A Chew Avenue house has become the focus of an investigation after “graphic” videos revealed that two missing women, Maribel Fresses and Gabriella Amarando, died there. Many other shocking items were recovered during searches at the "mystery house" in Philadelphia's Olney neighborhood.
The house is reportedly 44-year-old Eugene Horsch’s. He is also being investigated.
Philadelphia Police Inspector Raymond Evers shared details about the probe during a press conference. He explained how this investigation began and what detectives have found.
June 19, 2026: A park ranger stopped a BMW on the 600 block of Market Street near Independence Mall. Inside were a male driver and female passenger, Evers said. The driver was identified as Horsch, and the woman provided fake identification with the name Blair Tonzelli. According to the National Missing and Unidentified Persons System (NamUS), Tonzelli went missing in 2023. The park ranger found two handguns and $8,000 in illegal drugs inside the house.
June 19, 2026 (later that day): Later that day, a search warrant was issued at Horsch's house on the 400 block of West Chew Avenue. Inside, the DEA and the Philadelphia Police Department found at least one more illegal gun, a marijuana grow operation, another fake FBI badge and five urns filled with cremated remains.
June 27, 2026: Philadelphia Police Commissioner Kevin Bethel requested assistance from the FBI Evidence Recovery Team to process the lab, containers and digital evidence.
July 9: A K9 team searched the house and around it.
July 22, 2026: Another search warrant was served to remove a sewer line, lateral and trap at the house to see inside.
July 27, 2026: The containers with the oily substance were sent to a Chicago lab to be reviewed.
Beginning of August: A computer forensic lab started to review the digital evidence from the house. They reportedly went through 600,000 images, 70,000 videos and more than 10,000 pages of drawings and writings, which is just 5% of the digital evidence, according to Evers. As many as 95 search warrants were issued for the house and its contents.
"I'm not gonna get into exactly what I saw, it's dark. It's real dark. But what we saw is these two girls alive. There was a period of time and what appears to us that they're deceased. There's pieces of the video that we don't have yet," Evers said during the press conference.
The women are identified as Fresses, 27, and Amarando, 22. Both of them were born in 1990, Evers said. While Fressess was reported missing in February 2018, Anarando has been missing since September of 2012.
Their bodies have not been found. Evers explained that the only entity that can declare the women deceased is the Philadelphia Orphan's Court. The women’s families have been notified of the findings.
Horsch was indicted by a federal grand jury on charges connected to false FBI credentials, NBC10 reported. At a preliminary hearing on August 6, Pennsylvania state prosecutors withdrew all five charges against him.
Horsch is still facing federal charges for possession of a firearm by a felon and possession of an unlawfully produced document and authentication feature. He was transferred to federal custody after federal prosecutors charged him. A jury trial in the federal case has been scheduled for September 8.
It has been revealed that Amy McHale, who was previously married to Horsch's late father, has been missing since 2016.
The Philadelphia Police Department has urged anyone who may have been inside this house or interacted with Horsch or his father to call them at 215-686-TIPS. If you wish to speak directly with an investigator from the Homicide Division who is assigned to the case, call 215-686-3334.
Sumanti Sen covers everything that’s happening in the US, from politics to entertainment, but her expertise lies in covering crime news. She has comprehensively chronicled the Idaho student murders, the Laken Riley and Iryna Zarutska cases, and the killing of Charlie Kirk, among other incidents. Over the years, she has interviewed several victims/families of victims of crimes seeking justice. She digs up stories that might otherwise remain unheard, and does her bit to ensure that victims and survivors’ voices are heard. Sumanti’s many years of experience also include interviews with Hamas attack survivors and mental health experts, among others. Her coverage of the October 7 Hamas attack on Israel and interviews with survivors of the tragedy, coupled with her other works including the Titan submersible coverage, earned her the Digi Journo of the Quarter award during her first year at Hindustan Times. Sumanti actively tracks missing person cases in the United States, and peruses Reddit and other social media platforms to bring to light cases that frequently elude public attention. She has extensively covered the disappearances of Nancy Guthrie, Thomas Medlin, Beau Mann, and Sudiksha Konanki, among others. When not at work, you will either find her with her novels, or with her beloved rescue pooches.Read More
