PHILADELPHIA, PA — Authorities in Philadelphia say seven missing women have now been linked to a house in the city’s Olney neighborhood, and investigators believe five of them are dead. Police and FBI officials said Wednesday that the conclusion comes from a vast cache of digital files tied to Raymond “R.C.” Horsch, who died in 2025 at age 82.
Even so, investigators have not recovered human remains or other physical proof showing a homicide happened inside the West Chew Avenue home. Officials said they have reviewed only about 30% of the digital evidence so far, leaving hundreds of thousands of files still to examine. The case continues to hinge on whether those images and videos can be matched with other evidence.
More than one million digital files are still being reviewed
Police say the digital archive recovered from the property includes more than one million images and videos, along with electronic devices that may help explain what happened to the missing women. On Wednesday, investigators said they had identified 58 people in the material and were still working through the contents.
The Philadelphia Medical Examiner’s Office reviewed images involving three additional women and told investigators that, if the files are authentic and unaltered, the women appear to be deceased. Deputy Commissioner Frank Vanore said metadata tied to files involving three of those women suggests the videos were created in 2017.
Investigators have also warned that digital evidence alone does not prove a homicide. They say more corroborating evidence is needed before any criminal conclusion can be made in the absence of physical remains or other direct proof from the home.
Seven women have been tied to the case over more than a decade
The women connected to the investigation disappeared between 2012 and 2023, according to police. Gabrielle Amarando was in her early 20s when she vanished in 2012, and her mother later described her as someone who struggled with a drug addiction she could not escape.
Amy McHale, who was in her mid-40s when she disappeared in 2016, had been married to R.C. Horsch before the couple divorced. Her daughter said McHale was using heroin and receiving methadone treatment when she vanished, and police said she was last seen at the West Chew Avenue house.
Maribel Fresses, who was in her early 20s, was reported missing in 2018. Her brother, Dawson Fresses, said hearing that she had been connected to the case left him shocked after years of uncertainty about what happened to her.
Police say video evidence may connect the home to other disappearances
Investigators also linked Nicole Fusaro to the case. She disappeared in 2018 at age 27, and a family member told NBC10 investigators that police believe they have video showing R.C. Horsch strangling her. Fusaro was last seen near Kensington and Allegheny avenues, about four miles from the Chew Avenue property.
Blair Tonzelli was 35 when she disappeared in 2023. Police said a woman who was with Eugene Horsch at the time of his June arrest was carrying Tonzelli’s identification card, adding another connection between the family and the missing-women investigation.
Police also said a sixth woman, thought to be about 25 in the recordings, is believed to be dead. Her name has not been released at the request of her family. A seventh woman, identified only as Jane Doe, also appears in the files, and investigators estimate she was in her 20s.
The investigation grew from Eugene Horsch’s June arrest
The case widened in June after federal authorities arrested Eugene Horsch, the son of Raymond Horsch. Officials said he was found carrying fake federal credentials and other items, which led investigators to the inherited Chew Avenue house after his father’s death.
What started as a federal inquiry soon expanded when officers found a large archive of photographs, videos and electronic devices inside the property. Police also said investigators recovered chemicals from the basement and are still waiting for test results. Sources familiar with the case said authorities are trying to determine whether any of those chemicals could have been used to destroy evidence or dissolve remains.
Police have not publicly detailed the results of that testing. Investigators also say they found signs suggesting an attempt to grow or produce narcotics at the home, adding another layer to an already sprawling investigation.
Federal and state charges continue as the case heads to trial
R.C. Horsch was described by police as a photographer and filmmaker who made violent fetish films and wrote erotic books with sadomasochistic themes. Authorities have said he was never charged in connection with any of the disappearances before his death in 2025.
Evidence seized during the searches also included a piece of writing about serial killer Ted Bundy that mentioned zip ties and a drum, according to a source familiar with the investigation. The note also referred to killings and “trash that needs to go.” It is not clear who wrote it, though Eugene Horsch’s attorney previously suggested Ray Horsch was the author.
On July 9, 2026, a federal grand jury indicted Eugene Horsch on charges tied to false FBI credentials. At a preliminary hearing on Aug. 6, Pennsylvania prosecutors dropped five state charges against him. He still faces federal counts for possession of a firearm by a felon and possession of an unlawfully produced document and authentication feature, and a jury trial is scheduled for January.
Police ask the public for help as unanswered questions remain
Despite months of searching the home, authorities say no human remains have been found. The biggest unresolved question is whether physical evidence will ever surface to back up what investigators believe they are seeing in the digital files.
Police are asking anyone with information to call Philadelphia police at 215-686-TIPS (8477) or homicide investigators at 215-686-3334. The NBC10 Investigators can also be reached by email at david.charns@nbcuni.com and ali.ingersoll@nbcuni.com.
