01x03 - k*ller Succession

[bunniefuu]

[cheryl]
this was the o.J. Trial
before the o.J. Trial.

It was something that had
never happened in naples before.

[john]
it was just a horror story
from beginning to end.

[george]
a b*mb had gone off,
two people were dead.

[narrator]
a beautiful tobacco heiress
and an aspiring tennis pro.

[brent]
you got a family
with a lot of money.

[reporter]
margaret benson
and her 21-year-old adopted son,

scott, were k*lled instantly.

[todd]
the most violent thing

that you were going to find
in naples was a bar fight,

not a b*mb to go off
in somebody's driveway.

[narrator]
why would anyone
want to blow up

this loving mother
and her adoring son?

This is some sort
of a dysfunctional family

-at work here.
-It's like putting

a jigsaw puzzle together.

[michael]
I did a composite
of what the guy looked like.

-He made stupid mistakes.
-I couldn't believe it.

An intelligent person
would've driven

a couple hours away
to buy the pipes.

[cheryl]
he was a florida man.

naples is lovely.

[man]
location, location, location.

It's a beautiful setting.

It's on the gulf of mexico.

There's inland waterways,
access to boating.

It's always been
a very classy place to live.

♪

a lot of wealth here,

maybe the wealthiest city
in the state

and one of the wealthiest cities
per capita in the country.

A lot of retired
what-used-to-be-millionaires

are now multimillionaires.

♪

[cheryl]
I probably have never felt
like I live in a safer place.

The benson case
was one in a million.

[exploding, shattering]

[narrator]
on July 9th, 1985,

police respond
to multiple 911 calls.

Rattled residents report
a series of explosions

in quail creek,
a gated community in naples.

[narrator]
neighbors on the golf course
race towards

the earth-shattering blast,
trying to help.

The expl*si*n can be heard
five miles away.

[eric]
around 9:00, 9:15, we heard
a call on the police scanner

that there had been
an expl*si*n in quail creek

and that there was
possible fatalities.

[michael]
and sure as hell,
there was a car bombing.

[todd]
when the news came in
somebody had blown up a car

in naples, it was a big deal.

The miami herald
decided right away

that it was gonna be
a big story.

[harold]
we had to preserve the scene

because it was
quite a large expl*si*n

and there was particles
of bodies and material,

and the suburban looked like
a b*mb had been dropped on it.

I knew it was an A*F job.

They were the b*mb experts,

so I immediately had
to call A*F for assistance.

[george]
when we received the call,

we were pretty stunned
that there'd been

a bombing in naples.

This is the first time I've
worked a live scene like this

where the debris
was still there,

the bodies were still there.

[dramatic music]

[narrator]
sixty-three-year-old
tobacco heiress margaret benson

and her adopted son,


were k*lled instantly,
but margaret's daughter,


carol lynn kendall benson,

survived the blast.

Margaret's father,
harry hitchcock,

a tobacco magnate
from lancaster, pennsylvania,

affectionately known
as boppa,

makes the devastating phone call

that every
family member dreads,

particularly
one of this magnitude.

[female relative]
the phone call from
my grandfather, boppa.

I picked it up
and I said, "hey, boppa,"

and he said,
in his little, frail voice,

he said, "there's been
an expl*si*n in florida,

and they're dead!"

I said, "who's dead?"

he said, "our family is dead."

I was hyperventilating.

Carol lynn is severely burned,

and scottie and aunt margaret
are dead.

I was devastated when I heard

that my little scottie
was dead.

[narrator]
after carol lynn is transported
to a local hospital,

her family launches a plan
to move her

to a burn specialty unit
in boston, massachusetts.

[female relative]
my grandfather, he's like,
"we can't focus on the dead

because we can't help scottie
and aunt margaret.

We have to focus
on saving carol lynn

because she is suffering."

he hired a private plane

and got her transported
immediately

from the burn site,

and had her airlifted
and flew her

from florida to boston.

[reporter]
two explosions destroyed
the benson family vehicle

in the driveway
of their luxurious home

in naples, florida,
a millionaires' enclave

on florida's southwest coast.

[somber music]

[narrator]
the victims are heirs

to one of the most powerful
families in the country,

and the news ignites
a media storm.

[michael]
it was big news,
very big news.

[george]
these people were
very prominent people

in naples, florida,

and they came from
lancaster, pennsylvania.

[narrator]
margaret's father,
harry hitchcock,

has a net worth
close to $100 million.

His company, universal leaf,

reigns as the world's
leading supplier of tobacco.

[john]
harry hitchcock
was a big deal.

He was a pillar
of the community.

[narrator]
in 1947, harry's oldest
daughter, margaret,

married businessman
benny benson.

The couple had three children.

[female relative]
the benson family
was uncle benny

and my aunt margaret,
and their three kids.

