house. on that note, that is our broadcast for this friday night, and for this week, with our thanks for being here with us, have a great weekend unless you have other plans, on behalf of all our colleagues at the networks of nbc news, goodnight. networks of nbc news goodnight. >> you were looking for love and decided to try a dating site. >> i did. >> what was his description? >> he was a military, navy seal. >> he would show up have flowers, give me cards for no reason, he was a charm. >> my oldest daughter said to me either he is the perfect guy, or you will end up on dateline some ten. >> i googled derek alldred and i see all his old mug shots. >> when i saw the uniform i knew that there was something really wrong because he had a fake batch on. >> every minute he is with you, he is stealing all of your money. the more we found out about him, the more dangerous he became. >> he is starting to brandish a

gun. >> i had my guns leached and next to me. >> i had a back pack for myself, the minute i had heard him storing i jumped out of my bed. >> this guy needs to be stopped. >> we all banded together. >> he's not gonna do this to another woman. >> it all came down to this moment. >> we had officers and agents in vehicle, extra points, entry points to make sure he doesn't escape. >> finally he was in their sights. >> this guy needs to be stopped. >> he was going from state to state and he wasn't being held accountable. >> this is what he did for power. it's almost like a drug. >> he was good. really good. >> the best liar i've ever met in my life. >> he just didn't count on her. >> you have no idea, i'm not gonna stop.

>> cindi pardini was a true success story. she earned her degree in construction management and engineering. >> graduated with all men in a hard hat, and a gown. >> she went into technology, working for start-ups that became multi billion dollar companies. >> i had purchased stock, in the first tech company that i had worked for, at the time i left i had 1 million dollars. >> how old were you then? >> 30. >> by her early 40s, she was looking to slow down. >> i had taken a breather from my tech career, i was traveling all around the world, i was traveling well over hundred thousand miles a. here >> one day, after posting something on facebook about her beloved football team, san franciscan 49ers, a comment caught her attention. >> somebody had come on to my page and said go cowboys, and they are arch rivals, that

peaked my interest. >> that someone was a man named derek alldred, they had mutual friends on facebook. curious to find out more, she scanned his linkedin page and saw that he was a 42 year old investment banker. >> you're having this light hearted banterer on football teams? >> yes. >> she didn't hear from him for several months, then in the fall of 2013, out of the blue, derek message her. >> he said i've been going through a terrible divorce, and i've been in maui decompressing, and he said i've just inherited bunch of money, several million dollars and i'm thinking about moving to san francisco. >> he wondered if he could stay in her guest bedroom while he looked at properties nearby. >> he said i don't want to stay in the motel, and i don't want to stay downtown because that wouldn't give me the vibe of the marina. >> how did you feel about him staying with you. >> it really didn't matter, i've had friends stay with me and i do airbnb and so a kind

of welcomed having the company in my house. >> so derrick flew to hawaii to knock on her door, he seemed charming, we started talking and so we dug into -- he >> had an impressive background? >> sure. he said i'm building a ritz-carlton in maui and i build the one in tahoe. >> after several days of house hunting he went back to hawaii for business, but he found a house in san francisco he was interested. and >> he said do you mind if i come back while i come through and work through this list. >> when he returned? >> he was taking me to dinner almost every single night to reimburse me,. >> he even took cindy and her sister to a 49ers game. >> and we can get away to the hotel he said he had built. >> i wasn't pulling my wallet out for anything. my sister thought that he was awesome. she said, you should dayton. >> then, he told her about an

upcoming business trip to new york city and invited her as his guest on the luxury trip. >> he said i will stand one of the wrist carleton, i'm looking at the properties that we are investing. in >> is it still friendship? are things progressing? >> i mean, things are progressing but it's not a full blown dating relationship, you know? it was more, it was still an open -- >> let's see where this goes? >> yes. >> you are not picking out wedding dresses, let's put it that way? >> not at all. >> as the car pulled up to take them to the airport, cindy got a call from -- derek called dread, and i said yes and he said i need to let you know that it looks like he is using other peoples credit cards. >> cindy had the man on speakerphone, derrick was in the room and grab the phone. >> he was just like why do you keep calling, you, know somebody is using my name, this is not me, derrick explained

that they kept confusing him with another derrick who was living in the midwest. >> all my bags were downstairs, and the town car is calling up and asking us if we are ready to go. >> cindy wasn't sure what to believe, so she threw caution to the wind and headed to new york. >> the first morning there, she says derrick was upright an early. >> he got up, took a shower, put on a three piece suit had full contracts in hand put them in his briefcase. >> after he was out the doors and it was having trouble with her computers or she borrowed derek's. >> i wanted to check mail and read the news online, i clicked on the mail and i see that it is all of these women's name. >> it looked to cindy like he had been messaging women that he had met on line. one email in particular caught her eye. it was to it woman named wendy.

>> it's hi wendy, i hope you enjoy the weekend in hawaii, i hope you got the flowers -- >> wow. >> the earrings, and i can't wait to see you again. >> cindy concluded derek had been lying about what he had been doing in hawaii. he had told her that it was all business, she started wondering what else he could be lying about. she got back to that call from priced line and checked her bank accounts. >> i noticed in the last month that there was a 20,000-dollar line of credit that had been pulled down into my checking account. >> the money was gone and cindy was in a panic. she checked her american express platinum account and saw that he had opened a car to his name on her life credit. it has been dozens of toddlers, in fact she discovered it was her money. >> i was shaking, they're very few times in my life that if i

had been shook in. up >> when derek return later that day, did you confront him about the? money >> yeah is, and then at that point that was that. >> he refused to discuss it further. >> the last thing i remember is him walking out of the room with the silver briefcase. >> gone? >> gone. >> cindy was reeling. she couldn't think straight, she needed to get herself a home, to sort out this nightmare. >> it was so shocking that it was hard to put one foot in front of the other. >> the road ahead would be far from easy for sandy. she was in for the fight of her life. coming up. cindy couldn't possibly have known how long that journey would be, or how many women would join her on it. >> i went directly to facebook and gave his name, and said if anybody knows of him, share this. >> cher they did. a slew of dark stories about what derek had done. >> i was stunned, i was shock,

