Photo: Salt Lake City Police Department
During the press conference, Chief Brown told reporters that asearch of Ajayi’s homehad uncovered a burned area with some of Lueck’s charred personal items, as well as human tissue matching her DNA.
Brown also said that Lueck’s last known communications were with Ajayi, though he allegedly denied having met her.
Ajayi’s arrest came on the heels of a search of his home Wednesday night. According to theDeseret News, Salt Lake Assistant Police Chief Tim Doubt told reporters at the scene that the house and its occupants were “a nexus to the case.”
Brown told reporters that investigators have been examining the case’s “digital footprint” to retrace the woman’s steps. “This is a digital forensic investigation,” he told reporters. “This is covering computers, cellphones, IP addresses, URLs, texting apps.”
Before her disappearance, Lueck was active on social media. Though she hasn’t posted anything since June 17,Fox News reportsthat on Wednesday, Lueck’s personal Instagram handle followed an account called Fatherless. Her friends noticed the new activity and reported it to authorities, Fox reports.
At the press conference, Lueck’s uncle read a statement on behalf of her family. In the statement, the family said they would like to “express their gratitude” to the law enforcement agencies that assisted in the investigation.
Ajayi has not yet had a hearing to enter a plea or determine whether he can be freed on bail. It is unclear whether he has retained an attorney to speak on his behalf. PEOPLE’s call to his home phone number went unanswered.
source: people.com
