Camilla Jessen
Arrest made in 40-year-old rape and murder of New York teen.
Nearly four decades after 16-year-old Theresa Fusco was found dead on Long Island, prosecutors say they have finally identified her killer.
Teen found dead after leaving job
Lynbrook high school student Theresa Fusco was last seen on November 10, 1984, after clocking out from her job at the Hot Skates roller rink shortly before 10 p.m.
It was her last shift. She had reportedly just been fired.
Her body was found about a month later in a wooded area near the rink. An autopsy determined that she had been raped and strangled.
Wrongful convictions
In 1986, police arrested and charged three men in connection with Fusco’s killing. They were all convicted and imprisoned.
But in 2003, their convictions were overturned after DNA evidence proved they were innocent.
For years, the case went cold until investigators reopened it with new forensic tools and digital databases.
Arrest in a 40-year-old cold case
On Wednesday, October 15, 2025, new evidence led to a breakthrough in a decades-old investigation.
According to a press release from the Nassau County District Attorney’s Office, Richard Bilodeau was arrested and charged with second-degree murder and murder during the commission of a rape in connection with the case of Theresa Fusco.
Bilodeau, age 63, has pleaded not guilty. It is not yet clear whether he has obtained legal representation.
DNA from discarded straw
According to prosecutors, authorities began surveilling Bilodeau in early 2024 after following “multiple investigative leads.”
In February, detectives recovered a straw from a discarded smoothie cup that Bilodeau allegedly used. DNA from that straw matched biological evidence recovered from Fusco’s body in 1984, officials said.
At the time of the murder, Bilodeau lived with his grandparents in Lynbrook, less than a mile from both Fusco’s home and the roller rink.
“People got away with murder back then”
When police confronted Bilodeau about the DNA evidence, he allegedly gave a cryptic response, saying:
“People got away with murder back then.”
Prosecutor Jared Rosenblatt shared the remark in court, calling it “a chilling acknowledgment” of the era when Fusco was killed.
Bilodeau now lives about 60 miles away in Center Moriches and had been working at Walmart prior to his arrest.
Decades of unanswered questions
Nassau County District Attorney Anne T. Donnelly said the arrest brings long-overdue accountability for Fusco’s family.
“Theresa Fusco’s life was violently stolen from her 40 years ago,” Donnelly said to People. “No matter how much time passes, we will never stop fighting for victims.”
Theresa’s father, Thomas Fusco, attended Bilodeau’s arraignment and grew emotional during the hearing.
Her mother died in 2019, never learning who killed her daughter.
What’s next
Bilodeau is being held in custody and is scheduled to appear in court on November 21.
If convicted, he faces 25 years to life in prison.
This article is made and published by Camilla Jessen, which may have used AI in the preparation
