Authorities are hoping recent confirmation of the identity of a woman killed in 1980 whose body was dumped in a ravine in the Anza Valley is the break that will lead to solving the cold case.
Following decades of trying to pin down exactly whose body was hurled down a hillside adjacent to Highway 74 south of Cahuilla, Riverside County District Attorney’s Office Cold Case Unit investigators were finally able to verify who she was — 29-year-old Victoria Jean Hargrove of Opelika, Alabama.
“Investigators are now seeking additional information regarding Hargrove’s disappearance in 1980, the circumstances surrounding her death and what may have brought her to California,” according to an agency statement.
A photograph of the victim is available at rivcoda.org/victoria_hargrove_cold_case.
Investigators said the woman’s relatives reported her missing on Jan. 28, 1980, after she was last seen at her home in the east Alabama community bordering Auburn.
Hargrove’s remains were spotted by motorists on Feb. 18, 1980, roughly 35 feet into the ravine alongside the two-lane highway that connects the Anza and Coachella valleys.
All that sheriff’s detectives had to go on at the time were the most basic details — a Caucasian woman in her 20s with brown hair, roughly 5-feet-4 inches tall and 115 pounds. There was no identification with the decomposing body.
A facial autopsy photograph was released to media with the hope of generating leads, but nothing panned out.
The case was reopened in 2008-09, leading to a review of forensic data, but still nothing surfaced that could assist investigators. The DA’s Office said that in 2024, another review was initiated focused on “genetic genealogy.”
“The victim’s remains were exhumed,” the agency said. “Bone and tissue samples were collected and sent to OTHRAM Labs, a private laboratory, for DNA analysis. In January 2026, a DNA profile was developed and uploaded to a direct-to-consumer ancestry database. A genealogist attached to the (Cold Case Unit) identified a potential match to a relative in Alabama.”
That led to the party and his or her family members providing DNA samples voluntarily that were used to confirm Hargrove’s identity, according to the agency.
“Investigators encourage individuals to consider submitting their DNA to reputable ancestry databases, as it can play a vital role in identifying unknown victims and advance cold case investigations,” the DA’s Office stated.
Anyone with information regarding the Hargrove death was urged to contact investigators at 951-955-0070, or coldcaseunit@rivcoda.org.