MACKENZIE LUECK HOMICIDE

Police To Lueck Family: We’re Doing All We Can

Jun 27, 2019, 6:38 PM | Updated: 9:13 pm

SALT LAKE CITY, Utah – Salt Lake City’s police chief said he told Mackenzie Lueck’s father that they are doing all they can to find his daughter.

“I’m hurting just like our community is hurting, just like the nation is hurting,” said Chief Mike Brown in a one-on-one interview with KSL’s Dan Rascon. “We have a young woman who we can’t locate. We have a father and a family who are grieving. We need to find her.”

The 23-year-old University of Utah student suddenly vanished Monday, June 17 after being dropped off at Hatch Park in North Salt Lake at 3 a.m. 

Chief Brown said there was no indication thus far that Mackenzie has been harmed or is in danger.

Not right now. (We do know) that she’s been missing, and that’s very out of character for her, said the chief. 

The latest on the search for evidence came from a home in the Fairpark area at 547 North 1000 West.

The homeowner, who police have not named, is now considered a person of interest. The chief said, “we don’t know yet,” if there is a connection between the two of them.

Officers did carry out bags of evidence from the home, and dug holes in the backyard after executing a search warrant at the home Wednesday night and into Thursday morning.

Brown would not say why they dug those holes or what evidence they found, but did show a picture during a press conference on Thursday of a mattress and a box spring they are trying to locate.

The homeowner, or person of interest, put the items up online for free, and police are asking for the public’s help in trying to identify who picked them up.

“They didn’t go to the same person. They went to two different people. We would like to find whoever picked up that mattress and whoever picked up that box spring. We want them to call us and we will come get that. We feel like there could be evidence that we need on those items,” said Brown.

The chief said this is a case with all kinds of facets, including a digital and social media footprint that led them to the house, and hopefully will lead them to the whereabouts of Mackenzie Lueck.

“We are not looking through a straw in this investigation. We are looking broad, so anything that can provide us any information to help us find and bring her home, that’s what we are focusing on,” said Chief Brown. 

Anyone with information about Mackenzie Lueck has been asked to call police at 801-799-4420.

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Police To Lueck Family: We’re Doing All We Can