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connections, he was mr. big. he was very flamboyant. extremely charming. very brilliant. josh mankiewicz: his murder was big too. a car explosion at a posh resort-- he was very big. >> flamboyant. >> his murder wiz big,. >> too a car explosion at a posh resort? somebody wanted to make a statement. >> who would want him dead or who wouldn't? a string of angry investors. even whispers about the mob. >> everybody went oh, this is mob connected. >> so why would police focus on her? the beautiful socialite ex-wife number two? >> she is very intoxicating. >> i think she was cold and calculating. >> maybe her former husband was worth more dead than live. >> she the person everybody loves to hate. but she is completely innocent. >> or maybe it was someone else

entirely? it is a case we investigated more than five years. now, a stunning new end. >> here we go back on the roller coaster. and here, in the shadows of the majestic saguaros, spend a little time in tucson, arizona. and here, in the shadows of the majestic soaras, you'll find a thriving metropolis of a million people with a surprising small town feel. the kind of place where everyone seems to know everyone. and if you ask anyone from tucson where they were on november 1st, 1996, they will tell you it was the day of a murder. so dramatic, so horrific, they will never forget it. >> it was the story everybody

talked about. a mystery that would span two decades. >> never felt it wouldn't be solved. >> reporter: a tucson native, gary triano, was a successful real estate developer and entrepreneur. he was known around tucson for his big spending ways. his chauffeured limousines and rubbing elbows with folks like donald trump. like the song made famous by sinatra, the forceful and determined gary liked doing things his way. >> it was very brilliant. >> reporter: gary's niece. melissa. >> he had a wonderful personality. >> reporter: her uncle made her

see the value of herself. >> her father moved away when i was 17. i was sort of a lost child if you will. my uncle helped me realize a lot of my skills and taught me a lot about the real estate industry. >> he was a father figure. >> reporter: gary was a loving father to five children. four of them from his first two marriages and a daughter with a woman he dated named rob begin gardner. >> gary was full of life. he was probably more full of life than anybody i have ever known. when i met gary, he was 21 year older than i and we would go dancing and we would go to the movies. and hep was caring and fun. >> and charming? >> extremely charming. >> reporter: robin moved to tucson in her 20s from a small

town in the appalachian mountains. gary, she says, opened her eyes to a new way of life. >> well, i had never eaten at a five star restaurant. i had never drank fine wine. i had never been on a private jet. >> reporter: and robin says gary was generous with the money he'd made. >> gary was a big giver. he was a big giver. there was a waitress that seemed like she was struggling. he helped. and did it to be kind. >> reporter: then came the day that changed everything. a nightmare came to life. it was late afternoon, november 1st, 1996. gary had played a round of golf at a country club. he climbed into the lincoln

town car he had borrowed from a friend and was then instantly killed by a bomb that literally blew him to pieces right there in the parking lot. gary was just a few days shy of his 53rd birthday. some of his friends were already at his home preparing for a surprise party. people were paging me and i thought it was because i was running late. >> reporter: melissa called her aunt mary, gary's first wife. >> my aunt mary answered the phone. and then, told me he had been killed. they had been watching it on tv and it was his car. i thought she was kidding. i angry and said, what is this, a joke? this is not funny. >> she said no, it's not a joke. >> reporter: melissa knew her

uncle had planned to meet up with some friends at a local restaurant after his golf game. she called the bartender there. >> he answered the phone and i said is my uncle there? she said missy i'm so sorry. we got it on tv. he just kept saying i'm so sorry. >> that's a hell of a way to find out, watching it on television. >> they found out seeing it on the news. >> it was a powerful bomb. >> reporter: melissa raced down sunrise drive to the scene. >> i got out of the car and started running toward my uncle's car and the detective actually came running up and grabbed me. and stopped me from getting closer. >> reporter: detective james gamber was one of the first at the scene. it was his second homicide case ever. >> i was doing dishes. i got a call. there has been a car bombing at la paloma and you need to go up there. >> reporter: what he saw may

have rattled a far more seasoned detective. >> the roof had been peeled off the car. it was laying behind the car. the windshield was gone. we found i think the next day in the swim pool of the country club. >> how far away? >> probably 70 feet away and it had to go over some trees that were 20 feet tall. >> i'm guessing it was clear this wasn't an accident. there wasn't something wrong with his car. >> correct. >> he was dead instantly? >> yes. >> reporter: the gold watch around gary's wrist frozen in time at 5:38 p.m. his family and friends didn't know what to think. who would have done this and why? coming up,. >> the person who set off the bomb was watching gary get in his car? >> someone is watching and they are going, he's onto it. >> and the motive? what might that be? >> follow the money, you always follow the money and look at

who benefited from the death. >> reporter: when dateline continues. hen dateline continues. rsv can severely affect the lungs and lower airways. but i'm protected with arexvy. arexvy is a vaccine used to prevent lower respiratory disease from rsv in people 60 years and older. rsv can be serious for those over 60, including those with asthma, diabetes, copd, and certain other conditions. but i'm protected. arexvy is proven to be over 82% effective in preventing lower respiratory disease from rsv and over 94% effective in those with these health conditions. arexvy does not protect everyone and is not for those with severe allergic reactions to its ingredients. those with weakened immune systems

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astepro and go! astepro starts worgary triano, thees. businessman, the father, the philanthropist-- none of it made sense. gary playtriano, the businessman, the father, the philanthropist. none of it made sense. he had just played a ground of golf. and then the man who loved living large died a spectacular death. >> i was just so in shock like the rest of my family that this could happen at all. you don't want to believe it. you don't want to accept it. it was like something that was on television. i just thought oh my goodness. i can't believe this is happening in tucson, arizona. >> reporter: lupita morio has

covered tucson for kvoa for decades. she reported the night of the bombing. >> people kill each other for all kinds of reasons. you probably cover dozens of these. >> exactly, but a car explosion at a posh resort? obviously someone wanted to make a statement. >> so this is a very powerful bomb. >> yes. >> reporter: pima county sheriff's detective games gamber and an alphabet suit of agencies includeing the fbi and atf started looking closely at the homemade bomb that had somehow found its way to gary triano's passenger seat. >> we were able to determine the device was a 17-inch piece of pipe. an inch-and-a-half in diameter. >> the pipe was filled with explosive powder and detonated by remote control. >> using something that is normally meant to control boats, planes, that kind of

thing? correct. >> reporter: investigators determine whoever on rated that remote control was probably right there in the parking lot. >> so the person who set off the bomb was watching gary triano get in his car? >> we have ever reason to believe that. and from the injury patterns, it is consistent he was actually picking up the bag the device was in when it was detonated. that would make me believe someone is watching and he is onto it. we got to detonate it now. >> reporter: clearly, the killer had to know something about triano's daily routine. but gamber discovered a lot of people did. >> he had virtually no sense of personal security. never locked his car. wouldn't lock his house. so, someone with intel or information on gary's lifestyle could have easily set him up. >> reporter: and it appeared someone had checked on gary's where abouts that day. >> what was interesting is the day of the murder, someone called and asked if he was

playing golf. >> man or woman? >> man. never identified. >> reporter: the very public spectacle of a car bombing at a posh resort made an impact on gamber's boss. >> i have never seen an assassination of this kind. if it was a hit, it was probably a professional hit. >> reporter: could the sheriff be right? if so, who hired the hit man? who wanted triano dead? >> he was very flamboyant. out going, engaging, he ran in the real big circles. he is running around with donald trump and people like that. >> and he was throwing money around? >> yes. >> so when a flamboyant guy dies in a flamboyant way? >> tie him with big money, casinos. flamboyant lifestyle. and he is killed in a car bombing, everybody makes this automatic assumption that has to be some mob related hit.

