Jakob Bowerman, left, died Aug. 23, 2025. (Photo courtesy Taylor Singer)
MARINETTE, WI (WTAQ-WLUK) — Two people are in custody and facing charges following the drowning of a Marinette teenager.
The victim’s mother identified him as 13-year-old Jakob Bowerman, a rising eighth grader at Marinette Middle School.
Police have referred charges against a 16-year-old boy and 21-year-old man to the Marinette County District Attorney’s Office in relation to Bowerman’s death. Authorities did not release their names because of the ongoing investigation.
The incident happened on the afternoon of Aug. 20 in the area of Government Pier in Marinette, when first responders were dispatched for a report of a person who was believed to be drowning.
Shortly after they arrived on scene, crews spotted the victim and entered the water from both sides of the Menominee River. Officials were able to get Bowerman onto a rescue boat and begin performing lifesaving efforts as he was transported to the Menekaunee boat landing, where EMS personnel were staged.
According to Bowerman’s mother, Taylor Singer, first responders performed CPR on her son for 45 minutes, getting his heart beating again. He was transported from a Marinette hospital to St. Vincent Hospital in Green Bay, where he was declared brain dead and taken off life support Saturday.
An autopsy is scheduled for Wednesday.
“Everybody is just heartbroken for this family. We just never thought that would happen here. We’re such a small community and we’re always here for one another. We’ve got to do better as parents, as a village. We’ve got to do better,” said Melissa Barber. Her son, Eli, was friends with Bowerman.
Eli said, “Jakob was a really great kid. He wouldn’t be mean to anyone. He was such a great influence to everyone. He was a really great friend of mine and he was just a great impact on this community.”
Singer described her son, who was autistic, as a big brother who was always happy and positive. He loved to ride his bike around Marinette and Menominee and enjoyed playing Roblox and Fortnite, she said.
A candlelight vigil is planned for 8 p.m. Wednesday on the pier in Marinette. Barber is organizing the event.
She said, “I thought just a vigil to go out there and talk about how Jakob was a friend to people and how we’re always going to remember him and never forget this happened. And hopefully all the kids will do better too, seeing this happen and help us grow as a community and help our kids grow.”
An online fundraiser has been established to help the family, as well.
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