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Jose Antonio Ramos, Key Suspect in Etan Patz Case, Dies

3/20/2026

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Summary

Story summary

Jose Antonio Ramos died at age 82 on March 7 at Bellevue Hospital in Manhattan.
He was long suspected of killing Etan Patz, who vanished in 1979.
In 2001, Patz's parents filed a wrongful-death suit against Jose Antonio Ramos.
A civil ruling in 2004 was overturned.
Pedro Hernandez, who became a suspect in 2012, had a murder conviction overturned in 2017, leaving the case unresolved with Patz's body never found.

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Story summary

Jose Antonio Ramos died at age 82 on March 7 at Bellevue Hospital in Manhattan.
He was long suspected of killing Etan Patz, who vanished in 1979.
In 2001, Patz's parents filed a wrongful-death suit against Jose Antonio Ramos.
A civil ruling in 2004 was overturned.
Pedro Hernandez, who became a suspect in 2012, had a murder conviction overturned in 2017, leaving the case unresolved with Patz's body never found.