>> reporter: and adds investigators looked more closely into gary's finances, they saw only red ink. by the late 80s , the tucson real estate market had crashed and gary's bottom line took hit after hit. investigators learned that in 1994, saddled with more than $26 million in debts he couldn't pay, gary triano had filed for bankruptcy. he had rolled the dice and lost. he owed money to casinos, banks, and the irs. and just a day before the bombing, a friend said an extremely anxious gary had come to him. desperate for a $50,000 loan. >> he was tapped out. >> when he died, i understand that he had holes on the bottom of his soles in his shoes. >> any indication that any of the people to whom he owed money and there were a lot were

angry enough at him to do him any harm? >> no. there are people who openly said he cost me money. he owed me money. but was it enough for me to kill him? no. >> reporter: well not so fast. detective gamber didn't know it at the time, but fbi agents following the same trail had heard the name neil mcniece. the bureau received a tip that mcniece had experience with high explosives. and that he had access to them. and that he had a foul temper and had a lot of money. but that wasn't the end of it. the bureau was also told that he carried a profound hatred of gary triano. detective gamber's supervisor was keith saint john. >> you never talked to him? >> no. >> reporter: it would be years

before investigators realized how significant an omission that was. but there is no disputing that the neil mcniece tip was never followed up and so investigators changed the focus and looked away from gary's business relationships. >> you do two things. you go let's follow the ed. and, you say follow the money. and you look at who benefit fred the death. >> reporter: investigators were looking at gary triano's close personal ties. was there someone closer to home to whom gary might have been worth more dead than alive? >> i remember asking him why would anybody want to follow you? and, he said because of the life insurance policy. >> reporter: coming up, the women in gary triano's life. an ex-wife's club and an angry

former girlfriend. >> pretty happy at the breakup. >> i think her current husband put it best. when robin is mad, you're going to know it. it will be a street fight basically. >> reporter: when dateline continues. basically. >> reporter: when dateline continues. lowering bad cholesterol can be hard, even with a statin. diets and exercise add to the struggle. today, it's possible to go from struggle to cholesterol success with leqvio. with a statin, leqvio is proven to lower bad cholesterol by 50% and keep it low with 2 doses a year. common side effects were injection site reaction,

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tucson real estate developer gary triano's gruesome death by car bomb had a lot of people wondering just tucson real estate developer gary triano's gruesome death by car bomb had a lot of people wondering just who his enemies really were. investigators had been looking at gary's business dealings but started hitting one dead end after another. so, they began scouring his personal life. gary had lived large. and it turned out, he loved that way as well. and, he was no angel. by the time of his death, he was attached to two divorces and a trail of broken hearts. he had left his first wife mary after two children and more than 20 years of marriage to wed a younger woman, pam phillips. gary had two more children with her. after that marriage ended gary

dated robin gardner two years and that union produced a child. they had an angry break up while robin was pregnant. gary called 911 to report that robin showed up uninvited to his home and threw a vase at him during an argument. she told investigators she had thrown the vase at the ground after gary pushed her so investigators came knocking on robin's door. >> robin gardner was pretty unhappy at the breakup. >> and we looked into robin. and her current husband said if she is mad, you'll know it. it will be a street fight. >> and you were convinced that although she was angry at gary triano, she wanted him alive? >> yes. >> reporter: so investigators looked away from robin as a

person of interest and moved onto some of the other women in gary's life. he had maintained a good relationship with his first wife mary after they divorced. and investigators eliminated her. that left his second ex-wife pam phillips. pam had also been married once before. the stunning blond had a business degree from the university of arizona and one of few women to find success in commercial real estate in tucson in the late 80s . they were off to a good start in 1986 with an expensive black tie wedding in a yacht at sunset off the coast of san diego. >> he was mad about her. i know they were in love. they looked like they really loved each other. >> reporter: but reporter lupita says behind pam's back,

tucson was whispering. >> what did you hear? >> that she was a gold digger and married gary for his money and broke up his marriage. >> reporter: it is common for people on the outside to talk about the new wife that way. remember, gary had left his first wife for pam. and that alone sparked some anger in the family. bryan and heather are gary's kids from his first marriage. and initially, they were less than thrilled about their father remarrying. >> well i mean, she was a step mom. let's be honest. we were teenagers at the time. >> reporter: but it was hard to deny that the marriage was working. >> when we saw them together, they were happy. he seemed happen by. >> reporter: gary and pam had some very good years said gary's niece melissa. >> they were running around with donald trump, marla

maples. lee majors. taking extravagant trips. >> reporter: gary helped pam launch and astrology website. >> what did you say? >> reporter: heather and bryan said those new babies brought them closer to their new up the mother. >> we grew to like her. then love her as a step mom and mother of our brother and sister. >> she was great. she was very sweet. i think also being a girl, you know, she helped me fix my hair or get some clothes or new purses, shoes, things like that. girly stuff. >> reporter: but by the early 90s , gary's fortunes had faded and with them his marriage to pam. they were done after just seven years. >> he said that once, you know,

i can understand i just don't have the money that she was used to us having. >> reporter: pam moved to aspen after the divorce and the once happy couple started fighting over just about everything. >> there was an ongoing legal battle over the child support and she wanted it increased. and she was convinced that he was hiding assets and he used the bankruptcy to shield himself from having to pay increased child support. >> reporter: which to some was ironic. >> i was basically mr. mom. >> reporter: pam's former nanny kevin mcdonald. >> i was taking care of trevor and lois for seven days a week. day and night. >> reporter: according to him, pam was too busy shopping to take care of her kids. shopping, that is, for a new

husband. >> she wasn't apologetic about it. with all of her expenses, she was getting worried because she said kevin, i'm down to my last $60,000. and, what should i do? i said get a job. >> reporter: but kevin says she was focused on finding a man with a job. a good one. >> she wanted to find a husband that was worth at least $20 million. that's what she told me. >> worth $20 million? >> so the pam who married gary triano for his money had not changed except zip codes. >> right. zip code and weather. >> reporter: but while pam was looking for the right deal in aspen, back in tucson, gary triano was feeling uneasy. >> gary said i think we are being followed. i just thought, you're starting to scare me, dude. >> reporter: taylor, his girlfriend at the time, says gary was convinced someone was

