Hossein Nayeri meets future wife Cortney Shegerian, becomes a fugitive: Part 4: At 24, Nayeri met Shegerian, then 16, and began a relationship to the disapproval of her family, she said. Facing a criminal charge for a drunk driving crash that killed his friend, he fled to Iran. >>> WATCH THE FULL EPISODE OF 20/20

March 13, 2020, ABC News:  Hossein Nayeri appeared to have a knack for getting out of trouble — he's even facing charges for breaking out of jail.

But as Nayeri sat chained to the floor in a California jail cell charged with kidnapping, torture and aggravated mayhem against a medical marijuana dispensary owner and another woman — the man's roommate — it seemed like Nayeri's luck had finally run out.

"I'm just an average, ordinary person. Simple as that," Nayeri told "20/20." "I have many flaws. Wanting to hurt people is definitely not one of them."

Watch the full story on "20/20" Friday, March 13, at 9 p.m. ET on ABC

In an interview with ABC News five months before his July 2019 trial, Nayeri spoke about his history of running from the law, why he was innocent of the charges he was about to face in court and how he says he pulled off the jailbreak.

"[I want] to get my side of the story out," Nayeri said. "The true version of what happened."

Nayeri was about to stand trial on charges related to the October 2012 kidnapping of the dispensary owner, who asked to use only his first name, Michael, and Mary Barnes from their Newport Beach, California, home.

Police say Nayeri, a former U.S. Marine, along with two people whom he characterized as "business partners," tied the two victims up and drove them to the Mojave Desert where Nayeri and his associates believed the dispensary owner had buried $1 million in cash.

Michael was brutally beaten and burned with a blowtorch on their way to the desert. Once there, one of the perpetrators cut off Michael's penis. He was then doused with bleach in an effort to remove any DNA evidence, the prosecutor says. Then, authorities say the perpetrators drove away with Michael's penis, leaving him and Barnes in the desert.

"Cutting it off is one thing. Ensuring that it is never recovered to be reattached is a level of depravity and cruelty that…this man should never get out of prison," said Matt Murphy, the former senior deputy district attorney for Orange County who prosecuted Nayeri's case and who is now an ABC News consultant.

The kidnappers left behind the knife, which Mary Barnes used to cut the zip ties around her feet. Then, she walked barefoot through the desert to reach a road, where a police officer saw her while driving by. The pair was rescued and the victim underwent surgery for repair of the penile amputation.

Nayeri admitted that he carried out video surveillance of Michael for months before the kidnapping, but denies taking part in the kidnapping, torture and mutilation.

"Obviously, there was some involvement that I did have," Nayeri told ABC News. "I just had no clue that it was going to turn into [the] mess that it did."

Nayeri became linked to the kidnapping after police found a glove with his DNA in it inside of a truck belonging to his business partner, Kyle Handley, who had been arrested in connection to the kidnapping, torture and mutilation, according to Newport Beach Police Sgt. Ryan Peters >>>