Police race to save key evidence after a minivan used in a murder is found at a junkyard | 48 Hours | Forensic Files

So, Lieutenant Lynn, tell me about, you know, getting the call that night and what did you get exactly as far as the
call? The caller's information uh stated that this will be the parking garage where his the victim's phone was
located. >> So this is the parking garage right here. >> This is the parking garage to my left.
Yes. >> And what level was the car parked then? >> Uh the the car was parked on the second
level. So like right about there. >> Yeah, it's right. You can kind of see it right behind these traffic lights
essentially. So when I entered the garage, I saw a black on the Civic. I saw a body, a person sitting in the
driver's seat. At first I thought it was this person taking a nap, but because the position
of their head, I could see there's some discoloration around the neck area. So I
decided to knock on the window. There was no response. So I radioed. He was likely deceased.
>> This is one of the intel campuses we have in the city. This is one of their several parking garages. They have
surveillance cameras throughout the garage. I took a closer look and that's when I
realized they were painted. >> Like dripping paint still like it dripped. >> Looked like it was a spray paint.
We locked down the garage and I request detective response. He had been identified as Kenneth
Fandrich and he was a contractor at Intel >> doing union pipe fitting. >> He looked like he had passed peacefully.
His hands were placed in his lab. We thought that that was strange. But are you operating as if this is a homicide,
possibly murder already? >> Oh, we always do. Yeah. That night we actually had a patrol
officer in the intel command center where they have all their hundreds and cameras. They kept texting me little
clips. All a sudden we have some random person we have no idea who it is that's going
around spray painting about a half a dozen or so cameras in this parking garage.
>> Look at him just coming around the corner like that. >> He's obviously in disguise. He's wearing
a black mask covering most of his face. the the safety glasses and then the hard
hat. So, obviously, he's trying to conceal his identity. >> He does a a pretty good job of spray
painting. Really kind of obscuring enough of the camera. You see a lot of movement happening. All of a sudden,
>> then you see a lot of lights. >> A lot of lights flashing. >> Yes. What's going on in there during
that? When you see those lights flashing, >> that's when the person is murdering
Kenneth. So it was really initially like this big who done it for us a big mystery.
>> I mean had you ever seen anything like like that? >> Not in not in real life. No.
>> This was straight out of the movies. How would you two characterize this case
when you first got it? What did you think? You know, I just thought that it's a wild case. Detectives Stephanie
Winter and Deon Rigo of the Hillsboro, Oregon Police Department had never encountered a crime scene like the one
they encountered in January 2023. >> It was in the evening after 9. >> So, we all got a page on our department
cell phones saying that there was death at Intel. Intel, the giant tech company known for its innovative computer chips,
had several large production facilities in Hillsboro, Oregon, outside Portland. >> It didn't make sense. He looked like he
had passed peacefully. There was minimal blood within the car. >> The deceased was Kenneth Kenny Fandrich,
age 56, a contract pipe fitter at the plant. His wife Tanya had reported him missing when he was late getting home.
Like many couples, they shared their locations on their phones. Tanya tracked him to the intel parking lot.
>> What's not sure right now? >> She was already there at the garage when police arrived with body cameras
rolling. >> We're going to have minutes. We're going to He's here in the garage somewhere.
A short time later, she learned that her husband was dead. The Hillsboro Police Mobile Command post
was stationed at the scene, and that was where detectives first talked to Tanya.
>> That night, you you brought Tanya Vandrich right in here. What does she seem like to you?
>> She was very monotone in the way she was speaking. >> Detective Diana Mesh was first to
interview Tanya. She seemed very out of her body, like she didn't react as as much as you would think somebody would,
but I had to kind of pull a lot of the answers out of her. >> Detective Mesh learned more about why
Tanya had been at the scene. >> She told me that they had some issues in the past with their marriage. Now they
would check in on each other more often. Do alarm bells sort of go off here? >> Yeah, there was some suspicion. We
always look at the people closest to the disease, >> but Mesh knew better than to draw
conclusions right away. >> Everybody griefs differently. It just was different than other victims I've seen.
>> There was a lot to process for Tanya and investigators. The scene did not appear violent. his
lunch bag, his lunch, his keys, his phone, all sat neatly next to him in the passenger seat. My first thought was,
"How are we going to figure this out?" >> Their first clues would come from those
surveillance cameras. >> So, he will pop up right here uh next to that column that we're seeing
right here in the in the corner. She kind of waits for her camera and then just pops up.
>> The detectives discovered a man wearing a hard hat and red mirror tinted glasses
had actually spray painted those cameras around 7 a.m. earlier that same day. His
movements undetected by intel security. >> I want to say about six or seven cameras.
But there were also cameras that had not been sprayed and investigators locked in
on images of a vehicle they believed belonged to the suspect. >> Looking at early afternoon now and then
we see this maroon van come in the parking garage and no front plate on the car.
>> It was an older maroon colored Dodge van. They tracked the van's movements. camera by camera before it disappeared
under a layer of blue spray paint. Moments later, they could just make out the van pulling into a parking spot.
>> So, right here, you can see that the van is this shadow right in here. >> Okay. Right.
>> And then this vehicle right here is actually Kenneth Vander's black Honda Civic. It was 3:21 p.m.
just after Kenny had finished his shift. Here he is on video walking back through
the garage. And then very hard to see behind the blue spray paint. You can see a little bit of movement
right here in the in the thing. And that is Kenneth walking back to his car. You
