Narrator: DIANE BEASLEY WAS ON THE FAST TRACK TO A STABLE LIFE
WITH JOHN SMITH.
JOHN WAS JUST... WANTED TO DO ANYTHING HE COULD FOR DIANE.
IT JUST SEEMED LIKE A REALLY GOOD FIT.
Narrator: BUT SOON AFTER SAYING "I DO,"
THE NEW MRS. SMITH LEARNED HER GENTLE HUSBAND
WAS HIDING A GRUESOME PAST.
THAT'S FROM A MOVIE, AND IT'S A GORY MOVIE.
Narrator: AND "TILL DEATH DO US PART" TOOK ON NEW MEANING.
IF MY DAUGHTER HADN'T HAVE BEEN THERE, I'D HAVE BEEN DEAD.
Fleeman: IT'S VERY RARE THAT YOU COME ACROSS SOMEBODY
WHO EVERYBODY AGREES IS A PURE MONSTER.
Narrator: WHEN IT COMES TO LOVE AND MARRIAGE,
THINGS AREN'T ALWAYS AS THEY SEEM.
RELATIONSHIPS ARE NEVER EASY.
BUT FOR DIANE BEASLEY,
ROMANCE SEEMED TO BE ONE HARD KNOCK AFTER ANOTHER.
I WAS BROUGHT UP TO THINK THAT YOU GET MARRIED,
YOU HAVE KIDS, AND YOU LIVE HAPPILY EVERY AFTER.
AND I WENT THROUGH A COUPLE MARRIAGES,
TRYING TO LIVE HAPPILY EVER AFTER,
AND THAT NEVER HAPPENED. [ LAUGHS ]
Narrator: AFTER THREE DIVORCES,
DIANE WASN'T EXPECTING A FAIRY TALE.
SO IN THE SUMMER OF 1998,
WHEN A CO-WORKER INTRODUCED HER TO THE NEW GUY IN TOWN,
SHE KEPT AN OPEN MIND,
EVEN THOUGH JOHN SMITH WASN'T QUITE HER CUP OF TEA.
NO, HIS LOOKS WEREN'T THE DEAL FOR ME, YOU KNOW, AT ALL.
Narrator: JOHN HAD JUST MOVED FROM OHIO TO CALIFORNIA.
THE FEW PEOPLE WHO KNEW HIM SAW A WARM YET SOLITARY GUY.
Haywood: I FELT SORRY FOR HIM 'CAUSE HE SEEMED SO LONELY,
AND ALL HE DID WAS WORK, WORK, WORK SIX, SEVEN DAYS A WEEK.
HE CAME ACROSS WITH A WARM, GOOD HEART.
THAT'S WHAT I LIKED ABOUT HIM.
Narrator: JOHN WAS DEDICATED TO HIS JOB
AT A HIGH-END CAR MANUFACTURER.
DIANE LOVED FAST CARS AND BIG ENGINES.
SO WHEN JOHN ASKED HER OUT TO DINNER, SHE AGREED TO GO.
THEY HAD A GREAT DINNER, AND NEXT THING I KNEW,
THINGS WERE MOVING FORWARD PRETTY FAST.
Narrator: BEFORE LONG,
DIANE AND JOHN WERE SHARING INTIMATE DETAILS OF THEIR PASTS.
Beasley: A WEEK AND A HALF INTO IT, I SAID, "I'M DIVORCED.
I'VE BEEN MARRIED A FEW TIMES."
AND HE SAYS, "I'VE BEEN MARRIED TWICE, TOO."
Narrator: JOHN TOLD DIANE HIS FIRST MARRIAGE ENDED IN DIVORCE
AND, SADLY, HIS SECOND ENDED IN TRAGEDY.
HE SAYS, "MY LAST WIFE DIED OF CANCER."
YOU KNOW, AND OF COURSE I SAID, "OH, HOW SAD."
HE WAS HAVING A VERY DIFFICULT TIME IN LIFE
BECAUSE OF HIS WIFE.
Narrator: BUT AFTER JUST SIX WEEKS WITH DIANE,
JOHN SEEMED READY TO PUT HIS GRIEF BEHIND HIM.
AND HE SURPRISED HER WITH A PROPOSAL.
WHY DON'T WE GET MARRIED?
AND I KIND OF WENT, "WELL, THAT'S KIND OF SOON."
