SALT LAKE CITY – The Latest on two teens found dead in an abandoned Utah mine (all times local):
3:05 p.m.
As families of two slain teenagers call for the closure of the abandoned Utah mine shaft where the teens' bodies were dumped, a spokeswoman for the state mining department says she's hoping it can be sealed off.
Hollie Brown of Utah Division of Oil, Gas and Mining said Friday she's concerned about curiosity-seekers being drawn to the area dotted with hundreds of potentially dangerous abandoned mines.
She says the state could work with the landowner to close the mine where the missing teens were found.
Police say the couple was bound and stabbed to death after visiting a woman whose boyfriend warned her not to have male visitors.
The victims' relatives say abandoned mines are a serious problem near Eureka, a former silver mining hotspot about 75 miles (120 kilometers) south of Salt Lake City.
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12:40 p.m.
Authorities say they've confirmed that two bodies found in an abandoned Utah mine are those of a teenage couple who disappeared nearly three months ago.
Utah County Sheriff's officials say state medical examiners officially confirmed Friday the two were 18-year-old Riley Powell and 17-year-old Brelynne "Breezy" Otteson.
Police say they were stabbed to death and dumped in the mine in late December after visiting a woman whose boyfriend warned her not to have male visitors.
Their bodies were found Wednesday near their hometown of Eureka, about 75 miles (120 kilometers) south of Salt Lake City.
Police have arrested 41-year-old Jerrod W. Baum on suspicion of aggravated murder and other charges. His attorney has not returned calls seeking comment.
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