tailing them in the car. >> i remember asking him why would anybody want to follow you? and he said because of the life insurance policy. >> reporter: gary was insured for $2 million. his children were the beneficiaries but until they turned 18, the money was controlled by their mother, pam. >> they had gone through a nasty divorce. >> yes, child custody battles. visitation battles. >> so it would be natural you would be looking at her. >> yes. >> reporter: but the investigation showed pam was in aspen, not tucson, on the day of the murder. and, pam the socialite certainly seemed more bomb shell than bomb maker. >> i'm guessing pam phillips probably is not somebody that you thought was tinkering around on her workbench

building a pipe bomb. >> no. >> they seemed to be at another dead end until an alert detective 800 miles away happened to catch a news report about the bombing. and some bells went off. coming up. >> they found a note in the car, you know, buy tooth paste. then saw off shotgun. >> reporter: what could that have to do with the murder of gary triano? when dateline continues. ry tri? when dateline continues. [♪♪] if you're only using facial moisturizer in the morning, did you know, the best time for skin renewal is at night? olay retinol24 renews millions of surface skin cells while you sleep. wake up to smoother, younger-looking skin with olay retinol24. what is cirkul? cirkul is

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a news update. in baltimore, cranes are removing the wreckage of the bridge. they are moveing to reopen the port shipping route stalled by tuesday's bridge collapse. and at&t is investigating a leak that dumped millions of customers' data on the dark web including personal information. that leak affects nearly 73

million customers. the company says it has reached out to impacted users and has reset their pass codes. for now, back to dateline. >> reporter: aspen, colorado. a year round playground for the rich and famous. and sometimes, for the people who prey on them. that's the kind of case that then aspen police detective jim crowley caught in 1996. two local businesses said they had been defrauded by a man named ron young. >> what the scam was, was that he would become your business manager. help you grow the company. he actually did that part of it. but at some point, he would have all of your information. >> as far as you could tell, he had stolen how much money? >> probably between 80 and

$180,000. >> reporter: before he could get an arrest warrant, ron young disappeared. >> he knew you were on his trail? >> right. >> and he skipped town? >> yes. >> reporter: young fled in a rented mini van that later turned up in southern california. young himself was nowhere to be found. but what was found in the mini van was very curious. >> a note in the car that was like a laundry list. and down the list a little further was a sawn off shotgun. >> reporter: he was not known as a violent criminal. but when a shotgun and taser was found in the van, a man wanted for white collar crimes might have been more dangerous than he thought. they found something else peculiar. paperwork related to pamela phillips and gary triano. >> at the time, gary triano

meant what to you? >> nothing. >> reporter: but pam phillips was a name crowley had heard before. pam said ron had stolen money from her business. starbabys.com. >> did she have a case? >> we don't know. because she never came back. and she refused to answer my calls after that. >> so she originally came to you and made a complaint and backed off? >> yes. >> never told you why? >> no. >> reporter: pam's former nanny remembers for a while at least, pam and ron seemed close. >> and ron would come over at least two or three times a week. on some of those nights, pam would cook at her. have romantic dinners. >> reporter: although kevin says ron didn't seem to be pam's type. >> ron didn't have any money. he was not a socialite.

and, that is what she generally went for. >> reporter: so what was pam's relationship with ron young and why wouldn't pam cooperate with the place? did she want to protect ron? or was she afraid of him? crowley didn't know what to make of it all. >> i was aware that gary was pam's ex-husband. and that pam had some kind of relationship with ron young and he fled the area. that prompted me to call down to tucson. >> reporter: detectives gamber and saint john were there when the call came into the pima county sheriff's department in tucson. it certainly got investigators' attention. especially when they learned more about what was found in that van. there was a map of tucson. and, handwritten notes with the names and types of cars driven

by some of gary's business associates. family. and friends. including his niece melissa and his one time girlfriend taylor. and there was more. >> then we found a receipt for a hotel in tucson where ron young stayed in this hotel 18 days in summer of 1996. >> which would be what, a few years before gary was killed? >> yes. and what was interesting about the choice of hotels, it was geographically almost halfway between where gary triano lived and the country club. >> where he played golf every day. >> yes. >> reporter: an ron young stayed under a phony name. the name of one of the people he was accused of defrauding in aspen. but that was well before the murder and this was no evidence ron young was in tucson when the bomb went off. >> anything in ron young's

record or possession that suggested he knew how to or was involved in building a remote control bomb? >> no. >> and he has no history of working with exclosives? >> correct. >> still, they desperately wanted to talk with ron young. >> they were looking for him. they had an active fugitive case going on him. because they had a fraud warrant. but he just fell off the face of the earth. >> reporter: who was ron young? and what was his relationship with pam phillips? nine days after the murder of her ex-husband, pam phillips agree today come down to the sheriff's department for an interview. and that conversation was recorded. >> i wanted to ask you about the relationship of ron young. coming up,. >> the word i was getting was it was his former wife. and that was because of this insurance policy. >> reporter: pam's date with detectives. >> she knew she was going to be

scrutinized. >> reporter: two million reasons to be suspicious? >> we have this issue of this life insurance policy. >> gary is the one that took us out. he insisted it be in my name. >> reporter: when dateline continues. orter: when dateline continues. a month, each lastis or more - can be overwhelming. so, ask your doctor about botox®. botox® prevents headaches in adults with chronic migraine before they even start. it's the #1 prescribed branded chronic migraine treatment. so far, more than 5 million botox® treatments have been given to over eight hundred and fifty thousand chronic migraine patients. effects of botox® may spread hours to weeks after injection causing serious symptoms. alert your doctor right away, as difficulty swallowing, speaking, breathing, eye problems, or muscle weakness can be signs of a life-threatening condition. side effects may include allergic reactions, neck and injection site pain, fatigue, and headache. don't receive botox® if there's a skin infection. tell your doctor your medical history, muscle or nerve conditions and medications, including botulinum toxins, as these may increase the risk of serious side effects.

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i think it's a great gary triano violent death by car bomb had set the tucson rumor mill on overdrive. gary triano's violent death by car bomb had set the tucson rumor mill on overdrive. but according to local nbc reporter lupita morio, a lot of fingers were pointed in the same direction. >> within 24 hours after the dust settled, the word that i was getting was that it was his former wife and it was because

of this insurance policy. >> reporter: pam phillips, gary's ex was someone investigators abouted to talk with after word came from aspen that pam had been connected in some way to a fugitive on the run from fraud charges. named ron young. nine days after the murder, investigators got their chance. pam phillips voluntarily came in for questioning. >> i didn't give her a lot of what i knew. >> reporter: detective keith saint john spoke with her three times. twice in person. >> tell me your full name. >> pamela anne phillips. >> reporter: he asked pam to talk about her relationship with gary. starting with how they met. >> was he already divorced?

