WAYNE COUNTY, UT. (THECOUNT) — The three women allegedly killed by an Iowa man in a random attack in Wayne County, Utah, have been identified as Natalie Graves, Linda Dewey, and Margaret Oldroyd, according to the Utah Department of Public Safety. Graves was 34, Dewey was 65, and Oldroyd was 86. Ivan W. Miller has been identified as the suspect arrested in the brutal killings.
Graves and Dewey, who were aunt and niece, were found shot to death on the Cockscomb Trail off State Route 12 near Teasdale. Oldroyd was found shot to death inside her home in Lyman, Utah, a small community located a short distance from the trailhead where Graves and Dewey were killed. Officials said there is no known connection between Oldroyd and the two hikers.
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Miller, 22, of Blakesburg, Iowa, was arrested in the early morning hours of Thursday, March 5, 2026, in Pagosa Springs, Colorado, following a multi-hour, multi-state manhunt. He has been charged with three counts of aggravated murder, a first-degree felony, by the Wayne County Attorney’s Office. Miller had no prior connection to any of the three victims and no known ties to the Wayne County area, according to prosecutors.
According to court documents and statements made by Miller to investigators following his arrest, Oldroyd was the first victim killed. Miller told investigators he had been staying in a shed behind Oldroyd’s home before entering the residence after watching her leave. When Oldroyd returned home and sat down to watch television, Miller emerged from behind a door, shot her in the back of the head, and dragged her body to a basement. He then stole her vehicle. After deciding he wanted a different car, Miller drove to the trailhead near Teasdale Road and Cocks Comb, where he encountered Graves and Dewey as they stepped out of their white 2022 Subaru Outback. Miller approached both women and opened fire, shooting Graves in the chest and Dewey twice in the torso. When Dewey continued to move, he stabbed her multiple times. He then dragged both women to a nearby dry creek bed and stole their credit cards. “Miller said he did it because he needed money,” court documents state. “Miller said that he took their credit cards and used the older woman’s card to buy gas. Miller said his intent was to get back to Iowa.”
In a separate statement to investigators, Miller said the killings “had to be done,” according to court documents, though he noted he did not enjoy carrying them out.
The bodies of Graves and Dewey were discovered by their husbands, who became alarmed when the women did not return home and went searching for them. The men contacted Wayne County Emergency Communications at approximately 4:25 p.m. on Wednesday, March 4, 2026. Responding officers located the bodies near the trailhead and identified a Buick Regal abandoned nearby — the vehicle stolen from Oldroyd’s home. They then traced the vehicle to Oldroyd’s address in Lyman, where her body was discovered. Investigators subsequently used Automated License Plate Readers and a phone application connected to the Subaru’s key fob — operated by one of the victims’ husbands — to track Miller’s movements in real time as he fled through southern Utah, into northern Arizona, and ultimately into Colorado.
Multiple law enforcement agencies converged on Pagosa Springs, Colorado, where Miller was taken into custody in the early morning hours of March 5. He was found in possession of a firearm and a large knife during the arrest, according to law enforcement. When investigators asked Miller about the knife used to stab one of the hikers, he produced it himself during the interview, according to court documents. Miller is currently being held at the Archuleta County Detention Center in Pagosa Springs on a weapons charge and is scheduled to appear in court Friday afternoon. He is expected to be extradited to Utah to face the aggravated murder charges.
Miller’s trajectory to Wayne County began weeks earlier. According to his brother, who spoke on the condition of anonymity, Miller had set out from Iowa on a cross-country road trip approximately two weeks before the killings. His personal vehicle was disabled on February 28, 2026, after colliding with an elk in the Wayne County area. The owner of an auto parts store in Loa, Utah, confirmed to media that he had given Miller a ride following the elk collision. After the crash, Miller spent several days at a local hotel before allegedly carrying out the attacks. Records show Miller has a pending felony burglary and theft case in Davis County, Iowa, as well as misdemeanor counts of theft, possession of marijuana, and unlawful weapons possession, according to published reports.
Wayne County is a sparsely populated rural county in south-central Utah, bordering Capitol Reef National Park to the north. The county seat is Loa, and the area is known for its dramatic red rock landscapes and outdoor recreation. Lyman, where Oldroyd was killed, has a population of fewer than 300 residents. The Cockscomb Trail, where Graves and Dewey were attacked, is a remote hiking area south of Torrey, near the intersection of State Route 12 and Teasdale Road. The region draws hikers and tourists from across the country, particularly those visiting Capitol Reef National Park, which lies within Wayne County approximately 11 miles east of Torrey. Salt Lake City is located approximately 215 miles to the north.
Lyman Mayor Burke Torgerson, who confirmed that Oldroyd was a relative by marriage — the wife of his first cousin — mourned her publicly on Thursday. “This has been a real gut punch for us,” Torgerson said. “We’re not used to this kind of thing.” He described Oldroyd as known throughout the community for her generosity and selfless service. “If there was any person that was near sainthood on earth, it would be her,” he said.
The Utah Department of Public Safety credited the swift apprehension of Miller to the combined efforts of the Wayne, Archuleta, Sevier, and Kane County Sheriffs’ Offices, the FBI, the Bureau of Land Management, the Page, Arizona Police Department, and the Pagosa Springs, Colorado Police Department. “Our thoughts remain with the families and the community as they navigate this profound loss,” the Utah Department of Public Safety stated.
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