New Jersey Woman ID’d as Victim in 1973 California Cold Case

California authorities are seeking the public’s help in solving the murder of a New Jersey woman whose dismembered body was found in a suitcase 50 years ago in the San Diego Bay.

The San Diego Police Department identified the victim as Arminda Grangela Rodrigues da Silva Ribeiro, who was 29 when she was killed in 1973. Her dismembered body was found by fishermen in the San Diego Bay.

Saturday's update was the first time police have publicly named the victim, according to the San Diego Union Tribune. Officials are seeking to raise awareness of the cold case.

Police were unable to identify Ribeiro, whose body had been stuffed into an orange suitcase and plastic bags, for decades. Her remains were exhumed by the San Diego County Medical Examiner’s Office in 2020 in an attempt to uncover her identity with the help of DNA, police said.

"Ultimately, the DNA profile led to the identification," police said.

Ribeiro, who was from Portugal, emigrated to Newark, New Jersey, where police said she still has family. She was married and had two children. Police said she was working at a trailer fabrication company in Newark when she disappeared. 

Police are working to uncover Ribeiro’s connection to San Diego. Investigators are also trying to identify the company Ribeiro worked for in Newark and hope the public’s help can lead them to new clues.

Anyone with information is asked to call police at 619-531-2293.