When Dylan Lowndes went missing two years ago, the 19-year-old farmer from Idaho had just planted his first crop on his Utah property.
The Box Elder County Sheriff’s Office announced that local investigators and the FBI discovered skeletal remains believed to be his in a remote area of Ruthin, Utah, a 320-mile drive from Salt Lake City.
“This is something we have to get through,” his mother, Candace Cooley, said Wednesday morning.
She said the family was notified of the plea deal last Monday after a month of negotiations, and the FBI recovered her son’s body Tuesday morning.
Utah farmer Dylan police suspect remains missing on suspicion of murder
Authorities say 19-year-old Dylan Lowndes was last seen on May 25, 2022, in Ruthin, Utah. (Box Elder County Sheriff’s Office)
She said preparations have been underway for the discovery after a month of back and forth between the prosecution and defense, who agreed to a sentence of three to 30 years in prison in exchange for the location of Lowndes’ remains. .
She also said she is calling on the state of Utah to enact harsher penalties after learning that a proposal that would have kept murder suspect James Brenner in prison for only half the time was rejected.
“Our hearts go out to the family of Dylan Rounds,” the sheriff’s office said in a statement. “I would like to express my deepest condolences for the loss of your family. I know that the grief of the bereaved family is immeasurable, and my heart goes out to them. I pray that they may continue to live in peace.” I hope so.”
The boy’s last contact was on May 30, 2022, when he called his grandmother and told her, “It was about to rain, so I had to put the grain truck in the warehouse.”
Brenner was squatting in a trailer nearby.
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James Brenner leaves a courtroom in Box Elder County, Utah, in July 2023. Brenner was charged with the murder of 19-year-old Dylan Rounds, whose body was recovered on Tuesday, April 9, 2024, nearly two years after his death. (EastIdahoNews.com)
The 60-year-old, who investigators charged last year with killing Lowndes, led detectives to the boy’s body yesterday as part of a plea deal, authorities said.
The Box Elder County Sheriff’s Office identified the Brenner boy as a suspect shortly after he went missing. However, since there was no body, it took some time to assemble the case.
The sheriff’s office said investigators continue to work to recover Lowndes’ body. (Box Elder County Sheriff’s Office)
Law enforcement spent months searching the area using K-9s, drones, helicopters, ATVs and horses, but no one was found. But they found his boots and truck near a barn five miles from the camper.
Teen Utah farmer missing for more than two weeks due to mother fearing foul play
Dylan Lowndes, 19, left to become a farmer in Utah, according to his mother, Candice Cooley. He grew up on a family farm in Idaho and began learning the business at an early age. (Candice Cooley)
The FBI also became involved and arrested him on federal firearms charges after it was revealed that he shot and killed another man in Maryland in the 1980s.
as part of their Search for roundsinvestigators executed several search warrants.
Neighbors told investigators that Brenner asked them to hide three black powder guns and a .22-caliber rifle with no serial number. The neighbor, who was contacted by the FBI, handed over the weapon to authorities.Quote Past Felony Convictionthey charged Brenner with being a felon in possession of a firearm.
In March 2023, deputies discovered Lowndes’ cell phone and an incriminating video that allegedly showed Brenner cleaning a gun while wearing bloody clothes, Cooley previously told Fox News Digital. Told.
“That phone taught us a lot more than just the video and the data it had on it,” Cooley told Fox News Digital in September. “It’s amazing they took a video.”
An undated photo of Dylan Lowndes and his mother, Candice Cooley. (Candice Cooley)
Detectives also recovered Brenner’s shirt, which tests confirmed had Lowndes’ DNA on it.
“Everything is there,” Cooley told Fox News Digital in September. “We know Brenner did it. There’s no ifs, buts, or doubts about who else was involved. We just need to find Dylan…what happened that day. I just want to know what happened. I just need to be able to piece things together.”
Candace Cooley said her son, Dylan Rounds, had a special focus on farming. (Candice Cooley)
Lowndes’ family began a personal search around the area where Lowndes last called, but to no avail. However, Brenner led the FBI to the same area where they discovered him.
Cooley said her son is focused almost entirely on the farm. He did not use drugs and did not spend time on video games or social media, she said.
Brenner was an “acquaintance” of her son, but not a friend, she said.
Dylan Lowndes worked on his family’s farm as a child. At the age of 19, he set foot on his own land. (Candice Cooley)
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Brenner also agreed to a plea deal in the federal firearms case, according to court records.
His past criminal history includes three convictions for malicious wounding, malicious battery and being a felon in possession of a firearm, according to court records. Authorities said he was living on property next to Lowndes’ farm without the owner’s permission.
