Case 188: Robert Wone

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episode on your app or on our website. Nestled within
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the historic DuPont Circle neighbourhood in Washington DC's Old City
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is Swan Street North West. an exclusive residential strip lined
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with Victorian-style row houses. With the White House only a
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mile north, Swan Street is a highly desirable location for
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wealthy city dwellers who seek leafier surroundings. One address, a four-bedroom,
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three-storey abode with city views, is what's called a hot cellar,
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the kind of house that doesn't stay on the market long.
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Since the incident in 2006, the intruder has not returned
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to the address, ensuring residents within can now sleep easy. D.C.
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Emergency 911, operator 6752. Do you need police, fire, or ambulance?
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We need an ambulance. What's wrong, ma'am? We had someone
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named us in our house, evidently, and they stabbed somebody. Okay,
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somebody's inside the house now? I don't know. We heard...
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Are they bleeding? We see someone bleeding. Someone is bleeding
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in our house. Okay, where are they bleeding from? I
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think he was In the stomach. In the stomach. Is
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he conscious? Calm down for me. I'm going to send
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some help, okay? Female or male?
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It's a male. He's a friend of ours.
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He's spending the.
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Night with us.
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Okay.
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And who was the person that stabbed him? Did you know?
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Is he conscious? We need an ambulance. Ma'am, listen to me.
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He's not conscious.
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He's not conscious at all?
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No.
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We need someone right now.
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Is he breathing?
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Listen to me. Calm down. I'm going to help you, okay?
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Is he breathing?
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No. I'm upstairs, and he's downstairs.
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I don't know. Okay, who's downstairs with him? My partner
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is downstairs with him right now. He told me to
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go upstairs and call the police immediately. Okay, who's the person? Okay,
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I'm sending paramedics and the police. Okay, who's the person
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that stabbed him?
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I don't know.
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We think it's somebody with an intruder in the house.
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We heard a chime at the door.
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Oh, my goodness.
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Ma'am, calm down. Swan Street Northwest, am I correct?
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Yes.
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The person that stabbed him, is he still in the home?
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I don't know. The person had one of our knives.
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The person that stabbed him ran out the door with
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a knife?
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I think.
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So.
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Okay, anybody get any type of description of the person
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that came in the home? I have no idea.
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We have no description.
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We heard the chimes, and we heard the screams.
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Okay.
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So you both was upstairs and your friend was downstairs?
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Yes.
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You heard the door open and then you heard the scream?
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I didn't hear the door open until after the scream.
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And then we ran down the stairs and we heard,
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we have an alarm.
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And so the chime went off. Okay.
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We really need the ambulance.
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Okay. Stay around there, ma'am. Go to the door. They
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should be putting up any moment, okay? I'm afraid to
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go downstairs. Okay. The person who's downstairs, what's the person
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that was assaulted?
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No, we're on the second floor.
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Okay. So somebody need to go downstairs and open the
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door for the paramedics. You're not sure if that person's
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still in the home or not?
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I have no idea.
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Okay. We have paramedics in the room, okay?
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What time is it?
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What time is it at the moment?
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2354.
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It's 1154, ma'am.
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1154.
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Yes. I'll stay on the line with you. I will
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stay on the line until somebody gets here, okay? I
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won't hang up. We need them right now. I'm not
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hanging up, but we need help now. Okay. They are
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en route, ma'am. They are en route. Let me know
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when you hear the paramedics. Can you look out the
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window and see if you hear them coming? I'm looking out.
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The window, and I see nothing.
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I see nobody.
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Okay.
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It seems like forever, but they are en route, ma'am.
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They're coming. I see them.
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Here they are.
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Here they are. They're there. I'm going downstairs. Okay. I'll
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stand in line with you until you open the door
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for the paramedics, okay?
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Okay.
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Help us. We have someone with stabs on our second floor.
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Man.
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This is really an emergency.
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I mean, he's leaving.
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He's hurrying.
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Ma'am, we'll be okay.
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Thank you.
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It was just before midnight on Tuesday August 2 2006
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when the ambulance pulled up outside a grey brick row
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house on Swan Street Northwest. A resident, Victor Zaborski, met
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the paramedics out front, still on the phone to 911.
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Panic and distress made his voice sound higher than usual,
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leading the operator to mistake him for a woman. Between sobs,
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Victor informed the paramedics that someone had been stabbed on
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the second floor. They rushed past him into the house
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and ascended the steep wooden staircase just inside the front door.
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About halfway up, they spotted another male on the landing above,
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Dylan Ward. When the paramedics asked Dylan what was going on,
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he silently raised a hand and pointed down a short hallway.
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He was gesturing towards a nearby room. Following his direction,
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the two paramedics entered the small space. Against one wall
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was a sofa bed that had been unfolded and prepped
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with linen. A man sat perched on one side. He
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was Joseph Price, the third and final resident of the house.
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Next to him, lying face up on the sofa bed,
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was a fourth man. His pupils were fixed and dilated,
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skin pale and cold. Two weeks earlier, Robert Wan checked
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his inbox and noticed an email from an old friend,
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Joseph Price. Joseph was replying to a request Robert had
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recently sent him. Robert had only just landed a role
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as General Counsel for Radio Free Asia, an accurate and
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uncensored news source for Asian countries with poor media practices.
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It was the perfect job for the 32-year-old. As a
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fourth-generation Chinese-American, Robert was passionate about racial equality. On Tuesday
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August 2 2006, Robert's workday was set to be longer
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than usual. He had to stay after hours to attend
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a legal education course, which wouldn't end until after 9pm.
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The late finish wasn't ideal, as Robert lived 20 miles
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from the Radio Free Asia office in Washington DC and
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would have to commute to work again early the next day. So,
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in the weeks leading up to the event, the extremely
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organised Robert contacted some DC-based friends to see if they
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could host him for the night, including Joseph Price. The
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pair had met 15 years earlier in college. Although they
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had repeatedly tried to catch up for dinner, it had
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been a while since they'd seen each other. Consequently, Joseph
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emailed Robert back saying he was happy for him to
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crash at his house on August 2. That morning, Robert
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stood on bustling Connecticut Avenue where he kissed his wife
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Kathy goodbye. It was 8.45 and the couple had caught
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the metro train together into DC to go to their
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respective jobs. Later that night, Kathy received a call from
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Robert He had just finished up at his course and
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was on his way to visit the night shift at
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Radio Free Asia. Afterwards, he would take a cab to
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Joseph Price's house, one and a half miles away. As
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they said their goodbyes, Cathy told her husband, Have a
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good night. I love you. As Joseph Price waited for
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his guest to arrive, His partner, Victor Zaborski, returned home
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from an interstate business trip. Joseph informed Victor that Robert
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Warren would be staying over, but Victor was too tired
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to wait up and greet the visitor. He decided to
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retire for the night and catch up with Robert in
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the morning. Victor went up to the main bedroom on
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the third floor, climbed into bed, and turned on the
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television to unwind. Robert arrived at around 10.30pm and was
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greeted by Joseph, as well as Dylan Ward, a third
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man who also lived at the house. Dylan knew Robert
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too and was friends with him, but not to the
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extent of the others. The trio gathered around the kitchen
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table and made small talk over glasses of water. Like Robert,
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Joseph Price, Victor Zaborski and Dylan Ward were all corporate
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professionals in their mid to late 30s. Joseph was a
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partner at an internationally renowned law firm and the director
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slash general counsel for a non-profit that supported the LGBT community.
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His partner, Victor, was the director of marketing for the
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Milk Processors Education Programme famous for their Got Milk advertising campaign.
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Dylan Ward held an Associate of Culinary Arts degree and
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had also earned a Masters in Children's Literature, which he
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used to write, edit and publish children's books. He also
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worked alongside Joseph as Development Director for the LGBT non-profit.
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The conversation at the kitchen table revolved around family, work,
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the hot weather, and house repairs. But the chat was short-lived.
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As 11pm drew near, Robert was tired and wanted to
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get a good night's sleep. He told Joseph they would
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catch up further over breakfast. Dylan and Joseph led Robert
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up to the second floor. After turning right at the
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top of the stairs, the trio headed down a short hallway,
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passing a bathroom and sitting area, before reaching the home office.
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The room was toward the front of the house and
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had three long, narrow windows overlooking the street outside. Inside,
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a sofa bed had been prepared for Robert. His hosts
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also pointed out the bathroom down the hall so Robert
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could take a shower. The three men then went their
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separate ways. Joseph continued upstairs to the third floor bedroom
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he shared with Victor. He switched off the television and
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went to sleep. Dylan took a sleeping pill and went
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to his own room on the same floor as the
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home office. As Dylan waited for the medication to take effect,
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he read a magazine. From his room, he could hear
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the shower running. It stopped after a few minutes. Then
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he heard a click as the door to the home
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office closed. The sleeping pill taking effect, Dylan soon drifted
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off into a deep sleep. Earlier that night, Joseph had
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been downstairs when he noticed something out of place. A
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large windowed door in the kitchen led to a patio.
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This small fenced-in area at the rear of the house
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had a table, chairs and a barbecue grill. Joseph's attention
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was drawn to something on one of the patio's exterior lights.
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He went outside to investigate, only to discover it was
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just a spider. Joseph headed back into the kitchen, closing
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the door behind him. He didn't realise, and no one
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bothered to check before bed, that the door's deadlock was
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in the vertical position. Joseph had forgotten to lock it.
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Shortly before midnight, Joseph and Victor were awoken by the
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sound of their doorbell chime, alerting them that an exterior
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door had been opened. Going through either the front or
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rear doors of their house would activate this chime. Neither
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man thought much of it. They had a tenant who
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lived in the separate basement suite and her comings and
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goings sometimes caused the chime to go off. But then
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they heard a strange noise. It was a breathy, quiet sound,
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like a muffled grunt or scream. Dylan Ward heard the
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same noise, but he was drowsy from his sleeping pill
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and this prevented him from fully acknowledging it. He fell
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back asleep. Unlike Dylan, Joseph and Victor were unsettled. They
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decided to investigate the strange sound. Just as they got
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out of bed, they heard it again. This time, they
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were certain it was a low scream. They raced down
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to the second floor, and upon entering the home office,
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they saw Robert Wan unresponsive on the fold-out sofa. Joseph
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rushed to check Robert's pulse and realised blood was seeping
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from his chest. He yelled at Victor, who was screaming
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in panic, to call 911. Joseph then grabbed a towel
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and pressed it to Robert's wounds. The commotion woke Dylan,
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00:17:40.289 --> 00:17:43.490
who left his room to find a frantic Victor on
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00:17:43.529 --> 00:17:47.150
the phone and Joseph in the office, holding a towel
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00:17:47.289 --> 00:17:52.950
against Robert's chest. Dylan, still groggy from the sleeping pill,
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00:17:53.150 --> 00:17:58.670
was confused by the situation before him. Six minutes later,
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00:17:59.130 --> 00:18:06.279
an ambulance arrived. Robert's pyjama top was slashed in three places.
