Amid an investigation into a "mystery house" in Philadelphia's Olney neighborhood, authorities have found a disturbing video of a woman being strangled. The investigation centers on Raymond ‘R.C.’ Horsch, a photographer of sexually explicit material who died in 2025 at 82. He shared the house with his son, Eugene Horsch.
Inside the house, police have found one million images and videos, including footage that police say appears to show women unconscious, injured or dead. As many as seven women who disappeared over more than a decade ago have also been linked to a Philadelphia house.
What the disturbing video shows
In a set of videos dated from 2017, Raymond is seen nude with a woman inside the house, Deputy Police Commissioner Frank Vanore said, per NBC News. While Raymon appears to be operating the camera, another person records from a fixed position.
Vanore revealed that the videos show the woman appearing to use narcotics before Raymond hands her money. He then ties her to the bed using handcuffs and puts a zip tie around her neck.
The woman eventually appears to lose consciousness. Investigators have yet to determine if she died or whether she is among the missing women connected to the property.
{{/usCountry}}The woman eventually appears to lose consciousness. Investigators have yet to determine if she died or whether she is among the missing women connected to the property.
{{/usCountry}}Vanore said that investigators have identified 58 people depicted in material recovered from the house. Four of these people appeared lifeless or unconscious, per NBC News. Ten others reportedly later died of suspected drug overdoses at locations away from the property.
Police have found as many as 41 other people seen in the material. While 16 of them declined or were reluctant to be interviewed, detectives are now preparing to interview another 25, according to Vanore.
Hundreds of thousands of images and videos have yet to be interviewed by authorities. Investigators have reviewed only about 30% of the digital evidence. Authorities have not yet announced homicide charges in connection to any of the missing women.
How did the investigation begin?
It all began when a park ranger stopped a BMW on the 600 block of Market Street near Independence Mall on June 19, 2026. Inside were a male driver and female passenger, Philadelphia Inspector Raymond Evers shared during a press conference.
The driver was identified as 44-year-old Eugene Horsch, and the woman provided fake identification with the name Blair Tonzelli. According to the National Missing and Unidentified Persons System (NamUS), Tonzelli went missing in 2023.
The park ranger found two handguns and $8,000 in illegal drugs inside the house.
Images and videos recovered from a hard drive found during the search of Horsch's Chew Avenue home show what investigators believe are the bodies of two women, Maribel Fresses and Gabriella Amarando, Fox29 reported. While some videos showed them alive, others showed them appearing to be dead.
As many as 95 search warrants were issued for Horsch’s house on the 400 block of West Chew Avenue. Inside, the DEA and the Philadelphia Police Department found at least one more illegal gun, a marijuana grow operation, another fake FBI badge and five urns filled with cremated remains.
Authorities also found computer parts and what appeared to be a home lab with several containers of an unknown oily substance. The containers were sent to a Chicago lab to be reviewed.
In the beginning of August, a computer forensic lab started to review the digital evidence from the house. They reportedly went through 600,000 images, 70,000 videos and more than 10,000 pages of drawings and writings, which is just 5% of the digital evidence, according to Evers.
Eugene remains in federal custody on charges unrelated to the missing women.