A 60-year-old Canadian man has been brought to New Jersey to face murder charges in a case that has been unsolved for nearly three decades. The Somerset County Prosecutor’s Office announced on Dec. 2 that U.S. Marshals escorted Robert Creter to the Somerset County Jail, where he is now facing charges in the 1997 killing of a young woman, Tamara “Tammy” Tignor.
The tragic story dates back to Nov. 4, 1997, when a resident in Bridgewater, New Jersey, made a shocking discovery. The woman’s body was found in the dirt at the end of a quiet cul-de-sac. When detectives arrived at the scene, they identified her as 30-year-old Tamara Tignor, who lived in Newark. An autopsy confirmed her death was a homicide, but despite investigators’ efforts, the case went cold for years.
Fast forward to January 2023, when detectives from the Somerset County Prosecutor’s Office Major Crimes Unit and the New Jersey State Police Cold Case Unit revisited the case. This time, they had new tools on their side. As part of the Sexual Assault Kit Initiative Grant, they sent evidence from Tignor’s case to a lab for advanced DNA testing. Just three months later, a breakthrough came: DNA results pointed to Creter, thanks to a match in the Combined DNA Index System (CODIS).
It turned out Creter had moved to Canada back in 2002. After authorities in New Jersey charged him with first-degree murder, the U.S. State Department and Canadian officials worked together to track him down. He was arrested in Canada on June 27 and finally brought back to New Jersey on Nov. 26.
The case has been especially emotional for Tignor’s family, particularly her mother, who never gave up hope. Every year on the anniversary of her daughter’s death, she called detectives for updates. Somerset County Assistant Prosecutor Mike McLaughlin spoke to her after Creter’s arrest, describing the moment as deeply emotional.
New Jersey State Police Superintendent Patrick Callahan praised the persistence of law enforcement, saying, “The arrest of a suspect in this decades-old case is a testament to the unwavering dedication of law enforcement to seek justice, no matter how much time has passed.”
This development brings a long-awaited step toward closure for Tignor’s family, nearly 27 years after her tragic death.
