1 00:00:10,960 --> 00:00:14,600 Speaker 1: In June twenty seventeen, an old cattle truck made its 2 00:00:14,640 --> 00:00:18,760 Speaker 1: way down Highway forty seven in Costa Rica. Another car, 3 00:00:19,040 --> 00:00:24,279 Speaker 1: a Hyundai SUV, was close behind. If you happened to 4 00:00:24,320 --> 00:00:27,520 Speaker 1: see the two vehicles on the road, well you wouldn't 5 00:00:27,520 --> 00:00:31,720 Speaker 1: think anything of it. There was nothing remarkable about them. 6 00:00:31,880 --> 00:00:35,280 Speaker 1: In each vehicle there were two men, three Costa Ricans 7 00:00:35,360 --> 00:00:42,760 Speaker 1: and one Mexican. They thought everything was going to plan. Eventually, 8 00:00:43,200 --> 00:00:46,519 Speaker 1: the cattle truck and the suv reached the outskirts of 9 00:00:46,600 --> 00:00:50,479 Speaker 1: the small town of Orotina, an hour or so away 10 00:00:50,520 --> 00:01:02,280 Speaker 1: from the capital San Jose. The bust was a complete 11 00:01:02,320 --> 00:01:06,520 Speaker 1: surprise and executed quickly. The men in the cattle truck 12 00:01:06,720 --> 00:01:11,440 Speaker 1: and the suv had no time to react. The police 13 00:01:11,480 --> 00:01:16,000 Speaker 1: and a specialized tactical unit congratulated each other. They were 14 00:01:16,040 --> 00:01:19,800 Speaker 1: prepared for a shootout, but luckily it hadn't come to that. 15 00:01:21,319 --> 00:01:24,839 Speaker 1: For more drug cartel stooges were now off the streets. 16 00:01:26,120 --> 00:01:29,400 Speaker 1: In the back of the cattle truck, police found two 17 00:01:29,640 --> 00:01:33,400 Speaker 1: hundred and thirty seven kilos of cocaine hidden in a 18 00:01:33,400 --> 00:01:36,840 Speaker 1: false bottom of the trunk. It was worth close to 19 00:01:37,000 --> 00:01:43,040 Speaker 1: twenty million dollars. They also found a GPS, night vision goggles, 20 00:01:43,360 --> 00:01:49,040 Speaker 1: two way radios, and a gun, classic equipment for drug runners. 21 00:01:50,320 --> 00:01:53,080 Speaker 1: One of the men arrested was very well known to 22 00:01:53,120 --> 00:01:57,520 Speaker 1: the authorities and most Costa Ricans. He was a big catch. 23 00:01:58,120 --> 00:02:00,920 Speaker 1: The police had been tracking him for a long time 24 00:02:01,320 --> 00:02:05,680 Speaker 1: and their patients had now paid off. The following day, 25 00:02:05,800 --> 00:02:09,120 Speaker 1: his mugshot would be on the front of every newspaper 26 00:02:09,200 --> 00:02:14,120 Speaker 1: in Costa Rica. Later, he would plead guilty to providing 27 00:02:14,240 --> 00:02:18,800 Speaker 1: logistical and operational support to drug gangs linked to the 28 00:02:18,880 --> 00:02:24,160 Speaker 1: Mexican cartels. Costa Rica was fast becoming the drug route 29 00:02:24,200 --> 00:02:28,760 Speaker 1: of choice for South American cartels the eventual destination of 30 00:02:28,800 --> 00:02:34,200 Speaker 1: those drugs the US. The well known Costa Rican was 31 00:02:34,280 --> 00:02:39,720 Speaker 1: sentenced to ten years in prison and publicly humiliated. But 32 00:02:39,880 --> 00:02:43,800 Speaker 1: there's something else about the man captured on that hot 33 00:02:44,000 --> 00:02:51,000 Speaker 1: June day. He had very close links to John and 34 00:02:51,160 --> 00:03:03,640 Speaker 1: Anne Bender from Exactly Right Media and iHeart podcasts produced 35 00:03:03,680 --> 00:03:08,320 Speaker 1: by Blanchard House. This is Helen Heaven. I'm Becky Milligan. 36 00:03:33,480 --> 00:03:37,080 Speaker 1: Two years before that drugs bust, and Bender was in 37 00:03:37,280 --> 00:03:41,720 Speaker 1: court waiting for a verdict again. It was the third 38 00:03:41,800 --> 00:03:45,720 Speaker 1: time she'd been on trial for murder. She'd hardly slept 39 00:03:45,720 --> 00:03:49,280 Speaker 1: a wink the night before, author Carol Vaughan. 40 00:03:49,720 --> 00:03:51,800 Speaker 2: No one had any idea whether she was going to 41 00:03:51,800 --> 00:03:55,760 Speaker 2: be found guilty or innocent, no idea whatsoever, and. 42 00:03:55,880 --> 00:03:59,160 Speaker 1: Sat behind her lawyer. She had a clear view of 43 00:03:59,200 --> 00:04:03,040 Speaker 1: the three judges who faced her from the bench. Friends 44 00:04:03,040 --> 00:04:07,200 Speaker 1: and family were there to support her. At nine point fifteen, 45 00:04:07,760 --> 00:04:12,160 Speaker 1: the chief judge called the court to order. At last, 46 00:04:12,360 --> 00:04:16,479 Speaker 1: the verdict came on the charge of murdering her husband John, 47 00:04:17,560 --> 00:04:25,200 Speaker 1: Anne Bender was acquitted. In TV footage, at the moment 48 00:04:25,200 --> 00:04:28,560 Speaker 1: Anne realizes she's free, she looks completely blank for a 49 00:04:28,560 --> 00:04:32,240 Speaker 1: split second, as though she can't take it in. Then 50 00:04:32,279 --> 00:04:36,560 Speaker 1: she closes her eyes and squeezes them tight. Her lawyer 51 00:04:36,720 --> 00:04:40,640 Speaker 1: visibly relaxes and reaches a hand behind him to grab hands. 52 00:04:41,400 --> 00:04:44,599 Speaker 1: They don't speak or even look at each other, but 53 00:04:44,680 --> 00:04:50,320 Speaker 1: the release of tension and relief is obvious. Cameraman Kevin 54 00:04:50,400 --> 00:04:51,360 Speaker 1: Serrano was. 55 00:04:51,320 --> 00:04:56,040 Speaker 3: In court Ricordo, el momento, el cloud. 56 00:04:56,400 --> 00:04:59,440 Speaker 4: She lowered her head and started to cry. She was weeping. 57 00:05:00,320 --> 00:05:02,680 Speaker 4: At last, she was able to release all that tension. 58 00:05:03,400 --> 00:05:05,320 Speaker 4: I'm sure it must have been a turning point for her. 59 00:05:05,920 --> 00:05:08,080 Speaker 4: Anne's life could never be the same from the non 60 00:05:08,600 --> 00:05:11,479 Speaker 4: because despite the harshness of all the trials and the process, 61 00:05:11,960 --> 00:05:14,080 Speaker 4: nothing compares to the loss of the person she had 62 00:05:14,120 --> 00:05:18,120 Speaker 4: chosen to share her life with, a comfortable life. None 63 00:05:18,160 --> 00:05:20,720 Speaker 4: of that was there anymore, whether or not she had 64 00:05:20,760 --> 00:05:23,240 Speaker 4: anything to do with his death. So that was the 65 00:05:23,240 --> 00:05:26,719 Speaker 4: most memorable moment for me when she started to cry after. 66 00:05:26,560 --> 00:05:27,360 Speaker 5: Hearing the verdict. 67 00:05:28,080 --> 00:05:30,559 Speaker 1: Anne is led out of the courthouse into the bright 68 00:05:30,680 --> 00:05:34,440 Speaker 1: light of day and freedom by her brother Ken. The 69 00:05:34,520 --> 00:05:37,920 Speaker 1: media scram is pushed away by her security. A minus 70 00:05:37,960 --> 00:05:41,800 Speaker 1: scuffle breaks out. Anne, who looks pale and dazed, is 71 00:05:41,880 --> 00:05:45,040 Speaker 1: using a cane to help her walk and holds onto 72 00:05:45,080 --> 00:05:49,640 Speaker 1: her brother's hand tightly. Her eyes are downcast. She doesn't speak. 73 00:05:50,200 --> 00:05:54,279 Speaker 1: Can it really all be over? Ken speaks briefly to 74 00:05:54,320 --> 00:05:58,760 Speaker 1: a gaggle of reporters outside the courthouse, and you. 75 00:05:59,000 --> 00:06:04,080 Speaker 6: Sure noppreciate that justice was served today and my sister 76 00:06:04,279 --> 00:06:05,520 Speaker 6: did not murder her husband. 77 00:06:06,120 --> 00:06:07,040 Speaker 1: She's not a murderer. 78 00:06:07,400 --> 00:06:11,719 Speaker 6: There was not enough circumstantial evidence to convict her for 79 00:06:11,760 --> 00:06:13,920 Speaker 6: the simple fact that there was no murder. 