CEDAR CITY – One of the two suspects wanted in connection with a kidnapping in Centerville Tuesday surrendered himself to authorities Saturday morning in Wyoming.
According to a Facebook post from Sublette County Sheriff’s Office, Flint Wayne Harrison, 51, turned himself in at Sublette County Sheriff’s Office in Pinedale, Wyoming, at approximately 1:45 a.m. on warrants issued from Centerville Police Department.
Investigators are still looking for the second suspect, Harrison’s 22-year-old son, Dereck James Harrison.
The no-bail arrest warrant issued for the Harrisons this week is based on the district judge’s finding that probable cause exists to arrest the men on five counts each of aggravated kidnapping, a first-degree felony.
Flint and Dereck Harrison are wanted for allegedly luring a mother and her four teenage daughters into a Centerville home, where the men restrained them with zip ties and duct tape. The family was held at gunpoint and beaten with a baseball bat, police said. The woman’s daughters range in ages from 13 to 18.
Both men are also facing charges of aggravated assault, a third-degree felony; possession of a firearm by a restricted person, a third-degree felony; possession of a controlled substance, a class A misdemeanor; possession of drug paraphernalia, a class B misdemeanor; and three counts of damaging a communication device, a class B misdemeanor.
Read more about allegations against the Harrisons: Suspects wanted for allegedly kidnapping, beating a mother and her 4 daughters may have family in Cedar City
At the time of the sheriff’s post seven hours ago, police said they still believed Dereck Harrison to be in the forest near the Half Moon Lake area of Sublette County. Family members had previously told police the men may be “hiding in the mountains because they have gear to go deep and hide.”
The Sheriff’s Office has warned citizens to avoid the Half Moon Lake area until further notice.
According to the sheriff’s post, while no threats have been made to anyone but law enforcement, residents in the Pinedale area of Wyoming are being asked to remain in their homes except for emergency purposes and to “consider sheltering in place until the suspect is apprehended.”
Cedar City connection
Authorities issued a bulletin Wednesday for law enforcement to be on the lookout for both Flint and Dereck Harrison. The bulletin warned that the men had family ties in the Cedar City area.
In an interview with Cedar City News Friday, Centerville Police Lt. Von Steenblik confirmed the men had family living in Cedar City.
MaryAnn Dalrymple Harrison, 45, the ex-wife of Flint Harrison, 51, and mother of 22-year-old Derek James (DJ) Harrison lives in the Blackrock/Cove area in Cedar City on Beacon Drive located off State Route 56, Steenblik said. Court records show the two were divorced in 2003.
Steenblik told Cedar City News MaryAnn Harrison is currently visiting northern Utah and is not at her residence.
“We have been watching the family closely to make sure there are no keys exchanged and that they are not in contact with the suspects,” Steenblik said.
However, Steenblik admitted the men do not need permission or someone to supply keys, or even be at the home, in order for them to help themselves to the residence.
“No they don’t need keys or permission or even someone to be there,” Steenblik said. “They are the kind of the men who would just find a way in if that’s what they wanted to do.”
Officers said they have intercepted texts from Dereck Harrison’s relatives saying they will help him and his father evade police and hide them from authorities. At least one of these came from MaryAnn Harrison.
According to Fox 13, MaryAnn Harrison sent the text message in what she described as a state of desperation to her son, Dereck, telling him she would hide him.
“I want my son in front of me,” she said. “I would say anything in the world to get him in front of me.”
Derek never received the text. He had left his phone at the scene of the crime. Still, Police say, Harrison could face obstruction of justice charges.
Centerville police have remained in close contact with Cedar City authorities throughout the week, Steenblik said.
Law enforcement sources said it was reported Dereck Harrison had tried to rent an apartment in Cedar City Monday the day before the incident in Centerville but did not have a social security card to do so.
Enoch City Police Chief Jackson Ames confirmed Friday he had been in contact with Centerville police officers after it was learned MaryAnn Harrison, who once listed her residence on Wagon Wheel Drive in Enoch, no longer lived there.
“We found out it was an old residence that was still listed as hers but an Iron County Sheriff’s deputy told us she had since moved and lived off state Route 56.”
MaryAnn Harrison has a long history of run-ins with the law herself, Steenblik said. Criminal charges filed against her date back to 2001 and are as recent as 2010.
Court records show MaryAnn Harrison’s charges in Utah range from misdemeanors to multiple felonies including forgery, possession of drugs and unlawful use of a credit card.
News sources have stated MaryAnn Harrison reports she has been clean from methamphetamines for four years. Court records are consistent with this statement, as she has not had any new charges since 2011 when she was paroled from the Utah State Prison after years of being in trouble.
Flint Harrison priors
According to court records, Flint Harrison was charged in 1998 with sexually assaulting a 17-year-old girl at a party. He was convicted and appealed. The Utah Supreme Court overturned the conviction in 2001 and remitted the case back to the trial court. Flint Harrison was then found guilty of two counts of attempted forcible sexual abuse, a third-degree felony, on re-trial in 2001.
The district judge sentenced Flint Harrison to two five-year prison sentences on the sexual abuse counts. Both sentences were suspended subject to probation conditions, with a nine-month jail sentence served. He was also placed on the Utah Sex Offender Registry for 10 years.
Violation of any law is a violation of the probation conditions and may serve to reinstate the suspended prison sentences.
Tip Line
Centerville Police have set up a tip line for this incident: 801-335-8844. The public has been asked to call this number or their local police if they happen to come upon these suspects.
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Cedar City News | CedarCityUtah.com is a counterpart to St. George News | StGeorgeNews.com.
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What a charming family! Too bad the old “wanted dead or alive” laws are now prohibited.
well, we got plenty of details here, probably too much. i’d like to know the motive behind the abductions, was anyone raped?, how badly were people beaten? was the whole thing drug related? a whole family clan of scum bags sure, but we need to know the whole story…
Ok here’s the whole story. .it was noon and then later on it started raining. and somebody ordered pizza and the movie was almost over when out of nowhere a lizard appeared on the porch. hooba dooba was having a sale on toilet paper and toothpaste just as a sea turtle walked up on the beach.
the minions were out working on the banana boat listening to Trump as the price of wine dropped by 12.5 % due to a labor dispute in Oobalanga was being conducted. and the power came back on and the Muppets were on.and the show was interrupted to show a news breaking article. about someone that did sumptin somewhere to somebody someplace for some reason and. …well now it’s on St George news. .
I hope that helped. ..