This is an archived article that was published on sltrib.com in 2012, and information in the article may be outdated. It is provided only for personal research purposes and may not be reprinted.
A fugitive wanted in a fatal shooting at a west Salt Lake City party over the weekend turned himself in to police Monday afternoon.
Phillip James Lucero, 22, walked into the main Salt Lake Police Department offices at 315 E. 200 South about 12:15 p.m., Detective Mike Hamideh confirmed.
"The information on him was out there and I'd like to think it put some pressure on him," Hamideh said, noting that the Salt Lake County District Attorney's Office had earlier Monday charged Lucero with first-degree murder. Also, Lucero's photograph and description had been published and broadcast by a variety of news organizations, including The Salt Lake Tribune.
"We appreciate all the coverage," Hamideh said. "I have to believe it was definitely a factor" in Lucero's surrender.
His bail had already been set preliminarily at $1 million when an arrest warrant was issued.
Lucero had been last seen driving away from the scene of the early Sunday morning shooting in a beige 2002 Chevrolet Trailblazer.
Lucero, whose street name is "Philthy," was being questioned following his surrender. Hamideh said a motive for the shooting did not immediately come forth, though detectives had been investigating possible gang connections.
Just before 5 a.m. Sunday, police responded to a 911 call of shots being fired at a home near 1100 Glendale Drive (1500 West). Officers then were called to Intermountain Medical Center, where they found the deceased shooting victim, Valentin Sigala Jr., 20.
Sigala, police said, had been taken from the shooting scene and driven to the hospital by friends, who dropped him off and left. Sigala was dead on arrival.