY OF 1990, KIRTANANANDA
IS INDICTED FOR MAIL FRAUD,
RACKETEERING, AND CONSPIRACY
TO COMMIT MURDER.
DRESCHER TESTIFIES
AGAINST KIRTANANANDA.
Narrator:
THROUGHOUT IT ALL, THE HEAD GURU
MAINTAINS HIS INNOCENCE.
THEY SAID THAT I CONSPIRED.
[scoff]
I DON'T SEE THAT.
♪♪♪♪
[ SUSPENSEFUL CHORD STRIKES ]
[ CLOCK TICKING ]
[ ELECTRICITY CRACKLING ]
[ OMINOUS CHORD STRIKES ]
Reporter:
SWAMI BHAKTIPADA WAS SENTENCED
TO 30 YEARS IN JAIL.
BHAKTIPADA WAS CONVICTED
ON NUMEROUS COUNTS.
Narrator:
THE SWAMI'S CONVICTIONS
ARE OVERTURNED ON APPEAL,
BUT DURING A RETRIAL,
HE PLEADS GUILTY
TO ONE COUNT OF RACKETEERING
AND GOES TO PRISON.
ALL THREE MEN CONNECTED
TO CHARLES ST. DENIS'S
BRUTAL MURDER
FOUND THEMSELVES BEHIND BARS.
I COULD NOT HELP BUT THINK THAT
DEBORAH WAS PROVED TO BE RIGHT.
SHE WAS VINDICATED.
[ MELANCHOLY TUNE PLAYS ]
Westfall:
THE ST. DENIS CASE
WAS THE BEGINNING OF THE END
OF THE REGIME
OF SWAMI BHAKTIPADA
AND THE BEGINNING
OF THE END OF HIS INFLUENCE
WITHIN THE KRISHNA
CONSCIOUSNESS MOVEMENT.
Narrator:
DURING THE 1980s,
NEW VRINDABAN
WAS AS MUCH A CRIME SCENE
AS A PLACE OF SPIRITUAL
ENLIGHTENMENT.
IN 1987,
NEW VRINDABAN WAS REMOVED
FROM THE SANCTIONED LIST OF
KRISHNA TEMPLES AND COMMUNITIES.
IT REGAINED ITS STATUS IN 1998.
IN MANY WAYS,
THE HARE KRISHNA COMMUNITY
IS VERY DIFFERENT
THAN IT WAS IN THE '80s.
THE TWO MURDERS OF ST. DENIS
AND STEVE BRYANT
TURNED THE TIDE
REGARDING THE CORRUPTION
AND IMMORAL ACTIVITIES
AND CRIMINAL ACTIVITIES
AT NEW VRINDABAN.
THE ST. DENIS MURDER
MAY HAVE BEEN
MORE IMPORTANT,
IN THE LONG RUN,
BECAUSE, AFTER TOM DRESCHER
WAS PUT IN JAIL,
THE DEVOTEES AT NEW VRINDABAN
BEGAN TO UNDERSTAND THAT
MAYBE GOOD DOES TRIUMPH
OVER EVIL.
Rader:
OBVIOUSLY, WHAT HAPPENED
IN NEW VRINDABAN IS A TRAGEDY.
CHARLES ST. DENIS WAS AN AMAZING
PERSON, IN HIS OWN WAY,
AND, IN ALL LIKELIHOOD,
WOULD HAVE SETTLED DOWN,
LIKE MOST OTHER PEOPLE WHO GOT
INTO DRUGS AND HAD A WILD TIME.
I JUST SEE SO MUCH
LOST POTENTIAL.
Choir:
♪♪ HARE KRISHNA ♪♪
THE KRISHNAS OF THE '80s
LIVE IN A SOMEWHAT
MORE SHADOWY WORLD.
[ SUSPENSEFUL MUSIC PLAYS ]
HE WAS WORSHIPPED
LITERALLY AS GOOD AS GOD.
YOU THOUGHT, "THIS IS WHAT
I NEED IN MY LIFE.
THIS IS THE KEY TO HAPPINESS."
[ EERIE MUSIC PLAYS ]
I WAS BEING TOLD OFFICIALLY
THAT HE'S BEEN REMOVED
FROM THE PROPERTY.
I SAID, "NO ONE'S EVER
GONNA FIND THAT GUY."
♪♪♪♪
[ "EIGHTIES" PLAYS ]
SHE WAS UPSET, NOT ONLY
BY THE FACT THAT HE WAS MISSING,
BUT IT SEEMED LIKE NOBODY CARED.
Kirtanananda:
WE DO NOT BELIEVE
IN NONVIOLENCE.
KRISHNA SAID, "FIGHT FOR ME."
THEY WERE AFRAID
FOR THEIR LIVES.
THAT MURDER WAS DONE AS
AN EXAMPLE TO SCARE PEOPLE OFF.
[ GUNSHOT ]
Killing Joke: ♪♪ AH AH AH AH ♪♪
♪♪ EIGHTIES ♪♪
♪♪ I'M LIVIN' IN THE EIGHTIES ♪♪
♪♪ EIGHTIES ♪♪
JUST SAY NO.
♪♪ WELL, I HAVE TO PUSH ♪♪
- [SIREN CHIRPS]
♪♪ I HAVE TO STRUGGLE, OH! ♪♪
♪♪ EIGHTIES ♪♪
[ CLOCK TICKS,
ELECTRICITY CRACKLES ]
Narrator: IT'S 1983.
"TRADING PLACES" IS A SMASH HIT
AT THE BOX OFFICE...
SELL 200 APRIL AT 142!
[ SHOUTING ]
[ RING ]
...MOBILE PHONES ARE INTRODUCED
- HELLO.
TO THE GENERAL PUBLIC
FOR THE FIRST TIME...
Announcer:
THIS COULD MAKE IT POSSIBLE
TO HAVE A PHONE
THAT TRAVELS WITH YOU.
...AND TELEVANGELISTS LIKE
JIM AND TAMMY FAYE BAKKER
ARE PREACHING A NEW KIND
OF RELIGIOUS DEVOTION
TO A MULTIMILLION-DOLLAR
MEDIA EMPIRE.
GIVE US 300 MORE PEOPLE
TO CALL ON THEIR
CREDIT CARD RIGHT NOW.
BUT NOT EVERYONE IS BOWING DOWN
TO THE ALMIGHTY DOLLAR.
[ STATIC CRACKLES ]
Choir: ♪♪ HARE KRISHNA ♪♪
Narrator:
THERE'S A GROUP THAT
OFFERS ANOTHER PATH
TO A SIMPLER WAY OF LIFE --
THE HARE KRISHNAS --
AND THEY PLAY OUT THEIR PUBLIC
DISPLAYS OF DEVOTION EVERYWHERE:
STREET CORNERS,
AIRPORTS,
EVEN THE MOVIES.
WOULD YOU LIKE
TO MAKE A DONATION?
NO THANKS.
WE GAVE AT THE OFFICE.
"AIRPLANE"
IS MY FAVORITE MOVIE
BECAUSE OF THE
HARE KRISHNA SPOOFS.
THEY WERE SUCH A PRESENCE
SOAKED INTO THE CULTURE.
Narrator:
IN A DECADE WHERE MONEY,
POWER, AND STATUS RULE,
THE KRISHNAS ARE A HOLDOUT
OF THE PEACE-AND-LOVE
COUNTERCULTURE OF THE '60s.
IT'S A RELIGION BASED
ON DIVINE LOVE,
LEARNING TO LOVE GOD,
AND TRYING TO DEVELOP
COMPASSION FOR ALL.
WE HAD PEOPLE
FROM ALL WALKS OF LIFE,
FROM TRUCK DRIVERS
TO COLLEGE PROFESSORS.
Muster:
THE '80s WAS THE HIGH POINT
FOR THE HARE KRISHNA MOVEMENT.
THEY HAD ABOUT 5,000 MEMBERS
IN THE UNITED STATES.
Narrator:
THOSE WHO COMMIT THEMSELVES
TO THE KRISHNAS
OFTEN HAVE ONE THING IN COMMON:
DISILLUSIONMENT.
Doktorski: IN MY CASE,
THERE WAS SOME EMPTINESS
THAT I WAS VAGUELY AWARE OF.
I WAS NOT HAPPY WITH THE WAY
MY LIFE WAS GOING AT THE TIME.
CHARLES ST. DENIS,
A 29-YEAR-OLD
CALIFORNIA TRANSPLANT,
ALSO SHARES A TROUBLED PAST.
[ CAMERA SHUTTER CLICKS ]
Rader: CHARLES ST. DENIS
WAS A VERY ATTRACTIVE MAN.
HE WAS A STRONG, TALL,
DARK, HANDSOME
SORT OF CHARACTER,
MUSCULAR, 6'2".
THE KIND OF IRREPRESSIBLE
PERSONALITY,
VERY OUTGOING, LARGER-THAN-LIFE.
ST. DENIS REALLY DIDN'T HAVE
WHAT MOST PEOPLE
WOULD CONSIDER
A HAPPY CHILDHOOD.
CHARLES ST. DENIS'S PARENTS
WERE ALCOHOLICS.
Narrator:
CHARLES'S FATHER ABANDONED
THE FAMILY WHEN HE WAS YOUNG.