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at an affordable price, try olay skincare. this is elodia. she's a recording artist. 1 of 10 million people that comcast has connected to affordable internet in the last 10 years. and this is emmanuel, a future recording artist, and one of the millions of students we're connecting throughout the next 10. through projectup, comcast is committing $1 billion so millions more students, past... and present, can continue to get the tools they need to build a future of unlimited possibilities. >> cindy party any could feel

the shock wearing off and cold reality setting in. she had been swindled by a smooth talking conman and needed to act quickly. >> i went directly to facebook and i said i have been a victim of fraud and i need help. i gave his name and i posted his linkedin profile as well, i said if anybody knows of him, share this. >> when she started totaling up her losses to her horror, she realized in the month she had known him, derrick had stolen much more than she originally thought. he tapped into her 401(k), mortgage saving, and her credit card. >> how much do you alleged he ended up stealing from you in the end? >> $250, 000, that's like

losing $10,000 a day. >> she tried to piece together how he had done it. he hacked into her gmail account, she thinks, back then security wasn't as tight. >> we didn't have the authentication that we have now, he had been forwarding mayoral to his own mail and also playing a chess game with my mail, so i wouldn't see deleted items. >> from there, she says he changed her passwords and was able to raid her bank accounts and break up thousands of dollars on her credit card. she contacted her local san francisco police department and filed a report, i actually got a female detective and she said honey, i really don't think i'm gonna be able to get this until 2015. i said that's two years from now. >> oh my gosh, you must of been so deflated. >> yeah, i wasn't being heard. >> so cindy became her own

detective, she started by calling wendy, the woman she discovered derek had spend time with in hawaii. >> i wanted to warn her of what had happened to me. >> how did she react? >> she said, i'm not seeing him, i broke up with him, you know, over a month ago. >> wendy said derek hadn't stolen any money from her, that's when the conversation turned awkward. cindy told wendy all that money derek had been using to romance her came from cindy's own credit card. >> he was sending her 200 dollar bouquets of flowers, sometimes twice a week, he bought a 3000 dollar earring, spa treatment, he even, during the month that he was here he had borrowed my card supposedly to go see his dog and he actually picked up wendy and her daughter and took them to a concert and dinner in my car my money when they were visiting san francisco. >> how is she reacting to this when you are telling her, that was actually my money?

>> she was like i'm so sorry, and she said i knew something was off with him that's why i broke it off. >> she continued posting about him and even spoke to the newspaper, tips started coming in. one painted a picture of his childhood back in northern california,. >> he was adopted, his father had a restaurant business. >> did derek had some kind of messed up childhood that let him down his path? >> he grew up near the oakland hills in berkeley, very wealthy area. >> cindy got another tip about derrick's past, a woman named vanessa said she dated him back in 1992 when she was a student at ucla. derek was in his early 20s and told her he was amid student. he was there, walking through the hallways with his lab coat on. and his name was embroidered, ucla research. she had no reason to doubt him. >> i would take him to the children's hospital where he was doing research for cystic

fibrosis. and even the girls at the reception knew him. >> she fell hard, he was tall, handsome, and charming. she remembers a long road trips they took to visit his parents. she thought they were building a future together. >> he kind of created this dream, we fell in love, and he said we'd be married, and he'd be a doctor, and we have a family one day. and that's the first time someone had ever said that to me, so i believed him. why wouldn't i? >> but a year and a half into their relationship everything changed. >> one day he says he has to go visit his parents, out of the blue, gave me a kiss. he said i'll see you soon, bay. and i never heard from him again. the nasa said he'd taken off the sentimental gold bracelet, and $2,000 over money. she tried to get it all back. >> so, i got to his mom, trying to get answers, she was always

a evasive about his whereabouts. it wasn't until 25 years later, when on a she decided to google her old flame. there is a news article about him having swindled someone by the name of cindi pardini, and i was like what's? ? i couldn't believe it. she discovered her hands and that student was an impostor. derek alldred never even intended ucla. >> i was stunned, i was shocked, i was disgusted. all these crazy emotions. and so i immediately reached out to cindi. >> she was always kind of there to be supportive of me. >> soon, cindy had established a small network of derek's victims. >> we have a group instant messenger, we have group text, we have group emails. and i'll be like, welcome to the collab, you know. >> you don't want to be in this

club, but welcome. >> i was still reeling from the fact that we hadn't caught him yet. so, i just said, i know that this isn't going to help much right now and you're probably just as much and shock as i am about what's happened to you. but, i'm here to listen. >> after vanessa, for more women in california reached out to sandy. it was becoming clear to her, that's derek was moving from women to women, definitely avoiding the law. >> you didn't realize the kind of worms you are holding up? >> the more i found out, the more i was just pissed off that our justice system wasn't doing anything about it. another victim would pop up, and i would then call the police in my own city and say you need to charge him. at least charge him. >> in the meantime, cindi have been texting derek, demanding he give her her money back. eventually, he said, i'll

paypal whatever you think i owe you. of course, the money never showed, so cindy gave him a warning, i said i'm gonna be like a pit bull here. i'm just gonna keep going after it. you have no idea, i'm not going to stop. >> coming up. >> he said well, my wallets in my luggage, is it okay if we just check in? >> derek gets more daring, with a brazen con at a luxury hotel. >> he was having, someone, from a fictitious hospital in hawaii. which was really derek sending emails to the hotel, to say that he was good for the money? >> yes. >> when dateline continues. yes >> when dateline continues >> when dateline continues a place where everyone lives life well-protected. ♪♪ and even when things go a bit wrong, we've got your back. here, things work the way you wish they would. and better protection costs a whole lot less.

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that somehow she get her money back. she'd been pleading with her credit card company and bank, asking them to help her. >> literally 9 to 5 on the phone with banks. the impasse from one teller to another, and having to rehash the story. so far, she was getting nowhere. it had been six months since she last seen derek aldrin, and she had no idea where he was. >> i had hired a private investigator and said, we've got to find this guy. the pei found him. derek it was now dividing his time between hawaii and minnesota, and was engaged to a woman named kimberly.

>> what did you learn about? kimberly >> i just knew that she was a doctor. >> kimberly advertiser business online, and cindy found the ad. she instantly sends that this was another victim. at the same time, someone else was on derrick's trail. sheriff -- he'd gotten a call from the manager of the st. paul hotel. >> that's our finest hotel in st. paul, it's cater to presidents. there is a problem with the guest, the man seen here in the security video. i believe -- to preregistered the room, the credit card was eventually declined. he said he was a doctor, and told him he'd give them another credit card. but he claimed the airline had lost his luggage. >> and he said, well, my wallet is in my luggage, is it okay if we just check in. the clerk gave him a room. of course, the man checking in is derek alldred. >> he followed up with us manager and said he'd be able

to have the payment made through his office in hawaii. emails came in promising -- dr. reese assured payment for dr. old ridges stay. >> he always signed his emails, mahalo. >> he was having someone from a fictitious hospital in hawaii, which was really derek sending emails to the huddle. saying he was good for the money. >> yes. >> the sergeant learned derrick told the hotel manager was a special weekend. he was in town to take us fiancée kim, her daughter, and niece to a bruno mars concert. >> he said that he was going crazy because he was in a single room, can we just get another room. and the hotel desk manager felt sorry for him and said all right, we'll let you have this other room you know you're not supposed to. >> so the hotel is getting con? >> yes, they got caught out of two rooms instead of just the

