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In February 2020, the murder of a young woman named Sasha Krause shocked an entire community. She was a 27-year-old Sunday school teacher who disappeared in January 2020 from Farmington, New Mexico. Her body was found by a camper outside Arizona more than a month later.
Subsequent investigation revealed that she was killed by a man named Mark Gooch. As People Magazine Investigates delves deep into the case on Monday's upcoming episode, take a look at some of the most shocking details about the Sasha Krause murder case.
People Magazine Investigates: 4 shocking details about Sasha Krause's murder case you need to know
1) Mark Gooch had no connection to Sasha Krause
Perhaps the most chilling thing about the case is that the murderer, Mark Gooch, did not have any personal connection to Sasha Krause. Gooch was arrested almost two months after Krause's body was discovered outside Arizona.
Per Oxygen, prosecutors argued during the trial that Gooch hated the Mennonite community. His brother, Samuel, told authorities that Mark harbored a grudge against those who believed in the Mennonite faith.
2) Gooch was tracking the Mennonites prior to killing Sasha Krause
Another crucial piece of evidence presented in court was a text message exchange between the two brothers, wherein Mark stated that he was keeping a close eye on members of the Mennonite community in Farmington, days before he killed Sasha Krause. According to CNN, several witnesses said they saw a white SUV parked behind the Farmington Mennonite Church on the evening of January 18, 2020, around the same time Krause went missing.
3) Mark Gooch's background
Arguably, one of the most baffling things about the case is Mark Gooch's seemingly normal background. He reportedly did not have any criminal record. At the time of Sasha Krause's murder, Gooch was working as a mechanic at the Luke Air Force Base in Phoenix, Arizona. According to AirForceTimes, he did not display any signs of emotion during the sentencing. He later apologized to Krause's family in court and also expressed his gratitude to his own family for standing by him during the case.
4) Krause's body was found miles away in Arizona
Krause was living with a Mennonite community in New Mexico when she disappeared. However, her body was discovered in Arizona, approximately 400 miles away from where she lived. Krause's body was found with her hands bound by a duct tape. Investigators found out that she had been shot in the head.
With no apparent connection to the victim, police reportedly took almost two months to track down the culprit. Thanks to cell phone records, among many other sources, authorities arrested Gooch in April 2020 and charged him with theft, kidnapping, and murder. An Arizona jury found him guilty of first-degree murder and kidnapping in October 2021. He was ultimately sentenced to life in prison without the possibility of parole. Gooch was also handed an additional sentencing of five years for kidnapping.
People Magazine Investigates - The Grudge will air on Investigation Discovery on Monday, August 1, 2022.
