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An Edition of the
We A r e S a n p e t e . c o m Thursday, May 30, 2019 • Vol. 128, No. 22 • 75 cents
Vidrio sentenced to prison for Nay murder ASHLEY STILSON
Daily Herald
PROVO — More than two years after the body of Wesley Nay was found buried in a grassy meadow near Indianola, Mt. Pleasant gang member, Raul Vidrio, the man responsible for his murder was sentenced to prison May 23. Judge James Taylor fixed Vidrio with a glare as he ordered the 22-year-old to serve at least 15 years to life for murder, a first-degree felony. “This particular case is an unusually heinous killing,” Taylor said. “It was calculated, it was planned and it involved him digging his own grave. It involved murdering him in a heinous and callous way.” Vidrio will also serve one-to-15 years for a second-degree felony of obstruction of justice and zero-to-five years for a third-degree felony of desecration of a body. Taylor ordered each sentence to run consecutively. Family members of Nay hugged one another and wept throughout the court hearing
in Fourth District Court. “Homicide is a very hard word to digest when it is someone you love,” said Laurie Moser. “It was devastating. I couldn’t control my tears at the heartbreaking news.” During the sentencing, she recounted a timeline of events from when her cousin went missing in September 2016, to finding his body the next month, to attending the funeral and testifying in court hearings. “It just rips my heart out. All the pain and anguish and why did all this happen to such a good-hearted kid?” she said. In a letter read to the courtroom, Nay’s mother said she knew something was wrong when her son was reported missing because he would never go anywhere without telling her. “It felt like my heart was ripped out of my chest and my soul was full of emptiness,” she said. Nay, 22, died from stabbing and blunt trauma, according to the State Medical Examiner’s
Office. According to charging documents, Vidrio reportedly “placed Nay’s body in a shallow grave lined with wood, doused it with gasoline and lit it on fire. Once Nay’s body was mostly destroyed and disfigured by the fire, the defendant partially filled in the grave, concealing Nay’s remains under several inches of dirt.” Investigators also found a video on Vidrio’s phone of Nay digging a hole in the area where he was found. A Utah County Sheriff’s Office detective and family members visited the grave site to cover the hole sometime after Nay’s funeral. “It was extremely hard to be at the location where Wesley was murdered,” Moser said. “I am very glad Wesley was found. It was good to know he could come home.” Deputies arrested Vidrio in September 2016 for stealing a truck and found “shovels, a pick and gas jugs” in the bed of the truck, the probable cause statement reported.
Raul Francisco Vidrio A large knife was also inside the truck with blood determined to belong to Nay, charges stated. Vidrio was a known drug dealer in Mt. Pleasant and also associated
with a specific gang, officers stated. Deputy Utah County Attorney David Sturgill said the judge imposed the maximum penalty allowed by law.
Wesley Dee Nay “Hopefully this means Raul will go away and do his time and we won’t have to hear from him again,” he said. “I think at the end of the day this is a good resolution.”
17th Annual Rat Fink reunion this weekend Body of missing Ephraim man found
Jacob Christensen EPHRAIM — Sanpete County Sheriff’s Department announced May 25 that the body of Jacob Alma Christensen was located at the bottom of Dry Canyon, west of Ephraim City. He was located by a search party organized by his family. Christensen was last seen May 10 while riding a 2015 red Polaris four-wheeler. His body has been sent to the medical examiner’s office. The cause of
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death has not been determined at this time but foul play is not suspected. Funeral services will be held on Saturday, June 1, at 11 a.m., in the Ephraim Sixth Ward of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, 450 North 200 West, Ephraim. Visitations will be held Friday, May 31, from 6:30 – 8:30 p.m. and prior to services Saturday, from 10-11 a.m., both at the church. The family has asked everyone who knew and loved him to plant a flower in his name. He loved flowers and wanted to plant them everywhere he went as his legacy.
