ST. GEORGE — Officers responding to a motel on St. George Boulevard on what was initially reported as a disorderly call ended up arresting three suspects on Thanksgiving day. The detainment came after officers learned that one of the suspects reportedly pulled a gun during the escalating confrontation, according to police.
Stock image of the St. George Police Department on North 200 East in St. George, Utah, Oct. 23, 2023 | Photo by Cody Blowers, St. George News
On Nov. 23, officers were dispatched to a motel on St. George Boulevard shortly after midnight on a report of a family fight involving a suspect that had reportedly pulled a gun.
According to charging documents filed with the courts, the incident reportedly began after an alleged drug deal went wrong in the room downstairs from where the 911 caller was staying.
Following the transaction, the report states, the complainant heard a woman in distress. When he returned to the room where the noise was coming from, he found the suspect who appeared “upset” and was pointing a gun in his direction, which is when he told police he left the room.
Officers knocked on the motel room door. When they got no response, they performed surveillance on the room and could see the curtains being pulled back, as if someone was looking through the window, the report stated.
They also found a black Dodge Charger in the parking lot with a Nevada license plate that reportedly belonged to one of the suspects, which turned out to be a rental car out of Las Vegas.
While still in the parking lot, officers watched as three individuals “sprinted” from the room to what turned out to be a waiting Uber ride. Officers attempted to stop the trio, which is when two of the suspects complied. The third suspect took off running south on 400 East.
The suspect was located in a side yard of a residence and taken into custody. He was later identified as 33-year-old Anthony Ricketts, who told officers he had chest pain and was transported to the hospital to be checked by the medical staff.
In the hotel room where the suspect was staying, officers found a BB gun that was hidden underneath one of the mattresses, along with drug paraphernalia and other items. At the hospital, the suspect denied any drug use that day, adding the only reason he stayed in the room was to “try and convince” the other guest not to sell drugs.
The arrest report states that officers later learned that Ricketts had reportedly flushed methamphetamine down the toilet prior to their arrival.
Stock image of Purgatory Correctional Facility in Washington County, Utah | Photo by Cody Blowers, St. George News
The suspect was arrested and booked into jail on a possession charge that was enhanced to a third-degree felony due to the suspect’s criminal history, the most recent of which the officer noted was an arrest in August.
In that case, a corrections officer recovered suspected methamphetamine from the suspect’s property at the jail. The previous case is still pending in the courts.
The previous month, the defendant was charged with second-degree felony possession of a stolen vehicle following a pursuit with officers that reached triple-digit speeds on May 23, and he was charged two months later. He pleaded guilty to the felony charge in October and was placed on three years’ probation and ordered into treatment.
Following the recent arrest, Ricketts was booked into jail shortly after 5 a.m. on Thanksgiving day and made an initial appearance on Friday. He is scheduled to appear for a preliminary hearing on Dec. 12, and he remains in custody without bail.
Madison Nichole Schafer, 22, the second suspect, was also arrested and booked into jail on misdemeanor drug and paraphernalia charges and was later released on bail. A third suspect, 37-year-old Kristoffer Tabyer Jackson, was also booked into jail the following day on misdemeanor unlawful detention. He remains in custody at the time of this report.
This report is based on statements from court records, police or other responders and may not contain the full scope of findings. Persons arrested or charged are presumed innocent until found guilty in a court of law or as otherwise decided by a trier-of-fact.
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