In this image taken from a New Jersey Courts virtual hearing, Richard Cottingham, center, known as the "Torso Killer," pleads guilty Tuesday, April 27, 2021, to two 1974 murders, finally closing the cold case deaths of teenage friends who had left home for a trip to the mall and never returned. Cottingham, 74, is currently in state prison on a life sentence for other murders. (New Jersey Courts via AP)
Cold Case Double Murder
MINEOLA, N.Y. (AP) — More than five decades after Diane Cusick’s lifeless body was discovered in the parking lot of a mall on New York’s Long Island, authorities have linked her death to the so-called “Torso Killer.” The suspect, Richard Cottingham, is believed to be one of America’s most prolific serial killers. He was arraigned Wednesday on a second-degree murder charge in Cusick’s 1968 killing in Nassau County. From a hospital bed in New Jersey, Cottingham pleaded not guilty. He’s already serving a life sentence for other killings. While he has claimed he was responsible for up to 100 homicides, authorities have only officially linked him to a dozen so far.
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