The case spans Utah, Iowa, and Colorado and turned on what authorities described as a crime of “convenience”: Miller told investigators he killed two hikers because he disliked the car he had just taken and wanted a different vehicle, according to court documents.

A 22-year-old man accused of killing three women in rural Utah had been released without bail on Iowa burglary, theft, and other charges about two months before the slayings, court documents show.

Ivan Miller was arrested Dec. 31 after Iowa state park rangers found him inside a cabin at Lake Wapello State Park that he had broken into. A court order dated Jan. 13 freed him without bail on a promise to appear.

He missed his Iowa arraignment Friday. He was in jail in Pagosa Springs, Colorado, where authorities had tracked him — using license plate readers and vehicle trackers — in a vehicle he allegedly stole from one of his victims.

The killings, which officials described as a crime of “convenience,” left three women dead in Wayne County, Utah’s high desert: Margaret Oldroyd, 86, of Lyman; Linda Dewey, 65; and Dewey’s niece Natalie Graves, 34.

The victims

The husbands of Dewey and Graves found their wives missing Wednesday after the women did not return from a desert hike. The two women were found dead in a dry creek bed near a trailhead outside Capitol Reef National Park, about 10 miles from Lyman.

“Our family is dealing with the shock of the devastating loss of two members of our family who were bonding over the beauty of a hike in one of their favorite places on earth — cherished by them and the community, considered to be a safe sanctuary,” the family said in a statement. “They were murdered. We cannot comprehend why this happened.”

The family described Dewey as a wife, mother, grandmother, and “the heart of our family.” They described Graves as “joy, sunshine and beauty embodied.”

Oldroyd’s body was found in a cellar beneath a shed on her property after police linked a vehicle at the Capitol Reef trailhead to her. Her neighbor, Randy Jones, said she was “the sweetest woman you’d ever meet.” She attended religious services regularly, kept her lawn and flowers well-tended, and had worked at a local grocery store stocking shelves, Jones said.

There was no indication Miller had any prior connection to the three women, Lt. Cameron Roden of the Utah Highway Patrol said.

How the killings unfolded

Before the killings, Miller had been moving through the area. He struck an elk in the town of Loa, sold his pickup truck to the tow company, spent several days in hotels, and then slept in a shed on Oldroyd’s property without her knowledge, investigators said.

Wayne County prosecutors allege Miller shot Oldroyd while she watched television in her home, then took her Buick. He drove to the Capitol Reef area, where he saw Dewey and Graves getting out of a Subaru at the trailhead and killed them before taking their car, investigators said.

Miller told investigators he killed the two hikers because he did not like Oldroyd’s Buick and wanted a different vehicle, according to court documents. He told investigators he stole the cars and credit cards because he needed to get back to Iowa.

After the killings, Miller drove hundreds of miles through Arizona and New Mexico before authorities caught up with him in Pagosa Springs, a Colorado tourist town known for hot spring resorts along the San Juan River.

Iowa arrest, release, and missed court date

When Iowa rangers arrived at the Lake Wapello State Park cabin Dec. 31 to prepare it for an upcoming reservation, they found the front door unlocked, food on the counter, a pan with bacon grease on the stove, marijuana joints, and loaded guns — including a bolt-action rifle with a bayonet and an AR-10 with a scope and bipod — according to the Iowa arrest affidavit. Miller had also brought in a television, an Xbox game console, and a Starlink internet device, suggesting “intent to stay for a long period of time,” the affidavit states.

Miller showed up while rangers were there, knocked softly, and admitted to breaking in three days earlier seeking a warm place to stay, according to the affidavit.

His Iowa charges included felony second-degree burglary, misdemeanor theft, marijuana possession, and gun possession. Court documents in the case show he also faced a related charge of illegally hunting on a game refuge.

The county attorney’s office prosecuting Miller on his Iowa charges declined Friday to answer questions about the case, the Associated Press reported.

Miller appeared briefly in Colorado court Friday but said only his name. His attorney, Scott Van Zandt, said his client does not want to speak to police or media and will fight extradition to Utah, where he could face the death penalty.

Wayne County, Utah, Attorney Michael Winn declined to comment Friday on Miller’s plan to contest extradition.