[ SUSPENSEFUL MUSIC PLAYS ]
HE ACTUALLY RAN AWAY
WHEN HE WAS 11.
Narrator:
AFTER A TUMULTUOUS CHILDHOOD,
MARKED BY DRUG DEALING
AND JUVENILE HALL,
CHARLES FINDS THE FAMILY
HE NEVER REALLY HAD
ON THE SANTA CRUZ BOARDWALK.
WHEN HE FIRST MET THE HARE
KRISHNAS, HE WAS 16 YEARS OLD.
HE WAS SELLING LSD ON A PIER.
HE SAW THEM AS THE ANSWER
TO THE PROBLEMS IN HIS LIFE
AND HE THOUGHT, "THIS IS WHAT
I NEED IN MY LIFE.
THIS IS THE KEY TO HAPPINESS."
Narrator:
FOR THE FIRST TIME,
CHARLES HAS ORDER IN HIS LIFE.
THE KRISHNAS TELL HIM
WHEN TO WAKE UP, WHEN TO SLEEP,
AND WHAT TO DO IN BETWEEN.
HE GIVES UP DRUGS
AND DEVOTES HIMSELF
TO LIVING A SPIRITUAL LIFE,
A DECISION THAT WILL COME
AT THE ULTIMATE COST.
[ SINISTER MUSIC PLAYS ]
Choir:
♪♪ HARE KRISHNA ♪♪
IT'S A PROFOUND,
LIFE-ALTERING EXPERIENCE.
- ♪♪ KRISHNA, KRISHNA ♪♪
- Narrator: IN 1980,
CHARLES MOVES
TO A HARE KRISHNA COMMUNITY
IN WEST VIRGINIA,
CALLED NEW VRINDABAN.
Choir: ♪♪ HARE RAMA ♪♪
Reporter:
THE MEMBERS OF THE HARE
KRISHNA SECT WHO LIVE HERE
CALL THEIR HOME
AMERICA'S TAJ MAHAL.
- ♪♪ HARE ♪♪
- IN THE EARLY 1980s,
IT'S THIS REALLY GORGEOUS
TOURIST ATTRACTION HERE
IN WEST VIRGINIA.
Reporter:
GOLD, MARBLE, TEAK,
ALL OF IT HANDCRAFTED.
[ STATIC CRACKLES ]
Narrator:
INSIDE THE COMPOUND,
LIFE WAS LESS GRAND
FOR THE 500 OR SO DEVOTEES.
Doktorski:
MOST OF US JUST SLEPT ON THE
FLOOR IN OUR SLEEPING BAGS.
WE HAD TO GET UP AT 2:00 OR 3:00
IN THE MORNING EVERY DAY.
WE CHANTED FOR AN HOUR, THEN
THERE WAS THE MORNING SERVICE.
THEN, AFTER THAT, BREAKFAST,
AND THEN WORK ALL DAY LONG.
Narrator:
DESPITE THE VISITING TOURISTS,
THE KRISHNAS OF NEW VRINDABAN
ARE ISOLATED,
OPERATING WITHIN
THEIR OWN WORLD.
THE COMMUNITY INVOLVED
ESSENTIALLY EVERYTHING
YOU'D NEED TO RUN A SMALL CITY:
GROWING FOOD, THEIR OWN
WATER TREATMENT PLANT.
Narrator:
LEADING IT ALL?
KEITH HAM,
A BAPTIST MINISTER'S SON
FROM UPSTATE NEW YORK,
WHO'S KNOWN TO ALL DEVOTEES
BY HIS KRISHNA NAME:
KIRTANANANDA SWAMI BHAKTIPADA.
HE WAS LIKE A VERY WISE
AND COMPASSIONATE FATHER
THAT MAYBE I FELT I DID NOT HAVE
AS A CHILD, GROWING UP.
Rader:
KIRTANANANDA DEFINITELY
HAD A SPECIAL PRESENCE.
HE WAS WORSHIPED LITERALLY
AS GOOD AS GOD.
Muster:
I ALWAYS SAW HIM
AS A REALLY COMPLEX PERSON.
HE HAD POLIO AS A CHILD, THAT,
YOU KNOW,
PERMANENTLY SCARRED HIM.
Young:
HE SEEMED SO INFIRM, PHYSICALLY;
BUT HE WAS SO SHARP, MENTALLY.
HE COMMANDED A CERTAIN KIND
OF RESPECT BECAUSE OF THAT.
Doktorski:
WE ATTRIBUTED HIM
WITH DIVINE QUALITIES.
WE LOVED HIM, YOU KNOW?
AND IT SEEMED LIKE
HE LOVED US ALSO.
SO WE WERE HAPPY TO WORK
TO BUILD NEW VRINDABAN.
Narrator:
THE SWAMI WELCOMES 27-YEAR-OLD
CHARLES ST. DENIS,
WHO SHOWS HIS DEVOTION BY
LANDSCAPING THE PALACE GROUNDS.
LIKE ALL DEVOTEES,
HE WORKS FOR FREE.
KRISHNAS ARE TAUGHT TO LIVE
A STARKLY SIMPLE LIFE.
WHEN I MOVED IN,
THEY WANTED ME
TO THROW AWAY
ALL MY POSSESSIONS.
MOST OF US LIVED IN POVERTY.
YOU WERE EXPECTED
TO SURRENDER EVERYTHING.
YOU'RE LITERALLY SUPPOSED
TO GIVE UP ALL DESIRES
AND DESIRE TO ONLY PLEASE GOD.
Muster:
NO MEAT, NO INTOXICATION,
NO ILLICIT SEX,
AND NO GAMBLING.
ALSO, YOU HAD TO AGREE NOT
TO WATCH TV OR MOVIES,
NOT TO READ MAGAZINES,
NOT TO LISTEN TO POPULAR MUSIC.
EVERYTHING HAD TO BE
FOR KRISHNA.
[ MELANCHOLY TUNE PLAYS ]
Narrator:
CHARLES SOMETIMES SLIPS UP,
WHEN IT COMES TO THE
STRINGENT RESTRICTIONS.
HE WAS A GOOD DEVOTEE,
BUT, AT SOME POINT,
HE STARTED GOING INTO THE OLD
HABITS, WITH DRUGS AND SEX.
CHUCK WAS NOT BEYOND
HAVING HIS FAVORITE BEER,
AND HE MAY HAVE BROKEN SOME
OF THE OTHER RULES.
APPARENTLY VERY POPULAR WITH
THE LADIES AROUND NEW VRINDABAN.
Narrator:
RATHER THAN EXILING THOSE
WHO CAN'T FOLLOW THE RULES,
THERE'S A SPECIAL PLACE
FOR GUYS LIKE CHARLES.
HE BECOMES A FRINGY.
THEY'RE ON THE OUTSKIRTS
OF THE COMMUNITY,
SEVERAL MILES FROM THE TEMPLE.
Narrator:
FRINGIES ARE COMMITTED
TO THE SPIRIT OF KRISHNA
AND THE COMMUNITY
OF NEW VRINDABAN,
BUT NOT ALL OF THE RESTRICTIONS.
SOME WOULD COME
TO THE TEMPLE EVERY DAY.
MOST WOULD COME ONCE A WEEK.
THEY WEREN'T FOLLOWING
THE PRINCIPLES,
OF NO ILLICIT SEX,
NO INTOXICATION,
BUT, THE FRINGIES WERE STILL
SURRENDERED TO KIRTANANANDA.
[ SUSPENSEFUL MUSIC PLAYS ]
Narrator:
A YEAR AFTER HE MOVES
TO WEST VIRGINIA,
CHARLES FALLS HARD
FOR A FELLOW FRINGY:
DEBORAH GERE.
SHE WAS A COMMUNITY NURSE.
SHE WAS A VERY SMART LADY,
VERY TOUGH LADY.
SHE HAD LONG RED HAIR,
BIG BROWN EYES.
Doktorski:
THEY WERE A REALLY GOOD COUPLE,
VERY COMPATIBLE, WELL-MATCHED.
THEY WERE BOTH VERY
STRONG-WILLED PERSONS,
BUT, THEY FIGURED OUT HOW
TO WORK OUT THE DIFFERENCES
SO THAT THEY CAN STAY TOGETHER
IN A PEACEFUL RELATIONSHIP.
Narrator:
IN THE WINTER OF 1982,
DEBORAH COMES INTO
A SURPRISE INHERITANCE
AFTER HER FATHER DIES.
$50,000, WHICH, OF COURSE,
WAS A LOT MORE AT THAT TIME
AND, FOR HARE KRISHNAS,
YOU KNOW, NO ONE HAD ANY MONEY.
Narrator:
CHARLES AND DEBORAH WRESTLE
WITH A DIFFICULT DECISION:
DO THEY GO AGAINST
THE KRISHNA WAY?
NORMALLY, THAT WOULD
AUTOMATICALLY GO TO THE TEMPLE.
OR TO BHAKTIPADA,
KIRTANANANDA SWAMI.
CHARLES ST. DENIS HAS
THIS IDEA TO KEEP THE MONEY.
ST. DENIS WANTED
TO BE INDEPENDENT
AND START HIS OWN
NURSERY BUSINESS.
