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ST. GEORGE — A defendant facing a federal firearms charge was sentenced in federal court in connection with a 2021 case involving a Washington City call that escalated into a standoff and ended several hours later when the defendant was shot by a sniper.
Augustus James Cole, 34, appeared Wednesday for a sentencing hearing in federal court in St. George after pleading guilty to one federal felony count of felon in possession of a firearm on Dec. 21, 2021.
The case stems from an incident reported at an apartment complex on the afternoon of March 16, 2021, in Washington City where officers were dispatched to a report of a suspect in a silver car who was driving recklessly and pointing a gun at several residents.
But when officers attempted to stop the car, the suspect fled and drove into oncoming traffic at a high rate of speed, according to a press release issued by the Washington County Critical Incident Task Force shortly after the incident took place.
Shortly thereafter, Cole reportedly got out of the car and barricaded himself in his second-story apartment overlooking Telegraph Road, armed with a Stevens 12-gauge shotgun and a Taurus P-25 handgun.
Tactical officers were called in to assist. And after more than seven hours of negotiations, a SWAT sniper saw Cole pointing a gun in the direction of the officers from a window and shot the suspect in the abdomen. Cole then surrendered and was treated for his injury before being booked into jail.
Read the full article at St. George News.
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