Transcripts For WCAU Dateline NBC 20170401

Dangerous reporter paige had been playing a risky game. That opened up the door to a multitude of people we needed to start looking at. Reporter like this real estate investor. Reporter he was a scam artist . Correct. Reporter and this drifter. He was a liar. He was manipulative. Reporter two possible suspects would become four, then eight including a firefighter with a fixation. He had a list of names. Their bra size and whether or not they would have sex. Reporter did one of them have a motive, to hurt a loving mom . We werent gonna stop until we found the truth. Reporter what happened to paige . Im lester holt and this is dateline. Heres Keith Morrison with double lives. Reporter its been nine years since she vanished. But few people in Grand Junction, colorado have forgotten Paige Birgfeld how could they . The story of this Young Mothers disappearance has long since woven itself into local lore. Shes a great mother, a great friend. Reporter its a mystery weve been following since it began. And now, as thunderheads darken the highdesert sky, finally a trial. What he told me is that he knew how to get rid of a body so that nobody could find it. He said, im going to kill you and then he just slapped me repeatedly. Reporter finally rumors and gossip would be dispelled or made fact. And the secrets known not only by the guilty but also the shamed would finally be revealed. Why so many secrets, whispers, rumors . Because in this town, where Everybody Knows everybody elses business, there were enough potential suspects to fill a minivan. Did you have anything to do with the disappearance of Paige Birgfeld . No. I was put under Psychiatric Care for the first 48 hours and then sent to jail. I did not kill paige. I mean, thats the bottom line. Reporter it was late june, 2007, when news of Paige Birgfelds disappearance first spread like the morning sun. Over the mountains, in denver, four hours away, Frank Birgfeld was driving to his office. The phone rang. Voice on the phone says, this is somebody with the mesa county sheriffs office. And he said, are you paiges dad . And i said, yep. And he said, did you know shes missing . Reporter Barbara Campbell got the call from her husband, hans, who told her paige is missing. I was what do you mean shes missing . Reporter andrea land got the news in an email. It said paige is missing in the subject line. I knew something horrible had to have happened because it didnt make any sense that she would be missing. Reporter no way for even a best friend to prepare for such a thing. Stunningly beautiful. One of those women that was almost a little bit intimidating at first if you were you know, youre a more average mom. Reporter andrea land and the other Young Mothers of Grand Junction could have been forgiven for feeling a little envy. She had the look, the money, the big house on the hill, and three attractive kids. But no, it wasnt like that at all. The way she talked, the way she acted, the way she treated you, everything about her was just so wonderful. Taking care of kids now reporter Barbara Campbell, andrea, and paige were members of Grand Junctions moms club international. A kind of social and support group for young, stayathome mothers. Woo theres paige, everybody reporter once a year theyd throw a spring fling, a sort of puton prom for moms. Fancy clothes, red carpet entry, even a pretend reporter throwing fashion questions. Tell us who youre wearing. Reporter paige was always the star, of course and this year the party was held at her place, which made it a very special event. Most of us did not live in a home that large. She was just so downtoearth and humble about it that once you got over the artwork on the walls and how, you know, beautiful home it was, you almost forgot that you were in this really very highend home. So the winner is, drumroll please, Paige Birgfeld she was so comfortable hosting people that made it it made anybody there feel comfortable. Sometimes you meet someone and you just instantly have a good feeling about them. Youre gonna be friends with them. Its just gonna be an instant match. Thats what i had with paige. Reporter and then that call. The sheriffs deputy told the birgfelds that after meeting a friend on the afternoon of thursday, june 28, 2007 paige simply didnt come home. As they drove from denver to Grand Junction, paiges parents tried to understand what was happening. As we started out, i i dont know that i was very tense or i thought of the worse. I guess, gee, i wonder where she is. G i hope shes but as as the drive went on, it became more and more anxious, more and more tight, more and more and i would be calling the kids on the home phone just saying, w were gonna be there, you know, and t tryin to sound reassuring. Reporter the kids had just a nanny with them because paige had parted ways with her husband, rob dixon, whod since moved out of state. Still as a singlemom, with three little kids, paige had her life well in control. Due in no small part to her obsessive organizational skills. She ran several Small Businesses and kept track of every soccer practice and dentist appointment in an oldfashioned, handwritten, dayplanner. I mean, every page was full and crossed referenced and and she was always with it. And shed come over to visit it came in the door right there in front of her. She was always checkin it, and phonin. Reporter overbooked, divorced, three kids. First question, was there a chance Paige Birgfeld simply walked out on her life . We talked about, boy, sometimes i just wanna run away. And she said, you know, i never feel that way. I never wanna run away. Even if i did run want to run away just to get away from here, i would wanna take my kids with me. There was no way she would leave without her children. They were her life. If she needed to hide she wouldve found a way to do it with them. Reporter so what, then . What happened to paige . Her friends, her parents didnt know what to do or where to look. Maybe a clue could be found tucked away in her day planner. Except it too, was missing. When we come back, one encounter grabs their attention. We found out she was visiting her exhusband. Obviously, he was a person of interest. Caesar on a caesar salad . Surprising. Excuse me, pardon me. Whats not surprising . How much money matt saved by switching to geico. Could i get my parking validated . Fifteen minutes could save you fifteen percent or more. Thanks to applebees new 2fordate night. Girls night. 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Can make any occasion feel more special. Ie so she makes her pie crust from scratch. And sprinkles on brown sugar streusel. So that you can spend more time making special moments with your family. Marie callenders its time to savor never waver. Because going around is rarely ever as enjoyable. As going right through. Reporter it was a thursday, june 28th, when Paige Birgfeld, of Grand Junction, colorado, quite suddenly went off the radar. Which was, at least a place to so mesa county sheriffs investigators henry soffel and wayne weyler set out to trace her steps that day. We found out that she had been at eagle visiting her exhusband and they had been reconciling at that point. Reporter but he, having been the last person known to have seen her, i suppose would be a person of interest in your yes, obviously he was a person of interest. Reporter this person of interest, rob beigler, was paiges first exhusband. They married right out of high school. Young, immature, and soon, divorced. But, funny how this works. Ten years had sanded off their sharp edged disputes, and they saw anew why they fell in love. It seemed like as if no time had passed at all. Reporter this is ron beigler, talking to a dateline producer soon after paiges disappearance. At what point did you start to rekindle your relationship . About six months ago. We tried to take it slow, but there was there was no denyin that that it was just as it was before. Reporter problem was biegler lived in denver, a 4hour drive east. So the two lovers would often meet at some midway point. On the day of paiges disappearance they chose eagle, colorado. We were going to have a picnic and hang out together, all day. We went to subway and brought it back to where we were sitting outside down by the river. It was very familiar. And, you know, i brought some pictures, you know . And we just sat there and relaxed and enjoyed the day and the weather. I mean, it was special wonderful day. Reporter and then, around 