01x10 - The Boy In The Bunker Part 2

[bunniefuu]

- [screaming]

- Cold-blooded m*rder
in front of those kids.

- In the 911 call, d*kes
directs law enforcement.

He says he has a hostage.

- If they could get a
clear shot on d*kes,

it had to be a k*ll shot.

- d*kes wasn't getting what he
wanted, and time was ticking.

- This guy's already
committed a homicide.

I have no reason to think
that he wouldn't do it again.

- He has been like a time
b*mb waiting to go off.

- He was losing
patience with Ethan.

That was really
concerning as well.

- The Alabama hostage drama
is now in its seventh day.

d*kes remains underground with
his five-year-old c*ptive.

- Almost a full week into
the standoff,

very little has changed.

- I said, Director,
no assumption

can be made that Ethan is safe
in his custody even one

more minute.

- We put the gear on,
weapons checks, expl*sives.

- And nothing could dislodge
him from his insistence

that he was going
to tell that story,

or he and Ethan
were going to die.

[loud expl*si*n]

[dramatic music]

In the FBI, we make
a lot of headlines...

♪

drug busts, mob stings,

t*rror1st takedowns.

- [shouting indistinctly]

- We understand why people
want to tell stories about us.

- Mark it.
- Freeze!

- FBI.
- FBI!

- Action!

- But they don't
know the half of it.

What really goes down?

We save that for
each other,

when we're talking
agent to agent.

This is "FBI True."

[tense music]

♪

- We knew the bus
driver had been k*lled

and a kid had been kidnapped.

He says he has a hostage
in a bunker that he

had built on his property.

- So from what I
understand,

d*kes wants the reporter
to come down

so he can tell his story.

- Yes.

- There was no good
news about him.

And nothing, as it turned
out, could dislodge him

from his insistence that he
was going to tell that story

or he and Ethan
were going to die.

- What are you figuring
out at this point

about d*kes' personality?

- Who is Jim d*kes?

At his core, who is this man?

♪

And we figured out a few
things, none of it good.

He was very isolated.

He had no friends.

He lost contact
with his family.

He even really
rejected his identity

as a Southerner,
which simply isn't

done if one is a Southerner.

So that was bad,
because isolation

is a risk-enhancing
factor for violence.

- One neighbor told us
d*kes spoke of making

worldwide news someday.

Others said he
was often hostile

and convinced the government
was out to get him.

But we've learned d*kes is
a navy veteran who served

in the late '60s
in Japan and California,

where he received
awards for good conduct.

- He had a lifelong
pattern of low

to no empathy for others,

which was real bad news
for Ethan.

There was a story from
one of the neighbors

that he had beat her
dog to death with a pipe,

because the dog was
crossing his property.

And he told her,
if it happens again,

I'm going to k*ll
your dog, and he did.

- He k*lled one of my dogs,
and I had animal cruelty people

out then.

And he has... as I said, he's
been a source of interest

for a long time,
because he has been

like a time b*mb
waiting to go off.

- So he's been
violent in the past?

- He was violent,
but he wasn't just violent.

He was a violent
promise-keeper.

d*kes saw people's
actions or failures

to act as he said they should,
as justifying violence.

In other words,
please don't make me k*ll you.

Our profile was that he is
a violent promise-keeper,

and so we must take him at his
word when he says, this is it.

♪

He was isolated.
He was angry.

He had no empathy.

He saw himself
as a lifelong victim

of all kinds of injustices.

In fact, the term
injustice collector

is one that we would
use to describe

a guy like that...
psychologically

brittle, rigid.

- So what are the
next steps then?

Obviously, knowing the
Bureau, what's on the ground

is reporting back
to headquarters.

- There began to
be a misconception,

I think, in some quarters that
he genuinely cared for Ethan

and at a critical moment
would not harm him.

- He's told us that he
has an electric heater

and some blankets inside.

He's also allowed us
to provide coloring

books, medication, toys.

I want to thank him for
taking care of our child.

- And you're going to develop
what they call Stockholm

Syndrome, named after a famous
bank robbery in Stockholm

where the captor
and the c*ptive start to bond.

You can see those signs
when d*kes asks for coloring

books, for crayons.

He allows the
medication to come in.

He's trying to
provide for this boy.

