Transcripts For KTIV Dateline NBC 20151101

What if they dont believe me . Reporter growing up near kansas city, missouri,i,he two sisters sara and emily had about as normal a life as any suburban girls in the midwest. My sister and i used to play together when we were younger. My m, it seemed like she was always home with us. And my dad was always there for dinner and things like that it seemed like. Reporter their dad built houses. Mom, jennifer, a realtor, sold them. And the girls were close, despite a 7year age gap. We would go fishing together. She would take me to the pool every day during the summer. Things like that. So, i mean, we were close, but we fought like siblings. Reporter sara was 16. Emily just 9 and a star student. I was a teachers pet. And i was usually one of the top of my class. You were always prepared. Yeah, i was a suck up. You said that. I didnt, emily. Totally was. I didnt know it then. But i was. Reporter everything was easy sailing for the girls until their parents lives went in different directions. I knew that my parents were getting divorced. I didnt know why. They never fought in front of us or anything. Reporter thats always tough for kids. That summer, 2001, their mom jennifer was showing houses to a new client, a man named lou castro who, with his long hair, and western hat, looked for all the world like a wellheeled young cowboy. He seemed really y arismatic and outgoing and friendly and like he had a lot of money. He would tell everybody that he had cattle in south dakota, and that he was trading stocks he told me he had a bunch of cars in texas somewhere, and that he owned a mansion down there. Reporter this softspoken man was looking for a Country Property for his somewhat new age family commune just down from south dakota a young married couple, trish and brian ghes their baby girlrlnd a jennifer found them just the right parcel, but even after turning over the keys, there was something about that lou castro guy, that emilys mom found irresistible. Hed become more than a client. Well at first, he was just somebody that mom was doing business with. But they would go to lunch often. Reporter as you look back now emily what do you think went on with your mother . I dont know. Reporter but something was going on, huh . Something was. Reporter and something was going on with lou too. No sooner had he settled down in greater kansas city, than his family commune was on the move again. And guess who was going with them . Jennifer the realtor and her two girls. Reporter and whatd your dad think . My dad was devastated. Reporter just like that, in the fall of 2001. Emily, sara and their mom were packing up a uhaul and heading out for a fresh start to life. You got to leave your neigigorhood, your playmates, your classssids. At first, i was really upset. But eventually it kind of seemed like a new adventure and that thats what mom really needed to do. Reporter the new home for all three was a tenacre minifarm north of wichita. They moved in with lou and his family commune in the spread they called Angels Landing. The girls mom jennifer bought the adjoining ten acres and built a second house. And after they added a Swimming Pool and a dirt track for atvs, the commune later put up a third house. So what was the routine at the household . We were all having meals together. And we didnt really do chores. Reporter while the girls mom resumed her realestate business, brian worked as a mechanic and lou organized the down time. He would throw parties about every weekend. There was a lot of drinking. Other people would bring their kids over. Wed go swimming. I would ke care of the little kids. d play pool. Reporter pretty normal. Little lavish, but pretty normal stuff. Reporter lou lovefu 5iu u engines and there were a couple of workshops big enough to garage his enormous radiocontrolled planes and a fleet of snazzy cars. Going to a dealership and buying a corvette was like going to a toy store and picking out a model car. Like, that is how quickly. He would just go and pick one out, say, all right. I want it. Reporter r orvettes, dodge viper . Many corvettes, a few dodge vipers. We had suburbans, tahoes, trail blazers big trucks, duallies. Reporter they had vanity plates angel one, angel two and so on. So a lot of it is kind of a kids dream, huh . Yeah. I mean i got everything i wanted. Reporter while the sisters did stay in touch with their dad who had moved nearby lous promise of whatever your heart desisis found a sweet spopo lou asked me what i wanted for my birthday. And i was like, well, i would love to have a horse. But i know that its expensive. And i know its too much work. So, were not gonna do that. Hes like, no, if you want a horse, were gonna get a horse. Reporter you were the little girl who got a horse for your birthday . I was. I got three horses. Reporter you were the princess of the house . Yes. Reporter emily being the princess didnt always sit well with sister sara. So the other young mom in the family brians wife trish sometimes stepped in to referee their sibling rivalry. She was the disciplinari . Kind of. There was a specific way to do things. And you did it her way. And thats just what was expected. Reporter what did you think of trish . Did you like her . She was wonderful. I loved her just like another mom. Reporter so she really was substitute mom in a lot of things, huh . She was. Reporter so the sisters will never forget that awful day in june 2003. Emily just 11yearsold found herself standing by the swimmingng popo. Trish was floating in the shallow end of the pool, face down. Reporter a beach sandal floated on the water. Trish was dead. Reporter one of their own, gone. Life at Angels Landing forever. It was very traumumic. Reporter l ler, more shocks in store. Mysterious accidents. Dark threats involving the spirit world. Transformation. He would give this terrible grin that just looked evil. I know blowdrying fries my hair, but im never gonna stop. Because now ive got pantene shampoo and conditioner the prov formula locks moisture inside my hair and the damage from 100 blowowries is gone. What makes thermacare different . Two words it heals. How . With heat. Unlike creams and rubs that mask the pain, thermacare has patented heat cells that penetrate deep to increase circulation and accelerate healing. Lets review heat, plus relief, plus healing, equals thermacare. The proof that it heals is you. Guest pc does what . throughghhe door pc does amazingly thin desesns. 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Trish kind of was the one that would be there before we went to school and after we went to school, because my mom had to work. Did you like her . I loved her. I loved trish. Reporter so what happened in june 2003 at Angels Landing came as a sudden lifealtering shock. The day began normally enough for the sisterer we all l d gone to lunch, trish and her daughter a friend o mine and her baby and then lou and my sister. And then we came back to the house after lunch. And trish and emily and the baby were going to clean the pool. That was the plan for the afternoon . Right. And lou and i were gonna go to davis moore. Car dealer . Correct. So you go off to the car dealership with lou . Uhhuh. Reporter back at the Swimming Pool, something truly awful had happened. I called 911. Reporter she told the operator that trishs toddler had fallen in to the pool, and when trish had tried to save her little girl she slipped backwards. She tripped and fell and hit the concrete . She fell and hit her head and drowned. And the baby was in trouble in the pool, and that you rescued the baby but you couldnt help . Right. Eporter emily got the baby out of the pool but, because she was just a wisp of a thing, try as she might emily could not lift trishs body out of the water. Hopeless. Across town, sara and lou were checking out cars at the dealership when saras phone rang. I receive a phone call from emily. And she says that, trish fell in the pool. I need you to come home. Did she say thahatrish was dead . Yes. So this is shocking news. Youve all just had lunch a few homrs before. Uhhuh. Reporter lou and sara raced back home to Angels Landing, where police and emts were already on the scene. Theres no reason to believe that she was under the influence of anything at this time. Reporter they had pulled trishs body from the pool, and taken photographs. A single beach sandal floated on the waters surface. Pieces of f ishs hair clip werere in the pool. It had snapped apart when she banged her head, they presumed. And there were small bruises and a cut on trishs forehead. The medical examiner determined trishs death was due to a freakishly bad accident. Trish was just 26 years old. And trish was gone . Yeah. Reporter the family was in a state of shock. Devastated. Trish had been kindndf a mother of the house, the way you talk about her. Yeah. For you, too. Absolutely. It was really hard. It breaks my heart. Reporter and it was hard for lou. Trish was someone he regarded as his best friend. Lou had met trish in the mid 90s in south texas, after serving in the navy as a plane mechanic. And for eight years they were inseparable travelers. Moving on to south d dota and ending up in wichita. It was very traumatic. Reporter as the family commune tried to come to terms with the tragedy, trishs husband brian embraced his little daughter closer; and gradually, they all got on with their lives. And then, youre, what, goin back to school and yep. Exactly. Reporter still it was hard for the family to put trishs death behind them. And Something Else was troubling. Emily and sararaad a fuzzy recollection that trish wasnt the fit person in the family commune to die. Theyd recently met a teenager whod also once been on the fringes of the commune. And he told a story with painful echoes. Coming up, a tale of tragedy