A 22-year-old man, Ivan Miller, accused of killing three women in the United States, has reportedly told investigators he carried out the attacks so he could steal their vehicles and credit cards to fund his trip back home.
Miller was arrested on Thursday in Colorado following a multi-state search linked to the deaths of three women in Utah.
According to charging documents, Miller allegedly admitted to investigators that he carried out the killings because he needed money to return to his home state of Iowa.
Authorities said the suspected crime spree began after Miller reportedly struck an elk while driving through a rural town near Capitol Reef National Park.
Investigators said the accident left him stranded, forcing him to sell his truck to a towing company.
After spending several days at a motel, prosecutors allege that Miller broke into the home of 86-year-old Margaret Oldroyd in the town of Lyman, Utah and shot her from behind while she was watching television.
Police said he then fled with the victim’s Buick vehicle but later abandoned it at a trailhead about 10 miles away after spotting two women preparing for a hike.
Investigators say Miller attacked the hikers, identified as Linda Dewey, 65, and Natalie Graves, 34, shooting and stabbing them before attempting to conceal their bodies in a dry creek bed. He allegedly escaped the scene using their Subaru vehicle.
The case came to light after the husbands of the two hikers discovered their bodies at the trailhead when the women failed to return home on Wednesday, March 4.
Authorities later linked the abandoned Buick to the earlier killing of Oldroyd after checking the vehicle’s registration.
Miller was eventually tracked down in Colorado, where officers reportedly arrested him with a handgun and a large knife.
Officials of the Utah Department of Public Safety said investigators believe the victims were not specifically targeted.
According to Lt. Cameron Roden, the suspect appears to have chosen the victims simply because they were accessible.
Miller has since been charged with aggravated murder and several other offences as investigations continue.
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