MANTI — Three days of enjoyment await lovers of music and art during the 17th Annual Rat Fink Reunion Thursday, May 30, through Saturday, June 1, at the Rat Fink Store and Museum located at 404 East 300 North, and on Saturday in Manti City Park, 400 West 200 North. During the three-day event, visitors may certainly get their fill of amazing art and great live performances that can’t be seen elsewhere! This year’s reunion will not disappoint anyone, so plan now to drop in for a visit. The Rat Fink Store and Museum will be open each day of the reunion from 9:30 a.m.8:30 p.m., so visitors can certainly walk away with a ton of awesome memorabilia. Music will be provided throughout by JP Kennedy, the official Rat Fink DJ. Dozens of Rat Fink artists help to infuse the reunion with a unique level of energy, creativity and fun. There is certainly no other event that brings so many Rat Fink fans together to share their common interest! Thursday, May 30 At 10 a.m., the Rat Fink artists will be available to create special items for people. Visitors are encouraged to come see what the artists brought this year and meet and greet the artists. Shop in the Rat Fink Store, tour the Rat Fink Museum or enjoy one of the limited tours of the Roth residence. Interested runners can also register for the 5KFun Run. Early registration will qualify them for this year’s unique tee shirt. At 1 p.m., there will be two special items unveiled, first will be the Rat Fink BBQ created by Sjaak Klein Heerenbrink, a metal artist based in the Netherlands. Then the unveiling of the statue of Ed Roth, the Big Daddy himself, created by Tony Natsoulas from Sacramento, CA.
At 3 p.m., a live demonstration by Chad “Abnormal” Norman will show how to draw a Rat Fink. At 6 p.m., a live concert will be held by Kirk James “Bluzman” and a fundraising dinner for Dano Bonanno. Banana splits will be available at 8:30 p.m., then the store will close at 9 p.m., until morning. Friday, May 31 At 9 a.m., everyone who missed out the day before, can meet and greet with Rat Fink artists who can make customized personalized items. At 9:30 a.m., a special presentation for this year’s Rat Fink Hall of Fame will take place at the museum. Bob Bubins of the National Corvette Museum will be the guest speaker along with others TBA. The store will also be open and limited tours of the Roth residence will be available. At 11 a.m., there will be a photo shoot of all Corvettes. This photo will be on display in 2020 at the National Corvette Museum in Bowling Green, KY. At 11:30 a.m., Gene “Geno” Chambers and Mike “Mazooma” Babbel will give a pin striping demonstration. From 12:30 to 2 p.m., screened T-Shirt art will be created featuring Greg “Coop” Cooper. At the same time there will be a concert featuring “Summer of ‘89”. While visiting, be sure to check out the awards and auction displays by the Rat Fink Artists. At 2 p.m., plan to attend “Mariah’s Magical Tea Party.” At 6 p.m., dinner will be available and at that same time interested participants can register for the Rat Fink 5k Fun Run at the Roth residence, followed by the race at 7 p.m., at 400 North 300 East. Fun run awards will be presented at the museum after the race at about 8:15 p.m. At 8:30 p.m., banana splits will be available then the store will close at 9 p.m., until morning.
17th Annual Rat Fink Reunion brings avid Rat Fink artists to town for three full days of activities Thursday, May 30, thru Saturday, June 1, in Manti, at the Rat Fink Museum and store, 404 East 300 North, and on Saturday at Manti City Park, 400 West 200 North. Come see custom art as it is created. (Photo by Ray LaFollette, The Pyramid)
Tony Natsoulas stands next to the statue he created of Ed “Big Daddy” Roth which will be unveiled Thursday, May 30, at 1 p.m., in the Rat Fink Museum, 404 East 300 North, Manti. The 17th annual Rat Fink Reunion continues through Saturday, June 1. (Photo courtesy of Ilene Roth) Saturday, June 1 The reunion ends today, but not before lots of additional fun. At 8 a.m., before the museum and store open, the annual Rat Fink Car Show will begin in Manti City Park, 400 West 200 North. The Rat Fink Museum and Rat Fink Store will be open from 9:30 a.m. to 8:30 p.m. From 10 a.m. to 12 noon, the band “Junction 89” will perform a concert in the park followed by a live auction at 1 p.m. The car show awards will take place at 4 p.m.
At 5:30 p.m., with the car show wrapping up, a show car cruise will take place on Manti Main Street. At 6:30 p.m., enjoy a concert by “Junction 89” at the Roth Residence, 404 East 300 North, Manti. During the concert a fundraising dinner will be held for Ryan Dahlberg. Revelers will have another chance to enjoy more music, artists and food. Around 8:30 p.m., don’t miss out on the delicious banana splits after which the reunion wraps up at 9 p.m., till next year.