In the summer of 2004, the life of a young Caucasian woman, 27-year-old Lori Soares Hacking, came to a tragic and senseless end in Salt Lake City, Utah. On the morning of July 19, her husband, Mark Hacking, reported her missing, telling police she had gone for her customary jog in a nearby park and never returned. The initial report sparked a massive search effort, with concerned family, friends, and community members combing the area for any sign of the missing woman, who was also believed to
be five weeks pregnant. However, as the search for Lori intensified, so did the scrutiny of her husband's story.
It soon became clear that Mark Hacking's account of the morning his wife disappeared was riddled with inconsistencies. His credibility crumbled as investigators and reporters uncovered a complex web of deceit he had woven for years. Mark had lied to his wife and family about his educational and career achievements, falsely claiming to have graduated from the University of Utah and to have been accepted to medical school in North Carolina, a move the couple was just days away from making. The discovery of his long-term deception is believed to have been the catalyst for the events that followed. In reality, Lori had discovered his lies, leading to a confrontation.
Faced with the imminent collapse of his fabricated life, Mark Hacking murdered his wife in her sleep on July 19, 2004. He shot her in the head with a. 22-caliber rifle. He then disposed of her body in a dumpster. His strange behavior in the days following her disappearance, including being found running naked through the streets, led to a psychiatric evaluation. It was during this time that he confessed the horrific truth to his brothers, who then relayed the information to the police.
Mark Hacking was arrested on August 2, 2004, on suspicion of aggravated murder. Following his confession, an exhaustive search of a local landfill was initiated. After months of searching, Lori's remains were discovered. Mark Hacking pleaded guilty to first-degree murder and was sentenced to six years to life in prison. In a statement to the court, he expressed remorse, stating, "She was the greatest thing that ever happened to me, but I killed her, and took the life of my unborn child and put them in the garbage, and I can't explain why I did it."
