Arrest made in probe of slain Reno student

RENO, Nev., Nov. 26 (UPI) -- Police in Reno, Nev., announced an arrest in connection with the abduction and killing of a 19-year-old woman near the University of Nevada campus.

James Biela of nearby Sparks, Nev., was booked Wednesday on unspecified murder, kidnapping and sexual assault charges, although police wouldn't confirm he was being charged in the death of Brianna Denison.

The Reno Gazette-Journal said police were analyzing a DNA sample from Biela to determine if he was linked to the Denison case or three other sexual assaults in the university area.

Biela was picked up based on a tip from the city's Secret Witness program. The Gazette-Journal said Biela refused to supply a DNA sample and claimed that his girlfriend would confirm his alibi for the time frame that Denison vanished from the off-campus apartment.

Police said, however, that Biela's girlfriend couldn't account for his whereabouts during the early hours of Jan. 20 when Dennis disappeared.

Denison, a Reno native who attended school in California, had been sleeping at a friend's apartment when she disappeared. Her body was found in a field nearly a month later. The incident prompted a massive investigation as well as candlelight vigils on campus and a fundraising drive to help pay for the testing of backlogged DNA samples.