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00:18:07.440 --> 00:18:12.720
Underneath were three stab wounds to his chest. Robert had
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00:18:12.799 --> 00:18:16.160
only been at the address for 90 minutes before he
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00:18:16.200 --> 00:18:22.180
was rushed to hospital. He was pronounced dead shortly after midnight.
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There had been a recent spate of break-ins at homes
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00:18:28.750 --> 00:18:33.890
within the DuPont Circle. In some instances, intruders had been
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00:18:33.930 --> 00:18:37.789
brazen enough to enter properties while the residents were inside.
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00:18:39.150 --> 00:18:43.660
The police had only recently issued a security statement to locals,
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00:18:43.920 --> 00:18:47.539
advising them to keep their doors locked at all times.
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00:18:49.150 --> 00:18:54.660
Joseph Price failed to heed this warning on August 2.
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00:18:54.660 --> 00:18:58.240
When detectives arrived at his Swan Street address that night,
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00:18:58.680 --> 00:19:01.700
it was brought to their attention that the patio door
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00:19:01.819 --> 00:19:08.420
was not only left unlocked, but was slightly ajar. The
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00:19:08.460 --> 00:19:12.500
patio backed onto an alleyway that ran parallel to Swan
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00:19:12.519 --> 00:19:16.700
Street Northwest, bordering the backs of all the row houses.
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00:19:18.130 --> 00:19:22.690
This presented a likely scenario. An intruder had scaled the
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00:19:22.730 --> 00:19:25.890
patio fence from the alley and gained access to the
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00:19:25.950 --> 00:19:31.180
house via the unlocked door. The Swan Street row house
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00:19:31.299 --> 00:19:36.160
was an appealing target for any burglar. Worth well over
270
00:19:36.220 --> 00:19:41.819
a million dollars, the property contained flat-screen televisions and laptop computers,
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00:19:42.119 --> 00:19:48.309
among other high-priced goods. Upon entering the house through the
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00:19:48.369 --> 00:19:51.970
rear patio door, there was a kitchen counter to the left.
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00:19:53.279 --> 00:19:56.099
Sitting on top of this counter was a knife block
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00:19:56.599 --> 00:20:01.839
filled with black-handled knives. It appeared as though the intruder
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00:20:01.880 --> 00:20:07.240
had grabbed a knife before proceeding further inside. At some point,
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00:20:07.589 --> 00:20:13.059
They entered the home office and encountered Robert Wan. A
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00:20:13.140 --> 00:20:15.980
kitchen knife from the knife block was found on a
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00:20:16.059 --> 00:20:19.920
nightstand next to the sofa bed, its blade caked in
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00:20:20.000 --> 00:20:25.549
Robert's blood, chest hairs and some fatty tissue. The lack
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00:20:25.609 --> 00:20:29.309
of foreign fingerprints on the knife or anywhere else throughout
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00:20:29.349 --> 00:20:35.730
the property suggested that the intruder had worn gloves. Robert's
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00:20:35.890 --> 00:20:39.619
final moments were pieced together from evidence at the scene
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00:20:39.839 --> 00:20:44.359
and statements from the other occupants of the house. Robert
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00:20:44.420 --> 00:20:48.220
had prepared for bed in his usual tidy way. He
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00:20:48.279 --> 00:20:51.140
removed his work clothes and folded them neatly on a
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00:20:51.200 --> 00:20:55.970
desk with his other belongings. After showering, he put on
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00:20:56.029 --> 00:21:02.089
his pyjamas, a t-shirt, underwear and gym shorts. The last
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00:21:02.180 --> 00:21:05.730
thing Robert did before going to sleep was insert his
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00:21:05.789 --> 00:21:10.470
mouth guard, which prevented him from grinding his teeth. He
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00:21:10.509 --> 00:21:17.650
was wearing the mouthpiece when first responders arrived. Robert's killer
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00:21:17.670 --> 00:21:21.880
stabbed him three times in the chest and abdomen. What
292
00:21:21.980 --> 00:21:27.180
provoked the attack was uncertain. It didn't seem likely that
293
00:21:27.259 --> 00:21:32.750
Robert was targeted specifically. His colleagues hadn't noticed anything different
294
00:21:32.789 --> 00:21:36.390
about him lately, and his kind demeanour meant it was
295
00:21:36.490 --> 00:21:39.690
unlikely he was the target of a murderous vendetta. A
296
00:21:41.700 --> 00:21:46.420
case of mistaken identity didn't add up either. There was
297
00:21:46.480 --> 00:21:51.230
nothing in Joseph, Victor or Dylan's lifestyles that indicated any
298
00:21:51.309 --> 00:21:55.740
of them could have been the intended victims. None had
299
00:21:55.779 --> 00:21:59.319
a criminal history, and all were well regarded for their
300
00:21:59.380 --> 00:22:05.069
career success and philanthropy. The three men spoke willingly to
301
00:22:05.130 --> 00:22:11.130
police and provided their fingerprints, hair samples, and DNA. They
302
00:22:11.170 --> 00:22:15.440
were open and candid when answering questions, and when spoken
303
00:22:15.500 --> 00:22:24.099
to separately, their stories aligned. Yet, There was one aspect
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00:22:24.160 --> 00:22:28.420
of the men's lives that investigators honed in on, their
305
00:22:28.480 --> 00:22:32.660
sexuality and the nature of their relationships with one another.
306
00:22:34.220 --> 00:22:37.869
The men openly discussed their roles in each other's lives,
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00:22:38.180 --> 00:22:42.589
which amounted to them being in a three-way polyamorous relationship.
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00:22:43.910 --> 00:22:48.589
It started with Joseph and Victor, registered domestic partners who
309
00:22:48.630 --> 00:22:53.619
had been together for six years. Dylan entered the picture
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00:22:53.789 --> 00:22:57.750
as the couple's roommate before engaging in his own intimate
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00:22:57.809 --> 00:23:02.930
relationship with Joseph. There was a malleable aspect to the
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00:23:02.990 --> 00:23:08.279
group's arrangement which was developing over time. All three men
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00:23:08.400 --> 00:23:14.009
accepted and consented to their circumstances, describing themselves as a family. Yet,
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00:23:15.710 --> 00:23:20.390
Their lifestyle was of interest to investigators, who questioned where
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00:23:20.490 --> 00:23:26.789
Robert Juan fit in to their unconventional relationship. The police
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00:23:26.849 --> 00:23:31.549
interviews with Joseph, Victor and Dylan were later criticised by
317
00:23:31.650 --> 00:23:39.160
some for being, quote, homophobic browbeating. Without a clear motive
318
00:23:39.299 --> 00:23:43.799
or suspect, Interviewing officers set out to prove that Robert
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00:23:43.859 --> 00:23:47.640
Juan was gay to establish some or all of the
320
00:23:47.680 --> 00:23:53.250
Swan Street residents as potential suspects. Yet, all three men
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00:23:53.309 --> 00:23:58.410
denied having a sexual relationship with Robert. He was, by
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00:23:58.529 --> 00:24:07.299
all accounts, exclusively heterosexual and happily married. During Dylan Ward's interview,
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00:24:07.619 --> 00:24:08.559
he was asked.
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00:24:10.069 --> 00:24:13.740
Robert's perfectly straight and he's going to leave his wife
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00:24:13.779 --> 00:24:16.599
for the night and come over to you all's house.
326
00:24:18.480 --> 00:24:24.940
Dylan attempted to defend himself against the inflammatory remark, retorting, Yeah,
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00:24:25.259 --> 00:24:29.690
because … but was immediately cut off by the officer,
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00:24:29.869 --> 00:24:35.690
who said, Then he's not perfectly straight. That's not something
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00:24:35.710 --> 00:24:42.490
a straight guy would do. In Joseph Price's interview, he
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00:24:42.589 --> 00:24:46.750
insisted that Robert was not gay, never had been, or
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00:24:46.950 --> 00:24:51.920
ever thought about it. He described Robert as the most straight-A,
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00:24:52.180 --> 00:24:56.440
no-nonsense guy he had ever met. He didn't take drugs
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00:24:56.859 --> 00:25:02.190
or drink alcohol to excess. Others felt this line of
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00:25:02.250 --> 00:25:07.700
inquiry was not bigoted, just aggressive. They believed a possible
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00:25:07.799 --> 00:25:11.140
romantic link between Robert and any one of the others
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00:25:11.359 --> 00:25:19.799
was a reasonable lead worth investigating. After Robert Juan's murder,
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00:25:20.079 --> 00:25:23.759
the Swan Street Northwest Row House was left ravaged of
338
00:25:23.839 --> 00:25:29.130
its former glory. Through their process of collecting forensic evidence,
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00:25:29.509 --> 00:25:32.990
police had caused thousands of dollars worth of damage to
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00:25:33.029 --> 00:25:38.019
the property. Joseph, Victor and Dylan no longer wanted to
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00:25:38.059 --> 00:25:41.539
live there, but were forced to stay while repairs were
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00:25:41.599 --> 00:25:46.019
undertaken so that the house could be sold. And their
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00:25:46.059 --> 00:25:51.890
worries had only just begun. Barely two months after Robert
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00:25:51.930 --> 00:25:56.250
was murdered, Joseph, Victor and Dylan returned to their home
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00:25:56.369 --> 00:25:59.269
to find it in disarray. $ 7, 000 worth of items had
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00:25:59.289 --> 00:26:07.849
been stolen. including a flat-screen television and other electronics. An
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00:26:07.910 --> 00:26:13.190
arrest swiftly followed. To the shock of many, one of
348
00:26:13.289 --> 00:26:16.940
the two people accused of the burglary was Michael Price,
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00:26:17.619 --> 00:26:23.359
Joseph's brother. Michael had a substance abuse problem and had
350
00:26:23.440 --> 00:26:28.319
stolen from the three men before. This raised the question,
351
00:26:28.960 --> 00:26:33.140
did Michael break in on August 2? and perhaps not
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00:26:33.200 --> 00:26:36.359
expecting to come across a stranger in the home office,
353
00:26:37.079 --> 00:26:42.819
kill Robert Warne. Michael was a student and had missed
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00:26:42.859 --> 00:26:47.000
his classes on the night of Robert's murder. He also
355
00:26:47.099 --> 00:26:52.490
had a key to his brother's house. Nothing was uncovered
356
00:26:52.529 --> 00:26:56.450
that directly linked Michael to Robert, but he would remain
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00:26:56.490 --> 00:27:01.299
a person of interest in the homicide investigations. As for
358
00:27:01.319 --> 00:27:05.500
the burglary months later, the charges against Michael and his
359
00:27:05.559 --> 00:27:12.940
co-accused were ultimately dropped during a pre-trial hearing. Then came
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00:27:13.019 --> 00:27:18.500
another unexpected turn of events. Joseph Price, Victor Zaborski and
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00:27:18.579 --> 00:27:24.480
Dylan Ward all hired distinguished legal representation and ceased speaking
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00:27:24.500 --> 00:27:28.910
with authorities about the Robert Juan case. there was a
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00:27:28.950 --> 00:27:34.089
good reason for their change of heart. The two paramedics
364
00:27:34.150 --> 00:27:38.279
who responded to Victor Zaborski's 911 call on the night
365
00:27:38.319 --> 00:27:42.960
of Robert's murder were very proficient, with 25 years experience
366
00:27:43.019 --> 00:27:47.869
between them. Both had been to their share of violent scenes,
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00:27:48.180 --> 00:27:54.359
including stabbings. However, As they entered the Swan Street Northwest
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00:27:54.440 --> 00:27:58.279
Row House, they were greeted with a sight neither had
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00:27:58.359 --> 00:28:03.500
seen before. One of the paramedics later said that the
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00:28:03.640 --> 00:28:08.160
actions of Joseph, Victor and Dylan were enough to make
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00:28:08.220 --> 00:28:11.109
the hairs on the back of their neck stand up.
