The true story behind the Bethany Decker murder case ahead of Dateline: Secrets Uncovered season 16 episode 2

Dateline: Secrets Uncovered returns to the 2011 disappearance and murder of 21-year-old Bethany Decker in the episode Bethany Vanished. Oxygen re-airs the original NBC report, focusing on a young mother from Ashburn, Virginia, who vanished while five months pregnant.

The case moves from a last family visit to a missing person report, then to a homicide conclusion. Years later, her boyfriend, Ronald Roldan, admitted responsibility as part of a plea deal. The body has not been found.

According to NBC News, he pleaded guilty to second-degree murder in 2022 and received a 12.5-year sentence in 2023, while investigators questioned his claim that the death was accidental.

---

How Dateline: Secrets Uncovered frames the case

The episode opens with Bethany’s busy life, college classes, a job, and care for a toddler. On January 28, 2011, she visited her grandmother in Maryland. The next day, she returned to her Ashburn apartment. That was the last confirmed sighting by the family.

Messages from Bethany's account were reported after she vanished and did not read like her, per her family (Image via Unsplash)

In mid-February, friends and relatives received Facebook messages they thought felt off. Her car sat crooked in the lot, dusty, with a flat tire. The absence stretched on. A missing person investigation began, and the tone shifted quickly to suspected foul play.

Her Hyundai was found at an angle with a flat tire near the apartment complex (Image via Unsplash)

Also read: 5 chilling details about the Dan Markel case from Dateline season 34 episode 5

---

Dateline: Secrets Uncovered case background and early investigation

Bethany had married Emile Decker, a National Guardsman frequently deployed overseas. During a rough period in the marriage, she began seeing Roldan. He reportedly grew possessive and allegedly demanded frequent check-in photos. Family members started planning a safe exit.

Right before the disappearance, Bethany and her husband took a Hawaii trip to press reset. After returning on January 28, she stopped by her grandmother’s home, then left in a rush, reportedly under pressure from repeated calls and texts. Detectives later focused on the two men in her life, then narrowed the lens as digital and timeline clues stacked up.

---

Confession and aftermath in Dateline: Secrets Uncovered

Roldan eventually told authorities there was an argument in the apartment. He said he pushed Bethany, she fell, struck her head on a windowsill, and died.

He claimed panic, no 911 call, and disposal of her remains in a trash compactor. Investigators raised doubts about the story and pointed to messages allegedly sent from Bethany’s accounts after she vanished, reportedly from devices linked to Roldan.

---

Upcoming reairs and where to watch Dateline: Secrets Uncovered

Oxygen has upcoming reairs of Bethany Vanished on Wednesday, November 5 at 8 pm and 11 pm, Saturday, November 8 at 8 am, and Wednesday, November 12 at 7 pm. Local listings may adjust exact airtimes.

For streaming, the episode is part of the Dateline library. It can be viewed on Peacock Premium and the NBC app, with additional availability on The Roku Channel with ads, Spectrum On Demand, and fuboTV. That makes catching up simple, whether a re-air is convenient or not.

---

Also read: Dateline: Secrets Uncovered - 5 key details about Cathy Torrez's case

Edited by Preethika Vijayakumar