Tumultuous relationship ends with woman killed, body left in Carousel Park: Court papers
Stephen Heck didn't answer questions police posed about his missing girlfriend shortly after officers began investigating the 63-year-old woman's whereabouts on Sept. 25.
Eight days later, the 66-year-old boyfriend was charged with the first-degree murder of Cynthia Amalfitano, whose body was found in Carousel Park on Sept. 26.
Court documents that were unsealed nearly a week ago, but were released only Wednesday by Superior Court to Delaware Online/The News Journal, indicate Amalfitano was killed in the Pike Creek park shortly after the couple arrived back from an overnight trip to Rehoboth Beach.
The manner of death was ruled as numerous injuries and strangulation, according to the court documents, which piece together Amalfitano's final days and efforts by New Castle County police to solve the crime. The documents also bring up the couple's tumultuous relationship, including a conversation a police investigator had with one of Amalfitano's relatives who was identified in court records as "W1."
"W1 noted that they had broken up as recent as a couple of weeks ago," investigators noted in the documents. "She advised that during the most recent incident [Amalfitano] had kicked Stephen out of her residence.
"W1 stated that [Amalfitano] recalled being pushed by Stephen during the incident and further added that she was afraid for her life."
Rehoboth Beach trip: 'OK sweetie see you in a bit'
Amalfitano, who'd been a teacher at Concord Preschool, told several people she and Heck would be going to her beach house in Rehoboth Beach on Sept. 23 and returning the following evening. Amalfitano had been seeing Heck for a couple of years, and the two had even lived together for a period of time.
Shortly before 5 p.m. on Sept. 23, police said, Amalfitano texted Heck: "OK sweetie see you in a bit."
The couple, along with her dogs, spent the night in Rehoboth Beach. They were also in Rehoboth part of Sept. 24, where Amalfitano took pictures in the resort town area about 11:45 a.m. of that day, according to police who searched her phone.
The couple left Rehoboth at about 7:25 that evening.
Heck's Subaru Crosstrek is seen going through the Middletown toll plaza at 8:48 p.m., according to court documents. A surveillance photo shows that Heck is driving. The image also shows a woman in the front passenger seat with one of Amalfitano's dogs on her lap.
1 hour, 45 minutes
Because investigators have since tracked where Heck's and Amalfitano's phones had been over that weekend, court documents say the couple's phones ended up in Carousel Park at about 9:10 p.m. on Sept. 24.
The phones remained in the Pike Creek park for about 1 hour and 45 minutes.
Surveillance footage then captured Heck arriving at the back of Amalfitano's Pike Creek home at 10:54 p.m.
He is seen entering her home, then leaving it with a trash bag. Heck gets into his car at 11:24 p.m. and leaves, according to the documents, only to return about six minutes later. He exits his car with a dog, then walks to an area of a trash bin, court papers say.
Heck is seen repeatedly entering and leaving the house that night, according to documents. He's also seen disposing of items from his car into the nearby trash bin.
"It should be noted that Cynthia is not seen on the surveillance footage at any time returning to her residence at ... Birch Circle on Sept. 24," according to the court documents.
Security footage, according to police, shows Heck taking what appears to be a purse into the home about 11:45 p.m. He returns to the house shortly before midnight. He is not seen leaving the house until 7:40 the following morning when he enters and leaves the house several times while carrying numerous bags and what appears to be clothing.
He then drives away from Amalfitano's home at about 8 a.m. — after taking one more bag to a trash bin.
Where's Cynthia Amalfitano?
When Amalfitano failed to show up to work the morning of Sept. 25, someone from her job called Amalfitano's daughter to tell her Amalfitano failed to arrive at work and had not contacted them to say she would not be coming. Amalfitano's daughter was also told that they had tried to reach her mother with no success.
Amalfitano's daughter asked a relative who lives nearby to check on her mother.
