Susan "Sue" Curtis (May 18, 1960 - June 27, 1975) was a teenager who was murdered by Ted Bundy in Provo, Utah, on June 27, 1975. She was Bundy's sixteenth known murder victim.
Background[]
Sue was born on May 18, 1960, in Salt Lake City, Utah. She was living in Bountiful, Utah, at the time of her murder. She had a history of running away from home, but she always returned after a few days.
Disappearance[]
On June 27, 1975, Sue rode her bike to Provo, Utah. She was attending the Bountiful Orchard Youth Conference at Brigham Young University, which lasted two days. On the evening of the first day, a formal banquet was held at the Wilkinson Student Center.
Sue excused herself from the banquet to walk to her dormitory to brush her teeth. Sue left the banquet, and was never seen again.
Aftermath[]
Initial Aftermath[]
After Sue disappeared, police immediately determined Sue had likely never arrived at her dorm room, as her toothbrush was dry.
Sue was not believed to have been abducted, as she was a chronic runaway, and was allegedly seen at in a university class four days later, trying to sell a textbook. The professor identified Sue as the girl from her photo.
It was noted that in 1974, four other teenage girls were the victims of brutal murders in Utah. All of these cases were believed to be connected, and two of the girls, Debi Kent and Nancy Wilcox, remained missing, but Debi's patella (knee cap) was found in 1989, and was identified in 2015.
Identification of Killer[]
Sue's presumed killer would later be identified as Ted Bundy, who was first apprehended in 1975. He was a suspected in many disappearances in Washington and Oregon, but it's unknown if he was during the Utah murders. He escaped in late December 1977, and murdered three women in Florida. He was apprehended for the final time on February 15, 1978.
Bundy confessed to Sue's murder, claiming to have buried her body along a highway near Price, Utah. While he didn't confess to sexually assaulting her, it was part of his modus operandi and was his motive. Her remains have never been recovered.
Sources[]
- Ted Bundy on Wikipedia
- Sue Curtis at NamUs
- Sue Curtis at the Doe Network
- Sue Curtis at the Charley Project
- Sue Curtis at Find a Grave
- The Daily Herald