"Mysteries at the Museum" Lindbergh Kidnapping: Mysteries at the Museum

1 00:00:06,440 --> 00:00:08,100 I'm throwing open the books on one 2 00:00:08,100 --> 00:00:11,570 of the most shocking crimes of the 20th century. 3 00:00:11,570 --> 00:00:13,910 We're speaking to you now from the General Store 4 00:00:13,910 --> 00:00:15,040 in Hopewell, New Jersey. 5 00:00:15,040 --> 00:00:18,010 The kidnapping of a child, only 20 months old. 6 00:00:18,010 --> 00:00:20,250 Stolen from his crib, right under the nose 7 00:00:20,250 --> 00:00:21,920 of his father who happened to be 8 00:00:21,920 --> 00:00:25,390 the most famous man in the world, Charles Lindbergh. 9 00:00:25,390 --> 00:00:26,590 ANCHORMAN: Charles Lindbergh. 10 00:00:26,590 --> 00:00:28,520 ANCHORMAN #2: Charles Lindbergh took off alone 11 00:00:28,520 --> 00:00:30,690 on a flight to France. 12 00:00:30,690 --> 00:00:34,460 There goes Lindbergh and the Spirit of St. Louis! 13 00:00:38,200 --> 00:00:40,170 ANCHORMAN #3: This is the scene since the news 14 00:00:40,170 --> 00:00:43,270 of the kidnapping had created such intense excitement. 15 00:00:43,270 --> 00:00:46,940 WILDMAN: In 1932, the kidnapping of the Lindbergh baby 16 00:00:46,940 --> 00:00:48,740 transfixed the nation. 17 00:00:48,740 --> 00:00:52,180 "Dear Sir, have $50,000 ready." 18 00:00:52,180 --> 00:00:53,480 Hey, look at that! 19 00:00:53,480 --> 00:00:55,020 The whole world was here. 20 00:00:55,020 --> 00:00:58,220 The case was closed more than 80 years ago, 21 00:00:58,220 --> 00:01:03,190 but what if the official story got it wrong? 22 00:01:03,190 --> 00:01:06,130 Now I'm reexamining old evidence... 23 00:01:06,130 --> 00:01:09,300 So, this is in question, though, this board itself? 24 00:01:09,300 --> 00:01:10,700 This board is in question. 25 00:01:10,700 --> 00:01:12,730 -A planted piece of evidence? -Yes. 26 00:01:12,740 --> 00:01:15,100 ...and digging up new questions. 27 00:01:15,100 --> 00:01:16,970 Nobody asked for an explanation. 28 00:01:16,970 --> 00:01:18,510 That is weird? 29 00:01:18,510 --> 00:01:22,110 That cast a whole new light on the crime of the century. 30 00:01:22,110 --> 00:01:24,910 Lindbergh would come to influence the course of events 31 00:01:24,910 --> 00:01:28,650 in ways we're only now beginning to understand. 32 00:01:28,650 --> 00:01:32,290 Why would someone steal the world's most famous child? 33 00:01:32,290 --> 00:01:33,750 How did they do it? 34 00:01:33,760 --> 00:01:37,560 And who was really behind the Lindbergh baby kidnapping? 35 00:01:40,330 --> 00:01:41,830 I'm Don Wildman. 36 00:01:41,830 --> 00:01:44,460 I've explored the world's greatest mysteries, 37 00:01:44,470 --> 00:01:47,400 examined rare artifacts and epic monuments. 38 00:01:47,400 --> 00:01:48,870 That is unbelievable! 39 00:01:48,870 --> 00:01:52,070 Now I'm digging deeper into some of the most perplexing 40 00:01:52,070 --> 00:01:54,680 and famous cases in history. 41 00:01:54,680 --> 00:01:57,080 My goal -- to get closer to the truth. 42 00:01:57,080 --> 00:01:59,280 Let's burn this place down. Let's burn it down. 43 00:01:59,280 --> 00:02:03,920 On this special episode of "Mysteries at the Museum," 44 00:02:03,920 --> 00:02:06,550 "The Lindbergh Kidnapping." 45 00:02:08,000 --> 00:02:14,074 46 00:02:22,300 --> 00:02:26,040 In 1927, the biggest story in America was 47 00:02:26,040 --> 00:02:28,240 about a young pilot from the heartland, 48 00:02:28,240 --> 00:02:30,180 who risked his life in an airplane 49 00:02:30,180 --> 00:02:36,120 to shatter the limits of what was possible. 50 00:02:36,120 --> 00:02:38,190 Five years later, a new headline brought 51 00:02:38,190 --> 00:02:42,260 the country together, but this time in tragedy. 52 00:02:42,260 --> 00:02:43,720 ANCHORMAN #3: And now we're going to take you 53 00:02:43,730 --> 00:02:45,190 to Hopewell, New Jersey, 54 00:02:45,190 --> 00:02:47,130 and the greatest search in history! 55 00:02:47,130 --> 00:02:52,170 WILDMAN: A baby was stolen and carried into the night. 56 00:02:52,170 --> 00:02:55,940 They called it the crime of the century. 57 00:02:55,940 --> 00:02:58,810 The baby's father and the daring aviator 58 00:02:58,810 --> 00:03:00,270 were one in the same, 59 00:03:00,280 --> 00:03:03,940 the greatest celebrity the world had ever seen, 60 00:03:03,950 --> 00:03:09,620 Colonel Charles A. Lindbergh. 61 00:03:09,620 --> 00:03:13,890 In 1927, Charles Lindbergh was an unknown pilot 62 00:03:13,890 --> 00:03:15,890 in the Army Air Reserve Corps, 63 00:03:15,890 --> 00:03:18,160 scratching out a living flying air mail 64 00:03:18,160 --> 00:03:20,360 between Illinois and Missouri. 65 00:03:20,360 --> 00:03:22,760 But Lindbergh had loftier ambitions. 66 00:03:22,760 --> 00:03:25,570 With the backing of two St. Louis businessmen, 67 00:03:25,570 --> 00:03:27,700 he commissioned a one-of-a-kind aircraft 68 00:03:27,700 --> 00:03:30,500 to do something no one had done before, 69 00:03:30,510 --> 00:03:33,970 cross the Atlantic Ocean from New York to Paris, 70 00:03:33,980 --> 00:03:37,110 non-stop, in an airplane. 71 00:03:40,450 --> 00:03:42,520 In the years after World War I, 72 00:03:42,520 --> 00:03:45,420 America was a nation in need of a hero. 73 00:03:45,420 --> 00:03:49,120 Prohibition had seen the rise of organized crime, 74 00:03:49,120 --> 00:03:53,630 Warren G. Harding's White House was saturated with scandal, 75 00:03:53,630 --> 00:03:56,800 but the skies were still full of wonder. 76 00:03:56,800 --> 00:03:58,600 It had been less than 25 years 77 00:03:58,600 --> 00:04:00,870 since the Wright brothers first flight. 78 00:04:00,870 --> 00:04:03,500 ANCHORMAN #4: Air travel is rich and sensational. 79 00:04:03,510 --> 00:04:08,280 The noise is deafening. 80 00:04:08,280 --> 00:04:10,480 WILDMAN: Airplanes were fragile things, 81 00:04:10,480 --> 00:04:12,150 made of canvas and wood, 82 00:04:12,150 --> 00:04:16,880 with a range of about 500 miles or 5½ hours. 83 00:04:16,890 --> 00:04:19,450 Flying from New York to Paris would take 84 00:04:19,450 --> 00:04:22,260 a solid day-and-a-half. 85 00:04:22,260 --> 00:04:26,530 Others had tried and lost their lives. 86 00:04:26,530 --> 00:04:29,960 But Charles Lindbergh had great confidence in his skills, 87 00:04:29,970 --> 00:04:34,370 and in the plane he helped design, the Spirit of St. Louis. 88 00:04:34,370 --> 00:04:40,040 In less than 48 hours, Charles Lindbergh would become 89 00:04:40,040 --> 00:04:42,710 the most famous man on Earth. 90 00:04:42,710 --> 00:04:45,240 But within five years, he would be at the center 91 00:04:45,250 --> 00:04:47,250 of an epic tragedy. 92 00:04:47,250 --> 00:04:51,980 On that morning, though, he was still just an unknown pilot, 93 00:04:51,990 --> 00:04:56,420 all alone in a cramped cockpit. 94 00:04:56,420 --> 00:04:58,460 We're going down the runway 95 00:04:58,460 --> 00:05:01,130 to see the Spirit of St. Louis take off! 96 00:05:01,130 --> 00:05:04,360 On board were two canteens, four sandwiches 97 00:05:04,370 --> 00:05:07,870 and 450 gallons of fuel. 98 00:05:07,870 --> 00:05:10,740 There goes Lindbergh and the Spirit of St. Louis! 99 00:05:10,740 --> 00:05:15,910 He left his parachute behind to save weight. 