Body Found in Central Oregon Tentatively Identified as McMinnville Man

73-year old Kenneth W. Miller and 69-year old Betty Lou Japel, became the focus of a McMinnville Police Department missing person investigation May 17th after a man, identified as Gregory Allen Cole allegedly shot an Arizona police officer in Quartzite.

The remains of 73-year old Kenneth Miller have been discovered by Oregon state authorities

(SALEM, Ore.) - Salem-News.com recently published a series of articles about a missing couple from McMinnville and the death of an Arizona man who police say was a suspect in their disappearance.

Oregon State Police detectives have tentatively identified remains found in central Oregon as a missing man from the McMinnville area.

State Police Spokesman Greg Hastings says the remains were found Wednesday afternoon by a detective with the assistance of National Guard personnel while searching a section of BLM property east of Redmond.

Around 2:00 PM Wednesday, an Oregon State Police detective and two National Guard members were searching the remote area where the missing couple's motor home was found in mid-2006. The couple, 73-year old Kenneth W. Miller and 69-year old Betty Lou Japel, became the focus of a McMinnville Police Department missing person investigation May 17th after a man, identified as Gregory Allen Cole allegedly shot an Arizona police officer in Quartzite.

Police say the search focused on an area about 100 yards southwest from where the couple's motor home was found abandoned one year ago. During the search a shallow, partially unearthed grave site was found and dug revealing the remains of an adult male tentatively identified as Mr. Miller.

An autopsy is scheduled early next week to help confirm identification and determine cause of death.

According to an initial missing person investigation started May 17th by McMinnville Police Department, Mr. Miller and Ms. Japel had been together for 30 years but never married. Neither had a permanent address and traveled extensively. They reportedly checked in periodically with others but it was not uncommon for them to not have contact for a year or more. Family members indicated they had not heard from the couple for about a year. McMinnville Police Department entered the couple in a national law enforcement computer data base as "missing/endangered".

The whereabouts of Ms. Japel is currently unknown.

McMinnville police notified Mr. Miller's next of kin Thursday afternoon.

Anyone with information regarding this case is asked to contact McMinnville Police Department Sergeant Rhonda Sandoval at (503) 434-6500.

Other Salem-News.com articles about the missing couple:

Oregon Police Take Lead in Search for Missing Couple

Suspect in Police Officer Shooting With Ties to Missing Oregon Couple Found Dead