♪♪
Narrator: This is the story of a close-knit family...
Woman: When they would get together,
They were all happy that they were united.
Yeah, they loved each other.
Narrator: ...Who stick together through the good times...
♪♪
And the bad.
Man: He could not get away from it.
It taunted him every moment of every day.
Narrator: But a brutal act reveals...
There was blood splatterings...
[ camera shutter clicks ]
...On the walls and on the floor.
Narrator: ...That the monster hiding in plain sight...
There was photographs broken in disarray.
...May not be alone.
In one word...
It was overkill.
♪♪
-- Captions by vitac -- www.Vitac.Com
Captions paid for by discovery communications
Narrator: It's June of 1967, and the futo family
Is leaving st. Louis on an exciting trip
To dad emory's home country of hungary.
Captured on silent film is his wife euna
And their pride and joy, emory jr.
He's just 3 years old and ready to take on the world.
♪♪
It was important for emory sr. To go back to hungary.
He used to go back, go see his family.
He always felt that it was important for him
And his children to go back and see where he was from.
Narrator: This is the first time in a decade emory sr.
Has set foot in his homeland.
Emory fled communist-ruled hungary in 1956
In search of a brighter future.
One of the reasons, I guess, he decided to come to america
Was for a better life,
Freedom,
Live the american dream.
Narrator: Emory is just 19 years old
When he arrives at the home of his cousin nicholas miskov
In st. Louis.
39-year-old nick
And his wife grace become like surrogate parents,
Easing the new immigrant into the american way of life.
Frank: The relationship between emory sr. And my father
Was almost like brothers.
Betty: They both spoke hungarian,
So when they were together,
I didn't know anything they were saying.
I was a little girl,
And so the only thing I ever heard my dad say to me
Was he would call me his little cigán,
Which meant gypsy in hungarian, and so I didn't know
Anything else they were saying other than that.
♪♪
Narrator: Emory quickly lands a steady job
As a machine oiler at a local brewery.
And in 1964,
He is introduced to 23-year-old euna bailey.
Euna was a very soft-spoken woman.
She was kind of on the quiet side.
You never heard her raise her voice.
She was pretty, didn't wear a lot of makeup,
Just a little jewelry, and very simple.
Narrator: Emory is immediately smitten,
And just a few months after meeting,
The couple tie the knot.
Emory had a suit on,
And euna had a very simple dress on.
It was a joyous occasion.
Everyone had a good time, for sure.
Narrator: Later that year, the newlyweds welcome emory jr.
Into their lives.
He's an adventurous and confident boy,
Just like his old man.
Betty: Emory was a good baby.
Always, always a lot of energy, a lot of energy doing stuff
And running around and just into everything.
He just was a busy boy. [ chuckles ]
The futos may be living their happily ever after,
But in 1966, tragedy strikes.
At just 49 years old emory sr.'s cousin nick
Suffers a sudden and fatal blood clot.
Emory took it hard that my father had passed.
That was his relative here that he connected with.
And he did take it hard.
He did.
Narrator: But by christmas, the following year,
That sadness has given way to joy.
Euna was very excited to be expecting,
And emory was really proud of having a son,
And they were looking forward to it.
Narrator: In early 1968,
Euna gives birth to another baby boy,
And emory sr. Decides to name him after his cousin.
Frank: Emory sr. And euna named their second son
Nicholas, after my dad, and it made me feel good.
I felt honored that he would do such a thing.
Narrator: Young emory jr. Is thrilled
To have someone to play with.
And it's not long before the boys have a third playmate,
Little joseph.
Frank: The relationship between the three brothers --
Emory jr., nick, and joe --
I always thought was great.
Naturally, you had emory jr.,
Who tried to be the leader, the boss.
But as far as being brothers and getting along,
To me, they always got along.
Narrator: Wrangling three active boys under the age of 6
Can be exhausting.
Emory sr. Always makes sure he has the camera rolling,
Capturing life's happy moments
And the not-so-happy ones.
As with any young family, there are tantrums and tears
And even the occasional fight.
The three boys were really rambunctious.
They were boys, you know.
They played, and they were -- they'd fight.
The three of them, they'd always be fighting.
