CEDAR CITY — A man who was holed up inside a convenience store shortly after it closed was taken into custody following an hourlong standoff late Friday night.
Clinton Marshall, 50, was booked into Iron County Jail shortly after midnight on suspicion of aggravated burglary, obstructing justice and criminal mischief involving more than $5,000 in damages.
Cedar City Police Lt. Clint Pollock said the suspect is believed to have gone inside the store unnoticed by the clerk around the time it closed at 10 p.m.
Pollock said the man entered just as the clerk was busy cleaning and preparing for closing; the clerk ended up locking the door and leaving without knowing the man was still inside the building.
Shortly thereafter, police responded to a motion-activated alarm call originating from the Chevron gas station convenience store at 304 N. Main Street.
“When an officer arrived, he observed a male subject in the building holding a knife,” Pollock said. “The officer attempted to get him to come out; he refused, and retreated to the back of the store into the office area.”
The officer then notified dispatchers of the situation, after which the Iron County Metro SWAT team was called in.
“Based on the weapon and situation, a page went out for SWAT and other agencies responded to assist and set up containment,” Pollock said.
Pollock said multiple attempts to communicate with the suspect were unsuccessful, including via telephone and through announcements made over a public-address loudspeaker system.
“We were able to get a key for the building, opened the door and started giving commands with the door open,” Pollock added. “At this time, the suspect started responding.”
Soon thereafter, Pollock said, the suspect emerged from the front door of the store and was safely taken into custody without further incident.
The Cedar City News video above, taken at 11:15 p.m., shows the man shortly after exiting the store with his arms raised. Once the SWAT officers have secured custody of the man, cheers can be heard from the crowd of bystanders who were watching from the post office parking lot across the street.
Other agencies responding included the Cedar City Police Department, Iron County Sheriff’s Office, Utah Highway Patrol and Southern Utah University Police. At least one K-9 officer was observed at the scene.
Pollock said the man caused “quite a bit of damage” inside the store.
“It was mostly in the office that was damaged,” he said, adding that some merchandise and other items in the store were also tipped over. “He also got into the beer cooler and a lot of beer was spilled.”
Utah court records show Marshall’s criminal history spans more than two decades and includes various cases involving theft, drugs and weapons, in addition to numerous speeding tickets and other traffic violations. In his most recent case, he pleaded no contest in December 2022 to shoplifting from a Cedar City hardware store and was ordered to pay $121 in restitution, plus a fine of $690.
This report is based on statements from court documents and law enforcement officials 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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