just kind of have to watch the kind of shadows essentially what's going on between the two vehicles. You start
seeing the headlights flash a couple times, like you know, somebody be unlocking their car.
>> Detectives say the headlights on Kenny's Honda flashed as he unlocked his car
with his key fob. That's when they believe the masked man grabbed Fandrich, still holding on to his keys.
>> You see a lot of movement happening all of a sudden. >> Then you see a lot of light. A lot of
light. >> Detectives say that's Kenny desperately pushing his key fob as the mass man
dragged him into that maroon van. >> What do you think that's what's going on in there during that when you see those
lights flashing? >> We think that's when the person in the van is murdering Kenneth.
Detectives say Kenny was killed inside that Maroon Dodge van before the killer staged Kenny's body in his black Honda.
That meant the van itself would be a critical piece of evidence, the actual murder scene.
>> There could have been clothing and who knows what else in that minivan. >> But finding the van would be a
challenge. They couldn't see the license plates or the driver. The results of the autopsy would reveal
Kenny Fandrich had died from blunt and compressive trauma of his neck. His neck had been broken. But who would want to
kill Kenny Fandrich? >> It was really initially like this big who done it for us a big mystery.
>> A mystery they hope might be solved when Intel security staff told investigators
about another incident. Additional video images from the garage recorded a month
earlier. >> We learned that, hey, FYI, we about a month prior, we reported our cameras
being spray painted as well. >> That incident was investigated. >> A criminal mischief call.
>> A criminal mischief call, >> but they never figured out who it was. >> It was a man dressed in a construction
helmet, black glasses, a mask, and we're like, well, that's a clue. Investigators were 100% certain it was
the same person wearing different glasses. And they say these new images revealed an unusual clue.
>> We had this this distinctive forehead crease that we could see in this photo.
>> That little bit of forehead that you see, >> just a little bit of forehead. That's
that's what we got. >> It's a very odd clue right there. >> It is. But for us, it was a big a big
deal. >> And the detectives had one other big deal. Something Tanya Fandrich had told
them the night her husband died. >> Has he has you been having any issues lately?
>> No, but he had a stalker. >> A stalker who had been harassing her husband. And she had proof. A video from
their own home security camera. actually see the person kind of crawl and move around a bit underneath the the trailer
right there. So, this is the carport at the Fandrich's house out in Oregon City.
>> In the early hours of the investigation into the murder of Kenny Fandrich, his
wife Tanya told detectives her husband had a stalker seen here on the couple's home security cameras in their carport.
Here's some sort of utility trailer right here. And you'll notice right under the trailer, you actually see the
person kind of crawl and move around a bit underneath the trailer right there. >> Tanya told detectives the stalker was
her old boss, Steven Milner. Dr. Steven Milner was a wellto-do veterinarian worth millions. She had worked with him
in his clinic as a vette. You ready for your close-up doggies? Huh? Huh? Miley, you ready?
>> Crazy dogs. So, Dr. Milner was how you two met, right? >> Yes. >> Yes. >> We told him about the
>> friends Cheryl Coette and Darlin Robinson were longtime clients of the vet. >> What was he like?
>> He was as a vet. >> He was wonderful. He was very compassionate, caring, kind. He was a
great vet. >> Cheryl even took part in a video Dr. Milner made for his clinic which had
aired on the local news. >> Hi Cheryl. >> Hi Dr. Milner. >> Hey Princess. If I can do an alternative
thing that doesn't require medication, you know, drugs and chemicals, that's really nice.
>> She's a happy girl. >> The kind of vet that get gets down at the level of the dog like on the floor
with them >> on the floor. >> And both Cheryl and Darlin knew Tanya at least by sight. She was there for I
think 19 years and she was the one who would come out and get us to take us back to the room and kind of do the
intake on the animals. Just a sweet, nice lady, very, you know, kind of quiet, but super friendly and very
caring. >> Detectives soon learned about a complicated relationship between Tanya
and Dr. Milner. Tanya told investigators she and Dr. Milner had once had an affair. It began in early 2017.
At the time, Milner was separated. And Tanya said her relationship with Kenny hit a rough patch.
Did you notice any interactions between her and Dr. Milner? >> Just completely professional. It was
just, you know, he comes in, she goes out of the room. >> He was the boss in a way.
>> Yeah. But Darlin thought she noticed something. >> There came a point where my brain just
kind of went, I wonder if there's, you know, something going on, cuz just looks they would give each other.
>> Milner and Tanya tried to keep their affair quiet, say investigators. Milner even gave her a secret name, Kiki.
>> One of the nicknames was Kiki Essex. >> Prosecutor Mahaley Streblo worked on the
case. It's one of those that's like, you know, the name of your first pet and then the
street that you grew up on. >> But the couple's affair was exposed after a few months in July 2017 when
they attended a wedding together. Prosecutor John Ghard. >> There were employees from the veterinary
clinic that were there. >> She was under the impression that Kenneth was out of town for work.
Tanya indicated that they had both been drinking and that they were engaging in more physical intimacy in front of the
employees during that wedding. >> As the night ended, Tanya went home with Dr. Milner.
>> Lo and behold, Kenneth was not out of town for work. >> When Tanya didn't return home that
night, Kenny went to Milner's house >> and that's how they got caught. Kenny didn't confront or make a big
scene at the house. He kind of left the house and then started calling um to try
to figure out what's going on. >> According to Tanya, she ended the affair soon after they were caught.
>> After that, the relationship with Tanya and Steven Milner kind of stopped. >> And that's when Kenny said Dr. Milner
started harassing him. >> When Kenny came to me, he was terrified. Michael Fuller was Kenny's attorney.
>> This stalking issue had basically consumed his life. >> Fuller says Milner started with
