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Former NFL scout and Utah State staffer arrested in connection to poisoning death of pregnant girlfriend

Mar 15, 2024, 10:27 AM | Updated: Jul 1, 2024, 6:27 am

FILE: Blaise Taylor speaks among the 2017 NFF National Scholar-Athlete Class & Campbell Trophy ...

FILE: Blaise Taylor speaks among the 2017 NFF National Scholar-Athlete Class & Campbell Trophy Finalists during the press conference for the 60th NFF Anual Awards Ceremony at New York Hilton Midtown on December 5, 2017 in New York City. (Photo by Abbie Parr/Getty Images)

(Photo by Abbie Parr/Getty Images)

SALT LAKE CITY — A former NFL scout and Utah State University football analyst has been arrested in connection to the poisoning deaths of his girlfriend and her unborn child.

Blaise A. Taylor, 27, was arrested Thursday evening in Logan. The Metropolitan Nashville Police Department said a grand jury indicted Taylor on two first-degree murder charges, and he was taken into custody by deputy U.S. marshals with assistance from the Logan Police Department.

Police said Taylor’s girlfriend, Jade Benning, died at Vanderbilt University Medical Center on March 6, 2023 — her 25th birthday. She was hospitalized on Feb. 25, 2023, after Taylor called 911, saying she appeared to be having an allergic reaction.

Benning’s medical condition immediately became critical, according to police, and her unborn fetus died on Feb. 27, 2023. Police said they were not able to interview her before her death.

Detective Adam Reese led the investigation, which lasted months before Wednesday’s return of the murder indictment against Taylor. He is alleged to have poisoned Benning without her knowledge while visiting her Lebanon Pike apartment on the night of Feb. 25, 2023.

Taylor played college football at Arkansas State University and worked for one year at Duke as a graduate assistant coach. He later worked as a scout for the NFL’s Tennesee Titans, which play in Nashville, before moving to Utah to become a senior defensive analyst for Utah State in July 2023.

His profile page had been removed from Utah State’s website as of Friday morning. According to Utah State’s 2023 football media guide, Taylor assisted with the Aggies’ defensive secondary.

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Former NFL scout and Utah State staffer arrested in connection to poisoning death of pregnant girlfriend