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Location Unknown: KSL Investigates Utah’s Missing Sex Offenders 

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Location Unknown: KSL Investigates Utah’s Missing Sex Offenders 


SALT LAKE CITY – A convicted child sex offender on the run and charged with raping a minor in Utah last month is just one of hundreds of Utah sex offenders who are not in compliance with the state’s registry.

36-year-old Christopher Law is charged with two counts of felony rape and sodomy in a case filed in Davis County on June 30.

According to charging documents, he was last seen in Utah by a neighbor who reported seeing Law loading a laundry basket full of clothes into his vehicle. Bountiful Police told the KSL Investigators Law was known to be in the Sacramento, California area on Wednesday, June 12.

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There have been no updates on his location since.

More missing offenders

KSL’s investigation into Law revealed a long list of other sex offenders whose location is “unknown” on the Utah’s sex offender registry. As of Wednesday morning, 195 offenders were listed with an unknown location or blank address.

Under Utah code 77-41-105 anyone convicted of a qualifying sex offense in Utah is required by law to provide certain information, including the address of their primary and/or secondary residences, to a police department or other registering entity. That information is required to be updated every 6 months. Failing to register or providing false or incomplete information to the registry is a crime.

Of the 9,590 people listed Wednesday morning on the registry, 451 were flagged as “non-compliant”.

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Slipping through the system

KSL’s analysis of the registry found examples of offenders who’ve been slipping through the system, sometimes on repeat.

People like 63-year-old Jerry Serfoss who has pleaded guilty to failing to register as a sex offender at least five times since 2011. In 2021, his guilty plea earned him a sentence of probation. He’s now non-compliant once again, location: unknown.

Willy Brandt, 33, pleaded guilty to sexual battery and lewdness in May of 2023. He was also sentenced to probation and now, just two months later, his location is also unknown.

In July 2021, 36-year-old Roberto Navarro was sentenced to spend one year in jail after he pleaded guilty to aggravated sexual abuse of a child. Navarro was ordered to self-report to jail the following October. He never did. A warrant has been out for his arrest ever since.

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New criminal charges

Of the 195 sex offenders whose location is listed as unknown, 42 have new criminal charges filed against them.

34-year-old David Vargas, a convicted sex offender whose original conviction happened in California, was not in compliance with Utah’s sex offender registry when police say he tried to kidnap two girls in Sandy last summer. A warrant is out for his arrest, and he’s so far failed to appear in court to face two charges of first-degree felony attempted child kidnapping.

39-year-old Glendell Clark’s lifetime sex-offender registry requirement comes from a rape conviction in Louisiana in 2004. In May 2023, he was charged in Utah with two counts of aggravated sexual abuse of a child. A warrant is out for his arrest.

Wanted on warrants

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Navarro, Vargas and Clark are just three of 101 unaccounted for sex offenders with active warrants. Christopher Law also has a warrant out.

“We do feel he’s a danger to the community and we need assistance in locating and arresting him to bring him into custody,” said Bountiful Police Assistant Chief Dave Edwards in an interview with the KSL Investigators about Law last week. “Give us a location or information so we can locate him and get him into custody before any other crimes are committed.”

Police believe Utah child sex offender facing new charges has fled to California

Tracking them down

Utah’s Department of Corrections maintains the sex offender registry and is tasked with tracking offenders who are under the supervision of Adult Probation & Parole. A corrections spokesperson told KSL job of keeping track of the rest of the offenders who are not under AP&P supervision is up to the local law enforcement agencies where each offender lives.

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Members of the public with information about non-compliant and wanted sex offenders can report tips online through the registry website.

Anyone with information about Christopher Law’s whereabouts is asked to call Bountiful Police at 801-298-6000.

This report is part of a series examining how apparent gaps at every level of Utah’s criminal justice system fail to protect Utahns.

If you have experienced sexual violence, you can access help and resources by calling Utah’s 24-hour Sexual Violence Helpline at 1-888-421-1100. You can also call the National Sexual Assault Hotline at 1-800-656-4673 for free, confidential counseling.

Have you experienced something you think just isn’t right? The KSL Investigators want to help. Submit your tip at investigates@ksl.com or 385-707-6153 so we can get working for you.

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Utah

Former Utah quarterback Brandon Rose transfers to UMass

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Former Utah quarterback Brandon Rose transfers to UMass


Former Utah quarterback Brandon Rose has transferred to UMass, marking a fresh chapter in his collegiate career. The 6-foot-2, 210-pound signal-caller was among a handful of Utah quarterbacks to leave the program during the latest transfer cycle, seeking new opportunities to showcase his talents.

Rose’s time at Utah was marked by development and perseverance, highlighted by moments of promise before injury setbacks. In the 2024 season, Rose saw action in three games, starting one. In his first collegiate start against BYU, he displayed his dual-threat abilities, throwing for 112 yards and two touchdowns while adding 55 rushing yards. Unfortunately, a season-ending injury in that game cut short his promising campaign. Earlier in the season, Rose made his collegiate debut in Utah’s season-opening win over Southern Utah and later completed seven passes for 45 yards in a second-half appearance at Houston. After redshirting in 2022 and not seeing the field in 2023, Rose’s eventual move to UMass offers a chance for a new beginning.

