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Sunday, June 26, 2022

The David Pichosky/Rochelle Wise Murder Case

     In 2008, a year after his wife died of breast cancer, David "Donny" Pichosky, on a blind date arranged by his children, met Rochelle Wise. Donny, an active member of Toronto, Canada's Shaarei Shomayin Synagogue, a modern Jewish Orthodox congregation, retired after selling his office-carpet business in the North York section of the city. Rochelle, a divorcee, had retired in 2005 as a teacher and vice principal of the Bialik Hebrew Day School just outside of Toronto. She was also the founding director of the Crestwood Valley Day Camp. Shortly after their blind date the couple were married.

     In 2013, the 71-year-old Pichosky and his 66-year-old wife were wintering in Venetian Park, an affluent island neighborhood in Hallandale Beach, Florida, a town of 38,000 located between Fort Lauderdale and Miami. Surrounded by canals and waterways, the snowbirds resided in a stucco townhouse amid palm trees and the other pastel-colored dwellings. Donny and Rochelle must have felt safe living in this gated, security guard patrolled retirement enclave. (In 2012 there had been four criminal homicides in Hallandale Beach.)

     On Wednesday, January 9, 2013 Danny and Rochelle failed to show-up for a lunch date with a neighbor. The friend made several calls to the couple that were not returned. The next day, at six-thirty in the evening, a friend with a spare key entered the townhouse to check on the couple. The neighbor found Donny and Rochelle dead. Shortly after the discovery, a spokesperson with the Hallandale Beach Police Department announced that the Canadian retirees had been murdered.

     According to the Broward County Medical Examiner's Office the Canadian Couple had been murdered in their home. The cause of their deaths: asphyxiation either by hand or by ligature.

     In April 2013 Hallandale Chief of Police Dwayne Flourney told a reporter with the Miami Herald that detectives were looking for an intruder or intruders who had been motivated by robbery. Rochelle Wise's wedding band--valued at $16,000--was missing from the dwelling. Investigators asked local pawn shop operators to report anyone coming to their places of business with the platinum, five half-carat white diamond ring. 

     A month before publicizing the missing ring the police released a video taken from a neighbor's surveillance camera that showed a woman walking toward the rear of the murdered couple's home. That person remained unidentified. Detectives believed the murders were committed by two people.

     The home invasion criminal homicide in a place once considered relatively safe from crime made residents of that community fearful. The double-murder in Venetian Park put a lot of pressure on the local police to identify and catch the perpetrators.

     On January 8, 2014 a spokesperson for the Hallandale Beach Department held a press conference on the Pichosky murder case. It had been almost a year since the double murder. According to the spokesperson, crime scene investigators recovered DNA profiles of two women from the murder site. This DNA evidence did not match anyone who had access to the Pichosky home.

     In addition to the DNA, a partial shoe print left at the murder scene was identified as an Adidas model shoe that had been out of production since 2000. Over the past year detectives had questioned more than fifty people in the investigation of the case. A $57,000 reward had been posted for information leading to the identify of the killer or killers.

     This was one of those frustrating cases where the police had physical evidence but no suspects to match it to. 

     In January 2015, Jamie Wise, Rochell's son, wrote a letter to Florida Governor Rick Scott requesting the appointment of another law enforcement agency to take over the unsolved murder case. "What is desperately needed," he wrote, "is a fresh set of eyes, an independent investigation by an experienced entity capable of cultivating new leads through diligence, openness and the willingness to collaborate more purposely with agencies throughout the state."

     The Hallandale Beach Police Department remained in charge of the still unsolved double-murder.

     In April 2016, Police Chief Dwayne Flournoy told reporters that the best lead in the case involved crime scene DNA phenotyping that pointed to a pair of unidentified females. Flourney said that the constant running the DNA profile through CODUS, the U.S. DNA database, had to date failed to identify the killers. 
     As of June 2022 the Wise/Pichosky murder case remained unsolved.

15 comments:

  1. Isn't enough information about the crime to fuel pubic interest in the case? Really??? Then why are people installing intrusion alarms and window bars? And why can't I sleep at night not knowing the cause of this crime and how to protect myself from same fate? Surely the police can release a few details.

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  2. I'm shocked at the lack of information. Figures the female, hispanic and young "captain" of hallandale police department is not interested in the older, Jewish Canadian couple. Someone needs to raise a stink asap!!! The fact that two parents neglected and then killed their infant son 2 years ago takes precedence over giving the community piece of mind related to these horrible murders.

