True Crime with Kimbyr - Part 1: Sisters Killed After Sneaking On Abandoned Bridge At Night -Tragic Murder of Julie & Robin Kerry

Episode Date: November 24, 2025

In this gripping episode of True Crime with Kimbyr, Kimbyrleigha unravels the haunting final moments of sisters Julie and Robin Kerry, whose late-night visit to an abandoned bridge ended in unimaginable tragedy. Why did a simple adventure become a deadly encounter? What really happened on that isolated span in the dark? Through compassionate analysis and detailed research, this episode explores the sisters’ bond, the eerie setting, and the chilling events that followed. Join True Crime with Kimbyr as we seek answers buried beneath fear, betrayal, and the shadows of the night. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

It was just before 2 a.m. on April 5th in 1991, and the semi-truck was going down Riverview Drive in St. Louis, Missouri. The driver was scanning the road ahead of him in the darkness, and that is when he saw him. A young man, he was barefoot shivering, and his clothes were drenched in water and covered in river mud. He was stumbling along the side of this quiet road, and his face was in a panic as the headlights illuminated him in the darkness.

He was frantic. He was waving both of his arms. He was signaling for help, with the last bit of energy he had left. The trucker rolled down his window, and he's like, what's wrong? And the young man told him, I need help. My cousins, they were attacked on the bridge.

Now, the trucker wasn't sure what to make about this, but he didn't hesitate. He didn't even ask for more details. He knew enough. He knew that this man needed help, and he promised to find a pay phone and call the police. And then he drove off, leaving this young man alone again in the darkness.

The minutes went to the minute by so slowly, like time was just standing still. And then finally, blue and red lights came into view. Police cruisers arrived and their tires crunched against the gravel. The uniformed officers stepped out and they're looking at this young man. Own it all. Pay off your home. Travel for life. Drive a Ferrari. In celebration of the world premiere of the Monopoly Big Board Bucks slot machine by Aristocrat Gaming, Yamava Resort and Casino at San Manuel is giving one person a $1.6 million dream package. The biggest prize in Yamava's history. Club Serrano members can earn daily instant prizes and secure a spot in the finale May 29.

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shaking, his hands were trembling as he pointed back towards this vast Mississippi River and the chain of Rock's bridge that stretched across it. That's where it happened. Where what happened? They didn't know yet. It was hard to make out what this man was saying because he was so panicked. It was all coming out in fragments. It was something about him being a firefighter sneaking out at night, not being from the area,

and then his cousins, two college girls being attacked on the bridge. Why was he wet? Where were the girls? And who was this guy? Hi everyone, welcome back to my channel. If you've never been here before, I'm Kimberlea. It's nice to finally meet you. I really want to get into you. into today's case because I want you to pay close attention to the facts in this case.

It's one that kind of kept me up a night thinking about the discrepancies, thinking about theories, thinking about what really happened, and that is enough to make my head spin. So I want to get your opinions because you're also smart, you're insightful, I read all your comments, even if I don't reply. And I feel like a lot of you can be actual detectives in real life. So I like to get your perspective. But you really have to pay attention because there's a lot going on. in this case. It is solved, but I just think it's interesting and when you start to hear all the

things I'm going to tell you about, I think you're going to understand what I mean. So let me take you back to that roadside in the middle of the night on April 5th of 1991. A detective sergeant Dan Nichols of the St. Louis Metropolitan Police Department arrived on the scene shortly after 3 a.m. The location was Riverview Drive in front of the water treatment plant about a mile from the chain of Rocks Bridge. The young man that flagged down the that semi-truck was 19-year-old Thomas Cummins. He was a firefighter with the Montgomery County Fire and Rescue in Maryland. Now, Tom's story came out in fragments at first. He was urgent. His words were coming out faster than he could organize them. And he started from the beginning because detectives were like,

slow down. What is going on? He said that him and his family, his mother Kay and his father, Gene, and his two sisters, 16-year-old Janine and 15-year-old Kathy, were celebrating spring break with a family trip to see their cousins, 20-year-old Julie, 19-year-old Robin, and 9-year-old Jamie. The Commons family is from Washington, D.C., and they were staying with their grandpa on Fair Acres Road, which was about 10 minutes away. His father's sister, Virginia, known as Ginny, was his cousin's mom, and she also lived about 10 minutes away off Petit Drive. So now the detectives had the basics. The family was visiting together for a spring break. Got it. Tom explained that that night, before they were enjoying,

one of the last nights together before their long drive back to Washington the next day. He didn't want the night to end. And his older cousins, Julian Robin, wanted him to come out and get some coffee and hang out at Denny's. Denny's. He used to be open like 24 hours a day. This was the 90s. I remember going to Denny's. So we asked his dad if he could go.

