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MT. PLEASANT, Sanpete County — A Mt. Pleasant man has been arrested for investigation of murder after police say he beat his fiancée to death and then tried to make it look like her injuries had been sustained in a car crash.
Anthony Jeffery Christensen, 35, was arrested Saturday for investigation of murder, desecration of a dead body and obstruction of justice, according to the Sanpete County Jail.
On Friday, Mt. Pleasant police were called to 68 E. 300 North where officers found the body of Kammy Edmunds, 34, in her bathroom. Officers described her as "very bruised and bloody," according to a probable cause affidavit filed with Christensen's arrest.
Christensen told investigators that he and Edmunds, along with another woman, had been drinking heavily the night before, the affidavit states. Edmunds wanted to drive her friend home but Christensen told her not to, he told police. At that point, Chrstensen allegedly claimed that he passed out and awoke the next day to find Edmunds in the bathroom.
Christensen also said Edmunds' 2001 Oldsmobile Alero was missing. The vehicle was later discovered by police in a dry creek bed in the Power Plant Park area east of Mt. Pleasant. Detectives belive the vehicle had been driven off an embankment.
But when police pulled the car out and examined it, they found blood "on the door jams and door panel of the driver side of the front and rear doors. The blood evidence is located low on the door panel, not up where a person's head would be," the report states.
Furthermore, "the damage to the vehicle is not consistent with damage that would result in the death of (a) person," the officer wrote in the affidavit.
At the house, detectives found blood outside the entry and across the living room carpet leading to the bathroom.
"In the kitchen area of the house there were marks on the floor that suggested a person was dragged across the area," an officer wrote in the affidavit, adding that an effort had also been made to clean up the blood stains.
A muddy pair of shoes belonging to Christensen was found along with muddy shoe prints in the bathtub, according to the report.
- The Utah Domestic Violence Coalition has a statewide, 24-hour hotline for victims of domestic violence at 1-800-897-LINK (5465).
- The Division of Child and Family Services offers counseling, teaches parenting skills and conflict resolution and can connect the family with community resources. Their goal is to keep children with their family when it is "possible and safe," according to their website. Visitdcfs.utah.gov/questions/or call 1-800-323-DCFS (3237) for resources or to report child abuse or neglect.
- The Christmas Box House acts as a temporary shelter for children and can provide them with new clothing and shoes, among other services. Call the Salt Lake office at 801-747-2201 or the Ogden office at 801-866-0350.
The Utah State Medical Examiner's Office told investigators on Saturday that Edmunds died from "multiple blunt force trauma concentrated to the head" and that her injuries were "not consistent with being in an automobile accident," the report states.
Detectives also conducted searches on the cellphones of both Edmunds and Christensen. Edmunds' phone had been "erased or factory reset" sometime between Thursday night and Friday morning, according to the affidavit.
Christensen's phone was pinged as being near the Power Plant Park on Friday morning, and his phone had sent messages to Edmunds using Facebook near Parley's Lane early Friday at a time he claimed he was sleeping, according to police.
On social media, many friends and family members believe Edmunds' death was the result of domestic violence, some noting that Christensen had a prior history. Police said in their report that Edmunds' mother told them that since her daughter began dating Christensen, "she has seen multiple bruising and black eyes on her daughter."
Police also noted in their report that Christensen had an "extensive" criminal history, mainly out of Wyoming, including convictions for child abuse and strangulation, and was also at one time listed as a fugitive out of Nevada.
According to court documents from Sweetwater County, Wyoming, Christensen pleaded guilty in 2013 to strangulation and battery against a family member. He pleaded guilty in 2015 to domestic battery, his third offense, according to court records.
Christensen was also mentioned in 2013 in a press release from the newly formed Fugitive Apprehension Team of the Sweetwater County Sheriff's Office, being arrested for investigation of conspiracy.
A GoFundMe account* was set up to help with funeral expenses and to help support Edmunds' two young children from a prior relationship.
Help for people in abusive relationships can be found by contacting YWCA, Women in Jeopardy, 801-537-8600, or the Domestic Violence Hotline, 800-897-LINK.
Contributing: Sean Moody
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*KSL.com does not assure that the money deposited to the account will be applied for the benefit of the persons named as beneficiaries. If you are considering a deposit to the account, you should consult your own advisors and otherwise proceed at your own risk.
Editor's Note: This story has been updated to show Kammy Edmunds was Anthony Christensen's fiancée, not his wife as originally reported.
