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PLAIN CITY, Weber County — Matt Hunt is a pro when it comes to herding cattle. He never knew those same skills would come in handy next door.
They did Wednesday, when he confronted a group of three suspected home burglars and wrestled two of them down long enough for Weber County sheriff’s deputies to catch up with them.
“They were a lot easier. They didn’t put up too much of a fight,” said Hunt, standing next to the corral on his family’s property.
Hunt initially went to check out his sister’s home in Plain City after neighbors said they believed some people went behind the house.
“I saw this kid sitting in the car and I go up to him and ask him what he was doing,” Hunt recalled.
At that moment, he noticed the back door to his sister's house was open.
“I just ran straight into the home not knowing what was going on and there’s two kids in the home in the back room with a bunch of bags, hats, guns, jewelry,” Hunt said.
As those two men tried to run, Hunt’s herding instincts kicked into gear.
“They went for the front door, and that’s when I jumped over the couch and I tackled both of them and had them both in a headlock,” he explained.
One of those men, later identified by sheriff’s deputies as Tyger Ukena-Berkey, 19, of Ogden, escaped his grasp, but not his mom, who at that point had approached the house.
“She yelled at the kid and stuck her leg out and the kid fell straight on his face,” Hunt recalled.
Ukena-Berkey continued to flee but was taken into custody in a field near 2700 North and 4200 West after an hourlong manhunt, said Weber County Sheriff's Lt. Lane Findlay. Neighbors saw him running through the field and directed deputies to the area.
Officers also arrested Kaden Shaw, 18, of Kaysville, and 19-year-old Zachariah Dost, 19, of Ogden, and booked all three men into the Weber County Jail for investigation of theft and burglary of a dwelling.
Investigators were looking into whether the men may be tied to other home break-ins.
Though it worked for Hunt, Findlay said police generally advise against confronting suspected burglars.
Hunt’s sister, MeChel Orrock, said she was scared for her brother, but she was also grateful.
“My brother is a stud,” Orrock said. “Everyone around here knows you don’t mess around with country boys. They all are tough.”
