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TAYLORSVILLE — Three fugitives were booked into jail Thursday night thanks to the coordinated effort of several Utah law enforcement agencies. The arrest of the first man, the U.S. Marshal's Service said, proved to be part of a bigger picture.
"We located our other two individuals in a vehicle," U.S. Marshals Supervisory Deputy Jim Phelps said. "They pulled into a residence and those two individuals bailed."
"Each one of these individuals had been to prison and they were back out on the street," added Phelps. "We know that they're armed. We know that they're obviously conducting other criminal activities and they became a high priority for our task force."
Members of the Joint Criminal Apprehension Team (JCAT) teamed up Thursday afternoon to catch one man: 29-year-old Ronny Wakefield.
"This individual frequents our jail often, and he is a violent individual. He will fight with law enforcement," one officer said.
Wakefield is a known fugitive, perhaps one reason why he probably sent police on a chase late Thursday afternoon. Detectives noticed him in Taylorsville at 6400 South and 1300 West, and he took off.
"He eventually fled on foot in Taylorsville, just near the Jordan Canal," the officer said.
He was finally caught when he stopped at a dead end. It took a team of Utah Highway Patrol canines to track him down.
Wakefield has a lengthy criminal history. In 2012 alone, he's been charged with possession or use of a controlled substance, retaliation against a witness, assault, failure to stop at command of law enforcement, criminal mischief, interference with arresting officer; and most recently, use of stolen credit cards.
They're all good reasons why police obtained a $25,000 warrant for his arrest. But now he's behind bars.
The U.S. Marshal's Service said late Thursday there were two more arrests made in connection with Wakefield's apprehension. Michael Velarde, 30, and Carey Wayne Parker, 31, were also arrested for felony warrants.
Contributing: Paul Nelson
