Now an undercover plan to solve the mystery. Who was the real master mind . We all stopped breathing for about ten seconds. I want it to be wrong. I really wanted to be wrong. The American Dream. So many of us want it. The loving family. The honest job. The home you can afford. The idea that you can start over here. And in this new country, that better life will be yours. This is a story about that dream. About a family who worked for it, won it, and then what happened to them. This wasnt part of anyones dream. Someone just robbed our house. They tied me and my mom up. How could this happen in this Safe Gated Community . In this home they work so hard to have . Is everybody okay . I dont know. They just beat me up. I dont know where my mom is. And who deserved it less than this woman . My mom brought the heart to the family. Ryan girgis was the baby of the family. Spoiled rotten by his mother ariet. We couldnt function without my mom. She was the chef in the household. The counsellor. The full service mom. Oh, yeah. She was really, really nice, a sweet lady. She was one of those mothers who showed her love through food. Her cakes were legendary. Making every birthday that much more special, says her older son richard. She made this really good upside down pineapple cake. I remember cake and ice cream at birthdays. Growing up, richard was inseparable from his mom. Was she like the other moms your friends had . No. I think she was more on the conservative side. Because of where she came from. Ariet girgis was born in egypt and then came to the u. S. When she was 29 years old. Her family settled in Northern California. Ariet led a comfortable all american life. But cultural ties are strong and in 1980, ariet was called back to just a minute, to egypt to meet a nice young man. Magdi. She really liked him. Years later she would reminisce about how their romance blossomed. In egypt you cant just go out on dates and stuff. So they went together to the movie theater. When it got real dark, my dad reached over and gave her a kiss on the cheek. Which was a very big deal. Yeah. For her it was. It almost sealed the deal. It was american way of falling in love but she seemed happy. She and magdi married just two weeks later in egypt and moved together to california. Had rich was born and then ryan. Richard was delighted to have a brother to play with and to watch over. So you were his protector, big brother. Yeah. I would keep an eye on him. I love my brother with all my heart. How did you and your brother get along . Like best friends. I always looked up to him. Their dad was the classic hard working immigrant. Magdi earned his license to become a respiratory therapist. Then worked endless hours to keep a roof on his familys head and clothes on their backs. He came from a really poor country. For him, to come here, he was working real hard to build things up and try establish a life. Magdi emphasized education. Teaching both his sons math at an early age. He strove and saved to help them all prosper and they felt he would do anything to keep his family safe. He didnt want your family to get pushed around. Not at all. It took many years of saving and investing but he finally put together enough home to buy this home in a gated community in westminster, a quiet town in california. The girgis family was well on its way to build the life they worked so hard to build. Then in 2004, october 29, all of it came crashing down. Ryan girgis, then 17, was out with friends and stayed out later than he was supposed to. When did you get home . Like 1 00 the 1 30 that night. I slid the back door open and i went upstairs. His dad was not at home. His brother at work. His mom, asleep. I remember he was fixing up my ipod dock and i fell asleep to music night. Next thing he know, i hear a door opening and the first instinct was maybe it was my brother. His older brother richard. His best friend and protect ocoming home. So he thought. But wasnt richard. I looked back and thats when i felt like a hand being placed on my mouth. And it was a hand with some type of cotton glove. Can you see who it is . He know it was a black male, heavy set. I was going for my brother and my mom to help me and i was really scared. Ryan said he fought the intruder. I bit down on the hand and i rolled off the bed. I popped up and i was shoved into the wall. He was telling me to shut up and calm down. The man put duct time over ryans mouth and started taping his hands and feet together. Right after that, a second suspect comes inside. He starts making threats to me like, dont get your mom killed. Dont get your mom killed. That had to be terrifying to hear. Yeah. I was really terrified. What did you think was going on . I didnt know. May be a robbery or something. A terrifying situation was about to get much worse. Through hallway, i saw my mom yelling, take anything you want take. Anything you want. And then after that i noticed the guy was taking my mom away. Toward her bedroom. Ryans attacker dragged her into the closet but then noticed the duct time was slipping around ryans hands. I heard him taking some shoe string off one of my shoes. Using the shoelace, the man tied ryan hands behind his back. Through closet door, ryan pleaded with his attacker. I was saying please dont kill me. Please dont kill me. I started praying. And he said he know your circumstances. I know what youre going through. Im not going on kill you. He know your circumstances. Strange as those words sound, ryan found them somehow comforting. I started feeling a little sense of relief. But then ryan heard a sound that would could that will to haunt hip. I heard cutting the sheets. I thought he was cutting my sheets up. I didnt know what was going on. And what was going on was worse than anything he could have