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- [00:02]
Vanessa
Hi listeners, it's Vanessa. Before today's episode, I want to tell you about another show I think you'll love. Crime House and A E are teaming up on the podcast version of the famous true crime series the First 48. Each week, Carter Roy takes you inside a landmark homicide case. The interrogations, the dead ends, and the breakthroughs in the critical first 48 hours. Listen to and follow the first 48 every Thursday on Apple Podcasts, Spotify, Amazon Music, or wherever you listen to podcasts.
- [00:41]
Carter Roy
This is crime house.
- [00:47]
Sarah Turney
It's August 12, 2013. You're looking at a bridge running across Pensacola Bay on the Florida Panhandle. The toll on the bridge is completely automated. The and as cars drive across, their license plates are photographed and billed accordingly. A gray 1999 Toyota 4Runner crosses the bridge at exactly 7:51pm that night.
- [01:10]
Courtney Nicole
The car is driving from the mainland to Santa Rosa Island, a barrier island that's nearly 50 miles long. This car has made the same journey a handful of times. Its owner, 25 year old Tiffany Daniels, loves to go hiking, swimming and camping there. But whether Tiffany is the one driving the car that day is unknown. The camera only captures her license plate. We can't see who's driving.
- [01:34]
Sarah Turney
The toll reader never registers the car coming back to the mainland though. So whoever was driving the car that day was making a one way trip to the island whether they knew it or.
- [01:54]
Courtney Nicole
Every year, over half a million people go missing. And that's just in the United States alone. Most of those stories barely get a headline. Some don't even get a tip line. And when cases do get media attention, we only get the broad strokes.
- [02:07]
Sarah Turney
But for those of us who have lived these true crime cases, we know the devil's in the details. This is the Final Hours. A Crime House Original Powered by Pave Studios. I'm Sarah Turney.
- [02:20]
Courtney Nicole
And I'm Courtney Nicole. Every Monday, Sarah and I will be looking at the final hours of someone's disappearance to see if there was anything hiding in plain sight.
- [02:28]
Sarah Turney
Each episode I'll offer insight on what those close to the victim might have experienced. Courtney will use her expertise to give more context into the investigation itself. Crime House exists because of listeners like you want even more. Join Crime House plus and get every episode of the Final Hours and the rest of the Crime House lineup ad free and early part plus at least two bonus episodes every month. To join, go to crimehouseplus.com or if you listen on Apple Podcasts tap try free at the top of the final hour show page. As always, this show is made and recorded by humans, not AI.
- [03:04]
Courtney Nicole
For this episode we're discussing the disappearance of Tiffany Daniels. 25 year old Tiffany was a talented artist from Florida who was still trying to figure out her life. On August 12, 2013, she told her boss she had to leave early and take a few days off to deal with some personal problems. But after she clocked out that day, no one saw Tiffany again.
- [03:29]
Vanessa
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- [04:41]
Carter Roy
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- [05:42]
Courtney Nicole
Tiffany Daniels father Rodney Daniels summed up her personality in a beautiful way. He called her a quote butterfly girl because she was the type of person to drop what she was doing and follow a butterfly when she saw one. What that meant was Tiffany had a serious passion for adventure. Whenever the mood struck, she'd take off for some camping, hiking, or stargazing. She never let life get in the way of a bit of whimsy. But she was responsible about it too. So when she vanished and law enforcement tried to brush it off as a simple runaway case, her family put their foot down. They didn't think Tiffany would have just abandoned her life and her loved ones. They pushed for answers. A fight they're continuing to this day. But before we get into the mystery surrounding Tiffany's disappearance, let's discuss the things we do know about her and shout out to the docuseries. Disappeared Season 7 Episode 2 for helping us dig deeper on the facts about Tiffany's life and this case.
- [06:40]
Sarah Turney
Tiffany was born in Pensacola, Florida on March 11, 1988. Like a lot of young adults, she briefly left home to go to college and did some traveling before coming back. But by 2013, 25 year old Tiffany was back in Pensacola renting a house not too far from her parents in a neighborhood called Long Hollow. One of the things she loved most about this area was the nature. Her house was near the edge of the mainland, Close to a bridge that leads to nearby Santa Rosa Island. Both the peninsula and the island have a bunch of nature preserves and parks. Tiffany liked to drive across the bridge to hike, bike, camp, and swim. Being right in the middle of her twenties, she was trying to figure out what she wanted to do with her life. A lot of her friends had left town, moved to other parts of the world for college or work, and her mother, Cindy, said Tiffany sometimes seemed like she felt a bit lost because of that. But Tiffany did have a job that she enjoyed, working in the theater department of Pensacola State College. She also did a lot of painting and sculpting in her free time. She actually used those skills to help with the theater sets at work. But even though she was really good at it, Tiffany didn't seem interested in making it a career. A lot of her hobbies might have seemed solitary by nature, but Tiffany was a people person through and through. She especially loved dancing. Tiffany did both swing and blues dancing. She loved having parties at her house where she'd clear out the furniture in her living room to make a makeshift dance floor. She actually met a lot of her friends through the dancing scene. One of them remembered the first time he went and how he was having trouble breaking out of his shell. That was until Tiffany Asked him to dance. He said she was always extremely empathetic and kind. Her parents saw her friendliness as a bit of a fault, though they said she sometimes went too far in how much she was willing to do for others. Her mom, Cindy said she just saw the good in everything and she didn't believe there were any bad people out there. End quote. This quality caused Tiffany some problems, especially when she was subletting rooms in her house to make ends meet. She had a string of bad luck finding dependable people lately. Her roommates weren't paying their rent on time, if they paid at all. But Tiffany wasn't good with confrontation. She had trouble putting her foot down and getting her roommates to pay their half of the rent. It had gotten to the point where her parents had to help her out with a bit of money to make up for it.
