Law & Order Special Victims Unit s06e07 Episode Script
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In the criminal justice system, sexually based offenses are considered especially heinous.
In New York City, the dedicated detectives who investigate these vicious felonies are members of an elite squad known as the Special Victims Unit.
These are their stories.
Best estimate, she's about 30 weeks along.
Came in alone, slight bleeding with contractions at 20-minute intervals.
She say who the father is? No, and this isn't the first time she's been pregnant.
Scarring suggests she's delivered before.
You find her parents? Refuses to tell us where they are.
Only says her first name is Melanie and she's 12-and-a-half-years old.
ACS will arrange for foster care after you release her.
She's not going anywhere until after the baby's born.
Next 10 weeks, this is home.
Hey.
Melanie? I'm Olivia.
I'm a police officer.
Can I talk to you for a minute? The doctor said that you had another baby before.
Is that right? He died.
My mom says he's with God now.
Well, it's good that you came to a hospital.
Was that your idea? Was it your mom's? Well, I'm glad that your mom thought of that.
She must love you very much.
If you tell me where you live, I can go get her.
I'm not supposed to tell.
Melanie, if you were my daughter, I'd want to be right here with you.
Will you write down your address for me? You know, if you want, I can also try to find the father of your baby.
Can you tell me his name? Abraham.
And who's Abraham? He's my husband.
The guy should be home.
She said that he doesn't work.
Okay, they're here.
I'll see you in 10.
Bye.
Somebody's watching.
My partner's on his way.
Keep your eye out.
Hello.
Hey, I'm a police officer.
Is your mom or dad home? Are all of you guys here by yourself? Hey, kids.
It's okay, Samuel.
Go on in and play.
Can I help you? Detective Benson, Special Victims Unit.
Are you Abraham? Why? Sir, I'd like to ask you to step outside, please.
No, I'm sorry, I can't.
Things will be a lot easier for you if you step outside.
Son of a bitch.
SVU Portable to Central, I need a couple of units at 104 West 120th Street.
Suspect is inside, I need to secure all exits.
How many kids in there? At least four.
Go around the back.
Shots fired, shots fired at police.
You okay? The property records say the building is owned by an Abraham Ophion.
Hostage negotiators tried talking with bullhorns, no response.
Anyone try an old-fashioned phone call? No phone service, and Con Ed cut off the electricity eight years ago.
Neighbors say they've seen up to three dozen people in the house at a time, mostly women and kids.
Neighbors have any problems? They all got the same story.
They're weirdoes, but they're quiet.
They got one noise citation 10 years ago for doing construction in the middle of the night, that's it.
We think the hostages are in the living room here.
Any idea how many kids? I saw at least four.
You got a fix on the perp? No.
But we've got all the exits covered.
He's not getting out.
Look out! Shots fired.
Multiple shots fired inside.
Entry team go, entry team go.
Call EMS.
Get EMS here now.
Come here, come here, somebody.
Zermeno, where's the perp? He's gone.
What happened? They're dead.
They're all dead.
CSU found an old tunnel under the house leading to a vacant building on the next block.
So far, that's where the trail ends.
Abraham Ophion has no known criminal record, though it is likely a fake name.
We do know eight years ago he tried to obtain tax exempt status for his group, the Church of Wisdom and Sight.
That, along with the way they lived and the events surrounding their deaths, indicate we may be dealing with a cult.
Other members may have escaped through the tunnel.
Our priority now is to find them and to identify the victims.
In addition, I want to make sure you're all taking care of yourselves.
The department is providing psych support and you're all to sit down and talk to one of these people sooner rather than later.
It is not optional.
None of you are exempt from what I just said.
Cap? We can always get our heads shrunk after this case is over.
Get it done or you're off the case.
I can sit down with each of you right now.
Fine.
Let's get it over with.
What do you most remember seeing after you entered the house? The dead bodies.
Anything specific about them? A bunch of dead bodies.
Seen plenty.
So this was no different than any other case? What do you want me to say? That it was terrible? Fine.
It was terrible.
But one way or another, they all are.
And you think this is a big waste of your time.
Hell, no, I think we should sit around all day and chat about our feelings.
Well, what do you want to talk about? Well, doesn't really matter.
We can all talk till we're blue in the face.
It's not gonna change the fact that the human race is ever-evolving and will always come up with elaborate, repulsive and depraved ways to kill each other.
And that's really the hard part for you, isn't it? What? That you can still be repulsed.
As cynical as you try to be, you can still be sickened.
How are you feeling now? I don't know.
This was an extremely traumatic event, Liv.
The grief that you're feeling is completely natural.
I know that.
But you feel like you shouldn't be feeling anything.
Is that how you feel? Tell me what you did last night after you went home.
I ate dinner.
Called my kid.
Your son, right? Do you talk to him often? Not as much as I should.
I just wanted to call and say hey.
Did you tell him about the case? Nobody needs that in their head.
You've got it in your head.
What does that mean to you? Means nobody's safe.
And that makes you feel helpless? Not at all.
Look, I've got my own kids, and eventually you realize that you can't always protect them.
What made you think about your own children? What do you think? The victims were kids.
Lots of victims are children.
Do you think about your own family on every case? It's not You know, I don't It's Look The one girl was wearing a teddy bear shirt that my daughter Whatever.
It's done.
You move on.
I'm afraid that That I won't be able to handle it.
But you are.
By acknowledging that it affects you.
That's the way you handle something traumatic.
Well, I guess the real problem is that I'm afraid that That it's not working.
CSU collected these names inside the house, from paycheck stubs, the mail.
They're all female, but the names and the socials are all fake.
One of these women has to come forward.
Their kids are lying unclaimed in that morgue.
I got Abraham's real ID.
His name is Eugene Hoff.
How'd you get it? CSU printed all the common surfaces in the house.
His prints hit.
Eugene Hoff, four arrests in the '80s for check forgery and counterfeiting, identity theft and various frauds.
He's no religious guru.
He's a con man.
If this whole cult is nothing more than a scam, why did he kill only the kids? Where are their parents? Where are you going? Going home.
Are you kidding me? They're making you take leave? No.
I'm taking it myself.
Sometimes you just gotta step back.
Come on.
I'll walk out with you.
Our guy's last place of employment was a Pentecostal church.
It's a place to start.
What? They're gonna send me home.
No, they're not.
Yeah, I was way too emotional.
I couldn't hold it together.