7pm, they kissed and said goodbye and drove back to their respective sides of the state. Twohours later, at 8 57pm, paige called biegler. To see if i made it back into denver. And then we had a brief conversation. Reporter paige told biegler she wasnt home yet. She was stuck behind a bad Traffic Accident in Grand Junction. And indeed, investigators confirmed there was a fatal Traffic Accident right here at this intersection. Somebody saw paiges car here, too, that very evening. Thing is, this is five miles past her house. Why was she here . An hour later, 9 56pm, paiges 8yearold daughter, jess, left this anxious voice mail message on her mothers cell phone. Hi mom, its me, i was just wondering when you would get home. Love you, bye. Reporter no response. Her daughter waited, worried, and called again. Hi mom, i was just wondering when you were gonna get home. Bye. Reporter they slept then. Best they could. All three children. And awoke the next day, friday, june 29th, to a whole new kind of anxiety. She still wasnt home. Hi mom, you said you would be back last night and youre not even back today. Bye. Reporter something in the pit of the stomach. Paiges old, and new love, ron beigler, seemed to feel it, too. Hi, where are you . Call me if you get a chance. Im getting worried about you. Reporter and, hour by hour, they piled up. Phone messages. Like a normal day. Hi paige, laura just wanted me to give you a call and let you know hi, this is sears repair service for the fan, calling to let you know hi paige, its kevin from performance pool. Curious if your pool cleared up. Please give me a call. Thank you. Reporter not a single call was returned. And, that night, again, the children, with their nanny, waited in vain for their mother. The following day, saturday, june 30th. Ron beigler called the house and spoke to paiges 8year old daughter, jess. She didnt sound particularly that distraught. I dont think she had idea what was going on. Of course she didnt. Reporter beiglers next call was to 911. Dispatch, this is clint. Yes. I needed to talk about a missing person emergency. Okay. And who is missing . Her name is paige dixon. How how old is paige . Shes 33. Okay. She hasnt been home all all night thursday night, all day yesterday, and today. Something is definitely, definitely wrong. She either got abducted, or in an accident. Reporter and thats when word of paiges disappearance began to spread across colorado. Investigators didnt have a clue what happened to paige. But they wondered if beigler did. Have police questioned you . Yes, they have. And have they released you as a, you know, a potential suspect or i dont know what they what theyve done on that. I know that i that was never a concern or worry of mine havin it get pinned on me, you know . Reporter you have an alibi for that night . Just im confident that the police know that i had nothin to do with it. Reporter do you feel like you have any thoughts as to what may have happened or whats happening . I think it was a major premeditated abduction or a completely random incident. I think that its more likely that its a premeditated abduction. Reporter but sometimes those not asking questions, find answers. It was the third day. Sunday, july 1st, 2007. 9 58 pm. A woman driving home from work, slammed on her brakes, called 911. 911, this is dusty, wheres your emergency . Hi. Im at the corner of 23 and logos. And there is a car on fire in the parking lot at the building right here. There is a car on fire . Yeah. Do you see flames or smoke . Yeah. Theres theres a lot of flames. Coming up, paiges car. What will it reveal . More intense on the drivers side. Then, Something Else belonging to paige. It was an awful feeling of dread thinking how did this get here . What does it mean . When dateline continues. Hey allergy muddlers are you one sneeze away from being voted out of the carpool . 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You seriously cant tell the difference between a bird and a plane . Xfinity watchathon week starts april 3. The greatest collection of shows free with xfinity on demand. [ sirens ] reporter sunday night, the first of july. The Grand Junction Fire Department was called to an industrial parking lot. A little red car was on fire. Frank birgfeld heard about the fire the morning after roared over there, and could do nothing except watch from a distance as investigators crawled over his daughters car. And that morning, frank gave the first of what would be many, many interviews. We were hopeful when we found the car things would fall into place and maybe they will. Reporter this interview, though, was one frank just couldnt get through. You know it occurred to me that i havent cried in a long time. Ive learned how to do that. Thats it. Reporter firefighter Robert Thomason helped with the arson investigation. You can see that the glass itself was all burned out and you can see where its still kind of intact over here. It was really obvious to see that more intense was on the drivers side. Reporter meaning thats where the fire started. Thats where the arsonist wanted to be sure to erase evidence. Under the car, damaged skid plates and strands of wild grass caught in the suspension, meaning somebody had driven off road very recently. And after . Dumped and torched the car in an Industrial Area just a quarter mile from where paige made her last phone call. It was way beyond her house, right . Correct. Didnt fit for the car to be there. Reporter news of the car fire was a turning point. No longer did the public suspect this was a case of an overwhelmed, runaway mom. The response was an outpouring of volunteers, a Spontaneous Community project to find paige. Just seeing the dad on tv and everything like that, i have some children of my own and i know what id be feeling like if one of my children was gone and i just wanted to try to help if i could. Reporter paiges dad was there everyday, greeting a small army of volunteers. Thanks for helping us. You know its just really tough you know for people to give of themselves to that degree. I just [ sighs ] one of our moms was gone. And her kids needed her, and we needed our friend. And our kids needed to know [ crying ] that if someones mom is missing, that people are gonna work hard to find her. Reporter paiges brother and his wife came from seattle to help. The thing is i know that somebody out there knows where she is, and you know were looking for clues to find that person, but theres somebody maybe whos watching this who knows where she is. Reporter but, this seemed odd, not helping to find paige, was her exhusband and current boyfriend, ron beigler. Do you feel like you wish you could go there and help search for her . A part of me does definitely. Whats keeping you away from there . I dont know if i can handle being being right in the situation. Reporter then, knowing we were preparing a report about the case, beigler made a strange request. Try to keep me out as much as possible . Like, just a few words here and there, but i dont want to you just dont want to talk about how you love her, like, be on talking about things. Reporter but, hundreds of people, many whod never once met paige, searched on horseback, on atvs on foot. They peered under bushes, they walked miles of desert brush in hundred degree heat, and nothing. Truth be told. Paige could have been anywhere. And then, four days after paiges disappearance, a driver stopped along a lonely stretch of highway 50. And as he stepped out of his truck, a piece of litter caught his eye, a blank check trapped in the roadside weeds. The name on it . Paige dixon, paiges married name. So then, the flock of searchers descended on that road. Making my way back west along the median, i saw a checkbook. It was an awful feeling of dread, thinking, how did this get here . Why is it here . What does it mean . Reporter then more, paiges wallet, charm bracelet, this shoe, various cards, bank registers, and dozens of checks from both paiges personal and professional accounts, nearly a hundred items spread along 13 miles of road, which left investigators with two very different theories. Either paiges abductor was trying to throw them off track or she was in the trunk of a car or something of the sort and dumped these items out to leave a trail. Reporter and while volunteers gathered the sad detritus of paiges life, a new wrinkle. Paiges most recent exhusband, rob dixon, came back to town to look after the kids and help out with the search. And his reappearance stopped