Minnesota Authorities Identify Remains Found in Submerged Car | Crime Alert 6AM 10.07.25

After nearly six decades, authorities in central Minnesota have confirmed the identity of human remains found in the Mississippi River as Roy George Benn, who went missing in 1967.

Benn, then 59, was last seen at a café in Sartell early one September morning. He was reportedly carrying a large amount of cash, and his disappearance sparked a long-running investigation with no resolution—until now. On August 10, a fisherman using sonar near Sartell detected what appeared to be a submerged vehicle. Dive teams recovered a heavily deteriorated 1963 Buick Electra, registered to Benn, with human remains and personal items inside.

The Minnesota Bureau of Criminal Apprehension has confirmed the remains are Benn's.  The investigation into how Benn and his vehicle ended up in the river continues.  

See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Episode Transcript

Speaker 1 (00:00):
Crime Alert. I'm John Lemley. Authorities in Sartel, Minnesota say
a mystery that began more than half a century ago
may finally be closer to a solution. Police now believe
a car pulled from the Mississippi River, along with human
remains found inside, are those of Roy Benn. Ben was
last seen September twenty fifth, nineteen sixty seven. After breakfast

(00:25):
at the Kings End Supper Club, he entered his metallic
blue nineteen sixty three Buick Electra and vanished. That mystery
lingered for nearly fifty seven years until August tenth. That's
when an angler on the Mississippi near County Road I
spotted what looked like a vehicle under the water and
called police. The Stearns Minton County Sheriffs Office dive team

(00:49):
went in, confirmed the find, and days later freed the
intact car from decades of sediment. Collins Brother's towing brought
it to the surface, where it was towed to the
Sartell p Police Department. Investigators from Sartel Police, the Benton
and Stearns County Sheriff's Departments, and the Minnesota Bureau of
Criminal Apprehension combed through the vehicle. Inside, they found remains

(01:13):
and evidence linking the car and the body to Roy Benn.
A press release says that connection came from the remains themselves,
items inside the car, and the vehicle's VIN number. Officials
also noted Ben was wearing a dark suit, a white
French cuffed shirt, and gold and pearl cuff links. Back

(01:33):
in nineteen sixty seven, Ben was a widower, the owner
of an apartment building and of Saint Cloud Gas and
appliance service. His family described him as financially secure, with
no debts and possibly carrying thousands of dollars the day
he disappeared. Authorities say no one ever touched his bank accounts,

(01:54):
credit cards, or the registration of his car in the decades.
Sense loved one said Ben was happy, with no reason
to walk away from his life. The remains are now
with the Midwest Medical Examiner's Office for further investigation and
formal identification. We turned to a sweeping crackdown on organized

(02:20):
retail theft in California. Authorities in Ventura County have dismantled
what they called a major theft ring responsible for stealing
ten million dollars worth of merchandise from home Depot, marking
the retailer's largest theft case to date. The ringleader, David All,
who owns Arya Wholesale, reportedly orchestrated more than six hundred

(02:43):
thefts across seventy one home Depot stores last year alone.
He allegedly paid thieves in cash for high end electrical items,
which were then resold online, including through eBay. The forty
count criminal complaint names All, his ex, and his brother
in law, all facing prosecution. If convicted, all could face

(03:05):
up to thirty two years in prison. Authorities credited recent
funding and new legislation allowing multi county prosecutions for enabling
the bust. Turning now to Los Angeles, a joint operation
between the LAPD and the Sheriff's Office has apprehended a
burglary ring responsible for nearly one hundred break ins throughout

(03:27):
the region. In early morning raids, Seven men aged between
twenty two and forty seven were arrested. Three more suspects
have since been added, two men already facing attempted murder
charges and another who surrendered. That brings the total number
of arrests to ten. Authorities seized stolen luxury items, firearms, narcotics,

(03:48):
burglary tools and communication devices in a raid earlier this year.
Investigators had also uncovered fake IDs, credit cards, jewelry, and
additional firearms. District Attorney Nathan Hockman vowed to pursue maximum penalties,
emphasizing that close interagency cooperation and intelligence sharing proved pivotal

(04:11):
in dismantling the network. A former sheriff's deputy in Georgia
has been sentenced to sixteen months in federal prison for
using excessive force against a black detainee and a jailhouse
beating caught on video. Twenty seven year old Ryan Beagle
pleaded guilty earlier this year to violating the civil rights
of Jarrett Hobbs, who had been booked into the Camden

(04:34):
County Jail in Woodbine, near the Georgia Florida line September third,
twenty twenty two. Federal prosecutors say security footage from that
night showed Hobbs standing alone in his cell when five
deputies entered. At least three, including Beagle, punch Hobbs repeatedly
in the head and neck. He was then dragged into

(04:54):
the hallway and slammed against a wall. Beagle was fired
and arrested more than two months later, after Hobbes' attorney
released the jail video to the public. Two other deputies
involved also faced state charges of battery and violating their
oaths of office. Hobbes, from Greensboro, North Carolina, initially faced
felony charges stemming from the incident, but prosecutors later dropped

(05:18):
them citing insufficient evidence. Camden County later paid Hobbes an
undisclosed cash settlement to avoid a civil lawsuit. So far,
Beagle is the only one to face federal prosecution. Thanks
John for the latest crime in justice news. Go to
crime online dot com and please join us for our
daily podcast, Crime Stories, where we do our best to

(05:41):
find missing people, especially children, and solve unsolt homicides. With
this crime alert, I'm Nancy Grace.