This is an archived article that was published on sltrib.com in 2014, and information in the article may be outdated. It is provided only for personal research purposes and may not be reprinted.
British bikini models fired guns owned by the state of Utah as an on-duty state police officer stood by, according the early findings of an ongoing investigation.
A second officer from the Utah Department of Public Safety was off-duty, according to a statement the department issued late Thursday.
DPS is investigating the two officers' roles in the models' photo and video shoot for the 2015 bikini calendar called "Hot Shots."
Meanwhile, the Utah National Guard also is investigating how the models entered Camp Williams and used resources there, including riding in a tank and other vehicles, as part of the shoot.
A DPS statement issued Thursday said three guns — a Glock 18, an MP5 and an M4 — all were used during the June shoot at the Big Shot Ranch near Grantsville. The ranch supplied ammunition and any use of department ammo was "minimal," the statement said.
A Glock 18 is a pistol with a fully-automatic firing setting. An MP5 is a submachine gun and an M4 is a variant of the well-known M-16 rifle.
Logs from that day show that one of the officers was on duty and another off. Both belong to the department's SWAT team.
Department personnel sometimes show weapons and act as instructors for community groups such as the Boy Scouts and elected officials, but the assistance to the models was not approved by the chain of command. DPS commanders learned of the photo shoot from news reports last week.
"The Hot Shots photo shoot was not a DPS approved or sanctioned activity, and did not represent the values of our department," the Thursday statement said.
"The investigation into this incident is ongoing and appropriate action will be taken, consistent with human resources standards and department policy," the statement concluded.
Last week, a Utah National Guard spokesman said it appeared that a non-commissioned officer — typically someone in the sergeant ranks — approved the models to enter Camp Williams and use equipment there. The National Guard has said no weapons were fired.
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