Debbie Miller
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What I was trying to say is time between the first murder (if by the same person) and the 2nd one. It is a long time between the two if related.
CA CA - JOSEPH NASO, once a suspect in NY Alphabet Murders, now on trial in California
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What I was trying to say is time between the first murder (if by the same person) and the 2nd one. It is a long time between the two if related.
Steely Dan
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Wow! I live in this area and have been very interested in these murders. I hadn't heard about this dude. He certainly sounds like someone who should be looked at closer, JMO.
BTW, there is no reason this guy should be out of jail.
Debbie Miller
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One article mentions that white cat hair was found on the victims and doesn't specify Carmen to not be included. So how can they think it was isolated?
Hopefully they still have evidence (samples of semen, the cat hair) so they can start from scratch. Forensic technology has come to great new levels since this time and we can only hope the killer will be brought to justice.
Cheri, I will have to read your book, it sounds like a good read.
cherifarnsworth
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The cat hair found on Carmen was "light-colored," while the cat hair found on Wanda and Michelle was definitely "white-colored." Hopefully, they've submitted the cat hair from all three victims, as well as the cat hair found in one suspect's vehicle (the fireman) for DNA comparison studies. If they were to find that the cat hair on at least the 2nd and 3rd victims was identical, it would settle the question of whether Michelle and Wanda had the same killer. Semen gathered at Wanda's crime sight is the only semen that remains to be dna tested--the semen from the other two crime sights is no longer available (read, it got discarded or misplaced). But they DO have at least palm prints still left from Michelle's case.
gogrannypop
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Hi, neighbor. I have read all of your Haunted New York books. I'm a big fan!
Debbie Miller
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This is what makes it hard to know the true facts of the case, when reading these articles and being misinformed by the newspapers. Also, the way evidence disappears from many cases and leaving so many unanswered questions and unresolved.
Cheri- I am with you in agreement that the "new generation" investigators should read your words in your book- maybe something will explode to bring this to a close. It is going to take police with a passion to solve this and not just someone who views it as a "blah" job.
:+:MrTT:+:
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http://www.democratandchronicle.com/...NEWS01/9070316
New book delves deeper into Rochester's unsolved Double Initial murders
from the above link.
"Though slim at 109 pages, the book provides the most comprehensive publicly available look at the evidence that could lead to resolution of the crimes."
A DNA sample is still available from one of the murders investigators have taken samples from suspects in recent years and ruled them out and investigators also hope a preserved palm print could lead to the killer.
Ok, I watched the movie. Was any of it based upon the truth? Is there a female officer, in a mental hospital, who found and was attacked and couldn't tell anyone what happened? Very strange and I am really glad I watched it during the day. How bizarre, the way the bodies/spirits gathered around her as she was strapped down. Creepy!
TechWriter797
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Is the movie based on the truth? Basically, no.
I just finished reading Cheri Farnsworth's new book on the murders called "Alphabet Killer." It's accurate and the bibliography is many pages long. It's a quick and easy read that gives you the facts without sensationalizing the murders.
Rochester would love to see these murders solved!
cherifarnsworth
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There was no female investigator who went crazy, a priest was never considered a prime suspect (at least not to this date), and there are no known supernatural appearances of the girls to anyone. The movie was correct only in that three little girls with double initials were abducted off the streets of Rochester, raped, and strangled; and their killer or killers have eluded authorities for nearly 40 years. At least the movie generated interest in these murder cases, and hopefully once people begin talking about it again, something new will be divulged that someone was previously too afraid to come forward with. I have faith that that will happen.
cherifarnsworth
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Thanks, TechWriter797. 
Hi Cheri,
I just finished reading your book.It's great, well written and very well sourced. A few things stood out for me :
1. The fact that the coats belonging to Carmen and Michelle were found near their bodies. Also, the fact that Wanda was originally reported to have been wearing a red and green coat.
