Transcripts For MSNBCW Dateline Extra 20190203 : vimarsana.c

Tonight, the hunt is on. A gleaming yacht. I thought, why did you get on that boat . Reporter a scheming businessman, and a missing fortune. Youre a multimillionaire and you dont have any money. Fred high seas adventure to heartstopping murder. I dont think ill ever get another case quite like this. Reporter who killed the radio star . Welcome to dateline, everyone. He was one of the lucky ones who found fame and fortune. A dj with a golden voice on the raid crowe and a golden touch in life. Then he vanished in a mystery that stretched from the coast of california to a quiet town in montana. And the clue to it all, you might never guess, wrapped in a napkin tucked in a cabinet, hidden in a library. But would anyone find it . Heres keith morrison. Reporter down below the surface of the pacific ocean, on the far side of californias Catalina Island, is a silent current. Strange, how it flows up to the swelling coastline of santa barbara. Then, just before the open sea, turns back to glide again past this storied island. With, one sunny day in may 2006, someone in it. I have a saying that id rather be lucky than good. Reporter ken clark is a detective with the l. A. Sheriffs department. Been at it a long time. As has Robert Martindale. More than 50 years between them. But nothing like the case that literally floated to them on a lonely reach of ocean out by catalina. Would never have had the case at all, except we were lucky that we had some boaters leaving Newport Beach going to Catalina Island and they came upon a body floating in the water. Just happened to see it . Just happened to see it. Thats a big ocean out there. Absolutely. So the chances of it being seen are, what, needle in the haystack . Very slim. Reporter the sailors had spotted a flock of shrieking seagulls perched on top of a body. It looked like it had been in the water for some time. It was in extreme decomposition phase. Right. Bloated and barnacles had attached themselves. Barnacles already . Absolutely. Yes. Reporter there was no i. D. On the body. It was labeled a john doe and taken to the l. A. Coroners office. Well, initially it was believed to be a drowning victim. Reporter but who was he . Identifying their john doe posed a huge challenge. We could only say it was a human being and that was it. Reporter though there was one odd thing. Medical examiner pointed to the mans left hand. Three fingers were missing, and clearly had been, said the examiner, for years. When the victim was young, he had an accident where he severed Three Fingers on his left hand. Reporter which at least offered a slim chance of getting an i. D. We were hoping if someone were to call and said, my friend is missing. Tell us something about him. Reporter and then another piece of luck. Someone did call. Looking for a friend he hadnt seen for weeks. A friend who had lost Three Fingers in a Junior High School woodshop accident. And just like that, john doe had a name. And a whole remarkable life. Our victim we identified as Steven Bailey williams. Reporter Steven Bailey williams, better known to his friends, family, and fans as steven b. All hit 96 kpke, friday morning with the bird and the b. Reporter a dj with a distinctive voice and personality that had made him famous in the 1980s as part of the hit denverbased radio show steven b and the hawk. Reporter doug johnson and steven were friends for more than 30 years. They were the guys that really pioneered twoman morning radio. They were funny. They were great writers. They were great comedians. Weve been over here at kpke for about what . A hundred years . Hes lovable. I mean, you just Everybody Loves steven b. Reporter young Sylvia Noland had a big crush on steven b when they both worked in a hawaii Radio Station back in the early days, so she worked up her nerve. I went in and asked steven b. If hed be my date to the beach boys concert. And he turned me down and i was just like devastated, you know. And so i was sitting in my little sales cubical. And i whats the matter with me . I know. And the general manager walks in and he goes, i think you need to know something. And i said, what . And he goes, well, if you were a boy he would have gone. And im like here i am from west virginia, 18, im like, what . And he goes, hes gay. Its like oh, ok, well i can accept that then. So reporter and that very day sylvia and steven began a warm, lifelong friendship. Many afternoons spent lingering at this coffee shop. And many memorable evenings. What were those dinners like . Oh, stevens an amazing cook. If you were patient, he was good. He was a phenomenal cook. But you had to be geared to eating at, like, 10 30 or 11 00 because he was the type of person that if he would talk to you, you would have his undivided attention. So by the time we would eat its, like, everybodys drunk. Reporter and then somewhere in the middle of the 90s, the Radio Business seemed to tire of stevens huge deep voice and happy style. He got a job in the winery business for a while. Then went home to care for his ailing father in Southern California. And in 2003 when his father died oh, he was devastated. Reporter and then, in the depths of his despair, a window opened to a whole new set of possibilities. Steven made a new friend who had just bought a yacht, planned to sail it around the world. Would steven like to go along, be the chef . Did he know anything about sailing . No, nothing at all. What did you think about that . Hes excited about this. Its a nice diversion. Its something for him to focus on after his dad died. I thought it was amazing. I said i i think its awesome. I was really excited for him. Reporter but now . The dream, the voice, the happy go lucky charm. All gone. What happened to steven b . Did he fall overboard . In the harsh white light of the pathology lab, the coroner peered down at the body and made a pronouncement. Steven b did not die of accidental drowning. Couldnt have. Because there was a bullet in the back of his head. When we come back, murder . Who might have wanted steven b. Dead . He was bad with money, and he was trying to manage the estate. When who killed the radio star continues. And everywhere i go theres always something to remind me. Of another place and time. Hey, darryl. Would you choose the network rated 1 in the nation by the experts, or the one awarded by the people . Uh. Correct you dont have to choose, cause, uh. Oh vo switch to the Network Awarded by rootmetrics and j. D. Power. Now get 300 off our best phones. Heartburn and gas . Fight both fast tums chewy bites with gas relief all in one relief of heartburn and gas tum tum tum tums tums chewy bites with gas relief and the army taught me a lot about commitment. Which i apply to my life and my work. At comcast were commited to delivering the best experience possible, by being on time everytime. And if we are ever late, well give you a automatic twenty dollar credit. My name is antonio and im a technician at comcast. Were working to make things simple, easy and awesome. Reporter there had been so much promise in the air that spring of 2006. And then he winds up floating face down seven miles off the coast of californias Catalina Island. A bullet hole in the back of his head. But who wanted him dead . And why . Reporter there had been so much promise in the air that spring of 2006. Reporter the second act of a radio man. Taurus. Reporter all that fun on the radio was over, yes, but now he was all set to sail the world. Live a dream. And then he winds up floating face down seven miles off the coast of californias Catalina Island. A bullet hole in the back of his head. But who wanted him dead . And why . Detectives ken clark and Robert Martindale started by asking his friends. What did you find out about him . The thing i noticed about this case and i give the credit to his friends was he was surrounded by a group of very Close Friends that knew a lot about him. These are lifelong friends. He was just a great sounding board, somebody who id call if i was angry, if i was frustrated, if i needed advice. He could talk you down. Yeah. Or talk you up as the case might be. Yeah, he could do both, usually at the same time. Reporter and recently steven had found a sounding board of his own. A new friend named harvey morrow. Oh hes just a quiet easygoing guy. He came up to him and said, oh my gosh, im such a huge fan of steven b. And the hawk. Steven thought that was awesome. Reporter steven soon became fast friends with harvey and his wife, debbie. Whatd you think of steven . He was so funny. And he had such a great love of music. And he loved to cook. And i thought, oh, this mans going to be perfect to go on the boat with us. Reporter ah yes, the boat. Harvey had it docked at the l. A. Yacht club. A 69foot beauty called the iolair mara. Harvey and debbie had big plans for that boat. Theyd talked about it ever since their first date. He says, what do you want to do when you retire . And i said, i want to sail all over the world. Reporter it was her dream of a lifetime and now debbie actually found the man who shared it. They married at the dawn of the new millennium, right here on the front porch of their new texas home. All that adventure to look forward to. And now harvey had invited steven to go along as chef on their beloved yacht. Steven moved aboard, lived with them on the boat. But before they set sail, there was some work to do. He had bought this kind of basically old rusty tub, right . Yeah, yeah, yeah. Reporter greg labano helped harvey fix up the old tub. Greg fashioned all the stainless steel trim. Felt a connection with harvey too. He was a wall street guy, investment banker. Rejecting society. A little bit like you had been. Yeah, yeah. Im an outlaw mentality. Thats why we bonded, you know. Reporter though as greg watched harvey pour money into the boat, the flatscreen, the teak, the 50,000 washer dryer. Holy cat, you can buy another boat for 50 grand. Sure. He just wanted the biggest and the best of what he could get, you know. Reporter before harvey dropped out, hed been in the Investment Banking business. Had some old Stock Investments that finally paid off, he said, and so he plowed the money into the boat. Along with what a stillworking debbie was able to contribute. He says, dont worry, you know, so what if you have to work another year. He said that . Yeah. Yeah. What did you think . Its like, well, okay. Work another year. But by the time im in it. The boats bought. Hes already sunk so much money into it. So its like, lets just get this done. Cant walk away now. Right. Cant walk away now. Lets get it done. Reporter they did not ask steven to kick in a share, which was probably just as well, given how steven was with money. The creative side of his mind worked very well. But he was not a good money manager. Reporter Steven Bailey williams, as