one. and he took advantage of charging all the meals that he made at the hotel, also use the menu bar in both rooms, and charged it to the room. >> the sergeant said derek alldred kept a con going for three days. i one point, he and kim had been seen in the hotel business center. she briefly spoke to him, then quickly walked away. he continued to talk to a hotel staff member, and one of his time to pay the almost 1900-dollar bill, derek pulled a vanishing acts. leaving kim in the girls high and dry. >> and he just disappeared into the wind. >> so it's like the dine and dash, the hotel version. >> yes, the how expensive hotel version. >> when the sergeant went looking for him, he got a lucky break, to say the least. derek was brazenly trying to pull the same scam at another hotel in the area. >> the general manager for the st. paul hotel was friends with the general manager was at their country in. >> but derrick didn't know was

that while he was trying to get a room, the two managers we're talking. >> i think i said, funny, because my manager said i had a guy who's given the same story. and he said he also adopted from hawaii. >> general managers had called the cops. >> one of the odds of these two managers talking? >> exactly. >> police arrested derek and brought him in for questioning. >> however, you purported yourself to be one. >> now, i didn't report myself to be one, no i didn't. >> he looked me right in the eye in light. >> did you feel like he was trying to kanye? >> i did. >> you don't know i doctor james reece? chief of cardiovascular surgery? university of all? i >> know. >> why were they in contact, email, with a, the st. paul hotels and they would pay your bill? >> i don't know. maybe ask him about that. >> it doesn't mention can at

all. immense and there's a doctor all drench. >> i said was isa elaborate ruse by your fiancée cam, he said i don't know. >> but he was almost gonna blame cam? >> blame cam. >> but the sergeant knew kim was no con artist, she was the one being conned. >> he had told her he was an investor, that he had hundreds of thousands of dollars. >> in an interview with the sergeant a few days later, she told him derek all dread had all but destroyed her life. >> can you tell me how all this transpired, and what occurred, and how it affected you? >> my losses oh my whole life, through no credit. you got into my email accounts, intercepted emails, so they wouldn't know. he blocked calls from my parents, so the parents couldn't get in touch with me and tell me what was going on. >> so did you given the card too used to pay for things? >> no, not my credit card.

but he did with my credit card is, i found, he pulled it out of my purse, made a copy on his phone, which i actually have. and was using my credit card. >> not only did he ruin her credit, kimberly also told police he put her in debt so deep she worried that she would never recover. >> i was cam's demeanor like? >> broken. is probably a really good word for it. broken, heart. >> well derek it was not charge was dealing from cam, he was charged with one count of its death by swindle on the hotel. four cindi, hundred miles away in san francisco, the arrest was welcome news. >> if you think, finally this is going to be it, this is gonna be justice? >> yeah, i thought, okay, we've got him. >> but, cindi knew how slippery derek could be, so she reached out to local law enforcement. i start getting involved with the minnesota police, don't let him go, given until he sentenced. >> the prosecutor believed.

>> -- skipped bail. >> when you find that out, didn't you just want to scream? >> yeah, it was just so emotionally draining. >> i cindy saw it, in this game of cat and mouse, derrick had just scored another point. but the game was far from over, and cindi was determined to win. i was on a mission. >> coming up,. >> had she fallen for him? >> yes. >> but did you tell or? >> who's talking about marrying her. >> i knew the victim meets derek the attorney, complete with office staff. >> he had a secretary. i actually would call the secretary and talk to somebody. >> and then, a big break could mean he's caught. >> so you know potentially exactly where he's going to be an exact time,? >> right. >> when dateline continues. >> when dateline continues >> when dateline continues how do i sign up? where do i enroll? when is the deadline? one call to healthmarkets and they do it all.

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narrowly passed president biden's build back better act, friday. the boat passing 220 to do 13, the two trillion dollar spending package includes universal pre-k, extended tax, credit extends medical benefits, and medical leave and much more. the kyle rittenhouse was found not guilty of all five felony accounts, rittenhouse was charged in the shooting deaths of two men, and we need a third, amid protests over the shooting of jacob blake by police officer last year in kenosha wisconsin. now, back to dateline. cindi pardini was angry. just when she thought derek alldred would pay for his crimes, he'd gotten away again. >> derek alldred was always one step ahead of the law. >> he was. >> like a bloodhound she be tracking his movements for almost a year.

>> is he haunting you throughout this? >> oh my gosh, i mean, he's always in my thoughts, i would meet people and i'd say hi my name is cindi pardini, i'm a victim of fraud, it was in my dna. a warrant was out for his arrest for skipping bail in a hotel swindle, that didn't stop him from moving on to his next victim. in the fall of 2014, cindy heard about another woman who gotten tangled up in derek's web of deceit. >> you get a call from the mother of one of derek's alleged victims? >> and she said to my talking to my daughter. >> so cindi not on the phone with a woman named joanne, a high school teacher in minnesota, by cindi's count she was victim number ten. >> joann said she met him on hash on calm, and he said he was a hot shot attorney -- >> had she fallen for him? >> yes. >> what did you tell him? >> she was talking about

marrying her. >> joann, i deeply religious, women said derek we go to church with her every sunday and pray before every meal. even though cindi had sea never seen this devout side of derek. >> he asked a lot of questions, and he tries to become what the other person is. >> in need of. >> in need of, or looking for in a partner. >> what was his name with her? >> derek "derek r. allarad". there was a placard on the door "derek r. allarad". >> this is joanne, he had a secretary, and i'd call the secretary and i physically talked to a secretary. i have no idea how that. works >> derek, a lawyer, had wine dimes joann, even took her on a trip to hawaii. >> i really thought this was the guy. >> but when she started poking

around on social media, she stumbled on his real name. and saw there was a warrant out for his arrest. >> and just like cindi before her, i nagging feeling prompted her to check her finances. >> we did a credit check, and that's when i found out that he'd open no credit card in my name, and there was $14,000 charge to it. including the whole trip to hawaii. >> she broke it off. >> i was just devastated. >> and called the police. >> since there was a warrant out for derrick's arrest, she was transferred to the deputy sheriff paul mask in, who is working for the u.s. marshal service as a investigator. she told him her story of betrayal. >> technically, for my assignment with the marshals, didn't fit, because it wasn't a crime of violence. why did you decide i'm going to take action here and help this woman? >> he was a parasite. here is this woman that he completely victimized. this guy can get away with this. let's see what we can do. >> masking up to work.

