Gone Cold: Philadelphia Unsolved Murders

His name is Joseph Augustus Zarelli. He was found dead in a cardboard box in February 1957, naked, scratched, bruised and scarred. More than 65 years after he was found, investigators have answered maybe the most important question in the mystery of the “Boy in the Box.” This is the story of how they found Joseph's name, and what it means to the people who have spent a lifetime searching for his identity. To learn more about listener data and our privacy practices visit: https://www.audacyinc.com/privacy-policy Learn more about your ad choices. Visit https://podcastchoices.com/adchoices

The Philadelphia Police Department has released a new composite picture of the suspect known as the “Fairmount Park Rapist” based on his genetic profile. It’s the first time the department has used the technology. Parabon NanoLabs used DNA collected at the crime scenes to create a composite of the suspect, using genetic markers.  You can look at the photo on social media or on kywnewsradio.com -- Twitter: @gonecoldphilly (https://twitter.com/GoneColdPhilly) Instagram: @gonecoldphilly (https://www.instagram.com/gonecoldphilly/) Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/groups/gonecoldphilly/ It’s been 18 years since the serial rapist’s first attack, and still no arrests.  Read Kristen's article about the DNA composite on kywnewsradio.com :   https://www.audacy.com/kywnewsradio/news/local/philadelphia-police-release-dna-composite-fairmount-park-rapist Gone Cold: Philadelphia Unsolved Murders is made by Kristen Johanson (@KristenJohanson) and Tom Rickert (@teerick). To learn more about listener data and our privacy practices visit: https://www.audacyinc.com/privacy-policy Learn more about your ad choices. Visit https://podcastchoices.com/adchoices

September 11th is a day America will never forget. What began as a ‘bright blue day’, quickly turned into a generationally traumatic event -- the deadliest terrorist attack on American soil in US history. While the nation watched in horror, first responders and investigators jumped in, trying to pick up the pieces and give the victims back to their loved ones.   Two of those people were from the Philadelphia region. Veteran Philadelphia police officer Jon Taggart works in the Crime Scene Unit. He travelled to Ground Zero with a small team and they spent weeks collecting the remains of victims and locating pieces of the planes.  Dr. Bridget McLaughlin is a dentist in New Jersey. She was one of dozens of dentists who assisted the New York Medical Examiner’s office in identifying 9-11 victims through dental records.  Stay in touch with Gone Cold by following us online: Twitter: @gonecoldphilly ( https://twitter.com/gonecoldphilly ) Instagram: @gonecoldphilly ( https://www.instagram.com/gonecoldphilly/ )  Facebook group: https://www.facebook.com/groups/GoneColdPhilly Gone Cold: Philadelphia Unsolved Murders is a true crime podcast about unsolved murders and cold cases in Philadelphia and the Delaware Valley. The show is made by Kristen Johanson (@KristenJohanson) and Tom Rickert (@teerick) at KYW Newsradio in Philadelphia.  To learn more about listener data and our privacy practices visit: https://www.audacyinc.com/privacy-policy Learn more about your ad choices. Visit https://podcastchoices.com/adchoices

In July of 2003, a woman driving through Fairmount Park called 911 after hearing a bloodcurdling scream. Police followed her back to the spot where she first heard the scream and then walked into the woods. There, they found the body of med student Rebecca Park. She had been raped and murdered while out for a jog. It's been nearly two decades since Rebecca Park was murdered. Philadelphia Police have never stopped hunting for the man who killed her, known only as the Fairmount Park rapist. Contact the Philadelphia Police Department online at https://www.phillypolice.com/ Stay in touch with Gone Cold by following the podcast: Twitter: @gonecoldphilly ( https://twitter.com/gonecoldphilly ) Instagram: @gonecoldphilly ( https://www.instagram.com/gonecoldphilly/ )  Facebook group: https://www.facebook.com/groups/GoneColdPhilly Gone Cold: Philadelphia Unsolved Murders is a true crime podcast about unsolved murders and cold cases around Philadelphia. The show is made by Kristen Johanson (@KristenJohanson) and Tom Rickert (@teerick) at KYW Newsradio in Philadelphia. Subscribe to Gone Cold wherever you get your podcasts. To learn more about listener data and our privacy practices visit: https://www.audacyinc.com/privacy-policy Learn more about your ad choices. Visit https://podcastchoices.com/adchoices

