‘She was a good person,’ uncle of Jilly Todaro speaks out

JOHNSTOWN, Pa. (WTAJ)– Often what can get lost in stories about violent crime is the concern for the victim and their family. WTAJ News spoke with the uncle of Jilly Todaro, Bill Mazzarese, to learn more about what kind of person she was.

Nearly four years after Jilly went missing and over two months after her body was found. A now convicted murderer is being accused of also killing her .

After attending Jilly’s funeral services earlier this month, Mazzarese said everyone that he spoke with at the funeral had the same things to say about Jilly.

“They said that she was a good person,” Mazzarese said. “What I noticed the most about her was her child-like heart and her trusting nature.”

Mazzarese said Jilly was kind and accepting of everyone, no matter what they had gone through in their lives.

“She never thought that anyone would do her any harm. She opened up her heart to people who didn’t have her best interests in mind,” Mazzarese said.

Mazzarese hadn’t heard from Jilly in about ten years, as he was living in Washington state and Utah. He said that no one really suspected anything bad had happened to her because Jilly had always done her own thing.

When he learned from his brother that Jilly had been reported missing, Mazzarese said he started paying closer attention to the news. That all came to a head when he saw that remains were discovered on June 7, at the former home that she lived at with Brian Giles .

“I saw them working in that house and discovering the body in the basement, it was gut-wrenching it made me cry because I knew it was going to be her,” Mazzarese said.

At the time of this interview with Mazzarese, Brian Giles had not yet been charged in the death of Jilly Todaro. However, on Wednesday, Aug. 21 during a press conference, Cambria County Coroner Jeff Lees and Cambria County District Attorney Greg Neugebauer announced that charges have been filed against Giles.

However, Mazzarese said that they don’t want vengeance, because it isn’t equal to what they lost.

“Justice is a poor consolation when a life is lost due to injustice,” Mazzarese said. “The only reason we need justice is because injustice prevails.”

Get the latest news, weather forecasts and sports stories delivered straight to your inbox! Sign up for our newsletters .

Giles is now facing a felony charge of criminal homicide and aggravated assault and a misdemeanor charge of false reports.

For the latest news, weather, sports, and streaming video, head to WTAJ - www.wtaj.com.