. all hit 96. >> he had this amazing voice. >> very gra garous. >> he was the guy the whole town woke up to. morning deejay steven bean. >> he was so funny, and he had a great love of music. >> he's loveable. everyone loved steven. >> but soon it was very clear that not everybody did. >> shot him one time in the back of the head. >> i felt like i was in some made for tv movie, like this can't be happening. >> what did happen. tonight, the hunt is on. a gleaming yacht. >> i thought, why did you get on that boat? >> a scheming businessman, and a

missing fortune. >> you're a multi-millionaire, and you don't have any money. >> from high seas adventure to heart stopping murder. >> i don't think i'll ever get another case quite like this. >> who killed the radio star? welcome to dateline, everyone. i'm lester holt. he was one of the lucky ones who found fame and fortune. a deejay with a golden voice on the radio and a golden touch in life. then he vanished, in a mystery that stretched from the coast of california to a quiet town in montana. and the clue to it all? you might never guess, wrapped in a napkin, tucked in a cabinet, hidden in a library. but would anyone find it? here's keith morrison. today's tuesday. and here's what happened on this

day in history. ♪ >> down below the surface of the pacific ocean, on the far side of california's catalina island is a silent current. strange how it flows up to the swelling coastline of santa barbara. then just before the open sea turns back to glide again past this storied island, with, one sunny day in 2006, someone in it. >> i have a saying that i'd rather be lucky than good. >> ken clark is a detective with the l.a. sheriff's department of the been at it a long time, as has his partner, robert martindale. more than 50 years between them, but nothing like the case that floated to them out by catalina. would never have had the case at all except -- >> we had some boaters leaving newport beach going to catalina

island and came upon a body floating on the water. >> just happened to see it. >> just happened to see it. >> that's a big ocean out there. so the chances of seeing it are needle in a haystack. >> very slim. >> they saw a flock of seagulls perched on top of a body. >> it was if extreme decomposition. >> barnicacles had attached themselves. >> it was labeled a john doe and taken to the l.a. coroner's office. >> initially, it was believed to be a drowning victim. >> but who was he? identifying their john doe was a huge challenge. >> we could only say it was a human being. that was it. >> there was one odd thing. medical examiners pointed to the left hand. three fingers were missing, and clearly had been, said the examiner, for years. >> when the victim was young he had an accident where he severed

three fingers on his left hand. >> which at least offered a slim chance of getting an i.d. >> we were hoping if someone were to call and said my friend is missing, tell us something about him. >> then another piece of luck. someone did call, looking for a friend he hadn't seen for weeks, a friend who had lost three fingers in a school wood shop incident. and just like that john doe had a whole name and remarkable life. >> steven bailey williams, better known to his friends, family and fans as steven b. >> all hit 96 kcke, friday morning with the birds and bees. >> a deskra with a distinctive voice and personality that had made him famous in the 1980s as part of the radio show steven b. and the hawk. >> say a few words to the radio people around the country. >> well, i think we can keep

this short and simple. get a real job. >> he was really at his professional zenith in denver. >> doug johnson and steven were friends for more than 30 years. >> they were the guys that really pioneered two-man morning radio. they were very funny, great comedians. >> we've been here for what, about 100 years? >> no, it was 18 -- >> you know, you forget when you're having a good time. >> he was loveable. everybody loved steven b. >> she had a crush on him when they worked in a hawaii radio station back in the early days. so she worked up her nerve. >> i asked if he'd be my date to the beach boys concert, and he turned me down. and i was just like devastated, you know. and so i was sitting in my little sales cubicle. >> what's the matter with me.

