All language subtitles for Unsolved.Mysteries.S03E21.480p.WEB-DL.AAC2.0.H.264-PLAYREADY_track3_[und]

ANNOUNCER: This program is
about unsolved mysteries.

Whenever possible, the
actual family members

and police officials
have participated

in recreating the events.

What you are about to see
is not a news broadcast.

ROBERT STACK: 1957.

At the height of the Cold War,
Army Lieutenant Paul Whipkey

was an observation pilot for
government atomic bomb testing.

Almost immediately, he
began to show symptoms

of radiation poisoning.

Then Paul Whipkey vanished
and was declared a deserter.

Did he get lost and
perish in Death Valley?

Or was Paul Whipkey recruited
for a top-secret mission?

Tanya Kopric and Richard
Bocklage, two lovers,

a study in contrasts.

She was a promising physician
dedicated to her career.

He was a struggling
pharmacy student

with an unpredictable temper
and a penchant for murder.

In 1936, the Depression and
the looming threat of poverty

took Gary Rossman
from his family.

Now Gary's sister Gwen
hopes you can help

find her long lost brother.

Join me.

Perhaps you may be able
to help solve a mystery.

[theme music]

Tanya.
Here, let me--

Hi.

ROBERT STACK: In March of
1980, Dr. Tanya Kopric fell

in love with Richard Bocklage.

She was a practicing
resident at the Truman

Medical Center in Kansas City.

He was a pharmacy student at
the University of Missouri.

It seemed an unlikely match.

Richard was 10 years
younger than Tanya.

He had grown up in St.
Louis, the quintessential

all-American boy.

Five years earlier, Tanya
had emigrated from Yugoslavia

to study medicine,
leaving behind all

of her friends and family.

Like many immigrants, Tanya
Kopric dreamed of an America

paved with gold.

She was determined to overcome
the tremendous obstacles

of building a career and
a life in a new country.

At 34, she seemed to have
achieved the American dream.

Except for one thing.

Tanya longed for someone
to share her life with.

Enter Richard Bocklage.

Richard was young and
dynamic and showered Tanya

with attention.

Soon after they met, he
moved into Tanya's apartment.

Six months later, Richard
proposed and Tanya accepted.

But her friends had strong
misgivings about the younger

man Tanya intended to marry.

IVAN GREGORIC: I did not really
like him because he was using

her financially and morally.

He was using her
for a lot of things,

like using her
Master charge card

and was using her
car, using everything.

ROBERT STACK: Richard spent
more and more time with Tanya

and less time in class.

Midway through his
sophomore year,

he fell behind in his studies.

Unbeknownst to
Tanya, Richard was

perilously close to
flunking out of school.

JANE LEIGH: He was
not real motivated.

He wanted it.

He wanted to be a
pharmacist, but you

have to want it bad enough
to devote many, many hours

to the academic study.

End of it.

And I'm not sure he
was willing to do that.

ROBERT STACK: On July
19, 1980, university

officials notified Richard that
he was academically ineligible.

Look, Tanya, if you just
go to the school and you--

look, would you just go
to talk to Dr. Sandlin?

Pull a few strings--

ROBERT STACK: Richard demanded
that Tanya use her connections

in the Admissions Department to
have him readmitted to school.

--look, you've got
to help me do this.

No.
You must help yourself.

Help myself?

How am I gonna do that
if I'm not in school?

- I won't do it.
- Come on.

IVAN GREGORIC: I
was thinking maybe

he's down to drugs or alcohol
because his behavior was

changing.

He was kind of a wild person.

I can't find my
electric razor.

I don't know.

Well, see if you
can find it, will you?

ROBERT STACK: Richard began to
exhibit violent mood swings.

For three weeks, Tanya
tolerated his outbursts.

Finally, on September 2,
she broke off the engagement

and ordered Richard
out of her apartment.

Two weeks later, Richard
Bocklage returned to class

as if nothing had changed.

One instructor familiar with
Richard's explosive disposition

asked the assistant
dean to speak with him.

