This Teen Went Out With Her Friends One Evening, But Got Into An Argument With Her Boyfriend And Never Made It Back Home: Days Later, She Was Found Strangled In A Ditch And The Person Who Called To Report Finding Her Used A Fake Name

Regardless, though, by December 8, the Corley family learned that the Bellingham Police had made a heinous discovery.

Authorities received a report of an unclothed body by an unidentified tipster who used a fake name. Then, two days after Theresa was last seen, her unclothed body was discovered on the northbound side of Route 495.

The teen’s pair of jeans and jacket were found lying beside her, along with a mismatched pair of shoes. The man who discovered Theresa then contacted the police and identified himself as John Burlington, a driver who claimed to have pulled over to relieve himself before finding the remains.

Bizarrely, though, investigators claim that John Burlington never actually existed. An autopsy was also performed, and it was found that Theresa had been assaulted and strangled to death via a thin ligature.

It has now been over forty-four years since the teen was murdered, and tragically, the Corley family has still gotten no answers.

Some DNA evidence had been tested in the past– with one test finding male DNA on Theresa’s jeans. It also matched the DNA of one of the men who had been at the Presidental Arms with the teen the night of her murder.

However, it is unclear what happened next with this evidence, as no charges were ever filed, and no arrests were ever made.

The authorities are also in possession of other “items” from Theresa’s case, which were labeled as such, that can reportedly be used for M-Vac– a process that allows DNA to be collected from difficult-to-reach, porous areas. Theresa’s sister is still awaiting an update from investigators on this testing, though.

In 2018, Theresa’s younger sister, Geraldine Houde, also endured a back-and-forth process after attempting to request case records.

The inquiry began on March 14 of that year when Geraldine asked for copies of the Bellingham police reports concerning Theresa from December 6, 7, and 8, 1978.

Then, it was not until October 26, 2018, that the Bellingham Police concluded this process and stated, “The Police Department has fully responded to these requests in compliance with the Public Records Law.”