harassing calls, then escalated from there. >> Milner literally coming onto his property in the middle of the night,
following him to work, threatening him, those type of things. >> Tanya eventually left Milner's clinic,
but Milner continued to track Kenny. Detectives found plenty of evidence of exactly how he did it. Tanya actually
provided this to us and this is one of the actual tracking devices that Steven Milner had placed on one of their
vehicles. >> Is this the device? >> So this is so this is the device. We believe this to be the battery pack and
where they intend and put it in this case with the magnets and then put it up underneath their vehicle.
In August 2019, roughly 2 years after Tanya said she ended the affair, Kenny applied for an order of protection
against Milner. But detectives would learn the harassment continued and the vets's infatuation with Tanya deepened.
>> He wanted Tanya and he wasn't going to stop. Within days of Kenny Fandrich's death,
investigators set their sights on a suspect, veterinarian Dr. Steven Milner. Detectives learned he was obsessed with
Tanya. There were love notes. >> So, one of them was, "The one absolute rock solid truth is that I love you. I
have never loved anyone that way. I am consumed by your soul." >> He wrote letters like that for years,
even after Tanya had said, "The affair was over." Detectives also learned more about
Tanya's relationship with her husband, Kenny. >> It was a tumultuous relationship.
Alcohol came into play between them. They were often, as you can say, hot and cold. They argued a lot.
>> Kenny had been charged with domestic violence years before, but the charges were not pursued and the couple
reconciled. Then in August 2021, years after Tanya says she ended the affair with Milner, the couple had another
fight. This time she was arrested. >> Why isn't he getting arrested? >> The next day, something surprising
happened. >> Somebody posted her bail. She had $25,000 bail. When she leaves the jail,
Steven Milner's in the parking lot waiting for her. Tanya told investigators she ended up staying with
the doctor for a couple of days before returning to Kenny. She insisted nothing romantic happened. Milner was just
helping her out as a friend. >> To this day, none of us can figure out how Steven Milner actually found out she
had been arrested that night. >> That case was later dismissed and the couple reunited again. But Milner's
campaign of harassment continued. What do you think his end goal was? What did he think he could do? End their
marriage and then end up happily ever after with Tanya? >> Exactly. We think that that's what his
plan was. He wanted Kenneth out of the picture so he could be that white knight to save Tanya.
In March of 2022, just 10 months before Kenny's murder, Milner followed Kenny from Oregon City all the way to
Hillsboro, a 45minute drive. Kenny spotted him and called the police and Milner was pulled over as body
cameras captured the interaction. >> Hi, Officer Edwards Police. Do you know why we're stopping you today? Yeah, I'm
trying to get a hold of this guy that I'm following him. >> The responding officer learned from
dispatch that there was history between the two men. >> What's your role in the whole thing?
>> Uh, she's been a friend of mine for 20 years. >> Milner told police he believed Tanya was
in danger because she had allegedly told him Kenny was abusive. >> I'm the only person who gives a and I'm
not allowed to give. >> So, here's my advice to you. Okay, this is very, very strong advice.
Leave them alone. He wants nothing to do with you. She wants nothing to do with you. If you show up at their house, if
you contact them, anything like that, you're going to go to jail. Go. Thank you.
>> After that traffic stop, Kenny filed for a new order for protection. The original
one had expired years earlier. >> Kenny was absolutely in in fear of his life. And two weeks later, he was so stressed
out he told police he crashed his car. >> My wife and I have been fighting today.
>> Sorry. >> And um I thought she was at her boss's house where I've caught her cheating on
me. >> Sorry. And I was driving over there and he's just like right down the road and
I lost control of my car. I just >> Kenny's attorney says his client had every reason to be stressed out.
>> Kenny told me that Milner said, "Hey, I'm a veterinarian. I've done surgeries
and I have the tools to chop you up into little pieces." In August of 2022, after Kenny found
another tracking device under his car, Milner was criminally charged and was awaiting trial.
>> It was pretty clear to me that Milner was not in his right mind. >> Just a month later, Kenny filed a civil
suit seeking hundreds of thousands of dollars for invasion of privacy and infliction of emotional distress
allegedly brought on by Milner's stalking, harassment, and trespass. Five months later, Kenny Fandrich was
dead. Just days after the murder, detectives were convinced that Steven Milner was
that man behind the mask. But they needed more evidence. >> We need to get eyes on Steven Milner
because we know there was some sort of violent confrontation. We want to see if he had any injuries.
Not wanting to tip him off, investigators asked him to come in for a check-in about the stalking case.
>> So, we arranged a meeting for Steven to come in to sign some paperwork. Detective Winter was inside at a
reception desk. >> And your goal sitting there at the receptionist desk sort of as an
undercover, right? >> I wanted to see if he had any injury to himself. He walks in, he looks extremely
nervous. >> Another person in the office noticed something. She says, "Hey, he's got
makeup on his face." >> Makeup investigators say Milner used to cover up a scratch on his nose.
>> Bingo. You're thinking, "We got our guy." >> I I Yep. At that point, I thought, "This
is him. This is our guy that that did this." >> Moments later, after Milner walked out
the door. >> Hi, sir. I'm Debbie Davis, the sheriff's office. We're being recorded by my
camera, so everything's going to be a viscer. Do you understand that? >> Yes. >> Okay, sounds good. Right now, you're
being detained. >> On January 31st, 2023, four days after Kenny Fandrich was found
dead, Steven Milner was taken into custody and within days charged with seconddegree murder and stalking.
With Milner in custody, detectives Rigo and Winter were quickly able to connect one important clue from those
surveillance camera images. That unusual crease in the masked man's forehead. >> There's that very prominent forehead
