Paige Birgfeld
Everyone who knew Paige knew her to be a successful woman. Her children adored her, she had many friends, and she was very successful in business. She lived in a small Colorado community, and everyone thought very highly of her. When the truth came out that Paige was living a double life, her family was destroyed.
Hard Times
When Paige and her husband Rob divorced, she knew that she had to get some extra income. She wanted her children to be able to continue living the same lifestyle that they grew up with. She got the idea that she thought would be the answer to all of her problems. Before Paige met Rob, she was married to a man named Howard Rob Biegler. He was her high school sweetheart and the two married. Things didn’t work out, and they got divorced. This was when she met Rob.
A Picnic Reunion
The two decided to get together after Paige’s divorce and then met up for a picnic in the park. The reunion was to take place on July 28, 2007, on what was a very hot day in Colorado. Paige was 34-years-old at the time and hadn’t seen her ex-husband in years. She drove 120 miles that day to meet up with him. After the two had their picnic, Paige headed home. Howard called to make sure that she got home safe and when he didn’t return home for hours, her kids began to worry. Howard called her at 9m, and she told him that she was almost home. It was 11 pm when the nanny and the kids called her, and the call went straight to voice mail.
Missing Persons
It was two days after Paige’s date with Howard, and she still didn’t return home. Her ex-husband Rob tried to reach her. When he couldn’t, he filed a missing person report with the police. Paige’s father Frank and her mother, Suzanne got the call that their daughter was missing, they left their home in Denver to be there for Paige and her children. Her brother joined them from his home in Seattle. Paige was a wonderful mother, and her family knew that she wouldn’t willingly stay away.
The Ford Focus
A few days after Paige went mission, the police found her car. Her Ford Focus had been burned, and it was sitting in an empty parking lot. The police searched the car hoping to find some evidence. Unfortunately, the fire burned everything that could have helped in the search. Finally, after getting a close look at the car, they found something. Her purse and phone were gone, but her day-planner was still there. They hoped that they could get some information from her book. While going through the book, they found that someone had torn out the last few pages. They wondered what those pages contained and who took them.
More Evidence
When the police looked over the car, they realized that the driver’s seat was pushed back very far. It was too far for Paige to be able to reach the pedals. This meant that someone else was driving her car. When they realized that foul play was likely involved, a search party went through Mesa County looking for the young mother. Paige’s friends and family members were more than willing to go out and help with the search. The difficult terrain and the hot temperatures didn’t put them off. They worked alongside the police and the search dogs to find her. The police also brought in divers to check the Gunnison River. After the search, there was no sign of Paige. Finally, they got a clue. There were over 100 people searching, and someone found her video store card, her children’s medication cards, and her checkbook. When they found her phone, they found a call from a mystery number the night that she disappeared.
A Double Life
When the police called the mystery number, they found out that Paige was living a secret double life. The number that called Paige was a man named Jim who claimed not to know the young woman. This was because Jim didn’t know her as Paige; he knew her as Carrie. The phone showed that the two often spoke before her disappearance. The phone Jim used was a burner phone. He bought it on July 26th at Walmart and Paige was the only person that he ever called on the phone. Soon, the police figured out who the man was. His real name was Lester Jones. His office was close to the lot where Paige’s car was discovered. He was their prime suspect in her disappearance. Lester wasn’t a good guy. He had already been in prison for attempted kidnapping and sexual assault. With a record like that, the police were sure that they had the right guy.
Searching Lester’s Office
The police searched Lester’s office for clues. They found strange lists of women’s specification such as their bra sizes, their looks, and information about their character. They also found Viagra, condoms, toupees and a gas container in the office. It was then that they learned the truth about Paige’s double life. At first, Lester denied everything. When the police showed him the evidence that they had against him, they knew what the connection between Lester and Paige really was. In her secret life, Paige was running Models Inc., a prostitution service. She used the name Carrie to protect her real identity. When the police found Carrie’s online profile, they couldn’t believe it. They were sure that she didn’t like what she was doing, but she had to due to her financial problems.
Finding Paige’s Body
Paige had been missing for five years when a group of hikers found her bones in Wells Gulch. She had duct tape over her mouth, and it looked like she put up a fight against her attacker. The police knew Lester was their man and he went on trial for murder. The first trial ended in a mistrial because the jury couldn’t agree. During the second trial, he was found guilty and was sentenced to life without parole.
The Aftermath
Seeing the man who killed Paige sent to prison made Paige’s family happy; however, her father still felt uneasy about his daughter’s death. Paige’s children went to live with their father in Pennsylvania, and her children will always mourn the loss of their mother. This mother of three hid her double life for 15 years. He secret was safe until she was murdered. It is a very tragic story.
