US EditionKiller identified in Albany 1964 cold case
DNA and forensic genealogy breakthroughs identified career criminal Joseph Nowakowski as the killer in a brutal 1964 Albany cold case after 61 years, police said.
- On October 8, 2025, Albany police announced they identified Joseph Stanley Nowakowski as the man they say killed Catherine Blackburn in Albany, New York.
- The reopened probe in 2018 revealed preserved evidence and DNA testing led Albany Police Commander Melissa Morey and the Criminal Investigation Resource Center to exhume Nowakowski's body last month.
- The victim was found dead in her Colonie Street home after showing the apartment to potential renters, and Albany police say she was bludgeoned, raped, slashed, and burned with heated knives.
- Relatives said the identification brought closure, with Sandy Carmichael stating `Sixty-one years ago, evil entered my aunt's house and changed our lives forever. We prayed for this day`,
- Police say the suspect's record includes burglary arrests and a 1973 Schenectady assault, and Albany Police Chief Brendan Cox noted possible links to other cases as forensic genealogy aided identification.
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15 Articles
Upstate NY murder case solved over 60 years later through DNA evidence
ALBANY. N.Y. — Authorities in New York’s capital city have identified the man they say raped, stabbed and bludgeoned to death a woman inside her home more than 60 years ago.Officials linked DNA from Joseph Nowakowski, who died in 1998, to the killing of 50-year-old Catherine Blackburn in September 1964, Albany Police Chief Brendan Cox said during a news conference Wednesday.
Albany PD identify suspect in 1964 cold case homicide
ALBANY, N.Y. (NEWS10) -- The Albany Police Department have identified a suspect in a 61-year-old cold case homicide investigation, authorities announced in a press conference on Wednesday. Joseph Nowakowski allegedly murdered 50-year-old Catherine Blackburn in 1964. Get the latest news, weather, sports and entertainment delivered right to your inbox! According to Albany Police Chief Brendan Cox, Blackburn was found dead in her home at 117 …
NiagaraFallsReview.ca
1964 cold case solved in New York with DNA evidence, authorities say
ALBANY. N.Y. (AP) — Authorities in New York's capital city have identified the man they say raped, stabbed and bludgeoned to death a woman inside her home more than 60 years ago.
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