[Music] in the shadows of Omaha Nebraska there lurked monstrosities the world had yet to Fathom it was the quintess central Midwestern town yet beneath the serenity a malignant Darkness festered it was here that a vile Scandal of systemic sexual abuse and satanic worship unfolded within the very institutions that were meant to protect the city from itself in the mid 1980s the Franklin Community Federal Credit Union served the most disenfranchised and underprivileged communities of Omaha it operated under the guidance of Lawrence E King Jr he was a socialite friends with those who were in positions of power politicians and police who found themselves indebted to his favor King sat on the boards of charitable organizations and seemed to give back to his community but beneath this crafted exterior pulsed a Darkness accused of some of the worst crimes imaginable investigators initiated an audit of the credit union uncovering malicious and grotesque deceit King was charged with 40 counts of embezzlement fraud and tax evasion stealing over $39 million yet the startling revelation of his financial crimes would only be the beginning the investigation uncovered a horrifying narrative stitched together by the testimonies of children they named King as the architect of nightmares like ritualized abuse CST ceremonies and a web of political blackmail that implicated figures like Ronald Reagan and George Bush Senior they described a Sinister underbelly of Cruelty and Corruption the aftermath of which still Echoes through the nation the story of the Franklin Community Federal Credit Union begs a profoundly unsettling question what if the very institutions meant to protect become the architect of unimaginable [Music] [Music] horror the Franklin Community Federal Credit Union was established in 1968 with the intent ention of making credit accessible to the African-American community of North Omaha it was a lowincome credit union formed by Community activists it was a Cornerstone of communal support and it attracted deposits from Charities nonprofit organizations and struggling individuals the credit union offered certificates of deposit to non-members and they provided financial services and education for residents even helping when they couldn't cover their water or power bills Lawrence E King Jr would become the manager in 1970 just 2 years after its establishment under his Direction the Franklin Credit Union expanded its services like the initiative with the consumer service organization which managed welfare disability and Social Security checks this expansion allowed a significant addition to the coffers of the Franklin Credit Union King began offering highin certificates of deposit they marked at 2 to 3% above Market rates in an attempt to secure greater deposits at the credit union and it was instrumental to the growth of the institution however it quickly became a Ponzi scheme where additional CDs were required to cover payments for maturing ones these rates attracted Investments and grants from corporate powerhouses and religious organizations securing Millions for the credit Credit Union King leveraged these perceived successes to network with the movers and shakers of Omaha and later the national political Arena King started as a McGovern Democrat but he changed his affiliation and became the chairperson of the national black Republican Council he was tasked with coordinating efforts to mobilize the black vote across 17 States a role that placed him at the Confluence of national politics and community outreach King was a rising star of the GOP he sang The Star Spangled Banner at a republican event in 1982 that was attended by President Reagan and he sang the national anthem in 1988 at the RNC in New Orleans throughout the80s king became increasingly embedded in the Republican party at the state and National level his position with the Franklin Credit Union afforded him an annual salary of $116,000 a year but King drove a $70,000 white Mercedes chartered private jets and limousines and rented multiple apartments and houses in Washington DC and Omaha he explained that his wealth came from old family money the truth was much more Sinister King was exploiting his position at the credit union to fund his extravagant and debaucherous lifestyle the Franklin Credit Union provided King with an inexhaustible bank roll he expanded into multiple business ventures owning restaurants and bars including Omaha's showcase Lounge which was known to be frequented by pimps and sex workers he began to donate heavily to boy toown a large orphanage in Western Omaha started in 1917 as a shelter for young boys left behind with no family after World War I in the 1990s it was worth $5500 million the organization had expanded to owning its own school and church where over 500 homeless and abandoned children were housed still it was considered the richest square mile in the world King also joined the board of directors for the Omaha Girls Club he began to funnel vulnerable children from both organizations into his home businesses and parties under the guise of empowerment and employment these children would allege realities far more horrifying than anyone could have anticipated before the shutdown of the Franklin Credit Union in November 1988 before the senatorial investigation