Sunrise Stories: Utah Woman Charged for Stealing Urn Containing Human Remains

KDXU Sunrise Stories: Volume 217 

Statewide News – 05/22/24 

Sandy Woman Arrested for Stealing Urn with Ashes 

A 22-year-old woman in Sandy has been charged for allegedly stealing an urn containing the ashes of her roommate's son.  

Tianna Grace Talbot, 22, was charged on May 20 with the theft of two necklaces and the beforementioned urn in February. The charges include the abuse or desecration of a body. 

Investigators said a video showed Talbot picking up the urn and storing it in her jacket. Fortunately, the ashes were recovered by deputies from the Sevier County Sheriff’s Office. 

Southern Utah/St. George News – 05/22/24 

Man Arrested in St. George for 100 Charges of Child Abuse 

A man in St. George has been arrested on 100 counts of aggravated sexual exploitation of a minor. Investigators said the illegal material recovered from the investigation is the largest to be analyzed in the state of Utah, and possibly the entire United States. 

David Michael Thibodeau, 63, was arrested on May 15 following an 18-month investigation from the Internet Crimes Against Children Task Force. 

About 500 explicit images of children were recovered at the beginning of the investigation, and the task force said there may be over 600 gigabytes of material in the final forensic report. The actual number of images hasn’t been confirmed by authorities. 

Hurricane Fire Workers Investigating Cause of 5-Acre Brush Fire 

Fire workers in Hurricane are investigating the cause of a brush fire that burned about five acres of land near Sky Ranch on May 21. 

While the Hurricane Valley Fire District swiftly extinguished the flames, the fire's cause is unknown. 

Most of Washington County is at a higher risk of wildfires due to the dry weather and rising temperatures. Please be careful when dealing with fire outdoors. 

New Santa Clara-Ivins Police Chief Takes the Reins This Week 

The new chief of the Santa Clara-Ivins Police Department will be sworn into the role later this week. 

Jaron Studley will take the reins from Chief Bob Flowers who announced he would be stepping down as police chief for the head of security position at Black Desert Resort. 

Studley has been a part of the department for over 15 years, having started his time at the Santa Clara-Ivins Police Department before the two departments merged 12 years ago. 

Zion National Park Warns of Busy Memorial Weekend 

Officials from Zion National Park are warning visitors to be prepared for long waits during the Memorial Day weekend. 

Zion recorded more than 96,000 visitors over Memorial Day weekend in 2023 and it seems they expect a similar turnout for 2024. 

More information can be found on the official website for Zion National Park. 

Other 

Fun fact about Stockton Myers, the writer of Sunrise Stories.  

Stockton will be moving into a new home in August, and he couldn’t be more excited about it. That said, Stockton’s never been so terrified and excited at the same time. The budget will be tight, and if one thing goes wrong, he’s going to be in trouble. Fingers crossed everything will go OK. 

Happy Wednesday!