Sally Anne Bowman, a talented young woman from Croydon was brutally attacked and murdered outside her home at 18. The case remained unsolved until June 2006, when the perpetrator behind this monstrous act was finally caught.
Early Life
Sally Anne Bowman was born on 11 September 1987, in Croydon, London. She was the youngest of four sisters and showed her talents early in life. Sally attended the BRIT School for Performing Arts and Technology, where renowned artists like Adele and Amy Winehouse also studied.
She had a passion for singing, dancing and performing. After finishing school in 2004, she explored careers in both hairdressing and modeling, the Irish Sun reports.
At a young age, Sally sought independence and moved into her own apartment.
The Night of September 24, 2005
On the evening of 24 September 2005, she was at her mother’s house when her sister, Nicole invited her to celebrate a friend’s birthday. She agreed and left at 6:05 p.m. The group spent the night at Lloyd’s Bar in Croydon and later went to Nicole’s house. Around 2:20 a.m, Sally contacted her ex-boyfriend Lewis Sproston, asking him to pick her up.
Sally fabricated a story about her sister being in trouble to convince Lewis to drive her home. During the car ride, they argued about their recent breakup.
Lewis Sproston: “I thought she was seeing other boys that night and she thought I was seeing other girls. It was just jealousy. There may have been raised voices, but no one outside the car would have heard us”, per The Telegraph.
At 4:15 a.m. Lewis dropped her off at her home on Blenheim Crescent and drove away. Sadly, this was the last time Sally was seen alive.
The Horrifying Discovery
Approximately two hours later, a neighbor discovered her body outside her residence. She had suffered severe injuries and was partially undressed. A resident had heard disturbing noises earlier that night but after checking the area saw nothing unusual and went back to sleep.
Authorities were immediately called and an investigation began. The crime scene revealed the brutality of the attack. Sally had been stabbed multiple times in the neck and stomach, per the BBC.
Evidence indicated that she had been sexually assaulted either before or after her death. Investigators also found bite marks on various parts of her body, including her neck, chest and cheek. Her family was devastated by the heartbreaking news.
Linda Bowman: “At 11.30am on Sunday September 25 2005 three police officers knocked at my door, they came in and before I knew it I was screaming with immense pain in my heart, as I heard the liaison officer tell me that Sally Anne had been killed, stabbed to death. From that second on my life was over, all I wanted to do was to hold her in my arms and never let her go again”, The Telegraph reports.
The Investigation and Arrest of Mark Dixie
Initially suspicion fell on Lewis Sproston. He was arrested and questioned for four days. However, DNA evidence did not link him to the crime and he was released. The case remained unsolved for several months until June 2006, when authorities arrested a man named Mark Dixie after a pub fight. His DNA sample matched the evidence found at the crime scene leading to his arrest two weeks later, per The Standard.
Mark Dixie was born on 24 September 1970, in Streatham, South London. He had a history of criminal offenses, including robbery, indecent assault and indecent exposure. His criminal record dated back to 1986, when he was sentenced to six weeks in prison for robbing a woman at knifepoint.
In 1988, he was placed on probation for indecent assault. In 1993, he moved to Australia but was deported due to a sexual offense. He was also convicted of sexual assault in 2001 for exposing himself to a woman in a telephone booth, per Murderpedia.
Trial and Sentencing
Following his arrest in 2006, Dixie was charged with Sally Anne Bowman’s murder. He remained in custody for 18 months while awaiting trial. The trial commenced on 4 February 2008 at the Old Bailey.
Dixie pleaded not guilty, claiming he did not kill Sally but admitted to sexually assaulting her body after finding her outside her home. However, investigator’s gathered evidence proving his direct involvement in her murder.
On the night of 24 September 2005, Dixie was celebrating his 35th birthday at a pub with friends. He consumed large amounts of alcohol and drugs before leaving the venue. He later walked alone armed with a knife, when he saw Sally outside her home.
He launched a violent attack stabbing her multiple times and inflicting severe injuries. After murdering her, he sexually assaulted her body before returning to a friend’s house where he slept on the sofa, per The Times. The next morning he showed no signs of remorse.
In February 2008, Mark Dixie was sentenced to life imprisonment with a minimum term of 34 years before parole consideration. This was one of the longest sentences handed down in the UK for a single murder. His conviction brought some amount of justice to Sally’s family after years of pain and uncertainty.
Linda Bowman: “I cannot see why he killed her and why he did what he did. It was bad enough knowing Sally Anne had been stabbed to death but then to be told that after death he raped her and stole her belongings. It leaves me feeling he took her last bit of dignity. Please can you ask him why he did kill her? Why did you do these things?”, per Independent.
Further Convictions and Exhumation of Sally Anne’s Remains
Years later in 2015, Dixie finally admitted to killing Sally Anne Bowman. He also confessed to two other sexual assaults one in 1986 and another in 2002. In 2017, he was convicted of these crimes and received two additional life sentences.
Following her death, Sally Anne Bowman was laid to rest. However, her grave became a repeated target of vandalism. Due to multiple instances of damage and disrespect, her remains were exhumed and cremated in 2013. This decision was made to protect her final resting place and prevent further acts of desecration, per Express.
“We had to have Sally Anne’s remains exhumed and her ashes brought home because someone kept destroying her grave and her headstone.”