Fleeman: DIANE WAS VERY CANDID ABOUT SAYING,
"I WASN'T ATTRACTED TO HIM.
"BUT HE COULD HELP ME. HE COULD SETTLE DOWN MY LIFE.
"HE COULD GIVE ME SOMETHING I DON'T HAVE RIGHT NOW.
SO WHY NOT?"
Narrator: THAT SEPTEMBER, DIANE MARRIED JOHN SMITH
IN FRONT OF AN INTIMATE GROUP OF FRIENDS AND FAMILY.
Haywood: DIANE LOOKED ABSOLUTELY STUNNING.
AND A LOT OF SMILES THAT DAY.
YOU COULD TELL THAT THEY WERE ONE HAPPY COUPLE.
Beasley: I WAS GONNA DO WHATEVER I NEEDED TO DO TO MAKE IT LAST.
Narrator: IT WAS A FRESH START FOR THE COUPLE.
BUT WHEN DIANE MOVED IN WITH JOHN,
SHE REALIZED THAT HE HADN'T ENTIRELY LEFT HIS PAST
BEHIND HIM.
Beasley: WHEN I MOVED IN THERE, HE WAS ALREADY LIVING THERE,
AND THERE WAS THIS HUGE PICTURE OF FRAN ON THE WALL.
HE SAID, "DO YOU WANT ME TO REMOVE IT?"
AND I SAID, "NO, THAT'S FINE."
I SAID, "THAT'S PART OF YOUR PAST."
AND HE SAID, "THANK YOU." AND THAT WAS THE END OF IT.
Narrator: AND FOR A WHILE, THAT WAS THE END OF IT.
THIS IS A NEW BEGINNING FOR ME AND JOHN.
Narrator: BUT DIANE'S NEWLYWED BLISS
WOULD COME TO A SCREECHING HALT ONLY EIGHT MONTHS LATER.
THE MORNING OF MAY 5, 1999,
DIANE WAS BUSY AT HER SECRETARIAL JOB
WHEN SHE HAD SOME SURPRISE VISITORS.
Beasley: HALF AN HOUR AFTER I SAT DOWN,
THESE GUYS CAME IN IN SUITS,
WHICH IS VERY ODD FOR WHERE I WORK,
'CAUSE USUALLY EVERYBODY'S IN JEANS.
AND I SAID, "MAY I HELP YOU?"
AND THEY SAID, "ARE YOU DIANE SMITH?"
YOUR NAME IS DIANE SMITH?
I SAID, "YES."
Narrator: THE MEN WERE FROM THE FBI.
AND THEY HAD A POINTED QUESTION FOR DIANE.
THEY ASKED ME WHAT JOHN HAD TOLD ME ABOUT FRAN.
AND I SAID, "HE TOLD ME THAT HIS WIFE DIED OF CANCER."
Narrator: AND THAT'S WHEN THE FBI DROPPED A BOMBSHELL.
THEY TOLD DIANE THAT JOHN'S SECOND WIFE, FRAN,
HAD NOT DIED OF CANCER.
AND HIS FIRST MARRIAGE DIDN'T END IN A SIMPLE DIVORCE.
I WAS JUST ABSOLUTELY FLABBERGASTED.
Narrator: WHAT REALLY HAPPENED WAS FAR, FAR WORSE.
Beasley: I COULD NOT BELIEVE IT.
I DID NOT BELIEVE IT.
HOW WAS HE ABLE TO GET AWAY WITH SO MANY HORRIBLE THINGS
FOR SO MANY YEARS?
Narrator: IN SEPTEMBER OF 1998,
EIGHT MONTHS BEFORE A DEVASTATING VISIT FROM THE FBI,
DIANE BEASLEY WAS ENJOYING HER NEW MARRIAGE TO JOHN SMITH.
WE WERE DOING A LOT OF SIGHTSEEING,
'CAUSE HE'D NEVER BEEN OUT HERE, AND I'M A NATIVE SAN DIEGAN.
THEY WERE ALWAYS ON THE GO.
THEY LOVED TO GO TO THE BEACH AND GO FOR WALKS ON THE BEACH.
MY LIFE WITH JOHN AT THAT TIME WAS ALMOST PICTURE-PERFECT.
Narrator: BUT FOR DIANE,
THERE WAS ONE THING THAT COULD MAKE THE PICTURE EVEN PRETTIER.