his friends told the detectives, had lived hand to mouth most of his life. He was a radio guy, made good money, and spent it. Finance not a strong suit, said his friend doug johnson. He was bad with money and he was paperwork averse. He would just forget to file his taxes for a few years. How many years would he go . His record was eight. Reporter but then stevens father died, and the bad money manager was suddenly confronted with a windfall. Steven inherited nearly 2 million. So now hed have to manage real money. He was trying to manage the estate, trying to get things organized, which for steven was an almost impossible battle. Sure. Reporter but happily, there was harvey, the exbanker, to help him get the money socked away. A nice, safe tax haven, offshore. Steven had said, hes helping me with stuff. Hes a retired financial planner, investment banker. Just the sort of person i need right now. Yeah, and, boy, this will be a real great help. Reporter but that was just business. What really caught stevens imagination was sailing around the world. That is, if the boat ever got finished. Because every time he turned around it was a new computer being put in or new paintings and fireplaces and satellite systems. Reporter and two bathrooms, and its full kitchen. Well, it never seemed to end. Two years passed. Three years. Steven waiting and waiting. He had wanted to go to Culinary School but harvey kept saying, oh, were going to set sail soon. Were going to set sail soon. Reporter and then one day, without a word to anyone, steven simply disappeared. Coming up the questions begin. Where was steven . And what had happened to his newfound fortune . I said, how could this be . I mean, youre a multimillionaire, and you dont have any money. When dateline continues. Im a bunch of wind. And just like your stomach after that strip mall sushi, well, im a bit unpredictable. Lets redecorate. Whatsyamatter tanya, i thought you loved being spontaneous . I do. And if youve got the wrong Home Insurance coverage, i might break the bank too. So get allstate, and be better protected from mayhem, like me. Heartburn and gas . Fight both fast tums chewy bites with gas relief all in one relief of heartburn and gas tum tum tum tums tums chewy bites with gas relief make ice. D be mad at tech thats unnecessarily complicated. But youre not, because you have e trade, which isnt complicated. Their tools make trading quicker and simpler so you can take on the markets with confidence. Dont get mad. Get e trade. [sneezing] you dont want to cancel your plans. [sneezing] cancel your cold. The 1pill power of new advil multisymptom cold flu knocks out your worst symptoms. Cancel your cold, not your plans. New advil multisymptom cold flu. Reporter in the spring of 2006, exdj steven b. Williams was ready. Eager. Any day now, hed be setting off to sail around the world. And then suddenly, without saying a word to any of his lifelong friends, he vanished. I was worried sick. And we were all kind of having the same angst that that he had just dropped off the radar completely. Reporter his friends called each other, compared notes. No one had seen steven for weeks. So i called harvey. And i said, hey, harvey. Were all really concerned about steven. Have you seen him . And he goes, oh, well, hes over in hawaii. He went to hawaii. Reporter now, that was strange. Because harvey told another friend steven went to mexico. Whatd you think . I thought, well, steven wouldnt go into mexico at gunpoint. I mean, it was completely out of character for him. Reporter then harveys friend greg, the stainless steel guy, said he noticed something strange about stevens usually cluttered cabin. It was completely sterile. Just nothing in it, not one loose object. Reporter it was as if steven had never set foot in here. And then those boaters made their shocking discovery. Steven face down in the ocean, a bullet in his head. What was it like to get that news . Oh it was awful. I felt like i was in some made for tv movie. Its like, this cant be happening. None of us could believe it was happening. Reporter detectives ken clark and Robert Martindale wanted to have a look at harvey morrows boat, stevens last known residence, and they wanted to talk to harvey. They got a search warrant. Brought a whole team to the harbor. Seized the yacht. When you first walked in, was it clean, absolutely clean. Clean enough for you, and these are my words, eat off the floor. Reporter pristine, in fact. And for all the diligent efforts of the forensic people, there was no sign of steven bs existence. No evidence hed ever set foot on that yacht. They did find some hightech navigational equipment, which they hoped would tell them where the boat had been, but when the expert analyzed it he said it was never connected. It was never turned on. Reporter there was a manual for a handheld garmin gps. But only the manual. We went and we searched and we searched and we searched. And we just didnt find the gps. Reporter nor did they find harvey morrow. He seemed to have disappeared. And thats when they started digging into harveys background. Just who was he anyway . Some said he was as wealthy as 12 million or more. Reporter though when detectives talked to the neighbors here at the yacht club, at least one of them wasnt quite so sure that harvey was for real. She says, me and my husband, we have money, we live on our yacht. I knew when i saw harvey that he was full of it because no