SALT LAKE CITY (ABC4 Utah) – Concerned with the lack of progress, the Salgado family now wants new DNA testing on their daughter’s remains.
Nearly seven years ago, Elizabeth Salgado disappeared while leaving a language school in Provo. In 2018, her remains were found in a canyon in Utah County. But her murder has not been solved.
This week, Salgado’s mother and father appeared together on their Facebook page and posted a two-minute message.
“We are the parents of Elizabeth Laguna Salgado who disappeared on April 16, 2015,” said the mother, Ruth Laguna Salgado.
They aimed their message to investigators with the Utah County Sheriff’s Office and the community.
“Let’s not say they are frustrated but they are worried,” said their family attorney Carlos Trujillo. “They want more progress and they feel it’s gotten a little stagnant, the leads have dried out.”
The parents are requesting a different DNA laboratory review of her remains.
Utah County has a few of those remains in their possession but turned most of them over to the family for burial.
“We want them to turn them over to the forensics laboratory,” said the mother. “I know that they (new lab) have offered help to do a forensics study. Please release them as soon as possible.”
Their family said the lab located in Salt Lake County reached out to them and is hopeful of better results.
“This new lab is giving them hope that they might be able to find something if they retest,” said Trujillo. “That’s why we are going after this transfer of these remains.”
A spokesman for the Utah County Sheriff’s Office said most of the remains are with the family. They’ve kept a “femur” for DNA testing which showed “her dna” and “no one else.”.
As far as a transfer “We have no plans to release evidence to any lab,” Sgt. Spencer Cannon said in a text to ABC4.
It may not be the answer the family wanted. But they still hope someone will come forward with information.
II ask the community that if you know something, tell the police or us,” said her father Julio Cesar Laguna. “Don’t forget her, please.”
Anyone with information is urged to contact the Utah County Sheriff’s Office.
