09x06 - Shaken and Disturbed

[bunniefuu]

[dispatcher speaking]

[man speaking]

There was a tremendous
amount of fear.

[reporter] Tonight, Alexandr is
coming to grips with the possibility

a serial k*ller may
be on the loose.

Everybody was looking
to this investigative team

to bring some sense of security.

We have such a
wonderful neighborhood

and it's really unnerving.

[man speaking]

This was obviously a deranged
person loose on the streets

and we had to catch him.

Alexandria, Virginia is an
amazingly quaint and historic city.

People come from all
over the country to see

colonial Old Town Alexandria.

It's a great town
and people love it

and it's extremely popular.

[narrator] It's Veterans Da and


Ron Kirby is doing some DIY

He had a problem with the sink.

His kitchen sink was drippin

He actually tried
to fix it himself

and was unable to do that.

So, he called the plumber.

His wife had gone
out to an appointment.

So, you know, he's
all alon in his house,

waiting for the
plumber to arrive.

The plumber shows up
and is out in the driveway

and calls Ron Kirby,
and there's no answer.

And so he ends up
going on to another call.

Later in the afternoon,

Dad.

Ron Kirby's son shows
up for a lunch appointment.

Dad?

Dad.

[sobs]

Hello?

I need an ambulance.

- [siren wailing] - [narrator]
Paramedics rushe to the house.

But despite their best efforts,

Ron Kirby is pronounced dead

Sergeant Michael Kochis of
the Alexandria Police Department

is called to the scene.

[Kochis] When I arrived to the
crime scene of Ronald Kirby,

I noticed that there didn't
appear to be any type

of forced entry.

I noticed Mr. Kirby
laying o the ground

and that he was
close to the doorway.

Ronald Kirby was sh*t
two times in the chest

and then a third
time in his hip.

The two other rounds
that were fired missed.

One went into the radiator

and we found another in a piano.

There were no
foreign fingerprints.

There was no DNA that was found

that would point to a suspect.

[Kochis] Things
weren't in disarray.

So, it didn't appear to
be a robbery or break in

or anything like that.

Based on that
information, we believe...

[knocking at door]

Mr. Kirby heard a
knock at the door.

He answered the door
at which time he was sh*t.

[g*nshots]

Ron Kirby was simply
sh*t inside of his home

with no other apparent motive,

[narrator] Detectives
discov Ron Kirby's phone.

They noticed a missed
call from that morning.

Hello, this the police. Did you
call Mr. Kirby on his phone today?

[narrator] It belongs to the
plumber who Ron Kirby had called.

The plumber called Mr. Kirby to
tell him that he was on his way.

And you spoke to
Mr. Kirby himself?

Ron said that's no problem.
Come on over, I will let you in.

This was at 11:32.

Ten minutes later at 11:42, the
Plumber arrives at Mr. Kirby's home

and there's no answer.

So, there's a very small
window between 11:32 and 11:

that this crime
could have occurred.

One of the first things
that investigators want to d

is figure out who might have
had a motivation to k*ll Ron Kirby.

We inquired with family to
try and find out if Ron had

any enemies. If Ron had
any bad business deals

or anything along those
lines that that would cause him

to be a target of m*rder.

The family had no idea of
anybody holding any sort

a grudge or vendetta
against Mr. Kirby.

[narrator] Investigators request
an urgent ballistics report.

Typically, you see a larger
caliber w*apon used in a homicide.

Something that
packs a bigger punch.

The g*n in this case
appeare to be a .22.

It's very, very rare to see
a .22 used in a homicide.

Can't be.

What?

There had only been one
prior that we knew of in our area.

And that was the
m*rder of Nancy Dunning.

Get the Dunning files please.

Between the Nancy Dunning
ca and the Ron Kirby case,

there was over 10 years.

[telephone ringing]

[narrator] There's a 911 cal
on file for the Dunning case

[dispatcher speaking]

[man speaking]

His dad Jim Dunning was there
and took the phone from him.

[Jim speaking]

I was a detective on
December 3rd, 2003.

And I was working and I
heard the call at the address.

So, I immediately went there

Nancy Dunning had
been sh*t three times.

