Authorities say Christa's last known sighting was with her mother in September 1991 at a lodge near Mount Pocono, Pennsylvania, when she was 2.
The body of her mother, Christine Belusko, was found "brutally beaten, strangled, and burned" on Staten Island's east shore in 1991, according to Richmond County District Attorney Michael E. McMahon. Investigative work combined with forensic genealogy was used to confirm Belusko's identity in April 2021. Her identity was made public this week, over three decades since her "brutal and depraved" murder, he said.
"Despite the incredibly dedicated work of the NYPD at that time, authorities were unable to identify her or locate the person who took her life so savagely and viciously at such a young age," McMahon said.
"We are seeking the public's assistance to solve the homicide of Christine Belusko and determine the whereabouts of Christa Nicole," Nilsen said.Until she was identified, Belusko was only known as the "the girl with the scorpion tattoo" for decades, McMahon said, referring to a distinctive scorpion tattoo found on her body.
"There was no other indication that he was involved. He couldn't be prosecuted or exonerated at that time given the circumstances that we knew," McMahon said, adding that the individual is no longer living. After she found out she was adopted, she left home in July 1991 and briefly stayed at the Mount Airy Lodge in the Poconos in Pennsylvania, Clinton confirmed.
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