Student’s body found in Utah

SALT LAKE CITY — The body of a slain college student has been recovered in a Utah canyon about 85 miles from a backyard in Salt Lake City where other remains were found last week, police said Friday.

The disclosure came in the case involving 23-year-old Mackenzie Lueck.

Authorities previously said that some of her charred remains and personal belongings were found in the backyard of a suspect in Salt Lake City. The body was discovered Wednesday in Logan Canyon, north of the city.

“I spoke with Mackenzie’s family this morning. Another devastating call,” Salt Lake City police Chief Mike Brown said. “Despite their grief, we hope this will help them find some closure and justice for Mackenzie.”

The canyon is near Utah State University, where 31-year-old suspect Ayoola A. Ajayi sporadically attended classes for several years without earning a degree.

Lueck disappeared on June 17 after she returned from a trip to her hometown of El Segundo, California, for her grandmother’s funeral and took a Lyft ride from the airport to a park, where she met someone.

Ajayi was the last person she communicated with, and his cellphone puts him in the park at the same time as Lueck, police have said.

He’s being held on suspicion of aggravated murder, kidnapping and other crimes. Charges are expected to be filed next week, Salt Lake County District Attorney Sim Gill said.

Police have not discussed a motive for the killing or how Lueck died. It isn’t clear how Ajayi and Lueck knew each other.