By Colin Mixson
New York Daily News
NEW YORK — The remains of a woman recovered from Ground Zero following the 9/11 terrorist attacks have been identified through a new DNA forensic technique — the second time a victim of the 25-year-old terror attacks has been identified with this groundbreaking procedure, officials said Wednesday.
The woman’s identification brings the total number of identified victims of the World Trade Center attacks to 1,655, according to the city’s Medical Examiner. An additional 1,098 victims — roughly 40 percent of the 2,753 people killed in the attacks — have yet to be officially identified.
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The woman, whose name is being withheld at her family’s request, is only the second victim of the WTC attacks to be identified using investigative genetic genealogy, which in August was used to identify another woman killed in the attacks.
“A quarter century after the day that forever changed our world, we are keeping the promise to identify those who died at the World Trade Center in 2001 and return them to their loved ones,” Chief Medical Examiner Dr. Graham said following the identification of the woman in August. “This sacred commitment is propelled by our dedication to apply the most innovative scientific techniques, and FIGG represents a promising new addition to our toolkit.”
That victim’s family also asked that her name be withheld.
The new forensic technique marries DNA technology with genealogical investigative techniques, which are then confirmed by OCME using other forensic methodologies.
The same technique was employed by the Suffolk County District Attorney’s office as it sought to identify victims of the Gilgo Beach murders, including a young Asian man, dubbed “Asian Doe,” whose remains were discovered in 2011 as investigators combed the Long Island beach searching for the bodies of missing women.
In August. Suffolk County DA Ray Tierney traveled to Chinatown in Manhattan to request that New Yorkers hailing from the southern Han region of China to let investigators swab their cheeks, hoping the DNA they collected would lead them to a relative of the victim.
“Through modern DNA analysis… we could determine who your sister is, who your dad is, who your third cousin is,” said Tierney in August. “And the more DNA profiles you have, the more the chances are we’ll find a relative of Asian Doe’s.”
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