volunteers in their tracks. Because of the stories paige told while they were married, many thought him the most obvious suspect. She was afraid of him. Coming up, what else paige told loved ones about rob dixon. She was afraid he would kill her. Bite into magnum double cookies and cream. And unleash your wild side. Made with cookies cream ice cream and rich belgian chocolate. Discover magnum. I the uncertainties of hep c. Wondering, what if . I let go of all those feelings. Because i am cured with harvoni. Harvoni is a revolutionary treatment for the most common type of chronic hepatitis c. Its been prescribed to more than a quarter million people. And is proven to cure up to 99 of patients who have had no prior treatment with 12 weeks. Certain patients can be cured with just 8 weeks of harvoni. Before starting harvoni, your doctor will test to see if youve ever had hepatitis b, which may flare up and cause serious liver problems during and after harvoni treatment. Tell your doctor if youve ever had hepatitis b, a liver transplant, other liver or kidney problems, hiv or any other medical conditions and about all the medicines you take including herbal supplements. Taking amiodarone with harvoni can cause a serious slowing of your heart rate. Common side effects of harvoni include tiredness, headache and weakness. Ready to let go of hep c . Ask your hep c specialist about harvoni. Reporter a wave of whispers spread at the speed of suspicion among the searchers looking for the missing single mother, Paige Birgfeld. The ex was in town. Millions dixon met and married paige. And they had three kids and moved into a fine big house. Maybe twice that much. Reporter and paiges parents watched him change. The whole town saw that, actually. In his garage i saw three range rovers, a jaguar, two porsches, and then later he had a lemon yellow ferrari. If youve been to Grand Junction and you want to fit in, a lemon yellow ferrari is not exactly what you do. Did he make any effort to meet you or the other guys . The moms club would get together, they would have occasions when all the families would get together but he would never come to any of them. I never once saw him attend. I was so baffled how someone as upbeat and eternally happy as paige could have this grump around. Reporter but in hopes of promoting either good will, or himself, dixon joined the Grand Junction Fire District board. And then donated a brand new fire truck. His generosity made news and locals wondering if theyd misjudged him. But, soon it turned to dust. Dixon got himself in charge of Fire District investments, put public money in what he said was a sure thing. It wasnt. The money vanished. Blew i as i recall about 750,000 in bad investments for the Fire District. Reporter Peter Hautzinger was, at that time, the mesa county d. A. I made the decision to take that case to the grand jury and ultimately, the grand jury decided felonys stupid, but not worthy of criminal charges. Reporter then one day a repo man showed up for that shiny new fire truck dixon had donated. It turned out the fire truck was leased and they came and took it away from the Fire Department. Reporter thats when frank and paige and the whole town found out dixons money was gone, too. He gave it to someone who pyramid schemed it. Reporter the missing money, the repoed truck, the grand jury investigation, it all kept dixon on the front pages of the local paper for months. A series of public humiliations ending with an exclamation point when he was embarrassingly picked newsmaker of the year. It was clear rob, he was a big deal cause he had a lot of money. And then to lose it and be disgraced in a relatively Small Community theyre writing about him in the local paper. And i said, he has taken a gigantic fall and he will change dramatically for the worst. And i think that was very predictable and i think for rob thats what happened. At the end it was almost always bad rob that we were dealing with. She told friends and we saw an email, she was afraid hed kill her. He said he would kill her several times. Reporter in 2004, paige, in the midst of this downward spiral, called 911. 911. Where is your emergency . My husband and i were in a fight he was supposed to watch my children while i went to work and he said that i would come home and find them all murdered. Reporter police were dispatched but there was no arrest according to paiges parents the fighting only got worse. It was, you know, very ugly, the psychological, emotionally abuse that she endured all the time. And when i was there visiting, i saw an awful lot of it. Reporter after a 2nd incident, dixon was arrested on suspicion of thirddegree assault. We had misdemeanor Domestic Violence case against him with paige as the victim. Reporter dixon pleaded guilty to a lesser charge of harassment and got a deferred sentence. The entire case, though, was later thrown out. Anyway, paige filed for divorce and dixon for bankruptcy. And moved away to philadelphia to work as an emt again. And paige did what she could to keep the kids in the only home theyd ever known, that big place with the mortgage to match, close to six grand a month. She would just sit and ponder how can a single mom with three kids make enough money to stay in the house that her husband used to support . Reporter she had no lack of ideas or ambition. She sold cooking products for a Company Called the pampered chef and slings for carrying babies. She taught dancing classes for little kids, anything to turn a buck. Keeping track of it all in that big day planner of hers, the one that was almost an hour to hour record of her life. And even though he was now far away, she also kept an eye out for dixon. Flat out she was afraid of him. She was afriday of him coming back to town. She was always nervous he was gonna be coming back into town. Reporter and sure enough, two years later, in june 2007, the week before she vanished, paige got a call from dixon. Said he missed the kids. Said he was moving back to colorado. She said that she knew that rob was coming back. And that he was going to do something. And i was floored. I thought do something . What does do something mean . And she just said she knew something bad was gonna happen. But murder did not enter my mind. Kidnapping did not enter my mind. That must have been very strange to hear that. It it was a staggering conversation. I mean, we were just two moms with small children faced with an unknown situation and a couple days later she was missing. Coming up, inside the wreckage of paiges burned out car, her day planner. Still had the pages intact. Inside the planner, a shock for everyone in the case. It was stunning. Quite obviously, its dangerous. When dateline continues. Wanna get away . Now you can with southwest fares as low as 59 dollars oneway. Yes to low fares with nothing to hide. Thats transfarency. Just head shoulders . gasp i thought it was just for, like, dandruff new head shoulders. Cleans, protects and moisturizes to. Get up to 100 flakefree and unbelievably beautiful hair its not head shoulders, its the new head shoulders only abreva can heal it in as few as two and a half days when used at the first sign. It penetrates deep and starts to work immediately to block the virus and protect healthy cells. Dont tough it out, knock it out, fast. Abreva. The dinosaurs extinction. Got you outnumbered. Dont listen to them. Not appropriate. Now im mashing these potatoes with my stick of butter. Why dont you t esom find your awesome with the Xfinity Stream app. Crn. Reporter it was a dismal clue, the trail of bits and pieces of Paige Birgfelds life found scattered by the highway, but still no paige, alive or and now detectives had two exba ron beigler, the last person rob dixon, the man she told liv. Most people that she knew, friends, believed that rob dixon so he pops right up to the top of your list . He and rob beigler, both. Reporter as for hard evence evidence theyd been hiding from everyone, even the birgfelds something that by pure luck survived that car fire, paiges day planner. The melted dash had fallen the day planner and so it was as from the fire because it had. What sort of condition was it in . It was in i mean, it was smoke damaged and it had heat damage, but it still had the pages intact. Reporter t readable, was full of appointments, and plans and contact er most mundane routine. But and this was strange. Three key pages,e surrounding paiges out. And there was something , one particular Business Card th for a Company Called ladies