Ottobre stopped paying attention to the psychics. I learn this from John Ottobre, who finds talking about his sisters disappearance so painful that he often neglects to return my calls. None of these efforts produced any leads. The case, as a disappearance, had been handled by Philadelphia South Detectives, but was now due to be transferred to the homicide unit. Danielle and Richard were not the type to abandon their kids, and nobody had any reason to suspect either of them were depressed or considering suicide in any way. At the time, Danielle was married to her husband Joe Imbo, but they were estranged, and Danielle was in the process of separating from him. But what will stay with me is something he said about his son. Before long, they told Richards daughter, Angela, that her father wasnt coming home. But I felt like I had to do it for my mother.. Is it? They started dating almost immediately, and married a couple of years later, in 2002. Laurel home looking for her. But panic didnt really set in until 3 p.m., when Danielles son, little Joe, was due to be dropped back home by his father. Once, the footsteps came very fast, almost tumbling down the stairs. until John Ottobre intervened. Based on everything Ive read, no. [4][8], Since 2008, the FBI has been investigating the disappearance as a possible murder for hire, but has not named any suspects. This is how murder and disappearances destroy families. He went in and found the place dark, still and undisturbed. That means everybody, even people who saw something or heard something unusual but didn't understand how important it was. Pincus, fearing a second tragedy, ordered a search. They sat close, smiling and laughing. Shortly before she disappeared, Imbo told her husband and Petrone that she wanted "space" from both of them; she was reportedly considering ending her relationship with Petrone altogether. Imbo's purse and wallet have not been located. Shouldnt this be solved by now? But whats also brought him to the table is the chance, he says, to reminisce to contribute to a story that will recall Danielle as a person., The good times cause a torrent of happy memories: their first meeting at the car dealership, a first date that went on all night and meandered all over Philly and New Jersey. Joe Imbo, on the surface, seemed to be saying the right things, though. You know, he says, theres only one person in the world that knows I didnt do it, and its me.. But tonight, on February 19, 2005, he had been alone, eating in a South Philly bar and working his cell phone, searching for someone to meet up with for a drink. It could be a murder/suicide. That was the last time I saw them.. The speculation doesnt do any good, he says. Danielle and Richard both had children from previous relationships. How the FBI thinks the truck was disposed of (28:10). I wouldnt be able to live with myself this long after such a heinous thing, or look my son in the eye.. In the days after their disappearance, Richards then 14-year-old daughter Angela gave an absolutely heart wrenching public plea for the return of her dad that is very hard to watch. Accessed 24 May 2022. They were last seen walking on South Street toward Petrone's parked vehicle, a 2001 Dodge pick-up truck. He is married, the father of 11-year-old twin boys, and describes himself as bitter. Before she went missing, during football season he and Danielle would watch the Eagles, and if the team needed a score, hed hide his face until his sister gave my head a squeeze so Id know it was safe to look. Now, Sunday is just Sunday. Unfortunately, none of them had their heads in that place. Shed started dating another man, Richard Petrone. Your sister, she told him, is being held in the boxcar of a train in Philadelphia. Their case remains unsolved. You always feel it. In 2008, the FBI would issue a press release to this effect, suggesting that Imbo and Petrone were victims of a murder for hire scheme. However, panic didn't truly set in until 3 pm, when her husband Joseph arrived at her condo to drop off their son, "little Joe," and Imbowas absent. It was Joes weekend for visitation and he was scheduled to bring the boy back on Sunday morning. The disappearance of Richard and Danielle actually has several reward funds, including one administered by the Petrone family that has grown to more than $100,000. She was the daughter of John Ottobre, a Philly lounge singer who went by Johnny October and gained national fame in the 50s doo-wop group The Four Dates. Then he called his sister, who was with Danielle. They carried pictures of Petrones black Dodge Dakota truck, knew its license plate YFH-2319 and the image of its NASCAR decal by heart. Authorities have questioned associates of both people. We were sitting by the bar, and when they left we just hugged and said goodbye. Both