Deborah Atrops adopted a baby girl, which fulfilled her dream of being a mum. Months later, her marriage fell apart and she was going it alone. Then things took a sinister turn...

It was a time of new beginnings for Deborah Atrops. She had recently adopted a baby girl, which fulfilled her dream of being a mum, but within months her marriage fell apart and she was going it alone. Deborah, 30, who was affectionately known as Debe, married Robert Atrops in June 1987 after just a few months of dating. Atrops, then 34, was a construction product salesman, while Deborah worked as a secretary and bookkeeper. Nine months later, they adopted their eight-month-old daughter, but Deborah tearfully confided in colleagues that her marriage was in trouble, and by June 1988, they had separated.

Deborah moved out and got her own apartment in Salem, Oregon, which was about 30 miles away from her ex. She was the primary carer for her daughter and started to build a new life. She even began dating a co-worker, John Pearson. She was happy. On 29 November, Deborah left work for a 5pm hair appointment. Her daughter was at the babysitter’s as usual while the former couple worked, and Atrops had gone to pick her up. Deborah left the salon at around 7pm in her black Honda to collect her daughter from her estranged husband’s house, which was an eight-mile drive away. But according to Atrops, she never arrived.

At around 9.30pm, Atrops called the police and said he was concerned about Deborah. He had already called friends and family, who hadn’t seen her. The police told him it would be quicker if Atrops drove the route she would have taken, which he agreed to. It was a foggy night and there was a chance she might have gone off the road. Atrops called the police back two more times to say he hadn’t found her. At the time, he didn’t mention that he and Deborah were separated, which the police found strange. He also didn’t call Deborah’s apartment, which would have been an obvious call to make.

Early on 1 December, the police responded to multiple reports of a suspicious vehicle at a remote Beaverton construction site. The vehicle was parked on the edge of a wood on a dead-end road. It had no plates, the windows were frosted and the driver’s window was open with the keys inside. It was Deborah’s car. On further investigation, her body was found face down inside the boot.

Deborah had been strangled to death, but there was no sign of sexual assault. Her blue coat and black heels were covered with mud, and there was more on the steering wheel. It appeared that someone had tried to wipe down the outside of the vehicle.

Atrops lived five miles further down the road. When officers went to tell him, he reacted calmly, which was flagged as odd behaviour especially since he had called the police four times to report her missing. A murder investigation began. The police spoke to Deborah’s boyfriend. He had an alibi and passed a polygraph that he willingly took. Atrops refused to take a polygraph and then quickly hired a lawyer.

Atrops told detectives he had called friends and family on the night Deborah went missing and they confirmed he had. But when they looked at his phone records, none of the calls showed up. They determined that there was no record of the calls because Atrops had been out of the house, disposing of Deborah’s car and her body.

They tried to check payphones in the area, but it was a difficult task in 1988. Forensics were also not as advanced at the time and the police couldn’t connect Atrops to Deborah’s death. The case ran cold. Atrops raised his daughter and remarried. But the police were determined to solve the case and believed they had the right suspect. They believed Atrops had killed Deborah because she’d moved on and started seeing other people.

In 2022, Deborah’s blue coat and soil samples were sent away for more advanced testing. It was determined to be “indistinguishable” from the soil on Atrops’ front lawn. The DNA on the collar of the coat wasn’t a clear match to Atrops, but couldn’t be excluded. Atrops had said Deborah hadn’t been at his house for 10 days before her death, but samples from the car suggested she had been there more recently.

The cold case team also noted that the construction site where Deborah was found had a connection to Atrops. He’d sold roofing products there. Atrops was questioned again and when he was asked why the calls he had made hadn’t shown up on the phone bill, he changed his story. He said he had used a calling card. It didn’t make sense. The card involved inputting long digits – hardly a quick approach in an emergency. And why didn’t he say that at the time?

In March 2023, 34 years after Deborah’s death, Atrops was arrested and charged with murder. He pleaded not guilty. At the trial in 2025, the prosecution talked about the problems in the marriage. Former friends testified about arguments and another said Deborah told her Atrops had choked her before she had moved out. She allegedly said she was worried about him finding out about her new boyfriend. “If anything happens to me, Bob did it,” she told them.

They told the court about the calls Atrops had made, which were part of him constructing an alibi. They reminded the jury they weren’t on record but also pointed out he hadn’t called her apartment. Because he knew she was dead.

The defence suggested Deborah’s boyfriend at the time knew a great deal about the boot of her car when he was questioned. He was due to appear in court, but he died before the trial started. They said Deborah had a history of “making up” stories to get attention, and that Atrops hadn’t called the apartment because someone had already said they had been there to check. They said the phone billing equipment could have been faulty and that the mud on Deborah could have come from anywhere in the area.

At the end of a three-week trial, Atrops, then 70, was found guilty of second-degree murder. After 37 years, Deborah’s murder was finally solved. Atrops was given life with the chance of parole after 25 years. His daughter continues to stand by him and says that he’s innocent.

Deborah was just starting a new life when she was cruelly killed. With Atrops still denying his part, unanswered questions remain about that night. But the jury knew the answer to the most important question. Guilty.