April 21st, 2022 was a day that was cool but seasonable, typical of upstate New York in April. Temperatures hovered in the 50s (°F) during the day and dipped into the 40s or upper 30s by night. People were starting to get outside again, walking, biking, preparing gardens. Sunset occurred around 7:50 PM. The East Side of Binghamton was a quiet, largely residential neighborhood with modest homes and long-established families. Known for being relatively peaceful. It’s not considered a high-crime area. Like much of the U.S., Binghamton was still recovering from the emotional and economic toll of the COVID-19 pandemic. Schools were fully reopened, but some students (especially middle schoolers like Aliza) were still adjusting to normalcy. Local softball leagues were starting up. Parks and schoolyards were more active. At the time, Binghamton wasn’t experiencing a spike in gun violence. Crime was relatively low. That’s part of what made Aliza Spencer’s murder so jarring — it felt aberrant, like something that just didn’t happen in that part of the city. People were talking about the opioid crisis, mental health access, and housing costs — ongoing issues in many upstate New York communities. But the streets were not considered dangerous for families or children. There was already a mild distrust of local law enforcement in some circles, especially when it came to transparency and community policing. That tension only deepened after Aliza’s shooting and the perceived lack of communication from police.

When Nicole Marranca stopped calling her family in the summer of 2017, they knew something was wrong. Nicole had struggled, yes—but she was very open about her struggle with addiction. At the time she was without stable housing, engaging in sex work to get her basic needs met. But she always stayed in touch. She saw her mother regularly and called her father regularly, no matter what. Until she didn’t. In the years since, no trace of Nicole has ever been found.

There are some locals who believe Nicole didn’t just disappear. That she may have been targeted.We don’t know. There are so many unknowns in Nicole’s story. But what we do know is this: her life matters. She was deeply loved. And she was Last Seen in the Twilight Zone.

Our thoughts are with Nicole's family, who just celebrated her birthday on December 11th.

https://ithacavoice.org/2017/11/father-missing-ithaca-woman-im-waiting-worst-id-love-hear-best/?utm_source=chatgpt.com

https://murderincorp.wordpress.com/2024/01/01/upstate-ny/

Missing Persons podcast: https://open.spotify.com/episode/2L8ObEDb5ggn5c9P4tWmuf?si=3752118de70346e2

Today’s story is one of hate, heartbreak, and horror. But it's also a call to remember those we lost. Today, we go to Buffalo, New York—a proud Rust Belt city known for its snowstorms, football team, and the blue-collar resilience of its people. But on May 14, 2022, something happened that would fracture this community... a hate-fueled act of domestic terrorism. An 18-year-old man from the quiet town of Conklin drove more than 200 miles with one clear, terrifying motive: to kill Black people.

This is the story of the Tops Market Massacre.

It was a Saturday afternoon in Buffalo’s East Side—a neighborhood rich in history, culture, and community, and one that’s predominantly black, which is kind of crazy to me that he drove all the way there because theres quite a large black community right here in Binghamton, or like Syracuse? Why Buffalo?

Tops Friendly Market on Jefferson Avenue was bustling. Families shopping for Sunday dinners. Elderly neighbors picking up prescriptions. Regular folks going about their day. Tops was one of the few full-service grocery stores in the area. For many residents, Tops wasn’t just a store. It was a lifeline.

But around 2:30 p.m., that ordinary afternoon turned into a nightmare.

A young white man dressed in tactical gear and armed with an assault-style rifle stepped out of his car in the parking lot. On his weapon were racial slurs and symbols.

He livestreamed the attack on Twitch.He opened fire before even stepping inside.

Within minutes, 10 people were dead. All were Black. Three others were wounded.