New Jersey and Pennsylvania authorities are investigating their disappearances, which remain unsolved. Ominously, the couple's cell phones had not been used in the last two weeks, and there had been no activity on their credit cards or in their bank accounts, the families said. Last updated February 14, 2008; details of disappearance updated. It was good to hear them say that on the record, so there really can't be any confusion about what's happened.". Christian Zajac, the FBI agent in charge, said, "We feel this was an orchestrated act. However, one of the least-appreciated and often overlooked reasons a case goes cold is simply perspective. If, as the FBI maintained, this was a murder-for-hire, the person who hired the hitman likely furnished him with a description of Richards Dakota. Petrone's friends, Anthony Valentino and his wifeMichelle McLaughlin, joined Imbo and Petrone at the restaurant. At 23, she has moved past the fear, which dogged her as a teenager, that whatever evil took her dad will come back for his family. Danielles family believed the bad blood between the Petrones and Joe Imbo was counterproductive. Is it either of those things? In the summer of 2005, cracks first appeared in the relationship between the families, with the Petrone family particularly suspicious of Joe Imbo. And of the victims who knew their offenders, 62% were wives, common-law wives, ex-wives, or girlfriends of the offenders. Richard Jr. had just scored Springsteen tickets and was going to take his dad. Believe me, we looked, says Roselli, and we continue to look, but nothing has emerged that there was anything in his background that would suggest him as a target for murder.. Likewise, Richards family was worried. They were still hoping for the best. As I told you earlier, Danielles brother, John Ottobre, showed up looking for her at her condo that morning when he heard she had missed her hair appointment. So, maybe this case is cold because the police have been investigating murder-for-hire since 2008 and overlooking other explanations. Is it just me or is that alibi almost too perfect? There are the obvious reasons, things weve seen before. The couple, who had known each other since High School, had only recently started dating after Danielle's split with her estranged Husband. But twice a year, his mom or his wife calls Joe, and they arrange to pick up little Joe, now 10, in South Carolina, taking him for one week around Christmas and again in summer for a trip down the Shore. Danielle was going through a divorce from Joe Imbo in 2005, her husband of 3 years, and had returned to using her maiden name, Ottobre. It didnt appear to him that she had been home the previous night. The Charley Project is NOT a registered non-profit organization and any donations will NOT be tax-deductible. With ten years gone, the team had been whittled down, but refused to give up, the story said. On the 15th anniversary, in 2020, the FBI again pleaded for information from the public: The FBI, Philadelphia Police Department, New Jersey State Police, Mount Laurel Police Department, and Burlington County Prosecutors Office are seeking the publics assistance as we continue to investigate the disappearance, 15 years ago today, of Danielle (Ottobre) Imbo and Richard Petrone, Jr. But then I wouldnt know what happened to my son. 856-225-5470. Some even believe that it was the mob that carried it out. Danielles brother, John Ottobre, had a key to Danielles house. The relationship between them was fractured. Marge Petrone has said if it was murder-for-hire, she does not believe Richard was the target of the hit. He lost a wonderful person in his life.. Shed begun dating Richard during a long separation from her husband a separation she was intending to punctuate with a divorce. Or the person who committed the crime died shortly thereafter and left nobody behind who knew the truth. A murder-for-hire scenario also remains in play. "Not a lipstick, not a bag, not a shoe, not a car, not an eyewitness, not a tip," said Imbo's brother, John Ottobre. Richard, a NASCAR fan, planned to watch the Daytona 500. Her husband proved less enamored of their new life. Agent Roselli had not backed down from the Bureaus position that the disappearance had been an organized hit. I know I must have looked really stupid, he says now. But the truth is, we dont know what happened.. But people who knew him say he was more of a bruiser, lumping enemies up rather than killing them. He was mulling going to Abilienes later to see a band. What access did you have? As the trail grows colder, the question grows larger: What really happened that night? "The FBI decided to come out with something that we've felt has been the case from day one, that it was a murder. A few weeks earlier, Danielle Imbo had ended their on-again, off-again