A Student of Murder | Full Episode | Forensic Files

foreign [Music] it was early evening of August 31st 2012. when Nancy Knoll left work and headed
home [Music] started driving his battered old Subaru up interstate 5. some point P encountered a man in a BMW
he had no way of knowing that he was going to be dead in 10 minutes [Music] Nancy Noah was just a guy who lived in
North Seattle had a girlfriend and a dog like to climb mountains he was one of us
when you prosecute murder cases for as long as we have the random nature of death is what gets in your head he was
my best friend for 22 years he was my Touchstone he was the guy who kept me grounded
people adored him the last few moments of Yancey Knowles life were pulling up at a stoplight
the BMW pulled up next to Yancey's Subaru Yancey turned and saw this car and this
man next to him he saw the gun pointed at his head and he saw the bullet that shattered the
window and tore apart his face and then he turned and was shot three more times in the head
[Music] the witnesses really didn't know what had happened they heard the shots and then they saw the BMW pull into
oncoming traffic screeched out leaving tire marks going so fast that when the car hit a hill it took air and then sped
out of sight [Music] when I arrived that day at the murder scene it was dusk they had yellow crime
scene tape around Yancey Knowles Subaru there was blood outside the driver's door the driver's seat was saturated
with blood when police respond to a murder they're looking for a reason was anybody mad at
Yancey did Yancey have any enemies there might have been some kind of Road incident some kind of traffic incident
and what are people thinking that there's a killer on the loose there was a killer on the loose
[Music] it's Target didn't know they were looking for a student of murder [Music]
someone who would kill just to kill [Applause] [Music] I'm Peter Van Sant tonight on 48 hours
student of murder [Music] [Music] this case is about the presence of evil in our world it was like a bomb had
dropped none of us is ever safe any of us could have been Nancy Knoll prosecutors Adrian McCoy and Christian
Richardson say the murder of Yancey Knoll in 2012 shot to death in his car while stopped at a red light put the
city of Seattle on edge the police went all out they took it very seriously police are still looking for the suspect
Nancy Noel was shot and killed one week ago tonight right now the shooter is on the loose how big a story was this this
was a very big story Allison Grandy is a reporter for Cairo 7 a CBS News affiliate we have shootings in Seattle
we don't necessarily have many shootings in that area of Seattle that time of day
and that type of victim what were you hearing did Yancey Knoll have any enemies from talking to his friends the
Anthony didn't have any enemies he was an outdoorsy guy who enjoyed fine wine loved what he did working as a wine
Steward at QFC hey what's your name Nancy bottom line 42 year old Yancey Knoll was a good-hearted happy go lucky guy
wow yeah and friends say the idea that Yancey exploded into a road rage battle is ridiculous he drove like a grandma he
was very very careful long time friend Brad Kenny he had a Subaru wagon not known for its speed was he an angry man
no it was he impulsive No Reckless never verbally abusive God no not even close he was so careful and mindful with how
he interacted with people investigators suspect Yancey and his killer crossed paths around 7 pm on Interstate 5 just
north of Seattle it's possible that there was some sort of confrontation and Yancey pulled up to
the intersection thinking nothing of it [Music] you think he ever knew what hit him
never he was killed instantly thank God he had no idea what happened the details of this shooting were
curious to say the least right here five shots were fired with remarkable accuracy it was at about this time of
day and the shooter killed Yancey Knoll just a few feet from other motorists I heard five rapid shots they're kind of
like a pop pop pop friends Kevin watts and Angelo Rama were driving together when they heard those five pops behind
them the next thing they saw was a car speed away into oncoming traffic it drove by and I was like that's kind of
weird that someone wouldn't wait for a red light upset that the driver had run the red light the two friends hit the
gas and gave Chase we couldn't catch up to them how fast did that vehicle peel out of here zero
to sixteen like two three seconds he was gone [Music] gave up the Chase and returned to the
scene where a Subaru was still at the curb with its motor running the friends had a sinking feeling that those pops
they'd heard likely were gunshots I saw a lot of blood I saw where the bullet holes were and I
realized that there was just there's absolutely nothing I could do the shooter's bullets had hit Yancey four
times in the head the case was about to consume detectives Frank Clark and Dana Duffy for the next two years beancy had
no criminal history no history of being a hothead we really didn't have a lot to
go on after closely inspecting the crime scene the detectives realized Yancey's window
was down and the shooter had fired those five shots right through his own passenger side window that's so strange
to me the shooter would shoot through the passenger side window of his car at someone else have you ever heard of such
a thing no it it was strange to us as well that was a huge piece of evidence the
