She left the bar and disappeared. The Disturbing Case of Cori Desmond. True Crime Documentary

in this video we will look at the events that occurred in California 28-year-old Corey Desmond disappeared in Rondo Beach while leaving her bartending job on Valentine's Day 2009 a few days later her body was found in a plastic trash bag on the side of the road in Running Springs in San Bernardino County the police had different versions of what happened however a few months later the investigation reached a dead end the Breakthrough occurred after a woman who saw a billboard with a picture of Corey called the police department Cory day Desmond was born March 18th 1980 at Torrance Memorial hospital and right from the start she was the center of attention because she had to fight to survive due to a hole in her diaphragm she had to undergo multiple surgeries she was only given a 20% chance of survival and miraculously she not only survived but she thrived friends and family of Desmond knew her as a smart self-confident young woman unafraid to express her opinion who was energetic and full of affection for those she cared about who were many Desmond graduated from North Torrance High School and earned a master's degree in criminal justice from Long Beach State unsure of her calling in life she changed her mind and decided to become a teacher her goal was to teach autistic children a week after her death a notice came in the mail that she had earned her teaching credential she was loved by many and friends to all she was sweet at times but could be tough as Nails she could command a bar full of patrons when she wanted and all the while be singing one of her favorite karaoke songs such as Black Velvet or These Boots Were Made for Walking and once again being the center of attention it was that secondary family that Corey acquired while working in those various establishments that kept her going back despite what her family wanted her to do in 2009 Corey worked in a bar on Saturday February 14th she had a shift that ended at 9:30 p.m. she then walked two blocks to the popular bar Street Lounge many employees of this bar knew Corey as she had friends working there she was caught on surveillance cameras helping her friends at the bar she left there only after closing around 2:00 a.m. none of her friends saw her after that on Monday February 16th at approximately 2 2:20 p.m. the San Bernardino County Sheriff's Office received a terrifying call about 100 Mil from the bar where people last Saw Corey the driver stopped to take snow chains off the wheels the man felt a strong unpleasant smell as soon as he exited the car he thought the source of the stench was an animal that got hit by a car but still decided to check not far from the car he found something strange he saw a black plastic garbage bag with a woman's body inside the man ran out into the road in a panic stopping cars and asking to call the police as his phone's battery was dead they identified the victim by fingerprints and driver's license it was 28-year-old Corey day Desmond subjected to a brutal attack the woman died from strangulation she had a lot of bruises on her face and neck and injuries to the back of her head Corey tried to fight back as she had several defense wounds although unable to determine the exact time of death the medical experts said Corey was on the street for about 12 36 hours before the man found her Cory's pants were unbuttoned and pulled to her knees but no signs of intimate contact were found the first conclusion that investigators came to was that the place where the driver found Corey's body was not the place of her death the criminal left her body by the side of the road hoping it would take time to find it before the man found her body the rain destroyed all possible evidence reporting bad news to the families of the dead or missing is perhaps the hardest thing in the work of a policeman at that time Corey was living with her grandmother the news about the granddaughter's body found in a garbage bag shocked the woman and this news was no less devastating for Mark Cory's Father Mark knew perfectly well how the system worked sometimes the police delay the investigation for many months because they need a warrant to conduct searches interrogations and fingerprinting there are cases when the timeconsuming bureaucracy slows down the process of solving a crime therefore Mark decided not to sit and wait for the police to find the person who deprived him of his daughter he decided to act he said love for his daughter gave him the strength to look for the criminal Mark found Cory's Jeep Wrangler in an alley next to the bar where she worked he also discovered that Corey disappeared on the night of February 15th but unfortunately no one knew about it Grandma did not panic because Corey was already an adult and could stay overnight with a friend or friends in addition she often worked late into the night and came home when her grandmother was already asleep investigators went to the bar where Desmond worked to find possible Witnesses or leads they talked to other employees and learned that Cory finished her shift at 9:30 p.m. and then went to another bar she often did that her friends worked at that bar and Corey often visited them at the end of her shift she helped at the bar or chatted with friends while sitting at the counter besides it brought her extra tips bar visitors knew her face well and many perceived Corey as another employee surveillance cameras confirmed the words of the visitors they captured the girl helping her friends at the bar unfortunately a bartender's job is not only to pour drinks and entertain the interlocutors sometimes after drinking Al alcohol some people stop controlling their emotions and their behavior becomes inappropriate that evening Corey was unlucky enough to meet such a person according to eyewitnesses she argued with some man who behaved provocatively he bothered women and unceremoniously touched them making unflattering compliments while everyone was silent and did not dare to put this man in his place Corey stood up for the bar's visitors in other words the girl explained to the man that he was not welcome there the violent guest was Furious but still agreed to leave Corey continued to help her friends and made drinks at the bar as if nothing had happened that evening she consumed alcohol but it did