Unsolved Crimes Unit Reopening Decades Old Case


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JAMESTOWN, NY (WNY News Now) – A decades-old case once pushed aside is now being brought to the spotlight again in hopes of finding some answers for a Silver Creek woman who mysteriously went missing just a few short minutes from home.

The disappearance of Judith Threlkeld has stumped investigators since the 70’s and has since been deemed a cold case with no new leads. Now, with the help of social media, this case has been revitalized.





“On March 8th, 1976, Judith was walking home from the library, she was an avid reader. She was walking home from the library around 9 P.M. in Silver Creek,” said Senior Investigator for Chautauqua County Unsolved Crimes Unit Tom Di Zinno. 

The last person reported to have seen Judith was her own family member. 

“Her brother passed her on the way to their house, asked her if she needed a ride home, she told him ‘no, I’m close I’m just gonna walk’, and that was the last she was ever seen,” said Di Zinno.





















At the time however, there was no report made that Judith had gone missing.

“We’re still looking for people who have seen all the parties that we’re talking about, it’s really important. Judith was last seen, remarkably, by her own brother. Was he the only person? Given the instance where it wasn’t reported and there wasn’t a massive search, I’m sure a lot of people never even knew Judith was missing,” Di Zinno said.

A letter from a citizen that mentioned Judith sparked the investigators interest in the case.

“We went and tried to validate the case on Judith, and at that time in 1976, Silver Creek had its own police department, had its own records, they no longer exist,” said Di Zinno.









Now, the department is asking for assistance from the public.

“We’ve gotten leads from people that babysat her, people she babysat for, the family, a lot of people so in reconstructing that case, social media has been a real boon for us,” said Di Zinno.

Over 45,000 people have been engaged in the posts about Judith.

“Judith is new, and we’re gathering people for the first time who haven’t heard about it so the result of each exposure is different,” Di Zinno explained.

In the end, the investigator urges the public to keep an eye on the Unsolved Chautauqua Facebook page, and don’t hesitate to reach out to the Unsolved Crimes Unit with any information.

 

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