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  3. As a 60 years old Canadian woman alone across the street from the town houses I feel the police can't be too swift here. Communities rent empty police cars all over the place. Occasionally, the vehicle is faced in the opposite direction. Are criminals as stupid? There is no security in this area just a fake gate that opens when you drive up Three Islands Blvd and another fake gate when you leave on Atlantic Shores. We had police presence for a few night at the local crazy Wal-Mart at the corner and now there is none. Where are all these people from and how much more disgusting can it get--have a look!

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    1. I completely agree with you. My parents lived in that neighborhood for 30 years, so I remember when there was at least a manned gate. Now there is a fake "security" gate that only takes a photo of a license plate at best. Therefore one can walk or ride a bike past the gate with no photo at all. I think there is something fishy about the lack of information on the baffling and disturbing murder. Your entire community of Three Islands should be exerting constant pressure on law enforcement and you should involve the press. Otherwise you will have only fear to contend with.

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    2. I'm getting ready to go back to my condo. If only Wal-mart was build near Hwy 95 it wouldn't be so bad. I may sell the place and go to live in the ghetto with my many friends inland near Boca into the safe senior summer camp that I have always violently been opposed to, hopefully the police won't be need there.

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  4. I also live in area. But sad to say if this happened in a poor neighborhood the community would be up in arms and shouting for answers and justice and info. The police wait on corner for you run a stop sign or police sleeping by Harbor Woods. Or have empty gates for security on 3 Islands Blvd and Atlantic shores Blvd.

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  5. I just saw the press conference showing the "photo" of one of the suspects and AGAIN they showed video of the woman walking between buildings. It's shown every time a story airs on these murders. The building where the woman is walking is actually 2 buildings south of the Pichosky unit, which I told the police when they first interviewed. I've lived in the complex for almost 40 years and still feel quite safe there. But I believe that constantly showing wrong "evidence" isn't helping the investigation.

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  6. I Nathan Waldman was very close to Rochelle Wise my second cousin...no RESULTS all these years! I truly miss her

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    1. so sad that they haven't caught these killers. Very sorry for the loss of your cousin. The police should do a better job.

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  7. It's a shame that this killer or killers have not been caught two innocent people died and the police can't catch the killer? The police didn't take this case seriously, too much going around the bush by the Broward police.
    ?

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  8. Thank you for this post.
    I knew Rochelle Wise when we were working together at Bialik Hebrew Day School in Toronto. She was one of the most amazing, caring, kind people I have ever met, and I am truly grateful for the time we worked together. I was so happy for her when she married and moved to Florida.
    I am also still searching for answers for this senseless murder of two amazing people. It really upsets me that it is still an open case. I hope that soon both Rochelle and Donnie's families can get answers for this horrible crime, and hopefully some closure, and for the criminals to be caught and brought to justice.
    If anyone has any information at all, no matter how insignificant it may seem, please contact the authorities. Thank you!

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  9. Funny that the board of Desoto Park, across the street, (where no one was ever asked a question by police), can't get keys for each unit to spray for roaches. Tenants would rather pay higher condo fees than open up when they are away. What might a tenant be trying to hide--DNA culling?? This was an ineffective investigation that has resolved nothing.

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  10. Ten Years has passed quickly and it encouraging to see interest as late as 2020 in these tragic and senseless murders. Legitimate concern from neighboring residents has ebbed into reflections on the lack of police investigative progress. The police have shared the only tangible information they are entitled to release to try to identify involved persons and this may seem to some to be too little and unfortunately too late. For those involved in investigating complex murders, and rest assured, this is one of them, it can take decades. While the police in Florida will not elaborate, its very telling that one of their first investigative journeys lead them to Toronto. For robbery to be the motive its a big stretch to make this trip for that purpose. The intent to murder knows no geographic boundaries and I would be surprised if the Toronto Police Service is not supporting this investigation. For all your readers and those who have posted, I believe the police have a narrow list of those who are responsible, the challenge as often is the case is not knowing those who are responsible but rather getting the evidence to bring them to justice. Keep up the interest for Mark, Jamie and the rest of their families. The cherished memories of their parents are not forgotten and far from being ignored.

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  11. Surprised it hasn’t been on an unsolved mystery show.

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