All language subtitles for Americas.Book.Of.Secrets.S02E11_English
Afrikaans
Albanian
Amharic
Armenian
Azerbaijani
Basque
Belarusian
Bengali
Bosnian
Bulgarian
Catalan
Cebuano
Chichewa
Chinese (Simplified)
Chinese (Traditional)
Corsican
Croatian
Czech
Danish
English
Esperanto
Estonian
Filipino
Finnish
French
Frisian
Galician
Georgian
German
Greek
Gujarati
Haitian Creole
Hausa
Hawaiian
Hebrew
Hindi
Hmong
Hungarian
Icelandic
Igbo
Indonesian
Irish
Italian
Japanese
Javanese
Kannada
Kazakh
Khmer
Korean
Kurdish (Kurmanji)
Kyrgyz
Lao
Latin
Latvian
Lithuanian
Luxembourgish
Macedonian
Malagasy
Malay
Malayalam
Maltese
Maori
Marathi
Mongolian
Myanmar (Burmese)
Nepali
Norwegian
Pashto
Persian
Polish
Portuguese
Punjabi
Romanian
Russian
Samoan
Scots Gaelic
Serbian
Sesotho
Shona
Sindhi
Sinhala
Slovak
Slovenian
Somali
Spanish
Sundanese
Swahili
Swedish
Tajik
Tamil
Telugu
Thai
Turkish
Ukrainian
Urdu
Uzbek
Vietnamese
Welsh
Xhosa
Yiddish
Yoruba
Zulu
Odia (Oriya)
Kinyarwanda
Turkmen
Tatar
Uyghur
Would you like to inspect the original subtitles? These are the user uploaded subtitles that are being translated:
1
00:00:01,735 --> 00:00:03,095
>> NARRATOR: Millions in
2
00:00:03,104 --> 00:00:05,774
missing gold...
3
00:00:05,773 --> 00:00:07,313
>> DAVID CHILDRESS: 100 tons of
4
00:00:07,308 --> 00:00:09,208
gold bars were inside this
5
00:00:09,210 --> 00:00:11,310
mountain.
6
00:00:11,312 --> 00:00:13,112
>> NARRATOR: ...priceless art,
7
00:00:13,114 --> 00:00:15,124
lost for decades...
8
00:00:15,116 --> 00:00:16,116
>> ROBERT WITTMAN: Those
9
00:00:16,117 --> 00:00:17,117
paintings are valued at around
10
00:00:17,118 --> 00:00:18,448
$500 million.
11
00:00:18,452 --> 00:00:19,452
>> NARRATOR: ...and precious
12
00:00:19,453 --> 00:00:21,263
documents in the hands of
13
00:00:21,255 --> 00:00:22,785
thieves.
14
00:00:22,790 --> 00:00:23,790
>> CHRIS ISLEIB: He was stealing
15
00:00:23,791 --> 00:00:25,391
our heritage from us.
16
00:00:25,393 --> 00:00:27,333
>> NARRATOR: What are the real
17
00:00:27,328 --> 00:00:30,228
stories behind America's lost
18
00:00:30,231 --> 00:00:33,231
treasures?
19
00:00:33,234 --> 00:00:35,374
And are there some that the U.S.
20
00:00:35,369 --> 00:00:37,369
government would rather we
21
00:00:37,371 --> 00:00:39,411
didn't find?
22
00:00:39,407 --> 00:00:40,407
>> MARLA COOPER: My uncle was
23
00:00:40,408 --> 00:00:41,808
the hijacker known as D.B.
24
00:00:41,809 --> 00:00:43,139
Cooper.
25
00:00:43,144 --> 00:00:44,814
>> NARRATOR: There are those
26
00:00:44,812 --> 00:00:46,112
who believe in the existence
27
00:00:46,114 --> 00:00:48,154
of a book.
28
00:00:48,149 --> 00:00:50,819
A book that contains the most
29
00:00:50,818 --> 00:00:53,148
highly guarded secrets of the
30
00:00:53,154 --> 00:00:56,224
United States of America.
31
00:00:56,224 --> 00:01:00,834
A book... whose very existence
32
00:01:00,828 --> 00:01:04,298
is known to only a select few.
33
00:01:04,298 --> 00:01:06,298
But if such a book exists,
34
00:01:06,300 --> 00:01:09,300
what would it contain?
35
00:01:09,303 --> 00:01:12,313
Secret maps?
36
00:01:12,306 --> 00:01:15,436
Secret plans?
37
00:01:15,443 --> 00:01:18,853
Secret vaults?
38
00:01:18,846 --> 00:01:22,316
Does there really exist
39
00:01:22,316 --> 00:01:26,146
America's Book of Secrets?
40
00:01:33,461 --> 00:01:36,201
April, 1991.
41
00:01:36,197 --> 00:01:38,797
Hatfield, Arkansas.
42
00:01:38,799 --> 00:01:40,799
A lifetime obsession with
43
00:01:40,801 --> 00:01:41,841
treare hunting finally pays
44
00:01:41,835 --> 00:01:44,335
off for retired U.S. Navy
45
00:01:44,338 --> 00:01:46,808
helicopter pilot Bob Brewer
46
00:01:46,807 --> 00:01:48,807
when his shovel hits a hard
47
00:01:48,809 --> 00:01:50,509
object buried in the soil of a
48
00:01:50,544 --> 00:01:52,554
dense forest.
49
00:01:52,546 --> 00:01:54,846
>> WARREN GETLER: There was a
50
00:01:54,848 --> 00:01:56,818
glass jar filled with gold and
51
00:01:56,817 --> 00:01:58,347
silver coins, and he picked it
52
00:01:58,352 --> 00:01:59,352
up.
53
00:01:59,353 --> 00:02:00,493
And he said, "It's gold," and he
54
00:02:00,488 --> 00:02:03,758
pulled out 20 coins or so.
55
00:02:03,757 --> 00:02:04,887
>> NARRATOR: Dating from the
56
00:02:04,892 --> 00:02:07,462
1800s, with a face value of over
57
00:02:07,461 --> 00:02:11,231
$400, the coins were deemed to
58
00:02:11,232 --> 00:02:14,502
be worth thousands of dollars.
59
00:02:14,502 --> 00:02:15,902
>> BOB BREWER: It's probably the
60
00:02:15,903 --> 00:02:17,313
most exciting thing I ever did
61
00:02:17,338 --> 00:02:19,338
in my life.
62
00:02:19,340 --> 00:02:20,440
And then after I found the first
63
00:02:20,441 --> 00:02:21,911
one, within the next three
64
00:02:21,909 --> 00:02:23,909
years, there were several
65
00:02:23,911 --> 00:02:25,251
come up.
66
00:02:25,246 --> 00:02:26,376
>> GETLER: The largest recovery
67
00:02:26,380 --> 00:02:28,880
that I know Bob made is probably
68
00:02:28,882 --> 00:02:32,792
from $300,000 to $500,000.
69
00:02:32,786 --> 00:02:34,786
>> NARRATOR: Could it just be
70
00:02:34,788 --> 00:02:36,188
coincidence that Brewer struck
71
00:02:36,190 --> 00:02:39,930
it lucky several times?
72
00:02:39,927 --> 00:02:42,257
Or did he have more secret
73
00:02:42,263 --> 00:02:46,373
knowledge?
74
00:02:46,367 --> 00:02:47,797
Richmond, Virginia.
75
00:02:47,801 --> 00:02:52,241
April, 1865.
76
00:02:52,240 --> 00:02:53,340
In the final chaotic days of the
77
00:02:53,341 --> 00:02:55,941
Civil War, as the Confederate
78
00:02:55,943 --> 00:02:58,553
states faced defeat, a covert
79
00:02:58,546 --> 00:03:00,806
group of Southern sympathizers--
80
00:03:00,814 --> 00:03:02,254
known as the Knights of the
81
00:03:02,250 --> 00:03:04,790
Golden Circle-- laid plans to
82
00:03:04,785 --> 00:03:07,385
fight on.
83
00:03:07,388 --> 00:03:10,218
Secretly formed in Virginia, the
84
00:03:10,224 --> 00:03:11,794
group claimed approximately
85
00:03:11,792 --> 00:03:15,232
500,000 members and was active
86
00:03:15,229 --> 00:03:17,299
in both the North and the South.
87
00:03:17,298 --> 00:03:18,298
>> GETLER: The Knights of the
88
00:03:18,299 --> 00:03:19,299
Golden Circle was both
89
00:03:19,300 --> 00:03:20,500
Confederate and Masonic, based
90
00:03:20,501 --> 00:03:22,441
on our research.
91
00:03:22,436 --> 00:03:23,496
It's fascinating to me that the
92
00:03:23,504 --> 00:03:24,514
history of the Knights of the
93
00:03:24,505 --> 00:03:25,805
Golden Circle has been largely
94
00:03:25,806 --> 00:03:27,806
ignored by academics.
95
00:03:27,808 --> 00:03:28,808
But we have to start with the
96
00:03:28,809 --> 00:03:29,979
fact that this is a subversive
97
00:03:29,977 --> 00:03:34,317
secret organization.
98
00:03:34,315 --> 00:03:35,845
>> BREWER: Their goal was to
99
00:03:35,849 --> 00:03:38,449
take all of Mexico, Central
100
00:03:38,452 --> 00:03:40,852
America, and part of South
101
00:03:40,854 --> 00:03:42,394
America and Cuba and all of the
102
00:03:42,390 --> 00:03:43,990
South up to about Washington
103
00:03:43,991 --> 00:03:46,831
D.C., and make it a separate
104
00:03:46,827 --> 00:03:49,327
country and use slavery as its
105
00:03:49,330 --> 00:03:51,830
means to produce the wealth of
106
00:03:51,832 --> 00:03:54,842
the crops.
107
00:03:54,835 --> 00:03:55,995
>> NARRATOR: During their brief
108
00:03:56,003 --> 00:03:57,973
history, the Knights of the
109
00:03:57,971 --> 00:04:00,011
Golden Circle were rumored to
110
00:04:00,007 --> 00:04:01,737
have accumulated vast amounts
111
00:04:01,742 --> 00:04:04,752
of gold and silver, which they
112
00:04:04,745 --> 00:04:07,475
acquired by stealing from U.S.
113
00:04:07,481 --> 00:04:10,751
Treasury facilities, robbing
114
00:04:10,751 --> 00:04:12,851
military payrolls, and
115
00:04:12,853 --> 00:04:15,763
repatriating Confederate monies
116
00:04:15,756 --> 00:04:17,256
shipped to England and Canada
117
00:04:17,291 --> 00:04:19,291
during the Civil War.
118
00:04:19,293 --> 00:04:20,893
>> W. CRAIG GAINES: The Knights
119
00:04:20,894 --> 00:04:22,764
of the Golden Circle guarded
120
00:04:22,763 --> 00:04:24,903
some wealth, but the treasures
121
00:04:24,898 --> 00:04:26,498
that they guarded were probably
122
00:04:26,500 --> 00:04:29,770
loot from the war or personal,
123
00:04:29,770 --> 00:04:31,910
uh, treasures hidden during the
124
00:04:31,905 --> 00:04:33,005
war to keep outsiders away from
125
00:04:33,040 --> 00:04:35,040
it.
126
00:04:35,042 --> 00:04:37,512
>> GETLER: We know that this
127
00:04:37,511 --> 00:04:39,051
organization and its legacy
128
00:04:39,046 --> 00:04:41,376
groups still exist today.
129
00:04:41,382 --> 00:04:42,382
The families who were involved
130
00:04:42,383 --> 00:04:43,783
with this organization, going
131
00:04:43,784 --> 00:04:45,494
back more than 100 years, were
132
00:04:45,486 --> 00:04:47,516
trained into how to protect
133
00:04:47,521 --> 00:04:51,021
this money on horseback, by foot
134
00:04:51,024 --> 00:04:52,534
patrol, and they never touched
135
00:04:52,526 --> 00:04:54,056
it.
136
00:04:54,061 --> 00:04:56,061
My co-author Bob Brewer was
137
00:04:56,063 --> 00:04:58,803
being trained as a sentinel to
138
00:04:58,799 --> 00:05:00,799
protect the buried gold.
139
00:05:00,801 --> 00:05:01,941
He was shown what we call a
140
00:05:01,935 --> 00:05:04,805
Bible Tree, which had symbols
141
00:05:04,805 --> 00:05:05,865
and verses from the Bible in
142
00:05:05,873 --> 00:05:07,013
code.