She had a b*llet
wound in her chest.

She had a b*llet
wound in her left arm

and she had a b*llet
wound behind her ear.

Nancy was at the bottom
of the stairs in the foyer

right by her front door.

There was nothing
disturbed inside the home.

There were no shell casings
to be found on the scene.

[camera shutter clicks]

There was no evidence of
anybody even coming into the home.

The day that she was murdere

Nancy Dunning was
shopping at Target for a family

in need for Christmas.

Hey, can I see your security
footage from this morning?

Detectives went to the Targe to
find video footage of he in the store.

Video footage is gold because
it does not rely on memory.

It is a picture of
what happened.

Now can you start it from
about 10:15 this morning?

We are looking for
some type of detail

that's going to stand out to us.

Something that will help us
identify who k*lled Nancy Dunning.

Go back a bit.

Can you pause it there?

There. That's her.

Nancy arrived at the Target at
the Potomac Yard shopping center.

At around 10:15 a.m.

She was obviously trying to in
there, get her shopping finished.

And be done with it.

Let's see when she leaves.

Can you rewind it there?

- Pause it there.
- [keyboard clacks]

There she is.

She exited the store
after checking out

at around 10:30 a.m.

Play that again.

Who's that?

When she walked
out of the store,

a gentleman actually
walked behind her.

Pause it.

He's a white male,
wearing a leather jacket.

He leaves shortly after Nanc
leaves, having purchased nothing.

He just seems very out
of place and very odd.

[narrator] Detectives go
bac through the footage

for any other sign of
a suspicious individual.

There he is.

What's he doing?

The person walked into the
store and then noticed Nancy.

So, he stopped to tie his shoe.

But, his shoe didn't
need to be tied.

He just stopped to do that to
kind of give himself some time

for Nancy to keep
going into the store.

He looked like he may
have been in his 40s.

One interesting thing
about him is his hair.

He had widow peaks and it
kind of made him stand out.

Follow him.

Rewind it there.

There he is.

When she was going
to check out of the store,

he kind of walked
past the registers

and then followed her out.

It appears that
his following her,

there was really
no other explanation

as to why this person
would be in there.

But he was still an unknown.
We didn't know who he was.

The footage was grainy.

It was not really refined.

It was released to the media
but by the time it was blown up,

that footage just was not
strong enough to identify him.

[narrator] Without
any solid leads,

the Dunning case went cold.

Despite the 10 year gap, both
murders share striking similarities.

When Ron Kirby was m*rder*d,
there were so many elements

that match the m*rder
of Nancy Dunning.

It happened right in
the middle of the day.

[knocking at door]

There's a knock at the door.

There's the k*ller with a g*n.

[g*nshots]

Happened to be using the exact
same kind of very rare amm*nit*on.

These two murders
were in the same type of

upscale neighborhood.

They were within a mile
and a half of each other.

They appeared very similar,
but it had been over 10 years.

Which would beg the
question of what happened,

why is there that 10 year
gap if they are linked?

[narrator] Investigators
on the Ron Kirby case

compare the evidence with
the Dunning cold case files

and video.

Gonna get Tech
to digitize these.

We were reviewing this video
that was recovered 10 years prior.

There she is.

There he is.

Technology in and
of itself has changed.

Can you zoom in on him?

With new technology,
there's different stuff out there

that can clean video up.

To try to zoom in on the
vid to identify this person.

And we got some
good pictures of him.

Get the plumber and see
if he recognizes this guy.

Please, take a seat.

When the plumber arrived, he
said he saw an older white male

with a beard in the area.

Didn't recognize him,
didn't know who he was.

Was it this man?

[narrator] Without
a positive ID,

detectives are left
with little to go on.

Okay. Thanks for your time.

[Will] There wasn't a
whole lot of evidence,

not a lot was coming in.
Very little new information.

[narrator] Months passed by and
the case looks to be going cold.

[telephone ringing]

[dispatcher speaking]

[man speaking]

On February 6th, 2014.

I heard the call
on the police radio.

Something about the caretaker.

[man speaking]

[dispatcher speaking]

I immediately knew that
it was the Lodato home.

I drove there immediately.

Got there as quick as I could.

