Evil Talks: Chilling Confessions (2018–…): Season 1, Episode 2 - The Vanishing Women of San Luis Obispo - full transcript
Two young women vanish in California. To find them, detectives must convince a potential killer to talk.
OKAY.
OKAY.
Narrator:
TWO MISSING COLLEGE STUDENTS
TRIGGER A CITY-WIDE MANHUNT.
IT'S PRETTY OBVIOUS THAT
THERE'S SOMETHING GOING ON HERE.
Narrator: THE CLOCK IS TICKING
AS A HOSTAGE CRISIS UNFOLDS.
WHO KNOWS WHAT COULD HAPPEN
TO THEM? THEY COULD BE KILLED.
Narrator: POLICE MUST FOLLOW
A BLOODY TRAIL OF EVIDENCE.
THE VIDEO IS TRULY CHILLING.
[ INDISTINCT SHOUTING ]
Narrator: TWO MEN'S LIVES
DEPEND ON GETTING THE TRUTH.
[ LIGHT BUZZES ]
IN THE INTERROGATION ROOM,
POLICE MUST CONFRONT EVIL...
WHEN DID YOU DECIDE THAT YOU
WERE GOING TO KILL THIS PERSON?
WHY DID YOU
CHOOSE MURDER?
DO YOU THINK OF YOURSELF
AS A SERIAL KILLER?
Narrator:...SIFTING THROUGH
UNSPEAKABLE CRIMES
AND THE DARK SECRETS.
HAD THE KNIFE
AND PUT IT DOWN.
I AM A KILLER.
I'VE KILLED THREE OTHER PEOPLE.
Narrator: THE TRUTH CAN ONLY BE
REVEALED WHEN EVIL TALKS.
**
DECEMBER 5, 2015.
POLICE IN ROCHESTER, NEW YORK,
RECEIVE A CALL.
[ TELEPHONE RINGS ]
ROCHESTER POLICE DEPARTMENT --
DETECTIVE CASSIDY.
UNIVERSITY OF ROCHESTER SENIOR
ANI EWO IS MISSING.
Cassidy: ANI HAS A TWIN BROTHER.
THE TWIN BROTHER HAD BEEN TRYING
TO GET IN TOUCH WITH HIM,
SAID IT WAS VERY ODD
THAT HE WAS NOT RESPONDING.
Narrator: POLICE FOLLOW UP
WITH ANI'S FRATERNITY
AND MAKE A TROUBLING DISCOVERY.
ANI AND HIS 23-YEAR-OLD
FRATERNITY BROTHER NIKO KOLLIAS
WENT OUT FRIDAY NIGHT,
BUT NEITHER MAN CAME HOME.
NIKO'S FRIENDS THEN ALSO
GOT INVOLVED AND ALSO HELPED.
THEY WERE VERY ALARMED.
WHEN'S THE LAST TIME
YOU SAW THESE TWO GUYS?
Narrator:
DETECTIVES LEARN THAT THE TWO
HAVEN'T BEEN SEEN OR HEARD FROM
SINCE THEY WENT OUT
THE NIGHT BEFORE.
FRIENDS ARE CONVINCED
THAT NEITHER MAN
WOULD HAVE STAYED OUT ALL NIGHT.
COME ON,
YOU'RE FRATERNITY BROTHERS.
YOU'RE TELLING ME YOU DON'T
STAY OUT ALL NIGHT?
NOT ANI AND NIKO.
Callanan: NIKO WAS IN
THE BUSINESS SCHOOL...
HE WAS IN A FRATERNITY
ON CAMPUS,
HE WAS ALSO A FOOTBALL PLAYER.
ANI WAS THE SAME --
BUSINESS MAJOR,
HE ALSO PLAYED MULTIPLE SPORTS.
BOTH WERE GOOD STUDENTS.
THEY HAD NO CRIMINAL RECORD.
THEY WERE YOUR AVERAGE
UNIVERSITY OF ROCHESTER SENIORS.
DID THEY RUN AWAY, OR ARE THEY
IN SOME SORT OF TROUBLE?
THE FIRST SEVERAL HOURS
ARE CRITICAL.
THEY SAID
THEY WERE GOING TO A PARTY.
Narrator:
FRATERNITY BROTHERS TELL POLICE
THE TWO MEN WENT TO A PARTY
LATE FRIDAY NIGHT.
ONE OF THEM RECALLS
AN IMPORTANT DETAIL.
ANOTHER FRIEND OF THEIRS HAD
SPOKE TO THEM ON FaceTime,
AND THEY WERE IN THE BACKSEAT
OF A CAR WITH TWO GIRLS.
SO THAT'S REALLY ALL I KNEW
RIGHT THEN.
Narrator: THROUGH SOCIAL MEDIA,
CAMPUS POLICE
QUICKLY LOCATE A WOMAN
WHO MESSAGED ANI FRIDAY NIGHT --
19-YEAR-OLD SAMANTHA HUGHES.
SHE HAD TOLD
U OF R PUBLIC SAFETY
AND A POLICE OFFICER
THAT SHE HAD BEEN
WITH ANI AND NIKO
AND THEY HAD BEEN AT A PARTY.
AND AT THAT PARTY, SHE GOT SICK
AND LEFT FROM THERE.
SAID SHE HAD NEVER SEEN THEM
AFTERWARDS.
Narrator: SAMANTHA NOW OFFERS
TO HELP FIND THE TWO MEN
12 HOURS AFTER
SHE LAST SAW THEM.
Houlihan: SAMANTHA HUGHES
HAD DRIVEN AROUND
TRYING TO POINT OUT A HOUSE
WHERE SHE LAST SAW ANI AND NIKO.
SAME COLOR,
NOT THE SAME HOUSE, THOUGH.
UM...
Narrator:
BUT AFTER A NIGHT OF PARTYING,
SAMANTHA CAN'T FIND THE HOUSE.
NO, SORT OF LIKE IT,
BUT IT'S NOT REALLY IT.
UM...
SHE TRIES, BUT SHE CAN'T.
NOTHING THAT WOULD STICK OUT
AS A LOCATION THEY MIGHT BE IN.
WE STILL HAD NO IDEA
WHERE THE KIDS WERE.
**
Narrator: BY SUNDAY MORNING,
NIKO AND ANI HAVE BEEN MISSING
FOR 32 HOURS.
AND THE INVESTIGATION
HAS TAKEN AN OMINOUS TURN.
ALTHOUGH NIKO'S PHONE
WAS TURNED OFF,
IT CAME BACK ON AT ONE POINT,
AND A CALL WAS MADE
TO A FINANCIAL INSTITUTION.
Narrator: POLICE OBTAIN
A RECORDING OF THE CALL
MADE FROM NIKO'S PHONE
TO HIS BANK.
WHEN WE FIRST GOT ALL OF THOSE
CALLS BACK, IT WAS TERRIFYING.
IT WAS PRETTY OBVIOUS THAT
THERE'S SOMETHING GOING ON HERE.
Narrator: POLICE FEAR
NIKO AND ANI DIDN'T JUST VANISH,
THEY'VE BEEN KIDNAPPED.
THE CLOCK IS TICKING.
IF THEY WERE SUCCESSFUL IN
GETTING ALL THE CASH
FROM HIS ACCOUNTS,
THEY WOULD HAVE BEEN FORCED
TO DECIDE WHAT TO DO
WITH THEIR TWO
KIDNAPPING VICTIMS.
WHO KNOWS WHAT COULD HAPPEN
TO THEM?
THEY COULD BE KILLED.
**
Narrator: SUNDAY EVENING --
DESPERATE FOR ANY LEAD,
DETECTIVES DECIDE TO FOCUS ON
THE LAST PERSON
WHO SAW NIKO AND ANI.
WE REALLY NEEDED TO
TALK MORE EXTENSIVELY
WITH SAMANTHA HUGHES.
Narrator: SAMANTHA COMES DOWN
TO THE PRECINCT
AND REVIEWS HER MESSAGES
WITH ANI.
HER CONVERSATION WITH DETECTIVES
DRAGS ON
BUT TURNS UP NO NEW INFORMATION.
I SUGGESTED WE TAKE A BREAK,
AND SAMANTHA ASKED
TO USE A RESTROOM.
Narrator: OFFICER MELISSA FRASCA
SHOWS SAMANTHA TO
THE WOMEN'S ROOM.
I WALKED WITH HER ALONE
DOWN THE HALLWAY
AND INTO THE WOMEN'S ROOM.
AND WHILE WE WERE IN THERE,
WE JUST STARTED
HAVING CONVERSATION.
HOW YOU DOING?
FEELING OKAY?
I'M FINE.
IT WAS VERY CASUAL CONVERSATION
THAT JUST STARTED TO
SPIRAL INTO THE SITUATION THAT
WE WERE THERE INVESTIGATING.
IT'S JUST CRAZY WHAT HAPPENED
TO THOSE GUYS.
YEAH, IT IS.
THEIR PARENTS
ARE REALLY WORRIED.
Narrator: THEN, SAMANTHA
MAKES AN UNEXPECTED ADMISSION
ABOUT HER CONVERSATION
WITH DETECTIVES.
SHE DID TELL ME THAT
SOME OF WHAT SHE TOLD THEM
MAY HAVE NOT BEEN
COMPLETELY THE TRUTH
BUT THAT THE BOYS WERE SAFE.
THEY'RE SAFE.
I KNOW THEY'RE SAFE.
DO YOU KNOW
WHERE THEY ARE?
NO.
HOW DO YOU KNOW THAT
THEY'RE SAFE, THEN?
I ASKED MORE QUESTIONS ABOUT
EXACTLY WHERE THEY WERE,
AND THEN, AT ONE POINT,
SHE SAID TO ME
ONE OF THEM MAY HAVE BEEN SHOT.
Narrator: WHEN OFFICER FRASCA
TELLS LEAD INVESTIGATORS
WHAT SHE'S LEARNED,
THEY ARE STUNNED.
HAS SAMANTHA KNOWN ALL ALONG
WHAT HAPPENED TO NIKO AND ANI
OR WHERE THE TWO MEN
ARE BEING HELD?
IT WAS QUITE EVIDENT
THAT SAMANTHA HAD MORE TO DO
WITH THE SITUATION
THAN WAS INITIALLY BELIEVED.
Houlihan: WE WERE TREATING HER
AS A WITNESS.
SHE MIGHT BE A SUSPECT.
Narrator: MORE THAN 40 HOURS
AFTER NIKO AND ANI VANISHED,
DETECTIVES NOW BELIEVE
THE MEN ARE STILL ALIVE,
THOUGH POSSIBLY WOUNDED.
THEY ALSO SUSPECT
SAMANTHA HUGHES IS INVOLVED.
THEY GO BACK OVER HER EARLIER
STATEMENTS FOR CLUES.
Cassidy: THE INITIAL STORY
THAT SAMANTHA HAD GIVEN
TO THE U OF R INVESTIGATORS,
SHE SAID
AFTER SHE LEFT THE PARTY,
SHE CALLED HER FRIEND LEAH
AND ASKED HER
TO COME PICK HER UP.
Narrator:
DETECTIVES QUICKLY TRACK DOWN
20-YEAR-OLD LEAH GIGLIOTTI.
THEY ASK HER
TO COME TO THE PRECINCT
TO ANSWER SOME QUESTIONS.
