Investigation Discovery’s “Swamp Murders: Lethal Attraction’ recreates the June night in which the 18-year-old teenager, Tina Hendricks, was murdered and raped in Lake County, Florida. Investigators had to follow an extensive line of suspects’ and witnesses’ statements before finally identifying the culprit. If you’re interested in knowing more about the investigation, the identity and location of the culprit are in the right spot. Let’s begin!
How Did Tina Hendricks Die?
Tina Beatrice Hendricks was born on November 2nd, 1970, at Leesburg, Lake County, Florida, and was the daughter of late Lera Janet Daniels and Joe Daniels. Tina was the youngest of three brothers and sisters. She was employed as a part-time employee for a nearby doughnut shop called Oscar’s doughnuts after school. Tina, who was 18 years old, was extremely friendly and bubbly and loved hanging out with friends. On June 28th, 1989, she went to a bar in the area, located just outside Leesburg, known as Sand Dollar, to participate in a karaoke competition. First prize: $500, which she hoped to win and pay for rent and expenses.
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The sister of Tina, Tonia Jean Whalen, accompanied her later the same night to the bar to take Tina home but came back empty-handed because Tina was having fun and was refusing to come back. The next day, she discovered that Tina had not yet made it back home. Around a mile and a half away from Tina’s residence, the fisherman was trying to catch an early fish at about 8 am in Herlong park. It was a humid area near the point where the canal flowed into the park. This is where he found Tina’s remains.
Leesburg police were called to the scene and found that Tina was “sexually beat” and brutally strangled. The autopsy report said it was due to asphyxiation. The officers located her underwear a few inches from the body and sent it to forensics to test to determine the s*men sample.
Who was the killer of Tina Hendricks?
Investigators spoke with Tonia, who informed investigators that she’d last seen her sister alive at the Sand Dollar bar on the night she intended to meet her best friend. The friend, however, got caught up in work and did not make it to the bar. Tina’s boyfriend, Tom Hopwood, with whom she was going through ups and downs in recent times. Tom offered to give his blood sample, which was analyzed by the police using the DNA samples taken during the autopsy.
While the police waited to hear an outcome, the police visited the bar in which Tina was seen last alive. They interrogated witnesses to discover an individual identified as Mark, who was seen her the night before. He was employed in Joe’s tire store, located across the same street as the pub. Investigators went to the shop to locate Mark Vincent Olvera, who was only a witness at the time. However, the result of Tom’s DNA did not show any positive results. However, the police were able to catch an opportunity when a man could come in with information voluntarily.
He said he saw Tina the night before together with a friend of mine, “Johnny” Lockerd, who was seen following Tina out of the lot. After the investigators reconnected with Johnny the next day, he cooperated and informed them that he had seen Tina enter a vehicle the night before. While he did not see Tina’s driver in person, Johnny distinctly remembered seeing the person wearing a business shirt similar to Mark. The police questioned the 30-year-old Mark and found that he had been convicted twice before for drug possession and assault.
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As the police looked into Mark’s car, they discovered hair samples that appeared to match those of the victim as depicted in the TV show. FBI laboratory results confirmed that blood samples taken from Mark were identical to the DNA extracted from the victim’s body during the autopsy. Olivia was accused of killing and assault. She was arrested in February of 1990.
Is Mark Olvera Today?
During his trial in November 1991, Mark maintained his innocence repeatedly, claiming that he didn’t rape or strangle Tina. But the jury was not convinced by his testimony and found him guilty of murder in the first degree and sexual assault. It was sentenced to “life in prison, with a mandatory sentence of 25 years for the murder conviction as well as an additional life sentence following charges of sexual battery.” Mark Olvera continued to appeal his sentence but was not granted. According to court records, the defendant is currently incarcerated in a cell at Charlotte Correctional Institution. Charlotte Correctional Institution in Charlotte County, Florida.