Richard, I need to
talk to you for a minute.

Sure.

Could we go in the hallway?

Richard, we don't show you
being enrolled in this class.

Well, Admissions
said it would take

a few weeks for the
paperwork to come through.

That could very
well be, but that's

something you'll have to take
up with the admissions board.

Look, I know last quarter
I had a little trouble,

but I'm trying now,
and I have to--

Richard, this has everything
to do with your grades.

Fine.
Fine!

Richard, there's a--
there's a proper proce--

Ah!

OK.

JANE LEIGH: Richard always gave
me the impression that anything

that happened was
not his fault. It

was just that he could
not cope with the fact

that this was his
responsibility.

And again, he just
couldn't believe

that this was happening to him.

ROBERT STACK:
Increasingly desperate,

Richard wrote to the
admissions office

begging school officials
to reconsider his case.

On September 18, at 3:00 PM, the
Admissions Committee convened

to determine Richard's fate.

The decision was unanimous.

Jackie, would you
please take care

of that as soon as possible?

ROBERT STACK: Richard's
appeal was denied

and a secretary was ordered
to call him with the news.

Hoping to avoid a
confrontation, the committee

quickly dispersed.

At 3:45, two professors
spotted Richard driving

towards the dean's office.

They immediately headed
in the opposite direction.

Excuse me.

Have you seen
Professor Strickland?

Sorry--

ROBERT STACK: Bocklage
roamed the hallways searching

for the dean of admissions.

Under his arm, he carried
a large manila folder.

Some witnesses feared that
it concealed a weapon.

The dean in?

No, he's not.

When will he be back?

SECRETARY: I'm not sure
he's coming back today.

I'll just wait for him, OK?

OK.

ROBERT STACK: Three hours
later, Tanya Kopric returned

to her apartment after work.

By the time police and
paramedics arrived,

Tanya Kopric was dead.

She had been shot three times in
the head with a .45 automatic.

I came out, and then I
heard the first gunshot.

And I turned and he just--
he shot her two more times.

WARREN MILLER: There was
a witness at the scene

and she saw this man walk up
to the side of the doctor's car

and shoot her three
times in the face.

She recognized him as
being the man that dated

Dr. Kopric, Richard Bocklage.

Later during the
investigation, we

found out that Mr.
Bocklage had purchased

a .45 caliber handgun himself.

And when we checked
his residence

to see if the weapon was there,
we found out it was gone.

ROBERT STACK: Authorities
launched an immediate search

for Richard Bocklage.

Six days later, Royal
Canadian Mounted Police

found Richard's car in
Thompson, Manitoba, Canada,

more than 900 miles
north of Kansas City.

Richard was seen by
two area residents.

He then dropped from sight.

WARREN MILLER: I
personally think

he's back in the United States.

I think he would have
gotten tired of being

that far north with no family.

That's not his style.

His style was a little bit
faster, a little flashier,

a little looser.

That might have been
OK for a year or two,

but I think he's back.

I think he's back
here somewhere.

ROBERT STACK: Two months
after Tanya was murdered,

her parents in Yugoslavia
notified police

that they received
an unsigned letter

postmarked September 16, 1980,
two days before the murder.

The envelope was addressed in
Richard Bocklage's handwriting.

The letter was a vengeful
diatribe which took the tone

of a terrorist manifesto.

RICHARD BOCKLAGE:
"Dear Kopric family,

your daughter, Tanya
Kopric, has been executed

in Kansas City, Missouri.

She has caused so
much grief, anguish,

and turmoil to so many Americans
that this act was necessary.

Her execution was inevitable."

ROBERT STACK: At the
time of Tanya's murder,

Richard Bocklage
was 24 years old.

He is 6 feet tall and
weighs 170 pounds.

This computer-aged
photograph shows how he might

look today at the age of 34.

Next, the haunting story
of an army lieutenant

who mysteriously vanished.

His commanding officer believes
he was on a secret CIA mission.

August 17, 1958, Death
Valley, California.

