Netflix’s “Unsolved Mysterious Season 3” focuses on some of the mysteries in recent times that still continue to baffle Police & True Crime enthusiasts due to the evidence and how the families feel about the decisions upheld by the judiciary. One of the Episodes of the series that is worth talking is the case of Tiffany Valiante whose unexpected gruesome death is still confusing everyone else.
Tiffany Valiante, an 18-year-old graduated from Oakcrest High School who was already set to attend New York’s Mercy College on a full volleyball scholarship. Not only that, she had landed the position of Middle Starter, a very crucial position for a freshman athlete but during the fateful night of July 12, 2015 everything changed.
After leaving a graduation party that night, walking back home having an argument over their credit card usage which her parents Dianne & Stephen also had a discussion about which Tiffany didn’t seem stressed that night, as the mother recalls. However, the teen walked away alone at 9:28 and after the family came out looking for her exactly a minute later, she seemed to have just entirely vanished into thin air.
After an extensive search, one of her uncles learned that she’d been hit by a train at Mile Marker 45 along Prague Avenue, 4 miles from her residence at 11:16 PM. Her death was officially ruled as suicide within 48 hours after the teen was hit by a train going at 80 mph and for the lack of a more precise depiction, the teen had been blown to bits with her legs and hands ripped apart from her body in brutal directions.
Said by a New Jersey Transit Spokesperson, Tiffany was standing on the train tracks but did not move when the train’s engineer sounded the horn and applied emergency brakes. Her toxicology report was clean as well.
Being popular, Tiffany was described to the detectives by her friends as someone who was often sad about not fitting into the social norms and had felt a sense of loneliness. Things at home weren’t all well too since she’s been having issues with her mother since 2014 so much so that even Child Protection Services were called on three separate occasions within one year.
However, the theories relating to it being a murder are quite strong as well. The recording of the deer cam showed a headlight-like shadow and finding her cell phone on the ground within minutes of her vanishing poses more towards the idea of her getting abducted first.
That’s why even though her remains didn’t have any shoes on, her feet were not damaged in the way they should’ve been since she was found on train tracks. The spot was roughly a mile from the house, and the family urged that Tiffany couldn’t have made it alone since she was afraid of the dark.
The train engineers also gave contradictory statements and the fact that none of the items were sent for forensic analysis didn’t help in determining the result of the case.
Based on all the evidence, the likelihood of Tiffany getting murdered is significantly higher than her dying by suicide but still, the decision of her dying by suicide still upholds. The family still doesn’t support that decision and is still trying to do as much as they can to get the truth.
They are currently offering a $40,000 reward for information leading to the arrest and conviction of Tiffany’s possible killer. If you know anything, give me a call at 609-927-0001.