Cold Case Files - The Deadly Triangle

Episode Date: March 12, 2024

A prison inmate looking to make a deal doesn’t have the information investigators are looking for. What he does have, information that will help solve a 15 year old murder and expose a love triangle turned deadly. Sponsors: Progressive: Progressive.com  Shopify - Sign up for a one-dollar-per-month trial period at Shopify.com/coldcase and take your retail business to the next level today! 

Life can be seen as such a gift when you're staring death in the eyes. He's probably six inches from my face, and then he aimed at my head, emptied out the three or four more bullets. Unbelievable tales from everyday people that narrowly escaped their demise. He said, here's what we're going to do. You're going to pick A or B, and if you pick the right one, you'll live, and if you pick the wrong one, you'll die. Stories from real-life survivors. And these sharks are around here, and they circle around the boat that whole day. What's going to happen? Are we going to be alive the next day, or are we going to be fish food? A podcast on how terrifying life can get.

He repeatedly told me that if I told anybody that he would kill me and my family members. Listen to the I Survived podcast to hear how tragedy turns into triumph. There's a point where your mind kind of takes over and you find out you're a lot stronger than you are. I Survived is available now, wherever you get your podcasts. There was absolutely zip physical evidence. If I didn't say something, nobody was going to. And the first thing he said is, I've been waiting for you guys for 17 years.

I understand you'd like to talk to us about Walter Brown. Yes, sir. From A&E, this is Cold Case Files, the podcast. In today's Cold Case File, we visit a jail cell in Everett, Washington, where a man about to be dealt his stretch in prison decides to play one last card in hopes of a deal. He spins a yarn for police about a murder for hire, 16 years cold. Our story opens on a spit of land between the San Diego Bay and the Pacific Ocean, known as the Silver Strand. On November 29, 1980, at the southern tip of San Diego Bay, sailboats give way to salt flats in a thin strip of highway called the Silver Strand, a remote setting less than ideal for a young

couple with car trouble. This is Maria Ruiz. My husband and I were driving down Silver Strand going towards Coronado when he started hearing a funny noise in the car. So he thought he should pull over and check it out. While he was doing that, I started staring out to the water. And that's when I realized there was something out there floating that looked like a body. A few feet into the salt flats, a dead man lies face down in a puddle. Maria calls the police. Thirty minutes later, Coronado Police Detective J.R. O'Hara arrives on the scene. And because of the state the victims went in,

I thought perhaps that it was a robbery, that he'd been robbed and rolled. I believe the pockets were turned inside out on his pants, and he had no identification at all. O'Hara notices the man's belt buckle has a Navy insignia. He runs the John Doe's prints through naval records and comes up with a match.

The dead man is ID'd as Walter Brown, a 44-year-old former Navy seaman and father of three. O'Hara also discovers that Brown's wife, Glenna, had filed a missing persons report three days after her husband's body was found. O'Hara wonders if the grieving wife might not be a good place to start his investigation. On December 11, 1980, Detective O'Hara takes a taped statement from Glenna Brown. Mrs. Brown tells him that just prior to her husband's death, their marriage was in serious trouble.

He had a lot of problems with drinking and stuff, and it was just getting from bad to worse. And we had talked about a divorce Friday, the day after Thanksgiving. Later that evening, according to Glenna, Walter Brown left their home for the last time. He said he was going to go ride around. He had a lot of thinking to do. And I says, okay. And then the last thing he said to me before he left, I hope you sleep better than you did last. While Glenna Brown appears to be distraught over her husband's death, experience tells O'Hara tears don't always walk hand in hand with the truth.

His skepticism is rewarded when O'Hara runs a background check on Mrs. Brown. She had been interviewed by a sheriff's deputy a month or two before the homicide in the company of this guy named Chinchillas. Chinchillas is 20-year-old John Corday Chinchillas. According to police reports, he was found in the backseat of a car engaged in lewd behavior with Glenna Brown. We interviewed him also to find out what was going on. First he said he was just a friend of the family's and didn't know much.

And then finally he said that Glenna was confiding in him because Brown was abusive and a drunk and so on and so forth. And that she needed a shoulder to cry on and that he was available, this kind of thing. Could Glenna Brown have conspired with her young lover to kill Walter Brown? Jerry O'Hara's gut tells him absolutely. You just get kind of a gut feeling about something, and my gut feeling was that they were somehow, the wife and this guy Chinchillas, were somehow involved in the homicide, but there was, you know, no way to prove it. There was absolutely zip physical evidence. O'Hara questions Glenna Brown and Chinchilla several times, but the two hang tough. Just over a year later, a life insurance check is cut to the widow for more than $100,000.

