How Was Tina Knaub’s Body Hidden So Close to Home? | Forensic Files

The story I have for you today is a true mindbender. Just when you think you have
it figured out, I am going to throw a huge twist your way that will make you gut check all your assumptions. Cuz this
is a case that starts like so many before. A young woman goes missing and her boyfriend that she had a tumultuous
relationship with was the last one to see her alive. So when her body is found, he becomes the prime suspect. But
years later, old news footage gets unearthed that reveals a now convicted killer was at the crime scene watching
on as police worked. So, who really killed Tina Knob? It's just before noon in York,
Pennsylvania on May 22nd, 1985. You know, a time before apps and cell phones when you could skip school and play
hookie without parents being instantly notified. Well, that's what two teenage boys were doing that day. Skipping
school to do important things like throw large rocks into a creek just under the
West Princess Street Bridge, seeing who can make the biggest splash. Priorities.
Yes. But when one of these teens reaches for another large rock, he notices something underneath it. a garbage bag
with human hair sticking out from it. Now, this might deter some, but not this kid. He opens up the bag and gets the
shock of his life when he finds a human skull inside. Now, for a brief second, he and his buddy aren't sure what to do.
They even consider taking off and just going back to school before they get into trouble. But reality kind of slaps
them in the face, and they know that the right thing to do is go tell the police
what they found. I can't imagine just like having this innocent day off school and then boom, there's a body.
Oh, I know. I like Well, so I understand their reaction to be like, "We should probably just go back. Let's let's just
pretend like we were where we were supposed to be all along, right?" Exactly. So, what the York PD finds when they
come to investigate are the remains of a young female inside in an advanced state
of decomp. Now, she'd been buried in a shallow grave that had been hidden by those large rocks. Like some sources
claim that she was under like 2 or 3 feet of rocks, which police told the York Dispatch tells them something. This
would have taken someone real time, which they think might show that whoever buried her, they say, took care, maybe
even showed compassion for her. Two to three feet of rocks. I mean, that's like Ashley, we used to pick up rocks in my
parents farms. That's like a lot of work. We literally would spend a day on a gator picking up rocks out of a field.
Yeah. Like I'm imagine like picking up rock after rock, finding all of them, stacking them. Like would it take like
hours for one person to do? Yeah. Which is why it's like surprising that nobody would have seen that
happening? I mean, again, is is it happening under the cover of night or something? But this is an area where
people are driving around. This isn't like the middle populated, right? But again, is that like is that
because someone's trying to put distance between themselves and this person? Like
you would think if the person didn't know her, they would just leave her out to be found
because how is it going to get tracked back to you? Right. So the police kept saying like,
"Oh, that they're taking care or whatever for her." Like for me, it's more like they needed to make sure she
wouldn't be found because she's connected to them. And they think they know who that her
is. You see, the victim in front of them is still clothed in corduroy pants and a
windbreaker jacket. And there's also a pair of sneakers at the scene, too. And they recognize this clothing. Or at
least they think they do. Almost 15 months ago, like to the day, an 18-year-old named Tina Knob had been
reported missing by her family. And the last thing she was reported to have been
wearing was corduroy pants, a windbreaker jacket, and sneakers. Does the decomposition look like she's been
there all 15 months? So, I'm not sure that they 100% know that yet, but it is looking like it. And
honestly, it's a little surprising to me that she wasn't found sooner or that like whoever buried her wasn't spotted
when they were doing that cuz like I said, that would have taken some time. And the bridge that Tina's body is found
under isn't like off like down some country road. It's like in the town of York near a high school and a park and
the police station. So, you have to think that people and cars are like going over this bridge every single day.
I mean, maybe it wasn't that noticed because she was in that garbage bag. It might not have stood out as much.
Well, maybe. But I'm actually glad you brought that up because I did want to mention there is some conflicting
information if Tina's body was actually found in a garbage bag or not. Like, I'm
not sure if that plays a role in this too. Some sources say she was. And then one of the boys who found her says she
was too. However, Barry Bloss, who was one of the lead investigators, said during an interview with the Cadorus
murders podcast that that's not true. No bag. So TBD if that played a role in her
not being found or if whoever put her there just like flew under the radar and got very lucky. I don't know. Anyways, 3
days after she's found, the autopsy is done. And while they're eventually able to confirm with dental records that the
victim is in fact Tina Knob, they're not able to determine any cause of death. Now, one thing the autopsy notes, as
