SANPETE COUNTY – Authorities are reporting they have captured the elusive “mountain man” responsible for a series of cabin burglaries in southwest Utah.
The Iron County Sheriff’s Office confirmed that Troy James Knapp, 45, was taken into custody Tuesday morning at 10 a.m. near Ferron Reservoir in Sanpete County by officers from Emery, Sanpete and Sevier counties.
Knapp is a survivalist who is believed to have broken into dozens of cabins in southern and central Utah for at least seven years. He faces a total of 18 charges in Iron, Kane and Garfield counties.
In December 2011 the Iron County Sheriff’s Office was able to obtain surveillance footage and fingerprints from burglarized cabins that eventually helped lead to the mountain man’s identification by authorities.
The last reported sighting of Knapp was in Sevier County October 2012. Sevier County Sheriff deputies were able to come across one of Knapp’s suspected wilderness hideouts, though he managed to evade capture at the time.
While on the loose he was considered armed and dangerous by law agencies. He also allegedly left messages inside a burglarized cabin at one point threatening a county sheriff.
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