Update 12-7-2012: Two North Kingstown Cold Cases plus murders of Brandon Smith and Robert Jones added. Conviction in murder of Vicki Connolly.

This is a website about cold cases in Rhode Island. The purpose of this site is to seek justice for victims of crime, their families and to help locate missing persons. These are people's mothers, fathers, sisters, brothers, sons, daughters, friends and relatives. Please, see if you can help. If you have a case that you would like submitted please contact us at either of the email addresses below. Please send us a copy of any newsarticles regarding the case. We don't do this website for money and we are not an investigative agency. Many of our pictures and information are from sources such as the Providence Journal, Doe Network and the Charley Project. If you have any information about these cases you are asked to call Law Enforcement. If you would like to have a case submitted you may contact us. Please submit a copy of a newspaper article confirming the case.

How to spot Internet Scams. www.ctcoldcases.com/scams.html

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Questions surround Death of Man who Left Providence Bar Twenty-three year old Greg Hart's body was found in the Woonasquatucket River several days after he had gone missing from the Red Room Bar in Providence. He was last seen by a group of friends that March 14th 1:40 am in 2010. The Rhode Island Medical Examiner ruled that the Dedham, Massachusetts man drowned. There were reports that Hart was visibly intoxicated and left the Red Room Bar by himself. He was allegedly last seen downtown Sunday morning wearing a grey leather biker jacket, a green hooded sweatshirt, with black pants and black shoes. After Hart was reported missing, the Providence Police started a search for him. Instead, friends found his body less than a mile from where he was last seen. Providence Police do not believe that foul play played a part in Hart's death. His family disagrees and pressed for another autopsy. They believe that Greg Hart was in a physical confrontation and was murdered. The family is offering a $70,000 reward for information that may lead to information of criminal intent against Greg Hart.

Decades old Murder of West Warwick Woman Still an Active Case Kathy Perry was twenty year old woman who had aspirations to become a hairdresser. Those dreams came to halt when she was found brutally murdered in the September of 1986. The West Warwick High School graduate had left her job at Ultra Finishers on Access Road in Warwick and was found murdered hours later. Her naked body was found in an area of Warwick near an industrial park. She had been bludgeoned in the head and a victim of homicide. It is possible that she may have known her attacker. The case despite around twenty five years old is a very active case. If you have any information about the brutal murder of Kathy Perry, please call Sergeant Frederick Pierce of the Warwick Police Department at 401-468-4261. All calls can be confidential. You can also email the Warwick Police at warwpd@warwickpd.org.

Mysterious Death of 17 Year Old Still Haunts Family Nearly Fifty Years Later On November 28, 1964 the body of Benjamin Bailey was found on the shore of Lake Tigoue in the town of Coventry. His body was found by his brother and he had last been seen alive ten hours earlier. He had lived with his family at 59 West Shore Drive in town. His body was found fully clothed but his body was face down and partially submerged in the waters of the lake. He was found less than a half a mile from where he lived. Police reports indicated that medical examiner did not find any signs of violence on the body. It has never been determined how the young man died and he had not been reported missing by his family before he was found. Several youths were interviewed and said that they had seen Bailey between 12 and 1am early Saturday morning on Route 3 about a quarter of a mile from where he lived. If you have any information about this case please contact the Coventry Police Department at 401-826-1100 or via email at coventrypolice@coventrypd.org.

Bizarre Twist In Death of Family Man The family of Louis James DeFusco always knew that he did not kill himself. The thirty-eight year-old Cranston businessman was last seen alive pulling away from a dock on the Warwick shoreline on Aug. 6, 1964. His boat was found the next morning, empty, about 300 yards from land. Twelve days later his body was discovered in the waters of Narragansett Bay near Prudence Island. When he was found, he had a ship's anchor tied around his legs. A first autopsy attributed DeFusco's death to suicidal drowning. In 2006, at the request of his family, a different Medical Examiner conducted a second autopsy. The Examiner concluded that a gunshot wound to the back of the head killed DeFusco. Prior to his death, he was the co-owner of the Folly Landing Marina in Warwick. A family member has stated that they believed DeFusco's killing was mob-related and may have had something to do with his efforts to clean up the marina from mob and mafia linked individuals. DeFusco's family has suffered for over 44 years and is looking for justice and answers. If you have any information about the murder of Louis James DeFusco please contact Detective Lesser at the Warwick Police Department at (401) 468-4250.

