the staged kidnapping. -you smell like fish. >> right after the curb there, the house is right there. In court she described the devastation of "losing" both her parents. Disable anytime. save the little girl. now they know i didn't do it, and they're leaving me alone. like it was a dream. i thought, great, he got a job. she told me all about wendy and her background and growing up. >> more than $2,000, in fact, money he'd gotten in advance for an odd job, which he asked wendy to return when he couldn't complete it. someone cashed in her unemployment checks at an atm. my job is to help new homeowners who have turned into their parents. -keep it coming. you win." he has blue hair. but i had to make it clear that someone has to defend mom. >> i thought -- i thought he was hiding something. and two of her checks had been cashed at an atm in full view of the bank's surveillance camera. 15 percent. >> and what idea did you develop about wendy? with health insurance plans constantly changing, having the wrong fit could mean missing benefits or costing you thousands. >> translator: i made sure, you know, the body -- >> translator: what did you put on it? sweet. -[narrator] we are boomer natur. pretty scary, i think. they might not have looked at him twice. >> translator: she didn't suffer. Or, did danger lurk closer to home? there was usually a game in town. serious allergic reactions can occur, including anaphylaxis, which is severe. -you don't know him. >> oops. The 1997 murder of a Prince George woman and the subsequent conviction of her husband for second-degree murder 13 years later could be featured on a U.S. network television show. i feel a lot of guilt for not being able to have replaced her. i know my father's mannerisms. that phone call was happiness with a lot of relief in it. >> denis was in a downward spiral. Ratte case draws NBC Dateline's attention The 1997 murder of a Prince George woman and the subsequent conviction of her husband for second-degree murder 13 years later could be featured on a U.S.. >> translator: yeah, but, denis, we know that you killed her. Wendy Ratte was 47-years-old when she disappeared while shopping in downtown Prince George in August of 1997. when wendy ratte disappeared, there was a hint, i would say even a strong whiff of suspicion that this was another highway of tears case. please know that i'm here for you. you live it. they're waiting for satellite results from the u.s. >> satellite results? i finished her off with that. then they can't help me. she said, yes, very certainly. it's what she yearns for most these days. >> denis did not listen to his sister. and she said, "i'm not wendy anymore." now suddenly for a man he believed to be a crime boss, he changed his story. Join Facebook to connect with Gabriel Ratt and others you may know. >> yeah. anna had doubts about her father all along. >> translator: in the back of the head. >> there was a grudge. forward-thinking enterprises deserve forward-thinking solutions. it was a surprise to me. there's no evidence. that was never diagnosed. >> she was able to get a fairly big news story happening which made the city react and get them kicked off the property. >> when she phoned, she said, "i had a talk with denis. wendy ratte. stand living in this kind of doubt any longer? i didn't do it." Police investigated: a bitter feud with a neighbor, a possible serial killer. >> they're still my family. there was no evidence, said denis' sister. >> that's what i needed. but her brother, gabriel? >> translator: in the face. there are auctions going on right now, so what are you waiting for? i'm happy i have it. there was, after all, that sighting at the greyhound bus station. >> when "dateline" continues. mood swings for one thing. Sign Up for Free. so you've got this elaborate setup. you hear the odd story once in a while of someone returning after 25 years of absence. -blue. to ensure as much as possible that the suspect doesn't lie to gain respect. >> and i hear this story and think for crying out loud, she's done it again. >> i kind of hold my breath and go through it and hope that whatever i say is going to work for my dad. >> when "dateline" continues. we are going to put everything on the table. >> translator: yes. and gambled too much and started losing money. funny, that came up the last time i was at the doctor. >> it wasn't just, how's anna, what's gab doing now, it was always anna and gab. >> and especially hard on the family's finances. after a couple of months by august, he was helping to smuggle illegal cigarettes and kohl. in fact, in the very first week of the investigation, thomas had questioned him three times. >> thomas decided to focus her investigation closer to home. the joy of movement. experts warn it could climb to more than 400,000 by march 1st. >> i broke down. >> you were close to your mother? >> translator: honesty, honesty, okay. many people taking dupixent. i saw his demeanor change from a proud, working man to a street thug. so, uh, yeah, just a silly mistake. clear lakes reflecting the blue skies above. >> i always thought of my family and my parents as being perfect. >> was her mom alive? It'd take an elabor Read allWendy Ratte, a free-spirited mother of two, was missing. the beatings, the staged kidnappings, the fake blood pacts. hello, i'm dara brown. FACTS -Wendy Ratte a wife and mother of 2 kids disappeared on August 18th,1997 at the age of 44 -American free-spirit born in a well to do family from New England -Became a teacher like both parents -Had a bipolar personality -One of her odd personalities was Shanna, a wild child who wanted nothing but freedom -Ran away from home twice i even cried when i did it. available at boomernaturals.com, cvs stores, and cvs.com. i was heaving. that's not going to swim about in your brain. those old jacks you used to put under a vehicle. don't start humira if you have an infection. the actors are the family, divided across a thin line separating truth and deception. >> and then finally she and the family seemed to find it. so i couldn't make a reported yet. just so you know, next time, you can submit a claim with our mobile app. how did he seem going in? >> i had to believe him. support that. i got these three suitcases for less than $40. he told me, "no, no, no. s. a month into the investigation, police thought they were a big step closer to solving the mystery surrounding wendy's disappearance. >> translator: okay. they stopped by a coffee shop, one of denis and wendy's favorite meeting spaces. and help heal your skin from within with dupixent. i still love her even. "I want to know everything," she said, "So we can put my mom to rest.". why would he kill her? just wipe, and rinse. >> i was terrified. >> that's when he folded. the faster, easier way to clean as you go. it's another woman gone missing in unsubstantiated ways. >> why don't you want to see something, some kind of evidence to back up what you've seen on tape? Gabriel was in the kitchen and he was more or less paying attention when his mom and dad told him they were off to run some errands. >> that was just four months before she vanished leaving nothing but a van in the local parking lot. the gunshot, the tarp, the carjack. "It's a tragic story but it's really interesting to explore both the mystery of how her mother disappeared and then looking at the emotional and human drama of the daughter's quest to find justice for her mother and then discovering the ultimate betrayal," he said. Or, did danger lurk closer to home? something that he told his crime bud wles they asked whether he was capable of murder. >> straight out? web pages gabriel was in the kitchen, and he was more or less paying attention when his mom and dad told him they were off to run some errands. 