TAYLORSVILLE, Utah, June 5, 2021 (Gephardt Daily) — A 21-year-old woman has been charged with the shooting death of a man found Friday night, bleeding heavily, outside the Atherton Park Apartments in Taylorsville.
Sofia Penrod, who was located in an apartment at the same complex, faces initial charges of murder, a first-degree felony; and obstruction of justice, a second-degree felony.
The victim was identified Saturday by Unified Police as Joey Michael Duran, 30.
Penrod’s probable cause statement says UPD officers responded at 11:33 p.m. Friday to the complex, at 4545 S. Atherton Drive, specifically to building No. 4, on a weapons call.
“Witnesses reported multiple shots fired. Officers arrived on scene and saw a male, later identified as Joey Michael Duran on the ground bleeding profusely in front of building #4.
“Joey was transported to IMC hospital where he was pronounced deceased.”
Apartments on the second and third floors had been struck by bullets, and five bullet casings were located outside a second floor apartment next to the one struck, the probable statement said. Additional casings were found on the grass, about 20 feet from the victim. No firearms were located.
Officers initiated a safety sweep to make sure no other victims were inside apartments. One searched was near the second-floor apartment that had been struck.
“Officers opened the door, announced police, and a female, later identified as Sofia Penrod came from a back bedroom,” the probable cause statement says.
“Sofia was transported and interviewed at the sheriff’s office. Sofia was informed of her Miranda Rights, which she stated she understood and agreed to answer detectives questions.
“During the interview with Sofia, she was caught in numerous lies and changed her story,” her probable cause statement says. “Her initial story was she was at the apartment babysitting for her half-sister, she woke up to gunshots and she had no idea what had occurred.
“Sofia eventually admitted to knowing Joey Duran and reported she met him once and he is her cousin. She referred to Joey as his street moniker, ‘Suspect.'”
Penrod said “it was coincidental he was shot outside of the apartment she was in,” the affidavit says. “During the interview Sofia disclosed she deletes messages from her phone and social media platforms and claimed it was because people were nosey.”
A search warrant was obtained, and the phone taken from Penrod before she was taken to the Salt Lake County Sheriff’s office.
“Detectives conducted a physical search of the phone and located several messages sent from a social media account Sofie admitted to being hers. These messages were sent around the time the shots fired reports came into dispatch.
“Sofia sent messages through Facebook messenger reading in part: ‘Coco family just came Booboo shot them… Front of my house cops here… They came and knocked and looked for bullet holes and that’s it Imma jump out the back window? (SIC)'”
A statement found on a different social media account reads:
“Atherton Apts Cops are here I’m hiding in the closet Hurry They don’t think it was me There looking for bullet hes. (SIC)”
Officers showed the messages to Penrod and asked for an explanation, the statement says, “but Sofia told detectives to talk to Coco and continued to deny being involved despite the incriminating messages. Sofia denied knowing Coco’s name. Sofia also said she didn’t care about ‘Suspect’ and said he was barely her cousin.”
Penrod was booked into the Salt Lake County Jail, and is being held without bail.
The probable cause statement cited the seriousness of the charges, the danger Penrod would allegedly pose to the community and the likelihood she would flee. The statement also cited a bench warrant issued for Penrod’s arrest for failure to appear in West Valley City Justice Court on a child abuse charge.
