Trail had been beaten to death with a claw hammer, and his body rolled up in a rug. But that doesn't seem to account for the grotesque violence of Miglin's death. We may earn commission on some of the items you choose to buy. Who is Lee Miglin, Andrew Cunanan's Third Victim? All Rights Reserved. However, there were no signs of forced entry into the Miglins home, and Orth noted in her coverage that as an older, wealthy, and socially influential man, Miglin was a type Cunanan was known to research carefully.. He was shot in the head with Trail's handgun. Every item on this page was chosen by a Town & Country editor. On May 4, 1997, Cunanan drove to Chicago, Illinois, and killed Lee Miglin, a prominent real estate developer. Either [Cunanan] knew of the guy or knew his son. On the show and in real life, the Jeep provides a break in the case as a Chicago police officer notices the windshield is covered in parking tickets. In its original report on the murder, The Chicago Tribune noted, "The police department was extraordinarily tightlipped about the case a testimony to Miglin's position of influence in political circles here." And in its 2017 article on Duke Miglin, ABC7 also noted, "The FBI looked into a few claims that Cunanan knew Miglin or his family, but no link was ever nailed down.". From a Tribune report at the time: As detectives swarmed the neighborhood for clues, no one paid much attention to the Jeep. As Chicago Police Superintendent Matt Rodriguez (played on the show by Alex Fernandez) told reporters at the time, there was evidence that the person or persons did in fact avail themselves of food at the victims home and was walking around the apartment. Furthermore, while Rodriguez confirmed that Miglin was tortured before he was murdered, he, like the rest of the police department, remained extraordinarily tightlipped about the case, as the Chicago Tribune put it at the time, just as in the show. There Cunanan shoots Reese point blank and steals the truck. 72-year-old real estate tycoon Lee Miglin was found dead in the garage of his Gold Coast home on the morning of May 4. Cunanans ride: Cunanan is shown parking a red Jeep with Minnesota plates near the Miglin home before the attack. Miglin was also known for philanthropic activities, including fundraising for the University of Chicago Medical Center and the Museum of Science and Industry. She also continues to give back to her community by raising more than $1 million to the preservation of Oak Street in Chicago and by founding the Women of Destiny program. "A lot of false things were brought up and they were very hurtful, very painful, for me personally and there were attacks on me as well that I really didn't appreciate. They were tracking every lead they could -- hunting for Gianni Versace's suspected killer:. After the standoff, police went in and found the body speculated to be Cunanan's inside though police were not yet identifying Cunanan at that point. Long Waits, Short Appointments, Huge Bills. The episode leaves it for viewers to puzzle out, but in real life, Cunanan's motivations are similarly mysterious. But where the television series begins to diverge from some reports is in what relationship Cunanan had to the Miglin family, if any. Ms. Miglin called 911 and reported her husband missing, and also reported the couple's 1994 green Lexus missing from the garage. Investigators still dont know why Andrew Cunanan killed Gianni Versace. The Cook County Medical Examiner's office said his clothes were saturated in blood, but the area around him was clean suggesting that his body may have been moved. [27] Marilyn Miglin called the police around 8 a.m. that Sunday, after discovering a 9 mm handgun in the bathroom. 2023 BDG Media, Inc. All rights reserved. "A Random Killing" moves through the events preceding the crime and its aftermath, but does not truly answer the most pressing question: why did Andrew Cunanan kill Lee Miglin? Miglin did in fact come from this background to develop the Bar Association and Madison Plaza buildings with his partner, J. Paul Beitler, as well as many other significant structures in the Chicago area. Emma Dibdin is a freelance writer based in Los Angeles who writes about culture, mental health, and true crime. In episode three, Cunanan shows up at Miglin's house and is invited in. There had been no forced entry into his home, which implied that Miglin could have known his assailant. He killed William Reese, a 45-year-old. On the night of May 4, 1997, Andrew Cunanan murdered Miglin and stole his Lexus to flee the scene of the crime. All contents 2023 The Slate Group LLC. That friend was allegedly Duke Miglin. But the murder of Miglin, and Cunanan's whereabouts, remained a mystery until Tuesday, July 15, 1997 when fashion icon Gianni Versace was shot on the steps of his oceanfront villa,Casa Casuarina, in Miami's South Beach neighborhood. Miglin-Cunanan