But he said, no. He said, we have way too much to do to prepare for the early drive the next morning. But Tom, he's 19. He's a little rebellious teen. and he really saw no harm in hanging out with his own cousins, so at least he convinced his dad to let him sleep out in the van instead of the house. But what he had in mind was to wait for Julie to drive over with Robin and pick him up and then go to Denny's.

So she pulled up in her Chevy Chavette around 11 p.m. But now that they had the whole night to hang out, since he's no longer asking for permission, he's asking for forgiveness if it gets caught, the three of them decided on a totally different plan. They wanted to visit the Chain of Rock's Bridge. And this was a place that the girls loved. A place where they actually painted a huge poem on the concrete. It was about unity. It said, united we stand, divided we fall.

It's not a black or white thing. We're in a new generation and we take a stand. So they drove over to the bridge, to the parking lot, they got out and they proceeded to go and see it on the bridge. It was just supposed to be a quick midnight trip. Nothing unusual. That is until, Till Tom said they were attacked.

He said while they were out on the bridge in the darkness, a group of men who seemed friendly at first came up and started talking to them. One of them even smoked a cigarette with them. Another one actually showed them how you can climb through a manhole. I'm going to explain this in a minute. Inside the bridge on the deck. And another one called out saying he lost his flashlight. So if they saw it, let him know.

And then they left and they were heading in the opposite direction. But at some point, they come back. And that's when everything changed. Tom explained that the men surrounded them. One of them grabbed him and they said, this is a robbery. And they forced him to the ground. They said, don't look up or I will kill you. Then they took Julian Robin.

And at this point, you know, Tom is telling the story and he's frantic. He can hardly speak. His voice keeps cracking. And he was sobbing as he described hearing the screams from his cousins. and the entire struggle they went through. They were being attacked. He said that he heard his cousins begging and crying

as these men were forcing themselves on them one by one. And Tom was just laying on the bridge. He felt helpless. He was listening and he couldn't do anything. And then at one point, one of the men came back over, took his wallet, and then he opens it and sees a badge. It was his firefighter badge, but they accused him of being a cop. and their threats got even worse.

They told him, we know where you live because they saw his ID, and they said, if you tell anyone what we're doing, if you tell anyone anything, will come after you. Tom told the police that eventually, these men forced him down a manhole

on the bridge, and there was a steel platform suspended really high above the river, right under the road. And when he got down there, he saw Julian Robin. They were not clothed, and they were terrified.

And he joined them, and he was trying to comfort them, he was trying to hold on to them, and they were crowded on this narrow part of a ledge under the bridge about 60 feet above the dark water. And then came the moment that would haunt him for the rest of his life. This is what happened. What he was talking about, not only were his cousins attacked and begging, but out of nowhere. One of these men reached out and they pushed Julie off of the platform.

Her body disappeared into the darkness and then before he could do anything, his other cousin Robin was pushed. And then he could hear their screams just vanishing as they fell into the river. And this river was moving very fast. And that's when they turned to Tom, and they told him jump or get shot. And he jumped.

He hit the water really hard, and the current pulled him under, and when he surfaced, he saw Julie. He said he saw her for a moment. That's when she grabbed onto him, but then they sank down together. But Tom was able to kick free, and he wrote.

rose up again to the surface, but that's when he realized that Julie was gone. And now he was alone. He was in shock and he was freezing, but he just kept swimming towards the shore. He pulled himself up the riverbank and then he found the building and he stumbled towards the road and he was desperate for help flagging down a truck. Now, as Tom was recounting this horrific, horrific night, detectives began to question everything he was saying. You know, they're kind of skeptical at this point. They're like, okay, because we'll get there, why they were a little bit skeptical. But his fingers were pruned and looked like he had been in the water for a long time. His clothes were soaked.

