Early morning shooting in Spanish Fork

r On 07/21/2017 at 0222 hours officers from the Spanish Fork City police department were dispatched to the north parking lot of the Spanish Fork High School located at 99 North 300 West. It was reported that an 18 year old male had suffered a minor gunshot wound to the arm. A large group of adults and juveniles were present in the parking lot to witness a physical altercation that was going to occur between the victim and another individual. The victim was speaking to the individual in the passenger seat of a vehicle when the individual seated in the passenger seat brandished a handgun. The victim attempted to grab the gun from the shooter and was shot in the upper area of his arm. The victim and bystanders ran from the area. The shooter fired three to five rounds into the air as well as toward a bystander. The shooter fled the area in a vehicle being driven by a female.

Medical personnel responded to the scene and transported the victim to a local hospital where he was treated for a minor gunshot wound. The victim has since been released from the hospital and is cooperating with police during the course of the investigation.

Officers discovered that the suspect had been transported to a residence in Spanish Fork immediately following the shooting at the high school. The suspect left the residence with a male individual in a different vehicle than the vehicle involved in the shooting at the high school.

At 0423 hours two hours after the reported shooting in Spanish Fork, the Payson City police department located the suspects vehicle in the area of 900 East 400 North in Payson. The Payson City police department and deputies from the Utah County sheriff’s office initiated a traffic stop on the vehicle. The suspect was a passenger in the vehicle that was being driven by another male individual. The suspect shot himself while seated in the vehicle and is deceased from a self-inflicted gunshot wound. The suspect has been identified as a 19 year old male.

Once the investigation has been completed the findings will be forwarded to the Utah County Attorney’s Office to determine if criminal charges should be filed against the drivers of the two separate vehicles involved in the incident. The individuals that were driving the two vehicles are adults. The handgun used in the shooting is a .380 handgun.

The identity of the individuals involved will not be released at this time.

Questions in regards to the press release may be directed to Lt. Matt Johnson at 801-804-4722.