2. Michelle was murdered the day before her birthday. Wanda was murdered the day before her sister Rita's birthday.
3. Wanda told the grocery clerk that she was "in a hurry ", and she was last glimpsed leaning against the school fence, trying to carru a grocery bag. The clerk in the pharmacy said that Carmen seemed to be " in a hurry ". I wondered if they met someone before they went into the store and pharmacy ? Did someone they knew and trusted promise them a ride home after they finished their errands ?
4. Michelle's case was different. She was on her way home from school. Why did she decide to go to the store to look for her mother's purse ? Why hadn't her mother already gone and retrieved her purse ( with,presumably, her money in it )Her purse had been left at the store for several days ? ? How was it known that Michelle was going to that store ? Is that what she told the two neighborhood girls she met along the way ? I wonder if she was going somewhere else ?
5. Michelle's Uncle Phillip seems to have changed his story over the years. First,he said he didn't see Michelle pass by, and later he said that he actually went to the Plaza, saw her and offered her a ride home. I wondered why Michelle would refuse a ride from her Uncle, yet accept a ride from someone else, even someone she knew and trusted. I noted that LE said that they doubted Michelle ever made it to the Plaza. Yet, her Uncle says he spoke with her there. Did he tell LE this? t's very important information...
There are a lot of coincidences in this case. I doubt that they actually all are coincidences MOO...
I just finished reading your book.It's great, well written and very well sourced. A few things stood out for me :
1. The fact that the coats belonging to Carmen and Michelle were found near their bodies. Also, the fact that Wanda was originally reported to have been wearing a red and green coat.
2. Michelle was murdered the day before her birthday. Wanda was murdered the day before her sister Rita's birthday.
3. Wanda told the grocery clerk that she was "in a hurry ", and she was last glimpsed leaning against the school fence, trying to carru a grocery bag. The clerk in the pharmacy said that Carmen seemed to be " in a hurry ". I wondered if they met someone before they went into the store and pharmacy ? Did someone they knew and trusted promise them a ride home after they finished their errands ?
4. Michelle's case was different. She was on her way home from school. Why did she decide to go to the store to look for her mother's purse ? Why hadn't her mother already gone and retrieved her purse ( with,presumably, her money in it )Her purse had been left at the store for several days ? ? How was it known that Michelle was going to that store ? Is that what she told the two neighborhood girls she met along the way ? I wonder if she was going somewhere else ?
5. Michelle's Uncle Phillip seems to have changed his story over the years. First,he said he didn't see Michelle pass by, and later he said that he actually went to the Plaza, saw her and offered her a ride home. I wondered why Michelle would refuse a ride from her Uncle, yet accept a ride from someone else, even someone she knew and trusted. I noted that LE said that they doubted Michelle ever made it to the Plaza. Yet, her Uncle says he spoke with her there. Did he tell LE this? t's very important information...
There are a lot of coincidences in this case. I doubt that they actually all are coincidences MOO...
Unsolved Contra Costa murder one of four linked to serial killer jailed in Marin County
By Karl Fischer and Robert Salonga
Contra Costa Times
Posted: 04/12/2011
SAN RAFAEL -- "A 33-year-old unsolved Port Costa murder is one of four cold cases that investigators have linked to a serial killer now suspected of targeting women between the 1970s and 1990s, authorities announced Tuesday.
Investigators from multiple agencies have connected the deaths of four women -- including Port Costa resident Carmen Colon, who was killed in 1978 -- to 77-year-old Joseph Naso of Reno, said Marin County District Attorney Ed Berberian in a press conference."
and
"Naso's suspected victims also include Oakland woman Roxene Roggasch, who was found dead on White Hill near Fairfax in 1977, Berberian said. The other two victims were killed in Yuba County: Pamela Parsons in 1993 and Tracy Tafoya in 1994."
By Karl Fischer and Robert Salonga
Contra Costa Times
Posted: 04/12/2011
SAN RAFAEL -- "A 33-year-old unsolved Port Costa murder is one of four cold cases that investigators have linked to a serial killer now suspected of targeting women between the 1970s and 1990s, authorities announced Tuesday.