mentioned in the New York Daily Record, is that her pants were open and her zipper was pulled down. So, this could
indicate some kind of sexual assault took place or at least was attempted, but again, because of the condition of
her remains, they can't test for that at this point. And I read she was too decomposed for them to even do a
toxicology like report or testing. And Barry Bloss points out in that podcast a lot of that likely had to do with the
water level. It had risen multiple times in the last 15 months since Tina was last seen. So not only had she been out
there just for a long period of time. Her body was like underwater. Exactly. Exactly. So, while they aren't
certain about how Tina died, investigators do suspect foul play and they believe someone killed Tina shortly
after she disappeared back in February of 1984. So, now they have to work backwards.
Now, luckily, the jurisdiction she was found in is the same one she went missing in. So, they have everything
they need at their fingertips. According to the York Daily Record, they know that
on February 24th, 1984, Tina was last seen by her boyfriend, 19-year-old John Ruticil. Now, he saw her at about 10
p.m. when she left their apartment to go to a friend's house. Now, when she hadn't returned by the next day, John
called Tina's mother, aa, but aa didn't know where she was either. Now, Barry Bllos said in that interview that it was
actually the other way around, that Tina's mom went to John because she hadn't heard from Tina. And we tried
reaching out to John to like try and confirm or get comment about this, but we never heard back from him. So, I
don't know which way it was. But either way, I think it's fair to say that both became really concerned pretty quickly
because Tina and John have two little kids and it's not like her to just not be there for them without any
explanation. So, best I can put together from some conflicting information because, by the way, the police won't
answer our questions either. It seems like not too long after this, the York Daily Record reports that Aina, John,
and Tina's sister Debbie went to report Tina missing. Now, when she was just missing, it's unclear how serious police
were taking her disappearance in the early days. I assume, or I at least hope, that they were talking to her
friends, confirming she never made it anywhere that night, which to my understanding, she didn't. I hope they
were talking to her boyfriend, her family, but none of that was reported on. And like I said, police won't give
us an interview when we requested on it to like get some clarity. They told us they couldn't talk about this case. So,
I don't know what they did early days. But I do know that after her body is found, that's when a real investigation
gets underway. And if they weren't already, friends and family start pointing the finger at John. You see,
things weren't all sunshine and rainbows in their relationship. Tina's friends and family tell police that Jon and Tina
had like a rocky relationship. Sounds like Tina even kicked him out at one point and for pretty good reason because
John, by the way, was also seeing another woman in their building around the time Tina disappeared. Oh, and get
this, according to the York Daily Record, just 6 months after Tina's disappearance, John married this other
woman. So, he had been dating the woman like the whole time and then immediately gets
married. Yeah. he had been cheating on her while that they were together and obviously
living together they've got kids together. Um and I like as far as I can tell and
again this has never been said explicitly but it doesn't seem like there was any break right like like his
girlfriend his baby mama goes missing and then this woman comes in and like within 6 months while she's still a
missing person they get married. So, the police interviewed Jon at his mother's house in the early days of their
homicide investigation. And according to the York Daily Record, Jon admits that he and Tina often disagreed. And those
disagreements usually revolved around her going out with her friends at night and him being stuck to watch their
children. And they actually had one of those fights, he says, when she left that final time to go to her friend's
house. I guess he had asked her to stay home. And according to Barry Bloss, he even went as far as to try and
physically stop her from leaving. Like John admits to police that that night he took the shoelaces out of Tina's shoes
and tied them around the door knob and like the deadlock so tight that she could not physically get out of the
house. And interestingly, it sounds like she was found without shoelaces in her shoes, which seems to back that story
up. But the only mention of this detail is in that podcast interview with Barry Bloss, which is like I can imagine all
these years later that coming out, but it wasn't reported on earlier. So after trying to physically lock her
inside, John tells the police that he eventually told Tina like, "Fine, just go and apparently let her leave and then
you know the rest." So, just to be clear, John attempts to stop her from leaving using
shoelaces, then just like changes his mind, lets her go, and she just happens to go
missing the next day. Yeah. Yeah. Well, that's John's story, and he's sticking to it. Now, I know
that they at least talked to his new wife cuz remember, he's been married for a minute by this point. And it's
