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Show Sabotage? Southern Utah miners announce the destruction of mining equipment equip-ment at the Bromide Basin Gold mining operations located near the town of Hanksville, Utah, in the Henry Mountains. Owners of the privately owned property announced that all of their equipment has been deliberately sabotaged. Darys F. Ekker, Hanksville, owner and operator of the gold I mine, and equipment, has assessed i the damages at $175,000 to equip- mcnt and lost mining time. ! Sabotage to the equipment was administered during the night of ; Sept. 17, 1988, while the mining j crew was away from the mining operations. A grinding compound consisting of copper, iron, chrome, ! aluminum, silicon and sodium (salt) was poured into engine oil reservoirs of several expensive pieces of mining equipment, i.e., large generator, loader, compressor, hauling equipment and a D-6 Caterpillar Bulldozer. The perpetrators didn't even miss a small chain saw for cutting ! firewood. Oil samples from all of the equipment was tested by Wheeler Machinery Co. of Salt Lake City and then sent to the Utah Crime Lab for further studies. Garfield County Deputy Sheriff Maxwell Jackson reports that the . substance used in the attack appears . to be the same compound used in ' the sabotage of the Burr Desert ' Trail bulldozers last year as crews were paving the road. It is the belief of Mr. Ekker that the saboteurs are affiliated with an '. environmental coalition who seem to have no regard for privately '. owned property. Their acts have 1 now gone beyond "protecting their ', right to wilderness areas" to com-' com-' mining felonious acts of the high-l high-l est degree. Why should these peo-' peo-' pie not be brought to trial as any people who have committed a ' felony crime? In the December issue of the Arizona Daily Star out of Tuscon is a gloating article on one Dave Foreman. A man who publicly admits ad-mits to destroying construction equipment and foiling work crews which has made his organization . . EARTH FIRST. . .recognizable all over the country. He's even put together a book, very detailed in how to wage guerilla warfare against developers. It has sold over $11,000 worth of copies. Sample tactics: How to mix sand with bulldozer oil, how to successfully torch billboards, how to tumble power lines towers with just a hacksaw, or how to drive stakes into trees so loggers ruin their saws. This placer gold property atop the Henry Mountains is not a new development within the wilderness area, or a federal game preserve, or a study area. It is private property just like a home. These people have entered, violated, ruined and destroyed private property. Equipment, Equip-ment, that was recently purchased, cannot be repaired as such vandalism vandal-ism isn't covered in any 30 day warranty. This is not an isolated incident. It is happening more and more frequently fre-quently all over the United States. The wheels of justice seem to have been sabotaged with the same compound found in my equipment. Maybe it's time we, the victims, started the wheels turning a little faster with an organization of our own to put a stop to the malicious disregard these people have for private pri-vate property and people who are trying to make an honest living. I am soliciting the help of our state and federal law enforcement, and anyone who believes in democracy. We can do it by making these people aware that we will no longer tolerate their actions. Darys Ekker Hanksville |