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Mantua police chief dismissed after less than a year in office

Posted at 5:28 PM, Mar 30, 2021
and last updated 2021-03-30 19:37:01-04

MANTUA, Utah — The police chief of Mantua, a town in the middle of Sardine Canyon, has been dismissed after less than a year in the position.

Mayor Michael Johnson confirmed that Chief Michael Castro was dismissed for personal reasons and that two other officers resigned.

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Johnson said the town still has two officers, and they are "in conversation" with another who wants to return.

"I wish to make it clear that the termination in no way had anything to do with budget concerns or citations," Johnson wrote in an email to FOX 13. "Any claims to the contrary are totally false."

Mantua's previous police chief, Shane Zilles, was let go after being arrested and pleading guilty to impaired driving in his patrol car in 2019.

READ: Former Mantua Police chief arrested twice in 9 days

Castro took the job in the summer of 2020.