Sabrina Hustad Janish was strangled and stabbed, authorities say

BENTON COUNTY - Sabrina Hustad Janish died of multiple stab wounds and strangulation and her death has been ruled a homicide, state officials said Wednesday.

The Iowa Division of Criminal Investigation and Benton County Sheriff's Office are continuing to 'run down leads” in the case, according to the Department of Public Safety.

Janish, 25, was found dead Sunday at 3257 59th Street Trail, the home of 31-year-old David C. Miller. Miller is in custody on a theft of a motor vehicle charge and no charges have been filed in Hustad's death, which is still under investigation.

Authorities are still investigating what connections existed between Hustad and Miller prior to her death. According to court records, Janish named Miller in a paternity and child support case in Jasper County in April 2011. The case was dismissed later that year.

Through a survivors advocacy program, Janish's family and friends have declined to comment on her death. A release from Horizons Survivors Program said Janish enjoyed spending time with her family and friends and going to casinos and hockey games.

'She had a close bond with her sisters that she loved dearly,” the release said.

Around 4 a.m. Sunday, the Benton County Sheriff's Office took a report of a truck stolen from a home on 59th Street Trail. The victims told deputies they saw a man take the truck and head south. The truck was found crashed into construction equipment 1.5 miles south from where it was taken.

While that incident was under investigation, a nearby resident reported that his truck was missing.

As Benton County authorities were investigating the two stolen trucks, the Linn County Sheriff's Office took a report of a man suffering from a head wound walking along Lewis Bottoms Road - two miles east of where the first truck was found crashed into the construction equipment. The man - identified later as Miller - was taken to a Cedar Rapids hospital by the Iowa State Patrol and interviewed.

Around noon Sunday, the Benton County Sheriff's Office took two reports of a woman's body at 3257 59th Street Trail. There, authorities found Hustad's body, suffering from 'injuries from suspected foul play,” according to the Iowa Department of Public Safety.

The second stolen truck was found crashed into a tree in a deep ravine north of Pleasant Creek State Park.