UID Victim: Toddler's Mother, Peaches, found Hempstead Lake State Park June 1997 #4

[snarast]

Stephen Cullen, the Bristol, CT artist who tattooed Peaches, said Peaches was from NY and came to his CT shop with a friend. Per Cullen, the friend was possibly a Bristol local and the women were planning to visit friends in the Hartford area following the tattoo session.

Now, I haven’t been to CT in about 16 years but if I recall correctly, Bristol wasn’t/isn’t a big place and in that regard, I wonder how much media coverage the Peaches story has gotten in CT over the past decade.

If Bristol is as small as I recall, surely someone knows Peaches’ friend or maybe the friend is still in the area. Further, maybe someone in Hartford remembers meeting the women; perhaps Peaches showed off her new tattoo and someone just needs their memory jogged about an encounter with her.

It’s time for the Hartford and Bristol area media outlets to do refresher stories on Peaches. Perhaps showings Cullen’s tattoo shop, the surrounding area, and photos of the peach tattoo will trigger someone’s memory.

If you watched the bonus clips from The Killing Season, you’ll recall that Cullen received a call from someone claiming to be the mother of Peaches. Per Cullen, the called said her then teenage grandson wanted a peach tattoo in memory of his mother.

I don’t believe that the caller was really Peaches’ mother and that presents a whole other piece to the puzzle: who is the woman who called and what is her connection to the entire LISK case? The layers of this case are absolutely maddening but identifying Peaches and learning about her life could yield valuable clues in unveiling LISK..

Somehow this fact had eluded me - the artist who tattooed her? It seems so unlikely that LE wouldn't know who she is. I'm very concerned this has been glossed over for so long LE are assuming her DNA is properly on file bit it's not. Something isn't right about this.

 

[Breezymcdreamypants]

Somehow this fact had eluded me - the artist who tattooed her? It seems so unlikely that LE wouldn't know who she is. I'm very concerned this has been glossed over for so long LE are assuming her DNA is properly on file bit it's not. Something isn't right about thi

Somehow this fact had eluded me - the artist who tattooed her? It seems so unlikely that LE wouldn't know who she is. I'm very concerned this has been glossed over for so long LE are assuming her DNA is properly on file bit it's not. Something isn't right about this

Its my understanding that police know her identity, they just don't know how she wound up decapitated, so they're trying to trace her last steps and find how she ended up dead and who killed her...

 

[iamshadow21]

Its my understanding that police know her identity, they just don't know how she wound up decapitated, so they're trying to trace her last steps and find how she ended up dead and who killed her...

Police have never said this.

MOO

 

[snarast]

Police have never said this.

MOO

Yes, I agree. Rather, I've heard that she is hard to identify due to her specific lineage. Which is a shame.

I guess a tattoo artist identifying her isn't really 100%. Still, it's a bit of a conundrum.

 

[wcasewatch]

I don’t think she was a sex worker, instead I believe she was a victim of circumstance. Peaches was killed at a time when LISK trawled the streets so perhaps he approached at a bus or train stop, solicited, was told she wasn’t a working girl, he apologized and offered her a ride, she accepted, and here we are.

I also suspect her identity is right under someone’s nose and they don’t realize it. She had a light complexion, may have been biracial, and could have been from one of the multicultural communities comprising Queens.

I think this is what people want to believe because the idea of bringing a child while seeing clients seems unfathomable to those who have never been in the throes of a heavy substance addiction.

But it was common practice, especially at the time.

People like to airbrush victims and assume that they lived great lives. It's noble and understandable not to want to speak ill of the dead, but ultimately, it only paints a less realistic picture of the truth. In reality, Peaches was a person like anyone here, and she had her faults just like everyone else.

Each LISK victim so far has been a sex worker. That was his favorite MO, and you can bet that he justified it to himself by focusing on what these women were doing to earn money at that difficult moment in their lives.

