SALT LAKE CITY — A pair of teenagers are being charged as adults for murder in the death of a 17-year-old who was shot and killed last month in Salt Lake City.
According to court records, 16-year-old Christian Rodriguez and 17-year-old Nestor Del Valle* were charged Friday with murder and aggravated robbery. They are accused of killing 17-year-old Bryan Galicia-Rodriguez, who, according to police, it appeared they had no connection to.
Rodriguez is also charged with three counts of felony discharge of a firearm and possession of a handgun by a minor.
An arrest report states that on Sep. 10 around 1 a.m., Rodriguez and Del Valle were following the car that Galacia-Rodriguez was driving with his girlfriend in the passenger seat. When he pulled into his driveway in the area of 500 S. Post Street (near 950 West), Rodriguez allegedly got out of the car that Del Valle was driving, walked up to Galacia-Rodriguez's car, opened the driver's side door, yelled something and shot him three times. Rodriguez then got back in the car that he and Del Valle arrived in, and they drove off.
A witness later told police that Del Valle and Rodriguez had been following a different car earlier that night and were attempting to carjack it. One of the suspects' girlfriend's mother had reportedly backed into the targeted vehicle the day before.
However, the witness said Del Valle and Rodriguez lost sight of the car and later spotted Galacia-Rodriguez's, thinking it was the same one. They realized they were following the wrong car when it pulled into the driveway, but the pair allegedly decided that "they still wanted it" and planned to carjack it.
Investigators then found that a car belonging to a person related to the girlfriend of one of the suspects was in the area of the shooting around the same time that morning. Cell phone location data also tracked them to the area, and Rodriguez's fingerprint was lifted from the door handle of the victim's car, according to charging documents.
Police say both suspects have a substantial criminal history already prior to this incident.
*FOX 13 News normally does not identify criminal suspects who are underage unless they are charged as adults.
