>>reporter: he was on the search party for one of the vichlts he found lance turner body. and he has been involved in the doug el vision ever since. after john got a death sentence for the 3 murders russell says he called the fbi. your honoring them to investigate doug el for the collins disappearance. that agents went to san quentin to interview him again. >> he gave the agents an impression that he knew about the case the. that he knew something. but he medley clamped up and decided not to say anything more. >>reporter: but that story is hard to verify. the key agents in the san francisco office who would have worked the case have passed away. the fbi tells me they destroyed the doug el file without scanning it and they can't access the kevin collins file because it has been damaged in a flood at the washington, d.c. archives and drying out right now. all this frustrates ann collins. >> i feel in that kevin whoever took him was murdered that day. never would have got kevin back. but i think that the police should have done all they could to find the person. it's just it'

>>reporter: he was on the search party for one of the vichlts he found lance turner body. and he has been involved in the doug el vision ever since. after john got a death sentence for the 3 murders russell says he called the fbi. your honoring them to investigate doug el for the collins disappearance. that agents went to san quentin to interview him again. >> he gave the agents an impression that he knew about the case the. that he knew something. but he medley clamped up and decided not to say anything more. >>reporter: but that story is hard to verify. the key agents in the san francisco office who would have worked the case have passed away. the fbi tells me they destroyed the doug el file without scanning it and they can't access the kevin collins file because it has been damaged in a flood at the washington, d.c. archives and drying out right now. all this frustrates ann collins. >> i feel in that kevin whoever took him was murdered that day. never would have got kevin back. but i think that the police should have done all they could to find the person. it's just it'

>>reporter: he was on the search party for one of the vichlts he found lance turner body.en involved in the doug el vision ever since. after john got a death sentence for the 3 murders russell says he called the fbi. your honoring them to investigate doug el for the collins disappearance. that agents went to san quentin to interview him again. >> he gave the agents an impression that he knew about the case the. that he knew something. but he medley clamped up and decided not to say anything more. >>reporter: but that story is hard to verify. thts in the san francisco office who would have worked the case have passed away. the fbi tells me they destroyed the doug el file without scanning it and they can't access kevin collins file because it has been damaged in a flood at the washington, d.c. archives and drying out right now. all this frustrates ann collins. >> i feel in that kevin whoever took him was murdered that day. never would have got kevin back. but i think that the police should have done all they could to find the person. it's just it's not right. not fair for ke

lance turner died near a soccer practice.one died in a park after dark and police have suspected anymore each of the crimes. even told the media but they lacked evidence to make an arrest. their last resort paid off. >> when he moved to sacramento he befriended a officer. >> he became his buddy and snuck in his home. >> while he awaited trial on the burglary charge. they volunteered to try to get him confess to the murders. >> we had to get closure. >> joan knew him well. he was family friend who hung out with her boys. she drove to the state prison at jamestown by this point her son, also named john, had been missing for almost four years. >> i knew the minute i walked in and i looked at him, that he had murdered john. after they left me alone with him, he started to cheer up, when i kept saying over and over again, john, we need to know. >> he did not crack at jamestown but those familiar with the case tell me that joan davies set the stage. when he begin serving his burglary sentence at men's colony he started a sexual rel

lance turner's body found in the woods in belmont just hours after his soccer practice there. >> move a little bit tt right. ? >> students spotted someone who looked like dunkel at the scene around the time of the killing and helped an artist draw a sketch but dunkel ran free two and a half years before heinally confessed. dunkel gave a dripgs of killing shaen daniel, knocking him off his bike and stabbing him to death. >> i knew i could kill him. >> dunkel blamed marijuana and alcohol for fuelindesire to kill. he explains why he decided to confess. >> um i need help. and... that is -- . >> that is dunkel age 25 this, is his current mug shot. he's now 52. the death sentence he received for murders on hold because a judge decided he's incompetent to help in his own appeal. a received a bizarre letter from dunkel, i'm posting it along with this report on abc 7 news.com. you can see last week's investigation where i explore his possible connection to the disappearance of kevin collins in 1984. >> thank you. >> you may be surprised to learn what happened to the money when a refinery is fi

doi. >> in 1984 attorney bill russell was on a search party and found lance turner's body and has been voin involved in the dunkel investigation ever since. dunkel got a death sentence for three murders russell says he urged the fbi to investigate for kevin collins disappearance and that agents went to interview him again. >> he gave agents an impression he knew about the case. that he knew something. but clammed up and decided not to say anything more. >> but that story is hard to verify. the key agent in the san francisco office who would have worked the case passed away. the fbi tell meez they destroy the dunkel file without scanning it and they can't access the kevin collins files because it's been damaged in a flood at washington, d.c. archives and its drying out now. >> and i feel kevin never would got kevin back and to find the person it's not right. it's not fair. why was he just put on the back burner? >> i wrote to john dunkel on death row asking him about the boys he admitted killing and kevin collins. he sent a bizarre four page letter. the most coherent thing he wlot wroet

. >> 15-year-old john davies disappeared from his home in the middle of the night. 12-year-old lance turner disappeared from his shocker practice. sean danel disappeared after dark. and police suspected it him in each of the crimes. even told the media, but they lacked evidence to make an arrest. their last resort paid off. >> when he moved to sacramento we planted a female detective in the fast-food restaurant he was working in. >> lisa thomas became his drinking buddy and wore a wire and called for back up when he snuck into a sacramento area home. while dunkel awaited trial on the burglary charge, his first victim's mother volunteered to try and get him to confess to the murders. >> we had to get closure. it was ruining our family. >> joan davies knew him well. he was a family friend who hung out with her boys. she drove to the state prison at jamestown. by this point her son, named john, was missing for almost four years. >> i knew the minute i walked in and looked at him that he had murdered john. after they left me alone with him he started to tear up. i kept saying over and over agai

. >> 15-year-old john davies disappeared from his home in the middle of the night. 12-year-old lance turnerdisappeared from his shocker practice. sean danel disappeared after dark. and police suspected it him in each of the crimes. even told the media, but they lacked evidence to make an arrest. their last resort paid off. >> when he moved to sacramento we planted a female detective in the fast-food restaurant he was working in. >> lisa thomas became his drinking buddy and wore a wire and called for back up when he snuck into a sacramento area home. while dunkel awaited trial on the burglary charge, his first victim's mother volunteered to try and get him to confess to the murders. >> we had to get closure. it was ruining our family. >> joan davies knew him well. he was a family friend who hung out with her boys. she drove to the state prison at jamestown. by this point her son, named john, was missing for almost four years. >> i knew the minute i walked in and looked at him that he had murdered john. after they left me alone with him he started to tear up. i kept saying over and over again