and public unraveling a complex web of disturbing rumors began to surface these early Whispers were first shared with Law Enforcement Officers social workers and Foster Care admin administrators hinting at a deeply entrenched network of sexual exploitation abuse and even Satanic ritual all implicating the city's most prominent figures these initial reports were spaic and often dismissed or downplayed by those in positions of authority but as more victims came forward the horrifying scope of these allegations could no longer be ignored [Music] on June 10th 1985 a social worker with the Nebraska Department of Social Services received a call from the sheriff's department in Washington County records indicate the call was about child abuse complaints under the foster care of Jarrett and Barbara Webb Jarrett was a board member of the Franklin Credit Union and Barbara was Lawrence King's cousin the call details three foster children who had significant bodily injuries the children complained of abuse from their foster parents they claimed that they had been beaten with a railroad iron and belt the webs fostered nine children and more than than half had run away from home in the past during later investigations DSS would remove several siblings from the home after reports from six of the children that they had been stripped Ned and beaten for extended periods of time and they had been denied meals unfortunately the abuse didn't stop there one victim Lisa web told Jane Tulie of the sheriff's department that she had been Ser abused since the age of nine the Washington County prosecutor Patrick trip didn't believe Lisa's testimony he required that she take four separate polygraph tests she passed all four times but trip attempted to discredit her claiming that her story was too Fantastical to be real tragically this pattern of skepticism and disbelief would be a trend among investigators and prosecutors other children in the web home claimed to have found graphic images and videotapes some portraying underage victims they reported hearing that these materials had been produced and provided by Lawrence King Julie Walters a youth care worker at boy toown developed an extensive 51-page report based on interviews with Nelly and Kimberly web she had extensive experience working with children who had suffered abuse and she emphasized that the web children seemed truth their narratives shared a remarkable level of detail thematic consistency and implicated figures only enhancing their credibility Nelly Webb reported that king would attend parties at the Omaha Girls Club or he would throw parties at his home king would call the webs and tell them to provide one or more children who would be forced to attend she claimed the parties were attended by 30 adult patrons seeking the company of sex workers and children children who were co-mingled they would pay money and the encounters would happen in communal areas side rooms or bedrooms horrifyingly Nelly spoke about King flying her to Chicago New York and Washington DC where she met significant political players including Vice President George Bush Senior she described that these parties had countless bodyguards admission key cards and pat down security and behind closed doors she saw powerful politicians engaged with young male sex workers the Walters report was given to the Department of Social Services in 1986 but there seemed to be little if any investigative interest barbaret and Jarrett Webb lost their Foster license but they were not subject to any criminal charges for the abuses perpetrated separately a 17-year-old girl and her mother filed a report with the Omaha police department after participating in an illicit photography session the photographer Rusty Nelson approached the 17-year-old to be his subject for a European portfolio he was developing the girl and her mother followed Nelson to his apartment for a 5-hour session where Nelson made inappropriate remarks and attempted to convince the girl to pose nude the girl's mother noticed several nude photographs in the studio many of the subjects appeared to be minors officer caran interviewed the two women about the exploitation attempts of Rusty Nelson they claimed that Nelson spoke of being self-employed but regularly spoke of someone he called the boss investigators arrived at his apartment and they found it had been vacated just 9 days after the initial report the lease for unit 3B in the Twin Towers Apartment Complex was registered under the name Lawrence King when the FBI spoke with King he said he had evicted Nelson when he heard about the incident officers discovered that King rented several units in the Twin Towers complex including the penthouse and an interview with the building manager revealed rumors that King was a heavy drug dealer with a preference for young boys Nelson would later contend that King used his deep bankroll to make the investigation go away Nelson would not be indicted on these charges and he would disappear for several years before making critical contributions to the investigation in 1990 in 1988 officer caran was dispatched to interview shaunetta Moore a 15-year-old girl whose testimony involved the same themes players and patterns of abuse pointing again to a broad exploitation Network within the city of Omaha Moore was