Forensic Files (1996–…): Season 5, Episode 19 - Deadly Knowledge - full transcript
Narrator: AT THE START
OF THE FALL SEMESTER IN 1995,
A 23-YEAR-OLD COLLEGE COED,
TINA BIGGAR,
WAS REPORTED MISSING.
SHE HAD BEEN WORKING
ON A RESEARCH PROJECT
STUDYING THE HEALTH RISKS
OF HIGH-PRICED
CALL GIRLS IN DETROIT.
BUT SHE SOON DISCOVERED
THAT PROSTITUTES FACE
MORE THAN HEALTH RISKS
IN THEIR JOB.
THEY FACE THE POSSIBILITY
OF VIOLENCE.
Narrator: TINA BIGGAR WAS
A 23-YEAR-OLD PSYCHOLOGY MAJOR
ABOUT TO ENTER HER SENIOR YEAR
AT OAKLAND UNIVERSITY
OUTSIDE OF DETROIT.
SHE WAS RAISED
IN A MILITARY FAMILY,
AND FRIENDS KNEW HER
AS VIVACIOUS AND HARD-WORKING.
Woman: TINA BIGGAR WAS
THE ALL-AMERICAN GIRL.
SHE CAME FROM
A COAST GUARD FAMILY.
HER FATHER WAS
A COAST GUARD COMMANDER.
HER MOTHER WAS
A REGISTERED NURSE.
THE PEOPLE WHO KNEW TINA
AND WHO WERE CLOSEST TO HER
KNEW HER AS A VERY FUN-LOVING,
DEDICATED STUDENT,
WELL-LIKED BY ALL HER PEERS
AND COLLEAGUES,
AND VERY MUCH BELOVED
BY HER FAMILY.
A GREAT BIG SISTER,
A GREAT DAUGHTER.
Narrator: TINA WORKED
HER WAY THROUGH SCHOOL
AS A WAITRESS
AT THE ROCHESTER CHOP HOUSE,
AND LIVED WITH HER BOYFRIEND,
TODD NURNBERGER,
IN AN UPSCALE APARTMENT COMPLEX
NOT FAR FROM SCHOOL.
TODD NURNBERGER WAS A STUDENT
AT THE UNIVERSITY OF MICHIGAN.
THE TWO HAD AN ON AGAIN,
OFF AGAIN RELATIONSHIP,
AND FRIENDS WEREN'T SURE
WHETHER IT WOULD WORK OUT.
Weinstein: TINA ALSO HAD
ANOTHER SIDE TO HER.
SHE COULD BE DISTRUSTFUL,
SHE COULD BE VENGEFUL.
SHE HAD A TEMPER
AT TIMES, TOO.
THIS WAS A TINA THAT NOT A LOT
OF PEOPLE WHO KNEW HER SAW.
Narrator: TINA WAS CONDUCTING
A RESEARCH PROJECT FOR SCHOOL
ENTITLED, "A SURVEY OF SEXUAL
HISTORY AND HEALTH PRACTICES
AMONG WOMEN
EMPLOYED AS ESCORTS."
SHE WANTED TO FIND OUT
IF HIGH-PRICED CALL GIRLS
AND STREET PROSTITUTES
HAD THE SAME KNOWLEDGE OF
SEXUALLY TRANSMITTED DISEASES.
Weinstein: SHE DECIDED THAT
SHE WANTED TO DO HER OWN STUDY.
SHE THOUGHT IT WOULD HELP HER
GET INTO A GOOD GRADUATE SCHOOL,
AND SHE DECIDED TO STUDY
HIGH-CLASS CALL GIRLS AND
THEIR AWARENESS OF AIDS,
AND THEN SHE WAS GOING
TO COMPARE THE TWO.
Narrator: ON AUGUST 23, 1995,
TODD LEFT FOR WORK.
HE SAID TINA WAS STILL ASLEEP
WHEN HE LEFT.
WHEN HE RETURNED HOME
THAT NIGHT, SHE WAS GONE.
TODD IMMEDIATELY PHONED POLICE.
Man: USUALLY,
MISSING PERSONS--
THE CASE IS WRAPPED UP
WITHIN A COUPLE DAYS,
MAYBE EVEN A COUPLE OF HOURS.
USUALLY, PHONE CALLS
COULD BE MADE
TO DETERMINE WHERE THE PERSON IS
OR WHERE THEY'VE BEEN.
Narrator: BUT FROM THE START,
THIS CASE WAS DIFFERENT.
TINA'S CAR WAS GONE.
NONE OF HER PERSONAL BELONGINGS
WERE MISSING FROM THE APARTMENT.
NONE OF TINA'S FRIENDS HAD SEEN
OR HEARD FROM HER,
AND POLICE ALSO DISCOVERED
THAT TINA WAS PLANNING
TO MOVE INTO HER OWN APARTMENT
WITHOUT TODD.
Shankin: THE FACT THAT...
TINA WAS LOOKING TO MOVE
TO ANOTHER APARTMENT,
WAS ACTUALLY IN THE PROCESS
OF LOOKING TO GET INTO
ANOTHER APARTMENT,
LED ME TO THINK THAT
THERE WAS SOMETHING WRONG,
THAT MAYBE I NEEDED TO TALK
TO TODD A LITTLE BIT FURTHER
ABOUT WHAT WAS HAPPENING
IN THEIR LIVES...
MAYBE THAT THERE WAS
SOMETHING I WAS MISSING.
Narrator: POLICE LEARNED
THAT TINA FOUND EVIDENCE
THAT TODD WAS
SEEING ANOTHER WOMAN.
AND IN AN UNEXPECTED TWIST,
POLICE DISCOVERED THAT TINA WAS
HIDING SOME SECRETS OF HER OWN.
Narrator: 23-YEAR-OLD
PSYCHOLOGY STUDENT TINA BIGGAR
WAS A HARD-WORKING
HONORS STUDENT
WHO FRIENDS SAY HAD
A PROMISING CAREER AHEAD OF HER.
SHE DISAPPEARED WITHOUT A TRACE
SHORTLY BEFORE THE FALL SEMESTER
AT OAKLAND UNIVERSITY
OUTSIDE OF DETROIT.
WHEN HER BOYFRIEND,
TODD NURNBERGER,
CALLED POLICE
TO REPORT HER MISSING,
POLICE WERE
NATURALLY SUSPICIOUS.
THE TWO HAD AN ON AGAIN,
OFF AGAIN RELATIONSHIP.
A FEW MONTHS EARLIER,
TINA FOUND A SUGGESTIVE
GREETING CARD TO TODD
FROM ANOTHER WOMAN,
AND REALIZED THAT TODD
HAD BEEN UNFAITHFUL.
PEOPLE HAD SEEN THEM
FIGHT SOMETIMES.
HE WAS VERY DEVOTED,
BUT SOMETIMES THEY HAD
A VERY COMBUSTIBLE RELATIONSHIP.
HE SPENT MORE TIME WITH HER
THAN ANYONE ELSE.
HE PROBABLY KNEW HER BETTER
THAN ANYONE ELSE.
HE WOULD SEEM LIKE
A NATURAL SUSPECT.
Narrator:
DESPITE THEIR DIFFERENCES,
TODD NURNBERGER
DENIED ANY INVOLVEMENT
IN TINA'S DISAPPEARANCE.
TINA WORKED AS A WAITRESS
AT THE ROCHESTER CHOP HOUSE.