one dresses like gilligan and the skipper when theyre living on a yacht and yet harvey always showed up these are her words. He showed up in costume. Reporter and harveys employment history . Turned out it was not quite as goldplated as harvey had been letting on. As the detectives discovered. I think everything harveys been involved with throughout his career in banking or stockbroking has gone belly up. Everything hes involved in seems to have some type of fraud involved. Its one con after the next. I dont think hes ever actually had a bona fide job where hes been there for a period of time. Reporter which led to an obvious question what kind of job had harvey been doing managing stevens inheritance . Sylvia noland remembered shortly before steven vanished, somebody broke into the trunk of his car where he kept all his personal paperwork, his passport, his trust documents. All stolen. And i said, well, please tell me that the document between you and harvey, you know, wasnt in there. And he goes, what document . And i said, well, you know, for him investing your 2 million. I said, you have something documented, right . And he goes, no. And i said, you gave some man you just met a couple years ago 2 million and you got nothing in writing . Reporter she told the detectives, of course. And they took a good look at harveys boat and soon learned something that probably should have been obvious all along. That fancy, dolledup tub, with its pricey power winches, its expensive electronics, its polished teak, washerdryer, fireplace, was paid for, practically every dollar, by the unwitting steven b. That answer turned up in meticulous detail in harveys own ships ledger. He put, according to his own ledgers, 1. 7 million into that yacht. So almost the whole amount he took from steven went right back into that yacht. Reporter no wonder, said stevens friend sylvia, no wonder, the last time they went out to lunch she had to pick up the check. He was so embarrassed. And i said, how could this be . I mean, youre a multimillionaire and you dont have any money. And he said, well, harveys got it all tied up in these offshore accounts. Reporter the detectives discovered harvey morrow had put stevens inheritance money into an offshore bank account in the British Virgin islands, just as he said he would, but then he secretly brought it back to the u. S. In small increments and used the money to refurbish the boat. Harvey just sucked up all that money . All of it. Reporter steven, by his own admission a lousy money manager, trusting, vulnerable after the death of his father, was, said detectives, the perfect mark. Steven was no match for this man at all. Reporter nor, apparently, was his wife, debbie. I was really very much in love with harvey. Reporter but as she now began to discover the man she loved had lied. A house in vail, colorado, which he told her he owned outright, actually belonged to someone else. The money she sent him when she went back to work . Vanished. The Auto Insurance he told her he bought for her didnt exist. And what he said was a 125,000 diamond ring he slipped on her finger when he proposed . A fake. It was cubic zirconium. Reporter just who was that man she married and believed she loved . I dont think harvey even liked me. You know, love is not only blind, in my instance its also deaf and dumb. Reporter but devastating as those lies were, debbie couldnt bring herself to believe harvey could kill. I never once thought it would, it would be harvey that would have hurt steven. Reporter and in fact, there was nothing definitive tying harvey to stevens murder. No sign of any violent struggle, not a drop of stevens blood anywhere on the ship. If only the detectives could talk to harvey. It turned out they had just missed him. An employee at the yacht club told investigators harvey was standing nearby in plain sight, observing as the cops scoured his boat. But by the time they heard that, harvey was long gone. From friends and knowing his past, we there was some speculation that he would go south and he had some dealings in belize before and we believed thats possibly where he was heading. Reporter so they put out feelers, belize, the virgin islands, harveys old haunts down there. But the trail went cold. Stevens murder apparently unsolvable. When we come back, a mysterious stranger surfaces hundreds of miles away. Mysterious stranger surfaces hundreds of miles away. The more he would talk, the more intrigued i became. Could he hold the key to the case . Did you ever get any money from steven and put it in your account . When who killed the radio star . Continues. Afeteria and just chow down midday . You mean, like, lunch . Come on. Voted most likely to help people save 668 when they switch. At this school . Didnt you get caught in the laminating machine . Ha. [ sighs ] box, have a great summer. Danielle. Ooh. Danielle, control yourself. Id like to slow it down here with a special discount for a special girl. Danielle, this ones for you. With a special discount for a special girl. Heartburn and gas . Fight both fast tums chewy bites with gas relief all in one relief of heartburn and gas tum tum tum tums tums chewy bites with gas relief reporter it was september 2006 when a smoothtalking stranger walked into petes auto dealership in great falls, montana and got himself a job as a used car salesman. Reporter it was september 2006 when a smoothtalking stranger walked into petes auto dealership