Elliot, can you step in here? I'm referring you to psych services.
I just talked to them.
We've determined you require something ongoing.
What do you want me to do? You want me to cry? Is that it? If you won't take care of yourself, then you have to allow us If you stayed out of my head and let me do my job, there wouldn't be a problem.
You're out sick until psych says you can return.
It's a week, at most.
Take it.
And you don't need to be carrying a gun around right now.
Elliot.
Detective Benson, you're with Munch.
Captain Let him go.
Any word on Melanie? She's undergoing minor surgery to stop premature labor.
We can't talk to her for a few hours.
How about Elliot? He's not answering his cell phone.
Found some more info on the church where Abraham worked.
Christian Tabernacle of Grace.
Pretty mainstream.
Abraham preaches anything that'll make him money.
It's probably just another con.
Eugene signed up for our Bible study fellowship when he joined the church.
After a couple months he asked for a more active role, and I made him director of faith ministries.
You must've been pretty impressed with him to give him a job.
I admit, I was fooled.
Eugene's discussion groups had nearly 100 members.
He was very well liked.
So what happened to change that? The more popular he got, the more bizarre he became.
He preached that the serpent was Christ.
Explains his tattoo.
And people actually bought this? Ten families left the parish when I fired him.
Was she one of his followers? I don't recognize her, but I know one family who left Eugene's group after a few years.
They may be able to tell you more.
Abraham was magnetic.
It was like he knew you.
He could be talking to a roomful of people and it was like you were the only person there.
But things changed.
He became paranoid.
Kept telling us that we were gonna be punished for our beliefs, that the government was going to kill us and we had to be ready to defend ourselves.
Meaning what? Collecting weapons.
Trips to the firing range.
Storing food.
He started separating the married couples.
He said you couldn't be soldiers of God if you were slaves to the flesh.
The men slept on one floor and the women always slept on Abraham's floor.
Eventually, he drove most of the men away.
What about the children? Janie, go and do your homework.
Abraham always talked about the purity and goodness of children.
But, really, he only paid attention to the girls.
One night I caught him in Janie's room.
She was four.
He was down to his shorts.
She told us that he never touched her.
But we left that night.
Looking back, I can't believe that we got caught up in this.
Look, we know how crazy he is now.
But back then, he was convincing.
See for yourself.
Are you willing to prove your obedience? Because the time will come and you will be tested.
When the soldiers of Satan come for you, when they demand your allegiance and threaten to murder you and your children and destroy all we have, will you make that sacrifice in the name of God? Yes? Yes.
Guess that makes us the soldiers of Satan.
This guy isn't too paranoid.
He wants his followers to be.
It's part of the manipulation, instilling the idea of being persecuted creates solidarity and loyalty.
Loyal enough to let him rape their daughters.
A lot of cult leaders were known to have sexual relations with the children in their groups.
David Koresh had a 10-year-old bride, the leader of the Nuwaubian cult was convicted for molesting 14 children.
Hold on a second.
Captain, you're going to want to take this.
She says she'll only speak to the person in charge.
About what? The victims.
Wants to know if one of them was a nine-year-old boy with brown hair with a scar on his left leg.
Trace it.
Agent Huang.
FBI number 2317616.
I need a trace on this line.
Captain Cragen.
I want to know about the children who died.
What's your name? I can't tell you.
Okay.
You don't have to.
Just tell me if one of them was a boy.
Nine years old.
Brown eyes, brown hair.
We can arrange for you to see all the bodies.
That way, you can be absolutely sure.
Please tell me.
Ma'am, you are not in any trouble Did we get it? Payphone at St.
Catherine's Hospital.
Where Melanie is.
It's gotta be the mother.
I'm not talking to you.
Melanie, I know that you think that I want to hurt you and your family, but that is not true.
Just go away.
Your mother was asking about a little boy.
Is that your little brother? Is that Samuel? Melanie, do you know what happened the night that you came to the hospital? I'm not listening.
Something terrible.
Abraham is a liar.
He killed your little brother.
He killed your friends.
He might kill your mom.
Now, I can protect her.
But I need you to tell me where she is.
Mom said Abraham was taking them to a safe place.
Hey, you can't do this! This is a civil rights violation! Relax.
Back here.
They have the right to believe in whatever they want! Which one of you is Melanie's mother? Where's Abraham? As if you don't know.
Tell me where he is.
You have our husband in your torture rooms.
You are a slave to the devil! Murderer! Detective Benson, check it out.
Got their own little Waco down here.
I'm gonna try one more time.
May I have your name, please, as well as any aliases? I hereby christen you "Jane Doe Number Three.
" Nobody's carrying ID, and nobody's giving up Abraham's location.
And they're all, apparently, married to him.
They don't know where he is.
That's why they're so frightened.
Their shepherd has abandoned his flock, and they believe that we killed their children.
But one of these women is Melanie's mother, and she's already strayed from the flock by calling us.
I just don't know which one it is.
She's not gonna say with the others around.
We have to interview them separately, compare their voices to the recorded phone call.
We have their mug shots.
Melanie's cooperating.
Let her pick Mom out.
Hell of a lot easier than trying to pry information out of these people.
Okay.
I'll hit the hospital, you hit the morgue.
Warner's got something.
Believe me, there's nothing I'd like better than to help you put a needle in your guy's arm, but this isn't good.
How could it possibly be worse? He didn't kill them.
This is the oldest victim, I'm guessing around 20.
Her injuries appear self-inflicted.
Could be a setup.
And her right hand was covered with gunshot residue.
CSU found the murder weapon, her prints were the only ones on it.
Abraham had total control over all these kids.
He orchestrated all of this.
I'm just telling you what the forensics prove.
The DNA tells another story.
I'm estimating this girl around 16, this boy around two.
She's his mother.
And I'll bet Abraham's his father.
All of the victims have the same father, except the shooter.
Abraham, father of many.
Had children with his own children.
Now we know why.
Why what? Abraham's nothing more than an incestuous pedophile.
You kill the victims, nobody can testify against you.
There's still one victim left, the 12-year-old in the hospital who's having his baby.
Melanie? Excuse me, I'm looking for Melanie Ophion.
Where is she? I just got on.
They may have moved her.
Let me check.
Hey, wait, have you seen your roommate? Melanie? Earlier today, but her dad already took her home.
No luck finding Melanie? Hospital security cameras recorded her walking out with Abraham.
