Crime Junkie is investigating the sickening murders of three schoolgirls, Carmen Colon, Michele Maenza, and Wanda Walkowicz, by an unknown killer in the area around Rochester, New York.
The killings became known as the Alphabet Murders or the Double Initial Murders because the girls all had the same initials for their first and last names.
The murders were committed between 1971 and 1973. It’s unknown if it was the same assailant, but there were similarities between the cases; apart from their initials, all the girls were under 12 and were killed in a similar manner in the same location. Their bodies were found two days after they’d been abducted.
The girls were raped, strangled, and dumped by the side of the road. The investigators suspect their remains were thrown from a car.
The murder of 10-year-old Carmen Colon occurred after she was abducted while running an errand for her grandmother in November 1971.
She was spotted about 50 minutes later on the Interstate running naked from the waist down from a reversing car. She was seen by 100s of motorists, but no one stopped to help. Carmen’s naked remains were discovered a couple of days later.
Carmen Colon, Michele Maenza, and Wanda Walkowicz around Rochester, New York
Michele Maenza and Wanda Walkowicz were also abducted while running errands for their family in April and November 1973, respectively.
Watch the Latest on our YouTube ChannelThe remains of both 11-year-olds were found a couple of days after they vanished and were in a similar condition to Carmen.
The police retained DNA evidence from Wanda Walkowicz, but unfortunately, DNA samples from Michele Maenza and Carmen Colon were destroyed.
There have been suspects in the Alphabet Murders, but no one arrested
Carmen Colon’s uncle, Miguel Colon, was an early suspect after he fled to Puerto Rico a few days after the murder. However, the authorities didn’t have enough evidence to make an arrest. He committed suicide in 1991 after he shot and wounded his wife and brother-in-law.
Another suspect was Dennis Termini, a serial rapist who lived in the Rochester area, but he was eliminated as a suspect when his DNA failed to match.
Joseph Naso was arrested in 2011 for a series of murders in California. The 76-year-old had lived in Rochester in the early 1970s and was considered a major suspect; however, the DNA didn’t match to him either.
Anyone with any information about this case is asked to call Investigator Eric Fuenfstueck of the New York State Police at 585-398-4123 or email [email protected].
SERIAL KILLER: The Alphabet Murders Part 1 is available to download now.