Authorities Arrest 63-Year-Old in 1984 Cold Case Murder of 16-Year-Old Theresa Fusco After DNA Match
They carried the weight of unanswered years, memories frozen in time, until a single discarded smoothie cup brought a long-sought breakthrough. On Wednesday, Nassau County prosecutors announced the arrest of 63-year-old Richard Bilodeau in connection with the 1984 rape and murder of 16-year-old Theresa Fusco — more than four decades after the young girl disappeared. Theresa had vanished on November 10, 1984, after leaving her job at Hot Skates roller rink in Lynbrook. Her body was discovered weeks later in a wooded area near where she worked, her life stolen in secrecy, her case cold for years.
The long shadow of wrongful convictions also loomed large over the case. In 1986, three men — John Restivo, Dennis Halstead, and John Kogut — were arrested, convicted, and imprisoned for Theresa’s murder. But in the early 2000s, DNA evidence exonerated them, and they were released, later receiving civil damage awards for wrongful prosecution. The echoes of that injustice have persisted for the Fusco family, for the exonerated men, and for a community still haunted by what was lost.
The breakthrough came in February 2024, when investigators retrieved a discarded cup and straw from a smoothie shop in Suffolk County. DNA extracted from the cup matched the sample taken from Theresa’s body, pointing directly to Bilodeau. Prosecutors say he denied ever knowing Theresa and claimed he did not recognize pictures of her. But authorities assert the DNA match is indisputable.
At his arraignment, Bilodeau was charged with second-degree murder and related counts. He was ordered held without bail pending further court proceedings. Nassau County District Attorney Anne Donnelly described the scientific evidence as conclusive — “a 100% match, we got the guy,” she said.
Theresa’s father, Thomas Fusco, who has carried decades of anguish and uncertainty, expressed both heartbreak and relief. He said the news brings a measure of closure, though the pain will never entirely fade. He held up her photograph in court, standing as a living tribute to the daughter he lost.
The communities on Long Island remember how Theresa’s disappearance rattled the quiet suburbs. Her parents, her friends, the community of Lynbrook watched months of investigation unfold in fear, and the wrongful convictions that followed deepened the wound. Now, as the accused stands before the law, many hope for accountability that eluded the case for too long.
Still, the road ahead is fraught. Bilodeau has pleaded not guilty; his defense denied involvement. The court must now sift through decades-old evidence, witness recollections, chain-of-custody records, and the shadows of past errors. The missteps of earlier prosecutions remain a cautionary tale.
For the Fusco family, the arrest may not erase years of grief, but it revives hope that Theresa’s life, stolen so long ago, will finally be honored by the justice she deserved. And for a justice system long criticized for delayed resolution of cold cases, this moment becomes a precedent and a promise — that time need not be forever the enemy of truth.
