WEST VALLEY CITY, Utah -- One man is dead and another man is in police custody Saturday after a road rage incident involving a vehicle and a longboarder escalated to a shooting in West Valley City.
The incident occurred in the area of 3500 South and 5600 West at 1:55 p.m. Police at the scene confirmed to FOX 13 News a male was killed and another man is in police custody.
Several witnesses reported seeing a male on a longboard go through traffic as it was stopped at a red light, and the longboarder smacked or hit a trailer being towed by a pickup truck as he went by.
The longboarder kept going, but he came back after someone inside the truck yelled something out the window, witnesses report.
"The guy that was in the truck got out of the truck and pulled a gun," said Aliesha Doxey, a woman who was driving the car in front of the truck. "They were saying words, and then the guy in the truck went to get back in... The guy with the skateboard looked like he was going to hit the truck [with his longboard in hand]. That's when the guy got back out, had words, and then shot him."
Two men inside the truck were detained by police, and one of the men was put into a police car at one point. Police have yet to confirm any details about the events leading up to the shooting, though earlier in the day they said it began with a road rage incident.
Police identified the deceased Sunday as 30-year-old Maluolefale Toala.
"When we got over to the scene, the guy that shot the guy said, 'it was self-defense,'" Doxey said.
However, she doesn't agree: "I mean, he had a skateboard. He was going to hit his car. He could have stayed in his vehicle and just called the police if he had a problem."
The suspect, 24-year-old Aaron Pierce, was booked into jail and faces a charge of homicide.
