48 Hours - Live to Tell: My Name is Victoria

Episode Date: May 14, 2017

A California woman kidnapped, tortured and left for dead reveals her extraordinary tale of survival Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices See Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.

Wondery Plus subscribers can listen to this podcast ad-free right now. Join Wondery Plus in the Wondery app today. Even if you love the thrill of true crime stories as much as I do, there are times when you want to mix it up. And that's where Audible comes in, with all the genres you love and new ones to discover. Explore thousands of audiobooks, podcasts, and originals, with more added all the time. thousands of audiobooks, podcasts, and originals, with more added all the time. Listening to Audible can lead to positive change in your mood, your habits,

and even your overall well-being. And you can enjoy Audible anytime, while doing household chores, exercising, commuting, you name it. There's more to imagine when you listen. Sign up for a free 30-day Audible trial and your first audiobook is free. Visit audible.ca. In 2014, Laura Heavlin was in her home in Tennessee when she received a call from California. Her daughter, Erin Corwin, was missing. The young wife of a Marine had moved to the California desert

to a remote base near Joshua Tree National Park. They have to alert the military. And when they do, the NCIS gets involved. From CBS Studios and CBS News, this is 48 Hours NCIS. Listen to 48 Hours NCIS ad-free starting October 29th on Amazon Music. Real people. Real crimes. Real life drama my story is evil sort of getting a taste of hell

but it's a story that needs to be told Evil. Sort of getting a taste of hell. But it's a story that needs to be told. My name is Victoria, but it's not my real name. I'm gonna take you to a really dark place. I was 19 years old. I was an absolute rocker chick. That night, I was with a few friends. We were gearing up to go out and look at Christmas lights. As I was going home that evening, I know it was just after midnight.

I was pulling into my complex. I noticed my gate was wide open. It was extremely dark in the parking lot. It was extremely dark in the parking lot, and the lights over my carport were glitching. And I thought I had heard the sound of possibly somebody coming through the gate. It was that da-da-da-da sound of tires going over like a rail. Just the sound. I had taken my dog and stuck her inside my jacket and then folded her up real tight

because it was very cold outside. And as I got out, I just had the weirdest feeling that I was being watched. And as I got up to the sidewalk, I saw a shadow go in front of a light. And as I did that, a guy just came up and fastly approached me and he kept saying excuse me excuse me I'm lost can you help me find where the beach is and then a second person comes up he had a cigarette in his hand, and I see this in slow motion in my head. I see him flicking it, and I said to myself,

Watch where it lands. And then, bam, I got pounced from the front and from the back. He slammed a gun to my head, and he's just like, in my ear, I'm going to kill you so bad, I'm gonna throw you off the cliffs. I'm gonna mutilate you and throw you down the cliffs. And I fought with everything I had in my soul to not be a missing person or to have a toe tag at the end. Victoria's story is a miraculous tale of survival. But even nearly 25 years after the attack, it's not over, which is why she's not using her real name on camera. Hot shot Australian attorney Nicola Gaba was born into legal royalty.

Her specialty? Representing some of the city's most infamous gangland criminals. Hot shot Australian attorney Nicola Gaba was born into legal royalty. Her specialty? Representing some of the city's most infamous gangland criminals. However, while Nicola held the underworld's darkest secrets, the most dangerous secret was her own. She's going to all the major groups within Melbourne's underworld and she's informing on them all. I'm Marsha Clark, host of the new podcast, Informants Lawyer X. In my long career in criminal justice as a prosecutor and defense attorney, I've seen some crazy cases, and this one belongs right at the top of the list. She was addicted to the game she had created. She just didn't know how to stop.

