Sheriff considering ‘no-body homicide’ prosecution for case of missing Oakville girl Oakley Carlson

Jordan Bowers, mother of Oakley, was released from prison Sept. 23 on unrelated charges

By The Chronicle staff • September 30, 2025 1:30 am
File photo Oakley Carlson is pictured here before she vanished and in an age-progressed image provided by investigators.
File photo Oakley Carlson is pictured here before she vanished and in an age-progressed image provided by investigators.

Jordan Bowers, mother of missing 5-year-old Oakley Carlson, was released from the Washington Corrections Center for Women in Gig Harbor Sept. 23 after serving roughly two years for charges of theft and identity theft.

KOMO News reported that Bowers will be under community supervision for a year.

Bowers’ daughter, Oakley, went missing in 2021. As of today, she would be 8 years old.

In a press release Sept. 24, the Grays Harbor County Sheriff’s Office stated that Bowers and Oakley’s father, Andrew Carlson, remain persons of interest in the case.

No charges have ever been filed against Bowers or Carlson for Oakley’s disappearance.

“The Grays Harbor County Sheriff’s Office continues to actively investigate this case, and we are working closely with the Grays Harbor County Prosecutor’s Office looking into a no-body homicide prosecution,” the sheriff’s office stated.

The sheriff’s office added that it “remains committed to seeking justice for Oakley,” and requested any information from the public that could assist in the investigation.

Detectives can be reached at sodetectives@graysharbor.us or 360-964-1770.

A timeline compiled by former Chronicle reporter Emily Fitzgerald details Oakley’s disappearance:

Nov. 2019: Oakley leaves the care of her foster parents and returns to her biological parents Andrew Carlson and Jordan Bowers, according to King 5 News.

Feb. 10, 2021: The last time detectives with the Grays Harbor County Sheriff’s Office can confirm Oakley was seen alive by someone other than her biological parents.

Nov. 6, 2021: A fire was reported at the Carlsons’ residence in Oakville just before 5 p.m. Andrew Carlson told dispatchers his 4-year-old (Oakley’s age at the time) had lit the couch on fire with a cigarette lighter and said he had put the fire out himself. Investigators later determined the fire most likely started in the microwave on the kitchen counter — not from the couch, as Carlson had claimed.

Nov. 30, 2021: The date Oakley’s parents claim they last saw Oakley.

Dec. 5, 2021: Oakville Elementary School Principal Jessica Swift contacts the Grays Harbor County Sheriff’s Office with concerns about Oakley’s safety.

Dec. 6, 2021:

– Approximately 10 a.m.: An officer with the Tumwater Police Department initiates a welfare check for Oakley and interviews Oakley’s parents in their hotel room.

– 3:31 p.m.: An officer confirmed Bowers and Carlson left the hotel with their 2-year-old and returned to their Oakville residence.

– 5:10 p.m.: Bowers is booked into the Grays Harbor County Jail for allegedly obstructing an officer and on suspicion of manslaughter.

– 9:30 p.m.: Carlson is booked into the Grays Harbor County Jail on suspicion of manslaughter.

Dec. 9, 2021: The 72-hour hold on suspicion of manslaughter expires, and the case is closed. Bowers and Carlson remain in custody on unrelated child endangerment charges related to their other child. They were later convicted on those charges.

Dec. 13, 2021: Detectives complete their search of the Carlson family’s house and surrounding property.