Vernal property owner devastated after dirt is stolen, left with a pit

VERNAL, Utah (ABC4) — When Julia Mata purchased her summer home in the Dry Fork Canyon, she felt like she found her slice of heaven. Now, as she looks at the empty pit left behind by Jeremy Merrell, it’s become a personal hell.

Mata was looking to weatherize and make improvements to her home when Merrell stepped in. Mata explained, “He drove right down the driveway and said, ‘I’m a contractor. I’m your neighbor. I’m part of the Dry Fork Canyon family. You can trust me.'”

But according to court documents, that allegedly turned out not to be true. Merrell is accused of using the improvements to the home as a guise to take and unload dirt from the property. The charges claim it was a total of 435 cubic yards of dirt with a value of $6,600. It estimates the cost to repair the pit would cost $10,800. With those values, Uintah County is charging Merrell with a second-degree felony of theft.

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Documents claim it took 33 dump truck loads to move the dirt, and Merrell allegedly sold it for people to use to grade their driveways.

Mata says she was devastated when she saw the missing chunk of her land. “I drove in and I started screaming and crying, saying, ‘he took my dirt!’ And I’m like, oh, my gosh. You know, it was devastating.”

Not only was there the giant pit, but Mata says the “repairs” Merrell started on the home were poorly done and she hired a different contractor to ultimately fix everything.

ABC4 reached out to Merrell and received a response from his lawyer. They said that Merrell disputes the charges but will not release a statement as a case is pending. He’s due in court on April 28.

As for Mata, she awaits the pending cases including a civil suit. “He can take my dirt, he can take my piece of mind. He can’t take that view. He can’t take that every day that I wake up and I feel good about what I do and my behavior and how I handle things. But hopefully he’ll be held accountable, get some help, and he’ll knock it off.”