Son, daughter-in-law 'persons of interest' in Payson slaying of BYU prof Kay Mortensen

PAYSON — They told police the killers tied them up and held them hostage when they came for a visit.

Now investigators consider the son and daughter-in-law of retired BYU professor Kay Mortensen, who was found dead in his Payson Canyon home, as "persons of interest" in his death.

Roger Mortensen, 48, and his wife, Pamela, called police the evening of Nov. 16 and said two men tied them up when they came to the house for a visit. In a 911 tape released Monday, Roger Mortensen said that after the men left and he freed himself, he went upstairs to look for his father.

"He's leaned over face-forward in the bathtub with his throat sliced with a butcher knife, all the way up," he told a 911 dispatcher.

The Utah County Sheriff's Office announced Monday that Roger and Pamela Mortensen "have provided inconsistent statements throughout this investigation. At this time, they are considered persons of interest."

They have refused to help investigators complete a composite sketch of the two men whom they said held them hostage before fleeing in a blue hatchback, officials said.

"They have become uncooperative with investigators," according to a statement from the sheriff's office. Authorities have previously said that people interviewed in relation to the case had given inconsistent statements.

On the 911 recording, a dispatcher can be heard repeatedly asking Roger and Pamela Mortensen for more details about the suspects, but they seemed to have little information to provide. Asked for a description of the men's car, Pamela Mortensen told the dispatcher, "I don't know, ma'am, it was dark."

She went on to tell the dispatcher one of the men had a gun. Roger Mortensen later told the dispatcher it was a black handgun with a laser sight on the bottom.

Roger Mortensen also said the men took his driver's license and warned him that if he called the police, they would come to his house.

"We're really worried," he said to the dispatcher. "We're alone up the canyon."

Utah County Sheriff's Lt. Mike Brower said authorities are looking for "several" firearms missing from the house.