Sandy man arrested at gunpoint following multiagency pursuit from Zion into Arizona

File photo for illustrative purposes only of scene with multiple units responding to an area near 400 West and 2400 North, Cedar City, Utah, Feb. 14, 2021 | Photo by Jeff Richards, St. George News / Cedar City News

ST. GEORGE — A Sandy man is in custody in Page, Arizona, following a multiagency pursuit that began in Zion National Park and ended when a set of spike strips deployed in Fredonia shredded the suspect’s tires and he was arrested at gunpoint.

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

According to a statement released by the Kane County Sheriff’s Office, the incident was set in motion Saturday when a National Parks Service ranger came across a vehicle reportedly speeding through Zion National Park, just west of the Zion-Mount Carmel Highway tunnel. 

Kane County Sheriff’s Lt. Alan Alldredge told St. George News the pursuit began at 8:30 p.m., when the National Parks Service ranger attempted to conduct a traffic stop on a speeding Lexus. 

Instead of pulling over, the driver reportedly continued traveling east. Upon exiting the park, the Lexus fled at a high rate of speed, which is when pursuing rangers lost sight of the vehicle. 

Meanwhile, Alldredge said a Kane County Sheriff’s deputy coming to assist was heading north on U.S. Highway 89 within minutes of the initial call with emergency lights and sirens activated.

Less than 6 miles south of the Mt. Carmel Junction, the deputy was forced off the roadway to avoid a head-on collision with the Lexus that crossed over into oncoming traffic “in an aggressive manner,” the statement said. 

Alldredge told St. George News the pursuit began at 8:30 p.m. and the sheriff’s office became involved shortly after the call came out. 

The deputy joined the pursuit while officers deployed spike strips in an effort to slow or stop the Lexus before the pursuit entered Kanab; however, the Lexus avoided the spike strips and the multiagency pursuit continued through Kanab and into Arizona. 

Once the pursuit entered Arizona’s Coconino County, the Fredonia, Arizona’s Marshals Office joined the chase as the driver reportedly erratically crossed into oncoming traffic at more than 105 mph toward the Lee’s Ferry area. There the Lexus ran over a set of spike strips deployed by a park ranger, which disabled the vehicle and brought the pursuit to an end.

The suspect, identified as 62-year-old David Frank Magriplis from Sandy, was arrested at gunpoint.

Alldredge said Magriplis was transported to the Coconino County Detention Center in Page and was booked into jail. He will also face charges in Utah.  

Ed. Note: A new Utah law generally prohibits the release of arrest booking photos until after a conviction is obtained. 

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.

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

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