80 00:06:14,720 --> 00:06:17,560 Speaker 1: Anne is then whisked away in a car with blacked 81 00:06:17,560 --> 00:06:20,760 Speaker 1: out windows to the hotel Zimmer where she'd been staying. 82 00:06:21,760 --> 00:06:24,479 Speaker 1: One thing is on her mind to get out of 83 00:06:24,520 --> 00:06:27,159 Speaker 1: the country as soon as she can and return to 84 00:06:27,240 --> 00:06:32,880 Speaker 1: America before the Costa Rican authorities order another retrial. Her 85 00:06:32,920 --> 00:06:36,760 Speaker 1: passport had been confiscated, but the American embassy had managed 86 00:06:36,800 --> 00:06:40,760 Speaker 1: to slip her a replacement before the verdict. It's in 87 00:06:40,800 --> 00:06:45,560 Speaker 1: her jacket pocket. Kevin, the news cameraman, had listened closely 88 00:06:45,640 --> 00:06:49,080 Speaker 1: to the legal arguments. He was fascinated by the Benders 89 00:06:49,360 --> 00:06:53,400 Speaker 1: and their lavish but isolated lifestyle. It also made him 90 00:06:53,440 --> 00:06:59,080 Speaker 1: think about his homeland too. Are you Antia in this 91 00:06:59,160 --> 00:07:00,720 Speaker 1: voice a big picture? 92 00:07:00,880 --> 00:07:03,680 Speaker 4: Costa Ricue is seen as a place of tranquility and peace, 93 00:07:04,240 --> 00:07:06,880 Speaker 4: and when all this came to light, people said, maybe 94 00:07:06,920 --> 00:07:08,320 Speaker 4: it's not such a peaceful place. 95 00:07:08,800 --> 00:07:10,960 Speaker 1: By the end of the trial, he'd been convinced by 96 00:07:10,960 --> 00:07:15,360 Speaker 1: the prosecution's arguments that John didn't kill himself. He was 97 00:07:15,480 --> 00:07:18,520 Speaker 1: sure that the trial wouldn't be The end of the story. 98 00:07:20,200 --> 00:07:23,440 Speaker 4: Is if the wife was found not guilty, then who 99 00:07:23,520 --> 00:07:24,000 Speaker 4: killed him? 100 00:07:24,440 --> 00:07:26,600 Speaker 1: It was a question which had simmered a long time 101 00:07:26,680 --> 00:07:30,040 Speaker 1: in John Kolvic's head too. One of the Benda's neighbors, 102 00:07:30,440 --> 00:07:33,520 Speaker 1: he didn't think Anna killed John, but that didn't mean 103 00:07:33,640 --> 00:07:34,840 Speaker 1: someone else hadn't. 104 00:07:35,600 --> 00:07:37,480 Speaker 7: To this day. It still doesn't rest good with me. 105 00:07:38,200 --> 00:07:40,720 Speaker 7: Someone that wealthy at that house, I don't think his 106 00:07:40,800 --> 00:07:42,920 Speaker 7: wife pulled the trigger. And when they say there was 107 00:07:42,920 --> 00:07:46,000 Speaker 7: no one else there at that place is the darkest 108 00:07:46,080 --> 00:07:48,800 Speaker 7: jungle you've ever seen in your life. You have no 109 00:07:48,920 --> 00:07:51,480 Speaker 7: clue to talk about sending a ninja in to kill 110 00:07:51,520 --> 00:07:53,680 Speaker 7: someone or whatever you'd like to call him. An assassin, 111 00:07:54,400 --> 00:07:56,200 Speaker 7: someone who's going to pull a trigger on a millionaire 112 00:07:56,240 --> 00:07:59,320 Speaker 7: with a doped up wife, Jesus Christ, within the country 113 00:07:59,320 --> 00:08:02,120 Speaker 7: with no friends, you know what I mean? 114 00:08:02,960 --> 00:08:04,760 Speaker 8: Why not? Why not? 115 00:08:05,920 --> 00:08:06,280 Speaker 7: Why not? 116 00:08:07,280 --> 00:08:10,040 Speaker 1: Kevin was proved right. Even though the court case had 117 00:08:10,080 --> 00:08:13,640 Speaker 1: come to an end, speculation and theories about what really 118 00:08:13,720 --> 00:08:17,800 Speaker 1: happened to John Bender didn't stop and continue to this day. 119 00:08:18,720 --> 00:08:24,680 Speaker 2: Carol Vaughan, there are opinions that flowed around saying that 120 00:08:24,840 --> 00:08:29,520 Speaker 2: people saw individuals running away from Buakayan that night late. 121 00:08:30,280 --> 00:08:33,120 Speaker 2: There's just all kinds of things to be tidied up 122 00:08:33,160 --> 00:08:34,000 Speaker 2: and tied together. 123 00:08:34,640 --> 00:08:38,280 Speaker 1: Kevin, the camera operator began to mull over who else 124 00:08:38,480 --> 00:08:40,360 Speaker 1: could have had a motive to kill John. 125 00:08:43,320 --> 00:08:48,079 Speaker 4: Any of the security team could have. Perhaps it was 126 00:08:48,120 --> 00:08:50,880 Speaker 4: someone he did business with and something went wrong. He 127 00:08:50,920 --> 00:08:53,760 Speaker 4: owed someone money. I think there's still a feeling that 128 00:08:53,760 --> 00:08:55,280 Speaker 4: the case has not been resolved. 129 00:08:56,160 --> 00:09:00,439 Speaker 1: There was one person whose name came up again and again. 130 00:09:17,840 --> 00:09:21,040 Speaker 1: We're at a prison in San Jose. We have to 131 00:09:21,080 --> 00:09:25,520 Speaker 1: go through tight security. Our bags, passports and phones are 132 00:09:25,520 --> 00:09:30,520 Speaker 1: put through an X ray scan. The man we are 133 00:09:30,559 --> 00:09:33,920 Speaker 1: coming to visit is the same man who was captured 134 00:09:33,960 --> 00:09:37,240 Speaker 1: at the start of this chapter, caught with two hundred 135 00:09:37,240 --> 00:09:41,199 Speaker 1: and thirty seven kilos of cocaine by the police, arrested 136 00:09:41,320 --> 00:09:46,880 Speaker 1: and jailed for ten years, very well known in Costa Rica. 137 00:09:49,240 --> 00:09:52,240 Speaker 1: We're taken into a small room. A man dressed in 138 00:09:52,280 --> 00:09:55,360 Speaker 1: a bright orange top is sitting at a table. He's 139 00:09:55,400 --> 00:09:58,679 Speaker 1: around fifty, trimmer and healthier than he looked in the 140 00:09:58,679 --> 00:10:02,120 Speaker 1: photos I've seen of the rest, but he still wears 141 00:10:02,160 --> 00:10:06,679 Speaker 1: an impressive thick mustache. The person sitting in front of 142 00:10:06,720 --> 00:10:11,280 Speaker 1: me is Jose Pizzarro, the Bender's head of security, the 143 00:10:11,400 --> 00:10:15,439 Speaker 1: colonel whom John trusted deeply, and the man who cared 144 00:10:15,440 --> 00:10:19,880 Speaker 1: for Anne after John died. Yes, what we haven't told 145 00:10:19,920 --> 00:10:23,559 Speaker 1: you is that when we interviewed him, he was in prison. 146 00:10:24,600 --> 00:10:29,680 Speaker 1: Jose Pizzaro, El Toro, the Bull, one time head of 147 00:10:29,720 --> 00:10:35,120 Speaker 1: the Costa Rican Police, now convicted criminal. This is his 148 00:10:35,360 --> 00:10:40,400 Speaker 1: first interview since Anne was acquitted in twenty fourteen. As 149 00:10:40,400 --> 00:10:43,920 Speaker 1: we settled down, I remind him how well respected and 150 00:10:43,960 --> 00:10:49,199 Speaker 1: trusted he'd been before his conviction, even earning an affectionate 151 00:10:49,320 --> 00:10:54,280 Speaker 1: nickname that makes him smile, Toro. 152 00:10:54,520 --> 00:10:58,400 Speaker 8: Where I live, everyone knows me by the name Toro Bull. 153 00:10:59,080 --> 00:11:01,240 Speaker 8: Some don't even know my real name. They just call 154 00:11:01,280 --> 00:11:07,679 Speaker 8: out on the street, Hey Bull, Hey Toro. 155 00:11:08,200 --> 00:11:12,000 Speaker 1: The smile fades quickly. His reputation is now in shreds. 156 00:11:12,520 --> 00:11:16,800 Speaker 1: He was publicly disgraced and shamed in Costa Rica. He 157 00:11:16,840 --> 00:11:19,360 Speaker 1: first met John after the couple were confronted on the 158 00:11:19,440 --> 00:11:22,839 Speaker 1: roadside in two thousand and one. Convinced they were going 159 00:11:22,880 --> 00:11:25,920 Speaker 1: to be kidnapped or even worse, John hired the former 160 00:11:26,000 --> 00:11:29,640 Speaker 1: chief of police to protect them. Jose Pisari worked for 161 00:11:29,679 --> 00:11:32,160 Speaker 1: them for ten years and has nothing but good things 162 00:11:32,200 --> 00:11:33,280 Speaker 1: to say about the couple. 