His eyes were bloodshot. But then they noticed something weird. His hair was dry. And it was neatly combed. And that didn't make sense. How could he have come out of the Mississippi with his hair untouched? So the story was unbelievable, as in they actually didn't believe it. So at this point, it was too dark to venture back out onto the bridge.

So they brought Tom back to the station where they had him go over a story a few more times. And then in the morning, when it was daybreak, they actually filmed a recorded video as a reenactment where you can see Tom with a coffee in hand right next to Sergeant Nichols, showing him where it happened, where he said the girls were attacked, and then he showed him the open manhole,

where he said he was forced to drop down and where Julie and Robin were pushed. Now, though the story still seemed very far-fetched, at least they had Tom's statement. They had the location. But they didn't have Julie and they didn't have Robin. Not yet. The Mississippi River is wide and it's unforgiving and the girls were out there somewhere and they were lost. And soon, officer showed up at Tom's grandpa's house that morning and they told his family

that there had been an incident involving Tom, Julie, and Robin. The word incident really stood out, especially to say, senior old Janine, the cop didn't say accident. He used the word incident. But then he wouldn't elaborate any further, and he wouldn't let them know if their loved ones were safe and where they were. But they were involved in an incident,

and it involved the chain of Rock's Bridge. And the news got to Julian Robbins' mom, Ginny, and the family made their way out to the scene shortly afterward, hoping that somehow the girls were still alive. But no one knew that this was just the beginning of their nightmare. But before their names were etched into the pages of one of St. Louis's most horrifying crimes, Julie and Robin Carey were known for their compassion, their creativity,

and a rare kind of emotional depth that touched everyone who knew them. They were not just sisters. They were best friends. They were intellectual. They were advocates for change in a world that didn't always seem ready for change. It was the early 90s, and a shift was starting to happen in our society. The girls were born to Richard and Virginia, Carrie. Julie came into the world on December 16th of 1970, followed by Robin on January 27th of 1972. They were raised in a modest ranch-style home on Petit Drive in Spanish Lake, a quiet suburb in North St. Louis County, Missouri.

They carry home with full of warmth, imagination, and a deep sense of family. The girls were two of three sisters with their youngest sister, Jamie, completing the family. Their early years were spent attending St. Jerome's Elementary School, where their teachers quickly noted their intelligence and, quiet kindness. Later, they both moved on to Hazelwood East High School, where they continued to excel academically. They weren't the loudest in the room, but they left an impression on everyone. Both girls made the honor roll consistently, with their teachers often calling them dream students. Julie, the oldest, had a natural confidence about her. She was barely five feet tall and just over 100 pounds, with a head full of Auburn curls that swept her shoulders. She had

bright green eyes and a friendly smile. When she enrolled at the University of Missouri and St. Louis, in the fall of 1989, she majored in English and was quickly recognized as a standout in her department. Her English professor would later call her the most promising poet he ever taught, and that wasn't hyperbole. Julie had already published two poems in the university's literary magazine. They were raw, vivid, and they were full of meaning. One of these poems was called a poet's love song, and this is what it read in part, quote, amidst the early morning lovers, beneath a newborn sun, we sat on park benches

in the dark. We, whose dormant hearts suffered the cold, surviving on tired manuscripts and dog-eared love letters, we saw it coming. We used to wait for it in cozy cafes and prophesies with our pens on paper napkins, color it with chalk

on city sidewalks." And quote, Julie's words would just come alive on the page. She was honest, observant, and not afraid to feel deeply. In her second published piece called undertow, she described the experience of being trapped in a rushing current. It read in part, picture yourself, a thousand tiny pebbles rushing downstream in the current that presses your skin against huge jagged rocks. As frightening as you are frightened, remember that the undertow

can take you in so easily. Now, those lines would later haunt her loved ones. It was like a prophecy. Now, Robin was a year behind her sister, and she joined the University of Minnesota. in St. Louis in 1990. Now, she pursued French and German with the goal of becoming a translator. And like Julie, she had a gift with words. She was quiet and more reserved than her big sister, but she expressed herself

powerfully through poetry and visual art. Robin was known for a striking sense of style. She loved vintage clothing. She often wore black and embraced her individuality. She was about the same size as her older sister, petite with blue eyes and straight, shiny brown hair that barely came up to her chin, but she wore it in a heavy part to one side except for one small skinny braid of hair that she never cut.

