Attorneys appointed for Iowa man charged with brutally killing 3 women in rural Utah

LOA, Utah (KSL) — An Iowa man accused of brutally killing three Utah women at random and without warning has been extradited to Utah from Colorado, where he was arrested.

Ivan Miller, 22, of Blakesburg, Iowa, made his first court appearance Friday from the Sevier County Jail. He is charged with three counts of aggravated murder, a first-degree felony. He waived his extradition hearing last week, allowing him to be transferred to Utah.

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Miller is accused of shooting and killing Margaret Oldroyd, 86, Linda Dewey, 65, and Natalie Graves, 34, on March 4 in Wayne County. He had no prior connection to any of the women and no ties to the area, but claimed the killings “had to be done” to steal their cars, according to court documents. Oldroyd was killed in her home in Lyman and the other two women were killed as they were hiking.

Miller told investigators he had hit an elk in Loa, sold his truck to a tow company, stayed in a hotel for a few days, and then killed someone and stole a car, according to charging documents.

Miller is charged with breaking into Oldroyd’s home and shooting her in the back of her head as she was sitting down to watch television. He then stole her Buick Lesabre but said he didn’t like it, so he shot Dewey and Graves near a trailhead after seeing them get out of a Subaru, stabbing one of the women multiple times after she was still moving, the charges allege.

“Miller said he did it because he needed money. Miller said that he took their credit cards and used the older woman’s card to buy gas. Miller said that his intent was to get back to Iowa,” the charges state. “Miller confessed that it ‘had to be done,’ but he did not like to do it.”

Multiple agencies used license plate readers and tracking services to track the stolen car into northern Arizona and then southern Colorado. He was arrested near Pagosa Springs, Colorado.

Wayne County Attorney Michael Winn has said he will seek the death penalty against Miller if he is convicted.

RELATED | Iowa man who killed 3 Utah women said ‘it had to be done,’ charges say

In Friday’s hearing, 6th District Judge Mandy Larsen read Miller his charges and advised him of his right not to incriminate himself before asking Miller questions about his finances. Ultimately, she determined he is indigent and meets the requirements to have a court-appointed attorney.

Miller said he previously owned a car and had a job, but currently does not. He said he has about $6,000 or $7,000 in a bank account, is not married, has no children and does not own a home.

Neal Hamilton and Katie Filler were appointed as Miller’s attorneys. Hamilton said he had previously met with Miller in Colorado and planned to meet with him again on Friday.

Miller’s next court hearing will be on Sept. 21. Hamilton said he expects the next few hearings to be continuances while attorneys gather records and conduct interviews.

“I think both sides have a lot of work to be doing,” he said.