en confidante. Shad business called models inc, whose cards were found scattered personal effects. Exhusband ron beigler. That paige had clients she would see. It was, you knooncoanionship intelligent woman that they wa tried, what with the dancing classes, the babyslings, the couldnt keep up with the bills. And so paige investigators learned had taken on one more job. She started moonlighting as an finding out that paigruing a high quality sort of prostitution business was kind i had no idea that that took place in my jurisdiction and nice part of town and and known to a number of people that that i knew. I mean, she was a soccer mom. One of my best friends daughter i ev sure. Kids. Manage to keep her Escort Service a secret from ybntfor s . Well, she went by the name carrie selling her services ro called models inc. A name that implied, intentionally, that several women worked with her, when it fact it was just her didnt. It was very hard for me to li reporter but she did, according to t po 100 a session. You can imagine how these revelations hit paiges mom and dad. They just couldnt believe it. If i had known about it, i er ay from it. Ouldve tried to i mean, if nothin else, quite. Robteously, but they said th could understand her motives, after all, she was doing whash do to keep life as normal as poeporler the news spread, of course pretty soon most peop there were, people who wrote to the paper and said horrible things like,y for a dead hooker . Spread, said andrea, by those who didnt even know paige. We knew her heart. We knew who she was every day th it ly put us mode and and made us all wan much as possible. Problem, though, was that phone that she was using for models inc. You art identifying e who had the most recent contact multiple people. Hello, youve reached models c, geme reporter now every client who contacted paige on june 28th and therre potential suspect. Heres ja yes, this is buddy. I wawo aernoon. Yeah, please give me a call baroom now. S available tonight. Hi, this is glen, im just wondering if anybodys Still Available. Im at the country a anybodys Still Available for the night. Is jim, i tried calling you last night. Give me a call, thanks. My name is dave. I was calling about the adn sp female escorts. Hours and stuff like that. Yeah, this is john at motel 6, room 237. Reporter so they put ble sp the two exhusbands now joined by six of paiges clients. Nothing to do but check out all of them. Gi paige called this guy, george coralluzzo. Wh called her 19 times. Were thinking, thats our guy. I cout and hes still coming up, what this woman saw. It hit me. And what she told investigators. Investigators. He totally did is in fmrexulti, when added to your antidepressant, s be shown to reduce symptoms of depression. 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Like a free john deere dump cart, towbehind spreader, or push spreader with purchase of le plus get up to 24 months or push spreader special financing with your lowes Consumer Credit card. Start with lowes. Okayat hmm, pot pie costs you five bucks. Thats a famous bowl, five bills. And thats my twopiece original recipe, also five dollars. E bucks. Kfc, its Finger Lickin good. Reporter Grand Junction is a modern town in every way, but lift your eyes from the humdrum, watch a setting sun fire the Great Monument cliffs all around. And for a moment youre in the old west. A mystique that clings to the place, as do the drifters attracted to such things. Young men who split their time between odd jobs and the county jail. Like, for example, george coralluzzo. Here from new jersey and eager to hustle a buck, or a woman or whatever. George corraluzzo was a conman, a sick person. Reporter Meagan Williams knew coralluzo because he and her then husband had partnered in a house painting business. Knowing coralluzzo as she did, she was not surprised by a visit she got on july 1st 2007. Sheriffs came to our house. And they said, is george corraluzzo here . I actually thought they were there to talk about this kidnapping case. Reporter to meagan this kidnapping case meant one six months earlier in which coralluzzo, allegedly took this woman against her will on a long scary ride across state lines. I spilled to them everything i knew up to that point. Reporter thinking you were talking about a different crime altogether . Correct. Reporter deputies didnt let on, but of course they were really looking into the disappearance of Paige Birgfeld, three days earlier. Where was coralluzzo that day . Well very interesting, said meagan. Hed failed to show up for work. And later that night he offered a truly bizarre reason why. That his family had been in an accident. And we said, what kind of accident . Oh, well, my brother and my sisterinlaw and my niece and nephew were beheaded on the turnpike in new jersey. He had to go to new jersey. He had to solidify funeral arrangements. He was sobbing and hands were flying and he was just like, i dont know what im going to do. And just very upset. And we believed him. Reporter as she told the detectives, coralluzzo took the first available flight back to new jersey. And that was that. The detectives thanked her and left. Didnt mention a thing about Paige Birgfeld. And then the very next day meagan was watching the news on tv and saw the story about the burned out car. Her car was found ablaze, in this parking lot, off 23 road. And then i saw the paiges face come across the news. And i looked at my exhusband tim and i said, thats what happened. I said, he murdered that woman. It just it hit me. Reporter then of course she had to know, was that wild story about a decapitating accident in new jersey just coralluzzos excuse to run from what he had done to get out of town . I scoured the internet and made phone calls. Reporter scoured the internet looking for evidence of a big Traffic Accident. Didnt find uhhuh. Nothing there. Reporter so who did you phone . I called their local gazette newspaper, talked to a reporter. Nothing happened. I called the coroner. Nothing. So newspaper, coroner, hospitals. Nothing. Reporter but meagan was able to locate coralluzzo and passed that tip on to lead investigator beverly jarrell, who would end up playing a key role. Youll hear more about her later. Jarrell caught up with coralluzzo in new jersey. Grilled him for five hours. But coralluzzo denied everything. More important he was in new jersey when paiges car was set ablaze so jarrell let him go. Reporter if he didnt burn the car, doesnt that let him out . No. Reporter why not . Because his actions lead me to believe that he did something so disgusting and vile that he had to leave Grand Junction and lie about his family dying. Something happened. Reporter and there was Something Else, said meagan. He told multiple people that he did something so terrible that he could never take it to the grave and that he would never be forgiven. What was that besides murdering somebody . George was a sketchy person and he totally did this. Reporter the coralluzzo she knew she said was cunning enough to have one of his pals help him, somebody like this guy, his best friend, jose tavera. Detectives suspected that too. So they found tavera brought him in for questioning and what do you know hed recently injured his arm. I had a bandage on it and the cop asked me hes all, what what is that, you know . The detective goes, what happened there . I said, well, i burned my i burned myself at work. Hes like, well, are you good enough of a friend to burn a car down for george, you know . Discovery about paiges clirnt phone numbers, bra sizes and whr strange, but did it mean anything . When dateline continue make all your pains a distant memory with advil the worlds 1 choice pain . Advil. Need a fast absorbing try nivea inshower body lotion. Ply. It absorbs fast. Wash. For 24 hour moisture. Ready to go nivea inshower body lotion. Pizza a la awesome. Slam dunk mom, nice assist ranch. Its time to ranch out with the original, continuing now with the am se i knew something horrible happened. Finding out page was running a rather high class prostitution business was stunning. At least one of her patrons is under investigation. George was a sick person. Now, investigators will focu a man with an exwife. An exwife with a story to tell. He saidi the astonishing end to a heart breaking case. Reporter it was a traumatic time, here in Grand Junction, colorado, that summer of 2007. What with the fruitless search , loved by so many, who turned out to have secrets. Mails and phone records that