Tag: utah

Utah Oil Tycoon James Jensen and Wife Arrested in $300M Mexican Oil Smuggling Scheme — Feds Raid $9.2M Mansion with Battering Ram

Federal agents have arrested Utah oil magnate James Lael Jensen, his wife Kelly Anne Jensen, and two of their sons, Maxwell Sterling Jensen (aka “Max”) and Zachary Golden Jensen, in connection with a sprawling $300 MILLION smuggling and money laundering conspiracy tied to Mexican criminal organizations.

Court records reveal that all four members of the Jensen family were arrested on Wednesday, April 23 — with sons Max and Zachary taken into custody in the Rio Grande Valley, while James and Kelly Jensen were apprehended at their 26,893-square-foot mansion in Sandy, Utah, reportedly worth over $9.1 million.

The arrest was carried out by the U.S. Marshals Violent Fugitive Apprehension Team, equipped with a battering ram and tactical gear, according to KSLTV.

“James Jensen conspired with his wife, Kelly Jensen, and two of his sons, Maxwell and Zachary Jensen, to launder proceeds from sales of illegally imported crude oil,” a warrant filed for James Jensen’s arrest states.

“The payments for this crude oil were directed to businesses in Mexico that operate only through the permission of Mexican criminal organization. James Jensen was aware that the payments he made were going to these Mexican criminal organizations.”

According to KRGV, ” Federal court records say that they have been ordered to report to the Brownsville federal courthouse by Thursday, May 8, where their sons have already made their initial court appearance.”

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Two State Capitals Adopt LGBT Flags as Official City Flags in Bid to Circumvent Law

“Cutting off your nose to spite your face” is a metaphorical expression.

I’m not letting most of you, our infinitely wise readership, at home in on this self-evident fact. Instead, this is more of a public service announcement to the family, friends, and co-workers of those employed or elected by the cities of Boise, Idaho, and Salt Lake City, Utah: Keep sharp objects away from these people for the next few weeks or anytime you hear someone saying something about their visage. Thank me later.

I mention this because, within hours of each other, lawmakers in both state capitals, 330 miles away, passed laws that made the LGBT rainbow “pride” flag and other flags official city flags in order to sidestep state laws that would have barred the display of such flags.

According to KSL-TV in Salt Lake City, “[t]he new flags would add the sego lily logo from Salt Lake City’s city flag to the Juneteenth, Progress Pride and transgender flags” in order to make them official city flags, essentially a move to sidestep a bill that would ban flying most flags that were not the official national, state, city, or school flags.

BoiseDev reported a similar reasoning behind the move “retroactively designating the Pride flag and the Donate Life flag, commemorating April as Donate Life Month, honoring the benefits of organ donation, as official flags of the City of Boise. This puts these two flags alongside the traditional blue City of Boise flag featuring the Idaho State Capitol as official flags of the city’s government.”

“This move comes after weeks of tension over [the mayor’s] decision to continue flying the Progress Pride flag in front of city hall in defiance of HB 96 brought by Rep. Heather Scott, R-Blanchard.

“That bill, passed in the 2025 legislative session, restricted the flags local governments in Idaho can fly to a specific list of flags, including the United States flag, the State of Idaho flag, official city flags, the POW/MIA flag, branches of the U.S. military, Indian tribal flags, flags for colleges, universities or public schools and the flags of other nations for special occasions.”

Now, it’s worth mentioning that, when conservatives protested against the universal protection for killing babies in the womb and for same-sex marriage, the Supreme Court miraculously discovered in the Constitution — we were reminded that we were one nation and should respect the law of that nation — “penumbras” and “emanations” conveniently located in a vaguely written amendment, which originally dealt with the aftermath of the Civil War but is now used as a cudgel for every left-wing cause that cannot pass muster at the ballot box.

Now, two states have passed perfectly legal and clear laws about what flags may be displayed, a clear shot across the bow of liberal locales that put rainbow or transgender flags atop poles across the city for “pride” month, often overshadowing or ignoring the flag of the nation or state and alienating the electorate.

Very well, Boise and Salt Lake City are saying after the massive backlash: We’re going to make symbols of enforced acceptance of sexual deviance official city flags because nyahhhh!

“The feedback we have gotten since we ventured into this space has been overwhelming from local Boiseans in support of this because we know that’s not just a flag. We know it says who we are, and we know that this bill was about just one flag,” Boise Mayor Lauren McLean said.

“We now have three official flags in this city in response to this bill, but most importantly, that action demonstrates who we are, the values we hold, our commitment to those seen and unseen to show you are welcome and wanted here.”

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A Win For Medical Autonomy: Utah Becomes First State To Ban Fluoride In Drinking Water

The Utah legislature passed and sent a bill that bans local governments from adding fluoride to public drinking water to Governor Cox’s desk. The governor intends to sign the bill. The Utah Dental Association opposes the ban and is calling on the governor to veto it.