Investigators from multiple agencies have connected the deaths of four women -- including Port Costa resident Carmen Colon, who was killed in 1978 -- to 77-year-old Joseph Naso of Reno, said Marin County District Attorney Ed Berberian in a press conference."
and
"Naso's suspected victims also include Oakland woman Roxene Roggasch, who was found dead on White Hill near Fairfax in 1977, Berberian said. The other two victims were killed in Yuba County: Pamela Parsons in 1993 and Tracy Tafoya in 1994."
MsFacetious
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Joseph Naso of Reno, Nev., was being held on suspicion of murders in Marin, Contra Costa and Yuba counties dating from 1977 to 1994.
The first victim was Roxene Roggasch, whose body was found in Fairfax in Marin County in 1977, Berberian said. Carmen Colon's body was found in Port Costa in Contra Costa County in 1978.
Pamela Parsons and Tracy Tofoya were separately found dead in Yuba County in 1993 and 1994 respectively.
http://www.chron.com/disp/story.mpl/ap/top/all/7518516.html
State police and other law enforcement authorities are trying to determine whether there is a connection between a 77-year-old Nevada man charged with four murders Monday and the notorious double initial killings in Rochester in the early 1970s.
Naso once lived in the Rochester area and traveled between the west and the Rochester region in the early 1970s, authorities say.
As well, there is an eerie similarity between the California killings and the Rochester slayings the first and last name of each of the victims, all of whom were female, began with the same letter.
One California victim, in fact, was named Carmen Colon, the same name of the 10-year-old girl who was abducted in Rochester in 1971, sexually assaulted, and strangled.
http://www.democratandchronicle.com...-murders-California-killings?odyssey=nav|head
The first victim was Roxene Roggasch, whose body was found in Fairfax in Marin County in 1977, Berberian said. Carmen Colon's body was found in Port Costa in Contra Costa County in 1978.
Pamela Parsons and Tracy Tofoya were separately found dead in Yuba County in 1993 and 1994 respectively.
http://www.chron.com/disp/story.mpl/ap/top/all/7518516.html
State police and other law enforcement authorities are trying to determine whether there is a connection between a 77-year-old Nevada man charged with four murders Monday and the notorious double initial killings in Rochester in the early 1970s.
Naso once lived in the Rochester area and traveled between the west and the Rochester region in the early 1970s, authorities say.
As well, there is an eerie similarity between the California killings and the Rochester slayings the first and last name of each of the victims, all of whom were female, began with the same letter.
One California victim, in fact, was named Carmen Colon, the same name of the 10-year-old girl who was abducted in Rochester in 1971, sexually assaulted, and strangled.
http://www.democratandchronicle.com...-murders-California-killings?odyssey=nav|head
Suspect in 4 Calif. murders may be serial killer
By JASON DEAREN and SCOTT SONNER Associated Press © 2011 The Associated Press
April 12, 2011
"SAN RAFAEL, Calif. Authorities say they believe a 77-year-old Nevada man accused in four cold-case deaths in Northern California may have also killed in other states.
Joseph Naso is being held on suspicion of murdering women from 1977 to 1994.
Nevada authorities say Naso was a professional photographer who traveled the country for work."
more...
By JASON DEAREN and SCOTT SONNER Associated Press © 2011 The Associated Press
April 12, 2011
"SAN RAFAEL, Calif. Authorities say they believe a 77-year-old Nevada man accused in four cold-case deaths in Northern California may have also killed in other states.
Joseph Naso is being held on suspicion of murdering women from 1977 to 1994.
Nevada authorities say Naso was a professional photographer who traveled the country for work."
more...
TechWriter797
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THIS IS A MEDIA RELEASE FROM THE STATE OF NEVADA APRIL 29, 2010.
IT IS NOT SUBJECT TO COPYRIGHT.
It is announcing that he was being held for a probation violation. This is pretty much the beginning of the end for him in terms of his being investigated for more severe crimes than robbing a Raley's. One of the things about this that interests me is that, the probation transfer from California to Nevada, where Naso was living, occurred nine days before Jaycee Dugard was discovered and Phillip and Nancy Garrido were taken into custody, having been overlooked by the California and Nevada probation departments.