reported in the New York Daily Record that she tells police, quote, "If I had any thought John did this, I would not
be with him. I value my life and my kids." End quote. Now, they also interviewed John's mother, who insists
her son had nothing to do with Tina's death, and she's got lots of theories about what could have happened. She says
Tina was known to walk alone at night. She would even walk along a bicycle path along the creek where her body was
found. In at least one source, John's mom claims that some of his friends also saw Tina up to like two and a half
months after she disappeared. So, I think she's like trying to make the timing not so suspicious. Like maybe she
left and then something happened way later. Like that fight she had with Jon that night means nothing because that's
not the night that she was like last seen. But to be clear, no one else is ever quoted saying that they saw Tina
after February 24th. So, this sighting doesn't really hold any weight, especially because when police interview
Tina's friends, according to the New York Daily Record, one of them says Tina was supposed to come over on the 24th.
This is the day that she disappeared, but she never showed up. Another one of Tina's friends had this like interesting
encounter with Tina, which at least one source says took place in February before her disappearance. Now, unclear
on the exact date, but that friend says that Tina had come around to like say goodbye. And Tina didn't tell her where
she was going. And this friend didn't think Tina was like leaving her kids or anything, but it did feel like more than
just like her saying like, "Oh, I'm leaving wherever we are together. I'll see you later." kind of thing. Like it
felt a little more ominous or at least looking back on it, it does. And this person points out that, you know, Tina
was a young mother. She was unemployed. And who knows, like maybe she just needed a break. But Tina obviously
didn't leave because the West Princess Street Bridge where Tina's body was found was only a few blocks away from
where she lived. Now, sometime not long after Tina was discovered, the York PD gets an anonymous call from a woman who
says, quote, "I want to tell you who killed Tina Knob. I have to hurry before they come and get me. We were having a
pot party that night. her and me and Steven Wayne, they got into a fight and then click, the line goes dead. Now,
some sources say that this woman on the call said, "I know who killed the skeleton under the bridge and that they
got to arguing versus like a fight." So, there are some conflicting reports on the exact wording of this, but like I
mean, you still get the idea of like this is a bombshell. Yeah, but it's a bombshell with
questions. First off, who are Steven Wayne? The police don't know. No one seems to know. Not even John recognizes
these names. And if I were John, I would be like searching high and low for anyone with those names to get the heat
off of me. Yeah. Or at least side eyeing them. I know. But he truly does not know.
Doesn't even pretend to know to help himself out, which honestly to me feels honest, right? So there is nothing in
the source material that the police could or did trace this call back to where it might have originated from. If
the police change their mind and talk to us, I will obviously ask. But as far as
we can tell, this tip ends up being kind of like a black hole of nothing that they can verify. It just gives them two
more names to add to the list along with John, if those guys even exist at all. I
assume they asked more than just like who are Steve and Wayne when they talk to John like or like a party like did
they ask about that like I hope they did. I would assume they did but who they asked or what they said
what the question was like never reported on. I don't know. So police really only have John? Well,
yes, but only until June 8th when all of a sudden they are forced to consider an
unlikely suspect. It's anyways. Anyways, so assuming something happened in the apartment, if it was
John, because to me that seems like the most likely scenario again if it were him. The real question Detective Barry
Bloss and others had is how could he have gotten Tina's body to where it ended up without anyone seeing. As I
mentioned, they lived a few blocks from the West Princess Street Bridge. So, you
would have to cross several streets from the apartment building to leave the body
where it was ultimately found. And it's Tina's mother who offers up a theory to investigators. She tells them that there
were some large furniture boxes in the apartment before Tina vanished and at some point those boxes went missing. She
said she even asked John about the boxes and he claimed like he didn't know what
had happened to them. So Tina's mom suggests to police that John could have put the like barely over 5ft Tina in a
box and like carried her that way. So the implication is that he's just like carrying her in a giant box. Like that
feels just as conspicuous. I agree. Like I kept the thing I kept trying to find was like did they have a
car? Like did she have one? Did he have one? Did they have access to one? There's no mention of that anywhere. So
I feel like I'm missing a piece here of like I I understand where her mind's going and it's where I would you know if
I had a daughter that was murdered like you'd be looking for anything. But I don't I don't know because like I feel a
car has to be involved because carrying a bag, carrying a box like across all these streets, I like that's going to
