Cops believe torso found on NYC beach may be vanished Irish filmmaker: sources
Police believe the human torso found on a Queens beach may be the corpse of acclaimed Irish filmmaker and photographer Ross McDonnell, who vanished more than a week ago, sources told The Post.
Authorities are waiting for DNA test results to come back before they make an official pronouncement, law enforcement sources said.
But cops thinks McDonnell — a 44-year-old Emmy winner whose bike was found locked up at Fort Tilden Beach on Nov. 7 — may have drowned in the churning waters, then had his body ravaged by some natural phenomena before it washed up on Breezy Point Beach Friday, sources said.
McDonnell was last seen leaving his Taaffe Place home in Clinton Hill, Brooklyn at about 8:30 p.m. on Nov. 4, according to the NYPD.
He may have been at Fort Tilden Beach later that night or early the next morning, according to a missing persons’ flyer that had been making the rounds.
Gene Gallerano, the filmmaker’s close friend, told The Irish Times that it seemed like his pal went into the ocean, then suddenly disappeared.
“He was last seen last Saturday night; the alarm was sounded on Sunday. We don’t know much more than that,” Gallerano said. “It’s been a very, very emotionally heavy week.”
McDonnell’s bike was found at the beach three days later.
At around noon on Friday, cops got a 911 call that said a human torso — with its legs still attached — was lying on the sand at the popular beach in southern Queens, police said.
Authorities could not immediately say how the person had died, or even how old they were and what gender they appeared to be.
Investigators have been seeking to track down McDonnell’s red puffy North Face vest, black and white sneakers, dark-colored khaki pants and black North Face backpack as they searched for clues about his disappearance.
McConnell, a Dublin native who often travels abroad, took home an Emmy in 2021 for his cinematography work on the Showtime series “The Trade.”
His debut feature film, “Colony,” premiered at the Toronto International Film Festival and won the IDFA First Feature Award as well as an Irish Film and Television Award Nomination, according to an online bio.
He was also shortlisted for the world’s pre-eminent photography award “Prix Pictet” during its 2019 cycle, themed “Hope.”
He’d been nominated for another Emmy in 2018 for directing the documentary “Elian,” which was produced by CNN Films, BBC and Jigsaw Productions.