not affect her behavior after 2: a.m. she left the bar alone and planned to go home but as we now know a man found Cory's lifeless body 100 Mil from the bar the next day Mark gave the police all the information he could find through television he appealed to everyone to report any crucial information for the investigation meanwhile the police identified the man Corey quarreled with before her death during a conversation with investigators the man said he did not know who Corey Desmond was however he did not deny having a big fight with the girl in a bar on February 14th the man said alcohol made him uncontrollable confirming that they kicked him out of the bar right after that he went home to sleep the suspect denied any involvement in the crime he agreed to take a polygraph test and let the police search his house and car they carefully examined the suspect's car after all there could have been traces like blood stains hair or something belonging to Corey the car was dirty both inside and outside and yet forensic experts did not find any evidence there while searching the man's house they found nothing indicating his involvement in the crime The Last Hope of the investigators to catch the man in a lie was a the polygraph test but the Man passed it without much difficulty answering all the questions of the police in addition his wife confirmed that he came home before 2: a.m. and immediately went to bed Cory left the bar around 2: a.m. which means this man was not involved in her death thus the police excluded him from the list of suspects but the problem was that they had no other Persons of Interest in this investigation they studied Corey's personal life trying to find out if she had enemies who could wish her harm investigators found out another strange detail the owner of the bar where Corey worked said that that night she came and asked for permission to use the toilet but since the bar was closed he refused the girl's request and advised her to go home it was about 2:20 in the morning what happened next remained a mystery because Cory never got in the car and did not go home investigators assumed that she had been abducted or assaulted near her place of work however the bar's surveillance cameras did not record this and there were no Witnesses on the street at such a late hour at the time of Cory's death her blood alcohol content was more than four times the legal limit for driving it was unclear whether she planned to use her car or was looking for other ways to get home unfortunately she did not meet anyone who would help her that night a month later the investigation reached a the dead end the police checked all the versions and clues but found no new suspects Cory's Father Mark wasn't going to give up he rented three Billboards on Aria Boulevard in Redondo Beach the Billboards contained a photo of his daughter with the question who killed Corey day Desmond the man offered a $155,000 reward for any information helpful to the police I'm going to keep them up there to let people know the guy is still out there mark Desmond said maybe it will save somebody to some extent this story is similar to the one of Alexandra Kemp the latter's father Roger did everything to find the criminal and billboards played a crucial role in solving the crime if you haven't watched this story yet click on the link at the end of this video information about Corey periodically appeared on 50 electronic Billboards eventually it brought results in May 2009 the phone rang at the police station a woman named Tiffany wear saw one of the Billboards with a photo of Corey thanks to this woman the police were able to solve this case Tiffany spoke very quietly the woman was experiencing stress and severe fright she rambled as if she didn't know where to start then she finally focused and said hello my name is Tiffany I think my boyfriend Tony Lopez Perez killed that bartender girl Corey de Desmond please check him he's behaving strangely but I'll tell you more when we meet Tiffany called several times to arrange a meeting with the detective during their conversation in the park the woman told him about her suspicions according to her on February 14th she and Tony planned a romantic Valentine's Day dinner she spent the whole evening preparing for a date Tiffany took the children to their grandparents visited a beauty salon and bought a new red dress Tony loved it when she wore red clothes it drove him crazy the guy was working that day but had to return home around 11:30 p.m. Tiffany waited for Tony almost all night the woman tried to contact him but he did not answer calls and messages Tony returned home at 4:30 in the morning and as if nothing had happened said he was too drunk to go home he said he fell asleep in his car Tiffany mentioned that Tony rarely cleaned the interior of his car however after a few days he bought a whole set of cleaning products he washed the car thoroughly not letting her help the guy's Behavior seemed strange but at that moment she did not attach much importance to it a few days later Tony sold his white Dodge for almost nothing and bought another car he also changed his phone number for no apparent reason a little later they had a joint trip to Big Bear Lake they chatted along the way and everything seemed normal until Tony suddenly stopped the car on the side of the road he turned to Tiffany and asked her do you think this dead girl what was her name the bartender was dumped here I'm almost 100% sure that the police found her body here Tony Lopez Perez and Tiffany wear lived together for about 4 years they had a six-year-old son together but they never married he was a hardworking man and got along well with everyone he has never had any problems with the law Perez came from a large family with eight siblings his parents grew up in the LA area and Perez attended High School in Manhattan Beach Tony's absence on the day of Cory's death cleaning the car and urgently selling it a strange trip and an equally strange comment about where the police found her body a change of phone number and odd behavior putting all these facts together Tiffany realized that Tony could be the one who took the life of Corey Desmond she didn't want to believe it the investigators decided to talk to Tony and went to his house to prevent him from suspecting anything Tiffany agreed to play along with the police not telling him