Narrator: When things get out of hand,
Emory sr. Is quick to put a stop to it.
Euna -- I mean, she might tell him,
You know, "stop doing this, stop doing that."
But the real discipline came from emory sr.
He was very strict, very strict.
Narrator: While emory sr. Runs a tight ship,
He's also not shy about showing the boys how much he loves them.
Betty: There was a soft side to emory sr.
Frank: He openly showed his affection,
Kissing them on the head, kissing them on the cheek,
Giving them hugs.
Very affectionate, very.
Narrator: And as the boys get bigger,
Their relationship with their parents
Remains as strong as ever.
Outside in the snow and building a snowman.
♪♪
Having a snowball fight, all the boys.
Euna -- as a mom, she was great.
She loved her kids.
She was a good mother.
Narrator: As this home movie of christmas morning shows,
Life couldn't be better.
Betty: There's emory sr. And emory jr. And nick.
Another christmas.
The boys in the same pajamas.
Narrator: 16 years after first arriving in the u.S.,
The futos are living the american dream.
♪♪
Narrator: Every easter, the futo boys --
Emory jr,
Nick,
And joe --
Look forward to the family egg hunt.
My mom would always make her famous easter cake,
Which was a lamb with coconut.
Emory sr. Would go to the hungarian bakery
And get the famous hungarian nut rolls that everybody liked.
We always looked forward to having those certain things,
And the holiday gatherings were always nice.
Narrator: It's 1975,
And the family now live in a tidy brick house
In the lindenwood neighborhood of st. Louis.
It's a regular haunt for the futos' family and friends.
All the birthday parties for the kids
Were joyous occasions.
You know, the boys would have their friends around,
And there was always, you know, cake and ice cream,
And everything was always good at an occasion.
Narrator: Euna futo is now working as an accounting clerk.
And the family has more disposable income than ever.
I grew up with emory jr.
I considered him a friend.
He grew up in a household where I think that they --
Well, they certainly had more things
Than I had growing up.
Narrator: In 1984, emory jr. Graduates from high school.
He's keen to see the world, just like his dad,
And decides to enlist in the u.S. Navy.
His parents couldn't be happier.
Ready for it?
Emory jr.: As I'll ever be, I guess.
Emory and euna were proud that emory jr. Joined the navy.
It was especially important for emory sr.,
You know, being a refugee when he came over
To this country and becoming a citizen,
To see his son join the navy and serve his country.
Make us proud, son.
Every day, dad.
Narrator: As he crisscrosses the globe,
Emory jr.'s presence at home is sorely missed.
Joe and nick had a little bit of a hard time
With emory leaving,
But at the same time, I think they were happy for him
That he was getting out and getting on with his life.
Narrator: But that distance erodes the futo family's
Tradition of gathering at big moments.
So when 21-year-old emory jr.
Reveals he's engaged to a woman named angela leverenz,
There are no cameras to capture their December 1985 wedding
And no big celebration.
It was just kind of a low-key wedding.
That's what they wanted.
Narrator: In June of 1987, nick and joe graduate together
From the st. John high school.
Youngest brother joe decides
To take inspiration from emory jr.
Joe joined the army,
Following in his brother's footsteps about,
You know, going off to service
And kind of getting out of the house,
Getting away.
Narrator: But middle child nick
Is far less certain about life.
Betty: Nick always felt different.
He wasn't moving on as far as like his brothers.
Narrator: Not long after graduation,
Nick heads to new orleans with two buddies for the weekend.
He just wanted to get away
And be his own person.
Man: Now you want to know what?
Narrator: He decides to bring a camera to document the trip.
It's clear from the aim of his lens, his priorities
Couldn't be further from those of his brothers.
With two sons serving their country,
Emory sr. And euna can't help but worry
That nick's life is heading in the wrong direction.
Betty: Nick -- he's the only one left,
And I don't think he was happy about that.
Maybe his life just felt like it was just going nowhere.
♪♪
Narrator: In 1989, emory jr. Decides to leave the navy
To spend more time with his wife, angela.
The couple move in together
Just outside of big bear lake, california.
With emory jr. Finally back on land,
The futo clan head west for a visit to emory jr.'s house
With nick the tour guide.
