NY NY - Eve Wilkowitz, 20, Bay Shore, 22 March 1980

[evilwise]

Obituary suggests he died alone and unloved (no relations listed). Interment in Bay Shore suggests no travel and I see no mention of anyone matching him anywhere other than here. Perhaps his crime literally ate him up inside

 

[madamx]

But no motive. Seems unlikely that Rice would kill ONE person and never kill again. Perhaps LE should start looking at him for other crimes.

I completely agree ..

 

[madamx]

Some snip it’s from the article


A distant relative of Herbert Rice had submitted his DNA to a genealogy website and there was a familial link to DNA in the evidence kit from Eve Wilkowitz’s rape and murder. The relative led the FBI and Suffolk detectives to Herbert Rice’s son, who agreed to give a DNA sample to help the case.


On March 22, 1980, she caught the last train home to Bay Shore after her writer friend, Jack Dempsey, dropped her off at Penn Station in Manhattan. Three days later, Eve Wilkowitz’s body was found not far from the train station.

The website led the FBI and Suffolk police detectives to DNA from the suspect’s son. Eve Wilkowitz’s murderer is now dead, but he’s been identified as Herbert Rice, a Bay Shore man. He was 30 when Wilkowitz was tortured, raped, and killed. Rice died of cancer in 1991.

Killer’s body exhumed to solve 1980 murder of woman who took last train home from Penn station

 

[madamx]

The article above says she was held 3 days captive alive . The other article mentions that Herbert’s mother was one of the people interviewed since her body was dumped so close to his house. How did she not notice a woman captive in the house for 3 days is beyond me.

 

[bykerladi]

I suspect "mom" was willfully blind to her son's exploits.

I didn't say it before, but major props to the son who agreed to give his DNA. He mentioned he didn't have a relationship with his dad, so I suspect Rice was a bad father as well as an evil human being. That being said, its got to be hard knowing your bio dad is a murderer.

 

[SolVic]

When was Herbert Rice born?

 

[Green_Turtle]

I don’t understand the distinction this article makes between “familial DNA” and “genetic genealogy.” It’s saying they are different. She waited 42 years to learn who killed her sister. The answer didn’t ease her pain.

 

[dotr]

''Herbert Rice’s body was exhumed and connected to a murder that took place 42 years ago. (Credit: Suffolk County Police Department)
Sister of strangled NY woman sees killer’s face — 4 decades later | WRIC ABC 8News
rbbm.
''RIVERHEAD, N.Y. (WPIX) — Irene Wilkowitz drove hours from Rhode Island to Riverhead, New York, on Wednesday to attend a press conference about her sister’s 1980 murder case. And for the first time, she saw the killer’s face.

“I didn’t want to see him,” Irene Wilkowitz said tearfully, looking at a poster showing a photo of the late Herbert Rice, accused now of strangling 20-year-old Eve Wilkowitz 42 years ago. “The last face Eve saw while she was still alive. Now I’m seeing him, so it’s very upsetting for me.”

Herbert Rice was 29 years old then, and staying at a house in Bay Shore, New York. The house was four or five homes away from where Eve Wilkowitz’s body was discovered on March 25, 1980.
Rice died in 1991 of cancer, 11 years after the murder.''

''Irene Wilkowitz thanked the Rice family members who helped solve the case.
“His family didn’t know anything about it, so I feel very badly for them,” Irene Wilkowitz said at the press conference.

District Attorney Tierney showed an aerial shot of the neighborhood surrounding the Bay Shore Long Island Railroad station, where Eve Wilkowitz had gotten off a train shortly before she was murdered. Tierney said Herbert Rice often hung around the station, drinking.

“Unfortunately, we believe it was a crime of opportunity,” he said.''

 

[DSCrime]

I don’t understand the distinction this article makes between “familial DNA” and “genetic genealogy.” It’s saying they are different. She waited 42 years to learn who killed her sister. The answer didn’t ease her pain.

I may be wrong, but from what I understand "familial DNA" means that law enforcement can crosscheck databases they maintain for DNA of arrested / convicted family members. Whereas genetic genealogy here means that police rely on external databases, like the commercially available ones, for genealogical research.

The Grim Sleeper serial killer from Los Angeles was caught using "familial DNA". His DNA was collected from crime scenes but unidentified. Years later his son was arrested and incarcerated. When his son's DNA hit the system it showed similarities to Grim Sleeper's

DNA Sample from Son Led to Arrest of Accused 'Grim Sleeper'

 

[DSCrime]

My condolences to Eve Wilkowitz's family. It's hard to imagine that Rice committed such a crime as a one-off.

 

[faithx]

When was Herbert Rice born?

He was born on January 8, 1951, according to Ancestry.com records.

 

[dotr]

1980 Cold Case Murder of 20-Year-Old Eve Wilkowitz Solved - YouTube

 

[SAMS]

Rest In Peace finally Eve.

 

[bettyboop]

The article above says she was held 3 days captive alive . The other article mentions that Herbert’s mother was one of the people interviewed since her body was dumped so close to his house. How did she not notice a woman captive in the house for 3 days is beyond me.

I would give this more "likes" if I could . I was going to post something similar. SMH MOO JMO

 

[ArianeEmory]

DNA:ID did a good podcast on this case this week. I don’t think I’d seen this thread before. LE must have had a hell of a time with the love triangle she was seemingly in.

Also, it seems like this was another one of those scary “one and done” murderers, unless I missed something about any other murders in the podcast.