DID TINA BIGGAR
SHOW UP FOR WORK
LAST NIGHT?
Narrator: WHEN TODD CALLED TO
SEE IF SHE HAD REPORTED TO WORK,
HE WAS TOLD THAT TINA HAD
QUIT HER JOB...4 MONTHS EARLIER.
OK. THANK YOU.
Narrator: TINA SAID
NOTHING ABOUT QUITTING
HER WAITRESSING JOB,
AND HAD CONTINUED TO LAUNDER
HER WAITRESSING OUTFITS
AS IF NOTHING HAD CHANGED.
TODD SEARCHED THEIR APARTMENT,
LOOKING FOR SOME CLUE AS
TO WHERE TINA MIGHT HAVE GONE.
TODD FOUND A DUFFEL BAG
HE HAD NEVER SEEN BEFORE.
INSIDE WERE CONDOMS,
THIGH-HIGH STOCKINGS,
LINGERIE, SEXUAL LUBRICANTS,
CREDIT CARD SLIPS,
AND ENVELOPES ADDRESSED
TO THE L.A. ESCORT SERVICE
WITH THE NAME "CRYSTAL"
IN THE UPPER LEFT-HAND CORNER.
HELLO?
DO YOU HAVE A GIRL
THAT WORKS FOR YOU
NAMED TINA BIGGAR?
Narrator: THE OWNERS OF
THE L.A. ESCORT SERVICE
SAID THEY DIDN'T KNOW ANYONE
BY THE NAME OF TINA BIGGAR.
BUT THEY SAID THAT
"CRYSTAL" WAS THE NAME
OF ONE OF THEIR
MORE POPULAR ESCORTS.
ESCORT SERVICES OPERATE
IN MOST LARGE CITIES,
AND OFFER FEMALE
COMPANIONSHIP TO MEN
IN RETURN FOR FEES RANGING
FROM $150 TO $300 PER HOUR.
AMONG THE SERVICES PROVIDED
IS USUALLY SEX.
TODD NOW BEGAN TO SUSPECT
THAT TINA HAD BEEN LIVING
A SECRET LIFE...
AS A HIGH-PRICED CALL GIRL.
Weinstein: SHE DECIDED
SHE WAS GOING TO DO A STUDY
OF HIGH-CLASS CALL GIRLS
AND THEIR AWARENESS OF AIDS,
AND SHE BEGAN
CONTACTING SERVICES,
ASKING IF
SHE COULD TALK TO GIRLS.
SHE STARTED DOING THAT,
AND I THINK IN THE PROCESS,
BECAME SORT OF ENAMORED
WITH WHAT THEY WERE DOING.
I THINK, IN PART,
IT WAS THE MONEY.
SHE WAS BROKE.
SHE HAD MAXED OUT
HER CREDIT CARDS.
SHE NEEDED A NEW CAR.
SHE HAD TO PAY FOR SCHOOL.
THE MONEY THEY MAKE IS
A LOT MORE THAN YOU MAKE
WORKING AT A STEAKHOUSE.
AT ONE POINT, SHE WAS MAKING
$250 FOR AN APPOINTMENT.
MAYBE WOMEN HAVE A LITTLE
FANTASY ABOUT THEMSELVES.
MAYBE ALL WOMEN DO,
AND MAYBE SHE LIVED IT OUT.
I THINK SHE HAD
A FANTASY ABOUT HERSELF.
I THINK SHE WANTED
MORE ATTENTION
IN KIND OF A DISTANT WAY.
AND BEING A CALL GIRL,
SHE WAS GETTING IT,
BECAUSE THAT'S THE KIND
OF ATTENTION YOU GET.
MAYBE IT GAVE HER POWER.
[KNOCK ON DOOR]
HI. I'M CRYSTAL.
Narrator:
AFTER INITIALLY DENYING IT,
THE ESCORT SERVICE
EVENTUALLY ADMITTED
WHAT TODD ALREADY SUSPECTED--
THAT TINA BIGGAR
WORKED AS AN ESCORT
WITH THE PROFESSIONAL NAME
OF "CRYSTAL."
THEY ALSO REVEALED THAT
TINA WORKED FOR 2 OTHER
ESCORT SERVICES,
AND HAD DOZENS OF CLIENTS.
THAT ALSO MEANT DOZENS
OF POSSIBLE SUSPECTS.
Narrator: THE INVESTIGATION
INTO TINA BIGGAR'S DISAPPEARANCE
REVEALED A DARK SECRET.
FOR THE PAST YEAR,
TINA HAD BEEN WORKING AS
A HIGH-PRICED CALL GIRL.
IT WAS PROBABLY
VERY IMPORTANT FOR TINA
TO KEEP THIS INFORMATION, OR
WHAT WAS GOING ON IN HER LIFE,
AWAY FROM HER BOYFRIEND,
'CAUSE SHE WAS LIVING WITH HIM.
HE KNEW SO MUCH ABOUT HER,
BUT AT THE SAME TIME,
IF HE HAD DETERMINED
THAT SHE WAS INVOLVED
WITH AN ESCORT SERVICE--
ACTUALLY WORKING FOR ONE--
I WOULD SAY THAT WOULD
HAVE CAUSED A GREAT DEAL
OF HAVOC IN HIS LIFE
AND THEIR LIVES TOGETHER.
HE NATURALLY WAS DESPONDENT.
AT ONE POINT,
HE EVEN CONSIDERED
KILLING HIMSELF WITH
A GUN THAT HE HAD.
BUT HE CALLED SOME FRIENDS,
THEY TALKED HIM OUT OF IT,
AND HE DECIDED, BASICALLY,
THAT HE WAS GOING TO DO
WHATEVER NEEDED TO BE DONE,
THAT HE OWED IT TO TINA
TO GET TO THE BOTTOM OF
WHAT HAD HAPPENED TO HER.
Narrator: RECORDS
FROM THE ESCORT SERVICE
REVEALED NUMEROUS REQUESTS
FOR TINA'S SERVICES
FROM A MAN
NAMED KEN TRANCHIDA.
THEIR FIRST MEETING TOOK PLACE
AT THE BLUE BIRD MOTEL
JUST 12 DAYS BEFORE
TINA'S DISAPPEARANCE.
AMONG TINA'S PERSONAL ITEMS
FOUND IN HER APARTMENT
WAS A LOVE LETTER FROM KEN.
Man: "DEAR TINA, MY HEART
IS YOURS FOR YOU TO KEEP.
"YOUR LOVE WILL LIFT ME
OFF MY FEET.
"YOU CAME TO ME,
YOUR LOVE SO WILLING.
"I KNOW IT'S WORTH
ALL OUR WAITING.
LOVE, KEN."
Narrator: WHEN POLICE ENTERED
KEN TRANCHIDA'S APARTMENT,
THEY NOTICED
THE NAME "CRYSTAL"
ON SOME ARTWORK ATTACHED
TO HIS REFRIGERATOR.
A LOCAL CAR DEALER SAID
TINA WAS WITH KEN TRANCHIDA,
LOOKING AT
NEW CARS TOGETHER...
YOU LIKE IT?
YEAH.
WELL, IF YOU WANT IT,
IT'S YOURS.
Narrator: AND KEN HAD OFFERED
TO LOAN HER MONEY FOR THE CAR.
I LOVE IT!
IT'S BEAUTIFUL.
