WEST VALLEY CITY, Utah, Feb. 11, 2018 (Gephardt Daily) — A West Valley City neighborhood lit up like a pin-ball machine early Sunday morning after dozens of police units from several different agencies responded to a call of “shots fired” at a raucous house party on Wendy Circle.
Lt. Amy Maurer, West Valley City Police, told Gephardt Daily police acted with an abundance of caution with word of the potential gun play and the fact that the residence was already known to law enforcement.
Lt. Maurer said the first police units arrived about 12:30 a.m. and they encountered a “verbally uncooperative” crowd of roughly two dozen people inside the home and an adjacent garage.
Officers also discovered shell casings in the lawn outside the residence.
The evidence of firearms coupled with the hostile reception resulted in a call for back-up with units responding from across the Salt Lake Valley, including Unified Police and the Metro Gang Unit.
Within minutes, between 20 and 30 patrol cars were on scene while paramedics took up positions down the block.
Police established containment and then made the decision to enter the home.
Once inside they screened as many as 30 party-goers, ultimately arresting five for interfering with a police operation. Some were also charged with alcohol violations and outstanding warrants.
Investigators say they found bullets scattered on the floor of the home, but no other evidence of a possible shooting.
One of those arrested was the homeowner.
He and the other four arrestees were booked into the Salt Lake County Jail.
