Idaho Man Admits to Assaulting Federal Officers in Southern Utah

ST. GEORGE, Utah – Gregory Aaron Farley, 51, of Hazelton, Idaho, pleaded guilty in federal court today to assault of an employee of the United States with a deadly or dangerous weapon after he rammed his pickup truck into two U.S. Park Rangers’ vehicle in May 2025.

According to court documents and admissions made at Farley’s change of plea hearing, on May 3, 2025, while in the Glen Canyon National Recreation Area in Southern Utah, Farley used his GMC Sierra Denali pickup truck to assault two on duty United States Park Rangers who conducted a traffic stop on Farley. During the traffic stop, Farley, the driver and sole occupant of the vehicle, fled the scene while one of the rangers was speaking to him, nearly hitting one of the rangers. A vehicle pursuit ensued, and at one point, Farley turned his vehicle around and rammed his truck into the driver’s side of the rangers’ vehicle, pushing them into the shoulder of the road, causing their vehicle’s air bags to deploy and rendering the driver’s side door inoperable. See prior press release: Idaho Man Indicted after Allegedly Assaulting U.S. Park Rangers in Southern Utah.

Farley is scheduled to be sentenced February 11, 2026, at 11:00 a.m. before a U.S. District Court Judge in courtroom 2B of the courthouse located at 206 West Tabernacle Street, St. George, Utah 84470.

“My office will have zero tolerance for attacks on law enforcement,” said U.S. Attorney Melissa Holyoak of the District of Utah. “We are fortunate that these U.S. Park Rangers were not critically injured, but it is a stark reminder of the dangers they face while in the line of duty. My office will prosecute such violent offenders to the fullest extent of the law.”

The case is being investigated by the FBI Salt Lake City Field Office.

Assistant United States Attorneys Joseph M. Hood and Stephen P. Dent of the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the District of Utah are prosecuting the case.

This case is part of Operation Take Back America, a nationwide initiative that marshals the full resources of the Department of Justice to repel the invasion of illegal immigration, achieve the total elimination of cartels and transnational criminal organizations (TCOs), and protect our communities from the perpetrators of violent crime. Operation Take Back America streamlines efforts and resources from the Department’s Organized Crime Drug Enforcement Task Forces (OCDETF) and Project Safe Neighborhoods (PSN).