Convicted killer Mark Hacking has admitted to Utah State Prison officials that he was sending out autographed scraps of paper, hand tracings, inmate forms and even signed magazine covers to be auctioned on Internet Web sites specializing in so-called "murderabilia."
"He's voluntarily discontinued trying to sell anything on the Web," Department of Corrections spokesman Jack Ford told the Deseret Morning News on Friday.
Hacking is serving a sentence of six years to life in the Utah State Prison for the 2004 murder of his wife, Lori. He admitted to shooting her and dumping her body in the garbage. Hacking then claimed she disappeared while jogging.
Lori's body was found months later in the Salt Lake Valley landfill. Prosecutors said Lori Hacking was killed after discovering a web of lies her husband had created.
Earlier this week, the Deseret Morning News received a tip about a pair of Web sites that were auctioning off papers autographed by Hacking. After hearing the news, Ford said the prison warden spoke to Hacking.
"He had somebody that he was acquainted with in California that had mentioned (the auctioning of items) to him, and he said sure," Ford said. "He was unaware of the law, and he's voluntarily pulling everything."
Hacking will not face disciplinary action, Ford said.
Utah has a law that makes it a civil penalty for criminals to profit from their crimes. The Utah Attorney General's Office said it is still investigating if any money generated from the sale of Hacking merchandise should go to the Crime Victim Reparations Fund.
As of Friday, the Hacking items were still for sale on the Web site, murderauction.com. Hacking's papers were listed as one of the most popular auctions. The Web site did not respond to an e-mail request for comment. But on the Internet site's page on frequently asked questions, murderauction.com said it does not glorify killers, and collecting true-crime artifacts is nothing new.
"We do NOT glorify anyone," the Web site said. "We simply present the facts as they are and offer a rare opportunity to own various pieces of criminal history."
Crime-victim advocates have been pushing for a federal "Notoriety for Profit Law" to prevent killers from selling their wares through third parties on the Internet.
E-mail: bwinslow@desnews.com