CEDAR CITY — A man was arrested following a domestic disturbance at a hotel in Brian Head on Wednesday.
At approximately 10:50 am, emergency dispatchers were notified of an incident at the Best Western Premier Hotel, wherein a man had reportedly barricaded himself in one of the hotel’s 100-plus rooms and was allegedly making threats.
As a precaution, guests staying in the first floor west wing were evacuated, Brian Head Resort officials said in a written statement, adding that no employees or additional guests were evacuated.
Officers from multiple agencies responded to the incident, including negotiators with the Iron County Metro SWAT team.
Shortly after 1 p.m., the man surrendered and was taken into custody without further incident, authorities said. He was later identified as Jason Estes, 34.
Brian Head Marshal Dan Benson said Estes was first transported to Cedar City Hospital for treatment of self-inflicted wounds.
Then, shortly after 4 p.m., after he had been medically cleared, Estes was booked into Iron County Jail on suspicion of multiple charges, including one count each of aggravated assault, criminal mischief, unlawful detention, intoxication and resisting or interfering with arrest.
Nobody else was injured in Wednesday’s incident, authorities said.
Responding agencies included Iron County Metro SWAT, Brian Head Marshal’s Office, Iron County Sheriff’s Office, Utah Highway Patrol and Parowan Police Department.
Iron County Sheriff’s Deputy Brenda Pires, who is a member of both the Iron-Beaver-Garfield Mental Health Unit as well as the hostage negotiation team that supports Iron Metro SWAT, told Cedar City News she was pleased with how the situation was able to be deescalated.
“Any time we have an outcome where force is not necessary, it’s a good day,” Pires said.
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.
Ed. Note: This story has been updated to reflect Estes’ correct age as 34. A previous version of this story said he was 48, but that person is a different Jason Estes with a different middle name; a sentence containing information about the other man’s criminal background has also been removed.
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