crease that I don't He couldn't hide if he tried. There's no amount of makeup hiding that crease.
>> No. >> Do you feel at this point you've got like a pretty solid case? We had a lot
of circumstantial pieces like putting the puzzle together, but we were just at the tip of the iceberg of what we still
need to find out. >> More puzzle pieces would be found in Milner's house. It was shocking that somebody this
successful, a doctor, now suspect in a murder. >> With Dr. Steven Milner now in police
custody, Hillsboro detectives Stephanie Winter and Devon Rigo set out to find evidence that could prove Milner was at
the scene when Kenny Fandrich was murdered. As soon as he's arrested, we're getting
search warrants for his DNA to be taken. Hands >> on your back, please. >> We're getting search warrants for his
house as well. >> And detectives weren't quite prepared for what they found at his home.
>> We found a cardboard cutout behind a mirror of Steven Milner's face placed on
a very oiled, masculine man with a dogpaw tattoo over his heart. Very odd memorabilia to have in your bedroom.
>> Yes, >> I would say so. >> And there was more. >> In the nightstand in Steven's master
bedroom is a bunch of items that we kind of refer to as a shrine to Tanya. There
was a framed picture of Tanya. There were love notes. There were women's underwear. just like very like
personal keepsakes from their relationship together. >> That's more than just collecting a few
love notes and cards, >> especially from someone who hadn't been in a relationship with you for several
years at this time period. >> To build their case, investigators needed to connect the maroon colored
minivan seen in the intel parking garage parked next to Kenny's car to Milner. But as far as investigators could
determine, >> right now you're being detained. >> Milner usually drove the white Toyota
SUV he'd been in when he was arrested. >> Initially, we didn't know what evidence
this car could provide us. >> So, they ordered an FBI forensic analysis of the SUV's computer, hoping
it might provide some clues about Milner's movements before and after Kenny's murder.
So essentially the computer that's in the car retains a lot of information and luckily one of those things is like GPS
data points. >> Where was that bit of information is that a computer that's pulled out on top
there. >> Yeah. So that's part of the front dash and then it was just a little motherboard type thing that had a chip
in it. >> Within weeks they got a call from their digital expert. >> She said, "You guys need to look at the
Home Depot in Oregon City. He's there a lot the day of the murder. >> Home Depot just 15 minutes down the road
from Milner's house. >> How central did this place become in terms of piecing together the evidence
that you had? >> Like this was essentially like center stage of the investigation came into
place. >> The detectives asked Home Depot security personnel if there had been suspicious
activity in the lot recently. Amazingly, they said yes. Two cars, a maroon minivan and a blue
sedan, had been flagged for parking there for long periods of time with only temporary paper license plates.
>> And we learned that there had been a lot of calls created in the past couple months with a suspicious blue car and a
maroon minivan. For the second time in a matter of weeks, parking lot security cameras and
the images they recorded would provide investigators with key clues. In this clip from January 27th, 2023,
the day of Kenny's murder, detectives say you can see Milner's white SUV pull up and park.
Within minutes, the driver, believed to be Steven Milner, gets into the maroon minivan. Another camera then captured
the minivan exiting the parking lot. So, what was he doing with the cars? >> So, essentially, this was like his
staging location. So, he would drive his personal car here and then either pick up the blue sedan or the maroon minivan
and then drive that out to Hillsboro. >> What do you call them? >> Burner cars. >> Burner cars. We have everybody kind of
is more familiar with like a burner phone where you have a phone that's not traced to you but you know you can use
it for what you need get rid of it. Essentially he did the same thing but with a car. Investigators believed
Milner may have been using those burner cars to secretly follow Kenny to work even after law enforcement had told him
to stop. >> You're very close to going to jail today for stalking. Okay. Like very very
close. They also learned Home Depot security cameras had images of the driver of those cars shopping in the
store about a month before Kenny was murdered. >> He parked right in front of Home Depot.
>> He went in and then we saw him come to the selfch checkckout area and he had bought a pair of like safety glasses.
>> Was his face visible in that surveillance? >> It was. Yeah. There was no doubt it was
Steven Milner and those glasses he bought. Detectives say you can see them in his right hand as he exited the
store. The receipt said they had a red mirror tent. Detective Winter had an idea. We just happened to be sitting
near one of the aisles and I was like, I'm going to go see where they sell the glasses. And then a couple boxes down
was a yellow hard hat that looked very similar to the one that he was wearing in all of the intel garage surveillance.
>> The detectives were convinced this was where Milner had gotten his disguise to kill Kenny.
>> You have all of this, but you were missing one big piece of evidence. What was it?
>> We were at this point still missing the maroon minivan. Why is the minivan so
important? >> Because it's the minivan that we believe was really our main crime scene. We
thought there was going to be forensic evidence in that minivan. So, we really wanted to get that minivan to help
really put the icing on this case. Detective Rigo was laser focused on tracking down that maroon minivan and he
got an incredibly lucky break when those suspicious burner cars had been flagged.
The VIN number was also recorded. Rigo searched it and found out that van had been found abandoned just a few days
after the murder. The highway people had towed it off the side of the I5 in North
Portland. >> It had been dumped there. >> It had been dumped there. So I called the tow company. Hey, do you have this
car? No, sorry. We sold it to a scrap metal company. >> Detective Rigo knew the clock was
ticking to retrieve what he believed was the crime scene and all of the key evidence it held.
So, me and another detective drive as quick as we can to North Portland. >> But they were too late. When he asked