located at Richard young hospital where she had told her therapist that she was the victim of nude photography and suffered at the hands of powerful men committing Satanic rituals Moore reported that she was friends with Kimberly and Nelly web and that it began when all three of them were earning money by modeling for an unnamed photographer who was likely Rusty Nelson Moore claimed that many of those photographing and purchasing photographs were leaders of the North Omaha Girls Club she claimed she was coerced with threats of violence and that she reported the photography Network to law enforcement and the superintendent of her school dard Finch Finch was mentioned in previous testimony as a friend and frequent visitor of the webs and nothing came from her criminal report Moore reported that she was gradually introduced to ritualistic parties where kids were drugged she described graphic and indecent acts performed by men at these parties and she identified Lawrence King by name she claimed that many of these ritualistic parties occurred at a home owned by King on wart Street the investigating officer drove to the area and saw king's name printed on the awning of the home the officer's report indicated that Moore seemed reluctant to trust especially when king's name was mentioned and it wasn't until later in 1988 that she was completely forthcoming her disturbing testimony about Satanic ritual and abuse was later collected and entered into the Franklin committee's senatorial investigation and Report shaunetta Moore's testimony included descriptions of the hdes of several children and she named King as a leading participant she attended parties that were identical to the testimonies of the webs she remembered votive candles scattered around the room men sped in Long robes and descriptions of the rituals as power meetings Smith recounted that she was locked in a room with the Caucasian infant and told that she could achieve great power by killing something that she really loved the men deced the infant and removed the eyes before leaving the room Smith stayed in the room overnight and described hearing whippings and beatings in the building she was released the next day and told to return for the next power meeting in fear for her life she complied and she saw the superintendent of her school and Lawrence King in attendance she described five other instances of ritualistic sacrifice the details of which are more graphic than those already cited and included prolonged acts of dismemberment and cannibalism officer caran took these initial reports and told doctors at the Richard young hospital that he would return for more information however he never did Carol stit later recounted to the Franklin committee that case workers employees and therapists called caran requesting that he return because Smith was still sharing new accounts Senator Ernie Chambers would uncover that caran had been transferred out of Investigations Chambers would recall I felt he'd been transferred because he was getting too close to something and his superiors did not want him to continue some questioned Moore's credibility she had been hospitalized and suffered severe psychological trauma and law enforcement reported that she had a history of bizarre interactions with officers however the foster care review board executive director Carol stit believed her testimony was highly credible the chronology and the details were concrete and they overlapped in detail with the webs all all of whom implicated Lawrence King but this was only the beginning Carol stit believed that the Omaha police department was failing to investigate thoroughly or had even resorted to intimidating and discrediting Witnesses they seemed determined to make these stories go away but still the reports continued to grow in number in May 1988 Kirsten Hallberg an employee at Rich young Hospital reported seven additional Witnesses who had similarly horrifying and disturbing accounts connecting back to Lawrence King accounts that would soon be made public [Music] [Music] whispers about financial mismanagement at the Franklin Community Federal Credit Union continued throughout the 1980s in 1981 an anonymous letter was sent to the National Credit Union Association about misdeeds and a limited investigation uncovered $400,000 in missing funds in 1984 Edward h BS wrote a letter to the Franklin board detailing embezzlement at the credit union he was a former teller at the bank and he was fired the day after sharing his letter from 1984 to 1988 the Franklin Community Federal Credit Union escaped Watchdog audits from federal organizations King and several of his employees delayed and excused these potential audits to cover up their theft but in 1988 the National Credit Union Association closed Franklin for unsafe and unsound practices and a forensic Financial Accounting was conducted one week later they announced that millions of dollars of highin certificates of deposit had been hidden from federal examiners in the past the total was 4 million in assets and liabilities and 30 million in missing funds the total would later be raised to 39 9 million on November 18th 1988 the state legislature demanded an investigation of the Franklin closure the Franklin committee was formed to investigate the neglect and financial