DNA, Mud and a Cold Case: Beaverton Murder Ends with Husband's 2025 Conviction

Decades after Debe Atrops was murdered in Beaverton, Oregon, a 2022 cold-case review used DNA testing on Debe’s coat and soil/mud analysis to reexamine suspects, including her estranged husband Bob Atrops. A 2025 grand jury indicted Bob, and a jury convicted him of second-degree murder after weighing evolving forensic evidence and disputed alibi details; prosecutors say the case involved motive, means, and opportunity, while the defense pointed to other explanations and questioned the strength of the DNA and mud links. Debe’s daughter and family describe the verdict as closure after a long, painful saga.