Reporter so why would police focus on her . The beautiful socialite, exwife number two. Shes very intoxicating. I think she was cold and calculating. Reporter maybe her former husband was worth more dead than alive . Its easy to blame the rich, beautiful woman. Shes the person Everybody Loves to hate. But she is completely innocent. Reporter or maybe it was someone else entirely. He was obsessed with gary triano. Obsessed with him. Its a case weve investigated for more than 5 years. Reporter now a stunning new end. We go back on the rollercoaster. Im lester holt and this is dateline. Heres Josh Mankiewicz with mystery on Sunrise Drive. Reporter spend a little time in tucson, arizona and here in the shadows of the majestic saguaros youll find a thriving metropolis of a Million People with a surprising small town feel. Its the kind of place where everyone seems to know everyone. And if you ask anyone from tucson where they were on nov. 1, 1996 theyll tell you it was the day of a murder so dramatic, so horrific, theyll never forget it. It was the story that everybody talked about. Reporter the explosive end of a man whod been larger than life. Gary had a presence. Gary had charisma. Reporter and the beginning of a mystery that would span nearly two decades. Never, ever felt that it reporter a tucson native, gary triano was a successful Real Estate Developer and entrepreneur. He was known around tucson for his big spending ways, his chauffered limousines and for rubbing elbows with folks like donald trump. I did it my way reporter like the song made famous by sinatra, the forceful and determined gary liked doing things his way. Was very, very brilliant. Reporter garys niece, Melissa Triano he had a wonderful personality that was sort of charismatic. And people were sort of drawn to him. Reporter melissa says her uncle made her see the value in herself. My father moved away when i was 17. I was, you know, sort of a lost child, if you will. And my uncle kind of helped me realize, you know, a lot of my skills and taught me a lot about the real estate industry. Was kind of a father figure . Sort of, yes. Reporter and gary was a loving father to five children. Four from his first two marriages. And a daughter with a woman hed dated named Robin Gardner. Gary was full of life. He was probably more full of life than anybody that i have ever, ever known. When i met gary, he was 21yearsolder than i, and we would go dancing, and we would go to the movies. And he was caring, and fun. And charming . Extremely charming. Reporter robin moved to tucson in her 20s from a small town in the appalachian mountains. Gary, she says, opened her eyes to a new way of life. Well, i had never eaten at a fivestar restaurant. I had never drank fine wine. I had never been on a private jet. Reporter and, robin says, gary was generous with the money hed made. Gary was a big giver, he was a big giver. I remember we were at a restaurant, and there was a waitress that really seemed like she she was struggling. He did a origami flower out of a hundred dollar bill, and he gave it to that waitress. And he did that not to showboat, he did it to be nice. He did it to be kind. Reporter and then came the day that changed everything. A nightmare come to life. It was late afternoon, november 1, 1996. Gary had just played a round of golf at a toptier Tucson Country Club called la paloma. He climbed into the Lincoln Town Car hed borrowed from a friend and was then instantly killed by a bomb that literally blew him to pieces, right there in the parking lot. Gary was just a few days shy of his 53rd birthday. Some of his friends were already at his home preparing for a surprise party. And my cousin heather kept paging me over and over again 911, 911. And i thought that it was because i was running late and she was tryin to figure out where i was. Reporter melissa called her aunt mary, garys first wife. My aunt mary answered the phone and then told me that they believed that my uncle had been killed. And that they knew this because they were watching it on tv and that it was his car. And i thought she was kidding. I i completely i i got angry and said, what are you talking about . This is as joke . This is not funny. And she said, no, its not a joke. Reporter melissa knew her uncle had planned to meet up with some friends at a local restaurant after his golf game. She called the bartender there. He answered the phone and i said, is my uncle there . Please tell me hes there. And he said, missy, im so sorry. Weve got it on tv. Im so sorry. He just kept saying, im so sorry. Thats a hell of a way to find out, by watchin the television. Yeah. They we found out by seeing it on the news. It was a very powerful bomb, very powerful explosion. Reporter melissa raced down Sunrise Drive to the scene. And i got out of the car and i i started running towards my uncles car. And detective gamber actually came running up and grabbed me and stopped me from getting closer. Reporter detective james gamber was one of the first at the scene. It was his second homicide case, ever. I was doing dishes after dinner and i got a call, theres been a car bombing at la paloma and you need to go up there. Reporter what he saw might have rattled a far more seasoned detective. The roof had been peeled off the car was laying behind the car. The windshield was gone. We found that, i think, the next day in the Swimming Pool of the country club. How far away . Id estimate it was probably 70 feet away and it had to go over some trees that were probably 20 feet tall. Im guessing that from, sort of, the get go, it was pretty clear that this wasnt any accident. This wasnt something wrong with gary trianos car. Correct. He was dead, what, instantly . Yes. Reporter the gold watch around gary trianos wrist froze in time at 5 38pm. His family and friends didnt know what to think. Who could have done this and why . The questions were just beginning. When we come back clues start to surface about the country club killer. The person who set off the bomb was watching gary triano get in his car . And the motive . What might that be . Follow the money. You always follow the