Temperature, 120
degrees Fahrenheit.

42 miles from the nearest
town, a Fish & Game warden

is surprised to come
across an abandoned car.

The keys are still
in the ignition.

There is no sign of foul play.

The car is registered
to Lieutenant

Paul Whipkey of Fort
Ord, California,

nearly 400 miles away.

The army states that Whipkey
had been missing for five weeks

and, in fact, has been
declared a deserter.

Surprisingly, Paul
Whipkey had always

been considered
a perfect soldier

and no one could
understand why he would

choose to desert his post.

I don't think Paul deserted.

It was completely out
of character for Paul

to do such a thing.

He was a loyal American
soldier devoted to his work.

I think the army knew
exactly what happened to him

and he was part of a big
smokescreen cover-up.

ROBERT STACK: The strange
and unsettling account

of Paul Whipkey
began at Pennsylvania

State University, where he
was an ROTC honor graduate.

In 1954, after basic training,
he was granted a coveted slot

at Army Pilot School.

In July of 1956, Whipkey was
posted at Fort Ord, California.

Two years later, he was
assigned the duties of captain,

even though he remained a
first lieutenant in rank.

TOM REEVES: Paul
was quite worried

about his own capability, if
he had the leadership ability,

and if he could take
care of this job

or perform in a proper manner.

He studied a lot, and
he spent many hours

at night trying to learn the
job and to do a good job.

ROBERT STACK: Whipkey seemed to
undergo a personality change.

He became withdrawn and somber.

He also began to suffer several
upsetting physical symptoms,

which may have been a result
of a temporary duty assignment

in the summer of 1957.

Paul spent two months at
Camp Desert Rock, Nevada,

as an observation pilot for
government atomic bomb tests.

In that role, he was exposed
to radioactive fallout.

He soon noticed unusual
blotches on his skin.

Several months later,
back at Fort Ord,

he had to have all of
his teeth extracted.

July 10, 1958.

Late in the afternoon,
Whipkey left Fort Ord.

He said his destination
was Monterey, California,

less than a mile away.

Paul Whipkey never
returned to the base.

The next morning, he was
listed absent without leave.

After 30 days, he was
declared a deserter.

The following week, his car
was found in Death Valley.

Army investigators
traced a gasoline receipt

found in the car to
Mojave, California,

145 miles from Death Valley.

Whipkey had purchased
gas there on July

the 11th, the day
after he left Fort Ord.

The evening before,
Whipkey had signed

the guest register
at Whites Motel

and apparently spent the night.

The next morning, he drove
out of Mojave and vanished.

The Army concluded that
Paul Whipkey had broken

under the stress of
his new assignment,

wandered off into the
desert, and without food

or water, perished.

The Army report made
no mention of Paul

Whipkey's physical symptoms.

His body was never found.

And Paul's brother Carl
Whipkey immediately began

to investigate on his own.

More than 30 years
later, he is still

trying to piece together the
truth about his brother's

disappearance.

On the very morning
Paul turned up missing,

two soldiers stripped
his room at Fort Ord.

Everything was
removed, including

Paul's personal belongings.

CARL WHIPKEY: Regulations
state that the next of kin

or legal representative
must be notified

before packing
belongings, and they

didn't notify us at that time.

I was very suspicious
of this action

as soon as I discovered
this had taken place.

ROBERT STACK: Four weeks after
Paul Whipkey disappeared,

a rancher driving through
Death Valley saw his car.

It was driven by a man
in military uniform.

Paul Whipkey left Fort Ord
wearing civilian clothes.

When the car was
found a week later,

a pile of cigarette
butts was beside it.

Paul Whipkey did not smoke.

Also troubling to
Whipkey's family

was the fact that
the Army did not

mount a search for Paul's
body until nine months

after his car was found.

And it was only by
accident that Carl Whipkey

heard about the car at all.

CARL WHIPKEY: The only
way that I learned

about it was due to
a unofficial call

to an enlisted man at Fort Ord.