+
April 29, 2010
Gail Powell
Public Information Officer
Nevada Department of Public Safety
gpowell @ dps.state.nv.us
775-687-0380
MEDIA RELEASE
On April 13, 2010, the Nevada Department of Public Safety, Parole and
Probation Division placed Joseph Naso, age 76, a resident of Horizon Hills on a
no bail hold for a probation violation.
Nasos probation case was transferred from California to Nevada Division of
Parole and Probation on Interstate Compact on August 17, 2009. Interstate
Compact is when another state agrees to take responsibility and authority for
supervising an offender because they reside in their state.
Nasos criminal history includes convictions for petty theft in the State of
California.
Naso was placed on probation in June 2009 for grand theft at a Raleys grocery
store in South Lake Tahoe, Ca. A Parole and Probation officer made an
unannounced home visit to Naso. During the search of his home the officer found
ammunition and four firearms. Naso was placed into custody on a probation
violation for possession of firearms.
Naso is in the Washoe County jail on Parr Blvd, his booking photo is attached.
IT IS NOT SUBJECT TO COPYRIGHT.
It is announcing that he was being held for a probation violation. This is pretty much the beginning of the end for him in terms of his being investigated for more severe crimes than robbing a Raley's. One of the things about this that interests me is that, the probation transfer from California to Nevada, where Naso was living, occurred nine days before Jaycee Dugard was discovered and Phillip and Nancy Garrido were taken into custody, having been overlooked by the California and Nevada probation departments.
+
April 29, 2010
Gail Powell
Public Information Officer
Nevada Department of Public Safety
gpowell @ dps.state.nv.us
775-687-0380
MEDIA RELEASE
On April 13, 2010, the Nevada Department of Public Safety, Parole and
Probation Division placed Joseph Naso, age 76, a resident of Horizon Hills on a
no bail hold for a probation violation.
Nasos probation case was transferred from California to Nevada Division of
Parole and Probation on Interstate Compact on August 17, 2009. Interstate
Compact is when another state agrees to take responsibility and authority for
supervising an offender because they reside in their state.
Nasos criminal history includes convictions for petty theft in the State of
California.
Naso was placed on probation in June 2009 for grand theft at a Raleys grocery
store in South Lake Tahoe, Ca. A Parole and Probation officer made an
unannounced home visit to Naso. During the search of his home the officer found
ammunition and four firearms. Naso was placed into custody on a probation
violation for possession of firearms.
Naso is in the Washoe County jail on Parr Blvd, his booking photo is attached.
Wow.
That is really interesting.
Naso must be investigated as a very serious suspect for the NY Alphabet Murders, and given his California/Nevada ties, should be looked at as a Zodiac suspect as well.
In the 1971 to 1974 Rochester NY cases three young girls were killed. Each had double initials - C.C., M.M. and W.W. The 3rd, 13th and 23rd letters of the alphabet. There was speculation the killer may have been inspired by an Agatha Christie novel, it was called the "The A.B.C. Murders", in which victims had double initials.
Now this man has been arrested for these Northern California murders, and all 4 victims had double initials. One even had the same first and last name.
From the article:
The slayings in 1971 and 1974 of three young girls in Rochester still stands as one of the most baffling unsolved crimes in the region, a case fictionalized in a movie and the focus of a book released last year. The three victims Carmen Colon, 10, Wanda Walkowicz, 11, and Michelle Maenza, 11 all were abducted during the day, strangled, and dumped outside the city of Rochester.
***
Naso, whose father left home and mother died when he was young, apparently moved to the west in the late 1960s, Dombroski said.
The investigation revealed that he most likely left (Rochester NY) in 69 but he had family here and would travel back and forth, Dombroski said. According to the Associated Press, Marin County (Ca) District Attorney Ed Berberian said today that the 1970s victims in California were Roxene Roggasch, whose body was found in Marin County; and Carmen Colon, who was found in Contra Costa County.