163 00:11:39,559 --> 00:11:42,600 Speaker 8: She was a very nice person. She was very sweet. 164 00:11:43,440 --> 00:11:47,000 Speaker 8: She took care of her husband. He was like the 165 00:11:47,040 --> 00:11:50,600 Speaker 8: apple of her eye. They really made a very nice 166 00:11:50,640 --> 00:11:53,200 Speaker 8: couple and we got on from the beginning. Besides the 167 00:11:53,240 --> 00:11:58,520 Speaker 8: professional relationship, to put it in another way, we became friends. 168 00:11:58,840 --> 00:12:02,320 Speaker 8: They were very open, very friendly. 169 00:12:02,559 --> 00:12:10,040 Speaker 1: Thoseem He hasn't seen or spoken to Anne since she 170 00:12:10,160 --> 00:12:14,200 Speaker 1: was acquitted. As we heard, Jose Pizzaro was arrested in 171 00:12:14,280 --> 00:12:18,559 Speaker 1: twenty seventeen, a few years after Anne had left Costa Rica, 172 00:12:19,360 --> 00:12:22,280 Speaker 1: but it's reported that the former police chief was under 173 00:12:22,280 --> 00:12:26,000 Speaker 1: surveillance well before that. In fact, as early as two 174 00:12:26,040 --> 00:12:30,040 Speaker 1: thousand and nine, when Pizaro was working for the Benders, 175 00:12:31,600 --> 00:12:34,760 Speaker 1: a helicopter had come down in the mountainous Southern Zone 176 00:12:35,080 --> 00:12:38,640 Speaker 1: with three hundred and forty seven kilos of cacaine on board. 177 00:12:39,360 --> 00:12:42,439 Speaker 1: The first person at the scene of the crash, yes, 178 00:12:42,960 --> 00:12:47,520 Speaker 1: it was reportedly Jose Pizzaro. Many speculate that the only 179 00:12:47,600 --> 00:12:49,920 Speaker 1: way he could have been at the crash site so 180 00:12:50,200 --> 00:12:54,040 Speaker 1: fast was because he was involved in the smuggling operation. 181 00:12:55,360 --> 00:12:59,080 Speaker 1: So Kevin, the cameraman who covered Anne's trial, began to 182 00:12:59,160 --> 00:13:03,760 Speaker 1: wonder if Joe rom Bender had inadvertently or not got 183 00:13:03,800 --> 00:13:07,920 Speaker 1: mixed up with the drug cartels through his head of security, Jose. 184 00:13:08,600 --> 00:13:12,480 Speaker 9: Gisaro is Tyli Gao Conrako Trafico Istylia. 185 00:13:14,080 --> 00:13:16,199 Speaker 4: Between two thousand and seven and two thousand and eight, 186 00:13:16,200 --> 00:13:19,360 Speaker 4: a helicopter loaded with drugs crashed in the mountains. The 187 00:13:19,400 --> 00:13:22,160 Speaker 4: only person who managed to reach the place of Sossepi Sero. 188 00:13:22,640 --> 00:13:25,319 Speaker 4: It's presumed that he already had lates with Mexican cartels 189 00:13:25,320 --> 00:13:26,960 Speaker 4: and that John might have been caught in the middle 190 00:13:27,000 --> 00:13:31,360 Speaker 4: of all this. That reinforces my belief he didn't kill himself. 191 00:13:31,160 --> 00:13:34,880 Speaker 1: But was murdered, possibly by someone who had links to 192 00:13:34,960 --> 00:13:38,320 Speaker 1: the drug gangs. It's yet another theory to add to 193 00:13:38,360 --> 00:13:40,840 Speaker 1: all the others and may sound a little far fetched, 194 00:13:41,320 --> 00:13:45,000 Speaker 1: and there's no evidence to suggest it's true. In fact, 195 00:13:45,040 --> 00:13:47,600 Speaker 1: there's no evidence at all Jose Pizarro was in any 196 00:13:47,640 --> 00:13:51,480 Speaker 1: way connected to John's death. Perhaps it's just too easy 197 00:13:51,520 --> 00:13:54,360 Speaker 1: to pin it all on this celebrity ex police chief 198 00:13:54,400 --> 00:13:58,280 Speaker 1: turned criminal, But Kevin wasn't the only one thinking along 199 00:13:58,320 --> 00:13:58,920 Speaker 1: these lines. 200 00:13:59,640 --> 00:14:01,679 Speaker 5: The star a lot of my lady. 201 00:14:02,280 --> 00:14:02,360 Speaker 10: Do. 202 00:14:04,160 --> 00:14:07,600 Speaker 1: Remember Carlos, the ambulance driver who was the first on 203 00:14:07,640 --> 00:14:12,080 Speaker 1: the scene of John's death in Boracueyanne. He's convinced John 204 00:14:12,120 --> 00:14:15,400 Speaker 1: didn't kill himself and believes that Jose Pizzaro may have 205 00:14:15,480 --> 00:14:21,240 Speaker 1: been involved in some way. Again, though it's speculation. Like 206 00:14:21,360 --> 00:14:25,120 Speaker 1: with every part of this story, there are coincidences and 207 00:14:25,160 --> 00:14:28,760 Speaker 1: the unexplained. What are the chances that the person the 208 00:14:28,800 --> 00:14:32,200 Speaker 1: Benders hired to protect them is actually in bed with 209 00:14:32,320 --> 00:14:36,880 Speaker 1: violent criminals. It certainly got people talking, and again it 210 00:14:37,000 --> 00:14:41,160 Speaker 1: conveyed a certain mystique around the couple. On the other hand, 211 00:14:41,800 --> 00:14:45,440 Speaker 1: it kind of also makes sense. Latin America's cartels are 212 00:14:45,560 --> 00:14:49,120 Speaker 1: infamous and Pizarro was an obvious target for them because 213 00:14:49,120 --> 00:14:53,800 Speaker 1: of his police connections, and those connections were also why 214 00:14:53,880 --> 00:14:56,880 Speaker 1: John and Ann hired him. He was the go to 215 00:14:57,080 --> 00:15:01,600 Speaker 1: guy in Costa Rica, which isn't a big place. Jose 216 00:15:01,720 --> 00:15:08,240 Speaker 1: bizarre has spent five years in prison, which just There's. 217 00:15:08,000 --> 00:15:11,000 Speaker 11: A lot more that I have to say, but in 218 00:15:11,040 --> 00:15:15,280 Speaker 11: my current situation, there is much that I can't say. 219 00:15:16,080 --> 00:15:18,600 Speaker 11: What I really want for Anne is that she finds 220 00:15:18,760 --> 00:15:23,120 Speaker 11: peace and tranquility and that she can face whatever comes ahead. 221 00:15:23,560 --> 00:15:27,480 Speaker 1: Jose gave evidence at all of Anne's trials. He believes 222 00:15:27,640 --> 00:15:31,760 Speaker 1: she's innocent and that the evidence showed that. He says 223 00:15:31,760 --> 00:15:34,080 Speaker 1: that he had nothing to do with John's death and 224 00:15:34,080 --> 00:15:38,960 Speaker 1: believes that John kills himself. As to why Jose mentions 225 00:15:39,000 --> 00:15:41,680 Speaker 1: the trust which John and Anne put their money into, 226 00:15:42,280 --> 00:15:44,520 Speaker 1: meaning they effectively lost control of their. 227 00:15:44,400 --> 00:15:54,720 Speaker 9: Fortune, well, I feel sorry about everything that happened to 228 00:15:54,840 --> 00:15:58,520 Speaker 9: John and Anne. If you dig a little deeper, you'll 229 00:15:58,520 --> 00:16:01,560 Speaker 9: find much more about the fraud management of the trust, 230 00:16:01,600 --> 00:16:06,480 Speaker 9: which I believe led John Bender to kill himself. I 231 00:16:06,520 --> 00:16:09,200 Speaker 9: hope everything's well for her so that her family and 232 00:16:09,280 --> 00:16:13,240 Speaker 9: John's family find some peace. It's a shame what they're 233 00:16:13,280 --> 00:16:18,320 Speaker 9: going through tough. I know how difficult it has been 234 00:16:18,360 --> 00:16:23,040 Speaker 9: for both John's and Anne's family. I have nothing to 235 00:16:23,080 --> 00:16:26,440 Speaker 9: gain from this, but as a Costa Rican, I'm ashamed 236 00:16:26,480 --> 00:16:29,440 Speaker 9: to see these types of things happen in this country. 237 00:16:32,040 --> 00:16:35,040 Speaker 1: I asked him about being arrested and his involvement with 238 00:16:35,120 --> 00:16:38,160 Speaker 1: the drug cartels personnel. 239 00:16:45,880 --> 00:16:49,640 Speaker 8: I come from humble beginnings. I'm from the countryside. However 240 00:16:49,880 --> 00:16:52,720 Speaker 8: I managed to rise to the highest position of the police. 