100 00:05:15,910 --> 00:05:17,840 ANCHORMAN #2: Charles Lindbergh took off alone 101 00:05:17,850 --> 00:05:19,850 on a flight to France. 102 00:05:19,850 --> 00:05:23,980 In Paris, huge crowds turned out to greet the Lone Eagle. 103 00:05:23,990 --> 00:05:27,620 WILDMAN: 25,000 believers stood vigil in the dark 104 00:05:27,620 --> 00:05:29,990 to await the young hero. 105 00:05:29,990 --> 00:05:32,490 And then, they saw him. 106 00:05:34,900 --> 00:05:36,630 ANCHORMAN #5: Lindbergh's plane has touched to Earth 107 00:05:36,630 --> 00:05:39,770 at 10:24 Paris time. 108 00:05:39,770 --> 00:05:42,270 In the space of a moment, Paris had created 109 00:05:42,270 --> 00:05:46,040 the idol of the age. 110 00:05:46,040 --> 00:05:48,840 WILDMAN: Lucky Lindy had proven transatlantic flight 111 00:05:48,840 --> 00:05:52,180 was possible, and the world would never be the same. 112 00:05:55,880 --> 00:05:59,050 Seven months later, Lindbergh met an ambassador's daughter 113 00:05:59,050 --> 00:06:04,490 named Anne Morrow, they married in 1929. 114 00:06:04,490 --> 00:06:09,260 In June 1930, their first child was born. 115 00:06:09,260 --> 00:06:13,130 Charles A. Lindbergh, Junior. 116 00:06:13,130 --> 00:06:14,930 Photographers stalked the family 117 00:06:14,940 --> 00:06:19,170 in hopes of stealing a photo of baby Lindy. 118 00:06:19,170 --> 00:06:21,740 The Lindbergh's longed for more privacy. 119 00:06:21,740 --> 00:06:24,610 In 1931, they broke ground on a new house 120 00:06:24,610 --> 00:06:27,150 in the hills outside Hopewell, New Jersey. 121 00:06:27,150 --> 00:06:29,280 They called it Highfields, it was designed to be 122 00:06:29,280 --> 00:06:31,650 their tranquil retreat from the world. 123 00:06:31,650 --> 00:06:34,290 Instead, Highfields would be the site 124 00:06:34,290 --> 00:06:36,060 of their worst nightmare. 125 00:06:40,830 --> 00:06:45,970 March 1, 1932, 10:46 p.m. 126 00:06:45,970 --> 00:06:48,170 An urgent alert went over the police wire 127 00:06:48,170 --> 00:06:52,040 to every law enforcement agency in New Jersey. 128 00:06:52,040 --> 00:06:56,440 The Lindbergh baby had been kidnapped. 129 00:06:56,450 --> 00:06:58,910 Scholars and conspiracy theorists have been putting 130 00:06:58,910 --> 00:07:01,650 this night under the microscope for 85 years, 131 00:07:01,650 --> 00:07:04,450 and still, there are unanswered questions. 132 00:07:04,450 --> 00:07:08,390 So, I'm turning the clock back to March 1, 1932 133 00:07:08,390 --> 00:07:10,390 and heading straight for Highfields, 134 00:07:10,390 --> 00:07:11,860 the scene of the crime. 135 00:07:18,200 --> 00:07:24,240 The first police officers arrive within minutes. 136 00:07:24,240 --> 00:07:28,280 Colonel Lindbergh rushed them upstairs to the nursery. 137 00:07:28,280 --> 00:07:32,510 The crib where little Charlie had been sleeping was empty. 138 00:07:32,510 --> 00:07:34,480 Lindbergh said the nanny opened the door 139 00:07:34,480 --> 00:07:36,750 to check on the baby at 10:00 p.m. 140 00:07:36,750 --> 00:07:39,190 and found the room just like this. 141 00:07:39,190 --> 00:07:45,160 The whole household had been awake downstairs. 142 00:07:45,160 --> 00:07:47,430 Let's take a look here. 143 00:07:49,230 --> 00:07:51,660 Yeah, all right, so right over there, 144 00:07:51,670 --> 00:07:53,970 that far window is the nursery. 145 00:07:53,970 --> 00:07:56,900 And right beneath, directly beneath the window, 146 00:07:56,910 --> 00:08:00,770 if you look down here, what was once a muddy surface, 147 00:08:00,780 --> 00:08:06,580 they found a whole set of footprints. 148 00:08:06,580 --> 00:08:08,450 They also found a pair of neat, 149 00:08:08,450 --> 00:08:13,020 rectangular indentations, 14 inches apart. 150 00:08:13,020 --> 00:08:15,390 The question is, how did they get inside? 151 00:08:18,490 --> 00:08:22,460 The officers followed the footprints away from the house 152 00:08:22,460 --> 00:08:25,400 and found their answer. 153 00:08:25,400 --> 00:08:28,300 A crude, handmade ladder. 154 00:08:28,300 --> 00:08:30,340 They brought it back to the house and set it 155 00:08:30,340 --> 00:08:33,410 in the marks beneath the nursery window. 156 00:08:33,410 --> 00:08:35,940 A perfect fit. 157 00:08:35,940 --> 00:08:39,380 It seemed clear, this ladder was how the kidnapper got in 158 00:08:39,380 --> 00:08:41,310 and got the baby out. 159 00:08:44,890 --> 00:08:48,620 I've secured very special access to the old Lindbergh house 160 00:08:48,620 --> 00:08:52,290 to step through that evening in person. 161 00:08:52,290 --> 00:08:55,700 March 1, 1932 was a Tuesday. 162 00:08:55,700 --> 00:08:57,300 It was the first time the Lindbergh's 163 00:08:57,300 --> 00:09:00,630 had ever spent a Tuesday here. 164 00:09:00,640 --> 00:09:03,240 Highfields was still under construction, 165 00:09:03,240 --> 00:09:05,870 the Lindberghs came only on weekends. 166 00:09:05,870 --> 00:09:08,910 But that weekend, Charlie caught a cold, 167 00:09:08,910 --> 00:09:12,250 so Anne decided to stay another night. 168 00:09:12,250 --> 00:09:15,050 The nanny, Betty Gow, arrived around 1:00 p.m. 169 00:09:15,050 --> 00:09:18,050 and spent the afternoon tending to Charlie. 170 00:09:18,050 --> 00:09:21,120 Around 6:00 p.m., Betty and Anne Lindbergh took 171 00:09:21,120 --> 00:09:23,320 the baby up these stairs and fed him dinner 172 00:09:23,320 --> 00:09:25,260 at the little table up in his nursery. 173 00:09:25,260 --> 00:09:26,890 Then they dressed him for bed, 174 00:09:26,900 --> 00:09:30,400 and around 7:30 p.m. they bid Charlie goodnight, 175 00:09:30,400 --> 00:09:35,000 turned out the lights and closed the nursery door. 176 00:09:35,000 --> 00:09:38,070 Betty wouldn't check on him until 10:00 p.m., 177 00:09:38,070 --> 00:09:43,740 this was Lindbergh's rule, he didn't want his son coddled. 178 00:09:43,750 --> 00:09:48,080 At 8:25 p.m., Colonel Lindbergh arrived home. 179 00:09:48,080 --> 00:09:49,750 He pulled his car into the garage 180 00:09:49,750 --> 00:09:54,020 and entered the house through the service hall. 181 00:09:54,020 --> 00:09:58,220 At 8:35, Anne and the Colonel walked into the dining room 182 00:09:58,230 --> 00:10:01,490 and sat down to dinner. 183 00:10:01,500 --> 00:10:05,160 At 9:00 p.m., Charles and Anne had finished eating 184 00:10:05,170 --> 00:10:07,900 and came in here to sit by the fire, 185 00:10:07,900 --> 00:10:11,170 it was a cold and windy night. 186 00:10:11,170 --> 00:10:12,640 After a few minutes... 187 00:10:12,640 --> 00:10:16,580 Lindbergh said, "What was that?" 188 00:10:16,580 --> 00:10:19,910 He later told police that he'd heard a cracking noise, 189 00:10:19,910 --> 00:10:23,250 like an orange crate falling from a chair. 190 00:10:23,250 --> 00:10:26,390 But Anne didn't hear a thing and neither did the family dog, 191 00:10:26,390 --> 00:10:29,120 a fox terrier named Wagoosh. 192 00:10:29,120 --> 00:10:31,520 And Wagoosh barked at everything, 193 00:10:31,530 --> 00:10:34,330 but that night, he didn't bark at all. 194 00:10:38,870 --> 00:10:41,070 This was Lindbergh's library. 195 00:10:41,070 --> 00:10:43,870 At 9:30 p.m., he came in here 196 00:10:43,870 --> 00:10:46,670 and sat at his desk, writing, right here. 197 00:10:46,680 --> 00:10:49,410 Directly above the desk was the nursery. 