>> and the jgeneral manager wals in and says if you were a boy it might have made a difference. and i said what? and he said he's gay. so i can accept that. >> so that very day, they began a long, lifelong friendship of the many afternoons spent lingering at this coffee shop. and many memorable evenings. >> what were those dinners like? >> steven was an amazing cook. >> if you were patient, he was good. he was a phenomenal cook. but you had to be geared at eating at 10:30 or 11:00. because he was the type of person that if he talked to you, you would have his undivided attention. >> by the time we would eat everybody's drunk. >> then somewhere in the middle of the '90s, the radio business seemed to tire ofsteven's huge, deep voice and happy style. he got a job in the winery business for a while, then went home to care for his ailing

father in southern california. and in 2003 when his father died -- >> oh, he was devastated. >> and then, in the depths of his despair, a window opened to a whole new set of possibilities. steven made a new friend, who had just bought a yacht, planned to sail it around world. would steven like to go along and be the chef? >> did he know anything about sail being? >> no. nothing at all. >> what did you think about that? >> he's excited about this, it's a nice diversion, something to focus on after his dad died. >> i thought it was amazing. i said i think it's awesome. i was really excited for him. >> but now, the dream, the voice, the happy go lucky charm all gone. what happened to steven b. did he fall overboard? in the harsh white light of the pathology lab, the coroner peered down at the body and made a pronouncement. steven b. did not die of

accidental drowning. couldn't have, because there was a bullet in the back of his head. when we come back, murder? who might have wanted steven b. dead? clue number one, a multi-million dollar inheritance. >> he was bad with money and trying to manage the estate. >> when who killed the radio star continues. kid for a night. so we can finally get some sleep. the hotel has to be right. you can get a 4-star hotel for up to 60% off, even at the last minute. in the neighborhood where we wanna go? yes. you just won't the name until after you book. hmm. ooh. definitely. it's all about sleep. it's not all about sleep. yeah, well, for me it is. lucky me. >> he was bad with money and cleaning the home.

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there'd been so much promise in the air that spring of 2006. >> okay, child of the zodiac. here is your astroll oj cal forecast. it's diet time when you're required to wear a red flag on your butt. >> all that fun on the radio was over, but now he was set to sail the world, live a dream. and then he winds up floating face down 7 miles off the coast of catalina island, a bullet hole in the back of his head. and who wanted him dead, and

why? detectives started by asking his friends. what did you find out about him? >> the thing that i noticed about this case, and i give the credit to his friends, was he was surrounded by a group of close friends who knew a lot about him. >> he was a great sounding board, somebody to call if i was frustrated, angry, if i needed advice. >> he could talk you down or talk you up. >> yeah. he could do both, usually at the same time. >> and recently, steven had found a sounding board of his own, a new friend called harvey moreau. >> he came up to him and said oh, i'm such a huge fan of steven brmts and the hawk. >> steven soon became fast friends with harvey and his wife debbie. >> what did you think of steven? >> he was so funny, and he had such a great love of music, and he loved to cook. and i thought oh, man, this man's going to be perfect to go on the boat with us. >> ah, yes, the boat.

harvey had it docked at the l.a. yacht club, a 69 foot beauty called the iolar mara. >> he said what do you want to do when you retire? and i said i want to sail all over the world. >> it was her dream of a lifetime. and now debbie actually found the man who shared it. they married at the dawn of the new millennium, right here on the front porch of their new texas home, all that adventure to look forward to. and thousand harvey had invited steven to if along as chef on their beloved yacht. steven moved aboard, lived with them on the boat. but before they set sail, there was some work to do. >> he'd bought this old rusty tub, right? >> yeah. yeah. >> greg helped harvey fix up the old tub. greg fashioned all the stainless steel trim, felt a connection with harvey, too. >> he was a wall street guy,

investment banker, rejecting society. >> a little bit like you. >> yeah. i'm an outlaw mentality. that's where we bonded, you know. >> though, as greg watched harvey pour money into the boat, the teak, the flat screen. >> you can buy a whole another boat for $50,000. >> before harvey dropped out, he'd been in the investment banking business, had some old stock investments that finally paid off so he plowed the money into the boat, along with what a still-working debbie was able to contribute. >> he said don't worry. so what if you have to work another year. >> he said that? >> yeah. yeah. >> what did you think? >> well, it's like, yeah, work another year. but by that time i'm in it. the boat's bought. he's already sunk so much money into it, let's get this done. >> can't walk away. >> can't walk away.

