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    The Disappearance of Tara Lynn Grant
    The Disappearance of Tara Lynn Grant
    The Disappearance of Tara Lynn Grant
    Ebook179 pages2 hours

    The Disappearance of Tara Lynn Grant

    By Ruth Kanton

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    On February 14, 2007, Stephen Grant walked into Macomb County Sheriff's Office a little before 11 a.m. He told the desk sergeant that he wanted to report his wife Tara missing. Turning to the deputy manning the desk with him, the sergeant asked him to call detective Bill Hughes, a 20-year veteran in the police force, to the lobby. Hughes invited Stephen into his office, and sat silently as Stephen immediately began rambling on about Tara Lynn Grant's disappearance. He stated that Tara had gotten home late on February 9 because of a snow storm. He revealed that he had drunk a couple of beers before she arrived, and that they had argued on the phone earlier in the evening because she had changed her travel plans. She had stated that she would be flying out on Sunday instead of Monday, and this had him bent all out of shape. He stated that she walked into the house wearing her ear buds, and didn't immediately respond to his greeting. This riled him up, and they resumed their argument soon after. After about 20 minutes of arguing, he said he overheard her talking to someone on her phone, asking them to pick her up and that she would be out in a minute. He had no idea who was on the other side of the call, but he assumed it was the car service she usually hired to take her to the airport. As she left, he said, she told him, "Don't forget to get the car to the dealership Monday to get the dent fixed." He then saw her enter a dark sedan parked at the end of the driveway. That was the last time he saw her.
    What happened to Tara Lynn Grant?

    LanguageEnglish
    PublisherTrellis Publishing
    Release dateJul 4, 2021
    ISBN9798201010171
    The Disappearance of Tara Lynn Grant

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      Book preview

      The Disappearance of Tara Lynn Grant - Ruth Kanton

      THE DISAPPEARANCE OF TARA LYNN GRANT

      RUTH KANTON

      TABLE OF CONTENTS

      TARA LYNN GRANT

      STACEY CASTOR

      JUDY BUENOANO

      JANE DOROTIK

      SHEILA DAVALOO

      SHEENA EASTBURN

      DONNA YAKLICH

      MICHELLE REYNOLDS

      LEE ANN REIDEL

      KILL HIM JILL

      KRISTIN ROSSUM

      GWEN HENDRICKS

      Tara Lynn Grant

      Tara Lynn Grant (née Destrampe) was born on June 28, 1972, to Mary and Gerald Dusty Destrampe in Escanaba, Michigan. Life in Michigan’s Upper Peninsula was quiet and isolated – something Mary and Dusty quite enjoyed. Tara was the first born child, and when she was 21 months old, her parents had bought a 28-acre farm in Perkins, Michigan. The quaint little home was located behind a wall of pine trees and apple trees. The farm was rugged, and in the area filled with potato farms, the Destrampe family did not utilize much of the farmland. Mary was a dental hygienist in Escanaba, a job she commuted to even after they moved up north. Dusty was a utility worker at K. T. Sawyer Air Force Base, located 30 miles from his home. Three years after moving to Perkins, Alicia was born.

      Tara was a headstrong child, a character trait she shared with her father. There were two barns in the family’s property, where Tara spent time taking care of the livestock – they had chickens, goats, and a few cows. In school, she was known as a talkative child, and would barely keep quiet in school, sparking numerous complaints from teachers. To try and keep her in line, she was offered a reward if she staying quiet, usually a stick of gum. This system worked. By the time she got to high school, Tara was an accomplished student, working towards finding a life outside the small town. She was active in various activities in school, most notably playing the clarinet in the school band and as a cheerleader. Dusty and Tara were very similar, and during the hunting season they would head out every weekend to hunt deer and rabbit. However, their similar personalities often led to arguments and conflicts, a regular occurrence when Tara was a teenager.

      Tara’s relationship with Alicia was better, although she tended to see Alicia as the competition. Their household was chaotic, with frequent cussing even though Mary was very religious and a stickler for tradition. Despite her best efforts, Tara grew even more willful, and controlling. Mary and Dusty were frugal, farm-type people, and they often collected bottles and exchanged them for cash. One family member recalled Dusty bragging that he had used that money to buy the family’s groceries. For Tara, this was not the future she wanted for herself. She was set on making a lot of money and getting to buy all the material comforts she could get. After graduating 3rd in her class, Tara enrolled in Bay de Noc Community College in Escanaba. Two years later, she enrolled in Michigan State University to pursue Business Administration.