So as time goes on,
that bond should increase.

- I didn't think that was true.

He had a whole life
pattern of no empathy.

So for him to suddenly
empathize with and truly care

for Ethan... in other words,
have formed a genuine

emotional attachment...

that would be a deviation
from his whole life pattern,

and I didn't think so.

However, here's the hitch.

I didn't think that
was true for Ethan...

five years old,
under traumatic circumstances,

was now being cared for
by this man in the bunker.

So my concern, especially for
a five-year-old like Ethan,

was that he was genuinely
forming a bond to Jim d*kes.

And in a critical
moment like a rescue...

Bill and I talked about this...

he might run in the
wrong direction.

[ominous music]

- At one point,
he told the negotiators

that he had taught Ethan
how to detonate that IED.

So if something
happened to him...

for instance, we fatally shot
him or something like that...

that Ethan would then
detonate the IED.

- Now, I don't know that
Ethan would have done that,

but the fact that he was
teaching Ethan that starting

around day five,
losing patience with Ethan,

that was a concern as well,
because you're talking about

a five-year-old in a bunker.

His behavior's not likely
going to be perfect.

So that was really
concerning as well.

- Wow.

- Here at home, negotiations
are continuing this evening

with the Alabama
man who is holding

a five-year-old boy hostage in
an underground tornado bunker.

And Manuel Bojorquez is there.

- People who know the
hostage say he has

autism and needs medication.

Scott, they tell me
he has never been away

from his mother this long.

- We didn't feel like... based
on what Molly was telling us,

what the negotiators
were telling us,

we felt less
and less confident that

there was going to be
some sort of peaceful

resolution [inaudible].

We needed something else.

We needed an edge.

- We talked to his adult
daughters, who were...

wanted nothing to do with it.

They were very
fearful of somehow

making the situation
worse,

which
I can completely understand.

We did eventually secure
the cooperation of one

of his adult daughters
to come to Midland City

and be willing to
speak with him,

which
was very heroic on her part.

- They called and informed
me that my dad had m*rder*d

somebody and had
kidnapped a child

and was down in a bunker.

And I told them, whatever
they needed, because I had a...

I have a little boy
at the same age.

I was willing to do anything.

- What we'd set up was
a call between d*kes

and the daughter.

- And that was really tough.

It was tough on her.

She hadn't seen
him in many years.

She was worried about
all the same things

that anyone would
be worried about.

Will I make this worse?

Will I be able to help
in a positive way?

- She would have a computer,
and he would have a computer,

and she could see him,
and he could see her.

Of course,
unbeknownst to him,

I would be able to see
what she could see.

And the conditions
that had to be met

to make this thing
successful was,

Ethan had to be
away from the hatch,

and d*kes had to physically
be in that space.

And if we could have
those two conditions met

at the same time, we would
have at least reasonable

odds of a successful rescue.

We rehearsed it using the
rehearsal bunker dozens of

times, full-scale rehearsals.

♪

We have a plan.

This was the first time that
we were called in, I think,

to brief a director
on what our plan was.

- So you were on that
call, too, Molly, right?

- I was, yeah.
- OK.

- It was in the
command trailer.

It was like command-post
city, all trailers

and mobile vehicles,
if you can picture it.

But it was in the
command trailer.

It was full house.

- So you guys each had
your own part to say.

And what was your feedback?

- It kind of went
around the room.

I briefed what we could do,
which was this as*ault that we

think will take this long,
and here's our plan,

and we can't guarantee
success on this,

but this is what we can do.

And then we went around.

The negotiators, I think,
spoke for a little bit.

And we got to Molly.

- I don't remember what I
said the first time I spoke.

And I recall Director
Mueller saying, well,

in my experience,
patience usually

wins the days in these things.

He appears to be treating
Ethan relatively well,

so I think we should
hold position.

And we started waving at the
on scene, pointing at myself,

doing this, and pointing
at the speakerphone.

He put me back on the phone.

And I said, Director,
there has been a lot

said about Jim d*kes

and the nature of his
relationship with Ethan.

His whole life pattern
was one devoid of empathy

for other human beings.

For him to break that pattern
now and genuinely care

for Ethan,
no assumption can be made

that Ethan is safe in his
custody even one more minute.

