SALT LAKE CITY, Utah, July 7, 2023 (Gephardt Daily) — A 41-year-old Salt Lake City man has been arrested after police say he randomly fired roughly 20 shots from a handgun into the air and ground outside his home Thursday afternoon.
No one was injured in the shooting, though one round hit the garage door of a neighboring home, police said.
Salt Lake City police responded about 3:40 p.m. to reports that a man was shooting a handgun outside a home near 1900 W. North Star Drive.
The man, later identified as Eric Gonzales, had gone back inside the home by the time officers arrived and refused to come out for approximately an hour, according to a probable cause statement filed in Salt Lake City’s 3rd District Court.
Officers surrounded the home and later were able to capture Gonzales as he attempted to escape, police said.
Officers found 20 shell casings near the man’s home, which neighbors Cottonwood Park.
“The allegations in this case are very alarming,” Salt Lake City Police Chief Mike Brown said. “The potential for tragedy in this scenario could have been exponential. Based on what we know, this situation posed an imminent threat to the safety and lives of innocent bystanders in the neighborhood, and we are so fortunate that no one was harmed. I want to commend the officers for their quick and professional response.”
Police later recovered two handguns from inside the home.
Gonzales was arrested for investigation of:
- Discharge of a firearm in city limits, a third-degree felony
- Reckless endangerment, a class A misdemeanor
- Criminal mischief/recklessly endangering human life, a class A misdemeanor
- 21 counts of discharge of a firearm, a class B misdemeanor
He is being held without bail in the Salt Lake County jail.
Media lies didn’t happen like that at all I’m his neighbor