and mystery. I knew something wasnt right two members of the commune vanish in thin air. Yes way. Introducing mcdonalds new all Day Breakfast menu. Once, you changed how you ate breakfast. Its time to start changing when. Think your heartburn pill works fast . Take the zantac it challenge zantac works in as little as 30 minutes. Nexium can take 24 hours. When heartburn strikes, take zantac for faster relief than nexium or your money back. Take the zantac it challenge. When your cold makes you wish. You could stay. In bed all day. You need the power of. New theraflu expreremax. La. Trishs husband brian, an auto mechanic, a broken man, left to raise a daughter. Brian loved trish more than anything in the world. And he ved his daughter immmmsely. He wasas really just good person. He missed his wife. Brian was sad. Reporter as they coped with the loss themselves, emily and sara had a flashback, and pieced together another incident when tragedy struck the family about two years before. I wasnt there, and im glad i wasnt there. That would be morerehat i had lost. Reporter not long before trishs death, the sisters met 15yearold Cody Griffith from texas, whod also once been on the fringes of the family commune. Hed been close to trish and lou thanks to his mom, mona. My mom and trish were really great friends. They would do a lot together. Reporter codys mom mona was something of a flower child. She was extremely loving very freespirited. Everything was spontaneous. There was really no planning. She could say, hey, lets get in the car and drive somewhere. Eporter couldve been a hippie in an earlier day, huh . Maybe. Just someone who is extremely loving, very accepting. Reporter when cody was growing up in Corpus Christi in the mid 90s, his mom, mona, was going through a difficult divorce and financial trouble. She, cody and codys young sister lindsey moved in with their good friends trish and lou from the apartment complex. I can remember lou taking us to baseball practice when my sister was little, picking her up from scho and stuff like that. Reporr his mom, mona, and trish took turns cooking for what was the beginnings of the commune. So youre really an extended family . Yeah, pretty much. I mean, it was like living with an aunt and uncle. Reporter so when trish and lou suddenly decided they wanted to pick up sticks and move to south h kota, mona wanted totoo too, and to take cody and his sister lindsey along as well. Ill never forget it. It was just like yesterday, and i told her, no, im not leaving. And i had gotten extremely upset. Reporter the very thought of being so far away from his dad was too much for cody. So what did she say . Yes, you are. Youre gonna go with us . She let me make that decision. She would have not wanted me to do something i d dnt wanna do. Reporter so in late 1998, mona and codys younger sister it was an extremely small home. It was like in the mountains. We even went and cut our own christmas tree. Reporter off the grid kind of a cabin place . Yeah. Reporter the cabin was a tightsqueeze for sure, but the fafaly commune was growing. It was here thatatrish met and married brian, the auto mechanic, and they had a daughter. Mona, cody mom, had also found a boyfriend, a rapid city realtor and experienced private plane pilot. You were okay with that, huh . Oh, yeah. I wanted my mom to be happy. And, you know, i looked forward to meeting him. Reporter did you ever meet him . No. Reporter one friday in february of 2001, mona and her boyfriend decided to t te daughtht lindsey on an excititg birthday trip to nebraska. Exciting because monas boyfriend would fly them there himself. They took off from rapid city. But not long after, something went terribly wrong. How did you find out about the plane . My dad had called me inside, and he just looked at me. And i knew something wasnt right. And then he just told me, hey, your mom and sister have been missing. Reporter your dadamust have been all ripped up, huh . Theres nothing you can say. I mean he didnt there was no way that he could explain to his son that his sister and mom are gone. Reporter and imagine you hope that somebodys crawled out of the wreckage and theyve got some food and water and theyre in a little tent waiting for search and rescue to find them thats the only thing i could pray for. Reporter as cody was praying for a miracle, monas sister lisa also got a phone call, from another sister. And shek4q,l . . D hysterically. And she said that mona and lindsey had left on a plane, and the plane had never reached its destination. And they didnt know where it was. Reporter monas boyfriend hadnt filed a flight plan, so the plane could be anywhere. Rugged territory. Correct. Up in the badlands area, we assume, or nebraska. We really had no clue. Reporter but in south dakota, lou castro, a former navy plane mechanic, was on it. When lisa paid a short visit to try to help find her sister and niece, lou was in constant touch with s srch and rescue. A huge comfort. Soft spoken, nice, funny, friendly. He seemed very concerned. Very, very distraught over mona and lindseys disappearance. And very helpful. I mean, he was very gracious in whatever we wanted. Reporter so its thank goododss we have lou at the helm here, huh . Exactly. You know, he didnt work. So he seemed to have plenty of time. He seemed to know everybody. They knew him. We were grateful that there was somebody that was had taken control and was keeping us in the loop also. Reporter at a gathering of lindseys School Friends in support of the search, lou seemed especially popular with all the girls. Oh, they were mesmerizezeby him. Was he telling them stories or jokes or uhhuh, laughing. He k. Ew them all quite well. We could tell. Reporter was there something a little creepy about it . I dont want to plant an idea here that that didnt exist. They all knew lou, but they didnt know lindseys mom. Strange. Reporter six weeksksfter the plane went missing, lisa and cody got the news they were dreading. The wreckage had been found. There were no survivors. So thats the end of hope . This is not gonna have a miraculous ending . Yeah. Uhhuh. Reporter cody traveled back to rapid city, and once again saw lou, who seemed distraught. He starts crying and he tells me that my little sister was never supposed to be on the plane. He tells me that if my mom would have only been on the plane, that he says, you know i would have taken your siss ieu`3 f1 would have left. Reporter he would have become like the adoptive father then . Right. Reporter how would he know whether she was supposed to be or not . I dont know. Reporter looking back, do you wonder what he meant by that . Every day. Every day. Reporter an ntsb investigation into the catastrophe found no mechanical problemsmsith the plane, leanini toward a t tory that bad weatherer had contributed to the crash. When do you miss your mom and sister the most . Times along the way when youve been growing up . [ sniffling ] cody, i dont think you need to put any words to it. You really cant. Reporter lou and trish, not blood relatives, determined the burial plala for mona and ndsey a surprise lisa, who again raised an eyebrow when she saw her sisters and nieces obituary in a south dakota newspaper. And it lists myself, my two sisters, and her brother lou. Were like where did we pick up a brother . Reporter later, as emily recalled the awful story of the plane crash, she too remembered lou telling her what heetold cody. He e id that lindsey wasnsn supposed to o e. Reporter whatever that meant, in 2003, after trishs death in the Swimming Pool, emily and her sister sara werent the only ones trying to make sense of it all. A local detective in wichita was also taking an interest in the plane crash, and the death of trish hughes, and in whatever landing. Something wasnt adding up. We got the call that he had been crushed under a car he was fixing. On her social side. She literally started changing. It was shocking. laughs the difference has been incredible. Shes much more aware. jan a brighter look to her eyes. She loves the food. ray she wants to learn things. I went in as not a believer, but i am now. I dont know. Shes a good dog. vo youre getting a bit emotional there . ray yeah. vo purina pro plan bright mind promotes alertness and mental sharpness in dogs 7 and older. Purina pro plan. Nutrition that performs. Nothing like a good, quick meal to bring two people together. Campbells skillet sauces. Ready in under 20 minutes. Campbells. Made for real, real life. If you take multiple medications, a dry mouth can be a common side effect. Thats why theres b btene. It comes in oral rinse, spray or gel so theres moisturizing relief for everyone. Reporter in late 2003, after the drowning death of 26 year old trish hughes, the mood at angels lananng was grim. Sisters emily d sara watched as the family commune patriarch another young woman had joined the commune and soon lou and she were engaged with a little girl on the way. And as the clouds lifted over Angels Landing, shiny new rides appeared in the drive. Before trisha died, there was three corvettes and everybodod else had an suv. And then, after trish died, it got more and more and more extravagant. Reporter more vehicles . Sports cars . Higherpriced vehicles. Reporter salesmen must have been licking their chops to see him coming, huh . They were. We all had the dealerships owners cell phones, cell phone. Reporter speed dial, huh . Yeah. Reporter in fact lou spent a million n d a half dollars on cars in just a few years. And his lavish generosity didnt stop at the family. Civicminded lou was showered with highfives from the city council after he donated 19,000 towards a brand new police vehicle. And cops were always welcome at the extravagant parties thrown by lou at Angels Landing. One of the officers in the county dated one of the women