A BIGGER HOME.
LUCKILY, MONEY WAS NO OBJECT FOR JOHN.
Fleeman: HIS FAMILY HAD REAL-ESTATE HOLDINGS.
THEY HAD APARTMENTS.
HE'D NEVER LACKED FOR FINANCES.
Narrator: BEFORE LONG, THE COUPLE FOUND A PLACE THEY LIKED
AND APPLIED FOR A LEASE.
BUT SOON AFTER SUBMITTING THE APPLICATION,
DIANE GOT A DISTURBING PHONE CALL
FROM AN APARTMENT MANAGER.
Beasley: THE APARTMENT MANAGER SAID, "YOU NEED TO COME HERE.
I NEED TO SHOW YOU SOMETHING."
I SAID, "WHAT'S THE PROBLEM? JUST TELL ME OVER THE PHONE."
AND SHE SAID, "NO. YOU NEED TO SEE THIS."
AND I WENT, "UH-OH."
Narrator: DIANE RACED TO THE RENTAL OFFICE.
AND WHEN SHE ARRIVED,
THE APARTMENT MANAGER HAD A COPY OF JOHN'S CREDIT REPORT.
THE RESULTS WERE JAW-DROPPING.
Beasley: SHE SHOWED ME THE CREDIT REPORT,
WHICH WAS 10 PAGES LONG, OF STUFF THAT HE HADN'T PAID.
HE HAD HOUSES THAT HE HADN'T PAID TAXES ON.
THEY WERE IN FORECLOSURE.
HE HAD CREDIT CARDS THAT HE'D NEVER PAID.
IT WAS JUST TERRIBLE.
Narrator: BY THE TIME JOHN GOT HOME FROM WORK THAT EVENING,
DIANE WAS BESIDE HERSELF.
I SAID, "WE CAN'T EVEN RENT A PLACE BECAUSE OF YOUR CREDIT."
Narrator: BUT JOHN HAD AN EXPLANATION.
HE CLAIMED THE TROUBLED PROPERTIES
REALLY BELONGED TO A RELATIVE.
HE SAID, "I HAD TO TAKE THEM OVER,
AND I COULDN'T AFFORD THEM."
Narrator: JOHN PROMISED DIANE HE WOULD FIX EVERYTHING.
Beasley: HE SAID THAT HE CAN BUY A HOUSE OUTRIGHT WITH CASH.
AND HE SAID, "WE'LL JUST DO THAT, YOU KNOW,
WHILE I GET THIS CREDIT OF MINE STRAIGHTENED OUT."
I THOUGHT, "OKAY. ALL RIGHT.
"WE'LL JUST HAVE TO STAY IN THIS LITTLE GRANNY FLAT HERE
"FOR A LITTLE BIT LONGER,
AND THEN WE CAN GO AND BUY A HOUSE OUTRIGHT."
Narrator: OVER THE NEXT COUPLE MONTHS,
DIANE FOCUSED ON HER NEW MARRIAGE.
BUT SHE WASN'T PLEASED WHEN SHE NOTICED
THAT JOHN OFTEN SEEMED MORE INTERESTED IN THE COMPUTER
THAN IN HER.
Beasley: HE WAS ALWAYS AT THAT COMPUTER.
WHY CAN'T HE BE DOING IT AT WORK,
WHICH HE HAD ACCESS TO A COMPUTER.
Narrator: EVEN MORE WORRISOME
WAS JOHN'S STRANGE REACTION WHEN DIANE INTERRUPTED HIS WORK.
Beasley: WHENEVER I WOULD GO UP THERE LOOKING FOR HIM,
ALL OF A SUDDEN, THE COMPUTER WENT OFF.
AND I THOUGHT, "THAT'S KIND OF ODD," YOU KNOW?
Narrator: AS THE WEEKS WENT ON, DIANE COULDN'T HELP BUT NOTICE
HOW OFTEN JOHN HAD TO EXPLAIN THINGS AWAY.
DIANE WONDERED IF HER NEW HUSBAND
WAS HIDING SOMETHING.
AND SHE WASN'T THE ONLY ONE.
HER DAUGHTER, SUMMER,
BEGAN TO SEE A DIFFERENT SIDE OF JOHN WHEN SHE VISITED.
WHEN I WAS HOME ALONE WITH HIM, HE WAS VERY MAD, ANGRY.
