for the last seven and a half years. but i'm not going to anymore. david, i forgive you. i'm not going to hold myself to let you ruin my life anymore. >> but there is a question for which gael will most likely never get a comprehensive answer. >> why? and how could he ever harm such a nice person? i mean, nici was such a good person. >> the hardest question always the why. the coldest fact, the young woman gone too soon. >> that's all for this edition of dateline. i'm craig melvin. thank you for watching. hello, i'm craig melvin. and this is dateline. >> it was rough, it was a rough time for the whole community. >> it hit her town like a lightning bolt. the strange disappearance of carrie olson. >> it was scary. everyone loved carrie. >> it was so painful. >> you reach out to dateline?

>> i did, yes. we started getting people following our page. >> where was she? what was behind this? far from home early. >> i saw the tattoo and i said, that's her tattoo, isn't it? >> and three caught on camera clues. someone's in her car. someone's at her back. but, most jaw-dropping of all, someone is up onstage with a song turned sinister. >> i couldn't believe what i was hearing and seeing. >> could karaoke be a key to this case? >> my heart was pounding and pounding. >> i was sweaty and nervous. we need to figure this out, fast. hello, and welcome to dateline. 29 year old carrie olson was the girl next door, bubbly and bright, with close friends and a new man in her life. she had everything ahead of her,

and then she vanished. had she just walked away, or did someone take her? was she even alive? here is andrea canning and without a trace. >> it is a sad fact of american life, family separated from their loved ones, gone without a trace. nationwide, there are almost 100,000 active missing person cases. since december 2013, dateline's online missing america series has been telling some of those heartbreaking stories. one of the first came from the heartland. where not everything is serene and pastoral. this is the quad cities, urban, industrial, gritty, four cities split by the mighty mississippi river. two on the iowa side, two in illinois.

these days, the quad cities is a sometimes an easy mix of old-fashioned midwestern values, and modern urban life, where crime is an inescapable part of the landscape. this is where carrie olson went missing in december of 2013. >> she had a heart of gold, and always made you feel welcome. >> amanda smith and carrie were bff from the moment they met as 11 year olds at a neighborhood pool. >> we were just swimming together one day, and sparks just flew. >> how do little girls have sparks? what was it about carrie? >> she was outgoing, fun. she pushed you in the pool, she would splash you. she would give you the best bear hugs, you know, just would send tingles through your body,

made you feel so special. >> the vivaciously carrie was a people person. and according to, sarah paxton, another friend, a dog person too. she loved her collie. >> her dog, colby jack. colby, colby cheese. she loved loved loved colby. colby was like her child. >> 29-year-old carrie worked in her father's clothing and carpet store. carrie was a bit of a mommy and daddy's girl, was that fair? >> yeah. >> her dad seemed to do a lot of things for her? >> yeah, he did. if something needed done, he was taking care of it. >> but carrie was trying to find her own way. she live in her own house, and dreamed of one day walking down the aisle. >> she wanted to be loved. she wanted a family. she wanted something stable in her life. >> the outgoing carrie had no trouble meeting guys. but had not found mr. right. >> carrie with such a street heart. she was always bubbly. >> kelly hornick is a nurse who moonlights as a -- jimmie o's. carrie was a regular. >> she was always well behaved, hang out with her girlfriends, having a good time.

i think they came here for karaoke, and that is a fun crowd. >> it was at jimmie o's where carrie met tim mcvay. from the moment they laid eyes on each other, they were smitten. >> they were flirting with each other's. you could tell their interest in each other, it was cute. >> tim started theology at augustan college. he planned on combing a minister, but felt he was too young and inexperienced to live up to the responsibility. so he took a dramatic u-turn, and found a very different calling in bars and clubs, as the karaoke king of the quad cities. >> he was very good at running karaoke. he was funny. he entertained the customers. he got up there and dance with them. he would sing songs. you know, he was a good guy. >> tim, a divorced father of two, with ten years older than carrie. but that did not seem to matter. they were having fun, and

carrie could imagine a future together. >> she saw everyone around her getting married, and having children, myself included. and, i know she wanted that. >> but tim was not interested in having more children, and that was a deal breaker for carrie. so they decide to go their separate ways. carrie soon start dating justin mueller, an iraq war vet with a very different personality than the fun loving tim. >> he seemed very quiet and pleasant. he was polite, he was nice. he seemed a little awkward. >> despite his quiet and awkward demeanor, justin looked like a good fit for carrie. he was closer in age, hardworking, loyal, and he seemed to find a place in her heart. so, they moved in together. it was a big step. for carrie, it was the first time she set up house with anyone. >> but right from the start, it was not the happily ever after kind of life carrie dreamed about. the iraq war left justin with a difficult case of