241 00:16:54,080 --> 00:16:58,960 Speaker 8: Then I made a mistake. No, I committed a horror. 242 00:17:00,680 --> 00:17:04,199 Speaker 8: I feel ashamed for having committed such a thing. I 243 00:17:04,320 --> 00:17:08,360 Speaker 8: humbly ask for forgiveness to every citizen in this country 244 00:17:08,560 --> 00:17:11,080 Speaker 8: for committing a crime for which I am pain a 245 00:17:11,240 --> 00:17:12,480 Speaker 8: sentence in prison. 246 00:17:13,800 --> 00:17:16,640 Speaker 5: They are your cold indioses. 247 00:17:32,840 --> 00:17:35,679 Speaker 6: Okay, okay. 248 00:17:39,400 --> 00:17:42,720 Speaker 12: I believe in God. I'm a human being and I failed. 249 00:17:43,760 --> 00:17:46,560 Speaker 12: But I want to be clear that that doesn't justify 250 00:17:46,720 --> 00:17:49,760 Speaker 12: what I did. Though I was no longer an officer 251 00:17:49,800 --> 00:17:52,120 Speaker 12: of the police force of this country when I committed 252 00:17:52,200 --> 00:17:58,080 Speaker 12: this crime. So as a human being I might have failed, 253 00:17:59,160 --> 00:18:02,400 Speaker 12: but as a member of the police force, I never 254 00:18:02,640 --> 00:18:04,560 Speaker 12: did come more policia. 255 00:18:08,440 --> 00:18:11,280 Speaker 1: As Jose spoke, the tears began to roll freely down 256 00:18:11,320 --> 00:18:14,199 Speaker 1: his face. He wiped them away and then gave up 257 00:18:14,280 --> 00:18:17,400 Speaker 1: because they kept coming, wetting his cheeks and his chin 258 00:18:17,480 --> 00:18:20,280 Speaker 1: and his shirt. To us, they seemed to come from 259 00:18:20,320 --> 00:18:25,440 Speaker 1: a very profound sorrow and regret, but it's impossible to 260 00:18:25,520 --> 00:18:29,000 Speaker 1: know for sure if his tears were genuine. What did 261 00:18:29,119 --> 00:18:33,720 Speaker 1: leap outed us during the interview was rather cryptically. Jose 262 00:18:33,920 --> 00:18:37,320 Speaker 1: told us he had a lot more to say, but couldn't. 263 00:18:38,600 --> 00:18:39,360 Speaker 1: We said goodbye. 264 00:18:44,800 --> 00:18:44,960 Speaker 10: Oh. 265 00:18:53,240 --> 00:18:55,560 Speaker 1: As we made our way out of the prison, Jose 266 00:18:55,840 --> 00:18:58,600 Speaker 1: was led in the opposite direction. The last we saw 267 00:18:58,680 --> 00:19:01,240 Speaker 1: of him was disappearing through several double doors, and they're 268 00:19:01,320 --> 00:19:07,560 Speaker 1: out of sight. When Anne got back to the Zimmer 269 00:19:07,600 --> 00:19:10,920 Speaker 1: hotel after the verdict, her family and friends had lunch. 270 00:19:11,400 --> 00:19:14,960 Speaker 1: It wasn't a loud, celebratory one, but quiet and peaceful. 271 00:19:15,840 --> 00:19:18,800 Speaker 1: After lunch, they gathered their bags and Anne said goodbye 272 00:19:18,880 --> 00:19:21,560 Speaker 1: to hotel owners Santiago and Anna. 273 00:19:21,960 --> 00:19:25,119 Speaker 10: We don't know where she's going to, but you know 274 00:19:25,280 --> 00:19:27,840 Speaker 10: she was going to go out of the country. Of course, 275 00:19:28,440 --> 00:19:29,520 Speaker 10: I don't ask her where. 276 00:19:30,280 --> 00:19:33,359 Speaker 5: I said bye, good luck, that's it. 277 00:19:34,600 --> 00:19:35,280 Speaker 1: Did she smile? 278 00:19:35,640 --> 00:19:35,880 Speaker 11: Yeah. 279 00:19:37,280 --> 00:19:40,720 Speaker 1: Anne's brother thanked the hoteliers, saying he hoped it was 280 00:19:41,000 --> 00:19:47,560 Speaker 1: finally over, except the authorities had one last surprise for her. 281 00:19:52,520 --> 00:19:56,280 Speaker 1: All Anne wanted to do now was leave the country. 282 00:19:57,520 --> 00:19:58,879 Speaker 1: But would she be able to. 283 00:19:59,480 --> 00:20:01,840 Speaker 2: When she guide to the airport. Although she had a 284 00:20:01,920 --> 00:20:05,280 Speaker 2: new passport, she appeared on a no fly list. Costa 285 00:20:05,359 --> 00:20:06,240 Speaker 2: Rica had stopped her. 286 00:20:06,760 --> 00:20:09,840 Speaker 1: Author Carol Vaughan, she lost it. 287 00:20:10,840 --> 00:20:14,160 Speaker 2: I understand from people around her that she the poor thing. 288 00:20:14,280 --> 00:20:20,119 Speaker 2: She just fell apart. Her lawyer got her off that 289 00:20:20,359 --> 00:20:23,520 Speaker 2: no fly list super fast. The thing wasn't like eight days. 290 00:20:23,640 --> 00:20:25,000 Speaker 2: She was off and she was out of here. 291 00:20:25,720 --> 00:20:30,080 Speaker 1: She has never returned to Costa Rica. Now, all that 292 00:20:30,240 --> 00:20:33,200 Speaker 1: was left to remind people about the couple was the house. 293 00:20:33,920 --> 00:20:37,639 Speaker 1: Like so many people in Perizeladon, Santiago and Anna had 294 00:20:37,760 --> 00:20:41,760 Speaker 1: always been curious about the huge, full story home built 295 00:20:41,840 --> 00:20:44,240 Speaker 1: on a hill in the middle of the jungle. It 296 00:20:44,400 --> 00:20:48,680 Speaker 1: intrigued everyone, but the hoteliers had never seen it. After 297 00:20:48,800 --> 00:20:52,200 Speaker 1: the trials and Anne's departure, they decided to go and 298 00:20:52,280 --> 00:20:56,560 Speaker 1: have a look for themselves. When they arrived at the house, 299 00:20:57,040 --> 00:21:01,160 Speaker 1: it was empty, abandoned. Some of John and Ann's possessions 300 00:21:01,240 --> 00:21:05,840 Speaker 1: remained scattered around the four floors, without gardeners or anyone 301 00:21:05,960 --> 00:21:10,200 Speaker 1: to maintain the property. Nature was taking over the wallless house. 302 00:21:10,760 --> 00:21:12,040 Speaker 1: Animals were moving in. 303 00:21:13,320 --> 00:21:17,919 Speaker 10: It was it was glowing like a jungle because nobody 304 00:21:18,000 --> 00:21:20,879 Speaker 10: does nothing to the house. And the swimming pool there 305 00:21:21,000 --> 00:21:26,000 Speaker 10: was frogs and everything. Everything was down. The house in 306 00:21:26,119 --> 00:21:31,000 Speaker 10: size was dirty. Everything clothes and papers and all that 307 00:21:31,119 --> 00:21:32,399 Speaker 10: kind of stuff by the floor. 308 00:21:34,240 --> 00:21:35,560 Speaker 5: Nobody cleaned thathing. 309 00:21:35,560 --> 00:21:37,720 Speaker 1: So everything it was left as it was. 310 00:21:38,640 --> 00:21:43,080 Speaker 10: Why did you go because we wanted to see the house. 311 00:21:43,240 --> 00:21:44,680 Speaker 5: Everybody talk about the house. 312 00:21:45,400 --> 00:21:47,399 Speaker 1: So were you a bit shocked at the state it 313 00:21:47,520 --> 00:21:47,680 Speaker 1: was in? 314 00:21:48,000 --> 00:21:48,240 Speaker 10: Yeah. 315 00:21:49,600 --> 00:21:52,520 Speaker 1: They walked around the garden and decided to take one 316 00:21:52,560 --> 00:21:55,600 Speaker 1: of the bender's benches, which would have been chucked away otherwise, 317 00:21:56,240 --> 00:21:59,200 Speaker 1: a lover's wooden swing seat which the couple used to 318 00:21:59,280 --> 00:22:02,359 Speaker 1: sit on to enjoy their paradise. Now it's in the 319 00:22:02,440 --> 00:22:05,720 Speaker 1: hotel garden, a little weathered but still usable. 320 00:22:06,240 --> 00:22:06,600 Speaker 5: The bench. 321 00:22:07,720 --> 00:22:08,520 Speaker 1: Have you got the bench? 322 00:22:08,720 --> 00:22:09,880 Speaker 10: The benches from the house. 