richard cottingham lodi, nj address

I was shocked that one human being was capable of all this carnage, Moye said of Cottingham. 0000009264 00000 n It took some effort to convince him to go to court and let me make it public, Anzilotti said Tuesday. Altman, who was just 3 years old at the time, said her parents had separated prior to Cusicks killing. [22][23] He pleaded guilty in a December court appearance, and also officially admitted killing four other women in Long Island: Mary Beth Heinz,[24] Laverne Moye,[16] Sheila Heiman,[25] and Maria Emerita Rosado Nieves.[26]. Boyfriends, ex-boyfriends, family members all were questioned and cleared of suspicion. 0000003183 00000 n In 2000, as a young detective in the Bergen County prosecutors office, Robert Anzilotti was tasked with looking into the murders, along with a few other similar cold cases from the 1960s and 1970s. O'Dell's muffled cries of pain became so loud that the motel staff, already uneased by the previous two murders of Carr and Street, called police and then rushed to the room demanding that Cottingham open the door. Cottingham had kept these items as souvenirs so that he could remember his victims and relive his attacks. Hes hedged around and all but confessed.. This is the house where the "Times Square Killer," Richard Cottingham, lived between 1975 and 1980. Feech La Manna's house from The Sopranos. The clever killer slipped up, leaving a fingerprint on the cuffs. The inmate made it clear that pressure would not work. Below, you will find the address and the GPS coordinates for this location. In April 1978, Cottingham's wife filed for divorce on the grounds of "abandonment" and "mental cruelty" (refusing to have sex with her after the birth of their third child, staying out until early morning, and leaving her with insufficient household funds). This story has been shared 151,197 times. But on May 22, 1980 Cottingham's life as a predator came to light. But Mr. Anzilotti kept pressing him: You know youre going to tell me.. Authorities tied him to the killings after police were called to a Hasbrouck Heights motel, where a maid had heard a woman screaming. It was just shock all the way around.. The teenagers were last seen on Aug. 9, 1974, in North Bergen. On Dec. 2, 1979, the murders that earned Cottingham the nickname the "Torso Killer took place in New York City. Instead, she ended up shopping at one of Bergen Countys malls, according to Vronsky. Its mind-boggling and very scary, especially to know theres more of them out there.. In fact, Mr. Cottingham lurked around the fringes of a seedy Times Square and the prostitutes who worked its streets. Seth Wenig/Associated Press By Ed Shanahan Dec. 5, 2022 On a. As the New Jersey press reported on Cottinghams arrest, the NYPD started to take notice. . A judge sentenced him to 25 years to life after Cusicks brother and only child read emotional impact statements in court. They'd left home for a trip 13 miles (21 kilometers) north to . 0000001982 00000 n Six months later, Vronsky would learn that the man he encountered on the elevator was Cottingham as the killers face appeared in newspapers across the region. Between 1970 and 1974, Cottingham and his wife, Janet, lived at an apartment block called Ledgewood Terrace in Little Ferry, New Jersey. <<8BD7E4F5B15F3F4A8993EB3A0150F7AC>]>> [4], On October 3, 1969, Cottingham was charged and convicted of drunk driving in New York City and was fined $50 (equivalent to $400 in 2021). His "justification" for doing this was that he "didn't like anyone getting one over" on him. Retrieved April 2nd, 2007, from Factiva database. (1981, June 25). Cottingham, who is also nicknamed "The Torso Killer," moved into this rented three-bedroom house in February of 1975. %%EOF He said he would talk about other murders only on the condition that the revelations would be kept out of the papers. But he carried those cold cases with him literally, his thick files in cardboard boxes that he moved from office to office chipping away at the false leads, seeking similarities in the victims and in the crime scenes. But it was a way to get him comfortable to talk to me about murders.. Then he followed with an unusual request. Defense attorney John Bruno recited the details, which the white-bearded, 74-year-old killer acknowledged. Cottingham was not charged with this murder until June 2022, when he was implicated by DNA.[10]. In this case, instead, he removed her breasts and placed them on the headboard for shock value, former Commanding Officer of Bronx Homicide and criminal profiler Vernon Geberth says in the series, noting it convinced him of one thing: Still, at the time, no one suspected the scope of this sexual sadists homicidal footprint, which stretched into the Garden State and had started more than a decade prior. He was locked away to serve several life sentences, aging into a portly man with a thick white beard. In April 1978, after his wife had initiated divorce proceedings, he kept a locked room in a basement apartment of the house in which they lived in Lodi, New Jersey. This is a private property. Harp was found strangled to death the next day. The schoolgirl murder confessions increased that to to nine. For more information, please read our Privacy & Cookie Policy. However, he started killing again in 1974, when he murdered Lorraine Marie Kelly and Mary Ann Pryor. The people listed below were born in, residents of, or otherwise closely associated with Lodi, New Jersey. A maid heard the teenagers guttural screams and called police. A case based on his "signature pattern" was built against him, combined with the testimony of four surviving victims, as well as pieces of his victims' jewellery and other items found in his possession after his arrest. He described things only the killer would know, like where hed thrown her car keys afterward. 