The following is a press release issued by the Sonoma County Sheriff’s Office:
DNA links Jack Alexander Bokin, as the suspect in the murder of 32-year-old Michelle Marie Veal (Hinojos) of Union City.
On July 15, 1996, Michelle Marie Veal’s nude body was found on the side of the road by a survey crew working in the area of Stony Point Road, north of West Railroad Avenue in unincorporated Sonoma County. The autopsy showed Veal had multiple skull fractures and a broken neck, consistent with blunt force head trauma. At the time of the murder, evidence was collected, and Violent Crime detectives conducted an extensive investigation; all leads were exhausted. Despite their best efforts, the investigation went cold.
In April of 2021, detectives resubmitted evidence for review to the Serological Research Institute (SERI) for biological testing using today’s current technology.
On January 18, 2022, the Department of Justice notified Violent Crime detectives of a “CODIS Hit” due to the DNA evidence submitted to the laboratory. CODIS is the Combined Index System in the United States DNA database, created and maintained by the FBI. SERI laboratory had developed a DNA profile from the evidence that had been submitted. A DNA match came back to that of Bokin.
Shortly after receiving the information, detectives learned that Bokin died on December 4, 2021, at the California Department of Corrections Medical Facility in Vacaville, CA.
In October 1997, the San Francisco Police Department arrested Bokin for kidnapping, kidnapping with the intent to commit rape, rape of a victim incapable of consent, rape by force/fear, mayhem, aggravated mayhem, two counts of oral copulation of a person under 14 years of age, false imprisonment and attempted murder. Bokin remained in custody; then, in 2000, he was sentenced to serve 231 years for the above-listed charges in a San Francisco courtroom.
Cold cases are just as crucial to our detectives as are current cases. We are constantly reviewing them, looking for new leads. We know that every cold case represents long-awaited answers for the family and friends of victims. Thanks to the hard work of our detectives and our law enforcement partners, we are now able to bring a measure of closure and healing to Michelle Marie Veal’s family.
Family and friends of all victims awaiting justice for crimes committed in our county, you will not be forgotten by the Sonoma County Sheriff’s Office.
Very good news after such a long time. Closure is so important to all involved. Public pressure insures cold cases don’t end up in round file. Most transient, sex workers, and drug overdose cases get ignored unless there is clear easy evidence. The man seems like The Green River murders that took similar time to solve
Read Chasing The Devil for the details.
What an animal so glad he was not out committing other crimes. May he rot in he……