Maricopa County Sheriff’s Office deputies have found the body of former Sedona resident David Ian Wile and arrested a suspect in connection with Wile’s disappearance.
Wile, 30, a resident of Sedona from 1995 to 2006, was last seen at his home in Glendale on the morning of Aug. 14.
After Wile failed to arrive at a ballroom dance competition and photo shoot at Paragon Dance Studio in Tempe, Wile’s family in the Sedona area filed a missing person’s report with the Glendale Police Department on Aug. 17.
On Aug. 24, at approximately 12:18 p.m., a couple driving on Grand Avenue in Sun City noticed a foul smell coming from outside their vehicle, according to the Maricopa County Sheriff’s Office.
Ahead of their vehicle they noticed a white truck pulling a white box trailer, with foam insulation on the rear doors. The couple followed the vehicle for a while before contacting the Maricopa County Sheriff’s Office, because they reportedly believed the decaying smell was emanating from the trailer.
Deputies were given the license plate and a general location of the vehicle. A short time later, the vehicle was stopped on 111th Avenue north of Olive Avenue, between the cities of Peoria and Sun City. Deputies made contact with the 48-year-old driver.
Sheriff’s deputies immediately reportedly smelled the foul odor coming from the trailer and asked the driver about the circumstances. He was reportedly very evasive and did not give the deputies too many details, according to MCSO.
Upon opening the trailer doors, deputies reportedly found what appeared to be a human body inside the trailer, wrapped up in a garment.
The suspect was interviewed but reportedly invoked his right to counsel and was booked on one count of abandoning or concealing a dead body and $20,000 cash bond.
The body was taken to the Maricopa County Medical Examiner’s Office for further investigation on the cause and manner of death. On Friday, Aug. 27, an autopsy confirmed the body to be that of Wile.
The Maricopa County Sheriff’s Office Homicide Unit is actively working the case. Additional charges may be pending.
A preliminary hearing for the suspect is scheduled Friday, Sept. 3.