Now, through dramatic interviews and access, I'll reveal the truth behind one of the world's most shocking legal scandals. Listen to Informant's Lawyer X exclusively on Wondery Plus. Join Wondery Plus in the Wondery app, Apple Podcasts, or Spotify. And listen to more Exhibit C true crime shows early and ad-free right now. Have you ever wondered who created that bottle of sriracha that's living in your fridge? Or why nearly every house in America has at least one game of Monopoly? Introducing The Best Idea Yet, a brand new podcast from Wondery and T-Boy

about the surprising origin stories of the products you're obsessed with and the bold risk-takers who brought them to life. Like, did you know that Super Mario, the best-selling video game character of all time, only exists because Nintendo couldn't get the rights to Popeye? Or Jack, that the idea for the McDonald's Happy Meal first came from a mom in Guatemala? From Pez dispensers to Levi's 501s to Air Jordans, discover the surprising stories of the most viral products. Plus we guarantee that after listening you're gonna dominate your next dinner party. So follow The Best Idea Yet on the Wondery app

or wherever you get your podcasts. You can listen to The Best Idea Yet early and ad-free right now by joining Wondery Plus. It's just the best idea yet. I've been referenced as Jane Doe for many years. I just remember thinking, I don't have a toe tag. I lived through that night. I don't have a toe tag. I lived through that night.

A warning. Some of the details of Victoria's ordeal are difficult to hear. With sheer will, Victoria survived a series of terrible events, beginning with the assault on that Christmas Eve. Her attackers came out of nowhere. One she thought was Hispanic. The other an intimidating Asian man who according to Victoria

was the one calling the shots that night. Bam. I got sandwiched like a bear trap. He gouged me in the eyes as hard as he could, and he slammed a gun to my head. He tells me,

Bitch, you're going to die tonight. I'm going to effing kill you. And at that moment, my little puppy dog, who was caught in between all this, bit him so hard in the wrist, and he says, What the F was that? They both kind of broke free for a second. I threw my dog in the bushes as I ran because I didn't want her to get killed.

And then my hair got pulled back and then they both jumped on top of me and just started beating me. And he just takes his gun and he slammed it into my mouth and he takes my hair and he turns me to the side and he says, do you see that? And it was the Hispanic man with his gun pointed at the windows of my neighbors. And the Asian guy says in my ear, the first one that hears you, it's going to get their head blown off and you're going to watch. So it's your choice.

And I heard this really loud smack. What I thought to sound like maybe a bowling ball being dropped on cement. When I came to, the door was opened and they threw me in. And then he asked me where the cliffs were. Take us to the cliffs. Do we need to go to the cliffs? He's trying to get me to pick out where I'm going to be thrown to. And as we were going, I had this flash of my funeral

so I zoned out of that and I said to myself there's two guns silencers are on them and nobody knows I'm missing so it is going to be game on from this point. And I need to think of everything I can because all I have is my mind. That's my only weapon. So I'm like, there are no cliffs around here. I don't know where there are any cliffs.

there are no cliffs around here. I don't know where there are any cliffs. They ended up pulling over in front of someone's house. And the Asian guy said, bitch, take your clothes off. And he took his gun and showed me that it was loaded. And he took his gun and showed me that it was loaded. And he put that into my ear and told me not to get any ideas,

because he will have no problem splattering my brains in this car. And proceeded to rape me for the first time. proceeded to rape me for the first time. And then he proceeded to say, I needed a beach girl for my Christmas present to myself because I'm going to throw you down, I'm going to make sure the cops see you. He had a specific role for me.

And I felt like my only chance to live was to rewrite that role. Just so happens that I have in my wallet a friend of mine's newborn baby picture that she had mailed me. And I remembered saying that I had a kid. I had a baby. And you're going to let me out so I can go and see my son. And he says, bitch, you think I'm going to let you go after you've identified me? And I said, you poked my eyeballs out with contacts in them. I can't see s*** right now. And then it got real quiet. And I just thought, did they buy that? Did they buy that?

Victoria was desperately trying to gain their sympathy, yet the assault continued for what felt like hours. The two men taking turns raping her at gunpoint in the back of the car. And when things couldn't get worse, they did. The man in charge became even more sadistic. And I'm like, this guy is psychotic. He is an animal.

I just remember thinking, at this point, I would rather die than continue where I'm at right now. And he rips the door open, rips me out by my hair I'm naked he's got me with the gun to my head right here right here and so I'm on all fours like this he's telling me bitch keep your head down keep your head down Keep your head down. Keep your head down. Right as he goes to pull the trigger, the other guy throws a jacket on me real quick. And he goes,

What the f- are you doing, man? And the friend says, She's cold, man. And here I am on the ground going, oh, my God. The guy has caved. He feels something for me. And it was that pivotal moment. And he comes down to me,

and he said, one, two... By the way, bitch, Merry effing Christmas. Run. by an actual murder. Listen to Candyman, the true story behind the bathroom mirror murder, early and ad-free on Wondery Plus and the Wondery app.

