TORREY, Utah — Two men whose wives did not return from a hike in Utah's south-central desert arrived at the trailhead Wednesday to find both women dead and a car missing, spurring a multi-state search that led investigators to a third body before they arrested a suspect Thursday in Colorado.
An Iowa man faces three counts of aggravated murder in the deaths of the two hikers and a third woman authorities say he killed inside her home after he spent a night in a shed on her property.
Ivan Miller, 22, told investigators after his arrest that he killed the three women to steal their cars and credit cards because he needed money to get back to Iowa, charging documents show. He had hit an elk a few days earlier in a tiny Utah farming town near Capitol Reef National Park and was without a vehicle after selling his truck to the tow company.
After staying in hotels for a few days, Miller slept in the woman's shed. He stole her Buick after shooting her from behind while she was watching TV, Wayne County prosecutors allege.
Miller, of Blakesburg, Iowa, told authorities that he quickly realized he did not like the Buick and wanted a different vehicle, according to court documents. He parked it at a nearby trailhead, saw two women get out of a Subaru and killed them before taking the car, the documents state.
He attempted to conceal their bodies in dry creek bed, prosecutors allege. The husbands called 911 and waved down a ranger after finding their wives shot and stabbed at the trail, which is used mostly by locals, according to officials and court documents.
Officials identified the hikers as aunt and niece Natalie Graves, 34, and Linda Dewey, 65, and the woman killed in her home as Margaret Oldroyd, 86.
Lt. Cameron Roden of the Utah Highway Patrol said authorities found Oldroyd in a cellar under a shed on her property after they identified the owner of the Buick.
Police used yellow tape to cordon off the brick home in the tiny farming town of Lyman and an outbuilding while investigators gathered evidence Thursday.
About 10 miles (16 kilometers) away in Teasdale, investigators were also combing the trailhead, which is partially shielded from a paved road by piñon and juniper trees, and other vegetation.
Officials said the hikers had no connection to Oldroyd.
Authorities used license plate readers and vehicle tracking services to follow Miller's path, from Utah through northern Arizona and into the mountain town of Pagosa Springs in southwestern Colorado, where he abandoned the stolen vehicle, Roden said. He was found after a short search.
According to online jail records, Miller was being held on suspicion of carrying a concealed weapon, a misdemeanor. He was arrested in Colorado with a large knife and a .45 caliber pistol, according to court documents, and was scheduled to make his first court appearance in the state Friday afternoon.
Miller is being represented at the hearing by the Colorado Public Defender’s office, said Justin Bogan, who heads the office in the judicial district that covers Pagosa Springs. Bogan declined to comment further. Voicemail messages left at listings for possible relatives of Miller were not immediately returned on Thursday.
Authorities were working to bring Miller to Utah, where he has been charged with murder in the deaths of the women.
The Associated Press left a message for the public defender's office in Utah late Thursday afternoon.
Investigators have not yet found a motive for the killings and do not believe the suspect targeted the women for any other reason other than just “convenience,” Roden said. He said there is no indication that Miller had any connection to the victims. Investigators were still looking into when Miller arrived in Utah and what he was doing prior to the killings.
Before a suspect was taken into custody, residents in Wayne County were asked to remain vigilant and schools nearby were closed Thursday. Officials asked for help finding a white Subaru Outback but warned people not to approach it.
The State Bureau of Investigation and Crime Lab were supporting the homicide investigation, and multiple scenes were being processed in Torrey, Utah, and the surrounding area, Roden said.
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Slevin reported from Denver, Schoenbaum from Salt Lake City and Brumfield from Cockeysville, Maryland.