Remains presumed to belong to a Utah teen who went missing in 2022 have been found in a remote area of the state in Box Elder County.
Dylan Rounds was 19 when he disappeared from his farm after a phone call with his grandmother, the New York Post reported. In March 2023, James Brenner was charged with Rounds’ murder and agreed to tell police where the body was as part of a plea deal.
“On April 9, 2024, skeletal remains presumed to belong to Dylan Rounds were recovered in the remote western Box Elder County area of Lucin,” the Box Elder County Sheriff’s Office said on Facebook. “The FBI assisted the Box Elder County Sheriff’s Office by processing the area for evidence and recovering the remains. The remains are in the possession of the Utah Office of the Medical Examiner for confirmation of identity.”
Brenner was squatting on land next to Rounds’ trailer when he allegedly murdered the teen, East Idaho News reported last year, and was charged with one count of aggravated murder and one count of abuse or desecration of a human body. Brenner had a violent criminal history and had been arrested on outstanding warrants in June 2022 before authorities announced that he was a suspect in Rounds’ disappearance.
During a hearing last year, Brenner appeared with a limp, prompting Rounds’ parents to accuse him of attention-seeking behavior.
“He’s despicable. His whole act of limping around is a complete act,” Rounds’ mother, Candice Cooley, told East Idaho News at the time. “I don’t know if it’s so we think he’s going to die or make him some sort of deal but he wants people to feel sorry for him.”
“He looks for attention to have people feel sorry for him. That’s all. I think it’s an act,” Rounds’ father, Justin, told the outlet.
While the sheriff’s office announced the discovery of a body believed to be Rounds, it did not elaborate further due to legal proceedings against Brenner.
“Our hearts go out to the family of Dylan Rounds,” the sheriff’s office said. “We offer our sincerest condolences for the loss of their family member. We understand that the pain of their loss is immeasurable, and we want to express our deepest sympathies to them. It is our hope that they can find peace moving forward.”
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Squatting has become a national issue after several major stories have come to light about people refusing to leave properties and homeowners being unable to reclaim what is theirs. The issue prompted Sen. John Fetterman (D-PA) to condemn the laws protecting “squatter’s rights.”
“Squatters have no rights,” Fetterman told the New York Post. “How can you even pretend that this is anything other than you’re just breaking the law?”
“It’s wild that if you go away on a long trip, for 30 days, and someone breaks into your home and suddenly they have rights,” he added. “This is crazy. Like if somebody stole your car, and then they held it for 30 days, then somehow you now have some rights?”