>> no. >> she knew she was going to be scrutinized. >> she stalk today me about how the payments were being made. when the policy was taken out. seemed like she was up front. >> gary is the one that took us out. and he also insisted that it be in my name. >> reporter: they discussed who out there might be angry at gary. >> gary had so many business dealings. any insight you can give us on those nor. >> nothing really stood out about the interviews until, that is, he asked pam about ron young. >> something came up that i wanted to ask you about. is your relationship with ron young? >> i have a relationship with ron young. he's a guy from aspen. how did his name come up? >> reporter: saint john felt he

might have thrown pam off her game. >> we are trying to get out and do our best on this. >> wow. he's a guy from aspen that did some financial stuff for me. >> do you believe there is an arrest warrant out for him? >> no. >> when did you have dealings with him? >> a long time. since he was doing work for me. >> reporter: and pam denied ever having a romantic relationship with ron. >> and, you never were boyfriend or girlfriend? never an affair? >> no. no. no. >> my opinion, she minimized it. oh, he is just a person that did some work for me. >> not a guy i was involved in. >> no. >> not a guy i accused of defrauding me. >> correct. >> reporter: despite pam's startled reaction to the ron

young question, detective saint john had nothing else on him. nothing placing her or ron young for that matter in tucson on the day of the murder. and nothing connecting either one of them to the bomb that killed gary triano. >> after three interviews other than this thing with ron young and we didn't have him to talk to, there wasn't anything i thought that made her rise to a level of a suspect. >> and ron young was still somewhere in the wind. >> so safe to say this goes cold? >> yes. >> reporter: in january of 1997, pam phillips received her life insurance payment. $2million plus interest. >> did that give her back the lifestyle she had lost when gary went bankrupt? >> for a short while, yes. $2million doesn't go very far in aspen. >> reporter: pam bought herself a house. a million dollar fixer upper. >> and, with her exquisite taste, turn it into a beautiful

house. >> reporter: in fact, her deck was featured in the glossy aspen sojourner magazine. pam was dabbling in aspen real estate and trying to make starbabies.com a success. to help with the website, she invited gary's daughter heather triano to come live with her in aspen. >> it was a company my father purchased when they were married. i thought great. this is something my father started. i will come and restart it. >> reporter: during the time heather lived with pam, she took care of her younger half siblings. but she never once had a discussion with pam about gary's unsolved murder. >> we didn't talk about it. >> she was a member of your family and clearly felt very close to the two of you. and she never once said here's what i think happened. >> no. >> i don't think so. >> through the years, heather

and bryan maintain their relationship with pam as they had families of their own. >> she was at my wedding yeah. >> reporter: but gary's niece melissa couldn't help but suspect that she had something to do with his murder. >> there was really a rift in your family. some people believed pam could never have done anything like this. and there were other people who suspected her. >> reporter: yeah. yeah. >> reporter: gary's ex- girlfriend robin moved back to virginia in 2000 to raise their daughter elliot. >> he was a great father to all four of his other children and elliot missed that experience. my daughter was a victim. >> reporter: for nearly a decade, gary triano's friends and family waited and hoped for an answer. >> as time went by and there weren't any arrests, what did

you think? maybe i'm wrong about pam? maybe this will never be solved? >> no. i think part of me thought that in time, it would all be found out. and it just wasn't time yet. >> and detectives waited too. until one day in 2005, when a tip came in from 2000 miles away. coming up. >> it was beyond what anything else in the world would probably do. >> secret takes are about to warm up a cold case. >> just plenty of stuff. i had to literally dig out of the ground. >> the big advantage is he collected all our evidence for us. the tapes turned out to be the gold mine. >> when dateline continues. gold mine. >> when dateline continues. i'm out of breath, and often out of the picture.

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astepro starts nine years had passed. since gary triano

was killed by a car bomb. police had investigated his business partners and then his ex-wife pam. nine years had passed since gary was killed by a car bomb. they had come up empty. they had deep suspicions about ron young. an accused con man with a murky connection to pam. but investigators couldn't find him. looked as if the case might stay cold forever. and then, in 2005, the tv show america's most wanted featured the triano case and focused on the fugitive ron young. >> and that worked. >> took about 19 hours. >> reporter: after five years on the lam, ron young was fingered in florida but a most unlikely tipster. >> chiropractor recognized him and called america's most

wanted. and tbroward county fugitive team showed up. they waited for him at the office. >> reporter: betrayed by a bad back, ron young was now in the hands of authorities. america's most wanted was there when ron was arrested on the old fraud charges and illegal possession of a handgun. an atf officer sat down with him him for an interview. >> did you set that bomb? >> i had no reason to blow up or kill anybody. >> but the big advantage to catching him wasn't what he said in that interview was a it? >> no, the big advantage to catching him is he collected all the evidence for us. >> reporter: inside his home and storage locker they found a computer with saved emails. fedex tracking receipts from aspen and a stash of audio taped conversations that young had apparently recorded in

secret in the years following the murder. conversations with none other than pam phillips. >> the computer and the tapes turned out to be the gold mine. they played tape after tape looking for anything that shed light on the investigation. on those tapes, they heard ron young threatening pam. >> there is just plenty of stuff i could dig out of the ground. and you're a fried duck. >> reporter: the mysterious conversations about banks, and money. >> i would rather die. than sit here and deal with going to the bank which is totally illegal. every single week. i'm not going to do it. >> what do you mean it's illegal? >> i'm giving money to someone, i'm not spending it. i'm giving money and i'm not spending it. you are getting money and are

you declaring it? >> you are completely confused on that. >> reporter: and talk of some kind of preexisting deal between the two of them. >> i am not going to keep sending you more and more and more money unless i know that you can honor our agreement. >> reporter: it all started to add up. especially when they looked on ron's computer. and found a detailed schedule of payments from pam. payments that were made carefully and surreptitiously using a cryptic code that the two had devised. >> i'm happy. >> he talks about you got your 1.6. i want my 4 which conveniently adds up to 2 million. which matches the insurance pay- out. >> there is nothing on those tapes in which ron young says you hired me for x amount of money to put a bomb in your husband's car.

>> not said directly. but when you piece all the conversations together, that is. >> it was beyond what anybody else in the world would probably do. >> reporter: and perhaps the most damning piece of evidence? >> when you sit in a women's prison for murdering, you sit in a women's prison for murder. >> as far as i know, the only murder in her life was the murder of gary triano. coming up, a brand new mystery. where was pam phillips? >> pam disappeared. she could be anywhere in the world. they asked me to pull a rabbit out of my hat. i don't think i have any more rabbits. >> you were feeling defeated? >> yes. >> when dateline continues. fea >> yes. >> when dateline continues.

