Margaret Reiley Missing Person Case

Aug 07, 2010

Mar 12, 2024

Margaret

Reiley

64

30

60 inches

90 lbs

White / Caucasian

Female

On a summer night in Syracuse, New York, 30-year-old Margaret "Peggy" Reiley was last seen on August 16, 1992. She had been at Duffy's Tavern on South Geddes Street and was later seen in a vehicle with her boyfriend, Philip Whaley, in the 600 block of Gifford Street. Known for her long brown hair, blue eyes, and a small tattoo of the letter "P" on her upper right arm, Margaret was wearing a white dress shirt, blue jeans, and white high-top sneakers that evening. When she didn't return to her apartment in the 400 block of Shonnard Street, her live-in boyfriend reported her missing on August 18. He noted that she had left all of her clothing and identification behind and had not mentioned any plans to leave to him or her teenage daughter. The investigation into Margaret's disappearance soon focused on Philip Whaley. Initially, Whaley claimed that he and Margaret went their separate ways after leaving the bar, with her riding off on her blue ten-speed bicycle. However, this story began to unravel when, six weeks later, her bicycle was discovered in a storage shed at Whaley's mother's home in Pulaski, forty miles from Syracuse. Faced with this evidence, Whaley changed his story, asserting that he had given her a ride but let her out near her home to meet a drug dealer. Authorities and Margaret's loved ones were skeptical of this account, stating she did not use drugs. The discovery of a drop of Margaret's blood on a pillow in Whaley's trailer further implicated him in her disappearance. Despite the absence of a body, Philip Whaley was charged with Margaret's murder, as well as the 1984 disappearance of another woman, Josephine Chatraw. His 1996 trial was a landmark case for Onondaga County, being the first time a murder conviction was secured without a victim's body and the first to present DNA evidence. A witness testified that Whaley had confessed to shooting Margaret twice after she allegedly tried to steal his cocaine, then wrapped her body in blankets and plastic and disposed of it in the Salmon River. Searches of the river proved fruitless. Whaley was convicted of both murders and sentenced to 50 years to life in prison. Years later, in 2011, Whaley admitted responsibility for both deaths, claiming they were accidental, and offered to lead authorities to the bodies. This led to further searches, but Margaret's remains were never found, with investigators believing they may have ended up in a landfill. The case of Margaret Reiley is a somber one, marked by a conviction but lacking the finality of laying her to rest, leaving a painful void for her family and community.

Aug 16, 1992

Syracuse

New York

Onondaga County

8879

Syracuse Police Department

Syracuse

New York

Onondaga County

13202

Christopher DeJoseph

Police Detective

511 S. State Street, New York

3154425111

Local

Law Enforcement

92-121118

1992-08-15

Syracuse Police Department

Brown

Blue

Blue

No

09/06/2026