143
00:05:07,007 --> 00:05:08,007
>> BREWER: The Bible Tree itself
144
00:05:08,008 --> 00:05:10,408
is just one part of a major
145
00:05:10,411 --> 00:05:13,811
system of trees and markings
146
00:05:13,814 --> 00:05:16,054
that outline the depository and
147
00:05:16,049 --> 00:05:17,819
give you instructions as to how
148
00:05:17,818 --> 00:05:19,088
to find the treasure.
149
00:05:19,086 --> 00:05:22,416
Basically a map.
150
00:05:22,423 --> 00:05:23,823
>> NARRATOR: Using a secret
151
00:05:23,824 --> 00:05:25,434
decoding system that was passed
152
00:05:25,426 --> 00:05:27,826
down to him by his great uncle,
153
00:05:27,828 --> 00:05:30,358
Brewer deciphered the letters
154
00:05:30,364 --> 00:05:32,834
"J," "A," and "S" followed by
155
00:05:32,833 --> 00:05:35,843
three dots, as an abbreviation
156
00:05:35,836 --> 00:05:37,966
for the biblical book of James,
157
00:05:37,971 --> 00:05:39,841
and the three dots pointed to
158
00:05:39,840 --> 00:05:43,540
the third verse.
159
00:05:43,544 --> 00:05:44,954
Understanding this verse to be
160
00:05:44,945 --> 00:05:46,945
an instruction, Brewer took the
161
00:05:46,947 --> 00:05:49,077
image of a horse's head carved
162
00:05:49,082 --> 00:05:50,852
in the tree bark and turned it
163
00:05:50,851 --> 00:05:53,391
around.
164
00:05:53,387 --> 00:05:54,587
Following the new direction
165
00:05:54,588 --> 00:05:55,988
indicated by the inverted
166
00:05:55,989 --> 00:05:58,459
carving led him to discover even
167
00:05:58,459 --> 00:06:00,859
more clues.
168
00:06:00,861 --> 00:06:02,001
>> BREWER: We find all types of
169
00:06:01,995 --> 00:06:04,425
relics that are buried.
170
00:06:04,432 --> 00:06:06,002
And usually, if it's a sharp,
171
00:06:05,999 --> 00:06:07,869
pointed object, then it's
172
00:06:07,868 --> 00:06:09,938
looking at the treasure.
173
00:06:09,937 --> 00:06:12,137
Now, the treasure may be miles
174
00:06:12,139 --> 00:06:13,469
from there, but that's a line
175
00:06:13,474 --> 00:06:15,144
you've got to follow to find the
176
00:06:15,142 --> 00:06:16,982
treasure.
177
00:06:16,977 --> 00:06:18,107
>> NARRATOR: Although the first
178
00:06:18,111 --> 00:06:19,851
pointers did not lead him
179
00:06:19,847 --> 00:06:22,147
directly to buried gold, Brewer
180
00:06:22,149 --> 00:06:24,119
became convinced he was dealing
181
00:06:24,117 --> 00:06:26,817
with a well-thought out system
182
00:06:26,820 --> 00:06:28,990
for hiding valuables.
183
00:06:28,989 --> 00:06:30,159
>> BREWER: There's a systematic
184
00:06:30,157 --> 00:06:33,027
plan that runs from east to
185
00:06:33,026 --> 00:06:35,126
west, all the way from Virginia
186
00:06:35,162 --> 00:06:37,162
to California.
187
00:06:37,164 --> 00:06:38,904
>> NARRATOR: Brewer mapped out
188
00:06:38,899 --> 00:06:41,029
the locations of his finds:
189
00:06:41,034 --> 00:06:43,504
carved forest markers, hidden
190
00:06:43,504 --> 00:06:45,974
clues, and even small stashes
191
00:06:45,973 --> 00:06:48,513
of old coins.
192
00:06:48,509 --> 00:06:50,909
He began to see a pattern of a
193
00:06:50,911 --> 00:06:52,981
circle within a square,
194
00:06:52,980 --> 00:06:54,520
criss-crossed by intersecting
195
00:06:54,515 --> 00:06:55,975
lines.
196
00:06:55,983 --> 00:06:58,193
But the design made no sense
197
00:06:58,185 --> 00:07:00,045
until his partner John London
198
00:07:00,053 --> 00:07:01,993
brought him a mysterious
199
00:07:01,989 --> 00:07:03,859
"template" that he claimed to
200
00:07:03,857 --> 00:07:05,157
have found while treasure
201
00:07:05,158 --> 00:07:08,928
hunting in Texas years before.
202
00:07:08,929 --> 00:07:09,929
>> JOHN LONDON: In the early
203
00:07:09,930 --> 00:07:10,930
days, it had to have been made
204
00:07:10,931 --> 00:07:13,101
of... of oilskin or something
205
00:07:13,133 --> 00:07:15,143
very nearly transparent.
206
00:07:15,135 --> 00:07:16,865
>> NARRATOR: Brewer uses his
207
00:07:16,870 --> 00:07:18,940
recreation of the template as
208
00:07:18,939 --> 00:07:21,069
an overlay on topographic maps,
209
00:07:21,074 --> 00:07:22,944
believing it can help him to
210
00:07:22,943 --> 00:07:24,813
decipher the clues he has
211
00:07:24,812 --> 00:07:26,812
unearthed in his search for the
212
00:07:26,814 --> 00:07:28,054
treasures of the Knights of the
213
00:07:28,048 --> 00:07:29,948
Golden Circle.
214
00:07:29,950 --> 00:07:31,080
>> LONDON: These bent, gnarled
215
00:07:31,084 --> 00:07:33,824
trees are actually land markers.
216
00:07:33,821 --> 00:07:35,191
And if you draw a line from
217
00:07:35,188 --> 00:07:36,818
this point to that point over
218
00:07:36,824 --> 00:07:40,494
there, and then you find another
219
00:07:40,494 --> 00:07:41,834
land marker that, you know,
220
00:07:41,829 --> 00:07:43,559
creates another leg of an "X"
221
00:07:43,564 --> 00:07:46,834
and you start working on that,
222
00:07:46,834 --> 00:07:49,244
it all of a sudden makes sense.
223
00:07:49,236 --> 00:07:51,096
>> BREWER: I finally started
224
00:07:51,104 --> 00:07:52,844
seeing things that I hadn't saw
225
00:07:52,840 --> 00:07:55,510
before, I figured out they fit
226
00:07:55,509 --> 00:07:56,839
in... right into what I had been
227
00:07:56,844 --> 00:07:59,854
doing.
228
00:07:59,847 --> 00:08:02,117
We've got a piece here that was
229
00:08:02,115 --> 00:08:04,815
found out here in the mountains,
230
00:08:04,818 --> 00:08:06,818
but it's been cut and shaped,
231
00:08:06,820 --> 00:08:08,220
and as I slide it onto
232
00:08:08,221 --> 00:08:09,821
the template, you'll see that it
233
00:08:09,823 --> 00:08:12,063
fits that template perfectly.
234
00:08:12,059 --> 00:08:13,859
It-it doesn't point at money.
235
00:08:13,861 --> 00:08:14,931
But it tells you how to align
236
00:08:14,928 --> 00:08:16,128
the template so you can find
237
00:08:16,129 --> 00:08:17,969
the treasure.
238
00:08:17,965 --> 00:08:19,865
And so once I find the center of
239
00:08:19,867 --> 00:08:20,967
that template, the treasures
240
00:08:20,968 --> 00:08:23,998
are like picking grapes.
241
00:08:24,004 --> 00:08:25,014
>> GETLER: The Knights of the
242
00:08:25,005 --> 00:08:26,835
Golden Circle established the
243
00:08:26,840 --> 00:08:27,840
biggest network of buried
244
00:08:27,841 --> 00:08:29,281
treasure not only in America
245
00:08:29,276 --> 00:08:31,106
but in the world.
246
00:08:31,111 --> 00:08:32,111
It's a network that's connected
247
00:08:32,112 --> 00:08:34,012
by geometry, geography, secret
248
00:08:34,014 --> 00:08:35,884
codes, and symbols.
249
00:08:35,883 --> 00:08:37,153
>> LONDON: I believe, if there
250
00:08:37,150 --> 00:08:39,150
was a Book of Secrets, the
251
00:08:39,152 --> 00:08:41,292
methods used to lay down the
252
00:08:41,288 --> 00:08:42,288
treasure and to locate the
253
00:08:42,289 --> 00:08:43,589
treasure... I think they'd be in
254
00:08:43,591 --> 00:08:46,291
that book.
255
00:08:46,293 --> 00:08:48,033
>> NARRATOR: As he struggles to
256
00:08:48,028 --> 00:08:49,858
crack the code of the Knights of
257
00:08:49,863 --> 00:08:52,133
the Golden Circle, Bob Brewer--
258
00:08:52,132 --> 00:08:53,972
like many serious treasure
259
00:08:53,967 --> 00:08:56,167
hunters-- prefers to keep his
260
00:08:56,169 --> 00:08:58,309
discoveries a secret.
261
00:08:58,305 --> 00:09:01,235
But why?
262
00:09:01,241 --> 00:09:03,181
>> LONDON: It seems odd to me
263
00:09:03,176 --> 00:09:05,106
that every time you hear of a
264
00:09:05,112 --> 00:09:07,052
rumor of treasure being in a
265
00:09:07,047 --> 00:09:08,917
certain area, all of a sudden
266
00:09:08,916 --> 00:09:10,776
that land becomes a national
267
00:09:10,784 --> 00:09:14,194
park or an entity that all of a
268
00:09:14,187 --> 00:09:16,787
sudden we can't access for any
269
00:09:16,790 --> 00:09:18,260
other reason than to maybe camp
270
00:09:18,258 --> 00:09:19,788
or fish.
271
00:09:19,793 --> 00:09:21,063
>> GAINES: I believe there's a
272
00:09:21,061 --> 00:09:22,861
lot of these treasures, but most
273
00:09:22,863 --> 00:09:24,803
people don't tell you that they
274
00:09:24,798 --> 00:09:26,798
found it, because then you have
275
00:09:26,800 --> 00:09:28,070
the issue of who does
276
00:09:28,068 --> 00:09:29,198
it belong to.
277
00:09:29,202 --> 00:09:31,072
So a lot of these finds are
278
00:09:31,071 --> 00:09:33,171
unreported, but it's probably
279
00:09:33,173 --> 00:09:35,213
the tip of the iceberg.
280
00:09:35,208 --> 00:09:36,208
>> BREWER: This whole thought
281
00:09:36,209 --> 00:09:38,949
process of KGC treasure and the
282
00:09:38,946 --> 00:09:40,206
buried gold in the United
283
00:09:40,213 --> 00:09:42,083
States, it's one of the best
284
00:09:42,082 --> 00:09:44,222
conspiracy theories there is.
285
00:09:44,217 --> 00:09:46,047
And it's getting to the point
286
00:09:46,053 --> 00:09:47,093
where it's no longer
287
00:09:47,087 --> 00:09:49,187
just a theory.
288
00:09:49,189 --> 00:09:50,819
>> NARRATOR: Are restrictive
289
00:09:50,824 --> 00:09:52,234
government rules forcing
290
00:09:52,225 --> 00:09:54,225
treasure hunters to keep their
291
00:09:54,227 --> 00:09:56,897
discoveries secret?
292
00:09:56,897 --> 00:09:58,927
Would these valuables be better
293
00:09:58,932 --> 00:10:00,972
protected in museums and
294
00:10:00,968 --> 00:10:03,338
historical collections?
295
00:10:03,336 --> 00:10:05,106
Or might they be threatened
296
00:10:05,105 --> 00:10:07,105
by equally determined but
297
00:10:07,107 --> 00:10:09,207
perhaps even more audacious
298
00:10:09,209 --> 00:10:12,109
treasure hunters who dare
299
00:10:12,112 --> 00:10:15,822
to steal America's very history?
300
00:10:18,251 --> 00:10:27,291
Coming up:
301
00:10:27,294 --> 00:10:29,964
>> NARRATOR: June 27, 2012,
302
00:10:29,963 --> 00:10:32,003
Baltimore, Maryland.