Peaches seems like a ghost. No missing person report, no family looking for her, nothing. This is more in line with someone living that particular lifestyle than a "regular" mother who got picked up at a bus stop. I think a "regular" mother and child vanishing would have received far more attention.

I saw similar comments before Karen Vergata was identified, and it turned out to be the same.

 

[snooptroop88]

Someone earlier posted Tracey Collington. She is on the list I have as well for Peaches.

NamUs #MP21491 Tracey Collington, Female, Black / African American
Date of Last Contact December 4, 1994
Missing From Queens, New York
Missing Age 27 Years
Current Age 56 Years
Circumstances of Disappearance Tracey Collington was last seen at approximately 12:00 PM. in the 2800 block of Mott Avenue, in Queens, New York.

Also Tracey Yolanda Turner:

Name: Tracey Yolanda Turner
Case Classification: Missing
Missing Since: March 1, 1995
Location Last Seen: St. Louis, Missouri

Physical Description​

Date of Birth: April 14, 1968
Age: 26 years old
Race: Black
Gender: Female
Height: 5'8" to 5'11"
Weight: 136 to 180 lbs.

Circumstances of Disappearance​

Reports differ on whether Tracey was last seen in March 1995 or March 1996 in St. Louis, Missouri.
Tracey was seen with a friend (now deceased) who reported that she saw Tracey getting into a truck with an unknown male.

Also Michelle McKnight:

MP3327Michelle Sonja McKnight, Female, Multiple
Date of Last Contact January 1, 1991
Missing From Norfolk, Virginia
Missing Age 15 Years
Current Age 48 Years
Height 5' 3" (63 Inches)
Weight 70 lbs
Race / Ethnicity White / Caucasian, Black / African American

Circumstances​

Date of Last Contact January 1,1991
NamUs Case Created December 2, 2009
Location Norfolk, Virginia

Circumstances of Disappearance Michelle was last seen by Mother, Nora Mann on December 1, 1975. Now deceased Father, Charles Bryant reported to have moved with Michelle to New Jersey to stay with family. Charles Bryant reported that he and Michelle then moved to Norfolk, VA where Michelle stayed to live with his friend, Anita Hartison before Charles Bryant moved to Richmond, VA. Charles Bryant reported that the last time he saw Michelle when she was 16 years old and dating sailors in Norfolk, VA.

Investigating agencies are listed for Michelle McKnight as Connecticut.

 

[wcasewatch]

I'm surprised that there hasn't been any discussion about his apparent attempt to mislead LE in this case.

The site where Peaches Doe was found

In June 1997, the torso of an unidentified LISK victim called "Peaches Jane Doe" was discovered at this site in Hempstead Lake State Park, New York.

oddstops.com

 

[iamshadow21]

I'm surprised that there hasn't been any discussion about his apparent attempt to mislead LE in this case.

The site where Peaches Doe was found

In June 1997, the torso of an unidentified LISK victim called "Peaches Jane Doe" was discovered at this site in Hempstead Lake State Park, New York.

oddstops.com

View attachment 480218

To the contrary, myself and others have discussed it, repeatedly, over the years.

MOO

 

[wcasewatch]

To the contrary, myself and others have discussed it, repeatedly, over the years.

MOO

In Peaches' case? I know there were discussions about the belt.

 

[iamshadow21]

In Peaches' case? I know there were discussions about the belt.

I can only speak for myself, but I have talked about how I believe that the dismemberment and dispersal was to hinder identification and confuse LE. Peaches especially was killed in an era when DNA was fairly newly available as an investigative tool. Her body was scattered in a minimum of three locations, I believe two of which were in different jurisdictions. Her child was left in yet another place, bringing the minimum disposal locations to four. Her head and hands were removed, another typical preDNA mutilation intended to hinder or prevent identification. It's all about misleading LE.

MOO

 

[wcasewatch]

Maybe I should have been more specific. I was referring to staging. The act of deliberately trying to create a false impression. I once believed the belt was an example of such, but I'm not so sure now.