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00:28:21.220 --> 00:28:24.960
Casefile will be back shortly. Thank you for supporting us
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After the paramedics received reports of a stabbing at the
402
00:30:39.769 --> 00:30:43.670
Swan Street Northwest row house, it took them six minutes
403
00:30:43.730 --> 00:30:47.619
to reach the property. Victor Zaborski met them on the
404
00:30:47.680 --> 00:30:51.569
front steps in a white bathrobe. He was crying into
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00:30:51.630 --> 00:30:55.250
a cell phone, which was still connected to emergency services.
406
00:30:56.809 --> 00:31:00.250
What's going on? One of the paramedics asked him, to
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00:31:00.289 --> 00:31:03.809
which Victor explained that the stabbing victim was on the
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00:31:03.869 --> 00:31:09.440
second floor. They entered the house carrying a stretcher and
409
00:31:09.500 --> 00:31:14.059
immediately made their way upstairs, where they came across Dylan Ward.
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00:31:15.079 --> 00:31:19.170
He too was dressed in a white bathrobe. They asked
411
00:31:19.289 --> 00:31:23.619
Dylan the same question. He pointed down the hall without
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00:31:23.670 --> 00:31:28.380
saying a word. Then he silently retreated into his bedroom
413
00:31:28.599 --> 00:31:34.299
and closed the door. Dylan's complete lack of emotion confused
414
00:31:34.420 --> 00:31:39.309
the paramedics. They had never seen such cool indifference from
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00:31:39.380 --> 00:31:43.289
someone at an active crime scene. Come to think of it,
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00:31:43.809 --> 00:31:48.849
The paramedics noticed an uncharacteristic and eerie quietness throughout the
417
00:31:48.910 --> 00:31:52.789
entire residence that didn't add up to the urgency or
418
00:31:52.849 --> 00:31:57.920
brutality of what had happened there. Inside the home office
419
00:31:58.099 --> 00:32:01.980
was Joseph Price, sitting on the fold-out sofa with his
420
00:32:02.079 --> 00:32:05.359
back to the door and with one leg tucked beneath him.
421
00:32:06.460 --> 00:32:10.890
He was naked aside from a pair of underwear. he
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00:32:10.950 --> 00:32:14.559
wasn't touching Robert Juan or making any effort to render
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00:32:14.779 --> 00:32:20.079
aid or assistance. When asked what was going on, Joseph
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00:32:20.259 --> 00:32:26.079
simply replied, I heard a scream. Then he stood and
425
00:32:26.180 --> 00:32:30.839
moved out of the paramedic's way. The lead medic rushed
426
00:32:30.980 --> 00:32:34.460
to Robert while the other edged around the sofa to
427
00:32:34.500 --> 00:32:39.359
get a better look at Joseph. His ill-fitting behaviour made
428
00:32:39.400 --> 00:32:42.180
them uneasy and they wanted to keep him in their
429
00:32:42.240 --> 00:32:46.180
line of sight. They even eyed his hands in case
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00:32:46.240 --> 00:32:54.750
he was carrying a weapon. While the resident's version of events,
431
00:32:54.970 --> 00:32:58.630
as detailed at the beginning of this episode, indicated the
432
00:32:58.690 --> 00:33:03.009
attack happened quickly and recently, Robert appeared to have been
433
00:33:03.069 --> 00:33:08.769
deceased for some time. He was unresponsive, pale, had no pulse,
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00:33:09.180 --> 00:33:13.140
and was cold to the touch. His eyes were fixed
435
00:33:13.220 --> 00:33:17.000
and dilated. There was no blood seeping from the three
436
00:33:17.079 --> 00:33:21.230
wounds in his chest, even though they were big enough to, quote,
437
00:33:22.210 --> 00:33:28.049
fit your finger into. According to Joseph, when he lifted
438
00:33:28.190 --> 00:33:33.390
Robert's shirt upon finding the man unconscious, he saw blood everywhere.
439
00:33:34.519 --> 00:33:37.759
He claimed to have attempted to staunch the bleeding using
440
00:33:37.819 --> 00:33:41.460
a towel, explaining that there was a lot of blood
441
00:33:41.539 --> 00:33:46.940
on the bed. The knife had pierced Robert's heart, chest wall,
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00:33:47.269 --> 00:33:53.670
right lung, small intestine and pancreas. The resulting injuries should
443
00:33:53.710 --> 00:33:59.750
have caused a catastrophic amount of bleeding, as Joseph had described. However,
444
00:34:00.430 --> 00:34:04.849
there were no copious bloodstains or spatter on or around Robert.
445
00:34:05.349 --> 00:34:09.829
aside from two unusually small spots on the sheet beneath him.
446
00:34:11.289 --> 00:34:14.570
It was believed these were caused when the paramedics rolled
447
00:34:14.590 --> 00:34:18.860
his body onto the stretcher. Either way, the amount of
448
00:34:18.940 --> 00:34:23.139
blood in the room was entirely inconsistent with the violent
449
00:34:23.239 --> 00:34:29.719
stabbing having taken place there. Robert's blood was also discovered
450
00:34:29.800 --> 00:34:33.550
in minimal amounts on a black-handled kitchen knife found on
451
00:34:33.570 --> 00:34:37.849
the nightstand and a large white cotton towel on the floor.
452
00:34:39.309 --> 00:34:43.670
While the towel hinted at someone endeavouring to staunch Robert's bleeding,
453
00:34:44.300 --> 00:34:49.000
paramedics noticed something that suggested a completely different act had
454
00:34:49.059 --> 00:34:54.820
taken place. A light film across Robert's torso featured the
455
00:34:54.860 --> 00:34:58.000
type of markings that would be visible if someone had
456
00:34:58.059 --> 00:35:02.599
attempted to clean the area with a towel, not stabilise it.
457
00:35:04.739 --> 00:35:08.010
As for the bloody towel on the floor, the staining
458
00:35:08.090 --> 00:35:11.530
was more consistent with someone having used it to wipe
459
00:35:11.670 --> 00:35:16.329
the sharp edge of a knife clean. More than 10
460
00:35:16.329 --> 00:35:19.769
white fibres consistent with the towel were found in the
461
00:35:19.829 --> 00:35:24.460
blood on the knife. but there were no fibres from
462
00:35:24.800 --> 00:35:30.539
or consistent with Robert's torn shirt. The knife was absent
463
00:35:30.559 --> 00:35:34.199
of blood along the cutting edge, but blood ran the
464
00:35:34.280 --> 00:35:37.860
entire length of its blade, which measured five and a
465
00:35:37.900 --> 00:35:43.300
half inches. Robert's wounds were only four to five inches deep.
466
00:35:45.539 --> 00:35:50.349
While the knife contained no foreign DNA or fingerprints, Joseph
467
00:35:50.429 --> 00:35:56.250
Price informed police that his might be found He explained
468
00:35:56.389 --> 00:35:59.570
that when he first came across Robert the knife was
469
00:35:59.670 --> 00:36:02.900
lying on his stomach so he moved it aside to
470
00:36:02.980 --> 00:36:07.739
render first aid When speaking about the incident to a
471
00:36:07.820 --> 00:36:11.980
friend later Joseph would say that he had physically pulled
472
00:36:12.039 --> 00:36:15.239
the weapon out of Robert's chest before placing it on
473
00:36:15.280 --> 00:36:21.480
the nightstand Joseph volunteered that the police might not find
474
00:36:21.500 --> 00:36:25.110
the real killer's DNA on the knife because they might
475
00:36:25.130 --> 00:36:31.030
have been, quote, wearing a glove. Yet, it was determined
476
00:36:31.190 --> 00:36:34.530
that the knife at the crime scene was highly unlikely
477
00:36:34.650 --> 00:36:38.329
to have produced wounds the size and shape of Robert's.