relationship. He still saw her several days a week, still served as her chief chauffeur. I dont blame people for not wanting to be around us, says Marge. Danielle Imbo, 34, worked from home for a mortgage company andwas the lead singer ofa New Jersey rock band. He looks me straight in the eye. Three to five remained in the murky water after the search was stalled by bad weather, but police said none was known to be a Dodge Dakota. Were missing couple victims of a hit? Philadelphia Daily News, 07 02 2008, https://www.newspapers.com/clip/102527418/were-missing-couple-victims-of-a-hit/. But he has a different view. Whats really important to me is to know what happened.. Christine said no. There is a saying in law enforcement circles: Its always the ex-husband. So sitting down with Imbo is portentous a journey to the one man who might possibly hold an answer. Until police arrest someone else, he will likely always face suspicion. On the night of Saturday,February 19, 2005, Imbo and Petrone met with friends at Abilene's, a South Philadelphia Tex-Mex restaurant that has since closed. Through chance or planning, a criminal pulls off a crime with no witnesses and no evidence. About six weeks in, one got hold of John. Cmon, he told me over the phone before I arrived, its been nine years. Imbo was employed as a loan processor for a mortgage company at the time of her disappearance, working out of her home. Joseph O'Brien of the Philadelphia Police South Detective Division. Not to mention, a killer who dumps and burns a truck in the wilderness has to get back to town somehow. Youre just not good at your job. Two years after that, their son, little Joe, grounded her. They were even overheard making plans for the next day. No bloodstains. Also, he didnt need to incur a capital murder charge when drug dealing provided so much of what he dearly wanted: money. Then, as she put her marriage to Joe Imbo in her rearview mirror and sparked a new beginning, she rekindled an on-again-off-again romance with Richard Petrone, a childhood friend from the neighborhood. Want to come have a drink? Richard asked. He never thought Danielle Imbo would be interested. That first Sunday Richard Jr. went missing, Marge Petrone felt her sons death lodge, as a certainty, in her gut, even as Richard Sr. sat down and called every hospital and police station in the region. Ottobre drove to the scene, and as the police scoured the train, moving from car to car, he felt flush first with the adrenaline of the moment, then with embarrassment. Hed been planning to watch the Daytona 500 at home with friends but nobody had heard from him. Thirty-four year old Danielle Imbo was going through a divorce and raising her eighteen month old son. tipton, iowa obituaries. "He said "I got, like . Richards daughter, Angela, was 14, and Danielle had a son who was still a toddler. His hair was once coal-black, but hes 42 now, and big patches of gray sprout at the sides of his head. The disappearance of Imbo and Petrone: FBI says people know who did it. ABC7, 19 February 2020, https://abc7.com/true-crime-6abc-cold-case-philadelphia-police-department/5948803/. But Danielle Imbo and Richard Petrone didnt fit the profile. What is known about Joe Imbo, who was Danielle's estranged husband at the time (22:20). Many people have been suspicious of Danielle's soon-to-be ex-husband Joe Imbo but he appeared to have a solid alibi. They hadnt spoken since she broke things off, blowing right through Valentines Day without even a text message. His mom had called and said Danielle missed her hair appointment at 11 am. As reported by the Philadelphia Daily News: Danielle's estranged husband, Joe Imbo, says he believes he'll see her again. The former covergirl, 39, detailed her troubled past and battle with mental health . The pair crossed and recrossed the Walt Whitman, Ben Franklin and Betsy Ross bridges. Because it was nice to remember the good times.. Danielle has a tattoo on her lower back of "flowers." [3][4][5], On the evening of Saturday, February 19, 2005, Imbo and Petrone joined another couple for drinks at Abeline's bar and restaurant located at 429 South Street in Philadelphia. Its possible a perpetrator could just get lucky, Roselli says today, but its more likely just what it looks like: Someone behind this knew what they were doing., JOHN OTTOBRES FATHER, John Sr., a former boxer and doo-wop singer, died in 1999, at age 62. It also doesnt escape my attention that if this is a murder-for-hire plot, Joe Imbos alibi does not exclude him from suspicion. With no bodies to bury and no agreed-upon story to frame and help them understand their loss, they can only stare into empty space, sentenced to always wonder what happened. At around 11:45 p.m., they got up to leave. "They vanished," John Ottobre [told the Philadelphia Daily News.] Only