Carol lynn was the oldest,
then steven, then scottie.

I remember aunt margaret
being very reserved, formal,

and conservative.

Carol lynn was a beauty queen.

She was gorgeous.

She was very smart.

She had lots of boyfriends.

Very charismatic.

She had a sense of humor,

but she was known
for her beauty.

Steven was always
very aloof, quiet.

And then, scottie,
he was adopted.

So we grew up together.

I was very close to scottie.

He was very outgoing and fun
and a great guy.

[narrator]
when margaret's husband
tragically dies

from lung cancer in 1983,

margaret inherits
over $10 million

and decides to make
a fresh start.

[female relative]
aunt margaret and scottie
moved to florida

after my uncle died.

[narrator]
the bensons are
a close-knit family,

and margaret wants her children
to follow her to naples.

[john]
margaret was planning to build
a family complex

somewhat like
the kennedy compound

in massachusetts.

[narrator]
margaret manages
the family fortune,

and even though
her children are grown,

she continues
to financially support them.

Steve was a normal,
average guy,

but it was always known

that he had family wealth
behind him.

I was never sure exactly what
steve benson did for a living.

[narrator]
although steven
did not want to work

for the family
tobacco business,

he did rely on the benson name
and money.

Steven started
all sorts of businesses

and he would always use
his mother's money to do it.

[female relative]
steven was married twice.

His first wife, nancy,
was darling.

We loved her.

Steven got remarried
to a woman named debbie.

They had two children,
victoria and christopher.

And the four of them
eventually moved to florida.

[john]
margaret wanted to build
a 28,000-square-foot house,

which is enormous,
and that's where

they were supposedly going
on the morning of the m*rder.

[female relative]
margaret, scottie, steven,
and carol lynn would celebrate

carol lynn's birthday
on the 8th,

and then aunt margaret
was gonna build

a new house nearby,

so they were gonna all go
to the lot together.

[narrator]
on July 9th, 1985,

margaret arranges
for her children

to scout her dream property
with her,

but they never make it.

Within seconds
of getting into the suburban,

it explodes,
and steven watches helplessly

as his family perishes.

[female relative]
we found out that
steven wasn't hurt.

[george]
steven benson was in close
proximity to the vehicle

when it exploded,
but he was not in it.

[michael]
I was interviewing steven
right after we got there,

having him walk me through
where he was

when the b*mb went off
and all that.

I took him outside,
took him back in,

and I said, "do you know
who would do this?"

no, he had no knowledge
of anything.

[narrator]
although steven
is the only eyewitness

besides carol lynn,
who is in the hospital,

he is in shock
and not very helpful to police,

and they do not press him.

He had just lost members
of his family.

[michael]
but at a time like that,

you have to give some leeway
to a person.

[narrator]
detectives begin looking
for eyewitnesses

who might have seen
something suspicious.

[michael]
they did interview
construction workers

'cause there was a lot
of houses on that street

under construction.

They had no knowledge
of anything.

[narrator]
while detectives are speaking
to neighbors,

A*F agents are collecting debris
and examining the vehicle.

[george]
and the first thing we noticed
looking at the vehicle

was that this was
either a m*rder,

or these people had
a heck of a lawsuit

against general motors

because this vehicle
was just blown to bits.

The hood was blasted upward,

the windshield was blasted out,

the roof was peeled back.

There was extensive damage
to the vehicle.

[narrator]
A*F b*mb agents canvass
the neighborhood for evidence,

and they find
pieces of expl*sives,

proving that this
was not an accident.

[michael]
we found pieces of a motherboard
or a circuit board.

[george]
and there was parts
of a circuit board

that we theorized probably came
from a burglar alarm.

The debris field
in the immediate area

was so intense,
we started looking further out,

and we saw what appeared
to be pieces of pipe.

So we theorized that this was
probably gonna be a pipe b*mb.

Usually, bombings
take place in cities

where there is organized crime,
the mafia,

not in quail creek,
a gated subdivision.

[narrator]
investigators are perplexed.

Who would want to hurt
this family, and why?

[george]
when we arrived at the scene,

we had no idea of a motive
or a potential perpetrator.

We had no idea
what had happened.

[intense music]

[michael]
we started really digging in
to the family.

Margaret had an $18 million
checking account.

We had round-the-clock
police guards

in front of her hospital room
because we were afraid

that he was gonna come
to k*ll her.

Is there a sociopath who is
willing to k*ll for money?

[on July 9th, 1985,eporte]

two explosions
shattered the calm

of the exclusive
quail creek estates.

[reporter]
...k*lling widowed
millionairess margaret benson

and her 21-year-old son, scott.

Mrs. Benson's daughter, carol,
was critically hurt.

Her eldest son, steven,
narrowly escaped injury.