WHEN HE WAS OUT WITH MY MOM,
HE WOULD TALK REALLY NICE, BE VERY SWEET.
AND I USED TO TELL MY MOM THAT.
SHE KIND OF PLAYED IT OFF... "I THINK YOU'RE JUST PARANOID."
Narrator: BUT BY NOVEMBER OF 1998,
DIANE WAS ALSO BAFFLED BY JOHN'S FURTIVE BEHAVIOR.
TOO MANY DETAILS JUST DIDN'T ADD UP.
Beasley: HE DIDN'T HAVE A CHECKING ACCOUNT.
HE HAD BEEN OUT HERE FOR OVER A YEAR AND A HALF,
AND HE WAS STILL RESISTING
GETTING THE CALIFORNIA DRIVER'S LICENSE,
AND I THOUGHT THAT WAS VERY ODD.
Narrator: IT SEEMED LIKE JOHN SMITH
WAS TRYING TO FLY UNDER THE RADAR.
HE WAS A MAN WHO, AS ORDINARY AS HE WAS,
ALWAYS SEEMED TO HAVE THIS STRANGE, DARK, SECRETIVE SIDE.
Narrator: AND DIANE WOULD SOON LEARN
THERE WAS A TERRIFYING REASON WHY.
HE KNEW THAT AROUND EACH CORNER WERE FBI AGENTS SURVEILLING HIM.
SOMETHING WAS FISHY ABOUT THIS MAN.
I WAS AFRAID HE WAS GONNA SNAP BIG.
Narrator: BY JANUARY OF 1999,
JUST FOUR MONTHS INTO HER MARRIAGE,
DIANE BEASLEY WAS CERTAIN THAT SOMETHING WAS OFF
WITH HER NEW HUSBAND, JOHN SMITH.
Beasley: HE WAS VERY AGITATED.
AND I GOT TO GETTING KIND OF CONCERNED.
Narrator: BY NOW, HIS BEHAVIOR HAD GONE FROM MERELY STRANGE
TO CHILLING.
Beasley: WE WERE COMING BACK FROM DINNER,
AND I WAS IN FRONT OF HIM IN ONE OF THE CARS,
AND HE WAS BEHIND ME.
AND I COULD SEE HIM IN MY REARVIEW MIRROR
BANGING ON THE STEERING WHEEL,
TALKING TO HIMSELF, SCREAMING AND YELLING AT HIMSELF,
AND I THOUGHT, "WHO'S THIS GUY?"
YOU KNOW, "I DON'T KNOW THIS GUY."
HE WAS JUST HAVING A FIT ALL BY HIMSELF.
Fleeman: JOHN IS A MAN WHO WALKED AROUND WITH SECRETS.
HE WALKED AROUND WITH ALL THIS DARKNESS THAT HE HID.
I THINK DIANE SAW A GLIMMER OF LIGHT.
CLEARLY, YOU CAN'T IGNORE SOMETHING LIKE THIS.
Narrator: BUT JOHN'S UNNERVING BEHAVIOR
WAS JUST A GLIMPSE OF WHAT WAS TO COME.
THE MORNING OF MAY 5, 1999,
DIANE WAS AT WORK WHEN TWO FBI AGENTS PAID HER A VISIT.
SHE WAS STARTLED WHEN THEY BEGAN TO ASK HER QUESTIONS
ABOUT JOHN'S EX-WIFE FRAN,
WHO DIANE THOUGHT HAD DIED OF CANCER.
AND THEN IT ALL CAME OUT ABOUT JOHN.
THEY SAID, "WE'RE HERE FOR JOHN SMITH.
WE'RE INVESTIGATING THE MURDER OF TWO OF HIS WIVES."
I WAS JUST ABSOLUTELY FLABBERGASTED.
Narrator: THE AGENTS WENT ON TO EXPLAIN
THAT BOTH OF JOHN'S FORMER WIVES HAD GONE MISSING
UNDER SUSPICIOUS CIRCUMSTANCES.
Fleeman: THE FBI WAS STRUCK BY THE OUTRAGEOUS COINCIDENCES.
THIS MAN WAS MARRIED TWICE... TWO MISSING WIVES.
THAT'S JUST CAN'T HAPPEN NATURALLY.
BY THE TIME I GOT OUT OF THERE, I WAS JUST DUMBFOUNDED.
I WAS JUST SHOCKED.