478
00:36:42.469 --> 00:36:45.780
As for the guest room itself, there was no sign
479
00:36:45.800 --> 00:36:50.130
of a struggle having taken place there While this implied
480
00:36:50.269 --> 00:36:54.989
Robert was attacked mid-sleep, such a scenario didn't correlate with
481
00:36:55.030 --> 00:36:59.760
the condition of the sofa bed. Robert's head rested on
482
00:36:59.820 --> 00:37:05.619
a fluffed, clean pillow with only one indentation, meaning his
483
00:37:05.699 --> 00:37:10.969
head hadn't moved at all since falling asleep. His wounds
484
00:37:11.050 --> 00:37:15.110
were uniform in shape and size, which is unusual in
485
00:37:15.170 --> 00:37:20.730
stabbing cases. as victims tend to thrash around, creating varying injuries.
486
00:37:22.469 --> 00:37:27.159
The fatal wound effectively shut down Robert's heart, but none
487
00:37:27.199 --> 00:37:31.099
of his wounds would have killed or rendered him unconscious immediately.
488
00:37:32.000 --> 00:37:35.500
He would have been alive for between 60 seconds to
489
00:37:35.500 --> 00:37:38.500
10 minutes before succumbing to the type of injuries he
490
00:37:38.539 --> 00:37:42.570
had endured. It was odd that his body had remained
491
00:37:42.650 --> 00:37:47.630
in one position that entire time. He hadn't tried to
492
00:37:47.690 --> 00:37:52.230
defend himself or reacted in any other way. He just
493
00:37:52.329 --> 00:37:57.090
lay there, unmoving, even when someone was thrusting a knife
494
00:37:57.190 --> 00:38:04.400
into his chest. A medical examiner noted, The wounds and
495
00:38:04.480 --> 00:38:08.360
internal bleeding would have produced such extreme pain that it
496
00:38:08.380 --> 00:38:11.860
would have been virtually impossible for Mr. Wan to have
497
00:38:11.940 --> 00:38:15.280
refrained from moving his body while in the bed. or
498
00:38:15.340 --> 00:38:18.179
attempting to get out of the bed to seek help.
499
00:38:21.039 --> 00:38:24.139
The lack of any movement from Robert was even more
500
00:38:24.219 --> 00:38:30.269
suspicious considering the DC area was experiencing a heatwave. According
501
00:38:30.329 --> 00:38:35.210
to Cathy Wan, Robert was particularly self-conscious about sweating in
502
00:38:35.269 --> 00:38:38.989
his sleep. He would toss and turn and kick blankets
503
00:38:39.050 --> 00:38:42.829
away for relief, but the sofa didn't appear to have
504
00:38:42.869 --> 00:38:47.070
been slept in at all. The top sheets and covers
505
00:38:47.170 --> 00:38:50.739
were neatly folded down at a 45 degree angle under
506
00:38:50.820 --> 00:38:55.059
Robert's body, which was how his hosts had described preparing
507
00:38:55.139 --> 00:39:00.039
the sofa for him. Robert wasn't known to sleep this way.
508
00:39:01.280 --> 00:39:04.650
Even if he did, the bedding shared the same level
509
00:39:04.690 --> 00:39:08.650
of preservation as the pillow, as if Robert didn't move
510
00:39:08.730 --> 00:39:12.110
in the slightest at all after settling onto the bed.
511
00:39:13.849 --> 00:39:18.610
There were no defensive wounds whatsoever on Robert's body. A
512
00:39:18.679 --> 00:39:24.539
medical examiner concluded, Robert would have reacted instinctively to protect
513
00:39:24.579 --> 00:39:29.449
himself and or physically fend off his attacker, unless he
514
00:39:29.530 --> 00:39:39.340
was … quote, otherwise incapacitated. While there were no markings
515
00:39:39.420 --> 00:39:43.639
to suggest that Robert had been manually strangled, hemorrhaging in
516
00:39:43.679 --> 00:39:47.559
his left eye meant some type of asphyxiation had occurred.
517
00:39:48.800 --> 00:39:52.449
It was theorised that Robert had been smothered unconscious with
518
00:39:52.530 --> 00:39:58.289
a pillow prior to being stabbed. Yet, small needle punctures
519
00:39:58.369 --> 00:40:02.300
were visible on the left side of Robert's neck. There
520
00:40:02.340 --> 00:40:05.480
were three more on his chest, two on his right
521
00:40:05.559 --> 00:40:08.440
foot and one on the back of his left hand.
522
00:40:09.780 --> 00:40:13.710
There was no record of paramedics or hospital staff injecting
523
00:40:13.809 --> 00:40:18.139
Robert with anything. This meant that the puncture wounds were
524
00:40:18.179 --> 00:40:22.360
made before Robert was treated, while he was still alive.
525
00:40:24.369 --> 00:40:31.369
Tests for various alcohols, amphetamines, opiates, barbiturates and benzodiazepine drugs,
526
00:40:31.769 --> 00:40:37.639
including commonly known date rape drugs, came back negative. Remnants
527
00:40:37.699 --> 00:40:40.760
of ecstasy and cannabis were found in the row house,
528
00:40:41.280 --> 00:40:46.980
but did not show up in Robert's bloodstream. By the
529
00:40:47.019 --> 00:40:50.630
time police arrived at the Swan Street address, Robert was
530
00:40:50.690 --> 00:40:55.730
being stretched into the waiting ambulance. Officers entered the house
531
00:40:55.949 --> 00:41:01.820
and immediately encountered all three male residents. Victor and Dylan
532
00:41:01.889 --> 00:41:05.219
were still in their white robes and Joseph was still
533
00:41:05.280 --> 00:41:11.000
in his underwear. Joseph did all the talking. He said
534
00:41:11.059 --> 00:41:14.510
that they had been burglarised and pointed towards the patio
535
00:41:14.570 --> 00:41:19.130
door at the rear of the kitchen remarking, See, the
536
00:41:19.170 --> 00:41:25.050
door is still open. Officer Diane Durham went to investigate.
537
00:41:25.969 --> 00:41:28.690
She noted that the door was all but a quarter
538
00:41:28.730 --> 00:41:32.349
of an inch closed. It was just touching the frame.
539
00:41:34.489 --> 00:41:39.010
According to Officer Durham, Joseph heard somebody scream and ran
540
00:41:39.070 --> 00:41:43.090
down to the ground floor. In contrast to the story
541
00:41:43.130 --> 00:41:47.070
of Robert being discovered injured in bed, In this instance,
542
00:41:47.550 --> 00:41:52.250
Joseph claimed that Robert was actually outside the patio door bleeding.
543
00:41:53.349 --> 00:41:56.230
The others let him in and took him upstairs to
544
00:41:56.289 --> 00:42:01.699
lie on the sofa bed. Officer Durham advised Joseph to
545
00:42:01.760 --> 00:42:05.539
dress himself as other units would be coming to investigate.
546
00:42:07.360 --> 00:42:13.230
Joseph then covered himself with a white robe. As more
547
00:42:13.269 --> 00:42:16.840
police arrived, The three residents were asked to remain in
548
00:42:16.880 --> 00:42:21.119
the living room, where they were observed whispering among themselves.
549
00:42:22.570 --> 00:42:26.070
It was noted that they all appeared to have showered recently.
550
00:42:27.849 --> 00:42:32.010
When asked again what had happened, Dylan Ward began to speak.
551
00:42:33.010 --> 00:42:37.530
Joseph immediately shot him a forbidding stare, causing Dylan to
552
00:42:37.610 --> 00:42:43.130
fall silent. Joseph once again rehashed the events of the night,
553
00:42:44.260 --> 00:42:47.980
he reiterated that they had been woken by the door chime.
554
00:42:49.659 --> 00:42:54.440
Joseph theorised that an unknown intruder had scaled the patio fence,
555
00:42:54.920 --> 00:42:58.559
then entered and exited the house via the door he
556
00:42:58.619 --> 00:43:05.340
had accidentally left unlocked. Curiously, the residents had only heard
557
00:43:05.360 --> 00:43:11.840
the chime once, suggesting someone entered but didn't leave. Furthermore,
558
00:43:12.309 --> 00:43:15.769
The tenant who lived separately in the row house's basement
559
00:43:16.030 --> 00:43:20.530
had spoken to Joseph earlier that night. She was going
560
00:43:20.570 --> 00:43:24.639
to spend the night at a friend's house. Shortly before
561
00:43:24.699 --> 00:43:28.619
she left at 6pm, she called Joseph and told him
562
00:43:28.760 --> 00:43:32.059
that she had set the security alarm, one that would
563
00:43:32.099 --> 00:43:35.650
have made a loud commotion if someone broke into the house.
564
00:43:36.949 --> 00:43:41.789
This meant it had been deactivated during the night. In
565
00:43:41.829 --> 00:43:45.489
their statements to police in the immediate aftermath of the murder,
566
00:43:45.929 --> 00:43:49.860
the Rohauser's occupants would state that the security alarm was
567
00:43:49.940 --> 00:43:55.639
not engaged that night. Joseph then led the police on
568
00:43:55.679 --> 00:43:59.920
a tour of his home. As officers ascended the stairs
569
00:44:00.000 --> 00:44:03.570
to the second and third floors, they noticed how loud
570
00:44:03.630 --> 00:44:07.889
their steps were on the wooden floorboards. None of the
571
00:44:07.929 --> 00:44:13.650
residents recalled hearing the intruder's footsteps. Not even Dylan, whose
572
00:44:13.710 --> 00:44:16.550
bedroom was at the top of the stairs and needed
573
00:44:16.590 --> 00:44:19.679
to be passed in order to reach the home office.
