Despite the best efforts of local law enforcement and the Office of the District Attorney, sometimes the trail of evidence in a major crime “goes cold”. Simply abandoning these cases to the annals of unsolved crimes is unacceptable.

In order to continue to seek justice for the victims of these crimes, the Office of the District Attorney’s Detective Unit has investigators assigned to continue to investigate these cold cases.

Cold case investigators primarily focus on unsolved homicides and missing person cases where foul play is suspected in the person’s disappearance.

These investigators work closely with the law enforcement agency who originally began the investigation and the public in seeking new evidence and information that may lead to the solving of these cases.

Help us bring justice for these victims...

Lee Vanluvender

Homicide

Status:Open
Year:2007
Location:Hypsie Gap Road, Long Pond

Lee Vanluvender was murdered on the morning of December 4, 2007, while hunting along Hypsie Gap Road in Long Pond.

Mr. VanLuvender’s body was found in the parking area just east of the one lane bridge, less than one mile from Kuhenbeaker Road.

Anyone with information is asked to contact Detective Rich Luthcke at (570) 517-3052 or by email at rluthcke@monroecountypa.gov.

Stephen Lepore

Missing Person

Status:Open
Year:2012
Last Seen:Belvedere Road, Tobyhanna

Stephen Lepore was last seen leaving his Belvedere Road home on August 17, 2012 at 8:30 A.M.  He has not been seen nor heard from since.

His vehicle, a tan 2007 Chevrolet Express G2500 van, was later located on Brown Street in Stroudsburg on September 6, 2012.

Anyone with information is asked to contact Chief Detective Eric Kerchner at (570) 517-3109 or by email at ekerchner@monroecountypa.gov.

John Leonard

Homicide

Status:Open
Year:1970
Location:Barrett Township

John Leonard, then 52, of Cresco, was murdered on the afternoon of September 8, 1970.  He was shot four times in the head in the taxi cab he had parked near the entrance of the now-abandoned Buck Hill Inn.

In 1973, Mr. Leonard’s widow, Madeline Leonard, left her home after telling her teenage children that she was going to check on a lead on their father’s murder. She never returned.

The next day, she was found dead in her car, crashed into the woods along Route 940 in Paradise Township.  The crash was ruled an accident. 

Anyone with information is asked to contact Chief Detective Eric Kerchner at (570) 517-3109 or by email at ekerchner@monroecountypa.gov, or call Pennsylvania Crime Stoppers toll free at 1-800-4PA-TIPS.

Susan Cerritelli

Homicide

Status:Open
Year:1983
Last Seen:Tobyhanna Township

Susan Cerritelli, then 26, of Long Pond, disappeared on May 11, 1983.  Her husband, Andrew Cerritelli reported that he returned from Philadelphia that day at about 6:00 P.M. to find his wife missing.

After a lengthy investigation, much of which focused on her husband as a possible suspect in her disappearance, police were unable to solve the mystery of what happened to Mrs. Cerritelli.

In 2007, Andrew Cerritelli passed away.

In 2016, investigators uncovered information that leads them to believe that Susan was murdered and her body dumped in a mine fire in Centralia, PA.

Anyone with information is asked to contact Chief Detective Eric Kerchner at (570) 517-3109 or by email at ekerchner@monroecountypa.gov, or call Pennsylvania Crime Stoppers toll free at 1-800-4PA-TIPS.

Alfred Barnes

Homicide

Status:SOLVED (2013)
Year:1968
Location:Chestnuthill Township

Alfred Louis Barnes, then 40, of Bethlehem, was found murdered on October 19, 1968.  His body was discovered in a field in Chestnuthill Township by a nearby neighbor.  He was shot three times in the head.

Several days later, Barnes’ car was located near Blairstown, New Jersey, abandoned at a campground.  An examination of the car’s interior showed a large amount of blood in the driver’s seat area, a mashed bullet on the floor of the vehicle, and shattered human teeth. 

In 2010, the Pennsylvania State Police reopened the investigation into Barnes’ murder, and developed a suspect, Richard Keiper, now living in Texas.

With the help of the Texas Rangers, the Pennsylvania State Police were able to obtain a admission from Keiper, who claimed that he had shot Barnes in self-defense.  The physical evidence told another story, however

In 2015, Keiper was convicted of first degree murder and sentenced to life in prison without the possibility of parole.