I pulled up to Ridge Road
and as I was walking up

to the house,

the police department's
scene commander

quickly told me that
someone had been sh*t.

I immediately knew
it was Ruthanne.

I've known Ruthanne a long time.

I know her family and I knew
this paramedic supervisor

and I said she's a friend
of mine. Can I ride with her?

The detective in me kicked down

and I just said Ruthanne,
"Did you see him?"

She nodded, "Yes, I saw him.

I'd been around long enough
to know what I was going

to get out of her at that point.

And I said, "Did you know him?"
And she shook her head, no.

And that's important because,
you know, you can eliminate family.

[gasping]

She started to
struggle, so I was, like,

I put the mask
back on and, um...

I regret that...

I wasn't able to stay with her

and, um, you know, be with her.

Shortly after that, they had pronounced
her that she had passed away.

Ruthanne would be the
first person to welcome you

to the neighborhood
when you moved in.

She lived virtually her
entire life on the same corner.

Ruthanne and Norm lived
with Ruthanne's elderly mother.

[narrator] The family
also live with a caregiver

for Ruthanne's mother
named Janet Franco.

Hi.

Can you tell me everything
that happened this morning?

Ruthanne was at home, getting
ready to go to a doctor's appointment.

[knocking at door]

Around 11:30, Ruthanne
heard a knock at the door.

Her elderly mother and
caretaker were in a room close by.

[grunts]

There are sh*ts immediately.

[g*nsh*t]

First sh*t hit her in the chest.

- No!
- [g*nsh*t]

She also had a
sh*t in her left arm.

[g*nshots]

The caretaker came
out and she sees

this white male with a beard.

[g*nsh*t]

The caretaker is
sh*t in her left arm.

[g*nsh*t]

The subject continues
to sh**t at her...

until he suddenly stops,

turns around and leaves.

The caretaker then goes in
and gets Ruthanne's mother

and takes her to a neighbor

And started saying,
"Call 911, call 911."

[camera shutter clicks]

She went back to the house,
heroically and selflessly

to be with Ruthanne, to be at
her side until the police arrived.

On the scene,

there were b*ll*ts
left behind...

that were a small
caliber b*llet.

And that clearly showed
that this was again

a small caliber handgun.

[Kochis] Will Oakley immediately
told me, "this is Dunning."

Something in him was convinced
that that m*rder right away

looked like the Dunning m*rder.

We were able to
recover the projectiles.

We sent them to the lab
and ask that they be compare

with the projectiles from
the Ronald Kirby m*rder

and the Nancy Dunning m*rder.

[narrator] As they wait
for the ballistics report,

detectives canvass the area

[Will] In the neighborhood,
when we do a canvass.

We are looking for eyewitnesses.

We're looking for cameras.
We're looking for any video footage,

anything that can point
us towards the k*ller.

Hi, can I get the footage
from that camera, please?

In this case, a
short distan away,

there was a video camera
located that filmed the street

- Thanks.
- That the k*ller would have traveled on.

[narrator] Back at the station,

the ballistics report is in

Thank you.

The report said
all three murders

was the same brand of projectile

which was a .22 subsonic round.

But, the report also said that they
weren't fired from the same g*n.

[g*nshots]

But rather they were fired
from the same type of g*n.

[g*nshots]

A North American
Arms .22 revolver.

They're all definitely
the same guy.

[reporter] Tonight, the
Alexandria community

is coming to grips with
the possibility a serial k*ller

may be on the loose.

There was a tremendous
amount of fear in the community.

And everybody was looking
to this investigative team

to bring some sense of security.

We have such a
wonderful neighborhood

and it's really unnerving
to not be trusting anymore.

Nancy Dunning and Ronald
Kir and Ruthanne Lodato

were all prominent
people in Alexandria,

but it's not like they
were connected in any w

that people could
figure out other than

there probably was a
serial k*ller on the loose.

[reporter] Only in Lodato's case did a
witness survive to describe a suspect.

[Kochis] We were able to
ge a description of the suspect

a white male with a gray beard.

And we were able
to get a sketch artist

to do a sketch based
on the description.

[narrator] The description
also matches the person see

by the plumber near
Ron Kirby's home.