She didn't look like she was being forced.
She wasn't.
This cult is all she knows.
She went with Abraham because she wanted to.
You find her mother? This woman says that her name is Sarah.
She won't admit to anything, but listen to her voice.
You willing to go to jail for this guy's crimes? I'm willing to make a sacrifice, in the name of God the Father.
Just tell me if one of them was a boy.
Nine years old.
Brown eyes, brown hair.
That's all I needed to hear.
Detective Benson, this is Sarah.
We've been talking about numbers.
We found this in her pocket.
What does it mean? She hasn't shared that.
Sarah was Abraham's wife in the Bible, right? From what I recall, Sarah whored out her servant to her husband so that he could have a child.
Is that why you let Abraham have sex with your daughter? Of course, your Abraham is different because he likes to have children with his own children.
Melanie is not his daughter.
And we're supposed to believe you now because you've been so forthcoming? Her father abandoned us when she was a baby.
Abraham took care of us.
Abraham raped your daughter.
I don't expect you to understand.
Don't try to tell me for a minute that you believe this is right, because I know you don't.
You took Melanie to the hospital.
You called us to see if Abraham had murdered your son.
No.
No.
Your son was shot.
Along with all these other children.
Those women out there might be brainwashed, but you're not.
You know exactly what he is, a murderer and a child rapist.
That's not true.
You knew who he was, and you let this happen.
You let all those children die.
It was God's will.
No, Sarah.
It was your will.
You can blame God, and you can blame Abraham, but we all know the truth.
You did this.
You sat there and you watched as a man raped one of your children and then murdered the other.
You might as well have killed them yourself.
Olivia He has one of your children.
And he has your unborn grandchild.
This is a test.
I won't be tempted.
Captain, those numbers Sarah was carrying around with her, bank accounts.
How'd you figure that out? Forensic accountant did.
Sequence of 10 numbers, all starting with four identical digits.
Same branch of the same bank.
Whose bank accounts? All different names, all closed yesterday.
Somebody walked away with six hundred thou.
Abraham.
Sarah must've closed those accounts and given the money to Abraham before we got her.
You don't get that kind of money by passing the hat.
Accountant says most of the deposits were payroll checks from large corporations.
Easy to counterfeit because it takes longer for the companies to catch on.
Abe has fallen back on his old career.
We thinking it's a coincidence he does all his bogus banking in one place? No.
He must have had an inside guy.
Make him come out.
I told you, I'd take you someplace special.
I don't know.
We could go to Tampa, stay with Excuse me, who do you think you are? Is your employee number 419686, Reg? What exactly is this regarding? Your creative banking activities.
Setting up bogus accounts for your pal Abraham.
Cashing his phoney checks and taking a cut for yourself.
Now, your boss is on the phone with the FBI, who I'm sure would love to have a little chat with you.
Oh, my God.
God's not gonna help you, Reg.
He doesn't like fraud committed in his name.
I want a lawyer.
You're gonna need one.
You're screwed.
But I bet if you help us find Abraham, it would look very good for you.
He's coming in this afternoon.
There's one more account.
It's got more money than the rest combined.
All units be advised.
No one is to approach the subject until the girl is in custody.
I got a visual on the subject.
The subject is walking east toward the bank, on the south side of the street.
Baseball hat, gray pants and a white shirt.
The girl is not with him.
I repeat, the girl is not with him.
He's entering the bank now.
I'm counting on you, Reggie, so don't screw this up.
You're gonna have to slip the GPS tracker in with the money.
He's here.
Take a few deep breaths.
Relax.
Just pretend you're embezzling thousands of dollars like it's any other day.
Thank you for banking with us, sir.
Yes, Mr.
Smith, what can I do for you today? I want to close my account.
Subject made contact.
Abe doesn't look too happy.
What the hell is Reggie saying? It bounced, and I just don't know We've got a problem.
Reggie sucks at this.
He's making Abraham suspicious.
He knows something's up.
I think this is blown.
Police.
Don't move.
Don't be stupid, Abraham.
You've got no place to go, Abe.
Put your hands where I can see them.
Get down on the floor.
Get down on the floor now! Into thy hands I commend my spirit! It's over now.
You tell me, where's Melanie? Safe with our Father, now.
All nations rightly give him praise.
You've been out there a long time.
Where's Melanie? I already told you.
You said that she's with "our Father.
" Does that mean that she's dead? Melanie will enjoy everlasting life, as will all who believe.
Believe in you? No, I'm just the messenger.
What message are you sending by raping and murdering children? I killed no one.
So Melanie is alive.
It's interesting that you're in here with me alone.
Do you like putting yourself in dangerous situations? You consider yourself dangerous? No.
But you don't know that.
I wonder what attracts you to such a dangerous job.
What makes you do it? Rapists and pedophiles like you.
So it's not just about arresting criminals.
It's about those specific criminals.
You're drawn to this.
Why? Were you raped? Tell me where Melanie is.
How can you stand it? How can you invite this depravity into your mind, your body, your soul? It will kill you.
Every horror, every torment afflicts your body like a cancer.
It's devouring you and you can't see it.
Open your eyes.
You know, I thought that you were just another con artist, seeking out people who were starved for anything that would give them meaning in their life.
They're easy marks.
You talk about God, the apocalypse and they give you all their money.
But you're much more pathetic than that.
You actually believe your own hype.
You've conned yourself.
This guy's not gonna tell us anything.
Then we have a problem.
Our best shot at getting an indictment was Melanie's testimony.
Without her, I can't convert the complaint.
His 16-year-old daughter and their two-year-old son are lying in that morgue.
As soon as Abraham's DNA comes back, we've got him on statutory rape and incest.
Not unless you've got a birth certificate that supports that theory.
Don't need a birth certificate if we've got his chromosomes.
First, I would like you to prove that my client had knowledge the woman was his biological daughter.
She wasn't a woman.
She was That's your M.
E.
's estimation.
But no judge would take a guess as proof of age.
So no statutory rape, no incest, and your murderer killed herself.
I guess we're all ready to go home now.
I don't like that look, Casey.
I don't like that he's right.
We have seven victims.
Charge Abraham with murder, charge him with conspiracy to commit murder.
There's no point.
All the forensics acquit him.
The gunshot residue was only on the oldest victim's hands.
Charles Manson wasn't present for the Tate murders, but they still convicted him for killing them.
