New England Serial Killer Speculation Thread

[Techette2020]

This is the "lineup," so to speak, so far (partially copied from Gummyshoe's original post):

• New Haven, CT (March 21) – Remains identified as Denise Leary, 59, mother of two. Police investigations have found "there is no indication of any criminality" in her death. Ms. Leary had been reported missing following a period of odd behavior in September 2024; her makeup palette was found later outside an abandoned house nearby. Her remains were in thick brush on the same New Haven street she disappeared from.
• Norwalk, CT (March 6) – Paige Fannon, 35, from West Islip, NY, found in the Norwalk River following heavy rainfall. Per this article from Patch, she had been reported missing in New York two days before and was seen in CT the next day(one day before her body was found); her clothing and effects were on the riverbank
• Killingly, CT (April 9) – Unknown cause/manner of death but police do not believe there is any connection to other cases. No ID yet but autopsy indicates the remains (a skeleton) belonged to a 25-45 y/o man of Black/AA or White heritage, who stood around 5'8" (173cm) and who had died in the last year or so. NAMUS #142523.
• Groton, CT (March 19) – Identified as Suzanne Wormser of Groton; the man she lived with has confessed to killing her. Police do not believe there is a connection to other cases.
• Framingham, MA (Apr 10) - Skeletal remains found after a brush fire by Mass Pike exit 117, investigation says remains had been there for months, no foul play
• Plymouth, MA (March 6) - Skull found in the woods. Only further info iss: "small, discolored, and jawless skull"
• Foster, RI (March 26)– Identified as a Warwick woman missing since July 2024; her death is being investigated, but her family has asked for privacy, so I've omitted her name here
• Springfield, MA (4/22) - Woman was found unresponsive; Identified as Meggan Meredith, 45. Her death is being investigated as a homicide but investigators do not believe it connected to any other cases in the area

While we don't know if all eight deaths were homicide, eight murders across three of the densest-populated states since last August (when Ms. Romano went missing) would be a very normal num

 

[Techette2020]

Great summary. Thanks for updating it with the latest.

 

[DS2021]

I'm gonna work on a summary.

I've gone over it in my head and it doesn't feel as concerning as the media is portraying it. (Serial killer aspect wise)

I think Meggans case is the only one they've directly labeled a homicide

DA: Woman found dead near bike path was a homicide

The death of a woman who was found near a bike path in Springfield is being investigated as a homicide, authorities report.

www.westernmassnews.com

So the Springfield woman has been declared as a homicide. Does anyone know how many of the 9 have been declared as homicide? I find it strange that there is no cause of death listed (at least publicly) for most of them. I also thought we could identify a lot about people from DNA now, like sex and ancestry among other info.

The more I think about it, the more I'm convinced LE is keeping some info (rightfully) out of the news until they determine if there is any link between them.

As curious as I am, I know there is a lot we won't know for some time.

 

[Techette2020]

I'm gonna work on a summary.

I've gone over it in my head and it doesn't feel as concerning as the media is portraying it. (Serial killer aspect wise)

I think Meggans case is the only one they've directly labeled a homicide

That's true. Possible this is a combination of various causes with coincidental timing. So hard to know!

 

[DS2021]

That's true. Possible this is a combination of various causes with coincidental timing. So hard to know!

It's been getting warmer out over the last month. I don't think it's hard to believe that the discovery of most of these remains are from people poking around wooded areas now that the snows gone. Many of these remains would likely have been covered with snow until recently

 

[Soulmagent]

I'm gonna work on a summary.

I've gone over it in my head and it doesn't feel as concerning as the media is portraying it. (Serial killer aspect wise)

I think Meggans case is the only one they've directly labeled a homicide

I will work on a map tomorrow , unless I cant sleep after trying to ..

 

[DS2021]

I will work on a map tomorrow , unless I cant sleep after trying to ..

Just please don't add the deceased from RI. I'm sorry to keep emphasizing that. I just know the discussion is really hurting them.