- [09:02]
Courtney Nicole
Sarah, I don't know about you, but I personally thankfully have not had any bad roommate stories. But as far as like the people pleasing, you know, aspect of Tiffany, I feel like I can relate to that, especially with confrontation. Like I, I feel like I'll stand up for certain things, but when it's like really heavy, like a really heavy subject, I feel like I'm terrible with confrontation. I get really nervous and anxious.
- [09:25]
Sarah Turney
I'm better about it now. But at 25, I was Tiffany. I would go up to my roommates and be like, hey, do you like maybe have rent this month? No problem. If you don't like, no worries. Jk, right? I think it's one of those things where you don't want to harm people, you don't want to inconvenience them. Like I was definitely that 20 something year old. That felt like the biggest inconvenience to everybody. Like if you get my burger wrong, that's fine, I'll just eat it. If you don't pay the rent, that's fine. I'll catch you next time. I was Tiffany.
- [09:55]
Courtney Nicole
That's incredibly nice of you for like just paying the rent. That's such a, I don't know, a big thing to take care of. And I feel like it's just a really good way when you're a people pleaser for people to take care of, take advantage of you on a day to day basis. It might just boil down to that, like people taking advantage of you. But on a deeper level that could be dangerous.
- [10:12]
Sarah Turney
Oh yeah, it can absolutely be dangerous. Especially when you want to see the good in people again. I AM Tiffany At 25 years old, a thousand percent, that was me I didn't think that there were a ton of bad people out there. I thought that most people had good hearts, you know, and just were going through a hard time. And to your point, that can absolutely be dangerous.
- [10:33]
Courtney Nicole
Well, thankfully, by the summer of 2013, Tiffany had finally gotten her problematic roommates out of the house. Now she was living alone, but she couldn't afford it forever. She still needed two more people to come in and help her pay the bills. This time, she was determined to find someone reliable. In July, Tiffany posted a Craigslist ad searching for roommates, and a 54 year old man named Gary Nichols saw it. Gary was going through a divorce, and Tiffany's house was close to his work, so the room was pretty perfect for him. So at the end of July, he moved in. He actually sort of knew Tiffany because she was friends with his daughter Noelle. Noelle and Tiffany were both in their mid-20s, so Gary was nearly 30 years older. Her family thought it was a bit weird, but Tiffany and Gary got along really well. They were both outdoorsy and vegetarians. And most importantly, he had a steady job and could pay his share of the rent. Now she just needed one more roommate to keep things steady.
- [11:31]
Sarah Turney
But that wasn't the only complicated thing Tiffany was dealing with. Tiffany was having some problems in the romance department as well. She'd been dating a college student named Gray Thomas, who she'd met through the dancing community. They'd only been together a year and hadn't lived together yet, but things were getting serious. Tiffany's mother even thought Gray might be the one. But Gray wasn't planning on staying in Florida. He was studying robotics, and he'd just gotten into a graduate program at the University of Texas, which of course was exciting, but it also meant moving away from Pensacola and Tiffany. Gray asked her to come with him to Austin, but she wanted to stay put. So they decided to give long distance a try.
