Arrest in Dunn County homicide

DUNN COUNTY, Wis. (WEAU) – Dunn County authorities have made an arrest in connection with a cold case dating back to 1974.

Dunn County Sheriff Kevin Bygd says 84-year-old Jon Miller of Owatonna, Minnesota was arrested Thursday for the murder of Mary Schlais.

On February 15, 1974, Schlais was found dead near the intersection of 408th Avenue and 990th Street in the town of Spring Brook.

At the time, Schlais’ death was ruled a homicide, and an initial investigation revealed that she hitchhiked from Minneapolis to an art exhibit in Chicago.

Over the ensuing decades, many tips, leads, and interviews were conducted regarding the murder, but no viable suspects were identified.

In recent years, investigators from the Dunn County Sheriff’s Office began working with a team of genetic genealogists from Ramapo College in Mahwah, New Jersey, leading to the identification of Miller as a suspect.

Miller is in custody and awaiting extradition to Wisconsin.