A second man has been arrested and charged in connection with a May 15 shooting in Middle Canyon.
Manuel Mora-Hermosillo, 19, of Tooele, is charged with second-degree felony aggravated assault resulting in serious bodily injury and third-degree felony transaction of a firearm by a restricted person.
Alejandro Sainz, 25, of Tooele, is charged with second-degree felony aggravated assault resulting in serious bodily injury and third-degree purchase, transfer, possession, or use of a firearm by a restricted person.
Sainz and Mora-Hermosillo are cousins, according to a probable cause statement from the Tooele County Sheriff’s Office.
Mora-Hermosillo was detained at the time of Sainz’s arrest on May 15 in South Salt Lake City and deputies located three 9mm rounds in his pant pocket, according to the probable cause statement. He told deputies he gave Sainz a ride from the Best Western in Tooele and at that time learned about the shooting.
During the interview, Mora-Hermosillo gave deputies permission to search his phone and discovered Facebook messages between him and Sainz, the statement said. In messages exchanged prior to the shooting, Mora-Hermosillo and Sainz discussed a conflict with an unidentified person and 9mm handguns, including a Ruger and Smith & Wesson.
On May 22, Tooele County Sheriff’s deputies interviewed Mora-Hermosillo again and he would not admit to knowing about a gun or where the gun used in the assault was, the statement said. He was then arrested by deputies.
Deputies were dispatched to a shooting in Middle Canyon at 12:56 p.m. on May 15, according to the probable cause statement in Sainz’s case.
The victim told police he was at an unspecified campground in the canyon when Sainz and two other men drove up, the statement said. There was an argument between the victim and the three men, which ended with Sainz shooting the victim in the buttocks.
Following the shooting, the three men and victim all fled the scene, according to the probable cause statement. The victim crashed his vehicle into trees while fleeing at high speeds and then abandoned his disabled vehicle and continued on foot, according to Tooele Count Sheriff Paul Wimmer.