Affidavit Says Herriman Man Was Lured to Car-Parts Meet, Shot and Buried as Suspect Is Arrested

Overview

• Police identified the victim as 60-year-old Kevin Van Beuge, whose body was found in a shallow grave in remote Tooele County.
• Preliminary autopsy findings list gunshot wounds to the right arm and chest as the cause of death.
• Jeffrey Mauricio Lopez, 32, was booked into the Salt Lake County jail on suspicion of aggravated murder, aggravated kidnapping, aggravated robbery and desecration of a body.
• Investigators cite a Venmo payment from Van Beuge’s account to Lopez, surveillance of the victim’s truck being abandoned, and footage of a man buying gloves and mask materials.
• Detectives say GPS warrants guided them to the burial site, and allege the victim’s body remained in his truck for over a day while the suspect drove to multiple ATMs and attempted transactions captured on video.