BREAKING NEWS: New Evidence Points to Possible Ritual in Body Theft

by Noah Cohen
ncohen@bergenlivemedia.com

STAMFORD, CONN (July 8, 2009) New evidence found in New Jersey and Connecticut point to a possible ritual in the theft of a 2-year-old girl’s body from a Stamford, Conn., cemetery, police said

Stamford Police Capt Richard Conklin said items found in recent days at the grave and in New Jersey pointed to a possible ritualistic motive.

He declined to elaborate on the specific evidence found, citing the ongoing investigation.

The child’s body was found by two fishermen in the Passaic River in Clifton on Sunday and police later determined it was the same body stolen from Woodlawn Cemetery in Stamford.

Conklin said an armband on the body led police to make the identification. He would not discuss details of the armband.

Police  said the body was in good condition when it was discovered in the river.

The Stamford Advocate newspaper identified the child as 2-year-old Imani Joyner, who died in 2007 from semilobar holoprosencephaly, a condition that kept her brain from developing fully, the Advocate reported.

According to the newspaper, Stamford Town Clerk Donna Loglisci said she signed documents allowing authorities to exhume the child’s body Monday.  The information could not be independently verified at the time of this report.

A police spokesman did not immediately return a message seeking confirmation.

Lt. Richard Berdnick, who is leading the Clifton investigation, was not immediately available for comment at the time of this post.

Anyone found guilty of interfering with a cemetery or a burial ground could face a maximum penalty of 5-years in prison, said Lt. Tim Shaw of the Stamford Police Crimes Against Persons Unit.

Filed under: Clifton, body found, breaking news, Clifton, Clifton Police, crime, Stamford

Child’s Body Found in Clifton was Stolen from Conn. Grave

by Noah Cohen
ncohen@bergenlivemedia.com

STAMFORD, CONN (July 7, 2009) The body of a two-year-old girl found by boaters Sunday in the Passaic River in Clifton was stolen from a Stamford, Conn. cemetery, police announced today at a news conference.

Capt. Richard Conklin of the Stamford Police Detective Bureau said there were no suspects and the investigation was ongoing.

“We have speculation and theories” he said.

The child’s body, which was found embalmed and sealed in a plastic bag, was well preserved, Conklin said.

Police have not identified the child out of respect for the family’s privacy.

The body was identified by the New Jersey State Medical Examiner’s Office, Stamford Police said.

“The Stamford Police Department’s heartfelt condolences go to the family, who are reliving the grief of the loss of the child,” Conklin said.

The child died from a pre-existing medical condition and was buried at the Woodland Cemetery in 2007, police said.

“We believe that the baby was legally buried in 2007,” said Lt. Sean Cooney, a Stamford police spokesman.

He said there was nothing to show that the graves had been recently dug up or disturbed.

Stamford Police and Passaic County authorities exhumed the grave and found the body missing.

Cooney said he was unsure how New Jersey authorities identified the child’s body.

Filed under: Clifton, body found, Clifton, crime, passaic river

Body Found in Passaic River Identified as Missing Waldwick Woman

Bergen Live Staff Report

ELMWOOD PARK (July 6, 2009) Authorities have identified the female body found yesterday in the Passaic River as that of missing Waldwick mother of three Beverly T. Spano, according to a report in the Bergen Record.

Elmwood Park Police Chief Donald Ingrasselino said there was no evidence to suggest she was murdered. Investigators used dental records to identify the body after it was pulled from the river Sunday night.

A passerby discovered Spano’s body at 5:40 p.m. in the river along River Drive, south of Market Street, according to police Lt. Thomas Sabat.

Sabat said divers from the Bergen County Police Department and investigators from the Bergen County Prosecutor’s Office were called to remove the body Sunday night.

The body was too badly decomposed and was taken to the county medical examiner’s office for an autopsy and positive identification, Sabat said Sunday.

At the time of the discovery, police said it was a female and appeared to match the description of the then-unidentified Spano.

The discovery concludes a search that began Thursday after Spano was reported missing by her husband.

Spano’s unlocked minivan was found at an Elmwood Park marina on River Drive and Washington Avenue Thursday night.

Police began searching the Passaic River for Spano after her unlocked minivan was found at the Elmwood Park marina at River Drive and Washington Avenue

Hours before Spano’s body was found, two fishermen discovered a two-year-old child’s body down river in Clifton at approximately 3:30 p.m.

Sabat said there is no connection between the two bodies.

The investigation into the child’s death is ongoing, according to Passaic County authorities.

Filed under: Elmwood Park, body found, breaking news, Elmwood Park, passaic river, police, Waldwick

BREAKING NEWS UPDATE: Female Body Found in Passaic River in Elmwood Park

by Noah Cohen

ELMWOOD PARK (July 5, 2009) The body found in the Passaic River in Elmwood Park today is a female but police must await a positive identification by the Bergen County Medical Examiner’s Office, Elmwood Park police Lt. Thomas Sabat said this evening.

Sabat said the body was removed from the river along River Drive, south of Market Street, and transported to the medical examiner’s office this evening.  A passerby made the discover at 5:40 p.m. today, he said.

Fishermen found a child’s body in the same river in Clifton earlier today but Sabat said there was no connection between the two cases.

Police had been searching the area for a Waldwick woman reported missing by her husband Thursday.  Authorities said it was too early to tell if the body was that of the missing woman.

State, county and local police used divers, boats and a helicopter to search the river after an unlocked minivan belonging to the woman was found at an Elmwood Park marina Thursday.

Bergen Live News will continue to update this story as more information is available.

Filed under: Elmwood Park, body found, breaking news, Elmwood Park, passaic river, Waldwick