Editor’s Note: The PoliceOne team today received information from the Sevier County Sheriff’s Office that officers there are working to raise awareness about a memorial fund set up at Wells Fargo Bank for Sergeant Franco Aguilar’s family. Our contacts there tell us that you can donate to the “Memorial Fund for Franco Aguilar” at any Wells Fargo Bank nationwide. You can also contact Chief Deputy John N. Hunt of the Sevier County Sheriffs Office at 435-896-2600.
Duty Death: Sgt. Franco Aguilar - [Sevier County]
Deseret Morning News
RICHFIELD. Utah — Sevier County Sheriff’s Sgt. Franco Aguilar was someone that family, friends and co-workers could rely on for about anything.
“He was a heck of a guy,” said sheriff’s detective Nathan Curtis. “He was one of those guys you really enjoy working with. He was a hard worker. He led by example. He was really one of those guys when you picture a police officer, he was that kind of guy.”
Aguilar, who reportedly turned 36 Thursday, was killed while responding to a traffic accident on I-70 on the Fish Creek Bridge about 10:30 p.m. Thursday. A vehicle driven by a woman from Grand Junction, Colo., slid on the icy road into a concrete barrier.
While assisting the woman in that accident, a Suburban with two occupants inside, including an 18-year-old driver from Saratoga Springs, also lost control on the slick road at the same spot, and crashed head-on into the first vehicle, Curtis said.
Aguilar fell about 250 off the bridge to his death.
“At this point, we still don’t know if he was hit by the Suburban or was trying to get out of the way and fell to the bottom of the canyon,” he said.
The first vehicle suffered extensive damage. All three were taken to local hospitals, but suffered non-life threatening injuries.
Aguilar is survived by a wife and five children. He served 10 years in law enforcement, working for Richfield police, the Utah Highway Patrol from their Nephi office and most recently the Sevier County Sheriff’s Office.
Aguilar was a member of the department’s SWAT team and gang unit. When he was off-duty, he loved working on cars, Curtis said.
“He was into restoring old cars, painting auto body projects, old classic cars,” he said.
Aguilar grew up in American Fork, where his parents still live, and graduated from American Fork High School. He served in the U.S. Marines for six years.
Being called out to a “recovery” operation is never easy, Curtis said. But it’s especially tough on all law enforcers in the area when it’s for one of their own.
“We’re a pretty tight department and pretty tight with other agencies we work with. We’ve all worked together, we’ve all trained together. Half the time we hang out with each other after work. It’s pretty tough,” he said.
As of Friday morning, the department was working on establishing a fund for Aguilar’s family.
Copyright 2010 Deseret Morning News