(Dr. Maggie Zingman and her Caravan to Catch a Killer. Photo: Facebook)
Tulsa, Okla. (Nov. 10, 2024) — It has been 20 years since Brittany Phillips, an 18-year-old college student in Tulsa, was found dead in her apartment, strangled and sexually assaulted.
Her killer remains unknown, and the case remains unsolved despite relentless efforts by her mother, Maggie Zingman, who has spent nearly two decades on the road, determined to find the person responsible.
On Sept. 27, 2004, Brittany was last seen in the evening after she dropped a friend off at home.
Three days later, on Sept. 30, officers conducted a welfare check at her second-floor apartment after Brittany’s absence raised concerns among friends.
Inside, they found Brittany’s lifeless body next to her bed.
Since that discovery, hundreds of people have been questioned, DNA samples have been collected, and multiple leads followed — yet Brittany’s murderer remains unidentified.
For Zingman, a trauma psychologist who works with combat veterans, this year marks a painful milestone: “This is the first anniversary where the case has been colder than when she was alive because we buried her on her 19th birthday, Oct. 4,” Zingman, 69, shared.
“I never thought I’d be here 20 years later.”
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For nearly 18 years, Zingman has driven a brightly decorated KIA Carnival adorned with photos of Brittany and a phone number for tips.
Her car, a traveling memorial and call to action, has traversed 48 states and covered over 300,000 miles as part of her self-organized “Caravan to Catch a Killer.”
Zingman is motivated not only by the hope of uncovering new information about her daughter’s death but also by the commitment to raise awareness about unsolved homicide cases across the nation.
“I want my daughter’s case solved before I die,” she said.
“I feel like the case dies with me. Brittany would kill me if I stopped, and she’d be doing the same for me.”
(Brittany Phillips. Photo: Tulsa Police Department/Facebook)
A Student with Aspirations
Brittany, a Tulsa Community College student with a love for sports and music, planned to transfer to Oklahoma State University to pursue a career in cancer research.
On the morning of her last day, Sept. 27, she had gone to a doctor’s office for allergy issues.
“She had been at a doctor’s office, because she always had these allergy problems,” Zingman recalled.
“She was with a friend and told me, ‘I’m going to drop my friend off and then I’m going home.’”
When Brittany did not show up for classes, a friend reported her missing.
Officers found signs of a struggle in the apartment, noting defensive wounds and evidence under Brittany’s fingernails that suggested she fought her attacker.
“She must have fought,” Zingman said.
“My belief is that possibly he was waiting there, or he broke in after she slept.”
Despite exhaustive investigations and hundreds of interviews, authorities have been unable to gather concrete evidence linking anyone to the crime.
“Nobody really was able to give anything concrete happening around the time this occurred,” Tulsa Police Department cold case detective Jeremy Stiles said.
Brittany’s case, once an active murder investigation, has become a cold case.
(Zingman at her daughter’s gravesite. Photo: Facebook)
A Mother’s Road to Justice
In 2007, when initial leads ran dry, Zingman began to wonder if Brittany’s killer had left Tulsa and might be committing crimes elsewhere.
“Maybe he’s a serial predator, maybe he travels along the highways, and he has been killing or raping people across the U.S.,” she speculated.
Driven by this theory, she outfitted her vehicle with images of Brittany and her story, making it a mobile crime-stopper billboard.
She began her mission, passing out flyers at rest stops, police stations, and high-traffic areas, aiming to catch the attention of those who might know something or recognize a pattern.
Over the years, Zingman’s efforts have garnered media coverage and community support, with individuals contacting authorities to share information and offer tips.
“We’ve definitely had people reach out and say, ‘Because of Dr. Zingman, it made me want to reach out to you guys,’” Stiles confirmed, adding, “I’ve yet to run across another victim’s family that is as determined as Dr. Zingman. She does an amazing job getting the story out there.”
For Zingman, the road has provided more than an outlet for grief; it has offered connection.
“It’s been how I survive,” she said.
“I have had such unbelievable experiences. I couldn’t have survived this without these experiences.”
Through her journeys, she has forged bonds with other families of homicide victims, providing support, comfort, and a shared understanding of loss.
“It’s not about my daughter’s case as much anymore,” she explained.
“It really is about wanting to reach out. Let me help you be a voice. Let me just say you’re not crazy. Because that’s what kills people.”
(Brittany Phillips. Photo: Tulsa Police Department/Facebook)
A Tip and a New Timeline
Last year, a surprising clue came to light when Zingman’s ex-husband found a birthday card from Brittany, intended for her grandfather, with a postmark dated Sept. 29, 2004 — two days after authorities believe she was killed.
The card’s date, printed by a post office kiosk, has raised questions about the timeline.
“If it was a regular stamp, that would be easy,” Zingman noted.
“But this stamp having that date could change the timeline.”
Detective Stiles acknowledged the anomaly: “The timing is peculiar,” he said, though he refrained from drawing immediate conclusions.
“I 100% can’t say what I make of it yet, but it’s unexpected and odd.”
In the meantime, investigators are working with genetic genealogy to analyze DNA evidence found beneath Brittany’s fingernails.
Stiles expressed hope that the DNA analysis may finally identify a person of interest.
“Obviously if that leads to an individual, that’s definitely somebody who we’re going to want to talk to next,” he said.
An Unyielding Drive
Zingman’s search for justice has come at a personal cost.
Her relentless pursuit has strained her finances, leading her to live without heat, water, and air conditioning, and to accumulate significant debt.
She estimates that she has spent around $120,000 on her search.
“It was worth it, especially in those early years because I was getting 12 to 16 [newspaper] stories each time I went out,” she said, explaining that each article brought Brittany’s story to a wider audience and kept her daughter’s case from fading.
As the 20th anniversary of Brittany’s death passes, Zingman is preparing for her next journey.
Around Thanksgiving, she plans to travel through Texas, Arizona, New Mexico, Nevada, and California.
Her hope is that, along the way, someone will finally come forward with the information that will solve Brittany’s case.
“She was beautiful, and she was intelligent, and it just rips my heart out that the world lost her,” Zingman said.
“My car has been the gift,” she said. “I know millions know her because millions have seen her on the road.”
Anyone with information about Brittany Phillips’ case is encouraged to contact Tulsa Crime Stoppers at 918-596-COPS or email homicide@cityoftulsa.org.
For assistance with sexual assault, contact the National Sexual Assault Hotline at 1-800-656-HOPE (4673) or visit rainn.org.