seemed to point eight different ways at once, two exhusbands and six clients. I dont think that ive every entire career. Reporter one by one, the suspects or tried to. Exhusband number one and current boyfriend, ron beigler. We were able to determine cel phone records. Reporter second husband, rob dixon, the one man she said she feared . We were able to corroborate the philadelphia area at the time. Cell phone connected to a tower in pennsylvania the night paige left this message on paiges ph paige, if you get this, please, please, call somebody. Please, please, please, let us know youre okay. Re ats dixon alibisinatthem as far as having some involvement and maybe paying somebody. Reporter tn clies corallt the top of it given he didnt have a solid alibi and skipped town right after her at was most concerning. Ntio corralluzzos friend jose tavera the one with the big burn on his arm. I said well, i said, i reporter who swore he did not help corralluzzo by setting. I said, i dont care mother theresa comes and asks me to burn a car tell her t hell, you know. Reporter so they let him go too, for the moment. The other clients . Hautzinger knew one of them very well, a prominent real estate i. He was almost as well known and dixon, for the w handled when i came to this mean, i had prosecuted him and sent him to prison back in the early 90s for that. So when he came up again as a suspect in the birgfeld matter it was interesting. Reporter when detectives he embezzled money from his company to pay for dates with p. But then, he claimed, paige. He made allegations that she was essentially blackmailing him asking for extra money. Reporter what a motive. Except healds wife supplied an night, reading, watching tv. So heald seemed to be in the afte being questioned by detectives heald attempted suicide. That, d. A. Hautzinger assumed, was not guilt but shame. People dont really want to have it out in public that, oh, yeah. I was patronizing a callgirl. Reporter they checked ou who, the night paige vanished, called her again and again a motel 6. Desperate, apparently, for her atnt 6, room 237. Epter except thereo evidence paige ever went to but then there was this client, lester ralphes thats him standing in the shadow of s investigators got a tip about jones from this friend of paiges named carol linderholm. Paige had scheduled an appointment with jones the night before she disappeared. But for some reason didnt want to go, asked linderholm to meet jones instead. And then i think and then you showed up at his door. Expectat, led Escort Service. Well, he let it be known ie wanted sex. Reporter linderholm said that didnt happen. Instead they talked for an hour. Couple of days later, she said, she called paige. You . At first i thought she was just busy and she couldnt call back. Ws that the kids actually went to thats when i knew something terrible had happened to her. Oh, i hope youre all right. Oh my god. Reporter linderholm mentioned paiges second exhusbandof b him. Then, the next day linderholm fire. I wanted to go over and and look at it and i arrived ston arailer and and when it just it just left me with this horrible feeling. Reporter as she drove away her eye. It was a sign for bob scott rvs. Lester jones had told me tha car in the parking lot that was the same one that was in the driveway when i walked up to lester jones house. And i thought, oh my god. Reporter right away carol went to the sheriffs office, e Lester Ralph Jones. You ve that story, or did you . We gave it a lot of credence. Reporter i after paige disappeared they brought jones in for questioning mr. Jones, i appreciate you coming down, ok . Sure. Reporter jones wase department, which is where his ok. Reporter rob dixon. Paiges exhusband. Go down that road. What dthhe Fire Department up in hotchkiss. There. Ka that was a long time ago. Reporter and had also met dixons then wife, paige. cause she, aere and she had come to where . The Fire Department, you mean . Yeah. Aback jones claimed, when a couple of years later he went to the models inc massage parlor, and was greeted by, rob dixons do you know if she recognized you . I wouldnt e u o you think she would . Feel uncomfortable . Yeah. But things went ok. Yeah. And how often h business with them . I think twice, i think. Reporter while jones answered questions downtown, investigators scoured his house and bob scott rvs, where he worked. What did you whatd you find when you searched bob scotts rv location . A list of names of escorts that we knew ie junction area, where he had their names, phone numbers, bra size and whether or not they wo. Some viagras, and also some condoms. Reporte a black bra t d in a locked ca chef one of paiges many businesses. Creepy. Certainly suspicious but not es ll which led investigators to a new theory. I still have difficulty believing that you killed her. Unless youre working coming up, investigators gen for a very strange call. If you should bury the body. Me o of no. Nobody asked that . Nobody. Plus, mobile hot spot gbs of 22. 50 per month for 4es and now, the offer everyones been waiting for. For people with hearing loss, you get ultimate protection on your heaviest days tampax pearl for on the go. Did you like rob dixon . Reporter detectives ppearan of Paige Birgfeld had a big hunch. Connection between le second husband, rob dixon. When was your l with rob . Dixon had been looking for dirt abouig use in family court as a way of gettin so, as the cops saw it, rob dixon had the motive while leer means. So, maybe murder for hire . Ne calls. Ence of any contact no wire transfs. Nothing suspicious. On the othe hand. Well, er holes in his story. Paige went missing. Even worse, jones admitted that when paiges car was set on fire, he was at bob scott rvs practically across the street. By your own admission youand a. Tell me that. Explain that. I i cant explai t you. Reporter and guess what they found at jones work site . A discarded package that once a the os reveal the identity of the user. Le to determine that the phone was bought at walmart on north avenue. R Security Camera video. And well, well, well, the Lester Ralph Jones. Why was that important . Particular tracfone called paige at models, incve night she disappeared. Was e thi rose above all else it was the video of him buying the tracfone on that was uso th that was him in the video. Tracfone at walmart. I didnt buy no tracfone at . H, video. Onesas you can five hours, and then, they had to let him go. A couple of days later, a detective called jones to say his two cars which had b up. And jones wife answered the phone. Es, y i speak with ralph please . Hold on please. Ister jones . Yes, sir. This is art smith with the sheriffs office, just calling both oth office right now. No. Im sorry . I dont think so. You. You asked ld h bury a body. Whiam which surprised us. Becau n nobody had asked him about where he buried the body. We were calling him about his and the day before, we never and most certainly interesting when theun seemed so out of it, hed just taken an overdose of sleeping n wife, what appeared to be a suicide note. Ve,e wrote. Ive prayed all night and this i want you to know how much i love you. Youre the best thing that has en please forgive me and then he added this, tell the cops to get. I never did it, but i cant be jones recovered quickly but his actions that day remained a investigators. The evidence was definitely pointing toward lester jones. But we still had to keep an eye open on mr. Livingston, mr. Heald, mr. Coralluzzo. Ones we know about. Is there somebody else out there we dont even know about yet . S came back negative. The fire burned it clean of evturned to a volunteer Search Dog Team for help. And sure enough, the dogs appeared to hit on jones scent in paiges charred car. And along highway 50 where all those items were found. And then they sniffed their way ends at the gunnison river. Iven dogs followed exactly the same gravel road into the so was paiges body in here somewhere . Lein divers. Basically, we go across the river about a 100 feet. They let us out five feet. We come back across the river, feel, i just got o bottom. Reporter but, there just sns . Anyway, the laborintesive i guess thats the only soat d thing, at this point, to do because there isnt anymore to their own lives. Reporteut option for paiges family. I really wish i could get into. Reporter even offered a 15,000 reward, no questions asked. D if shes out there, we need to find her. Ul tips. Not one, even though frank stayed on in Grand Junction