Narrator:
HE AND DEBORAH STRUGGLE
WITH THE DILEMMA.
CHARLES WANTS TO USE
THE MONEY TO OPEN
AND RUN THE BUSINESS HIS WAY,
BUT HE DOESN'T WANT TO BETRAY
HIS PLEDGE TO THE KRISHNAS.
THEY DECIDE THAT THEY'LL
GIVE HALF OF THE MONEY
TO THE COMMUNITY,
TO KIRTANANANDA.
Narrator:
THEY PROPOSE THIS TO THE SWAMI,
WHO GRUDGINGLY CONSENTS
TO THE DEAL.
I'M SURE HE PROBABLY
DIDN'T LIKE THE FACT
THAT CHARLES ST. DENIS
DIDN'T WANT TO GIVE
ALL THAT MONEY TO HIM.
Narrator:
CHARLES AND DEBORAH
EXCITEDLY BEGIN LOOKING
INTO BUILDING
THEIR NEW BUSINESS.
Doktorski:
AND THINGS WERE
LOOKING PROMISING.
EXCEPT, THEY HAD A SQUATTER
ON THEIR PROPERTY.
THIS WAS THOMAS DRESCHER.
HE WAS ALSO ANOTHER FRINGY.
[ STATIC CRACKLES ]
VERY TOUGH GUY.
HE WAS ABOUT 190 POUNDS,
ABOUT 6'0", MOSTLY ALL-MUSCLE.
HE CLAIMS THAT BHAKTIPADA SAID
HE COULD LIVE ON THAT PROPERTY.
PART OF WHY HE CAME
TO THE COMMUNITY WAS
TO SERVE AS A KIND OF PROTECTOR
OF THE COMMUNITY.
THERE WERE A LOT OF LOCALS
GOING BY THE COMPOUND AT NIGHT,
LIKE SHOOTING THE PLACE UP,
AND THERE WERE PEOPLE
LIKE BEATING UP THE DEVOTEES,
LIKE OUT ON LIKE ISOLATED ROADS.
THE SWAMI HAD TROUBLE
PROTECTING THE PLACE.
Drescher:
HE DID NEED SOMEONE THERE
TO PROTECT THE DEVOTEES.
I DID HAVE MILITARY EXPERIENCE.
IN VIETNAM,
I WAS PERSONALLY INVOLVED
IN QUITE A NUMBER OF
[ RAPID GUNFIRE ]
[ BLAST ]
CAMPAIGNS.
[ SUSPENSEFUL MUSIC PLAYS ]
Narrator: CHARLES REALIZES
THE ONLY WAY TO GET
DRESCHER TO MOVE IS
TO PAY HIM TO LEAVE THE HOUSE,
BUT THE VIETNAM VET
DOESN'T EXACTLY
GO QUIETLY INTO THE NIGHT.
HE TOOK A FEW THINGS,
LIKE THE KITCHEN SINK,
THE HOT WATER HEATER,
APPLIANCES THAT SHOULD'VE
BEEN LEFT IN THE HOUSE.
HE KIND OF RIPPED THEM OUT,
SO, OF COURSE,
ST. DENIS WAS REALLY
PISSED ABOUT THAT.
BUT AT LEAST HE'S GONE NOW,
FINALLY, THANK GOODNESS.
HE CAN BUILD HIS NURSERY.
Narrator:
NOW CLEAR TO GET THE BUSINESS
UP AND RUNNING,
CHARLES GETS FINANCIAL ADVICE
FROM ANOTHER FRINGY:
DAN REID.
[ STATIC CRACKLES ]
DAN REID WAS A BOOKKEEPER
IN THE NEW VRINDABAN
ACCOUNTING OFFICE
AND HE WAS VERY GOOD AT HIS JOB.
Narrator:
WITH DAN'S EXPERTISE
AND DEBORAH'S INHERITANCE,
THEIR DREAM OF OPENING A NURSERY
IS WELL ON ITS WAY
TO BECOMING A REALITY.
[ SUSPENSEFUL CHORD STRIKES ]
[ CLOCK TICKING ]
[ ELECTRICITY CRACKLING ]
[ OMINOUS CHORD STRIKES ]
[ TRANQUIL TUNE PLAYS ]
IT'S BEEN A CHALLENGING YEAR,
BUT, AS SUMMER APPROACHES,
CHARLES AND DEBORAH
HAVE REASON TO CELEBRATE.
ST. DENIS'S NURSERY
WAS COMING ALONG.
THEY HAD A PLANTING PARTY,
WHERE THEY WANTED TO GET ALL
OF THEIR PLANTS IN THE GROUND.
Narrator:
ALL OF CHARLES'S
FRIENDS STOP BY.
INCLUDING DAN REID.
Rader:
IT WAS A FUN TIME FOR EVERYONE.
CHARLES ST. DENIS WAS THE SORT
OF CENTER OF ALL THIS ACTIVITY
AND SORT OF ENGAGING
WITH EVERYONE.
Narrator:
AFTER THE PARTY ENDS,
THE EXHILARATED,
YET EXHAUSTED, COUPLE
GETS READY FOR BED.
WHEN THE PHONE RINGS.
[ RING ]
IT'S DAN REID.
ST. DENIS TELLS DEBORAH,
"I HAVE TO GO GET $50
THAT DAN OWES ME.
I'M GONNA GO MEET HIM."
HE TELLS HER HE'LL BE BACK
IN 10 MINUTES.
Narrator:
DEBORAH SUSPECTS CHARLES
IS HEADING OUT
FOR A LITTLE AFTER-HOURS
PARTYING WITH DAN.
SHE SAID, "DON'T STAY VERY LONG"
AND THEN HE DROVE OFF.
[ SUSPENSEFUL MUSIC PLAYS ]
Rader:
DEBORAH WAKES UP
THE NEXT MORNING.
HE'S STILL NOT HOME.
SHE ASSUMES HE IS OUT,
PARTYING SOMEWHERE
AND HE'LL BE STUMBLING IN
ANYTIME.
Narrator:
BUT AFTER A FEW HOURS
AND STILL NO SIGN OF CHARLES,
SHE BECOMES ANXIOUS.
[ SUSPENSEFUL MUSIC CLIMBS ]
DEBORAH REACHES OUT TO DAN.
DAN REID SAID CHARLES ST. DENIS
HAD NOT BEEN THERE.
SHE BEGINS TO GET
REALLY WORRIED
THAT SOMETHING HAPPENED TO HIM.
[ SUSPENSEFUL CHORD STRIKES ]
[ ELECTRONICA PLAYS ]
[ CLOCK TICKING,
ELECTRICITY CRACKLING ]
[ SUSPENSEFUL MUSIC PLAYS ]
Narrator: IT'S 1983.
TO THE OUTSIDE WORLD,
THE HARE KRISHNAS
ARE SPIRITUAL DEVOTEES
SEEKING ETERNAL BLISS.
BUT WITHIN THE BORDERS OF THEIR
COMPOUND, THERE IS DISCORD.
DEBORAH GERE IS PANICKED.
WHEN ST. DENIS
DID NOT COME HOME,
DEBORAH WAS REALLY,
REALLY, REALLY WORRIED.
Narrator:
CHARLES HAS BEEN MISSING
SINCE THE PREVIOUS NIGHT,
WHEN HE LEFT TO MEET
HIS FRIEND DAN REID.
DAN SAYS CHARLES
NEVER SHOWED UP.
♪♪♪♪
DEBORAH JUMPS INTO HER TRUCK
AND SETS OUT TO SCOUR
THE COMPOUND FOR HIM.
AROUND THE COMMUNITY,
ON THE BACK ROADS,
SOME OF THE DIRT ROADS,
IT'S KIND OF ROUGH TERRAIN.
ONE THOUGHT SHE HAS
IS MAYBE THAT
HIS TRUCK FELL
OFF THE SIDE OF A CLIFF.
Westfall:
WENT EVERYWHERE
AROUND THE COMMUNITY.
SHE WAS DESPERATE TO FIND OUT
WHAT HAPPENED TO HIM.
SHE REPORTED IT TO A TROOPER
AND THEY SAID,
"WE DON'T START LOOKING
FOR MISSING PEOPLE
FOR 48 HOURS."
Narrator:
DESPERATE FOR HELP,
DEBORAH GOES TO SEE
THE GROUP'S SPIRITUAL LEADER,
SWAMI KIRTANANANDA.
SHE CAME TO THE TEMPLE
AT NEW VRINDABAN
AND SAW KIRTANANANDA
AND TOLD HIM,
"MY HUSBAND'S GONE,
YOU KNOW, MISSING."
Westfall:
HE DIDN'T TAKE IT
VERY SERIOUSLY.
SHE SAID, "HE JUST ACTED LIKE
I WAS JUST A SILLY WOMAN."
SHE WAS FRUSTRATED THAT A LOT
OF OTHER PEOPLE IN THE COMMUNITY
THOUGHT THAT CHARLES ST. DENIS
PROBABLY JUST
PACKED UP AND LEFT.
CHARLES, IN HIS EARLIER LIFE,
WAS A LITTLE BIT NOMADIC.
