Body found in Ogden shed, homicide suspected
Shawn Boehme, 44. Person of interest in homicide case
Elgie Ray Mills Jr., identified as the victim of a homicide in Ogden.
Police investigate the scene of a suspicious death at 2930 Pennsylvania Ave in southwest Ogden on Friday, May, 30, 2014. As of Friday morning, few details were released other than the fact that the victim was an adult male. (BENJAMIN ZACK/Standard-Examiner)
John Harvey, Deputy Director with the Ogden Police Department, speaks with the media following a suspicious death in southwest Ogden on Friday, May, 30, 2014. As of Friday morning, few details were released other than the fact that the victim was an adult male. (BENJAMIN ZACK/Standard-Examiner)
OGDEN — Police said they suspect a homicide after a man’s body was found in a storage unit Thursday night.
A woman called Ogden police at about 10:15 p.m. Thursday reporting she found a man dead inside the storage area, located in an industrial park at 2930 Pennsylvania Ave.
“The officer responding determined the circumstances to be suspicious,” said Ogden Police Deputy Directory of Administration John Harvey at a news conference Friday morning.
The victim was identified Friday afternoon as Elgie Ray Mills, 43.
Harvey declined to speak about the cause of death or how long Mills’ body appeared to have been stashed away before it was found.
“That’s what the autopsy will reveal,” Harvey said.
Police announced they are searching for 44-year-old Shawn Gerrald Boehme of Ogden, who was described as a person of interest in the case. Investigators believe Boehme was with the suspect around the time of the alleged murder.
Friday evening, police found Boehme’s truck abandoned in west Weber County.
“We will leave no stone unturned. … We’re following leads and we have a person of interest,” Harvey said.
It wasn’t immediately clear how long Mills’ body had been in the storage unit. A large swath of the block where he was found has been cordoned off “because so much is unknown,” according to Harvey. He said businesses within the taped-off crime scene may not reopen until officers give the say-so.
Ishmael Contreras, who works at Alvarez Muffler Services next door to the storage shed, said employees there hadn’t noticed anything suspicious in the area.
Contreras added police are keeping his business informed about the investigation.
Harvey noted no offenses were reported within a quarter mile radius of the shed in the past 30 days.
According to court records, Mills was recently in the Davis County Jail for protection order violations. Mills has an extensive history of misdemeanors for violating protection orders, a few against family members.
Police are asking anyone with information about the case to call 801-629-8221. They can all submit anonymous tips at this website: http://tinyurl.com/opdtips .
Contact reporter Ben Lockhart at 801-625-4221 or blockhart@standard.net. Follow him on Twitter at @SE_Lockhart.
Reporter Andreas Rivera contributed to this story.