police now knew the shooter's car had a broken passenger side window and there was more even though witness Angelo Rama
had only glimpsed the fleeing car for a split second something registered my first guess was an M4 it's a BMW car the
one that I saw was a convertible it was silver was the top up or down it was down and when he was driving by I
noticed he had really really nice silver rims armed with his detailed description
the police advised the public to be on the lookout for that BMW model with that broken passenger side window
[Music] as for the driver I looked at the person who was driving the car because I'm
really good with faces Kevin watch helped a police artist come up with this remarkably detailed sketch of the
shooter within a week the sketch was released to the public along with grainy still
photos of the car from a nearby security camera we knew that police in Seattle were looking for a silver BMW and they
were pulling them over all over the city yes [Music] police were desperate to stop the killer
from striking again not knowing if or when he would two weeks went by and then a suspect surfaced who surprised
everyone when you see something like this from somebody who has it all together he's not crazy
he's just evil police are still looking for he was driving a silver BMW 20s or 30s did
Witnesses say leave for anyone with information in the two weeks that followed Yancey
Noel's brutal execution cops received hundreds of tips about that dark-haired suspect in a silver sports car
[Music] seemed at that time like everybody in the city of Seattle was driving a BMW Z4
or Z3 then on September 14th a woman calls in an anonymous tip for the first time this mysterious man has a
name and she provides a name of Jin Bowman and his address Which is less than 10 blocks from the
shooting site when we pulled up a photo of him matched the description of our sketch did his
hairstyle match yes and the age description match and yet the 29 year old Dan Bowman appears to be the most
unlikely of potential suspects he's a dazzling engineer with an inventive imagination the golf ball hits the lever
of this press which drives the drill which spins the wire with like this Rube Goldberg contraption he created
it swings over and hits this water bottle the bottle of the water bottle is a magnetic plunger the people that we've
spoken to have described him as brilliant a genius others have titled him as a genius which then triggers this
flamethrower Bowman was only a 12 year old when he entered College in his 20s Bowman opened
his own business a boutique engineering company called vague industries that specialized in robotics
and then in 2007 Bowman met Jennifer Palm a successful dentist at an education seminar they were married a
year later I thought they were what I considered to be a power couple very very sophisticated Justin Mata was a
friend of the Bowmans what would they like as a couple loving the both of them I think understood one another
but it was up to detectives Duffy and Clark to figure out din Bowman and they quickly learned that he had owned a BMW
we wanted to know does he still have that BMWs it's still at his house and immediately we came up with a plan that
we're going to set up a surveillance on his residence a Stakeout a Stakeout by with no sign of the BMW coming or
going but then the garage door opens up just enough for the detectives to spot a
silver sports car based on that information we're able to obtain a search warrant Before Dawn on September
21st 2012 as den and Jennifer were leaving for work police swooped in to arrest in Bowman
din was placed in handcuffs and transported down to our office but you know this police facility and
everything is being recorded okay I'll just let you know that Bowman has to wait two hours for
detectives to arrive to question him while he's killing time Bowman doesn't appear to be concerned he enjoys some
snacks and a cup of coffee exasperated Bowman complains his precious time is being wasted
will you nugget yes sir yes uh so kind of getting a little annoyed at how long this is taking do I need to like
um sorry just it it has to take as long as it takes okay he was pretty confused about the whole thing it was kind of
weird Bowman also didn't realize that in another room his wife Jennifer had agreed to answer questions from
detectives Clark and Duffy have you heard of any murders like within a few blocks of your house
in the last few weeks I'm not sure you're not sure it's a yes or no question I'm not sure we call it the I'm
not sure interview sure because her responses were overwhelmingly I'm not sure so your
honesty right now [Music] Jennifer didn't know that the detectives had already inspected din's BMW and had
discovered from these markings that the passenger side window had been replaced remember investigators were certain the
killer had fired through that glass the first thing we did was open the passenger door and you could see glass
shards in The Well of the door jamb also within the garage there was this fresh smell of paint
[Music] W's rims had been painted black what about the paint smell that we're smelling in there
I'm not sure do you know anything that goes on in your house for nearly four hours he bled
all over the freaking streets of Seattle okay investigators hammered Jennifer for
answers and I'm tired of you sitting there playing dumb well the interview was going on
investigators entered the Bowman's house which was surprisingly bare we knew that
