Just strange. Right. Some said the motel owner had simply checked out and left town. Ine to get on to an airplane. But her prized car turned up excon behind the wheel. We thought, oh, my god. It was him. He killed her. Was it that simple . Onal life was very complicated. A younger boyfriend. The man was very charismatic, dropdead gorgeous. And an estrangecaught them having sex in room 11. But the case really started to sizzle when someone torched the motel. Ng to destroy some evidence or something . We just didnt know. This is a murder mystery of both of us were obsessed with this case. Can this get any more bizarre . And this is heres Keith Morrison with a place on the sand. Ittle island, its own bit of fantasy, off the gulf coast of florida. Here. It is paradise. And it just gets better and better, we think. Nna maria island, where high rise condos are banned, is seven miles of unspoiled white sand, unspoiled , too, most of them. When you come across the bridge, its a whole different life. Mean, yeah, you just come across the bridge and its like ah. It is. Reporter and here is where she found her little paradise, too. Ay from germany for it. Sabine musilbuehler. And whether they called her sabina, or as some did, sabine, re on the island. Larger than life person. Absolutely. You met her, you just were drawn to her. Those people that you wanted to get to know better. Nd even now, looking back on what happened to sabine on the awful mystery. It just doesnt seem possible, not here. I mean, nothing happens on this island. Mean, this is a sleepy little town. Its sweet town. We dont have things like that happen here. Certainly not to her. Sabine made good things happen here, crazy things, happy things. 0s motel she bought and reimagined along with tom buehler, the man she marriedmeeting, her partner at haleys motel. Longtime friends Nancy Ambrose and suzi fox. N her lifelong dream to have her own resort. Me on the market. And at the time it was pretty run down. Ke, oh, now thats youve got your hands full here. But we knew that tom could do it. I mean, if anybody could do it, the two of them could turn this around. Ter oh, and they did. Tom did the fixing, sabine had the ideas. Le town to their quirky events, their dressup parties. Hel motel. Please join me for a tour. Reporter this is her with sent parrot. Sabine was the star of her own promotional videos for the hotel. Well, i hope you like our , but with all our activities we offer you you wont spend too much time in there. R barbara hines. Sabine never saw something that had a broken wing that she didnt try to fix. Was a rescuer. People, cats, dogs, turtles. I fox took over the anna maria turtle watch nesting turtles are a very big or help. My fourth volunteers. And theres nine sections on this island one mile long. And they said theyd take as ed to give them. I watched her with a huge leatherback in the water. Reporter bonner joy owns ther the islander. Unfortunately, the leatherback was missing a flipper. And he swam in circles. So he kept coming back to the beach. Umped in the water without a second thought. And she was up to here, talking to the turtles face, like she s 400pound turtle to turn around, you know or will him to. Reporter so you get the idea. T amazing. I mean, she just was one of those people that cared about everybody. Reporter like Nancy Ambrose,e was battling cancer and nobody would give her a job because of her schedule. Until the day she met sabine. You know, i explained what my situation was. Shes like, great. Come on, come on to work. And i was that was one of the happiest days of my life becausere she was giving me a chance. Reporter so sabine had passions. Animals, her motel, her white ertible, and in 2008, a new passion campaigning for barack obama. An uphill battle on this predominantly republican island. Night, sabine was certainly up for a party. Shed arranged to meet nancy, in fact, in what they hoped would celebration. She was so into the election. She was so excited. She wanted obama to win. Then that when nancy arrived she couldnt find sabine. And i thought she had already got there late. Reporter sabines husband tom had been there earlier, too, but without her. Still, nancy didnt worry. Y. It wasnt until a couple days missing. Ow was it possible . The woman who loved to celebrate didnt. Talk called no one. The woman who loved her motel suddenly wasnt there. Sabine was gone. When we come back, the first troubling clue, her car with e wheel. Flags started going off. Who was this mystery driver . She would have driven throughnd it just came to my mind that maybe she ba da ba ba ba dont drop your phone, drop your network. Bring your phone to Cricket Wireless. We nationwide than tmobile or sprint. Cricket wireless. Something to smile about. Ake multiple medications, a dry mouth can be a common side effect. 