Disclaimer: This article contains mentions of murder. Reader discretion is advised.
The upcoming episode of Dateline: Unforgettable, titled “A Walk in the Rain,” will air on Oxygen on Thursday, March 28, 2024, at 8 p.m. ET. It will explore the disappearance and murder of a 19-year-old woman, Sonya Ivanoff.
Nome Nugget reported that Ivanoff was reported missing on August 12, 2003, by her roommate, who had last seen her when the two of them went out partying on the night of August 10. After they parted ways at midnight, Ivanoff reportedly didn’t show up at home the following day. Ivanoff’s body was then found on the outskirts of Nome. Weeks later, an officer from the Nome Police Department, Matthew Owens, was charged with Ivanoff’s murder.
About a month after Sonya Ivanoff disappeared, a police vehicle was missing. A retired police officer, Byron Redburn, then contacted authorities and informed them that an officer, Matthew Owens, had contacted him and claimed that someone was shooting at him. When Redburn rushed to Bessie Pit, where Owens was, he saw that the officer was unharmed. Moreover, a police vehicle with broken windows was discovered at the site.
According to Oxygen, an envelope containing Sonya Ivanoff’s missing ID and a letter was found inside the police car. Investigators suspected that Matthew Owens came across Ivanoff and tried to convince her to have sex with him. When she refused, he sensed that she was not drunk. He then allegedly killed her out of fear that she might report him.
Matthew Owens was convicted of the first-degree murder of Sonya Ivanoff and tampering with physical evidence on December 6, 2005.
What did Sonya Ivanoff’s autopsy reveal?
According to court documents, an autopsy was performed on August 15, 2003. It revealed that Sinya Ivanoff died from a gunshot wound to the back of her head. It was a .22 caliber bullet and was shot from point-blank range. However, there wasn’t any trace evidence on the .22 caliber bullet casings and magazine that were found later. There was also no evidence of sexual assault. Additionally, there was no physical evidence, such as fingerprints, fibers, skin scrapings, or DNA evidence.
The lack of physical evidence reportedly suggested that whoever tried to cover up the evidence was aware of how traces are left behind after a crime in a way that a police officer would be. Aside from that, Sonya Ivanoff’s body was found without any clothing except for one sock on the left foot. This also seemed like an attempt to minimize the evidence that authorities have access to.
Meanwhile, authorities found Coffee Creek, which is about 75 miles from Nome and where Matthew Owens reportedly went after the crime. They found a fire pit where he allegedly burned much of the evidence. Grommets from Tilt jeans, metal parts from a bra, a pair of Skechers shoes, and four keys were found in the pit. The jeans were identified as the same brand of jeans that Sonya Ivanoff was wearing on the night of her disappearance. The keys also matched the ones she owned.
The Dateline: Unforgettable episode “A Walk in the Rain” will air on Oxygen on Thursday, March 28, 2024, at 8 p.m. ET.
