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Suspect in officer-involved shooting on I-15 released from hospital, jailed on attempted murder charges

Posted at 6:27 PM, Dec 23, 2017
and last updated 2017-12-23 20:33:35-05

UTAH COUNTY — The suspect in an officer-involved shooting and chase on I-15 in Utah County Wednesday night has been released from a hospital and booked into jail on three counts of attempted murder and other charges.

According to a press release from the Utah County Sheriff’s Office issued Saturday, Arturo Ray Gallemore-Jimenez was released from Utah Valley Hospital and booked into the Salt Lake County Jail.

The man was booked on three counts of attempted aggravated murder as first-degree felonies and one count each of possession of a firearm by a restricted person and failure to stop at the command of a police officer, both of which are third-degree felonies.

The man’s bail has been set at $1 million, cash only.

The man was taken into custody after the incident Wednesday night, during which he exchanged gunfire with deputies and officers in a chase that began in Nephi and ended in Orem.

Police say the man had locked himself out of a pickup truck at a Flying J gas station in Nephi and shot out a window to get inside. Deputies attempted to stop that truck on I-15 near mile marker 260, and the man was initially compliant but eventually drew a firearm and fired at an officer who was approaching his vehicle and giving him commands. Police say dash cam video shows the man firing at least three shots at police.

Police returned fire as the suspect drove off at high speeds. A chase ensued, more shots were fired =, and the pursuit eventually ended when the suspect crashed his vehicle.

Gallemore-Jimenez was shot in his right arm and on the right side of his neck.

Police say the suspect was wearing body armor at the time of the incident, and they state they found numerous firearms in the pickup truck. They say he told officers that if only one officer had approached his vehicle, he would have shot to kill that officer. However, because there were several officers responding and no single officer approached his window, he said he decided to fire several shots in the general direction of the officers before fleeing.

The man is also wanted in connection with a shooting that occurred recently in Aurora, Colorado. Police in Colorado say he shot a man in the back three times and that the truck he was driving in the Utah incident appears to match the suspect description from the Colorado incident. The victim in the Colorado shooting is expected to survive.

Police also state that Facebook posts made by the suspect indicate he was ready to commit violence against police and displaying the weapon recovered from his vehicle.

“While looking at his public Facebook page, he posted one day prior to this incident that if any “pigs, G’s, or anyone else” gets in his way, he would send souls to heaven,” a statement of probable cause indicates. “He has posted numerous pictures of gang affiliations and pictures with the revolver. In some pictures, he is holding the revolver to his head.”