What happened to Logan Bowman? Human remains found in Virginia identified as missing 5-year-old boy

In January 2003, 5-year-old Logan Bowman disappeared from Grayson County and was reported missing. A press release by the Carroll County Sheriff's Office stated that on September 6, 2022, officials responded to Iron Ridge Road in Galax, Virginia, following a report of human remains being located in a wooded area.

According to the press release by the Carroll County Sheriff's Office, during the course of the investigation, authorities figured that the human remains had been present at that location for an extended duration.

Carroll County Sheriff Kevin Kemp told 10 News that it is too soon to determine charges, but there has been some development in the investigation.

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Identification of the human remains of Logan Bowman

WSLS 10 reported that a male individual from out of town purchased the property and detected the human remains in a trash bag. Carroll County Sheriff Kevin Kemp noted:

"These are very rare circumstances that do not happen very often, so we understand the importance and the rarity of this circumstance. So to say I’m not in shock with the outcome I think would be understating it a little bit."

The press release by the Carroll County Sheriff's Office stated that following the discovery of the human remains, the sheriff's office received assistance from a private company based in Texas named Othram Inc., which specializes in Forensic-Grade Genome Sequencing and Forensic Genetic Genealogy.

According to the report by WSLS 10, Carroll County Sheriff Kevin Kemp noted:

"It was a day where I first thought, 'What if these could be the remains of Logan Bowman?'"

The sheriff's office reported that Othram Inc. was able to generate a complete DNA profile, allowing them to utilize Forensic Genetic Genealogy and two direct DNA comparisons of family members to identify that the human remains belonged to Logan Bowman.

WSLS 10 reported that Othram Inc.'s Chief Development Officer, Dr. Kristen Mittelman, and her team were in charge of the procedure for the identification. She mentioned that the procedure takes time as the DNA gets older. However, they were still able to link it back to Logan Bowman. Dr. Mittelman noted:

"We used forensics genome sequencing on the boy’s remains that were found. And they were found decades later, so you can imagine how much degradation was there. It's hard to prosecute a murder if you don’t have a body, because there's always that doubt brought in."

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Logan Bowman's mother was charged in his disappearance in 2003

The press release by the Carroll County Sheriff's Office stated that in 2003, Logan Bowman's biological mother, Cynthia Davis, and her then-boyfriend, Dennis Schermerhorn, were charged by Grayson County for their alleged involvement in his disappearance.

WSLS 10 reported that in 2004, the charge of felony murder against Dennis Schermerhorn was dismissed due to the lack of evidence. However, Cynthia Davis was sentenced to 15 years for second-degree murder.

With regard to the progress in the investigation following the identification of the human remains, Sheriff Kemp noted:

"I want people to know that we don’t give up. And you may not know every little thing going on, it may be quiet for a little while, but this is proof that just because you don’t hear something every single week, it doesn’t mean there’s not work being done. We’ll do everything we can to press whatever charges need to be pressed."

The investigation into the death of Logan Bowman remains active and ongoing.