We are so excited to announce that DNA: ID has been selected to be part of Podcast row at Crimecon 2023 happening in Orlando, FL at the World Center Marriott September 22-24.

On February 25, 1957, the badly beaten and naked dead body of a little boy was found discarded in a box on the side of Susquehanna Road, in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. His death was ruled a homicide, and police worked feverishly to ID him using all of the tools available to them at the time. Although some of the clues that they had to work with seemed promising, they failed to ID the child, and he was buried without his name. Over the decades that followed, the story of 'The Boy In The Box' touched countless people. Finally, in the Fall of 2022, DNA & genealogy combined to solve the mystery of who this child was. He was identified as Joseph Augustus Zarelli. But finding out who Joseph was was only one part of the mission, police also wanted to find out who killed him and discarded him like trash. To date, that has proven to be a challenge, and that part of the mystery remains unsolved. We may not know who murdered The Boy In The Box, but we now know his name; to be Joseph Augustus Zarelli and this is his story.

Court reporter Nancy Bennallack was found brutally slain in her apartment in Sacramento in October 1970. Her killer had stabbed and cut her dozens of times, and taken precautions to ensure that he was not identified. No suspects stood out, but a possible link to another murder led many to consider whether Nancy could have been the victim of an infamous serial killer; the Zodiac. When Nancy’s murderer was finally identified by forensic genealogy, he turned out to be someone police had spoken to – someone who was hiding in plain sight. Although we know his name, the question remains – why did he kill Nancy?