imagined. Coming up i will kill. A panicked call to 911 and another to his brother. I was really freaking out. Whats going on . What really happened inside that house . Oh, my god. Oh, my god. When dateline continues. Atd here, evan whoo dont do it. Dont you dare. I dont think so [ sighs ] its okay, big fella. Were gonna get through this together. [ baseball bat cracks ] nice rip, robbie. Raaah when you bundle home and Auto Insurance through progressive, you get more than just a big discount. Im gonna need you to leave. You get relentless protection. [ baseball bat cracks ] you get relentless protection. I dont have to worry about that, do i . Are irritated. Harmful bacteria lurk just below the gum line. Crest gum detoxify, voted product of the year. It works below the gum line to neutralize harmful plaque bacteria and help reverse early gum damage. Gum detoxify, from crest. Im a talking dog. The other issue. Oh. Im scratching like crazy. Youve got some allergic itch with skin inflammation. Apoquel can work on that itch in as little as 4 hours, whether its a new or chronic problem. And apoquels treated over 7 million dogs. Nice. And. The talking dog thing . Is it bothering you . No. Itching like a dog is bothering me. Until dogs can speak for themselves, you have to. When allergic itch is a problem, ask for apoquel. Apoquel is for the control of itch associated with allergic dermatitis and the control of Atopic Dermatitis in dogs. Do not use apoquel in dogs less than 12 months old or those with serious infections. Apoquel may increase the chance of developing serious infections and may cause existing parasitic skin infestations or preexisting cancers to worsen. Do not use in breeding, pregnant, or lactating dogs. Most common side effects are vomiting and diarrhea. Feeling better . Im speechless. Thanks for the apoquel. Awww. Thats what friends are for. Ask your veterinarian for apoquel. Next to you, apoquel is a dogs best friend. Bbut what if you couldg do better than that . Like adapt. Discover. Deliver, in new ways, to new customers. What if you could come back stronger . Faster. Better. At comcast business, we want to help you not just bounce back, but bounce forward. And now, with one of our best offers ever, were committed to helping you do just that. Get a powerful and reliable internet and voice solution for only 29. 95 a month for three months. Call or go online today. Ryan girgis had just been through a terrifying ordeal. Two men breaking into his home in a gated community in the middle of the night. Both black guys, they were really huge to me. Their whole persona was just gangsterism. Like thugs. You had never seen them before. Never, ever. They tied him up. Threw him in a closet. But not before he saw one of the men drag his mother into her bedroom. He said he thought he heard the men walk out. Thought he heard a car drive away. But for a few more moments, ryan sat in that dark closet, heart thumping, afraid, he says, to come out. It was now or never. Ryan says he managed to untie himself and grab his cell phone. I went down the hallway. I looked to the right really quickly. I noticed that the door was in like closed position. To your mothers bedroom. To my mothers bedroom. Why didnt you check on her . I wanted to get out. I thought i need to get out of this house and come back with someone. I already got overpowered by myself. He ran outside the house and called 911. What happened . Two black guys just jump in the my house. Dont make me have to kill you. Dont make me have to kill you. I will kill. Dont get your mom killed. Ryan called his dad magdi. He was shocked and asked two things. If ryan was okay . And where ariet was . And ryan didnt know. He also called his older brother richard who was working the night shift at the queen mary hotel. What did richard say . He questioned if i was all right, he questioned where was mom, and he said who do you think it is . Someone you know . Why would richard think that you might know the people who broke into the house . He felt like i was the one who got tied up and they came into my room. So he was just questioning, is it something having to do with you . Did they have a personal vendetta on you or anything . As youll see, that is a question that would could that up again. After the call, richard left work and drove to the house but the police tape was already up and they wouldnt let him through. I was really freaking out. Whats going on . I was asking him, where is my mom at . Where is my mom at . Police took richard and ryan to the station. The boys were surprised to find themselves split up and sitting in separate interview rooms. Ryans hands were bagged to preserve any evidence. But before detective cosmetic ask too many questions richard asked one of his own. Can i talk to my mom, please . Mom is dead. Oh, no. No, shes not. I didnt hear that. I didnt hear that. Ryan said he didnt know what was happening right then but he could tell it was bad. Oh, my god. Oh, my god. I just heard like a scream. And im like, what just happened . It sounds like richard, my brother, and he is screaming to the top of his lungs. No, shes not. Shes not. You cant see richard. You can just hear him. Could i hear him in the other room and he was going hysterical. I never heard him scream like that in my whole life. Oh, my god. Does my little brother know . Police soon told ryan the same awful news. Their mother ariet had been murdered. Now, the cops started asking questions. That wasnt all they did. The police took my fingerprints, cotton swabs, dna, you name it. They did it. Are they treating you like suspect or a witness . They are treating me like a suspect at this point. Did you have a chance to check on your mom . No. I just ran out. Richard was facing questions that were slightly different but just