Tonight on 20/20 ` no body, no weapon, but definitely a murder. Comes up behind him like this and cuts his throat. What really happened to Brian Carrick? That is all you need to know about who committed the murder. A bombshell jailhouse confession that could change everything. It was false. It dramatically changes it. I mean, he was the whole case. Is the right man in prison? They got the wrong guy. Did you kill Brian Carrick? Did you kill Brian Carrick? Absolutely not. Can you solve the mystery on Johnsburg Rd? < You guys were shocked at that point? < You guys were shocked at that point? Yes, completely shocked. Copyright Able 2015 Kia ora. I'm Sonya Wilson. How does a man end up sentenced to 26 years in prison, convicted for murder with no body, no weapon and no DNA linking him to the scene? Well, that's exactly what happened to Mario Casciaro when last year he was convicted of killing 17-year-old Brian Carrick, his former co-worker, almost 12 years earlier. But could potentially explosive evidence, including a key prosecution witness recanting his story, help Casciaro prove his innocence? 20/20 follows the clues as the mystery unravels. BLUES MUSIC The village of Johnsburg, Illinois, the essence of small-town America, a flag-waving heartland some 50 miles outside of Chicago, a conservative community where tradition reigns and nostalgia is embraced. But Johnsburg is also a village with a secret ` a lingering 12-year-old unsolved mystery that still has people talking. I think there's somebody who knows exactly what happened. What happened to Brian Carrick, a likable 17-year-old high-school junior, who one Friday night vanished from inside the grocery store where he worked as a stock boy just five days before Christmas. Amanda Marrazzo covered Brian's disappearance for the Chicago Tribune. He was excited about Christmas. There was no indication for him to run away. His father, William Carrick, an electrician, says his youngest son was always by his side. His dad said he'd be in his hip pocket wherever he went. He was an entrepreneur ` started making money very early on shovelling snow. And he loved Val's Foods, the village's only grocery store, directly across the street from the Carrick home. Val's co-owner Jerry Casciaro. He was smart. You have no idea how smart he was. If you tell him to do one thing one time, say, 'This is what I want you to do.' Next time, he'll tell you what to do. Next time, he'll tell you what to do. So he was a go-getter. If there were more people like Brian in this country, there will be a beautiful future for America. In Johnsburg, everyone knew the Carricks, the hard-working Irish Catholic family with 14 children, Brian the 11th. The parents, when they got married, said, 'God, give us as many kids as you want, and we'll take 'em.' Describe the Carrick family for me. What were they like? Describe the Carrick family for me. What were they like? They, um` All very nice people. One of the sisters said they didn't have the best clothes and didn't always have school supplies, but they had a lot of love. That December 20th was Brian's day off, but he went to Val's looking for a co-worker, passing his brother Eddie, also a stock boy, on the way. Eddie was going to get the carts from the parking lot. Brian was walking into the store. He never saw his brother after that. The next day, his mother, Terry Carrick, received a troubling phone call. Brian hadn't shown up for work. She knew her son would never miss work. That was his life ` was going to that store. She went upstairs. He wasn't in his bed. She knew immediately something's wrong. RT CRACKLES As weeks passed, no one knew if Brian Carrick was dead or alive. Johnsburg police were involved. Illinois state police became involved. The FBI became involved. People were searching the places where Brian might go. They had the search dogs. They had` Psychics would come to Terry's front door and try and tell her where he might be. Val's Foods posted a $25,000 reward. Grocer Jerry Casciaro's daughters, Julia and Joanne. I think some people would look at it and say, 'You're putting up $25,000 for somebody who works for them ` not a family member but an employee.' Because the Carricks needed it. I don't` They didn't have the money. We were desperate to try and find what happened to him. The Carricks and the Casciaros, two of Johnsburg's most well-known families, friendly for nearly 20 years. Almost half of the Carrick kids had worked at Val's. I understand you have a picture of him in your wallet. I understand you have a picture of him in your wallet. Yeah. Can you show me? So, this is some 12 years later... This is a beautiful kid. This is a beautiful kid. ...you're still carrying this picture in your wallet of this young man who worked with you as a stock boy. of this young man who worked with you as a stock boy. Right. Right. < Why do you carry his picture with you? < Why do you carry his picture with you? Because to me he was like a son. An early break in the missing persons case revealed blood evidence in and around the grocery store produce cooler, news no one wanted to hear. Drops, spatter, smears, a bloody fingerprint ` Brian's blood. What heartbreaking mystery did the family's grocery store hold? What was your reaction when you heard police found blood in the produce cooler? I think then immediately it's, like, 'Well, who did it?' Everybody was just, like, on edge. Police questioned everyone, including three stock boys ` Shane Lamb, Rob