A 56-year-old Minnesota man admitted he killed his mother because he had spent all her money and she was becoming suspicious.
Troy Michael Mitteness has been arrested and charged with second-degree murder for the slaying of his 82-year-old mother, Sandra Viola Mitteness, and disposing of her body parts in bins at various locations along the state highway.
Dakota County Attorney Kathy Keena described the case as one of the most devastating of her career. She expressed her gratitude to the Burnsville Police Department for their commitment to investigating the disappearance of Ms. Mitteness, which led to the resolution of this case.
The investigation began when officers from the Burnsville Police Department looked into reports of mail theft allegedly committed by Troy Mitteness. During their investigation, they discovered that some of the stolen funds had been deposited into his mother’s bank account. When authorities attempted to speak with Sandra Mitteness, her son claimed she was in South Dakota but later informed them that she had died on June 14, 2022.
A search warrant executed at Mitteness’ home uncovered an obituary indicating his mother’s death on that date. However, the funeral home denied having provided any post-mortem care or funeral services for Sandra Mitteness. Family members corroborated Mitteness’ claim of his mother’s death, as they had not seen her for approximately a year and believed her to be deceased based on his statements. Mitteness alleged that she had fallen down the stairs in June 2022, was hospitalized without any visits allowed due to COVID-19, and later died.
Further investigation revealed blood in Sandra’s car, which Troy had sold, and the presence of blood on the stairs of the home shared by Mitteness and his mother. Police also discovered a mattress and box spring stained with large, dark red marks.
In a subsequent interview, Mitteness admitted that his mother had started to bother him about her finances, and revealed that he had researched methods to kill an elderly person without using poison, ultimately choosing to stab her in the neck while she slept. Mitteness claimed to have dismembered her body after a few days and placed the remains in plastic tote bins stored in his garage. He then drove with the bins, discarding parts of the body in ditches along his route to avoid detection. Two of the plastic totes were allegedly left behind a dumpster at an abandoned rest stop on Highway 7 toward Willmar, Minnesota.
Authorities were able to recover the bins abandoned at the rest stop, which matched similar bins found in Mitteness’ garage during the execution of the search warrant.
Mitteness is currently held at the Dakota County Jail on a $2 million bond. He is scheduled to appear in court for an Omnibus Hearing on July 20.