And it draped over her right ear and hung down her back almost to her waist. It was very unique and it definitely made her stand out. It was a piece of her past that she held on to. She was also a vegetarian, which reflected her commitment to living consciously. Her humor was dry, often sarcastic, and it definitely caught people off guard from time to time. She had a way of delivering one-liners that would leave you laughing, but also kind of questioning what she meant by that because she had a little bit of dry humor. But she rarely sought the spotlight.

And the bond between the Carrie Sisters was one that could never be broken. Even if they did have their occasional arguments as sisters, they were truly best friends. They loved spending time together. They loved listening to Sheenade O'Connor, watching the Dead Poet Society, or dreaming about how they were going to change the world. and they believed they could. The message from the film that they love so much, Carpe Diem, seized the day,

was a mantra that they actually took to heart. Their bedroom walls were decorated with peace signs, handwritten quotes, and calls for social justice. One of the quotes read, Who said you can't change the world? And this wasn't just decoration. It was a belief that they held too firmly. Julie once marched in Washington, D.C. to protest

for individuals without homes who were living on the streets. When her friends asked what she would do if she ever won the lottery, she answered without even hesitating that she would open an apartment building for people that were unhoused. She would help them get job training and it would be a place where they could heal. And despite her only having a part-time job and very limited income, Julie and Robin both donated to Amnesty International and Greenpeace. They volunteered at the Salvation Army Family Haven. They would tutor first graders in downtown St. Louis.

And they didn't just talk about helping. they actually helped. And in 1987, their world shifted because their parents got divorced. Ginny had been a stay-at-home mom for nearly two decades, and she had to return to work. The family struggled financially,

but they remained strong. Robin, she was so thoughtful that she even gave her mom a teddy bear one Christmas that year, but it wasn't just a teddy bear. Attached to the bear was a handwritten note, promising that she would pay two of her mom's bills. Any choice she could pick

the two. And then she gave her the $300 that she had saved, and this gesture was something that Jenny would never forget. Julie was a leader. She was a planner, and Robin was beside her, helping her every step of the way, and together. They even adopted or sponsored a family in need. They called it adopting a family for Christmas, and they raised $600 and delivered five carloads of gifts, even though their mom said, you might not have enough money for anything for yourselves this Christmas, and they didn't care. They believed in doing the right thing, even when it wasn't easy. And I was thinking how far $600 used to go in 1991, five carloads of gifts. That's a lot. In 1989, on a warm summer night, Julie and Robin painted that message in black

and white across the concrete pavement of the chain of Rocks Bridge. It wasn't far from their home, and their message stretched 20 yards. It was a poetic protest against racial division. And I told you it read, United We Stand, divided we fall. It's not a black or white thing. we in a new generation take a stand. This bridge became a place of reflection for them. It was a very peaceful place. Other people might have seen it as just like abandoned concrete and graffiti, but they saw beauty and hope.

And on April 4th of 1991, Julie and Robin were two young women with a lot of dreams and passions, and they really wanted to show their cousin this beautiful message that they put on that bridge. They had no way of knowing that this bridge, where they left this beautiful message of unity, would soon become the place where they spent their last moments.

Now, this bridge stretched across the Mississippi, from Missouri into Illinois, with entrances on both sides. It was like a relic frozen in time, a 5,353-foot-long steel ribbon arching across the water. It was rusting with age and haunting in its symmetry. The chain of Rocks Bridge, this was a landmark of Americana. It was once a vital part of Route 66, the Mother Road. It carried Dreamers West. It was built in the 1920s, and it used to be busy and full of life. But by 1970, the bridge had closed to cars and traffic.

And what remained was a skeletal corridor of concrete, suspended 60 feet above the swirling and unforgiving river. And over the years, nature reclaimed it with moss crawling up its sides, rusted railings, and even birds making their nest beneath its beams and vines creeping across its weathered steel. The bridge developed a mystique about it. And in 1980, it was actually featured in the movie Escape from New York. And at that point, it had gotten a little sketchy. It was really worn down. But it had such a beautiful view that people would often climb the fences that were supposed to keep people out.