Jennifer was the primary Breadwinner in that household and we knew from serving some of our search warrants that she
made probably 250 000 a year but when we got into the home she had hardly any bedroom furniture her mattress laid on
the floor as they went room to room investigators discovered a small arsenal of weapons and ammunition everything
except the suspected murder weapon a nine millimeter Glock [Music] when detectives finally got to Bowman
they hoped he would answer a few questions but Bowman was smart enough to shut down the interview do you want to
talk to a lawyer you want to talk to us first well I guess I'd like to talk to a
lawyer Bowman might have been done with the detectives but they were far from finished with him
you're going to be charged with a crime of what murder of what of who murder of a human being
okay it was something to see at least 45 friends of murder victim Yancey Knoll packed arraignment court this morning to
get a look at this man you watch this man walk in and you see this unassuming person and you go
why why would why would you do this do Bowman has been in custody for four months for the murder of Yancey Noel and
at this hearing Bowman learns his bail is set at a stunning 10 million dollars a sum he cannot make he hasn't shown any
sign of guilt or even fear Brad Kenny is desperate for answers it just feels he was so much anger while Bowman appears
stoic in court prosecutors say the alleged killer has a quirky side that emerges in hundreds of recorded
Jailhouse phone calls with his wife Jennifer they had pet names Den was bunny and Mrs Bowman Jennifer was snuggles
Bunny and snuggles Bunny and snuggles when they talk to each other they talk in baby talk honey bunny how are you
my little Sparkle cake I just wrote you an email yay it's very strange very strange
I miss so many things right now I know I don't have a snuggles you don't have a snuggle one next to you everyone warned
us don't listen to the jail calls don't listen to the jail calls you'll want to throw up
mama Meanwhile Back among the grown-ups detectives Frank Clark and Dana Duffy were methodically building their
homicide case against Bowman they discovered that for years that tech savvy genius had been downloading these
books articles and videos to his computer on the subject of death and murder it's not that he just had a
little bit of it he had tons of it and then there was Bowman's obsession with this man Bond
James Bond [Applause] and it showed in Bowman's computer videos that's din Bowman driving a car at high
speeds around an obstacle course and here he is blasting away in shooting demonstrations where he proved he was an
expert Marksman with either hand I don't believe that Dan Bowman got up that morning thinking today's the day that
I'm going to shoot somebody this situation presented itself somehow but once it did then all his self-training
and research kicked in we're going to talk about shooting through glass and one of
Bowman's videos made by a Firearms expert really shocked police I've come into a situation where I feel threatened
by somebody off to my passenger side it was a play-by-play of Yancey's murder of
course I recognize I come down I grip I cross parallel extend touch press if you want to know how to shoot
somebody in traffic from your very fancy sports car was an awfully helpful video he didn't
even have to roll down his window prosecutors came to believe Bowman wanted to kill someone just for the
thrill of it why would he commit this murder in broad daylight where there are witnesses around who could see his car
perhaps see him what's the fun of it if there's no challenge if there's no Witnesses if there's no need to get away
to speed off and fly through neighborhood streets and hide your car in your garage that was the fun for him
soon after the murder police say that Bowman went to his computer where he had his vast library of murder-related books
including arrest proof yourself how to cover up a murder how to get rid of a gun
how to get rid of gunshot residue and police say Bowman now had an accomplice Jennifer Bowman AKA snuggles do you
understand how serious this is Jennifer Jennifer to me seemed very very nervous tell us the truth poor eye
contact I could see that she was shaky tell me the truth right now Jennifer never asked for a lawyer and
handed over her purse where police found receipts that aided the investigation do
either of you have the belief that Jennifer had prior knowledge of this attack I don't think she had prior
knowledge but I believe that at some point Den told her what happened she had to know something because the next day
she went to Portland with him [Music] to this auto glass shop where police say Bowman began to cover up his crime his
wife by his side she was very standoffish she didn't say much repairman Jeff Shields he just seemed
like he needed a window right away Bowman told Shields the BMW window had been Shattered by a thief while he and
Jennifer were eating in Portland what time of day was the window broken we found it in the afternoon approximately
what time it was right after we at lunch but detectives say a restaurant receipt
from Jennifer's purse told a different story they were never there for lunch they went there at dinner time
[Music] three weeks later the Bowmans visited a tire store in Northern Seattle manager
Doug haskett says Bowman used the name Peter while his wife avoided eye contact she was a blonde and she just kind of