Narrator:
DEBORAH THEN RUSHES TO FIND
CHARLES'S FRIEND BIG JOHN,
WHO LIVES ACROSS
THE BORDER IN OHIO,
WHERE HE MAKES HIS LIVING
DEALING POT TO FRINGIES.
BIG JOHN'S FARM IS A PLACE
THAT CHARLES ST. DENIS
USED TO VISIT REGULARLY.
Narrator:
AS DEBORAH PULLS UP,
SHE'S RELIEVED TO SEE
HER HUSBAND'S TRUCK
PARKED NEARBY.
SHE ANXIOUSLY APPROACHES JOHN.
HE SAID, "I HAVE NO IDEA
WHY THAT'S DOWN THE STREET,
BECAUSE HE WAS NOT HERE.
I DON'T KNOW ANYTHING ABOUT IT."
Narrator:
AFTER TWO DAYS
OF FRANTICALLY SEARCHING,
DEBORAH REACHES OUT
TO HER LAST HOPE:
SGT. TOM WESTFALL.
Young:
HE WAS CALLED THE KRISHNA COP.
IF THERE WAS ANY
COMMUNICATION AT ALL
BETWEEN THE COMMUNITY
AND NEW VRINDABAN,
IT PROBABLY WENT
THROUGH SGT. WESTFALL.
HE DIDN'T SEE THE DEVOTEES
AS SOME HEATHEN RELIGION,
WORSHIPING FALSE GODS.
THE FIRST TIME
THAT I EVER MET A DEVOTEE,
I NOTICED THAT HE WAS
A LITTLE BIT NERVOUS.
WE ALL GREW UP
WITH THE VIETNAM WAR,
WITH THE HIPPIE GENERATION,
ALL OF THAT,
SO I PUT HIM AT EASE.
WE WERE VERY MUCH ALIKE,
EXCEPT THEY WERE FOLLOWING
A FAR EASTERN RELIGION
AND I WAS
ENFORCING THE LAWS
OF THE STATE OF WEST VIRGINIA.
Narrator:
DEBORAH KNOWS THAT,
IF ANYONE WILL HELP HER,
IT'S WESTFALL.
Westfall:
SHE WAS EXTREMELY UPSET.
SHE WAS WEEPING.
SHE WAS UPSET, NOT ONLY BY THE
FACT THAT HE WAS MISSING,
BUT IT SEEMED LIKE NOBODY CARED.
Narrator:
ONE OF THE THINGS
THAT IMMEDIATELY
CATCHES WESTFALL'S ATTENTION
IS DEBORAH'S RETELLING
OF THE PROBLEMS
CHARLES HAD
WITH THOMAS DRESCHER.
AWARE OF HIS REPUTATION,
WESTFALL BELIEVES
THE VIETNAM VET COULD BE
CONNECTED TO THE DISAPPEARANCE.
I NEVER HAD ANYBODY EVER
COME UP TO ME AND SAY,
"WHAT A GREAT GUY."
EVERYBODY KNEW
WHAT HIS ROLE WAS THERE,
AND EVERYBODY FEARED THAT.
THOMAS DRESCHER HAD
A CRIMINAL RECORD
THAT INVOLVED A LOT OF CRIMES,
THAT INCLUDED VIOLENCE.
I WAS THE SECURITY GUARD
FOR THE PALACE
AND THAT ROLE
WAS SORT OF EXPANDED
TO BEING SORT OF LIKE THE,
YOU KNOW, COMMUNITY'S POLICEMAN.
FROM THERE, THE ROLE,
I GUESS YOU COULD SAY,
IT EXPANDED INTO OTHER THINGS.
HIS ROLE EVOLVED TO ALSO
KICK PEOPLE OUT
WHEN THEY NEEDED TO BE KICKED
OUT, OR ROUGH PEOPLE UP.
Kirtanananda:
WE DO NOT BELIEVE
IN NONVIOLENCE.
KRISHNA SPOKE THE "BHAGAVAD
GITA" ON THE BATTLEFIELD.
KRISHNA SAID, "FIGHT FOR ME."
WE WOULD GET REPORTS
OF FLEEING DEVOTEES,
THAT THEIR CAMERAS WERE TAKEN,
MONEY WAS TAKEN,
CREDIT CARDS WERE TAKEN.
AND THEY WOULD ALL SAY
IT WAS TIRTHA --
TOM DRESCHER'S DEVOTEE NAME.
THEY WOULD SAY, "THOMAS DRESCHER
BEAT THE HELL OUT OF ME,"
BUT NOBODY EVER
WANTED TO PROSECUTE.
Narrator:
HOW COULD A COMMUNITY DEVOTED
TO THE PRINCIPLES
OF PEACE AND LOVE
UNLEASH A MAN
LIKE THOMAS DRESCHER
ON ITS OWN MEMBERS?
DISILLUSIONED DEVOTEES BEGIN
QUESTIONING THE STATUS QUO.
♪♪♪♪
- ♪♪ HARE ♪♪
- ♪♪ HARE ♪♪
- ♪♪ KRISHNA ♪♪
- ♪♪ KRISHNA ♪♪
DESPITE ALL THE PROMISE
OF LOVE AND INNER PEACE,
[ SITAR PLAYS ]
THE DEVOTEES BEGIN TO REALIZE
THERE'S A DARK SIDE
TO NEW VRINDABAN...
DURING THE 1980s, ESPECIALLY,
THERE WAS A LOT OF
UNFORTUNATE INCIDENCES.
Narrator:
...AND IT HAD BEEN IN FRONT
OF THEM THE WHOLE TIME.
[chanting]
HARE KRISHNA
HARE KRISHNA.
SURRENDER,
SURRENDER, SURRENDER.
HEAD GURU KIRTANANANDA
DEMANDS ABSOLUTE OBEDIENCE
FROM ALL OF HIS FOLLOWERS.
HE WOULD RISE EARLIER
THAN ANYBODY ELSE
AND HE WOULD WAKE US UP
IN THE ASHRAM.
HE'D WALK ALONG AND, IF SOMEONE
WASN'T GETTING UP FAST ENOUGH,
HE'D WHACK 'EM WITH HIS CANE.
Narrator:
THE SWAMI BELIEVES VIOLENCE
IS EVEN NECESSARY
WITH WOMEN.
I CAN'T SAY THAT THERE WOULD
NEVER BE A CIRCUMSTANCE
WHEN IT WOULDN'T BE THE BEST
[chuckle] THING IN THE WORLD
TO GIVE HER A LITTLE SLAP
ON THE FACE OR --
Y-- JUST LIKE, UH, MY DOG.
Narrator:
CHILDREN ARE SEPARATED
FROM THEIR PARENTS
AFTER THE AGE OF FOUR.
THEY ALSO WERE
SUPER-OVERMANAGED.
THEY WERE MADE TO ACT
LIKE LITTLE ADULTS.
THEY WERE EXPECTED TO CHANT
AND TO SIT QUIET.
THEY USED TO SAY,
"NOT A BLADE OF GRASS MOVES
WITHOUT KIRTANANANDA
KNOWING ABOUT IT."
I WAS AFRAID OF HIM.
Narrator:
KIRTANANANDA COUNSELS DEVOTEES
NOT TO LET THE OUTSIDE WORLD
KNOW ABOUT THE TRUE
GOINGS-ON WITHIN.
Doktorski:
KIRTANANANDA ALWAYS TOLD US,
"YOU SHOULD NOT TALK
TO ANYONE ELSE,
SUCH AS THE POLICE.
WE DON'T WANT PEOPLE
TO KNOW ABOUT
ANY NEGATIVE THINGS
THAT MIGHT HAPPEN HERE."
Narrator:
DRESCHER MAY NOT
HAVE ANYTHING TO DO
WITH CHARLES'S DISAPPEARANCE,
BUT, IF SOMETHING HAS
HAPPENED TO HIM,
THE COMPOUND'S HEAD ENFORCER
WILL LIKELY KNOW ABOUT IT.
WESTFALL TRIES
TO TRACK HIM DOWN,
BUT IT SEEMS DRESCHER'S
GONE INTO HIDING.
I WAS BEING TOLD OFFICIALLY
THAT HE'S BEEN
REMOVED FROM THE PROPERTY,
BUT I HAVE OTHER PEOPLE
TELLING ME THAT HE'S THERE,
THAT HE'S STILL COMING BACK,
AND THAT HE LIVES IN THE AREA.
♪♪♪♪
Narrator: AT THIS POINT,
WESTFALL BECOMES CONVINCED
SOMETHING HAS HAPPENED
TO CHARLES.
HE CONFRONTS THE SWAMI.
SWAMI BHAKTIPADA TOLD DEVOTEES
NOT TO TALK TO ME
AND I SAID, "LISTEN,
I'M GONNA TALK TO YOU"
AND HE SAID, "WELL, I MAY NOT
WANNA TALK TO YOU."
AND I ASKED HIM
DIRECTLY ABOUT IT.
I SAID, "WHAT DO YOU KNOW
ABOUT THE ST. DENIS CASE?"
AND HE SAID,
"OH, EVERYBODY KNOWS:
HE'S GONE TO CALIFORNIA
OR GONE TO DO SOMETHING.
HE'S NOT HERE, HE'LL PROBABLY
NEVER COME BACK HERE,
AND WE DON'T CARE."