- [12:13]
Courtney Nicole
Gray starts packing, and on August 11, 2013, it's time for him to hit the road. That morning, Tiffany puts together a breakfast for Grey and says goodbye before he sets out for Austin. That night, she talks to her roommate Gary Nichols for a bit. According to him, she was upset about her boyfriend leaving, but that she was also excited to visit Grey in Texas. That same evening, Gary and Tiffany watch a movie together to take her mind off of it. Monty Python and the whole Holy Grail. It also counts as research since Pensacola State's gonna do the Spamalot musical very soon. Eventually, they call it a night and head off to their rooms. But around 5am the next morning, something wakes Gary up. He hears the front door to the house open and close a few times. It's a Monday, but Tiffany does not normally start work that early. She usually starts around 8am sometimes even later. But for whatever reason, when Gary gets up for the day at around 7am, Tiffany's car is gone. It's not clear where Tiffany goes before work that day, but she makes it there just fine. At work, she talks to her boss, Don Snowden, about having some personal problems. She tells him that she has some things to take care of and will need a few days off. She also asks if she can leave early that day and he tells her that that's all fine. What these personal problems are is vague. Tiffany mentions needing to find another roommate to dawn, but she'd also told friends she was thinking about finding a new job. And of course, her boyfriend had just moved away. But none of them are brought up. When she asks about that time off, I personally don't see anything wrong with what she's doing. Like, I can't tell you how many times that since I've been working since like 15 years old, that if I need that day off, I need that day off. And I'm always going to put myself first.
- [14:00]
Sarah Turney
Yes, please, can we normalize taking time off from work, please? For physical illness, for a mental health day, for whatever you need. Let's normalize that more. But of course, I mean, I do wish that we had more insight into why she was taking this time off, because my mind explodes into, like a million different possibilities.
- [14:19]
Courtney Nicole
Even if it just boiled down to her just needing the day off, like she just really wasn't feeling it or needing, like, those few days off. I don't know. We have to look back and kind of use what we do know. Like, all of these little tiny things were, like, piling up and so many different things piling up. Like, that can just be a lot. And it is totally okay to just take a few days off, take a breather and just reset if you really need it. There's nothing wrong with that.
- [14:41]
Sarah Turney
Yeah. And at this part, I really keep going back to, like, her dad calling her butterfly girl. Right. And her going off to chase a butterfly. And maybe, maybe that's what this was. Maybe after her boyfriend actually leaving and her being alone, she wanted to rethink things. Even if that was just like, what am I gonna do with my life? It seems very appropriate for that age. And she seems like the type that would, you know, take a few days off to reevaluate reset, and maybe go move to Texas if she wanted to.
- [15:11]
Courtney Nicole
Whatever was going on in her life, Tiffany Daniels clocks out 17 minutes early that day. At 4:43pm on Aug. 12, she gets into her car, ready to deal with whatever personal matters are so urgent. But where she goes after work is a complete and total mystery.
- [15:34]
Carter Roy
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- [16:00]
Courtney Nicole
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- [16:04]
Carter Roy
sponsored by Chumba Casino the moment a body is found, the clock starts ticking. 48 hours. That's how long detectives have before the trail begins to go cold. From A E and Crime House, this is the official podcast from the famous true crime series the first 48 step inside the critical window. The interrogations, the dead ends, and the breakthroughs that crack a case wide open. I'm Carter Roy. Each week I revisit a landmark homicide investigation with the depth you know and immersive, long form storytelling built for your ears. Real detectives, real cases, real stakes. This is the first 48 new episodes every Thursday. Listen to and follow the first 48 on Apple Podcasts, Spotify, Amazon Music, or wherever you listen to podcasts.
- [17:09]
Sarah Turney
It's the evening of August 12, 2013. Tiffany Daniels left her job just before 5pm, telling her boss she's having some personal problems, though she doesn't say what they are. Wherever she goes next, it isn't home. So by that Evening, her roommate, 54 year old Gary Nichols, is worried about her. As it gets later in the night and Tiffany isn't answering her phone, his concerns only grow around 10pm after not hearing from Tiffany all day, Gary calls his daughter Noelle, who's friends with Tiffany and is around the same age. Noelle gently reminds her dad that he doesn't need to parent Tiffany. She's an adult. Gary agrees and tells Noelle he'll try not to overstep. But the next day, Tiffany still isn't home or answering her phone. When Gary gets home from work that afternoon, he also notices that the power is out. He's worried that Tiffany didn't pay the Bill. So again, he calls Noelle and asks her to call Tiffany's parents to see what's going on, but she doesn't have their number. It takes a few days, but Noelle eventually gets a hold of Cindy via Facebook. She lets her know that Tiffany hasn't been home. And she's worried now, too. Cindy figures Tiffany's staying with someone for a day or two and hasn't made her plans known. Cindy calls her daughter and assumes Tiffany will call back soon. She later said it didn't even occur to her that Tiffany might be missing at this point. So they likely weren't the type of family who spoke every day. Tiffany's father, Rodney, thinks maybe Tiffany's gone on a spontaneous trip to visit her boyfriend Grey in Texas. So Rodney calls him. Gray says he last spoke to Tiffany on the phone on the night of the 11th. They chatted for a bit after he got to Austin, but he hasn't heard from her since. Her family says that she's traveled a lot, going on spontaneous hiking or camping trips. But she was usually good about keeping people in on the loop where she was going. They figure one of her friends must know something. So after a few days, Noelle and Cindy start checking in with all of Tiffany's friends. But as they go down the list of everyone she knows, it becomes clear that she isn't with anyone. By August 17, five days after she left work, they realize no one's heard from her, and they need to call the police. The Escambia county sheriff's office comes to the Daniels house to talk with Cindy and Rodney about their worries. The officers think this is most likely a voluntary disappearance, but Cindy is not having it. She tells them, you file that report, and they listen.
