There’s no doubt that Chris Hansen is the king of investigative reporting and covering all the latest news stories. Having won eight Emmy awards for his work, investigative correspondent Hansen is bringing his talent to Investigation Discovery’s all-new newsmagazine series, Killer Instinct With Chris Hansen on Monday, Aug. 17 at 10pm ET/PT.
Showcasing his award-winning reports involving online sexual predators for the popular Dateline NBC, Hansen is familiar with the chase of an investigation that both detectives and journalists must run after. Killer Instinct allows Hansen to use his unique way of taking viewers along for the journey as they seek out justice for the victims. With the help of key witnesses, loved ones of the victims and local law enforcement, Hansen is able to tell the tales of those who no longer can. This new series will dive deep into the mind of a killer and bring back to life some of America’s most gut-wrenching homicide cases.
In the premiere episode titled “Nightmare on Imperial Avenue,” Hansen investigates the disturbing case of serial killer Anthony Sowell in Cleveland. As more and more women went missing from the streets of the city’s east side, it seemed that the families of the missing were alone in finding their loved ones. Since the missing persons were known drug addicts from the streets, the 11 families searching for their loved ones claimed they were getting little help from authorities. Vanessa Gay could have easily been another one of these drug addict girls who went missing from the streets and vanished forever.
In 2008, after getting addicted to drugs, losing her car, being homeless on the streets and losing her children, Vanessa didn’t have much hope in her life. When a stranger approached her to do some drugs for his birthday, she figured there’s no harm in following him to his house. The man introduces himself as Anthony Sowell, who served two terms in the Marines before being honorably discharged. What he’s hiding is that he is a serial killer and rapist, who likes to physically abuse his victims before killing them. After a long night of being beat and raped, Vanessa was able to convince Anthony to let her go the next day.
When police finally followed up on the local’s tips about Sowell’s odd behavior, they find a gruesome scene at his residence. Turns out the strange smell that the local residents were so familiar with wasn’t coming from the sausage factory. The 11 women who went missing were all identified by parts of their bodies that were found throughout Sowell’s home. With such a shocking discovery, a statewide manhunt began to track down Sowell.
Hansen sits down with Gay who retells her traumatic and emotional tale of what happened that night she almost died. Hansen also visits Sowell’s former neighborhood to speak with some of the locals who were involved with the case. Other interviews include speaking with family members of victims Tonia Carmichael, Crystal Dozier and Amelda Hunter. Also, those involved with the case including prosecuting attorney Pinkey Carr, prosecution law clerk Christopher Schroeder and forensic pathologist Dr. Krista Timm. Hansen also speaks with Sowell’s half-brother, Allan Sowell to hear his thoughts on the story.
Killer Instinct With Chris Hansen premieres Monday, August 17 at 10/9C on Investigation Discovery (ID).
Re: episode tonight. Why did take 10 years 2 put this man 2 death?