Narrator:
EQUALLY TIGHT-LIPPED
IS DAN REID,
THE MAN CHARLES WAS ON HIS WAY
TO SEE THE NIGHT HE VANISHED.
JUST SAID THAT CHARLES
ST. DENIS HAD NOT BEEN THERE.
Narrator:
THE NEXT STOP?
BIG JOHN'S.
IT'S STILL A MYSTERY,
WHY CHARLES'S CAR
WAS PARKED NEAR HIS HOME.
Westfall:
BIG JOHN WAS VERY
HONEST WITH US.
HE COOPERATED
AS MUCH AS HE COULD.
IT BECAME PRETTY CLEAR TO ME
THIS WAS NOT PART
OF WHAT BIG JOHN DID.
MY BELIEF WAS SOMEBODY
PUT THE VEHICLE THERE.
[ SUSPENSEFUL CHORDS STRIKING ]
Narrator: BUT WHO, AND WHY?
[ RING ]
AFTER WEEKS OF DEAD ENDS,
THE KRISHNA COP FINALLY UNCOVERS
A POTENTIAL BOMBSHELL.
THERE'D BEEN SOME
HARSH DEALINGS
BETWEEN DAN REID
AND ST. DENIS.
DAN HAD HEARD TALK
THAT HIS WIFE
WAS HAVING AN AFFAIR
WITH ST. DENIS.
AND REID'S REACTION WAS
IT MUST'VE BEEN RAPE.
[ SUSPENSEFUL MUSIC CLIMBS ]
SO THAT MADE HIM REALLY,
REALLY ANGRY AT ST. DENIS.
A VERSE FROM THE
"SRIMAD BHAGAVATAM" SAYS
"ONE WHO RAPES A WIFE
DESERVES TO BE KILLED,
WITH NO PUNISHMENT GIVEN
TO THE EXECUTIONER."
[ SUSPENSEFUL CHORD STRIKES ]
[ ELECTRONICA PLAYS ]
[ CLOCK TICKING,
ELECTRICITY CRACKLING ]
[ SUSPENSEFUL MUSIC PLAYS ]
Narrator: IT'S BEEN TWO WEEKS
SINCE DEBORAH GERE'S HUSBAND,
CHARLES ST. DENIS,
VANISHED WITHOUT A TRACE
FROM THE HARE KRISHNA COMMUNITY
NEW VRINDABAN.
DEBORAH'S REALLY, REALLY,
REALLY UPSET.
SHE'S FRANTIC.
Narrator:
SGT. TOM WESTFALL HAS UNCOVERED
A DISTURBING ALLEGATION
ABOUT DAN REID,
THE MAN CHARLES WAS HEADING TO
SEE RIGHT BEFORE HE DISAPPEARED.
HE FELT HIS WIFE, BRENDA,
HAD BEEN RAPED
BY CHARLES ST. DENIS.
DAN HAD HEARD TALK
THAT HIS WIFE
WAS HAVING AN AFFAIR
WITH ST. DENIS
AND, WHEN HE APPROACHED
HER ABOUT IT,
SHE SAID IT WAS A RAPE.
DEBORAH SAYS THAT SHE KNEW
ABOUT THE RELATIONSHIP
BETWEEN CHARLES ST. DENIS
AND BRENDA,
BUT THAT IT WAS JUST AN AFFAIR.
THERE WAS NEVER ANY RAPE.
Narrator:
DEBORAH HAS FORGIVEN CHARLES
FOR WHAT SHE BELIEVES
WAS A BRIEF DALLIANCE
THAT ENDED LONG AGO.
BUT DAN HAD JUST HEARD ABOUT THE
TRANSGRESSION A MONTH EARLIER.
IF DAN BELIEVED THAT CHARLES
HAD RAPED HIS WIFE,
COULD HE HAVE GOTTEN
HIS OWN BRAND OF JUSTICE
BY GOING AFTER CHARLES
THE NIGHT OF HIS DISAPPEARANCE?
Westfall:
WHEN I TALKED TO DAN REID,
HIS VOICE CRACKED,
I COULD SEE
THAT HE WAS SWEATING,
AND HE WAS SHAKING A LITTLE BIT.
I COULDN'T EXACTLY SAY
THAT HE WAS NERVOUS
BECAUSE HE HAD DONE SOMETHING,
BUT I KNEW THAT HE WAS NERVOUS
ABOUT TALKING TO ME.
BUT HE SAID HE LIKED
CHARLES ST. DENIS.
Narrator:
THERE ISN'T A SHRED OF EVIDENCE
THAT HE KNOWS
WHAT HAPPENED TO CHARLES.
WESTFALL CONTINUES TO SUSPECT
THAT THE VOLATILE
THOMAS DRESCHER IS THE LINCHPIN.
DRESCHER TRIED TO INTIMIDATE
ST. DENIS.
Narrator:
BUT DRESCHER HAS NOT BEEN SEEN
ON THE COMPOUND FOR WEEKS
AND HE'S NOT THE ONLY ONE
WHO'S MADE A HASTY EXIT.
WHEN WESTFALL GOES BACK
TO INTERVIEW DAN AGAIN,
HE FINDS OUT HE'S GONE, TOO.
DAN REID MOVES BACK
TO LOS ANGELES.
Westfall:
HE CRATED UP HIS MOTORCYCLE
AND SHIPPED IT, AND HE'S GONE.
I DIDN'T HAVE ANY REASON TO GET
A WARRANT FOR HIM AT THAT POINT,
BUT I THOUGHT THAT
WAS VERY CURIOUS.
♪♪♪♪
Narrator:
MONTHS INTO THE INVESTIGATION,
POLICE ARE NO CLOSER
TO SOLVING THE MYSTERIOUS
DISAPPEARANCE.
DEBORAH GERE WAS VERY
FRUSTRATED BY THE FACT
THAT WE WERE
NOT GETTING ANY FURTHER.
Narrator:
WESTFALL IS STONEWALLED
ON ALL SIDES:
[ STATIC CRACKLES ]
THE SWAMI WON'T COOPERATE,
THE PEOPLE WHO MAY KNOW
WHAT HAPPENED HAVE LEFT,
AND IT APPEARS THE DEVOTEES
HAVE BEEN ORDERED TO KEEP QUIET.
AS MONTHS TURN INTO YEARS,
THE INVESTIGATION SPUTTERS
TO A DEAD HALT.
[ SUSPENSEFUL CHORD STRIKES ]
Westfall:
WE COULDN'T GO ANY FURTHER.
WE DID NOT HAVE THE BODY.
WE WERE SORT OF
IN PURGATORY ON THIS.
Narrator:
BUT WESTFALL NEVER
LETS GO OF THE CASE,
KNOWING THAT DEBORAH
HASN'T, EITHER.
Westfall:
IT WAS VERY DIFFICULT
FOR DEBORAH.
A SPOUSE WHO'S DISAPPEARED.
SO, I MEAN, IT HAD A GREATER
IMPACT ON HER THAN ANYBODY,
AND I THINK SHE SHOWED
THE STRESS OVER THE YEARS.
BUT I CONTINUED TO INVESTIGATE.
I WAS FORMING UP A GROUP
OF POLICE OFFICERS
ALL AROUND THE COUNTRY
WHO HAD HAD DEALINGS
WITH THE HARE KRISHNAS.
[ SUSPENSEFUL CHORD STRIKES ]
[ CLOCK TICKING ]
[ ELECTRICITY CRACKLING ]
[ OMINOUS CHORD STRIKES ]
Narrator:
NEARLY THREE YEARS AFTER
CHARLES ST. DENIS VANISHES,
THE SERGEANT GETS
A DISTURBING CALL
FROM THE LOS ANGELES POLICE.
[ RING ]
A FORMER NEW VRINDABAN
MEMBER LIVING THERE,
NAMED STEVE BRYANT,
WAS MURDERED.
EXECUTION-STYLE.
HE WAS PARKED IN HIS VAN.
[ EERIE MUSIC PLAYS ]
Westfall:
SOMEONE WALKED UP TO HIS VAN,
TAPPED ON THE WINDOW,
[ KNOCKING ]
SO THAT STEVEN BRYANT
WOULD TURN AND LOOK AT HIM.
♪♪♪♪
AND, WHEN HE DID, HE FIRED
TWO SHOTS INTO HIS HEAD.
[ GUNSHOT ]
[ GUNSHOT ]
AND KILLED HIM.
♪♪♪♪
Narrator:
WESTFALL IMMEDIATELY SUSPECTS
THE CALIFORNIA KILLING
IS CONNECTED TO CHARLES
ST. DENIS'S DISAPPEARANCE.
STEVEN BRYANT HAD BEEN
A DEVOTEE AT NEW VRINDABAN
AND REALLY HAD BEEN
A CONTROVERSIAL CHARACTER.
HE WAS EXPELLED
FROM THE COMMUNITY BY SWAMI
AND WAS SPEAKING
AGAINST BHAKTIPADA.
STEVE BRYANT WAS CONCERNED
WITH THE VARIOUS ACTIVITIES
HAPPENING AT NEW VRINDABAN.