0000000756 00000 n Vronsky, who frequently visits Cottingham in prison, said he had a freak, random elevator encounter with the serial killer on the early morning of Dec. 2, 1979, as he tried to check into the Travel Inn Motel near a seedy and sex-crazed Times Square. Hes younger when all this is going on in Bergen County, he said. He also claimed to have committed 80 perfect murders no one knows about. He drove his car ahead of Harp, pulled over and walked back toward her, Vronsky said. F! Moye, 55, stared down serial murderer and rapist Richard Cottingham in a Nassau County courtroom Monday as the 76-year-old notorious "Torso Killer" admitted to five more sadistic slayings. I never broke my promise to him, all these years later, the chief said. (1981, June 16). Cottingham has confessed to murdering 12 women. Anyone can read what you share. Community Rules apply to all content you upload or otherwise submit to this site. The girls vanished Aug. 9, 1974, while hitchhiking to a mall in . To this day, their remains have never been recovered. It doesnt bring my mother back, but at least I have answers now. The police believed they had given up on the bus and were trying to hitchhike to a mall. His yearbook photo shows a cross-country runner with blond hair slicked back. His upcoming sentencing will add more time to a prison term that already extends beyond his remaining years. On Monday, July 13, 1969, at approximately 8:00 p.m., On March 1, 1970, a group of hikers came across a young woman's naked body in the woods to the west of Tweed Boulevard in, At approximately 7:00 a.m. on the morning of December 16, 1977, the body of X-ray technician, At 9:30 a.m. on May 22, 1980, police entered Room 117 at the same Quality Inn where Carr and Street were murdered and found 18-year-old, This page was last edited on 2 March 2023, at 15:20. He had pornographic artwork, adhesive tape, books about S&M, said Geberth. He soon realized the woman had no head, the Daily News reported. It was pure evil. The potential payoff in return felt almost too important to describe. Anzilotti and BCPO subsequently confirmed the "exceptional closures" of these three murders.[13][8]. He began torturing her, nearly biting off one of her nipples. As you can see, he didn't always look like Santa Claus. 0000003125 00000 n Ms. The victim, Valerie Street, had just been busted in Miami for prostitution, and was last seen getting picked up by a man in New York City. Twenty years later, he was reinvestigating several cold cases involving girls and young women who had been abducted, sexually abused and killed. Although Cottingham has formally admitted to eighteen killings and has claimed to have killed as many as 100, he is known to have only murdered seventeen girls between 1967 and 1980 and attempted to kill a further four. The family lived in Lodi, and Mr. Cottingham commuted to a job as a computer operator at Blue Cross Blue Shield in Manhattan. And later that same month, a fifth woman was found mutilated in the former Hotel Seville near Fifth Avenue in Manhattan. That made 11 murders Cottingham that admitted since his arrest more than 30 years ago. Richard Cottingham was born in 1946 and grew up largely in New Jersey. 21 23 In December 2019, forensic historian and author Peter Vronsky, on the eve of publishing the revelation in his second edition of Serial Killers: The Method and Madness of Monsters, publicized the confessions with the BCPO's cooperation, in a community meeting in Midland Park. I had long suspected that whoever killed Irene Blase also killed Denise Falasca, Mr. Anzilotti said. He said he wouldn't have done it if I wasn't retiring.. Math-wise its possible," said Vronsky. If hes going to confess to some others, if they can get him to talk, just for those families if he can confess to those, that right there would be I dont know the right word to say, Ms. Mulder said. All rights reserved (About Us). Five months later, the serial slayer struck again, strangling Maria Emerita Rosado Nieves, an 18-year-old Manhattan woman originally from Puerto Rico. One would remind him of a TV actress. Pages in category "People from Lodi, New Jersey" The following 21 pages are in this category, out of 21 total. Follow him on Twitter @rodrigotorrejon. [4], On May 3, 1970, Cottingham was married at Our Lady of Lourdes Church in Queens Village, Queens. Canadian author Peter Vronsky is now writing his second book on the horrifying killing spree that culminated in May 1980 at a New Jersey motel, where cops arrested Cottingham after he handcuffed, stabbed and bit an 18-year-old woman. 