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Brianna Denison was a 19-year-old college student who was found murdered and r*ped after mysteriously disappearing from her friend's house. Her story has been covered in the series Dateline: Secrets Uncovered.
The series, currently available for streaming on Oxygen, takes a deep dive into such mysterious cases of murder. Brianna Denison's case has been covered in episode 40 of the 10th season of the series. The official synopsis of the episode reads:
"When a college student vanishes, investigators launch a massive manhunt and quickly discover she is not the kidnapper's first victim; police are inundated with leads before an anonymous tipster divulges a secret that helps crack the case."
The episode will re-air on November 2, 2023, at 10.00 pm EST, on Oxygen.
Dateline: Secrets Uncovered - An anonymous tip, and 4 other details about Brianna Denison's murder
1. Brianna Denison shockingly disappeared from her friend's house
After visiting some friends and relatives in sunny Santa Barbara, Brianna made her way back home to Reno for a break. On the evening of January 20, 2008, the psychology student went out with her friends. They then went back to a house close to the University of Nevada for the night.
Brianna was gone when her friend K.T. Hunter woke up the following morning. Hunter immediately notified Brianna's mother and even alerted the police.
2. Nothing apart from a bloodstain was left as a clue
One of the most shocking details about the case was that all of Brianna's belongings were left behind in the house, including her cell phone, purse, clothes, and, even shoes. This raised suspicion since no college-going girl would leave home without these belongings.
The only trace of evidence to suggest Brianna's sudden disappearance was a blood stain on the pillow where she was sleeping. Tests verified that Brianna's blood was on the pillow, and detectives found what seemed to be bite marks on the pillow, indicating that Brianna had been roughly pushed into the pillow before she vanished.
3. Brianna Denison was found murdered almost 4 weeks after she went missing
In the days that followed Brianna's disappearance, worry and attention surrounding the case only increased. Rallies and vigils were held as the region was searched. The public continued to see her face on billboards.
Her body was finally found in February 2008 in a field near the South Reno industrial park. While on his lunch break, one person took a shortcut across a field and found Brianna's body. The 19-year-old was killed by strangulation with a pair of underwear after being s*xually assaulted.
4. Brianna Denison's killer was arrested after authorities received an anonymous tip
The murder case of Brianna remained unresolved for 10 months until a tip from an anonymous source informed detectives that they had discovered underwear belonging to someone else in her boyfriend's van.
James Biela (the killer who was eventually convicted), her lover, shared uncanny features with their suspect. He was a pipe fitter by trade, had thick fingers, and had recently acquired the truck that the victim of s*xual assault had described. His physical attributes also matched those in the sketch being circulated by the police.
5. Brianna Denison's killer was handed the death penalty by the judiciary
Upon receiving the tip from the caller, Reno Police requested a DNA sample from James Biela, but Biela declined.
His girlfriend consented to provide authorities a sample of their four-year-old son's DNA, which finally proved the young child was connected to Brianna's assailant, instead of giving him an alibi for the morning Brianna vanished as he had claimed.
In 2010, James Biela was convicted guilty of s*xually abusing two other college students and r*ping and killing Brianna Denison. He received four consecutive life sentences for the r*pe of the other two women and the death penalty for the murder of Denison.
He is currently awaiting his death penalty in a Nevada prison.