303
00:10:31,999 --> 00:10:33,999
Barry Landau, author and
304
00:10:34,001 --> 00:10:36,041
renowned presidential historian,
305
00:10:36,036 --> 00:10:38,136
once known for his impressive
306
00:10:38,138 --> 00:10:40,038
collection of documents and
307
00:10:40,040 --> 00:10:42,110
influential connections,
308
00:10:42,109 --> 00:10:44,239
is sentenced to seven years in
309
00:10:44,244 --> 00:10:47,254
federal prison.
310
00:10:47,247 --> 00:10:50,877
His crime? Stealing the history
311
00:10:50,918 --> 00:10:53,148
of the United States of America.
312
00:10:53,153 --> 00:10:55,063
>> ROD ROSENSTEIN: People who
313
00:10:55,055 --> 00:10:56,185
looked Barry Landau up on the
314
00:10:56,189 --> 00:10:58,189
Internet or did any research
315
00:10:58,191 --> 00:10:59,931
about him would find Barry
316
00:10:59,927 --> 00:11:01,287
Landau talking about himself and
317
00:11:01,294 --> 00:11:02,304
his connections and his
318
00:11:02,295 --> 00:11:04,025
relationships.
319
00:11:04,031 --> 00:11:05,271
But when you scratch beneath
320
00:11:05,265 --> 00:11:06,925
the surface, you found that
321
00:11:06,934 --> 00:11:08,344
nobody really knew who
322
00:11:08,335 --> 00:11:11,065
Barry Landau was.
323
00:11:11,071 --> 00:11:12,941
>> ISLEIB: He seemed to have
324
00:11:12,940 --> 00:11:13,940
been somebody who lived
325
00:11:13,941 --> 00:11:15,081
a high life.
326
00:11:15,075 --> 00:11:16,935
He was attracted to glamour.
327
00:11:16,944 --> 00:11:18,354
He was attracted to
328
00:11:18,345 --> 00:11:20,075
the presidency.
329
00:11:20,080 --> 00:11:21,180
He became a self-styled
330
00:11:21,181 --> 00:11:22,221
expert.
331
00:11:22,215 --> 00:11:23,875
He collected a lot of inaugural
332
00:11:23,884 --> 00:11:24,894
memorabilia.
333
00:11:24,885 --> 00:11:25,885
>> CATHERINE WILLIAMSON: One
334
00:11:25,886 --> 00:11:28,186
pattern that seems to emerge is
335
00:11:28,221 --> 00:11:30,221
so much like gambling.
336
00:11:30,223 --> 00:11:31,893
The first time you win on
337
00:11:31,892 --> 00:11:33,362
the slots makes you put so much
338
00:11:33,360 --> 00:11:35,230
more money into the machine.
339
00:11:35,228 --> 00:11:38,428
And it seems, in a small group
340
00:11:38,431 --> 00:11:41,071
of collectors, that this same
341
00:11:41,068 --> 00:11:43,368
psychology is at work.
342
00:11:43,370 --> 00:11:46,070
They have a tremendous success
343
00:11:46,073 --> 00:11:47,913
having discovered an
344
00:11:47,908 --> 00:11:49,378
important piece, and they want
345
00:11:49,376 --> 00:11:51,236
to replicate it.
346
00:11:51,244 --> 00:11:52,954
It becomes very difficult to do
347
00:11:52,946 --> 00:11:54,176
that through legitimate means,
348
00:11:54,181 --> 00:11:56,451
so that seems to be the impulse
349
00:11:56,449 --> 00:11:57,989
that might make them step
350
00:11:57,985 --> 00:12:01,955
over the line.
351
00:12:01,955 --> 00:12:03,255
>> NARRATOR: Interestingly,
352
00:12:03,256 --> 00:12:04,986
it was Landau's method of
353
00:12:04,992 --> 00:12:06,932
collecting that led to his
354
00:12:06,927 --> 00:12:08,957
fall from grace.
355
00:12:08,962 --> 00:12:12,132
In 2011 he and his 23-year-old
356
00:12:12,132 --> 00:12:15,002
partner in crime Jason Savedoff
357
00:12:15,002 --> 00:12:17,142
were caught red-handed at the
358
00:12:17,137 --> 00:12:20,137
prestigious Maryland Historical
359
00:12:20,140 --> 00:12:22,940
Society in Baltimore.
360
00:12:22,943 --> 00:12:24,883
>> ISLEIB: He would basically
361
00:12:24,878 --> 00:12:25,878
attack with kindness.
362
00:12:25,879 --> 00:12:27,349
He would bring cookies, bring
363
00:12:27,347 --> 00:12:29,877
cupcakes, ingratiate himself
364
00:12:29,883 --> 00:12:31,153
with the people who were on
365
00:12:31,151 --> 00:12:32,351
staff there.
366
00:12:32,352 --> 00:12:33,892
>> WILLIAMSON: In the academic
367
00:12:33,887 --> 00:12:35,357
community there is a
368
00:12:35,355 --> 00:12:37,385
gentleman's agreement that we
369
00:12:37,390 --> 00:12:40,390
will all respect the material;
370
00:12:40,393 --> 00:12:42,903
we will do what is necessary to
371
00:12:42,896 --> 00:12:44,156
gain access to the archives.
372
00:12:44,164 --> 00:12:45,904
Once we are there, we will treat
373
00:12:45,899 --> 00:12:47,169
the material with respect.
374
00:12:47,167 --> 00:12:49,037
That is the contract
375
00:12:49,036 --> 00:12:50,896
between scholars.
376
00:12:50,904 --> 00:12:53,044
And that is why you don't go
377
00:12:53,040 --> 00:12:54,170
through a metal detector,
378
00:12:54,174 --> 00:12:55,414
generally, to go into a rare
379
00:12:55,408 --> 00:12:57,008
book room or to go into
380
00:12:57,010 --> 00:12:58,450
a reading room.
381
00:12:58,445 --> 00:12:59,975
>> ISLEIB: Barry Landau was a
382
00:13:00,013 --> 00:13:02,023
fraud and he was a predator.
383
00:13:02,015 --> 00:13:04,145
He specifically targeted
384
00:13:04,151 --> 00:13:06,051
certain organizations and
385
00:13:06,053 --> 00:13:07,923
certain institutions just to
386
00:13:07,921 --> 00:13:09,161
steal from them.
387
00:13:09,156 --> 00:13:10,456
He would case them, he would
388
00:13:10,457 --> 00:13:12,187
visit them repeatedly, he would
389
00:13:12,192 --> 00:13:13,332
look for their weaknesses,
390
00:13:13,326 --> 00:13:15,256
and he would go in, eventually,
391
00:13:15,262 --> 00:13:16,932
and steal directly from them.
392
00:13:16,930 --> 00:13:18,300
And he knew exactly what he was
393
00:13:18,298 --> 00:13:19,928
taking and he knew exactly how
394
00:13:19,933 --> 00:13:21,943
to get away with it.
395
00:13:21,935 --> 00:13:23,065
>> ROSENSTEIN: But the employees
396
00:13:23,070 --> 00:13:24,200
of the historical society were
397
00:13:24,204 --> 00:13:25,344
suspicious of Mr. Landau.
398
00:13:25,338 --> 00:13:27,138
They just thought something
399
00:13:27,140 --> 00:13:28,910
wasn't right about him.
400
00:13:28,909 --> 00:13:30,079
One of the employees went up
401
00:13:30,077 --> 00:13:31,207
into a balcony and watched and
402
00:13:31,211 --> 00:13:34,921
saw Mr. Landau and Mr. Savedoff
403
00:13:34,915 --> 00:13:35,945
secrete some of these documents
404
00:13:35,949 --> 00:13:37,079
in their briefcase and their
405
00:13:37,084 --> 00:13:38,154
clothing, and then called
406
00:13:38,151 --> 00:13:40,151
the Baltimore police.
407
00:13:40,153 --> 00:13:41,353
>> NARRATOR: The police were
408
00:13:41,354 --> 00:13:43,464
astonished to discover 79
409
00:13:43,456 --> 00:13:46,026
original documents, some of
410
00:13:46,026 --> 00:13:48,356
which bore the signatures of
411
00:13:48,361 --> 00:13:51,061
Abraham Lincoln, hidden inside
412
00:13:51,098 --> 00:13:54,328
Landau's computer bag.
413
00:13:54,334 --> 00:13:56,204
But an even bigger surprise
414
00:13:56,203 --> 00:13:57,373
awaited the officers who
415
00:13:57,370 --> 00:14:00,110
searched his home in New York.
416
00:14:00,107 --> 00:14:01,367
>> ISLEIB: Barry Landau had a
417
00:14:01,374 --> 00:14:03,244
collection in the tens of
418
00:14:03,243 --> 00:14:04,953
thousands of items.
419
00:14:04,945 --> 00:14:06,245
It included inauguration
420
00:14:06,246 --> 00:14:08,246
tickets, it included menus, it
421
00:14:08,248 --> 00:14:10,078
included badges, it included
422
00:14:10,083 --> 00:14:11,253
goblets.
423
00:14:11,251 --> 00:14:13,391
We're not sure what was stolen
424
00:14:13,386 --> 00:14:17,086
and what was not, what was
425
00:14:17,090 --> 00:14:19,130
legitimately gained.
426
00:14:19,126 --> 00:14:21,326
>> ROSENSTEIN: What Barry Landau
427
00:14:21,328 --> 00:14:23,128
had in his apartment in New York
428
00:14:23,130 --> 00:14:24,970
was the sort of collection you'd
429
00:14:24,965 --> 00:14:26,265
expect to see in a museum.
430
00:14:26,266 --> 00:14:28,396
In fact, the agency needed to
431
00:14:28,401 --> 00:14:30,141
rent a truck in order to take
432
00:14:30,137 --> 00:14:31,337
all the evidence away from
433
00:14:31,338 --> 00:14:33,938
Mr. Landau's apartment.
434
00:14:33,941 --> 00:14:35,011
>> NARRATOR: Landau's young
435
00:14:35,008 --> 00:14:37,108
protégé, Jason Savedoff,
436
00:14:37,110 --> 00:14:39,110
received a reduced sentence in
437
00:14:39,112 --> 00:14:40,412
exchange for assisting law
438
00:14:40,413 --> 00:14:42,083
enforcement with the recovery
439
00:14:42,082 --> 00:14:43,682
of evidence.
440
00:14:43,683 --> 00:14:47,293
But just how did Barry Landau
441
00:14:47,287 --> 00:14:50,157
manage to remove thousands of
442
00:14:50,157 --> 00:14:52,387
irreplaceable items from museums
443
00:14:52,392 --> 00:14:57,162
and libraries across the U.S.?
444
00:14:57,164 --> 00:14:58,174
Like a magician employing
445
00:14:58,165 --> 00:15:00,425
the art of distraction, Landau
446
00:15:00,433 --> 00:15:02,703
enticed librarians with cakes
447
00:15:02,702 --> 00:15:05,312
and candy, but the clothes he
448
00:15:05,305 --> 00:15:08,435
wore played an even bigger role
449
00:15:08,441 --> 00:15:10,711
in his audacious larceny.
450
00:15:10,710 --> 00:15:12,050
>> ROSENSTEIN: These are some of
451
00:15:12,045 --> 00:15:13,305
the tools of the trade that Mr.
452
00:15:13,313 --> 00:15:14,453
Landau would use to steal
453
00:15:14,447 --> 00:15:15,447
documents from historical
454
00:15:15,448 --> 00:15:16,448
societies.
455
00:15:16,449 --> 00:15:18,019
He had these coats and jackets
456
00:15:18,018 --> 00:15:19,118
specially tailored with a large
457
00:15:19,119 --> 00:15:21,049
interior pocket.
458
00:15:21,054 --> 00:15:23,194
So, for example, in this
459
00:15:23,190 --> 00:15:26,060
overcoat here, the pocket is so
460
00:15:26,059 --> 00:15:28,199
deep, that Mr. Landau was
461
00:15:28,195 --> 00:15:31,455
actually able to conceal this
462
00:15:31,464 --> 00:15:33,274
entire document and then walk
463
00:15:33,266 --> 00:15:34,726
right out of the museum carrying
464
00:15:34,734 --> 00:15:36,074
it with him.
465
00:15:36,069 --> 00:15:37,739
>> NARRATOR: When it came time
466
00:15:37,737 --> 00:15:39,737
to sell the priceless items,
467
00:15:39,739 --> 00:15:41,739
Landau used his knowledge
468
00:15:41,741 --> 00:15:43,341
of archival methods to conceal
469
00:15:43,343 --> 00:15:45,753
that the documents were in fact
470
00:15:45,745 --> 00:15:48,745
stolen property.