198 00:10:52,150 --> 00:10:56,550 At 10:00 p.m., Betty Gow went to check on the baby. 199 00:10:56,550 --> 00:10:59,150 A heartbeat later, she raced down the stairs 200 00:10:59,150 --> 00:11:03,220 and burst into Lindbergh's library. 201 00:11:03,230 --> 00:11:05,630 Little Charlie was gone. 202 00:11:08,830 --> 00:11:11,030 This is the nursery. 203 00:11:11,030 --> 00:11:14,570 The crib was right here, 204 00:11:14,570 --> 00:11:16,570 it was empty. 205 00:11:16,570 --> 00:11:21,410 But the kidnapper did leave one critical clue. 206 00:11:21,410 --> 00:11:24,540 A small white envelope, right on the windowsill. 207 00:11:24,550 --> 00:11:26,710 It was a ransom note. 208 00:11:28,050 --> 00:11:30,780 "Dear Sir, have $50,000 ready." 209 00:11:30,790 --> 00:11:32,650 $50,000. 210 00:11:32,650 --> 00:11:33,920 This is 1932, 211 00:11:33,920 --> 00:11:38,260 that's $900,000 in today's money. 212 00:11:38,260 --> 00:11:41,260 "After two to four days we will inform you 213 00:11:41,260 --> 00:11:43,060 where to deliver the money. 214 00:11:43,060 --> 00:11:46,470 We warn you not to be making 'anyting' public," 215 00:11:46,470 --> 00:11:50,340 "anyting" public, "or for notifying police. 216 00:11:50,340 --> 00:11:55,070 The child is in 'gut' care," gut with a T. 217 00:11:55,080 --> 00:12:00,810 "Indication for all letters are signature and three holes." 218 00:12:00,820 --> 00:12:02,950 So, take a look at this weird symbol here, 219 00:12:02,950 --> 00:12:06,820 this is three circles with three punched holes. 220 00:12:06,820 --> 00:12:10,760 This was to ensure the family that if they received 221 00:12:10,760 --> 00:12:13,090 any future letters with this symbol, 222 00:12:13,100 --> 00:12:15,030 that it was authentic communication 223 00:12:15,030 --> 00:12:18,760 from the kidnappers themselves. 224 00:12:18,770 --> 00:12:21,770 12 more ransom letters would follow. 225 00:12:21,770 --> 00:12:24,640 Lindbergh would even try to negotiate with the kidnappers 226 00:12:24,640 --> 00:12:29,510 through a top secret go-between, but that was all still to come. 227 00:12:29,510 --> 00:12:31,910 On that first night, Colonel Lindbergh cared 228 00:12:31,910 --> 00:12:36,980 about only one thing, where was his baby? 229 00:12:42,490 --> 00:12:45,960 WILDMAN: On the night of March 1, 1932, 230 00:12:45,960 --> 00:12:49,530 a toddler was kidnapped from this very house. 231 00:12:49,530 --> 00:12:53,030 The child's father was world-famous aviator, 232 00:12:53,030 --> 00:12:55,570 Charles Lindbergh. 233 00:12:55,570 --> 00:12:57,640 We're speaking to you now from the General Store 234 00:12:57,640 --> 00:13:00,040 in Hopewell, New Jersey. 235 00:13:00,040 --> 00:13:01,840 WILDMAN: Word of the kidnapping quickly reached 236 00:13:01,840 --> 00:13:04,180 every corner of the country. 237 00:13:04,180 --> 00:13:05,710 ANCHORMAN #6: Jim and the boys are all day 238 00:13:05,710 --> 00:13:06,980 and all night pounding out their latest information 239 00:13:06,980 --> 00:13:10,580 to be sent to the eager-awaiting public. 240 00:13:10,590 --> 00:13:13,790 WILDMAN: The story led the news for a solid month. 241 00:13:13,790 --> 00:13:17,420 But the barrage of press made Lindbergh anxious. 242 00:13:17,430 --> 00:13:19,860 The ransom note had explicitly warned him 243 00:13:19,860 --> 00:13:24,430 not to notify the police, or make anything public. 244 00:13:24,430 --> 00:13:27,200 Lindbergh asked for privacy for his family, 245 00:13:27,200 --> 00:13:32,870 but in actuality, the aviator was up to something. 246 00:13:32,870 --> 00:13:36,210 On the morning of April 2, 1932, 247 00:13:36,210 --> 00:13:39,080 Lindbergh slipped past the press unnoticed 248 00:13:39,080 --> 00:13:42,480 and headed for the George Washington Bridge. 249 00:13:42,480 --> 00:13:45,790 He had urgent business in New York. 250 00:13:45,790 --> 00:13:47,020 I'm heading across the river 251 00:13:47,020 --> 00:13:51,020 at the New York City Borough of the Bronx. 252 00:13:51,030 --> 00:13:54,090 Lindbergh had found a back channel to the kidnappers. 253 00:13:54,100 --> 00:13:56,560 For three weeks, he had been quietly negotiating 254 00:13:56,560 --> 00:13:58,960 with them through a secret go-between. 255 00:13:58,970 --> 00:14:00,830 The police were kept on the sidelines 256 00:14:00,840 --> 00:14:03,500 and the press was totally in the dark. 257 00:14:03,500 --> 00:14:05,540 Lindbergh couldn't risk letting them in 258 00:14:05,540 --> 00:14:09,340 on what was about to happen. 259 00:14:11,050 --> 00:14:15,850 A box of money in exchange for his baby. 260 00:14:15,850 --> 00:14:18,120 And it all began right here. 261 00:14:18,120 --> 00:14:20,120 Richard? How ya doin'? 262 00:14:20,120 --> 00:14:23,060 Hi, Don. How are you? Nice to see you. 263 00:14:23,060 --> 00:14:26,990 Richard Sloan has spent years studying the Lindbergh case 264 00:14:27,000 --> 00:14:30,030 and its connection to the Bronx. 265 00:14:30,030 --> 00:14:32,800 -So this is the actual house? -That's right. 266 00:14:32,800 --> 00:14:37,300 Dr. John F. Condon's house. 267 00:14:37,310 --> 00:14:41,140 Dr. John F. Condon was a retired public school principal, 268 00:14:41,140 --> 00:14:43,280 and a pillar of his community. 269 00:14:43,280 --> 00:14:46,150 But more recently, he had led a double life 270 00:14:46,150 --> 00:14:49,150 as Colonel Lindbergh's secret go-between. 271 00:14:49,150 --> 00:14:53,720 The two men were total strangers just three weeks earlier. 272 00:14:53,720 --> 00:14:56,490 In a fit of bravado, Condon publicly offered 273 00:14:56,490 --> 00:14:58,490 to meet with the kidnappers in person 274 00:14:58,490 --> 00:15:00,560 on behalf of the Lindberghs. 275 00:15:00,560 --> 00:15:03,900 To his complete shock, the kidnappers accepted. 276 00:15:06,840 --> 00:15:09,900 And now the time had come to follow through. 277 00:15:15,380 --> 00:15:19,250 So, April 2, 1932, that night, set the scene for me. 278 00:15:19,250 --> 00:15:20,550 Who's in the house? 279 00:15:20,550 --> 00:15:24,880 Condon and Lindbergh are here and the cash, 280 00:15:24,890 --> 00:15:28,020 waiting for a signal from the kidnapper 281 00:15:28,020 --> 00:15:30,860 to tell him where to take the money. 282 00:15:30,860 --> 00:15:33,860 Around 8:00 p.m., a taxi driver appeared 283 00:15:33,860 --> 00:15:36,930 at Condon's door with an envelope. 284 00:15:36,930 --> 00:15:38,460 At the bottom of the note was 285 00:15:38,470 --> 00:15:40,930 the kidnappers signature symbol. 286 00:15:40,940 --> 00:15:44,200 "Dear Sir, take a car and follow Tremont Avenue," 287 00:15:44,210 --> 00:15:45,670 here in the Bronx, 288 00:15:45,670 --> 00:15:49,280 "to the east until you reach Bergen Greenhouse." 289 00:15:49,280 --> 00:15:52,350 "Don't speak to," this is like a movie, oh, my gosh! 290 00:15:52,350 --> 00:15:54,210 "Have the money in one bundle. 291 00:15:54,220 --> 00:15:57,020 We give you three quarters of an hour to reach the place." 292 00:15:57,020 --> 00:15:59,420 45 minutes. -That's not a lot of time. 293 00:15:59,420 --> 00:16:02,760 So, Lindbergh and Condon take the money. 294 00:16:02,760 --> 00:16:04,290 And get in the car and go. 295 00:16:04,290 --> 00:16:06,430 Wow, let's go! 296 00:16:09,030 --> 00:16:12,830 Condon and Colonel Lindbergh drove east through the Bronx. 