 

[fidgeypie]

I've been looking at this again, zoomed in on the letters and laid a black filter over it. I see a J and possibly an R what do you guys think? I'm wondering if they are children's names.

 

[snooptroop88]

There's heavy police presence at Heuermann's home again. Maybe we'll get some clues for Peaches and her baby.

Exclusive | Cops scouring accused Gilgo Beach serial killer Rex Heuermann’s home in search of evidence tying him to new victims: sources

Cops scouring the Long Island home of accused Gilgo Beach serial killer Rex Heuermann are using body parts from potentially other victims to try to tie him to those murders, too, police sources say…

nypost.com

 

[fidgeypie]

There's heavy police presence at Heuermann's home again. Maybe we'll get some clues for Peaches and her baby.

Exclusive | Cops scouring accused Gilgo Beach serial killer Rex Heuermann’s home in search of evidence tying him to new victims: sources

Cops scouring the Long Island home of accused Gilgo Beach serial killer Rex Heuermann are using body parts from potentially other victims to try to tie him to those murders, too, police sources say…

nypost.com

I hope so,

 

[Blueeyedbrowngirl]

I think this is what people want to believe because the idea of bringing a child while seeing clients seems unfathomable to those who have never been in the throes of a heavy substance addiction.

But it was common practice, especially at the time.

People like to airbrush victims and assume that they lived great lives. It's noble and understandable not to want to speak ill of the dead, but ultimately, it only paints a less realistic picture of the truth. In reality, Peaches was a person like anyone here, and she had her faults just like everyone else.

Each LISK victim so far has been a sex worker. That was his favorite MO, and you can bet that he justified it to himself by focusing on what these women were doing to earn money at that difficult moment in their lives.

Peaches seems like a ghost. No missing person report, no family looking for her, nothing. This is more in line with someone living that particular lifestyle than a "regular" mother who got picked up at a bus stop. I think a "regular" mother and child vanishing would have received far more attention.

I saw similar comments before Karen Vergata was identified, and it turned out to be the same.

We don’t know that a missing persons report wasn’t filed or that no one has been looking for her. Just because we don’t know her name doesn’t mean these things haven’t happened, and to simply assume they haven’t is a disservice to the victim and her child.

And “airbrushing”? No. I’ll stand by my thoughts on the matter until proven otherwise.

 

[wcasewatch]

We don’t know that a missing persons report wasn’t filed or that no one has been looking for her. Just because we don’t know her name doesn’t mean these things haven’t happened, and to simply assume they haven’t is a disservice to the victim and her child.

And “airbrushing”? No. I’ll stand by my thoughts on the matter until proven otherwise.

If a missing person report was filed for a missing Black woman and her toddler, someone would have made the connection long ago. This is someone who a) wasn't reported missing or b) wasn't officially listed as missing.

Feel free to hold on to your opinions. Who believes what doesn't really matter. Just don't be surprised when Peaches' identity is revealed and it turns out that she was indeed a sex worker.

 

[Blueeyedbrowngirl]

If a missing person report was filed for a missing Black woman and her toddler, someone would have made the connection long ago. This is someone who a) wasn't reported missing or b) wasn't officially listed as missing.

Feel free to hold on to your opinions. Who believes what doesn't really matter. Just don't be surprised when Peaches' identity is revealed and it turns out that she was indeed a sex worker.

Missing person reports don’t always receive the local publicity they deserve, nor do they necessarily go national, especially those made in small burgs/towns/cities; fall through the cracks ring any bells?

Again, we don’t know that Peaches wasn’t reported as missing because we don’t know her name. Presenting the opinion that she wasn’t reported missing as fact is a disservice to her and her child.

Could my opinion be off base? Absolutely, and that’s why I present it as just that, opinion.

 

[wcasewatch]

If she was officially reported missing, she'd be listed somewhere. It wouldn't need national attention or publicity to be solved. The task force have already trawled through every missing person report that they can get their hands on. If Peaches and her child were in there, she'd stick out like a sore thumb.