draw attention to. So maybe she's thinking again, I don't know the car situation, but is it a box to put into a
car to then drive? I don't know. All unclear. But either way, it's still all a little sus.
Though, it's worth noting that no boxes seem to have been found anywhere. So, this is all theories, all speculation
with no actual proof that John murdered Tina or a box had anything to do with anything. So, according to the York
Daily Record, over the next 2 years, police continued to question Jon off and on. At times, they would even pick him
up and drop him at the site where Tina's body was found. The hope being that like
at some point, Jon would just confess. But he does the opposite. He maintains his innocence the entire time. And then
finally in 1987, John gets smart and he lawyers up. According to Barry, when he talked in
that podcast, he refuses to take a polygraph, which he initially agreed to, but like you got a lawyer now. They're
never going to let that happen. So according to that York Daily Record article, 1987 was the last time police
talked to John. And I don't know if it's because of this or just the fact that police really don't have much else to go
on, but Tina's case went cold after that. Though there were attempts over the years to heat things up. Like in
August of 1988, Crimestoppers offered a $1,000 reward for information on Tina's case. So like that was a step in the
right direction, but not a step that really moves the needle. The only thing that does that comes in May of 1989. And
it comes from a news cameraman at WGA TV. So, this person is reviewing some old footage that he had taken out there
doing the Lord's work, making connections, paying attention. And I don't know all the details of why he was
reviewing this stuff or like what was going on, but the station ends up sending the district attorney of this
county a videotape and is like, "You need to watch this." And when the DA hits play, it's news footage from the
day that Tina's body was discovered and removed from underneath the bridge. And at one point, the person operating the
camera like pans up to the West Princess Street Bridge, and you can see eight people there, like gawkers, just kind of
watching what's happening below. Now, nobody would have recognized those eight people in 1985.
But now in May of 1989, one of those people on the bridge, a teenager, stands out like a beacon. It's
Quintterio Poncho Smart. And the DA knows him because just a month before looking at this tape, his office had
secured a conviction against Smart and an accomplice for the murder of 29-year-old Judy Anne Keterman, which
took place in October of 1987. What? Yes, coincidence maybe. But as the district attorney
points out, Judy and Tina's murders had some like real similarities. Like for starters, they were both young women
with children. And more importantly, both crimes took place along the east side of Kadoris Creek. Although there
was nothing in the source material that says she was buried like Tina. And there
was a cause of death for Judy. She was beaten and sexually assaulted. Whereas we don't have the full picture with Tina
because she was too decomposed. Do we know how far apart the crime scenes were though?
I mean like a 15-minute walk from where Tina's body was found to where Judy was murdered. Like you can walk along this
creek trail bike path thing that I mentioned earlier. And this dude Quintterio is a really bad guy. He was
also convicted of sexual assault of another woman and the robbery of that woman's brother. And according to
multiple sources, Quintterio had also told others that he had killed before. Maybe meaning Tina, maybe just boasting,
I don't know. So he was watching like a a crime scene get investigated and then he himself goes on to become a murderer
of of someone like in that like the same dem demographic and same like area too which like makes
you wonder like is is him being there proof that he like or you know circumstantial proof that maybe he did
something to her and was like watching his own work or or did it give him the idea that you
could get away with murder if you did it here or even just like was there something sick and twisted in him and
when he saw what happened like did that give him the idea to then do what he did
in ' 87 like I don't I don't know the answer I don't think anyone knows the answer now
detective Barry Bloss in that podcast interview indicates that Quintterio was interviewed but not by him and like then
we get nothing else about him in that interview not if he was cleared not if they suspected him not even what
questions he might have been asked about Tina. And unfortunately, Detective Barry
Bloss passed away in 2023 or we would have tried to ask him ourselves because I have so many questions about this guy.
It seems like if they do still suspect him, they haven't gotten enough to move forward because Quintterio has not been
arrested or charged in connection to Tina's murder. But he is, I will say, at least behind bars because he got like 30
years for Judy's murder and additional time for the other sexual assault and robbery. But that's not a whole lot of
solace for the police or for Tina's family who are left wondering if this could be their guy. And the fact that
Tina's pants were unbuttoned and unzipped feels more like the MMO of Quintterio. Like unless John has some
wrap sheet that I don't know about yet. No, it doesn't appear that that he did. as far as I can tell. But I will say um
