Delusional Landlord Claimed Self-Defense After Putting Dead Tenant In Barrel

Watch this police interrogation with intense raw interrogation from the interrogation room as police conduct a full interrogation of a suspect. This raw interrogation footage captures every moment of the suspect interview, complete with deception detection techniques, and criminal psychology in true JCS style interrogation. The Background Ricky Dean Miller (age 67 at the time), landlord/property owner in the 3600 block of Old Lewis River Road, Woodland, Cowlitz County, Washington. Dennis Eugene Schmitt (age 71), longtime tenant who lived in a separate residence/tiny home on the same property for approximately 24 years. Relationship: Landlord-tenant; strained over the prior year. Miller described Schmitt as “mean” and said he wanted to evict him. Neighbors reported hearing yelling and fighting from the property. Motive (per Miller’s statements to police): Conflict during an attempted reconciliation; Miller claimed self-defense after feeling scared when Schmitt allegedly grabbed his shoulder and told him to leave. The Crime Date: November 28, 2025 (day after Thanksgiving). Location: Schmitt’s residence on Miller’s rural Woodland property. Details (per Miller’s account to investigators): Miller went to talk/reconcile; Schmitt told him to leave and grabbed his shoulder, causing him to stumble. Miller struck Schmitt with a wooden walking stick (at least once, possibly more), then placed his foot on Schmitt’s neck and hand over his mouth. Cause of death (autopsy Dec. 19, 2025): Multiple blunt-force injuries to the head and evidence of strangulation. Concealment: Miller returned about two days later, removed the body (dragged through a sliding glass door, covered with a tarp). Days later he bought an orange 55-gallon barrel from a feed store in Kelso, placed the body inside, and hid the barrel behind Schmitt’s home. The Investigation Dec. 16, 2025 (approx. 6:53 p.m.): Family member (sister in some reports) called 911 after Miller admitted he had killed someone and hidden the body on the property. Deputies contacted Miller; he admitted to killing Schmitt. Search warrant executed; body found inside the barrel. Key evidence: Body in the barrel; autopsy findings consistent with blunt-force trauma and strangulation; Miller’s statements to family and police; purchase of the barrel. Miller booked into Cowlitz County Jail on second-degree murder and unlawful disposal of human remains. Held without bail initially; public defender appointed; bail review hearing scheduled around Dec. 22, 2025. Conviction and Sentencing As of available reports through mid-2026, Ricky Dean Miller has been charged with second-degree murder and unlawful disposal of human remains but has not been tried, convicted, or sentenced. The case remains pending in Cowlitz County Superior Court. No verdicts or final sentences have been reported.