mismanagement of the credit union but the scope of their investigation would become much larger the Franklin committee was run by state senator Lauren Schmidt and state senator Ernie Chambers both senators ERS faced significant political headwinds credibility concerns and even dissension through the lifespan of the committee but they were dedicated to the pursuit of Truth and Justice on December 12th 1988 Senator Ernie Chambers received allegations of physical and sexual child abuse related to the Franklin Credit Union the source of these allegations was never named the senatorial Comm committee was only beginning to uncover a malignant nightmare the scope of which they had yet to imagine on December 19th Carol stit Dennis Carlos and Burell Williams of the foster care review board recounted the allegations of abuse to the Franklin committee the first investigator hired was Jerry low a former Lincoln policeman and by July 1989 he had gathered a great deal of secondhand evidence including witness testimony and some Financial records indicating the Omaha police chief had spent time with King at his Washington DC residence however without substantial evidence Senator Schmidt worried the case would fall apart Senator Ernie Chambers and investigator low resigned by August the Franklin committee hired Gary Kori a former State patrolman and with his assignment the case took an even darker ER [Music] turn Gary kadori made public appeals for information calling for victims to come forward he networked with disgruntled social workers and Advocates to identify potential victims who were hesitant to come forward despite the resistance and skepticism of law enforcement he made connections with Omaha police officers and agents who reported on abuse this holistic approach combined with previous evidence allowed kidori to find and identify victims who are willing to go on the record four victims allowed their testimony to be video and audio recorded they were Alicia Owen Troy boner Danny King and Paul benachi kidori and his assistant Karen ormiston interviewed 21-year-old Alicia Owen at the women's Reformatory in York Nebraska Owen was reluctant to involve herself initially but on November 7th 1989 she told kidori that she had become involved with Lawrence King in August 1983 when she was just 14 years old Troy boner and another boy from boy toown had invited her to a party at King's Penthouse in the Twin Towers complex just a few floors away from where photographer Rusty Nelson had been investigated she identified prominent businessmen like Alan beay and Harold Anderson and the police chief robbert wadman the following accounts are deeply disturbing while her first party was in August Owen attended multiple parties at the Twin Tower Penthouse they had fewer than 10 adults with nearly twice as many miners reportedly around the ages of 14 or 15 the same men were often in attendance these parties were well stocked with drugs and alcohol and the room featured a television set which played pornography Owen remembered seeing many boys in varying States of dress the boys would often be sitting in the laps of men attendees would Retreat to back bedrooms or other times the abuse would occur in the main room in front of others Owen described being assaulted by police chief wadman on multiple occasions during her taped recounting she would request moments to stop and regain her composure she claimed that wadman is likely the father of her child Owen confirmed what many of the other testimonies had already stated she recounted private flights with King to Los Angeles where she was victimized by Violent Men this story would be corroborated by another witness interviewed by kadori when asked about satanic activity Owen described a house in lenworth where a pentagram was painted on the kitchen floor the home was filled with demonic pictures and she mentioned a man named King's horse es who frequently attended the parties and oversaw King's Dirty Work she claimed that king's horses was deeply involved in a cult ritual Rusty Nelson and Lawrence King directed photography sessions at many of these parties and Owen was forced to participate or receive physical beatings she speculated that Nelson kept the negatives of these sessions to Blackmail King with the resulting testimony from his first first witness kidori would recommend 62 individuals and documents to be subpoena and he provided a list of alleged perpetrators including Lawrence King police chief wadman Harold Anderson Alan Bay superintendent dard Finch Peter catron and judge Theodore [Music] Carlson kidori was directed by Owen to speak with Troy boner he visited Troy tr's mother who described him as a boy with a great weight on his shoulder who was unwilling to share on November 25th at 4:00 a.m. Troy called kidori and the two spoke for an hour Troy seemed paranoid interrogating kadori on his intentions and affiliation with law enforcement when Troy began to share that he had been abused and deeply scarred by what happened kadori insisted that they not discuss it over the phone and the two agreed to meet the following day kadori videotaped the conversation with his second witness on November 25th 1989 Troy corroborated much of Owen's testimony although some dates did not match he confirmed that he had witnessed police chief