574
00:44:21.679 --> 00:44:24.960
Joseph told officers that Dylan might have slept through the
575
00:44:25.019 --> 00:44:28.929
attack because the air conditioner was on and the compressor
576
00:44:29.070 --> 00:44:33.829
on the roof above Dylan's bedroom was very loud. When
577
00:44:33.909 --> 00:44:38.030
officers tested this theory, they could barely hear the compressor,
578
00:44:38.530 --> 00:44:47.420
calling the noise imperceptible. Despite the residents' claims, the situation
579
00:44:47.539 --> 00:44:52.159
didn't seem like a burglary gone wrong. The interior of
580
00:44:52.199 --> 00:44:56.320
the row house was neat and orderly. Expensive electronics were
581
00:44:56.380 --> 00:45:02.000
in their usual spots. Nothing was missing. Even Robert's wallet,
582
00:45:02.199 --> 00:45:05.539
watch and BlackBerry phone were still in the home office,
583
00:45:05.989 --> 00:45:10.940
on the desk with his work clothes. Joseph and Victor
584
00:45:11.059 --> 00:45:14.489
told police that their Swan Street residence had never been
585
00:45:14.550 --> 00:45:19.809
burglarised before, or even entered by an intruder. They, as
586
00:45:19.869 --> 00:45:24.090
well as Dylan, ultimately acknowledged that the intruder theory was
587
00:45:24.190 --> 00:45:30.800
implausible and made absolutely no sense. But all three steadfastly
588
00:45:30.880 --> 00:45:36.380
maintained it. Their recollections of the night mostly aligned, and
589
00:45:36.460 --> 00:45:43.269
their statements were also suspiciously specific. For investigators, this indicated
590
00:45:43.289 --> 00:45:49.489
they had coached each other on what to say beforehand. Curiously,
591
00:45:49.949 --> 00:45:54.389
they glossed over some key details, such as their friendship
592
00:45:54.449 --> 00:45:58.510
with Robert. They minimised it to the point where it
593
00:45:58.610 --> 00:46:02.309
seemed like they were distant friends at most, and old
594
00:46:02.349 --> 00:46:08.010
acquaintances at least. This didn't align with the fact that
595
00:46:08.050 --> 00:46:12.269
the trio had hosted Robert's 30th birthday party years earlier,
596
00:46:12.889 --> 00:46:16.630
Joseph and Victor had attended his wedding, and Robert would
597
00:46:16.670 --> 00:46:20.829
catch up with them periodically, sometimes multiple times a year.
598
00:46:22.429 --> 00:46:26.610
Despite their inability to remember something as significant as their
599
00:46:26.650 --> 00:46:31.880
long-term friendship with Robert, the trio recalled unremarkable details with
600
00:46:31.929 --> 00:46:36.099
a suspicious amount of details. such as how Joseph had
601
00:46:36.199 --> 00:46:40.179
gone outside to investigate the spider on the patio light,
602
00:46:40.599 --> 00:46:46.409
which led to him leaving the door unlocked. Once interviewing
603
00:46:46.510 --> 00:46:50.630
officers sensed things weren't adding up, they started to record
604
00:46:50.650 --> 00:46:54.989
the three men. At any given time in their recollections,
605
00:46:55.389 --> 00:46:58.210
there were moments in which one or several of the
606
00:46:58.250 --> 00:47:02.780
men were unable to account for the others. Yet, No
607
00:47:02.840 --> 00:47:06.719
matter the line of questioning, all three were unwavering in
608
00:47:06.760 --> 00:47:13.030
their innocence and staunchly defended one another. Joseph told officers,
609
00:47:14.309 --> 00:47:17.269
I know Victor and Dylan better than I know my mum.
610
00:47:17.889 --> 00:47:20.250
There is no chance on the face of the earth
611
00:47:20.329 --> 00:47:24.550
that anybody did anything to Robert. They couldn't even spank
612
00:47:24.610 --> 00:47:29.889
a child that was being bad. At one point during
613
00:47:29.949 --> 00:47:34.389
his interview, Joseph demanded, I want to see them both,
614
00:47:35.030 --> 00:47:39.780
referring to Victor and Dylan. He seemed most concerned with
615
00:47:39.880 --> 00:47:44.480
Dylan in particular. When told he was free to go,
616
00:47:45.139 --> 00:47:50.599
Joseph replied, What's the story with Dylan? I mean, I'm
617
00:47:50.659 --> 00:47:55.969
going to get his attorney to come down here. By now,
618
00:47:56.179 --> 00:48:01.389
police had well-formed opinions of the trio. They described Joseph
619
00:48:01.469 --> 00:48:08.449
Price as arrogant, unconcerned, flippant, aggressive and self-centred. His partner,
620
00:48:08.610 --> 00:48:14.909
Victor Zaborski, was passive, disinterested and unconcerned about solving the attack,
621
00:48:15.650 --> 00:48:23.579
as was Dylan Ward, who was calm and distant. Following
622
00:48:23.679 --> 00:48:28.860
Robert Wan's murder, detectives meticulously canvassed the Swan Street row
623
00:48:28.900 --> 00:48:33.550
house for evidence. On one occasion, They watched as a
624
00:48:33.570 --> 00:48:37.809
cadaver dog, trained to locate human blood and remains, was
625
00:48:37.889 --> 00:48:42.289
led through the house. The dog ran through the open
626
00:48:42.349 --> 00:48:46.730
living space downstairs, nose to the ground, before being led
627
00:48:46.809 --> 00:48:50.650
out the back door to the patio. When he reached
628
00:48:50.710 --> 00:48:54.489
a drain cover at its centre, he stopped and indicated
629
00:48:54.550 --> 00:48:58.960
to the handler that he could smell blood. The handler
630
00:48:59.099 --> 00:49:04.349
approached the drain. The cover was slightly ajar and an
631
00:49:04.510 --> 00:49:09.989
uncoiled garden hose lay nearby. Given the rest of the
632
00:49:10.030 --> 00:49:16.349
house was presented so immaculately, the displaced hose was uncharacteristically sloppy.
633
00:49:17.489 --> 00:49:21.960
It looked as though it had been recently used. The
634
00:49:21.980 --> 00:49:25.539
cadaver dog also alerted at a clothes dryer on the
635
00:49:25.599 --> 00:49:31.260
second floor near Dylan's bedroom. It was empty, but police
636
00:49:31.360 --> 00:49:35.579
were developing a theory. The killer had hosed down their
637
00:49:35.619 --> 00:49:40.190
bloody clothes over the drain outside, before placing them in
638
00:49:40.250 --> 00:49:45.510
the dryer. Detectives also tested for blood in the home
639
00:49:45.590 --> 00:49:48.889
office that might not have been visible to the naked eye.
640
00:49:50.130 --> 00:49:53.800
They sprayed a substance that revealed trace amounts of blood
641
00:49:53.889 --> 00:49:58.820
on the walls, floor, sofa bed and door frame. It
642
00:49:58.889 --> 00:50:03.940
indicated that a large-scale clean-up had taken place after Robert's murder,
643
00:50:04.820 --> 00:50:10.780
but before authorities were called to the scene. The entire
644
00:50:10.860 --> 00:50:14.539
home was very clean, with the captain of the violent
645
00:50:14.599 --> 00:50:19.019
crime unit later saying, A lot of evidence that we
646
00:50:19.099 --> 00:50:22.480
should have seen at the house, we didn't see. A
647
00:50:28.789 --> 00:50:32.829
search of Dylan Ward's room uncovered a three-piece cutlery box
648
00:50:32.889 --> 00:50:36.590
set designed to hold a carving knife, a large fork
649
00:50:36.909 --> 00:50:43.789
and a smaller knife. the smaller knife was missing. Detectives
650
00:50:43.869 --> 00:50:49.610
contacted the manufacturer, who sent out a duplicate. When compared
651
00:50:49.670 --> 00:50:53.659
to the wounds inflicted on Robert Warn, this knife was
652
00:50:53.780 --> 00:51:01.159
capable of causing very similar results. Dylan's room also contained
653
00:51:01.219 --> 00:51:05.599
a trove of items used for dominant and submissive sex acts,
654
00:51:06.179 --> 00:51:13.719
including shackles, chains with locks, metal collars, wrist and ankle restraints, clamps, hooks,
655
00:51:14.079 --> 00:51:18.780
and mouth gags. He also had a collection of manuals
656
00:51:18.929 --> 00:51:24.010
on sadomasochistic practices and books dedicated to the subject of
657
00:51:24.150 --> 00:51:30.750
inflicting pain or enslaving others for sexual gratification. Many of
658
00:51:30.809 --> 00:51:36.829
these texts contained passages highlighted by the reader, When these
659
00:51:36.929 --> 00:51:41.150
items were first discovered, Dylan was up front with detectives.
660
00:51:41.809 --> 00:51:48.409
He and Joseph engaged in BDSM. That was an acceptable explanation,
661
00:51:49.170 --> 00:51:53.380
but in the context of Robert Juan's murder, police did
662
00:51:53.449 --> 00:51:58.019
wonder whether the items were used to restrain or smother Robert.
663
00:52:00.199 --> 00:52:04.539
Traces of semen were found on and around Robert's genitals.
664
00:52:05.610 --> 00:52:11.610
When tested, it produced a puzzling result. The semen belonged
665
00:52:11.710 --> 00:52:15.670
to Robert, but there was nothing to suggest he willingly
666
00:52:15.750 --> 00:52:19.329
participated in any sex acts the night of his murder.
667
00:52:20.989 --> 00:52:27.739
Among Dylan Ward's belongings was an electrical shockwave generator. This device,
668
00:52:28.019 --> 00:52:33.329
controlled by a second party, released electrical impulses capable of
669
00:52:33.429 --> 00:52:38.559
causing the target individual to ejaculate, even when sedated or
670
00:52:38.639 --> 00:52:44.880
under anaesthetic. A search of Joseph Price's computer indicated that
671
00:52:44.940 --> 00:52:49.300
he and Dylan were familiar with this machine. On a
672
00:52:49.360 --> 00:52:54.429
fetish site that he belonged to, Joseph listed electro-torture as
673
00:52:54.489 --> 00:53:01.630
an activity that he and Dylan enjoyed. Robert Seaman was
674
00:53:01.730 --> 00:53:07.360
also found inside his own rectum, with authorities pointing out that, quote,
675
00:53:08.659 --> 00:53:12.519
There were many items and devices recovered from Dylan Ward's
676
00:53:12.559 --> 00:53:18.099
bedroom designed to be inserted into one's anal cavity. A
677
00:53:18.139 --> 00:53:25.210
medical examiner concluded, Taking all the evidence and circumstances into consideration,
678
00:53:25.840 --> 00:53:30.840
This finding is suggestive of Mr. Wan having been sexually assaulted.