Mrs. Brown buys a ranch in Boulevard, California and settles her family there. Meanwhile, with no new evidence, the investigation into her husband's death goes cold. Sixteen years later, in Everett, Washington, it's Wednesday morning, and business as usual for homicide detective Steve Kaiser. After clearing his desk of paperwork, Kaiser sits down with a convict named Jesse Reyes. The detective believes Reyes might rat on his cellmate, a suspected murderer, for a deal in his own case. After a few minutes of conversation, Kaiser realizes Reyes knows nothing about his cellmate's case. The detective is about

to end the interview when Reyes shifts gears and begins to jaw about another homicide, an old one that never got solved. So he started saying, I know something about this 15 year old murder happening in San Diego and would that help me? And I said, well you'll have to give me a little more information than just that so I can track the information down and see if what you're telling me is true and then I can get back to you. Jesse Reyes tells Kaiser about Walter Brown's body found in the salt flats outside Coronado in 1980, and the bare bones of a love triangle gone bad.

The woman had a boyfriend, and the woman and the boyfriend conspired together, I believe, to kill the husband. Kaiser puts Reyes in a holding cell and places a call to the Coronado Police Department. Sergeant Jeff Hutchins catches the call. I came down to our old case files cabinet, dug through and found a 1980 homicide with Walter Brown. He had given me a couple other names involved. Looked briefly through the case file.

A lot of what Jesse initially just briefly told him was staring right at me in the police reports. Hi, Jesse. My name is Jeff Hutchins from the Coronado Police Department. Okay. I understand you'd like to talk to us about Walter Brown. Yes, sir. Watson and Holmes, Cagney and Lacey, the Hardy Boys. What about the perfect partners when it comes to growing your business? That's you and Shopify. Shopify is the global commerce platform

that helps you sell at every stage of your business, from the launch your online shop stage to the first real life store stage, all the way to the, did we just hit a million dollars stage? Shopify is there to help you grow. Whether you're selling sleuthing supplies or marketing mystery merch, Shopify helps there to help you grow. Whether you're selling sleuthing supplies or marketing mystery merch, Shopify helps you sell everywhere from their all-in-one e-commerce platform to their

in-person POS system. Whatever and wherever you're selling, Shopify's got you covered. Shopify helps you turn browsers into buyers with the internet's best converting checkout, up to 36% better compared to other leading commerce platforms, and sell more with less effort thanks to Shopify magic, your AI-powered all-star. The best thing about Shopify is no matter how big you want to grow, Shopify gives you everything you need to take control and take your business to the next level. Shopify powers 10% of all e-commerce in the U.S. and Shopify is the global force behind Allbirds, Rothy's, and Brooklinen, and millions of other entrepreneurs of every size across 175 countries. Plus, Shopify's extensive help resources are there to support your success every step of the way, because businesses that grow, grow with Shopify.

Sign up for a $1 per month trial period at shopify.com slash coldcase, all lowercase. Go to shopify.com slash coldcase now to grow your business no matter what stage you're in. shopify.com slash coldcase. Cold Case Files is brought to you by Progressive Insurance. Hey, Cold Case Files listeners, whether you love true crime or comedies, celebrity interviews, news, or even motivational speakers, you call the shots on what's in your podcast queue, right? And guess what? Now you can call the shots on your auto insurance too. Enter the Name Your Price tool from Progressive. The Name Your Price tool puts you in charge of your auto insurance by working just the way it sounds.

You tell Progressive how much you want to pay for car insurance. Then they'll show you a variety of coverages that fit within your budget, giving you options. Now that's something you'll want to press play on. It's easy to start a quote, and you'll be able to choose the best option for you fast. It's just one of the many ways you can save with Progressive Insurance. Quote today at Progressive.com to try the Name Your Price tool for yourself and join the over 28 million drivers who trust Progressive. Progressive Casualty Insurance Company & Affiliates. Price and coverage match limited by state law. And I didn't think after 16 years they were ever going to figure it out.