[narrator]
while carol lynn
is clinging to life

in a boston burn center,

the benson family
is picking up the pieces.

[female relative]
my grandfather was devastated.

He lost his daughter
and scottie.

We were all devastated.

It was awful.

[narrator]
on July 14th, 1985,
steven benson,

his wife, debbie,
and their two children

travel to lancaster,
pennsylvania,

to attend the funerals
of his mother, margaret,

and his younger brother,
scottie.

[sam]
it was front-page news here
in lancaster, pennsylvania.

Everyone was pretty much
as horrified as I was

to see that that had happened.

[narrator]
margaret benson was
a famous heiress and socialite.

Her family is well-known
in naples.

The murders rocked
this community to its core,

and there is pressure
on law enforcement

to find the K*llers.

[michael]
it shocked the whole community.

I mean, you know,
it's not every day

that anybody blows anybody up.

[todd]
the most violent thing

that you were going to find
in naples in those days

was a bar fight.

You would not expect
a b*mb to go off...

[intense music]

...In somebody else's driveway.

That shook people up
when it happened.

[female relative]
I couldn't imagine anybody
that would want to hurt them.

Why would anybody
k*ll my family?

[narrator]
although there is
a lot of speculation

about what happened,
police do not have

any solid leads or theories.

[reporter]
family attorney wayne kerr

was inside the house
at the time.

[narrator]
and one week after the murders,

they conduct a formal interview

with the family accountant
and attorney, wayne kerr.

[george]
wayne kerr was giving us
information

approximately what time
it happened.

[narrator]
wayne tells police
that a week before the murders,

margaret asked him
to come down from lancaster.

And the whole reason
he was brought down here

was to look into
the family finances.

[michael]
margaret, she had
an $18 million checking account.

[george]
we felt that the motive
was financial.

[narrator]
although police theorized
that the motive for the bombing

had something to do
with the family's wealth,

they do not have
enough evidence

to prove this theory,
and the question remains,

who in the family
was the intended target?

[dark music]

[george]
from the damage to their bodies

and what the scene looked like,

we theorized margaret benson
was sitting

in the right front
passenger seat,

and the extensive damage
to her body

was to the left side
of her body.

Scott benson was sitting
in the driver's seat

and the extensive damage
to his body

was to the right side.

The first b*mb that went off
was in the center console.

The second b*mb was in the left
rear passenger seat

where carol lynn was sitting.

[narrator]
the vehicle is registered
to margaret and scott benson.

Was margaret the target?

Or was it scottie?

Or was it the entire family?

♪

after giving steven
a few weeks to grieve

the loss of his loved ones,

police want to reinterview him.

We decided that we were
gonna try to find steven now

and do a formal interview
with him,

and we heard that he had gone
to a motel.

He was afraid to go home.

He was afraid that somebody
was gonna try to k*ll him also.

[narrator]
is it possible
that carol lynn and steven

are still in danger?

In late July,
three weeks after the bombing,

detectives fly to boston
to speak to carol lynn.

[george]
I flew to massachusetts
general hospital in boston

to interview carol lynn.

[female relative]
we had round-the-clock
police guards

in front of her hospital room
because we were afraid

that if somebody
purposely blew them up,

they were gonna come
and hurt her.

[narrator]
worried that the K*llers
could strike again,

the family takes
every precaution.

We were waiting to find out

if carol lynn would be able
to even talk to us

because she was
in critical condition.

[female relative]
she got burned
over most of her body.

Her ear was burned off.

Carol lynn was suffering.

[narrator]
although carol lynn
is conscious and recovering,

she chooses not to speak
to investigators at this time.

[george]
the doctor said,
"there's good news and bad news.

The good news
is she can talk to you.

The bad news
is she doesn't want to."

[narrator]
detectives return to naples
empty-handed.

Neither steven or carol lynn
are forthcoming

with information,
and police speculate

that they both might be
hiding something.

That's when we started
really digging into the family.

[narrator]
one week after attempting
to speak to carol lynn,

investigators discover
that this prestigious family

has a history
of hiding secrets

not only from the world,
but from each other.

Scottie was carol lynn's child.

Carol lynn had scottie,
and nobody knew it.

[melancholy music]

she was young,
and they swept her away

before anybody knew
that she was pregnant,

and then when
they all came back,

aunt margaret
and uncle benny announced

that they had adopted a baby.

None of us knew that
this was carol lynn's child.

In fact, we didn't know this
for quite a long time.

[narrator]
the news is leaked to the media

and sends shock waves
around the country.

The media just went wild
with that

and just told the world
this family secret,

so we resented that.

[cheryl]
that was also a big thing
when that came out,

that scott was
carol lynn's son.

Okay, what's the motive there?

And, yeah, everybody speculated
about everything.