297 00:16:12,830 --> 00:16:17,170 They were alone, Lindbergh didn't want the police around. 298 00:16:17,170 --> 00:16:21,040 Nothing could be permitted to endanger his son's life. 299 00:16:21,040 --> 00:16:23,410 So, from the beginning, Lindbergh has wanted 300 00:16:23,410 --> 00:16:26,110 the police to stand down, stay out of the way. 301 00:16:26,110 --> 00:16:28,250 But the police got one concession out of him, right, 302 00:16:28,250 --> 00:16:29,450 about the ransom money. 303 00:16:29,450 --> 00:16:31,120 That's right, they were all trackable. 304 00:16:31,120 --> 00:16:32,320 The bills? 305 00:16:32,320 --> 00:16:34,250 That's right, every serial number 306 00:16:34,260 --> 00:16:35,990 of every bill was recorded 307 00:16:35,990 --> 00:16:38,820 and most of them were in gold notes. 308 00:16:38,830 --> 00:16:41,990 The U.S. was about to go off the gold standard, 309 00:16:42,000 --> 00:16:44,400 which would make gold notes obsolete. 310 00:16:44,400 --> 00:16:47,400 So that would make anyone holding a gold note 311 00:16:47,400 --> 00:16:49,000 that much easier to catch? 312 00:16:49,000 --> 00:16:50,840 -That's right. -Got it. 313 00:16:55,280 --> 00:16:59,410 St. Raymond's Cemetery in the East Bronx. 314 00:16:59,410 --> 00:17:03,850 The kidnapper's directions led Condon and Lindbergh here. 315 00:17:03,850 --> 00:17:06,650 And under a table in front of the Bergen Greenhouse, 316 00:17:06,650 --> 00:17:10,320 Condon found more instructions. 317 00:17:10,330 --> 00:17:13,390 "Cross the street and walk to the next corner, 318 00:17:13,400 --> 00:17:17,830 and follow Whittemore Avenue to the south. 319 00:17:17,830 --> 00:17:21,770 Take the money with you, come alone and walk. 320 00:17:21,770 --> 00:17:23,400 I will meet you." 321 00:17:23,410 --> 00:17:25,840 Lindbergh waited in the car, 322 00:17:25,840 --> 00:17:30,640 the kidnappers wanted Condon alone. 323 00:17:30,650 --> 00:17:34,310 So this is the spot, huh? 324 00:17:34,320 --> 00:17:37,980 At this very spot, Condon met a white man, 325 00:17:37,990 --> 00:17:41,190 about 5'10", in his early 30s. 326 00:17:41,190 --> 00:17:45,520 He spoke with a German accent. 327 00:17:45,530 --> 00:17:48,260 He said, "Where's the money?" 328 00:17:48,260 --> 00:17:50,830 and Condon said, "Where's the baby?" 329 00:17:50,830 --> 00:17:56,170 Condon exchanged the $50,000 for a handwritten note. 330 00:17:56,170 --> 00:17:58,340 It was directions to the child. 331 00:18:01,210 --> 00:18:04,880 Anne and Charles allow themselves a gasp of hope. 332 00:18:04,880 --> 00:18:09,520 But the directions were a dead end. 333 00:18:09,520 --> 00:18:15,390 Two months later, their worst fears became a reality. 334 00:18:15,390 --> 00:18:18,560 A tiny child's body, badly decomposed, 335 00:18:18,560 --> 00:18:22,830 was found alongside a road, 336 00:18:22,830 --> 00:18:29,170 less than four miles from the Lindbergh home. 337 00:18:29,170 --> 00:18:32,240 It was little Charlie. 338 00:18:32,240 --> 00:18:35,240 The autopsy found that he died by a blow to the head, 339 00:18:35,240 --> 00:18:38,380 roughly two months earlier. 340 00:18:38,380 --> 00:18:42,450 Perhaps, on the very night of the kidnapping. 341 00:18:42,450 --> 00:18:46,650 Lindbergh processed the loss stoically and silently. 342 00:18:46,650 --> 00:18:51,320 His wife never saw him cry. 343 00:18:51,330 --> 00:18:54,990 But to the police, one thing was now painfully clear, 344 00:18:55,000 --> 00:18:58,600 the apparent kidnapper had stood right here in the open 345 00:18:58,600 --> 00:19:01,900 and then vanished into the shadows. 346 00:19:01,900 --> 00:19:04,200 Could they ever find him again? 347 00:19:04,210 --> 00:19:07,870 Or, had they missed their one best chance 348 00:19:07,880 --> 00:19:09,840 at catching a killer? 349 00:19:17,030 --> 00:19:20,540 WILDMAN: The Lindbergh baby was dead. 350 00:19:20,540 --> 00:19:23,870 Detectives questioned everyone, from Dr. Condon 351 00:19:23,870 --> 00:19:27,710 to the baby's nanny, but the leads went nowhere. 352 00:19:27,710 --> 00:19:33,720 Two whole years passed without a single, viable suspect. 353 00:19:33,720 --> 00:19:41,060 And then, on September 17, 1934, the police got their big break. 354 00:19:41,060 --> 00:19:46,600 A $10 gold note, used to purchase 98 cents worth of gas. 355 00:19:46,600 --> 00:19:49,670 It was a Lindbergh ransom bill. 356 00:19:49,670 --> 00:19:51,470 The alert attendant scribbled down 357 00:19:51,470 --> 00:19:55,000 the man's license plate number. 358 00:19:55,010 --> 00:19:57,810 In that instant, the driver of that car 359 00:19:57,810 --> 00:20:01,710 became forever entwined with the Lindbergh kidnapping. 360 00:20:01,710 --> 00:20:05,180 His name was Bruno Richard Hauptmann. 361 00:20:09,250 --> 00:20:14,060 Richard Hauptmann was born in Germany in 1899. 362 00:20:14,060 --> 00:20:16,330 He was a machine gunner in the Kaiser's Army 363 00:20:16,330 --> 00:20:18,760 during World War I. 364 00:20:18,760 --> 00:20:22,670 Then, later served three years in prison for armed robbery. 365 00:20:22,670 --> 00:20:26,900 Hauptmann snuck into the U.S. illegally in 1923. 366 00:20:26,900 --> 00:20:29,410 He made his living as a carpenter. 367 00:20:29,410 --> 00:20:34,440 The pieces were lining up, carpenter and ladder, 368 00:20:34,450 --> 00:20:37,610 German speaker and German phrasing. 369 00:20:37,620 --> 00:20:42,680 He even resembled the man at the ransom drop. 370 00:20:42,690 --> 00:20:45,090 Look at this, check it out. 371 00:20:45,090 --> 00:20:47,490 This is the house that Richard Hauptmann lived in, 372 00:20:47,490 --> 00:20:49,130 in 1934. 373 00:20:49,130 --> 00:20:51,290 The police brought him here for questioning, 374 00:20:51,300 --> 00:20:54,260 they wanted to know if he had any more gold certificates? 375 00:20:54,270 --> 00:20:57,900 He said, "No," that turned out to be a lie. 376 00:20:57,900 --> 00:21:00,740 The police eventually found cash hidden 377 00:21:00,740 --> 00:21:03,640 in the framework of his garage, 378 00:21:03,640 --> 00:21:06,640 totaling $14,600. 379 00:21:06,640 --> 00:21:10,380 And every bill, Lindbergh ransom money. 380 00:21:15,020 --> 00:21:17,050 Rob, get to the air right away, here's a flash. 381 00:21:17,060 --> 00:21:18,290 Yes, sir. 382 00:21:18,290 --> 00:21:19,560 WILDMAN: Word of Hauptmann's arrest 383 00:21:19,560 --> 00:21:22,320 quickly reached the Lindbergh's. 384 00:21:22,330 --> 00:21:24,060 Charles and Anne had spent the years 385 00:21:24,060 --> 00:21:27,630 since the kidnapping in seclusion. 386 00:21:27,630 --> 00:21:33,100 Now, the greatest public spectacle of all was just ahead. 387 00:21:33,100 --> 00:21:36,340 It would be called the trial of the century. 388 00:21:36,340 --> 00:21:37,910 ANCHORMAN #7: Such dramatic possibilities 389 00:21:37,910 --> 00:21:41,940 had not escaped the press, every top reporter was here. 390 00:21:46,020 --> 00:21:47,950 -Harry, how you doing? -Good. 391 00:21:47,950 --> 00:21:50,090 WILDMAN: Harry Kazman's has read the entire 392 00:21:50,090 --> 00:21:53,090 32 volume court transcript 393 00:21:53,090 --> 00:21:55,820 and staged an annual re-enactment of the trial. 394 00:21:55,830 --> 00:21:57,630 Hey, look at that! 395 00:21:57,630 --> 00:21:59,630 Now, that's cool! 396 00:21:59,630 --> 00:22:02,230 So this is as it was in the day, back in 1935? 