Ms there arent a lot of murders in paradise. A darling girl with two darling children. Its a story Keith Morrison followed for nearly ten years. I get a call from her boss said she hadnt showed up for work. They found her in the car. I saw in the back, ligature marks. Didnt deserve that. A small island. Small pool of suspects. I had no idea he was a drug dealer. The soon to be exhusband. That morning he called in sick. Was there a polygraph. And the lover . He didnt do that good either. Without much to go on, this case was growing colder by the day. Nothing, just nothing happened. But a father doesnt forget. I have to have justice for my daughter. After all these years, are there still secrets to uncover . Quite a journey for you. It isnt over yet. This father finally got his answer. But is it the one he wanted . Every in my wildest dreams would i imagine what were going through now. held. Sandra galas was born and raised on an island known as one of the most beautiful places on earth. How could something so ugly happen there . The young mother found strangled to death in her garage. Police immediately set their sights on two men close to sandra. It would take a fathers relentless pursuit of the truth to unravel this mystery. Heres Keith Morrison with the other side of paradise. Wandering through this land, you wonder if youre transported through the beginning of biblical times. To a garden free of want, temptation or betrayal. And in i land so distractingly beautiful, tourists who ebb and flow like the tides could be forgiven for looking past this, a lone tormented father begging for help for a terrible reason, to solve the murder of his precious daughter sandy. I really appreciate it. Anything we can do. We hope wie hope we get an arrest. We first came upon Larry Mendonca on another assignment in 2009 which is when we shot this video. He was 68 years old then. Alone he worked. Handing out flyers, gruff and stoic. Except when the pain was just too much. Just three years. Still rough. Larry took us to sandras grave, told us how he promised to bring her killer to justice. She wont be forgotten as long as im alive. We had no idea then where this meeting would lead us. That our journey would last a decade. A case that would expose evil lurking in this garden in paradise and bring larry to the edge of his own mortality. Vide. Like many, she was multiracial, she was half japanese, half portuguese. She attended st. Katherine school. When people ask what was she like, you tell them. She was absolutely a gogetter. She was teachers pet. Oh, really . She was perfect. Always had her perfect nice and done. You know, she was always focused. In high school sandra was an athlete, a cheerleader. Very popular. She was the complete package. And her home life . Oldfashioned, traditional family. Catholic. Played by the rules type of people. Disciplined. Very important thing to larry. 20year air force veteran. I was trying to toughen her up if you want to put it in that expression. To know what the real world was like. That was why larry insisted sandra leave kauai a to go to college. She ended up in honolulu. For a small island girl, it felt as big and lonely as new york city. She missed kauai, her family and would come home as often as she could. She got involved with darren. Darren was here. Darren was here. Darren galas, a little older. Made good money in his highway construction job. Sandra was crazy about him. So son austin, came nine months later and braydon, two that. By anyone 24, she was the matriarch of her own little clan. They were the apple of her eye. Life was good until april 2005 when sandra came to her parents very upset. As she told us, she was cleaning out her husbands backpack and two phone numbers fell out. She called the phone numbers and it turned out to be two different married women. Sandra confronted darren. He would never admit it. He kept saying they were friends. She knew koiz. She new otherwise. She moved out. Got a job at a beach house restaurant. An island landmark. It was a life changer. She was a darling girl, you know. With two darling children. A waitress at the beach house saw her transformation into young working woman. She wore her hair back, was prim and proper. Was very subdued. As soon as she got away from darren, she was she cut her hair in a bob and was cute and stylish all of a sudden. Sandra started going out with friends and as is obvious in this concert video, she was enjoying her new life. Before too long, sandra started getting friendly with one of the chefs, a recent transplant from oahu named ryan. He wined and dined her and took really good care of her. He was really nice to her. They were doing fabulous things. Going on honolulu Shopping Trips where ryan would lavish expensive gifts on sandra. Louie vuitton luggage. Larry and sandras mom knew little of him. In january 2006, they were visiting their son when they got an odd call from sandras boss. Said she hadnt showed up for work. Very unusual for her. Hours later the phone rang again. It was 3 00 a. M. A time when bad news comes calling. Larrys son answered the phone. This is basically how it goes. Hello. Oh, hi. Hi cousin. No coming up. She was slumped to the right of the passenger seat facedown. Who wanted sandra dead . She goes driving by with her boyfriend in the car. From what were told he went ballistic, he flipped out. When dateline continues. I wanted more from my copd medicine, thats why ive got the power of 1,2,3 medicines with trelegy. The only fdaapproved, oncedaily 3 in 1 copd treatment. With trelegy and the power of 1, 2, 3, im breathing better. Trelegy works 3 ways to open airways, keep them open, and reduce inflammation for 24 hours of better breathing. Trelegy wont replace a rescue inhaler for sudden breathing problems. Trelegy is not for asthma. 