NY NY - Possible serial killer in Niagara Falls, 2015

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I've been following this shocking and sad case since it broke last week. It had eerie parallels to the Toronto murder and dismemberment case from August.

I don't have much more to add except that parts of Niagara Falls NY are somewhat seedy and run down. Looking at street view of that area she was in, my guess is that they wouldn't have any security cameras.

If she was meeting a friend or client, then there should be a cellphone record of who she contacted before she left her mom's place. I don't know how busy that area is, but I guess she would have screamed or made a commotion if someone was forcing her into a car against her will.

Her body may have been completely disposed of the same day. If you follow the road that runs adjacent to Hyde Park, it goes south towards the Niagara River near the Robert Moses Parkway. There's an open area where the person could have dumped the torso and other body parts that washed up downstream. I'm guessing they did that, rather than making their way down the slopes of the Niagara Gorge to dump the body parts downstream from The Falls. The head and arm turned up in that lake recently because decomposition would have brought them up to the surface if they weren't weighed down.

Since the torso turned up 4 days after she went missing, the killer must have killed her the same night and disposed of her before dawn, or the next night. Judging by the lack of distance traveled to dump the parts, it may have been someone local. They knew about the lake in Hyde Park (I've been to Niagara a number of times, and never knew there was a park with a lake there), and probably the best spot to dump her torso without being seen. The news isn't going into detail about her past. They just quoted one of her facebook postings about getting her life together. Maybe she had a past romantic relationship that went sour. Maybe she was known to police for other dealings that brought her into contact with the criminal element in the city.

Very sad, I hope they find the killer and bring justice to her and her family.
 
elizabethie said:
I am literally minutes away from Niagara Falls, so if anyone wants any photos or information about the area, I'm glad to try and help.

The police aren't saying much, except that "they want everyone to know there is not a serial killer in the neighborhood." really? HOW do they know that?

http://www.wivb.com/dpp/news/local/lorettas-hand-found-in-niagara-river
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They might know about her, her associates or people she's dealt with in the past. Perhaps there's rumors on the street that police are hearing. I agree it's technically not a serial killing since she's just one victim. Serial means multiple murders with the same or similar m.o.
 
If the perp is not a serial killer, or someone who previously murdered, -wouldn't they be disgusted, freaked out and panicked beyond belief? I mean, murder is one vile thing, but who has the stomach to dismember someone, especially a mom to 3 children?
Would people have noticed the perp at work or recreation (whatever that might be)acting paranoid or looking strange and pale, perhaps a usually hearty eater no longer with a good appetite?A drinker, suddenly stops drinking ,lest they slip up with the truth?
 
Shlock Homes said:
I've been following this shocking and sad case since it broke last week. It had eerie parallels to the Toronto murder and dismemberment case from August.

I don't have much more to add except that parts of Niagara Falls NY are somewhat seedy and run down. Looking at street view of that area she was in, my guess is that they wouldn't have any security cameras.

If she was meeting a friend or client, then there should be a cellphone record of who she contacted before she left her mom's place. I don't know how busy that area is, but I guess she would have screamed or made a commotion if someone was forcing her into a car against her will.

Her body may have been completely disposed of the same day. If you follow the road that runs adjacent to Hyde Park, it goes south towards the Niagara River near the Robert Moses Parkway. There's an open area where the person could have dumped the torso and other body parts that washed up downstream. I'm guessing they did that, rather than making their way down the slopes of the Niagara Gorge to dump the body parts downstream from The Falls. The head and arm turned up in that lake recently because decomposition would have brought them up to the surface if they weren't weighed down.

Since the torso turned up 4 days after she went missing, the killer must have killed her the same night and disposed of her before dawn, or the next night. Judging by the lack of distance traveled to dump the parts, it may have been someone local. They knew about the lake in Hyde Park (I've been to Niagara a number of times, and never knew there was a park with a lake there), and probably the best spot to dump her torso without being seen. The news isn't going into detail about her past. They just quoted one of her facebook postings about getting her life together. Maybe she had a past romantic relationship that went sour. Maybe she was known to police for other dealings that brought her into contact with the criminal element in the city.

Very sad, I hope they find the killer and bring justice to her and her family.
Click to expand...

Excellent post, SH. I think the bolded parts make complete sense.
 
Sounds like they have no clue who did this but yet the public is told there is no serial killer out there.

Whatever. It's not unique, afterall.

:banghead:
 
Niagara Falls, NY is pretty well known as a hotbed for mob activity.

She has had addiction problems.

Could she have tried to feed her habit by low or mid level dealing?

Could her murder and dismemberment have been a warning if she tried to skim or steal?

Poor woman. Poor family. It's heart wrenching.
 
unsinkable said:
Niagara Falls, NY is pretty well known as a hotbed for mob activity.

She has had addiction problems.

Could she have tried to feed her habit by low or mid level dealing?

Could her murder and dismemberment have been a warning if she tried to skim or steal?

Poor woman. Poor family. It's heart wrenching.
Click to expand...


http://www.buffalonews.com/article/20120906/CITYANDREGION/120909807

"Loretta Gates had been clean for nearly four years, her sister said. She was in the process of regaining custody of her three children, the youngest of whom started kindergarten Thursday.

On her Facebook page, she wrote: "im getting my life together for my 3 children I love them soso much."

