According to the story, Costa was only involved in dismembering and burying the bodies, not in the actual murders. Costa bought the girls ice cream, gave them rides in his truck, and even gave them a tour of his "secret garden" where he grew cannabisand eventually buried his mutilated, dismembered victims. All addicted to drugs - that was the unifying element, Maureen Boyle, author of Shallow Graves a book about the investigation into the New Bedford highway killer, told CBS. The Crazy True Story Of The Cape Cod Vampire, According to authors Liza Rodman and Jennifer Jordan, As noted by authors Liza Rodman and Jennifer Jordan, Authors Liza Rodman and Jennifer Jordan explain, an earlier diagnosis as a "schizoid personality,", cash in on his horrific alleged crimes with "If I Did It, submitted it to publisher Houghton Mifflin, according to The Provincetown Independent, Authors Liza Rodman and Jennifer Jordan note. "It's just needle in a haystack kind of stuff. After the disappearance of Mearns and Dolores Ann, Muldavin went on the lam. Christa Worthington murder 20 years later: How police solved the crime The Bristol District Attorneys Office said Perrys body was discovered on Oct. 19, 1975, by a teenager who was riding in the gravel pits near New Plainville Road, The Standard Times reported. Marchioni, of Framingham, was savagely stabbed to death inside her home on Oct. 8, 2001. Jeanette DeForge of The Republican reported. Here is the crazy true story of the Cape Cod Vampire, Tony Costa. Tony Costa was an enthusiastic user, which according to The Lineup, caused his marriage to disintegrate. First published on September 20, 2007 / 11:18 AM. The year before the gruesome Cape Cod murder, a female bank robber named Rory Gene Kesinger escaped from the Plymouth County Correctional Facility. "Sometimes the weight of events forces you to look back. Tony, as he was known to friends and family, began showing signs of predatory violence at the age of 16, according to a Murderpedia entry that references Michael Newton's Hunting Humans: An Encyclopedia of Modern Serial Killers. Jermaine Taylor was murdered on January 27, 2018. "How do I explain this? We all have to get involved to solve this gun violence in this city and in this state.. A later trial was planned for the murder of his other victims at a later date. (FBI via AP) Officials used investigative genealogy to identify a woman whose mutilated body was found on the Cape Cod National Seashore nearly 50 years ago, solving the mystery of the "Lady of. The murder remains unsolved. These are just some of the bizarre unsolved mysteries we've covered on The Lineup. We are a participant in the Amazon Services LLC Associates Program, an affiliate advertising program designed to provide a means for us to earn fees by linking to Amazon.com and affiliated sites. Christa Worthington's savage murder in January of 2002 left 2-year-old Ava without a mother, and it left the townspeople of Truro edgy, nervous and silently wondering if the killer might be one of them. Prosecutors go into Christopher McCowen's trial confident the jury will accept their simple theory of Christa Worthington's murder. Of the 9,686 homicides that took place in Massachusetts from 1965 until 2019, there are 3,749 that remain unsolved, according to statistics from Project: Cold Cases. Creepy Cape Cod: Hauntings, Murders and Unexplainable Events 48 Eerie Unsolved Mysteries That Will Keep You Awake at Night - The Lineup Shocked EMTs carelessly grabbed a blanket from the house to cover Christa's body. List of unsolved deaths. "Beautiful beach - a . 23-year-old Darrell Jenkins was shot and killed in front of his home on Kensington Avenue in Springfield on Wednesday, June 4, 2014. "Who else would come down to the end of the world in January and do this?" He later was seen at another party, and then slept at a friend's house. And the baby was very enchanting," says Susan Jackett. The cards were distributed by state police, the Department of Corrections, and district attorneys. in a video that shows each of the playing cards, Key players in the Christa Worthington murder case 20 years later, Boston man charged with murder in Hyannis shooting, Your California Privacy Rights/Privacy Policy. Truro was astonished and relieved and it seemed like a done deal. But his enthusiasm for home-grown weed led to his downfall. "There was enough evidence, it seemed, to push them, to unanimously agree. He turned a small patch of land into a garden of horrors. Two of his victims stayed at the same boarding house where Costa lived. The Cape Cod Vampire, was dangerously mentally ill. Murderpedia reports that he was diagnosed with a "schizoid personality" shortly after his arrest. Three years following her disappearance, her remains were discovered a few miles from the pond. 'No worse than that.' Now, Costas garden of horrors is said to be overgrown. When Terry was 20, she married Korean War veteran Billy Ray Smith, and it seems Terry left Tennessee for good sometime after the wedding. "All I can say is I'm an innocent man" he tells the court at his sentencing. Investigate the crime before it's too late! Walsh and Monzon had been shot in the head, but Costa had then dismembered them and cut them up badly with a knife. State police create playing cards to help with unsolved murders, 4 Cape As for the DNA, the lynchpin of the prosecution's case, the significance of that, George says, is all in how you look at this crime. Which makes Antone Charles Costa, usually known as Tony, ahead of his time: He killed at least two and probably eight women between 1966 and 1969. Bird sightings on Cape Cod - The Boston Globe Is San Francisco tiki bar the Tonga Room actually