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To many people, it became a spot for adventure. Local teens would go there because they were drawn by the thrill of its isolation. Some teens would come to skateboard on it. Others came to party, and some would even spray paint rebellious slogans or their initials. And yet, the chain of rocks bridge had a different meaning for Julie and Robin. They didn't see danger. They really saw beauty and poetry. So the Carrie Sisters, this bridge was sacred ground.

It was part urban cathedral and part open-air journal for them. It was here on a summer night in 1989 that they returned with paint and a vision. Using black and white as their palette, they wrote out those words, a declaration. Robin once said that the bridge just made her feel calm, and Julie used to bring friends just to sit and talk and just kind of like get away from the world for a minute. Sometimes they would lay down and they would look up at the stars and they would listen to the water below. But if you're wondering where the name came from, the chain of rocks bridge, it came from a natural rock formation that was below. It was treacherous for steamboats back in the day. These rocks were nearly invisible, and more than one vessel had run into the ground near the bridge.

The rocks were a hazard. It was considered one of the most dangerous spots, and they're still there. Today, they jet out above the surface causing a swirling turning effect as the current rushes past. And I talked about its symmetry, how it was kind of haunting. Well, it wasn't a straight bridge, like you would imagine one. It made a sudden 22-degree bend in the middle, and this was an engineering solution to river traffic, but also a very unsettling feature for anyone unfamiliar with the layout in the dark. It was actually very disorienting for someone that didn't know it bent like that.

By 1991, when this case took place, the bridge had become a hangout for groups looking for a place to just get away or even get into trouble. It was closed to cars, and it was accessible on foot or bike, and it offered a panoramic view of the Mississippi River and the St. Louis skyline. People also really like to look at the little water intake towers, they look like little castles in the middle of the water. But this bridge wasn't exactly safe. There were open manholes that I told you I would tell you about

because that sounds kind of weird on a bridge. But this is where workers used to gain access to the underpinnings. And these manholes were scattered about every 100 feet or so. And they were open. There were no covers on them anymore because this bridge wasn't in working order. So if you didn't know the pathway,

you could easily fall inside there. And there were no working street lights at the time. So you were in pitch black at night, except for the stars, and maybe the lights on shore. I know that was very detailed, but I really needed to paint a picture of what this bridge was like. I tried to get so many photos that I could find if you're watching, so it'll give you an idea of what happened and what it looked like that night. But on the night of April 4th, it was quiet, it was a cool night,

the stars were visible in the sky, and for Julie and Robin, it felt like the perfect way to say goodbye to their cousin. Tom and Julie were really close. They shared a special bond. They had spent a summer together at their grandmother's house in Florida, and they became really close. Bonded not just by family, but a shared emotional sensitivity that they had. Julie wanted to take Tom somewhere meaningful, somewhere that spoke to who she and Robin were,

and she wanted to show him her poem. So the three of them, Julie, Robin, and Tom slipped quietly out of their homes late at night, and it wasn't the first time they had done this together. And to them, this was innocent, a short walk, a moment of peace on this bridge, but for all its symbolism and comfort, it could not protect them for what was to come. They reached it at about 11.30, and they were walking beneath the chain-link fence

and into the overgrown brush before stepping onto the concrete. And about five minutes, walking in the dark on the bridge, where they used lighters to light their path, they saw the peace sign, and they knew where they were. Their poem was there. Bold, defiant, and they're proud to show it off in the dark. The three cousins stood the three cousins,

there near the Illinois side of the bridge, admiring their message in the dark. And Tom kept watching as his cousins were just so confidently moving around this bridge, but he was uneasy because of those open manholes. They were hazards that he hadn't expected being there. But they just didn't seem afraid. This was a place they knew very well. They were actually kind of like making fun of him and saying like, don't worry, come on, what are you doing?

Why are you being chicken? But let's switch back to Tom and the police. Because when he was at the police station, he was being questioned again and again because they wanted to understand every little detail of what happened that night. Me too. That's why I try to paint you the best picture I can. There were many versions to Tom's story what happened, but they all kind of contained the same information,

except just minor deviations. But from everything that he said, this is what happened. They were admiring the poem, and they heard footsteps in the dark coming towards them from the Missouri side. Four men approached them. They were walking casually and they appeared to be friendly. And they greeted the cousins. They asked them how they were, how they were doing to small talk.

