Autopsy results indicate that a California Department of Justice agent whose body was found Wednesday afternoon near the town of Sheridan died of blunt trauma to the head, Nevada County Sheriff Keith Royal said Thursday.
Sheriff's Capt. Gary Jacobson said analysis of evidence collected from the home and vehicles of Ron and Michiel Blamey is still ongoing.
"We have several items which we suspect were used, which were sent off to DOJ for analysis," Jacobson said. "There was no stabbing or firearm involved."
Ron Blamey, 63, of Truckee, was arrested in Reno on a no-bail bench warrant for murder Wednesday, three days after Michiel was last seen at their Prosser Lakeview home.
Searchers on Wednesday aftenoon, acting on directions given by Ron Blamey, discovered Michiel's body, wrapped in a blanket, off Wise Road in a rural area near the town of Sheridan, west of Auburn, according to Royal.
Ron Blamey is being held in the Washoe County Jail. California authorities will have to extradite him from Nevada for any trial.
Jacobson said there are no other suspects in the case. He said the investigation is focusing on activities leading up to her death and following it.
"It's still the intensive part of our investigation, filling in those blank areas, to determine their activities before and after the incident," Jacobson said.
According to Royal, Blamey turned himself in to a private attorney's office in Reno around 11 a.m. Wednesday. Law officers began interviewing him Wednesday afternoon.
Officers from several agencies combed the Truckee area on Tuesday and Wednesday, looking for any sign of Michiel, whose Sacramento DOJ coworkers reported her missing on Monday, March 27. The search shifted to Interstate 80 west of Auburn Wednesday afternoon, after Ron Blamey told investigators the general location of his wife's body.
Royal said Michiel was last seen Sunday by a Truckee neighbor at around 9 a.m., outside the home she and her husband owned in Prosser Lakeview.
Jacobson said that evidence collected from the both Blameys' house in Truckee and from their two vehicles led officers to suspect foul play. He said blood was found in the residence and a vehicle.
On Tuesday afternoon, deputies combed wooded areas near Laurelwood Drive with the assistance of volunteers and dogs from the California Rescue Dog Association.
At 5 p.m. Tuesday, Nevada County Superior Court Judge Ersel Edwards issued a no-bail warrant for Ron Blamey.
Co-workers from her Sacramento DOJ office reported Michiel Blamey missing when she failed to return to work Monday.
DOJ spokesman Mike Van Winkle said Michiel began her career with the California Department of Justice in 1984. During her tenure, she served as an undercover narcotics agent for the Bureau of Narcotics Enforcement and also worked investigations for the California Bureau of Investigation.
As a special agent supervisor, Michiel worked out of CBI headquarters in Sacramento on Special Projects and Special Investigations. Most recently, Van Winkle said, she worked closely with the legislature to bolster DOJ's sexual predator apprehension team. He said Michiel was a recognized expert in the field of investigating child sexual predators.
She formerly served in the military and worked as a peace officer in a community near San Diego.
Jacobson said the Blameys had been married for about 10 years, and that Ron Blamey worked as a contractor.
Nevada County Sheriff's Office is investigating the case, in conjunction with officers from the California Department of Justice, Sierra County Sheriff's Office, Sacramento County Sheriff's Office and the Federal Bureau of Investigation.
NCSO is asking anyone with information regarding the case to call (530) 582-7838.