For the families of victims killed in unsolved murders, life is at a standstill.
The Enquirer is highlighting a series of cold cases, summarized and analyzed by the journalists whose careers largely focus on unsolved murders: the creators of Cincinnati.com's Accused podcast. If you have any information on any unsolved case, please reach out to the appropriate law enforcement agency. Suggestions for cases to highlight can be sent to [email protected].
The crime: Paula Wolfe's last hours alive must have been terrifying.
We know this because, according to her sister's understanding of her cell phone records, Wolfe spent those hours trying to find someone who could save her life.
"She was reaching out to all these people," said Pam Hallberg, one of Wolfe's older sisters.
Wolfe's body was found Jan. 5, 2007, wrapped in a comforter near 1750 Gilbert Ave. in Mount Adams. Hallberg said Wolfe had been kidnapped from her Madeira home because it was believed she knew someone who had stolen drugs and money from a cartel.
"She didn't know anything," Hallberg said, "but they used her as a 'don't mess with me, this can happen to you'-type of thing. And that's why they shot her and left her."
The victim: Wolfe, 47, was one of seven children in a family that's been touched too often by tragedy. Two of her brothers had died as teenagers in separate car wrecks. After Wolfe's slaying, another brother died of cancer, leaving three sisters alive.
Wolfe had grown up loving music and briefly took piano lessons when she was 5 or 6. She stepped away for a few years, but then was drawn back to the piano. Aside from those early foundational lessons, she was self-taught, her sister said.
"And then she got into playing not just the piano, but the harmonica," Hallberg said. Cincinnati jazz bands routinely asked her to join them for gigs.
"She was just a natural," Hallberg said.
To send a message: Wolfe's death in 2007 was marked as the city's third homicide of the year. She'd been shot multiple times, then wrapped in a blanket and dumped unceremoniously in front of the WCPO television studio.
At the time, Cincinnati Police Sgt. Robert E. Liston said the dumping was either meant to send a message or because the killer was in a hurry. As the investigation unfolded, police came to believe the same as Hallberg: that Wolfe's death was meant as a warning to others.
"They thought Paula had information on a person that had defied them," said Hallberg. "So they were after this other person and somehow they related Paula to them."
Hallberg said Wolfe was taken from her home and driven to Pleasant Ridge, based on cell phone records. Wolfe made multiple phone calls, apparently trying to find someone who could provide her kidnappers with the information they were seeking.
She never did.
The investigation: Hallberg said Cincinnati Police haven't let the case go. Earlier this year, Homicide Detective Greg Gehring told Enquirer reporting partner Fox19 that he felt he was getting closer to an answer.
"It was an international drug organization out of Mexico that someone she knew was involved with that got her in that situation," the detective told the station. "The guys involved, responsible for this, are dangerous guys."
Gehring said he's been working with the federal Drug Enforcement Agency, as well as the Dallas and Houston police departments, to track down a specific suspect.
Got tips: People with information on Wolfe’s case can call Cincinnati Police's homicide unit at 513-352-3542 or Crime Stoppers at 513-352-3040.
Accused, reported by Enquirer journalists Amber Hunt and Amanda Rossmann, is an award-winning podcast investigating cold cases with three seasons available on all mainstream platforms such as Apple Podcasts and also at www.accusedpodcast.com.
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