And then they stopped to smoke a cigarette. And then one of the guys flung himself over the side of the railing, which frightened everyone at first, but then he was just standing up on a steel platform beside the bridge. And it led underneath to where one of those manholes led up underneath the bridge pavement. So what he did is he climbed over and then he went under and then he popped his head up through the manhole and kind of made a joke saying this was a good place to be alone with your woman.

And that was it. Just a few words at the men exchanged and then they just continued walking. And the cousins were relaxed and they just assumed that this encounter was over, but it wasn't. Because moments later, as the cousins were looking out over the water, the same group of men turned back around and walked towards them again. And this was the point when one of them claimed he lost his flashlight and asked them, you If you see it, let me know. And then came just small talk and laughter.

And for a moment, everything felt okay until it wasn't. Because without warning, the men just shifted their tone. And then their presence became really aggressive. One of them grabbed Tom and you told them, this is a robbery. And if they did what he said, everything would be okay. Then they forced him to lay face down on the bridge and they said, don't look up. If you look up, I will kill you.

And Tom froze. His face was pressed against the concrete, and this guy's boot was on the back of his neck. And behind him, Julie and Robin were separated from him, and they were being led further and further down the bridge by the three other men. Tom could hear them, he couldn't see them, but he could hear his cousin's voices.

They were trembling with fear, and then they were crying, and then they were screaming. And what followed was honestly what nightmares are made of. because according to Tom's statement, the men forced themselves on the girls one after the other. Each man taking turns while one of them held Tom down and threatened him, making sure that he was not able to help. One of them said they had a gun. Another promise to throw one of the girls over the bridge if she didn't stop screaming.

Tom lying prone unable to move could do nothing but just listen. He was then robbed. They took his wallet and his swatch watch watch. When the attackers found out he was a firefighter or they saw his badge, they kind of panicked, thinking that he was a cop. And that's when they said, we know where you live. And if you say anything, we will find you. And then came the next phase of this nightmare.

One of the guys came over back to Tom and said, I just fucked your girl. How does they make you feel? And he was like, they're my cousins. And the guy was like, oh, y'all are cousins. Okay. Kind of like he didn't believe him. Like Tom was trying to minimize and the guy wasn't really taking it as him being serious.

And then Tom was forced to walk to this painted hopscotch. And it was really eerie because it literally led to an open manhole. That was the last step on the hopscotch. And he was ordered to climb down to the steel platform below the bridge. And once he was there, he found Julie unclothed except for a green flannel and Robin didn't have any clothes on. And they were visibly shaken lying on their backs with their eyes closed. And you could faintly make out something Julie was saying.

She was trying to comfort her sister, saying things like, it'll be over soon. Don't worry, everything's going to be okay. But if only that were the truth. When Tom got down there, the girls got up and they all huddled together and he was trying to comfort them. But there was no time because two of the attackers jumped down there. And then in an instant, it would shatter their lives forever. because Julie was pushed.

And without warning, without even a word, one of the men reached out and just shoved her from the platform and she screamed as she fell into that river. And then Robin screamed too. She kind of lunged forward almost to fight or even to grab a hold of her sister. But when she did, she was pushed. And both of these girls were gone in just seconds.

And then these men turned to Tom and they were like, jump or get shot. And he was terrified, so he just jumped. And he remembers falling so far. He said it took forever to hit the water. Like he was just floating in slow motion. And once he broke the surface, it was with such force. It was so intense.

The water was so cold. And it was fast and relentless. And he had to kick really hard to get his head above the water. And when he finally surfaced, he obviously had to get his bearing straight because he didn't know where he was. And he realized the water was pushing him away from the Missouri side. And he was struggling to even get out of his coat because he was still wearing his clothes. And he was trying to keep his head.

above the water, but there were logs and floating debris all around him, just going past at a fast pace. And after he was able to kind of calm down from the initial shock, he was scanning the surface looking for his cousins. And that's when he finally spotted Julie. She was by one of the intake towers about 15 feet away from him, and he yelled to her. And she screamed, oh my God, where's Robin? And he just yelled back, we have to swim. He told her to swim towards the lights on shore. And I can't even begin to imagine being in that river at night. It's so huge. It's wide. And Julie yelled back that she was drowning. But Tom, he tried to reassure her that she wasn't going to drown. Just keep swimming, swim towards him. And she tried. And finally, he could see that she was right behind him.

