KEARNS, Utah — Three alleged gang members have been arrested in connection with a shooting that critically injured a man in Kearns earlier this year.
Jose Gutierrez-Gonzalez, 28, Diego Cruz, 18, and Angel Garcia, 20, were taken into custody with the help of the U.S. Marshals Service.
The Unified Police Department said officers were called to the home at 4067 West 4865 South at 1:30 p.m. on March 19, and found the man with gunshot wounds.
According to investigators, the victim, an adult man who hasn't been identified, was approached by two men who fired multiple rounds at the victim. Both individuals fled before police arrived.
FOX 13 News obtained court documents charging Jose Gutierrez-Gonzalez with attempted murder that reveal more of what allegedly happened the night of the shooting.
According to court documents, the victim told detectives that while he was walking down 4865 South, he encountered two men who asked whether he 'banged.' To which he responded that he did not.
Investigators clarify that 'banged' is a check of sorts to see if someone has a gang affiliation.
After the victim stated that he wasn't in a gang, officers say the two suspects pulled a gun and fired at him multiple times. Following the shooting, one of the men also stabbed the victim several times.
The victim told police that the men both had facial tattoos.
When the victim was later interviewed by police, he stated he believed the suspects were members of Dog Town, a criminal street gang affiliated with Surenos. When the victim's phone was reviewed, he had text messages about the suspects being Dog Town members.
The victim's brother is also allegedly a well-known member of 18th Street, another group that is affiliated with Surenos, and is currently in prison.
Detectives explain that despite both Dog Town and 18th Street being parts of the Surenos gang, they have been experiencing internal conflict between members.
On March 23, investigators were able to identify the truck used to flee the scene using license plate reader data. The truck was registered to Gutierrez-Gonzalez, an alleged Dog Town member with a face tattoo.
In April, a search warrant for the cellular records of Gutierrez-Gonzalez was served and detectives claim they found frequent communications between Gutierrez-Gonzalez and other all Dog Town members both before and after the shooting.
Location record data also showed Gutierrez-Gonzalez near the location of the shooting both before and after the incident.
A court date for the suspects hasn't been set.
