NEWTOWN, Conn. — It’s been one year and a day since 29-year-old Nico Saraceni—a Newtown man and a Southern Connecticut State University student—was murdered. Now, New Haven Police believe the case is running cold, and they and the family are asking for the public’s help to gather information about what happened.
“Nico wasn’t involved in any wrongdoing, he was just going out for groceries at the wrong time. So, I think there’s a huge motivation to get this person off the street, for the safety of other people, too,” said Bob Saraceni, Nico’s dad.
Police are offering a $25,000 reward for details leading to an arrest in the case.
“It looks like it was a random act of violence,” said Det. Freddy Salmeron with the Major Crimes Unit at the New Haven Police Department.
New Haven Police said on October 10, 2022, just before 9:30 p.m., Saraceni was smoking a cigarette on the sidewalk on Whalley Ave near his home, when he was approached and stabbed by a man wearing an all-gray sweatsuit. He was taken to the hospital where he was pronounced dead. Police said the suspect ran away right after the incident.
Since then, police have not been able to identify who the perpetrator was, they have not found the murder weapon, and there have been no strong leads in the case.
“This is a very interesting case because we have very limited information. So, we are scratching our heads,” Det. Salmeron said.
Det. Salmeron said there was at least one eyewitness who had been cooperating with police and was able to give them a description of the subject. That same person called the police after seeing the stabbing.
Police said they do not have the incident on video, but they do have who they believe to be the suspect on video walking in the direction of the scene moments before the stabbing.
“We’ve been trying to monitor any similar cases, like any type of stabbings. None of them have matched up. We’re still in the area actively patrolling,” Det. Salmeron said. “We’re doing everything we can and this case is leading to go cold, but we will still always work it.”
Det. Salmeron said a few tips have come into the department, but nothing came of them. He believes someone, somewhere knows more.
“I believe someone knows what happened to Nico that day. Someone maybe didn’t see it, but, someone has information. Even if they don’t have a first name, they know what happened. And they can reach out to us and we can put the pieces together,” Det. Salmeron said.
The Saraceni family said this past year has been hell for them.
“It’s the first thing you think of every day and every night. You know, it’s like cutting off your arm and trying to figure out how to get through the day with one arm,” Bob Saraceni said. “It’s like, every day, you have this thing you can’t use in yourself. And there’s no getting over it, like, I don’t believe that time heals all these things. I think time helps fade them a bit, the level of the pain, but, it’s an everyday, trying to figure out how to be hopeful, celebrate life, move forward in forgiveness. And still, keep Nico present.”
The Saraceni’s said as a student at SCSCU, Nico was just hitting his stride as an artist and finding the confidence to recognize his own talents just before the tragedy. They said he was a writer, a poet, and a film buff.
“I feel like he was a creative genius, and he had no idea that we was. He was so humble about it, and he was so hungry for anything creative and anything that was an expression of life and love and pain,” said Isabella Saraceni, Nico’s sister. “His brain was like an encyclopedia for everything related to film and horror and poetry and his writing was completely flourishing in the last few years. And he was feeling it too in a way that I had never seen him recognize it in himself.”
Months before Nico’s death, Bella and her brother put their artwork together for a showing at a studio in Newtown. Her paintings, alongside Nico’s poems.
“So many people have said we were like twins, and I feel like we were soul twins,” Bella Saraceni said.
In the months after the tragedy, the Saraceni family described hearing from Nico’s professors at Southern, who described his passion for his work and his intelligence.
“It opened up a whole new side of Nico that we didn’t even know as parents because he was so private about his art,” Bob Saraceni said.
Since then, the family opened up a memorial scholarship at SCSU in Nico’s honor. The first recipient was awarded their scholarship earlier this year.
“There was a relationship there and it’s a way to have him go on. The way we move through the loss is by keeping the person present. And we can only do that through these kinds of acts,” Bob Saraceni said.
Though the Saraceni’s acknowledge they’ll never get what they truly want—which is to have their son back, they hope the public can come forward if they have any information on his murder.
“If there’s people out there that are hesitant, they need to think of their own families and their own friends being at risk. And how information they have might help,” Bob Saraceni said.
If anyone knows anything about what happened to Nico, even the smallest detail, police ask that you reach out to them. You can do so by calling the Major Crimes Unit at (203) 946-6304. You can also leave an anonymous tip at 1-866-888-TIPS. OR you can Text-a-tip plus your message to 74637 (CRIMES).
If you’d like to make a donation to the Nico Saraceni Memorial Scholarship at Southern CT State University, checks can be made payable to SCSU Foundation with Nico Saraceni Memorial Scholarship in the memo portion and sent to SCSU Foundation 501 Crescent St New Haven CT 06515. Gifts can also be made online at www.southernct.edu/giving. Select Other (Designation) and enter Nico Saraceni Memorial Scholarship in the text box.
Julia LeBlanc is a reporter at FOX61 News. She can be reached at jleblanc@fox61.com Follow her on Facebook, X and Instagram.
---
Have a story idea or something on your mind you want to share? We want to hear from you! Email us at newstips@fox61.com
----
HERE ARE MORE WAYS TO GET FOX61 NEWS
Download the FOX61 News APP
iTunes: Click here to download
Google Play: Click here to download
Stream Live on ROKU: Add the channel from the ROKU store or by searching FOX61.
Steam Live on FIRE TV: Search ‘FOX61’ and click ‘Get’ to download.