The Secret Life Of Paige Birgfeld

The Search For A Young Mother Exposes A Double Life

(CBS)  This story was originally broadcast on June 10, 2008.

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By all accounts, 34-year old Paige Birgfeld was a devoted mother to her three young children. So when she suddenly disappeared last June, police in Grand Junction, Colorado suspected foul play.

But while police and volunteers searched for the missing mother of three, disturbing evidence of a secret life she led shifted the investigation in a totally new direction.

Did that secret life-which Paige kept hidden from her family-play a role in her disappearance?

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No one loved a family gathering more than 34-year-old Paige Birgfeld. "She would literally beam, she would radiate," her father Frank tells correspondent Harold Dow. "Those were the absolute cherished times that she enjoys most."

So when their daughter Paige vanishes on June 28, 2007, Frank and his wife Suzie feared the worst. "This is a crime. There's a crime here," says Frank, who doesn't believe Paige would have just walked away and left her kids.

After Paige disappeared, her brother Dr. Craig Birgfeld, a Seattle plastic surgeon who specializes in the facial reconstruction of children, moved into Paige's Colorado home to help take care of her three kids. "Callie and I decided at that time that our role was to be there for the kids and try to take care of them, be family there for them, just help them," he explains.

Craig’s wife, Callie, adds, "And I just remembered, the little girl, Jess, going 'So do you know what happened to my mom, do you know where she is?' And I was like, 'What do I say?' So I said, 'Wherever she is, she wants to be with you right now.'"

Her friends and family say Paige spent all of her free time with her children. She was a single mother; her ex-husband was living in Philadelphia. After their divorce in 2006, Paige had become the primary caregiver for their three children.

"I think as long as I can remember, what she wanted to be was a mom and she just couldn't wait to be that mom," Craig says.

So when Paige disappeared, Mesa County Sheriff Stan Hilkey was pretty convinced this mother of three would not have left on her own. "There's nothing at all that leads us to believe that she had abandoned her life or abandoned her children and gone off in that regard," Hilkey says.

Authorities started by looking at those closest to Paige. They quickly learned that Paige had not one, but two ex-husbands. Her first husband was her high school sweetheart, Ron Beigler.

According to Paige's father, Ron was her first big love. And in fact, for the past few months, the two had been dating again.


Ten years after divorcing her first husband, Paige said she was in love with him again.

And ex-husband No. 1 becomes the focus of the investigation in June 2007, when it’s learned they had their last date-on the very day she disappeared-at a rest stop, a halfway point between her home in Grand Junction and his home, more than four hours away.

When she was driving back home later that night around 9 p.m., Paige called Ron from her cell phone. They spoke briefly, and Paige told him she'd call him later.

Cell phone records show that Paige was just a few miles from her home when she made that call to Ron. And that phone call was one of her last.

Paige never did call Ron back that night, so the next day, he tried calling her. "And her phone rolled over to the voice message right away, so just to indicate the phone was turned off or the battery was down," Frank explains.

On Saturday morning, two days after seeing Paige, Ron finally tried calling her at home. Paige’s father, Frank, describes what Ron did next. "He actually called the house and got our granddaughter. And she was the one that told him that Paige hadn't been home since Thursday night. At that point the alarms start goin' off and he touched base with us, touched base with the sheriff's office. And things started getting in gear then."

Ironically, after Ron called authorities to report Paige missing, he became one of the first people they wanted to question since he'd been one of the last people to see her.

Although Ron was one of the last to see and speak with Paige, those who know him believe he's also one of the last who'd want to harm her. "We met with him recently, and I think he is very devoted to Paige, and very emotional that she's not here," Paige’s mother, Suzie, says.

But Paige’s friends were far more suspicious about her second ex-husband, Rob Dixon, the father of her three children. It turns out Paige had an explosive, troubled history with Dixon.

[drdavedmd]

This is such a tragedy. My heart goes out to her family and friends. I hope one day justice will be served and the killer will be caught.She is such a beautiful woman. We know that this was a murder because as the end of the show indicated, Paige wouldnot have abandoned her children, and also she would not have left her thousands of dollars behind. Don''t worry, Paige, we''re coming for you! Our thoughts and prayers goes to everyone who knew you......

