Utah campus shooting victim had filed complaint

SALT LAKE CITY (AP) – The University of Utah police chief says a female student who was fatally shot on campus by a man she dated had filed a complaint against him earlier this month.

Chief Dale Brophy said Tuesday that Lauren McCluskey had filed a police report on Oct. 12 against Melvin Rowland.

Brophy said investigators had been working to build a case, but he declined to disclose details.

The victim’s mother, Jill McCluskey, says her daughter filed a harassment complaint after she broke up with Rowland.

Salt Lake City police say the 37-year-old Rowland killed himself overnight at a church after police tracked him down after the shooting.

Lauren McCluskey was a 21-year-old senior track athlete and communication major from Pullman, Washington. Her body was found in a car near a campus medical facility.

Jill McCluskey says in a statement that her daughter dated Rowland for about a month then ended the relationship on Oct. 9 when she learned he had lied about his age, name and criminal history.

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6:55: a.m.

University of Utah officials have identified a female student fatally shot on campus Monday night as a senior track athlete and communication major from Pullman, Washington.

Separate statements released by university President Ruth Watkins and Athletic Director Mark Harlan identified the victim as Lauren McCluskey and expressed sadness and shock over her killing.

Police said previously that Melvin Rowland, the man suspected of killing McCluskey and ex-boyfriend of hers, was found dead in an off-campus church early Tuesday.

Watkins said McCluskey was “a highly regard member of the university’s track and field team, and an outstanding scholar, a senior majoring in communication.”

The university canceled classes Tuesday and a campus vigil for McCluskey is scheduled at 5 p.m.