HE STARTED TRAVELING
AROUND THE COUNTRY,
VISITING OTHER DISGRUNTLED
FORMER RESIDENTS,
AND HE FOUND OUT MORE AND MORE
ABOUT ALLEGATIONS
AGAINST THE SWAMI.
HERE WAS STEVEN BRYANT,
WHO WAS A DISSIDENT,
AND, YET, HIS PUNISHMENT
WAS NOT JUST BANISHMENT.
HE WAS MURDERED.
THAT MURDER WAS DONE AS
AN EXAMPLE TO SCARE PEOPLE OFF.
[ GUNSHOT ]
THE MURDER WAS ONE OF THE BIG
TURNING-POINT MOMENTS
BECAUSE THINGS WERE
NEVER THE SAME.
[ EERIE MUSIC CLIMBS ]
[ HEARTBEAT ]
[ CLOCK TICKING,
ELECTRICITY CRACKLING ]
[ OMINOUS CHORD STRIKES ]
[ GUNSHOT ]
Narrator: A LOS ANGELES MURDER
[ GUNSHOT ]
MAY FINALLY LEAD TO ANSWERS
ABOUT CHARLES ST. DENIS'S
DISAPPEARANCE
FROM A HARE KRISHNA COMMUNITY
OVER 2,300 MILES AWAY.
THE SHOOTING VICTIM,
STEVE BRYANT,
ONCE BELONGED TO THE SAME
WEST VIRGINIA COMPOUND
AS CHARLES:
NEW VRINDABAN.
THE STEVE BRYANT MURDER WAS
A VERY HIGH-PROFILE INCIDENT.
IT WAS A CLEAR CASE OF MURDER.
THIS BEGINS TO DRAW
SOME LARGER MEDIA SCRUTINY
TO THE NEW VRINDABAN COMMUNITY.
Westfall:
HE WAS KILLED ON THE
STREETS OF LOS ANGELES.
THE MEDIA IS A LITTLE BIT
THICKER IN LOS ANGELES
THAN IT IS
IN NORTHERN WEST VIRGINIA.
THE KRISHNAS OF THE '80s
LIVE IN A SOMEWHAT
MORE SHADOWY WORLD.
WE HAD NETWORKS IN
AND WE HAD NEWS MAGAZINE SHOWS
COMING IN AND DOING PIECES.
THE ORGANIZATION WAS
VERY OUT OF CONTROL.
Narrator: BRYANT WAS
A DISAFFECTED KRISHNA
WHO QUIT THE COMPOUND IN 1984,
ONE YEAR AFTER
ST. DENIS DISAPPEARED.
STEVEN BRYANT
WAS A DISSIDENT
AND HE WAS UNHAPPY WITH HOW
KIRTANANANDA WAS RUNNING THINGS.
HE BECAME MORE
AND MORE FRUSTRATED
WITH TRYING TO GET
SOMEWHERE AT THE COMMUNE
AND HE FINALLY DECIDED
THAT HE HAD HAD IT.
HE WANTED TO LEAVE.
[ STATIC CRACKLES ]
AND HE SAID THAT
HE WOULD DESTROY
ME AND THE COMMUNITY.
Narrator: BRYANT GOES
ON A ONE-MAN ODYSSEY,
TRACKING DOWN EX-DEVOTEES
ACROSS THE COUNTRY.
HE STARTED AN INVESTIGATION
TO FIND SOME DIRT
ON KIRTANANANDA,
AND HE FOUND LOTS OF IT.
Narrator:
BRYANT UNCOVERS VARIOUS SCHEMES
KIRTANANANDA BHAKTIPADA UTILIZES
TO FUND THE UPKEEP AND EXPANSION
OF HIS ORNATE PALACE.
BECAUSE OF HIS GOALS, BHAKTIPADA
HAD A VERY BIG NEED FOR MONEY.
WHICH MEANT COLLECTING MONEY,
BY ANY MEANS POSSIBLE.
Westfall:
THERE'S A SORT OF FAMOUS PICTURE
OF HIM SEATED ON A THRONE
AND HE'S COVERED IN MONEY
THAT WAS BROUGHT IN.
HE'S CELEBRATING
THE MONEY COLLECTION.
Woman:
THEY DID NOT DRESS UP
AS THEY DID IN NEW VRINDABAN.
THEY MADE IT VERY CLEAR
THAT IT WAS IMPORTANT
NOT TO BE NOTICED
OR KNOWN AS A HARE KRISHNA.
FUND-RAISING PRACTICES
THAT WERE EXTREMELY
QUESTIONABLE, AT BEST.
THEY COLLECTED MONEY
IN THE NAME OF NORML,
THE MARIJUANA ORGANIZATION.
THEY COLLECTED MONEY IN THE
NAME OF THE GIRL SCOUTS.
THEY WOULD ASK FOR MONEY TO HELP
STARVING CHILDREN IN APPALACHIA.
♪♪♪♪
Narrator:
BRYANT ALSO DETAILS
SHOCKING ALLEGATIONS
INVOLVING CHILDREN.
VARIOUS ACTIVITIES HAPPENING
AT NEW VRINDABAN,
ESPECIALLY CHILD ABUSE
AND SEXUAL ABUSE
OF CHILDREN IN THE COMMUNITY.
THEY HAD A SCHOOL
AT THE PROPERTY
AND THEY HAD CHILD ABUSERS
WORKING ON THE STAFF.
Narrator:
BRYANT TAKES HIS STORY
TO THE MEDIA.
EVEN MORE DAMNING?
DISTURBING ACCUSATIONS
THAT THE GURU HIMSELF
IS A SEXUAL PREDATOR.
BRYANT FOUND OUT MORE AND MORE
ABOUT THESE ALLEGATIONS
OF THE SWAMI HAVING
SEXUAL RELATIONS
WITH THE BOYS
AT NEW VRINDABAN.
Rader:
STEVE HAD MANY AUDIOCASSETTES
ABOUT SEXUAL MOLESTATION
OF THE BOYS.
Narrator:
BRYANT KNEW HE WAS
PLAYING WITH FIRE.
ONE RECORDING IS
EERILY FOREBODING.
[ GUNSHOT ]
Narrator:
NOW? HIS WORST PREDICTIONS
HAVE COME TRUE.
WITH STEVE BRYANT'S MURDER, ALL
EYES ARE NOW ON NEW VRINDABAN
AND, FOR CHARLES ST. DENIS'S
WIFE, DEBORAH,
IT'S THE BREAK SHE'S BEEN
WAITING FOR FOR THREE YEARS.
THERE WAS SO MUCH
MEDIA ATTENTION
THAT CAME AFTER THE BRYANT CASE
THAT DEBORAH GERE
WAS NO LONGER SOMEBODY
CRYING IN THE WILDERNESS.
SHE HAD A LOT OF PEOPLE
PAYING ATTENTION
TO WHAT SHE HAD TO SAY.
THE MURDER OF STEVE BRYANT
WAS AN EXTREME
TURNING POINT
FOR THE COMMUNITY BECAUSE
THAT'S WHEN THE FEDERAL
GOVERNMENT GOT INVOLVED.
[ SUSPENSEFUL CHORD STRIKES ]
Westfall:
WE FORMED THIS TASK FORCE.
THERE WERE TWO TROOPERS
AND THERE WAS AN FBI AGENT.
WHEN THE FEDERAL GOVERNMENT
ENTERED THE CASE,
WE HAD A LOT MORE RESOURCES.
THAT HELPED QUITE A BIT.
Narrator: TWO DAYS
AFTER BRYANT'S MURDER,
[ GUNSHOT ]
A NEW FIGURE EMERGES:
A FRIGHTENED OLDER MAN
NAMED RANDALL GORBY.
HE MADE CONTACT WITH A TROOPER
WHOM HE KNEW PERSONALLY
FROM UP IN THE AREA.
Narrator:
GORBY DID LAND DEALS
FOR THE SWAMI.
HE'S FRIENDS
WITH THOMAS DRESCHER
AND HE HAS A SPINE-TINGLING
STORY TO TELL.
HE TELLS THEM THAT HE KNOWS
WHO KILLED STEVE BRYANT.
WHILE THOMAS DRESCHER WAS SORT
OF HIDING OUT AT GORBY'S HOUSE
TO STAY AWAY
FROM NEW VRINDABAN, AND ME,
HE TOLD RANDALL GORBY THAT "I'M
GOING TO KILL STEVEN BRYANT."
Narrator:
AFTER THE BRYANT MURDER
BECOMES FRONT-PAGE NEWS,
HE REALIZES DRESCHER
WAS DEAD SERIOUS.
NOW, GORBY'S TERRIFIED
THAT DRESCHER MAY REGRET
HIS CONFESSION
AND COULD COME AFTER HIM NEXT.
DRESCHER MUST'VE RECOGNIZED
THAT HE HAD A LOOSE END
THAT HE NEEDED TO CLOSE.
Narrator:
BUT THAT'S NOT ALL.
THERE'S ONE MORE SHOCKING
REVELATION THAT CAME OUT
DURING THE DISTURBING
CONVERSATION.
DRESCHER TELLS GORBY,
"I'M GONNA HAVE TO KILL
STEVE BRYANT
JUST LIKE I DID ST. DENIS."
