this is the main street of courmayeur. >> and some very nice high-end shops here. >> yes.ive, too. >> this is a place where he frequented. >> yes. >> an american with money is always welcome. but in a small town like courmayeur, it was inevitable that someone would pull up a chair, perhaps buy him a drink, and try to learn something about this solitary american and pass it along. did you ever see him here? his name according to those who gained his confidence was mark. mark something. >> it sound quite like a german last name. mark stern. >> whenever he was in town, mark stern seemed to be a fixture on the nearby slopes by day and a cafe presence by night. no one seemed to know where he slept exactly until late 2008. >> here on the left we have the agency. >> that's when he walked into this real estate office and signed a lease. >> this is where he rented his apartment. >> yes. >> it looked as though the rich american intended to stick around for a while. >> here in italy, it's not a very affordable place. >> the apartment he rented was in a convenient spot near the center

at the beginning of another winter ski season that a certain high-rolling stranger rolled in to courmayeurth a driver we're told. >> first class. >> very first class. very first class. >> locals say the stranger appeared to be an american. he kept to himself, mostly. >> he was also described as a nice man, very quiet man. >> did he cause problems here? >> no. >> sometimes he disappeared for months at a time. later police suspected the stranger may have had business to transact on the other side ever the mountains in switzerland. >> he went to a couple of time to swiss. >> to switzerland. >> yes. also by bicycle. >> yes. >> do you think he had bank accounts there? >> yes. >> coming up, a fugitive comes in from the cold. >> i would live here. i would live here. >> when the great escape continues. inues. ♪ goin' down the only road i've ever known ♪ ♪ like a drifter i was-- ♪ born to walk alone! keep goin' man! you got it! if you ride, you get it. ♪ here i go again geico motorcycle.