Plymouth, MA (March 6) - Skull found in the woods. Only further info iss: "small, discolored, and jawless skull"

Also Male

The National Missing and Unidentified Persons System (NamUs)

By bringing people, information, forensic science and technology together, NamUs helps resolve cases.

www.namus.gov

 

[CuriousCricket]

This is the "lineup," so to speak, so far (partially copied from Gummyshoe's original post):

• New Haven, CT (March 21) – Remains identified as Denise Leary, 59, mother of two. Police investigations have found "there is no indication of any criminality" in her death. Ms. Leary had been reported missing following a period of odd behavior in September 2024; her makeup palette was found later outside an abandoned house nearby. Her remains were in thick brush on the same New Haven street she disappeared from.
• Norwalk, CT (March 6) – Paige Fannon, 35, from West Islip, NY, found in the Norwalk River following heavy rainfall. Per this article from Patch, she had been reported missing in New York two days before and was seen in CT the next day(one day before her body was found); her clothing and effects were on the riverbank
• Killingly, CT (April 9) – Unknown cause/manner of death but police do not believe there is any connection to other cases. No ID yet but autopsy indicates the remains (a skeleton) belonged to a 25-45 y/o man of Black/AA or White heritage, who stood around 5'8" (173cm) and who had died in the last year or so. NAMUS #142523.
• Groton, CT (March 19) – Identified as Suzanne Wormser of Groton; the man she lived with has confessed to killing her. Police do not believe there is a connection to other cases.
• Framingham, MA (Apr 10) - Skeletal remains found after a brush fire by Mass Pike exit 117, investigation says remains had been there for months, no foul play
• Plymouth, MA (March 6) - Skull found in the woods. Only further info iss: "small, discolored, and jawless skull"
• Foster, RI (March 26)– Identified as a Warwick woman missing since July 2024; her death is being investigated, but her family has asked for privacy, so I've omitted her name here
• Springfield, MA (4/22) - Woman was found unresponsive; Identified as Meggan Meredith, 45. Her death is being investigated as a homicide but investigators do not believe it connected to any other cases in the area

While we don't know if all eight deaths were homicide, eight murders across three of the densest-populated states since last August (when Ms. Romano went missing) would be a very normal number.

Yes. From this list, I'm not seeing anything that suggests SK, either. When you add the density of the population, the suggestion does appear to be reaching, doesn't it?

 

[CuriousCricket]

I'm gonna work on a summary.

I've gone over it in my head and it doesn't feel as concerning as the media is portraying it. (Serial killer aspect wise)

I think Meggans case is the only one they've directly labeled a homicide

Unfortunately, our media today can not be trusted. The ethics of yesteryear seems to have given way to bottom-line driven reporting and click-bait.

 

[liminal-limitless]

I admittedly haven't read the whole thread but as someone who grew up in New England, these locations don't really read as "the same area" to me -- they look close together on the map, especially to people from bigger states, but for example my family considered a 2-hour drive to Cape Cod to be a pretty long trip. I've never been to most places in CT, the only times I was in the state at all was when we drove through to visit relatives in NYC. Providence RI is only like an hour away from where I grew up and I've only been there twice! There's a pretty provincial quality to a lot of places in New England, people who live right on the border between states might commute across state lines but there's not really a sense of anywhere in CT being in the same region as Springfield or Plymouth MA for example. That's all to say, if there were an NESK I would expect it to present more like LISK where all the victims were found within literally yards of each other, not spread across multiple states

 

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[digitective]

IMO this sounds like suicide to me. i don't know why, but removing clothes and phone and leaving them by the river seems like the kind of solemn thing someone might do before taking their own life.

plus, if this was foul play, i would think the perpetrator would either throw the clothes and phone into the river as well, or take them, either to keep or dispose of elsewhere. imo

I had the same thought. It seems to me that she had some sort of mental health issue (suicide or hallucinations), left her stuff on the riverbank and got in. A killer definitely would have taken and disposed of her clothing and belongings, not left them there. And it doesn't sound like there was evidence of a crime scene on Schenck's Island, and it really wouldn't make sense for someone to have killed her elsewhere, brought her there and left her belongings there.

Does anyone know how / why she ended up in Wilton, all the way from Long Island? I haven't heard anything about her having ties to the area.

 

[digitective]

Just some general questions I haven’t seen the answers to and I’m hoping will focus things a little at least for me.
-Where are these bodies being found? Out in the country, suburbs, sketchy parts of town, nice parts of town?
-Were any of these people’s disappearances ever investigated by LE at the time they went missing?
-are these truly resort type towns like the headlines claim?
-do the victims live on the periphery of society, so to speak? Escorts, drug addicts, serious mental health issues?

