A body was discovered Thursday by Mohave County Sheriff’s Office detectives buried in an abandoned residence in Golden Valley.
While conducting a missing persons investigation, officers were led to a property in the area of Sacramento Road and Geronimo Drive in Golden Valley, a city near the southern corner of Nevada.
The Mohave County Sheriff’s Office obtained and executed a search warrant.
At the property, detectives identified a “suspected burial site” where human remains that had been buried approximately three feet deep were discovered, according to Mohave County police. The property was abandoned and littered with junk and debris, authorities said.
Police identified the body as 42-year-old Joshua William-James Blake, who was reported missing by family members in August.
Police believed due to information regarding the missing persons case and the fact that the body was buried, that the body discovered was a homicide victim.
An official cause of death will be determined by the Mohave County Medical Examiner’s Office.
An update from police Friday morning announced that 31-year-old Michael Blaine Turner Jr. was charged with first-degree murder in connection to the death of Blake.
During this investigation, officers learned that Turner Jr. and another man, 26-year-old Hunter McGuire, allegedly shot and killed Blake.
Blake’s body was then buried on an abandoned property in the area of Sacramento Road and Geronimo Drive, located a short distance from where McGuire was living.
In August, Turner Jr. was living in Blake’s residence off Kingman Trail in Golden Valley.
Days before Blake’s disappearance, there was an argument between the two men over a missed payment of rent. Blake had also taken the blame for Turner Jr. shooting a subject at the property in June and threatened to go to the police to report Turner Jr. as the actual shooter.
Immediately following Blake’s disappearance, Turner Jr. attempted to notarize a bill of sale in an attempt to take possession of Blake’s residence. He was also found to be in possession of Blake’s vehicle.
Turner Jr. was arrested driving Blake’s vehicle in September and was found to be in possession of a firearm and illegal narcotics during the traffic stop. He was booked into the Mohave County Adult Detention Facility where he has been in custody since.
McGuire, the second suspect, ended his life after being pursued by law enforcement on October 21. He was identified as committing multiple homicides in Kingman and Las Vegas.
Reach breaking news reporter Ellie Willard at ellie.willard@gannett.com or on Twitter @EllieWillardAZ.
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