Hey, it's Payne, and I'm here to tell you that we're back with a brand new season of Up and Vanished, called Up and Vanished in the Midnight Sun, available right now on your podcast app. In this newest season of Up and Vanished, I'm investigating an unsolved missing person's case in Nome, Alaska, on the edge of the Arctic Circle. Florence Okpiolik, an Alaska native, was last seen on August 31st, 2020. And I've spent the last year in Alaska trying to find what happened to her, putting myself in the most dangerous positions I've ever been in. You don't want to miss this brand new season of Up and Vanished. It is by far the most intense investigation I've ever been a part of. Here's a trailer. She was murdered, taken out on the tundra and dumped somewhere. There's no way they'd say something like that if they didn't know what happened.

Somebody's being hurt or taken advantage of.

You don't just look the other way. Stay on the phone with you, please. Did you have a license for this vehicle?

There's a truck that's following you guys. We heard gunshots.

Where were the gunshots at?

If you think you're investigating a murder scene, things have to be documented. We don't know who to trust.

From Tenderfoot TV, Up and Vanished in the Midnight Sun, is available right now. Listen for free on Apple Podcasts or wherever you get your podcast. The Raven is released weekly and brought to you absolutely free. But if you want ad-free listening and early access to next week's episode, subscribe to Tenderfoot Plus. For more information, check out tenderfootplus. Com. Enjoy the episode. You're listening to The Raven, a production of Tenderfoot TV, in Association with Odyssey. The views and opinions expressed in this podcast are solely those of the individuals participating in the podcast. This podcast also contains subject matter which may not be suitable for everyone. Listener discretion is advised.

Yeah, my experience was not good. There was things that happened that were put on my dad that shouldn't have been put on him.

For months, I've been trying to reach limo driver Dwyane Fassett. I've dialed countless numbers and gotten nowhere. So I started searching for family members and eventually connected with Fassett's daughter.

My dad is a straight shooter. And even though he's my dad, he's a great guy. Did he have his downfalls? Of course. I think this is why it bothers me so much is because he had to stay and not say stuff that he felt like he had to stay.

And do you think that affected him mentally in a very profound way?

Oh, yeah. Our family broke down after that. And I know my family is going to be mad that I'm even saying this, if you put this out there, whatever. This is the defining moment of when everything went wrong with dad. He had so much guilt of what he was supposed to say, what he should say, what he shouldn't say, what he wanted to say. I remember being home because they wouldn't let me go to Atlanta. And looking at him on his stand, I'm like, That's not my dad. Why is he looking like that? Why is he saying that?

Dwyane Fassett was never the same after witnessing the stabbings, and the trauma extended well beyond him. Fassett's night in Atlanta affected his whole family and continues to affect them over two decades later.

He had a stroke, a massive stroke. But like I said, that was the of our family not being our family. And that's why I'm so geared out about talking about it, because I never talk about it. We had death threats. Police were at our house He used to follow me to work. And he didn't even say anything bad about Ray. And my family were still friends with the Louis family. I'm like, I'm not understanding why. I'm not saying Ray They did what he was on trial for. I'm just saying it could have went differently, or he could have said something. He just left it up to my dad to take it all.

From Tenderfoot TV, I'm Tim Livingston, and this is The Raven. Episode 6, Should Have Stayed Home. Went fishing. You're about to hear a reading of the statement Dwyane Fassett gave to Assistant DA Clint Rucker, hours after witnessing the double homicide in Atlanta. The voice belongs to an actor. The words are real. Outside of the lawyers and investigators in this case, nobody has ever heard this statement. Fassett was the most important witness in this case, and his story in the stand was very different from what you're about to hear. As you listen, please imagine that you're a member of the jury and ask yourself, do you believe him? Fassett refers to Louis' friends by nicknames. Oakley is Derby, Sweeding is Shorty, and Kwame King is Fedora.

Everyone got into the limo except Ray and Derby. The three other men walked past, and when they got to the front of the limo, they started saying something, don't know what it was. Derby started walking towards him, and Ray told him to get back. Shorty and Fedori got out the limo. Shorty and the one guy got into a fight by the tree, and it sounded like he got hit with a bottle. I saw Shorty hit him once in the stomach, and Ray swung at him. The other guy, Derby, took off running after the other guy and caught him at the end of the street. Derby grabbed the guy by the shirt, flipped him in the air. I mean, he literally flipped him in the air, and he landed on the road. Derby started hitting him. Right by them, there was another fight. I'm not sure if it was another fight or if it was the one that started by the tree with Shorty. Ray hollered at him and said, Get back in the truck. Shorty and Derby came up the street. Ray came from by the tree, and they all got in a limo, and Ray told me, Get out of here.