in great falls, montana and got himself a job as a used car salesman. He was quite the character. Wasnt your typical car salesman persona. Reporter Joe Parsetich was the finance manager at petes auto. He was at the dealership the day the new guy started. He was very sure of himself to the point of a little bit smug. In montana, where you have a lot of downtoearth meatandpotatoes people, where theyre very friendly towards one another, having somebody with a smug, cocky attitude isnt going to go over very well at times. Reporter still, joe was friendly in the way montanans are known for. He gave the guy the benefit of the doubt. One sunday evening, they got to talking. Joe says the new salesman told him how he used to be a successful stockbroker, had a beautiful lakefront home in texas. They even looked up his property on google earth. So why on earth, joe asked, would someone leave all that and come to great falls . He had shared that his wife and a couple of her friends had taken their yacht down to the gulf of mexico and were gonna go sailing for the weekend. During that time, a storm ensued. And the boat was capsized, and his wife and her friends all perished, along with the boat. So he had shared that looking at large bodies of water was just more than he can bear. And he wanted to get as far away from that kind of environment as he could. Reporter and who did this tragic past belong to . Joe said the wealthy salesman told him his name was harvey morrow. Harvey was quite chatty with joe, but one thing harvey didnt know joe, his attentive audience, was a former police officer. And harveys amazing story made joes antenna buzz a little. The more he would talk about the loss of his wife and his boat, the more intrigued i became. Reporter so on his way home that night, joe took a little detour, drove by the hotel where harvey said he was staying. And when i drove by, i didnt find his suv at that location that he said. Which i didnt think suspicious at the time. But i still, for whatever reason, drove around to see a few other hotels or motels, to see if i found his vehicle. And i located his vehicle at a place called the imperial inn. Reporter why would harvey lie about something as benign as where he was staying . When joe got home that night, he went straight to his office and turned on the computer. I entered harvey morrows name on google. And i was surprised what i had found. Reporter a simple Google Search and there it was. A news article describing the murder of disc jockey steven b. Williams. And harvey morrow was listed as a person of extreme interest. Reporter but if harvey really was a fugitive, wouldnt he have changed his name . Maybe it was an awful misunderstanding. Still, joe called the captain of Cascade County Sheriffs Department in great falls and told him what he had learned. And it wasnt long before sgt. Clark in california returned to his desk and saw the red light on his phone. There was a message. And he said i understand you might be looking for harvey morrow. Wow. Whatd you whatd you think when you heard that message . Well, i was happy. Reporter it was another stroke of luck. You go to montana because im looking you down in the British Virgin island. Everyone ive talked to in Southern California says thats where you like to go. Thats where youre going to be. Unfortunately for you, again, lucky for me, we got a retired cop that is not going have a bleeding heart. Hes going to have sympathy and empathy and hes going to say, okay, great. But behind the doors hes going to go run you on the computer and goes, oh my goodness. Reporter sergeants clark and martindale boarded a flight to great falls, montana to pay the elusive harvey a visit. Joe helped arrange a little meeting at the car dealership. I told harvey, i said, i need you to go back out there and get this one particular vehicle prepared, that one of his customers were coming back to look at it. Reporter and when harvey stepped out front, officers from the Cascade County Sheriffs Department were waiting for him. They just walked up and said, harvey, here are some guys from california that want to talk to you. Put your hands behind your back. Youre under arrest. Click, click. That was that . That was that. Its pretty civilized, isnt it . Very civilized. Very civilized. We should all live like they do in great falls. I was i was impressed. I was very impressed. Reporter police searched harveys landrover, discovered guns and ammunition. They loaded him into the back of a squad car, took him to the local sheriffs dept, eager to hear what he had to say. Yeah, our my primary focus is about your vessel, harvey. How much money did you put into that boat . I dont know. What would you estimate . What would you think . Roughly. I have no idea. It was over a period of a long time. And so we wanted to key in on him. How much money did you have . How much money did you spend . Where did the money come from . And things of that nature. He was very vague. It became pretty frustrating. Did you set up stevens trust fund . You lost me. Did you set up stevens trust fund . Steven took care of his own stuff. Did you ever help steven with his finances after his fathers estate sold . Ask steven. Okay. Did you ever get any money from steven and put it into your account . We passed money back and forth. How many times did you receive money from steven . Was it more than once . I dont remember. Do you remember how much money you got from