Narrator: THE STORY LEFT DIANE SHAKEN.
BUT SHE WAS DETERMINED NOT TO BELIEVE A WORD OF IT
UNTIL SHE HEARD JOHN'S SIDE.
Beasley: I COULDN'T BELIEVE THIS OF JOHN.
JOHN WASN'T LIKE THIS. THEY MUST HAVE THE WRONG PERSON.
Narrator: AND WHEN JOHN FINALLY CALLED HER LATER THAT DAY,
DIANE WAS CERTAIN IT WAS ALL A BIG MISTAKE.
ESPECIALLY WHEN SHE FOUND OUT
HE HAD ALSO BEEN INTERROGATED BY THE FBI AND LET GO.
Beasley: HE WAS TALKING A MILE A MINUTE.
HE WAS VERY UPSET.
HE SAID THE REASON WHY HE TOLD ME FRAN DIED OF CANCER,
HE SAID, BECAUSE HE DIDN'T BELIEVE THAT FRAN WAS MISSING.
HE THINKS THAT SHE TOOK OFF.
HE DIDN'T WANT TO SHOCK ME.
HE SAID THAT THE FIRST ONE... HE TOLD ME THIS STORY
ABOUT HOW HE THINKS A FRIEND OF HERS KILLED HER.
Narrator: JOHN CLAIMED THAT HE WAS BEING FRAMED BY THE FBI
FOR SOMETHING HE DIDN'T DO.
Beasley: IT WAS ALL A CONSPIRACY,
AND THAT'S THE REASON WHY HE LEFT OHIO...
BECAUSE HE COULDN'T GET PAST ANY OF THIS.
IT WASN'T HIM.
Narrator: AT FIRST, DIANE BELIEVED HER HUSBAND.
BUT THAT WAS ABOUT TO CHANGE.
TWO WEEKS LATER,
A SPECIAL-DELIVERY LETTER ADDRESSED TO DIANE
ARRIVED IN THE MAIL.
Beasley: FRAN'S SISTER WROTE ME A LETTER,
AND WHEN I GOT IT, IT HAD A PHONE NUMBER ON THERE
FOR ME TO CALL HER.
AND A COUPLE DAYS LATER, I DID CALL HER.
Narrator: BY THE TIME DIANE HUNG UP THE PHONE,
HER BELIEF IN HER HUSBAND WAS SHAKEN TO THE CORE.
Beasley: THE SISTER WAS TELLING ME,
"WE ARE CONVINCED THAT JOHN KILLED FRAN."
AND SHE SAID, "YOU'RE IN DANGER OF YOUR LIFE.
EVERYTHING THAT THE FBI TOLD YOU IS TRUE."
Narrator: DIANE'S FOCUS IMMEDIATELY CHANGED
FROM BEING A SUPPORTIVE WIFE TO JUST KEEPING HERSELF ALIVE.
Beasley: I DID WHAT THE FBI TOLD ME TO DO.
"WHEN HE STARTS GETTING AGITATED WHEN YOU'RE ASKING QUESTIONS,
"QUIT RIGHT THEN.
DON'T IRRITATE HIM."
Narrator: MEANWHILE, FOR INVESTIGATORS,
THE CLOCK WAS TICKING.
WITH NO BODIES AND ONLY CIRCUMSTANTIAL EVIDENCE,
DETECTIVES NEEDED A SMOKING GUN
TO PROVE JOHN SMITH WAS A MURDERER.
LESS THAN TWO WEEKS LATER, ON MAY 15th, THEY GOT IT.
Fleeman: THE WEAK LINK FOR JOHN SMITH
WAS SOMEBODY WHO WAS THE CLOSEST TO HIM,
AND THAT WAS HIS BROTHER MICHAEL.
Narrator: MICHAEL SMITH WAS JOHN'S YOUNGER BROTHER.
THE FBI HAD QUESTIONED HIM EXTENSIVELY
DURING THE INVESTIGATION,
AND THEY WERE CERTAIN MICHAEL WAS HIDING SOMETHING.
HE WAS TORMENTED, AND HE HAD NIGHTMARES.
AND POLICE COULD KIND OF SENSE
THIS TROUBLE BENEATH THE SURFACE WITH MICHAEL.
AND THEY HAMMERED HIM.
Narrator: WHEN MICHAEL FINALLY BROKE,
HE TOLD DETECTIVES A HORROR STORY.
