Accident? Or sophisticated scheme to end the life of a man entwined in many dark business ventures?

 

This was Ira Tobolowsky. 

 

On May 13, 2016, he died in a fire in the garage of his home.

 

At the time of Tobolowsky’s death, I was a detective with the Dallas Police Department and was one of several assigned to investigate the incident.

 

Tobolowsky’s son, Michael, continues to search for answers and wants the public to see what became of his father as a result of the fire.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

It has never been determined if Tobolowsky’s death was an accident or if he was murdered. When Dallas Fire and Rescue arrived at the scene the garage was engulfed in flames but the garage door was closed, indicating the fire and death was an accident or perpetuated by someone within the residence.

 

WHO WAS IRA TOBOLOWSKY?

Ira Tobolowsky was a man with a range of complex and opaque business interests whose family is entwined with the business and political elites of Texas. Tobolowsky was linked through interlocking relationships with the powerful Zale family, tied by blood, marriage, and business interests. The Zale’s are a powerhouse politically, legally, culturally, and economically in the city and state. Tobolowsky — lawyer, investor, lobbyist — was an extension of a family whose members are scattered throughout the legal profession and judiciary in Texas.

Much of Tobolowsky’s work was behind the scenes, serving the interests of those who chose not to be publicly identified. Over decades, Tobolowsky and his business associates served as agents for dozens of businesses that opened and then closed with regularity. Tobolowsky regularly represented these entities in court, thus masking their principals from public view.

Our investigation discovered that the Dallas legal community had a strong negative opinion about Tobolowsky. His peers respected his power but not the man.

 

His marriage was known to be unhappy with occasional abuse.

 

Tobolowsky used two different Social Security Numbers:

 

                                                         461-78-XXXX and 450-08-XXXX

 

In 2008, Tobolowsky was arrested and criminally charged in South Carolina in Case No. D317662.

 

Records reflect Tobolowsky created at least seven (7) fictitious businesses:

 

DALLAS TITLE CO- LOVERS LANE

4305 W. Lovers Lane

Dallas, Texas 75209

Filing Number: 86055929

Filing Date: 07/21/1986

Owner: Ira E. Tobolowsky

 

G2 GLOBAL LLC

4305 W. Lovers Lane

Dallas, Texas 75209

Filing Number: 0800237450

Filing Date: 08/21/2003

Owner: Ira E. Tobolowsky

 

CYNTHIA A DORBER ENTERPRISES INC

4305 W. Lovers Lane

Dallas, Texas 75209

Filing Number: 32022108289

Filing Date: 11/07/2006

Owner: Ira E. Tobolowsky

 

MEYERSONS LLC

4305 W. Lovers Lane

Dallas, Texas 75209

Filing Number: 32034210388

Filing Date: 11/27/2007

Owner: Ira E. Tobolowsky

 

DIT #1 FAMILY LIMITED PARTNERSHIP

4305 W. Lovers Lane

Dallas, Texas 75209

Filing Number: 20080299216

Filing Date: 09/16/2008

Contact: Ira E. Tobolowsky

 

TABLE 18

4305 W. Lovers Lane

Dallas, Texas 75209

Filing Number: 20080328446

Filing Date: 10/10/2008

Contact: Ira E. Tobolowsky

 

PST ENTERPRISES, LLC

4305 W. Lovers Lane 

Dallas, Texas 75209

Filing Number: 0801498878

Filing Date: 10/26/2011 

Owner: Ira E. Tobolowsky

 

 

WAS THE FIRE AN ACCIDENT?

 

When Dallas Fire and Rescue arrived at the Tobolowsky North Dallas residence, on Kenshire Lane, the garage was engulfed in flames and the garage door was closed. After opening the garage door and extinguishing the violent fire, the body of Mr. Tobolowsky was found along with gasoline that had been stored in a juice container.

 

Over the last several years, photos from the incident have been studied by multiple fire reconstruction experts. Many believe that the fire was the result of an electrical explosion. Injury to Tobolowsky’s head could have been caused by the explosion forcing his body to hit his car or from his fall the garage floor. If not from the electrical outlet, some believe Tobolowsky’s cell phone may have exploded.