looked at the ground she really wouldn't talk to anybody Bowman bought four cheaper tires to replace the expensive
BMW tires why would he get new tires because during our investigation the media released that there were tired
tread tracks left at the scene why did you get new tires that's where the other ones wore out
I'm not sure what if we put you on a polygraph test today you'd feel it like a sack of potatoes I
mean I can tell your lion just looking at you police say they later found the set of
expensive practically new BMW tires inside Bowman's workshop at vague Industries the murder weapon was never
recovered but prosecutors felt they had enough evidence to try Den Bowman for first degree murder
and he would soon take the stand and tell a story he had long kept secret if I didn't do something right then I was
going to die [Music] foreign what do we have here Peter we're in the evidence Warehouse of
the Seattle Police Department two vehicles side by side once again just as they were on that summer evening in
August 2012. this is Dan Bowman's BMW Roadster Z4 and Yancey Knowles Subaru what brought them together is unclear
the results of their encounter is not [Music] what goes through your mind when you
look inside this car sadness Devastation for Yancey this family lost a loving member murder is is very ugly it's never
pretty and now on November 19 2014 two years after Yancey Knoll was savagely gunned down his alleged killer
enters the courtroom to face the charge of first-degree murder please rise court is now in session by
the time of trial he looked like he was 13. Dean Bowman is transformed gone is The Confident cocky young man who first
met with detectives do you want to talk to a lawyer you want to talk to us first
well I guess I'd like to talk to a lawyer and in his place is what appears to be a clean-cut college student this
guy doesn't look like a killer and that's not at all uncommon for defendants to change their appearance in
order to appeal to the jury Bowman's mother a native of Vietnam and his father a Boeing engineer are in court
every day to support their only child but his cooing wife Jennifer his snuggles is nowhere to be seen
we are ready to begin opening statements prosecutor Adrian McCoy tells jurors that the motive for murder wasn't greed
or jealousy this was a fulfillment of a quest but something far more Macabre a quest to know
what it would be like to kill someone McCoy attempts to take the jury inside Bowman's Mind by showing these training
videos recovered from his computer we're going to talk about shooting through glass
from video to thousands of pages of research on killing another person prosecutors paid a portrait of a
premeditated murder it was the equivalent of the Library of Congress on death you ever seen anything like this before
in your career not even close why was all that stuff on his computer he hoarded information he had a lot of
things on his computer that are totally bizarre having possession of it doesn't mean anything Mr Bowman was actually
trying to create a library of basically everything Bowman's lawyer prominent defense attorney John Henry Brown whose
former clients include serial killer Ted Bundy says there's no evidence that Bowman ever read or watched any of these
materials they were thousands if not hundreds of thousands of pages about engineering techniques but also there
was all this bizarre stuff that the prosecutors used in order to make up their motive
as the defense presents its case Brown takes a big gamble you swear our firm on the penalty he puts din Bowman on the
stand I felt like it was just this crazy bad dream and like I was just right like I
was running from a monster and brown knows he's risking it all on Bowman's ability to sway jurors and convince them
that he was the victim of road rage if I didn't do something right then I was going to die Bowman explains that it all
began when he accidentally cut off Yancy knoll on the interstate there was sort of a
a stream of swearing I think the the phrase that caught my attention was you better learn how to drive that fancy
card boy or you're gonna get yourself CNC he followed him off the interstate to this traffic light where they both
stopped and it was that point when I got framed yeah that Wham Bowman says was a wine
bottle thrown by Yancey that hit him in the head he's an absolute liar that's sacrilegious to Yancey would never throw
and waste wine on somebody like that I remember seeing his eyes really like bulging
and like as he was kind of as he was yelling I would describe it as just like violent hatred that you would
I had only seen in the movies did you think it was possibly a gun yeah yeah I was scared
fearing for his life Bowman says he pulled out his nine millimeter Glock pointed it at Yancey and fired
you intentionally shot yes was it your intent to kill him no road rage is by definition not
premeditation and Bowman says he shot Yancy Knoll in self-defense I remember opening my eyes seeing that I had the
gun in my hand and I just dropped the gun and stepped on the gas though Bowman claims
he was the victim he didn't call the police panicked Bowman says he collected evidence from his car including the wine
bottle and the gun and threw it all away throwing away of the evidence that would
support his own story this is a guy whose genius level IQ right well but yeah but a lot of geniuses I
know don't have a lot of common sense he threw away the evidence that you could show the police to prove you were not a
