The Grand County Sheriff’s Office is asking for anyone who may have been in the South Mesa area of the La Sal Mountains between Aug. 13 and Aug. 15 to contact them in regards to the murders of local Moab couple Kylen Schulte and Crystal Turner. The area is accessible off the La Sal Mountain Loop Road, north of the turn-off for Oowah Lake.
Kylen Schulte and Crystal Turner had been recently married. Both worked in Moab and were beloved members of their vibrant communities. They were reported missing on Aug. 14, and their remains were discovered by a friend at their campsite off the La Sal Loop Road on Aug. 18. Investigators confirmed the cause of death for both as homicide.
“The Grand County Sheriff’s Office has and continues to follow up with any information and tips received,” reads a statement issued by the agency on Sept. 28. “The response has benefitted this office in the investigation of this case.”
Kylen Schulte’s father, Sean-Paul Schulte, has spent many hours at a home-made tip station in Swanny City Park, soliciting any information that could help solve the case. Community businesses have offered a total of $20,000 in rewards for tips leading to a conviction of the killer.
“The Grand County Sheriff’s Office has enlisted numerous labs and technicians to assist in the forensic analysis of items of interest in this case,” the statement says, adding that the analysis may take several months to complete. The Federal Bureau of Investigation and the Utah State Bureau of Investigation are assisting Grand County with the case.
On Sept. 17, the Grand County Sheriff’s Office issued a statement that after being in contact with investigators in Florida, they had found no connection between the South Mesa case and that of the murder of Gabby Petito, who was found killed in Teton County, Wyoming, earlier this month after passing through the Moab area with her boyfriend.
To report any information that may be relevant to the South Mesa Homicide case, contact the Grand County Sheriff’s Office at 435-259-8115. Officials ask the public not to leave pertinent tips on social media.