reports and accounts and theories. Disappearance of Danielle Imbo and Richard Petrone Jr. Wikipedia, https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Disappearance_of_Danielle_Imbo_and_Richard_Petrone_Jr. He preferred his Crown Royal straight, his beer Yuengling, and his clothes casual sweatpants and t-shirts. I also have not ruled him out.. Danielle Imbo loved Chinese food, her moms meatballs, and a particular Wawa coffee she called Christmas in a cup. She loved one pair of pajamas in her favorite color, baby blue, covered in penguins. Imbo and her boyfriend,Richard Petrone, were last seen at Abilene's (sometime's spelled "Abeline's" or "Abiline's"), a bar and restaurant in the 400 block of South Street Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, on February 19, 2005. Daniel She fronted a rock band around New Jersey and boasted a singers outgoing personality, and after the trouble shed had with her estranged husband, shed responded to Richards gentler approach. The FBI announced yesterday that investigators believe that Richard Petrone and his girlfriend Danielle Imbo [] might have been killed in a "murder-for-hire" plot. At the time, Danielle was married to her husband JoeImbo, but they were estranged, and Danielle was in the process of separating from him. He just cant find the trail leading from the crime back to its perpetrators. Youve gone crazy!. Laurel woman, 34, missing since Feb. 19th.. Just days before he vanished, Petrone told his father he had angry words with Joe Imbo over the phone. But hes getting older, and I dont know how long that can last., VITO ROSELLI, THE FBI AGENT charged with ending all of this, doesnt try to hide his feelings. There are a million Hollywood reasons like that. We can go in any direction at all, because there are no tracks or markers. The FBI has questioned Imbo's estranged husband, Joe Imbo, many times. And its because of this., At this, he gestures toward the audio recorder sitting on the table between us the whole mystery surrounding the vanishing of his estranged wife. They get on the phone with old friends from time to time. Weve all seen Philadelphia depicted on the screen a thousand times; the steps in front of the Philadelphia Museum of Art so famous from the Rocky movies, Independence Hall where both the Declaration of Independence and the Constitution were signed, and more commonplace but equally character-defining rowhouses shoulder-to-shoulder in working class (and some would say gentrified) neighborhoods. Joe Imbo has dealt with a lot of pressure in the past nine years. Did someone follow him in another vehicle? The Scope of the Problem: Intimate Partner Homicide Statistics. VAWnet.org, https://vawnet.org/sc/scope-problem-intimate-partner-homicide-statistics. And thats what keeps me going now. The FBI has questioned Imbo's estranged husband, Joe Imbo, many times. Laurel, New Jersey home, all in the hope of shedding some light on the situation through a visual representation. Today would be [Richard] Petrone's 36th birthday, according to a family website. Danielle was stymied. It's like you're in this awful dream, and you're caught in quicksand.". We' re aggressively pursuing a scenario that's based on leads and tips we've received.". It would be a simple matter from there to slide right into the truck with the two of them and force them to drive to wherever they met their end. Did the transfer take place on someone elses property? As for the Ottobres, Felice wakes up, and before she gets out of bed, she cries, her grief bubbling up in wracking sobs. He put on dad weight, clocking in at five-foot-nine and 200 pounds. The community was engaged but there were no leads to be found. [1] Petrone, age 35, resided in Philadelphia and worked at his family's bakery. In a video that can still be found online via the Daily Voice, Adventures with Purpose chronicled their search of the river in March 2022. Danielles family were worried, yes, but they were not expecting the worst. In a city like Philly, people go missing all the time, for all kinds of reasons. Thirty-four year old Danielle Imbo was going through a divorce and raising her eighteen month old son. In fact, some 20 minutes after we part, he will call me. John paid $1,200 to get a Camden police officer to take him up in a helicopter to search. Philly Couple Who Disappeared In 2005 Latest Case For Famous Rescue Group. Daily Voice, 24 March 2022, https://dailyvoice.com/pennsylvania/bucks/news/philly-couple-who-disappeared-in-2005-latest-case-for-famous-rescue-group/828538/. In 2010, Robert Carey, the alleged leader of a Kensington-area prescription pill ring, killed himself in prison; rumors abounded for years that he had been the hit man. Her boy, Timothy, the grandson Richard never knew, means everything to the Petrones, whose lives have been