about the minivan, the scrapyard showed Rigo this video. This is that maroon minivan. Police believe Milner drove to
the intel garage to kill Kenny just moments before it was pulverized by the metal jaws of the scrapyard claw. I was
able to watch one of my key pieces of evidence be crushed and taken away >> before your very eyes.
>> Before my very eyes. Exactly a week too late. On January 13th, 2025, Steven Milner
went on trial charged with stalking and murdering Kenny Fandrich. Washington County prosecutors John Ghart
and Mahaley Streblo knew they faced a challenge without that maroon minivan where they believe Steven Milner
murdered Kenny. All the evidence that was inside the van was lost with it. The biggest disappointment for us is
there was likely a lot of forensic evidence. >> But prosecutors had some forensic
evidence they say put Steven Milner at the scene. DNA from swabs taken of Kenny Fandrich's hands.
>> I remember getting an email of the results and immediately opening it and being like,
"Oh my gosh, this is it." Steven Milner's DNA was on Kenneth Vandress's hands. >> Now, you really felt like you had your
case made. >> Yes, because there's no way he could explain away why his DNA would have been
on Kenneth's body. >> Steven Milner would have an explanation for that. To everyone's surprise, Milner
took the stand, admitting he did spray paint the cameras and was in the intel garage waiting for
Kenny. He presented what detectives believed was a far-fetched explanation. He was trying to save Tanya. There were
no cameras in court, but there is audio of Milner telling prosecutor John Ghard why he was in the intel lot that day.
>> I was trying to get him arrested for driving while he was drunk or driving without a license.
>> Why was it your responsibility to enforce traffic laws? I was trying to keep Tanya
from getting killed. >> He had this delusional belief that he needed to protect Tanya Fanrich.
>> The defense case, it seemed to be to kind of get the jury to maybe feel sympathetic to Milner.
And Milner insisted it was Kenny who attacked him. After Kenny spotted Steven Milner inside the maroon minivan,
>> Stephen essentially said, "Well, I knew I was caught, so open the door to kind
of confront him." And then Kenneth attacked me. >> Basically fought for a little bit.
>> There was pushing and shoving. Eventually, I was able to kind of push him up against the car and and then
shove him into the car. Prosecutor John Ghart challenged Milner's self-defense story.
And >> it's that push that causes him to fall into his seat. >> He hit up against the car and then kind
of tripped at the same time. And I kept pushing. >> His testimony just didn't line up with
the physical evidence at the scene. >> To my knowledge, >> bumping your head on a corridor is not
going to break your neck. After 6 hours of deliberations, the jury found Steven Milner guilty of murdering
Kenny Fandrich and multiple stalking charges. Mr. Gart, are the parties prepared for
sentencing? >> Cameras were allowed for Steven Milner's sentencing hearing, which took place on
February 18th, 2025. >> Sir, can you stand up? Tanya, who asked not to be shown on
camera, gave a powerful statement directed at Steven Milner. Prosecutor Mahaley Streblo read us her words.
All you had to do was stop. Hear me clearly when I say you are a vengeful, deceptive, manipulating,
selfserving, aggressive, hateful, lying predator. and all you had to do was stop.
>> Steven Milner was sentenced to life in prison with the possibility of parole after 25 years.
Milner did not respond to our request for an interview. >> This case highlights the very worst case
scenario. Take stalking seriously. Kenny's attorney, Michael Fuller, says what happened highlights the limits of
the system that is supposed to protect victims of stalking. >> Kenny called the police. When that
didn't work, he got a lawyer. Kenny did everything he could under the legal system, and it didn't help him at all.
>> After Kenny's death, Fuller filed a wrongful death suit on behalf of Kenny's estate, asking for damages of several
million dollars. Bowler believes Milner made millions from real estate investments and the
sale of his business. >> In the wrongful death case, my goals are to extract as much money as we can out
of Milner. If the estate recovered any money for Kenny, it would go to his wife.
>> For Milner's former veterinary clients, Cheryl and Darlin, it was hard to reconcile the doctor they knew with a
now convicted murderer. I could not believe that it was the same guy. >> I just believe that he ended up going
through some type of psychosis. And I think that at some point he snapped. >> I think it really gets down to like you
never know what anybody is capable of. You never know what monster might be inside.
>> Almost a Dr. Jackekal and Mr. Hyde situation. >> Yeah. Absolutely. Yeah, he had
everything to live for. You know, he could do anything he wanted to do. And this is where it ended up. It's real
sad. Welcome back to Postmortem. I'm your host, Ann Marie Green, and today we're
discussing the mysterious death of Kenneth Bandridge. He was found murdered inside a parking garage on January 27th,
2023 in Hillsboro, Oregon. When police reviewed the security footage from that garage, they noticed a masked man spray
painting the cameras wearing a disguise to obscure his identity. But incredibly,
as we're going to discuss, they were still able to find the killer. So, joining me now to discuss this is 48
hours correspondent Natalie Morales. It's a fascinating case. Thanks for joining us again, Natalie.
>> Sure is fascinating. Good to be with you, Anie. As usual, a reminder to everyone. If you
haven't already listened to this episode of 48 Hours, head on over to your podcast feed. You'll find it just below
this one. Listen to the hour and then come on back for this conversation. All right, let's get into it. The victim
here is Kenneth Bandrich. He he also went by Kenny and investigators discovered his body in the driver's seat
of his car in a parking garage run by the tech company Intel. The garage is located on this massive campus, very
large campus of one of Intel's production facilities. This is where he's been working as a contract pipe
fitter. Natalie, you actually went to the garage and I I just want to get a sense of just how big is the garage?
What was it like there? How many cameras are we talking about? Was it like finding a needle in a hay stack?
>> You know, this was actually almost the opposite of a needle in a haystack when
you think about it. I mean, this is an this is a huge tech company, Intel. We're talking the maker of all those uh
