Pierce County sheriff's investigators said 63-year-old Janet Mueller had been dead for a month and a half when burglars broke into her home. That's when the two brothers allegedly hatched an elaborate plot to take everything she had.
“Instead of doing the right thing, they hid her body, stole her cars, changed the name on them, took her antiques and started to raid her bank accounts,” said Pierce County Sheriff’s spokesman detective Ed Troyer.
Mueller was reported missing but no one came by her home to check on her. Her horse apparently starved and was found dead in a corral behind the house.
According to investigators, one of the men drove Mueller's body from her home to his, using his own car, wrapped it in a tent and hid it under a pile of hay.
Over a period of about 2 1/2 weeks the two brothers allegedly took anything they could find of value and began withdrawing thousands from Mueller's bank account. Bank employees became suspicious and contacted police.
Once investigators connected the stolen identity to the missing woman it led to the suspects. They located Mueller’s body using a dog trained to detect human remains, said Troyer, and arrested the two.
“It’s very strange, and we don’t know what kind of people would do that, and we’re going to hold them accountable,” Troyer said.
The two men were placed on a 72-hour hold and are expected in court Monday.
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