National true crime podcast spotlights Bridgeport woman's unsolved murder
Milagros Nieves, 49, of Bridgeport was stabbed 33 times in her apartment in 1993. Over 30 years later, the unsolved murder is getting national attention from the popular true crime podcast, The Deck.
More Stories
It was a brutal murder more than 33 years ago. Milagros Nieves, 49, was stabbed 33 times in her Bridgeport apartment in front of her 3-year-old granddaughter. The case went cold but is now in the national spotlight thanks to the popular true crime podcast called "The Deck."
"They came down here in March. A crew spent two days in the city, getting to know us, getting to know the case, getting to know the locations involved in the case," said Detective Jeffrey Holtz of the Bridgeport Police Department Homicide Unit.
"I couldn't believe the amount of equipment they fit in my office downstairs," added Detective Frank Podpolucha, who's also featured in the podcast episode, "Milagros Nieves (3 of Clubs, Connecticut)," which dropped on Wednesday.
Podpolucha was a rookie patrol officer on Sept. 22, 1993, when he and his field training officer responded to Milagros Nieves' apartment at 223 Iranistan Ave.
"As we looked into the kitchen area, there a woman that was laying on the ground, full of blood. There was blood all over. All over the place, and there was a little girl there, her granddaughter we found out later on, who was covered in blood also," Podpolucha recalled in an interview with News 12. "Detectives came in from there, secured the scene, and then they took it from there."
The toddler wasn't physically hurt, but the trauma and horror of that scene have remained with Podpolucha, even though he never worked the case.
"It's never left my memory, and it's one of the stories I tell repeatedly over and over again because it was that bad," Podpolucha said.
"The bedroom appeared to be ransacked. We don't believe this was a robbery. And we believe that whoever did this was trying to make it look like a robbery by ransacking the bedroom," Holtz told News 12.
Holtz is among the investigators who continue to work on this unsolved case.
"According to Milagros' family, she had a habit of leaving her door open," Holtz said. "Milagros was very trusting, very social. She knew a lot of people, and a lot of people knew her, and unfortunately, it's a habit that may have cost her her life."
Holtz said when "The Deck" approached police about doing an episode, it was a no-brainer.
"It's entertainment for some companies or some people, but for us, the reason we're involved is to get tips on this case, and that's why we do it. We're looking to solve this case," he said.
He said the episode reached No. 3 on Apple's podcast chart for true crime shows.
Listen to the episode on any podcast platform--including Apple, Spotify, iHeart--or on "The Deck’s" website here. Or catch the episode on Audiochuck Investigates' YouTube channel here.