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a severe allergic reaction to the vaccine or its ingredients. adults with weakened immune systems may have a lower response to the vaccine. the most common side effects were pain and swelling at the injection site, muscle pain, fatigue, headache, and joint pain. i want to be able to keep my plans. i don't want to risk ending up in the hospital with pneumococcal pneumonia. that's why i chose prevnar 20®. ask your doctor or pharmacist about the pfizer vaccine for pneumococcal pneumonia. alice loves the scent of gain so much, ask your doctor or pharmacist about the pfizer vaccine she wished there was a way to make it last longer. say hello to your fairy godmother alice and long-lasting gain scent beads. part of the irresistible scent collection from gain! josh mankiewicz: tucson police have discovered a large number of financial files and secret recordings in ron young's apartment, which detective james gamber believed tucson police had discovered a large number of

financial files in secret recordings and run young's department, which detective james gamber believed outlined the details of the murder for hire plot to kill gary triano. when you look at the tapes and documents he founded and run young's possession, what arrangement did that spell out? >> basically that he was entitled to $400,000 of a $2 million life insurance policy, and he was using pam as his bank. he was earning 4% interest. >> why would somebody who had committed a murder for hire keep detailed records that would essentially prove their own involvement and that of the person that hired them? >> i think for two reasons. one, if your ego is that big

and you think you are too smart to get cut, and two, you are saving it as evidence, or as a threat, something to hold over your co-conspirator. >> in case she stops paying? >> yes. >> ron young was sentenced to 10 months in federal prison on gun charges. fraud charges were eventually dismissed. detectives still do not have enough to charge him with gary's murder but they did have enough to turn up the heat on pam. >> we went up to aspen and filed for a search warrant, and ultimately searched pam's house. >> but, in pam's home, they did not find anything related to ron young, or the bomb. >> absolutely nothing related to the murder. >> so, once again, despite their suspicions, they could not charge pam phillips with any crime. for gary triano's children, heather and brian, it was impossible to believe that their former stepmother could have anything to do with their father's murder. >> i was her friend. i lived with her, so no, i did not think she was a suspect at all.

>> then, they read the search warrant affidavit, which detailed the audiotaped conversations between pam phillips and wrong -- ron young. >> you sit in a was women's prison for murder. >> it's at that point we realized something was wrong. that this -- that the whole thing wasn't right. >> what was it like for you to find that this woman who had been your stepmother and later your friend was implicated in your father's murder? in november of 2007, 11 years after the murder, have her -- heather and brian, along with gary's youngest daughter, elliott, filed a wrongful death lawsuit against pam phillips and ron young. the point of that wrongful death suit was not to recover any money. the idea was to serve subpoenas and maybe get the investigation going?

>> it had came to just a slow halt, and it just seemed as if it was as cold as cold could be, so the children got together and, as you said, not for revenue, but to simply get the ball rolling. >> despite all the evidence investigators had uncovered and run young's possession, prosecutors in tucson still did not feel there was enough to charge either ron young or pam phillips with murder.

i don't know but no one ever gave me a solid answer. >> but, the civil suit changed things. prosecutors decided it was time to move. >> you think the wrongful death suits are what guilty prosecutors and going forward? >> or, it showed them how valid the case was. >> nearly a year after the civil suit was filed in october, 2008, ron young, who is out of prison after serving 10 months on gun possession charges, was rearrested in california. this time, for the murder of gary triano. young was flown back to tucson. lupita moreno is one of the people who likes to greet people at the airport. >> how does it feel to be back at the airport, sir? did you kill gary triano, sir? did you place that bomb? >> no, of course not. >> where was pam phillips? it turns out, she may have outsmarted everyone by leaving the united states just one month before authorities filed arrest warrants for her and ron.

>> she took what we believed was an innocent trip to switzerland to visit her daughter. >> she just decided what? i'm not coming back? >> i think when the news broke, she probably made a conscious decision to stay in europe. >> but, if you think she was living a rough life as a fugitive, think again. arc commerce cut it firsthand when we tracked her down in 2009 living in the beautiful lakeside town of lugano, switzerland. the area is known as switzerland's version of monte carlo. pam and gary's little girl, lois, was now a college student there. we discovered pam living in a $5000 per month apartment, and she had made a new friend, a well-heeled widower with whom she often dined overlooking the lake at this five-star hotel. maybe it is proof that if you do enough shopping, sometimes you find exactly what you're looking for.

>> she was basically living a very affluent lifestyle. she did not need to work, apparently. >> back in pam phillips former country of residence in 2009, three of gary triano's children won their wrongful death lawsuit against pam. the judge ordered her to pay them $10 million. but, gary's family and friends wondered, would they ever see pam return to the united states to face charges, because by then, detective gamber had learned pam was no longer in switzerland. >> it's like i told heather, i said pam has disappeared. we don't know where she is anymore. she could be anywhere in the world, and they said the sheriff told me to find her i said and so they're asking me to pull a rabbit out of my hat. i said i don't think i have any more rabbits. >> you are feeling defeated.

what did you think, that you are never going to see pam phillips again? >> yes. >> coming up. >> i think she was cold and talk to lading. -- calculating. when dateline continues. er ious for those over 60, including those with asthma, diabetes, copd, and certain other conditions. but i'm protected. arexvy is proven to be over 82% effective in preventing lower respiratory disease from rsv and over 94% effective

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-you need astepro. -astepro? it's faster, bro. 8x faster than flonase. it's faster, bro! it's faster, bro! it's faster, bro! it's mom to you. astepro starts working in 30 minutes. astepro and go! astepro starts worjosh mankiewicz:es. in tucson, arizona, a warrant was out for the arrest of socialite pam phillips, accused of masterminding the car bombing death of her ex-husband gary triano.

in tucson, arizona, a warrant was out for the rest of socialite pam phillips, accused of masterminding the car bombing death of her husband, gary triano. there was only one problem. pam was not in arizona or the united states. were, switzerland, where she had been living. like a femme fatale in an old movie, she had left town with no forwarding address. >> that was one of the frustrations that she was in the european union, where there is basically no borders. it's not like she has to go through immigration and customs. she can move. >> but, investigators in europe were cooperating with the u.s. authorities, and the started tracking pam's cell phone. >> so, even though you did not know where she was, the authorities over there was still on the case? >> yes.

>> they kept checking records and looking for pam, and in december, 2009, more than one year after she went on the lam, they found her in austria. detective gamber received the news from overseas, and realized he was not out of rabbits after all. >> a coded message that said she is in custody and vana. do you want to extradite her? it was like a one word response, yes. >> but, pam would spend some time waiting in an austrian gel first, while her accused co- conspirator, ron young, stood trial. in february 2010, prosecutors presented their case against young to a jury. they argued that young planted the bomb that killed gary triano and that pam phillips paid him to do it. >> everything you say, everything you've heard reeks of conspiracy. people who are so cold and so greedy that they believe that

nothing else matters. >> gary's niece, melissa, testified, and learned for the first time that her name had been on a list found in ron young's abandoned van. >> it was alarming. it was horrifying. >> the defense argued that pam's payments to ron were just extortion, blackmail, and that there was no evidence tying ron young to a bomb or placing him in tucson on the day of the murder. >> you have a laundry list of alternative suspects in this case that make just as much sense as blaming ron young. >> the jury, however, did not buy it. >> we find the defendant guilty. >> in march of 2010, ron young was found guilty of first- degree murder and conspiracy to commit murder. he was sentenced to life in prison in just two months later, pam phillips was

extradited back to the united states. you can guess who was there to welcome her back. >> what do you say to the triano family? what do you say to gary's children? what you said your own children who don't have a father and his mother is going to be in county jail? >> but, lupita is was not the only face pam saw at the airport. what was it like to see pam come back? >> it was gratifying. when she got off the plane about 10:00 at night, she was not happy to see me. >> also present, melissa triano. why was it important for you to be there? >> i think because she had thought she had gotten away with this. and, i think we wanted her to see that we know that she had not. >> there she was on full display, the former socialite chauffeured limo was now a pima county sheriff's car.