[ SUSPENSEFUL MUSIC CLIMBS ]
[ SUSPENSEFUL
CHORD STRIKES ]
[ ELECTRONICA PLAYS ]
[ CLOCK TICKING,
ELECTRICITY CRACKLING ]
[ SUSPENSEFUL MUSIC PLAYS ]
Narrator: RANDALL GORBY
HAS JUST GIVEN SGT. TOM WESTFALL
THE BREAK
HE'S BEEN WAITING FOR:
THE NAME OF THE
PERSON RESPONSIBLE
FOR CHARLES ST. DENIS'S
MYSTERIOUS DISAPPEARANCE.
I KNEW THAT THOMAS DRESCHER
WAS INVOLVED.
Narrator:
GORBY TELLS INVESTIGATORS
THAT DRESCHER SAID
HE KILLED ST. DENIS
AND ANOTHER KRISHNA DEVOTEE:
STEVE BRYANT.
HE AGREES TO BE
A POLICE INFORMANT.
GORBY ALLOWS THEM
TO TAP HIS PHONE.
HE HAS A CONVERSATION
WITH DRESCHER
ABOUT THE STEVE BRYANT MURDER.
Narrator:
THE RECORDING PROVIDES
DAMNING EVIDENCE
THAT DRESCHER WAS A PAID
ASSASSIN WHO KILLED BRYANT.
IT WAS A CONVERSATION
ABOUT WHY DRESCHER
HADN'T GOTTEN THE FULL $8,000
FOR KILLING BRYANT.
Narrator:
THE SOURCE OF THAT MONEY?
SWAMI BHAKTIPADA.
[ SUSPENSEFUL CHORD STRIKES ]
[ SUSPENSEFUL MUSIC PLAYS ]
Narrator:
WHEN CONFRONTED,
THE SWAMI VEHEMENTLY DENIES
ANY INVOLVEMENT
IN BRYANT'S DEATH.
DID YOU GIVE THE ORDER
TO MURDER STEVE BRYANT?
[ LAUGHS ]
I'M SURPRISED AT YOU.
OF COURSE NOT.
I COULD NOT DO THAT.
WE DON'T EVEN KILL ANIMALS.
Narrator:
AS MAJOR NEWS NETWORKS
CONTINUE TO SHINE A HARSH
LIGHT ON NEW VRINDABAN,
SGT. WESTFALL HOPES THE GLARE
WILL REFLECT BACK
TO THE UNSOLVED DISAPPEARANCE
OF CHARLES ST. DENIS
AND DEVOTEES WILL COME FORWARD.
HIS HOPE IS REALIZED WHEN
THREE KRISHNAS TELL WESTFALL
THAT DRESCHER ALSO MADE
MURDEROUS CONFESSIONS TO THEM.
DRESCHER BRAGGED THAT
HE KILLED ST. DENIS.
[ OMINOUS CHORD STRIKES ]
Westfall:
WE HAD FORMAL STATEMENTS
FROM EVERYBODY.
WE HAD DEVELOPED
MORE INFORMATION.
Narrator:
THE STUNNING INFORMATION
REVEALED THAT DRESCHER WAS NOT
THE ONLY ONE INVOLVED IN THE
MURDER OF CHARLES ST. DENIS.
DAN REID WAS AN ACCOMPLICE.
REID IS SAYING, "I WANT
TO KILL THIS ST. DENIS
BECAUSE MY WIFE SAYS
HE RAPED HER."
I DON'T KNOW THAT WE EVER
KNEW WHETHER OR NOT
THAT RAPE EVER OCCURRED.
Narrator:
IN EARLY JULY,
WHILE AWAITING TRIAL
FOR THE MURDER OF STEVE BRYANT,
THOMAS DRESCHER,
ALONG WITH DAN REID,
IS INDICTED ON CHARGES OF
MURDERING CHARLES ST. DENIS.
BUT THERE'S ONE MAJOR HURDLE:
ST. DENIS'S BODY?
HAS STILL NOT BEEN FOUND.
WE WERE HAUNTED BY THE
POSSIBILITY OF LOSING THE CASE
BECAUSE WE DID NOT HAVE A BODY,
BUT TIME RAN OUT.
[ SUSPENSEFUL CHORD STRIKES ]
[ CLOCK TICKING ]
[ ELECTRICITY CRACKLING ]
[ OMINOUS CHORD STRIKES ]
[ SUSPENSEFUL MUSIC PLAYS ]
Narrator: ON A COLD WINTER DAY,
THE TRIAL BEGINS.
Reporter:
ONE WITNESS CALLED TODAY,
DEBORAH GERE,
WAS LIVING WITH ST. DENIS
WHEN HE DISAPPEARED.
Narrator:
DEBORAH GERE TELLS THE JURY
ABOUT THE FEUD
BETWEEN HER HUSBAND
AND THOMAS DRESCHER.
RANDALL GORBY AND THREE KRISHNA
DEVOTEES ALSO TESTIFY
ABOUT HOW DRESCHER BRAGGED
TO THEM ABOUT MURDERING CHARLES.
THE TRIAL LASTS FOUR DAYS.
Reporter:
THE PROSECUTION HAS
TWO PREMISES TO PROVE:
ONE, CHARLES ST. DENIS
IS ACTUALLY DEAD,
EVEN THOUGH THE BODY
WAS NEVER FOUND;
AND TWO, THAT THOMAS DRESCHER
KILLED HIM.
Narrator:
DRESCHER SITS SMUGLY
THROUGH THE TRIAL,
CONVINCED THAT, WITH NO HARD
EVIDENCE AND NO BODY,
THERE WILL BE NO CONVICTION.
AND THEN, ON DECEMBER 5, 1986,
THE VERDICT IS ANNOUNCED.
Reporter:
THE JURY FOUND THOMAS DRESCHER
GUILTY IN THE FIRST DEGREE OF
MURDERING CHARLES ST. DENIS.
[ OMINOUS CHORD STRIKES ]
Narrator:
DRESCHER IS SENTENCED
TO LIFE IN PRISON
WITHOUT PAROLE.
I THINK THOMAS DRESCHER
WAS PRETTY STARTLED.
[ SUSPENSEFUL CHORD STRIKES ]
♪♪♪♪
Narrator:
REID, WHO HAS NOT YET
GONE TO TRIAL,
IS SPOOKED BY THE SWIFT,
AND HARSH, OUTCOME.
IT WAS NOT LONG AFTER THAT
THAT DAN REID'S ATTORNEY
OFFERED A DEAL:
THAT HE WOULD PLEAD
TO MANSLAUGHTER
AND THAT HE WOULD SHOW
THE INVESTIGATORS
WHERE THE BODY WAS BURIED.
Narrator:
AND INVESTIGATORS LEARNED,
FOR THE FIRST TIME,
EXACTLY WHAT HAPPENED
THE NIGHT CHARLES ST. DENIS
LEFT HIS HOME MORE THAN
THREE YEARS EARLIER
AND NEVER RETURNED.
[ OMINOUS CHORD STRIKES ]
[ SUSPENSEFUL CHORD STRIKES ]
[ CLOCK TICKING ]
[ ELECTRICITY CRACKLING ]
[ OMINOUS CHORD STRIKES ]
[ OMINOUS MUSIC PLAYS ]
THAT NIGHT,
AS ST. DENIS WAS WINDING DOWN
AFTER HIS PLANTING PARTY,
DAN REID AND THOMAS DRESCHER
LAUNCHED THEIR PLAN
TO LURE CHARLES TO A CABIN.
[ RING ]
Rader:
CHARLES ST. DENIS
GETS A CALL FROM DAN REID.
[ EERIE MUSIC PLAYS ]
HE'S THINKING THAT THEY'RE GOING
TO DO SOME COCAINE TOGETHER
AND HE TELLS DEBORAH
THAT HE HAS TO GO MEET DAN.
♪♪♪♪
CHARLES DRIVES UP TO MEET DAN.
Doktorski:
DAN WAS SITTING
IN THE SHADOWS
AND DRESCHER WAS
BEHIND THE DOOR.
AND ST. DENIS
PULLS UP IN HIS JEEP.
HE WALKS OUT.
AND THEN DAN CONFRONTS HIM.
♪♪♪♪
Rader:
DRESCHER SAYS, "STEP INSIDE.
WE WANT TO TALK TO YOU."
AT THAT POINT,
CHARLES ST. DENIS
TURNS TO RUN AWAY.
Westfall:
DRESCHER HAD A.22 PISTOL
[ TWO GUNSHOTS ]
AND SHOT HIM ABOUT 11 TIMES.
[ THREE GUNSHOTS ]
ST. DENIS WENT DOWN,
BUT HE DIDN'T DIE.
ST. DENIS IS SAYING,
"WHAT ARE YOU GUYS DOING,
SHOOTING ME,
YOU KNOW, BULLETS IN ME?"
Rader:
HE'S STILL TRYING TO GET BACK
TO HIS TRUCK TO ESCAPE.
THOMAS DRESCHER YELLS
TO DAN REID, "GET ME A KNIFE!"
DAN REID -- HE'S FREAKING OUT
BY THIS POINT --
RUNS AND GETS HIM A KNIFE.
♪♪♪♪
THOMAS DRESCHER STABS
CHARLES ST. DENIS
MULTIPLE TIMES.
