Overview
- State and federal investigators on Aug. 23, 2026 said they have a new lead pointing to Theresa “Teri” Belenske as a person of interest in the long-unsolved 1992 kidnapping and murder of college student Tammy Zywicki.
- Belenske, who died in 2014, is not being called a suspect; investigators say she was known to hitchhike, had ties to several California cities, and may have interacted with the unidentified truck driver seen near Zywicki’s disabled car.
- Witnesses in 1992 described a semi-trailer truck and its driver as a white man about 35–40 years old, over 6 feet tall with dark, bushy hair, and investigators are seeking anyone who knew Belenske or who rode with that truck driver.
- Illinois State Police and the FBI are re-examining roughly 200 pieces of evidence with modern DNA techniques, have released a 2009 photo plus an AI-generated 1992-age image of Belenske, and are asking the public for anonymous tips via the ISP tips page or 1-800-CALL-FBI.
- The FBI is offering up to $50,000 for information that leads to identification of those responsible, and investigators say successful new leads could come from people who can place Belenske or the truck driver along I‑80 or I‑44 in the late 1980s through the mid-1990s.