post-traumatic stress disorder. >> i felt like it was not a good match. all he want to do is stay home, where carrie was always going to go out and do things. >> did you start seeing this as, i can see this going to be a problem? >> i did, i saw this as a clash. >> then, just three weeks after justin moved in, there was a problem. and it was a big one. carrie suddenly disappeared. it was a monday, december 30th, 2013, the start of a work week. carrie did not show up at the store, and did not call in. not like her at all. >> something was wrong. >> right. i called her, i could tell her phone was off. it was going straight to voice mail. and i thought about calling hospitals. i just was scared. >> not home, not at work, not in touch. where was carrie? coming up -- >> it was in the news, it was on facebook. >> i even contacted dateline. >> a frustrating search for

carrie. >> it's traumatic, and it's overwhelming. >> i just felt like a needle in a haystack. >> and maybe signs of trouble. >> she start acting out, slamming the door. >> when dateline continues. and fizz when you throw them back. and who doesn't love a good throwback? ( ♪♪ ) ( ♪♪ ) emergen-c crystals.

what can you do with sensitive skin? cetaphil moisturizing lotion hydrates for a full 48 hours. because a lot can happen in 48 hours. dermatologist-recommended cetaphil. we do skin. you do you. shipstation saves us so much time it makes it really easy and seamless pick an order print everything you need slap the label on ito the box and it's ready to go our cost for shipping, were cut in half just like that go to shipstation/tv and get 2 months free

get over here kids. justtime for today's lesson. wow. -whoa. what are those? these are humans. they rely on something called the internet to survive. huh, powers out. [ gasp ] are they gonna to die?

worse, they are gonna get bored. [ gasp ] wait look! they figured out a way to keep the internet on. yeah! -nature finds a way. [ grunt ] stay connected when the power goes out, with storm ready wifi from xfinity. >>grief can sneak in like a and see migration in theaters now. thief and steal your joy. >> that is what's seemed to happen when carrie olson disappeared.

grief gripped an entire community, and did not let go. >> on new year's day, i did create a find carrie olson a facebook page. people were sharing it left and right, so her story was getting out. i even contacted dateline. >> and? >> they published her story. >> when we posted carrie's story as part of dateline's missing in america series, it reached 1. 9 million people, and was shared 42,000 times. did you feel like that was something that could help? just getting it out at a national level? >> i think it helped a lot. >> thousands starting to follow amandas page. carrie's story united the quad cities in a unique way, everybody want to help, and everybody was hoping for a break in the case. but they were also on edge. >> did you just start to have worse and worse thoughts as you waited? >> i did. >> what are you told is going on with carrie?

>> that she did not show up for work. that the family was concerned. >> the family was so concerned they called the police. the case went to detectives rick roy and bill thomas of the davenport police department. they say carrie's live in boyfriend justin said he had no idea where she was. >> justin did not have any answers. >> justin said he and carrie had a fight. she stormed out of the house, and he had not seen her in two days. >> carrie was upset. >> what did she say to him? >> she said something about being stupid. >> carrie's ex tim mcvay was in las vegas when he was told she was missing. he and carrie we're still close friends. tim said he wanted to help, and had an idea. he talked to carrie's father, dave, where to look. >> he told him, hey, she could be at my place. go over and look. there is a window open, you can crawl into the window, and search the house. >> they went over there, and searched? >> through the window, did he see anything? >> no.

>> no carrie at tims, no carrie anywhere. and something that showed something was terribly wrong. her beloved dog, colby. >> everything was colbi, she treated the dog just like a little kid. and where she would go, colby was with her. she would always make arrangements for colby. she would never just leave. >> colby being at home without carrie led detectives roy and promised to a grim possibility. >> as detectives, do you have to consider that someone may have taken their own life? >> and a missing person investigation, that is always a possibility. >> amanda gave that theory some weight. she said there was a sadness behind carrie's bubbly personality. >> i started thinking that maybe she had committed suicide somewhere. did you think carrie was capable of taking her own life?

