AMERICAN FORK, Utah, Dec. 5, 2016 (Gephardt Daily) — Investigators say the man and woman shot and killed in American Fork Sunday night had been involved in a romantic relationship.
The deadly shootings were first reported around 7:26 p.m. when Utah Valley dispatchers received a 911 call from a woman in the Walmart parking lot who screamed her car was being shot at. When police arrived they found the gravely wounded woman inside a bullet riddled Volkswagen with a gunshot wound to the head. She died at the scene.
Eight minutes later, a silver Chevy Tahoe seen leaving the shooting site, was spotted by police in the parking lot of the Gordman’s store southeast of the Walmart.
Police attempted to stop the driver who led officers on brief high speed chase before screeching to a halt in the nearby parking lot of the Cinemark Theater.
Investigators say three officers — one from American Fork, one from Lehi, and one from the Utah County Sheriff’s Office — confronted the man as he brandished a pistol. When he refused orders to drop his weapon, all three officers opened fire. The gunman was mortally wounded and died at the scene despite efforts to save him. Investigators say it’s unclear if he was killed by police gunfire or actually shot himself.
A statement released early Monday morning by Lt. Gregg Ludlow of the American Fork Police Department said investigators determined the man and the woman – whose identities have yet to be released – had been involved romantically and the woman had filed a temporary restraining order against her attacker on Nov. 20.
The Utah County’s Attorney’s Office will oversee the investigation by way of the Officer Involved Shooting Protocol Team.
Parallel investigations will be conducted by the American Fork Police Department, Lehi police, and the Utah County Sheriff’s Office.
Initial police reports indicated the incident was related to a possible case of road rage.
