WEST VALLEY CITY - UTAH, (ABC 4 News) - An arrest has been made in the murder of a West Valley City mother of two.
Police officials say officers are questioning an 18-year-old neighbor of murder victim 33-year-old Kim Hain. Her body was discovered last week inside her West Valley home, officers say she died from blunt force injuries.
Investigators identified the primary suspect in the murder investigation as Martin Vuksinick. Police say evidence suggests Vuksinick beat Hain to death last week with a baseball bat.
Officers say Hain and the suspect's family knew each other.
Jail records indicate that Martin Vuksinick was trying to burglarize the home of Kim Hain when he was discovered.
According to the probable cause statement filed by West Valley City Police, Vuksinick "...admitted to being inside the Hain residence without their permission to commit a theft."
The probable cause statement, which is filed by the arresting officer at the time of a jail booking stated, "...while inside the residence, Vuksinick Jr. encountered (Hain) and struck her in the head with his fist. Vuksinick then retrieved a baseball bat struck her in the head multiple times."
West Valley City Police Sergeant Tom McLaughlin says Vuksinick also admitted to using drugs just before the incident. "He admitted to ingesting cocaine prior to entering the house," said McLaughlin.
A young woman who claimed to be Vuksinick's ex-girlfriend was seen talking with family members at the house. "I know he's not a killer," said Sheena Simons. "He was nice to the kids. He had a strong friendship with the family. He's a good kid that got mixed up in a bad thing."
Simons said Vuksinick was attending Cyprus High School but then transferred out.
A neighbor friend of Vuksinick referred to as Danny said he ran into the suspect on Saturday.
"He was angry. He said 'this shouldn't have happened to her'," said Danny. "He wanted them to be caught, arrested."
ABC 4 asked Danny how he felt, knowing Vuksinick was allegedly keeping secrets from him.
"I feel kind of betrayed," said Danny. "He was sitting with us, talking to us, and he was the one who did it. It was kind of sad."
