By Kenneth Macdonald
http://stream.publicbroadcasting.net/production/mp3/wbfo/local-wbfo-569107.mp3
Buffalo, NY – Buffalo Police Commissioner McCarthy Gipson is responding quickly to a broadcast report last week about missing evidence in a high-profile cold case. He revealed yesterday that evidence thought to be lost from the 1980 mob-murder of William Sciolino was found in a storage area of Police Headquarters.
It was so long ago, Police Chief Dennis Richards was just a report technician in central booking. Commissioner Gipson was beating the streets in Precinct 6. Twenty-seven years ago, mob associate and informant William Sciolino was murdered in a construction trailer on the corner of Main and East Ferry.
The only witness decided not to make a statement.
As the trail got colder, more recent homicides took priority. Last week, WIVB television revealed a 2004 FBI request for evidence for six unsolved mob murders, including the Sciolino case. But in the request was not followed through by previous commissioner, Rocco Diina.
The story about the oversight aired on Tuesday... the same day a search for the evidence was started by Gipson. The evidence for the Sciolino case was rediscovered Thursday in a storage area in the basement of police headquarters. Gipson says the evidence never left the building since it was brought in the day of the murder. He asserts the chain of custody was never compromised.
Two 38 caliber revolvers, were recovered near the shooting scene 27 years ago. The weapons have been resubmitted to the Buffalo Crime Lab for further DNA testing, not available at the time of the murder.
A cold case file was being opened on the request of Sciolino's daughter before the story of the missing FBI request broke.
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