[comama4]

Paige was the first dance teacher that my two oldest children had, and they still dance today because of her nurturing guidance-she was one of those people who positively shaped the lives of kids. It breaks my heart that her kids are without their mom-she was truly devoted to them and I never saw her without them. It still think of her regularly and truly feel for her family.

[talentedtoes]

I enjoyed watching tonight''s program as I do every week, but what I don''t understand is why Paige''s family, not quite the first year anniversary of her disappearance, have begun selling her personal belongings? That''s not thinking positive, instead it is as if they have concluded she''s dead. I know that it seems that way, considering the cash they say that was left behind at her house, but I would think they should have hope, too, that she might be alive. I think most families in this type of situation would not write their loved one off as being dead so soon. Tonight''s ending really left me feeling that way.

[cold777]

I am not blaming the victim here, but I simply cannot understand why Paige didn''t realize how dangerous escort services are.

[smurfcrusher]

Clearly she could see the benefit, but not the true costs of her decisions. Keeping the lavish lifestyle and home with the $6,000 monthly payment (and selling her - um, ''services'') was preferable to starting over with a modest lifestyle.

Sadly, her lack of good judgment proved fatal.

[honeywestsd]

So many questions. How long had she been doing this? And when she went out on calls, who was baby-sitting? How often did she do this? And she was doing this WHILE getting back with husband #1? And why did she think she needed a home that cost $6000/month? I''m sure the kids loved the house, but come on, get real here. You get a smaller place.

She had to have been pulling in a lot of cash to bankroll this.

I''m guessing her family was horribly shocked to find out about this secret life of hers and also that she used to work as a dancer back then. Very sad.

[honeywestsd]

I did a search with her name and found out more. Way back, she wanted to be a stripper, and her mom said no. And some neighbors would see her leaving the house late at night.

[drdavedmd]

Talentedtoes,

Get real. She is dead. She did not just walk off leaving her kids and her money. She had a head on her shoulders, so she isn''t stupid. She''s dead. When she was missing for two days, nd not seeing her kids, one can say that she is dead. People like Paige don''t just walk off. This is a sad sad tragedy.

Hopefully the killer will have a conscious and spill the beans and confess or something. Justice will be served, I hope.

[momquixote]

As one of Paige''s friends who had to go on National tv to defend her... I am grateful to 48 Hours for doing a decent and fair telling of her story. Regardless of what her choices were she was a devoted mother and friend. She saw the best in people and lifted them up. She was not a prostitute. She did not live a lavish lifestyle. Her parents are not negative or giving up for selling the house and her furniture. They spent more than $100,000 trying to keep it afloat and have every reason to believe she was murdered. They kept the keepsakes and special things for her children. If Paige was found alive by some miracle she would probably be relieved that the *** house was sold.

She was left in an upside down mortgage which wouldn''t sell for the year she tried. If she had sold it she still would''ve had to pay on the leftover balance plus a new home.

Her kids had been through hell watching their father hold a gun to her head and beat her. She was trying to do everything she could not to take away their whole life and give them at least one small piece of stability.

Hopefully that answers some of your questions. Thank you to those of you who are kind and send well wishes to her family and friends. I wouldn''t wish this pain on anyone.

I feel sorry the ones who think she somehow deserved this. You must be a miserable and ugly person inside. But Paige would''ve been able to see some good in you anyway.

[honeywestsd]

I don''t think she deserved this, but she definitely wasn''t thinking clearly on this. I do wonder why way back, she had such a fascination on ''dancing'' at a club like that.

There was a lot more to Paige than anyone knew.

I am confused on the comment tho that she was not a prostitute. Pros, escort, they are basically the same.

Hopefully there will be some closure; finding her body, charging someone and the charges stick and the person is found guilty.

[doodle41]

I was just wondering if there had been any updates on this case. I saw 48hours.I had never seen it before until last night. I really enjoyed the way they handle the situation. So if anyone has any updates.

[honeywestsd]

What I did, was just do a search with Paige''s name in it and I found out more stuff that didn''t even make it to the news story. Odds are, this could have been a 2 hour show. Hopefully the next update will be talking about an arrest.

I am assuming that her ex, the father of the children is working. And...did he pay child support?