679
00:53:32.900 --> 00:53:38.039
No foreign DNA was found on Robert. Unsurprising, given one
680
00:53:38.079 --> 00:53:41.719
of his treating paramedics was of the opinion that Robert
681
00:53:41.900 --> 00:53:50.750
had been stabbed, showered, redressed, and placed in bed. During
682
00:53:50.809 --> 00:53:55.360
his interview with police following the murder, Dylan mentioned reading
683
00:53:55.519 --> 00:54:00.460
before he went to sleep. In his room, detectives found
684
00:54:00.539 --> 00:54:03.719
a New Yorker magazine open on the floor to an
685
00:54:03.820 --> 00:54:10.849
article titled Late Works, Writers Confronting the End. It was
686
00:54:10.909 --> 00:54:15.730
accompanied by an illustration of renowned English playwright, poet and
687
00:54:15.889 --> 00:54:21.940
actor William Shakespeare lying on his deathbed. His body was
688
00:54:22.039 --> 00:54:25.760
positioned in the same way that Robert Juan had been
689
00:54:26.000 --> 00:54:31.550
when he was found. The first line of the article read,
690
00:54:33.250 --> 00:54:36.969
Last words recorded and treasured in the days when the
691
00:54:37.030 --> 00:54:41.469
deathbed was in the home have fallen from fashion, perhaps
692
00:54:41.610 --> 00:54:45.420
because most people spend their final hours in the hospital
693
00:54:46.099 --> 00:54:55.090
too drugged to make any sense. It was months before
694
00:54:55.150 --> 00:54:59.650
police publicly named Joseph Price, Victor Zaborski and Dylan Ward
695
00:54:59.730 --> 00:55:04.039
as suspects in the murder of Robert Wan. Their efforts
696
00:55:04.099 --> 00:55:07.840
were later criticised as sluggish and flawed, due to the
697
00:55:07.900 --> 00:55:12.440
abundance of circumstantial evidence implicating the three men from the get-go.
698
00:55:14.000 --> 00:55:17.789
Even the interrogation of the three suspects was considered sloppy.
699
00:55:19.170 --> 00:55:22.369
Far too much focus was placed on trying to establish
700
00:55:22.389 --> 00:55:26.059
a sexual relationship between one or all of the parties
701
00:55:26.159 --> 00:55:32.480
with Robert, despite this lead being completely unfounded. Anything compelling
702
00:55:32.539 --> 00:55:36.239
that should have been pressed harder, such as Joseph's two
703
00:55:36.320 --> 00:55:40.070
tails of where he apparently found the injured Robert, the
704
00:55:40.110 --> 00:55:45.389
patio or the guest room, fell by the wayside. By
705
00:55:45.409 --> 00:55:48.909
the time police zeroed in on Joseph, Victor and Dylan,
706
00:55:49.369 --> 00:55:52.590
The men had lawyered up and were no longer cooperating.
707
00:55:54.489 --> 00:55:58.150
Detectives now believed that either two or all of the
708
00:55:58.190 --> 00:56:02.090
men committed the murder or knew who did and were
709
00:56:02.139 --> 00:56:07.760
covering for them. All they needed was a motive. Yet
710
00:56:08.059 --> 00:56:12.360
things continued to move at a slow pace. A year
711
00:56:12.440 --> 00:56:15.739
passed without any concrete leads that could result in an
712
00:56:15.800 --> 00:56:21.239
arrest or, better still, a conviction. The case was passed
713
00:56:21.320 --> 00:56:25.260
between three different prosecutors and evidence from the Roe House
714
00:56:25.380 --> 00:56:30.590
was still being processed. A $ 25, 000 reward was offered by
715
00:56:30.650 --> 00:56:34.670
police for information and led to plenty of tips, but
716
00:56:34.750 --> 00:56:39.949
the money was never handed out. Cathy Wan had so
717
00:56:40.050 --> 00:56:43.469
far grieved for her husband in private and kept away
718
00:56:43.590 --> 00:56:47.610
from the media, but she was compelled to step forward.
719
00:56:49.030 --> 00:56:52.889
In a statement printed in the Washington Post, Cathy said,
720
00:56:54.329 --> 00:56:58.690
Anything short of full and complete cooperation is very troubling
721
00:56:59.110 --> 00:57:03.199
and essentially is equivalent of helping Robert's killer or killers
722
00:57:03.300 --> 00:57:09.079
get away with this terrible crime. She also described how
723
00:57:09.159 --> 00:57:14.739
she had coped with her husband's murder. Quote, During this
724
00:57:14.820 --> 00:57:18.639
year of intense sadness, I learned that being still and
725
00:57:18.739 --> 00:57:23.159
letting grief interrupt whenever it wished was oftentimes the best
726
00:57:23.219 --> 00:57:27.699
thing I could do for myself. When grief barges in
727
00:57:27.860 --> 00:57:31.300
and demands a visit, it's best to let her have
728
00:57:31.340 --> 00:57:39.090
your undivided attention. Frustrated by the lack of progress, Cathy
729
00:57:39.150 --> 00:57:43.210
held a press conference around the one-year anniversary of Robert's murder.
730
00:57:44.260 --> 00:57:48.639
Her lawyer fielded questions from reporters about the investigation and
731
00:57:48.659 --> 00:57:53.920
the alleged involvement of Joseph Price, Victor Zaborski and Dylan Ward.
732
00:57:55.659 --> 00:57:59.659
Cathy had a message for Robert's killer. Her choice of
733
00:57:59.760 --> 00:58:03.880
words seemed personal, as though she had her own suspicions
734
00:58:04.159 --> 00:58:05.800
as to who was responsible.
735
00:58:05.820 --> 00:58:10.659
Having a murder on your conscience is no small load
736
00:58:10.679 --> 00:58:11.179
to carry.
737
00:58:12.239 --> 00:58:13.199
As you try to live, I.
738
00:58:13.639 --> 00:58:23.320
Imagine, as normal a life as possible. Confessing will be
739
00:58:23.360 --> 00:58:24.179
the hardest.
740
00:58:23.900 --> 00:58:28.599
Thing that you'll ever do in your life. Our laws
741
00:58:28.619 --> 00:58:34.170
will impose severe consequences. But it will also be the
742
00:58:34.230 --> 00:58:35.510
most frightening.
743
00:58:35.090 --> 00:58:36.989
Thing that you can do for yourself.
744
00:58:38.989 --> 00:58:41.869
A secret like the one you are hiding from the world.
745
00:58:42.900 --> 00:58:44.460
Although we grow heavier with time.
746
00:58:53.849 --> 00:58:57.349
Case File will be back shortly. Thank you for supporting
747
00:58:57.469 --> 00:59:06.690
us by listening to this episode's sponsors. Wake up. Wait.
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750
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757
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our sponsors, you support Casefile to continue to deliver quality content.
758
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As the two-year anniversary of Robert Wan's murder neared in
759
00:59:56.070 --> 01:00:01.260
June 2008, Joseph Price sold his Swan Street Northwest row
760
01:00:01.300 --> 01:00:07.159
house for just under $ 1. 5 million. He and Victor Zaborski
761
01:00:07.260 --> 01:00:10.650
moved to a rental nearby and planned to buy a
762
01:00:10.699 --> 01:00:15.690
house in Florida. Dylan Ward, who had already moved to
763
01:00:15.750 --> 01:00:19.750
Florida and obtained work as a massage therapist, was set
764
01:00:19.809 --> 01:00:22.530
to move in with the two men once they arrived.
765
01:00:24.110 --> 01:00:28.469
But their plans were disrupted just four months later, when
766
01:00:28.530 --> 01:00:33.820
Dylan was arrested and charged with obstruction of justice. Although
767
01:00:33.880 --> 01:00:37.579
there wasn't enough evidence to charge him with murder, elements
768
01:00:37.659 --> 01:00:41.760
of the crime scene had been tampered with, suggesting a cover-up.
769
01:00:42.980 --> 01:00:49.369
An affidavit released days later stated, The evidence demonstrates that
770
01:00:49.489 --> 01:00:57.820
Robert Warren was restrained, incapacitated, sexually assaulted, and murdered. Given
771
01:00:57.880 --> 01:01:01.900
that Joseph and Victor were in a long-term domestic partnership,
772
01:01:02.380 --> 01:01:06.449
police zeroed in on Dylan Ward. They saw him as
773
01:01:06.530 --> 01:01:11.769
the weak link. Dylan didn't share the same longevity and
774
01:01:11.909 --> 01:01:16.110
loyalty to the others, leading detectives to suspect he'd be
775
01:01:16.150 --> 01:01:22.679
more likely to crack under pressure. They were wrong. Dylan
776
01:01:22.739 --> 01:01:26.860
continued to maintain that they were all innocent. He was
777
01:01:26.940 --> 01:01:34.059
ultimately jailed after failing to make bail. Prosecutors warned Joseph
778
01:01:34.099 --> 01:01:37.789
and Victor that their silence would result in a similar fate,
779
01:01:38.630 --> 01:01:41.829
and when their arrest warrants were issued a month later,
780
01:01:42.269 --> 01:01:47.679
the pair self-reported to authorities. All three men now faced
781
01:01:47.800 --> 01:01:52.820
charges for conspiracy, obstruction of justice, and tampering with evidence.
782
01:01:54.219 --> 01:01:58.739
The prosecution alleged that there was overwhelming evidence, far in
783
01:01:58.820 --> 01:02:03.760
excess of probable cause, that they obstructed justice by altering
784
01:02:03.860 --> 01:02:08.579
and orchestrating the crime scene, planting evidence, delaying the reporting
785
01:02:08.639 --> 01:02:11.989
of the murder to authorities, and lying to the police
786
01:02:12.110 --> 01:02:17.590
about the true circumstances of the murder. They all pleaded
787
01:02:17.760 --> 01:02:22.059
not guilty and were released to await trial, but subject
788
01:02:22.179 --> 01:02:32.039
to electronic monitoring and curfews. Joseph Price, Victor Zaborski and
789
01:02:32.139 --> 01:02:37.900
Dylan Ward faced trial in June 2010. They opted for
790
01:02:37.960 --> 01:02:42.480
a non-jury trial and invoked their Fifth Amendment right, meaning
791
01:02:42.559 --> 01:02:47.099
they would not have to testify. If found guilty, they
792
01:02:47.159 --> 01:02:52.349
faced prison sentences of up to 38 years. The group
793
01:02:52.389 --> 01:02:55.969
had hired a total of six defence attorneys, including a
794
01:02:56.050 --> 01:03:01.309
famous CNN commentator, a former DC Attorney General and two
795
01:03:01.449 --> 01:03:07.199
former top DC prosecutors. They argued that their clients were
796
01:03:07.280 --> 01:03:11.619
unfairly targeted because they were gay and highlighted the sloppy
797
01:03:11.699 --> 01:03:18.050
police investigation. Quote, The government has cobbled together its case
798
01:03:18.150 --> 01:03:22.659
with tidbits of information that it interprets through innuendo and
799
01:03:22.780 --> 01:03:30.219
speculation and then calls evidence. The defence's entire argument relied
800
01:03:30.300 --> 01:03:36.829
on the intruder theory. Prosecutors were unconvinced. Such a claim
801
01:03:36.909 --> 01:03:40.329
relied on an intruder deciding to break into the Swan
802
01:03:40.349 --> 01:03:43.829
Street row house on the exact night that Joseph happened
803
01:03:43.949 --> 01:03:48.300
to have left the patio door unlocked. Upon entering, the
804
01:03:48.360 --> 01:03:52.659
intruder made no attempt to steal anything of value, including
805
01:03:52.739 --> 01:03:57.840
a laptop and television in view of the patio door. Instead,
806
01:03:57.860 --> 01:04:01.880
they grabbed a knife. walked through several areas to the
807
01:04:01.949 --> 01:04:06.039
front of the house and immediately headed upstairs from there.
