Estimated read time: 1-2 minutes
This archived news story is available only for your personal, non-commercial use. Information in the story may be outdated or superseded by additional information. Reading or replaying the story in its archived form does not constitute a republication of the story.
UTAH COUNTY -- A man accused of holding a family hostage and demanding money will stand trial. A judge has ordered 36-year-old Tyler Archuleta to stand trial on aggravated burglary, robbery and kidnapping charges.
In court, one of the victims testified he was held at gunpoint for more than two hours. He also testified he feared the gunman hadn't thought out his ransom plan very well and believed he would end up being killed before it was all over.
Archuleta has been in jail the past five weeks.
On Sept. 22, Lone Peak police said Archuleta went to the home of the CEO of Savage Trucking in Alpine. He had a fake U.S. Census Bureau ID badge, which he used to get inside.
During the ordeal, the CEO testified he became suspicious of the man and, after questioning his U.S. Census Bureau credentials, said the man pulled a gun out of his backpack and said, "I'll show you who I work for!"
The victim testified Archuleta said he had been hired by a group of investors. He claimed had been hurt by Savage companies and said if the victim didn't pay $100 million that a lot of people would be hurt.
The victim also testified that near the end of the standoff, Archuleta said he was willing to accept $30 million.
The man's wife called 911 and left the phone off of the hook and their daughter also relayed information to police from inside the home. That allowed police to move in and make an arrest.
He will be arraigned on Nov. 18. The trial is expected to begin sometime next year.
E-mail: spenrod@ksl.com
