SALT LAKE CITY, Utah, July 26, 2016 (Gephardt Daily) — Several people were questioned and released Monday night at Liberty Park after a bullet struck a man in a huge crowd awaiting a Pioneer Day fireworks show.
“We detained a couple people, but nobody has been arrested,” Det. Greg Wilking, Salt Lake City Police, said on Tuesday morning. “We are still investigating, and we are still going to be talking to them and people who are still outstanding.”
Salt Lake Police Lt. Dave Cracroft told Gephardt Daily on Monday night that the shooting took place about 10 p.m. just as Pioneer Day fireworks were getting underway.
According to Cracroft, a group of juveniles had gathered near the park’s flagpole when an altercation broke out.
“Our suspect was running, pointing the gun behind him, when he fired off three rounds,” Cracroft said. “Unfortunately, one of those rounds struck an innocent man in the leg.”
The wounded man — identified only as a 26-year-old — refused medical treatment at the scene and drove himself to St. Mark’s Hospital. Wilking said Tuesday that the man had a flesh wound, which was not life-threatening.
One juvenile jumped over a fence to enter Tracy Aviary. He was held on trespassing charges during questioning.
Wilking said the scene Monday night was chaotic, and investigators are still trying to piece together what happened before and after the gunfire.
“There were a lot of people running from it,” he said. “We are trying to find the suspects, and investigating any relationship between the victim and the suspects. We are still trying to figure all that out.”
