The city of Bridgeport, Connecticut, sits on picturesque Long Island Sound, approximately 60 miles north of New York City. With slightly more than 144,000 residents, it has the largest population of any municipality in the state. Once an industrial powerhouse, Bridgeport is not unlike many small cities of its type, working to revitalize a struggling downtown and striving to improve neighborhoods stricken by poverty and crime.

In recent history, it was not uncommon for the Bridgeport Police Department (BPD) homicide unit to investigate close to two-dozen homicides in a single year. With an annual closure rate of 80%, the unit has taken great pride in the justice it has provided to the families of homicide victims.

But like investigators everywhere, BPD homicide detectives are haunted by cases that remain unsolved. Particularly difficult are those in which the loved ones of murder victims call yearly, monthly, and sometimes weekly, looking for word of progress or—better yet—an arrest warrant. Some of those unsolved cases date back to the 1990s crack epidemic, when Bridgeport suffered upward of 60 murders in the city per year.

To help move those cold cases forward, the BPD homicide unit has undertaken a new approach. In 2024, it released the first episodes of a self-produced cold case video series: “Park City Confidential.” Each installment runs between five and 10 minutes and features a different cold case. Episodes include interviews with detectives and victims’ family members. Viewers see case photographs and videos and hear radio transmissions. Content is always vetted for sensitivity. At the end of each episode, viewers are asked to phone in tips.

Part of the impetus for “Park City Confidential” comes from the philosophy of BPD Chief Roderick Porter, Sr. Since his appointment in 2022, Chief Porter has emphasized using social media to connect with the community.

The series is an excellent tool to shine a brighter light on these cases in our attempt to bring justice to these families. And I am extremely proud of our detectives and their commitment to help them [find closure].

With the public’s appetite for true crime at an all-time high, the BPD believes that, along with the heightened interest and use of the department’s social media platforms, now is the ideal time to launch the series.

“Park City Confidential” is available on the BPD’s Facebook page and YouTube channel. Videos are produced and edited in-house. The unit collectively decides which cold cases to feature.

Captain Kevin Gilleran, commander of the homicide unit, quickly approved the project.

This series demonstrates our commitment to solving these cases and making Bridgeport safer. By engaging the community, we increase the potential to remove dangerous individuals from our streets and bring long-overdue justice to the victims’ families.

Episode 1 featured the 2020 murder of Abdul Lemon on Remington Street on the East Side of Bridgeport. Lemon was shot and killed in front of his home.   

Episode 2 covered the murder of Heriberto Marquez, who was shot from behind in an execution-style killing on the West Side, also in 2020.  

The response to “Park City Confidential” has been extremely positive. Early results have shown promise; tips came in after the first episode’s airing that moved the case forward. We hope that Episode 2 will also yield new leads for the Marquez case.  

Plans are in place to release a new episode every couple of months. People and their circumstances can change over time. You never know when new information will come in and where it might come from.

We always need the public’s assistance, and everyone knows that can be challenging. These videos tell the story of what happened. That can get people invested in trying to help. Releasing these episodes and using any new information they bring in to solve even one case would go a long way toward showing members of our community that their loved ones’ murders are not forgotten.