In the Pacific Ocean, halfway between Peru and New Zealand, lies a tiny volcanic island. It's a little-known British territory called Pitcairn, and it harboured a deep, dark scandal. There wouldn't be a girl on Pitcairn once they reach the age of 10 that would still

have heard it. It just happens to all of us. I'm journalist Luke Jones, and for almost two years, I've been investigating a shocking story that has left deep scars on generations of women and girls from Pitcairn. When there's nobody watching, nobody going to report it, people will get away with what they can get away with. In the Pitcairn Trials, I'll be uncovering a story of abuse and the fight for justice that has brought a unique, lonely Pacific island to the brink of extinction. Listen to the Pitcairn Trials exclusively on Wondery+.

Join Wondery in the Wondery app, Apple Podcasts or Spotify. I just kept thinking, evil has crossed my path. I was kidnapped, I was tortured, and I was left for dead. By the grace of God, I knew the right words to say, and I ended up getting away. I was like, oh my God, did I really make it? Am I not in a car? Victoria was suddenly free, running for her life. A family took her in and called 911.

But before she went to the hospital, Victoria returned with investigators to the initial crime scene. They were looking for evidence. Victoria was looking for something she had left behind. I got out, and I'm calling for my dog. Chassis, chassis. And I didn't hear anything. And I'm calling for my dog, Shassy, Shassy. And I didn't hear anything. And I'm like, oh, my God, I probably killed her when I threw her. And I'm crying now because I'm thinking she's dead. And I heard this screech sound.

Yipe, yipe, yipe, yipe, yipe, yipe, like this. And I saw her, and I'm like, Chassie, come here, girl. And I look over, and these officers are at the end of the sidewalk, bawling and jumping up and down and saying, she found her, she found her. It was a perfect moment. We got to the hospital. We went into the waiting room.

You know, it was kind of all confusing because at 12 years old, I didn't understand what was happening and no one was saying anything. And all we knew is just that my sister was hurt. one of my eyes where apparently his nails had gone in and cut the backs of my eyes. I had a semi-dislocated shoulder. I had dislodged part of my hinge in my jaw. Majority of my teeth were extremely loose. I lost a lot of hearing from the head trauma. I was in so much pain that on a scale from one to ten I would have registered a thousand. I guess the way you can explain it is it took the air out of my lungs. It was just devastating. Nothing that

any child that age would have to see. She was always the strong one and always our rock and now she was made into nothing. Now she's the one that needed us. someone that needed us. They took me into hiding at my grandmother's house in Huntington Beach. I wanted a shower. I wanted to be clean. And I remembered my mom, and she just lost it. My mom couldn't do it.

It was just too hard for her. So I took her. But I just had to reassure her, it's okay, I'm going to get you clean. We're going to make you beautiful. And just, if you've ever watched a horror movie and seen a murder scene in a shower that is what it looked like all this stuff was was touching my foot my ankles like something it reminded me of when I was in the

beach that seaweed would wrap up around your ankles I was was like, what is that? What is that? What is that? She said, don't look down. Don't look down. As I washed her hair and as I tried to smooth it out, just chunks of hair came out. And by the time we were done done probably half of her hair was on the floor of the shower it had just been held on there by the blood that was in her hair. That day made me an adult. It was a nightmare and it's still a nightmare. And there's not a day that I don't think about it. My sister's so brave.

And she was so strong. And it got me through the worst day of my life, which was Christmas Eve. life, which was Christmas Eve. I was assigned Victoria's case on Christmas Eve of 1990. Well, when the case was first assigned to me, I looked at it and I realized we really had a problem here. These are two violent offenders. I felt certain that they were going to continue to assault and so I set everything else aside on my desk to work

this one. I remember sitting there and them asking me what was the shape of the brow, what was the face shape, what did their hair look like. We post the composite drawings through the news media on television. It's about any place we could distribute the composite drawings we did, hoping we get somebody to recognize them. But investigators had something else, DNA. Evidence collected from Victoria's body at the hospital and from the jacket she was wearing that night yielded profiles for two men. And there was another clue, something Victoria remembered her attackers discussing.

