November 03, 2025

The Woods Remember: The Unsolved Murder of Holly Piirainen

35 minutes

In August of 1993, ten-year-old Holly Kristen Piirainen vanished while visiting her grandparents’ cottage in Sturbridge, Massachusetts. She’d walked just a few hundred yards down a dirt road to see a neighbour’s puppies...and never came back. Seventy-nine days later, hunters discovered her remains in the woods of nearby Brimfield.

More than thirty years later, Holly’s killer has never been caught. In this episode, we retrace that summer day, the massive search that followed, and the decades of leads, suspects, and heartbreak. From the Stanger brothers’ eerie connection to the Molly Bish case, to convicted rapist Gerald Battistoni’s proximity to the scene, and the mysterious “Boston” tank top found near Holly’s body — every clue feels close but never close enough.

Now, with modern DNA testing and genetic genealogy back in the spotlight, investigators are hoping technology will finally reveal what time has buried. The Hampden District Attorney’s Office is even hosting another FIGG DNA drive on November 9, 2025, inviting locals to provide cheek-swab samples that could generate long-overdue answers.

Because somewhere in those quiet Massachusetts woods, the truth is still waiting to be found.

⚠️ Listener Discretion:
This episode contains discussion of child abduction and murder. Please take care of yourself while listening.

📍If You’re Local:

You can take part in the Forensic Investigative Genetic Genealogy event on Nov 9, 2025, from 11 a.m. – 3 p.m. at the Brimfield Public Safety Complex, 34 Wales Rd. Participants provide a simple cheek swab and will receive free ancestry and family-tree results.

📞 Tip Line:

If you have any information about Holly’s case, contact the Hampden County District Attorney’s Office or visit HelpHolly.com.

Sources:
https://www.nbcboston.com/news/local/da-to-release-new-details-in-1993-killing-of-10-year-old-mass-girl/2960667/

https://www.helpholly.com/

https://www.facebook.com/hollypiirainen

https://www.cbsnews.com/news/investigators-link-dead-mass-man-to-site-where-body-of-10-year-old-holly-piirainen-was-found/

https://www.facebook.com/events/1505090837301831/?acontext=%7B%22event_action_history%22%3A[%7B%22mechanism%22%3A%22your_upcoming_events_unit%22%2C%22surface%22%3A%22bookmark%22%7D]%2C%22ref_notif_type%22%3Anull%7D

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