A half an hour, he
called back very excited,

and he said this is
classified information

and requested that I did
not tell anyone where I

had received this information.

After I was informed
that Paul was a deserter,

I called six army headquarters.

And I was inquiring
about his status.

I found it almost
unbelievable that he would

be classified as a
deserter, and I was curious

what was the basis for it.

And I was quickly
and promptly advised

that Charlie, forget this.

The case has been closed, and
I would recommend that you

don't carry it any further.

And in essence, I
was told to shut

up and drop it and blow away.

ROBERT STACK: In 1957,
Lieutenant Colonel Lewis

was a captain stationed
at Camp Desert Rock.

He recalled the
day he saw two men

in plain clothes talking to Paul
Whipkey and another officer.

CHARLES LEWIS: On the way
to the airfield one morning,

there was two visitors
on the airfield

over talking with Paul.

I noticed that they had gone
directly to the airfield

instead of reporting to
operations, which was required

for a purpose of security.

So I asked them for
their identification.

Excuse me, gentlemen.

Did you see that
sign over there?

Yes, sir.

This is a restricted area.

Do you have any identification?

Yes, we do.

CARL WHIPKEY: They showed me
their military identification

cards and the picture did
verify who the two were.

Looks OK.

Is everything all right here?

Yes Yes, sir.

Carry on.

ROBERT STACK: Lewis did not know
which government agency the two

men represented, but
over the next few weeks,

he often saw Paul Whipkey
talking to the same two men.

CHARLES LEWIS: When Lieutenant
Whipkey would come in

after they had
departed, you could

feel and sense a rigidity
in his personality

traits and his mannerisms.

Whipkey, is everything OK?

Everything's fine, sir.

You sure?

Sure.

Finally I asked him, Paul is
there something that is wrong?

Something you need to explain?

And he said, no, I'm fine.

I have no problems.

ROBERT STACK: Years
later, Lewis realized

there could have been a logical
explanation for Whipkey's

association with the men.

CHARLES LEWIS: During
that era, there

was a tremendous amount
of nationwide recruiting

conducted by the CIA.

And with Paul's qualification--

Lieutenant Whipkey's
qualifications,

he would have been an
exceptional candidate

for such an assignment.

CARL WHIPKEY: January of the
year he disappeared, he told me

during a telephone conversation
that he was going to be going

on an assignment,
that he was going

to make a name for himself.

Before he could
tell me what it was,

he was interrupted by
some officers moving

in the proximity of his
desk and he could no longer

talk to me about the subject.

I theorized that
Paul was recruited

into an Army/CIA joint program
that was going on at that time.

When Paul left
Fort Ord, he drove

to the town of Mojave,
California and checked

into Whites Motel.

It's a possibility that he was
met there by Army intelligence

agents or the CIA and
transported to Southeast Asia,

possibly from Edwards Air
Force Base, which is nearby.

- Lieutenant.
- Good morning, Mr. Johnson.

Good morning.

Everything going all right?
- Yes, sir.

Thank you.
- Sleep OK last night?

Yes.

ROBERT STACK: Carl
Whipkey theorized

that when Paul left on
his secret assignment,

he turned his car
over to the military,

who kept it for four
weeks before driving

it into the desert.

CARL WHIPKEY: I think the Army
took his car out to the desert

to get rid of it.

Out of sight, out of mind.

If they would just say, yes,
he died on a secret assignment,

we'd live with that.

We're all loyal American
citizens in our family

and we would buy that.

And until the army
tell us what happened,

there will be no
peace in our family.

ROBERT STACK: There is
a final puzzling twist

to the saga of Paul Whipkey.

One of Paul's closest friends,
Lieutenant Charlie Guess,

had served with him
at Camp Desert Rock

and again at Fort Ord.

Guess disappeared in
an airplane 11 days

after Paul had vanished.

Just over a year
later, Guess' remains

were found near a crashed plane
northwest of Death Valley.

Curiously, the wreckage showed
a different serial number

from the plane Guess
had taken off in.