UNLIKE SAMANTHA,
WHEN WE FIRST STARTED TALKING,
WE THOUGHT SHE WAS A WITNESS.
BY THE TIME WE TALK TO LEAH,
WE KNOW THAT LEAH'S A SUSPECT.
WE DEFINITELY TOOK
THE INVESTIGATION UP A NOTCH.
BECAUSE NOW WE KNEW THAT THEY
WERE DEFINITELY MORE INVOLVED.
Narrator:
SHE DENIES GOING ANYWHERE
WITH SAMANTHA OR NIKO AND ANI.
CELLPHONE DATA
PUTS LEAH WITH SAMANTHA
AT THE TIME NIKO AND ANI
WENT MISSING.
BUT THE RECORDS
ARE NOT PRECISE ENOUGH
TO GIVE POLICE
A SPECIFIC LOCATION.
WE'RE UP AGAINST THE CLOCK
FOR TIME.
WE'RE GONNA HAVE TO
SQUEEZE HER A LITTLE BIT,
MAKE HER FEEL PRESSURE,
AND UNDERSTAND THE GRAVITY
OF HER SITUATION.
Narrator: DETECTIVES READ
LEAH GIGLIOTTI HER RIGHTS.
I DON'T THINK SHE GRASPED THE
SERIOUSNESS OF THE SITUATION,
OR DIDN'T WANT TO.
Narrator: INVESTIGATORS KNOW
THERE IS NO TIME TO LOSE.
Callanan: WE'RE INTO SUNDAY,
AND THESE BOYS HAVE BEEN MISSING
SINCE SATURDAY MORNING.
THE CLOCK KEEPS GOING, BUT THEY
ARE GOING UP AGAINST A WALL
THAT THESE BOYS
MIGHT NOT SURVIVE.
Narrator:
LEAH DENIES HAVING ANY KNOWLEDGE
ABOUT THE MISSING MEN.
BUT THERE IS AT LEAST
ONE OTHER PERSON
WHO KNOWS WHAT HAPPENED TO
NIKO AND ANI LATE FRIDAY NIGHT.
WHEN WE STARTED KIND OF
GETTING AWAY FROM MY APARTMENT
AND HEADING MORE DOWNTOWN,
I KIND OF --
I REALIZE THAT THE NEIGHBORHOOD
KIND OF STARTED TURNING
MORE SHADY OR NOT GOOD,
AND THAT'S WHEN I STARTED
GETTING NERVOUS.
**
Narrator:
LEAH GIGLIOTTI DENIES KNOWING
NIKO KOLLIAS AND ANI EWO
HAVE BEEN KIDNAPPED.
DETECTIVES THINK SHE'S LYING.
NIKO KOLLIAS KNOWS SHE IS.
I'M TRYING TO WAKE UP...
Kollias: IT'S JUST
ANY OTHER FRIDAY NIGHT.
[ BOTH LAUGHING ]
I WAS WITH ANI,
AND HE WAS LIKE,
"YEAH, THESE TWO GIRLS
ARE TEXTING ME,
AND THEY WANNA MEET UP."
THEY WERE SAYING, "ANI,
COME TO THIS PARTY WITH US."
**
TWO GIRLS WERE DRIVING, AND
ANI AND I WERE IN THE BACK SEAT.
AND THEN, WHEN WE PULLED UP
AT THE HOUSE...
[ DOOR CREAKS ]
...WE JUST WENT IN
THE SIDE DOOR.
I WENT AHEAD
AND SAT DOWN ON THIS COUCH
IN THE FAMILY ROOM
OFF OF THE KITCHEN THERE.
WHAT ARE WE DOING HERE?
UH, HEY, I ACTUALLY
FORGOT SOMETHING IN THE CAR.
I'LL BE RIGHT BACK.
WAIT, WHAT?
YO, WE JUST GOT HERE.
WE'LL BE RIGHT BACK.
JUST CHILL.
AND JUST SECONDS LATER,
THE LIGHTS GO OUT.
AND 5 TO 10 MEN WITH MASKS
AND BATS AND CLUBS
AND GUNS AND KNIVES
START SCREAMING AND YELLING
AND ATTACKING.
AND MY IMMEDIATE RESPONSE
IS JUST FIGHT OR FLIGHT.
AND, YOU KNOW, MADE MY WAY
TO THE DOOR AS FAST AS I COULD.
I PROBABLY GOT HALFWAY
TO THE DOOR,
AND THEN I GOT CLUBBED
OVER THE HEAD.
OTHERS YELLING AND SCREAMING,
"STOP FIGHTING, STOP RESISTING.
JUST ACCEPT IT."
THE NEXT SECOND,
I WAS ON THE GROUND.
I WAS SHOT IN MY LEFT LEG,
BROKE MY FEMUR IN HALF.
**
42 HOURS LATER,
DETECTIVES ARE SCRAMBLING
TO FIND NIKO AND ANI.
A CALL MADE TO NIKO'S BANK
IS THE ONLY SIGN DETECTIVES HAVE
THAT EITHER MAN IS STILL ALIVE.
NIKO AND ANI ARE STILL OUT
THERE, THEY'RE STILL MISSING.
TIME IS STILL VERY IMPORTANT
TO US.
ONE OF THEM MAY HAVE BEEN SHOT.
THERE IS A CHANCE THAT,
YOU KNOW,
ONE OF THESE GUYS COULD DIE.
Narrator:
WHY WERE NIKO AND ANI TAKEN?
AND WHERE?
DETECTIVES BELIEVE THAT ONE OF
THE WOMEN WHO SAW THEM LAST,
LEAH GIGLIOTTI,
KNOWS MORE THAN SHE'S ADMITTING.
AND NOW WE SUSPECTED
SHE MAY BE INVOLVED FURTHER.
**
Narrator:
DETECTIVES CASSIDY AND HOULIHAN
WASTE NO TIME WITH SMALL TALK.
**
WELL, YOU CAN SEE THAT THE
WHEELS ARE SPINNING IN HER HEAD.
SHE'S KIND OF AT A LOSS
FOR WHERE SHE'S AT RIGHT NOW.
AND, IN A WAY, LOOKING TO US
FOR HELP AS,
"I DON'T KNOW WHAT TO SAY.
I DON'T KNOW WHAT YOU WANT
FROM ME."
Narrator: WHAT DETECTIVES WANT
IS AN ADDRESS
WHERE NIKO AND ANI
ARE BEING HELD.
LEAH HASN'T EVEN ADMITTED
SHE MET THE MEN,
BUT FINALLY, SHE OFFERS
A GLIMPSE OF THE TRUTH.
ONCE WE STARTED TALKING ABOUT
WE KNOW THERE WAS SOMEONE SHOT
AND IF THEY DIE,
THIS COULD BE A MURDER,
I THINK IT MAYBE STARTED TO
SINK IN A LITTLE TO HER THAT,
"YEAH, THIS COULD BE
A LITTLE MORE SERIOUS
THAN I WAS THINKING."
Narrator: LEAH RESISTS
GIVING ANY DETAILS
BEYOND WHAT DETECTIVES
ALREADY KNOW
FROM TALKING TO HER FRIEND
SAMANTHA --
THAT ONE OF THE MISSING MEN
MAY HAVE BEEN SHOT.
WE NEEDED TO FIND THEM,
SO THE PRESSURE WAS ON,
AND WE NEEDED TO
GET HER TO TALK.
**
Narrator: WITHOUT LEAH'S HELP,
INVESTIGATORS KEEP DIGGING
FOR EVIDENCE
BEFORE IT'S TOO LATE.
THEIR ONLY LEAD SO FAR
IS A ROBBERY ONE WEEK EARLIER
THAT POLICE LEARN INVOLVED
A TEAMMATE OF NIKO AND ANI'S.
ISAIAH SMITH,
A FRIEND OF ANI AND NIKO
AND ALSO
A FELLOW FOOTBALL PLAYER
WAS IDENTIFIED AS BEING INVOLVED
IN THAT ROBBERY.
Narrator:
SMITH TALKS TO POLICE.
WHAT THE HELL WENT ON
OUT THERE?
HE ADMITS TO
ORGANIZING A ROBBERY
OF SOME DRUG DEALERS
IN ANI'S APARTMENT
WITHOUT HIS KNOWLEDGE.
SMITH ENDED UP DOING
A DRUG DEAL IN THERE,
AND DURING
THIS DRUG TRANSACTION,
SOMEONE CAME IN
AND ROBBED THE DRUG DEALER
OF SEVERAL POUNDS
OF MARIJUANA.
GET ON THE GROUND!
GET YOUR ASS ON THE GROUND!
GET ON THE GROUND NOW!
Narrator: SMITH ADMITS
HE EXECUTED THE ROBBERY
AND NOW FEARS THE DEALERS
ARE OUT FOR REVENGE.
SURVEILLANCE FOOTAGE
CONFIRMS SMITHS STORY.
MEN ENTER ANI'S APARTMENT
WHILE HE IS OUT OF TOWN.
TWO OF THEM LEAVE
COVERED IN BLOOD.
THE AMOUNT OF MARIJUANA TAKEN
WAS --
WE FIND OUT LATER
IT WAS FOUR POUNDS,
SO IT'S A SIGNIFICANT ROBBERY.
CERTAINLY ENOUGH FOR SOMEONE
TO WANT RETALIATE.
WHERE ARE THESE GUYS?
I DON'T KNOW.
I DON'T KNOW WHERE THEY'RE AT.
Narrator: COULD NIKO AND ANI'S
DISAPPEARANCE
BE CONNECTED TO THE DRUG DEALERS
ROBBED BY THEIR TEAMMATE?
AS NIGHT FALLS
SUNDAY DECEMBER 6th,
POLICE CONTINUE TO PRESS
LEAH GIGLIOTTI FOR INFORMATION.
**
WE'RE INTERVIEWING
AGAINST THE CLOCK,
TRYING TO GET TO WHERE
THE LOCATION OF THESE GUYS ARE.
WE'RE NOT GOING REAL SOFT
AND QUIET
AND LETTING THEM
JUST LEAD US DOWN A PATH.
WE NEED TO KIND OF
STREAMLINE THE INTERVIEW.
**
Narrator: DETECTIVES PUSH LEAH
TO GIVE THEM A LOCATION
WHERE ANI AND NIKO
ARE BEING HELD.
...TO THE CURB.
A S.W.A.T. TEAM IS STANDING BY
TO ATTEMPT A RESCUE.
THEY JUST NEED AN ADDRESS.
WE DON'T WANT TO MAKE ENTRY
INTO THE WRONG HOUSE.
Narrator:
WHAT POLICE DON'T KNOW
IS THAT AFTER MORE THAN 42 HOURS
OF TERROR,
NIKO AND ANI
ARE BARELY HANGING ON.
THEY CAME BACK IN THE ROOM
AND JUST STARTED FIRING
THIS ASSAULT WEAPON EVERYWHERE.
[ GUNFIRE ]
I GRABBED ANI'S HAND,
AND I JUST --
THAT'S WHEN I THOUGHT
I WAS GONNA DIE.
[ GUNFIRE ]
**
**
Narrator:
HELD HOSTAGE FOR OVER 42 HOURS,
NIKO KOLLIAS AND ANI EWO
PREPARE FOR THE END.
**
Kollias: THEY SAID THAT
THEY WERE GONNA KILL US.
THEY STARTED PLAYING LOUD MUSIC
IN THE KITCHEN.
AND THEY PUT A GUN UP TO US...
