Trial Begins in Coconino County Superior Court for Airman Accused of Murdering Mennonite Woman Crime and Courts

Mark Gooch, 22, is waiting in Coconino County Superior Court for his defense attorney to deliver his opening argument in his murder trial for the death of Sasha Krause, 27, Friday morning.

Ammon Barker, Assistant District Attorney for Coconino County, will deliver the prosecutor’s opening statement in the murder trial of Mark Gooch, 22, on the death of Sasha Krause, 27, in the Coconino County Superior Court on Friday morning.

BRADY WHEELER Sun Staff Reporter

Sasha Krause was found face down in the ashes near Sunset Crater National Monument outside of Flagstaff. Her hands were tied with patterned tape and a .22 caliber bullet had been shot in the back of her head.

When the opening arguments began Friday in Coconino County Superior Court, attorneys say these details will be important during the three-week trial in determining the guilt of their alleged murderer.

Krause disappeared from her Mennonite community outside of Farmington, New Mexico on January 18, 2020. Her body was found hundreds of miles away by a camper searching for firewood more than a month later.

The prosecution has brought a largely cumbersome case against the 22-year-old US Air Force aviator, Mark Gooch, which links him to the crime through cell phone records, annual financial statements and surveillance material.

Gooch is accused of kidnapping Krause from the community before he murdered her and dumped her body in a forest clearing.

One point of contention between the two sides is the weapon used to fire the bullet into the back of the victim’s head.

Prosecutors allege forensic evidence is conclusive that the bullet was shot from a rifle that Gooch owned. However, the defense said they would use expert reports to prove that the gun markings printed on the bullet could not be linked with certainty to the defendant’s firearm.