there for while, huh . That was me. Reporter it was yoyo uhhuh. Reporter but not everyone in uniform was joining in the fun. It didnt smell right. Reporter a local informant gave a psst, check it out, to wichita detective ron goodwyn an undercover narcotics officer who ended up recruiting two lawenforcement heavyweights. And in early 2003, from the shadows, the detectiti was eyeballing the commune, zeroing in on lou castro. Ron, why did you become interested in him in particular . He drew attention to himself. Reporter kinda flashy or ostentatious . Flashy. He had what appeared to be unexplained wealth, drew attention to himself with parties, high optioned vehicles. Each vehicle had an angel vanity plate with a number after it, one, two, three, four. Repororr maybe he had old family money, was an inheritancece guy. Sure. And that was something that we had to look at without violating any of his rights. Reporter you thought there was a lot of smoke around this guy, but you didnt know what exactly it was coming from . There was. Reporter and the smoke kept billowing when goodwyn learned about the death of trish hughes. So her death didnt trigger your interest in him . It absolutely triggered more of my interest in hihi reporter goodwyn wanted to find out exactly who lou castro was. He ran castros name in Law Enforcement tabases, quickly discovered he was trying to put his finger on a man who seemed to have no past, a virtual ghost. And not long after trish hughess death, he trawled the internet. And as i started researching. I started d ticing that there wererether deaths associatat with him. Reporter he landed on that obituary of mona and her daughter lindsey, and bingo, there was lous name. That was the first time i had seen lou castro in print. Reporter underlying goodwyns suspicion about castros unexplained wealth he theorized he had a drug case. I worked drug cases and unexplained wealth is, is something thatatou look at to determine if thahas how this person might be earning their money. Reporter so goodwyn set out to collect evidence from Angels Landing. He began with the trash bags. Maybe inside there was evidence of drugs, incriminatin3 f2 comenzo a buscar evadenidencia en documents or a fingerprint . So maybe if you can get a fingerprint, somewhere hell be in the system and youll come up with a name . E . Thats right. Reporter you tried to get a fingerprint. I did. Reporter and the tech guys couldnt come up with anything . They could not. Reporter frustrating. There was no evidence of drugs. And nearly three years later there were still no clues as to who lou castro was. But in 2006, came another shocking coincidence. Brian hughes, trishs husband, an experienced 31 year old mechanic who was raising their daughter in the commune suffered an unimaginable accident. As emily tells it, brian was visiting family in south dakota. One day he called and he spoke to lou for a little while and then he asked to speak to wichita. And the story goes that he told her goodbye. Reporter told his daughter goodbye . Right. And then, a couple hours later, we g the call that he habeen crushed underneath a car that he was fixing. Reporter brian was dead. Really . That didnt make any sense to emily. He would have put blocks under the tires. Reporter he knew his way around a vehicle . Right. Reporter and then, he was dead . Yeah. H. Reporter the bodies were piling up, five now. But none of the findings in any of the cases, including brians, concluded there was foul play. It was classified, and still is classified, as an accident. Reporter detective goodwyn decided he was going to have to find a new angle on the enigma of Angels Landing and lou castro even if hehead to work around the clock. What d dve you on this thing . There had to be Something Else out there he was hiding from. Reporter the mystery . The mystery of lou castro, his true identity. Reporter one thing was for sure, goodwyn wasnt going to coming up, yet another member of the commune meets a tragic end, but thisisime a light bulb wouou go off. What we saw was a pattern. Reportestigators dig in to lous past, he starts to seem like a ghost. There should have been credit records, drivers license records and we could find none. Give extra. Get extra. How w n you see yourself in new glasses. Without your glasses . At lenscrafters, our unique camera and screen system lets you compare yourself in four different frames at time. Making sure all your vision choices are clear. [special effects] lisa what took you so long . Duracell quantum lasts longer in 99 of devices, [laser blasts] lindsey perished in the plane crash, trish in the pool and now brian had been crushed under a car he was working on. While all of the deaths were deemed to be accidents really he wondered how could any family be so unlucky . What baffled him most is he didnt know who the central man, lou castro, really was. Rifling through Angels Landing trash cans hadnt worked. What do you do next . One day when i was out on a day off i just happened to see lou castro with a female in an suv vehicle. I followed them to a restaurant on the north end of town. Odwyn sat in the restaurant, watched and waited. And glasses they had used at that table. Reporter the idea was to get fresh fingerprints that could i. D. Castro. Did that work . We tried every piece of dinner ware but were unsuccessful. Reporter he is still a mystery man. Thats right. He tried another fingerprint ploy. He took some glossy y otos, walked up to castros home, and he cooked up a story about burglaries in the neighborhood. Could lou recognize the cars or people in the photos. So you hand the glossy 8x10s to the guy who you believe is lou castro. I do. How did he handle them. He takes them and holds them once the photos are out of of i felt ron was on to something. Reportete ron enlisted another big gun to help find castro, fbi supervisory special agent john sullivan. We checked the fbi databases and private databases. I had the officers go out and get photographs, pull arrest records. We checked every lou castro we could find in the u. S. And none matched the lou castro o we had living in wichita. How unusual is that that the fbi cannot come up with a name and i. D. On the guy. Thats extremely unusual, especially in this day and age because usually everybody has a there should have been credit records, drivers license record and all sorts of records and we could find none. Reporter none of the car purchases, property deeds and utility bills at Angels Landing were under the name lou castro. They were all under the names of commune members. Just as goodwyn was feeling stuck, another tragedy was about to shake Angels Landing. In happened in 20000when sara was 24 and emily 17. I called mom after school to have dinner with her. She didnt answer her phone. I was so angry with her. Because she ignored my phone call. About 30 minutes into the test i was taking, they pulled me out of class. He said, we have to go. And he started driving me to my house and i said, dad, we have to go to the hospital. And he said, no, emily, we dont. 911. Whats the location. Reporter their mothers car had swerved in to the oncoming traffic. She had hit the gravel troublblg head on a rural road. So your mother was suddenly dead. Right. Reporter may have been distraction or turn away from trouble. We really dont know, do we . No idea. She had just bought a little yorkie and for the past couple of weeks she had been happy. Reporter what did the investigators make up happened. They said it was an accident. Reporter t t investigators couldnt ignore that jennifers headon highway death was the sixth in eight years from the same family commune. Does that change your interest in the case . Are you amped up more . I think we were. We saw a pattern. Reporter every two and a half years a mysterious death, deemed each time to be an accidentnt while the officers suspected lou castro was somehow involved they had no hard evidence on which to arrest him. They had to wait. Its not that easy. We did not want to tip off what we were looking at and if he knew we were looking at him, he could move or change the way he does business. Repororr and you still did not know who he was. We still did not know who he was. Reporter and a year later in 2009, castro did what they fe took off but just as the investigators thought lou castro might have slipped pero cuando pensaron que se they got their first big break. A troubling encounter shakes sara. He was very angng with me, scary angry. Reporter a a someone new gives a first look in the Angels Landing world. Authorities were interested in what you had to say . Yeah. Mmmmm. Mmmm. When you add liquid gold velveeta to Rotel Tomatoes and zesty chilies, you got a queso so good. Itll blow em away. 