Because members of his cult testified that Manson ordered it.
Can you flip any of Abraham's followers? No.
Melanie's mother was our best shot, and she just began a hunger strike protesting our persecution of her religion.
Then Melanie's our only chance.
If she testifies that Abraham orchestrated this, we can get him on the rape and the murders.
How long can we keep him in custody? Check fraud will keep him tonight, but he'll be out on bail tomorrow afternoon unless I get something new.
We'll put a detail on him the minute he leaves that courthouse.
That account that Abraham tried to close out today had over a million dollars in it, under the name and social of John Cramer, Englewood, New Jersey.
Another alias Abraham used? This time the guy is real, only missing.
He vanished with his wife and daughter about 10 years ago.
Daughter was only two at the time, she'd be around 12 now.
Named Melanie.
Who reported them missing? Cramer's parents, now deceased.
Missing persons database lists the contact as Detective Stu Mackenzie, Englewood PD.
Find out what he remembers.
The wife's name was Cindy? Yeah.
She didn't have any family.
Husband's parents died hoping we'd find them alive.
I always figured this case was some weird cult thing.
What made you think of that? Well, Cramer's parents knew he got in with this church group, was real secretive about it.
Donated his trust fund to the cause.
Okay, you ever run into this guy? Nope, but Cramer and his group lived totally off the grid.
No known address, no phone, no utilities, no jobs.
Only contact with the parents was a letter demanding the money in his daughter's trust fund.
How much is that worth? About two mill.
Available when the girl turns 21 or has a baby, whichever comes first.
That explains Abraham's reason for keeping Melanie alive.
At least until she delivers.
Where does Cramer's trail end? Last known activity was charging up some construction supplies on a credit card his mom paid for.
Severino Building Supply.
Three grand in drywall and tiles.
Ten years ago.
You know, a neighbor said something about middle of the night construction going on at Abraham's place around that time.
We searched that place top to bottom.
Didn't check the walls.
No building permits were ever issued while your guy owned this place, so basically we're looking for a room that shouldn't be here.
Tiles narrowed it down.
According to the building plans, this is supposed to be the exterior wall.
Benson.
Now it's just a matter of X-raying the walls.
Somebody's in there, we'll find him.
Cragen said that Abraham just lost his surveillance detail at Grand Central.
He could be anywhere now.
Detectives, come on over here.
Here's Johnnie.
What is this sand? Kitty litter.
To absorb the odor.
We'd better test for DNA to make sure this is John Cramer.
There could be 25 bodies in these walls.
It's him.
John Cramer.
Well, somebody better tell Sarah or Cindy or whatever her name is.
She thinks he left her.
Yeah, I wonder who told her that.
Do you recognize that? Cindy? Her name is Sarah, Detective.
Get your cases straight.
Belonged to John, your husband.
The one that you said abandoned you 10 years ago.
This is what's left of him.
He was shot in the back of the head and buried in the wall in the house where you lived.
Are you accusing my client of murder? No.
Just of being stupid and gullible.
You know, it's interesting how Abraham only surrounds himself with women and girls.
There's no men anywhere.
I wonder if he didn't like the competition.
No.
No? He killed your husband.
The father of your child.
What exactly does he have to do for you to stop defending him? Abraham told me that John fell in love with another woman and I believe him.
He was wearing it when he died.
What do you want from her? Abraham was last seen at Grand Central Station.
He's going to wherever he's keeping Melanie.
Now, she's gonna have her baby, he's gonna get his hands on her trust fund and then your daughter is dead.
Where are they? What are you offering? A chance to do the right thing for Melanie, something you've never done her entire life.
That's not good enough.
Up north.
This warehouse.
Melanie, are you okay? I'm going to take you someplace safe, all right? He's coming.
Don't move! Put the bag down.
Walk towards me.
Stop! They're going to take you away.
They're going to kill your baby.
It's over, Eugene.
You see? You can't control her anymore.
Come on, darling.
Come on.
Get him out of here.
Don't answer that.
Melanie, listen to me, sweetheart.
I know you didn't mean to do that.
Tell her to shut up.
Shut up.
Sweetheart, listen to me.
Shut up! What are you gonna do, Detective? Are you gonna shoot a pregnant child? You son of a bitch.
Don't do that, Officer.
She already shot you once.
We're coming in.
Do you copy? Tell them to stay back or she'll kill you both.
Do it! I'll kill you.
Detective Benson, respond.
Okay, okay.
Everybody stay back.
I repeat, stay back.
We copy.
All units stand down.
Melanie, I need you to listen to me, okay? I need you to let Officer Zermeno go.
No.
Melanie, look at him.
No, Melanie.
He's bleeding and he's very sick and he needs a doctor, okay? I promise you, I'm gonna stay in here with you, okay? You and me.
I'm gonna stay right with you.
Get out of here, Z.
No way.
I'm not leaving you alone with these guys.
Get out of here now, Officer.
So what's your plan now, Eugene? Everything I predicted has come true.
Do you believe now? He's lying, Melanie.
They tried to destroy us, but we are strong in the Lord.
Melanie, listen to me.
Do you know how I found you? She's working for Satan.
Your mother told me where you were because she wants me to get you away from him.
Melanie, no.
Melanie, he killed your father.
All who believe will rise up again.
He killed him for his money.
So says the Lord.
That's all he cares about, sweetheart.
He does not care about you.
You're a liar! He gave me a baby! Melanie, I'm sorry.
And I know this is very hard to hear, because he was supposed to take care of you.
But he made you do things that you didn't want to do.
She's lying, Melanie.
He hurt you.
You know I'm telling the truth.
He knew what he was doing was wrong.
Now, you listen to both of us very carefully, sweetheart.
She says she's telling you the truth, but you know me.
I've loved you, and I've cared for you and I've taught you all your life.
Now you have to decide.
Which one of us is telling the truth? No, Melanie! And the liar must be punished.
You do not take another step.
Or what? You'll shoot me? You'll kill me? Do you see the evil, Melanie? Shoot her.
No, Melanie.
Shoot her, Melanie! No, Melanie, no.
Shoot her! No! Come on.
All these men have come to kill me.
Shut your mouth, Eugene.
Why? Because they know! They know that I am greater than man, I am greater than God! And they are afraid of what I can do! Melanie, it's okay.
It's okay, honey.
It's okay.
Put it down.
It's okay.
It's okay.
It's okay.
It's okay.
