She Died Locked in a Burning Storage Unit With Her Dog — and Video Captured Argument with Boyfriend By KC Baker 13

A Utah man who is suspected by police of locking his girlfriend and her dog inside a burning storage unit in 2023 has now been charged with her murder, authorities say.

On Feb. 18, 2023, Morgan Kay Harris, 27, and her dog, Huck, were found dead in a CubeSmart Self Storage unit in Murray after a strip of units erupted in flames, according to authorities.

Authorities at the time alleged that her boyfriend, Alexander Paul Wardell, then 30, locked them inside, trapping them when a fire broke out, according to the probable cause declaration obtained by PEOPLE.

Wardell was arrested and booked into Salt Lake County Jail on suspicion of kidnapping and negligent homicide, KSL.com reported.

However, after a lengthy investigation, in May 2024, the Salt Lake County District Attorney’s Office announced that no charges were to be filed against Wardell, given “the current evidence” at the time, Gill said, KUTV reports.

Calling the incident tragic, Gill said, “This office turned every stone to make sure Ms. Harris’s memory was served with our best effort.”

Angered by the DA’s decision, Harris’s mother, Laurice Williamson, asked the Attorney General’s Office to review the case, KUTV reports. On Thursday, Aug. 28, the Utah Attorney General’s Office charged Wardell in connection with Harris’s death.

He is charged with felony murder-domestic violence, kidnapping-domestic violence, aggravated animal cruelty and other crimes, according to charging documents obtained by PEOPLE.

When Gill announced at a press conference that no charges would be filed against Wardell, he said that his office’s investigation found that it was “not likely” that Wardell had set the fire, KSL reports.

According to the charging documents, just before Wardell allegedly locked Harris and the dog in the unit, surveillance video showed the two arguing, according to the declaration of probable cause.

Wardell told police that when he left, there was no candle or any other fire source burning, the declaration says.

According to the declaration, the fire originated underneath and to the left of Harris, who was unconscious and sitting in a folding plastic lawn chair with metal supports.

As she sat unconscious, her buttocks and left side caught on fire, according to the probable cause declaration, which noted that a conscious person would have tried to “evade the pain of fire,” which she did not do.

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“After some time,” it continues, she regained consciousness and stood up in the unit and breathed in the fiery hot air, which burned her upper airway and larynx, it says.

As flames engulfed the unit, Harris went over to her dog and lay on the ground trying desperately to breathe the air from underneath the unit door, the declaration says.

She was found dead on the ground about a foot from the door of smoke inhalation and thermal injuries.

As part of the Attorney General’s investigation, a search warrant was executed to search a duffle bag belonging to Wardell, the charging documents state.

“In it, investigators found an extra-large blue button-down long-sleeve shirt wadded up in the center of other XL clothing,” it alleges. 

“Blood stains and burn marks appeared to be on the shirt. A rapid DNA test revealed the tested red brown stains to be blood and the DNA in the blood matched (Harris’s) DNA,” it alleges.

According to the charging documents, “a burnt cardboard box was located near where (Harris’s) chair had been. Inside the box was an intact candlestick. A lighter was found on (Harris’s) body.”

The DA’s office did not immediately respond to PEOPLE’s request for comment.

On Thursday, Aug. 28, Gill said he stands by his team’s decision to not file charges based on the evidence they had at that time, KSL reports.

It is unclear whether Wardell has retained an attorney who can speak on his behalf.

If you are experiencing domestic violence, call the National Domestic Violence Hotline at 1-800-799-7233, or go to thehotline.org. All calls are toll-free and confidential. The hotline is available 24/7 in more than 170 languages.