The young woman known only as Publicker Jane Doe for more than three decades was identified as Lisa Todd earlier this year. It was a triumph of investigative work and genealogy, and it was also the first time that we here at Gone Cold worked on a story -- and then saw a major update happen in the story. On this bonus episode, Gone Cold's Kristen Johanson and Tom Rickert talk about what that was like. Then, you'll hear the full interview with Kristen, Bensalem Police Detective Chris McMullin, and Yolanda McClary, the longtime investigator who led the team that used genealogy and DNA to name Lisa Todd. Part 1: What Happened to Publicker Jane Doe? LISTEN: https://bit.ly/3t2E60I  Part 2: What Happened to Jeanette Tambe? LISTEN: https://bit.ly/3sZ5CMw Part 3: Update: Naming Publicker Jane Doe LISTEN: https://bit.ly/3xz2fzi  Gone Cold: Philadelphia Unsolved Murders is made by Kristen Johanson (@KristenJohanson) and Tom Rickert (@teerick). Follow the show on Twitter: @GoneColdPhilly Instagram: @GoneColdPhilly Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/groups/gonecoldphilly/ To learn more about listener data and our privacy practices visit: https://www.audacyinc.com/privacy-policy Learn more about your ad choices. Visit https://podcastchoices.com/adchoices

This is an update to the episode "What happened to Publicker Jane Doe," from November of 2020. Make sure you listen to that episode before starting this one. The remains of a young woman were found on the property of the abandoned Publicker distillery in Bensalem in January of 1988. For more than 30 years, she was known only as Publicker Jane Doe. Bensalem Police Detective Chris McMullin has spent much of his career trying to find out her name. And then earlier this year, it happened. Through the efforts of the Bensalem Police Department and their law enforcement partners, the scientists at Bode Technology, and the incredible work of the DNA genealogy team lead by Yolanda McClary – we now know that Publicker Jane Doe is Lisa Todd. This episode is about how the remains of Lisa Todd were identified, and what it means for everyone who has been invested in this case that Publicker Jane Doe has a name.  Gone Cold: Philadelphia Unsolved Murders is made by Kristen Johanson (@KristenJohanson) and Tom Rickert (@teerick). Follow the show on Twitter: @GoneColdPhilly Instagram: @GoneColdPhilly To learn more about listener data and our privacy practices visit: https://www.audacyinc.com/privacy-policy Learn more about your ad choices. Visit https://podcastchoices.com/adchoices

On March 15th, 2018, Shelton Hayes was shot and killed in his mother's house in Northwest Philadelphia. Shelton's mother, Rhonda, was upstairs. He was 39 years old. He was a son, a brother, and a father.  If you know what happened to Shelton Hayes, please call Philadelphia Police. The tip line is 215-686-tips, or send an email to tips@phillypolice.com   Gone Cold: Philadelphia Unsolved Murders is made by Kristen Johanson (@KristenJohanson) and Tom Rickert (@teerick). Follow the show on Twitter: @GoneColdPhilly Instagram: @GoneColdPhilly To learn more about listener data and our privacy practices visit: https://www.audacyinc.com/privacy-policy Learn more about your ad choices. Visit https://podcastchoices.com/adchoices

On the morning of October 20th, 2005, a man was cutting the grass around Memorial Park in Lansdale, PA. The 10-acre park has a veterans memorial wall, tennis courts, and a baseball field with a dugout. After he drove by the dugout a few times and looked inside, he knew that something horrible had happened. More than 15 years after the murder of Michael Ewer, Lansdale Police Chief Mike Trail and Montgomery County Detective Jim McGowan are still going to work every day looking for his killer. Do you know anything about what happened to Michael Ewer? There's a $5,000 reward for information. Contact Montgomery County Detectives at 610-278-3368, or call Lansdale Police at 215-368-1801. What Happened To is a series from Gone Cold: Philadelphia Unsolved Murders, a KYW Newsradio Original Podcast. Gone Cold is made by Kristen Johanson (@KristenJohanson) and Tom Rickert (@teerick).   Follow the show on Twitter: @GoneColdPhilly   Instagram: @GoneColdPhilly To learn more about listener data and our privacy practices visit: https://www.audacyinc.com/privacy-policy Learn more about your ad choices. Visit https://podcastchoices.com/adchoices

