Dead Philadelphia pornographer filmed missing women in alleged snuff movies found alongside chemical vats: cops

An 82-year-old Philadelphia pornographer recorded videos of at least 58 women before his death, with seven now missing, police said.

Raymond “R.C.” Horsch, 82, lived in a home in the city’s Olney section until he died in May 2025.

Federal agents and local investigators announced Wednesday that they were expanding an investigation into the deceased man’s residence, authorities said.

At least seven of the women identified in his recordings have vanished without a trace, police said. Investigators fear those missing women may have been murdered, according to police.

Authorities also expressed concern that their bodies may have been dissolved in acid vats, according to police.

The renewed probe began after the pornographer’s son was arrested on unrelated charges three months ago, police said.

Police arrested 44-year-old Eugene Horsch on June 19 in Center City, Philadelphia. The convicted felon was charged with gun possession, possessing firearms without serial numbers, and possessing fraudulent DEA identification cards, according to police.

A woman traveling in the vehicle with the younger Horsch carried an identification card belonging to a missing person, police said. That identification belonged to Blair Tonzelli, who disappeared in 2023 at age 35, according to police.

The vehicle stop prompted authorities to execute a search at the Olney residence, police said.

Investigators seized more than 600,000 images, 70,000 videos, and 10,000 pages of text, drawings, and manuscripts from the home, authorities said.

Many of the seized writings referenced serial killers including Ted Bundy, according to investigators. The documents also contained written descriptions detailing methods for disposing of human bodies, police said.

Authorities also uncovered multiple alleged snuff movies featuring the pornographer and several missing women, police said.

Footage recovered from the house showed women who appeared to be either unconscious or dead, according to investigators.

No human remains have been found on the property, police said. Investigators did discover industrial vats filled with a mysterious liquid inside the house, along with more than 20 containers of an oily substance.

A 55-gallon drum was discovered in the basement connected directly to the home’s water lines, police said.

Investigators also confiscated fake FBI and DEA badges, fraudulent identification cards, and narcotics, according to authorities.

Police also recovered a death certificate for an unidentified deceased woman alongside five urns containing cremated remains, authorities said.

Of the 58 women identified across the video archive, at least five are feared dead, CBS News reported. Two other women identified in the footage have not been seen in years, according to the network.

Philadelphia Police Inspector Raymond Evers shared details of the investigation during a press conference on Wednesday, Aug. 12, 2026. Evers said recordings taken from what police called a mystery house in Olney show two missing women who are believed to be dead, according to police.

One newly examined video shows an unidentified woman taking narcotics and accepting money from Horsch, Philadelphia Police Deputy Commissioner Frank Vanore said at the briefing.

The pornographer then handcuffed the woman to a bed, Vanore said.

He then placed a zip tie around her neck until she became unconscious, according to Vanore.

Two women shown in the newly discovered recordings appeared to be dead or unconscious, police said. Police have not publicly identified either woman, according to investigators.

“They’re in the video. Both are not wearing clothing, there’s two separate cameras, one he’s controlling and one is that is afixed somewhere in the bedroom where they’re at,” Vanore said of the two unidentified women.

“Both of the videos were obtained by us. We have them all,” he added.

The two recordings brought the number of possible deaths connected to the residence to five, police said.

Those possible victims include Nicole Fusaro, Maribel Fresses, and Gabrielle Amarando, according to police.

Fusaro disappeared in 2018 and is one of five missing women connected to the active investigation, according to police.

Fresses was last seen in 2018 at age 27, according to records.

She is purportedly seen in a snuff movie seized from the residence, police said.

Amarando disappeared in 2012 at age 22, according to missing-person records.

She is also purportedly seen in a snuff film recovered from the residence, according to police.

Two other women with connections to the pornographer remain unaccounted for, police said.

His ex-wife, Amy McHale, was last seen at the Olney house before disappearing in 2012 at age 44, according to authorities.

Tonzelli, who disappeared in 2023 at age 35, said the younger Horsch described flushing dissolved bodies down a toilet, records show.

The elder Horsch was a self-described sociopath, police said.

He publicly described how he targeted women addicted to drugs in Philadelphia’s Kensington neighborhood, luring them to his residence to film pornography, according to police.

He also made public claims on podcasts and in his own books that he was a serial killer, authorities said.

The elder Horsch resided in the Olney residence until his death in 2025, according to police.

The FBI is now increasing the scope of its investigation at the property, federal authorities said.

Federal agents plan to return to the residence with additional search warrants later this month, according to investigators.

“The objective here is thoroughness, not simply speed. We need to ensure that we do not overlook something that could help identify a victim, establish what occurred, provide an answer to a family that has been looking for one,” Special Agent in Charge Wayne Jacobs of FBI Philadelphia told the press conference Wednesday.

Eugene Horsch has not been charged in connection with any deaths, police said. The investigation remains open.