let's get it done. >> they did not ask steven to kick in a share. >> the creative side of his mind worked very well, but he was not a good money manager. >> steven bailey williams had lived hand to mouth most of his life. he was a radio guy. made good money, and spent it. finance not a strong suit said his friend doug johnson. >> he was bad with money, and he was paperwork adverse. he would just forget to file his taxes for a few years. >> how many years would he go? >> his record was eight. >> but then steven's father died and the bad money manager was suddenly confronted with a wind fall. he inherited nearly $2 million. so now he'd have to manage real money. >> he was trying to manage the estate, trying to get things organized which for steven was almost an impossible battle. >> but there was harvey to help him get the money socked away, a nice safe tax haven offshore. >> he's a retired financial

planner, investment banker. >> just the sort of person i need right now. >> yeah. and that would be a real great help. >> but that was really just business. what really caught steven's attention was sailing around the world if the boat got finished. >> every time you turned around there were new paintings or fireplaces. >> two bathrooms, full kitchen. it never seemed to end. two years passed, three years. steven waiting and waiting. >> he had wanted to go to culinary school, but harvey kept saying we're going to set sail soon, we're going to set sail soon. >> and then without a word to anyone, stevenimy >> comin up,he questions begin. where was steven? d wt happene to his newfound fortune. >> i said how could this be? you're a multi-millionaire, and

partly cloudy, with a slight chance of rain through tomorrow, high today around 85. low tonight, 55, right now, 76 and counting. >> in the spring of 2006, exdeejay steven was ready. and without saying a word to any of his friends, he vanished. >> i was worried sick. we were all kind of having the same angst, that he just dropped

off the radar completely. >> his friends called each other and compared notes. no one had seen him in weeks. >> i called harvey and said we're all really concerned about steven, have you seen him? he said he's over in hawaii. he went to hawaii. >> now that was strange, because harvey told another friend he went to mexico. >> what did you think? >> i said steven wouldn't have gone to mexico at gun point, i mean, that was, it was completely out of character for him. >> then harvey's friend greg, the stainless steel guy said he noticed something unusual about steven's usually cluttered cabin. >> it waster stairle. >> then they made the shocking d discovery. steven face down in the water dead. >> none of us could believe it was happening.

>> the detectives wanted to have a look at the boat, steven's last known residence. they got a search warrant, brought a whole team to the harbor and seized the yacht. >> when you first walked in, was it clean? >> absolutely clean. clean enough, where you could eat off the floor. >> pristine, in fact. and for all the diligent efforts of the forensic people, there was no sign of steven b.'s existence. no evidence he'd ever set foot on that yacht. they did find some high tech navigational equipment which they hoped would tell them where the boat had been, but when the expert analyzed it -- >> he said it was never connected, never turned on. >> there was a manual for a hand held gps. but only the manual. >> we went and searched and searched and searched and didn't find the gps. >> nor did they find harvey. he seemed to have disappeared. and that's when they started

digging into harvey's background. just who was he anyway? >> some said he was as wealthy as $12 million or more. >> though, when detectives talked to the neighbors here at the yacht club, at least one of them wasn't so sure harvey was for real. >> she says me and pie husband live on our yacht, we have money. i knew when i saw harvey that he was full of it because no one dresses like gilligan and the skipper. harvey always showed up in costume. >> harvey's employment history? it was not quite as gold-plated as harvey had been letting on, as the detectives discovered. >> i think everything harvey's been involved with throughout his career in banking or stock breaking has gone belly-up. everything he's involved in seems to have some sort of fraud involved. one con after the next. i don't think he's had a bona fide job where he's been there for a period of time. >> which led to an obvious question, what kind of job had harvey been doing managing

