Crime & Safety

Cold Case: Nicholas Loriss

Murder of man in trailer park is unsolved six years later.

Of all the cold cases Des Plaines Police Sgt. Mike Holdman remembers, one sticks out in his mind.

Nicholas Loriss was killed Oct. 5, 2005. He was found by his wife, stabbed to death, in his mobile home, 815 E. Oakton St., according to a Chicago Tribune report.

The offender fled the scene in Loriss’ van, Holdman said. The vehicle was found in an unincorporated area of Des Plaines. Holdman said he could not get into specifics of the case, as the investigation is ongoing.

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“But it was a horrific crime scene,” he said.

Earlier:

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have been interested spectators as the Cook County Sheriff's Office reopened the John Wayne Gacy case earlier this year and identified a previously unknown victim. But the recent turn of events reminded the department of its crucial role in the sensational saga and brought to mind other cold cases in Des Plaines' files.

A murder case starts to turn cold if it’s not solved in the first 48 hours, Holdman said.

“The first 48 hours of a homicide investigation is crucial,” Holdman said. “You go a week to two weeks, it gets hard to solve.”

Holdman, who runs the Des Plaines police undercover unit, among other duties, said there were three key things for solving a case quickly: witnesses on the scene, a victim on the scene and evidence.

“Take away those things, and it becomes more difficult to solve,” Holdman said.

Des Plaines Police Chief James Prandini said police maintain homicide investigations forever, and there are a couple such cases being worked on presently. He said in the past people have come forward after an extended period of time, making it possible to solve cases.

“We’re routinely looking at a case, even if we don’t have any new tips, just to see if new information surfaces,” Prandini said.

Holdman began working alongside detectives who worked the Gacy case, now all retired.

“The reason people get in [law enforcement is] you want to work the greatest case of all time,” Holdman said. “They were part of something huge.”

Anyone that has information about this case can contact Des Plaines police Commander Nicholas Treantafeles in investigations at (847) 391-5400.

Anonymous tips may be given to by calling Crime Stoppers at (847) 699-7867 or by texting through .

Tipsters can send a text to CRIMES (274637), and begin the message with "ICARE" so the system recognizes it as information for Des Plaines and Park Ridge police departments. The sender will receive a message back from a third-party vendor with an anonymous identification number in alphanumeric code. All subsequent messages between the tipster and police go through the system the same way.

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