[brent]
this is some sort of
dysfunctional family

-at work here.
-There was speculation

that scott may have learned
this family secret

and retaliated
by k*lling himself

and his entire family.

[jerry]
the question is whether
there was any suicidal ideations

connected with living
as if his grandmother

was actually his mother
and his mother was his aunt,

but nothing was ever
really confirmed on that.

I don't think scottie knew.

I don't think he ever knew.

[narrator]
investigators take
a deeper dive

into scott's background

and they unravel
more disturbing information.

[female relative]
he didn't go to college.

Scottie was very good
at tennis.

He was starting to excel
when he was m*rder*d.

I mean, he was only 21.

I thought that the reason
it happened

was because scottie
got into some drugs

down in florida.

[narrator]
margaret doted on her children,

especially her grandson,
scottie,

but she ignored
a lot of red flags.

[brent]
scott liked to party
a little more

than an aspiring tennis player
should party.

[john]
well, scott was
a pampered youth.

He was into recreational drugs.

[narrator]
scott benson had been arrested
a few times

for drug-related crimes.

[todd]
it was suspicious.

He certainly was using drugs.

He may have been doing
some things that were ill*gal.

His girlfriend was a stripper.

This was all
very unlike naples,

and so it made people
suspicious.

[dark music]

[narrator]
although law enforcement
did not consider scott

a suspect in the m*rder,

they did theorize
that his lifestyle

may have led to the bombings.

We considered
that scott's drug use

might have been a motive
for the crime.

The collier county
sheriff's deputies

looked into that extensively.

[brent]
there was speculation
that scott had

somehow been involved
in a drug deal,

and a dealer had taken
revenge on him

by k*lling him
and his family.

[george]
they were looking for someone
who would've had

a reason to k*ll scott.

[narrator]
was scottie's spiraling
drug habit to blame?

Could the bombing
have been a targeted hit

on the benson family

as some sort of revenge
against scottie?

[ominous music]

[expl*si*n]

the serenity of naples,

a millionaires' enclave,

is shattered
after the benson family bombing,

and everyone is talking about
what kind of twisted person

could commit such a crime.

[woman]
this is the worst thing

that I've ever heard of
happening in naples.

[man]
anybody that associated
with the bensons is a suspect

until we can determine what
the motive for the bombing was.

[dramatic music]

[narrator]
detectives are
heavily pursuing the lead

that scottie's
questionable lifestyle

may have led to the bombing.

[jerry]
scott was involved
in drug dealing,

and there was speculation
that he owed people money

and that the bombs
had been placed there

by people who were out
to get scott

for either money he owed

or because he was competition
for them.

♪

[narrator]
while detectives
are doing a deep dive

into scott's background
looking for potential suspects,

A*F agents are combing
the bensons' neighborhood

for fragments of the b*mb,

and some are found
up to two miles away.

[george]
you actually can find

most of your valuable
bombing information

quite a distance from the actual
site of the expl*si*n.

You canvass the entire area.

You do not touch
the suspected evidence.

You go out there,
you photograph it,

and then, one person
picks it up and labels it,

where it was found
and what it was.

We had agents using
what looks like a big sandbox,

and they're sifting the dirt
through this screen

to separate things
that might be of value,

almost like putting
a jigsaw puzzle together.

What we were finding were
many sections of pipe.

[narrator]
they are able to find
enough pieces of pipe

to reconstruct the b*mb.

[george]
we put the pipe together,

and our expl*sive expert
looked at it and he said,

"this pipe is
four inches in diameter,

it's twelve inches long."

[narrator]
the A*F confirms

that two pipe bombs were used
to blow up the suburban.

Either someone wanted to make
sure that the job got done

or they were targeting
more than one person.

[reporter]
experts determined
that two pipe bombs like this

were responsible
for blowing the car apart.

[narrator]
armed with this new information,

investigators hunt
for the supplier

of this specific pipe.

We're looking for two pieces
of pipe with those dimensions.

Then the search began
for how do you find

pipe of that dimension.

So we started going
by all the hardware stores

and places that would sell that.

[narrator]
detectives are perplexed.

In 1985, pipe bombs
are not widely used,

and it takes a certain amount
of expertise to make them.

[todd]
people don't use pipe bombs

in naples, florida.

You wouldn't think that would
ever happen in your community.

[narrator]
besides drug cartels

who often used bombs
to send a message,

what kind of person
would have the knowledge

to know how to make
a pipe b*mb?

Detectives turned
their attention

to scott benson's
diverse social network.

[jerry]
there was no doubt
he was hanging around

with some unsavory characters,

someone who might be
in a position to build a b*mb.

[narrator]
three weeks after the bombing,

a character
with a unique skill set

shows up on police radar:



[jerry]
guido was friends with

or somehow associated
with scott.