397 00:22:02,230 --> 00:22:08,500 1935, January 2nd, and the whole world was here. 398 00:22:08,510 --> 00:22:11,710 For the newspapers, it was irresistible. 399 00:22:11,710 --> 00:22:15,910 Lucky Lindy, America's hero, versus Bruno Richard Hauptmann, 400 00:22:15,910 --> 00:22:17,450 the German machine gunner. 401 00:22:17,450 --> 00:22:18,980 ANCHORMAN #7: The trial was beginning, 402 00:22:18,980 --> 00:22:21,420 the charge, murder in the first degree. 403 00:22:21,420 --> 00:22:25,990 WILDMAN: Hauptmann insisted he was innocent 404 00:22:25,990 --> 00:22:29,660 but he was already the most hated man in America. 405 00:22:29,660 --> 00:22:32,060 This is the defense? Yes. 406 00:22:32,060 --> 00:22:36,330 Hauptmann was sitting there, prosecution over here. 407 00:22:36,330 --> 00:22:37,930 So where's Lindbergh? 408 00:22:37,940 --> 00:22:42,000 Lindbergh is right about where you're standing. 409 00:22:42,010 --> 00:22:45,440 Tourists climbed in windows for a peek of him. 410 00:22:45,440 --> 00:22:48,440 Vendors hocked souvenirs outside. 411 00:22:48,450 --> 00:22:51,280 But Lindbergh took the trial seriously. 412 00:22:51,280 --> 00:22:53,950 The prosecution sat him front and center 413 00:22:53,950 --> 00:22:55,520 so he could follow it all. 414 00:22:55,520 --> 00:23:00,420 And, so the jury could feast their eyes on the tragic hero. 415 00:23:00,430 --> 00:23:02,420 ANCHORMAN #8: Now, Charles Lindbergh would be sitting 416 00:23:02,430 --> 00:23:04,390 10 feet away from the man accused 417 00:23:04,400 --> 00:23:07,660 of murdering their first child. 418 00:23:07,660 --> 00:23:09,870 WILDMAN: The State argued that Richard Hauptmann was 419 00:23:09,870 --> 00:23:12,170 a lone wolf. 420 00:23:12,170 --> 00:23:14,170 He climbed the ladder and committed 421 00:23:14,170 --> 00:23:17,410 the murder all by himself. 422 00:23:17,410 --> 00:23:22,540 Then collected the ransom and stashed it in his garage. 423 00:23:22,550 --> 00:23:25,780 He quit his job the day he collected the $50,000! 424 00:23:25,780 --> 00:23:28,320 The very day! 425 00:23:28,320 --> 00:23:30,990 The defense argued that no forensic evidence 426 00:23:30,990 --> 00:23:35,990 linked Hauptmann to the actual scene of the kidnapping. 427 00:23:35,990 --> 00:23:39,490 But the prosecutor had an ace up his sleeve. 428 00:23:39,500 --> 00:23:41,800 In Hauptmann's attic, the police had found 429 00:23:41,800 --> 00:23:44,430 a floorboard cut in half. 430 00:23:44,440 --> 00:23:47,740 A forensic wood expert studied the floorboard 431 00:23:47,740 --> 00:23:50,410 and the ladder found at Highfields. 432 00:23:50,410 --> 00:23:52,610 His testimony is that 433 00:23:52,610 --> 00:23:56,010 this ladder was made from the wood 434 00:23:56,010 --> 00:23:57,680 that was found in the attic. 435 00:23:57,680 --> 00:23:59,550 This is the key piece of evidence, isn't it? 436 00:23:59,550 --> 00:24:03,020 This is what makes sure that the jury knows 437 00:24:03,020 --> 00:24:05,820 that this guy sitting here was actually 438 00:24:05,820 --> 00:24:08,960 the man who made that ladder? -Right. 439 00:24:08,960 --> 00:24:10,830 The State claimed Richard Hauptmann built 440 00:24:10,830 --> 00:24:16,830 the kidnap ladder, the ladder linked him to the murder. 441 00:24:16,830 --> 00:24:19,570 The trial lasted 32 days. 442 00:24:19,570 --> 00:24:22,300 The jury took 11 hours to reach their verdict. 443 00:24:25,040 --> 00:24:28,180 Bruno Richard Hauptmann had been sentenced to die, 444 00:24:28,180 --> 00:24:31,180 and it seemed as if the whole world was glad. 445 00:24:31,180 --> 00:24:34,120 Charles Lindbergh told a writer after the verdict 446 00:24:34,120 --> 00:24:37,820 there was no doubt at all that Hauptmann did the thing. 447 00:24:37,820 --> 00:24:42,320 But even on death row, Hauptmann swore he was innocent. 448 00:24:42,330 --> 00:24:45,130 Were these the ravings of a condemned killer? 449 00:24:45,130 --> 00:24:47,700 Or, was the trial of the century so enthralled 450 00:24:47,700 --> 00:24:52,000 with its heroic aviator that they got it all wrong? 451 00:24:56,740 --> 00:25:01,340 WILDMAN: January 1936, the trial of the century had been 452 00:25:01,350 --> 00:25:07,220 over for a year, but once again, Charles Lindbergh led the news. 453 00:25:07,220 --> 00:25:09,490 Charles, Anne, and their new son, John, 454 00:25:09,490 --> 00:25:13,220 had fled to Europe to escape the press. 455 00:25:13,220 --> 00:25:16,360 America had smothered the Lindberghs with adulation 456 00:25:16,360 --> 00:25:19,530 and ultimately drove them away. 457 00:25:19,530 --> 00:25:22,100 Meanwhile, Richard Hauptmann, the convicted kidnapper 458 00:25:22,100 --> 00:25:28,340 and killer, sat on death row insisting he was innocent. 459 00:25:28,340 --> 00:25:33,110 But the German carpenter had gained a powerful new ally. 460 00:25:33,110 --> 00:25:34,710 So, his office would have been right up, 461 00:25:34,710 --> 00:25:38,110 that's the State House there? -Yes. 462 00:25:38,120 --> 00:25:42,650 New Jersey Governor, Harold Hoffman. 463 00:25:42,650 --> 00:25:44,320 Hoffman had grave concerns 464 00:25:44,320 --> 00:25:47,020 about his own prosecutor's central theory. 465 00:25:47,020 --> 00:25:49,930 Bruno Richard Hauptmann came to the state of New Jersey 466 00:25:49,930 --> 00:25:53,060 on the night of March 1, 1932. 467 00:25:53,060 --> 00:25:56,830 WILDMAN: That Richard Hauptmann was a lone wolf. 468 00:25:56,830 --> 00:26:00,340 One day before Richard Hauptmann was scheduled to die, 469 00:26:00,340 --> 00:26:02,610 Governor Hoffman signed a reprieve, 470 00:26:02,610 --> 00:26:05,670 delaying the execution for 30 days, 471 00:26:05,680 --> 00:26:08,910 and then reopened the investigation. 472 00:26:08,910 --> 00:26:12,550 Patrick Bamburak is Governor Hoffman's great-grandnephew 473 00:26:12,550 --> 00:26:15,350 and author of his forthcoming biography. 474 00:26:15,350 --> 00:26:17,720 So why was the Governor so personally 475 00:26:17,720 --> 00:26:19,150 invested in this case? 476 00:26:19,160 --> 00:26:22,620 There was evidence that was being presented in trial 477 00:26:22,630 --> 00:26:26,030 which, to today's standards, would raise reasonable doubt 478 00:26:26,030 --> 00:26:27,900 as to whether or not Bruno Hauptmann committed 479 00:26:27,900 --> 00:26:29,900 that crime by himself. 480 00:26:29,900 --> 00:26:32,230 The State linked Hauptmann to Highfields 481 00:26:32,240 --> 00:26:34,500 with a piece of wood. 482 00:26:34,510 --> 00:26:37,110 They claimed he cut part of a floor plank 483 00:26:37,110 --> 00:26:40,240 out of his own attic, pulled out its nails 484 00:26:40,240 --> 00:26:42,580 and fashioned it into an upright section 485 00:26:42,580 --> 00:26:46,250 of the kidnap ladder, known as Rail 16. 486 00:26:48,590 --> 00:26:50,650 Patrick has copies of the original 487 00:26:50,650 --> 00:26:52,890 police photos of Hauptmann's attic. 488 00:26:52,890 --> 00:26:55,360 Let me ask you a very basic question here. 489 00:26:55,360 --> 00:26:57,960 The importance of this board is that 490 00:26:57,960 --> 00:27:00,330 there is physical evidence that ties Hauptmann 491 00:27:00,330 --> 00:27:01,930 to the scene of the crime, yes? 492 00:27:01,930 --> 00:27:04,470 Yes, and this is the only piece of physical evidence 493 00:27:04,470 --> 00:27:06,470 that would tie Bruno Hauptmann to the scene. 