Fleeman: MICHAEL TOLD THE POLICE AND THE FBI
ABOUT A WOODEN BOX HE SAW,
A WOODEN BOX THAT HIS BROTHER JOHN HAD BUILT
AND STORED FOR YEARS.
AND ONE DAY, MICHAEL HAPPENED TO OPEN THAT BOX,
AND INSIDE HE SAW THE SKELETAL REMAINS OF JOHN'S FORMER WIFE.
Narrator: IT WAS THE BREAK
INVESTIGATORS HAD BEEN WAITING FOR.
BUT THERE WAS ONE PROBLEM.
MICHAEL DIDN'T KNOW WHAT HAD HAPPENED TO THE BOX.
Fleeman: IT WAS BRUTAL FOR MICHAEL.
HE HAD NIGHTMARES ABOUT IT.
I THINK HE WAS SCARED OF JOHN.
HE DIDN'T WANT TO END UP IN HIS OWN BOX.
Narrator: FOR DIANE, THE NEWS WAS HORRIFYING.
SHE JUST WANTED TO GET OUT OF HER MARRIAGE ALIVE.
BUT LEAVING JOHN SMITH WOULD NOT BE EASY.
DIANE WAS ABOUT TO COME FACE-TO-FACE
WITH THE MONSTER HER HUSBAND TRULY WAS.
IF SUMMER HADN'T HAVE BEEN THERE, I'D HAVE BEEN DEAD.
Narrator: BY DECEMBER OF 1999,
DIANE BEASLEY HAD NO DOUBT HER HUSBAND, JOHN SMITH,
WAS A MURDERER.
Fleeman: REAL FEAR STARTED TO GRIP HER.
HE'S MARRIED TWO OTHER WOMEN. ONE TURNED UP DEAD IN A BOX.
THE OTHER ONE... WE DON'T KNOW WHERE SHE IS.
Beasley: AS SOON AS THEY FOUND OUT WHAT KIND OF PERSON HE IS,
THEY WOULD LEAVE HIM, AND THEN THEY WOULD BE GONE.
Narrator: DETERMINED NOT TO BE A THIRD VICTIM,
DIANE SECRETLY WENT ABOUT GETTING HER MARRIAGE ANNULLED.
ON DECEMBER 17th, JOHN WAS SERVED WITH PAPERS.
ANTICIPATING THE WORST,
DIANE HOLED UP IN THE APARTMENT WITH HER DAUGHTER, SUMMER.
THEY CHANGED THE LOCKS,
HID THE CARS, AND CLOSED THE BLINDS.
AND SURE ENOUGH, JOHN SMITH ARRIVED IN A FURY.
Beasley: SUMMER WAS PEEKING OUT. SHE GOES, "HERE HE COMES."
Hathaway: HE COMES STORMING UP,
AND IT'S LIKE HIS FACE CHANGED.
LET ME IN!
Beasley: "MOM," SHE SAYS,
"HE LOOKS LIKE A MONSTER COMING UP HERE."
Narrator: DIANE IMMEDIATELY CALLED 911.
Hathaway: WE HEARD HIM POUNDING ON THE WINDOWS.
YOU COULD HEAR HIS BODY BEING THROWN UP AGAINST THE DOOR.
AND THEN YOU COULD HEAR THAT DOOR FRAME CRACKING.
[ GRUNTING ]
HE BUSTED DOWN THE DOOR. I DIDN'T EVEN RECOGNIZE HIM.
WHAT ARE YOU THINKING?!
Beasley: AND AS SOON AS HE SAW SUMMER,
HIS WHOLE DEMEANOR CHANGED.
"BABY, YOU DON'T NEED TO DO THIS.
I DON'T WANT YOU TO DIVORCE ME. I CAN EXPLAIN EVERYTHING."
I KNEW RIGHT AT THAT TIME,
IF SUMMER HADN'T HAVE BEEN THERE, I'D HAVE BEEN DEAD.
Narrator: DIANE SURVIVED THE ENCOUNTER,
AND JOHN SOON LEFT THE APARTMENT.
MEANWHILE,
ARMED WITH A SHOCKING CONFESSION FROM JOHN'S BROTHER MICHAEL,
DETECTIVES WERE ON THE HUNT FOR THE BODY OF JOHN'S FIRST WIFE,
JANICE HARTMAN.
