sherry engel and tom rickerson drove there. get out the car, and in front of the mailbox, i see a pair of glasses. and when i get up close, i see blood on the pavement. well, sherry comes up, and i said, "sherry, get back in the car," 'cause i'm thinking whoever did this is still there. narrator: police were called to the scene and immediately searched the area. cestare: and approximately 10 to 15 yards inside the wood line, they see what appears to be a body laying there. [ camera shutter clicking ] narrator: it was fred engel. he'd been strangled with a highly unusual murder weapon. we see what appears to be a bootlace or a shoelace tied around fred engel's neck, and it's tied from the back. narrator: there was also a bloody gash on the back of his head. detectives assumed that, while he was at the mailbox, fred had been knocked unconscious, dragged into the woods, and then strangled. this gave detectives one piece of vital information straight away. fred was well over 6 feet and weighed 250 pounds. dragging him into the wood