Murder of Carla Walker by Glen McCurley investigated by On The Case With Paula Zahn

On The Case With Paula Zahn is examining the truly sadistic murder of teenager Carla Walker who was abducted and killed by Glen McCurley in Forth Worth, Texas, in 1974.

The initial murder investigation grew cold, and McCurley managed to evade capture for nearly 50 years before the cold case detectives came knocking on his door.

Carla was just 17 years old when McCurley spotted her sitting in a car with her boyfriend, Rodney McCoy, shortly after the young couple’s high school Valentines Day dance. The violent killer pulled McCoy out of the vehicle and pistol-whipped the teenager; he then abducted Carla, who was never seen alive again.

Carla’s remains were discovered three days later in a culvert near Benbrook Lake, west of Forth Worth. She had been strangled and sexually assaulted.

The cops later identified McCurley as a person of interest when they discovered a magazine from a .22 Ruger firearm at the crime scene as they knew he owned such a weapon. However, there was no other strong evidence to tie him to the crime.

Glen McCurley was finally tracked down using DNA evidence

The breakthrough finally came in 2020 when DNA from the victim was matched to McCurley. The killer was taken in for questioning, and he initially vehemently denied he had ever seen or met Carla.

However, as the interrogation continued, he finally confessed. An investigator asked, “how did you kill her,” and McCurley responded, “I just choked her.” 

At McCurley’s trial, his lawyers would later claim that the police had bullied a confession out of an elderly sick man; he was now 78-years-old. However, as the trial was still ongoing, McCurley suddenly sent a written confession to the judge.

Glen McCurley was sentenced to life in prison for the brutal murder of Carla Walker. Prosecutors subsequently stated that McCurley’s involvement in other crimes stretching back to the 1970s could not be ruled out.

More from On The Case With Paula Zahn

Follow the links to read about more murders examined by On The Case With Paula Zahn.

Beth Buege was found slumped dead in her car on a street in Milwaukee, Wisconsin, in June 1990. She had been strangled, but her murder remains a mystery.

Single mother Ashley Yamauchi was planning a new life in New York when she was strangled to death in the parking lot of a bar in downtown San Rafael, California, in 2008. Her killer has never been found.

On The Case With Paula Zahn airs Sundays at 10/9c On Investigation Discovery.