>> well, she seemed depressed at times. >> still, detectives needed to know more. they executed to search warrants. the first at the house carrie shared with her boyfriend justin. >> the search warrant that we prepared for carrie's house included everything that justin owned and justin's vehicle. >> justin's vehicle was checked and photographed, and a sweep was made in the house. it was tidy, undisturbed, didn't look like a crime scene. another search was done at ex-boyfriend tim mcvay's house. >> we wanted to get into his residence, and see, was she there, was she not there? are there any clues that we need to build on? >> detective tina noe executed the search on tom's home. >> we took lots of photographs. you never know what's gonna be important, possibly, later on. >> tim was in the middle of a major renovation. the house was a mess. but things were strewn everywhere. clothes, construction materials, rolls of carpenting. but nothing looked like a good

lead. carrie's family was growing increasingly desperate. they want to do something, anything. when they reached out to dennis harker off the quad cities missing persons network, sadly, he knew just what to do. >> it is traumatic. i mean, it's just the crisis, and it is overwhelming. his own son went missing just a few months earlier. >> you find yourself being tireless, and you can't sleep anyway, you might as well be doing something. >> dennis offered suggestions and organization to help find carry, and keep her story public. it was a remarkable effort, a reward was offered, a prayer vigil became a moment of peace and faith. and of course, there were endless searches. dennis led one at the mississippi river, where his son's body had been found. >> the mississippi tends to collect a lot of people that go missing. >> amanda was with dennis for one of his river searches. >> maybe she had drowned, or been dumped in the river. so, we started looking around the river. and i was giving up everything looking for her. >> i had to do something for her. she would have done it for me. >> sarah paxton was searching too. she remembers the frustration

of dredging through a huge part, covered with fresh blanket of snow. >> every search, i felt smaller and smaller, and the world felt bigger and bigger. she was one of my closest friends. loved her dearly. >> it just felt like a needle in the haystack. >> a needle in the haystack, but carrie's friends and family would not stop looking or hoping. dozens of tips came in from strangers, well-wishers, even psychics. but it would be something much closer to home that would finally lead to the first clues about what's really happened. >> coming up -- >> new questions about carrie's new boyfriend. >> it sounds like she was getting ready to maybe end the relationship with justin. >> when dateline continues. so i didn't think i needed swiffer, until,

i saw how easily it picked up my hair every time i dried it! only takes a minute. look at that! the heavy duty cloths are extra thick, for amazing trap & lock. even for his hair. wow. and for dust, i love my heavy duty duster. the fluffy fibers trap dust on contact, up high and all around without having to lift a thing. i'm so hooked. you'll love swiffer. or your money back! hey, you should try new robitussin honey medi-soothers for long-lasting cough and sore throat relief. try new robitussin lozenges with real medicine and find your voice. you know? we really need to work on your people skills. >> the people of the quad

cities were desperately searching for carrie olson. and law enforcement on both sides of the mississippi were doing their best, pushing the investigation as hard as they could. for detective tina noe, solving the case became a mission. >> finding someone quickly is very important. >> it is very important.

it was bothering me where is she? what could have happened to her? we need to find answers. >> in murder investigations, eight out of ten, suspects and victim know each other. >> and that meant taking a harder look at carrie's boyfriend, justin mueller. detectives started by talking to carrie's family about him. >> we rely heavily on the information that families give us early on in the investigation. >> but carrie didn't share details of her love life with her family. they didn't even know justin had moved in with her. it turns out, the person carrie did confide in was her ex boyfriend, tim mcvay. >> to me, it appeared that they were best buds. they talked daily, sometimes, they would talk over 20 times a day. their main way of communicating was text messaging.

>> tim drove straight to police headquarters when he flew back from las vegas, saying he wanted to help. >> i want to talk to you about carrie. >> absolutely. that's why you are down here, right? >> anything you want to know. i don't know where she is. i don't know what she's doing. i very much want to know, because i'm concerned. >> it turns out, tim also had a lot of concerns about justin, which he shared with detectives. he said the problem started even before justin moved into carrie's house. >> she called me out of the blue one afternoon, freaking out because this guy, justin, that she had been dating, was kind of stalking her. >> it was something best friend amanda also worried about, when carrie went missing. >> who did you think would want to hurt her? >> i immediately thought justin. >> have you ever heard anything about justin stalking carrie? >> she had told me that he would drive by her house, before even he moved in. he wanted to be with her so bad. >> and then, there was justin's post-traumatic stress disorder, carrie had talked to her about it, and she can relate. amanda's own military has been also struggled with ptsd. >> that could be a lot to handle, if you are not used to that, and then, you start

