FBI, Philly police dig up Horsch backyard at home tied to 7 missing women in possible serial killer probe
Police and the FBI have returned to dig up the backyard of a Philadelphia home as part of an ongoing investigation into a potential serial killer that has already turned up apparent "snuff" films, ash-filled urns and evidence linked to at least seven missing women.
Images show an excavator in the backyard as police in protective gear continue to come and go from the property this week. They've set up tents in the backyard and out front and covered parts of the lawn in tarps. Investigators could be seen wearing various levels of safety equipment, including face masks, hazmat suits, rubber gloves, protective sleeves and booties.
One crime scene investigator was seen wearing what appeared to be a chemical-spraying backpack as she entered the property. A crime scene photographer also came and went Wednesday.
There is yellow police tape around the perimeter, and uniformed officers are standing watch.
Joseph Giacalone, a retired NYPD cold case sergeant and adjunct professor at the John Jay College of Criminal Justice, said the scale of the investigation stands out to him.
"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," he told Fox News Digital. "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 repeatedly visited the home 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 Thursday, citing the active and ongoing investigation.
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"Investigators continue to examine evidence and pursue all available leads," she told Fox News Digital. "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."
Raymond "RC" Horsch, a producer of BDSM-themed pornography and books, died last year at 82. However, police searched his former home after arresting his 44-year-old son Eugene Horsch in June. The younger Horsch was arrested in a car alongside a woman carrying an ID belonging to one of the seven missing women now linked to the investigation.
Earlier searches turned up images and videos that police have said show four of the seven missing women. They also found 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," said James Gagliano, a retired FBI supervisory agent and Fox News contributor. "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."
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Only some of the women have been publicly identified. Philadelphia police identified Maribel Fresses, 26, who vanished in 2018, and Gabrielle Amarando, 27, earlier in the investigation. During Eugene Horsch's arrest, the woman with him had an ID for Blair Tonzelli, 38, who was last seen in Philadelphia in February 2023, police told Fox News Digital in September.
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Two other women were identified in local reports. Both are listed as missing persons in the National Missing and Unidentified Person System, or NamUs.
One is Horsch's ex-wife, Amy McHale, 54, who was 44 when she was last seen on June 13, 2016, the Philadelphia Inquirer reported in June.
The other is Nicole "Nikki" Fusaro, 34, according to CBS' Philadelphia affiliate, citing local police sources. She was 27 when she vanished near the intersection of Kensington and Allegheny Avenue in July 2019.
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Investigators said they have also identified dozens of other people from the images. However, no arrests have been made as the investigation continues.
Police have previously excavated underground pipes, but no bodies have been found.
Eugene Horsch's arrest was unrelated to the disturbing discoveries police made at his father's former home, and he has not been charged in connection with the women's disappearances.