It has been 45 years since 13-year-old Vickie Lynn Rust was found murdered in Manhattan, but her family and a dogged NYPD detective say they are not giving up hope of solving the near half-century-old mystery once and for all.

When the teen ran away from her Pennsylvania home in the early 1980’s, her family could not imagine it would be the last time they would see her. She took off in 1981, taking a taxi to a bus that was bound for the Big Apple. Just days later, she was found lifeless in what is now known as Manhattan’s Hudson Yards.

“It just felt like she went away one day and never came back,” Rust’s sister, Nancy Baker, told amNewYork. “Me and my sister, we talk about her quite often. She’s never forgotten.”

Rust’s body was discovered in an empty railway warehouse on West 33rd Street and 10th Avenue; she had been bludgeoned and strangled. The area looked strikingly different when compared to the hustling and bustling Hudson Yards of 2026. 

The crime scene in 1981.NYPD The crime scene in 1981.NYPD

While police do not know exactly what took place on Sept. 14 — the day she was found dead — they believe she had ended up in bad company during her brief stay.

“We think she was staying maybe in a shelter or with a Catholic organization. Maybe fell into the wrong crew, and then ended up unfortunately being murdered,” said Detective Robert Deckert of the NYPD Cold Case Squad. “Detectives worked the case as hard as they could back then, but ultimately it went cold.”

It wasn’t Rust’s first time in New York. According to Baker, although the teen was deeply loved, home life had been hard, and she had run away before.

At the time, police identified her because they already had her fingerprints on file from a previous petit larceny arrest. Baker still remembers the moment she heard the news her sister would never be coming back.

“I didn’t want to believe it. My parents told me when I got home, and I ran out of the house, and I remember my grandmother was there too. She came out in the yard and comforted me,” Baker shared.

With no witnesses or leads at the time, police hit a dead end. Still, years and decades later, Deckert says he isn’t giving up because the NYPD doesn’t, no matter how much time goes by.

Newspaper clippings from 1981 showing the family together. NYPD

“Every homicide in New York City, it’s never closed. They’re all open,” Deckert said. “The victims matter to us, and they matter to the family. So, even though it’s 45 years ago, it’s like yesterday for the family. The family still cares very much about Vickie as we do, and we care about all the victims. We want to make sure that we can provide closure for the family.”

Baker told amNewYork that it is important to her for the world to know that Rust was loved and that her father, before he passed away, never stopped holding out hope that the mystery would be solved. She continues to ask anyone who knows anything to come forward. The still-grieving sister says far more than an arrest; she is looking for closure.

“We want to know what happened, and we can finally put her to rest. She was loved by the whole family. The whole family talks about her, remembers her — she was well loved,” Baker said.

Anyone with information about the Rust murder can call Crime Stoppers at 800-577-TIPS (for Spanish, dial 888-57-PISTA). You can also submit tips online at crimestoppers.nypdonline.org, or on X (formerly Twitter) @NYPDTips. All calls and messages are kept confidential.

Rust’s sister, Nancy Baker.Provided.