for a whole fruitless year. At some point, you have to doing this . Or is it time to go back to what was it like on the way you were leaving for good . I would say kind of a mewher im im leaving her. Reporter but while no one knew where paige was. Idea as to what may have happed this is lisa nance, who was rather briefly married, once lisa will always remember him. Coming up, the exwifes tale. He looked at me and said, im he looked at me and said, im going to kill you. It helps to strengthen it also has stain lifting action. The protection that they need higher parents arent perfect, but then the. Ke dear fellow citizen, i know what its like to worry about st so i couldnt do the things i love, like traveling. But i knew there had Citizens Bank education refinance loan. An education refinance loan helped me save on payments each month. Refinancing is right for you, ask me. Sincerely, robert kennedy, fellow grad and fellow citizen. Ca. No doubt about it, thought lisa nance lester ralphes was a catch, tall, strong, a firefighter, for heavens sake. He was a really nice person. Really nice, huh . What do you mean by really nice . Nice how . He just seemed really nice reporter well, you know how people are, caht blinding glare of new love. And then, in a month, or two, or six, disturbing things begin to occur unimagined traits emerge. Mes ni story like the one lisa nance told us abou Lester Ralph Jones. I caught him, you know, watchin me and stuff, you know . Like, watchin me where i was reporter he tapped her phone, she said. He hid secret recording devices. Like, if id talked to any of my friends or anything like tha, he would already know that i had talked to whoever. Reporter it just wasnt better sooner than later, she thought. And one morning, as she was drivinhe a car drew up beside her car, it was him,es d my car. And it knocked h and caused the airbags and stuff to go off. Took off running. But jones had a gun. He shot at him twic and i think the other one grazed his head. Nd i thought. I thought that. It was scary. I asked him to put the gun down, you know . cause he had it pointed right at me. And finally he put it in the backseat the back floorboard. And then, you know, i talked t him and tried to calm him down, you know . What was he saying to you . Di anymore. And i didnt want him anymore. And i was tryin to convince hif she called the police, he was but in no time made bail. And then, lisa was at home a few ek i came out of my room. D as just sitting on the couch. I mean, just sitting in the my stomach just you know, what on earth are you doing here . You know . And he didnt say anything. Scared, because he just didnt look like himself. Anything. Reporter he had something on his mind . I think so. We it seemed like it an ans wanted to get out of the house, you know, as quick as we could. Reporter she said what came into her head, lets go o t driving but then she realized he wasnt going to dinner. E mounta. I was like, where are we anything. He just kept rubbin the back of my head, saying, its gonna be okay. Rubbing the back of your uhhuh. What sortto saithat . He wasnt being loud. He wasnt yelling or anything like that. He was just really, really quiet. Uhhuh. Its a little creepy. Were not gonna eat, are we . And he looked at me. And he said, do . And he was like, im goin over. The moment had come for you . cause all i could think aseei. But i was, like, trn talk to him, youw . And trying to get him to talk to me, listen to hes like, you dont love me anymore. And was like, no, tha true, you know . And hes like, well, then prit me to make love to him in the car. And i e could just go get a room and talk, you know . And so finally he agreed to that. So what happened when you go . We went to that motel. And he pulled in there. And he looked at me. Hes like, youll be waitin here when i come back. And i said, yes. So he goes in. As soon as he went in that second door and he was out of sight, i took off. I started drivin back toward wn and i was goin really fast, hoping that i i should think so. Told him what someone would was happening. And and then they took me back to the police sta to the motel to arrest jones. But. They said they couldnt find e. Reporter where was he . Terrified, went home. And he called. Hsaid was, where are you . And i house. And did they catch him . Noo look. Somebody broke into lisas mothers house in oklahoma. She called me, la later that day and said when she was leaving work that she noticed this car was following her and she said it was ralph. She called the Sheriffs Department and shes like, hes here, hes following me, and they arrested him. My mom said she asked him what was he doing. And he said, looking for your daughter. Reporter Lester Ralph Jones was convicted of assault and kidnapping and served three years. And now he was out and remarried and by the fall of 2007 a pile of circumstantial evidence connected him to Paige Birgfelds disappearance. Why didnt you just go arrest him . Our job is to gather the facts. And then present it to the District Attorneys Office and they make that determination. You wanna add cause he had to fight that battle constantly for years. Oh, i think you hit it hit it right on. Reporter meaning they were ready to pick up jones, but d. A. Hautzinger was not. Why didnt you decide to pull the pin on Lester Ralph Jones . I didnt have a body. And that was the defining. Absolutely. That was really. I mean, there are lots of no body cases that go to trial. Not a lot of no body cases where the victim has a double life and has been lying to her family and friends. Because of her double life the possibility that defense attorney could throw out there that she ran off with some rich client and is living on a beach in brazil or something. Reporter and as the years passed, paiges story went from the front of the paper to being filed away on microfiche. Where was she . Coming up, they were about to fipd out, and it would transform the case. We need to make a critical decision. And then, a brandnew theory of what happened to paige. I think that triggers something and something went wrong. Unpredictable diarrhea and abdominal pain, you may have Irritable Bowel Syndrome with diarrhea, or ibsd. A condition that can be really frustrating. Talk to your doctor about viberzi, a different way to treat ibsd. Viberzi is a Prescription Medication you take every day that helps proactively manage both diarrhea and abdominal pain at the same time. So you stay ahead of your symptoms. Viberzi can cause new or worsening abdominal pain. 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A couple trekking through the wells gulf march 6, 2012. Pretty soon, paiges dad got another one of those phone calls, this time from a local reporter. He said, do you know they found paiges remains this morning . He asked if anybody had called me. I said you are the first one. Reporter it took time though, to be certain it was her. A couple weeks or so was verified it was paiges remains. Reporter a few miles south of where the documents were. It had to be paige that left the trail. A call for help or arrow pointing where to find her. All that, while restrained. They found remnants of duct tape wrapped around her jaw. We really think the searchers were here. To miss it, you know, its like, darn, how did that happen . Reporter probably, said the detectives, her killer buried her five years earlier, back in 2007 when she first disappeared. Eventually, what was left of her was unearthed by run off. So, the d. A. Said this is what we have been waiting for. We need to put the pedal to the medal and make a decision. Reporter now, with a body, they decided to fashion a murder case against one of the eight possible suspects, rob dixon and bieglor had solid alibis. Both being hundreds of miles away. So, that left the six clients. Of course, Lester Ralph Jones was at the top of the list. George coralluzzo, remember him . Coralluzzo is the suspect that gave me, as the d. A. Heart burn and concerns. Thats because his alibi was so hard to pin down. He was partying at joses apartment. But what time exactly . That depended on who you spoke to. What everybody did agree was this, coralluzzo was out of control. He was intoxicated, slurring his words, not being able to focus. He wouldnt have been able to murder her and get rid of the body. He wasnt capable of it. Reporter of course, he might have been lying to protect his friend. Detectives wanted to talk to coralluzzo himself but they couldnt find him. They asked for help. Dune where