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Pennsylvania Exotic Dancer Strangled, Battered, Thrown Off Bridge To Her Death By Drunk Patron
After the "mangled" body of Rachel Siani, 21, was found in New Jersey after being thrown from a bridge, police tracked down a patron at the Pennsylvania club she worked at.
On April 1, 2000, the body of 21-year-old Rachel Siani was discovered in Burlington County, New Jersey, after apparently being thrown from the Delaware River-Turnpike Toll Bridge.
The bridge connects that state to Bucks County, Pennsylvania. New Jersey State Police were called to investigate since Siani's body landed on that side of the span.
“Her body was just mangled ... It looked like she had been there for a few days at least,” John Villamil, then a detective with the New Jersey State Police, said in the “Dancing for the Devil” episode of Philly Homicide, airing Saturdays at 9/8c p.m. on Oxygen.
“There were no drag marks or tire marks,” Villamil added of the area where Siani's body was found. “I knew right away she came from the bridge above.”
Investigators considered suicide but blood and fiber evidence pointed to foul play.
Who was Rachel Siani?
Detectives learned that Siani lived with her father and stepmother in Bensalem Township, Pennsylvania, which is near Philadelphia and just across the Delaware River from New Jersey. She was last seen alive on March 29, 2000 at 2:30 a.m.
Her goal was to be a music therapist. “By day, she was going to the Bucks County Community College, studying psychology,” said David W. Zellis, a former First Assistant District Attorney in the Bucks County DA's Office.
“She was able to pay for her tuition by working in the evening at Divas gentlemen’s club in Bristol Township, Pennsylvania,” Zellis added.
Kimberly Lauterio, the victim’s friend and coworker, called her “a little blast of spunkiness."
"By day, she was Rachel Siani, and by night, she was Foxy Roxy," Lauterio told Philly Homicide. "She was the girl next door, and people loved it.”
Siani’s family felt that her working at a strip club would expose her to unsavory characters, according to journalist and author Matt Coughlin. And, now, tragically, their worst fear appeared to have come true.
Searching for clues in Rachel Siani's death
Detectives began to hunt for clues by checking out Siani’s car, which was still in the parking lot of the club she worked at as a dancer. It was processed by a forensics team, which turned up no evidence of foul play.
Investigators turned their attention to a former coworker, a cook named Jason, who had allegedly developed “an unhealthy infatuation” with Siani, Coughlin told Philly Homicide.
Siani eventually went to management and “let them know that she was starting to feel uncomfortable, and they fired him,” said Lauterio.
After a thorough investigation, the former coworker was released as a suspect. Police then looked into a fellow dancer who had a conflict with Siani that had turned physical. This dancer was also eventually cleared.
Siani’s blood and sweater fibers were determined to be on the bridge, based on evidence collected at the crime scene.
What did the medical examiner’s report say in Rachel Siani's case?
“The medical examiner found there was no indication of sexual assault, but a tremendous amount of damage had been done to Rachel’s body,” Coughlin said.
“Her legs were broken, her ribs were broken, her clavicle was broken as well,” said Villamil. “She had injuries to the left and right side of her head, which are not consistent with a fall from a bridge.”
Siani had also been strangled, but not fatally. The medical examiner determined that her heart was still pumping when she fell from the bridge. “It was the impact with the ground that killed her,” said Coughlin.
Detectives concluded that Siani had been dumped off the bridge and that she’d received some injuries before that.
Clues from Divas gentlemen’s club
Investigators learned that three days before Siani's body was found, a police officer had been at Divas in response to a report of an intoxicated patron trying to get into the club.
“We found out Rachel Siani and another dancer were in the parking lot when they saw some man banging on the back door of the gentlemen’s club,” Zellis told Philly Homicide. “Rachel agreed to escort this gentleman to his room in the motel that’s next door.”
His name was John "Jack" Denofa.
Who is John "Jack" Denofa?
Denofa was a married club regular who was known to drink at Divas and sleep it off at the motel. “Jack was on a friendly, personal level with all of us. We had fun with him,” Lauterio told Philly Homicide.
“He only had eyes for one person, and that was Rachel,” said Doug Bowker, who formerly worked security at Divas.
“She loved the money that he gave her,” he added, “and she loved the fact that she didn't think she had to do anything to get it. He never intimated for a second that she had to sleep with him or do anything because he was happily married.”
Siani had no fear about walking Denofa to his hotel room, police learned from her fellow dancer.
Jack Denofa interviewed by police
Investigators asked Denofa to speak with them at the Bristol Township Police Department. They explained what happened to Siani.
“His attitude was very impassive, like he had no feeling about it,” said Villamil.
After police pressed Denofa about scratches on his arm, he asked for an attorney and shut down the interview.
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Police turned to Denofa’s motel room for leads. The night manager didn’t notice anything out of the ordinary when he checked in, but she noticed that he checked out early.
“On this occasion, the clerk said to the police that he left at about 3:30 in the morning,” said Zellis. This was not in keeping with Denofa’s typical routine.
In Denofa’s room, investigators found what appeared to be a drop of blood in the shower stall, as well as blood outside on the sidewalk below.
“We’re thinking, since no one saw Rachel leave, that maybe he had lowered Rachel's body outside the window and somehow her body fell,” Villamil said.
Tracking Jack Denofa’s truck
Investigators’ next step was to find out if Denofa’s vehicle was driven over the bridge where Siani was found.
Investigators relied on video footage available on the Pennsylvania side of the span. A painstaking review revealed that Denofa’s red Dodge Ram pickup truck went through the toll plaza.
In a shocking revelation, a small female wearing jeans and a sweater, the same clothes Siani’s body was found in, was seen in the back of the vehicle.
“The video was time-stamped, March 29 at 4 a.m. It certainly looked like it was the smoking gun,” said Zellis.
The video showed that when the vehicle returned from New Jersey to Pennsylvania, there was no body in the truck bed.
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Police searched Denofa’s truck, where they turned up dried blood under a bed liner. Hair and more dried blood was found behind a bumper.
The crime lab determined the blood in the truck matched Siani’s. Officials had what they needed to make an arrest.
Jack Denofa charged with murder
About a week into the investigation, Denofa was arrested for Siani’s murder. He was taken into custody on charges filed in New Jersey, but held in Pennsylvania until extradition could be arranged.
Following his arrest, Denofa claimed he wasn’t driving his truck and fought extradition. The judge ruled that Denofa should be extradited. The trial took place in Burlington County, New Jersey, where Siani's body was found.
Who killed Rachel Siani?
Officials theorized that Denofa killed Siani after she resisted his efforts to have sex. He put her in a stranglehold and she passed out. He later threw her out of his motel window, loaded her into his truck and then tossed her from the bridge.
In November of 2002, Denofa was convicted of first-degree murder. He was sentenced to 30 years to life in prison.
To learn more about the case, watch the “Dancing for the Devil” episode of Philly Homicide, which airs new episodes on Saturdays at 9/8c p.m. on Oxygen.