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Detective ron goodwyn believed that ron castro was involved in the deaths of six people. Now lou castro had slipped away, left wichita. It happened suddenly. A few months after their mothers death in the 2008 car crash, emily and sara were traumatized when lou announced a move to tennessee. How was that approached to the family, were moving to tennessee. He said we really needed to go. We were angry with him for wanting to move. I didnt want to go. I wanted to stay. Lou said emily we are doing this for you. Reporter for you . Yep, he said we were going to be closer to vanderbilt, which was the college i wanted to go to. And he said this whole move was for me. Thats kind of flattering to hear. Yeah, well and also, how do you say no when e entire thing is ababt you . So you u re still the princess . Right. Reporter emily was 17, but sara was nearly 24 and edging away from the smothering nest. I moved out. Howd you do that . Thats a huge step. They were leaving to go to tennessee and i didnt wanna go. And i had just lost my mom and i couldnt stand the thought of losing my dad. I never have been able to stand that thought. My daddy is so important to me. A a did you tell lou to his face, im not going. Im not gettin in the car . Yes. Howd that go down . He was very angry with me. Scary angry. And i just said, im i cant. Im not doin that. I dont wanna be that far away from my dad. I dont. Theres no way. Reporter emily might have gone to live with ththr father, but she remained with the commune. I wasnt going to leave what i considered my family. And your dad was part of another family back when but i mean i still visited my dad and i still loved my dad, but thats just not where i was going to live. Reporter so as the family and emily moved to a beauauful colonial home onon acreage in columbia, tennessee, sara stood her ground in wichita. She could exhale at last. And one evening, she went out and met a guy. His name was daniel an expert marksman in the Kansas National guard. And as they fell in love, she began to spill the buried secrets of her past. Youd think nobody could have these dark stories that are part of your life. But you had just awful, awful things to tell . Uhhuh. Yes. Reporter sara was still in touch with the family commune, now living in tennessee. And daniel wanted to know more about this lou character sara was telling him about. And i j jt started researching all these death ur`3 f1 much of it was related to this individual. Which is exactly what Law Enforcement was doin on the outside of all this, trying to look in and figure out where the puzzle lay. Whatd you feel about these stories . A lot of mixed emotions. I didnt know how to handle a lot of stuff at that time. Because it was all very fresh, very new to me. And just stuck with her and decided, you know, lets try to make things right. Reporter and secretly, daniel decided to take action. You put together a remarkable letter for the f. B. I. Yes. That took somomguts to do it. I was jususpretty much just tired of me carrying all that information myself. I found out enough thai believed that it should be in somebody elses hands that can do something with it. Reporter daniel laid out his suspicions, painting an alarming picture of the Angels Landing mmune a series of mysterious deaths, a code of silence enforced with sickening threats, and a big clue as to where all the money might have come from. And at the center of it all the man who called himself lou castro. Even for this veteran of the wars in afghanistan and iraq, reporting to the authorities car e5iu ip3 f2 al medio de tododom hombre que you worry about that . I did. But i decided, you know, this was something i have to do and the chips will fall where they fall. And turns out the authorities were very, very interested in what you had to say . Yes. Reporter so in december 2009, nearly sevevyears after the wichita investigation began, detectives goodwyn and snyder and the fbi agent sullivan got their first break the email from daniel. And in the email, he told us what he thought was happening. But the great thing about it was, for the first time, we had somebody from the inside that could confirm some of ouou suspspions. Saying you guys really y ed to look at this guy, lou castro . Yes. And im guessing you get a holy cow phone call, huh . Yes. We finally have a cooperating determine who lou castro is. Reporter in secret without sara knowing they brought daniel in and peppered him wiwi questions. Castro and the others had moved to a residence in columbia, tennessee. We were reluctant to talk to his girlfriend because, again, we did not want to tip off lou castro or anybody else. Reporter and daniel, their inside man, delivered the mother lode. Theyd bring me pictures, do you can you identify these people . . Theyre out at the gate lookin, you know, surveilling, watching cars come and go. But youre able to put the picture together for them . Correct. Reporter armed with daniels email and his intel, g snyder and sullivan got an official green light to pursue castro and try to take him out of business. And, castro, walking into a bank in tennessee, was about to make a big mistake. Ing up, investigators the commune. And later, sinister stories of Angels Landings dark angel. Amber was the angel of death. She would come around when somebody was going to die. Then youll hear from lou castro himself when dateline continues. [applause] if your plan is to fly solo, only sprint gives you starter unlimited data for 20 a month. So you never have to worry about unexpected overages. No creret required. They leave on sunday afternoon, to grandmas house theyre bound. The car is filled with music, that classic disco sound. And on their little faces, only smiles could be found. Goldfish crackers. 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But inside, emily and the other occupants were oblivious. So tennessee. The house looks very nice. You werent happy about leaving your your classmates and your life in wichita, but were you pleased at what the prospects were for you in tennessee . I was. I mean it was really hard goinin school there and things, but i just started focusing on getting to college and things like that. Reporter emily recalls there had been so many changes. And one change in particular was unusual. Lous name. Lou now wanted to be called joe. How did he explain that to you . That, m not gonna be lou. Dont call me lou over here anymore. I think because he didnt have the proper, like, identification to actually get legitimately established as lou. So he needed, like, an actual Social Security card and an actual drivers license. Reporter by now, goodwyn and snyder and agent sullivan were getting upupo speed on lous whereabouts and agents in tennessee were keeping close tabs on him. Johns counterparts in tennessee obtained a license tag on a vehicle out there which was registered to a person by the name of joe venegas. So at that time, we had a new name that we potentially thought could be a new Family Member or that could potentially be lou castro. Reporter at the same time as the investigators were looking for joe venegas, they were following money transferred from the Angels Landing family to their new home in tennessee. The money had transferred from wichita, kansas area banks to cololbia, tennessee banks. Repororr emily remembers t t day lou set up a new account. Did you go to the bank with him that day he opened the account . I did. Reporter you dont know that the local authorities had been looking at him for years back in wichita . Nope. Reporter after they got in touch with the bank, the investigators pulled the Security Camera video. There, clearly visible, was and there was a man called joe and who did you see in that image . Lou castro. Reporter so lou castro, of wichita is now joe venegas of tennessee . Thats correct. Reporter the investigators believed he was neither lou castro nor joe venegas. And now hed been made. Identity fraud is a federal crime so the investigators now had grounds to arrest him. A week later, they moved in. We went to the front of the residence, knocked on the door. Mr. Castro and his common law wife answered the door. We actually approrohed him as joe venegas. We called him joe venegas to his face when we talked to him. He corrected us and told us he was not joe venegas, but he was in fact lou castro. So he went back to his old old identity. Reporter was he shaky to see Law Enforcement at his front dodo . I didnt think so. He wawaconfident that he wa gonna be able to explain away why we were there. Reporter the officers arrested him, charged him and searched the property. Whatd you find in the house . Normal things. We found paper documents. We found computers. We f fnd 11 weapons, guns inside t t house. Reporter any smoking guns . No. Reporter emily had been on her way home from school when she got a call from detective goodwyn. Are you . And i said, i dont know who you are . . Where are you . He said, you need to come home. Reporter first time you heard that name, goodwyn, huh . I showed up and goodwyn and sullivan came out and i just about fainted. And goodwyn had to practically carry me into the house because i was terrified. Reporter what did they tell you it was all about . I dont remember. I remember that i didnt tell them anything. Reporter lou himself was continuing to confound the officers by not giving up his real name. Were very frustrated at that point. We swept him away to the jail as fast as possible. 