AND MOVE IT AT THE LAST SECOND.
THEY FORCED THE BARREL
OF THE WEAPON DOWN OUR MOUTH
AND WERE JUST DOING JUST
THE MOST TERRIBLE THINGS TO US.
Narrator: KOLLIAS KNOWS
THE SITUATION IS DIRE.
AT THAT POINT,
I WAS PRETTY CONVINCED
AND CONFIDENT
THAT I WAS GONNA DIE.
[ BREATHING HEAVILY ]
**
Narrator:
BUT ROCHESTER DETECTIVES
HAVE NOT GIVEN UP.
THEY BELIEVE A DRUG ROBBERY
CARRIED OUT
BY UNIVERSITY OF ROCHESTER
FOOTBALL PLAYER ISAIAH SMITH
MUST HAVE LEAD TO
AN ACT OF RETALIATION
AGAINST HIS TEAMMATES
NIKO AND ANI.
INVESTIGATORS SCOUR THE LIVES
OF TWO WOMAN LINKED
TO THE MISSING MEN.
INVESTIGATORS
AND THE CRIME ANALYSTS,
THEY WERE LOOKING INTO
SAMANTHA AND LEAH.
Narrator: ONE NUMBER
IN SAMANTHA'S CELLPHONE RECORDS
GRABS DETECTIVES' ATTENTION.
Cassidy:
WE FOUND ONE NUMBER THAT
SHE HAD BEEN TALKING TO A LOT
THE LAST THREE DAYS,
CONSTANT COMMUNICATION WITH,
BUT HAD NEVER BEEN ON THE PHONE
UP TO THAT POINT.
SO, THAT MADE US THINK, "WELL,
IF SHE'S IN THE MIDDLE OF THIS,
THIS IS PROBABLY
SOMEONE WHO'S INVOLVED."
Narrator:
POLICE TRACK THE NUMBER
FROM SAMANTHA'S PHONE.
THEY GOT AN ORDER AND QUICKLY
STARTED LOOKING FOR THAT PHONE.
IT WAS HITTING IT ON
THE NORTHEAST SIDE OF THE CITY,
BUT IT WAS MOVING AROUND.
IT WAS HITTING AT
DIFFERENT PLACES.
Narrator: FINALLY, THE PHONE
IS TRACKED TO AN ADDRESS
THAT MATCHES ONE OF SAMANTHA'S
CONTACTS ON SOCIAL MEDIA --
23-YEAR-OLD DENNIS PEREZ.
THEY FOUND A CONNECTION
BETWEEN SAMANTHA HUGHES
AND DENNIS PEREZ, WHO RESIDED
AT 22 HARVEST STREET.
**
WAS A HUGE BREAK.
Narrator: ARE NIKO AND ANI
BEING HELD AT 22 HARVEST STREET?
A S.W.A.T. TEAM IS STANDING BY
TO ATTEMPT A RESCUE.
Frasca: WHEN THE CALL
WAS BEING MADE TO S.W.A.T.,
IT WAS LITERALLY A MATTER
OF LIFE AND DEATH
FOR INVESTIGATORS CASSIDY
AND HOULIHAN TO DEBRIEF LEAH
AND CONFIRM THAT ADDRESS
AT 22 HARVEST STREET.
AND THIS WAS THE POINT
WHERE I REALLY STARTED TO
GET FRUSTRATED WITH HER --
WITH LEAH'S ATTITUDE
THAT SHE DIDN'T REALLY
PLAY A PART IN THIS
AND WE SHOULD JUST
LEAVE HER OUT OF IT.
WE REALLY DID NEED HER TO VERIFY
THE INFORMATION
THAT WE ALREADY HAD.
**
Narrator:
AFTER LESS THAN AN HOUR
IN THE INTERROGATION ROOM,
LEAH DECIDES TO OPEN UP
ABOUT WHAT REALLY HAPPENED
FRIDAY NIGHT.
MIKE THREW IN THERE
HARVEST STREET, AND...
SHE MIGHT NOT KNOW THE EXACT
NAME OR NUMBER OR WHATEVER,
BUT WITH THIS,
I THINK WE FEEL CONFIDENT,
AT LEAST MAKING
OUR RECOMMENDATION
THAT WE GO INTO
22 HARVEST STREET
AND SEE IF WE CAN GET THESE GUYS
OUT OF THERE.
Narrator:
43 HOURS AFTER NIKO AND ANI
WERE TAKEN HOSTAGE
A S.W.A.T. TEAM
MOVES INTO POSITION.
INVESTIGATORS HOPE
THEY'RE NOT TOO LATE.
**
WE GET ONE SHOT AT THIS.
IF WE CHOOSE THE WRONG HOUSE,
THAT COULD CAUSE
A KNEE-JERK REACTION,
WHICH COULD CAUSE THEM
TO KILL THE VICTIMS,
BECAUSE THEY CAN FEEL
THEM NOW CLOSING IN.
Narrator: THE S.W.A.T. TEAM
MOVES IN SILENTLY, AND THEN...
[ INDISTINCT TALKING ]
[ GLASS BREAKS ]
[ CRASH ]
[ INDISTINCT SHOUTING ]
**
GET ON THE GROUND!
GET ON THE [BLEEP] GROUND!
THE HOUSE JUST LIGHTS UP
AND, YOU KNOW, JUST EXPLODES,
AND...
I HAD NO IDEA WHAT WAS GOING ON,
BUT THEY CAME IN FAST
AND VERY STEALTH-LIKE,
AND IT WAS KIND OF SCARY
AT FIRST
'CAUSE I SAW MORE MEN WITH GUNS.
BUT THEN, AFTER I REALIZED
THAT THEY WERE SAVING MY LIFE,
I WAS VERY THANKFUL.
**
GEEZ.
[ BREATHES DEEPLY ]
YEAH, I MEAN,
AS YOU CAN SEE FROM HERE,
IT'S JUST, MY HANDS ARE SWOLLEN,
MY FACE IS SWOLLEN,
I'M EXTREMELY PALE.
AND MY LEG
IS PARTIALLY BANDAGED,
AND I'M JUST BLEEDING.
I MEAN, YOU CAN'T SEE
THE GASHES IN MY HEAD,
BUT NUMEROUS, NUMEROUS
BLOWS TO MY HEAD.
THESE WERE INSANE PEOPLE,
AND WHAT THEY DID TO US
WAS JUST NOT OKAY.
Narrator:
AFTER 43 HOURS IN CAPTIVITY,
NIKO AND ANI ARE FINALLY SAFE.
THEY BOTH LOOK LIKE
THEY'D SEEN GHOSTS.
I MEAN, THEY JUST HAVE ALMOST
VACANT STARES ON THEIR FACE.
YOU CAN TELL THAT THEY'D
BEEN THROUGH A LOT.
WHAT'S YOU NAME?
DENNIS.
DENNIS WHAT?
DENNIS TORRES?
Narrator: AFTER THE RAID
AT 22 HARVEST STREET,
TWO PEOPLE
ARE TAKEN INTO CUSTODY --
DENNIS PEREZ,
WHO WAS LIVING AT THE HOUSE,
AND HIS GIRLFRIEND,
INALIA ROLLDAN.
NIKO AND ANI TELL POLICE
THEY ARE JUST TWO
OF THEIR ASSAILANTS.
WE KNEW THERE WAS
AT LEAST FOUR MALES THERE,
AND AT THIS POINT,
WE ONLY HAD ONE MALE IN CUSTODY.
SO WE KNEW THERE WAS AT LEAST
THREE OTHERS, MAYBE MORE.
Narrator:
AS POLICE URGENTLY HUNT FOR THE
REST OF NIKO AND ANI'S CAPTORS,
THEY STRUGGLE TO MAKE SENSE
OF THE CRIME.
WE STILL HAD TO FIGURE OUT
EXACTLY WHO WAS INVOLVED
AND ALL OF THE DETAILS AROUND --
SURROUNDING WHAT LEAD THEM
TO 22 HARVEST.
Narrator:
AMONG THE PHOTOS AND VIDEO
ON DENNIS PEREZ'S CELLPHONE,
POLICE MAKE
A STARTLING DISCOVERY.
THE VIDEO IS TRULY CHILLING.
IT'S -- YOU CAN'T
REALLY DESCRIBE IT.
Narrator:
THE BRUTAL CRIMES COMMITTED
INSIDE 22 HARVEST STREET
HAD BEEN RECORDED.
**
OKAY.
TWO MALE COLLAGE STUDENTS
WERE FOUND SAFE SUNDAY NIGHT
AFTER POLICE SAY THEY WERE
FORCIBLY ABDUCTED
OVER THE WEEKEND.
POLICE SAY THE
UNIVERSITY OF ROCHESTER SENIORS
WERE LAST SEEN
EARLY SATURDAY MORNING.
A S.W.A.T. TEAM WAS LAUNCHED
ON SUNDAY
AFTER POLICE FIGURED OUT
WHERE THEY WERE BEING HELD.
Narrator:
NIKO KOLLIAS AND ANI EWO
ENDURED 43 HOURS OF TORTURE
INSIDE 22 HARVEST STREET.
POLICE QUESTION DENNIS PEREZ,
ARRESTED IN THE RAID,
DETERMINED TO UNDERSTAND
WHAT HORRORS
NIKO AND ANI SUFFERED
AND WHY THEY WERE TARGETED.
AND WE TALKED TO DENNIS PEREZ.
HE WAS ADVISED OF HIS RIGHTS,
WHICH HE WAIVED.
AND DENNIS PEREZ
STARTED TO TELL US THIS TALE.
HE PLAYED THE VICTIM HIMSELF.
THESE PEOPLE CAME IN,
HELD HIM AT GUNPOINT,
MADE HIM BEAT THEM,
MADE HIM HOLD THEM AT GUNPOINT,
ALL AGAINST HIS WILL.
IT WAS JUST
AN UNBELIEVABLE STORY.
I DON'T KNOW
WHO WOULD BELIEVE THAT.
WE TOLD HIM IT WAS UNBELIEVABLE,
AND HE'S, "WELL,
THAT WHAT HAPPENED."
HE WAS THE ONLY INDIVIDUAL
THAT I SAW WITHOUT A MASK ON.
AND HE KNEW.
I MEAN, HE WAS THERE FROM
THE SECOND WE ENTERED THE HOUSE
WITH THE TWO GIRLS.
Narrator: DETECTIVES HAVE PLENTY
OF EVIDENCE AT 22 HARVEST STREET
TO CONNECT PEREZ TO THE CRIME.
BUT AS THEY TRY TO ESTABLISH
HIS ROLE IN THE ATTACKS,
FORENSIC TECHNICIANS
RECOVER EVIDENCE
PEREZ TRIED TO DELETE
FROM HIS CELLPHONE.
WE EXTRACTED VIDEO --
A 30-SECOND VIDEO CLIP
WHICH CAPTURED
A VERY HORRENDOUS ASSAULT
ON ANI AND ON NIKO
IN THE BATHROOM
AT 22 HARVEST STREET.
YO.
THE VIDEO IS TRULY CHILLING.
IT'S...
JUST TO SEE A 15-SECOND SNIPPET
OF THAT.
AND TO THINK THAT THAT WAS, YOU
KNOW, 40 HOURS OF THEIR LIFE.
**
Narrator: WHO ARE THE MASKED MEN
IN THIS VIDEO?