>> i researched, and sure enough st. paul had a case of the hotel. and started working on that angle. >> the same poll hotel swindle. >> joanne gave him one of their experience cars, so he paid a visit to the law office address. >> that address he claimed, they said there's nobody who would ever been there by that, it's real addressed, but he never been to the law firm or anything like that. >> and you call the number one woman we answer, right? >> i ever find out who this one was? >> no. >> that's gonna news team brainstormed ways to catch, derek and came in with a plan. >> he had originally showed joann to shut down the credit card derrick had been using. but now he had a different idea. let's activated again. >> see if derek is using the card. >> she turned her card by. calm >> and doesn't work? >> they started giving information between the credit card companies, which brings out that he bought it trying to

get on amtrak. >> so you know potentially exactly where he's going to be at an exact time? >> right. >> the ticket was for the next day. the 6:40 am train leaving out of union station in st. paul. >> it was don, november 7th, 2014. this train platform was swarming with undercover u.s. marshals, sheriff's deputies, and police officers, all waiting for derek alldred to board the train, would you finally be captured? >> we were in our positions, and ready, and the train came. >> coming up. this is a long train. there are a lot of ways to get on or off the train. >> yeah, we had everything covered. >> so why is she about to slip through their fingers yet again? >> this really came down to minutes. >> we were on a time. cringe >> when dateline continues. a time cringe >> when datelin continues. continues. heo.

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chain pulled into st. paul station, all eyes are on the lookout for derek alldred. >> i wanted everyone to familiarize themselves with the photo. >> we briefed everything up, let him out here it, is here's the, photo here's what our phone is. here's a takedown team. >> plain clothes officer scanned each train car, ready to pounce. >> and this is a long train, there's a lot of ways to get on or off a train.

>> yeah, we've got everything cover. >> so you're looking, and looking, and looking. and? >> he wasn't there. >> derek there's nowhere to be found. >> he invaded law enforcement again. >> the investigator didn't know what happened, it was hopeful derek we do use the stolen card again. >> for a few days, he heard nothing. and then. >> police got a tip, he used a card, he's on a train. -- now let's work that angle. >> do you know exactly where is going? >> we eventually get information, as we're making phone, calls and interviewing people, that it looks like he's heading for portland. by the time asking out the tip, derek was only a few steps away from its final destination. >> so this really came down to? minutes >> yeah, we were on a time crunch. he contacted the u.s. marshals and portland, and a team race over the station. >> arriving, just as this train was planned. >> and he walked up the train, and they walked out to him and

said derek? and take him into custody. >> bingo. finally got him. >> he was sent back to minnesota, where he was charged with failure to appear, and for that death by a swindle incident at the st. paul hotel. joann was told he wasn't charged for using her freddy card, derek alldred was sentenced to 15 months. it wasn't nearly enough time, not the way cindi pardini sought. but it was a start. >> i was happy, at this point i was hopeful. hopeful that when he was released, to get justice for herself in california. that san francisco and find a way to extradite him. so i spent that year thinking, what am i gonna do, can you at least tell him nothing. >> nothing's ever that, easy isn't? >> now. >> less than a year later, cindy got a tip that derek was free again. she had no illusions though, that he had somehow learned his lesson. she figured, for derrick, the

short jail stint was just the price of doing business. and it was only a matter of time before he would pull another con. sure enough. >> in august of 2016 i get a message, he's back in action. and >> you are just like. >> yes. >> the message in your inbox front was from a woman named missy bryant. a flight attendant from st. paul. she told cindy every single detail, it started like so many others, on a dating site. >> i was at a point where i figured, i would like to meet somebody. >> she quickly found a match, somebody named richie peterson, a former navy seal. >> he had just retired, and he was very decorated. >> he relationship focused? >> right away, i walked into my house and there was four dozen roses. >> wow. romantic. >> two days later, there were four more dozen roses for my daughters. >> what did your daughter say about him? >> they were just like, wow, oh my gosh, teddy bears, and

candy. eventually he bought a boat, for us. >> like he gave it to you? >> he had at the marina. >> but he said this potus for you? >> that's a big gift. >> big, it was a nice vote. >> what kind about was a? >> it was like a 31 foot chris craft. it's loved all of us and a kitchen and bathroom. >> he's not messing around? >> now, he's not. >> i mean, this is great. >> messi had now spent four months with her new dream man. >> we've not got along with? them >> they loved him. >> are you thinking like he could be the one? >> i did actually tell my daughter when she was bringing her school one day, i'm gonna marry him. >> and yet, no matter what his new name or occupation, derek could now would be derek. he started doing shady things he gave a pause. >> he would go missing, and i'd go why did you go mia, literally when we are supposed to do something, all of a sudden they're zero communication, you're just gone? >> how does he explain that? >> there's always an excuse, it

almost made me feel bad. >> i'd be really angry at the time. and then he david all turned around, and he was really busy doing something. and then it was important. >> and when he was around, he said they were always take a trip to the er to deal with as old war injuries and a heart condition, or so you said. >> we spent a lot of time in the emergency room. >> they're giving him? drugs >> are given him drugs, lots of drugs. >> it was after an illegitimate trip to the er, he'd been a motorcycle accident. curiosity got the better of missy. when he wasn't looking, she snapped. >> so i went to look in that wallet, and when i open up the wall, there is a minnesota state i.d. in there that day says derek mylan derek alldred. >> he told you he's richie. it's like a lightning bolt? >> that was a sign that clearly i needed. but i don't say anything at the time. >> she waited until he went to

run an errand, and then lit up his phone. i'm doing nothing else with you. >> he's like i don't know we are talking about? >> this is how you confronted him? >> the attacks, i have nothing else to do with you. derek alldred. i >> at first she was devastated, then angry, then curious once again. because of what she had seen while she was snooping. >> when i found his wallet, i also found two credit cards, with a woman's name on them. >> do you search linda? >> now my mission is to find. linda >> she didn't know it then, but missy had just become a player in one of derek's most outlandish law cons yet. >> coming up. >> i said i know you're gonna think i'm crazy, but i believe we're dating the same man. >> missy tracks down linda, who is home along with derek. >> so i'm like, we need to get him out of there. >> you're not helping? >> of course i am, absolutely. she's afraid.

