The murder of Susan Cox Powell
West Valley City, Salt Lake County, Utah · 2009
Overview
Susan Cox Powell, 28, a mother of two who worked at a Wells Fargo call center, was last seen at her home in West Valley City, Utah on the evening of December 6, 2009. Her husband, Josh Powell, told police he had left her asleep at half past midnight and taken their sons, aged four and two, camping in the desert of Tooele County in freezing weather. Officers found fans drying a wet patch on the carpet, and later drops of Susan's blood beside a freshly cleaned sofa. Josh hired a lawyer, stopped answering detectives and was named a person of interest. He moved the boys to his father's house in Puyallup, Washington. In September 2011 his father, Steven Powell, was arrested on voyeurism charges, prosecutors said Susan was among the women he had secretly photographed, and a judge gave the boys to Susan's parents. On February 5, 2012, Josh locked a social worker out of a supervised visit and killed himself and both boys in a house fire. His brother Michael, who had sold a Ford Taurus for scrap in Oregon weeks after Susan vanished and was the main beneficiary of Josh's life insurance, died by suicide in February 2013. On May 20, 2013 West Valley City police closed the active investigation, saying they believed Josh killed his wife and that Michael was heavily involved in getting rid of her body. Susan has never been found.
How it was solved
Nobody was ever charged, and there is no body, so the resolution is an official finding rather than a verdict. From the first week detectives doubted Josh Powell's account that he had taken two small boys camping at Simpson Springs after midnight in freezing temperatures; police went back to the campground, found nothing to support the story, and learned that fewer than twenty people visit it in a winter. A search warrant served on December 9, 2009 took boxes, bags and a computer from the house. Unsealed files showed what police had: drops of Susan's blood on the floor next to a sofa that looked freshly cleaned, two fans blowing on it, her phone in Josh's van with the SIM card removed, life insurance policies on her, and paperwork Josh filed about ten days after she vanished to withdraw her retirement money. Josh was named a person of interest on December 15, 2009 and never spoke to detectives again. West Valley City police said that over three and a half years they followed 800 tips, conducted 800 interviews and searched in eleven states, including a ten-day search with cadaver dogs near Topaz Mountain in September 2011 where a suspected grave turned out to hold only charred wood. After Josh's death in February 2012 the focus shifted to his brother. Police said wiretapped conversations between the brothers led them to a Ford Taurus Michael Powell had left at a salvage yard outside Pendleton, Oregon, weeks after Susan disappeared, a fact they only learned nearly two years later; DNA from the trunk upholstery was inconclusive, and the brothers had used encryption that investigators could not break. Deputy Chief Mike Powell, no relation, called it suspicious that Josh had named Michael the primary beneficiary of his life insurance. Michael denied wrongdoing and died by suicide on February 11, 2013. At a news conference on May 20, 2013, police said they were confident Josh was involved in Susan's disappearance and that Michael was heavily involved in disposing of her body. District Attorney Sim Gill said that without a body, a crime scene or a cause of death the case was circumstantial, and asked what he could have charged. The city released tens of thousands of pages of the file.
Sources
- WVC PD will no longer actively investigate Susan Cox Powell case (May 20, 2013)
“Police say wire tapping conversations between Josh and Michael led them to a car in a salvage yard in Oregon in 2011. Over the course of three and a half years, 800 tips and 800 interviews took detectives across the country.”
- Police close Susan Powell case, offer new details (May 21, 2013)
“"This is a circumstantial case, yes," said West Valley City Deputy Chief Phil Quinlan. "We didn't have a body. We don't have a crime scene."”
- Police give details in Powell disappearance case (May 21, 2013)
“Utah police said they believe Susan Powell's brother-in-law was "heavily involved" in getting rid of her body. DNA recovered from the upholstery inside the car's trunk proved inconclusive, they said.”
- Powell case closed (May 21, 2013)
“It wasn't until last August that Utah police discovered Michael Powell's Ford Taurus at the junkyard outside Pendleton, Ore. Investigators have been unable to decipher that encrypted communication, he said.”
- Police Call Off Search for Susan Cox Powell (May 20, 2013)
“"We are confident that Josh was definitely involved in her disappearance," said West Valley Deputy Police Chief Mike Powell.”
- Susan Powell case closed, files open (May 2013)
“"Even if we charge him, what do we charge him with?" Gill said. "We unfortunately never got to that," Gill said.”
- Detailed timeline of events surrounding Josh Powell, Susan Cox Powell (February 5, 2012)
“Police serve a search warrant on the Powell residence and remove boxes, bags and a computer. Investigators conduct an 10-day search, using cadaver dogs, near Topaz Mountain in Juab County.”
- Husband Named Person of Interest in Susan Powell Disappearance (December 2009)
“Police obtained a court order to force a DNA sample of Powell Tuesday.”
- Susan Powell's Father-in-Law Arrested on Child Porn, Voyeurism Charges (September 23, 2011)
“Among the females photographed was his daughter-in-law Susan Powell, prosecutors said.”
- Desert search for missing Susan Powell may last for days (September 21, 2011)
“Searchers have been working on foot, all-terrain vehicles and horseback for more than a week. So far, police estimate they have covered more than 50 square miles.”
- House searched in Utah missing-mom case (August 26, 2011)
“Investigators from West Valley City, Utah, spent about nine hours Thursday in the house in Puyallup”
- Missing mom's 2 kids, husband die in blast (February 5, 2012)
“After they arrived, police say Powell pulled only his children in and locked the social worker out. Within minutes, the house was up in flames, according to Ed Troyer from the Pierce County sheriff's department.”
- Brother killed in apparent suicide was primary beneficiary of Powell family life insurance policy (February 13, 2013)
“Michael Powell, the younger brother of Josh Powell, jumped to his death from a parking garage in downtown Minneapolis.”
- 'Cold': Josh Powell's brother lied under oath (February 20, 2019)
“The lies came on Oct. 20, 2012, during a deposition tied to a legal dispute over Josh Powell's life insurance. "He never gave any indication that he could have been involved."”
- Police searching Oregon farm for Susan Cox Powell (May 15, 2013)
“Police have concluded a search for Susan Cox Powell that began earlier this week at a rural property in Oregon. Investigators gathered at the property on Tuesday, focusing in a heavily wooded area.”
- Susan Powell's diary foreshadows family tragedy (November 19, 2015)
“"If I die, it may not be an accident even if it looks like one," she wrote in 2008. Josh Powell tried to cut his wife off from the world, limiting her computer and phone access.”
- Cold season 1, episode 2: Wake Up, Little Susie, full episode transcript (2018)
“They married the afternoon of April 6, 2001 in the Portland temple. She soon landed a position at Wells Fargo Investments, a call center, doing similar work to her old job at Fidelity.”
- Susan Marie Powell
“Her blood had been found on the tile floor next to the couch in the family home”