dating a guy with ptsd. >> it is a lot to handle. >> tim told police that carrie thought her relationship with justin had reached a tipping point. >> and she was, yeah, i can't do this anymore. i can't even keep pretending, you know, that this is gonna be okay. >> tim then speculated that the problems in the relationship had escalated into that saturday morning fight. >> her and justin got in a fight. she didn't really wanted to go back, and get into more. she was still, she wanted him to learn his lesson. >> and how did tim know about that fight? carrie had gone through his house after running out on justin in a huff, and told him all about it. >> this sounds like she was getting ready to maybe end the

relationship with justin. >> tim went on to tell police that he dropped carrie back home the next morning. >> i just watched her walk into the garage. >> he then borrowed her car, and headed to the airport for his trip to las vegas. but when detectives spoke to justin, he said after carrie stormed out, she never came back home. and he hadn't seen her since. and that made a tip called into police all the more intriguing. >> you all get a tip that there is a man looking for carrie in the milan area. >> yes. >> that deserved a close look because two days after she disappeared, her phone which hadn't been connecting to our cell network, suddenly started pinging in the nearby town of milan. the man with a tip set the search or was carrie's boyfriend. >> did you think it was tim at first? or did you think it was justin? >> justin. >> but justin had another story to tell.

he said he wasn't in milan, and insisted the fight with carrie was no big deal, but it was about something trivial. >> there were some burnt eggs. >> and she had left that day, slammed the door, called him stupid. >> yes. >> justin insisted he never saw carrie again after that fight. and in the morning, tim said he dropped her at home, watched her go into the house, justin said that never happened. >> one guy tells us, i dropped her off here at 6:30 in the morning. and the other guy says, she never came in the door. we know there is a problem. >> a boyfriend who had a blowout with carrie, and an ex who gave her a shoulder to cry on. one of them was lying. but which one? >> coming up -- >> a caught on camera stunner. who is that using carrie's bank guard? >> you see him on video trying to get $400 out. >> when dateline continues. can you do with sensitive skin? ♪♪ cetaphil gentle skin cleanser does more than clean. it actually protects skin by keeping it hydrated. so you're always ready for the unexpected. cetaphil. we do skin. you do you.

honey... honey... nyquil severe honey. powerful cold and flu relief with a dreamy honey taste. nyquil honey, the nighttime, sniffing, sneezing, couging, aching, fever, honey-licious, best sleep with a cold, medicine. fever, honey-licious, best sleep with a cold, he had to have seventeen teeth removed. he has an appetite that can never be satisfied, which is why he's trying to eat rocks. he ate beef and had an allergic reaction, and i was like 'hmm - have i killed my dog? he had a bypass surgery because he ate a - he ate a sock. fetch provides coverage for all of this and so much more. get up to ninety percent back on unexpected vet bills, use any vet, and cancel any time. fetch, the most comprehensive pet insurance. get your free quote today. in the first nominating contest

sometimes, the lows of bipolar depression feel darkest before dawn. with caplyta, there's a chance to let in the lyte. caplyta is proven to deliver significant relief across bipolar depression. unlike some medicines that only treat bipolar i, caplyta treats both bipolar i and ii depression. and in clinical trials, movement disorders and weight gain were not common. call your doctor about sudden mood changes, behaviors, or suicidal thoughts. antidepressants may increase these risks in young adults. elderly dementia patients have increased risk of death or stroke. report fever, confusion, stiff or uncontrollable muscle movements which may be life threatening or permanent. these aren't all the serious side effects. caplyta can help you let in the lyte. ask your doctor about caplyta. find savings and support at caplyta.com.

of the republican primary.

former president trump leads the field but nearly 30 points according to the final and d.c. news poll. millions across the u.s. are dealing with a cold and winter storms as they began to -- to conserve electricity as a blow of freezing temperatures are expected to affect the states electric grid. now back to dateline. now back to dateline welcome back to dateline, i'm craig melvin. there is an old axiom in homicide investigations. follow the money. police were zeroing in on -- men in carrie olson's life, when they got a big clue. if carrie was missing, then who used her atm card, and why? here is andrea canning and without a trace. >> carrie olson's boyfriend and ex-boyfriend have given conflicting stories about the day carrie went missing. and now, police were taking a closer look at both of them. >> that is kind of a tough thing to have to figure out, when you've got two potential suspects.

