RC Horsch home excavated again in Philadelphia serial killer probe
RC Horsch home excavated. Police and the FBI excavated the backyard of a Philadelphia home linked to a potential serial killer investigation connected to missing women and evidence found at the property.
Police and the FBI have returned to dig up the backyard of a Philadelphia home as part of an investigation into a potential serial killer. The probe has previously turned up apparent snuff films, ash-filled urns, and evidence linked to at least seven missing women.
Images show an excavator in the backyard while police in protective gear come and go from the property. Investigators have set up tents and covered parts of the lawn in tarps, wearing safety equipment that includes face masks, hazmat suits, rubber gloves, protective sleeves, and booties.
The sheer number of crime scene technicians that are going in and out of this house — usually you try to keep it to a minimum because you don't want people trampling on things and stuff like that
Joseph Giacalone, a retired NYPD cold case sergeant and adjunct professor at the John Jay College of Criminal Justice, made that observation to reporters, adding:
I just think that there's so many different nooks and crannies that they have to cover that they need this many people. So, I mean, we're not talking three or four, we're talking 10, 12, or 14 people going in and out of this place at one time.
Police have visited the home repeatedly in recent weeks, carrying out boxes of evidence earlier this month, including one marked glass vials. A Philadelphia Police Department spokesperson declined to go into specifics about the continued searches, citing the active and ongoing investigation.
Investigators continue to examine evidence and pursue all available leads
The spokesperson added:
At this time, we are unable to provide specific details regarding investigative activities at the property, any potential findings, or the status of efforts to authenticate the previously recovered images and videos.
The home belonged to the late Raymond RC Horsch, a producer of BDSM-themed pornography and books who died last year at 82. Police searched the property after arresting his 44-year-old son, Eugene Horsch, in June. Eugene Horsch was arrested in a car alongside a woman carrying an ID belonging to one of the seven missing women linked to the investigation.
Earlier searches recovered images and videos that police said show four of the seven missing women, as well as a drum of chemicals hooked up to the house’s water system.
Investigations predicated on forensic evidence can sometimes result in repeated trips back to a crime scene
James Gagliano, a retired FBI supervisory agent and contributor, said of the ongoing work:
You find something that initiates a search into a different area. We saw how early release of a crime scene in Tucson led to so many questions. They won’t make that mistake here.
Police have publicly identified some of the women, including Maribel Fresses, 26, who vanished in 2018, and Gabrielle Amarando, 27. During Eugene Horsch’s arrest, the woman with him possessed an ID for Blair Tonzelli, 38, who was last seen in Philadelphia in February 2023.
Two other women were identified in local reports as missing persons in the National Missing and Unidentified Persons System. They include Horsch’s ex-wife, Amy McHale, 54, who was last seen on June 13, 2016, and Nicole Nikki Fusaro, 34, who vanished in July 2019.
Investigators stated they have identified dozens of other people from the recovered images, but no arrests have been linked directly to the disappearances. Police have previously excavated underground pipes, and no bodies have been found. Eugene Horsch’s arrest was unrelated to the discoveries at his father’s former home, and he has not been charged in connection with the missing women.
