Two men who were arrested following the fatal shooting of a teenage girl in Utah said they followed her and shot at the red truck she was driving because they believed she and her passenger were “stalking” them, officials revealed.
Michael Edward Hess-Witacki and Ethan Andrew Galloway, both 23, admitted to investigators that they were involved in the shooting, according to the Iron County Sheriff’s Office.
The two men, along with Aldric Felipe, 21, and Matthew D. Sorber-Petrie, 22, who were also arrested, were in a black truck that allegedly pursued the 17-year-old driver and her passenger along a stretch of road northwest of Cedar City Friday night.
Iron County Sheriff Ken Carpenter said the black truck pulled up alongside the teens around 10:42 p.m. and began firing, which caused the driver to crash through a fence. She suffered multiple gunshot wounds and died from her injuries.
Her passenger, who was injured in the crash, was able to call 911 and eventually led investigators to the suspects, KSTU reported. She said they had first encountered the black truck at a residential complex. It’s unclear what the teens were doing in that area.
Deputies searched the complex and located a black 2018 Black Chevrolet Silverado pickup truck that matched the description by the witness, KSL reported.
The four suspects attempted to flee, but were quickly detained.
Hess-Witucki was identified as the registered owner of the truck, and told investigators that he drove the truck that chased the teens, while Galloway said he sat in the front passenger seat and shot at the vehicle, according to law enforcement authorities.
They said they went after the girls because they had seen the red truck in the neighborhood and thought they were stalking them, according to the arrest affidavit.
“Both suspects admitted that their actions had resulted in serious bodily injury and death of the victim,” the affidavit states. “Their justification for chasing the victim’s vehicle was they believed they had previously observed the victim’s vehicle in their neighborhood and presumed the occupants of the victim’s vehicle were (stalking) them.”
Sorber-Petrie reportedly told investigators that he handed over his gun with knowledge of their intent to go after the girls.
Galloway said he fired 12 shots into the vehicle, according to authorities.
Both Galloway and Hess-Witucki were charged with one count of murder and 12 counts of felony discharge of a firearm resulting in serious injury, obstruction of justice, possession of a controlled substance, and possession of a dangerous weapon by a restricted person.
The other two suspects were arrested for investigation of obstruction of justice, possession of a controlled substance, and being a restricted person in the transaction of a firearm.
"During the execution of the search warrant, several firearms and ammunition matching the caliber used in the homicide, similar to the shell casing recovered at the crime scene, were recovered,” deputies wrote in the affidavit.
“Additionally, controlled substances and drug paraphernalia were recovered in the suspect(s’) residence. Narcotics, including mushroom vapes, marijuana vapes and an assortment of pipes used to smoke marijuana, were identified and recovered,” the affidavit added.
All four suspects are being held without bail.
