The last time the 16-year-old girl was seen was when she got into a car with a stranger. Shortly after the brutal rape and murder of 16-year-old Gabrielle “Britney” Ujlaky, the police identified the suspect. However, the murderer’s identity shocked the victim’s family and the community.
The Beautiful Teenager
Gabrielle ‘Britney’ Ujlaky was born on June 4, 2003, in Colorado Springs, Colorado, USA, in a close-knit family with parents and a younger brother James Ujlaky.
In August 2010, when Britney was 7 and James was 6, the family moved to Elko, Nevada, after her father got a job there. Living in an area known for its ranches and mining industry, Britney began learning horseback riding.
But cracks began to appear between her parents. Eventually, they decided to divorce. Britney lived with her father to take care of her horses.
At the age of 16, Britney was a beautiful, strong, and independent girl. She loved horseback riding, spending most of her free time at the ranch, riding, training, grooming, and feeding horses. Britney seemed happy with her life.
On Sunday, March 8, 2020, Britney went to band practice with her father. Britney’s father – Jim Ujlaky said she sent messages to friends and said that Bryce Dickey – one of her friends was coming to pick her up. Bryce was an 18-year-old boy Britney met at a local horse race.
When they returned home around 7:30 p.m., Jim didn’t see his daughter, although she was supposed to be home by then. He tried to contact her, but all calls went straight to voicemail.
Mysterious Disappearance
Jim hastily called his ex-wife Alisha, who informed him that neither of them had left together. Alisha tried to contact her daughter but with no success. James also didn’t hear anything from his sister. He called Bryce to ask if there was anything unusual when he picked up Britney.
Bryce said he had taken Britney to high school and the last time he saw Britney was when she got into a truck with a tall man with a “cowboy look.” According to Bryce, the man drove a worn-out green Ford F-150, resembling a 2000 model.
All night, there was no sign of Britney returning home, causing her family to worry immensely and decide to report to the police around 6 a.m. the next morning. One of Britney’s close friends said that recently she had been in touch with someone she referred to as “JT.”
Bryce recounted the story he had told Britney’s parents. The 18-year-old admitted to picking up Britney and then driving around until Bryce received a call from his dad asking him to come home. According to Bryce, the last time he saw Britney was when she got into a blue pickup truck with a stranger.
Checking Britney’s phone signals, the police knew that the 16-year-old girl was about 8km away from the high school.
The authorities conducted a large-scale search with community involvement. Along with that, family and friends formed search teams for Britney, printing about 500 flyers about her and posting them everywhere.
On March 10, Britney’s mother unexpectedly received a message from an unknown number.
The body next to the condom
Bryce Dickey – the friend who was with Britney before she disappeared – was asked if he could think of another location that no one had searched for, and the 18-year-old boy mentioned the area near the Spring Creek Mountains.
On March 10, 2020, Alisha – Britney’s mother suddenly received a text message from an unknown number claiming to be holding Britney and saying she was seriously ill. This person also demanded a ransom. According to police, Alisha did not immediately respond to the message. This made the anonymous texter very angry, texting back with threats that he would kill Britney if Alisha did not respond.
The next day, two local men passing through the Burner Basin area, about 24km from Spring Creek, discovered bloodstains on the dirt road leading to a blue tarp in the field. They quickly reported to the authorities.
When police arrived, they found the female body lying face down under a blue tarp. It appeared the victim had been sexually assaulted, with her pants and underwear pulled down to her ankles. There were stab wounds on the victim’s neck. A key and lanyard were found nearby with the name ‘Brittany’ on it.
In addition, in the bushes near the body, police also discovered a used condom, condom shell, and a headphone. All are immediately collected and sent for analysis.
Anonymous texter
Police continued to check Alisha’s phone to find the person behind the ransom messages. But it turned out to be just a spam phone number, making the search fruitless.
Autopsy results showed that Britney’s cause of death was strangulation and a stab wound in the neck that severed an artery. The killer raped a 16-year-old girl before strangling and stabbing her. Self-defense wounds were also found on the victim’s hands.
Police redirected the investigation to the cowboy-like boy Britney called “JT”. Friends said Britney contacted this person mainly through messaging applications.
Elko is an area with many farms, so the number of freelance workers from other places coming here to work is quite large, making investigation and search difficult.
Finally, a neighbor of the victim’s family told police that he knew a man known only as JT who owned a farm and drove a green F-F150 as described by Bryce Dickey.