wadman assault Owen and he named many of the same locations that Owen had mentioned Troy explained that it began when he met Alan Bay in 1983 another boy had taken him to an apartment on the second floor of the Twin Towers complex and introduced him to beay where he was abused and paid several 00 per meeting bear gave a picture of Troy to Lawrence King and King approached him at the max bar a prominent bar in the gay community King paid Troy for similar abuses and King moved Troy into a Travel Lodge in for 3 weeks where the two met almost every afternoon Troy would eventually be moved to an apartment owned by King where he and other miners were frequently abused in May 1985 Troy recruited another minor Danny King and introduced him to bear just as he had been introduced Troy Danny and Owen would frequently be flown on private Charter planes or directed to take commercial flights to California where they met with sadistic PS Troy claimed that some miners were not on return flights and he assumed they had been sold or killed with Troy's videotaped testimony Senator Schmidt and kidori were fearful about how to proceed given that the institutions of power in Omaha were directly implicated Danny King was employed but in the process of being evicted when kidori met him kidori and Troy picked up King from his apartment where he gathered his things kidori filmed the interview with his third witness at a Residence Inn on December 5th 1989 Danny confirmed that he met bear through Troy's introduction in 1983 he was 13 or 14 years old at the time the two drank schnaps and Dany accepted abuse for a payment of $50 and this continued every week for 7 months until Danny was introduced to Lawrence King the three would do drugs at Bear's residence and Danny would be beaten and unpaid if he didn't perform certain acts to King's liking the videotaped interview of Danny King ran nearly 6 hours and in the days following kidori drove him through Omaha to confirm several of the named locations including the apartment of Alan Bayer the 21 hours of testimony from Owen Troy and Dany corroborated multiple events located ations and people in their separate accounts and they were confirmed by testimony from other Witnesses who refused to go on record the footage was submitted to the Nebraska Attorney General's office and the US attorney on December 27th 1989 while this was a necessary step in escalating the accusations of corruption child abuse and Satanism kidori worried about the welfare of his Witnesses given the history of corrupt ion he housed his Witnesses and supplied them with food and goods he advocated that they receive physical and psychiatric care and he worried about harassment similar to what the webs and Owen had already suffered at the same time Senator Schmidt and his attorney John de Camp spoke with an agent at the FBI field office in Omaha to discuss law enforcement's inaction in previous investigations they implicated prominent figures and shared that police chief wadman had been named as an alleged perpetrator the agent told Schmidt and de camp that he was close friends with wadman and that the committee would receive the full and direct scrutiny of the FBI if they chose to implicate him as a result de Camp turned to the Press releasing a memo that publicly named many of those mentioned in the videotaped testimony the shock waves of this memo reached throughout newspapers and television networks in Nebraska and neighboring states a blur was even written in Newsweek magazine Omaha reporters and officials were quick to discredit De Camp the Lincoln Journal and World Herald only printed excer stripping the names of those implicated DeCamp and others posited that the editorial decisions were influenced by Peter catron and Harold Anderson catron was a prominent newspaper columnist who wrote for the World Herald and Anderson was the former publisher of the World Herald both were implicated in the child abuse allegations on March 1st 1990 the FBI debriefed Danny King who began to recant what he told kidori on videotape they conducted multiple hour debriefings and his story remained unchanged until March 5th he claimed to have lied about the interstate flights but he re iterated the abuse by beay and King Danny King blamed Troy boner for the fabricated stories he claimed that Troy was looking to sue King for millions and the orchestration of the testimony was meant to ensure their victory in the judicial system by the end of March Dany had recanted almost all of his testimony including the repeated abuses of Bayer and King the FBI followed by debriefing Troy boner who recanted much of his testimony as well the DeCamp memo the leaked videotaped testimony and the recantation of Dany and Troy greatly wounded the investigation damp Schmidt and kidori believed the FBI had coerced the recantations kidori met with Paul bonach on May 10th 1990 after getting his name from a member of the concerned parents organization Bonacci was in the Lincoln Correctional Center for two charges of sexual assault on a child the victims were 13 and 9 years old Bonacci was evaluated by a courta appointed psychiatrist and diagnosed with what was formerly known as multiple personality disorder but what is now known as dissociative identity disorder the disorder while controversial in Diagnostics