Two high school students, Evan Clark and Pandora Kjolsrud, were fatally shot while camping on Mount Ord on May 25. The motive remains unknown. The suspect, Thomas Brown, pleaded not guilty at Friday's Maricopa Superior Court hearing.
Brown, a retired military member from Minnesota who resides in Chandler, is being charged with two counts of first-degree murder. His bail is set at $2 million cash.
Captain David Lee of the Maricopa County Sheriff's Office Major Crimes Division said, “They were, as far as we know, complete strangers,” during a MCSO news conference on Oct. 3.
The Gila County Sheriff's Office received a tip for an overdue party at Mount Ord on May 26. Court documents state that when arriving at the last known location of the victims, a GCSO sergeant found a 1998 Mercedes-Benz with blood on the bumper, which was later identified as Clark’s car. Inside was a bloody pillowcase.
A pair of gloves covered in blood was later found while detectives were processing the exterior of the car. The blood matched the DNA of Kjolsrud, and a swab collected from inside the gloves matched Brown’s DNA.
Deputies found drag marks from the campsite to a fence line. Ten to twenty feet past the fence, they found the two victims, and they were pronounced dead.
A tip from a group of campers described encountering a man whose description matched that of Brown, acting strangely. Detectives also received a tip from Thomas Brown, stating he was camping on May 25 and had personal drone footage he would like to share.
Brown reposted a news article on May 29 about the teens’ death to his Facebook page and wrote, “Terrible news, especially with the last days of school just prior."
During Brown’s interview, he said he encountered a young male and female driving a silver SUV with historic plates. He denied having any physical contact with the pair.
Brown recounted that he parked at a turnout, then hiked back up to the campsite, where he encountered the victims. He rummaged through a tote bag and picked up an air rifle that was left near the campsite, but put the items back.
Brown had asked if there would be any reason his DNA would be on any of the victims. Detectives asked if his DNA would be inside the vehicle, which he denied, but the DNA tests say otherwise.
An Army spokesperson confirmed Brown served in the Minnesota and Arizona National Guard and “was a Staff Sergeant when he left the Army National Guard” in Dec. 2022.
Detectives set out to retrace Brown’s hike up the campsite on Sept. 4, where items associated with the victims were found.
Brown's trial is set to begin June 9.