In 1982, the Army Board for
Correction of Military Records

met to review Paul
Whipkey's case

and found no basis to support
his status as a deserter.

Two months later,
the board officially

changed Whipkey's
status from deserter

to died in the line of duty.

Carl Whipkey hopes that
someone watching tonight

served with his brother at
Camp Desert Rock or Fort Ord

and has knowledge that
will shed light on Paul's

mysterious disappearance.

Next, a woman's quest to
find a long-lost brother she

has not seen for
more than 50 years.

Perhaps you can help.

[music playing]

Katherine Bickford
was 19 years old when

she fell in love with Andrew
Rossman, a man twice her age.

It was 1932 at Lake
Placid, New York,

the height of the
Great Depression.

Rossman cut a dashing romantic
figure, a rugged outdoorsman

who made his living
hunting and trapping

in the Adirondack Mountains.

This is the spot I
was telling you about.

Oh, Andrew, it's beautiful.

ROBERT STACK: Katherine
knew that Andrew was not

the marrying kind,
but she was in love

and nothing else mattered.

By that time and
place, Katherine

and Andrew's relationship
was certainly unconventional.

They never married,
but lived together

and had two
children, a daughter,

Gwen, and a son, Gary.

Sadly, family life
and responsibility

proved too much for Andrew.

He left Katherine when
Gary was still an infant.

Katherine went to
work as a waitress

to support her
children, but was often

made to feel ashamed of
being an unwed mother.

However, one
family, the Winches,

who had known Katherine
from childhood

never wavered in their support.

[bells ringing]

PRIEST: Suffer the little
children to come to me

and do not forbid them, for of
such is the Kingdom of Heaven.

ROBERT STACK: In
the winter of 1935,

Katherine had her
son Gary baptized.

Despite local gossip, the Winch
family went to the baptism

and stood by Katherine.

Amen.

This is Gary
Bickford, the newest

member of the family of God.

ROBERT STACK: By the
time of Gary's baptism,

Katherine was in deep
financial trouble.

After the ceremony,
she took Florence,

the Winches' daughter, aside.

What is it, Katherine?

What's wrong?

I got kicked out of
my apartment today,

and I can't even get back
in to get any of my stuff

until I get work.

What are you going to do?

My uncle owns a
restaurant in Scruton Lake

and he said I could come
there and work for him,

but I can't take Gary with me.

Would you like us to
keep him for a few days?

ROBERT STACK:
Katherine found herself

facing the most
difficult decision

a mother could ever make.

Are you sure?

ROBERT STACK: She
had to earn a living

to provide for her
children, even if it meant

being separated from them.

Looks like we're all set.

Ready to go?

Daddy, Katherine
wants to know if we can

take in Gary for a few weeks.

Is that OK?

Oh, a few weeks?

Sure.

ROBERT STACK: Several
days later, Katherine

left Lake Placid to take the
job at her uncle's restaurant,

secure in the knowledge that
Gary would be well cared

for by Florence and her family.

Katherine's daughter, Gwen,
who was three years old,

went to live with Katherine's
mother and father.

Three years passed.

Katherine visited
whenever she could.

Throughout this period,
Gwen stayed her grandparents

and Florence Winch
took care of Gary.

GWEN SANDERS: Florence and
my mom were great friends.

And when my mother left
my brother with Florence,

I think she felt that
it was a temporary thing

and that she would get
herself together and be

able to support the family.

But it never really
worked out that way.

They were really
difficult times.

Times were very hard.

And Katherine was two
hours away, working,

and she couldn't get there.

It wasn't something that
she didn't want to do.

It was something
that-- a circumstance.

ROBERT STACK: In 1939,
when Gary was three,

county child welfare
officials contacted Katherine.

She signed papers
which she thought

would allow Florence to continue
in the role of foster parent.

In fact, the papers gave
the county authorization

to put Gary up for adoption.

FLORENCE WINCH
LAVALLEY: When they

told me that he was ready for
adoption, I tried to adopt him.