money and you look at who benefitted from the death. Like 4 pizzas. We all get separate bills. Besides, if you dont like gordon why did you invite him this weekend . I didnt invite him. He just, like, shows up its pronounced gordon. Hey lets go those tacos arent going to eat themselves over there. Tacos you look great, by the way. The bills are separate . With the sprint unlimited framily plan, the more you add, the more you save. Unlimited framily plan get unlimited data, talk, and text for as low as 45 a month per line. Happy connecting from sprint. I wanted to do some good for them, so im trying hellmanns with olive oil. Im kinda nervous. You dont mess with a firemans hellmanns. Hey mike, seriously, so good. Well you know, thats not hellmanns on your sandwiches. Its hellmanns with olive oil. Whaddaya want, a parade . [ laughter ] give me another sandwich. [ male announcer ] hellmanns mayonnaise dressing with olive oil. The delicious taste of hellmanns, with the goodness of olive oil. Smoke . Nah, im good. [ male announcer ] celebrate every win with nicoderm cq, the unique patch with time release Smartcontrol Technology that helps prevent the urge to smoke all day long. Help prevent your cravings with nicoderm cq. That helps prevent i make a lot of purchasesy long. Foand i get ass. Lot in return with ink plus from chase. Like 50,000 bonus points when i spent 5,000 in the first 3 months after i opened my account. And i earn 5 times the rewards on internet, phone services and at Office Supply stores. With ink plus i can choose how to redeem my points. Travel, gift cards, even cash back. And my rewards points wont expire. So you can make owning a business even more rewarding. Ink from chase. So you can. At the petsmart big brands bonus sale. Save on a wide selection of your Favorite Brands all at low prices and our unbeatable price guarantee and save up to 30 on select Martha Stewart pets™ products. At petsmart®. Everin a day is building up layer, upon layer, of bacteria. And to destroy those layers . You need listerine®. Its unique formula penetrates these layers deeper than other mouthwashes, killing bacteria all the way down to the bottom layer. So for a cleaner, healthier mouth, go with 1 dentist recommended listerine®. Power to your mouth™. Also try new listerine® naturals. The only mouthwash that combines the power of listerine® with naturally sourced ingredients. 36 of all teachers in the u. S. Have been teaching for more than 20 years. What does that mean . Do the math. We need more teachers to lead future generations. The more you know. Reporter gary triano, the businessman, the father, the philanthropist, none of it made sense. He had just played a round of golf. Then, the man who loved living large died a spectacular death. I just was so in shock like the rest of my family, that this could happen at all. You dont wanna believe it, and you dont want to accept it. No one that i know its killed with a bomb. It was like somethin that was on television. Reporter it was a crime scene no one will soon forget. I just thought, oh my goodness. I cant believe this is happening in tucson, arizona. Reporter Lupita Murillo has covered tucson for nbc affiliate kvoa for nearly 36 years. She reported from la paloma the night of the bombing. People kill each other for all kinds of reasons. Youve probably covered uhhuh. Exactly. Dozens of these. But but a car explosion at a posh resort . Obviously, somebody wanted to make a statement. So this was a pretty powerful bomb. Yes. Reporter pima county sheriffs detective james gamber and an alphabet soup of investigative agencies including the fbi and atf started looking closely at the homemade bomb that had somehow found its way to gary trianos passenger seat. We were able to determine that device was a 17inch piece of pipe, about an inch and a half in diameter. Reporter the pipe was filled with explosive powder, and detonated by Remote Control. Using something thats normally meant to control boats, planes, that kind of thing . Correct. Remotecontrolled planes. Those those handheld planes . Yes. Reporter investigators determined that whoever operated that Remote Control was probably right there in the parking lot. So the person who set off the bomb was watching gary triano get in his car . We have every reason to believe that, and from the injury patterns, its its consistent that he actually was picking up the bag the device was in when it detonated. That would make me believe someones watching and theyre going, hes onto it. You know, we gotta detonate it now before he realizes what it is and has a chance to escape. Reporter clearly the killer had to know something about trianos daily routine. But, gamber soon discovered a lot of people did. He had virtually no sense of personal security. Hed never lock his car, wouldnt lock his house. So somebody with intel or information on garys lifestyle could easily have set him up. Reporter and it appeared someone had checked on garys whereabouts that day. What was interesting is the day of the murder, someone called and asked if he was playing golf. Man or woman . Man. Never identified. Reporter the very public spectacle of a car bombing at a posh resort made an impact on gambers boss, sheriff clarence dupnik. Ive never seen an assassination of this kind. If, in fact, it was a hit, it probably was a professional hit. Reporter could the sheriff be right . If so who hired the hitman . Who wanted triano dead . He was very flamboyant, and he was very outgoing and engaging. And he he ran in the real big circles. I mean, hes running around with donald trump and people like that. And he was throwing money around. Yes. And so when a flamboyant guy dies in a flamboyant way yup. People start thinking. You know, you tie him with big money, casinos, flamboyant lifestyle, and then, hes killed in a car bombing. Everybody makes this automatic assumption that that that has to be some mobrelated hit. Reporter and as investigators looked more closely into garys finances they saw only red ink. By the late 80s, the tucson Real Estate Market had crashed and garys bottom line took hit after hit. Investigators learned that