Utah Woman Unknowingly Confesses to Police Informant That She Murdered Sleeping Husband and Dumped Body in Shallow Grave: Court Docs

A Utah woman was arrested on suspicion of murdering her estranged husband after she unknowingly confessed to a police informant that she shot him and dumped his remains in a shallow grave.

Jennifer Gledhill, 41, and her husband, Matthew Johnson, 51, were in the middle of a tumultuous divorce and custody battle over their three children. Days before the alleged murder, Gledhill sought out a protective order against Johnson, but a court denied it after no evidence of abuse was presented.

Six days after Johnson was thought to have died, on Sept. 28, an informant told police that Gledhill "openly admitted" to shooting her husband, according to court records obtained by WTOP News.

Following the arrest, police obtained several search warrants. According to court documents, multiple incriminating items were found, including blood and evidence of a cleanup.

"We discovered a large blood-stained spot in the master bedroom carpet underneath the bed," records state. "Blood was also found on the bed frame slats, which supports the information police were told. Evidence also supports that significant clean up had taken place after this crime had occurred, including bleaching walls, and using carpet cleaning supplies."

Johnson's body has not yet been found. Gledhill will appear in court, where prosecutors will determine formal charges.