There's a lot We're going to unpack here, so let's start with this. Until Louis took the stand and testified against Sweden and Oakley, the prosecution had no witness that detailed the fight from beginning to end. Fassett does that, and it's fair to assume that his account would have been impactful for the jury to hear. Fassett begins by saying that Louis was attempting to de-escalate the situation, urging Oakley to get back into the limo. Three members of the Akron Group were shouting at Oakley as they walked past the car. Then, Oakley walked toward them, and the fight started. From there, Fassett says that Louis, Oakley, Sweeding, and Kwame King got out of the limo to join the brawl. Fassett places Louis in the fight, saying that the linebacker swung at somebody and then ran back to the limo from the tree. Louis has repeatedly said that he was not involved in the brawl. His lawyer said that he was not involved. Fassett says in this statement that the linebacker took part in the fight. After listening to Fassett's initial recollection, Assistant DA Clint Rucker asked the limo driver a series of pointed questions. With Rucker's permission, we used AI to recreate his voice.

Mr. Fassett, did you ever see anyone in the limo with a weapon?

No, sir. I never saw anyone with a weapon. The only thing I did see was the plastic package as the knives come in. Shorty dropped a lot on the ground in front of a club a couple of days before the incident.

Shortly before the altercation, did you hear anything that would lead you to believe that an altercation was about to occur?

There appeared to be an argument as they were walking on the street. Ray had his arm in front of Derby, forcing him backwards towards the limo, telling them to get in the truck and get out of here.

Did you ever hear anybody say that had cut or stabbed anybody else?

I heard Derby say, I stabbed him, and Shorty say, I stabbed him, too. Or worse to that effect, I didn't hear anyone else.

Did you hear Ray make any comments?

Nothing, but let's get out of here.

To the best of your knowledge, was anyone else bleeding with the exception of Derby? No. After you You parked the vehicle at the Holiday Inn, did you have any other conversation with Ray?

Not really. The only thing he said was, I'll call you later to find out about the truck.

As of this moment, has Ray called Did he ever tell you?

Before the police arrived, Ray called me twice about the truck. He asked me if it was the tire fixed.

Did Ray, Derby, or Shorty ever speak to you about the incident or the victims? No. At any time, did Ray Derby or Shorty express any remorse towards the victims?

No, not that I noticed, anyway.

Immediately following the incident, did anyone express remorse?

No, only to get out of there. And Shorty and Derby say that they stabbed someone.

How many bodies did you see down on the ground after the the incident?

Two.

Where were the two bodies when you saw them?

They were to the right side of the center line of the street.

As you rode past the two bodies in the street, were they visible from the limo?

Yes, they would have been on the ground to the right of the vehicle.

Did you hear Ray, Derby, Shorty, or anyone in the limo express concern or remorse for the victims? No. Did you hear Ray, Derby, Shorty, or anyone in the limo say anything as you were passing the two bodies in the street?

Yes, get out of here. That was seconds before the gun shots.

How would you How would you describe your relationship with Ray Louis?

I thought we were super close.

I think the world of them. How do you feel about giving this statement?

It is one of the hardest things that I've had to do.

Why did you not tell the police everything the first time you spoke with them?

I was afraid Ray. I was so close to them that in a way I couldn't believe it happened. I've had these guys so many times before with never so much as an argument. I didn't think that it was serious. I thought it was just a bis fight. They were just punches. I saw Derby flip the kid, and I knew it was serious.

When you saw Ray swing at the victim, what part of the victim's body did he strike?

From the middle of his chest up.

Is it possible that he could have struck him lower than you saw?

It is possible, but he struck the guy from mid chest up.

Is there anything that you would like to add to this statement?

No.

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He says that he heard Sweeney and Oakley admit to stabbing Lawlor and Baker, and then he specifies that Louis landed a punch in the victim's upper chest. Dwyane Fassett's attorney claimed that he was pressured by Atlanta Homicide Investigators to give a false, inculpatory statement. This is where I'd love to have the tape and listen to the reflection in Fassett's voice. Did it sound like there was a gun to his head, or did this sound real and genuine? Because when Fassett got onto the stand, nothing felt genuine. He was petrified. And the jury, the victim's families, and the millions of people following this case around the world got a much different story when Fassett, under oath, answered questions from Paul Howard.

What did they do as they approach the limousine as you were standing there?

Besides verbally arguing, nothing, I guess. All I saw was Ray come up with like that and said, Knock the shit off. I didn't see him throw the punch. I didn't see it land or nothing. But because that's when this guy got flipped down here, and that's what caught my attention. Holding a fist over his head, Fassett said, I didn't see him throw the punch. I didn't see it land or nothing. So wait a minute. Did Fassett not see Louis throw the punch, or did he not see Louis land the punch? If he didn't see Louis land the punch, did Louis throw the punch? The limo driver's words should have provoked an immediate reaction from Paul Howard, especially considering the Fassett claimed Louis threw a punch in his original statement. This was the perfect opportunity for Howard to introduce what Fassett said to Rucker. But instead, Howard just kept on going.

