Estimated read time: 2-3 minutes
- West Valley police offer $10,000 reward for 2022 homicide information.
- Innocent bystander Pete Ulibarri killed in gang-related shooting retaliation.
- Police seek gunman identity; tips can be sent to majorcrimes@wvc-ut.gov.
WEST VALLEY CITY — West Valley police are offering a $10,000 reward for information leading to the arrest of the person or people responsible for the death of an innocent bystander during a gang-related retaliation shooting in 2022.
On the night of May 5, 2022, Pete Carlos Robert Ulibarri, 45, was shot in the head and killed while sitting in his car in a driveway near 3500 South and 6400 West. He died from his injuries the next day.
On Monday, the eve of the third anniversary of Ulibarri's death, West Valley police held a press conference to announce a $10,000 reward for information in the case.
Investigators believe the West Valley case has ties to a killing a month earlier in Magna. On April 8, 2022, Unified police were called to an area near 2600 South and 7250 West on a report of a shooting. They arrived to find Fernando Ruesga, 20, of Magna, deceased inside a Dodge Charger with a gunshot wound to his head, according to charging documents. Thirteen shell casings were found close to the car.
On April 29, 2022, Noah Ezequiel Valenzuela Sanchez was arrested and later charged in 3rd District Court with murder.
Just a few days after Sanchez was arrested, a vehicle drove past the West Valley home where the arrest was made, did a U-turn at the end of the street, and then slowed down as it went by a second time. Multiple shots were fired. A 46-year-old man standing near the entrance was not injured. But police say Ulibarri, who was sitting in his car in the driveway, was struck in the head by a bullet that went through the back windshield.
Investigators do not believe, however, that he was the intended target. Ulibarri was staying at the residence and teaching boxing lessons to the children who lived there, according to West Valley police detective John Wells.
"Mr. Ulibarri had no gang affiliation and appears to have been an innocent victim in the case," West Valley police announced Monday.
Police believe that after rival gang members learned that Sanchez, who was also staying at the residence, was arrested at that address, some members decided to do a drive-by shooting in retaliation.
West Valley police announced Monday that the department is funding a $10,000 reward for anyone who steps forward with information regarding the identity of the gunman. Wells says he isn't necessarily looking for witnesses to the shooting, but rather someone who may know the identity of the gunman, either because the alleged shooter was talking about the incident or had messaged someone about it. Wells says that to collect the reward, that person must also be willing to "do the right thing" and testify in court.
Anyone with information on the case can call police at 801-965-5200 or contact majorcrimes@wvc-ut.gov.