But I wasn't married at
the time, and in those days

you couldn't adopt a child
unless you were married.

So then my mother and
father tried to adopt him.

They were too old.

There was an age
limit at that time.

We had very good neighbors,
and the neighbors

took up a petition at
that time and asked

the county if I could keep him.

And of course that was unheard
of, so I couldn't keep him.

ROBERT STACK: Finally,
the early spring of 1939,

a county welfare worker
informed Florence's family

that Gary would be
taken away for adoption.

She gave them no
idea when or where.

Florence began to prepare
Gary for the journey.

Look at the train, Gary.

It's big, isn't it?

This train goes all
the way to New York.

FLORENCE WINCH LAVALLEY: When
we would go by the railroad

station to go to church
or go to the store,

he was afraid of the
train, I suppose,

because it made a noise.

It was a steam engine.

So in order that he
wouldn't be afraid of it,

I took him up to the train.

The conductor saw us, and I was
talking to Gary about the train

and it wouldn't hurt you.

The conductor said,
come on onto the train.

We went onto the train and
I sit in a seat with him.

The train didn't go anywhere.

It was sitting there.

But I don't think he was
afraid of the train after that.

Do you mind if we
sit here a while?

FLORENCE WINCH LAVALLEY: I
didn't talk to Gary at all

about him leaving.

I never told him that
he might be going away.

Now I could see
maybe I should have,

but at that time, I didn't.

I never told him that he
was ever going to leave.

ROBERT STACK: Eight days
after Gary's fourth birthday,

the child welfare
worker returned.

FLORENCE WINCH LAVALLEY:
One morning at 9 o'clock,

the social worker drove
up and came into the house

and said she was
going to take him.

I always thought
that she wouldn't

come and that, one way or
the other, we would keep him.

Either Katherine or our
family would keep him.

But of course,
that didn't happen.

I-- I packed a
few things for him.

That won't be necessary.

And I said, well,
could he take a toy?

No, he couldn't.

So with that, she just
took him by the hand

and the car was down in front
of the house, and she took him.

I think now, as I look back
on it, that Gary thought

he was just going for
a ride with somebody,

that he was coming back.

I don't think he ever thought
he was going to leave.

ROBERT STACK: By the time
Florence was able to contact

Katherine, it was too late.

Gary had already been
taken to New York City.

Eventually, Katherine and her
daughter, Gwen, were reunited.

But in 1984, Katherine died.

She never had a chance to tell
Gary how much she loved him.

Well, I felt a real desire
to find my brother in that I

wanted to express to him
how much guilt my mother had

experienced through her
life because of this loss

and to maybe be able to
fill in some of the feelings

that she had toward
him and still carried

onward even to her death.

And I thought, well, I could
give this to him on her behalf.

I think it's about the last
thing I could do for her.

ROBERT STACK: Gary Bickford was
born in Saranac Lake, New York,

on June 6, 1935.

He has brown hair
and brown eyes.

On Gary's birth certificate,
his first name was probably

spelled with two Rs
and his last name may

have been listed as Rossman.

When we return, the perplexing
case of a missing millionaire.

His family believes
he was murdered.

[music playing]

St. Croix in the
US Virgin Islands,

a lush tropical getaway known
as the American paradise.

In 1984, Jim Rice, a wealthy
and successful contractor,

came to the island of St.
Croix with his wife Astarte

to build their dream house
and live the good life.

But two years later, the
marriage was crumbling.

Astarte, I wish
you'd reconsider coming

to San Francisco with me.

I've already told you I can't.

I've already made plans.

ROBERT STACK: In July, 1986,
Jim planned to fly to San

Francisco for shoulder surgery.

Astarte refused
to accompany him,

so Jim Rice was scheduled
to make the trip alone.

Now police believe he
never made the trip at all.

--get an operation
without his wife.

Which is more important?

KATHLEEN CLEMENTS: My dad was
scheduled to arrive on July 29

and he never showed
up at my house,

never called from the airport.