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She was beyond out of sight of the rich and burdened estates of the she was the working class suburbia, in her garage, in her car, she had been strangled to death. It was sandras new boyfriend who called the police that he found her that way. And she was slumped to the right to the passenger seat face down into the seat. Roy asher is one of the original investigators. We spoke to him in 2009. This was two years after sandra was murdered. I saw the back of her neck, ligature marks. We have an idea of what could have been used. What . Thin cord, like a fishing line. Sandras shirt and bra were askew. Her lip was split as if she had been punched in the face. Ryan, the boyfriend, hes the one on the right of the screen, told investigators he discovered sandras body around 9 00 p. M. But the cops could see she had been dead for a while by then. Probably eight to ten hours. Putting the time of death in the morning. Can you get more exact . No. Given that the estranged husband, darren, used to live with sandra and ryan was now dating her, their fingerprints could certainly be explained. Nothing suspicious there. But ryan finding the body, well, that was potentially suspicious. Did he have an alibi . Yes. It checked out . Yes. Do you remember what it was . He was at work. So who else . There was sandras estranged husband darren, of course. This was interesting. That morning he called in sick. In other words, he didnt have an alibi . No. Based on that lack of an alibi, the Police Arrested darren. The police said, do you think her husband could have done it, my first reaction was no. Even as larry tried to wrap his mind around that idea they says we got to let him go. We dont have enough. We dont have enough. Meaning what . Was darren involved or not . Grieving and impatient for answers, larry launched an investigation of his own. It was like, i dont know, a panic. Ive got so many things to do and ive got to get it done now. As a native from kauai and intelligence analyst, larry had the connections and the skills to piece together the details surrounding his daughters murder. For instance, he found out that two days before the killing darren while working on a road crew saw sandra and ryan together. She goes driving by with her boyfriend in the car. From what were told from his coworkers, he went ballistic. He just flipped out. At that time this is important to the case sandra and darren shared custody of their two sons. Remember, she worked evenings at the restaurant so the boys slept over with darren and at 6 00 in the morning, she would show up, take them out for breakfast, get them ready for school and daycare. But larry discovered that on the night before she was murdered, sandra stayed over at ryans house, her boyfriends. He dropped her off at her place at 6 00 a. M. And then the neighbors told larry, they saw her leave in her car soon after that apparently heading to pick up the boys. Neighbors confirm they saw sandras car return a short while later but without the children. Larry learned through his contact that sandra had a 10 00 that morning to get her nails done at a salon about 45 minute away. She never made the appointment. So this is how we narrow down the time of death. Before about 9 00 where she would have had to leave to make her appointment. Larry learned from his own sources the boyfriend ryan had an alibi. Well, husband darren did not. All of which got larry thinking the same thing as the police. Must have been darren who murdered sandra. Right now, im driven by the case. I mean many of sandras friend, like krista hall also thought darren was guilty. I think everyone thought darren would be arrested immediately and hed be going to jail and the children going to the grandparents or her brother and everything would be okay. Exactly one year after the murder there was indeed an arrest. But it wasnt darren. Coming up weve got to get this case solved. A new theory about sandras murder. She may have been smuggling drugs in her new Louis Vuitton suitcase and not known it. When dateline continues. The countdown has begun. til everyone can enjoy a professional clean feel. At home. Youre stronger than you know. So strong. You power through chronic migraine, 15 or more headache or migraine days a month. One tough mother. Youre bad enough for botox®. Botox® has been preventing headaches and migraines before they even start for almost 10 years, and is the 1 prescribed branded chronic migraine treatment. Botox® is for adults with chronic migraine, 15 or more headache days a month, each lasting 4 hours or more. Effects of botox® may spread hours to weeks after injection causing serious symptoms. Alert your doctor right away, as difficulty swallowing, speaking, breathing, eye problems, or muscle weakness can be signs of a lifethreatening condition. Side effects may include allergic reactions, neck and injection site pain, fatigue, and headache. Dont receive botox® if theres a skin infection. Tell your doctor your medical history, muscle or nerve conditions, and medications including botulinum toxins, as these may increase the risk of serious side effects. Go on with your bad self. You may pay as little as zero dollars for botox®. Ask your doctor about botox® for chronic migraine. You got this. Kauais unique is many ways, not least of which is this. Its almost a mediafree zone. Most information spreads here and it has for generations by wo wordofmouth. Where facts, opinions all swirl together as one. As the news swept across the island like a wave, ryan shinzo had been arrested but not by the island cops. By the fbi. Then we hear that ryan has gone to jail. Were like oh, my god. What did he do . Then we hear no, no. He went to jail for drug dealing which none of us knew he was a drug dealer. I had no idea. He was a player in a big money Drug Trafficking ring. Running meth from the mainland to oahu to kauai. When people found out about that, rumors started to fly. Was ryan using sandra as an unwitting drug mule when he took her to honolulu . Was she bringing back meth with her . Who knows . She may have been smuggling drugs in her knew Louis Vuitton suitcase and not known it . The final part of that story, maybe she was killed before she could go to the police. But that was just a rumor. In