Narrator: KEN TRANCHIDA
WAS A 42-YEAR-OLD EX-CONVICT
WITH A HISTORY OF
PASSING BAD CHECKS,
FORGERY, FRAUD,
EMBEZZLEMENT, AND THEFT.
HE WAS NOT
THE WEALTHY BUSINESSMAN
HE PORTRAYED TO TINA.
Man: SORT OF A DRIFTER,
A LONER...
HE WAS A PETTY THIEF
AND A PETTY CON MAN...
TYPE OF A PERSON.
HE HELD DOWN SOME MENIAL JOBS,
BUT NOT FOR VERY LONG.
I THOUGHT HE WAS JUST, LIKE,
KIND OF A LITTLE WEASEL, REALLY.
I DON'T KNOW HOW ELSE
YOU WOULD DESCRIBE HIM.
HE HAD KIND OF
A LITTLE VOICE,
AND HE WAS SORT OF
PATHETIC, REALLY.
HE JUST WAS A GUY
WHO PROBABLY...
THOUGHT TINA WAS GONNA BE
HIS GIRLFRIEND OR SOMETHING.
Narrator: TRANCHIDA ADMITTED
MEETING TINA BIGGAR,
WHOM HE FIRST KNEW AS "CRYSTAL,"
THROUGH THE ESCORT SERVICE.
HE SAID THEY LATER MET
WITHOUT THE AGENCY KNOWING,
AND THAT TINA STOPPED CHARGING
HIM FOR THEIR SEXUAL LIAISONS
SINCE THE TWO
HAD BECOME FRIENDS.
HE TOLD POLICE THAT
HE HAD DRIVEN TINA
TO THE AIRPORT
JUST ONE WEEK EARLIER
FOR A FLIGHT TO OHIO,
WHERE SHE WAS GOING
TO SERVICE A CLIENT.
A CHECK OF FLIGHT LOGS
SHOWED NO RECORD OF TINA BIGGAR
ON ANY FLIGHT TO OHIO.
KEN SAID TINA LEFT HER CAR
WITH HIM FOR SAFEKEEPING
WHILE SHE WAS AWAY.
WHEN POLICE ASKED
TO INSPECT THE CAR,
TRANCHIDA WILLINGLY OBLIGED.
INSIDE, POLICE FOUND
NAMES AND ADDRESSES
OF MORE ESCORT SERVICE CLIENTS,
ALONG WITH DIRECTIONS
TO THEIR HOMES.
Shankin: WE HAD LEARNED,
THROUGH PAPERWORK
FOUND IN HER CAR
AND THROUGH THE ESCORT SERVICE,
THAT SHE ACTUALLY HAD CONTACT
WITH PEOPLE THAT WERE LIVING
OUT OF THE COUNTRY.
THEY WERE LIVING OUT OF STATE,
SO IT WAS POSSIBLE THAT
SHE COULD HAVE JUST TAKEN OFF,
GONE SOMEPLACE.
Narrator: ALTHOUGH THE TRUNK WAS
FILLED WITH DEBRIS,
A PRELIMINARY SEARCH
FOUND NO EVIDENCE OF FOUL PLAY.
RESEARCH SHOWS
THAT MOST FIRST-TIME KILLERS
DISPOSE OF
THEIR VICTIMS' BODIES
IN LOCATIONS
THE KILLER IS FAMILIAR WITH,
SO POLICE USED CADAVER DOGS
TO SEARCH AREAS NEAR
TRANCHIDA'S HOME.
MICHIGAN STATE TROOPER
RICHARD HETU
WORKS WITH KAI,
A VETERAN CADAVER DOG
TRAINED SPECIFICALLY
TO FIND HUMAN BODIES.
TO TRAIN THE DOGS,
THE TROOPERS HIDE A SMALL SAMPLE
OF HUMAN TISSUE OR FLUID
IN THEIR WOODED TRAINING AREA.
Hetu: THE DOG ISN'T REWARDED
FOR FINDING ANIMAL REMAINS,
BUT THEY'RE REWARDED FOR
FINDING HUMAN REMAINS.
SO THEY'RE GOING TO DIG A LOT
HARDER AND LOOK A LOT HARDER,
'CAUSE THEY'RE WORKING
FOR THAT REWARD.
Narrator: TROOPER HETU AND KAI
SEARCHED WOODED AREAS
AROUND KEN TRANCHIDA'S
RENTED HOME,
AS WELL AS THE GROUNDS
OF A NEARBY MONASTERY
WHERE TRANCHIDA OFTEN WALKED.
ALTHOUGH THEY SEARCHED
HUNDREDS OF WOODED ACRES,
THEY FOUND NOTHING.
WITH NO EVIDENCE
TO HOLD KEN TRANCHIDA,
HE WAS RELEASED
FROM POLICE CUSTODY.
IT WAS A MISTAKE
POLICE WOULD SOON REGRET.
Narrator: AFTER POLICE
QUESTIONED KEN TRANCHIDA
ABOUT THE DISAPPEARANCE
OF TINA BIGGAR,
HE WAS RELEASED BECAUSE
OF A LACK OF EVIDENCE,
EVEN THOUGH THEY SUSPECTED
HE KNEW MORE ABOUT
HER WHEREABOUTS
THAN HE HAD TOLD THEM.
IT WAS CLEAR THAT
KEN'S RELATIONSHIP WITH TINA
WAS MORE THAN JUST BUSINESS,
SINCE A LOVE LETTER FROM KEN
WAS FOUND IN TINA'S BELONGINGS,
AND KEN HAD PROMISED TO LOAN
TINA THE MONEY FOR A NEW CAR.
IF YOU WANT IT,
IT'S YOURS.
REALLY?
Shankin: WAS HE GOING
TO HELP HER GET A CAR?
HE MADE PROMISES.
HE WAS PROBABLY
TELLING HER THINGS
TO MAYBE MAKE HER
HANG ONTO HIM.
MAYBE SHE WAS MAKING HIM THINK
THAT THEY WERE FRIENDS,
JUST TO KIND OF GET SOME OF
THESE THINGS TAKEN CARE OF.
Narrator:
WITH NO OTHER LEADS,
POLICE DECIDED TO TAKE
A SECOND LOOK INSIDE TINA'S CAR.
TO THEIR EMBARRASSMENT,
WHAT THEY FIRST THOUGHT
WERE COFFEE STAINS
ON THE SIDE OF A CUB
NOW APPEARED TO BE BLOOD.
AND WHEN THEY PEELED BACK
THE TRUNK CARPET,
THEY FOUND A POOL OF BLOOD
ON THE RIGHT-HAND SIDE.
DNA TESTS REVEALED THE BLOOD
BELONGED TO TINA BIGGAR.
Pendergast: THE INVESTIGATION
WAS ALREADY BEING LOOKED AT
AS A HOMICIDE,
MORE SO THAN PERHAPS
ANOTHER CASE MIGHT HAVE BEEN,
BUT ONCE THEY FOUND THAT BLOOD,
THERE WAS REALLY NO QUESTION.
Narrator: THE AMOUNT
OF BLOOD IN THE TRUNK
POINTED TO MURDER,
AND SINCE THE CAR HAD BEEN
IN KEN TRANCHIDA'S POSSESSION
SINCE TINA'S DISAPPEARANCE,
HE WAS THE PRIME SUSPECT.
BUT BY THIS TIME,
KEN TRANCHIDA HAD VANISHED.
POLICE FINALLY GOT
A BREAK IN THE CASE
ONE MONTH AFTER
TINA BIGGAR DISAPPEARED.
