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The mysterious disappearance of Lynnwood resident 32-year-old Nicole Pietz on January 28, 2006, led to the conviction of her husband, 34-year-old David Pietz. He was convicted seven years after her naked body was found choked to death in a wooded field near the airport in Seattle.
Nicole Pietz struggled with addiction due to her prescribed pain medication for her endometriosis. While she celebrated eight years of sobriety, her husband and the perpetrator tried to turn the case, which turned cold for four years due to her addiction issues. However, David Pietz was tried using circumstantial evidence and sentenced to prison for 18 years in 2013.
The upcoming Dateline: Secrets Uncovered episode, titled Secrets in Seattle, re-airs on December 12, 2023, at 9 pm EST on Oxygen. The synopsis reads,
"Nicole Pietz was a well-liked fitness executive married to the man of her dreams. Then one night, she didn't show up for dinner with her husband and friends. Had Nici's troubled past caught up with her or did someone want to harm her?"
Who was Nicole Pietz? Details explored
Nicole Theresa “Nici” Zurcher Pietz was born to Gael Ann Schneider on February 2, 1973, in Bellevue, King County, Washington. Nicole's mother, Gael, had divorced her father when she was a child and raised the sisters as a single mother. She worked as a stewardess flying from one place to another.
Nicole Pietz battled addiction for a while in her early adulthood as she grew up with the painful condition of endometriosis. She was prescribed pain medication from a young age, which she eventually developed an addiction to. Nicole spent some time in rehabilitation and attended Alcoholics Anonymous meetings with which she bounced back in life.
She started working as a receptionist at a local health club and met her friend Tamara van der Heyden there. Tamara van der Heyden described her friend via CBS News, saying,
"She was a people person. Yeah, absolutely, everyone loved her."
During her time as a receptionist, Nicole met a salesman named David Pietz, another health club employee. David and Nicole got married to one another at the beach in Maui on April 20, 2002. With eight years of sobriety, Nicole led a seemingly content life with her new husband and her new job at a cell phone company till she unexpectedly went missing on January 28, 2006.
She is survived by her mother, Gael, her sister, Tonia Zurcher, and her stepfather, Rod Schneider.
What happened to Nicole Pietz?
Nicole Pietz (32) allegedly went missing from her Lynnwood home on January 28, 2006. Her husband reported her missing to the police at 10:20 pm and stated that he did not find her home when he returned from work the previous day at 11 pm. He left for work that morning and expected her to be back, but she was not seen again.
David Pietz mentioned to the police about Nicole's struggle with addiction and her visits to Alcoholics Anonymous. He mentioned spotting a bottle of painkillers with 56 pills missing to the police. David alleged that Nicole had been wearing her mouthguard during the daytime and outdoors as of late. She wore a retainer to stop herself from grinding her teeth during sleep. He also hinted towards challenges in their married life, saying that the couple were not wearing their wedding bands for a while.
Nine days later, Nicole's naked body was discovered with bruises on her elbows, thighs, knees, and pelvis by a man in a wooded field near the airport in Burien. Her face was indicative of blunt trauma, while her neck and eyes showed signs of hemorrhages.
Nicole Pietz's autopsy determined asphyxia due to manual strangulation as the cause of her death. Even though her body was found bare, Nicole's feet were not dirty. The most tell-tale sign of murder was the fact that her mouthguard was inside her mouth.
David Pietz was convicted of the second-degree murder of his wife, Nicole Pietz, on October 14, 2023, and sentenced to a jail time of 18 years and four months, which is the maximum under the Washington State Law.
