ST. GEORGE — Less than a week after being released from jail, a St. George man is in jail again, this time as a result of allegedly entering an RV without consent as well as other charges.

Robby Doyle Arnold, 55, of St. George was arrested Sunday after police responded to a 911 call reporting a suspicious man who was in their recreational vehicle at a Bluff Street hotel.

According to charging documents filed in the court, officers spoke to the caller who said she entered her RV carrying her young child and once inside, noticed a bag that did not belong there. 

A man came out of the back of the RV saying, “That’s mine,” which is when the caller’s partner entered the RV and started to yell at the suspect to get out of the vehicle and kept the bag while the suspect exited the recreational vehicle. 

The suspect was described as 5-foot-10 and “very skinny,” covered in tattoos with sunken cheeks, scraggly hair and wearing black clothing, the report states. 

Officers also learned the suspect, later identified as Arnold, ran behind an athletic club on Bluff Street after exiting the RV. Officers searched the bag for any identifying documentation and came upon paperwork with the name of Robby Arnold on the documents. 

Meanwhile, officers scouring the area located a man who matched the description provided by the caller near a dumpster by the old K-Mart building. 

Officers recovered a baggie containing suspected methamphetamine while searching Arnold, and the report also states he later was transported to Purgatory Correctional Facility and booked into jail initially for third-degree felony vehicle burglary, along with two felony drug charges and one misdemeanor paraphernalia charge. 

The officer also noted that a background check revealed multiple convictions for vehicle burglary, theft and drug possession. 

The charges were submitted to the Washington County Attorney’s Office for review, and on Monday, the burglary of a vehicle charge was enhanced to second-degree felony burglary of a dwelling, while the other three charges remained unchanged during filing.  

One of the cases uncovered during a review of the suspect’s criminal history had several similarities to the incident reported over the weekend.

In that case filed in July 2020, a woman called emergency dispatch reporting that her car was broken into shortly before noon while it was parked at the motel off of North 1000 East in St. George. 

Officers arrived and spoke to the reporting party who said a suspect had broken into their car and there was property missing. The caller also told officers the suspect was still on the premises, and pointed the man out to police. 

When officers approached, they immediately recognized the suspect as Arnold, whom officers had come into contact with “many times” in the past, the report states. 

While speaking to police, the suspect told officers “he hadn’t done anything,” even after officers advised him of the video, and during a search of the suspect’s pockets, officers found a pay stub under the name of the vehicle owner, and also recovered the owner’s passport during a search of the suspect’s belongings. 

The suspect was arrested and later charged with felony theft, as well possession of another’s identifying documents and vehicle burglary. The suspect’s criminal history was mentioned in court documents relating to this case as well, which is why the theft charge was enhanced to a felony. 

Less than one month later, Arnold faced more charges including felony aggravated assault and burglary after officers responded to a local car dealership on St. George Boulevard in August of that same year on a robbery in progress call.   

In that case, the owner of the dealership arrived at the business to find a man, later identified as Arnold, reportedly going through one of the cars on the lot, and then noticed that several other vehicles appeared to have been broken into.

When the owner yelled for the suspect to leave the property, court documents state that Arnold reportedly drew a knife and pointed it at the owner, who ran into the office and called police. 

The suspect was located shortly thereafter, and during a search officers found the knife, along with property reportedly taken from one of the car dealership offices. He was arrested and charged with felony aggravated assault and burglary, along with misdemeanor vehicle burglary. He later pleaded no contest to the assault charge, while the felony burglary charge was dismissed.  

 Both cases filed in 2020 resulted in all jail and prison terms being suspended, and instead, Arnold was placed on 36-months probation. Both cases are still open following a series of probation violations and warrants that have been issued for his arrest.  

Last week, the suspect appeared in court on the most recent warrants and he was released on Sept. 28. Four days later he would reportedly be found in the RV by a woman and her young child. 

Following the arrest on Sunday, the suspect remains in jail and is being held without bail. He is scheduled to make an initial appearance in 5th District Court on Oct. 12.   

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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