We'd known about guido dal molin
for some time

because he was
a bit of a character.

[jerry]
guido was a young man,

off-the-charts brilliant.

Perhaps one of the smartest
people I've ever met.

Guido figured out
how to take a car

and make it where
he could drive it

with a remote control.

At that time,
that just was unheard of.

[brent]
and that was sort of a story

that made a splash
in the newspaper.

I mean, teenager rigs up
remote-control car

was not something
that happened a lot in the '80s.

So he was sort of known
in the newsroom.

[george]
there were some mysterious
things in the vehicle

that we never could possibly say
why they were in the vehicle.

[michael]
we found pieces of a motherboard
or a circuit board.

It was found in alarm systems,

and it was probably
a garage door opener,

a clicker, that he used
to set the bombs off.

[jerry]
and because of his knowledge
of the electronics

that were used in the detonation
of the car bombs,

he was a suspect.

[narrator]
detectives theorized that guido

may have offered his services
to a potential drug dealer

who wanted to eliminate scott.

[harold]
our swat team had him
under surveillance.

[alarm wailing]

[jerry]
he had an alibi.
He could not have been the one

that put the bombs
in the suburban.

[soft music]

[michael]
guido ended up going to jail for
second-degree m*rder himself.

[narrator]
after fully investigating
guido and his alibi,

detectives eliminate him
as a suspect.

With no other solid leads,
police abandon the theory

that scott's drug use
was responsible for the murders.

Just nothing that could lead us
to anything concrete.

[narrator]
as the weeks pass,

detectives focus
all their attention

on tracing the materials

that were used to make
the pipe bombs,

hoping it will lead them
to the k*ller.

We ran down
a lot of blind alleys

in the investigation.

I drove back and forth

from miami to naples
five days a week

looking for two pieces of pipe.

[narrator]
on August 10th, 1985,

detectives get a hit
on one of the caps

that was placed on the end
of the pipe bombs.

And one of the end caps
was labeled itt grinnell,

and it turned out
that there was a plant

for itt grinnell
in very close proximity

to lancaster, pennsylvania,

where the benson family
was from.

♪

[narrator]
is it possible that someone
in the benson inner circle

bought the end caps
and transported them

back to naples?

Wayne kerr, the family attorney
and accountant,

made an unexpected trip
to naples

a week before the murders,

and detectives
circle back to him.

[michael]
he was cooperative answering
questions and everything.

[narrator]
satisfied with
wayne kerr's interview,

police do not consider him
a potential suspect.

Detectives turn their attention
back to the benson family.

Although carol lynn is still
recovering in the hospital,

she did not want to talk
to police.

[michael]
we couldn't interview her,

and so we were just digging
into family background

and everything, waiting for her
to get well enough

to tell us
what she could remember.

[narrator]
investigators request
a formal sit-down interview

with steven benson,

and they are shocked
by his response.

He refused to talk to us.

He lawyered up.

He hired the best attorneys

that were in naples at the time:

Mike mcdonnell and jerry berry.

[narrator]
why would steven benson
hire defense attorneys?

[todd]
I made a real effort

to talk to steve benson,

but he was never gonna talk.

I never did get a statement
from steven.

[narrator]
police are confused

as to why neither carol lynn
or steven

are forthcoming
with information.

Is it possible one of them knows
something about the bombing?

[dramatic music]

suspicions start to swirl
around margaret's son, steven.

Why would he hire a lawyer,

and why doesn't he want to help
police find his mother's k*ller?

I became suspicious
of mr. Benson.

If my mother was splattered
all over a golf course

and my brother was k*lled

and my sister was off
to the hospital blown away,

I think I'd have been a little
bit more concerned about them.

[narrator]
although detectives go
to lancaster

to investigate the end caps,
it is a dead end,

but they use the opportunity
to interview

steven's friends
from high school,

and what they discover changes
the course of the investigation.

[michael]
one of steven's friends,
he signed a yearbook,

"we'll go bombing around
again next year."

we knew he was familiar
with pipe bombs

from talking to his friends
up in pennsylvania.

Everything kept leading
right back to steven.

♪

[soft music]

♪
[narrator]
the benson m*rder investigation

heats up after detectives learn
that someone at the crime scene

knew more about pipe bombs
than he was admitting

and he's been making them
since high school.

[john]
the police had a lock on steven.

[michael]
he knew how to build bombs.

His friends up in pennsylvania

told me, well, they were all
little small bombs,

they'd blow up mailboxes.

And so that was just
more stuff to go on.

He was very quiet

and just off by himself
and kind of aloof.

He was always kind of tinkering
with electronics or cars,

but I wouldn't say
that there was a scary

or strange vibe.

He was odd, just different.

[narrator]
the end caps were purchased
in lancaster, pennsylvania.