often presents in disorganized victims who suffer repeated and severe abuse as as a child Bachi was born in Omaha the second youngest of six he came from a broken home with a second and then third stepfather he suffered neglect and a predatory neighbor began abusing him at the age of six when he was 9 or 10 Bonacci became involved with drugs and sex work loitering in a nearby park frequented by files this quickly matured into parties where he encountered and embraced Satanism and large scale exploitation in the first 7 hours a videotaped interview Bachi confirmed he met Owen Dany and Troy in late 1983 at the Twin Towers Apartments he had already been abused by catrone beay and King he described meeting catron at an amusement park where he was solicited and he described meeting beay in 1979 in the milk run neighborhood Bachi was just 12 years old when he was abused by Bayer and paid $20 he remembered that the encounters frequently included sadistic abuse like beatings cuttings and burnings Bonacci claims that his affiliation went on to include cross-country flights to California DC and de Mo the same locations cited by the other Witnesses in one particularly brutal recounting bonach claims a camera crew followed them to a remote area outside Sacramento one of the boys was placed in a cage and the other two were instructed to beat and abuse him a particularly sadistic man joined the assault before shooting one of the boys with a handgun the other two were instructed to continue their abuse afterwards that night Bonacci would unsuccessfully attempt Sude in the hotel bathro resulting in a 2-day stay in a California hospital Bachi confessed that he participated in the Abduction of 12-year-old Johnny gsh in De Mo it was the early morning of September 6th 1982 when gosh vanished without a trace the only remnants of his presence were a wagon with undelivered newspapers and his dog left to wander the street alone the search was immediate and widespread Flyers were plastered on every surface and the police were inundated with tips entrenched in a case the defied explanation the search quickly went cold months turned into years and then in 1984 Johnny gsh was one of the first missing children portrayed on a milk carton this was an initiative to spark interest Drive public engagement and unearth leads that might otherwise be lost Bacci recounted that men had forced him to kidnap gosh they threatened him with a pistol and instructed him to speak with the boy on the the street long enough for one of the men to grab him these men took Bonacci gsh and another boy to a home near Omaha where their abuses were filmed it was Bach's testimony that began to provide reason for the trips to Washington DC he implied that King used children to Blackmail politicians and other power Brokers the home in the area had been outfitted with security cameras to capture the illegal seual activity these tapes would be sold to other players to twist votes and force political capitulation Bonacci claims that he was interviewed by the Omaha police department on several occasions he even provided documentation of aggressors including photographic evidence however nothing came from these investigations Bonacci and Owen suggested that kadori pursue Rusty Nelson who likely had a surplus of photographic negatives they could Ure physical evidence of their testimony on July 9th 1990 kidori flew a 1984 single engine Piper Saratoga from Lincoln to Chicago with his 8-year-old son they were going to attend the MLB allstar game kidori told his wife that he would be meeting Rusty Nelson while in Chicago kidori made four phone calls while there speaking with Lauren Schmidt his wife and two others in one phone call he stated that he would be acquiring photographs and other materials that would corroborate the testimony from his remaining two victims Rusty Nelson would later confirm that he met with kidori in Chicago and provided him with photographic negatives that would be the Lynch pin in the Franklin case the All-Star Game ended around 11:45 p.m. and The kador Departed Chicago's Midway Airport at 1:51 a.m. an hour later the plane crashed in a cornfield in Ashton Illinois debris was scattered up to 1,800 ft from the fuselage and an investigation determined that the plane had broken up mid-flight 2 years later it would be speculated that kidori may have become overtaken by fatigue when attempting to desperately recover lost altitude he had snapped the Wings off the plane the backpack and film camera of kador son were Rec covered nearly undamaged yet kador briefcase was not those close to the case believe that if kidori had retrieved photographs they would have been stored inside this briefcase the following day FBI agents armed with a subpoena arrived at kori's office requiring the surrender of all evidence related to the Franklin case as well as any phone logs and financial documents related to kidori investigations Senator Schmidt feared that kidori death was one more example of corruption and coverup the committee hired former CIA director William Colby to investigate the plane crash during his tenure with the CIA Colby notably devoted outsized resources to operation Phoenix which sought to disrupt the political and social support system of the Viet Kong by infiltration assassination torture