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MIDVALE -- Police in Midvale are investigating a murder and have arrested the victim's husband for the crime. They say the man admitted to strangling his wife.
The couple lives in an apartment at the Midtown Villas Apartment Complex, located near 7900 South and 800 West. Police responded to the apartment building Thursday morning after receiving a report of domestic violence.
When officers arrived, they say Carlos Augusto Soto-Lopez was waiting outside.
"The suspect walked up to them, put his arms out in front of him in a handcuffing gesture, if you will, and said, 'I'm tired. I killed her,'" said Midvale police Sgt. Marcelo Rapela.
Officers went inside the apartment and found the woman in on a couch. They say she was covered in blankets and appeared to have been strangled with some type of cord.
Soto-Lopez had reported his wife missing around 8:30 Thursday morning, after she was out all night. When police arrived to take in the report, they found that the woman had just arrived home, so they left.
The domestic disturbance call came in just an hour and a half later.
Police say there have been rumors among family members that the wife was having an affair, and they believe that was the motive for the murder.
The couple does have two children who were in the home at the time, but Soto-Lopez told officers they were asleep. He said the reason he covered his wife's body in the blankets was so the children would not find her if they woke up.
The couple's children are 4 and 8 years old. They are with other family members at this time.
Soto-Lopez and the victim have been living together in a common-law marriage. Police say they have responded to the couple's apartment before on domestic violence calls.
Soto-Lopez was arrested in 2008 for domestic abuse after attempting to strangle his wife. Police say he may be in the country illegally.
Investigators are now talking to the couple's family members and friends, trying to verify exactly where the victim was all night. Officers are not releasing her name because they're still trying to notify her mother, who lives in Arizona.
E-mail: syi@ksl.com
