Witness death delays trial of Robert Atrops, man accused in wife's 1988 murder
Editor's note: If you or someone you know is in a crisis, help is available with the 988 Suicide and Crisis Lifeline. Call or text 988 or go to 988lifeline.org for help.
PORTLAND, Ore. (KOIN) – The murder trial centering Robert Atrops, a man accused of killing his wife in 1988, was delayed Tuesday after a key witness committed suicide, according to the Washington County DA's Office.
Opening statements were expected to begin Tuesday morning, but will now be moved to an undetermined date. A CBS News team at the trial learned that the defense requested this delay to investigate the witness' motive for suicide.
Details about the witness and the witness' death are limited, but deputies from Mojave County in California said the suicide was reported Thursday night.
“This can’t be ignored, and we can’t proceed to trial without learning more about why this happened," Stephanie Pollan with the defense said.
Robert Atrops, 70, is charged with the alleged second-degree murder of his wife, Deborah Lee Atrops, after she went missing on Nov. 29, 1988.
That day, Deborah was expected to pick up her 8-month-old daughter from Robert’s residence in Sherwood, as the couple had been living separately. When she didn’t arrive at the agreed-upon time between 7:30 and 8 p.m., he filed a missing person report.
The next day, her 1988 black Honda Accord was spotted at a dead end of Murray Road. The license plates were gone. The driver’s window was rolled down. Police found her body in the trunk.
Investigators said the position of her body inside the trunk indicated she was put there after she was killed. Witnesses said they noticed the car there early in the day on Nov. 30.
A few days later, an autopsy revealed Deborah Atrops was physically assaulted and strangled to death. She was 30.
In May 2021, the Washington County Cold Case Unit partnered with the Washington County Sheriff’s Office to reinterview witnesses and re-examine forensic evidence in the case.
Those pieces of information were presented in early 2023 to a grand jury, which indicted Atrops.
A status check hearing for the case is scheduled for Monday, Oct. 28. The Washington County DA’s Office expects a new trial date to be set that day.
Stay with KOIN 6 News as we continue to follow this story.