KEN TRANCHIDA'S BROTHER
SUGGESTED THAT POLICE SEARCH
A DESERTED HOME
ONCE OWNED BY HIS AUNT.
THE HOME WAS JUST 10 MILES
FROM TINA BIGGAR'S APARTMENT.
IN THE WOODS
IN THE BACKYARD...
POLICE FOUND
THE BADLY DECOMPOSED
BODY OF A YOUNG WOMAN.
SINCE THERE WERE NO POOLS
OF BLOOD NEAR THE BODY,
THIS TOLD FORENSIC SCIENTISTS
THAT THE MURDER HAD TAKEN PLACE
SOMEWHERE ELSE.
AN ANALYSIS OF DENTAL RECORDS
LATER REVEALED
THE BODY WAS THAT
OF TINA BIGGAR.
SINCE THE DECOMPOSITION
STARTED IN THE NECK AREA,
THE CORONER SUSPECTED
TINA HAD BEEN STRANGLED,
SINCE DECOMPOSITION
BEGINS IN THE AREAS
WHERE THERE IS BLEEDING
AT THE TIME OF DEATH.
Man: IT WAS AN UNNATURAL
CAUSE OF DEATH.
THERE WAS NO FRACTURE
ANYWHERE IN THE HEAD AREA,
SO THE NECK HAS TO BE THE PLACE
WHERE THE EVENT HAPPENED,
AND WE CALLED IT
A "NECK TRAUMA."
I COULD NOT IDENTIFY
SPECIFICALLY IF HER NECK
WAS SLASHED,
SHE WAS STRANGLED,
SHE WAS SMOTHERED...
I CANNOT SAY THAT,
BUT IT HAS TO BE A NECK INJURY,
AND THAT WAS THE CONCLUSION.
Narrator:
A NATIONWIDE MANHUNT
FOR KEN TRANCHIDA
WAS NOW UNDERWAY.
TRANCHIDA WAS EVENTUALLY SPOTTED
IN A RUN-DOWN NEIGHBORHOOD
IN DOWNTOWN DETROIT.
POLICE CLOSED IN.
KEN MADE A WEAK ATTEMPT
AT SLITTING HIS WRISTS
IN THE BATHROOM
BEFORE GIVING HIMSELF UP.
AFTER SEVERAL HOURS
OF POLICE INTERROGATION,
KEN TRANCHIDA
FINALLY ADMITTED
THAT HE AND TINA HAD
AN ARGUMENT OVER MONEY.
YOU DON'T HAVE
THE MONEY TO
LOAN ME, DO YOU?
OF COURSE
I HAVE THE MONEY.
I DON'T BELIEVE YOU.
THE MONEY IS COMING.
Narrator: THEY HAD STRUGGLED,
AND TINA FELL,
HITTING HER HEAD...AND DYING.
BUT X-RAYS OF TINA'S SKULL
CONTRADICTED THAT SCENARIO.
Virani: SHE DID NOT HAVE
ANY SKULL FRACTURE, ANYWAY.
IF SHE BLED
INSIDE OF THE SKULL,
I WOULD HAVE SEEN SOME
BLOODSTAINING INSIDE OF THE
SKULL, WHICH WAS NOT PRESENT.
Narrator: ALTHOUGH TINA
MAY HAVE SUFFERED A HEAD WOUND,
AS EVIDENCED BY THE BLOOD
FOUND IN TINA'S TRUNK,
THE WOUND WAS
PROBABLY NOT FATAL.
WHEN TRANCHIDA WAS CONFRONTED
WITH THIS INFORMATION,
HIS STATEMENT SHOCKED POLICE.
Pendergast: WHAT HE SAID WAS,
"TINA WAS JUST SO MISERABLE
IN THOSE LAST DAYS
"THAT I MADE A SUDDEN DECISION
TO END IT FOR HER
AND PUT HER
OUT OF HER MISERY."
THE MINUTE THE POLICE
HEARD THAT STATEMENT,
THEY THOUGHT, "HOLY JESUS."
I'VE PLED GUILTY,
YOUR HONOR,
YOU KNOW?
Narrator: KEN TRANCHIDA
ACCEPTED A PLEA BARGAIN
AND PLED GUILTY
TO SECOND-DEGREE MURDER.
TINA'S FAMILY, RELUCTANT TO HAVE
TINA'S DOUBLE LIFE MADE PUBLIC,
AGREED TO THE DEAL.
YOU PROMISED!
Narrator: PROSECUTORS BELIEVE
WHEN TINA DISCOVERED
KEN HAD LIED TO HER ABOUT HAVING
THE MONEY TO BUY THE NEW CAR,
THE TWO FOUGHT,
TINA STRUCK HER HEAD,
AND WAS LATER STRANGLED
OR SMOTHERED TO DEATH.
KEN PLACED TINA'S BODY
IN THE TRUNK OF HER CAR,
THEN DUMPED THE BODY IN
THE WOODS NEAR HIS AUNT'S HOME.
IT WAS A TRAGIC END
TO AN UNFORTUNATE STORY.
KEN TRANCHIDA WAS SENTENCED
TO LIFE IN PRISON.
IRONICALLY, WHILE TINA
WAS LIVING A LIFE OF DECEPTION,
SHE, TOO, WAS DECEIVED
BY KEN TRANCHIDA,
A CON MAN OFFERING
THE PROMISE OF A BIG LOAN.
Pendergast:
IF TINA WAS BROUGHT
INTO THIS DOUBLE LIFE
UNDER SOME KIND OF ILLUSION
THAT IT WAS GOING TO BE LIKE
A SCENE FROM PRETTY WOMAN,
AND RICHARD GERE WAS GOING
TO COME RESCUE HER,
AND, YOU KNOW,
BRING HER WONDERFUL GIFTS,
AND SHE WAS GOING TO FALL
INTO THIS OPULENT LIFESTYLE,
THAT THAT'S NOT THE REALITY
OF THE CALL GIRL WORLD.
YOU CAN MEET UP WITH
SOME VERY DESPERATE CHARACTERS
AND SOME VERY BIZARRE
CHARACTERS.
IN THIS CASE, UNFORTUNATELY,
THE PERSON THAT SHE MET UP WITH
WAS NOT RICHARD GERE.
IT WAS KEN.
AND WHERE TINA ENDED UP,
LYING IN THAT FIELD,
IS MORE THE REALITY
THAN THE MOVIE, I THINK.
SHE CHOSE TO CROSS THE LINE,
AND...SHE PAID
THE ULTIMATE PRICE,
WHICH IS WHAT ALL OF US,
AS PARENTS, GUARD AGAINST
AND FEAR THE MOST, I THINK,
FOR OUR CHILDREN.
AND I BELIEVE BY TELLING
TINA BIGGAR'S STORY
THAT WE SENT A MESSAGE
TO OTHER GIRLS
WHO MIGHT BE IN THE BUSINESS,
TO OTHER YOUNG WOMEN
WHO MIGHT BE THINKING OF
GOING INTO THE BUSINESS,
TO YOUNG WOMEN WHO MIGHT
THINK THEY CAN TEASE
OR PLAY A LITTLE BIT
WITH A WORLD THAT
THEY DON'T BELONG IN.
I THINK THAT SENDS A MESSAGE
THAT YOU'RE ASKING FOR TROUBLE,
THAT YOU CAN END UP
IN A SITUATION THAT
YOU CAN'T HANDLE,
THAT YOU CAN END UP DEAD.
