A decades-old cold case murder has seen a major breakthrough after DNA discovered on a discarded straw led investigators to a new suspect.
Richard Bilodeau, 63, has been indicted on two counts of murder over the death of 16-year-old Theresa Fusco, who disappeared in 1984.
Why It Matters
The murder of Fusco has been unsolved for 41 years, during which time three men were prosecuted and jailed for nearly 20 years before being exonerated by DNA testing.
This marks the latest case in which prosecutors have used DNA evidence from discarded items to advance cold investigations, such as in the 2023 arrest of Rex Heuermann in connection with the Gilgo Beach murders.
What To Know
The Theresa Fusco disappeared after leaving the Hot Skates roller rink she worked at in Long Island in November 1984. Her naked body was found a month later in a wooded area.
Police determined that the teenager had been raped and strangled to death.
Nassau County detectives began monitoring Bilodeau last year, and obtained his DNA by collecting a cup and straw he had discarded at a smoothie shop, prosecutors said.
His DNA was reportedly found to be a match to the sample taken from the crime scene decades ago.
Bilodeau was arrested on October 14 and charged the following day with two counts of second-degree murder, one for intentional murder and another for murder during the course of a rape.
He has pleaded not guilty. All suspects are innocent until proven guilty.
Bilodeau, who was 23 at the time of the crime, had been living with his grandparents in Lynbrook, around a mile away from the roller rink and Fusco’s home.
One of his former neighbors, Liz Bregel, now 80, told The New York Times that Bilodeau was an awkward loner and that “our kids were afraid of him.”
At the time of his arrest Bilodeau was living in Center Moriches in New York’s Suffolk County and working at a Walmart, according to News 12.
Three men were wrongfully convicted of Fusco’s murder in 1986, and spent around 18 years in prison before advanced DNA testing led to their exoneration. Two of the men, John Restivo and Dennis Halstead, were awarded $18 million each for the wrongful conviction.
The third man, John Kogut, had signed a confession that he later said was coerced, and was retried but acquitted in 2005.
What People Are Saying
Nassau County District Attorney Anne Donnelly said in a press conference: "Through his denials that he had ever known her name, who she was, he made kind of a flippant comment about the 1980s. He said, 'People got away with murder.' Well, I'll tell you something, Mr. Bilodeau, I've got you now."
Bilodeau’s attorney Dan Russo said in a statement to CNN: “This incident took place over 40 years ago, and three men were convicted after trial and served almost two decades in prison before being exonerated. If ever a case exemplifies that someone accused of a crime is entitled to the presumption of innocence, it is this case.”
The victim’s father, Thomas Fusco, said in a press conference: “It’s heartbreaking to go through this over and over again, but this seems like a finalization and I’m very grateful.”
What Happens Next
Bilodeau is due back in court on November 21. If convicted, he could face 25 years to life in prison.