I can answer about the location for Paige Fannon. Schenck's Island in Wilton, CT, where her belongings were found and where she likely went into the water, is in a wooded area near Wilton Center (the center of town with shops and restaurants). It's a place where families go for walks / little hikes and there are some picnic tables. Wilton is a very safe and wealthy small town with extremely low crime rates -- think Stars Hollow from Gilmore Girls or Stepford from The Stepford Wives (the latter was literally inspired by Wilton and the author lived there). Someone from West Islip, NY, on Long Island, wouldn't usually be there unless they knew someone in Wilton or had some tie to the area.

Wilton is landlocked and very woodsy -- most of the town is somewhere between suburban and rural. Norwalk is the city next door, which is where Paige's body was found after she floated down the Norwalk River from Schenck's Island. Norwalk is on the Long Island Sound and has beaches but it's mostly people from the area who go to them -- it's not really a resort-style vacation destination that people from elsewhere would travel to. Rowayton is the wealthier area of Norwalk that has a little bit of a beach town feel. Norwalk is the 6th largest city in Connecticut by population and has more crime than Wilton.

 

[sunshineray]

This is the "lineup," so to speak, so far (partially copied from Gummyshoe's original post):

• New Haven, CT (March 21) – Remains identified as Denise Leary, 59, mother of two. Police investigations have found "there is no indication of any criminality" in her death. Ms. Leary had been reported missing following a period of odd behavior in September 2024; her makeup palette was found later outside an abandoned house nearby. Her remains were in thick brush on the same New Haven street she disappeared from.
• Norwalk, CT (March 6) – Paige Fannon, 35, from West Islip, NY, found in the Norwalk River following heavy rainfall. Per this article from Patch, she had been reported missing in New York two days before and was seen in CT the next day(one day before her body was found); her clothing and effects were on the riverbank
• Killingly, CT (April 9) – Unknown cause/manner of death but police do not believe there is any connection to other cases. No ID yet but autopsy indicates the remains (a skeleton) belonged to a 25-45 y/o man of Black/AA or White heritage, who stood around 5'8" (173cm) and who had died in the last year or so. NAMUS #142523.
• Groton, CT (March 19) – Identified as Suzanne Wormser of Groton; the man she lived with has confessed to killing her. Police do not believe there is a connection to other cases.
• Framingham, MA (Apr 10) - Skeletal remains found after a brush fire by Mass Pike exit 117, investigation says remains had been there for months, no foul play
• Plymouth, MA (March 6) - Skull found in the woods. Only further info iss: "small, discolored, and jawless skull"
• Foster, RI (March 26)– Identified as a Warwick woman missing since July 2024; her death is being investigated, but her family has asked for privacy, so I've omitted her name here
• Springfield, MA (4/22) - Woman was found unresponsive; Identified as Meggan Meredith, 45. Her death is being investigated as a homicide but investigators do not believe it connected to any other cases in the area

While we don't know if all eight deaths were homicide, eight murders across three of the densest-populated states since last August (when Ms. Romano went missing) would be a very normal number.

Paige was last seen in Wilton, a park area called Schencks Island (not really an island). That's about a 3 mile drive from where she was recovered. If she went into the Norwalk River there in Wilton, it's about a 5 mile journey down to Grist Mill Rd and Main St in Norwalk area of the river where they found her.

Wilton Police search for missing person in area of Schenck's Island

news.hamlethub.com

 

[DS2021]

Denise Leary

September disappearance of Connecticut woman Denise Leary leaves family baffled

The 59-year-old was last seen on September 29, 2024, at her home in New Haven, Connecticut

www.nbcnews.com

Joshua Webbe says the summer of 2024 was difficult for his mom. “She suffered with mental health and anxiety and really bad depression,” he said.

A few nights prior to Denise’s disappearance, Joshua found her behavior concerning. “Around 10:30 p.m., she said she was going out,” he recalled. “She was like, ‘Turn my location off on my phone.’” He says he reluctantly did as his mother requested. “So I tried to look out the window to see who was picking her up,” he recalled.

Joshua says he couldn’t see who was picking his mother up, and that she returned home safe later in the night. He added that while his mother was single, he believes she may have been seeing someone.

Clip

To summarize the rest, a few days later they found the house locked up. Paramedics were called after Denise didn't answer the door. Once inside they discovered Denise wasn't home

Another quote

According to Joshua, paramedics believed Denise used a cable cord to hoist herself out of the window. They also found footprints near the house

 

[Soulmagent]

Map of the discoveries

All the links are source links I used to get as close to the places as reported. They have all been posted here . Map entries are not listed in any order.

