'Becca Doe' cold case solved by college students after 35 years

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A decades-old mystery was solved March 4 after college students helped Albuquerque law enforcement identify a woman found dead in a New Mexico motel room in 1991.

The Albuquerque Police Department said in a March 4 social media post that the woman, long known as “Becca Doe,” has been identified as Becca Mallekoote. The breakthrough came through investigative genealogy work led in part by students and staff at Ramapo College's Investigative Genetic Genealogy Center, in coordination with the Albuquerque Police Department and the New Mexico Office of the Medical Investigator.

Mallekoote was born March 4, 1973, in Tacoma, Washington, and was 18 years old when she died in June 1991 at a motel in Albuquerque, the police department said. Her death was ruled a suicide.

USA TODAY reached out to the Albuquerque Police Department and the Investigative Genetic Genealogy Center for comment on the identification and investigation.

How she became known as “Becca Doe”

According to Ramapo College's website, Mallekoote's body was found in 1991 after traveling to Albuquerque with a man who was later interviewed by investigators. Her personal belongings were examined, but officials were unable to confirm her identity at the time.

Investigators with the Albuquerque Police Department and the FBI reviewed the case. After an anonymous call in 2021, investigators believed her first name may have been Becca, and she became known as “Becca Doe.”

Breakthrough from genetic genealogy

In 2025, the case was reopened using investigative genetic genealogy, a method that combines DNA analysis and family tree research to help identify unidentified individuals, the Albuquerque Police Department reported.

A forensic sample was sent to Genologue, a company that specializes in DNA testing and sequencing, for analysis. Parabon NanoLabs then analyzed the results and created a DNA profile, Ramapo College's website noted. That profile was uploaded to GEDmatch Pro, a genetic genealogy database used by law enforcement and researchers to compare DNA and identify individuals, in January 2026.

Within days, Ramapo researchers identified Mallekoote as a potential match, the school's website noted.

Confirmation and identification

Authorities said the identification was confirmed through DNA testing of a close family member on March 4, 2026, on what would have been Mallekoote’s 53rd birthday.

“After 35 years, Becca’s name has been restored,” the Albuquerque Police Department said on Facebook, adding they hope the identification brings long-awaited peace to her family.

Ramapo College has helped identify 24 people since the program began in 2022.

Reporter Anthony Thompson can be reached at [email protected], or on Twitter @athompsonABJ