That was a lie.
What was? He said he was greater than God.
But nobody is.
In New York City, the dedicated detectives who investigate these vicious felonies are members of an elite squad known as the Special Victims Unit.
These are their stories.
Best estimate, she's about 30 weeks along.
Came in alone, slight bleeding with contractions at 20-minute intervals.
She say who the father is? No, and this isn't the first time she's been pregnant.
Scarring suggests she's delivered before.
You find her parents? Refuses to tell us where they are.
Only says her first name is Melanie and she's 12-and-a-half-years old.
ACS will arrange for foster care after you release her.
She's not going anywhere until after the baby's born.
Next 10 weeks, this is home.
Hey.
Melanie? I'm Olivia.
I'm a police officer.
Can I talk to you for a minute? The doctor said that you had another baby before.
Is that right? He died.
My mom says he's with God now.
Well, it's good that you came to a hospital.
Was that your idea? Was it your mom's? Well, I'm glad that your mom thought of that.
She must love you very much.
If you tell me where you live, I can go get her.
I'm not supposed to tell.
Melanie, if you were my daughter, I'd want to be right here with you.
Will you write down your address for me? You know, if you want, I can also try to find the father of your baby.
Can you tell me his name? Abraham.
And who's Abraham? He's my husband.
The guy should be home.
She said that he doesn't work.
Okay, they're here.
I'll see you in 10.
Bye.
Somebody's watching.
My partner's on his way.
Keep your eye out.
Hello.
Hey, I'm a police officer.
Is your mom or dad home? Are all of you guys here by yourself? Hey, kids.
It's okay, Samuel.
Go on in and play.
Can I help you? Detective Benson, Special Victims Unit.
Are you Abraham? Why? Sir, I'd like to ask you to step outside, please.
No, I'm sorry, I can't.
Things will be a lot easier for you if you step outside.
Son of a bitch.
SVU Portable to Central, I need a couple of units at 104 West 120th Street.
Suspect is inside, I need to secure all exits.
How many kids in there? At least four.
Go around the back.
Shots fired, shots fired at police.
You okay? The property records say the building is owned by an Abraham Ophion.
Hostage negotiators tried talking with bullhorns, no response.
Anyone try an old-fashioned phone call? No phone service, and Con Ed cut off the electricity eight years ago.
Neighbors say they've seen up to three dozen people in the house at a time, mostly women and kids.
Neighbors have any problems? They all got the same story.
They're weirdoes, but they're quiet.
They got one noise citation 10 years ago for doing construction in the middle of the night, that's it.
We think the hostages are in the living room here.
Any idea how many kids? I saw at least four.
You got a fix on the perp? No.
But we've got all the exits covered.
He's not getting out.
Look out! Shots fired.
Multiple shots fired inside.
Entry team go, entry team go.
Call EMS.
Get EMS here now.
Come here, come here, somebody.
Zermeno, where's the perp? He's gone.
What happened? They're dead.
They're all dead.
CSU found an old tunnel under the house leading to a vacant building on the next block.
So far, that's where the trail ends.
Abraham Ophion has no known criminal record, though it is likely a fake name.
We do know eight years ago he tried to obtain tax exempt status for his group, the Church of Wisdom and Sight.
That, along with the way they lived and the events surrounding their deaths, indicate we may be dealing with a cult.
Other members may have escaped through the tunnel.
Our priority now is to find them and to identify the victims.
In addition, I want to make sure you're all taking care of yourselves.
The department is providing psych support and you're all to sit down and talk to one of these people sooner rather than later.
It is not optional.
None of you are exempt from what I just said.
Cap? We can always get our heads shrunk after this case is over.
Get it done or you're off the case.
I can sit down with each of you right now.
Fine.
Let's get it over with.
What do you most remember seeing after you entered the house? The dead bodies.
Anything specific about them? A bunch of dead bodies.
Seen plenty.
So this was no different than any other case? What do you want me to say? That it was terrible? Fine.
It was terrible.
But one way or another, they all are.
And you think this is a big waste of your time.
Hell, no, I think we should sit around all day and chat about our feelings.
Well, what do you want to talk about? Well, doesn't really matter.
We can all talk till we're blue in the face.
It's not gonna change the fact that the human race is ever-evolving and will always come up with elaborate, repulsive and depraved ways to kill each other.
And that's really the hard part for you, isn't it? What? That you can still be repulsed.
As cynical as you try to be, you can still be sickened.
How are you feeling now? I don't know.
This was an extremely traumatic event, Liv.
The grief that you're feeling is completely natural.
I know that.
But you feel like you shouldn't be feeling anything.
Is that how you feel? Tell me what you did last night after you went home.
I ate dinner.
Called my kid.
Your son, right? Do you talk to him often? Not as much as I should.
I just wanted to call and say hey.
Did you tell him about the case? Nobody needs that in their head.
You've got it in your head.
What does that mean to you? Means nobody's safe.
And that makes you feel helpless? Not at all.
Look, I've got my own kids, and eventually you realize that you can't always protect them.
What made you think about your own children? What do you think? The victims were kids.
Lots of victims are children.
Do you think about your own family on every case? It's not You know, I don't It's Look The one girl was wearing a teddy bear shirt that my daughter Whatever.
It's done.
You move on.
I'm afraid that That I won't be able to handle it.
But you are.
By acknowledging that it affects you.
That's the way you handle something traumatic.
Well, I guess the real problem is that I'm afraid that That it's not working.
CSU collected these names inside the house, from paycheck stubs, the mail.
They're all female, but the names and the socials are all fake.
One of these women has to come forward.
Their kids are lying unclaimed in that morgue.
I got Abraham's real ID.
His name is Eugene Hoff.
How'd you get it? CSU printed all the common surfaces in the house.
His prints hit.
Eugene Hoff, four arrests in the '80s for check forgery and counterfeiting, identity theft and various frauds.
He's no religious guru.
He's a con man.
If this whole cult is nothing more than a scam, why did he kill only the kids? Where are their parents? Where are you going? Going home.
Are you kidding me? They're making you take leave? No.
I'm taking it myself.
Sometimes you just gotta step back.
Come on.
I'll walk out with you.
Our guy's last place of employment was a Pentecostal church.
It's a place to start.
What? They're gonna send me home.
No, they're not.
Yeah, I was way too emotional.
I couldn't hold it together.
Elliot, can you step in here? I'm referring you to psych services.
