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The Dateline episode The Girl with the Hibiscus Tattoo was first broadcast on May 31, 2024. It attracted viewers with its chilling and detailed retelling of a tragic Hollywood true crime story. The story is set within the glamorous and risky realm in which the quest for fame may clash with the real threat to life.
In his true-life investigation, Keith Morrison, a longtime correspondent of Dateline, gives viewers an account of the terrifying narrative of Kristi Johnson. Kristi was a young woman who had an ambitious dream of becoming a star, but her journey to success was cut short.
It shows how the case of Kristi’s initial disappearance prompted an investigation that exposed serial predator Victor Paleologus. Through the narration of Morrison, the episode weaves interviews with Kristi’s family, detectives who solved the case, and survivors who evaded the manipulative schemes of Paleologus.
This Dateline episode follows the twists and turns of the Hollywood journey of Kristi and the day she vanished. Through archival footage, testimonies of witnesses, and dramatic reenactments, one can see how fast the opportunity shifted into betrayal.
Morrison does not stop with the case of Kristi. The episode also highlights the troubling past of Paleologus and a system that enabled him to act freely.
Dateline: Who was Kristi Johnson, and what happened to her?
Kristi Johnson was 21, a Saugatuck High School graduate who had packed her dreams and made her way to Los Angeles. And like so many young hopefuls, she wanted a shot at Hollywood.
That dream seemed to come to fruition on February 15, 2003, when she met a man at Century City Mall. The man claimed to have an opportunity of a lifetime: a new James Bond movie was being auditioned.
He instructed her to come prepared in high heels, a miniskirt, sheer pantyhose and a white dress shirt. Kristi obeyed his instructions with enthusiasm and was willing to experience what she believed might be her big break.
Her father, Kirk Johnson, told Dateline:
“She felt like she was on her way, you know, when this happened.”
Santa Monica police Detective Virginia Obenchain added:
“She was all excited because she was gonna do an audition that was gonna bring in some big dollars.”
The man said his name was Victor Thomas, whose identity was later revealed to be Victor Paleologus. He wasn’t a Hollywood insider. He was a serial predator. Over the years, he had mastered the art of pretending to be a casting agent and offering false hopes of auditions to trap his victims.
On 15 February, Kristi left her house in the costume for her supposed audition. She never came back.
According to Dateline, Kristi’s roommate, Carri, told the police:
“She had to be real sultry and sexy. That’s what they were looking for... And they were going to give her a necktie to wear.”
Her mother, Terry Hall, told Dateline that while they used to catch up on the call almost every day, this time there was no response from Kristi for two days, which bothered the family.
“When I got her answering message on her work phone is when I became very alarmed.”
Kristi’s disappearance raised a desperate search. Police canvassed the city. The media spread her picture. The situation sent a chill throughout Los Angeles. But soon, other women came forward with the same disturbing encounters.
A woman named Susan Murphy tells Dateline:
“It mentions this beautiful young lady who disappeared after going to meet a photographer and — and that’s all it says… I just knew. My heart dropped.”
This is after Susan also encountered a man named Victor Thomas at the same place Kristi met him. He told the same story to Susan; however, she dodged the potential tragedy, as she took her boyfriend to the so-called audition, where the man, after spotting her partner, said she was not fit for the role.
After some other women, including Alice Walker, detailed their stories, which had some eerie similarities, police believed they had found the suspect, Victor Thomas. However, it turned out that no such person exists.
The investigation intensified when her car was found in the St. Regis Hotel close to the mall. It had been scrubbed down, except for her fingerprint. More than 2 weeks later, the breakthrough came when one of the hikers in the Hollywood Hills discovered a body in a ravine. It was Kristi.
Her identifying characteristic was a hibiscus tattoo. The autopsy showed information that was nearly too gruesome to digest: she was tied up, had a wound on her head, and was strangled. There was evidence to indicate that she was alive when she was thrown into the ravine.
Her father told Dateline:
“Those horrific last moments, we will never know exactly what happened.”
The puzzle was put together by detective Virginia Obenchain and her team. They talked to women who had almost fallen into that same trap, created a composite portrait, and found a trail of predatory conduct that had occurred over a decade.
The prosecutors accused Paleologus of having a record of assaults, attempted rapes, and, finally, the murder of Kristi. He pleaded guilty and received a 25-year-to-life sentence in 2006. The plea bargain acquitted him of the death sentence after years of court cases and appeals.
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