After four decades of heartbreak and unanswered questions, police have made a major breakthrough in a Long Island cold case murder of 16-year-old Theresa Fusco. Nassau County prosecutors announced Wednesday that Richard Bilodeau, 63, a Walmart worker, has been charged with the 1984 rape and murder of the Long Island teen—thanks to cutting-edge DNA analysis.
“I never gave up hope,” said the victim’s father, Thomas Fusco. “For me, hearing that there was someone [who took] my daughter’s life will bring closure to me and my family.”
Fusco vanished on Nov. 10, 1984, after being fired from her job at the Hot Skates rink in Lynbrook. Her body was found weeks later “buried beneath leaves in a wooded area a few blocks away,” according to Nassau County District Attorney Anne Donnelly. Investigators said she had been raped, beaten, and strangled.
For years, three innocent men were wrongfully convicted in the case, serving up to 18 years before DNA evidence cleared them in 2003. But in 2025, investigators say science finally delivered justice.
“The DNA from that straw, Richard Bilodeau’s DNA, was a match to the sample that was taken from Theresa’s body,” Donnelly said, referring to a discarded cup retrieved by detectives. “Science and DNA evidence doesn’t lie, period.”
For the Fusco family, the arrest marks the end of a 40-year nightmare. “She lives in my heart,” her father said quietly.
