A man is in custody in connection with a cold case murder in western Wisconsin that has gone unsolved for 50 years.

On Thursday, the Dunn County Sheriff's Office announced that genetic genealogy had identified Jon Miller, an 84-year-old Minnesota man, as a "viable suspect" in the 1974 death of Mary K. Schlais.

Officials say Schlais, 25, was killed in the township of Spring Brook in Dunn County on Feb. 15, 1974.Investigation revealed Schlais was hitchhiking from Minneapolis to Chicago for an art show.

Over the course of the next several decades there were many tips, leads, and interviews conducted related to this homicide by multiple law enforcement agencies. There were also several items of evidence examined and re-examined over the years as technological advances in DNA were developed. Still, no viable suspects were identified.

It wasn't until recently, when Dunn County investigators began working with a New Jersey college and their team of genetic genealogists, that Miller was identified as a suspect.

Authorities say when Miller was confronted with the evidence, he "confirmed his involvement with Mary's homicide in 1974."

Miller is in custody in Minnesota and awaiting extradition back to Wisconsin. Online court records show he is facing a first-degree murder charge and is being held on a $1 million bond.