Southern Utah's 'Most Wanted' named

Mark Clifton Bryant, Geoffrey Lamont Pena, Jason Randy Gerber and Matthew Mark Haynes are officially on notice.

They're wanted by the Washington County Sheriff's Office.

The agency unveiled its first-ever "Southern Utah's Most Wanted" list on Thursday, hoping to publicize the area's most sought after criminals by posting their mug shots and information at www.washeriff.net.

"We have our resources to capture these individuals, but ultimately it comes down to the public," said Brock Bentley, with the Washington County Sheriff's Office Fugitive Apprehension Unit.

Bentley said the most wanted criminals will be the "worst of the worst."

Before the names were even publicized, one of the most wanted fugitives was captured. Daniel Luis Perez, 26, was arrested June 16. He was wanted on warrants, like everyone else on the list.

Washington County Sheriff Kirk Smith has sought to publicize the five most wanted in southern Utah in part because of the popularity of inmate booking information that is posted online from the Purgatory Jail.

"We would encourage the public to access this site frequently and become involved in helping to make our community a safer place," Smith said.

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E-mail: bwinslow@desnews.com