And if I didn't say something, nobody was going to. And Walter didn't deserve it. In 1980, Jesse Reyes was a 16-year-old runaway living at the Brown family home. According to Reyes, Walter's wife, Glenna Brown, and her 20-year-old lover, John Corday Chinchillas, talked openly and often about killing Walter Brown. Walter was going to divorce Glenna, and she was worried about not being able to support the kids or keep the house. She didn't really have any job skills, so she didn't know how she was going to support herself.

According to Jesse Reyes, Glenna told Chinchillas there was a way out of her financial difficulties, over $100,000 worth of life insurance in her husband's name. Of course, for that financial plan to work, Walter Brown needed to be dead. At first, it just seemed like it was, you know, some little fantasy that we're talking about, but as the time drew closer,

you could tell they were serious about it. The murder was set for the evening of Friday, November 28th. According to Reyes, Chinchilla's plan was to lure Brown to a remote location with a phone call and then kill him with the help of an unidentified third man. Jesse Reyes decided to intercept the call and stop the murder before it can begin. I sat on the phone for about two hours

waiting for John to call Walter and ask him to come out and help him with this flat tire. And I answered the phone, and it was John. I told him Walter wasn't there. Then the other phone was answered, and it was Glenna. She told him that Walter was there and went and got Walter. Walter Brown walked out of his house and was never seen alive again.

The following morning, John Chinchillas showed up at the Brown house bearing gifts. When Walter didn't come back and John pulls up and he's got flowers and gifts and money, you know, I knew he'd done it. A month later, Jesse Reyes packed his bags and hit the road. Sixteen years later, he tells his story to the Coronado police. Jesse, what did you tell the detectives at the time? Reyes' statement produces three suspects, Glenna Brown, John Corday Chinchillas, and an unidentified accomplice.

Cold case detectives begin to hunt them down. In 1997, at the Coronado Police Department, John Chinchillas is the first and easiest suspect to find. Still a resident of San Diego County, Chinchillas is questioned at the Coronado Police Department by Detective Eric Jaima and District Attorney Investigator Edward Sergat. He claimed, of course, he had nothing to do with the murder. And he came in of his own free will. He was not in custody. And we told him he was not in custody

when we were speaking to him. We said, thank you for coming in. And we chatted for two hours. The night Walter left, he got a phone call. What do you know about that phone call? I don't remember the phone call. I don't. OK, no phone call at all?

I don't remember. I don't know. I don't. Okay, no phone call at all? I don't remember. Okay. Later on that evening, you met Walter somewhere, whether it was a bar or a pay phone or something like that. I met him. Did that ring a bell with him? No. Two hours later, Chinchilla still has not given anything up.

The suspect then tells detectives he wants to take a break from the questioning. Two hours later, Chinchilla still has not given anything up. The suspect then tells detectives he wants to take a break from the questioning. Detective Jaima had been leading the questioning at the time. I want to go back home right now. I want to think about what had happened in the past. You know where I'm at. You know I can't remember anywhere. At that point, we knew we had enough probable cause to arrest him, and we told him so. Okay, what I'm going to do is, at this point, I'm going to arrest you for the murder of Mr. Brown. Okay, we've got no choice at this point, because everything you just told us is totally contradictory to three other people.

Once backed into a corner, Chininchillas changes his story placing himself at the scene of the murder but with no involvement in the actual killing at that point he tells us that yes he was involved he tells us that it was this other individual named chris a friend of his that plans it was solicited for it and does the whole thing. What did Chris say to you, or how did Chris get you to be involved? Trying to convince Walter to do the whole thing? The audio quality of Surgat's taped interrogation is difficult to understand. Chinchillas responds to his question, saying, quote, Basically what would happen, Chris would try to convince Walter to get a divorce or

leave or straighten his act out. And would I be willing to help him? And I said, yeah, I'm the kind of person to always help people. Helping people, however, doesn't usually involve leaving them for dead in a California mudflat. If you were just going to talk to him, John, why would you have to have him go to Imperial Beach and have this elaborate room where the car broke down? Why didn't you just talk to him there before walking down the sidewalk? You know, whatever you guys are trying to get out of me, fine. We're asking you. We're asking you.