- [19:39]
Courtney Nicole
I think some people might think five days is a long time to, you know, not hear from someone and then report the missing. But I actually think going days without talking to family is more common than what some people might realize. So when Tiffany had only been gone 5 days, I can understand why her family didn't immediately jump to the worst case scenario. That being said, I think Gary's concern is a good reminder that if something feels off, it's okay to speak up. You might worry about overstepping like he did, but I'd rather have someone check in and be wrong than stay quiet when something genuinely is just not right.
- [20:13]
Sarah Turney
Yeah, I mean, I feel like I can't speak on what normal families do, But I think, like, not speaking to somebody for five days is something that's normal. So this isn't a situation where I'm going to look harshly on anybody because this just seems like a natural thing that unfolded as opposed to, like, anything nefarious here. And I mean, props to Cindy for, like, not having it and saying you're gonna file that report. Because, like I say, if you push back, they will usually file it. So good on Cindy.
- [20:40]
Courtney Nicole
Oh, for sure. And I can't help but feel thankful for Gary. Like, he was probably in a very weird situation, being nearly 30 years older than Tiffany, living with her, and he doesn't wanna overstep. Like, he doesn't want to parent this young girl because, like, he's not her dad. But he, like, right away also felt like something was not right. So props to him for really speaking up, trying to check in with his daughter to see if everything was okay. I feel like I have a soft spot for him. I feel like he did everything right.
- [21:07]
Sarah Turney
You're right. You're right. He deserves a shout out. He definitely sounded those alarms as soon as possible. And again, I think it's natural for his daughter to be like, come on, dad. Like, you can't, like, parent my friend. I'm sure she's fine. She's not me. Take a step back. A daughter telling her dad to chill seems very normal to me.
- [21:25]
Courtney Nicole
Once the report is made, the Escambia County Sheriff's Office turns her case over to the Pensacola pd, which has jurisdiction where Tiffany lives. And thankfully, they take the case much more seriously. Sergeant Daniel Harnett takes the lead and puts out a BOLO on Tiffany's car right away. A 1999 gray Toyota 4Runner. Both law enforcement and her family are worried that she may have taken a spontaneous trip and run into trouble. They check her camping supplies, but her tent is still in her house. That doesn't rule out a hike or a swimming trip, though. Cindy thinks it's possible that Tiffany had car trouble or ran out of gas, and perhaps someone who saw her on the side of the road offered her a ride. She mentions how Tiffany is incredibly trusting and might not say no to a ride from a stranger. Which is where Cindy gets the idea that Tiffany might have been kidnapped. Law enforcement also has to rule out the possibility of suicide, not because they suspect it, but because it's another box that they just have to check. Tiffany was having money problems and her loved one said she'd been feeling a bit aimless lately, but her family and friends don't think it's likely. So this has crossed off pretty quickly. The police also have to look into the people closest to her they call her boyfriend, Gray Thomas and have him go down to his local police station to have DNA and fingerprints sent over. Over. Austin PD works with Pensacola PD to verify his phone records and everything seems to check out. He has not come back to Pensacola, at least not with his phone. Her roommate, Gary Nichols is also questioned early on in the investigation and he willingly gives fingerprints and DNA samples too. Although nothing suspicious comes up, Gary does provide the police with some valuable information. He mentions the fact that Tiffany, Tiffany was up around 5am going in and out of the house the day she vanished. That sets off alarm bells instantly for Tiffany's family.
- [23:18]
Sarah Turney
Tiffany is not a morning person. If anything, she had a habit of being late to things. Sometimes she'd even leave the house at the time she was supposed to be arriving at her destination. But that isn't the only unusual thing that happened at her house that day. The police have reason to think that Tiffany went home after work before she disappeared, although they haven't said why. But Gary says he didn't see her. He got home a little before 4:30pm so he definitely would have beat her home if she clocked out at 4:43. He says he was in his room on the phone with his girlfriend for a while after work though, so maybe he just didn't hear her come in. Now Cindy does find this odd because Tiffany's closet is missing part of the back wall, so there's not a ton of privacy in the house, noise wise. However, Sergeant Harnett agrees with Gary's theory that he wouldn't have heard Tiffany come in if he was on the phone. But if any other clues come from the house, law enforcement has yet to disclose them.
- [24:15]
Courtney Nicole
Law enforcement doesn't always share everything they know because some details can help them verify tips and rule out false confessions. It can be super helpful because it preserves evidence, but it can also be super frustrating, especially like years later because families and the public are left wondering if their answers just kind of being kept behind closed doors. I understand that it's overall for like the good of the case most of the time, but I can definitely see the flip side where it would be really frustrating for the families who are just kind of left in the dark.
