Led by a tip and cadaver dogs, police on Saturday began digging a massive hole next to a murky canal that runs through an industrial district west of Salt Lake City.
Hours into their excavation, after it had gone dark, Salt Lake City police officers unearthed a body that had laid buried under 7 feet to 10 feet of wet dirt for five years to seven years. Police retrieved the remains Sunday.
The victim — a Hispanic man in his mid-30s named Ignacio and nicknamed “Nacho” — was killed sometime between 2010 and 2012, according to Salt Lake City Police Sgt. Brandon Shearer. A source told police the homicide happened during the summer.
The body was buried under property leased to Los Lobos Paving and Construction, near 800 South and 2475 West. The owner of the company, 56-year-old Carlos Trevizo-Acosta, was arrested and booked into Salt Lake County jail on Saturday night on suspicion of homicide and possession of a firearm by a restricted person.
Police believe Ignacio was killed after a disagreement with Trevizo-Acosta, who lives in the Salt Lake Valley.
According to a probable cause statement, the witness said the victim had been buried on the construction company’s property in summer 2011 after being killed somewhere else. The tipster told police about hearing gunshots and gave a detailed eyewitness account of the homicide, the document states.
Police ask that anyone who can positively identify the victim or provide more information about the homicide call 801-799-3753.