Naman Shrestha
When the Wonderland Gang was attacked inside their Wonderland Avenue property in the summer of 1981, the entire community was shell-shocked and horrified at the gruesomeness of the crime scene. In order to get to the bottom of the case, two determined and competent detectives were assigned to the case — Tom Lange and Robert “Bob” Souza. As they feature in MGM+’s ‘The Wonderland Massacre & The Secret History of Hollywood’ several decades after the massacre occurred, the two former detectives provide a detailed account of the crime and the investigation that followed.
Tom Lange and Robert “Bob” Souza Served as Lead Detectives in Several High Profile Cases
In Milwaukee, Wisconsin, Frederick Douglas Lange, later known as Tom Lange, was born on April 14, 1945, destined to achieve great things in life. Dedicated to serving his country from his early days, he grew up to become a sergeant in the US Marine Corps and earned a Bronze Star for his services in Vietnam. In 1967, he became an integral part of the Los Angeles Police Department in the form of a detective. In the coming years, he was involved in many criminal investigations, including being one of the lead detectives in the OJ Simpson case and the Wonderland Massacre of the early 1980s.
After nearly three decades of service, Tom retired in 1996 with more than 60 commendations from law enforcement agencies to his name. His partner in the investigation of the Wonderland murders was Robert “Bob” Souza, another homicide detective in the LAPD Hollywood Division. He retired from his duties after serving as a detective for about 25 years or so. As per reports, during the final decade on the job, he also moonlighted as a real estate broker.
Tom and Bob Worked in the Movie Industry Post-Retirement
After retirement, Tom Lange collaborated with Detective Philip Vannatter and published a book titled ‘Evidence Dismissed: The Inside Story of the Police Investigation of O.J. Simpson.’ In 2018, he reunited with Robert Souza and together, they published a book titled ‘Malice In Wonderland: The Inside Story of the Police Investigation of The Laurel Canyon Murders,’ detailing the decades-long case and their part in the investigation. On the other hand, Robert Souza got into Hollywood after his retirement, becoming a screenwriter and producer.
He debuted as a co-producer and screenwriter with the 2003 Harrison Ford starrer, ‘Hollywood Homicide.’ He has also been featured in a couple of docuseries and podcasts with his former partner, Tom Lange, including ABC News’ ‘City of Angels, City of Death’ and a podcast series titled ‘The Wonderland Murders by Hollywood & Crime.’ Just like Robert, Tom has also served as a producer for a few projects, such as ‘O.J. Simpson: Blood, Lies & Murder’ and ‘E! True Hollywood Story.’ Besides featuring in documentaries like ‘Is O.J. Innocent? The Missing Evidence,’ ‘OJ25,’ ‘Most Famous Murder: The O.J. Simpson Trial,’ and ‘The Life and Murder of Nicole Brown Simpson,’ Tom has also portrayed Bluehall BG in ‘Heartbreak Hotel.’
Tom and Bob Are Likely Leading Peaceful Lives With Their Respective Families Today
On October 6, 1979, Tom Lange tied the knot with the love of his life, Linda Ann Lee, and has been married to her ever since. Over the course of their decades-long marriage, they have given birth to two lovely children. In the 2010s, the couple published a couple of books together — ‘Loving God: What Love Is and What It Isn’t’ and ‘Traumas and PTSD: Living Free!.’ Seemingly residing in Simi Valley, California, Tom enjoys his retired life and spends time with his family.
On the other hand, Robert “Bob” Souza has kept most of the details about his personal life private and away from the public eye. What we could find is that he has a TikTok account, where he posts videos of himself detailing the gruesome investigation cases he was involved with during his time as a detective, including the case about a farm girl in Hollywood. As of today, the retired detective supposedly prefers to focus on himself and his family.
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