Mr. Fassett, you had indicated when the police initially asked you who was in the limousine, and you did not give them any information. Is that correct? Yes. Did you ever change what you said to the police?

Yes.

And what caused you to change?

When they told me that there was two people killed, they put the handcuffs on me, put me out in the car. I thought I was being arrested for the crime. They didn't me any different. Howard questions Fassett for two hours, but gets nowhere. His questions aren't direct or logical. He bounces around and says, in the end, a whole lot of nothing.

And what do you recall who, if anyone, went with you to that location? And when they got closer to you, what did you see them doing at that time? At the time you were at the closest point. What were they doing at that time? So at that time, how many of the people who were inside the limousine were now outside the limousine? Who in the limousine was any place near that person? And did anything happen after that was done?

Long One time, ESPN legal analyst, Roger Kostik, wrote of Howard, If they ever write a book listing the most inept prosecutions ever, this one will be highlighted as the standard by which all others are to be measured. On the other side, you had to Ray Lewis's attorneys, Don Samuel and Ed Garland, two men who did not make mistakes. Knowing Howard's inability to impeach Fassett had him firmly in the lead, Garland completed his questioning of Fassett in less than two minutes.

Ray Louis didn't do anything to cause, aid, or encourage anyone to stab Have someone with a knife, did he?

No, sir, not that I could see. Not at all.

That's all the questions I have.

Fassett then faced questioning from Oakley's attorney, Bruce Harvey. So After you heard somebody say something, Mr. Oakley walked forward, right? Yes, sir.

And you could see him walking forward. He was walking normally, was he not?

Yeah, he wasn't running or nothing. He wasn't running, he wasn't rushing, he wasn't aggressive to run up to anybody, right? Right. Right. He was walking calmly, and you could see him doing that, right? Yes, sir. And the next thing that you remember is you hear a bottle breaking over by the tree, right? Mm-hmm. Harvey starts by asking Fassett if Oakley was walking normally. Fassett confirms that Oakley was not running. Oakley's lawyer then pushes a little farther. He was walking calmly, and you could see him doing that, right? Harvey asks. Yes, sir, Fassett responds. This is the first report of Reginald Oakley doing anything calmly on the night in question. Paul Howard, of course, doesn't make a peep. Next, Fassett answered questions from Seydou's understudy, John Bergendahl, the Miami the attorney. You've previously said that several people from the limousine got out and went down the street, correct, Mr.

Fassett?

That's what it says, yes, sir. And that wasn't the only time that you've made that statement, correct?

I don't recall saying it, but it's in there, so I must have.

Fassett has answered questions for 3 hours and 37 minutes. He appeared tortured the whole time. Skinny, pale, and nervous, the lawyers finally rest, and Fassett takes a breath. Any other defendant?

Any redirect.

Re-read.

No, we redirect. All right. May this witness be excused.

Thinking that it's over, Fassett lights up for a moment. Then, he hears Judge Bonner's next sentence. Is he under subpoena? We would like him to act, but we would have a right to recall him. Mr. Fassett, it's possible you will be recalled as a witness. You can see the life leave Fassett's body. He crumbles, and the courtroom, not knowing anything about the limo driver's mental state, laughs. Dwyane Fassett disappeared after his court appearance. He never spoke publicly about Atlanta again. What was Fassett's truth? What was he hiding? What was he scared of? After our initial call, I planned on visiting Dwyane Fassett's daughter, but she ghosted me.Forwarded.

To an automated voice messaging system.

Finally, Mellie. Close to the release of this podcast, I got her back on the phone.

I am not trying to hinder you at all. I love podcasts. I love the people in it. I really do appreciate it. I'm sad about it and when it came to me, I was like, Oh, I do just speak from the truth in the heart. I did not realize, Oh, they might use my name, and then I'm screwed because if you find me, then anybody can find me.

I understand why she's timid. Her family received death threats, and the trauma did something to her father's brain that can never be reversed. I try to assure her that all I'm looking to do is understand who Dwyane Fassett was before and after the incident.

My dad loved Ray, and that was my problem with this whole thing. It wasn't that Ray was a football player. It wasn't like he was famous. He really liked Ray as a person. There was other stuff that happened before that that made me doubt Ray. My dad would sleep in the limo. Ray, why would you make him sleep in the limo?

And not get him a hotel or not think about his well-being.

Exactly. My dad was retired. He went to Vietnam. Then he was an ER doctor. Then he worked at North Arundel as a phontomist. And then he finally was like, I'm going to retire, but he couldn't sit still. So then he had a friend. It was like, I got this limo service. Dad was like, Yeah, I'll do it. But he was just something I was like, You should have just had home, went fishing.

