Synopses & Reviews
THEY WERE YOUNG. THEY WERE SMART -- OFTEN TO THE POINT OF ARROGANCE. BUT WERE THEY KILLERS?
Investigative correspondent Peter Van Sant draws on penetrating interviews and extensive research to unravel a controversial case from TV's 48 Hours Mystery -- the two gifted college students charged with murdering one of their families in cold blood.
Bellevue, Washington: Early on a serene summer evening, neighbors heard a muffled commotion from inside the home of a quiet Muslim family, newcomers to the wealthy Seattle suburb. It wasn't until well after midnight that Atif Rafay and his best friend, Sebastian Burns, entered the Rafay house to find Atif's parents fatally bludgeoned, and his sister clinging to life. Despite airtight alibis and a dearth of evidence, the boys quickly emerged as suspects -- and sealed their fate when they headed to Canada. After a six-year extradition battle that went all the way to Canada's Supreme Court, they were returned to the U.S. -- in a twisting case involving an elaborate sting operation; a damaging screenplay; a shattering surprise witness; and the shocking discovery of one of the boys having sex with his female attorney in prison. Were Atif Rafay and Sebastian Burns falsely accused? Or was this unspeakable crime PERFECTLY EXECUTED?
Table of Contents
Introduction A Perfect Murder
PART I THE CRIME
1. A Quiet Cul-de-Sac
2. Sounds in the Night
3. Best of Friends
4. The Discovery
5. Help Arrives
6. So Many Questions
7. Ask Us Anything
8. We Have Alibis
9. Suspicions Grow
10. Sebastian's Turn
11. Homecoming
PART II THE SUSPECTS
12. A Professional Hit
13. Exhausted and Dazed
14. Leopold and Loeb
15. Parting Words
16. Convinced Canadians
17. The Great Despisers
18. Too Good
19. Perchance We Meet
20. Crossing the Line
21. Show Me the Money
22. Raising the Stakes
23. Dead Serious
24. One of the Most Intelligent People in the World
25. A Turning Point
26. Crime Is Cool
27. A Wild Hair
28. A Bullet in My Head
29. Tell Me Anything
30. An Old Man
31. A Scene to Remember
32. The Straight Goods
33. "You Do It Naked"
34. "What's the Highest IQ Possible?"
35. The Code
36. "I'm Flattered by Your Attention"
37. "I Think of It as a Sacrifice"
38. "He's Just Being Clever"
PART III THE TRIAL
39. "Good Morning, Boys"
40. The Fight Begins
41. A Defense Begins
42. Meeting Sebastian
43. "The Role of Second Fiddle"
44. A Shocking Delay
45. The Dream Team
46. A Case Hangs in the Balance
47. Roll the Tape
48. Betrayed
49. "No Going Back"
50. "I Think They Are Capable of Doing Anything"
51. "This Is Going to Be a War"
52. Sebastian Tells His Story
53. The Cross
54. A Recycled Alibi?
55. Hubris Did Them In
56. The Road to Hell
57. The Wait
58. The Verdict
59. The Aftermath
Epilogue