[1] In 1993, at Drumheller in Alberta, three kilometres west of the Royal Tyrrell Museum of Palaeontology, a skeleton was found of a theropod.

As it was initially identified as some unimportant ornithomimid specimen, preparation only started in 2002 and was almost immediately discontinued when no skull was thought to be present, the fossil again being covered in plaster.

The generic name is derived from the Greek goddess of deceit, Apatè, and Latin raptor, "robber", in reference to the specimen hiding its true identity for many years.

The specific name means "feathered" in Latin, referring to the find of quill knobs on the ulna, showing the animal had wings.

[1] The holotype TMP 1993.051.0001 was found in a layer of the Horsethief Member of the Horseshoe Canyon Formation dating from the Campanian.