as skeptical. Why would someone break into your house . I dont know, man. I wish i knew. Did the cops take your finger prints . And your dna . Yes. Did you think they were looking at you as a suspect . Yeah. It was scary. I had never been in that situation with police. But the focus steamed linger on his brother ryan. This wasnt directed against him that you know of. I dont know, dude. The first reaction was, is that one of your friends . Did someone break in . That was your first reaction . As police continued their questioning, one question stood out above all. Why would these two thugs come into your house, basically, not hurt you, and then really brutally kill your mother . And leave behind a witness . Yeah. This investigation was about to take a turn that no one expected. It looked like two ghosts had just talked about this and committed the ultimate crime. Dna and csi. What will the evidence reveal . When dateline continues. Oh, we love our new home. Neighborhoods great. Amazing school district. The hoa has been very involved. These shrubs arent board approved. You need to break down your cardboard. Thank you. Violation. Violation. I see youve met cynthia. At least geico makes bundling our home and Car Insurance easy. And it does help us save a bunch of money. Two inches over regulation. Thanks, cynthia. For bundling made easy, go to geico. Com they have businesses to grow customers to care for lives to get home to they use stamps. Com print discounted postage for any letter any package any time right from your computer all the Amazing Services of the post office only cheaper get our special tv offer a 4week trial plus postage and a digital scale go to stamps. Com tv and never go to the post office again like real bad. We cant wait to get you back so weve added temp checks, face coverings, social distancing and extra sanitizing to get the good times going again. Were finally back. And cant wait until you are too. Ryan girgis was attacked in his own home and hours later, given the worst news imaginable. While he had managed to escape, his mom ariet had not. She was dead. All of which begged a pressing question. Why would they kill her and leave me . Police and even his own brother were asking the same thing. How many murders do you get in westminster . Not that many really. She was a deputy d. A. In orange county, california. The ariet girgis case landed on her desk. Its a nightmare. The thing most people would fear, to be home in the sanctity of your home and have intruders come in and do the unthinkable. Police found ariets body near her bed. She had been stabbed multiple times. That odd tearing sound ryan said he heard . Investigators believed it was the sound of the knife ripping through the mattress as ariets killer slit her throat. Was that knife found at the scene . It was not. James wilson was a Patrol Officer at the time of the murder. Wilson said the details of the crime seasonable pointed to something other than a Home Invasion robbery. In part because nothing appeared to have been stolen. This was an burglary in which she was collateral damage. Definitely not. Cash was in plain sight. Jewelry, too. Even ryans ipod and new dock, all untouched. The house wasnt even rummaged through as if they were looking for something. Whats more, this was a gated community. The killers would have needed a gate code to get in. It starts getting more interesting as to who could have double it. Crime scene investigators collected mounds of evidence and surprisingly, with all that blood, not a single trace of unknown dna. All the results were people in the house. Ariet, richard, magdi and ryan. A witness who for some reason was left alive. Two guys came into the house, beat up ryan, tie him up and kill ariet in a brutal handson way and leave no trace . Thats what it looked like. It looked like two ghosts had just come in and committed the ultimate crime. It seemed improbable and it encouraged detectives to look closely at ryan. He claimed to be a victim. But was he really . Police learned the friend he was with the night of the murder had offered ryan a knife for protection. Just hours before ryans mother was brutally killed with a knife. A knife that had not been found. They also learned ryan smoked marijuana and not just at the occasional party. He smoked every day. And he wasnt just smoking. Police found small amounts of marijuana in ryans room along with a bong, baggies and tin foil and there was more like the description ryan had given detectives about the two suspects. Both male blacks, he said they were large. He said they acted like they were from a gang but that was something that we still didnt know 100 sure if that was true or not. Claiming two black men committed the murder seemed almost too convenient. And more troubling, if ryan had been beaten by gang members much bigger than he was, why didnt he look like it . Theres no question if ryan had been in a serious duking it out fight with a couple of guys, that he would have ended up much more battered than he was. If they wanted to hurt him worse than they did, definitely so. Yes. And remember, ryan had told police that one suspect said, i know your circumstances. Im not going to kill you. Was that true . And if so, what did it mean . And then there was issue of ryan claiming to have left the house before he so much as took a peek into his mothers bedroom. Did that strike anybody as odd . I think so. As a detective, you have to consider why someone would do that. Soon detectives found out. Ryan had more dark secrets than theyd realized. Coming up hes the only one who survived. He is practically unharmed. New questions for ryan. And a new clue. Had he received a warning before the attack . Take in fragrance inspired by nature. 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