8c ru u rr h ingerprints immediately. We wanted to kw who he was. And that didnt occur. Reporter castros prints didnt show up in any federal database and, even after a sixhour interview, he didnt crack. So after the search warrant, after the tennessee trip, we came back to wichita partly happy because we had arrested lou castro, but we s sll didnt pleaded guilty to id fraud and was sentenced to twoyears in federal prison, goodwyn believed that was just a ploy to avoid much bigger charges really serious crimes over many years. And he was determined to get to the truth. Seven years after opening up his investigation into Angels Landing, he set off to the place he believed lou castros criminal journey began. And at last found castros true identity. Coming up, the discovery that would break the case wide open. I snatched it out of his hands and said where did you get that . Reporter and then emily makes a troubling discovery about lou. That was the price of being the right. When your cold makes you wish. You could stay. In bed all day. You need the power of. New theraflu expressmax. Reporter the nemesis of detective ron goodwyn a man who called himself lou castro but would not give up his real name was behind bars after confessing to id fraud. But even after seven years of investigating, goodwyn was just getting started. He believed castro was involved in much more serious crimes. Heavy duty stuff. Maybe even those mysterious deaths the plane crash that killed mona, her boyfriend and her daughter lindsey; the death of brian hughes under a collapsed vehicle; that inexplicable headon tragedy in which saras and emilys mom jennifer died . And trish hughess drowning. As the investigators called everyone with links to castro, the phone trail took goodwyn to south texas. It took us to south texas because Patricia Hughes the victim in the drowning was from beeville, texas. Reporter goodwyn questioned trishs family and a sister recalled trish had gone with a guy way back when. A guy by the name of daniel perez. Reporter had you ever heard that name in all your years of trying to figure out who lou castro was . No, id never heard that name. Reporter daniel perez. Goodwyn immediately contacted the local authorities and it turned out there was a record of a daniel perez and a mug shot. They faxed that to me that day. I remember when ron finally got the fax from texas and i snatched it out of his hands and said where did you get that . It was obvious that it was the person we knew as lou castro. But now k , of course, knew he was daniel perez. Reporter we got our guy here . Yes. Reporter lou castro was daniel perez born in aransas pass, texas in 1959. The records showed daniel perez had pleaded no contest to two sex crimes in the mid 1990s. But the cases had been dismissed because he was believed to be dead. And the person believed in south texas to have been dead for many years wasnt dead because you saw him in wichita. Thats right. Reporter so he was on the lam . He was on the lam. Reporter in kansas and tennessee, interviews with the Angels Landing commune helped goodwyn connect the dots between six states and more than a dozen commune members over a period of about 15 years. And Something Else happened. Emily wrote a letter to lou while he was serving time for id e5 u. I said im finally going where i wanna go and im doing the things i wanna do. And he wrote me back and chewed me out for not caring about him. Reporter that was the price of being right. Reporter his little princess. I was saying that i was happy. And he took that as a slap in the face. And i stopped talking to him. Reporter instead, emily started talking to the investigators but warily. She and sara trickled out their stories, fearful they too might be implicated in whatever it took a lot of questioning and lots of tears and lots of detective goodwyn telling me that it was gonna be all right and that i wasnt in trouble. Reporter sara and emilys whole terrifying saga began when sara was 17 and emily just 10. A supernatural world began to emerge soon after their mom got to know the man they called lou in 2001 as they prepared to move into Angels Landing. Mom said, you know, emily, does i think sara was in the car, too. Does lou seem kinda special to you . And i was like, yeah, hes pretty nice. And shes like, well, you know, hes actually a seer. Reporter a seer . A seer. Mom said that he had told her that he was hundreds or thousands of years old, and that he could see what was going to happen in the future and that the reason we followed him was that she just had that instinct and just knew that she needed to be close to him, because he could protect her and keep her safe, because he knew what was i mean i was a little skeptical at first. But i think when youre nine or ten and your mom says that this is really whats happening you give it a little bit more credibility. Reporter and it wasnt just emilys and saras mom. Others at Angels Landing believed lou was a direct descendent of geronimo and had the power to make it rain and Bring Good Health to those at deaths door. Trish had told me about similar incidents where either lou had been dead or an animal had been dead or somebody had been really sick and he made them better. Reporter did you believe it . Yes. He could also see people, like, from the past, like, people thatd already died, he could see those people too. Reporter see them because he said he was an angel. Lou said, you know, your mom is right. I am hundreds of years old. This isnt really my body, you know. Ive died several times, but this is just the one im in right now. Reporter what did you think . It seemed really cool, you know. It was like being so special, and being around this thing that nobody else gets to do. Right. Its like seeing santa claus. You get really excited when youre tenyearsold. And, you know, he was tellin us that he would take care of us, and he would always make sure that we were safe. Reporter but safety meant lou needed control. He was the one that told everybody what they were gonna do and when they were gonna do it and how they were gonna do that. Reporter really bossy guy, my way or the highway kinda thing . Kind of. He was very good at, like, manipulating you i guess you could say. Reporter was your mom vulnerable, do you think, he seemed to know where peoples buttons were. Yes, very much so. Reporter hes steppin in like the boss, huh . Yeah, he acted like he was my dad. Reporter what do you think that thing was that he put together that you got pulled into, sara . A cult. Reporter cult . And the guy you knew only as lou castro was the cult leader . Yes. Reporter what is that thing that he had . Things and you think hes telling you the truth . Yeah. Reporter detective ron goodwyn was incredulous listening to all of this. But nothing could have prepared him for what came next. Lou castro the seer had three angel alter egos. They were always watching over him. Daniel, amber, and arthur. Like, arthur was mean. And daniel was kinder. Reporter but you didnt wanna meet either of these alternate personalities, huh . No. No. Amber was the angel of death. So, shy u1u p ound when somebody was going to die. Reporter he could see who was going to die . Was that something he yes. Reporter said was in his powers . Right. Reporter and did you ever see that personality in him . I did. He wouldnt blink. That just looked evil. Reporter the sisters say before their moms death, castro had a terrifying vision. He predicted that my mom was going to die. Reporter so howd you feel about this . Devastated. It was awful. Reporter the outlandish stories wererehocking to ron goodwyn, a seasoned detective, who was about to discover more about lou castros power over life and death. Emily was about to take the detective back to that summer day in 2003 when trish hughes drowned in the Swimming Pool at Angels Landing. And her story is that Tricia Hughes is not an accidental 8rowning. Thats right. Reporter coming up what emily heard. A splash and shriek. And then what emily saw. When dateline continues. What if one piece of kale could protect you from diabetes . What if one situp could prevent Heart Disease . One. Wishful thinking, right . But there is one step you can take to help prevent another serious disease. Pneumococcal pneumonia. If you are 50 or older, one dose of the prevnar 13 vaccine can help protect you from pneumococcal pneumonia, an illness that can cause coughing, chest pain, difficulty breathing, and may even put you in the hospital. Even if you have already been vaccinated with another pneumonia vaccine, prevnar 13 may help provide additional protection. 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Sisters emily and sara recounted that lou castro, whose real name was daniel perez, had brainwashed them into believing that he was a seer, and that he took on the personalities of dark manipulative angels who could predict someones death. They said they believed it really happened. Eight months after castros arrest, emily at last took the detective back to 2003, and the tragic death of trish hughes. This was a different story than the one she told at the time back when she was 11, and it began with a prediction eerily similar to the one lou castro made before her moms death in 2008. She tells of an incident prior to Patricia Hughes drowning in the Swimming Pool. Reporter about a week before trishs death, emily, trishs toddler, and trish herself, were sitting at a table when lou castro the seer, as the 11 yearold emily believed him to be, had a vision. And he said, you know, gonna happen. And he said, trish is going to die. And i started crying. He said, its its okay. Its her time. Reporter she says castro told her not to worry. While he couldnt be there when trish died, because it would destroy his power as a seer, he would still bring trish back to life. And, you know, this shell come back. Do i understand that trish is listening in on all this . Right. Reporter shes hearing this described . Yes. Reporter is she startled . Does she say not me. Im not going along with this . No. She was in you know, quite involved. Reporter on the appointed day, the Angels Landing family had gone out to lunch. We had just gotten back from lunch. And he said, all right. Well, were gonna go to the dealership to look at a car. I think it was for sara, but i dont remember. And he said, but the pool needs to be cleaned. So, you and trish are gonna stay here and clean it. Youre gonna stay here and clean the pool. Yep. And he said, emily, its its time. And i said, okay. Reporter she says lou began to set up the cleaning equipment for the pool, a few feet away from the workshop. He said, youre gonna wait inside the shop with the little one. I said, okay. So, i gave trish a hug on the diving board, and i started crying. And she said, why are you crying . I said, cause im gonna miss you. And she said, itll be okay. Reporter then emily took the toddler, waited inside the workshop where there were some new kittens. A few minutes go by and theres a splash, theres a little scream. Reporter a little bit of a scream . Uhhuh, like a shriek. And then lou came in. And he was panting, or out of breath, he looked sad and his arms were wet. Reporter then, she says, lou gave emily a critical order. Wait 