Local Woman Found After Seventeen Years; Ex-Sheriff Implicated in Murder
Chaos erupted Friday night in the Southside as the site of the new housing project being built by Hayward LLC was rocked with an unexpected surprise. This new housing development is set to be built off of Waverly Avenue, carving out a portion of Fox Forest in the process, and is meant to serve as a means to give the people of the Southside more viable living opportunities. While clearing the land so that production could begin, construction workers unearthed an intact skeleton wrapped inside an old rug.
It has since been confirmed that the skeletal remains are those of local Southside mother Liora Karofsky, who has been missing for several years; sources tell us that several of the markings and nicks on the neck and rib cage suggest she was violently stabbed multiple times, suggesting that she was, indeed, a victim of the elusive Hand of God killer who terrorized the town in the timeframe of her disappearance. At news of this outcome, Paul Karofsky stated that while he is devastated to know his wife truly is not coming home, he is also relieved to know sheâs not suffering. In a brief statement to the Register, Mr. Karofsky had this to say:
âLiora was always a troubled girl. I had always hoped she would return to us one day. She did this often. A small argument over something trivial would escalate to something much larger, and she would leave for days on end in order to cool down. When I called her mother a few weeks later to see when she would be returning home, as Li would often run to her motherâs during this time, I learned that she had never arrived. Immediately, I filed a missing personâs report with the RPD. All I could do was hold out hope that she had simply chosen to go somewhere else. I must admit, though, given the events happening in the town during that year I believe a part of me has always known she wasnât coming home. Iâve tried to keep my sons hopeful for her return, but it hasnât been easy. At least we know now that sheâs in a better place.â
Liora Karofsky has been reported as missing since late 2002. Mrs. Karofsky and her husband had a whirlwind of a relationship. The two met in the spring of 2000 and were married later that year; from the outside, the marriage appeared to be a happy one until Liora gave birth to the youngest Karofsky child.
According to multiple sources, Mr. Karofsky and his wife fought often after the birth of their son; Mr. Karofsky often attributed this to his wife suffering from post-partem depression. Liora Karofsky filed for divorce in the early Fall of 2002 citing cruelty as the grounds for the divorce, stating that her husband was mentally and emotionally abusive. Three short weeks after the divorce claim was filed, Paul Karofsky filed a missing person's report with the Riverdale Police Department. Karofsky stated that his wife would often leave him alone with their children for days and weeks at a time after an argument sparked by trivial issues, an occurrence that he had become accustomed to during the brief two and a half years that he had been with her. When she had been missing for nearly three weeks, Mr. Karofsky filed a missing person's report with newly appointed Sheriff Burt Hummel, stating that she had never been gone for such an extended amount of time, and he was worried about her well-being.
In connection with Sheriff Hummel and his recent arrest, authorities have stated that the most shocking aspect of this case is just how it connects to the townâs previous Sheriff. The notorious Hand of God killer was arrested shortly after Mrs. Karofsky had gone missing, and the man accused of these heinous crimes was arrested by none other than then-Major Burt Hummel. This ground-breaking arrest was stated as the main motivation behind Mayor Jonesâ appointment of Major Hummel as the new townâs Sheriff after Richard Westerly retired one short month later. Previously, it was believed that Chief Deputy Roger Davis would be the obvious candidate for the promotion to Westerlyâs job after the man retired from his 35-year run as Sheriff, but Hummelâs promotion was widely accepted given his dedication to stopping the Hand of God killer.
With this recent revelation, Iâm sure we at the Register are not the only ones wondering if the Riverdale Police Department are going to start looking to more than just the Black Hood case.
