Robbery may be motive in couple’s slaying
Expensive wedding ring missing, police say
Police in Florida are linking the murders of a well-liked Toronto couple to the disappearance of a diamond and platinum wedding ring.
David (Donny) Pichosky, 71, and Rochelle Wise, 66, were found dead in their Hallandale Beach winter home on Jan. 10.
Police say the couple, prominent figures in Toronto’s Jewish community, died of asphyxiation. Investigators are combing through more than 100 pieces of evidence related to the case and have noticed that Wise’s wedding band is missing, Hallandale Beach police said Thursday. The $16,000 platinum ring has five half-carat white diamonds, framed in a half-moon shape. It may also have the letters “DCC” engraved inside. “It’s been the first significant item of value that has come up missing,” Hallandale Beach police Capt. Sonia Quinones told the SunSentinel newspaper. Police are asking pawn shop owners and jewelry exchange businesses to check their inventories to see if there’s a ring that matches the description. Homicide investigators still want to identify and talk to a mystery woman seen walking to the rear of Pichosky and Wise’s Venetian Park townhome the day before a neighbour discovered their bodies. On security camera footage released last month, the mystery woman is seen carrying an item and walking to the back of the home. She then walks to the front/side area of the home without anything in her hands. Robberies aren’t common in the couple’s quiet neighbourhood, Hallandale Beach Mayor Joy Cooper told the Star Thursday. “We’ve had a lot of break-ins in specific areas, but not in that area. That has been a very crime-free area,” she said. Police have assured neighbours that they’re safe and that the case will be solved. With files from Rachel Mendleson and Peter Edwards