The accused allegedly fired a crossbow at a man in Colorado and then slit his throat. He later reportedly shot and killed University of Utah student Guo Chen Wei, and is now charged with aggravated murder, which carries the death penalty.
Kathleen Boutain, wife of the accused, also faces a number of charges in connection with the case, including multiple counts of criminal solicitation and theft by receiving stolen property. If convicted, she could face life in prison.
She is eligible for bail, set at just over $1 million, cash-only.
The two may also face charges in Colorado. After Boutain was apprehended on Oct. 31 at the Salt Lake City Main Library, he admitted to killing a man in Colorado, reports the Salt Lake City Tribune. He then provided police with a detailed account of events leading up to the arrest. Police and prosecutors recounted Boutain’s statements in court, and they were made public on Thursday.
Days after the pair allegedly killed 63-year-old Mitchell Bradford Ingle in Colorado on Oct. 27, court documents state, Austin and Kathleen Boutain were on the lookout for a victim to carjack and kidnap at the University of Utah.
“They hatched a plan that they were going to kidnap a person and a vehicle from the Red Butte Garden area and then drive this person to Tennessee,” Salt Lake County DA Sim Gill said, reports Fox. “They were going to use his or her credit cards for food and gas, and once they got to Tennessee their intent was to kill that person.”
At one point, 23-year-old Guo Chen Wei and a woman passenger drove up to the location the Boutains had staked out. Guo was shot and killed, then several bullets were fired at the woman, who managed to escape.
“And she did probably the smartest thing at that point, which is she threw the phone on the ground, and as he went down to pick it up to turn off the phone—she was on the phone with 911—she ran away, and as she was running away, Mr. Boutain filed several shots at her, as he later admitted, with an intent to kill her,” Gill said, according to Fox.Following the incident, the University of Utah issued a statement mourning the loss of student Guo.