Shed met her husband, Joe, when he needed a new car, after his clunker broke down. [2] The couple had been involved in what family and friends describe as an "on again, off again" romantic relationship. Tipsters can remain anonymous. They were still hoping for the best. I wish I could say someone saw them walk to Richards truck and get in it and drive away, but we cant even say that. Mt. At 23, he had a daughter out of wedlock, raising her in an apartment above his parents pastry shop. You cant imagine outliving your child.. Unfortunately, none of them had their heads in that place. Like Richards father, he still speeds up to get a closer view of any black truck. I wouldnt be able to live with myself this long after such a heinous thing, or look my son in the eye.. His reminiscences of Danielle are tender, but his affect is flat. Imbo had a 2-year-old son and Petrone had a teenage daughter. [1] Petrone, age 35, resided in Philadelphia and worked at his family's bakery. Absolutely not., He says hes decided to talk to me for a couple of reasons. He had been socializing at a gathering with family and friends who also happened to be law enforcement. Not even the best-funded investigation can run down every thread of every possibility. A police dredging operation rumored to be related. A detective embarks on a missing-persons case with every possible end in sight. The place was called Abilene at 429 South Street a skinny little single-lane one-way street; historic, pedestrian-friendly, and lined with souvenir shops and places to grab a bite and a brew. [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. By early 2005, shed told both Joe and Richard that she wasnt interested in seeing either of them anymore. 856-225-5470. 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. Police: dredging isn't search for missing couple. Philadelphia Inquirer, 29 08 2005, https://www.newspapers.com/clip/102493641/police-dredging-isnt-search-for-missin/. Your sister, she told him, is being held in the boxcar of a train in Philadelphia. Accessed 24 May 2022. Not a fingerprint or a hair, not a sighting on a. Both New Jersey and Pennsylvania authorities are investigating their disappearances, which remain unsolved. I also have not ruled him out.. But inside, he hurt. That said, Roselli hasnt closed the book on Careys involvement, positing a scenario of some sort of beat-down that escalated into a double homicide, or a robbery gone haywire. And if so, who and why? Many people have been suspicious of Danielle's soon-to-be ex-husband Joe Imbo but he appeared to have a solid alibi. Joe called Richard at his parents bakery, where he worked, warning him to stay away from his wife. Their moms enjoyed a friendship of their own. Imbo also said he tried to win his estranged wife back. You come out here, Lovers Lane, you know late at night and then you accidentally put it into drive instead of reverse you know, theres a lot of possibilities as to what could happen out here. Danielle Imbo And Richard Petrone Both Disappeared Without A Trace - Heres What We Know. Petrone's friends, Anthony Valentino and his wifeMichelle McLaughlin, joined Imbo and Petrone at the restaurant. Place of suicides. 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/. Thats change your life money for a person who has the right tip. But again, coming back to 2005, how much fencing was up here? He wants to get this out there again in the hopes that someone, somewhere, will come forward with new information. But it could be. Danielle Olivera appeared on Monday night's episode of Watch What Happens Live, where she confirmed Oliver Gray cheated on Mya Allen. Imbo's family first noticed something was amiss when Imbo failed to show up for a hair appointment on Sunday morning at 11 am. He readily acknowledges that people looked at him like a monster in the wake of his wifes disappearance. She and Richard Sr. had long-since grieved their son. Petrone and Imbo's estranged husband had allegedly exchanged threats with one another over the telephone and Imbo had made multiple failed attempts to reconcile with her husband, who was involved with another woman. There may be a NASCAR sticker in the rear window. Christine said no. It also doesnt escape my attention that if this is a murder-for-hire plot, Joe Imbos alibi does not exclude him from suspicion. Adventures With Purpose - COLD CASE: 2005 Disappearance of Danielle Imbo and Richard Petrone Jr. (Part 3). Facebook, 2 March 2022, https://www.facebook.com/watch/?v=972861123603259. Youve got to stop this, Pincus warned him. Danielles family believed the bad blood between the Petrones and Joe Imbo was counterproductive. At ages 34 and 35, they both had lives that appeared to be angled up good jobs, loving families, wide circles of friends. But the different outlooks between the two families the Ottobres pressing hope, the Petrones, acceptance confused the girl, and tensions arose. Richards camp pointed to Danielles estranged husband, Joe Imbo, and their rough divorce. The FBI continued to investigate the case and has actively been looking for tips. He looks me straight in the eye. Then there was this weird bit at the end. Updated 3 times since October 12, 2004. Imbo was carrying a two-handle black purse at the time of her disappearance. If we can find the truck, well find Richard and Danielle. It could also be a car accident that ended in the same way, at the bottom of the river, with Richard and Danielle trapped inside. Accessed 24 May 2022. Police in Philadelphia and New Jersey where the couple were apparently headed have launched an intense investigation, checking financial records, interviewing family, friends and neighbors, even searching the banks of the Delaware River by helicopter. It felt like something was about to happen, but nothing did. What happened to Danielle Imbo and Richard Petrone Jr.? Couple's disappearance leaves families in turmoil. Philadelphia Daily News, 05 03 2005, https://www.newspapers.com/clip/102488322/couples-disappearance-leaves-families-i/. 