A 42 year old cold case is getting more attention from the FBI.
ONEIDA, N.Y. — Forty-two years to the day after the disappearance of then 19-year-old Tammy Mahoney from Oneida, the FBI said more witnesses have come forward in just the past several months, which had led state police to add more resources to assist in the investigation.
At the Troop D State Police headquarters in Oneida, the special agent in charge of the FBI Field Office in Albany, Janeen DiGuiseppi, talked about the developments in the case over the course of the past year.
“In the last few months, several brave witnesses have come forward and have gone on the record with their stories, which confirm and corroborate what other witnesses have said,” Diguiseppi said.
FBI officials say over their years-long investigation, they have developed a solid understanding of what happened before, during and after that party. What they lacked, were witnesses to corroborate it.
“Through our ongoing investigation, we continue to develop a solid understanding of what occurred before, during and after the party,” Diguiseppi said.
With the new developments from the past months, NYS Police have added resources to assist in the FBI’s investigation into Tammy’s disappearance.
“Due to the magnitude of the new information and the leads that have been developed over the years, we have determined NYSP special units could be of assistance,” said NYSP Troop D Commander Major VIncent Lightcap.
State police polygraphers, NYSIC, and State Police Cold Case out of Albany will assist in the investigation. State Police Troop D units out of Oneida will also provide assistance.
Mahoney’s younger sister, Marlene Laccesaglia, who was 15 years old when Tammy disappeared, said not a day goes by that the family doesn’t think about Tammy.
“I was in tenth grade at the time I think,” Laccesaglia said. “It was a terrible experience… the uncertainty and not knowing what happened initially.”
She hopes people who know what happened to her sister will come forward.
“In our community, there are so many people that still remember her and always ask about her,” Laccesaglia said. “When my mother was alive, she would say a prayer for Tammy every night.”
The FBI is still offering a reward of up to $20,000 for information leading to the recovery of the body of Tammy Mahoney and/or the arrest and prosecution of those responsible for her death/disappearance.
Mahoney was last seen on May 8, 1981, near Route 46, in Oneida. According to the FBI, she was likely hitchhiking to visit friends. Tammy was picked up and brought to a party at a residence on Territory Road East, off Route 46.
According to some individuals, Tammy departed the residence on foot. Her family and friends haven’t seen or heard from her since.
She was reported missing on May 8, 1981. She was 19 years old at the time.
Oneida Nation Police added to the FBI’s reward a few years ago.
“In 2019, the Oneida Indian Nation increased the reward to $20,000 to match the FBI’s reward for information that solves this case,” said Oneida Indian Nation Police Chief Gary Henderson.
“I know they were always looking for the answers that we have been looking for,” Laccesaglia said. ” I would like her remains so that we can bury her, so that she can be laid to rest with dignity and the respect that she deserves.”
“I’m hoping this puts a little more pressure and makes them understand what they are doing and that it is not right and hopefully, that they don’t move on with this type of guilt,” DiGuiseppi said. “We are in a lot better position than we were a year ago.”
Anyone with information concerning this case is asked to contact the FBI’s Albany Office at 315-731-1781 or their local FBI office or the nearest American Embassy or Consulate.