The situation appears
to be deteriorating,

and he's losing patience.

I pretty much cut
it at that,

and I sat back and hoped that
I wasn't going to be fired.

- It was very unusual
for us to sort of

be able to speak our mind
directly to the director.

And I think it was
particularly unusual

for someone to stand up
and re-explain to the director

that he wasn't
understanding what it was

we were trying to convey.

And she did a pretty
darn good job with that.

- I didn't have
time to be nervous.

I was so alarmed
for Ethan's safety,

and I thought
I had the knowledge,

so I knew I had to speak up.

And there was nothing
else on my mind.

- You did your job.

- I did what I thought
had to be done.

I didn't think
about anything else.

And I just sat
there and waited.

And it felt like an eternity.

I don't know how long it
was, but he changed his mind.

♪

- That's awesome.

- And then he used the
words "rolling green."

I didn't know what that
meant, but I could guess.

- A rolling green
means, basically,

we have authority to execute.

- I left that meeting
with the director

in the command trailer
and just...

there was no place for me.

I was sitting in this quiet
little room in Destiny Church

all by myself,
really ruminating.

I was starting
to think things like,

I know there's going to
be as*ault at some point

if an operator gets k*lled.

Am I the one who
made that happen?

I'm not, of course.

Jim d*kes made it happen.

But I mean, am I the
one that did that?

- The Alabama hostage drama's
now in its seventh day.

d*kes remains underground with
his five-year-old c*ptive.

Manuel Bojorquez is in
Midland City, Alabama.

- Good morning,
Charlie and Norah.

Police tell us they
still have an open line

of communication with d*kes.

But almost a full week into
the standoff,

very little has changed.

- So we put the gear on,
did the final checks,

radio checks, weapons
checks, expl*sives,

and we got into position.

♪

- The daughter, we always
hoped that that conversation

would happen
and would be beneficial.

- Yep.
- And ultimately she was never

able to talk with her father.

- The first part
of that as*ault

was to deliver toys to Ethan.

♪

So we brought up the toys.

The deputy brought them up
like always, yelled at d*kes.

Hey, I'm here.
I've got Ethan's medicines.

I've got his toys.

d*kes undid the lid
just a couple of inches,

so he could slide them
in and slid those in.

But unbeknownst to d*kes,
while we're doing that,

the breaches are
setting their charges.

Second thing we did, we had
visual on Ethan, where he was.

He was actually where he was
supposed to be, as far away

from the hatch as he could.

Right, so that was the first
condition we had to meet.

The second condition was,
we wanted to lure

d*kes up into the access tube.

We lowered the computer monitor
just low enough to where he

would have to come out
and reach up to get it

but not so high that it would
kind of tip our hand that it

was a trick or something like
that, 'cause he's pretty smart

that way.

So I think we lowered
about 3 and 1/2 feet,

so he would have to
stretch to reach it.

- Mm-hmm.

- We lower the laptop in
there, and first thing we hear

is d*kes yelling
for more slack.

He says, I need more
slack; I need more slack.

The deputy yells back,
that's all we got.

That's all the cable we got.

And I can see a hand reaching
up to grab for the computer.

And at that point,
I signal the breacher

with a slap to his shoulder,
and he executes the charge.

[loud expl*si*n]

The charge goes boom.

Our guys run up.

They peel back what's
left of the hatch.

Our number one guy,
just as rehearsed,

goes down in the hatch
with an access bar

that we had developed to lower
himself down a little bit,

gets in pretty quick.

Number two guy goes
in right behind him,

and he's stuck, right?

Number two guy doesn't
disappear in the hatch

like he's supposed to.

Unbeknownst to us, d*kes had
a separate trap down lower

in the hatch.

It was probably about six
feet down, halfway down,

and it was just a man trap.

It was another set
of cables that we

didn't know about stretched
across the access tube.

d*kes starts sh**ting
at the guy who's hung up

in the access tube, probably
from a distance of 3,



He's sh**ting blind
from around the corner.

[g*nshots]

But we pull him out.

I asked the medic to look
for holes, look for leaks,

because we're pretty
sure he's been shot.

And at that point,
we're pretty f*cked.

- We run the risk
of losing momentum.

We tried to get a dog
in there, but poor Ella,

who's a shepherd,
a black shepherd,

she wasn't having
anything of it either.