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. As for the Ottobres, Felice wakes up, and before she gets out of bed, she cries, her grief bubbling up in wracking sobs. Richard, a NASCAR fan, planned to watch the Daytona 500. 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. Her brother, John Ottobre, later said, She wouldnt have missed that. Until you or someone like you comes forward with the tip that brings this case to a close, the disappearance of Danielle Imbo and Richard Petrone Jr. will remain Unresolved. When his son lived upstairs, he would hear slow footsteps before Richard Jr. came down to start his own workday. 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. As John Ottobre tells it, Joe left Danielle with a sick infant and a cold of her own to attend the 2004 Super Bowl, only to return and announce that hed met someone else on the plane to New Orleans. 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. Is it just me or is that alibi almost too perfect? 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. At the time, Danielle was married to her husband JoeImbo, but they were estranged, and Danielle was in the process of separating from him. The former covergirl, 39, detailed her troubled past and battle with mental health . Still, there were whispers that the suicide note he left behind after hanging himself with a shoelace contained a confession. If Richards truck was parked down the block a distance, however, there were dark places, in front of temporarily vacant storefronts, where a potential attacker could approach the couple out of the dark and stick a gun in their ribs just as they opened the door to Richards truck. If youre an amateur sleuth like me, you immediately wanna pull up Google Earth and plot the location of the truck on South Street, the path Danielle and Richard walked from Abilene to get to the truck, the driving route they would take to get to Danielles Mt. She smoked a pack of Marlboro Lights a day. Place of accident. 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. Petrone was going to drive Imbo to her condo in Mount Laurel, NJ, and then return to his own home. Statistics show, for the year 2013, fifteen times as many women were murdered by a male they knew than were killed by male strangers. Paraphrasing Occams Razor, all things being equal, the simplest explanation tends to be true. Richard Jr. had just scored Springsteen tickets and was going to take his dad. No evidence. 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. But that is the legacy of this case: We have yet to learn why Richard Petrone will never see his grandson, or why Danielle Imbo isnt alive to care for her son. Never much for dressing up, Richard Petrone wore a gray hoodie, jeans and sneakers. How the FBI thinks the truck was disposed of (28:10). Everyones gut says pretty much the same thing. 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. After Danielle disappeared, police informed her family that Joe had his wifes cell-phone passcode, and that hed listened to her voicemail. Somewhere in the city of brotherly love there had been a dark conspiracy. 856-234-1414, Philadelphia Police Department It was a normal kind of night, Valentino said. Maybe theres a totally different explanation for the disappearance; an alternate chain of events that we havent even considered. Or both. But Leisek searched all the obvious areas in that particular stretch of the river and didnt find the car in the search in March of 2022. Unfortunately, as is so common with cold cases, the flow of information in Danielle and Richards disappearance has dwindled to a trickle. Accessed 24 May 2022. Is this a potential place to dump vehicles or a dumping ground in general? Is it either of those things? Sure, there are other ways to dispose of a vehicle. In the absence of any discovery by Adventures with Purpose, would you consider it more likely the disappearance of Danielle and Richard was foul play? The relationship between them was fractured. Richard said hed drive Danielle home to Mount Laurel before returning to his place in South Philly. The two clicked instantly. Danielles brother, also John Ottobre, named after their father, arrived at her Mt. Their relationship was going well when Danielle's ex-husband began attempting to rekindle their romance. Their loved ones believe foul play was involved in their cases, and both families have accused members of the other family of causing their disappearances. John would later tell ABC7 Joe Imbo seemed surprised to find a bunch of Danielles family at her place, but she wasnt there. They compared notes on what their ensuing Sundays entailed: Danielle had a hair appointment at 11 a.m.; her ex-husband was scheduled to return their son after that. Through her best friend, Christine, she reconnected w. danielle imbo husband, joeare you required to disclose you were fired. This would be the last time anyone saw them. In