True crime doc lifts the lid on twisted case of ‘bubbly’ cheerleader, 19, who was beaten and strangled to death on NYE – before her partially clothed body was found stuffed in a concrete pipe on January 1

An upcoming documentary will unravel the chilling case of a cheerleader who was beaten and strangled before her partially clothed body was found in a concrete drain pipe.

Valerie Zavala Wilson, a sophomore from San Jose State studying education, had returned to her hometown in Fillmore, California, last year. the Christmas period 2002.

The aspiring primary school teacher, 19, attended a party with friends on December 31 to ring in the new year, but tragically never made it home.

It would later emerge that she was subjected to a brutal attack before being murdered by then 17-year-old Samuel Puebla, who callously dumped her body.

Here, FEMAIL has exposed the sordid details Oxygen murder for the holidays gets ready to investigate the case.

The horrific ordeal began at 9:30 PM on New Year's Eve 2002, when Valerie left for the annual party with cousin Robert Padilla and girlfriend Anna Hinojosa.

She seemed in good spirits and was even videotaped standing in the kitchen with friends during the countdown – with former high school prom king Puebla also in the group.

Friends reported that Valerie, who was the designated driver, offered to drive both Anna and Puebla home at 2 a.m. before they planned to visit an ex-boyfriend afterward.

Anna was the first to be dropped off, but Valerie's high school sweetheart said she never arrived to meet him.

Tragically, her half-naked body was discovered in a concrete drain pipe at around 10am the next day. in a citrus field between Fillmore and Santa Paula.

Her autopsy later revealed that she had died of asphyxiation and suffered blunt force head injuries that left her with a ruptured eardrum.

In the aftermath, father Kevin Wilson said: 'She was a bubbly, lively, outgoing child.

'She was a very trusting person. I don't understand why things like this have to happen to people like her.'

The car she had been driving that night was also found abandoned in the parking lot of Fillmore's only grocery store.

Detectives soon learned that Puebla was one of the last people to see the cheerleader alive and he was interviewed at his home on New Year's Day.

He initially claimed that Valerie dropped him off at his house before driving away, and told investigators that the pair had no romantic involvement.

But his story kept changing.

Puebla later acknowledged that he had attempted to kiss Valerie, who had rejected his advances, and claimed that he had “given up any further attempt at romantic conversation.”

However, when told forensic tests would be carried out on her body, the teenager claimed the pair had had sex.

Yet no evidence of sexual intercourse was found.

Meanwhile, on January 7, detectives discovered Valerie's underwear, stud earrings and other personal items behind St. Francis of Assisi Roman Catholic Church – a block away from Puebla's home.

Following the discovery, police executed a search warrant at his parents' home as evidence began to pile up against him.

It was at that point that investigators seized a jacket he had worn that night – which had been identified from the video taken at the party – and discovered it was splattered with Valerie's blood.

Puebla's conflicting stories and the bloodstained jacket were important pieces of evidence; his shoe print also matched the shoe print found where Valerie's body had been dumped.

He was arrested and charged with murder and attempted rape, but pleaded not guilty, leading to a month-long trial.

It emerged that the aspiring footballer had tried to sexually assault Valerie in the car near his home and when she resisted, he choked her unconscious, police said. Santa Paula Times.

She regained consciousness and was able to flee the car, but her attacker caught up with her and “hit her in the head” in the church parking lot, prosecutor Greg Totten noted.

He said: 'Puebla took off her clothes and tried, without success, to rape her.'

Valerie was hit several more times as she tried to defend herself before being strangled as Puebla leaned on her chest.

“This woman suffered injuries while trying to stay alive and did not simply go out in a peaceful manner,” Senior Deputy District Attorney Maeve Fox told grand jurors at the time. “This girl died fighting for her life.”

Puebla was convicted of first-degree murder, attempted rape and the special circumstance of murder during the attempted sexual assault.

He was ultimately sentenced to life in prison without the possibility of parole.