The Playboy Murders: Has the 2002 double murder of Michael Tardio and Chris Monson been solved?

The 2002 double homicide of Michael Tardio and Chris Monson remains unsolved to this day despite relentless pursuit by the investigators. The 35-year-old Tardio had been dating Playmate Sandy Bentley when the pair decided to sell jewellery worth $1 million. This was gifted to her by her ex-boyfriend and hedge fund owner, Mark Yagalla.

However, the ordeal went sideways when Michael Tardio and Chris Monson were to meet the proposed buyer. Their dead bodies were found the next day inside their Mercedes SUV in Studio City. They had been shot at point-blank range and the jewellery had been missing.

Playboy Murders episode Double Trouble aired on Investigation Discovery on January 22, 2024, at 10 p.m. EST and showcased the unsolved murder of Sandy Bentley's boyfriend Michael Tardio. The synopsis reads,

"In the late '90s, Playboy twins Sandy and Mandy Bentley's fame soars until an affair with a Vegas High Roller leads to a fall from fame, stolen jewels, a shadowy buyer and a brutal double murder in the Hollywood hills."

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What happened to Michael Tardio and Chris Monson?

Michael Tardio was reported to be a "clean-looking guy" who was "well-liked". Tardio worked as a doorman at the Garden of Eden - one of the most popular nightclubs in Los Angeles. He also worked as a part-time model in Hollywood.

Tardio had begun dating Hugh Hefner's ex-girlfriend and Playmate Sandy Bentley in the fall of 2002 around the time her then-boyfriend, Mark Yagalla, was arrested for mail fraud charges. Yagalla, a financier and a hedge fund owner, swindled his clients of their money by running a Ponzi scheme to fund his s*xcapades.

Mark Yagalla showered Sandy Bentley and a string of women with expensive and rare jewellery, sports cars, high-end watches, property, and furs which eventually led him to almost $50 million in debt. However, a USA federal receiver was appointed to recover Yagalla's assets as he pled guilty to his charges on February 14, 2002.

In an attempt to liquidate some of her jewellery gifted by Mark Yagalla, Sandy Bentley laid the plan to sell $1 million worth of jewellery with Tardio. Michael Tardio spoke to a person at the club who connected him to a buyer named Mr. Big. A meeting was scheduled for September 1, 2002, when Tardio and his friend, Chris Monson, left for the exchange at Sunset Boulevard around 9:30 p.m.

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Has the 2002 double homicide case of Michael Tardio and Chris Monson been solved yet?

Tardio made the last call to Sandy Bentley around 11:30 p.m. This provided her with a phone number in case the deal went sideways. However, Michael Tardio and Chris Monson were found shot to death inside their Mercedes SUV in the early hours of September 2, 2002. Their car was parked in the upscale neighbourhood of Los Angeles - Studio City. Tardio's car appeared to be set on fire and riddled with bullets. The jewellery was missing and has never been located since.

The Los Angeles City Council had set up a $75,000 reward for information in the case as there was no evidence recovered from the crime scene.

The retired Los Angeles homicide Detective Bill Cox spoke to CBS News saying,

"None of the people that lived in the neighbourhood had heard any shots at all."

The Los Angeles Times crime reporter Andrew Blankstein further added,

"It's not the kind of place that you're gonna find two people murdered on the street. And so the theory is that the two men were shot somewhere else and then brought to that street where the car was later lit on fire."

The double murders of Michael Tardio and Chris Monson remain unsolved to this day.