3. he didn't want to lose that. >> shortly after wendy disappeared, anna was looking through her papers searching for clues and found an application for a teacher's job in california. and best of all, their services are completely free. >> then, denis continued, he put the body in the plymouth voyager, made a left turn onto highway 16, the highway of tears, and drove to an abandoned logger loggers road, 1.5 hours away. but, when used at the first sign, abreva can get you back to being you in just 2 and a half days. >> when "dateline" continues. the best thing we can be is striving to be at our best. you need flexibility- to work from anywhere and manage from everywhere. i've decided we're going give it another try." yes, three wendys. it was a sweet wedding, happy and a little sad too. they're going to look at you. CBC's Journalistic Standards and Practices. -okay. and that's why i love healthmarkets, your insurance marketplace. >> what did you think when you heard that? she felt restrained by the bonds of marriage and family. she came to light sometimes at seances with anna and gabriel. four years after denis passed his lie detector test, the rcmp reviewed it. >> just as our very approach, she began screaming obscenities and shouting and behaving in a menacing, hateful way. >> and he didn't. i can be swayed by the evidence whether it is going to be for or against my dad. >> by then, the rcmp's lead investigator, robert burret of the unsolved homicide unit in vancouver, was in charge of the case. It'd take an elaborate, undercover mission to finally crack this case.Wendy Ratte, a free-spirited mother of two, was missing. that's not wendy." >> what does that do inside when you hear that? >> yes, because it was specifically asked did wendy have money on her. while shawna was the wild child. >> the joneses ruled out as suspects in the disappearance of wendy ratte. >> so said judy thomas, no highway of tears. hello. >> all i remember is the glint in his eye when he told me he was working again and how proud he looked. she did say that she recognized my mom. Her remains were never found, and the case remained unsolved for more than a decade,. four months after wendy. >> an undercover operation? what was it like to testify at the trial? they told me that they know it that my father did it and they are 100% certain of it. and the wrench in her eyes when that came out was something i -- i don't think i can ever forget. progressive is always here for you with round-the-clock service. >> a month before she, disappeared, wendy decided she needed some distance from denis. be there for you, and them. i called every friend of mine, every friend of hers. now, what could that be? >> but she wasn't the first to vanish. right now we're going to see who are you as a person. >> okay? [phone rings] "sore throat pain? president-elect joe biden is the apparent winner in georgia, hooking the state for the first time since 1992 as north carolina was called for president trump. >> the jones family matriarch sent a scathing letter to the "prince george citizen," bad-mouthing wendy and her family. >> when "dateline" continues. once neighbors of the rattes, not exactly friends. that came from me. but no, said thomas, false alarm. four months into the investigation of wendy ratte's disappearance, no sign of wendy. but "dateline nbc" reviewed an rcmp summary of the mission. we can't let that go. i just didn't want to believe it. one of my really vivid memories is we went to see a movie together because we felt like let's have a little distraction from this trauma. wistful when anna, the bride, danced with her father. approached denis in prince george. >> they feel they have transcended the conflict intention of their former lives. he changed so much. she was shocked to learn that the confession was the only thing the cops had to convict her brother of killing his wife. for a fast-acting rush of relief like you've never tasted in honey lemon ahh woo vicks vapocool drops now in honey lemon chill and there's moving with move free ultra. Sieppert, who was a teenager when her mother disappeared, tried for years to track her mother down, talking to newspapers and radio shows every year on her mother's birthday, but to no avail. Tracks. >> this is karen crieder, wendy's sister, who told how wendy vanished the first time when she was 17 years old. in a prince george courtroom, the battle lines were drawn. so the litmus test to me is corroboration. >> denis told mr. big he drove back to prince george, got rid of the gun and his wife's i.d. >> i said, you know, get used to it. denis ratte answered with conviction, "no, i did not." >> and denis, anna remembered her father going for long walks in the woods alone, seemed devastated, lost, in denial. and not -- especially not with his kids in the house. there's no way. they promised they want still looking. >> it was painful for diane to watch the video of her brother's confession in the pretrial hearing. her father was guilty. he admitted it. they're going distrust you, but don't take a lie detector test. it's there to seek the truth. so you can experience few or no symptoms. >> they're described as right out of hollywood. i couldn't understand that he would be okay with not telling the police. >> translator: that -- that's my left side. especially about the mystery of his wife's disappearance. it continuously scans the market to compare your plan against any new options year after year, so you don't have to stress about picking your health insurance plan. really. Sign in or register for your free account, Fort St. James man arrested, charged with attempted murder, Thinner forests key to industry prosperity, Man homeless after BC Housing buys building. >> translator: i'm going to tell you. when they got back, she was back to normal. >> in the classroom. it was one of the crime boss's alleged cronies with an internal police memorandum. Police investigated: a bitter feud with a neighbor, a possible serial killer. >> translator: okay, where? he had to leave right after his testimony. a terrifying specter haunted the lonely highway that passed through prince george on its way into the wilderness. >> gabriel was not there for the guilty verdict. The horrendous crime occurred on the night of August 31, 2003. 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