Brother of accused killer charged with murder in separate case

MILLCREEK — A fourth person has been charged in connection with the fatal shooting of an 18-year-old man at the Mount Olympus trailhead in August.

Christian de la Rosa, 17, of West Jordan, was charged Friday as an adult in 3rd District Court with murder, two counts of aggravated kidnapping and two counts of firing a gun causing serious injury, all first-degree felonies; aggravated assault, a second-degree felony; and assault, a class A misdemeanor. All charges carry gang enhancement penalties if convicted.

Investigators say de la Rosa is the brother of Christopher Cazares De la Rosa, 16, who is also charged as an adult with murder in the fatal stabbing of Jordan High School student Kian Hamilton, 16, on Aug. 23.

During the investigation into that case, Sandy police served a search warrant on all of the cellphones at Christopher De la Rosa's residence. Christian de la Rosa lives in the same house and his cellphone was searched. His cellphone data placed him at the Mount Olympus trailhead at the time of the shooting, according to charging documents.

Mateo Heriberto Martinez, 20, and Alex Daniel Ruiz-Martinez, 19, are also both charged with murder in connection with the Mount Olympus trailhead shooting, as well as a 15-year-old boy who is facing charges in juvenile court.

On Aug. 3, 18-year-old Naod Welday and two friends, ages 18 and 24, were at the Mount Olympus trailhead parking lot at 5425 Wasatch Blvd. at about 4:30 a.m. when they were approached by two males who asked what gang they were in, according to charging documents. After Welday's friends said they weren't in a gang, one of the friends was punched.

That friend ran away and hid. But he watched as the other group got into their cars and started "slowly driving down and circling on Wasatch Boulevard," in an apparent attempt to find him, the charges state. When the friend saw the car go back toward the parking lot, he called Welday and his other friend and warned them to hide in the car, the charges state. The friend who was hiding told police that the keys were still in his pocket, so the others couldn't drive off.

While on the phone with the others, the friend heard someone banging on the car windows, prompting the group to call 911, according to the charges.

Prosecutors say Welday was in the driver's seat and his friend in the passenger seat and the doors were locked. That's when the rear driver's side window was broken and the four assailants unlocked the doors and attacked the two men, the charges.

The man in the passenger seat was attacked with a hammer but managed to get away by going over a retaining wall and running across I-215, according to investigators.

When Salt Lake County sheriff's deputies arrived, they found Welday's body still in the driver's seat.

"Deputies observed that the windows on the rear driver and front passenger side of the sedan were broken, and two shell casings were located on the ground at (Welday's) feet and another shell casing on the driver's side rear floor," the charges state.

Investigators also said they learned that hours after the Mount Olympus trailhead killing, Martinez and de la Rosa were involved in a gang-related shooting in Midvale.

"Both Mateo and Christian sustained gunshot wounds in the Midvale shooting and were treated separately in local hospitals," according to charging documents.

Police say the four people charged in connection with the Mount Olympus shooting belong to a gang that has been involved in multiple violent crimes across the county, including a triple homicide in 2022. Prosecutors say the statements of the defendants "clearly demonstrated that they believed the victims to be members of a rival gang. Moreover, based on the available evidence, the defendants appear to have reached this conclusion solely based on the victims' physical appearance," the charges state.

Police say neither Welday nor his friends had any gang associations.

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