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LGBTQ community honored shooting victim at drag show Sunday at Salt Palace

Dennis Gwyther — shown alongside, from left, Riley Richter and Michael Goulding, the new ownership team behind Salt Lake City gay bar the Sun Trapp — was shot and killed near the Idaho-Utah border on Wednesday.

Members of Utah’s LGBTQ community will be coming together Sunday to honor the memory of Dennis Gwyther, who was reportedly shot by another motorist on Interstate 84 on Wednesday while commuting to his job as a Boise, Idaho-based flight attendant.

Gwyther was known for being an activist, FOX 13 writes, and often could be found behind the scenes at LGBTQ events, making sure everything ran smoothly. His friends planned to honor his memory at a drag show Sunday night at the Salt Palace, according to FOX 13.

Sunday evening’s Royal Court of the Golden Spike Empire Coronation included a moment of silence and tribute to Gwyther, who friends say was a big supporter of the drag community, even though he didn’t perform onstage.

“He definitely was not one who would wear a dress. ... If you saw Dennis walking down the street you would not know that he was part of the LGBT community,” friend Bobby Childers told FOX 13. “He deserves his story to be told, just like anybody else, not because he’s a member of the LGBT community, but because he’s a member of the human community.”

Officials said Wednesday that the motive for the shooting was unknown.

The Utah Highway Patrol tweeted that the shooter, Jonathan Llana, had been detained Friday about 10 miles from the crash location.

See more at FOX 13.

Editor’s note: The Salt Lake Tribune and FOX 13 are content-sharing partners.