steven in total . No, no. You dont . He was very vague. I believe he talked to us thinking he was going to outsmart us in that interview. Was he trying to prevent you from getting him on the record, pinning him down in a way that you could use it against him later . I felt that. Youre asking questions that but harvey, youre a banker, man. You should know the answers to these questions. I dont want to talk anymore. Youre done . Yeah. I mean, youre not telling me anything. Youre well, were not finished yet. I told you i got a lot to tell you and i do and i will tell you. Tell it to my lawyer. But tell it to what . Tell it to a lawyer. Reporter of course, he was going to need one. Harvey was extradited to california, charged with first degree murder. But for all the evidence that harvey conned and stole from steven, evidence of murder was pretty thin. At least without another stroke of luck. And thats exactly what they got. A missing piece of the puzzle discovered at last. He said you need to look at the data thats in this gps. When dateline continues. Onemillionth order. Millionth order. There goes our first big order. 44, 45, 46. How many of these did they order . Ooh, thats hot. You know, we could sell these. Nah. We dont bake. Opportunity. What we deliver by delivering. danny s voice of course you donte because you didnt . Your job isnt doing hard work. Its making them do hard work. And getting paid for it. vo snap and sort your expenses to save over 4,600 at tax time. Quickbooks. Backing you. We all make excuses for the things we dont want to do. But when it comes to colon cancer screening. Im not doin that. I eat plenty of kale. Ahem, as i was saying. With cologuard, you dont need an excuse. All that prep . No thanks. That drink tastes horrible but. Theres no prep with cologuard. I cant take the time off work. Who has two days . And i feel fine no symptoms everybody, listen all you need is a trip to the bathroom. If youre 50 or older and at average risk, cologuard is the noninvasive option that finds 92 of colon cancers. You just get the kit in the mail, go to the bathroom, collect your sample, then ship it to the lab this is your year own it cologuard is not right for everyone. It is not for high risk individuals, including those with a history of colon cancer or precancer, ibd, certain Hereditary Cancer syndromes, or a Family History of colon cancer. Ask your doctor if cologuard is right for you. Covered by medicare and most major insurers. Itin 30,000 precision parts. Is right for you. Or it isnt. Its inspected by mercedesbenz factorytrained technicians. Or it isnt. Its backed by an unlimited mileage warranty, or it isnt. For those who never settle, its either mercedesbenz certified preowned, or it isnt. The mercedesbenz certified preowned sales event. Now through february 28th. Only at your authorized mercedesbenz dealer. Just as important as what you get out of it . Our broccoli cheddar is made with aged melted cheddar, simmered broccoli, and no artificial flavors. Enjoy 100 clean soup today. Panera. Food as it should be. The only thing i remember is losing control, and i hit the pier face first. 911 operator, muffled 911, whats your emergency . overlapping radio calls the first responders, they are the reason why im here. Just um, just makes me thankful, for everything that i have. Reporter in september of 2006, doug johnson was walking on the beach, thinking about his friend of 30 years, the murdered onetime dj steven b. Williams. Reporter in september of 2006, doug johnson was walking on the beach, thinking about his friend of 30 years, the murdered onetime dj steven b. Williams. And i see this light on the beach. And i thought, now, what can that be . Id dropped my cell phone and it had landed faceup. And the panel was lighting up and i walked over to it and i picked it up and it was ken clark, detective clark calling to tell me that they had arrested harvey. It was a real great sense of relief. It was almost indescribable. Reporter which is perhaps where the movie version of this story would end. But real life is not quite like that. For all the suspicion of stevens friends, the murder case against harvey morrow was rather weak. No evidence sufficient to prove that harvey shot steven then dumped his body in the ocean. We were looking for stevens dna on the boat. Knowing that his death was caused by a gunshot wound it was pretty obvious that there should be something that said this is where it was. Reporter but there wasnt. No blood, no gun, no significant fingerprints. What they needed, couldnt find, was something that put the two men together on the far side of Catalina Island where that current would have caught the body, carried it round to the spot where boaters saw it floating face down in the water. They hunted everywhere for harveys gps, but they never found it. Months went by. Harvey sitting in jail. No luck for the investigation now. And then . A phone call. It was the commandant of harveys yacht club. He says, i found a handheld gps in the library of our club. Reporter the commandant told them someone in the club had found the gps, wrapped in a napkin and hidden in the back of a club library cabinet. And he says, that cabinet is in a position where harvey morrow always sits and reads all the time. And he showed us a garmin c60 which exactly matched in the way it looked. All the manuals that we had recovered months earlier on that yacht. Reporter here it was, the