KEARNS, Utah — Who allegedly pulled the trigger and why? Who is the man who died after being shot outside a Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints meetinghouse in Kearns? Did he and the suspect know each other?
Unified Police Detectives have their hands full trying to sort it all out.
Meanwhile, Kearns residents can’t believe it happened in their quiet neighborhood, especially on a Monday morning.
For the past dozen years, Rick Warner said he’s lived right across the street from the LDS chapel where the shooting occurred.
“Yeah, it’s an all-Polynesian ward. They have summer barbecues, they invite everybody over — ‘Come on over and get a plate of Polynesian food' and stuff like that. Really nice," he said.
Warner was sitting on his front porch Monday morning when he saw friends and family members gathering in the chapel parking lot for a funeral. He said all appeared to be normal until gunshots rang out.
“I heard a 'bang!' Sounded like a really loud firecracker," he recalled.
But Warner said he quickly realized what was really happening.
“And then, I mean, a second later there was, ‘boom, boom, boom!' Like three or four more shots. And I said, 'No, that’s not a firecracker. That’s a gunshot.'”
WATCH: Live team coverage of fatal shooting outside funeral
Unified Police Deputy Chief Justin Hoyal said the situation was chaotic.
“Officers immediately went to the area where they heard shots being fired and found one victim in the road with some critical injuries," Hoyal said.
The man later died due to those injuries.
Officers then spotted another vehicle speeding away with a wounded man inside.
Police had to chase that vehicle and stop it before getting the wounded man into an ambulance.
Officers then found a second wounded man at the church.
Hoyal said UPD officers were already outside the church due to a tip from someone involved with the funeral who said there might be some issues.
“Our officers came over here to be visible in case there were, and fortunately they were right here when everything unraveled," he said.
Detectives say this may be a gang-involved shooting, but they won’t know more until their interviews and possible arrests are conducted.
This continues to be a dynamic investigation with multiple witnesses and at least one potential suspect.