Render and Mario Casciaro. Two of them have criminal records. But police quickly turned their attention to the one with no priors ` the boss' son, 19-year-old Mario, Jerry's heir apparent. Are you kidding me? < You guys are shocked at that point? < You guys are shocked at that point? Yes, completely shocked. Mario is really one of the nicest, kind, intelligent, funny, just a sweetheart. Cops were being to develop a more sinister profile. There were rumours there were things going on at the store that shouldn't have been. Tell me about that theory. Tell me about that theory. The story is that Mario Casciaro was selling drugs and that he would use some of the kids from the grocery store, like Brian Carrick, to sell the drugs. Brian Carrick, being the sweet kid he is, wouldn't always collect the money. Authorities were convinced that the boy who freely gave away pot was a victim of foul play. They believed he was killed over a $400 to $500 drug debt he owed Mario. The police began to dig into Mario a little bit, and they believed that he was selling drugs. I think, you know, maybe he smoked pot. I think maybe he` him and his friends bought it and sold it to each other. I mean, we're talking about a very small amount. But with no eyewitnesses, no physical evidence tying Mario to the crime scene or even a body, the investigation grew cold. But for Mario, life was moving on. Mario Anthony Casciaro. Mario Anthony Casciaro. PEOPLE CHEER Here he is receiving his degree in finance from Illinois State University three years after Brian's disappearance. But for the Carricks, no closer to any answers, it was as if time stood still. MAN: Hey, Mario. Mario joined the family grocery, worked as a manager and helped build the business. It was not the only store that he was gonna have. It was always gonna be two stores and three stores and four stores. That grand plan would never happen. Mario's world was about to collapse around him. A break in the case ` this stock boy, Shane Lamb, would change everything with a tale of violence in the produce cooler the night Brian vanished. I hit Brian a few times. He was bleeding from his mouth. I thought I knocked him out. Where's Mario when you were doing this? Where's Mario when you were doing this? Right in the doorway. What did happen to Brian Carrick? Stay with us. Bye, Mum. TENSE MUSIC ENGINE STARTS MUSIC CONTINUES TALKBACK, MUSIC PLAYS ON RADIO PEOPLE CHATTER OMINOUS MUSIC MUSIC QUICKENS (GASPS) No, no! (GASPS) No, no! (SQUEALS) Come on. Come on. (SCREECHES) SOFT MUSIC PLAYS PEOPLE CHATTER TENSE MUSIC Wait up! (GASPS) (PANTS) Welcome back. In 2002, teenager Brian Carrick disappeared. They have never found his body, but eight years after he went missing, police finally had a breakthrough in the case. 2010 ` a break in the eight-year-old case. Prosecutor Combs finds a key witness. His name ` Shane Lamb. Who is Shane Lamb? Shane Lamb ` he, um` he's got a criminal history. He grew up rough. I think he's a very tragic character in all of this. A stock boy at Val's who worked alongside Brian and Mario, a five-time felon with a rap sheet that included attempted murder at just 14. He repeatedly denied knowing anything about Brian's disappearance to authorities. Now eight years later, in jail facing up to 12 years on drug charges, he was ready to talk. But first he wanted a deal, and so did prosecutors. Shane Lamb is given immunity from the offence of murder, involuntary manslaughter, concealment of a homicidal death and any other offence resulting in his involvement in the disappearance of Brian Carrick. With this deal, Shane escaped all charges related to Brian's death and a reduced drug sentence. All he had to do to get the deal ` tell his story, and that led police to Mario. What exactly did Mario tell you? What exactly did Mario tell you? Pretty much to talk to Brian, try to get the` intimidate him into getting the money. How were you to intimidate him? How were you to intimidate him? Talk to him. He never came out and said, 'Go kill him,' or anything like that. A controversial deal awarded to a man who admits he was the likely killer and Mario the mastermind. According to the prosecutors, Mario knew what he was doing by bringing Shane Lamb in and using him as a tool, enforcer, as the muscle to get what he wanted. Shane was off that night at a party getting high. He says Mario called him to come to the store. Brian owed him money, and he wanted it back. Mario wanted Shane to talk to him. It was time for him to pay up. I told Brian, 'What's up with the money you owe him? 'Why don't you pay him at least some of the money back?' We got to arguing. Mario said it was getting too loud, 'Go in the produce cooler.' Shane says he demanded the money from Brian, but Brian resisted. Shane lost his temper. Things turned violent. I hit Brian a few times. He was bleeding from his mouth and fell down. How hard you hit him? How hard you hit him? Thought I knocked him out. That was it. Where's Mario when you're doing this? > Where's Mario when you're doing this? > Right in the doorway. Knocked unconscious, not sure if Brian was dead or alive, Shane says Mario told him to leave the grocery store. He said, 'Don't worry. I'll handle this.' I left and went back to the party. Armed with Shane's version of what happened, prosecutors arrest Mario for killing family friend Brian Carrick. A small victory for Bill Carrick, reminded daily of the store across the street on Johnsburg Rd. A moment Terry Carrick would not