ST. GEORGE — A Hurricane man is being held without bail for allegedly sending a series of threatening text messages last week that was accompanied by a photo of a man in uniform, authorities say.
The suspect, 47-year-old Jason Ryan Little, was arrested Monday evening after several agents with Adult Probation and Parole responded to the Little’s home in Hurricane regarding a report alleging that Little was impersonating a law enforcement officer.
According to the affidavit filed in support of the arrest, on the afternoon of Jan. 18, an adult Probation and Parole agent received a report that the suspect, who was on active probation at the time, had reached out to the complainant in regards to retrieving some personal property belonging to an inmate at the jail in Washington County.
The agent also learned the suspect had called the reporting party several times, followed by a series of text messages sent in short succession the complainant deemed were threatening and accompanied by a photo of “someone in a Washington County Deputy Uniform,” the agent noted.
When the agent reviewed the message thread, he saw the photo depicting a uniformed man agents recognized as Little, a former deputy who worked for the Washington County Sheriff’s Office years ago. The agent also noted Little was currently on supervised probation.
The photo in question depicted Little wearing “a tan Washington County Sheriff’s Office Uniform sitting in a white F-150 truck,” and according to the report, the Sheriff’s Office logo was clearly visible on the left sleeve of Little’s shirt.
The report also states the complainant, after sending the photo, received another text message from the suspect that read, “Please reach out to me so I don’t need to reach out in a professional manner.”
The caller also said they initially believed the calls and texts had come from someone working at the Sheriff’s Office, and it was only after the call to police they learned that Little no longer worked for the Sheriff’s Office.
A check of the cell phone number used to send the suspicious text messages came back to Little, and on Monday, three probation officers responded to the suspect’s residence located at an apartment complex in Hurricane to advise the suspect that he was being arrested for a probation violation.
When asked about the text messages, the report also states that Little told agents he had sent them in an effort to get his friend’s property back.
The agent went over the scenario by asking Little the following question: “If you sent a text asking for her property back, stated you did not want to have to handle it in a professional manner, and included a picture of yourself in uniform, what does that look like?”
Little responded by saying, “I know exactly what that looks like,” according to the report.
Little was arrested and transported to Purgatory Correctional Facility and booked into jail facing one third-degree felony count of possession of a dangerous weapon by a restricted person, along with the misdemeanor charge for impersonating an officer – charges that were filed by the Washington County Attorney’s Office the following day.
This was not the first time Little has faced charges for impersonating a police officer. A criminal background check revealed Little was convicted of the charge in a case filed in August 2019. The suspect pleaded no contest to the charge in June of the following year and he was fined $680 and placed on 12 months’ bench probation.
A review of court records also revealed that Little had an open case involving the assault of a peace officer filed in September 2022.
In that case, Little allegedly sent several text messages to an individual in which the suspect threatened to “end the life” of one of the school resource officers working in Washington County. The messages also included a photo of the officer, as well as photographs of the school where the officer worked and of the school resource officer’s residence. The suspect also reportedly sent photos of a 9 mm handgun in one of the messages.
In another message, the report states, the suspect claimed the officer had ruined his life and ended the message by the suspect saying “he could not wait to watch the officer take his last breath.”
Officers also learned Little had sent two messages to the officer on Facebook but reportedly deleted them before the officer had a chance to see them. Little was arrested and booked into jail facing one misdemeanor count of assault on a peace officer.
Days later, an individual called authorities reporting that his Springfield 9 mm handgun was missing. The gun had a unique laser and holster also missing from his vehicle. He said he was initially unaware the firearm was no longer in the car and said he discovered that his gun was missing after reading the news story involving the school resource officer.
One of the photos showed a black handgun with a clear view of the serial number later matched to the gun that was stolen. The firearm was recovered during a search of the suspect’s vehicle conducted just prior to Little’s arrest on Sept. 17, 2022.
Little was charged with a second-degree felony count of theft of a firearm, as well as a third-degree felony charge for possession of a firearm, while the assault charge was never filed. Little pleaded guilty to the charges in December 2022, and he was sentenced to serve 120 days in jail with credit for time served. He was also placed on three years’ probation, while both prison sentences were suspended in the case. He was released at the end of December.
Little is scheduled to make an initial appearance in 5th District Court on the two felony charges on Thursday, and he remains in custody without bail.
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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