The ‘Stranger’ in the House | The Case of Leslie Preer | UNSEEN

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You're dehydrated. You're tired. My eyes are. I'm just trying to say that this seems a little put on. Are you kidding me? No. They've been trying to catch him because they believe he has gotten away with murder while someone else was blamed for it. We have physical evidence that shows that you were the one who did it. 23 years earlier, police had found the body of a woman brutally murdered inside her home. Almost immediately, they focused their attention on her husband. Just 48 hours after the murder of his wife, he was brought in for questioning and something about his calm demeanor alarmed investigators. I told you everything exactly how it happened and I don't have anything else to say. To determine if he was telling the truth, detectives had him take a polygraph. When the results had come back, it only reinforced their suspicions. He failed. We can prove that you haven't told us the truth, Sandy. And that don't lie. People lie. For 23 years, everyone in the community believed he killed his wife. But in reality, he's innocent while the real killer has been getting away with it all this time. We believed you had something to do with this. Oh my God, you're so full of it. You're just, you're after it. Detectives are closing in because while the killer thought he committed the perfect crime, he forgot one thing. And 23 years later, he's about to walk straight into their trap. Well, there's actually, a little more to it than what we told you so far. Leslie and Sandy are married in 1974 and begin building their picture-perfect life. They settle in a cozy Maryland suburb and, a few years later, welcome their daughter, Lauren. As soon as she is born, Lauren is the center of her parents' world. Her parents are known among Lauren's friends for welcoming everyone into their house, always there to make jokes and cook food for them. Lauren's parents, her mom in particular, just welcomed everybody with open arms. And she was the one that made sure that they were fed. Lauren's father could be described as like the life of the party. Very, very involved in Lauren's life. And they had a really great relationship. He was a really great guy. Before we continue Leslie's story, we'd like to thank this episode's sponsor. Our sponsors help us continue our mission of sharing powerful survivor stories. And today, we've partnered with Shopify. When Unseen started years ago, there were a lot of unknowns. Finding our voice and building our brand, it takes a lot of work. And pushing through that doubt, uncertainty, and what ifs can be tough. But actually taking that leap and launching Unseen was one of the best decisions we've made. And if you're starting something yourself, having the right tools to support your vision can make a huge difference. That's where Shopify can come in. 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On top of everything else, the autopsy report comes back and suggests Leslie may have died the night before. But Sandy had told them Leslie was alive when he left for work around 8 that morning. To detectives, the timeline doesn't add up. Sandy still insists he's innocent, though, so detectives have him take a polygraph test. The results only confirm what they already believe. He fails. By that point, cops are convinced Sandy Prear is a murderer. But with no murder weapon or physical evidence tying Sandy to Leslie's killing, they would need a confession from him to go to trial. And since Sandy is still claiming he's innocent, investigators decide to speak with his daughter, Lauren, to see if she knows anything that could prove Sandy's guilt. Even when the labs discover a crucial new detail, extracted from under Leslie's fingernails, the DNA of an unknown man, detectives still remain completely convinced of Sandy's guilt. They simply develop a new theory that Sandy had an unknown accomplice in Leslie's murder. In spite of Sandy and Lauren's insistence, investigators simply won't consider any other possibilities. "I knew my dad loved my mom so much. I mean, I had my moment where I questioned, could he really go that far? I'm like, no. My dad loved my mom. Loved, adored her. That's impossible." To the cops, Sandy is still the only real suspect, and it takes a toll on the family. Some members of Leslie's family even agree with the police. The grieving husband is endlessly scrutinized after 16 years of living under the weight of suspicion, abandoned by nearly everyone except Lauren. Sandy dies. The way it works is by using publicly available DNA databases, the same ones people use to trace their own family history. If investigators find a genetic link, they begin building a family tree using additional information they can find online about the relatives. But if that lead goes nowhere, they'll have to start again with another match. She was relentless. She sat there and built family trees for days and didn't give up. After over a year of pursuing every possible partial match in the U.S., Detectives Agostin and Depoy still haven't identified their suspect, but they refuse to give up. They decide to look at international databases, too, in hopes of finding a better match. We had a couple of particularly high matches. They were from Eastern European descent. We decided, OK, well, let's just work with these high matches and see what we can do. And once we did that, within two weeks, we came up with a match that was based out of Romania. And with it, a family name, Gligor. Gligor popped up, and knowing that that family lived in this area at the time, it's like, this is a really good match. I remember I said, Allie, come over