Roughly 38 years later, the cold-case murder of a Hardin County woman has been solved through DNA and forensic genealogy, Silsbee Police Chief Shawn Blackwell announced May 1.
July 28, 1988, Caroline Susan Bolen, 26, was discovered dead inside her home at 1280 Cooks Road in Silsbee, according to police reports. Media reports from the 1980s indicated Bolen had lived in Silsbee for about two weeks, leaving behind prior residence in Lumberton. She was an employee of St. Elizabeth Hospital in Beaumont.
Initial investigation revealed Bolen had been brutalized, sexually assaulted, and murdered by an unknown suspect. Her young son was left alone inside the residence with his deceased mother after the assailant fled the scene.
Blackwell said that, despite extensive investigative efforts and the development of initial leads, the case eventually went “cold.” Temperature of the case aside, Blackwell said the Bolen murder case consistently remained open and under periodic review.
According to Blackwell, in 2019, the Bolen case was reassigned to Investigator Justin Holt of the Silsbee Police Department’s Special Assignment Unit.
During the same time, the case was also being actively reviewed by Texas Ranger Brandon Bess with the Texas Rangers Co. A Unsolved Crimes Investigation Program.
“The investigators from the two agencies collaborated and began a comprehensive re-examination of the case, including the collection and reanalysis of physical evidence, as well as evaluating advancements in forensic technology,” Blackwell said.
In August 2022, the Texas Department of Public Safety Crime Laboratory in Houston developed a DNA profile from biological evidence recovered at the scene, including blood found beneath the victim’s fingernails and other biological evidence collected during the autopsy. The DNA profile was entered into the Combined DNA Index System; however, no matches were identified. Investigators then pursued advanced forensic genealogy as a means of identifying a suspect. DNA evidence was submitted to Othram Inc., a forensic laboratory specializing in genetic genealogy in The Woodlands. Blackwell said funding for the genetic genealogy came through two grants from Season of Justice, a nonprofit organization dedicated to supporting unresolved violent crime investigations.
Over time, Othram built what Blackwell called “an extensive profile” based on the suspect’s DNA and began compiling leads based on the suspect’s family genealogy.
Bess, Holt, and Ranger Chris Perkins began reviewing leads from the forensic genealogy analysis, which led the investigative team to identify Bolen’s killer as Allen Wayne Mosley, 27 at the time of the murder. He was a Port Arthur native.
Mosley lived at 106 Woodward Lane in Silsbee, on a nearby street adjacent to the victim’s residence at the time of the assault and murder. At the time of the killing, Mosley was on court-ordered supervision for a prior rape charge in Jasper County involving the abduction of a minor.
Investigators believe Mosley traveled to Bolen’s home in the early morning hours of July 28, 1988. It was reported that Bolen heard him arrive and thought it was her boyfriend, whom she had visited earlier that day.
According to investigators, Mosley forced his way into Bolen’s home when she came to the door. He sexually assaulted her, with her 6-year-old child present, before killing her by asphyxiation as she resisted, leaving behind critical biological evidence.
Witness information at the time indicated a man matching Mosley’s description was seen leaving the residence the following morning.
The investigation revealed Mosley reportedly allowed a family member to drive his vehicle to Galveston that same morning, removing its presence from the area. Authorities later learned Mosley and his family relocated to Oklahoma after Bolen’s killing.
Eighteen years later, on Aug. 22, 2006, Mosley, 56, died by a self-inflicted gunshot wound after an argument with his spouse while living in Tulsa, Oklahoma. He was buried Sept. 23, 2006, at Knupple Cemetery in Silsbee.
Blackwell said that, during the recent investigation, Mosley’s family members were cooperative; investigators believe Mosley’s relatives were unaware of his crimes.
Additional information obtained during the investigation revealed multiple allegations of sexual assault involving at least three underage victims connected to Mosley.
“While the suspect is deceased, investigators hope that this resolution brings a measure of closure to the family and loved ones of Caroline Bolen after nearly four decades,” Blackwell said.
According to her obituary, Bolen was born Aug. 12, 1961, in Berlin, Germany. She was buried at Chattanooga National Cemetery in Tennessee.