On August 8, 1986, a couple drove from Philadelphia to Buena Vista, New Jersey to check on a home they were building. They pulled into the driveway, walked around the property, and found something horrible: the mangled body of a woman, wrists shackled, in the blood soaked yard. This story started in the last episode, "What Happened to Publicker Jane Doe?" When Bensalem Police Detective Chris McMullin was trying to find the identity of the murder victim known only as Publicker Jane Doe, one of the leads he followed was the disappearance of a young woman named Jeanette Tambe. After a lot of boots on the ground police work and DNA analysis, he found something he wasn't expecting, and ended up helping to unravel another mystery that had gone unsolved for decades. If you know anything about the murder of Jeanette Tambe, please send an email to ColdCase@NJSP.org. Thank you to Detective Sergeant Joseph Itri and Detective Taylor Bonner with the New Jersey State Police Cold Case Unit, and Bensalem Police Detective Chris McMullin. What Happened To is a series from Gone Cold: Philadelphia Unsolved Murders, a KYW Newsradio Original Podcast. Gone Cold is made by Kristen Johanson (@KristenJohanson) and Tom Rickert (@teerick).   Follow the show on Twitter: @GoneColdPhilly Instagram: @GoneColdPhilly To learn more about listener data and our privacy practices visit: https://www.audacyinc.com/privacy-policy Learn more about your ad choices. Visit https://podcastchoices.com/adchoices

In January of 1988 a young girl's remains were found near the old Publicker Distillery in Bucks County, PA. She was pregnant when she died. For more than 30 years, her name has remained a mystery. Bensalem Police Detective Chris McMullin has followed leads in the case that have taken him across state lines and even across the country in his mission to find two things: Who was the girl known as Publicker Jane Doe? And who killed her?  If you have information about who Jane Doe may be, call Detective Chris McMullin at the Bensalem Police Department: 215-633-3700. Or, you can leave an anonymous tip here: https://bucks.crimewatchpa.com/bensalempd/15488/submit-tip What Happened To is a series from Gone Cold: Philadelphia Unsolved Murders, a KYW Newsradio Original Podcast. Gone Cold is made by Kristen Johanson (@KristenJohanson) and Tom Rickert (@teerick). Follow the show on Twitter: @GoneColdPhilly Instagram: @GoneColdPhilly To learn more about listener data and our privacy practices visit: https://www.audacyinc.com/privacy-policy Learn more about your ad choices. Visit https://podcastchoices.com/adchoices

It was the Thursday after Mother's Day. A group of teenagers on Park Avenue in Philadelphia saw something large, wrapped in blankets on the back seat of a white Pontiac. A few days earlier, Melvin Dunn's family sent out a desperate plea for help. Melvin had missed Mother's Day for the first time ever, and they couldn't find him.  If you have any information about what happened to Melvin Dunn, contact the Philadelphia Police Department. Leave an anonymous tip at 215-686-8477, or send an email to tips@phillypolice.com What Happened To is a new series from Gone Cold: Philadelphia Unsolved Murders, a KYW Newsradio Original Podcast. Gone Cold is made by Kristen Johanson (@KristenJohanson) and Tom Rickert (@teerick). Follow the show on Twitter: @GoneColdPhilly Instagram: @GoneColdPhilly To learn more about listener data and our privacy practices visit: https://www.audacyinc.com/privacy-policy Learn more about your ad choices. Visit https://podcastchoices.com/adchoices