471
00:15:48,748 --> 00:15:50,078
>> WILLIAMSON: The mid-century
472
00:15:50,083 --> 00:15:52,493
American method for documenting,
473
00:15:52,485 --> 00:15:54,215
by and large, was to pencil
474
00:15:54,221 --> 00:15:56,361
inventory numbers.
475
00:15:56,356 --> 00:15:57,416
And that's obviously very
476
00:15:57,424 --> 00:15:58,764
simple to remove.
477
00:15:58,758 --> 00:15:59,758
>> ROSENSTEIN: Mr. Landau would
478
00:15:59,759 --> 00:16:01,229
use something as simple as a
479
00:16:01,228 --> 00:16:02,298
pencil eraser to erase
480
00:16:02,295 --> 00:16:05,065
notations.
481
00:16:05,065 --> 00:16:06,765
He also would use a file.
482
00:16:06,766 --> 00:16:08,196
And of course a magnifying
483
00:16:08,201 --> 00:16:09,441
glass, which would allow him to
484
00:16:09,436 --> 00:16:10,766
inspect the documents and make
485
00:16:10,770 --> 00:16:12,110
sure that he removed all traces
486
00:16:12,105 --> 00:16:13,235
of where they came from.
487
00:16:13,240 --> 00:16:14,370
>> WITTMAN: When you try
488
00:16:14,374 --> 00:16:15,484
to monetize these pieces and
489
00:16:15,475 --> 00:16:16,735
bring 'em back to market, that's
490
00:16:16,776 --> 00:16:18,776
when they get caught.
491
00:16:18,778 --> 00:16:20,778
Anyone who steals artwork from
492
00:16:20,780 --> 00:16:22,450
a museum or cultural property
493
00:16:22,449 --> 00:16:24,079
from a museum valued at more
494
00:16:24,084 --> 00:16:26,194
than $5,000 and over a hundred
495
00:16:26,186 --> 00:16:27,246
years old is committing
496
00:16:27,254 --> 00:16:28,394
a federal crime.
497
00:16:28,388 --> 00:16:30,118
The real art of an art heist
498
00:16:30,123 --> 00:16:31,223
is not the stealing,
499
00:16:31,258 --> 00:16:33,058
it's the selling.
500
00:16:33,060 --> 00:16:34,260
>> ISLEIB: Barry Landau was
501
00:16:34,261 --> 00:16:35,401
stealing American history.
502
00:16:35,395 --> 00:16:37,255
He was stealing our heritage
503
00:16:37,264 --> 00:16:39,274
from us and from our future
504
00:16:39,266 --> 00:16:42,736
generations.
505
00:16:42,735 --> 00:16:44,265
>> NARRATOR: In an effort to
506
00:16:44,271 --> 00:16:45,811
recover America's priceless
507
00:16:45,805 --> 00:16:48,335
historical artifacts, federal
508
00:16:48,341 --> 00:16:50,141
agents must sometimes go
509
00:16:50,143 --> 00:16:52,213
undercover and take a walk
510
00:16:52,212 --> 00:16:56,082
on the wrong side of the law.
511
00:16:56,083 --> 00:16:59,093
In 2003 Special Agent Robert
512
00:16:59,086 --> 00:17:01,086
Wittman received a tip about
513
00:17:01,088 --> 00:17:03,758
one of the original 13 copies
514
00:17:03,756 --> 00:17:06,756
of the Bill of Rights.
515
00:17:06,759 --> 00:17:08,759
Sent to North Carolina by
516
00:17:08,761 --> 00:17:11,761
George Washington in 1789, the
517
00:17:11,764 --> 00:17:13,504
priceless parchment had been
518
00:17:13,500 --> 00:17:15,170
looted from the state capitol
519
00:17:15,168 --> 00:17:18,238
by a Union trooper in 1865
520
00:17:18,238 --> 00:17:21,238
at the end of the Civil War.
521
00:17:21,241 --> 00:17:23,841
Nearly 140 years later, after
522
00:17:23,843 --> 00:17:26,283
changing hands several times,
523
00:17:26,279 --> 00:17:27,809
the document was in the
524
00:17:27,814 --> 00:17:29,854
possession of a man who was
525
00:17:29,849 --> 00:17:31,319
trying to sell it to the
526
00:17:31,318 --> 00:17:33,188
National Constitution Center
527
00:17:33,186 --> 00:17:37,156
in Philadelphia for $4 million.
528
00:17:37,157 --> 00:17:38,327
>> WILLIAMSON: This Bill of
529
00:17:38,325 --> 00:17:39,855
Rights is another example that
530
00:17:39,859 --> 00:17:42,459
if a piece is stolen, it doesn't
531
00:17:42,462 --> 00:17:44,402
have good title.
532
00:17:44,397 --> 00:17:45,467
And you're never gonna get
533
00:17:45,465 --> 00:17:47,295
good title back no matter
534
00:17:47,300 --> 00:17:49,740
how many hands it moves through.
535
00:17:49,736 --> 00:17:51,466
If it was once stolen, it is
536
00:17:51,471 --> 00:17:55,741
still stolen property.
537
00:17:55,742 --> 00:17:57,182
>> WITTMAN: We set up an
538
00:17:57,177 --> 00:17:58,177
undercover operation,
539
00:17:58,178 --> 00:17:59,478
a sting operation.
540
00:17:59,479 --> 00:18:01,209
We created a $4 million
541
00:18:01,214 --> 00:18:02,284
fake check.
542
00:18:02,282 --> 00:18:03,422
It wasn't real.
543
00:18:03,416 --> 00:18:05,216
I was actually undercover as
544
00:18:05,218 --> 00:18:06,448
a philanthropist who was putting
545
00:18:06,453 --> 00:18:08,163
the money up to actually
546
00:18:08,155 --> 00:18:09,215
buy the piece.
547
00:18:09,222 --> 00:18:11,892
And we had a code word.
548
00:18:11,891 --> 00:18:13,231
When we said the code word,
549
00:18:13,226 --> 00:18:14,886
agents came in, and we were able
550
00:18:14,894 --> 00:18:16,234
to recover the document.
551
00:18:16,229 --> 00:18:17,359
>> NARRATOR: Fooled by the
552
00:18:17,364 --> 00:18:18,774
fake check, the seller handed
553
00:18:18,765 --> 00:18:20,765
over the precious copy.
554
00:18:20,767 --> 00:18:22,167
And although he was out
555
00:18:22,169 --> 00:18:24,899
$4 million, he at least escaped
556
00:18:24,904 --> 00:18:27,374
federal prosecution.
557
00:18:27,374 --> 00:18:28,844
>> WITTMAN: The U.S. attorney's
558
00:18:28,841 --> 00:18:30,241
office decided not to charge
559
00:18:30,243 --> 00:18:31,743
the individuals with a crime
560
00:18:31,744 --> 00:18:32,884
'cause we couldn't prove they
561
00:18:32,879 --> 00:18:34,249
had actual knowledge of it
562
00:18:34,247 --> 00:18:36,847
being stolen at that point.
563
00:18:36,849 --> 00:18:38,919
>> NARRATOR: Undercover agents?
564
00:18:38,918 --> 00:18:42,758
Sting operations?
565
00:18:42,755 --> 00:18:44,255
The hunt for America's missing
566
00:18:44,257 --> 00:18:46,757
relics reads more like fiction
567
00:18:46,759 --> 00:18:48,229
than fact.
568
00:18:48,228 --> 00:18:51,398
But that is nothing compared
569
00:18:51,398 --> 00:18:53,898
to the details behind a decades-
570
00:18:53,900 --> 00:18:56,400
old mystery involving cash,
571
00:18:56,403 --> 00:18:59,213
a hijacked plane, and a
572
00:18:59,206 --> 00:19:01,206
mysterious man known
573
00:19:01,208 --> 00:19:04,908
as D.B. Cooper.
574
00:19:04,911 --> 00:19:13,821
Coming up...
575
00:19:13,820 --> 00:19:17,220
>> NARRATOR: February 10, 1980.
576
00:19:17,224 --> 00:19:18,434
The Columbia River, near
577
00:19:18,425 --> 00:19:21,285
Vancouver, Washington.
578
00:19:21,294 --> 00:19:22,434
On a camping trip with his
579
00:19:22,429 --> 00:19:24,299
parents, eight-year-old Brian
580
00:19:24,297 --> 00:19:25,827
Ingram discovers a strange
581
00:19:25,832 --> 00:19:27,972
bundle of decomposing bank notes
582
00:19:27,967 --> 00:19:30,837
buried at the water's edge.
583
00:19:30,837 --> 00:19:34,937
The cash adds up to $5,800.
584
00:19:34,974 --> 00:19:38,814
But where did it come from?
585
00:19:38,811 --> 00:19:40,251
>> GRAY: It's like
586
00:19:40,247 --> 00:19:41,247
every boy's dream.
587
00:19:41,248 --> 00:19:42,248
He found buried treasure.
588
00:19:42,249 --> 00:19:44,249
And this treasure was caked in
589
00:19:44,251 --> 00:19:45,391
some sand.
590
00:19:45,385 --> 00:19:46,985
They're all 20-dollar bills.
591
00:19:46,986 --> 00:19:48,716
And when they brought the money
592
00:19:48,721 --> 00:19:49,691
to the authorities, they could
593
00:19:49,722 --> 00:19:52,862
read some of the serial numbers.
594
00:19:52,859 --> 00:19:54,829
>> NARRATOR: The serial numbers
595
00:19:54,827 --> 00:19:56,427
reveal that the money was part
596
00:19:56,429 --> 00:19:58,329
of a ransom payment.
597
00:19:58,331 --> 00:20:00,401
The first physical evidence
598
00:20:00,400 --> 00:20:01,870
recovered from the world's only
599
00:20:01,868 --> 00:20:04,838
unsolved hijacking...
600
00:20:04,837 --> 00:20:06,767
nine years earlier.
601
00:20:09,876 --> 00:20:12,746
November 24, 1971.
602
00:20:12,745 --> 00:20:13,945
>> Ground transportation...
603
00:20:13,946 --> 00:20:14,946
>> NARRATOR: On the evening
604
00:20:14,947 --> 00:20:18,017
before Thanksgiving, Northwest
605
00:20:18,017 --> 00:20:20,347
Flight 305-- a short trip from
606
00:20:20,353 --> 00:20:22,463
Portland to Seattle-- takes a
607
00:20:22,455 --> 00:20:26,025
terrifying turn when a passenger
608
00:20:26,025 --> 00:20:29,755
in row 18, listed as Dan Cooper,
609
00:20:29,762 --> 00:20:31,462
presses the call button.
610
00:20:31,498 --> 00:20:32,768
(button dings)
611
00:20:32,765 --> 00:20:33,765
>> COOPER: As soon as the plane
612
00:20:33,766 --> 00:20:34,966
took off, he handed the flight
613
00:20:34,967 --> 00:20:36,897
attendant a note informing her
614
00:20:36,903 --> 00:20:37,973
that he was hijacking the
615
00:20:38,004 --> 00:20:39,514
airplane.
616
00:20:39,506 --> 00:20:40,836
>> GRAY: To show her that he's
617
00:20:40,840 --> 00:20:41,910
serious, he reaches for his
618
00:20:41,908 --> 00:20:44,508
attaché case and he opens it.
619
00:20:44,511 --> 00:20:45,781
Inside, she can see wires and
620
00:20:45,778 --> 00:20:47,908
she can see red sticks.
621
00:20:47,914 --> 00:20:50,784
She thinks it's a bomb.
622
00:20:50,783 --> 00:20:52,323
>> NARRATOR: The hijacker
623
00:20:52,319 --> 00:20:54,789
demands $200,000 in cash, and
624
00:20:54,787 --> 00:20:57,317
four parachutes to be delivered
625
00:20:57,324 --> 00:20:58,934
to him when the plane touches
626
00:20:58,925 --> 00:21:00,785
down in Seattle.
627
00:21:00,793 --> 00:21:01,393
>> COOPER: Once he landed and
628
00:21:01,394 --> 00:21:03,464
the money was on board, the
629
00:21:03,463 --> 00:21:05,403
passengers were released.
630
00:21:05,398 --> 00:21:06,928
Nobody was physically harmed
631
00:21:06,933 --> 00:21:08,033
in the hijacking.