here and look at this. I think I really have a break. Like, oh, this is serious. Not only did the family live near the Priers, but a student named Eugene Gligor even attended high school with Lauren Prier. However, the DNA from the genetic genealogy implicates the whole family tree. It can't specifically point to one person. At this point, the next step is clear. Investigators need a full DNA sample from Eugene to either match him or rule him out. The question is, how can they get a sample without tipping Gligor off and prove that he's the real killer? It's now early in the morning on June 18th, 2024. A task force of U.S. Marshals is quietly waiting outside a home in Washington, D.C. Inside the house is Eugene Gligor. The moment he steps out the front door, agents move in. Hands up! Hands up! Within seconds, he's in handcuffs. What's going on? What is this about? He was shocked. So you didn't know anything about the swarm? He wasn't expecting this. Shh. Eugene is brought in right away for questioning. Inside the small windowless interrogation room, the atmosphere is tense. He doesn't know it yet, but Augustin and Dupuy are determined to unmask a killer. And, Detective Augustin, this is Detective Dupuy. Hi there. From Omery County. Okay. I'm sure you're wondering what this is all about. I would really like to know. This has been really, really hard, whatever's happening. Um, do you recall back in 2001, Leslie Prier? Yes, that she was murdered, yeah. Yes, okay. So that's the case that we are investigating. Um, so I, you went to BCC with her daughter at the time? Yes. Correct. Is that correct? Okay. And what was your relationship with Lauren, the daughter? Um, we had dated. As it turns out, Eugene and Lauren were high school sweethearts. They dated for five years and even went to prom together. His parents' house was only about a seven-minute walk from the Priers. Eugene was a familiar face around his girlfriend's family home, often stopping by and sharing meals cooked by Lauren's mom. But Lauren's father, Sandy, never liked Eugene. He believed he was a bad influence. In high school, Eugene was a person of interest in a few burglaries and had several other run-ins with the law but was never charged with anything. So you and Lauren had dated well before her mother was killed. Do you remember, like, were you still in touch with Lauren when this stuff happened to her mom? Um, no, we had broken up a couple years before, um, at least. I believe I reached out just to send my regards and, um, maybe saw her. I saw her a couple times, and, um, but that was it. Another detail quickly catches their attention on the day of Lauren's mother's funeral. Strangely, Eugene was nowhere to be found. I remember asking Lauren specifically, I was like, "Where is Eugene?" And her saying to me that it was too much for him to handle. That's the most selfish thing I've ever heard. Why the hell is Eugene not here? Eugene's absence didn't raise any alarms back then. But now? Twenty-three years later, it's all beginning to make sense. Before arresting Eugene, detectives had dug into his background, speaking with people who knew him best, including his two ex-wives. In fact, one of his exes had filed for a protection order against him, where she outlined a disturbing pattern of behavior. - Eugene is an addict and has two guns. His behavior has been erratic and scary for a couple of years, off and on. Eugene repeatedly calls me a whore and yells into my face. He throws objects, punches walls, and I fear for my safety when he has these outbursts. - It just showed a completely different side of him that hadn't been exposed before. - Once I saw that, okay, well there is a propensity for violence and now that kind of changes things to where, okay, he might be capable of actually killing someone. - I'm just, I'm a little confused. To find out more and talk to me, why not just call me and ask me to come in and talk to me? - Well, because we needed to talk to you in a controlled environment and because there's a little bit more to it. From the crime scene, the DNA that was taken, we actually have a sample of your DNA and it was compared to the crime scene DNA. - I never gave a sample of DNA. - Eugene Gligor is right about one thing. He never knowingly gave a DNA sample. Unbeknownst to him, on June 9th, 2024, just nine days before this conversation, Detectives Augustin and Dupuy had launched a covert operation to catch their killer. That day, Eugene Gligor had flown back home into Dulles International Airport. As Gligor stepped off the plane, an airport agent pulled him aside for what appeared to be a routine check. He was then escorted to a small room. Several bottles of water had been taken out of his body. The water had been carefully placed on the table in front of him. The plan was simple. They needed Gligor to drink from one of the bottles. Once he did, the bottle would contain his DNA. Eugene took the bait. He drank from one of the bottles, throwing it in the trash as he left the room. The detectives immediately swooped in, collecting their evidence with Eugene having no idea that he'd just fallen right into their trap. The lab results come back and the proof is undeniable. The unknown DNA from under Leslie's nails, is a match to Eugene. - We obtained a sample from a discarded water bottle that you drank out of. So your DNA matches the crime scene DNA. - Why, I don't know. I don't recall. I don't have any memory. I didn't do anything that you're talking about. So I don't know. And I don't feel like I can. - There's no tears coming out of your face. - I'm very dry right now. - You're dry? - I'm very dry. My heart's like dehydrated. You can probably see my eyes are bloodshot