True crime fans have a way of latching onto the smallest details. Sometimes, a single object becomes the focal point of an entire mystery, a tiny piece of evidence that seems to hold the weight of a conviction or an acquittal. That’s exactly what happened with the pin at apartment 210 Dateline episode, which covered the tragic and baffling death of 19-year-old Kenia Monge. If you’ve spent any time on true crime forums or watched the NBC coverage, you know this case isn't just about a disappearance. It’s about a series of "coincidences" that felt anything but random.
Kenia vanished in April 2011 after a night out in Denver. She left her purse and cell phone at a nightclub, which is basically every parent's worst nightmare realized in real-time. But the case took a turn when Travis Forbes entered the picture. Forbes was the man who claimed to have given her a ride, and his story—specifically the details surrounding his van and that specific apartment—became the nexus of the investigation.
Why the Pin at Apartment 210 Dateline Remains So Chilling
The "pin" isn't a piece of jewelry. It's a tracking point, a digital breadcrumb, and a physical location all rolled into one. When detectives started looking into Travis Forbes, they weren't just looking at him; they were looking at his movements. The Dateline coverage highlighted how investigators used cell tower pings to place Forbes near specific locations. One of those locations was a bakery where he worked, but the most haunting "pin" on the map was the one associated with the apartment complex where the timeline started to fall apart for him.
He told a story. He said he dropped Kenia off at a gas station. He claimed she met some other guy. It was a classic deflection. However, the digital evidence—the literal pins on a map—told a story of a van idling in places it shouldn't have been.
Honestly, the way the Denver police tracked this was pretty brilliant for the time. They didn't have the sophisticated GPS tracking we have in 2026, but they had enough. They saw the discrepancies. They saw that Forbes wasn't where he said he was. The "pin at apartment 210" became a shorthand for the moment the police realized they weren't dealing with a Good Samaritan. They were dealing with a predator.
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The Van, The Cooler, and The Discrepancies
You have to understand the sheer guts it took for Forbes to try and play the hero. He actually went to the police station voluntarily. He thought he could outsmart them. While he was sitting there giving his "statement," investigators were already noticing things that didn't add up.
There was the smell of bleach.
If you've ever cleaned a bathroom, you know that sharp, stinging scent. Now imagine that scent coming from the back of a van. Forbes claimed he spilled something. He claimed he was just a clean guy. But when you combine the chemical smell with the cell phone pins that put him near Apartment 210 and later near a remote area off I-70, the "clean guy" act starts to look a lot more like a "covering my tracks" act.
The Dateline episode, titled "The Girl with the Blue Tattoo," did a deep dive into these specifics. It wasn't just about the murder of Kenia Monge; it was about how Forbes was also linked to the brutal attack on Lydia Tillman in Fort Collins. The "pin" in the Kenia case was the precursor to catching a serial attacker before his body count could grow even higher.
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What the Investigation Revealed About Apartment 210
Why Apartment 210? It was a location linked to Forbes' world. It served as a landmark in the digital reconstruction of his night. In true crime storytelling, these specific numbers—Apartment 210, Room 101—tend to stick in the audience's mind because they ground the abstract horror in a physical place.
- The location provided a gap in his alibi.
- It was a point where witnesses saw the van.
- It contradicted his claim of a linear "drop off" at the gas station.
The detectives didn't just take his word for it. They went to the gas station. They checked the surveillance footage. Guess what? No Kenia. No white van dropping off a girl. The "pin" was the truth; the story was the lie.
The Resolution Most People Forget
Eventually, the pressure of the "pins" and the mounting physical evidence broke him. Travis Forbes eventually led police to Kenia’s body, which he had buried in a shallow grave near Keenesburg. He pleaded guilty to first-degree murder to avoid the death penalty.
He's currently serving a life sentence without the possibility of parole.
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People often get confused about whether the "pin" was a physical piece of evidence left at the scene or a digital one. In the context of the Dateline episode and the trial, it was the digital footprint that mattered most. It proved Forbes was circling, waiting, and lying.
Lessons From the Kenia Monge Case
This case changed how a lot of people think about "stranger danger" in the modern age. It wasn't just a random snatching; it was a man who used the guise of being a helpful driver to lure someone who was vulnerable.
- Trust the digital trail. If your gut says someone is lying, the metadata usually proves it. Your phone is a witness that never forgets.
- The "Good Samaritan" trope is a common predator tactic. Forbes used his "helpfulness" as a shield.
- Persistence matters. Kenia's stepfather, Tony Lee, was relentless. He confronted Forbes. He didn't wait for the police to do everything; he pushed until the cracks in the story became canyons.
If you're looking for actionable ways to stay safe or help in these situations, it's about the "buddy system" but with a digital twist. Always use "Live Location" sharing features when getting into a ride-share or a vehicle with someone you don't know well. In 2011, Kenia didn't have that option. Today, we do.
The "pin" in Apartment 210 wasn't just a coordinate on a map. It was the beginning of the end for a killer who thought he was invisible. It serves as a reminder that in the age of data, there is no such thing as a perfect crime.
To truly understand the impact of this case, look into the Lydia Tillman story as well. It provides the terrifying context of what Travis Forbes was capable of when he wasn't being tracked by the digital pins of Apartment 210.
Next Steps for True Crime Sleuths:
- Review the official Denver Police Department archives on the Kenia Monge case for the full forensic timeline.
- Watch the "The Girl with the Blue Tattoo" episode of Dateline (Season 20, Episode 13) to see the original interviews with Tony Lee and the lead investigators.
- Use ride-sharing safety features like "Share My Trip" every single time you travel alone, ensuring your own "pins" are always visible to people you trust.