Police use advanced DNA testing to identify body of teenager who disappeared in 1975

The stays of a Virginia teenager who disappeared practically 50 years in the past have now been recognized, police introduced Monday. Authorities concerned in the longstanding chilly case credited advanced DNA exams and “forensic-grade” genome sequencing for the current discovery, which linked a set of beforehand nameless stays to Patricia Agnes Gildawie, who was additionally referred to as “Choubi.”

Gildawie went lacking in 1975, and was final seen on Feb. 8 of that 12 months, the Fairfax County Police Department stated in a news release confirming her identification. She was 17 on the time and relationship an older man who labored at an upholstery retailer, in accordance to the discharge. 

Gildawie’s half-sister assisted the latter phases of the police investigation and shared some particulars about her sibling’s life, together with her beginning place in France in 1958 and subsequent transfer to the U.S. at round eight months outdated. When she disappeared, Gildawie lived in Fairfax and was identified to drive a Cadillac Eldorado with a crimson inside, police stated. Detectives are persevering with to examine the circumstances surrounding her loss of life with further assist from Gildawie’s members of the family.

Although few particulars about her disappearance are clear, police say that the teenager’s stays had been initially found behind an residence advanced, the place a building crew was working in the autumn of 2001. Clothing gadgets had been discovered with the skeletal stays, in accordance to police. A health worker and anthropologist’s joint overview later decided {that a} gunshot wound to the pinnacle triggered Gildawie’s loss of life. 

Fairfax County’s chilly case detectives had been unable to identify the stays discovered in 2001 till this 12 months, after they partnered with Othram, Inc., a forensic family tree company that specializes in disappearances and unsolved murders. The genome exams led detectives to Gildawie’s half-sister.

“Identifying this young woman solves a mystery that has been more than 47 years in the making,” stated Ed O’Carroll, the bureau commander of main crimes and cyber and forensics on the Fairfax County police division, in a press release. 

“Our community should take comfort in knowing that our detectives never stop working these cases,” the assertion continued. “Advancements in technology have given my Cold Case detectives an opportunity to pursue fresh leads and bring some relief to families that have been long suffering with the unknown.”

As the investigation continues, authorities are asking anybody with information about Gildawie’s loss of life or disappearance to report it to Fairfax County Crime Solvers. They are providing rewards of up to $1,000 for nameless suggestions.