SOUTH JORDAN — Two men accused of chasing two women in a car and firing multiple rounds at them, striking one woman twice, have been charged.

Mohamed Dahir Zubeir, 29, of West Valley City, and Paul Robert Nieves, 28, of Salt Lake City, were each charged Tuesday in 3rd District Court by the Salt Lake County District Attorney's Office with discharge of a firearm causing serious injury, a first-degree felony; discharge of a firearm causing injury, a second-degree felony; and two additional counts of illegally shooting a gun, a third-degree felony.

Nieves was also charged with being a restricted person in possession of a gun, a second-degree felony; while Zubeir received additional charges of failing to stop for police and two counts of drug possession, both third-degree felonies.

On Sept. 27, South Jordan police responded to a report of a shooting and crash near 2200 West and South Jordan Parkway (10400 South). They arrived to find a woman who had been shot once in the leg and once in the back and then crashed into another car, according to charging documents.

"The victim received a through-and-through gunshot wound to her left thigh, causing a break in her femur, and a second gunshot would to her lower back. Officers observed five bullet holes in the victim vehicle including once through the front windshield," the charges state.

A woman in the passenger seat was not injured.

As investigators tried to piece together what happened, the passenger told police that the driver was giving her a ride but needed to a make a stop at a gas station to talk to a man who allegedly was not making car payments on a vehicle they had co-signed for, according to charges.

The driver got out of the car and into another vehicle occupied by two men. When she returned to her own car, the passenger "knew something was wrong" as her friend appeared "terrified," the charges state.

The driver began crying and saying that "they needed to get away from the guys," the passenger told police, according to the charges.

The woman sped away, but the men followed. At one point, the women pulled off to the side of the road, turned off the car and slid their seats back in an attempt to hide, the charges state. The driver told her friend that she thought one of the men had a gun, the charges state.

Related:

Woman crashes into vehicle after being shot in South Jordan

A woman was shot and injured in a car late Monday in South Jordan, causing her to crash into another vehicle, police said.

At that point, the men pulled up behind them and the women could hear someone get out of the car. As the women turned their car back on and tried to drive away, four to five shots were fired at them, according to the charges.

Investigators later determined that Zubeir was driver of the car that chased the women and Nieves fired the shots, charging documents state.

Detectives also learned that Zubeir was the shooting victim's ex-boyfriend, the charges state. Police located Zubeir on Sept. 28 and attempted to stop him, but he sped away from them, fleeing at an estimated 70 mph into a residential neighborhood. He was arrested after crashing into two vehicles and then trying to run, according to the charges. Officers located him hiding under another vehicle.

Zubeir was on felony probation at the time of his arrest. Nieves was on supervised release after serving just under three years in federal prison on a firearms conviction, court records state. He was released from prison in May, according to court records. Prosecutors have requested both men now be held in the Salt Lake County Jail on no bail pending trial.

Utah Domestic Violence Coalition operates a confidential statewide, 24-hour domestic abuse hotline at 1-800-897-LINK (5465). Resources are also available online at udvc.org.

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