Woman's Homicide Still Unsolved North Providence Police have a cold case on their hands as they are still trying to solve the homicide of a woman in their town. Cynthia McKenna was found dead in her apartment on February 21, 2007 at 242 Waterman Avenue, Apartment #9. A friend went to check on her and found the forty-nine year old woman deceased in her bedroom. The Medical Examiner has ruled the death was caused by Asphyxiation and Law Enforcement believes she may have been dead prior to her discovery for two to three days. There is one possible clue as to who may have killed her. On February 18th at around 10:30 p.m. she had been seen arguing with a man in a silver pick-up truck in her apartment complex parking lot. McKenna left behind three daughters who are looking for answers as to who and why their mother was killed. If you have any information as to who may have killed Cynthia McKenna please call the North Providence Police department at (401) 231-4533 extension 141.

Does The Answer To A Fugitive's Whereabouts Lie At the Bottom of the Bay? It was a senseless murder. 20 year old Jason Bass was stabbed to death by an enraged Adam Emery not far from the Rocky Point Amusement Park in Warwick. Emery and his wife Elena mistakenly believed that Bass had hit their car and drove off. At his wife's urging, a confrontation ensued several streets away and Bass was stabbed twice in the chest. It was later learned that Bass's car was not responsible for the damage done to Emery's vehicle. At trial Adam Emery was found guilty of 2nd degree murder. He was allowed out free on bail that same day on November 10, 1993. Hours later, his car was found abandoned on the Claiborne Pell Bridge. He and his wife Elena had gone missing. Adam Emery was now a fugitive from justice. Police theorized that the two had agreed to a suicide pact and had jumped to their deaths from the bridge. Other believed that the couple faked their deaths and had fled to Europe. Almost a year later, a fisherman found a human skull in his fishing net just north of the Pell Bridge. It was confirmed to be the remains of Elena Emery. To date, Adam Emery's remains have never been found. IT is believed that he died that day with his wife and his body is on the bottom of Narragansett Bay. However, there are still some that believe he may killed his wife and made it look like he committed suicide with her. There are theories that he is in Europe or elsewhere even though his family has denied that in the press. The State of Rhode Island has declared Adam Emery deceased while the Federal Bureau of Investigation still considers the case an active investigation. Either way, the mystery of where is Adam Emery still remains.

Murder of Robbery Suspect Still Unsolved Twenty-six year old Burrlliville resident Donald Abbott found himself on the wrong side of the law. He and four other men were charged with a 1.2 million dollar heist from an armored car in Pittsfield, Massachusetts back on April 9, 1991. Abbott’s luck took a turn for the worse when he was found dead, slumped at the wheel of his vehicle in August of 1993. He had been shot to death by someone from a passing vehicle. Abbott had agreed to testify against his partners in crime in exchange for a lenient prison term. It was a decision that may have cost him his life. The United States Government eventually succeeded in bringing those responsible for the armored car heist behind bars. Three men were convicted and plead guilty and helped the prosecution’s case. The masterminds of the heist, Bernard Kiley and Vincent Lattanzio are still serving time for the crime. Most of the money from the heist has never been recovered. The murder of Abbott to this day is still unsolved. If you have any information about this case, please contact the Rhode Island State Police at 401-444-1000. For more information about this case please view this link at Caselaw.

