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SALT LAKE CITY (AP) -- A man accused of abducting and killing a fellow security guard in 1991 pleaded guilty in a case that grew out of an affair between the victim and the defendant's wife.
Bryan Ruff's remains were discovered in Utah County in July 1993, nearly two years after he disappeared from a Kennecott Copper guard shack.
Authorities said he had been having an affair with Dale Bradley Jr.'s first wife, Kristi Kalskett.
Prosecutors claim Bradley forced Ruff into the trunk of his car and drove 46 miles to the Cedar Fort area, where the victim was shot five times in the back.
Among the evidence linking Bradley, now 38, to the crime was a scuff of red paint found on one of Ruff's boots.
Bradley pleaded guilty to second-degree felony manslaughter and kidnapping.
They were so-called Alford pleas, meaning Bradley does not admit guilt but concedes it is likely he would be convicted at trial. With weapons enhancements, Bradley faces a maximum prison term of four years to 40 years on March 19.
Outside court Monday, defense attorney Loni DeLand said Bradley entered the pleas to spare his family and Ruff's family from a trial and improve his chances at getting parole.
Prosecutor Vincent Meister, however, said Bradley's poor health, due to severe diabetes, could turn the prison term into a "life sentence."
A detective who works on cold cases, Todd Park, was reviewing the file when he noticed the boot paint, which turned out to be an exact match to the paint on Bradley's 1974 Camaro, according to court testimony.
------ Information from: The Salt Lake Tribune, http://www.sltrib.com
(Copyright 2007 by The Associated Press. All Rights Reserved.)
