The Boy in the Box // 269

In February of 1957, a box containing the body of a boy was found in Pennsylvania, and for nearly 70 years, his identity remained a mystery. But in November of 2022, it was finally discovered. Although police are continuing the search for the boy’s killer now that they know the victim’s name, the identity of the murderer is still unknown. This is the story of the boy in the box.

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CASE SOURCES

1. CBS: https://www.cbsnews.com/philadelphia/news/the-boy-in-the-box-joseph-augustus-zarelli/

2. Newsweek: https://www.newsweek.com/boy-box-joseph-augustus-zarelli-has-living-siblings-60-years-later-1765716

3. New York Times: https://www.nytimes.com/2022/12/08/us/boy-in-the-box-philadelphia-homicide.html#:~:text=His%20name%20is%20now%20known,case%20work%20in%20recent%20years.

4. FInd A Grave: https://www.findagrave.com/memorial/7207817/boy-in_the-box

5. Philly Voice: https://www.phillyvoice.com/boy-in-box-philadelphia-joseph-augustus-zarelli-homicide-victim-identfiied/

6. The NetLine: https://thenetline.com/joseph-zarelli-family/

7. Republican and Herald: https://www.newspapers.com/clip/114869310/joseph-augustus-zarelli-2281957/

8. The Philadelphia Inquirer: https://www.newspapers.com/clip/114409749/boy-in-the-box-joseph-augustus-zarelli/

9. ABC 27: https://www.abc27.com/news/remains-of-boy-in-the-box-identified-by-philadelphia-police-after-65-years/

10. The Philadelphia Inquirer: https://www.newspapers.com/clip/114499080/gus-zarelli-theorized-to-be-bio-father/

11. Gus' Find A Grave: https://www.findagrave.com/memorial/131531160/augustus-john-zarelli

12. Grunge: https://www.grunge.com/901122/the-tragic-1957-murder-of-the-boy-in-the-box-explained/

13. ABC 6: https://6abc.com/boy-in-the-box-identified-dna-philadelphia-cold-case-child-killed-50s/12546104/#:~:text=The%20%22Boy%20in%20the%20Box,forensic%20genealogist%20at%20Identifiers%20International.

14. Local Today: https://localtoday.news/us/chinas-strict-zero-covid-policy-may-be-over-but-it-has-been-replaced-by-chaos-confusion-and-risk-216647.html

15. The Philadelphia Inquirer: .css-j9qmi7{display:-webkit-box;display:-webkit-flex;display:-ms-flexbox;display:flex;-webkit-flex-direction:row;-ms-flex-direction:row;flex-direction:row;font-weight:700;margin-bottom:1rem;margin-top:2.8rem;width:100%;-webkit-box-pack:start;-ms-flex-pack:start;-webkit-justify-content:start;justify-content:start;padding-left:5rem;}@media only screen and (max-width: 599px){.css-j9qmi7{padding-left:0;-webkit-box-pack:center;-ms-flex-pack:center;-webkit-justify-content:center;justify-content:center;}}.css-j9qmi7 svg{fill:#27292D;}.css-j9qmi7 .eagfbvw0{-webkit-align-items:center;-webkit-box-align:center;-ms-flex-align:center;align-items:center;color:#27292D;}