steven's inheritance? >> she remembered somebody broke into the trunk of his car where he kept all his personal paperwork, passport, trust documents, all stolen. >> i said please tell me that the document between you and harvey, you know, wasn't in there. and he goes what document? and i said well, you know, for him investing your $2 you have something documented, right? and he goes no. and i said you gave some man you just met a couple years ago, $2 million, and you got nothing in writing? >> she told the detectives, of course, and they took a good look at harvey's boat and soon learned something that probably should have been obvious all along. that fancy dolled up tub with the pricey electronics and polished teak, washer dry, fireplace was paid for practically every dollar by the unwitting steven b. that answer turned up in

meticulous detail in harvey's own ship's ledger. >> he put according to his ledgers, 1.7 in that yacht. so almost the entire amount he took from steven went right back into that yacht. >> no wonder the last time they went to lunch she had to pick up the check. >> he was so embarrassed. i said how can this be. you're a multi-millionaire and you don't have any money. and she said harvey's got it all tied up in offshore accounts. >> the detectives discovered harvey had put steven's money in an offshore account in the british virgin islands just as he said he would, but then he secretly brought it back to the u.s. in small increments and used the money to refurbish the boat. >> harvey sucked up all of that money. >> all of it. >> steven, by his own admission, a lousy money manager, trusting,

was, as said by the detectives a perfect mark. >> i was really very much in love with harvey. >> but now she began to discover the man she loved lied. a house in vail, colorado which he told her he owned outright actually belonged to someone else. the money she said when she went back to work, vanished. the auto insurance that he told her he bought for her didn't exist. and what he said was a $25,000 diamond ring he slipped on her finger when he proposed? a fake. >> cubic zirconium. >> just who was that man she married and believed she loved. >> i don't think harvey even liked me, you know. love is not only blind. in my instance, it's also deaf and dumb. >> but devastating as those lies were, debbie couldn't bring herself to believe harvey would kill. >> i never once thought it would be harvey that would have hurt steven. >> and in fact, there was

nothing definitive tying harvey to steven's murder. no sign of any violent struggle. not a drop of steven's blood anywhere on the boat. if only the detectives could talk to harvey. it turned out they just missed him. an employee of the yacht club told investigators harvey was standing nearby in plain sight observing as the cops scoured his boat. but by the time they heard that, harvey was long gone. >> from friends and knowing his past, there was some speculation that we go south, and he had some dealings in belize before, and we believe that's where he was possibly heading. >> so they put out feelers, belize, the virgin islands, harvey's old haunts down thayer, but the trail went cold. steven's murder apparently unsolvable. when we come back, a mysterious stranger surfaces hundreds of miles away. >> the more he would talk the more irigued i became. >> could he hold the key to the case. >> did you ever get any money

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it was september, 2006, when a smooth-talking stranger walked into pete's auto dealership in great falls, montana and got himself a job as a used car

salesman. >> he was quite the character. wasn't your typical car salesman persona. >> joe was the sales manager at pete's auto. he was at the dearliship the day the new guy started. >> he was very sure of himself, to the point of a little bit smug. in montana where you have a lot of down to earth meat and potatoes people where they're very friendly toward even other, having somebody with a smug, cocky attitude isn't going to go over very well at times. >> still, joe was friendly in the way montanaens are known for. he gave the guy the benefit of the doubt. one sunday evening they got to talking. joe says the new salesman told hem how he used to be a successful stockbroker, had a beautiful lakefront home in texas. even looked up his property on google earth. zoo why on earth joe asked would someone leave all that and come to great falls. >> he said that his wife and a

couple of her friends had taken their yacht to the gulf of mexico and were going to go sailing during that weekend. during that time a storm ensued and his wife and friends all perished along with the boat. he shared looking at large bodies of water was more than he could bear, and he wanted to get as far away from that kind of environment as he could. >> and who did this tragic past belong to? joe said the wealthy salesman told him his name was harvey morrow. harvey was quite chatty with joe. but one thing harvey didn't know, joe was a former police officer and harvey's amazing story made joe's antenna buzz a little. >> the more he would talk about his wife and the loss of his boat the more intrigued i became. >> so on his way home that night, joe took a little detour and drove by the hotel where