494 00:27:06,470 --> 00:27:08,470 Okay, so this is in question, 495 00:27:08,470 --> 00:27:10,210 though, this board itself? 496 00:27:10,210 --> 00:27:13,010 This board is in question. 497 00:27:13,010 --> 00:27:14,280 Oh, yeah, here we go. 498 00:27:14,280 --> 00:27:16,380 So this is a close up on the rail itself. 499 00:27:16,380 --> 00:27:18,550 So this is a shot of Rail 16, 500 00:27:18,550 --> 00:27:20,880 taken from the ladder, the ladder was taken apart 501 00:27:20,880 --> 00:27:23,150 and placed back across the floor beams. 502 00:27:23,150 --> 00:27:24,750 The state showed the jury 503 00:27:24,760 --> 00:27:27,020 how nail holes in the ladder rail 504 00:27:27,020 --> 00:27:29,160 matched up perfectly with nail holes 505 00:27:29,160 --> 00:27:31,090 in the attic floor beams. 506 00:27:31,100 --> 00:27:33,160 What makes this suspicious? 507 00:27:33,160 --> 00:27:35,060 This photograph. 508 00:27:35,070 --> 00:27:36,970 Oh there you go, that's the rail, right? 509 00:27:36,970 --> 00:27:40,570 Yes, that is the actual rail 16 from the kidnapping ladder. 510 00:27:40,570 --> 00:27:43,970 This photo of a ladder taken at Highfields 511 00:27:43,970 --> 00:27:48,040 the morning after the kidnapping clearly shows rail 16. 512 00:27:48,050 --> 00:27:51,580 According to the state, this section of the ladder 513 00:27:51,580 --> 00:27:53,920 was once one a floor plank nailed down 514 00:27:53,920 --> 00:27:56,850 in Richard Hauptmann's attic. 515 00:27:56,850 --> 00:27:59,820 So where are the nail holes? 516 00:27:59,820 --> 00:28:03,530 Governor Hoffman drew the only logical conclusion. 517 00:28:03,530 --> 00:28:04,790 A planted piece of evidence? 518 00:28:04,800 --> 00:28:06,400 Yes. 519 00:28:06,400 --> 00:28:08,130 If there was no connection between 520 00:28:08,130 --> 00:28:10,270 Hauptmann's attic and the ladder, 521 00:28:10,270 --> 00:28:12,330 then there was no physical link between 522 00:28:12,340 --> 00:28:14,970 Richard Hauptmann and the kidnapping. 523 00:28:14,970 --> 00:28:16,600 This is a little scary. 524 00:28:16,610 --> 00:28:18,870 I mean, why was it so important 525 00:28:18,880 --> 00:28:21,080 for the state of New Jersey to nail this guy? 526 00:28:21,080 --> 00:28:23,610 Well, the eyes of the world were on this case, 527 00:28:23,610 --> 00:28:25,610 Charles Lindbergh was the biggest celebrity 528 00:28:25,620 --> 00:28:27,280 that the world had ever seen. 529 00:28:27,280 --> 00:28:29,920 And there was a lot of pressure from the public 530 00:28:29,920 --> 00:28:33,320 to see justice served and to see this chapter closed. 531 00:28:36,430 --> 00:28:38,090 In the end, the governor's findings 532 00:28:38,100 --> 00:28:39,760 were too little, too late. 533 00:28:39,760 --> 00:28:42,330 Richard Hauptmann lost his appeal, 534 00:28:42,330 --> 00:28:45,730 and his reprieve ran out. 535 00:28:45,740 --> 00:28:49,370 On April 3, 1936, the German carpenter died 536 00:28:49,370 --> 00:28:50,910 in the electric chair 537 00:28:50,910 --> 00:28:54,440 and the case was officially closed. 538 00:28:54,440 --> 00:28:57,250 But what if Governor Hoffman was on the right track? 539 00:28:57,250 --> 00:29:01,650 What if the lone wolf theory was fundamentally flawed? 540 00:29:01,650 --> 00:29:04,120 There's only one way to find out. 541 00:29:10,230 --> 00:29:13,230 WILDMAN: In 1935, Richard Hauptmann was convicted 542 00:29:13,230 --> 00:29:18,300 as the lone wolf kidnapper and killer of the Lindbergh baby. 543 00:29:18,300 --> 00:29:24,970 The official story ended when he went to the electric chair. 544 00:29:24,980 --> 00:29:28,740 But questions still remain about this case. 545 00:29:28,750 --> 00:29:30,850 And they've led me right back to the scene of the crime. 546 00:29:37,320 --> 00:29:39,190 If you bore all the way down 547 00:29:39,190 --> 00:29:40,920 to the center of the state's case, 548 00:29:40,920 --> 00:29:44,260 you find out the whole thing rests on that rickety ladder. 549 00:29:44,260 --> 00:29:47,400 Hauptmann had to use it to get in the nursery window, 550 00:29:47,400 --> 00:29:51,900 and then back out and down with the baby all by himself. 551 00:29:53,800 --> 00:29:59,170 But I want to know if that was even possible. 552 00:29:59,180 --> 00:30:03,210 So I've commissioned a replica of the kidnapper's ladder 553 00:30:03,210 --> 00:30:06,780 built to the exact dimensions of the real thing. 554 00:30:06,780 --> 00:30:09,050 And thanks to the pair of indentations 555 00:30:09,050 --> 00:30:14,160 and careful police notes, I know precisely where it goes. 556 00:30:17,800 --> 00:30:19,760 All this has to happen, remember at night. 557 00:30:19,760 --> 00:30:23,630 You know, this guy is being very, very quiet 558 00:30:23,630 --> 00:30:26,640 on a very awkward ladder. 559 00:30:26,640 --> 00:30:30,440 As soon as you get up here it feels very high. 560 00:30:30,440 --> 00:30:32,240 This thing is not easy to climb. 561 00:30:32,240 --> 00:30:35,340 The rungs are 18 inches apart, 562 00:30:35,350 --> 00:30:39,920 which is six inches more than on a standard ladder. 563 00:30:39,920 --> 00:30:44,390 Now he's almost in, but you got to get higher 564 00:30:44,390 --> 00:30:50,860 in order to open this window from the outside, yikes. 565 00:30:50,860 --> 00:30:53,460 Very quiet, staying quiet. 566 00:30:55,030 --> 00:30:57,330 Even that is loud. 567 00:30:57,330 --> 00:30:59,330 Oh, gosh. 568 00:31:02,340 --> 00:31:04,870 And now because of the placement of the ladder, 569 00:31:04,880 --> 00:31:07,080 I basically have to do an acrobatics. 570 00:31:07,080 --> 00:31:09,810 Oh, gosh. 571 00:31:20,620 --> 00:31:24,960 My, God, terrifying to try and make it through there. 572 00:31:24,960 --> 00:31:28,500 Now I got to kidnap a child. 573 00:31:28,500 --> 00:31:29,830 At the time of the kidnapping, 574 00:31:29,830 --> 00:31:33,940 Charles Lindbergh Jr. was a 30-pound toddler. 575 00:31:33,940 --> 00:31:35,970 The most popular theory is that he was carried 576 00:31:35,970 --> 00:31:38,910 out of the window in a sack. 577 00:31:38,910 --> 00:31:40,980 But standing in front of the window 578 00:31:40,980 --> 00:31:45,150 was a large chest, with a suitcase on top. 579 00:31:45,150 --> 00:31:47,380 Somehow, the kidnapper got out of here 580 00:31:47,380 --> 00:31:50,590 without disturbing that. 581 00:31:50,590 --> 00:31:54,060 This is by far the most crazy part of the situation. 582 00:31:58,460 --> 00:32:01,400 Remember, this is between 7:30 and 10:00. 583 00:32:01,400 --> 00:32:03,530 The whole household is awake. 584 00:32:03,530 --> 00:32:05,870 And so, I've been completely quiet. 585 00:32:05,870 --> 00:32:11,710 Oh, before I leave, I'm gonna leave a note 586 00:32:11,710 --> 00:32:15,240 about what just happened here. 587 00:32:15,250 --> 00:32:17,410 Where is that ladder? 588 00:32:17,410 --> 00:32:19,680 Okay. 589 00:32:19,680 --> 00:32:20,680 All right, here we go. 590 00:32:34,860 --> 00:32:39,570 Okay, well, it's possible. 591 00:32:39,570 --> 00:32:42,970 I've just established that the doing this 592 00:32:42,970 --> 00:32:45,510 is at least physically possible. 