St. George man arrested after allegedly stealing $44,700 worth of jewelry

ST. GEORGE – A 25-year-old St. George man was arrested Saturday for allegedly stealing $44,700 worth of jewelry from a residence in St. George and then hocking the stolen jewelry at a pawn shop in Las Vegas.

On Saturday morning, officers located Austin Reid Taylor who is a suspect in an open investigation involving a residential burglary, according to a probable cause statement written by St. George Police Officer Cody Adams in support of the arrest.

Austin Reid Taylor, of St. George, Utah, booking photo posted April 18, 2015 | Photo courtesy of the Washington County Sheriff’s Office, St. George News
Austin Reid Taylor, of St. George, Utah, booking photo posted April 18, 2015 | Photo courtesy of the Washington County Sheriff’s Office, St. George News

Taylor is alleged to have been involved in a residential burglary reported April 9, in which $44,700 worth of jewelry was stolen from a woman’s residence in St. George.

The woman reported seeing photos of Taylor pawning the jewelry at a pawn shop in Las Vegas, according to the statement of probable cause. When the woman confronted Taylor, he allegedly admitted to taking her jewelry and then pawning it.

When officers interviewed Taylor about the incident, he admitted to taking some of the jewelry but said he did not take all of it, the statement said. However, he said he knew the person or persons who did take the rest of the jewelry but would not provide their information to police.

During the interview, Adams said in the statement, Taylor admitted to pawning the jewelry in Las Vegas.

Taylor was arrested and booked into the Washington County Purgatory Correctional Facility. He was charged with a second-degree felony for theft.

Fifth District Judge Eric A. Ludlow ordered Taylor’s bail amount set at $10,000 during his initial court appearance Monday.

Taylor was found indigent by the court and will be represented by court-appointed attorney Douglas Terry. He is scheduled to make his next court appearance on April 27.

Persons arrested or charged are presumed innocent until found guilty in a court of law or as otherwise decided by a trier-of-fact.

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