harvey said he was staying. >> i didn't find his suv at that location. which i didn't think suspicious at the time, but i still for whatever reason drove around to see a few other hotels and motels to see if i found his vehicle. and i located his vehicle at a place called imperial inn. >> why would harvey lie about something as benign as where he was staying. when joe got home that night he went straight to his office and turned on the computer. >> i entered harvey morrow's name on google and was surprised at what i had found. >> a simple google search and there it was, a news article describing the murder of disc jockey steven b. williams. >> and harvey morrow was listed as a person of extreme interest. >> but if harvey was indeed a fugitive, wouldn't he change his name? maybe there was an awful misunderstanding. still, joe called the cascade

falls police department and told them what he learned. there was a message. >> he said, i understand you might be looking for harvey morrow. >> what did you think when you heard that message? >> well, i was happy. >> it was another stroke of luck. >> you go to montana because i'm looking for you down in the british virgin islands. everybody in southern california says that's where you like to go, that's where he's going to be. unfortunately for you, lucky for me, we've got a retired cop who's not going to have a bleeding heart, but he's going to have sympathy and empathy and run you on the computer and go oh, my goodness. >> he flew to montana to pay the elusive harvey a visit. joe helped arrange a little meeting at the car dealership. >> i told harvey i need you go out there and get this one particular vehicle prepared that one of his customers were coming

back to look at it. >> and when harvey stepped out front, officers from the cascade county sheriff's department were waiting for him. >> they just walked up and said harvey, there's some guys from california that want to talk to you. you're under arrest, click, click. just like that. >> it was all very civilized. >> very civilized. i was very impressed. >> police searched harvey's land rover, discovered guns and ammunition. they loaded him into the back of a squad car, took him to the local sheriff's department, eager to hear what he had to say. >> tell us about your vessel, harvey. how much money did you put in that boat? >> i don't know. >> what was your estimate? what would you think? >> i have no eye die. it was over a period of a long time. >> we wanted to key in on him how much money did you have, how much money did you spend? where did the money come from, and things of that nature. he was very vague. it became pretty frustrating. >> did you set up steven's trust

fund? >> you lost me. >> did you set up steven's trust fund? >> steven took care of his own stuff. >> did you ever help steven with his finances after his father's estate sold? >> ask steven. >> okay. did you ever get any money from steven and put it in your account? >> we passed money back and forth. >> how many times did you receive money from steven? was it more than once? >> i don't remember. >> do you remember how much money you got from steven in total? >> no. >> i think he figured he was going to outsmartness that interview. >> was he trying to prevent you from getting him on the record? >> i felt that. >> you're asking questions that -- >> harvey, you're a banker, man. you should know the answers to these questions. >> i don't want to talk anymore. >> you're done? >> yeah.

you're not telling me anything. you're, you're -- >> well, we're not finished. i have a lot to tell you, and i will tell you. >> tell it to the lawyer. >> what? >> tell it to the lawyer. >> of course he was going to need one. harvey was extradited to california, charged with first degree murder. but for all the evidence that harvey conned and stole from steven b., evidence of murder was pretty thin, at least without another stroke of luck. and that's exactly what they got, a missing piece of a puzzle discovered at last. >> he said you need to look at the data that's in this gps. when dateline continues. how about... both? new tide pods free and gentle free of dyes and perfumes with a deeper clean than the leading free detergent.

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geico. fifteen minutes could save you fifteen percent or more. jesse? in september of 2006, doug johnson was walking on the beach, thinking about his friend of 30 years, the murdered, one-time deejay, steven b. williams. >> and i see this light on the beach. and i thought, now what can that be? i dropped my cell phone? and it had landed face up. and the panel was lighting up, and i walked over and picked it up and it was ken clark, detective clark telling me that they had arrested harvey. it was a real great sense of relief. almost indescribable. >> which is perhaps where the

