PROVO — Minutes after her sister and fianc testified as witnesses for prosecutors, Kerri Fae Brown was taken into custody in the 2001 slaying of Mina Pajela of Pleasant Grove.
On Friday, after listening to attorneys argue the case for two days, a judge decided there was enough evidence to force Brown to stand trial in Pajela's death. Brown pleaded not guilty to the murder charge and appeared distraught at the prospect of spending the next few months in jail as attorneys on both sides prepare for trial.
Her attorneys urged 4th District Court Judge Lynn Davis to let Brown remain free without bail. But bail was set at $100,000, cash or bond.
Prosecutors say Brown shot Pajela three years ago because Pajela discovered Brown was embezzling money from her as an employee at the Mira Vista Care Center in American Fork. On Friday, witnesses testified the gun that killed Pajela belonged to Brown's boyfriend and that gunshot residue was found on pants Brown wore the day of the slaying.
According to evidence presented Friday, Pajela was shot in the back of the head while sitting in the front seat of her car. Prosecutors believe Brown killed Pajela on the morning of April 25, 2001, drove her car to an Eagles Lodge parking lot that night, and tried to destroy evidence by stuffing a burning rag in the car's gas tank. Police found Pajela's body slumped in the passenger seat after two men doused the burning rag.
No trial date has been set.