Man charged with killing woman who accused second man of rape

SOUTH SALT LAKE — The death of Ann Jensen, who was shot and killed in her South Salt Lake apartment on Nov. 4, 2012, remained a mystery for some time.

But now police and prosecutors believe they know who killed her and suspect the death may be tied to a man whom she said raped her and wanted to keep her quiet.

Christopher Grant Sutton, 36, was charged Thursday with murder and aggravated burglary, both first-degree felonies, as well as obstructing justice, a second-degree felony, in connection with Jensen's death.

Two days before she was killed, Jensen told police that she had been raped a few days earlier by an acquaintance who had previously sold her drugs. That acquaintance later learned that Jensen was accusing him of rape and he was overheard talking on the phone saying, "Dead (expletive deleted) can't talk," according to charges filed in 3rd District Court.

Another person told police that same acquaintance talked to him about getting a gun because he "needed to deal with a snitch," the charges state.

On Nov. 4, the day of the killing, Sutton allegedly borrowed a handgun and .22-caliber bullets from another man. Police say both Sutton and the acquaintance were dropped off a block away from Jensen's residence and were seen putting on gloves and hoodies. The acquaintance accused of rape was seen giving Sutton "a large amount of cocaine," the charges state.

About 4 a.m., a witness told police he heard gunshots coming from Jensen's apartment at 2389 S. 300 East. The door of the apartment was ajar, and Jensen was lying on the floor with a head wound.

An autopsy determined that Jensen suffered three gunshot wounds, including a fatal shot at close range to the temple. The bullets retrieved from the body were consistent with .22-caliber bullets, according to prosecutors.

Police say Sutton told them that he sent text messages to Jensen that day about selling her drugs. "Sutton stated he had no intention of selling her drugs, but that he and (the man accused of rape) intended to confront Ms. Jensen regarding the rape allegation," charging documents state. Sutton said he worried the texts would implicate him in her death so he sent her another text saying he wasn't coming and then deleted all of the texts with Jensen from his cellphone, according to the charges.

Sutton was charged with obstructing justice in November for allegedly deleting the texts, but that case was dismissed Thursday when the new charges were filed.

Sutton is being held in Salt Lake County Jail on $1 million bail. As of Friday, no charges have been filed against the acquaintance accused of rape.

E-mail: rlowry@desnews.com