Naman Shrestha
In 1988, Deborah “Debe” Atrops exited a salon after her hair appointment, but never returned home in Washington County, Oregon. Her sudden disappearance sparked an extensive search, which eventually turned into a homicide investigation when her remains were found at a secluded construction site. However, it took the authorities more than three long decades to crack the case and bring the perpetrator/s to justice. CBS’ ’48 Hours: The Mother I Wish I Knew’ delves deep into all the intricate details of the case and the investigation that followed.
Debe Atrops Was Found Dead in an Isolated Area Two Days After Her Disappearance
Gloria and Robert Phillips welcomed a little bundle of joy in the form of Deborah “Debe” Lee Phillips Atrops on June 4, 1958, in Florence, Oregon. Growing up alongside her brothers, Calvin and Robert, and a sister named Aimee Phillips, Debe moved to several places with her family as her father was regularly transferred to different places, including Guam and the Philippines. During her teenage years, she resided in Salem, Oregon, for a couple of years before relocating to Spokane, Washington. After a while, she returned to Salem, where she landed multiple jobs as a secretary and bookkeeper.
At some point, she was employed at Wellon Industries in Sherwood, Oregon, as a bookkeeper for one and a half years. After that stint, she attended Chemeketa Community College in Salem. Her hobbies included hiking, camping, and skiing. On June 6, 1987, Debe tied the knot with Robert “Bob” Atrops in Sherwood. Not long after, the couple adopted an infant girl and named her Rhianna Stephens. About a year and a half later, the couple became distant for some reason and lived separately. Having so many things to look forward to, including raising her daughter, her life was cut short in 1988.
On November 29, 1988, Debe was supposed to pick up Rhianna from Bob’s house. After leaving her workplace in the evening, she reportedly went for a hair appointment in Tigard around 5:15 pm. She left the salon around 7 pm, but never reached Bob’s residence to pick up their daughter. Thus, he called 911 and reported his wife missing. A couple of days later, on December 1, 1988, Debe’s car was found parked at a secluded Beaverton construction site near Southwest Murray Road. When the authorities opened the trunk, they discovered Debe’s remains. Since her clothes and the car were smeared with mud, the detectives collected mud samples for further examination. The medical examiner determined that 30-year-old Debe was physically assaulted and strangled to death.
Debe Atrops’ Killer Managed to Evade Justice For More Than Three Decades
As part of the investigation, the authorities interviewed Deborah Atrops’ loved ones, including her estranged husband, Robert Atrops. He told the detectives that he had called her family and friends from his home phone before calling the police. However, they couldn’t find any record of those alleged calls. Since the investigators didn’t have enough evidence or suspects, the case went cold over time. In the following years, the case was reviewed by numerous detectives, but no progress had been made until 2020, when the Washington County District Attorney’s Office Cold Case Unit reopened the case. As per reports, the reason for Debe and Bob’s separation was that the latter was allegedly physically abusive towards her. Amid their divorce proceedings, she reportedly began dating a coworker named John Pearson.
According to her friends, she told them that Bob had confronted her about her relationship with John and that she was worried that he might kill her. With an advanced DNA technology at hand, the detectives submitted the items, including mud samples, for forensic analysis, which led them to Bob, whose DNA was found on the coat Debe was wearing at the time of her death. In addition, the mud collected from the crime scene matched the mud found on Bob’s Sherwood residence. In 2022, the investigators interviewed Bob again and noticed several discrepancies and inconsistencies in his 1988 story. On February 28, 2023, he was indicted for one count of murder in the second degree, after which he was finally arrested at his Newberg home on March 23, 2023.
Bob Atrops is Currently Incarcerated at an Oregon Prison Facility
On March 18, 2025, Robert “Bob” Atrops’ trial for his involvement in the murder of his estranged wife, Deborah Atrops, got underway. The prosecution presented a series of circumstantial evidence against Bob in front of the jury. Meanwhile, the defense argued that there was no direct physical evidence or witnesses that linked the defendant to the crime. After several weeks of trial, the jury deliberated for six hours and reached a final verdict. Thus, on April 17, he was found guilty of the second-degree murder of Debe in 1988. Almost three months later, on July 8, Bob was sentenced to life in prison with the possibility of parole after serving 25 years.
During the sentencing hearing, Debe and Bob’s daughter, Rhianna, took the stand and stated, “When I was 8 months old, someone robbed me of having a life with my mom. There was no one to support me for every milestone — my first birthday, kindergarten graduation, 8th grade promotion, high school graduation, my wedding.” Defending her father, she added, “He was the one in the crowd when I looked up nervously from the volleyball court. He was the one holding my hand when I felt lost.” As of today, 71-year-old Robert “Bob” Elmer Atrops is serving his sentence at Snake River Correctional Institution in eastern Oregon.
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