I know that they were saying, show the respect to Sons of Samoa and really playing into that as though they were part of that gang. And I saw a smug, self-centered psychopath. He carved SOS onto my rear end. I know I've heard of SOS before. They were a really bad gang. I thought that they had screwed up by telling her that and not killing her. I thought that was a real viable lead. I knew we'd get these guys. I was in a 90% certain range that we'd get them real quickly. Detective Howes told me people like this

who do heinous acts will slip up one day and I'll be there when that day happens. I felt like my whole life was completely dominated by this attack. And it really beat me down because I thought I survived it. And the realization was that my journey had just begun. They broke her. They broke her spirit. She just was different. She didn't smile. She didn't laugh. I remember when I would nod off to sleep.

I was back in the car again. to sleep, I was back in the car again. I would wake up screaming and I would shake like a seizure. I was in the moment every time I closed my eyes. So why would I want to close my eyes? I'd have to talk to her and talk to her to get her to realize, you're okay, you're safe, you're safe. Things that set me off would be the break of a car,

a door shutting, a phone ringing, the knocks on my door, TV, the news. Somebody passed by a window, and I heard this quick move and the shadow. They're coming to get me again. They're coming to get me again. I would double-check all the windows and doors for her over and over because she was too terrified. How in the world am I going to get past this? This one was at the top of the pile for a very long time. I thought there was enough information immediately to have these guys in jail in a few weeks. We worked at Sons of Samoa Angle for about a year. There was nothing.

There was no rumors on the street. There was no gang intel. There was no rumors on the street. There was no gang intel. There was no one matching the descriptions. So I had to come to the conclusion that it was a false lead. What didn't we have in this investigation? We did not have a license plate. We did not have fingerprints.

Nobody else saw the bad guys coming or going. What we had was a lot of nothing. But we knew we had to work the DNA. And in 1990, DNA evidence was just starting to become popular. And so we had this good DNA evidence that would tie us to somebody. We just didn't have a big enough data bank to make the connection. It was incredibly frustrating. After the days turned into weeks and turned into months... I'd have to tell her, no, we got nothing. And then years went by.

The case had gone cold and actually gone to the point to where we weren't actively doing a lot with it. Knowing that they were still out there made me fear for every single person on the street in the daytime walking amongst two demons. Because they were out there. And nobody knew who they were. For my sanity and my health,

I was going to leave the state and start over fresh. It was amazing. It felt like the weight of the world lifted off my shoulders. Eventually I made it to where it wasn't with me every day. I could sleep through a whole night. me every day. I could sleep through a whole night. I was regaining some of my inner peace, and I think with that, allowing myself to feel again. I had made a phone call to an old friend, and the day he showed up, he never left. And then I ended up having twins. It's the highlight of our lives. And one day, I received a phone call that I waited for for 18 years.

I said, yeah, we got him. We finally got a DNA hit. This was the best part of the story. Yes, yes. To know that one of them was caught. Just to confirm that she could identify him, we arranged to send the photo lineup to her. So the moment I looked at this lineup, I immediately knew. And she goes, number one, no. Number two, no. Number three, no. Number four, no. Number five was him. That's the face I see every night when I go to bed before I fall asleep.

That's the nightmare I have. I don't have to look at number six. When I saw his face, I said, you're caught. It's you, and I've caught you, and you're going to go down. Please welcome from Huntington Beach, California, Joe Sun. The name to the DNA was a man named Joseph Sun. Rather than going and hiding and staying away from the limelight, he was in the MMA.

And now he's in command on the ground. It all came together. That's why he was doing all the wrestling-type moves with me. Oh, now he's working the choke. He's got it around. He's no longer around. Joseph's son was in the DNA database only because he had a conviction after he kicked in the door of a former roommate's car. As part of his plea deal, Sun had agreed to submit his DNA. And that's what led to the hit in Victoria's case in 2008.

