BRIDGEWATER, N.J. (1010 WINS) — A Canadian man was extradited to New Jersey and charged in the 1997 murder of Tammy Tignor, a New Jersey woman whose body was found 27 years ago in Bridgewater Township.
Robert Creter, 60, is charged with first-degree murder in Tignor’s death after new DNA evidence connected him to the scene of the crime.
A Bridgewater woman discovered Tignor’s body in the afternoon of Nov. 4, 1997, on a dirt-access road not far from Washington Valley Park. Detectives from the Bridgewater Police Department and Somerset County Prosecutor’s Office Major Crimes Unit responded to investigate, and an autopsy determined that Tignor, of Newark, was murdered. She was only 23 when she was killed.
Over the years, the investigation into Tignor’s death has been pursued but remained unsolved, until a DNA development in January 2023 turned the cold case hot once again.
Detectives met with members of the New Jersey State Police Cold Case Unit as part of their Garden State Cold Case Network and Sexual Assault Kit Initiative (SAKI) Grant to discuss the investigation, and it was determined that evidence collected during the initial investigation could be resubmitted for testing.
“We tried to have that DNA tested in the past, it’s just that DNA was not scientifically advanced to the point where it is now,” Assistant Somerset County Prosecutor Mike McLaughlin said.
On April 6, 2023, the NJSP’s Laboratory’s Office of Forensic Science was able to generate a match for Creter based on the resubmitted DNA. This led investigators to look further again into the circumstances surrounding Tignor’s death, and into Creter himself.
“The last person who saw Tammy alive saw her get into an orange van, and that became key to our investigation after the DNA hit,” McLaughlin said. “When we started looking into Mr. Creter, we learned that he was working for a company that also had orange vans, and that kind of pointed us in the right direction.”
Investigators determined that Creter had relocated to Winnipeg, Canada in 2002, and by May 18, 2023, charges of first-degree murder in Tignor’s death were authorized for Creter. Detectives worked with the State Department to follow the legal process of serving Creter his criminal complaint in Canada, and he was taken into Canadian custody on June 27, 2023.
Members of the U.S. Marshal Service were finally able to extradite Creter to New Jersey on Nov. 26, 2024.
How or if Tignor and Creter knew one another is unclear.
“Tammy’s mom called our office on Nov. 4 of every year, the anniversary of Tammy’s death, looking for an update,” McLaughlin said.
With the arrest of Creter, she finally got one.
“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,” said Colonel Patrick Callahan, Superintendent of the New Jersey State Police. “The Garden State Cold Case Network and the [SAKI] Grant have been invaluable tools in revisiting unsolved cases, utilizing advanced technology and investigative techniques to bring new hope to victims’ families.”
Authorities ask anyone with information relating to the homicide to contact the Somerset County Prosecutors Office at (908) 231-7100 or the Bridgewater Township Police Department at (908) 722-4111 or via the STOPit app.