a disappearance like Danielle and Richards, we have nothing. She wasnt all that serious about him, but he treated her well. Originally published in the April 2014 issue of Philadelphia magazine. smorgon family office. Not to mention, a killer who dumps and burns a truck in the wilderness has to get back to town somehow. Sometimes a family witness might be less-than-forthcoming with information in a criminal case due to a feeling of shame. Laurel, New Jersey, and was separated from her husband at the time of her disappearance. It was also featured on the podcast Women & Crime in December 2021. "They vanished," John Ottobre [told the Philadelphia Daily News.] And he worked alongside his father at Viking Pastries in Ardmore, attending culinary school to learn how to build towering wedding cakes. Im not a mastermind. What if Richard slipped up while parking or made a mistake? But the evidence, or lack of it, suggested a very particular kind of crime. But two people who read the note told me that rumor is false. It could be a murder/suicide. Danielle Imbo was 34 years old when . gold label distribution bud man. He orders egg whites. He learned how to dress a little girl. Then he drives on to the bakery and registers the silence. 215-686-3013, Camden County Sheriff's Office "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 lot of time had passed but the police were finally making a good show of it. 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. Disappearance of Danielle Imbo and Richard Petrone Jr. Wikipedia, https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Disappearance_of_Danielle_Imbo_and_Richard_Petrone_Jr. Just days before he vanished, Petrone told his father he had angry words with Joe Imbo over the phone. But then I wouldnt know what happened to my son. 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. And while talking about Richard and Danielle seems to cast a great weight on their families, Imbo, as we wrap up our conversation, looks lighter. She spent a lot of time in bars, performing or listening to bands, but wasnt a big drinker. 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. They started dating almost immediately, and married a couple of years later, in 2002. Youd have to make sure the fire completely erased anything identifiable about the truck the distinctive black over silver paint scheme for example and youd have to clip the VIN number from the dash, take the license plates, and even those measures would only buy time. Volunteers fanned out a hundred miles in every direction. Both New Jersey and Pennsylvania authorities are investigating their disappearances, which remain unsolved. And then the next day she does it all over again. That is our setting, because thats where Danielle Imbo and Richard Petrone disappeared. There are only a couple of ways to get rid of that truck. Whats really important to me is to know what happened.. The message was that he needed to be civil, says Ottobre. This case is both interesting and unusual becausepolice have found almost no evidence of what happened to them. However, one of the least-appreciated and often overlooked reasons a case goes cold is simply perspective. Their cellular phones have stayed turned off. But the night no doubt meant something special to him, because she was there. If you're a human and see this, please ignore it. We used to be fun, and now were always sad. Details: Danielle Imbo and Richard Petrone were last seen leaving a. They have not been seen nor heard from since this last sighting. Hangin with cops at the time of the disappearance? The restaurant is popular among locals, who have jammed the walls with pictures of their dogs. From the inside out, with guilt and suspicion and shame and resentment. "They walked out of Abilene and from the minute they got out the door, no one knows if they turned left or right. We exchanged words, he says implying that when he called Richard at the bakery, the heat definitely went both ways. Hes dressed in jeans, a button-down shirt and a black baseball cap. I wish I had more to say, says Roselli. Hed been planning to watch the Daytona 500 at home with friends but nobody had heard from him. You may have been wondering earlier, where was Danielles son while she was out Saturday night? That night, Ottobre and Petrone's father, Richard Petrone Sr., begansearching for the missing couple and combed the streets of Philadelphia until the next morning. About six weeks in, one got hold of John. The most we can say is that they were alive on the sidewalk as they left the bar. The authorities have since come out and expressed suspicion of their own. The evening went fine, and friends watched the couple walk towards Richard's truck. The FBI has questioned Imbo's estranged husband, Joe Imbo, many times. Danielle was stymied. He walked into a dealership and saw a pretty girl sleek, sporting a bob haircut that accented her high cheekbones and deep dimples from the financial department. Joe Imbo has never been declared a suspect in the case. 