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The plans, though, died with the men, not long after the manhunt began. Many theories surround this story, as some believe the three men were planning on building a bomb using the stolen truck, or even overthrowing the government. More than 500 officials were part of the manhunt at one point or another, and Schultz’s book describes interagency rivalry between local law enforcement, Navajo Police and the FBI, and interviews included in the book insinuate that the manhunt could have gone smoother, according to a 2013 Journal article. Mason then shot and killed himself, surrounded by pipe bombs, according to Deseret News.

San Juan County deputy Kelly Bradford was wounded after responding to that report. A few days later, Mason shot at a Utah state employee from a mile away. The men fled across the Colorado-Utah border, shooting and injuring two Montezuma County Sheriff’s deputies in the process. Before Claxton could even get out of the vehicle, one of the men stepped out of their vehicle and shot the officer 29 times, according to an article from 2007 by Deseret News. Jason McVean, 26, Alan “Monte” Pilon, 30, and Robert Mason, 26, stole a water truck from Ignacio and were later stopped in Cortez by officer Dale Claxton. A sign marking the spot on the County Road 27 bridge where patrol officer Dale Claxton was killed on May 29, 1998.

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