relationship: This is probably the most contentious part of the story. A knife is stuck in a ham on a desk. 25 years ago: Andrew Cunanan's murder spree takes Lee Miglin's life. Andrew Cunanan, left, and Darren Criss as Andrew Cunanan, Lee Miglin, left, and Mike Farrell as Lee Miglin, John Reilly/Sygma/Sygma via Getty Images and FX, Marilyn Miglin, left, and Judith Light as Marilyn Miglin, the family denied that the two knew each other, evidence that the person or persons did in fact avail themselves of food at the victims home and was walking around the apartment, Advocate writer Ted Gideonse disputes this, Robert Milan, a former assistant states attorney for Cook County, told ABC News, a Chicago bookseller repeated them to the Minneapolis Star-Tribune. Cunanan would then travel to Miami before shooting Gianni Versace on the front steps of his mansion on July 15, 1997. Marilyn Miglin said on Tuesday, May 6. "A Random Killing" posits that Cunanan and Miglin knew one another, implying that Miglin was a closeted gay or bisexual man who had hired Cunanan, a sex worker, several times before. As for the murder, the details are particularly disturbing. On Friday, May 9, he shot and killed cemetery caretaker William Reese in rural Pennsville, New Jersey in order to steal Reese's red Chevrolet pickup truck. Madsons family members suspected that he had accidentally walked in on the killing of Trail, and subsequently been taken hostage by Cunanan, and this is the version of events that plays out in American Crime Story. Blachford was 58 when they met and grieving the loss of his partner of 26 years, who had recently died of AIDS . However, an autopsy showed Cunanan to be HIV-negative. The 27-year-old Cunanan committed four other murders in a nationwide spree before killing Versace in Miami in July 1997. Once they decide to base something on my book, they have artistic license to do certain things.. The California native, who could speak two languages, dropped out of college and funded his lifestyle thanks to relationships with older, wealthier gay men, federal investigations found. "Would this guy let some stranger in off the street? There is no indisputable evidence to suggest Lee Miglin was involved with men or knew Cunanan specifically. The SUV had Minnesota license plates that had been registered to Minneapolis interior designer David Madson, 33, whose body had been found near a lake in Chisago County, Minnesota the day before Miglin's body was found. Police responding to the attack found Reeses stolen truck in a nearby parking garage, along with Cunanans clothes, a fake passport, and newspaper clippings detailing his murders. Cunanan didnt leave a note when he killed himself in July 1997, and Wednesdays episode relies heavily on alleged dialogue between Cunanan and Lee Miglin. One of the most ambiguousand contentiouselements of the series is the relationship between Cunanan and Versace, and whether they even knew each other. A night later, it remained a mystery who had so brutally murdered Miglin. The FBI also reported there had been sightings of Cunanan in the Palm Beach and Miami areas in the weeks prior. Police spotted a car with a Minnesota license plate near Miglin's home after the murder, another report from The Chicago Tribune noted. What is known about Cunanan and Versace is that the fashion mogul was not Cunanans first victim. Police press conference: We consider Andrew Cunanan to be armed and to be extremely dangerous. CBS 2's Brad Edwards went back to our archive to watch a Betamax tape of our 10 p.m. news from May 4, 1997 "News 2 Chicago," as our news was known at the time anchored by Lester Holt and Linda MacLennan. In the one scene in which the police speak with Duke about Cunanan, he doesn't give any indication that he recognizes Cunanan's name from anywhere. "I made an effort to be all right, so everyone else could be all right," she told the Chicago Tribune. The family of one of Andrew Cunanan's victims disputes the version of events presented in FX series. Miglin was that rare breed of real estate person, neither venal, nor aggressive, nor self-absorbed, nor egocentric, as Stanley Tigerman, the architect of the Chicago Bar Association building, told the Chicago Tribune. Per Orth, Cunanan considered Trail to be his best friend, and referred to him as my brother." "There's so much pain generated from what happened 20 years ago and now another something else that is out of our control here is happening again," Duke Miglin said. His mouth was gagged with a white garden glove with numerous black rubber dots. And in her Vanity Fair report on Cunanan, she wrote that he was a sex worker. Maureen Orth wrote the book that The Assassination Of Gianni Versace is based on. Her website describes her as a beauty authority, author and speaker who is among the nations top-500 women business owners.. "I don't think you healyou never close up that