632
00:21:08,034 --> 00:21:09,404
>> 36 passengers
633
00:21:09,402 --> 00:21:10,802
got off the jetliner in Seattle
634
00:21:10,803 --> 00:21:11,803
last night.
635
00:21:11,804 --> 00:21:12,944
Left aboard, four crew members
636
00:21:12,939 --> 00:21:14,369
and the hijacker.
637
00:21:14,374 --> 00:21:15,514
>> GRAY: The hijacker wanted
638
00:21:15,508 --> 00:21:16,808
to go to Mexico City,
639
00:21:16,809 --> 00:21:18,349
but he had these very specific
640
00:21:18,345 --> 00:21:19,805
instructions on how the plane
641
00:21:19,812 --> 00:21:21,352
should be flown.
642
00:21:21,348 --> 00:21:22,878
He wanted it no higher than
643
00:21:22,882 --> 00:21:24,382
10,000 feet.
644
00:21:24,384 --> 00:21:25,394
Couldn't go any faster than
645
00:21:25,385 --> 00:21:26,815
200 miles an hour.
646
00:21:26,819 --> 00:21:27,819
Furthermore, this was a very
647
00:21:27,820 --> 00:21:28,820
unique kind of plane because
648
00:21:28,821 --> 00:21:30,061
it had these rear stairs that
649
00:21:30,056 --> 00:21:32,826
came out.
650
00:21:32,825 --> 00:21:33,955
>> NARRATOR: But passenger Dan
651
00:21:33,960 --> 00:21:36,830
Cooper-- later known as D.B.
652
00:21:36,829 --> 00:21:38,929
Cooper-- never made it to
653
00:21:38,931 --> 00:21:41,071
Mexico.
654
00:21:41,067 --> 00:21:42,837
As the plane flew over
655
00:21:42,835 --> 00:21:44,095
Southwestern Washington, the
656
00:21:44,103 --> 00:21:45,973
hijacker strapped the money to
657
00:21:45,972 --> 00:21:48,782
his body, lowered the plane's
658
00:21:48,775 --> 00:21:50,705
aft stairs, and jumped.
659
00:21:53,112 --> 00:21:55,112
Over the following days and
660
00:21:55,114 --> 00:21:57,784
weeks, teams of law enforcement
661
00:21:57,784 --> 00:21:59,054
officials scoured the region for
662
00:21:59,051 --> 00:22:00,991
any sign of him.
663
00:22:00,987 --> 00:22:03,917
But despite the intense efforts,
664
00:22:03,923 --> 00:22:06,533
nothing was found.
665
00:22:06,526 --> 00:22:07,856
No money.
666
00:22:07,860 --> 00:22:09,760
No parachute.
667
00:22:09,796 --> 00:22:11,456
And no suspect.
668
00:22:11,464 --> 00:22:13,804
>> RONALD KESSLER: The FBI still
669
00:22:13,800 --> 00:22:15,470
has an open case on Cooper.
670
00:22:15,468 --> 00:22:16,898
He was indicted, so it has not
671
00:22:16,936 --> 00:22:19,006
closed the case.
672
00:22:19,005 --> 00:22:20,105
There's always a possibility
673
00:22:20,106 --> 00:22:22,806
that he could be found.
674
00:22:22,809 --> 00:22:23,809
>> NARRATOR: But who was the
675
00:22:23,810 --> 00:22:25,810
mysterious passenger known as
676
00:22:25,812 --> 00:22:27,152
Dan Cooper?
677
00:22:27,146 --> 00:22:28,846
And is there a secret reason
678
00:22:28,848 --> 00:22:32,488
why he has never been found?
679
00:22:32,485 --> 00:22:33,485
>> GRAY: People know this case
680
00:22:33,486 --> 00:22:34,486
as the D.B. Cooper case.
681
00:22:34,487 --> 00:22:35,487
But really it should be called
682
00:22:35,488 --> 00:22:36,488
the Dan Cooper case.
683
00:22:36,489 --> 00:22:38,019
Because Dan Cooper is the name
684
00:22:38,024 --> 00:22:39,494
that the hijacker gave when he
685
00:22:39,492 --> 00:22:40,492
bought his ticket to board that
686
00:22:40,493 --> 00:22:41,833
flight.
687
00:22:41,828 --> 00:22:42,828
On the night of the hijacking,
688
00:22:42,829 --> 00:22:43,829
a lot of reporters were trying
689
00:22:43,830 --> 00:22:45,100
to figure out what was going on.
690
00:22:45,097 --> 00:22:46,767
>> NARRATOR: A miscommunication
691
00:22:46,766 --> 00:22:48,466
between a journalist and the FBI
692
00:22:48,468 --> 00:22:50,468
led to the hijacker's name being
693
00:22:50,470 --> 00:22:54,470
reported as D.B. Cooper.
694
00:22:54,474 --> 00:22:56,444
The FBI decided not to correct
695
00:22:56,443 --> 00:22:58,453
the record, believing it would
696
00:22:58,445 --> 00:23:00,905
help them to eliminate suspects.
697
00:23:00,913 --> 00:23:02,783
>> GRAY: Agents wanted the
698
00:23:02,782 --> 00:23:04,052
public to think it was D.B.
699
00:23:04,050 --> 00:23:06,790
Cooper because then they could
700
00:23:06,786 --> 00:23:08,046
look for Dan Cooper.
701
00:23:08,054 --> 00:23:09,064
They could weed out all the
702
00:23:09,055 --> 00:23:10,055
clues that would come in about
703
00:23:10,056 --> 00:23:11,116
D.B. Cooper.
704
00:23:11,123 --> 00:23:13,793
That was their, you know, sort
705
00:23:13,793 --> 00:23:14,793
of ace in the hole.
706
00:23:14,794 --> 00:23:15,804
>> NARRATOR: More than four
707
00:23:15,795 --> 00:23:17,795
decades later, the decaying bank
708
00:23:17,797 --> 00:23:19,527
notes found on the edge of the
709
00:23:19,532 --> 00:23:22,072
Columbia River remain the only
710
00:23:22,068 --> 00:23:24,938
clue to ever surface in the D.B.
711
00:23:24,937 --> 00:23:26,807
Cooper case.
712
00:23:26,806 --> 00:23:27,806
>> KESSLER: None of the money
713
00:23:27,807 --> 00:23:29,207
that D.B. Cooper received ever
714
00:23:29,208 --> 00:23:31,038
showed up in circulation based
715
00:23:31,043 --> 00:23:32,913
on the serial numbers that, of
716
00:23:32,912 --> 00:23:33,952
of course, had been recorded.
717
00:23:33,946 --> 00:23:35,206
So that tells you something
718
00:23:35,214 --> 00:23:37,224
about whether D.B. Cooper ever
719
00:23:37,216 --> 00:23:39,816
survived that parachute jump.
720
00:23:39,819 --> 00:23:40,949
If he had, he certainly would
721
00:23:40,953 --> 00:23:42,223
have spent the money.
722
00:23:42,221 --> 00:23:43,821
>> NARRATOR: But is it possible
723
00:23:43,823 --> 00:23:45,833
that money might not have been
724
00:23:45,825 --> 00:23:47,485
D.B. Cooper's motive for the
725
00:23:47,494 --> 00:23:50,204
hijacking?
726
00:23:50,196 --> 00:23:52,196
Or was there another, perhaps
727
00:23:52,198 --> 00:23:55,228
more secret, reason?
728
00:23:55,234 --> 00:23:57,204
>> COOPER: I'm Marla Cooper.
729
00:23:57,203 --> 00:23:59,043
I'm the niece of the hijacker
730
00:23:59,038 --> 00:24:00,238
known as D.B. Cooper.
731
00:24:00,239 --> 00:24:02,239
My uncles Dewey and L.D.
732
00:24:02,241 --> 00:24:03,941
planned the hijacking.
733
00:24:03,943 --> 00:24:05,213
L.D. was the man on the plane,
734
00:24:05,211 --> 00:24:06,251
but Dewey was the man
735
00:24:06,245 --> 00:24:08,815
on the ground.
736
00:24:08,815 --> 00:24:10,175
>> NARRATOR: In 1971,
737
00:24:10,182 --> 00:24:11,982
eight-year-old Marla Cooper was
738
00:24:11,984 --> 00:24:14,524
spending Thanksgiving as usual
739
00:24:14,521 --> 00:24:16,121
with her family at her
740
00:24:16,122 --> 00:24:17,922
grandmother's house in Sisters,
741
00:24:17,924 --> 00:24:19,064
Oregon.
742
00:24:19,058 --> 00:24:21,828
It was there that her two
743
00:24:21,828 --> 00:24:23,828
uncles, after years of
744
00:24:23,830 --> 00:24:25,830
struggling to get by, boasted
745
00:24:25,832 --> 00:24:27,872
about coming into a large sum of
746
00:24:27,867 --> 00:24:29,837
money.
747
00:24:29,836 --> 00:24:30,836
>> COOPER: And I heard my Uncle
748
00:24:30,837 --> 00:24:33,867
Dewey tell my father that we
749
00:24:33,873 --> 00:24:35,073
were rich, our money problems
750
00:24:35,074 --> 00:24:36,284
are over.
751
00:24:36,275 --> 00:24:38,105
Um, we just had to go back and
752
00:24:38,110 --> 00:24:39,850
find the money.
753
00:24:39,846 --> 00:24:41,976
Um, but he said, "We did it, we
754
00:24:41,981 --> 00:24:44,081
hijacked an airplane."
755
00:24:44,083 --> 00:24:46,023
>> NARRATOR: A few days later,
756
00:24:46,018 --> 00:24:47,988
her father's two brothers,
757
00:24:47,987 --> 00:24:50,157
Dewey and Lynne Doyle-- known as
758
00:24:50,156 --> 00:24:52,256
L.D. to his family--
759
00:24:52,258 --> 00:24:55,088
disappeared, and Marla Cooper
760
00:24:55,094 --> 00:24:57,834
never saw either of her uncles
761
00:24:57,830 --> 00:24:59,130
again.
762
00:24:59,131 --> 00:25:02,771
Could L.D. Cooper have been the
763
00:25:02,769 --> 00:25:04,269
mysterious hijacker known
764
00:25:04,270 --> 00:25:06,310
as D.B. Cooper?
765
00:25:06,305 --> 00:25:08,775
And, if so, might he have
766
00:25:08,775 --> 00:25:10,305
audaciously used skills he
767
00:25:10,309 --> 00:25:12,239
learned as a U.S. Navy
768
00:25:12,244 --> 00:25:13,784
paratrooper during the
769
00:25:13,780 --> 00:25:15,850
Korean War?
770
00:25:15,848 --> 00:25:18,888
Skills that tied in directly to
771
00:25:18,885 --> 00:25:20,915
the unique make and model of the
772
00:25:20,920 --> 00:25:23,320
aircraft from which Cooper made
773
00:25:23,322 --> 00:25:25,062
his escape?
774
00:25:25,057 --> 00:25:26,057
>> GRAY: From the documents I
775
00:25:26,058 --> 00:25:28,798
uncovered, what I learned was
776
00:25:28,795 --> 00:25:30,295
that that plane had been used by
777
00:25:30,296 --> 00:25:32,196
the CIA.
778
00:25:32,198 --> 00:25:34,798
And the CIA, in the Vietnam War,
779
00:25:34,801 --> 00:25:35,941
had specifically used this
780
00:25:35,935 --> 00:25:38,195
Boeing 727 and the rear stairs,
781
00:25:38,204 --> 00:25:40,814
which came down on hydraulics,
782
00:25:40,807 --> 00:25:42,337
to drop parachutists
783
00:25:42,341 --> 00:25:46,811
and guns and food.
784
00:25:46,813 --> 00:25:48,823
Was Cooper somebody that
785
00:25:48,815 --> 00:25:49,945
potentially had connections
786
00:25:49,949 --> 00:25:51,179
with the CIA?
787
00:25:51,183 --> 00:25:53,023
>> COOPER: I think that my Uncle
788
00:25:53,019 --> 00:25:56,089
L.D. Cooper was used by the CIA
789
00:25:56,088 --> 00:25:58,018
for the hijacking.
790
00:26:02,061 --> 00:26:04,931
>> NARRATOR: "Used by the CIA"?
791
00:26:04,931 --> 00:26:07,071
Why would the CIA want to hijack
792
00:26:07,099 --> 00:26:11,099
a domestic airline flight?
793
00:26:11,103 --> 00:26:13,213
In the nine years prior to D.B.