THEY'RE KILLING THE GUY
AND THEY'RE ORDERING HIM,
"CHANT HARE KRISHNA."
Choir: ♪♪ HARE KRISHNA ♪♪
♪♪ HARE KRISHNA ♪♪
- THEY DID ENOUGH TO KILL 10 MEN,
BUT ST. DENIS WAS
SOMEHOW STILL BREATHING.
ST. DENIS WOULD NOT DIE.
- ♪♪ HARE HARE ♪♪
- THEY WRAP HIM IN PLASTIC.
- ♪♪ HARE RAMA ♪♪
Narrator:
THE MEN ARE CONVINCED
THAT CHARLES IS FINALLY DEAD.
BUT, JUST LIKE A CHARACTER
IN A HORROR MOVIE...
HE OPENED HIS EYES AND SAID,
"DON'T PUT THAT OVER MY FACE.
YOU'LL SMOTHER ME."
[ OMINOUS CHORD STRIKES ]
Narrator:
DRESCHER AND REID DRIVE
ST. DENIS TO A NEARBY CREEK.
WHEN DRESCHER AND REID BURIED
ST. DENIS IN THE CREEK,
HE WAS STILL BREATHING.
THE CAUSE OF DEATH
WAS DROWNING, TECHNICALLY.
Young:
TOM DRESCHER BURIED THAT BODY
UNDER A MOVING STREAM.
THAT WILL CONFUSE DOGS.
THAT WILL CONFUSE
ANY KIND OF SEARCH PARTY.
AFTER THEY BURY
CHARLES ST. DENIS,
THEY TAKE HIS TRUCK.
THEY DRIVE TO BIG JOHN'S FARM.
THEY PARK THE TRUCK THERE.
Choir: ♪♪ HARE HARE ♪♪
I SAID, "NO ONE'S EVER
GONNA FIND THAT GUY."
[ OMINOUS CHORD STRIKES ]
ST. DENIS WOULD'VE
NEVER BEEN FOUND,
IF DAN REID HADN'T HAVE GONE
TO THE AUTHORITIES
AND SHOWN THEM
WHERE THE BODY WAS.
[ EERIE MUSIC-BOX
LULLABY PLAYS ]
Narrator:
INVESTIGATORS FINALLY
HAVE THEIR ANSWER
AS TO HOW CHARLES ST. DENIS
WAS KILLED.
BUT THERE'S STILL ONE
MORE PERSON INVOLVED
IN THE GRUESOME TALE,
ONE WHO APPARENTLY
AUTHORIZED THE MURDER:
KIRTANANANDA SWAMI BHAKTIPADA.
[ OMINOUS CHORD STRIKES ]
Doktorski:
REID IS SAYING,
"I WANT TO KILL ST. DENIS."
DRESCHER SAYS, "YOU GOTTA COME
AND TALK TO KIRTANANANDA.
HE'LL KNOW WHAT'S
THE BEST THING TO DO."
I FINALLY TALKED HIM INTO
GOING TO SEE KIRTANANANDA.
Narrator:
AFTER MEETING WITH THE SWAMI,
REID CONTACTS DRESCHER.
I SAID, "HOW'D IT GO?"
HE SAYS, "HE WANTS ME
TO KILL HIM.
HE SAID TO GET WITH YOU AND MAKE
SURE THE JOB GOT DONE RIGHT.
BECAUSE OF HIS OFFENSES,
HE HAS TO DIE."
[ SINISTER FLOURISH PLAYS ]
DAN REID IS SENTENCED
TO FIVE YEARS
[ EERIE LULLABY CONTINUES ]
FOR VOLUNTARY MANSLAUGHTER
AS AN ACCOMPLICE IN THE KILLING
OF CHARLES ST. DENIS.
BUT INVESTIGATORS ARE UNABLE
TO PIN ANY RESPONSIBILITY
ONTO THE SWAMI.
IN CALIFORNIA, THOMAS DRESCHER
FACES YET ANOTHER TRIAL.
HE STILL HAD TO FACE THE TRIAL
FOR THE MURDER OF
STEVEN BRYANT IN CALIFORNIA,
WHICH, HE WAS LATER
BROUGHT OUT OF PRISON
AND TAKEN TO CALIFORNIA.
Narrator:
DRESCHER IS FOUND GUILTY
AND RECEIVES A SECOND
LIFE SENTENCE.
AND, WITH NOTHING LEFT TO LOSE,
HE FINALLY REVEALS THAT
THE SWAMI HAD HIS OWN REASONS
FOR WANTING ST. DENIS DEAD.
Drescher:
ST. DENIS WAS TELLING PEOPLE
KIRTANANANDA WAS HAVING
SEXUAL RELATIONS
WITH SOME OF THE MEXICAN
WORKER BOYS.
IT'S BECAUSE THERE WAS TRUTH
TO THESE ALLEGATIONS
THAT HE HAD TO BE SILENCED.
[ SUSPENSEFUL MUSIC PLAYS ]
WHATEVER I DID,
I DID OUT OF A SENSE OF DUTY
TO MY SPIRITUAL MASTER.
Rader:
DRESCHER REALIZES THAT
HE'S BEEN USED BY KIRTANANANDA.
HE TELLS POLICE THAT
KIRTANANANDA SANCTIONED
BOTH OF THESE MURDERS
AND HE IS VERY ADAMANT
THAT HE WOULD NEVER HAVE
DONE ANYTHING LIKE THAT
WITHOUT KIRTANANANDA'S
DIRECT PERMISSION.
Narrator:
INVESTIGATORS WORK DILIGENTLY
TO PUT THE SWAMI BEHIND BARS
FOR THE MURDERS OF ST. DENIS
AND STEVE BRYANT.
IN MAY OF 1990, KIRTANANANDA
IS INDICTED FOR MAIL FRAUD,
RACKETEERING, AND CONSPIRACY
TO COMMIT MURDER.
DRESCHER TESTIFIES
AGAINST KIRTANANANDA.
Narrator:
THROUGHOUT IT ALL, THE HEAD GURU
MAINTAINS HIS INNOCENCE.
THEY SAID THAT I CONSPIRED.
[scoff]
I DON'T SEE THAT.
♪♪♪♪
[ SUSPENSEFUL CHORD STRIKES ]
[ CLOCK TICKING ]
[ ELECTRICITY CRACKLING ]
[ OMINOUS CHORD STRIKES ]
Reporter:
SWAMI BHAKTIPADA WAS SENTENCED
TO 30 YEARS IN JAIL.
BHAKTIPADA WAS CONVICTED
ON NUMEROUS COUNTS.
Narrator:
THE SWAMI'S CONVICTIONS
ARE OVERTURNED ON APPEAL,
BUT DURING A RETRIAL,
HE PLEADS GUILTY
TO ONE COUNT OF RACKETEERING
AND GOES TO PRISON.
ALL THREE MEN CONNECTED
TO CHARLES ST. DENIS'S
BRUTAL MURDER
FOUND THEMSELVES BEHIND BARS.
I COULD NOT HELP BUT THINK THAT
DEBORAH WAS PROVED TO BE RIGHT.
SHE WAS VINDICATED.
[ MELANCHOLY TUNE PLAYS ]
Westfall:
THE ST. DENIS CASE
WAS THE BEGINNING OF THE END
OF THE REGIME
OF SWAMI BHAKTIPADA
AND THE BEGINNING
OF THE END OF HIS INFLUENCE
WITHIN THE KRISHNA
CONSCIOUSNESS MOVEMENT.
Narrator:
DURING THE 1980s,
NEW VRINDABAN
WAS AS MUCH A CRIME SCENE
AS A PLACE OF SPIRITUAL
ENLIGHTENMENT.
IN 1987,
NEW VRINDABAN WAS REMOVED
FROM THE SANCTIONED LIST OF
KRISHNA TEMPLES AND COMMUNITIES.
IT REGAINED ITS STATUS IN 1998.
IN MANY WAYS,
THE HARE KRISHNA COMMUNITY
IS VERY DIFFERENT
THAN IT WAS IN THE '80s.
THE TWO MURDERS OF ST. DENIS
AND STEVE BRYANT
TURNED THE TIDE
REGARDING THE CORRUPTION
AND IMMORAL ACTIVITIES
AND CRIMINAL ACTIVITIES
AT NEW VRINDABAN.
THE ST. DENIS MURDER
MAY HAVE BEEN
MORE IMPORTANT,
IN THE LONG RUN,
BECAUSE, AFTER TOM DRESCHER
WAS PUT IN JAIL,
THE DEVOTEES AT NEW VRINDABAN
BEGAN TO UNDERSTAND THAT
MAYBE GOOD DOES TRIUMPH
OVER EVIL.
Rader:
OBVIOUSLY, WHAT HAPPENED
IN NEW VRINDABAN IS A TRAGEDY.
CHARLES ST. DENIS WAS AN AMAZING
PERSON, IN HIS OWN WAY,
AND, IN ALL LIKELIHOOD,
WOULD HAVE SETTLED DOWN,
LIKE MOST OTHER PEOPLE WHO GOT
INTO DRUGS AND HAD A WILD TIME.
I JUST SEE SO MUCH
LOST POTENTIAL.