What Happened When Amber Frey Started Secretly Recording Her Phone Calls With Scott Peterson

You guys don't have any problems, marriage problems. Al mentioned to her, you were somebody that we were praying for. We were hoping to God that somebody like you would come forward so it would help us with this case. Buehler starts a tape recorder and Amber walks them through her relationship with Scott. She has brought photographs, gifts, and things he left behind. Her interview lasts more than an hour. Over lunch, Amber asks what she can do to help find Lacey. You're doing it, says Buehler. Amber presses. She later writes that she felt Lacey Peterson was counting on her to bring her and her baby home. The detective gives Amber a long look. How would you feel about taping your calls, Buehler asks her. Amber agrees to play along with Scott as if she knows nothing about Lacey and to record every conversation for the police. Buehler described the next steps for him and Brocchini when he spoke to me in 2021. And so we retrieved a recorder out of my trunk along with, like, 10 tapes and some batteries, and then we went to Radio Shack, which was nearby, and Brock bought the connecting unit that would go to her phone, and the recorder itself showed her how to use it. As he's showing her how to use it, the phone rings, and Brock, he goes, that's Scott's number right there. Amber puts in the earpiece from Radio Shack. Her hands shake so badly that she misses the first call from Scott. Buehler tells her, relax, and that while she knows the call is being recorded, Scott has no idea. Amber then packs a bag and leaves her house to stay with friends. She does not want to be there alone with her daughter. Hours later, her cell phone rings again. It's Scott. Amber clears the room and tries not to panic. She reminds herself that Scott is in Europe, and she has to sound like she believes it. She starts the tape. Her palms are damp with sweat. Hello? Amber, hey, are you there? I can barely hear you. The line is full of static, but she hears him say he's catching a plane out of Normandy and will be in Paris for New Year's. She knows this isn't true. I miss you, he says. If you can hear me, bye. Scott is not in Europe. He makes that call from his own Modesto neighborhood. The moment Amber hangs up, she calls Buehler. Her hands are shaking so badly, she drops the phone. I spoke to him, she says, and I got it on tape. The next night is New Year's Eve. At East La Loma Park, Lacey's family is holding a candlelight vigil. They call Scott up to speak from the stage, and he declines, saying he'll watch from the crowd with his friends. As the candles burn around him, with people praying for his wife, Scott steps away and calls Amber. Over the next 7 weeks, Amber secretly records more than 140 calls with Scott. She does her best to keep him talking. So what do you want to be together with me? Then Scott returns home from Europe. On January 6th, Buehler brings Amber to Modesto and puts her in a motel under an alias. At the station, she joins Buehler, a criminal profiler on loan from the Department of Justice named Sharon Hagan, and Detective Craig Grogan. Lacey Peterson has been missing for 2 weeks. On the next call, they want Amber to coax some information out of Scott to push him to talk about his wife. Instead, he's got a bombshell for her. The conversation goes on for a while. Buehler, Hagan, and Grogan write questions for Amber to ask Scott. Did you have a gun? Did you shoot her? Where's her body? And they listen and silently cheer her on. I said that I lost my wife. Yes, you did. I did, and yes. How did you lose her then, before she was lost? There are different kinds of loss, Amber. Then explain your loss. I can't, you know. Eventually, the conversation fizzles and drops out. While they wait, Hagan, the profiler, tells Amber what she's hearing. He lies even when he doesn't have to lie. He's lying about little things. Every time he says the phrase, my God, he's lying. He's even lying about lying. Scott calls back, and the conversation goes in circles. When it finally ends, the officers commend Amber for her performance, but they are no closer to finding Lacey. Amber Fry starts reading everything. She pages through old issues of the Modesto Bee, the local newspaper. She visits the website set up for Lacey Peterson every day, sometimes multiple times a day, and reads the outpouring of support from around the country for Lacey and her family. And through that reading, she finds Lacey Peterson's due date. It's February 10th, Amber's birthday. At this point, Bueller is telling her she has done enough. Every time Scott calls, Amber feels herself coming unglued. Bueller talks her down, but he's becoming worried about her. He suggests stopping the recordings and the ruse. But we haven't found Lacey, she says. I want to keep trying. On January 16th, Amber Fry's private life evaporates. The National Enquirer publishes photos of her and Scott Peterson together. Having gotten word of the story about to break the day before, Modesto police break the news to Lacey's family, who had been supporting Scott up until this point. Eight days later, exactly one month after Lacey Peterson went missing, Amber's name is broadcast out on the radio, and reporters are at her door within the hour. Police decide her best move is to make a statement and ask the world to leave her alone. As Amber heads to the press conference, Scott calls again. She does not answer. She enters a room packed with reporters standing shoulder to shoulder and speaks into a bank of microphones. I met Scott Peterson November 20th, 2002. I was introduced to him. I was told he was unmarried. Scott told me he was not married. We did have a romantic relationship. When I discovered he was involved in the Lacey Peterson disappearance case, I immediately contacted the Modesto Police Department. I am very sorry for Lacey's family and the pain that this has caused them, and I pray for her safe return as well. Thank you. Lacey's family also addresses the press on January 24th. Lacey's brother, Brent Rocha, says Scott has admitted to the affair exposed by the National Enquirer and that the family is no longer supporting him. While Amber's statement is being broadcast, Lacey's mom, Sharon Rocha, calls the precinct, hoping to catch her. She thanks Amber for stepping forward and says she would like to meet her. The next day, a friend of Lacey's drives Amber Fry to Sharon's home. Sharon says she's hoping to fill in some gaps as far as what happened between Amber and Scott. She asks a few questions about dates and timing Meanwhile, Scott Peterson continues calling Amber. The day after her press conference, he calls to tell her how proud of her he is. Your strength.