Men sentenced in murder of Kearns woman found on side of road

Two men convicted in the 2021 murder of a Kearns woman whose body was found wrapped in plastic bags on the side of a road have been sentenced.

Orlando Tobar and Jorge Rafael Medina-Reyes both received their sentences Wednesday in Third District Court for their involvement in the death of Nicole Solario-Romero .

Tobar was sentenced to 30 years-to-life, while Medina-Reyes will serve 15 years-to-life in prison.

Solario-Romero was kidnapped from her Kearns home in February 2021 and brought by knifepoint to another residence where she was shot in the head by Medina-Reyes, and then a second time by Tobar.

Tobar and another defendant, Cristian Morales, then took Solario-Romero's body, which had been wrapped in plastic bags, to Tooele County where they dumped it on the side of a road.

Solario-Romero's body was discovered a month after she was kidnapped.

The judge sentenced Tobar to serve 15 years-to-life on one count of first-degree felony murder, which will be served consecutively with a 15 years-to-life sentence for one count of first-degree aggravated kidnapping.

Medina-Reyes was sentenced similarly to Tobar, although his sentences will be served concurrently instead of consecutively.

“The pernicious crimes committed by the co-defendants in this case are some of the worst I have seen in my 30 years as a prosecutor," said Salt Lake County District Attorney Sim Gill. "These sentences send a strong message that violence will not be tolerated in our community.”

Three others implicated in Solario-Romero's death still face prosecution in the murder.

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