movie version of this story would end. but real life is not quite like that. for all the suspicion of steven's friends, the murder case against harvey morrow was rather weak. no evidence sufficient to prove that harvey shot steven and dumped his body in the ocean. >> we were looking for steven's dna on the boat, knowing that his death was caused by a gunshot wound. it was pretty obvious that there should be something that said this is where it was. >> but there wasn't, no blood, no gun. no significant fingerprints. what they needed, couldn't find, was something that put the two men together on the far side of catalina island where the current would have caught the body, carried it around to the spot where boaters saw it floating face down in the water. they hunted everywhere for harvey's gps, but they never found it. months went by, harvey sitting in jail. no luck for the investigation

now. and then a phone call. it was the common daunt of harvey's yacht club. he said i found a hand held gps in the yacht club. >> someone had found the gps, wrapped in a napkin and hidden in the back of a club liabor rath -- library cabinet. >> he said that's where harvey always sits and reads. >> here it was, the device they searched for on the boat and couldn't find. >> and he said you need to look at the data that's in this gps. >> amazing thing. the gps preserved in its memory in almost infinity detail its very last detail, which was as follows.

may, the gps headed out to catalina island and hided to the backside where it puttered around aimlessly, then returned back to the dock 6:00, may 5. that little device seemed to pinpoint the place and time of steven's murder. but how could detectives be sure on harvey and was on his boat? and then, what do you know? luck, again. when harvey bought the gps, he took a friend. >> i was with him in the car when we picked it up. and it was such a cool gps. i've got one myself. >> that gps was a pivotal point in the investigation that really kind of sealed this whole case together. >> but though the gps evidence told detectives where harvey's boat was the day steven was killed, how could they be sure harvey and steven were together on the boat at precisely that time? >> electronic data is fascinating nowadays. >> oh. >> very fascinating. cell phones. we can follow that signature.

we were lucky again. >> lucky this time because of blackjack, blackjack cell tower, catalina island, where both harvey and steven's cell phones pinged together, just where the gps said they would be. after which, steven's cell phone went right to voice mail and harvey's sailed back to his dock the next morning where he was late for a pre-arranged fishing trip with his friends. >> they basically said he looked dishevelled, like he had been up all night. he was not himself. >> one question left. exactly what happened on that fancy boat the last moments of steven b.'s life? doug remembered steven was angry over harvey's handling of his money. >> he had said that he was going to have a come to jesus with harvey. he was going to confront harve . >> did steven confront harvey over his lost fortune? is that what led to this? >> we believe they were both on

deck and he walked up behind him and walked up, put the gun to the back of his head and pulled the trigger, which can explain the lack of blood evidence. you push him right over or he fell right over. >> took five years and over 30,000 pages of evidence to build the case against harvey morrow. most of it hinged on the financial motive, all of it circumstantial. the detectives felt confident about the case they had so carefully assembled, while harvey, all the while, maintained his innocence. and then the very first day of the trial, the bombshell they didn't see coming. coming up. >> i thought, oh, my god, he's being set free. >> so many years and so many cons. was there about to be

it had taken five long years to get to this point. harvey morrow was finally being tried for the murder of steven b. police and prosecutors felt confident. that is until the defense gave its opening statement, and things took an unexpected turn. >> during opening statement, it was said that the money that harvey got from steven w money that was owed to harvey in a loan that happened many years ago. >> harvey loaned money to steven's father back in the '80s, the defense told the jury. they had a promissory note to prove it. >> hadn't you encountered that along the way? >> no. it was part of the trust packet. and the trust, at this point, the numbers i'm getting from the court were over 33,000 pages of documentation. >> quite frankly, we missed it. >> they missed evidence that

seemed to show harvey wasn't stealing from steven at all. had no motive to kill him. suddenly the whole case against harvey, fragile to begin with, seemed in danger of falling apart. the judge declared a mistrial. >> i thought, oh, my god, he's being set free. >> and harvey wasn't set free. instead, the state appointed to the case its third prosecutor in five years. >> this was my first case of this particular type. >> prosecutor john mckinney. >> how do you get ready? >> quickly. >> his first task, to address that alleged loan between steven's father and harvey. that evoked a mistrial. he spoke to steven's friend and heard this. >> i said i know it's complete fiction, i know it's fraud. >> and sure enough, when prosecutor mckinney took a closer look at that loan document, steven's father's

