Current:Home > FinanceLogan Bowman, 5, went missing 20 years ago. Now his remains have been identified. -MoneyFlow Academy
Logan Bowman, 5, went missing 20 years ago. Now his remains have been identified.
View
Date:2025-04-18 18:53:58
Human remains discovered in Virginia were identified as belonging to a 5-year-old boy who went missing over 20 years ago, police said.
Logan Nathaniel Bowman went missing in January 2003, and his mother, Cynthia Davis, and her then-boyfriend, Dennis Schermerhorn, were charged in the child's disappearance. The Carroll County Sheriff’s Office said in a statement on social media last week that additional charges are expected to be filed.
Logan's remains were discovered in September 2022 in Galax, Virginia, the sheriff's office said.
Remains found nearly 20 years after disappearance
His remains were discovered in a wooded area of Galax, a southwestern Virginia city of about 6,700 residents, on Sept. 6, 2022, the sheriff's office said. They had been there "for an extended period of time," investigators determined.
Investigators worked with Texas-based forensic genealogy company Othram Inc. to use DNA and compare it to Logan's relatives, confirming the identity of the remains.
The remains were in a trash can, according to DNASolves.com, a site owned by Othram. Also found with the body were a sleeping bag, a Winnie the Pooh blanket and a cloth fragment, the site said.
Logan went missing from nearby Grayson County in 2003 in what DNASolves.com said was "suspicious circumstances." The site said he was entered into the National Missing and Unidentified Persons System, which noted Logan had a healing fracture in his left arm, tooth decay and burn scars on his feet. Logan's case in the NamUs system is no longer available online.
The boy's father, Wayne Bowman, told WFXR after the remains were identified that Logan was a "good kid" and he would finally be able to give him a proper burial. Wayne Bowman said he hopes the identification of his son's remains could lead to justice.
"I can go on, I know where he’s at now. I don’t have to worry where he’s at. I know it hurts, but it’s going to be OK," Wayne Bowman said.
Mother, boyfriend could face additional charges
Davis pleaded guilty to two counts of child neglect and one count of homicide, court records show. She was sentenced to 10 years for each count of child neglect and 30 years for homicide, with a suspended sentence of 15 years in prison and 15 years of probation.
Davis had been released from prison before her son's remains were identified, following her sentence for the earlier convictions, Carroll County Sheriff Kevin Kemp told USA TODAY.
Schermerhorn was sentenced to a year in jail for one charge of child neglect, according to court records. A murder charge and another child neglect charge filed against Schermerhorn were later dropped, the records show.
"We are still exploring our options for additional charges," Richard Vaughan, sheriff in Grayson County where Logan went missing, told USA TODAY on Wednesday.
Neither Davis nor Schermerhorn was in police custody or currently incarcerated, Kemp and Vaughan said.
Attorneys listed for Davis and Schermerhorn in their previous court cases could not be reached.
veryGood! (7)
Related
- Macy's says employee who allegedly hid $150 million in expenses had no major 'impact'
- See Samantha Hanratty and More Stars Pose Backstage at the 2024 People’s Choice Awards
- Jessie James Decker Gives Birth, Welcomes Baby No. 4 With Husband Eric Decker
- Is Rooney Mara expecting her second child with Joaquin Phoenix?
- Federal Spending Freeze Could Have Widespread Impact on Environment, Emergency Management
- See Ryan Seacrest and 26-Year-Old Girlfriend Aubrey Paige's Road to Romance
- Arrests made after girl’s body found encased in concrete and boy’s remains in a suitcase
- Kansas City woman's Donna Kelce mug sells like wildfire, helps pay off student lunch debt
- Google unveils a quantum chip. Could it help unlock the universe's deepest secrets?
- OpenAI's new text-to-video tool, Sora, has one artificial intelligence expert terrified
Ranking
- Former longtime South Carolina congressman John Spratt dies at 82
- You Came Here Alone to Enjoy These Shocking Secrets About Shutter Island
- Minnesota police seek motive as town grieves after 2 officers, 1 firefighter fatally shot
- NBA All-Star weekend: Mac McClung defends dunk title, Steph vs. Sabrina captivates
- US wholesale inflation accelerated in November in sign that some price pressures remain elevated
- Kelly Osbourne says Ozempic use is 'amazing' after mom Sharon's negative side effects
- California again braces for flooding as another wet winter storm hits the state
- NBA All-Star weekend: Mac McClung defends dunk title, Steph vs. Sabrina captivates
Recommendation
Residents worried after ceiling cracks appear following reroofing works at Jalan Tenaga HDB blocks
Jeremy Renner Makes Rare Appearance at 2024 People's Choice Awards After Past Year's Heck of a Journey
Teen arrested after young girl pushed into fire, mother burned rescuing her: Authorities
To Live and Die in Philadelphia: Sonya Sanders Grew Up Next Door to a Giant Refinery. She’s Still Suffering From Environmental Trauma.
Person accused of accosting Rep. Nancy Mace at Capitol pleads not guilty to assault charge
Horoscopes Today, February 17, 2024
Mega Millions winning numbers for Friday night's $457 million jackpot
Here's how long a migraine typically lasts – and why some are worse than others