0000006081 00000 n Hed been a married father of three, but the Lodi resident - who would brutalize his victims bodies, cutting off limbs, heads and breasts - would later become known as the Torso Killer" for what he left behind. The chief contacted the Blase family and told them what they had ached to know for decades: He knew who had killed Irene. My whole life has been this, she said. Her attacker was caught as he ran away. Its his fault this is out.. Again and again, for 15 years, Mr. Anzilotti met with the inmate, seeking the truth. 0000005253 00000 n Around dawn, they checked into the same Hasbrouck Heights Quality Inn where he had left Valerie Street's handcuffed body under a bed to be discovered by a housekeeper. He had been dubbed the Times Square Torso Ripper setting off Vronskys lifelong fascination of serial killers. The girls, Mary Ann Pryor, 17, and Lorraine Kelly, 16, had last been seen days earlier at a nearby bus stop. Click here to follow Daily Voice Hackensack and receive free news updates. In 1948, Cottingham's family moved to Dumont, New Jersey, and in 1956 to River Vale, New Jersey, where he began his fascination with bondage pornography. After the hearing, the cameras off, Mr. Anzilotti approached Mr. Cottingham. Cottingham then confessed to more murders including Nancy Vogel, whom he killed in 1967, and five teenaged victims from New Jersey, none of whom were in the sex trade. Bergen County investigators realized there were numerous open sexual assault cases with similar hallmarks: Cottingham kidnapped them from Times Square, drugged and assaulted them. Use of and/or registration on any portion of this site constitutes acceptance of our User Agreement, Privacy Policy and Cookie Statement, and Your Privacy Choices and Rights (each updated 1/26/2023). It was Aug. 14, 1974, in Montvale, N.J., a suburb just over the New York state line. The chief agreed. She knew that Mr. Anzilotti had solved Denises killing, too. He'd been a married father of three, but the Lodi resident - who would brutalize his victim's bodies, cutting off limbs, heads and breasts - would later become known as the "Torso Killer" for. Mr. Anzilotti, doing his best not to betray any emotion, slowly pulled out his Blackberry and took notes. Starting in 2014, Cottingham confidentially admitted to Detective Robert Anzilotti of the Bergen County Prosecutor's Office (BCPO) to being the perpetrator of the murders of three teenage females between 1968 and 1969. She agreed to have sex with him for money. His search for a killer led him to a man already locked away, in New Jersey State Prison, 75 miles from his office. 7{(~tm LB IBJ*ZB`0 Anything that might close more cases, bring answers to more families. [1] He was nicknamed the New York Ripper, the Torso Killer and the Times Square Killer, since his crimes often targeted prostitutes and included mutilation. [3], Richard Francis Cottingham was born on November 25, 1946, in the Mott Haven neighborhood of the Bronx in New York City, the first of four children. In 2009, decades after his first five murder convictions, Cottingham told a journalist that he had committed at least 80 to 100 "perfect murders" of women in various regions of the United States. H|U0+(QvG`b08NbHlSoZ2CRSs=* \e~ They sat at the kitchen table, very professional, very polite, very considerate, Ms. Mulder recalled. Over time, though, one investigator was slowly developing a theory. Once, he outright explained his hesitation: He said, I know once I give you that case, Ill never see you again, Mr. Anzilotti recalled last month. I was shocked that it was a serial killer, Moye said of his mothers confessed murderer. "From the sense of other things that Im uncovering, he was a very busy boy., I think the math worked out to one every six weeks, Vronsky also said. Richard is related to Rosemarie Marie Cunningham and Larry J Cunningham as well as 3 additional people. Like two little dolls at Christmastime.. He tried a different approach. On May 22, Cottingham then picked up Leslie Ann ODell, a 19-year-old runaway desperate to escape her pimp something he promised to help her do over drinks in Midtown. Theyre pushing him on multiple other cases. Hes been interviewing Cottingham in state prison for years. [13] In 2021, he pleaded guilty to the 1974 kidnapping, raping and drowning of Lorraine Marie Kelly and Mary Ann Pryor. There was also a lockbox filled with trophies from his murders, including Maryann Carrs apartment key and a necklace belonging to Jean Reyner. And at the time, it was beyond our capacity to look beyond New York City, he told The Post. 21 0 obj <> endobj Notably, none of his crimes took place on the property. When Mr. Cottingham entered prison in 1981, Robert Anzilotti was not yet a teenager. Richard Cottingham, a family man who denied everything in court, was convicted of killing five women in the early 1980s. This guy was particularly ruthless. On Dec. 2, 1979, fire alarms rang out at the Travel Inn Motor Hotel on West 42nd Street. The picture