I just talked to them.
We've determined you require something ongoing.
What do you want me to do? You want me to cry? Is that it? If you won't take care of yourself, then you have to allow us If you stayed out of my head and let me do my job, there wouldn't be a problem.
You're out sick until psych says you can return.
It's a week, at most.
Take it.
And you don't need to be carrying a gun around right now.
Elliot.
Detective Benson, you're with Munch.
Captain Let him go.
Any word on Melanie? She's undergoing minor surgery to stop premature labor.
We can't talk to her for a few hours.
How about Elliot? He's not answering his cell phone.
Found some more info on the church where Abraham worked.
Christian Tabernacle of Grace.
Pretty mainstream.
Abraham preaches anything that'll make him money.
It's probably just another con.
Eugene signed up for our Bible study fellowship when he joined the church.
After a couple months he asked for a more active role, and I made him director of faith ministries.
You must've been pretty impressed with him to give him a job.
I admit, I was fooled.
Eugene's discussion groups had nearly 100 members.
He was very well liked.
So what happened to change that? The more popular he got, the more bizarre he became.
He preached that the serpent was Christ.
Explains his tattoo.
And people actually bought this? Ten families left the parish when I fired him.
Was she one of his followers? I don't recognize her, but I know one family who left Eugene's group after a few years.
They may be able to tell you more.
Abraham was magnetic.
It was like he knew you.
He could be talking to a roomful of people and it was like you were the only person there.
But things changed.
He became paranoid.
Kept telling us that we were gonna be punished for our beliefs, that the government was going to kill us and we had to be ready to defend ourselves.
Meaning what? Collecting weapons.
Trips to the firing range.
Storing food.
He started separating the married couples.
He said you couldn't be soldiers of God if you were slaves to the flesh.
The men slept on one floor and the women always slept on Abraham's floor.
Eventually, he drove most of the men away.
What about the children? Janie, go and do your homework.
Abraham always talked about the purity and goodness of children.
But, really, he only paid attention to the girls.
One night I caught him in Janie's room.
She was four.
He was down to his shorts.
She told us that he never touched her.
But we left that night.
Looking back, I can't believe that we got caught up in this.
Look, we know how crazy he is now.
But back then, he was convincing.
See for yourself.
Are you willing to prove your obedience? Because the time will come and you will be tested.
When the soldiers of Satan come for you, when they demand your allegiance and threaten to murder you and your children and destroy all we have, will you make that sacrifice in the name of God? Yes? Yes.
Guess that makes us the soldiers of Satan.
This guy isn't too paranoid.
He wants his followers to be.
It's part of the manipulation, instilling the idea of being persecuted creates solidarity and loyalty.
Loyal enough to let him rape their daughters.
A lot of cult leaders were known to have sexual relations with the children in their groups.
David Koresh had a 10-year-old bride, the leader of the Nuwaubian cult was convicted for molesting 14 children.
Hold on a second.
Captain, you're going to want to take this.
She says she'll only speak to the person in charge.
About what? The victims.
Wants to know if one of them was a nine-year-old boy with brown hair with a scar on his left leg.
Trace it.
Agent Huang.
FBI number 2317616.
I need a trace on this line.
Captain Cragen.
I want to know about the children who died.
What's your name? I can't tell you.
Okay.
You don't have to.
Just tell me if one of them was a boy.
Nine years old.
Brown eyes, brown hair.
We can arrange for you to see all the bodies.
That way, you can be absolutely sure.
Please tell me.
Ma'am, you are not in any trouble Did we get it? Payphone at St.
Catherine's Hospital.
Where Melanie is.
It's gotta be the mother.
I'm not talking to you.
Melanie, I know that you think that I want to hurt you and your family, but that is not true.
Just go away.
Your mother was asking about a little boy.
Is that your little brother? Is that Samuel? Melanie, do you know what happened the night that you came to the hospital? I'm not listening.
Something terrible.
Abraham is a liar.
He killed your little brother.
He killed your friends.
He might kill your mom.
Now, I can protect her.
But I need you to tell me where she is.
Mom said Abraham was taking them to a safe place.
Hey, you can't do this! This is a civil rights violation! Relax.
Back here.
They have the right to believe in whatever they want! Which one of you is Melanie's mother? Where's Abraham? As if you don't know.
Tell me where he is.
You have our husband in your torture rooms.
You are a slave to the devil! Murderer! Detective Benson, check it out.
Got their own little Waco down here.
I'm gonna try one more time.
May I have your name, please, as well as any aliases? I hereby christen you "Jane Doe Number Three.
" Nobody's carrying ID, and nobody's giving up Abraham's location.
And they're all, apparently, married to him.
They don't know where he is.
That's why they're so frightened.
Their shepherd has abandoned his flock, and they believe that we killed their children.
But one of these women is Melanie's mother, and she's already strayed from the flock by calling us.
I just don't know which one it is.
She's not gonna say with the others around.
We have to interview them separately, compare their voices to the recorded phone call.
We have their mug shots.
Melanie's cooperating.
Let her pick Mom out.
Hell of a lot easier than trying to pry information out of these people.
Okay.
I'll hit the hospital, you hit the morgue.
Warner's got something.
Believe me, there's nothing I'd like better than to help you put a needle in your guy's arm, but this isn't good.
How could it possibly be worse? He didn't kill them.
This is the oldest victim, I'm guessing around 20.
Her injuries appear self-inflicted.
Could be a setup.
And her right hand was covered with gunshot residue.
CSU found the murder weapon, her prints were the only ones on it.
Abraham had total control over all these kids.
He orchestrated all of this.
I'm just telling you what the forensics prove.
The DNA tells another story.
I'm estimating this girl around 16, this boy around two.
She's his mother.
And I'll bet Abraham's his father.
All of the victims have the same father, except the shooter.
Abraham, father of many.
Had children with his own children.
Now we know why.
Why what? Abraham's nothing more than an incestuous pedophile.
You kill the victims, nobody can testify against you.
There's still one victim left, the 12-year-old in the hospital who's having his baby.
Melanie? Excuse me, I'm looking for Melanie Ophion.
Where is she? I just got on.
They may have moved her.
Let me check.
Hey, wait, have you seen your roommate? Melanie? Earlier today, but her dad already took her home.
No luck finding Melanie? Hospital security cameras recorded her walking out with Abraham.
She didn't look like she was being forced.
She wasn't.