incredible super speedy chips that we all use on our computers, but you know, this is an area, the garage especially,
where there are, you know, loads of security cameras all the way inside the garage as well as on the campus. Um,
it's an area that is well covered. There is a lot of security. So obviously the garage of a tech company like Intel is a
very interesting choice and place to commit a murder. Intel security staff told investigators that a month earlier
the security cameras had been spray painted. It was investigated as just sort of criminal mischief.
But do investigators think that maybe this was a a dry run? And I'm also curious. I don't know if you know this
or not, Natalie, but was it the same security cameras or different ones? I imagine there's, you know, there are
many, probably hundreds. Well, you know, it seemed that Steven Milner had been plotting this for a
while. Uh, according to investigators, I mean, they do believe it was a test run.
And the cameras that he spray painted were the cameras that he then spray painted, you know, a month later in the
act of killing Kenny Fandrich. They did notice it. They filed a suspicious activity report as you said, but they
couldn't pinpoint exactly who it was at the time. You see in the hour the security
footage. I mean, almost all of it is blacked out except for the probably the most crucial camera, right? There's one
camera where he spray paints almost all of it. There's probably like one tenth at the top where you can actually see
what's happening. And because of that little slip up, investigators were able to identify what they believe was the
scene of the murder. Right. It's this maroon minivan. >> Yeah. You know, that onetenth of a slip
up, as you said, was huge for the investigators because with that, they were able to see that maroon minivan
just kind of making its way through the parking garage. Now, keep in mind as well, though, that that they did have
other security cameras all the way through. So, as the minivan was making its way up, it was tracked throughout
with other cameras that had not all been spray painted. That said, though, they were never really able to see the driver
or to identify, you know, the killer in the garage. They needed to do all the police work to connect all those dots.
So, you know, what was really fascinating about covering this case is you see this is a real police
procedural. I mean, this shows you how well the police built their case from the minute they had just that little
sliver of video that they could see. When you say connect all of the other dots, I guess when you have it seems
like you have a little bit to work with, everything is incredibly important. And
so in this video where you can like see the person just a little bit, but he's almost completely covered. The only bit
of skin that you can really see is right above his forehead. And so they identify
this crease. I got to tell you, looking at that, that was something that I did not notice. I
didn't even like consider it as like a defining feature. I just thought maybe like the mask was pushing his head his
skin down. That would not have jumped out at me, but it became crucial. Oh, it became huge. That forehead crease was
such an identifying characteristic. Now, this was from the video from the security cameras a month before in that
testr run case that they were able to see a little bit more of that mysterious person behind the mask. And that crinkle
in the forehead, it turns out that's a genetic trait. I don't know if you know since viewing the hour if you've started
looking at people but I know when I'm in airports or when I'm you know out and about I start noticing that and and it's
very rare that you see that forehead crinkle. So um it was definitely something that was a huge break in in
the case when it came to trying to identify the suspect. >> I had no idea that was a genetic trait.
Now you're like making me think about my forehead but there's a wee bit of Botox
up there so it's not crinkling the way you see >> the other way. >> Yeah. Exactly. All right. So, this turns
out to be sort of a critical clue and the Hillsboro police immediately focus on Kenny Fandrich's wife, Tanya. It's
not completely surprising. I mean, if you're a 48 hours span, you know, often the spouse is sort of the person that
investigators focus on, but it's also about access, knowing his schedule, knowing where he is. There's only going
to be a handful of people who know that information. So, inevitably, that's where investigators are going to start.
Now, I think maybe some people might see the video of Tanya and think that her demeanor is maybe a little cool, maybe
suspicious. I I didn't get that. I thought she seemed adequately, you know, concerned. Um, but why did police
ultimately rule her out? As you said, people do look at the partner or the spouse, the person closest to the
victim. Tanya is there on the scene even before the uh responding officer arrived. That arouses some suspicion.
However, um as Tanya tells the that officer, she said, "My husband has a stalker." And Tanya revealed that she
had had a relationship with Steven Milner and they had had an affair that it had ended years prior, but that
Steven Milner was still actively stalking Kenneth Fandrich and also keeping track of her even though she had
said many times, "Leave us alone." And she had also reported that to police. >> Let's talk about Steven Milner. Um here
we have this veterinarian. He's a smart guy. He's popular. Um, he seems sort of pretty normal, though. I mean, when they
did have the affair, they were kind of eventually sort of blatant about it, right? So, that's a little odd for a guy
who's, you know, you would think would be concerned about his professional reputation. Um, but did you learn
anything more about who he was and his personality? We talked to a couple of his clients as you saw in the hour and
they say that by all accounts, you know, he was very involved in the community, very well-liked,
um was pretty much a a well-known figure in Oregon City where his vet practice was. They also knew Tanya because she
worked with him um and they had seen their interaction. So, they talked about that as well. something in the hour that
I was really fascinated by. I don't know if it kind of hooked other viewers, but
that police body cam video where he's being pulled over, right? And he tells the police officer that, you know, Tanya
is in danger. Is he just sort of making this up or or does he really believe this that this is justifying his