Though the brothers have been separated for many years
And thousands of miles,
They pick right up where they left off.
The boys missed each other.
You know, certainly, the times have changed,
And they're not those little boys anymore,
And they are growing up to be men.
[ door opens ]
When they would get together, they were all happy
That they were united
And had time together, yeah.
They loved each other.
Narrator: And in the summer of 1990,
The family expands again
With the arrival of emory jr. And angela's son joshua.
Euna is over the moon.
She was thrilled to have a grandson
And get to spoil her little grandchild
And then send him home. [ laughs ]
Yeah, she was thrilled.
Narrator: And like his father before him, emory jr.
Is always there with the video camera.
But at thanksgiving that year in st. Louis,
The ever-present camera shows another side to the family.
The relationship between emory sr.
And the rest of his family appears strained.
Emory sr. -- He was always behind the camera
And wanting to take those pictures.
[ indistinct chatter ]
♪♪
The boys would be annoyed by him, and they didn't smile.
And the boys didn't look happy.
[ joshua crying ]
Narrator: It's not long before baby joshua
Picks up on the tension.
As the night wears on,
Emory sr.'s attitude shows no sign of changing.
[ laughs ] do it.
In the '60s and '70s,
All those hours of super 8 family footage were silent.
Hearing emory's voice on camera captures
His overbearing personality...
...In a manner that borders on bullying.
I think emory sr. Was cocky, you know.
He portrayed himself out to be like he was
A real ladies man, like how could the women not like him?
"oh, I've got something for you that you'll like," you know.
I can hear him laughing in my head right now, his laugh.
[ indistinct chatter, laughter ]
♪♪
The way he would do when he would say something
And he'd make that little laugh of his that was,
You know, like it -- like...
He enjoyed it.
[ emory sr. Laughs ]
[ laughter echoes ]
♪♪
Narrator: The following July,
The futos gather in angela and emory jr.'s new home.
♪♪
The tension from last thanksgiving
Seems to have been forgotten.
Betty: Angela and emory bought a house,
And they were just thrilled about.
Emory jr. Really had it going on.
He was happy.
He's living his life, and...
You know, I think that's just what he wanted.
[ laughter ]
Oh! [ laughs ]
Oh! [ baby cries ]
Narrator: But the summer is about to turn ice-cold.
On July 26, 1991,
Frank miskov receives a call from euna's co-workers.
They said they're concerned euna didn't show up for work.
So that kind of raised a red flag.
Betty: The bank called euna and emory sr.'s neighbor
And said, "euna hadn't reported to work today,
And she hasn't called in.
Do you know if everything is okay?
Could you check on this for us?"
Narrator: Both euna and emory sr.'s cars
Are parked in their garage, but no one answers the door.
She called the police and told them what's going on.
I didn't know what to think.
♪♪
Narrator: Police officers investigating the disappearance
Of 50-year-old euna futo...
...Make a routine search of the family home.
♪♪
Is anyone home?
Uniformed officers located a female body,
Which was partially laying
In a hallway and a bedroom area.
She was obviously lifeless.
Severe trauma to her head area.
There was blood splatterings on the walls and on the floor.
[ camera shutter clicks ]
She also had what appeared to be
An extension-cord ligature around her neck area.
Narrator: The deceased woman is euna futo.
♪♪
The electrical cord around her neck
Tells police whoever did this
Wanted to be sure they finished the job.
♪♪
The officers then, in proceeding through the house,
Discovered the male body
In the basement area.
Narrator: It's emory sr.
His body is riddled with multiple stab
And gunshot wounds.
The individual responsible for it wanted to ensure
That he would not be left alive.
That would be an overkill-type situation.
We had learned the futos had three sons,
One of whom lived out of state,
And that two sons still lived in the residence.
Narrator: Investigators' priority is finding
Nick and joe futo.
We had to find those two individuals, first of all,
To make sure that they were safe
And to advise them of what had transpired in the house.
Narrator: But at 6:00 p.M.,
Groundskeepers at a nearby cemetery
Make a shocking discovery.
Come look!
It's the body of nick futo.
♪♪
An initial examination reveals four gunshot wounds,
Along with something else.
In his pocket was a piece of paper.
