Utah farmer Dylan Rounds goes missing as prime suspect in murder

Dylan Rounds, a teenage Idaho farmer who traveled alone to Utah and was awaiting his first harvest when he disappeared last year, remains missing for a week after police accused his former prisoner of killing a neighbor.

James Brenner, 59, shot dead a man at a Maryland campsite in the 1980s over a work dispute, court records show, and has been in custody since July after police discovered the perpetrator was illegally in possession of several firearms following Round’s disappearance. , who was 19 years old when he was last seen, and would have turned 20 today.

Box Elder County authorities announced a murder charge last week after they said they found Rounds’ phone and an incriminating video allegedly showing Brenner wearing bloody clothes and cleaning a gun.

Deputies found the clothes and Round’s DNA on them, authorities said.

DILAN ROUNDS IS MISSING: UTAH DEPUTY CALLS NEIGHBOR SQATTER SUSPECT IN DISAPPEARANCE OF 19-YEAR-OLD FARMER

Dylan Rounds and his mother Candice Cooley in an undated photo. Round, an Idaho native who moved to Utah at age 19 to run his own farm, disappeared last May. A 59-year-old former prisoner named James Brenner, who was squatting nearby, was charged with murder. (Candice Cooley.)

According to court documents, Brenner was squatting outside the Rounds property, where authorities found the missing man’s boots and farm truck. They found blood on one of the shoes, as well as Brenner’s DNA, according to the criminal case.

MPs first identified him as a suspect in the summer following his arrest on firearm possession charges. He now faces charges of aggravated murder, abuse or desecration of the body, and concealment of Round’s remains.

Candice Cooley, Round’s mother, told Fox News Digital at the time that Brenner was an “acquaintance” of her son, challenging the description in court documents that referred to him as a “family friend.”

TEEN FARMER IS AVOID FOR MORE THAN 2 WEEKS BECAUSE MOTHER IS AFRAID OF ROUGH PLAY

Dylan Rounds, a 19-year-old Idaho native who left alone as a farmer in Utah, last spoke to his family on May 28, according to authorities. (Box Elder County Sheriff’s Department.)

“I’m holding it together the best I can,” she said at the time.

Brenner’s past criminal record includes intentional wounding, malicious shooting and three previous convictions for possession of a firearm, court records show.

“Defendant has no employment record, is currently unemployed and has no verifiable place of residence,” court documents say. “The accused entered the territory and squatted down.”

as part of them search for rounds, investigators served several search warrants. Two of them led to federal prosecutions against men who had been in contact with Round prior to his disappearance – Brenner and Chase Venstra.

Dylan Rounds grew up on the family farm and was happy to run his own farm when he went missing last year at the age of 19. (Candice Cooley)

When police charged Brenner with murder last week, they also ruled out the possible involvement of Venstra or any other suspects in Round’s disappearance.

Evidence confirms that James Brenner is the only suspect.

– Deputy Chief of the Cade Palmer/Box Elder County Sheriff’s Office

According to a neighbor identified in court documents as DH, at some point after Rounds disappeared, Brenner asked him to hide three black powder pistols and an unserialized .22 rifle. After being contacted by the FBI, DH handed over the weapon to the authorities. Citation past criminal convictionsthey accused Brenner of being a criminal with a firearm.

Dylan Rounds, a 19-year-old Idaho native who worked as a farmer in Utah, last spoke to his family on May 28, according to authorities. (.Box Elder County Sheriff’s Department)

“When Dylan Rounds was not located early on in the search, the investigation focused on the possibility that Dylan was the victim of a crime,” Palmer told Fox News Digital.

A native of Idaho, Rounds went solo as a teenager to build his own farm in utah, according to Cooley. According to her, he had a passion for work, and did not spend time on video games or social networks, like others his age, and he did not use drugs.

She suspicion of foul play almost immediately when family members lost touch with him.

Palmer previously issued a direct warning to anyone who might be implicated in Round’s disappearance.

“If someone is in hiding, who was involved or knows something, and they think they’ve been hiding long enough, we’ll just leave, that’s not going to happen,” he told Fox News Digital. “We will continue until we get answers.”

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The search for Round’s remains continues in a rural area dotted with abandoned mines and cave systems.

“We hope they will be found,” Palmer said.

Anyone with information is asked to call the Box Elder County Sheriff’s Office at 435-734-3800.