Is it possible
that steven bought them

before the family moved
to florida?

But why would steven
want to k*ll his family?

[michael]
the bombs didn't go off
at the same time.

The first b*mb went off,
and then, 30 seconds later,

the second b*mb went off.

[narrator]
steven ran back into the house

before the second b*mb went off.

Is it possible that is when
he detonated it?

[eric]
they spoke to somebody
up in lancaster that said

that steven had told them
that he had experimented

with building
his own expl*sives

and that he could detonate
them remotely.

♪

[narrator]
even though steven hired lawyers

and there is speculation that
he's involved in the bombing,

detectives need solid evidence
to prove this theory.

I was not treating him
as a suspect

because he had just lost
members of his family,

but I thought steven was
a very cold, aloof person,

and he just seemed to be

not really affected
by the whole thing.

Just his behavior
caused suspicion

among the detectives.

[narrator]
five weeks after the bombing,

the rest of the benson family
is still reeling

from the loss
of margaret and scottie.

I was devastated
that scottie was m*rder*d.

He didn't even get
to get married and have kids

and have a life.

It was awful.

I just feel bad for carol lynn.

I can't imagine the loss
that she went through that day.

[narrator]
carol lynn lost her mother
and her son in the bombing.

Detectives are sensitive
to this fact,

but when carol lynn
is released from the hospital

on August 14th, 1985,

they request an interview
with her and she agrees.

[reporter]
the b*mb that blew up
in the bensons' driveway

also blew the family's life
and problems into the open.

[narrator]
on the morning
of July 9th, 1985,

the benson family
was going to see the land

that margaret wanted
to purchase,

but according to carol lynn,
this was not her mother's idea.

Steven arranged
for the family

to take a trip
to see the new property.

[female relative]
steven, that morning,

got them all together and said,

"I'm gonna go get
some doughnuts."

[eric]
steven didn't live there,

but he showed up
in his work van.

He took the suburban
instead of his own vehicle

to do it,
and the place that he went to

was about a five-minute drive,
ten at the most,

but he was gone an hour.

That's the time we feel
he placed the bombs

inside the suburban.

[dramatic music]

[george]
carol lynn told us
steven was the one

that got everybody together,

he was the one who determined

who was gonna sit where
in the suburban.

[female relative]
then he threw the keys
to scottie

and said, "hey, go ahead,

get in the driver's seat
and start the car."

and carol lynn said
when she came out of the house,

she was surprised that scott
was behind the wheel,

margaret was in front,
and carol lynn said

she usually liked
to ride in the front

because she gets carsick,
but steven took her

and placed her
right behind scott,

which would've been
right over the b*mb.

[female relative]
steven said, "I forgot
the tape measure."

so steven runs back
to the house,

and as soon as he got back
to the house,

the first b*mb went off.

♪

and instantly k*lled
scottie and aunt margaret,

then the second b*mb,
which went off

maybe like a minute later,
and carol lynn survived.

[george]
the only reason
carol lynn did not die

is because this huge fireball
came at her

and she realized
she was on fire

and she had to get
out of the vehicle.

Carol lynn told us,
after the first b*mb went off

and she was rolling around
on the grass

trying to put the fire out,
she saw steven

right there on the walkway,
now in front of the vehicle,

and she said she screamed
for him to come help her,

and he looked at her
and ran back in the house.

[john]
he looked in shock to see
that carol lynn was still alive.

Instead of going to help her,
he went back to the house,

and the police thought
that was extremely meaningful.

[narrator]
there was a 30-second delay

between the first
and the second b*mb.

Detectives theorized
that this was enough time

for steven to run inside

and remotely detonate
the second b*mb.

♪

[george]
carol lynn's statements

about steven's behavior
that morning

before the b*mb went off

was the key piece
of evidence from her.

Steven benson
was our main suspect.

[narrator]
what would drive someone to
commit such a horrific m*rder,

especially against
their own mother?

Every business
that he tried failed,

went bankrupt.

You know,
when we started digging

into his financial stuff,

you found out that his mom
was constantly giving him money.

$50,000 here.

You could see all the checks
that were coming out

and they were going to him.

[george]
margaret suspected that steven

was embezzling money from her,
and she was very upset about it.

It was only like a week
before the bombing

that margaret laid down the law
with steven.

[narrator]
a week before the murders,

margaret benson demands
an emergency meeting

with wayne kerr,
the family attorney and cpa.

She wants to discuss the future
of the family fortune.

[eric]
wayne kerr was
margaret's personal cpa.

He was actually at the house
at the time of the blast.

He had met with her
at breakfast time over there.

[narrator]
wayne kerr had spoken
to police multiple times,

but he has not been considered
a suspect.

[eric]
we did hear that wayne
and steven were friends.

