Eight years after Nicole Fusaro vanished from Philadelphia’s Kensington neighborhood, police revealed to her family that video evidence shows the 27-year-old was strangled to death. The discovery connects her case to a house of horrors where investigators found disturbing footage linking seven women to possible murders.
Mother’s Search Ended Without Answers
Diane Fusaro spent two years searching for her daughter before dying in 2020, never learning Nicole’s fate. She walked Kensington’s drug-plagued streets daily, distributing fliers with Nicole’s photo attached to sandwiches, desperate for information. Her nephew Jonathan Halloran-Koren told reporters his aunt devoted every waking moment to finding Nicole from July 2018 until her death. Police finally notified the family in September 2024 that video recovered from a Philadelphia home shows a woman matching Nicole’s description being strangled with a zip tie.
The footage allegedly depicts Raymond Horsch, an erotic filmmaker whose work featured violent themes, strangling a woman until she appeared lifeless. Horsch lived in the Olney neighborhood house where police discovered the evidence and died in 2023. The video’s metadata dates to 2017, one year before Nicole disappeared near Kensington and Allegheny avenues around 9 p.m. on July 19, 2018.
Five Women Feared Dead in Connected Cases
Nicole represents one of seven women linked to the Horsch property, with investigators fearing five are dead based on photos and videos found inside. Police have not recovered bodies, DNA evidence, or other physical proof of killings despite months of investigation. Raymond Horsch’s son Eugene was arrested in June 2024 on unrelated charges, leading authorities to the house. Eugene has not been charged in connection with any disappearances or deaths, and police confirmed in September that detectives had not identified him in recovered videos.
Federal investigators and Philadelphia police returned to the property this month, conducting another search for physical evidence to support what the disturbing images suggest. The investigation remains active as authorities work to identify victims and establish criminal charges.
Family Remembers Beloved Daughter
Halloran-Koren described his cousin as a kind-hearted person who loved animals and treasured a Shih Tzu inherited from her grandparents. Nicole grew up in Northeast Philadelphia and enjoyed family trips, including a memorable vacation to Disney World. After her father died in 2009, Nicole began spending time in Kensington, prompting her mother to move there to stay close. Like many in that neighborhood, Nicole struggled with drug addiction despite her mother’s attempts to get her into rehabilitation programs.
The family learned details of Nicole’s apparent death only hours before police publicly announced the findings at a September news conference. Halloran-Koren expressed anger and sadness over the discovery, particularly the graphic nature of evidence presented to the public before family members fully processed the information. The case highlights ongoing dangers in Philadelphia neighborhoods affected by drug addiction and raises questions about how multiple women could vanish without generating earlier police attention to the suspect property.