 

This is the photo studied by many that indicates the fire started at the base of this wall where the electrical outlet is and the gasoline was stored.

 

 

 

All DNA samples that we collected at the scene did not match any of the suspects we investigated.

 

With no evidence connecting anyone to a crime, the question as to whether or not Tobolowsky’s death was an accident remains open.

 

 

CONTRACT KILLING?

 

Robert Hinton, Dallas attorney and long-time friend of Mr. Tobolowsky, told NBC’s “Today” show: “This was a hit. There’s no question in my mind this was a hit. … It just had to be criminal. It was disguised as a fire to cover a hit.”

 

This extraordinary statement, made by Tobolowsky's very close friend, infers that Tobolowsky’s death was a targeted killing carried out by a hitman or contract killer on behalf of a mafia or organized crime syndicate.

Tobolowsky was a gambling industry lawyer/lobbyist and behind-the-scenes player in numerous obscure business enterprises. However, there was absolutely no evidence that any person, other than Tobolowsky and his wife, was present when the explosion occurred. That said, it is possible that a professional hit man could have possibly committed the crime and left nothing behind.

The basis for the statement that it was a “hit” has never been discovered because the DPD was not permitted to investigate any of Tobolowsky’s business relationships.

 

 

INVESTIGATION INFLUENCE

Conducting interviews is a core task of law enforcement. The objective of interviews by police is to elicit accurate, reliable and actionable information. It is NOT to confirm what the officer thinks might have happened. We have homicide investigation standard operating procedures that are typically followed.

Interviewing family members, friends, co-workers, etc. at death scene – allows for timely gathering of pertinent information regarding the decedent and provides essential information for the investigative process.

The investigation into the death of Mr. Tobolowsky was NOT standard or normal.

 

Immediately after Tobolowsky’s death in May 2016, the DPD was directed to not interview Tobolowsky’s family members or his businesses partners.

 

Though it is standard procedure to take family member specimens and decedent’s specimens and then appropriately package and label them, we were instructed not to do this.

Dallas Police Department understood they were to concentrate on Steven Aubrey and Brian Vodicka, who were immediately targeted upon Tobolowsky’s death by Stephen Schoettmer.  He straightaway accused them of capital murder. Aubrey and Vodicka had perfectly clean police records with no violent history or arrests of any type. We had ample evidence that Aubrey and Vodicka were not involved in Tobolowsky’s death, including an electronic trail and eyewitnesses. Public naming of Aubrey and Vodicka was necessary to deflect attention from the most logical possibilities: Tobolowsky’s wife; his various shadowy business interests; and his family’s behind-the-scenes struggle over a large estate.

The spouse is often a key person of interest, a potential witness, or someone who could possess crucial information about the victim, a suspect, and the events leading up to a murder. Law enforcement needs to understand the relationship dynamics between the victim, the suspect, and the spouse to build a complete picture of the situation.

 

Finally, on May 24, 2016, eleven days after the fire and death, Detective Robert Ermatinger was permitted to interview Debbie Tobolowsky. He was directed to treat Debbie Tobolowsky with kid gloves and was not permitted to question her about certain topics.

 

The interview was conducted at Dallas Police Dept. Jack Evans Headquarters. Debbie identified a potential suspect but never once mentioned Aubrey or Vodicka as possible suspects. Though it was widely known their marriage was not happy, Det. Ermatinger was restricted from asking Debbie about her husband’s $1 million life insurance policy, a possible strong motive to consider in a homicide investigation.

 

Because the garage door was closed when Dallas Fire and Rescue arrived at the scene, if Tobolowsky’s death was not an accident, Debbie Tobolowsky is the only living person who had access to the garage when the fire occurred. She was paid the $1 million from the life insurance policy; has had plastic surgery procedures; and and is reportedly living her best life.

 

Tobolowsky’s three children, Jonathan, Michael, and Zachary, all refused to be interviewed by detectives. Due to the Tobolowsky family’s restraints imposed on this investigation, it is unlikely that the truth of what happened will ever surface.