SALT LAKE CITY — The list of gang-related crimes in Utah, and specifically the Salt Lake area, continues to rise, and examples of the violence they bring aren't hard to find. But what's worrying is that gangs are finding new ways to infiltrate the lives of children.
Last August, a man was murdered at the Mt. Olympus trailhead by a local gang, and just a week later, two people were injured in a separate gang-related shooting.
The Salt Lake City Police Department’s gang unit shared how they're seeing more gang-related crimes than in years past.
“It’s less likely that we’re catching them out on the block, out in the hood, having parties,” said Sgt. Robert Tycz, a member of the gang unit. “That’s traditionally what we think of. A lot of the stuff happens now through social media, through messaging apps, in the schools.”
The ways gangs are investigated have changed a lot over the years.
“A lot of the investigations are based on social media platforms and gathering search warrants that way,” Tycz said.
Sheriff continues battle against gang crime in Salt Lake area:
The Utah Statewide Information and Analysis Center reported that 35% of firearm-related cases in Salt Lake County last year were gang-related.
“Unfortunately, they target kids from less affluent families," Tycz explained. "It's easier for the established gang member to go to the youth and say, 'Hey, if you go sell this marijuana, THC carts, cocaine or whatever it is,' and then they’re seeing tens and thousands of dollars. It’s a very attractive thing.
"Once they get their hooks in them, then they start, payment comes due, now you’ve got to hold guns for us, commit acts of violence, do drive-by shootings."
Jun Naea, now 57 years old, joined a gang when he was just 13. It was all he ever knew. That was before he moved to Utah from California in the 90s and started a family. Now, he works with Day Won, an organization that empowers troubled youth to continue their education and engage with their community. He helps youth stay out of gangs and prisons.
“If I had an older brother who set a better path, I probably would’ve taken that path,” Naea said. “We didn’t have that option growing up. It was either this way or that way.”
Sgt. Tycz said parents need to remain present with their kids.
“Being a parent is hard, especially, like I said, in our economic status,” he shared. “You’re having to work multiple jobs to afford family life, but be involved in your kid’s life, paying attention to what they’re doing, who they’re hanging out with.”
