August 19, 1984. Manassas, Virginia. At around 4:15 AM, the doorbell rings at the residence of Johnny Bowman, a 31-year old trooper with the Virginia State Police. When Johnny answers the door, he is viciously attacked by an assailant who stabs him over 40 times before fleeing the scene and they leave behind a wig, glasses and hardhat which were possibly used as a disguise. Years later, investigators announce that their prime suspect is Perry Worrell, a former state trooper who happened to be one of Johnny’s closest friends, and they believe the murder was committed over some sort of personal dispute. However, there is not enough evidence to make an arrest and the crime continues to be surrounded by unanswered questions. On this week’s episode of “The Trail Went Cold”, we explore the murder of a Virginia state trooper which has gone unsolved for over 40 years.
Additional Reading:
https://www.odmp.org/officer/2106-trooper-johnny-rush-bowman
https://www.fbi.gov/news/stories/seeking-info-in-1984-murder-of-virgina-trooper-johnny-bowman-092418
https://www.fbi.gov/wanted/seeking-info/trooper-johnny-rush-bowman
https://www.fbi.gov/contact-us/field-offices/washingtondc/news/press-releases/advancements-in-forensic-technology-renew-investigation-into-30-year-old-murder-of-virginia-trooper
https://abcnews.go.com/US/fbi-solve-1984-murder-virginia-state-trooper-stabbed/story?id=58091478
https://www.wric.com/news/virginia-news/northern-virginia/decades-old-of-virginia-state-trooper-remains-unsolved-vsp-continues-to-pursue-leads/
https://www.wusa9.com/article/news/murder-of-virginia-state-police-trooper-still-unsolved-35-years-later/65-83929bda-2a59-40b6-b038-3f9ca43c7363
https://www.washingtonpost.com/archive/local/2004/08/20/20-years-later-still-tracking-a-killer-of-one-of-their-own/41c88673-53e1-4b7e-b529-023e74f6d117/
https://www.washingtonpost.com/local/renewed-push-to-solve-virginia-state-troopers-1984-murder/2012/08/15/6ed57874-e6ff-11e1-936a-b801f1abab19_story.html
https://wjla.com/news/local/johnny-bowman-murder-fbi-police-step-up-investigation-into-1984-murder-78848
https://www.newspapers.com/image/1142213702/
https://www.newspapers.com/image/917727554/
https://www.newspapers.com/image/984481810/
https://www.newspapers.com/image/984481897/
https://www.newspapers.com/image/984401040/
https://www.newspapers.com/image/984401500/
https://www.newspapers.com/image/985892491/
"The Trail Went Cold" will be appearing at the True Crime Podcast Festival, taking place at the Doubletree by Hilton Hotel Boston North Shore in Boston, Massachusetts on July 18-20, 2025. To get a 20 % discount on tickets, please use our specialized promo code, “ROBIN20”, by visiting https://www.truecrimepodcastfestival.com/.
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The Trail Went Cold is produced and edited by Magill Foote.
All music is composed by Vince Nitro.