Current:Home > InvestLogan Bowman, 5, went missing 20 years ago. Now his remains have been identified. -WealthSphere Pro
Logan Bowman, 5, went missing 20 years ago. Now his remains have been identified.
View
Date:2025-04-22 05:58:55
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! (6)
Related
- Tom Holland's New Venture Revealed
- OpenAI's new text-to-video tool, Sora, has one artificial intelligence expert terrified
- All the Couples Turning the 2024 People's Choice Awards Into a Date Night
- Inside Hilary Swank's New Life With Her Million Dollar Babies
- Intel's stock did something it hasn't done since 2022
- You’ll Choose And Love This Grey’s Anatomy People’s Choice Awards Reunion
- US senators to submit resolution condemning democratic backsliding in Hungary
- Oscar-nommed doc: A 13-year-old and her dad demand justice after she is raped
- Louvre will undergo expansion and restoration project, Macron says
- 1 dead, 5 others injured in early morning shooting at Indianapolis Waffle House
Ranking
- DoorDash steps up driver ID checks after traffic safety complaints
- Feds Deny Permits for Hydro Projects on Navajo Land, Citing Lack of Consultation With Tribes
- Harry Styles Debuts Winning Haircut During Rare Public Appearance at Soccer Game
- How Ziggy Marley helped bring the authenticity to ‘Bob Marley: One Love’
- Mets have visions of grandeur, and a dynasty, with Juan Soto as major catalyst
- You’re So Invited to Look at Adam Sandler’s Sweetest Moments With Daughters Sadie and Sunny
- Damian Lillard named MVP of NBA All-Star Game over Tyrese Haliburton
- Book excerpt: True North by Andrew J. Graff
Recommendation
Bill Belichick's salary at North Carolina: School releases football coach's contract details
Taylor Swift posts video of Travis Kelce and her parents accidentally going clubbing after 2024 Super Bowl
Colorado university mourns loss of two people found fatally shot in dorm; investigation ongoing
'Oppenheimer' wins 7 prizes, including best picture, at British Academy Film Awards
Trump suggestion that Egypt, Jordan absorb Palestinians from Gaza draws rejections, confusion
Trump $354 million fraud verdict includes New York business ban for 3 years. Here's what to know.
Oscar-nommed doc: A 13-year-old and her dad demand justice after she is raped
Damian Lillard named MVP of NBA All-Star Game over Tyrese Haliburton