[roscoezzz]

Didn''t authorities find over $10,000 stowed away in that house? Why would she just up and leave her money and kids? With evidence showing her car burned, a credit card and license found by the highway. She had to have been kidnapped and/or murdered. Who knows?
I can understand her parents auctioning off what was in that house. Didn''t they have to keep up the payments after the daughter disappeared? $6,000 rent is pretty steep. That''s $72,000 a year plus other bills. No wonder she went into the Escort Service. Fast & Easy Money.
I don''t condemn this woman for anything. She''s a single mother who had to make ends meet. It''s not easy to live a lavish life-style and then it suddenly disappears. Most people don''t know how to quit the fancy trips, nice cars and social position. Unfortunately, this woman made a wrong choice which may have cost her own life.

[carolcape]

This woman is in my opinion not alive. She was living a very dangerous life. Two ex''s, one violent, having close encounters of a dangerous nature with complete strangers, it seems she had a death wish. Yeah, you are right, who was looking after the children and as you say, who in the hay needs a house that costs 6000 a month. Her father loved her and she had a family, she did not need to jeopardize her life and her childrens lives to live like she did. She certainly was a jeckyl and hyde, sure sounds like it. Sad that the children have lost their mother and her mom and dad also. Thoughts and prayers to them. It is even harder for them, knowing of this secret life style she had.

[rodeoin_qb]

My heard just aches for this family, especially her children. I don''t care about what went on in her personal life, she did what she had to do for her family. It sounds like she was a wonderful person and mother. I admire her family''s determination! I hope and pray that she is found soon!!

[xtina100-2009]

It doesn''t make her bad, you know, it makes her desperate. Desperate women in the Middle East do it too, when they have nothing else to offer and no man to protect them. It is the oldest economic reality in the book, and if you were hard up and had kids to feed you would do it too. Who says the family has a lot of money they could support her and the kids? And there is the matter of pride - being a two time loser and being so fooled by the 2nd dipstick husband. I relate, but I would have ditched the ultra expensive mortgage - she probably would have lost it sooner or later. Likely she tried to hold on to it so she wouldn''t have to displace the children. I hope they find her body, and I hope they bust the *hit who did this to her and get a full confession.

[gopsoccermom]

roscoezzz, mob hit. They dont like independants.

[juliuswillis]

when i got to page 4 and still didn''t know about the wife/mother''s secret life, i decided it was a lame story that is taking waaay too long to tell. the writer is an idiot who beats around the bush. that''s the real story here. just get to the point. better luck next time, lame writer. lame storytelling skills...

[jboxton]

I agree with the guy below me. This guy is a hack writer. He keeps referring to a secret life as if he already said what it was. I love how the media only cares about the rich. If this woman was not wealthy, there would be no story here. For as much as you liberals and your media say you hate rich people, that''s all you ever write about.

[smurfcrusher]

momquixote, how would you know whether or not she was a prostitute? Funny thing about secret lives... they''re so... Secret.

Must be that she was "escorting" tourists perhaps? Perhaps you are trying to encourage others to become "escorts" since (in your eyes anyway) they aren''t prostitutes?

I think the lesson here is if you get into what many consider the prostitution business, the real ugliness is what happens when the truth comes out. While all might be sunny and bright in your imaginary world, the fact of the matter is she chose this risk and now her children have no mother. Pretty, that isn''t.

[smurfcrusher]

momquixote, how would you know whether or not she was a prostitute? Funny thing about secret lives... they''re so... Secret.

Must be that she was "escorting" tourists perhaps? Perhaps you are trying to encourage others to become "escorts" since (in your eyes anyway) they aren''t prostitutes?

I think the lesson here is if you get into what many consider the prostitution business, the real ugliness is what happens when the truth comes out. While all might be sunny and bright in your imaginary world, the fact of the matter is she chose this risk and now her children have no mother. Pretty, that isn''t.

[ptjhu]

So she was a hooker? My only question is: why the hell didn''t the IRS wonder why a part-time teacher was able to afford a $250,000 house?

[honeywestsd]

I wondered about the IRS too. And how did she make a $6000/month payment for her house? If she made the payment by cash, wouldn''t that be a red flag? And let''s say that she never disappeared. Odds are, we''d be hearing a different version of this; we''d be hearing of a bust of her and her johns.

I''ve read where the majority of women who join the *** trade were sexually exploited; I do wonder. Incest? Rape?

And did she get regularly tested? Did a *** game a role play go horribly wrong? Did a john catch a STD and get upset? Will we ever find out?

[smurfcrusher]

Clearly she was very secretive, and I would say with good reason.