OF THE FALL SEMESTER IN 1995,
A 23-YEAR-OLD COLLEGE COED,
TINA BIGGAR,
WAS REPORTED MISSING.
SHE HAD BEEN WORKING
ON A RESEARCH PROJECT
STUDYING THE HEALTH RISKS
OF HIGH-PRICED
CALL GIRLS IN DETROIT.
BUT SHE SOON DISCOVERED
THAT PROSTITUTES FACE
MORE THAN HEALTH RISKS
IN THEIR JOB.
THEY FACE THE POSSIBILITY
OF VIOLENCE.
Narrator: TINA BIGGAR WAS
A 23-YEAR-OLD PSYCHOLOGY MAJOR
ABOUT TO ENTER HER SENIOR YEAR
AT OAKLAND UNIVERSITY
OUTSIDE OF DETROIT.
SHE WAS RAISED
IN A MILITARY FAMILY,
AND FRIENDS KNEW HER
AS VIVACIOUS AND HARD-WORKING.
Woman: TINA BIGGAR WAS
THE ALL-AMERICAN GIRL.
SHE CAME FROM
A COAST GUARD FAMILY.
HER FATHER WAS
A COAST GUARD COMMANDER.
HER MOTHER WAS
A REGISTERED NURSE.
THE PEOPLE WHO KNEW TINA
AND WHO WERE CLOSEST TO HER
KNEW HER AS A VERY FUN-LOVING,
DEDICATED STUDENT,
WELL-LIKED BY ALL HER PEERS
AND COLLEAGUES,
AND VERY MUCH BELOVED
BY HER FAMILY.
A GREAT BIG SISTER,
A GREAT DAUGHTER.
Narrator: TINA WORKED
HER WAY THROUGH SCHOOL
AS A WAITRESS
AT THE ROCHESTER CHOP HOUSE,
AND LIVED WITH HER BOYFRIEND,
TODD NURNBERGER,
IN AN UPSCALE APARTMENT COMPLEX
NOT FAR FROM SCHOOL.
TODD NURNBERGER WAS A STUDENT
AT THE UNIVERSITY OF MICHIGAN.
THE TWO HAD AN ON AGAIN,
OFF AGAIN RELATIONSHIP,
AND FRIENDS WEREN'T SURE
WHETHER IT WOULD WORK OUT.
Weinstein: TINA ALSO HAD
ANOTHER SIDE TO HER.
SHE COULD BE DISTRUSTFUL,
SHE COULD BE VENGEFUL.
SHE HAD A TEMPER
AT TIMES, TOO.
THIS WAS A TINA THAT NOT A LOT
OF PEOPLE WHO KNEW HER SAW.
Narrator: TINA WAS CONDUCTING
A RESEARCH PROJECT FOR SCHOOL
ENTITLED, "A SURVEY OF SEXUAL
HISTORY AND HEALTH PRACTICES
AMONG WOMEN
EMPLOYED AS ESCORTS."
SHE WANTED TO FIND OUT
IF HIGH-PRICED CALL GIRLS
AND STREET PROSTITUTES
HAD THE SAME KNOWLEDGE OF
SEXUALLY TRANSMITTED DISEASES.
Weinstein: SHE DECIDED THAT
SHE WANTED TO DO HER OWN STUDY.
SHE THOUGHT IT WOULD HELP HER
GET INTO A GOOD GRADUATE SCHOOL,
AND SHE DECIDED TO STUDY
HIGH-CLASS CALL GIRLS AND
THEIR AWARENESS OF AIDS,
AND THEN SHE WAS GOING
TO COMPARE THE TWO.
Narrator: ON AUGUST 23, 1995,
TODD LEFT FOR WORK.
HE SAID TINA WAS STILL ASLEEP
WHEN HE LEFT.
WHEN HE RETURNED HOME
THAT NIGHT, SHE WAS GONE.
TODD IMMEDIATELY PHONED POLICE.
Man: USUALLY,
MISSING PERSONS--
THE CASE IS WRAPPED UP
WITHIN A COUPLE DAYS,
MAYBE EVEN A COUPLE OF HOURS.
USUALLY, PHONE CALLS
COULD BE MADE
TO DETERMINE WHERE THE PERSON IS
OR WHERE THEY'VE BEEN.
Narrator: BUT FROM THE START,
THIS CASE WAS DIFFERENT.
TINA'S CAR WAS GONE.
NONE OF HER PERSONAL BELONGINGS
WERE MISSING FROM THE APARTMENT.
NONE OF TINA'S FRIENDS HAD SEEN
OR HEARD FROM HER,
AND POLICE ALSO DISCOVERED
THAT TINA WAS PLANNING
TO MOVE INTO HER OWN APARTMENT
WITHOUT TODD.
Shankin: THE FACT THAT...
TINA WAS LOOKING TO MOVE
TO ANOTHER APARTMENT,
WAS ACTUALLY IN THE PROCESS
OF LOOKING TO GET INTO
ANOTHER APARTMENT,
LED ME TO THINK THAT
THERE WAS SOMETHING WRONG,
THAT MAYBE I NEEDED TO TALK
TO TODD A LITTLE BIT FURTHER
ABOUT WHAT WAS HAPPENING
IN THEIR LIVES...
MAYBE THAT THERE WAS
SOMETHING I WAS MISSING.
Narrator: POLICE LEARNED
THAT TINA FOUND EVIDENCE
THAT TODD WAS
SEEING ANOTHER WOMAN.
AND IN AN UNEXPECTED TWIST,
POLICE DISCOVERED THAT TINA WAS
HIDING SOME SECRETS OF HER OWN.
Narrator: 23-YEAR-OLD
PSYCHOLOGY STUDENT TINA BIGGAR
WAS A HARD-WORKING
HONORS STUDENT
WHO FRIENDS SAY HAD
A PROMISING CAREER AHEAD OF HER.
SHE DISAPPEARED WITHOUT A TRACE
SHORTLY BEFORE THE FALL SEMESTER
AT OAKLAND UNIVERSITY
OUTSIDE OF DETROIT.
WHEN HER BOYFRIEND,
TODD NURNBERGER,
CALLED POLICE
TO REPORT HER MISSING,
POLICE WERE
NATURALLY SUSPICIOUS.
THE TWO HAD AN ON AGAIN,
OFF AGAIN RELATIONSHIP.
A FEW MONTHS EARLIER,
TINA FOUND A SUGGESTIVE
GREETING CARD TO TODD
FROM ANOTHER WOMAN,
AND REALIZED THAT TODD
HAD BEEN UNFAITHFUL.
PEOPLE HAD SEEN THEM
FIGHT SOMETIMES.
HE WAS VERY DEVOTED,
BUT SOMETIMES THEY HAD
A VERY COMBUSTIBLE RELATIONSHIP.
HE SPENT MORE TIME WITH HER
THAN ANYONE ELSE.
HE PROBABLY KNEW HER BETTER
THAN ANYONE ELSE.
HE WOULD SEEM LIKE
A NATURAL SUSPECT.
Narrator:
DESPITE THEIR DIFFERENCES,
TODD NURNBERGER
DENIED ANY INVOLVEMENT
IN TINA'S DISAPPEARANCE.
TINA WORKED AS A WAITRESS
AT THE ROCHESTER CHOP HOUSE.
DID TINA BIGGAR
SHOW UP FOR WORK
LAST NIGHT?