593 00:32:45,510 --> 00:32:48,840 The question is whether it's feasible. 594 00:32:48,850 --> 00:32:51,650 I hoped climbing that ladder would give me answers. 595 00:32:51,650 --> 00:32:55,020 But strangely, it's only left me with more questions. 596 00:32:55,020 --> 00:32:58,220 Why choose such a precarious plan? 597 00:32:58,220 --> 00:33:01,660 Was Richard Hauptmann a daring criminal mastermind? 598 00:33:01,660 --> 00:33:07,330 Or, is there some other explanation out there? 599 00:33:13,170 --> 00:33:14,900 WILDMAN: I'm trying to untangle the truth 600 00:33:14,910 --> 00:33:18,040 behind the Lindbergh kidnapping. 601 00:33:18,040 --> 00:33:23,040 And my journey has brought me back to Flemington, New Jersey. 602 00:33:23,050 --> 00:33:25,250 -Okay, right upstairs. -All right. 603 00:33:25,250 --> 00:33:26,920 I'm invited to a special meeting 604 00:33:26,920 --> 00:33:30,020 that I hope can answer some of my questions. 605 00:33:30,020 --> 00:33:31,090 Hey guys, how you doing? 606 00:33:31,090 --> 00:33:32,350 -Good morning. -Hi. 607 00:33:32,360 --> 00:33:35,290 A gathering of experts who have spent years digging 608 00:33:35,290 --> 00:33:37,490 through the Lindbergh archives. 609 00:33:37,490 --> 00:33:39,160 -Hi. -This is Dolores. 610 00:33:39,160 --> 00:33:40,360 Hello, Dolores. 611 00:33:40,360 --> 00:33:43,400 And my host is the archivist, Mark Falzini. 612 00:33:43,400 --> 00:33:45,170 Mark knows the Lindbergh case file 613 00:33:45,170 --> 00:33:46,770 better than anyone else alive. 614 00:33:46,770 --> 00:33:48,040 Oh, very nice to meet you Lloyd. 615 00:33:48,040 --> 00:33:50,370 These are the some of the top scholars 616 00:33:50,370 --> 00:33:51,370 of the Lindbergh case. 617 00:33:51,380 --> 00:33:52,840 -Fantastic. -They do actual 618 00:33:52,840 --> 00:33:54,910 hands-on research at the State Police Consumer Archives. 619 00:33:54,910 --> 00:33:56,650 -May I? -Please. 620 00:33:56,650 --> 00:33:58,850 Fantastic. 621 00:33:58,850 --> 00:34:01,480 Boy, well, you guys are exactly who I need to talk to, 622 00:34:01,490 --> 00:34:05,820 'cause I am full of questions. 623 00:34:05,820 --> 00:34:09,690 All right, so, the state's whole case rests on the fact 624 00:34:09,690 --> 00:34:12,560 that Bruno Richard Hauptmann worked alone. 625 00:34:12,560 --> 00:34:14,100 That he was a lone wolf. 626 00:34:14,100 --> 00:34:15,500 Right. 627 00:34:15,500 --> 00:34:17,430 So I have a big problem with the lone wolf theory, myself, 628 00:34:17,430 --> 00:34:19,770 because I just tried something crazy. 629 00:34:19,770 --> 00:34:21,570 But with a replica ladder, 630 00:34:21,570 --> 00:34:24,240 I climbed up into that window, okay? 631 00:34:24,240 --> 00:34:29,040 It's very difficult to pull this off in broad daylight. 632 00:34:29,050 --> 00:34:33,250 Imagine the circumstances the night of the kidnapping. 633 00:34:33,250 --> 00:34:35,720 It's a Tuesday night. 634 00:34:35,720 --> 00:34:37,990 Between 7:30 and 10:00 this happens, yeah? 635 00:34:37,990 --> 00:34:41,520 A very unlikely time to kidnap a child. 636 00:34:41,530 --> 00:34:43,830 Absolutely, you've got the household staff, 637 00:34:43,830 --> 00:34:47,000 there all up, they're working, preparing dinner. 638 00:34:47,000 --> 00:34:50,530 Right, you'd kidnap a child at 3:00 in the morning. 639 00:34:50,530 --> 00:34:53,270 And the Lindbergh's had a dog, right, Wagoosh? 640 00:34:53,270 --> 00:34:54,670 I mean, this was a barky dog. 641 00:34:54,670 --> 00:34:56,600 Wagoosh did not bark at all that night. 642 00:34:56,610 --> 00:34:58,810 Why? 643 00:34:58,810 --> 00:35:01,280 MELSKY: Everyone testified that the dog would bark 644 00:35:01,280 --> 00:35:03,280 when he heard a noise except for Lindbergh. 645 00:35:03,280 --> 00:35:04,810 Okay. 646 00:35:04,810 --> 00:35:06,080 Lindbergh said he wouldn't expect the dog to bark, 647 00:35:06,080 --> 00:35:09,480 his testimony was a complete opposite 648 00:35:09,490 --> 00:35:12,350 compared to everyone else's. 649 00:35:12,360 --> 00:35:14,960 And then there's the Tuesday night problem. 650 00:35:14,960 --> 00:35:17,290 March 1st was the first time the Lindbergh's 651 00:35:17,290 --> 00:35:20,630 had ever spent a Tuesday night at Highfields. 652 00:35:20,630 --> 00:35:22,500 Somebody wouldn't expect him to be there 653 00:35:22,500 --> 00:35:25,500 had they been casing the house. 654 00:35:25,500 --> 00:35:27,570 It was only at 10:30 that morning 655 00:35:27,570 --> 00:35:30,440 that Anne Lindbergh decided to stay another night. 656 00:35:30,440 --> 00:35:33,740 How could Richard Hauptmann have known? 657 00:35:33,740 --> 00:35:36,040 So here's a big question I have. 658 00:35:36,050 --> 00:35:39,350 The motive behind this crime, okay? 659 00:35:39,350 --> 00:35:42,120 $50,000 is in the ransom notes, so there's cash, 660 00:35:42,120 --> 00:35:43,990 but put that aside. 661 00:35:43,990 --> 00:35:48,590 Why else would anyone want to kidnap the Lindbergh baby? 662 00:35:48,590 --> 00:35:51,730 -Or make him go away? -Or make him go away? 663 00:35:51,730 --> 00:35:53,600 Sounds like you have a theory. 664 00:35:53,600 --> 00:35:56,060 Well, for that, I think you need to talk to Lloyd. 665 00:35:56,070 --> 00:35:57,530 Lloyd, talk to me. 666 00:35:57,530 --> 00:36:00,540 Lloyd Gardner wrote an exhaustively researched book 667 00:36:00,540 --> 00:36:05,040 on the case and has developed an explosive new theory 668 00:36:05,040 --> 00:36:11,350 about who is actually behind the crime of the century. 669 00:36:11,350 --> 00:36:13,080 After years of working on this book, 670 00:36:13,080 --> 00:36:16,150 I gradually became convinced that there were two factors. 671 00:36:16,150 --> 00:36:19,150 Now here one is the child's health, 672 00:36:19,160 --> 00:36:21,120 the state of the child's health. 673 00:36:21,120 --> 00:36:23,690 And the other is Lindbergh's personality. 674 00:36:23,690 --> 00:36:25,690 Whoa. So hold on. 675 00:36:25,700 --> 00:36:28,160 So what was the state of the child's health? 676 00:36:28,160 --> 00:36:31,830 The child had a number of strange defects. 677 00:36:31,840 --> 00:36:34,840 The physicians who examined Charlie weeks 678 00:36:34,840 --> 00:36:36,970 before the kidnapping noticed 679 00:36:36,970 --> 00:36:39,440 that he had kind of a square head. 680 00:36:39,440 --> 00:36:40,840 He could not stand up straight. 681 00:36:40,840 --> 00:36:42,540 So you're saying the baby was suffering 682 00:36:42,550 --> 00:36:45,050 from a physical condition, what was that? 683 00:36:45,050 --> 00:36:48,650 -It was rickets. -Rickets. 684 00:36:48,650 --> 00:36:52,390 Rickets is a disease that causes weak bones in children. 685 00:36:52,390 --> 00:36:55,260 It was widespread in the early 20th century. 686 00:36:55,260 --> 00:36:59,390 And often treated with a drug called viosterol. 687 00:36:59,400 --> 00:37:03,230 It's impossible to know for sure if Charlie did have rickets. 