Timothy O'Bryan

popular name: Henry Bedard, Jr.

date_of_death: December 16, 1974

age: 15

cause_of_death: Homicide - blunt force trauma

claim_to_fame: Crime and their Victims

best_know_for: Henry E. Bedard Jr. was a 15‑year‑old sophomore at Swampscott High School in Massachusetts. He was active in school sports—playing youth baseball and "Big Blue" football—and also worked at his father’s service station. Henry was considered a beloved member of his community, known for spending time with family and friends. On December 16, 1974, Henry was last seen after school doing some Christmas shopping. He stopped at a CVS in Vinnin Square, buying perfume as a gift for his sister. After leaving the mall, witnesses (including Swampscott Police Lieutenant Peter Cassidy) saw him walking along Paradise Road and entering a wooded area near the town’s Department of Public Works yard, a place known locally as “Swampscott View” or “Kite Hill.” The next day his body was discovered in that wooded area, behind the DPW building, under a pile of leaves. He had been severely beaten to death. Investigators found a Louisville Slugger baseball bat near the body—31‑inch, wooden—with distinctive carvings or markings on the handle, possibly Roman numerals or letters. The bat is believed to be a key piece of evidence. Despite investigations, including interviewing dozens of people, reviewing the evidence, and even exhuming Henry’s body recently to run updated forensic tests (such as DNA) and autopsy work, no one has been charged in his murder. The case remains unsolved half a century later with no suspect and no motive.

popular name: Whitey Bulger

date_of_death: October 30, 2018

age: 89

cause_of_death: Homicide - blunt force trauma

claim_to_fame: Crime and their Victims

best_know_for: James Joseph "Whitey" Bulger Jr. was an American organized crime boss and FBI informant who led the Winter Hill Gang in the Winter Hill neighborhood of Somerville, Massachusetts, a city directly northwest of Boston. On December 23, 1994, Bulger fled the Boston area and went into hiding after his former FBI handler, John Connolly, tipped him off about a pending RICO indictment against him. Bulger remained at large for sixteen years. Bulger was added to the FBI's Ten Most Wanted Fugitives list in 1999, and was considered the most wanted person on the list behind Osama bin Laden. After his capture, Bulger's trial began on June 12, 2013. He was tried on 32 counts of racketeering, money laundering, extortion and weapons charges, including complicity in nineteen murders. On August 12, Bulger was found guilty on 31 counts, including both racketeering charges, and was found to have been involved in eleven murders. On November 14, he received two consecutive life sentences plus five years for his crimes

popular name: Joseph Colombo

date_of_death: May 22, 1978

age: 54

cause_of_death: Cardiac arrest related to shooting

claim_to_fame: Crime and their Victims

best_know_for: Joseph Colombo Sr. became the boss of the Colombo crime family, one of five families associated with the American Mafia in New York City. Joseph Colombo’s father Anthony was an early member of the Profaci crime family, forerunner of the family that would eventually bear his name. After Anthony Colombo was found strangled to death in a car with his mistress, a young Joe dropped out to of high school to join the U.S. Coast Guard. He was diagnosed with neurosis and discharged from the service and resumed a normal lifestyle with jobs that included ten years as a longshoreman and six years as a meat salesman. Eventually Joe Columbo drifted back into the life of organized crime and Colombo followed his father into the Profaci family becoming an enforcer and quickly promoted to Caporegime. Separate from his crime family, Colombo went on to create the Italian-American Civil Rights League in 1970, hosting the first Italian Unity Day rally in Columbus Circle later that year. On June 28, 1971, Colombo was shot three times at the second annual rally by Jerome A. Johnson. The shooting left Colombo paralyzed and he died seven years later of cardiac arrest. Many members of the Colombo family claim Joe Gallo, mobster of the Profaci crime family, was to blame for the shooting due to his falling out with Colombo.