But investigators couldn't believe what else they found. He was an actor with a role in a Hollywood blockbuster, Austin Powers, International Man of Mystery. I had his movie sitting on my rack. I remember running over there and just destroying it because I thought, are you serious? He's in my home? So we're trying to give you your opportunity to tell us what happened that night.

I've never done anything like that. I have no idea what you're talking about. Completely denied the crime, completely denied any contact with her whatsoever. That's nasty. That wasn't me. We knew that he was lying to us. I prefer confession, but sometimes a lie is just as good. Despite Son's denials, there was that DNA. So in October 2008, he was charged with multiple counts of rape and kidnapping. And then the case was handed off to another DA, brand new to the sexual assault unit. It was my first day.

I had been on the job in sexual assault for maybe half an hour. I just pulled a case down by random, and it's the Joseph's son case. I cannot believe the horrors that this woman had to go through. This is my entire caseload. I'm never gonna survive. This is a case that you have to work for, you have to fight for, to make sure she gets justice. I was glad we had Joseph's son, but I wanted to find the second suspect.

You know he's dangerous, you know he's out there. That was my priority number one. When I got this case, it kept me up at night. this case, it kept me up at night. We had identified one of the suspects who had assaulted Victoria, and I knew there was another one out there. And that's really where I focused my initial energy. So we decided to put Joseph's son's picture out on a bulletin along with the sketch of the second assailant and we put it out to the media. We weren't getting anything, I mean nothing.

And we were going, come on, somebody has to know this guy. And then a couple of days into it, we get an email from a man who wanted to be anonymous. He told us he didn't know anything about the crime, but he knew Joseph's son in high school, and he knew one of Joseph's friends, and the sketch looked a lot like that friend. It's a couple months of hard detective work, and they were able to put together a very good profile

about who this individual was and where he was living. And his name was Santiago Gaetan. We still need to identify him. We still have DNA evidence for the second offender, so we need to get his DNA and compare that. Two Huntington Beach detectives set up surveillance outside of his apartment complex. They were there for maybe 30 minutes, and they saw Santiago Gaitan walking out of his apartment, drinking a bottle of Sunkissed Soda, and throwing out the trash. Finishes his last drink from the bottle

and puts it on top of the dumpster. The detectives get out of the car. They grab the bottle. They bag it. They grab the trash. They take that with them. And what do you know? It was a DNA match. So Santiago Gaitan is arrested. That was the best night's sleep of my life. Mr. Gaitan had minimal criminal history. He had moved out of state and essentially

had tried to start a new life for himself. He had a wife, he had a couple of children. He was like anyone else you might meet. So we've identified the suspects. Now is when the real work begins. Anytime you have a case that's 18 years old, you know there's the potential for things to go wrong. Memories fade, evidence gets lost. So I wanted to make sure that I dotted my I's and I crossed

my T's. Let's get ready. Let's get ready for trial. But things did go wrong, very wrong. Deputy DA Scarborough made a sickening discovery. It had taken police so long to track down the suspects, the statute of limitations for rape and kidnapping had run out. It was like my stomach had hit the floor. There was the very real likelihood that we were going to have to dismiss the case and they were going to walk out of the courthouse scot-free.

Oh, my God. I spent the weekend looking for different ideas and different angles. I reread through the entire case file. And so a light went off. Why don't I charge torture? There was no other way to describe the defendant's conduct other than they had tortured her.

Because torture carries the possibility of life imprisonment, there is no statute of limitations. There was still going to be an opportunity to bring Victoria justice. One of my absolute best days. Bar none. Santiago Gaitan's attorney ultimately approaches me and says his client is willing to plead guilty. I agreed that a plea deal would be acceptable, but he needed to confess what he did.

He confessed to everything. And they gave him 17 years. Son decided that he wanted to go to trial. He wasn't going to confess to anything. Then let's get ready to go. An actor from the Austin Powers movies goes on trial in Orange County this week for charges of a violent rape.

The trial took place in August of 2011. Victoria was essential to this prosecution. I had a job to do. My job was to put away what I considered one of the biggest monsters ever. I was terrified for my sister because I knew that she was going to have to see him. My biggest concern about going in the courtroom was making eye contact.