688 00:37:03,230 --> 00:37:08,100 But Lloyd says there are clues if you know where to look. 689 00:37:08,100 --> 00:37:10,470 During the kidnapping, Anne Lindbergh published 690 00:37:10,470 --> 00:37:12,940 little Charlie's diet, in the hopes that he would 691 00:37:12,940 --> 00:37:14,940 be well cared for. 692 00:37:14,950 --> 00:37:20,150 Charlie needed 14 drops of viosterol every day. 693 00:37:20,150 --> 00:37:22,420 A mega dose. 694 00:37:22,420 --> 00:37:24,290 Lindbergh believed to know 695 00:37:24,290 --> 00:37:27,490 only the fittest should propagate, 696 00:37:27,490 --> 00:37:32,560 and the idea that he could have an imperfect child, 697 00:37:32,560 --> 00:37:35,930 was a terrible burden on him. 698 00:37:35,930 --> 00:37:40,900 In 1930, Charles Lindbergh met Dr. Alexis Carrel. 699 00:37:40,900 --> 00:37:43,710 Carrel studied eugenics, the theory 700 00:37:43,710 --> 00:37:46,570 that humans should create a better race 701 00:37:46,580 --> 00:37:48,540 through selective breeding. 702 00:37:48,550 --> 00:37:50,580 Lindbergh was hooked. 703 00:37:50,580 --> 00:37:54,120 He became a lifelong student of eugenics. 704 00:37:54,120 --> 00:37:55,980 And even met top Nazi's 705 00:37:55,990 --> 00:38:00,390 while he and Anne were living in Europe in the 1930s. 706 00:38:00,390 --> 00:38:02,990 According to Lloyd, Lindbergh also considered 707 00:38:02,990 --> 00:38:06,160 himself a superior specimen and wanted 708 00:38:06,160 --> 00:38:08,330 to spread his good genes. 709 00:38:08,330 --> 00:38:11,530 He and Anne had five children after Charlie. 710 00:38:11,530 --> 00:38:13,870 But Lindbergh fathered seven more, 711 00:38:13,870 --> 00:38:17,310 by three different women in Germany. 712 00:38:17,310 --> 00:38:19,810 He visited them twice a year, 713 00:38:19,810 --> 00:38:21,210 and no one knew about it, 714 00:38:21,210 --> 00:38:23,780 until years after his death. 715 00:38:23,780 --> 00:38:26,410 Charles Lindbergh was certainly a man capable 716 00:38:26,420 --> 00:38:29,550 of secrets and deceit. 717 00:38:29,550 --> 00:38:31,090 This is blowing my mind. 718 00:38:31,090 --> 00:38:32,620 And so Lloyd, what are you saying here? 719 00:38:32,620 --> 00:38:35,090 That the whole crime, the whole kidnapping 720 00:38:35,090 --> 00:38:37,430 would have been created by Charles Lindbergh? 721 00:38:37,430 --> 00:38:39,890 Yes. 722 00:38:39,900 --> 00:38:41,560 For what purpose? 723 00:38:41,570 --> 00:38:44,570 Simply to get the child out of public view I think. 724 00:38:44,570 --> 00:38:47,500 Okay, to institutionalize the child? 725 00:38:47,500 --> 00:38:48,840 Possibly. 726 00:38:48,840 --> 00:38:51,840 Lloyd believes Lindbergh planned the kidnapping 727 00:38:51,840 --> 00:38:55,580 as a public cover to exit the boy from their lives 728 00:38:55,580 --> 00:38:57,750 and put him in a medical institution 729 00:38:57,750 --> 00:39:00,450 where the press could never find him. 730 00:39:00,450 --> 00:39:04,290 This indicates a conspiracy with the father 731 00:39:04,290 --> 00:39:06,190 of the baby at the very center of it. 732 00:39:06,190 --> 00:39:08,560 Where was Lindbergh that day? 733 00:39:08,560 --> 00:39:10,990 We don't know. 734 00:39:10,990 --> 00:39:13,530 Lindbergh was actually never directly asked. 735 00:39:13,530 --> 00:39:15,930 He said that he was in New York working, 736 00:39:15,930 --> 00:39:19,200 and that he thought he might had a dental appointment, 737 00:39:19,200 --> 00:39:20,740 but he couldn't remember. 738 00:39:20,740 --> 00:39:22,500 Nobody asked for an explanation. 739 00:39:22,510 --> 00:39:25,140 That is weird. 740 00:39:25,140 --> 00:39:27,140 So the timeline on Lindbergh, March 1st 741 00:39:27,140 --> 00:39:30,210 is that he was away from the house all day. 742 00:39:30,210 --> 00:39:31,680 Yes. 743 00:39:31,680 --> 00:39:33,350 And had not come back until the night time, right? 744 00:39:33,350 --> 00:39:34,480 Right. 745 00:39:34,480 --> 00:39:36,480 When Lindbergh comes home, 746 00:39:36,490 --> 00:39:38,820 everything in the household orbits around him. 747 00:39:38,820 --> 00:39:40,050 Sure. 748 00:39:40,060 --> 00:39:41,960 So he comes in through the garage, 749 00:39:41,960 --> 00:39:43,620 and all the servants are with him, 750 00:39:43,630 --> 00:39:47,760 his wife is with him, the dog is with him, I'd say. 751 00:39:47,760 --> 00:39:50,370 The area where the nursery is at into the house, 752 00:39:50,370 --> 00:39:55,040 is all dark, it's all quiet, it's all clear. 753 00:39:55,040 --> 00:39:56,970 Lindbergh being at the center of this, 754 00:39:56,970 --> 00:40:00,240 the architect of it, ties up so many loose ends. 755 00:40:00,240 --> 00:40:01,980 It addresses the Tuesday night issue, you know, 756 00:40:01,980 --> 00:40:05,380 it puts him at the center of the investigation 757 00:40:05,380 --> 00:40:08,050 for a purpose, he's controlling this whole thing. 758 00:40:08,050 --> 00:40:12,250 But the fact remains that this child died. 759 00:40:12,260 --> 00:40:14,720 GARDNER: This is not necessarily a murder plot. 760 00:40:14,720 --> 00:40:16,460 Things could have gone wrong. 761 00:40:16,460 --> 00:40:19,060 The baby suffered a fractured skull. 762 00:40:19,060 --> 00:40:21,660 Many have wondered if he was dropped from the ladder 763 00:40:21,670 --> 00:40:23,130 the night of the kidnapping. 764 00:40:23,130 --> 00:40:26,730 And there are people involved in this whole conspiracy 765 00:40:26,740 --> 00:40:28,270 that knew this. 766 00:40:28,270 --> 00:40:31,010 So that makes it possible that the money involved, 767 00:40:31,010 --> 00:40:33,710 the ransom money, is actually, it's blackmail. 768 00:40:39,080 --> 00:40:41,350 Lloyd believes Lindbergh paid the ransom 769 00:40:41,350 --> 00:40:45,020 to keep his co-conspirators silent. 770 00:40:45,020 --> 00:40:48,220 Even if he's right, there are many unanswered questions 771 00:40:48,220 --> 00:40:50,730 about who those co-conspirators were, 772 00:40:50,730 --> 00:40:55,360 and whether Richard Hauptmann was one of them. 773 00:40:55,370 --> 00:40:58,370 In the end, Lloyd's take on the crime of the century 774 00:40:58,370 --> 00:41:00,940 is only a theory. 775 00:41:00,940 --> 00:41:02,970 But it's these enduring questions 776 00:41:02,970 --> 00:41:06,170 that keep the Lindbergh case alive. 777 00:41:06,180 --> 00:41:08,440 Was Richard Hauptmann framed? 778 00:41:08,450 --> 00:41:13,110 Was the kidnapping an inside job gone wrong? 779 00:41:13,120 --> 00:41:17,390 And how many people have carried these secrets to the grave? 780 00:41:17,390 --> 00:41:19,920 We may never have all the answers. 781 00:41:19,920 --> 00:41:22,520 We only know that Hauptmann was found guilty 782 00:41:22,530 --> 00:41:25,760 on the flimsiest of evidence. 783 00:41:25,760 --> 00:41:29,200 That he maintained his innocence to the very end. 784 00:41:29,200 --> 00:41:31,000 And that Colonel Charles Lindbergh 785 00:41:31,000 --> 00:41:34,570 sat in that courtroom and watched it all happen. 786 00:41:34,570 --> 00:41:38,470 The State of New Jersey has rested it's case. 787 00:41:38,480 --> 00:41:40,880 Hauptmann said they think when I die, 788 00:41:40,880 --> 00:41:42,340 the case will die. 789 00:41:42,350 --> 00:41:44,080 They think it will be like a book I close. 790 00:41:44,080 --> 00:41:46,810 85 years later, we're still searching 791 00:41:46,820 --> 00:41:49,080 for answers about the crime. 792 00:41:49,090 --> 00:41:52,220 And about the man whose name carried a thousand headlines -- 793 00:41:52,220 --> 00:41:55,160 Charles Lindbergh. 793 00:41:56,305 --> 00:42:56,244 Support us and become VIP member to remove all ads from www.OpenSubtitles.org