This cult is all she knows.
She went with Abraham because she wanted to.
You find her mother? This woman says that her name is Sarah.
She won't admit to anything, but listen to her voice.
You willing to go to jail for this guy's crimes? I'm willing to make a sacrifice, in the name of God the Father.
Just tell me if one of them was a boy.
Nine years old.
Brown eyes, brown hair.
That's all I needed to hear.
Detective Benson, this is Sarah.
We've been talking about numbers.
We found this in her pocket.
What does it mean? She hasn't shared that.
Sarah was Abraham's wife in the Bible, right? From what I recall, Sarah whored out her servant to her husband so that he could have a child.
Is that why you let Abraham have sex with your daughter? Of course, your Abraham is different because he likes to have children with his own children.
Melanie is not his daughter.
And we're supposed to believe you now because you've been so forthcoming? Her father abandoned us when she was a baby.
Abraham took care of us.
Abraham raped your daughter.
I don't expect you to understand.
Don't try to tell me for a minute that you believe this is right, because I know you don't.
You took Melanie to the hospital.
You called us to see if Abraham had murdered your son.
No.
No.
Your son was shot.
Along with all these other children.
Those women out there might be brainwashed, but you're not.
You know exactly what he is, a murderer and a child rapist.
That's not true.
You knew who he was, and you let this happen.
You let all those children die.
It was God's will.
No, Sarah.
It was your will.
You can blame God, and you can blame Abraham, but we all know the truth.
You did this.
You sat there and you watched as a man raped one of your children and then murdered the other.
You might as well have killed them yourself.
Olivia He has one of your children.
And he has your unborn grandchild.
This is a test.
I won't be tempted.
Captain, those numbers Sarah was carrying around with her, bank accounts.
How'd you figure that out? Forensic accountant did.
Sequence of 10 numbers, all starting with four identical digits.
Same branch of the same bank.
Whose bank accounts? All different names, all closed yesterday.
Somebody walked away with six hundred thou.
Abraham.
Sarah must've closed those accounts and given the money to Abraham before we got her.
You don't get that kind of money by passing the hat.
Accountant says most of the deposits were payroll checks from large corporations.
Easy to counterfeit because it takes longer for the companies to catch on.
Abe has fallen back on his old career.
We thinking it's a coincidence he does all his bogus banking in one place? No.
He must have had an inside guy.
Make him come out.
I told you, I'd take you someplace special.
I don't know.
We could go to Tampa, stay with Excuse me, who do you think you are? Is your employee number 419686, Reg? What exactly is this regarding? Your creative banking activities.
Setting up bogus accounts for your pal Abraham.
Cashing his phoney checks and taking a cut for yourself.
Now, your boss is on the phone with the FBI, who I'm sure would love to have a little chat with you.
Oh, my God.
God's not gonna help you, Reg.
He doesn't like fraud committed in his name.
I want a lawyer.
You're gonna need one.
You're screwed.
But I bet if you help us find Abraham, it would look very good for you.
He's coming in this afternoon.
There's one more account.
It's got more money than the rest combined.
All units be advised.
No one is to approach the subject until the girl is in custody.
I got a visual on the subject.
The subject is walking east toward the bank, on the south side of the street.
Baseball hat, gray pants and a white shirt.
The girl is not with him.
I repeat, the girl is not with him.
He's entering the bank now.
I'm counting on you, Reggie, so don't screw this up.
You're gonna have to slip the GPS tracker in with the money.
He's here.
Take a few deep breaths.
Relax.
Just pretend you're embezzling thousands of dollars like it's any other day.
Thank you for banking with us, sir.
Yes, Mr.
Smith, what can I do for you today? I want to close my account.
Subject made contact.
Abe doesn't look too happy.
What the hell is Reggie saying? It bounced, and I just don't know We've got a problem.
Reggie sucks at this.
He's making Abraham suspicious.
He knows something's up.
I think this is blown.
Police.
Don't move.
Don't be stupid, Abraham.
You've got no place to go, Abe.
Put your hands where I can see them.
Get down on the floor.
Get down on the floor now! Into thy hands I commend my spirit! It's over now.
You tell me, where's Melanie? Safe with our Father, now.
All nations rightly give him praise.
You've been out there a long time.
Where's Melanie? I already told you.
You said that she's with "our Father.
" Does that mean that she's dead? Melanie will enjoy everlasting life, as will all who believe.
Believe in you? No, I'm just the messenger.
What message are you sending by raping and murdering children? I killed no one.
So Melanie is alive.
It's interesting that you're in here with me alone.
Do you like putting yourself in dangerous situations? You consider yourself dangerous? No.
But you don't know that.
I wonder what attracts you to such a dangerous job.
What makes you do it? Rapists and pedophiles like you.
So it's not just about arresting criminals.
It's about those specific criminals.
You're drawn to this.
Why? Were you raped? Tell me where Melanie is.
How can you stand it? How can you invite this depravity into your mind, your body, your soul? It will kill you.
Every horror, every torment afflicts your body like a cancer.
It's devouring you and you can't see it.
Open your eyes.
You know, I thought that you were just another con artist, seeking out people who were starved for anything that would give them meaning in their life.
They're easy marks.
You talk about God, the apocalypse and they give you all their money.
But you're much more pathetic than that.
You actually believe your own hype.
You've conned yourself.
This guy's not gonna tell us anything.
Then we have a problem.
Our best shot at getting an indictment was Melanie's testimony.
Without her, I can't convert the complaint.
His 16-year-old daughter and their two-year-old son are lying in that morgue.
As soon as Abraham's DNA comes back, we've got him on statutory rape and incest.
Not unless you've got a birth certificate that supports that theory.
Don't need a birth certificate if we've got his chromosomes.
First, I would like you to prove that my client had knowledge the woman was his biological daughter.
She wasn't a woman.
She was That's your M.
E.
's estimation.
But no judge would take a guess as proof of age.
So no statutory rape, no incest, and your murderer killed herself.
I guess we're all ready to go home now.
I don't like that look, Casey.
I don't like that he's right.
We have seven victims.
Charge Abraham with murder, charge him with conspiracy to commit murder.
There's no point.
All the forensics acquit him.
The gunshot residue was only on the oldest victim's hands.
Charles Manson wasn't present for the Tate murders, but they still convicted him for killing them.
Because members of his cult testified that Manson ordered it.
Can you flip any of Abraham's followers? No.
