The moment ‘They Found Her, Patricia Gildawie Remains Discovered Near Drainage Ditch’ Virginia police announced on Monday that they have identified human remains found in 2001 as a 17-year-old girl who vanished in 1975.
They Found Her, Patricia Gildawie Remains Discovered Near Drainage Ditch
Patricia Gildawie is reportedly the teen whose remains were discovered by a construction crew near a drainage ditch in McLean two decades ago. WTOP reported that an initial review determined that the victim suffered a gunshot wound to the back of the head.
The initial review also suggested that the victim was likely African American and in her late teens to early 20s. Earlier this year, Fairfax County detectives elected the help of Othram, a Texas-based company that specializes in forensic genealogy and DNA testing.
The company ultimately located Gildawie’s half-sister, who divulged details about the 17-year-old’s unsolved disappearance, WRC reported.
In addition to misclassifying Gildawie’s race at the time, the medical examiner also incorrectly estimated that her remains were there for two years before their discovery in 2001. However, police believe Gildawie’s body had been there since the mid-70s.
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Fairfax County police said they confirmed the remains as Galdawie in August, per The Washington Post.
Gildawie’s older sister, who lives in Maryland, reportedly entered her DNA into an online database after she was gifted a subscription to Ancestry.com a few years earlier. She told WTOP that Gildawie was dating a man in his 30s who worked at an upholstery store in Vienna. Fairfax police Major Ed O’Carroll said they are interested in interviewing him.
Gildawie’s sister said that when she last saw her in 1975, she was covered in bruises, according to The Washington Post. The teenage girl spent a few hours at home once or twice a week in the months prior to her abduction.
Gildawie’s sister reported that after confronting Gildawie about the bruises, she disappeared.
No one has been taken into custody in relation to the murder of Gildawie. She lost her mother in 2016
The Washington Post quoted Gildawie’s sister as saying of their mother, “She was very worried about her.” And even after all these years, she was unaware of what had happened to her.
Anyone with information regarding Gildawie’s disappearance or death is asked to call Fairfax County Crime Solvers at 1-866-411-TIPS (8477).
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