[john]
wayne was a close friend.

He'd been steven's best man
at his wedding.

[narrator]
is it possible that wayne
knew more about the bombing

than he admitted to police?

[george]
wayne may have tipped steven off

as to why he was coming down.

Wayne was brought down
from lancaster

to look into the family finances

to see what steven was doing
with the money.

[john]
she was gonna say to him,
"look, this is enough.

What did you do
with all my money?"

he was stealing
from his mother.

[female relative]
steven just started
taking advantage.

Aunt margaret planned
on cutting him out of the will,

and he wanted to m*rder her

before she was able
to sign the papers.

[michael]
he had the motive but now
had to prove that he did it.

[george]
he's comparing the prints,
and I couldn't believe it.

[female relative]
the sketch looked just like him.

My whole life, I never saw
steven wear a baseball cap.

[george]
he said this guy's
either totally innocent

or a cold-blooded k*ller.

Margaret benson had been
planning to change her will]

because she believed steven
was stealing from her,

and she was afraid
he might k*ll her

for the family fortune.

[narrator]
after a very revealing interview

with carol lynn,
police name steven benson

as the main suspect
in the benson family bombing,

and the news
sends shock waves

through this
millionaires' enclave.

[family relative]
when we found out
that steven was the suspect,

we were so shocked
because steven and aunt margaret

had a good relationship,
but I don't remember ever seeing

any kind of violence
in his personality ever.

♪

[narrator]
if wayne kerr,
the family accountant,

called steven in advance
to let him know

why he was coming to naples,

was this the catalyst
that set the plan in motion?

[john]
steven knew well enough to know

that he wouldn't lie
to cover for him

for all the things
that steven had been doing,

so it was all gonna come out,

and obviously, steven
didn't want that to happen

because it'd be the end
of his free ride.

[narrator]
with the entire family gone,

steven would've been
the sole heir

to his grandfather's legacy,
the tobacco company,

which was worth
close to $100 million.

He was gonna get rid
of everybody,

because the grandfather was
the real money in the family.

[narrator]
although investigators establish

that steven had a financial
motive for the murders,

they still need to find
solid evidence

to prove he is guilty.

[eric]
law enforcement
needed to build a case.

Could they get fingerprints,
could they find out

where this b*mb originated,

could they find out that he,
in fact, purchased the parts?

And that was what
they were trying to do.

[harold]
we started an all-out search.

I had the swat team, A*F,

I don't know how many people
we had working,

but going from place to place
that sold these pipes,

these galvanized pipes
and end caps.

[george]
we started calling
plumbing companies

around the immediate vicinities

to find out who carried


So I went to a place called
hughes supply here in naples,

and, sure enough, they sold
the 12-inch pipe to a guy.

[george]
they found, on Friday, July 5th,

that somebody wearing
a baseball cap and sunglasses

came in there
and bought two end caps

right around the corner

from where
steven benson's office was.

[eric]
the purchase happened

about four days before
the actual expl*si*n.

They were trying to figure out
who might've purchased the parts

and assembled the b*mb.

When they talked to the folks
at hughes supply,

they asked for a description.

[michael]
and we did a composite

of what the guy looked like,

and it looked like steve benson
with a baseball hat on.

[george]
the employees

at meridian security,

who worked for steven,
they couldn't remember,

it was either Thursday or Friday
before the bombing,

steven was looking to borrow
a ball cap from somebody,

and they'd never known him
to wear a hat,

and they couldn't understand,
but no one loaned him one,

but he was looking
for a ball cap,

and they thought
that was very odd.

[female relative]
my whole life, I never saw
steven wear a baseball cap.

The sketch looked
just like him.

[narrator]
investigators are able
to lift a palm print

off of the receipt,
and it gives them the evidence

they were hoping for.

They had a receipt
signed by the guy.

So I impounded the receipt,

but they found
a partial palm print.

[brent]
they were able to lift
a palm print,

not a fingerprint,
off that sales receipt.

That's an identifying factor.

[george]
left-handed person

will always put their palm
on a page

and then, like, write down.

They'll curl their hand around
where they're writing.

He said there's two
perfect prints on there,

and I recall that steven
was left-handed.

They asked mike mcdonnell,
steven's lawyer,

if they could have
his fingerprints,

and mike said, "no,
you'll have to get a warrant."

they successfully got a warrant

to get his fingerprints
and palm prints.

Then we were able to compare
the palm prints

on the invoice with steven.

I wanted to make sure
this was done by an expert

because we would have
one shot only.

After I obtained the rolled
palm prints and fingerprints

from steven, I flew to atlanta.

We drive to the A*F lab.

We open it up,
we're the only ones there.

I give him the rolled prints,

and then I start walking
back and forth.

As he starts looking
under a magnifying glass,

he says to me, "it is him,"
and I couldn't believe it.