Detective Bloss had his own theory about the pants not related to Quintterio, but
like his goes back to John. So I guess he talks about this in the podcast. He says that he thinks if something had
happened in Tina's apartment, it would have been possible that John dressed her. I guess they were like pretty tight
jeans she was wearing. And like who among us hasn't had to like lay on a bed to like zip up their favorite pair of
jeans? You know what I'm saying? Like that's how these were apparently. So he's thinking that maybe he put the
pants on her but couldn't get the pants zipped up or buttoned or whatever. And Barry also notes that the jacket Tina
was found in was John's windbreaker. But in my mind I'm like if John dressed her,
why put her in your clothing, right? Like it's just as likely I mean their boyfriend, girlfriend, they live
together. Like I've grabbed Eric's jacket. I don't know. So that's that's Barry's theory. I don't know for me if
it totally makes sense. Yeah. Like to me, it's just as likely that she could have grabbed his jacket
before leaving the house. Like it's big, it's warm, whatever. Yeah. The only thing I think about in
relation to the pants is like touch DNA. Like I know I don't know what they have
to work with since so much was destroyed by the water. But if like if if you found his DNA on her pants like in
specific areas, can that would that prove that he pulled them up? Probably not because they lived together. like
did he pull up her pants or did he fold laundry that week in my opinion? So, I don't know if that's even
available. I don't know if anything would have survived the water. Obviously, it's not something they would
have access to like test or do anything with in the 80s and early 90s. So, they did more of what they could in the '9s.
In October of 1990, Detective Barry Bloss and his partner appeared on an episode of Crimestoppers 800, which is
like a syndicated show that aired nationwide from like a short stint, 89 to 91. and they were hoping that someone
would see the episode and offer some information. They even read the transcript of that anonymous tipers call
from 1985, thinking that maybe the woman who called in might call again, but it doesn't appear that she did. And while
tips do come in, there's a problem. A second case aired on the show that night and people got confused. They call the
York PD with tips on that case, not Tina's. So once again, nothing really comes of this. The years drag on, but
the York PD once again circles back to the boyfriend, John, who is now divorced. And when they do this again,
they're still not talking to him. He's lawyered up, but they decide to talk to people that he works with, hoping Jon
might have said something to them. They talk to his friends, but no one has anything to offer. And over the years,
police also interview other people Jon ends up having relationships with, hoping that he might have said something
to them or maybe even made threats indicating that he had done something to Tina. But nothing comes of that either.
So, fast forward to 2005. This is when DNA testing is like a real tangible thing. Police do send off some stuff for
testing. Now, we know one of the pieces of possible evidence sent is a soda can that was collected at the scene as
reported by the York Daily Record. Nothing in the source material explicitly states that the clothes were
sent. I'd like to think they were, but again, knowing they were in water all that time.
I don't know if they would produce anything. A lot of times labs will actually look at stuff before they even
like do all the testing and burn the money, which is maybe what they did here. Long story short, whatever they do
send off, no DNA ends up being found. And this testing in 2005 appears to be the last big push in this case. And
while investigators over the years would return to the cold case, reinterview people, relook at evidence, they all end
up in the same place. No arrests made, no closer to solving Tina's case. And this goes on and on and on. John has
never been arrested in connection to Tina's death. No one has. And I want to make that clear because we talk about a
couple of different people in this episode. Tina's brother is never formally connected to her case. The same
goes for the mystery Steven and Wayne, too, if they exist. And this is probably a good time to say that if the woman who
made that call is still out there, I'm sure police would love to hear from you. John has continued to maintain his
innocence over the years. In a 2016 York Daily Record article, John is quoted as
saying, "I wish this would get solved. That would be something positive in my life." Something positive is exactly
what needs to happen in this case, especially for Tina's two children. Tina's father, Tim, died in 2018,
followed by her mom, AA, in 2021. And they never found out what happened to her, who took their daughter from them.
And then her sister died of cancer, too, unfortunately. 40 years is a long time to keep a
secret. So do yourself a favor, whoever you are, or whoever out there may know something, and free yourself of whatever
burden you've been carrying all this time, just come forward. You know anything about the death of Tina Knob,
who is thought to have been murdered in February of 1984 in York, Pennsylvania, please contact the York Police
Department at 7178461234. We're also going to leave a link in the show notes where you can submit a tip
anonymously. [Music]

