'Corona Girl' cold case: WCSO still investigating 1989 murder of Sue Ann Huskey

Corona Girl cold case

For more than three decades, she was known as "Corona Girl". Now investigators are still wondering what happened to 17-year-old Sue Ann Huskey.

JARRELL, Texas - For more than 30 years, Sue Ann Huskey was known as "Corona Girl." Now investigators are still trying to find out what happened to her.

On Sept. 25, 1989, two Texas highway department employees found her body on the side of the road along the I-35 west side frontage road in Jarrell.

She was known to investigators as "Corona Girl" because of the clothing found on her body.

"She was actually found wearing a Corona beer T-shirt as a Cinco de Corona Celebrate Corona. Those shirts were actually made in 1989, to celebrate Cinco de Mayo," said Det. Mary Lewis with the Williamson County Sheriff's Office's Cold Case Unit.

Old newspaper photo reveals unmarked graves of "Orange Socks," "Corona Girl"

The problem investigators had to overcome was bad record-keeping. No one knew exactly where the graves were because there are no official records available.

"She was found wearing that and looked to be…she was probably around in her late 20s is what the medical examiner said, that she had been left along the side of the road, probably for a week to two weeks. And we were not able to identify her," Lewis added.

Lewis said that the medical examiner ruled the cause of death was a gunshot to the head.

In 2018, WCSO's Cold Case Unit reached out to the DNA Doe Project in an effort to identify the victim. Two years later, in 2020, they were able to identify "Corona Girl" through genetic genealogy as 17-year-old Sue Ann Huskey of Sulphur Springs.

"She was known to hitchhike at various points," Lewis said. "So maybe that is how she got to the general area. We really don't know."

Williamson County Sheriff's Office identifies Corona Girl

After 30 years, three months and 21 days, Corona Girl has been finally identified as 17-year-old Sue Ann Huskey of Sulphur Springs.

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To this day, detectives are still trying to figure out how she got to Jarrell as Sulphur Springs is over 200 miles away.

"Well, the story then was, supposedly my oldest brother took her to the truck stop, and he went in to get coffee and come back out, and she was gone," said Sue's older sister Michelle Barnard. "That was the story that was being told back then when she disappeared."

Barnard says Jarrell holds no significance to her and her family.

"None whatsoever. And, I mean, I go up to Georgetown and Jarrell every year since we found her up in there every year," she said. "I take flowers to her grave, and I go out to where she was found on the highway. You know. I go up every year."

In August 2020, Sue finally had her name engraved on her headstone.

"It's sad that she's gone. And at 17, she never really got her life. She never got to have a family, and that's what hurts," Barnard said.

Even though Sue's life was taken too soon, her sister wants others to remember her for who she was.

"She was real nice, you know, sweet, outgoing girl. I mean, she had many friends," Barnard said.

Anyone with any information regarding the murder of Sue Ann Huskey is asked to call the Williamson County sheriff's office at: 512-943-5204.

Williamson County Crime Stoppers also has a cash reward for information that leads to an arrest. Those wishing to leave a tip can call 1-800-253-7867 or go online.