He identified the 1990s victims as Pamela Parsons and Tracy Tofoya, both of whom turned up in Yuba County, Ca.
-----------------------
So were there TWO serial killers with this double initial obsession? Was Naso just a copycat? Or were the NY and California crimes done by one man, Naso?
In the California cases, the initials were CC, PP, RR and TT. The 3rd, 16th, 18th and 20th letters of the alphabet. The P (16), R (18) and T (20) series is very interesting, pattern wise.
Just for the heck of it, here is a picture of Naso and the Zodiac aged sketch, and beneath it a possible suspect sketch in the 1971/1974 Rochester Alphabet Murders.
That is really interesting.
Naso must be investigated as a very serious suspect for the NY Alphabet Murders, and given his California/Nevada ties, should be looked at as a Zodiac suspect as well.
In the 1971 to 1974 Rochester NY cases three young girls were killed. Each had double initials - C.C., M.M. and W.W. The 3rd, 13th and 23rd letters of the alphabet. There was speculation the killer may have been inspired by an Agatha Christie novel, it was called the "The A.B.C. Murders", in which victims had double initials.
Now this man has been arrested for these Northern California murders, and all 4 victims had double initials. One even had the same first and last name.
From the article:
The slayings in 1971 and 1974 of three young girls in Rochester still stands as one of the most baffling unsolved crimes in the region, a case fictionalized in a movie and the focus of a book released last year. The three victims Carmen Colon, 10, Wanda Walkowicz, 11, and Michelle Maenza, 11 all were abducted during the day, strangled, and dumped outside the city of Rochester.
***
Naso, whose father left home and mother died when he was young, apparently moved to the west in the late 1960s, Dombroski said.
The investigation revealed that he most likely left (Rochester NY) in 69 but he had family here and would travel back and forth, Dombroski said. According to the Associated Press, Marin County (Ca) District Attorney Ed Berberian said today that the 1970s victims in California were Roxene Roggasch, whose body was found in Marin County; and Carmen Colon, who was found in Contra Costa County.
He identified the 1990s victims as Pamela Parsons and Tracy Tofoya, both of whom turned up in Yuba County, Ca.
-----------------------
So were there TWO serial killers with this double initial obsession? Was Naso just a copycat? Or were the NY and California crimes done by one man, Naso?
In the California cases, the initials were CC, PP, RR and TT. The 3rd, 16th, 18th and 20th letters of the alphabet. The P (16), R (18) and T (20) series is very interesting, pattern wise.
Just for the heck of it, here is a picture of Naso and the Zodiac aged sketch, and beneath it a possible suspect sketch in the 1971/1974 Rochester Alphabet Murders.
DA Links Nevada Man to Fairfax Murder, Three Others
District Attorneys office will charge 77-year-old Joseph Naso with four murders from 1977 to 1994.
By Jim Welte | 4:11pm
Snippet of info:
"According to a Marin Independent Journal article from Jan. 11, 1977, the Marin County Sheriffs Office found out about Roggaschs murder from an anonymous caller who said he found an unidentified nude body at 7 p.m. the night before when he had pulled his car to the side of the road because of car trouble.
Roggasch was described as 5 feet, 2 inches tall and about 135 pounds, wearing nothing but white fabric that tied her feet together.
That discovery marked the sixth time in the past 12 months that an unidentified body has been found in Marin County after an apparent murder, the newspaper said at the time."
District Attorneys office will charge 77-year-old Joseph Naso with four murders from 1977 to 1994.
By Jim Welte | 4:11pm
Snippet of info:
"According to a Marin Independent Journal article from Jan. 11, 1977, the Marin County Sheriffs Office found out about Roggaschs murder from an anonymous caller who said he found an unidentified nude body at 7 p.m. the night before when he had pulled his car to the side of the road because of car trouble.
Roggasch was described as 5 feet, 2 inches tall and about 135 pounds, wearing nothing but white fabric that tied her feet together.
That discovery marked the sixth time in the past 12 months that an unidentified body has been found in Marin County after an apparent murder, the newspaper said at the time."