LINCOLN COUNTY, Wyo., May 18, 2016 (Gephardt Daily) — The FBI is now involved in an investigation into the death of a man believed to be Kay Porter Ricks, who disappeared from Salt Lake City at about the same time two men now charged in the beating of a Centerville woman were fleeing the scene.
One of the two suspects was later located camping in Wyoming, where the body identified by two agencies as that of Ricks was discovered.
Speaking at a news conference on Wednesday morning, Utah Transit Authority Police Chief Fred Ross said the body found cannot be identified as Ricks until a coroner makes that determination.
But Ross did say he had met with a Ricks family representative to express his condolences and those of the UTA staff and employees. Ricks had been a UTA employee since 2010, and was in a UTA vehicle when he was last seen, at about 4 p.m. May 10.
That UTA vehicle was positively identified from surveillance video taken two days later, at a Diamond, Wyo., Chevron station, at 5:58 p.m. Thursday.
“We are not rushing it,” Ross said of the body identification. The Centerville Police Department and the Sublette (Wyoming) County Sheriff’s Office have both said the remains are those of Ricks.
“Our most important thing is to bring this case to closure,” Ross said.
Ricks, 63, was last seen exiting I-15 at 600 South in Salt Lake City in his 2013 white Ford F-150 UTA maintenance vehicle.
Centerville Police Lt. Von Steenblik said on Monday that detectives were investigating a potential connection between Ricks’ disappearance and a father and son suspected of brutalizing a Centerville woman and her four daughters. All were bound, and the mother and one daughter were reportedly struck with a baseball bat.
Police say the suspects, Flint Wayne Harrison and his son D.J. (Dereck James) Harrison, were believed to have headed to Wyoming after the kidnapping May 10. Flint Harrison turned himself in Saturday to authorities in Sublette County, and helped officers locate son D.J. Harrison, who had been camping in the Half Moon Lake area of Sublette County.
The body believed to be Ricks’ was found in nearby Lincoln County, 16 miles south of Kemmerer, Wyo., according to an official from the Lincoln County Sheriff’s Office. It was found in a rural area, and had not been concealed.
As of Wednesday afternoon, the UTA vehicle Ricks was driving had not been located. Law enforcement officials were considering searching for it in a nearby lake, according to the Sheriff Shane Johnson.
“This is a very large organization,” Ross said of UTA. “As we do what we do, we’ve got to come together as a family, and we’ve lost a family member. It’s very traumatic for all of us.”
Ross said UTA Police officers had gone off duty Thursday when the office got a call about the case.
“All the officers turned around and came back, and started working the case,” Ross said. adding that several officers were on site, “following every lead.”
“We’ve expressed our deepest sorrow,” Ross said, of contact with Ray Ricks’ family. “They are in our thoughts and prayers.”
The Ricks family released a statement thanking all those involved with the search, and adding that they believe Ricks’ spirit still lives.
“The family takes comfort in their faith and knowledge that though Kay’s body may be dead, they know he lives and that they will see him again.”