Narrator: WHEN TODD CALLED TO
SEE IF SHE HAD REPORTED TO WORK,
HE WAS TOLD THAT TINA HAD
QUIT HER JOB...4 MONTHS EARLIER.
OK. THANK YOU.
Narrator: TINA SAID
NOTHING ABOUT QUITTING
HER WAITRESSING JOB,
AND HAD CONTINUED TO LAUNDER
HER WAITRESSING OUTFITS
AS IF NOTHING HAD CHANGED.
TODD SEARCHED THEIR APARTMENT,
LOOKING FOR SOME CLUE AS
TO WHERE TINA MIGHT HAVE GONE.
TODD FOUND A DUFFEL BAG
HE HAD NEVER SEEN BEFORE.
INSIDE WERE CONDOMS,
THIGH-HIGH STOCKINGS,
LINGERIE, SEXUAL LUBRICANTS,
CREDIT CARD SLIPS,
AND ENVELOPES ADDRESSED
TO THE L.A. ESCORT SERVICE
WITH THE NAME "CRYSTAL"
IN THE UPPER LEFT-HAND CORNER.
HELLO?
DO YOU HAVE A GIRL
THAT WORKS FOR YOU
NAMED TINA BIGGAR?
Narrator: THE OWNERS OF
THE L.A. ESCORT SERVICE
SAID THEY DIDN'T KNOW ANYONE
BY THE NAME OF TINA BIGGAR.
BUT THEY SAID THAT
"CRYSTAL" WAS THE NAME
OF ONE OF THEIR
MORE POPULAR ESCORTS.
ESCORT SERVICES OPERATE
IN MOST LARGE CITIES,
AND OFFER FEMALE
COMPANIONSHIP TO MEN
IN RETURN FOR FEES RANGING
FROM $150 TO $300 PER HOUR.
AMONG THE SERVICES PROVIDED
IS USUALLY SEX.
TODD NOW BEGAN TO SUSPECT
THAT TINA HAD BEEN LIVING
A SECRET LIFE...
AS A HIGH-PRICED CALL GIRL.
Weinstein: SHE DECIDED
SHE WAS GOING TO DO A STUDY
OF HIGH-CLASS CALL GIRLS
AND THEIR AWARENESS OF AIDS,
AND SHE BEGAN
CONTACTING SERVICES,
ASKING IF
SHE COULD TALK TO GIRLS.
SHE STARTED DOING THAT,
AND I THINK IN THE PROCESS,
BECAME SORT OF ENAMORED
WITH WHAT THEY WERE DOING.
I THINK, IN PART,
IT WAS THE MONEY.
SHE WAS BROKE.
SHE HAD MAXED OUT
HER CREDIT CARDS.
SHE NEEDED A NEW CAR.
SHE HAD TO PAY FOR SCHOOL.
THE MONEY THEY MAKE IS
A LOT MORE THAN YOU MAKE
WORKING AT A STEAKHOUSE.
AT ONE POINT, SHE WAS MAKING
$250 FOR AN APPOINTMENT.
MAYBE WOMEN HAVE A LITTLE
FANTASY ABOUT THEMSELVES.
MAYBE ALL WOMEN DO,
AND MAYBE SHE LIVED IT OUT.
I THINK SHE HAD
A FANTASY ABOUT HERSELF.
I THINK SHE WANTED
MORE ATTENTION
IN KIND OF A DISTANT WAY.
AND BEING A CALL GIRL,
SHE WAS GETTING IT,
BECAUSE THAT'S THE KIND
OF ATTENTION YOU GET.
MAYBE IT GAVE HER POWER.
[KNOCK ON DOOR]
HI. I'M CRYSTAL.
Narrator:
AFTER INITIALLY DENYING IT,
THE ESCORT SERVICE
EVENTUALLY ADMITTED
WHAT TODD ALREADY SUSPECTED--
THAT TINA BIGGAR
WORKED AS AN ESCORT
WITH THE PROFESSIONAL NAME
OF "CRYSTAL."
THEY ALSO REVEALED THAT
TINA WORKED FOR 2 OTHER
ESCORT SERVICES,
AND HAD DOZENS OF CLIENTS.
THAT ALSO MEANT DOZENS
OF POSSIBLE SUSPECTS.
Narrator: THE INVESTIGATION
INTO TINA BIGGAR'S DISAPPEARANCE
REVEALED A DARK SECRET.
FOR THE PAST YEAR,
TINA HAD BEEN WORKING AS
A HIGH-PRICED CALL GIRL.
IT WAS PROBABLY
VERY IMPORTANT FOR TINA
TO KEEP THIS INFORMATION, OR
WHAT WAS GOING ON IN HER LIFE,
AWAY FROM HER BOYFRIEND,
'CAUSE SHE WAS LIVING WITH HIM.
HE KNEW SO MUCH ABOUT HER,
BUT AT THE SAME TIME,
IF HE HAD DETERMINED
THAT SHE WAS INVOLVED
WITH AN ESCORT SERVICE--
ACTUALLY WORKING FOR ONE--
I WOULD SAY THAT WOULD
HAVE CAUSED A GREAT DEAL
OF HAVOC IN HIS LIFE
AND THEIR LIVES TOGETHER.
HE NATURALLY WAS DESPONDENT.
AT ONE POINT,
HE EVEN CONSIDERED
KILLING HIMSELF WITH
A GUN THAT HE HAD.
BUT HE CALLED SOME FRIENDS,
THEY TALKED HIM OUT OF IT,
AND HE DECIDED, BASICALLY,
THAT HE WAS GOING TO DO
WHATEVER NEEDED TO BE DONE,
THAT HE OWED IT TO TINA
TO GET TO THE BOTTOM OF
WHAT HAD HAPPENED TO HER.
Narrator: RECORDS
FROM THE ESCORT SERVICE
REVEALED NUMEROUS REQUESTS
FOR TINA'S SERVICES
FROM A MAN
NAMED KEN TRANCHIDA.
THEIR FIRST MEETING TOOK PLACE
AT THE BLUE BIRD MOTEL
JUST 12 DAYS BEFORE
TINA'S DISAPPEARANCE.
AMONG TINA'S PERSONAL ITEMS
FOUND IN HER APARTMENT
WAS A LOVE LETTER FROM KEN.
Man: "DEAR TINA, MY HEART
IS YOURS FOR YOU TO KEEP.
"YOUR LOVE WILL LIFT ME
OFF MY FEET.
"YOU CAME TO ME,
YOUR LOVE SO WILLING.
"I KNOW IT'S WORTH
ALL OUR WAITING.
LOVE, KEN."
Narrator: WHEN POLICE ENTERED
KEN TRANCHIDA'S APARTMENT,
THEY NOTICED
THE NAME "CRYSTAL"
ON SOME ARTWORK ATTACHED
TO HIS REFRIGERATOR.
A LOCAL CAR DEALER SAID
TINA WAS WITH KEN TRANCHIDA,
LOOKING AT
NEW CARS TOGETHER...
YOU LIKE IT?
YEAH.
WELL, IF YOU WANT IT,
IT'S YOURS.
Narrator: AND KEN HAD OFFERED
TO LOAN HER MONEY FOR THE CAR.
I LOVE IT!
IT'S BEAUTIFUL.
Narrator: KEN TRANCHIDA
WAS A 42-YEAR-OLD EX-CONVICT
WITH A HISTORY OF
PASSING BAD CHECKS,
FORGERY, FRAUD,
EMBEZZLEMENT, AND THEFT.
