Suspect arrested in 2 alleged burglaries in St. George, investigators have shoe clues – St George News

ST. GEORGE – A suspect was linked to two burglaries in St. George last week after investigators requested a photo of the shoes he wore while incarcerated. The prints turned out to be a match, police said.

On May 15, Matthew Aaron Nelson, 35, of St. George, was arrested on multiple charges in two separate cases filed last week.

The arrest was triggered when officers were dispatched to a St. George residence for a reported burglary, according to charging documents filed with the court.

The complainant told police the incident occurred on May 14, when approximately $2,000 in jewelry was allegedly stolen from a home. Officers received information identifying the suspect as Nelson, who was arrested and jailed later that day.

Meanwhile, officers were attempting to identify a suspect involved in another burglary reported at a residence on South Cambridge Drive two days prior. The author of the report told police that a suspect entered the garage during the night and rummaged through the owner's vehicle.

Officers obtained video footage of the incident that allegedly shows a man with tattoos and blue shoes looking around the property as if to see if anyone was watching, then entering the garage. The man in the security footage is also visible inside the vehicle.

An email was sent to other officers to help identify the suspect. Two days later, Nelson was arrested for the alleged jewelry theft and detectives in the second case noticed that the physical description and tattoos matched the suspect they were looking for.

They asked for a photo to be taken at the prison to see what shoes the inmate was wearing. When they saw the photo, they reported that he was wearing the same slip-on shoes as in the footage captured on South Cambridge Drive.

With the suspect already in custody, the case was filed and Nelson was formally charged with third-degree burglary and misdemeanor vehicle burglary.

Following the suspect's arrest on May 15, he was also formally charged with one count of third-degree theft and two misdemeanor charges of possession of a controlled substance and paraphernalia. On Friday, Nelson made an initial appearance in 5th District Court in St. George.

The case faces a preliminary waiver hearing scheduled for May 30 in St. George. As of this writing, Nelson remains in jail on $5,000 bail.

This report is based on statements from court records, police or other stakeholders and may not contain the complete findings. Persons arrested or charged are presumed innocent until proven guilty in a court of law or otherwise determined by a finder of fact.

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