Gates gave no indication that she could have relapsed, her sister said."
 
Hve commented from time to time on cases, particular interest here because I am originally from this area. This area of Niagara Falls is pretty run down, and is rampant with poverty, drugs, and prostitution 24/7. There are some decent areas of Niagara Falls but most people from the nicer areas will avoid this part of town. That being said, on a Saturday night I would expect a decent amount of foot traffic in the area of the convenience store, even at the late hour. I would also expect that because of the type of nieghborhood that it is, the regulars would notice someone who was out of place. I am thinking that she left the area willingly with someone she new, or agreed to meet.

I also believe that her murder took place in the very close vicinity, as there are several access points to the River, whether by Bath Ave or by the train Bridge that crosses over Main Street.

As for the multiple disposal sites, I am wondering if the killer used public transportation, and dumped what he could in the river, and maybe was able to carry the rest in bag to Hyde Park which is on the main bus route. As for dumping the bag in the lake, there are locations in the park that are pretty desolate, even during the daytime.

I have a second theory that involves her work life, but I am going to wait on that.
 
I don't see the killer using public transportation. It would be too hard to carry a torso, and there would be concern of blood leaking. Plus time would be of the essence, it would just be easier to use a car. They dumped above the falls, probably along the the Robert Moses Parkway area. The Hyde Park lake dumping just illustrates it was someone local who was familiar with the area. The head and hand were probably dumped separately from the other parts because they're the identifiers, although I'm not sure the significance of dumping just one hand in the lake.

The killer wouldn't have dumped her body near Bath or the train bridge because of the difficult terrain to get to the water. Plus, the torso was found by people on Maid of The Mist, which means it was dumped upstream, not downstream. Maid of the Mist doesn't go beyond the Rainbow Bridge.
 
Bump for Loretta ... has anything else come about on this case?
 
This article was published a couple of months ago. It discusses the case and the suspects, which for some reason, were never mentioned previously in articles that came out around the time of the crime.

Also they mention something that I don't recall ever being mentioned, that she was beaten, stabbed about 30 to 40 times, before being butchered. Sounds like a crime of passion. No mention of whether she was tied up when she was beaten and stabbed.

One thing I didn't like was the article referred to her many times as a '*advertiser censored*'. I don't know if he was trying to go for an effect, like some kind of pulp novel. To me, it just adds a little insult to injury to the woman who was murdered.

http://www.niagarafallsreporter.com/Stories/2013/Jun25/Justice.html
 
http://www.wgrz.com/story/news/local/niagara-county/2014/08/20/fbi-loretta-jo-gates-death/14355611/

On Wednesday, we learned that in the spring of 2013, the FBI began investigating the murder of Gates. Captain William Thompson of the Niagara Falls Police Department tells 2 On Your Side, the FBI reviewed all police materials related to her death. This includes her autopsy report and statements her family gave to police.

Thompson tells us the FBI has not been able to find any new angles in Gates' death.
Click to expand...
 
elizabethie said:
This guy is making people ask a lot of questions about Loretta's murder:
http://www.buffalonews.com/city-region/police-courts/the-shocking-world-of-iver-phallen-20141011
Click to expand...

Never heard of him before, but now he no longer flies under the radar, who knows how many victims we may discover he has had in the past.

A good reminder that when a perp is reported for violent behavior, it may well save the life of someone else down the road, imo.
From the (chilling) link..
rbbm.


“So often we see that these perpetrators are not the creepy guy in the trench coat in the alley. The majority of our victims know those who have sexually assaulted or raped them,” Brennan-Taylor said. “In terms of the sex-trade industry, this particular victim and others who have not come forward need to realize no matter what the activity, they did not deserve to be sexually abused, raped, tortured or imprisoned.”

Police, medical personnel – especially the sexual assault nurse examiner – and sexual assault-victim advocates can be trusted and “will believe you and will treat you with dignity,” Brennan-Taylor added.

She says the 24-year-old woman showed remarkable courage and concern for other potential victims.

Police shared the same opinion.

“Who knows how many other women she has saved,” the law enforcement official said. “She withstood 20 hours of torture, but still had the strength and courage to come forward to face this monster.”
 
http://www.buffalonews.com/city-region/police-courts/the-shocking-world-of-iver-phallen-20141011


"The sex torture crimes that Iver J. Phallen is accused of committing are horrific – luring a 24-year-old woman to his home, stringing her up with an elaborate contraption, choking her and forcing her to watch all this in a mirror strategically placed nearby.

And it is alarming that he boasted of doing the same to some 20 other women.

But here’s the scariest part.

“He told her he ... had accidentally killed a couple of them,” a police source familiar with the case told The Buffalo News."
 
elizabethie said:
http://www.buffalonews.com/city-region/police-courts/the-shocking-world-of-iver-phallen-20141011


"The sex torture crimes that Iver J. Phallen is accused of committing are horrific – luring a 24-year-old woman to his home, stringing her up with an elaborate contraption, choking her and forcing her to watch all this in a mirror strategically placed nearby.

And it is alarming that he boasted of doing the same to some 20 other women.

But here’s the scariest part.

“He told her he ... had accidentally killed a couple of them,” a police source familiar with the case told The Buffalo News."
Click to expand...

If he did commit murder, whether accidentally or not, would he be likely to dismember the victims?
 
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