>> one of these two individuals is not telling the truth. >> detectives were trying to figure out which one. and they came across a significant clue. a trace on carrie's debit card led them to a gas station where they look at security camera video. it was chilling. there was a carrie's car, her debit card was being used. but there was no carrie. instead, the person using the card was tim mcvay. >> he is seen on video at the pump, trying to enter the number several times. you can tell it is unsuccessful. >> tim also tried the card at a drive-through atm agatha mississippi valley credit union, but he had problems. >> that is carrie's bank. he is seen on video there, three separate times, trying to get $400 out. >> the pin is not working. >> the pin is not working. >> why was tim driving carries car, and using her debit card? tim told detective voy there was a simple explanation, even after they broke up, he and carrie always had each other's

backs. >> she is the kind of friend where if she called me, i would drop whatever i was doing to help her off, kind of thing. >> tim said that's why he had taken care of carrie when she came to his house after storming out on justin. and it also wasn't unusual that she lent in her car, and debit card, he said. >> she gave me her debit card. she said go to the ih mississippi valley atm, and get me out four hundred dollars. then, go up top off the gas tank, whatever it takes to fill it up. >> can set, she also promised him to drive him to the airport in minnesota that sunday, but then, she changed our mind at the last minute. >> she says, just take my car, drive yourself up there, drop me off at home. >> so, according to tim, he goes back up to his house, and he and carrie get into the car, and he takes carrie back to her residence. >> and when they pulled up to the house, tim said carrie told him she didn't care how how justin reacted to doing him a favor. >> i walked into the door and said, hey, i let him borrow my car, to get himself

up to the airport. you need to shape up, ship out. >> detective voy questioned teams version of events, security camera video from the genesis health clinic, next to carrie's house, did not show and dropping him off at home. >> explain to me, then, the video cameras on the side of the genesis, when you dropped her off. it does not show you there. >> it has to show the part that i was there. >> tim did not realize it, but detective voy was testing him. there was actually no video camera at the clinic. tim stuck to his story, insisting he dropped off carrie. >> there is not nothing on the video. justin said she never came in that house. she's home his home. >> i don't know. >> she didn't walk into the garage and then walk away? >> i am thinking justin is probably not being very truthful at this point. >> it was clear, one of them

wasn't telling the truth. and it was time to find out which one. >> did you ask tim to take a polygraph? >> we did. >> did you give justin a polygraph? >> we did. >> but when justin and tim took those lie detector tests, they both passed, and then, they both went back to their lives. still, detectives kept an eye on them, hoping one might slip. one night, later that winter, tim mcvay, the karaoke king of the quad cities was back, sinking in front of a crowd. he sent, i used to love her by guns n'roses. ♪ ♪ ♪ i used to love her, i had to kill her. ♪ ♪ ♪ >> a woman at the bar who was aware of the case knew he was a suspect, shocked by his performance. she said she shot this video to document it, then, gave it to the detective noe. >> he says, i used to love her but i had to kill her. and i put her six feet under. ♪ ♪ ♪ six feet under ♪ ♪ ♪

>> tim knew what he was doing, and to get up there and sing that song, it was sickening. >> but that song was played frequently at the bar, and detective noe knew that tim's performance did not prove anything. so, with no physical evidence connecting tim to carrie's disappearance, there was nothing she could do. the investigation had hit a wall. >> it was a mystery. we felt something just wasn't right, something was going on, and we needed to figure this out, fast. >> carrie was still missing. winter was settling in, and it would be a long one. >> coming up -- a brand new clue. this tattoo. >> i emailed the man. >> there is a definite match. >> when dateline continues. [♪♪] there's a way to cut your dishwashing time by 50%. try dawn powerwash dish spray. it removes 99% of grease and grime in half the time.

it cleans so well, you can replace multiple cleaning products. april 5th, 2014, warm try dawn powerwash.

weather, finally, after a merciless midwestern winter, melting snow led to a terrible discovery. >> a body had been found in minnesota. that was similar to carrie's description. >> it was found unclothed in a wooded area of a country road and the town of hastings, 300 miles from where carrie olson went missing. police circulated a possible identifying image, the dead woman's tattoo.

