A 43-year-old mother from Utah was found beaten to death one day after seeking a divorce from her husband and two months after her cosmetics business burned down. Linda Paola Zerpa Lara, originally from Venezuela, was found dead on Friday evening near a 55-year-old man at her home in Herriman, near Salt Lake City.
Although the man she was with was not named, the 43-year-old woman had planned to meet with her estranged husband and the father of her 10-year-old child on Friday afternoon, according to the woman's relatives. Police said Zerpa Lara was killed by a blunt object, while the man died from self-inflicted injuries.
Local media reported that the 43-year-old was not living with her estranged husband, with whom she seemed to have a good relationship for the sake of their child, who was not home at the time of the murder. Zerpa Lara, who emigrated to Utah from Venezuela eight years ago, had opened her spa business in 2022, but it went bankrupt two months ago, and she had also founded a cancer support organization. Her friends urged women suffering from domestic violence to seek help: "Start talking about it. With your friends, with your families. Don't stay silent. Seek help."