mostly blown apart. She has worked as a loan mortgage processor. On this Wikipedia the language links are at the top of the page across from the article title. The two clicked instantly. It was also featured on the podcast Women & Crime in December 2021. He had been socializing at a gathering with family and friends who also happened to be law enforcement. The person who suffers the most is my son. Its one of my biggest fears that hes gonna resent me, he told me, drooping forward like a dying flower at the thought that he might one day find his sons judgment placed on him. They were rivals. I wait till hes nearly finished, just moving bits of egg around with his fork, before I ask, flat out: You had nothing to do with the disappearance of your wife? Through her best friend, Christine, she reconnected with her high school crush, Christine's older brother, thirty-five year old, single father Richard Petrone. What happened to Danielle Imbo and Richard Petrone Jr.? Join Mike and Morf as they discuss the mysterious disappearance of Danielle Imbo and Richard Petrone. But in the end, they all found nothing no truck off the road, no hulking shadow flickering beneath the water. John would later tell ABC7 Joe Imbo seemed surprised to find a bunch of Danielles family at her place, but she wasnt there. But several days later, he pulled a gray hoodie on against sub-freezing temperatures, walked the two blocks from his apartment to the South Philly Tap Room, and ate dinner alone. I want to thank you, he will say. Leisek has vowed to continue searching, and well just have to eagerly await developments. Somewhere in the city of brotherly love there had been a dark conspiracy. "He said "I got, like . Anyone might wonder if, in time, those questions will grow pointed. By early 2005, shed told both Joe and Richard that she wasnt interested in seeing either of them anymore. 856-234-1414, Philadelphia Police Department Imbo, age 34, was a resident of Mt. So when Danielle disappeared, I felt like I was the man of the family, the younger Ottobre says. Sitting across from Imbo, I find myself wishing that hed suddenly sprout horns, or a halo, and clear the picture. And thats why were out here scanning and searching each one of these, to make sure that we clear the entire area, to make sure theres no vehicles underwater that we need to clear. Well have to do the best we can with what we have, to answer one question. "I don't have evidence to arrest Joe" is all he says. Something was wrong. He went to his parents for dinner once a week for his favorite meal, chicken cutlets, which his mother breaded and fried, wrapping extras in foil for him to take home. She lives her entire day with a sick feeling in her stomach, like something is wrong. She worked in car sales, and then the financial industry, supervising mortgages. Investigators monitored the couples bank accounts, credit cards and cell phones, looked for evidence that either had a secret life. The details offered by the Philadelphia Daily News, however, were not good. At about 11:45 pm, Imboand Petroneleft Abilene's. The two clicked instantly. On the night they vanished, Danielle and Richard had met some Friends at a bar named Abilene's on the 400 Block of South Street in Philadelphia. According to Petrone Sr., his son told him prior to his disappearance that he received several threatening phone calls from Joe. Their case was also recapped on the podcast "Obsessed With Disappeared" in August 2022 in an episode titled "A Bridge Too Far: The Disappearance of Danielle Imbo & Richard Petrone". Using maps and accounts of the missing persons last-known whereabouts, their home, and their destination, founder Jared Leisek has been able to locate a surprising number of vehicles (many times with remains still in them) in which the missing simply, for unknown reasons, drove their vehicle into a body of water. Danielles ex-husband, Joe Imbo, had a rock-solid alibi for February 19th, one that placed him 50 miles away at a kids party with his stepfather, an ex-NYPD officer, and multiple active police. But Richard suddenly found himself with vast amounts of free time. [2] The couple had been involved in what family and friends describe as an "on again, off again" romantic relationship. I cant help but feel the answer is the truck. Now, lets be honest. Richard said he understood; hed raised a daughter on his own. When a song his son loved floods the vehicle, his loss arrives with every line. She was wearing a jacket, cream colored sweater, blue jeans and carrying a black purse. You know and theyre labeled now as private property, no trespassing, they have some, you know, fencing up there. Updated 3 times since October 12, 2004. Angela now works in the bakery. When Danielle got pregnant, she had put her own music dreams to rest and left her position as