‘I will never give up’: 2 women were murdered in their Phoenix home. The case went cold

Rachel Glass choked back tears as she looked up at her daughter’s smiling face on an electronic billboard near downtown Phoenix on Saturday afternoon.

It was the 14th year that she was standing in a parking lot at the corner of Seventh and Lincoln streets, begging the public to send in tips that could help solve the mystery of who killed Nicole Glass and Melissa Mason.

The 27-year-old roommates were found strangled to death in their east Phoenix home on Dec. 3, 2010. Mason was pregnant, and the incident is considered a triple homicide.

Since then, there has been little movement in the case, with no named suspects or stated motive. The billboard urges passersby to call Silent Witness with information, advertising a $8,700 reward for anyone who provides a tip that leads to an arrest.

Phoenix police Sgt. Brian Bower said officials receive tips each year, but so far, none has led to new information. He confirmed that police haven’t had an active lead in the case for years, making it a so-called “cold case.”

“We’re just waiting for that one person,” he said. “We know they’re out there. We know that they have information.”

But Rachel Glass still holds onto hope that her daughter’s killer can be found — and justice delivered. It’s why she has continued to show up in the parking lot to talk to local media about the case, even though doing so makes her anxious and the crowd of cameras, friends and family around her for the annual event has dwindled.

“I will never give up,” she said, looking up at her daughter.

What happened to Melissa Mason, Nicole Glass?

The bodies of the two women were discovered in a single-story brick home near 40th Street and Thomas Road that Nicole had purchased in 2006. Police said there was no sign of forced entry, and the doors to the house were locked.

The two had been friends for years. They met while working together as bartenders at local nightclubs. Nicole was a junior at Phoenix Community College, studying communications. Melissa aspired to be a dental hygienist.

A few months before her death, Nicole had been embroiled in a large-scale wiretapping investigation that resulted in dozens of arrests and charges involving drugs, street gangs, weapons and money laundering.

She became involved after police recorded her calling a friend and asking to buy marijuana, according to court documents. She took a plea deal in April 2010.

On the day Nicole and Melissa were found dead, Rachel said she was supposed to go to the home to help set up a printer. She left a voicemail to reschedule. Later, she received a panicked call from one of her daughter’s friends, who said she had seen Nicole’s house on the news.

Rachel turned on the television. She recognized the house and the two cars parked in the driveway as a newscaster reported that bodies were found inside.

“I knew,” she said. “I knew what that meant.”

Hoping for answers

Bower said Rachel has shown “a lot of courage” in the years since her daughter’s death. She doesn’t just show up to the annual press conference, he said.

“She’s throughout the year,” Bower said. “She’s calling me. She’s constantly in contact with my office.”

Rachel said she’s not going to give up on finding her daughter’s killer. She said she will keep looking “forever” if she has to. She and other members of Nicole’s family started a GoFundMe last year to increase the reward amount for tips leading to an arrest, setting a goal for $100,000.

“I’ll be in a wheelchair and I’ll be out here, asking people if they know something to say something,” Rachel said.

Anyone with information surrounding the case can contact Silent Witness to submit anonymous tips at 480-WITNESS or on the website.

Reach the reporter at sasha.hupka@arizonarepublic.com. Follow her on X: @SashaHupka. Follow her on Instagram or Threads: @sashahupkasnaps.

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This article originally appeared on Arizona Republic: It was a triple homicide in Phoenix in 2010, but still no answers

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