How Did He Die? Who Killed Him?

Dana Nicole Lowrey started a new job selling magazines in Ohio in 2006 and got a fresh start after breaking up with her partner, who was also the father of her two children. When he stopped contacting them for a long period of time, his loved ones assumed he had chosen to move on. Unfortunately, the truth was much more tragic. Human remains discovered near Marion, Ohio in 2018 were determined to belong to Dana. ABC’s ‘Meet the Other Me’ episode of ’20/20′ follows the meticulous police work that led to uncovering the truth about Dana’s fate and bringing her killer to justice.

Dana Lowrey Suddenly Stopped Calling Her Kids She Talked To Every Day

Dana Nicole Lowrey was born in 1983 in Minden, Louisiana. Little is known about his early years, except that he tragically lost his parents at a young age. She longed for a family of her own and found joy when she met David Cobb. Together, they welcomed two daughters, one in 1999 and the other in 2005, and for a while it seemed like Dana had found the stability she’d always dreamed of. However, the relationship eventually deteriorated, leading to a falling out with David. Dana quietly left the house, sharing few details about her departure.

According to David, the next time Dana contacted him he was in Ohio and working as a door-to-door magazine salesman. She called every day to check on her daughters and gave the impression that she was adjusting well to her new life. However, the calls suddenly stopped in May 2006. David didn’t think much of it at the time, assuming Dana had decided to move on and cut ties. Unbeknownst to her, Dana had never been in contact with anyone. It was learned that one of his aunts filed a missing person report, but there were no significant developments in the incident.

On March 10, 2007, police discovered human remains in Salt Rock Township, Marion County, Ohio. The remains had been cremated, and since no personal belongings or identifying material were found nearby, identification of the victim was difficult. DNA was collected from the scene and entered into a national database, launching a global search to identify the person. For years, Dana’s family remained unanswered. With the help of multiple agencies and advances in forensic technology, the remains were not positively identified as Dana’s until 2018. His family finally retrieved his remains and buried him in Minden, Louisiana.

The Arrest of a Serial Killer Helped Dana’s Case a Lot

The first significant development in the Dana Lowrey case occurred in September 2016 with the arrest of Shawn Grate. Authorities found the bodies of two women, Elizabeth Griffith and Stacey Stanley, in his home in Ashland, Ohio. These horrific findings came to light when a woman called 911 from Grate’s home and reported that Grate had kidnapped and assaulted her for days. While in custody, Grate confessed to other murders, including one in Marion, Ohio. This location was the last reported sighting of Dana, but directly linking her to the murder remained a challenging task.

During his confession, Grate had trouble remembering the victim’s name and vaguely stated that it was something like Dana, Diane or Dina. He explained that he sold a magazine to his mother and when he couldn’t deliver it, he decided to attack her. Grate put him in his car and brought him back to his house. There he strangled her until she lost consciousness, then dragged her to the basement, where he stabbed her in the neck and killed her. He said he wrapped her body in sheets and threw it on the roadside. Grate then returned to the house with the sheets and burned them. He then revisited the scene where he left the body and set it on fire as well.

Advanced DNA Tracing Helped Identify Dana Lowrey’s Killer

Following Shawn Grate’s confession, authorities followed leads in Canada, Israel, Mexico, the United States and even Estonia in hopes of identifying the victim. In October 2016, a drawing was created by a sketch artist at the Delaware County sheriff’s office based on an interview with Grate. Additionally, a 3D facial reconstruction sculpture was produced by a forensic artist from the Ohio Bureau of Criminal Investigation. These images were shared with the public in January 2017 to assist in identification efforts. In 2018, researchers reexamined Dana Lowrey’s DNA and used oxygen isotope analysis. This advanced technique revealed that the victim was likely born in the southern United States, providing a critical piece of the puzzle by narrowing down the search.

Police worked with the DNA Doe Project, a nonprofit organization, to further the investigation. Dana’s DNA was uploaded to a database, where it was compared to other samples, resulting in a match. Despite this progress, police were unable to identify Dana from a photo when they conducted a follow-up interview with Grate. At the time, Grate had already been convicted and sentenced to death in addition to life in prison without the possibility of parole for his other crimes. But closing Dana Lowrey’s case brought much-needed peace and healing to her family, offering them a sense of resolution after years of uncertainty.

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