- [24:46]
Sarah Turney
I feel like I might surprise you with this, but I'm kind of team like don't release it at least to the public. Right. Especially right away. Like I'm okay with that. When I hear people frustrated over like a brand new case not getting all the information, I don't really understand that feeling. I'm like Good. Keep it anonymous, keep it private. Right. Keep what you need secret to solve the case. But to your point, I do think that it gets to a certain point in the case where it's kind of like, what do you have to lose by releasing it?
- [25:16]
Courtney Nicole
That's true. By releasing too much, you kind of open the door for false confessions. People who are scheming, who now know too much and, you know, preying on these vulnerable families. Yeah, I definitely can see your viewpoint. There's.
- [25:30]
Sarah Turney
Yeah, I mean, it's a hard line, I think, to walk between what does the public need to know and what are they legally obligated to release? Because at a certain point the argument is made that this is public information or it should be public information. And I really don't know what the perfect answer is, to be totally honest with you, because like, as much as I would love to see every single thing in my sister's case. Right. Because they still haven't released everything to me, even after 10 years of asking for everything. And in my mind that gives me hope that there's something there that they don't want me to know, that they don't want the public to know, that they could be working in the background. But that is just like hope and feelings with no factual basis behind it. So I don't know, I think it's really hard and it should be taken on like a case by case basis.
- [26:20]
Courtney Nicole
But three days into the search, police find their next big clue. On August 20, a jogger on Santa Rosa island is running near the west end. She actually knows the Daniels family personally, so as she jogs, she's keeping her eyes open for anything strange, just in case. That's when she spots a gray Forerunner. She takes a closer look and sees the license plate and realizes it matches Tiffany's. She then calls the police and the Daniels family. They make the nearly 10 mile long journey over the Bay Bridges straight to the island. Inside the car, officers find several of Tiffany's paintings, which is another sign she didn't plan to be gone for long. Storing paintings in a car can easily damage them since heat can warp canvases and melt the varnish. Police find Tiffany's purse in there too, along with some clothes and a jar of peanut butter. They process the car for prints and most of them can be accounted for for. But they do find two prints on her car door that don't match either Tiffany or any of the people who gave prints for the case, like Gary Nichols or Gray Thomas. They don't turn up any hits in Criminal databases either.
- [27:31]
Sarah Turney
Over the next few days, police, the Daniels family, and volunteers start searching the area. But Santa Rosa island is nearly 50 miles long. Friends and family post flyers around town and make a Facebook page. Police canvassed the condos near where her car was found, Hoping maybe somebody took notice of the vehicle, but they have no luck. Her car was left near the western edge of the island, where there's a nature preserve and lots of beaches. And some of her friends wonder if that might be the key to what happened. Maybe Tiffany decided to visit one of the beaches, went for a swim, and something happened to her in the ocean. Her friends and family can absolutely see her going from a sunset swim. In fact, there was a meteor shower that night. So some friends wondered if she'd specifically planned to go night swimming. But if tragedy had struck and she drowned, she likely would have been found by now. With the way the currents work there, bodies are usually recovered in accidental drownings.
- [28:29]
Courtney Nicole
So the police keep digging. They pull the toll records for the bridge to the island and find that her car had been sitting there since the day Tiffany vanished Aug. 12. It had crossed the toll at 7:51pm that night. But because the toll was automated, all they had was a picture of the plate, not the person driving the vehicle. Police and volunteers continued to scan the island over the next week. The biggest search is on August 25th, and it was put together by a charitable organization called Class kids. They were founded to protect children from abduction and violence. But their search and recovery teams also help in missing person cases. They put together a team of over 100 people who scour the island looking for clues. But this search and other smaller ones held afterwards turn up nothing fruitful. Brad Dennis, the national search director for the Class kids organization, said, quote, there's just no trace of her outside of that last contact of her coming across that bridge. Since that point, no one can claim where she was. We've got no video of her. We don't know what took place. We don't even know if she's the one who literally parked the car out there, End quote. After that, the case stalls.
- [29:41]
Sarah Turney
The Daniels family and law enforcement follow up on tips when they come in. But as the months wear on, Cindy has a new theory. Human trafficking. Florida consistently ranks third in the nation when it comes to reporting reports of human trafficking. And a few tips that are coming in seem to point in that direction. In January 2014, six months after Tiffany disappeared, law enforcement gets a tip from New Orleans. A waitress calls in to say she thought she saw Tiffany dining At the restaurant she worked at alongside another girl about her age and an older woman. The waitress took notice of the trio because both the younger girls seemed timid, bordering on scares, and the older woman mostly talked for them. The waitress had also seen the news stories about Tiffany and thought one of the girls looked strikingly similar. She also said the girl who looked like Tiffany ordered a seafood based dish and asked if the dish had any chicken broth. And this is critical because Tiffany's family said she would occasionally eat fish, but she never ate chicken. The waitress said that while interacting with the table, she also told the girl how much she looked like Tiffany. And in response, the older woman ushered the entire group out of the restaurant in a hurry. Now, unfortunately, there was no security footage of this incident and the waitress had nothing to verify her story. But it is worth considering.