device they searched for on the boat and couldnt find. And he said, you need to look at the data thats in this gps. Reporter amazing thing. The gps preserved in its memory, in almost infinite detail, its very last trip. Which was as follows may 4th, 2006 around 2 p. M. , the gps headed out toward Catalina Island. Went to the back side, where it seemed to putter around aimlessly in the middle of the night. Then returned back to the dock 6 00 a. M. May 5th. That little device seemed to pinpoint the place and time of stevens murder. But how could detectives be sure the gps belonged to harvey and was on his boat . And then, what do you know. Luck again. When harvey bought the gps, he took a friend. I was with him in the car when we picked it up. And it was such a cool gps. Ive got one myself. That gps was a Pivotal Point in the investigation that really kind of sealed this whole case together. Reporter but though the gps evidence told detectives where harveys boat was the day steven was killed, how could they be sure harvey and steven were together on the boat at precisely that time . Electronic data is fascinating nowadays. Very fascinating. Our cell phones, we can also follow that signature. We were lucky again. Reporter lucky this time because of blackjack. Blackjack cell tower, Catalina Island, where both harvey and stevens cell phones pinged together just where the gps said they would be. After which stevens cell phone went to straight to voicemail and harvey sailed right back to his dock the next morning. Where he was late for a prearranged fishing trip with his friends. They basically said he looked disheveled. He looked as if he had been up all night. He was not himself. Reporter one question left. Exactly what happened on that fancy boat, the last moments of steven b. s life . Doug remembered steven was angry over harveys handling of his money. He had said that he was going to have a come to jesus with harvey. He was going to confront harvey about the money. Reporter did steven confront harvey over his lost fortune . Is that what led to this . We believe that they were both on deck and he walked up behind him and just walked up, put with the gun in the back of the head and pulled the trigger. Which can explain the lack of blood evidence. He just pushed him right over. Or he fell over. Reporter it took five years and over 30,000 pages of evidence to build the case against harvey morrow. Most of it hinged on a financial motive. All of it circumstantial. The detectives felt confident about the case they had so carefully assembled, while harvey all the while maintained his innocence. And then, the very first day of the trial the bombshell they didnt see coming. Coming up i thought, oh, my god, hes being set free. So many years and so many cons. Was there about to be another . When who killed the radio star continues. burke parking splat. And we covered it. Talk to farmers. We know a thing or two because weve seen a thing or two. We are farmers. Bumpadum, bumbumbumbum not long ago, ronda started here. And then, more jobs began to appear. These techs in a lab. This builder in a hardhat. The welders and electricians who do all of that. The diner staffed up cause they all needed lunch. Teachers. Doctors. Jobs grew a bunch. What started with one job spread all around. Because each job in energy creates many more in this town. Energy lives here. [sneezing] you dont want to cancel your plans. [sneezing] cancel your cold. The 1pill power of new advil multisymptom cold flu knocks out your worst symptoms. Cancel your cold, not your plans. New advil multisymptom cold flu. This is it guys. You ready . To have epix . Absolutely. Woooo youd laugh. Oh, ow. [ chuckles ] youd cry. Look, look, look, look, look, look, look,. Maybe even laugh while crying. What the fertilizer . Sounds pretty great, right . Riiiiiiiiiiiiiiiight just say, add epix and it can all be yours. Its easy to upgrade. And you dont want to miss out on everything epix. Reporter it had taken five long years to get to this point, but harvey morrow was finally being tried for the murder of steven b. Police and prosecutors felt confident. Reporter it had taken five long years to get to this point, but harvey morrow was finally being tried for the murder of steven b. Police and prosecutors felt confident. That is, until the defense gave its Opening Statement and things took an unexpected turn. During the Opening Statement, it was said that the money that harvey got from steven was money that was owed to harvey in a loan that happened many years ago. Reporter harvey loaned money to stevens father back in the 80s, the defense told the jury. They had a promissory note to prove it. Hadnt you encountered that along the way . No. It was part of the trust packet and the trust at this point, the numbers im getting from the court were over 33,000 pages of documentation. Quite quite frankly, we missed it. Reporter theyd missed evidence that seemed to show harvey wasnt stealing from steven at all. Had no motive to kill him. Suddenly, the whole case against harvey, fragile to begin with, seemed in danger of falling apart. And amid doubt about the new evidence, the judge declared a mistrial. I thought, oh my god. Hes being set free. Reporter but harvey wasnt set free. Instead, the state appointed to the case its third prosecutor in five years. This was my first case of this particular type. Reporter prosecutor john mckinney. How do you get ready . Quickly. Reporter his first task to address that alleged loan between harvey and stevens father, the issue that caused the mistrial. He spoke to stevens best friend and heard this i said i know its a complete fiction. I said, i know its fraud. Reporter and sure enough, when prosecutor mckinney took a closer look at that loan document stevens fathers signature didnt match. Classic sign of a con job, said the prosecutor. Even the idea that there had been any sort of relationship between morrow and Steven Williams father is nonsense, right . Bogus. Couldnt have possibly been. Couldnt have possibly been and wasnt corroborated by any evidence whatsoever. Reporter now he was ready for the new trial. He showed the jury, check by check, how harvey drained stevens accounts, all 1. 