INVESTIGATIVE TEAM

Investigative Team

Director / Lead Consultant

Alex Baber

Alex Baber, founder and director of Cold Case Consultants of America, LLC (C.C.C.O.A.), is an autodidact polymath turned cold case analyst. His fields of study include forensic linguistics, cryptography, biometrics, CSE, and handwriting analysis. A former PSO specializing in protective services, Alex now dedicates his time to re-examining the facts and providing an often unique perspective on “difficult” and purportedly unsolvable homicide cases.

Investigator / Case Consultant

Detective Patrick Apoian

Retired Detective Patrick Apoian’s distinctive law enforcement career began as an officer with the City of Atlanta Police Department in 2002. By 2008, Patrick had become an Officer Of The Year recipient prior to his promotion to Detective in 2009. He would then become a vital member of the Atlanta Police Hostage Negotiations Team from 2010-2016. His last official call resulted in Patrick saving the life of an Atlanta Firefighter in 2017. Detective Apoian’s awards and commendations include the City of Atlanta Emerald of the Year, Metro Atlanta Police Emerald Society, Service Award, Dekalb CountyBar Association, 300 Club Award of Valor, Atlanta Police Department Purple Heart Award, Broken City, Dedicated Service Award, Police Union Board of Directors IBPO, Former Atlanta Police Foundation, Deputy Director of Crime Stoppers, Humble Heroes 2009-2015. Apoian founded Humble Heroes in 2009, an organization established to assist seriously ill or injured first responders and their families.

Case Documentarian / Historical Records

Joe Cochran

Joe Cochran has over 25 years of television and radio broadcasting experience and is a prestigious Michigan Hall of Fame Inductee for Broadcasting and Writing. He’s also a True Crime TV Show Host, an Investigative Journalist, True Crime Author, and two time N.A.T.O.A. National Television Award Winner. In addition to providing coverage of Daniel Underwood’s case with the Warner Brothers Network, he covered the highly prolific Aaron Hernandez Murder Trial on “Crime Time,” and has also been interviewed on “Crime Watch Daily.”

Forensic Document Examiner / Case Consultant

Curtis Baggett

Curtis Baggett is the nation’s leading Forensic Document Examiner. As a Handwriting Analysis Expert, Curt has examined documents and/or testified in all 50 states, as well as a dozen foreign countries. He has investigated and offered an evaluation in over 5,000 cases nationwide since 1990, while appearing in court as an expert witness, providing testimony when required. He is court qualified and certified by the American Bureau of Document Examiners and the American Institute of Applied Science. His expertise has been acknowledged in interviews and appearances on national networks, such as CNN, CNBC, along with multiple televised shows including “Texas Justice” and “Judge Alex.”

Investigator / Case Consultant

Patty Tackett

Patty Tackett is an esteemed law enforcement veteran who has left an indelible mark on the Dayton Ohio Police Department during her 31 years of dedicated service. Her career began with patrolling the streets, but her expertise and tenacity quickly led her to become a highly skilled detective, working to solve complex property crimes and even more challenging homicide and cold cases for 16 years. She was then called upon to serve on the hostage negotiation team, where she honed her expertise in crisis management. She pioneered the creation of a crisis intervention program in the Miami Valley and has since collaborated with numerous outside agencies to develop and deliver critical crisis intervention training, making her a recognized authority in the field. After retiring in 2021, Detective Tackett continued to serve her community as a certified instructor for the Ohio Peace Officer Training Academy. She has trained countless new police officers, inspiring and empowering them to uphold the same high standards of excellence and dedication that she embodied throughout her career.

Forensic Anthropologist / Research Scientist

Dr. Arpad Vass

Dr. Arpad Vass is a research scientist, forensic anthropologist, and founder of Forensic Recovery Services (FRS), an organization dedicated to advancing science in the detection of clandestine graves. He is a pioneer in forensic biomarkers in death scene investigations. He was TN Scientist of the Year in 2004, has authored over 60 publications, and has 17 patents. As an expert in human decomposition, he has developed four novel methods to determine the post-mortem interval which is currently used worldwide. And Dr. Vass is currently developing a forensic science technique called “decomposition odor analysis,” or “DOA”, which will help locate clandestine graves by the use of odor mortis. He is also an instructor at the National Forensic Academy and has assisted law enforcement on numerous homicide investigations.

Forensic Researcher

Chelan Wagstaff

Chelan Wagstaff received her Bachelors of Science in Criminal Justice with a minor in Psychology in which her capstone project was on 3 infamous serial murderers, their similarities and differences, modus operandi, characterization from the Federal Bureau of Investigation, and more. She then went on to receive her Masters of Art in Forensic Psychology in which her main focus of study was, again, serial murderers: male vs. female serial murderers, teamed serial murderers: male-male, female-female, and male-female, and medical health professional serial murderers, psychopathology, and mass shooters. During the Forensic Psychology program, she also participated in a research lab to identify similar characteristics within female serial murderers. Chelan is now enrolled in a doctorate program in Clinical Psychology (PsyD) with a concentration in Forensic Psychology.

Data Analyst

Jacqueline Quinn

Jacqueline Quinn is C.C.C.O.A’s leading-edge proprietary Forensic Linguistics Database (FLD) expert. Her background spans diverse fields in software development, online education, sales & marketing, and training & coaching. She is known for her exceptional leadership development training and coaching of corporate teams. Alongside her corporate work, she founded Consciousness Liberty, a pioneering platform that merges science and spirituality for personal, professional, and spiritual development. Her expertise in human development and potential, combined with her understanding of cutting-edge technologies, give her a sought-after edge to innovate in the fields of human development and performance. She is passionate about the transformative role that technologies, such as AI, machine learning, XR, online education, 3D Printing, and bioinformatics, play in driving our collective societal progress.