george is . I said george is dead. Drown the year before while swimming in a river in new jersey. Still, to satisfy the d. A. , investigators had to make a case that coralluzzo was guilty of innocent. Because dead men dont talk, they had to go through seven years of reports, interviews and statements. It was two years after paiges body was discovered, investigators stumbled upon an overlooked piece of evidence that would change the case. It was Security Camera video of coralluzzos friend. He wasnt in the video but the time stamp backed up the story, minute by minute that he had been telling the cops, lifting his credibility and, in turn, helping to establish coralluzzos where abouts. It helps kor ob rate what the witness was saying, piecing together a time line of where he was, where we could prove he was during the relevant window of opportunity right. That evening or next day when paige went missing. By interviewing lots of people that had been with coralluzzo or talked to him, we were able to pain stakingly alibi him. Reporter they felt they had enough to take the case to a jury. In november, 2014, 7 1 2 years after paige vanished, Police Arrested ralph jones for her murder. Did they know the whole story now . Oh, no, they certainly did not. They didnt know where or how paige was killed. It would have been nice to have that additional piece of evidence or additional puzzle piece to put into the jigsaw. Reporter help you tell the story, too. Exactly. Reporter thats an important thing for a prosecutor to do. Its the entire thing. I dont have to prove motive, for example, but i usually try to anyway because the jury wants to know, why did this person do this. Reporter tell us the story, what happened in your view . I think lester jones was obsess obsessed with paige and she had not enjoyed her time with him and was putting him off. I think that triggered something and thats why he got the tracfone and something went wrong. My guess is that he physically subdued her and drove her down to where her body was found but she was conscious and had the ability to throw things out the window or trunk or whatever it was leaving the trail going down to delta and she was ultimately killed not far from where her body was found. Reporter but the defense had its own compelling story to tell or rather stories. A separate tale for each of those alternate suspects, waste of time . Well, maybe not. Remember, it takes just one juror with reasonable doubt to throw a whole case into, well, youll see. Coming up, at trial, the defense goes hard at the original lead detective in the case. Did you actually receive an official reprimand for the poor quality of work you did in this case . Reporter maybe the case against jones never stood a chance. If you are doing shotty work in the beginning, your investigation is sick. 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If they didnt know paige personally, then they were in on the search, or were a potential witness, or knew somebody who was or, in the worse case, they knew one of the possible suspects. So when the trial finally got underway. The towns attention was very much focused on this courtroom. Were on the record, reporter but the trouble began before a single witness could be called. Ron beigler was angry, wound up. The new District Attorney Dan Rubinstein was set to call paiges first husband. He was a key witness, but was afraid he might actually attack jones in the courtroom because beigler had actually threatened to kill him. And indicated that he wanted mr. Jones to be found not guilty so that he could kill him and feed him his genitals, although he used a different word than that. Reporter proceedings ground to a sudden halt. Beigler was hauled before the judge. If you have any outbursts or you do anything in an attempt to harm anybody in the courtroom, that will result in serious consequences. I think it was over exaggerated. Taken out of context. All right. Sarcasm may be taken out of context. Reporter chastened, but still insisting it was all a misunderstanding, beigler took the stand and testified about his last day with paige. We talked about me moving into her house in Grand Junction. We talked about her quitting that business. Which business . The Adult Entertainment business. Did you give her reasons why you wanted her to quit . Mmhmm. What were the reasons you said . Because she could get killed, for one. Reporter the jury heard about it all. The day planner, items along the roadside, the bits of paper left along the highway, the search dogs who scented on jones the Tracfone Jones bought then lied about. And the apparent suicide note hed left for his wife, and the jury heard that strange call jones had with a deputy. When jones said you asked me where i would bury a body. Reporter lisa nance told the jury the harrowing tale of the night jones took her into the mountains. And he looked at me. He said, im going to kill you. Reporter and, there was this. Hi mom. Its me. I was just wondering when you would get home. Reporter the prosecution played the fearful phone messages paiges then 8yearold daughter jess left on her mothers cellphone. Love you, bye. Reporter and here was jess today, now a senior in high school, but still able to give a childs perspective of a very loving mother. She was pretty much a typical soccer mom. She she we did everything with her. We all slept in the same bed with her, and [ sniffs ] we always went shopping together. And she took us to all of our soccer games, and to school, and she provided us with everything that we needed, whatever that may have been. Reporter a procession of witnesses that lasted for weeks. And the defense teams response . That this was all so much show to distract from a shoddy investigation that focused on jones from the start, despite the lack of any physical evidence. Do you solemnly swear reporter and they drove that theory home by boldly calling former lead investigator, beverly jarrell. Remember her . She was in charge of the investigation and all those detectives from the beginning, yet was never called to testify for the prosecution, perhaps for good reason. Would you agree, investigator jarrell, that you made some mistakes in this investigation . Um, yes. Okay. Has it come to your attention that you did, in fact, forget to book in a few recordings into evidence for this . Yes. Reporter jarrell admitted reports had gone unwritten and evidence was actually lost, like jose taveras first police interview. And did you actually receive an official reprimand for the poor quality of work you did in this case . I dont remember that. You dont remember getting a major disciplinary action because you kept evidence from this case in your office . In writing . No. Reporter jarrell said her memorys been fuzzy since a 2010 horseriding accident, something that happened three years after the slipups on the birgfeld case. And then came the alternate suspects, the guy who called paige from that motel 6. And in that storage unit you had numerous guns, right . I did have, yes. Reporter this former client, who allegedly discussed killing paige. Did you tell ms. Waylan that you had killed ms. Birgfeld by putting ms. Birgfeld through a woodchipper . [ laughs ] no, maam. Somebody had said something about, did you do this to paige . Did you murder paige . And i said, just out of context, had i had i they wouldnt find her because i would have used a woodchipper. And it was totally out of context. Reporter the client who admitted embezzling his companys money to pay paige. Did you kill ms. Birgfeld . No. Are you responsible for her disappearance. Absolutely not. Reporter and then the defense went after jose tavera, who admitted he was so tight with coralluzzo he would have done just about anything for his friend. Including burning a car to help him if he needed that done. I wouldnt do that. You wouldnt do that . No. Thats the one thing you wouldnt do . Yeah. Reporter Meagan Williams told the jury she was sure the killer was really corralluzzo. He was a pathological liar, and anything that came out of his mouth was a lie. And any story that he made up, was made up reporter so many suspects, said the defense, and they put on a retired detective to accuse the police of tunnel vision. Because if youre doing shoddy work in the beginning, and youre not paying attention to all the details and all the information, and vetting all of the leads, your investigation becomes sick, its almost impossible to make it well again. Reporter as for forensic evidence, said the