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Escalante has placed its only police officer on paid leave while the Utah Attorney General's Office conducts an investigation, the mayor confirmed Thursday.

Police Chief Kevin Worlton was placed on leave Jan. 12. He did not return a call seeking comment on Thursday morning.

Escalante Mayor Jerry Taylor on Thursday said the Attorney General's Office sent the town a letter notifying it of an investigation. Taylor and the Town Council decided to put Worlton on leave after speaking with Escalante's insurer about the letter.

Taylor on Thursday said he doesn't know why Worlton is under investigation.

"I have no idea who filed the complaint," Taylor said.

A spokeswoman for the Attorney General's Office did not offer comment Thursday morning.

However, Nate Mutter, who oversees special investigations and the public corruption unit for the Attorney General's Office, confirmed an investigation to the Escalante newspaper, The Insider.

Mutter told the newspaper that not every investigation results in criminal charges.

"It is a process, and we want to be thorough and fair and we want to get it right," Mutter told The Insider in its Feb. 12 edition.

Worlton's Linkedin profile says he has been Escalante's police chief since April. The profile says he was an officer in South Jordan from 1992 to 2005.

Taylor said Garfield County Sheriff's deputies are policing the town in Worlton's absence.

Twitter: @natecarlisle