323 00:22:11,280 --> 00:22:15,040 Speaker 1: They also saw the remnants of John's beloved orchids strewn 324 00:22:15,080 --> 00:22:19,800 Speaker 1: all over the place, withered and decaying. Santiago rescued some 325 00:22:19,920 --> 00:22:23,560 Speaker 1: of the healthier looking ones and took them away. Now, 326 00:22:23,840 --> 00:22:27,440 Speaker 1: in one corner of Santiago's hotel garden, there is a 327 00:22:27,560 --> 00:22:31,480 Speaker 1: spectacular display of yellows and reds, which often catch the 328 00:22:31,560 --> 00:22:35,760 Speaker 1: eye of the guests. John's beautiful and rare orchids are 329 00:22:35,920 --> 00:22:46,800 Speaker 1: tall and thriving all these years after his death. A 330 00:22:46,880 --> 00:22:50,640 Speaker 1: few days after Anne had left Costa Rica, a mysterious 331 00:22:50,800 --> 00:22:55,879 Speaker 1: package arrived at the hotel inside Santiago and Anna found 332 00:22:56,040 --> 00:23:01,280 Speaker 1: beautiful clothes Anne's designer collection and must have arranged for 333 00:23:01,359 --> 00:23:05,119 Speaker 1: them to be sent. Anna couldn't believe it. She'd had 334 00:23:05,240 --> 00:23:09,040 Speaker 1: marred them so many times, and and sense of style. 335 00:23:10,119 --> 00:23:13,080 Speaker 1: All these years. Anna has looked after them and even 336 00:23:13,160 --> 00:23:19,160 Speaker 1: wears them. Sometimes they're a perfect fit. When Santiago says Anne, pattern, 337 00:23:19,560 --> 00:23:20,560 Speaker 1: that's Anne Bender. 338 00:23:21,240 --> 00:23:24,760 Speaker 10: Sometimes when she used those clothes, she says, Okay, I'm 339 00:23:24,800 --> 00:23:28,320 Speaker 10: gonna be Anna's today, and pattern? 340 00:23:28,560 --> 00:23:30,119 Speaker 8: Really you say that? 341 00:23:30,800 --> 00:23:32,480 Speaker 1: Do you walk up and down and go look at me? 342 00:23:32,800 --> 00:23:35,359 Speaker 10: I'm gonna be a pattern today, That's why she said. 343 00:23:35,960 --> 00:23:38,040 Speaker 1: And sure enough, one morning, when I was staying at 344 00:23:38,080 --> 00:23:41,159 Speaker 1: the hotel, Anna called me over. She was wearing one 345 00:23:41,200 --> 00:23:44,879 Speaker 1: of Anne's dresses, long and black and elegant. This was 346 00:23:44,960 --> 00:23:50,400 Speaker 1: Anne's see oh it's beautiful. See do you feel elegant? 347 00:23:53,960 --> 00:23:58,720 Speaker 1: It's perfect, it's perfect, it fits beautifully. So it's a 348 00:23:58,880 --> 00:24:02,359 Speaker 1: really sort of really quite tight fitting long black dress 349 00:24:02,560 --> 00:24:10,639 Speaker 1: with a halting neck headkake, oh beautiful. After her acquittal, 350 00:24:11,000 --> 00:24:14,119 Speaker 1: Anne left the country and settled in America to start 351 00:24:14,160 --> 00:24:17,600 Speaker 1: a new life. And yet you can probably guess what 352 00:24:17,760 --> 00:24:22,159 Speaker 1: happened next. The Costa Rican authorities were still determined to 353 00:24:22,280 --> 00:24:27,080 Speaker 1: get her. In twenty seventeen, the Prosecutor's office ordered a 354 00:24:27,359 --> 00:24:31,240 Speaker 1: fourth trial. They wanted to try her all over again, 355 00:24:32,080 --> 00:24:35,080 Speaker 1: but to do that they would need to extradite Ann 356 00:24:35,280 --> 00:24:40,159 Speaker 1: from the United States. They issued an international arrest warrant 357 00:24:40,240 --> 00:24:44,800 Speaker 1: against her, effectively making it impossible for her to travel internationally. 358 00:24:46,720 --> 00:24:51,000 Speaker 1: There were other battles too. She took her Costa Rican lawyer, 359 00:24:51,280 --> 00:24:55,920 Speaker 1: Juan Alvarez to court for fraud in twenty twelve. He 360 00:24:56,080 --> 00:24:59,040 Speaker 1: had control over part of their fortune, which had been 361 00:24:59,080 --> 00:25:01,960 Speaker 1: put in that truck. The money was supposed to be 362 00:25:02,040 --> 00:25:06,160 Speaker 1: set aside for John and Ann's wildlife sanctuary. Anne accused 363 00:25:06,200 --> 00:25:10,080 Speaker 1: Alvarez of taking cash from the trust for his personal use, 364 00:25:10,760 --> 00:25:14,119 Speaker 1: spending it on horses and paying off credit card bills. 365 00:25:15,000 --> 00:25:17,560 Speaker 1: The court ruled that he should be removed from the 366 00:25:17,640 --> 00:25:22,480 Speaker 1: trust's board. Alvarez denied all the accusations made against him, 367 00:25:22,920 --> 00:25:27,520 Speaker 1: telling CBS they were bogus, but when his office was 368 00:25:27,640 --> 00:25:31,119 Speaker 1: raided during an investigation into his management of the trust, 369 00:25:31,680 --> 00:25:35,879 Speaker 1: it was discovered that forty million dollars was missing. He 370 00:25:35,960 --> 00:25:41,680 Speaker 1: didn't respond to our requests for an interview. We of 371 00:25:41,840 --> 00:25:45,320 Speaker 1: course also reached out to Anne. We would have loved 372 00:25:45,400 --> 00:25:48,919 Speaker 1: to have talked her about everything in this podcast, about 373 00:25:49,000 --> 00:25:54,920 Speaker 1: the whole story, but she didn't respond. So what about 374 00:25:54,960 --> 00:25:59,439 Speaker 1: those gems, the rubies, diamonds, the opals, which the police 375 00:25:59,480 --> 00:26:02,439 Speaker 1: confiscated at the time of John's death and which they 376 00:26:02,520 --> 00:26:06,800 Speaker 1: claimed were Anne's motive for murder? The Costa Rican authorities 377 00:26:06,960 --> 00:26:09,800 Speaker 1: alleged that the Benders had not paid taxes on the 378 00:26:09,880 --> 00:26:14,720 Speaker 1: jewels and had smuggled them in The private collection was 379 00:26:14,800 --> 00:26:19,840 Speaker 1: originally valued at twenty million dollars. Anne eventually recovered some 380 00:26:20,000 --> 00:26:23,560 Speaker 1: of the gems in February twenty twenty, but that part 381 00:26:23,640 --> 00:26:27,760 Speaker 1: of the hoarde was apparently valued closer to four million dollars. 382 00:26:28,800 --> 00:26:31,880 Speaker 1: Authorities explained some had been kept in order to pair 383 00:26:31,880 --> 00:26:35,359 Speaker 1: a tax bill of about one point three million dollars. 384 00:26:36,280 --> 00:26:39,040 Speaker 1: What happened to the rest of the collection is still 385 00:26:39,080 --> 00:26:43,760 Speaker 1: a mystery, and all the while, the threat of having 386 00:26:43,800 --> 00:26:47,120 Speaker 1: to face trial in Costa Rica for a fourth time 387 00:26:47,560 --> 00:26:51,200 Speaker 1: hung over Anne. The international arrest warrant meant that she 388 00:26:51,320 --> 00:26:54,520 Speaker 1: was effectively trapped in the US even as she tried 389 00:26:54,520 --> 00:26:59,120 Speaker 1: to rebuild her life. She was not free until finally 390 00:26:59,480 --> 00:27:04,159 Speaker 1: the law changed, enabling her defense team to challenge the retrial. 391 00:27:04,880 --> 00:27:07,440 Speaker 1: The case was heard before the Human Rights Chamber of 392 00:27:07,560 --> 00:27:12,360 Speaker 1: Costa Rica's Supreme Court in twenty twenty three. Her defense 393 00:27:12,440 --> 00:27:16,400 Speaker 1: team argued that she was the victim of judicial persecution. 394 00:27:17,760 --> 00:27:22,440 Speaker 1: Seven judges deliberated and the vote was very close, but 395 00:27:22,600 --> 00:27:25,720 Speaker 1: in the end, four of the seven judges ruled in 396 00:27:25,920 --> 00:27:30,800 Speaker 1: Anne's favor that Anne's two previous acquittals will now protect 397 00:27:30,840 --> 00:27:34,800 Speaker 1: her from any more appeals. She can never again be 398 00:27:34,920 --> 00:27:39,040 Speaker 1: prosecuted for the death of her husband. In other words, 399 00:27:39,560 --> 00:27:42,960 Speaker 1: in the eyes of the law, it is finally over. 400 00:27:46,880 --> 00:27:50,320 Speaker 1: But for those around the couple, it's not quite so simple. 401 00:27:51,320 --> 00:27:55,240 Speaker 1: It's been fifteen years since John's death, but the repercussions 402 00:27:55,280 --> 00:28:00,280 Speaker 1: are still reverberating. Around the mystical Dia Monte Valley and beyond. 