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Ecause obama won the election, but because sabine musilbuehler, the one and only, was not around to celebrate. Not with her pets. Not at her motel. Ever leave her animals. She would never, ever not go to haleys to work. I mean, that was her baby. Hen, two days later, 2 30 in the morning, a seedy neighborhood across the bridge on the mainland. A patrolman pulled over a white tible with a burnedout taillight. As the cop approached the car, the driver ran. There was a wild chase, but they caught him. Obert corona. And he had a story, said john kenney of the manatee ice. Mr. Coronas original story is, i was doing crack cocaine with the owner of the car. Orted stolen. Reporter did he say he knew who the owner was . Yes, and had permission to reporter but when detectives checked the registration, they learned the convertible belonged to sabine. A record. Hes a known street criminal. I mean, he has a lengthy arrest history. Y learned from sabines friends that there had to be something very wrong with a story that had her doing d drinking with a felon in a smoky bar in a seedy part of town. She would never be buying drugs. I mean, she would not evene around her. She would not let people smoke at haleys motel property. Reporter really . I mean, not even in the rooms, but on the property. She was reporter she was kind of a health fanatic. She had a private a personal trainer. Reporter so they arrested corona, installed him in the morning drove over to haleys motel to talk to sabines husband tom. And . Tom said he hadnt seen sabine he hadnt filed a missing persons report but did after nd. What was he like . What was your impression of the guy . For her wellbeing. She wasnt answering her phone. He couldnt find her. Reporter and something else. According to tom, sabine never let anyone drive her car. Now there was a stolen car, a missing woman and a known criminal. Ood combination for sabine. Flags started going off. And shortly thereafter, etting involved as a missing persons case. Reporter but then it got worse. When detectives went over the d drops in the back seat. A patch of the rear seat had found more blood traces on the rear seat. Now, sabines friends, like horrified. So then we thought, oh, my god, it was him. He killed her. He must haeporter so now it was a homicide investigation. Detective jeff bliss decided to pay a visit to corona in jail. My Business Card down on the table and slid it across, and we said were homicide detectives. This isnt about an auto theft. Truth and we and hes like, hey, i had nothing to do with any murders. And then he changed his story. Reporter coronas new story . Named sabine. He just found her car parked behind a place called the gator scale wine bar. In a jailhouse interview, corona claimed it was just a crime of you didnt see anybody, though, did you . I didnt see nobody inside the car or around the car. So thats why i decided to take you know . So i go inside, then i see the keys. So im like oh [ bleep ]. Mean . Mmhmm. And joy ride, you know . So the vehicle was left, like, somebody wanted it stolen. Liberty of stealing that car. Reporter was the second story any more true than the first . The local paper jumped on all this, of course. Ot of stories. There were a number of people who speculated that sabine mightown to go to an obama celebration that was being held downtown. The area that she wouldve driven through to go to that h area and that just came to my mind that maybe shed been carjacked. Reporter certainly, something very bad must have happened. Maybe that happened in her car. So was corona their killer . Or was he finally telling the car outside that bar . But if that was true, how did it coming up could it be sabine had plans no one knew about . Free spirit simply skipped town . There were two women who were at the sarasota airport. 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Piadina the newest addition to Olive Gardens lunch duos menu paired with your choice of unlimited soup or salad starting at just 6. 99uesadilla that speaks fluent italian m hannibal im gonna use samsung pay to get a katzs deli pastrami sandwich. katzs employees hey hey whats up . Pay with my phone . You mean like apple pay . We dont got that. No like samsung pay. Kind of works everywhere. Even on this janky old thing. Ne. Whadda ya want hannibal . I want to pay with my phone. Dont look at the cameras mike. You ready . It doesnt work. Watch me. Boom samsung pay is here and it was a disturbing time on Anna Maria Island. What happened to sabine . Car there was blood in it. And the felon whod stolen it kept changing his story. So the logical conclusion was rk indeed. Still, she could have just gone back to germany to see her right, and there was investigation to determine that. Reporter in fact, had been seen alive and well at the local airport. Her friend Chris Tollette heard the story. Two women who were at the sarasota airport, and they were sure that they saw her up ahead in line, you know, to irplane. Reporter but when detectives her passport wasnt used. That checking surveillance cameras at sarasota bradenton airport, Tampa Airport to make sure that she did not leave the fly out. Reporter a couple of weeks went by that way. Lots of tips. Ngs. And then finally they got the dna back on that blood in the car. We were able to get her toothbrush and some other dna comparison. Reporter yeah. And we were able to match nkt, her blood. Reporter her husband tom was prepared for the worst from that first morning when he was the second i knew when the police told me that they found t her in it and with the keys in the car, i knew sabine was no longer with us. I knew something had happened to her immediately. O, looked like this guy corona might be on the hook for murder. But beyond the blood . Well, evidence didnt exactly em. But who else . Had sabine made an enemy . When detectives started looking at her life, they had to cast a eople she associated with. After all, sabine was like a magnet. Everybody wanted to go to her lavish parties. Waiting list to get on her party list. Exactly, exactly. Ter she could even get a little racy for sleepy little Anna Maria Island. One of the more unusual things, she hired some people who came here to do nude body painting. That nude body painting on anna marie island . Hat here. Reporter but sabine did what had to be