How I Caught My Killer on Hulu: Where is Mark Gooch Now?

Hulu’s How I Caught My Killer is a docu-series that premiered back in January 2023 with its first season, which had a total of 9 episodes. The second season was released earlier this month in July 2024, and also included 9 episodes. The first episode, titled It Was a Religious Hate Crime revolved around the murder of Sasha Krause, which was committed by Mark Gooch. The following official synopsis reads:

“Devout Mennonite Sasha Krause vanishes from her church parking lot in the middle of the night, investigators follow a series of unlikely digital clues across state lines to a gruesome discovery and uncover a killer filled with burning hatred.”

Gooch, who was 21 back in January 2022 when he was pronounced guilty, is currently serving a life sentence at Arizona's Eyman Prison. Mark Gooch is a former Air Force officer who was stationed in Phoenix at the time.

Where is Sasha Krause’s murderer, Mark Gooch, now?

Sasha Krause was a 27-year-old New Mexico resident who belonged to the Mennonite community. The religion revolves around a range of beliefs such as pacifism, adult baptisms, foot washing, church discipline, and separation from the world. Krause had disappeared from Farmington, New Mexico, in January 2020, and her body was found near the Sunset Crater National Monument near Flagstaff in Arizona, on 22nd February 2020.

Identified due to her fingerprints, the investigation used a range of technological aids in order to narrow down the suspects. Mark Gooch was known in the Air Force for having a deep resentment towards the Mennonite community, which was also talked about in detail in the episode from the Hulu series.

Regardless, Krause’s cellphone had allowed them to narrow down the suspects. It was revealed that Mark Gooch’s phone had communicated with the same cell towers as the victim. Furthermore, he was also revealed to have been near the location where Sasha Krause had gone missing initially, and the then-officer was also known to have been near the Farmington church.

The Sinister Case of Sasha Krause byu/gandalf45435 inThatChapter

Regardless, Gooch’s resentment towards the religion was due to the fact that he himself was brought up in a Mennonite family. He felt like an outsider right from his childhood and felt that the community did not treat him well. This was down to his refusal to be baptized, as his decision to join the Air Force was also an escape from family, in some ways.

Mark Gooch’s trial concluded in January 2022, and while the evidence against him was mostly circumstantial, its overwhelming nature meant that the court eventually held him guilty of the crime. He was sentenced to a lifetime in prison on the charges of kidnapping and first-degree murder and continues to serve his sentence for the time being.

Gooch has not been allowed the possibility of parole, due to the heinous nature of the crime he was convicted for. Sasha Krause had been shot in the head, and despite both her and Gooch belonging to the Mennonite community, the two did not know each other in advance.

The sentence was delivered by Coconino County Superior Court Judge Cathleen Brown Nichols, who had described the murder as the most senseless case that she had ever presided over. This was chiefly because of the lack of motive, as Nichols called Gooch's crime extremely callous, and did not allow much scope for a future release.

This means that Mark Gooch can be expected to stay put and continue to serve the life sentence at Arizona's Eyman Prison.

For further information about the case, fans can watch episode 1 of Season 2 of Hulu’s How I Caught My Killer.