good? The two women Costa supposedly drove to California were never officially found, but the bodies of both Perry and Monzon were found in 1969, brutally murdered and buried in the woods outside Truro, Massachusetts. Susan says Tony was home with her when Christa was killed. Unsolved Massachusetts murders, disappearances - WCVB So if we sample everybody, we'll find who it was," O'Keefe argues. As noted by authors Liza Rodman and Jennifer Jordan, the Cape Cod area attracted a large population of hippies and had a steady supply of drugs flowing through it. "Ava won't have her. Despite new concerns raised by the feds around a proposed machine gun training range at Joint Base Cape Cod, the National Guard says the location remains best suited for the facility. According to Christa's friends, Jackett had little time for the baby at first and eventually, Christa demanded that he at least pay child support. In fact, Christa had gone on the "Leeza" talk show the year before to talk about women who choose to be single parents. For five agonizing days, the jury, including two African Americans debated that very question. When a community discovers a serial killer in its midst, panic and terror are pretty reasonable responses. A month later, the remains of Walsh and Wysocki were found buried in the woods outside Truro. "He admits that, yes, he went there on Friday night, yes, he had sex with her and yes, he beat her. He then called 911: Operator: 911, this call is recorded. According to The Lineup, the bodies had been cut up and the pieces buried separately. "A very devoted mother and she would always have Ava on her lap and they would always be playing and laughing," Linda remembers. No matter how many references and safeguards you use, there's always the possibility that the person you've trusted with your kids will turn out to be dangerous. During a 2015 viewing of Jaws, which was filmed around Martha's Vineyardaround the time of Terrys murder, Hill noticed an extra who looked similar to the description of the Lady of the Dunes. Christopher McCowen never testifies, betting that his attorney has created enough doubt to set him free. Ruth Marie Terry, known for decades as the "Lady of the Dunes" unsolved Cape Cod murder victim, was identified in October 2022. Murderpedia reports that 1961, when Costa was 16 years old, he twice invaded the home of a teenage neighbor, attempting to drag her from her bed. "This person, wanted the company of a woman, after partying and drinking all night," O'Keefe argues. On December 6, 1991, Austin, Texas was shell-shocked by a vicious crime. "I walked into the newsroom here in Cape Cod and we just had gotten word from police that there'd been a murder," remembers reporter Eric Williams. "The Christa I knew was a person of contradiction. FBI/Handout For nearly half a century, the Lady of the Dunes. The eight- to ten-year sentence was reduced to three to five. For about a year, off and on, they had an affair and for the beautiful writer, who desperately wanted a child - and the local fisherman who already had six, one thing did lead to another. A death certificate shows Terrys mother died a year later of epilepsy. Karen Marchioni (Photo submitted by Jennifer Case). By continuing to browse, you accept the use of cookies and other technologies. This is, without a doubt, a major break in the investigation that will, hopefully, bring all of us closer to identifying her killer, Bonavolonta said. Tweet. The only problem? "A person of Chris McCowen's race, class and limited capacities was an easy target," George argues. Tim Arnold: It's Christa Worthington. Ava still lives with her legal guardians and by all accounts is doing well. If an internal link led you here, you may wish to change the link to point directly to the intended article. "Well, being a suspect definitely cost me custody, more than anything else, custody of my daughter," he says. There's little doubt that Tony Costa, a.k.a. The agencies believe Muldavin and Terry married in February 1974, and both went by a number of other names including Raoul Guy Rockwell, Guy Muldavin Rockwell, Teri Marie Vizina, Terry M. Vizina and Teri Shannon. He describes speaking with local legend Victor Moulty Moulton, a member of the band The Barbarians, and asking if he knew Costa. Soon after his convicton, the verdict was called into question when several jurors made allegations of racial bias during their deliberations. The widened circle brought in DNA from repairmen, trash men and deliverymen. We'll find out what happened.". Police say that's when his story changed. A grisly double homicide still haunts the small Cape Cod community of East Falmouth. One of the most remarkable aspects of Tony Costa's serial killer career was how he evaded suspicion for so long despite being pretty obviously linked to the victims. George argued in court. The Lineup reports that four bodies were found near Truro, Massachusetts in 1969. There were many other girls killed, and nobody knows about [that]. Moulty goes on to say that Costas predatory ways were common knowledge around that area at the time, making his arrest unsurprising to those who had their eyes open. It was Sunday, Jan. 6th, 2002. Cold case. Yes! New England's Unsolved: Double murder on the cape New England's Unsolved: Double murder on the cape EAST FALMOUTH, Mass. The decks will be given out to state prison inmates, who state police hope will have information about some of the cases and be willing to come forward. Officials hope the cards inspire someone with information to come forward. Jaws film poster (L) and screenshot from the film via Joe Hill's tumblr page (R). Days later, she was discovered slain and brutally mutilated