TO CONFIRM THEIR IDENTITIES,
POLICE RETURN TO LEAH GIGLIOTTI.
[ CRYING ]
Houlihan:
THIS IS A MUCH DIFFERENT LEAH.
WE'VE RESCUED ANI AND NIKO.
SHE'S HAD TIME TO THINK
ABOUT HER SITUATION.
SHE'S CRYING.
SHE'S AFRAID
OF WHAT'S GONNA HAPPEN.
SHE APOLOGIZED TO US
AS SOON AS WE COME IN.
YOU KNOW, "LET'S HEAR
WHAT YOU HAVE TO SAY,
AND LET'S WORK THROUGH THIS."
**
Narrator: LEAH CONFIRMS
SHE WAS ONE OF NINE PEOPLE
INVOLVED IN THE KIDNAPPING.
SHE AND SAMANTHA HUGHES
ARE ALREADY IN CUSTODY.
DENNIS PEREZ,
LIVING AT 22 HARVEST STREET,
AND HIS GIRLFRIEND,
INALIA ROLLDAN,
WERE ARRESTED IN THE RAID.
Cassidy:
EACH ONE OF THESE PEOPLE
WERE INTERVIEWED,
AND THEN WE WOULD ALL GET
TOGETHER AND SHARE INFORMATION.
Narrator:
FOUR OTHERS ARE ARRESTED
BASED ON INFORMATION GATHERED
IN THE INTERROGATION ROOM.
**
Narrator: BUT THE NAME
DETECTIVES REALLY WANT
IS THE ONE SUSPECT
WHO IS STILL AT LARGE,
THE MAN POLICE BELIEVE ORGANIZED
AND PROFITED FROM THIS CRIME.
DURING THE INTERVIEWS,
LEAH TALKED ABOUT
SCRAP BEING THE MAIN GUY,
THE GUY WHO WAS RUNNING THINGS.
WE'RE ABLE TO IDENTIFY HIM
AS LYDELL STRICKLAND.
**
HE'S KNOWN TO BE INVOLVED
WITH WEAPONS, DRUGS,
SHOOTINGS, ROBBERIES.
HE'S A VIOLENT INDIVIDUAL.
Narrator: STRICKLAND IS ARRESTED
AND BROUGHT TO THE PRECINCT
FOR INTERROGATION.
DETECTIVE HOULIHAN, HAVING
ARRESTED STRICKLAND BEFORE,
TAKES THE LEAD,
CONFRONTING THE MAN
POLICE BELIEVE
DIRECTED NEARLY TWO DAYS
OF TORTURE AND MAYHEM.
**
I WENT IN.
I SAW THAT HE WAS HANDCUFFED.
I REMOVED THE HANDCUFF FROM HIM.
I ASK HIM IF HE WANTED
ANY CIGARETTES OR WATER
OR ANYTHING.
[ INDISTINCT TALKING ]
[ GLASS BREAKS ]
[ CRASH ]
[ INDISTINCT SHOUTING ]
**
Houlihan:
WE WENT IN THE DOOR THAT
HAD BEEN BLOWN OFF ITS HINGES,
WHERE THE S.W.A.T. TEAM
MADE ENTRY.
AND TO THE LEFT
WAS THE LIVING ROOM.
THERE WAS HEDGE TRIMMERS
UP ON TOP
OF AN ENTERTAINMENT CENTER
THERE.
THE HEDGE TRIMMERS
HAD BLOOD ON 'EM.
THERE WAS BLOOD IN THE BASEMENT.
WE FOUND PLASTIC MASKS,
HALLOWEEN MASKS.
IN THE GARAGE, WE FOUND GARBAGE
BAGS THAT HAD BEEN TIED UP.
AND THOSE GARBAGE BAGS
WERE OPENED UP,
AND WE FOUND NIKO'S CLOTHES.
THEY WERE ALL BLOOD-SOAKED.
IT WAS UPSETTING.
JUST ONE OF THE WORST THINGS
I'VE EVER SEEN --
HUMAN BEINGS DO
TO OTHER HUMAN BEINGS.
**
**
Narrator:
LYDELL "SCRAP" STRICKLAND
IS ARRESTED
AFTER THE KIDNAPPING AND TORTURE
OF NIKO KOLLIAS AND ANI EWO.
DETECTIVES BELIEVE
HE AND EIGHT OTHER PEOPLE
PARTICIPATED IN THE CRIME.
BUT IT WAS STRICKLAND
WHO ESCALATED THEIR OFFENSES
TO THE UNTHINKABLE.
DETECTIVES READ STRICKLAND
HIS RIGHTS
AND TELL HIM ABOUT THE TWO MEN
RESCUED FROM 22 HARVEST STREET.
ORIGINALLY WHEN WE TALKED
TO LYDELL STRICKLAND,
HE DENIED ANY INVOLVEMENT.
THE INVESTIGATORS
ARE CONDUCTING THIS INTERVIEW.
I DON'T KNOW HOW
YOU KEEP A STRAIGHT FACE.
Houlihan:
I BELIEVE HE THOUGHT HE COULD
TALK HIS WAY OUT OF THIS ONE.
BUT THIS CASE HERE
HAD THE EVIDENCE NECESSARY
TO PROSECUTE EACH OF THEM FULLY.
Narrator:
STRICKLAND DENIES INVOLVEMENT.
BUT DNA FOUND AT THE SCENE
CONNECTS HIM
TO 22 HARVEST STREET.
AND THE STATEMENTS
OF HIS CONSPIRATORS
PUT HIM AT THE CENTER
OF THE CRIME.
THE EVIDENCE WAS OVERWHELMING
AGAINST HIM --
DNA ON THE MASKS,
THEY WERE STILL IN THE HOUSE.
HE NEVER CUT HIS LONG DREADS
THAT WERE VERY IDENTIFIABLE
IN THE VIDEO
FROM THE CELLPHONE CAMERA.
HE DIDN'T CARE.
HE DID WHAT HE DID.
HE WASN'T GONNA PLEAD ANYTHING.
IT'S REALLY UNFATHOMABLE.
BUT THE EVIDENCE AT THE HOUSE
ALL SUPPORTS
THE TALES OF TORTURE
THAT ANI AND NIKO
PROVIDED TO ME.
Narrator: IN ADDITION TO PROVING
STRICKLAND'S INVOLVEMENT,
THE VIDEO FROM
DENNIS PEREZ'S CELLPHONE
CONFIRMS DETECTIVES' THEORY
OF THIS CHILLING CRIME --
RETALIATION FOR THE ROBBERY
STAGED BY NIKO AND ANI'S
TEAMMATE ISAIAH SMITH.
IN THE VIDEO,
STRICKLAND SAYS, "FOUR POUNDS,"
THE EXACT AMOUNT OF MARIJUANA
STOLEN IN THE ROBBERY
STAGED IN ANI'S APARTMENT.
THIS TRULY WAS A CASE
OF MISTAKEN IDENTITY.
NIKO AND ANI HAD NOTHING TO DO
WITH THE ORIGINAL ROBBERY
THAT HAPPENED.
THEY HAD NO KNOWLEDGE OF IT,
NO INVOLVEMENT AT ALL.
Narrator: RETALIATING ON BEHALF
OF THE DEALER'S ROBBED BY SMITH,
NIKO AND ANI'S ASSAILANTS
SHOWED TO REMORSE.
AND LYDELL STRICKLAND
SAW AN OPPORTUNITY FOR HIMSELF.
AT THE POINT THAT THEY FIGURED
OUT THEY HAD THE WRONG GUYS,
THEY COULD HAVE LET 'EM GO.
BUT I THINK THAT THEY SAW
THAT THERE WAS MONEY TO BE MADE.
LYDELL STRICKLAND
TOOK THE LEAD ON THAT.
Narrator:
POLICE LEARNED THAT WHILE
THE TWO MEN WERE HELD CAPTIVE,
STRICKLAND WENT TO ATMs
AROUND ROCHESTER,
TAKING AS MUCH MONEY AS HE COULD
FROM NIKO'S ACCOUNTS.
LYDELL STRICKLAND
WAS THE, YOU KNOW, ACCELERANT.
HE WAS THE LIGHTER FLUID
TO THE FIRE.
HE GOT INVOLVED,
AND ONCE HE DID,
HE TOOK CONTROL.
AND THE BANKS WERE TELLING HIM,
"THAT MONEY
IT'S NOT GONNA BE AVAILABLE
UNTIL MONDAY."
Narrator:
IT'S A POLICY THAT MAY HAVE
SAVED BOTH ANI AND NIKO'S LIVES.
Kollias:
ULTIMATELY, THEY WERE TRYING TO
KEEP US ALIVE TILL MONDAY
SO WHEN THE BANKS OPENED UP,
THEY COULD LIQUIDATE
ALL OF MY ACCOUNTS.
Narrator: STRICKLAND REFUSES
TO FULLY ADMIT
HIS ROLE IN THE CRIME
BUT KNOWS POLICE HAVE THE
EVIDENCE TO PUT HIM BEHIND BARS.
HE HAD BOUGHT HUNDREDS
OF DOLLARS WORTH OF CLOTHING
WITH THE PROCEEDS OF THE MONEY
THAT THEY HAD GOTTEN OUT OF
NICHOLAS' BANK ACCOUNTS.
Narrator: LEAH GIGLIOTTI
EVENTUALLY COMES CLEAN
AND, IN THE AFTERMATH
OF THE ARRESTS,
FINALLY FEELS THE WEIGHT
OF HER ACTIONS.
**
[ CRYING ]
**
SHE AND SAMANTHA HUGHES
EACH PLEAD GUILTY
TO FIRST-DEGREE KIDNAPPING
AND ASSAULT CHARGES.
THEY AND SIX OTHERS
WILL BE SENTENCED
TO SERVE FROM 7 TO 35 YEARS
IN PRISON
FOR KIDNAPPING
AND OTHER CRIMINAL CHARGES.
LYDELL STRICKLAND
IS CONVICTED OF 28 CHARGES
AND IS SENTENCE
TO 155 YEARS IN PRISON.
Cassidy:
WHEN IT'S ALL SAID IN DONE,
NINE PEOPLE WERE CONVICTED
FOR THEIR ROLES
IN THE ABDUCTION,
KIDNAPPING, TORTURE
OF ANI AND NIKO.
**
Kollias:
I WAS HOSPITALIZED FOR 25 DAYS,
HAD FOUR BLOOD TRANSFUSIONS,
AND, YOU KNOW,
HAD FEMUR SURGERY
AND GLASS REMOVED FROM MY HEAD
AND SCALP AND EARDRUM.
Narrator:
NIKO AND ANI BOTH GRADUATE
AND PURSUE CAREERS IN FINANCE.
NIKO FINDS COMFORT IN HIS
CLASSICAL PIANO TRAINING
TO COPE WITH THE TRAUMATIC
MEMORIES OF A TERRIBLE CRIME.
Kollias: YOU CAN'T JUST
TAKE LIFE FOR GRANTED
BECAUSE, YOU KNOW, IT REALLY IS
SUCH A GREAT THING TO BE ALIVE
AND TO HAVE FREEDOM AND
HAVE SUCH GREAT OPPORTUNITIES.
SO, YOU KNOW, THAT'S WHY
I KIND OF TAKE THAT APPROACH
TO BE SUCH A GOOD PERSON
AND TRY AND BE
AS POSITIVE AS I CAN
TO KIND OF MOVE FORWARD
IN A POSITIVE WAY.
