S13 E7 - Dee Warner - The Woman He Tried to Erase

When 52-year-old Michigan mother, grandmother, farmer, and businesswoman Dee Warner missed Sunday breakfast with her daughter in April 2021, her family immediately knew something was wrong.

Dee's vehicles remained behind. Her young daughter was waiting for her. And as days became months and then years, those closest to Dee refused to accept the suggestion that she had simply walked away.

What followed was an extraordinary fight for answers involving a troubled marriage, business and financial conflict, digital evidence, a murder prosecution begun without a body—and, more than three years after Dee disappeared, the discovery that changed everything.

But this story does not end with her killer.

It ends with Dee.

And with a Michigan family who refused to let her disappear.

#DeeWarner #JusticeForDee #MichiganTrueCrime #TrueCrimePodcast #MaliceInTheMitten

Hosted and produced by Tracy Preston, featuring Christine Mulligant

Story researched and written by Tracy Preston

Original music created exclusively for Malice in the Mitten by Tracy Preston

Original artwork by Todd Preston

Sources:

Associated Press. “Michigan Man Convicted of Killing His Wife Whose Body Was Stuffed in a Farm Tank Years Ago.” AP News, 10 Mar. 2026.

Court TV. “MI v. Dale Warner: Hidden Murder of Dee Warner.” Court TV, 2026.

“Dale Warner Sentenced to 70 Years in the Murder of His Wife, Dee Warner.” 13abc WTVG, 7 May 2026.

“Dale Warner Sentenced to Up to 70 Years in Prison for Murder of Wife, Dee.” WTOL 11, 7 May 2026.

“Dale Warner Sentenced to More Than 30 Years in Prison for Second-Degree Murder of Wife.” WXYZ 7 Action News, 7 May 2026.

“Day 4 of Witness Testimony in Dale Warner Murder Trial.” WTOL 11, 18 Feb. 2026.

“Man to Spend at Least 31 Years in Prison for Murdering Wife Dee Warner.” ClickOnDetroit, 7 May 2026.

“WATCH: Cell Phone, Vehicle Data Experts; Dee's Nanny and Personal Assistant Testify in Dale Warner Trial.” 13abc WTVG, 18 Feb. 2026.

“Michigan Man Convicted of Murdering Wife Found in Fertilizer Tank 3 Years After She Vanished.” People, 10 Mar. 2026.

“‘They Fought About Money Before She Vanished’—and Was Found Sealed in a Fertilizer Tank Years Later.” People, 2026.

“Michigan Man Convicted of Killing His Wife Whose Body Was Stuffed in a Farm Tank Years Ago.” KBTX, 11 Mar. 2026.

“Dale Warner Sentenced to 70 Years in Prison for Wife's Murder.” WILX News 10, 7 May 2026.

“‘Dateline’ Revisits Michigan Farmer Dee Warner's Murder in ‘The Day Dee Disappeared.’” Our Midland, 5 Aug. 2026.

Additional primary-source material represented in reporting:

Lenawee County Circuit Court proceedings in People of the State of Michigan v. Dale Warner, including the 2024 preliminary examination, February–March 2026 jury trial, verdict rendered 10 Mar. 2026, and sentencing hearing held 7 May 2026.