SALT LAKE CITY -- The family of a woman found murdered inside a Salt Lake City hotel room are demanding answers in the case.
Holly Nicole Carges, 34, was found dead inside the Royal Garden Inn, located in downtown Salt Lake City.
According to police, hotel management contacted them around 9:00 a.m. Thursday. Initially, authorities called the death suspicious, but by Friday morning they changed it to a homicide case.
“We just want to know that she didn’t suffer,” said Tammy Coles, the sister of Carges’ longtime boyfriend.
A mother of four, Carges was a familiar face in her Sandy neighborhood. She worked at a grocery store nearby, and was planning for the future.
The last time anyone spoke with her was on Wednesday afternoon when, according to Coles, she told her boyfriend she was heading out to meet a friend.
“That was the last time he talked to her,” Coles said. “I don’t know why she would have been at that hotel. She’s not that type of person. She’s not that type of girl.”
Police enlisted the help of the public to figure out exactly where Carges went after leaving home.
"Come forward and let us know if you've seen her, if they know what her activities were in the last 48 hours, anything that can help contribute to us resolving the case,” said Detective Dennis McGowan of the Salt Lake City Police Department.
Coles said the room Carges was found in was unfinished and locked.
“Someone had broken the back window, and that’s how they were able to see her in there because I guess maintenance saw it,” Coles said. “The only thing I can think of is she was walking. She was walking from trying to find a friend at her work or something, and something happened.”
Police ask anyone with information about the death to contact authorities at 801-799-3000.