Handwritten on that piece of paper
Were the words "america west 1408."
That's all we had to go with at that point.
♪♪
Narrator: Minutes later,
Just two blocks from the family home,
Officers find joe futo's car...
♪♪
And another dead body.
It's quickly identified as joe.
Ostendorf: We found joe futo in the back seat.
He had been covered with some unopened plastic trash bags
In an attempt to cover him up.
He had also been shot.
So now at that point, we had the two parents
And two sons that had been discovered
Within close proximity of the home.
Narrator: Detective william ostendorf
Is tasked with trying to understand
Why an entire family has been murdered
And what has become of emory jr.
You've got four family members that were killed
Within a short period of time.
This was very uncommon.
Narrator: At the crime scene, there's no sign of forced entry
Suggesting the killer is someone the family knew
And who bore a very personal grudge.
There were several photographs,
Framed photographs broken in disarray.
On the wall, you could see the nails
Where they had previously been hung.
All those pictures had been removed, broken, thrown,
Stepped on, whatever, except for one picture,
Which was a photograph of who we presumed to be the grandson,
A younger individual.
And that was the only photograph that was not damaged.
That jumped out like a rattlesnake
As to why would this perpetrator,
Or perpetrators, damage all these other photographs
And specifically leave that one untouched?
♪♪
Narrator: Closer inspection of the scene yields one final clue.
A bloody footprint.
This is almost as important as a latent fingerprint.
We can match that footprint with the sole of the shoe.
Narrator: As news of the brutal slaying hits the airwaves,
Cousin betty tries to comprehend what has happened.
Betty: You never think something like this is gonna happen
To your family, you know?
And four family members dead, and you have no idea
What's happened, who did it.
Are we to be afraid? Is somebody after us?
I mean, all kinds of things were going through our heads.
We didn't have any answers, and then we thought,
"oh, we have to call emory jr. In california.
We need to let him know what's happened."
[ telephone rings ]
We had one family member left, the one that lived out of state.
It was essential that we contacted him
To see if he was okay.
[ baby cries ]
♪♪
Betty: It was horrific,
Terrible to have lost four family members in one day.
We had attempted to call emory jr. Several times.
We had no answer.
You know, we just kept leaving messages like, you know,
"emory, call us when you get this message.
Emory, call home. Emory"...
[ telephone ringing ]
Narrator: Finally, 24 hours after the murder of his family,
Betty is able to get through to her cousin.
I asked him, you know, "we've been calling you.
How come you didn't answer your phone?"
Yeah, he told us that he was camping
And that he had just got back.
I said, "emory, I have something to tell you."
And I said, "it's not gonna be easy."
And he's like, "what? What, betty?"
I said, "well"...
Your mom and dad and brothers are dead."
The first thing he said to me was,
"well, they don't think I did it, do they?"
I never said they were murdered.
I just said they were dead.
♪♪
Narrator: Emory jr.'s unusual reaction to his parents'
And brother's deaths...
...Prompts detectives to check his recent movements.
Ostendorf: He said he hadn't been to st. Louis in over a year
And that, in fact, in the time frame
We were looking at, he was camping with a friend of his
And they had just gotten back when he got these messages.
Narrator: When news of the gruesome murders
Hit the airwaves,
Police receive a call from emory's camping buddy.
He claims that the camping story was a ruse.
In reality, he took emory to the airport
To catch a flight to st. Louis.
We knew america west airlines flew out of california,
And we contacted that airline, and they, in fact,
On that day did have a flight number 1408.
So that corresponded with the information that we had found
In nick's pocket.
At this point, emory -- he was a strong suspect in the case.
Our st. Louis county prosecuting attorney,
With the evidence that we had had at that point,
He had issued an arrest warrant for emory
So he could be held in custody while we traveled out there.
Narrator: Over the course of the next several hours,
Under interrogation by st. Louis detectives,
Emory jr. Explains what happened.
Emory jr. -- He admitted that he had flown to st. Louis,
That nick had picked him up from the airport.
The reason being that he came to st. Louis
Was that he said he was going to help nick
While he was involved
In a $200,000 cocaine or drug deal.
Narrator: Emory claims they traveled to the cemetery
To do the deal.