In February of 1957 the body of a young boy was found in a box in the woods near Susquehanna Road in Philadelphia. More than 60 years later, the identity of The Boy in the Box and the identity of his killer remain unknown.  When the Boy was found, his body was photographed and flyers seeking information were distributed all over Philadelphia. Bill Fleisher and Barb Cohan were kids at the time. They saw the flyers, and the image of the boy's body was permanently etched in their minds. Fleisher became one of the founders of the Vidocq Society, a group of investigators, forensic scientists, and experts who help law enforcement solve crimes. Cohan, a former federal prosecutor, has been a member of the Vidocq Society for more than two decades. Walt Hunter covered the investigation into the Boy in the Box for all of his 30-plus year career as a Philadelphia investigative reporter. Now, he's the public voice and face of the Vidocq Society. Cohan, Fleisher, Hunter, and the rest of the Vidocq Society have remained dedicated to solving the mystery of the Boy in the Box and putting a name on his gravestone.  You can find the Philadelphia Police Department online at https://www.phillypolice.com/ Read more about the Vidocq Society: https://www.vidocq.org/ Stay in touch with Gone Cold by following us online: Twitter: @gonecoldphilly  ( https://twitter.com/gonecoldphilly ) Instagram: @gonecoldphilly ( https://www.instagram.com/gonecoldphilly/ )   Facebook group: https://www.facebook.com/groups/GoneColdPhilly Gone Cold: Philadelphia Unsolved Murders is a true crime podcast about unsolved murders and cold cases in Philadelphia and the Delaware Valley. The show is made by Kristen Johanson (@KristenJohanson) and Tom Rickert (@teerick) in the KYW Newsradio studios in Philadelphia. Subscribe to Gone Cold wherever you get your podcasts. See omnystudio.com/policies/listener for privacy information. To learn more about listener data and our privacy practices visit: https://www.audacyinc.com/privacy-policy Learn more about your ad choices. Visit https://podcastchoices.com/adchoices

Jennifer Tong was taken from her Marple Township home and murdered in 1993. Her children were 11 and 14 years old, left without a mother. Jeanette Tong doesn't like to talk about the day her life changed forever, 26 years ago, when she learned her mom was murdered. But she came to talk to us anyway. Joe Maguire clearly remembers June 26, 1993. He was the Radnor Police detective on duty that weekend, and he was taking a class at the firehouse when his pager went off, summoning him to the scene. 26 years after the murder, Jeanette, Joe, and T.J. Schreiber, the Radnor Police detective now in charge of the investigation, want to make sure you don't forget about Jennifer Tong. If you know anything about the murder of Jennifer Tong, contact Radnor Detectives by email at detectives@radnor.org, or call them at 610-688-0503 and ask to speak to a Radnor detective. You can see videos and photos from the people you heard in the episode on all our social media places: Twitter: @GoneColdPhilly  Instagram: @GoneColdPhilly  Facebook group: facebook.com/groups/gonecoldphilly   Gone Cold is a true crime podcast about unsolved murders and cold cases in the Philadelphia area. The show is made by Kristen Johanson (@KristenJohanson) and Tom Rickert (@teerick)  in the KYW Newsradio Studios in Philadelphia. Subscribe to Gone Cold on the radio.com app or wherever you get your podcasts. See omnystudio.com/policies/listener for privacy information. To learn more about listener data and our privacy practices visit: https://www.audacyinc.com/privacy-policy Learn more about your ad choices. Visit https://podcastchoices.com/adchoices

Pete Kane is a photojournalist at NBC10 in Philadelphia. You met him in Episode 7: Officer Cione -- he talked about what it was like living in the neighborhood where Fred Cione was murdered, and described what the next few weeks and months were like in the middle of an intense investigation. But that's just what we used in the actual episode. Pete also told us incredible stories about growing up in North Philly in the middle of gang wars, watching the riots after Dr. King was assassinated, living through the crack epidemic of the 1980s, and saving a man's life on a bridge. We wanted to make sure you could hear Pete's stories too, so we made this extra. Thank you, very much, to Pete Kane and NBC10 for making this episode possible. Stay tuned for updates on Episode 8 and 9 soon! Keep in touch with us on Instagram: @gonecoldphilly, twitter: @gonecoldphilly, and Facebook: facebook.com/groups/gonecoldphilly/. See omnystudio.com/policies/listener for privacy information. To learn more about listener data and our privacy practices visit: https://www.audacyinc.com/privacy-policy Learn more about your ad choices. Visit https://podcastchoices.com/adchoices

