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MAGNA — Six months after a Magna woman allegedly shot and killed her husband in self-defense inside their martial arts studio, the Salt Lake County District Attorney's Office has charged her with murder.
Cynthia Vincent, 41, was charged Tuesday in 3rd District Court with murder, a first-degree felony.
On July 6, Unified police were called to Vincent's House of Goju, 9145 W. Main in Magna, after Vincent called 911 to report that she had shot her husband, according to charging documents.
Michael Vincent, 57, was found deceased just inside the entrance of the business, where the couple also lived.
When interviewed by police, Cynthia Vincent "asserted that she and Michael had been fighting all weekend. Vincent stated that shortly before the shooting, Michael had assaulted and strangled her," the charges state.
Vincent told detectives that she had called a friend to pick her up and then told her husband that a friend was on the way. That's when she said Michael Vincent lunged at her and she fired a shot, according to the charges.
But prosecutors say when Cynthia Vincent apparently realized that where Michael Vincent's body was found didn't match up to where she said she shot him, she tried to explain again what had happened.
"Vincent tried to explain the events again but appeared to be guessing at where they were standing during the shooting. Vincent's recollection of the events was not supported by evidence. The evidence is consistent with Michael leaving through the front door of the business when he was shot in the side of the head," according to charging documents.
Investigators also learned that the call Cynthia Vincent made to her friends to pick her up was made just one minute or less before she called 911, the charges state.
Detectives reviewed security video from the house which showed Vincent and her husband "doing chores and interacting normally" the day before on July 5. Even as late as two hours before the shooting, Michael Vincent is seen on video kissing his wife, the charges say.
"While the defendant claims she was defending herself, there is surveillance video in parts of the building that shows the defendant and the victim throughout the day performing chores, talking, kissing, and other interactions. At no point in the available video is any violence observed," prosecutors wrote in the court documents.
"Following this incident, she attempted to gain access to and close financial accounts that she previously shared with the victim. She was unable to do so as the victim removed (her) from the accounts prior to his death," the charges state.
An arrest warrant was issued Tuesday for Vincent. Prosecutors have requested she be held in the Salt Lake County Jail without bail pending trial.
