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DNA Match Leads to Arrest in 1990 New Jersey Killing

A recent DNA hit from preserved evidence points to a suspect using new lab methods.

Overview

  • Robert McCaffrey, 54, was arrested Friday in Manteo, North Carolina, during a traffic stop and is being held pending extradition to New Jersey on murder, kidnapping, and burglary charges in the Lisa Marie McBride case.
  • Investigators reported a February 2026 CODIS match to the male DNA in the case after a 2022 exhumation enabled modern genotyping to separate a mixed sample for entry into the FBI-run database.
  • McBride, 27, was reported missing in June 1990, and a hunter found her skeletal remains in October 1990 in the Delaware Water Gap, with dental records confirming her identity and decomposition preventing a cause of death finding.
  • McCaffrey’s DNA was in CODIS from a 2014 arrest tied to his wife Gayle’s 2012 disappearance in South Carolina, which Charleston County detectives say remains an open investigation.
  • Following the arrest, investigators executing a residential search warrant reported seizing five firearms from McCaffrey’s North Carolina home.