Research Paper On The Boy In The Box By Joseph Zarelli

The Boy In The Box Joseph Augustus Zarelli. Many of you may know him as “The Boy In The Box” or “America's Unknown Child”. On February 25, 1957, a young 4 year old boy was found in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. He appeared malnourished and beaten. The most shocking thing is he was freshly cleaned with a new haircut, and trimmed his fingernails. His body was covered with scars which seemed to be from surgical procedures all along his ankles and chin area. His body was discovered by a young man who was out checking his rabbit traps. He found the body wrapped in a cloth blanket inside a large J.C. Penny box. Police received and opened the investigation with no identification. 400,000 flyers were printed and spread begging for any information on the boy. Sadly,

In 1998, his body was exhumed for further DNA testing, which would be extracted from his tooth. Once again, this led nowhere. It's like this boy is a complete ghost. Another 18 years would go by before advancements in the case would be made. On March 21, 2016, the National Center For Missing and Exploited Children released a facial reconstruction image of the victim and he would be added to their database. This case will continue to lead nowhere, with no recognition of this young child. However, on November 30, 2022, the Philadelphia Police Department announced that they had identified the child through various DNA tests and genetic testing. On December 8, 2022, the child was publicly identified as Joseph Augustus Zarelli, born January 13, 1953 to a prominent Delaware County family. Investigators will say they had the name of the child for weeks, before they decided to release it, along with his parents name. Many will ask why the parents never came forward to identify their son, or why no missing person report was ever filed. Well, to answer that question, Joseph spent his only 4 years of life in a foster home located 1.5 miles from the site of his