A Nevada man accused of kidnapping an 18-year-old woman from a Walmart parking lot has been charged with murder, authorities announced.
The charge comes days after the woman, Naomi Irion, was found dead in a remote gravesite near Reno. A cause of death was not released.
The suspect, Troy Driver, was arrested last week on kidnapping charges. He’s now also been charged with open murder with a deadly weapon, robbery, burglary and destruction of evidence, the Lyon County Sheriff’s Office said in a statement on Friday. Driver, 41, remains held at the Lyon County jail.
Prosecutors allege in a criminal complaint that Driver abducted Irion on March 12 “with the purpose of committing sexual assault and/or for the purpose of killing her,” NBC affiliate KRNV reported.
Naomi Christine Irion.FBI
Irion disappeared shortly after 5 a.m. while she was sitting in her car in the parking lot of a Walmart in Fernley. Her brother, Casey Valley, 32, said surveillance video showed a man in a mask and hoodie circling her car before forcing his way in.
Her car was found in an industrial area in Fernley.
The sheriff’s offices in Churchill and Lyon counties said investigators located Irion’s body after receiving a tip.
“We would like to extend our sympathy and condolences to the Irion family and thank all the volunteers for their hard work in trying to find Naomi and bring closure to the family,” a joint statement said.