A Suspicious Vehicle and then a Murder Esscence Christal was a twenty-one year old woman from Providence and the mother of a six year old son. Tragedy took her life around 1:45 am on a Saturday morning. On November 26, 2011 she drove a car with two other individuals as passengers; Arney Hepburn and James "Smurf" Perkins. The three were on Broad Street in Providence, when a suspicious dark four door vehicle pulled up alongside the passenger side of their car and shot at them. The car that Esscence was in crashed into a tree and flipped over. She was pronounced deceased shortly after the incident. Perkins was injured in the incident and treated for minor injuries. Who targeted them remains a mystery. A family mourns their daughter and mother. If you have any information about this case you are urged to contact the Providence Police Department at (401) 272-3121 or (401) 243-6406. All calls can be confidential.

Assault Suspect Still on Loose At 8:05am on February 19, 2009, a female living on Hope Furnace Road in the town of Scituate was assaulted by an unidentified male suspect. The perpetrator threw the woman on the ground but was soon frightened off by the victim's dog. It is believed that he had an accomplice and that they had planned to burglarize the woman's home. The suspect is described as a white male around 30 to 35 years of age. He was around Five foot Nine inches tall and between 170 to 200 pounds. He had brown hair down to his shoulders and his complexion was pocked marked and full of acne. He also had an unusual reddish/purple blemish on his right cheek which could be a possible birthmark. This suspect was also described as having a strong diesel fuel odor on him. At the time of attack, he wore an olive green jacket and blue jeans. If you have any information as to who this suspect may be, please contact Lieutenant Craig W. Hawkins at the Scituate Police Department: (401) 821-5900. All calls can be confidential.

Providence Man Slain On December 30, 2005, 32 year old Johnny Jimenez was found unconscious on Cornwall Street right near the Rhode Island School For the Deaf. He ended up the 22nd homicide of 2005 year in Providence. He had been shot and his 1997 LandRover had been taken from him. Police believe he had been killed elsewhere and his body dumped there. The Providence man who lived at 17 Burnett Street had talked to family members earlier that day. Police want to know who he may have been with that Friday afternoon and evening. Anyone with information about this case is asked to call the Providence Police Department at (401) 272-3121 or (401) 243-6406. All calls can be confidential.

Christmas Day Murder Still Unsolved On December 25, 2003, Roy Weber was found dead from a gunshot wound on the Johnston and Wales Campus in Providence. The twenty-two year old had a tough life and was known to have been a drug user and a gay hustler. Hours before the discovery of his body, he was last seen on a video camera with a mystery man at the criminally troubled Cathedral Square Apartments. Providence Detectives are trying to find the identity of this mystery man. If you can identify this man or have information about this case, please call Shamshak Investigative Services at 1-800-422-0944 or the Providence Police Department at (401) 272-3121. For additional information about Roy Weber's murder click here.

Peaceful Place, Violent Scene Lincoln Woods is a peaceful park located in Northern Rhode Island. It's a popular place for families, hikers, walkers and even rock climbers. On August 10, 2011, that changed when an abandoned car was found in a driveway about 200 yards outside the Twin River entrance to the park. Inside the trunk of the vehicle, was a grisly scene. A man shot execution style several times in the head, his hands bound behind his back. IT didn't take police long to identify the victim as Ronny Almonte who had lived in both Pawtucket and Providence, Rhode Island. Almonte did not have a criminal record. Police do not believe that Almonte's homicide is related to the shotgun murder of 26 year old Anthony Stone of Providence. Stone has died from a gunshot wound to the abdomen earlier that day. When he was found, he had handcuffs still attached to his wrists. Stone was a known drug dealer who had been arrested months earlier. He lived at 372 Broadway in Providence, which police believe he may have been shot. If you or anyone else has any information about this case, you are urged to call the Rhode Island State Police at (401) 444-1216.

