Lynn police take fresh look at 1974 murder of 22-year-old woman

The is the last in a series of stories about cold cases in Lynn.LYNN – On the morning of June 27, 1974, Lois Centofanti ventured out of her apartment bright and early on a quest to find a job. But who she met that day remains a mystery, along with how she ended up severely beaten, strangled to death and sent to a watery grave in Lynn Harbor.Lynn Police Captain Mark O?Toole said the East Boston native had been temporarily staying at the Charlestown YMCA while trying to get a job and a place of her own.The dark-haired beauty was last seen around 7:30 a.m., and, according to O?Toole, her whereabouts that afternoon remain unknown.At 4 p.m., a fisherman spotted Centofanti?s bruised and beaten body floating in Lynn Harbor, fully clothed, in the vicinity of General Edwards Bridge and the public fishing pier. According to an autopsy report, O?Toole said Centofanti had only been in the water for a few hours and had numerous bruises on her jaw, neck and around her eyes.?Her death still haunts me,” said Centofanti?s brother, Vincent. “I didn?t know that she had any enemies. She was beautiful from within and deeply cared about people.”Centofanti said he was 14 years old at the time of his sister?s murder, which rocked his entire family. Choking back tears, Centofanti described his sister as musically gifted with a love of the piano, as well as a talented cook and seamstress.?For a very short life, she had a lot of hobbies and interests,” Centofanti said.The last time Centofanti said he saw his sister was the day before she died. She had stopped by her parents home to grab a jacket on her way to the former bar Jacob?s Ladder in Revere. She also mentioned she was planning on applying for a job at the former Harbour House in Lynn on the day she was killed.?She had moved out of the house because of trouble at home, like many families have, and was trying to get a job,” Centofanti said. “Unfortunately, I like to say that she was a good girl around bad people.”Since she didn?t have a car at the time, Centofanti wondered if his sister hitchhiked from her place at the YMCA to Lynn.?It?s possible she was just in the wrong place at the wrong time,” Centofanti said. “There?s a three-hour window from when she left to when she died that we don?t know what happened.”O?Toole said people staying at the YMCA later told police that they saw Centofanti leave the building, but that she didn?t say where she was going.?Did she have an appointment with someone that day and not tell anyone?” O?Toole wondered. “Did someone follow her from the YMCA? She had a couple relationships at the time, but nothing significant, she was just 22.”With her murder now cold for 37 years, Centofanti said the only new information he has heard since her death came in 2007, when her close friends called him to say they had all received eerie notes on their cars at the time of her death that said, “Keep your mouths shut.”Frustrated by the length of time her friends waited to tell him about the notes, and the lack of any new information, Centofanti said he feels renewed hope that O?Toole has taken the time to reopen her case.?She would have been 61 years old now,” Centofanti said. “Sometimes I wonder if she would have had children?We all loved her very much. I know there?s someone out there who knows what really happened and I wish somebody would find it in their hearts and call the police. My sister did not deserve to die the way she did.”Anyone with information on this cold case is urged to call the police at 781-595-2000. Anonymous tips can be submitted by texting the word tiplynn and the information to tip411. Tips can also be sent through the department?s website www.lynnpolice.org and clicking the “submit tip” icon.