Man accused of killing Mackenzie Lueck was banned from university

The man charged in the murder of University of Utah student Mackenzie Lueck was banned seven years ago from the Utah State University campus, where he was once a student, new documents reveal.

Ayoola A. Ajayi, now 31, was arrested on suspicion of having stolen an iPad, a misdemeanor, during his time at the school, university police reports indicate. His student visa had expired as well — and he had stopped attending classes there a year earlier. But he continued to sleep on residence hall couches and keep his belongings in a janitor’s closet, police and university documents reveal.

He was barred from campus in August 2012, and police notified the Nigerian consulate of his arrest.

Jail documents indicate that Ajayi is now a US citizen, and at the time of his 2012 arrest, his visa was expired, but he had married a woman in Texas.

They divorced this past January, records indicate.

Once Ajayi resolved his immigration status in 2015, he was allowed to re-enroll in classes, university spokesman Tom Vitale said.

Ajayi was charged Friday with aggravated murder, aggravated kidnapping, desecration of a body and obstruction of justice in connection with Lueck’s death. He’s accused of kidnapping and killing the sorority sister and burning her body.

Lueck met with Ajayi around 3 a.m. June 17 near a Salt Lake City park after her Lyft driver dropped her off, authorities have said. Phone records indicate that Ajayi was the last person to communicate with Lueck before she went missing — and both of their phones pinged in that area around that time, authorities said.

Police have not yet released information on a motive or how Lueck died. It also isn’t clear how the two knew each other.

Prosecutors said Tuesday that they’d been granted an extension on filing formal charges against Ajayi until next week. No attorney was listed for him.

Ajayi’s ex-wife, Tenisha Jenkins Ajayi, said early this week that her marriage with Ajayi fell apart after he became “aggressive and controlling” and threatened to kidnap and kill her.

Meanwhile, it emerged that back in 2014, a woman who formerly worked with Ajayi at a financial company filed a rape complaint with North Park police. No charges were filed in that case.

With Post wires

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