PROVO, Utah— A Provo man was arrested Monday after allegedly stealing a truck, a gun and a “large amount” of property, officials said.
A probable cause statement from Utah County said Richard John Brown, 20, who is listed as a transient, is facing a charge of theft by receiving stolen property, a third-degree felony.
Brown was initially arrested for being in possession of a stolen vehicle, the statement said.
“Upon arrest it was found that suspect Brown had a large amount of property which was suspicious,” the arresting officer wrote. “Much of that property was seized for investigation. One of the items was an Apple iPhone. A contact was obtained from that phone and I was able to speak to that person/victim.”
The victim explained that on Monday night, her residence in Provo was burglarized and a large amount of property was stolen, including large power tools, personal property, cash, and personal electronics. That victim and her 18-year-old daughter described in detail some of that property which matched exactly the property on Brown’s person at the time of his arrest, the statement said.
“Some of the property was located in drawstring type bags which Brown stated he ‘found’ at a Maverik gas station earlier that morning,” the statement said. “Brown’s explanation for having possession of the property was extremely vague and inconsistent with statements he previously made.”
The property claimed by victim included a GoPro camera, an old iPhone, an iPod, a small camcorder, and an iWatch. According to the victim, she was also missing between $800 and $1,000 in cash that she was saving.
“Money seized from Brown at the time of his arrest was $897 to which he gave no explanation of how he obtained it only that he was ‘saving money for a storage unit,’” the statement said. “Additionally a .40 Cal Glock G27 pistol was found on the person of Brown at the time of his detainment.”
On Tuesday, a victim came forward to report that a pistol stored in his vehicle was likely taken on Monday night when he was visiting a friend in Payson.
The total value of the property found on and in the possession of Brown and returned to victims is approximately $2,500.
There is still an ongoing investigation for several outstanding theft incidents that likely involved the suspect.
Brown was ordered to be to be released with conditions.
