The BEST episodes of The FBI Files season 1

Every episode of The FBI Files season 1, ranked from best to worst by thousands of votes from fans of the show. The best episodes of The FBI Files season 1!

Through re-enactments of high profile cases involving the FBI, the show reveals how agents solve these crimes behind the scene. The show producers work with FBI special agents and examiners in high tech crime labs to portrait each case accurately. You will learn how the FBI protects the lives of Americans and brings the most notorious criminals to justice. The FBI was originally established to address crime that covered cities, counties, and spread across state lines. The country needed a federal law-enforcement entity to do those investigations. And over the years, as the country has grown and as the world, by the same token, has grown smaller, the FBI's mission has changed to meet the various threats.

Last Updated: 11/6/2024Network: DiscoveryStatus: Ended
John Gotti: Convicted
star
7.58
24 votes

#1 - John Gotti: Convicted

Season 1 - Episode 12 - Aired 2/23/1999

By December 1985, John Gotti had assumed his place as the new Don of the Gambino crime family in New York with the assassination of his boss, Paul Castellano. When the FBI convinced Gotti's underboss, Salvatore Gravano , to testify against him, the jury came back with their verdict: guilty on all counts, including the murder of Castellano.

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The World Trade Center Bombing
star
7.56
25 votes

#2 - The World Trade Center Bombing

Season 1 - Episode 11 - Aired 2/9/1999

On February 26, 1993, an explosion rocked the World Trade Center parking garage. Six people died and more than a thousand were injured in the bomb blast which tore a 5-story crater in the building. Mohammed Salameh, Nidal Ayyad, Mahmud Abouhalima, Ahmad Ajaj, Ramzi Yousef and Eyad Ismoil were convicted and will spend the rest of their lives in prison.

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The Crazy Don
star
7.54
26 votes

#3 - The Crazy Don

Season 1 - Episode 6 - Aired 12/8/1998

The reputed boss of the Genovese crime family, Vince Gigante wandered the streets of New York wearing only pajamas and a bathrobe, but the FBI was convinced he was anything but crazy. The FBI helped convict Gigante of murder and murder conspiracy.

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The Unabomber
star
7.42
24 votes

#4 - The Unabomber

Season 1 - Episode 9 - Aired 1/26/1999

He was a recluse who spread terror through the mail for 18 years. Two men died and more than a dozen were injured , but Ted Kaczynski wasn't known as the Unabomber until his brother tipped off the FBI. Kaczynski's Manifesto, published in major newspapers, set off a flurry of activity for the FBI: writing analysis and comparisons, DNA gleaned from a single postage stamp and finally, Kaczynski's arrest at his tiny cabin. The agents collected enough evidence, including the Manifesto itself, to convict Kaczynski. He is serving four life sentences plus 30 years with no chance of parole.

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Death in Alaska
star
7.31
35 votes

#5 - Death in Alaska

Season 1 - Episode 4 - Aired 11/14/1998

A young mother and her two daughters were sexually assaulted and brutally murdered in Anchorage, Alaska. With only one piece of forensic evidence, a wash rag carrying pubic lice with which the killer used to clean himself, the FBI helped convicted the woman's nephew, Kirby Anthoney on all three counts of murders.

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Human Prey
star
7.24
41 votes

#6 - Human Prey

Season 1 - Episode 3 - Aired 11/10/1998

Thomas Dillon killed five outdoorsmen over a period of three years in rural Ohio. A mother's letter published in the newspaper addressing the murderer of her son prompted the killer to respond. Thomas Dillon was arrested and ultimately convicted.

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Polly Klaas: Kidnapped
star
7.23
48 votes

#7 - Polly Klaas: Kidnapped

Season 1 - Episode 1 - Aired 10/20/1998

Polly Klaas was kidnapped from her own slumber party and murdered, lasers helped the FBI identify and find the perpetrator. It took 200 FBI agents two months to find Richard Allen Davis, who was convicted and sentenced to death.

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Above the Law
star
7.19
52 votes

#8 - Above the Law

Season 1 - Episode 2 - Aired 11/3/1998

The body of 23 year old Robin Bishop was discovered near her car on a remote highway. After acquitted in two state trials, Gwaltney was convicted of the murder in the federal trial. The FBI was able to convince the third jury.

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Deadly Paradise
star
7.17
30 votes

#9 - Deadly Paradise

Season 1 - Episode 5 - Aired 12/1/1998

Two couples found themselves on the same deserted island paradise, but only one couple left alive. Buck Walker and Stephanie Sterns arrived in Hawaii on the Sea Wind, which belonged to the missing couple, Mac and Muff Graham. Years later, Buck Walker was convicted of murder.

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Killing Spree
star
7.08
25 votes

#10 - Killing Spree

Season 1 - Episode 7 - Aired 12/29/1998

No suspect had emerged after the rapes and murders of ten women near Tampa, Florida in 1984. When one of the killer's victims survived, the FBI was able to identify 31-year-old Bobby Joe Long as the suspect. Long was later convicted on eight of the murders and rape.

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Murdering Cowboy
star
7.05
22 votes

#11 - Murdering Cowboy

Season 1 - Episode 10 - Aired 2/2/1999

Claude Dallas lived the life of a cowboy -- a loner and distrustful of authority. When two game wardens confronted Dallas about his deeds, they were shot and killed. After a massive manhunt , Dallas was captured and convicted, but he escaped prison within months.

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The True Story of Mississippi Burning
star
7.04
25 votes

#12 - The True Story of Mississippi Burning

Season 1 - Episode 13 - Aired 2/23/1999

On June 21, 1964, three civil rights workers, who set out to educate southern blacks about receiving the right to vote, disappeared in Mississippi. The FBI gained the trust of an informant, whose information led to the conviction of seven local Ku Klux Klan members.

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Melissa Brannen: Missing
star
6.96
25 votes

#13 - Melissa Brannen: Missing

Season 1 - Episode 8 - Aired 1/19/1999

5-year-old Melissa Brannen disappeared from a Christmas party on Dec. 3, 1989, leaving behind a family wracked with anguish.

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