SPRINGVILLE, Utah, Oct. 1, 2022 (Gephardt Daily) — A man was arrested Thursday after a Springville police say he argued with another customer in a business, then used a bat to strike the victim in the face.
Police responded Thursday afternoon to 1460 N. 1750 West, which is the address of the Springville Flying J Travel Center. The 2:54 p.m. dispatch call was for an assault in progress. The suspect was reported to be wearing a yellow construction jacket and blue work pants.
“I made contact with a male in front of the store matching the description of the suspect,” says the probable cause statement, filed by a Springville PD officer. “He had blood spatter on his clothes and body.”
The man, identified as 19-year-old Mario Rodriguez, was read his Miranda Rights and declined to talk with police. He was placed in patrol car.
“I spoke with witnesses on the scene and watched security footage,” the police statement says. “In the footage I identified Rodriquez as the suspect. Rodriquez and the victim got into a verbal altercation inside the store.
“Both Rodriquez and the victim went to the front of the business to the register to pay for their items. Rodriquez picked up a metal baseball bat from one of the displays and struck the victim in the face multiple time. Both the victim and Rodriquez went to the floor in a physical altercation. Shoppers and employees in the store had to break up the fight.”
The victim “sustained a large laceration to the head” and was transported to the hospital, the police statement says.
The statement says the incident disrupted business, the basis of one charge, “because individuals shopping and the employees had to break up the fight and clean up the mess leaving the store unable to operate.
Rodriguez was booked into the Utah County Correctional Facility on suspicion of:
- Felony commercial obstruction, a second-degree felony
- Aggravated assault, a third-degree felony
- Disorderly conduct, a class C misdemeanor
Rodriquez was ordered held without bail.