794
00:26:13,205 --> 00:26:14,835
Cooper's daring seizure of an
795
00:26:14,841 --> 00:26:17,841
aircraft, nearly 50 commercial
796
00:26:17,844 --> 00:26:19,354
flights had been hijacked in the
797
00:26:19,345 --> 00:26:22,175
United States, often by a
798
00:26:22,181 --> 00:26:24,951
politically motivated attacker
799
00:26:24,951 --> 00:26:27,851
demanding to go to Cuba.
800
00:26:27,854 --> 00:26:29,264
>> COOPER: There was an epidemic
801
00:26:29,255 --> 00:26:31,315
of hijackings taking place
802
00:26:31,323 --> 00:26:32,933
during that time.
803
00:26:32,925 --> 00:26:35,125
President Nixon was desperate
804
00:26:35,127 --> 00:26:37,857
and so was J. Edgar Hoover,
805
00:26:37,864 --> 00:26:38,934
who was in charge of the FBI,
806
00:26:38,931 --> 00:26:41,271
to improve airport security.
807
00:26:41,267 --> 00:26:43,267
But like today, changes like
808
00:26:43,269 --> 00:26:46,139
that bring into question: are we
809
00:26:46,138 --> 00:26:47,938
losing our freedoms?
810
00:26:47,940 --> 00:26:48,880
>> GRAY: You have to look at the
811
00:26:48,875 --> 00:26:50,275
results of the Cooper case.
812
00:26:50,276 --> 00:26:53,146
Very high publicized, very
813
00:26:53,145 --> 00:26:55,875
famous, not necessarily for
814
00:26:55,882 --> 00:26:57,822
getting away with the money but
815
00:26:57,817 --> 00:26:59,147
for changing the climate of
816
00:26:59,151 --> 00:27:01,891
airport security in our nation.
817
00:27:01,888 --> 00:27:03,158
Now we go to an airport,
818
00:27:03,155 --> 00:27:04,215
we're scanned.
819
00:27:04,223 --> 00:27:06,863
The sterile terminal all came
820
00:27:06,859 --> 00:27:08,829
about because of Cooper.
821
00:27:08,828 --> 00:27:10,158
>> COOPER: I didn't start out to
822
00:27:10,162 --> 00:27:11,832
be a conspiracy theorist, but
823
00:27:11,831 --> 00:27:13,171
I've really come to believe
824
00:27:13,165 --> 00:27:14,965
that there is classified
825
00:27:14,967 --> 00:27:16,967
information about the hijacking
826
00:27:16,969 --> 00:27:20,869
that has never been made public.
827
00:27:20,873 --> 00:27:22,313
>> NARRATOR: Is it possible that
828
00:27:22,308 --> 00:27:24,908
the U.S. government was behind
829
00:27:24,911 --> 00:27:28,051
the world's only unsolved
830
00:27:28,047 --> 00:27:30,047
hijacking?
831
00:27:30,049 --> 00:27:32,249
And if $5,800 of the ransom
832
00:27:32,251 --> 00:27:34,191
money washed up on the shores of
833
00:27:34,186 --> 00:27:36,916
the Columbia River, might the
834
00:27:36,923 --> 00:27:40,933
rest still be out there waiting
835
00:27:40,927 --> 00:27:43,027
to be found?
836
00:27:43,029 --> 00:27:45,199
Perhaps it has vanished forever
837
00:27:45,197 --> 00:27:47,797
along with D.B. Cooper, leaving
838
00:27:47,800 --> 00:27:50,800
nothing but unanswered questions
839
00:27:50,803 --> 00:27:53,813
and a colorful myth that
840
00:27:53,806 --> 00:27:57,206
persists to this day.
841
00:27:57,209 --> 00:27:58,279
Coming up:
842
00:27:58,277 --> 00:28:03,847
>> CHILDRESS:
843
00:28:03,850 --> 00:28:05,850
>> NARRATOR: Boston,
844
00:28:05,852 --> 00:28:09,862
Massachusetts, March 18, 1990.
845
00:28:09,856 --> 00:28:11,986
As the city slept off its annual
846
00:28:11,991 --> 00:28:14,991
St. Patrick's Day party, two men
847
00:28:14,994 --> 00:28:16,864
dressed as police officers
848
00:28:16,863 --> 00:28:17,963
talked their way into the
849
00:28:17,997 --> 00:28:20,127
Isabella Stewart Gardner Museum.
850
00:28:20,132 --> 00:28:22,272
>> GEOFFREY J. KELLY: Once they
851
00:28:22,268 --> 00:28:23,398
were inside the museum, they
852
00:28:23,402 --> 00:28:25,372
spent the next 81 minutes going
853
00:28:25,371 --> 00:28:27,141
through it and removing 13 works
854
00:28:27,139 --> 00:28:29,339
of art from the vaults.
855
00:28:29,341 --> 00:28:31,141
And they disappeared into
856
00:28:31,143 --> 00:28:32,413
the night.
857
00:28:32,411 --> 00:28:35,011
>> NARRATOR: The 13 stolen
858
00:28:35,014 --> 00:28:37,024
masterpieces include works
859
00:28:37,016 --> 00:28:41,986
by Degas, Vermeer and Manet.
860
00:28:41,988 --> 00:28:43,888
>> WITTMAN: In today's market,
861
00:28:43,890 --> 00:28:45,260
those paintings altogether are
862
00:28:45,257 --> 00:28:47,887
valued at around $500 million,
863
00:28:47,894 --> 00:28:49,264
making it the largest single
864
00:28:49,261 --> 00:28:53,301
property crime in U.S. history.
865
00:28:53,299 --> 00:28:55,269
>> NARRATOR: As the FBI spread
866
00:28:55,267 --> 00:28:57,167
their net, the list of suspects
867
00:28:57,169 --> 00:28:58,909
began to focus on infamous
868
00:28:58,905 --> 00:29:02,105
Boston mobsters like Whitey
869
00:29:02,108 --> 00:29:04,038
Bulger, then leader of the
870
00:29:04,043 --> 00:29:08,113
notorious Winter Hill Gang.
871
00:29:08,114 --> 00:29:09,884
>> WITTMAN: At the time of the
872
00:29:09,882 --> 00:29:11,182
heist, all leads were covered.
873
00:29:11,183 --> 00:29:13,123
There might have been some
874
00:29:13,119 --> 00:29:15,119
thought at that time that the
875
00:29:15,121 --> 00:29:17,921
Irish mob in the Boston area
876
00:29:17,924 --> 00:29:19,064
might have been involved,
877
00:29:19,058 --> 00:29:20,128
or even possibly the
878
00:29:20,126 --> 00:29:21,286
Italian mob.
879
00:29:21,293 --> 00:29:22,933
>> KELLY: Well, I can't comment
880
00:29:22,929 --> 00:29:24,199
on Mr. Bulger, but certainly his
881
00:29:24,196 --> 00:29:25,996
name has been linked to it by
882
00:29:25,998 --> 00:29:27,428
others due to the fact that his
883
00:29:27,433 --> 00:29:29,173
involvement in organized crime
884
00:29:29,168 --> 00:29:31,068
in Boston and his support
885
00:29:31,070 --> 00:29:32,940
for the IRA.
886
00:29:32,939 --> 00:29:36,009
The IRA has used art theft as a
887
00:29:36,008 --> 00:29:38,208
viable fundraising technique.
888
00:29:38,210 --> 00:29:40,450
>> ERIK NEMETH: The eluding and
889
00:29:40,446 --> 00:29:42,076
the trafficking, so that's the
890
00:29:42,081 --> 00:29:44,051
movement of the artifacts from
891
00:29:44,050 --> 00:29:46,090
the discovery to an eventual
892
00:29:46,085 --> 00:29:49,155
buyer, is a challenging process.
893
00:29:49,155 --> 00:29:51,285
Organized crime is very well
894
00:29:51,290 --> 00:29:54,930
versed in those tactics.
895
00:29:54,927 --> 00:29:55,927
>> NARRATOR: Some even
896
00:29:55,928 --> 00:29:56,958
speculated that the theft had
897
00:29:56,963 --> 00:29:58,973
been commissioned by a wealthy
898
00:29:58,965 --> 00:30:01,065
collector, one determined to own
899
00:30:01,067 --> 00:30:04,367
the world's finest art.
900
00:30:04,370 --> 00:30:06,070
>> NEMETH: When an art theft
901
00:30:06,072 --> 00:30:07,312
occurs, we're gonna talk to
902
00:30:07,306 --> 00:30:09,206
experts in the field to see who
903
00:30:09,208 --> 00:30:10,978
might be interested in this type
904
00:30:10,977 --> 00:30:11,977
of painting.
905
00:30:11,978 --> 00:30:13,378
I don't know if it was, uh,
906
00:30:13,379 --> 00:30:15,249
commissioned or if they just
907
00:30:15,247 --> 00:30:16,847
took pieces that they liked
908
00:30:16,849 --> 00:30:18,179
or if they took what they
909
00:30:18,184 --> 00:30:19,324
believed would be the most
910
00:30:19,318 --> 00:30:20,348
valuable pieces by going
911
00:30:20,352 --> 00:30:22,392
to the Dutch Room.
912
00:30:22,388 --> 00:30:23,388
>> WILLIAMSON: The really
913
00:30:23,389 --> 00:30:25,259
high-profile art heists must be
914
00:30:25,257 --> 00:30:28,227
carried out on commission.
915
00:30:28,227 --> 00:30:30,397
I just don't think that you
916
00:30:30,396 --> 00:30:33,126
would steal high-profile
917
00:30:33,132 --> 00:30:34,402
multimillion-dollar paintings
918
00:30:34,400 --> 00:30:35,870
on spec.
919
00:30:35,868 --> 00:30:38,098
I just think that you must have
920
00:30:38,137 --> 00:30:40,137
an end user.
921
00:30:40,139 --> 00:30:41,869
It is difficult to find a
922
00:30:41,874 --> 00:30:43,144
market, even when you have a
923
00:30:43,142 --> 00:30:44,212
really terrific piece.
924
00:30:44,210 --> 00:30:45,880
You don't always know who will
925
00:30:45,878 --> 00:30:49,248
buy it.
926
00:30:49,248 --> 00:30:50,878
>> NARRATOR: Today, the FBI
927
00:30:50,883 --> 00:30:53,153
estimates that art theft from
928
00:30:53,152 --> 00:30:55,252
museums and private collections
929
00:30:55,254 --> 00:30:59,034
costs Americans at least
930
00:30:59,025 --> 00:31:01,155
$6 billion each year.
931
00:31:01,160 --> 00:31:03,030
But is art theft really just
932
00:31:03,029 --> 00:31:04,999
about elite collectors and
933
00:31:04,997 --> 00:31:06,997
priceless paintings?
934
00:31:06,999 --> 00:31:10,169
Or is there another, more secret
935
00:31:10,169 --> 00:31:12,439
reason why recent art heists
936
00:31:12,438 --> 00:31:16,178
are about much more than money?
937
00:31:16,175 --> 00:31:17,235
>> NEMETH: As a security
938
00:31:17,243 --> 00:31:20,313
concern, art crime competes for
939
00:31:20,312 --> 00:31:22,312
resources with other more
940
00:31:22,314 --> 00:31:23,924
serious crimes, whether it's
941
00:31:23,916 --> 00:31:25,916
drug trafficking or murder.
942
00:31:25,918 --> 00:31:27,388
>> NARRATOR: Although glamorized
943
00:31:27,386 --> 00:31:30,316
in movies like Oceans Twelve and
944
00:31:30,322 --> 00:31:33,132
The Thomas Crown Affair,
945
00:31:33,125 --> 00:31:35,055
art theft can be both lucrative
946
00:31:35,061 --> 00:31:39,201
and lethal.
947
00:31:39,198 --> 00:31:42,168
It now stands third behind the
948
00:31:42,168 --> 00:31:43,938
sale of illegal drugs and
949
00:31:43,936 --> 00:31:45,936
weapons as the world's biggest
950
00:31:45,938 --> 00:31:48,068
crime business.
951
00:31:48,074 --> 00:31:49,184
>> NEMETH: Now it has
952
00:31:49,175 --> 00:31:50,305
implications for international
953
00:31:50,342 --> 00:31:51,942
security.