red because I'm just tired and drained. You want me to drink water so I can tear? - I'm just trying to say that this seems a little put on. - Are you kidding me? Are you kidding me? - No. - After 23 years, the case of Leslie Prier's murder is finally solved. But detectives still have to break the news to Lauren about the true identity of her mother's killer. When Lauren picks up the phone, she's relieved to hear detectives finally have new information about the case, unaware that what they're about to tell her will turn her world upside down once again. - And she's like, "Just get a glass of water. "I'm gonna tell you something." And she goes to you, "You know a Eugene Gligor." I mean, when I say I lost my mind. Like, I couldn't believe it. And she was like, "He's the one that killed your mom." I couldn't believe my ears. I had no idea that it was someone that I dated. It's insane. And then he almost got away with it. He almost got away with it. - Just the horror that he could have done that to somebody that took care of him and opened their house to him was just shocking. - Now that detectives know who killed Leslie, one question remains, why? Eugene refuses to explain himself, but investigators can piece together what likely occurred on May 2nd, 2001. They know Eugene had a history of burglaries and that he was familiar with the Preer home. He also thought the family had money. To detectives, that combination indicates a possible motive. - I think that Eugene was breaking into the house thinking no one was home, and he encountered Leslie. And knowing that she would recognize him and he would get in trouble, I think that he just panicked and only thought about himself and made a selfish decision to. kill Leslie in the heat of the moment, just so he could get away. - I think he got scared because he was in the house and she saw his face and knew exactly who he was. And then he freaked out and she ran for her life. He took her into the shower, thinking that the DNA was gonna be gone. - On August 25th, 2025, Lauren walks into the courtroom for Eugene's arraignment. Several days after her mother's murder, she'd cried in her ex-boyfriend's arms as he comforted her. And that moment was one of the last times she'd seen him, until today, where she will come face to face with him, knowing he's the man responsible for her mother's murder. She looks toward Eugene. He can't even meet her gaze. As the hearing begins, the judge asks Eugene Gligor how he intends to plead, and his answer shocks everyone in the courtroom. He pleads guilty. - Sir, are you pleading guilty here today, freely and voluntarily? - Yes, Your Honor. - Are you pleading guilty because you do believe that you are guilty of second-degree murder? - Yes, Your Honor. - In that moment, the shadow that has followed Lauren's family for over two decades is finally lifted. Her father's name is cleared, not only in the eyes of the law, but also in the court of public opinion. Though Sandy was never able to see his wife's killer being put behind bars, his daughter is there to witness it for him. Before the judge delivers the sentence, Lauren is given the chance to speak directly to Eugene and address him for the first time since the truth came out. - So, Ray, we let you go through our lives. - That's Eugene. - And a monster arrives right at the front door. - It's someone we trusted and considered a friend. But the same thing, you have us all pulled. Your scary, terrifying lies looked us right in the eyes. You're a monster, old wolf in sheep's clothing. - You almost got away with it. - And by the grace of God and prayer, I was able to save my parents for almost 25 years. My mother's luster was cut. Eugene T. Gligor, that's why my family and friends are still here. - Eugene Gligor is sentenced to 22 years in prison, followed by five years of supervised probation. At last, the Preer family can begin to live in peace. - Yeah, a lot of emotions at play in the courtroom. The family, finally today, able to stand around this picture and take a family portrait and say, they are thankful for what they've done for us. - This is an amazing detective work. - This is a history-making case. - Leslie Preer's murder isn't just a cold case solved years later. It becomes a testament to the power of persistence and determination. First, from a daughter that refused to let her father's name be defined by suspicion. - I can't believe it's over. It's been so long. Almost 25 years, I'm 48 years old. I thought I was gonna die without knowing. - And it's over. - It's over. - Yeah, looks at it. - New detectives who refuse to let old conclusions stand as the final truth. - There were a lot of ups and downs, and it took a long time, but in the end, it was ultimately a success, and we were very pleased with it. - For years, families like the Preers awaiting leads on cold cases were left without options and told that there would be no leads left to pursue. With forensic science evolving with every passing year, detectives Tara Augustin and Alison Depoy represent a new era, one where the smallest piece of evidence can change everything, even decades later. Solving cold cases like Leslie's proves that there's always hope to get justice, even against seemingly impossible odds. Lauren now knows that her mom and dad can rest in peace. - I have pictures of them in the guest bedroom, and I talked to them, and I said, "I wish you had been here." I said, "Daddy, thank you for being such a wonderful father, "and I'm so sorry that you didn't get to see justice." "But you're getting justice." - It was a miracle, literally. I hope that for the other families that are dealing with very old cold case files, that we give some hope.