Kristen and Tom took Gone Cold to a live audience for the Philadelphia Podcast Festival at the end of July. Special guests Jacque Davis and Greg Yatcilla dive into what it's like to be crime scene officers for the Philadelphia Police Department, and Tom and Kristen have some updates to episodes 1 - 6. Special thanks to the Philadelphia Podcast Festival, Indy Hall, and Jacque, Greg, and the Philadelphia Police Department. Join the podcast discussion group on Facebook! facebook.com/groups/gonecoldphilly See omnystudio.com/policies/listener for privacy information. To learn more about listener data and our privacy practices visit: https://www.audacyinc.com/privacy-policy Learn more about your ad choices. Visit https://podcastchoices.com/adchoices

You met Gerald Ross Jr. in Episode 7: Officer Cione. He was a police officer and homicide detective in Philadelphia in the 60s and 70s -- one of the detectives who arrived at the scene of Fred Cione's murder the night Fred was shot. That part of his story is in Episode 7. But Gerald Ross has more stories to tell than just the ones that made it into the last episode. We wanted to share some of them, like the time he was shot in the line of duty. And what it was like being an African American police officer under Police Commissioner Frank Rizzo. And he even has a few things to say about his nephew, current Philadelphia Police Commissioner Richard Ross. Come see Gone Cold LIVE at the Philadelphia Podcast Festival! We're doing the show live at 2pm on Saturday, July 27, at Indy Hall in Philadelphia (399 Market St., #360). We'll be talking about updates to Officer Cione's case and all of the homicides we've covered so far, and we'll have two completely amazing real life Crime Scene Investigators joining us. Bring your questions! Event info is at kywnewsradio.com/gonecoldlive  Gone Cold is a true crime podcast about unsolved murders and cold cases in Philadelphia and the Delaware Valley. The show is made by Kristen Johanson (@KristenJohanson) and Tom Rickert (@teerick) in the KYW Newsradio Studios in Philadelphia. Follow us on Twitter: @gonecoldphilly  Instagram: @gonecoldphilly  And join the Facebook group: Facebook.com/groups/gonecoldphilly  Subscribe to Gone Cold wherever you get your podcasts! See omnystudio.com/policies/listener for privacy information. To learn more about listener data and our privacy practices visit: https://www.audacyinc.com/privacy-policy Learn more about your ad choices. Visit https://podcastchoices.com/adchoices

On Jan. 30, 1970, Officer Frederick Cione was shot and killed on Oxford Street in North Philadelphia. He was 25 years old. Nearly 50 years later, his killing is still the only unsolved murder of a Philadelphia police officer in department history. If you have information about the killing of Officer Cione, please contact the Philadelphia Police Department. Their website is phillypolice.com. Tom and Kristen from Gone Cold: Philadelphia Unsolved Murders will be at the Philadelphia Podcast Festival hosting a live show on July 27 at 2 p.m. at Indy Hall , 399 Market St., #360. Come hang out with us! Find videos and pictures of the people you hear in this episode and more things we found from 50 years ago: Twitter: @gonecoldphilly  Instagram: @gonecoldphilly   Facebook group: facebook.com/groups/GoneColdPhilly Thank you to the Philadelphia homicide detectives who are working to solve the case, Philadelphia Police Commissioner Richard Ross, Gerald Ross Jr., Pete Kane, and Nick Cione. This story is possible because of you, thank you for making the time for us. Gone Cold is a true crime podcast about unsolved murders and cold cases in Philadelphia and the Delaware Valley. The show is made by Kristen Johanson (@KristenJohanson) and Tom Rickert (@teerick) in the KYW Newsradio studios in Philadelphia. Subscribe to Gone Cold wherever you get your podcasts. See omnystudio.com/policies/listener for privacy information. To learn more about listener data and our privacy practices visit: https://www.audacyinc.com/privacy-policy Learn more about your ad choices. Visit https://podcastchoices.com/adchoices