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he had tried to pass himself off as a firefighter when he showed up at a california seeking treatment for an apparent drug overdose. now the fire investigator was in hot pursuit of the man he believed was a fraud. he drove around visiting

hospitals, urgent care centers and pain specialists in four counties. >> was he conning the doctors and nurses? >> yes, he was. in a week and a half or so, i was probably up to about 20 different pharmacies and clinics. dozens of prescriptions. there were sometimes i -- one day, he went to five different pharmacies. >> reporter: in one day? >> yeah. he was real busy. >> reporter: oldag discovered the fake firefighter had gotten every last pill for free by claiming he was injured on the job. >> he was filling out worker's comp forms. he'd go in there on a fake name, fake social security number, and go in and get his medications and walk out. >> reporter: oldag now believed he had enough to go after derek for fraud. >> i had an arrest warrant for him. we brought his ex-wife in. we were talking to her. and he happened to call her on her cellphone. she told us where he was at. >> reporter: the investigator sprang into action and raced over to a nearby fast food place. >> he was on a payphone right outside of a mcdonald's in placerville. so i went in there really quick

and got him at gunpoint, arrested him. >> reporter: wow. at -- at gunpoint? >> yeah. i wanted him to know he -- that it was real serious on my part and not to play anymore. >> reporter: the investigator interrogated derek for more than two hours. >> you know just take a deep breath and be honest. >> reporter: he quickly admitted he had an issue with pain 00 on medication. >> so i'm addicted to -- uh -- to the vicodin and soma. >> reporter: and came clean about all his names. >> obviously my name then um -- allred, a-l-l-r-e-d. aldrich. >> how do you spell that? >> uh -- a-l-d-r-i-c-h. >> what other first names would you have used? >> usually always derek. i mean -- >> okay. any richards? >> uh -- i think i have in the past, yeah. >> reporter: but when the investigator asked him about getting drugs for free, well, the con man wasn't about to confess to that. >> you can go into a hospital, impersonating a firefighter, right, and then how would you use that to get pills? how would a person do that? >> i don't know to be honest with you. >> have you ever done that?

>> specifically to get pills, no. >> reporter: this takes the term "liar, liar, pants on fire" to a whole new level. >> oh, exactly. >> reporter: about an hour into the interview, oldag left the room. he wanted derek to stew for a bit. when he came back, he tried a different approach. you shake his hand. >> i did. i told him he was the best liar there was ever and that pumped him up. >> i want to shake your hand. you are very good at what you do. the way you go and get drugs, you are very good, aren't you? >> it's not something that -- yeah. >> no, aren't you very good? >> well yeah. i've been doing it for a long time. >> i was shocked. i was completely shocked at that answer. >> reporter: the new approach worked. derek opened up about his other fake identities. >> i've represented myself as an executive, as a firefighter, as -- you name it. >> and all those social security numbers? >> just pull a number out of, you know, out of thin air. >> he'd recall everything without a piece of paper. it was all in his head.

>> reporter: smart? >> so i knew he was very smart. he was incredibly smart. >> reporter: do you think there was part of him that enjoyed the con? >> oh, i have no doubt. i believe that he is a narcissist, and very much he enjoys the challenge of seeing what he can get away with. later on, he told me that i was the first guy to catch him in 19 years. >> reporter: are you thinking i'm dealing with a real crazy? >> oh, yeah. if you could put his abilities to work, he could go places. but his deal was a con. >> reporter: derek alldred took a plea deal and was convicted of six felonies, including embezzlement, burglary and making false insurance claims. in total, he swindled the fire fighter's worker's comp fund for more than $200,000. all to pay for his medical care and prescription drugs. and for those crimes -- >> he did three years' probation, a year, year and a half in county jail. >> reporter: oldag was certain

derek wouldn't go straight after his time in lock-up. >> he was a fraud. and tigers don't change their stripes. >> reporter: oldag was right. as we now know, in the years that followed, derek scammed more than a dozen women in five states, including wendy, cindy, and all those women in minnesota. by 2016, he was free again and heading to sin city. only now he seemed in a rush. more desperate. and he let it be known he was carrying a gun. >> coming up -- a new victim, caught in derek's web, tries to escape. >> i had a little bag packed for myself. and the second i heard him snoring, i jumped out of my bed, and i -- >> reporter: oh, my gosh. >> -- ran downstairs. due to afib not caused by a heart valve problem. so if there's a better treatment than warfarin that's a trail i want to take. eliquis. eliquis reduces stroke risk better than warfarin.

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>> reporter: cindi pardini feared derek would never stop. so it was no surprise when in late 2016, she heard he conned another woman in arizona. by cindi's count, victim number 16. >> he had met a woman there, and

he had stolen jewelry from her. and so he got arrested there, and, again, he didn't show up for his sentencing. >> reporter: so he got away again? >> yes, again. >> reporter: from what cindi had been hearing, derek seemed to be rushing through women and cons. >> they're in shorter periods of time. he's moving pretty fast through all of them. >> reporter: and the women in minnesota had told her something frightening. >> he's starting to brandish a gun. >> i still sometimes have a hard time really wrapping my head around it. >> reporter: kelly patterson met derek just a few months after his escape from arizona. he'd shown up in las vegas calling himself rich tailor, former navy fighter pilot. >> seven or eight deployments. >> reporter: that's a lot. >> that's a lot. >> reporter: kelly, a single mom of two girls, recalls being swept off her feet almost immediately. rich quickly moved into her house, bought her roses, a mercedes, and a membership to a swanky country club.

>> he just called me one day when i was at work, and said, "hey, we're members at red rock country club now." >> reporter: isn't that where o.j. plays? >> he might. >> reporter: her new life seemed perfect. >> we were going to the club all the time for dinner, and lunch, and he was golfing there a lot. >> reporter: were you proud to show him off? >> i was. i had a group of girlfriends from college, and they came in and met him. and, i mean, they just were like, "wow, we're so happy that you've met someone like this. you deserve it." >> reporter: but not everyone was smitten. where kelly envisioned the altar ahead, her teenager saw trouble. >> my oldest daughter, she said to me, "either he's the perfect guy, or you're gonna end up on 'dateline' someday." and -- >> reporter: and here you are. >> here i am. >> reporter: rich also flunked the "meet the parents" test when her father visited from ohio. >> i think immediately my dad just had that fatherly instinct. >> reporter: instinct.

same as your daughters? >> same as my daughters. >> reporter: kelly admits she also had some doubts about rich but shoved them aside. her family, however, would not. back in ohio her dad made some calls while her sister scoured the internet. >> i was at work. my parents called me and they said, "kelly, he is not who he says he is." my dad said, "i'm really worried. i don't know if he can be -- if he could be violent. >> reporter: how are you feeling when you hear this? >> sick to my stomach. >> reporter: i would be scared. >> i was scared, and i -- and i had to go home, and i had to pretend like everything was okay to try and -- and get away from him. >> reporter: fortunately, her daughters were away at the time, staying with their dad. but that meant kelly had to face him at home -- alone. she was especially frightened because he once told her he had a gun. >> he wouldn't leave my side. it was like he knew that something was wrong, as much as i was trying to act like everything was okay.

