ENOCH, Utah, Oct. 6, 2021 (Gephardt Daily) — A man has been arrested after allegedly burglarizing multiple vehicles in Enoch, two of which belonged to law enforcement officials.
A probable cause statement from the 5th District Court of Cedar City said Taylor Matthew Button, 25, is facing three charges of vehicle burglary, a third-degree felony.
An officer was dispatched to a vehicle burglary in the area of 1200 E. Southern Homestead Blvd., Enoch, on Sunday, the statement said.
A deputy from Iron County Sheriff’s Office told the officer that his wife had gone to their pickup truck that morning and discovered that multiple items were stolen, including a gun, ammunition, and a wallet including credit cards and identification.
Soon after, it was discovered that across the street, a the vehicle of a Cedar City police officer had also been broken into. He reported that his wife’s wallet containing cash, credit cards and identification had been stolen.
A neighbor contacted the deputy whose pickup had been broken into and said he had just seen a man crouching behind farm equipment in a field south of Southern Homestead Boulevard. Officers were called to the scene and set up containment, but no one was located.
The deputy spoke with multiple neighbors about the incident, and one of them told him he had been renting one of his rooms to a man whom he caught going through his possessions recently. The deputy and the neighbor went to the man’s room, and the deputy “immediately recognized his SolarEdge phone charger, and his wife’s Quay sunglasses on the bed just inside the door to the right,” the statement said. The deputy told the neighbor he recognized the items and he would apply for a search warrant.
“A search warrant was approved and a search of the suspect’s room was made,” the statement said. “Located in the room were multiple items missing from vehicles that were burglarized.”
The suspect was identified as Button. Later the same day, Cedar City officers were dispatched to a suspect matching Button’s description. The suspect was found in a construction garage and a backpack was located with Button’s laptop and clothing inside. Also inside were bullets matching those belonging to the stolen revolver and several bags of change that were allegedly taken from multiple vehicles.
Button was read his Miranda rights and allegedly admitted to committing the thefts. The suspect then took officers to a location in Cedar City, where he showed them where he had hidden the stolen gun.
He was transported to Washington County Jail, with his bail set at $7,500.
