ST. GEORGE — A couple accused of stealing more than $500,000 in donations meant for Ukraine through their ammunition shop have pleaded guilty to federal wire fraud conspiracy.

John Earl Donaldson, 32, and Carlie Elizabeth Winters, 30, were charged in federal court in April 2024 with wire fraud conspiracy and money laundering conspiracy. The couple was accused of defrauding customers and financial institutions of more than $600,000 in total, according to the U.S. Attorney’s Office of Utah.

Donaldson was a federal law enforcement officer before working as a consultant for a private security company, according to his LinkedIn profile.

The couple ran a company called Urban Armz in St. George, which state records show was started in late 2020 with Donaldson as its registered agent. Their website falsely claimed that the “company clients” included the FBI and the U.S. Defense Intelligence Agency, according to court documents, and claimed they could “sell large quantities of ammunition to potential customers for competitively low prices.”

When a customer wired $90,000 to the company for 300,000 rounds of ammunition in December 2021, investigators say the company never delivered.

In April 2022, charging documents say a Detroit-based company paid Urban Armz $300,000 for body armor, while another nonprofit sent over $217,000 for “night vision goggles, thermal optics and other equipment” — both orders intended for Ukrainian first responders in war zones.

Neither order made it to Ukraine, according to the indictment, with Donaldson and Winters spending over $600,000 from the three orders on “unrelated parties, other withdrawals, shopping and transfers to personal accounts.”

The two told each company that orders were delayed, sometimes blaming the shipping company or customs, before going silent, according to court documents.

“I falsely represented to a nonprofit organization that Urban Armz could fulfill an order of body armor and other equipment that the nonprofit intended to donate to Ukrainian first responders. After the nonprofit paid for the order, I falsely represented that the delivery was delayed and would imminently arrive,” Donaldson said in his guilty plea statement.

On May 19, Donaldson pleaded guilty to conspiracy to commit wire fraud and conspiracy to commit money laundering. He is scheduled to be sentenced on Sept. 25.

Winters pleaded guilty Monday to wire fraud conspiracy. She will be sentenced on Oct. 10.

TAYLORSVILLE — The traditional green lawn may soon be a thing of the past in Utah.

With a growing population and limited water resources, experts say the future of landscaping is water-wise.

“We’re always thinking about water conservation,” said Salt Lake County Mayor Jenny Wilson.

Nearly 60% of residential water use happens outdoors, and the average single-family home uses 2,000 gallons every time they irrigate their yard.

As part of the statewide Slow the Flow campaign, Salt Lake County and Utah Water Ways are working to revitalize yards by replacing grass with drought-friendly options like native plants, hybrid turf and smart irrigation systems.

“We’d love for this to be the new norm,” said Alan Packard, General Manager of the Jordan Valley Water Conservancy District.

A newly unveiled demonstration yard in Taylorsville is already showing what’s possible. With a full landscaping makeover, the yard is now expected to save more than 58,000 gallons of water per year. Homeowner Lindsey Taylor is thrilled with the result.

“It’s nice to not have to worry about watering the grass, and we can keep water in our lakes instead of on our lawns,” she said. “I think it’s going to make a big difference.”

Salt Lake County, Utah Water Ways and cities like Taylorsville hope more families will follow suit, re-imagining the traditional lawn to meet Utah’s growing water challenges.

“What we’re hoping is that the public at large, homeowners, business owners, schools (and) government buildings make changes to achieve durable conservation,” Packard said.

Through the Slow the Flow rebate program, Utah homeowners can earn up to $3 per square foot for replacing grass with water-wise landscaping. Visit slowtheflow.org to find out more.

COTTONWOOD HEIGHTS, Utah — After losing his 17-year-old son to an accidental shooting, a Utah father has transformed his grief into a mission to prevent gun violence through education and support for affected families.

Jeff Jarrett founded the nonprofit “Harley’s Angels” after his son Harley was killed 11 years ago. He said his son’s friend accidentally shot him with what they thought was an unloaded gun.

“He went to a little get-together over at his friend’s house. Somebody had a stolen gun, and they broke it out,” Jarrett said. “They were all passing it around, checking it out, and my son’s friends, when it was his turn to look at the gun, he thought it wasn’t loaded, and as a joke, he put it to my son’s head, and he thought it wasn’t loaded, and he pulled the trigger.”

That night changed his life forever.

“I got a knock on the door to about 10 Cottonwood Heights police officers,” he recalled. “I remember pointing at them and just being like, ‘You guys are all a bunch of liars. My son can’t be dead.’”

Jarrett describes making the devastating call to Harley’s mother as “the hardest phone call I’ve ever made in my life.”

“Having to call my son’s mom and tell her what happened and hearing that scream on the phone — it was horrible,” he said.

For years after the tragedy, Jarrett struggled with substance abuse and suicidal thoughts before finding purpose in creating the nonprofit.

“Something sparked in my head. Something told me to start a nonprofit,” Jarrett said.

The organization works with families who have lost children to gun accidents and supports individuals who have unintentionally harmed others.

Beyond providing support to affected families, Jarrett worked to pass House Bill 104, which requires Utah schools to teach gun safety. The legislation takes effect July 1 of this year.

Recent shootings in Utah have been particularly difficult for Jarrett, who empathizes deeply with families now experiencing similar trauma.

“I just look at the hard road that these families have ahead of them. It took me forever to find happiness again in this world. I’m here to talk to them if they need anything,” he said.

WATCH: Stepfather arrested for manslaughter in death of 18-year-old in Riverton

Stepfather arrested for manslaughter in death of 18-year-old in Riverton

Despite his grief, Jarrett found room to forgive the person responsible for his son’s death.

“The judge talked to me, he was like, ‘Mr. Jarrett, how do you feel about this?’” Jarrett said. “And I told him… ‘One life was lost. What’s the point of two lives being lost?’”

Jarrett continues his mission to educate youth about gun safety to prevent other families from experiencing similar tragedies.

“The conversations, feeling his presence, sitting down, watching a movie, going out to eat… all those are just thoughts in my head now,” he said.

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