in a dumpster in the Back Bay neighborhood of the city, her body cut in half. Get browser notifications for breaking news, live events, and exclusive reporting. Earlier this year, Bones-Colon was featured on playing cards that feature victims in unsolved homicides and missing-persons cases. According to Vonneguts Life article, the victims had been dismembered with what local police guessed at the time to be a brush hook or an ax. "He was a convenient patsy for the defendant to blame," D.A. Ava never will remember those happy times, but Christa's friends are determined that one day she will know how much her mother loved her. The six of clubs card shows Martin, who died of multiple gunshot wounds. When the story of the Cape Cod Vampire murders exploded in 1969, it dominated everyone's attentionincluding famed novelist Kurt Vonnegut. Massachusetts' unsolved killings 1 of 8 Watch "Murder on Cape Cod: Who Shot Shirley Reine?" Wednesday, September 2, at 9 p.m. Months passed with no word on the DNA taken from Christa's body. Maine's oldest unsolved murder case is that of 13-year-old Mary Catherine Olenchuk. I saw Christa two weeks before she was murdered, roughly. Use of and/or registration on any portion of this site constitutes acceptance of our User Agreement (updated 4/4/2023), Privacy Policy and Cookie Statement, and Your Privacy Choices and Rights (updated 1/26/2023). "She was mysterious, enigmatic, somewhat of a loner.". Anyone with information about the case is asked to contact the FBI tipline at 1-800-225-5324 or the Massachusetts State Police at 1-800-527-8873. In a 1969 Life magazine article written by famed author Kurt Vonnegut, a fellow Cape Cod resident, Vonnegut describes hearing Costa referred to as a spoiled little boy who was never punished for anything., Vonnegut goes on to assert that his own daughter, then-19-year-old Edith, met Costa one summer when he invited her to go see his marijuana patchan invitation she declined. But the judge ruled against McCowan, upholding his conviction. Filmmaker, writer, and artist John Waters, who has been summering in Provincetown, Massachusetts for decades, writes about Costas string of murders in his 2019 book, Mr. Know-It-All. Although Costa's main income when living in Provincetown in the late 1960s appears to have been drug dealing, according to The Provincetown Independent, Costa worked as a handyman at the Royal Coachman Motor Lodge in the late 1960s, as well as a carpenter doing odd jobs. Anyone with eyes could see that he was terribly hurt by what happened," says his attorney, Bob George. And everyone in town's had an opinion. Couldn't believe they'd come up with a match.". Related: Lake Bodom Murders: 60 Years Later, Finlands Infamous Unsolved Killings Remain a Mystery. The body was found without a head, arms, and legs, and wasaffixed to a two-wheel dolly. Days went by and the clock ticked on without a verdict. Cape Cod explosion sparks massive blaze, reduces home to rubble And his DNA doesn't show up anywhere at the crime scene. The one that went unsolved the longest was the murder of Centerville builder and . The front door was smashed - there were drag marks on the ground outside and several personal items scattered in the drive. She was half naked, and stabbed once through the left lung. So he blames the worst part of it on someone else," O'Keefe says. Arnold's story was that he had simply dropped by the house at 4:30 that afternoon to return a flashlight and instead got the shock of his life. In it, McCowen is sometimes confused and comes up with at least half a dozen different versions of what really happened the night police say Christa Worthington died. Costa also had a habit of lecturing his fellow inmates about drug use, and there is evidence he was routinely assaulted during his time behind bars. Spencer asks Jackett. Unlike a serial killer like the Son of Sam, Costa didn't kill from a distance with a gun. In May of 1970, Costa was sentenced to life in prison for the murders of Mary Ann Wysocki and Patricia Walsh. But The Lineup notes that Costa was only arraigned on three counts of murder. "This is a false confession," George argues. According to McCowen, that somebody else was his friend Jeremy Frazier, who had been with him the night of the murder. In May of 1970, Costa was sentenced to life in prison for the murders of Mary Ann Wysocki and Patricia Walsh. A Cape Cod home was destroyed in a powerful explosion that caused a massive fire and left behind an expansive debris field. I mean, they've got no chance. There were fibers, hairs and DNA that never made it to a lab, and a crime scene contaminated by careless EMTs. Quarantine. "We're still taking DNA from people, dozens of people. The case against Christa's alleged killer, O'Keefe concedes, depends on two vital pieces of evidence. The best potential lead to the murderer's identity was DNA found on Christa's body. For more than two decades, the family of Molly Bish has searched for an answer following the disappearance of their 16-year-old daughter. New England's Unsolved: Double murder on the cape "He was using Percocet that day, he was using marijuana that day," George says. According to Boston.com, when it was explicitly stated that the bodies had teeth marks on them implying that the murderer had bitten the victims the media almost immediately came up with the vampire nickname, and it stuck. An entire American colony disappears completely, with only mysterious tree carvings as evidence. Brian Walshe and his defense attorney . This was a Friday night, this was a college town, this was a college party, this was a fight that happened off campus. In the 1980s, Unsolved Mysteries was a big television hit.