On May 21, 2025, in a South Salt Lake apartment near 900 West and 4000 South, T.M., a male resident, opened his door and was fatally shot. His body was discovered the next day, May 22, with a paintball-style “less-lethal” handgun found near his side—set to safe—and an autopsy determined he died from a gunshot wound to the head. Detectives concluded the killing occurred the day before the discovery.
Investigators reviewed surveillance footage showing a car arriving that morning with three men and a woman; two of the men appeared to pull on black gloves before approaching the unit. The vehicle's movements were traced from Uintah County to the apartment and back, and data from court-ordered ankle monitors placed Brandon David Murphy and Noah Brady Angus at the scene during the window of the shooting.
Charging documents describe a drug deal gone bad as the spark. According to investigators, Michael Lynn Angus arranged a meth purchase through an intermediary, and when the buyers believed they'd been sold fake drugs, the group sought out the seller. They went to the apartment connected to that transaction, where T.M.—who, investigators say, had nothing to do with the deal—answered the door and was shot. Detectives allege Murphy escalated the confrontation by taking a gun and pointing it at T.M.; Murphy later told police he had been trying to “fix” the situation and protect himself because he believed a gun was present. The filing also says Michael supplied the firearm and Noah helped facilitate the drug deal.
Arrests followed quickly. On May 23, police announced an arrest tied to the killing, and by May 31 prosecutors charged Murphy, 29, with aggravated murder, aggravated robbery, aggravated burglary, obstruction of justice, and possession of a firearm by a restricted person. Michael Angus, 50, and Noah Angus, 27, were each charged with murder, with prosecutors alleging the trio's attempt to claw back money from the suspected bad drug sale culminated in T.M.'s death. News releases and court filings emphasized that T.M. was an uninvolved resident caught on the threshold of his home.
