Wasatch County sheriff's detectives have identified a teenager whose nude body was found Saturday morning on a bank of the Provo River.
Killed was:Krystal Lynn Beslanowitch, 17.
Beslanowitch had moved to Salt Lake City from Spokane, Wash., with her boyfriend in July. She was last seen Friday about 2 a.m. when she told her boyfriend she was going to a nearby convenience store. She never returned.
Her boyfriend called Salt Lake police Sunday and reported her missing. The man had photos of the girl, which led police to identify her.
Wasatch County Sheriff Mike Spanos said the boyfriend was interviewed by detectives, but no arrests have been made.
An autopsy conducted Sunday revealed Beslanowitch had been beaten badly about the head with rocks, said sheriff's deputy Glen Van Wagoner.
It was the third homicide this year in Wasatch County, which hadn't been the scene of any slayings since 1989.
A farmer feeding his livestock discovered the body about 8 a.m. on the east bank of the river near where the river crosses North River Road, about 4 miles north of Heber and about a half-mile west of U.S. Highway 40. The body was lying in some large rocks that form a riprap.
Beslanowitch was unclothed, wearing only a ring on her left hand. Some socks were found in the vicinity, but investigators are not sure they belong to the victim.
Van Wagoner said the homicide was committed where the body was found. Detectives recovered two rocks, the largest 10 pounds, believed to have been used in the murder.
The autopsy determined the girl had been dead for 10 to 12 hours, putting the time of death between 8 p.m. and 10 p.m. Friday. Preliminary tests revealed no sign of sexual assault, said Van Wagonerwho refused to say whether there were any other marks on the body that would indicate if a struggle took place.
The only identifying marks on the girl were tattoos on her upper left arm, above her left breast and on her left hand. On the arm was a tattoo of a series of arrows in blue-green ink. Above the breast was a tattoo of two overlapping hearts with the word "Chris" written above it. On the left hand was a dot and the number "6."
Friday night's slaying is the third this year in Wasatch County.
- In July, Allen Lee Waters was shot to death in a residence in Charleston. A 56-year-old woman was charged but the district attorney later dismissed the case, saying the shooting was in self-defense.
- In September, Brent Winters, 40, was shot to death in a trailer community 13 miles east of Heber. An acquaintance, Jimmy Harker, 33, was charged with murder and faces a preliminary hearing Jan. 5, Spanos said.
Deseret News staff writer Cala Byram contributed to this report.