Yes, it was steven benson.

[electronic music]

[reporter]
steven benson
was charged with m*rder

a month after the bombing.

[narrator]
on August 22nd, 1985,

steven benson is arrested

for the m*rder
of his mother margaret,

his nephew scott,

and the attempted m*rder
of his sister carol lynn.

[sam]
I was shocked to see
that steven was arrested

for the murders.

I thought that is
hard to believe

that somebody that I knew
would've done that

to his own family.

[female relative]
there was so much evidence,

it was obvious
that it was steven.

[narrator]
however, steven benson
does not confess to the murders,

and he maintains his innocence.

It was just a horror story
from beginning to end.

[narrator]
on July 14th, 1985,

one year after the bombing,

the trial of steven benson
rocks this upscale hamlet

on florida's west coast
to its core.

[cheryl]
this was the o.J. Trial
before the o.J. Trial.

I mean, it was big,
it was something

that had never happened
in naples before.

[reporter]
spectators included
several authors

and soap opera script writers.

[cheryl]
the media made
such a huge deal out of it.

It was a media circus.

[narrator]
worried that the jury
is going to be influenced

by the expl*sive media coverage,

the judge decides to move it
from naples to fort myers.

[jerry]
there certainly was drama.

[narrator]
steven's defense attorneys
steal the show.

[george]
mike mcdonnell was
very flamboyant.

He was very emphatic

in his courtroom gestures.

We thought,
"we're in big trouble here."

mike mcdonnell said
in his opening arguments

that he looked high and low
and looked everywhere,

and he couldn't find out
who did it.

[mike]
they said he k*lled his mother
because he stole

two and a half million dollars
from her...

But you won't hear that
in this courtroom,

because it wasn't true.

[george]
and jerry brock walked over
to the defense table

and he said, "I'll tell you
why mike mcdonnell

couldn't find out who did it."

and he slammed his fist down
right on top of the table.

He said,
"'cause he's sitting right next

to the guy that did it,
steven benson."

[female relative]
and it was just so creepy

to see steven sitting there

as the defendant
who m*rder*d my family.

♪

when steven was
in the courtroom,

he didn't show
any emotion whatsoever.

[harold]
he had no remorse at all.

[female relative]
so the trial lasted two weeks
and it was just excruciating,

and at one point,
steven's attorney stood up

and was telling everybody how
he was such a loving family man.

I just couldn't stand it.

[narrator]
when carol lynn takes the stand

to testify against her brother,

steven's defense falls apart.

I thought I was being
electrocuted,

and I remember calling

for someone to help me.

[female relative]
and I can't imagine

how carol lynn felt
looking at her brother,

who was watching her,
who had just blown her up,

k*lled her mother and her son,

and was watching her
lay there dying

and just didn't come
to help her.

[jerry]
the most damaging evidence
against us

was his sister carol lynn's
testimony.

We were at the point
where we really couldn't dispute

scientific evidence available
at the time.

We really couldn't dispute
the palm print.

[foreperson]
the defendant
is guilty as charged

of first-degree
premeditated m*rder.

[narrator]
although steven is found guilty
on all counts,

he is sentenced
to life in prison

instead of the death penalty.

[female relative]
when we heard the verdict,

we were thrilled
that he was found guilty.

I believe he only escaped
the death penalty

by one juror.

[light piano music]

I could never forgive steven
for what he did, no.

He took away my little scottie.

He took away my mom's sister.

Aunt margaret was a good mom.

They were very loving and sweet,
and just such a shame.

[john]
this is a family that looked
like it had everything,

and then suddenly
it had nothing.

It's a lesson on what money
can do to people.

To do it at the expense
of your mother and your sister

and your brother,
it was just heinous.

[female relative]
steven was k*lled in jail.

I hope that he was tormented.

You don't k*ll your mom.

What our family has gone through

is unspeakable and horrific,

and steven is just...Evil.

[dark music]

[george]
I think steven figured

that he was gonna get away
with it.

[brent]
steven did not expect
carol lynn to survive.

[female relative]
he must've been horrified
that carol lynn survived

because now he wasn't gonna get
all that money.

[todd]
steven benson was inept,

and he was convicted
of a crime

that was just
not very well done.

[jerry]
steven wasn't worried
about buying pipe

in a hardware store

in the same area
where the b*mb goes off.

An intelligent person
would've at least driven

a couple hours away
to buy the pipes.

He was a spoiled rich kid.

[cheryl]
steven thought he was smarter
than everybody else,

and in reality, he wasn't.

He made the same mistakes
that you see

of stupid criminals on the news.

You hear on the news,
"the florida man,"

you know,
"the florida man did this."

the not-very-bright thing
that the florida man did.

Well...

Steven was a florida man.