signature didn't match. classic sign of a con job said the prosecutor. >> evany hint that there'd been relationship between harvey and steven's father was -- >> not corroborated by any evidence whatsoever. >> now he was ready for the new trial. he showed the jury check by check how harvey drained steven's account to dress up a boat that was never going to sail anywhere. >> the boat wasn't properly outfitted for a trip around the world. in fact, it was outfitted in such a way that suggested it was just going to be a showpiece. it was going to be part of his con, part of the image three liked to sell to people. >> then the prosecutor took the jury through the gps and cell phone records and explained how that evidence put steven and harvey together on the far side of catalina island. after which, steven vanished and harvey told conflicting stories

about where he supposedly went. >> i think the most damning evidence in this regard was the fact that despite having a history of calling mr. williams on the telephone over the years that they knew each other he never called his phone one time after the day the victim went missing. >> that didn't mean harvey killed steven, the defense said. steven b. was so depressed about losing his career and father and about getting older that he killed himself. and the medical examiner testified it was possible steven could have shot himself. >> what was your opinion of the idea that he might have committed suicide? >> i think it was incredulous. i don't think he would have done it. >> still, it was another explanation, and the jury would have to consider it. so now the courtroom waited and whisper whispered. would harvey take the stand? >> i told the investigators that i thought he was going to

testify. and they didn't think so. they thought i was crazy. >> what made you think he would? >> well, he's a con man. and he likes to talk. and conmen think they can talk themselves out of any situation. >> he was right. sure enough, harvey was confident, self-assured, had answers for almost everything. he didn't steal steven's money, he said. >> he came up with a story that no one had heard before his testimony. >> which was that steven actually owed him his entire inheritance to pay back a whole different loan. this second loan was verbal, said harvey, done on a handshake, undocumented, naturally. >> but mr. morrow thought he could sell it. he is a conman, and he told it with a straight face. >> would jurors believe him? steven's friend sylvia worried. >> i was thinking, oh, my gosh, what if he cons these people the way that he conned steven. >> and perhaps there was reason to worry.

the jury stayed out for almost two full days. >> it was a long couple days, i'll tell you that. >> and then, finally. >> we the jury in the above entitled action find the defendant harvey morrow, guilty of the crime of willful, clib rat and premeditated murder of steven about. >> williams. >> oh, high gosh. we were all holding hands. and when they read it we all started crying and were so grateful. >> and steven's many friends poured into the courtroom the day harvey was sentenced. doug johnson read a statement for all of them. things he had to say to harvey. >> you ate his food, lived and worked on what you thought was a common goal, the whole time stealing from him and ultimately taking what was most precious, his life. you worship a false god, the god of arrogance, ego and greed. today our it nightmare ends. today yours begins. >> harvey was sentenced to life

without parole. after which his now ex-wife debbie invited us down to the pier where she took harvey's fake engagement ring and the other costume jewelry he had given her. >> and i threw them into the water as a tribute to steven. >> and his friends? >> steven was part of my family. he's part of the family you get to pick. i can open a great bottle of wine and sit there and think about steven. the pain fades. the memories are sustained. and that's the part that i'll keep with me forever. >> the only way that i can kind of deal with it is i knew that he was eventually going to get on a boat and sail around the world. so i just kind of think of him out there, you know, he's out there somewhere. >> out there like the happy go lucky free spirit on the radio. >> that's a good one. >> the man they called steven b. >> have a good weekend. bye! that's all for now.

i'm did morning, coming up on "early today," the death toll rises and the bloodiest day for israelis. and secretary of state john kerry heads for cairo. outrage from the families on malaysia flight 17 skyrockets as access to the crash site is limited. a chance for a true investigation is threaten washington state wildfires don't rage, but relief could come today. plus, hollywood action legend james garner has died. a hot air balloon accident caught on camera. and much, much more for this monday, july 21st. "early today" starts right now. good morning. i'm angie