- [31:06]
Courtney Nicole
Tips like this always fall into the interesting but unverified category, if that makes sense. Sometimes they're nothing, but every once in a while, they end up being the clue that breaks a case wide open. The challenge is that since there's no, like, video footage of them, memory, as we know, is not perfect, especially when someone is trying to recall a brief interaction months or even years later. So I think leads like this are absolutely worth looking into, but they have to be backed up by evidence whenever possible. What makes this story stand out is that the woman who looked like Tiffany reportedly ordered a seafood dish and specifically asked whether it contained chicken broth. According to her family, Tiffany would never eat chicken. So that's an incredibly specific detail for a complete stranger to get right. I don't know if it's proof of, like, trafficking, but it's kind of hard to dismiss.
- [31:54]
Sarah Turney
Yeah, I mean, that's what's hard, right? You can say that a tip's not verified, and that's totally valid. But on the other hand, like, from a family member perspective, how can you definitively rule it out without video, without that double verification? That is something I would probably think about forever. To be totally honest. I'm sure her loved ones often think about this. It's just one of those things that I think leaves a question mark forever. And that's how I feel about human trafficking as a theory in true crime. Right. When there's these cases where it's really hard to tell what happened to the person, when there's like, no one clear direction of, like, this probably happened, it feels like trafficking is always on the table. Unfortunately. Well, soon another tip comes in that seemingly points to Tiffany and the fact that she may still be Alive. Someone calls from Mobile, Alabama and says she'd just seen Tiffany hitchhiking on the side of the road with an unknown man. This was along Interstate 10, close to the Florida border, and the person who saw her called the police right away. So they jump on the lead and the police are able to track the woman down not far from where she was spotted. But unfortunately, she is just a hitchhiker who bears a strong resemblance to Tiffany. Before long, the one year anniversary of her disappearance is looming and the Daniels family is still fielding tips, some of which go nowhere, but others they think might have serious potential, including a new lead on Tiffany's car.
- [33:34]
Courtney Nicole
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Sarah Turney
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Courtney Nicole
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- [34:10]
Sarah Turney
It's August 12, 2014, one year since Tiffany Daniels vanished. Her family holds a vigil to mark the anniversary. There's been no activity under Tiffany's bank accounts or social media. Any hope that she may have run away on her own is dwindling. So at the vigil, her dad, Rodney, gives a speech to raise awareness for human trafficking. At the end of the vigil, those attending release a dozen paper lanterns into the sky to symbolize each month Tiffany's been missing. The police's official stance on the case is that there's no current evidence of foul play. Whatever they think happened, they're staying very neutral in how they speak about the case. And they don't let the media in on which way they're leaning. The Daniels family has their own ideas, though. That same day, August 12, the Help Find Tiffany Facebook page makes a shocking post. It says they have reason to believe there are people in Pensacola who know more than they're saying. They issue a plea for anyone who has information to come forward. And they remind them that if they don't, karma will get them one day. This post isn't signed with a particular name, but the page is run by family and trusted friends. Whatever this information is, whoever these people are, it has not yet been made public. The Daniels have kept these suspicions to themselves.
- [35:29]
Courtney Nicole
Leads ebb and flow, but nothing promising turns up. Before long, the two year anniversary is around the corner. At the start of August 2015, the Daniels family gets an anonymous message on Facebook from someone. They claim that Tiffany has been killed and they know where her body is. They even say they can give them a taped confession from the killer. They also say it will come at a cost. $3,000 to start out. Cindy persuades the source to send them part of the recording as proof, and they give in and send a clip. Noelle immediately does a reverse search and finds the audio is taken from an unrelated homicide. From a court video online. More leads trickle in after this, but none of it seems promising. I think we talk about this way too much on this channel, and it's just, like, disgusting how much this comes up. How many people prey on innocent families going through something horrible like this to try and make a little bit of money and get a little bit of attention. It's just sickening.
- [36:29]
Sarah Turney
Yeah. I mean, the fact that I've also been offered a taped confession of my sister's murderer is insane. Like, why is this ever happening more than once? What is wrong with people?
- [36:40]
Courtney Nicole
I don't know. But I keep going back to what that post said on the help find Tiffany Facebook page. Karma will get you. I keep that in the back of my mind, because if you're this type of person that, like, interferes with an investigation and puts a family through this. No, karma will get you 100%.
