EXCLUSIVE: 'Killing Fields' Prepares to Re-Examine a Second Cold Case
In addition to the unsolved homicide of Eugenie Boisfontaine, Killings Fields is taking a closer look at another cold case: the disappearance of Curtis "Cochise" Smith, a young black man from Iberville Parish, Louisiana, who went missing in 1991.
Interest in the case is reignited when the Louisiana State University FACES lab reveals it has forensic evidence that a 25 to 30-year-old black man was inside a barrel first found in 2005 just a few hours outside Iberville Parish. And ET has your first look at the episode as detectives Rodie Sanchez and Aubrey St. Angelo as well as forensic experts examine the eerie contents of the barrel, including body imprints in the cement.
MORE: 'Killing Fields' Season 2 Finds Links to Other Unsolved Cases
"When you see the fact that somebody that was encased in concrete -- a human being -- and you can see the ridges of the bottoms of their feet molded into the concrete, that'll make your skin crawl," St. Angelo says in the clip.
This terrifying case of a body stuffed in a barrel fits the timeline that the main suspect in the case, businessman Tommy Francise, gave Det. Sanchez, when authorities first investigated the disappearance of Smith. In a statement, Francise said he shot Smith in self-defense and disposed of the body in a barrel that was dumped into the bayou. However, he was not arrested because there was no body at the time -- a fact that no doubt has weighed heavily on the conscience of Det. Sanchez, who's busy trying to solve cold cases from earlier in his career.
Ahead of season two, co-executive producer Tom Fontana told ET that the second cold case from Det. Sanchez's past was a surprise, adding an unexpected layer of reality to the series. "[Cases] don't get solved in 46 minutes," he said, referring to his time as a producer on NBC's Homicide: Life on the Street. "They take time."
"The detectives are so wonderfully determined," Fontana added, promising the show will dig deeper into the lives of the detectives as they try to bring justice to these victims.
Killing Fields airs Tuesdays at 10 p.m. ET/PT on Discovery Channel.
Related Articles
