Looking in at Iowa

4/23 UPDATE: Salt Lake woman found dead in Missouri; ex-boyfriend detained

Prior to the announcement of the discovery of Jones’ body, the Deseret News spoke with Michael Doyel’s 75-year-old mother in Cedar Rapids, Iowa. She expressed grave concern for Jones due to her son’s behavior in the past.

“My last words to him were, ‘Go away. Leave her alone and be good. Be good,’” Pauline Doyel said. “Leave people alone.”

Pauline Doyel said her son is a “habitual liar” and suffers from what she called paranoid schizophrenia.

“We had him institutionalized. He’s been in jail, he’s been in prison. We’ve done everything in our power to get help for him,” she said. … [MORE]

~~

4/23 UPDATE: Woman found dead in vehicle, Michael Doyel held by police.

~~

Photo of Debbie Jones from flyer.

From April 22 Deseret Morning News (Salt Lake City):

Deborah Jones met with domestic violence detectives a day before she went missing, police said Monday, as the search for Jones continued.

Jones, 50, met with Salt Lake domestic violence detectives Wednesday, concerned about threats made by her ex-boyfriend, said Salt Lake police detective Robert Eldard. Jones agreed to another meeting the next day, but never returned to the station, police said.

Jeff Jones, Deborah’s son, believes his mother may have been taken against her will by her former live-in boyfriend, Michael Jerome Doyel. Jeff Jones said after his mother and Doyel broke up about two weeks ago, Doyel made several threatening phone calls. Some of the threats were violent in nature. …

Jones’ family… believes Doyel is the main person of interest. They have created a Web site, www.finddebbie.com, to help locate their missing loved one. On the site, they said Doyel should be considered a “dangerous person” and made a plea to the public to “help bring Michael Doyel to justice.” …

The Jones family said on the Web site that Doyel has “an extensive criminal record.” A check of state court records in Utah by the Deseret News showed Doyel was arrested in 1999 in Salt Lake City for being a fugitive from justice from Cedar Rapids, Iowa. Doyel was also charged in 1999 in 3rd District Court and later convicted of assault on a police officer and interfering with an arrest, both misdemeanors.

Jones is 5 feet 6 inches, weighs 230 pounds with hazel eyes and shoulder-length brunette hair. Doyel is 5 feet 11 inches, 195 pounds with brown eyes and wavy brown hair. He wears wire-rim glasses. He has a tattoo “Jan Dolley” on his chest. …

From September 22, 1999 Gazette:

C.R. man won’t be charged in woman’s disappearance
By Kristophere’ Owens
Gazette staff writer

CEDAR RAPIDS – A Cedar Rapids man connected with the disappearance of a Marengo woman will not face charges for his actions during the four weeks the two were gone.

While Michael Doyel, 38, of 3411 First Ave. SE, and Juanita Plowman, 60, of Marengo, were away, Doyel used a bank ATM to make an empty deposit in an account opened by Plowman and later withdrew about $8,000 from the account.

Because Plowman has repaid that money to the bank, Cedar Rapids Police Department Detective Greg Koenighain told KCRG-TV9 that no charges would be filed against Doyel.

Koenighain said Plowman knew Doyel was taking the money.

Plowman, however, denied that.

Upset that Cedar Rapids Police and the Linn County Attorney’s Office did not tell her they do not plan to file charges against Doyel, Plowman said she is not sure what action she will take. She said she will discuss it with her son, Jim, of Marengo.

“It’s kind of a rotten deal,” she said last night.

Plowman met Doyel through a personals advertisement and left on a trip with him April 25. Family members, concerned about her safety, filed a missing person report in Iowa County.

The two were found May 24 in a West Valley City, Utah, motel room.