Wanted Utah Fugitive Arrested In Colorado

Wanted Utah Fugitive Arrested In Colorado

TOWAOC, Colo.-Sunday evening, police arrested a man wanted in connection with an assault on federal officials on the Ute Mountain Indian Reservation in southwestern Colorado.

A Bureau of Indian Affairs officer arrested Cecil Vijil at 7:00 pm MDT while walking along the side of U.S. Highway 160 south of Towaoc, Colo. about 18 miles southwest of Cortez, Colo.

This was confirmed by a report from the San Juan County Sheriff’s Office.

Vijil had last been seen at Aneth, Utah on Navajo Nation land in San Juan County Thursday.

He was reportedly involved in a shooting that occurred there around 3:00 pm that afternoon.

Law enforcement first pursued Vijil at the 7-Eleven convenience store of Mexican Hat, Utah, southwest of Aneth, per a statement from the San Juan County Sheriff’s Office.

The FBI then stated he had fired multiple rounds at an FBI special agent and a San Juan County sheriff’s deputy who had gone into a house in Aneth to serve a search warrant.

No one was injured in the arrest.

A warrant was then issued for Vijil’s arrest as he had previously been investigated for assaulting a federal officer and discharging a firearm during, and in relation to, a violent crime.

Without incident, he was taken into custody per the news release.

Authorities did not say Vijil had been booked into the San Juan County Jail at Monticello or elsewhere.

Authorities also sought a second man, Gary Lee Jr., in connection with the Thursday shooting.

It was unclear if Lee had been arrested or if he is still at large.

The FBI had offered up to $5,000 for Vijil’s arrest and conviction. The San Juan County Sheriff’s Office offered an $1,000 reward.