Sounak Sengupta
NBC’s ‘Dateline: Lost in Sin City’ attempts to solve the mystery surrounding the brutal murder of Theresa Insana in Las Vegas, Nevada, in late October 2004. The 26-year-old’s body was found around a week later, in early November 2004. The episode features interviews with the victim’s family members and cold case investigations involved with the probe discussing the two-decade-old homicide.
How Did Theresa Insana Die?
Theresa “Tree” Elizabeth Insana was born to Joseph Insana and Ann Marie Insana in Niagara Falls in Niagara County, New York, on January 20, 1978. She graduated from Niagara Falls High School in 1996 and earned her Psychology Degree from the State University of New York in Binghampton in 2000. After college, Theresa’s journey took her out west, and she landed in Las Vegas, Nevada, in June 2000. Her sister, Maribeth Insana, recalled, “She was just that type of person that if she wanted to do something, she was going to do it.”
The Rio Hotel and Casino employed Theresa in the Sales Department, and she lived a quiet life in Las Vegas, made friends, working hard at her job. Her friend, Grace Carducci, said, “Her motto was Carpe Diem, to seize the day – and she really did. Every day she had a smile on her face, and she tried her best.” As she started climbing the steps of her career, her family missed her but could see she was thriving and visited as often as time would allow. In 2002, Theresa began dating a co-worker, Jeff Fenton, and got engaged after three months of dating.
They both worked in the Sales Department, and her loved ones were surprised by the rapid progression of her relationship. Maribeth added, “She, you know, was so excited when Jeff and she got engaged. And they came back to Niagara Falls. They were going to be married in Niagara Falls.” The wedding was planned for April 2004, with Theresa excited to take that next step in her life. However, the relationship did not last long, and the couple broke up in March 2004, weeks before their wedding.
Maribeth alleged Jeff had claimed he was not ready to get hitched. However, she tried to pick up the pieces and move on. Theresa’s father, Joseph Insana, recalled, “The marriage just wasn’t right. She was upset, but she remained positive. She said, ‘I’m going to move forward,’ and she did.” Adding insult to injury, her former fiancé started dating another Rio Hotel co-worker, Melissa Ball, shortly after canceling the wedding. Theresa had planned to return to Niagra Falls but decided to stay after being recently promoted to Sales Manager.
The show noted how things gradually returned to normal, with Jeff and Theresa remaining in touch as she continued to dote on the puppy he had recently given her as a birthday present. Hence, it was shocking when the 26-year-old reportedly went missing on October 26, 2004. Reports stated Theresa followed her usual routine — leaving her Summerlin home early for work, going to vote, returning home, walking her dog in the evening, and having dinner. Grace stated she received a call from Theresa in the evening, which she failed to pick up.
Maribeth claimed her sister then had a phone conversation with her mother, which investigators believed was the last contact someone had with her. When Grace returned the call around 7:30 pm, Theresa did not pick up. She also did not go to work the following two days. Her concerned manager contacted hotel security, and two colleagues, including Jeff, went to her house. The co-workers found her cell and purse inside, her car in the garage, and her dog left unattended. Concerned, they called 911, and the police mounted a massive search.
Construction workers discovered her body wrapped in some carpet in a drainage ditch at a construction site near Peace Way and Hualapai, about 3.5 miles from her Summerlin home, a week later, on November 1. Her autopsy determined Theresa died from strangulation and blunt-force trauma. Police sources stated the medical examiner also believed she might have been sexually assaulted, although it wasn’t possible to know for sure due to the advanced state of decomposition.
The Search for Theresa’s Killer Continues
After the colleagues called 911 on October 28, the police arrived to find a blood smear on Theresa’s car’s back bumper and two more blood spots in a hallway bathroom. A missing towel rod indicated she might have fought her attacker(s) before she was overpowered. The forensic analysts discovered the blood on the vehicle bumper belonged to Theresa, while the ones in the bathroom came from an unknown male suspect. The detectives hypothesized the perpetrator(s) killed her and disposed of the body using her automobile before returning it.
When Theresa’s body was discovered, the rocky terrain to get to the drainage ditch led the investigators to believe more than one person might have been involved. They immediately suspected Jeff and his erstwhile girlfriend, Melissa. However, the couple was “essentially cooperative” and offered a strong alibi. Detective Ken Hefner, a cold case investigator with the Las Vegas Metro Police Department, noted, “They were car shopping. The salesman and dealership confirmed they were there.”
Though Jeff was a person of interest and his polygraph test showed deception, the police ruled him out as a suspect after his DNA did not match the blood drops in the bathroom. However, the officers discovered a disturbing fact when they interviewed Grace. She stated she had visited Theresa in May 2004, and the latter had alleged she sometimes returned home from work to find the TV set to a different channel than the one on which she had allegedly left it. Theresa had no alarm or a security system, which were uncommon in 2004.
After the case remained cold for seven years, the police shared their case files with the show producers. Over a decade passed since the show aired an episode on Theresa’s homicide, and the authorities were yet to receive a tip. In 2017, they had a breakthrough when Virginia-based Parabon Labs, specializing in DNA phenotyping, reported the killer might be someone of Filipino descent. They also created a sketch of the probable perpetrator using phenotyping data. Detective Ken Hefner described the sketch as their “most active lead.”
The authorities have been unable to match the sketch to a possible suspect. Reports explained Asians are underrepresented in genealogical databases, which made it more difficult to track down potential relatives of the suspected killer. However, the detectives continue to push the sketch, hoping some good samaritans come forward with some information. Theresa’s family also clings to the same hope, with her sister, Maribeth, stating, “It has been a very long 19 years we’ve been waiting. But we’re not going to stop.”
Read More: Johnny Crawford Murder: Where Are Ted and Lance Nixon Now?
