ST. GEORGE, Utah, Jan. 10, 2024 (Gephardt Daily) — A St. George man was sentenced to more than two years in federal prison for his one-day crime spree.
Jason Grace, 54, of St. George was sentenced to 26 months imprisonment followed by three years supervised release after he admitted to a credit union robbery, Utah’s federal prosecutors said in a Tuesday press release.
According to court documents, on July 26, 2023, Grace entered a Mountain America Credit Union in St. George. “Grace handed the teller a note which read “this is a robbery” and directed the clerk to provide $4,400 in lower denominations. The teller gave Grace ten $100 bills”.
Grace fled in a two-door black Chevy Silverado. Which was located the next day by police in Mesquite, Nevada, about an hour’s drive southwest from St. George.
Grace was arrested and admitted to chewing up the robbery note and spitting it out the window as he was driving, according to the Department of Justice press release.
He told officers that after obtaining the money, he purchased two money orders, a pool cue he had recently pawned, paid his back rent, and fled to Mesquite with the remainder of the money.
“No individual should be threatened or intimidated at their place of business,” said U.S. Attorney Trina A. Higgins of the District of Utah. “This was not a spontaneous act of violence, but instead something Mr. Grace carefully considered for approximately a week. We are grateful to our law enforcement partners who acted quickly and carefully.”
After Grace’s Silverado was located in the parking lot of the Virgin River Casino in Mesquite, where he was staying, a records check of the vehicle determined it belonged to Grace and photos confirmed it was the getaway vehicle.
Investigators also identified Grace as the suspect by comparing his driver’s license photo to surveillance from the robbery and photos on social media. Grace was served a search warrant and his hotel room and vehicle were searched. Officers located clothing that matched what Grace wore during the robbery.
The case was investigated by the FBI Salt Lake City Field Office, it’s St. George Resident Agency, the St. George Police Department and the Mesquite Police Department.