And that's when I told you she grabbed on him. He could see her exhaustion. And the current was so strong that they both went under together. Tom did not have a second to take in a breath before he was pushed under. So now he was drowning. And he took Julie and he thrust her towards the surface and then he kicked as hard as he could to break up to the top again. And then he yelled to swim and keep swimming. But the current was way too strong to keep them together. They were both just trying to make it to shore. Tom swam towards the Missouri bank and he was disoriented and he was barely surviving. So we turned back from time to time just to make sure that Julie was there. But soon, he couldn't see her anymore. And that's when he started to talk really negatively to himself.

He was saying things like, I can't do this, I can't fucking do this, but he knew he had to. So he began to do the backstroke to save energy, but any time he stopped kicking, the current would just take him. But finally, he managed to get to shore. His clothes were waterlogged. His body was sore from the fall and the river's pole, but he climbed under the shore near the chain of rocks waterworks building,

but the bank was six feet high. It was full of really slimy, slippery logs and driftwood, plus a lot of soft mud. And after all the energy he had just exerted, this was yet another challenge. It took him a few tries before he made it to the top. And that's when he saw the road. And you know the rest. The police took his statement. And at first, what they heard, it was horrifying.

They could see his hands were pruned. His jeans were straight with river mud. His shirt was damp and it was clean to his body. But I told you. His hair was dry. It was neatly parted, and that stuck with the detectives. I was thinking he was already out of the water. He was climbing up that bank.

He was standing on the road for an hour before the detectives even questioned him. So, I mean, I saw him in the video, in the back of an ambulance. And yes, he appeared to be dry in a paramedic jacket on. But that doesn't mean that this didn't happen just because his short hair wasn't wet. But it's what the officers didn't see. that made them question his story. No visible injuries. Tom claimed he had jumped

nearly 60 feet into the river. The newspaper I read actually said 90 feet. Yet he didn't appear to have any bruises or scrapes. Nothing. No broken bones. So officers began to question the physics of that fall. How could you survive? Then there was a detective from the Missouri State Water Patrol, and he mentioned the river currents

and the conditions outside that night. This was information that raised even more suspicions because they wondered if it was possible to swim to shore from the location that Tom described. And another officer was quietly saying this out loud, he said, if this man had just experienced a near-death escape and the violent murders of his cousins, why didn't he fight back? Well, he did say that one of these four men, there were four men.

There was one of him and four of them. And they said they had a gun. But when asked if he saw it, he never did. It was never pressed onto his head or his body. So if he was a firefighter, someone with authority, I guess they figured, why didn't you do anything? Like, why didn't you even try? So they wanted to dig a little deeper.

And by 9 o'clock that morning, Tom was taken to the station to provide a formal recorded statement. He had been up all night. He was visibly shaken and he was emotionally exhausted. Yet the interview continued for hours upon hours. These officers began pressing him harder and harder. Was he telling the truth? Well, his own father apparently didn't think so,

or at least it seemed that way, because he made a really odd gesture. And I'm sure you remember this, because in the 90s it was really popular. It was that gesture where you take one of your fingers and you kind of make a circular motion like someone's crazy. Well, that is what Gene Cummins did behind a son's back when officers were questioning him at the scene,

insinuating that he didn't believe what his son was saying. Adding to the confusion was the alleged inconsistencies in Tom's story. Police said that at some point during the interview, Tom told them he never jumped off the bridge at all. He ran off the bridge once he saw his cousins being attacked. And then when he reached the river bank, he entered the water only up to about his neck to try to save them.

But he couldn't because the current was too strong. And according to the first responders and the authorities, he revised his story when pressure was put on him, when they questioned the lack of injuries, and he even failed a polygraph test. Now, he had been awake for, I think, 30 hours at the point, so sleep deprivation can cause your body to register as deceptive on a lie detector test. Because they're using cues from your body, your heart rate, your breathing. He was exhausted.

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