WEST VALLEY CITY, Utah, May 24, 2021 (Gephardt Daily) — A man is in custody Monday night after he fired five or six shots while sitting alone in his yard, then fired three or four more after police arrived on scene.
West Valley City Police Department Lt. Bill Merritt told Gephardt Daily neighbors called police just before 9 p.m. reporting shots fired in the area of 1600 W. Big Oak Drive, which is just off Redwood Road.
Police arrived quickly on scene and surrounded the area, evacuated surrounding homes, requested a SWAT team, and flew a drone above the residence.
Merritt said that officers who could see the yard reported that no one appeared to be threatened or in danger; they saw the man standing outside smoking a cigarette, then his wife smoking a cigarette.
Before the SWAT team arrived, the man surrendered to authorities without further incident.
Merritt added the only people apparently at the home during the incident were the man and his wife and child.
It is not clear at this early stage why the man fired the shots.
The identity of the man has not been released.
Merritt said it’s unclear what charges he will be facing, but it is illegal to fire a gun within city limits.