gary's youngest child, elliot, was just seven months old when her father was killed. by now, she was beginning to understand more about how her father died, and who might have done it, and why. >> when you heard pam was accused of having your father murdered for a $200 million insurance policy, what did you think? >> i don't know what it's like to live the kind of life that she was living, but i know what it's like to grow up without having my dad around, my biological dad. >> arizona versus pamela and phillips. >> pam phillips pleaded not guilty to charges of murder and conspiracy to commit murder. veteran pima county attorney rick was chosen to prosecute the case.

you think she killed over his money? the sense one gets of pam from you guys is someone who is kind of a human calculator. >> i think calculator is an apt description. i think she was cold and calculated, that she used men for her benefit, and ultimately, she used gary for her benefit. >> but, it would take years before prosecutors would actually get to try the case as it meandered through the legal system. motion after motion. for a time, pam was ruled mentally incompetent to stand trial. she told at least one doctor someone had been watching and listening to her for years, and she believed she had tracking devices placed in her passport and her head, but by late 2012, the judge said she was fit to proceed. >> i think the police got tunnel vision with regard to this investigation. >> the woman who live the good life now had a court-appointed attorney.

her name was alecia. >> pam phillips has been variously described as a narcissist, gold digger, and ultimately, ruthless, cold- blooded murderer. your shaking your head. how do you describe her? >> i would describe her as a mother of two who works hard, who tried to make a life for herself. >> did pam phillips >> >> no. he was the father of her children. >> it's not crazy the police looked at pam. they had had this contentious relationship. pam got some serious money out of that insurance settlement. pam later was found to be associating with the guy who pick police believe was actually responsible for planting the bomb. >> there is absolutely no physical evidence linking ronald young to that murder or to that bomb. nothing whatsoever.

>> and yet, he was convicted. >> exactly, and it is a statement of how powerful an accusation can be. people now have to prove their innocence. people are presumed guilty because the press puts it out there. >> so, this is our fault? >> well, partly, yes. people are now presumed guilty and that is the hurdle the defense has to overcome. >> some, alecia and her team set about overcoming that hurdle, preparing a vigorous defense for pam phillips as their client ready to face the jury more than 17 years after the murder. coming up. was it runs dna? >> it was not. the only thing they had with those tapes, and that was it. >> when dateline continues.

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josh mankiewicz: february 2014, more than 17 years had passed since gary triano's shocking death by car bomb outside a tucson country club. his ex-wife, pam phillips was now on trial february, 2014, more than 17 years had passed since gary triano's shocking death by car bomb outside a tucson country club. his ex-wife, pam phillips, was now on trial, charged with his murder and right from the start, pam's defense team insisted that police rushed to judgment. >> it's a lot easier to go after the ex-wife who collected $2 million. that's the low hanging fruit. >> in his opening statement,

attorney paul ackerson defended not just pam but her alleged co- conspirator, as well. >> the evidence you're going to hear is going to convince you that not only my client is innocent but ron young is innocent. >> the defense insisted there was nothing placing ron young or pam phillips in tucson on the day of the murder. >> if you going to do a bombing, you've got to come in and do the bombing. >> and, says pam's attorney, there was no proof ron even knew how to build a bomb. >> there is no evidence he had the ability, the knowledge, there is nothing in his van or any of the stuff they found on his computer. it is not like he had a workshop in his garage and tinkered on the weekends, and he had a slight tremor in his hands. he did not have the ability to do this, not at all. >> and, this defense expert analyzed some trace dna found on the bomb parts. >> my conclusion is that ron young is wrong men in prison.

>> but, there was all the evidence police discovered in his abandon than a month before the murder. maps of tucson, paperwork related to pam and gary's divorce, a notepad with names of some of gary's friends and family and a receipt showing ron spent 18 mysterious days in tucson in the days before the murder under a fake name. what was all that about? >> he was looking to help him get more child support by investigating the hidden assets of gary triano. that is why he was here. >> there was a notebook containing a few names of people associated with gary? >> and you know why. >> but, why use an assumed name during his tucson visit? >> he was already on the run from the police in aspen, colorado. he was hiding at that point. >> as for the theory that pam

killed gary for $2 million in life insurance? nonsense, said the attorney. a friend of pam's testified that she took overpayments on the policy because pam was short on money. a judge would not allow us to show the friends face. >> is about $600 a month and she felt that was one piece she could be rid of and stop doing, and i said absolutely not. that if you can't pay for it now, i will, but you need to have the security for the kids. >> and, the friend told the jury she actually forgot to make the last two payments on the insurance policy before gary was killed. which you think is significant why? >> because she testified at trial that pam never asked her again about the insurance policy. it never came up in any conversation. she just let it go.

>> if pam was killing gary for the insurance money she would've said something to a friend like you made those last payments, right? but then, how to explain all those recorded phone calls between pam and ron? the discussion of payments? the threats. >> there's just plenty of stuff i could literally dig out of the ground. >> and, talk of prison time. >> when you sit in a women's prison for murdering -- when you sit in a women's prison for murder -- >> the defense argue ron was extorting pam with threats of ruining her reputation in aspen. >> well, because it would get in the paper and be an embarrassment to you. >> i think he was trying to threaten her by saying look, you see all these things that are in the press right now with regard to you being a suspect

in this murder, i'm going to make sure it goes into the front page of the aspen times. >> so, he is blackmailing her even though she didn't do anything wrong? >> she was concerned about her reputation because reputation is everything in the business that she did. >> and even though she had not committed any crime, even though she did not hire ron young or anybody else to kill her husband she couldn't go to the police when she was extorted? somebody threatens to frame me for a murder i had nothing to do with and wrecked my reputation, the police are the first phone call i making. >> there are many people who get extorted, blackmailed and just basically want to make the problem go away. >> so rather than go to the police, pam continued making payments to ron young. >> those were the words of the person trying to get money from another person. >> that's not a criminal conspiracy in the wake of pam having hired rhonda killed gary? >> that's after the fact, they don't have a single shred of evidence of conspiracy before

the fact. >> if pam and ron did not conspire to kill gary triano, did not carry it out, then who did? you are about to hear one wild story of a man police never checked out, a man who had the means, the motive, and apparently the desire to kill gary triano. coming up. >> he was coked out of his mind and about as evil as they come. >> could he be the real killer? >> he was so obsessed with gary, he immediately started declaring he was going to kill him. >> you heard him say that? >> many times. >> when dateline continues. tim. >> when dateline continues. [♪♪] if you're only using facial moisturizer in the morning, did you know, the best time for skin renewal is at night? olay retinol24 renews millions of surface skin cells while you sleep. wake up to smoother, younger-looking skin

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police detained a man suspected of pulling four hostages in a nightclub for hours. all four were let go and injured. police were able to apprehend the men without using violence, saying the man was armed with knives but the motive for that attack is unknown. for now, back to dateline. on the eighth floor of the pima county courthouse, pam phillips' attorneys were pleading her case. prosecutors, they said, had it all wrong. not only was pam not guilty, but there was real evidence someone else committed this crime, and the man the defense pointed that has a name you might recall, a lead that came up early in the murder investigation, one that was never pursued. neil mcneice. >> well, he was coked out of his mind and he was about as evil as they come.

