The Skeleton Key Chronicles

16 hours ago

Sixty years ago tonight, Jerry and Linda Bricca were home with their 4-year-old daughter, Debbie, at 3381 Greenway Avenue in Bridgetown on Cincinnati’s west side. It was Sunday, September 25th, 1966, and at around 10 p.m., a neighbor saw Jerry outside taking the trash cans to the curb before he went back into the house.

It would be the last known sighting of anyone in the Bricca family, although no one had any reason to know that at the time. Jerry was supposed to leave the following morning for a business trip to West Virginia, but he never made his flight, and a coworker who tried to reach him couldn't get an answer. As Monday wore on, there were other little things that probably wouldn't have meant much on their own, but together were beginning to seem unusual.

The trash cans Jerry had carried to the curb Sunday night were still sitting there, newspapers were beginning to collect in the driveway, and the porch light had never been turned off. The television could still be heard playing inside the house, and neighbors had also noticed that the Briccas' two dogs, which were normally let outside, hadn't been out.

By Tuesday, September 27th, enough time had passed that two neighbors decided to walk over and check on the family themselves. When they found the front door unlocked, they opened it, quickly realized something was terribly wrong and contacted the Hamilton County Sheriff's Office.

Jerry and Linda were found deceased in their bedroom, while 4-year-old Debbie was found in hers. What authorities discovered inside that house would become the beginning of one of Cincinnati's most enduring mysteries.

And the timing couldn't have been much more unsettling for the people who lived here. Cincinnati had already spent the summer of 1966 reeling from the Cincinnati Strangler cases, and after months of looking over their shoulders, people were already on edge. Then came the news from Bridgetown that an entire young family had been found inside their home on an ordinary west-side street.

The Bricca case became one of those Cincinnati stories that simply never went away, particularly on the west side. Investigators conducted more than 400 interviews searching for an answer, but as the years passed without one, theories and rumors began filling in the blanks. Organized crime has been mentioned, possible connections to cases in other parts of the country have been explored, and suspicion has fallen on people who were part of the Briccas' own circle. Some of those theories have been debated around Cincinnati for decades, but none has ever resulted in someone being charged.

The case hasn't exactly been forgotten by investigators either. Evidence has been looked at again as technology has changed, books have been written about the Briccas, and generations of local amateur sleuths have gone back through the names, timelines and theories hoping there might be something everyone else missed.

Maybe that's why this particular case has stayed with Cincinnati for so long. This isn't a mystery attached to some distant place most of us have never seen. It's Bridgetown. It's a house on Greenway Avenue. And there are still people around town who remember when Jerry, Linda and Debbie Bricca weren't the names attached to a famous Cincinnati cold case, but simply a young family living on the west side.

Sixty years ago tonight was the last night anyone saw the Bricca family alive, and what happened inside their home that night remains one of Cincinnati's most enduring mysteries.

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The Skeleton Key Chronicles

19 hours ago

A Hamilton, Ohio man has now been missing for four days after leaving Brookville Lake early Monday morning to head home. Todd Payne, 50, left Quakertown Marina on the northern end of Brookville Lake around 1:30 a.m. on September 21st. He was headed home toward Hamilton in his 2009 white Ford Fusion, but he never made it.

There is at least one clue about his route. Todd’s family says his car was captured on camera passing through Liberty at around 2 a.m. From there, however, there are several ways he could have traveled back toward Hamilton, including routes through the College Corner and Oxford areas. That leaves quite a bit of ground between his last known location and home.

Friends and family are asking people along those possible routes to check their properties and cameras from the early morning hours of September 21. They are also looking for volunteers willing to drive the roads and carefully check areas where a vehicle could have left the roadway or might be difficult to see.

Todd is approximately 6 feet tall and 190 pounds, with blond hair and blue eyes, and he uses a wheelchair. Anyone with information is asked to Hamilton Police.

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The Skeleton Key Chronicles

21 hours ago

Update: Cumberland 2-year-old found safe after going missing for 19 hours

Authorities and local residents in Cumberland County, Virginia, are searching for 2-year-old Bridget Maeve Zeigler, who is believed to have walked away from her home on Hidden Valley Road around 6 p.m. last night. (Thursday 9/24)

Her family contacted law enforcement within the hour, and crews have been searching the area ever since. The focus has been around Hidden Valley Road and Anderson Highway, with K-9 teams and a Virginia State Police helicopter brought in to help. The FBI is also assisting along with state police, the Cumberland County Sheriff’s Office and other agencies.

One of the more important pieces right now may be cameras. Investigators checked surveillance footage from a nearby business, but Bridget wasn't seen on it, so people who live in the area are being asked to check their own security cameras and properties. Hunters are also being asked to go through their trail-camera footage in case one of those cameras caught something that could help.

Bridget was wearing an orange dress, blue coat and white tennis shoes when she went missing and is believed to be on foot.

Her photo and the Cumberland County Sheriff’s Office information are on the poster below. If you're anywhere near the Hidden Valley Road area, please take a look at her face and keep an eye out for Bridget.

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