criminal right I didn't think they would even believe me but prosecutor Kristen Richardson
isn't buying a word of Bowman's story you don't think that most husbands would go home to their wives and say oh my God
I almost got killed I figured the more that he talked the worse it was going to get for him you're an expert shooter
what was your target I there was no aiming involved in this okay well you did a pretty good job
didn't you because you hit him four times in the head including the temple right
um that surprised me for three days Richardson hammers away at Bowman you lied to your parents you lied to your
wife right is that a question but he never loses his composure Mr Roman you have no trouble answering yes or no to
Mr Brown is there something wrong with the way I ask questions of you foreign question okay well that's the first no I
think I've gotten from you so I guess the point's been made I have nothing else thank you you may step down as
didn't Bowman steps down the question is did he convince the jury that he killed
Yancey Noel to save his life but I think Jim deeply believed that the jury would
see that self-defense is justifiable homicide or simply for the thrill is he guilty of murder in the first degree
yes [Music] [Music] I will never forget Nancy [Music] every time he hikes this Trail Brad
Kenny thinks of his friend Yancy Knoll I really miss him it's never going to be over and I'll always miss him
I mean it's good to be here but it's um it's really difficult didn't Bowman's murder trial is coming
to a close he hasn't shown one iota of remorse he's just completely stoic [Music]
I think we're ready for the jurors on December 9 2014 more than two years after Yancey Knowles murder and
coincidentally din Bowman's 32nd birthday jurors begin deliberations it's the worst part of the job waiting for a
verdict but it's just the nature of it you always doubt yourself one person not doubting himself is Den Bowman as he
confides to his wife Jennifer in recorded Jailhouse phone calls we should chastise the it's yours if they take
longer than tomorrow Jennifer has not appeared a single day of Bowman's trial but she stays in constant contact and
has no doubt whatsoever of his innocence [Music] to believe anything be City please
on day three the jury returns I understand the jury has reached a verdict I will read the verdict form
we the jury find the defendant Thomas Ben Bowman guilty of the crime of Murder in the
first degree is charged guilty the jury didn't buy Den Bowman's he admits he killed Noel but says first degree murder
required premeditation it's a total surprise to Bowman but sweet relief to Yancey's girlfriend and his supporters
the verdict is read what was that moment like for din well he was so emotionally
upset he said I can't believe it I can't believe it I can't believe it different looking Den Bowman is back in
court for sentencing Mr Bowman made some bad decisions the once cocky boy Genius
is gone as the reality of the guilty verdict sinks in and his parents stepped forward to beg the judge for mercy
I know this is my fault defense attorney Brown must finish reading her statement our son's acts are
our faults my husband and I we provide and allowed him to learn a gun for self-protection
brown a seasoned trial lawyer can't help but show emotion as din's mother asks the judge to send her to prison in place
of her only child please ask you about myself to substitute any punishment by placing myself in din's role it was
heartbreaking to watch his mother at sentencing for her to offer herself in his place to do his punishment for him
that's real moments later it's Bowman's turn damn are you able to speak but Yancey's girlfriend and his
supporters refuse to listen I'm disappointed that the Jews didn't believe me in the first words out of Den's mouth
when he's asked to make a statement at sentencing is not about his parents or his heartbroken mother or Yancey's
friends or family it's I can't believe the jury didn't believe me that's his Focus
I don't even having to make the uh burden of deciding by faith it's it's not and I'm sorry for placing you in
that situation and all I could ask as the judge is about to deliver Bowman's sentence he has something he
feels compelled to say I feel very sorry for your parents Mr Bowman and I want to
tell them that it is not their fault Mr Bowman is responsible for his own actions
Bowman gets 29 years and one month slightly less than the maximum the case against in Bowman is over but
the police feel there's unfinished business was Jennifer misleading or dishonest or lying at any point during
this questioning yes she was I would very much like her to be charged with a crime the crime of helping her husband
cover up Yancey's murder Frank would you like her to be charged with a crime yes
I would Jennifer today has changed her name and her job she opened the door but we tracked her down in Seattle hey
Jennifer Peter Van sat 48 hours why did you lie to Detectives why did you help your husband cover up a
murder you can talk to us no answers still ultimately the state attorney chose not
to bring charges against Jennifer and she in turn has cut off all ties with the man she once endearingly called her
bunny [Music] today the house the couple lived in sits empty the two cars at the heart of this
case remain in a police Warehouse but the memories of Yancey Noel remain as alive as ever ready ready get it
hahaha [Music] foreign [Music]

