Chandler Michael Cooper was 22 when his body was found by hikers on February 11, 2016, near a trail by Saltair in Magna, Utah. He had been shot twice, once in the face and once in the chest; investigators described the killing as execution style. His body lay a few hundred yards from the intersection of North Temple Frontage Road and 11500 West. Two shell casings were recovered but no firearm.

Cooper lived in the Holladay-Millcreek area. Friends said he was not known to frequent the area where he was found, and investigators believe he was driven to the remote location and killed there. Detectives considered a possible connection to a drug-involved lifestyle because Cooper had prior drug-related offenses. In the nights before his death he was reportedly with a friend who said he had dropped Cooper off in a Salt Lake City area.

In 2024 new DNA testing on Cooper’s clothing recovered DNA from at least two other people and prompted fresh interviews and warrants. Those developments led investigators to a primary suspect and, in September 2025, an arrest was made; court documents allege a planned robbery tied to a party where Cooper and others discussed taking $14,000 in winnings and where Cooper was described as a problem.

Does anyone have information about Cooper’s movements in early February 2016 or about the party tied to the robbery plot?