Teen Arrested in Montana After Mom's Body Found in Freezer

BOUNTIFUL, Utah – An 18-year-old wanted for questioning in the death of his mother, whose body was found stuffed in a freezer, has been taken into custody in Montana, police said Thursday.

Jeremy Hauck was arrested without incident by Missoula police at a motel on Wednesday night, said Bountiful police Detective Randy Pickett.

Hauck was arrested for investigation of automobile theft, Pickett said. His mother's blue 2001 Toyota was found at the motel. Officials said he had three guns, ammunition and a knife when he was arrested.

Detectives from the Bountiful Police Department traveled to Missoula to interview the teenager, but he declined to speak to police on the advice of an attorney.

Hauck is scheduled to be arraigned Friday in Missoula's 4th District Court, said the Missoula County attorney's office.

Bountiful police will be seeking Hauck's extradition to Utah, Pickett said. An arrest warrant for Hauck for investigation of first-degree murder was issued Thursday, Pickett said. He said search warrants were also obtained for the motel and the car.

The body of Laura Hauck, 52, was found Monday in a chest-style freezer at the Bountiful condominium where she lived with her son. It took two days for the body to be identified because it had to be thawed to be removed from the freezer.

The Haucks had not been seen since last Friday. Police were called by relatives to check on the family Monday. When officers entered the Hauck home they found a bloody mattress, shells from a .22-caliber rifle and a trail of blood leading to the body in the freezer.

Police had been looking for Jeremy Hauck and the blue Toyota Corolla since Tuesday.

Laura Hauck grew up in St. Ignatius, Mont., and had previously lived in Missoula. She moved to Utah about two years ago

Her brother, Michael Umphrey, said Thursday his sister's death came as a complete shock to friends and family members.

"There was never any indication from Laura that Jeremy was any trouble at all," Umphrey said.

Family members said Jeremy Hauck planned on attending Weber State University in Utah to study forensic science.

"He wanted to be a crime scene investigator," Umphrey said.