Could Oura Rings provide clues to Cottonwood Heights man's missing remains?

SALT LAKE CITY — As prosecutors prepare for Jennifer Gledhill's murder trial, scheduled to begin in December, the search continues for the body of Gledhill's husband, the person she allegedly killed.

Gledhill, 43, is charged with murder and eight other crimes in 3rd District Court. She is accused of shooting her estranged husband Matthew Johnson, 51, in his sleep and disposing of his body. As of Friday, Johnson's body remained missing.

Johnson was a member of the U.S. military Special Operations Unit. The Utah National Guard contacted police on Sept. 25, 2024, to report that Johnson had not shown up to work. Gledhill reported her husband missing three days later and said she had not seen him in a week.

Charging documents state that a man Gledhill was having an affair with contacted police after she allegedly told him she had shot and killed her husband in his sleep.

After waiving her right to a preliminary hearing, Gledhill pleaded not guilty, and a trial was originally scheduled for December 2025. Prosecutors requested a delay, however, because of a conflict with another murder trial happening at the same time. Her seven-day trial is now scheduled to begin on Dec. 7.

But investigators have not been sitting idle waiting for the trial to begin. Several search warrants have been served or drafted by the Salt Lake County District Attorney's Office since the beginning of the year.

According to a search warrant affidavit served in January, investigators wanted to look at cell phone data from the man Gledhill was having an affair with.

Based on GPS mapping data collected from Gledhill, investigators say she "visited remote sites in northern Utah several times prior to the date of the homicide, which are near areas she visited the days following the homicide," the warrant states.

But investigators believe "it would be extremely difficult for a female of Jennifer Gledhill's stature to place a human body into a rooftop carrier, remove that carrier from the residence, and lift the carrier and body into a van similar to the one driven by Jennifer Gledhill. Your affiant further believes it would be extremely difficult for a female to remove a rooftop carrier containing a body, extract the body, and bury it without assistance," according to the warrant.

The return for the warrant states that "electronic data" was collected from the man's phone "to determine if he assisted Jennifer Gledhill in transporting the body of Matthew or was in the area the evidentiary items that were located."

In a search warrant affidavit served in February, however, investigators note that data from the man's phone was consistent with the statements he gave police regarding his whereabouts and that "these records also did not further disclose any leads to the whereabouts of Matthew."

The February warrant states that while reviewing the Gledhill case, investigators "discovered when searching the phone downloads for Jennifer Gledhill a picture of Jennifer on Sept. 21, 2024, wearing a ring on her index finger," which they believed was a fitness ring.

They also learned that "Matthew frequently wore a fitness ring and it is the same that is issued by the (Utah) National Guard and that brand was is Oura Ring," the warrant states. Investigators concluded that Gledhill likely also had an Oura Ring.

After researching the Oura Ring, investigators learned that "it also tracks location," according to the warrant.

"The date that Jennifer was seen in the picture wearing the ring was Sept. 21, 2024, the day of the homicide. On Sept. 22, 2024, Jennifer Gledhill was tracked on her GPS location, dumping significant evidence related to the homicide," the warrant states.

In a search warrant affidavit served in March, investigators noted that they were still waiting for information from the previous warrant.

The March warrant requested a search of a desktop computer and three laptops that Cottonwood Heights police seized from Gledhill's home as evidence. A return to that warrant states "electronic data" was collected.

A fourth warrant affidavit was written in May but not served, according to court records. It was unknown Friday why the warrant wasn't served or if another warrant seeking the same information was written.

The unserved warrant states that while reviewing Johnson's telephone records, investigators discovered an account linked to a home surveillance security system.

Investigators believe that before Johnson was killed, "he told Jennifer he had cameras installed in the residence. Matthew was seen on video after he told Jennifer about the (cameras), pointing to area in a ceiling vent and then told Jennifer that he saw her cheating on him with another man," the affidavit states. "(Investigators) found information related to the cameras and usage in the data recovered from Matthew's cellular phone with usage as recent as August, the month before he was killed … Matthew was killed shortly after the last video usage report that was on his phone."

The warrant, which was not served, had sought information about whether there were other cameras hidden in Gledhill's residence that may have recorded the crime "or captured Jennifer cleaning up the crime scene, disposing of evidence or moving Matthew's body from the residence."

In a statement to KSL, Salt Lake County District Attorney Sim Gill said he could not comment on what has and has not been collected under the search warrants.

"This is an active case that we are rigorously continuing to investigate and prosecute. To protect the integrity of the case, we are unable to make any comments that speak to the methods or outcomes of any potential investigatory tools," he said.

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