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

The remains of a Virginia teenager who disappeared nearly 50 years ago have now been identified, police announced Monday. Authorities involved in the longstanding cold case credited advanced DNA tests and "forensic-grade" genome sequencing for the recent discovery, which linked a set of previously anonymous remains to Patricia Agnes Gildawie, who was also called "Choubi."

Gildawie went missing in 1975, and was last seen on Feb. 8 of that year, the Fairfax County Police Department said in a news release confirming her identity. She was 17 at the time and dating an older man who worked at an upholstery store, according to the release. 

Gildawie's half-sister assisted the latter stages of the police investigation and shared some details about her sibling's life, including her birth place in France in 1958 and subsequent move to the U.S. at around eight months old. When she disappeared, Gildawie lived in Fairfax and was known to drive a Cadillac Eldorado with a red interior, police said. Detectives are continuing to investigate the circumstances surrounding her death with additional help from Gildawie's family members.