This is Australian True Crime International with Michelle Laurie.

Connie Pruden Gardinetti vanished in 1988,

leaving her family searching for answers for decades

as suspicion continued to surround her husband.

What began as a missing person's case

would eventually unravel into a story of manipulation,

coercive control and an alleged cover-up that lasted years.

Tonight, we look at how the investigation finally broke open and the long road to justice

for Connie and her loved ones.

Joining us is Christy Lee from Canadian True Crime.

This is Australian True Crime.

We acknowledge the traditional owners of the land on which this podcast is created,

the Wurundri Woi Warang people of the Kulin Nation.

And a warning, this episode of the podcast contains graphic descriptions of violence.

This crime takes place in April of 1997 in the province of Alberta, Canada.

It's a freezing cold morning and it's not quite 7.30 in the morning.

And there's two motorists driving through a rural rolling farmland. Now, suddenly, their eyes are

drawn to something by the side of the road, and they stop the car to investigate.

Lying in an icy snow-filled ditch is what looks like a body lying face down, and it appears to be a woman who is fully clothed with long,

blonde hair. Now, the motorists call the authorities immediately. The first members on scene

conduct a search of the immediate area to see if there's any clues as to who the woman might be

and what might

...