Chicago police have identified Thomas F. McInerney Jr., a former homicide detective who died in 2006, as the killer of 8-year-old Gloria Kowalewicz. The 1960 cold case, which remained unsolved for 65 years, was resolved using DNA evidence from a family tree website and a preserved fingerprint from the victim’s purse. The investigation revealed that McInerney was an active-duty Chicago police officer at the time of the child’s abduction and murder.
Evidence From the 1960 Crime Scene
Gloria Kowalewicz was 8 years old when she vanished on November 12, 1960. She was walking the three blocks from her West Englewood home to Mass at St. Mary of Mount Carmel Church when she disappeared. Investigators later noted bruising on the child’s neck.
Police lifted a fingerprint from the strap of Gloria’s purse, a key piece of evidence that sat untouched for decades. A massive manhunt followed, involving local and state police, as well as volunteers including Boy Scouts, firefighters, and veterans.
McInerney’s Career as a Police Officer
Thomas F. McInerney Jr. joined the Chicago Police Department in 1959, just one year before the murder. He was 24 years old at the time of the crime. His father, a Cook County Jail corrections officer, lived only a few blocks away from the Kowalewicz family. McInerney retired from the force in 1987 after 28 years of service.
After leaving Chicago, McInerney moved to Nevada, working as an investigator for the Federal Public Defender’s Office in Las Vegas and Reno until 2004. He died in 2006 at age 70. His obituary noted that he had received numerous commendations during his years with the [CPD]
and was recognized as an outstanding federal defender investigator in 2003.
DNA Technology Identifies the Killer
The case moved forward in 2024 when the Chicago Police Department, the Illinois State Police, and the FBI used DNA technology to identify the killer. By comparing DNA from the clothing to samples on family tree websites, the FBI identified McInerney.
Police confirmed the identity by matching his fingerprints from his 1959 job application to the print found on the purse strap decades earlier. Authorities also determined that McInerney had owned three Colt revolvers consistent with the firearm used in the killing.
Police Department Responds to Findings
The Chicago Police Department stated that McInerney should never have worn the CPD star, and it is devastating to accept that he was never identified and held accountable while he was alive.
Chicago Police Chief of Detectives Kevin Bruno stated that the fact the perpetrator was a police officer is deeply troubling to all of us that have made a career out of this most noble profession.
“His abhorrent actions not only took the life of an 8-year-old child, but left her parents and all who knew and loved her shattered as they searched for answers.”
Chicago Police Department
He never paid his dues,
Adam Kowalewicz said. You hope he’s going to pay his dues with the good lord.
The FBI is now determining if McInerney is connected to other unsolved crimes from that period.