anything about this conversation it looked as if they were conducting a routine interview of people to find witnesses in the Cory Desmond case Tony looked calm like a person with nothing to hide he wasn't nervous while answering all the questions he said he didn't know her mentioning he had only seen Corey in the newspapers however to arrest Tony Lopez Perez for taking the life of Corey they needed hard evidence thus the police found the new owner of the Dodge that Tony sold shortly after the news of Cory's death the new owner confirmed that Tony sold him his car for a low price he allowed the police to check the vehicle for any evidence Tiffany said Tony cleaned the interior thoroughly before selling his car however when the experts applied luminol and used an UltraViolet lamp it became evident why Tony Lopez Perez got rid of his car the interior of the car lit up in bright blue the police asked Tony to come to the police station they didn't tell him anything about the find so he wouldn't run away at first he claimed he had never seen Corey but later changed his testimony saying he saw her near the bar and whistled at her as soon as the police noticed that the man was changing his testimony they showed him photos of the car he had sold and said that they had found crucial evidence there this time Tony claimed to have seen Corey outside the bar standing under a Street Lamp she suddenly lost Consciousness and fell on the sidewalk he tried to help her but she did not regain Consciousness then he started slapping Corey on the cheeks Corey opened her eyes and started screaming she told him to get out and asked him to let her go according to Tony he got scared put his hands over her mouth and accidentally strangled her fearing he would get blamed for Corey's death he put her body in the back seat of his car and drove home Perez said he woke up during the night and went outside to see if it was a nightmare I opened the door and it was not a nightmare Perez told detectives it was true Perez said he went back inside and tried to get some sleep in the morning he went to work with Desmond's body still in the back seat at the end of the working day he placed her body in two garbage bags took it to a remote area and left it next to the side of the road according to Tony's story what he did to Corey was an accident he claimed that he was drunk and scared he accidentally strangled her in a state of panic but Cory's injuries suggested otherwise she had severe injuries on the back of her head bruises on her face and neck and defense wounds on her hands moreover Cory's pants were down to her knees Tony Perez was arrested and charged with first-degree deprivation of Life the next day he showed the police where he dumped Corey's body in addition to Tony's confession they now had the results of DNA tests Cory's blood matched the blood found in the car that Tony sold immediately after committing the crime at the 2011 trial coroner Jack Sheridan testified to the multiple contusions to the victim's head the evidence of strangulation and the blunt force trauma to her face Sheridan also said she had scratches on her body that suggested the criminal dragged her after her death based on Cory's injuries prosecutors said Perez assaulted her and tried to force her into Intimacy in the early morning of February 15th 2009 Cory resisted unable to get what he wanted Perez strangled her Tiffany wear testified during the trial she told the San Bernardino County jury that her former boyfriend Tony Lopez Perez had an insatiable appetite for sex in January and February 2009 even though they were making love almost every day we said Perez was still not satisfied Tiffany also told the court that Tony had twice engaged in intimacy with her against her will it happened after the birth of their son and with an interval of about a month both incidents occurred when she was fast asleep on the couch after taking painkillers due to severe back pain Perez who chose not to testify at the trial made his first statements to the court during his sentencing he said he was taught to love and respect those around him but that he veered off course at times I forgot the key lessons I was taught about in life which make me a man a father a loving Uncle to many and a responsible person who supports his family that I so love Perez said in the end I fell short he generally stuck to the story his attorney Andrew hanel presented at the trial that he was scared and didn't mean to hurt Desmond hanel argued to a jury of six men and six women that Perez found her passed out on the sidewalk he said he tried to calm her down and didn't mean to kill her I should have thought before acting Perez said I should have stepped back and cleared my head fear took over I was so scared so careless Cory's Father Mark Desmond said his daughter had a beautiful future ahead of her before her life was cut short at the age of 28 Tony Perez should live the rest of his miserable life knowing he killed his own children's hopes and dreams at the same time he was killing Corey her father said he embodies all the characteristics that women in society fear just before sentencing Perez asked God in the court to show him Mercy my very deepest apologies to The Desmond family and to my own family I have brought such hurt and sorrow to The Desmond that will forever shape their life I hope he never gets out in the street again said Desmond's grandmother Beverly I hope he suffers as much as she suffered in July 2011 a jury of six men and Six Women found 36-year-old Tony Lopez Perez guilty of first-degree deprivation of life he was sentenced to life imprisonment with the right to parole after 25 years Corey Desmond's family expressed gratitude to Tiffany wear thanks to whom the police solved this case if it hadn't been for her I don't think they would have ever found out it was him said Leslie Schwab a family friend who attended every day of the trial along with about a dozen others in San Bernardino County

Channel: True Crime

Views: 123,678

Keywords: True, crime, true crime, true crime documentary, Cori Desmond, true crime channel, investigation, detective, disappearance, crime investigation, case solved, solved, disappearance of woman solved, detective stories, documentary, crime documentary, true crime 2023, The case of

Id: 5okDOrDWqUw

Length: 20min 5sec (1205 seconds)

Published: Sat Oct 14 2023