According to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, drinking fluoridated water reduces cavities in both adults and children by 25 percent. The US Department of Health and Human Services advises an “optimal concentration” of 0.7 milligrams of fluoride per liter of water (0.7 ppm). Levels exceeding 4.0 ppm may lead to dental and skeletal fluorosis, resulting in mottled tooth enamel and brittle bones.

While 0.7 ppm of fluoride in the water supply is safe, dentists do not recommend fluoride supplements for children under six months of age. Recent studies have associated high levels of fluoride ingestion with reduced IQ in children.

In 1901, a Colorado dentist named Frederick McKay discovered that fluoride was associated with reduced tooth decay. In 1945, Grand Rapids, MI, became the first municipality to add it to its public drinking water. By the 1960s, fluoridated water had become widespread throughout the country.

Nowadays, people can obtain fluoride to prevent tooth decay in many other forms. Consumers can purchase bottled water containing fluoride, over-the-counter mouthwashes containing fluoride, and fluoride varnish from dentists and, in some states, pharmacists. Dentists can also prescribe fluoride supplements. And, of course, many toothpaste products contain fluoride.

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Majority Of Utah Voters Support Legalizing Marijuana, Poll Finds As GOP Leader Downplays Reform Prospects

A majority of Utah voters support legalizing adult-use marijuana in the state, according to a new poll.

The survey from Noble Predictive Insights, which was commissioned by the nonprofit Keep Utah Medical, found that 52 percent of registered Utah voters would support a ballot initiative to end cannabis prohibition, while 38 percent would oppose it.

Support for legalization was highest among Democrats (76 percent), followed by independents (61 percent) and Republicans (41 percent).

“YES wins the left and the middle and divides the right. In a red state like Utah, that’s enough to get to a solid—though not overwhelming—margin of victory,” the polling firm said in a memo.

“Over the last decade, major political victories came from a populist-traditionalist coalition: The GOP’s wings would coalesce, form a majority together, and govern. If legalization were to win, the coalition would be built from left to right—a progressive minority joining with the center and Republican moderates. This is possible—but it requires careful execution.”

Alex Iorg, co-founder of Keep Utah Medical, told ABC4 that while the results of the poll indicate that an adult-use measure could also narrowly pass, the organization is not currently planning to lead such a proposal.

“I believe the majority now support recreational use because they see it as an easier option [than] Utah’s current medical program,” he said.

“We need to make the medical program easier to navigate. Rural, disabled, and other patients need telemedicine just like [they] can do for other medications,” he said. “Out-of-state recreational dispensaries have more advertising rights than Utah in-state medical pharmacies. We have to level the playfield.”

Here’s the text of the survey question posed to voters: 

“Currently, medical marijuana is legal in Utah, but some Utahns still obtain marijuana illegally for medical and recreational purposes. Would you support or oppose a ballot initiative that legalized marijuana for all purposes—including recreational use?”

The survey involved interviews with 609 registered Utah voters from March 11-13, with a +/- 3.97 percentage point margin of error.

Asked about the prospect of advancing adult-use legalization in Utah, House Speaker Mike Schultz (R) said he has a “huge problem with turning Utah into a recreational state.”

“It’s not going to happen,” he said.

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Judge who allegedly had a relationship with an accused child predator and let him out on bail is now accused of similar crimes

A Utah judge was put on unpaid leave after police accused him of committing several sex crimes involving children. The next day, a former fire chief from the same locality was charged with similar crimes. But court documents revealed an even deeper connection between the two men.

According to court documents obtained by KSL, a local NBC affiliate, Ned Brady Hansen, 54, was charged on Tuesday with eight counts of aggravated sexual exploitation of a minor. When Hansen was first arrested on Jan. 27 — when he was still Tremonton’s fire chief — investigators working his case asked a judge to hold him in custody without bail due to the nature of his alleged crimes.

That judge, Kevin Christensen, 64, let Hansen go free.

On Monday, Christensen was charged with seven felony sex crimes involving children and obstructing justice. And according to an affidavit for Hansen’s arrest, the two men had been engaged in a “sexual relationship,” KSL reported.

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Utah GOP to End Universal Mail-In Voting, Moves to Restore Election Integrity

Utah Republicans are making a stand for election security, passing legislation that will dramatically change how mail-in ballots are handled in the state. The GOP-controlled Legislature has approved legislation that would end universal mail-in voting and implement stronger voter identification requirements. The bill now awaits the signature of Republican Governor Spencer Cox, who has already signaled his support.

For years, Utah has been one of the few Republican-led states that embraced universal mail-in voting, which automatically sends ballots to every registered voter. But amid growing concerns about election integrity, particularly from voters who have watched election chaos unfold in other states, Utah lawmakers are taking action to tighten security measures and stop potential absentee ballot fraud.

