DRAPER, Utah, March 29, 2026 (Gephardt Daily) — Draper City police have arrested a 53-year-old man after an alleged road-rage shooting incident Saturday on Interstate 15.
The victims said they exited I-15 in Draper after feeling threatened by a man in a black truck, but the driver followed them off the highway to a Smith’s parking lot at 212 E. 12300 South, “where a male subject brandished a handgun at them.”
The victims said they fled, and the truck driver followed them east, to the intersection of 300 E. 12300 South.
“A second victim stopped in the roadway after observing the two vehicles driving erratically through the area,” say arrest documents for the suspect, identified as John Edward Orvis.
“The subject in truck (Orvis) exited his vehicle and approached the second vehicle and fired one round through the driver door, impacting the female driver through the seat.”
Police met with the victims from the second vehicle, and confirmed one woman had minor injuries, and that the vehicle “had an obvious bullet hole.”
After allegedly firing a gun at the second vehicle, Orvis allegedly got back into his truck “and began pursuing the initial victim, at which time the initial victims reported hearing more gunshots, and believed he was shooting at them near the area of 13200 S. 300 East,” charging documents say.
Orvis and his vehicle were later located at 12800 S. Minuteman Drive by patrol officers, who took Orvis into custody.
“The subject was transported back to the police department where he was read Miranda, which he waived,” the charging document says.
“He denied being involved in any type of confrontation and said he did not have any firearms in his vehicle.
“A search warrant was obtained for the subject’s vehicle and was searched at the evidence holding area. Two handguns were located along with measurable amounts of controlled substances” according to the charging documents.
“The subject stated voices coming from the music he was listening to in his truck led him to Draper, and he was driving around the city when he ran out of gas,” prior to his arrest.
Orvis was booked into the Salt Lake County jail, without bail, for investigation of:
- Felony discharge of a firearm — road rage, a third-degree felony
- Aggravated assault, a third-degree felony
- Prohibited dangerous weapon conduct, category II, a class A misdemeanor
