By Jamie Loftus, CNN

Using advanced DNA testing, Virginia police have identified the remains of a body found in a drainage ditch 21 years ago in Fairfax County as Patricia Agnes Gildawie, a young woman who has been missing for more than 47 years.

Also known as “Choubi,” Gildawie was last seen on February 8, 1975, when she was 17 years old, the Fairfax County Police Department said in a news release Monday.

Authorities said Gildawie’s skeletal remains were found by a construction crew on September 27, 2001. Initially, investigators believed the victim was an African American female in her late teens to early 20s who died from a gunshot wound to the head.

This year, cold case detectives worked with forensic experts from Othram Inc., a Texas-based laboratory that provides law enforcement with advanced DNA testing and forensic-grade genome sequencing. This testing found a half-sister who led to identifying Gildawie as the victim and shared her story.

“Detectives learned Gildawie was born in France in February 1958 and came to the United States when she was eight months old,” the release said. “In the early 1970s, Gildawie moved to the City of Fairfax. Prior to her disappearance at age 17, Gildawie was dating an older man. He worked at an upholstery store, near the intersection of Church Street and Lawyers Road in Vienna.”

moved up: Police have not named any suspects in the case and continue to investigate with new information provided by…