What happened to Aundria Bowman? Netflix docu explores mystery of missing teen made famous by Soul Asylum
HAMILTON, MICHIGAN: Teenage American Aundria Michelle Bowman disappeared from her family's Hamilton, Michigan, farm under suspicious circumstances. Aundria was raised by her adoptive father, Dennis Bowman, after being adopted as a baby.
She said he had molested her when she was fourteen. She disappeared from the rural estate owned by her family not long after this occurrence.
Dennis said that she had fled after robbing her parents of their money. Her case was labeled a runaway as she had been gone for almost thirty years. Among other missing children, Aundria's picture appeared in the music video for the Soul Asylum song "Runaway Train". Dennis was taken into custody in November 2019 on suspicion of killing Kathleen Doyle in Norfolk, Virginia, in September 1980. Dennis was charged with Kathleen's murder after being extradited to Virginia in February 2020. He was also charged with Aundria's murder in May 2020. The case of Aundria has drawn national attention from media outlets, such as Inside Edition and Oxygen.
The journey is chronicled in 'Into the Fire: The Lost Daughter', which delves into the murky depths of a terrifying true-crime tale that is nearly unbelievably real. But at the core of this maze-like story is the strength of maternal instinct that transcends time and distance, as well as the enduring link between mother and child.
Who was Aundria Bowman?
In New Orleans, Louisiana, on June 23, 1974, Alexis Miranda Badger gave birth to Aundria. Her real mother, Cathy Terkanian, placed her for adoption when she was nine months old.
After spending some time in foster care, Alexis was 21 months old when she was adopted by the Michigan Bowman family, who gave her the new name Aundria.
Why did Aundria Bowman run away?
When Aundria showed anxiety about returning home from school in late 1988, the personnel at her high school became concerned. When Aundria was examined by police after being involved by school staff, she disclosed that she was being molested by her adoptive father.
A social worker brought Aundria back to her family's house and questioned them about her claims. Dennis and his ex-wife refuted Aundria's claims, saying that her family's recent admission that she was adopted as a baby had caused her to become rebellious. The Bowmans moved to a mobile home in an Allegan County rural region shortly after this occurrence. Aundria was last seen at this location. Dennis said she had taken money from him before fleeing when her family reported her missing. The status of Aundria's case was changed to "endangered runaway."
In the weeks and months after her daughter vanished, Brenda shared a number of suggestions that appeared to corroborate Aundria's escape.
Brenda reported at the end of March that she had seen Aundria in a 7-Eleven. Brenda claimed to have gotten an anonymous call in mid-April from someone saying that the adolescent was being sought by police, but that they were searching the incorrect street—whatever that meant.
She claimed to have seen Aundria in June at a nearby house, where she was allegedly hanging out with some young males. Additionally, Brenda reported in October that a friend had spotted Aundria in a Meijer queue, pregnant and sporting colored hair.
The police looked into it, but they discovered nothing.
Aundria Bowman featured in Soul Asylum's 'Runaway Train'
After graduating and going to prom, Aundria's peers either obtained jobs or enrolled in college. They eventually got married and had a family.
However, Aundria would always be 14. Most people's memory of her was created by a single image.
The police had received it when she first disappeared. Aundria is shown in it seated in front of a blue studio background, facing slightly off-camera, with her black, shaggy hair flowing over her forehead and her optimistic green eyes directed skyward.
She has a beautifully unbalanced smile. She appears to be in between adolescence and maturity.
Pictures of missing kids were frequently printed on milk container sides or on fliers that were posted to the top of pizza delivery boxes. The photo of Aundria ended up somewhere else.
The names and pictures of children who went missing across America were used in the first music video for the song "Runaway Train" by Soul Asylum, which was released in 1993. Multiple versions of the video, which aired on MTV and VH1, were a big smash.
Aundria's picture can be seen in the Michigan version shortly after the two-minute mark. Director Tony Kaye asserted that the video was responsible for the discovery of over twenty missing children while looking back on the video 20 years after it was first released.
Aundria was not one of them.
Why was Dennis Bowman arrested?
After Aundria's disappearance was reported, her family left the house they had lived in. Over the following several months, Aundria's adoptive mother called the police multiple times, claiming to have heard reports of multiple sightings of Aundria that could not be verified. When she vanished, Dennis had a noteworthy criminal history. In 1980, he was taken into custody after a young lady reported that he had tried to entice her into a forested location in western Michigan so that he might attack her. After reaching an agreement with the prosecution, he entered a guilty plea for the assault. Dennis was taken into custody in 1998 after breaking into an Ottawa County coworker's house and taking many items, including her underwear.
Dennis wrote a letter to the presiding court mentioning his daughter's disappearance before his sentencing in the case, "I am the father of two lovely daughters, one 25 and the other 11, and feel that being a parent is one of the most important and sobering things a person can undertake." Jane Doe, identified as Peggy Johnson after being found in a Wisconsin cornfield in 1999, was thought to be Aundria because of her striking similarities. Dennis, however, was eliminated as a candidate using DNA profiling that her real mother, Cathy, gave.
Dennis, Aundria's adoptive father, was detained in November 2019 in connection with the unresolved September 11, 1980, killing of 25-year-old Kathleen in Norfolk, Virginia. He had been involved in court proceedings for his attempted assault of a young woman during this time, but he was unable to appear in court for two weeks in September 1980, citing his duty to attend a two-week drill as a member of the US Navy Reserve.
Dennis Bowman confesses to murdering his adoptive daughter Aundria Bowman
Early in February 2020, it was reported that Dennis had admitted to authorities that he had killed his adoptive daughter, Aundria, while he was detained awaiting trial for Kathleen's murder. A few days later, it was reported that skeletal remains, hidden by a thin coating of cement, had been found in the 3200 block of 136th Avenue in Monterey Township, Allegan County (close to Dennis's house). Dennis was extradited to Virginia on February 9, 2020, to stand trial for the murder of Mrs Doyle. Later, DNA testing verified that the bones were, in fact, those of Aundria.
Dennis was accused of Aundria's murder on May 15, 2020. In June, he entered a guilty plea on both counts. He received two life sentences for the murder of Katherine. Dennis entered a plea of not guilty to second-degree murder in Allegan County Circuit Court on December 22, 2021, following the death of 14-year-old Aundria.
He received a further 35–50 years in jail as punishment for killing Aundria.
To know more about the case, tune into Netflix on September 12 to watch 'Into the Fire: The Lost Daughter'