20 minutes. And then, go out there. Make sure you and the baby jump in so that youre wet, and call 911. So we went and we played with the kittens in the shop. And i waited. It was an agonizing 20 minutes. Reporter trying to entertain the little girl and knowing that trish was outside. Reporter time goes by. You leave the shed, go over to the pool. Yeah, we went to the pool. Trish was floating in the shallow end of the pool, face down. Zx i got the baby and i jumped in. Reporter just to get yourself wet . Yeah. Because you had to you had a story that had been fed you, huh . Right. Reporter that you have attempted to rescue the baby . Right. How awful. There, youre seeing trish floating dead in the pool. I lost it. Reporter even so, emily called 911, just as shed been ordered by castro, and told the story that trish had slipped while trying to rescue the baby, had banged her head and drowned. And in the crucial 20 minute window, lou had apparently taken emilys sister sara to the car dealership. Did he give you a hint of what was going on that day, sara . Reporter what do you believe lou did at the pool that day . I believe he drowned trish. Reporter not an accident at all . No. Reporter pushed her head under the water and killed her . Yes. Reporter detective ron goodwyn believed both sara and emily had been horribly duped. Emily told the detective castro shored up his alibi with more hocuspocus, telling her that, with his powers as a seer, he had put her in a time warp, convincing her for many years that she was not even at the pool when trish drowned. So innocent, 11year old emily waited and waited for lou to bring trish back to life. But she was gone, and for years, her death remained an accidental drowning. I know that it was because of the story that i told, and theres a lot of regret that comes along with that. Reporter but youre not to blame for this. You do get that, right . Trying to come to terms. Reporter goodwyn was now grasping the full extent of castros hold over the family at the control that he had over her was unlimited. She would do anything for him. She truly believed that he was this person. Reporter and with emilys story, he had the evidence hed been seeking, for so many years, of castros grievous crimes. So now, based on this little girls story, young woman, but telling the story of what she saw and took part in as a little girl, youve got a murder case . Yes. Reporter but, as if murder wasnt enough, emily and sara had more to tell. There were more crimes to reveal even more ugly stuff. Take the investigators into their truly diabolical world. Coming up, the dark truth at the heart of Angels Landing. Emily, heres the really difficult part of your story. As much as you would like. He texts, he doesnt talk. That would be weird. Get an iphone at at t and get 50 more data. And right now get 300 credit for every line you switch. Why do i cook for the holidays . To share with family to carry on traditions to come together, even when were apart in stuffing, mashed potatoes, gravy, and more, swanson makes holiday dishes delicious pain from your day can haunt you at night, dont let it. Advil pm gives you the healing sleep you need, helping you fall asleep and stay asleep so your body can heal as you rest. Reporter wichita detective ron goodwyn had listened in horror as emily and sara revealed the awful story of trish hughess murder at Angels Landing. But nothing, not the email from daniel, the story about trishs drowning, or his wildest suspicions about lou castro, could prepare him for what he was about to hear next. Emily, heres the really difficult part of your story. And ill let you tell as little or as much of it as you like. But you seemed right away to be sharing the bedroom with lou. I was. As a fourth grader. Yes. I was i was ten. Ten years old . Yes. And i was in his bed every night. You know he convinced me that this is what i needed to do to take care of him, and this is my job. And why did he say that he needed you . He said that, for a seer, he needed to have a pure little girl to have sex with him so that he could survive. And that would recharge his batteries as the angel whos hundreds, maybe thousands of years old . Right. And he would validate it with old biblical stories or things like that, about how little girls are special, and that he really needed a little girl, and that i had to take care of him. Did you think it was wrong or out of line at the time . No. I wanted to take care of him. Thats what i was supposed to do. Its hard to explain but i loved lou. I loved him quite a bit. It was uncomfortable. And it was painful. And it breaks my heart now, you know. Its really hard for me to look at pictures of myself when i was little. But reporter your childhood was stolen from you. It was. By this man. It was. Reporter even when castro got engaged and had a child, the abuse didnt stop, though emily was pushed out of the bedroom. Crazy to say, were you a little bit jealous . I was. I definitely was. I was 12 and i felt like i was getting divorced. Reporter for sara the awful reality was not so dissimilar. She too was subjected to castros mind games, as she says he sought to control her. Like trying to drive a wedge between my sister and i. Were you jealous of emily . Uhhuh. He tried to make me jealous of her, yes. Reporter and she says castro was more violent with her than he was with her sister. If you didnt follow lous way, what would happen . He would rape me. Rape you . Uhhuh. How awful. I mean, there are hundreds and hundreds and hundreds of times and i cant tell you every single time. But you try not to remember those things. How old were you when it began . Seventeen. Reporter castros abuse was backed up by demonic threats if the girls didnt obey him. He told me he was going to take me to purgatory. He would threaten to take people to purgatory so theyd be forever in limbo. But and that was his capacity and his skills as an angel, to right. Take your soul to purgatory . Right. And the, its important to remember that he, lou would never make these threats. It was the angels who were inhabiting his body who would make these threats. And, so, the next morning, hed wake up and hed be like, mama, i love you. Im so sorry. And im like, really . Now, wheres your mom when when all this is is goin on . It was, like, usually really late at night. And so she would be sleeping in her house. And cause you had by then, two or three different properties, huh . Yeah. Reporter and what about all the other adults . Theres brian, theres trisha. There are people coming and going. People goin to the pool parties and maybe seeing things. Nobody intervened . Nobody saw it. You know, i think thats really important is that nobody saw the abuse. And i have spoken to people who were there and i guarantee you, nobody knew. He was very careful. I never had a bruise. Except psychologically. Right. And i was always with him, so it wouldnt be weird for us to disappear for an hour or two. You know . It nobody knew. Reporter but castro didnt just manipulate the girls for sex. He ordered sara secretly to bathroom, orders backed up with the most sadistic of threats. And was he happy with what you showed him . No. He made me do it twice, because the first time he said that i didnt get what he needed me to get. If you had said, no, im not gonna take that video camera. Im not gonna go with that little girl, what would have done to you, do you think . Hell say im gonna make your Worst Nightmare come true. Im gonna kill your dad. Reporter it was the same reason she never told her dad about the abuse. He was always threatening to kill my dad. And that was his big goto thing with you . Yes. cause im a daddys girl. And he knew that . Uhhuh. Reporter she says the acute fear castro instilled in her was even worse when hed been drinking. One evening he was brandishing an assault rifle. He shot a gun at my head. At you . Yes. Because he was angry with me. He enjoyed the pain. Miserable, and making people terrified. He enjoyed it. Reporter but so great was castros power that leaving didnt seem to be an option for the young girl. You didnt have any money and a plan b or anything. But you did have your dad back home. I think that thats thats a pretty common thing for people in these types of situations that everybody says, well, you couldve left then. And you couldve left then. But that didnt seem like a possibility. The thought of leaving was scarier than the thought of staying. The scary part is what if hes right i am useless . What if hes right nobody will love me . What if hes right and he is a seer and and does have an avenging angel who will come get you. And thats scarier than staying. And you believed that that might happen. I did. And i know i physicpqxit vidente y esto damas susto, de p3 f1 now. But i never once thought about leaving. I thought about killing myself, but i didnt think about leaving. How do you ever get over you dont. I have ptsd. Im not at all surprised. Reporter ron goodwyn, aghast at what he was hearing, believed he had heard evidence of crimes that could see daniel perez aka lou castro, already in prison, behind bars for a very long time. Hes a sexual predator who is willing to do anything to get his way and do what he wants to do. Live a life like he wants to live. He will stop at nothing, including, you know, murder and rape. And he didnt stop at anything to get what he wanted. Reporter after the investigators presented all their evidence to the da, they waited until castro had completed his twoyear federal prison sentence, and then they immediately rearrested him and kansas v daniel perez was heading to the court. As witnesses filed into the courtroom, the investigators wondered if their star witness emily, perhaps still so vulnerable, would hold up when she saw the man she knew as lou castro sitting before her. How much