NYPD genetic genealogy squad and NYC medical examiner identify second 9/11 World Trade Center victim

New York City authorities have identified a second victim of the September 11, 2001 World Trade Center attacks through the use of investigative genetic genealogy, the city’s medical examiner and the NYPD genetic genealogy squad said.

The person identified is an adult woman who was killed when the Twin Towers collapsed, and the medical examiner’s office and the family have asked that her name not be made public. Officials say the case is the second positive identification achieved with this forensic method after an initial identification in August using the same technique.

Investigators applied a combination of DNA analysis and family-tree research known as forensic investigative genetic genealogy to match recovered genetic material to relatives. The medical examiner’s office said it has collected additional genetic samples capable of undergoing genealogical review as it continues efforts to identify victims from recovered remains. Lt.

Maria Powers, commander of the NYPD genetic genealogy squad, described the investigative work as meticulous and labor-intensive in media accounts. ABC7 New York reported that the total number of formally identified victims from the 2001 attacks now stands at 1,655, and noted that about 40 percent of the 2,753 people killed in the attacks remain unidentified.

The outlets covering the identification noted the technique has been used in other investigations and cold cases and that the medical examiner’s office and police applied it specifically to World Trade Center remains.

Reporting from the New York Post highlighted the city medical examiner’s announcement and the family’s request for privacy; Newsday and ABC News also ran accounts corroborating the identification using genetic genealogy.

The coverage indicates this identification follows the office’s prior success and reflects ongoing forensic work rather than a single breakthrough ending the identification process. Officials have not released further personal details about the woman, and the public statements emphasize privacy for surviving relatives.

The medical examiner’s office has described the collection of new genetic samples that could be reviewed with genealogical techniques, which officials framed as offering renewed hope to families still awaiting identifications.

The use of investigative genetic genealogy in this context builds on its growing application in long-unsolved cases; local reports noted prior uses of advanced DNA techniques in other investigations and identifications.

The statements in the reporting limit claims to the identification itself, the method used, the number of formal identifications to date, and the family's request for privacy, without attaching motive, responsibility, or additional forensic findings to the announcement.