A Toledo man accused of murdering a Parma escort who vanished in 1997 is asking a Cuyahoga County judge to throw out the case entirely, arguing that nearly three decades of inaction by prosecutors destroyed evidence he needs to defend himself. Michael Bukowski, 50, faces six counts ranging from murder to gross abuse of a corpse in connection with the disappearance of Catherine Parisi, who was 25 when she went missing on April 17, 1997. His trial is currently scheduled for August 24, but a pending motion to dismiss could end the case before it ever reaches a jury.
Parisi vanished after taking an escort call in Parma, according to Cleveland 19 News. Her 1991 Chevrolet Lumina turned up abandoned in Cleveland one day later with her keys, personal items and $350 in cash still inside, according to a detailed timeline published by WTOL. She had called her escort agency at 6:30 p.m. that evening to report no answer at the Parma client location, and police later traced the call from a prospective client to a payphone at a Cleveland donut shop. Her body has never been found.
A Case That Sat Untouched For Years
Bukowski was picked up and questioned as a suspect in Cleveland in 1997 shortly after Parisi disappeared, with Assistant Prosecuting Attorney Ben McNair telling the court he consistently denied knowing or contacting her, per the same account from WKYC. He was released without charges, and the case went cold for 17 years before detectives reopened it in 2015 and retested evidence the following year. That 2016 retesting produced a fingerprint match on a CD cover found inside Parisi's car, tying Bukowski to the vehicle. A phone in Bukowski's apartment and a nearby payphone had also contacted Parisi's escort service around the time she took the fatal client call.
Despite the 2016 match, Cuyahoga County prosecutors waited eight more years to secure an indictment, according to the WTOL report. A secret indictment was returned on April 1, 2024, but it wasn't unsealed until Toledo Police arrested Bukowski on January 20, 2025. At the time, Bukowski was working as a team leader at the Jeep Assembly Plant in Toledo, sharing custody of two daughters and living in the community since moving from Cleveland within a year of Parisi's disappearance.
Defense Says Key Evidence Is Gone
In a 34-page motion filed in July, defense attorneys Terry Gilbert and Marcus Sidoti argued that the pre-indictment delay violated Bukowski's due process rights because critical physical evidence is now destroyed or lost. Parisi's Chevrolet Lumina was removed and destroyed by the Cleveland vehicle impound unit years before the indictment came down, the defense reported. A broken necklace with a sunflower pendant, recovered from Bukowski's apartment in 1997 and resembling one Parisi wore daily according to the defense, went missing roughly a decade before the case reached court. The defense has also said key witnesses have died and memories have faded in the years since, and Sidoti has called the eight-year gap between the 2016 fingerprint match and the 2024 indictment unjustifiable.
Sidoti, a partner at FG+G, has said Bukowski maintains his innocence and was considered not a flight risk given his steady employment and local ties. The defense wants prosecutors to explain what new evidence, if any, was presented to the grand jury that led to the 2024 indictment after so many years of inaction. Sidoti has also noted that the allegations date back roughly three decades.
Prosecutors Cite Juvenile History, Bond Fight
During a January 2025 court appearance, McNair disclosed that Bukowski, as a 16-year-old, admitted to raping a 14-year-old girl and later broke into her home armed with a hammer to beat her while on home confinement, in an effort to intimidate her over the rape charge, according to WKYC. Defense attorney Terry Gilbert countered that Bukowski had no adult criminal record beyond minor traffic violations. Cuyahoga County Common Pleas Judge Jennifer O'Donnell ultimately set bond at $500,000 on January 28, 2025, over objections from prosecutors and from Parisi's daughters, who had requested $1 million. Bukowski was released after posting 10% cash, and his daughters, Cecelia Parisi and Angelina Speer, voiced safety concerns about his release.
A Second Suspect Who Was Never Charged
The defense has pointed to another man, James Faia, an escort client of Parisi's, as an alternate suspect. In January 1997, less than 90 days before Parisi disappeared, Faia allegedly held her at gunpoint at his North Olmsted home, choked her, and put a bag over her head in an attempt to kill her, according to the WTOL report. Parisi reported the attack to police, and Faia was arrested and charged with attempted murder, but those charges were dropped after she vanished. Four witnesses identified Faia as a suspect over the years, and one man told investigators Faia had threatened to make Parisi disappear, per Cleveland 19 News. Faia denied any involvement in her disappearance and died in 2022 without ever being charged in connection with the case.
What Happens Next
Ohio courts weigh pre-indictment delay motions under standards set by the Ohio Supreme Court in State v. Luck and State v. Whiting, which allow an indictment to be dismissed if the defense proves actual prejudice to a fair trial and the state cannot offer a justifiable reason for the delay, according to Court News Ohio. Cuyahoga County prosecutors have declined to comment because the case is pending. A judge has not yet ruled on the motion to dismiss, and Bukowski is due back in court next Tuesday. Speer has said her family believes the case deserves a full and fair hearing. Cleveland 19 News, whose 19 Investigates team first interviewed Parisi's daughters in January 2020 and later covered her case on the Dark Side of the Land true crime podcast, reported that Bukowski has remained in the community throughout the proceedings.