954
00:31:51,944 --> 00:31:55,354
Der Spiegel ran a story which
955
00:31:55,347 --> 00:31:57,947
connected Mohamed Atta, one of
956
00:31:57,950 --> 00:32:00,290
the 9/11 hijackers, with an
957
00:32:00,286 --> 00:32:01,946
attempt to sell antiquities or
958
00:32:01,954 --> 00:32:04,324
inquire with a German expert
959
00:32:04,323 --> 00:32:06,463
in cultural artifacts on the
960
00:32:06,458 --> 00:32:08,128
sale of antiquities in Hamburg,
961
00:32:08,160 --> 00:32:10,160
Germany.
962
00:32:10,162 --> 00:32:12,702
The fact that places like Iraq
963
00:32:12,698 --> 00:32:14,968
and Afghanistan and Southeast
964
00:32:14,967 --> 00:32:17,197
Asia have a tremendous wealth in
965
00:32:17,203 --> 00:32:19,713
marketable antiquities and
966
00:32:19,705 --> 00:32:22,365
cultural artifacts, it's easy to
967
00:32:22,374 --> 00:32:24,714
suspect that cultural wealth
968
00:32:24,710 --> 00:32:26,380
might be exploited as a source
969
00:32:26,378 --> 00:32:29,118
of funding.
970
00:32:29,115 --> 00:32:30,345
>> NARRATOR: Did Mohamed Atta
971
00:32:30,349 --> 00:32:33,049
finance Osama bin Laden's terror
972
00:32:33,052 --> 00:32:34,752
plot against the United States
973
00:32:34,753 --> 00:32:39,393
by selling stolen artwork?
974
00:32:39,391 --> 00:32:42,261
It seems far-fetched until one
975
00:32:42,261 --> 00:32:44,261
considers that the thieves
976
00:32:44,263 --> 00:32:46,133
responsible for the Isabella
977
00:32:46,132 --> 00:32:48,402
Stewart Gardner heist still
978
00:32:48,400 --> 00:32:50,400
remain at large.
979
00:32:56,108 --> 00:33:00,008
March 18, 2013.
980
00:33:01,280 --> 00:33:03,280
On the 23rd anniversary of
981
00:33:03,282 --> 00:33:05,752
America's largest unsolved art
982
00:33:05,751 --> 00:33:08,791
heist, the FBI makes a stunning
983
00:33:08,787 --> 00:33:11,087
announcement.
984
00:33:11,090 --> 00:33:13,690
>> FBI agents developed crucial
985
00:33:13,692 --> 00:33:15,032
pieces of evidence that confirm
986
00:33:15,027 --> 00:33:16,257
the identity of those who
987
00:33:16,262 --> 00:33:18,162
entered the museum and others
988
00:33:18,164 --> 00:33:19,704
associated with the theft who
989
00:33:19,698 --> 00:33:20,698
belong to a criminal
990
00:33:20,699 --> 00:33:22,299
organization.
991
00:33:22,301 --> 00:33:24,041
>> NARRATOR: Although they claim
992
00:33:24,036 --> 00:33:25,696
to know the identity of the
993
00:33:25,704 --> 00:33:28,044
thieves, the FBI refuses
994
00:33:28,040 --> 00:33:30,710
to name them.
995
00:33:30,709 --> 00:33:32,279
But why?
996
00:33:32,278 --> 00:33:34,148
>> WILLIAMSON: I think that
997
00:33:34,146 --> 00:33:35,706
perhaps they're trying to exert
998
00:33:35,714 --> 00:33:37,724
pressure on the person or
999
00:33:37,716 --> 00:33:39,046
persons who may have
1000
00:33:39,051 --> 00:33:40,121
the property.
1001
00:33:40,119 --> 00:33:41,719
You know, if they turn up the
1002
00:33:41,720 --> 00:33:43,190
heat, you're not gonna be able
1003
00:33:43,189 --> 00:33:44,319
to shop it around without
1004
00:33:44,323 --> 00:33:47,333
compromising yourself.
1005
00:33:47,326 --> 00:33:48,386
>> NARRATOR: Even more
1006
00:33:48,394 --> 00:33:50,804
surprising is the FBI's
1007
00:33:50,796 --> 00:33:52,396
announcement that they are
1008
00:33:52,398 --> 00:33:54,398
willing to consider immunity for
1009
00:33:54,400 --> 00:33:56,240
anyone who returns the stolen
1010
00:33:56,268 --> 00:33:58,068
artwork.
1011
00:33:58,070 --> 00:34:00,070
>> ISLEIB: Crooks come and go.
1012
00:34:00,072 --> 00:34:01,742
They will be caught eventually.
1013
00:34:01,740 --> 00:34:03,410
But recovering the artifact
1014
00:34:03,409 --> 00:34:04,739
is extremely important.
1015
00:34:04,743 --> 00:34:06,183
That would be the number one
1016
00:34:06,212 --> 00:34:08,412
priority.
1017
00:34:08,414 --> 00:34:10,224
>> NARRATOR: After 23 years and
1018
00:34:10,216 --> 00:34:12,216
a trail that has involved law
1019
00:34:12,218 --> 00:34:13,718
enforcement agencies from all
1020
00:34:13,719 --> 00:34:16,759
over the world, the FBI now
1021
00:34:16,755 --> 00:34:18,715
believes the stolen paintings
1022
00:34:18,724 --> 00:34:21,364
might be as close to Boston as
1023
00:34:21,360 --> 00:34:24,460
Connecticut or Philadelphia.
1024
00:34:24,463 --> 00:34:26,303
But that's small consolation to
1025
00:34:26,298 --> 00:34:28,228
the thousands of patrons who
1026
00:34:28,234 --> 00:34:31,304
flock to the museum each year.
1027
00:34:31,303 --> 00:34:32,843
Due to a provision in Isabella
1028
00:34:32,838 --> 00:34:35,308
Stewart Gardner's will
1029
00:34:35,307 --> 00:34:36,737
requiring that the exhibition
1030
00:34:36,742 --> 00:34:39,752
not be changed in any way, the
1031
00:34:39,745 --> 00:34:41,175
missing masterpieces are now
1032
00:34:41,180 --> 00:34:43,850
represented by nothing more than
1033
00:34:43,849 --> 00:34:46,389
an eerie array of empty
1034
00:34:46,385 --> 00:34:48,785
picture frames.
1035
00:34:48,787 --> 00:34:50,117
>> KELLY: There have been
1036
00:34:50,122 --> 00:34:51,322
so many dead ends, times
1037
00:34:51,323 --> 00:34:53,463
where I've really thought that I
1038
00:34:53,459 --> 00:34:55,789
was literally minutes away from
1039
00:34:55,794 --> 00:34:57,804
the recovery.
1040
00:34:57,796 --> 00:34:59,766
If you go into the Dutch Room
1041
00:34:59,765 --> 00:35:01,765
of the museum, you'll see the
1042
00:35:01,767 --> 00:35:02,867
empty frames are still
1043
00:35:02,868 --> 00:35:04,138
on the wall.
1044
00:35:04,136 --> 00:35:05,766
I look at those empty frames
1045
00:35:05,771 --> 00:35:09,141
and it kind of mocks me.
1046
00:35:09,141 --> 00:35:10,681
>> NARRATOR: Coming up...
1047
00:35:10,676 --> 00:35:17,716
>> DELONAS: Both President
1048
00:35:17,716 --> 00:35:19,716
>> NARRATOR: White Sands Missile
1049
00:35:19,718 --> 00:35:22,388
Range, New Mexico.
1050
00:35:22,388 --> 00:35:25,858
Here, within 3,200 square miles
1051
00:35:25,857 --> 00:35:28,927
of dry, dusty desert are areas
1052
00:35:28,927 --> 00:35:31,427
so isolated, they provide the
1053
00:35:31,430 --> 00:35:34,270
perfect location for top secret
1054
00:35:34,266 --> 00:35:36,266
weapons tests...
1055
00:35:36,268 --> 00:35:38,338
rocket launches...
1056
00:35:38,337 --> 00:35:41,337
and atomic bomb trials.
1057
00:35:41,340 --> 00:35:43,740
But could this desolate area
1058
00:35:43,742 --> 00:35:46,412
in America's Southwest also be
1059
00:35:46,412 --> 00:35:48,752
hiding other, even more
1060
00:35:48,747 --> 00:35:50,677
explosive secrets?
1061
00:35:54,286 --> 00:35:56,886
Growing up in the 1950s and 60s,
1062
00:35:56,888 --> 00:35:59,758
Terry Delonas loved to listen to
1063
00:35:59,758 --> 00:36:01,358
his grandmother's stories about
1064
00:36:01,360 --> 00:36:03,460
the incredible treasure she
1065
00:36:03,462 --> 00:36:05,902
claimed her husband Doc Noss
1066
00:36:05,897 --> 00:36:08,297
found near White Sands at
1067
00:36:08,300 --> 00:36:09,740
Victorio Peak in November of
1068
00:36:09,768 --> 00:36:11,768
1937.
1069
00:36:11,770 --> 00:36:12,770
>> CHILDRESS: What Doc Noss
1070
00:36:12,771 --> 00:36:16,781
found apparently...
1071
00:36:16,775 --> 00:36:19,775
a hundred tons of gold bars
1072
00:36:19,778 --> 00:36:22,248
were stacked up inside this
1073
00:36:22,248 --> 00:36:24,218
mountain.
1074
00:36:25,784 --> 00:36:27,924
>> NARRATOR: In addition to gold
1075
00:36:27,919 --> 00:36:30,919
bars, Noss also found antique
1076
00:36:30,922 --> 00:36:33,932
artifacts and a sword.
1077
00:36:33,925 --> 00:36:35,255
>> DELONAS: My grandmother
1078
00:36:35,261 --> 00:36:36,261
would, uh, she would
1079
00:36:36,262 --> 00:36:37,262
occasionally reach in one of
1080
00:36:37,263 --> 00:36:38,733
her dusty old trunks and pull
1081
00:36:38,764 --> 00:36:40,804
out an artifact like this one.
1082
00:36:40,799 --> 00:36:43,269
It's actually a, uh, sword of
1083
00:36:43,269 --> 00:36:44,939
European origin.
1084
00:36:44,936 --> 00:36:46,736
The hallmark shows that it was
1085
00:36:46,738 --> 00:36:48,738
made in Klingenthal, Bavaria.
1086
00:36:48,740 --> 00:36:50,880
And some historians have
1087
00:36:50,876 --> 00:36:52,276
speculated it could've been one
1088
00:36:52,278 --> 00:36:54,948
of the swords used by one of the
1089
00:36:54,946 --> 00:36:56,276
guards during Maximilian's
1090
00:36:56,282 --> 00:36:59,352
empire in Mexico.
1091
00:36:59,351 --> 00:37:01,291
>> NARRATOR: Could the sword
1092
00:37:01,287 --> 00:37:02,887
really have belonged to
1093
00:37:02,888 --> 00:37:05,258
supporters of Mexico's last
1094
00:37:05,257 --> 00:37:06,287
emperor-- and even more
1095
00:37:06,292 --> 00:37:09,362
mysteriously, did Doc Noss also
1096
00:37:09,361 --> 00:37:12,801
find, as he claimed, a cavern
1097
00:37:12,831 --> 00:37:17,401
full of gold bars?
1098
00:37:17,403 --> 00:37:19,973
If so, where did the treasure
1099
00:37:19,971 --> 00:37:21,411
come from?
1100
00:37:21,407 --> 00:37:22,407
>> GETLER: It's our strong
1101
00:37:22,408 --> 00:37:23,438
belief that the Knights of the
1102
00:37:23,442 --> 00:37:24,912
Golden Circle buried massive
1103
00:37:24,910 --> 00:37:26,310
amounts of gold in certain
1104
00:37:26,312 --> 00:37:28,382
locations.
1105
00:37:28,380 --> 00:37:29,450
They buried them in underground
1106
00:37:29,448 --> 00:37:31,318
caverns.
1107
00:37:31,317 --> 00:37:32,817
The biggest one that we're
1108
00:37:32,818 --> 00:37:34,318
pretty sure of is Victorio
1109
00:37:34,320 --> 00:37:35,450
Peak.
1110
00:37:35,454 --> 00:37:36,924
The Knights of the Golden Circle
1111
00:37:36,922 --> 00:37:38,992
went to Mexico to rescue
1112
00:37:38,990 --> 00:37:40,860
Maximilian, who was their ally
1113
00:37:40,859 --> 00:37:41,859
right after the Civil War, and
1114
00:37:41,860 --> 00:37:42,830
they brought this gold back to
1115
00:37:42,861 --> 00:37:46,471
Victorio Peak.
