CASTLE DALE, Utah, Oct. 15, 2025 (Gephardt Daily) — A 35-year-old Castle Dale man has been arrested for multiple alleged crimes of theft, burglary and weapons charges after people’s belongings in or near the Manti-La Sal National Forest went missing this summer and fall.
“Well, we got him,” Emery County Sheriff Tyson Huntington posted Wednesday on social media. “ECSO was able to work with victims and others to make a positive identification of the suspect.”
ESCO investigated the cases and served a search warrant on the residence of Kolby Kiesel.
“Upon service of the search warrant, deputies and agents were able to locate most of the stolen items,” Huntington said. “The items have been returned to their rightful owners.”
Items recovered included multiple generators, a chainsaw, a cooler, two propane tanks, a Star Link, multiple radios, a trail camera, drills, two walking sticks, a charger, a trolling motor and a porch swing.
A pistol and shotgun shells also were found, and Kiesel is prohibited from possessing them due to a previous conviction. Kiesel was booked into the Emery County jail for investigation of the alleged crimes of:
- Two counts of prohibited dangerous weapon conduct, a second-degree felony
- Theft, value $1,500 to $4,999, a third-degree felony
- Two counts of burglary, a third-degree felony
- Theft, value $500 to $1,499, a class A misdemeanor
- Two counts of theft, value greater than $500, a class B misdemeanor
“I would like to thank all the involved deputies from ECSO and agents from Adult Probation and Parole (AP&P) for their perseverance and relentless pursuit to find justice for these theft victims,” Huntington’s post says.
“We are grateful to the victims for their cooperation in this case. Without the help from them, we would not have been able to be successful.”
Additional items officials believe seemed out of place and suspect were stolen could not be seized because they had not been reported stolen.
“That being said, if you are missing something or believe it to be stolen, please call the Sheriff’s Office and make a report,” Huntington said.
“With your help, we might be able to return even more stolen property.”
