SALT LAKE CITY, Utah, July 11, 2019 (Gephardt Daily) — A suspect has been charged with murder after stabbings that claimed the life of a Maverik store clerk July 3 and injured a second man.
Tukka Gonne, 21, was booked into the Salt Lake County Jail after the attacks, which occurred at 1270 S. Main St.
Friends and family identified the deceased as Joey Allen, who had recently started working graveyard shifts at the gas station.
A probable cause statement from the 3rd District Court of Salt Lake County said Gonne is facing charges of murder, a first-degree felony; aggravated assault, a second-degree felony; and interference with an arresting officer, a second-degree felony.
The statement said that July 3 just before 3:30 a.m., the Salt Lake City Police Department received a call of a stabbing that had just occurred at the Maverik.
“Upon arrival SLCPD officers found that two males had been stabbed,” the statement said. “One was pronounced dead at the scene and the other was transported to a local hospital.”
Detectives watched surveillance video from Maverik showing the incident. The video shows a group of four black males in the parking lot, the statement said. Each of the males is distinctly dressed and can be differentiated from one another, officials said.
“The video shows the victims approach the group of black males,” the statement said. “The surviving victim was holding a long cylindrical object, later discovered to be a metal rod, in his hand. He then swings or throws the object at the males. This male is then knocked to the ground by one of the black males. A fight ensues between the four black males and victims in the parking lot.”
The video shows the group move from the northeast end of the parking lot to the southwest area of the store’s property. The A/P (accused person), Gonne, is depicted on the video as shirtless, with underwear visible and black jeans. The shoes he is wearing have a distinctive white stripe along the sole area, the statement said.
“It is clear that the person taken into custody by SLCPD is the same person in the video,” the statement said.
“The video shows the A/P come up behind the victims with a large shiny object in his right hand,” the statement said. “The A/P thrusts the object toward the victims. The group of black males then fled the scene. The A/P drops the shiny metal object as he leaves, then picks it up from the sidewalk and takes it with him.”
One victim was taken into the store, where he collapsed and died, the statement said. The surviving victim was stabbed several times.
After being located and read his Miranda rights, Gonne was shown still images of the video from Maverik depicting him as he was currently clothed, with the same shoes, pants and visible underwear.
“Gonne eventually admitted that he was the person in the images and also that he was there at the Maverik,” the statement said. “The A/P stated that a fight did break out between him and the store clerk and ‘another white guy.’ For these reasons, the A/P will be booked for murder.”
Gonne has been booked into Salt Lake County Jail without bail.
Gephardt Daily will update the story as more information becomes available.