We just never heard
from him again.

ROBERT STACK: Jim
Rice was a man's man.

He played football
in college and was

a highly decorated bomber pilot
during the Second World War.

Through his
construction business,

Jim amassed a sizable fortune
worth nearly $2 million.

In 1970, Jim Rice
met Astarte Davis

and was instantly captivated.

Jim turned his life upside
down and left his first wife

to marry Astarte.

It proved to be a tumultuous
union, marked by business

failures, separations,
reconciliations,

and finally Astarte's
imprisonment in 1982

for bankruptcy fraud.

Yet through it all, Jim Rice
remained loyal to Astarte.

Then three years
after Jim vanished,

Astarte Rice also disappeared.

She was born Estebelle
White, but as

an adult changed
her name to Astarte,

after a primitive
goddess of love.

She had three grown sons
from a previous marriage

which ended in divorce.

She seemed to make my dad
happy and I was happy for him.

And I figured he saw something
in her that I didn't see.

And as long as he was
happy, then that was OK.

ROBERT STACK: In 1979, Jim and
Astarte moved to Kona, Hawaii

and eventually started a
charter fishing business.

Two years later, while
Jim was out of town,

Astarte's son, Noble, was
cleaning their boat when

it was rocked by an explosion.

Noble was seriously
injured but recovered.

By good fortune or design,
Astarte just happened to be

near the dock at the time.

DUKE DIEDRICH: Well, there
was a large debt on the yacht

and they carried
insurance on the yacht.

Noble indicated that he was just
aboard cleaning the ship, which

is kind of strange because
it was like 2 or 3 o'clock

in the morning, a
strange time to be

cleaning a boat using gasoline.

And the yacht caught
on fire and he said

it was just purely an accident.

But there was sufficient
cause for the authorities

back there in Hawaii to
charge both Astarte and Noble

with arson of the yacht.

ROBERT STACK: After
the explosion,

Jim and Astarte separated.

Both returned to California.

Astarte and her son
were never extradited

back to Hawaii for trial.

In April 1981, Astarte
filed for bankruptcy.

A year later, she was
charged with altering

official court documents.

She was convicted and
sent to federal prison.

When Jim visited
Astarte in prison,

she convinced him that
she had mended her ways

and they reconciled.

After her release in 1983, Jim
and Astarte moved to St. Croix

in the Virgin Islands and
built their dream house

on an isolated bluff
overlooking the Caribbean.

KATHLEEN CLEMENTS: He
got down to St. Croix

and expected to
build his dream house

and Astarte was going
to go straight and not

get in any trouble.

And I think that he found out
that she was not rehabilitated.

ROBERT STACK: On July 20, 1986,
Jim phoned his daughter Kathy

in the States and
told her that he

would be flying to California
for shoulder surgery in a week.

He never arrived.

DUKE DIEDRICH: Jim disappeared
around the end of July in 1986.

Kathy kept trying to
reach him by telephone

and was totally unsuccessful
for about two weeks.

When she finally was able to
reach his home in St. Croix,

she talked to Astarte.

And at that time, Astarte had
told her that Jim had run off

with a woman from Australia.

No, he went off fishing
on the Great Barrier Reef

in Australia.

DUKE DIEDRICH: A few days later
when she talked to Astarte,

the story was that Jim
had gone on an airplane

and flown from St.
Croix to Miami.

So we had two completely
different stories.

And later on, Astarte denied
that either of these things

had occurred.

So we know that right
from the beginning,

she lied about what had happened
to Jim and how he disappeared.

ROBERT STACK: Two months
later, Kathy Clements

hired Dennis Sheraw, a
private investigator,

to look into her
father's disappearance.

I'm looking for a gentleman
by the name of James Rice.

He's a missing person.

ROBERT STACK: Sheraw
came across a customs

declaration dated July
28, 1986, the day Jim

was to leave for California.

On the form, Jim
Rice's signature

appeared to have been forged.

Sheraw notified the FBI.

