In a quiet neighborhood in Spanish Fork, Utah, the life of a young, White/Caucasian boy named Joshua Jaden Boren Jr. came to a tragic end on January 16, 2014. At seven years old, the energetic male, known to his loved ones as Jaden, was found deceased in his home alongside his mother, Kelly Boren, 32, his five-year-old sister, Haley, and his maternal grandmother, Marie King, 55.
The grim discovery was made after Jaden's father, 34-year-old Joshua Boren, a police officer with the Lindon Police Department, failed to report for his scheduled night shift.
Concerned when he couldn't be reached, his colleagues requested a welfare check at his residence. When officers from the Spanish Fork Police Department arrived, they peered through a window and saw a scene that hinted at the violence within: blood was visible on the carpet, and empty shell casings were scattered in the front room. Upon entering the unlocked home, their search led them upstairs, where they found the four family members, all of whom had been shot. The investigation concluded that there was only one suspect in the deaths: Jaden's own father, Joshua Boren.
Investigators believe that Joshua Boren was the perpetrator of the killings, turning his service weapon on his family before taking his own life in a devastating murder-suicide. His body was found in a bedroom next to his wife and two children. His mother-in-law, Marie King, was discovered in an adjacent room. In the wake of the tragedy, no suicide note was found, leaving a community and extended family to grapple with the unanswered question of why this happened.
As the investigation unfolded, a portrait of a troubled home emerged. Friends and acquaintances reported that Joshua and Kelly Boren had been experiencing significant marital problems for several months leading up to the incident. A later report from the Spanish Fork Police Department, released after a seven-month investigation, revealed a darker side to the man who was publicly known as a dedicated officer. The report detailed a history of personal struggles for Joshua Boren, including allegations of abuse against his wife and other deeply troubling behaviors, which investigators believe culminated in the violent end to his family's lives. Since the sole suspect took his own life, no arrests were made in connection with the deaths.
