Gallegos pleaded guilty in March 1991 to first-degree felony aggravated murder in the shooting death of 18-year-old Tammy Snydergaard of Sandy. He was spared the death penalty but was ordered to spend the rest of his life in prison for the slaying. Diaz-Arevalo shot and killed his 23-year-old girlfriend, Lindsey Fawson, on March 16, 2005, with a sawed-off shotgun while her young son sat nearby.

Johnson is from Sandy. The Rogerses are from Roy. All of them were at the same barn dance earlier that evening but did not know each other. When Johnson returned to his trailer, located in a remote area where the next closest home is a mile away, he was immediately grabbed around the neck. He then felt a knife being pointed at his side. Although they didn't identify themselves, "When I felt the arm around my neck, (I thought), 'Who else could it be?"'

Gallegos and Diaz-Arevalo did not say much to Johnson as they tied his hands and feet with duct tape and then tied him to his trailer with torn bed sheets.

"I figured the less I said, the better off I'd be," Johnson said.

About 20 to 30 minutes after the escaped inmates left Johnson, he was able to free himself and ran to the road for help. The only car that he saw go by that night was the Rogerses'.

Johnson said he would use his money to pay some recent medical bills and buy some Christmas presents. The Rogerses said they also planned to pay bills and use the money for Christmas.

The three have since become good friends. After the ceremony, the Rogerses were overheard talking to Johnson about finding a time they could stop by to help him make repairs to his roof.

"We always try to help people out," David Rogers said.

Gallegos and Diaz-Arevalo were indicted by a federal grand jury in connection with their escape and kidnapping of Johnson. Both were being held Wednesday at the Utah State Prison.

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E-mail: preavy@desnews.com