Burglary-In-Progress Call Has Unexpected Ending in Alpine

ALPINE, Utah – A burglary-in-progress call had an unexpected ending in Alpine Saturday.

 Around 11 a.m. Saturday, Diane Griggs heard a crashing sound at a neighbor’s house. When she went to see what had happened, she noticed a window smashed.

 “Window blown out, glass everywhere. We can still hear glass crunching inside, so we’re thinking intruder or has a deer jumped through the window?” Griggs said.

 Griggs called Lone Peak Police.

 “Officers arrived on scene, kind of checked the perimeter of the house. All the doors were locked except for this window. They were able to find an open door on a second floor,” said Officer Dave Ventrano. “When we clear a house, usually we have our guns out because you have to be prepared if there is somebody in there.”

 As they moved through the house, they finally came face to beak with the intruder.

 “They got to the point on the second floor where they could look down to where the glass was broken and there, laying on the floor, was a turkey,” Ventrano said.

 Ventrano and several neighbors said turkeys and other wildlife are common in the area.

The bird had died after apparently flying through the window. Police called the Utah Division of Wildlife Resources for guidance on what to do with the turkey.

They were told it is a protected species, but they were free to give it to anyone who might want it. It turns out, someone had the perfect plan for it.

 “The person next door actually owns a barbecue place, so they ended up taking the turkey,” Ventrano said.

“The smoker’s there. We might have, like, a neighborhood turkey. I’ve had one of his smoked turkeys before! They’re pretty tasty,” Griggs said.