FORT MOHAVE, Ariz. — A routine stop at a gas station on the Fort Mojave Indian Reservation turned into a life-threatening ordeal on July 16 when a federal Fish and Wildlife officer deployed a Taser on Clarence “Chuck” Coyl while he was pumping gas, igniting vapors and setting the man on fire.
Cellphone footage recorded by Coyl shows the tense confrontation with Officer P. Nielsen. The officer demands identification, threatens jail, and then fires the electronic control device after Coyl questions the basis for an arrest and calls the officer an “a**hole” while referring to the alleged offense as a misdemeanor.
Seconds later, flames erupt near the pump. Coyl can be heard screaming as he falls to the ground. “I thought I was gonna die… Believe it or not, I went into instinct to stop, drop, and roll,” Coyl later told local reporters.
Coyl suffered first- and second-degree burns on his hands and wrists along with nerve damage. He spent more than five hours in the hospital and has described ongoing physical therapy needs, nightmares, flashbacks, and severe anxiety whenever he approaches a gas station.
The encounter began roughly 20 minutes earlier at the Havasu National Wildlife Refuge. Coyl and a friend said they drove through an open gate near Catfish Paradise intending to fish. Officer Nielsen ordered them to leave for alleged trespassing. Coyl complied and left the area.
The officer then followed them to Thalypo Convenience & Fireworks on the Fort Mojave Indian Reservation. As Coyl returned from the store with drinks and began fueling his truck, Nielsen confronted him and demanded his ID.
In the video, the officer states, “You’re gonna go to jail, all I’m asking for is your license right now to identify you.” When Coyl asks what he is being arrested for, the officer replies that he is not cooperating “for having committed a crime.” Coyl responds, “What? A misdemeanor? A misdemeanor, a**hole…” before the Taser is deployed.
Coyl was never charged or cited in connection with the incident. No officers followed up with him at the hospital, he said.
Department of the Interior policy on electronic control devices warns officers against using Tasers near flammable or explosive materials unless there is a clearly articulated, compelling reason, precisely because of the risk of secondary injuries such as fire.
A retired Chandler police officer and use-of-force expert who reviewed the video for local media noted that Coyl showed no active aggression and that the alleged offense was low-level. “The severity of the crime is low. The threat to officers or public, I would say, is low,” the expert said, adding that other options appeared available.
A spokesperson for the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service, which falls under the Department of the Interior, confirmed a Taser was deployed and stated: “Consistent with DOI policy, all such deployments undergo review, and we are unable to comment further while that process is ongoing.”As of early August, no public outcome of the review, including any disciplinary action against the officer, has been announced. Coyl has indicated he is pursuing legal action.
The Fort Mojave Indian Tribe declined to comment on the incident.
The video continues to circulate widely, raising questions about the use of force by federal officers in situations involving minor alleged infractions and the risks of deploying electronic weapons near gasoline.
