Two teenagers have been charged with the kidnapping and murder of a 21-year-old man who was discovered dead from an apparent gunshot wound in rural Utah several days after going missing, authorities said. Alexia “Alex” Franco’s body was recovered in a remote desert about 50 miles from where he was last seen getting into a Jeep on Sunday afternoon, according to the Taylorsville Police Department.
The Taylorsville police have refrained from disclosing the identities of the two teenagers who stand accused in the killing of Franco. However, they have been identified as a 15-year-old and a 17-year-old boy in a statement issued by the department when announcing their arrests. According to CBS affiliate KUTV, the teenagers have been detained at the Salt Lake Valley Detention Center on various felony homicide charges.
Their arrests happened just one day after authorities discovered Franco’s body in an isolated and arid area of Lehi, a tiny city near Provo. Authorities were investigating Franco’s disappearance as an abduction, and they searched for the white 2000s Jeep Liberty that ultimately led them to the perpetrators.
With the assistance of the public, the police managed to locate the Jeep after Franco’s body was found, leading them to shift their focus from a potential abduction to a homicide investigation. The vehicle was discovered in Salt Lake County, where Franco’s girlfriend, Alyssa Henry, revealed that acquaintances had picked him up on Sunday afternoon. Their intention was apparently to take the couple to a park. Police widely circulated surveillance footage depicting a white 2000s Jeep Liberty parked outside Henry’s residence in Taylorsville, while urging the community to provide any information regarding its location.
When Franco got into the Jeep on Sunday, Henry told police and KUTV reporters that she heard what sounded like a gunshot coming from within. Then the automobile drove off.
“He didn’t do anything,” Henry recounted to KUTV, recalling the moment. “They all glanced at me before driving off, and I instinctively started pursuing the car. I managed to reach the end of the street before someone discovered me and alerted the police.”
According to KUTV, Henry expressed immediate concern when she heard what sounded like a gunshot and saw the Jeep swiftly driving away. In response, she took action by tracking Franco’s cell phone once the vehicle had left the scene.
Henry recounted how the vehicle ceased its pursuit as it reached the end of the street.