It's possible that someone attempted to report her missing and were met were the usual hesitancy from LE due to her age and lifestyle.

If you look at serial killers who preyed on sex workers, you'll notice that none of them really deviated from that victim profile. They're comfortable in that "world". It is what they know and obsess about. They also use the victims' line of work to justify it to themselves.

In this case, we are dealing with a sadist who needed time and space with his victims. Otherwise, there was no point. He needed to be able to bring them back to his place without it drawing any attention from neighbors. This routine worked with sex workers because they agree to outcalls and won't bat an eyelid if a client requires secrecy.

Picking up a "civilian" and her child off the side of the road and offering her a ride is one thing, but convincing her to go back to his house and then go inside is another. Bear in mind that he would have also needed to happen across this "civilian" in the wild while his family were out of town and he didn't have any commitments...

I'm not seeing it.

 

[carbuff]

If you read through the missing persons threads here, you'll see a lot of cases as you say, but also case after case where family insists they reported their loved one missing and LE doesn't have a record. Or it's just a line in a police log, or it was in a state where reports of runaway minors were purged when the minor turned 21, or the police filled it out but never did anything with it but file it in a cabinet and forget about it.

Even if there was a report filed, and the LE agency took it seriously and tried to find her, it doesn't mean the old record was ever uploaded to any centralized database. I've seen an estimate that only about 10-15% of the missing people in Massachusetts are even in the state database, never mind the national ones, and we're not the only state with that problem. Archived records have been destroyed by accident in fires, floods, tornadoes, and hurricanes, and deliberately when sheer volume forces archives to be removed.

You're likely right that she was at least a part time sex worker, but that in no way implies she wasn't reported missing.

 

[Blueeyedbrowngirl]

If she was officially reported missing, she'd be listed somewhere. It wouldn't need national attention or publicity to be solved. The task force have already trawled through every missing person report that they can get their hands on. If Peaches and her child were in there, she'd stick out like a sore thumb.

It's possible that someone attempted to report her missing and were met were the usual hesitancy from LE due to her age and lifestyle.

If you look at serial killers who preyed on sex workers, you'll notice that none of them really deviated from that victim profile. They're comfortable in that "world". It is what they know and obsess about. They also use the victims' line of work to justify it to themselves.

In this case, we are dealing with a sadist who needed time and space with his victims. Otherwise, there was no point. He needed to be able to bring them back to his place without it drawing any attention from neighbors. This routine worked with sex workers because they agree to outcalls and won't bat an eyelid if a client requires secrecy.

Picking up a "civilian" and her child off the side of the road and offering her a ride is one thing, but convincing her to go back to his house and then go inside is another. Bear in mind that he would have also needed to happen across this "civilian" in the wild while his family were out of town and he didn't have any commitments...

I'm not seeing it.

Had you read (or understood) my initial comments from several years ago, you would know that I didn’t say Peaches was randomly picked up on the side of the road or convinced to visit her killer’s home.

Peaches’ remains were found in June 1997, prior to the advent of the internet when LISK would’ve trawled for street girls rather than use agencies that kept records. Also during that time, Queens Plaza, almost anywhere along Roosevelt Avenue, and the LIRR hub @ Sutphin & Archer in Jamaica were hotbeds for prostitution.

Photos of Peaches’ tattoo show a lighter complexion so in that vein, perhaps she was from one of the culturally diverse neighborhoods that comprise Queens. If so, then maybe she and her daughter were waiting for a bus or train at one of the aforementioned spots, a stranger approached asking if she was working, she said no, he apologized and offered her a ride, she accepted and here we are today. Inference? The seemingly innocuous stranger was LISK and considering Heuermann’s small arsenal, he could have threatened to shoot her if she tried to exit his vehicle.

Opinion? Yes. Beyond the realm of possibility? No.