ST. GEORGE — The man suspected of robbing the Mountain American Credit Union last month has been extradited from Nevada to Southern Utah after his arrest by Mesquite Police.
But not before he apparently tried to do his laundry.
St. George Police Sgt. Tyrell Bangerter confirmed their suspect, from Washington City, was booked into Purgatory Correctional Facility at 11:13 a.m., Aug., 15, from the Clark County Detention Center in Las Vegas, Nevada.
Mesquite Police Sgt. Wyatt Oliver told St. George News Jason Carl Grace, 54, was on his way to the laundromat with a basket of dirty laundry when he was apprehended.
As previously documented, Grace reportedly entered Mountain American Credit Union on July 26 at about 4:58 p.m. and handed the teller a note demanding money. The suspect immediately left the bank with an undisclosed amount of money from the building at 123 South River Road.
Oliver said Mesquite Police received a “blast email” from the St. George Police Department with pictures and descriptions of the suspect and the vehicle around noon July 27. He said he immediately sent all of the information out to all active officers.
“The vehicle of our suspect had some very distinct markings on it and was able to relay that information down to Mesquite PD,” Bangerter said. “One of their officers did some proactive work and was able to locate the vehicle in the parking lot of the Virgin River Casino and still had all of the distinguishing marks and things that would not be on a normal vehicle.”
Oliver said the “distinguishing marks” helped police make a positive comparison match. Some modifications reportedly had been made to hide these marks.
The suspect’s vehicle was located by Officer Skyler Vent about 11 minutes after the “blast email” went out and multiple officers were put on surveillance to ensure the vehicle didn’t leave.
St. George Police secured a warrant, and the Mesquite Police Department made the arrest at the hotel.
Oliver said Grace was surprised as soon as he stepped off of the elevator to have multiple officers ready to arrest him. He said Grace was “completely comfortable and caught off-guard.”
Mesquite Police searched the vehicle and the hotel room and recovered additional pieces of evidence. Grace was temporarily booked into the Mesquite Correctional Facility and then transported to the Clark County Detention Center in Las Vegas later that night.
Grace appeared in 5th District Court before Judge Keith Barnes for charges of robbery, a seconnd-degree felony, and theft, a class A misdemeanor, at his initial hearing. A motion to continue was granted and he is scheduled to appear for the preliminary waiver hearing on Aug. 31 to face state charges.
He was indicted by the federal courts on Aug. 8 on charges of bank robbery by force or violence for credit union robbery, a felony.
“It never ceases to amaze me the mentality that other people have from other places that want to come to Mesquite because they just want to lay low and hide out here and think things will cool off for them,” Oliver said.
He said they maintain excellent communication and relationships with bordering agencies, helping them to catch fugitives fleeing law enforcement in other jurisdictions.
Oliver said they have noticed other fugitives running to Mesquite, especially from Utah. He said their officers are proactive and constantly look for the criminal element.
“We don’t want to become known as being able to harbor fugitives here. We don’t want people to think they can commit crime somewhere else and come to Mesquite and hang low for a minute, because that is the exact opposite that will happen,” he said. “Mesquite is definitely not the place for you.”
Bangarter lauded the cooperative effort between police departments.
“We want to express our appreciation to Mesquite PD for the excellent work they did in helping us,” Bangerter said. “Obviously, we couldn’t have done this without them.”
This report is based on statements from court records, police or other responders 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.
St. George News reporters E. George Goold and Ron Chaffin contributed to this news.
Copyright St. George News, SaintGeorgeUtah.com LLC, 2023, all rights reserved.