Police arrest man who allegedly pointed pink pistol at occupants of another vehicle

Stock image | Photo by Chalabala/iStock/Getty Images Plus, St. George News

CEDAR CITY — A 22-year-old man who was a passenger in a car driven by his father was arrested Sunday after allegedly brandishing a pink handgun and pointing it at the occupants of another vehicle.

Utah Highway Patrol Sgt. Bambi Baie said the incident occurred Sunday afternoon in Parowan.

According to Baie, emergency dispatchers had received a call about someone wearing a flannel shirt and displaying a pink pistol while riding in a silver Kia four-door sedan.

Shortly thereafter, a Parowan Police officer spotted a vehicle matching that description parked on Exit 75 onramp of northbound Interstate 15, Baie said.

The two occupants of the car were later identified as Jared Buchanan and his father, Devin Buchanan. The elder Buchanan had been driving the vehicle, Baie told Cedar City News.

Jared Buchanan booking photo, Iron County Jail, Cedar City, Utah, Jan. 10, 2021 | Photo courtesy of Iron County Sheriff’s Office, St. George News / Cedar City News

During the traffic stop, the passenger, who was wearing a flannel shirt, was found to have a loaded 9 mm handgun in his pocket. The gun, which was pink with black trim and a silver slide, was later confiscated and taken as evidence by UHP.

Officers also reportedly found nearly a pound of marijuana under the car’s seat, along with some pills for which Jared Buchanan did have a prescription, according to a probable cause statement filed in support of his arrest.

The witnesses who had reported the incident told police that the Kia’s passenger had pulled a gun and pointed it out the car window at all four of them. 

“He lasered all four occupants while yelling obscenities and trying to get them to pull over so they could have a fight,” Baie said.

She added that the Buchanans were not local, having recently moved from the Las Vegas area to the Salt Lake area, and they did not have any known connection to the occupants of the other vehicle.

Jared Buchanan was transported and booked into Iron County Jail later that afternoon, at which point he allegedly tried to get rid of a wadded-up $20 bill that had marijuana wrapped up inside.

“He took it out of his pocket while I was watching him and threw it on the floor,” Baie said, “so I went in there, picked it up, opened it up and there was marijuana.”

Devin Buchanan booking photo, Iron County Jail, Cedar City, Utah, Jan. 10, 2021 | Photo courtesy of Iron County Sheriff’s Office, St. George News / Cedar City News

Because the jail is a secure facility, it elevated the drug possession charge to a felony, she added.

Buchanan remains in custody as this report publishes, facing four counts of aggravated assault, a third-degree felony, one count of possessing a prohibited substance inside a secure facility, also a third-degree felony, plus two misdemeanor counts of possession of drugs and paraphernalia.

Meanwhile, Devin Buchanan faces a single misdemeanor count of DUI, as he was allegedly under the influence of drugs while driving. He was booked and later released.

This report is based on information provided by law enforcement 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. 

Copyright St. George News, SaintGeorgeUtah.com LLC, 2021, all rights reserved.

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