defense, forget about it. They called an expert to say there is no way a dog can follow a monthold scent. My opinion is that its not possible. Reporter if true that meant there was no proof jones had ever been in paiges car or along the highway where her belongings were found. By the end of the sixweek trial, the jury had heard from more than a hundred witnesses, testifying about a nineyear investigation, involving multiple suspects. So it wasnt surprisingduring deliberationsthe jury came back with one question after the other. The prosecutor i started to get worried and the question popped into my mind, is it possible to ever convince 12 people beyond a reasonable doubt, unanimously as to an answer on this case . And i started to worry about that. Please rise for our jury. Reporter by day three, the judge called the jury into his courtroom to ask is there a likelihood of progress towards a unanimous verdict . Reporter after getting this far, was the prosecutions case coming undone . Coming up, jurors speak out saying the case went wrong from the start with the original lead detective. She boggled me when she was like, i dont remember, i dont know. You are a lead investigator . Then, paiges parents emotional reaction. I will tell you, that was a hard part. That was the hardest for me. Can make any occasion feel more special. Ie so she makes her pie crust from scratch. And sprinkles on brown sugar streusel. So that you can spend more time making special moments with your family. Marie callenders its time to savor sugar, were letting you go. What . Whos replacing me . Splenda naturals . Look, shes sweet, shes got natural stevia, no bitter aftertaste and shes caloriefree. So thats it . We made you a cake. With sugar . Oh, no. laughing new neutrogena® rapid wrinkle repair we made you a cake. Wrinkles . Your time is up with the proven power of retinol. Reduces wrinkles in just one week. Neutrogena® my swthis scarf all thatsara. Left to remem. What she washed this like a month ago the long lasting scent of gain flings thanks to applebees new 2fordate night. Girls night. Or just any night, has never tasted better. Enjoy two classic favorites in one savory dish, with the spinach artichoke chicken cavatappi. Two fullsize entrees and an app for just 20 bucks. Only at applebees. The following ad for your viewing convenience. So i just switched to geico. What took you so long . I know, i saved a ton of money on car insurance. Thats what im talking about geico also gives you 24 7 access to licensed agents booooyah. Good game, you really crushed it. No son, geico crushed it. By day three of deliberations, the jury sent word to the judge they were deadlocked. Is there oo likelihood of progress toward a unanimous verdict . No. All right, thank you. Reporter the judge ordered them back to deliberate further. Now there was concern. They wont make another effort consider their opinions further. If they are unable to make a verdict reporter less than two hours later, another message from the jury. The jury remains in the same position period. We are not unanimous in our decision, period. We do not feel any further discussion will change our current state, period. That was it. The judge had no option but declare a mistrial. Minutes later, paiges dad, frank, tried to keep it positive. If we hadnt had a trial, it was a massive effort. I am grateful they gave us a shot at it. Reporter like many times in the past, frank cracked and the pain slipped through. At the end, they should have that all in my heart, i believe he was guilty. Reporter a handful of jurors spoke to us afterward to explain how the trial played out for them. This man, William Sullivan voted guilty. Because of the evidence. You know, nobody has that bad of luck in one week. This man was disturbed by the lead investigators testimony. She boggled me on the stand, i dont remember, i dont know. Whatever. And you are a lead investigator . They should have replaced her immediately. Reporter still, he voted guilty. There were others, three, who couldnt go with their doubts. Not enough evidence for them to get past a reasonable doubt. Reporter the prosecutor said, in a way, he understood. The biggest weakness of the case, in my opinion was, there were no eyewitnesses that placed him with miss birgfeld that night. Reporter he conceded they did a good job defending jones. The point they were trying to make is a good one, it could be anyone. It could be anyone we never thought of. Reporter the seasons slipped by. With the leaves gone and snowfalling, a retrial. Good afternoon, ladies and gentlemen. Reporter with time and money tight, this would be the last shot at jones. Another mistrial would be just as good as an acquittal. Do you solemnly swear reporter it all played out before. You have a track record of being dishonest . Yes. Reporter the same witnesses. Did you kill her . No maam. Reporter the same testimony. I have never been able to run a dog on a trail that is a month old. Reporter the same suspect. Did they conduct a good investigation . No. Reporter the same Closing Argument from the defense. This man is innocent and he stays that way unless these people can convince you otherwise, beyond a reasonable doubt. Reporter what is different this time is the Closing Argument taking the alternate suspect seriously, he went after each theory, one by one, with attitude. And to think that somebody whose so drunk that three people have to cart him around, who is also on cocaine is capable of doing this, carefully and going back and cleaning us up, carefully, with a car fire that specifically targeted to get the evidence, to tear pages out of a day planner. Does this sound like george at all . No. Reporter would that make a difference to the new jury . Few thought so. While deliberations went on from one day to the next, paiges parents braced themselves. I think theres a reasonable chance it could be another mistrial. If it is a mistrial, i suspect jones will walk out a free man. Reporter just as in the first trial, the jury deliberated for three days before sending a note to the judge. Please be seated. Reporter this time, there was a verdict. We the jury find the defendant Lester Ralph Jones guilty of count one, murder in the first degree. When the verdict came in, i think we were supposed to feel elated, like the home team kicked a field goal with two seconds left and we just won. To be honest, i didnt feel that. There were no winners in this case. None of this brings paige back to us. Reporter what about you . This is about paige. This is about paige who has been gone and will not be able to come back to her friends, her brother, her parents, her kids. Reporter who now live far away in pennsylvania, as they have since paige first vanished. The birgfelds tried to get custody, but the court ruled in favor of the father. Just trying to get back to our normal lives. We wont. We never will be what we were ten years ago. Its changed each of us, but we are working it, trying to get back to normal. Reporter or Something Like it. A big word that always hangs over is closure. Im not sure what that means. Paige was kidnapped. Reporter there were difficult moments for them during the murder trial. The first time they heard the frightened voice mail messages of her children. Hi, mom. You said you would be back last night and you are not back today. Bye. That was the hard part. That was the hardest for me. There is almost a recognition that you are in trouble, please dont be in trouble. Please come home to us. Reporter and then, there was the day planner, when the sweet, mundane details of her life were made real once more. The family night, soccer games, the dance resitals and birthday parties and library visits, they were all there. The precious, chaotic rhythms of a family that once was. Proved there was a time when all was as it should be. Proof, also, that time is gone, forever. Thats all for this edition of dateline. Well see you again next friday at 9 00, 8 00 central. Of course ill see you each night for nbc nightly news. Im lester holt. For all of us at nbc news, good night. Water woes, we have seen a wet start to the weekend but it is not a total washout. Fire fallout tonight. Three people are facing charges for this inferno on the interstate. The new way terrorists are trying to get explosives on to airplanes. Rainy roadblocks. The wet water made it very difficult for drivers today. Area streets were flooded. The creeks in your neighborhood could be filling up. A viewer sent us this video of a creek in bucksou