Couple arrested after 26 felony firearm charges filed in Iron County2 min read

By Tracie Sullivan, For Iron County Today

A Cedar City couple is facing a combined 26 felony charges after investigators say they recovered more than a dozen firearms from their home, despite both being convicted felons.

According to charging documents filed in support of the couple’s arrests, Neil Wayne Hight, 46, and Rachael Cynthia Hight, 44, were each charged with 13 counts of possession of a prohibited firearm, a second-degree felony.

The investigation began when a runaway juvenile and several siblings told a school resource officer that their parents had drugs and guns inside the home. Agents obtained a search warrant and, because of the couple’s prior convictions and reported access to weapons, called in Iron Metro SWAT to serve it.

“During the search agents were able to recover 13 firearms in the residence… Additionally, 9 other firearms were found in a wood gun cabinet… [and] in a small safe towards the foot of their bed was 2 pistols [sic] which were loaded,” officers wrote in the affidavits.

One firearm — an AR-style pistol with an optic — was found in the grandmother’s closet. Investigators also discovered a locked safe in the same room; Neil Hight allegedly retrieved the code from a jewelry box and opened it, revealing another pistol and ammunition.

When questioned, Neil Hight told officers the guns belonged to someone else and said he thought the laws had changed to allow felons to have them for home defense.

Court records show both have prior felony convictions. Neil Hight’s criminal history includes home invasion, possession of a stolen vehicle, and obtaining money under false pretenses, along with a misdemeanor domestic battery. Rachael Hight has a felony burglary conviction.

Iron County law enforcement officials say the case is part of a broader trend. In recent years, investigators have reported seizing a growing number of illegal firearms during arrests and search warrants across the county.

“It’s a problem,” said Iron County Sheriff Lt. Shawn Peterson. “We’re seeing an increase we haven’t seen before and it’s only growing.”

Both suspects were taken into custody without incident and booked into the Iron County Jail.