>> i emailed the man and i said, i hate to say it, but that's her tattoo, isn't it? >> i had one picture of her tattoo. and i sat and compared it to the drawing on the report. >> what's that moment like, when you look at the photograph of your friend, and the photograph of the tattoo in the news report? >> i was completely empty. i called my mom and dad, and i said, there is a definite match for carrie, in hastings, minnesota. >> this is where carrie olson's was found on saturday night -- >> we had mixed emotions, obviously. we wanted to find her, but then, find out what had happened. it was rough. it was a rough time for the

whole community. >> i just sat there. i cried. i lost a confidant. i lost someone i could laugh with. i lost -- i lost a very good friend. >> the funeral was at saint pauls church in davenport. >> she had to come back home and again. >> it was a day to lay carrie to rest, and remember a beautiful life. but there was still so many unanswered questions. >> now, we need to find out why. we need to find out what's happened. >> first step, an autopsy. but it couldn't answer a key question for detectives. >> the doctor that did the autopsy called it a homicide by unspecified means. >> no cause of death? >> no cause of death. >> are you thinking, come on, there's gotta be a cause of death? >> that is where. but we have seen the photos of the scene, and you can tell she didn't walk up there and just fall over dead.

the body was placed there. >> but the autopsy did offer a possible clue. >> the doctor had found a chunk of carpet in her hair. we remembered from the january search warrant that tim had a beige carpet rolls in his house. >> but they also knew that carrie worked in a store that sold carpeting, so it might not mean anything. still, the carpet in carrie's hair, and the carpet into mcvay's house were sent to the lab for analysis. >> how long did it take you to get your answer? >> it takes a while. it doesn't come back after the commercial break, like on tv. >> while detectives waited for results, they explored the most tantalizing clue they have received, and it didn't come from carrie's body. it came from where she was

found, hastings, minnesota. >> we knew that's where ten parked his car before he went to the airport. >> when tim mcvay flew from minneapolis to las vegas, the same weekend carrie disappeared, it turns out he left carrie's car in hastings. why? that's where his girlfriend at the time lived. >> pretty big coincidence. >> yeah, that is what we call a clue. >> but detectives needed more. they had to tie mcvay to the very spot where carrie's body was found. they did have one long shot clue, just a few feet from carrie's body, investigators discovered this four-dollar price tag. a google search showed the tag was for a kids shovel sold at the discount chain big lots. detective thomas found a big lots store in la crosse, wisconsin, where that kind of shovel was bought on the same day mcvay drove to minnesota. la crosse is about two thirds of the way between the quad cities and hastings. but the store security cameras were broken, no video. so how could detectives tie mcvay to this purchase? they decided to work backwards.

>> he is seen in the tobacco outlet on video. >> mcvay told police before driving to minnesota and the airport that sunday, he stopped to buy a cigar at this tobacco outlet in the quad cities. >> so you knew exactly what time tim had been here? >> exactly. >> correct. >> the big lots in la crosse as a three hour drive of highway 61 from the tobacco outlet, and it turns out, the shovel was purchased exactly 3.5 hours after mcvay bought that cigar. >> that was huge for us. you leave the tobacco outlet, which is the exact amount of time to get to la crosse, wisconsin. >> but detectives still needed something more concrete to connect mcvay to the purchase of the shovel. >> so then we asked for the actual sales receipt. >> on the receipt was not only the shovel, but a black bag. >> a black bag. >> a desage brand travel bag,

it cost $10, but it was the big pay police had looking for. >> we found it in the garage of tim's parents house. that was a huge piece to our puzzle. >> so on july 18th, 2014, 3.5 months after carrie's body was found and seven months after she went missing, tina noe and the other two detectives went to a construction site where mcvay was working. >> tim was up on a ladder, and i said, we have a warrant for first degree murder for you, and concealing a homicide. >> tina also brought along her signature accessory, pink handcuffs. >> you chose to cuff him with your hot pink handcuffs. how did it feel seeing him in pink handcuffs? >> good. >> was it an extra little jab? >> yes. >> for tina. >> tim mcvay pleaded not guilty

he was denied bail and put in the county jail. that's where dateline found him for his first television interview. >> i did not kill carrie. and i did not dump her body. >> tim said the wrong guy was behind bars, pointing to the fight carrie told him that she and justin had that saturday morning. >> did she say what the fight with over? >> romantic issues, i guess, that would be the best way to put it. >> of a sexual nature? >> that was my impression, yes. >> and then, what happened after that? >> there was some throwing, a couple of things had gotten broken. there was a little bit of a physical altercation between the two of them. >> tim said the last time he saw carrie was when he drove her back to her house, just before he went to the airport. >> she was walking into the garage at her house, alive, happy, as well as could be. >> tim said he still loved carrie, even though they had broken up. how could he explain the seemingly damning lyric, i used to love her, but i had to kill

