WEST JORDAN, Utah, April 3, 2016 (Gephardt Daily) — A vehicle involved in a West Jordan burglary Sunday is suspected to be the one involved in a drive-by shooting on I-15 Saturday.
West Jordan Officer Nelson Vargas said his department received a call just after 7 a.m. of a burglary in progress at 7011 S. 1300 West.
“When officers arrived, they observed a Polynesian male come around from the back of the SUV carrying a screwdriver and other tools,” Varga said. “He told officers he was burglarizing the SUV. When officers approached him, he became combative with the officers and had to be restrained immediately. He was still fighting with officers until more units arrived and gained control, and finally took him into custody.”
The male suspect was booked on resisting arrest, assault on a police officer, vehicle burglary, and possession of burglary tools, and the female was booked for outstanding warrants. Both suspects are convicted felons and are restricted from possessing firearms, Vargas said.
Officers began to suspect a connection to the drive-by shooting when they located a sawed-off shotgun inside the SUV. The suspect, a known gang member, also matched the description from Saturday’s incident.
West Jordan police contacted Utah Highway Patrol and the SUV was taken to the FBI warehouse for UHP to do its investigation.
Lt. Jason Garcia with Utah State Bureau of Investigations told Gephardt Daily that after following up on a lot of leads and talking to several people, they now believe it is the same SUV involved in the freeway shooting, as well as the same suspects.
Garcia said they had identified possible suspects Saturday night and had been looking for them when the incident happened Sunday morning. They have both been questioned by investigators but they are not being cooperative.
“This is a unique crime, is the best way to describe this situation,” Garcia said.
Police are still searching for one person of interest in the freeway shooting incident.
