America's Most Wanted - Twenty-Seventh Season

I'm John Walsh and I've dedicated my entire life

to locking up the worst criminals.

Since 1988, we've caught 1,191 fugitives.

We're tracking down one of the most ruthless gangs

of lawbreakers we've ever gone after.

Including several of the FBI's most wanted.

And we've reunited dozens of missing children

with their families.

But the job continues.

And this time,

my son, Callahan, joins the fight.

With your help, we're going to put

more low life criminals behind bars,

including these that you'll see tonight.

Up first, Gordon Machek thought he made a new friend

in Eddie Perez,

but the first day that they had plans

was also the last day the police say Gordon was ever seen.

Can you help us find Edgardo Luis Perez?

Then, this high-level drug trafficker

helped an infamous prison gang destroy a small town in Georgia.

It's time to get David Young behind bars where he belongs.

And finally, years of tension

between a man and his ex-girlfriend's son

reached a tipping point and ends in murder.

Now, authorities need your help to locate Taejon Gill.

America's Most Wanted is the original true crime series

You can run, but you can't hide.

Hello everyone, I'm John Walsh.

And I'm Callahan Walsh.

And this is America's Most Wanted.

We are back tonight with a new roster of fugitives

that we really need your help to find.

Our incredible team of investigators,

both local and state police,

and the FBI are right here ready for your tips.

Remember, no tip is too small.

We promise you can remain anonymous.

Now tonight, we have a very special guest.

Cold Case investigator, Payne Lindsey, is here

to discuss our first fugitive.

Let's get into it.

Now, in 2001, a 56-year-old Michigan man went missing

under suspicious circumstances.

The day he disappeared was also the day

he had planned to spend with a new friend,

19-year-old Eddie Perez.

A new friend who police say happened to have a shady past.

Take a look.

Gordon was a soft-spoken gentleman.

In 2001,

Mr. Machek was a former Chrysler employee

who was a designer.

Gordon could work with any kind of media.

He was a creative genius.

Jim was Gordon's partner.

They lived together over 25 years.

Because we went so often from their house to our house,

we wore a path through the woods.

Jim was in Florida to meet with the contractors

in Tampa to start building their dream home.

When Jim was in Florida,

Gordon had called Jim and told him he was going

to spend the day with an individual named Eddie

Gordon had met Eddie at the gym.

And they were going to go on a bike ride together.

On October 22, 2001,

it had been several days since Jim heard from Gordon.

He had called him numerous times

and Gordon hadn't answered the phone,

which was completely out of character for him.

Later, Jim received a phone call from their credit card company.

They indicated there was numerous transactions

that were in Mexico.

I got a phone call from Jim who was worried about Gordon.

The next day, I told him that I'll go over

and check it out.

Gordon?

And nothing seemed to be out of order

and there was no luggage missing.

Gordon?

Jim asked me to put in a missing person report.

Jim immediately flew back to Michigan.

When detectives responded to do a walkthrough,

they discovered numerous things that weren't right to Jim.

Jim stated a large butcher knife was missing

and detectives discovered a six-foot piece of carpet

cut out in the basement.

In addition to that,

they observed an antique steamer trunk was missing.

Using an alternate light source and luminol,

they discovered a large portion of blood present

on the cement floor where the carpet had been removed.

There was also heavy drag marks in the cement floor

that we believe is from the steamer trunk.

During an exterior search of the home,

they found a tarp in the back of Gordon's van,

droplets of blood on the tarp,

and heavy drag marks inside the van on the carpet

that are consistent with the drag marks

on the cement floor.

It leads detectives to believe

that we have a homicide investigation.

Detectives had learned from Jim

that Gordon was going to spend the day

with an individual named Eddie he had met at the gym.

That definitely sets off alarms with detectives.

There's more to this than what meets the eye.

I want to talk about the first red flag

that something wasn't right in this case.

That call that Gordon's partner Jim received

about their credit cards being used in Mexico.

Exactly, and that's what first raised suspicions

around Gordon's whereabouts.

But anytime you get a call that there's been a charge

you didn't make on your credit card

or a bill for an item you didn't buy,

pay attention, investigate further,

and check your credit report on a regular basis.

Now, Gordon went missing in 2001

and things move a lot quicker these days,

especially with identity theft.

So protect yourself by staying aware.

Now, we still have a lot to learn about Perez,

but I want to make sure that the viewers know

what he looks like now, more than 20 years later.

Let's take a look at an AMW progression of Perez.

And here's another one with longer hair and a goatee.

Take a good look.

Now, when we come back,

friends and family of Gordon had a feeling

that something bad had happened that day.

But they were about to find out how bad it really was.

And we get a chance to talk to a cold case investigator

and podcaster, Payne Lindsey,

and hear his take on this heartbreaking story.

Plus, one of the biggest drug gang busts

in Georgia State history.

Now, we need your help

to find the only one authorities haven't,

high level drug trafficker, David Young.

And later on, a terrifying attack

in an underground parking garage in Los Angeles,

and it's not the first time this guy has done this.

And you could be the reason

this lowlife gets put behind bars where he belongs.

And remember: you can make a difference.

Welcome back to America's Most Wanted.

The circumstances around Gordon Machek's disappearance

were definitely suspicious.

But once his friends and loved ones noticed

a large piece of their carpet

and a knife from the kitchen missing,

the panic really set in; Something wasn't right.

Let's see what was wrong

with Gordon's new friend, Eddie Perez.

During the search of Gordon's house,

detectives observed Gordon's day planner

and inside that day planner, on October 20th, 2001,

the day we believe Gordon disappeared,

was the name Edgardo Perez with his phone number listed.

And we think Edgardo Perez is Eddie

who Gordon had met at the gym.

Detectives looked into Edgardo's criminal history

and discovered that he was on probation

for impersonating a police officer and robbery.

When detectives searched Edgardo's residence,

they found numerous books inside his bedroom.

How to become a fugitive, how to make fake IDs

and how to steal someone's identity.

After Gordon's disappearance, he called Gordon's stockbroker,

and on that call, he impersonated Gordon

with the attempt to liquidate his stock account.

But he was unsuccessful.

Typically, when we see an identity theft today,

it is a remote crime.

People are accessing your computer

to take over your identity and steal your finances.

Mr. Perez's alleged con was essentially a very old one

where they slide up next to the victim

and get them to trust them and then defraud them.

When detectives interviewed Edgardo's friends,

they indicated that he searches out older gay men

because they are easy targets

to steal their money and identification.

He had used Mr. Machek's credit card

to buy a flight to San Diego.

He was spotted in the San Diego airport

on surveillance footage.

We were able to track Mr. Perez crossing over the U.S. border.

The last credit card charge on Gordon's credit card

was to a hotel in Tijuana, Mexico.

Mexican National Police attempted to locate him,

but he had already left the hotel.

Mr. Perez was last seen with another male

holding his hands shortly after he had arrived in Mexico.

So, it's believed he was likely targeting

this individual for a similar crime.

Someone murdered Gordon,

put him in a trunk and disposed of the body,