808
01:04:07.820 --> 01:04:11.320
Dylan Ward's bedroom was at the very top of the stairs,
809
01:04:12.079 --> 01:04:17.010
yet the intruder opted to turn 180 degrees and proceed
810
01:04:17.050 --> 01:04:20.989
down the hallway directly to the home office, the room
811
01:04:21.130 --> 01:04:27.030
furthest from the staircase. They entered, stabbed Robert, then cleaned
812
01:04:27.090 --> 01:04:30.449
the room of blood spatter, so quietly that none of
813
01:04:30.489 --> 01:04:33.849
the other men in the house heard a thing. The
814
01:04:33.929 --> 01:04:38.219
intruder then fled, without even bothering to take Robert's small
815
01:04:38.280 --> 01:04:43.219
valuables such as his watch, cell phone or wallet. They
816
01:04:43.300 --> 01:04:47.400
exited through the patio door, scaled the fence and escaped
817
01:04:47.539 --> 01:04:51.639
via the alleyway. All this happening within a 42 minute
818
01:04:51.679 --> 01:04:59.329
time frame. The defense's 42-minute time frame existed because of
819
01:04:59.389 --> 01:05:02.610
a series of emails sent from Robert's BlackBerry on the
820
01:05:02.670 --> 01:05:08.460
night of August 2. When investigators initially examined the device,
821
01:05:08.760 --> 01:05:13.079
it appeared as though Robert emailed his wife at 11.05pm,
822
01:05:13.480 --> 01:05:16.449
informing her that he had just showered and was about
823
01:05:16.489 --> 01:05:20.469
to go to sleep. Two minutes later, he sent a
824
01:05:20.550 --> 01:05:23.969
second email to a friend regarding some lunch plans the
825
01:05:24.010 --> 01:05:29.699
following day. This meant he was confronted within the 42-minute
826
01:05:29.760 --> 01:05:36.289
window between sending this email and when Victor Zaborski phoned
827
01:05:36.289 --> 01:05:42.250
911 at 11.49. But the emails were never sent. They
828
01:05:42.289 --> 01:05:48.010
were in a drafts folder. Investigators suspected that Robert didn't
829
01:05:48.179 --> 01:05:52.989
author the emails at all. Instead, a perpetrator had crafted
830
01:05:53.030 --> 01:05:58.989
them to manipulate the supposed timeline of events. Robert's ordeal
831
01:05:59.130 --> 01:06:04.530
could have started much earlier. Assuming the emails were forged,
832
01:06:04.909 --> 01:06:08.760
the timeframe for the assault and murder was 79 minutes,
833
01:06:09.340 --> 01:06:14.320
not 42. This allowed far more time for everything to
834
01:06:14.380 --> 01:06:20.840
take place before Victor Zaborski placed the 911 call. In
835
01:06:20.920 --> 01:06:25.730
Victor's call to 911, he continually used the pronoun we,
836
01:06:26.289 --> 01:06:30.949
as in, we heard an intruder in the house. He
837
01:06:30.989 --> 01:06:35.380
was clearly speaking on behalf of others, suggesting a conversation
838
01:06:35.420 --> 01:06:38.840
had taken place between them before he placed the call.
839
01:06:40.340 --> 01:06:43.159
It wouldn't be the only time the trio had delayed
840
01:06:43.260 --> 01:06:48.480
calling authorities following a crime at their residence. When Michael
841
01:06:48.519 --> 01:06:52.400
Price burglarised the address in the months after Robert's murder,
842
01:06:52.960 --> 01:06:56.760
Joseph convinced the others to wait a day before alerting
843
01:06:56.800 --> 01:07:03.150
the police. There was further evidence that supported the larger
844
01:07:03.230 --> 01:07:08.230
window of time theory, and it involved another witness. For
845
01:07:08.269 --> 01:07:11.309
the sake of clarity, we will refer to this witness
846
01:07:11.409 --> 01:07:16.519
as Sam. Sam lived next door to Joseph Price's row house.
847
01:07:17.389 --> 01:07:20.869
Their property shared an internal wall with the home office
848
01:07:21.070 --> 01:07:26.570
where Robert had slept. On August 2, Sam was watching
849
01:07:26.630 --> 01:07:30.739
the 11pm news when they heard what they described as
850
01:07:31.059 --> 01:07:38.300
a single, desperate scream. As Robert was incapacitated, authorities believed
851
01:07:38.460 --> 01:07:42.670
this scream came from Victor Zaborski. the only one of
852
01:07:42.730 --> 01:07:45.809
the three men to have shown any level of distress
853
01:07:45.949 --> 01:07:51.679
when first responders arrived. Victor had previously told police that
854
01:07:51.719 --> 01:07:57.599
he had screamed upon seeing Robert's body. If Sam's recollections
855
01:07:57.659 --> 01:08:01.559
were correct, then this left a 19 to 49 minute
856
01:08:01.619 --> 01:08:08.340
window between Victor's alleged scream and him calling 911. From
857
01:08:08.380 --> 01:08:12.820
the prosecution's perspective, This gave the defendants enough time to
858
01:08:12.880 --> 01:08:16.550
clean up the crime scene, shower, and concoct a story
859
01:08:16.630 --> 01:08:21.810
to tell authorities. When Joseph ordered Victor to make the call,
860
01:08:22.189 --> 01:08:25.670
he told him to do so from upstairs, meaning the
861
01:08:25.729 --> 01:08:29.729
third floor, even though there was a phone right there
862
01:08:29.930 --> 01:08:37.510
in the home office. The proceedings felt like a murder trial,
863
01:08:37.850 --> 01:08:40.689
even though none of the accused had been charged with
864
01:08:40.789 --> 01:08:45.319
any such offence. Thirty witnesses were called on behalf of
865
01:08:45.359 --> 01:08:50.899
the prosecution, compared to the defence's eight. The prosecution found
866
01:08:50.920 --> 01:08:56.409
the intruder scenario preposterous. They believed that at least one
867
01:08:56.550 --> 01:09:00.479
Row House resident was responsible for Robert's assault and murder,
868
01:09:00.979 --> 01:09:04.800
and a second or third had participated or was an
869
01:09:04.859 --> 01:09:09.829
accomplice in the cover-up. Joseph Price was painted as the
870
01:09:09.890 --> 01:09:14.310
lead conspirator who manipulated Victor and Dylan through the use
871
01:09:14.350 --> 01:09:21.050
of money, influence and power. The trio's intimate relationship ensured
872
01:09:21.189 --> 01:09:26.140
that they protected one another. Based on the type of
873
01:09:26.260 --> 01:09:31.000
sexual relationship Joseph and Dylan shared and their collection of
874
01:09:31.079 --> 01:09:34.899
adult toys, it appeared that either one or both had
875
01:09:34.960 --> 01:09:39.739
assaulted Robert. The fact that Joseph was near naked when
876
01:09:39.819 --> 01:09:45.579
first responders arrived hinted at his participation. though Joseph insisted
877
01:09:45.680 --> 01:09:50.739
he always slept in only his underwear. As Victor was
878
01:09:50.850 --> 01:09:54.329
the sole person to have had any emotional response to
879
01:09:54.409 --> 01:09:59.510
Robert's murder, some theorise he wasn't involved in the crime itself,
880
01:09:59.989 --> 01:10:05.380
but was an accomplice in covering it up. The prosecution's
881
01:10:05.439 --> 01:10:09.470
case was not a slam-dunk. There were lots of aspects
882
01:10:09.550 --> 01:10:14.930
that were uncertain, inconsistent, circumstantial, or could be explained away.
883
01:10:16.170 --> 01:10:19.829
One example was the needle puncture marks found on Robert's body,
884
01:10:20.289 --> 01:10:24.649
hinting that he had been injected with a sedative. This
885
01:10:24.760 --> 01:10:27.989
was a major part of the prosecution's interpretation of the
886
01:10:28.029 --> 01:10:32.840
crime scene. Yet, a paramedic testified that she'd attempted to
887
01:10:32.920 --> 01:10:37.890
insert an IV into Robert's body in several spots. She
888
01:10:37.949 --> 01:10:44.039
was unsuccessful and her actions were not documented. Despite this,
889
01:10:44.420 --> 01:10:47.239
the judge found that some of the puncture marks did
890
01:10:47.319 --> 01:10:51.520
not align with those caused by medical intervention and was
891
01:10:51.600 --> 01:10:55.449
therefore confident that they had been caused during an assault.
892
01:10:57.310 --> 01:11:00.850
The investigation was plagued with a litany of other issues.
893
01:11:01.789 --> 01:11:06.470
Although crucial in determining the timeline of events, Robert's BlackBerry
894
01:11:06.569 --> 01:11:11.689
phone had been completely lost. The device had apparently been
895
01:11:11.729 --> 01:11:14.729
given to the Secret Service, who were going to copy
896
01:11:14.789 --> 01:11:20.710
its contents, but they denied ever receiving it. The blood-exposing
897
01:11:20.770 --> 01:11:24.109
product applied to the home office to reveal the clean-up
898
01:11:24.189 --> 01:11:30.430
effort was not applied as per the manufacturer's instructions. Consequently,
899
01:11:30.810 --> 01:11:37.140
this evidence was deemed unreliable. Robert's blood wasn't tested for
900
01:11:37.220 --> 01:11:41.479
all types of paralytic drugs. It is not known if
901
01:11:41.579 --> 01:11:46.720
the shockwave device among Dylan Ward's adult toys was tested forensically.