>> this is dr. lawrence d'antonio, a doctor of osteopathic medicine. he sat down with us to share the extraordinary tale he told the jury about neil mcneice, a man d'antonio said suffered from a couple of melodies. >> one was drug addiction and the other was exceeding wealth. >> said neil's mother paid him to block off his schedule and look after her son, who was at the time, addicted to heroin and cocaine. >> he had a very sweet type of humble personality when he was not on drugs.

>> but when he would use? >> very paranoid. blamed all of his problems on select people, and then went after them with a vengeance. >> and, there was his storage locker full of weapons. >> it was all military weapons, m-16s, militarized shotguns and you can see hand grenades laying on the ground. >> and, his use of dynamite for sport. and then there was the company he kept. dr. d'antonio said that in the early 90s, neil was hanging around with antigovernment militia types in montana and then right after the oklahoma city bombing in 1995, neil's girlfriend showed up at d'antonio's house. >> she swore up and down that she felt he was involved financially, so at this point -- >> neil's girlfriend told you she thought neil had bankrolled the oklahoma city bombing? >> yes. >> dr. d'antonio even called an fbi hotline to report neil. there is no indication the bureau found any link between neil and the bombing but they did eventually contact d'antonio when they were investigating neil mcneice for something else. he found himself a defendant in a federal wiretapping case, accused of extorting money from

a man who had been his friend. mcneice ultimately pleaded guilty to receiving the proceeds of extortion. and why was this relevant? because, said dr. d'antonio, his frightening acquaintance, neil mcneice, had a history of bad blood with none other than gary triano. it started, the doctor said, after mcneice and triano agreed to purchase an item together at a charity auction. >> gary did not have any money to pay so neil paid and he was supposed to pay neil 50% later and of course he did not pay them. >> then some years later around 1991, gary tried to get neil to go and do business with a highflying real estate mogul. their meetings were held not in the boardroom, but in a series of limousines.

>> because they could keep neil a captive audience in a limousine. >> d'antonio said mcneil wanted a finders fee for the arrangement but in the meantime, gary had to pay for all the wining and dining and it was very costly. >> there in the limousine, d'antonio says gary asked mcneice for a loan. >> this is a magnificent wedding ring. it had two appraisals, one close to 250,000 and he wanted and $80,000 cash loan. >> the doctor says neil agreed, but -- >> he ended up with a cubic zirconia with about $70,000.

>> gary triano switch the ring on him? >> at some point that is when he lost it toward gary triano. he was so obsessed, he immediately started declaring he was going to kill him. >> you heard him say that? >> oh yeah, many times. hundreds to maybe thousands of times. he was obsessed with gary triano. obsessed with him. >> that was the case the defense made to the jury. they argued neil mcneice had the means, the motive and the stated desire to kill gary triano. any evidence the investigators ever looked at the sky as a possible suspect? >> no, no. they ignored this whole line of investigation completely. >> the defense even contacted -- connected neil to a potential bomb maker. his close friend, jerry capuano, happened to be a master would maker and handyman. >> one of jerry's hobbies was that he was an avid radio control airplane operator and he would build his plains from scratch. >> he would do it using the same types of components found in the bomb that killed gary triano . before the trial, the defense inspected jerry

capuano's workshop. >> bailout is to go into the shop and we found items in that shop that everything there could've been used to build the bomb. cut pipe, wires, units for the model planes and this is something they could've found in 1997. >> there is just one problem with this defense theory. it is pretty hard to check out. >> where is jerry capuano now? >> he died. >> and neil mcneice is dead . so these guys are the perfect third-party defense for you guys. they're dead so they can't stand up and call you a liar. >> but, the evidence is there. >> and, the defense argued, dr. d'antonio was not the only person to mention neil mcneice as a potential suspect in the case. this friend of gary triano's told detective st. john about

mcneice not long after the murder. >> did you tell them about a person by the name of neil mcneice? >> yes. >> so, why didn't the detective at least go talk with neil mcneice? because it's just one of those things that fall through the cracks or because you guys were so focused on pam phillips ? >> that is what the defense would have you believe but i would say that there were eight to 10 what i felt were viable leads in addition to pam phillips. >> and neil mcneice wasn't one of them? >> in hindsight do you wish you had dragged neil mcneice into a little tiny room and asked him some questions? >> of course. >> what you think you would've

found? >> based on evidence that i've seen from our investigation and the defense investigation as we would have cleared him in some way. >> there was nothing to the mcneice story, said investigators and prosecutors. the true killer, they said, was the person sitting in that courtroom, and if there were any doubts, the prosecution had a star witness who is about to share the secret she had kept for nearly two decades. coming up. >> i just didn't feel safe. >> a former friend turns powerful foe. >> she started talking about how easy it would be to just hire a hitman and have him taken out because he has such a predictable schedule that he played golf every day. >> you sure you are remembering that conversation accurately? >> absolutely. >> when dateline continues. wh e before they even start. it's the #1 prescribed branded chronic migraine treatment. so far, more than 5 million botox® treatments have been given to over eight hundred and fifty thousand chronic migraine patients. effects of botox® may spread hours to weeks after injection causing serious symptoms. alert your doctor right away, as difficulty swallowing, speaking, breathing, eye problems,

