Bolvan was a male human who served as the gunnery captain aboard the Imperial Star Destroyer Devastator in 0 BBY. After the capture of the corvette Tantive IV, he ordered his subordinate Lieutenant Hija not to fire at an escape pod that launched from the captured ship because there were no life signs aboard. Due to new regulations designed to counter rebel propaganda about Imperial accuracy, the Empire had ordered that all promotions would be tied to an individual's kill ratio. Therefore, firing on the pod would have been a waste of lasers and hurt his rise through the ranks.
While the corvette was being searched, and the Death Star plans, which Darth Vader suspected the rebel ship of carrying, still had not been found, Bolvan came to suspect that they were hidden aboard the escape pod. In order to avoid getting in trouble for failing to realize this earlier, he asked logistics officer Arvira for assistance. Bolvan disliked filling out paperwork, as he felt it took up too much of his time, but agreed to follow through all the datawork Arvira suggested to save himself from Vader's wrath. In return, he promised to lose in the next gambling game they both attended.