behavior when she wants nothing to do with him? you know, when he was pulled over um for following Kenny, uh Milner
told police, "Look, I'm the only one who really gives a blank," as he said to the
officer at the time, and and I'm not allowed to give, you know, an a blank at that point. There had been issues
between Tanya and Kenny Fandrich of domestic abuse. Steven Milner really felt like he was the one that could save
Tanya from what he felt could be a dangerous situation for her. Now, one of the videos that we see in the hour that
kind of really touched me was it's of Kenny. He's sitting on the back deck. He's really distraught. He's crashed his
car after an argument with his wife and he just looks so sad and heartbroken. What more do we know about this marriage
and the problems they had experienced? >> Tanya and Kenny, they had struggled over
the years. Alcohol typically um came into play according to Tanya when there were these instances of domestic
violence. They became something of a he said she said. Um Tanya acknowledged their issues and as I said she was, you
know, very firm in saying this relationship with Steven Milner happened years ago. It was in her past and that
she and Kenny Fandrich were really trying to work through all those issues and they were stronger than ever as a
couple. Welcome back. So Natalie, as you mentioned, investigators really didn't have a lot to go on linking Milner to
Kenny's murder. So, they really have to kind of dig in and find this evidence at
they go to his house. So, I I want to ask you, what sort of things did they discover? And I definitely want to ask
you, what was up with that cardboard cutout in his house? >> Yeah, that was a very odd clue. Um, you
know, Milner did have a male roommate who was living with him at the time of his arrest, but you know, investigators
when they saw that cardboard cutout, they assumed, rightfully so, that that was um Steven Milner's room because then
they open the drawers and they see he has this so-called shrine to Tanya with all the love notes and letters that he
had kept. He even acknowledged in those notes and letters, you know, I know you don't want me there's no future here in
this relationship that you want this to be over, but he couldn't get over it. So, they felt that Steven Milner seemed
like the likely suspect based on all of that. But that said, they still had to make their case and they had to have
solid proof to connect that this Steven Milner who had this stalking history and
past is the guy who was in the garage at the time when uh Kenny Fandrich was killed and to prove that he was the one
who actually committed the murder. That's the thing. You know, all that extra stuff that perhaps goes to motive,
but you need some sort of solid evidence. So then what ultimately allowed investigators to build their
case against Milner? >> Well, it really came down to, you know, the good detective work as we talked
about and following the maroon minivan trail. So, Steven Milner usually drove a white Toyota SUV and once they seized
the car, investigators were able to analyze the data on the computer within the car and they noticed that he had
been going to an Oregon City Home Depot. Um, he had been there, in fact, on the day of the murder. So once uh detectives
Rigo and Winter went to that Home Depot, they asked uh security there if there had been any suspicious activity on the
parking lots. Turns out the security did notice there had been a couple of cars that had been parking and had gone in
and out of the parking lot a couple of times. Local law enforcement was called and local law enforcement then saw these
vehicles. They were able to get the VIN numbers off of them, these so-called burner cars that Steven Milner was
using. Detectives Rigo and Winter were able to then track down that maroon minivan to a scrapyard which as you saw
in the hour, unfortunately, their biggest clue, I mean, they believe the minivan was the murder scene just a week
earlier had been crushed. So unfortunately that that big clue that they were hoping for in the minivan was
then gone right before their very eyes. It still amazes me just um how much how often we were all on camera, right? But
this is the first time that I've seen video as investigators sort of watched a key piece of evidence being destroyed.
I'm sure they wanted to kind of like reach into the the screen and just pluck that vehicle out.
>> Yeah. Unfortunately, they were a week too late, you know, to get that vehicle.
Had they gotten there a week earlier, they probably could have had that and have gotten all the evidence they
needed. That said, they were able to eventually get DNA that was uh the concrete proof that they needed.
>> Yeah. And we're going to talk a little bit more about that later. But before we
do that, I want to talk to you about the two lead detectives. What was your take
on this pair? >> Oh, yes. Detective uh Stephanie Winter and Deon Regal. I mean, these are like
the dynamic duo of an investigation team. I I really we all said were saying they really need their own TV show. I
mean, Stephanie uh is about 6'2 or 6'3, former college basketball player, and this was actually her first homicide
case that she worked on. So, um she was paired up with with Devon Rigo, um who had, you know, a real solid background
in working homicides. And uh it was a real breakthrough case for for both of them because you know you don't see a
lot of murders in that area of Hillsboro, Oregon. And here you have this mysterious such a suspicious case.
It really came down to to them chasing all the leads and and knowing where to go. And so finally on January 13th,
2025, Steven Milner goes on trial for stalking and murdering Kenny Fandrich. But as we pointed out, a ton of forensic
evidence is lost because that maroon van is crushed. So the prosecution has to work around that. Was that sort of the I
guess that was the biggest hurdle. So, of course, when the detectives see that key piece of evidence, that maroon
minivan being crushed, they think, well, there goes our key evidence for trial. However, it really came down to the
great police work in this case and being able to connect all the dots. And they had plenty of surveillance footage, not
to mention past orders of protection that proved that Steven Milner had been stalking Kenny Fandrich and Tanya, and
that there had been a history there between them. They did have DNA as well. You know, Steven Milner's DNA was on
Kenny Fandrich's hands, so that was was crucial as well. So, of course, Milner has an explanation for that. He did take
the stand. Um, there were no cameras in the courtroom, but there is audio, and so we're going to play some of what he
