A couple is stabbed to death and then their home set on fire In the early morning hours of Saturday, February 16, 1991, a chilling discovery was made in Portsmouth, New Hampshire. James J. Moore, a 73-year-old African-American male, and his longtime friend and roommate, 68-year-old Stella N. Bolton, were found murdered in their home at 74 Rockhill Avenue. The fire that engulfed their residence, discovered at 1:30 a.m., was a deliberate attempt to conceal the heinous crime that had taken place within its walls.
Firefighters who responded to the
two-alarm blaze battled the flames for over an hour. Once the fire was extinguished, the bodies of Moore and Bolton were found amongst the charred remains of their small, four-room bungalow. However, it was soon determined that the fire was not the cause of their deaths. The medical examiner concluded that both James Moore and Stella Bolton had been stabbed to death before the fire was intentionally set. The case was officially ruled a double homicide.
The investigation into the brutal slayings commenced, with police believing the perpetrator or perpetrators were likely locals. A significant piece of evidence surfaced when a neighborhood boy discovered a bloodied knife with an eight-inch blade nearby and reported it to the police. Despite this discovery and ongoing investigative efforts, the case has remained unsolved for decades. No arrests have ever been made in connection with the murders, and no suspects have been publicly identified. A reward of up to $20,000 has been offered for any information that leads to the arrest and conviction of the person or persons responsible for the deaths of James Moore and Stella Bolton. The case remains an open and active cold case with the Portsmouth Police Department and the New Hampshire Attorney General's Office.
