A suspect has been identified by the Grand County Sheriff’s Office (GCSO) as being involved in the murders of a newlywed couple who was found dead near a campsite in Moab, Utah around the same time Gabby Petito went missing.
“Grand County Sheriff’s Office has identified Adam Pinkusiewicz as a suspect in the double homicide of Kylen Schulte and Crystal Beck Turner,” a news release published on Facebook Wednesday said.
The Suspect Was Linked to Crystal Turner as Both Had Worked at the Same McDonalds in Moab, Utah.
“Adam Pinkusiewicz was a former employee at the McDonald’s that Crystal worked at located in Moab, Utah,” the news release revealed, also stating that Pinkusiewicz was “identified at that time as one of many persons of interest being investigated by the GCSO, and the GCSO made numerous attempts to locate and interview [him].”
“Through continued analysis and collection of evidence, the GSCO had learned that the suspect was in the La Sals and Moab at the time of the murders, had left the State of Utah shortly after the homicides, then later committed suicide,” the release continued.
“GSCO conducted numerous interviews and recently received information that prior to committing suicide, Adam Pinkusiewicz told another party that he had killed two women in Utah and provided specific details that were known only to investigators,” authorities also claimed, adding that the investigation is still ongoing. The case is not closed.
The bodies of Turner, 38, and Schulte, 24, were found on August 18 at a campsite near the La Sal Mountains near Moab, Utah.
The couple was last heard from on August 14 and were reported missing soon after, People reported at the time. Both women were shot multiple times, authorities said after discovering the bodies.
Turner and Schulte lived a sort of nomadic lifestyle, Bridget Calvert, Schulte’s aunt, explained.
The newlyweds lived in their van, Calvert told People. They moved from campsite to campsite but mostly stayed in the Moab area.
Calvert claims that the couple went on a camping trip on August 13 and had shared with friends they were having issues with a strange man.
A friend of the couple went looking for them after they stopped responding to calls and text messages. The friend found both of their bodies at a campsite on La Sal Loop Road. Schulte’s body was partially submerged in a nearby lake.
Jason K. Jensen, a Utah-based private investigator, began working pro bono on the case in early October, People also reported. He began his investigation after Calvert reached out to him for help.
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Jensen explained at the time that solving the murders hinges entirely on finding the “creepy” man the nomadic couple had described in text messages to family and friends just before they stopped replying.
Jensen believed satellite imagery and increased awareness of the killings on social media would lead investigators to the killer.
While the suspect has been named, the case is still open. The GCSO is still urging anyone with details about the murders to contact their office at (435)-259-8115.
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