HE WAS NOT
THE WEALTHY BUSINESSMAN
HE PORTRAYED TO TINA.
Man: SORT OF A DRIFTER,
A LONER...
HE WAS A PETTY THIEF
AND A PETTY CON MAN...
TYPE OF A PERSON.
HE HELD DOWN SOME MENIAL JOBS,
BUT NOT FOR VERY LONG.
I THOUGHT HE WAS JUST, LIKE,
KIND OF A LITTLE WEASEL, REALLY.
I DON'T KNOW HOW ELSE
YOU WOULD DESCRIBE HIM.
HE HAD KIND OF
A LITTLE VOICE,
AND HE WAS SORT OF
PATHETIC, REALLY.
HE JUST WAS A GUY
WHO PROBABLY...
THOUGHT TINA WAS GONNA BE
HIS GIRLFRIEND OR SOMETHING.
Narrator: TRANCHIDA ADMITTED
MEETING TINA BIGGAR,
WHOM HE FIRST KNEW AS "CRYSTAL,"
THROUGH THE ESCORT SERVICE.
HE SAID THEY LATER MET
WITHOUT THE AGENCY KNOWING,
AND THAT TINA STOPPED CHARGING
HIM FOR THEIR SEXUAL LIAISONS
SINCE THE TWO
HAD BECOME FRIENDS.
HE TOLD POLICE THAT
HE HAD DRIVEN TINA
TO THE AIRPORT
JUST ONE WEEK EARLIER
FOR A FLIGHT TO OHIO,
WHERE SHE WAS GOING
TO SERVICE A CLIENT.
A CHECK OF FLIGHT LOGS
SHOWED NO RECORD OF TINA BIGGAR
ON ANY FLIGHT TO OHIO.
KEN SAID TINA LEFT HER CAR
WITH HIM FOR SAFEKEEPING
WHILE SHE WAS AWAY.
WHEN POLICE ASKED
TO INSPECT THE CAR,
TRANCHIDA WILLINGLY OBLIGED.
INSIDE, POLICE FOUND
NAMES AND ADDRESSES
OF MORE ESCORT SERVICE CLIENTS,
ALONG WITH DIRECTIONS
TO THEIR HOMES.
Shankin: WE HAD LEARNED,
THROUGH PAPERWORK
FOUND IN HER CAR
AND THROUGH THE ESCORT SERVICE,
THAT SHE ACTUALLY HAD CONTACT
WITH PEOPLE THAT WERE LIVING
OUT OF THE COUNTRY.
THEY WERE LIVING OUT OF STATE,
SO IT WAS POSSIBLE THAT
SHE COULD HAVE JUST TAKEN OFF,
GONE SOMEPLACE.
Narrator: ALTHOUGH THE TRUNK WAS
FILLED WITH DEBRIS,
A PRELIMINARY SEARCH
FOUND NO EVIDENCE OF FOUL PLAY.
RESEARCH SHOWS
THAT MOST FIRST-TIME KILLERS
DISPOSE OF
THEIR VICTIMS' BODIES
IN LOCATIONS
THE KILLER IS FAMILIAR WITH,
SO POLICE USED CADAVER DOGS
TO SEARCH AREAS NEAR
TRANCHIDA'S HOME.
MICHIGAN STATE TROOPER
RICHARD HETU
WORKS WITH KAI,
A VETERAN CADAVER DOG
TRAINED SPECIFICALLY
TO FIND HUMAN BODIES.
TO TRAIN THE DOGS,
THE TROOPERS HIDE A SMALL SAMPLE
OF HUMAN TISSUE OR FLUID
IN THEIR WOODED TRAINING AREA.
Hetu: THE DOG ISN'T REWARDED
FOR FINDING ANIMAL REMAINS,
BUT THEY'RE REWARDED FOR
FINDING HUMAN REMAINS.
SO THEY'RE GOING TO DIG A LOT
HARDER AND LOOK A LOT HARDER,
'CAUSE THEY'RE WORKING
FOR THAT REWARD.
Narrator: TROOPER HETU AND KAI
SEARCHED WOODED AREAS
AROUND KEN TRANCHIDA'S
RENTED HOME,
AS WELL AS THE GROUNDS
OF A NEARBY MONASTERY
WHERE TRANCHIDA OFTEN WALKED.
ALTHOUGH THEY SEARCHED
HUNDREDS OF WOODED ACRES,
THEY FOUND NOTHING.
WITH NO EVIDENCE
TO HOLD KEN TRANCHIDA,
HE WAS RELEASED
FROM POLICE CUSTODY.
IT WAS A MISTAKE
POLICE WOULD SOON REGRET.
Narrator: AFTER POLICE
QUESTIONED KEN TRANCHIDA
ABOUT THE DISAPPEARANCE
OF TINA BIGGAR,
HE WAS RELEASED BECAUSE
OF A LACK OF EVIDENCE,
EVEN THOUGH THEY SUSPECTED
HE KNEW MORE ABOUT
HER WHEREABOUTS
THAN HE HAD TOLD THEM.
IT WAS CLEAR THAT
KEN'S RELATIONSHIP WITH TINA
WAS MORE THAN JUST BUSINESS,
SINCE A LOVE LETTER FROM KEN
WAS FOUND IN TINA'S BELONGINGS,
AND KEN HAD PROMISED TO LOAN
TINA THE MONEY FOR A NEW CAR.
IF YOU WANT IT,
IT'S YOURS.
REALLY?
Shankin: WAS HE GOING
TO HELP HER GET A CAR?
HE MADE PROMISES.
HE WAS PROBABLY
TELLING HER THINGS
TO MAYBE MAKE HER
HANG ONTO HIM.
MAYBE SHE WAS MAKING HIM THINK
THAT THEY WERE FRIENDS,
JUST TO KIND OF GET SOME OF
THESE THINGS TAKEN CARE OF.
Narrator:
WITH NO OTHER LEADS,
POLICE DECIDED TO TAKE
A SECOND LOOK INSIDE TINA'S CAR.
TO THEIR EMBARRASSMENT,
WHAT THEY FIRST THOUGHT
WERE COFFEE STAINS
ON THE SIDE OF A CUB
NOW APPEARED TO BE BLOOD.
AND WHEN THEY PEELED BACK
THE TRUNK CARPET,
THEY FOUND A POOL OF BLOOD
ON THE RIGHT-HAND SIDE.
DNA TESTS REVEALED THE BLOOD
BELONGED TO TINA BIGGAR.
Pendergast: THE INVESTIGATION
WAS ALREADY BEING LOOKED AT
AS A HOMICIDE,
MORE SO THAN PERHAPS
ANOTHER CASE MIGHT HAVE BEEN,
BUT ONCE THEY FOUND THAT BLOOD,
THERE WAS REALLY NO QUESTION.
Narrator: THE AMOUNT
OF BLOOD IN THE TRUNK
POINTED TO MURDER,
AND SINCE THE CAR HAD BEEN
IN KEN TRANCHIDA'S POSSESSION
SINCE TINA'S DISAPPEARANCE,
HE WAS THE PRIME SUSPECT.
BUT BY THIS TIME,
KEN TRANCHIDA HAD VANISHED.
POLICE FINALLY GOT
A BREAK IN THE CASE
ONE MONTH AFTER
TINA BIGGAR DISAPPEARED.