in the top left corner shows Cottingham during one of his trials. Its taken more than 46 years, but a Bergen County police veteran who is only days from retirement got one of the countrys most notorious serial killers to confess. God rest their souls," Bergen County Prosecutor's Chief of Detective Robert Anzilotti said Tuesday after Richard Cottingham of Lodi admitted killing both in 1974. . Furthermore, one of the women that he murdered in 1979 is still unidentified. By all accounts, he seemed to be leading an everyday life in Lodi, New Jersey, with his wife and three kids. I just ruled him out. 21 23 Photos of the house and other related images. He would occasionally remove and dispose of his victims heads and hands, presumably to make identification more difficult. Everyone deserves justice under the law.. Author Peter Vronsky, who has a forthcoming book on Cottingham, and was first to publicly announce that the imprisoned Cottingham was responsible for the three 50-year-old crimes, says authorities want to add more to the list. But something a hunch, past investigative speculation, the proximity of the crimes drew Mr. Anzilotti to the prisoner. The house was built in 1974one year before Cottingham and his wife, Janet, moved in. Richard Cottingham, Lorraine . Peter Karas/The Record, via USA Today Network. On February 15, 1968, Cottingham killed his second known victim. Unfortunately, we were unable to find a photograph of Jean Reyner. He called his detectives and gave the word: Bring in Cottingham. Vronsky, whose works also include an authoritative tome cataloging 17,000 years of pathological homicide, said Cottingham scouted his victims before transforming from a family man into a ferocious monster. It will take her a while to forget the habit of calling the detectives for updates a lifetime constant, through the deaths of her parents, her marriage and divorce, her second marriage and widowhood. With Ms. Pryor and a judge watching on Zoom that day, Mr. Cottingham pleaded guilty to the two murders. Years ticked past, 1974 into 1975, into the 1980s, the 1990s. 0 A local investigator began to wonder: Could there be a link to a series of infamous Times Square murders? Look her up, she looks like her. Others he remembered from a haircut.. They have also lived in Manasquan, NJ and Ada, MI. 43 0 obj<>stream Her glasses, a ring, a necklace, Ms. Mulder said. Again, he knew details from Ms. Falascas file. Richard Cottingham was born in 1946 and was raised mostly in New Jersey, according to the The New York Times. The following is a list of his victims in chronological order. His name had floated around in the lore of Bergen County cold cases.. Filming Location in Lodi, New Jersey, United States, Filming Location in Paterson, New Jersey, United States, Filming Location in Clifton, New Jersey, United States, Filming Location in Bloomfield, New Jersey, United States, Crime Location Wylie, Texas, United States, Crime Location Memphis, Tennessee, United States, Place of Interest Brooklyn, New York, United States, Crash Site Location Beaufort, South Carolina, United States. Note that there seems to have been a "lull" between 1970 and 1973. Goodarzi was later identified as the woman who had been tortured, killed, beheaded and had her hands cut off by Cottingham. He remembers certain aspects of a person, Mr. Anzilotti said. The five victims addressed . The items included necklaces, broaches, earrings, and other pieces of jewelry. In 2010, Bergen County authorities announced hed pleaded guilty to a sixth murder, a 1967 strangling in Bergen County. The year 2020 arrived, and running his office through the coronavirus outbreak kept Mr. Anzilotti too busy for cold cases. To this day, I dont even think they would have ever said anything. Cottingham's confirmed killings resulted in nine convictions and a further eight confessions under non-prosecution agreements, leading to him serving multiple life sentences in New Jersey prisons. Serial killer Richard Cottingham made his admission in the cold case murders of the high school girls, acknowledging that he kidnapped, raped and finally drowned the pair inside a motel room. Her youth and difference in appearance, with a boyish haircut, set her apart from the other victims. It is my fervent hope that this arrest and conviction bring some semblance of closure to the friends and family of Mary Ann and Lorraine and a measure of justice to members of our communities, who have long feared this unknown actor.. It represented closure, Moye said of this weeks hearing. This location belongs to the following categories: Follow us on Facebook or Twitter to see future locations. This is a "Then and Now" photograph of Cottingham's former house at 29 Vreeland Street. Absolutely, its completely plausible. Ive never seen rain like that, he said. In the new docuseries, the second in Netflixs Crime Scene anthology, director Joe Berlinger dissects the Torso Killers murder spree against the backdrop of the sexually charged, crime-ridden culture of 1970s Times Square and how it provided the predator with a fertile hunting ground.

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