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ST. GEORGE — The pair accused of taking a stolen car to a usually quiet St. George neighborhood on Oct. 25 before one of them allegedly set it on fire was trying to avoid getting in trouble for using drugs, police say.
![](https://www.stgeorgeutah.com/wp-content/uploads/2018/11/Screen-Shot-2018-11-01-at-4.48.57-PM.png)
Samuel Lee Duncan and Jennifer Smith, who are both from Union, Missouri, were driving the stolen sedan when it started breaking down in St. George, St. George Police officer Tiffany Atkin said. They drove it to Barcelona Drive near the intersection of Hidden Valley Drive, where Duncan then allegedly set the car on fire, Atkin said.
Read more: Car consumed by flames, explosions; couple spotted running away from scene
Several witnesses at the scene told St. George News they saw the pair placing a gas canister in the front of the vehicle before the car started bursting into flames and exploding. No injuries were reported and no surrounding homes were affected by the fire, but the car was burned to a crisp after firefighters extinguished the flames.
“Because of the issue they were having with (the car) starting to not work, they chose to burn it to avoid getting in trouble,” Atkin said.
A boy at the scene told St. George News he saw the pair smoking marijuana before the car caught on fire then running away from the scene with several pieces of luggage. Their plan was to hitchhike away to avoid getting arrested, Atkin said.
![](https://www.stgeorgeutah.com/wp-content/uploads/2018/10/fire-suspect.jpg)
Methamphetamine was found inside the burned car by police officers, Atkin said.
Police quickly caught up to the suspects and arrested them about one block away from the fire. They were both booked into Purgatory Correctional Facility.
Duncan was charged with felonies for theft and arson, as well as misdemeanors for giving false information to police, possessing marijuana and possession of drug paraphernalia. Smith was charged with a felony for possessing a stolen vehicle and a misdemeanor for possessing drug paraphernalia.
At the time of this report, Smith has been released from jail while Duncan remains in custody with a $20,850 bail.
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Twitter: @STGnews | @SpencerRicks
Copyright St. George News, SaintGeorgeUtah.com LLC, 2018, all rights reserved.
Such a violent and distressing picture. Shame on you SG News for posting this without blurring it out. What if there is a dead person in that car? WHAT THEN??
OMG that would be so cool. Stgnews, if you could please post pics of dead people in cars that’d be so awesome! And please give debragubler full credit for the wonderful suggestion! #forevergrateful
Great article St George news. I love the pictures good job on posting the pictures and the article
Wow, take it easy snowflake, go to your safe space and calm down.
Snowflake? Hardly. Debra is as conservative as it gets. She loves Trump.
STGnews, please post more of these “violent and distressing” pictures, especially those showing fires. Maybe it’ll help debragubler the snowflake to melt a little faster…..
More rocket scientists…
LOL ! anybody need a babysitter ?
Curious why they weren’t charged for possession of meth that was allegedly found in the car, but were charged with marijuana possession that this article does not state it was found.
Was the meth that was allegedly found in the car the only thing that didnt “burn to a crisp?”
A whole new way to cook meth?
debraguler:
“What if there was a dead person in the car?” READ the article. There WASN’T. What if there was an alien standing by the car? Please, quit Horriblizing. STGNews does an amazing job of reporting things and posting pictures as they are. No sugar-coating, just real news. Seems to me that you may want to avoid this news source and go to the competing “newpaper” who will sweeten things up to your liking.
Sorry for offending everyone with my opinion. I’m entitled to my own opinion! Wow
What is your problem? There is nothing distressing about this. If you can’t handle a PG version of news stories you need to get off the internet.
It would apply if you were stating your own opinion. However, your stated words are not your own opinion they are fabricated and a complete lie.
Opinions can be anything. I say it like it is. That’s why Trump is our president. He says his opinion and he doesn’t care who he offends.
Lol. You’re a mess! Bless your heart.
Ladybug, you are too kind.
I hear that alot. Lol
Yep… spoken like a true Trump supporter. Heaven help us all!