403 00:28:01,320 --> 00:28:04,399 Speaker 1: Carol Vaughan wasn't the only one to become possessed and 404 00:28:04,600 --> 00:28:08,920 Speaker 1: obsessed with the story. So what do all our characters 405 00:28:09,000 --> 00:28:09,399 Speaker 1: make of it? 406 00:28:09,520 --> 00:28:09,680 Speaker 5: Now? 407 00:28:10,480 --> 00:28:14,119 Speaker 1: Do they still think about the private but compelling couple 408 00:28:14,520 --> 00:28:18,720 Speaker 1: who lived on top of the hill? Remember Michael, the 409 00:28:18,840 --> 00:28:21,040 Speaker 1: mercenary who we had voiced out by an actor. 410 00:28:21,560 --> 00:28:24,639 Speaker 2: I was contracted by a third party to kind of 411 00:28:25,119 --> 00:28:28,200 Speaker 2: intercept mister Bender and send him to the States. 412 00:28:29,240 --> 00:28:32,040 Speaker 1: Michael said he'd been hired to abduct John and take 413 00:28:32,160 --> 00:28:35,040 Speaker 1: him back to America. I caught up with him briefly. 414 00:28:35,560 --> 00:28:38,400 Speaker 1: He said, there's one thing he thinks about. At the 415 00:28:38,480 --> 00:28:41,520 Speaker 1: time he had John under surveillance, he noticed a couple 416 00:28:41,600 --> 00:28:44,760 Speaker 1: of other people, a youngish woman and a man, also 417 00:28:44,960 --> 00:28:48,280 Speaker 1: keeping an eye on John Bender. Who were they and 418 00:28:48,400 --> 00:28:51,040 Speaker 1: what were they up to? He still has no clue. 419 00:28:51,600 --> 00:28:54,920 Speaker 1: Another mystery, and what of Jesse and Matty. 420 00:28:55,240 --> 00:28:58,320 Speaker 5: I personally thought he was probably somebody very big in 421 00:28:58,800 --> 00:29:02,240 Speaker 5: the drugs first Lene, obviously they were doing something secret. 422 00:29:02,520 --> 00:29:06,000 Speaker 1: They haven't forgotten their former neighbors. In fact, they have 423 00:29:06,200 --> 00:29:09,840 Speaker 1: become more invested in their story. Jesse even went to 424 00:29:09,960 --> 00:29:13,000 Speaker 1: the court to watch part of the trial. Remember I 425 00:29:13,120 --> 00:29:17,520 Speaker 1: told you Matty is a clairvoyant. Well, halfway through our interview, 426 00:29:17,840 --> 00:29:21,360 Speaker 1: Jesse stopped us and said, Matty may be receiving a 427 00:29:21,480 --> 00:29:24,280 Speaker 1: communication from John at that very moment. 428 00:29:26,200 --> 00:29:28,840 Speaker 2: It's possible we could have some information from John. 429 00:29:32,640 --> 00:29:32,880 Speaker 9: John. 430 00:29:36,040 --> 00:29:48,040 Speaker 3: Lookjon, no mean John Nolosavia's the John. I said, Gold 431 00:29:48,160 --> 00:30:00,680 Speaker 3: Bi Gold bildandua. 432 00:29:57,360 --> 00:30:04,320 Speaker 1: Is Matty was breathing heavily, and we waited. But well, 433 00:30:04,520 --> 00:30:06,760 Speaker 1: I don't think they were able to speak to John 434 00:30:06,800 --> 00:30:09,800 Speaker 1: at that time in the past. They say they had 435 00:30:10,200 --> 00:30:13,280 Speaker 1: curious if he could give them answers. They say he 436 00:30:13,400 --> 00:30:16,719 Speaker 1: tells them that he killed himself and is played by 437 00:30:16,840 --> 00:30:19,920 Speaker 1: guilt about Anne's illness and his attempts to cure her. 438 00:30:20,920 --> 00:30:22,600 Speaker 5: They're saying that Anne killed you. 439 00:30:22,720 --> 00:30:23,360 Speaker 13: What do you say? 440 00:30:24,280 --> 00:30:26,239 Speaker 5: And then he said I killed her. 441 00:30:27,760 --> 00:30:30,840 Speaker 1: Then there's doctor Lozano and psychiatrist. 442 00:30:31,640 --> 00:30:32,440 Speaker 5: I asked her what. 443 00:30:32,560 --> 00:30:33,320 Speaker 1: Did these bumps? 444 00:30:33,560 --> 00:30:38,320 Speaker 9: He said, Well, John was injected me, giving me clear 445 00:30:38,880 --> 00:30:43,280 Speaker 9: spring water injections under my skin to heal me. 446 00:30:43,520 --> 00:30:46,800 Speaker 5: I said, and are you serious. 447 00:30:47,800 --> 00:30:51,120 Speaker 1: He's still practicing in San Jose and he's been left 448 00:30:51,200 --> 00:30:54,200 Speaker 1: with a sense of great loss following the departure of 449 00:30:54,280 --> 00:30:57,960 Speaker 1: his former patient. He feels like the girl. 450 00:30:57,840 --> 00:31:05,720 Speaker 5: Who's boyfriend left her, kind of feeling really like, what happened? 451 00:31:06,160 --> 00:31:06,800 Speaker 11: What did we do? 452 00:31:07,880 --> 00:31:08,560 Speaker 13: What was wrong? 453 00:31:09,320 --> 00:31:10,640 Speaker 1: You thought you'd done something wrong. 454 00:31:12,480 --> 00:31:15,520 Speaker 8: I have kind of lies one thousand times, and I 455 00:31:16,080 --> 00:31:17,800 Speaker 8: think they never did anything wrong. 456 00:31:17,960 --> 00:31:19,160 Speaker 1: Did you find it confusing? 457 00:31:21,000 --> 00:31:23,400 Speaker 5: Yes in the beginning, But there was a moment in 458 00:31:23,520 --> 00:31:27,440 Speaker 5: time in which I said, well, let it be. 459 00:31:28,400 --> 00:31:31,280 Speaker 1: Let it be, he says, but I can tell he 460 00:31:31,400 --> 00:31:34,480 Speaker 1: finds it hard to let go of Van Bender. And 461 00:31:34,640 --> 00:31:38,240 Speaker 1: what of John Corvick, who first told us how sinister 462 00:31:38,440 --> 00:31:40,000 Speaker 1: the dear Monte Valley could be? 463 00:31:41,360 --> 00:31:43,680 Speaker 7: She at that place is the darkest jungle you've ever 464 00:31:43,720 --> 00:31:45,720 Speaker 7: seen in your life. You have no clue. 465 00:31:46,120 --> 00:31:49,320 Speaker 1: He left Costa Rica and now lives in Florida, still 466 00:31:49,440 --> 00:31:52,960 Speaker 1: loving the outdoor life. He and his wife, Nicole do 467 00:31:53,160 --> 00:31:57,240 Speaker 1: sometimes talk about their old neighbors, the Benders, and discuss 468 00:31:57,320 --> 00:32:01,000 Speaker 1: all their theories about what really happened, But most of 469 00:32:01,080 --> 00:32:03,600 Speaker 1: the time John is air boating in the Everglades. 470 00:32:04,040 --> 00:32:05,400 Speaker 7: Well, I'm still out in the woods a lot. 471 00:32:05,480 --> 00:32:05,640 Speaker 5: Here. 472 00:32:06,000 --> 00:32:08,080 Speaker 7: We ride boats around, and I don't know, you know, 473 00:32:08,080 --> 00:32:10,440 Speaker 7: I still have some wilderness is different than the mountains, 474 00:32:10,480 --> 00:32:12,960 Speaker 7: But I'm a well rounded outdoors person. 475 00:32:15,480 --> 00:32:20,160 Speaker 1: Hotelier Santiago put forward a proposal for groups of tourists 476 00:32:20,440 --> 00:32:25,520 Speaker 1: to stay at Borichayanne and experience the authentic jungle, but 477 00:32:25,720 --> 00:32:30,000 Speaker 1: that was rejected. The Bender's head of maintenance, as Valdo, 478 00:32:30,480 --> 00:32:33,520 Speaker 1: is now working at a local vets. He's still coming 479 00:32:33,560 --> 00:32:36,480 Speaker 1: to terms with what happened while he worked for the Benders. 