Murder of Mob Enforcer Still Unsolved Kevin Hanrahan was a feared man, a physically imposing individual, he was often hired to beat up people, extort and murder. According to Providence Journal journalist Zachary Malinowski, Anytime there was a mob hit, Hanrahan topped the state police list of possible suspects.This included the unsolved murder/hit in a Federal Hill (Providence) Restaurant of Raymond "Slick" Vecchio in 1982. On September 18, 1992, he had dinner with a police informant and two other mob associates. He went to a bar called The Arch, where he told others he was expecting a big score. After leaving the Arch he walked down Atwells Avenue to go to a restaurant in North Providence. He was confronted by two men at the corner of Pequot and Atwells. One of them pulled a gun and fired three bullets into Hanrahan's head. Hanrahan died not far from where Raymond Vecchio had perished ten years earlier. Hanrahan's killers have never been found but at the time of his slaying the Patriarca crime family was involved in an internal war between the Providence and Boston factions. For more information about the Rhode Island mob please visit W. Zachary Malinowski's excellent series of articles at the Providence Journal.

Billboards in Woonsocket Seek Justice for Victims It was October 28, 2008 when three individuals entered a building at 425 Diamond Hill Road. The three wore wearing hooded sweatshirts and two had masks. They knocked on the door of 23 year old Robert Jones and proceeded to shoot him in the torso. Afterwards the assailants fled the building leaving Jones to die. Jones lived in the apartment with his girlfriend and their infant child. Police believe that the trafficking of illegal drugs could have been a motive in his murder. Police have a suspect in this case. This is not the first time Police in Woonsocket have used a billboard to get information regarding a victim of homicide. They used one for the murder of 17 year old Brandon Smith. The Billboard proved useful as Police have developed leads in that case but no arrests yet. In June 2008, Smith was shot in the chest at 45 Robinson Street. Like the murder of Jones, Smith’s homicide may also be related to the drug trade in town. If you have information about this murder please call the Woonsocket Police Department at (401)766-1212

Justice in 1988 Murders of Two Young Girls Still Remains Elusive Seven year old Michelle Norris was found murdered on May 30, 1988 on a wooded hill behind Brook Street. The young girl had gone missing four days prior from outside of the Captain G. Harold Hunt Elementary School in the small city of Central Falls. Norris had been beaten, raped and then suffocated to death. Sadly Michelle was not the only young Rhode Island girl to be a victim of homicide that year. Ten year old Christine Cole of Pawtucket was found murdered on Februrary 28th on the beach at Conimicut Point in Warwick. She had been reported missing on January 6th, two months prior after she had gone to a nearby supermarket that afternoon. Her murder is also unsolved. If you have any information about these two cases please call the Rhode Island State Police at (401) 721-2622 or (401) 721-2618.

Bones Found On Beach Don't Answer All The Questions Regarding College Freshman That Disappeared The first year of college can always be an adjustment. For 18 year old New Jersey resident, Bryan Nisenfeld, it proved to be more that just that. On February 6th, 1997, the architecture major left a college class and seemingly disappeared. At first it seemed that the Roger Williams College student may have taken off, he had been homesick and emotionally upset. College officials notified Nisenfeld's parents six days later that their son was missing. It seemed through various reports that College officials and the Bristol Police Department thought that Nisenfeld ran away. Six months later a woman and her daughter were walking along Hog's Beach when they came across a boot with a human foot in it. DNA testing later revealed that the foot and a bone found nearby belonged to Nisenfeld. College officials and Bristol Police theorized that Nisenfeld may have slipped on some rocks and fell into the water or that he committed suicide by jumping off the Mt. Hope Bridge. However, Nisenfeld had received threats from a former Roger Williams College student that he knew during his first semester. It is not clear if Nisenfeld was friends with or romatically involved with this other male student. However, just days before Nisenfeld disappeared, this former student allegedly threatened him via a phone call to come back to campus and harm Nisenfeld. Suicide, accident or murder, we may never know. If you know anything about the death of Bryan Nisenfeld you are urged to call the Rhode Island State Police at (401)444-1000.

Congratulations on finding this hidden message. Read the "Prince of Providence", an excellent book about the life and times of former Providence mayor Buddy Cianci. Best mafia movie ever. "The Godfather"

Song is called "Late Goodbye" and is performed by Poets of the Fall

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