and more the program resulted in over 25,000 deaths many of whom were civilian non-combatants kobby later became outspoken about the cia's practices and he received tremendous political and social pressure to keep his Secrets Colby familiar with the pressures of political conspiracy warned damp and Schmidt about the forces at play Colby investigated kador plane crash and could not find evidence to indicate tampering with the plane however it's rumored that he told three members of the Franklin committee that he believed kidori had been assassinated mysteriously Colby would take a solo canoe trip near his Maryland Home in 1996 and he would go missing only to be recovered 9 days later there were no Witnesses and the scene was not thoroughly investigated as authorities believed it was a stroke or accidental drowning his life jacket was missing from his shed but it was not recovered with his [Music] [Music] belongings the purpose of the Douglas County grand jury was to judicially review the Franklin related child abuse allegation the grand jury proceedings would be private and they would make decisions on who to indict to stand trial as criminal defendants the prosecutor began by calling Witnesses reviewing testimony and sharing evidence with a jury of Nebraskan citizens they began by reviewing the earlier allegations of the adopted web children and they released an interim report that would be used to indict Jared Webb on third degree sexual assault charges against his adopted daughter Lisa this interim report was released to ensure charges could be filed before the statute of limitations expired the possibility the grand jury spent the majority of their time reviewing kori's videotaped interviews the witnesses themselves appeared before the grand jury and Dany and Troy upheld their recantations their testimony was meant to discredit Owen and Bonacci Troy claimed that Owen had called him and fed him the information contained in his 7-hour taped interview and Dany echoed these claims during his short time on the stand Owen spent 2 days testifying and she was questioned about her history of psychiatric hospitalizations drug use financial fraud and more bonach testified but his history of sexual offenses and psychiatric diagnosis greatly damaged his credibility the Douglas County grand jury released its final report on July 23rd 1990 less than 2 weeks after kori's death the subsequent publication of the World Herald read grand jury says abuse stories were a carefully crafted hoax the report claimed that child abuse allegations related to King were nothing more than rumor it claimed to have found no evidence of any children being transported on Interstate flights despite passenger manifests and pilot interviews missing from admitted evidence the report concluded that Lawrence King had used money to solicit and procure men in their late teens and early 20s which was considered adult pandering King was not prosecuted because of the pending federal financial case that would result in his conviction instead the jury indicted Alicia Owen on eight counts of perjury Paul Bonacci on three counts of perjury and Alan Bayer for two counts of adult pandering in 1991 King was convicted of embezzling over $39 million from the Franklin Community Federal Credit Union the court found him guilty of making fraudulent Financial transactions and misappropriating funds which led to the credit unions insolvency and subsequent Federal takeover King was sentenced to years in prison a judgment that aimed to hold him accountable for the financial damages his actions caused in addition to his prison sentence King was ordered to make restitution although the prospect of recovering the embezzled funds was considered slim due to the scale of his theft and his depleted resources [Music] the aftermath of the Franklin committee's investigation and grand jury trial were as multifaceted and complex as the case itself King's conviction brought a sense of legal resolution to the financial aspect but left many in the community still grappling with the unresolved allegations of child abuse and exploitation some believed that Justice had been done they believed that the allegations of child abuse had come from compromised Witnesses the testimonies of children who had suffered difficult lives by any measure compounded by drug use sexual abuse and more they believed that these children had suffered greatly but they had ultimately been confused or coached by investigators and social workers satanic Panic was at its PE in the 1980s and 1990s it was a period of heightened fear about demonic ritual abuse and it had become public hysteria in short they believed that the stories were too salacious and Sensational to be true others found the testimony of the videotaped witnesses to be compelling they pointed to historical precedence for cover up indicating that those in positions of power wielded undue influence to dismiss and discredit Witnesses they believed that law enforcement had been deliberately inept and the system had not only failed to find justice but actually contributed to the harm of the outspoken victims in 1994 a British television company known as Yorkshire television produced a documentary titled conspiracy of Silence the documentary was developed in cooperation with the Discovery