480 00:32:37,720 --> 00:32:42,920 Speaker 1: Ambulance driver Carlos now drives taxis, but still thinks about 481 00:32:42,960 --> 00:32:46,240 Speaker 1: that night in twenty ten when he went to Borichayanne 482 00:32:46,280 --> 00:32:48,960 Speaker 1: in the small hours and saw the house like a 483 00:32:49,080 --> 00:32:53,680 Speaker 1: flying saucer and John dead on the fourth floor. While 484 00:32:53,760 --> 00:32:57,720 Speaker 1: in prison, the Bender's former head of security, Jose Pizzaro, 485 00:32:58,080 --> 00:33:01,480 Speaker 1: found god he was really east from prison in twenty 486 00:33:01,600 --> 00:33:06,040 Speaker 1: twenty two, Rosemary, who sold seeds to the Benders and 487 00:33:06,200 --> 00:33:10,560 Speaker 1: witnessed that dramatic confrontation with the police, is now making 488 00:33:10,760 --> 00:33:16,880 Speaker 1: locally sourced chocolate. There's something about this story which seems 489 00:33:16,960 --> 00:33:19,880 Speaker 1: to stay with people, get under their skin. 490 00:33:20,920 --> 00:33:23,280 Speaker 13: It was a big shock. I didn't know that it 491 00:33:23,400 --> 00:33:26,760 Speaker 13: was going to bother me that much, but it did. 492 00:33:27,560 --> 00:33:31,000 Speaker 1: Remember John's friend Steve John taught him how to chat 493 00:33:31,160 --> 00:33:35,520 Speaker 1: up girls in Philadelphia. He was deeply affected when he 494 00:33:35,680 --> 00:33:39,440 Speaker 1: heard about John's death and for a while it took 495 00:33:39,520 --> 00:33:40,360 Speaker 1: over his life. 496 00:33:41,120 --> 00:33:43,960 Speaker 13: And I'm looking at the pictures, I said, that's him, 497 00:33:45,560 --> 00:33:48,000 Speaker 13: and it just hit me like a ton of bricks. 498 00:33:48,720 --> 00:33:50,920 Speaker 13: For one of the few times in my life, I 499 00:33:51,000 --> 00:33:55,160 Speaker 13: actually shed the tear. I don't cry. I couldn't stop 500 00:33:55,240 --> 00:33:58,840 Speaker 13: talking about it. I went on Facebook and I put 501 00:33:58,880 --> 00:34:03,480 Speaker 13: a whole big posts and everybody saw it. I did 502 00:34:03,680 --> 00:34:07,640 Speaker 13: research all over the place finding what happened. I was 503 00:34:07,720 --> 00:34:11,120 Speaker 13: there in all kind of forums, cracks and crevices. I 504 00:34:11,280 --> 00:34:13,600 Speaker 13: was going to find out what happened to John. And 505 00:34:13,719 --> 00:34:15,719 Speaker 13: then one day I woke up and I said, I 506 00:34:15,840 --> 00:34:18,320 Speaker 13: can't do this anymore. I don't like walking around that 507 00:34:18,360 --> 00:34:21,360 Speaker 13: big burden on my shoulder and something hurting me. So 508 00:34:21,400 --> 00:34:25,439 Speaker 13: I deleted all my posts, I deleted the video I had, 509 00:34:26,239 --> 00:34:28,239 Speaker 13: and I promised I would never talk about it again. 510 00:34:29,440 --> 00:34:33,000 Speaker 13: And after that day, I never talked about it because 511 00:34:33,040 --> 00:34:35,360 Speaker 13: that saved That saved it, like it made me. I 512 00:34:35,520 --> 00:34:36,360 Speaker 13: was okay after that. 513 00:34:37,520 --> 00:34:41,000 Speaker 1: Like Steve, author and journalist Carol Vaughan couldn't let go 514 00:34:41,120 --> 00:34:45,440 Speaker 1: of the Bender's story either. She was possessed and obsessed 515 00:34:46,120 --> 00:34:47,440 Speaker 1: and it changed her life. 516 00:34:48,160 --> 00:34:55,200 Speaker 2: I became so deeply entrenched, involved, smitten that I would 517 00:34:55,239 --> 00:34:59,400 Speaker 2: go hardly. I'd go days without bathing and go all 518 00:34:59,480 --> 00:35:03,840 Speaker 2: day with any I was just I was possessed. 519 00:35:04,800 --> 00:35:07,600 Speaker 1: Is how what it felt like? Definitely, did you try 520 00:35:07,760 --> 00:35:08,399 Speaker 1: to stop being? 521 00:35:08,600 --> 00:35:08,640 Speaker 10: No? 522 00:35:08,960 --> 00:35:09,480 Speaker 5: I loved it? 523 00:35:10,239 --> 00:35:11,160 Speaker 1: And why did you love it? 524 00:35:11,600 --> 00:35:14,880 Speaker 2: Because I felt so much passion, really, and I like passion, 525 00:35:15,640 --> 00:35:20,040 Speaker 2: So I felt I think Kostreika is a very passionate place, 526 00:35:20,800 --> 00:35:23,400 Speaker 2: a very sexy place that's filled with love. And I 527 00:35:23,600 --> 00:35:25,320 Speaker 2: was right in the middle of all of that, so 528 00:35:25,680 --> 00:35:26,440 Speaker 2: felt kind of good. 529 00:35:26,640 --> 00:35:27,640 Speaker 1: Yeah, where you wanted to be? 530 00:35:27,800 --> 00:35:27,960 Speaker 7: Yes? 531 00:35:28,080 --> 00:35:29,839 Speaker 1: Do you think it's detrimental to you at all? 532 00:35:30,080 --> 00:35:30,120 Speaker 5: No? 533 00:35:30,800 --> 00:35:36,320 Speaker 2: I think that I'm over it, really, But it was 534 00:35:36,440 --> 00:35:40,359 Speaker 2: an almost year where I wasn't very healthy. I wasn't eating, 535 00:35:40,440 --> 00:35:42,600 Speaker 2: while I wasn't exercising. 536 00:35:42,080 --> 00:35:44,920 Speaker 1: Wasn't Yeah, would you like to let go of it 537 00:35:45,040 --> 00:35:47,200 Speaker 1: a bit? I would like to. 538 00:35:48,320 --> 00:35:51,360 Speaker 2: I like to know what really happened, which I probably 539 00:35:51,400 --> 00:35:51,839 Speaker 2: never will. 540 00:35:52,640 --> 00:35:55,800 Speaker 1: We said at the start of the series that Bora Kayne, 541 00:35:55,960 --> 00:35:59,239 Speaker 1: the extraordinary house which John built on top of the hill, 542 00:35:59,800 --> 00:36:03,600 Speaker 1: was the scene of a mystery but also a tragedy, 543 00:36:04,480 --> 00:36:07,640 Speaker 1: the death of a brilliant man who, for all his flaws, 544 00:36:08,080 --> 00:36:11,960 Speaker 1: followed his dreams. For a few short years, he created 545 00:36:12,000 --> 00:36:15,200 Speaker 1: his own heaven. Anne and John lived there among animals, 546 00:36:15,520 --> 00:36:19,319 Speaker 1: the sloths, monkeys, and anteaters in the natural world, which 547 00:36:19,400 --> 00:36:24,280 Speaker 1: they loved. But it turned to hell. John left behind 548 00:36:24,400 --> 00:36:27,600 Speaker 1: his family, his brother Matthew and parents Margie and Paul, 549 00:36:28,239 --> 00:36:31,040 Speaker 1: who I can see are still reeling from his death. 550 00:36:32,120 --> 00:36:34,680 Speaker 1: Were you able to have a funeral or at least 551 00:36:34,719 --> 00:36:37,360 Speaker 1: be able to have a ceremony for John? 552 00:36:38,120 --> 00:36:42,279 Speaker 5: We didn't. We probably should if she had some kind 553 00:36:42,320 --> 00:36:44,719 Speaker 5: of a formal ceremony of. 554 00:36:44,800 --> 00:36:48,640 Speaker 1: Some kind, Paul is talking about Anne, we. 555 00:36:48,719 --> 00:36:52,040 Speaker 5: Probably would have gone down there for it, Yes, but 556 00:36:52,239 --> 00:36:52,760 Speaker 5: she didn't. 557 00:36:53,400 --> 00:36:56,799 Speaker 1: Do you feel that you have questions that are unanswered 558 00:36:56,880 --> 00:36:59,440 Speaker 1: still that you would have you would want answered. 559 00:37:00,120 --> 00:37:03,239 Speaker 5: Well, I don't know Mary feels about us. She's much better, right, 560 00:37:03,280 --> 00:37:05,719 Speaker 5: It's not than I am. But what's the point of 561 00:37:08,280 --> 00:37:10,640 Speaker 5: worrying about things that have happened and there's nothing you 562 00:37:10,680 --> 00:37:15,399 Speaker 5: can do about them anymore? I think sometimes that makes 563 00:37:15,480 --> 00:37:17,040 Speaker 5: the situation far worse? 564 00:37:18,960 --> 00:37:20,840 Speaker 1: Continuing to ask questions. 565 00:37:21,040 --> 00:37:24,799 Speaker 5: Yeah, because what the answers are? What are you going 566 00:37:24,840 --> 00:37:27,160 Speaker 5: to do with what you find out? I knew he 567 00:37:27,239 --> 00:37:30,800 Speaker 5: had some battles with people in the investment things that 568 00:37:31,040 --> 00:37:33,480 Speaker 5: worked for him or that he worked against him. I 569 00:37:33,560 --> 00:37:35,279 Speaker 5: knew about that kind of stuff, but he seemed to 570 00:37:35,360 --> 00:37:37,680 Speaker 5: be doing well with that. I figured he got what 571 00:37:37,760 --> 00:37:40,000 Speaker 5: he's doing a lot better than I is. So what 572 00:37:40,120 --> 00:37:40,480 Speaker 5: can I do? 573 00:37:40,880 --> 00:37:43,879 Speaker 1: Is it something that both of you you still think 574 00:37:43,920 --> 00:37:47,320 Speaker 1: about every day? Are you able to in some ways 575 00:37:47,400 --> 00:37:49,720 Speaker 1: come to terms with what happened? Because I can't imagine 576 00:37:49,719 --> 00:37:50,239 Speaker 1: how that could be. 577 00:37:50,840 --> 00:37:53,240 Speaker 5: I don't know what you mean, but coming to terms 578 00:37:53,320 --> 00:37:58,279 Speaker 5: with him, I certainly coming to terms is not a 579 00:37:58,360 --> 00:37:59,400 Speaker 5: thing I even think about. 