[ PIANO PLAYS ]
OKAY.
Narrator:
TWO MISSING COLLEGE STUDENTS
TRIGGER A CITY-WIDE MANHUNT.
IT'S PRETTY OBVIOUS THAT
THERE'S SOMETHING GOING ON HERE.
Narrator: THE CLOCK IS TICKING
AS A HOSTAGE CRISIS UNFOLDS.
WHO KNOWS WHAT COULD HAPPEN
TO THEM? THEY COULD BE KILLED.
Narrator: POLICE MUST FOLLOW
A BLOODY TRAIL OF EVIDENCE.
THE VIDEO IS TRULY CHILLING.
[ INDISTINCT SHOUTING ]
Narrator: TWO MEN'S LIVES
DEPEND ON GETTING THE TRUTH.
[ LIGHT BUZZES ]
IN THE INTERROGATION ROOM,
POLICE MUST CONFRONT EVIL...
WHEN DID YOU DECIDE THAT YOU
WERE GOING TO KILL THIS PERSON?
WHY DID YOU
CHOOSE MURDER?
DO YOU THINK OF YOURSELF
AS A SERIAL KILLER?
Narrator:...SIFTING THROUGH
UNSPEAKABLE CRIMES
AND THE DARK SECRETS.
HAD THE KNIFE
AND PUT IT DOWN.
I AM A KILLER.
I'VE KILLED THREE OTHER PEOPLE.
Narrator: THE TRUTH CAN ONLY BE
REVEALED WHEN EVIL TALKS.
**
DECEMBER 5, 2015.
POLICE IN ROCHESTER, NEW YORK,
RECEIVE A CALL.
[ TELEPHONE RINGS ]
ROCHESTER POLICE DEPARTMENT --
DETECTIVE CASSIDY.
UNIVERSITY OF ROCHESTER SENIOR
ANI EWO IS MISSING.
Cassidy: ANI HAS A TWIN BROTHER.
THE TWIN BROTHER HAD BEEN TRYING
TO GET IN TOUCH WITH HIM,
SAID IT WAS VERY ODD
THAT HE WAS NOT RESPONDING.
Narrator: POLICE FOLLOW UP
WITH ANI'S FRATERNITY
AND MAKE A TROUBLING DISCOVERY.
ANI AND HIS 23-YEAR-OLD
FRATERNITY BROTHER NIKO KOLLIAS
WENT OUT FRIDAY NIGHT,
BUT NEITHER MAN CAME HOME.
NIKO'S FRIENDS THEN ALSO
GOT INVOLVED AND ALSO HELPED.
THEY WERE VERY ALARMED.
WHEN'S THE LAST TIME
YOU SAW THESE TWO GUYS?
Narrator:
DETECTIVES LEARN THAT THE TWO
HAVEN'T BEEN SEEN OR HEARD FROM
SINCE THEY WENT OUT
THE NIGHT BEFORE.
FRIENDS ARE CONVINCED
THAT NEITHER MAN
WOULD HAVE STAYED OUT ALL NIGHT.
COME ON,
YOU'RE FRATERNITY BROTHERS.
YOU'RE TELLING ME YOU DON'T
STAY OUT ALL NIGHT?
NOT ANI AND NIKO.
Callanan: NIKO WAS IN
THE BUSINESS SCHOOL...
HE WAS IN A FRATERNITY
ON CAMPUS,
HE WAS ALSO A FOOTBALL PLAYER.
ANI WAS THE SAME --
BUSINESS MAJOR,
HE ALSO PLAYED MULTIPLE SPORTS.
BOTH WERE GOOD STUDENTS.
THEY HAD NO CRIMINAL RECORD.
THEY WERE YOUR AVERAGE
UNIVERSITY OF ROCHESTER SENIORS.
DID THEY RUN AWAY, OR ARE THEY
IN SOME SORT OF TROUBLE?
THE FIRST SEVERAL HOURS
ARE CRITICAL.
THEY SAID
THEY WERE GOING TO A PARTY.
Narrator:
FRATERNITY BROTHERS TELL POLICE
THE TWO MEN WENT TO A PARTY
LATE FRIDAY NIGHT.
ONE OF THEM RECALLS
AN IMPORTANT DETAIL.
ANOTHER FRIEND OF THEIRS HAD
SPOKE TO THEM ON FaceTime,
AND THEY WERE IN THE BACKSEAT
OF A CAR WITH TWO GIRLS.
SO THAT'S REALLY ALL I KNEW
RIGHT THEN.
Narrator: THROUGH SOCIAL MEDIA,
CAMPUS POLICE
QUICKLY LOCATE A WOMAN
WHO MESSAGED ANI FRIDAY NIGHT --
19-YEAR-OLD SAMANTHA HUGHES.
SHE HAD TOLD
U OF R PUBLIC SAFETY
AND A POLICE OFFICER
THAT SHE HAD BEEN
WITH ANI AND NIKO
AND THEY HAD BEEN AT A PARTY.
AND AT THAT PARTY, SHE GOT SICK
AND LEFT FROM THERE.
SAID SHE HAD NEVER SEEN THEM
AFTERWARDS.
Narrator: SAMANTHA NOW OFFERS
TO HELP FIND THE TWO MEN
12 HOURS AFTER
SHE LAST SAW THEM.
Houlihan: SAMANTHA HUGHES
HAD DRIVEN AROUND
TRYING TO POINT OUT A HOUSE
WHERE SHE LAST SAW ANI AND NIKO.
SAME COLOR,
NOT THE SAME HOUSE, THOUGH.
UM...
Narrator:
BUT AFTER A NIGHT OF PARTYING,
SAMANTHA CAN'T FIND THE HOUSE.
NO, SORT OF LIKE IT,
BUT IT'S NOT REALLY IT.
UM...
SHE TRIES, BUT SHE CAN'T.
NOTHING THAT WOULD STICK OUT
AS A LOCATION THEY MIGHT BE IN.
WE STILL HAD NO IDEA
WHERE THE KIDS WERE.
**
Narrator: BY SUNDAY MORNING,
NIKO AND ANI HAVE BEEN MISSING
FOR 32 HOURS.
AND THE INVESTIGATION
HAS TAKEN AN OMINOUS TURN.
ALTHOUGH NIKO'S PHONE
WAS TURNED OFF,
IT CAME BACK ON AT ONE POINT,
AND A CALL WAS MADE
TO A FINANCIAL INSTITUTION.
Narrator: POLICE OBTAIN
A RECORDING OF THE CALL
MADE FROM NIKO'S PHONE
TO HIS BANK.
WHEN WE FIRST GOT ALL OF THOSE
CALLS BACK, IT WAS TERRIFYING.
IT WAS PRETTY OBVIOUS THAT
THERE'S SOMETHING GOING ON HERE.
Narrator: POLICE FEAR
NIKO AND ANI DIDN'T JUST VANISH,
THEY'VE BEEN KIDNAPPED.
THE CLOCK IS TICKING.
IF THEY WERE SUCCESSFUL IN
GETTING ALL THE CASH
FROM HIS ACCOUNTS,
THEY WOULD HAVE BEEN FORCED
TO DECIDE WHAT TO DO
WITH THEIR TWO
KIDNAPPING VICTIMS.
WHO KNOWS WHAT COULD HAPPEN
TO THEM?
THEY COULD BE KILLED.
**
Narrator: SUNDAY EVENING --
DESPERATE FOR ANY LEAD,
DETECTIVES DECIDE TO FOCUS ON
THE LAST PERSON
WHO SAW NIKO AND ANI.
WE REALLY NEEDED TO
TALK MORE EXTENSIVELY
WITH SAMANTHA HUGHES.
Narrator: SAMANTHA COMES DOWN
TO THE PRECINCT
AND REVIEWS HER MESSAGES
WITH ANI.
HER CONVERSATION WITH DETECTIVES
DRAGS ON
BUT TURNS UP NO NEW INFORMATION.
I SUGGESTED WE TAKE A BREAK,
AND SAMANTHA ASKED
TO USE A RESTROOM.
Narrator: OFFICER MELISSA FRASCA
SHOWS SAMANTHA TO
THE WOMEN'S ROOM.
I WALKED WITH HER ALONE
DOWN THE HALLWAY
AND INTO THE WOMEN'S ROOM.
AND WHILE WE WERE IN THERE,
WE JUST STARTED
HAVING CONVERSATION.
HOW YOU DOING?
FEELING OKAY?
I'M FINE.
IT WAS VERY CASUAL CONVERSATION
THAT JUST STARTED TO
SPIRAL INTO THE SITUATION THAT
WE WERE THERE INVESTIGATING.
IT'S JUST CRAZY WHAT HAPPENED
TO THOSE GUYS.
YEAH, IT IS.
THEIR PARENTS
ARE REALLY WORRIED.
Narrator: THEN, SAMANTHA
MAKES AN UNEXPECTED ADMISSION
ABOUT HER CONVERSATION
WITH DETECTIVES.
SHE DID TELL ME THAT
SOME OF WHAT SHE TOLD THEM
MAY HAVE NOT BEEN
COMPLETELY THE TRUTH
BUT THAT THE BOYS WERE SAFE.
THEY'RE SAFE.
I KNOW THEY'RE SAFE.
DO YOU KNOW
WHERE THEY ARE?
NO.
HOW DO YOU KNOW THAT
THEY'RE SAFE, THEN?
I ASKED MORE QUESTIONS ABOUT
EXACTLY WHERE THEY WERE,
AND THEN, AT ONE POINT,
SHE SAID TO ME
ONE OF THEM MAY HAVE BEEN SHOT.
Narrator: WHEN OFFICER FRASCA
TELLS LEAD INVESTIGATORS
WHAT SHE'S LEARNED,
THEY ARE STUNNED.
HAS SAMANTHA KNOWN ALL ALONG
WHAT HAPPENED TO NIKO AND ANI
OR WHERE THE TWO MEN
ARE BEING HELD?
IT WAS QUITE EVIDENT
THAT SAMANTHA HAD MORE TO DO
WITH THE SITUATION
THAN WAS INITIALLY BELIEVED.
Houlihan: WE WERE TREATING HER
AS A WITNESS.
SHE MIGHT BE A SUSPECT.
Narrator: MORE THAN 40 HOURS
AFTER NIKO AND ANI VANISHED,
DETECTIVES NOW BELIEVE
THE MEN ARE STILL ALIVE,
THOUGH POSSIBLY WOUNDED.
THEY ALSO SUSPECT
SAMANTHA HUGHES IS INVOLVED.
THEY GO BACK OVER HER EARLIER
STATEMENTS FOR CLUES.
Cassidy: THE INITIAL STORY
THAT SAMANTHA HAD GIVEN
TO THE U OF R INVESTIGATORS,
SHE SAID
AFTER SHE LEFT THE PARTY,
SHE CALLED HER FRIEND LEAH
AND ASKED HER
TO COME PICK HER UP.
Narrator:
DETECTIVES QUICKLY TRACK DOWN
20-YEAR-OLD LEAH GIGLIOTTI.
THEY ASK HER
TO COME TO THE PRECINCT
TO ANSWER SOME QUESTIONS.
UNLIKE SAMANTHA,
WHEN WE FIRST STARTED TALKING,
WE THOUGHT SHE WAS A WITNESS.