the lead singer for a pop rock band called the Schoolboys. Danielle and Richard had been dating, but they were on a break. Accessed 24 May 2022. According to the Philadelphia Daily News, Richard Petrone Sr. considered the admission from the FBI a small victory. Youve got to stop this, Pincus warned him. "Tips throughout time have indicated logically that this is not a kidnapping case. The authorities have since come out and expressed suspicion of their own. Danielle Finlay Jones, 31, was found dead in December Pair had just started dating after meeting on the app, Bumble Court hears neighbours heard 'loud, violent sex' She smoked a pack of Marlboro Lights a day. And this is mine.. There was no doubt that there had been some tension between Joe Imbo and Richard Petrone, though. Danielle, like her late father John "Johnny October" Ottobre, had a passion for music. [12], In 2016, their case was profiled on the podcast The Vanished.[13]. Danielle Imbo, 34, of Mount Laurel, and her friend Richard Petrone, Jr., 35, of Philadelphia, were last seen on Feb. 19, 2005 leaving a bar near 5th and South streets. It was a crowded spot, though. This would be the last time anyone saw them. He orders egg whites. Investigators stated that very little evidence is available to indicate what happened to Petrone and Imbo, but they have ruled out kidnapping and think a random act of violence is also unlikely. It is possible whomever was driving the vehicle was a little impaired and just made a costly error a wrong turn, a slip of a foot off the brake pedal. Petrone was going to drive Imbo to her condo in Mount Laurel, NJ, and then return to his own home. When Richard Sr., the writer, tries to talk about his son, he breaks down, sobbing, hiding his face behind his hands until he can regain his composure. The statement reiterated the facts of the case, then mentioned a reward. He can see shadows out there, flickering across the empty field. He falls silent for a second, whispers, I apologize, reaches for a napkin to wipe away the single tear that escapes down his cheek. People who got hammered and had a lost weekend at a club. They were last seen at Abilene's bar and restaurant on South Street in Philadelphia, and Richard's best friend Rick Bellezzi told the Philadelphia Inquirer that the couple "left the club happy at about 11:45." But that was the last time they were seen. There are also more pedestrian reasons, equally as damaging, but grounded in our human emotions and interpersonal complexities mixed with feelings of self-worth. "We haven't found anything to indicate foul play, but all of our options remain open," said Capt. THE LOST DOG CAFE sits on a side road amidst a grove of palm trees on Folly Beach, a little resort town (population 2,600) near Charleston, South Carolina. On the night of February 19th, 2005, an unseasonably cold night, even for Philly, Danielle had been socializing with family over dinner and asked to be dropped off at a taproom where Richard was having a drink. What is known about Anthony Rodesky, a convicted murderer who has not been ruled out in this case (24:50). Richard loved music, and never missed a Springsteen show. Joe Imbo moved to the Carolinas with the son he had with Danielle, Joe III, and to this day, he maintains his innocence and he has never been named an official suspect by the police. Nobody could say. Danielle has a tattoo on her lower back of "flowers." We don't even know if they made it to New Jersey.". Ill admit, that part makes me a little nervous. Or both. Danielle Imbo And Richard Petrone Both Disappeared Without A Trace - Heres What We Know. The FBI continued to investigate the case and has actively been looking for tips. Neither Imbo nor Petrone have accessed their bank accounts or used their credit cards or EZ-Pass cards since they went missing. Petrone channels his pain into writing, posting poetry, prose and song lyrics, liberally referencing Springsteen, on the memorial website Richardpetrone.com: Nothing to sayEven less to feelTheres no more leftFor this sorrow to steal. After the Petrones reached out to him, Roselli consulted with Richard Walter, a renowned criminal profiler and member of the Vidocq Society, a group of retired criminal investigators who gather in private in Philadelphia once a month to review cold cases. Through her best friend, Christine, she reconnected w. Original music created by Micheal Whelan through Amper Music, Theme music created and composed by Ailsa Traves. Their relationship was going well when Danielle's ex-husband began attempting to rekindle their romance. The visits, he says, are both amazing and awful, because the boy sings like his mother, and his face is so much like hers that he seems to project her like a hologram back out into the world.
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