And I keep on telling you guys over and over, you guys are trying to trick me into something. Why not? Which is fine and dandy. Whatever you guys want. I'm already sitting in jail. My life is already gone. Detectives press for the name of the man Chinchillas claims actually killed Brown. Two hours later, Chinchillas coughs up the name. What's that? The hospital. Who's that? Who is? the name. Chris Wahoski, the last link in the chain of rats tied together to a murder. 16 years gone cold. A warrant check provides an address for Wachowski,

one that takes this investigation to the deep south. In a dusty Alabama town, two California detectives sit down with Chris Wachowski and begin to talk about murder. In 1980, a person by the name of Walter Brown was murdered. And as soon as I said that, I noticed his carotid artery started pounding in his neck. Then he started to sweat and he started to shake. And the first thing he said is, I've been waiting for you guys for 17 years. Chris Wachoski tells detectives he was recruited for the murder by John Chinchillas and Glenna Brown

and then goes on to surprise them with the details of a failed first attempt at killing Walter Brown. They were going to give me $100,000 to go in and just off the guy. According to Wachoski, John Chinchillas and Glenna Brown drove him to Walter's mobile home in Long Beach, gave him a buck knife, and instructed him to kill Walter Brown.

Wahoski, however, got cold feet. I knocked on the door, and the guy opened the door, and it was just so awkward. I couldn't do anything. I mean, as soon as I started talking to him, I liked the guy, I felt sorry for him. Two weeks later, Wahoski gets his nerve back and tries again. This time, John Chinchillas joins him.

According to Wahoski, the pair lures Brown out to a deserted stretch of the Silver Strand Highway. Once again, the audio quality of the tape recordings is difficult to understand. Wahoski describes the attack, saying, quote, There was a struggle, and Walter started coming, running towards me. And John said, get him. And I just jumped out, and I swung the wine bottle, hit him in the head, knocked him down. I stood back and then John jumped on him with the knife and he just kept on stabbing him.

After 17 years, two people have confessed to their involvement in Walter Brown's murder. Now cold case detectives set their sight on the final person they believe to be involved in the killing, Walter Brown's wife and beneficiary, Glenna Brown. In March of 1998, Deputy District Attorney Blaine Bauman of San Diego, California charges Glenna Brown with murder. Eight months later, her trial is about to begin. Everyone involved in this investigation felt that there were three people who

were responsible for this killing. And we want to make sure that all three ultimately paid the price. Unlike Chinchillas and Wahoski, the case against Mrs. Brown is not so neat. She can't be placed at the scene of the crime and is smart enough to admit she had talked to John Chinchillas about killing her husband. Brown, however, claims it was just that, talk, and that Chinchillas acted on his own. But I did not know that he was going

to kill him that night. I didn't. Prosecutors counter with Jesse Reyes, who paints Brown as the femme fatale, pushing Chinchilla's buttons and walking him to the very edge of murder. It was talked about freely for two weeks before it happened. We had Jesse Reyes saying that he overheard this plan to kill Walter Brown, and then we have what happened after the crime.

They collected approximately $125,000 in insurance money. She did use that money to treat her and John Chinchillas to a fairly decent lifestyle where neither one of them had to actually work. And what should have been a red flag to anybody was Chinchillas and the widow moved in together. And they lived together for 13 years. How can you not remember John providing him with a buck knife

and telling him to go in there and slit his throat? On the eve of her trial, Glenna Brown folds, pleading guilty to second-degree murder and drawing a term of 15 years. John Chinchillas pleads guilty to first degree murder and receives a sentence of 25 years to life. In exchange for his cooperation, Chris Wachoski receives a 15-year sentence. After 18 years, the first cold case reopened by the Coronado Police Department is finally put to rest.

I've been in this business a long time, and one of the most satisfying things you can do is catch somebody who thinks they got away with something. One of the really gratifying things to do on this earth is to catch somebody that's killed another human being. The Walter Brown case was the first cold case ever reopened by the Coronado Police Department. Because of its success, the department decided to take another look at two other unsolved homicides.

After investigation, Detective Eric Haima solved his second cold case. The third cold case is still being investigated. Thanks for listening to the Cold Case Files podcast from A&E. Cold Case Files is hosted by Marissa Pinson, produced by Jeff DeRay, and distributed by Podcast One.

The Cold Case Files TV series was produced by Curtis Productions and hosted by Bill Curtis. Check out more Cold Case Files at series was produced by Curtis Productions and hosted by Bill Curtis. Check out more Cold Case Files at A&E TV.com. CSI, Star Trek, or The Price is Right, well, The Price is Right, it's free. Hit movies like Braveheart, Sonic the Hedgehog, Anchorman, The Legend of Ron Burgundy, or Mean Girls won't cost you a thing because everything is free. All you have to do is download the app, which, by the way, is also free.

Pluto TV, stream now, pay never.