it was an amicable separation, and that he loved carm.ust happened-- andrea canning (voiceover): and his reaction to the news that night seemed genuine. the detective thought he was emotional when he was told and-- acting the way one would expect when they've just received news like this. yes. andrea canning (voiceover): and besides, his alibi was airtight. so detectives wondered, if carmela's husband wasn't the killer, who was? it was time to find out more about her from other people in her life. we learned that she was very involved with her boys. nobody could say a bad thing about carmela. there was nothing negative whatsoever in any interview. andrea canning (voiceover): tara coccimiglio was one of the people who'd spoken to police. she and carmela were friends from college. we had a lot in common, and we became the best of friends. what do you think it was about you two that eventually you just totally hit it off? to be honest, we both liked to party and have a good time. sounds familiar. tara coccimiglio: yeah. she was a sweetheart.

they have a lot of carm. thank god. that's all for this edition of "dateline." i'm craig melvin. thank you for watching. to say something. i'm not going to be here for long. someone's going to kill me. [dramatic music] priscilla villarreal: the sheriff's department and texas rangers are investigating a murder. who'd want melissa dead? i have no idea. federico calderon: the sheriff had a bad feeling about this case. isidro alaniz: the second victim is from laredo, comes from a very good family. i think my whole block heard me scream. it did not feel like a coincidence. isidro alaniz: the killer is looking for his next victim. she does something amazing. she's able to slip out of her blouse. she realizes, oh my god, he killed melissa, he killed claudine, and i'm sitting in his house [dramatic music] and, welcome to "dateline." melissa ramirez and claudine luera were loved, if lost, souls whose lives took a tragic turn after years of struggle and life on the streets. the friends were found murdered days apart. theirs were the first two in a string of homicides, sending police in sea