Hitchhiker who was shot in hip arrested on outstanding warrant, police say

Hitchhiker who was shot in hip arrested on outstanding warrant, police say

(Courtesy of the Washington County Sheriff's Office)


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ST. GEORGE — A man who was hitchhiking with his girlfriend from Nevada to St. George was shot and robbed while making a pit stop Wednesday, police said.

The man who was shot, 21-year-old St. George resident Codi Jaye Norton, was later arrested on an outstanding warrant, according to the Mohave County Sheriff’s Office. He was traveling in a Dodge Charger with his girlfriend when the driver decided to stop in the area of Desert Springs, Arizona, according to the Mohave County Sheriff’s Office.

“The couple got out of the vehicle when they were approached by an unknown male subject in a white passenger car,” a statement from the sheriff’s office reads. “The male subject confronted the couple with a black handgun and demanded their money.”

Investigators said Norton gave the man approximately $200. The man then shot at the couple, hitting Norton in the hip, before leaving in his car, police said. The driver of the Dodge Charger left the scene when the shots were fired, stranding the couple, according to the sheriff’s office.


The male subject confronted the couple with a black handgun and demanded their money.

–Mohave County Sheriff's Office


Deputies received a report of the shooting at about 12:30 p.m. and sent a description of the white truck the couple was seen leaving in to the nearby law enforcement agencies. Investigators said after the couple was stranded, they borrowed a phone from a woman and called a friend to pick them up.

"Apparently, Norton did not want law enforcement called because he has an outstanding warrant," the statement from the sheriff's office reads.

The truck was pulled over for a traffic stop as it entered Utah by the Utah Highway Patrol, officials said. Medical personnel responded to the scene and Norton was taken to the Dixie Regional Medical Center for a non-life threatening gunshot wound in the hip.

Norton was also arrested by UHP for the outstanding warrant after he was treated, investigators said. He was booked into the Washington County Jail after being released from the hospital.

His girlfriend was also taken to DRMC and treated for an unrelated injury, according to the sheriff’s office.

Investigators are still looking for the man who shot Norton. They described him as being white with long blond hair and about 30 years old. He was of a skinny build and had a “sunken” face.

The incident is still under investigation, according to the Mohave County Sheriff’s Office. Anyone with information can call the Mohave County Sheriff’s Office at 800-522-4312 or Silent Witness at 928-753- 1234.

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