Channel it sought to publicize and explore the allegations of child abuse and exploitation surrounding the Franklin Scandal it was scheduled to air on Discovery and the event was printed in the TV Guide for its debut time slot at the last minute the Discovery Channel unexpectedly pulled the documentary from the broadcast schedule shortly before its airing while the official reason was not named it's believed that legal and political pressure were responsible the suppression of the documentary is one more talking point for those who believe the Franklin Scandal was the result of a widespread coverup additionally there are 15 suspicious deaths connected to Franklin Bill Baker was a restaurant owner in Omaha Baker knew King and was a partner in his py operations he was found shot in the back of the head Shawn boner was the brother of Troy owner in 1991 Shawn was just 20 years old when he was found with an accidental gunshot wound to the Head investigators told reporters that Shawn had fired the weapon himself he was found slumped on the couch Sheriff Pat Thomas claimed that it appeared Shawn had been drinking and must have believed the gun was empty at the time Aaron Owen brother of Alicia Owen was found hanging from a ventilator by a prison issue bed sheet in 1990 he was serving a 4 to 7year term for several charges and he died in his cell just hours before one of Alicia owens's court dates Claire Howard was Alan Bear's former secretary she had access to his schedule and personal information revealing his attendance of King's parties and prior relationships with underage boys she mysteriously died in her sleep in 1991 several of King former Associates perished under suspicious circumstances Dan Ryan was found suffocated in his vehicle Charlie Rogers was shot with a shotgun which was ruled a Joe M was found with a gunshot wound which was also ruled as Curtis Tucker was thrown or jumped from the window of a holiday in others who were only tangentially related to the case also had bizarre circumstances of death mikee Lewis was a caregiver for shaunetta Moore he died of a severe diabetic reaction bill scolesi was an Omaha police officer who had been conducting his own investigation into King and he died of a cardiac event Kathleen senson had fostered Nelly and Kimberly Webb after they left the care of Jared and Barbara Webb Sorenson died in October 1989 in a two-car Collision just 2 m mil east of Arlington Nebraska Sorenson collided with another vehicle when it crossed the center line and hit her head on lastly Harmon Tucker who supervised vocational schools in the area was reported missing on October 18th 1988 he was found on November 1st along a Logging Road 1,400 M away from Omaha Tucker was found by hunters with a 22 caliber gunshot wound to the head just a few few miles away from hunting grounds frequented by Harold Anderson the circumstances surrounding these deaths Forge an alarming pattern and they underscore the chilling possibility that these were calculated acts what truths were buried with the deaths of these individuals and what truths were still waiting to be uncovered in the Years following the Franklin Scandal Paul Bonacci served his time for his convictions he filed a federal suit against Lawrence King and won because King refused to appear in court Bonacci was awarded a $1 million settlement but it's unclear how much of this money if any was ever collected in 1997 noren gsh had survived a divorce and moved into an apartment on her own it was 15 years after The Disappearance of her son Johnny gosh and she was trying to put the pieces of her life back together she claims that two men appeared at her door in the middle of the night and she recognized one of them as her son almost immediately which was confirmed when he revealed an identifiable birth mark on his chest gosh traveled with another man who spoke very little he didn't mention his living situation or the abuses he had suffered but he did confirm much of Paul Bacci's story about his abduction they only spoke for a few hours before gsh left claiming that he was on the run from his abductors and he would not be safe until the perpetrators were brought to Justice Paul bonach is 57 years old now he has a family of his own and he still lives in Nebraska he was briefly interviewed in 2023 about the aftermath of the Franklin Scandal and the gosh abduction Bonacci confirmed Goring story he claims that he has been visited by gsh between 15 and 20 times the last being in 2018 he stated that gsh is afraid to come out of hiding afraid that his name will be added to the list of suspicious deaths as long as gosh lives so does a version of the truth the aftermath of the Franklin Scandal remains unresolved a sorrowful Litany of unanswered questions although King was convicted for embezzlement and conspiracy to defraud the United States the deeper more disturbing accusations of systemic seual abuse corruption and ritualistic worship Remain the question of whether the truth was inherently hidden or deliberately obscured remains one of the Franklin scandals most enduring Mysteries it is a haunting reflection about the nature of power and the potential for Darkness it's a chilling reminder that the very institutions designed to uncover the truth can sometimes seek to obscure it [Music] n [Music]