I wonder if you'd do me
a favor and hold this aside

and I'll have one of the
agents from the FBI stop

by and pick it up so
they can process it.

We noted that
Jim supposedly had

flown on an airplane on July 28,
1986, from St. Croix to Miami.

In fact, the airplane ticket had
been bought by a person using

the name of Jim Rice
and, in fact, the people

who actually flew on
that flight were Astarte,

Astarte's son, Noble,
and Noble's girlfriend.

[knocking]

Come in.

ROBERT STACK: Private
investigator Dennis Sheraw also

discovered that, a week prior
to Jim's scheduled flight

to San Francisco,
Astarte had filed

documents which gave her control
of Jim Rice's entire estate.

--from your husband to Jim?

Yes.

Where is he?

He's-- we're
meeting him in Miami

very shortly and that's
one of the reasons

we're in kind of a rush.

DENNIS SHERAW: Probably the
key document was a power

of attorney in Astarte's name.

The investigation, however,
showed that this original power

of attorney was in the
name of Jim's daughter,

Kathy Clements and
Astarte had done

a cut-and-paste
job on the document

and inserted her
name in its place.

I feel, because Jim would have
known that his assets were

beginning to be changed
or taken away from him,

that Jim's disappearance had to
happen in that 12-hour period

from the time that he
last spoke to Kathy

to the following morning
when the documents

were presented to the notaries.

Hi, ladies.

I don't know if you
had a chance to look

at all the shirts
and everything yet,

but the jacket is really great.

DENNIS SHERAW: Our
investigation showed

that, just days after
Jim's disappearance, all

of his personal effects,
his tools, his truck

were all sold in a garage sale
that was conducted at the house

and sold by Astarte
and Noble Davis.

ROBERT STACK: Four months
later, Kathy Clements

received a typewritten
letter from Australia

signed by Jim Rice.

Once again, Jim's signature
appeared to have been forged.

And one other
discrepancy cast doubt

on the letter's authenticity.

DUKE DIEDRICH: The most
important thing was the fact

that the letter throughout
contained the words "I am"

put together.

We know that, from letters which
we can attribute to Astarte,

that that was a grammatical
error that she frequently used.

I just thought that was the
cruelest thing anybody could do

would be to write a letter
to a family of a missing

person posing as that
person still being alive,

giving an ounce of false hope.

I just thought
that was so cruel.

ROBERT STACK: Kathy
Clements and Dennis Sheraw

are convinced that
Jim Rice was murdered

and that his body lay somewhere
beneath the blue waters

of the Caribbean and that
Astarte Rice may hold

the key to solving the mystery.

In January 1989,
Astarte Rice was charged

with bank and mail fraud
because of her attempt

to seize Jim Rice's assets.

She was released on
bail and disappeared.

In 1991, Astarte
Davis-Rice was arrested

in Santa Barbara, California.

Because Jim Rice's body
had never been found,

authorities were unable to
charge her in his death,

though the FBI still
considers her a prime suspect.

Astarte did, however, plead
guilty to bank and passport

fraud in the United
States and in St. Croix

and served the first portion
of her 15-year sentence

in a medium security
prison in California.

In 1997, Astarte was transferred
to the minimum security

federal prison camp
in Dublin, California,

to complete the
rest of her term.

A year later, taking advantage
of the lighter security,

Astarte Davis-Rice simply
walked out of the facility.

She was present
during the morning count

at approximately between
5:00 and 6:00 AM.

Then during the
course of the day,

there was a fire
drill conducted which

resulted in another
present count

being conducted at 10:00 AM.

She wasn't scheduled
to work that day,

and so it was the time frame
between the first count

and the second count that
she had the opportunity

to leave the facility.

She's very cunning.
She's smart.

She's intelligent.

And she's very dangerous.

She'll use anyone,
deplete their resources--

and that she's been
suspected of being involved

in the disappearance of people.

[music playing]

For every mystery,
there is someone,

somewhere who knows the truth.

Perhaps it's you.

[music playing]