She couldn't get
through the obstruction.

There was b*ll*ts flying out.

[g*nshots]

We're tossing in
flashbang grenades,

which make a lot of smoke, a
lot of noise, a lot of flash...

anything we can do to keep
his attention focused on us

and away from Ethan.

♪

We hear this loud boom behind
us, expl*si*n behind us.

[loud expl*si*n]

And the shots kind of stop.

What d*kes has done,
he's moved into the IED mode.

Papers, smoke, all kinds
of particulate matter

just comes flying out at us
as that expl*si*n's going off.

And about that time,
the same number one guy

that we had pulled out... and
he just drops into the hatch,

into the smoke,
the debris, all that,

drops 12 feet straight down.

Complete smoke and darkness.

Unfortunately for him, he's
got his handgun in his hand,

right, which literally
hits his arm on the way in,

knocks the p*stol
loose from his hand.

So...
- Ah, sh*t.

- ...he hits the ground, and
he is literally unarmed,

can't see anything.

He lunges forward the
first time, gets nothing.

A little bit deeper,
and he feels

what he knows to be a child.

He has a small child at home.

And he kind of says, hey, I
knew what that felt like, so...

♪

You know,
ten years later, I still get

a little emotional about it,
get a little choked up.

♪

Let me start again.

So he wraps Ethan up,
covers him with his body,

and that gives the number
two a chance to get in.

Number two lunges
into the darkness,

and he's now hands-on,
basically hand-to-hand combat

with d*kes.

They're engaged in
this mortal struggle.

He gets one round
off with his p*stol,

which he had in his hand.

[g*nsh*t]

It's a GL*CK,
so the weapon doesn't cycle.

- Sure.

- He pulls the trigger
again, and nothing.

And about that time,
the number three guy

is in the fight with a p*stol.

And...

that was the definitive
end to the situation.

We had a k*ll shot.

♪

Ethan, little Ethan,
we extracted him from the hole.

He ended up... had a
small scratch on his leg.

That was it, pretty much,
so incredible

that he wasn't hurt more.

- Awesome.

I mean, that could have
gone sideways so many ways.

- Yeah.

- FBI agents safely recovered
the child, who's been held

hostage for nearly a week.

Within the past 24 hours,
negotiations deteriorated.

FBI agents, fearing the
child was in imminent danger,

entered the bunker
and rescued the child.

The child appears
physically unharmed

and is being treated
at a local hospital.

The subject is deceased.

♪

- This is probably
the scariest photo of all.

Each one of those
tape marks is a round impact.

- And your guy
was right there...

- Yep.
- ...in that area.

- And those impacts are from
d*kes sh**ting up blindly

from around the corner,
but he's only literally



- And he's so lucky.

- And he was hanging
literally right there

when these shots are
being fired, so grace of God.

Yeah, but...

- Wow.

- Yeah, there's a lot of
factors at work there for sure.

- Hundreds gathered Sunday
to remember slain bus driver

Charles Poland Jr.

Robby Batchelor
is also a school bus driver.

- He laid down his life
for the kids on that bus.

♪

- I mean, I think for
me, personally, it was...

it was the pinnacle
of my career.

So I think it was just an
incredible act of confidence,

I guess, in the team's
capabilities and the crisis

negotiators
that that was our last hope,

really, for saving Ethan, so...

but yeah, the takeaways is
that preparation is everything.

We rehearsed that
so many times,

and we were ready
for anything to go wrong.

We couldn't predict
what was going to go wrong,

but we had the tools
we needed when it did.

[gentle music]

- Do either one of you
know where Ethan is today?

Is he OK?

- He's doing great.
- He is.

I do.

I talked to him probably
less than a year ago.

And he is just an amazing
kid, has very few memories,

some vague memories
of what happened,

but he's forever grateful,
super bright,

just well-adjusted kid.

And it makes me feel good.

♪

- So does this case bring
up feelings ten years later?

- Those guys could have died.

Not a scratch on them.

And Ethan... you
know, I'm a parent,

so to know that he's
healthy and happy

makes me very emotional.

- What our guys did
in the moment

and no regard for their
own safety... and it

makes me proud of those guys.

And it definitely makes me
emotional thinking about it.