BY THE TIME WE TALK TO LEAH,
WE KNOW THAT LEAH'S A SUSPECT.
WE DEFINITELY TOOK
THE INVESTIGATION UP A NOTCH.
BECAUSE NOW WE KNEW THAT THEY
WERE DEFINITELY MORE INVOLVED.
Narrator:
SHE DENIES GOING ANYWHERE
WITH SAMANTHA OR NIKO AND ANI.
CELLPHONE DATA
PUTS LEAH WITH SAMANTHA
AT THE TIME NIKO AND ANI
WENT MISSING.
BUT THE RECORDS
ARE NOT PRECISE ENOUGH
TO GIVE POLICE
A SPECIFIC LOCATION.
WE'RE UP AGAINST THE CLOCK
FOR TIME.
WE'RE GONNA HAVE TO
SQUEEZE HER A LITTLE BIT,
MAKE HER FEEL PRESSURE,
AND UNDERSTAND THE GRAVITY
OF HER SITUATION.
Narrator: DETECTIVES READ
LEAH GIGLIOTTI HER RIGHTS.
I DON'T THINK SHE GRASPED THE
SERIOUSNESS OF THE SITUATION,
OR DIDN'T WANT TO.
Narrator: INVESTIGATORS KNOW
THERE IS NO TIME TO LOSE.
Callanan: WE'RE INTO SUNDAY,
AND THESE BOYS HAVE BEEN MISSING
SINCE SATURDAY MORNING.
THE CLOCK KEEPS GOING, BUT THEY
ARE GOING UP AGAINST A WALL
THAT THESE BOYS
MIGHT NOT SURVIVE.
Narrator:
LEAH DENIES HAVING ANY KNOWLEDGE
ABOUT THE MISSING MEN.
BUT THERE IS AT LEAST
ONE OTHER PERSON
WHO KNOWS WHAT HAPPENED TO
NIKO AND ANI LATE FRIDAY NIGHT.
WHEN WE STARTED KIND OF
GETTING AWAY FROM MY APARTMENT
AND HEADING MORE DOWNTOWN,
I KIND OF --
I REALIZE THAT THE NEIGHBORHOOD
KIND OF STARTED TURNING
MORE SHADY OR NOT GOOD,
AND THAT'S WHEN I STARTED
GETTING NERVOUS.
**
Narrator:
LEAH GIGLIOTTI DENIES KNOWING
NIKO KOLLIAS AND ANI EWO
HAVE BEEN KIDNAPPED.
DETECTIVES THINK SHE'S LYING.
NIKO KOLLIAS KNOWS SHE IS.
I'M TRYING TO WAKE UP...
Kollias: IT'S JUST
ANY OTHER FRIDAY NIGHT.
[ BOTH LAUGHING ]
I WAS WITH ANI,
AND HE WAS LIKE,
"YEAH, THESE TWO GIRLS
ARE TEXTING ME,
AND THEY WANNA MEET UP."
THEY WERE SAYING, "ANI,
COME TO THIS PARTY WITH US."
**
TWO GIRLS WERE DRIVING, AND
ANI AND I WERE IN THE BACK SEAT.
AND THEN, WHEN WE PULLED UP
AT THE HOUSE...
[ DOOR CREAKS ]
...WE JUST WENT IN
THE SIDE DOOR.
I WENT AHEAD
AND SAT DOWN ON THIS COUCH
IN THE FAMILY ROOM
OFF OF THE KITCHEN THERE.
WHAT ARE WE DOING HERE?
UH, HEY, I ACTUALLY
FORGOT SOMETHING IN THE CAR.
I'LL BE RIGHT BACK.
WAIT, WHAT?
YO, WE JUST GOT HERE.
WE'LL BE RIGHT BACK.
JUST CHILL.
AND JUST SECONDS LATER,
THE LIGHTS GO OUT.
AND 5 TO 10 MEN WITH MASKS
AND BATS AND CLUBS
AND GUNS AND KNIVES
START SCREAMING AND YELLING
AND ATTACKING.
AND MY IMMEDIATE RESPONSE
IS JUST FIGHT OR FLIGHT.
AND, YOU KNOW, MADE MY WAY
TO THE DOOR AS FAST AS I COULD.
I PROBABLY GOT HALFWAY
TO THE DOOR,
AND THEN I GOT CLUBBED
OVER THE HEAD.
OTHERS YELLING AND SCREAMING,
"STOP FIGHTING, STOP RESISTING.
JUST ACCEPT IT."
THE NEXT SECOND,
I WAS ON THE GROUND.
I WAS SHOT IN MY LEFT LEG,
BROKE MY FEMUR IN HALF.
**
42 HOURS LATER,
DETECTIVES ARE SCRAMBLING
TO FIND NIKO AND ANI.
A CALL MADE TO NIKO'S BANK
IS THE ONLY SIGN DETECTIVES HAVE
THAT EITHER MAN IS STILL ALIVE.
NIKO AND ANI ARE STILL OUT
THERE, THEY'RE STILL MISSING.
TIME IS STILL VERY IMPORTANT
TO US.
ONE OF THEM MAY HAVE BEEN SHOT.
THERE IS A CHANCE THAT,
YOU KNOW,
ONE OF THESE GUYS COULD DIE.
Narrator:
WHY WERE NIKO AND ANI TAKEN?
AND WHERE?
DETECTIVES BELIEVE THAT ONE OF
THE WOMEN WHO SAW THEM LAST,
LEAH GIGLIOTTI,
KNOWS MORE THAN SHE'S ADMITTING.
AND NOW WE SUSPECTED
SHE MAY BE INVOLVED FURTHER.
**
Narrator:
DETECTIVES CASSIDY AND HOULIHAN
WASTE NO TIME WITH SMALL TALK.
**
WELL, YOU CAN SEE THAT THE
WHEELS ARE SPINNING IN HER HEAD.
SHE'S KIND OF AT A LOSS
FOR WHERE SHE'S AT RIGHT NOW.
AND, IN A WAY, LOOKING TO US
FOR HELP AS,
"I DON'T KNOW WHAT TO SAY.
I DON'T KNOW WHAT YOU WANT
FROM ME."
Narrator: WHAT DETECTIVES WANT
IS AN ADDRESS
WHERE NIKO AND ANI
ARE BEING HELD.
LEAH HASN'T EVEN ADMITTED
SHE MET THE MEN,
BUT FINALLY, SHE OFFERS
A GLIMPSE OF THE TRUTH.
ONCE WE STARTED TALKING ABOUT
WE KNOW THERE WAS SOMEONE SHOT
AND IF THEY DIE,
THIS COULD BE A MURDER,
I THINK IT MAYBE STARTED TO
SINK IN A LITTLE TO HER THAT,
"YEAH, THIS COULD BE
A LITTLE MORE SERIOUS
THAN I WAS THINKING."
Narrator: LEAH RESISTS
GIVING ANY DETAILS
BEYOND WHAT DETECTIVES
ALREADY KNOW
FROM TALKING TO HER FRIEND
SAMANTHA --
THAT ONE OF THE MISSING MEN
MAY HAVE BEEN SHOT.
WE NEEDED TO FIND THEM,
SO THE PRESSURE WAS ON,
AND WE NEEDED TO
GET HER TO TALK.
**
Narrator: WITHOUT LEAH'S HELP,
INVESTIGATORS KEEP DIGGING
FOR EVIDENCE
BEFORE IT'S TOO LATE.
THEIR ONLY LEAD SO FAR
IS A ROBBERY ONE WEEK EARLIER
THAT POLICE LEARN INVOLVED
A TEAMMATE OF NIKO AND ANI'S.
ISAIAH SMITH,
A FRIEND OF ANI AND NIKO
AND ALSO
A FELLOW FOOTBALL PLAYER
WAS IDENTIFIED AS BEING INVOLVED
IN THAT ROBBERY.
Narrator:
SMITH TALKS TO POLICE.
WHAT THE HELL WENT ON
OUT THERE?
HE ADMITS TO
ORGANIZING A ROBBERY
OF SOME DRUG DEALERS
IN ANI'S APARTMENT
WITHOUT HIS KNOWLEDGE.
SMITH ENDED UP DOING
A DRUG DEAL IN THERE,
AND DURING
THIS DRUG TRANSACTION,
SOMEONE CAME IN
AND ROBBED THE DRUG DEALER
OF SEVERAL POUNDS
OF MARIJUANA.
GET ON THE GROUND!
GET YOUR ASS ON THE GROUND!
GET ON THE GROUND NOW!
Narrator: SMITH ADMITS
HE EXECUTED THE ROBBERY
AND NOW FEARS THE DEALERS
ARE OUT FOR REVENGE.
SURVEILLANCE FOOTAGE
CONFIRMS SMITHS STORY.
MEN ENTER ANI'S APARTMENT
WHILE HE IS OUT OF TOWN.
TWO OF THEM LEAVE
COVERED IN BLOOD.
THE AMOUNT OF MARIJUANA TAKEN
WAS --
WE FIND OUT LATER
IT WAS FOUR POUNDS,
SO IT'S A SIGNIFICANT ROBBERY.
CERTAINLY ENOUGH FOR SOMEONE
TO WANT RETALIATE.
WHERE ARE THESE GUYS?
I DON'T KNOW.
I DON'T KNOW WHERE THEY'RE AT.
Narrator: COULD NIKO AND ANI'S
DISAPPEARANCE
BE CONNECTED TO THE DRUG DEALERS
ROBBED BY THEIR TEAMMATE?
AS NIGHT FALLS
SUNDAY DECEMBER 6th,
POLICE CONTINUE TO PRESS
LEAH GIGLIOTTI FOR INFORMATION.
**
WE'RE INTERVIEWING
AGAINST THE CLOCK,
TRYING TO GET TO WHERE
THE LOCATION OF THESE GUYS ARE.
WE'RE NOT GOING REAL SOFT
AND QUIET
AND LETTING THEM
JUST LEAD US DOWN A PATH.
WE NEED TO KIND OF
STREAMLINE THE INTERVIEW.
**
Narrator: DETECTIVES PUSH LEAH
TO GIVE THEM A LOCATION
WHERE ANI AND NIKO
ARE BEING HELD.
...TO THE CURB.
A S.W.A.T. TEAM IS STANDING BY
TO ATTEMPT A RESCUE.
THEY JUST NEED AN ADDRESS.
WE DON'T WANT TO MAKE ENTRY
INTO THE WRONG HOUSE.
Narrator:
WHAT POLICE DON'T KNOW
IS THAT AFTER MORE THAN 42 HOURS
OF TERROR,
NIKO AND ANI
ARE BARELY HANGING ON.
THEY CAME BACK IN THE ROOM
AND JUST STARTED FIRING
THIS ASSAULT WEAPON EVERYWHERE.
[ GUNFIRE ]
I GRABBED ANI'S HAND,
AND I JUST --
THAT'S WHEN I THOUGHT
I WAS GONNA DIE.
[ GUNFIRE ]
**
**
Narrator:
HELD HOSTAGE FOR OVER 42 HOURS,
NIKO KOLLIAS AND ANI EWO
PREPARE FOR THE END.
**
Kollias: THEY SAID THAT
THEY WERE GONNA KILL US.
THEY STARTED PLAYING LOUD MUSIC
IN THE KITCHEN.
AND THEY PUT A GUN UP TO US...
AND MOVE IT AT THE LAST SECOND.
