Boca Raton, Florida – Palm Beach County detectives have identified a young woman found dead in Boca Raton in 1978, reopening a decades-old homicide investigation.
According to the Palm Beach County Sheriff’s Office, the remains belong to Patricia Ann Ritchie, a white female who was between 17 and 29 years old at the time of her death. Construction workers discovered her partially buried skeletal remains on Jan. 18, 1978, in a wooded area of unincorporated Boca Raton. The Palm Beach County Medical Examiner responded, and the manner of death was ruled a homicide.
For more than four decades, investigators were unable to identify the victim despite extensive efforts. In July 2024, the sheriff’s office partnered with Othram, a private forensic laboratory specializing in investigative genetic genealogy, to reexamine evidence. Othram developed a forensic DNA profile, which cold case detectives used to conduct genealogical research and follow investigative leads.
In September 2025, detectives traveled domestically to interview individuals connected to the case and collected reference DNA samples. Those efforts ultimately led to confirmation of Ritchie’s identity, authorities said.
Investigators believe Ritchie was last seen in 1977 in the Harrisonburg, Virginia, area. She is believed to have traveled to Florida before her death, though detectives say it remains unclear when, how, or with whom she made the trip. At the time of her disappearance, she would have been in her early twenties.
The identification was the result of collaboration between the Palm Beach County Sheriff’s Office Cold Case Unit, the Palm Beach County Medical Examiner, and Othram, officials said.
Detectives are now asking for the public’s help to piece together Ritchie’s final movements. Anyone who knew or encountered Patricia Ann Ritchie in the years leading up to her death is urged to contact Crime Stoppers or investigators.
The case remains an active homicide investigation.