- [36:57]
Sarah Turney
Yeah. A thousand percent. And, you know, even if you aren't empathetic towards the families, if you're like, whatever, it's a joke, I don't care. How about the loss of law enforcement resources? Right. Their budgets are not infinite. They have very limited resources that are often wasted on stupid hoaxes like this. So if you don't care about the families, care about your tax dollars at least.
- [37:19]
Courtney Nicole
Yeah. One of the biggest red flags is when someone asks for money in exchange for information. Another is if they're unwilling to speak with law enforcement and they keep changing their story or just staying super vague. And also, if they seem more interested in attention than actually helping, that's usually a warning sign, too. So if you're listening and if you ever find yourself. Hopefully not. But if you ever find yourself in a situation like this, please just be careful. Trust your gut and protect yourself. I think Noelle did the exact right thing. Like, she felt like something was not right, and she researched that clip, and she immediately found that this person was lying to her. So props to her.
- [37:54]
Sarah Turney
Yeah. And again, it's so hard because what is the cost that you put on your child's life? There is no number that these families will not pay or try to pay. And it's one of those stones that like, you can't leave unturned. You just can't. I know in my experience, right, it's anecdotal and I can't say that all families feel this way. But when I see something come through that immediately, like, raises red flags, I'm like, this is bs, right? I still have that other part of me that's like, oh, well, gotta see it through. Like there is no option in my mind, like, even when it sounds crazy, I have to see it through. Otherwise, the what ifs eat away at you forever. At the two year anniversary of Tiffany's disappearance, the press checks in with her family. Cindy says we miss her laugh, her humor. We miss her coming in here covered up in paint from head to toe. 2015 brings some good news though. The investigation discovery program disappeared goes to Pensacola to film an episode on the case. The Daniels hope this will drum up some new leads. Noticeably absent from the episode is any footage of Tiffany's workplace. Apparently, Pensacola State College denied investigation discovery permission to film on campus. And the Daniels family calls Pensacola State out for this. They say Tiffany devoted so much time to her work, missing weekends, family dinners, and even holidays. They say the college should be ashamed of not helping out in return.
- [39:20]
Courtney Nicole
One organization that's willing to lend a hand though, is class kids. They put together another search of the western part of Santa Rosa island in October of 2015, more than two years after Tiffany vanished. But once again, they turn up nothing. A few months later though, on December 16, 2015, news breaks about a possible new lead. An anonymous local was watching an update on the case and realized they had seen Tiffany's car on Santa Rosa island two years prior, around the time she disappeared. They actually spotted it on a different part of the island, not the parking lot area where it was found. They noticed it because it was parked in a roped off wildlife area and it was facing the wrong way on an access road. This person also saw someone around the car, a white male in his 30s or 40s, wearing only red shorts. He was standing behind the vehicle while the trunk was open. Police go through and canvas this new spot, asking the locals if they'd noticed the same thing. By the end, they find three other people who say they saw the same thing. On February 6, 2016, law enforcement does another intensive search with the help of class kids and other organizations. But again, it brings nothing new. Instead, the updates are all about honoring Tiffany's memory.
- [40:39]
Sarah Turney
On what would have been Tiffany's 30th birthday, March 11, 2018, her family plants a tree in her honor. They say they plan to make this an annual tradition. This seems like a valid tip to me, Courtney. Yeah.
- [40:53]
Courtney Nicole
If three other people on top of the initial, you know, witness is saying the same thing, that's crazy. And it just goes to show that, like, the tiniest little detail that you might remember, please come forward and just say it, because you never know if it will, like, impact the investigation in a good way. And in this case, I do think, like, although there's still no resolution, there's still not finding Tiffany. This is still one step further in the investigation, which is always a good thing.
- [41:19]
Sarah Turney
Yeah. I mean, this could point to somebody else being the last person to see her. Right. And if we can find that person, we could find out more, which could possibly lead to solving this case. I mean, that's how it works.
- [41:29]
Courtney Nicole
It could also put to rest rumors. If there are any going around about this case, about her getting in the water, swimming, and accidentally drowning or taking her own life, it could really put to rest those rumors. And that alone is probably really helpful for the family.
- [41:43]
Sarah Turney
Yeah. I mean, any box you can just check off as, like, fully investigated Is worth something in my eyes.