Eric Birnbaum was a beloved father, brother, and son, working as an attorney in a quiet Bucks County town. On February 11, 2009, Eric was murdered in the parking lot of his Northampton Township office. A decade later, investigators still actively search for his killer, and have just released a composite sketch of the shooter in hopes of helping the cold case gain traction. If you know something about the murder of Eric Birnbaum, you can submit an anonymous tip on CRIMEWATCH. Download the app HERE Call the tip line at 215-546-8477. The Northampton Police Department can be reached at (215) 322-6111, or online at northamptontownship.com   See the sketch of the suspect on one of our social media pages. Twitter: @gonecoldphilly   Instagram: @gonecoldphilly  Facebook Group at Facebook.com/groups/GoneColdPhilly   This episode is dedicated to the memory of Katie Kovalcik Raiguel. Gone Cold is a true crime podcast about unsolved murders and cold cases in Philadelphia and the Delaware Valley. The show is made by Kristen Johanson (@KristenJohanson) and Tom Rickert (@teerick) in the KYW Newsradio Studios in Philadelphia. Subscribe to Gone Cold wherever you get your podcasts.   See omnystudio.com/policies/listener for privacy information. To learn more about listener data and our privacy practices visit: https://www.audacyinc.com/privacy-policy Learn more about your ad choices. Visit https://podcastchoices.com/adchoices

Dr. Erin Kimmerle digs up bodies. She's carefully picked through mass graves in Kosovo and Croatia to identify victims of war crimes. She did the same thing in Peru, where men, women, and children were executed by the military forty years ago. She dug up the bones of young boys murdered at a Florida reform school. And this summer, she came to Philadelphia, to dig up bodies. This is a special edition of Gone Cold: Philadelphia Unsolved Murders. It originally appeared on our sister podcast, Scroll Down. You can follow Scroll Down on Twitter: @ScrollDownPod . Gone Cold is hosted by Kristen Johanson (@KristenJohanson) and Tom Rickert (@teerick) in the KYW Newsradio studios in Philadelphia. Follow the show on twitter: @GoneColdPhilly  See omnystudio.com/policies/listener for privacy information. To learn more about listener data and our privacy practices visit: https://www.audacyinc.com/privacy-policy Learn more about your ad choices. Visit https://podcastchoices.com/adchoices

Tomiene Jones worked the night shift at the post office. She would take her young daughter to the babysitter, and then drive to work. She'd done this many times before, and each time, she came back to pick up her daughter after her shift. Then they'd go home. But on April 17th, 2002, Tomiene didn't go to work. She didn't pick up her daughter. And she didn't come home. Nobody ever saw Tomiene Jones again. Gone Cold is a true crime podcast about unsolved murders in the Philadelphia area. This case takes place in South Jersey. Our goal is to document what happens after the taking of a life, the collateral damage that takes place after a senseless act of violence. To tell the stories of the people left behind, and the people who are still on the job. To remember the lives of the ones who aren't with us. And, hopefully, to help police get tips that help them solve the case.  If you have a tip about this case, please call the Gloucester County Prosecutor's Office at (856) 384-5500. You can also leave a tip online: CLICK HERE Thanks to Wendy Ruderman (@wendyruderman) for her help with this episode.  Gone Cold: Philadelphia Unsolved Murders is a KYW Newsradio original podcast, made by Tom Rickert (@teerick) and Kristen Johanson (@kristenjohanson) in the KYW Newsradio studios in Philadelphia.  Follow the podcast on Twitter: @GoneColdPhilly Join our Facebook group and talk about the cases with us! Here's the link: https://www.facebook.com/groups/GoneColdKYW See omnystudio.com/policies/listener for privacy information. To learn more about listener data and our privacy practices visit: https://www.audacyinc.com/privacy-policy Learn more about your ad choices. Visit https://podcastchoices.com/adchoices