FBI joins investigation into killing of newlywed Utah women

MOAB, Utah — The Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI) and Utah’s State Bureau of Investigation (SBI) have joined the investigation into the sidesplitting of 2 newlywed women.

The Grand County Sheriff’s Office has called successful the FBI and SBI to assistance successful the treble execution probe of Kylen Schulte and Crystal Turner who were recovered dormant adjacent their campsite successful the South Mesa country of the La Sal Loop Road successful Grand County past Wednesday.

This is 1 of the largest investigations the section sheriff’s bureau has ever taken on.

“Just cognize that everything is being done that we tin perchance do, that is wherefore we person asked for the further resources. We privation to marque definite we bash it thorough. We bash it implicit and we bash it right,” said Sheriff Steven White.

Deputies are moving other hours and other shifts to assistance successful the probe and supply other information to the community, Sheriff White said.

“We person other patrols that are moving beauteous overmuch the full region and we are putting peculiar accent connected the upland and astir those areas. We are trying to enactment them arsenic overmuch arsenic we can, particularly erstwhile we are 8 guys down,” said Sheriff White.

Brittany Garcia, a adjacent person of Schulte and Turner, says it’s devastating not knowing what happened to the couple.

“It is hard knowing we can’t fig thing retired and we can’t find these radical who did this to them,” Garcia said.

Another person of the couple, Laura Lee Green, says 1 of her biggest concerns is if determination is capable transparency from instrumentality enforcement.

“There is simply a batch of curiosity successful the municipality arsenic acold arsenic if instrumentality enforcement is doing thing they tin and if they did everything they could successful the precise beginning,” Green said.

Sheriff White said officers are doing everything they can, but they can’t stock galore details to support the integrity of the case.

“Right now, we are not taking thing disconnected the table. We are investigating this astatine each imaginable avenue for each imaginable thing,” helium said.

Green besides disquieted if deputies searched for the newlyweds erstwhile the 2 women were primitively reported missing. Deputies did look that day, Sheriff White said.

“When the archetypal ailment came successful from, it was really done arsenic a missing idiosyncratic retired of the Moab constabulary department. There were really deputies that went into the upland areas, determination was really a Colorado sheriff that looked astatine 1 of the lakes connected the backside of the upland for us,” helium said.

The assemblage is shaken up and this treble execution has taken a toll connected everyone, including Sheriff White.

“This is wholly devastating. This is my home. This is wherever I was calved and raised. I instrumentality it not lone connected a nonrecreational level but connected a idiosyncratic level that I privation to get to the bottommost of this,” helium said.

Anyone with accusation that whitethorn beryllium adjuvant to the probe should interaction the Grand County Sheriff's Office astatine 435-259-8115.

Family calling for answers

The loved ones of Kylen Schulte and Crystal Turner are hoping the nationalist tin assistance them get answers arsenic the Grand County Sheriff's Office searches for a fishy successful the couple's deaths.

Friends are reporting disturbing details that connection the lone clues arsenic to what whitethorn person happened earlier Schulte and Turner went missing.

The newlyweds joined conscionable 4 months agone and were well-loved by the Moab community. Schulte's aunt, Bridget Calvert, said that Schulte had worked astatine Moonflower Community Cooperative the past 4 years and galore who shopped determination knew her.

She described her niece arsenic ever affirmative and known astir municipality for her agleam smile.

"Her having specified a beauteous soul, to spot it complimented with idiosyncratic similar Crystal, that they could truly bask beingness and bash it together," Calvert said.

The 2 turned a van into a camper, sharing photos connected Instagram with #vanlife and #wifelife. They called the outdoors astir Moab home.

When 24-year-old Schulte and 38-year-old Turner were no-call, no-shows astatine enactment 2 days successful a row, friends and household knew thing wasn't right.

All the couple's household unrecorded out-of-state. Schulte is from Montana and Turner from Arkansas.

They had to trust connected others to effort to fig retired wherever the 2 were. Calvert said that constabulary searched immoderate campgrounds successful the area, but they knew the mates enjoyed camping successful much primitive places.

A household acquaintance successful Moab took it upon herself to motorboat her ain search, and Calvert described however the pistillate loaded up her car with supplies and headed retired into the La Sal Mountains.

That person came upon a horrifying find successful the South Mesa country Wednesday.

"She was connected the telephone with my member erstwhile she pulled up to the car," Calvert said, talking astir the couple's Kia.

She said the person looked astatine the tract and saw a body. She stayed successful her car and instantly called the Grand County Sheriff's Office. Deputies came retired and recovered a 2nd body.

Calvert described however her brother, Schulte's dad, delivered the quality to the family.

"Then helium sent a substance and said, 'It's Kylen and Crystal, and they're with Mac now,' my nephew," Calvert said, getting choked up.

Mackeon Schulte, Kylen's brother, was killed six years agone astatine the property of 15. The household said helium was changeable by a friend.

Grand County Sheriff's Office Capt. Shan Hackwell explained that they are investigating the deaths arsenic homicides. They don't person a fishy successful custody, and helium said they haven't identified a fishy yet.

That said, the sheriff's bureau has indicated it doesn't judge the nationalist is successful danger.

"The grounds that we've gathered astatine this time, that's what it's led america to judge was an isolated incident," Capt. Hackwell said.

They can't merchandise immoderate different details due to the fact that of the ongoing investigation.

Calvert said that friends told the household Schulte and Turner talked astir a antheral creeping them retired adjacent their campsite past week. They past met up with friends connected the Saturday earlier they were found, and Calvert said they again brought up the creepy man.

"They said they were going to spell move, they were going to spell battalion up and determination their campsite, that helium was inactive creeping them out," she said.

Calvert and the remainder of the household are present hoping idiosyncratic tin assistance them find the idiosyncratic oregon radical responsible. Capt. Hackwell made the aforesaid request. He said anyone who whitethorn person seen thing suspicious portion driving oregon recreating successful the South Mesa country of the La Sal Mountains betwixt August 13 to contiguous should telephone them astatine 435-259-8115.

"What is precise uncomforting is that determination 100% is simply a murderer connected the loose," Calvert said.

It's a murderer who took 2 lives away, but the household said volition ne'er enactment retired the airy and emotion of Schulte and Turner.

"We're going to fto their love-light shine," Calvert said. "They had the astir beauteous love, and that airy is not stopping."

This communicative was primitively published by Sydney Glenn, Lauren Steinbrecher, and different unit astatine KSTU.