PROVO, Utah, Feb. 25, 2021 (Gephardt Daily) — A Provo murder suspect is facing new charges after he allegedly attempted to contact potential witnesses from jail.
Michael Taylor Robinson, 29, was charged with murder, a first-degree felony, after Provo resident Freya Larsen, 27, was shot in the head on May 7, 2019 and subsequently died.
Robinson was transported to Utah County Jail, where he is being held without bail. His next court date is scheduled for March 4.
An original probable cause statement from Utah County said that Robinson and the victim had been in an altercation at an address in Provo and he pulled out a .380 black handgun that he owned and was carrying at the time.
“He pointed the gun at the victim as she stood near the front door and pulled the trigger,” the statement said. “Michael shot the victim one time in the head on the right side. The victim fell to the ground in the corner of the room next to the door.”
After shooting the victim in the head, Michael called 911 for assistance and during the call he made the statement that “she scared him and he shot her,” the statement went on.
“He also stated that they were fighting and she told him she was going to kill him and she was mad at him,” the statement said. “He also made the statement later that he shot her, but it was an accident.”
In the home the only accessible weapon that was located near the victim or the suspect was the pistol that was allegedly used by Robinson to shoot Larsen.
Family had reported that on April 21 of that year, Robinson and the victim had been in an altercation and the suspect had pulled the same gun out on the victim and held it to her head. She did not make a report at that time, but had planned on making the report after she had moved, to Chicago. Family members advised that Robinson and Larsen had also been in an altercation, two days before the shooting, where he pushed her out of a vehicle, causing bruising, the statement said.
Robinson is now also facing three charges of obstruction of justice, a second-degree felony, according to a new probable cause statement from Utah County.
On Feb. 20 of this year, a Utah County Sheriff’s officer was contacted by a deputy at the Utah County Jail regarding some information they had in regard to Robinson, the statement said. The deputy said that Robinson had received a book at the jail on Jan. 25. Then on Feb. 20, Robinson attempted to give his mother a book.
“As per the jail policy a deputy goes through the books to verify there is no contraband or anything in the books the inmate is attempting to release,” the statement said. “The jail deputy who went through the above-listed book observed handwriting in the book which appeared to be of interest for the aggravated murder case.”
Next to the introduction page there were at least three names written with numbers next to each name. At the bottom of the page it said: “Don’t submit to Provo PD only to my attorneys. Everyone keep one copy to study. Get to know it stick to story.”
The notes contained details written to each person such as when they met Robinson and what their relationship was. The notes for each person contained examples of when the victim of the aggravated murder case, Larsen, was allegedly “being crazy” or was allegedly violent toward him, including allegedly punching him, strangling him, pulling a gun on him and others, and threatening to kill him and others.
“It says the victim had PTSD, split personality disorder and schizophrenia that caused her to go crazy,” the statement said. “It says the victim ended up beating the crap out of Michael on the porch and knocked him out. It says Michael didn’t fight back or try to hit the victim. After beating Michael to the ground the victim got on top of him and strangled him with both hands.”
Some of the notes also talked about Robinson’s defense strategy.
“It says there is a recklessness clause in a murder charge where basically if they can argue that I went over knowing a deadly or life threatening situation could/would happen I’m done,” Robinson allegedly wrote.
“The information listed above is very specific to Michael and the victim and the individuals Michael was writing the stories to,” the statement concluded. “Michael is obviously obstructing the case and tampering with potential witnesses in the aggravated murder case which is still pending before the court. It is a concern that if Michael is attempting to coerce witnesses into statements and stories while incarcerated that if he were to be released from the jail he would have direct access to witnesses in the aggravated murder case to continue to obstruct and interfere with the court case.”