gaping woundbut you adjust," Marilyn told the Chicago Tribune. He was described as an upbeat, fun-loving, compassionate man. The motive behind Cunanan's third murder remains a mystery, according to an article by ABC7Chicago 20 years after Miglin's death. Miglin home after the attack: Marilyn Miglin immediately knows something is wrong when she returns home from her business trip and gets help from a couple walking by the home. After killing Miglin, Cunanan left with his car, several items of clothing, $2,000 in cash, and some gold coins from the safe. Police still did not know why Cunanan had tortured and murdered Miglin and after Cunanan took his own life without leaving a suicide note, there was no way to find out from him. Duke Miglin said he received a call in December from Egan, his brother-in-law. That is pure speculation, however, as is the scenario presented in The Assassination of Gianni Versace. On Wednesday, July 23, authorities surrounded a houseboat along Miami Beach, in which Cunanan had apparently holed up. The skyscraper was never built. The Sky Needle is grounded in fact (the project. As The Assassination Of Gianni Versace (editor: Emily Greene) accurately shows, Miglin and his wife Marilyn were prominent figures in the city. As depicted in 'The Assassination of Gianni Versace: American Crime Story,' Cunanan killed four other men before murdering Versace in July 1997. "That's right," Andrew answered. On May 4, 1997 - 25 years ago Wednesday - Chicago real estate magnate Lee Miglin was found brutally murdered under a car in the garage of his Gold Coast mans. Kate Middleton Makes the Case for Houndstooth, Prince William & Kate Middleton Visit Wales, Courteney Cox Hasn't Read Prince Harry's Memoir, Historic Photos of King George VI's Coronation. The murder set off one of the biggest and most intense manhunts of the '90s. ", "In the Miglin case, this was such a horrible crime. CBS News Correspondent Dave Fehling reported the house was about two and a half miles from the Versace villa, but only blocks from the Normandy Hotel, where Cunanan was known to have been staying. Another connection that Orth investigated was one between Cunanan and Lee and Marilyn's son Duke. But the plan fell through. According to Orth's report, a friend of Cunanan's had told the FBI that Cunanan had said he was going to start a movie set business with a friend. Miglin, however, strongly disputed this, telling ABC there was no relationship whatsoever. Miami Beach police and FBI agents surround the houseboat where Andrew Cunanan's body was later found. What the executive producers told me at the 2018 TCA Winter press tour is that they tried to do justice to the victims as best they could based on the differing statements and accounts. Man With 'Interest in Killing Black People' Charged With Terrorism After Attempted Train Attack, The Secret History of the Shadow Campaign That Saved the 2020 Election. The 27-year-old was on the FBIs Ten Most Wanted Fugitives list, suspected in the killings of four other people in Minnesota, Illinois and New Jersey. As noted in published reports, Miglin was born in 1924 in downstate Illinois the son of a Lithuanian immigrant coal miner. And I still don't.". That certainly could have been used by Cunanan to force his way into the Miglins' townhouse, if that is what happened. According to an article in Newsweek from May 1997, Miglin was found in his garage with stab wounds, and his throat slashed with a gardener's bow saw, his feet constrained, and his head covered in tape. According to Orth's book, the two met in mid-1994, three years before the murders. The website also states she is a recipient of the Raoul Wallenberg International Humanitarian Award, and it is at this ceremony that the episode shows her paying tribute to her supportive husband of 38 years, Lee, saluting him as the embodiment of the American dream, the son of an Illinois coal miner who started as a salesman and rose to become a leader in his field, developing prestigious projects such as the Chicago Bar Association building and Madison Plaza. His watch had stopped at 9:55 pm, which investigators believed was the time of his killing on Sunday, April 27. There is no indisputable evidence to suggest Lee Miglin was involved with men or knew Cunanan specifically. The series, which airs at 9 p.m. Wednesdays, is based on the 1999 book Vulgar Favors by Maureen Orth, who covered the Cunanan manhunt for Vanity Fair. Lee Miglin was found in his garage with several shallow stab wounds, his throat slit by a bow saw, his feet bound, and his head wrapped in tape, according to a May, 1997 article in Newsweek. Separate fact from fiction with this timeline of Cunanans real-life murders. Season 2 of .css-gegin5{-webkit-text-decoration:underline;text-decoration:underline;text-decoration-thickness:0.0625rem;text-decoration-color:inherit;text-underline-offset:0.25rem;color:#9a0500;-webkit-transition:all 