Patricia Marceaux was known to be punctual. So when the 55-year-old Centralia woman failed to show for her 6 a.m. shift at the ARCO AM/PM store on Aug. 5, her coworker called in a welfare check.
Centralia police officers arrived at her home on 1205 Marion St. at about 7:30 a.m. They found her dead inside, lying on her back on the bedroom floor. Blood pooled around her neck wound. Three spent casings lay nearby. No other occupants were in the home, save for a small dog.
On Thursday, Centralia police announced a suspect, Douglas Bowen, was in custody in Idaho awaiting extradition to Lewis County on first-degree murder charges.
Few details had emerged since Aug. 6, when the Centralia Police Department first announced the suspicious death of an unnamed person. On Aug. 14, the Lewis County Coroner’s Office confirmed Marceaux as the victim of homicide caused by multiple gunshot wounds.
That same day, Centralia Police Chief Andy Caldwell told The Chronicle no one had been charged, but said detectives were following leads and coordinating with another agency.
Now, Bowen, a 56-year-old former Lewis County resident living in Hayden, Idaho, has been charged with two counts of first-degree murder and one count each of first-degree unlawful firearm possession, second-degree theft and third-degree theft.
He faces up to life in prison.
The first murder charge alleges Bowen committed the act with premeditated intent. The second charge alleges Bowen murdered Marceaux while attempting to commit first-degree robbery.
According to a probable cause affidavit, Bowen had worked as a home improvement contractor in Centralia and “performed a substantial amount of work” at Marceaux’s home.
In their Thursday news release, Centralia police said Bowen was expected to be extradited from the Kootenai County Jail and booked into the Lewis County Jail within weeks.
The investigation
According to the affidavit, officers at the scene observed multiple gunshot wounds to Marceaux’s neck and torso. They later recovered 12 .22-caliber long rifle casings. The autopsy noted a gunshot to the back of Marceaux’s head that did not penetrate the skull. Investigators estimated Marceaux had been shot 13 to 15 times.
Detectives described the aftermath of a “targeted search”: drawers and closets rummaged through, an empty wallet on Marceaux’s bed and medications scattered about.
Detectives applied for and received a search warrant for the home and the three vehicles parked outside — including two registered to Marceaux.
The Washington State Patrol Crime Scene Response Team assisted in photographing the scene and collecting evidence, including a coffee cup taken for DNA analysis. The Lewis County Sheriff’s Office also assisted in the investigation.
Investigators learned the other three residents were all hospitalized at the time of Marceaux’s murder. Her last text messages went to one of those residents at about 4:30 a.m. on Aug. 4.
Detectives identified a limited number of regular visitors, including a yard worker who had worked at the property for at least a year and a half. According to the affidavit, the worker admitted to watering and weeding the yard the evening of Aug. 4. He said he had knocked on the front door but no one answered.
Detectives investigated the worker, searching his trailer and car.
The case took a turn on Aug. 7, when a detective at the Kootenai County Sheriff's Office contacted Centralia detectives about the June 11 homicide of 77-year-old Karen Boyd in the Coeur d'Alene area.
According to the affidavit, the detective said Boyd had been shot with .22-caliber long rifle ammunition after being “financially exploited” out of $53,000 by Bowen. Prior to her death, Boyd had suffered a “suspicious fentanyl overdose incident,” after which her family had attempted to separate her from Bowen. Bowen’s phones had allegedly gone “dark” around the time of Boyd’s death. The FBI was assisting in the investigation, according to the affidavit.
Investigators learned Bowen had lived in Lewis County before moving to Idaho. He’d even introduced the yard worker to Marceaux and the other residents. According to one of the residents, Bowen had come to the home about two weeks prior to Marceaux’s murder to finish painting and other work he’d abandoned two years ago. A resident reportedly told him they didn’t have the money to hire him.
As the investigation homed in on Bowen, the FBI reportedly used cellphone data to place Bowen at the Muckleshoot Casino Resort in Auburn shortly before Marceaux’s death. According to the affidavit, Bowen’s two phones “went dark” in the Olympia and Tumwater area from about 5 a.m. to 2 p.m. on Aug. 4. The pattern matched with the Boyd case.
According to the affidavit, Flock cameras captured Bowen’s 2017 Chevrolet Silverado pickup truck in Auburn and Centralia on Aug. 3. Private residential cameras later recorded the truck on Marion Street. Flock cameras found it heading away from Marceaux’s home.
The next day, Flock and private cameras reportedly captured the truck near Marceaux’s home from about 6:50 a.m. until 8 a.m., before capturing it returning to Auburn at about 10:25 a.m.
Investigators interviewed Bowen’s fiancée on Aug. 13, 20, and 26. She initially denied being with Bowen in Centralia the morning of Marceaux’s murder, according to the affidavit, though she later reported her 22-caliber pistol had gone missing from her safe, and allegedly said Bowen had asked her to buy a silencer. The woman said she’d refused.
According to the affidavit, the woman described Bowen’s recent secrecy, his steroid and peptide injections, and “financial strain” due, in part, to gambling losses.
Law enforcement detain Bowen
The Kootenai County SWAT Team detained Bowen on Aug. 13. According to Centralia police, Bowen was arrested on weapons-related charges, including unlawful firearm possession.
A search of his fiancée’s Ford Explorer reportedly yielded a “9mm pistol, a .22-caliber pistol equipped with a suppressor, and improvised zip-tie restraints,” according to the affidavit.
During an interview, Bowen allegedly said he’d gone to Marceaux’s home to inspect repairs. He said he’d been offered coffee by Marceaux, but later “became uncertain as to whether he had actually consumed it,” according to the affidavit.
After detectives informed Bowen of Marceaux’s death, Bowen allegedly said he’d need an attorney, though he continued to talk, giving conflicting accounts about the location of his phones.
According to the affidavit, Bowen allegedly confessed to murdering Marceaux during an interview with Centralia detectives on Aug. 26.
“He said Patricia gave him coffee and then walked toward her bedroom to get allergy medication for him,” the affidavit said. “He got up, removed the gun from the bag, and began shooting from the hallway while she stood sideways in her bedroom looking for the medicine. He said he emptied a magazine, inserted another magazine, and continued firing because he did not want her to suffer.”
According to the affidavit, Bowen allegedly said he then rummaged through the home to “make the scene look like a robbery.” He stole credit cards and jewelry, which he later pawned.
Lewis County Prosecutor’s Office files charges
The Lewis County Prosecutor’s Office filed charges against Bowen on Sept. 2. A no-bail arrest warrant was issued that day.
Prosecutors believe Bowen’s alleged statement to detectives that he “lost control” contradicts with his planning of the murder. According to prosecutors, Bowen admitted to buying items for a homemade suppressor, chose to be dropped off by his fiancée away from Marceaux’s home, and changed his wardrobe before leaving Marceaux’s home.
According to the affidavit, Bowen allegedly told detectives he’d “jogged down the road” until his fiancée picked him up.
“He described financial collapse after gambling away a large settlement and other funds, failed nonprofit and housing ventures, heavy testosterone and peptide use, sleeplessness, and panic,” the affidavit said.
Police said the investigation remains active and ongoing and encouraged anyone with additional information to contact the Centralia Police Department at 360-330-7680.
