CASTLE DALE — An Emery County man who was supposed to be helping with a friend's financial obligations is accused of using her credit card to buy drugs and gifts for other women.
Joe J. Mower, 49, of Castle Dale, was arrested Monday for investigation of unlawful use of a financial card.
The investigation began May 1 when the Emery County Sheriff's Office was contacted by a "local mental health authority" stating that while a woman was in the Utah State Hospital, she had "entrusted a financial transaction card to Joe Mower … to pay court-related fines and (her) financial obligations while she was at the hospital," according to a police booking affidavit.
Investigators reviewed bank statements that showed between August of 2024 and March of this year, there were "13 ATM withdrawals totaling $6,500. In total, there was in excess of $36,000 in purchases between those dates. I interviewed Mr. Mower and he confessed to using the card without authorization … for almost all of the transactions. Mr. Mower stated he used the majority of the money to purchase controlled substances from his friends for his addictions and purchased gifts for multiple women to gain admiration," the affidavit states.
As investigators gathered additional evidence, they reported finding surveillance video of Mower purchasing more than $800 in tires in Price. Mower also "admitted to purchasing multiple prepaid Visa cards from stores such as Family Dollar and other merchants to use as payment for controlled substances," the arrest report says.