live to see when she died in 2009. For the Casciaro family, it was a moment of utter disbelief. I wanted justice for` for the Carricks, but they got the wrong guy. Mario and Shane, the mastermind and the muscle, according to the prosecution's theory. Though Shane says Mario never laid a hand on Brian, never ordered him hurt, prosecutors insist he's guilty of the rare charge of murder with intimidation. To them, just by uttering the words, 'Talk to him,' Mario Casciaro sicced a weapon of destruction on Brian and was responsible for everything that followed, including Brian's murder. Did you kill Brian Carrick? Mario Casciaro sits inside one of the toughest maximum-security prisons in the country, Menard. The college graduate and budding grocery store magnate, now a convicted murderer, shackled and chained to the floor. Brian Carrick's family believes that you belong here. If allegations are repeated over and over and over again for, say, seven years, you begin to believe it as a fact. you begin to believe it as a fact. The Carricks believe that you know where Brian's body is. It's sad that they think that. It's sad that, um... that they would ever think something like that, and I really hope that we find Brian. Mario says Brian Carrick was a loyal employee and they had a good relationship. He was a good guy. Um, good family. He worked hard. One of my favourite co-workers. 12 year later, and Mario still remembers December 20th 2002. It was Brian's day off, but he showed up that evening around 6.30, asking for another stock boy, Robert Render. Brian was looking for Rob Render and had asked me if I'd seen him. 'Hey, where is this guy?' And I paged him, and that was the last time I seen him. After seeing Brian, Mario says he picked up a pizza nearby, sharing it with employees in the break room, clear across the other side of the store from the produce cooler. That's his alibi. Mario says he helped close the store as usual at 8. Both the defence and prosecutors believe Brian was murdered before closing time. Did you kill Brian Carrick? Did you kill Brian Carrick? Absolutely not. Are you responsible in any way for his death? Are you responsible in any way for his death? No. As for the prosecution's claims that the man who put him in prison with his testimony, Shane Lamb, was called to the store that night to talk to Brian? So, this is important because police believe at some time you call Shane Lamb. Did you ever call him? No. We actually gave them my phone records and showed them that there was no call. Shane, on your urging of, 'Talk to him,' has an altercation with Brian Carrick, punches him a few times, lays him out. You tell Shane, 'Go. I'll take care of this.' Any truth to that? Not at all. I didn't even see Shane in the building that evening. Why would I say, 'Buddy, let me take care of this for you'? I don't know that kid. 'Let me just take care of a murder for you.' Be serious, you know what I mean? He questions why anyone would believe he'd take a murder rap for Shane Lamb, who'd only worked at the store for a few months after a two-year stint in juvie for attempted murder. Did Brian ever sell pot for you? Did Brian ever sell pot for you? No. Did Brian ever owe you money for selling pot? Did Brian ever owe you money for selling pot? No. No. So this claim about him owing you $400 or $500 and that's why you had Shane talk to him? It's all made up. When you are innocent, you are gonna fight until the very end cos you know you're innocent. And we're gonna fight to the very end cos we're 100% behind him. And that's why they hired this gladiator, Kathleen Zellner, a high-powered attorney, to appeal his case. Her reputation ` overturning convictions and solving cases. She's uncovered what she believes are secrets long tucked away inside the family grocery store. Next ` the state's star witness, Shane Lamb, the man who put Mario Casciaro behind bars, does a shocking about-face. All it was false. Every single thing. The state's attorney set it up. Stay with us. Welcome back. Last year Mario Casciaro was locked up for 26 years, convicted of murdering co-worker Brian Carrick. There was no body, no weapon and no DNA linking him to the scene, and he has maintained his innocence ever since. Now lawyer Kathleen Zellner thinks she has evidence that won't only set Casciaro free but also reveal who killed Carrick. And as you're about to see, a shocking jailhouse confession could change everything. I believe we have an excellent chance. This'll just be reversed outright. According to Kathleen, the trail of evidence potentially so explosive, it may set Mario free. She believed the evidence leads not to Mario, not to Shane Lamb but to one man, Rob Render, an early suspect in the case, that stock boy Brian accused of stealing alcohol from the grocery store and the one Brian was looking for the day he vanished. For Kathleen, the case begins with the physical evidence ` the blood at the crime scene. Rob Render's blood was there, and his was the only blood that was ever found, aside from Brian's. We know that Rob Render and Brian Carrick had an altercation, because both of their blood is right there at the crime scene. For her, the crime scene tells the story. Look at these photo exhibits. While Brian's blood is in the hallway leading to the cooler, Rob Render's bloody fingerprint is on the cooler door handle. And inside the door, more of Rob Render's blood. When police questioned Rob, he insisted he wasn't there. I didn't do