her, that he sang at the karaoke bar when she was still missing. >> maybe not the best choice of song, given what's actually happened. >> i told my brother in law, he was with me that night. i said, why didn't you slap me when i put that song in? it's kind of a bonehead move. had nothing to do with carrie. it has nothing to do with anything, it was a song. >> but to prosecutors, it was more than a song, it was a look inside the mind of a killer. and they were determined to prove that in court. tim mcvay was about to stand trial for murder. >> and he was about to face a showdown in court. one boyfriend accusing another on the stand. >> coming up -- >> the way she stormed out of the door, i thought maybe i upset her. >> what really happened to carrie? when dateline continues. sickness can spread fast. but with lysol, you can go into protect mode. for the things you touch, nothing kills more viruses on more surfaces than

lysol disinfectant spray. [girl coughs] and when it comes to your laundry, adding lysol laundry sanitizer kills 99.9% of illness-causing bacteria detergents leave behind. lysol. what it takes to protect. my husband and i have never been more active. shingles doesn't care. i go to spin classes with my coworkers. good for you, shingles doesn't care. because no matter how healthy you feel,

your risk of shingles sharply increases after age 50. but shingrix protects. proven over 90% effective, shingrix is a vaccine used to prevent shingles in adults 50 years and older. shingrix does not protect everyone and is not for those with severe allergic reactions to its ingredients or to a previous dose. an increased risk of guillain-barré syndrome was observed after getting shingrix. fainting can also happen. the most common side effects are pain, redness, and swelling at the injection site, muscle pain, tiredness, headache, shivering, fever, and upset stomach. shingles doesn't care but, shingrix protects. shingrix is now zero dollars for almost everyone. ask your doctor about shingrix today. choose advil liqui-gels for faster, stronger and longer-lasting relief than tylenol rapid release gels because advil targets pain at the source of inflammation. so for faster pain relief, advil the pain away.

this election is a choice between because advil targets pain at results or just rhetoric.n. californians deserve a senator who is going to deliver for them every day and not just talk a good game. adam schiff. he held a dangerous president accountable. he also helped lower drug costs, bring good jobs back home, and build affordable housing. now he's running for the senate. our economy, our democracy, our planet. this is why we fight. i'm adam schiff, and i approve this message.

andrea canning: tim mcvay's murder trial tim mcvay's murder trial started in june of 2015. started in june of 2015. there was no jury. judge michael meersman would decide. >> mcvay's defense attorneys believed they held the winning hand. >> he passed the polygraph. so we thought this could be the truly innocent accused here. >> prosecutor john mcgehee knew he was facing a tough test. >> you had no cause of death. you had no weapon.

you had no ironclad forensic evidence. >> i did feel that it could be an uphill battle, that it was going to be a real challenge. >> as the trial began, mcgehee presented the prosecution's theory as to how tim did it. >> even though there was no official explanation for how carrie died, the state presented something called, birking a method of suffocation designed to leave no marks by sitting on someone's chest, and covering their nose and mouth. >> to support that scenario, the state called one of mcvay's ex girlfriends, katie smitty. >> why are you nervous? >> i'm scared of him. >> katie described an incident one night in 2013. she said she was startled awake by mcvay sitting on her chest. >> i couldn't breathe. he cut off my air. he is a big man. i'm not a very large woman. i couldn't inhale. >> you moved out after that? >> yes.

>> the evidence in prosecutor mcgehee's case was largely circumstantial, but he still felt it was strong. he believed mcvay was the last one to talk to carrie. he had her car. used her debit card, and her body was found just minutes from where he parked her car at his girlfriend's house. and the prosecution had the test results for the carpet fibers found in carrie's hair. they matched that rolled up carpet in mcvay's house. >> how does a piece of carpet get lodged in someone's hair and remain in her hair? her head must have been on tim mcvay's floor at the time of her death. >> the prosecutor also used mcvay's internet searches to show how he was constantly checking the website of the newspaper in the distant town where carrie's body was found. >> he knew that he had concealed her body in hastings. so he started accessing the hastings star gazette in january, wanting to know the

headlines, when her body would be discovered. he accessed that website 100 times. that is an action of a guilty man. >> what were you looking for? you don't live in hastings. it's kind of a long way away. >> i'm not gonna answer any questions about that. >> and why not? >> all i can say is the newspaper is a newspaper. i don't have any other comments about that. >> just interested in hastings? >> move on to your next question. >> finally, prosecutors called to the stand carrie's boyfriend, justin mueller. he testified about the last time he saw carrie. >> did you say goodbye? >> i didn't really have a chance to say goodbye. the way she left, i mean, i tried to say goodbye, yes. >> justin acknowledged that she was upset with him. >> the way she stormed out of the door, and i thought, maybe i upset her in some minor way, because i wasn't paying attention to her somehow. >> as the hours of carrie's unexplained absence and silence grew, so did justin's concern