Nick was ahead of him. Emory said he heard gunshots.
[ gunshots ]
He got scared, went back to nick's car, and took off.
Went to the airport and flew back to california.
Narrator: But when detectives tell emory
That a bloody footprint was found at his parents' house,
He suddenly changes his story.
♪♪
Every now claims that he went to his parents'
After the events in the cemetery.
Ostendorf: He went into the house,
Found his mother and his father deceased,
Got back into nick's car,
And drove to the airport and flew to california,
Which would explain the bloody footprint.
Detectives question why emory jr.
Didn't then raise the alarm.
First thing you would do is panic, holler, scream,
Knock on a neighbor's door,
Call 911.
He didn't do any of that.
He got into his brother's car, drove to the airport,
Sat on a plane for several hours like nothing happened,
And went home.
What he's saying isn't making any sense.
Narrator: Finally, emory says he's ready to tell the truth.
Ostendorf: He says that nick did pick him up at the airport.
They then went back to his parents' house.
Nick bludgeoned his mother.
Nick tied the wire around her neck.
Nick shot the father.
Nick went down and stabbed the father.
Narrator: Emory jr. Claims that his brother joe
Then arrived at the house.
In emory's words, joe went ballistic,
Started getting upset.
[ gunshot ] nick, at that time, shot joe.
[ gunshot ]
They then went and parked joe's vehicle
Where it was later located.
♪♪
Narrator: Emory then claims nick persuaded him to join him
In a suicide pact at the cemetery.
♪♪
Ostendorf: Nick said, "ready.
Ready, ready."
And with that, emory shot him.
[ gunshot ]
♪♪
Emory shot him...
Two more times, I believe...
[ gunshots ]
...To make sure that he was dead.
Narrator: But when it was time to turn the gun on himself,
Emory jr. Says he hesitated.
Ostendorf: And per their agreement,
He couldn't pull the trigger, so he got up,
Left nick there, and headed towards the airport.
With this being the umpteenth version,
I did not buy what he was saying.
Narrator: Investigators push emory jr. To explain
Why his brother would do such a thing.
Finally, emory jr. Reveals a horrifying secret
That lay at the heart of the futo family.
Every sr. May have looked
Like your average midwestern blue-collar dad.
In truth, his son claims he was a monster.
Emory said his entire family had been abused
At the hands of his father.
It had been going on for years and years and years.
Narrator: Investigators have to wonder
If emory is simply fabricating a story,
Until cousin betty comes forward.
I believed him because...
♪♪
Emory sr. Had abused me as a child.
♪♪
So I know he's telling the truth.
I know he's telling the truth about the abuse.
And I don't know what age he started with me.
♪♪
But at 5 years old, I could remember.
I had a memory.
And I know what he did.
♪♪
Narrator: Despite emory's claims that his brother nick
Was responsible for the death of the family,
Police believe they have now found a motive for murder.
Emory jr. Is charged with four counts of first-degree homicide.
♪♪
At the trial, prosecutors lay out what they think happened.
Emory jr. First shot his brother nick in the cemetery.
[ gunshot ]
He then met joe...
[ gunshot ]
...Who he shot then dumped in his car.
[ gunshots ]
[ camera shutter clicking ]
Emory jr. Then traveled to his parents' house,
Where he bludgeoned and strangled his mother,
Shot and stabbed his father,
Before returning to the airport
And flying back home to california.
The one thing prosecutors are unable to explain
Is why euna, nick, and joe futo had to die.
Ostendorf: A lot of times, we don't get the answer.
There's only one person that knows that,
And that's the one who did it.
Narrator: On March 12, 1993, the jury finds emory jr. Guilty
On four counts of first-degree murder.
He is sentenced to four consecutive life terms
In prison without parole.
After almost 30 years of blaming his brother nick,
Emory jr. Is finally ready to tell the truth.
In September 2020,
In an uncharacteristically frank and emotional interview,
He admits that he was responsible for the killings.
I think it was about hatred and anger
And what his father did to those boys.
You got two monsters here. You got the father, emory sr.
And he was a monster for the way he abused his family,
Physically, verbally.
Then you got the other monster, emory jr.,
Who was the monster for the way he brutally murdered his family.
♪♪