ST. GEORGE — A suspect caught allegedly breaking into a vehicle was held at gunpoint Tuesday morning, while the person holding the gun called the police.
Shortly before 6 a.m. on Tuesday, officers were dispatched to a vehicle burglary reported in the area of South 1500 East, an industrial area off of South River Road. According to the 911 caller, they were holding the suspect at gunpoint “waiting for officers to get there,” according to the probable cause statement filed in support of the arrest.
The caller told emergency dispatch that they had observed the suspect breaking into one of their trucks.
Officers arrived and handcuffed the suspect, later identified as 24-year-old Jacob Darwin Jensen of St. George. During a search of the suspect prior to transport officers recovered multiple items, including a Bluetooth speaker, two wallets belonging to other individuals, as well as knives, five credit cards and a Utah driver’s license also belonging to someone else.
The report also states other items allegedly taken from the vehicles were also recovered and documented by officers processing the scene.
During questioning, officers asked the suspect what he was doing with the stolen items and where he got them. Jensen allegedly told the officers he had taken the items from a white truck parked in the parking lot.
Jensen also admitted to knowing there would be valuable items in the truck, according to police, and said that one of his friends told him where to find the truck, though he refused to provide the name of the friend. He also told officers he was “having a hard time financially,” the officer noted, and said he knew there would be money in the truck, which is why he broke into it.
He went on to explain that he did not attempt to break into any other vehicles and said he specifically targeted that particular truck, according to the report.
The suspect was then transported to the jail in Washington County where he was booked on five third-degree felony counts of acquiring a financial card without consent, along with one misdemeanor count each of possession of another’s identification document and vehicle burglary.
He was also arrested on three active warrants issued out of Washington City Justice Court, one of which was issued the month before in connection with an arrest in Washington City on March 22, when Jensen was detained during a traffic stop for a theft reported the week before.
During the stop, the suspect allegedly admitted to taking money from a family member’s purse, and he was arrested for misdemeanor theft and possession of a controlled substance after officers found a fentanyl pill on the suspect prior to transport.
Another warrant was issued March 9 after the defendant failed to appear in court on a 2018 misdemeanor drug case. He was ordered to appear for failing to complete the requirements relating to his bench probation.
A review of court records indicate the defendant had no prior felony charges until the arrest Tuesday.
The suspect was also booked on a third warrant issued March 16 on another misdemeanor drug case after the suspect failed to comply with the terms of his probation.
Ed. Note: A new Utah law generally prohibits the release of arrest booking photos until after a conviction is obtained.
This report is based on statements from court records, police or other responders and may not contain the full scope of findings. 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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