and his texts. prosecutors had him read them in court. >> baby, come home, i love you. i am sorry for whatever i did. i love you. colby and i miss you. is everything okay? i gave colby his pill. >> did you get any kind of response? >> no. >> now, it's sunday night at 8:10. were you started to get worried then? >> yes. >> although there was no evidence presented about mcvay 's motive for murder, in closing arguments, the prosecutors offered their theory. he killed carrie's in a twisted fit of rage because he demanded her car to get to the airport and she said no. >> we see it all the time, that people are murdered for sometimes the smallest little things. and you are just surprised that another human being can do this to another human being.

but that's what happened. >> mcvay's attorneys, aaron dyer, dan dalton, and jon ruud, argue that the prosecution's theory of motive was preposterous. >> the idea that he could kill her and take her car to just get a ride to minnesota i think is laughable. >> you didn't have a cause of death, so how do you point the finger at somebody? >> the defense did not produce any witnesses of their own. instead, they aggressively challenged the state's witnesses, like that former girlfriend. the defense tried to show mcvay was more playful than violent. >> you said, when i finally did get him off me, he said he was just playing around. but you did not find it funny? -- >> yes, he--. >> wasn't striking you, right? >> no, he wasn't. he has never struck me. >> defense attorney also contacted detective thomas, who traced that shovel to big lots in wisconsin. >> you have no because of the

transaction, right? >> you have no receipts with tom's name on any of that day? >> no, it's paid by cash. >> the defense confronted justin mueller. police said he was spotted in the town where carrie's phone last pinged, but he wouldn't admit it. >> do you remember being in the milan area at all during the week? >> no. >> his phone records put his phone at the very leastin milan. another person indicated to police that he was seen in milan. >> what do you make of that? >> i think it is a huge hole in the prosecution's case. >> the defense also challenged the state's evidence, like the carpet fibers found in carrie's hair that investigators said matched the carpeting in mcvay 's house. >> she worked in a carpet store. just because it happened to be in her hair certainly doesn't indicate anyone intentionally killed anybody. >> they even challenged the idea that a crime had been committed at all. >> how did she get there? we don't know. how did she die? we don't know. it's one of the biggest mysteries that not even sherlock holmes, i don't think,

could solve. >> tim mcvay declined to take the stand in his own defense, but he maintains that he is a family man who loves his kids, not the violent thug described in court. >> i'm just not that kind of person. >> i could not inhale. >> you were accused by katie of -- >> well, that was a lie. that was a lie. >> did you kill carrie? >> i did not. there's a lot of coincidences going on, terrible ones for you. >> i agree. >> what do you say to the people watching who just maybe don't believe you right now? >> all i can say is what i know. i know that i did not kill carrie. she was a beautiful person, a wonderful friend, a lover, a confidant. she meant the world to me. >> it is the end of a long trial -- >> after more than two weeks of testimony and argument, judge meersman was ready to give his verdict. >> timothy mcvay, i find you

guilty of first degree murder, and count two, concealment of a homicide death. >> i jumped out of my seat. i was so excited and happy. >> tim mcvay was stoic, showing no emotion. and three months later, he was just as stoic when the judge sentenced him to 45 years in prison. >> i believe you killed her. and the saddest part is you have killed her for a car and some money. >> for justin mueller, the cloud of suspicion finally lifted. for carrie's family and friends, the verdict meant justice and bittersweet relief. >> i just started crying. and it felt just, like, this huge weight was gone. ♪ ♪ ♪ >> but justice for carrie still could not explain the why. >> if it was over a ride to minnesota, a car, and money, it's not a very good why. ♪ ♪ ♪ >> what will you miss most

about carrie? >> what i ultimately miss is that she's not there, pulling in my driveway, honking, you know, announcing that she's here. she had a heart of gold. she was there for everybody. >> she had a lot of hope for her future. she had everything to live for. >> that is all for this edition of dateline. i am craig melvin. thank you for tuning in. ng in. >> hello i'm andrea canning and this is "dateline." >> i just dropped off the children and he wouldn't let me in the door. >> it was horrible. we're normal people and the person you're dealing with is a psychopath. >> it's a story that haunted