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The Detectives

Sympathy for the suspect: How a Fredericton detective drew out a confession from a killer

In a last-ditch effort to solve a brutal homicide, Detective Mike Richard resorted to the most disturbing task of his career to obtain a confession: sympathize with a suspected pedophile and murderer.
CBC ·

Detective Mike Richard's interrogation with suspect Murray Lyons

4 years ago
Duration 2:34
To get a murder confession from a violent pedophile, Detective Mike Richard had to pretend to sympathize with him.

In a last-ditch effort to solve a brutal homicide, Detective Mike Richard resorted to the most disturbing task of his career to obtain a confession: sympathize with a suspected pedophile and murderer.

Richard had hit an impasse in solving the 1995 investigation of Jackie Clark's murder in Fredericton.

"We had no DNA. We had no trace evidence," he said. "Without a confession this case was going nowhere."

So to prepare for his interview with the suspect, Richard worked with Robert Keppel of the FBI, best known for his contributions to the investigations of Ted Bundy and Gary Ridgway. Keppel pioneered an investigative technique that involves blaming the victim of the crime in order to draw out a confession from a cold-blooded killer who is unresponsive to themes of remorse.

The video above contains archival footage of Richard applying this technique in an intense interrogation with suspected killer Murray Lyons.

The Detectives