Richard Fox Charged with Murdering Woman in Niagara Falls, Concealing Body in Wall

Niagara County District Attorney Brian D. Seaman announced on Monday, December 22nd, an indictment was in Niagara County Court charging Richard J. Fox with one count of Murder in the Second Degree. Fox is charged with Murdering 32 year old Crystal Curthoys, formerly of Lockport, in January 2023, in Niagara Falls.

Niagara Falls Police opened an investigation into Fox after he was charged with two murders in Erie County. The investigation led to the discovery this past March of human remains in a house where Fox had formerly lived in Niagara Falls. Those remains have been identified as belonging to Crystal Curthoys through dental records.

Fox was remanded to jail without bail by County Court Judge John Ottaviano and a further court date was scheduled for January 5th, 2026.

In March, authorities found the remains of an unidentified woman beneath a stairwell, enclosed in drywall, at a property on Orleans Avenue. The discovery came during a joint operation involving Niagara Falls Police detectives, Buffalo Police Homicide Squad officers, and investigators from the Chautauqua County Sheriff’s Office who were executing a search warrant at the location on March 28th.

On April 8th, police ramped up their efforts by executing additional search warrants at multiple properties on Pierce, Pine, and LaSalle avenues. During the operation, authorities towed away a white Chevy Express utility van parked behind a residence on Pierce Avenue. The vehicle is believed to be linked to Fox and may play a role in the expanding investigation.

On September 19th, Fox admitted that he murdered two other women whose remains were discovered together in Chautauqua County in September 2021, according to Erie County District Attorney Michael Keane.

The victims, 50-year-old Marquita Mull and 40-year-old Cassandra Watson, had vanished from Buffalo nearly two decades apart. Investigators say Watson, who had been romantically involved with Fox, disappeared sometime between 2003 and 2004. Mull was last seen in July 2021. Their bodies were uncovered along a trail in the Town of Portland. Watson’s remains were located on September 26th, 2021, buried in a shallow grave. The following day, Mull’s remains were found less than 20 yards away. DNA testing later confirmed their identities. Authorities believe both women died by strangulation.

Fox, now 62, pleaded guilty to two counts of second-degree murder. Prosecutors did not offer him a lesser plea.

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Richard Fox Charged with Murdering Woman in Niagara Falls, Concealing Body in Wall