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UPDATE: The Murray City Police Department released the following statement Friday, Jan. 31: Investigators with the Murray City Police Department located the person of interest they wanted for questioning. The person in the photographs provided yesterday is no longer outstanding. He was cooperative and provided useful information. The search for the homicide suspect continues. We would like to thank the public for their assistance.
Further updates will be provided as they are received. The Murray Police Department has created a Twitter account that will be used to update the case. The Twitter handle is @MurrayPoliceUT.
MURRAY — Police have received a photograph of the man who they believe was driving Shirley Sharp's car on the morning she was found dead in her burning house.
Sharp, 85, was found killed in her house, 20 E. Winchester St. (6400 South), Saturday. An autopsy determined she died from blunt force trauma to her head.
Investigators discovered Sharp's body after Utah Transit Authority police officers stopped a vehicle at 75 W. 5300 South about 6 a.m. that day. The driver sped off in the middle of a conversation with the officers. But the officers wrote down the license plate number and discovered that the vehicle was registered to Sharp. The car was later found abandoned.
Investigators now believe they have a picture of the man who was driving Sharp's vehicle.
The man with a tan beard was photographed while panhandling on Jan. 23 on State Street near 6500 South, at the top of the off-ramp from I-215. The man's identity and whereabouts were unknown as of Thursday.
While panhandling, the man often drew attention from passers-by because of the signs he held, including "Too stoopid to steal" and "Too ugly for prostitution."
Sharp's family released a statement Thursday, thanking UTA and Murray police for their work. They also made a plea to the public to help them find the panhandler.
"Please examine the photos and video and get a clear picture of who this person is. Keep a watch out for him and report any tips to the Murray Police Department. You don’t know how much this would mean to us as a family to get him off the streets. The next victim could be one of your loved ones," the statement said.
The family members also said they will not let her tragic death define how they remember her. Rather, they will remember her love and generosity and will be at peace knowing she is reunited with her husband of 53 years who passed away 15 years earlier.
"We will continue to strive to live a life that exemplifies hers. We know she would want us to move forward and love others as she did," the family said.
Anyone with information on the case can call police at 801-840-4000 or 801-264-2673.