Today we examine the disturbing unsolved murder of Tina Knaub, an 18-year-old mother of two from York, Pennsylvania, who disappeared on February 24, 1984. In May of 1985, teens Richard Kuba and Troy Hughes discovered her remains in a garbage bag, buried under rocks in plain sight near the West Princess Street Bridge along Codorus Creek, just blocks from the York City Police station. With no clear cause of death, suspicion fell on John Rudacille, Tina’s boyfriend at the time, though he maintains his innocence. Tim Knaub, Tina’s father, shares his raw grief and suspicions, while her friend Lana laments, “Somebody hurt Tina bad.” Despite decades of investigation by the York City Police, questions about Tina Knaub's fate and the roles of figures like Patrick Knaub and Quinterio “Poncho” Smart remain unanswered. Help us explore the puzzling clues and enduring questions of this story to hopefully bring justice to this tragic case.

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Brief Summary

The episode discusses the unsolved murder of Tina Knob and the investigation into her boyfriend and a potential suspect.

Key points

The Investigation Begins. Tina Knob's body is discovered, leading to a homicide investigation.
A Shocking Discovery. Two teens skip school and find a human skull in a creek.
John's Rocky Relationship. Tina's friends reveal her tumultuous relationship with boyfriend John.
Anonymous Tip. An anonymous caller claims to know who killed Tina, but the names are unknown.
A New Suspect Emerges. Old footage reveals a teenager who was present at the crime scene.
The Unsolved Case of Tina Knob. Tina's murder remains a mystery 40 years later, leaving her family searching for answers.

Episode highlights

Episode quotes

I wish this would get solved. That would be something positive in my life.

John's plea for resolution in Tina's case.

26:38WatchJun 5, 2025

Tension

65/ 100Some tension

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