0.3s ease-in-out;transition:all 0.3s ease-in-out;}.css-gegin5:hover{color:#595959;text-decoration-color:border-link-body-hover;}American Crime Story: The Assassination of Gianni Versace delves into the slaying of world-renowned fashion designer Gianni Versace outside of his Miami Beach mansion on July 15, 1997. Copyright 2023 WLS-TV. So I understand it is their choice. The only source for the latter is Orth, who, quoting several anonymous sex workers, claims it was well-known in Chicagos gay community that Miglin was gay. "We don't even think about it," said Marylin. Miglins family has consistently and vigorously denied that Leeor his 25-year-old son Duke, a rising actor whose name Cunanan had reportedly dropped to friendshad ever met Cunanan. He heads to Miami Beach and fatally shoots Versace before killing himself eight days later. Miglins green Lexus was also missing from the garage. The FBI painted Cunanan as a highly intelligent and dangerous man who desired a life of luxury. Criss Cunanan is nothing if not an unreliable narrator. On July 15, 1997, Cunanan approached the famed Italian designer as he returned to his Miami Beach mansion after a morning trip to a nearby caf. Miglin was killed in the garage on May 3, 1997 by serial killer Andrew Cunanan. Moreover, the crime scene showed . Despite Miglin's wife and their son Duke vehemently denying any previous connection between Cunanan and Miglin, reports from several people indicate Miglin and Cunanan may have been involved on a . This echoes the scene in the drama where, after reminding him of her connections, Marilyn emphasizes to Rodriguez that, despite there being no sign of forced entry, the murder was nothing more than an opportunistic attack, repeating that the killer took money, two suits, some insignificant jewelry, two leather coats, some gold coins (one of which turned up in a South Beach pawn shop), and the Lexusplus a dozen silk Sulka socks. Cunanan's third murder in a spree that spanned Minneapolis to Miami was not immediately linked to him by authorities. The car belonged to one of the men that Cunanan was suspected of murdering in Minneapolis. Morgan Doughty Filed A Lawsuit Against The Murdaugh Family, Heres How To Watch The Alex Murdaugh Trial Live, Sophie Turners Joan Charts The Rise Of A Famous British Jewel Thief, Alex Murdaugh Faces Life In Prison For Allegedly Killing His Wife & Son, Get Even More From Bustle Sign Up For The Newsletter. There has been speculation in the quarter century since. His body was found five days later on the shore of East Rush Lake near Rush City, Minnesota (approximately one hour from Minneapolis by car), with gunshot wounds to his head and back. He left no suicide note or explanation for his crimes. Miglin was Cunanan's third victim (out of what would become five total), and the show bluntly depicts the way Cunanan bound him with tape and brutally tortured and murdered him in Miglin's garage while his wife, Marilyn, was out of town on business. "What do you say about a man you loved passionately for 38 years a man who exemplified courage, and honor, and dignity, and a code of ethics beyond any that I think anybody's ever had?" The episode's version of events depicts that Lee Miglin knew Andrew Cunanan before Cunanan allegedly killed him. All rights reserved. Speaking to The Chicago Tribune a year after Lee's murder, Marilyn denied these rumors about her husband and Cunanan. The Assassination of Gianni Versace writer Tom Rob Smith and producer Ryan Murphy based the series on a book by veteran Vanity Fair writer Maureen Orth, who reported extensively on the case before writing Vulgar Favors: Andrew Cunanan, Gianni Versace, and the Largest Failed Manhunt in US History. On the morning of July 15, he was returning from a walk when Cunanan approached him and shot him on the steps of his house. In fact, the series depicts Miglin as being a closeted homosexual who hires Cunanan as a sex worker. But the high-profile killing of Versace forced Cunanan to keep a lower profile for the final week of his life. The Jan. 31 episode of The Assassination Of Gianni Versace: American Crime Story (executive producer: Nina Jacobson), "A Random Killing," focuses on the murder of Lee Miglin, a real estate mogul from Chicago. It appeared that Cunanan went into Miglin's kitchen following the murder, made himself a ham sandwich, and shaved before taking off in his new getaway vehicle. Cunanan had a. In Thursday, June 12, Andrew Cunanan became the 449th addition to the FBI's Ten Most Wanted list. Instead, the story delves into the crime Versaces killer, Andrew Cunanan (Darren Criss), committed before heading for Miami: the May 1997 murder of successful Chicago real estate developer Lee Miglin. Of Gianni Versace is that the fashion mogul was not Cunanans first Victim would this guy let stranger! 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