Cathy Terkanian Gave up Her Daughter Aundria for Adoption in 1975 — Decades Later She Was Searching for Aundria's Killer

While it's easy to condemn Netflix for its factory-like production of true-crime documentaries, there is goodness to be found in these disturbing tales. Some believe these types of films and series fetishize violence against women, but what they don't take into account is the people who genuinely want their stories told. Although the dead cannot speak for themselves, the living still want to understand what drives an individual to hurt another.

Every so often, Netflix finds an actual hero whose experiences are worth sharing. This is precisely how we get to know Cathy Terkanian, who is the driving force behind Into the Fire: The Lost Daughter. In 1975, 17-year-old Terkanian gave up her newborn daughter for adoption, with the hopes of giving her a better life. The child was adopted by Brenda and Dennis Bowman, but decades later, Terkanian discovered her child was a missing person. Here's what we know.

In February 2022, Dennis was sentenced to 35 to 50 years in prison after he was convicted of second-degree murder in the death of Aundria Bowman. Allegan County Prosecutor Myrene Koch told WOOD-TV that "Dennis Bowman was the suspect in Aundria’s disappearance for many years; however, despite numerous search warrants, interviews and searches of his property by law enforcement, no evidence was located at those times to link him to her murder." Things changed thanks to a genealogy website.

Dennis was already being investigated for the 1980 murder of a woman named Kathleen Doyle in Norfolk, Va., because he had previously confessed to breaking into her home and assaulting her, per the Holland Sentinel. Dennis claimed she was still alive when he left. Norfolk police didn't have a sample of Dennis's DNA but they learned that Michigan State Police did, as they were investigating Aundria's disappearance.

Both the Norfolk Police and Michigan State Police departments were able to compare the DNA from the Doyle crime scene with Dennis's DNA. When they learned there was a match, Dennis was arrested for Doyle's murder in November 2019, per Oxygen. While awaiting his trial, Dennis confessed to killing Aundria. Terkanian told Fox 17 News that the confession validated what she suspected all along.

Although Dennis received a hefty sentence for killing Aundria, he was already serving two life sentences for Doyle's murder. After the conviction in Michigan, he was returned to Virginia to serve his time.

In February 2021, Brenda testified during Dennis's trial, telling the court that Aundria had "confided she had been molested by her father when she was 13 and 14," reported WWMT. Brenda looked at her daughter and said, "That's a lie, and you know it." On March 11, 1989, Aundria got into a fight with Dennis after telling him she was going to the police. He later admitted to "striking his daughter, which caused her to lose her balance and fall."

Dennis proceeded to cut up her body and put it into a barrel that he buried in their backyard, though he would later dig it up and rebury it when he and Brenda moved. Brenda was told that Aundria stole $100 from them and ran away from home. He would keep this secret for over 30 years.

Terkanian got involved in 2010 when police reached out to her regarding a DNA sample they needed to help identify a body they thought was Aundria's. That was the first time she realized something had happened to her daughter. While that body wasn't Aundria's, it set Terkanian on a path that would last a decade.

For more on this story, stream Into the Fire: The Lost Daughter on Netflix starting Sept. 12, 2024.