Slaying of newlywed women at Utah campsite investigated

MOAB, Utah (AP) — Residents of a Utah tourist town near the campsite where a newlywed couple was recently gunned down say they’re puzzled and concerned as the police investigation unfolds.

Crystal Turner and Kylen Schulte were found dead last week at a campsite near Moab, a desert town where they were living that draws visitors from around the world to its sweeping red-rock vistas.

Investigators believe someone killed the women and fled the area, KUTV reported. No firearms have yet been recovered.

“We do think it was an outside party,” Grand County Sheriff Steven White said.

The sheriff’s office has also said there’s no further danger to the public. But that leaves unanswered questions for locals now nervous to be alone.

“Until they can give us more than that, we are not safe,” said friend Cindy Sue Hunter. She said she ventured to the campsite after they didn’t return as planned earlier this month and she called police.

Schulte’s aunt Bridget Calvert previously said the couple told friends that a “creepy guy” was making them uncomfortable in the days prior to their deaths.

Schulte, 24, was from Billings, Montana. Her brother died in an accidental shooting in 2015, Calvert has said. Mackeon Schulte was accidentally shot by a friend who was startled when he threw pebbles at the boy’s window in the middle of the night.

Kylen Schulte had recently fallen in love with and married Turner, a 38-year-old from Hot Springs, Arkansas. The two were remembered with flowers and candles at a vigil Sunday at the Moonflower Community Cooperative in Moab. Hunter said the couple was beautiful inside and out.

“We just had an instant connection,” she said. “They were just very special people.”