Estimated read time: 2-3 minutes
- Leopoldo Gutierrez, 25, was the fourth person to be arrested for a suspected gang-related shooting in Eagle Mountain.
- The Dec. 23 incident left a 23-year-old man critically injured with a neck wound.
- Three juveniles, all gang members, were previously detained after the shooting.
EAGLE MOUNTAIN — A fourth person has been arrested in connection with a gang-related shooting last week in Eagle Mountain.
Leopoldo Gutierrez, 25, of Lehi, was booked into the Utah County Jail on Monday night for investigation of two counts of attempted murder, causing a riot, 18 counts of discharge of a firearm, criminal mischief, disorderly conduct and illegal gun possession.
Utah County sheriff's deputies on Dec. 23 "were dispatched to a reported fatal drive-by shooting in the area of Wild Horse Way and Morgan Way in Eagle Mountain, where a 23-year-old male received a gunshot wound to the neck," according to a police booking affidavit.
As of Tuesday, the sheriff's office said the 23-year-old victim remained hospitalized and was "making improvements."
Detectives investigating the shooting learned that a "juvenile" had been in a fight with another person earlier in the day.
"After their altercation, (the juvenile) had made threats on social media to kill (the other person)," the affidavit states.
The boy went to that other person's residence around 8 p.m. The 23-year-old man, the other male and his girlfriend went outside to confront him.
"As they approached (the juvenile), he ran behind a parked car, where an individual fired at the victim and (second male) from the passenger side of a dark four-door sedan, striking the victim in the neck, and also striking an occupied home and a car parked in the driveway," according to the affidavit.
While emergency crews were performing life-saving measures on the 23-year-old man, two boys drove up and surrendered, according to the arrest report. Inside their car, investigators found a handgun that was determined to have been stolen out of a car in Lehi, as well as gang paraphernalia.
Police say the two boys who surrendered and the third boy who got into the earlier altercation are members of the same gang. The third boy was arrested at his home and all three were taken to a youth detention center while the investigation continues.
"Through interviews, the detained suspects identified a fourth person involved, Leopoldo Gutierrez, a 25-year-old relative of one of the juveniles," the affidavit says.
This story may be updated.
