Hearing for "Mountain Man" cabin burglar set for June

Troy James Knapp, who police believe is the notorious multi-county cabin burglar known as the "Mountain Man," will have a preliminary hearing in June related to alleged crimes in Sanpete County.

The Sanpete County Attorney's Office has charged Knapp with a total of six felonies and five misdemeanors in three separate cases: three counts of second-degree felony burglary; theft by receiving stolen property, a second-degree felony; use of a firearm by a restricted person, a third-degree felony; third-degree felony criminal mischief; three counts of class B misdemeanor theft and two counts of criminal mischief, also class B misdemeanors.

Knapp, 45, appeared in 6th District Court on Wednesday via video feed, and asked for the preliminary hearing, which was set for June 10, according to Utah State Courts officials. Evidence will be presented on that day, and a judge will determine whether there is enough evidence to bind Knapp over for trial.

Probable-cause statements for the three cases cite separate cabin break-ins that took place in October 2012. In one case, the owner of a cabin in Fairview Canyon complained that his cabin had been broken into, and when a Sanpete sheriff's deputy inspected the building, he saw an upstairs bedroom had been inhabited. There were no signs anything had been taken, but it looked as if someone had rummaged through dresser drawers, and a closet door was broken.

In another case, a cabin owner complained that food, pliers and a flashlight had been stolen from his Fairview cabin, and a bottle of liquor and box of Oreos had been consumed.

In the third case, a Fairview cabin owner called police after their cabin was burglarized and a hatchet and GPS system were stolen. Ammo and guns were moved around the cabin, according to court documents, but none were taken.

According to the probable cause statements, Knapp admitted during interviews after his arrest to breaking into all three cabins.

Police say that immediately prior to his capture on April 2, Knapp fired a rifle at a Department of Public Safety helicopter and pointed the weapon at Emery County Sheriff Greg Funk, one of about 50 law officers who converged on the fugitive near Ferron Reservoir. No charges have been filed in connection with those alleged acts.

Sanpete is the fourth county to file charges against Knapp. Iron, Kane and Garfield counties last year filed burglary-related charges dating back to 2007. As of Tuesday, Knapp had a total of 19 felonies and 10 misdemeanors — mostly burglary and theft — filed against him.

Keisel said last week that Sanpete County plans to go ahead with its case against Knapp because he is in custody at its county jail. He said it is unclear in what order or exactly how he will be prosecuted in the other counties.

jmiller@sltrib.com

Twitter: @jm_miller