in, they said they heard screams coming from the park. she was found naked and bound with red duck taped. when you see the photos, you can feel the terror. he left her for dead. we were shocked. as a dna laboratory that there were no other offenders. how is this guy not in the system? then, one day, you ve got a call. they said there s been an update on the case. it was like finally. i ve been thinking about who this guy was for so long, i don t think anything could have prepared me for that answer. how do you wrap around mind around the fight that someone you trusted this. i can picture him smirking. a second customization? yes. might screw up. what kind of person does that kind of thing? exceptionally sick, evil. reporter: the evening arrows warm and thick with anticipation. college students, returning a new, mix and drank with young locals. darkness fell on colorado. one more night to take a lusty bite of the flooding summer. that last friday
Transcripts for MSNBC Dateline 20240604 08:42:45 archive.org - get the latest breaking news, showbiz & celebrity photos, sport news & rumours, viral videos and top stories from archive.org Daily Mail and Mail on Sunday newspapers.
detective seymour got a warrant, tracked his name and address. aric was 20 something, lived with his parents, but he wasn t home. his mother was there and she said that he usually volunteers at the church. so, a partner of mine and i went to the church to contact him there. the case that i am working right now is involving amber smith. yes, like i picked her up and then we re hanging out. i think he was surprised that we were there, but he also knew, i believe at that point in time that something had happened to amber because he was in connection with other people that she knew. and you didn t know at that point whether was guilty knowledge because he did it, or if he just knew? correct. reporter: aric echoed embers story, drinking in the park, having won too many. amber falling asleep. so i try to wake her up.
craigslist, and that must be how she picked up his dna. oh, loud. that was not me. we had sex, i did not hurt you, amber. reporter: that was a terrible thing to say, it wasn t true. that was horrible. that was embarrassing and disgusting, and disturbing. reporter: right after he threw out that disturbing story. sound ended the call. this conversation is done. i didn t hurt you. i m sorry, i didn t hurt you. reporter: was it remotely possible he was telling the truth? detective seymour had been listening intently. you can hear his wheel spinning as he s trying to create the story that is somehow plausible. given the evidence, he is trying to figure out how to make what we have match something that could have happened. reporter: something that
circle were questioned, close to ten of them. friends, acquaintances. each one provided a dna sample for melissa grass. as we received more samples from individuals in this case, we anticipate that one of them would eventually, or could potentially match the unknown dna profile in this case. reporter: but, none of them did. and a terrified victim waited, and winter came to fort collins. and anxious detective seymour watch for news, anywhere, of sexual assaults. tiktok. he had to be out there. was he watching? coming up for investigators, the depths of despair. i felt helpless, how do we not know who this guy is? reporter: and then for amber, a brand-new trauma. i would look at men and question is it him? reporter: what would happen to you inside when that happened? i would have an anxiety