Hikers in the area of the Hidden Splendor Mine found a car containing a body on Dec. 20. They noticed the car while hiking and after hiking two hours in the area thought it was suspicious the car was still there. Upon arriving at the car, they saw the car had a metal flex hose running from the exhaust pipe into the car. There was a dead body in the back seat lying in a sleeping bag.
The apparent suicide victim was listed as Roger Lee Kennedy from Oakland, Mich. DOB-Dec. 27, 1961.
The hikers notified the Emery County Sheriff’s Office upon arriving home, the call came in at 3:43 p.m. Sgt. Norm Vuksinick, Deputy John Barnett and Det. Sgt. Bob Blackburn returned to the car to investigate. The car was still running when the hikers came upon it. Sgt. Blackburn reported the family of the man said he had been depressed when he left Michigan. He traveled to California where he was located by the family and he was OK at that time. He traveled to Tooele and other Utah towns. He had a receipt from Dec. 16 at the Green River Gas-n-Go and he may have camped out on the Swell. There was also a propane bottle spewing in the back seat of the vehicle. The investigators took Fausett’s mortuary to the car and they transported the body to the Medical Examiners in Salt Lake to determine exact cause of death before being released to the family.
It was reported that Kennedy was never married and didn’t have children. It was assumed the victim had been planning the suicide because a receipt in the vehicle indicated the metal flex tubing had been purchased in Michigan prior to Kennedy’s coming to Utah.
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