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HOLLADAY — Police on Tuesday arrested a Murray man accused of shooting and killing another man and injuring a second during a home invasion robbery.
Damian Garcia, 19, was booked into the Salt Lake County Jail for investigation of murder, attempted murder, aggravated assault and aggravated burglary.
His arrest comes just over a month after he was released from the jail and just two days before Garcia was scheduled to go to court on two other shooting incidents, including one that made headlines in 2014 because his mother assisted him.
Just after 2 a.m. Saturday, Garcia was among a group of about seven to nine people who forced their way into an apartment at the Hidden Meadows Apartment Complex, near 1800 East and 4800 South, according to a Salt Lake County Jail report. There were approximately six people in the apartment, said Unified Police Lt. Lex Bell.
Detectives on Tuesday didn't release why they believe the group went to the apartment, though Bell noted they do not believe it was chosen at random.
Garcia allegedly pistol-whipped a man before being hit in the back. After being hit, Garcia turned and fired two shots at Darrin Jackson, 46, killing him, according to the report. He then fired another shot, striking Jonathan Jackson, 26, the man's son, in the hand, police say.
Garcia was arrested without incident Tuesday night following a traffic stop by detectives who had been looking for him, Bell said. Additional arrests were pending Wednesday.
Garcia is already facing an aggravated robbery charge from a separate case. He was charged Sept. 30 with the first-degree felony for being the getaway driver after he and another man robbed a person at gunpoint of $2,200 cash and then fired a shot at him during an ensuing chase, according to charging documents.
Garcia was out on bond when Saturday's shooting occurred, according to court records. A court hearing in that case is scheduled for Friday.
In 2014, Garcia — who had recently turned 17 — was charged in 3rd District Court with 10 felonies, including multiple counts of discharging a firearm. Garcia was accused of firing at least eight shots during a drive-by shooting at a 7-Eleven parking lot near 3900 South and 500 East. Police called it a gang-related retaliation. Garcia's mother was driving the car during the incident, the charges state, and she claimed she and her son were both Kearns Blood gang members.
Garcia was convicted in that incident on illegal discharge of a firearm, a second-degree felony, and aggravated assault, a second-degree felony. He violated the terms of his probation, however, and a new trial was scheduled to begin Friday, according to court records.
