By: Najla Alexander
Authorities in Somerset County announced that on May 19, Robert Creter pled guilty to the 1st degree Aggravated Manslaughter of Tamara “Tammy” Tignor on November 4, 1997.
After 27 years, this cold case homicide, if you remember reading here, was accepted by the Honorable Angela F. Borkowski, J.S.C., in Somerville. Mr. Creter admitted during the plea allocution that on November 4, 1997, in the Township of Bridgewater, he manually strangled Ms. Tignor with his bare hands, causing her death.
In exchange for his plea of guilty, the State agreed to a 10-year New Jersey State Prison sentence for the 61-year-old defendant, with 85% of that sentence to be served without parole. Sentencing is set for July 11, 2025, at 11:00 a.m., according to SCPO officials.
Somerset County authorities say that on Tuesday, November 4, 1997, at approximately 4:38 p.m., Bridgewater Township Police received a 9-1-1 call reporting the discovery of the body of a deceased female by a Bridgewater resident. The deceased body was located on a dirt access road that ended in a cul-de-sac off Gilbride Road near Washington Valley Park.
Detectives from the Bridgewater Township Police Department and the Somerset County Prosecutor’s Office Major Crimes Unit and Crime Scene Investigation Unit responded to investigate, SCPO officials stated. The victim was subsequently identified as Tamara “Tammy” Tignor, 23, of Newark.
Over the years, the investigation into Tamara Tignor’s death was continued by detectives from the Bridgewater Township Police Department and the Somerset County Prosecutor’s Office Cold Case Unit and Major Crimes Unit, but remained unsolved, according to Somerset County authorities.
In January of 2023, detectives from the Somerset County Prosecutor’s Office Major Crimes Unit met with detectives from 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 furtherance of this investigation, according to Somerset County officials.
SCPO authorities say it was determined that evidence collected in the investigation could be resubmitted for DNA testing, which may not have been possible in years past.
As a result, on April 6, 2023, during a search of CODIS (Combined DNA Index System), members of the New Jersey State Police Laboratory’s Office of Forensic Science were able to generate a high stringency match for Robert A. Creter based on the resubmitted evidence in this investigation, Somerset County officials said.
Further investigation into Robert Creter and the circumstances surrounding the death of Tamara Tignor was conducted by detectives from the Somerset County Prosecutor’s Office and the New Jersey State Police Cold Case Unit, SCPO authorities said. During the investigation, it was determined that Robert Creter had relocated to Winnipeg, Canada, in 2002.
According to SCPO officials, on May 18, 2023, charges of 1st degree Murder for the death of Tamara Tignor were authorized for Robert A. Creter. The Somerset County Prosecutor’s Office worked with the U.S. Department of State to adhere to the legal process of serving Robert Creter with his criminal complaint in Canada.
Somerset County officials stated that on Thursday, June 27, 2024, Robert Creter was taken into custody by Canadian authorities based on his New Jersey arrest warrant for murder.
SCPO authorities say that on Tuesday, November 26, 2024, Robert Creter was extradited to the United States from Canada by members of the United States Marshals Service.