In the spring of 1980, a sinister plot began to unfold that would ultimately lead to the tragic death of 21-year-old Edward Bianculli Jr., a Caucasian male from Tinicum, Pennsylvania. The plan was conceived by Michael Rinaldi and carried out by Theodore J. DiPretoro, who had discussed killing Bianculli on several occasions. On the evening of May 19, 1980, Rinaldi made three separate visits to Bianculli's home, each time insisting on seeing him.
Later that same evening, a fateful arrangement was made for DiPretoro to pick up both Rinaldi and Bianculli.
The trio then drove to a desolate, secluded area near the Philadelphia Airport. There, under the cover of darkness, DiPretoro and Bianculli walked away from the car and into a patch of tall weeds. It was in this isolated spot that DiPretoro fatally shot Bianculli. After the murder, Rinaldi and DiPretoro drove to the Schuylkill River, where they disposed of the murder weapon, hoping to erase any connection to their heinous crime. Bianculli's body was not discovered until December of that year.
For two years, the case remained a somber mystery. The break came when Theodore J. DiPretoro, while cooperating with the FBI on other mob-related killings in Philadelphia, confessed to the murder of Edward Bianculli Jr. and implicated Michael Rinaldi as the orchestrator of the crime. In May of 1982, both men were arrested for their roles in Bianculli's death. DiPretoro ultimately pleaded guilty to first-degree murder and received a life sentence. Rinaldi, on the other hand, went to trial and was convicted of first-degree murder and criminal conspiracy. He was sentenced to life in prison for the murder, with a concurrent sentence of five to ten years for the conspiracy charge.