We took the Target
video and the sketch.

Eleven years had passed.

He did not look the same.

One thing he couldn't
hide was the widow peak.

We made a decision
to put that sketch

out to the public
and ask for tips.

In the meantime, we take
a look at the surveillance.

We're looking for
that white male.

The heat was on to catch
this guy before he k*lled again.

Play that bit again.

We see this car going
west on Braddock Road,

right around the
time of the m*rder.

And it's acting different.

There, look.

It was supposed to
be 15 miles an hour.

But this car is traveling
faster than all the other cars.

Oh, that was going quickly.

Another thing we
would be looking at

is, is that an exit route
from where the crime occurre

And in this case,
it absolutely is.

- Any other angles?
- Yeah.

Play that bit again.

We identified the vehicle
as a red Ford Escort wagon.

Not an unusual
vehicle, but it was older.

We knew through
the sketch artist

that we were looking for a
white male with a gray beard.

Pause it there.

Zoom it in.

When you slowed
it down and looked,

you see what appears to
possibly be a white male

with a beard driving that ca

The golden goose would
have been to be able to see

that license plate.

Zoom it in.

It was not possible
in this case.

Look. Something to go
on, we'll look into the car.

We did a search on all
the red Ford Escort wago

within a 50 mile radius
of the crime scene

to hopefully tie in who
would have been driving that.

[narrator] Tracing the
car doesn't lead anywhere.

But the sketch gets
thousands of tips.

[telephone ringing]

We were committed to
looking into every single tip.

Okay, and what's the address?

We believe the answer
was going to be somewhere

in those thousands of
tips that we received.

Thank you.

One tip came in for a
gentleman with a beard

that's acting weird and lives
near where Ruthanne Lodato lived.

We went out to
interview this person

that we received a tip on.

Can you tell me where
you were on February 6th?

That person had an alibi.

Thank you for your time.

It was solid and we
were able to confirm it.

That person also went on
to tell us I know a person

who looks like that sketch by
the name of Charles Severance.

And it wouldn't surprise me that
he could have been involved in this.

[narrator] Detectives look f any other
information on Charles Severance.

In the late '90s, Charles
Severance ran for mayor

of the city of Alexandria.

Hey, come check this out.

He was kind of a
fringe candidate.

[speaking in Spanish]

We located a video where he
was involved in a political debate.

His behavior during
the debate was odd.

You got the still from
the Target CCTV?

You got it.

He was just talking about issues
that didn't make a whole lot of sense.

He was so odd, that other people

who were politically
involved in Alexandria

were concerned about
his behavior towards them

as this debate continued.

Charles Severance is
wearin a black leather jacket.

His hair is short and darker

The similarities
between tho three things,

black leather
jacket, the black hair,

the widow's peak,
they all look the same.

Go give this guy a visit.

Yeah, right.

We applied for a search warrant,

and then went to Ashburn to
Mr. Severance's girlfriend's house.

[narrator] But Charles
Severance isn't there.

When searching the home,

there was a receipt for a North
American Arms .22 revolver.

It's the same as
the m*rder w*apon.

But the g*n itself
was not there.

There were other g*ns in
the house that were recovered,

but not that one.

So, it really concerned
us that when he left,

he chose to take
that firearm with him.

We need to get this person
into custody somehow.

How do we get
him into the public?

[narrator] With a prior
conviction to his name

for carrying a concealed w*apon,

Charles Severance is
banned from owning a g*n.

[Kochis] So, at that point,
the discussion was had to se

a warrant for possession
of a firearm as a felon.

And that's what we did.

While we were looking for
him doing search warrants,

Charles Severance was moving

But we didn't know
where he was going.

We knew he had credit cards
We knew he had bank accounts

So, we were able to
put aler on those cards.

When they were used,
we would be notified

about how they were used
and where they were used.

On March 12th, our
investigative team

was notified by the
uniformed Secret Service.

Hey, Will, have look at this.

That Charles Severance
left his house and went

into Washington DC.

He drove his Ford Escort wagon.

He took his
bicycle off of his car

and bicycled...

to the Russian Embassy
in Washington, DC.