I don''t know whether she was ashamed of what she was doing; given that she defied her mother when she was a young adult and danced at a strip club I would suggest she was a little weak on ethics and a bit strong on greed.

There are a million foreclosed homes in this country... but I don''t see a million new ''escorts'' on the streets. I suggest there is an honorable way to struggle with life''s challenges, and a dishonorable way. Her choice was clear and unfortunate.

[uscitizenvet]

Sounds like the cops are on the right trail with one of her last (jon) contacts. He seems to meet all the criteria to do something like this......or his wife if she had found out about their escaoades. Paige no doubt was leading a double life but it was one she was familiar with and knew it would provide her the money in the amounts needed to continue her life style. Wonder why family and/or friends never caught on to: how can someone live with these kinds of expenses and not have at least a CEO position?

[nottosmart]

just so sad for the unfortunate events. in time you will find closure and move on. Shes just missing and by gods hands she will be found in due time. great show but sad to say this happens in the world we live in......who can you trust? god luck and god bless.

[mndogez]

I didn't see it in this article, but I just watched 48 hours about the disaperance of Paige.
They said on T.V. that along a highway they found her checkbook and some other items.
Did she carry a purse? Was that found? It would seem to me that whoever tossed out those items must have had her purse? Also it would seem that they had probabley already disposed of her body.Has the search team backtracked from those items found along that side of the highway, or sideroads? I don't think it would be a very far distance after getting rid of her body, to dispose of that incriminating evidence. I pray for the family and hope they find there daughter soon. Remember God loves her and she is with him, or lets pray she is still alive. I live in San Diego and there was just a 14 year old girl abducted in Escondido walking to school Amber Duboius. It seems like that's all that's been happening the past few months with the 3 babies in Florida. I was watching America's Most Wanted tonight also, flipping back and forth between shows. I hope I get a response if the search team did do what my question was.

[strmrnnr]

I am wondering why you are not investigating the possability of a pedophile ring. You have an ex-stripper who has aged and become a prostitute. A father who says that he thinks that may have been moral issues there, as if he can't add. And the hooker is teaching a pre-school dance lessons.

I would say all the ingredients are there except the client list. but, IMO, A-moral dad likely took care of that when they searched the computers instead of the police.

[capegal67]

I just can't understand a woman like her. I mean she was a mother and putting herself in that kind of danger, what in the hell was she thinking. There is no earthly reason she had to live in a home with a 6G a month mortgage. She just got used to all that money and it was her God. I feel sorry for her family and her childen, but play around with fire and it will get you. She must have known this man was violent, because that kind of man doesn't seem to be the kind that could afford a highclass prostitute. I feel really bad for her father, but I don't think they will ever find her body. I mean this is an area with all kinds of animals, desert conditions, very sad indeed. That was a scary existence she was leading without anyone else knowing what she was up to.

[jo7752]

Paige's case has a few similarities to my daughter's. My daughter has been missing for seven years from Monte Vista, Colorado and also left behind two small children she would never have left by choice. Her body has never been found, but the "persons of interest," her ex-boyfriend, Victor Braun, and his father, Vern, are not saying what happened though it is strongly suspected that they killed her and disposed of her somewhere. I know what Paige's parents are going through and I feel so bad for her children; losing your mother by such means has got to be life-altering. I will pray for her children and family when I pray for my own grandkids. My daughter's website is daniceday.com if anyone would like more details. Thanks for letting me have a say, and thanks for being here. Jonene Day, Laramie, Wyoming

[NannyD]

I could identify with the family in this story. My family has been living with the pain of not knowing the facts of my cousin's disappearance since 1983. While the stories aren't similar in terms of finding out about a secret life, that really isn't the point. Living with the 'what ifs' for the rest of your life is an agony that you can't really, adequately express to those who haven't lived it.

My cousin's disappearance had a lot of questions surrounding it. Most of those questions still exist, & may never be known. We've had to come to this 'new normal' that has alterd all of our lives for the last 26 years. Family members who took part in the search for her have passed away. New people in our lives have this as a daily element of our lives, no matter what we do.

I know that someone who hasn't been through it could understand the profound impact it has on the lives of their loved ones, if they choose to leave. Knowing her, I doubt that she would have chosen to leave, even if she could have known the pain it would cause. Whatever is going on in someone's life, they don't deserve this.

NannyD