In Vietnam, in the hospital, Fassett was around death his whole life, but something about this was different. What was the source of his sadness, the depression that ultimately destroyed his family? Was it witnessing the murder of two men? Or was it the aftermath, the pressure he felt to say or not say?

I don't know if he lied. I know he didn't say, but that made me mad that you didn't say. This is a man who did they... I'm not going to say in hard life, but he was in Vietnam at 18, did two tours, came home, was an ER doctor, this, this, and this. And when I looked at him on Court TV, I was like, I don't know who that is. His eyes are dead. That's not my dad. So I'm just glad because I feel like most people who come to me or come to my family have always came to the thing. It's like, Ray Louis had nothing to do with it. He knew nothing. It was just a happenstance. No, That's not how I took it. That's not how my family took it. He had a heart in it.

Good morning.

Good afternoon.

You may be seated. We'll come on. I understand the jury has reached a verdict. Is that right?

All right. You may bring them in. On June 12, 2000, the courtroom filled, anticipating a verdict. Ray Louis was not present. He was home, getting ready for training camp. The families of Joseph Sweeding, Reginald Oakley, Richard Lawlor, and Jason Baker sat silently and prayed. I understand you've reached a verdict.

Is that true?

That's true.

All right. I'll get the foreperson to give the verdict form to the deputy, and I'll review it, and then I'll get you to publish the verdict. That means stand and say it in open court. I'll get the defendants to please stand.

Would you publish the verdict, please?

State of Georgia versus Joseph Swayze.

Count 6, aggravated assault.

We, the jury, find defendant not guilty. Minimum outburst in the courtroom. They'll be excused. Count three, felony murder.

We, the jury, find defendant not guilty.

Count five, aggravated assault.

We, the jury, find the defendant not guilty.

Arme forward, please. State of Georgia versus Reginald Oakley, count two, murder. We, the jury, find defendant, not guilty. Count four, felony murder. We, the jury, find defendant, not guilty. Count six, aggravated assault. We, the jury, find defendant, not guilty. The jury never heard Fassett's original statement.

But now that you've heard it, which version of the limo driver's story do you believe? Do you believe what he said on the stand? Or do you believe what he said to Clint Rucker the morning after the killings? And what do you believe when it comes to Fassett's depiction of Ray Louis? Because Louis has always said the same thing about Atlanta. What do you want us to know about that night in Atlanta When you hear people say, Well, you pleaded guilty to obstruction of justice.

Do you know what? Let me make sure everybody's clear what they, quote, unquote, charged me with. The police came to me that night and asked me, Do you know everybody names that was in the limo? I said, No, I don't know everybody names in the limo. And this is your limo? Yeah. He gets mad and says, Yes, you do. Oh, that's the problem with people like you. You all just ride around with anybody. Do you know everybody in the limo? I said, No, I do not know everybody's names in the limo. That's what I was found guilty of.

That's the obstruction of justice?

That's the obstruction of justice. That I told him I didn't know about it, first and last names in the limo. That's what the court put me in front of, the world, no factual evidence ever of me ever being in altercation, ever.

Louis still won't talk with us, but I think he should. I think it would benefit him. Many people think Ray Louis is a murderer. This podcast makes it pretty clear that is almost certainly not the case. Louis tried to get Oakley in the limo. He tried to be a peacekeeper. So the question is now, how do we get Ray Lewis to tell us his real story? How do we get Ray Lewis to talk? The Raven is a production of Tenderfoot TV and Journeyman, in association with Odyssey. Donald Albray and Payne Lindsay, our executive producers on behalf of Tenderfoot TV. I'm the executive producer on behalf of Journeyman. Alex Bespistead is our lead producer and editor on behalf of Tenderfoot Labs. Patty Cotter is our producer. Tracey Kaplan is our supervising producer. Paul Cucceri and Sydney Evans, our associate producers. Original music is by Makeup and Vanity Set. Sound design, Mixing and Mastering by Cooper Skinner and Daten Cole. Cover design and illustration by Mr. Soul. Trial archival, provided by CORE TV. Special thanks to actor Chris McCann. Special thanks to Oren Rosenbaum and Grace Royer at UTA, Beck Media & Marketing, The Nord Group, Ninning Moran, and The Moran Family, Russell Rathner, Alyssa Gonsarca, James Yu, and Todd Baines.

If you enjoyed the podcast, please subscribe, rate, and review. For more podcasts like The Raven, search Tenderfoot TV on your favorite podcast app, or visit tenderfoot. Tv. Thanks for listening. Thanks for listening to this episode of The Raven. If you want to listen to next week's episode right now, subscribe to Tenderfoot Plus for early access. Tenderfoot Plus is available on Apple Podcasts or tenderfootplus. Com.