Eight states and Washington, D.C., allow all elections to be conducted entirely by mail: California, Colorado, Hawaii, Nevada, Oregon, Utah, Vermont and Washington state.

Five Republicans joined all Democrats in opposing the bill, which passed with veto-proof margins in the House and fell one vote short of a veto-proof majority in the Senate.

Democrat State Sen. Nate Blouin was quoted by the Associated Press as saying Republicans were “conspiracy thinking” around election security.

Under the new Utah law, voters who wish to receive mail-in ballots must opt-in, rather than having ballots sent to them automatically. This represents a major shift from the current system, which many critics argue is vulnerable to fraud and manipulation. Additionally, the bill strengthens voter ID requirements, requiring anyone returning a ballot by mail or drop box to provide the last four digits of their driver’s license, state ID, or Social Security number.

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USU student felt unsafe in dorm with trans resident assistant, testifies to legislature

A young female student at USU, who lived in a women’s dorm suite where a purported transgender resident assistant was assigned after Christmas break, called the RA placement unacceptable and said she did not feel safe.

In her first interview, Avery Saltzman said she felt compelled to speak up for herself and “to protect girls.”

When asked if it was an assignment she could have lived with, Saltzman said no.

“No, not at all,” the 19-year-old freshman said. “It’s unacceptable, really, feeling unsafe in your own private spaces.”

Saltzman’s mother first raised concerns weeks ago, and after initially defending its housing policies, USU suddenly announced an “external review” of the programs.

GOP legislative leaders said lawmakers would address the concerns — and Thursday, Saltzman testified in favor of HB 269, Privacy Protections in Sex-designated Areas.

Among other things, the bill says, “to preserve the individual privacy of males and females, a degree-granting institution that provides student housing may only rent to, assign, or otherwise place an individual in a dwelling unit that is sex-designated within the institution student housing.”

Saltzman said she is not anti-trans, she supports inclusive housing, and moved rather than share the women’s space — which has a shared bathroom — with a transgender RA.

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‘Very bizarre’ large explosion heard across multiple cities in Salt Lake Valley

A loud explosion in the sky was heard overnight in over multiple cities in the Salt Lake Valley, according to multiple tips sent to KSL TV and police.

According to the West Valley City Police Department, callers from West Valley City, Taylorsville and even Murray reported hearing the loud boom just before 3 a.m. Wednesday. Outdoor home surveillance camera footage from one residence also showed a flash of light.

“We got calls that were just, you know, hundreds of yards apart from each other, a mile apart from each other and that’s just not typical,” said Lt. Bill Merritt with West Valley City police.

Merritt said that a West Valley City officer was one of the spectators and reported seeing the large flashes of light and the large boom, too. Officers responded in the area of some reports and couldn’t locate any odd activity or objects that could have fallen. Then, the reports kept coming.

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CPS Is Investigating an Influencer Because Her Son Flinched in a Video

Social media influencers who post their children online often face their share of criticism. But now, if their audience disapproves of their parenting decisions, they could also find themselves being investigated by child protective services (CPS).

The latest parent to face a CPS investigation for showing innocuous footage of her children is Hannah Hiatt, an influencer who has built an audience of half a million followers for videos detailing her life as a nurse with two young children. Last month, Hiatt posted a video in which her toddler-aged son appeared to flinch slightly as his father walked toward him to hand him a box of ice cream mochi. While most wouldn’t think much of the clip, many viewers seized on the moment, arguing that it was proof that Hiatt and her husband were abusing their children.

The now-deleted video went viral, with many users making videos of their own debating the meaning of the clip. Angry internet users also found another video of Hiatt, in which her husband flicked her son’s hand away from some french fries, again claiming that this too was evidence of physical abuse. 

“The flinch breaks my heart,” one TikTok user commented.

“Why are people like this allowed to procreate,” posted another.

An Ogden, Utah Police Department spokesperson told People that an investigation had been opened against Hiatt and her family following “numerous reports through Child Protective Service and police.”

While the investigation is ongoing, and it remains unclear whether Hiatt will be found guilty of any wrongdoing, she is far from the first person to face a CPS investigation after upsetting an internet mob. In April, influencers J.D. and Britney Lott faced a child welfare investigation after Reddit users became convinced that the newborn was being medically neglected—though a medical examination confirmed that the child was healthy. And in 2021, a father who tweeted jokes about his daughter’s struggles to use a can opener ended up getting a visit from CPS after an enraged internet mob reported him for alleged child abuse.

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Federal agents in Utah under investigation after FBI raid: Sources

Federal special agents in Utah are under investigation after the FBI reportedly raided the Utah Department of Homeland Security in recent days, according to sources.

Sources close to federal law enforcement told ABC4.com that the FBI raided the DHS office in West Valley City within the last several days, and at least one agent was under arrest as of Dec. 9.

Sources said several agents were being investigated for a drug trafficking conspiracy, and at least two agents are suspected to be involved in the incident.

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