he -- i think he sensed it. >> reporter: that's, like, in a really scary part of a movie. >> it was very scary. >> so i went to bed with him and waited for him to fall asleep, and i had a little bag packed for myself. and the second i heard him snoring, i jumped out of my bed, and i -- >> reporter: oh, my gosh. >> -- ran downstairs. >> reporter: and just when she thought she had escaped unnoticed -- >> i got in the car, and as i was backing out, he was standing -- >> reporter: oh. >> -- in the doorway, and i just peeled out of my neighborhood and drove directly to my girlfriend's house. >> reporter: could you see the look on his face? >> yeah, he looked angry. and my -- my phone started blowing up, and i didn't answer it. and he called and called and called, and -- >> reporter: you got out just in the nick of time. >> -- i got out just in time. >> reporter: eventually, she'd realize just how lucky she was. rich had only stolen her rent money. as for the mercedes -- >> we walked off that lot with this almost $50,000 car, and not a dime had been paid. that's how good he was. >> reporter: she later returned

it, and the country club he scammed -- >> i think at one point the bill was getting so high that the general manager called him and said, "you know, we're gonna need you to make a payment." i think he was around $20,000, and i think that that was when everything started to kind of go sideways for him. >> reporter: kelly would also learn that rich was actually derek alldred, a con man not a navy man. >> and that was the thing that my dad was so adamant about. he was, like, "this jerk is walking around impersonating, you know, military. and, you know, not okay," and, i mean -- >> reporter: military men and women do not like that. >> no, nobody likes that. my dad went to ncis and talked to an agent. >> reporter: the naval criminal investigative service. >> yes, yes. yes, and my dad said, "he's impersonating a naval officer." >> reporter: her father was furious, but kelly was just ashamed.

>> i was really, really upset with myself, and i lost faith in myself. i -- i didn't trust myself anymore. i -- such a bad decision. >> reporter: if anything helped it was this, she found out she was not alone. kelly was now part of a strange sisterhood. what would you call this club? >> like the courage club. it's taken a lotta courage for us to speak out about it, because this is not the kind of attention any of us welcomes. >> reporter: by cindi's count, in 2017 derek, the bogus lawyer, doctor, firefighter, professor, ceo, hotel developer, fighter pilot, navy seal. had conned more than a dozen women in seven states. >> these are smart women. what happens is he's a master manipulator. >> reporter: lauren leamanczyk from kare 11 was now reporting extensively on these victims and derek's ability to prey on them. >> how does this happen to these women? there's a doctor. there's a nurse. there's an engineer. there's a computer programmer.

>> reporter: one woman was a nuclear physicist, but when they went to police, leamanczyk says, the women often felt they weren't heard. >> what the women say time and again is they feel like they are treated like scorned women. like their complaints aren't taken seriously, that sometimes police departments just don't have the bandwidth to really investigate these financial crimes, and so he gets off with a slap on the wrist. >> reporter: derek alldred had tried his luck in vegas with nothing to show for it. he was moving on. this time to texas, and a showdown. >> coming up -- derek strikes again, but may have met his match. >> i got my gun. i had my dogs leashed and next to me, god forbid he comes through that door, i'm ready. >> when "dateline" continues. ♪ ♪ ♪ (sha bop sha bop) ♪ ♪ are the stars out tonight? (sha bop sha bop) ♪ ♪ ♪

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while olay collagen peptide visibly firms and reduces the appearance of fine lines and wrinkles; and olay retinol 24 brightens and smooths the skin while you sleep. for dermatologist-recommended ingredients at an affordable price, try olay skincare. here is what is happening. the cdc has given the go-ahead for adults 18 and older to get a covid-19 booster shot. the agency says those over age

50 should get another dose of pfizer or moderna vaccine while all other adults may get the shot six months after their last vaccination. and president biden's doctor says that he is, quote, healthy vigorous 78-year-old. mr. biden underwent a colonoscopy and had a polyp removed. during the procedure vice president became acting president, the first woman to do so in the nation's history. now back to "dateline." ry now back to "dateline. >> reporter: after talking to kelly in vegas, things were pretty quiet for cindi pardini. derek alldred was in the wind. >> i knew that he had moved on, but i didn't know where. >> reporter: even though kelly's dad had alerted naval investigators, nothing came of it. then five months later, cindi's phone rang. it was a woman from dallas, another victim. >> she was very upset. like, this had just happened to her.

>> reporter: cindi listened to her story about duplicitous derek. he was still using the name rich taylor and posing as a navy vet. >> he'd been dressing up in, you know, the military uniform. >> he told me he was still in the reserves with the united states navy and worked for the department of defense. >> reporter: dorie van horn, an hr manager at a telecommunications company had only dated "richie" for about six weeks. the tall man in uniform had quickly captured her heart. their first date, though, started out rocky. he took her to a texas rangers game. >> he went up to the will call and he said, you know, "i'm captain rich taylor, and he said, "colonel somebody --" i don't remember the name, "left tickets for us here." >> reporter: but there were no tickets. >> he started getting angry and he pulled out his ncis badge and said, "look, this is who i am." come on we need these tickets. i mean it was a good five to ten minutes at least. and finally, they came up with some tickets.

>> reporter: during the game, dorie says richie's phone buzzed an urgent call from the pentagon. he told her they were asking for his expertise on north korea. >> the north korean crisis started right around that time. there was a senate hearing committee that he was gonna have to go down and present his opinion. >> reporter: are you thinking, "wow, this guy's really high level?" >> yes. i was impressed. >> reporter: later on, she saw his uniforms, those medals, all kinds of military awards. >> reporter: did he ever wear his military uniform around you? >> he did put on his dress blues when he was having several meetings out at the dfw airport and i also had seen him in a flight jumpsuit that pilots wear. he had the helmet, you know, with the microphone on it. >> reporter: dorie offered to drop him off at the airport for his top secret missions because his porsche had been in an accident, at least that's what he said.

he even sent her pictures. he told her he was in the navy reserves flying f18s. >> and he would send me pictures that he had taken when he was up in the sky, of flying. they were flying training missions. basically, getting prepared for this attack that is pending possibly with north korea. >> reporter: some of his grand stories did make her wonder. >> but i was falling for him. i thought he was, you know, the one i'd been looking for. so a lotta these little things i just pushed down. >> reporter: you were ignoring your gut? >> ignoring my gut, absolutely. >> reporter: were you falling in love with rich? >> i think i was. >> reporter: did he express to you that he was falling for you? >> absolutely. i got "i love you" after it was about two weeks. he was telling me that i was everything that he had been looking for. just absolutely treating me like a -- i mean, just made me feel

really good about himself. >> like a princess. >> yeah. made me feel really good. >> reporter: but she says richie the romantic also had a dark side. >> he would just, you know, whether it be kick the wall, kick my bookcase, kick something. flip something off the coffee table, but i always made excuses for it. >> reporter: the dramatic end came the day richie left behind an ipad he had borrowed from dorie. >> i pick it up. i flip it open and everything's different on the front page. >> reporter: he's hijacked your ipad? >> yeah. >> reporter: and what do you find inside? >> a picture of him laying in a hospital bed. and then i look closer and the name on the account is "derek allred." >> reporter: oh no. >> i remember looking at it, thinking, "that's richie." >> reporter: a quick google search and the name, derek alldred, showed up along with his decades long history of fraud and a stack of mugshots that could fill a photo album. dorie could barely breathe. >> i went upstairs and got my gun, and i sat on my couch and i was wide awake.

