Joel David Rifkin: The Long Island Serial Killer
Background
Joel David Rifkin was an American serial killer who murdered women in the New York metropolitan area between 1989 and 1993. Born in New York City on January 20, 1959, he was adopted as an infant and raised in East Meadow on Long Island. He experienced academic difficulties, struggled socially and attended several colleges without earning a degree. As an adult, he operated a small landscaping business and continued living in his family’s East Meadow home.
Rifkin targeted women he encountered in areas of Manhattan and Brooklyn associated with street prostitution. Many of the women were experiencing addiction, poverty, unstable housing or estrangement from their families. Their circumstances sometimes delayed missing-person reports and allowed Rifkin to believe their disappearances would receive little attention. Investigators eventually concluded that he had killed 17 women, although he was convicted of nine murders.
Beginning of the Murders
Rifkin’s first known victim was Heidi Balch, who also used the names Susan Spencer and “Susie.” Rifkin brought her to his family’s East Meadow home on February 20, 1989. After killing her, he dismembered her remains and scattered them across New York and New Jersey in an effort to prevent identification. Her head was discovered inside a paint container near a golf course in Hopewell Township, New Jersey, on March 5, 1989. Additional remains were recovered from Pequannock Creek and the East River.
For more than two decades, the recovered remains were unidentified. Advances in forensic investigation eventually allowed authorities to identify the victim as Heidi Balch in 2013. The identification confirmed that the woman Rifkin had described as his first victim was the same person whose remains had been recovered in 1989.
Rifkin’s second acknowledged victim was Julie Elizabeth Blackbird. The exact date of her death has never been conclusively established, although investigators placed the murder in 1990, approximately 14 to 16 months after Balch’s death. Rifkin said he brought Blackbird to the East Meadow residence, killed her and concealed her remains in containers that he discarded in waterways. Her body has never been recovered.
Escalation of the Murders
After a lengthy pause, Rifkin resumed killing in 1991. His methods generally involved strangulation, although he sometimes used an object or his hands to overpower his victims. He transported bodies in his pickup truck and abandoned them in rivers, creeks, wooded areas and isolated roadside locations across New York. In several cases, he dismembered the women or placed their remains in containers to hinder identification.
Barbara Jacobs was killed in July 1991. Rifkin later recalled striking and strangling her inside his home before placing her body in a plastic bag and cardboard box. He transported the box to the Hudson River. Her remains were recovered on July 14, 1991.
Rifkin killed Yun Lee during September 1991. Her body was placed in a trunk and thrown into the East River. The trunk was discovered near Randalls Island on September 23, 1991. Mary Ellen DeLuca was also killed during September 1991. Rifkin later claimed that she died after he strangled her in his vehicle. Her body was abandoned near Cornwall, New York, and discovered on October 1, 1991. She remained unidentified until July 1993.
Rifkin also confessed to killing an unidentified woman during this period. He remembered little verifiable information about her, and no remains were conclusively associated with his account. Investigators designated her as one of the unidentified victims in his chronological confession.
The 1991 and 1992 Victims
During the winter of 1991 and 1992, Rifkin killed Lorraine Orvieto, Maryann Holloman and another unidentified woman. The precise dates of their deaths are uncertain, but court proceedings established that the three murders occurred between December 1991 and January 31, 1992.
Lorraine Orvieto disappeared in December 1991. Her remains were placed inside an oil drum and later recovered from Coney Island Creek on July 11, 1992. She was not formally identified until July 1993. Maryann Holloman was killed during the same general period. Her body was also placed in a container and dumped in Coney Island Creek, where it was discovered on July 9, 1992.
The unidentified woman was placed in a 55-gallon steel drum that was later found floating in Newtown Creek between Brooklyn and Queens on May 13, 1992. Rifkin pleaded guilty to her murder, but her identity has never been established.
Anna Lopez was killed during the spring of 1992. Rifkin strangled her and drove north before abandoning her body in a wooded area near Patterson in Putnam County, New York. Her remains were discovered on May 25, 1992.
