Registered sex offender dressed in Elmo costume arrested at Utah farmers market
04/18/2023 12:56 pm PDT
LEHI, Utah (TCD) -- Detectives with the Utah County Sheriff’s Office arrested a 74-year-old registered sex offender who reportedly dressed as Elmo and posed in photos at a farmers market.
The Utah County Sheriff’s Office initially received a report that the Lehi Farmers Market was violating Utah County code and zoning ordinances. On April 10, a Utah County Sheriff’s Office detective was assigned to investigate and later learned one of the Lehi Farmers Market operators, Larry Neff Jarvis, is listed on the Utah Sex Offender Registry.
Detectives with the Sheriff’s Office discovered Jarvis’ listed address on the registry is in Saratoga Springs even though he resides at the Lehi Farmers Market near 7400 North 8000 West. Authorities reportedly spoke with residents at his listed address in Saratoga Springs and learned he has not lived there for at least three months.
Sex offenders on the registry are required to update their address within three days of moving.
According to the Sheriff’s Office, detectives also discovered social media photos of Jarvis dressed as "Sesame Street" character Elmo. The Lehi Farmers Market reportedly hosts multiple children’s activities, such as a petting zoo, trailer tractor rides, and "candy drops" from a helicopter. The Sheriff’s Office said registered sex offenders must have "written permission from the parents of any child being accompanied by that person."
On April 14, Jarvis was arrested and booked into the Utah County Jail on charges of fail to update sex offender registry address and sex offender violation in protected area. He posted $5,000 bail and was released the same day.
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