UHP trooper arrests murder suspect during ‘routine’ traffic call on Interstate 80

Kyle Jepson, 22, is being held in Utah, awaiting extradition to Iowa, where he is charged with murder in the death of a Des Moines woman. Photo: Des Moines Police Department

TOOELE COUNTY, Utah, Jan. 13, 2017 (Gephardt Daily) — A Utah Highway Patrol trooper responding to a motorist assist call Thursday evening didn’t realize it at first, but the man he was about to encounter was wanted for murder in the state of Iowa.

According to a news release from UHP, the trooper responded to the call at milepost 65 on westbound Interstate 80. The trooper identified the driver as Kyle Jepson, 22, of Des Moines, Iowa.

An initial background check showed Jepson was wanted on a second-degree burglary warrant out of Iowa, but he was also driving a Honda Civic associated with a missing person case out of Des Moines.

Agents from Utah Department of Public Safety’s State Bureau of Investigation immediately began to coordinate with detectives from the Des Moines Police Department.

“Des Moines Police Department informed the Utah Department of Public Safety they located a deceased person in the residence related to this missing person case,” according to the release.

Agents from the SBI interviewed Jepson. He was subsequently booked into the Tooele County Jail for his outstanding warrant and is now awaiting extradition to Iowa.

The Des Moines Register newspaper is reporting that Jepson is being charged with murder in the death of Gloria Gary, 49, of Des Moines, whose Honda Civic he was driving when arrested.

According to the Register, Gary was last seen Jan. 3 and was reported missing by her employer two days later. Her car was seen in Utah with Jepson, but the woman was not in the vehicle. After Jepson’s arrest, Des Moines police obtained a warrant to search Gary’s home and found her concealed body. The Register quotes police as saying Gary’s family members didn’t think she was in the home and hadn’t searched for her there.

Utah SBI agents continue to coordinate with authorities in Iowa regarding this ongoing investigation.

The Register quotes Des Moines police as saying Utah law enforcement was vital in solving the case and that the information provided by the trooper “was probably what broke this for us.”

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