902
01:11:48.159 --> 01:11:51.119
The lint trap from the dryer believed to have been
903
01:11:51.300 --> 01:11:55.380
used to dry the killer's clothes was not taken for analysis.
904
01:11:57.439 --> 01:12:03.090
The murder weapon was another contentious subject. the prosecution presented
905
01:12:03.159 --> 01:12:06.569
evidence that the kitchen knife on the nightstand was not
906
01:12:06.829 --> 01:12:11.430
used to kill Robert. They believed Robert was stabbed with
907
01:12:11.489 --> 01:12:14.989
the missing knife from the cutlery set in Dylan Ward's room.
908
01:12:16.270 --> 01:12:20.250
But after a blood spatter expert for the defence described
909
01:12:20.369 --> 01:12:24.229
finding several of Robert's cut chest hairs on the kitchen knife,
910
01:12:24.970 --> 01:12:28.310
the judge was of the opinion that it was indeed
911
01:12:28.489 --> 01:12:35.430
the murder weapon. After nearly two weeks of defence testimony,
912
01:12:35.890 --> 01:12:40.609
the judge delivered a 35-page verdict. In the hour it
913
01:12:40.850 --> 01:12:43.880
took her to read it, she explained that she did
914
01:12:43.960 --> 01:12:47.840
not believe an intruder broke into the house, calling the
915
01:12:47.920 --> 01:12:54.699
circumstances suspicious and even damning. During a break in his
916
01:12:54.779 --> 01:12:59.250
initial police interview, Joseph had phoned his brother Michael and
917
01:12:59.350 --> 01:13:05.399
was overheard saying... Did Dylan come out? This led to
918
01:13:05.420 --> 01:13:09.100
the suspicion that Michael Price might have been involved in
919
01:13:09.140 --> 01:13:14.439
the crime. The trial judge admitted Michael's failure to attend
920
01:13:14.520 --> 01:13:18.590
class on the night of the murder was, quote, certainly
921
01:13:18.689 --> 01:13:23.350
worth pausing over in the circumstances of this case. But
922
01:13:23.590 --> 01:13:28.630
she was unconvinced that an outsider, including Michael, was responsible.
923
01:13:30.550 --> 01:13:33.869
The judge said that the charges came with what she
924
01:13:33.949 --> 01:13:37.899
called a math problem, that one or two of the
925
01:13:37.939 --> 01:13:42.119
defendants probably knew more than they were letting on, but
926
01:13:42.380 --> 01:13:45.239
it was also possible that at least one might have
927
01:13:45.260 --> 01:13:50.970
been genuinely innocent of knowledge or involvement. But without the
928
01:13:51.010 --> 01:13:55.850
defendants' cooperation, determining who was the odd man out was
929
01:13:55.949 --> 01:14:01.960
nearly impossible. She went on to say the prosecution failed
930
01:14:02.000 --> 01:14:06.939
to prove that the three defendants covered up a murder. Quote,
931
01:14:08.300 --> 01:14:12.739
My verdicts represent my effort to fairly and impartially follow
932
01:14:12.779 --> 01:14:17.189
the rule of law. My focus on the difference between
933
01:14:17.350 --> 01:14:22.310
moral certainty and evidentiary certainty in this case is probably
934
01:14:22.409 --> 01:14:26.090
cold comfort to those who loved Robert Warren and wish
935
01:14:26.210 --> 01:14:29.470
for some measure of peace and justice. and I am
936
01:14:29.550 --> 01:14:35.439
extremely sorry for this. I believe, however, that the reasonable
937
01:14:35.520 --> 01:14:40.060
doubt standard is essential to maintaining our criminal justice system.
938
01:14:41.659 --> 01:14:46.199
I cite the wisdom of English jurist William Blackstone, that
939
01:14:46.359 --> 01:14:50.159
it is better that ten guilty persons escape than that
940
01:14:50.380 --> 01:14:57.829
one innocent suffer. Joseph Price, Victor Zaborski and Dylan Ward
941
01:14:58.029 --> 01:15:03.670
were acquitted of all charges. Victor cried, while Joseph and
942
01:15:03.789 --> 01:15:10.689
Dylan stared straight ahead, expressionless. The Assistant US Attorney General
943
01:15:10.840 --> 01:15:17.359
respected the judge's decision and accepted her verdict, saying, Everybody
944
01:15:17.439 --> 01:15:26.229
knew this was a challenging investigation and prosecution. Cathy Wan,
945
01:15:26.430 --> 01:15:29.510
who had attended the trial daily with members of her
946
01:15:29.569 --> 01:15:34.800
husband's family, was led sobbing from the courtroom. For her,
947
01:15:35.020 --> 01:15:41.239
the case was particularly perplexing. Despite the acquitted having downplayed
948
01:15:41.319 --> 01:15:45.369
their friendship with her husband, Joseph Price had been a
949
01:15:45.449 --> 01:15:50.590
pallbearer at Robert's funeral, a position reserved for those closest
950
01:15:50.630 --> 01:15:56.079
to him. In the aftermath of the trial, Cathy filed
951
01:15:56.119 --> 01:16:00.140
a wrongful death civil suit against Joseph, Victor and Dylan.
952
01:16:01.180 --> 01:16:04.220
In it, she alleged that the three men failed to
953
01:16:04.300 --> 01:16:08.199
rescue Robert after he was injured, destroyed evidence of the
954
01:16:08.270 --> 01:16:14.229
murder and obstructed the police investigation. The suit was settled
955
01:16:14.310 --> 01:16:19.550
privately for an undisclosed amount. In a statement issued through
956
01:16:19.590 --> 01:16:22.050
her attorney, Cathy Wan said.
957
01:16:23.880 --> 01:16:28.500
Although the defendants repeatedly chose to hide behind the Fifth Amendment,
958
01:16:29.579 --> 01:16:37.510
to me, their silence speaks volumes. Cathy told the Washington
959
01:16:37.569 --> 01:16:41.109
Post that she agonised over the decision to settle out
960
01:16:41.149 --> 01:16:45.329
of court to avoid a lengthy civil trial. She thought
961
01:16:45.390 --> 01:16:49.069
about Robert and what he would want her to do. Quote,
962
01:16:50.380 --> 01:16:54.239
Nothing gave him more happiness than knowing I was at peace,
963
01:16:54.720 --> 01:17:00.789
focusing on love and optimism. This sentiment was echoed by
964
01:17:00.850 --> 01:17:05.250
Cathy's attorney. He believed that if the civil case had
965
01:17:05.329 --> 01:17:08.189
gone to trial, it would have been a spectacle to
966
01:17:08.270 --> 01:17:12.470
no purpose, as the respondents weren't going to come forward
967
01:17:12.550 --> 01:17:18.560
and provide any information. Quote, This case was never going
968
01:17:18.600 --> 01:17:22.760
to put anybody in jail or bring Robert back to life.
969
01:17:24.899 --> 01:17:28.779
The settlement funds were divided between the Warren estate and
970
01:17:28.859 --> 01:17:32.390
a law clinic at the University of Pennsylvania Law School
971
01:17:32.710 --> 01:17:38.710
which provides legal aid to inner city residents. The world
972
01:17:38.789 --> 01:17:42.829
lost a good man when Robert Warren was killed. During
973
01:17:42.869 --> 01:17:47.350
his time at university, Robert ran the 13 Club whose
974
01:17:47.430 --> 01:17:52.439
members went around campus performing random acts of kindness. It
975
01:17:52.500 --> 01:17:56.819
was fitting that at his graduation, Robert received an award
976
01:17:56.960 --> 01:18:01.810
presented to students who excelled in characteristics of heart, mind
977
01:18:02.149 --> 01:18:07.149
and helpfulness to others. In the years after his murder,
978
01:18:07.630 --> 01:18:16.060
many organisations have dedicated scholarships and memorials in his honour. Joseph,
979
01:18:16.199 --> 01:18:20.189
Victor and Dylan reunited in Florida as they had planned,
980
01:18:20.529 --> 01:18:22.869
where they bought a home and settled in as a
981
01:18:22.930 --> 01:18:29.229
family once more. As of mid-2021, nobody has been charged
982
01:18:29.289 --> 01:18:34.859
with the murder of Robert Wan. Case file acknowledges Joseph Price,
983
01:18:35.119 --> 01:18:40.260
Victor Zaborski and Dylan Ward's presumption of innocence. In the
984
01:18:40.380 --> 01:18:43.380
eyes of the law, All three men have not been
985
01:18:43.439 --> 01:18:47.260
found guilty of any of the crimes committed against or
986
01:18:47.359 --> 01:18:54.819
associated with Robert Warren. The case continues to intrigue amateur
987
01:18:54.960 --> 01:19:00.119
and professional sleuths alike. Some believe that one of the
988
01:19:00.180 --> 01:19:03.800
residents of Swan Street North West had ordered another to
989
01:19:03.899 --> 01:19:08.779
kill Robert as the ultimate act of dominance. Others suggest
990
01:19:08.920 --> 01:19:12.960
that sexual assault was intended, but the murder itself was
991
01:19:13.000 --> 01:19:18.909
an accident. The general consensus is that one or all
992
01:19:18.949 --> 01:19:21.829
of the acquitted men at the centre of the controversy
993
01:19:22.250 --> 01:19:27.970
know exactly who committed the slaying. A website dedicated to
994
01:19:28.010 --> 01:19:36.479
the case, whomurderedrobertwan.com, sums it up succinctly. Price, Zaborski and
995
01:19:36.600 --> 01:19:43.260
Ward were not guilty, but they are not innocent. Due
996
01:19:43.340 --> 01:19:47.939
to the trio's continuing silence, Robert Warren's murder is often
997
01:19:48.010 --> 01:19:53.569
described as a case that will never be solved. Kathy
998
01:19:53.630 --> 01:19:57.729
Warren has a message for Joseph Price, Victor Zaborski and
999
01:19:57.850 --> 01:20:03.979
Dylan Ward. Quote, I am moving on. I want to
1000
01:20:04.039 --> 01:20:08.000
spend the next 40 years of my life focusing on good.
1001
01:20:09.020 --> 01:20:11.590
They can rot from the inside out from all the
1002
01:20:11.689 --> 01:20:17.710
secrets they chose to keep. That's their choice. I chose
1003
01:20:18.130 --> 01:20:18.899
to move on.