in 1994, saddled with more than 26 million in debts he couldnt pay, gary triano had filed for bankruptcy. He had rolled the dice and lost. He owed money to casinos, banks, and the irs. And just one day before the bombing, a friend said an extremely anxious gary had come to him desperate for a 50 thousand dollar loan. He was tapped out . Yeah. When he died i understand that he had holes on the bottom of his soles in his shoes. Any indication that any of the people to whom he owed money, and there were a lot, were angry enough at him to do him any harm . No. I mean, there were people that openly said, he cost me money. He owed me money. But was it enough for me to kill him . No. Reporter well, not so fast. Detective gamber didnt know it at the time, but fbi agents following the same trail had heard the name neil mcneice. The bureau received a tip that mcneice had experience with high explosives and that he had access to them. And that he had a foul temper. And that he had a lot of money. But that wasnt the end of it. The bureau was also told that neil mcneice carried a profound hatred of gary triano. Detective gambers supervisor back then was keith st. John you had neil mcneices name from two different sources, one of em which was one of which was the f. B. I. Yes. And you never talked to him . No. Reporter it would be years before investigators realized how significant an omission that was. But theres no disputing that the neil mcneice tip was never followed up. And so investigators changed their focus, and looked away from gary trianos business relationships. You do two things. You go, lets follow the evidence. And you say, follow the money. You always follow the money in a homicide. And then, you look at who benefited from the death. Reporter investigators were now examining gary trianos closest personal ties. Was there someone closer to home to whom gary might have been worth more dead than alive . . I remember asking him, why would anybody wanna follow you . And he said, because of a Life Insurance policy. Reporter coming up the women in gary trianos life an exwives club. And an angry former girlfriend pretty unhappy at the breakup . Got fifa world cup fever . Come to mcdonalds and play peel. Play. Ole ole. You could win a trip to the 2014 fifa world cup finals match in brazil. Ba da ba ba ba reporter tucson Real Estate Developer gary trianos gruesome death by car bomb had a lot of people wondering just who his enemies really were. Investigators had been looking at garys business dealings, but started hitting one dead end after another. So they began scouring his personal life. Gary had lived large. It turned out he loved that way as well. And he was no angel. By the time of his death, garys name was already attached to two divorces and a trail of broken hearts. Hed left his first wife mary after two children and more than 20 years of marriage to wed a younger woman, pam phillips. Gary had two more children with her. After that marriage ended, gary dated Robin Gardner for two years, and that union produced a daughter, elliott. But gary and robin never married and had an angry breakup while robin was still pregnant. Gary even called 911 a year before his death to report that robin showed up uninvited to his home and threw a vase at him during an argument. Robin told the investigators shed thrown the vase at the ground after gary pushed her. And so investigators came knocking on robins door. Robin gardner was pretty unhappy at the breakup between she and gary triano . And we looked into robin, and i think her current husband put it best is that when robins mad, youre gonna know it. And whatevers gonna happen is gonna happen right now. He said, she basically its gonna be a street fight. And you were convinced that what . Although she was angry at gary triano, she wanted him alive . Yes, and i dont think she would have done that to their child. Reporter so investigators looked away from robin as a person of interest and moved on to some of the other women in garys life. Hed maintained a Good Relationship with his first wife mary after they divorced. And investigators eliminated her. That left his second exwife, pam phillips. Like gary, pam had also been married once before. The stunning blonde had a business degree from the university of arizona and was one of few women to find success working in commercial real estate in tucson the late 80s. Pam and gary seemed off to a good start back in 1986, with an expensive, blacktie wedding on a yacht at sunset off the coast of san diego. I know gary was mad about her. I was positive that he was madly in love with her. Reporter the wedding photographer, garys friend david bean they looked like they really did love each other and cared about each other. Reporter but reporter Lupita Murillo says behind pams back tucson was whispering. What did you hear about her . That she was a gold digger. That she married gary for his money. And that she broke up his marriage. Reporter its common for people on the outside to talk about the new wife that way. Remember, gary had left his first wife for pam and that alone sparked some anger in the triano family. Brian and heather are garys kids from his first marriage. And initially, they were less than thrilled about their father remarrying. Well, i mean, she was a stepmom. Lets be honest. We were teenagers at the time not happy about our parents getting divorced. Reporter but it was hard to deny that the marriage was working. When we saw em together, they were happy. And he seemed happy. They would always sing love songs. Reporter gary and pam had some very good years, says garys niece melissa. Oh, they were running around with, you know, donald trump, marla maples. They were friends with lee majors. And just taking really extravagant trips. Money flowin like water. Yeah. Reporter gary helped pam launch an astrology website starbabies. Com. The site was designed to give parents an astrological reading about their children. It was a business pam started after her children trevor and lois were born. What you say trev . Cow. Reporter heather and brian say those new babies brought them closer to their