A case that has haunted our community for more than three decades may finally be approaching resolution. The New Jersey State Police announced this week that new DNA evidence has led to an arrest in the 1990 murder of Lisa Marie McBride of Highland Lakes.
Robert William McCaffrey Jr., 54, of Manteo, North Carolina, was taken into custody last Friday during a traffic stop conducted by the Nags Head Police Department. He faces charges of murder, kidnapping, and burglary in connection with McBride's death.
A Decades-Long Investigation
The tragic story began on June 22, 1990, when Lisa Marie McBride went missing. Four months later, on the morning of October 20, 1990, a hunter made a grim discovery in a wooded area off Old Mine Road in the Delaware Water Gap National Recreation Area in Sandyston Township, Sussex County. The skeletal remains were so badly decomposed that investigators could not determine the cause or manner of death.
Dental records confirmed the remains belonged to McBride, but for years the case went cold. The breakthrough began in August 2020 when investigators sent key evidence for advanced DNA testing. The results showed the DNA came from a man, but the profile wasn't detailed enough to be entered into a national database—it could only be compared directly to specific individuals.
What followed was painstaking detective work. Over the next five years, investigators compared the DNA profile against more than 50 individuals and conducted numerous polygraph examinations. In 2022, McBride's remains were exhumed to obtain a definitive DNA sample for comparison—a step authorities described as pivotal to their efforts.
The Break in the Case
The investigation took a significant turn when McCaffrey's DNA profile was entered into CODIS, the national DNA database, in 2014. This entry came following his arrest in connection with the disappearance of his wife, Gayle McCaffrey, who went missing on March 18, 2012, in Charleston County, South Carolina. Gayle McCaffrey remains missing.
In February 2026, the pieces finally came together. A CODIS match identified Robert William McCaffrey Jr. as the male DNA contributor from the evidence collected in McBride's case. Further investigation confirmed that McCaffrey was living in Sussex County at the time of McBride's disappearance in 1990.
During the court-authorized search of McCaffrey's residence following his arrest, authorities recovered five firearms.
Seeking Additional Information
While this arrest represents a major development, investigators believe there may be more to learn about this case. The New Jersey State Police Cold Case Unit is urging anyone with information to come forward by calling their tip line at (833) 4NJ-COLD. Anonymous tips are welcomed and encouraged.
This case serves as a powerful reminder that our law enforcement community never gives up on seeking justice for victims and their families. The combination of advancing forensic technology and determined detective work has brought new hope to a case that has remained unsolved for 35 years.
As authorities remind us, charges are accusations and all persons are considered innocent until proven guilty in a court of law. The legal process will now move forward as our community watches closely, hoping for answers that have been decades in the making.
