To many who lived in Hollywood, the life of thirty-seven-year-old Tom Roche may have seemed mundane, but for him it was a fairy tale. The Burbank, California, machinist had a great relationship with his live-in girlfriend, was surrounded by a large circle of friends, and was about to begin a new job encompassing more authority and substantially more income.

Tom’s life seemed terrific until Friday, September 13, 1991. The day proved ominous as it was the last time he was seen alive.

If Tom Roche’s Hollywood life had been a movie, it began as a fairy tale then descended into a drama. Several weeks later, the drama became a horror story when his girlfriend received a letter saying Tom had met with foul play. Five months later, the horror morphed into noir when Tom’s murder was confirmed.

One final genre can be applied to the story of Tom Roche: that of mystery, as his killer remains unknown.

Tom Roche

Tom Roche and Barbara Rondeau grew up together in Rhode Island and dated each other for sixteen years. They never married, but they moved to California together in 1988.

In addition to their love for each other, Tom and Barbara loved motorcycles and were each proud owners of pristine Harley Davidsons. The couple were not gang members; each was also a professional. Barbara worked for a blueprint company and Tom was a machinist until September 1991, when he accepted a managerial position with a company which plated aircraft parts.

Tom was looking forward to his new job, which he was to begin on September 16, 1991. Someone, however, denied him the chance to launch his new career.

Tom and Barbara

Tom drove Barbara to work on the morning of September 13. The couple made plans to meet for lunch, but when the time came, Tom did not arrive. Uncharacteristically, he did not call Barbara to explain his absence.

Having still not heard from Tom, Barbara returned home after work. Upon finding the front door unlocked, she expected Tom to be there, but he was not. The answering machine was turned off, which Tom often did when he was home. A motorcycle battery he had planned to install still sat on the kitchen counter.

Barbara grew increasingly concerned when Tom still had not called or returned by evening.

Barbara Becomes Worried 

After a sleepless night and still with no word from him, a distraught Barbara reported Tom as missing.

Tom’s Missing Person Flyer

Investigators found Tom had used an ATM machine to make two deposits at approximately 8:20 a.m. on September 13. At approximately 9:30 a.m., he was seen by a neighbor speaking to a white male. The men were looking into the bed of a pick-up truck, and the neighbor said it appeared to be a normal conversation. No voices were raised and nothing seemed out of the ordinary.

The neighbor did not recognize the man she saw speaking to Tom and could not recall having previously seen the pickup. She did not pay much attention and could not remember any clear details of the man or the pickup.

Nothing Unusual 

Barbara burst into tears after opening the mail five days later, on September 18. A letter without a return address contained Tom’s driver’s license and the earring he had been wearing when last seen. The typewritten letter began with “to the family of Tom Roche.” From there, the contents became sinister.

The letter went on to say “You don’t know me and hopefully never will, but I am the one who killed Tom Roche.” The writer claimed to have met Tom at a topless bar and to have lured him into a trap in which he killed him “quickly and efficiently.”

The author claimed to have served in Vietnam. Serial killer Jeffrey Dahmer had been arrested two months earlier, and the supposed traumatized veteran said the arrest had rekindled his suppressed desires to kill.

The writer claimed to have murdered Tom on September 13, but Andy Marsala, the owner of a motorcycle parts store in Glendale, approximately five miles northwest of Burbank, is certain he saw Tom come into his store on the afternoon of September 14. Andy knew Tom, but at the time he did not know he was missing.

Andy said it was unusual that Tom did not acknowledge him when he waved. When Andy returned from the warehouse after retrieving apart, Tom was gone.

Police believe Andy is mistaken about the date and that he saw Tom earlier. Andy, however, is certain it was September 14.

On January 11, 1992, four months after Tom Roche’s disappearance, weathered bone fragments and personal items linked to him were found at a remote hillside in Placer County, California, five-hundred miles north of Burbank. The items found included a duffel bag, flashlight, hunting knife, two pairs of prescription eyeglasses, and an empty prescription medicine bottle. Also found were several shirts and other pairs of clothing, all with motorcycle emblems consistent with clothing worn by Tom.

DNA tests confirmed the remains were those of Tom Roche. He had been shot to death.

Tom is Gone

Thirty-three years later, the circumstances of Tom Roche’s murder remain unclear and no suspects have been named. The identity of the letter writer is also still unknown.

Police believe the unknown man seen with Tom by the pick-up on the morning of September 13, 1991, is probably his killer as well as the author of the letter. They believe the writer’s claims that Tom’s remains were in Los Angeles, rather than in Placer County, were an effort to thwart them.

If you have any information on the murder of Tom Roche, please contact the Burbank, California, Police Department at (818) 238-3000.

Who Killed Tom Roche?

Barbara Rondeau died in 2010 at age forty-nine.

Over heaven’s clouds, Tom and Barbara are hopefully again cruising together.

Two Lives Too Short

SOURCES:

• Los Angeles Times
• Ludington Daily News
• Sedalia Democrat
• Unsolved Mysteries