duffle bag
Julie Hambleton
Julie Hambleton
April 26, 2022 ·  4 min read

Murdered Queens Mom Dragged to Sidewalk Inside Duffel Bag, Suspect Texts Husband from Her Phone

A True Crime scene in real life. Earlier this month, a man murdered a mother of two in her own home and left her body discarded on the sidewalk in a duffle bag. He then sent a chilling text to her husband, telling him that the rest of his family is next.

Queen’s Mom Murdered In Her Own Home

Police identified the victim as Orsolya Gaal (left)

Last week, 51-year-old Glenn Van Nostrand was out walking his two Rhodesian Ridgebacks when the dogs became agitated. They led him to a duffle bag discarded beside the sidewalk. In the bag Van Nostrand saw a foot and leg and at first thought it was a mannequin. Next, however, he saw the blood and realized that it was an actual human woman. (1)

“But to me it looked a mannequin,” he said. “It didn’t look very fleshy. It was more like a crash test dummy. I thought it was maybe some equipment being used for something. I didn’t think anything of it.”

Once he realized that the body was an actual human, he immediately called the police. They arrived on the scene, however, the two dogs remained agitated. The pair next led Van Nostrand and a couple of the police officers to a pool of blood about a hundred yards away from the bag. 

“They are scent hounds,” Van Nostrand said. “They see the world through their noses.”

From there, the police were able to follow a trail of blood that led them to a home on Juno Street in Queens, New York City.

Orsolya Gaal

The body, authorities learned, was that of Orsolya Gaal. She was a wife and mother of two teenage boys. Her husband and oldest son were away at the time visiting potential universities for their son for the next school year. The 13-year-old was at home. (2)

On the night of the murder, Gaal went out, telling her 13-year-old she was going to see a show. Instead, however, she apparently met up with a man. At some point during the night, the man killed Gaal in the basement by stabbing her multiple times in the neck. Surveillance footage shows the man dragging her body outside and down the street in the duffle bag.

Her killer then sent a chilling text message to her husband using Gaal’s phone. In the text, the killer told her husband that her wife was the reason he went to jail some years ago. He said that if he went to the police, the killer would kill their entire family. The investigators have identified a person of interest in the case, but they have yet to arrest anyone. They did take the 13-year-old son in for questioning, however, they released him with no charges. The husband and father are both devastated about his wife while at the same time grateful that his son is okay. The family is naturally fearing for their safety currently.

Read: Neighbor Who Complained About Living Next Door To A Paedophile Jailed For Being A Paedophile

The Community Reacts

This Queens neighborhood is a normally calm, quiet, safe neighborhood. Gaal and her family had lived in that house for about nine years. From what their neighbors say, the family always seemed like a normal family. Her neighbors describe Gaal as a dedicated stay-at-home mother who spent a lot of time with her children. (3)

“She was out there living her life and making sure her kids were well looked after like any mother would,” said one neighbor. “This is the last thing I’d expect to wake up to in the morning. To wake up to this is just devastating.”

Naturally, many members of the community are terrified. Things like this, they say, never happen in their community. Especially following so shortly after the Brooklyn subway shooting, they are feeling quite shaken. One neighbor already had plans to move to Florida. Now she says she can’t get out of New York fast enough.

“It’s freaky. As a woman, it’s scary. You listen to true crime stuff and you don’t want to see it in real life, especially in your neighborhood,” said one resident.

“It’s absolutely horrifying,” another agreed. “Nothing like this would happen in this neighborhood. People pay a lot of money to live in Forest Hills. I’m sick to my stomach. I don’t feel safe. I’m not going to be walking here at night. I can’t believe there is a . . . body thrown on the side of the road.”

The investigation is still ongoing as the authorities look for the suspect.

Keep Reading: 4 Men Gang-Raped, Killed, and Ate a Protected Monitor Lizard

Sources

  1. New York mother found dead in duffel bag was stabbed 58 times, police sources say.” NBC News. Marlene Lenthang and Myles Miller. April 18, 2022.
  2. Killer texted Queens mother’s husband warning of more violence: sources.” Pix11. Jennifer Bisram, Sarah Vasile, Magee Hickey. April 17, 2022.
  3. Son questioned after Orsolya Gaal’s body found in blood-soaked duffel bag in Queens.” NY Post. Joe Marino, Dana Kennedy and Steven Vago. April 16, 2022.