Body of Milpitas woman found buried in neighbor’s backyard

This past Monday, January 31, the Milpitas Police Department (MPD) got a call from a party requesting a welfare check at a woman’s home. The caller had not heard from the woman (age 59) in days and had grown concerned. 

MPD showed up at the woman’s home, located at the Mobilodge on Milpitas Blvd., and found nothing suspicious. Still, they launched a missing person investigation. They also met with the missing woman’s family members. 

A search began, with MPD officers canvassing the area for the victim. According to neighbors, a female could be heard screaming in the area around 4am on Saturday morning (January 29).

Come February 1, during morning hours, following an overnight search, officers found a key piece of evidence (undisclosed) near the missing party’s home. This led them to believe she had been the victim of a violent crime. The investigation was soon handed off to detectives. 

Pursuant to a search warrant, investigators searched both the victim’s home and the home of Micah James Dovlet (age 34), located directly across the street. More physical evidence was found in Dovlet’s home, but not the victim. However, as the evidence pointed toward a homicide, Dovlet was arrested for that crime and booked into the Santa Clara County Main Jail. 

Come February 2, as a result of new information put together by detectives, investigators revisited Dovlet’s home with a second search warrant. With the combined efforts of the Santa Clara County District Attorney’s Crime Laboratory, the Santa Clara County Office of the Medical Examiner-Coroner, and Milpitas Police Department Evidence Technicians, the victim’s body was found in and exhumed from Dovlet’s backyard. 

Dovlet was arraigned in court on February 3, at which point he was formally charged with homicide and retained in custody. 

Read an MPD statement, “Our thoughts and prayers are with the victim’s family. To ensure the privacy of the victim’s family, the Milpitas Police Department will not be releasing the victim’s name.”

At present, a motive has not yet been released.