He said he was seeking asylu

because Alexandria
is persecuting him.

He was turned away
from the Russian embassy

and a Secret Service personn

was able to get pictures
of Charles Severance.

The Secret Service
forwarded these photographs

to detectives in Alexandria.

[camera shutter clicks]

From those photographs,
you can see the beard

and the facial features
that are very similar

to that composite drawing.

The evidence just
continued to come together.

-At that point, a detective
walked in to tell us -What's up?

That Charles Severance
had just booked a hotel room

in Wheeling, West Virginia.

[narrator] Detectives also received
footage of Charles Severance

checking into the hotel,

wearing the same clothes as
outside the Russian embassy.

We had someone we
believe was a serial k*ller.

And we had a community
that was clearly in danger.

We reached out to the
Wheeling Police Department

and then the Federal Bureau of
Investigation surveillance team

out of Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania.

[narrator] Alexandria detectives
pass on the pictu of Charles Severance

outside the Russian embassy

and warn officers
that he may be armed.

[Douglas] He
showed me the photo.

There's a bicycle in the
photo that stuck out as well.

The bicycle was a blue bike with
a yellow strap around the handle.

I leave the building
after the briefing.

And on that street, across
from the police department

leaned up against a pole
outside the Ohio County Library

is a blue bike
with a yellow strap.

Due to the safety factor of
Mr. Severance possibly being armed.

I didn't want Mr. Severance to
see a uniformed officer walk in.

I request a couple of
our undercover officers

that are in the area to go in.

When one of the
plainclothe officers went in,

they spotted Mr. Severance
on one of the computers.

The plainclothes officer grabbed
Mr. Severance from behind

and then that's when the
uniformed officers went up.

And placed him into
custody with handcuffs.

He was very calm.
He didn't say anything.

We escorted him back across
the street to the police department.

[camera shutter clicks]

[narrator] Wheeling Police
discover Severance's car

outside his hotel and
have it impounded.

His car was brought to the West
Virginia State Police barracks

and put in a garage there.

It looked like he had
been living out of it.

There was all sorts of stuff

There was g*n cleaning kits

There was books
and books of writings

and...

he would talk about
his hate towards

the Alexandria utopian elites.

He talked about
the sweet sound of

a North American
Arms .22 revolver

and murdering cops.

But the most important item
that we found out of that vehicle

was a notebook.

That was kind of a
manifesto if you will.

He talked about
knocking on a door

and someone answering
it and him k*lling.

Which was exactly what
happened in these three cases.

Someone knocked at their
doo Someone sh*t them,

and then someone left.

One of the pages read,
"Can you forgive someone

for kidnapping your child?

Can you k*ll someone
for kidnapping your child?"

It kind of gave us
his motive if you will.

In 2001, Charles Severance
had lost custody of his chil

We believe that Alexandria
sheriff's deputies serving

those papers on
Mr. Severance was the impetus

of going after Nancy Dunning

Ronald Kirby and Ruthanne Lodato

were not targeted
because of who they were.

That neighborhood was targeted.

In his writings, he
actually stated this.

He wanted to instill fear in a
safe and secure community.

[narrator] Severance won't talk
and the revolver are never found,

but detectives believe they have
enough to take the case to trial.

During the trial,

the plumber positively
identified Charles Severanc

as the person he saw that
day in the neighborhood.

[narrator] Janet Franco,
the caregiver who witnessed

the sh**ting of Ruthanne
Lodato also appears at the trial.

She took the stand

and positively identified
Charles Severance...

[g*nshots]

as the person who not
only k*lled Ruthanne Lodato.

But also sh*t her several times.

Charles Severance did
not acquit himself well

in that trial.

He was constantly yelling,
he was rambling,

belligerent to the judge.

The jury ended up giving
a unanimous verdict.

Charles Severance is guilty
for three murders.

In November of 2015,
Charles Severance

was sentenced
to three life sentences

and a $400,000 fine.

Even today, all three
of these m*rder victims,

their legacies and their
memories will live on.

Ron Kirby, Nancy Dunning
and Ruthanne Lodato

will be remembered
for who they were

and how much they gave
to others and wanted nothing,

nothing in return.

Nothing.

It's sad.