had to say to explain why his DNA was there. This was not included in uh the 1-hour broadcast. He is uh speaking with
defense attorney Amanda Thibo. Uh, he's under uh direct examination and here's what he had to say.
>> What happened next? >> I jumped out towards him. >> What happened next? >> Then we
basically fought for a little bit. >> Okay. Describe Can you describe that fight for me?
>> Um, there was pushing and shoving. I was kind of trying to push him back into his
car and he was punching at me. >> Did you punch Kenneth Vandrich? me. I I don't know. Okay.
>> Did you kick him? >> I didn't kick him. >> Did you grab onto him? >> Yes. >> What happened next?
>> Um eventually I was able to kind of push him up against the car and and then shove him into the car.
>> How much force were you using when you were pushing and shoving him, Mr. Miller?
>> As much as I could. Why? >> I was scared. It was It was We were fighting. >> What were you scared of?
>> Him that he was going to hurt me. >> It's so interesting to hear. And first of all, even to just see him take the
stand. Um, you know, here Steven Milner is is not denying that he was there. He said, "I was there. Yes, I was the one
who spray painted the cameras." Um, but he claimed he did it all out of self-defense. and he said when Milner
confronted Kenny, he's like, "Kenny is the one who attacked me." He says that he's defending Tanya.
Um, I would think a self-defense claim is is is pretty tough when I mean, it's not like Tanya's there. He's seeking out
Kenny at his place of work. His whole, you know, self-defense defense really didn't make sense. Stephen Milner said
that his reasons for being there in the parking garage and for going after Kenny
in that case was because he felt that Kenny Fandrich was a continued threat to Tanya because of the past abusive claims
in their relationship. Now the prosecutor Mahale Streblo said that in that testimony did not line up at all
with the physical evidence at the scene. It goes against everything that they were able to piece together. But, you
know, I I imagine that his defense attorney thought letting him take the stand uh and speak to his own defense
and reasons for being there, perhaps if he could convince one jury member that, you know, he was the guy who was really
just there trying to do a good deed, trying to protect Tanya and that it was um, you know, Kenny Fandrich who came
after him. All he needed to do was to convince one juror. Clearly, the jury didn't buy his self-defense defense.
Steven Milner found guilty of murdering uh Kenny Fandrich a and also found guilty of multiple stalking charges. He
was sentenced to life in prison uh with the possibility of parole after 25 years. But I think what's really sort of
tragic about this, this is a couple that did everything right. They did everything that they were supposed to do
and they they still were not protected. >> Yes. And and that in fact is what is so
tragic about the case is that there's such a clear history of stalking here. And you know, previously Milner had been
criminally charged back in August of 2022 when he had planted another tracking device um on Kenny's car. Then
Kenny filed that civil suit where he was seeking hundreds of thousands of dollars
in damages uh for infliction of emotional distress. Prosecutors brought all of this up and and Tanya even raised
it herself in her victim impact statement. She looked at Steven Milner and she said all you had to do was stop.
She said that she and her husband Penny Fandrich are doing everything they possibly could to try to alert
authorities to Stephen Milner's stalking behavior. Prosecutors acknowledged the only other thing they possibly could
have done because there had been multiple orders of protection already taken out would be to track Steven
Milner himself. I mean, had authorities been tracking Stephen Milner, um, they would have seen there's about a 45minute
drive where he's going back and forth from Oregon City to Hillsboro, tracking Kenny Fandrich and following him as he
went to work. How is Tanya doing today? >> Well, you know, Tanya obviously has experienced a lot of loss in her life.
Um, nothing, no amount of money will make up for that. But Kenny's estate has a wrongful death suit against Steven
Milner. any money is won, Tanya would stand to benefit. Um, Kenny's estate is seeking damages of several millions of
dollars and reportedly Steven Milner sold his veterinary clinic um years ago and apparently has an estimated net
worth of several million dollars, but you can imagine she has to be shattered. She's a victim in this case. She was a
stalking victim and then her husband was was murdered. So she is a victim on so many sides of this case.
>> Yeah, absolutely. Um, you know, you always sort of try to look for the lessons in all of these stories. I think
if there is a lesson, it's that stalking behavior is not normal, right? It's not
something to be dismissed and you should take it seriously. >> Yeah. And certainly Tanya and Kenny
Vandrich did and still it was not enough in this case. No, absolutely not. Um, Natalie, thank you very much.
>> Thanks for having me, Emory. >> And to everyone else, follow and listen to Postmortem on the free Odyssey app or
wherever you get your podcasts.

Watch "Murder in the Parking Garage" and then catch up with "48 Hours" correspondents Natalie Morales and Anne-Marie Green as they discuss the murder of Kenny Fandrich.

00:00 Murder in the Parking Garage 41:43 Watch the "Post Mortem" podcast

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Brief Summary

Kenneth Fandrich was murdered by his wife's stalker, Steven Milner, leading to a complex investigation and trial.

Key points

A Mysterious Murder Scene. Detectives encounter a baffling crime scene with minimal blood and a staged body.
The Stalker Revealed. Tanya Fandrich reveals her husband had a stalker, escalating the investigation.
Milner's Obsession. Detectives uncover Dr. Milner's obsession with Tanya and his history of harassment.
Milner Detained. Steven Milner is taken into custody just days after Kenny Fandrich's murder.
Discovery of the Minivan. Detectives track down a maroon minivan believed to be central to the crime.
Milner's Trial. Steven Milner goes on trial for stalking and murder, facing significant evidence against him.

Episode highlights

Episode quotes

How are we going to figure this out?

Detective's thoughts on the investigation.

7:20WatchNov 21, 2025

Tension

85/ 100High tension

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