'Mountain man' who escaped arrest for 6 years in Utah gets decade in prison

ST. GEORGE, Utah, June 10 (UPI) -- A man who escaped arrest for six years by hiding in the Utah mountains has been sentenced to a decade in federal prison for firing at a helicopter.

At a second court appearance Monday, Troy Knapp, 46, pleaded guilty to breaking into hunting cabins. A Utah judge imposed two sentences of one to 15 years, to run concurrently with each other and the federal sentence.

"You perhaps ought to write a book," U.S. District Judge Ted Stewart told Knapp. "You're going to have time to write a book."

Knapp nodded when Stewart told him he is "obviously a man of some intelligence and resource."

Jay Winward, one of Knapp's lawyers, said the sentences were a "just outcome." Authorities said negotiating the plea agreement took time because of the number of law enforcement agencies and victims involved.

During his years on the loose, Knapp lived off the land in the mountains of southern Utah. But he also broke into cabins during the winter and stole food and guns.

Kathy Nester, a defense lawyer, told Utah District Judge Eric Ludlow that Knapp had cooperated with police, telling officers where all the stolen guns had been stashed.

"Thirteen handguns, two rifles and a shotgun were recovered," Nester said. "They were exactly where Mr. Knapp advised law enforcement they would be."

Knapp was arrested last year after he was spotted by a group collecting antlers and was recognized from wanted posters.

Once Knapp completes the federal sentence, he is to be returned to Utah for a parole hearing.