1116
00:37:46,465 --> 00:37:48,325
>> NARRATOR: Was Victorio Peak
1117
00:37:48,334 --> 00:37:50,304
really part of a network of
1118
00:37:50,302 --> 00:37:52,472
secret hiding places that
1119
00:37:52,471 --> 00:37:54,871
researchers claim were used by
1120
00:37:54,873 --> 00:37:56,813
the mysterious Knights of the
1121
00:37:56,808 --> 00:37:58,478
Golden Circle?
1122
00:37:58,477 --> 00:38:01,477
Unfortunately, we may never
1123
00:38:01,480 --> 00:38:02,880
know.
1124
00:38:02,881 --> 00:38:04,351
Because before Noss could
1125
00:38:04,350 --> 00:38:06,320
retrieve the horde of gold bars
1126
00:38:06,318 --> 00:38:07,888
he claimed was hidden deep
1127
00:38:07,886 --> 00:38:10,956
within the mountain, a rockfall
1128
00:38:10,956 --> 00:38:14,826
cut off access to the treasure
1129
00:38:14,826 --> 00:38:15,886
shortly before the U.S.
1130
00:38:15,894 --> 00:38:17,904
government suddenly annexed
1131
00:38:17,896 --> 00:38:19,966
Victorio Peak as part of the
1132
00:38:19,965 --> 00:38:21,295
White Sands Missile Base in
1133
00:38:21,333 --> 00:38:25,103
1953.
1134
00:38:25,103 --> 00:38:26,913
A coincidence?
1135
00:38:26,905 --> 00:38:29,905
Or could there be another, more
1136
00:38:29,908 --> 00:38:32,778
secret reason why the U.S.
1137
00:38:32,778 --> 00:38:35,348
Army wanted to keep the land
1138
00:38:35,347 --> 00:38:36,347
off-limits?
1139
00:38:36,348 --> 00:38:37,348
>> LONDON: They're doing
1140
00:38:37,349 --> 00:38:38,449
a lot of stuff out there.
1141
00:38:38,450 --> 00:38:39,890
From training troops to
1142
00:38:39,885 --> 00:38:40,915
testing missiles of every
1143
00:38:40,919 --> 00:38:42,119
description.
1144
00:38:42,120 --> 00:38:43,460
So you really can't have
1145
00:38:43,455 --> 00:38:44,785
civilians running around loose
1146
00:38:44,790 --> 00:38:47,060
on a missile range.
1147
00:38:47,058 --> 00:38:48,058
>> DELONAS: If there was an
1148
00:38:48,059 --> 00:38:49,529
actual America's Book of
1149
00:38:49,528 --> 00:38:51,058
Secrets, I think what it would
1150
00:38:51,062 --> 00:38:52,802
reveal is the very high level of
1151
00:38:52,798 --> 00:38:54,928
Oval Office presidential
1152
00:38:54,933 --> 00:38:56,903
awareness of events surrounding
1153
00:38:56,935 --> 00:39:00,935
Victorio Peak.
1154
00:39:00,939 --> 00:39:03,069
>> NARRATOR: June 5, 1963.
1155
00:39:03,074 --> 00:39:05,814
At the height of the Cold War,
1156
00:39:05,811 --> 00:39:07,811
President John F. Kennedy
1157
00:39:07,813 --> 00:39:09,083
and Vice President Lyndon
1158
00:39:09,080 --> 00:39:11,820
Johnson visit White Sands
1159
00:39:11,817 --> 00:39:13,417
Missile Range for a
1160
00:39:13,419 --> 00:39:14,819
demonstration of rocket and
1161
00:39:14,820 --> 00:39:17,490
weapons launches.
1162
00:39:17,489 --> 00:39:18,819
But there are those who claim
1163
00:39:18,824 --> 00:39:20,964
that during the official events,
1164
00:39:20,959 --> 00:39:23,159
Kennedy and Johnson also viewed
1165
00:39:23,161 --> 00:39:26,101
a much more secret but no less
1166
00:39:26,097 --> 00:39:28,827
awe-inspiring display at
1167
00:39:28,834 --> 00:39:30,544
Victorio Peak.
1168
00:39:30,536 --> 00:39:32,436
>> DELONAS: Recently one of
1169
00:39:32,438 --> 00:39:34,108
President Kennedy's security
1170
00:39:34,105 --> 00:39:37,105
team said that he had been sent
1171
00:39:37,108 --> 00:39:39,108
in advance to Victorio Peak to
1172
00:39:39,110 --> 00:39:41,110
prepare the site and that both
1173
00:39:41,112 --> 00:39:42,982
President Kennedy and Lyndon
1174
00:39:42,981 --> 00:39:44,981
Johnson actually entered the
1175
00:39:44,983 --> 00:39:48,453
caverns at Victorio Peak and,
1176
00:39:48,454 --> 00:39:50,994
um, viewed some of the treasure.
1177
00:39:53,459 --> 00:39:55,459
>> NARRATOR: Five months later,
1178
00:39:55,461 --> 00:39:58,001
John F. Kennedy was assassinated
1179
00:39:57,996 --> 00:40:01,466
in Dallas, and Lyndon Johnson
1180
00:40:01,467 --> 00:40:03,867
became the 36th president of the
1181
00:40:03,869 --> 00:40:06,069
United States.
1182
00:40:06,071 --> 00:40:08,871
And it was Johnson who became
1183
00:40:08,874 --> 00:40:10,984
the first U.S. president to
1184
00:40:10,976 --> 00:40:13,006
have an airstrip constructed
1185
00:40:13,011 --> 00:40:15,481
at his personal residence,
1186
00:40:15,481 --> 00:40:18,851
outside Fredericksburg, Texas.
1187
00:40:18,850 --> 00:40:20,950
But why?
1188
00:40:20,952 --> 00:40:21,952
>> CHILDRESS: Lyndon Johnson did
1189
00:40:21,953 --> 00:40:22,953
some things that other
1190
00:40:22,954 --> 00:40:24,164
presidents never did.
1191
00:40:24,155 --> 00:40:25,955
He would have military planes,
1192
00:40:25,957 --> 00:40:28,857
including Hercules cargo planes,
1193
00:40:28,860 --> 00:40:30,130
actually fly in and out of his
1194
00:40:30,128 --> 00:40:31,158
ranch.
1195
00:40:31,162 --> 00:40:33,132
And that was something of a
1196
00:40:33,131 --> 00:40:35,171
mystery, because no one really
1197
00:40:35,166 --> 00:40:37,036
knew why military planes and
1198
00:40:37,035 --> 00:40:38,765
cargo planes should be flying
1199
00:40:38,770 --> 00:40:40,170
in and out of Lyndon Johnson's
1200
00:40:40,171 --> 00:40:41,171
ranch.
1201
00:40:41,172 --> 00:40:42,842
>> GETLER: I believe that the
1202
00:40:42,841 --> 00:40:44,881
gold that was at Victorio Peak
1203
00:40:44,876 --> 00:40:47,176
has been completely removed.
1204
00:40:47,178 --> 00:40:48,478
It was taken out, I believe,
1205
00:40:48,480 --> 00:40:52,480
during the Johnson years.
1206
00:40:52,484 --> 00:40:53,924
>> NARRATOR: Did President
1207
00:40:53,919 --> 00:40:55,189
Lyndon Johnson have secret
1208
00:40:55,186 --> 00:40:57,186
knowledge of the gold that was
1209
00:40:57,188 --> 00:40:59,488
hidden deep inside Victorio
1210
00:40:59,491 --> 00:41:00,791
Peak?
1211
00:41:00,792 --> 00:41:03,062
And if so, did he order that
1212
00:41:03,061 --> 00:41:05,861
the gold be removed?
1213
00:41:05,864 --> 00:41:08,934
The facts may remain a mystery.
1214
00:41:08,934 --> 00:41:10,044
Because, although there is still
1215
00:41:10,035 --> 00:41:11,795
no concrete evidence that gold
1216
00:41:11,803 --> 00:41:13,943
was ever hidden at Victorio
1217
00:41:13,939 --> 00:41:16,539
Peak, Terry Delonas continues
1218
00:41:16,542 --> 00:41:19,512
his family's decades-long quest
1219
00:41:19,511 --> 00:41:21,551
to excavate the site.
1220
00:41:21,547 --> 00:41:24,017
In 1992, under the watchful
1221
00:41:24,015 --> 00:41:25,815
supervision of the U.S.
1222
00:41:25,817 --> 00:41:28,087
military, he was even granted a
1223
00:41:28,086 --> 00:41:29,516
brief access.
1224
00:41:29,521 --> 00:41:30,521
>> DELONAS: We finally broke
1225
00:41:30,522 --> 00:41:32,222
into one of the major fissures
1226
00:41:32,223 --> 00:41:34,033
and we believe it was access
1227
00:41:34,025 --> 00:41:36,055
to the main treasure caverns.
1228
00:41:36,061 --> 00:41:37,831
That was a Friday afternoon.
1229
00:41:37,829 --> 00:41:39,969
Our excavation crew came out
1230
00:41:39,965 --> 00:41:41,065
from the dig site that day
1231
00:41:41,066 --> 00:41:42,896
feeling pretty happy and perky.
1232
00:41:42,901 --> 00:41:45,901
The MPs noticed that, and we
1233
00:41:45,904 --> 00:41:47,844
were evicted the following
1234
00:41:47,839 --> 00:41:48,839
Monday.
1235
00:41:48,840 --> 00:41:50,840
Our equipment was confiscated, a
1236
00:41:50,842 --> 00:41:52,312
fence was built around Victorio
1237
00:41:52,310 --> 00:41:54,850
Peak, and we were never allowed
1238
00:41:54,846 --> 00:41:57,976
access again.
1239
00:41:57,983 --> 00:42:00,193
>> NARRATOR: Why did the U.S.
1240
00:42:00,185 --> 00:42:02,245
military prevent Terry Delonas
1241
00:42:02,253 --> 00:42:04,863
from accessing the cavern?
1242
00:42:04,856 --> 00:42:07,256
Did they have secret knowledge
1243
00:42:07,258 --> 00:42:09,558
of what he might find there?
1244
00:42:09,561 --> 00:42:10,861
>> DELONAS: There are so many
1245
00:42:10,862 --> 00:42:12,132
great treasure stories, but
1246
00:42:12,130 --> 00:42:13,870
this is the only one that seems
1247
00:42:13,865 --> 00:42:15,565
to have had a really overt
1248
00:42:15,567 --> 00:42:17,197
attempt by some individuals in
1249
00:42:17,202 --> 00:42:18,872
the government to suppress the
1250
00:42:18,870 --> 00:42:20,870
truth about the events that
1251
00:42:20,872 --> 00:42:23,882
happened at the peak.
1252
00:42:23,875 --> 00:42:26,005
>> NARRATOR: Missing
1253
00:42:26,011 --> 00:42:27,151
masterpieces.
1254
00:42:27,145 --> 00:42:29,815
Mountains of gold.
1255
00:42:29,815 --> 00:42:32,015
And a hijacker who vanished
1256
00:42:32,017 --> 00:42:34,847
without a trace.
1257
00:42:34,853 --> 00:42:36,293
Is the U.S. government doing
1258
00:42:36,287 --> 00:42:38,817
everything it can to locate
1259
00:42:38,824 --> 00:42:42,164
America's lost treasures?
1260
00:42:42,160 --> 00:42:45,000
Or are they deliberately and
1261
00:42:44,996 --> 00:42:48,096
mysteriously intended to
1262
00:42:48,099 --> 00:42:51,899
remain lost forever?
1263
00:42:51,903 --> 00:42:54,113
Perhaps the only way to know for
1264
00:42:54,105 --> 00:42:55,965
sure is to keep digging.
1265
00:42:55,974 --> 00:42:56,944
Keep searching.
1266
00:42:56,975 --> 00:42:58,975
And keep unlocking the secrets.
1267
00:42:58,977 --> 00:42:59,947
Captioning sponsored by
1268
00:42:59,978 --> 00:43:01,978
A&E TELEVISION NETWORKS
1269
00:43:01,980 --> 00:43:02,980
Captioned by
1270
00:43:02,981 --> 00:43:03,981
Media Access Group at WGBH
1271
00:43:03,982 --> 00:43:05,322
access.wgbh.org
83515