True Crime Collection

Tiffany Daniels

A native of the Dallas area, Tiffany distinguished herself in high school through her interest in art and her outgoing personality. Her family, who described her as "free spirited," say she could often lift the mood of those around her simply with her presence. She enjoyed painting, and eventually took a job at the Pensacola State College theatre in Florida, where she painted sets.

When she was not at work, she took advantage of Pensacola's cultural and natural attractions. In the city's downtown, near her job, she often organised and attended blues and swing dance parties. From her house, a short distance from the Bob Sikes bridge to Santa Rosa Island in the Gulf of Mexico, she often went hiking or biking in the dunes. A pescatarian, she had tattooed 4 images atop of her feet showing a plant's growth and blooming.

Despite her apparent satisfaction with her life, she had financial problems. Her parents said that by summer of 2013 they had noticed she had a pattern of paying her rent for a series of housemates who were either disinclined or unable to pay their share. In July of that year, after another one had moved out, she advertised on Craigslist for a new roommate. 

Gary Nichols, the 54 year old father of one of her friends who was separating from his wife and wanted to live closer to his job, answered her ad and moved in. Tiffany's parents were uneasy about her sharing living quarters with a man more than twice her age, but he was able to pay his share of the bills, and the two had similar interests. He, too, liked bicycling and followed a similar diet. 

On 11th August, Tiffany started the day with a farewell breakfast for her boyfriend, who had been accepted into the graduate robotics program at the University of Texas in Austin. He had encouraged her to move there with him, but she demurred. Her friends said that while she still loved him and wanted to continue the relationship, to the point of making plans to visit him later in Austin, she was not ready to move from Pensacola yet. After the breakfast, he left. Gary recalls that she was slightly depressed for the rest of the day, but that was tempered with enthusiasm for a later visit to Austin, a town her friends believed she could easily adapt to. 

Tiffany and the theatre department were scheduled to start preparing sets for a production of Spamalot that fall. That night, she and Gary decided to watch Monty Python and the Holy Grail, the film on which that musical is based, for inspiration and relaxation, after which the 2 retired to their bedrooms as they both had work the next morning. At 5am, Gary recalled that he heard the door to the house open and close several times. He looked outside from his room, thinking it might be Tiffany, but did not see her. 

When he got up later and left for work around 7am, Tiffany's car, a grey Toyota 4Runner, was gone. He assumed she, too, had gone to work. Her parents, however, say it was unusual for her to get up early; in situations where she had to, she would usually leave only right before the time she had to be wherever it was. 

Tiffany arrived at work on schedule for the beginning of her shift painting sets. She asked her supervisor if she could leave a little early that day, and also let him know that she would be taking some time off, possibly the whole week, but did not explain why other than "things she had to take care of." He assented, and she punched out at 4:43pm as she left the theatre. No one had reported seeing her since. 

That night, Gary grew concerned when Tiffany had not returning home by 10pm. She did not return his calls. He called his daughter Noel, who told him not to worry as Tiffany was an adult and might want to hang out with friends closer to her age. He agreed with her and went to bed. 

Gary again attempted to call Tiffany when she had not returned by the next morning, but again could not reach her. That evening, he returned and found that the electricity to the house had been turned off. He assumed that his housemate had failed to pay her share and again called his daughter to inform her that Tiffany still had not returned. This time he suggested she get in touch with her parents, which she did via a private Facebook message.