SARATOGA SPRINGS, Utah — A Saratoga Springs man, whose wife went missing and was later found dead in a trailer he owned, has been charged with her murder as he remains at large.
Formal murder charges were filed Monday against Alvaro Jose Urbina Rojas — one week to the day after police found the body of his wife, 43-year-old Jeusselem Elieth Genes, inside an RV at a Draper storage facility.
As of Monday, Rojas was still on the run.
According to charging documents, the couple was apparently having significant financial struggles, and those arguments over money may have led to Rojas killing his wife.
Assistant Chief Bill Robertson of the Saratoga Springs Police Department said relatives of the couple initially told them about the RV and where it was located.
“During the investigation, it became apparent that was one of the locations we wanted to check," Robertson said. "We had received information from some family members that the trailer did exist, so that was high on our priority list.”
Genes was found, bound and beaten. The state medical examiner ruled her cause of death to be homicide.
Rojas then went from a "person of interest" to a suspect.
As the case progressed, Saratoga Springs Police Chief Andy Burton says detectives began hearing more about the possibility that money may have been the cause of issues between Rojas and Genes.
“But there had been some talk recently of a divorce over some situations we’re still getting into with the family," Burton said.
Following those interviews, detectives say they learned that “the couple had been experiencing significant financial problems for about the last year, causing serious strain on their relationship.”
Detectives were then able to put a video timeline together.
First, the couple was seen leaving their home in Saratoga Springs on Thursday, Feb. 26, a little after 10 a.m.
Less than 20 minutes later, the same vehicle, an older model Toyota Sequoia, was recorded on Bangerter Highway near the RV lot.
Thirty minutes after that, Rojas was seen at a Draper gas station filling up his SUV, alone.
Roughly four hours later, he was again seen on surveillance footage filling up in St. George. Again, he was alone.
Detectives then obtained information showing that Rojas later used his debit card to make several purchases in Southern California, in and around San Diego. They believe he is still in Southern California.
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Resources for domestic violence victims/prevention (free, 24/7, confidential):
Utah Domestic Violence Coalition
- Hotline: 1-800-897-LINK (5465)
- Online help: udvc.org
National Domestic Violence Hotline
- 1-800-799-SAFE (7233)
- Online live chat: thehotline.org
- If you or someone else is in immediate danger, or in an emergency, call 9-1-1 immediately.
