Kevin
2015-12-28 08:58:03 UTC
SALT LAKE CITY The remains of a man police believe shot and
wounded a state park ranger in 2010 and eluded more than 100
officers in a desert manhunt have been found, authorities said.
Skeletal remains believed to be those of Lance Leeroy Arellano
were discovered Thursday in a narrow cave near Moab, the Grand
County Sheriff's Office said in a press release. Arellano was 40
when he disappeared.
Officers spent days searching rugged desert canyons and caves
for Arellano after identifying him as the suspect in the
shooting of Utah park ranger Brody Young.
Young, who was 34 at the time, survived the shooting with
injuries to his arm, leg and abdomen. A message seeking comment
from Young on Thursday night was not immediately returned.
Gary Lewis, a manager of Young's motivational speaking business,
said police contacted Young seeking help identifying the remains.
Young and his family would not be commenting, Lewis said, citing
the holidays. He noted that the Christmas Eve discovery also
marked the five-year anniversary of the day Young returned home
from the hospital.
Young still works for Utah State Parks in the agency's boating
safety program.
"He's made a complete recovery but he still carries around four
bullets," Lewis said.
The Grand County Sheriff's Office said a college student
discovered the remains in the cave. Nearby was a bag containing
a handgun, ammunition and binoculars.
The sheriff's office said the student, Caleb Shumway, was
specifically searching the area for Arellano.
Shumway, a 23-year-old Utah Valley University student, told The
Associated Press than he and his 15-year-old brother had decided
to spend two weeks over winter break searching for Arellano -- a
mission their police officer father helped with five years
earlier. An outstanding $30,000 reward for Arellano was part of
the draw, Shumway said.
"For a poor college student, that's pretty appealing," he said.
Shumway added that resolving the case was a big thing for the
Moab community. "There's lots of closure that would come with
finding this guy because no one really knew if he was dead or
alive," he explained.
Shumway, an Eagle Scout who grew up exploring caves and canyons
in the area, said he was confident he could find Arellano's body
after studying the case and discussing the search area with his
father.
"I kind of had a good idea of what had happened," he said.
He and his brother were two days into their search when they
discovered a bone and the bag with the gun near the mouth of a
cave on Wednesday.
Shumway hopped down and under boulders and took pictures. Then
they met with police Thursday and took officers back out to the
site. They found more skeletal remains, clothing and another
backpack with another gun deeper in the cave.
Shumway believes the first bone and bag he spotted had been
recently dragged to the cave's mouth by an animal. He was still
awaiting word on whether he would get the reward.
Authorities said evidence left with the remains led
investigators to believe it was Arellano, but they did not offer
further details.
The remains will be sent to the state medical examiner to be
identified.
Messages seeking further details from Grand County Sheriff
Steven White were not immediately returned.
Young was shot when he approached Arrellano in his car near the
Poison Spider Mesa Trailhead on Nov. 19, 2010, according to
authorities. Young told Arrellano that he was in a no-camping
area, and when he attempted to verify the man's name and
birthdate, he was shot several times in the back, authorities
said.
Police believed Arrellano may have been injured as Young
returned fire.
More than 160 law enforcement officers combed a 15-squre mile
area near Dead Horse State Park. They recovered a rifle,
backpack and tattered bloody T-shirt.
Prosecutors had filed first-degree felony attempted murder and
other charges against Arrellano.
http://www.foxnews.com/us/2015/12/26/eagle-scout-finds-state-
park-gunmans-remains-in-utah-cave-5-years-
later.html?intcmp=ob_article_sidebar_video&intcmp=obinsite
wounded a state park ranger in 2010 and eluded more than 100
officers in a desert manhunt have been found, authorities said.
Skeletal remains believed to be those of Lance Leeroy Arellano
were discovered Thursday in a narrow cave near Moab, the Grand
County Sheriff's Office said in a press release. Arellano was 40
when he disappeared.
Officers spent days searching rugged desert canyons and caves
for Arellano after identifying him as the suspect in the
shooting of Utah park ranger Brody Young.
Young, who was 34 at the time, survived the shooting with
injuries to his arm, leg and abdomen. A message seeking comment
from Young on Thursday night was not immediately returned.
Gary Lewis, a manager of Young's motivational speaking business,
said police contacted Young seeking help identifying the remains.
Young and his family would not be commenting, Lewis said, citing
the holidays. He noted that the Christmas Eve discovery also
marked the five-year anniversary of the day Young returned home
from the hospital.
Young still works for Utah State Parks in the agency's boating
safety program.
"He's made a complete recovery but he still carries around four
bullets," Lewis said.
The Grand County Sheriff's Office said a college student
discovered the remains in the cave. Nearby was a bag containing
a handgun, ammunition and binoculars.
The sheriff's office said the student, Caleb Shumway, was
specifically searching the area for Arellano.
Shumway, a 23-year-old Utah Valley University student, told The
Associated Press than he and his 15-year-old brother had decided
to spend two weeks over winter break searching for Arellano -- a
mission their police officer father helped with five years
earlier. An outstanding $30,000 reward for Arellano was part of
the draw, Shumway said.
"For a poor college student, that's pretty appealing," he said.
Shumway added that resolving the case was a big thing for the
Moab community. "There's lots of closure that would come with
finding this guy because no one really knew if he was dead or
alive," he explained.
Shumway, an Eagle Scout who grew up exploring caves and canyons
in the area, said he was confident he could find Arellano's body
after studying the case and discussing the search area with his
father.
"I kind of had a good idea of what had happened," he said.
He and his brother were two days into their search when they
discovered a bone and the bag with the gun near the mouth of a
cave on Wednesday.
Shumway hopped down and under boulders and took pictures. Then
they met with police Thursday and took officers back out to the
site. They found more skeletal remains, clothing and another
backpack with another gun deeper in the cave.
Shumway believes the first bone and bag he spotted had been
recently dragged to the cave's mouth by an animal. He was still
awaiting word on whether he would get the reward.
Authorities said evidence left with the remains led
investigators to believe it was Arellano, but they did not offer
further details.
The remains will be sent to the state medical examiner to be
identified.
Messages seeking further details from Grand County Sheriff
Steven White were not immediately returned.
Young was shot when he approached Arrellano in his car near the
Poison Spider Mesa Trailhead on Nov. 19, 2010, according to
authorities. Young told Arrellano that he was in a no-camping
area, and when he attempted to verify the man's name and
birthdate, he was shot several times in the back, authorities
said.
Police believed Arrellano may have been injured as Young
returned fire.
More than 160 law enforcement officers combed a 15-squre mile
area near Dead Horse State Park. They recovered a rifle,
backpack and tattered bloody T-shirt.
Prosecutors had filed first-degree felony attempted murder and
other charges against Arrellano.
http://www.foxnews.com/us/2015/12/26/eagle-scout-finds-state-
park-gunmans-remains-in-utah-cave-5-years-
later.html?intcmp=ob_article_sidebar_video&intcmp=obinsite