Fleeman: IN A DESPERATE BID TO TRY TO FIND THIS BODY,
THE COPS SENT AROUND A ROUND OF LETTERS.
AND A POLICEMAN IN INDIANA WAS OPENING HIS MAIL ONE DAY
AND GOT THIS LETTER.
IT SAID, "HEY, DID ANYBODY FIND A BODY IN A BOX?"
Narrator: THE GRIM QUESTION RANG A BELL.
Fleeman: ONE DAY IN 1980,
A ROAD CREW WAS WORKING ON THIS LONELY PAVEMENT
IN THE MIDDLE OF AN INDIANA FIELD
WHEN THEY CAME ACROSS A WOODEN BOX.
THEY OPENED IT UP,
AND WHAT WAS LOOKING AT THEM BUT THE SKELETAL REMAINS
OF A YOUNG WOMAN.
Narrator: THE REMAINS HAD NEVER BEEN IDENTIFIED.
AND THE GIRL BECAME KNOWN AS THE LADY IN THE BOX.
SHE WAS BURIED IN A PAUPER'S GRAVE.
AND THIS COP SAID, "I THINK WE GOT YOUR GIRL."
Narrator: INVESTIGATORS HAVE THE REMAINS EXHUMED AND TESTED.
AND WHEN THE RESULTS CAME BACK FROM THE LAB,
THE LADY IN THE BOX WAS FINALLY IDENTIFIED AS JANICE HARTMAN,
JOHN SMITH'S FIRST WIFE.
JOHN'S GRISLY SECRET HAD LITERALLY BEEN UNEARTHED.
Beasley: I WAS DEVASTATED.
I THOUGHT, "THIS POOR GIRL CUT DOWN BY THIS MONSTER, JOHN."
Narrator: ON OCTOBER 3, 2000, JOHN SMITH WAS ARRESTED AT WORK.
AT THE TRIAL NINE MONTHS LATER,
DIANE LEARNED THE EXTENT OF JOHN'S DECEPTIONS.
ALL THAT TIME HE'D SPENT ON THE COMPUTER
WASN'T JUST BUSINESS, AS HE CLAIMED.
JOHN WAS HAVING MULTIPLE AFFAIRS.
SO MUCH OF WHAT POLICE SAY JOHN WAS MOTIVATED BY WAS POWER.
IT'S NOT MONEY. IT WASN'T SEX.
IT WAS POWER... POWER OVER THESE WOMEN.
IN THE TWO CASES IN WHICH HIS WIVES DISAPPEARED,
THE WIVES CHALLENGED HIM AND CROSSED HIM.
THEY TOOK ON HIS AUTHORITY.
Narrator: AND THAT'S WHEN JOHN SMITH WOULD SNAP.
Fleeman: JOHN HAD LOTS OF GIRLFRIENDS.
AND SO THE FEAR IS
THERE ARE MORE THAN TWO MISSING MRS. SMITHS.
Narrator: ON JULY 19, 2001,
JOHN SMITH WAS FOUND GUILTY OF MURDER
IN THE CASE OF JANICE HARTMAN.
HE WAS SENTENCED TO 15 YEARS TO LIFE.
FRAN GLADDEN-SMITH, JOHN'S SECOND WIFE,
HAS NEVER BEEN FOUND.
IT'S BEEN MORE THAN A DECADE
SINCE JOHN SMITH WALKED INTO HER LIFE,
AND DIANE HAS CLOSED THE BOOK ON THAT UNHAPPY CHAPTER.
BUT DESPITE EVERYTHING,
DIANE HELD FAST TO HER BELIEF IN HAPPILY EVER AFTER.
AND EIGHT YEARS AGO,
SHE FOUND IT IN HER NEW HUSBAND, ROBERT.
Beasley: WE HAVE A NEW LIFE TOGETHER.
WE LIVE HERE ALL BY OURSELVES
WITH VISITS FROM THE KIDS AND THE GRANDCHILDREN.
SO IT COULDN'T BE BETTER. IT'S PERFECT.
Narrator: TODAY DIANE SURROUNDS HERSELF
WITH GOOD FRIENDS AND FAMILY.
AND SHE FINALLY KNOWS
THAT HAPPINESS ISN'T JUST A FAIRY TALE.
YES, THERE IS HAPPILY EVER AFTER,
AND I'M LIVING PROOF OF IT.