      Stephen Grant

      In the summer of 1994, Tara was wrapping up her studies when she met Stephen Grant through her roommates. He had moved out of his previous apartment nine months prior, and one of his former roommates was currently residing with Tara in Cedar Village. He lived in The Oaks, but with the regular group hangouts, he and Tara met. He was immediately enamored, but his personality was a bit of a turn-off for Tara. He was somewhat of a braggart and a know-it-all, quick to air out his superior opinions to anyone within earshot. He constantly played up his city boy image to try and impress Tara – he was born and raised in Detroit, Michigan. He had a fancy lifestyle, drove the best car, dined in fancy restaurants, and joined the best gym. However, he also had a tendency of making up stories to impress Tara as well as the people he was around.

      With her goals of becoming successful in the corporate world at the forefront of her mind, Tara remained immune to Stephen’s relentless pursuit for a while. However, he piqued her interest when she found out that he was working at the office of State Senator Jack Faxon. He aspired to be a lawyer, and she deduced that his plan was to pursue a career in politics. Combined with Stephen’s pursuit, she began warming up to the idea of dating him. On their first date, he took her on a tour of Detroit, making sure to pass through Grosse Pointe. He showed her all the mansions in the affluent neighborhood because he knew this side of Detroit would appeal to her. They went for lunch in Greek Town before heading to the Detroit Institute of Arts. She was impressed by the date, and hoped to see him again.

      Tara became enamored with Stephen when he showed up uninvited to her grandfather’s funeral. Her on-again off-again boyfriend, Jamie Hanson, was present with her at the time. Stephen did not hesitate to introduce himself to Tara’s family as her boyfriend, a move that impressed her so much she broke up with Jamie soon after. The relationship with Stephen quickly turned serious, and they moved in together into an apartment in Lansing. When she graduated in December 1994, Stephen proposed to her on the steps of the Detroit Museum of Art.

      Marriage and Family

      After graduation, Stephen convinced Tara to move to a Detroit suburb, close to where he had grown up. His father had offered him a job at his company, a tool and dye shop called USG Babbitt. The salary was good, and Stephen readily accepted the offer. Tara got a job as a temporary office girl at an engineering firm – Washington International Group – in Troy. Her potential, determination, and focus impressed her superiors, and she was soon offered a permanent position at the company. It was not long before she became a valuable member of the team.

      They got married in September 1996 with Alicia as the maid of honor. The honeymoon was on the Golf Coast of Alabama, and soon after they came back to Detroit, the moved once again to an apartment in Auburn Hills. At work, Tara was hailed as a real achiever, and she quickly moved up the ladder. By 1997, they were ready to move into their own home so that they could have more space to raise a family. Their first child, Lindsey, was born in 2000, and Ian in 2002. She only took short breaks after the birth of their children, eager to get back to work each time. Her dedication didn’t go unnoticed, and in 2003, she was promoted to assistant manager. In 2006, she was offered a fulltime position in the company’s San Juan, Puerto Rico, office and a $168,000 salary a year. She readily accepted, and made plans to always fly home during the weekends to spend time with her family. As her career flourished, she was offered yet another chance to join LEAP, a prestigious program at the company for those who had a shot at becoming upper management. The annual program was offered to only 15 other employees. Tara was excited by the offer.

      At home, Stephen was the more involved parent, and seemed to have a great relationship with the kids. However, since he was still working, they decided to find au pairs to look after the children, focusing on foreign au pairs who could teach the kids another language. The first au pair, a Spanish lady, was hired in 2003, but by 2007, the family had hired seven au pairs. Some had stayed weeks and others months, but the running theme was that none of them seemed to stay long. Despite this, everyone outside the family believed that the Grants were close. Tara and Lindsey would often get manicures together while Stephen and Ian would run various errands. They dined out often when Tara was home, as she often came home on Friday and went back to San Juan on Sunday or Monday. However, as she went up the ranks at work, Tara started talking golf lessons, which curtailed the time she spent with Stephen and the kids. She knew that business was always carried out on the golf course, and she wanted to be part of the deals being made. In 2006, Stephen made $18,900 a year, which was marginally less that Tara’s $28,000 year-end bonus. This, coupled with Tara’s controlling nature, made Stephen increasingly resentful, although he did his best to hide it when they were in the presence of others.

