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KEARNS — A man already facing forgery and assault charges was arrested Wednesday after allegedly making a bomb threat that prompted the evacuation of several homes and the lockdown of an elementary school.
Kristopher England, 35, was arrested for investigation of making threats against life or property.
Police were originally called to perform a welfare check and investigate a possible domestic situation at 5630 S. Honeysuckle Way (5370 West) about 8:50 a.m. After officers arrived, England made threats, said Unified Police Lt. Justin Hoyal.
"He starts making threats that he's going to harm himself. He also indicated that he had an explosive device in his car," Hoyal said. "They looked inside (the vehicle) and saw some wiring and some containers which ultimately led them to believe there might be an explosive device in the car."
A bomb squad from the Unified Fire Authority was called. Approximately 30 surrounding homes were evacuated, and a lockdown was initiated at nearby Beehive Elementary School, 5655 S. 5220 West.
By 11:45 a.m., crews determined there was no bomb in the vehicle and the evacuation order was lifted. The items seen in the sports car were nitrous oxide cans for the vehicle, Hoyal said.
England's arrest is the latest in a series of recent activity with police, according to court records.
In 2013, England accumulated a number of charges in 3rd District Court. He was charged with forgery and theft by deception in one case after allegedly trying to pass a forged $18,000 check.
In November, he was charged with aggravated assault. In that case, court records indicate that England is the owner of Wolf Motor Sports, 3762 S. State. A former employee asked for money to cover a bounced check that he claimed England gave him. Instead, "England pulled a gun from his waistband, racked a round and fired two shots" into a car and the ceiling, and then told the man, "If you don't get out of my shop I'm going to kill you," charging documents state. He then hit the man in the head with the gun, according to police.
In October, England was charged with two counts of aggravated assault, reckless driving and threatening the use of a weapon in a fight. In that case, England threatened a man and his 16-year-old daughter with a gun in an apparent case of road rage, according to charging documents.
In July, he was also charged with theft. All of England's 2013 cases are still active.
Court records also show England pleaded guilty to attempted forgery in 2002 and was convicted of using a dangerous weapon in a fight in 2001. He was given probation but later served jail time after violating his probation, court records state.