i had my dogs leashed and next to me, just sitting there, ready. god forbid he comes through that door, i'm ready. >> reporter: derek never showed, so dorie fled to her brother's ranch. >> and while i was out there, i started digging into my finances. >> reporter: dorie searched her accounts and there it was, derek had drained her checking account and charged thousands on one of her credit cards. >> in total $19,800. the only thing i can put together is i went upstairs. you know, he snapped a picture of my checkbook and then this extra credit card that i had up there, he took. >> reporter: she called the police. detective keli hunt of the colony texas police department got the case. she knew derek alldred was bad news after running his name through a criminal database. >> theft and some fraud, and you could just see that this was just something he just got away with. no real time in jail. >> reporter: detective hunt

assured dorie she would make sure he didn't get away this time, unlike many detectives before her, she understood this wasn't about scorned women out for revenge. >> i took it probably a little more personal than other cases i would have, just because, you know, you could see the trail that he left of just destruction. >> reporter: and here's where dorie did something that would prove crucial to the case. >> we've gotta stop him. we've got to do something different that hasn't worked before. >> reporter: after derek left, she collected a closet full of potential evidence. >> i had all kinds of uniforms, uniforms and badges. he hid them all around my closet, way in the back of the closet. >> reporter: detective hunt was also interested in the credit card fraud aspect of the case. she knew it was something she could work with. she visited three local businesses where derek had used dori's card. >> in all three places they knew him, real big talker. he would wear his military uniform. i had one of the cashiers come

in and he did a photo lineup. picked him out immediately. so that was for me an airtight case. we could go ahead and get a warrant and get him into custody before he ran. >> reporter: but there was something else she needed to do. of all the stuff he'd left behind at dorie's, one thing stood out. >> he also had a badge from the ncis, naval criminal investigations. it looked to me like a legitimate badge. >> reporter: so she reached out to ncis and showed that badge to a real agent. when he compared his to derek's, he couldn't tell them apart. >> he took pictures of it. he goes, "i have to send this to my boss right away, because he'll never believe this." >> reporter: derek is impersonating a federal officer. >> correct. >> reporter: which is an avenue that can be taken to maybe finally get him. >> yes. >> reporter: that gold badge was about to lead the us navy into a conman's treasure trove and launch an investigation with teeth. coming up -- a previous victim, willing to go

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>> reporter: ncis agents mike elkheir and jeremy houck got a look at the military paraphernalia dorie had collected. they were astounded. the conference table was filled with counterfeit geneva convention id cards, military uniforms, metals, counterfeit ncis special agent badges. i've never seen anything like it. >> reporter: and it all belonged to one man, dorie's former boyfriend, derek alldred. >> how seriously does the military take it when someone is impersonating a military officer, from a legal standpoint? >> from a legal standpoint, it's free speech to wear a military uniform out in public but it's illegal if you use that -- to gain something of value. >> reporter: it's called stolen

valor. and as far as the agents could tell, derek had used the military to live the high life. >> he really went all out to -- to fit the persona of -- of a military officer? >> absolutely. >> purple heart, silver star. >> seal team one -- underwater -- demolition school. he displayed 'em all. >> so all of this here represents stolen valor? >> absolutely. >> yes. >> and this was a big part of your case? >> this was. this was definitely the hook to get in -- to start the case. >> reporter: the agents quickly learned there was so much more. >> mail fraud, aggravated identity theft, felony possession of a firearm, wire fraud. access device fraud. there was a whole slew of charges. >> social security fraud. he was collecting social security disability because he was blind. derek's not blind. >> reporter: but building a federal case takes time and that's one thing they didn't have. >> we needed to catch him as

soon as possible 'cause he was gonna run. >> lover on the lam. >> he has a history of running and so why stop now? >> reporter: so agent elkheir had an idea. >> i asked detective hunt if she could just get a local warrant for the credit card abuse charge just so i can get him into custody. >> reporter: hunt got the warrant. now they needed to find derek. not surprisingly cindi got involved. she was still keeping track of derek's whereabouts and thought she might know where he was. her information came from a new member of the club. a woman named tracey. >> once i reached out to cindy she said, "well, there's another girl in texas as well." >> reporter: he'd been dating tracey at the same time as dorie...which explained all those charges on her credit card. >> he was basically wining and dining on my dime. they were -- they had airbnbs pretty much every weekend. you know, fancy dinners, fancy -- lake houses they rented. >> reporter: based on what cindi learned from tracey, she thought it was possible derek was still in dallas. agent elkheir tracked down

tracey hoping she was still in contact with derek she wasn't. >> she told me that she got into a fight earlier, prior to knowing all of this, and she kicked him out of her house. >> reporter: the agent asked her to patch things up so she could find out where he was. >> she did exactly what we asked her to do. to text, to apologize. >> she's essentially acting at this point? >> correct. >> right. >> pretending that she's still in love with him, everything's fine? >> right. >> meanwhile, she's -- >> she's setting him up. >> reporter: derek took the bait and told her he was in the hospital having a heart procedure. she offered to pick him up the next day. >> and the plan was to arrest him in front of the hospital? >> yes. >> reporter: all the details had been worked out. they were ready to make the arrest but then, after seeing a local police alert online, not knowing a sting was in the works, dallas tv station wfaa ran a story warning the public about derek. >> empty promises and empty wallet. >> and you're just, like, "why? why now?" >> yes. based on what we knew of derek at that time and how savvy he was, we were concerned he was gonna see that and he was gonna

be gone. >> he could run? >> he could run. >> reporter: the agents decided to go ahead with the sting anyway. >> the adrenaline was pumpin'. we were keepin' our eyes out -- hoping to spot him. and -- and hoping that everything went smoothly. >> reporter: ncis enlisted the help of local law enforcement. ten officers and agents had the hospital covered. >> we had plain clothes officers just walking around the hospital as just normal patrons and we had -- officers and agents all around the hospital in -- in vehicles, just staged locations, exit points, entry points -- to make sure we cover our bases -- with derek so he doesn't escape. >> did you feel like this was your moment? you were finally gonna catch derek alldred? >> i felt that if we didn't catch him now -- we weren't sure if we were ever gonna catch him. >> reporter: the pick up time was fast approaching. derek sent a text to tracey. >> there was a problem. >> best laid plans don't always work the way they're supposed to to? >> they don't. >> reporter: tracey has bad news for law enforcement. >> was she frantic?