THEY FORCED THE BARREL
OF THE WEAPON DOWN OUR MOUTH
AND WERE JUST DOING JUST
THE MOST TERRIBLE THINGS TO US.
Narrator: KOLLIAS KNOWS
THE SITUATION IS DIRE.
AT THAT POINT,
I WAS PRETTY CONVINCED
AND CONFIDENT
THAT I WAS GONNA DIE.
[ BREATHING HEAVILY ]
**
Narrator:
BUT ROCHESTER DETECTIVES
HAVE NOT GIVEN UP.
THEY BELIEVE A DRUG ROBBERY
CARRIED OUT
BY UNIVERSITY OF ROCHESTER
FOOTBALL PLAYER ISAIAH SMITH
MUST HAVE LEAD TO
AN ACT OF RETALIATION
AGAINST HIS TEAMMATES
NIKO AND ANI.
INVESTIGATORS SCOUR THE LIVES
OF TWO WOMAN LINKED
TO THE MISSING MEN.
INVESTIGATORS
AND THE CRIME ANALYSTS,
THEY WERE LOOKING INTO
SAMANTHA AND LEAH.
Narrator: ONE NUMBER
IN SAMANTHA'S CELLPHONE RECORDS
GRABS DETECTIVES' ATTENTION.
Cassidy:
WE FOUND ONE NUMBER THAT
SHE HAD BEEN TALKING TO A LOT
THE LAST THREE DAYS,
CONSTANT COMMUNICATION WITH,
BUT HAD NEVER BEEN ON THE PHONE
UP TO THAT POINT.
SO, THAT MADE US THINK, "WELL,
IF SHE'S IN THE MIDDLE OF THIS,
THIS IS PROBABLY
SOMEONE WHO'S INVOLVED."
Narrator:
POLICE TRACK THE NUMBER
FROM SAMANTHA'S PHONE.
THEY GOT AN ORDER AND QUICKLY
STARTED LOOKING FOR THAT PHONE.
IT WAS HITTING IT ON
THE NORTHEAST SIDE OF THE CITY,
BUT IT WAS MOVING AROUND.
IT WAS HITTING AT
DIFFERENT PLACES.
Narrator: FINALLY, THE PHONE
IS TRACKED TO AN ADDRESS
THAT MATCHES ONE OF SAMANTHA'S
CONTACTS ON SOCIAL MEDIA --
23-YEAR-OLD DENNIS PEREZ.
THEY FOUND A CONNECTION
BETWEEN SAMANTHA HUGHES
AND DENNIS PEREZ, WHO RESIDED
AT 22 HARVEST STREET.
**
WAS A HUGE BREAK.
Narrator: ARE NIKO AND ANI
BEING HELD AT 22 HARVEST STREET?
A S.W.A.T. TEAM IS STANDING BY
TO ATTEMPT A RESCUE.
Frasca: WHEN THE CALL
WAS BEING MADE TO S.W.A.T.,
IT WAS LITERALLY A MATTER
OF LIFE AND DEATH
FOR INVESTIGATORS CASSIDY
AND HOULIHAN TO DEBRIEF LEAH
AND CONFIRM THAT ADDRESS
AT 22 HARVEST STREET.
AND THIS WAS THE POINT
WHERE I REALLY STARTED TO
GET FRUSTRATED WITH HER --
WITH LEAH'S ATTITUDE
THAT SHE DIDN'T REALLY
PLAY A PART IN THIS
AND WE SHOULD JUST
LEAVE HER OUT OF IT.
WE REALLY DID NEED HER TO VERIFY
THE INFORMATION
THAT WE ALREADY HAD.
**
Narrator:
AFTER LESS THAN AN HOUR
IN THE INTERROGATION ROOM,
LEAH DECIDES TO OPEN UP
ABOUT WHAT REALLY HAPPENED
FRIDAY NIGHT.
MIKE THREW IN THERE
HARVEST STREET, AND...
SHE MIGHT NOT KNOW THE EXACT
NAME OR NUMBER OR WHATEVER,
BUT WITH THIS,
I THINK WE FEEL CONFIDENT,
AT LEAST MAKING
OUR RECOMMENDATION
THAT WE GO INTO
22 HARVEST STREET
AND SEE IF WE CAN GET THESE GUYS
OUT OF THERE.
Narrator:
43 HOURS AFTER NIKO AND ANI
WERE TAKEN HOSTAGE
A S.W.A.T. TEAM
MOVES INTO POSITION.
INVESTIGATORS HOPE
THEY'RE NOT TOO LATE.
**
WE GET ONE SHOT AT THIS.
IF WE CHOOSE THE WRONG HOUSE,
THAT COULD CAUSE
A KNEE-JERK REACTION,
WHICH COULD CAUSE THEM
TO KILL THE VICTIMS,
BECAUSE THEY CAN FEEL
THEM NOW CLOSING IN.
Narrator: THE S.W.A.T. TEAM
MOVES IN SILENTLY, AND THEN...
[ INDISTINCT TALKING ]
[ GLASS BREAKS ]
[ CRASH ]
[ INDISTINCT SHOUTING ]
**
GET ON THE GROUND!
GET ON THE [BLEEP] GROUND!
THE HOUSE JUST LIGHTS UP
AND, YOU KNOW, JUST EXPLODES,
AND...
I HAD NO IDEA WHAT WAS GOING ON,
BUT THEY CAME IN FAST
AND VERY STEALTH-LIKE,
AND IT WAS KIND OF SCARY
AT FIRST
'CAUSE I SAW MORE MEN WITH GUNS.
BUT THEN, AFTER I REALIZED
THAT THEY WERE SAVING MY LIFE,
I WAS VERY THANKFUL.
**
GEEZ.
[ BREATHES DEEPLY ]
YEAH, I MEAN,
AS YOU CAN SEE FROM HERE,
IT'S JUST, MY HANDS ARE SWOLLEN,
MY FACE IS SWOLLEN,
I'M EXTREMELY PALE.
AND MY LEG
IS PARTIALLY BANDAGED,
AND I'M JUST BLEEDING.
I MEAN, YOU CAN'T SEE
THE GASHES IN MY HEAD,
BUT NUMEROUS, NUMEROUS
BLOWS TO MY HEAD.
THESE WERE INSANE PEOPLE,
AND WHAT THEY DID TO US
WAS JUST NOT OKAY.
Narrator:
AFTER 43 HOURS IN CAPTIVITY,
NIKO AND ANI ARE FINALLY SAFE.
THEY BOTH LOOK LIKE
THEY'D SEEN GHOSTS.
I MEAN, THEY JUST HAVE ALMOST
VACANT STARES ON THEIR FACE.
YOU CAN TELL THAT THEY'D
BEEN THROUGH A LOT.
WHAT'S YOU NAME?
DENNIS.
DENNIS WHAT?
DENNIS TORRES?
Narrator: AFTER THE RAID
AT 22 HARVEST STREET,
TWO PEOPLE
ARE TAKEN INTO CUSTODY --
DENNIS PEREZ,
WHO WAS LIVING AT THE HOUSE,
AND HIS GIRLFRIEND,
INALIA ROLLDAN.
NIKO AND ANI TELL POLICE
THEY ARE JUST TWO
OF THEIR ASSAILANTS.
WE KNEW THERE WAS
AT LEAST FOUR MALES THERE,
AND AT THIS POINT,
WE ONLY HAD ONE MALE IN CUSTODY.
SO WE KNEW THERE WAS AT LEAST
THREE OTHERS, MAYBE MORE.
Narrator:
AS POLICE URGENTLY HUNT FOR THE
REST OF NIKO AND ANI'S CAPTORS,
THEY STRUGGLE TO MAKE SENSE
OF THE CRIME.
WE STILL HAD TO FIGURE OUT
EXACTLY WHO WAS INVOLVED
AND ALL OF THE DETAILS AROUND --
SURROUNDING WHAT LEAD THEM
TO 22 HARVEST.
Narrator:
AMONG THE PHOTOS AND VIDEO
ON DENNIS PEREZ'S CELLPHONE,
POLICE MAKE
A STARTLING DISCOVERY.
THE VIDEO IS TRULY CHILLING.
IT'S -- YOU CAN'T
REALLY DESCRIBE IT.
Narrator:
THE BRUTAL CRIMES COMMITTED
INSIDE 22 HARVEST STREET
HAD BEEN RECORDED.
**
OKAY.
TWO MALE COLLAGE STUDENTS
WERE FOUND SAFE SUNDAY NIGHT
AFTER POLICE SAY THEY WERE
FORCIBLY ABDUCTED
OVER THE WEEKEND.
POLICE SAY THE
UNIVERSITY OF ROCHESTER SENIORS
WERE LAST SEEN
EARLY SATURDAY MORNING.
A S.W.A.T. TEAM WAS LAUNCHED
ON SUNDAY
AFTER POLICE FIGURED OUT
WHERE THEY WERE BEING HELD.
Narrator:
NIKO KOLLIAS AND ANI EWO
ENDURED 43 HOURS OF TORTURE
INSIDE 22 HARVEST STREET.
POLICE QUESTION DENNIS PEREZ,
ARRESTED IN THE RAID,
DETERMINED TO UNDERSTAND
WHAT HORRORS
NIKO AND ANI SUFFERED
AND WHY THEY WERE TARGETED.
AND WE TALKED TO DENNIS PEREZ.
HE WAS ADVISED OF HIS RIGHTS,
WHICH HE WAIVED.
AND DENNIS PEREZ
STARTED TO TELL US THIS TALE.
HE PLAYED THE VICTIM HIMSELF.
THESE PEOPLE CAME IN,
HELD HIM AT GUNPOINT,
MADE HIM BEAT THEM,
MADE HIM HOLD THEM AT GUNPOINT,
ALL AGAINST HIS WILL.
IT WAS JUST
AN UNBELIEVABLE STORY.
I DON'T KNOW
WHO WOULD BELIEVE THAT.
WE TOLD HIM IT WAS UNBELIEVABLE,
AND HE'S, "WELL,
THAT WHAT HAPPENED."
HE WAS THE ONLY INDIVIDUAL
THAT I SAW WITHOUT A MASK ON.
AND HE KNEW.
I MEAN, HE WAS THERE FROM
THE SECOND WE ENTERED THE HOUSE
WITH THE TWO GIRLS.
Narrator: DETECTIVES HAVE PLENTY
OF EVIDENCE AT 22 HARVEST STREET
TO CONNECT PEREZ TO THE CRIME.
BUT AS THEY TRY TO ESTABLISH
HIS ROLE IN THE ATTACKS,
FORENSIC TECHNICIANS
RECOVER EVIDENCE
PEREZ TRIED TO DELETE
FROM HIS CELLPHONE.
WE EXTRACTED VIDEO --
A 30-SECOND VIDEO CLIP
WHICH CAPTURED
A VERY HORRENDOUS ASSAULT
ON ANI AND ON NIKO
IN THE BATHROOM
AT 22 HARVEST STREET.
YO.
THE VIDEO IS TRULY CHILLING.
IT'S...
JUST TO SEE A 15-SECOND SNIPPET
OF THAT.
AND TO THINK THAT THAT WAS, YOU
KNOW, 40 HOURS OF THEIR LIFE.
**
Narrator: WHO ARE THE MASKED MEN
IN THIS VIDEO?
TO CONFIRM THEIR IDENTITIES,
POLICE RETURN TO LEAH GIGLIOTTI.