Melanie's mother was our best shot, and she just began a hunger strike protesting our persecution of her religion.
Then Melanie's our only chance.
If she testifies that Abraham orchestrated this, we can get him on the rape and the murders.
How long can we keep him in custody? Check fraud will keep him tonight, but he'll be out on bail tomorrow afternoon unless I get something new.
We'll put a detail on him the minute he leaves that courthouse.
That account that Abraham tried to close out today had over a million dollars in it, under the name and social of John Cramer, Englewood, New Jersey.
Another alias Abraham used? This time the guy is real, only missing.
He vanished with his wife and daughter about 10 years ago.
Daughter was only two at the time, she'd be around 12 now.
Named Melanie.
Who reported them missing? Cramer's parents, now deceased.
Missing persons database lists the contact as Detective Stu Mackenzie, Englewood PD.
Find out what he remembers.
The wife's name was Cindy? Yeah.
She didn't have any family.
Husband's parents died hoping we'd find them alive.
I always figured this case was some weird cult thing.
What made you think of that? Well, Cramer's parents knew he got in with this church group, was real secretive about it.
Donated his trust fund to the cause.
Okay, you ever run into this guy? Nope, but Cramer and his group lived totally off the grid.
No known address, no phone, no utilities, no jobs.
Only contact with the parents was a letter demanding the money in his daughter's trust fund.
How much is that worth? About two mill.
Available when the girl turns 21 or has a baby, whichever comes first.
That explains Abraham's reason for keeping Melanie alive.
At least until she delivers.
Where does Cramer's trail end? Last known activity was charging up some construction supplies on a credit card his mom paid for.
Severino Building Supply.
Three grand in drywall and tiles.
Ten years ago.
You know, a neighbor said something about middle of the night construction going on at Abraham's place around that time.
We searched that place top to bottom.
Didn't check the walls.
No building permits were ever issued while your guy owned this place, so basically we're looking for a room that shouldn't be here.
Tiles narrowed it down.
According to the building plans, this is supposed to be the exterior wall.
Benson.
Now it's just a matter of X-raying the walls.
Somebody's in there, we'll find him.
Cragen said that Abraham just lost his surveillance detail at Grand Central.
He could be anywhere now.
Detectives, come on over here.
Here's Johnnie.
What is this sand? Kitty litter.
To absorb the odor.
We'd better test for DNA to make sure this is John Cramer.
There could be 25 bodies in these walls.
It's him.
John Cramer.
Well, somebody better tell Sarah or Cindy or whatever her name is.
She thinks he left her.
Yeah, I wonder who told her that.
Do you recognize that? Cindy? Her name is Sarah, Detective.
Get your cases straight.
Belonged to John, your husband.
The one that you said abandoned you 10 years ago.
This is what's left of him.
He was shot in the back of the head and buried in the wall in the house where you lived.
Are you accusing my client of murder? No.
Just of being stupid and gullible.
You know, it's interesting how Abraham only surrounds himself with women and girls.
There's no men anywhere.
I wonder if he didn't like the competition.
No.
No? He killed your husband.
The father of your child.
What exactly does he have to do for you to stop defending him? Abraham told me that John fell in love with another woman and I believe him.
He was wearing it when he died.
What do you want from her? Abraham was last seen at Grand Central Station.
He's going to wherever he's keeping Melanie.
Now, she's gonna have her baby, he's gonna get his hands on her trust fund and then your daughter is dead.
Where are they? What are you offering? A chance to do the right thing for Melanie, something you've never done her entire life.
That's not good enough.
Up north.
This warehouse.
Melanie, are you okay? I'm going to take you someplace safe, all right? He's coming.
Don't move! Put the bag down.
Walk towards me.
Stop! They're going to take you away.
They're going to kill your baby.
It's over, Eugene.
You see? You can't control her anymore.
Come on, darling.
Come on.
Get him out of here.
Don't answer that.
Melanie, listen to me, sweetheart.
I know you didn't mean to do that.
Tell her to shut up.
Shut up.
Sweetheart, listen to me.
Shut up! What are you gonna do, Detective? Are you gonna shoot a pregnant child? You son of a bitch.
Don't do that, Officer.
She already shot you once.
We're coming in.
Do you copy? Tell them to stay back or she'll kill you both.
Do it! I'll kill you.
Detective Benson, respond.
Okay, okay.
Everybody stay back.
I repeat, stay back.
We copy.
All units stand down.
Melanie, I need you to listen to me, okay? I need you to let Officer Zermeno go.
No.
Melanie, look at him.
No, Melanie.
He's bleeding and he's very sick and he needs a doctor, okay? I promise you, I'm gonna stay in here with you, okay? You and me.
I'm gonna stay right with you.
Get out of here, Z.
No way.
I'm not leaving you alone with these guys.
Get out of here now, Officer.
So what's your plan now, Eugene? Everything I predicted has come true.
Do you believe now? He's lying, Melanie.
They tried to destroy us, but we are strong in the Lord.
Melanie, listen to me.
Do you know how I found you? She's working for Satan.
Your mother told me where you were because she wants me to get you away from him.
Melanie, no.
Melanie, he killed your father.
All who believe will rise up again.
He killed him for his money.
So says the Lord.
That's all he cares about, sweetheart.
He does not care about you.
You're a liar! He gave me a baby! Melanie, I'm sorry.
And I know this is very hard to hear, because he was supposed to take care of you.
But he made you do things that you didn't want to do.
She's lying, Melanie.
He hurt you.
You know I'm telling the truth.
He knew what he was doing was wrong.
Now, you listen to both of us very carefully, sweetheart.
She says she's telling you the truth, but you know me.
I've loved you, and I've cared for you and I've taught you all your life.
Now you have to decide.
Which one of us is telling the truth? No, Melanie! And the liar must be punished.
You do not take another step.
Or what? You'll shoot me? You'll kill me? Do you see the evil, Melanie? Shoot her.
No, Melanie.
Shoot her, Melanie! No, Melanie, no.
Shoot her! No! Come on.
All these men have come to kill me.
Shut your mouth, Eugene.
Why? Because they know! They know that I am greater than man, I am greater than God! And they are afraid of what I can do! Melanie, it's okay.
It's okay, honey.
It's okay.
Put it down.
It's okay.
It's okay.
It's okay.
It's okay.
That was a lie.
What was? He said he was greater than God.
But nobody is.