The relative arrived at Amalfitano's house at about 10:15 a.m. and knocked on the rear door, which turned out to be unlocked. Police were called when the relative saw Amalfitano's two dogs inside the house, as well as the woman's cellphone, purse and keys also inside the house.
The relative told investigators she last spoke to Amalfitano on Sept. 23. That's when Amalfitano said she was going to Rehoboth with Heck.
The relative, who confirmed she'd not heard from Amalfitano since then, told the investigator it was unlike Amalfitano to miss work without notifying someone. The relative added that it was "extremely unlikely" for Amalfitano to leave her house without her purse, wallet, keys or to leave the doors unlocked.
Amalfitano also takes her dogs everywhere she goes, the relative told the investigator.
Tumultuous relationship
The relative described to investigators that Amalfitano and Heck had had a tumultuous relationship, adding that Heck had been physically and verbally abusive to Amalfitano. Others interviewed by the investigator confirmed this, according to the court documents.
The relative mentioned an incident that occurred last year in Long Beach, New Jersey, which, according to court documents, the investigator searched for and found an altercation that occurred in that state in August of last year.
Quoting the New Jersey records, the New Castle County police investigator said Heck grabbed Amalfitano's hand and threatened to burn her on the electric stove. The following day, Amalfitano told Heck she was going shopping "so that she could get away from him for some time."
"Stephen stated to [Amalfitano], I cannot even tell you what will happen if you call the police," the investigator quoted the New Jersey report.
Delaware Online/The News Journal searched through Delaware court records and also found that Heck was charged with a misdemeanor last year following an incident between the two.
On Jan. 25, 2022, the couple argued as to who was going to walk the dog that morning, according to Delaware Family Court documents. Following the argument, the document claims Amalfitano was applying makeup in the bathroom when Heck came in and shoved her.
Police charged Heck with offensive touching and he was ordered to have no contact with Amalfitano. But as time went on, the no-contact order was modified to say he was not to have any "unlawful contact" with Amalfitano.
Heck was supposed to have a case review hearing on Feb. 21 of this year, but the case was dismissed on that day.
Heck's silence
The relative also mentioned that while checking on Amalfitano's home on Sept. 25, Heck called her spouse but he hung up before anyone could answer.
The relative, according to court records, called Heck, who answered but stayed silent before hanging up. The relative called him back several times, but he did not answer.
Police went to Heck's apartment in the 2700 block of Jacqueline Drive in Brandywine Hundred on Sept. 25 and made contact with him, but court records said he "did not answer any questions about Cynthia's whereabouts."
Body found
The following day, New Castle County police detectives conducted a terrain search on Skyline Drive near the entrance to Carousel Park. This is when a detective found a woman's body located near the park's wood line.
Family identified the body as that of Amalfitano.
Court records indicated the body had several injuries, including bruising of the neck and cuts to the head. The investigator said this was consistent with a physical assault.
Amalfitano's shirt was rolled up as if she had been dragged into the wood line and she was missing her left earring.
Investigators found Amalfitano's earring about 75 feet away, where they also saw multiple drops of blood.
"The ground appeared to be disturbed and there were drag marks nearby that led to the area where the victim was found," the court document said, noting that "a struggle may have taken place."
Search warrants issued
Detectives had warrants drafted to search Heck, his vehicle and his apartment. They were carried out the day Amalfitano's body was found.
A police search of Heck's Subaru found blood inside the compact SUV, including on the passenger door, door frame steering wheel and gear shift knob. A preliminary analysis of the blood samples showed a match to Amalfitano, according to the court documents.
Amalfitano's death was ruled a homicide and Heck was charged with murder on Oct. 3. He remained at Howard R. Young Correctional Institution Wednesday after failing to post $1 million cash bail.
Send tips or story ideas to Esteban Parra at (302) 324-2299 or eparra@delawareonline.com.
This article originally appeared on Delaware News Journal: Woman found in Carousel Park killed by boyfriend after trip: Police