      Disappearance

      On February 14, 2007, Stephen Grant walked into Macomb County Sheriff’s Office a little before 11 a.m. He told the desk sergeant that he wanted to report his wife missing. Turning to the deputy manning the desk with him, the sergeant asked him to call detective Bill Hughes, a 20-year veteran in the police force, to the lobby. Hughes invited Stephen into his office, and sat silently as Stephen immediately began rambling on about Tara Lynn Grant’s disappearance. He stated that Tara had gotten home late on February 9 because of a snow storm. He revealed that he had drunk a couple of beers before she arrived, and that they had argued on the phone earlier in the evening because she had changed her travel plans. She had stated that she would be flying out on Sunday instead of Monday, and this had him bent all out of shape. He stated that she walked into the house wearing her ear buds, and didn’t immediately respond to his greeting. This riled him up, and they resumed their argument soon after. After about 20 minutes of arguing, he said he overheard her talking to someone on her phone, asking them to pick her up and that she would be out in a minute. He had no idea who was on the other side of the call, but he assumed it was the car service she usually hired to take her to the airport. As she left, he said, she told him, Don’t forget to get the car to the dealership Monday to get the dent fixed. He then saw her enter a dark sedan parked at the end of the driveway. That was the last time he saw her.

      He stated that their 19-year-old German au pair Verena Dierkes got home about 10 minutes after Tara had left. When asked why he waited so long to report his wife missing, Stephen said that he had called Tara’s boss in San Juan, Lou Trendel, who had asked him to wait before calling the police. He stated that Lou said that he needed to meet with Tara’s other bosses in Puerto Rico to discuss the issue first. This sounded odd to Hughes, but he noted it down and let Stephen continue with the story. Stephen stated that he called Tara’s mom Mary and her sister Alicia on Tuesday, and that he told Alicia that he hoped Tara was down in some motel with another man, just as long as she was okay. He said that there had been rumors of an affair between Tara and her boss, but that he didn’t believe at first. He stated that he was getting suspicious lately, and although they went to couple’s counseling, it wasn’t much help. He called his dad, William Allen Al Grant, about Tara’s disappearance, and Al told him that the husband was always the first suspect. He told Hughes that there was a warrant out for his arrest over an unpaid parking ticket, and that Tara’s company was involved in chemical weapons, with Lou in charge of the program. He theorized that maybe Tara had been exposed to nerve gas or had been kidnapped by terrorists.

      Hughes was taken aback, but he remained silent. Of all the odd things Stephen had said, he was more confused by the fact that Stephen kept referring to a notebook as he talked. It seemed suspicious, and he noted it in his report. He asked Stephen for Lou’s number and promptly called. Lou sounded genuinely concerned, and maintained that there was no way Tara would have taken off on her own. There was absolutely no way Tara would have left her job or her kids without an explanation. Hughes then asked Stephen if he was in a relationship with Verena, to which he replied with a smirk, She’ll never tell. Hughes wrapped up the interview and asked Stephen to write a statement. It was three pages long.

      Investigation

      At one p.m., two detectives were assigned to the case, mainly because police suspected Stephen’s story was not the actual truth. On the case were detectives Elizabeth Darga and Brian Kozlowski. They created a list of people to call, and split the names. Darga called Alicia and her husband Eric Standerfer to find out how the family was taking Tara’s disappearance. Eric was adamant that there was no way Tara could disappear for five days without contacting anyone. He stated that while she traveled a lot, Tara kept in touch with the family daily. Alicia told Darga that she had spoken to Tara on February 9 while she was in Newark. They spoke for 40 minute weather delay, and during the entire conversation, Tara never mentioned anything about a change of travel plans. As far as she knew, Tara was planning to head back to Puerto Rico on Monday as usual. Kozlowski called Lou, who stated that there were no plans for Tara to head back to Puerto Rico early. He stated that he had worked with Tara for 10 years and knew her well, stating that it was impossible for her to have taken off on her own. She had never missed a day of work in the 10 years she had been in the company. Following her disappearance, the company’s chief of security had checked out Tara’s company email, cellphone, and credit cards. There

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