a sea of rumors. Police didnt seem any closer to finding sandras killer, whoever it was. The case grew colder with each passing year. Larry still thought darren killed sandra. It seemed wherever larry went on this small island, there he was. With the boat and the truck. Its not easygoing by here knowing hes still running free. Weve got to get this case solved. On this day, larry and sandras mom had to see darren at grandson austins Little League game. Thats darren on the field coaching. In the dugout with his girlfriend. The woman he had known since before sandras murder. It was at this point 2009, three years after sandras murder when larry felt the time had come for him to go from investigator to avenger. He was seriously thinking about killing darren. If i ever figure out a way to get away with it, it will happen. Fortunately, the arrival of a new kauai police chief put his plans on hold. A 30year veteran of the honolulu p. D. Agreed to meet with larry and listen to his theories about the case. He showed me the scene and explained to me what happened. I could feel his grief. It wasnt the point was what . The point was i wanted him to realize that theres somebody there that is listening to him. What do you do next . We went to stood there what were you thinking about . I was thinking about the sadness and the loss of a child. Nothing, nothing like it. Nobody can understand unless theyve been there. Not unless you lost a child. Chief barry was struggle to tell us he did know what it was like to lose a child. He came out of retirement and took the job as head of the Kauai Police Department after the sudden death of his 26yearold son. I feel like im working through him. That he motivate me. I believe that. Things happen for a reason. I told him, theres a reason why we met. I dont know what the reasons are. But im here for you. So after meeting with larry, chief perry sent sandras file to a couple of friend in honolu honolulu, investigators with the cold case unit. Ask them to find anything we may have missed. They did indeed find something using breakthrough science for that time, early 2009. Cold case investigators extracted touch dna from sandras shirt and bra. She have perry called larry with the news. He said, we got something. They rescanned her clothes i i e they found two, how did he put it. Two microscopic particles of a male origin. Sometimes its what you find and sometimes its what you dont. Coming up what i found really interesting is its pretty detailed from january 1st all the way up until the 24th. But on the morning of sandras murder. We have nothing. When dateline continues. Protect your pet with the 1 name in flea and tick protection. Frontline plus. Trusted by vets for nearly 20 years. All the way out here just for a blurry photo of me. Frontline plus. Oh, thats a good one. Wait, whats that . Thats just the lowbattery warning. Oh, alright. Now its all, check out my rv, and, lets go fourwheeling. Maybe theres a little part of me that wanted to be seen. Well, progressive helps people save when they bundle their home with their outdoor vehicles. So theyve got other things to do now, bigfoot. Wait, whatd you just call me . My name is daryl. Heres whats happening. There are over 11 million coronavirus cases across the globe and more than half a million have died. Just in the past 24 hours, brazil reported nearly 38,000 new cases and over 1,000 deaths. England reopened restaurants and bars for the first time in three months on saturday. Despite the governments move to ease lockdown measures, some restrictions persist as a limitation on crowds and ban on live music. Now back to dateline. Welcome back to dateline. Im natalie morales. Three years after sandra galas murder, the investigation has stalled. Enter chief darryl perry. Like sandras father larry, chief perry knew the pain of losing a child. Motivated by their shared grief, he asked state investigators to take a look at the files and remarkably they found new evidence. But in a case full of twists, there was another one just around the corner. Here again is Keith Morrison with the other side of paradise. It took a scientific breakthrough to finally get Larry Mendonca the answers he was pleading for. Touch dna, microscopic skin cells on sandras shirt and bra. It was a match to darren. When that result came in, tell me what your first thoughts were. We got him. Larry was wary. It isnt over yet. Because what seemed like great evidence to the cops did not to the newly elected prosecuting attorney. For one simple reason. The dna did not exclusively match darren. It could have come from the two children. Larry, though, refused to be dis discouraged. The driving force is to get this case solved, put my daughter to rest. Because she isnt yet. Hopefully it will be this year. Hopefully it will be 2009. Were close. 2009 ended as it had begun, with the case in stasis. No breaks, no leads, no arrests. 2010 was no different. Same for 2011. Nothing. Its fair to say, sandras Murder Investigation was very much cold. So 2012, no. Six years after the murder and three years after that dna test, chief perry gave the case to a new detective named bryson ponce. Who reinvestigated the evidence in the car. Undisturbed. She was sitting in the drivers seat and from her waist up was pulled, slouched over the passenger seat. It appeared she was yanked over that way. It appeared. We believe there was a struggle in the vehicle in the granl. Thats due to some evidence on the outside front of the vehicle. Wait a minute. Smudge, marks. When you look at how this happened, it wasnt sexually motivated or a robbery. It was focused on anger. So ponce circled back to the original two suspects, husband darren, boyfriend ryan. But which one . From the file, ponce learned ryan, in addition to being a drug trafficker, had been c convicted of Domestic Violence. Was there something fishy about how he found the body . He told cops he went to her house. Doors were locked. He said he peered through the ventilation spots at the base of her garage wall and saw sandra in he