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. Again, as they had so many times before, investigators vowed to redouble their efforts on the anniversary reanalyzing old files and evidence for anything they had overlooked, interviewing old witnesses, and again, they came up empty. Since their disappearance, there has been no activity on Imbo's or Petrone's cell phones or personal finances. Nine vehicles were pulled out of the river yesterday, police said. Now. until John Ottobre intervened. by Anna Orso February 17, 2015 When Danielle Imbo and Richard Petrone left a South Street bar 10 years ago Thursday, they left no trace. The next morning members of both families were making phone calls, looking for Danielle and Richard. It didnt appear to him that she had been home the previous night. A murder-for-hire scenario also remains in play. Imbo was employed as a loan processor for a mortgage company at the time of her disappearance, working out of her home. They were looking for vehicles, they just didnt want people to think they were looking for Richard and Danielle specifically. Joe Imbo has dealt with a lot of pressure in the past nine years. Many people have been suspicious of Danielle's soon-to-be ex-husband Joe Imbo but he appeared to have a solid alibi. But today, the wind off the beach bears a frosty little snap, and the place is mostly empty when Joe Imbo enters, a few minutes early for our 10 a.m. breakfast. His mom had called and said Danielle missed her hair appointment at 11 am. When asked for comment, the authorities said they dont comment on lie detector tests but that nobody had been cleared in the investigation. Sometimes, his son asks random questions about her. In the fall of 2021 they took on 36 missing persons cases and actually found 11 missing people. After she broke things off, that Valentines Day without her was hard. And he seems to understand the predicament he faces: Danielle and Richard came together that night by chance, and a motive could be attributed to him for the disappearance of either. Now I know what real love is, she told friends. Not likely. In the early hours and days after Richard Petrone and Danielle Imbo disappeared, their families banded together, frantically phoning each other the next morning when Danielle didnt turn up for her hair appointment and both her cell phone and Richards kicked straight to voicemail. Every detective, every agent, has their case, the one that haunts them, he says. Friends and volunteers canvassed neighborhoods for 100 miles in every direction, distributing pictures of Petrone's truck. The case remains unsolved. In fact, investigators have never named a formal suspect in the case. 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. I ask him: The affair with the girl he met on the plane to New Orleans? Through chance or planning, a criminal pulls off a crime with no witnesses and no evidence. Thats what the investigation is like. Through her best friend, Christine, she reconnected with her high school crush, Christine's older brother, thirty-five year old, single father Richard Petrone. But she put the invitation to Danielle. 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. I am a bitter, bitter man, he says. And two hours later, the reunited couple looked happy together. 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. Again, the killer is involving other people in the plot when there is a simpler way to accomplish his evil deeds. 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. Her boy, Timothy, the grandson Richard never knew, means everything to the Petrones, whose lives have been mostly blown apart. He still saw her several days a week, still served as her chief chauffeur. After host Andy Cohen mentioned a Deux Moi report that claimed a . In April, police said publicly they did not believe the couple simply ran away, which eliminated one possibility. We were sitting by the bar, and when they left we just hugged and said goodbye. Joe Imbo claimed to have taken a polygraph and that the police told him he passed. Did someone follow him in another vehicle? The FBI had last released information on the case in 2008 and there had been no movement. Their relationship was going well when Danielle's ex-husband began attempting to rekindle their romance. I dont have evidence to arrest Joe is all he says. And I catch myself not only trying to observe Imbo, but to look through him. Danielles family were worried, yes, but they were not expecting the worst. She has worked as a loan mortgage processor. The two clicked instantly. Afterward, John Ottobre changed Danielles locks and held a sit-down with Joe. 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. He was mulling going to Abilienes later to see a band. In the spring of 2022, a privately-funded dive research team from Oregon, Adventures with Purpose, announced they were taking an interest in the case and they were riding high with a surprising success rate considering the cold case nature of the disappearances theyd recently investigated. 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. His life only shifted in 2004, when Angela, then 13 and developing a womans interests, decided she wanted to live with her mother. The pair crossed and recrossed the Walt Whitman, Ben Franklin and Betsy Ross bridges. If the person driving the truck was consumed with homicidal and suicidal intent, he or she could have easily driven the truck into the icy February waters of the Delaware River in a spot where we havent found it yet. Or your sister will be gone forever.. Their friends stated that both of them behaved normally and seemed happy that evening. But Danielle Imbo and Richard Petrone didnt fit the profile. Marge, the talker, keeps going, her eyes always wet with tears that roll slowly down her cheeks, like blood pumping from a wound. On this Wikipedia the language links are at the top of the page across from the article title.