FOR BREAKING NEWS VISIT WWW.QNS.COM NOVEMBER 11, 2021 • THE QUEENS COURIER 11
Jamaica man busted for 1976 cold case murder of WWI veteran: DA
BY BILL PARRY
bparry@schnepsmedia.com
@QNS
A Jamaica man was arrested last week
and charged with the murder of a World
War I veteran who was missing since
1976.
Martin Motta, 74, of 89th Avenue, was
indicted by a Queens grand jury and
arraigned before Queens Supreme Court
Justice Kenneth Holder charging him for
the killing of 81-year-old George C. Seitz,
whose dismembered body parts were discovered
in the backyard of a Richmond
Hill home in 2019, according to Queens
District Attorney Melinda Katz.
According to the charges, on March
12, 2019, human remains consisting of
a pelvis and partial torso were found
under concrete in the backyard of 87-72
115th St. Th e body had been dismembered
at the neck, shoulder and hips and
the remains allowed the Offi ce of the
Chief Medical Examiner to determine a
DNA profi le, in the hopes of identifying a
family member.
Th at profi le was searched within local,
state and national databases with negative
results.
Earlier this year, the Queens District
Attorney’s Offi ce and the NYPD sought
the assistance of a private laboratory and
the FBI to help generate leads to the
unknown victim’s identity. In February,
the lab, Othram Laboratories, used
advanced DNA testing to produce a comprehensive
genealogical profi le from the
skeletal remains, which was then given
to the FBI.
Th e feds generated leads that were
turned over to the DA’s offi ce and the
NYPD. Investigators working the cold
case began to contact potential family
members of the victim and obtained DNA
samples for comparison to the discovered
remains.
Investigators were able to confi rm that
the remains belonged to George Clarence
Seitz, a World War I veteran who went
missing on Dec. 10, 1976, when he left his
Jamaica home on his way to get a haircut.
“Th e offi cers of the NYPD’s Detective
Bureau, its homicide and cold case squads
and its highly trained forensic units never forget
and never give up,” NYPD Commissioner
Dermot Shea said. “Here again, this case
shows that no matter how much time passes,
our police offi cers and partners in the
Queens District Attorney’s Offi ce carry out
a sustained commitment, across decades,
to establishing justice for crime victims and
their families in New York City.”
Th e joint investigation by the NYPD
and the Queens DA’s offi ce uncovered
evidence that allegedly links Motta to the
crime. Th e investigation included multiple
interviews of witnesses and extensive
searches of records through various agencies
that spanned fi ve states.
“Aft er 45 years, the alleged killer of a
WWI Veteran is being held accountable
and brought to justice,” Katz said. “We
hope the identifi cation of the remains and
the indictment, in this case, will begin to
bring peace and closure to his loved ones.
Th is indictment serves as an example of
how police and prosecutors work together
to bring individuals alleged to have committed
crimes to justice, regardless of how
much time passes or how many obstacles
are placed in our path.”
If convicted, Motta faces up to 25 years
to life in prison.
Photo courtesy of Queens DA’s offi ce
Investigators arrested a Jamaica man on murder charges in the killing of a WWI veteran in 1976.
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