On Jan. 31, 2019, after BuzzFeed News revealed that Family Tree DNA was working with the FBI to solve murders and rapes using its DNA database, the genetic testing company put out a press release that stated: “If we can help prevent violent crimes and save lives or bring closure to families, then we’re going to do that.”



Just days later, Parabon NanoLabs, a DNA forensics company that had by then already solved nearly three dozen cases by finding suspects through their family trees, asked for permission to upload crime scene DNA profiles to Family Tree DNA’s database to search for potential matches.

The request was not granted, email correspondence obtained by BuzzFeed News under a Freedom of Information Act request to the FBI shows. “My answer is no…” Family Tree DNA CEO Bennett Greenspan wrote on Feb. 4 to Steve Kramer, a lawyer in the FBI’s Los Angeles field office, in an email in which he forwarded Parabon’s request.

Since April 2018, when the method scored its first big success with the Golden State Killer case, dozens of alleged murderers or rapists have been identified by genetic genealogy. The technique involves investigators looking for DNA profiles that partially match genetic material from crime scenes and then building family trees from these relatives to find a suspect.

The fact that cops were doing this in databases set up to allow people to research their family histories, initially without users being informed, has led to a tense debate over genetic privacy. The new emails, which BuzzFeed obtained as part of an ongoing FOIA lawsuit against the FBI, highlight another flashpoint: rivalries between companies working with cops to solve highly publicized cases.

Family Tree DNA declined to discuss Greenspan’s Feb. 4 email describing his decision not to grant Parabon’s request. A spokesperson told BuzzFeed News by email that the company had “encountered some quality control and data management issues” with sample data later provided by Parabon in March and April 2019 but was still “engaged in conversations with Parabon and evaluating the possibility of a direct business relationship.”

Parabon’s lead genealogist, CeCe Moore, declined to comment on negotiations with Family Tree DNA, but said that Parabon’s failure to gain access to the database had slowed progress in solving crimes over the past year.

“Absolutely, more cases would have been solved by now if we had an additional database,” Moore told BuzzFeed News.

The issue became more acute in May 2019, when the other leading genealogy database used to find partial matches to crime scene DNA, called GEDmatch, changed its rules to require users to explicitly opt in for searches by law enforcement. As of last month, only about one in six had done so, making it harder to solve cases.

So far, Parabon has identified more than 85 criminal suspects using genetic genealogy, according to Moore. Four involved matches obtained using Family Tree DNA’s database, after law enforcement agencies working with Parabon submitted the profiles directly — a workaround that Family Tree DNA does allow.