OGDEN — Two weeks after her daughter went missing, Dawn Miera said she bumped into Dea Millerberg.
What was odd about the meeting, Miera says, was that Millerberg didn't even ask about her missing 16-year-old daughter, Alexis Rasmussen.
Wednesday, Miera expressed sadness in trusting Millerberg, a mother of two young daughters herself. Millerberg and her husband, Eric Millerberg, have been named persons of interest in Alexis' death.
"My biggest mistake was expecting her to be like me or the moms I know," she said. "I had no idea that they'd be capable of doing something like this."
Miera and members of Alexis' family made their first public comments Wednesday since the teen's body was discovered in a remote part of Morgan County. Their comments came just hours after the attorney for Dea Millerberg said criminal charges against both the Millerbergs involving Alexis' death "will be coming."
In 2nd District Court Wednesday, Dea Millerberg's newly appointed attorney said he was appointed to the case because of a potential conflict with her old attorney, Randy Marshall.
Marshall was assigned to represent both Dea and Eric Millerberg, 36, on their prescription fraud and probation violation cases. But Marshall had to withdraw from representing Dea Millerberg because of potential charges that are expected to be filed in the Rasmussen investigation.
Dea Millerberg's new attorney, Mike Bouwhuis, said he had a "general discussion" with Weber County Attorney Dee Smith and learned that "charges will be coming" against the Millerbergs. "That's what I've been told," he said.
Those charges could range from homicide to desecration of a dead body. Because both Millerbergs could be charged, the same attorney cannot represent both.
Alexis' mother said Wednesday she had never met Eric Millerberg prior to her daughter's disappearance. But when she did finally meet him, "I had the most horrible feeling in the world."
If she had met Eric Millerberg beforehand, Miera said she probably wouldn't have let her daughter baby-sit at his home.
"I didn't think anything like this could happen," she said.
When asked about the possible charges the Millerbergs could receive, Miera said it made her "sick to my stomach."
"I have ideas about what happened," she said, adding that she knew from the beginning that her daughter didn't run away.
"I had a lot of bad thoughts. I really don't want to say (what they were) because one of them may actually be what happened," she said.
But for more than a month, Miera said she got by on the hope that her instincts could be wrong because of the numerous reported sightings of her daughter by members of the public.
"I let people convince me. That's how I got through that month and a half," she said.
Now, both she and Alexis' stepfather, Mike Miera, are warning other parents to keep an eye on who their children hang out with and don't assume they're safe just because they might live in a nice neighborhood.
Several family members, including Alexis' brother, sister and aunt, all spoke briefly to the media Wednesday. Miera recalled her daughter as being a "look at me" type of girl with a large personality, or a "large force" that drew everyone to her.
"Lexi was as smart as she was beautiful," her mother said. "She's somebody who I think would have made a big difference."
Miera said her daughter was a person who could drive someone crazy but have them laughing at the same time.
Dea Millerberg, 38, was scheduled to have a preliminary hearing Wednesday on two felony counts of falsely obtaining a prescription. Bouwhuis was assigned to the case Wednesday morning. He asked the court to reschedule her hearing until Nov. 16 at which point a decision will be made whether to have a preliminary hearing.
Tuesday, Smith confirmed both Millerbergs were persons of interest in the disappearance and death of the North Ogden teen. Eric Millerberg's probation was revoked Tuesday and he was sent to the Utah State Prison on his original sentence of up to five years.
Dea Millerberg remained in the Weber County Jail Wednesday on $10,000 bail.
Alexis was last seen baby-sitting for the Millerbergs at their home, 3328 N. 900 East, on the night of Sept. 10. She had tended the children, a 5-year-old and a 9-month-old, in the past.
According to Dawn Miera, Dea Millerberg returned home about 10:20 p.m. and Alexis went with her to Walgreens in Layton to pick up a prescription. Store surveillance video confirms the two were at the store, she said.
But when they were done picking up the medication, Dea Millerberg left again to resume her night out with her husband, something Miera said sounded very odd to her.
About 11:30 p.m. that night, Alexis texted her mother to report that the couple wasn't home yet. Her mother told Alexis to make sure she got paid and to stay the night at the Millerbergs' house because it was so late. That was the last contact her mother had with her.
The Millerbergs were arrested on Oct. 3 for investigation of charges unrelated to the Rasmussen case. Several search warrants have been served on their home since then. Smith said police have also seized a couple of vehicles in connection to the Rasmussen case. Her body was found last week in a rural area of Morgan County.
A funeral for Alexis will be held Saturday.
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