Anthony Peter Tumolo

Status:

Open

Jurisdiction:

Philadelphia Police Department Pa (PA)

Missing From:

Philadelphia, Pennsylvania

Summary:

Anthony Peter Tumolo disappeared on October 15, 1966, when he left his Philadelphia home on his bicycle to ride to his best friend's house and never arrived, failing to show up for his morning newspaper route the next day. His case remains unsolved.

Vital Statistics

Circumstances of Disappearance:

On the afternoon of October 15, 1966, Anthony left his Philadelphia, Pennsylvania home on his bicycle to ride to the home of his best friend, Jack Marino. They had been together earlier that day and had made plans to go to their respective homes, eat dinner and then meet up again after dinner. The boys spent the morning delivering papers and collecting dues, taking a break to devour a dozen doughnuts they bought at a bakery on Torresdale Avenue. They parted just before 3 p.m. to head to their respective homes for supper, planning to meet up again afterward. Anthony ate his supper in a hurry; when Jack showed up at Anthony's brick duplex on Princeton Avenue near Torresdale, his mother told Jack that Anthony had left just 10 minutes earlier. He was last seen on October 15, 1966 leaving his house to go to a friend's house. He never arrived at his friend's house and has not been seen or heard from since. They didn't realize anything was wrong until the next morning, after several customers along Anthony's morning paper route called the house to ask why their newspapers hadn't been delivered. The Tumolos didn't worry until Anthony failed to return home to deliver his newspapers the next morning, a duty he never shirked.

Additional Details:

Authorities initially believed he was a runaway. The police stopped looking for him after that, believing he was safe and did not want to be found. Prior to his disappearance, he had argued with parents; he was making poor grades and they wanted him to quit his paper route and focus on school. Five days after Anthony went missing, two of his classmates claimed to have seen him. The witness admitted he and his friend had lied about seeing Anthony; they'd made up the story to get out of being punished for being late to school. Jack never believed Anthony left of his own accord. The two teenagers were very close and Anthony had never mentioned wanting to leave home. In addition, Anthony was very close to his family, which included eight siblings, and it would be uncharacteristic of him to leave without warning. He also left behind an uncashed paycheck, some cash and other belongings in his bedroom, which would make little sense if he was planning on leaving. Jack is now a police officer and, decades after his friend vanished, he located one of the boys who claimed to have seen him in the days following his disappearance. Jack theorizes Anthony was struck by a vehicle while riding his bicycle, and the driver panicked and hid his body and the bike, which has never been found. Interstate 95 was under construction in the area around the time Anthony disappeared, and it would have been relatively easy to conceal a corpse at the construction site. This theory has not been verified, but law enforcement currently in charge of investigating Anthony's case believe it's a likely possibility. Anthony's parents are both deceased; his father died of cancer two years after his disappearance, and his mother died in 2001. Hess and her siblings have submitted their DNA to the National Center for Missing and Exploited Children, and Tumolo's missing-person profile has been updated with age-enhanced photos. A few years ago, Hess heard about some bones that were discovered in Philadelphia. She and other family members were hopeful that they were Tumolo's. But they weren't his.

Case Last Updated:

Apr 16, 2026