On January 26th, the Park County Sheriff’s Office responded to a report of felony vandalism and arson that occurred to an oil well and tank battery on BLM land in the McCullough Peaks south of Powell. Investigation revealed that unknown individuals used firearms to shoot into bulk propane tanks, oil battery tanks and line heaters in an attempt cause a fire.

The suspects also attempted to catch a building on fire using gasoline from a generator that was on site but only succeeded in causing damage without the total loss of the building. Numerous bullet holes were found in the equipment with damages exceeding $77,000.00. Approximately 40 barrels of oil had leaked from a battery tank, but were successfully contained inside a catch berm that surrounded the tanks. A 250 gallon propane tank had also been shot and was venting propane.

The Park County Sheriff’s office is working in conjunction with BLM Law Enforcement to investigate this crime and the investigation should be considered active and ongoing at this time. Anyone with information regarding this investigation is encouraged to contact the Park County Sheriff’s Office or email us at tips@parkcountysheriff.net.