guts, how much courage did this young woman have . I cant imagine what it took for her to get to that point. And now shes gonna take him on . Yes. Coming up, despite all of the evidence, at least one part of this case may not be a slam dunk. This was the only count that had the testimony of one individual. So it was the most difficult to prove. Later, face to face with the man accused of being the evil when dateline continues. Pc does what . What . Pc does infinityedge display. Pc does what no pc has done before. Does yours . Quiet mom has a headache had a headache but now, i. Dont excedrin is fast. In fact for some, relief starts in just 15 minutes. Excedrin. Now available in geltabs. I finally did it ew, you did it all right. Let sparkle paper towels clean it up. Do the math and youll see sparkle costs less. Plus its perfect for cleaning spills. Desktops. Windows. And chalkboards. Now thats what i call clean. Too clean . Sparkle. Because its a messy world out there. Think your heartburn pill works fast . Take the zantac it challenge zantac works in as little as 30 minutes. Nexium can take 24 hours. When heartburn strikes, take zantac for faster relief than nexium or your money back. Take the zantac it challenge. When cigarette cravings hit, all i can think about is getting relief. Only nicorette mini has a patented fastdissolving formula. It starts to relieve sudden cravings fast. I never know when ill need relief. Thats why i only choose nicorette mini. You know the rules. Eggs and sausage. Hotcakes and butter. Morning fare right . Well mcdonalds has thrown away those rules and opened a new world of possibilities. Now, youre free to start enjoying the breakfast you love any time you wish. No way. Yes way. Once, you changed how you ate breakfast. Reporter at Sedgwick County District Court in wichita, kansas, a few weeks ago. You must determine whether the defendant is guilty or not guilty. Reporter daniel perez, aka lou castro, went on trial. He was charged with the firstdegree murder of trish hughes. With sexual crimes including child exploitation, and fraud. Eventually, twentyeight counts in all. There were no charges in any of the other mysterious deaths. Emily and sara would both testify, at the time not wanting to make public their identities, and face down the accused whod controlled them both for so many years. Reporter i cant imagine how antsy you must have been walking into that courtroom. Right. Reporter because, you know, the case really depends on you. Right. All i could think about was, how are they going to believe me . Story. What if they dont believe me . The state, mr. Bennett and i, will ask you hold him responsible and find him guilty. Reporter District Attorney marc bennett and assistant d. A. Kim parker prosecuted this sprawling case. Reporter were you worried about even explaining this thing to a jury about what it was all about . Sure. We had facts from across several states. Facts that involved a multitude of victims and witnesses. Reporter this was like an imax movie. And you went with that epic version of the daniel perez story. Why did you do that . You cant understand it otherwise. If you cant tell the whole story, the jury would be lost. Reporter the prosecution had won a key ruling before trial when judge Joseph Bribiesca allowed evidence from beyond kansas to be entered. So criminal accusations that goodwyn, snyder and sullivan had uncovered from texas through the midwest would be heard by the jury. An individual by the name of Patricia Hughes had died. Reporter on the big one, the murder charge the das alleged that even though trish hughes might have been a willing participant in her own death, it was nonetheless perez who held her head under water. The primary distinction between homicide and suicide is that suicide is at your own hand, and literally in this case, homicide, the hand of another. His hand was necessary to complete this act. Reporter there was circumstantial evidence presented to prove the charge and the star testimony o . Ze ip3 f2 necesario para completar el one witness, emily, 11 years old at the time of trishs death. Reporter was this the weakest part of the case, the one you really had to work the most on . This was the only count that had the testimony of one individual. So yes, it was the the most difficult to prove. I kept thinking, nobody is going to really think that its as bad as it was. No ones going to think that he should serve life in prison. Reporter beyond emilys an Expert Witness to testify to the small bruises seen on the top of trishs head, consistent with finger pressure, he said. Likewise, the broken hair clip found on the pool bottom got there not because trish stumbled but because someone pressed on the top of her head as she was held underwater. Moving on. The next big charge, the exploitation of a child, carried a life sentence. This was the incident in which sara accused perez of forcing her to video tape a young girl as she got undressed. Reporter how did it feel to see him in court, right there . It was terrifying. I always felt like he was gonna jump across the table and get me. Reporter even then . Uhhuh. Reporter the das alleged perez had ordered sara to take videos of the child at least twice. We found all this video on the computers in in tennessee. Reporter among the other sexcrime charges, sara and emily and one other witness testified about the same Sexual Assault that took place one evening. All three independently described that this event happened. So right off the bat, that was important. It was surreal and terrifying to sit before 12 people that i didnt know and tell them all of these terrible things in terribly, graphic detail that had happened when i was 10. Reporter and there were more witnesses, another four young women from three states, alleged victims unaware of one another, agreeing that lou castro claimed malevolent angels were controlling him as he assaulted them sexually. Reporter so the m. O. Of yes. Reporter attacking his victims was similar. They didnt know each other. Thousands of miles apart. And their story is essentially the same. Reporter but it was the fraud charges that revealed the big picture of what daniel perez and Angels Landing were ultimately all about. You didnt have to go very far down the paper trail before you realized that perez signed nothing. The car loans . The Mortgage Applications . All filled out by his followers. The prosecutors said he manipulated the Family Members into using their own names to buy all that real estate and the lavish toys. And it got worse. It turned out that trish, mona, and lindsey who died in the plane crash, brian hughes, the mechanic who was killed under a collapsed vehicle, and emilys and saras mother whod died in a car crash, all had two things in common. Daniel perez had predicted each of their deaths and each had juicy Life Insurance policies. Payouts totaling 4. 2 million were made to commune members perez controlled. Reporter and it seemed, whenever the coffers were running low, someone would die, and there would be a big insurance payoff. Was it that, bold faced a pattern, marc . Oh, absolutely. Yeah. I mean the, get down into the less than 10,000 in the account, sometimes less than 5,000, and then thats around the time somebody was gonna die. Reporter and with that explanation, the d. A. S summed up their case against 55 year old daniel perez. Its a story of domination, control and manipulation. Of the most vulnerable. It spans 15 years, multiple victims, multiple deaths, multiple Life Insurance policies, and he moves through several states so that he can satisfy his own sexual appetite. We do call daniel perez. Reporter daniel perez was the court that it had all been a big misunderstanding. Next, youll hear him speak directly to us. Coming up mr. Perez, in recent weeks i have heard you described as cult leader, child rapist. Who are you . So i asked my doctor about victoza. He said victoza works differently than pills. And comes in a pen. Victoza is proven to lower blood sugar and a1c. Its taken once a day, any time. Victoza is not for weight loss, but it may help you lose some weight. Victoza is an injectable prescription medicine that may improve blood sugar in adults. With type 2 diabetes when used with diet and exercise. It is not recommended as the first medication to treat diabetes and should not be used in people. With type 1 diabetes or diabetic ketoacidosis. Victoza has. Not been studied with mealtime insulin. Victoza is not insulin. Do not take victoza if you have a personal or Family History of medullary thyroid cancer. Multiple endocrine neoplasia syndrome type 2, or if you are allergic to victoza. Or any of its ingredients. Symptoms of a serious allergic reaction may include itching. Rash, or difficulty breathing. Tell your doctor if you get a lump or swelling in your neck. Serious side effects may happen in people who take victoza , including. Inflammation of the pancreas pancreatitis . If you have signs of pancreatitis, such as severe pain that will not go away. In your abdomen or from your abdomen to your back, with or without vomiting. Tell your doctor about all the medicines you take and if you have any medical conditions. Taking victoza with a sulfonylurea or insulin may cause low blood sugar. The most common side effects are headache, nausea, diarrhea, and vomiting. Side effects can lead to dehydration, which may cause kidney problems. If your pill isnt giving you the control you need. Ask your doctor about. Noninsulin victoza. Its covered by most health plans. How can you see yourself in new glasses. Without your glasses . At lenscrafters, our unique camera and screen system lets you compare yourself in four different frames at time. Making sure all your vision choices are clear. Lenscrafters loves eyes guys listen up jake, put that down point it at the ground til your ready thats not the ground leo put that down when your day goes on and on, you need 48 hour odor protection that goes on clear for no white marks. 