Overview
- Sumter County deputies said the 1971 victim is 21-year-old Maureen L. Minor Roward of Tampa, known to friends and family as “Cookie.”
- The person of interest is her estranged husband, Charles Emery Rowan Sr., whose conduct around the time of the separation raised concerns, though he was not named a suspect and died in 2015.
- Deputies discovered her body on Feb. 19, 1971 beneath the I-75 overpass at Lake Panasoffkee, wrapped in a carpet with a leather belt around her neck, and believe she was dumped about a month earlier.
- The case drew national attention in 1992 on Unsolved Mysteries, and a 2012 USF analysis suggested a Greek origin based on lead levels in her teeth.
- Investigators are seeking tips at 352-569-1915 or [email protected], or anonymously through Crimeline at 1-800-423-TIPS.