Skeletal remains have been found in the search for Dylan Rounds, who vanished over Memorial Day weekend two years ago.
Rounds, 19, who vanished in 2022, was allegedly murdered, and 60-year-old James Brenner was charged in connection with his death in March 2023, facing charges of aggravated murder and abuse or desecration of a human body, as per court records cited by EastIdahoNews.com.
A press release from the Box Elder County Sheriff’s Office revealed that on April 9, 2024, skeletal remains presumed to be those of Rounds were recovered in the remote western Box Elder County area of Lucin.
The release stated: "The remains are in the possession of the Utah Office of the Medical Examiner for confirmation of identity."
The statement continued: "Our hearts go out to the family of Dylan Rounds. We offer our sincerest condolences for the loss of their family member. We understand that the pain of their loss is immeasurable, and we want to express our deepest sympathies to them. It is our hope that they can find peace moving forward."
The FBI assisted in processing the area for evidence and recovering the remains, according to the release.
"No additional information can be released at this time so as not to compromise the ongoing legal proceedings," it added.
The sheriff's office also expressed "our gratitude to our deputies, detectives, volunteers, and other Box Elder County employees who have worked tirelessly investigating and assisting in the many search efforts during the past 23 months."
According to court documents obtained by Fox News, Brenner and another local resident were deemed "family friends" of Rounds, squatting on land approximately five miles from the teen’s farm.
The last known communication from Rounds occurred on May 30, 2022, when he spoke to his grandmother over the phone, mentioning that he was "putting the grain truck into shelter."
The investigation into Rounds' disappearance, labeled as "difficult and extensive," culminated in the recovery of crucial evidence. Among the findings were a missing grain truck and a pair of bloodied boots, identified through DNA analysis to belong to Rounds.
Further scrutiny revealed illegal possession of firearms by Brenner, who reportedly requested the second resident to hold onto the weapons for "his own safety".
Investigators uncovered a cache of firearms during searches, linking Rounds' DNA to Brenner's bloody shirt.
Justin Rounds, the 19-year-old's father, recalled a conversation he had with Brenner before his son went missing to the US Sun.
Reflecting on the conversation, Justin believes it may offer insight into Brenner's possible motive.
"When I got there, Brenner was talking about how Dylan backed into his horse gate," Justin recounted. "He was a little frustrated, and I didn’t think a whole lot about it at the time. But that could have been what set him off."
.png_mLRugh?tr=h-40&config=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)
.png_mLRugh?tr=h-184&config=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)