Violet O’Neill was killed in June 1992. Rifkin dismembered her body and discarded the remains at several locations around New York City. Portions of her remains were recovered during July 1992 from the Harlem River, the East River and waters near Governors Island. She was identified in September 1993.
Later Victims
Jenny Soto was killed on November 16, 1992. Rifkin later described struggling with her inside his vehicle before strangling her. He dumped her body near the Harlem River in the South Bronx. Her remains were discovered the following day, November 17, 1992.
Mary Catherine Williams was killed in December 1992. Williams had moved to New York after growing up in North Carolina and had once hoped to pursue an entertainment career. Rifkin strangled her and transported her body to northern Westchester County. Her remains were discovered near Yorktown on December 21, 1992, and she was identified in July 1993.
Leah Evens was killed in February 1993. Rifkin abandoned her body in a wooded area near Northampton in Suffolk County, New York. Her remains were discovered on May 9, 1993. Rifkin later pleaded guilty to her murder.
Lauren Marquez was killed in April 1993. Rifkin left her body in the Long Island Central Pine Barrens in Suffolk County. Investigators recovered her remains on June 29, 1993, after Rifkin directed authorities to the disposal site. She was formally identified on August 21, 1993.
Iris Sanchez was killed in May 1993. Rifkin concealed her body beneath a discarded mattress in an illegal dumping area near John F. Kennedy International Airport in Queens. Police recovered her remains on June 29, 1993, after Rifkin provided information about the location.
Victims and Verified or Approximate Dates
- Heidi “Susie” Balch, 25: Killed on February 20, 1989, at Rifkin’s family home in East Meadow, New York. Her remains were scattered in New Jersey and New York and were identified in 2013.
- Julie Elizabeth Blackbird, 28 or 29: Killed in 1990 at the East Meadow residence. The exact date is unknown, and her remains have never been recovered.
- Barbara Jacobs, 31: Killed on or shortly before July 14, 1991, in East Meadow. Her body was recovered from the Hudson River on July 14, 1991.
- Yun Lee, 31: Killed in September 1991. Her body was found inside a trunk in the East River near Randalls Island on September 23, 1991.
- Mary Ellen DeLuca, 22: Killed in September 1991 and abandoned near Cornwall, New York. Her body was discovered on October 1, 1991.
- Unidentified victim known as “Number Six”: Killed during late 1991, according to Rifkin’s confession. Her identity, exact date of death and disposal location remain unknown.
- Lorraine Orvieto, 28: Killed between December 1991 and January 31, 1992. Her remains were recovered from Coney Island Creek in Brooklyn on July 11, 1992.
- Maryann Holloman, reported as 39 or 41: Killed between December 1991 and January 31, 1992. Her body was found in Coney Island Creek on July 9, 1992.
- Unidentified victim known as “Number Nine”: Killed between December 1991 and January 31, 1992. Her body was found inside a steel drum in Newtown Creek on May 13, 1992.
- Anna Lopez, 33: Killed during the spring of 1992. Her body was discovered near Patterson, New York, on May 25, 1992.
- Violet O’Neill, 21: Killed in June 1992 in the New York City area. Portions of her remains were recovered from several waterways during July 1992.
- Jenny Soto, 23: Killed on November 16, 1992. Her body was discovered beside the Harlem River in the South Bronx on November 17, 1992.
- Mary Catherine Williams, 31: Killed in December 1992. Her body was found near Yorktown in Westchester County on December 21, 1992.
- Leah Evens, 28: Killed in February 1993 and left near Northampton in Suffolk County. Her remains were discovered on May 9, 1993.
- Lauren Marquez, 28: Killed in April 1993. Her remains were recovered from the Long Island Central Pine Barrens on June 29, 1993.
- Iris Sanchez, 25: Killed in May 1993. Her remains were recovered near John F. Kennedy International Airport in Queens on June 29, 1993.