Was a boy genius a stone cold killer too? "48 Hours" correspondent Peter Van Sant investigates. Watch more full episodes of "48 Hours" on Pluto TV.

True crime. Real justice. "48 Hours" investigates the most intriguing crime and justice cases that touch on all areas of the human experience including greed and passion. "48 Hours," which premiered in 1988, has developed a rich history of original reporting and impact journalism that has helped exonerate wrongly convicted people, caused cold cases to be reopened and solved, and along the way changed lives.

For video licensing inquiries, contact: licensing@veritone.com

Brief Summary

Yancey Knoll was murdered in 2012; Din Bowman was convicted of first-degree murder after a chaotic investigation and trial.

Key points

The Murder of Yancey Knowles. Yancey Knowles was shot to death in his car while stopped at a red light, shocking the Seattle community.
The Search for the Killer. Police launched a massive manhunt for the shooter, who was still on the loose after the murder.
The Suspect Emerges. A tip leads detectives to Jin Bowman, an unlikely suspect with a seemingly perfect life.
Bowman's Arrest. Din Bowman was arrested after detectives spotted his silver BMW, matching the description of the suspect's vehicle.
The Trial Begins. Two years after the murder, Din Bowman faces trial for the first-degree murder of Yancey Knowles.
Bowman's Trial Verdict. The jury finds Den Bowman guilty of first-degree murder, shocking him and bringing relief to Yancey's supporters.

Episode highlights

Episode quotes

He was my Touchstone, the guy who kept me grounded.

A friend reflecting on Yancey Knowles.

1:05WatchMay 9, 2023

Tension

85/ 100High tension

More from 48 Hours

Solve the Crime

Read a real case one clue at a time, then see how your call held up against the investigators.