3 f2 a in tennessee he was joe venegas. You do you solemnly swear the testimony you are about to give will be the truth reporter now as he faced charges of first degree murder, child exploitation, sex crimes, and fraud, he took the stand in his own defense, this time in his real name. Daniel perez. Reporter perez told the court that everything about his story had been invented by the prosecution. There were no angels, no demons, no sexual crimes, no insurance fraud, and certainly no murder. Perez recently agreed to sit down with dateline and we went over the points of his defense. Mr. Perez, in recent weeks i have heard you described as cult leader,tw d rapist, someone thats very good to have off the streets. Who are you . I, im, im im no one in particular. Im just, im just me. Reporter do you think you can see into the future . Are you a prophet, a seer . No, sir. Reporter why are you telling people you can . I never told them anything. Reporter who are your angel alter egos . Are they still around . The good angel, the mean angel, the angel of death . Theres no such thing. And they werent alter egos. If i was having sex with somebody i dont want anybody else calling me by my name. So youd call me anything you wanna call me, just dont call me lou. And thats what they chose and thats what they did. Reporter explaining his wealth, he says after being charged with sex crimes in the mid90s, he left texas not because he was fleeing the authorities, but because he was on an illicit job, something he never revealed to investigators or in court. I was just a mule. I was just moving money. Thats it. I delivered money and i got paid for it. Reporter is this illegal money yes, sir. Reporter you still got the money . Yes, sir. Reporter what are you worth . What do you think . I dont know. Reporter half a million . Reporter as for the alleged murder of trish hughes in the Swimming Pool, did he sit emily and trish at a table and predict trishs death . Did you tell her her time had come . Did you tell little emily that trishas time had come . No. No. Reporter and have that little girl set up an alibi for you to be out at the car dealership and no sir. Reporter so youre saying they made up all that stuff about trisha in the pool . No, i was not there. I was at davis moore chevrolet. Reporter well, theres no question you were at the at the car dealership later on. Key question, it wasnt your hand on Trisha Hughes head pushing her beneath the water, killing her . Nobody killed Patricia Hughes. Reporter heres the thing. When, when investigators look at you, i mean what theyre telling is the court that bad things happen to people that know you, but theres a big infusion of insurance money in. Lets go back to the plane incident. Did you rig that plane to crash and kill those three people . No, sir. Reporter years go by and then its trishas time in the pool. A few more years go by and its brian, the husband, trapped underneath the car. Yes, he passed away in south dakota. Reporter passed away. Did you have anything to do with the no, sir. Reporter death of brian hughes . No, sir. Reporter did you play mind games with jennifer to make her drive into that truck . No, sir. I had nothing to do with anyones death. Reporter what about the instructions he allegedly gave sara with the video camera . You didnt order somebody to take these obscene naked pictures of this little girl . No. They found the pictures and the videos on her computer not mine. Has anyone considered that fact . Has anyone considered the fact that she is the one that was doing it . Reporter are you a pedophile . No, sir. Reporter do you have an appetite for little girls . No, sir. Reporter so raping the 11yearold never happened . No. Reporter thats the allegation. It is, but im not. Reporter that the thing that you get up for in the morning is to drive your flashy cars around and look forward to raping a young girl. Thats what youre about. Well, thats the picture thats come together but thats not reality. Reporter sara says that you raped her hundreds of times. No. Reporter hundreds. No. Reporter thats what she testifies to in court. Yes, she did. Yes, she did. Reporter that makes you a monster . Yes, it would. It would make anyone a monster. Reporter so what are you saying . You didnt do it . No. No. They were of age and they were of willing and consent. We were just just having fun. Reporter the stories that come out from these people that used to be in your family is that you were manipulating them, you were gonna go kill their father. p solutely terrorized by you. And one of them was dating a Police Officer. We have Police Officers, Law Enforcement that hang out at the ranch for at least eight years. Its not logical. I mean how are you gonna sit there and be raping an individual and that individuals not gonna run to a Police Officer thats standing right there . And go say, hey, listen, this is taking place, you know . Reporter the prosecution is gonna put together a story that you are a very unlucky guy with all of these people around you dying every few years and a lot of money coming into the family. How do you explain that kind of pattern, that circumstantial pattern they say is your criminal enterprise . I mean i cant explain i i cant explain it. Reporter were you a cult leader . No. There was no commune. There was no cult. Reporter and thats in essence what daniel perez told the jury. The state had it all wrong, top to bottom. The jury got the case and retired to deliberate. In about three hours it was back with a verdict. Judge Joseph Bribiesca read it to the court. Count 1, guilty of murder in the first degree. Reporter daniel perez was found guilty on all 28 counts. And the following month, he was sentenced to two consecutive life sentences for the firstdegree murder of trish hughes, and for the exploitation of a child. The evidence conclusively shows that mr. Perez used people as mere objects. Reporter he received another 33 years for the other charges. The 55yearold wont be eligible for parole for more than 80 years. Reportebgju tq pain of loss speculate perez might have been involved in the other deaths, like the car crash in which emilys and saras mom died. Do you think theres more to it than a simple road accident, sara . Probably. Reporter or that plane crash in which codys mom and sister were lost . Perez was a plane mechanic in the navy. He did it. Some way, somehow, he found a way to alter the aircraft. Reporter you believe . In my heart, i do. Reporter you dont have any evidence to say that . I cant prove anything. Reporter his heart goes out to emily and sara. I lost my mom and sister but those girls lost [ crying ] i cant even imagine. Reporter so who is daniel perez . Well, he used so many different stories that its kind of hard to piece them together. Reporter hes just a guy from south texas . Right. Reporter telling stories. Right. Reporter buying toys. Right. Reporter destroying lives. Yeah. Reporter for what reason . He liked it. He realized that if he could find a way to generate capital without having to work, he could have access to whatever sort of things his heart desired, the things including me and my sister. Reporter in the end it was tenacity and good oldfashioned doggedness that took perez down. Do you have an atta boy for detective godwyn . Outside your fence all those years looking, trying to figure it out . Yeah, i i would not have my life back if it wasnt for detective goodwin and detective snyder and supervisory special agent sullivan. And mr. Bennett and ms. Parker, the d. A. s, it is amazing what they have given me. Reporter sara, 30 years old, and emily, 23, are now trying t3 f1 move on still reflecting on the shocking abuse. And your mother knew nothing about all of this, do you think . Now, looking back, she she had to have known. Reporter youd think. But she mustve lost her mind. Theres no way that my mom would allow that to happen to her children. Reporter the sisters are now closer than ever, and closer to their dad too who was anguished when he heard his daughters stories for the first time. There are many, many times that my dad could have given up on me. And he never gave up on me. He cried. And he wanted to know why i never told him. Reporter because in your mind you were protecting him. You were keeping him from the demon. Uhhuh. Reporter sara is now married wichita. Emily got manner married too and. There are. There are a lot of people who care. Maybe i can help somebody. Or at least least i want to. I think some sort of lightness has to come out from all of his darkne hillary, thank you so much for throwing this halloween party. John edwards, im so glad you came. I just thought it would be good for all of us democrats to get together after tuesdays debate. Ha, ha, ha. Agreed. Even those things can get heated, come next november we all have to support the democratic nominee, no matter who she may be. May i just say, that is a great witch costume. Im actually a bride. Oh, okay. Now i see it. All in how you wear it, i guess. John edwards, you better not be using the game on my wife. Looking good, bill. Looking good. Im sorry, john, could i have a word with my husband . Bill, i thought we agreed to dress like bride and groom. Oh, man. Be . A mystery from that show the pickup. Bill clinton, how is that appropriate . Oh, its a party. Have fun, all right . H richardson. Hillary, bill. Who are you supposed to be, bill . Al gore. I got the nobel prize, oscar. Thats great. I know. Me dressed as the vice president. Weird. Not that weird, though, right . You look great. Yeah, hey. So can i help out at all . Actually we could use some ice. Im on it. Okay. He really does want to be your vice president