KEN TRANCHIDA'S BROTHER
SUGGESTED THAT POLICE SEARCH
A DESERTED HOME
ONCE OWNED BY HIS AUNT.
THE HOME WAS JUST 10 MILES
FROM TINA BIGGAR'S APARTMENT.
IN THE WOODS
IN THE BACKYARD...
POLICE FOUND
THE BADLY DECOMPOSED
BODY OF A YOUNG WOMAN.
SINCE THERE WERE NO POOLS
OF BLOOD NEAR THE BODY,
THIS TOLD FORENSIC SCIENTISTS
THAT THE MURDER HAD TAKEN PLACE
SOMEWHERE ELSE.
AN ANALYSIS OF DENTAL RECORDS
LATER REVEALED
THE BODY WAS THAT
OF TINA BIGGAR.
SINCE THE DECOMPOSITION
STARTED IN THE NECK AREA,
THE CORONER SUSPECTED
TINA HAD BEEN STRANGLED,
SINCE DECOMPOSITION
BEGINS IN THE AREAS
WHERE THERE IS BLEEDING
AT THE TIME OF DEATH.
Man: IT WAS AN UNNATURAL
CAUSE OF DEATH.
THERE WAS NO FRACTURE
ANYWHERE IN THE HEAD AREA,
SO THE NECK HAS TO BE THE PLACE
WHERE THE EVENT HAPPENED,
AND WE CALLED IT
A "NECK TRAUMA."
I COULD NOT IDENTIFY
SPECIFICALLY IF HER NECK
WAS SLASHED,
SHE WAS STRANGLED,
SHE WAS SMOTHERED...
I CANNOT SAY THAT,
BUT IT HAS TO BE A NECK INJURY,
AND THAT WAS THE CONCLUSION.
Narrator:
A NATIONWIDE MANHUNT
FOR KEN TRANCHIDA
WAS NOW UNDERWAY.
TRANCHIDA WAS EVENTUALLY SPOTTED
IN A RUN-DOWN NEIGHBORHOOD
IN DOWNTOWN DETROIT.
POLICE CLOSED IN.
KEN MADE A WEAK ATTEMPT
AT SLITTING HIS WRISTS
IN THE BATHROOM
BEFORE GIVING HIMSELF UP.
AFTER SEVERAL HOURS
OF POLICE INTERROGATION,
KEN TRANCHIDA
FINALLY ADMITTED
THAT HE AND TINA HAD
AN ARGUMENT OVER MONEY.
YOU DON'T HAVE
THE MONEY TO
LOAN ME, DO YOU?
OF COURSE
I HAVE THE MONEY.
I DON'T BELIEVE YOU.
THE MONEY IS COMING.
Narrator: THEY HAD STRUGGLED,
AND TINA FELL,
HITTING HER HEAD...AND DYING.
BUT X-RAYS OF TINA'S SKULL
CONTRADICTED THAT SCENARIO.
Virani: SHE DID NOT HAVE
ANY SKULL FRACTURE, ANYWAY.
IF SHE BLED
INSIDE OF THE SKULL,
I WOULD HAVE SEEN SOME
BLOODSTAINING INSIDE OF THE
SKULL, WHICH WAS NOT PRESENT.
Narrator: ALTHOUGH TINA
MAY HAVE SUFFERED A HEAD WOUND,
AS EVIDENCED BY THE BLOOD
FOUND IN TINA'S TRUNK,
THE WOUND WAS
PROBABLY NOT FATAL.
WHEN TRANCHIDA WAS CONFRONTED
WITH THIS INFORMATION,
HIS STATEMENT SHOCKED POLICE.
Pendergast: WHAT HE SAID WAS,
"TINA WAS JUST SO MISERABLE
IN THOSE LAST DAYS
"THAT I MADE A SUDDEN DECISION
TO END IT FOR HER
AND PUT HER
OUT OF HER MISERY."
THE MINUTE THE POLICE
HEARD THAT STATEMENT,
THEY THOUGHT, "HOLY JESUS."
I'VE PLED GUILTY,
YOUR HONOR,
YOU KNOW?
Narrator: KEN TRANCHIDA
ACCEPTED A PLEA BARGAIN
AND PLED GUILTY
TO SECOND-DEGREE MURDER.
TINA'S FAMILY, RELUCTANT TO HAVE
TINA'S DOUBLE LIFE MADE PUBLIC,
AGREED TO THE DEAL.
YOU PROMISED!
Narrator: PROSECUTORS BELIEVE
WHEN TINA DISCOVERED
KEN HAD LIED TO HER ABOUT HAVING
THE MONEY TO BUY THE NEW CAR,
THE TWO FOUGHT,
TINA STRUCK HER HEAD,
AND WAS LATER STRANGLED
OR SMOTHERED TO DEATH.
KEN PLACED TINA'S BODY
IN THE TRUNK OF HER CAR,
THEN DUMPED THE BODY IN
THE WOODS NEAR HIS AUNT'S HOME.
IT WAS A TRAGIC END
TO AN UNFORTUNATE STORY.
KEN TRANCHIDA WAS SENTENCED
TO LIFE IN PRISON.
IRONICALLY, WHILE TINA
WAS LIVING A LIFE OF DECEPTION,
SHE, TOO, WAS DECEIVED
BY KEN TRANCHIDA,
A CON MAN OFFERING
THE PROMISE OF A BIG LOAN.
Pendergast:
IF TINA WAS BROUGHT
INTO THIS DOUBLE LIFE
UNDER SOME KIND OF ILLUSION
THAT IT WAS GOING TO BE LIKE
A SCENE FROM PRETTY WOMAN,
AND RICHARD GERE WAS GOING
TO COME RESCUE HER,
AND, YOU KNOW,
BRING HER WONDERFUL GIFTS,
AND SHE WAS GOING TO FALL
INTO THIS OPULENT LIFESTYLE,
THAT THAT'S NOT THE REALITY
OF THE CALL GIRL WORLD.
YOU CAN MEET UP WITH
SOME VERY DESPERATE CHARACTERS
AND SOME VERY BIZARRE
CHARACTERS.
IN THIS CASE, UNFORTUNATELY,
THE PERSON THAT SHE MET UP WITH
WAS NOT RICHARD GERE.
IT WAS KEN.
AND WHERE TINA ENDED UP,
LYING IN THAT FIELD,
IS MORE THE REALITY
THAN THE MOVIE, I THINK.
SHE CHOSE TO CROSS THE LINE,
AND...SHE PAID
THE ULTIMATE PRICE,
WHICH IS WHAT ALL OF US,
AS PARENTS, GUARD AGAINST
AND FEAR THE MOST, I THINK,
FOR OUR CHILDREN.
AND I BELIEVE BY TELLING
TINA BIGGAR'S STORY
THAT WE SENT A MESSAGE
TO OTHER GIRLS
WHO MIGHT BE IN THE BUSINESS,
TO OTHER YOUNG WOMEN
WHO MIGHT BE THINKING OF
GOING INTO THE BUSINESS,
TO YOUNG WOMEN WHO MIGHT
THINK THEY CAN TEASE
OR PLAY A LITTLE BIT
WITH A WORLD THAT
THEY DON'T BELONG IN.
I THINK THAT SENDS A MESSAGE
THAT YOU'RE ASKING FOR TROUBLE,
THAT YOU CAN END UP
IN A SITUATION THAT
YOU CAN'T HANDLE,
THAT YOU CAN END UP DEAD.