I didn't want him to be able to wink at me or do anything that would give him the sensation that he was doing something to me again. So I didn't allow him eye contact. The testimony was heart-wrenching to hear. The jurors were horrified. And they needed to hear every single detail. There were jurors who had tears in their eyes. There wasn't a dry eye in the whole courtroom.

Joseph's son did not testify during the trial. At various times throughout the case, he would attempt to yell out, that's a lie, they're making this up. When I was waiting for the jury to make their decision, up. When I was waiting for the jury to make their decision, in my head I thought, was everybody affected? Did they believe me?

Did they see the evidence? DNA is DNA. There are no guarantees in a jury trial. What if 99% of them feel one way and one doesn't. The jury deliberated for a few hours before they reached the verdict. He was guilty. Guilty of torture. I just thought,

he's son of a bitch. Now you're the one who has your hands behind your back. Have a little taste of my life and what you put me through. Joseph's son was sentenced to seven years to life in prison, which meant that theoretically he would one day be eligible for parole. But then just one month later, guards made a gruesome discovery. No one was safe around Joseph's son. No one's safe. In my career, I have dealt with what I think is some of the worst of the worst that humanity

has produced. Joseph's son, I think, deserves a place at the top of that list. Joseph's son was convicted and sentenced. He was transported to state prison. Within a very short time of being there, he murdered his cellmate. The fact that the cellmate died of punches, kicks, and blows,

it just sounded exactly like the person that I was with that night who did the same thing to me. Under California law, if you're serving a life term in prison and you kill somebody in prison, that could be a death penalty trigger. And so it would be possible for them to file a death penalty case against Joseph's son for this. And if so, Victoria would need to come

and testify at the sentencing to say this is the crime he committed against me. He's bad enough a guy to warrant that level of punishment. Honestly, in the very beginning, I didn't think he deserved to live. But there was a lot more to it than that that I had to think about. I didn't know if I had enough energy

to do this battle. I understood they wanted to put him to death. I mean, he killed somebody. He tried to kill me. He's an animal. But I just felt at the end of the day that I was done. I had a life to live. And I wasn't interested anymore. So prosecutors dropped the death penalty for Joseph's son's upcoming trial. But Victoria's ordeal was still not over. It's hard to believe, but once again, she found herself in a fight for her life.

I had noticed in May of 2014 that I wasn't feeling that great. I shared with my husband that, and he said, get to the doctor immediately. He just had a bad feeling. I was diagnosed with advanced breast cancer. diagnosed with advanced breast cancer. I think you, for a minute or so, lose your faith. That why is this happening to my sister so many times? Why is she being attacked in different ways?

Why can't she just have a beautiful happy life? Why now does this have to come in? I needed to get in immediately and start getting treatment. When she got diagnosed I told her I'm gonna shave my head because I didn't want her to go through it alone and I wanted to make her feel that I supported her. To shave your head for someone in my heart meant that I'm traveling with you. It made me feel like I wasn't the only bald person in the room. And it made me feel like I wasn't the only bald person in the room.

And it made me feel like I had someone like me there. I've managed to bounce back pretty good. I'm in remission. And I'm just going to stay in that light for as long as it allows me to. She has that something in her that allows her to bounce back, even when bad things happen to her. It's quite remarkable of her to do that. I don't know if it's in her DNA or in her karma or in her personality,

the way she was raised, I have no idea. For her to not only survive, but to survive well and do well it's a miracle it's miraculous stuff I chose the name Victoria because I find that it's more rewarding and more healing to be called Victoria, because it was a victory. It was an epic victory. There is happiness after tragedy. It's okay to be happy again. I've had my kids, we're in a good place,

I'm healthy again. And I rock out every chance I get. Joseph's son's trial is scheduled for later this year. Santiago Gaitan could be paroled as early as 2018 In 2016, Victoria became a grandmother for the first time If you like this podcast, you can listen ad-free right now by joining Wondery Plus in the Wondery app. Before you go, tell us about yourself by filling out a quick survey at wondery.com slash survey.