Three adults from Warm Springs were arrested in connection with the death of Brian Jones, whose body was discovered in August on the side of Danube Drive in farmland north of Madras.

Theresa Marjorie Winishut, 27, Salbador Angeles Robinson, 27, and Stephanie Mae Belgard, 37, are being held without bail in Jefferson County Jail, each charged with the same 10 felony counts, including second-degree murder, conspiracy to commit murder, robbery and unlawful use of a vehicle.

The investigation into Jones’ death was delayed by the backlog at the state crime lab, according to Jefferson County Sheriff Jim Adkins, who added DNA evidence proved decisive in pinning Jones’ death on Belgard, Robinson and Winishut.

“We had a suspicion as to who we thought it was,” Adkins said. “Then DNA and other evidence tied them right to it.”

Adkins said he could not publicly describe Jones’ cause or manner of death, though investigators believe the three suspects robbed Jones and stole his vehicle, which turned up later on the Warm Springs Reservation.

Jones, 52, was a Redmond resident who had no known connections to Jefferson County. He remains a subject of speculation to police.

“He was a hard individual to get background on,” Adkins said. “He had no ties up to Jefferson County that we’re aware of. Why was he up here? How did he hook up with the suspects? We had a lot questions.”

In the early morning of Aug. 20, a truck driver called 911 to report a person’s body on the side of NW Danube Drive about seven miles northwest of Madras. The man, Jones, was about 40 feet from U.S. Highway 26, though obscured from view by a sharp turn in the road.

It was clear to investigators Jones had walked a short distance and leaned against a guardrail before succumbing to his injuries, Adkins said.

“You can tell where he fell against the guardrail and then fell on the ground,” Adkins said.

It’s not thought Jones was at the location for very long, given average traffic volume on Danube Drive and how prominent the body was.

On Friday, a Jefferson County judge signed an arrest warrant for Winishut, Robinson and Belgard, and they were arrested in Warm Springs the next day and interviewed by police. It’s not thought the trio was on the run from the law or hiding out when they were arrested, Adkins said.

Two of the three, Winishut and Belgard, have been assigned public defenders. Calls to their offices seeking comment were unreturned Monday. Robinson is not yet represented by a lawyer.

The three are due in court Friday to be arraigned.