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i think it's a greajosh mankiewicz: it had taken nearly two decades to bring pam phillips to trial. and according to prosecutors, there was no doubt, she was guilty of murder. woman 2: look, sir, there's one reason it had taken nearly two decades to bring pam phillips to trial, and according to prosecutors, there was no doubt she was guilty of murder. >> look, there is one reason gary triano was murdered, one reason. he was murdered because his death benefited pamela phillips in a big way. >> and, while there was no physical evidence tying pam phillips or wrong -- ron young to the car bomb that killed gary triano and nothing placing either one of them in tucson at the time of the murder, prosecutors urged the jury to listen carefully to those phone calls between ron and pam that were recorded after the murder. there is talk of an agreement. >> i'm not going to keep

sending you more and more money unless i know that you can honor our agreement. >> and, doing something for pam no one else would do. >> you know, and i also helped you on something that was, you know, beyond what anybody else in the world would probably do. >> neither pam nor ron ever explicitly says those payments were for a murder. >> the defense argument was that he was extorting her. >> right. what was it wrong young could have on her that she had to pay him $400,000 of it wasn't the murder? and if those tapes didn't sway the jury, prosecutors had one more star witness, a woman that was about to share publicly the secret she had kept for a long time. >> pam's husband, gary, and the gentleman i dated, had played

golf together. >> ernie was laura chapman and she had first met pam back in the late 80s. the two became good friends and laura had a front row seat to pam and gary's of stale -- upscale lifestyle. >> they had a dining room table that actually came up out of the floor, which i thought was a little bit over the top but it was interesting. >> it was a lifestyle that laura says pam was not pleased to part with. >> the part of pam that was more significant than thinking to yourself okay, he is a wonderful guy and the father of my children? >> i have to wonder if she really truly ever did love him, or if it was just a lifestyle they had that she was in love with. >> when pam and gary separated, pam told lori about the

problems they were having. >> she started talking about how easy it would be to hire somebody, that she should just hire a hitman and have them taken out and how easy it would be because he had such a predictable schedule, that he played golf every day. and then, she started talking about their life insurance policy and of course, at the time, you think it somebody who is venting, angry. >> you didn't think it was someone plotting a murder. you just thought it was pam letting off steam? >> yeah. >> and so laura brushed a conversation with pam aside. this was three years before gary triano's murder. they stayed friends even after pam moved to aspen and then november 1st, 1996, laura heard the news about the car bombing at la paloma. >> i remember once i heard that it was gary, i remember saying to my husband, oh my gosh, she really did it. >> but, laura chose not to go to the authorities. >> his body parts were blown all over sunrise drive and it was gruesome, and knowing that somebody could do that and take a father away from five children

, i just did not feel safe. >> and so, for years, laura kept that secret until one evening in 2011, both dining at a local restaurant, she saw gary's daughter, heather, and something told her it was time. >> i said heather, i think there is something that i need to tell you and i told her what pam had shared with me that night at her house. >> the very next day, laura shared her story with detective st. john. what made you decide to come forward? >> seeing heather and knowing how much she loved her father knowing that what i knew could possibly help convict the person who is responsible for his murder. >> on the stand, the defense attacked laura, saying she must not of been remembering things clearly because of a brain

tumor she had been diagnosed with back in 2005, which laura says is nonsense. >> you sure you remember that conversation with pam accurately? >> absolutely. >> have your health problems, the brain tumor you survived, in any way impacted your memory of things like that? >> absolutely not. >> how important of a witness was laura? >> i think she was criddle -- critical. this was pam phillips saying i could hire someone to take him out. his golf game is pretty predictable, i can do it and that is what happened. >> of course, gary's niece, melissa, had never wavered from her belief that pam was guilty. >> she is the only person that could gain anything from his death, monetarily. >> as the trial headed toward a close, the council felt

confident but one never knows which way a jury will go. >> we both firmly believed we had the right person on trial. we believed with the had the evidence showing she was guilty and the question was, given the circumstantial nature of the case, did we produce enough? >> coming up, do you feel confident? >> i've been doing it long enough to never be confident about anything. >> a 17 year investigation comes down to a single moment. >> it was overwhelming. >> my heart breaks. my heart breaks. >> the verdict, when dateline continues. but this is my story. ( ♪♪ ) and with once-daily trelegy, it can still be beautiful. because with 3 medicines in 1 inhaler, trelegy keeps my airways open for a full 24 hours and prevents future flare-ups. trelegy also improves lung function,

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josh mankiewicz: april 2, 2014, it had been 17 years, 5 months join the millions of people taking back their privacy and 1 day since gary triano and the life he lived had parted company. april 2nd, 2014. it had been 17 years, five months and one day since gary triano and the life he had lived had parted company. now, each side had one last chance. the defense insisted that investigators had blinders on when they went after pam phillips, carelessly ignoring other possible leads like neil mcneice, who had openly wished gary triano dead. >> there is plenty of proof that we have shown that there is a reasonable doubt, and the

state went after the easy marks, the woman who got a $2 million insurance policy, and the guy that was extorting her. >> but, said the prosecutor, the idea that anyone else was responsible for this murder other than pam and her co- conspirator, ron young, was pure fantasy. >> it makes for a good story. it makes for a good story that he has a friend that does model airplanes and does gizmos that are similar to those used for a bomb. it makes for a good story. it's time to hold pamela phillips responsible for her crimes. it is time to find pamela phillips not -- guilty. >> and so, the jury retired and everyone else waited.

>> do you feel confident? >> i've been doing it long enough to never be confident about anything. >> after 2.5 days of deliberations, the jury had a verdict. and, the story that had been the talk of tucson for so many years entered its final chapter. >> pam phillips, guilty of first-degree murder and conspiracy to commit murder. for the now retired detective james gamber, it was finally over. it was a long road for you guys. >> yes, it went from my second homicide to my last homicide. >> but, when word spread to gary's friends and family, there were few if any tears. >> it was overwhelming. it was surreal. this is a sad story. in every aspect of it. >> the day that she was convicted was very bittersweet. >> why bittersweet? >> i'm a mom, and i was extremely saddened for all the

children involved. >> their mom is just been convicted of killing their dad. >> and i can't imagine, and the heart breaks. my heart breaks. >> the next month, pam was back in court with her jail issued jumpsuit and gray hair, looking nothing like the moneyed socialite she had wanted so badly to remain. no longer was she the stepmother gary's oldest kids, heather and brian, had grown to love, the woman who had been there friend. they each made an emotional statement. >> my father's death was sudden and violent. his life was taken as a result of greed, hate, and malice. >> heather spoke about the woman she had once defended.

>> to think i actually stood up for this woman when others suggested she might of been involved in the murder. i told her she could keep her head held high because she had nothing to do with this murder. was i wrong. >> and then, pam phillips had the floor. she turned toward the gallery and spoke out for the first time. >> i just want everybody to know that i am innocent. i am innocent. i am innocent, okay? this is hard, so hard for me. this is a nightmare. what has happened is a nightmare and gary was my husband, okay. gary was my husband and he was the father of my children, and i am innocent and i want everybody to know that. this is been a travesty. it's a nightmare for me, okay? and i don't understand how this could even happen, right? i want you all to know that. i am innocent.

thank you. >> the judge issued his sentence. the woman who had once lived the jet setting high life would now spend the rest of her natural life in a prison cell. >> fair to say that if ron young had kept such careful records and he wasn't such a pack rat neither he nor pam would be behind bars right now? >> there's a good chance of that. >> if it sounds like a victory, the triano family will assure you it is not. >> my uncle is not coming back. no conviction or life sentence is going to change that. all it did was make a murderer out of my cousin's mother. nothing else has changed. hello, i am craig melvin >> it is like a bloody movie and it is. it is so deep, you