580 00:38:01,000 --> 00:38:02,120 Speaker 2: It hangs there. 581 00:38:03,719 --> 00:38:07,360 Speaker 5: Yeah, it's just a helpless feeling. So there's nothing you 582 00:38:07,440 --> 00:38:11,239 Speaker 5: can do about it, don't I still don't know who's responsible. 583 00:38:11,280 --> 00:38:14,319 Speaker 5: That's the difference. That's not going to make it anything better. 584 00:38:14,960 --> 00:38:17,879 Speaker 1: If there was one memory, at least of looking back 585 00:38:17,960 --> 00:38:20,600 Speaker 1: of the best memory of John is the one that 586 00:38:20,760 --> 00:38:21,879 Speaker 1: comes to mind. 587 00:38:23,560 --> 00:38:27,520 Speaker 5: The relationship with the animals and with the land which 588 00:38:27,600 --> 00:38:33,640 Speaker 5: he had developed with the house. That's a really positive thing. 589 00:38:35,000 --> 00:38:38,600 Speaker 5: I couldn't believe it when I saw the whole develop 590 00:38:38,719 --> 00:38:41,479 Speaker 5: into the place or something that I never thought would happen, 591 00:38:41,560 --> 00:38:44,880 Speaker 5: and that was just wonderful to see. And then it 592 00:38:45,000 --> 00:38:49,000 Speaker 5: all comes crashing down. But it was very, very successful, 593 00:38:49,120 --> 00:38:51,440 Speaker 5: and he did that all on his own. I just 594 00:38:51,600 --> 00:38:55,160 Speaker 5: kept saying, this isn't going to work, but it always worked. 595 00:38:56,400 --> 00:38:59,720 Speaker 1: As well as a mystery and a tragedy, this series 596 00:38:59,880 --> 00:39:03,120 Speaker 1: is also a love story. Remember how John and Anne 597 00:39:03,200 --> 00:39:06,600 Speaker 1: fell instantly in love in Virginia over the punch Bowl. 598 00:39:07,520 --> 00:39:11,320 Speaker 1: Echoing that romantic meeting is the story of how Paul 599 00:39:11,400 --> 00:39:15,320 Speaker 1: and Margie met back in the nineteen fifties. The memory 600 00:39:15,400 --> 00:39:18,480 Speaker 1: of it makes them both smile, and the heaviness in 601 00:39:18,520 --> 00:39:23,080 Speaker 1: their voices lifts. It's just nice to hear, but it 602 00:39:23,160 --> 00:39:26,400 Speaker 1: reveals something else, how their love for each other has 603 00:39:26,440 --> 00:39:30,000 Speaker 1: got them through the dark days and still does. They 604 00:39:30,080 --> 00:39:31,479 Speaker 1: were both studying at the time. 605 00:39:32,719 --> 00:39:38,879 Speaker 5: She was one year behind me, and we met. That's 606 00:39:38,920 --> 00:39:42,760 Speaker 5: the wonderful time we've met at a Gilbert and Sullivan production. 607 00:39:43,040 --> 00:39:45,560 Speaker 5: And I played the piano when she was in the chorus. 608 00:39:45,840 --> 00:39:46,879 Speaker 1: Was it love at first sight? 609 00:39:48,120 --> 00:39:49,200 Speaker 5: Well me, it certainly was. 610 00:39:49,680 --> 00:39:49,960 Speaker 8: Really. 611 00:39:50,880 --> 00:39:56,200 Speaker 5: He's a very lovabo, he's very romantic. We got along 612 00:39:56,480 --> 00:39:56,960 Speaker 5: very well. 613 00:39:57,920 --> 00:40:02,160 Speaker 1: And what about the house. It's still on sale. It 614 00:40:02,280 --> 00:40:06,040 Speaker 1: seems the asking price has been reduced from twenty five 615 00:40:06,120 --> 00:40:10,839 Speaker 1: million dollars to twelve million, and it's been renamed ce 616 00:40:11,360 --> 00:40:17,040 Speaker 1: Ridge Reserve. The house, with no walls, stands vacant, with 617 00:40:17,239 --> 00:40:21,799 Speaker 1: two guards at the gate, and the jungle steadily reclaiming 618 00:40:21,920 --> 00:40:26,920 Speaker 1: the land to its original wilderness. It's thought that Anne 619 00:40:27,360 --> 00:40:31,160 Speaker 1: would like whoever buys it to revive the nature reserve, 620 00:40:31,600 --> 00:40:36,200 Speaker 1: which she and John were so proud of, but so 621 00:40:36,440 --> 00:40:40,319 Speaker 1: far there are no takers. This is where they lived, 622 00:40:41,120 --> 00:40:45,560 Speaker 1: this is where John died. We started with the house 623 00:40:46,520 --> 00:40:49,560 Speaker 1: and we end with it. I mean, when it was 624 00:40:49,680 --> 00:40:53,040 Speaker 1: really beautiful, poppy, it must have been quite dramatic to 625 00:40:53,080 --> 00:40:55,920 Speaker 1: walk up those steps. I mean what an entrance. Absolutely. 626 00:40:56,880 --> 00:41:00,600 Speaker 1: I mean there's something quite kind of you know, after 627 00:41:00,640 --> 00:41:02,719 Speaker 1: be doing working on it for so long, It's something 628 00:41:02,800 --> 00:41:05,080 Speaker 1: quite kind of poignant about actually seeing the house, isn't it. 629 00:41:06,000 --> 00:41:09,279 Speaker 1: You know this is where it all happened, on that 630 00:41:09,440 --> 00:41:15,080 Speaker 1: top floor, you know, near the dome. Something. It's sad, 631 00:41:16,560 --> 00:41:19,560 Speaker 1: it is. I feel kind of heavy here, So do 632 00:41:19,680 --> 00:41:28,720 Speaker 1: I carries something? Doesn't it? They had the big doors 633 00:41:28,760 --> 00:41:30,359 Speaker 1: in the big haught iron. Do you think that had 634 00:41:30,560 --> 00:41:34,000 Speaker 1: flowers on it? I think the whole lot had flowers 635 00:41:34,040 --> 00:41:48,279 Speaker 1: everywhere and animals just wandering around. We were told that 636 00:41:48,440 --> 00:41:52,960 Speaker 1: John's ashes are scattered here at his beloved Bora Kaya. 637 00:42:22,760 --> 00:42:29,560 Speaker 1: It's weird, isn't it just so still? Yeah, it's really sad. 638 00:42:32,640 --> 00:42:34,600 Speaker 1: It just feels that you can only hear the buds. 639 00:42:44,600 --> 00:43:20,160 Speaker 1: Sure we go, Let's come on. You've been listening to 640 00:43:20,400 --> 00:43:24,960 Speaker 1: Helen Heaven from Exactly Right Media and iHeart Podcasts, produced 641 00:43:25,120 --> 00:43:29,920 Speaker 1: by Blanchard House, hosted, written and produced by me Becky Milligan. 642 00:43:30,520 --> 00:43:34,600 Speaker 1: The producer and co writer is Poppy Damon. Music is 643 00:43:34,680 --> 00:43:39,440 Speaker 1: by Daniel Lloyd Evans, Louis Nankmanell, and Toby Mattamont. The 644 00:43:39,560 --> 00:43:42,400 Speaker 1: sound recordist and head of sound and Music is Daniel 645 00:43:42,440 --> 00:43:47,279 Speaker 1: Lloyd Evans. The lead sound designer is Vulcan Kisseltook. The 646 00:43:47,520 --> 00:43:51,800 Speaker 1: artwork is by Vanessa Lilac for Exactly Right Media. The 647 00:43:51,920 --> 00:43:57,080 Speaker 1: executive producers are Karen Kilgarreth, Georgia Hartstark and Danielle Kramer, 648 00:43:57,400 --> 00:44:03,080 Speaker 1: with consulting producer Lilly Ladderwig and associate producer Jay Elias. 649 00:44:03,960 --> 00:44:08,239 Speaker 1: The creative director of Blanchard House is Rosie Pye. The 650 00:44:08,400 --> 00:44:12,080 Speaker 1: executive producer and head of content at Blanchard House is 651 00:44:12,200 --> 00:44:17,160 Speaker 1: Lawrence Griselle. Listen to Helen Heaven on the iHeartRadio app, 652 00:44:17,360 --> 00:44:20,399 Speaker 1: Apple Podcasts or wherever you get your podcasts