A 19-year-old Utah County man has been arrested and charged with randomly firing a gun at five vehicles on Interstate 15, wounding two people, almost five months ago.
According to the charges, on Nov. 30, the suspect — who lives in Genola, Utah County — drove south on I-15 to Juab County, where he fired the gun at random vehicles traveling at freeway speeds. The shootings were first reported about 3:15 a.m., and all took place on a 37-mile stretch of I-15 between Nephi in Juab County and Scipio in Millard County, according to police.
The suspect has been charged in 4th District Court with two counts of felony discharge of a weapon with injury, second-degree felonies; five counts of felony discharge of a weapon, third-degree felonies; and five counts of criminal mischief and one count of possession of a dangerous weapon with intent to assault, class A misdemeanors.
The charges, which were filed on April 20, were sealed until Wednesday. The court documents do not indicate a motive for the shootings, but included these details:
• Two bullets struck the first vehicle, hitting the driver’s door and the front fender.
• One bullet struck the second vehicle, hitting the driver’s door and shattering the window.
• One bullet struck the third vehicle. It entered through the driver’s door and grazed a woman’s chest.
• One bullet entered the fourth vehicle through the driver’s side window and hit the victim in the shoulder. The bullet exited out the victim’s back, and he had to be treated at a hospital. A second bullet hit a trailer the victim was towing.
• The fifth vehicle was struck by one bullet, which entered through the rear door on the driver’s side.
The suspect was booked into the Juab County jail. His first court appearance is scheduled for May 3.