Later, the police found out that there were two ranchers with the same name, but both of them had a solid alibi for not being in the area at the time Britney disappeared.
Britney’s mother provided police with information that several months earlier, her daughter had a crush on someone. He dresses like a cowboy and drives a nice car.
Mysterious car
However, he wants their relationship to progress quickly while Britney does not like this. Upset by being rejected, this guy broke up with Britney. However, the 16-year-old girl is still friends with his sister.
One night, Britney was driving with his sister and unfortunately got into a car accident. The man became angry and told Britney to kill herself and that he wished her dead, even hoping she was raped and murdered in the desert. Three months later, Britney passed away.
However, police later obtained surveillance camera footage showing that this person was working during the time Britney disappeared. Ultimately, his name was removed from the list of suspects.
When the clues dried up, the police returned to investigate Bryce Dickey – the friend who was with Britney before she disappeared. According to Bryce, the last time he saw Britney was when she got into a green Ford F-150 car with a tall stranger.
Authorities decided to search for clues through surveillance cameras of homes and businesses in the area in hopes of finding the green truck.
Finally, from the camera at a gas station opposite the high school, the police didn’t see any signs of the green Ford F-150, but they did spot Bryce’s navy blue Chevy truck appear, passing by the high school and continuing down the road toward Burner Basin, the area where Britney’s body was later found.
The story is full of doubts
Investigators have rearranged the timeline. Accordingly, at 3:30 p.m. on March 8, 2020, Britney was picked up by Bryce from the band’s practice session. They drove past the gas station around 4:00 p.m. Phone data also showed the two traveled together through the gas station and into Burner Basin.
Police began to suspect Bryce when they noticed inconsistencies in his testimony. Surveillance video showed the car traveling east, past the entrance to the high school parking lot, contradicting his statement. They also couldn’t find the tall, cowboy-looking man with the green pickup truck as Bryce testified. The investigation agency believes that Bryce falsified the entire story.
At the police station, Bryce was asked to share phone data and provide a DNA sample to prove he was not involved in the case as claimed.
Subsequent analysis results showed that Bryce and Britney’s DNA were both found on a used condom thrown away near the body. In addition, Bryce’s DNA also appeared under Britney’s fingernails and on her neck.
Police questioned Bryce again, asking if he and Britney had ever been intimate. Bryce affirmed that he had never had sex with Britney and only considered her as his sister.
But then, when the investigator informed him about the used condom and that his DNA was found on it and on the victim’s body, Bryce immediately changed his testimony.
Evidence in the bedroom
According to Bryce, Britney flirted with him. They kissed and had consensual sex on March 8, 2020, before she disappeared with a man in a cowboy hat he had never met. However, friends and relatives confirmed that Britney never had feelings for Bryce.
Detectives executed search warrants at Bryce’s residence and car. They found a pair of bloody boots in the bedroom closet. In addition, police also discovered a bloody knife believed to be the murder weapon and a bloody sweater in the toolbox on Bryce’s truck.
On March 19, 2020, 11 days after Britney was murdered, Bryce was arrested and charged with murder during a sexual assault or attempted sexual assault with a deadly weapon.
The truth about the close friend
According to the investigation, Britney met Bryce while attending a local horse racing competition. He is described as kind and helpful to others. Britney’s parents also love Bryce.
Relatives said Bryce was one of Britney’s closest friends. The young girl often calls Bryce her “brother”. Britney cares a lot about Bryce but has absolutely no romantic feelings.
In contrast to Britney, Bryce has been dating another girl for more than two years but still hopes for a romantic relationship with Britney. He even proposed to Britney in early 2020.
During his 2022 trial, Bryce pleaded not guilty to all charges. The defense attorney also made arguments affirming his client’s innocence.
However, in addition to the forensic evidence presented by the prosecution, Bryce’s ex-girlfriend also testified that Bryce had committed violent acts, strangling her at least four times.
Ultimately, after a nine-day trial, Bryce was convicted of first-degree murder and sexual assault.
This 21-year-old defendant received a life sentence but was paroled after 20 years for murder; Life in prison with the possibility of parole after 10 years for sexual assault and 20 years in prison for modifying a deadly weapon. Bryce’s total sentence is life in prison with the possibility of parole after serving 70 years.
Bryce never gave a reason why he killed Britney. It is believed that the motive may have stemmed from his anger at being rejected by the 16-year-old girl.
