UPDATED: Police identify new suspect, clear other in armed crime spree reported in St. George

2019 file photo for illustrative purposes only of St. George Police responding to an incident in St. George, Utah, April 10 | File photo by Mori Kessler, St. George News

ST. GEORGE — A man named as one of three suspects in a string of thefts has been cleared by police, and the St. George Police Department has identified the second individual who is being sought as a person of interest in the case. A third suspect has been arrested.

Jason Burguin, no age available, is being sought as a person of interest in connection with string of thefts in St. George, Utah | Photos courtesy of the St. George Police Department, St. George News

According to information posted by the St. George Police Department on Thursday morning, one of the suspects listed following a reported retail theft at Red Cliffs Mall on Saturday, 38-year-old Randy Colwell, reached out to authorities.

St. George Police Officer Tiffany Mitchell said in a social media post that “after further investigation, it was determined Randy (Colwell) is no longer a suspect in this case.”

Investigators were able to positively identify the second person of interest in the case as Jason Burguin, who is a convicted felon with a long history of violent felonies, the department said.

The age of the suspect was not specified.

Following a reported retail theft at Red Cliffs Mall on Saturday, 32-year-old Lindsey Dawn Ferguson, of Henderson, Nevada, was arrested Sunday, and two suspects remain at large: 36-year-old Nathan Lee Burkett and Jason Burguin, who is being sought as a person of interest in the case.

According to a statement released by the St. George Police Department, both suspects, Burkett and Burguin, are considered armed and dangerous. Anyone with information that may assist in the capture of the suspects, including spotting either individual in public, is asked to immediately call the St. George Police Department at 435-627-4300, or dial 911, and refer to incident numbers: 22P012947 and 22P012915.

The incident began Saturday when officers were dispatched to a retail theft in progress reported at the Dillard’s department store in the Red Cliffs Mall.

Nathan Lee Burkett, 32, of Henderson, Nev., is being sought by police in connection with string of thefts in St. George, Utah | Photos courtesy of the St. George Police Department, St. George News

Officers arrived and learned from mall security that two suspects were allegedly shoplifting, and one of the men was reportedly armed with a handgun, according to police reports. Following the thefts, witnesses reported seeing both suspects leave the mall and drive away on two black bullet bikes.

One of the officers who responded to the scene spotted two motorcycles that matched the description and observed the suspects throwing several items in the mall parking lot before driving off.

The suspects then headed southwest on Red Cliffs Drive toward Interstate 15, and despite two attempts by law enforcement to stop the bikes, both reached the interstate where they headed south.

Police say the pair were spotted early. the next morning exiting I-15 at the Southern Parkway Exit on their motorbikes.

They then turned into the parking lot of Terrible’s gas station. A black Chevrolet Tahoe then pulled into the parking lot next to where the bikes were parked, and the suspects attempted to attach a dual-axle trailer onto the SUV, the report states.

When the officer approached in an attempt to detain the suspects, the two men reportedly fled the scene together on one motorbike.

In the meantime, the driver of the Tahoe, identified as Ferguson, got out and attempted to connect the dual axle trailer loaded with lumber onto the back of her SUV.

As she did so, the two suspects riding tandem on the motorcycle returned to the parking lot, which is when Ferguson reportedly started yelling at them and telling them to leave. “They listened,” the officer noted, and after the pair drove off, Ferguson reportedly told the officers “she did not know them.”

Ferguson was detained while a search was conducted on the Tahoe; during which, officers reportedly recovered methamphetamine, heroin and marijuana, along with two firearms recovered from the center console.

Authorities also recovered more than $700 in clothing reportedly stolen from Dillard’s, along with “hundreds of other items” that officers suspect could have been stolen, according to the statement.

All told, the value of the items recovered from the SUV could be as high as $1,500, the report states.

The trailer Ferguson was attempting to connect to the SUV when officers approached had no VIN number, and when asked, Ferguson reportedly gave two different accounts of how she obtained the trailer.

Moreover, officers also learned the VIN number found on the motorcycle left abandoned at the scene appeared to be fraudulent. When checking the two firearms, they also discovered that one was missing a serial number.

Ferguson was arrested and transported to Purgatory Correctional Facility facing five third-degree felony charges – two counts of possession of a firearm by a restricted person and three counts of possession of a controlled substance. She also faces one misdemeanor count each of theft by receiving stolen property and possession of marijuana and paraphernalia.

Police say when officers reached out to the Henderson Police Department in Nevada, they learned the suspects are well known to authorities, who referred to Ferguson and her boyfriend, Burkett, as individuals known to carry firearms and are considered “dangerous.”

Authorities also learned that the spree in Utah was a common tactic used by all three suspects in Henderson.

Henderson Police Department patrol vehicle, Henderson, Nev. | Photo courtesy of the City of Henderson, St. George News

A background check on Ferguson also revealed an extensive criminal history that included a recent robbery charge, as well as cases involving firearms and drug possession, in addition to a case filed in March of this year.

Authorities requested that Ferguson be held without bail, citing both her and her boyfriend’s extensive histories.

Moreover, with Burkett and Burguin still at large, the officer wrote, if Ferguson is released then she “will be free to continue her theft spree in our city” and create more victims. The suspect also reportedly has no ties to the local area and will likely return to Nevada.

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, 2022, all rights reserved.

Free News Delivery by Email

Would you like to have the day's news stories delivered right to your inbox every evening? Enter your email below to start!