BOCA RATON, FL (Boca Post) (Copyright © 2026) — Construction workers found partially buried skeletal remains in a wooded area of unincorporated Boca Raton on Jan. 18, 1978, launching a Palm Beach County cold case that investigators say was a homicide.
The Palm Beach County Sheriff’s Office and the Palm Beach County Office of the Medical Examiner responded to the scene and collected the unidentified remains. The manner of death was ruled a homicide. Anthropologists later examined the remains and determined they belonged to a white female estimated to be between 17 and 29 years old.
For years, investigators worked to identify the victim, but those efforts did not produce a name.
That changed after a recent forensic DNA push involving a private laboratory and genealogical research.
In July 2024, Othram — a private laboratory focused on forensic DNA testing and genetic genealogy — began assisting the Palm Beach County Sheriff’s Office Cold Case Unit with efforts to identify the woman, investigators said. In August 2025, Othram provided cold case detectives with investigative leads derived from genealogical research.
The following month, in September 2025, cold case detectives traveled domestically to investigate the leads and collect reference samples from relatives of the decedent, according to investigators.
On Dec. 2, 2025, the woman was identified through forensic investigative genetic genealogy as Patricia Ann Ritchie. Investigators provided her date of birth as Dec. 3, 1953, and said she was from Harrisonburg, Virginia. The identification, investigators said, resulted from collaboration between Othram, the Palm Beach County Sheriff’s Office Cold Case Unit, and the Palm Beach County Office of the Medical Examiner.
Detectives say it is believed Ritchie was last seen in 1977 in Harrisonburg. What remains unclear is how she got to Florida, when she arrived, and who she may have been with.
Investigators said it is unknown at this time exactly when and with whom Ritchie traveled to Florida before her death.
Now, the Sheriff’s Office is asking for public help filling in the gaps. Cold case detectives are seeking information from anyone who may have known or encountered Patricia Ritchie in the years preceding her death, and from anyone who might remember her traveling, staying, working, or spending time in Florida before she was killed.
The case dates back nearly five decades, but detectives are treating the identification as a major step that could generate fresh leads. Tips, they said, could come from people who knew Ritchie personally, crossed paths with her in Virginia in the mid-to-late 1970s, or encountered her in Florida around the time investigators believe she traveled south.
Palm Beach County Sheriff’s Office Cold Case Unit detectives are asking anyone with information to call Crime Stoppers at 1 (800) 458-TIPS or Investigator William Springer at (561) 688-4013.
A reward of up to $3,000 is being offered, and tipsters can remain anonymous through Crime Stoppers.
Boca Post is a hyperlocal news outlet covering Boca Raton, with original reporting on city government, public safety, development, and community issues that is frequently cited across the local media landscape.
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