7 million, in just 3 years to dress up a boat that was never going to sail anywhere. The boat wasnt properly outfitted for a trip around the world. In fact, it was outfitted in such a way that suggests that it was just going to be a showpiece. It was going to be part of his con. Part of the image that he liked to sell to people. Reporter then the prosecutor took the jury through the gps and cell phone records and explained how that evidence put steven and harvey together on the far side of Catalina Island. After which, steven vanished and harvey told conflicting stories about where he supposedly went. I think the most damning evidence in this regard was the fact that despite having a history of calling mr. Williams on the telephone over the years that they knew each other, he never called his phone one time after the day the victim went missing. Reporter but that didnt mean harvey killed steven, the defense said. Steven b. Was so depressed about losing his career and his father, about getting older, that he killed himself. And the medical examiner testified it was possible steven could have shot himself. What was your opinion of the idea that he might have committed suicide . I think it was incredulous. I dont think he would have done it. Reporter still, it was another explanation and the jury would have to consider it. So now the courtroom waited and whispered. Would harvey take the stand . I told the investigators that i thought he was going to testify. And they didnt think so. They thought i was crazy. What made you think he would . Well, hes a con man and he likes to talk. And con men think they can talk themselves out of any situation. Reporter he was right. Sure enough, harvey was confident, selfassured. Had answers for almost everything. He didnt steal stevens money, he said. He came up with a story that no one had heard before his testimony. Reporter which was that steven actually owed him his entire inheritance to pay back a whole different loan. This second loan was verbal, said harvey, done on a handshake. Undocumented, naturally. But mr. Morrow thought he could sell it. He is a con man and he told it with a straight face. Reporter would jurors believe him . Stevens friend sylvia worried. You know, i was thinking, oh my gosh. What if he cons these people, you know, the way that he conned steven. Reporter and perhaps there was reason to worry. The jury stayed out for almost two full days. It was a long couple days, ill tell you that. Reporter and then, finally we the jury in the above entitled action find the defendant, harvey morrow, guilty of the crime of willful, deliberate and premeditated firstdegree murder of steven b. Williams. Oh my gosh. We were all holding hands. And when they read it, we all started crying and just were so grateful. Reporter and stevens many friends poured into the courtroom the day harvey was sentenced. Doug johnson read a statement for all of them. Things he had to say to harvey. For years you ate his food, lived and worked under what he thought was a common goal, the whole time stealing from him and ultimately taking what was most precious, his life. You worship a false god, the god of arrogance, ego and greed. Today our nightmare ends. Today yours really begins. Reporter harvey was sentenced to life without parole. After which his now exwife, debbie, invited us down to the pier where she took harveys fake Engagement Ring and the other Costume Jewelry hed given her and i threw them into the water as a tribute to steven. Reporter and his friends . Steven was part of my family. Hes part of the family you get to pick. I can open a great bottle of wine and sit there and think about steven. The pain fades. The memories are sustained. And thats the part that, you know, that ill just keep with me forever. The only way that i can kind of deal with it is i knew that he was eventually going to get on a boat and sail around the world. So i just kind of think of him out there, you know . Hes out there somewhere. Reporter out there like the happygolucky free spirit on the radio. Thats a good one. Reporter the man they called steven b. Have a good weekend. Bye thats all for now. Thanks for joining us. Im craig melvin. And im natalie morales. And this is dateline. Im going to destroy you. The fear was terrible. I cant even describe it. Its a surreal thing. People thought i was dead. The attack sudden, savage. I saw a man standing there. I heard multiple shots. The wife, the only witness. The only thing i could see was his eyes. Her story was concerning about a masked man, shooting her husband and leaving her alive. Im worried, did she hire somebody . Then a revelation. The dead man had a dangerous drm