Iowa Attorney General Brenna Bird says the state Cold Case Unit that was started last year has made its first arrest.
The AG announced the arrest in the death of Barbara Lenz of Woodbine who disappeared in May of 1989. Woodbine Police investigated Lenz’s home and determined she had been taken against her will. The investigation stalled and Lenz was never found.
The Attorney General reports the Cold Case Unit reviewed the case and 61-year-old Robert Davis of Council Bluffs, who was Lenz’s boyfriend when she disappeared, was arrested Monday and charged with first-degree murder. According to the complaint, at least two witnesses told investigators that Davis had threatened to kill Lenz if she ever left him and there were multiple occasions where the two got into fights. It also says Davis admitting to having “choked her down” during the fights.
The complaint against Davis says investigators believe his actions give them probable cause to believe Davis killed Lenz and disposed of her body.