Rose entered college with a strong resume from Murrieta Valley High School in California. Rated as a three-star pro-style quarterback, he amassed 7,521 career passing yards and 74 touchdowns. As a senior, he led his team to a Southwestern League championship, earning league MVP honors. That year, he recorded 3,002 passing yards, 33 touchdowns, and 236 rushing yards. Despite a shortened junior season, he threw for 1,415 yards and 11 touchdowns while completing 70% of his passes. His sophomore year was equally impressive, with 3,087 passing yards, 30 touchdowns, and 395 rushing yards.

UMass provides Rose with a platform to compete and potentially secure the starting quarterback role. Known for his accuracy and mobility, he brings valuable experience and a hunger to prove himself at the collegiate level. With a history of overcoming challenges, Rose’s transfer to UMass signals a promising opportunity for both him and the Minutemen.

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Meet Derek Brown, Utah's newly elected attorney general

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Meet Derek Brown, Utah's newly elected attorney general


SALT LAKE CITY — After taking the official oath of office on Wednesday, Derek Brown has become Utah’s newest attorney general.

Now that he’s in office, what’s next? He joined Inside Sources to talk more about his priorities for office.

Below is a partial transcript of this interview as well as the full podcast.


KSL NewsRadio modified this interview for brevity and clarity.

HOST TAYLOR MORGAN: What are your priorities as you take office?

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GUEST DEREK BROWN: I think the key to that is transparency. When I served in the House of Representatives, I learned that people appreciate when you are open and you make it clear to them what you’re doing. And as people understand what we’re doing in the Attorney General’s Office, we’ll see successes, there will be an increase in trust … That’s just the natural outgrowth of transparency, and I’m going to be doing a number of things proactively so that we build that feeling of not just transparency but [also] trust.

MORGAN: My understanding is that you and your family have put your assets into a blind trust … and you have officially stepped down from any non-profit boards. Is that correct?

BROWN: That’s correct… I just feel like it makes sense, in light of this position, to just eliminate any potential conflicts of interest in advance. I’m a little sad to do it because these are great people. I love being there, making a difference. But at the same time, I feel like we’ve got those organizations onto a good footing.

People make Utah great, not government, says Gov. Cox at inauguration

MORGAN: [How] would you explain your role to listeners? What does the Utah attorney general do primarily?

BROWN: We have 280 attorneys, and they provide legal counsel for all the boards, commissions, and agencies of the state. Everything from the University of Utah to UDOT to DMV… So there’s literally 280 attorneys that do every conceivable area of the law… It is the largest law firm in the state of Utah, so my job is to make sure it’s also the best, most efficient, most well-funded, and well-respected law firm in the state of Utah.

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Listen to the podcast below for the entire interview.

 

We want to hear from you.

Have a story idea or tip? Send it to the KSL NewsRadio team here.



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RECAP: Panthers 4, Utah Hockey Club 1 | Florida Panthers

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RECAP: Panthers 4, Utah Hockey Club 1 | Florida Panthers


“Sometimes they go in, and sometimes not,” Boqvist said. “I feel like our line played pretty well. We’re working hard and winning a lot of pucks down low, trying to play with speed. When we have time and space to do stuff, we will.”

From there, penalties proved costly for the Panthers.

After coming up short on their first two trips to the power play in the period, the third time was the charm for Utah as Logan Cooley lit the lamp to cut Florida’s lead to 2-1 at 13:41.

Stomping out any would-be comeback for Utah, Boqvist regained the two-goal cushion for the Panthers when he cashed in on the empty net from deep in his own zone to make it 3-1 at 17:59.

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At 19:38, Eetu Luostarinen tacked on another empty-netter to make it 4-1.

Finishing strong, the Panthers led 12-3 in scoring chances at 5-on-5 in the third period.

“I liked the bench,” Maurice said. “I liked the mood of it. They’re pulling for each other, supporting each other, battling and grinding. Understanding we come into this building, these teams come wired for us and are ready. Get out of the first period even. We’re good on the road like that. Then I thought we built. Halfway through the first period we got our game going.”

THEY SAID IT

“He’s earned it. We’ve used him at left and right wing, and he’s played center for us. He’s played with different people. He’s a really competitive guy.” – Paul Maurice on Jesper Boqvist

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“Speed, skill, hard work. He works really hard, but he also has that ability to take over games with his speed and skill. He has a great shot. We’ve seen that all year in practices and games. He’s fun to watch. He’s one of those players where it’s just a matter of time until he breaks out, and he’s breaking out right now. It’s been fun to watch.” – Aleksander Barkov on Jesper Boqvist

“He’s so good, right? It’s so fun to watch. Playing against him for a couple years, it’s not easy.” – Jesper Boqvist on Sergei Bobrovsky

CATS STATS

– Carter Verhaeghe extended his point streak to three games.

– The Panthers are 7-for-8 on the penalty kill over their last two games.

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– The Panthers have four players with at least 30 points this season.

– Sergei Bobrovsky is the third goaltender to earn a win against 33 NHL franchises.

– Sam Bennett won a team-high nine faceoffs.

– Matthew Tkachuk and Jesper Boqvist each recorded five hits.

– The Panthers held Utah to just eight shot attempts at 5-on-5 in the third period.

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WHAT’S NEXT?

Grab your popcorn.

Meeting for the third time this season, the Panthers will try to improve to 3-0-0 against the Boston Bruins when the two rivals clash at Amerant Bank Arena on Saturday at 1 p.m. ET.

For tickets, click HERE.

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