3/21 DL
https://www.nhregister.com/news/article/new-haven-body-denise-leary-missing-20239995.php
3/6 Pf
Body Pulled From CT River ID'd As LI Woman: Police

4/9 Killington UID Male
https://www.ctinsider.com/news/article/killingly-remains-connecticut-state-police-namus-20294228.php
4/10 Unknown ,Framingham Ma
Brush fire near Massachusetts Turnpike leads to discovery of human remains, DA says
4/22 MM Investigators identify woman found dead near bike path in Mass. park
3/6 SKULL FOUND
State Police scour woods off Route 3 after discovery of a human skull - Plymouth Independent

 

[sunshineray]

It's been getting warmer out over the last month. I don't think it's hard to believe that the discovery of most of these remains are from people poking around wooded areas now that the snows gone. Many of these remains would likely have been covered with snow until recently

There's been very low to no snow cover in the Northeast this Winter and the last overall, a wide spread lack of snowfall. Seems what little snow has accumulated has been almost immediately melted by precipitation changing over to rain. MO

 

[StarryStarryNight]

There's been very low to no snow cover in the Northeast this Winter and the last overall, a wide spread lack of snowfall. Seems what little snow has accumulated has been almost immediately melted by precipitation changing over to rain. MO

Thanks for this information.
I had seen the original post you responded to, and thought that post made it sound like it was a common occurrence every spring that bodies were found all over the place as the snow melted. Then that made me wonder, then why was finding bodies this spring so different than other springs.
Now I understand from your post there was not really enough snow this year to cover up much of anything.
Still unsure whether finding bodies in the spring is an annual occurrence, and if it is, why the interest in it this year and not others.
I figured you would know the answer since you live up that way.

 

[Palisades]

There's been very low to no snow cover in the Northeast this Winter and the last overall, a wide spread lack of snowfall. Seems what little snow has accumulated has been almost immediately melted by precipitation changing over to rain. MO

That is incorrect that there was little to no snow cover. There were several storms, especially in February. Snow in the upper portion to the Northeast did not melt immediately. There was also a period of cold.

Thanks for this information.
I had seen the original post you responded to, and thought that post made it sound like it was a common occurrence every spring that bodies were found all over the place as the snow melted. Then that made me wonder, then why was finding bodies this spring so different than other springs.
Now I understand from your post there was not really enough snow this year to cover up much of anything.
Still unsure whether finding bodies in the spring is an annual occurrence, and if it is, why the interest in it this year and not others.
I figured you would know the answer since you live up that way.

The claim about no snow is incorrect. There was snow in New England this winter. There was also a cold snap in January and February. Even without the snow, the cold keeps people indoors more and not walking in the woods for fun. Even without snow, people stay in more during the colder months.

I will also mention that several of the women in CT - Denise Leary in New Haven, Paige Fannon in Norwalk- and Meggan Meredith in Springfield MA were all found quickly after they went missing or died.

Suzanne Wormser in Groton was in a suitcase in a somewhat public area for a month before being found. The man she lived with was arrested for her homicide.

The remains in Killingly CT, Plymouth MA, Framingham MA, and Foster RI were skeletal or partial remains. Framingham remains were found by firefighters during a brush fire. Plymouth skull was found by a man looking for deer antlers.

 

[sunshineray]

Thanks for this information.
I had seen the original post you responded to, and thought that post made it sound like it was a common occurrence every spring that bodies were found all over the place as the snow melted. Then that made me wonder, then why was finding bodies this spring so different than other springs.
Now I understand from your post there was not really enough snow this year to cover up much of anything.
Still unsure whether finding bodies in the spring is an annual occurrence, and if it is, why the interest in it this year and not others.
I figured you would know the answer since you live up that way.

In states like Vermont, New Hampshire and the Berkshires of MA, snow cover melt is probably more of a thing. The past 5 years in CT at least have not been what people tend to expect for New England. It's more like in the movie White Christmas...where's the snow? And if you get a heavy snow, it's gone well before what used to be called Spring melt. For some perspective, In I think it was 2011, we had 80+ inches that Winter and were shoveling every two or three days. This past Winter if we got 15 inches total that's saying something. I did no shoveling just sweeping the stairs and walkway a couple times.