anything, and I don't know anything. It's, like, you know? They asked Rob if he wasn't there, why was his blood? Maybe I cut my finger. Hey, who knows? Maybe I bit my nails so bad ` I do ` that it bled a little bit and I put my thumb on the door. There's no way that this amount of blood could have been left by Rob Render by biting his nails. You'd have to be a haemophiliac. You'd had to have a clotting disorder. Tell me what you believe happened between and Brian and Rob Render. I believe that Render comes up behind him like this and cuts his throat and in the process cuts himself. Then I believe that Brian starts falling forward, and Render grabs the door. That's why his thumbprint is on the door, and then he pushes him like this. Then he scrapes against those boxes. That's why the transfer blood is there. The attack is in the hallway. Kathleen's investigators finding a piece of evidence in the police report, a pair of soiled underwear with a brownish-red colour. Kathleen thinks it may be blood. Mario's attorney Kathleen Zellner believes what may have happened in this ladies' bathroom could blow this case wide open. A stock boy, coming into this bathroom about a month after Brian disappeared, saw there was a leak in this bathroom and saw that it led up to this panel. So he stepped on this toilet, lifted up this panel and found a pair of men's underwear, size small. A size similar to Rob. The underwear handed over to the police, but Kathleen says it wasn't entered into the evidence log and never made it to trial. That is a huge bombshell, and that's why we wanna have DNA testing. We wanna confirm if that was his underwear. Because if that's got Render's blood on it and Carrick's blood on it, that is all you need to know about who committed the murder. < Unfortunately for you, the evidence points at you. Almost all of it points at you, Rob. Rob wasn't let off scot-free. Police charged him with concealing Brian's murder but later dropped the charge. Rob Render never told his story in court. Struggling with drug issues for years, he overdosed on a cocktail of heroin and cocaine and died in 2012. Just this week, a dramatic development in the Mario Casciaro case. The man at the centre, the state's star witness, whose testimony helped send Mario to prison, now says it was all a lie. Why are you coming forward now? Mario's in for 26 years for something he didn't do. I didn't have anything to do with it. Mario didn't do this. He doesn't deserve to be in prison. And it's safe to say that he's serving 26 years in a maximum-security prison because of your testimony. because of your testimony. Yeah, that's right. He said he was coerced by a prosecutor hell-bent on putting Mario behind bars. What do you want to say about your testimony? All of it was false. Every single thing. The state's attorney set it up. I was arrested for cocaine charges. My offer was 12 years. They said that I'd be indicted for murder if I didn't cooperate. And it came down to him or Rob Render. He said Rob Render was in Lake County Jail; if I didn't wanna talk to them that they're going to go to Rob Render next. So you believed they were either gonna feed a story to Rob Render that he was going to tell about his involvement or Mario's involvement? Right. Right. And whoever took the deal first...? Right. And whoever took the deal first...? Exact` Yeah. 100% that's how I felt. On December 20th 2002, Mario Casciaro never called you to say, 'Come to the store and talk to Brian Carrick because he owes me money'? Never. Never. You weren't his enforcer? No. No. Did you guys ever get into a fight? No. You never punched him two or three times, knocking him unconscious? You never punched him two or three times, knocking him unconscious? Never. Mario never said to you, 'Get out of here. I'll take care of this'? Mario never said to you, 'Get out of here. I'll take care of this'? Never. Never happened. You know, as I hear you today, I think what do you have to gain from all this? I have absolutely nothing to gain. The only thing that can happen to me is recharging me for murder. I have everything to lose now. You have nothing to gain, everything to lose ` is that why you think people should believe you? 100% they should believe me. It's the truth. How does this change your defence of Mario? > It dramatically changes it. I mean, he was the whole case. I mean, he was the only person that was responsible for Mario being convicted. But then who killed Brian Carrick? All three stock boys tell a different story. Shane Lamb now says he was never at the store that night, and no co-workers placed him there either. Mario Casciaro claims he was eating pizza in the break room. And before his death, Rob Render proclaimed his innocence. And Brian Carrick's body has never been found. MARIO: Every day that goes by is another day that I'm not with my family. God bless Mario. My dad's 79 years old. I don't know how much longer he has left. And every day that goes by, I'm missing out on that. Missing out on being with your family. POIGNANT MUSIC Two families in pain and seeking justice for their loved ones, but has justice been served? Where Brian Carrick is remains the mystery on Johnsburg Rd. POIGNANT MUSIC Looking forward to hearing your feedback. Coming up next week ` it's called natural insemination ` donors online offering sex for free with complete strangers to help create a family. But is their motivation really that innocent? And what are the risks of sex with random strangers?