>> she was a little frantic and we were more concerned with losing him. >> reporter: and derek finally in custody claiming he is the victim of a scorned woman. >> when things went south, i mean, she was bitter. and wanted revenge or whatever you wanna call it. >> when dateline continues.

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reporter: the navy's sting operation in fort worth was in trouble. police were supposed to arrest derek as he left this medical center. tracie, working with investigators, had just gotten a text from him. >> so in the last minute, she called me and says "hey, he's at the heart hospital. he's not at -- at fort worth. and he's waiting for me there." >> reporter: was she frantic? >> she was a little frantic. but i think we were more concerned with losing him. >> reporter: how do you all scramble to get into position in the new location?. >> we just get in our cars. some of us were already in cars. and we start headin' in that direction. >> reporter: the agents had to wonder if derek had seen that local news report, gotten spooked, and changed his plans at the last minute.

when they pulled up to the second hospital, the agents didn't see him there either. >> just start walking around the hospital and tryin' to find him in the valet, in any of the lobbies, anywhere where we can get eyes on him. >> reporter: so the new medical center is crawling with local law enforcement and federal law enforcement tryin' to find derek alldred? >> yes. >> reporter: and then -- there he was. he was sitting in a lounge, in an expensive-looking suit and tie, waiting for tracie. >> and we said, "derek?" and he said, "yes?" i said, "go ahead and stand up. put your hands behind your back." >> reporter: the sly fox who talked his way out of every trap, this time was acting like an obedient puppy. >> i was more shocked at the fact that he wasn't questioning what was goin' on. a normal person would go, "what is this all about?" and it was almost like he was at peace with it. >> so tracie said, "we got him." you know, "we've got him." >> reporter: tracie, who was at the hospital, witnessed the arrest. she was on the phone, giving cindi a play-by play. >> i said, "send me the pictures now." and so she hung up and she took pictures of him in the suit with his hands behind his back.

>> reporter: handcuffs. >> in handcuffs. >> reporter: could you believe it? >> i couldn't believe it. i was so happy. >> tell me a little bit about why you may think you're here today. >> reporter: within minutes, derek alldred had gone from a hospital lounge to a police department interview room. >> there was a warrant out for my arrest in the colony. i actually saw the 7:00 news this morning. >> reporter: so, he had seen that news report and was dodging the law when agents nabbed him. but now he wanted them to know something, he was the victim here of angry exes. like linda from minnesota. >> when things went south, i mean, she was bitter. and she was upset and hurt. probably a little scornful and wanted revenge or whatever you wanna call it. >> reporter: but the agents weren't interested in his sob stories. they had something else in mind. >> and let me ask you, have you ever served in the military? >> no. >> never served in the military? >> no. >> have you ever been in law enforcement before? >> no. >> fireman? >> no. >> the only thing that he essentially really told the truth about is that he wasn't in

the military, he wasn't a pilot, he wasn't a special agent with ncis. >> reporter: and yet, the agents had security video of derek walking around in an airport posing as a fighter pilot. >> and one of the things he did was he would tell one victim that he was deploying for the weekend and she would drop him off at dfw on a friday night at one terminal. >> and then he would walk to a different terminal and have another victim pick him up. and he would tell her he just got back. >> reporter: so they put the question to him. >> do you wear uniforms of military personnel? >> no, i don't. >> never? >> i have in the past. but, i mean, i -- yeah, i mean, like -- >> by "in the past," last week or -- >> no, not last week, not last month, not last year. >> reporter: except they had a photo that said otherwise. dorie snapped it days earlier, when derek wasn't looking. >> in full naval uniform on his

cell phone, not payin' attention. she snapped a photo of that. >> reporter: but when they showed him the proof, he tried to deny it. >> i never wore this in public anywhere. and that's -- i don't even know how that was taken. that's -- that's crazy. >> okay. so when you do you think that was taken? >> i'm not quite sure. >> a normal response would be, "yeah, that's me." just -- "i don't know how you would've gotten those photos." >> reporter: so you caught him in a lie immediately? >> absolutely. >> reporter: in fact, they had a lot more images. derek in dress blues and whites, flight jumpsuits. none of which is a crime exactly, but -- >> have you ever heard of the term, stolen valor? >> i have. up until recently, i hadn't. >> reporter: wearing military uniforms and flashing badges to get things for free. that is a crime. >> have you ever had any military id's, like, in your possession or anything like that? >> military id's? no. >> okay. so not even fake, counterfeit, anything like that? >> i don't think so, no. >> i can tell you, beyond the shadow of a doubt, you know,

i've never gone out in public and, you know, gotten free stuff or free drinks or free dinners or -- >> tickets to baseball games -- >> tickets to baseball games -- >> --or concerts or -- >> --or concerts, no. nothing. >> nothing? okay. >> never. >> reporter: once again, they had evidence. >> you had these credentials here. and you had this navy -- >> oh. this is -- yeah, okay. >> you know what i'm talking about, right? >> yeah. >> okay. and so this is a common access card. >> you can buy 'em off of ebay. >> yeah? is that where you got these from? >> that's where i got that. yeah. >> and what were you gonna do with -- these here? >> nothing. i haven't done anything with them. >> reporter: but remember when derek took dorie to see the texas rangers on their first date? cameras were recording more than just the game. >> the rangers ticket. we were able to pull some footage. and clearly you are showing id and insisting that you're military -- and gaining something which is the equivalent of stolen valor. >> i didn't. i never -- never showed id. >> reporter: oh, yes he did, according to stadium security

officers. they recalled the larger-than-life man who waved his ncis badge. >> and so i showed 'em a picture of derek. and they said, "yeah, absolutely. he was a great guy. we gave him a tour of the stadium." >> reporter: the real agents had the fake one in a corner, but derek, who could talk himself out of a tight spot, was gonna give it one more try. not only with them. ready to do this? we're recording. derek, you go ahead. but also with us. coming up -- our turn to confront the con man. what do you say to all these women who say that that you destroyed their lives? >> i was a horrible boyfriend. destroying someone's life -- i think is a bit exaggerated. >> reporter: and then, the hardest thing about being his victim. you get really emotional talking about that. >> that part bothers me.

>> reporter: ncis agents elkheir and houck were losing patience with derek alldred. they'd been interviewing him for more than an hour and were getting nowhere. >> i think in the last

i'm craig melvin. >> and i'm natalie morales. >> and this is "dateline." >> oh, my god. >> a fire chief murdered. his wife the only witness. >> this detective knew them both. >> she started telling me about a young man coming into their home and shooting keith. >> her job now, solve this crime. and clue number one was a doozy. >> she said that after he shot keith, he turned to her and said, you know, i'm sorry, ma'am. >> i'm sorry? a killer who