- [41:50]
Courtney Nicole
Tips and leads trickle in on occasion, Many of which are, unfortunately scams or attention seekers. Then, In November of 2018, the Daniels family has a woman show up at their house in the middle of the night. She pounds on their door, and when they answer, she says she has information on who kidnapped Tiffany. Details are sparse on what she claimed to know, but once law enforcement gets involved, it becomes clear she did not have any credible information about the case for several years after. There are very few updates. Until 2025, that is. The Daniels family has been hinting to the press at possible new leads. They can't disclose too many details, but it seems there may be something promising happening behind the scenes. Police were going back and re interviewing people who'd helped the family initially, and something happened that made Cindy really suspicious. She said that one of these people, quote, lawyered up. Just like that, out of the clear blue sky. Lawyered up. Now, I don't know about you, but that said a lot to me. If you don't have anything to hide and you claim you're helping us, why are you lawyering up? End quote. They're keeping any information on Who? This is a secret, but the family and those helping them say they're changing how they look at the case. Brandi Mitchell, a PI and activist who's been helping the family, says that in recent years, they've moved away from the human trafficking theory. She thinks someone who knew Tiffany was responsible for her disappearance. And Cindy now agrees with this. Maybe someday soon these leads will pan out and Tiffany's family will know for sure what happened to her. Lawyering up doesn't always mean an admission of guilt. Sometimes it does seem like that. But there are plenty of innocent reasons why someone might want legal representation, especially in, like, high profile cases. But with that being said, it clearly caught the family's attention because of the timing. And I can completely understand why this feels like a red flag to them. I just keep coming back to the fact that someone knows more than what they've said, whether that person is directly involved or just knows a piece of the puzzle. I really don't think we've heard the full story yet, Sarah. That's just my personal opinion, but I think someone out there really does know something.
- [44:03]
Sarah Turney
Yeah, I mean, I have to hope so. And like, in terms of lawyering up, I feel like I see both sides, right? Like, personally, if I get arrested for anything, I'm grabbing a lawyer. But that's because I don't trust the police. You know what I mean? We've seen it happen time and time again where the police just do the wrong things and that leads to a wrongful incarceration. It happens all the time. But on the flip side, you know, if somebody in my sister's case, you know, lawyered up immediately, I would also think that that would be a little suspicious. So maybe I'm a hypocrite, right? Because I think it's kind of natural to feel both ways. And I think that's because you know your true intention. When you go and you're getting a lawyer, you know why you're doing it. When somebody involved in your loved one's case gets a lawyer and they don't communicate that with you, you don't know why they're doing it. So I think that's really where the contention comes in between, like, yes, everyone out there, if you get arrested and you have the means to do so, get a lawyer. Take the public defender, do not say anything. But on the flip side, when you see somebody doing that in your loved one's case, I also think it's fair to think, why are they doing that?
- [45:09]
Courtney Nicole
I know they're holding this information really close to their hearts because hopefully this means that it will pan out. But I can't help but wonder who this is that they're talking about.
- [45:17]
Sarah Turney
I know somebody she knows. Who could it be? Maybe we don't need to know, you know. At least not now. Here's what we know for sure. On Monday, August 12, 2013, Tiffany Daniels was having a tough day at work. She asked to leave early and told her boss she wouldn't be back for a few days. She said she had some personal matters to deal with, but whatever these problems were, the specifics were unknown to everyone around her. At 4:43pm, just 17 minutes before her shift ended, she clocked out. Law enforcement thinks maybe she went home for a bit, but her roommate didn't see her. A toll camera caught her car driving across the Pensacola bay Bridge at 7.51pm, but whether that was her actually driving the car is still unknown.
- [46:07]
Courtney Nicole
Tiffany Daniels would be 38 years old as of this recording. She is 5ft 7 with blue eyes and wavy blonde hair. She has a slim, athletic build and she has distinctive botanical tattoos on her feet of seeds sprouting into vines. If you have any information related to her case, please contact the Pensacola Police Department at 850435 1900.
- [46:40]
Sarah Turney
Thank you for listening to the Final Hours. If you have any other details about Tiffany Daniels case, please share it with us on social media. We want to hear from you. Your thoughts, condolences and feedback are what make this community so special at Crime House.
- [46:54]
Courtney Nicole
We value your support. Share your thoughts on social media and remember to rate, review and follow the Final Hours to help others discover the
- [47:02]
Sarah Turney
show and to enhance your listening experience. Don't forget to join crime house plus@crimehouseplus.com or if you listen on Apple Podcasts, tap the Try free at the top of the Final Hours show page.
- [47:14]
Courtney Nicole
The Final Hours is hosted by Sarah Turney and me, Courtney Nicole and is a Crime House original. Powered by Pave Studios, this episode was brought to life by the Final Hours team Max Cutler, Ron Shapiro, Alex Benidon, Lori Marinelli, Natalie Pertofsky, Sarah Camp, Alyssa Fox, Bethany Branson and Russell Nash. Thank you for listening.
- [47:43]
Vanessa
Hi listeners, it's Vanessa. Before today's episode, I want to tell you about another show I think you'll love. Crime House and AE are teaming up on the podcast version of the famous true crime series the First 48. Each week, Carter Roy takes you inside a landmark homicide case. The interrogations, the dead ends and the breakthroughs in the critical first 48 hours. Listen to and follow the first 48 every Thursday on Apple Podcasts, Spotify, Amazon Music or wherever you listen to podcasts.