- Tiffany Bresciani, 22: Killed on June 24, 1993, in East Meadow. Her body was discovered in Rifkin’s pickup truck after his arrest on June 28, 1993.
The Murder of Tiffany Bresciani
Tiffany Bresciani became Rifkin’s final victim. On June 24, 1993, Rifkin encountered her on Allen Street in Manhattan and drove her to Long Island. He killed her at the East Meadow house and initially placed her body in the garage. Over the next several days, he continued working while the body remained concealed.
During the early morning hours of June 28, Rifkin loaded Bresciani’s body into the bed of his Mazda pickup truck. He wrapped her in a tarpaulin and intended to dispose of her at a distant location. The truck, however, was missing its rear license plate.
Arrest and Confession
At approximately 3:15 a.m. on June 28, 1993, New York State troopers noticed Rifkin’s truck traveling on the Southern State Parkway without a license plate. When they attempted to stop him, Rifkin accelerated and led them on a chase through Nassau County. The pursuit lasted approximately 20 minutes and ended in Mineola when Rifkin lost control and struck a utility pole.
As troopers approached the damaged vehicle, they detected a powerful odor coming from the truck. They pulled back the tarpaulin and discovered Bresciani’s body. Rifkin was arrested at the scene. What began as a traffic stop quickly developed into one of the largest serial-murder investigations in New York history.
During questioning, Rifkin initially spoke only about Bresciani. He then began describing additional murders in chronological order. He provided names when he remembered them, physical descriptions when he did not, and detailed directions to places where bodies had been abandoned. A specialized task force compared his statements with unidentified-remains cases, missing-person reports and evidence collected throughout New York and New Jersey.
A search of Rifkin’s home, garage and vehicles produced numerous items connected to the victims. Investigators recovered identification cards, jewelry, clothing, photographs and other possessions that Rifkin had kept. His detailed knowledge of disposal sites also led police to the remains of Sanchez and Marquez and helped authorities identify several women who had previously been listed as unidentified.
Trials, Guilty Pleas and Sentencing
Rifkin went to trial in Nassau County for the murder of Tiffany Bresciani. His attorneys argued that statements he made to police should not be admitted, but the prosecution presented extensive physical and circumstantial evidence. On May 9, 1994, a jury convicted him of second-degree murder.
In June 1994, Rifkin received a sentence of 25 years to life for Bresciani’s murder. Additional cases were prosecuted in several New York jurisdictions. He later pleaded guilty to the murders of Leah Evens, Lauren Marquez, Lorraine Orvieto, Maryann Holloman, the unidentified Newtown Creek victim, Jenny Soto and Iris Sanchez. Another conviction involved Barbara Jacobs.
The separate sentences were structured to run consecutively, giving Rifkin a combined prison term of 203 years to life. Although he admitted killing 17 women, prosecutors obtained convictions in nine cases. Some of the remaining cases could not be prosecuted because remains were missing, exact jurisdictions were uncertain or the available evidence depended heavily upon his confession.
Legacy of the Investigation
The investigation demonstrated the difficulties authorities faced when crimes crossed numerous city, county and state jurisdictions. Rifkin abandoned victims in locations controlled by different police agencies, and several women were unidentified for months or years. Before computerized databases became widely integrated, investigators had limited ability to compare a missing woman in one jurisdiction with remains recovered somewhere else.
The case also drew attention to the treatment of women involved in street prostitution. Rifkin deliberately selected victims whom he believed society would overlook. Many had families and friends searching for them, but addiction, poverty and social stigma complicated the investigations into their disappearances. Later reporting and forensic identifications helped restore the victims’ names and personal histories, emphasizing that they were individuals rather than numbers in a killer’s confession.
Joel Rifkin remains imprisoned under a sentence that makes his release effectively impossible. His arrest ended a four-year series of killings, but questions remain about the two unidentified women and the precise circumstances surrounding several of the murders. The eventual identification of Heidi Balch more than 20 years after her death also demonstrated that unresolved victim identities can still be restored through persistent investigation and improved forensic methods.