done. It can be a tough businessand promoting a little old motel. Debts are fat, margins thin. And with the economy began to tank in 2008, and light was gray with worry. Sabine and tom were in trouble. The Real Estate Market had folded. I know from sabine, not from tom, that they were highly, aged. Please call me for your reservation. Reporter and while sabine ting skills to try to keep the motel afloat, she and tom couldnt do the same for their marriage. Re than a decade as husband and wife, they were that in name only. But what they did not do was the they were always still good. I mean they worked well together. Reporter romance part, the marriage part seemed to what . Kind of maybe romance changed. Reporter it certainly did. As the detectives couldnt help tom and sabine had taken up with other people, both of them. He with a woman hed known quite a while. She with a local artist who onceas a handyman. And then there was the matter of the Life Insurance. Did he take out on sabines life, the cops asked. 100,000 said tom. As apparently an amicable breakup, people on Anna Maria Island couldnt help but wonder about tom. W, said sabines friend caryn hodge. A lot of people whispering and suspecting him in a way justidnt know. Jack elka did promotional stillsand became good friends with tom and sabine. There was no evidence found. There was no nothing. So everything was speculative. Who did it . It. This is a murder mystery of epic proportions. Reporter so it was. Then 12 days afterom the face of the earth somebody set fire to haleys motel. Open just going can this get any more bizarre . Reporter what was this all about . We just didnt know. D or alive, where was sabine . Coming up bines husband, that 100,000 policy wasnt the whole story. It came up later it was 300,000. Tive or just maybe jealousy . He had caught them having sex with every use. Its resolve, so you know it cleans and freshens. But it also softens. A carpet that welcomes you. And to clean pet messes, try resolve pet expert. Flame is out. Ugh. Today the flame is out, tomorrow my attitude. Your mother. Antonio. Antonio. Que . Its not working. Campbells microwaveable soups. The torching of haleys motel here in ctable a mystery as the disappearance of sabine. What they did know was it was no accident. This was arson. In a building beside the main hotel structure, a building that once served as tom and sabines living quarters. T, happily. But there were questions. Was it personal . An attempt to destroy evidence or what . Me people wondered if tom had something to do with it. Others dismissed that as just plain nonsense. Pher jack elka covered the fire for the islander newspaper. Thats when the mystery other element of this puzzle that reporter yeah. Why would somebody do that . Kind of bizarre. Urely, it had to whatever happened to sabine. Why would that place burn down . To destroy some evidence or something . It was a theory. We werent sure if something happened there and then she was buried somewhere. Reporter months went by without a decent lead. Though it was not for lack of trying to find one. Where their instincts were telling them sabine might be buried. The beach. Ver we would have a break, we into would come out here to this very spot. The case and brainstorm the case. Reporter detective sergeant d his partner jeff bliss kept organizing searches on the beach. Looking for any area where the ground or the White Sand Beach looked disturbed. Aver dogs, walked them up and down the beach. We used groundpenetrating radar, checked various spots on reporter to no avail. , the First Anniversary of whatever it was that happened, on the beach d a little memorial. Husband tom tossed a flower wreath into the surf. There was no hope. We knew. She was gone. Ger alive. Reporter but apparently the Life Insurance company wasnt so sure. Time of that Memorial Service at the beach, tom went to court to take the first step to get that money. Snt it tom who petitioned the court to declare her dead . Yes. Reporter if shes declared dead, he gets a lot of insurance money. Ct. Reporter he gets the ownership outright of the motel. Correct. Reporter yes, that. Told the detectives before hed held a 100,000 policy on sabine. But when he filed papers to ad, it turned out insurance policy that he forgot to mention. It came up later it was 300,000. He revelation made the newspapers. Attorneys for the Insurance Company argued that under bine had to be missing at least five years before she could be declared dead and any insurance money paid out. Hearing reporters noticed an Unusual Group of observers listening to the proceedings. The whole back row of seats was taken up by sheriffs deputies. And if they werent interested ay to the Insurance Company, why were they there . Reporter but tom was not successful. Th certificate. And tom was denied the insurance. Reporter and thats a big story. How they into deny a death certificate. There was no body. Then the police knew corona didnt kill sabine. A barmaid at the gator lounge was able to confirm the essentials of his story. So he was convicted of car der. Island cop had known sabine and ed to have another try much closer to home. He asked tom for any detail, no at might take the investigation beyond the conjecture and whispers of suspicion that floated on the and he went into a whole background of their courtship, their marriage, and how it disintegrated. Reporter how did it disintegrate . He told me that they just slowly, you know, like grew stayed together because they were very good friends and they owned the business together. Ut and this seemed unusual while they stayed ma