Mariana Redrovan
15 YOA
Case Number: 98-00744
Walnut Creek Inn
West Des Moines, IA
Polk County
January 23, 1998
On Friday, January 23, 1998, Mariana Redrovan, 15, was stabbed to death in a room at the West Des Moines Walnut Creek Inn where she worked as a housekeeper.
Redrovan, who was from Ecuador, was found by her supervisor in a guest room.
Michael Went, deputy director of the INS office in Omaha, Neb., said Redrovan was employed illegally at the Walnut Creek Inn because she did not have proper documentation to enter the country and worked more hours than the law allows for a 15-year-old. (Cedar Rapids Gazette, Jan. 24, 1998)
Neal Roth, the hotel’s general manager, said Redrovan presented a driver’s license and a social security card with a last name of “Prieto” and an age of 17 when she was hired nine months earlier.
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If I recall correctly wasn’t this murder attributed to Donald Piper? Investigative Discovery showcased Mr Piper who was convicted of First Degree Murder for the murder of a woman in a West Des Moines hotel. He was the Building Engineer and had a pass key to her room. The Investigation tied him to other murders in Des Moines as well. I should think he is possibly Iowa’s first convicted Serial Killer.Kind regards, Joe
Joe, that is my recollection as well. He was a VERY strong suspect in the Redrovan homicide. Thanks for your comment.
Donald Piper actually worked for my father. I remember shaking his hand when I was 12 years old. Scary.
Did he make you uncomfortable at all? In the report on Investigative Discovery a 12 year old girl exited the elevator when he entered as he made her so uncomfortable.
There are some court documents on line which show the extent of Mr Pipers depravity. Hopefully he stays in jail for a long, long time.
The TV channel investigation discovery has a show/documentary about Donald Piper. I had never heard of him before. I did try searching the internet for him and nothing came up on any true crime sites or even on wikipedia.
Unusual Suspects (Season 3)
Hotel Homicides
TV-14 (V)
Between 1993 and 1997 three women are murdered in three Des Moines, Iowa hotels. Hampered by the sheer volume of suspects and the infancy of forensic testing, it takes years of dogged investigation to bring a sadistic killer to justice.
Yes, Donald Piper is believed to have killed Mariana Redrovan. He has been convicted in two similar cases and the details that came out at trial were horrific.
The picture you have is NOT Mariana Redrovan! That is Zurijeta Sakanovic – the maid that Donald Piper murdered at the Budgetel Inn in 1997.
Dear Jessica: Thanks so much for alerting us to this. Someone had passed that photo on to us stating it was Mariana, but I have now removed the photo from all references to her. I don’t suppose you’d know where we could locate a photo for her? :-) At any rate, we appreciate it when readers pay attention and catch errors like this. Thank you again for taking the time to write! Jody
Jody,
I’m sorry I don’t. I worked with Zurijeta at the hotel & that’s how I knew it was her & not Mariana.