Woman found dead outside Benton County home identified

SHELLSBURG - A woman was found dead Sunday outside the rural Shellsburg home of a man under investigation for stealing a truck in the same area, according to authorities and records.

Investigators have not said how or if the incidents are related.

The man, David C. Miller, 31, is in custody facing a motor vehicle theft charge and remains under investigation, officials said.

The woman was identified as Sabrina Christine Hustad, 25, formerly of Cedar Rapids. She was found dead in a driveway at 3257 59th St. Trail - Miller's home, according to records.

The Iowa Department of Public Safety said she died of 'injuries from suspected foul play.”

Sunday's events in Benton County began hours before Hustad's body was found when the Benton County Sheriff's Office took a report of a stolen truck around 4 a.m. The truck was reported stolen from a residence on 59th Street Trail, the same road where the body was found. The theft victims said they had seen a man take the truck and head south.

The Sheriff's Office said the truck was found crashed into construction equipment 1.5 miles south from where it was taken, on a closed road under construction.

While that incident was under investigation, a resident at 3251 61st Lane, which is near where the crash was discovered, reported that his truck was missing.

While the vehicle theft investigations were underway, the Linn County Sheriff's Office received a report of a man walking along Lewis Bottoms Road suffering from a head wound. The man was about 2 miles east of where the truck was found crashed into the construction equipment. The man, identified as Miller, was taken to a Cedar Rapids hospital by the Iowa State Patrol and interviewed.

Around noon Sunday, the Sheriff's Office received two calls about a woman's body at 3257 59th Street Trail. Deputies found the body outside what turned out to be Miller's home.

The state patrol was called in to assist in finding the second stolen vehicle. A patrol airplane located the truck in a 'densely overgrown area” north of Pleasant Creek State Park. Authorities said the truck had been driven down an old trail and crashed into a tree in a deep ravine.

Brian Brummer said he had parked his 2001 Ford F-150 with the keys under a floor mat. He didn't notice it was missing until about 10 a.m. Sunday. Brummer said he was 'astounded” to find out his stolen vehicle had a possible connection with an apparent homicide.

Miller made an initial appearance on the original stolen vehicle charge Monday morning in Benton County District Court. The magistrate set a bail of $5,000 cash. However, Benton County Sheriff Randy Forsyth said Miller faces a parole violation as well, which would prevent him from leaving jail even if he could raise the money.

Forsyth said he is unsure of a relationship between Miller and Hustad. Forsyth said that issue was still under investigation, and he is awaiting state autopsy and lab reports before deciding on any additional charges.