[ CRYING ]
Houlihan:
THIS IS A MUCH DIFFERENT LEAH.
WE'VE RESCUED ANI AND NIKO.
SHE'S HAD TIME TO THINK
ABOUT HER SITUATION.
SHE'S CRYING.
SHE'S AFRAID
OF WHAT'S GONNA HAPPEN.
SHE APOLOGIZED TO US
AS SOON AS WE COME IN.
YOU KNOW, "LET'S HEAR
WHAT YOU HAVE TO SAY,
AND LET'S WORK THROUGH THIS."
**
Narrator: LEAH CONFIRMS
SHE WAS ONE OF NINE PEOPLE
INVOLVED IN THE KIDNAPPING.
SHE AND SAMANTHA HUGHES
ARE ALREADY IN CUSTODY.
DENNIS PEREZ,
LIVING AT 22 HARVEST STREET,
AND HIS GIRLFRIEND,
INALIA ROLLDAN,
WERE ARRESTED IN THE RAID.
Cassidy:
EACH ONE OF THESE PEOPLE
WERE INTERVIEWED,
AND THEN WE WOULD ALL GET
TOGETHER AND SHARE INFORMATION.
Narrator:
FOUR OTHERS ARE ARRESTED
BASED ON INFORMATION GATHERED
IN THE INTERROGATION ROOM.
**
Narrator: BUT THE NAME
DETECTIVES REALLY WANT
IS THE ONE SUSPECT
WHO IS STILL AT LARGE,
THE MAN POLICE BELIEVE ORGANIZED
AND PROFITED FROM THIS CRIME.
DURING THE INTERVIEWS,
LEAH TALKED ABOUT
SCRAP BEING THE MAIN GUY,
THE GUY WHO WAS RUNNING THINGS.
WE'RE ABLE TO IDENTIFY HIM
AS LYDELL STRICKLAND.
**
HE'S KNOWN TO BE INVOLVED
WITH WEAPONS, DRUGS,
SHOOTINGS, ROBBERIES.
HE'S A VIOLENT INDIVIDUAL.
Narrator: STRICKLAND IS ARRESTED
AND BROUGHT TO THE PRECINCT
FOR INTERROGATION.
DETECTIVE HOULIHAN, HAVING
ARRESTED STRICKLAND BEFORE,
TAKES THE LEAD,
CONFRONTING THE MAN
POLICE BELIEVE
DIRECTED NEARLY TWO DAYS
OF TORTURE AND MAYHEM.
**
I WENT IN.
I SAW THAT HE WAS HANDCUFFED.
I REMOVED THE HANDCUFF FROM HIM.
I ASK HIM IF HE WANTED
ANY CIGARETTES OR WATER
OR ANYTHING.
[ INDISTINCT TALKING ]
[ GLASS BREAKS ]
[ CRASH ]
[ INDISTINCT SHOUTING ]
**
Houlihan:
WE WENT IN THE DOOR THAT
HAD BEEN BLOWN OFF ITS HINGES,
WHERE THE S.W.A.T. TEAM
MADE ENTRY.
AND TO THE LEFT
WAS THE LIVING ROOM.
THERE WAS HEDGE TRIMMERS
UP ON TOP
OF AN ENTERTAINMENT CENTER
THERE.
THE HEDGE TRIMMERS
HAD BLOOD ON 'EM.
THERE WAS BLOOD IN THE BASEMENT.
WE FOUND PLASTIC MASKS,
HALLOWEEN MASKS.
IN THE GARAGE, WE FOUND GARBAGE
BAGS THAT HAD BEEN TIED UP.
AND THOSE GARBAGE BAGS
WERE OPENED UP,
AND WE FOUND NIKO'S CLOTHES.
THEY WERE ALL BLOOD-SOAKED.
IT WAS UPSETTING.
JUST ONE OF THE WORST THINGS
I'VE EVER SEEN --
HUMAN BEINGS DO
TO OTHER HUMAN BEINGS.
**
**
Narrator:
LYDELL "SCRAP" STRICKLAND
IS ARRESTED
AFTER THE KIDNAPPING AND TORTURE
OF NIKO KOLLIAS AND ANI EWO.
DETECTIVES BELIEVE
HE AND EIGHT OTHER PEOPLE
PARTICIPATED IN THE CRIME.
BUT IT WAS STRICKLAND
WHO ESCALATED THEIR OFFENSES
TO THE UNTHINKABLE.
DETECTIVES READ STRICKLAND
HIS RIGHTS
AND TELL HIM ABOUT THE TWO MEN
RESCUED FROM 22 HARVEST STREET.
ORIGINALLY WHEN WE TALKED
TO LYDELL STRICKLAND,
HE DENIED ANY INVOLVEMENT.
THE INVESTIGATORS
ARE CONDUCTING THIS INTERVIEW.
I DON'T KNOW HOW
YOU KEEP A STRAIGHT FACE.
Houlihan:
I BELIEVE HE THOUGHT HE COULD
TALK HIS WAY OUT OF THIS ONE.
BUT THIS CASE HERE
HAD THE EVIDENCE NECESSARY
TO PROSECUTE EACH OF THEM FULLY.
Narrator:
STRICKLAND DENIES INVOLVEMENT.
BUT DNA FOUND AT THE SCENE
CONNECTS HIM
TO 22 HARVEST STREET.
AND THE STATEMENTS
OF HIS CONSPIRATORS
PUT HIM AT THE CENTER
OF THE CRIME.
THE EVIDENCE WAS OVERWHELMING
AGAINST HIM --
DNA ON THE MASKS,
THEY WERE STILL IN THE HOUSE.
HE NEVER CUT HIS LONG DREADS
THAT WERE VERY IDENTIFIABLE
IN THE VIDEO
FROM THE CELLPHONE CAMERA.
HE DIDN'T CARE.
HE DID WHAT HE DID.
HE WASN'T GONNA PLEAD ANYTHING.
IT'S REALLY UNFATHOMABLE.
BUT THE EVIDENCE AT THE HOUSE
ALL SUPPORTS
THE TALES OF TORTURE
THAT ANI AND NIKO
PROVIDED TO ME.
Narrator: IN ADDITION TO PROVING
STRICKLAND'S INVOLVEMENT,
THE VIDEO FROM
DENNIS PEREZ'S CELLPHONE
CONFIRMS DETECTIVES' THEORY
OF THIS CHILLING CRIME --
RETALIATION FOR THE ROBBERY
STAGED BY NIKO AND ANI'S
TEAMMATE ISAIAH SMITH.
IN THE VIDEO,
STRICKLAND SAYS, "FOUR POUNDS,"
THE EXACT AMOUNT OF MARIJUANA
STOLEN IN THE ROBBERY
STAGED IN ANI'S APARTMENT.
THIS TRULY WAS A CASE
OF MISTAKEN IDENTITY.
NIKO AND ANI HAD NOTHING TO DO
WITH THE ORIGINAL ROBBERY
THAT HAPPENED.
THEY HAD NO KNOWLEDGE OF IT,
NO INVOLVEMENT AT ALL.
Narrator: RETALIATING ON BEHALF
OF THE DEALER'S ROBBED BY SMITH,
NIKO AND ANI'S ASSAILANTS
SHOWED TO REMORSE.
AND LYDELL STRICKLAND
SAW AN OPPORTUNITY FOR HIMSELF.
AT THE POINT THAT THEY FIGURED
OUT THEY HAD THE WRONG GUYS,
THEY COULD HAVE LET 'EM GO.
BUT I THINK THAT THEY SAW
THAT THERE WAS MONEY TO BE MADE.
LYDELL STRICKLAND
TOOK THE LEAD ON THAT.
Narrator:
POLICE LEARNED THAT WHILE
THE TWO MEN WERE HELD CAPTIVE,
STRICKLAND WENT TO ATMs
AROUND ROCHESTER,
TAKING AS MUCH MONEY AS HE COULD
FROM NIKO'S ACCOUNTS.
LYDELL STRICKLAND
WAS THE, YOU KNOW, ACCELERANT.
HE WAS THE LIGHTER FLUID
TO THE FIRE.
HE GOT INVOLVED,
AND ONCE HE DID,
HE TOOK CONTROL.
AND THE BANKS WERE TELLING HIM,
"THAT MONEY
IT'S NOT GONNA BE AVAILABLE
UNTIL MONDAY."
Narrator:
IT'S A POLICY THAT MAY HAVE
SAVED BOTH ANI AND NIKO'S LIVES.
Kollias:
ULTIMATELY, THEY WERE TRYING TO
KEEP US ALIVE TILL MONDAY
SO WHEN THE BANKS OPENED UP,
THEY COULD LIQUIDATE
ALL OF MY ACCOUNTS.
Narrator: STRICKLAND REFUSES
TO FULLY ADMIT
HIS ROLE IN THE CRIME
BUT KNOWS POLICE HAVE THE
EVIDENCE TO PUT HIM BEHIND BARS.
HE HAD BOUGHT HUNDREDS
OF DOLLARS WORTH OF CLOTHING
WITH THE PROCEEDS OF THE MONEY
THAT THEY HAD GOTTEN OUT OF
NICHOLAS' BANK ACCOUNTS.
Narrator: LEAH GIGLIOTTI
EVENTUALLY COMES CLEAN
AND, IN THE AFTERMATH
OF THE ARRESTS,
FINALLY FEELS THE WEIGHT
OF HER ACTIONS.
**
[ CRYING ]
**
SHE AND SAMANTHA HUGHES
EACH PLEAD GUILTY
TO FIRST-DEGREE KIDNAPPING
AND ASSAULT CHARGES.
THEY AND SIX OTHERS
WILL BE SENTENCED
TO SERVE FROM 7 TO 35 YEARS
IN PRISON
FOR KIDNAPPING
AND OTHER CRIMINAL CHARGES.
LYDELL STRICKLAND
IS CONVICTED OF 28 CHARGES
AND IS SENTENCE
TO 155 YEARS IN PRISON.
Cassidy:
WHEN IT'S ALL SAID IN DONE,
NINE PEOPLE WERE CONVICTED
FOR THEIR ROLES
IN THE ABDUCTION,
KIDNAPPING, TORTURE
OF ANI AND NIKO.
**
Kollias:
I WAS HOSPITALIZED FOR 25 DAYS,
HAD FOUR BLOOD TRANSFUSIONS,
AND, YOU KNOW,
HAD FEMUR SURGERY
AND GLASS REMOVED FROM MY HEAD
AND SCALP AND EARDRUM.
Narrator:
NIKO AND ANI BOTH GRADUATE
AND PURSUE CAREERS IN FINANCE.
NIKO FINDS COMFORT IN HIS
CLASSICAL PIANO TRAINING
TO COPE WITH THE TRAUMATIC
MEMORIES OF A TERRIBLE CRIME.
Kollias: YOU CAN'T JUST
TAKE LIFE FOR GRANTED
BECAUSE, YOU KNOW, IT REALLY IS
SUCH A GREAT THING TO BE ALIVE
AND TO HAVE FREEDOM AND
HAVE SUCH GREAT OPPORTUNITIES.
SO, YOU KNOW, THAT'S WHY
I KIND OF TAKE THAT APPROACH
TO BE SUCH A GOOD PERSON
AND TRY AND BE
AS POSITIVE AS I CAN
TO KIND OF MOVE FORWARD
IN A POSITIVE WAY.
[ PIANO PLAYS ]