SANTA CRUZ, Calif. (KRON) – A 13-year-old girl who was found dead along a river in California’s Santa Cruz County three decades ago was recently identified through DNA testing, investigators said.

The Santa Cruz County Sheriff’s Office partnered with a forensic DNA lab, Othram, to develop new leads in the cold case. “As a result of this collaboration, we successfully identified the remains as those of 13-year-old Laura O’Malley from Queens, New York,” the sheriff’s office wrote Tuesday.

O’Malley’s partial skeletal remains were found on March 22, 1995, along a river flowing next to Highway 129. Her estimated date of death was between 1977 and 1984.

O’Malley was reported missing in New York by her family in the summer of 1975. Her family never saw or heard from her again. Investigators said it’s still unknown how the teen girl traveled to California, nor what caused her death.

Othram and the Sheriff’s Office utilized advanced genetic genealogy to identify potential family
members in recent years.

“We are deeply grateful for our partnership with Othram and the use of forensic advancements that have provided long-awaited answers to Laura’s family. The circumstances surrounding her
death are still under investigation,” the sheriff’s office wrote.